see the crowd and joining me is jonathan cape hart, and "time" magazine assistant arouni. >> a month ago they didn't know who we were, but they do now. >> so he is trying to spin it as a win. did he win? did by even losing just by being there, does he win? who is the winner and loser? >> well, obviously, technically romney is the winner, but i have to agree with santorum by showing up to get 38% in romney's home state, that is a win, and what it does is that it continues to create this question in the minds of the republicans about whether the base can really get behind romney and whether he has enough excitement. you saw it in the exit speeches that i agree with almost nothing that santorum says, but romney, i kept waiting for the powerpoint slides.

>> although, i would suggest that he needs to keep it a little tightener the future and some of the things go on and on and on. and jonathan, conservatives obviously still a problem for mitt romney, but he did win back his electability argument, because if you look at the exit polls, nearly half said that the quality that mattered most is can he beat barack obama and 31% said it mattered the most, the candidate with the most experience. and do you think this helps to put to rest some of the electability questions? >> well, what it does put to rest is his victory no matter how small it is, puts to rest this idea that there's some sort of a need for a white knight to come out there. mitt romney has to come out there and save the republican party from potentially losing this presidential election, but the thing that, the electability argument for mitt romney has been his strong suit. the one card that he has, and when you look at all of the polls and all of the states leading up to the contests while he doesn't have the

conservatives behind him, and he doesn't have the passion of the party, when those same people are asked what is the number one thing they want in a candidate, beating barack obama is the number one issue, and that's how mitt romney has been able to win victories big and small. >> it does seem though that rick santorum had an opportunity here. he was leading in the polls, and then he starts making these statements that raise questions, and it almost seems as though he said i'm not ready. >> it is a great point. he is trying to play this class warfare card a little bit, and that is what you are referring to with the idea that you are a snob and like obama, if you want to promote education. >> and solve the social issues that he brought up and took to next level. >> and you saw at the end of the exit speech where he was evoking the idea of the british fighting the americans and people ruleded by nobles up on high, and that is something that he has to walk very carefully, because on the one hand, yes, there are a lot of americans that he can appeal to that feel that the country is ruled by an entitled elite, but

also everybody in america wants to be educated which is part of the american dream which he profess to be a supporter of. >> and coming up super tuesday six days, and no debate which is a big deal there, and again, look at the exit polls, because romney ran stronger with older and affluent and better educated incomes and overhalf with incomes over $100,000, and voters over age 65. he got as much support from the voters with four years of college or more, so if this is romney's demo, and rick santorum and newt gingrich drag it out among the most conservative voters, does he win, by with a long drawn out ugly contest? >> yes. >> in short, it is romney. >> in short, i do think that because of the money that he has, because of his organization, because he does well with those groups and those groups are the folks that they come out, and they come out and vote. this is still, this is still a

nomination for romney to lose, but it is just unfortunately for romney, each one of the contests, it looks like this is the chance for someone else, rick santorum, newt gingrich, and anyone else to come in and take the nomination away from him, if you will. >> and let me, speaking of newt gingrich, let me bring in rick tyler who is newt gingrich's former adviser, and future winning the super pac adviser, and so how are you, chr shg? >> very good, chris. thank you. >> and if rick santorum had beat romney in his home state, that it is, rick santorum is dead and the conservative alternative, and because he didn't win, and i'm giving you a softball here -- >> thanks. >> -- is that the opening that you feel like you have a new lease on life because mitt romney won last night? >> well, couldn't have been a better outcome considering the circumstances. rick santorum failed to win, but mitt romney failed to inspire and both looks like they will

split the actual delegate vote. and rick santorum could have won if he could speak english. they didn't knew us? could we speak english here on the trail. anyways, look, i do think that those two have tied each other up with money and time in michigan. newt has been in georgia and more conservative states like south carolina. i do believe there is a opening here, and newt is talking about one thing that affects americans, energy, and it goes from iran to the keystone pipeline, and remember, it is jobs and not snobs. and the gas pump and people are feeling the pinch, and newt has a message there. >> let me play a clip of the new ad that you guys have out for, and it speaks exactly to that for newt gingrich. take a watch. >> i just don't relate to romney. >> i really don't know if we can trust him. >> we are looking at $5 and $6 gas. >> romney does not pump his own

gas. >> and newt has a plan for american-made energy. >> it sounds good and a slick ad, and i will give you that, but newt gingrich has been promising $2.50 gas and maybe $2 a gallon and i scoured, and i scoured all of the analysis this morning and i can't -- i mean, i'm no expert on this or energy policy, but i can't find an expert on energy policy who sees how we get there. it is a great line and if americans would love to have $2 a gallon gas, but can you deliver it? >> well, i think that you can deliver it if we would only open up our own production here, because we have vast reserves and as rick mentioned last night shale and other energy sources. open up the keystone pipeline and start to get some oil in here that we could refine, but it is also the rising cost of gas reflects a weak dollar, so that is an economic problem, but no one, and ask anybody in economics who will say that if you reduce the supply, of course, you are going to drive up the price, and if we increase

theproduction and i hear the left saying, it won't happen overnight, but they said that ten years ago and speculators say more supply is coming, and that will drive the cost down, and there are things that the government can do to increase the supply and if the market works, it should reduce the cost. >> and as it has been done gas production is up, and exports are a big part of the debate, but you have new ads in georgia, ohio, tennessee, oklahoma. and speaking of ads, here's what your guy had to say about mitt romney's ads. >> it is clear that governor romney can raise more money, because he can go to wall street and get money from all of the people who got bailouts from the taxpayers, so in a sense, your money is coming back to you in the sense of a negative ad. >> well, it is funny and clever, but i guess that people could say that they are gambling losses are coming back to them in the form of super pac ads

funded by shell and adelson. >> well, i have said that the supreme court narrowed ruled too narrowly. i think that they should put the money back to the candidates so that they would take responsibility for these ads, but you know, romney has clearly engaged in in the scorching advertising since iowa. you remember that newt gingrich wanted to run a positive campaign in iowa, and that did not happen, but he is giving himself a half life. every time he scores with the policies, we never hear about his plan for more jobs or his plan for more production or his plan for unemployment or jobs, but we hear about how terrible the other people are, and that may give you a short half life, but in the end, it is hurting himself and by the time it is done, it is not sustainable, and he will not get through the process, because he is hurting himself with the independent voters and the other candidates. i make a prediction that i don't believe that rick santorum recovers from the defeat yesterday. with newt and the southern states coming up, newt is the

alternative to the establishment candidate mitt romney. >> tyler, thank you very much, and we should say however to be fair if you look at the polls, look at who is leading in ohio. ohio is a state that every single president, every single republican president has won. so it is critical. here's the way that alex cast la castellanos sees it, he has to win in a state where his wasn't governor. interesting point. >> well, it is not energyis goi the fall, but it is taxes and manufacturing, and those play in santorum's favor in ohio, and it is a big blue collar manufacturing state, and he can talk that up, and talk up the tax issue and the wealth card. >> it is a blue collar state,

and i grew up in ohio and it is the state where they say, can i sit down at the under table with them and have a cup of coffee or beer, and mitt romney has had the gaffes to not get away from the fact that he is wealthy and his wife drives a couple of cadillacs, and the problem connecting that 1% saying that this is why i love tom brokaw so much, and this is from "morning joe" this morning. >> at a certain point in our lives we are who we are. and the chances off me going on the stage with 50 cent as a rapper is not going to happen. >> and you know, to the point, jonathan, how do you take mitt romney who is what he is and make him this likable every man? >> well, maybe he has to be more true to himself. we all know he is a rich man, and we all know that he comes from and born and raised into wealth.

he comes from a wellny baalthy background and he has to find a way to be at peace with who he is and at peace on the campaign trail and to the point where ohioans want to have someone come to the dinner table and talk the issues with them, rick santorum can do that, but i wonder if the same people in ohio would like the same sort of anger-filled rick santorum that we have seen on the campaign trail. sure people invite people into their homes to sit around and talk about the issues, but the moment that the guest is crazy and starts to yell and scream can and high pitched about how they feel about things, you kind of want them to leave. >> it is the crazy uncle that we have all had. >> h ait is good to see you jonathan and rana. >> thank you. and obama will talk today about the common ground, but has the common ground been lost in the

bermuda triangle? ed schultz is coming up next. and off of the coast of mobile bay, the coast guard is searching for three of its own after a helicopter crashed off of the coast of alabama after a training flight. fog has been hampering the search, but divers do plan to search the submerged aircraft again today. why stop at cereal? bring on the pork chops and the hot fudge. fantastic. are you done sweetie? yea [ male announcer ] fiber one.

crisp, clear, untouched. that's why there's brita, to make the water we drink, taste a little more, perfect. reduce lead and other impurities with the advanced filtration system of brita. i'm going to own my own restaurant. i want to be a volunteer firefighter. when i grow up, i want to write a novel. i want to go on a road trip. when i grow up, i'm going to go there.

i want to fix up old houses. [ female announcer ] at aarp we believe you're never done growing. i want to fall in love again. [ female announcer ] discover what's next in your life. get this free travel bag when you join at aarp.org/jointoday.

take a look at the pictures out of branson, missouri, and what a disaster. they had storms that went through missouri and kansas and illinois and four people killed. we will keep our eye on that situation and have more for you coming up about those storms and the tornadoes in the midwest. back to politics and the republican plan to take back the senate is in serious jeopardy this morning. moderate maine senator olympia snowe blindsided the party leaders yesterday when she announced that she will not run

for re-election and the reason, the increasingly polarized politics in washington, and something that has frustrated the president as well. this afternoon, he will host a luncheon to find out where they can find common ground to boost the economy and jobs. joining me is ed schultz, and thank you for coming in, especially since i knew you were up late last night. >> hello, chris. >> and olympia snowe has been stinging congress. she said, i do find it frustrating that an atmosphere of polarization, and my way or the highway ideologies is pervasive in the campaigns and in our governing institutions. i see it vital to focus on the democracy to flourish. you cannot get any clearer.

>> well, the politicians go to washington with great ideas about how to work across the aisle, but that has changed in recent years. yesterday in the radio show, i played a clip of ted kennedy asking for a raise in minimum wageb on the floor, and he was talking about the number of amendments, and asking them to back it off and get this one thing done, and it went nowhere and that is the beginning of the toxic attitude in washington. i think that it wears on the senators. i think that they go to washington with the idea of wanting to do something good for the people, to want to make some -- >> and she said, she didn't feel s she could get anything done, so why do it? >> well, they are personally vested and work long hours and try to get something done and then the line up with us, because you are a republican, and the president time and time again has reached out and just has not been able to get things done. you cannot deny the record number of filibusters is what the culture she is talking about and where she has come from, and

she got sick of it. there is people on the other side, and i think that byron dorgan did not publicize it, but for the same reason he got out of the senate on the democratic si side, because he was tired or not getting people to work together for the common good. it wears on the senators and there may be moret. >> and she does join some moderate democrats and kent can conrad is going, and ben nelson is going, and i have seen it written this morning that adding her to the list there, and essentially writing the obituary for moderates in what is supposed to be the world's great greatest deliberative body, and are we to throw up the hands and say, there is so much noise on the extremes and pressure, and when you listen to the politicians talk, they think that they are doing the public's ws work, and they claim this is what the public wants. >> well, this is is where we are at a vital point of paying attention to all of the state conventions that are going to be taking place. what kind of candidate or challenger are the republicans going to put up against the

opposition? is it going to be somebody radical or somebody standing up to say, hey, i want to go to washington and i will work with somebody on the other sidef of the aisle? judging what the people want to hear is really going to be the dynamic here. and there are no room -- there is no room for moderates anymore. it would seem to me that mitt romney is probably more of a moderate than some of the other candidates in there, and he is having a hard time, but it was a big win last night. if he could win in ohio, he could turn the table quickly. i say that ohio is a must-win for santorum, so it all plays together here in many respects and the state conventions are going to be interesting to follow to see what is said and what the attitude is and see what kind of person different states want to send to washington to compete. >> and is there something that can be done to put pressure on the politicians, via their constituents? i was thinking as i watched the president yesterday before the uaw and he was fired up, and you know, he really delivered the

message and i thought, this is not the guy i don't think that when they got into the race, mitt romney or rick santorum thought they would be running against. this is the incredibly gifted campaigner, and the guy who really can make an argument. is there anything that he can do? >> well, a year ago i spoke to that convention, the uaw and they love the president. there is not a bullet point or angle or proposal put on the table to turn labor away from the president at this point. so that the president went in there yesterday with a little bit of swagger, and he reminded them of exactly who was with them in the down times and who helped them get out to get to where they are right now, and it is awfully hard for the republicans to come over that and they'd be better off saying, glad you have a job and let me see if i can do more. don't bad mouthing the process, and rom areney is making a mist in that regard. but this is a friendly crowd,

and the president will meet with republican leadership today, and saying, hey, you have stated that you want the defeat me and a record-number of filibusters and did you see the crowd that i talked to yesterday you cannot connect with them, and by the way, you are losing moderates such as olympia snowe. >> should they lisen? sglel w they should, because the president has put a proposal on the table in recent weeks and willing to drop the corporate tax rate down to 28% and it is not the 25% that the republicans are begging for, but it is movement, movement. and he is going to get people mad at him on the base over on the left if he does it, but he is willing to do things, so once again, we are seeing the president of the united states bringing the republicans and saying, you know, do a deal on something. you know what they could do? they could do it within two weeks and have the corporate tax rate dropped down to 28%, and i guarantee you that the republicans won't go along with it. >> thank you, ed. don't forget to watch ed schultz on "the ed show" right here on

msnbc at 8:00 p.m. and tonight, the president and the first lady will honor the troops that served in the iraqer war. they are hosting a dinner that will include 78 men and women from all ranks and services from each of the 50 states, and the theme is a nation's gratitude. it is the first dinner of its kind to mark the end of a major war. who are the "your business entrepreneurs of the week." seven years ago, jesse and mark bought a rundown movie complex that could not compete with the big chains. they upgraded with seats and lobby and the atrium is now one of the few remaining cinema complexes remaining. wake up! that's good morning, veggie style. hmmm.

for half the calories plus veggie nutrition. could've had a v8.

the calcium they take because they don't take it with food. switch to citracal maximum plus d. it's the only calcium supplement that can be taken with or without food. that's why my doctor recommends citracal maximum. it's all about absorption. but when she got asthma, all i could do was worry ! specialists, lots of doctors, lots of advice... and my hands were full. i couldn't sort through it all.

with unitedhealthcare, it's different. we have access to great specialists, and our pediatrician gets all the information. everyone works as a team. and i only need to talk to one person about her care. we're more than 78,000 people looking out for 70 million americans. that's health in numbers. unitedhealthcare. to politics now where long time california congressman david dreier is retiring. he announced it on the house floor and this another blow to republicans because democrats have a shot of picking up the seat. we told you moments ago that olympia snowe announced her retirement yesterday. president obama's super pac is getting into the ad race. they plan to spend $61,000 in the columbus, ohio, media market starting tomorrow. but that is a fraction of what mitt romney's super pac has spent there.

more than $1 million on tv and radio ads. a new new jersey poll shows that even with chris christie as a running mate, mitt romney would still lose that state. the poll shows a 49/43 wip for president obama. >> and speaking of vice presidents, it looks like joe biden's speech will have to compete with the first nfl game of the year, and usual will they game is on a thursday, but that is when the president is speaking, so mark your calendars for wednesday, september 5th for vice president biden or football. and tonight's the first feud with rod blagojevich's wife, patty, and she talks about how the fbi took her husband and how her family is coping. on this final day of black history month, hattie mcdaniel became the first african-american woman to win an oscar. she was in 400 films, but playing mamie in "gone with the

wind" was her iconic role. she never apologized for her choices, and among her fiesty quotes, i have played everything but a harp. oh! [ baby crying ] ♪ what started as a whisper ♪ every day, millions of people choose to do the right thing. ♪ slowly turned to a scream ♪ there's an insurance company that does that, too. liberty mutual insurance. responsibility. what's your policy? ♪ amen, omen

it used to upset me and now it makes me sad to see people use patriotism and the troops as a pawn in their political argument. because i know personally growing up in a military family the sacrifice that is made on a daily basis. the troops are not red and blue. they are not black and white. they are not male and female. they are americans. when they put their uniforms on, they are americans, and that is a fact. rinkles. neutrogena® rapid wrinkle repair. it has the fastest retinol formula available. it's clinically proven to visibly reduce wrinkles in just one week. "why wait if you don't have to." rapid wrinkle repair.

neutrogena®. recommended most by dermatologists. it is a very busy news day, and let's get you caught up on the other stories that people are talking about. a third victim has died at chardon high school in ohio. more than 1,000 people gathered last night to grieve and remember the victims. meanwhile police released the frantic 911 calls made right after the gunman opened fire monday. >> 911. >> chardon high school and we have shots fired, gunshots fired, multiple gunshots. >> we need help badly. >> the 17-year-old suspect t.j. lane is ordered to stay in custody for his own safety and expected to be formally charged tomorrow. >> absolutely sickening report out of the pentagon. some human remains of 9/11 remains found at the pentagon

and shanksville, pennsylvania, ended up incinerated and at a landfill. and there is another mortuary also cited for disposing of the dead. and the funnel clouds that ripped through four midwest states, and you can see the path of destruction left behind in towns like harveyville, kansas, and officials say 40% of that town is impacted. the death toll and injury numbers are mounting and at least four dead and dozens injured across four states. there is a severe threat in kentucky and southern illinois. we will keep an eye on the weather and keep you posted on that. he northern plains and the upper midwest, there is blinding snow, and we will get a weather update from mike seidel in a few moments. and everybody is talking about the path to the republican

race for president, and it looks like a long slow slog to the convention. our senior political editor is checking where we are now and what is ahead, and what did you get? three or four hours sleep, mark preston? >> well, five, chris. >> that is more than usual with the new baby, right? so that is not so bad. >> well, got some sleep. >> let's check the races from last night, and michigan and arizona, and what are we looking at here? >> well, chris, out of the delegate count from michigan last night, you have so far mitt romney with 13 delegates, and rick santorum with 13. then four are undecided so far. of course, those were based on winner-take-all by congressional district for the most part. now, in arizona, it was winner-take-all and mitt romney was able to grab all 29 of those delegates. so overall the totality, it was a strong delegate night for mitt romney. >> where does that put all of the candidates right now totally. >> well, mitt romney has an edge

with 126 and his other competitors are in the 20s right now, but the one thing to keep in mind, chris, is that the 126 is really just a little bit more than 10% of the 1,144 needed. so as you mentioned in the intro, we have a very, very long way the go, and while romney will maintain edge throughout, it will be a slow process. >> we do have a big day coming up next tuesday, six days from now, super tuesday, and big delegate show dourndown, and wh at stake there? >> well, 424 delegates overall and they are proportionately, and the big thing is who will emerge with the most delegates. the biggest prize is ohio, but romney will do well in massachusetts as well as vermont, and newt gingrich looking to georgia and rick santorum, tennessee, oklahoma and maybe also ohio. >> well, we have talked about this today that the wins last night for romney have tamped down the rampant conversation that we have been having about

would somebody else try to get into the race, a jeb bush or somebody like that, however, there still is as we said a long way to go. what are the absolute mustt-win states for mitt romney? >> well, first, mitt romney needs to do well in the super tuesday contests and maybe he could end up losing a couple of them, but them he needs to put away the race in april. there are key contests, states like new york, connecticut, maryland, and so if he is able to do pretty welcome super tuesday, and do well in april, you can make the case that he could start putting away the republican nomination by the end of april and start turning to the general election. >> mark murray, nbc news political editor. thank you. so it is on to ohio and a lot of people may not know this, but it is the secondest biggest car manufacturing state in the country. look at how fired up the president was yesterday reminding the auto workers about the bailout he backed that saved

the auto industry. >> you know why i knew that the rescue would succeed? >> i do. >> you want to know? it was not because of anything that the government did, and it was not just because of anything that management did, it was because i believed in you. i placed my bet on the american worker. and i will make that bet any day of the week. >> i am joined now by three-time presidential candidate ralph nader who is author of "getting steamed over corporatism." >> good morning, chris. >> and that is barack obama the cham champion of the working man and is that the candidate who can win in november? >> yeah, look at the competition. he has a bunch of republicans often called the c-team, and they are not bringing the best out of each other, but bringing the worst out of each other in the low-grade attacks with the exception of ron paul. so i think that he's got a pretty easy row in terms of the

lack of a vibrant candidate against him. >> there were interesting exit polls from michigan, and romney essentially split the working class vote with santorum, but santorum beat him with union families, and union families were about one quarter of the voters in michigan and what do you make of that? >> i thought it was a poor showing for mitt romney, and he outspent santorum by an enormous amount of money. >> two to one. >> and he grew up in michigan and barely won. i would not call it much of a vick trishtory victory, and santorum kept making boo-boos and he still almost won. >> yes. let's talking about the overall economic message that would work for the president or he should bring to the campaign. we got a glimpse of it yesterday when he took a thinly veiled shot at mitt romney in the 2008 new york times op-ed with the headline he was calling on the government to let detroit go bankrupt. this is what the president said. >> i've got to admit, it has

been funny to watch some of the folks completely try to rewrite history now that you are back on your feet. [ applause ] the same folks who said if we went for it with our plan in detroit, you can kiss the american auto industry good-bye. we were right all along. >> and so, in states like wisconsin, you can see the votes, but how critical will it be in this campaign those kinds of messages and things that we probably didn't expect to be important like the auto bailout? >> well, the unions always side with the democrat es pepecially with campaigns, but the issue that obama should highlight is increasing the minimum wage. the federal minimum wage is $7.25 and $2.25, chris, less

than it was in 1968 adjusted for inflation. the polls show 70% of the american people which includes republicans favor a minimum wage to keep cans up, and it will put tens of billions of dollars in the hands of hard-pressed workers to spend increasing consumer demand to increase jobs in a recessionary economy. it is amazing that he has not picked up on that, because in 2008, president obama said he want wanted a $9.50 minimum wage federally by 2011. so i think that the democrats have to get their thing together here. this is a winning issue, and it always has been when the federal minimum wage is lagging so far behind inflation. >> and let me ask you a little bit about that, because obviously, you have things that you would like to see the president do, and you also think on the other hand that the romneys and the santorums represent a weak challenge to him. is there something that you see, gas prices, for example, that

threaten the president's re-election? >> i don't think so. president obama said the other day, there is no quick fix to the high gas prices, well, there are a few. you stop your people from constantly threatening iran. that is another whole story, and ron paul has it right on that, and that deals with counter belligerent language and then the mercantile exchange speculators increased the price of gasoline for millions of american motorists and that is one way to dampen the price of gasoline. and establish more competition. and americans elect which has a vote which is under way now to have a third party candidate whether it is bud ldy caroamer walker or whoever, but it will change whatever works. >> and what does a third-party candidate bring to the table? >> well, it depends who the

candidate is, but they could bring to the table stronger law enforcement on the wall street type crime, fraud and abuse. change the tax code to tax pollution and speculation on wall street before it taxes workers. it could increase the living wage. it could move for electoral reform so that the voters have more choice, and they get the expectation levels raised. without higher voter expectation levels, you don't get higher performance from the politicians, and what americans elect us doing works this way. if you happen to like the candidate whose record stands for the well-being of workers and consumers and small taxpayers and peace abroad and bringing the soldiers back home go to americans elect.org and vote for me for example, and this is what is go on right now. there are internet voting for candidates, and sometime by may or june, that's the winner is going to be selected and they are going to have 50 states. the ballot access, chris.

>> you don't serve as a spoiler? >> no, first of all, spoil ser a politically bigoted word to use since both of to parties have spoiled our electoral and political system. i think it is competition and new ad jen das and ideas supported by a larger number of the american people like full medicare for all, and above all, it respects the voters by raising their expectation level, and that is the history of the small parties when they came on board in 19th century when they came on board for slavery and women's right to vote, and labor and improvement, and they never won an election, but they pushed the american people's party to respect the american people. and watch that website americans elect.org. >> thank you, ralph nader. we want to go back to the major winter storm blast iing t plains right now, because some

areas could see a foot or more of snow before that storm heads east to new england. and mike seidel -- oh, my gosh! he is in the middle of it all in duluth, minnesota, and this is a picture i have not seen all year, mike. tell us what is going on. >> yes, this is true. we have not had much of a winter he here, and they are running a three-foot deficit. look at this downtown duluth, it is a whiteout, and we are getting the wind gusts 40 miles per hour, and the only thing that is on the positive side is that the temperature is a relative balmy 30 degrees, but the windchill is 15. and looking down the boardwalk to lake superior, huge waves crashing over the seawall, and we have had six to seven inches of snow, and we have is been pounded, and this a full blown blizzard, and snow and wind which qualifies for a blizzard. look at a lake superior, can you see it? five to six-foot waves crashing over the sea wall and so we are

getting spray from the lake coming n and it is coating all of the trees, so we have ice secretion here as the blizzard continues. we are looking at storm totals for 8 or 10 inches, and we have seen it in some areas. minneapolis/st. louis has seen mostly rain, and nothing like what we have had up here, but to put it in perspective the biggest snowfall they have had in duluth until today was saturday, 3.2 inches, and that is the biggest storm all winter. very, very mild up here, too, and the locals now, well, they are actually enjoying a typical winter day and temperatures around 30 is about average for this time of the year. back to you. >> unfortunately for most of them hoping unlike you they could stay home in bed with a good book, but we appreciate your braving the elements. i grew up on lake erie, and that is high waves for one of the great lakes.

mike seidel, take care out there. business news, about a year after apple released the ipad 20 and they are ready to unveil the ipad 3 next week. apple sent out this e-mail inviting reporters to a march 7th media event and they said id that you have something that you have to see and touch. they are reporting that the new tablet is similar in size to the ipad 2, and a 4g high speed connection and if you don't have to have the latest and the greatest, you can buy the ipad 2 at a discount, because best buy has slashed the prices by $50. ♪ everybody wants the rule the world ♪ us lawnsmiths. grass gurus. doers. here's to more saturdays in the sun. and budgets better spent. here's to turning rookies - into experts, and shoppers into savers. here's to picking up. trading up. mixing it up. to well-earned muddy boots. and a lot more - spring per dollar.

more saving. more doing. that's the power of the home depot. show the yard who's boss, with this cordless black and decker trimmer, just $84.97. [ kareem ] i was fascinated by balsa wood airplanes since i was a kid. [ mike ] i always wondered how did an airplane get in the air.

at ge aviation, we build jet engines. we lift people up off the ground to 35 thousand feet. these engines are built by hand with very precise assembly techniques. [ mike ] it's gonna fly people around the world. safely and better than it's ever done before. it would be a real treat to hear this monster fire up. [ jaronda ] i think a lot of people, when they look at a jet engine, they see a big hunk of metal. but when i look at it, i see seth, mark, tom, and people like that who work on engines every day. [ tom ] i would love to see this thing fly. [ kareem ] it's a dream, honestly. there it is. oh, wow. that's so cool! yeah, that was awesome! [ cheering ] [ tom ] i wanna see that again. ♪ to find you a great deal, even if it's not with us. [ ding ]

oh, that's helpful! well, our company does that, too. actually, we invented that. it's like a sauna in here. helping you save, even if it's not with us -- now, that's progressive! call or click today. no mas pantalones! good morning, everybody. i'm thomas roberts and it is leap day, and a leap or a lent? richard wolffe and kevin steel and we will post the results.

and has mitt romney squashed all talk of a white knight to save the day? ron reagan joins me live. and the military kiss that went viral, and how this picture turning heads and change canning stereotypes since the military's repeal of"don't ask, don't tel tell". well, for the second week in a row the gas prices are rising and so is the call to do something about it. the national average is $3.73 which is up 30 cents in the last month. republicans are no surprise blaming the president. >> the president says he is for an all of the above energy plan. has anyone seen it? i have not seen it. and the fact is that the president blocked the keystone pipeline. and it is just about damn time that we actually have a national energy policy, and do something that the american people want us to do. enough of this.

get out of here [ laughter ] >> i'm joined by congressman ed markey, democrat from massachusetts and member of the energy and commerce committee, and let me get your reaction to what i heard speaker boehner say. >> well, first of all, we have the largest amount of drilling going on in the united states in eight years. greater than the drilling that was going on during the bush administration. so, i wished that it would at least give president obama credit for doing more drilling than president bush did, but at the same time, the republicans have is also in the last year zeroed out the money for wind, for solar, compromised the ability of the environmental protection agency to increase the fuel efficiency of the cars that we drive so that we don't have to import so much oil from of seas, and as they build the keystone pipeline, or they proposed to do so, they don't want a restriction on it that the oil can stay here in america, and that oil is going straight to china or europe, and

what is the point of us building the pipeline, if it does not stay in the united states. so the republicans have a big problem, in their all of the above category, because wind, solar, and plug-in, hybrids and all of that sauf of the table as far as they are concerned and in terms of keeping the oil in america, they say don't do it at all, and when i suggested to deploy the strategic oil reserve in order to keep the price of oil low, the republicans said, no, you don't want to do that and you want the free market to control the price of oil even though we know it is fear and greed driving the market right now. >> well, let's talk about the proposal, because americans are hurting, and gas prices at this time of year, and record for in time of year, and you can only expect it to get worse in the summer, and how much would releasing some of the reserve oil help, and how quickly could we see the effects of it. and president obama and president clinton have released the oil reserve and each time they have done it, it released

the price of oil from 18 to 33 cents, and the republicans always object to using the strategic reserve. iran is wanting to make a nuclear weapon and threatening the oil markets, and we have to threaten them back, and use our strategic petroleum reserve and say, they will not be allowed to inject fear into our petroleum reserve, and we will not allow them to inject fear in every driver in the united states as they pull to see what the price of gasoline is as they pull up to the pump. but the republicans don't want to crack down on the speculators or iran and make sure that we are using the strategic petroleum reserve as the strategic weapon we have to keep the prices low. they have a stake in a higher price of gasoline, because they think it is going thurt the e kcon -- it is going to hurt the economy and president obama and they will be taught a lesson before too much longer here out

in the marketplace. >> well, you have a news conference with this with congressman barney frank, and we will watch for that later on today. thank you, -- markey for coming on. and the quote of the day comes from stephen colbert, if they change the signs at gas stations, the prices will never change again. s that brushing ale isn't enough to keep it clean. fortunately, you've got listerine. unlike brushing which misses 75% of your mouth, listerine cleans virtually your entire mouth. so what are you waiting for? it's time to take your mouth to a whole new level of health. listerine... power to your mouth. forty years ago, he wasn't looking for financial advice. back then he had something more important to do. he wasn't focused on his future.

but fortunately, somebody else was. at usaa we provide retirement planning for our military, veterans and their families. now more than ever, it's important to get financial advice from people who share your military values. for our free usaa retirement guide, call 877-242-usaa. is the pain reliever orthopedic doctors recommend most for arthritis pain, think again. and take aleve. it's the one doctors recommend most for arthritis pain. two pills can last all day. ♪ crisp, clear, untouched. that's why there's brita, to make the water we drink, taste a little more, perfect. reduce lead and other impurities with the advanced filtration system of brita.

it is a boy and happy leap day and dumb criminals. down to the wire. third time is a charm for jennifer garner and ben affleck. they have two girls and they have yet to release their new boy's name. speaking of birthdays, this is patty clendenan's 21st, and yes, she is a leap year baby born in 1928 and she plans to have an adult beverage to mark the occasion, and the chances of

being born in a leap year are 1 in 1,500. it is human dominos with a twist. everybody was attached to a mattress. and single push they all come tumbling down one by one and 850 people in new orleans breaking the guinness book of world records that was set in belgium last year. i could watch that all day. note to self, if you use a fake i.d., don't use the celebrity. in a brazil, a man used this i.d. to open up a bank account, and yes, that is jack nicholson. and the guy had five fax on him by the way. that wraps up this hour of "jansing & company." tomorrow, join us when my special guest will include dnc chair debbie wassermann schultz, and danny brokele. thomas roberts is up next. it's morning somewhere.

only hertz gives you a carfirmation. hey. this is challenger. i'll be waiting for you in stall 5. it confirms your reservation and the location your car is in, the moment you land. it's just another way you'll be traveling at the speed of hertz. i had[ designer ]eeling enough of just covering up my moderate to severe plaque psoriasis. i decided enough is enough. ♪ [ spa lady ] i started enbrel. it's clinically proven to provide clearer skin. [ rv guy ] enbrel may not work for everyone -- and may not clear you completely, but for many, it gets skin clearer fast, within 2 months, and keeps it clearer up to 9 months. [ male announcer ] because enbrel suppresses your immune system, it may lower your ability to fight infections. serious, sometimes fatal, events including infections, tuberculosis, lymphoma, other cancers, and nervous system and blood disorders have occurred. before starting enbrel, your doctor should test you for tuberculosis and discuss whether you've been to a region where certain fungal infections are common. don't start enbrel if you have an infection like the flu. tell your doctor if you're prone to infections,

have cuts or sores, have had hepatitis b, have been treated for heart failure, or if, while on enbrel, you experience persistent fever, bruising, bleeding, or paleness. if you've had enough, ask your dermatologist about enbrel. get on e-trade. set up a real plan. frank! oh wow, you didn't win? i wanna show you something... it's my shocked face. [ gasps ] [ male announcer ] get a retirement plan that works... at e-trade.

[ male announcer ] for our town. [ dog barks ] for our country. ♪ for our future. ♪ this isn't just the car we wanted to build. it's the car america had to build. ♪ the extended range electric chevy volt. from the heart of detroit to the health of the country, chevy runs deep. just a week ago the pundits and the pollsters were ready to count us out if we didn't win by a lot, but we wony enough, and that is all