good morning. security breach? the prostitution scandal involving secret service agents widening this morning. nbc news has learned the men had copies of president obama's exact schedule in their hotel rooms at the time. could the president's safety have been compromised? billion dollar rip-off? bad ns for drivers as the weather heats up. this morning, why you may be getting far less than you pay for at the pump, and the simple solution that some gas stations are fighting. and no victim, no crime? will there be a criminal investigation into that incident involving pippa middleton and a driver holding what appears to be a pistol? we're live in paris as police decide what, in any, actions to

take "today," tuesday, april decide what, in any, actions to take "today," tuesday, april 17th, 2012. captions paid for by nbc-universal television and good morning. welcome to "today" on a tuesday morning. i'm matt lauer. >> good morning, everyone. i'm savannah guthrie, in for ann this morning. that secret service scandal is moving well beyond embarrassing now. with word that those agents had sensitive information in their possession. >> so imagine you're in a hotel room, you're a secret service agent, and you're there with a prostitute. somewhere nearby in that room is a copy of the president's exact itinerary. what would happen if that itinerary fell into the wrong hands? well, an investigator from the u.s. is now in colombia to interview potential witnesses. we're also hearing that even more agents and military personnel may have been involved in this than originally thought. coming up we'll talk about the

fallout with new york congressman peter king, chair of the house homeland security committee. >> also ahead, start packing. that's mitt romney's message to president obama. as the gop's presumptive nominee begins his search for a running mate. coming up, what he says he'll look for in a vice president. >> and actress jennie garth will be here. he's going through a difficult divorce from her husband of 11 years. this morning she'll open up in a live interview with the split, how she's hoping to turn the page with a new reagoty show. >> and then, her novel has become a run away hit all around the world. it's a racy tale and women cannot seem to get enough of it. this morning the author of "fifty shades of grey" opens up in a rare interview. and even she blushes at some of the things she's written. fifty shades of pink we all turned. >> two of the ladies in the studio have read the book, correct? >> that is correct. some have ordered the sequel. >> one here and another across the studio. natalie is over at the news desk with a check of the headlines. natalie? >> matt, thank you.

okay. good morning to you guys once again. in the news this morning, new developments this morning after kate middleton's sister pippa was photographed with a friend who appeared to be aiming a gun at the paparazzi. nbc's michelle kosinski is in paris with more. michelle, good morning. >> hi, natalie. all this controversy and buzz surrounding an acquaintance of pippa middleton pointing what appears to be a gun on the streets of paris has opened up a barrage of reports, some of them conflicting. just this morning a french photographer was quoted as saying he felt sure that gun was plastic, this was all just a big joke. but others quote police sources as saying they are reviewing the photos and expect to receive more information. now, using a gun, real or fake, to threaten someone is a crime. but at this point, police say there is no investigation because no one has filed any formal complaint about it. natalie? >> all right. michelle kosinski. we're going to have more on this story coming up shortly. thank you. congress is putting the general services administration, the gsa, in the hot seat. set to grill both current and

former officials on an $823,000 las vegas conference back in 2010. on monday, jeff neely, the gsa official at the center of the scandal, used his fifth amendment rights on capitol hill to keep silent. but damaging photographs posted to his wife's social media account have surfaced showing him in a lavish hotel room during a scouting trip for that 2010 conference. new information about a terrifying incident board an air canada jet last year that left 16 people injured last january. a canadian transportation safety board investigation found that when the co-pilot awoke from his approved nap in the cockpit, his fatigue caused him to then mistake the planet venus for an approaching u.s. military plane. as a result he took a severe nosedive toward the atlantic ocean, violently throwing passengers and their belongings around the cabin. at the time, air canada blamed the incident on turbulence, but now says it will take new measures to address pilot fatigue.

the space shuttle "discovery" takes to the sky one last time today with a little help from a modified jumbo jet, as you see it there. the two are piggybacking back to washington, d.c. where nasa's oldest and most traveled shuttle will then begin its retirement as a museum piece at the smithsonian. we can all look forward to that there. the owner of the third and final winning mega millions ticket has come forward in illinois. the lucky single winner will be presented with a check for $218.6 million in the small town of red bud on wednesday. but unlike the winners in maryland, and kansas, the winner in illinois will be required to claim his or her prize publicly, according to the lottery rules there. so savannah and matt, we're all going to get to know who this person is tomorrow. and everybody's going to be moving to red bud, illinois, and becoming their best friend. >> and it's happening on tax day. >> perfect. >> it's just perfect. natalie, thank you very much. mr. roker is here with a check of the weather. it's been warm in the north. >> i walked into your dressing room, saw the moon, and i

dodged -- >> no, that was uranus. >> here's the line. >> anyway. let's show you what's happening right now. we've got a lot of wet weather to talk about down through the gulf. man, i mean, we're getting wet, we're talking anywhere from 3 to 4 inches of rain. that's why we've got flash flood watches, as floods, flash flood watches from port arthur to new orleans. heavy rains, some areas picking up 2 to 4 inches of rain in the next 24 hours. even a little bit more in some localized flooding. and in fact around much of the country we've got a risk of strong storms down through the southeast, and rain moves into the pacific northwest. >> good morning. it will be a breezy and mild day today. temperatures will still be about 10 degrees above average. a mixture of sun and clouds.

>> and that's your latest weather. matt? >> all right, al, thanks very much. new details are emerging about the widening prostitution scandal involving members of the secret service. this as the demand for answers grows louder in congress. nbc's kristen welker is at the white house with more on that. kristen, good morning to you. >> good morning to you, matt. those 11 secret service personnel are waking up this morning after having their security clearances revoked. and now we are learning more about the night that may have led to this entire situation. as the investigation into the secret service and military prostitution scandal enters its fourth day, one u.s. official tells nbc news a group of the men were out and about at this bar, play club, in cartagena, last wednesday. several locals told our sister

network telemundo they saw 10 or 11 americans there that night saying they were drinking, partying and watching a strip show. u.s. officials say the men later brought prostitutes back to this hotel, less than a mile from where the president would very eent lullly stay. now, secret service and military investigators are looking into the possibility that there may have been more men involved. so far, u.s. officials say there are at least 11 secret service, and more than 5 military personnel under scrutiny. nbc's national investigative correspondent michael isikoff, has been speaking with law enforcement officials. >> sources tell us among those involved were two secret service supervisors, three members of the elite counterassault team, whose job it is to repel attacks on the president's motorcade, and three members of the countersniper team, those officers with rifles who scout for threats from the tops of buildings. >> reporter: isikoff also reports none of the agents was part of the president's personal detail. but had hard copies of the president's schedule.

>> if the prostitutes had access to that, they could have potentially given it to a foreign intelligence service, a drug cartel, or even a terrorist group. >> reporter: sources tell nbc news the military officials under investigation include bomb disposal experts and dog handlers from the army, navy and marines. >> i can speak for myself and my fellow chiefs who are embarrassed by what occurred in colombia. we let the boss down. >> obviously if violations are determined to have been the case, then these individuals will be held accountable, and that's as it should be. >> reporter: members of congress are calling for an investigation. but for this former secret service agent, who served for 12 years, the damage is already done. >> this is a national embarrassment. he's our president. he's overseas. he's not a democrat president. he's our president. overseas. and this was an embarrassment. >> reporter: now the military has sent a special investigator to cartagena who will be

interviewing people at that hotel and anyone else who may have information about this incident. savannah? >> all right, kristen welker at the white house thank you. new york republican congressman peter king is chairman of the house committee on homeland security, which oversees the secret service. congressman, good morning to you. >> good morning, savannah. >> before we get into the larger issues here, we know that 11 agents were involved with allegedly 11 prostitutes. but there have been reports that up to 20 may have been involved. can you confirm that there were more than 11? >> my understanding right now is that the number is at 11. obviously, everything is being done to find out the exact number. but as of now, the only precise number is 11. 11 agents and 11 women. >> there's another report that the scene got rather ugly that morning, in that one of the agents actually threw furniture, got very angry at the hotel manager. to your knowledge, is this true? >> so far, i don't believe it is true. but again, it's being examined. there was a dispute between the agent and the woman. and the agent initially would not allow the hotel manager into

his room. but the hotel manager did go and get the colombian police. my understanding is when the police arrived, there was an argument between the agent and the woman over the amount of money, but as far as the furniture, so far there's no evidence of that. i know that the investigators have spoken to various hotel employees, and as of now there's no evidence that there was furniture being thrown around or that there was a really disorderly scene. it was the argument between the agent and the woman, though. that's for sure. >> let's talk about the security breach here. i know you look at this as more than theoretical. we've reported that these agents actually had the minute by minute presidential schedule in their rooms. can you paint a picture of how damaging this could have been to the president's security. >> yeah, right now, we really lucked out on this. because this could have been disastrous. first of all, as you said, agents have access to the president's schedule. even if they didn't, just having prostitutes, if they were agents

working for a terrorist group or al qaeda for that matter, they would just be able to pick up anything, any tidbit of information as to where the president might be, what might be being planned, who else might be coming in. and also, there could be materials, laptop computers, all of this. i mean, this violates the most basic rule of being a secret service agent. don't allow a potential enemy into your security zone. you don't put yourself in a compromising position. your job is to protect the president of the united states. >> let me ask you the larger question here. "the wall street journal" wrote about a culture within the secret service of wheels up, rings off. referring to, once the president is in the air, the rings come off, the partying begins. do you think there is a larger cultural problem within the secret service? and does it disturb you that this actually happened before the president was wheels down, before he even got there? >> certainly, to me, i think the most disturbing thing, that this happened before the rez got there. it's one thing what happens afterwards. that's a separate issue. but the fact that there was

drinking and partying going on while they should have been getting ready for the president to arrive, that makes it even worse than it is. >> do you think it's widespread in the agency? >> i've spoken to many people, i've dealt with secret service agents in washington and new york, actually around the country, i've been on presidential trips. i have not seen this type of behavior. i think -- the fact that so much attention something focused on this, i think it's the exception. that's why i think the secret service manager, the director, mark sullivan, why they're coming down so heavy on these 11 people. because this does -- i mean, i have great respect for the secret service. they do an outstanding job. they're professionals. that's why this is being done after so diligently and so vigoro vigorously, finding the secret service director and all people at the top level. >> on the secret service draekter, should he keep his job? how far should accountability go? >> when this happened he acted immediately. he removed those 11 agents from the country immediately. got them out of the country. right now, i know that there's a very severe investigation going

on. i've known mark sullivan. i have great regard for him. and from all we know so far he acted quickly, he acted promptly and did the right thing. i think it's wrong to be prejudging either mark sullivan or the entire secret service on what 11 agents did. >> thank you for sharing your views this morning. now here's matt. >> all right, savannah, thank you. mitt romney is hitting the campaign trail in pennsylvania today. but he's clearly got his sights set on pennsylvania avenue. launching the search for a running mate. nbc's peter alexander is in washington, d.c. peter good morning to you. >> good morning to you. mitt romney said he began the vp search process this past weekend but he won't say when he'll make his final decision. campaign advisers say experience is going to be one of romney's top criteria. and the 2008 vp choice of sarah palin, who critics say was insufficiently vetted, is sure to cast a shadow on the process, as well. >> this campaign is just getting going. it's going to be fun. >> reporter: just watching him, it's clear mitt romney is becoming increasingly

comfortable in his role as the presumptive republican nominee. >> mitt romney in the house today. >> reporter: spending monday at a red sox game, romney fired off this fastball at president obama during an interview with abc news. >> start packing. that's what i'd like to say, obviously. we have a very different view. the president, i'm sure, wants another four years. but the first years didn't go so well. >> reporter: campaign advisers confirmed to nbc news that romney has formally started the search for a running mate. tapping one of his closest confidants, beth myers to head up the vp vetting process. senator john mccain has already weighed in. but campaign advisers say don't expect romney to pick a game changer like sarah palin. meanwhile, ann romney is clarifying her response to a democratic strategist remarks last week that the wealthy mother of five couldn't understand the challenges facing cash-strapped working moms. >> his wife has actually never worked a day in her life. >> reporter: during a private fund-raiser in florida this

weekend, overheard by reporters outside, ann romney said this about those remarks. it was my early birthday present for someone to be critical of me as a mother. and that was really a defining moment. and i loved it. when the remarks became public monday, ann romney explained she doesn't view the controversy in political terms. >> that wasn't how i meant it. it was a birthday gift to me, because i love the fact that we're talking about this. i love the fact that women are talking about deficit spending, and the economy. i love that. >> it's a thrill to be here on "saturday night live." >> reporter: the real mitt romney revealed he's considering an appearance on "saturday night live" but he says it will depend on the nature of the skit. he says he wants it to be funny. >> and of course, there's that unforgettable opening we all know oh, so well. hey, new york, let's start the show. >> it's saturday night. >> yeah, exactly, what he said. that's right. >> reporter: romney says he

watches the "snl" skits and he thinks that he is, quote, very good. by the way, as for ann's birthday. she said her favorite present is a beautiful red dress from her husband. she says she liked it so much she might actually save it for the convention this august. >> all right. peter alexander in washington this morning. peter, thank you very much. it's 17 after the hour. once again here's savannah. >> matt, thanks. now to the death of trayvon martin. george zimmerman, who is charged with second degree murder, is seeking a new judge in the case. nbc's kerry sanders is in sanford, florida, this morning with the details on that. kerry, good morning to you. >> reporter: well, good morning, savannah. it's up to judge jessica recksiedler if she will recuse herself from this case. she's already publicly acknowledged the potential conflict of interest. meantime, the lawyer representing george zimmerman, who says his client was acting in self-defense the night he shot trayvon martin, filed papers here on monday, asking the judge to step down. but those documents, like so many associated with this case, are currently sealed from public view.

if convicted of second degree murder, 28-year-old george zimmerman could spend the rest of his life in prison. with so much at stake, defense attorney mark omar ra wants the judge to reveal any conflict of interest she may have in this case. >> there's certainly the potential of conflict. get it taken care of now. >> reporter: what is the potential ethical conflict? judge jessica recksiedler's husband is also a lawyer. jason recksiedler works mostly civil litigation at one of the largest law firms in central florida. a law firm where mark meejam is a partner. zimmerman had asked him if he would represent him. but when he declined he recommended o'mara. adding to the mix, he is a legal expert on contracts with cnn and hln to comment on this case. another twist? he and o'mara are friends.

both were legal analysts on wkg-tv in orlando during the casey anthony trial. >> in a high profile case where everything is magnified, even a small conflict can become big enough to take a judge off the case. >> reporter: if judge recksiedler recuses herself, the case will be randomly assigned to another judge. it's up to whomever presides over this case to decide if the investigation records should remain sealed or should be released to the public. a consortium of news organizations, including the new york times, mcclatchy, and nbc news has filed for the release of all documents. that could include photos of george zimmerman the night of the shooting. a videotaped interview with police. trayvon martin's autopsy reports. and detailed investigative narratives by detectives. >> our public records law says if the information is information the defense should get, then the whole public should get it.

it's just part of the whole way of looking at how our justice practice should work. open, transparent, available to anyone. >> reporter: a bond hearing is scheduled for this friday, and these issues could come up then. but accord administrator here says the schedule is not set in stone and could change. savannah? >> all right, kerry sanders in sanford, florida, this morning, thank you. it is now 7:20 and here's matt. >> savannah, thanks. families are created in a lot of different ways these days but some say the laws are not keeping up with the science. and one american mother says that has placed her in a situation that's both frustrating and humiliating. here's nbc's martin fletcher. >> they're like perfect. >> reporter: like any mom, she adores her children. >> i wonder what i did to get such an amazing gift. >> reporter: what she did was in vitro fertilization in israel. using donor sperm and donor eggs to have a baby. in her case, twins maya and

sheila, now 2 1/2 years old. because she's an american from chicago, she went to the u.s. embassy in israel to register her daughters as americans, and that's when joy turned to anger. >> i was embarrassed, humiliated, horrified, ashamed. >> reporter: to her last petition over a loudspeaker in a crowded room she asked her, a single mother, how she conceived the children. >> it's an outrageous question. >> reporter: and that was just the beginning. after more private questions asked in a public least, elise fled in tears. she said her children's request for u.s. citizenship, denied. why? because there's no proof that either the donors of the sperm or of the egg is american. everything's anonymous. secrecy guaranteed. >> they are my kids. i carried them for nine months. >> you can have a child that is a child without a country. they are not going to get u.s.

citizenship because there's no biological connection. and the laws of that foreign country may say we don't recognize this child as our citizen, either. and the law really needs to address this. >> reporter: if maya and sheila were adopted there'd be no problem. but in vitro babies. >> u.s. policy is not keeping up with the technology. that's essentially what the issue is. >> reporter: there is a way for the girls to become americans. live in america for six months and do all the paperwork there. but the family lives in israel. and what elise thinks should be an automatic right, the children born to an american mother are american, well, it's harder for in vitro babies born outside the united states. for "today," martin fletcher, nbc news, tel aviv. >> we reached out to the state department, officials there tell us they are sympathetic to the family's situation, but they are following the law. just ahead, more on the fallout over these photos of pippa middleton in a car with a driver who is holding what appears to be a gun.

word a photographer is actually in on it. we'll get a live report from paris. but first, this is "today" on nbc. mm, these artisan bagels are so tasty. hey, what do you think "artisan" means? it's latin. for what? really, really good bagels. dunkin's new artisan bagels are as authentic as it gets. soft, chewy, and delicious. grab one today.

coming up a costly problem that's aing to your misery at the pump. why consumer groups say you're being cheated every time you fill up your gas tank on a hot day. >> and we'll reveal the suburban mom behind the hit novel "fifty shades of grey." but do you really? [ female announcer ] neutrogena® makeup remover erases 99% of your most stubborn makeup with one towelette. can your makeup remover do that? [ female announcer ] neutrogena® makeup remover. [ female announcer ] sometimes, all you need is the smooth, creamy taste

of werther's original caramel to remind you that you're someone very special. ♪ werther's original caramels. >> this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am stan stovall. a baltimore city councilman wants to allow advertising on the sides of city fire trucks. he says he would rely heavily on firefighters to guide the design and placement of the rolling billboards. he is hopeful that it will pass in time to pass some fire house

closures. here is sarah caldwell and traffic pulse 11. how is the j.f.x. going this morning? >> thankfully no accidents like we saw yesterday. that's look at some problems. white marsh, speeds around 30 miles per hour. approaching white marsh, accident is on the shoulder. washington boulevard and western avenue, we have an accident on the south side. north and west side, experiencing normal volume- related delays. eastbound eye-to 70 towards 29, marked on ritchie highway at marley station, there is an accident in two west there. 95 from 152, starting to ease up now that the accident is off to the shoulder. live view of the j.f.x. at coldspring lane.

looks good in contrast to yesterday. that is the latest on traffic pulse 11. >> a little cooler than the last couple of days. it is still 73 downtown, but down to 58 in taneytown. 61 in part in a. greece is going to start later this morning the breeze -- is this morning the breeze -- is going to (bell rings)

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so have you read it? we're talking about "fifty shades of grey." it is the steamy novel that's become a worldwide sensation. women, it seems, can't put it down. and you may be surprised when you meet the mom who wrote it. coming up our interview with the elusive e.l. james. 7:30 now on a tuesday morning, april 17th, 2012. i'm matt lauer alongside savannah guthrie, who is in while ann is taking some time off. >> good morning, everybody. also ahead today, you expect to get what you pay for when you fill up at the pump. especially these days when you're paying so much. but apparently that is not always the case. we're going to tell you why consumer groups say you're being ripped off every time you get gas during the long, hot days of summer. >> also ahead, it's called sin city for a reason.

now there's an unusual way to heal yourself after a night of heavy partying in las vegas. and all you have to do is hop on a bus. it's going to be a little controversial. we'll explain that. >> that's an interesting idea. and then jennie garth is going to be here. we're going to talk to her about her new reality show, moving to the country with her daughters and the recent end of her marriage. >> all right, let's begin this half hour with that incident involving pippa middleton, what looks like a gun and photographers in paris. nbc's michelle kosinski has the latest. michelle, good morning. >> hi, matt. when you see those photos it seems very clear that this thing is a gun. what we don't know, was it real? was it fake? but real, or fake, if someone was being threatened, then this could be considered a crime. just this morning a french photographer was quoted anonymously as saying he felt sure this was just a plastic toy. he thought it was nothing more than a joke. but other reports are quoting police sources as saying that they are reviewing the photos and expect more information to come in.

it was the photo seen around the world. and how pippa middleton and her pals could have found this amusing. while pippa and three friends took a convertible dprief through paris on sunny saturday, here look at the driver, pointing a gun directly at someone. the others, smiling. the headlines now blaring, and citizens asking, who do they think they are? >> you can't just brandish a gun in broad daylight and point it at somebody, but to do it in france is even worse. because france has very, very tough gun laws. >> reporter: the alleged target of the sun was a paparazzi. and despite reports some photographers may have known it was a joke a police source is quoted as saying they expect to receive more information. brandishing a gun in france whether real or not, is a crime. punishable by up to several years in prison. pippa middleton could potentially be called as a

witness if this were to become an investigation. and if it were believed she was in on the idea, the planning or carrying out of threatening someone this way, she, too, could be prosecuted. >> i don't think you can ever overreact when there's a gun being pointed at someone. whether it's a fake gun, or a real gun. >> reporter: the young man in the back seat is, according to newspapers, tviscount. who was seen at a birthday party pippa had attended the night before with another prominent young parisian. here she smiles coyly next to a man with a dog collar and chain around his neck. this is an embarrassment for sociable pippa. she stepped into the public eye at her sister's royal wedding, looking angelic. the palous has no comment. here in paris the aggressive paparazzi has long drawn the ire of its subjects. you remember in 1997, princess diana died in that horrible car

crash, the driver pursued by photographers. this time it seems the paparazzi was the intended target, and joke or not, not too many others besides those in this car are smiling. now a situation like this, of passengers in the car could potentially be charged with something like being an accessory if they helped plan a threat. or maybe disorderly conduct if they took part in a prank. but the likelihood of this is a whole other story. and at this point police say there is no formal investigation, because no one has come to them and complained about the gun, or pippa, or anything. matt? >> all right, michelle kosinski in paris this morning. michelle, thank you very much. martin barb ear is the host of the martin bashear covered the royal family extensive. >> christopher, let me start with you, because you always have a good way of putting things in perspective for me. clearly this is something that happened with bad judgment.

it is a joke if it's that that went very wrong. the police have photo evidence. but unless somebody comes forward does this become anything more than a front page photo that has a short life span? >> no, i'd say that's exactly what it is. in fact the french press is laying it on the entertainment pages, if it's playing it at all. they're not taking this very seriously because there are no charges and because they think probably its a plastic gun based on at least one of the paparazzi who was there has told gala.fr. i think they're not playing it very seriously here. >> have you heard any of these reports that have circulated here, christopher, that perhaps the paparazzo, the photographer who was the target of this joke, if it was a joke, might have actually been in on it? >> well, that's exactly what we're reading, and what the french press is saying. that the paparazzo was, you know, playing along with this. it was all kind of a joke. but let me just be clear about something and that's how stupid this was. whether it was a joke or not.

this was taking place very close to the big train station here in paris, where the eurostar is. where there are armed police and armed soldiers on patrol all the time. the last thing you want to do is be brandishing anything that looks like a gun in that vicinity. so this wound up being a joke, it will probably be a short-term story. but there was a potential here for tragedy, and i can't overstate how stupid it was to be playing these kinds of games where they were playing them. >> martin, let me turn to you. image is very important for the royal family. pippa middleton is not actually a member of the royal family. but how big a deal is this? >> i remember a courtier once saying to me that whenever a member of the public gets close to the royal family, they utter a paraphrase of the lord's prayer, lead us not into temptation, deliver us from evil. why? because members of the public, when they get into contact with the royal family, have an opportunity. it brings with it the section, so for example, a month before the royal wedding last year, pippa middleton's parents, they

run a family business, a merchandising business, they started producing all these kind of merchandises around the royal wedding. a month after the royal wedding, pippa middleton is sitting in one of the most prestigious seats at roland garros, the french tennis open. now would she have been there if her sister had not married the heir to the throne? of course not. the problem is you have opportunity without responsibility because you're not placed -- you're not a member of the royal family and yet you're connected in some way. >> how does the royal family handle a public relations nightmare like this? who changes charge in a situation like this? >> i don't think the palace will say a word. but i think her sister will give her the mother of all tongue lashings. this year is hugely important for the united kingdom. it is the queen's diamond jubilee. it is the london 2012 olympics. you and i will be in london taking the best network television in america there. this is the last thing the royal family needs. >> except these things tend to go away. the royal family has survived if

not thrived in the wake of some other incidents of young people behaving badly. we don't have to catalog all the incidents involving prince harry over the years. >> we don't. and also, she is a young person, and as i said, she's not a member of the royal family. so she ought to be unencumbered. the problem is that if your sister is married to the heir to the throne, it brings with it certain responsibilities. and that's why, whatever she does is going to be scrutinized. and that's why her sister, i think, is probably going to give her a tongue lashing. >> she might have to come out with an apology herself. martin in new york, christopher in paris, thanks as always. nice sighing you. and a remainder you can catch the martin bashir show 3:00 p.m. weekdays on msnbc. let's get a check of the weather from mr. al roker >> "today's weather" is brought to you by so slimming jean from chico's. >> and good morning. boy was it hot in boston yesterday. you won the boston marathon? >> we got second. >> yeah.

in a parallel universe. but how hard was it during that heat? >> really hard. >> well, congratulations. >> happy birthday, jenna. >> all right. happy birthday to jenna. let's talk about these temperatures. yesterday boston, 87 set a record. 86 in watertown. buffalo up to 82. 84 in montpelier. we've got cooling weather, big cool front moves through so it's going to be anywhere from 10 to 30 degrees cooler today. watertown only 52. 77 in new york city. we need some rain, though, because we've got very dry conditions, red flag warnings from southern new jersey all the way on up in to new england. and as you can see, temperatures are going to be in the 30s and 40s around the great lakes. 80s and 90s through the southwest. good news in the northeast. we're going to be seeing some heavier rain as we move into the weekend.en >> good morning. it looks like it will be a nice day today. not as warm as yesterday a mixture of sun and clouds.

>> that's your latest weather. matt? >> all right, al, thank you very much. up next, a new pain at the pump. why you may not be getting what you pay for when you fill up your gas tank on a hot day. we'll explain that right after these messages. cash rewards credit card, we earn more cash back for the things we buy most. 1% cash back everywhere, every time. 2% on groceries. 3% on gas. automatically. no hoops to jump through. no annual fee. that's 1% back on... wow! 2% on my homemade lasagna. 3% back on [ friends ] road trip!!!!!!!!!!!! [ male announcer ] get 1-2-3 percent cash back. apply online or at a bank of america near you. ♪

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at the gas pump. "today" national investigative correspondent jeff rossen is here with the story. jeff, good morning. >> good morning. you don't need me to tell you gas prices are incredibly high right now and only getting worse. if you're anything like me you shop around for the best price. but consumer groups say, there is a summertime secret at gas stations. cheating you at the pump, out of billions of dollars. talk about sticker shock. $4. $4.5 more than $5 for gas. we're all feeling the squeeze. >> gas prices are getting crazy. >> i'm spending way too much money for the gas. >> reporter: but consumer watchtalks like judy duggen say many drivers don't even know the half of it. >> it's a huge rip-off of american drivers. >> reporter: you see, when it's hot outside and the gasoline is warm, consumer advocates say you're not getting what you pay for. >> every time you stick that nozzle in your tank on a hot day, you're getting cheated. >> reporter: here's the issue, when gas gets hot it loses energy. meaning your car gets fewer

miles per gallon. fill up at 60 degrees and the typical car can go 500 miles. but fill it up when it's 90 degrees, you get ten miles less out of that same tank. but guess what, you're still paying the same amount at the pump. >> there's no way that we can tell what kind of value you're getting when we pull in to the gas station. >> reporter: in fact, according to the 2007 congressional report, persamericans were payin estimated $1.5 billion extra for gas in just that one summer. and gas prices had skyrocketed since. is this fixable? >> yes, there's technology on the market that would fix it. >> reporter: gas pumps with special meters would give you the right amount of gas for your money, based on the heat. those pumps are available today. but the gas stations won't install them. in fact, they're fighting it. >> we simply don't agree that the is worth the squeeze. >> reporter: he says they're already giving consumers the

best deal they can. that drivers benefit in cold weather and installing the new pumps would just be too expensive. >> putting a $2.4 billion cost on gas station owners would only transfer $2.4 billion to the consumer. >> reporter: so you're saying if they put this technology into place we have to pay for it? >> of course. >> reporter: but here in canada they've been doing it for nearly two decades. now 90% of gas stations use these pumps. that measure and adjust for temperature. so on a hot day, you actually get more gas for your money. consumer advocates say here, no matter what the weather, you actually get what you're paying for. now, angry american drivers have filed class action lawsuits against gas station chains in 21 states. calling it fraud. hoping to force gas stations to install the high test pumps. what is your message to the oil industry, to these gas stations? >> the message is just fix it. we're getting ripped off. it's easy to fix. >> now it looks like the big companies are taking action as part of a legal settlement,

costco has agreed to install the new pumps at its gas stations in warm weather states, pending court approval. and now three of the big oil companies, bp, shell and conoco phillips, well they're settling, too. debt tails of that settlement still unclear. but this is not over yet. not by a long shot. other gas station chains are fighting the lawsuit. savannah, they'll be in court next month. we're going to keep an eye on this because i think a lot of consumers maybe want this change. >> every penny counts these days. jeff rossen, thanks so much. still to come, a rare interslew with the extremely shy mom behind that racy novel, "fifty shades of grey." but up next, the new hangover cure rolling through las vegas. we're going to go for a ride on hangover heaven. coming up right after this. hush little bunny don't say a word. we used to be enemies, but that's absurd. a nibble on your ear used to keep me up all night. now our relationship can be nice and bright. yes, my chocolate friend, our struggle's thru. when i bite your head off, i'll still love you.

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who started drinking hours before. >> i don't know what to expect. this is my first time in vegas. >> sin city. the place to break loose and have a good time. >> a night the four of us will never forget. >> reporter: a mantra captured in the movie "the hangover," where bad decisions lead to a rough morning. >> some guys just can't handle vegas. >> reporter: now, they might have a little help. after a long night, some of our north carolina revelers are the first customers of hangover heaven. a bus for the times you feel like hell. >> this is the front los angeles of the bus. >> reporter: jason burke came up with the idea. he's a board certified anesthesiologi anesthesiologist, and a businessman. >> i was in the recovery room one day treating patients for head eks, nausea, aches and pains and realized that a lot of the medications and treatments i was giving them worked well for a hangover. >> reporter: the bus will travel the vegas strip on weekend mornings, looking for people to hook up to ivs and rehydrate.

for a price. the redemption package costs $90. the salvation package, with extra medicines for different systems runs $150. >> we encourage you to drink in moderation. >> reporter: for this group from casper, wyoming, it's worth it. >> we're here for a company outing. a sales meeting. not a lot of meeting going on. >> reporter: another woman clearly needed help. >> thank god i got on this bus. whoo. >> reporter: sure enough, within 20 minutes, we saw a definite improvement. >> i think it will definitely encourage a lot more debauchery in vegas, that's for sure. >> reporter: still, its website offers this disclaimer. hangover heaven is not designed for emergencies or serious medical conditions resulting from alcohol poisoning. >> this is really a short-term fix, and it's really the hydration component. it doesn't take away the toxicity of alcohol. >> reporter: but for this business, location is everything. just ask its first customers. >> 45 minutes, and i'm feeling

good. >> love this bus. >> reporter: now the owner says that he won't treat anyone who's belligerent. this is all about allowing people to enjoy the rest of their very indications, he says. matt? >> all right, gabe, thank you. stick a needle in your arm because you had too much to drink? bad idea. >> i think they should serve burger and fries. that works. >> jennie garth coming up. mother of three. he fue it was soccer, and ballet, and cheerleading, and baseball. those years were crazy. so, as we go into this next phase, you know, a big part of it for us is that there isn't anything on the schedule. (belhi.ings)

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>> this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am mindy basara. time for a check of the morning commute. here is sarah caldwell and traffic pulse 11. >> pleasantly surprised that the j.f.x. is not bad today, in contrast with yesterday, which was a nightmare. 95 is where we have heavy delays still from risch 24 tot harford county. 36 miles per hour. we had an accident in white marsh and that is clear. middletown to belfast, volume- related delays starting to fall into place. outer loop delays begin

approaching greenspring. southbound 795 is affected by the accident towards the beltway. average speeds at 11 miles per hour through the west side outer loop. northbound ritchie highway and marley station, accident still clearing. delays on southbound 295 remain towards 32. here is what it looks like from harford county to mountain road. delays are in place for a mountain road to the earlier accident scene in white marsh. coldspring, not showing any delays. you may cap the brakes at the construction zone, but otherwise a nice ride. >> we had a cold front go through, but there was no weather associated with that front. 72 downtown, but 58 in taneytown.

62 degrees in jarrettsville. mostly sunny, breezy, and mild. a little bit cooler than yesterday. even

at 8:00 on a tuesday morning, it's the 17th day of april, 2012. and you know what it makes it? >> tax day. >> tax day 2012. that's right. these people have filed their returns, they're shipshape. including lenny. and that's good news. i'm on the plaza along with savannah guthrie, who is in while ann is taking some vacation time this week. and mr. roker, as well. and if we could look through the penguins over here, we might actually see that in our studio right now is the one and only jennie garth. she is out with a brand-new reality show and it comes just weeks after, i guess, a pretty well publicized split or end to

her 11-year marriage. jennie's going to be here to talk about the show and the split in just a couple of minutes. >> look forward to catching up with her. then coming up a rare interview with the suburban mom who wrote that racy novel, "fifty shades of grey." a lot of people are reading this. women can't seem to put it down. we will learn more about how she came to write this naughty novel. we talk about women reading it. you know, men can read it, too. >> yeah but just curious. you read the book. >> yes. >> and there's another book and you have not been driven to read that, why? >> because i'm prude i guess. it was a little too racy for me. >> okay. >> but other people, they order it right away. get right to part two. >> okay. >> what grinds your gears? what makes you your blood boil? what burns you -- anyway. >> thank you very much. >> is it your boss? your spouse? how you handle your an remember can have a big impact on your overall health and happiness. we're going to help you figure

out your anger style, and then help you cope with it. >> before we get to that. let's go inside. natalie is standing by at the news desk. she's got a check of all the headlines. >> good morning again, matt, savannah and al. the investigation into an $823,000 las vegas conference by the general services administration is now looking into possible bribes and kickbacks. on monday, a house panel did not get to hear from the gsa figure at the center of the scandal, jeff neely, who invoked his fifth amendment rights and refused to testify. a fired agency executive and a current official are set to testify today. mitt romney has formally started his search for a running mate. the presumptive republican presidential candidate said monday he has put longtime adviser bess myers in charge of selecting and vetting potential ticket partners. a special u.s. investigator has been sent to colombia to question witnesses about the widening secret service scandal. 11 agents have been stripped of their security clearance, accused of inappropriate

behavior with prostitutes in colombia. and nbc news has learned that the agents were not part of the president's personal detail but that they did have hard copies of his schedule. at least five members of the u.s. military have also been implicated. the lawyer for defendant george zimmerman has filed papers asking the judge assigned to the trayvon martin murder case to step down. the judge has acknowledged a potential conflict of interest through her husband's connections as an attorney at a large florida law firm. if the judge does recuse herself, the case will be randomly assigned to another one. now for a look at what's trending today, our quick roundup. what has you talking on line. the virtual performance by the late tupac is an internet sensation. and now its creators are discussing a possible tour. they envision the hollow gram of shakur performing duets with the likes of eminem. online techies are breathing new life into the persistent

reports that apple is developing a mini ipad. a chinese language website is claiming the mini will hit the market later this year. and twitter is buzzing over first lady michelle obama's leggy prom pictured revealed on the ellen show on monday. >> that slit was a little high. >> yeah. >> i don't know if i'd let my kids go out with a slit that high. let's not show this to malia and sasha. >> ellen was a good sport. she joked that her own prom dress used to be a tablecloth. there is a look. we all have a picture like that in our past. it's 8:04. let's go back to al with a check of your weather. what did you wear to prom, the blue tuxedo? >> i couldn't get a date to the prom. >> ah, al. i'll be your date next time. >> okay. thank you. so i could maybe go with some tall ladies to the prom. wow. you are all tall. what's the deal? >> it's stand tall week. >> okay, there you go.

enough said. leaves me out but what the heck. they're all doing good. let's see what we've got for you. safrena could do this. our pick city today, nbc 6, miami. partly sunny, warm, 84 degrees. going to be toasty. we've got a lot of rain along the gulf coast. some flood watches along the gulf coast from texas on into louisiana. we've got some more clouds getting ready to move into the pacific northwest along the coast. showers there. cooling down here in the northeast. plensy of sunshine. slight risk of strong storms in the southeastern atlantic >> good morning. it will be a breezy and mild day today. temperatures will still be about 10 degrees above average. a mixture of sun and clouds.

>> and that's your latest weather. mr. lauer? >> all right, al, thank you very much. coming up, the woman behind the "fifty shades of grey" phenomenon. we'll talk to the author of that steamy novel. but up next, jennie garth is in our studio. she's going to talk about her new reality show, and a split that made the headlines. [ male announcer ] we imagined a vehicle that could adapt to changing road conditions. one that continually monitors and corrects for wheel slip. we imagined a vehicle that can increase emergency braking power when you need it most. and we imagined it looking like nothing else on the road today. then...we built it. the 2012 glk. see your authorized mercedes-benz dealer for exceptional offers through mercedes-benz financial services. splenda® essentials™ no calorie sweetener with b vitamins,

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a lot of hershey's happiness in little drops of milk chocolate. and cookies n creme. pure hershey's. back now at 8:10 with actress jennie garth. fans fell in love with her on "beverly hills, 90210." and recently she's been in the headlines for her split with her husband peter facinelli. now garth and her three daughters are entering a new chapter with a new reality show called "jennie garth, a little bit country." take a look. >> come on, guys. here we go. here we go. everybody, look at my new trend. okay. they're fighting. i really think that there's some peeing going on right now. >> there's pee right there. >> i didn't really think about it until they started tearing my house apart. a dog peeed on my couch. that is when the reality set in.

seriously? on my couch! >> jennie garth, good morning to you. we definitely see a different side of you in this. >> yes. the obsessive compulsive -- >> doesn't match up with having all those animals. we'll talk about the show in a few minutes. but of course you have this new reality show and it's coming at a time you're facing the painful reality in your own life, recently splitting from your husband. has it been hard to go through that on such a public stage? >> that is probably the hardest part about it, actually, is the timing of everything. when i started to take this show on, i wasn't headed down this road. it -- it was sort of -- it happened in the middle of filming the show. and now part of my job that i'm doing any kind of an actress is following through and doing the

press on something. so now i'm doing the press circuit for the show and doing interviews and people want to talk about it. and you know, i'm okay talking about it. but it's not -- certainly not something that i'm going out and, you know -- not something anybody really wants to talk about. >> so you moved out to the country. it wasn't for the purpose to get away. but has it had that effect? how has it helped you deal wiwith a really struggling time i'm sure. >> being in the country has allowed me a really great perspective. just some clarity. and open space, you know. >> but the show wasn't the reason for the split, i take it? >> no. no. no. the show was just something that the girls and i wanted to do, you know, to keep us busy creatively and we thought it would be fun. and so -- but the two really do not go to the at all. >> you know, you've been pretty open about the separation. i know one of the reasons is because you want to help other women. you were with him for 17 years,

married for 11. what's been the hardest part about it? did it come as a shock? >> no, you know, it was something that we were working through to the. and as anybody who's been through it, it's always, you know, kind of shocking when it ends up finally happening. but, it was, you know, sad, and you know, for our family unit. we're a really great family. and i think that we always will be. because we have three beautiful daughters together. >> and how are the girls doing? now they have this new environment, too, are they flourishing out there? >> they're doing great. you know. peter is still really involved with them. i'm, of course, really involved with them every day. and we have a great time together. >> one of the burdens of being in the public eye is that people speculate about what went wrong. or why it happened. and some people said well he's been so successful now with the "twilight" movies and maybe that is somehow the reason of the split.

anything you want to say about that? >> i enjoyed the quote that i was, i don't remember what it was exactly, but i was envious of his fame, or whatever. there was nothing like that going on. i was very happy for him, and, you know, so happy to be at home with the kids, and enjoying my early retirement, you know. i didn't want to work at that time. i just wanted to be at home, on the farm. >> on the farm is really about a lot of fun more than anything else. there are a lot of laughs on this show. i have to ask you about what happens in the first episode. where your assistant is sucking on a cow udder. please tell me how this happened. >> this is good tv. you won't want to miss it. we have a bet, she and i have this bet and she thinks that that's how you actually milk a cow and i am not lying to you when i say this, she's serious about that. so i bet her, that she has to actually suck the cow's udder so she loses the bet. >> an image we will not get out

of our minds any time soon. >> no. >> real quickly before we go. how many animals do you have? >> oh, i don't know. a lot. i'm an animal hoarder at this point. >> jennie garth. you look great. thank you so much. really appreciate it. you're going to be back to talk later to kathie lee and hoda, too. you can catch the series premiere of "jennie garth, a little bit country" this friday night on tnt. coming up, the suburban mom and author of "fifty shades of grey" opens up in a rare interview about her racy novels and their surprising success.

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we're back now at 8:19 with the woman behind the "fifty shades of grey" phenomenon. the racy novel is a hit with readers all around the world. and nbc's sister company universal pictures just won the bidding for the movie rights. this all comes as a surprise to the british author who really doesn't like to talk about it all that much. but she gave nbc's michelle kosinski a rare interview. michelle, good morning again. >> hi, matt. e.l. james is a suburban mom, former tv producer, who almost on a whim writes this erotic romance. very erotic. the story of an innocent college girl and her billionaire boyfriend. and it just sold 2 million

copies in one month. well, the author cannot believe it. >> this is my mid-life crisis. all my fantasies out there -- >> every fantasy that you've had is in this? author e.l. james' best-selling book, "fifty shades of grey," definitely gets a reaction. >> it makes you squirm in your seat. >> it definitely, for lack of a better word, gets you going. >> i couldn't stop blushing at some points. >> women who are reading it are saying they're having more sex with their husbands. >> reporter: is there anything revolutionary about this? >> no. >> then why is this causing -- >> i don't know! >> -- such a stir. you need to be in the mood to write? or a particular mood to write this type of fiction? do you need a couple of glasses of wine? >> i always need a couple of glasses of wine. for that sort of story. >> are you writing every day? >> almost, yes, i was. every day, every minute. i had a phone and i used to write on the train.

beat it in my mac and then tidy it all up. >> so you're just a woman obsessed. >> i was obsessed. i didn't do anything else. >> from the simple purchase of some lingerie to the steamy rules and limits of a dominant/submissive relationship, fifty shades is as graphic as its content is unusual. are you writing this are you thinking, oh, man, this is good, people are going to love this? >> no. not at all. here i was amazed how popular it was. i'm still amazed. i'm stunned by its popularity. >> in simple tv terms, an sabre yeah, the book's heroine, surrenders her will to her dom mant lover christian grey and finds both love and happiness. i'm trying to find the first description of him. he's very -- okay. you hate this. why is this excruciating for you? >> this is excruciating. >> this christian grey is the richest, most elusive, most enigmatic bachelor in washington

state. is that what women really want? >> i think in their fantasies, yes. in real life i think there's something very, very different. you want someone without those issues. >> why does he have to be rich and domineering? >> because that's really attractive on paper. >> is it saying that women have this secret desire to be submissive? >> possibly, yes. you know, you're in charge of your job, your house, your children, getting food on the table, doing all of this, all of the time. you'd love for someone else to just be in charge for a bit. >> shades of grey sparked a number of columnists to wonder if this is actually bad for women. fifty shades of retro grade. though not a single woman we interviewed thought so. >> what i really enjoyed was the dynamic between the characters and the way they evolved together. >> it's all about compromise. i will do this if you do that, in a way. >> the things that the main character goes through are some of the things that you wonder yourself, but you're too afraid

to ask. >> it's about openness and talking about what you want, and also talking about what you don't want. >> but i'm open in my mind. i can't say that i've done any of those things. >> steamy romance has been a staple for century. author jackie collins' work was first called nasty, filthy and disgusting. and yes, hugely successful. >> as an author you can never be worried about what people are going to think. i mean, if i'd been worried about what people are going to think i would have never written another word after my first book. >> the first, and now second and third book were inspired by the twilight saga. now this suburban mom's got a movie deal herself. and is well on her way to becoming a significant, if improbable voice, for generations of women. >> i think this is a very undisciplined kind of world and undisciplined writer. it's raw. i'm not a great writer. >> she makes no apologies for

the writing, the plot, anything, said she wrote this as a hobby. sheer fantasy. so there. matt? >> well, she's caused quite a stir. michelle kosinski in paris for us this morning. michelle, thank you very much. and now here's al. >> hey, matt, thanks so much. competition heating up on nbc's hit singing competition "the voice." quarterfinals kicked off last night. and two contestants sent packing. good morning to both of you. >> good morning. >> hi, al. >> this has been a heck of a ride for you. jesse, i should say if i want to start first, because i mean you were homeless, single dad, and now here you are, you get your act together, and you're singing on "the voice." what's this ride been like for you? >> well, it's been an incredible but enjoyable ride. you know, being here on nbc "the voice." yeah, we've had some very challenging moments, my daughter and i. but you know, i just teach her to find the positive, you know, even in the negative, and just

focus on that. and the moment of the now. and it will bring about more of the same. >> such a beautiful girl. and jordis, you're on team blake. last night you showed that emotional side. any regrets to doing that? >> not at all. i think it was really appropriate song for my journey on the show. and i think, you know what, ability to, i guess connect to a lyric is something central. i'm really proud of what i did here. >> jesse, you were on team christina and in the end christina said i had to go with the strongest team. did you talk to her afterwards and find out why she decided to boot you? >> no. i don't know if i'll have that opportunity. i mean, i know one of the last things that i remember her saying is that she had to go with her gut. and my thing is, hey, you know, it's all about what you feel, and if she felt that, to me, it's like, it may be the end in some sense but i see it as the beginning. so i'm not mad or disappointed. i'm just grateful for the

experience that i've had thus far. >> all right. looks like a great beginning for both of you. jordis, jesse, thank you so much. more eliminations tonight at 9:00, 8:00 central right >> live, local, latebreaking. this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am mindy basara. howard county prosecutors are dropping charges against colombian man accused of killing a twin brother. prosecutors say they will not pursue the second trial after the first murder trial last month ended in a mistrial. he is accused of killing his brother in 2007 after he implicated him from stealing a in a store. let's get a check on the morning commute with sarah caldwell. j.f.x. looks good. >> i contrast to yesterday, a lot better. white marsh and perry hall, we have an accident.

95 is holding onto delays from the baltimore harford county line. beltway on the north side, heavy delays towards the harrisburg expressway. on the west side, in a live, 140, attracting an accident there. couple of other accidents to talk about. springlake and northern parkway, we have a crash. another one at north avenue and park avenue. hillen and coldspring, watch for an accident. here is pickwick live look at traffic in 95 and 152. things are easing up towards the white marsh area. 83 and coldspring lane, smoot right through the construction zone. over to you, tony. >> so far it has been a beautiful start this tuesday. temperatures have been falling off the last few hours. send it to downtown. out of 56 in emmitsburg. 50 degrees in parkton. mostly sunny, breezy and mild.

high temperatures in the-to-mid- 70's. down to 63 tomorrow per 70 on friday and saturday. >> another update at 8:55.

we're back now, 8:30 on a tuesday morning. the 17th day of april, 2012. we're taking a look at a big crowd that's gathered on rockefeller plaza, some women who are standing tall. >> savannah tall. >> excuse me, i've got to go with my ladies. >> outen the plaza, i'm matt lauer -- >> did you know they were going to be here? >> no! we didn't plan it. but i think we have a connection.

>> my people. >> my people! >> out on the plaza i'm matt lauer along with savannah guthrie. savannah is here while ann is taking some time off this week. we've got natalie here and al, as well. and if you are looking for a great place to go on your next vacation, conde nast traveler is out with their list of the hottest new resorts and spas and hotels. these are places that either opened this year, reopened this year or were completely renovated and some of them on the list are affordable, great suggestions coming up. >> all right. also ahead, what is your anger management style? apparently there are different ways to handle your anger. some are more healthy than others. we will tell you how to figure it out and how to come up with a new approach to handle your anger. apparently repressing and then just becoming more and more builter is not on the list. >> are you somebody who keeps it all inside? >> yeah, repress. repress it. >> i go to a certain point then i explode. >> yeah. >> i think i'm kind of like al. you kind of reach that tipping point. >> i don't get mad often but

when i get mad, it's not good. anyway, just a warning to all of you. >> remember -- >> what do you have al going on? >> well, hey, by the way, sometimes you're trying to decide what you're going to make for dinner. should you have steak, should you have seafood? why choose? why not have both? we're going to show you a great little steak and seafood dinner that you can put together pretty easily. >> all right. and after you eat that then we can talk about our most pressing diet dilemmas. coming up we're going to answer some of your most asked questions, including should you trust those calorie counters on those workout machines. >> never trust them. >> really? >> lots to get to. mr. roker, how about a check of the weather? >> all right? >> i've had it! sorry. >> i believed you had had it. >> let's show you what's going on for today. we've got plenty of sunshine, but cooling down here in the northeast. slit risk of some strong storms in the southeast. more rain in the pacific northwest. plenty of sunshine to the southwest, with mild conditions continuing today, rain along the

pacific northwest coast, sunny and cool in the northeast, and in the great lakes. showers along the southeastern and mid-atlantic coast. sunny and warm throughout much of florida. nice and mild conditions, central plains, on down into texas. >> good morning. it looks like it will be a nice day today. not as warm as yesterday a mixture of sun and clouds. >> savannah is talking with these people right now. she gets some tall girls. hey, don't forget, check your weather any time of the day or night. go to the weather channel on cable. weather.com online. and now let's go with the happy guys dotcom, mr. willard scott.

hey, uncle willie. >> we've got birthday buddy wishes from florida. check the list and you can see for yourself. i like this man. this is the lovely rosco cassidy from owensville, kentucky. world war ii veteran and every evening he has a little shot of bourbon. that's where they invented it, kentucky. did you know that? freda popky, wilkes-barre, pennsylvania. she's 104. loves to argue politics and cook traditional jewish food. and we have gilbert herrick, rochester, new york, 100 years old today. an excellent painter, and he just got married at 99. a lot of guys would like to. hattie goldsmith, from greenville, south carolina is 104 years old today.

the oldest member of her church. they all love her down there. love her to death. helen turner has a great name, turner, linwood, new jersey, is 105 years old today. wrote a book when she was 100. and now she's going to write a sequel. how about that? an active lady. and willie elliot, good old william is from philadelphia, pennsylvania, home of the cream cheese and liberty bell. he is a proud mail carrier for 40 years. that's it from good old captiva, island. back to new york. >> all right. see you guys at the meeting later. willard, thank you so much. coming up next, the biggest hot spots of the year. where you can go and get a really good value. conde nast list is coming up for the best spots for 2012.

"today's travel"er is brought to you by walt disney world. don't wait. let the memory begin.

>> back now at 8:37. this morning on "today's travel," the best new hotels, spas and resorts. if you're planning your summer vacation, we've got great ideas. lisa gill is senior editor for conde nast traveler here with their 2012 hot list. good to see you. >> good morning. >> not a reader's poll. this is all about editors and writers. >> right. the hot list is an editor's pick of the world's best new hotels that have opened all around the world in the past year. >> or reopened. these places could have been renovated and reopened in 2012. the u.s. does pretty well on this list. there are 12 entries. let's start with one of them. you love this hotel in scottsdale, arizona. is it called the segoro. >> this is one of the reinventions. a cluster style building, fun new design. friendly vibe. we love this place because of the burst of color in a place that has a lot of sand tones. >> and a lot of these types of resorts are located in the middle of nowhere in the desert.

you like this because it's right on the edge of old town. >> right near the shopping district, the arts district, so you can walk around and enjoy the town. $125 a night is the starting point. >> let's move on to chicago. the public in chicago getting a lot of attention. >> yeah. >> this was a top to bottom renovation. >> it was. it is the first of ian schrager's new hotels. hotel classic in the gold coast. and they've done a fabulous job in >> especially like the food here. >> we love the food. the restaurant is iconic. a lot of celebrities used to go there and still go there. it's had another reinvention, and it's all good stuff. >> as you mention right on the gold coast. let's head down to new orleans right now. in the french quarter, what did you like there? >> we love that new orleans is on the list this year. the saint is a modern twist on new orleans style. it's in the french quarter right on canal street. and we love the historic touches, gas lanterns and the

entryway but the rooms are very modern and fresh and we love that combination of fresh and historic. >> when i was looking through the information on this particular hotel, the saint, one thing jumped out at me. you describe or the writers describe it as boardleo chic. >> that's the burgundy bar which has a louis armstrong theme. we love it. you know, deep red bankettes and very cozy spaces. >> new orleans is a great town to visit any time of the year. the next property has been described as an upscale grown-up version of summer camp, located only about 2 1/2 hours from here out on montauk in long island. >> this is like summer camp for adults. it's so much stuff to do. it's a very social experience. you can do ping pong, yoga, paddle boarding. feels like summer camp. rooms are kind of rustic with cedar plank walls and it's really fun. it's a really fun place to be. >> if you are a surfer this one is just a shuttle bus ride away from the best surf break on the east coast. or at least arguably, that's

ditch plains out in montauk. >> this place is open from may to september. so it's a real summer get away. >> i was looking at some of the rates on this one. and it says $175 a night. that's not for peak season right? >> peak season is july and august and i will pay a little bit more. you can find really great deals in the months around that, may, june, and september. >> all right. let's get a little bit more exotic. the next one is a cool hotel in marrakech, morocco. >> marrakech is one of the hottest cities in the world. and ria joya is a real gem of a place. seven rooms. >> total? >> it is seven rooms total. it's in a traditional moroccan house called a riyad. and the rooms are oriented around an inner court yard. it's intimate. the attention to detail is amazing. we love the milan meets morocco. >> because there are only seven rooms my guess is it's a little more expensive? >> it's very affordable. rooms start at $228 a night. it's really great for groups. if you rent the whole place you have the whole place to

yourself. >> finally, this is the most expensive one on the list i understand. this is abu camp in botswana. >> this is a place to add to your bucket list. it's in northern botswana and situated on a 450,000 private game reserve that has the highest concentration of elephants anywhere in africa. so your experience with eleph t elephants here is really like no other place you'll ever be. lap of luxury. and it's the best thing about this place, totally solar powered so you're saving the planet. >> i went to botswana for where in the world one year. it is stunningly beautiful. what's the best time of the year to go there, because they're in their fall season right now. >> mm-hmm. they do have a anyy season. it's best to check with an agent who can book you at the right time and also the right season. but i would say probably the summer months, the fall months is really great. don't forget the price is a little pricey, $3800 for two people per night. but that includes all meals, game drive, laundry, park fees, so you get a lot of value for your money. >> thank you very much. appreciate it.

>> coming up next, how to determine your manager style, and find healthier ways to handle the stress in your life. we'll get to that.

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you hundreds of dollars on car insurance... da bears. haha... you people sure do talk funny. geico®. fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more on car insurance. how do you deal with stress and manage your anger? we all face daily pressures that can push us to the brink from problems that work to traffic, to the annoying habits of your spouse and kids. while in may's "prevention" magazine they break down the different styles of anger and psychiatrist and "today" contributor gail saltz is here with the details. >> good morning. >> guess we all need a shrink. >> well, i said during the break there were some unhealthy anger styles going on. >> all right. we'll get into that. this is a starting point. some people say, i don't get angry. i don't feel angry. is that possible? >> no. everybody experiences anger. because everybody has life. and things happen that they don't like. whether they're conscious of their anger, aware of it, and

able to utilize it in a way that resolves conflict is another story. but, if they repress it, or later as we'll discuss, are avoidance, then, in fact, they might not have it in their awareness but it's still going on and it does take a toll, both on mind and body. >> there are about four different anger management styles. we'll put them on the screen. why is it important to identify what your style is? >> because some anger management styles are truly bad for you. they're bad for your cardiovascular health. they're bad for your emotional health. and they're bad for your relationships, because they make it impossible to actually resolve conflicts in a productive way. >> let's get to our first one. this one we all reactive. this is our explosive, door slamming, voice raising, matt lauer character. >> apparently so. unbeknownst to me. that you can actually -- you feel the feeling and whatever you feel is out of your mouth, and out of your body right away. and in this sort of explosive way. the problem with that is it's

shown to correlate with cardiovascular disease, increases your blood pressure. you have all of this physiologic symptoms of anger and it takes a toll on your heart. it also takes a toll on your relationships. because the bottom line is these people are perceived as bullies, as difficult to be with, and it doesn't help you resolve a conflict. let me also say that nationally i think we have a problem with reactive types. like, you know, someone who's exploding, being a bully, and we're not getting things resolved. >> then there's the opposite end of the spectrum which is the passive aggressive approach. which i guess is a person's angry, they fact like they're not angry, but then take it out in indirect ways? >> right. like they withhold anything nice they might say or they give you the silent treatment. or they say snide comments, with a smile on their face. but they're zingers. women do this quite frequently, unfortunately. especially if they feel it's not okay to be angry in a forthright way. but the side effect is, you tend to carry around your anger much

longer. you ruminate about it, and it makes you more anxious and feel frankly more angry. >> it sounds like a bad cycle because the recipient of this behavior may not really know what you're mad about and then they get mad. >> exactly. so this breaks up relationships. i think this is a big factor in marriages, which, as you know, have a very high divorce rate. couples who treat each other in a passive aggressive way. >> now to the next people who simply walk away and forget about their anger. the avoidance. which is a terrible word. >> seems so innocent. but it isn't. because, in fact, something is actually going on, you're avoiding it, this is actually shown to correlate with cardiovascular disease, as well. so you need to 24i about it. >> because why, you're holding it in? >> and even though it's not conscious, unconsciously it is actually affecting your card cardiovascular system. it also correlates with depression. people who are avoidance tend to feel helpless, like whatever is happening to them they can't really affect it. they're stuffing it down. and that does, you know,

depression is known as anger turned inward on the self. so it does tend to make people depressed. >> but there are times when you shouldn't have an explosive reaction. i mean you want -- >> avoidance is not the same as not having an explosive reaction. there's somewhere in between, which is directive. being aware that you're angry, saying ooh, i feel angry, i'm going to think about how i want to respond to my angry feeling, you do respond, but in a thoughtful, respectful, manner that helps you resolve what -- what's going on. so you know what? savannah, i'm angry with you. let me tell you about why. >> we're describing the final category, actually, which is the direct person. >> exactly. >> so would you count to ten and then try to address it? >> if you are the reactive type then you would do just that. you would notice, ooh i'm feeling like i'm going to blow up, i want to stop, think about what's going on, and respond in a way that i thought through that i think is going to help me resolve the conflict. which is not the same as making a snide comment, walking away,

exploding, or saying you know what? you are a bad person because i'm angry with you. >> real quickly, just to be devil's advocate and don't get mad at me here gail, is there any value to having -- letting someone see your anger and that explosive reaction, a controlled reaction as opposed to the direct approach. >> no, the direct approach is the controlled reaction. yes, there's a definitely advantage to letting someone see that you're angry. you should work towards that. that should be the goal. let them see you're angry but in a controlled and thoughtful manner, not in an, i've completely lost it. they later feel guilty, too, which is not helpful effect. >> dr. gail saltz, thanks for the session. i'll write you a check right afterwards. appreciate it. coming up next we're going to put a new twist on surf and turf in "today's kitchen."

"today's kitchen" is brought to you by folgers. the best part of waking up is folgers in your cup. we're back at 8:52. this morning on "today's kitchen" we're spicing it up with an asian inspired surf and turf meal. chef roger's latest cookbook is everday exotic. good to see you. >> good to see you, sir. >> doing a little kind of surf and turf. >> that's the idea. but we're focusing around black beans. >> you call in your cookbook an

ingredient obedient. >> a lot of people are intimidated by ingredients. you don't know what to do with it. i'm going to teach you how to be the master of the ingredient. >> listen to me. >> fermented black beans or regular? >> it's not regular beans that you know like mexican cuisine or some french cuisine. this is actually a soybean that's been cured and fermented. sometimes with ginger but always with salt. >> how hard to find? >> you can find them in any chinatown, supermarket. in canada where i live i see it in most supermarkets now. and it's really inexpensive. so we take these beautiful fermented black beans, basically chop them down, because it's quite salty and you don't want to have a big bite of salt on one. a little bit of oil in here. toast that up and you can already smell the aroam map >> right. >> it smells kind of like soy sauce. garlic, shallots, ginger. very simple. we want nice, fine dice so it breaks down. can you stir that up for me? >> absolutely. >> you're a pro at this.

>> that smells good. >> i hear you can get busy in the kitchen. >> i can. >> the chilies. >> are these spicy? >> they're a little bit spice si. not as spicy as thai hot but they are above jalapenos, for sure. you have the sauce sauce. i'll do the white wine -- the red wine vinegar. rice wine vinegar, sorry. >> and a little sugar? >> a little bit of sugar, yeah. water. about half of that water i think will do the trick. because it's quite salty. we have fermented black beans and the soy sauce. >> then you've got -- >> got those flavors. we've got cornstarch and water. you're going to let that bubble up. now very important when using cornstarch, al, it's got to boil to activate so that it starts breaking down. >> and then we end up with something like this. >> no, that's -- >> no, no, we don't. >> no! what are you talking about? >> the key ingredient. >> okay. so this is just some shallots in the pan with a little bit of oil.

>> use whatever oil you like. i like a very neutral oil because i don't want to overtake the flavor. can you turn that down just a little bit. boiling is good, bubbling over, not so good. >> not good. >> shrimp. >> this is shrimp peeled, deveined, tails off. and we're just going to saute this to get some of the flavors. >> hopefully it cooks pretty quickly. we only got a minute left. >> we're golden, okay. a minute. that's like forever in tv land. >> yeah. you've never been on our tv. >> okay so check this out. there's some of that sauce, right? >> ooh. >> take some of the sauce. add it in to there. you see that immediately start to come together. and we don't want to kill these ingredients so we're just going to add a little bit of green onion. >> scallion. >> yes, green onions. some chopped cilantro. >> right. meantime you're grilling up a fillet? >> yes, these are six or eight ounce filets. you take those. throw it on a plate. >> uh-oh. >> we'll have to go. >> that's good. >> top it and put it on.

>> you can put it on top. >> thank you so much. still ahead, simple ways to give your home a spring face-lift. >> live, local, latebreaking. this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am mindy basara. here is a look at one of our top stories. add the anne arundel county council to the list of those expressing no confidence in james teare. the council voted 4-3, voicing concern over his ability to lead the department after the

indictment of john leopold. it is believed that he knew about some of the allegations that leopold misused his security detail and failed to do anything about it. two unions have

>> it is is going to be another nice day, cooler than yesterday. still above average for this time of year. . >> thank you for joining us. another