making news in america this morning -- >> with the president's signature and some salty language by the vice president, health care reform becomes law. behind closed doors. a big bank vice president, blows the whistle on why struggling homeowners aren't getting the help they are beggi ingin ingin. and family feud. 80-something sisters battling over a lottery ticket. >> it's wednesday, march 24th, 2010. good morning. thanks for being with us on this

wednesday. the white house begins to shift focus today, back to healing the economy. but washington remains charged up by the passage of health care reform. >> efforts to ovturn it are under way, despite new numbers that show broad support for the new law. 49% of americans say it's a good thing. 40% do not. >> abc's t.j. winick is in washington today with more. good morning, t.j. >> reporter: good morning. the debate continues in the senate today. republicans want to change the bill only slightly so it has to go back to the house for another vote. democrats want no part of that. they want to keep the bill intact so the president can have another historic bill signing as soon as possible. it was a moment in history. president obama celebrated and relished. >> health insurance reform becomes law in the united states of america. >> reporter: for such a public display, the president reflected on many personal stories, including his own.

>> i'm signing this reform bill into law on behalf of my mother. who argued with insurance companies, even as she battled cancer in her final days. >> reporter: the vice president, obviously unaware of the open microphone, offered his own unique take. as soon as pen was put to paper in the east room of the white house, attorneys general from 14 states filed legal challenges against the law. the white house believes the legal challenges will go nowhere. most legal scholars agree. >> i can tell you the lawsuit has no chance whatsoever of being successful. >> reporter: american doctors, much like the general population are split on the new law. and how much health care will now have to be karationed. >> people will die. and these are the people i have to tell their families, i'm not allowed to do that for your

child. >> i think that's very unlikely. i don't see any likelihood of people needing acute care getting less of it. >> reporter: tomorrow, the president hits the road to talk up health care reform. he'll travel to iowa stay, where he first unveiled his plans for reform three years ago. jeremy and vinita? >> t.j. winick in washington. thanks, t.j. the president used 22 pens to sign the bill, giving away 19 to supporters, 2 for the archives and one for themselves. you can see what effect that it has been otherwise usually smooth signature. also, a tribute to ted kennedy. a note left on his grave by his son, patrick kennedy, which read, dad, the unfinished business is done. we'll dig deeper into health care and the hysteria from both sides, with james carville and kevin madden on "good morning america." also from washington, it was a lengthy and mostly unseen white house visit for israel's

prime minister. there was no sighting of benjamin netanyahu with president obama, despite two, separate meetings. earlier on capitol hill, netanyahu received a warm welcome. his state has been owe shadowed on his decision to build new apartments on land claimed by the palestinians. d there's fallout of a hit squad murder by hamas in january. it's widely believed it was carried out by israeli agents. now, t british government has taken diplomatic action, as sonia gallego reports. >> reporter: the u.k.'s decision to expel an israeli diplomat, over the forged british passports use to target an official in dubai. addressing parliament, british foreign secretary, david miliband, minted at the affair. >> the government takes this matter extremely seriously. such misuse of british passports is intolerable.

>> reporter: the organized crime agency found the 12 forged british passports were copies of genuine documents that were handed over to israeli officials and used in the plot to kill the founder of hamas' military wing. and also implicated that israel's intelligent service, the mossad, was involved. another stumbling block in israeli lations with its allies. and it comes a particularly sensitive time, as the country's premi premier, benjamin netanyahu, is facing criticism from washington. this is not the first time that britain has come down on israel for such an incident. back in 1987, the israeli government promised then it would not use u.k. passports in secret operations after a containing eight british passports were found in a phone booth in west germany were believed to be used. mexican's drug war got

high-level backing from the obama administration. secretary clinton and other secretaries were in mexico city yesterday, promising long-term assistance against the drug car fetes. clinton said a new u.s. anti-drug policy would soon be announced. secretary gates has returned from mexico. we expect to hear from him about changes to the military's don't ask, don't tell policy. gates has described more humane enforcement for the controversial law. the case of the alabama professor who is suspected of murdering three of her colleagues has been turned over to the grand jury. amy bishop made a brief appearance yesterday. and an investigator said the gun bishop allegedly used was purchased for her husband in 1989. a spring storm is dumping heavy snow in much of colorado. denver was covered by a number of cinches yesterday. suburbs to the west and south of the city could see up to two

feet. and drivers are facing treacherous roads with nearly the storm is not rare, though. march is the snowiest month of the year in colorado. and now, for this morning's weather around the nation. that storm pushes into northern new mexico and the western edge of kansas. heavy in south of des moines, to kansas city and dallas. flooding, gusty winds, hail, and a chance of tornados in oklahoma and texas. windy, with morning showers along the coast of maine. >> 70s in atlanta, miami and new orleans. indianapolis climbs up to 60. chicago will be 53. 49 for omaha. a near record high of 65 in seattle. 53 in salt lake city. and 75 in phoenix. when we come back on this wednesday, how you can save on summer air travel. then, the big, bailed out banks, facing criticism for not returning the favor. for the first time, we hear from someone on the inside. and in health news, concern over

there is growing concerns about the fragile recovery in the housing market. new numbers show existing me sales fell 0.6% last month. that's the third-straight drop, pushing sales to the lowest level since last july. another dip in housing could make it harder for the overall economy to rebound. late their morning, we'll get the latest figures for new home sales. overseas stock markets are rising this morning.

tokyo's nikkei average rose 0.4% today. hong kong's hang seng is slightly higher. in london, the ftse opened higher. on wall street, the dow climbed almost 103 points. the nasdaq was up nearly 20. the federal reserve has issued new rules on gift cards, make it less like lie they will go to waste sitting in a drawer. customers must have five years to use them before they expire. and limited activity fees should be used under certain conditions. the rules take effect in late august. it may be a good time to snap up airline tickets for your summer vacation. jet blue, frontier and air tran have issued sales on their routes. it pays to be flexible. some of the best prices are for midweek travel. and you have to act fast. jetblue's sale ends today, air tran's ends tomorrow, and fon tier's ends on friday. the ivo will be available this summer. it's a touch-screen phone that runs on google's mobile software.

and it features two cameras. >> they say the 4g thing can download stuff ten-times faster than the previous version. people will be in a hurry to get that. next on this wednesday morning, oprah winfrey i voids going to court in the latest lawsuit against her. that's where two elderly lawsuit against her. that's where two elderly sisters are battling it o

the sound of a rushing river in wellesley, massachusetts. this part got flood rain overnight. there's even more rain expected on friday. now, for a look at morning road conditions. heavy snow across colorado today, especially along i-70 and i-25. flooding in the plains and the midwest, along stretches of i-20, 40 and 70, in kansas and texas. and wet roads in iowa and up to

illinois. if you are flying today, expect airport delays in denver, kansas city and dallas. and in the east, from boston to washington. well, the administration's plan to help struggling homeowners avoid foreclosure is a bust, according to a watchdog group's new report. >> and an abc news poll shows 69% said the big bailed out banks aren't doing enough to help the middle class. >> david muir spoke to a whistleblower who says he can't bare what the banks are doing to dmers. >> you know, we're raised to do the right thing. and you know, we're treated like a number. >> reporter: what about all this talk from washington that after the bailout, the major banks would help homeowners.

>> it's just not happening. >> reporter: his bank alone holds tens of millions in deposits. in the last year, how many loan modifications have you seen in your particular bank? >> completed? fully completed? zero. >> reporter: and mortgages, he says, are just the tip of the iceberg. angered about what he says are exploding penalties and fees. the top four banks pulling in $40 billion in fees in just a year. he says he won't forget what happened to one customer. >> i've seen $1.40 escalate to over $1,000 in overdraft fees. >> reporter: how is this possible? >> it snowballs. >> reporter: and to get the fees, he says bank employees are pushed to sign up customers for as many accounts and as many cards as possible. and he says some employees so pressured to sign you up for more, they're taking your information home with them. >> social security number home. your check, atm card number home. your p.i.n. number home.

>> reporter: you've seen it in your own bank? >> on multiple occasions. i've seen customers over a four-mon period have 10 to 20 checking accounts open and closed. >> reporter: he says he's tried to stop the cycle. if your bosses knew you were telling some of the customers you don't need that account, or you don't need this financial product? >> as a vice president of the bank, i would be terminated. >> reporter: he says he can't get the customers, like that couple from georgia, out of his mind. >> i don't see how the middle class is going to survive. >> i'm in the middle of this disaster. and no one's listening at the top. and no one's listening to the customer. >> reporter: david muir, abc news, new york. oprah winfrey has settled a lawsuit brought by a former head mistress at his girls school in south africa. the case had been headed for trial until the two women sat down face-to-face and resolved their differences. financial details were not

disclosed. there is no settlement yet in the case of two elderly connecticut sisters over a powerball jackpot. the sisters used to gamble and play the lottery together, until they had a falling out. then, their brother won $500,000 jackpot and split it with one of the sisters. now, the other one is suing. and no one in the family is speaking to one another. in health news, sis sarian births have skyrocketed to an all-time high. experts contribute this increase to multiple births, bigger babies and older mothers that require c-sections. the mothers are more likely to get blood clots and babies are more likely to have breathing problems. a study is telling women to get an hour of exercise. more exercise is needed for women that are already overweight. recommended activities include

brisk walking, leisurely walking and biking. last night, the college ladies played some hoops. here's jonathan coachman at espn news. >> good morning, everybody. we're going to start in the women's ncaa tournament. can anybody even come close to beating number one uconn? well, temple can. nearly a perfect first half played tuesday night against temple. maya moore lays it in. uconn up early. it would get much worse. tina charles down low. working it. work, girl. uconn up ten. later in the first, moore again from the corner. splash. and then, uconn up 42-11. i said it right. moore inside. uconn wins 90-36. they won their first two tournament games by 110 points. to the nba, nuggets/knicks. word came out of denver on tuesday night.

george karl could miss the rest of the season, due to recovering from cancer. j.r. smith, keeping the nuggets close, within one. under 30 seconds to go. how about toney douglas. the stepback. he's been playing very well. knicks win at home. gallinari tossed in 28 for new york. clippers/mavs. mavericks have won 10 of their last 11 against the clip show. watch this here. watch dirk. he gets pushed by drew gooden. he just slaps him. dirk not pleased. official, bill kennedy, he would get an earful. there's one. there's -- dirk's night would be over in the third quarter. 18 points, 19 minutes, before he left. but the mavericks start the fourth on a 22-3 run. jason kidd had 26. mavs win by ten. that will do it for now. i'm jonathan coachman. back to you guys in new york.

looks like art is imitating life when it comes to supersizing our meals. >> two scholars say the last supper has grown by proportions over the years. they analyzed the painting. what they found is that the size of the main course grew by 69%. even the plate size went up by 66%. >> yeah. by the year 2000, jesus and company were eating 23% more bread than the originals. >> the scholars said they ed the size of the disciples' head as the ratio and compared it to the plate size. >> a lot of food. up next, the stories we'll be following today, including a new focus for the president on health care reform. and congress takes on tanning beds. we'll be right back. the moistu. skin accepts it better. absorbs it better. and has its natural balance restored for a clinically tested 24 hours.

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and a support plan that's right for you. some people have had changes in behavior, hostility, agitation, depressed mood and suicidal thoughts or actions while taking or after stopping chantix. if you notice agitation, hostility, depression or changes in behavior, thinking or mood that are not typical for you, or if you develop suicidal thoughts or actions, stop taking chantix and call your doctor right away. talk to your doctor about any history of depression or other mental health problems, which can get worse while taking chantix. some people can have allergic or serious skin reactions to chantix, some of which can be life threatening. if you notice swelling of face, mouth, throat or a rash stop taking chantix and see your doctor right away. tell your doctor which medicines you're taking as they may work differently when you it smoking. chantix dosing may be different if you have kidney problems. the most common side effect is nausea. patients also reported trouble sleeping and vivid, unusual or strange dreams. until you know how chantix may affect you, use caution when driving or operating machinery. chantix should not be taken with other quit-smoking products. ♪ my benjamin, he helped me with the countdown.

"ben, how many days has it been?" "5 days, mom. 10 ys, mom." i think after 30 days he got tired of counting. [ male announcer ] talk to your doctor to find out if prescription chantix is right for you. now, a look ahead to the stories we'll be watching on this wednesday. one day after signing health reform into law, the president signs an executive order banning federal funding of abortion, which he promised to do to secure last-minute votes for the health care bill. the president begins to shift his focus to boosting the economy. giving senator chris dodd and senator barney frank about financial reform. secretary of state hillary clinton just back from mexico, beginning high-level meetings with pakistani leaders in washington. the fda and members of congress discuss strict, new rules today on tanning beds. they are imposing stiffer warnings about skin cancer.

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finally from us this morning, the website chat roulette has launched the career of the latest internet superstar. >> video of a hooded man playing a piano to unsuspecting chatters has been played 4 million times. our on-campus repoer, miles dorn, has an interview with the phenomenon who prefers life in the shadows. >> reporter: wearing a disguise, a man calling himself mertin, is surprising unsuspecting merchants on chat roulette. he comes up with lyrics on the fly. ♪ semiitalian looking >> reporter: but this piano man is youtube's latest hit. video of his chat roulette performance has received more five-star ratings than any other. making it the highest-rated

youtube video ever. ♪ you have a thumb - up situation over there ♪ >> reporter: who is this guy? at first, many suspected musician ben folds was underneath that hoodie. they too look alike. both have denied it. which means much about mertin is still a mystery. until now. we asked mertin for an interview. and he agreed to talk to abc news, if we agreed a few ground rules first. we can't reveal where he lives, who he works for, or his real name. and the hoodie stays on, too. >> i'm not trying to build up mystique. it's easier for my personal life. and i think it's -- i think it's more fun. >> reporter: even ben folds has paid tribute to his look alike. that's him during a concert last weekend in north carolina, nning mirtin's trademark