making news in america this morning, president trump preparing to take the center stage at cpac, a big change from a year ago after skipping the conference as a candidate. plus, the president explaining why he wants to boost the country's nuclear arsenal and town halls across the country getting heated yet again. police officers gunned down in washington, d.c. new details on their condition and the suspect. and a break in the case. the disappearance of a beauty queen has baffled investigators for more than a decade until now, the new evidence leading to an arrest. tigers on the hunt. what are they chasing?

good morning to you, i'm adrienne bankert in for diane. >> i'm kendis gibson and what a difference a year makes. last year donald trump didn't even attend the conservative conference known as cpac. >> wasn't warmly welcomed either. attendees were trying everything to stop his campaign. this morning he goes as president with the republican controlled congress. >> vice president mike pence warmed up the crowd telling them president trump is making good on campaign promises. >> america's obamacare nightmare is about to end. >> reporter: a forceful defense overnight of the administration's plans for new health care system. vice president mike pence telling the activists that obamacare has been a failure promising something better. >> we'll have an orderly transition to a better health care system that finally puts the american people first. >> pence praised his boss calling president trump a modern day ronald reagan and noted their differences. >> i'm a s

he's big city. i'm midwest. he's manhattan island. he's known for his bigger than life personality, his charm and his charisma and i'm like not. >> reporter: earlier steve bannon making rare public comments to that crowd. the former editor of breitbart news portrayed as the grim reaper by "saturday night live" may be the president's most powerful and controversial aide. he said the president won't back down from this battle with his opponents. >> if you think they're going to give you your country back without a fight you are sadly mistaken. every day, every day it is going to be a fight. >> reporter: appearing with chief of staff reince priebus he said the trump we saw in the campaign is the trump we'll see as president. >> he tells reince and i committed this to the american people and promised and i'm going to deliver on this. >> one more

he said when it comes to the president's battle with the media every day is going to be a fight. >> well, while his top aides were at that conference the president was making headlines on other issues from nuclear immigration or from immigration to nuclear weapons. there's a laundry list. abc's ken ♪ moton with details. >> reporter: the president's push for the u.s. to become the world's dominant nuclear power. >> if countries are going to have nukes we're going to be at the top of the pack. >> reporter: the position nothing new for president trump who tweeted in december, the united states must greatly strengthen and expand its nuclear capability. but now he has the nuclear codes. >> does it keep you up at night. >> no, but confidence that i'll do the right thing and the right job rrpts russia has slightly more nuclear warheads than the u.s. and vladimir putin deployed a cruise missile in violation of a treaty and trump told reuters it's a big deal and

it up with him but it was focused on relations with mexico. seconds of state and homeland security working to cool tensions. >> we're getting bad dudes out of this country. >> reporter: this man is part of a recent group deported and told 25 years in the u.s. illegally and arrested after paying a ticket. it raised eyebrows. >> it's a military operation. >> reporter: the administration worked to clarify the use of the word military. >> the president was using that as an adjective. it's happening with precision. >> no, repeat no use of military force in immigration operations. none. >> reporter: john kelly there and secretary of state rex tillerson met with mexico's president who said his country's top priority the protection of mexicans in the u.s. and respect for their rights. kendis and adrienne. >> thank you, kenneth. we appreciate it.

congressional town halls across the country show no signs of letting up. outside tucson, people packed a church to ask representative martha mcsally question. she was asked about her thoughts on newly appointed education secretary betsy devos. she seemed to sidestep the question by discussing her own schooling. a retired teacher demanded she answer their questions. >> i ask students who have parents who ask me questions every day, i don't hide under the table. [ applause ] you are not answering our question. answer everybody who has asked a question to answer the question. answer our question. >> and mcsally replied by saying she was answering the questions th

the answers which drew loud boos from the crowd. gabby giffords is slamming lawmakers who are not hosting townhalls like those. she took particular aim at texas congressman louis gomert who cited her assassination attempt in 2011 as a reason he would not meet constituents in person. giffords tweeting to the politicians who have abandoned their civic obligations i say this, have some courage, face your constituents. hold town halls. washington, d.c., two police officers shot about a mile from capitol hill. the two uniformed officers were responding to a report of shots fired. both were taken to the hospital. we're told they're expected to recover from those wounds. the suspect was shot and killed. there were several other shootings earlier in the day in other parts of d.c. new developments overnight in the death investigation of north korea leader's half brother. police say swabs taken from

presence of what is called vx nerve agent. a banned chemical weapon which the u.n. classifies as a weapon of mass destruction. nearly two weeks ago kim was assaulted by two women seen wiping the toxic chemical on his face. authorities are now saying they plan to decontaminate the airport where he was attacked. it could be a miserable morning commute for 50 million in 11 upper midwestern states. the snowstorm stretching from idaho across to wisconsin is strengthening into a blizzard with very strong winds and 6 to 12 inches of snow. now below that the air is much warmer and that may produce severe thunderstorms and possible tornadoes. still ahead a popular toy recall. the new information just in. plus, new details about a deadly shooting inside a bar. why investigators say it might have been a hate crime. and the man who tackled the gunman talking from his hospital bed. this woman in shock. thankfully it's happy shock. the life-changing news

received that got this reaction.

breaking news in iraq. military officials say they recaptured this. the entered the first western neighborhood. the operation to take back mosul has been going on for months. back here in this country the fbi is investigating a possible hate crime in the case of a man accused of opening fire in a crowded sports bar near kansas city. witnesses say adam puritan used racial slurs before shooting one man and injuresing two others. one was killed and one wounded was a good samaritan who tried tackling the gunman saving one of the victims. speaking from his h

ian grillet is talking about that man who calls his new best friend and what they'll do after they heal. >> i was planning on going to do some fishinghis weekend but i don't think that's going to be happening right now and get together with the gentleman that i have now become best friends with. i don't think it's going to be at the bar though. maybe grilling in the backyard with a beer or two. >> pretty good attitude. the accused gunman has been charged with murder and attempted murder so far. more small protests over an off-duty police officer shooting at teens. new video shows the explosive encounter between the lapd officer. he was off-duty and a 13-year-old. as that escalates and more teens get involved the man aims

gun. this has been a horrible week. seven people killed from gunfire on wednesday alone including a pregnant woman. that's the deadliest day so far for shootings in that city an at least 92 have been shot to death so far this year in the city. in the meanwhile, the president once again tweeting about this. saying seven people shot and killed in chicago. what is going on there? totally out of control. chicago needs help. also the trump administration may crack down on recreational marijuana use. sean spicer saying the justice department will enforce the federal law. but eight states and the district of columbia have already legalized recreational use. washington state's attorney general is promising a legal battle if there is a federal crackdown. when we come back the mysterious murder of a beauty queen. investigators describing how they found their suspect after more than a decade. caught on camera, what it's like inside of a plane when the

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a rare sight for february. a big wildfire but there are a number in the southern plains going on right now. this one near tulsa is now under control but because of the unusually warm weather and low humidity, the red flag warning remains in effect. no road closures reported there but drivers in the northern plains will encounter blizzard conditions. flooding will be a problem to the east and the ohio valley and there will be snow on the roads in the western mountains and wet roads along the northwest coast. if you're flying airport delays most likely in minneapolis, chicago and detroit. meanwhile, in georgia police may have finally solved a nearly 12-year-old cold case. tara grinstead was a high school teacher and seasoned pageant contestant before she vanished in 2005. >> abc's steve osunsami with the details.

mystery that made headlines across the country. the disappearance of 30-year-old tara grinstead. >> what happened to tara? >> reporter: she was a high school teacher and experienced beauty pageant contestant. in 2005 she went missing after watching a pageant and having dinner with friends. more than a decade went by with no answers for her family. but this morning, this man seen here in his first court appearance is now charged with murdering her. authorities say that ryan alexander duke broke into her home in 2005, rob and killed her with his bare hands and hid the body. he has not entered a plea. >> steve will have the latest on that case a little later on today on "good morning america." in the meantime, police in massachusetts say a new dna profile may be the break they need in the murder of a google executive last summer.

vanessa vanished while jogging near her mother's home. investigators now say they're looking for a specific person of interest and it's all based on a profile built from dna at the

i'd be holding on tight if i was on that one. a true scene of seasons changing, major league baseball spring training games begin today. good morning, welcome to "sportscenter" from los angeles. i'm stan verrett. the nba action from thursday night. clippers, klay thompson to kevin durant. warriors down by three in the third but they were just getting started in the quarter. steph curry to durant, 25 for durant in the game, 67 apiece. later curry's turn working on jamal crawford, curry with 35. warriors scored 50 in the third and roll to a ten-point victory. rockets and pelicans. knocking that down. 3 for 3 to start the game. wound up with 27 and 14. anthony davis'

29. pelicans lose big, 129-99 as the rockets roll and got a new addition to william, 27 points off the bench. that's it from here. send it back to you. >> sounds like that trade is working out for you, new orleans. up next in "the pulse," counting down the hours until the oscars. we all have our favorites but who does vegas like? and run, tigers on the prowl but what were they after?

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gamblers. vegas, "la la land" is by far the favorite to win best picture. >> they're going out on a limb there. so one of the movie star, emma stone is a favorite to win best actress. casey affleck is favored to win best actor for his performance in "manchester by the sea." gripping. >> and a lot of people have given it rave reviews. prop bet, all about host jimmy kimmel. likes a good donald trump commentary and joke. >> you can bet on how many president trump references he will make and you can wager on what kimmel's first joke will be about. odds on favorite, of course, president trump. >> yeah. we don't know who bought the powerball ticket that won the $435 million jackpot yet. >> but we do know they're my next best friend. no, we know this new jersey woman won $2 million in the same drawing and didn't remain anonymous because cameras were

time that she came to check out her numbers. >> are you kidding me? >> you just won $2 million. >> you're kidding me. this is real? it was a rough year. i lost my dad and uncle and my mom is having a hard time so it's going to be -- thank you. >> quick turnaround for her year already. very happy for her. >> she is an attorney who works near that newsstand in new york and matched five numbers but not the powerball but still $2 million richer. >> that's a nice day, however, she did pay an extra dollar for that option that doubled her prize. i think that was the wisest investment she's made this year. probably seemed like a good idea at the time, some of the siberian tigers at a zoo in china were getting fat so the keepers figured they'd send in a drone for them to chase to get exercise. >> nice try. instead the tigers swatted it out of the air and, look, right there in the middle they made

chew toy out of that drone. i'd say -- right there, that thing they were nibbling on is the drone. >> we did get a nice shot of what it looks like to be chased by a tiger if you wanted to imagine that. world cup penalty kick from a high school kid. check out this. wearing red. that's gareth greene. not only does he score but let' as you just heard from police chief peter newsham-- two police officers now hospitalized after exchanging gunfire with an armed suspect. it happened in the 1300 block of morse street just before 11 p.m. both officers are conscious an

hospital. we have a reporter at the hospital and will bring you a live update coming up in a few minutes. and happening today-- president donald trump is preparing to deliver the keynote address at cpac. it will be the first time in nearly a decade that the sitting president will speak at the annual conservative conference. he is scheduled to take the stage in just a few hours-- at 10 am. good morning washington. toss to eileen - 2 more 70 days (warmest today) - rain/thunderstorms tomorrow afternoon - breezy & cooler sunday today: mostly sunny and very warm. highs: 73-78 winds: s 5-15 g 20 mph tonight: mainly clear to partly

winds: s 5-10 mph saturday: partly sunny to mostly cloudy. afternoon rain & thunderstorms. breezy to windy. highs: 65-70 winds: sw 10-20 g 30 mph developing now. new details are

shocking claim by cnn. the white house reportedly asked the fbi to knock down reports about talks between donald trump's associates -- and some russians. and the agency - refused. this is according to cnn. a white house official says the f-b-i told the administration it didn't think reports

were true. and for that reason the white house was asking the f.b.i. to share that with reporters, but the f.b.i. so far has said no. president donald trump will take the stage at cpac today-- one day after vice president pence addressed the crowd. and the vice president used his time telling supporters to stay the course. vice president pence went on to say that president trump assembled the strongest conservative cabinet in his lifetime. he also reaffirmed that the trump administration is committed to "an orderly transition" to a new health-care system. a florida police officer who accidentally shot a woman to death- during a gun training exercise-- now facing manslaughter charges.

citizen's police academy! a 73-year-old librarian and mother of two - was shot during a drill. the gun should have been loaded with blanks -- but mistakenly had a live round in it. the officer who fired the shot could face up to 30 years in prison, if convicted. also -- the police chief of that city -- is charged with negligence. the woman who was killed- does have a local connection. mary knowlton - graduated from george mason university. pretty soon-- taking a ride on metro may feel like stepping into luxery car. wmata is seeking industry feedback about new concepts. how about heated floors on your metro ride? included - an open air pairing between cars -- giving riders the chance to move between them without opening a door. and passenger wi-fi on all trains! but don't get too excited- this could all be a decade away. it's xx and we're just getting started.

breaking news-- two police officers shot in the line of duty.. and overnight the district's top cop revealed more information about the shooting, and what officers found on the scene. president trump-- preparing to lay out his vision for america at cpac. this comes amid new scrutiny over his plans to increase america's stockpile of nuclear weapons. what the white house is saying. good morning washington. - 2 more 70 days (warmest today) - rain/thunderstorms tomorrow afternoon - breezy & cooler sunday today: mostly sunny and very warm. highs: 73-78 winds: s 5-15 g 20 mph tonight: mainly clear to partly cloudy. mild. lows: 52-58 winds: s 5-10 mph saturday: partly sunny to mostly cloudy. afternoon rain & thunderstorms. breezyt