out of the woods? new signs the economic recovery is taking hold including more americans finding work. the ipad coming. a sneak peek at the gadget apple calls a game changer. and one-on-one. the early show's harry smith talks business and basketball with the president. >> just like health care. i always come from behind. i finish strong. this is the "cbs morning news" for friday, april 2nd, this is the "cbs morning news" for friday, april 2nd, 2010. captioning funded by cbs good morning. thank you for joining us. i'm bianca solorzano in for michelle gielan. and we begin with new signs of recovery for the u.s. economy, the labor department releases new unemployment figures this morning. and they're expected to show the

first real improvement in nearly three years. and there is more positive news, too. tara mergener is in washington with the latest. >> reporter: well, economists say this could be a real turning point in the economy. there is also good news to report in the auto industry. but the job market is expected to stay slow. today's unemployment report is expected to show a growing number of americans found work last month, only the second time since the recession began. analysts predict the economy gained 190,000 jobs in march, boosted somewhat by temporary hiring for the u.s. census. unemployment is forecast to stay at 9.7%. >> i want you to know we are working every single day to spur job creation and to turn this economy around. >> reporter: president obama will focus on jobs today when he visits a manufacturing plant in charlotte, north carolina. his administration has said that despite signs of improvement,

the jobless rate will likely stay high for quite some time. while unemployment may be holding steady, auto sales are shifting into high gear. u.s. car sales jumped 24% in march. the best showing since august of last year. toyota saw a 41% surge after offering steep discounts to win back customers. that sparked an incentive war among rival dealers leading to double digit gains for ford and gm. chrysler saw sales fall 8%. still the promising trends could have a ripple effect on other industries like this los angeles production company. they just worked on a new ad for jeep that employed 120 people. >> there were a lot of people who literally came up to me at the end of that shoot and said thank god for jeep, thank god for that job, because i hadn't worked in two months. >> reporter: the hope now is the auto industry's recent boost will mean a similar rebound for the rest of the country. and construction manufacturing

and retail payrolls that were hit hard by snowstorms last month will see gains, as well. bianca, back to you. >> tara mergener, thank you. and department of homeland security is announcing new security rules for air travelers coming into the united states. after the christmas day bombing attempt near detroit, president obama ordered a review of passenger screening procedures. the new measures drop the policy of patting down travelers from 14 mostly muslim countries. instead, they will require extra screening only for passengers who match intelligence information about terror suspects. president obama spoke by phone with china's president last night as both leaders try to ease tensions before he visits the united states later this month. the white house says they discussed iran's nuclear ambitions and also other issues. mr. obama was returning from flood stricken new england when that conversation took place. during his visit thursday, the president thanked weary

emergency workers in massachusetts, inspected flood damage and attended fund-raisers there and also in maine. in wichita, kansas, scott roeder was sentenced to 50 years in prison with no chance of parole for last year's murder of an anti-abortion doctor. the 52-year-old roeder says he was obeying god's law against killing babies, but a spokesman called him a terrorist who took pleasure in his crime and bragged about it. >> if this person is set free, he will do it again and again and boast about it while stopping for pizza on the way home. >> roeder remained defiant even as he was led out of the courtroom shouting that the blood of babies is on your hands. at the vatican, pope benedict said catholics should examine their conscience but did not directly address the priestly child abuse scandals. on thursday the pope performed

the annual feet washing ceremony. it is a symbolic act of humility following the example of jesus at the last supper as recounted in the gospels. on "moneywatch," stock markets in asia got a boost this morning on positive economic news from the u.s. japan's nikkei average finished about half a percent higher. wall street is closed today for the holiday. thursday, the dow gained 70 points. the nasdaq rose 4. and now to the most hotly anticipated some might say most heavily hyped new gadget to hit the market in years. it's the apple ipad. and it goes on sale tomorrow. john blackstone got a preview. >> reporter: when the doors open at apple stores this saturday morning, there's certain to be a crush of people eager for an ipad. hype over the new tablet computer has been building since steve jobs unveiled it january 27th. >> and we call it the ipad. >> reporter: back then, we got

our hands on one. reading on this device seems much more like a natural print experience. since then, apple has kept the device largely under wraps, sharing it only in the past week or so with a very few tech reviewers and the cast of a tv sitcom. >> his last wish was an ipad. >> reporter: in an ambitious act of product placement, last night's episode of abc's "modern family" was all about the ipad. >> oh, my god, you got it. all this time i said i didn't care, but i do care. i care so much. >> reporter: on saturday when real consumers start buying the ipad for $499 and up, we'll begin to see whether apple has changed the world one more time. >> it's great. if you're into apple, it's even more exciting. >> i think it's a complete waste of money. >> reporter: enthusiasts are focusing on what it can do. its nearly 10 inch screen can be used to watch movies and play games. it will run 150,000 apps and can

be held comfortably for reading. >> this will basically be your new newspaper and your new stack of magazines. >> reporter: doubters are focusing on what it doesn't do. it doesn't have a camera. my cell phone has a camera, my laptop has a camera. and it doesn't have a real keyboard as plenty of cell phones do. >> this one actually has a physical keyboard, which a lot of people still want. and the ipad doesn't. so it's hard to imagine why you necessarily need to switch from this to this. >> reporter: less than a decade ago, the ipod was a similarly new device that took a while to catch on. in 2002, just 376,000 were sold. last year, apple sold more than 54 million ipods. apple's clearly hoping the ipad will do something similar. >> who's ready for the first day of the rest of their lives? >> reporter: undoubtedly for some, that day will arrive on saturday. john blackstone, cbs news, san francisco. just ahead on the "morning

news," sarah palin makes her debut as television host. plus, liftoff for the latest mission to the international space station. but first, katie couric has a preview of tonight's "cbs evening news." >> abandoned and sometimes abused, how these dogs are helping others and themselves get a new leash on life. that's tonight's american spirit only on the "cbs evening news." hey! - increase in 6 months. - pete, back it up! ( marker squeaking ) when business travel leaves you drained, re-charge with comfort suites. spacious rooms, free hi-speed internet, and free hot breakfast. comfort suites. power up. now stay two separate times with comfort suites... or any choice hotel and earn a free night. book at choicehotels.com. ♪ fresh butter taste ♪ yes that's here ♪ no hydrogenated oils, ♪ so there's no trans fats here, ♪

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packed with th-those antioxidants that are good for ya. tastes real good, too! to give you an idea, let's whip up a quick sample. or you could just try this. [ chuckles ] yeah. ocean spray blueberry juice drinks. real blueberries, real good. beginning their journey to the international space station. >> up and away. a rocket with a nasa astronaut and two russian cosmonauts aboard blasted off shortly after midnight eastern time. california native tracy coldwell dyson and the two cosmonauts will join the crew on board the international space station. they'll dock with the space station on sunday. it has been a bad week for the republican national committee. first, there was the embarrassment over that $2,000

tab at a sex theme hollywood night club. and now the rnc admits it accidentally put the phone number of a sex line on a fund-raising letter. callers are offered, quote, talk with a nasty girl. sarah palin's first television special aired last night on the fox news channel. >> heroism. church. generosity. and a warrior's spirit. these are the things that unite all americans. >> the former alaska governor and vice presidential candidate narrated profiles of americans overcoming adversity and helping others. the debut was not without controversy, though. an interview with singer ll cool j was dropped after he complained it had been given to another media outlet two years ago. the intensely partisan health care debate may have given a preview of what the november congressional campaigns will look like. early ads are going negative and taking an animated approach. jeff greenfield reports. >> he's voted for higher taxes 133 times.

>> reporter: it's a familiar political tactic. >> i met harold at the playboy party. >> reporter: run an ad that shows your opponent looking silly or suspicious. but in california this primary season, the negative images are literally out of this world. the campaign of republican senate candidate carly fiorina is depicting tom campbell as -- >> a wolf in sheep's clothing. >> reporter: -- a demon sheep. >> soon her elitist self-image -- >> reporter: that same campaign has produced an 8 minute video that includes a lengthy portrayal of barbara boxer as a blimp powered by hot air. >> she quit working for us and worked only for herself. >> reporter: and while meg whitman has already spent $45 million on her campaign for governor, an unaffiliated democratic campaign group has

gone on youtube with a tactic right out of a hollywood smash hit. meg whitman as -- >> i kept my personal jet costs down to a frugal $3 million. >> reporter: -- an "avatar." there's new nothing about portraying politicians as inhuman. abe lincoln was drawn as an ape. and new york democrats shown as predatory tigers. in our time, says sean clegg, whose group created the video, the point is attention. >> most political ads these days are still stuck in the era of walter cronkite, the mega-tar ad is designed for the era of jon stewart and youtube. >> reporter: but veteran republican campaign strategists warn there's a danger. >> there is a fine line between an ad that is sufficiently unique to reinforce the argument and an ad that is so unique and

so pecular that it distracts from it. >> reporter: it's too soon to know whether these avatar ads will have any real impact, but if they do, there's just no telling where it might lead. jeff greenfield, cbs news, new york. just a few months ago, americans were scrambling for h1n1 flu vaccine. well, not anymore. the cdc now says of that the 230 million doses made, only about 91 million have been used. 70 million of the leftover doses may be dumped if they're not used before they expire. most of the rest will go to poor countries or to storage. and straight ahead, your friday morning weather. also, in sports, dayton beats mighty north carolina and the flyers celebrate their first n.i.t. championship in more than 40 years. breath. i couldn't believe i was actually having a heart attack. i remember being at the hospital, thinking about my wife. i should have done more to take care of myself.

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here's a look at the weather in some cities around the country. new york, sunny, 68. miami, sunny, 80, chicago, partly cloudy, 67, denver windy and cloudy, 49, los angeles partly cloudy, 62. and time now a check on the national forecast. the latest satellite picture shows clouds scattered over the northwest. the southwest is mainly clear. and the great plains are looking at cloudy skies. later today, scattered showers will be returning to the northwest. the southeast will have a beautiful day with sunny skies. and some strong storms are likely around the southern plains. in sports, a bit of magic on the court in dallas.

orlando's dwight howard dominated inside scoring 17 points with 20 rebounds and five blocked shots. and he makes all six three point attempts and scoring 24 points as the magic beat the mavericks 97-82. in denver, anthony scored 25 including 13 in the last quarter to lead the nuggets past the trailblazers 109-92. and now to college basketball and a huge victory for dayton in the n.i.t. championship game. playing north carolina last year's nca champion, dayton's marques johnson put on a show spinning for a lay-up, driving the lane for a jam. and scoring 20 points in the game. then it was celebration time as the flyers beat the tar heels 79-68 for their first n.i.t. title since 1968. and it just might be the last n.i.t. tournament because

the ncaa is getting serious about expanding. nothing's final yet, but an ncaa official has outlined a detailed plan for a 96 team tournament starting next year. and as for this year's tournament, you can see all the final four action right here on cbs tomorrow night. cbs sports game coverage begins at 6:00 eastern time with butler taking on michigan state followed by west virginia versus duke. two of those teams will play for the championship on monday night. when we return, another look at this morning's top stories. and holding court. president obama talks health care and hoops with our own harry smith. ♪ ladies, raise your spoons. now there's nothing left standing between you and a satisfying breakfast. introducing special k® low-fat granola. with 50% less fat than the leading granola... and 5 grams of fiber per serving,

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here's a look at today's weather. powerful thunderstorms will be developing across the southern plains. it remains dry and warmer over the northeast, and the southwest and southeast will be dry and pleasantly mild.

here's another look at the morning's top stories. the labor department issues its latest unemployment figures today. the first big improvement for job seekers in nearly three years is expected. and the government is issuing new security rules for air travelers coming to this country. searches will target known terror suspects rather than all passengers from certain countries. "the early show's" harry smith went one-on-one with president obama in the white house and on the basketball court. and it turns out even the president's jump shot has a good natured bit of political spin. >> harry smith. >> mr. president. >> how are you, sir, on this beautiful spring day? >> reporter: we came to the white house to talk some policy and shoot some hoops. i asked the president about his decision to expand offshore oil and gas exploration. >> i wasn't going to be governed

by ideology and the dogmas of the left or the right, that we were going to do what was best to secure america's energy independence. >> reporter: a short walk down from the white house is the president's personal basketball court. we were joined by clark kellogg of cbs sports. >> i hear you've got game, harry. i'm feeling a little tense about this. although i do have the home court advantage. >> exactly. we're on your turf. >> mr. president, the question is, that everybody wants to know, can you go to your right? >> i can go to my right, but i prefer my left. >> reporter: he doesn't always sink his famous jump shot. >> i got a few other things on my mind. it's like health care. i always come from behind. i finish strong. >> and you can see more of harry's exclusive interview with the president, that will be later this morning on "the early show." i'm bianca solorzano. and this is the "cbs morning news."

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davis. hello again. four minutes before 5:00 on a wonderful morning. it's good friday and seer sucker friday of the season. >> i'm not putting on the seer sucker. but take i look at this in april, sunshine and 27 on the lunch on the way to a high of 80 degrees this day and evening temperatures in the mid-70s. in the mid-40s indeed. take it away. making a comeback, the h1n1 swine flu pops up again in maryland and claims another life. going for glory maryland

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