this morning on "early today," make or break? mitt gets his moment to try to win over doubting republican conservatives. tarnished image? fbi files on steve jobs reveal not everyone was impressed with apple's iconic cofounder. and historic hall. authorities seize 15 tons of pure powder meth at a ranch in western mexico. captions paid for by nbc-universal television hello. good morning. i'm lynn berry. today, we begin with a campaign crossroad. later today in washington, gop presidential hopeful mitt romney

will deliver a speech to 10,000 members of the conservative political action conference. with rival rick santorum three victories tuesday night leaving more than just a hint conservative republicans aren't so enthusiastic about romney as the party's nominee, his performance today could be crucial. with more on that and the ongoing fight over health care coverage for birth control, nbc's brian moore joins us from washington. >> reporter: romney more conservative supporters have been urging him to step up his game. today is his chance. ♪ >> reporter: before the gop presidential hopefuls address a big gathering of conservatives here in washington today, former candidate rick perry set the tone. >> if it's halftime in america, i'm fearful of what the final score is going to be if we let this president start the second half as the quarterback! >> reporter: it is a critical chance for rick santorum to build on his big primary season wins earlier this week.

and make the case he is the conservative candidate who can win. it's a chance for newt gingrich to rally his supporters. but it may be mitt romney who has the most riding on his appearance. >> reporter: it is an incredible opportunity for romney to speak about the issues they care about. >> reporter: he is struggling with conservatives and expected to explain his time as massachusetts governor. while the candidates may attack each other, the president and his administration's controversial contraceptive process willing targeted and the president himself not ready to sound off. >> come on. thank you. come on. >> reporter: but his republican rivals are. >> this attack on religious freedom cannot and will not stand. >> reporter: well, all eyes are on the c-pac straw poll and could be a key barometer for romney in particular.

since the first time since the first partial meltdown in 1979 the government has approved a license for nuclear power facility. by a 4-1 vote, the nuclear regulatory commission okayed a plan to build two new atomic reactors in eastern georgia. the new reactors would be built on an existing site owned by the southern company. the construction plan would have the 14 billion dollar reactors operating as soon as 2016. two other nuclear plants in south carolina are also being considered for approval in the next few months. following the deadly soccer riot in egypt, the muslim brotherhood is flexing its newfound muscle in egypt, calling for the military there to surrender power to a new civilian government. the group once outlawed in egypt now controls more than 50% of the seats in a newly elected parliament. the brotherhood wants one of its leader named prime minister so he can form a new government instead of waiting until the june deadline for the generals now in charge to hand over

power. more than 70 people died in the soccer riot which the muslim brotherhood showed the military failed to provide leadership, security, and economic stability. here is a look at some of the other stories making news early today in america. dramatic video inside a georgia walmart shows a young girl fighting off a man trying to abduct her. the 7-year-old made every kick count, hitting her attacker as hard as she could until he let her go. the man fled, but police nabbed him shortly after the incident. the suspect who was out a payroll for a voluntary manslaughter conviction now faces attempted kidnapping charge. a brief car chase turned into a very long standoff in a los angeles residential neighborhood. after the driver abandoned the stolen vehicle, police chased the suspect and car thief up a roof. the ordeal ended after the suspect surrendered after being hit with bean bag projectiles.

passengers on a los angeles bound flight from chicago know knows what it's like to travel with hollywood royalty. 42 statuettes scheduled to be given out at this year's academy awards arrived on the oscar flight. they got their own chocolate version. now for a look at your national and regional weather, here is meteorologist todd san tows with your weather channel forecast. good morning. >> that's a good little treat getting on a plane. normally, you're always concerned about your boarding group. >> you get chocolate oscars instead of peanuts. thanks to the snow showers that are likely to get going as you work your way into the afternoon. this morning doesn't look like much on the radar but a lot of snow showers up toward the northern great lakes and northwestern great lakes are the marker of that colder air that is rushing in during the day time today. that system swings down to the south. even late morning get some snow going around chicago and then once the front moves on, we also

have to cool down across portions of the upper mississippi valley but the lake effect kicks in and enhance the snowfall. this system bringing rain showers across portions of the southeast and into the east coast that is the coastal low that could provide snow showers to boston and cape cod and the mountains the numbers drop off quickly as far as the snowfall amounts. there is a look at it this morning. again, on up towards green bay get snow showers going there shortly and mid-morning as i mentioned in and around chicago the front itself goes through' dallas, houston and showers and not a great set up for any widespread thunderstorm threat but isolated pockets likely during the day time today so keep a close eye on that and talk about the cooler temperatures that's a look at the national forecast. now here's a look at the weather outside your window. new york coming in at 45 degrees today. as we get into the weekend we talk about a big cool down. florida and gulf coast showers on the radar likely see some of that tracking eastward during the day time.

at least to finish off the week, a little blast of winter and some cool numbers for many of us into the weekend and talk more about that coming up. >> todd, thanks so much. also, job numbers sparkle. no more kodak cameras and guys are more romantic than women? your early morning business headlines are straight ahead. plus, a tear-jerker story from previous tearjerkers is set to make the other films cry this weekend at the box office. coming up, lakers versus celts. a goal from center ice, a dance party break down in pebble beach. you're watching "early today."

good morning. welcome back to "early today." i'm lynn berry. here are some of your top headlines this morning. syrian forces reportedly killed dozens of people yesterday on an

attack. snipers shoot from rooftops. the u.s. is working to form a group of nations to address the ongoing crackdown by syrian president bashar al assad. newly released fbi files paint a less than flattering picture of steve jobs. during fbi interviews before the apple cofounder was to president bush they questioned his honesty, saying he will, quote, twist the truth to achieve his goals. gabby giffords is running for her congressional seat with giffords endorsement. rob barber was injure inned same shooting that nearly took giffords life last year. marine corps is apologizing for a photograph taken in 2010 posing in fronts of a nazi flag. the spokesman says the marines

will not bed because they thought the ss stood for sniper scouts. a drug bust in mexico seizing some 15 tons of pure methamphetamine. that is equal to about half of all the meth seizures in the world in 2009. now here is another look at one of your top health headlines on msnbc.com. a new study says a cancer drug reversed alzheimer's disease in tests on mice. in just six hours, the drug reduced levels of a protein in the brain linked to alzheimer's by 25% and the mice showed an improvement in their mental function. human studies are needed but the results suggest in early stages, alzheimer's could be a reversible disease. for more information on this and other health stories, check out the health page at msnbc.com. now here is an early look at how wall street will kick off the day. the dow opens at 12,890 after adding six points yesterday. the s&p was up a point. the nasdaq gained 11. taking a look at overseas

trading this morning. in tokyo, the teak kay fell 55 points and hong kong, the hang seng dropped 226. thursday's latest upbeat unemployment report could help stocks continue higher today. the number of people seeking unemployment fell near a four-year low last week. a sign strong hiring may continue in the coming months. in europe, an agreement on debt restructuring moves to the greek parliament which must pass unpopular budget cuts before euro zone finance ministers sign off on a bailout deal. exports from china fell in january. the biggest decline since the 2008 crisis. a new sign of weak global demand and a slowing chinese economy. more than a million coffee makers called after dozens of reports people being sprayed with hot liquid, coffee grounds or tea leaves. call of duty is still

selling well, but overall retail sales of video games fell 34% in january because of the lack of new game titles. it is the end of an era for eastman kodak as the company stops making digital cameras and pocket video cameras. the 25 billion dollar foreclosure will mean up to checks for up to $2,000 for some of those who lost their homes. and just in time for valentine's day, new studies on dating show that single men don't want to date a lot of women and are more romantic than women. the surveys also found that as in the past, although most women prefer a man with a job, more than one-third said if they were really interested, unemployment wouldn't matter. coming up, the lakers block the celtics in overtime. the warriors overtake the nuggets. and one very lucky way to score.

plus, the shot that has this golfer busting moves in pebble beach! your early morning sports headlines are straight ahead. mother nature has moves of her own more and talk more about that know coming up. you're watching "early today."

good morning. if you're just waking up, this is "early today."

in sports, last night's classic nba matchup between the lakers and the celtics proved why it is so important to keep playing right up until the buzzer. here is fred roggin with an early look at all of your sports headlines. good morning. it is somewhat of a rivalry week in sports. it started with the pats/giants rematch in the super bowl and then a tlirl between duke and north carolina. last night, lakers and celtics. to boston we go. a riflely like none other. check out how the celts started the game off. the tip, hike, and between his legs and off and running. kobe to pau gasol who dished to andrew bynum. harlem globetrotters would have been proud. this went down to the wire. lakers trailed by two. kobe's shot off the mark but pau gasol there to tip it in and tied the ganel forced to overtime. end of o.t. celts down one. pawl pierce for the win, no. ray allen for the win. rejected by gasol and the lakers

hung on. nuggets continue to struggle and lost their fifth straight last night. golden state rode the hot hand of stephan curry. warriors win it. hockey, caps and jets keep an eye in the middle of the screen. byfuglien with a shot from center ice and he scores! take another look. a goal from that distance ought to be a three-pointer. jets won in a shoot-out 3-2. finally, pebble beach pro am under yesterday. tiger woods the favorite but ken duke had the shot of the day. par 4 16th, duke's approach from the fairway, up, on line and in the hole for an eagle! look at duke's reaction. that is either dancing or he has something in his pants. get down with your bad self, ken. there is the cabbie patch. luckily, duke's golf game is better than his dancing. >> that is your early look at sports on "early today." have a great weekend.

i'm fred roggin. so who would you pick to fight princess diana. in a movie in? your early morning entertainment headlines are straight ahead. plus little life coincides and the astronomical coincide of one baby's birth in georgia. you're watching "early today."

welcome back to "early

today." i mentioned cooler temperatures channeling down the great lakes. chicago lake-effect snow and warning into early tomorrow morning. the issue there will get the snow going early this afternoon and that continues tonight and 1 to 3 inches today but overnight it continues another 4 to 5 inches possible. quiet on the east coast until tomorrow you get the showers even in towards new york with a few light flakes there. if you're watching us on nbc 10 in providence, rhode island, chicken little and the culture of fear at the rhode island school design of museum of art. i've always called it risd. that is your "early today" event of the today. >> everyone in rhode island knows it's that. here is an early look at this morning's headlines in entertainment. that sound you may hear this weekend is probably the sound of husbands and boyfriends being dragged to the movie theater. expectations are high for the romantic drama "the vow" starring channing tatum and

rachel mcadams. the true story about a newlywed who loses her memory after a car crash. it is expected to take top spot up to $30 million and perhaps as many tears. for the guys, there is the weekend's clever counterprogramming. "safe house" it probably will take second with $25 million or more. the 3d re-release of 1999 "star wars" episode one taking in about 20 million. weekend's final new film the pg fantasy adventure "journey 2" starring the rock will grab 15 million. casting news to tell you about. australian naomi wats will play princess diana about the upcoming film about the last two years of her life. she said as much, this is a lot of pressure any kind of role where you're playing a huge,

huge icon. >> i have no love for british imperialism but diana's story is so amazing it has to make a good movie. in albany, georgia, in nearby, sill vesters, deja vu for a pair of paramedics when they she had up at one expecting mom's home. the emergency crew quickly realized jordan was going to be born inside their ambulance. but no problem for these guys. especially since two years ago, it turns out they helped jordan's mom deliver his older sister exactly the same way! they experienced and they are experienced pros. they have delivered plenty of babies but never the second time around with the same mom. both babies, healthy. always a good thing. i'm lynn berry. this is "early today," your first stop of the day today on your nbc station.

our time is 4:28. 38 cold degrees outside this morning. clear skies, nice morning, it looks like. good morning to you, i'm joe krebs. >> i'm eun yang. welcome to "news4 today" for this february 10, friday. happy friday to you. in the news this morning, mitt romney will be campaigning in northern virginia today. the former massachusetts governor will speak at the presidential series breakfast this morning with virginia governor bob mcdonnell in reston. mcdonnell endorsed romney for president last month. and virginia holds its primary next month, as well. romney and ron paul are the only

two candidates whose names will appear on the ballot at this point. there may be good news for romney coming out of a major conservative convention going on now in washington. the associated press spoke to two dozen people at the conservative political action conference, and none said they would not support romney if he seems to be in the best position to beat president obama in november. that could cast doubt on the notion that romney cannot attract conservative republican voters. romney as well as gingrich and santorum will speak today at the convention, also known as cpac, so will governor mcdonnell. former white house hopeful rick perry energized the crowd yesterday when he used clint eastwood's super bowl ad to describe the obama presidency. >> if it's halftime in america, i'm fearful of what the final score's going to be if we let this president start the second half as a quarterback. >> occupy d.c. says it's going to protest today and tomorrow outside the marriott wardman park hotel where this conference is