it's wednesday, february 17th, coming up on "early today," the republicans are feeling the pressure as the clock winds closer to the south carolina show down. and president obama lays out a bold plan to nominate his successor to the supreme court while taking direct aim at donald trump. a rare moment of pope francis losing his cool and the reason why as he greets the faithful. plus incredible images of a driver going straight into a wicked tornado. and a world class athlete shares her darkest hour. and meet c.j. he beat out more than 3,000 dog fweez nas id best in

"early today" starts right now. closing in on the south carolina primary, republicans push back against critics. in the latest poll, the donald has a 12 point lead over senator ted cruz and jeb in a disappointing fourth place trailing marco rubio. president obama weighed in on the race and a direct shot at the frontrunner, donald trump. >> being president is a serious job. it's not hosting a talk show. or a reality show. it's not promotion, it's not marketing. it's hard. >> and this is what mr. trump reacted to when he was told of the president's remarks. >> reality show is not promotion, is not marketing, it's hard. that's

[ crowd boos] >> this man has done such a bad job and for him to say that is a great compliment. your arer lucky i didn't run last time when romney ran because you would have been a one-term president. >> but he soon turned his attention to fellow republican, ted cruz. >> ted cruz who i think is totally unfit be to president, but these are minor details. meanwhile in columbia, south carolina, cruz had his own take on the job. >> you know, people will be forgiven this election season for thinking at times it seems like a bit of a circus. the time for games is over. we need a leader who's prepared to be commander in chief. [ applause ] when radical islamic terrorists wage jihad on the united states of america, the answer is no

>> and cruz picked up two big indorsements, kansas congressman tim, the medal of honor recipie recipient. veterans makeup over 12% of the population there. and for the democrats, both are fighting hard for the african-american vote. hillary clinton is ahead of vermont sanders by 18 points, numbers clinton is hoping to keep security. on tuesday, she met with the leaders of the national urban league and al sharpton said his decision is decided but under wraps. >> she's trying to ask whether i'm endorsing and i said only you know and i'm not telling. >> later during a speech in harlem, clinton

again with a charge of being a single-issue candidate. >> it's not enough for your economic plan to be break up the banks. you also need a serious planning to create jobs, especially in places where unemployment remains doubly high. [ applause ] >> but there are signs of trouble in clinton's push as a top african american democrat in georgia said he would switch from clinton to sanders. siting the minimum wage and health care as reasons for the shift. daughter of eric garner, who died by being put into a choke hold by police in 2014. the late supreme court

justice, ant onin scalia's funeral. and senate judiciary who's in charge of any confirmation hearing said in part quote i would wait until the nominee was made before i made any decisions but he's not open to a confirmation hearing. yesterday president obama charged them to rise above day to day politics. >> this will be the opportunity for senators to do their job. your job doesn't stop until you're voted out or until your term expires. i intend to do my job between now and january 20th of 2017, i expect them to do their job as well. >> nbc's tracie potts is live in washington as well. now we have president obama taking direct aim at the republicans. >> reporter: exactly. sometimes we forget that he taught constitutional la

partisan issue, it's a constitutional issue. listen to his response to republicans arguing that a late-term president in his final year should not be nominating a justice to the u.s. supreme court. >> there's no unwritten law that says that it can only be done on off years. that's not in the constitutional text. i'm amused when i hear people who claim to be strict interpreterase of the constitution reading in things that aren't there. >> reporter: republicans here and on the campaign trail have said they will block those hearings. you heard what chuck said just a few moments ago, that sound that you ran from him. although, he walked that back a bit. also,

who sticks to the law, even if that person disagrees with his politics. >> thank you so much for that. and happening overseas, tensions continue to mount in regards to north korea's missile ambitions. the u.s. flew over south korea today after north korea tested ballistic missile technology. this comes in response to their latest missile launch. defiance of the sanctions, pyongyang firing a long-range rocket with a earth observation satellite. they won't say how long the planes with s will be deployed region. and apple plans to fight. court papers reveal that they

assistance to unlock the cell phone of syed farook. investigators are trying to find out who the shooters were communicating with and who may have helped plan and carry out the massacre. a rare moment of anger from pope francis during his visit to mexico tuesday. he lost his cool after a member of the crowd caused him to lose balance and fall on a man in the wheelchair. he said in spanish "don't be selfish." and he will hold a mass today in the violent border city of juarjuar juarez. >> reporter: i think we'll hear the same message that's been consistent throughout his tour of mexico. this the fifth and final day. one of help for immigrants along the boarder. there's going to be an

interesting mix of theology and technology here later today. the pope will be able to hear and see the thousands as they watch and listen to his mass, which will be just a few miles away, across the boarder. still, for many this is as close as they can get to the pontiff. >> reporter: pope francis ends his tour in mexico with a mass later today in juarez. the five-day journey of hope in a country where it's desperately needed. >> he's reforming the church and i think he's absolutely wonderful. >> reporter: his message to hundreds of thousands who spilled into the streets, fields and arenas to listen has been focussed on compassion to immigrants and a challenge to eliminate the crime, conditions effecting those along the boarder. >> i

[ speaking spanish] if the pope goes, things are going to change. and i remind him the pope is not good and he's not going to change things immediately, but over time. >> reporter: he's going to preach his message to mill yngz yngz -- millions in juarez and in sun bowl stadium. a pontiff's historic visit. >> close to city mexico is very emotional, being here. >> reporter: emotions effecting so many in separate countries but from a single faith. the faithful are expected to gather hours before the mass here at the sun bowl for songs and prayer celebrating the papal visit. and here in el paso, i'm jay gray. back to you.

out of florida. a dash cam was rolling as a man ran straight into the path of a tornado. you can see the sheer force of the twister as tree limbs go flying through the air. and in rochester, new york, hundreds of drivers got stuck on highways and local roads. nearly two feet of snow fell in some parts. and good morning to you, raphael. crazy weather. yeah, we had everything from that same storm system, the severe weather across the south and florida. much quitter today. we look at the satellite and radar picture, our storm is gone and finally high pressure settling in across the east. temperatures in the 40s from boston to d.c. lots of sunshine, also quiet in chicago, 29 and sunny there. and near 80 in miami.

74 in l.a. and we're tracking rain and mountain snow from the pacific northwest down to central california. so it has been quiet, stormy at times return to the west tomorrow as well and we're chilly but dry in the northeast for your thursday. that's a look at your national weather, now here's a closer look at your day ahead. finally catching a break today in new york city, 42 sunshine, boston looking good as well, light snow showers across the great lakes down in the southeast, temperatures in the 60s and 70s. a beautiful day in florida, 78 in miami. back to you, dara. >> thank you. one of the most bazar slow-speed chases ever. plus ultimate fighter, ronda rousy reveals her darkest thoughts if you're looking to save money on your medicare part d prescriptions, walgreens says, carpe med diem.

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town. c.j., a german short-haired pointer from california won best in show at the 140th westminster dog show last night. the 4-year-old beat the best of the best, including rumor has it the german shepherd having won over 100 previous competitions. and check out this police dash cam video of a backhoe on the florida keys seven-mile bridge. deputies were able to stop 59-year-old driver by throwing spike strips in front of the backhoe, slicing the tires. in oklahoma, the new bridge came crashing down on tuesday. it was imploded one month after a brand new bridge was open in january. and on "elen" yesterday, ufc champ ronda rousy recounted her saving grace.

i was like what am i anymore if i'm not this and i was literally sitting there and thinking about killing myself and i'm like i'm nothing. and i looked up and saw my man standing there and i looked up at him and i was just like i need have his babies. i need to stay alive. >> amazing moments pfrmnt. nfl commissioner roger goodell gets a multimillion dollar pay cut. and the show-stopping finish. i'm phil mickelson, pro golfer. my psoriatic arthritis caused joint pain. just like my moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis. and i was worried about joint damage. my doctor said joint pain from ra can be a sign of existing joint damage that could only get worse. he prescribed enbrel to help relieve pain and help stop further damage. enbrel may lower your ability to fight infections. serious, sometimes fatal, events including infections, tuberculosis, lymphoma, other cancers, nervous system and blood disorders

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> ♪ this morning on "today," 3,000 dogs from 12 different countries and all 50 states competing for top dog. today takes you behind the scenes that westminster dog show. and now to sports. college upsets. texas taking on west virginia in austin. the long horns manage to keep the lead. and 25th ranked baylor battled iowa state. baylor with the upset at home. and any idea what this guy earned last year as nfl commissioner? roger goodell earned just over $24 million in 2014

down from the 24.2 million he earned in 2012. a sprinkler malfunction caused a delay in the olympic qualifying match. and 5-1 was w the victory. and talk about the dunk team has raised the bar. the seven-team member finish with a monster slam dunk that shatters the back board. talk about your show stopper. and just ahead, someone famous is getting a face lift just for the oscars. plus, the eagles of death metal make a triumphant performance in paris. do you love your wireless keyboard more than certain family members? is your success due to a filing system only you understand? does printing from your tablet to your wireless printer give you a jolt of confidence? if so, you may be gearcentric.

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i think we should've taken a tarzan know where tarzan go! tarzan does not know where tarzan go. hey, excuse me, do you know where the waterfall is? waterfall? no, me tarzan, king of jungle.

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victims. and there's a new family member in the new house gang, none other than donald trump. >> you see, donald, that's just it. if you really want to make america great again, you have to bring people together, not push them apart. >> look, dunelonald, we underst you're used to winning all the time and now that you're not, you're scared and confused. >> i know, you're right. what ever happened to predictabili predictability. the milk man, paper boy. >> funny moments. i'm dara brown and this is "early today."

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now at 4:26, breaking news surrounding a judge's order for apple to unlock the phone used by one of the terrorists in the san bernardino attack. the response just in from apple. toxic culture. those words are sure to be brought up several times today as d.c.'s new fire chief gets ready to go before the d.c. council. >> announcer: "news4 today" starts now. and for the first time in days, the weather has finally calmed down. some of you waking up above freezing this morning. how about that. good morning, everybody, i'm aaron gilchrist. >> and i lick that, good morning, i'm eun yang. let's go to

desk with the latest. good morning, angie. >> yes, we do have school delays to tell you about. let's begin in virginia, spotsylvania and culpepper schools start two-hour delays. west virginia, jefferson county, hampshire county morgan county and hardy county schools on delays. we'll continue to post it on our nbc washington app. eun, aaron. >> thank you. >> let's check in with storm team 4 meteorologist chuck bell. >> hey, good morning. there's no snow falling. temperatures flirts right around the freezing mark. some above, some below. 27, manassas, 32 in rockville. some a

could be an icy spot or two. nothing has fallen out of the sky. clouds clearing out this afternoon. breezy and cool. temperatures today close to average, hovering in the mid to upper 40s this afternoon. we'll start talking about the warming in the weekend for the next couple minutes, it's track time. >> melissa. >> talking about construction here. top of the beltway, a couple of construction pieces to pass along. innerloop, right lanes getting by. outer loop getting by in the right lane. as far as other problems, 15 southbound, near 50, we have police directing traffic around the crash here. road work on 395 south after seminary, two left lanes getting by. can the d.c. fire transport? >> no, they cannot.

to the hospital? that is one of tough questions the d.c. fire chief has to answer at a council hearing today. d.c. firefighters will decide who takes the patient to the hospital. and that is raising concerns. although tough questions chief greg doerr dean will face today will surround the resignation of the department's medical director. in a scathing letter dr. juliet saussy described it as a tough culture. the memo said that dr. saussy was dissatisfied and did not fulfill the duties of her job. the chief said he will explore the successes at the hearing. >> we'll be talking about a lot of different areas, the recruits, the class, the entrance exam that we've given for the first time in years. >> the hearing will a

long private ambulances will operate in d.c. today is a sad day for the hartford county sheriff's office as it prepares to bury one of its deputies. senior deputy patrick daly died in a shoot-out. he was shot and kimmed at the panera restaurant. the deputy mark mozdan was also killed. his funeral is sunday. brian mayhew is serving a life sense for killing someone in 2011. prosecutors say mayhew had someone killed who is testifying against him. lynette mundey is accused of stealing $1300 worth of fre