geoff: thank you. the commitment 2016, the gop race heating up with the south carolina primary two days away. allyson: a new poll has a shakeup in the race. nikole killion joins us live with more. nikole: good morning. today, the candidates are going to square off in another town hall after two competing ones were held last night. the townhome -- a townhall with donald trump on msnbc and ted cruz, arco a ben carson on cnn. the new wall street journal poll shows donald trump slipping behind ted cruz. >> this led a really impressed the balance of the most frivolous and ridiculous letters i have ever seen. >> i don't know that we will

nikole: the tangle comes as marco rubio picks up the key endorsement from governor nikki haley. this is a bit of a setback for jeb bush because he did want her support, but he does have his mother with him on his campaign. allyson: you mentioned this a little, but how have the candidates reacted to nikki haley's decision to endorse marco rubio? nikole: jeb bush admitted he was disappointed and called nikki haley the most meaningful endorsement in south carolina. at a rally for donald trump, [no audio] this is one with democrats. allyson: hillary clinton a bebeie sanders. with the primary two days away, candidates are on the road today throughout the state. geoff: and many are here in the upstate. presidential candidate marco rubio remains in greenville

cnn. he has stops starting with a rally at 9:00 this morning with that's at swamp rabbit crossfit in greenville. he then has a meet and greet at 12:30 at anderson's hilton garden inn before heading back to greenville tonight. ted cruz also set to be in greenville at noon today. this is video of his visit to seneca yesterday. cruz has a luncheon with the greenville county republican men's club. after that he goes to easley for , a meet and greet at mutts bbq. that's at 2:15. allyson: john kasich's scheduled for a town hall in the upstate. he's set to be at the strom thurmond institute at clemson starting at 2:15 this afternoon. and donald trump has a town hall today at the broad river electric cooperative in gaffney. that's scheduled to be 5:30 this evening. geoff: doctor ben carson as well as senator ted cruz will appear at the conservative review's first even convention at the well tonight. that's at 8:00. conservative icon, author, and commentator sean hannity will also be speaking. many are still talking about the big event last night in

c.n..n.'s gop first of two town halls. voters who say they are still undecided, listened to doctor ben carson, senator ted cruz and senator marco rubio in the old cigar warehouse in the west end. >> people won't support a comprehensive approach to immigration. it's now been tried three times in the last decade. it has failed each time, and so now we have to understand that the only way forward is thru a step by step approach that begins with finally securing our border. >> i will compass i laughed out loud. this has not been a typical race by any sense. i don't think anyone is surprised that donald trump is turning to sue people. he has done that most of his adult life. >> by the time we got to the 1960's, lbj was saying we the government are going to eliminate poverty. how'd that work out? you know, $19 trillion later, 10 times more people on food stampspsmore poverty, more welfare.

town hall tonight. that one's in columbia with trump, bush and kasich. allyson: south carolina voters are runing out of time to cast absentee votes for the gop primary saturday. dozens of voters waited in line yesterday in greenville county. you're required to have a reason to vote early. there are 17 different scenarios including being out of town on , voting day. folks who are 65 years and older are also able to vote absentee. you have until 5:00 p.m. the day before each primary to cast an absentee vote in person. the polling office will extend hours until 7:00 tonight and ursday of next week for absentee voters. don't forget, wyff news 4 is your home for commitment 2016 coverage. on saturday night, as soon as the polls close at 7:00,we'll bring you full coverage of the election results.. live reports from across the upstate from candidate watch parties. we'll cover this through news 4 at 11:00 with everything you need to know about the south carolina gop primary right here on wyff 4 and on our mobile app. geoff: on the democratic side

for hillary clinton at upstate universities. she'll be at presbyterian college wofford college and usc upstate. this is video from clinton's visit yesterday to chicago. allyson: taking a look at the roads, picking up on i-85 around highway 14. a serious accident in anderson county and the coroner has been called to highway 81 and highway 153. road closures in downtown greenville at falls park drive from main street to boggs aly. a 5k will close woodland weight circle from 8:00 to 9:30 in the morning. other than that, roadways lookinin clear and smooth speed limit drive. let's take a look at haywood road. geoff: dale, pretty nice stretch for good four days or so.

temperature currently at 30 and laurens, and lighter winds will be the story today, so good news for folks getting outdoors to enjoy the weather or work. won't be quite as cool as far as wind chill. high pressure and control meaning dry weather. franklin and andrews at low to mid 20's. greenville at 31 may drop a degree before climbs. boone is the breezy us. as you look ahead, it gets better. 54 to 57 tomorrow, 64 on saturday and 66 sunday. the mountains will hit 60's both days but a 30% chance of showers after 4:00 on sunday afternoon. on monday, have the umbrella ready because of 50% to 60% chance on monday and better chance on tuesday of more rain.

screenings in jeb bush's super pac continues to throw mud, this time about john kasich. newt gingrich responded, "any suggestion that john kasich is anti-defense is simply false. i served with him for sixteen years and he consistently fought for a better, more effective military. any ad attacking kasich on defense should be pulled as false and misleading."

announcer: you are watching live, local, breaking news with geoff hart, allyson powell, and weather with meteorologist dale gilbert. this is wyff news 4 today in

allyson: coming up on 6:11. happening today, if you've been meaning to get to the doctor to get your heart health checked out, now's your chance to do it for free. geoff: wyff news 4's aly myles joins us live from bon secours. aly: good morning. we are live and talking about the free heart screenings today. they start at less than one hour -- they start in less than one hour. the thing we're talking about . guenther, a registered dietitian. talk to me about what folks can do to make sure they are doing the best they can for their bodies. >> from a nutrition expected -- perspective, whole grains, lean meats, and when we talk about heart health, we want to focus on a low-sodium diet. that will eliminate a lot of canned and processed foods.

grocery store, vegetables, not the frozen section. that is a good place for purpose with no extra sodium, but if you're looking for canned stuff, with or less sodium. and pay attention to that content. we want to have more heart healthy fats from things like avocado, peanut butter, less of red meats, and those sorts of things. balancing those will be very helpful. aly: is there anything that is surprising when they find out it is bad for you? >> i think just looking at a lot of processed food. even something that comes in a green box does not mean it is healthy. a lot of your foods marketed as a health food, you turn around and nitpick and see, it does have hydrogenated oils, trans-fats, it has way more sodium than i need per day, so getting comfortable with that

aly: thank you for joining us this morning. it will be checking for things like cholesterol, blood pressure, blood glucose and it only involves a finger prick. it is from 7:00 to 9:00 and don't forget, do not eat or

dale: >> now, your live super doppler 4 hd forecast. dale: good morning. getting busy on three 85 outbound, woodruff road. not as far he has yesterday with clear skies, high-pressure and control in the southeast and a wonderful day ahead. temperatures ranging from low to mid 20's in western north carolina, upper 20's and rutherfordton to boone. temperatures in the upper 20 to 30 range in the upstate. in anderson, 30. look at pickens, 24 and 27 in easley. attend degree difference within counties across the upstate and mountains. cool now, but by the afternoon, temperatures will reach low-to-mid 50's. not has windy, so good.

everybody looks around seven miles an hour as far as breezes. average this time of the year is what we are experiencing. 30's in the morning, mid to upper 50's for the afternoon. look at the record in 2011 when it got up to 78. we can have former personals and temperatures and we will see that this weekend. not 70's but mid 60's on the way for the weekend. asheville averages 50 to make it up to 50 to 51 today. tomorrow should be on the money as far as typical temperatures. the jet stream is taking a dip down south, ushering cold temperatures in supported this morning. atlantic is at 35. when the jet stream receives, temperatures will warm up friday, saturday and sunday. if you are headed down to the beach or staying in the upstate, pretty much the same with mid to upper 60's for highs.

56 degree temperatures or the upstate and low 50's expected in the mountains today. even better tomorrow. perfect weather for kickoff for baseball. saturday and sunday, mid 60's for the upstate and 60 in the mountains. i 4:00 on sunday afternoon, we will have a better chance of a shower and a better chance on monday. allyson: taking a look at the roads, i-85 around pelham road, reported pedestrian in the roadway, southbound lanes. be careful. a serious accident this morning. the corner has been called in powdersville at highway 81 and highway 153. injuries are reported. slow around the area and we will keep you updated. road closed in downtown

from main street to boggs aly. on saturday, heads up, if you are on woodland way circle, that will be closed for a 5k in the morning. 26 and 40 looking at a smooth speed limit drive. all good on 385 and 85. enough around woodruff road. construction on woodruff road but should clear within the hour. geoff: the daytona 500 a few days away and really know the top two so far because they had qualifiers last week and they will run the couple of races this evening to determine the field. and with all that kyle busch has accomplished on the track. one thing he's never done is win the great american race. ricardo lecompte has more from daytona beach, florida, with the defending sprint cup champion. ricardo: in 2015, he captured his first ever sprint cup championship. he wants to start the 2016 season by captured his first

>> that is what it is all about. that is what speed week is about , what a lot of driver seasons are built on. i would love to come out to win this thing and continue on their winning ways. and to in the daytona 500 this year. ricardo: it will not take long to see what 18 has on the speedway. the tool takes place thursday night. ricardo lecompte wyff news 4 sports. geoff: thank you. to high school basketball, the playoffs began last night for the 2a and 4a voice teams. gaffney knocked off hillcrest. we have all of last night's scores under schools on our wyff 4 mobile app. allyson: you can register to volunteer or buy tickets for the bmw program. it will be held in the upstate on may 19 two the 22nd. more than 1000 volunteers are

volunteer will earn $20 per day for their chosen tournament charity. they donated thousands of dolllls to charity last year. we have a link on her mobile app to learn more. to south carolina money matters, boeing has delivered their airplane assembled in north charleston. the company announced the 787-8 was delivered to american airlines tuesday. the plane was finished late last year at the dreamliner plant in the low country. it had been undergoing system checks and engine runs since. the first dreamliner manufactured in south carolina rolled off the assembly line at boeing's $750 million assembly plants almost four years ago. geoff: if you could name the

this nuisance in allyson: in this morning's buzz, the fast-growing tumbleweed is known as the sahara panic. geoff: all right, take a look at this thing. people were frustrated and complaining about the cleanup

wednesday, causing the wild tumbleweed to cover properties, gardens and garages. local media reported that the tumbleweed has been around for a couple of years but dry conditions have made this some of the worst area. >> we have a table and chairs, and the tumbleweed came through. i spent eight hours cleaning up the tumbleweed yesterday. this is what i have got today. geoff: it is a nightmare. people thinking the tumbleweed is coming for the nearby field and they have failed to maintain . they are not considered a fire risk and the local counsel has refused to help people clean it up. dale: how could that not be a fire risk? it is liket tinder box ready to go. geoff: i guess that is where the pan it comes through. allyson: i have seen tumbleweeds

geoff: that is a lot more. doesn't it? they had kangaroos that can jump big. such an odd country. we have 31 degrees in greenville, or skies and it will get to the mid 50's for the afternoon in the mountains will see temperatures reach about 51. a sweater and jacket early and nice for the afternoon today. time for a school salute picture from mrs. baldwin's class at east north street academy. remember that at that last friday with snow? they all ran around outside and minutes. the kids even got out of school. geoff: looked like a blast. it's time now for your wyff news 4 timeline on this february 18. on this date in 1930, astronomers discovered pluto. allyson: pluto is thought to be

the sun. astronomer percival lowell

earlier where pluto would be.breaking news this morning... allyson: breaking traffic news.

headed to attempt the wreck on highway 81 near highway 153 in powdersville. it happened around 4:30 this morning. we will bring you more details on air and on a mobile app. geoff: four people in easily charged with murder. they found 17-year-old kejuan brown was shot and killed at tri-city lanes around nine last night. it happened in the parking lot. he was shot in the chest. authorities say they found the suspects at a spinx store on 183. they arrested jamari fair, dennis gibb, albert taylor and a 15-year-old. allyson: in pickens county, they have identified the victim of a deadly head on crash. tiffany labelle was driving a car that collided with the pickupupruck. she died at the scene. geoff: an update to breaking news yesterday morning. anderson county deputies want to find these two men after convenience store clerk was shot during a robbery. if you know anything about the crime call crime stoppers at

you this morning, and oconee fired. the georgia bureau of investigation said it was part of a drug trafficking operating and surrounding communities. they seized more than $9 million investigation. allyson: as we take a live look outside, let's get with our chief meteorologist -- our meteorologist. i gave you a promotion, dale. [laughter] dale: i will take that. clear and cool temperatures this morning. 30's overnight with clear skies and no fog like yesterday morning. temperatures will rebound quickly and get into the 50's. 55, 56 for the upstate and 51 expected for the mountains. lighter breezes than yesterday. a nice day. we will talk about how long the pattern will last in a few minutes.

turning to commitment 2016, the gop race heating up as the primary nears. allyson: nikole killion has the latest from our washington newsroom. nikole: tonight, three of the gop candidates will take part in ones were held last night. donald trump was on msnbc and ben carson on cnn. carson on cnn. donald trump threatened to sue ted cruz over paul's campaign ads. >> this led a really pressed the bounds of the most ridiculous letters i have ever seen. >> i don't know that we will have a lawsuit but we went to keep someone honest. nikole: it comes as marco rubio picks up the endorsement of governor nikki haley, considered a setback to jeb bush. he has another powerful woman with him today, his mother barbara. nikole killion wyff news 4 in

allyson: thank you. candidates are on the road again today throughout the state. geoff: many are in the upstate. marco rubio remains in greenville after last night's greenville. he has stops starting with a rally at 9:00 with senator tim scott. that's at swamp rabbit crossfit in greenville. he then has a meet and greet at 12:30 at anderson's hilton garden inn before heading back to greenville tonight. ted cruz also set to be in greenville at noon today. this is video of his visit to seneca yesterday. cruz has a luncheon with the greenville county republican women's club. after that he goes to easley for , a meet and greet at mutts bbq. that's at 2:15. allyson: john kasich's scheduled for a town hall in the upstate. he's set to be at t t strom thurmond institute at clemson starting at 2:15 this afternoon. and donald trump has a town hall today at the broad river electric cooperative in gaffney. that's scheduled to be 5:30 this evening. geoff: doctor ben carson as well as senator ted cruz will appear at the conservative review's

that's at 8:00. conservative icon, author, and commentator sese hannity will also be speaking. many are still talking about the big event last night in greenville. c.n..n.'s gop first of two town halls. voters who say they are still undecided, listened to doctor ben carson senator ted cruz and , senator marco rubio in the old cigar warehouse in the west end. >> people won't support a comprehensive approach to immigration. it's now been tried three times in the last decade. it has failed each time, and so now we have to understand that the only way forward is thru a step by step approach that begins with finally securing our border. >> i will confess i laughed out loud. this has not been the typical race by any sense. i don't think anyone is surprised that donald trump is threatening to sue people. he has done that most of his adult life. >> by the time we got to the 1960's, lbj was saying we the government are going to eliminate poverty. how'd that work out?

times more people on food stamps, more poverty, more welfare, broken homes, out of -- geoff: cnn hosts another gop town hall tonight. that one's in columbia with trump, bush and kasich. allyson: south carolina voters are runing out of time to cast absentee votes for the gop primary saturday. dozens of voters waited in line yesterday in greenville county. you're required to have a reason to vote early. you have until 5:00 p.m. the day before each primary to cast them -- cast an absentee vote in person. the polling office will extend hours until 7:00 tonight and thursday of next week for absentee voters in the democratic primary. wyff news 4 is your home for commitment 2016 coverage. on saturday night, as soon as the polls close at 7:00, we will bring you full coverage of the election results. geoff: on the democratic side michele kwan set to stump for , hillary clinton at upstate universities. she'll be at presbyterian

upstate. this is video from clinton's visit yesterday to chicago. allyson: the deadly accident this morning in anderson county. minute.

clear and cool conditions >> now, your live super doppler 4 hd forecast. dale: good morning. here is our skycam, starting to see early light in spartanburg. 32 degrees and sunrise happens a little after 7:00. as a look at from our various skycam's, pretty pictures. high pressure is going to be the story, meaning clear skies, beautiful day for today, tomorrow and starting to get more clouds saturday and sunday. maybe late sunday, the showers quote be skied -- the upstate will seats scattered showers or two. cool this morning and tomorrow morning. over the weekend, low 40's as opposed to vote 30's. here is the expected high today. about 2:00, temperatures will

the upstate and piedmont counties will do better. 50 to 51 and dissipated in the asheville area today. upper 50's tomorrow and mid 60's saturday and sunday. a wonderful break from the cold this weekend. rain comes back first of the week. allyson: happening right now in traffic, first pictures of a fatal accident happening that 4:30 this morning and powdersville. highway 81 near highway 153, the corner has been called to the scene of the accident. avoid the area this morning. that is highway 153 and highway 81. spartanburg county, you accident blocking the road at asheville highway and john. road. yellow indicating slower than normal traffic. it is blocking the road. also, the road closure today at falls park drive in downtown

boggs allete and will be close throughout tomorrow. 385 and 85 looking good this morning. nine minutes from highway 101 to 385. that should be the traffic. geoff: happening this morning, a free hardtop screening in greenville. -- a free heart health screening in greenville. aly myles joins us to the lesson. -- to fill us in. aly: good morning. we are doing a free heart screening. i'm not sure who is being brave, me or meredith, but talk to me about what folks will do if they come. >> as they come in, they will get paperwork at the front desk, go to a screening station that is part rate, blood pressure, height, weight, emi and then -- bmi and then they will get the

to do a full risk assessment. the paperwork they can take to their own position or if they don't have one, we can get one for them and get them started. aly: speaking of the process, let's go for it and i will talk in the meantime and try not to jump too much. this is from 7:00 until 9:00 today. i am about to be brave. the worst part just be the finger pricking. she has been doing this for 17 years, a huge collaboration and deal for bon secours st. francis health system, upstate cardiology and run by the governor's office because this is a statewide screening day. you can get results in about five minutes and i will be able to tell you how high my blood pressure is. i get nervous during the show. as she was saying, very easy stuff. you can make sure there is no heart disease, risk, weak as a

not know they have symptoms until it is too late. if you have a few minutes this morning, do not eat or drink before you come today. i cannot really show you what is going on because we don't want to show blood, but thank you for doing this. we will be back in a few minutes to let you know what is going on. aly myles wyff news 4 live at the bon secours wellness arena. brad: the clemson men are in control of their own destiny. most of the games from here on out our must win games. the tigers have three of their last on the road and needed to win three of the fourth to get into the tournament. with boston college a back and , forth first half, but jaron blossomgame with a couple highlight reel dunks. clemson trailed 34 to 31 at the break. dante grantham pulls up on the break and drills the three. grantham finished with 10. avery holmes hit some big shots down the stretch. holmes with 17 on the night to go with 5 assists, and then blossomgame with the daggar.

rebounds. clemson wins its ninth acc game of the season. they beat boston college 65 to 54. weekend. a rivalry game. game. final seconds, north carolina up by one. grayson allen out on the break is fouled. the shot doesn't fall, but allen hit both free throws to put duke up by one. final possession and opportunity for the tar heels. berry's shot is partailly blocked and no timeout called. he wanted his guys to go and duke comes down at the fall and the blue devils stun the tar heels 74 to 73, the final score. allyson: taking a live look outside from our anderson

jeb bush's super pac continues to throw mud, this time about john kasich. newt gingrich responded, "any suggestion that john kasich is anti-defense is simply false. i served with him for sixteen years and he consistently fought for a better, more effective military. any ad attacking kasich on defense should be pulled as false and misleading."

k in powderville... allyson: breaking traffic news, a fatal wreck and powdersville that highway 81 near highway 153. we had a photographer on the way to the scene. also breaking this morning, for people now charged with murder. geoff: police said they found 17-year-old kejuan brown was shot and killed at tri-city lanes around nine last night. it happened in the parking lot. they arrested jamari fair, dennis gibb, albert taylor and a

allyson: new information in pickens county where the coroner identified the victim of the deadly head-on crash. tiffany lavelle was driving a car that collided with a pickup truck on wednesday afternoon. she died at the scene. geoff: an update to breaking news yesterday, anderson county deputies want to find these two men on your television screen after a convenience store clerk was shot during a robbery. if you know w ything about this, call crime stoppers at 1-888-crime-sc. allyson: also new, the georgia bureau of investigation says they were part of a drug trafficking network operated out of stevens county and surrounding communities. they seized more than $9 million worth of drugs in the investigation. turning to weather with a live look from our peace center skycam in downtown greenville. geoff: clemson and south carolina getting ready to open the baseball season, but weather will be good. dale: you couldn't order any

today will be a nice day. beautiful skies. sunrise at seven: 12 this morning. asheville at 30 degrees, so a jacket will feel good for the early hours and the afternoon will reach 50 to 51 in the mountains and mid 50's in the upstate. breezes will be lighter today. today, the temperatures are in the 20's and 30's and not chilled with the windchill. about five to 10 in the mountains and less in the upstate. for the afternoon today, mid 50's for the upstate, the 50's for the mountains and it gets much better saturday and sunday with mid 60's. great weather to watch a game, a vote, whatever you have planned. allyson: thank you. speaking of voting, candidates are visiting south carolina today. a big indoor smith for one candidate. >> every day -- geoff: of big endorsement for

>> every day is a good day in south carolina. ladies and gentlemen, if we elect marco rubio, every day will be a great day in america. geoff: governor nikki haley throwing her support behind marco rubio for president. the influential endorsement comes just days before the south carolina primary, and it was just hours before last night's cnn republican town hall. allyson: marco rubio remains in greenville after last night and he starts with the rally at 9:00 this morning with senator tim scott that's long for rabbit crossfit in greenville. that's at 9:00. then rubio will head to anderson for a meet and greet. that's at the hilton garden inn on destination boulevard at 12:30 ted cruz is also in the upstate today. he's here for a luncheon with the greenville county republican women's club. after that, he will head to a meet and greet in easley. he will be at mutt's barbeque at 2:15. geoff: john kasich will be in clemson at 2:15 today.

strom thurmond institute. donald trump has a town hall today for 5:30 this evening. allyson: dr. ben carson and ted cruz will be at the first-ever convention at the well tonight at 8:00. sean hannity will also be speaking. geoff: south carolina voters are running out of time to cast their absentee votes. you are required to have a reason to vote early. there are 17 different scenarios, including being out of town on voting day. folks who are 65 years and older are also able to vote absentee. you have until 5:00 p.m. the day before each primary to cast an absentee vote in person. the polling office will extend hours until 7:00 tonight. allyson: wyff news four is your

on saturday night, as soon as the polls close at 7:00, we'll bring you full coverage of the election results. olympic skater michele kwan set to stump for hillary clinton at upstate universities. she'll be at presbyterian college wofford college and usc , upstate. this is video from clinton's visit yesterday to chicago. president obama heads to cuba. the first commander-in-chief to visit in nearly nine decades. allyson: nikole killion has more from our exclusive washington newsroom with the daytona 500 -- with the trip getting criticism. nikole: the white house will unveil their plans for president obama's historic visit to cuba. he is expected to travel there in march. this comes about one year after the administration moved to relaunch relations with havana, but some are not happy with his visit. the congressman born in cuba

point to the castro regime, saying there has been no progress regarding human rights. nikole killion in washington wyff news 4. geoff: thanknkou. with the daytona 503 days away a , lot of eyes are on the upgraded daytona internationon -- with the daytona 500 three days away, a lot of eyes are on the upgraded daytona international speedway. the world center of racing received a $400 million face lift over the last year, called the daytona rising project and designed to give more of a stadium feel. drivers say the best has gotten better. >> i know personally when i pull up on the highway here, i look at the outside and say that is pretty amazing. but stepping in it, it was absolutely amazing what some of the people have done. geoff: the track president says the fan area is set to have a new look in the next year or so, too. brad: cemson wide receiver germone hoppper has decided to transfer to another school for his final year of college. hopper is expected to graduate this summer, which makes him eligible to transfer and play

hopper caught 71 passes for 797 yards in his three years playing for the tigers. he registered as a freshman. his best game this past season came against wake forest, where he caught three passes for 129 yards and a touchdown. no word on where he will transfer. allyson: you can get the free heart health screening in greenville. last time we checked, aly myles was getting her blood drawn. let's check in now. aly: pretty painless and very fast. my results are in. i think it was seven minutes ago they did the finger pricking. good results on my end. relatively low cholesterol, 173. it should be below 200 or my size. you can see the folks behind me getting started. they are already getting folks in the chairs, getting them ready to get to work today and getting set up for a fast

it is important to get prescreening. they coming that because of this, it can help you find symptoms that you may not know you had. this goes from 7:00 to 9:00 with free screenings at the bon secours wellness arena. all the information is online. aly myles wyff news 4 live at the bon secours. geoff: a lot of people. it will be a big day at the well. unfortunately, a fatal accident in powdersville. allyson: a lot going on. you are taking a look and a picture of the fatal accident at highway 81, have a 153 in powdersville. avoid that area. slow around that and the corner was called to that accident around 4:30. one blocking the road in spartanburg as well in asheville. traffic is slow there as it works to get around the accident. a road closed in downtown

from main street. geoff: it is chilly this morning, but the pretty nice stretch ahead. dale: a beautiful morning. 30 degrees, calm and by the afternoon, reach in the upstate, the mountains of north reaching the 50's or afternoon highs. high pressure keeps us dry through sunday. late sunday afternoon by about 4:00, the mountains may get a shower but a beautiful weekend and warmer. mid-fifties today, mid 60's across the region as a get to saturday and sunday in the mountains get up to around 60. a really nice pattern of whether to take us to the weekend. temperatures start to warm up nicely as the kids get out of school this afternoon with mid 50's in the low 50's today.

this morning on "today," ted cruz and donald trump at each other's throats. the latest political drama, ahead on "today." allyson: a reminder in "the greenville news," the primary is this weekend and next weekend. you do not have to declare republican or democrat that you can only vote in one primary.

to be

let us be lovers, we'll marry our fortunes together [ cheering ] i've got some real estate here in my bag counting the cars on the new jersey turnpike they've all come to look for america [ cheers and applause ] all come to look for america all come to look for america all come to look for america

good morning. breaking overnight the white house expected to announce today that president obama will head to cuba next month, the first american president to go there in nearly 90 years. a historic trip being met with praise and criticism. game change? ted cruz just ahead of donald trump in our new national poll. >> the sounds you're hearing is the sound of screams coming from washington, d.c. >> this morning why trump says he is not buying those results. slippery slope? the tech world lining up behind apple as a government tries to get the company to hack into the iphone of this san bernardino shooter.

privacy and protecting america. and speaking out. why the sister of nicole brown simpson is furious about the new o.j. simpson mini series and one star in particular. today is thursday, february 18, 2016. >> from nbc news this is "today" with matt lauer and savannah guthrie live from studio 1 a in rockefeller plaza. >> and good morning. welcome to "today." i'm savannah guthrie. we have willie in for matt this week. a lot of people are talking about the new poll. and if it holds up it is a real shift in the race. >> a lot of eyebrows raised. >> 28% for ted cruz moving into first place over donald trump. this is a different story than what is told by many other national polls where trump had a big lead.