as dan lothian reportt... controversial law was signed by president obama two years ago last friday. friday. --reporter pkg-as follows --it took a bruising battte to get obama barely got the affordable carr act---his signature accomplishment--- across he finish line, but at a high cost."i think barack tea parry found its voice and set oot to dismmntle whaa had been a cornnrstone of the presidents 2008 campaign. "...it's not a maadaae on government to provide health insurance, it's a mandate on individuals to purchase it." once in office the president pushed hard to sell the plan &pto the country... "we need health care reform because future."and to congress""he time for bickering is over. the time for games has passed." but the time for biikering had only just begun.and in onee reached a new low."the reforms i'm prooosing would not apply to thoseewho are here illegally."" you lie!" republican congressman joe wilson shouted the feelinns of maay americans some of whom joined the tea party in protesting what they

with that story we go to correspondent dan lothian. n, tell me what happened today. >> reporter: officials saying that meeting between president obama and prime minister netanyahu lasted about two hours, and then they moved on to a working lunch. according to these senior officials, the message remains unchanged. the position on iran that they should not get a nuclear weapon as opposed to what the israelis are looking for, a much lower threshold, which is iran not acquiring nuclear capability. in all, though, the two leaders try to portray a sense of unity. president obama saying that the u.s. does have israel's back, but benjamin netanyahu saying that israel is responsible for its own security. >> israel must have the ability always to defend itself by itself against any threat, and that when it comes to israel's security, israel has the right, the sovereign right, to make its own decisions. >> reporter: now, president obama is calling for patience, believing that diplomacy can work here, that the sanctions that have been brought on ir

dan lothian is at the white house. bashing the president, calling his visit staggering in its disingenuousness. ouch. >> reporter: that's right. some tough talk there from republicans. and as you pointed out, there are two pipelines here. the one that the president rejected, his administration rejected in january, saying that the people who own this pipeline or were planning this pipeline should go back to the drawing board. that one runs from canada in -- would run from canada to the united states. the president, this administration concerned about some environmental issues. that's why that was rejected. then there is this southern part of this pipeline which would run from cushing, oklahoma, to texas that would take oil to be refined. that oil is now transported by trucks or by trains. so this would be seen as a more efficient and safer way to transport that oil. now what republicans are pointing out is that this really -- this particular pipeline within the united states is nothing that really involves the president

dan lothian, cnn, the white house. >> all right. thanks. later this hour we're going to speak with an expert about the divide between israel and the u.s. and what it could mean for how the allies confront iran. >>> up next, the state of black america as seen by the national urban league. we're talking about important issues fundamental to every american. we'll see him after the break. >>>first, i want to tell you about this. this week's cnn hero has watched the beauty of the sea disappear. he's bringing life back to a world in crisis. meet ken knead mieer. >> i grew up diving in the florida keys. it was just the most magical place. the coral reeves were so pretty. i decided that's what i wanted to do for a living is do i have on coral reeves. in an area there's live coral, there's more fish. reef provide protection. over time, i saw those coral reef start to die. worldwide, they are in decline. if they die completely, coastal communities would be bankrupt. tourism would be virtually gone. a billion people in the world will be impacted. i st

let's go to dan lothian to parse what the president said.s. >> reporter: the president pointed out this is a case being investigated he needed to be very careful as he weighed into this publicly for the first time. at the briefing over the last week here at the white house we have been asking whether or not the president had said anything about this case, what his feelings were, and the white house was very careful to sort of give broad statements about how this was a tragedy and now the president is saying it's a tragedy when he thinks of the boy he thinks of his own daughters. certainly this adds more weight to a story that has captivated the nation. i think the president pointing out that if he had a son he would look like this young boy. so the president obama during the nomination for the world bank, making a stand at least publicly for the first time on this very couldn't ser sal case. >> i did think it was interesting, dan, he only allowed that one question, he answered it and then left. it was a if he didn't want any more questions a

. >>> i'm dan lothian at the white house.met medvedev jumps into the political fray. >>> we are tracking that fire just southwest of denver, colorado, that exploded overnight. over 3,000 acres burned. 900 homes evacuated. fire danger still exists today. we'll go over where that is happening in the next hour. >> thanks to all of you. can your employer ask you for your facebook log-in and password? they can under most state laws. coming up, one man who gave up that personal information because he feared for his job. e™ no calorie sweeteners. this bowl of strawberries is loaded with vitamin c. and now, b vitamins to boot. coffee doesn't have fiber. unless you want it to. splenda® essentials™ are the first and only line of sweeteners with a small boost of fiber, or antioxidants, or b vitamins in every packet. mmm. same great taste with an added "way to go, me" feeling. splenda® essentials™. get more out of what you put in. ashlee! ashlee! ashlee! ashlee! what were you looking for when you bought your edge? um, i was definitely lo

does the rest of the law belong on the scrap heath as well in dan lothian is at the white house.equiring most americans to have health insurance or be penalized, it seems to be in trouble based on the court's questions. tell us what the justices are saying and what it might mean. >> reporter: that's right. this is really historic, getting a chance to hear audiotapes because you see which direction these justices are leaning. the liberals are clearly standing behind this health care law. the conservatives asking some very tough questions because they're concerned about the president dents that this would be setting if you're requiring americans to buy something. justice roberts wondering whether or not you could require americans to buy cell phones, for example, in order for them to be able to call in the case of an emergency. so there were really some blunt arguments on both sides. >> everybody has to buy food sooner or later. so you define the market as food. therefore, everybody's in the market, and therein, you can make people buy broccoli. >> the people who don't participate

dan lothian has the very latest for us. >> well, good morning. you know, the white house believes that it is constitutional, and what they're saying and they've been saying now for the past two years is that there are a lot of benefits to it this new law, that young people between 21 and 26 years old who move back in with their parents will be covered, that seniors will have better coverage, and that everyone being covered will bring down the overall cost of health care insurance. but, of course, republicans have been pushing back saying that all of these things that the white house is talking about in terms of the benefits of this new law simply aren't panning out and in the end it will be a much more expensive law. what will be heard in the court today will be what's called the antiinjunction act. essentially, as you pointed out, those who do not take this coverage, which everyone must have insurance coverage by 2014, those who do not will face a penalty of $700 a year. but, of course, since no one has been penalized yet, can, in fact, this be

. >>> i'm dan lothian at the white house.ews conference this afternoon. he will be asked a number of questions about foreign policy, domestic issues, but also will be announcing a new housing plan to help those in the military and veterans. i'll have more details at the top of the hour. >>> i'm elise labbott in washington. israel prime minister heads to capitol hill after talks with president obama and tough speech about iran's nuclear program, coming up in the next hour. >> thanks. >>> also in the next hour one of newt gingrich's key supporters will join us. georgia governor nathan deal. and asked if today could make or make the gingrich campaign. >>> it is conference championship week in college basketball. four more teams have cards to the big dance. vcu used their defense to knock off drexel and take the colonial tournament. the dragons won 19 straight. the rams back in the ncaas after making it back to the final four in the season. to the west coast conference there. go zags couldn't find the same magic in o.t. the final

i'm going to go to cnn's white house correspondent dan lothian now at the white house. esident said if i had a son he'd look like trayvon, he was in the middle of the newsroom and everyone gasped because everyone thought it was such a powerful statement from the president. >> that's right. a white house aide told me this is clearly something the president had been think being now for quite some time in personal terms, but the white house had been very careful over the last week not to get involved in this. in fact, twice this week at the daily briefing white house supposeman jay carney was asked about reaction from the white house. they spoke about this in broad terms about how this was a tragedy but jay carney specifically saying the white house did not want to get involved in a local law enforcement matter. however, the president today did weigh in, although he said he wanted to be very careful because his justice department is involved in this. >> but obviously this is a tragedy. i can only imagine what these parents are going through. and when i think about this boy,

. >>> i'm dan lothian at the white house.e president's signature accomplishment, but is it constitutional? that's the question before the supreme court. coming up at the top of the hour, i'll tell you what this all means for the obama administration. >>> and i'm rob marciano, the cnn severe weather center. the storm moving across southern california into the rockies. enough about weather. everybody wants to know how you're doing in your march madness bracket. break that down. >> i'm thinking that's probably not true. thanks, rob, thanks to all you have. >> and did you hear in tim tebow is joining the jets. a news conference with the new york media happened this morning. a big spotlight for someone expected to be the backup quarterback. we'll talk about that in the next hour of "newsroom." >>> this tournament is just flying by, isn't it? the final four is now set. we're in the cnn center bracket lounge to show the survivors. good morning, jeff. >> good morning. we've made it from 68 down to the final four. it's actually a real

dan lothian, thanks very much. i was just going to say, republicans are saying that this is a political liability because the president last week, as you recall, did not celebrate the two-year anniversary, but the white house is saying, look, this is not a political liability. there are others in the white house and also the campaign who have been out there talking about the benefits of health care reform, and so the president is not running away from this. instead, they are celebrating the benefits. >> and they have had some successes at the lower court level, too. one failure but three successes, so i see what you mean. all right, dan. thanks very much. >> okay. >>> folks, get ready to check out rick santorum's latest campaign stop. it is the supreme court. no big surprise here. let's listen. >> it's a very, very important day for america. this is -- as i have said in this campaign, there's no more important issue, the most fundamental issues of the day, which is our economic security and stability, job growth, t

let's go to our white house correspondent dan lothian. dan?, earlier in the week when white house spokesman jay carney was asked for reaction on this matter he said the white house did not want to weigh into what he considered a local law enforcement matter, but i can tell you an aide told me that the president had been thinking about this in personal terms now for some time and when he was asked a question about it today he jumped. >>. >> reporter: more often than not president obama dodges questions that reporters shout his way, but after naming his choice to head the world bank, mr. obama did respond when asked about the trayvon martin case. it got personal. >> my main message is to the parents of trayvon martin. if i had a son he'd look like trayvon, and when i think about this boy i think about my own kids. >> with the justice department now involved -- >> reporter: and a wave of national emotion that has sparked protests in civil communities, the president chose his words carefully to avoid, he said, impairing the investigation. >> i thi

. >>> dan lothian is looking into it. dan? is something that make spook some people. it seems a bit like big brother, but in fact advertisers have been doing this for years -- doing data mining, in other words going through data banks, perhaps information they gathered during the 2008 campaign, going through information that's posted on their website, on twitter, on facebook, to try and build a better profile of the voter. rayeed ghani, who had been doing work in the corporate world, has been brought on board to do similar work on the campaign. let's say, for example, you tweet a lot about the environment. the campaign can see that and appeal to you, whether for support or to go out and get engaged by talking about the environment. it gets your attention. if it were about something else. i spoke to a technology writer, lso efficient.kind of targeted >> they're putting it into one centralized data bank, and using it for ads, solicitations, what have you, so anytime they're asking for information, it's all going to a one central

cnn's white house correspondent dan lothian joins us now live from the white house. dan, it's a very interesting moment we have found ourselves in. i'm not sure if you heard owe my conversation can john lewis. he spoke about the president's comments and reiterated he feels the same way as the president. >> reporter: you know, it was quite unusual for the president to address this question today. it was after he was making his announcement for a nomination for the head of the world bank, and often times we throw questions at the president during events at the rose garden or in the east room or elsewhere here on the white house grounds and if the president doesn't want to talk about it, most of the time he will just pivot and walk away. but today he was asked a question on this issue, and he weighed in. i'm told by a white house aide that this is something that the president had been thinking about in very personal terms for some time. today he decided to speak out even though he also said he wanted to be cautious because his own justice department is involved in the in

>> dan lothian in ohio for us, a key battleground state, thank you. >>> a husband and wife kidnappedl tell you hoe they managed to get away. >>> now the whole ship is for sale. that's coming up right here on "the situation room." [ artis brown ] america is facing some tough challenges right now. two of the most important are energy security and economic growth. north america actually has one of the largest oil reserves in the world. a large part of that is oil sands. this resource has the ability to create hundreds of thousands of jobs. at our kearl project in canada, we'll be able to produce these oil sands with the same emissions as many other oils and that's a huge breakthrough. that's good for our country's energy security and our economy. in here, the landscaping business grows with snow. to keep big winter jobs on track, at&t provided a mobile solution that lets everyone from field workers to accounting, initiate, bill, and track work in real time. you can't live under a dome in minnesota, that's why there's guys like me. [ male announcer ] it's a network of possibilities -- he

cnn's dan lothian is live at the white house. netanyahu also said i will never let my people live in the shadow of annihilation. has his patience worn thin? >> well, it certainly, as you heard there, clearly benjamin netanyahu is impatient. they have been waiting on the international community to see if sanctions will work. and there's a skepticism that despite this pressure from the international community, these economic sanctions and otherwise, that iran has still not been moved off its nuclear ambitions. so that's why you heard that message from benjamin netanyahu saying that ultimately israel is responsible for its own security. >> so do you think that he will be able to convince the president that his approach is the better approach? >> well, look, you know, based on yesterday, u.s. officials tell us that, no, you know, there was no real moving off these positions. in fact, the president reiterated many of the key positions, one of them being that the u.s. seeks to stop iran from. developing a nuclear weapon, where israel se

cnn white house correspondent dan lothian has more in prince georges county in virginia. dan? >> reporter: wolf, the president came here today because he says rolls royce jet engines are helping to boost the economy. 140 new jobs expected here, another hundred at a plant in indiana. but it was also a chance for him to cheer the latest job numbers which he says proves the u.s. economy is on the right track. even though not everyone agrees. the u.s. employment picture is far from sunny. but the better than expected february job numbers seems to have pushed a few more dark clouds out of the way. president obama expressed optimism. >> the economy is getting stronger. >> the u.s. labor department reports 227,000 jobs added nationwide. that's the third straight month of job growth above 200,000. >> in the past, corporations were experiencing record profits and sitting on record amounts of cash, over $2 trillion. now they have enough confidence that they're beginning to invest. >> reporter: 31,000 of those jobs were added in manufacturing alone. yet the unemployment rate remains unch

our white house correspondent dan lothian is with us. rip to oklahoma. >> reporter: it really is. and, you know, some people see a lot of politics at play here believing that the president going on this trip will give him a chance to essentially answer critics of his energy policy and, in fact, yesterday during the white house briefing, white house spokesman jay carney was asked several questions about why shouldn't the public see this as more of ap pr stunt? his response was presidents all the time will travel around the country to push their various policies, and what the president will be highlighting is his all of the above energy strategy which is a gcombination of alternative fuels and also pushing for more domestic oil production, carol. >> as you intimated, the gop is already making hay out of this trip. they call it a pr stunt and they call it -- they say it will just illustrate the failure of the obama administration's energy policy. >> reporter: the message has been the president's policy contributes to the high gas prices. in

let's go live to our correspondent dan lothian in charlotte. why did the white house choose to talk about fuel efficiency standards today? >>. >> reporter: well, one big reason is the current energy climate. you have high gas prices, there's the volatile out market, so the president is really pushes green energy, came to this daimler plant to showcase a line of trucks that they have here that run on natural gas. at the same time the president was blaming the high gas prices on a cycle that happens just about every year on problems in iran, on some speculation on wall street as well, and while this was billed as an official event, the president did take a shot at his critics who were promising, a el as he called it, quick fixes. >> they get out on the campaign trail, and you and i both know there are no quick fixes to this problem, but listens to them, you would think there were the next time you hear some politician trotting out some three-point plan for natural gas, you let them know we know better. tell them we're tired of hearing phony elect

cnn's dan lothian has more. >> reporter: he addressed sunday's meeting of the american/israeli publiccommittee. >> whenever an effort is made to delegitimize the state of israel, my administration has opposed them. so there suld not be a shred of doubt by now, the chips are down, i have israel's back. >> reporter: a high-stakes meeting between president obama and his real's prime minister, benjamin netanyahu, iran's nuclear program and how to deal with a looming threat are fueling tensions. >> the warnings that i and others have been giving over the years will materialize unless iran is stopped. >> we are heading into dangerous territory because the israeli/u.s. partnership has already been under strain the last couple of years. >> reporter: haim malka, an expert at the center for strategic and international studies says while the u.s. and israel share the same objectives they don't always share the same strategy. >> the obama administration is going to try to convince the israeli prime minister he should give sanctions a bit more time to work while the israeli government, the israeli

dan lothian got a close look. >> reporter: as you pointed out, republicans have been so busy now tryingt that republican presidential nomination that the democrats have been able to get that advantage especially in the state of ohio, where they have canvassing, opening additional field offices and as you pointed out vice president biden flew in to toledo to hammer away at the president's opponents, directly by name, but republicans in the state of ohio say that president obama faces an uphill battle there. in fa polian, ohio, a quintessential middle american town of about 8,000 people. >> i'm calling this support of president obama's re-election campaign. >> reporter: the push to get president obama reelected heats up. volunteers explain the benefits of his signature health care law. a factory worker. >> i've had people that have hung up on me. >> reporter: a laid off elementary school teacher. >> we're getting positive feedback. >> reporter: the chairman of the state's democratic party is taking nothing for granted. how critical will ohio be in this election? >> we pick presidents. as

. >> reporter: i'm dan lothian at the white house.sident obama and israel's prime minister benjamin netanyahu have met eight times over the last three years, but some see monday's face-to-face as the most important. iran and its nuclear program will be front and center as president obama pushes for a diplomatic solution. then on wednesday the president heads to the key battleground state of north carolina. an event in charlotte is expected to focus on the economy. >> reporter: i'm barbara starr. this week in washington two countries for the pentagon to continue to worry about. first up, syria, as the killing continues there. defense secretary leon panetta will be on capitol hill trying to explain to congress what the pentagon has in mind, if anything, about the crisis in that country. and as u.s. and israeli officials hold talks this week about the crisis over iran, the pentagon will also be on the hot seat trying to explain whether it has any new ideas about how to make iran turn away from its nuclear ambitions. >> reporter: i'm popp

. >> reporter: i'm dan lothian at white house.s visiting seoul, south korea. while there, he'll stop by the demilitarized zone, the dmz, that area between south korea and north korea. he'll also visit with u.s. troops who are stationed there. president obama is also holding bilateral meetings with china's hu jintao and russia's mefd yesterday, among other leaders who are there as well. after returning from overseas the president switches into campaign mode later in the week with a fund-raising trip to vermont and maine. >>> i'm kate balduan in washington. the senate will spend the bulk of the week with gas prices with democrats pushing to repeal oil and gas tax subsidies, something they have tried multiple times before and republicans oppose. the house is expected to focus on the republican budget this week and will also learn more details on a democratic alternative. neither proposal though is expected to pass the full congress, and both sides will be keeping a close eye on the supreme court as the justices will hear arguments on

i want to bring in dan lothian. . what is the one thing that they hope this meeting will accomplish? >> i think president obama wants to resiterate that they are a strong supporter of israel but all options remain on the table when it comes to iran and that includes military action as well but the key message from president obama will be a call for patience. the president and this administration believing that there is still time for diplomacy to work, to let the sanctions take hold before you take any military action. from president netanyahu, the message will be that the administration needs to take a more forceful public action in terms of condemning iran and threatening military action but also make the case that israel is in charge of its own security. and you heard that towards the end of his comments that he made early in the oval office when he said, quote, my supreme responsibility as prime minister of israel is to make sure that israel remains the master of its faith and making the point that israel is in c