jan crawford and chip reid are in las vegas. first, we go to jan crawford who is following romney. jan, good evening. >> reporter: well, good evening, nancy. that is right. romney is not only expected to win here but win big, and because he's got that kind of commanding lead, he's been able to get a ahead start campaigning in the other states that are next. >> i know i did well in henderson last time. i owe you a lot. thank you. >> reporter: nevada is romney country. he won here four years ago with 51% of the vote. he and his supporters are pushing hard this time with television ads targets his main rival. >> reagan rejected newt's ideas. >> reporter: campaign rallies, and a celebrity endorsement. and with polls showing voters again are solledly behind him, romney can afford to look ahead. earlier this week, he was in minnesota. >> how you doing, thank you? >> reporter: and this afternoon he ducked out of nevada for a quick campaign rally in colorado. both states vote tuesday, and romney has the organization to campaign in several places at once, which gives them an edge. now, that

jan crawford, chip reid and john dickerson watch the race out west. dramatic video of the snowboarder who survived a colorado avalanche. john blackstone shows us the high-tech backpack that may have saved her life. and elizabeth ii celebrating 60 years as queen. aarlie d'agata takes a look at the second longest reign in british history. captioning sponsored by cbs this is the "cbs evening news." >> jeff: good evening, i'm jeff glor. for more than three decades, the u.s. and egypt have had a strong s.liance, but tonight that relationship is on shaky ground following egypt's decision to try 19 americans on unspecified charges. the americans, including the son of cabinet secretary ray lahood, are barred from leaving egypt. senior white house correspondent norah o'donnell is tracking developments tonight in isshington. norah, good evening. >> reporter: good evening, jeff. and the obama administration says tonight that they are seply concerned about these eeplrts and urging the egyptian government to change course or risk more than a billion dollars in ame

jan crawford tells us he spent much of today explaining a controversial comment. jan is in nevada, which is holding caucuses on saturday. jan? >> reporter: scott, romney was actually taking a victory lap on the morning news shows when he started talking about how he was focused on helping the middle-class, not the very rich or the very poor. he's made that point a lot on the campaign trail but this time it was the way he said it that got him into some trouble. >> i'm not concerned about the very poor. we have a safety net there. if it needs repair, i'll fix it. i'm not concerned about the very rich, they're doing just fine. i'm concerned about the very heart of america, the 90%, 95% of americans who right now are struggling and i'll continue to take that message across the nation. >> reporter: romney's comments lit up twitter and other social media. this afternoon in an interviews with cbs station wcco romney said he misspoke. >> sometimes things don't come out exactly the way you'd like them to. that's not exactly what i meant to say. my focus is on middle-income

jan crawford is with his campaign in mesa, arizona, tonight. jan?>> reporter: well, scott republicans who say they're afraid romney isn't a true conservative always point to social issues. they say they're afraid that can't trust him because he's changed his views, especially on abortion and they worry he's going to change them again. at a town hall meeting yesterday in michigan, romney talked about the economy, but a voter turned the conversation to social issues. >> i just want to hear you say that you are 100% pro-life, meaning embryonic stem cell research, 100% professor life, no abortions. >> romney's response was swift. >> i am pro-life, i am in favor of protecting the sanctity of life. i'll cut off funding to planned parenthood. >> reporter: romney says he opposes abortions except in cases of rape, incest, or if the mother's life is in danger. but questions remain for some voters because when romney ran in 2002 for massachusetts governor he supported a woman's right to an abortion. he said he changed his mind two years later after a debate ov

jan crawford is in tempe tonight and, jan, what are you hearing about the race in arizona? >> reporter: scott, sources in romney's campaign tell me they think his lead may actually be more than four points and that's because of the high percentage of early voting that occurs in this state. here in maricopa county, for example, 60% of the state's population, nearly 170,000 people have already voted. a lot of that before the big santorum surge. so while santorum was out campaigning hard today as the true conservative, for a lot of these voters it's too late. >> pelley: and jan, in romney's home state of michigan, he's trailing santorum by five points. 37% to 32%. what's romney saying about his prospects of losing in his home state? >> reporter: well, scott, obviously a loss in michigan would be a huge political slap in the face for romney, but today he was striking a really confident tone. he said he thought he would win and there's a reason for that, according to my campaign sources. they believe that they have actually regained the edge in michigan. romney's been hitting sa

jan crawford is in colorado where the republicans will be caucusing tomorrow. jan? >> reporter: well, good evening, scott. with that landslide victory in nevada, romney's got all the momentum but newt gingrich, the former front-runner, says he is coming back. reporters at a campaign stop today in colorado may want gingrich, but republican voters many the last two states have not. instead of consistently delivering a strong conservative message, gingrich has been complaining about romney, even calling him a liar. >> he decides to lie about my career. i mean, there's something about the hypocrisy that should make every american angry. >> reporter: voters didn't like it. gingrich was blown out in florida and lost badly in nevada to romney and his campaign organization. and the next six states in february aren't any more favorable. that's led supporters like judson phillips, founder of the tea party nation, to hit the panic button. today phillips called gingrich's campaign a disaster. former house majority leader dick armey, who has not endorsed a candidate, is equally

first jan crawford with the celebrating romney campaign in tampa. jan. >> absolutely, scott. governor romney is just coming out to address this very excited crowd. his wife ann just finished speaking a few moments ago. what this shows here tonight is that he can take a beating and come back strong. remember it i was just over a week ago that he was down in the polls, fighting to get back his momentum. one of his advisors told me it was a real gut check for him after that loss in south carolina. they think he emerged a tougher, more focused candidate. we saw in these two debates here and also on the campaign trail when he really took off the gloves went after newt gingrich and also strongly defended himself from gingrich's attacks when gingrich was calling him a liar. all of this will serve romney well going forward. this race has taken a very ugly turn with those negative ads and also those attacks on the campaign trail. now on to the west. >> pelley: jan, thank you very much. let's take a second here and listen to what governor romney has to say. >> primary contests are not

jan crawford is on the trail in denver. jan? >> reporter: well, good evening, scott. in the roller coaster ride that's been this republican race, the latest poll suggests rick santorum may be on the way up. he's expected to do very well in the three states that are voting today. but who knows how long that will last? >> are we going to win tonight here in colorado? (cheers and applause) >> reporter: santorum is expected to finish strong in all three states voting today after campaigning hard as the true conservative alternative to mitt romney. >> rick santorum for president. he doesn't just talk a good conservative game, he lives it. >> reporter: that message appears to be resonating with voters as his opponents... romney's to ponts continue to portray him as too moderate. but in the all-important issue of electability, romney still holds an advantage over the g.o.p. field. the latest "u.s.a. today"/gallup poll shows romney would do best in a head-to-head matchup with the president. they are tied at 48%. but mr. obama would beat ron paul by 3%, santorum by 8%, and new

jan crawford and chip reid are following the two top candidates and we begin with jan in denver, jan, good evening. >> reporter: well, good evening, jeff, after that landslide victory last night romney has now won three out of the first five state force voting. and with his mum and that campaign organization, it's go stock hard for anyone to stop him now. >> surrounded by thousands of supporters, romney surrounded-- sounded like he already was in a head-to-head matchup with president obama. >> this president's misguided policies made these tough times last longer. >> if i'm elected president my priority will be worrying about your job, not saving my own. >> reporter: he won big in nearly every category of voters. and his rival newt gingrich with groups the former speaker needed to win, the very conservative evangelicals and tea party supporters. and look at this statistic, among voters who said beating president obama was the most important factor in their decision, romney won 70% of the vote. that widespread support even had romney's wife ann looking ahead. >> now that we have all of

jan crawford on mitt romney's explanation for this controversial comment. >> i'm not concerned about the very poor, we have a safety net there. >> pelley: facebook is going public. john blackstone on how the social network plans to change. and his soul train helped carry stars to fame. remembering don cornelius and that voice. >> love, peace, and soul! captioning sponsored by cbs this is the "cbs evening news" with scott pelley. >> pelley: good evening. the combat role for u.s. troops in afghanistan may end a full year earlier than

dean reynolds and jan crawford on where the front-runners stand. dr. jon lapook reports f.d.a.ical experts are recommending approval of the diet pill qnexa despite risky side effects. and chip reid on a new national museum that will tell the story of a long struggle for freedom. >> they weren't mine. they belonged to the world. captioning sponsored by cbs this is the "cbs evening news" with scott pelley. >> pelley: good evening. "shameless brutality." those are the words the united states c

jan crawford is in scottsdale, arizona. jan, good morning >> good morning, charlie. this change dramatically. rick santorum is the new front-runner, romney trying to regain the lead, ron paul remains a player, gingrich plummeted. all that led to fiery exchanges last night, especially involving santorum a the candidates clash repeatedly on issues big and small. >> and the government take over healthcare. >> wait a second, wait a second. >> there was a study that just came out. >> the new front-runner and the former slugged it out. >> it would be a difficult task for someone with the model with with with obama care to be the nominee of our party. >> let's not forget that four years ago you not only endorsed me, you said this is the guy who is really conservative and we can trust him. >> for most of the night, santorum was under siege. ron paul hit hardest. >> you have a new television ad that labels him april fake. why? >> because he's a fake. [ laughter ] >> rick santorum fought back. >> it was the most fiscally conservative senator in the congress in the 12 years tha

jan crawford is in washington with more this morning. jan, good morning. >> reporter: good morning. for months, the obama campaign has been focusing fire on mitt romney. they think he's going to be the republican nominee. for the first time, it took direct aim at santorum hitting him hard with something he didn't even really say. campaigning in ohio, santorum was criticizing president obama's liberal environmental views which he says hurt the american people. >> it's not about you. it's not about the equality of life, about your jobs. it's about some phony ideal. some phony theology. oh, not a theology based on the bible. this is the opposite. >> many in the media report that somehow the president wasn't a christian is what he said. trying to type cast santorum as an extremist. >> i can't help but think that those remarks are well over the line. it's wrong, it's destructive. >> on face the nation sunday, santorum said he wasn't talking about obama's religious faith but his liberal ideology. >> i have repeatedly said that i believe the president is christian, he says he is. i am talk

jan crawford has that story. jan, good morning. >> reporter: well, good morning, guys.e out west the suchb is just starting to come up. mitt romney is still trieng to clean up. he should have been talking about the big win in florida. he made an unforced error in one of his seven morning show appearances. >> i'm not concerned about the very poor. we have a safety net there. if it needs repair, i'll fix it. i'm not concerned about the very rich. they're doing just fine. i'm concerned about the very heart of america, the 90, 95% of americans who are struggling. >> reporter: romney's made that point often on the campaign trail. the way he said it during an interview on national television caused it to take off like wild fire. he had to spend the entire day clarifying what he said. >> sometimes things don't come out exactly the way you'd like them to. that's not exactly what i meant to say. my focus is on middle income americans. we do have a safety net for the very poor. i said if there are holes in it, i want to correct that. >> reporter: opponents on the left jumped on i

correspondent jan crawford is in denver this morning. >> reporter: it's snowy. it's beautiful here this morning. we heard from newt gingrich. he's retooling. he took a beating in the last two states and he said he's getting back to what he does best, bashing the media and defending conservative principles. >> the elite media would love to talk us into lengthing another moderate. >> reporter: he's vowing to fight till the end all the way to august in the republican national convention. on sean hannity's radio show on monday he came out firing against a favorite target, the med media. >> they get up every morning saying, gee, there's got to be some way of getting gingrich out of this race. >> reporter: in south carolina, he was dominant but in the next few weeks he isn't expected to make much headway. today colorado and minnesota aren't expected to go his way. some polls indicate he could lose to rick santorum, and in missouri he's not even on the ballot. but gingrich isn't focused on february. he's looking at march. tennessee and his home state of georgia vote on

jan crawford is with us. good morning. >> good morning, guys.here everyone who flat-out declared this was a two-man race between romney and gingrich, voters in three states said not so fast. not only did santorum win in missouri and minnesota, he won colorado. that was a state romney was expected to have locked up. >> conservatism is alive and well in missouri and minnesota. >> rick santorum was such an underdog that a week ago people were speculating he would drop out. last night he not only won, he blew out the competition. >> your votes today were not just heard loud and wide across the state of missouri and minnesota, but they were heard loud and louder all across this country. >> the states were a bit quirky. missouri, for example, was basically a beauty contest with voters caucusing next month for real. still, santorum's strong showing is a huge blow to the frontrunners. especially newt gingrich. who has been campaigning as the conservative alternative to romney. when gingrich stumbles and voters nervous about his baggage, santorum assumed

political correspondent jan crawford has that story from las vegas this morning. good morning. >> good morning. romney really should have spent yesterday talking about that big win in florida. instead, he made an unforced error on one of his seven morning show appearances. he had to spend the whole day cleaning it up. >> i am not concerned about the very poor, we have a safety net there. if it needs repair, i'll fix it. i'm not concerned about the very rich. they're doing just fine. i'm concerned about the very heart of america. the 90, 95% of americans who are struggling. >> romney's made that point often on the campaign trail. but the way he said it and during an interview on national television just a day after his victory in florida caused it to take off like wildfire. he had to spend the entire day clarifying what he said. >> sometimes things don't come out how you'd like them to. that's not exactly what i meant to say. my focus is on middle income americans. we have the safety net for the poor. if there are holes in it, i want to correct it. >> opponents on

political correspondent jan crawford is in phoenix. >> reporter: good morning erica and to the west. seen for the past several weeks sign the economy may be inching toward recovery. that's good news for president obama. the economy is the issue voters say they care about most. that, of course, would rob republicans of a critical issue they've been hitting him hard for. now with gas prices continuing to go up, republicans are starting to hammer the president for that too. >> higher gasoline prices. why are they so high? >> reporter: newt gingrich has made gas prices a center piece for his campaign. he's blaming barack obama and promising change. >> it is perfectly reasonable to try to get to somewhere between $2 and $2.50 a gallon. >> reporter: rick santorum also blames the president saying his decisions, like limiting oil exploration, have led to higher prices at 9 pump. >> all because of the radical environmentalist policies of this president. >> reporter: the president can say there's been some good news lately. unemployment, for example, rose through much of his term and now it's

jan crawford is in scottsdale, arizona. >> reporter: good morning, charlie. this race has changed so dramatically since the last debate. rick santorum is the new front-runner. romney's trying to regain the lead. gingrich has plummeted. ron paul still remains a player. all that led to some fiery exchanges last night, especially involving santorum as these candidates clash repeatedly on issues big and small. >> the government take over health care. >> wait a second. >> there was a study that crust came out. >> reporter: the new front-runner and the former one slugged it out. >> it would be a difficult task for someone who has the model for obama care, which is the biggest issue in this case of government control of your lives, to be the nominee of our party. it would take that issue off the -- >> first of all, lets me not forget that four years ago, well after romney care was put in place, four years ago you not only endorsed me, you went and said this is the guy who is really conservative and we can trust him. >> reporter: for most of the night santorum was un

political correspondent jan crawford is in chilly denver. good morning. >> good morning, erica. good morning to the west. here in snowy denver we heard from newt gingrich yesterday. he's retooling his campaign after he lost big in the last two states. he's going to do what he does best, bash the media and defend conservative principles. >> the elite media would love to talk us into nominating another moderate. >> reporter: gingrich is down but not out. he rallied to fight to the end all the way until august. on a radio show monday he came out firing against a favorite target, the media. >> they get up every morning thinking, gee, there's got to be some way we can get gingrich out of this race. >> reporter: that's gingrich back to form with a combative message that worked in south carolina where he was dominant. in the next few weeks he isn't expected to make much head way. today's contests in colorado and minnesota aren't expected to go his way. some polls indicate he could lose to rick santorum. in missouri he's not even on the ballot. gingrich isn't focused on february, he's l

political correspondent jan crawford is in washington with more this morning. good morning. >> you know, for months, the obama campaign has been focusing its fire on mitt romney. they think he's going to be the republican nominee. but over the weekend, for the first time, the campaign took direct aim at that new front-runner santorum. hitting him hard for something he didn't really even say. campaigning in ohio, santorum was criticizing president obama's liberal environmental views. which he says hurts the american people. >> it's not about you. it's not about your quality of life. it's not about your jobs. it's about some phony ideal, some phony theology. oh, not a theology based on the bible. a different theology. >> reporter: but many in the media reported that santorum was somehow suggesting that the president wasn't a christian, and the obama campaign trying to type cast santorum as an extremist pounced. >> i can't help but think that those remarks are well over the line. it's wrong. it's destructive. >> on "face the nation" sunday, santorum said he wasn't