let's talk now with cnn's jim acosta. the wide ranging questions that they addressed during this news conference. jim? >> absolutely, natalie. that is right. and just to start off with flight 370, because it is sort of the big news that overwhelming everything here in malaysia. it was interesting to hear the president at one point say that he believes the malaysian government has been fully fort coming with us, meaning the united states, about what the malaysians know about the whereabouts of that plane, the investigation into the disappearance of that plane. and so it was interesting to hear the president sort of defend the malaysian government in that regard. and he went on to say that, you know, the ocean is a big place. that is a big place, he said at one point. it shouldn't too surprising the plane has not been recovered at this point. you mentioned the controversy regarding the l.a. clippers owner donald sterling. it was interesting that the president was asked about this. but natalie, you know, when we're out on the

cnn's jim acosta is traveling with the president. jim, what pressing issues do the united states and malaysia have to work on? >> reporter: well, they are going to be talking about this big pacific trade deal the president would like to see reached. he is not coming home with one so they will continue to try to make progress on it and come together with a deal that all parties of that pacific partnership would like to see. not only here in malaysia but also in japan. and back in the united states, which is going to be a tough sell to the president's own party. but, don, you mentioned the ceremonial aspect of this trip and i think that is really the case here in malaysia. he is going to be visiting a national mosque later today and holding a bilateral meeting with the prime minister here before sitting down for a news conference with reporters. but there is an overall strategy here for this white house, for this president, for this administration and that is countering china's rise not only economically but militarily at the tail end o

so let's bring in our senior white house correspondent jim acosta.t exactly is therd presiden doing today and what will it entail? >> reporter: we'll see the president sign a couple executive orders, basically targeting the problem that the white house has identified as an issue that they would like for tackle. and that being equal pay for equal work, equal pay for women. they're saying women earn 77 cents on every dollar a man makes. so what the president wants to do is sign an executive order that basically instructs federal contractors that they cannot tell their employees that they cannot discuss what they make. and so this is an issue of pay secrecy that goes on in the workplace, employers basically tell employees you can't talk about what you're making. the president will sign an executive order at least addressing the federal contractors side of the issue, not every employer around the country, just federal contractors. and then eashe's he's also goino instruct the labor department that they need to study the issue so the federal government ha

preparing a new nuclear weapons test and has completed all the preliminary steps required for that jim acostatraveling with president obama who is in seoul, south korea tonight. and jim, what more do we know about this american who is being detained? the story seems really bizarre. >> it does seem very bizarre, erin. it's just another addition to the president's list of worries over here in asia. what we do know is basically what you just said, erin, and that is american officials are not saying very much right now. they've only heard these reports that this american, 24-year-old miller matthew todd was detained by north korean officials in the last several days, that he was behaving erratically when he entered the country, tearing up his visa and he was taken into custody at that point. at this point, erin, all they can say is they're dealing with swedish diplomatic officials who they typically deal with in these circumstances with the north koreans. >> just very bizarre. so many questions. at the same time, you have -- i mean, it's kind of incredible in terms of a provocation. you have pres

jim acosta, live in washington. good morning, jim. >> reporter: right.r this morning president obama will focus on equal pay for women. what about the pay for women located at the office at 1600 pennsylvania avenue? we'll talk about that in just a few moments. [ laughter ] smoke? nah, i'm good. [ male announcer ] celebrate every win with nicoderm cq, the unique patch with time release smartcontrol technology that helps prevent the urge to smoke all day long. help prevent your cravings with nicoderm cq. and his new boss told him two things -- cook what you love, and save your money. joe doesn't know it yet, but he'll work his way up from busser to waiter to chef before opening a restaurant specializing in fish and game from the great northwest. he'll start investing early, he'll find some good people to help guide him, and he'll set money aside from his first day of work to his last, which isn't rocket science. it's just common sense. from td ameritrade. >>> good morning. i'm carol costello. thanks for joining me. opening bell on wall street just happened

jim acosta at the white house.ay on the latest enrollment numbers in obama care. i'll explain why coming up in a few moments. the owner of a vehicle, with a bumper sticker, "turrible" your lights are on. you wanna get that genius? not mine. on the passenger seat, there is a collection of charles barkley highlight dvds. must be a big fan. and the license plate reads "sir charles." i'm gonna get some drinks with my capital one venture card. be right back. earn unlimited double miles with no blackout dates from the capital one venture card. forgetting something, sir charles? what's in your wallet? making moves that would put an adult in the emergency room. yet all they really want to do is grow up. it's funny, everyone i know wishes they could go back and feel younger. sound familiar? then test drive one of these. current non-gm owners and lessees use your $1,500 allowance to lease the 2014 cadillac ats for around $359 a month with nothing due at signing. [ male announcer ] when fixed income experts... ♪ ...work with

jim acosta, thank you very much.for kate to sign up. >> thank you. let's turn to this week's cnn hero. losing your home in a fire, for many pet owners there's an extra burden. they often have to give up animals because they can't take care of them anymore. firefighter jen leery saw a problem and came up with a solution. >> i'm a firefighter in philly for seven years. i would see how upset the people were about their animals. where is my pet, and then where is it going to go? these are people's children. >> we have a dog displaced by a fire, a chihuahua. i'm headed to the scene now. we respond 24-7, 365 days a year. we do for pets what the red cross does for people. >> we went into the basement, found the dog hiding behind something. once the fire under control, we're able to look for the animals and bring them out. >> hi, baby. come here. >> paw headquarters is my house. we've helped close to a thousand animals. everything their animal need we'll handle for free for them. when we reunite the families, it's a good thi

i want to bring in senior white house correspondent jim acosta. im, this is not where we would expect us to have been when the rollout started, nothing less than a disastrous start for obamacare. >> reporter: that's right, jim. what a difference a working website makes. you heard the president take what was basically a victory lap here in the rose garden, this was a moment in the sun and they wanted to maximize it. you heard the president announce that 1.1 million americans have signed up for a obamacare. a slight increase in the hour since we heard that news earlier today and you heard the president tout the benefits of the law. i think we heard the opening shots of the 2014 midterm campaign cycle, the president saying that the debate over repeal is over, the affordable care act is here to stay. he even went after his critics saying that there's no proof of death panels. it was on october 21st, nearly six months ago when the president was in this rose garden acknowledging problems with the website, acknowledging problems with healthcare.gov, that

our senior white house correspondent jim acosta is traveling with the president.right now. so, what tuz does it look like,? how bad is it for the president? >> reporter: wolf, as you know, the trip has been dubbed the asia pivot, but the president has been doing pivoting of his own away from this region and toward some of the other foreign crises that have dominated his presidency, namely russia and ukraine. senior administration officials say expect the next round of sanctions against russia to come in days. not weeks. the pageantry in south korea stood in stark contrast to the increasing chaos the president faces in ukraine. with ukraine's prime minister warning russia wants to start world war iii, mr. obama huddled on the phone with the leaders of britain, germ manygermany, fran itty on the next round of sanctions. afterwards the british only spoke of, quote, extension of current sanctions. the president conceded the economic pressure so far has had little effect on vladimir putin. >> i think that's self-apparent. i think that there are no guarantees in life. w

our own jim acosta asked the president whether he was backing himself into a corner while he was at the>> how does that draw another red line that you would have to enforce? >> the treaty between the united states and japan preceded by birth. so obviously this is not a red line that i'm drawing. it is the standard interpretation over multiple administrations of the terms of the alliance. >> president obama has long held plans to pivot his foreign policy focus to malaysia and the old world preceps of europe. of course, no tour of asia is complete without the president fielding a penalty kick from a robot while in japan. some critics, such as dana milbank, is taking options of these critics. the photo-op contributes to a perception that obama's asian policy and his foreign policy in general is similarly itinerant. while the president is in asia for a whole week, this is what ukraine looks like now. a road block in flames. ukrainian forces killing five militants and clashes at pro-russia's strong hold while russia announces yet another round of military exercises. this video was captured n

jim acosta, thank you.up our situation room special report, we look at the iranians who boarded the airliner, malaysian flight 370 using stolen passports. for you have entered the promised land of accomodation. ♪ booking.com booking.yeah! ♪ hooking up the country whelping business run ♪ ♪ build! we're investing big to keep our country in the lead. ♪ load! we keep moving to deliver what you need. and that means growth, lots of cargo going all around the globe. cars and parts, fuel and steel, peas and rice, hey that's nice! ♪ norfolk southern what's your function? ♪ ♪ helping this big country move ahead as one ♪ ♪ norfolk southern how's that function? ♪ i'm on expert on softball. and tea parties. i'll have more awkward conversations than i'm equipped for, because i'm raising two girls on my own. i'll worry about the economy more than a few times before they're grown. but it's for them, so i've found a way. who matters most to you says the most about you. at massmutual we're owned by our policyowners, and they

senior white house correspondent jim acosta is in cue althere. >> thank you. please be seated.xcellencies, ladies and gentlemen, we will begin this press conference today with a statement by the prime minister of malaysia, followed by a statement by the president of the united states and then the two leaders will take questions. now, the prime minister of malaysia. a very good afternoon. it is an honor to host you, mr. president and the united states delegation on behalf of the malaysian people i extend to you our warmest greetings. normally, i would say welcome, but since grew up not far from here, you're one of the few leaders who will understand when i say that to you. 48 years ago, the first u.s. president stepped foot onto malaysian soil. back then, t.v. were black and white. >> it's a good song. >> and a sound of music movie was winning academy awards. today, mr. president, you see not rubber trees that's linden b. johnson did but soaring sky scrapers. they are a testament to the transformation that is taking place here in malaysia and here on this journey, we're thinkfan

one of them people working now is jim acosta, standing by live at the white house. this is a critical part of the president's plan all along. this was -- he came into office asking about fair pay. he worked this into the state of the union address. >> that's right, this was his very first bill he signed into law back in 2009. he's still swinging away at this issue. you know, you saw these executive orders signed in just the last couple of seconds there. targeting basically federal contractors. basically saying that federal contractors cannot retaliate against employees who ask about pay and whether or not they're being paid equally and instructing the labor department to start doing some studies on this. so the president using his pen, as he's been trying to say lately, using his pen and his phone to take executive action when congress won't move on his agenda. i think it was striking in the last several minutes as the president was wrapping up his remarks, the president got personal there, talked about his daughters, talked about his single mother, saying that his

this news just coming in to our own jim acosta. i want to go straight to the white house. athena jones is there for us. athena, what more can you tell us? people have been calling for her head. it seemed like she might have survived, but no. >> that's right. hi, erin. all along during the disastrous roll-out of healthcare.gov, secretary sebelius was under an enormous amount of pressure and the administration stood by her, repeatedly in briefs. you heard from white house press secretary jay carney that the administration had faith in kathleen sebelius. the word here is she wanted to wait until they could announce these positive numbers. you'll remember a week ago the administration was able to say 7.1 million people ended up signing up for health insurance, despite that rocky start, that rocky roll-out to healthcare.gov. and even this morning, we heard from secretary sebelius on capitol hill saying that another 400,000 people have now signed up. so bringing that total to 7.5, which is a number that many people, many people doubted the administration would be able to reach.

i'm joined by senior white house correspondent jim acosta and jennifer habercorn from politico. hy did it take so long? >> reporter: well, what the white house is saying is she came to the president back in march and said she thought obamacare was on a better path and that she wanted to step aside after the end of this open enrollment period which just wrapped up in the last week. so that is what is happening. but no question. the president was under a lot of pressure up on capitol hill. he does not like to throw people overboard when they come under criticism. he kept kathleen sebelius in that job even in rough moments. you remember last fall up on capitol hill she was testifying about health care gov are.gov and then healthcare.gov crashed. she held tough. she stayed in there. the website was repaired and enrollment picked up. she got to announce yesterday they had 7.5 million signups. she gets to leave on somewhat of a high note. >> somewhat of a high note, jennifer. you hear so many different stories about obamacare, i'm not sure people know what to think even now. >> right.