trench and duck for cover. george buckley, if you want to stand and speak, the microphone is available. be brave enough to step up and take the questions. until you do, i'm done using post-it notes. cnn "newsroom" continues with my good friend brooke baldwin. ali, thank you. major major developing stories happening right now. more information about this decision just announced by the white house to clear the way for military trials at gitmo. and disgusting crime story north of houston. an alleged gang rape of had been 11-year-old girl today. the number of suspects is growing to an enormous, unbelievable figure. the accusations here are dividing this community. we'll have more on this, more of the suspects apparently were in court today. we're going to get to that here in just a bit. first, i want to begin with the civil war in libya and the diplomatic push now to try to

end it. obviously intensifying by the hour, first new comments today from the obama administration, we heard from president obama speaking to those near and working with libyan leader moammar gadhafi saying essential, you will be held accountable for the violence that continues to take place there. spokesperson jay carney said today sending ground troops to libya is, quote, an option but not at the top of the list. then there was this comment about a british report that the u.s. is urging saudi arabia to arm the anti-government fighters, the folks you're seeing in the pictures here, but we're also hearing a senior u.s. official says that claim is not true. let's get you to what jay carney said just this afternoon. >> you have to be very cognizant of when you pursue these options what it is you're trying to accomplish. and i think it would be premature to send a bunch of weapons to a post office box in

eastern libya. we need to not get ahead of ourselves in terms of the options we're pursuing. and, again, i would refer you to the fact that we are reviewing and implementing actions with great haste. meantime, we are also getting word that nato has begun round-the-clock surveillance flights much l s of libya as th considering options of dealing with the violence day-to-day on the ground. these are images on the streets of misrata in central libya. because this video is from social media web sites we cannot confirm its authenticity, but here's what i can tell you. moammar gadhafi's forces are carrying out aerial and ground assaults in the city of ras lanuf, targeting the main town heading into the oil refining town after launching another air strike just southeast of the city. opposition forces responded to that with anti-aircraft fire. also from the united nations

today word that security council members are working on a possible resolution that would include language on a no fly zone. an update now from nic robertson in tripoli. >> reporter: we're about 1 1/2 kilometers, a mile from the center of zawiya. we can hear small arms gunfire. just at an intersection up here you can see the soldiers at the intersection just ahead down here, down the road. there's a main road there, just along that main road we saw two big anti-aircraft guns being driven on the backs of trucks across there. as we've been driving into this area, we've been able to hear heavy artillery gunfire. we're not -- we haven't been allowed to come here with the help of government officials, but getting through the army che checkpoints to here we've been able to do. that's the sound of heavy machine gun fire, it sounds, heavy machine gun fire, cracks,

shots, just ducking for cover. we're okay behind this wall. so that's what we can hear going on on the outskirts of zawiya. we don't know what's going on in the center of the city where the rebels are. they're about a mile away from where we are. and the exchanges of gunfire indicate this is still a very, very active military area at the moment. that's a crack, probably not so far from where we are right now. just taking cover behind this wall where we're okay. so we don't have a clear picture of what's happening, but what the government officials have said is that they control this city right now. they control zawiya. it's very clear there's a big military operation going on here right now. we've seen checkpoints perhaps as far as three or four miles at least, probably ten kilometers, seven or eight miles circumference around the city. from what we can see with our eyes here, the battle is still going on, the fight for zawiya is still going on, despite the

fact the government claims they've taken control of it. nic robertson, cnn, libya. >> it is nighttime in libya. that is where we find under a dark sky nic robertson in tripoli. nic, watching that and hearing the gunfire, you didn't even flinch. i guess these days that's just par for the course where you are, huh? >> reporter: i must say my heart rate went up quite a bit. after we left that area, we saw more troops, about 150 troops, going in in jeeps on the backs of trucks, singing songs quite triumphantly. we get a feeling that the government will try to make a final push. that offensive has been going on for days now. >> nic, you know you and ben wedeman, arwa damon are all in libya covering different as peblgts the story. i want to read to you something ben wedeman apparently overheard. heard someone say, we'll capture gadhafi, put him on top of this

car and drive around libya. every libyan will get one shot. what do you make of that? and do you think those who you speak with on the ground there in libya, the anti-gadhafi, forces would agree? >> reporter: i'm not sure what they want to do with moammar gadhafi. i know they want to see him gone. you get some middle class people here who have been agitating for reform for years. i think they'd just settle for him being gone. but i talked with some other people in tripoli today. you don't have to go far from this hotel to find them. i won't tell you their jobs because that might give a clue to who these people were. but these are normal people you might meet in a store or driving around the city, and they told us that the only reason they haven't risen up in this city yet is because they don't have any weapons. they say all the weapons in tripoli are in the hands of gadhafi's supporters and loyalis loyalists. that's what we saw on sunday

here, people firing into the air in celebration. so the answer is, there are a lot of people who are extremely angry about him, and i can see them buy noing into that idea b heard about. >> nic robertson, stay safe. my thanks to you. cnn's arwa damon is live now in benghazi. arwa, we know benghazi has been long held by the rebel forces, the anti-government forces. is that, a, still the case today, and, b, has the fighting in and around where you've been intensified? >> reporter: brooke, it most definitely still is the case, and there has not been much fighting around benghazi for quite some time now. it was the first city to fall to oppositi opposition forces. what they've done is actually over the weekend establish the interim national council, being headed by the former minister of justice who we're told is acceptable to the people because even though he served under gadhafi, he was viewed as being a voice of moderation. he actually tried to resign a

number of times. this national council still very much in its infancy but trying to establish some sort of cohesion amidst all of the chaos, not just politically speaking but on the battlefield as well. there is a military council within it that is trying to consolidate the movement of the forces on the front like, making sure that they have enough ammunition, really coming up with some sort of a plan both politically and militarily to try to move this current conv t conflict forward. >> i don't know if you heard my conversation with nic, but he says most definitely the rebels are outgunned by gadhafi's forces. is that the case you're seeing as well, that they're outgunned? >> reporter: they're definitely outgunned, brooke. they managed to get their hands on weapons by raiding some ammunition storage facilities. they've also been able to get some heavier weapons from military people who have basically defected and join the

opposition. but you have to remember that by and large this is not a military force. these are young men, for the most part -- tefighting with thr heart but no experience. a lot are teenagers, very young, very gung ho, but they don't have that basic military training. and that is at times painfully obvious on the battlefield, especially as these confrontations between anti and pro-gadhafi forces intensify. >> arwa, my thanks to you, live in benghazi. coming up here, dramatic video of a tornado ripping through a convenience store. wait until you see who was standing at the doors just moments before the twister hit. also, the u.s. is responding to an attack that killed nine afghan boys. >> like to begin by joining general petraeus in offering my personal apology for the accidental killing of nine

afghan boys by coalition forces. >> after rejecting an apology from general david petraeus, how does afghan president hamid karzai respond to what you just heard, secretary gates' apology? you'll see that in just a moment. plus, there was a surprising comment from a u.s. general and it's linked to a taliban bank heist.

you may have already heard this, that defense secretary robert gates had to apologize

today to afghan president hamid karzai, apologize for a u.s. attack that killed nine afghan children, apparently yet another mix-up. i want you to hold that thought here because we're going to hit that in a moment with barbara starr at the pentagon. but did you hear about this? what the taliban did just last week, it might have escaped your attention. it was an ugly, ugly scene. here is cnn's phil black. >> reporter: this is security camera video from a bank branch in eastern afghanistan. it is silent and shocking. it shows insurgents raiding the bank, shooting staff and customers randomly. gunmen are seen blasting people at close range. they're also seen firing wildly into the crowd of cowering men, women and children. they killed 40 people. mostly members of afghan security forces who were there picking up their pay.

70 more were injured. afghan and international forces fought the insurgents for hours. four of the attackers were killed, one survived. a man from pakistan, his name is kaan. afghan media were allowed to speak to him. he said he killed lots of people. he enjoyed doing it. it made him happy. this attack was just one in a wave of insurgent violence across afghanistan, among the targets was the police headquarters in the southern city of kandahar. at least 19 people were killed there. the capital kabul was secure for much of last year, but it's seen two recent suicide bombings in a supermarket and shopping center killing a further ten. targeting afghans isn't new for the taliban. human rights groups say they're now responsible for most civilian deaths in this war.

but they also believe the recent attacks show an increased willingness to kill innocent people. >> the taliban are weak now so they want to demonstrate themselves in a way that they are the same taliban. they are active and they can still create an environment of fear and intimidation. >> reporter: to achieve that goal, the taliban is showing they're prepared to pay a high price in afghan blood. phil black, cnn, kabul. >> also just coming in, a piece of paper from the white house, we're getting news that involves al qaeda and guantanamo bay. we're gathering the facts and will bring that to you on the other side of this short break. [ wind howling ]

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p. let's talk about afghanistan. let's nail this down. first take a look at this scene from sunday. death to america, shake on karzai. so why all the anger? and why is defense secretary robert gates having to say he's sorry, apologizing today to american-backed president hamid karzai. here is secretary gates. >> this breaks our heart. not only is their loss a tragedy for their families, it is a setback for our relationship with the afghan people whose security is our chief concern. >> so civilian deaths, again, an issue in afghanistan. i want to bring in barbara

starr. apparently the incident happened last week that caused the problem between president karzai and david petraeus. you and i spoke about that last week. today, barbara, what can you tell me about that and what about the pressure mounting on karzai from his own people? >> well, this is a very difficult situation, brooke. yesterday hamid karzai, president of afghanistan, met with general david petraeus. petraeus tried to apologize, karzai wouldn't have any of it. he said the apology was not accepted for the death of these nine young afghan boys at the hands of a u.s. apache gunship, a helicopter which struck them last week, an inadvertent accidental killing yet again of afghan civilians. today defense secretary bob gates shows up in kabul in a long-planned visit. it went a little more smoothly, but make no mistakes these ongoing incidents of civilian cashties, the deaths of afghans at the hands of u.s. operations,

very troubling to the afghan people, very difficult for hamid karzai. he has to show in front of his own people that he is the president of this country, that he can be strong, that he can really govern and take control. ten years of u.s. troops and coalition forces in this country and you get the pictures like you see now, anti-american, antiforeign troop demonstrations. afghans getting really upset about all of this after so long of enduring this. yet, as that phil black piece showed, so many civilian casualties at the hands of the insurgents actually. >> let's get to that point. let's play some sound. this is going to be general john campbell, a commander in eastern afghanistan. he is talking today and says 80% to 90% of civilian casualties are caused by the taliban. let's listen. >> there are stories that the taliban are saying, don't go after the civilians, but

yesterday we had 15 civilians killed, two ieds. if you go to jilalabad and look at the bank situation, where the guys smile and laugh as he shoots civilians in cold blood. the insurgents target innocent women and children. the coalition forces do not. >> obviously, barbara, no one wants to hear about civilian casualties. but would it help the u.s. cause in afghanistan to compare the u.s. record with that of the taliban? >> well, you know, that certainly is the strategy right now. i think u.s. kmoonder commande commanders believe they must point that out to the afghan people, that the majority of the casualties come at the hands of the insurgents, the warlords, the taliban who still engage in ied attacks, the bomb blasts, the kind of bank robbery incident we saw. overwhelmingly, the number of civilian casualties are at the

hands of the insurgents. but, that said, when you see very are high-profile incidents like this terrible mistake that the u.s. helicopter crew made in firing on nine boys in afghanistan, that certainly is going to pop right to the top of the concern to the afghan people. >> absolutely. apologies now beer hearing from petraeus and secretary gates. barbara, before i let you go, this e-mail here from the white house, the headline, new actions on guantanamo bay and detainee policy. barbara, have you had a chance to look at this? what are you learning? >> let's just go back in time a little bit. you will remember, of course, that president obama during the election campaign made a vow he would shut down guantanamo bay. >> right. >> clearly, that is not happening and isn't about to happen any time soon. so the administration for some months now has been, if you will, regrouping, relooking at the whole policy of how guantanamo and the legal

proceedings there are handled. and pretty much what we're seeing today is the issuance of the administration's new way ahead, if you will. military commissions, trials, of detainees will be resumed there. there will be more protection for detainees' statements received under duress of interrogations, not necessarily admissible. detainees held but not charged, still believeded to be a threat to national security, their kailss will be cases will be reviewed. the federal option for trials will remain open. but this is all about the way ahead. there is some negative reaction on capitol hill. congress want a say in all of this. the president largely doing it by executive order. now that guantanamo is not going to be shut down, this is a clear signal they just want to move ahead, brooke. >> absolutely. i think we'll try to work through these legal complexities. barbara starr, i appreciate you

sorting some of it out initially. thank you. >> sure. also ahead here -- a young woman, we've talked about her, the chief of police in one of the most dangerous towns in mexico. there are reports she has fled mexico to the united states because of threats against her life. well, now her town just made a drastic move. we're following that story. also -- a volcano erupts. perhaps you visited this once upon a time here. one of america's most popular tourist spots. lava shooting 80 feet in the air. can you guess where that is? obviously so, it says it on the screen. hawaii.

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selectquote. we shop. you save. the 20-year-old female police chief of a violent mexican border town has now been fired. it was just last october when the woman made headlines around the world by becoming chief of police in this mexican town. well, last week rumors started flying that garcia was seeking asylum in the united states to escape some drug cartel threats against her. city officials said she was on personal leave, would return to work today. she did not do that so she has been fired. you want to see what it looks like inside a tornado? then check out this amazing video. this is -- that's a twister slamming into a drugstore, look

at the force of this. this is louisiana saturday. one of at least two tornadoes hit the state over the weekend and the storms leveled several buildings, knocking out power. and saw the rainfall along with it. one woman died when a tree fell on her home. over the wek kind, one of the most active volcanoes in the world, kilauea, put on quite a show. this stunning video of the eruption was taken after the creator collapsed saturday afternoon. some reports suggested the lava shot as far as 80 feet in the air. no lives, no homes are threatened. but look at that stuff, the magna. we are able to do what we do every day, all thanks to you, and this week cnn thanks our army of ireporters at the upcoming south by southwest festival in austin, texas. if you're not familiar with ireport, let me remind you of the stories you covered here in cnn. here are the nominees for the ireport awards.

i don't know what [ expletive ] just happened. a car bomb just went off outside of our apartment. >> still got about 11 of 15 people missing. >> local officials fear that those buildings and homes are going to collapse from this raging water. >> you can see more nominees at cnnireport.com/ cnnireport.com/awards. who can forget the unforgettable submissions in the best reporting in the ireport category. >> we're fishing for crude oil. >> how is anything supposed to live in this?

>> this is actually the world's largest pet. >> let's go. let's go. >> i don't know if my insurance covers this or not. >> what is that? >> a cluster bomb can be cleared in a day, but a survivor needs help all their life. >> mom dresses me funny. >> cat therapy helps stimulate the brain and relax the body at the same time. >> little bit of everything there, huh? again, check out cnn ireport.com/awards. we'll show nominees throughout the week right here on the show. now to a disturbing, disturbing story here out of texas. a town is in shock after an 11-year-old girl is allegedly gang-raped inside a mobile home.

there are now 18, at least 18, suspects. police are out looking for more after video of the attack has gone viral. coming up next, i'll be speaking with someone who spoke with the girl's mother. stay there.

i'm going to tell you about a crime so terrible, so chilling it may be impossible to get this out of your head. this case is so, so huge and is

ripping apart this town. the town is cleveland, texas, just about 50 miles north of houston. 18 men and boys have been arrested so far, so far, in the alleged gang-rape of an 11-year-old girl inside an abandoned mobile home. yeah, i said 11-year-old girl. the suspects include a middle school student and a star high school athlete just for starters. the alleged victim who is in sixth grade is reportedly in hiding. cindy horsewell is a writer for the houston chronicle paper and exclusively interviewed this 11-year-old's mother. i read this article today and the word that comes to mind is enrage. i'm enraged over this story. i want you to begin for people who aren't familiar with it, begin with the gang rape. i know it happened last november. how did police learn about it? >> well, the young girl was in school, and these videos, onlookers of this event -- we

know it was at least on one day, it might have been other days things happened. but on the one main event apparently videotape and photographed things with their cell phones and so it was getting -- becoming a very popular -- went viral basically around the school, and someone reported it to the school authorities, that they had seen this. they were very upset because they knew the young girl and recognized her. >> hang on. let me back you up. this whole thing started according to your article from this 19-year-old young man who sort of lured this 11-year-old into a mobile home, abandoned mobile home, allegedly. then from there he then called in other young men to partake. yes? >> right. it started out he asked her to ride around with him and three other young men i think it was. they first went to another person's house, and it kind of started at this one house. and then when a relative of that person came home, they scrambled

out the back window and they ended up in that mobile home and it continued on there. >> now, so far 18 young men have been arrested, according to you. they range in age from middle school all the way up to 27 years of age. how are police tracking them down, all through these videos that were allegedly shot? >> i believe so. and interviews. it's been a long investigation, but i think it's 17 total so far, but it's been very -- because people are wondering who's involved, who's not. it's disturbing the whole basketball team. i think they lost on wednesday. let's just say they've lost a couple of players. some of these people are adults. some of them had criminal records. >> because you're saying some of these young men were on this cleveland high school star basketball team. is that what you got from investigators? >> right. right. i think the basketball team is ranked third in the state. so at least two of the people played on the team were

starters, and now they're not on the team anymore. i don't believe because they haven't returned to school. >> that is confirmation from you, according to investigators. i want to get to this 11-year-old. i know you spoke with her mother exclusively. how is she doing? >> her mother is saddened because she's prevented from being with her daughter, as is her brothers and sisters and father. >> why is that? >> they've been separated. she's in a -- you know, children's protective services will not discuss the case because there's a gag order, but they've had some hearings. the parents tell me she's been put in foster care as a safe house because, as these names come out, as this trial goes on, it's going to become dangerous for them, too. they should move from the area, they believe, because there could be -- there have been people calling the house and just saying, "where is she" and

she don't believe the mother that she's not there. then they cuss and get upset. they're worried it could become worse than that so they just kind of don't want any more pressure on her or the family. >> understandable. understandable. i know you spoke with an attorney representing three of these young men. what did he say? what is his defense? >> well, he believes that, you know, you can't -- he's not trying to say anything -- whatever happened, that anything would be good for an 11-year-old. but he said the little girl is not, you know -- it wasn't like she was completely innocent in this case. it wasn't like she was kidnapped or something. whether he was indicating that she might have been a willing participa participant. >> at age 11, as you point out, an 11-year-old cannot legally give consent. >> right. and i do believe at some point a police affidavit says she was not -- that she was balking and

there were threats made. it will all have to come out fully. i know she's got a web site where she sounds fairly confused. it's basically her facebook page where she knows a lot of people are looking at her now like she's caused problems. she's feeling a lot of conflicting feelings. >> can't even begin to imagine. cindy, i appreciate it. i'd love to speak with her mother. i'd love to hear how this little girl is doing from her. but until then, i thank you for your reporting with the "houston chronicle." thank you, cindy. >> okay. controversy brewing on capitol hill. this week lawmakers will hold hearings on the threat of "radical muslims." many muslims are outraged saying they're being demonized by these hearings. we'll talk to someone who has their finger on the pulse of

these situations.

you want to talk about middle america? how about cedar rapids, iowa, by some accounts the safest city in the country. that is the cedar river you sigh there meandering through the town. did you know cedar rapids, iowa, is home to the oldest mosque in america? yep, correct. it is called the mother mosque

of america, and it goes all the way back to the early '30s. but when that mosque flooded in 2008, the city came together to help repair the damage. so, as we talk this week about muslims in america, we decided to start in the middle of the country, in cedar rapids. joining me by phone is imam. what did it mean to you that three years ago the community pitched in when your mosque was flooded? >> well, that was a great feeling and it was the normal that the community always in iowa comes together and help each other, regardless of their race or religion or background. they have been an always welcoming community, and that's -- i saw from buddhists to christian, catholic and even

a monk coming in and helping the mother mosque to clean and put it back together. >> different places of the community, different backgrounds coming together. just curious, how many muslims do you have in cedar rapids? >> we have about 2,000. >> 2,000. what percentage of cedar rapids would that be, roughly? >> i would say roughly 1.5 maybe. >> 1.5%. so obviously a teeny, teeny number. >> very tiny, yes. >> so we hear these stories. does the city at all treat muslims as radicals? >> no way. no way. >> not at all. >> not at all. as i said in many cases they come to our mosque, they have meetings, even the mayor when we elect him he comes and tell us his agenda, like any other nominee, and then the muslim community will go and vote for

whoever is fit for that job. >> well, here's why we wanted to talk to you. as you know, representative peter king of new york is hosting these hearings this week. in fact, the official title is the extent of radicalization in the american muslim community and that community's response. some people coming out criticizing these hearings saying, look, this could be a way to stigmatize, demonize one slice of the community, the muslims. are you behind these hearings, or you think it's a bad idea? >> well, it seems, generally speaking, that representative peter king is really a great man with a great talent and skill. and as a chairman of the u.s. home land security committee he is trying to make our beloved country secured and safe. and as muslim-americans, i stand firm with him on these issues.

but i do admire also his vision to be proactive and to be alert and aware of what's going on in all radicalization, whether it's coming from muslims or christians or zionists or any political party. >> forgive me from interrupting. if the united states holds a hearing on the radicalization within the american-muslim community, should there also be one regarding judaism, the christian faith? should that be equal? >> i think that's where the issue is. we don't attack the people, we attack the issue. the issue is safety and security, and i don't think we attack the people of certain religion or certain color or background. much radicalization in our

country starts to come up and unfortunately in our schools we hear feuding. in our college we hear shooting. and the one who shot our congresswoman the other day, who led him to do so? there are radicalization across the board. >> right. i think many would agree with you in looking at the safety and security of our country. from the middle of the country, the oldest mosque in the country, from cedar rapids, iowa. my thanks to you. later this month, i do want to remind you soledad o'brien is taking us into the dramatic fight over the construction of a mosque in tennessee. we're calling it "unwelcome the muslims next door." it airs sunday march 27th 8:00 p.m. eastern. an oil platform in the gulf goes up in flames. coming up, the dramatic rescue off the coast of louisiana. plus -- love him, hate him, it seems a lot of people are talking, here we go again, about charlie sheen

as he fights cbs over his tv show. the actor now starring in his own show online. have you caught any of this? he is now apologizing for something that has hatppened. that is trending. brooke anderson has the goods. she's next.

trending this hour, say it with me, collectively, charlie sheen, now rivalling the energizer bunny. entertainment correspondent brooke anderson joins me live from los angeles. brooke, i have to be honest. i took a bit of the charlie sheen diet over the weekend. >> good for you. >> yes. but i do know he's doing this whole web tv thing. what can you tell me about it? >> yeah. a lot of people, brooke, say he's taking his media blitz to the next level, and he is, but to me it's not the next level in a good way. the charlie sheen spectacle really did continue over the weekend. good for you for getting a break from t.charlie took his very bizarre behavior to the internet for a live webcast, as if the interviews last week were not enough, he launched his own show called "sheen's korner" and it

had this on-screen message, you're in sheen's corner or with the trolls, whatever that means. in the one-hour webcast that drew 100,000 viewers, if you can believe it. sheen rallied his fan base and had a message for his children. listen to this. >> disorganized random experiment of sorts. a big shout-out to my children, cassandra, sam, lola, bob and max. daddy loves you, and if you're watching, tell mom to leave the room. it's on. winning. >> winning. >> winning, winning. >> a shout-out to all five children. >> nice sippy cup. >> and then he drank from one of his baby's sippy cups. >> strange. >> yeah. and, you know, of course -- go ahead. >> and then the twins' mom, that

is brooke mueller, right? >> and she and sheen are in a really heated custody battle over their twin sons. the boys are almost 2 years old now, but if you think it stopped there, it did not. sheen had a message to all of his listeners. watch that. >> everyone out there who thinks that they have been wing along with us, who has been supporting this entire movement, that is in fact winning. i want you to go to your win doe. i want you to open, it because if you don't, no one can hear you, and i want you to join our chant, winning, winning, winning. winning. winning. winning. winning. winning. >> who are all of those people? brooke, that really has become the slogan for the recent wild behavior of sheen's over the past few weeks, winning, but i actually think the guy is losing. the more he says and does, the bigger joke he becomes. >> if i have to hear winning one more time. it's everywhere, twitter. and speaking of twitter, what

does he have, like 2 million followers now, and now he's trying to make some dough on twitter, right? endorsements. >> yeah. more than 2 million followers, and you and i touched on this last week because sheen has joined the forces with the beverly hills-based company adley which specializes in celebrity endorsements. "showbiz tonight" spoke with that company and the ceo says they helped get sheen's twitter account up and running. sheen has not made any endorsement tweets, but the company tells us their phone is ringing off the hook with potential clients wanting to latch on to charlie sheen. brooke, adley tells us they have never seen a level of engagement quite like this before, and it's very possible that sheen could rake in $1 million a year just for tweeting. >> wow. >> sounds like a good deal. we should get in on that, brooke anderson. i tweet all the time during the show, how about you? >> only if. >> all right. brooke, thank you so much. good to see you as always. >> and now to this dramatic

life-and-death moment all inside this restaurant. coming up, how a waiter reacted when a guy starts choking. we have the whole video. we'll play that for you. also, a high-profile senator making a major announcement today. wolf blitzer with john ensign's political future. that's next. ♪ new fixodent plus scope ingredients. ♪ cleans...kills germs that cause denture odors... and provides your dentures with the freshness of scope. ♪ new fixodent cleanser plus scope ingredients. got the mirrors all adjusted? you can see everything ok? just stay off the freeways, all right? i don't want you going out on those yet. and leave your phone in your purse, i don't want you texting. >> daddy... ok! ok, here you go. be careful. >> thanks dad.

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good to see you. >> key word, hot, as in hottest right now on the political thermotestify, as they are calling it. a new poll put out by quinnipiac university, hot politicians, some not so hot politicians and among the sitting politicians who is the hottest right now. not a huge surprise. chris christie, the republican governor of new jersey. he ranks hot, hot, hot on this thermometer and michelle obama is very hot on the thermometer and so is the former president bill clinton, the current president, but among the sitting politicians, right now chris christie. as you know, brooke, he's repeatedly said he's not interested, has no plans and will not run for the republican presidential nomination but a lot of republicans looking at chris christie saying right now is his moment. if he doesn't take advantage of it right now works knows four years or eight years down the road if that moment will reappe reappear. a lot of republicans really like chris christie. this poll suggestion he's really hot. some of those not so hot right

now, tim pawlenty who is also running for the republican nomination, we suspect, among others, so nancy pelosi, by the way, not very hospital she's among the coolest of those in this new pool, along with the majority leader harry reid in the senate and former governor sarah palin pretty cool as is newt gingrich. cool not necessarily a positive description in this particular poll. john ensign, by the way, the republican senator from nevada, announced he's not seeking re-election. a lot of personal issues over the past year or two, including acknowledging an extra marital affair so he's not going to run when he's up for re-election. we'll see what happens in nevada. just a quick note as far as libya is concerned and oil prices. i know, brooke, you're doing a lot on that. former governor of new mexico, bill richardson, coming into "the situation room" today. we'll speak with him live. he's got a lot of thoughts and one thing i'll ask him because he's got a lot of experience going to rogue nations and

dealing with a bunch of tyrants out there. who would be the best person in the world, the best leader in the world, to actually go out and go to tripoli, meet with gadhafi and tell gadhafi, guess what, colonel. it's over. you've got to leave. who would be the best person to do that, to face to face tell gadhafi it's over? is there anyone in the arab world, the muslim world in, europe? is it bill richardson? someone like that who can actually go there and tell gadhafi it's over, so we'll see what he has to say, but i'm curious what bill richardson has to say. i know you will be watching 5:00 p.m. eastern in "the situation room." >> of course, as always. got a little surprise for you, wolf blitzer. >> i'm nervous. >> like to put on the spot. wolf, my thanks to you. see you next hour. also, another political update in half an hour, and you can always get online and see what's cooking on the political ticker at cnnpolitics.com or go to twitter at political ticker.

as we approach the top of the hour, take a look at this. a violent gang rape shocks an entire town. police say more than a dozen young men have attacked an 11-year-old girl, and investigators are looking for possibly more suspects after this attack has gone viral. i'm brooke baldwin. the news is now. civil war in libya. the defiant regime dropping bombs on its people, and protesters are fighting back. one libyan says they will capture moammar gadhafi, put him on top of a car and parade him around the country, but when? the race for 2012. the republicans who could challenge president obama will share a stage tonight in iowa, an one expert says the event is so big, if someone stumbles, it could mean the end. and a waiter has just seconds to save one man's life. you will see how the dramatic scene plays out.

hi, everyone. i'm brooke baldwin, if it's interesting and interesting right now, you are about to see it. "rapid fire," let's go. it is possible. american troops could be sent to libya. that is a surprising statement from the white house press secretary jay carney today, although at this point he says it's not at the top of the priority list. libyan leader moammar gadhafi continues to attack protesters, and those protesters are fighting back. president obama says the violence is unacceptable and gadhafi and his regime will be held accountable. we'll get a report for you from the ground minutes away. also, an ugly, ugly picture. oil production platform 50 miles offshore from louisiana there. something, as you can tell there, caught fire sunday, and the coast guard hurried out to rescue the two men who had escaped in a life capsule. fortunately, neither was hurt, and the fire is now out. and a lesson for all of us. we all need to be nice to our

waiters and waitresses, but if you need a little more incentive. take a look at this. a guy is chowing down at a mexican restaurant in atlanta. all of a sudden this guy is choking. gets up. see him being patted. that is when the waiter, matthew mcconnell, comes over and gives this guy, there you go, the heimlich maneuver. the man he saved obviously calls him a hero. mcconnell says nah. >> hero might be a little bit of an exaggeration, but i think anybody would have stepped in and did the same thing. >> definitely a hero, and if it wasn't a broke college student, we probably would have tipped a lot more than we did. >> you want to do the heimlich with enough force to lift them off their feet. >> nice. by the way, even though he was a broke college student mcconnell says the tip was a very good one. take a look at this, the face of an american college student who went missing in spain one week ago. austin bice from san diego is doing a semester in madrid.

he was last seen february 26th leaving a nightclub. his friends and classmates are posting fliers are pictures on him and bice's father has traveled all the way to madrid helping to find his son. aust austin bice, 22 years of age. nancy cooper, killed in 2008 and today the trial began for the only suspect in her death, her husband. there's bradley cooper on the right, and their two young children obviously with their faces blurred. bradley cooper insists his wife went jogging and never returned home and he's since been charged with her murder. he's pled not guilty. space shuttle "discovery" now detached from the international space station and coming on home. the shuttle crew flew a victory lap around the orbiting space station this morning before their long trip back, and they also got a pretty amazing wake-up call this morning from william shatner, as in captain kirk. do havery's landing is scheduled for wednesday morning. now, watch this surveillance video with me.

this is a typical day behind the counter for this worker in a dry cleaners in georgia. until that happens, boom. truck into window. smashes through the front entrance. glass, cement, woodall flying, as can you see. amazingly the worker behind the counter is okay other than a broken leg. turns out the driver, a regular customer. employees say he accidentally hit the gas instead of the brake. the business is open, but customers got to go through the back entracks this time. and before you make that pb & j there for lunch or dinner, listen to this. some skippy peanut butters are being recalled because they may be contaminated with salmonella. two varieties, creamy and super chunk. best if used by dates in may of this year, so take a good look at label. they were shipped to 16 states, so if you're not quite sure what kind of peanut butter you have, take a look. go to our website at cnn.com. we have all the info there.

what's more distracting than a classroom of elementary school students? how about kids sitting on bouncing balls. they are replaced their chairs with the stability balls and it helps them focus on the class work. a month-long campaign in florida called pint for a pint. show up, give a little blood and they will give you a voucher for a beer from the orlando brewing company. officials say if it's successful, they may plan another one. pint for a pint. coming up next, a horrific story that will infuriate you. police say more than a dozen young men, some of them middle school students, gang-raped an 11-year-old girl. there's apparently video of this attack, and now investigators are looking for more suspects, and you may not believe who they already have in custody. that's next. ay.

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going to tell you about a crime that's so terrible and horrific and chilling it may be impossible to get out of your head the rest of the day. this case is really, really big. it's ripping about this tiny town in texas. it's called cleveland just about 50 miles north of the houston. 18 men and boys have been arrested thus far in this alleged gang rape of an 11-year-old girl inside an old abandoned mobile home. now, this case came to light in cell phone videos of the attacks started trickling around,

circulating around the girl's school. the case is so hot that child protective services is actually keeping the girl at a safe house. she can't even live with her family right now. a senior writer for "the houston chronicle" newspaper spoke exclusively with this 11-year-old's mother and listen to what cindy told me. >> her mother is saddened because she's prevented from being with her daughter, as is her brothers and sisters and fathers. >> why is that? >> they are separated. she's in a -- you know, children's protective services will not discuss the case because there's a gag order, but -- but they have had some hearings, and -- and the parents tell me that she's been put in foster care as a safe house because as these names come out, as the trial goes on, that it's going to become, you know, dangerous for actually them, too. they should move from the area, they believe, because there could be -- there are people calling the house and just saying, you know, like where is she, and think don't believe the

mother that she's not there and then they cuss and get upset. they are worried it could become worse than that, and they kind of don't want any more pressure on her or the family. >> understandable, understandable. i know you spoke with an attorney representing three of these young men. what did he say? what is his defense? >> well, he believes that, you know, you can't -- he's not trying to say anything -- that whatever happened that anybody would be good for an 11-year-old, but he said the little girl is not, you know, it wasn't like she was totally completely innocent in this case. it wasn't like she was kidnapped or something, and whether he was indicating that she might have been a willing participant. >> yeah. at age 11, us a point out, an 11-year-old cannot legally give consent. >> right, and i -- and i do believe at some point this a police affidavit says she was not -- that she was balking, and there were threats made.

>> now, two of the gang rape suspects did appear in court this morning two more are scheduled for court this afternoon i promise we'll stay on that story and follow that for you. also coming up, brand new video of attacks from september 11th, 2001. the never-before-seen footage shot from a helicopter circling the world trade center. that is ahead. plus, could american troops be on the ground in libya? might they be sent there? the white house says it's possible. "globe trekking" is next. nationwide insurance. talk to me.

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i know it's hard to believe, but this year we will mark ten years since the 9/11 terrorist attacks, and it was the worst non-wartime terror attack in the u.s. 2,752 people died when the two planes flew into the twin towers in new york, and there is some new video that we've just gotten that actually shows the devastation from the perspective of an nypd helicopter. watch it with me, for just a moment. i know it's tough to watch. i saw it this morning. it made me sick to my stomach, but video shows the chopper flying close to and above the twin towers right after they were hit. can you hardly see the towers at

some points in the video simply because of all of that smoke. one officer on this video is heard yelling "the whole tower is gone." the video is about 17 minutes in length. it was obtained by the national institute of standards and technology through a freedom of information act request as part of the investigation still ongoing into the 9/11 attacks. and now we go "globe trekking." we're talking about libya, fighting intensifying there and diplomatic efforts, they are heating up as well. hala gorani to walk me through what's happening today. with regard to the u.n., france, britain, u.s. >> right. >> talking about a possible resolution with language to include a no-fly zone. >> right, but then we have to be very careful with that. nothing is imminent, potentially language to be included in a resolution. have you to keep in mind russia and china, both permanent members of the u.n. security council, are likely to oppose any kind of military intervention. the russian foreign minister said the libyans are going to

have to solve their problems by themselves, and importantly this language would be trigger-based, not timeline-based. in other words, there would be to be an increase in the problems on the grounds for them to consider it. >> tangible catalyst. >> right. >> okay. what about the countries -- there are some countries who are calling for it? >> and they are calling it with it for urgency. i'm talking about the gulf countries, the gulf cooperation council, uae, dubai, qatar saying the united nations those act and act quickly in order to protect civilians in these battle zones in northern -- in northwest and in northeast libya as we're now seeing that. >> just this afternoon weary hearing from nato out surveying the country. >> yes, and that's important because if a no-fly zone is voted upon and if everybody agrees on the concept of a no-fly zone which, by the way, is not a battle that's been won in any way, in that case, what happens? who enforces it? >> that's an excellent question. >> that's right. it would be nato, but that would mean that you that you are

willing to shoot planes out of the sky if somebody actually breaks the no-fly zone over the skies of libya. so this is not an easy thing. it's not something diplomatically people are agreeing on, countries are agreeing on and not something militarily that's easy to implement and get everybody on board, especially with a country like the united states that's already engaged in two war zones, in iraq and afghanistan. despite the scaleddown in iraq there's still a military presence there, appetite inside each country, all of those questions are hanging out there. >> there's also the quote from jay carney an option to sending troops to libya. what does that mean? >> just means that nothing is off the table. >> but? >> but not high on the list. that's what he added after saying not ruled out. we're talking about ground troops, so if the no-fly zone is something difficult to agree on, can you imagine -- >> troops on the ground. >> the possibility of ground troops as well-being something really further down the line. it's important that the trigger-based -- the based on

triggers, that language is important. it just means we're not setting a time line saying in six weeks if things don't improve we'll impose a no-fly zone. it means if things escalate and there's a huge difference between those two things. >> interesting to see what information we can get from nato after they have taken a survey from the scene. >> they are saying this will give them a more accurate idea of what's going on on the ground in libya. >> in realtime, hala gorani, thank you. >> thank you. several of the republicans who run for president next year with getting ready to share a stage tonight in iowa, and one expert says if they mess up at tonight's event, it could mean their campaigns end before they over begin. that is next. also, get this. 95% of americans apparently use a gadget just before they go to bed. do you do that? >> yes. >> i totally do, too. are you one of them? >> coming up, why that could mean big health problems for all of us.

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how important are events like this? >> reporter: well, some of the usual suspects are going to be there. newt gingrich works kind of announced that he was running for president last week. >> he announced he has a website. >> reporter: right. tim pawlenty who i'm told is going to announce an exploratory committee within the next two to three weeks. he'll be there. former senator rick santorum, he'll be there. also, businessman herman kane, ex-louisiana governor buddy romer, but the important thing is who is not there tonight because mitt romney is not there. sarah palin is not there. and so, you know, those are two of the -- sort of the big candidates we're all waiting to hear from in iowa and see what they are going to do. we don't know if sarah palin is going to run. we assume mitt romney is going to run, but these are values voters that you have to appeal to if you're going to win the

republican primary in that all important state of iowa. >> you have the republican party which is divided somewhat between the social conservatives and the fiscal conservatives. how would all these candidates then try to position themselves, and how might that potentially complicate the race, you know, for the nominee when it turns to general election time? >> reporter: right, it's very difficult. look, social conservatives are very, very important constituency in the republican party, particularly in that early state of iowa. but then you have the tea party constituency which is largely comprised of fiscal conservatives. most of these candidates are going to try and run as a little bit of both, but then the problem is for any candidate, republican, when you want to take that turn to the general election you have to appealed to inpent voters. independent voters are much more interested in the economy than they are in social issues, and remember in the last race, john mccain tried to do both. it didn't really work out for him very well. mitt romney tried to do well.

it didn't really work out for him, so i think in this race you're probably going to end up having to choose >> you mentioned mitt romney, gloria, you say of the people not there tonight. we know mitt romney will not be, but he had a pretty speech over the weekend where he tried to confront some questions, people within his party have these questions about the health care plan within the state of massachusetts when he was governor, right? >> reporter: yeah. it's very interesting. mitt romney this time -- last time he ran as a values conservative and this time he's running as a businessman who knows how to manage the economy, except he's got one problem and that is health care reform. the state of massachusetts, as you know, when he was governor, had health care reform, and in that health care reform bill was an individual mandate, the kind of mandate that republicans rail against now, and that's going to be a real problem for romney as he heads into the general election. what he says now, look, passed health care reform in massachusetts. some of it was good. some of it was not so good, but

what i would not have done is pass a national health care reform plan because that tramples states' rights, and that's how he's differenciating himself from barack obama but people in the white house like to say, you know, we took some good ideas from mitt romney's massachusetts health care plan, and you can be sure that obama would remind candidate romney of that in a general election if he becomes the nominee. >> yeah. i'm sure he would. gloria borger, thanks so much. >> sure. >> live in washington. here at cnn we never go too far from what's happening in libya. thousands of people fleeing libya each and every day, and as many libyans stay behind will be the country to fight the country's regime, president obama is offering some big help. also, brand new developments in the standoff in wisconsin. did you hear what the republican governor actually said today? "reporter roulette" times four is next. [ woman ] when you want a bank that travels with you. with you when you're ready for the next move.

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refugees fleeing libya, secretary gates in afghanistan, gas prices skyrocket, and a show of support for wisconsin's embattled governor. we have correspondents covering all of that. time to play "reporter roulette" beginning with becky anderson on the tunisia/libya bothered. we know president obama just pledged some $15 million in refugee aid for the growing humanitarian crisis there.

becky, to you. >> reporter: brooke, the sun has gone down here on the tunisian/libyan bothered and the 17,000 men who occupy the tents behind me at this u.n. temporary camp will be hoping that it won't be many more days before they are evacuated from here. we're seeing less people coming over the border. about 3,000, we're told, an average a day now. at its height it was about 1,000 male migrant workers an hour, so it sounds as if things are improving somewhat, although we still don't know what's going on on the other side of the border. it was mainly egyptians here to begin with. now the majority of men who are here are bangladeshis, and tomorrow we are told there will be seven flights laid on for the next ten days in order to get these thousands of men back home to dhaka. for those who remain the situation is slightly unclear. for many western and sub saharan

men their government is doing very little so these men will become refugees at this point. it is not the humanitarian catastrophe that the u.n. had feared, but certainly things are grim here. it's fairly desolate, but it's better than perhaps it might have been. brooke? >> becky anderson, my thanks to you. next here on "reporter roulette," barbara starr at pentagon. barbara, we know the secretary of defense, robert gates in afghanistan today, talking to american forces there, but he also spoke specifically about that attack that killed those nine young afghan boys. what did secretary gates say? >> reporter: well, he called it heartbreaking essentially, brooke, apologizing yet again to the afghan people and afghan president hamid karzai. karzai basically accepted the apology which is a 24-hour turnaround. yesterday on sunday karzai met with general david petraeus who apologized and said that apology was not accepted. very grim words from the afghan president saying he was fed up

with all of the civilian casualties, and he wanted it stopped, a situation in kabul where there was a demonstration, anti-american, karzai under a lot of pressure from afghan civilians about this whole question of afghan deaths, and of course, as we've talked about, it is the taliban and the insurgents who are responsible for the majority of those deaths. >> barbara, big picture here looking at afghanistan. is there any movement in terms of the time frame for keeping u.s. troops in country? >> reporter: well, you know, gates is sticking very close to the president's plan, as you would imagine, that in july of this year the withdrawal of u.s. forces will begin, and the nato plan, the overall plan, of course, is to have combat forces essentially out of afghanistan by 2014, but secretary gates today let that little bit of wiggle room creep in yet again, saying that the u.s. would continue to have a security relationship with afghanistan if they wanted one, and by all

accounts, they will. unlikely the afghans will be able to fully look after their security, so whether u.s. troops are really out of there by the end of 2014, of course, remains to be seen. >> still to be determined, barbara starr. thank you. now i want to take to you madison, wisconsin, where our own ed lavandera is. ed, what is this? here we go, what is this, week three into week four. the 14 state senators, the democrats in illinois. they want a meeting with the governor. governor scott walker, to work out their differences on the state budget. what are the democrats saying, and how is the governor responding? >> reporter: well, those democrats led by senator mark miller works the minority leader of the democrats here at the statehouse in madison, which is which, sent a letter to the governor, and the majority letter requesting a meeting somewhere near the illinois/wisconsin border. the governor of wisconsin responded by saying that's simply a ridiculous idea so really negotiations and any kind of talking seemed to have really stalled out.

spoken to several other senators in illinois, talks really broke down last thursday and there hadn't been much movement. there was a report out there suggesting that the democrats would be willing to come back at some point this week, but almost everyone we've been able to speak to so far says that's not the case. they are willing to get out much longer to try to get some compromise here and so far that doesn't seem to be happening. >> as the political stalemate continues, eddie, i don't see anyone behind you, the protesters. has their presence lessened? >> reporter: well, there have been several hundred here throughout the day. it really has changed dramatically since they are no longer allowed to stay inside the capitol 24 hours a day, but inside there's still 100 or so. protesters who have been outside the capitol grounds here walking around throughout the day, so the presence is still here, but clearly not as strong as it was in the early on or in the early days of this showdown, but we anticipate as it gets closer and perhaps the vote gets closer, if indeed it does happen, that that would change intensely as well. >> yeah. let us know if you hear anything

new with regard to those negotiations. eddie lavandera, thank you. lastly and certainly not least alison kosik in new york with the check of ever increasing price of gas. a buddy from l.a. sent me a price, 4.50, 4.50 in l.a. >> reporter: california is actually paying the most when you talk about gas. gas prices overall soared 34 cents in 13 days, brooke. the national average signature at 3.51 for a gallon of regular. like i said, you're paying the most in california. the least in montana. of course, it's all tied to this surge in crude oil which gained another dollar today. americans are having a tough time already and will be lifts say the prices could keep climbing maybe to 3.75, $4 a gallon and that's pretty likely. brooke? >> and the issue people have been e-mailing me about, the number of people who use a gadget before they go to bed. 95% of americans, according to a new poll, but apparently this could mean big health problems so what does that mean when i'm

on my blackberry? what does that mean about me? >> reporter: this is coming from the national sleep foundation, so keep in mind if you're going to sleep an hour before you go to sleep, step away from the electronic gadgets. i'm talking about your cell phone, you know, the video games, the internet. you know, those are the kind of things that kind of play with your brain and make it really tough for you to wind down and go to sleep. tv less interactive, and you may have an easier time of going to sleep since it's sort of a more passive activity, but, you know, doctors are saying what happens here is the artificial light exposure that you have between dusk and the time we go to bed at night winds up suppressing the sleep promoting hormone melatonin. i can think of a few ways to wind down and none of them include cell phones and video games so the idea is, you know, an hour before bed, just don't be on the internet. >> a good thing. step away from the electronics. i'll do that tonight, alison kosik and let you know how it goes. thank you so much, and that is today's "reporter roulette." and we told you about the

latest stand from the governor of wisconsin. just then with eddie lavandera, but did you hear which celebrity is joining forces there with union workers in wisconsin? that is ahead. remember the "jeopardy!" champ ken jennings. there's now word that a couple of high-profile lawmakers asked him to run for office and challenge a longtime republican. that is next in "political pop." "newsweek" has just released the results of a new study of american women most admired by other women. any guesses who may be on that list? i've got the top five for you and here's a hint. it is not lindsay lohan or snooki, thank you very much. rounding out the number five spot, former first lady laura bush. number four on the bush, former secretary of state condoleezza rice. number three. most admired women by women, first lady michelle obama. so that leaves the top two. who might that be? that is next. st be the new kid. naomi pryce: i am. i'm in the name your own price division. i find empty hotel rooms and help people save - >> - up to 60% off. i am familiar. your name?

> naomi pryce. >> what other "negotiating" skills do you have? > i'm a fifth-degree black belt. >> as am i. > i'm fluent in 37 languages. >> (indistinct clicking) > and i'm a master of disguise >> as am i. > as am i. >> as am i. > as am i. >> well played naomi pryce.

okay. here we go. did you think about the the results of the new "newsweek" survey rating american women most admired by their fellow women is out. some people in here in the studio guessing on this one and might have gotten it right. got the list for you. a lady you admire be in the top two. according to "newsweek," the secretary most admired woman in america is the secretary of state and former first lady, hillary clinton. and the number one and most admired woman in america,

last-minute guesses, anyone, anyone? there she is, naturally, oprah winfrey, of course. so a lot of fun, political items happening over the weekend makes for a great story, great segment for "political pop" and for that we go to joe johns in washington. joe, we have this "jeopardy!" champ, of course we all remember ken jennings asked to run for senate and filmmaker michael moore in wisconsin. first, what exactly does michael moore, kind of know, what was he up to in madison? >> it was a speech and really pretty incredible. have you seen it by the way? >> have not seen, it just read about it. >> it was riveting, whether you're a supporter or a critic or somewhere in between, and it's really gotten enormous buzz on the internet so rather than talk too much, let's listen to a chunk of it. >> that's right. neither is wisconsin. america is not broke.

contrary to what those in power would like you to believe so that you'll give up your pension, cut your wages and settle for the life your great grandparents had, america is not brok broke. the country is awash in wealth and cash. it's just that it's not in your hands! it has been transferred in the greatest heist in history, from the workers and consumers to the banks and the portfolios of the uber rich. >> so perhaps, joe, foreshadowing to another documentry. we know he's a huge movie producer. he's great at drumming up excitement for his films. what's different here? >> i've seen him a couple of times in washington, and, yes,

he's been drumming up excitement for his films, but this was bigger. this was sort of a michael moore manifesto, you know. very big audience, well received by a supporting crowd. he said all of this happened kind of spontaneously. he was in new york and apparently started out writing the blog and by the time it was over he decided to hop on a plane from new york to wisconsin and read it to the people, and now he's just sort of added his voice to those on the life who said wisconsin is the start of something really big. one of the lines that's been quoted a lot from him there is that wisconsin has aroused a sleeping giant, so we'll see. >> we will see, and then we have the news, the report about, you know, uber star on "jeopardy!" ken jennings. what's the news about him today? >> well, first of all, we're trying to track down some of the details and nobody is calling back. ken jennings is the guy who won millions of dollars on "jeopardy!" but not able to beat the ibm supercomputer named was theon. anyway, last week he's answering

questions and somebody asked him some of the interesting job offers he's gotten and jennings said senator chuck schumer of new york and harry reid of nevada the democratic leader, both called him personally in 2004 to try to get him to run for senator orrin hatch's senate seat in utah. okay. flow chart. ken jennings, the "jeopardy!" star, says democratic senators schumer and reid asked him to run against orrin hatch in utah, and there you see what the exchange was. jennings says i'm not making this up. went on a game show. you can apparently run for the u.s. senate. this is what i realized that the democratic party was expletive deleted in 2004. fascinating stuff. >> it is interesting. "jeopardy," you never know where you can go. joe johns, thank you. stick around, i don't know if you've been following the charlie sheen sago but i've got some breaking news for you. here we go. this just in to cnn. charlie sheen has been fired from his sitcom. warner brothers tv gave us this

statement. let me read it for you, quote. after careful consideration warner brothers television has terminated charlie sheen's services on "two and a half men" effective immediately. he had been making something like 1.8 million per episode. in case you are curious, spying on my laptop, charlie sheen tweeted about 41 minutes ago and his tweet is i'm looking to hire a winning intern with tiger blood and there's a link. charlie sheen fired from cbs's "two and a half men." should kids be paddled at school? know, sounds like a debate all the way from the 1950s but at one high school the punishment is very much alive and many students are coming out in support of that. were on the case. that's ahead. also, lava shooting some 80 feet in the air. look at the pictures. this is a volcano in hawaii erupting at america's one most beautiful and popular vacation spots. we'll get you more of that video

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a little bit more information for you on charlie sheen. we've just learned charlie sheen has been fired according to warner brothers after careful consideration, warner brothers

television has terminated charlie sheen's services on "two and a half men" effective immediately. want to pull up this tweet for you. take a look at tweet, his last tweet as of just about 45 minutes ago. i'm looking to hire a winning intern with tiger blood. apply here, and when you look at the link, as i have just clicked on this link, it is a charlie sheen internship link. at the very bottom you'll learn how to promote and develop a social media network of hollywood's most trending celebrity, charlie sheen. by the way, cnn did just get a phone call from cbs, and they said they are -- they made no decision regarding the future of "two and a half men," so the show very much so may continue. it's just that charlie sheen will not be a part of it. that just in from cbs. now, it is time for you've got to see this. over the weekend, one of the most active volcanoes on the planet kilauea put on quite a show. look at this. the volcano is located on the big island of hawaii, and the stunning video of the eruption was taken after the crater

collapsed saturday afternoon. some reports suggest the lava shot something like 80 feet into the air. no lives, no homes are threatened. this makes for amazing video. also, i wanted to get this on the show. cyndi lauper fans, anyone, she thrills a crowd, impromptu style at airport in buenos aires. she busted out an a capella performance of "girls just want to have fun." listen. ♪ in the morning light >> okay. lauper tried to cheer up bored travelers whose flights had been cancelled or delayed. can you imagine hearing her in the airport? lauper was in town on a stop for her world tour. actually sounds pretty good when you listen to the whole thing. bad kitty. the kitty was caught hours after attacking a woman. she was bitten three times in the leg and had to be tested for

rabies. the bobcat may be the same one who has also attacked several animals. and now to wolf blitzer, and, wolf, i hear you have governor bill richardson coming up on "the situation room" today. >> yes. >> and i promised you a little surprise. here we go. before you tell me about that and that interview that's coming up, let me show you what the governor said to candy crowley but and the governor's recent trip to north korea. let's play, that guys. >> so what was the best part of traveling with wolf, and what was the worst? >> well, the best part of traveling with wolf is that he is very persistent, and he makes you think about what you're going to ask the north koreans and what you came out of the meeting because you know wolf is going to ask you, so wolf forces you to be more organized. the bad part of wolf, there isn't any bad part of wolf except when you're with him, you're with him 24 hours a day. he doesn't leave you alone.

>> you're everywhere, wolf blitzer will not leave your side. i know -- >> let me just say this. >> go ahead. >> we spent six days in north korea and pyongyang. >> yeah. >> in december, and i've spent a lot of time with politicians and leaders traveling all over the world. bill richardson is a very good guy to travel around the world with. he and i likes to have a little fun, also does some substance, and it was just a great opportunity to see north korea with bill richardson. we did that documentary that was on cnn. we're going to re-air it at some point down the road. very important and during an extremely tense time on the korean peninsula. >> i remember the time you were there and waiting for some quirky wolf blitzer audio as a companion but nothing. >> i thought were you going to ask me about my major motion picture debut this weekend. i thought you -- how could you not ask me about matt damon and me. what's the matter with you, brooke? >> come on, give it to me.

>> "the adjustment bureau," didn't see my cameo in there. >> no, i didn't. it will be my homework. >> somebody on your -- i thought you for sure, when you said an hour ago we've got a surprise for you, you were going to run the clip from "the adjustment bureau," wolf blitzer, finally i'm on the big screen, and you don't even have, that what's the matter? >> angie, are you listening to this. she's in trouble. we know we're in trouble. we'll make it up to you. >> if this motion picture thing works out, the news, small screen, forget about it. i'm going all the way. >> we can't lose you. yeah. she's saying -- >> major motion picture. >> we don't want to lose you though. you can do both. >> all right. >> seriously, let's talk about bill richardson because you're talking about who could potentially come in to libya, right? >> somebody's -- at some point down the road somebody has to go meet eyeball to eyeball with moammar gadhafi and say, colonel, it's over, over. you've got two choices, and they are both bad. who is that person going to be?

is it going to be an arab leader, a king, somebody else who has a relation? is it going to be hugo chavez of venezuela, got a good relationship, fidel castro, call him up on the phone, a good relationship with castro. who is going to tell gadhafi it's over? i'll ask bill richardson for some ideas and what about you, you've met with world leaders, thug types over the years so maybe it's bill richardson who will go to tripoli and say to the -- to the colonel, you know what, it's over? maybe. >> we'll see you in minutes. writing down right now "adjustment bureau" tonight. >> go see it. >> see you in a couple minutes. lindsay lohan says she did not steal a very expensive necklace, but the jewelry store accusing her of theft may have proof. sunny hostin is on the cares. that's next.

the santa monica jewelry store where lindsay lohan alodgedly stole that $2,500 necklace reportedly has made $35,000 selling the video in still pictures to media outlets. and a software company says it's bought the rights to the video. it plans to stream the whole thing online. so what impact could all of this have on the case against this actress? lohan heads back to court this week. keep in mind we're on the case here with sunny hostin. sunny, let me pose that to you. does that with the video hurt the prosecution's case? >> it really does. the fact they sold it for $35,000 really hurts their case

because it's the jewelry store's credibility that's at issue. lindsay has always said that this was a loan to her and that this jewelry store was trying to trade on her notoriety by making these false allegations, and now that they have made so much money, $35,000, if i were the prosecutor here, i would be livid. this almost torpedos their case. >> how would the release of the video work in lindsay lohan's favor? >> on so many levels, brooke. i mean, first of all, i haven't seen the video, but those that have seen it are reporting that she has the necklace on. she's walking around the store. she's talking to the jewelry store owner. she doesn't look like someone that's sort of trying to sneak out with the necklace, so on that level, and i think on another level, these videos are usually pretty grainy, and -- and so there's no sound to it, and on the third level, i think that she could take a plea or maybe the prosecution will sort of just withdraw the plea because it really lends credence to her position. >> okay. and then case number two, we

have the archbishop of new orleans wants to have paddling as a punishment at st. augustine high school but has opposition from current and former students. they rallied against corporal punishment on saturday. here's what a few of the students have to say. >> what can never be argued is the fact thatst augustine high school since the 1950s has produced successful black men. this cannot be argued. this cannot be changed. >> you're not just taking away a form of discipline. you're taking away a form of life at st. augustine. >> so it sounds like it's a bit more about tradition perhaps, sunny. but hasn't paddling been be a published like everywhere else? >> it certainly has been be a published in the catholic school system. i mean, there have been so many studies about this and how it's not -- it's an inappropriate way of discipline. i've got to tell you, when i heard about this story, i was kind of like really, kids want to be beaten i? just -- it just doesn't makeny