gunned down. the supreme court begins hearing arguments this morning as 26 states challenge president obama's health care overhaul. at the heart of the debate? whether the individual insurance mandate is constitutional. and president obama is joining lead errs of more than 50 nations in seoul, south korea this morning for the 2012 nuclear security summit. the president kicking things off with a stinging warning to north korea. a developing story from afghanistan. nato officials say a gunman wearing an army uniform, an afghan army uniform, killed two coalition members in southern afghanistan before he himself was shot dead. this follows the shooting rampage by a u.s. army soldier that killed up to 17 afghan villagers just earlier on this month. in chile, rocked by a major earthquake, the 7.1 magnitude quake shoot buildings in santiago and triggered a coastal evacuation. three injuries are reported, no major damage however. one minute past 5:00. it's become emotional, it's become racial and political. today thousands are expected to march in the biggest rally yet, a rally for justice for trayvon martin, the unarmed teenager killed one month ago by neighborhood watchman george zimmerman. the march begins with a rally at 4:00 p.m. outside the first united methodist church in sanford, florida. crowds will then make their way to the civic center about a half mile away. it's at the civic center where city officials will be holding a town hall meeting. it's also where trayvon's parents are expected to speak. yesterday worshippers in churches right across the country wore hoodies, something that has become a symbol of the whole fight. cnn's martin savidge is live in sanford, florida, this morning, where they're expecting a lot of people, aren't they? >> reporter: they are, ashley, indeed. the commissioners' meeting had been had on the calendar for some time, but in light of the tragic shooting now they decided to clear the entire agenda, now solely focused on the trayvon martin shooting. they're expecting a very large crowd. they had to move it to the civic center and in fact they believe the civic center could in fact overflow so they're going to set up a jumbotron inside the park where we are right now just in case. it's not just the number of people they're expected to overflow. it's the passion that is also expected to overflow, which is why the family of trayvon martin has put out a statement in advance of tonight saying, please, they ask everyone, be civil to one another. there are concerns that perhaps people's passions, people's emotions could get out of hand at this particular meeting. so everyone is asked to be on their best behavior despite the fact that there are a lot of people who are very, very upset and plan to be there. >> martin, it's one thing to ask people to be on their best behavior and it's another thing to bring out the big guns and start lining the streets with police. do we know anything about the city's plans for additional security today? >> reporter: well, i mean, the only thing we know for certain is, one, they've requested that people act on their best behavior. there will be additional law enforcement standing by, of course, just in case to handle any circumstance that could arise. we also just noticed that a truck has pulled up here with additional fencing. so every precaution the city can take they will take. >> let's hope everything stays peaceful. martin savidge for us in sanford this morning, thank you. also want to let you know that a little later on today brian palmer in "slate" magazine will join us. he's been looking into stories about neighborhood watches and whether or not they have an effect on reducing the crime rate. we'll talk to him at 6:30 this morning. two years after signing his health care overhaul into law, president obama and the american people will soon find out if it is indeed constitutional. the supreme court begins hearing arguments at 10:00 a.m. eastern time. 26 of the 50 states are challenging the measure. it will be six hours of arguments over the next three days. a ruling is expected in june. the individual mandate says most americans must buy health insurance by 2014 or pay a tax penalty. is that constitutional? dan lothian has the very latest for us. >> well, good morning. you know, the white house believes that it is constitutional, and what they're saying and they've been saying now for the past two years is that there are a lot of benefits to it this new law, that young people between 21 and 26 years old who move back in with their parents will be covered, that seniors will have better coverage, and that everyone being covered will bring down the overall cost of health care insurance. but, of course, republicans have been pushing back saying that all of these things that the white house is talking about in terms of the benefits of this new law simply aren't panning out and in the end it will be a much more expensive law. what will be heard in the court today will be what's called the antiinjunction act. essentially, as you pointed out, those who do not take this coverage, which everyone must have insurance coverage by 2014, those who do not will face a penalty of $700 a year. but, of course, since no one has been penalized yet, can, in fact, this be ruled on, the constitutionality of this be ruled on? that's essentially what the court will be looking at today, and, in essence, this could sort of stop the whole case in its tracks, delay it for several years. now, one of the top advisers at the white house, david plouffe, was on "state of the union" yesterday, was asked about what the white house is doing right now to prepare for this case if they do lose. here's what he had to say. >> i don't want to get ahead of the court. we haven't even had arguments yet. obviously the mandate -- >> you've got to be thinking -- >> i don't want to get into -- we're focused right now, our solicitor general going to put forth a very powerful case for why this law is constitutional, why it's important. >> white house officials saying they believe that they will prevail in this case. and, again, they're focused on implementing all the aspects of this new law. again, the coverage whereby everyone must get health coverage won't take effect until 2014. >> dan lothian, live in washington, d.c., thank you very much. seven minutes poost 5:00, and this is about the time we always get that nasty little sign that tells us where the gas prices are today. as if you couldn't guess, sorry, up again. aaa has just announced the national average, $3.90 a gallon. if you're wondering, that's just up three-tenths of a cent but we're less than a quarter shy of the all-time high for gas set back in 2008, which was $4.11 a gallon. gas prices, it's all about where you live. there's several parts of the country, mostly in the west and northeast, where they're already seeing the $4 per gallon and have been for quite some time. sorry to be the bearer of that bad news. kind of feels like groundhog day when we give that one out. >> yes, same thing. seven minutes past the hour here. time for your early start day book, the stories we'll be watching throughout the day. opening arguments are scheduled in a sex case involving two philadelphia priests including monsignor william lynn, the first catholic church official to be tried for allegedly covering up abusive behavior by preeflts. lynn was responsible for investigating reports of sex abuse in the philadelphia diocese. pope benedict xvi visits cuba today on his first trip to spanish speaking latin america. yesterday he led 400,000 catholics in an open-air mass in mexico. just 80% catholic. take a look at the shots. wow. he asked mexican catholics to, quote, boldly promote peace across the country. much to the onlookers' delight, check it out, in the pope mobile he put on asome braer r sombres. that's great. look at those crowds. tim tebow officially arrives in new york city today. the new york jets will formally introduce their new number two quarterback at a news conference at team headquarters in new jersey. the jets acquired tim tebow in a trade with the denver broncos after the broncos signed peyton manning. it's nine past 5:00. still ahead on "early start," we're hearing from the wife of that army staff sergeant accused in the massacre of afghan civilians. we'll find out a little bit about that and also what it's like to be an army wife in this day and age. also some new details about the alleged attack as well. and he has reached the deepest spot on earth. did you know about this? we have an update on james cameron's historic dive seven miles under the sea. got an he tight for "hunger"? apiernlt you're not alone. there were a lot of people who saw this movie. so how did it rate? on the record-breaking scale. we'll let you know how "hunger gai games" pulled offi its weekend. you're watching "early start." not that we'd ever brag about it. turn right. come on, nine. turn left. hit the brakes. huh? how'd that get there? 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[ male announcer ] help your family stay afloat at aflac.com. plegh! so i wasn't playing much of a role in my own life, but with advair, i'm breathing better so now i can take the lead on a science adventure. advair is clinically proven to help significantly improve lung function. unlike most copd medications, advair contains both an anti-inflammatory and a long-acting bronchodilator, working together to help improve your lung function all day. advair won't replace fast-acting inhalers for sudden symptoms and should not be used more than twice a day. people with copd taking advair may have a higher chance of pneumonia. advair may increase your risk of osteoporosis and some eye problems. tell your doctor if you have a heart condition or high blood pressure before taking advair. if you're still having difficulty breathing, take the lead. ask your doctor if including advair could help improve your lung function. get your first full prescription free and save on refills at advaircopd.com. it is 12 past 5:00 on the east coast. time to check the top stories making news with christine romans. >> good morning. the biggest rally planned for trayvon martin today in sanford, florida. the unarmed teen was gunned down by george zimmerman, a man never charged in the death. yesterday church goers across the country wore hoodies to show support and demand justice. george zimmerman's lawyer says the killing was justified saying george zimmerman's nose was broken and back was bruised after he was injured in the confrontation. afghan officials say the u.s. paid $50,000 to the families of each villager killed in the rampage there and $11,000 to those wounded. army staff sergeant robert bales is charged with 17 counts of murder. in an nbc interview, carolyn bales says her husband could never be that cold blooded. >> he loves children. he's like a big kid himself. >> he is accused of killing nine children. >> right. >> innocent children. >> it's unbelievable to me. i have no idea what happened, but he would not -- he loves children and he would not do that. >> meantime, military investigators believe bales carried out the massacre in two phases, returning to his base after the first attack. former vice president dick cheney is recovering from heart transplant surgery this weekend. cheney waited more tran 20 months for a transplant. at age 71 he was nearing the age limit. we'll talk to cnn's senior medical correspondent elizabeth cohen about this in the next hour. moviegoers gorging on "the hunger games." the film opened with a staggering $155 million take at the box office, a biggest opening for a movie not a sequel. if you add in the nearly 60 million it need outside the u.s., "the hunger games" had a weekend haul around the world of almost $215 million. that's a big, big weekend at the box office. >> i've got to see this thing. >> my son went to see it. >> he loved it, right? >> yeah. but he said the book is better. go figure, from my 13-year-old. >> i worry if i go it means i'll have to go to all three of them, right? three or four? whatever it is. i hate being that committed. >> after this weekend, there will be another, i promise you. >> oh, my gosh, unbelievable. >> i think we're on the same track, christina. i go to "lorax," anything that's disney or pixar. >> thank you, christine. let's get a check of your travel weather. here is rob marciano live for us. good morning. >> good morning, guys. that pesky storm that was slowly moving across the country all last week is still affecting the east coast, the back side of which across parts of north carolina. this brought severe weather to the carolinas yesterday and showers across the outer banks but it is slowly moving out to sea finally. we have big changes in the offing. windy in the northeast and finally a dose of march reality, cold temperatures tonight in the 20s and 30s, freeze warnings have been posted for a good chunk of the northeast. then we'll rebound into heat. albuquerque, new mexico, 85 record high, 75 in colorado springs, and in denver, colorado, for record high temperatures. the heat continues across the midsection, a little cooler across the northeast, and a storm system that moved through southern california yesterday heads into the rockies and a fire threat with windy conditions here, gusts 60 to 70 miles an hour, extreme fire danger in denver proper as a matter of fact. we go further out west, or east depending on your perspective, to guam where james cameron got down to the deepest part of the mariana trench there, over 35,000 deep underneath the sea. that is as far deep as mt. everest is tall, actually deeper. it did so yesterday afternoon, about 5:00 or so eastern time. this has been done before, guys, but the first man to do it solo. james cameron obviously a hollywood director but a deep sea diver as well. jason carroll reporting on this a couple of weeks past and he made it down there. >> and he tweeted from down there, rob. >> listen, if you're going to do something, break records, you might as well tweet while you're doing it. >> i can't get reception on metro north. who's getting reception mt. everest deep under the ocean? >> i'm just happy he's okay. we were really worried about traveling solo down there and never making it back up again. so good for him. how exciting. >> thanks, rob. hey, it's 17 minutes past 5:00 on the east coast. and do you know how many people actually paid taxy taxes in thi country? the truth about taxes an who actually pays what. and like an old-school shaq slam dunk, look at this. whoa, the former home of the magic comes crashing down. >> i love that stuff. >> you're watching "early start". >> i can't get enough. >> i don't want to be anywhere near it. welcome back. we are minding your business. u.s. markets closing higher on friday, the dow and s&p 500 up about a third percent. the nasdaq up a little less. stocks are having a strong year so far. there is some concern it's time for a pullback. >> going to bring in christine romans now to talk taxes. 'tis the season. i did the my taxes a couple weeks ago. first time i've ever been early. >> in washington, it's always tax season because we're talking about tax policy and how to change it. you'll hear all these claims that are political. i want to give you a fact check. this is in "money" magazine, very well done. truth or fiction about taxes. you'll hear this a lot, that about half of americans don't pay federal income tax. >> half? >> half of americans. that is actually true. they don't pay federal income tax, 46.4% of taxpayers do not pay federal income tax but they pay payroll taxes out of their paycheck. many of these people are elderly so they don't pay taxz because they're elderly or very, very poor, low income. so when you talk to people about how to broaden the tax base and get more people to pay into the federal coffers, keep that in mind. there's another thing, too. we talk about how warren buffett just paid 17% effective tax rate and that rich people aren't paying their fair share. look at this, the tax rate for the top 400 filers in 1995 was 30%. in 2008, it was 18%. last year it was even less for some because a lot of one-time breaks for all of your investment income. the thing is, the very, very richest people in the country pay less than people who work hard and make money with their hands or their brains because they're making money with their money and that's taxed differently. let's talk about the corporate tax rate. you've heard this so much, that the corporate tax rate is too high and it needs to be lowered. well, the u.s. on paper's tax rate is 39.2%. compare that with the average for all the other rich countries, 29%. but what a company is actually paying is more like 27.7% in this country, pretty much in line with the rests of the world. and guess what, last year they paid even less, more like 12%, because of, again, goodies in the tax code, one-time goodies, meant to help companies. so there is nothing simple about taxes. i've said it a million times. nothing simple about taxes. if you hear from the campaign trail or from politicians that this is it simple, this is how we fix it, just remember -- >> i like you clearing up do half of us really pay no taxes? there's the truth behind the statement. >> absolutely. >> and we all got that big lesson with mitt romney's tax rate that, yes, that's the way it works. sometimes there's a whole different system for tax in businesses, effective tax rates can change. >> making money with money is taxed much, much less. >> christine, thanks so much. 23 minutes past 5:00 on the east coast. we're getting an early read on your local papers. we always get the big old stack and we like to get you up to date. this morning we have the headlines from detroit and atlanta. detroit first, and it ain't good news i hate to say. deadline day in detroit. city leaders there are real worried about their budget and they are scrambling to get some semblance of a financial plan because they're facing a $45 million deficit in the motor city. and guess when they're going to run out of cash. ready? mid next month. the state recommends a fix of -- when i say mid next month, i should correct that. mid-may. about six to eight weeks from now. city is going to recommend a fix of its oven, actually the state, to the governor. but bigger problem here? the detroit mayor is not feeling well. dave bing has been hospitalized. he's had intestinal surgery. he's not sort of there to helm all of. that we'll have to keep an eye on detroit. an investigation uncovers possible widespread cheating on standardized activities in public schools. this is across the country. according to the "atlanta journal-constitution." it's a seven-month investigation. 196 of the nation's 3,125 largest school districts had a high degree, a high degree, of suspicious results on test scores. it suggests cheating but does not prove cheating. most extreme test score swinks in school systems are in baltimore, dallas, detroit, houston, los angeles, and mobil moeb il county, alabama. in houston, the test results for the entire grades of students jumped two three or more times of the amount expected in one year alone. so when children move to a new grade the next year, their scores actually plummeted. the findings suggests the gains were not due to learning. huge investigation there. >> i think the journal constitution has said that this is a big problem for the no child left behind thing, where the schools have been forced into -- not the students here. this isn't the kids doing this. these are the schools doing this. >> the administration. >> right. to get their scores up so they can get the funding they need and continue their programs the way they want them because of the no child left behind. i'm sure there's a lot of debate about that. let's not indict the kids. >> oh, no, no. they're clear. it's the administration absolutely. 25 minutes past 5:00. up next on "early start," rick santorum saying some things you might expect from a sweater vest wearing guy. lashing out at mitt romney but then really lashing out at reporters. i don't even know if we can tell you the word, but we can letd you know kind of what it was. and, hey, look, you recognize that guy? 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[ male announcer ] it's a network of possibilities -- helping you do what you do... even better. ♪ it is now 20 minutes past 5:00. welcome back to "early start." i'm ashleigh ban field. >> i'm zoraida sambolin. time to check the stories that are making news. rallies will mark one month since trayvon's martin's death. the unarmed teen gun down by george zimmerman. yesterday churchgoers across the united states wore hoodies to show support and demand justice. george zimmerman's lawyer says the killing was justified, saying george zimmerman had a broken nose and a cut on the back of his head. the supreme court begins hearing arguments at 10:00 eastern this morning as 26 states begin their challenge of president obama's health care overhaul. a ruling is it expected on the matter around june. at the heart of the debate? whether the individual health care insurance mandate is even constitutional. it would require most americans could buy health care insurance or face a tax penalty. wow! like a shaquille o'neal slam dunk, there it goes. orlando's amway arena got it down in under ten seconds, the old home of the orlando magic, the building imploded in front of hundreds of people. a man two blocks away was actually hit in the leg with a piece of shrapnel from the blast but was not seriously hurt. >> yikes! and he's back. for the first time, listen to the cheers, in over two years, tiger woods is a winner on the pga tour. he ended the drought at the arnold palmer invitational yesterday with a five-stroke victory. tiger finding his form just two weeks before the master's tees off. it is 31 minutes past the hour. it seems the closer mitt romney comes to securing the republican nomination the nastier the attacks get from rick santorum. santorum wasting no time after winning louisiana, the primary on saturday, he is campaigning in wisconsin. we see him there yesterday. wisconsin's primary is next week on april 3rd, 42 delegates at stake there. maryland and washington, d.c., holding primaries on april 3rd as well. and listen to this. santorum ripping romney with voters in racine. >> why would we put someone up who is uniquely -- pick any other republican in the country! he is the worst republican in the country to put up against barack obama. why would wisconsin want to vote for someone like that? >> cnn political editor paul steinhauser is live in washington for us. we want to talk about a lot here, the fact that he got snippy with the "new york times." but let's start with the math and the delegate count and what he faces, an uphill battle. >> yeah, he faces a very tough route to the nomination. let's look, this is our cnn estimate. other networks have similar ones. you can see right here, zoraida, he is behind in the delegate count, romney way ahead, 568 according to our estimate. look, romney is just about halfway now to the number of delegates needed to clinch the nomination. rick santorum at 261, less than half of what romney has. you heard the sound you just played from wisconsin last night. what santorum is saying is that romney would be the worst candidate because he is -- of his stance on health care and what he passed, so-called romneycare back in massachusetts, which many say was inspiration for what the president passed on the national level. that's why santorum continues to say over and over that mitt romney would be a tainted candidate in a way he would not do well against barack obama in the fall. the delegate count you saw, that's tough for rick santorum even though he had the big win in louisiana. also the calendar you just mentioned, in april, almost every contest except pennsylvania his home state looks unfavorable for santorum. also, more and more people are starting to rally around mitt romney. you saw that yesterday from senator lindsey graham. he was on our own "state of the union 0" saying something very favorable about romney. today we've learned that senator mike lee, a tea party senator from utah, will be officially endorsing romney. >> do you think santorum is responding to all of this? maybe that's why he's getting a little bit snippy? >> it seems that way to a degree because i think he keeps getting frustrated with the media saying it's basically over. he did get a little snippy i guess you could say last night wi with a "new york times" reporter asking about those comment ez he said. he said he was being distorted. he said what he said we heard it. it is now 34 minutes past 5:00. the u.s. supreme court is going to hear arguments beginning at 10:00 eastern this morning on the affordable care act. opponents call that obamacare. no matter what you think about it, it is hotly contest and highly partisan. and it's health care, that bill signed into law by president obama two years ago. facing legal challenges from 26 states, the arguments will be long, folks. it's rare when you hear six hours over three days of oral arguments before the nine, but that's the schedule. it's in three parts. let me get you a little bitt primmer on all this. today, the issue of whether this case should even be heard at all or whether it has to wait until 2015 because that's when that individual insurance health care mandate actually takes effect and can be challenged. so we may have to wait altogether. tomorrow the central issue of the case is that mandate. you know that thing you've heard about, you need to buy insurance or you'll be penalized? that's the issue tomorrow. on wednesday, a bit of a double-header. in the morning, if we clear tuesday and the mandate is ruled unconstitutional, what happens to the whole law? does the whole 3,000-some pages of it? then finally the question of states and whether they're being pushed, coerced by the federal government to expand their state-run medicaid programs because of the threat of a loss of federal funding? hopefully that's got you up to speed on the essential issues. the administration was really out this weekend saying it feels good about its chances. have a listen. >> we're confident that it's going to be upheld. you had democrat and republican jurists upholding it including two prominent conservative jurists. >> republicans are obviously hoping for a very different outcome. have a listen. >> the process was bad. the substance is going over it like a lead balloon. the vice president whispered to the president when they signed the bill two years ago, this is a big f-ing deal. well, now it's become a big f-ing mess for the democratic party and the country as a whole. >> lindsey graham saying f-ing. the court's decision isn't expected this week or next, probably closer to june. joining me now to talk about this is dr. william winkenwerder, the former coo of blue cross blue shield of massachusetts and also served as assistant secretary of defense for health affairs from october 2001 through april 2007 under president bush. doctor, thanks for being with us. i know you're no fan of this bill. let's just get that out of the way right off the bat. >> that's right. >> but i don't want to talk about the politics so much about the bill as it's sort of been ripped by both sides for the last two yooers. i want to talk about the legalities because that's what's at stake this week. how do you think this individual mandate argument is going to play out? >> well, it's a great question. i think it's going to be a close case either way, either striking down the individual mandate or upholding it. and we've seen that in the lower courts, in the appellate courts, and it looks like it's going to be a close case. that's what i would say. >> and i looked at these lower courts. one of the federal appeals courts found it was unconstitutional. but two others said it was a proper exercise of the congressional mandate. then a third ruled against the states on technical grounds. so it's a bit of a mishmash but it's looking more toward the positive sign that this bill can actually come out of this challenge from all of these states and what they've sort of said is unfair. >> i would disagree 0 with thwi. i would cast my best prediction slightly in the direction of the court coming to the conclusion that the mandate is unconstitutional. >> how come? >> because it's the conception of federal power. and really this whole legal c l challenge is about the issue of federal power. how much power does congress have under the constitution? and, as you know, those powers are what they call enumerated. they're listed. and among those is certain power within the commerce clause, but it's never been expanded to this point, at least that's how most people on one side of the issues see it. >> i think some of those people see that regulating commerce and the economy has long been in the purview of the federal government. >> well, it has, but it hasn't been to the point of compelling individual actions, and that's where this really gets to the root of the issue. so it really is about federal power, and that's the same issue with the medicaid program and how far can the congress go expanding medicaid where that imposes costs on the state government. right now, you know, states spend about 25%, 30% on their entire budgets on medicaid. with the expansion of that, you could conceptually have the federal government driving a big portion of state government budgets, which means that states might have to raise taxes on their citizens, and that would be derivative of federal power. so that's not really how the constitution and the separation of powers was envisioned. >> let me bring this down to something that everybody can understand because whenever we're told, you have to buy something, we get our hackles up. >> right. >> a lot of people are arguing that you can't force a person to buy a product that he or she may not want. but when it comes to health care, it's not like we don't all need to partake in it at some point in our lives. at some point, we're all going to need some kind of health care. so doesn't that sort of shift this from being just a widget to actually a service that we as a society all need to pay for? >> well, it does. that's why its's a close call, i believe. on the other hand, people do get health care. they're not denied. they get -- >> yeah, but we've got to pay for it if they're not, and that's where i think people get upset. >> that's right. and really on the conservative side, that's where there were those that said that individuals have some responsibility to help pay for their own health care. now, there are many ways we could do that without imposing a mandate of the sort that this law has. but individual responsibility is important, and that's part of what we're going to debate here. >> you know, i had a feeling that in our very short time together this morning we were not going to be able to solve this issue, but great job at bringing some light to a very complex series of issues. thank you, doctor. >> thank you. it's a tough issue. >> it is indeed. >> exciting and interesting to watch. >> heck yeah. i never thought i'd say that about three days of oral arguments. >> right. who would have thought six hours of oral arguments and the whole country watching closely. >> break out popcorn. thanks, doctor. >> people were waiting in line since friday to try to get a ticket to be in the courtroom. there are a lot of people very excited about this. >> the greatest nerds on earth i like to call us, the people who love watching court. and i'm one of those real nerds. you know nerds of the world unite unite. it's 41 minutes after the hour. calls for justice from underneath a hoodie. reverend jamal bryant is going to join us shortly. also, coming up, wedding crasher. the queen! the queen pops in on a couple of commoners. you're watching "early start". >> and she knows how to curtsy, yes. these clothes are too big, so i'm donating them. how'd you do it? 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this is big news. it's 45 minutes pasts the hour. time to check the stories making news this morning. here's christine romans. >> the biggest rally yet planned for trayvon martin today in sanford, florida. the unarmed black teen was shot and killed by george zimmerman one month ago. zimmerman's attorney now speaking saying the public has only heard part of the story. he told abc news that his client's nose was broken in the scuffle with trayvon. president obama and leaders of more than 50 nations are in seoul, south korea this morning for the 2012 nuclear security summit. even before the official welcoming ceremony, the president was talking tough to north korea. >> there will be no rewards for provocations. those days are over. >> the president promising to pursue further nuclear arms cuts with russia. he's attending a working dinner with other world leaders. you may know him as the guy ringside with the cigar in his mouth and fedora on his head. hall of fame boxing writer burt sugar died yesterday of cardiac arrest. he wrote more than 80 books and was publisher and editor of "boxing illustrated" and later "the ring" magazine. he even made a cameo in the last "rocky" movie. he was 74 years old. queen elizabeth wedding crasher. she unexpectedly droched into a wedding in manchester while on official business. the bride and groom bowed and curtsied to the queen. they say she was invited almost as a goof, you guys but they didn't think she would come. the queen says she wanted to meet the couple since she was in manchester anyway. wow, already the big pressure day and then the queen shows up. >> i love it! >> what a talker for the rest of your life. the queen attended my wedding. >> right. >> i just can't believe they thought to invite her. i think that's the coolest part of it. >> it's funny because some other british couples i know say they routinely invite the queen just in case. >> i don't think that reached the rest of the commonwealth, right? >> you never know. when they're in the area, she drops by. very cool story. >> you're in the neighborhood, drop in. 47 minutes past the hour here. we're keeping you in the pop culture loop this morning by taking a look at what's trending on the web and in social media. kazakhstan demanding an apology after getting the borat treatment. >> no, they didn't! >> this happened at a tournament in kuwait. it was a spoof of the national anthem from the film "borat." it was played instead of the real one during the medal ceremony. apparently this is what happened. someone downloaded the parody from the web they say by mistake. also got the serbian national anthem wrong. later they redid the ceremony with the right anthem. >> how about the winner just standing there stoically. not making a big deal of it. this is one that you will probably be looking for on youtube and forwarding around if you liked the whole susan boyle thing on "britain's got talent." you've have got to see this. he may look like a head-banger, like he doesn't know how to sing. but take a look and listen. ♪ look at the audience. look at simon cowell. >> amazing. >> awesome! >> $17 years old, folks. his name is jonathan antoine. get used to that name. absolute showstopper on "britain's got talent." >> just let it go. >> that's incredible. >> look at the audience. ♪ >> that's his partner charlotte and simon cowell said, listen, you don't need charlotte. he says, yes, i do. she has stood up for me through teasing, people being mean to me. he is not dropping charlotte from the act, which is awesome. but remember this is the kind of show that produced susan boyle who has been an international sensation. let's hear it for jonathan. already viewed millions of times on youtube. make it a million and one. still ahead, the wife of the man accused in the afghanistan massacre is speaking out. she's saying he loves children and would not do what he's accused of doing. you are watching "early start." ] you are a business pro. monarch of marketing analysis. with the ability to improve roi through seo all by cob. and you...rent from national. because only national lets you choose any car in the aisle... and go. you can even take a full-size or above, and still pay the mid-size price. i'm going b-i-g. 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[ female announcer ] yoplait original. 25 flavors for you to love. will be giving away passafree copies [ female announcer ] yoplait original. of the alcoholism & addiction cure. to get yours, go to ssagesmalibubook.com. it is 5:52. you're watching "early start." this week the supreme court will hear arguments for and against president obama's health care overhaul. court will have to decide whether sweeping chances are constitutional. >> and that decision will likely affect every american and may play a role in this year's election as well. our dan loanage hthian has the . >> reporter: it took a bruising battle to get to the signing. president obama barely got the affordable care act, his signature accomplishment, across the finish line, but at a high cost. >> i think barack obama is anti-american. >> reporter: the tea party found its voice and set out to dismantle what had been a cornerstone of the president's 2008 campaign. >> it's not a mandate on government to provide health insurance, it's a mandate on individuals to purchase it. >> reporter: once in office, the president pushed hard to sell the plan to the country. >> we need health care reform because it's central to our economic future. >> reporter: and to congress. >> the time for bickering is over. the time for games has passed. >> reporter: but the time for bickering had only just begun. and in one dramatic moment, some argue, reached a new low. >> the reforms i'm proposing would not apply to those who are here illegal. >> you lie! >> reporter: republican congressman joe wilson shouted the feelings of many americans, some of whom joined the tea party in protesting what they dubbed obamacare, as intrusive and illegal. now the supreme court is hearing arguments on several parts of the new law, including the individual mandate that requires all americans to purchase insurance. >> health care touches every single american, every single family. >> reporter: william galston served in the clinton white house and is now at the brookings institution. >> if the court decides to strike down even a piece of the law, we will see a replay of a political debate we haven't seen for three-quarters of a century. this is a game for extremely high stakes, not only for the president, not only for the 2012 election, but also for the institution of the supreme court itself. >> reporter: the obama administration's justice department plans to vigorously defend the new law in court, against a coalition of 26 states that the president told american public media's marketplace was motivated by politics. >> because, frankly, these lawsuits that were filed were basically uniformly filed by republicans who wanted to score political points. >> i'm calling in support of president obama's campaign. >> reporter: meanwhile, the president's reelection campaign and the dnc are defending health care reform in battleground states like ohio, through mailings, online, and with phone banks. >> i'm helping them to understand the good things about the legislation. >> reporter: but as the president visited ohio last week, the rnc launched its own attack on health care with tv and web ads. >> higher costs for taxpayers, another broken promise by obama. >> reporter: the affordable care act remains unpopular, but polls show support is up for the new law slightly over last year, even though americans remain divided. on the left, many believe it doesn't go far enough. on the right, they believe it goes too far. dan lothian, cnn, the white house. coming up, new calls for justice one month after trayvon martin was gunned down in florida. this by a neighborhood watch captain. so do neighborhood watches even work? you'll hear that argument at 6:30. you're watching "early start." in with aveeno daily moisturizing lotion. the natural oatmeal formula improves skin's health in one day, with significant improvement in 2 weeks. i found a moisturizer for life. 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[ beeping ] ...to bring all the right results. it's the at&t network -- doing more with data to help business do more for customers. ♪ it is now just before 6:00 a.m. on the east coast. welcome to "early start." i'm ashleigh banfield. >> i'm zoraida sambolin. we're bringing you the news from a to z. we're looking to have biggest collection of crowds, getting larger. this rally today planned in honor of trayvon martin in sanford, florida, one month after that teenager was gunned down by george zimmerman, a man who was not charged in that death. his lawyer is now speaking out saying george zimmerman suffered a broken nose and a bruised and cut head and says the whole story still has to come out. health care reform heads to the supreme court. the justices begin hearing arguments this morning, 26 states are challenging president owe bam obama's health care overhaul, at heart of the debate, whether it is even constitutional. president obama attending the 2012 nuclear summit in seoul, south korea, this morning and the president had a harsh warning for the neighbor to the north korea, north korea, all of that even before his official welcome. police officers in oklahoma city are under investigation this morning. they were caught on surveillance tape, look at this, dragging a hand cuffed man through an airport, face down, that after tasering him. >> ooh, i smell a civil suit there. says a lot. check your brackets, no cinderella story this year. it will be kentucky and usei useisville and kansas versus ohio saturday in new orleans. one month after he was gunned down, trayvon martin has become a national symbol, thousands will march for the teenagers who life was cut short by a neighborhood watchman named george zimmerman. crowds will then make their way to the civic center about a half a mile away. it was at the civic center where official also hold a town hall meeting and where trayvon's parents are expected to speak. yesterday worshippers traded their sunday best for hoodies in churches across the country, something that has become a national symbol of the fight. cnn's martin savage is live in sanford, florida, with the latest on that march and what we could expect. good morning. >> reporter: good morning to you, you're right. thousands of people are anticipated, tempers and emotions are expected to be running high. in fact so high the family of trayvon martin put out a statement in advance they will be participating tonight but asking that civility rules at this particular meeting that is taking place. there are concerns of people's passions, tempers, their attitudes could get out of hand. the family certainly does not want that. they are asking that this is a town hall meeting, it is a chance for people to speak to one another, not to rage at one another and that's the concern that they have about this meeting that's going to take place tonight. we should point out the family of trayvon martin has been very outspoken, that's the reason they believe the tragedy reached not just across the nation but in some cases all the way around the world. they say that now the world knows who their son is. zoraida? >> have we heard any more on the investigation per se? >> reporter: all eyes remain on george zimmerman and waiting to see if he is going to say anything. we know he's spoken to authorities on at least one, perhaps two occasions talking about the fatal shooting that happened that night. other than that, all of the talking has come from his attorney craig sulner, saying the stand your ground law, the one that is particular to the state of florida applies in this case to his compliant and that's where things stand right now as the sprinklers come on here at the park. >> uh-oh. >> gosh, sorry about that. martin, you handled it well, martin savidge live in sanford, florida, thank you. in four hours, the nation's highest court will begin the process of determining whether or not president obama's health care overhaul is constitutional. the supreme court will begin the oral arguments at 10:00 a.m. eastern. 26 of our 50 states are challenging this health care measure and the arguments, are you ready? make sure you get a seat pause they're going to be six hours long, over the course of three days. don't expect a quick judgment, a couple of months at least, maybe in june we'll hear the argument or at least the decisions handed down. the individual mandate says that most americans must buy health insurance by 2014 or they're going to have to pay a penalty. some people say it's a tax. is it legal? kate bolduan is live at the supreme court. kate, day one is broken into the jurisdictional thing. can we even be hearing this case today? take me from there. >> reporter: it's broken down as you well laid out, ashleigh, four issues, six hours over three days. it shows how important this case is, how much importance the justices are putting on this case because this rarely happens when they give this much time to oral arguments. today begins in a little bit more dry of an argument but important issue. can the justices, should they even be hearing this case right now because many of the main provisions including the individual mandate don't go into effect until 2014. should they hear the case until it's all in place? they'll hear 90 minutes of oral arguments today. looking into tomorrow that is the main event, the central issue, really what this entire case hinges on, the justices hear two hours of oral argument, on the individual mandate, is it constitutional? 26 states oou sued, are challenging this. the obama administration is defending the law saying it is constitutional, should stay in place, that is what we will have our eyes on. very important how the justices will lean, how they lean, the questions they ask. looking into wents you're getting two issues, also important but we're kind of considering a little bit of the side issues, the issue of severability, if the individual mandate is ruled unconstitutional does the entirety of the rest of the law have to be thrown out as well? that's one issue. the final issue is having to do with medicaid. can the federal government force the states to expand their share of the costs of covering the medicaid program, when the eligibility of being able to get into medicaid expands under this law. 26 states are suing saying they cannot. it's a states rights issue versus the leverage that the federal government has. 26 states are suing as i said. the obama administration is defending their position on that as well. so many issues but again trying to keep it focused on the central issue, what this case hinges on is the issue of the individual mandate. >> here's a weird question. i'm not sure anybody has been able to answer this one so i'm certainly not going to push this on you, it's dark outside the supreme court. >> reporter: bring it on. >> if we don't get any decision meaning hey we can't decide on this because it's challenged can we shut down for the week or do we move on to the medicare/medicaid issue? >> reporter: you will get passed today. they will have all three days of oral arguments. the gateway issue, the jurisdictional issue, why it's so important, whenever we get the ruling, be it in a couple of weeks, june, which is expected if they rule first that they cannot hear this case until the rest of the entirety of the law goes into effect it puts the brakes on legal proceedings, will delay any further legal action. doesn't necessarily stop it but delay it a few years before they can move forward with the major challenge against the individual mandate. so this is kind of considered the sleeper issue in this case. it could be important, but again, if it comes out they say yes, we can hear it, because interestingly if i have one more second to tell you, both of the main players in this case, the 26 states that are suing as well as the federal government both at this point agree that they should move forward, they should get a quick decision on it, they should be able to hear the rest of the case, that this jurisdictional gateway issue should not impact the rest of the law. the justices had to bring outside counsel to argue that point because neither of the big players were standing on that side of the issue. >> two words we don't hear when it comes to the nine justices, quick dags. >> reporter: it's good, you want them to consider this slowly and methodically. still ahead the wife of the soldier accused in the afghan massacre is speaking out saying he loves children, that he would never do that. other military wives coming out to support her as well. we will talk to one of them. a major earthquake strikes chile, one of the same areas that got hit and hit hard two years ago. we'll take you there. and former vice president dick cheney recovering from a heart transplant, but is he too old to get one? 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[ male announcer ] engine light on? come to meineke now for a free code scan read and you'll say...my money. my choice. my meineke. welcome back to "early start." it is 12 minutes past the hour. busloads of college students and protesters are heading to central florida today to join a mass rally. one month ago today trayvon martin was shot and killed by a neighborhood watchman. martin's parents will speak this afternoon in sanford, florida. parishioners at churches wore hoodies yesterday showing solidarity with the victim's family. he was hearing a hoodie while killed by neighborhood watch captain george zimmerman. you can see in this video from "the baltimore sun" he helped organize today's rally and joins us this from sanford, florida, reverend for being with us this morning. can you tell us who you are expecting to attend the rally? >> good morning to you. i think that all different walks of life will come. students are coming from college campuses, families are coming, church groups are coming. this is really a new generation stepping up to take the baton of civil rights. you're getting ready to see a demographic that previously has not shown up, the demographic between 18 and 45, an alarming moment for so many of us who realize it could have been any one of us. >> you say this is going to be this generation's selma, alabama. could you explain that? >> yes, i think that this begins the birth of the hip-hop generation's embracing of civil rights. he heretofore, we've not seen our generation involve and engage in this capacity but when you see these demonstrations happening around the country, it says that young people are really gravitating behind this trayvon martin issue because the young man was not in a club, he was not in some seemly situation. he was walking home and the reality is if you don't feel safe going home, where can you feel safe? >> you mentioned the hip-hop generation and the hoodie has kind of become a symbol of that generation. i want to read something, too. i want you to listen to something fox news's geraldo rivera said that sparked outrage and i want to talk about that hoodie in particular. >> i am urging the parents of black and latino youngsters particularly to not let their children go out wearing hoodies. i think the hoodie is as much responsible for trayvon martin's death as jorm zgeorge zimmerman. >> your sermon was focused on the hoodie as well. and we understand that this incident is not just about the hoodie, but perception really is important here, right? and unfortunately the perception seems to be that if you wear a hoodie like that, that perhaps you're a thug. so when you're trying to change the perception here, isn't it important to address what these youngsters that you're going to have at your disposal the whole issue of the hoodie? oh, i'm not certain that you can hear me. reverend, can you hear me? it seems like perhaps we have lost communication with the reverend here. oh, too bad. i'm terribly sorry but we lost our communication there with reverend jamal bryant so we'll try to get him back. 7:00 eastern on "early start," soledad o'brien will be discussing the trayvon martin case with the reverend jesse jackson as well and hopefully we can continue this dialogue. >> it's 16 minutes past 6:00. top stories making news this morning with christine romans standing by. >> good morning, ashleigh. a 7.1 magnitude earthquake hitting chile, in the capital of santiago and triggered evacuations along the coast. three people were injured but no major damage. the region is still reeling from a devastating 8.8 quake in 2010. former vice president dick cheney recuperating after heart transplant surgery this weekend. he was on the transplant waiting list for more than 20 months and nearing the age limit. we'll talk to cnn senior medical correspondent elizabeth cohen and the procedure and process, next hour. there was so much hype "the hunger games" smashing box office records with a $155 million opening weekend, that makes it the third best debut ever, and best by a non-sequel and guess what, ashleigh and zoraida, the cinema score rating give it an "a" among people who are 25 and younger, a minus among people who are 25 and older, very big group of young people seeing this movie. that's always a recession proof age group. made a lot of money this weekend. >> a and a minus. >> that was the score. >> not a lot of disparity. it is never too early to see something blown up real good. have a look at the screen. >> something blowed up real good. >> that blowed up good, didn't it? look at that, the orena. oh, man, look at that! look at that! you know, i don't know what it is, i think we all feel the same way, that's the former home of the magic, coming crashing down. find out why, how this thing ended. you're watching "early start." 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"the hunger games" with a huge weekend box office opening. first of three installments, this is going to make the studio a lot of money and that's "lion's gate." >> christine romans is here with more fun facts about this big opening weekend. >> fun facts about a movie about teens fighting to death. i mean that's the premise of this movie is that these teens live in a place that's sort of a post-apocalyptic america and there are different districts and a kid is chosen and they have to fight to the death. the one who lasts until the end, then their people get food. and it's really, it is really a quality on a hollywood scale and plays out on reality television so there are the interesting twists and turns that relate to tweens and in fact 39% of the audience this weekend were kids under the age of 18, and it was a slight majority, 61% were women. so especially women were appealed by this. it came in the third best box office haul ever. "the dark knight" and second harry potter beat this one out. $155 million box office, more than $200 million world i would, the highest grossing non-sequel. this was a book, and it's not like those, the "twilights" or did better than that or the harry potters or spider-man. brand new, came out of the gate number three. >> that says a lot. you expect the other ones will blow everything away because that first book was incredible. >> a lot of people are salivating, there's another one coming november 2013 will be the next one. $80 million it cost and one of the reasons why they could keep the costs down so much was because of tax credits from north carolina where they shot it. you got to imagine the producers of the money behind this film are just doing a little victory dance today. >> they must have spent a fortune on marketing. i was hearing about "hunger games" every time i stepped out i saw "hunger games" something, pictures of elaborate costuming of the people who are the top 1%. i didn't know what it was about and it paid off. >> we talk $80 million but it's really slow. >> "the dark knight" was $250 million to make. one month since trayvon was killed, but he was in a neighborhood watch area, and the person who shot him was the captain of the neighborhood watch program, so do these programs work? you might be surprised. we'll let you know. and look at this, folks, look who won. tiger woods ending a 923-day dry spell. you're watching "early start." this is an rc robotic claw. my high school science teacher made me what i am today. our science teacher helped us build it. ♪ now i'm a geologist at chevron, and i get to help science teachers. it has four servo motors and a wireless microcontroller. over the last three years we've put nearly 100 million dollars into american education. that's thousands of kids learning to love science. ♪ isn't that cool? and that's pretty cool. ♪ i get my cancer medications through the mail. now washington, they're looking at shutting down post offices coast to coast. closing plants is not the answer. they want to cut 100,000 jobs. it's gonna cost us more, and the service is gonna be less. we could lose clientele because of increased mailing times. the ripple effect is going to be devastating. congress created the problem. and if our legislators get on the ball, they can make the right decisions. 8% every 10 years.age 40, we can start losing muscle -- wow. wow. but you can help fight muscle loss with exercise and ensure muscle health. i've got revigor. what's revigor? it's the amino acid metabolite, hmb to help rebuild muscle and strength naturally lost over time. 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[ major nutrition ] ensure. nutrition in charge! welcome back. 28 minutes past the hour here. welcome back to "early start." >> hi, everybody. i'm ashleigh banlfield. >> and i'm zoraida sambolin. rally also mark one month since trayvon martin it's death today. the unarmed teenager who was gunned down by jornl zgeorge zi. yesterday churchgoers across the united states wore hoodies. zimmerman's nose was broken in that confrontation. in less than four hours the supreme court hears argues to determine whether president obama's health care overhaul is determined constitutional. at the heart of the debate whether the individual mandate is constitutional, it would require most americans to buy health care insurance or face a tax penalty. look at that, like the shaquille o'neal slam. orlando's am way arena imploded in front of hundreds of people. a man two blokcks away was actually hit in the leg with a piece of shrapnel with a piece of its blast. he's back, for the first time in over two years, tiger woods is a winner on the pga tour. tiger woods ended the drought at the arnold palmer invitational with a five-stroke victory. tiger finding his form two weeks before the masters tees off. ashleigh? >> 9 minutes past 6:00. george zimmerman was the leader of a neighborhood watch in his gated community. he ignored a police dispatcher's instructions not to follow a teenager he said looked suspicious. that teenager, trayvon martin, who ended up debt. even when volunteers stick to the rules, do these neighborhood crime watches reduce crime rates? brian palmer is a columnist for "slate" magazine and been digging deeper on that story. brian, thanks for coming in. i'm really glad to talk to you about this today. i feel at times seeing that neighborhood watch sign becomes part of the white noise of our environment. i almost don't notice those signs anymore, but they're out there and there are a lot of neighborhood watches. >> 2000 study suggested that 41% of americans live in neighborhood watch areas. doesn't mean too much. i grew up in a neighborhood with one of the signs and i'm sure there were no meetinged and no patrol. >> what exactly does it mean? >> in theory what it should be is that neighbors are supposed to meet periodically, get to know each other and establish lines of communication. this all started in the 1970s, there was a big surge in them and many of the signs are still up from that time. some neighborhood watches involve patrols, that is rare, the kind they did in orlando. most police officers don't want people doing that. >> some of the signs are still up there and have been forgotten and there is no neighborhood watch and we're lulled into the idea we got someone looking out for us? >> even the ones where there are looking out for us don't appear to work particularly well. the biggest study was in 2008 they looked at a compilation of old studies and indicated there is a 16% reduction in crime in neighborhood watch areas and a lot of study thinks that's wrong. >> why? >> earlier study looking at the data found that 75% of the studies that they relied were were scientifically unsound and the few that are scientifically rigorous there is no crime reduction at all. the big problem is that it's hard to get a neighborhood watch going in an area where there's crime because people don't have time in those neighborhoods to come to the meetings or walk around the streets. >> do they even feel safe enough to be citizen patrols. >> many don't trust their own neighbors and a lot of them don't trust the police and don't want to get involved in something like this, so participation is very, very low, and in 1980 study, biggest one in minneapolis, it was a complete disaster. the more resources they put into getting low income, high crime, the less participation they got. the few neighborhoods that did participate were wealthy middle class neighborhoods. the neighborhood watch lasted for a few weeks and people gave up when they realized it wasn't doing anything at all. >> i read somewhere originally the idea here back in again like you said the '60s and '70s was that people were going inside and watching tv a lot more than they used to sit outside on their stoop and that actually effectively changed crime in america? >> that's one of the theories. there's an urban renewal movement in the '60s and jane jacobs is kind of a main mover behind the movement. people would look out their front window, sit coffee and chat. the issue isn't really people outside as much as people looking outside, which is where we get confused between the patrols and the watch. >> the thing i found most fascinating about the establishment of the neighborhood watch was that the whole idea especially in light of this trayvon martin case, the whole idea behind it was that citizens would be looking out for people who they hadn't seen in their community before. george zimmerman seemed to be indicating that to his 911 dispatchers. he said i don't see this guy before. his dad's fiance was a renter, a foreclosure ridden complex, a lot of runned down, transient places. in that respect was george zimmerman doing what the program sets out for you to do? >> not really. in most of the initial meeting that you have for neighborhood watch, they're run by a police officer or police officer or employee. in the case of the george zimmerman watch, one of the things they train you to do is know when to call 911 and when not to call 911. it is true you're supposed to be looking out for people you haven't seen before but that is not supposed to trigger a call to 911. that is supposed to trigger increased scrutiny. >> following? >> following absolutely not. in fact the civilian employee who ran the neighborhood watch before george zimmerman claims she told him they're not supposed to do patrols, not supposed to follow subjects and certainly not supposed to carry guns. >> that's the critical issue. brian palmer, interesting you had such trouble finding data reliable in this, i think a lot of people would have been surprised by this. >> thank you. still ahead vice president dick cheney recovering from a heart transplant. is he too old to get him? we'll ask elizabeth cohen what the norm is. look at this wedding crasher, the queen pops in on a couple of commoners. you're watching "early start." 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"i'm with scottrade." ♪ [music] welcome back. it is 3 minutes past the hour. we're finally hearing from the wife of the soldier accused of going on a killing spree in afghanistan. arm issy staff sergeant robert bales has been charged with 17 counts of murder. new reports suggest he may have broke than killing spree into two parts, returning to his base in between and this morning his wife, carolyn, is opening up for the first time in an interview that will air today on nbc. >> he loves children. he's like a big kid himself. >> he is accused of killing nine children, innocent children. >> it's unbelievable to me. i have no idea what happened, but he would not -- he loves children and he would not do that. >> military spouses have been speaking out to show their support for karilyn bales and one of them is heidi collins, married for 13 years to an air force major and member of the officer's wives club support group at bowling air force base in washington and a blogger for spousebuzz.com. thank you for lending us your time this morning. from what we've heard, karilyn bales hasn't seen her husband since december. she still has very few details about what actually happened. what do you think is going through her mind right now? >> just like you said or just what was shown in the interview before, i can understand how she would feel it's unbelievable her husband would be capable of doing this, so i can -- it's mind-boggling to even try to hut yourself in her position or even in his position. >> but put yourself there for a minute. your husband was deployed. he was in iraq, right? >> yes. >> so you said when your husband came back home that he was a changed man. >> yes, he was. >> how had he changed? >> he was very silent. he still has a hard time if there's a helicopter that flies too closely. there's those kind of things that happen afterwards but it's, it takes a long time for that readjustment to find their place back into the family both on the spouse part as well as the active duty member part, so it really is, there's adjustment period but it depends on each person, if my husband -- it took a while plus we moved about a month after he returned from his deployment, in iraq, so there were those stressors on top of it. it did take a while for both of you to try to find our way because a couple and as a parenting team to be with our boys and also just to be a family member. >> sergeant bales, we know, was deployed four different times. and you have a blog that you write for frequently. what are other military wives saying about this situation? is it a different dialogue than the one that we're having? >> yes, it is, because just like this is my opinion on the matter, everybody has a different viewpoint about deployments. there are many families out there that have had less time together than they have apart, so it's one of those where there is some anger, there is some understanding that this could be a very difficult time for the family but there's also a point where it's hard to believe that this actually happened. there are many, many systems and services in place to help support both the family and the active duty member before, during and after a deployment so it's kind of one of of those things that it makes you scratch your head. >> it seems unbelievable definitely to the wife, she can't imagine how this could have happened. what are the women, the other military wives saying on the blogs, do they think perhaps ptsd played a role in this? >> we're trying to get away from the depart, it's just post traumatic stress. no one is pointing fingers. nobody wants to blame. i no he that's the first human instinct is to say is it the fault of the military, is it the fault of sergeant bales, is it the fault of leadership? it's very difficult until you've been in their shoes and been in his family's shoes to really say whose fault it is. no one is saying whether he is guilty or not. the great thing about america is you're innocent until proven guilty so it's one of those things where no one is pointing any blame or saying that this did or did not happen. >> you mentioned there is some support available. >> yes. >> what kind of support do you think sergeant bales' wife and children are getting now? >> there's a program called the key spouse program where there is a peer spouse that is mediator between leadership and the families, i'm hoping that system is in place and they're offering her the counseling and support she needs as well as i don't know specifically for the army but i know for the air force there is the airmen and family readiness center that do the same exact things and for anybody else that is out there, for the family who may have questions about what to do or friends, there's always military onesource.com, which is available, has many, many, many links to counseling, about grief, about sorrow, how to help and support the family. >> when your husband went away and came back, how long did it take him before he became the same husband and father? >> i don't know necessarily if he's ever been the same and that's not necessarily a bad thing but it's also a good thing. he was much more appreciative of being home, and didn't take us for granted as well as we did not take him for granted either. so the differences in him not necessarily is the negative thing. we actually, you know, try to see the positive in this and try not to take any day for granted that he is here and with us because you never know when he's going to be gone again. >> heidi collins thank you for your thoughts with us. >> thank you. >> ashleigh back to you. time to check our top news making stories. christine romans is here. >> the biggest rally planned for trayvon martin planned in sanford, florida. he was killed one month ago today. zimmerman's attorney is speaking saying the public is only hearing part of the story. he told abc news his client's nose was broken in the scuffle. health care reform heads to the nation's highest court this morning. the supreme court justices will hear arguments for six hours over the next three days. they're expected to decide in june whether the individual mandate requiring most americans to buy health care insurance by the year 2014 is constitutional. president obama and more than 50 other world leaders are in seoul, south korea, attending the 2012 nuclear security summit. before the official welcome the president publicly challenged north korea to have the courage to pursue peace. queen elizabeth, wedding crasher. she unexpected dropped in on a wedding while in manchester on official business. the bride and groom looked ready, though. curtsy. she was invited, they didn't think she'd come. the queen said she wanted to come since she was going to be in manchester anyway. >> technically not a crasher, she had an invite. >> but still not an official guest. great for pictures. soledad o'brien joins us with what is ahead on "starting point." >> good morning. ahead on "starting point" you've been talking about the big rally planned in remember rants of trayvon martin, this morning we'll talk to natalie jackson, the martin family attorney and talk about some of the plans for this week ahead and reverend jesse jackson as well. he takes a licking and kooekeeps on ticking, newt gingrich is staying in the race, we'll talk to his daughter, jackie cushman, ahe ahead. the easter egg hunt canceled because the parents were too aggressive. they were going to win those eggs for their kids no matter what. those stories and more on "early start." we'll see you at the top of the hour. i'm walt gale, i worked at the colorado springs mail processing plant for 22 years. we processed on a given day about a million pieces of mail. checks, newspapers, bills. a lot of people get their medications only through the mail. small businesses depend on this processing plant. they want to shut down 3000 post offices, cut 100,000 jobs. they're gonna be putting people out of work everywhere. the american people depend on the postal service. until the end of the quarter to think about your money... ♪ ...that right now, you want to know where you are, and where you'd like to be. we know you'd like to see the same information your advisor does so you can get a deeper understanding of what's going on with your portfolio. we know all this because we asked you, and what we heard helped us create pnc wealth insight, a smarter way to work with your pnc advisor, so you can make better decisions and live achievement. it is 49 minutes past 6:00, welcome back to "early start." he was once a heartbeat away from the presidency and now former vice president dick cheney is recovering after heart transplant surgery over the weekend. >> cheney, who is 71 years old, had been on the transplant waiting list for 20 months. he suffered five heart attacks and a pacemaker for the past decade as well. cnn's senior medical correspondent elizabeth cohen joins us live from atlanta. good morning to you. here's the big question, 71 years old. everybody is saying isn't he too old to be receiving a heart? >> some hospitals say it is so risky to give a heart transplant to some over 70 they won't do them but many will, depending on the health of the 70-year-old. if you look at the statistics there's no question that a 70-year-old has less of a chance of being alive five years after a heart transplant than somebody else but again having said that, hospitals are allowed to really do whatever they want to do. some people have ethical issues with giving a heart transplant to a 70-year-old because these are precious resources. a heart from a cadaver is a precious resource and some people feel why should we give it to someone who we know has less of a chance of being around five years later because of their age. >> not only that, this is a prominent person so a lot of people are wondering whether he jumped to the head of the line. >>' always hear when a prominent person gets an organ from a cadaver we wonder. the former vice president waited 20 months to get that heart from a cadaver. the average wait time in his hospital in virginia was nine months, so he actually waited longer than most people at his hospital to get a heart so i think it appears that that's not the case. sometimes i think zoraida we focus so much whether prominent people get to the head of the line, the big issue is that people with good insurance get to the front of loont. it costs $1 million to get heart transplant. you've got to have really great spoorns to pay for that. if you don't have insurance or if you don't have fabulous insurance you're not in the line. >> insurance aside don't you have to be super healthy as well? i've been looking at the pictures of the vice president over the years, slimmed way down, seems as though he's been watching his diet, being very careful. you have to be in perfect health. >> that is a great question and going to give you a funny answer. you have to be a combination of re really healthy and really sick. your heart has to be in bad enough shape that you need a transplant. this is a last resort so your heart has to be bad enough so you need a transplant but the rest of you healthy enough to take that heart and to live for means years thereafter. if your kidneys are in bad shape or liver is in bad shape they're not going to give you a transplant. the rest of you needs to be in good shape. >> we are pulling for him, all the best to him. rallies working one month since trayvon martin was shot and killed in florida. supporters say it's more than just a call for justice. live to sanford, next. showers with it. we make our coffee with it. but we rarely tap its true potential and just let it be itself. flowing freely into clean lakes, clear streams and along more fresh water coast line than any other state in the country. come realize water's true potential. dive in-to the waters of pure michigan. your trip begins at michigan.org. the healthcare law gives us powerful tools to fight it... to investigate it... ...prosecute it... and stop criminals. our senior medicare patrol volunteers... are teaching seniors across the country... ...to stop, spot, and report fraud. you can help. guard your medicare card. don't give out your card number over the phone. call to report any suspected fraud. we're cracking down on medicare fraud. let's make medicare stronger for all of us. welcome back to "early start." it is just about 7:00 here. two big stories we are watching today actually only one for you. >> martin savidge has been watching the trayvon martin shooting case in florida. a lot of people are expected to turn out today in sanford. >> reporter: exactly right. it's been one month since the tragic shooting tack place in the central florida community here and as a result of that, there was a protest planned, going to start at 4:00. it will go to a community town hall meeting. so many people anticipated they moved it to the civic center. if that gets full they' come to the park for a large screen television. the family is appealing for calm. at this point they're worried emotions and passions are running high, some people have a great deal of anger against the police force and government in this community. we're asking everyone be simple, and so far what they've seen, security is being beefed up for it. >> it's the other thing to have the city planning for what they don't know. >> reporter: well, i think you know, you have to be careful here, of course you don't want to make it look like a police state in any way, shape or form but they have a responsibility to maintain order. they have a responsibility to make sure nothing gets out of hand as people make their way through the downtown area ahead of the selfic center. i imagine there will be a combination of some police, they'll have other forces waiting just in case they need to intercede in some way, shape or form but they are hoping the lesson out of all of this is that calm needs to rule today. >> martin savidge live in sanford. also on the agenda, yeah, day one. i love this, so nerdy but i love the supreme court hearing over the course of three days begins today on the president's health care bill. >> i know that people were waiting since friday in line to get into the courtroom. i'm surprised you weren't one of them. >> i asked for the day off, just so you know. no kate bolduan and a whole team. this is critical and what happens today, tomorrow and the next day is going to set the agenda for what the campaign will look like as we head into the election in november. >> it's one key issue because it is complicated the three days of them talking and deciding the fate of the health care bill. there's one key issue. >> it boils down for you to whether or not the government can say to you, buy insurance or face a fine. there's other stuff, though, with medicaid and how the states pay for it and the force that the federal government can actually exert on states so that's going to come up, too, but it will be fascinating. that's str"early start." i'm ashleigh banlfield? >> i'm zoraida sambolin. "starting point" with soledad o'brien starts now. our starting point is a call for justice, coming from all over the country. >> they made trayvon martin, martyrs have power. >> exactly one month after trayvon martin was gunned down, thousands are expected to rally. we're talking to reverend jesse jackson. and eye on nukes, president obama warns ir