celebrating because today's job news might really start to seal the deal for re-election. that's his hope unemployment in america fell to 8.3% as the country added 243,000 jobs. >> the recovery is speeding up. and we have to do everything in our power to keep it going. >> which reminds us of another president who found himself in a similar situation during his re-election year. >> i am pleased to report that america is much improved. and there's good reason to believe that improvement will continue through the days come. >> raegen won on this. >> it's morning again in america. today, more men and women will go to work than ever before in our country's history. with interest rates at about half the record highs of 1980. >> tonight, we ask a question we asked before, actually last menth when the jobs picture improved. is this morning in america for barack obama. in january of 1984, months before reagan was re-elected, the unemployment rate was 8%. compare that to today's 8.3%. by the time election day rolled around, the unemployment rate was 7.4%. even though it was the highest unemployment rate for a re-elected president since world war ii. voters felt a recovery was in full swing. but this president in 2012 still has a tough road ahead. take a look at the pie, how many people have lost their jobs since this financial crisis began. 8.7 million people. since the recession began in 20008. now, under president obama, we have regained 3.2 million of those jobs. that's about 37% of the pie. it's significant. it's a trend that if it continues could be morning in america for the president, but it's not easy. a long way to go, and gop presidential hopefuls are taking the opportunity to remind him of that. >> it's been a tough time. and i know the president didn't cause this downturn, this recession, but he didn't make it better, either. he made it worse. >> the truth is that if it gets better and better and better between now and the election, he will get some credit. on the other hand, if this is a lull before it starts getting worse, his election will be in enormous trouble. >> we checked that claim by newt gingrich, and it's pretty interesting. i didn't know what we would find, but we found more for president obama. even though the unemployment rate under reagan fell dramatically in 1984, it bottomed out in the spring and rose again in the summer. summer of '84, which was the last date the voters had, a few days before they wnt in to pull the lever, it was higher than it was in the spring. let's bring in jim beaungo, jamal, and ruhan. >> pretty interesting, the more you comb through the data, the trend, five months in a row of job creation and dropping unemployment rate, pretty good for the president in terms of re-election, isn't it? >> lower is always better, and that's going in the right direction. so that is a positive. if there's a flipside to that coin, it's that reagan won with a low 7% unemployment rate. but bush 41 lost in ' 92, carter lost and ford lost with similar numbers, around 7.5%. we have had four elections in the waurld war ii era with a seven handle on unemployment, and only one resulted in a re-election. >> you have a 25% chance even if things are improving. the president even though he doesn't want to come out and sound excited has got to be feeling really good. >> he certainly has to be feeling better. he should feel better. everybody in the country should feel better because things are going in the right direction. whenever i see the numbers in the morning, the first thing that comes to my mind is what must they be thinking at the mitt romney headquarters. are they celebrating the fact that things are looking better, or are they feeling down? i'm sure they're having mixed emotions about this. it does make it tougher for republicans to fight back. i think not only for the president, but also for the democrats who are running for congress, they really have a case now, with the american people, that says the republicans can either help make the recovery stronger or stand in the way of it. if the republicans are caught standing in the way of t they'll pay the price in november. >> what do you think the romney camp is thinking? it's possible, this is the sick thing about the unemployment numbers, people who haven't looked for jobs in a while don't count. when they start looking, ie, the job market gets better, the rate picks up. >> that's absolutely right. so you -- that pie chart was a useful way of thinking about it. we had a huge hit to the labor force participation in the country. that means the people looking for jobs, working, that's still at a really, really low level in historical terms. and it's not picking up. it ticks up when people are more optimistic about their prospects about finding work. in 2011, we had three months of tough job creation, february, march, and april, and then sub-100,000 jobs a month creation. that's another thing thaticate happen. this summer, we're going to see gash prices hit $5 a gallon. that's a big wallop to the economy. another thing is the seasonal adjustment. there's a lot that still remains to be seen. the economy is doing better, a robust expansion of exports and manufacturing, but it's still an uneven economy where some groups have much higher levels of unemployment than others. >> how much are people moved by headlines like five months in a row of dropping unemployment rate. 8.3% going in the right direction, as opposed to people feeling they're underemployed or working part time and want to work full time. >> i think there's no doubt that there's an emotionally driven fact rather than fact driven. the stock market is up 150 dow points today, all leads people to believe that things are getting better and that emotion will drive it. it's right to say that the participation rate is low. 1.2 million people have left the work force all together. if they decide to come back into the work force and look for a job, the unemployment rate could spike over 90%. it would be a bad thing because all of a sudden, the unemployment rate goes up. it's all about emotion, and the emotions are working now because everything is moving in the right direction. >> it's ironic that an improving economy could lead to a higher number and hurt the president. that could cause great frustration for his re-election camp. >> it won't feel very good, but at the end of the day, i have always said this from the very beginning and i'll say it again today, this election is not just going to be a referendum on the president. it's also going to be a choice between barack obama and whoever the republican nominee is, looking like mitt romney perhaps, and ultimately, if you look at 1992 or look at 1980, who was the more optimistic forward looking, sunny faced candidate. ronald reagan in 1980, bill clinton in 1992. the president will be that person this year because mitt romney frankly has not really done himself any favors with his reputation over the last few months in the campaign. >> a bruising battle. some people make the aurm, you're ready for the final battle. some make the argument you're so bruised, you can't fight there. this is kind of a bizarre thing, and if you're into omens, i don't like to admit i am, but sometimes i am. we're on this weird grugorian calendar, and 28 years ago, it was the same calendar. we got a jobs number, election day on the 6th, exact same way this time, which is weird, but the bottom line is people are going to get a jobs number, literally, three days before they go to the polls. >> and that will make a big difference as far as how everybody is going to react because that's going to be the big number as we move in there. and i'm glad you were talking about the gregorian calendar and not the mind calendar which is meaningless after december. >> that puts a whole new twist on the election. >> also which team wins the world series and how that plays out. >> those ones, fine. those are like omens. but this one, i don't know. maybe there's a little more to it. well, gentlemen, thanks to all three of you. we appreciate it. >> thanks. >> thank god i'm not a believer in the mien calendar. still out front, breaking news in the doping case against lance armstrong. just crossing, and staggering what we discovered. and violence erupting in egypt, spreading across the country after the deadly soccer game. also americans kidnapped. the story. >> and the ron paul revolution. >> once you become a ron paul supporter, you remain a ron paul supporter. welcome to new nutritionpossible.com... from centrum. its unique assessment tool... helps you find the multivitamin and supplements... that are right for you. so visit nutritionpossible.com. better nutrition... is within reach. centrum. nutrition possible. when we were determined to see it through. better nutrition... is within reach. here's an update on the progress. we're paying for all spill related clean-up costs. bp findings supports independent scientists studying the gulf's environment. thousands of environmental samples have been tested and all beaches and waters are open. and the tourists are back. i was born here, i'm still here and so is bp. a little bird told me about a band... ♪ an old man shared some fish stories... ♪ oooh, my turn. ♪ she was in paris, but we talked for hours... everyone else buzzed about the band. there's a wireless mind inside all of us. so, where to next? ♪ breaking news on lance armstrong and performance enhancing drugs. they said the federal probe into the biking champion has been closed. closed after all this. seven-time tour de france winner and his team were under investigation for years. charges that armstrong has strongly and repeatedly denied time and time again. senior legal analyst jeffrey toobin has more on the story. let me ask you what does it mean. is this done? >> this is what it means. remember raymond donovan, the secretary of labor under ronald reagan, he was investigated for years. and he was cleared and asked a famous question. he said, where do i go to get my reputation back? who do i see about that? it's kind of a haunting question for those of us who cover and report all these accusations. he has been investigated for years. nothing has come of it. this investigation is over. >> there are people who will always believe he did it, it affected his reputation. >> it will, and it's not fair. this guy is cleared. it's done, it's over. >> so this is then the deciding that he's innocent, not that they didn't have enough facts. >> the justice department never says anyone is innocent. they're not in the bgz of providing clear health. they're saying we can't find proof beyond a reasonable doubt that person x did thing y. as journalists, as citizens, i think the only thing we can conclude is there's nothing there. >> are they going to apologize to them. if so, does it help the reputation? >> they don't do apologies. well, they don't. and you know, i'm a former federal prosecutor myself. cases fall apart for various reasons, you think about how bad these cases have gone for the government. >> absolutely, absolutely not. barry bonds, they investigated him for years. tried him. he got 30 days house arrest. the case against roger clemens fell apart. maybe it will be retried, maybe it won't. >> not charging anybody? >> maybe it wasn't appropriate for criminal penalties. these cases have been disastrous for the government, and they need to rethink how they do them. >> all right, well, i guess he should be celebrating. i'm sure you're right. >> you can never get your reputation totally back. >> jeffrey, thank you very much. >> okay. violence eripting for a second day in egypt. at least seven people killed, more than 2,000 injured as protesters clash with police. this is after a deadly riot after a soccer game. 79 people were killed. police had been blamed for failing to provide any kind of security stepping back, and letting people kill each other with rocks and knives. also two american tourists are free. they were kidnapped in the sina eninsula in egypt. ben wedeman is following the story. good to see you. i wanted to start with the american tourists if you don't mind, and the two women. whaument do you know what about happened to them, who they were? >> they were two women tourists who had gone to st. catherines which is right next to mt. sinai. there they were on a bus, it was stopped, and apparently the kidnappers were looking specifically for americans. they took these two women off of the bus and took them away. now, negotiations quickly began between the budoan and authorities, egyptian authorities in the area. they wanted to have some of their tribesmen who were in prison released or retried. now, we were told that the egyptian authorities promised to do that, and therefore, the women were released just before sundown here in egypt, and they're fine. they're unharmed, and they're free now. >> at least, i suppose, is a little bit of good news. ben, you're in cairo tonight. 1400 people injured, but 2,000 people now around egypt as clashes are more widespread. what is your sense of whether this is under control or spiraling even more out of control right now? >> certainly here in cairo, it's been going around the clock since yesterday. and the clashes continue until now. in fact, just a while ago, the egyptian tax authority building was lit on fire. it's not quite sure how that happened, so the clashes continue. here, they continue in suez where we have at least four people killed. and now they have spread to the port city of alexandria as well. it's not clear whether they'll dissipate or simply continue and get worse. >> do you have any sense, ben, whether this is -- for lack of a better word, another revolution. you can see the government fall? we started to see parliamentary electoral process begin in egypt. is it possible all this could be derailed? >> well, it reminds me of the morning after hosni mubarak resigned. one of the big papers here had banner headlines that the people had toppled the regime. people are realizing that getting rid of mubarak was not topping the regime. it was removing the facade. the things that make people angry like the interior ministry and the history of police brutality and petty corruption, they feel that hasn't changed. people want to see fundamental change. until that happens, this kind of unrest, whether it's sparked by football or something else, is inevitable. it's going to continue. >> ben wedeman, thanks very much. reporting for us from cairo late on friday night. all right, still to come outfront, escalation between israel and iran. one calling the other a cancer today. and now specific looks at the scenario. how many planes does israel have? what route could they fly. how big are their bombs? what could they really do? we look, we have the math, we have the numbers and we're going to tell you about it. next, the weather does a number on air travel. plus drones watching new york city? [oinking] [hissing] [ding] announcer: cook foods to the right temperature using a food thermometer. 3,000 americans will die from food poisoning this year. check your steps at foodsafety.gov. so it's been an unusually warm winter so far for pretty much everyone across the country. people around the country have had their prayers answered with fresh powder and snow out west. in the bronx, or in kansas, bought if you went to the rockies, you had a bad problem. you got the storm you were looking for with over 9 inches of counting. six flights were canceled thursday night and today in the snow. as our boss said, wow, a lot of flights going in and out of denver. people didn't expect there were thought many flights going in and out of denver, but there are. and a lot of prns in that airport. which brings us to tonight's number, 19. that's the number in thousands of airplanes that can be in the air the same time at any given time around the world. take a look at this animation. pretty cool. this shows time elapsed flight patterns over the united states from 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. you can see it heat up on the east and move to the west. neat but kind of terrifying because when you're in one of those planes and you look out your window mid-flight, what makes you more scared, the fact you know there are thousands and thousands of planes and you never see them and they're one level below you so you don't see it, or is it more scary that you should see more? with 19,000 planes in the air at the same time, maybe it would be more comfortable to see them flying around. that's tonight's number. >> still outfront, the outfront five. israeli strikes. >> dealing with a nuclear iran would be far more complex, far more dangerous, and far more expensive in blood and money than today. >> no charges so far. >> i would be shocked if charges aren't coming. >> all of this out front in the second half. [ male announcer ] this was how my day began. a little bird told me about a band... ♪ an old man shared some fish stories... ♪ oooh, my turn. ♪ she was in paris, but we talked for hours... everyone else buzzed about the band. there's a wireless mind inside all of us. so, where to next? ♪ yoyou u wawalklk i intna coconvnvenentitiononalal ms ststorore,e, i it't's s ry nonot t ababouout t yoy. ththeyey s sayay, , "w"weleu wawantnt a a f firirm m bebn lilie e onon o onene o of ff yoyou u wawantnt a a s sofou cacan n lilie e onon o onene o " wewe p prorovividede t thet inindidivividudualalizizatat yoyourur b bodody y neneede. wewelclcomome e toto t thehe slsleeeep p nunumbmberer . nonot t jujustst o ordrdininaran sasalele, , bubut t ththe e bn chchanangege y youour r lilifef. ththe e slsleeeep p nunumb. ththisis i is s yoyourur b bodo. yoyou u cacan n sesee e a a lile prpresessusurere i in n ththe es anand d inin t thehe h hipi. nonow w yoyou u cacan n fet hahappppenens s asas w we e rarr slsleeeep p nunumbmberer s seted alallolow w ththe e bebed d totr toto y youour r inindidivividud. wowow!w! ththatat f feeeelsls r reae. itit's's h huguggigingng m. itit's's n notot a abobt sosoftft o or r fifirm. itit's's a aboboutut s supuppope yoyou u fifindnd i it t momost. ririghght t nonow,w, q queun mamattttreresssseses s statartr. anand d sasaveve a an n asag 5050% % onon t thehe f fininalat ofof o ourur i innnnovovatae lilimimiteted d ededititio. yoyou u cacan n adadjujustst i r yoyou u wawantnt s so o yoyoue toto w wororryry a aboboutg ththe e wrwronong g mamat. huhurrrry y ththisis w weeee ulultitimamatete s sleleepep n. ononlyly a at t onone e ofo0 slsleeeep p nunumbmberer s. we start the second half of the show with stories we care about, do the reporting, and find the outfront five. >> the u.s. economy added 244,000 johns. that was much expected. stocks surged as a result. all three averages up by more than a percent. nasdaq, levels not seen since december in the year 2000. number two, the fbi has launched a criminal investigation after confirming a hacking group reported a call between the fbi and scotland yard. law enforcement officials tell us that the conversation was recorded after an e-mail about the conference call was intercepted. the call was placed two weeks ago and involved an investigation into a hacking group called lulsec. they added no fbi computers were hacked. but they're accused of hacking three computers run by the british government. >> following public outrage, the susan g. komen administration backtracked and reinstated funding for planned parenthood. we want to apologize to the american public for recent decisions that cast doubt on our commitment to our mission of saving lives. they restored funds at planned parenthood. they said it came from a policy change and not because they perform abortions as some suggestioned. the organization has used the branch to provide 170,000 breast exams for women who couldn't afford them otherwise. >> th