hostage, jessica buchanan. she's at a hospital in italy. she's going through what's callcal called a reintegration. it requires time. it's to max mime health and welfare. the question is could she be coming home soon. >> wish her well nonetheless. special delivery. can you say hot sauce? >> i woke up to the story and thought, oh, my man, what a delivery. >> politic and tacos, folks. hundreds and hundreds of tacos going to the office of the mayor of east haven, connecticut. i think you know who's behind this, why it happened and what's the reaction to it. we have an amazing video. a snow blower rider fell hundreds of feet. what he did after the crash. >> there were three angles on that. let me tell you. it looks like he's completely busted up or we wouldn't be showing you the video. >> we wouldn't have be showing you the video. >> i like good x games, i tell you. >> a real daredevil. >> let's go to the x games of politics, shall we? it was the gop's final four, and they were pulling out, no stops, kicking it up a notch. going everything from the maximum board to the new colony newt gingrich would like to establish. if you didn't know it, take a look at the backdrop. right here on this network, newt gingrich and mitt romney went at it. you can't tell by the faces but let me tell you. romney was on, going at the jugular vein, grin grich claiming he was anti-immigration. >> i'm not anti-immigrant. my father was born in mexico. my wife's mother was born in wales. don't use a term like that. you can say we disagree on certain policies but to say to welcome here legally, expand legal immigration that i approve that that's how anti-immigrant is the kind of over the top rhetoric that's carried on too long. i'm glad marco rubio called you out on it. i think you should apologize for it, and i think having differences of opinions does not give you the right to charge people with epithets. christine romans is going to join us as well. we're going to begin with paul. good morning to both of you, by the way. i see you waving there, christine. paul, i want to start with paul's picks because there are a slew of them. your favorite moments from last night. so the immigration finger-pointing sparked by the romney radio add was on the list. tell us about it. >> listen. right off the bat i'm going to say romney has had his best debate performance. this was probably the most important because it's coming a few days before the florida primary. you saw him strongly defend himself from the charges of newt give grich that he was the most anti-immigrant candidate of all four remaining republican candidates. you mentioned the radio ad. they really got him. he had a strong defense. this is the radio ad that the romney campaign put up a cup all of days in florida that gingrich at one time called the language of the spanish the language of the ghetto. >> it's one of your ads running here in florida oonld the radio and at the end you say i'm mitt romney and i approve this ad. so it is here. >> let me ask you a question. let me ask the speaker a question. did you say what the ad says or not, i don't know. >> it's taken totally out of context. >> okay. he said it. >> no, i did not say it about spanish. i said it in general about all languages. we're better for children to learn english in general, period. >> quit turn by romney, there, who was put on the spot by wolf blitzer the moderator and turned it around. one out of ten voters in the primary are latinos and hispanics and they're important. i was speaking with a lot of supporter and they were extremely, extremely pleased with his performance. >> yeah, and it's interesting because that's not an immigration issue. it's a language issue, a culture issue. i want to talk about rick santorum. he attacked mitt romney on his health care plan. let's listen, and then you can talk to me about it. >> governor romney was the awe thougher of romney care which is a top run government health care system which i read an article today has 15 different items directly in common with obama care. congressman gingrich for 20 years advocated that the federal government can force each and every person to enter into a private contract. we cannot give the issue of health caraway in this election. it is too foundational for us to win this election. that politico saying he's got game. what do you think? >> i think you're right and i think a lot of people are agreeing, zoraida. to go to mitt romney and he'd agree that that was the right way to go. that's a very dangerous thing for a republican to say. maybe he went on a little too long, a little too strong for health cakacare but he was definitely packing a punch. listen, for rick santorum and ron paul on the sides, you need to yell and scream to be a part of what's turning out to be a two f-person race. i think he did that successfully just a few hours ago. >> thanks for playing with us this morning. of course, one of the big crises is the housing crises. but nowhere has it been hit harder than in florida. here are some stats. 1 out of every 360 homes got a foreclosure notice and nearly half are under water, they're upside down. it's awful to hear that. since the housing prices peaked a few years back the home prices in florida have plummeted. 60% in orlando, more than half in miami and tampa. the republican front-runners have different versions is of how they would cope with that. here's a little bit of what both gingrich and romney said they would do about this. >> i would break each of them up into five or six separate units and over a five-year period i would wean them from all federal sponsor "showbiz flashpoint" because we need to get away from the system. >> the right course for the housing industry is to get people back to work so they can buy homes again. we have 9.9% unemployment. in florida, it's unthinkable. >> all right. so let's get you back to jacksonville where christine romans is standing by. you say it all the time when we're talking on camera, but when you hear the number, it almost feels like what the politicians are saying is just platitudes. i don't know that any politician can come in and fix this anyway. >> that's a really good point. look. the housing market isn't going to get fixed until the job market gets better. all the people we talked to, homeowners, realtors, real doors, professors who studied this thing. and really the interesting thing about this, ashleigh is no one in florida is going to be casting a vote without the baggage of the housing bubble. that's really clear. this is a housing story. florida went up fast and went up big and florida came down fast and came down big. here, jacksonville, it's about a half of all homes are under water right now meaning people who aren't in foreclosure still owe more on the home than the home is worth. it's a jobs issue. but let me tell you something else we have found. there are little seeds of recovery there, prices have dropped and are now glassed and are a lot lower than they were a few years ago. very low interest rates. you've got this glut of foreclosures that's starting to move out of the market. but the seeds being planted is much different than the green, the dawn of recovery. and so this is a real serious problem. you know, there's a lot of talk about mitt romney's taxes, too, and i think when you talk about taxes and housing, those are two issues floridians are talking about. >> you know what? you can mess with interest rates a all you want but when you're under water in a mortgage, good luck taking advantage of any of those benefits. good luck. going to come back to you to get more detail especially regarding the finances and how it affects this rice. and at 7:00, "startingpoint" with soledad o'brien. oo they were throwing her name around all sorts of times at the debate. you also want to make sure you join wolf blitzer, erin burnett, anderson couper and the wonderful and talented candy crowley for the live coverage. it's tuesday night, 6:00 eastern right here on cnn, which means they basically get no vacation. good morning. we're talking about the stories that are developing right now but they will be the big story tonight. attorney general eric holder will disclose a new fraud there are mortgage backed securities that trig erred the financial crisis. >> it's sentencing day for the barefoot bandit. he's got fans. arrested in the bahamas, remember, back in 120u after a two-year spree of barefoot break-ins and boat and plane thefts in the pacific northwest and canada. he was on the lam and had a huge plea deal. he was sentenced last month for his state crimes. so he's getting it from all directs. and the santa ana winds kicking up from southern california. officials say wind gusts as high as 70 miles an hour combined with low humidity have created very dangerous fire conditions there. >> we'll have to keep an eye on that. in fact, we have rob marciano keeping an eye on it much better. hey, there. >> good morning. we've had about a week or so break from the santa anas so it's about time for it to happen. the rain, yesterday, flooding across parts of new orleans and tornado threats across the gulf states. that has moved into florida. heavy rains moving into tampa. this is sneaking up toward jacksonville or into jacksonville and daytona and getting up into the low country of the carolinas. up to the north we do have a little wintry precip, some ice mixing in at times in upstate new york and 4 to 6 inches of snow affecting parts of the northeast. but the i-95 corridor is okay. it's a mild system heading up there. again, 1 to 4 inches across lower new england and 4208 across other parts. boston, new york, those are going to be your problem spots, philadelphia as well. tampa will see afternoon thunderstorms. another little clipper going to be coming across into chicago. that will finally bring some colder air. just like every other cold punch of air we've had, enjoy it when it comes. speaking of winter, winter x games, aspen, happening, you bet. shaun white, flying tomato. multiple winter x gold winner. there's not him. there's shaun. guys, he was practicing yesterday and sprained his ankle. i don't know if it's a little game man "showbiz flashpoint" going into the competition to get his competitors on their heels. >> this is shaun, isn't it? >> yeah, this is shaun. >> he's unbelievable. >> he's unbelievable. he goes bigger, higher, and more graceful and more peace in the air than any of his competitors. >> hey, rob, have you ever tried that? >> yeah. i can hug my carcass just like shaun. >> look at you. now, here's your crash. >> yeah, taking some big air and not quite -- i don't know if he got hurt on this seriously or not. >> no. he walked away from it. >> he did win the gold medal. >> we got e-mails that he is injured but he doesn't know it because of all the adrenaline. >> look at him walking away. i think he was doing a tim tebow afterward for that. i'd thank the lord above. >> are you going do a little half pipe for us next? >> yeah. >> thanks, rob. it's 14 minutes past the hour. time to check the news. another debate, another sparring match between the lidle republican candidate, mitt romney, newt gingrich. the two clash over illegal immigration. romney blasting him for calling him the most anti-immigrant candidate. the ad was pulled. and in mississippi, a man hunte hunt is continuing. state attorney jen reese offer a reward if you can help find this guy on your screen. take a good look. take a good, good long look. joseph osmund is his name. they say, by the way, the files on this guy and a few others are missing. the four murderers who are missing, the files are missing. they were supposed to be turned over. >> didn't that guy shoot somebody in the head twice? >> that wasn't didn't. >> i thought it was him. >> no. that was -- i got it. it will come to me. this guy is a killer. there were four of those. conveniently or accidentally the files on these guys on how they behaved, whether they were -- something you would give to the parole board. >> right, right, right. >> not able to find them. a pakistani military coming under attack overnight. officials say at least nine rockets were fired. it's located near the come pound where obama was ki where osama bin laden was killed. it's taco night. special delivery. 500 tack co-s coming into the mayor's office. >> i thought it was 2,000 talkers. nonetheless it's a lot sniet does look like more than 500. of course, you'll probably remember he made a stupid comment about making tacos for dinner as a way to reach out to latinos in that community. not the smartest thing to say. also we were watching eve though we were supposed to be asleep. the moon, a nice place to visit in august, i hear. in any case, mitt romney was smacking newt gingrich for talking about livie colonizing moon. wash and dry diesel self-serve fix a flat jumper cables 5% cashback right now, get 5% cashback at gas stations. it pays to discover. moon. ♪[music plays] ♪[music plays] purina one beyond. food for your cat or dog. you know what's exciting, graduation. when i look up into my student's faces, i see pride. you know, i have done something worthwhile. when i earned my doctorate through university of phoenix, that pride, that was on my face. i am jocelyn taylor, i am committed to making a difference in peoples lives and i am a phoenix. and who ordered the yummy cereal? yummy. [ woman ] lower cholesterol. [ man 2 ] yummy. i got that wrong didn't i? [ male announcer ] want great taste and whole grain oats that can help lower cholesterol? honey nut cheerios. since ameriprise financial was founded back in 1894, they've been committed to putting clients first. helping generations through tough times. good times. never taking a bailout. there when you need them. helping millions of americans over the centuries. the strength of a global financial leader. the heart of a one-to-one relationship. together for your future. ♪ will be giving away passafree copies together for your future. of the alcoholism & addiction cure. to get yours, go to ssagesmalibubook.com. welcome back, folks. it is 5:19 in the east. we have papers from washington and fayetteville, north carolina. i'm going to start with "the washington post." wondering if newt gingrich's plan to colonize the moon is actually science fiction. it's making a lot of headlines because of the shuttle program. can a permanent lunar base be set up by 2021? experts were interviewed. they are skeptical. robe robert wee land says it speculative. this was his polite way of saying that a lunar base by january 2021 is going to be very difficult to achieve. i don't know that you call romney an expert for weighing in, but he says it may be a big idea, but it's not a good idea. and santorum say this is not a responsible thing to even put out there. >> i'd visit the moon. i don't think i'd live there, right? give me a break, seriously. >> you know, the idea of spacecraft going up on daily basis, i don't know. >> and petitioning for statehood? >> it doesn't appeal to me. i know you're more of a daredevil. i wouldn't be trying it out, i'm sorry. >> there's another great story we had coming in from the fayetteville observer out of north carolina. if you've ever been to fort brag, rail good folks work there, lived there. they're jittery about the cutbacks the pentagon keeps talking about. they're talking about major defense cutbacks and 100,000 troops and brigades gets axed. if you're at fort brag, that's not good news. they've got four of those and they're really nervous about the thousands of people who could be affected by this, because the town itself depends on that installation of that base. they depend on it. there's thousands of families, hair cutting and groceries. whatever happens -- >> domino effect. >> huge, huge effect. they're watching very closely what the defense department is going to be saying. east haven, connecticut, the mayor won't have to look far for one of the tacos he was thinking of having the other night. why? look at this. huge special delivery. hundreds of tauco tacos deliver his office. this was following the insensitive remark. members of the grun junta for progressive action delivered the tacos. >> hopefully you know now that comments like yours heightens racial teng and how the intolerance uncovered by the department of justice was allowed to take hold. these tacos represent every american across america who was disgusted and condemns your comments. >> he says the tacos are going to be donated to local soup kitchens and he also says, i'm going to quote this, the events of the past few days have focused our town and my administration on the need to deal sensitively and compassionately with the needs of the latino community. >> yeah. he's had a rough week to say the very least and i'm thinking he's looking forward to this being behind him. >> not any time soon. i also want to keep you in the pop culture loop this morning. take a look at what's trending on the social media and the intrawebs. how about this? twitter with a new policy. kind of sounds like censorship. they're going to block certain tweets. there are certain countries we can exist in. for example they're looking at the idea of even blocking neo-nazi tweets in germany and france. there are laws against hate speech there. twitter is essentially saying is figure out a way to exist in these countries and make some of those sort of heated tweets exist somewhere else so everyone else in the world can still access those that might not be offensive, to, say, an islamic republican, but they can still exist. but everybody else in the world can read those tweets. it's kind of tough. >> yeah, yeah, yeah. it's censorship. >> any way you cut it, it's censorship. drunk behind the wheel? look at these two? "wheel of fortune" hosts. they would load up on margaritas while filming the game slow. he said so. he said they would take dinner breaks as a nearby mexican restaurant. listen. >> vanna and i would go across and have two or three or six and come and do the last shows and have trouble recognizing the alphabet. they're really good tapes to get hold of. >> ashleigh thinks he was kidding. this happened when the show started and when he was much younger and could hold his liquor. he wants to go back and look at the episodes. that ire keend of fun to watch. we have highlights for you when you go to bed early and get up early. romney appearing to get his swarg, big swagger. all of this ahead of the florida primary. it's coming up on tuesday. that state, be i the way, is up for grabs. and have you watched mtv's new reeight series, "caged?" the show starts live on the set. you are watching "early start." 28 minutes past the hour. time to check the stories that are making news this morning. more debate drama as the republican presidential candidates exchange fire on everything from health care to a moon colony to illegal immigration. >> that's my favorite one, by the way. >> which one? the moon colony? >> yeah. >> it drew an angry response from mitt romney. it was called inexcusable. the ad was pulled. it was final face-off. overseas, take a look at the mass rally in cairo. more than two dozen pro-democracy groups were behind this. they were called out to march all in friday prayers. that's a big day in the country where it's like church day where they can go out and protest. that's what they were doing to mark the first anniversary of the protest that removed president hmubarak. 11 people were killed in the worst oil spill history. it's no secret. florida's big. it's a big place. i think delegate-wise, 55 up for grabs. that state still up for grabs. if you look at the number of voters and where they stand, look at. this 64% of florida voters, gop voters, anyway, they figured they know who they're going to vote for. but 25%