race on the garden state parkway in new jersey. the police were allegedly leading. >> up first, ready to kick the reelection campaign into high gear. the president and first lady will hold the first rallies next week. in virginia and ohio. if the president's two-day, three-state college swing this week is any indication, the administration is trying to stirrup a youth movement. it's using the federal student loanish issue to o do it. >> congress needs to act right now to prevent interest rates on federal student interest loans from shaking you down. i want all of you to be rich. i want all of you to be successful. >> dan lothian is live in washington, d.c. in 2008, he had the youth in record numbers. other than that the federal student loan program, anything else he's working on? >> well, what you see from the p, he's talking about what his administration has done over the last three-plus years to help young people and you hear him talk about pell grants, about streamlining the process for students in getting loans. and you know, i think what's interesting here. you look back, it wasn't too long ago that many people thought that young people, they could grj niezed around campaigns. what we saw was a big jump of 2 million young people showing up to the polls compared to four years prior to that in 2004. they were at the heart of president's campaign, that grassroots effort. the exit polling showing that the president got 66% of the vote compared to john mccain's percentage of the vote. that's why he's pushing hard to recapture of the glory that the voters who are four years older and also go after those who weren't old enough to vote at the time. mitt romney is also going after the group but there's a wide gap according to the most recent polls showing president obama in a hypothetical matchup leads mitt romney among 18 to 34-year-olds. 64% to 32%. mitt romney, that's why you see him this week also agreeing with the president on the issue of making sure that those federal student loans stay at a low level, so that they can afford it, but that's where the similarities end. mitt romney going after the president telling young people that it's because of the president's lack of leadership that the economy has not turned around, zoraida. >> that's quite a commanding lead. the rnc isn't too happy with the president's recent events and filed a complaint saying that president obama is misusing taxpayer money. tell us about that. >> that's right. you know, the rnc has been criticizing the obama administration for all these years, usually to battleground states where the administration says that these are official trips, but they have this feel of a campaign and so the rnc always sends out press releases saying, look, this is a campaign event at taxpayers' expense. now you have the chairman of the rnc asking the government accountability office for an investigation, writing in part in the letter "throughout his administration but continuingly in recent weeks, he's been passing off travel as official events allowing taxpayers to pay for his reelection efforts." this is not anything new. other presidents do the same kind of thing. there's always that balance between what the campaign pays for and what is paid for by taxpayers and the white house and also the campaign saying that they're following a formula. they're following the guidelines here. >> all right. dan lothian, live in washington for us. thank you. it's four minutes past 5:00 on east coast. student protests in montreal turned ugly last night. that's exactly what it looks like. police just pepper sprayed that cameraman and his camera as he was trying to actually get video of this arrest. riot police were called in as 11,000 students who were protesting tuition hikes started to get rowdy. they were throwing rocks, they were throwing bottles, they were setting off fireworks. police declared it was an illegal assembly over a loud speaker, they did it. they reportedly arrested more than a dozen people. the supreme court is shaking up the immigration debate. justices seem to be siding with arizona in the fietd over its controversial immigration lauchlt the federal government is arguing that states don't have the authority to enforce immigration matters. the case was criticized by the high court yesterday with even president obama pick, justice sonia sotomayor was saying the case was not selling very well. jan brewer says even if the court does not side with her state, she is not backing down. >> i certainly would talk to my legal counsel and see what our other avenues of approach would be. but you know, i'll cross that bridge when we get there. who -- i don't think we're going to have to do that. >> meantime, protests against the law are heating up in arizona. nine demonstrators were arrested in phoenix yesterday. the supreme court is expected to make a final decision this summer. nice morning conversation for you. are strippers and prostitutes part of the culture in the secret service? hmm. scandal that erupted in colombia at a hotel is growing this morning. there's a new report out from cairo news of seattle. it's quoting the government contractor who works in el salvador prior to president obama's trip there in march of 2011. that source is saying about a dozen agents, as well as the military personnel got "wasted at a strip club there" and then paid extra to go to the vip area to do a little extra with some of the strippers. this all comes a day after the secretary of homeland security and that's of course the department overseeing the secret service now, that secretary was asked if anything like this has ever happened before. have a listen. >> to your knowledge is this the first time something like this has happened? >> there was nothing in the record to suggest that this behavior would happen. >> well, janet napolitano will have to change her tune now because these reports are coming out following a report that quoted an unnamed agent, several actually, who talked about another incident in 2009. in buenos aires, when president clintons agents went out to ready for this strip club. there's no comment on the story. but one reaction by our leadership speaks for itself. seven minutes past the hour. two current and two former tsa employees have been arrested in a drug and bribely scream at los angeles international airport. they're accused of allowing large amounts of cocaine, meth meth and marijuana to pass through x-ray machines at checkpoints in exchange for cash payoffs. one courier is in custody and another expected to turn himself in today. the workers face life in federal prison if convicted. to the courtroom now. government star witness in the trial of john edwards is facing tough cross-examination from defense lawyers. the former senator's ex-aide and confidant, andrew young, was on the stand for a third day yesterday. defense went at him, accusing him of lying about his ex-boss and trying to profit off of his downfall. edwards, for his part, left the courthouse smiling and have a listen to what he told his daughter. >> sun's out now. >> i know. >> in more ways than one. >> sun's out there in more ways than one he says. andrew young is scheduled to return to the stand for more blistering cross-examination this morning. video of the death race caravan that got two new jersey state troopers suspended. they allegedly escorted dozens of really expensive and really fast luxury cars on a dangerous 100 mile per hour run to atlantic city. former new york giant, brandon jacobs was reportedly behind the wheel of one of the cars. an attorney for one of the officers says the whole incident is being exaggerated. he even suggested to us that the troopers were just doing their jobs. like the graphic said, this just in. at nine minutes past 5:00. gas prices just keep on dropping. >> yea. >> nice to bring you this news. >> aaa just posting it on the web sooifrt. the new national average is at $3.83 a gallon. fill her up folks. >> we were like $3.98 not long ago. >> 20% higher than the start of the year. that's the last 24 hours. ten days straight if you're doing the math, it's fun to count day by day. we'll see what happens as it gets closer to the busy summer driving season, the memorial trend. >> they've already changed their gas, saying it's going to be fine. >> every single year close to memorial day, you're planning the trip to grandma or grandpa, prices go up. firefighters in kansas dealing with one very, very explosive situation. a half-ton propane tank catches fire. capital police are investigating a credible threat against that man. you know him now. florida senator marco rubio. who is after him and why. you're watching early start. this reduced sodium soup says it may help lower cholesterol, how does it work? you just have to eat it as part of your heart healthy diet. step 1. eat the soup. all those veggies and beans, that's what may help lower your cholesterol and -- 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[ male announcer ] it's a network of possibilities -- helping you do what you do... even better. ♪ mine was earned off vietnam in 1968. over the south pacific in 1943. i got mine in iraq, 2003. usaa auto insurance is often handed down from generation to generation. because it offers a superior level of protection, and because usaa's commitment to serve the military, veterans and their families is without equal. begin your legacy, get an auto insurance quote. usaa. we know what it means to serve. it is 13 minutes now past 5:00. that's a really good time check the top stories making news this hour. >> you probably didn't see this coming. the u.s. supreme court appears to be backing arizona in the immigration law. even sonia sotomayor saying white house arguments are "not selling very well." the high court is deciding whether states have the ability to enforce immigration matters. a final decision is expected in the summer, perhaps june. a cameraman caught in the pepper spray crossfire. look at that. during a student protest in montreal late last night. police were having to dodge bottles and rocks and reportedly arrested more than a dozen people in this melee. the senate is willing to pony up $11 billion to help keep the u.s. postal service from shutting down thousands of post offices across the country. in a bipartisan 62-37 vote, the senate wednesday approved a measure to allow the postal service to keep the facilities open and continue with saturday delivery. u.s. capital police are investigating what they're calling a credible threat against florida senator marco rubio. rubio's name has been floated around as a possible running mate for mitt romney on the gop ticket. a patrol car has been spotted outside of his home in west miami and the threat was so credible that rubio has police protection in washington and at his west miami home. for their part, authorities are not giving out any additional information on this. firefighters in kansas city, kansasv to deal with exploding propane tanks as they battled a two-alarm fire outside of a large warehouse. it began when a 1,000-pound propane tank caught fire. they reported several explosions as they worked to try to contain the flames. burger king is making a cage-free promise. the world's second biggest burger chain says by 2017, all of its eggs and its pork is going to come from chickens and pigs that are not living in cramped cages. burger king say it is switching because more and more consumers are demanding products come from animals raised and treated humanely. >> that's interesting. there's a big argument about that. you don't want your animals stressed out when you're eating them. head to our blog, cnn.com/early start for an expanded version. it's 16 minutes past 5:00. let's get a check of the weather. look at that handsome man. you got the orange memo with tie. we have a rude awakening for people. scattered showers and thunderstorms. until the 8:00 local time. south of cincinnati. also on parts of 64, heavy rain coming down. even more towards i-70. would not be surprised if we get a little flash flooding through the region in the midday hours. little bit of rain in the sierra nevada. the highest elevations, light touch of snowfall. not a great deal but a dusting. we'll switch gears and go from the snow to the heat. we had plenty yesterday. triple digits in childress, texas, lubbock even amarillo. marking the all-time record for april. incredly warm temperatures. amarillo with 99. childress with 106. another warm day expected and not only whether the temperatures heat up but severe weather possibility, into the ohio valley, portions of the southeast. breezy in spots. like atlanta. anyone trying to take off orland at hartsfield, jackson may have a few delays. 78 degrees a high. the city, 54. 91 in dallas. 82 in atlanta. wrapping it up in new york with 59 degrees. that's your expected high. back to you in the big apple. >> reynolds wolf, thanks. you bet. it's 17 minutes past the hour. an early read on your local news making national headlines. we have papers from washington, d.c. and orlando. let's start with the washington post. his mouth got him in trouble. marian berry causing a diplomatic ruckus over nurses. he said if you go to the hospital now, you'll find a number of immigrants who are nurses, particularly from the philippines. no offense, let's grow our own teachers and nurses so we don't have to skrouj around in clinics and having to hire people from somewhere else. >> some people find that offensive, others not so much. but now the philippines investor wants him to apologize. he says berry is blaming asians, it's discrimination and violence. barry said he will not apologize. he did apologize over another outrageous remark that he got in trouble for bashing asian-owned business as dirty. it's on the heels of that, that people are finding this offensive. >> i would say using the word skroujing around is -- >> we have our own, let's grow them. on the heels of that, when you sbi combine the two -- >> maybe that's an old school way of looking at things. when you look at the education stats, we don't rate so well. some other countries that we're looking for, have better educated people. >> just a higher volume that we have as well. >> there's that as well. >> marian berry, you have demons in your closet too. maybe you should shh for a minute. orlando sentinel. this is fascinating. this has been controversial. why did that man have a gun the night he shot trayvon martin. more insight into george zimmerman and why he had the gun. reuters investigating and finding out that he and his wife had been afraid of a pit bull. he called the police several times about it. seminole county animal services actually recommended that he go and buy pepper spray and a gun. the officer said, get a gun. so what did he do? he did it. he completed the firearms training, got a concealed weapons permit and bought that handgun. fascinating information. doesn't necessarily tell you what happened in the critical minutes in the investigation. but people eat up every detail about that story. >> 20 minutes past the hour. coming up, jobs and the race for the white house. why some big ceo's can't wait for election day. you're watching early start. s p? 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[ male announcer ] marriott hotels & resorts knows it's better for xerox to automate their global invoice process so they can focus on serving their customers. with xerox, you're ready for real business. the dow and nasdaq making gains yesterday. three arrows pointing up. gaining 2% alone driven bring the earnings from apple. caterpillar closed lower after the news came in lower. poppy harlow is here. you interviewed the ceo of caterpillar. >> yeah. last night after the earnings. it's interesting that they're on track for a record year. top line missed a little bit. the story i