day eight of the rob porter disaster, and the white house still can't get its timeline straight. white house chief of staff john kelly under increasing scrutiny as sources tell cnn he tried to cover up for porter. >> frankly, the united states is under attack. >> a stern warning from top u.s. intelligence officials. russia is already meddling in the midterm election. what they said about president trump's willingness to fight

back. redemption for shaun white in south korea, winning gold in the men's halfpipe. a live report with all the olympic headlines you missed overnight. the flying tomato, the godfather of snowboarding, he was incredible, clutch performance. 100th gold medal in the winter olympics for the u.s. welcome to "early start," i'm dave briggs. >> i'm alison kosik. wednesday, february 14th, happy valentine's day. >> that's right. happy valentine's day. >> happy valentine's day to you -- >> or galentine's day -- twitter told me. >> i think he's going to give a rose later. >> i will. conversations over who could replace embattled chief of staff john kelly heating up. cnn is reporting that president trump called associates in recent days discussing possible replacements for kelly in the wake of the rob porter spousal abuse scandal. multiple sources tell us the president has made no decision to push kelly out, but they say names being floated if he does

include chief economic adviser gary cohn. house majority leader kevin mccarthy, and nic mulval -- nic mulvaney. sarah sanders said yesterday the president has confidence in kelly. >> in comes as the white house struggles to control fallout over allegations porter, the former white house staff secretary, physically abused his two ex-wives. porter denies the accusations. chief of staff kelly defending his handling of the situation, though, telling the "wall street journal," "it was all done right." the scrutiny only intensified tuesday after the director of the fbi up-ended the entire white house timeline of events. >> let me go through a quick recap. monday the white house said top officials learned the "extent of the allegations" last tuesday and that porter's background check was still ongoing. but then yesterday, fbi chief chris wray told the senate intel

committee the bureau notified the white house of the allegations months ago. >> i submitted a partial report on the investigation in question in march, and then a completed background investigation in late july that is soon -- soon thereafter we received requests for followup inquiry, and we did the followup and provided information in november. and that we administratively closed the file in january. >> this comes as we learn porter was in line for a promotion at the same time the abuse allegations were surfacing. jim acosta from the white house. >> reporter: the white house is again at odds with the fbi, this time over the timeline and scandal involving former staff secretary rob porter. the director of the fbi said his agents completed their investigation into porter's

background last july, contradicting what white house officials have said for days, that they only became aware of what happened last week. the white house offered a new explanation saying that the fbi background check went to the white house office of personnel security. asked about the shifting explanations, press secretary sarah sanders said that she's doing the best she can. >> obviously the press team's not going to be as read-in as some other elements at a given moment on a variety of topics. we relay the best and most accurate information that we have, and we get those from those individuals. >> reporter: aides to the president are becoming frustrated with information they're receiving from top officials inside the west wing. one white house official complained white house counsel don mcghan received much of the information last summer and did not share enough with top staffers. >> okay. jim accost athank you very mu mumuch -- acosta, thank you very much. longtime liar michael cohn said he paid $130,000 out of his pocket to porn star stormy daniels who once claimed she had

an affair with mr. trump. it is the first time cohn has acknowledged making the payment since it was first reported last month by the "wall street journal." sources say cohn paid stephanie clifford, better known as stormy daniels, out of concern the accusation could damage the president. in a statement, cohn says this, "the payment to ms. clifford was lawful and was not a campaign contribution or a campaign expenditure by anyone. just because something isn't true doesn't mean that it can't cause you harm or damage. i will always protect mr. trump." >> cohn said he was not reimbursed by the trump campaign or trump organization. he has previously said the president denies any affairs with daniels. she has dodged questions about an affair in recent weeks but has not publicly denied it. the nation's top intelligence official sending a unanimous full-throat warning to the white house -- russia is already meddling in the 2018

midterm elections. director of national intelligence dan coates telling the senate intel committee russia is convinced its previous meddling efforts were successful, and he says the kremlin will continue using propaganda and social media to widen the political divide in the u.s. listen to senators questioning the intel chiefs about president trump's role in combating the russian threat. listen. >> making a lot of specific efforts to blunt directives by the president? >> not as specifically directed by the president. >> okay. not direct, the presidential direction to take steps to disrupt his activities? >> not sure -- >> could you -- >> sorry. i'm not sure how specific. >> despite the testimony from his top intel agencies, three sources familiar with the president's thinking say he remains unconvinced russia interfered in the 2016 election. >> staggering. president trump calls the immigration debate now underway

in the senate the last chance for dreamers. negotiations are off to a rocky start with democrats and republicans in a standoff over how debate should even proceed. majority leader mitch mcconnell trying to open the session with a vote on legislation to punish sanctuary cities. minority leader chuck schumer objecting to the measure because it has nothing to do with the dreamer act. >> no reason, no reason not to come together and get a solution this week. this has been going on endlessly. they shut down the government over this. i want to see what they want to do. >> finding 60 votes for something that meets the needs of both sides and can deal with the dreamers and border security is not easy. we all know that immigration is fraught with peril, but this is the closest we've come, and everybody head to make a really final effort. >> reporter: florida bait

faltering, a bipartisan group, seems to be making progress behind the scenes an immigration plan that could get the 60 votes needed to pass. time for an early start on your monday. trump discussed the state of the steel industry with lawmakers tuesday saying he's considering a range of options to address imports that he believes are hurting u.s. steelworkers. >> we can not be without a steel industry. we cannot be without an aluminum industry. and so what we're talking about is tariffs and/or quotas. >> and the president said these restrictions would help save struggling steel companies from foreign competitors like china that dump low-priced metal on the united states. an issue he was very vocal about on the campaign trail. he framed it as a national security issue, saying he doesn't want the u.s. to rely on steel for a country it could be fighting with in the future. republican lawmakers urge caution on this saying they don't want to start a trade war over steel and aluminum-dumping issues.

this is the administration's latest jab on trade. according to the commerce department, trade investigations rose 81% in the first 12 months of trump's presidenty with tariffs imposed on solar panels, washing machines, and paper. the fate the noofl draft hangs -- fate of the nafta hangs in the business. and snowboard superstar shaun white soaring to historic gold medal at the winter olympics. >> coy wire with more from pyeongchang. tell me, sweet redemption, huh? >> reporter: absolutely. great call. longevity of his success is impressive. when he won his first olympic gold in 2006, former snowboarding medalists chloe kim and red gerard were 5 years old. shaun white captured his third medal and redemption after failing to medal at sochi. needing something outstanding in his final run to take the lead, white did a trick that he'd

attempted just four months ago that left him with a gash and over 60 stitches. he secured a 100 to secure the united states its 100th gold medal in the history of the winter games. once his score was announced, white burst into tears. he was sobbing as he hugged his mom, dad, and other family there. he talked about that moment at a press conference moments ago. >> at the bottom, all those emotions hit me. i won, everything we'd been through, every -- you know -- dream i've had, trying to sleep last night, you know. and i'm like living that dream right now. so it's amazing. >> reporter: despite the pressure on the only two north korean athletes that qualified to be here outright, the nation's pair figure skaters skated out on to the ice in front of the loudest applause of any competitors thus far in the event performing to an instrumental version of the

beatles' song "a day in the life." they put on a career-best performance, finishing 11th out of 22 to move to the final. they are currently ahead of the united states in the standings. the final is later tonight on the east coast. wicked wins in the mountains of pyeongchang postponed the women's slalom and michaela's shiffrin -- makayla shiffrin's win again. women's slalom set for thursday on the east coast. let's get an early start on your medal count. norway still at the top with 11 followed by netherlands and canada who have ten. germany currently with nine. the usa rounding out the top five with seven. to finish up on shaun white, because of this incredible accomplishment, the 12-year span between his first gold and this year's, is the longest by any winter olympian ever. what's more, shaun white said in his press conference in the last

hour here that his run may not be his last. he thinks he may go on to ride in 290 -- in the 2022 beijing games. >> the tom brady of snowboarding, the godfather of the sport. impossible to measure his impact. thank you very much. an all positive news for shaun white. moments after clinching the gold, he was asked about sexual harassment allegations logged by a drummer in his band. >> you know, i see -- here to talk about the olympics, not gossip. so -- i don't think so. i am who i am. and i'm proud of who i am, and my friends love me and vouch for me. i think that's -- stands on its own. >> back in august of 2016, the drummer filed an amended complaint to a civil suit alleging white had sexually harassed her. for his part, white admitted to sending her sexually explicit

and graphic images last february. the pair reached an undisclosed settlement. christine brennan, a cnn contributor and sports columnist at "usa today," has a cover story on usatoday.com if you want to read more. israeli police saying there is sufficient evidence to indict the israeli prime minister. we'll tell you what benjamin netanyahu is accused of coming up. it's time for the 'ultimate sleep number event'

on the only bed that adjusts on both sides to your ideal comfort, your sleep number setting. and snoring? does your bed do that? right now during the ultimate sleep number event, save 50% on the ultimate limited edition bed with adjustable comfort on both sides. ends soon. visit sleepnumber.com for a store near you.

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4:17 eastern time. kim jong-un thanking the south koreans for allowing his country to participate in the winter olympics. the north korean leader wrapping up his charm a fefefb -- offens, calling on the two koreas to build on the dialogue that exists. he carried on the front page of the state-run newspaper. we have more from south korea. paula?

>> reporter: the joint north korean/south korean people e team playing ice hockey, 2-1 at this point. the most interesting part is the one gold that has been scored by this joint korean team has been scored by an american. randy griffin, a korean american, came from harvard. she is the one that has scored the only goal that this joint north/south korean team has scored during this olympics. many spectators are saying it's not about the score, it is about the fact that they are playing together. a massive roar around the stadium when the gold was actually -- in the back of the net. when it comes to kim jong-un, he has said that he's impressed, he's said. he thought it was sincere what the south koreans had done for the north korean delegation. certainly that's something you don't often hear from the north korean leader thanking the south koreans. the south koreans have also just said how much they have spent or will be spending on the north korean delegation, $2.6 million.

not on the athletes, not on the high-level delegation. that's just for the cheerleaders. that's for the art troop, the orchestra, food, accommodation, transportation. a lot of money has been put into this effort. and certainly from the south korean officials' point of view, they think it is money well spent. dave? >> that is interesting. paying for that cheer squad, some propaganda some feel. paula live for us. 6:19 in pyeongchang. thank you. israeli police say there is sufficient evidence to indict prime minister benjamin netanyahu in two separate corruption cases. authorities claiming they have evidence netanyahu accepted bribes, committed fraud, and breached the public trust. the prime minister insisting all allegations against him will be dismissed. in one case, netanyahu allegedly accepted gifts from businessmen overseas totaling about $280,000. in the second case, police say

they have recordings showing the prime minister bartering with the owner of a leading israeli newspaper for more favorable coverage in exchange for suppressing the circulation of a rival newspaper. israel's attorney general must decide whether to indict netanyahu. several russian paramilitary contractors among more than 100 men killed by u.s. airair strikes last week in -- u.s. air strikes last week in northern syria. they were working for a russian company, wagner, that has sent hundreds of contractors to syria to help the russia military and pro-regime units. u.s. air strikes hit a force of about 500 pro-assad fighters. a u.s. detachment was based with the anti-assad rebels. james mattis says the russians told the u.s. they had no forces at that location. a kremlin spokesperson says it had no details on russians working in syria. more still to come on that story. this will make your hair

stand up. terrifying moments in the air over the pacific ocean when the cover tore off of a plane's engine. how passengers reacted once they were on the ground. ♪ i'm jimmy, this is my definition of fresh since 1983. ♪ stop by your locale tax serjackson hewittou? and get all the benefits of a tax pro. with jackson hewitt you get 100% accuracy and our max refund guarantee. so, switch to jackson hewitt.

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the engine on a united flight from san francisco to honolulu. passengers say they heard a big metallic bang. check that out. the plane began to shake for more than 40 minutes. >> 40 minutes? >> a united spokesman said the plane made an emergency landing in hawaii, but passengers got off at the gate just as they normally would, clearly shaken, not as they normally would feel after departing a flight. >> something tells me that must have felt like the longest flight ever. >> terrifying, no doubt. happy news here. this morning, flynn, the bichon frise, is best in show at the 142nd westminster kennel club dog show in new york. look at that furball. >> the champ turns 6 next month. according to his handler, he plans to retire after his win. not before taking the traditional victory lap, though, which includes lunch at sardi's, a visit to the freedom tower, and lots of press.

going out on top. good for him. that's a great breed. >> they're all great breeds. they're all cute -- >> there's a dog for everyone. >> yes. even poodles, even though they're not your favorite. >> not a poodle guy myself. the white house struggling to get its story straight in the rob porter scandal with talk of a cover-up, next. hey, need fast heartburn relief? try cool mint zantac. it releases a cooling sensation in your mouth and throat. zantac works in as little as 30 minutes. nexium can take 24 hours. try cool mint zantac. no pill relieves heartburn faster.

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day eight of the rob porter story, and the white house still can't get its timeline straight.

chief of staff john kelly under increased scrutiny as sources tell cnn the president is looking for possible replacements. >> frankly, the united states is under attack. >> a stern warning from top u.s. intelligence officials. russia is already meddling in the midterm election. what they said about president trump's willingness to fight back. redemption for shaun white in south korea. a live report with all the olympic headlines you missed overnight. welcome back to "early start," i'm alison kosik, good morning. >> i'm dave briggs. he was fantastic. 4:32 on this ash wednesday. we start with these conversations over who could replace embattled white house chief of staff john kelly. they are heating up this morning. cnn reporting that president trump called associates in recent days discussing possible replacements for kelly in the wake of the rob porter spousal abuse scandal. multiple sources telling the u.s. -- telling us the president has made no decision to push kelly out. they say names being floated if

he does include chief economic adviser gary cohn, house majority leader kevin mccarthy, and budget director mick mulvaney. mulvaney has denied he's under consideration. press secretary sarah huckabee sanders said yesterday the president has confidence in kelly. >> this coming as the white house struggles to control fallout over allegations porter, former white house staff secretary, physically abused his two ex-wives. porter denies the accusations. chief of staff kelly is defending his handling of the situation, telling the "wall street journal," "it was all done right." scrutiny only intensifying on tuesday after the director of the fbi up-ended the white house timeline of events. a quick recap now. on monday, the white house said top officials learned the "extent of the allegations" last tuesday, and that porter's background check was still ongoing. then yesterday, fbi chief chris wray told the senate intel committee the bureau notified the white house of the allegations months ago.

>> the fbi submitted a partial report on the investigation in question in march. and then ape completed background investigation in late july that is soon -- soon thereafter we received requests for follow yupfollowup inquiry provided that information in november. we administratively closed the file in january. >> this all comes as we learn porter was actually in line for a promotion at the same time the abuse allegations were emerging. chief white house correspondent jim acosta has more. >> reporter: the white house is once again at odds with the fbi. this time over the timeline and the scandal involving former staff secretary rob porter. the director of the fbi testified his agents completed their investigation into porter's background last july, contradicting what white house officials have said for days,

that they only base aware of what happened last week. the white house offered a new explanation saying that the fbi background check went into the white house office of personnel security. asked about the shifting explanations, press secretary sarah sanders set that she's doing -- said that she's doing the best she can. >> obviously the press team's not going to be as read-in as some other elements at a given moment on a variety of topics. we relay the best and most accurate information that we have and get those from those individuals. >> reporter: aides to the president are becoming frustrated with the information they're receiving from top officials ned the west wing. -- officials inside the west wing. one white house official complained attorney don mcghan received information last summer and did not share enough of it with top staffers. >> jim acosta there at the white house. president trump's longtime personal lawyer, michael cohn, says he paid $130,000 out of his own pocket to porn strar stormy

daniels that alleged an affair with president trump. this is the first acknowledgment since it was reported last month by the "wall street journal." he paid stephanie clifford, better known as stormy daniels, he says, out of concern the accusation could damage the president. in a statement, he says, "the payment to ms. clifford was lawful and was not ape campaign contribution or expenditure by anyone. just because something isn't true doesn't mean that it can't cause you harm or damage. i will always protect mr. trump." >> cohn says he was not reimbursed by the trump campaign or the trump organization. he has previously said the president denies any affair with daniels. she has dodged questions about an arffair in recent weeks but has not publicly denied it. the nation's top intelligence official sending a unanimous, full-throated warning to the white house russia is already meddling in the midterm elections. director of national intelligence dan coates telling a senate committee russia is convinced its previous meddling

efforts were successful, and he says the kremlin will continue using propaganda and social media to widen the political divide in the u.s. listen to senators questioning the intel chiefs about president trump's role in combating the russian threat. >> we're taking a lot of specific efforts to blunt -- >> directives by the president? >> not as specifically directed by the president. >> okay. directly have you received a specific presidential direction to take steps to disrupt these activities? >> not sure -- >> could you -- >> sorry, i'm not sure how specific. >> despite the testimony from his top intelligence agencies, three sources familiar with the president's thinking say he remains unconvinced russia interfered in the 2016 election. president trump calls the immigration debate now underway in the senate the last chance for dreamers. negotiations are off to a rocky start with democrats and republicans in a standoff over

how a debate should even proceed. majority leader mitch mcconnell trying to open the session with a vote on legislation to punish sanctuary cities. minority leader chuck schumer objecting to the measure because it has nothing to do with the dreamer act. >> no reason, no reason not to come together and get a solution this week. this has been going on endlessly. they shut down the government over this. i want to see what they want to do. >> finding 60 votes for something that meets the needs of both sides and can deal with the dreamers and border security is not easy. we all know that immigration is fraught with peril. but this is the closest we've come, and everybody has to make a really final effort. >> so with the debate faltering, a bipartisan group of senators claims to be making progress behind the scenes on an immigration plan that could get the 60 votes needed to pass. a second federal judge temporarily blocking the trump

administration from ending daca. the program protecting young immigrants brought here illegally as children. the judge ruling dreamers in states who filed suit likely to succeed in their claim. president trump's decision to end daca was arbitrary. last month a federal judge in california came to the same conclusion -- daca was originally set to end on march 5th. time for an early start on your money. president trump discussed the state of the steel industry with a bipartisan group of lawmakers tuesday saying he's considering a range of options to address imports that he believes are hurting u.s. steel workers. >> we cannot be without a steel industry. we cannot be without an aluminum industry. and so what we're talking about is tariffs and/or quotas. >> the president said these restrictions would help save struggling steel companies from foreign competitors like china that dump low-priced metal on the united states. it's an issue we heard a lot about on the campaign trail. he framed it as a national security issue saying he doesn't

want the u.s. to rely on steel from a country it could be fighting with in the future. republican lawmakers urged caution on this saying they don't want to start a trade war over steel and aluminum dumping issues. then we can wind up seeing price spikes. it is the administration's latest jab on trade, according to the commerce department. trade investigations rose 81% in the first 12 months of trump's presidency with tariffs imposed on solar panels, washing machines, lumber, and paper. the fate of nafta, the trade deal among the u.s., canada, and mexico, that's still hanging in the balance. >> that was interesting because a lot of republican senators were very clear right to the president's face, be very careful here, we don't want to start a war on this. >> what's interesting is we saw aluminum and steel company shares spike yesterday after trump talked. everybody saying, listen, caution, caution here. this can really upset the marketplace for consumers, for you and me. >> a big deal. keep an eye on this.

everybody talking talking about snowboard superstar shaun white who soared to historic gold medal at the winter olympics. >> coy wire with more from pyeongchang. >> reporter: good morning. at 31 years old, shaun white captured his third olympic gold and redemption after he failed to medal in sochi. more than his age, it was his mind coming into these games that was holding him back. just four months ago, he attempted a trick that left him with a gash and over 60 stitches in his face. he said earlier this week that that had him questioning why he's even still competing. now we know why. needing to do something outstanding in his final run to take the lead, white did that same trick and nailed it. scoring nearly a perfect 100. he secured the united states its historic 100th gold medal in the history of the winter games. once his score was announced, he burst into tears. dad said he had never even seen him cry before. he was sobbing a he hug -- as he

hugged his mom, dad, and family members. happy valentine's day to you and all of our "early start" friends. maybe this is the year, dave, you get the gift right. a lot of olympians here, they can't be with the people they love to celebrate. they're competing. two u.s. olympians will be taking each other ice skating. meet alexa and chris canarum. the winning couple advanced to the pairs figure skating competition on the east coast. we asked them about competing on this special day. >> that will be really, really special. i think we will be the only married couple in the world to say that they got to skate at the olympics on valentine's day. we're setting a record there. >> absolutely. >> reporter: even on the ice, they are melting each other's ice. what else to look for here coming up? elsewhere in pyeongchang, women's hockey as the usa improves to 2-0 in pool play. next up, rival canada. and you also have men's hockey tournament getting underway with the u.s. taking on slovenia in

just about two hours' time. happy valentine's day. >> and to you. how's that go? i got it -- >> like this. >> happy valentine's day to coy's pregnant wife. she's probably sleeping now. >> that's right. >> as is mine. that will fall on sleeping ears. happy valentine's day to you. >> same to you. israeli police say there is sufficient evidence to indict the israeli prime minister, we're going to tell you what benjamin netanyahu is accused of coming up. they have passions to pursue how do they avoid trips to the post office? stamps.com mail letters ship packages all the amazing services of the post office right on your computer get a 4 week trial plus $100 in extras including postage and a digital scale go to stamps.com/tv and never go to the post office again

israeli police say there is sufficient evidence to indict israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu in two separate corruption cases. the prime minister insisting all allegations against hip will be dismissed. cnn's ian lee with more. we heard through the investigation netanyahu saying

there will be nothing because there is nothing. it sounds like investigators have found something. >> reporter: that's right. and now they're trying to get the attorney general to agree. it's up to him to decide whether or not to move forward with this indictment. if it does go forward, expect this to be tied up in courts for a number of years, going up all the way to the high court. if the prime minister is found guilty, he could face up to ten years in prison, according to legal experts and also, of course, lose his job as the prime minister of israel. you know, he last night went on television. he gave a defiant defense of himself. he went back through history talking about it. israelis were glued to their televisions, watching this. and he said there isn't -- there isn't anything to these cases. what are these cases? case 1,000, the first one, deals with alleged bribes that the prime minister received from a

businessman in turn for political favors. case 2,000 deals with the prime minister allegedly concluding with an owner of a newspaper for more favorable coverage. in return he would limit the circulation of a rival newspaper. this morning we were looking at the political scene to see how this was playing out. his members of his coalition, they are supporting him so far. obviously the opposition is saying that he needs to resign. but it's interesting -- in a speech early this morning, one of the members of his coalition, the minister of education said that the prime minister was not living up to the standard expected of israel's leaders. so we may be seeing a crack there in his coalition. allison? >> and netanyahu is israel's second longest serving prime minister. we'll keep a watch on this. cnn's ian lee. thank you very much. all right. when you are picking out your valentine's day bouquet, one

company says they've got a bouquet that lasts -- get this -- an entire year. >> i'm in. it's time for the 'ultimate sleep number event' on the only bed that adjusts on both sides to your ideal comfort your sleep number setting. and snoring? does your bed do that? right now during the ultimate sleep number event, our queen c2 mattress with adjustable comfort on both sides is only $699, save $200. ends soon. visit sleepnumber.com for a store near you.

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i will. no. make that the password: "you_stillóhave_toóvisit_us." that's a good one. [ chuckles ] seems a bit long, but okay. set a memorable wifi password with xfinity my account. one more way comcast is working to fit into your life, not the other way around. u.s. secretary of state rex tillerson's mideast trip teens in jordan where he's meet -- continues in jordan where he's meeting with king abdullah. he announced pressure on isis and $200 million in aid to stabilize and rebuild syria. michelle kaczynski live in oman for us this morning. good morning. >> reporter: yeah, what's happening, too, is that the secretary's signing this

memorandum of understanding with jordan that increases aid to the country, to the tune of more than $275 million each year. that's a minimum. even though what we've been hearing repeatedly from the administration and especially from the president himself -- i mean, the last couple of days, he's been tweeting and saying that all of the money spent in the lemiddle east over the last ten years has been a mistake and sad. he characterized it as $7 trillion which many people take issue with, saying that's just not the amount at all. but this trip proves that, you know, at least from the state department's perspective and the administration as a whole, they are willing to spend that money and even increase foreign aid when it's in the u.s. best interests. and that's absolutely one way to smooth over these relationships is to show that contribution and that the u.s. commitment is strong. you mentioned the additional $200 million to stabilize syria.

but the jordanians and others have huge concerns about the u.s. just announcing that it's going to move its embassy from tel aviv to jerusalem. big concerns there -- these are going to be tough conversations, and as the state department terms it, tough diplomacy, dave. >> very difficult trip for the secretary of state. live from jordan, thank you. a a-ranking chicago police officers -- a high-ranking chicago police officer shot and killed in chicago. commander paul lauw bauer, a 31 veteran, was gunned down while pursuing a suspect fleeing from other officers. the 51-year-old in the area attending active shooter training when he heard an alert and responded to the scene. >> there was an honor procession tuesday for the slain police commander. bower leaves behind a wife and daughter. a gun was recovered from the unidentified suspect who was reportedly wearing a protective vest. he's in custody. a hiker who fell over 700 feet off the south side of mt.

hood in oregon has died. officials are not releasing his identity. seven other climbers from two groups who were stranded have been rescued. police say strong winds and sunny conditions, all of that's causing rocks and ice to fall, making the popular climbing spot extremely hazardous. >> another scary sight here. passengers called it the scariest flight of their lives after part of the cover tore off the right engine on a united flight from san francisco to honolulu. imagine what you'd think if you saw this outside your window. passengers say they heard a big metallic bang, then the plane began to shake for more than 40 minutes. >> the captain kept trying to tell everybody it's going -- he was just -- i don't know how they it. thank god for that crew. that's all i got to say. they were calm, and they -- there was just -- horrible. >> can you imagine?

the united spokesman says the plane made an emergency landing in hawaii. but passengers got off at the gate just as they normally would. only terrified. presumably they didn't put a delay on all of them like you typically would to honolulu. frightening. let's check "money stream." global stocks are mixed with futures pointing higher. the stock market finally calming down a about the tuesday after two volatile weeks with the dow closing higher for the third day in a row. the smooth ride, oh, no, it may not last. the government coming out with reports on consumer and producer prices this week. so investors are going to be watching those reports to see if there's a pickup in inflation. it's those fears about inflation, that's what drove the market sell-off that began on february 2nd and included two 1,000-point plunges in the dow. almost one-third of main street businesses say this is the best time in decades to expand, at least that's according to a survey from the national federation of

independent business. it's the highest level of enthusiasm since 1973. wages and prices are also seeing a boost. 31% of small businesses reported paying employees more. that's the highest since 2000. the nfib credits the republican tax bill for the sense of optimism. so you can say anything with flowers this valentine's day, but, mm, sending a lint bouquet makes the wrong impression. flower -- a limp bouquet makes the wrong impression. a flower company specializes in boxed roses that this company says can -- get this -- last an entire year. the company works with a farm in ecuador that produces a version that extends the smell. they've sent bouquets to kim kardashian and more. a single flower will cost $39.

a box of 40 -- box of roses is going to run you almost $400. if they last that long, eternal roses, the smell -- >> great decoration for your home, apartment. that's not going to work as a gesture to your wife. then you say you're off the hook. you buy one thing of flowers for the year? you're not off the hook. you're not. you're not. good decoration. "early start" continues right now. >> day eight of the rob porter story, and the white house still can't get its timeline straight. white house chief of staff john kelly under increased scrutiny as sources tell cnn the president is looking for possible replacement. frankly, the united states is under attack. >> a stern warning from top u.s. intelligen