it incorporates the best ideasx from democrats and republicans, including some of the ideas that republicans offered during the health care summit like funding state grants on medical malpractice reform and curbing waste and fraud and abuse in the health care system. my proposal also gets rid of many of the provisions that have no place in health care reform, provisions that were more about winning individual votes in congress than improving health care for all americans. now, despite all that we agree on and all the republican ideas we've incorporated, many, probably most republicans in congress, just have a fundamental disagreement over whether we should have more or less oversight of insurance companies. and if they truly believe less regulation would lead to higher quality, more affordable health insurance, then they should vote against the proposal i put forward. and some also believe we should instead of doing what i'm proposing pursue a piecemeal approach to help health care reform where we tinker around the edges of the challenge for the next few years. even those who acknowledge the problems of the uninsured say we can't afford to help them now, which is why the republican proposal only covers 3 million uncovered while we cover 31 million. the problem with that approach, unless everyone has access to affordable coverage, you can't prevent insurance companies from denying coverage based on pre-existing conditions. you can't limit the amount of families forced to pay out of their own pockets. the insurance reforms rest on everybody having access to coverage. and you also don't do anything about the fact that taxpayers currently end up subsidizing the uninsured when they are forced to go to the emergency room for care to the tune of about $1,000 per family. you can't those savings if those people are still going to the emergency room. so the fact is health reform only works if you take care of all of these problems at once. now, both during and after last week's summit, republicans in congress insisted the only acceptable course on health care reform is to start over. but given these honest and substantial differences between the parties about the need to regulate the insurance industry and the need to help millions of middle class families get insurance, i don't see how another year of negotiations would help. moreover, the insurance companies aren't starting over. they are continuing to raise premiums and deny coverage as we speak. for us to start over now could simply lead to delay that could last for another decade or even more. the american people and the u.s. economy just can't wait that long. so no matter which approach you favor, i believe the united states congress owes the american people a final vote on health care reform. [ applause ] we have debated this issue thoroughly, not just for the past year but for decades. reform has already passed the house with a majority. it has already passed the senate with a supermajority of 60 votes. and now it deserves the same kind of up or down vote that was cast on welfare reform, that was cast on the children's health insurance program, that was used for cobra, health coverage for the unemployed, and, by the way, for both bush tack cuts, all of which had to pass congress with nothing more than a simple majority. i therefore ask leaders in both houses of congress to finish their work and schedule a vote in the next few weeks. from now until then, i will do everything in my power to make the case for reform. and i -- i urge every american who wants this reform to make their voices heard as well. every family, every business, every patient, every doctor, every nurse, every physicians assistant, make your voice heard. this has been a long and wrenching debate. it has stoked great passions among the american people and their representatives, and that's because health care is a difficult issue. it is a complicated issue. if it was easy, it would have been solved long ago. as all of you know from experience, health care can literally be an issue of life or death. as a result, it easily lends itself to demagoguery, political gainsmanship, misrepresentation and misunderstanding. but that's not an excuse for those of us who were sent here to lead. that's not an excuse for us to walk away. we can't just give up because the politics are hard. i know there's been a fascination, bordering on obsession, in this media town about what passing health insurance would mean for the next election and the one after that. how will this play. what will happen with the polls. i will leave it to others to sift through the politics, because that's not what this is about. that's not why we're here. this is about what reform would mean for the mother with breast cancer whose insurance company will finally have to pay for her chemotherapy. this is what reform would mean for the small business owner who will no longer have to choose between hiring more workers or offering coverage to the employee she has. this is about what reform would mean to middle class families health insurance for the very first time in their lives and get a regular checkup once in a while and have some security about their children if they get sick. this is about what reform would mean for all those men and women i've met over the last few years who have been brave enough to share their stories. when we started our push for reform last year, i talked to a young mother in wisconsin named laura. she has two young children. she thought she had beaten her breast cancer but later discovered it had spread to her bones. she and her husband were working and had insurance but their medical bills still lands them in debt. now she spends time worrying about that debt, when all she wants to do is spend time with her children and focus on getting well. this should not happen in the united states of america, and it doesn't have to. [ applause ] in the end that's what this debate is about. it's about what kind of country we want to be. it's about the millions of lives that would be touched, and in some cases saved, by making private health insurance more secure and more affordable. at stake right now is not our ability to solve this problem but our ability to solve any problem. the american people want to know if it's still possible for washington to look out for their interest and their future. they are waiting for us to act. they are waiting for us to leave. as long as i hold this office, i intend to provide that leadership. i do not know how this plays politically, but i know it's right. so i ask congress to finish its work and i look forward to signing this reform into law. thank you very much, everybody. let's get it done. [ applause ] >> what's been called a final push for health care reform from president obama, he started off his remarks saying it's time to bring this journey to a close. let's talk about what we just heard from the president. democratic strategist chris cofinas. the president said he's included the best ideas from democrats and republicans, it's time for an up or down vote. the american public is owed this from our lawmakers. what do you think? >> the president, i think, came out very strong. clearly has thrown down the gauntlet. if you notice, i think the language he used there in the end there in terms of painting anyone who is concerned about politics as missing the point here. the point here is how do we help tens of millions without health care as well as hundreds of millions of americans that have to struggle within the current health care system. it is clear, i think, we're coming to an end. the reality, though, is, the political battle is still going to continue. you still have republicans, i can't imagine we're going to win one of these votes from republicans in the house or the senate, so the political fight will continue. we're definitely, i think, coming close to getting this done. the president is clearly -- i think that message really was to democrats more so than republicans. it really was a message, now is our moment, let's finish this. >> david, let me bring you in. senate republican leader mitch mcconnell saying there will be public outrage by the way that the democrats want to push this through the finish line will the president said in his remarks this deserves the same kind of up or down vote that we cast on welfare reform, the children's health insurance program. he also mentions both bush tax cuts. how do republicans argue with that point? >> first off, there are a couple of things. i have to say i fundamentally disagree with the way our stand on health care, trillions in new taxes, cuts medicare by half a trillion. maybe i should start with that. i'm upset with the way he portrayed that. i think that was a willful political point. the nuclear option. there are certain elements and they are very confined in terms of what can be used in terms of 51 votes. the originator of this, senator byrd of west virginia said this is not the way to do it. bit way, i worked with bill fritz when he was majority leader and he had the same decision in terms of trying to get 51 judges to get judges through, which democrats ultimately opposed. ultimately bill thought for the nature of the senate, what the senate was, he was going to stick with 60 judges. he got five out of the seven judges through. ultimately he follows the rules. this is a pure political move because this president is panicked that his one initiative isn't going to go through and he needs to take a step back and breathe and go through this. >> he points out it's passed the senate with a supermajority of 60 votes. >> what are you going to do with issues like abortion, some of the regulation with insurance companies? that doesn't necessarily deal with the germane nature of what reconciliation is about. the problem is -- by the way, he said this before. you cannot govern -- if you go back, a bunch of videos on the internet, the president saying you can't govern with 50 plus one, you need 60 in the senate to govern. what he's admitting is he can't govern. >> chris, i'll let you respond to that. >> the republicans, i'm constantly amazed how they are able to talk out of both sides of their mouth and rewrite their own history. they have used reconciliation in the past. we can debate about what the political implications of that are. but the notion somehow this is going to be so terrible for the democratic party -- if it's going to be so terrible for the democratic party, i would think republicans would want the reconciliation vote. the reality of the situation here is this. if we past health care reform and it accomplishes what we believe it will do, which is expand coverage, better options, better care, help bring down the deficit, the republicans don'te have a counter argument. >> you're saying the ends justify the means. if i may -- >> i want to bring this -- >> if i may. senator byrd, the person who developed this reconciliation concept, a democrat, says this is an inappropriate way to use it. don't argue with me, argue with your own senator. >> gentlemen, hang on for a second. wasn't to fast forward this conversation with the time we have. chris, it is now down to the democrats. it is now about the democrats trusting -- those in the house trusting those in the senate. it's clear from what david is saying, other republicans are saying they are out. now this is about the democrats. can they do it? >> i think they can do it. to be even more brutal about it, they have to. at the end of the day, this is no longer about gathering republican votes, this is simply about getting democrats who may be on the fence to support it. i think clearly what happened with the president's speech, he's making very clear to democrats we're in all this together. it is better we pass good health care reform and make the argument in november than not pass it at all. >> as ken strickland just put out a note. a couple of steps. house must pass senate version, reconciliation that fixes other issues and senate must pass that same reconciliation. the problem, two critical things, the democratic ranks must have votes and trust. it boils down to them now. thank you both, gentlemen, i greatly appreciate your time. while president obama was speaking on health care, charles rangel was also on capitol hill responding to the intense pressure coming in from an ethics probe and announcement he requested a leave of absence as chairman of the house ways and means committee. this is what he said while the president was speaking about health care. here it is. >> and that is that i had told the speaker, actually many months ago, if my issues were going to impede the elections of a democratic party, then i would be glad for and entertain a leave of absence. so i love my country, i love congress and i love the democrats more. so any member that thought my chairmanship would impede their election, then i think if the speaker accepts my request to take a leave of absence, politically, i think that should take care of the political problem. >> here is my technical question. >> just ask the question. >> according to the house parliamentarian and folks who know this, they interpret your letter, which says a temporary leave of absence, as final. the chairs use the term resignation. according to them, there is no shading of this. they interpret all these things as final. for you to be reinstalled as chairman of the ways and means committee, they would have to do that. is there any question in your mind this is temporary or final? >> let me make it clear, i wrote the letter and i wrote what i meant and i said what i meant. if it's anyone that needs clarification, it's the speaker. not you. i think that takes care of us. thank you very much. the press has been very understanding of the need for me not to answer questions, because the whole situation, some of the questions you raise even more questions. having said that, this country and this congress has been very good to me. it just seems to me that i should not do anything that would impede the success of other democrats. they should be so lucky as i am. >> haven't had a bad day yet? >> haven't had a bad day yet but it's been close. have a great afternoon. >> ending his hours, remarks of humor. let's bring in kelly o'donnell. kelly, from those remarks as well as the comments we heard earlier from mr. rangel, it seems he was speaking to his party. he was worried or pressure was coming in from democrats that he could be a burden to them. >> well, it was no secret to charlie rangel he was feeling that pressure because every member of the house is up for re-election in november. he's got a very secure seat but many others do not. people point to the fact that speaker pelosi when she came into the position pledged to have the most ethical and open congress. and people have tried to hold her to that using the rangel situation. he was admonished to accept caribbean trips to attend kmpbs paid for by corporations. there's some other outstanding issues that deal with fund-raising and tacks not resolved by the house ethics committee yet. once that admonishment came back, how could she square her pledge and that finding. it really put the speaker in a difficult position, put other democrats in that spot as well, so rang ellis willing to do that. as you can tell, he's got one of those personalities people like on the hill. but there's a real question from the critics whether or not his move is a permanent one or temporary. there's a lot of doubt about that at the moment. >> kelly o'donnell live for us, reacting to the news of charles rangel speaking out. the military is set to hold a hearing on repealing the don't ask don't tell policy. we're going to talk with an iraq war veteran facing difficult charge after publicly announcing he's gay. a member of the mcstay family says he fears for the lives of those missing. we're going to talk to friends of the family. to get the latest on the investigation and learn more about this family who has disappeared without a trace. [ female announcer ] the latest athletic fabrics that keep you cool and dry have now inspired stayfree® to create a whole new level of comfort when it comes to your period. only stayfree® ultra thins have thermocontrol™. designed with the comfort of athletic fabrics in mind, stayfree® with thermocontrol™ quickly wicks moisture away for exceptional dryness. so you stay incredibly comfortable no matter where your day takes you. stay dry. stay cool. with thermocontrol™ only from stayfree®. welcome back. the hearing on the repeal of the controversial don't ask, don't tell policy that bans gays from serving openly. this comes one day after defense secretary robert gates set the pentagon review about how the ban will go about the troops and their families. the policy is hurting military recruiting efforts. >> there are estimates that 4,000 of our troops per year leave service voluntarily because of their apprehension or opposition to the don't ask, don't tell policy. of course, we can only guess how many people didn't enlist, haven't enlisted in the military because of don't ask, don't tell. >> we should point out senator is introducing legislation for don't ask, don't tell. an iraq war veteran facing discharge after announcing on rachel maddow show only to be asked to return. >> hi, tamron, glad to be with you. >> is there real progress? we're hearing about reviews, studies, conversations? are you impressed at all with what you're hearing right now? >> it's very disappointing, tamron, every since studying arabic at west point i've heard this proverb. even in iraq i heard this in arabic. patience is the virtue that can wear down the mountains. so some people would tell us, we should just wait and stand by and have patience while people are getting fired for telling the truth. i think this is intolerable. this is absolutely devastating for what we stand for. we're kicking out people for thog more than telling the truth. when people talk about a study. there have been study if we stacked up the papers, they would be taller than me and you right now. we don't need to study more. we don't need an entire year for that. i can give you cliff's notes look at britain and canada, australia, our nato allies. they have no problems with that, with the truth. it's seen through all the studies, recruiting and retention gets better when people can tell the truth. that's the bottom line. >> what do you think about those who are out there saying, despite general powell saying the time is coming and others, because we are in two wars, it's not the right time. >> it's ridiculous. we're in two wars right now. is this the time to be kicking out people proficient in arabic, farsi, kicking out infantrymen? we should have everybody able bodied and willing to go. i'm willing to go. i went back to my unit last month. guess what happened? i know there's a lot of people who think devastation occurred and chaos and maybe thunderstorms and tsunamis because gay people are allowed to serve openly. tamron, i want to tell you a secret, if you just can keep it between you and me. >> okay. >> gay people are serving openly right now. i'm evidence of that. and our troops are not disintegrating. >> well, you know - >> just between you and me, don't tell anybody. >> that might be one of the worst kept secrets. in the memo from secretary gates, given the political dimensions, it is equally critical in carrying out this review, every effort be made to shield our men and women in uniform and their families from the aspects of this debate. >> tamron, i take huge issue with that. when you're talking about polling or getting the opinions of soldiers or their families, i wonder, are you going to poll and get the opinions of the family members, the loved ones, the lovers, the partners, of those gay soldiers. are you going to ask them questions like, how does it feel to know if your partner dies in combat today, you won't get that phone call. you won't get that flag that says on behalf of a grateful nation we honor the service of your partner or loved one. how does it feel not to exist? how does it feel not to have that support? is that what you're going to be polling? when we look at the issue, the heart of the matter is, it is absolutely anti-american to wait for a single moment. tamron, it is a political issue also. we all need to realize that whenever there's injustice going on, it's not because of the unjust law, it's because of those good people who refuse to speak up. those that are silent in that time. i think of this in a historical context. sixty years ago, i wouldn't have been able to serve in my unit because of segregation laws and because of racism because i'm asian-american. now, today because i'm gay american, i'm not allowed to serve openly, i'm not allowed to tell the truth. what are people going to be thinking 60 years from now, that a soldier has to get on tv and beg not to be fired. this is shameful. i think everybody who is absolutely insulted by this, i think we should all be insulted by this law, we need to step up, we need to stand up. you could go to courage campaign. it's a group that has been working with me to defend me in my case, go to couragecampaign.org. courage campaign has a way to call your senators and hold our leaders accountable. i would love to see everybody give their senator a call and say right now is the time to repeal don't ask, don't tell. none of us should have to wait. >> lieutenant, thank you so much for coming on with us. we certainly appreciate it. thank you. >> thank you, tamron. >> investigators searching for a california family that vanished nearly a month ago. coming up, we'll talk with friends of the mcstay family. who are they? what's their background and what do their friends have to say about the missing family. i'm going to tell you why the faa is investigating a new voice at the tower in one of the busiest airports in the country. >> jetblue 171 clear for takeoff. >> clear for takeoff, jetblue 171. >> this is what you get, guys, when the kids are out of school. uhhh! [ laughs ] it's, uh, haunting. anyway, while i was away, the e-trade machine... thanks, martha. ...worked its technomagic, triggered my stop loss orders, saved me a pantload! [ pilot ] please fasten your seatbelts. dad? no, mike, that's the pilot. he's making an announcement! dad? ugh. [ male announcer ] upgrade to first class investing technology at e-trade. increase in 6 months. pete, back it up! ( marker squeaking ) when business travel leaves you drained, re-charge with comfort suites. spacious rooms, free hi-speed internet, and free hot breakfast. comfort suites. power up. now stay two separate times with comfort suites... or any choice hotel and earn a free night. book at choicehotels.com. welcome back. the international police organization interpol has been called in to help investigate the disappearance of a san diego family who vanished two weeks ago. joseph, his wife summer and their two young sons were last seen february 4th when a relative checked on their home, he found food rotting in the kitchen, the family dogs left unattended. a few days later the family's car was found near the mexican border. allen and melissa, thank you for joining us. we greatly appreciate it. >> thank you. >> we should point out, we're not telling your last name because so much is uncertain, unsure. you've known the mcstays for a while. you and allen met as a result of your friendships. >> yes, we did. actually i'm holding here invitation summer sent me to be part of her wedding party in 2007 when i met salen. they are the ones that set us up on our first double-date and now we're engaged. it's devastating for us. we want them back. >> tell me a little about the family. we see pictures of them smiling and happy. they seem close-knit. just to finish like this. >> yeah. like we've told everybody, we've speculated about different paths this could take. they are a close-knit, active family, very loving. they just recently moved. they have been in the community, san diegos southern orange county for ten years now. it's just -- it's wild they are disappeared and no leads whatsoever. >> would you describe them as the average family? >> i would. homebodies. didn't go too far. just a very active family. >> melissa, when did you see the family last. >> joe plays soccer with allen so i attend the soccer games. summer usually doesn't go. she was so active in getting her house ready for a house warming party, they just purchased the house a few months ago and they were super excited about it. we last saw them, the last time on the 29th. before that i hadn't seen summer in months. we had talked but they were so busy, excited about the move and getting everything ready that we were just talking over the phone. it had been several months i had not seen summer but saw joe in -- >> i imagine the family members you know and friends, they have to be stunned or in shock here. there are no clues essentially, this family disappeared with the kids without a trace. >> right. right. everybody is shocked. friends and family on both sides. we've had some prayer vigils and a lot of people from the community, just everybody is flabbergasted. i don't know how to put it any other way, it's been said so many times. shocked is a good word. >> we know the national center for missing, exploited children involved in this. another group, equusearch involved in natalee holloway's disappearance also involved in this. melissa, allen, we hope your friends and their kids are found safely. we appreciate you coming on to talk about them with us. >> thank you for having us. >> thank you for raising the awareness again. >> absolutely. powerful aftershocks caused panic in areas of southern chile devastated by saturdayed massive earthquake, the strongest reported 6.0, u.s. embassy in chile announced it is working to locate up to 1200 americans who were in the quake zone. meantime chile's government has stepped up efforts to deliver food and water and other supplies to survivors who have been angry, in fact, complaining emergency aid has been too slow. nbc's mike taibbi joins us from the capital of santiago. michael, i heard a man interviewed saying he was eating out of the trash can waiting for the government to get food to his area. >> reporter: there have been complaints, reports of some people slaughtering a horse to eat because nothing had gotten there. the president of chile spent much of the day defending her government's response saying now aid, food, water, shelter is getting to all thosexd towns do south principally on the coastline that got hit with a one-two punch, the earthquake and sea quake that followed, something like tsunami that wiped out whole towns on the coast. estimated 350 dead, estimated total for the country. that's where the aid is going. they do have the looting under control. some 14,000 chilean troops dispatched to the troubled areas. now the looting and men with pistols invading homes and stores, that's over now. people calling phony fire alarms to get the fire trucks there so they can draw off the water, that has ended. aid is getting down there four days after the quake here in santiago, part of the crew like the one behind me helping a man whose house badly damaged, there isn't much evidence of the earthquake four days ago. >> thank you very much. faa and air traffic controllers union are outraged with the actions of one controller and the supervisor. the controller took a child to work letting the youngster actually green light planes from the from the tarmac to the air. here is the recording. >> jetblue 171 contact departure. >> over to departure jetblue 171, awesome job. >> clear for takeoff. >> this happened about two weeks ago. we've learned that the child made a total of five transmissions from the control tower at jfk airport in new york. an investigation is under way. two employees are on administrative leave. breaking news from the entertainment world, burt reynolds, the actor, is recovering from open-heart surgery. nbc.com courtney hazlett. >> quintuple bypass is the surgery he underwent. he's at home resting comfortably, as comfortably as you can after that procedure. he's got 24-hour care at home. it's exceedingly serious. burt reynolds is 74. he's had a lot of problems recently. he just completed recently a one-month stay in a rehab center for i believe it was prescription pill abuse. not the easiest road for him. he says he's looking forward to getting back to teaching and working. james cameron -- i didn't know this until recently he's known for his temper and passion and people are a little afraid of him. >> sense of humor or lack thereafter. so james cameron, obviously his film avatar is nominated for everything you can be nominated for. sasha cohen and ben stiller were supposed to do a sketch poking fun at the film during the oscar broadcast on sunday. in short, what it was going to be was sasha cohen dressed up as one of those blue beings, a female one. ben stiller was going to be translating. some sort of hillarity was going to ensue where it would reveal sasha cohen character was pregnant. james cameron was the father of it. very complicated. >> but it was going to be funny. >> it was intended to be funny. it was decided at the last second that maybe james cameron wouldn't think it was funny and they were scared he would walk out. i say what great television. a guy with a best picture nomination he's going to leave before the academy awards. everybody needs to start taking the oscars just a touch less seriously. that's part of what i'm sad to see this go. it's an acting contest. i love the film industry. i love acting. i love all of this. but sometimes we just take it to seriously. >> you're saying getting over yourself. >> lighten up, james cameron, laugh a little. this has become my favorite daily update. i'll be so sad when he goes to jail because we'll have less news. monday he'll return to the courthouse for his sentencing. we assume he'll leave the courthouse and report for jail shortly thereafter. >> another weekend. >> he was at madison square hanging out. >> that's what i'd do. for the latest entertainment news, of course logon to scoop.msnbc.com, courtney headed to los angeles for the oscars. we'll have scoop from her when she gets back. same-sex marriage takes a giant step forward in the capital. details ahead. newly released documents reveal more than 50 new leads in the search for madeleine mccann are out there. the latest developments in that case. host: does charlie daniels play a mean fiddle? ♪ fiddle music charlie:hat's how you do it son. vo: geico. 15 minutes could save you 15% or more on car insurance. if you're on medicare part d, you can get... your 90-day prescription supply from a place... you already trust to keep you staying well. walgreens. you'll have the confidence of knowing your walgreens... pharmacist has personally checked your medications. and you'll be in control of how and when you pick them up. so you can relax and enjoy all your benefits. cheese! walgreens. there's a way to stay well. bad cholesterol but your good cholesterol and triglycerides are still out of line? then you may not be seeing the whole picture. ask your doctor about trilipix. if you're at high risk of heart disease and taking a statin to lower bad cholesterol, along with diet, adding trilipix can lower fatty triglycerides and raise good cholesterol to help improve all three cholesterol numbers. trilipix has not been shown to prevent heart attacks or stroke more than a statin alone. trilipix is not for everyone, including people with liver, gallbladder, or severe kidney disease, or nursing women. tell your doctor about all the medicines you take and if you are pregnant or may become pregnant. blood tests are needed before and during treatment to check for liver problems. contact your doctor if you develop unexplained muscle pain or weakness, as this can be a sign of a rare but serious side effect. this risk may be increased when trilipix is used with a statin. if you cannot afford your medication, call 1-866-4-trilipix for more information. trilipix. there's more to cholesterol. get the picture. a new study finds people who suffer from migraines may be at double the risk for heart attack than those without the headaches. the heart attack risk was nearly three times greater than those who have migraines. when the patient sees lights just before the headache hits. welcome back. we're keeping the eye on the airport in charlotte, north carolina, specifically us airways. you might ask yourself why. today captain sully sullenberger is retiring. there it is. this is his final flight. he's retiring after 30 years with the airline. of course it was captain sullenberger who landed that jet on the hudson river, the miracle on the hudson, as it was called. everyone on that aircraft that day survived. he's been a hero. since then giving interviews on the "today" show and around the world. a big sendoff to aviation legend at this point, captain sully sull sullenberg sullenberger. there's a flight attendant on the flight who is retiring today. he glided the plane to a safe landing. the final flight was fort lauderdale to charlotte where he is based. now that he's retiring he might be headed back to florida to enjoy some sun. quite a sendoff for an aviation legend, as i said. the parents of missing four-year-old madeleine mccann are furious after learning portuguese essentially ignored scores of new leads in their daughter's disappearance. the information came in after the case in 2007 disappearance was closed. the mccanns believe they should have been told about the new tips. madeleine mccanns' parents are conducting their own investigation and are calling on the police to share all of the new information. same-sex couples in the nation's capital have a reason to celebrate it's because same-sex marriage is legal in washington, d.c. more than 100 couples have applied for marriage licenses so far. >> we are registered to get married. >> we're number one in line. we'll be the first ones to register to get our license. >> it's an historic day. we're really proud to be part of it and delighted. we've been together for 17 years. and we've been denied a lot of benefits and a lot of -- and had to pay a lot of taxes. >> nbc's pete williams joins us live. these couples won't be able to marry until later in the month, march 19. >> next week. next tuesday there's a rule after you apply for marriage license it takes three business days to get you the license. that's the earliest they can actually formally legally get married. this happened after several steps. the d.c. city council passed this. since we're the district of columbia, congress has the opportunity to take it away. it sits in congress 30 days. congress failed to do anything. then there was a legal challenge that went clear to the supreme court. yesterday chief justice roberts said the supreme court would not get involved in what is essentially a local matter. he also pointed out there is a group of people in the district to oppose this, who are trying to get an initiative on the ballot to overturn the decision of the city council, to in essence pass a new city ordinance saying marriage can only be between a man and a woman. for now it is the law here. so the first marriages could come next tuesday making washington, d.c. the sixth place in the u.s. where gay couples can get married, in addition to massachusetts, connecticut, vermont, new hampshire and iowa. by the way, tamron, which is the last of the places where there are active efforts to get the law changed. there are no pending matters in state legislators considered close. you may recall new york turned it down earlier this year. no pending state court cases. for a while this is it. a while before we see initiatives to increase the numbers beyond district of columbia and those five states. >> thank you, pete. >> you bet. >> when you go out for dinner at a restaurant, should you be paying an additional fee for health insurance for the waitress and other employees of the restaurant? it is today's crossing the line. we've got a live interview. of course you can always vote on it. ♪ [ male announcer ] you've wanted to quit smoking so many times, but those days came and went and the cigarettes remained. ♪ today's a new day. talk to your doctor about prescription treatment options and support. and this time, make it your time. 's as small businesses are busy reinventing the economy, small business owners have a lot of questions. can paperless billing get me paid faster? how can i keep my best employees? how can i bring down my insurance costs? and while at american express open we may not have all the answers, we know who does. other owners. that's why we're helping business owners connect. together, we're building a community for them to talk, share and help each other. a place called openforum.com where owners can swap ideas and ask questions. will tweeting get me more customers? how can i make my business green? and one question seems especially popular. how can i get paid faster? how can i get paid faster? i was about to ask you the same thing. and they're inspiring ideas like acceptpay. a new tool from open that lets owners invoice digitally and helps them get paid faster. ask a question. find an answer. join the conversation at openforum.com. >> am i dead or alive? >> can i be ambassador to cancun. >> it's a funny or die mom, a presidential reunion, the comedy website reunited some of "saturday night live's" funniest comedians to reprice presidential performances plus jim carrey, plus a new video to check it out. it's entertaining. it's wise to look at a bill to make sure you don't have wrong charges or overcharges. next time you dine out, you might want to look for add on charge for health coverage for the employees of the restaurant. ed perkins from the "chicago tribune" recently wrote about what he called a scam that first popped up in san francisco. in his words, you can count on it spreading. joining us now is ed, he talks about this with us. hi, ed. >> nice to be with you. >> talk to us about this. is it only in san francisco? how are they getting away with this? >> as far as i know, it is only in san francisco so far. as i say, there's nothing that succeeds in the travel industry like a bad idea. >> so what they are doing, according to your article, is they add a few dollars or percentage points to each customered bill to cover the city's health coverage system, mandatory. >> that's right. i mean, it's just another one of these pile-ones. i'm sure that people, who are your viewers right now, are very much aware that suppliers -- sellers of all kinds of things are resorting to what i call split pricing more and more to make their list prices look better than they really are. >> in your article, you said the restaurant is adding this fee self-righteously proclaim it is not hidden. we print a notice on our menus. when did you -- did you go into a restaurant and discover this or is this a result of someone tipping you off? >> someone tipped me off. i haven't been in san francisco since this started to appear. >> the person was pretty outraged by it? >> i would say pretty outraged is a very mild description. >> so with this restaurant owners, they are simply saying, this is part of our expenses so we just pass it along to you? >> yeah. but so is rent and utilities and food. if it's a chain restaurant, an outrageous bonus for the ceo. i mean, once you start to carve out these various components of your cost of doing business. >> right. >> why, you could go on and on and on. in the travel industry, actually the worst offenders are hotels. >> i saw you point that out. >> we're out of time. i sure appreciate you coming on talking with us. you do point out hotels are the worst of this and they do it as well but we should keep an eye out for restaurants. i appreciate a great article, ed. what do you think about ed's article, he's making a great point. is their mandatory fee worth it? is it too hard to swallow. >> slapping on a fee for the insurance they have to play for their employees. go to tamron.msnbc ku klux klan or twitter your response, twitter.msnbc.com. that's it for this hour. i'm tamron hall, joining me weekdays 11:00 a.m. and 2:00. my friend david shuster picks things up. what do you have? >> just an hour ago when president obama talked about the latest effort on health care reform. we're getting reaction from key republicans. we will go through some of that and talk about what's next. also, iran is taking the unusual step of moving some of its nuclear facilities out into the open. what are they doing? are they daring the united states and israel to attack? we'll go through that with secretary of state lawrence eagle berger. both stories after this. e, back! 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[ female announcer ] 'cause sara's mom discovered neosporin® with patented technology that heals cuts two days faster than store brands. neosporin®. heals faster than store brands. and over probably isn't giving results you want. introducing neosporin ® lip health™. shown to restore visibly healthier lips in just three days. new neosporin ® lip health™. rethink your lip care. the sparkly flakes. the honey-baked bunches! the magic's in the mix. my favorite part? eating it. honey bunches of oats. taste the joy we put in every spoonful. it is the top of the hour at msnbc. here are the stories we're following right now. president obama has unveiled the final plan for health care reform. it includes republican proposals but will any republican support the measure? plus -- many veterans are infuriated over the oscar nominated movie "the hurt locker." we'll talk with someone who served in iraq and said the film was an insult. later -- >> jetblue 171 contact departure. >> over to departure jetblue 171. awesome job. >> your ears are not deceiving you. that is a child directing real planes at air traffic control at a major american airport. how on earth did this happen. hello, everybody. i'm david shuster reporting live in washington. we've got a big schmo for you. let's start with president obama's newest effort to push through health care reform. this afternoon the president