dramatic reading last night on the colbert report. but first let s get to the news. president obama delivered a major foreign policy address yesterday looking to capitalize on the recent democratic uprisings across the middle east. speaking to diplomats, the president laid out his vision for the united states role in the region so-called arab spring. so we face a historic opportunity. we have the chance to show that america values the dignity of the street vendor in tunisia more than the raw power of the dictator. there must be no doubt that the united states of america welcomes change that advances self-determination and opportunity. yes, there will be perils that accompany this moment of promise. but after decades of accepting the world as it is in the region, we have a chance to pursue the world as it should be. while the president praised egypt and tunisia, he condemned syria where officials have reportedly killed hundreds of anti-government protesters. on wednesda
lawmakers are asking for a full investigation. i d like to know if there were any costs to the people of california or if any campaign funds might have been used to perpetuate that coverup that s gone on the seven years that schwarzenegger was governor of california. miguel almaguer reporting there for us from los angeles. the birth certificate of the newly revealed child shows that he was born less than one week apart from one of schwarzenegger s sons that he had with maria shriver. the paperwork also does not list the former governor as the boy s father. a history making french official could be on her way to breaking barriers again. this time as the successor to dominique strauss-kahn at the imf. let s take an early look at the markets. rebecca meehan live in london for us. good morning. yes, all attention is turning to who could be the next head of the imf, a role dominate the by the frefrng, but also dominated by men. this time around, one of the
learning that his love child was born just days after the child he had with wife maria shriver. plus president obama s re-election campaign comes out with a line of birth certificate merchandise. true story. they re having a good laugh about this. we ll show you what they ve got for you later in the show. but first let s get to the news live at 5:30 a.m. here at 30 rock in new york city. a big story in the world of finance just breaking overnight. dominique strauss-kahn has stepped down as head of the international monetary fund. his resignation ends a leadership crisis to the imf after he was charged with sexually assaulting a new york city hotel maid earlier this week. in a letter, strauss-kahn strongly denies the accusations saying in part i want to protect this institution which i served with honor and i want to devote all my strength, time and energy to proving my inside. michelle kosinski joins us by phone from paris. so what s going on there? was there surprise in fran
agree to pay for health care. there is a way to do it to make lost libertarians happy. we should have health insurance or post a bond or in some way indicate you will be held accountable. but that is the individual mandate s it not? it s a variation on it. newt gingrich talked about his more controversial comments about president obama, defending them, saying nothing he said about the president has been racist. as more republicans are expected to announce, president obama received some good news in a new poll. 59% say they will either vote for the president or consider voting for him. we ll have more politico poll results on morning joe at the top of the hour. right now we want to turn to the scandal here. rebecca meehan is live in london. do we have rebecca with us? yes, we do i m here. let s go to tracy strahan with us from new york city on this imf scandal, the head of the imf accused of sexual
the hotel, strauss-kahn was gone. he was on an air france flight bound for paris at that point and authorities nabbed him. he was taken to the station house in harlem and then taken to the hospital. he is expected to be arraigned in a few hours from now. french media is here, all the local new york stations as well. as head of the imf, there are concerns about his political aspirations as well. he was considered the strongest potential challenger to nicolas sarkozy to next year s elections in france. back to you. thank you very much. also new reports about the way they got him on that plane. he had called back to the hotel on his way to the airport saying he left his phone. did they have it? hotel security was coached to say, yes, we do have it. we can we deliver it. he said he was going to the airport. as head of the imf, strauss-kahn played a key role in helping nations manage their way through the european debt crisis. here to explain the impact of his arrest, rebecca meehan from