a recorder conversation between the captain and the port authority. pretty damning stuff in there. what's happening right now? the captain is being questioned. and new this morning, the number of the missing much higher than we first reported. >> and, also, in politics, when you're the front runner, it's like you've got the bull's eye on your back. that would be mitt romney where rick perry and everyone else, rick santorum, all gunning for myth romney. the race is tight. we're going to break it all down for you. >> you're going to have to dig a little deeper when you fill up this morning. the highest january gas prices. could we see $5 gas this summer? >> and if you're about to pour some o.j., think about the folks picking the o.j. where did the oranges come from? because if they're from brazil, we sent our reporter there to find out just what they're spraying or putting on those oranges to fight diseases and it ain't something that our country likes. not one bit. we'll tell you more about that in just a moment. >> we're going to begin this morning with breaking news on several fronts in the ieal january cruise ship disaster. the italian navy blasting a hole in the ship. watch the lower left of the screen. the blasting of the this hull will allow search teams to enter and exit the cruise liner more easily. >> and, also, we've got some just phenomenal pictures that have been coming into cnn from our crews around the world. look at this. divers underwater. if this isn't harrowing, imagine these divers having to smash windows to swim into the hull and get through hallways clogged with debris. there are now 29 people who are unaccounted for. and that's obviously the first mission of those divers. but in the meantime, they were still able to uncover the first black box. it's already providing a a lot of very important information about just what happened when this cruise liner ran aground. the italian coast guard says it has also located the second black box. divers actually trying to get their hands on it. >> more break news here. we have the transcript of the recorded conversation between the port authority and the captain. this is from the italian newspaper. port authority, concordia, we ask you if all is well there. concordia responds all is well. it is only a technical failure. port authority, how many people are on board? 2,300. >> port authority says how come so few people. the captain says no, i am not on board. we've abandoned it. >> port authority responds what? you've abandoned the ship? no, i'm here. >> port authority says you must return on board, climb the ladder, assuming the rope ladder, return to the fore stem, that's the front of the ship and coordinate the work. captain schettino goes on and they say you must tell us how many people are on board? how many women? how many children? you have to coordinate the rescue operation. commander, this is an order. now i'm in charge, you've abandoned ship and now you are going to the step, again, the front of the ship and coordinate the work. there are already dead bodies. >> and schettino replies how many. >> you should be the one telling me. do you want to go home? now go back on the stem and tell me what to do. schettino okay, i'm doing it. the newspaper reports the captain never went back to the ship. >> now, we're not clear whether that's cell phone transmissions or radio transmissions, but that news paper is a bona fide newspaper. really just remarkable material. you can bet your bottom dollar that that is going to end up in court. we do want to get you up to speed on what's happening now. that captain who steered the ship into the rocky italian coast is about to go before a judge and be questioned today. he says he just hit rocks that weren't on his charts. cnn has been in the courtroom and she's joining us now on the line. so many questions. i think just give us the run down on the first thing that's happening in court with regard to this captain. >> that's right. the captain is in court right now. he's sitting in front of a a female judge whether that's going to make a difference or not, we don't know. but he's with his lawyer and the prosecutor who has very damning information against him right now. but his lawyer is going to focus on getting him out of jail. this captain has been in protective kus day sharing his cell with two other local inmates since his arrest on saturday. he wants to get out of jail. his lawyer is going to aplay for his release to house arrest or another form of protective custody because he's emotionally unstable. he suffers the pain for all of the deaths and, you know, people's lives who are destroyed. so this, today, is a very technical hearing. the lawyer or the captain is going to try to get him out of jail. and then the judge is going to ask a few questions based on the previous investigation. so far, that's about a hundred crew members and passengers that they have interrogated over the course of the last 72 hours. the magistrate is expected to ask about a half a dozen questions and then make a decision whether or not to keep the captain schettino in jail or not. >> now, barbie, we're just receiving these transcripts right now. are they going to be using these transcripts in court today? >> these transcripts are part of the investigation. and the lawyer for schettino is as going to try to stop further publication of these transcripts because he feels his client is public opinion. it is, theoretically, illegal to publish transcripts during an on going criminal trial. but it does happen quite frequently. and we've seen that. this is a very reputable newspaper and these transcripts we've had confirmation from tr prosecutor where the court is being held that those transcripts are bona fide. whether or not they'll get into the details of those transcripts in terms of the questioning of the captain today, that we won't know until after this hearing has ended. it's expected to last less than an hour, we're told. and then the lawyer will make a brief statement to reporters gathered here after the hearing. and then we'll know about a court calendar and we'll understand whether or not captain schettino will be remanded in custody or whether he'll be able to enjoy the investigation in his own private home. >> while they're assessing what we would call bond or bail hearings, i'm curious to the list of charges that could be in the works for him, multiple counts of manslaughter and 28 missing at this point. ship wreck, which is also a charge under italian law and then abandon ship, which, as i understand, and correct me if i'm wrong, can carry up to 15 years on itself. with that transcript that we were just talking about, it sounded pretty clearly of an admission of, no, we abandoned the ship. it's keeling. >> exactly. and i think by design, these charges are meant to carry the maximum weight possible that abandoning ship and ship wreck, ship wreck, which is a charge that carries at least three years on itself. that is like if you're in an automobile accident, it's the maritime equivalence of that. it's his fault is what they're saying. but the abandoning ship is a serious maritime offense. and that's the one that they're going to look at. i suspect that these transcripts are going to be crux of that investigation. again, the italian port authority ordering the captain back on the ship. it's going to be hard for any defense team to defend a captain on that. the port authorities got those transcripts. it's every conversation between the port authority and the captain of the ship recorded. this is a no contest document, basically, or transcript. so this will all be used against him. the manslaughter charges are six dead so far, but there are 29 or 28, the numbers may have changed. >> we have 29, yeah. >> 29, i stand corrected. 29. >> 29 still missing. so this -- >> keep us apprised of what transpires in court. this is fascinating, especially with these transcripts that have come. barbie nadeau reporting live. >> every morning, we give you an early start to your day. wisconsin governor scott walker could become just the third u.s. governor in history to be recalled from office. today, his opponents are expected to submit 540,000 signatures, that would be enough to force a recall election. walker came under fire last year of scrapping collective bargaining rights for most public workers. >> and welcome back to work, congress, at least those of you in the house who are returning back. the senate is ending its winter break next week. but those congressmen, well, they better get their kevlar on because just 11% of us approve of what they've been doing when they go to work every day. >> and president obama's job heads to the white house today. the panel of business leaders will urge the president to call for a corporate tax overhaul, expand domestic drilling and new regulatory reforms. ten min uts passed the hour here. we'll be watching europe very closely this morning after standard and poors downgraded many countries. >> when you start talking gas prices, that's when i really pay attention. >> and gas prices, there's a forecast out there that they could go up to $5 a gallon. and that's probably the parts that are like chicago, california. absurd. >> and they've been moving up here. and what's really interesting is there's a couple of thicks going on. you've got brazil, india, china, they are competing with the u.s. for supplies around the world. you've also got the concerns we've talked about with iran and all of the sort of the rabbling that the iranians are doing. and you've got people talking about going into the springtime and the summertime that you could see prices going up. i want to be very careful about forecasting gas prices because i think it could be unpredictable. i hope you can see this. the darker it is, the more -- the higher the price is. and then when you look at gas prices by a state, when you look at how much you spend on your income, when you put income and gas prices together, you can see that in the south, people spend an awful lot of their income on gas prices. mississippi, 14% of their income is spent on gasoline. the darker, that's gas prices and percent of income, look at where all of these primaries are coming up, guys. you're going to have politics playing out in a place where people spend a lot of their money on gasoline prices. >> is that just gasoline? >> that's just gasoline. because they pay less for heating oil and stuff because it's the south and a little bit warmer. but this is what we're going to be hearing a lot about. when people are paying more for gas, the economy becomes that much more important, even though people are saying that the economy is very bad, still eight out of ten saying poor, somewhat poor, not going in the right direction. so gas prices will be okay. and 47% approve the president's handling of his job. that's pretty much steady. i any in november, it was 49%. but when you start talking about gas prices and long term unemployment, these are some of the challenges that we hear about. >> $5, that's outrageous. i know you don't like to talk about specific dollars. >> i know. i know. >> and it does. but that's why i just think it could be a little unpredictable this year. if you get iran, not as big a deal, maybe gas price wills come down. >> it always does this. thank you, christine. >> it's 5:13 here in the east. still to come, what's in your orange juice? we go to the source for a lot of america's orange juice. find out what growers are using that could be affecting you. should you be worried this morning? we're going to let somebody else chime in. you're watching "early start." we are so happy you're with us. peppery poblano, sweet butternut. we're roasting, and grilling to create must-have meals with no preservatives. lean cuisine. be culinary chic. no, i wouldn't use that single miles credit card. hey, aren't you... shhh. i'm 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[ male announcer ] get the venture card at capitalone.com and earn double miles on every purchase every day. what's in your wallet? cover for me. i have an audition. good morning to you, tampa. it is 49 degrees. it's going to be sunny and 77 today. later today there. >> i love it, but it always gives me the mungo hair, you know, when it's so humid. >> mungo hair? you're going to have to show me mungo hair. >> all girls know what i'm talking about. >> i'm feeling you. >> yeah, it's mungo hair. that's the word of the day, my friends. >> it is 16 minutes past the hour. we do want to get you up to speed on some top stories because we've been getting a lot of developments overnight. the italian navy is blasting a hole into this ship to allow the rescuers to get access because, of course, it is very difficult for those divers you're looking at to get in at the listing angle that that ship is at. right now, captain of the costa concordia, he's in a courtroom to answer some serious charges related to the grounding of that ship. 6 people dead, 29 unaccounted for, including two americans. >> in syria, opposition groups say 13 people were killed by government forces. >> if you were watching the debate last night, all of these candidates, look at them looking right at mitt romney. and there's a good reason for it. the bull's eye was on that man. newt gingrich, rick santorum, everybody going after mitt romney. and look at him laughing it all off. the front runner hoping to seal the deal on the gop nomination trying for that victory in saturday's south carolina primary. before the vote, the candidates are going to take part in our big cnn debate. it comes across your screen right here on thursday. john king is going to be involved in that. it will be the best of the 17th and, by then, debates. >> let's start with that. mitt romney's rivals trying desperately to take down the republican front runner. it's a tight race between gingrich and romney. perry says to romney, show me the money. >> mitt, we need for you to release your income tax so the people of this country can see how you made your money. >> my record is out there. proud of it. and i think if people want to have someone who understands how the economy works, having worked in the rereal economy, that i'm the best that can best oppose barack obama. >> in case you missed it last night, jamal sprks imons, from charles ton, south carolina, cnn political editor and from little rock arkansas, former communications director for the michelle bachmann campaign. last night was some of the most contentious exchanges. does romney need to release his tax returns in order to stop all of the asking? and my second question would be if he does, is it like president obama releasing his birth certificate? >> well, like he said, time will tell if he actually does do that. that was certainly big news of the night. but more importantly, what we did get out of this is we were able to show that romney was able to withstand all of the attacks that came out throughout the night. he did unvail a good more details of his job creation plan, which is important for the people of south carolina. currently, they're looking at an unemployment rate of 10% and far above 8.5 pbt. that's what they want to hear about. they want to hear what the candidates can do for them. they want to see what they can do. and a lot of the candidates did very well showing how they will help not only create jobs, but, also, how they want to reduce the income tax. so that was important that came out of this debate. whether or not this was a game changer for the candidates that were trying to secure the consistent conservative anti-romney vote, time will tell. but certainly gingrich came out of this very strong. he certainly shows that he is a fantastic debater. but more than anything else, romney was certainly the guy out there with the target on his back. and he came out of this very well. >> so, jamal, let's talk about that. the washington post called newt gingrich the winner last night. let's listen to what he said on jobs creation and then we'll talk about it. >> all unemployment compensation should be tied to a job training requirement. if somebody can't find a job -- [ applause ] -- and they show up and they say, you know, i need help, the help we ought to give them is to get them connected to a business-run training program to acquire the skills to be employable. now, the fact is 99 weeks is an associate degree. >> so ellis was just talking about the fact that this is a contender. you tweeted out last night newt is fuevo. what do you think? did he move up here? >> i think for that crowd, listen, i don't like much of what newt gingrich has to say, but for a republican crowd, they seem today really react very positively to him. i want to go back to what you just asked about mitt romney's tax returns. my experience working on campaigns, if it was an easy answer, if it was nothing in the tax returns to worry about, they would have released them a long time ago. there's a reason why mitt romney is delaying letting out his tax returns. he's delaying it to april hoping that the primary season will be over. people should ask for those tax returns sooner rather than later. >> paul, why don't you weigh in on that and then we'll talk about gingrich reestablishing himself. >> again, this has been a bone of contention. >> speaker gingrich, i already said at our last debate that anything that's false in "pac ads" whether they're supportive of me or supportive of you should be taken off the air and fixed. i've already said that. >> all right, sorry about that. we wanted to discuss super pacs a little bit later. >> it's early. we'll give you guys a little leeway. >> all right, paul. >> super pacs were a huge topic in this debate. romney, right off the bat on the defensive, about 20 minutes in, former senator rick santorum of pennsylvania hammering mitt romney as well over a super pac that's criticized santorum overvoting rights for former felons. romney was put on the defense there. it was the first time i saw romney kind of out of his game since our debate in las vegas. santorum really got into romney easter toir there. and. super pacs, a huge issue in this campaign. so much has changed compared to four years ago. but all of these campaigns, i think, are guilty in some ways when it comes to super pacs. >> but as a candidate here, you really can't go in and tell the super pac what to do or whatnot to do. they're kind of all guilt, right? >> exactly. romney may be the worst offender because his super pac is putting up so many ads. but all of them have the same problem. >> all right, paul, before we actually put that sound byte out there, you were going to weigh in on tax returns. i want to give you an opportunity to do that. >> yeah, this is -- this was, i guess, the biggest news out of this debate of romney finally saying he will "maybe" put his tax returns out in april. it is a bone of contention. his rivals are going to continue to hammer him. if he makes it to the general election, the democratic committee will be hammering him as well. >> thanks for joining us this morning. you can keep it on cnn now through november for the best political coverage on television. at 7:00 a.m. eastern, we go one-on-one with the tea party caucus, south carolina senator jim demint. >> that's 5:00 a.m. on the east coast. and still to come, there is a frenzy like you've never seen before in china. you may have noticed this outside the apple store the other day. and the chinese uphold the iphone 4s from the store. so how is it they're still getting them? 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