reporter: open floodgates, thousands hit by floodwaters so new orleans stays dry. the alternative, city officials say, would have been worse than katrina. water is pouring through 15 of 125 floodgates at morganza, louisiana right now, a quarter of the gates will eventually be opened. downstream, water from the spillway is already overrunning some homes. as many as 25,000 could go under water in the next few weeks. president obama is welcoming jordan king abdallah to the white house. the conversation is expected to center on the arab uprising. so thursday, the president is expected to layout detailed u.s. viewpoints and a vision on events that are reshaping the middle east. lawyers for imf chief dominique strauss-kahn says their client has an alibi. lunch with another person at the same time that police say he was attacking a hotel housekeeper. lawyers say his launch part they are will come forward to vouch for his whereabouts. strauss-kahn is jailed at new york s rike
chosen that particular venue for this message? only because i think she wasn t ready to face the cameras. even respond to a friendly question. that s how jangled she was by th this. we always love having you here. thank you. up next, we ll talk with congresswoman gabrielle giffords chief of staff, the latest on her health status after opening her eyes for the very first time. coming up monday on msnbc, don t miss the hardball special, obama s america, hosted by chris matthews, monday 10:00 eastern only on msnbc. you re watching the daily rundowns, and we ll be right back. [ tires squeal ]