jessica yellin was in the briefing room when the president spoke. jessica, president did not say this was a terror attack, as we are saying now based on what law enforcement, federal law enforcement, is telling us. but i assume the president is trying to be overly cautious before he declares this a terror attack. >> reporter: i think that they are being very careful, and he is -- has had experience with these kinds of situations after the attack in libya and carefully avoiding using the word, using the word. the fact he didn't mention it, wolf, is meaningful. perhaps they have some more information than we do. he's being considered, i think, and there must be a reason he chose not to use that word. he, clearly, is determined and one of the, you know, messages that they consistent ll lly sen is bin laden's capture -- the killing of bin laden was a message to the world that when we say we will make people who attack america or cause death in america pay we mean it. and when he said today we will find out who did this and they'll pay consequences, he c

jessica yellin is over there watching what's going on. any indication, jessica, what the president is going to say? >> reporter: they haven't told us exactly what he'll say, but he'll reassure the american people that officials here in washington are in ongoing contact with the officials there on the ground as they have told us consistently since the president was first briefed at 3:00 in the afternoon. i would remind you this white house took quite a lashing after they failed to call another incident terrorism when a number of americans were killed in attacks then overseas, but one would imagine the president would be careful to call this, i would guess, terrorism today. if you do hear him say that, it could have a broad range of meanings, politically, it's something that one might imagine he has to do. also, he spoke today with deval patrick, the mayor of boston, and speaker boehner. speaker boehner released a picture of that conversation, as well. the speaker will hold a moment of silence later this evening for those who lost their liv

>> jessica yellin at the white house. we'll come back to you in a bit. if you're just tuning in, just to catch you up, shortly over an hour or so ago in the last mile of the boston marathon there were two explosions. police now say that two individuals were killed in those explosions and according to police and local hospitals about 28 are injured. we still do not know exactly what happened. we will update you as events transpire. we're now going to go to cnn national security contributor fran townsend. fran, what are your law enforcement sources telling you? what are they doing right now? >> jake, it's interesting because the first thing you want to do is identify the substance that was used in the explosion and who was the perpetrator. so they're pulling -- they're doing the typical investigative steps. i understand that through the jttf in boston, the joint terrorism task force, the fbi is working with boston law enforcement to pull surveillance camera videos to see if there are any clues there. they're going through open cases, whether those are coun

did you have a chance, senator graham, i assume you did to hear the exchange between jessica yellin and the president at the news conference? >> yes, somebody played it back for me. i have to say, wolf, with all due respect to the president, we've had eight americans killed in the last seven months by radical islamists, four in benghazi, four in boston and i think our systems are degrading and i stand by that statement. it's not like i relish saying that. i think it's true. and benghazi, multiple warnings were coming out of our ambassador stevens. request for security was denied. the consulate became a death trap for 7 1/2 hours, nobody could come to the aid of the people under attack. susan rice told the narrative it didn't hold water. it wasn't a spontaneous event by video. boston got its problems too. >> this is the president speaking at news conference responding to jessica yellin's question. >> lindsey graham, senior member of the armed services committee said that benghazi and boston are both examples of the u.s. going backwards on national security. is he right? and did our intel

jessica yellin at the white house right now. new words from the president, new words that matter. >> reporter: i thought, john, you're right, the use of the word "m "malevolent" person is interesting choice of words, perhaps leaving the room for the possibility this was the act of a crazy person or we'll have to find out why he chose that particular phrase. it seems to me that's the immediate reason that comes to mind why he would rule out the possibility that this could be anything other than the act of a malevolent person. i will tell you i've spoken to a number of sources inside the government since yesterday about the use of the word "terror" and "terrorism" and why the president may not have used it yesterday and it's being used by so many. bottom line, they say, when it comes to an investigation on the ground, whether it's called terrorism or not it doesn't make much of a difference. it matters to us in the media. it matters to the public in terms of how we feel about it. but when it's an investigation, they proceed the sa

jessica yellin live from the white house. we have every angle covered as we try to find more information out. >> erin, because we obviously set the scene here by remembering the little boy who lost his life, three lives were taken, his face kind of captures the symbolism of how harsh and painful the situation was. we're learning more about him and the family. we heard about the reaction from his father. carol costello's piece setting up exactly who this little boy was and what was lost. >> reporter: martin richard is now sadly the face of the tragedy. he was just 8 years old, a much loved boy. this is martin who, according to affiliate station whdh, ran into the street to congratulate his dad who was just about to cross the finish line. that moment of joy and triumph turned deadly for marten. >>> i thought i saw a child laying to the left and my wife didn't see that as she later told me. i thought perhaps it was clothing or perhaps someone's limb because there was a man there missing a limb. but it -- it was surreal. >> repor

. >> let's bring in our chief white house correspondent, jessica yellin. the president said this is round one, a setback but not giving up. realistically what can he do now? >> wolf, while we're here talking about this, the president is out having dinner with democrat senators. he can focus on what gloria just mentioned, the 2014 election. now, i am -- i'm confident that when he said this is round one, he was not talking necessarily about 2014 alone. but democrats will now make this an issue in 2014. they can use the president's organizing ofa, his group, to help put this on ballots in states. gun issues on ballots in states, to target members who voted against this, and the president will no doubt make this an ongoing issue throughout his second term. because he has expended more political capital on this one issue than on any other single issue, frankly since health care reform. when he spoke hast week at a rally on guns, just to push the guns legislation, he said the day of the newtown shootings was the toughest day of his presidency. but he said, i've

i think we've reconnected with jessica yellin, who's in the briefing room right now. what are they saying about the delay of jay carney's briefing. >> wolf, if i can start with some news i just received a statement from the fbi saying the second letter sent to the offsite white house facility addressed to the president did test positive for ricin on a preliminary test. the envelope addressed to, again, the white house, was quarantined and is part of now a coordinated investigation headed up by the fbi. this statement notes that operations here at the white house were in no way impacted. it never reached any area that touches the president in any way. the statement also adds that filters at a second government mail screening facility -- filters, also tested positive for ricin this morning on a preliminary basis. now, i've been previously told that preliminary tests as we know sometimes test positive and then you find out a negative test later. so that's why they're being cautious. so they say that second facility is now they're testing the mail at that second facility

joining me is jessica yellin and cnn crime and justice correspondent, joe johns. welcome to you both. jessica, the president was very careful with his words. he didn't mention terror or terrorism but i believe the white house has been briefing, and they view it as a terror attack. >> reporter: that's right. shortly after the president made his statement in which you're correct, he avoided using that word, i spoke with a white house official who said that they want to be clear that the white house clearly views an event like this in which multiple explosive devices appear to have been used, that was their language, this is as clearly a terror attack. that was their exact phrase. but investigators have to determine whether it was carried out by a terrorist or terrorist organization. so they are differentiating between what they call an act of terror in which individuals, americans are killed, and harmed, and an investigation that determines that terrorists are individuals involved with those organizations were engaged in this activity. so they're trying to make a po

our chief white house correspondent, jessica yellin, was in the front row asking questions. jessica is joining us now with more. jessica? >> wolf, president obama came to the briefing room without an obvious agenda and announcement. and on a range of topics he asked for patience from the boston bombing to syria, he made clear he's moving at his timetable. >> hello, everybody. >> reporter: at his first press conference since the boston marathon bombing -- >> we're not going to stop living our lives because wamp twisted individuals tried to intimidate us. >> reporter: for the question of intelligence was missed leading up to the attacks, president obama defended law enforcement. >> there's been an ordered review prior to the attack. a senior member of the armed services committee has said that benghazi and boston are both examples of the u.s. going backwards on national security. is he right? and did our intelligence miss something? >> no, mr. braham is not right on this issue. although i'm sure it generated some headlines. based on what i've seen so far, the fbi performed its

let's go to jessica yellin, chief white house correspondent, because the president is about to make a statement. jessica? >> reporter: that's right. hi. president obama i'm told by sources here was in the residence tonight watching television reports of the pursuit and that all the developments in watertown as we were, and he saw this go down just as we did. as soon as it was happening, he went over to the oval office to get the latest updates from his staff and then fbi director robert muller called him to officially let him know that the suspect had been captured alive. and he decided to come out and make a statement, i'm told by staff, and they brought in a local news from boston throughout the day so they could monitor actually some of the events all day long. they were revitied to the television just as we were. so the president updated throughout the day, and he is here back at work and ready to come in, brief the nation on a -- an exciting end and a, you know, successful law enforcement conclusion to all of this and the beginning of even more further investigation, piers. we're

jessica yellin, those are my three headlines. what are yours? >> reporter: i'm with you on the headlines, brooke. the major one, he is offering to reform social security and medicare, finding savings in both of those programs, so important to key democrats. and some in the president's own party are now howling betrayal. the president is also proposing to raise taxes on millionaires, millionaires in particular, and together all of this is meant to kick start negotiations with the republicans on the debt, and also replace as across the board spending cuts. this is going to surprise you. you might expect he says that he's gone a long way in offering compromise. this is the president. >> for years, the debate in this town is raised between reducing our deficits at all costs, and making the investments necessary to grow our economy. this budget answers that argument because we can do both. >> reporter: and guess what, it answers the argument by enraging both democrats and disappointing some republicans. so we don't see this as likely to lead to much

i'm joined by jessica yellin and john king. this is a message that will have big importance for people here. >> it will here, chris and around the nation. the president is well aware of that. i suspect he has given a lot of speeches at events, sad events, especially in the wake of recent gun deaths, mass shootings, tucson and more recently in sandy hook. this speech i think will take a very different tone. today it will not be solely about sadness, but about american resilient. i think he will focus a lot on boston strength. this is a tough town, a up to already come back to life. i think you will hear him talk about the people who died and remember them in some detail, but also the heroes. and i also think you might hear him talk about his own experience. he went to school here in boston and he might talk a little bit about his own time as a young man. >> the word resolve the president was using, another clergy member using the lines of community and unity be used in defiance of cruelty and violence. >> part of the president's

jessica yellin is joining us by the phone in denver to preview the new push. good morning, jessica. >> hi, carol. sources tell me that while he's here president obama will highlight the fact that this state, with the western frontier tradition, passed their new gun laws. he's going to use the success here to push congress to try to do the same and make that the top priority issue when congress comes back from recess, which happens next week. while he's here today, carol, the president is going to hold a round table with families of victims including from the aurora movie theater and columbine massacres. carol? >> he's got a challenge trying to push any gun control measure through congress because i hear the background check bill is going before congress is in trouble. >> you're right. a handful of republicans has promised to filibuster that bill, which includes universal background checks for all purchases. senate democrats are looking for the 60 votes they need to overcome that opposition. they currently don't have it. they are working on a compromise. one op

first, a check with jessica yellin. jessica, the president seems more emotional talking about guns at this point than any other issue really that we've seen him address. >> reporter: absolutely, anderson. the president has repeatedly said that the sandy hook shooting was the hardest day of his presidency, but i've talked to aides who have known him dating back even before his white house days, and they tell me they have never seen him as raw as he was on that day, and so it's not a big leap to deduce that part of his sense of deep emotional connection to this issue is his sense of responsibility. gun safety, gun safety agenda was missing from his first term, despite repeated mass shootings, and so now you see him working for it pretty aggressively. >> i mean, we know the president was pushing for an assault weapons ban, limit on the size of gun magazines. neither is expected to actually get through congress. one does have to look at the politics of this. what does the white house expect to get from pushing from congress

with that story, our chief white house correspondent cnn's jessica yellin. so, jessica, give it up, is this a aye or a nay. i know she's being vetted. >> sources tell me that caroline kennedy is going through the vet process, has been asked to be the next ambassador to japan. but this vet still has to be completed. if she gets the post, she would be following in the kennedy family tradition. her grandfather joe kennedy was ambassador to england. sergeant shriver ambassador to france. keep in mind, kennedy was not only an early endorser of the president, but also a trusted ally of this administration. she was on the president's vice presidential selection committee in 2008. so if she goes through the vet successfully, and we expect she will, this would not be your typical old school supporter stuck up. she's someone who can get the president and his staff on the phone and bottom line that means she would have juice in the job, fredricka. >> and, apparently, japan likes it when a u.s. ambassador to their country is someone who is well known, someone who really

>> jessica yellin is over at the white house for us. by the way, later this hour i'll speak with the white house senior adviser to the president dan pfeiffer and get more on this. also a democrat and republican who don't see eye to eye on anything but are both against the president's proposed budget and cuts to social security for very different reasons. we'll have much more on that, much more on this afternoon's very dramatic developments here in washington on the korean crisis. our special report on the korean crisis. remember, the full hour comes up 6:00 p.m. eastern right at the top of the hour. off like a sco♪ ♪ beep beep what? ♪if you set your phone to vibrate ♪ ♪ then it might alert your button flies all the ♪ ♪ girls and the guys wanna keep that credit score ♪ ♪ high like a private jet free-credit-score-dot-com ♪ ♪ don't forget! narrator: offer applies with enrollment in freecreditscore.com how old is the oldest person you've known? we gave people a sticker and had them show us. we learned a lot of us have

i'm joined by jessica yellin and john king here in boston. when the president said, jessica, we will finish the race, such strong metaphor kal impact, such rousing applause, you could feel it out here. >> a big line. multiple meanings for the president. he means in terms of we'll finish this investigation, we will catch the people who did this, but he also means america never stops. and america moves forward. for the president, he is -- and he knows he's very good in these moments. it's his role to unify the nation in the wake of a tragedy like this. and it's his role to remind everybody that we go on. this was a speech that for him is especially touching. it's a city his whole family has a connection to. not only he went to school here, mrs. obama did, his own father went to harvard university as well. i know the speech was written by a speech writer in the shop i think is somebody who grew up in boston and has a connection here. and it's an important moment for the president to remind all of us that no terrorism stops this country. >> it's

our chief white house correspondent is jessica yellin. she joins us now from denver. so, jessica, what is the mood in denver? is everyone on board with the tighter gun control laws now? >> reporter: hi, don. no. not everyone. but polls show overwhelming support for background checks. but the law is facing some stiff resistance. gun rights groups are vowing to mount a challenge to the state democratic governor in the next election because of the new law that just passed. and at least a dozen colorado sheriffs say that they might not enforce the new gun safety laws in their counties. they're arguing that the law might violate the constitution. the law, as you point out, not only requires universal background checks for all gun purchases, it requires the buyer to pay for their own background checks and limits to ammunition to 15 rounds. here is what one sheriff who opposes the law says about it. >> the president and the vice president made their presence very well known throughout this, between them and mayor bloomberg. there is a feeling by a lot of coloradans that a lo

yellin, for that. jessica, in listening to the president today, he used the word that was conspicuously absent the first time. >> reporter: hi, brooke, he did. that is because some 20 hours after the attack, he was much more confident with all the facts that this was, in fact, a terrorist organization. he spoke originally yesterday, just three hours after the act, and the president speaking from the white house clearly did not want to get ahead of the facts that they were learning here. so a different posture they're taking today. i will tell you the president is sticking to his planned schedule here, effectively signaling to the nation that while everybody is pausing to recognize this great tragedy, the nation isn't stopping because of it. the president will have an event honoring last year's nascar champion, coming up in less than an hour, actually, less than half an hour, here at the white house. and i would expect he will address the boston tragedy in his remarks. nothing substantial, not a briefin

jessica yellin, chief white house correspondent, thank you. >>> coming up, the president of rutgers is right now holding a town hall, days after the uproar over the video from the basketball coach abusing players. we know that coach is out, the assistant is out, we know the athletic director is out. let me tell you this, this president just got an earful. you'll see what happened. >>> plus, a former boxer has a rap sheet you wouldn't believe. now there are concerns that this man could be linked to murders across america. welcnew york state, where cutting taxes for families and businesses is our business. we've reduced taxes and lowered costs to save businesses more than two billion dollars to grow jobs, cut middle class income taxes to the lowest rate in sixty years, and we're creating tax free zones for business startups. the new new york is working creating tens of thousands of new businesses, and we're just getting started. to grow or start your business visit thenewny.com >>> the fallout from that disturbing video showing the rutgers head basketball coach berating his players in pr

i'm here to talk about it with jessica yellin, nancy cook from the national journey and jim from "the washington post". jessica. here's the big question. >> read it. >> i know. because you took the evelyn wood speed reading course. the aarp and progressive groups are mad about the changes, the adjustments, the cuts to social security in here. president obama has talked in the past he wants to be somebody who responsibly deals with the entitlement or social welfare programs but he's also talked how this is not his idea, it's a compromise a figure leaf to republicans, an olive branch. does he want to cut social security or not? >> you know, i think he does in a way, this is who he has been all along. i think he rather find other ways to cut the deficit, but he is a person who campaigned on deficit cutting. and a lot of progressives didn't hear it. they didn't want to hear it or believe it. in 2008 he talked about it. his first month in the white house in 2009 he held a fiscally responsible summit. he said and he was deficit trimmer. does he want to change social security idea deally? >>

jessica yellin, you were there. you asked an important question of boston. the president said he supports the director of national intelligence who wants to have a full review of what happened and didn't happen to make sure important lessons are addressed. he did go after senator graham. he said mr. graham is not right on this issue. the president did not back off at all when he defended the fbi and the entire investigation. >> you're right. the president was unwaivering in his support of fbi and the jttf. he has maintained that they've done -- the information sharing has been excellent and that there are some things, some times, when you just can't catch a terrorist act before it happens. so he sort of repeated a thing we've heard from him before suggesting that he didn't say it quite explicitly, that senator graham is pushing this issue too hard. we heard it after senator graham attacked him over the benghazi incident. senator graham is up for reelection. perhaps there's a political back and forth over this issue is the intimation there. more broadly the p

i want to bring in chief white house correspondent jessica yellin at the white house and chief congressional correspondent dana bash on capitol hill. jessica, let's start with you. what is the white house telling us about this letter to president obama? i know it didn't actually arrive at the white house, but what do we know about the substance in this letter? >> jake, well, we know first of all that they are -- the fbi and the secret service are continuing to investigate and conducting further tests on this letter. they say that they had protocol set up for exactly this kind of incident and this is the exact standard incident that they, you know, protocol they set up after 9/11. the letter contained a message that was parallel to the same message that was in a letter sent to senator wicker. it said, quote, i am -- it said to see a wrong and not expose it is to become a silent partner to its continuance. i am k.c. and i approve this message which is allegedly a comment on health care and providing care in general and so it could provide something of a lead for investigators. they believe the

yellin joins us now. she's our chief white house correspondent. and jessica, in the back and forth with the president today, heard you press the president on some of the criticism he's been getting mostly concerning intelligence sharing before the attack here in boston, just boylston. if you would, walk me through that exchange. >> reporter: sure brooke. the president effectively defended law enforcement's actions leading up to the boston attack and then forcefully defended them after the attack. he effectively accuseded critics who say intelligence was missed because of bad signals or bad sharing. he accused them of playing politics. listen to a little bit of the exchange if you the arm s servic committeei and boston are both examples of the u.s. going backwards on national security. is he right? and did our intelligence miss something? >> no. mr. graham is not right on this issue. although i'm sure it have one individual deceased, one in custody, charges have been brought. i think that all our law enfor

. >> jessica yellin joins us now. she's our chief white house correspondent. and jessica, in the back and forth with the president today, heard you press the president on some of the criticism he's been getting mostly concerning intelligence sharing before the attack here in boston, just up the street on boylston. if you would, walk me through that exchange. >> reporter: sure, brooke. the president effectively defended law enforcement's actions leading up to the boston attack and then forcefully defended them after the attack. he effectively accuseded critics who say intelligence was missed, because of bad signals or bad sharing. he accused them of playing politics. listen to a little bit of the exchange if you would. >> -- member of the armed services committee has said that benghazi and boston are both examples of the u.s. going backwards on national security. is he right? and did our intelligence miss something? >> no. mr. graham is not right on this issue. although i'm sure it generated some headlines. we now have one individual deceased, one in custody, c

meanwhile, let's bring in jessica yellin on the scene for us in denver. are we getting any indication of what the president has to say? >> wolf, we are. he is going to highlight the tough new gun safety laws. and he'll make the case, according to sources in a state like colorado that has a long frontiered twra digs of gun owner ship can pass the laws, then so can congress. colorado passed the new laws last month that show universal background checks. they make gun owners pay for the cost of the background checks and limit magazine clips to 15 rounds. and the president is due out here any minute. i think he's still in that meeting with law enforcement officials and the families of victims. >> what kind of response have we seen in colorado with new laws as far as guns are concerned? >> well, not everyone is a fun of the new laws. some of colorado's sheriffs have already warned they're not going to enforce them. some are saying they're still weighing if they're going to let the laws stand in their counties. listen to what one sheriff had to say. >> the presi

official telling cnn's jessica yellin about the ongoing investigation that there is no hard evidence of accomplices. there is no known evidence to extremists. they're still not certain what radicalized them. additionally investigators determined that the pressure cookers used in the attack came from the department store macy's. the official says investigators did that because too many people in the public were falsely accusing the wrong people of being the bombers. and investigators believe the older bomber who did the car jacking and the younger brother was nearby and then they picked him up. let's dig deeper with peter bergen. jou juliet kayyem joins us here. what have you learned about the elder brother's travels to russia last year? do we really have a complete time line of where he was and when at this point? >> anderson really it's six months that are unaccounted for. he did come here. he stayed with neighbors and people in local stores where he lived report seeing him. his family is very much in denial about his vomit and the local community doesn't want to open up about where

a news official tells cnn's jessica yellin there is no hard evidence the tsarnaev brothers had any accomplices or any connections to extremists. there is another new development this morning. a delegation from the u.s. embassy in moscow is in dagestan this morning attempting to interview the parents off tamerlan and dzhokhar tsarnaev with cooperation from the russian government. >> reporter: good morning. it is a historic moment for boylston street over at the corner of boylston and dartmouth. they're just getting the streets reopened here. a little confusion about how this is rolling out this morning, but as the day gets going, you're going to see a lot more people on the street. we just shot some very sensitive video. folks are very, very sensitive about opening this street, even running live shots down boylston street? the video shows them repairing one of the sites of the bombings. they're replacing the bricks and the cement. they're replacing windows blasted out. there is now a boston strong message. all of this as we are learning more about the plot and the aftermath. new pictures of the

white house correspondent jessica yellin is there. jessica, so the house has already approved paul ryan's budget. he's the chairman of the house budget committee, the senate has approved patty murray's budget, very different budget. she's the chair of the senate budget committee. now the president's weighing in with his own budget. what happens now? >> these are effectively negotiating positions, wolf. and what the president has done today is laid out what he considers a compromised position to try to restart debt talks with republicans. the headlines out of this budget are that he's proposing reforms to social security and medicare. big thing from a democratic president to do, not well-received by some progressive groups in the president's own party. but even republicans say it's not enough. so he's managed to -- with the budget anger both folks on the left without winning over people on the right. a bit of a challenge in understanding where this will go next. he's also proposed replacing the sequester cuts, those across the board sp

this from our chief white house correspondent jessica yellin, the white house saying that the president will say the nation has an obligation to the children lost in newtown and the other victims of gun violence to act on these proposals. that's basically what the president is going to be doing in connecticut, just as he did in colorado last week, another state that just passed some very tough gun control legislation. he's basically going to be touting these new laws in the state and kind of putting the onus back on congress to get something done. as you mentioned, as early as this week, as early as this week, a democratic bill could start work in the full senate. this bill, of course, don, has background checks, universal background checks is part of what have this bill has. take a look at this. this is interesting. all the polls we've seen, including this win from quinnipiac university, the most recent, shows nine in ten americans shows the background checks for all gun buyers, and that's across party lines, democrats, independents and even republicans. so why such a tough time? why w

this from our chief white house correspondent jessica yellin, and the president will say the nation has an obligation to the children lost in newtown and the other victims of gun violence to act on these proposals. that's basically what the president is going to be doing in connecticut, just as he did in colorado last week, another state that just passed some very tough gun control legislation. he's basically going to be touting these new laws in the state and kind of putting the onus back on congress to get something done. as you mentioned, as early as this week, as early as this week, a democratic bill could start work in the full senate. this bill, of course, don, has background checks, universal background checks is part of what have this bill has. take a look at this. this is interesting. all the polls we've seen, including this win from quinnipiac university, the most recent, shows nine in ten americans shows the background checks for all gun buyers, and that's across party lines, democrats, independents and even republicans. so why such a tough time? why will this bill maybe not

. >> jessica yellin is at the white house. the one thing we did not hear from the president was the word "terror." but this seems to be a terror event. what is the white house telling you why he chose not to say that formally? >> the president is being careful. i've been in touch with officials throughout the night. it's their position that what happened in boston is an act of terror. but they don't yet know who carried out the attack and an investigation will have to determine whether it was planned and carried out by a terrorist group, foreign or domestic. now, clearly given that phrasing, the president avoided the word terror out of an abundance of caution and avoiding a rush to judgment or anything that could taint this investigation at its earliest stages. as you know, this is at its earliest stages. the president has directed his attorney general to make the full resources of the department of justice available. the fbi is taking the lead on this investigation, but the atf is helping as well, along with the department of

yellin our white house correspondent is standing by with that. set the scene and the key issue is this. if 80% or 90% of the american people according to all the most recent public opinion polls want more background checks, why can't the senate approve it? i assume the president is going to get into that. >> reporter: that's right. i imagine that is exactly what the president will say when he comes out here. his press secretary made that point today. he called this a 90% issue. alluding to the fact that some polls have shown as much as 90% of the american public supports expanding background checks and then asked why can't the senate then pass this? i'm told the president when he comes out here and he is scheduled to be here in as little as one minute from now although i suspect it'll take longer than that, he will be joined by some of the families of newtown victims, families who were up on capitol hill today when this amendment was defeated up there with vice president biden so he will be joined by the victims' families no doubt making his rema

jessica yellin as well. we have no idea whether this has any connection or just a coincidence that is happening around the same time as the boston incident. we have no idea when those letters were actually mailed from memphis, tennessee, again. i think it is always important in this kind of a situation to acknowledge what we don't know as well as the information we do know. we'll take a short break. you're coverage here live in boston continues in just a moment. isyou've known?erson we gave people a sticker and had them show us. we learned a lot of us have known someone who's lived well into their 90s. and that's a great thing. but even though we're living longer, one thing that hasn't changed: the official retirement age. ♪ the question is how do you make sure you have the money you need to enjoy all of these years. ♪ to your table for a limited time! it's our seafood dinner for two for just 25 dollars! a handcrafted seafood feast made to share. first you each get salad and unlimited cheddar bay biscuit

let's go to jessica yellin who is standing by at the white house. jessica? >> reporter: anderson, this is an opportunity for the president to come out here and cheer on boston. thank the police there, honor the victims, and remind the nation that america doesn't stop for terrorism. president obama watched all of this unfold and the capture go down live on television in the white house as the rest of the nation did. as soon as he learned that the capture was happening, he went across the coloinated, over to the oval office and sat there with staff where he got a call from fbi director muller who officially notified him that it was true, the suspect was captured alive. then the president decided to come out here. he decided he'd wait until boston investigators announced it to the nation themselves. now he will tell us in his own word, no doubt reminding everybody that this investigation doesn't end here. there is much more work to be done. this is a moment for a lot of recognition for the people there in boston. anderson? >> it absolutely is. and as you say, o

jessica yellin is one of the white house correspondents. she's there. jessica, there was some criticism that 90% of the american people wanted more robust background checks for gun purchases. it failed in the senate. there's been some criticism saying why can't this president really twist arms the way lbj used to do it when the overwhelming majority of the american people want it according to all the public opinion polls. i know it is something white house officials have been concerned about, the criticism that he's not tough enough with members of congress. >> reporter: his second term agenda is very up in the air and depends on his relationships with congress. he's not the arm twisting kind of president. we all know that very well now. i would point out if you do the math from the 20th of january, today does mark the 100th day of his second term. we could say he's having this press conference because it is the first hundred days. of cour >> of course not. they would never do anything like that. a hundred days, that's a good point. maybe he'll mention

jessica yellin says kennedy is being vetted for the post. excuse me, i have to cough. so sorry. okay. i'm back. pope francis, let's talk about him celebrating his first easter mass before thousands this st. peter's square. among them, a physically disabled boy who the pope kissed after the boy was passed through the crowd. observers noted francis' interaction with the crowd and how it was a departure from his predecessor. the pope called for an end to conflicts in several parts of the world. >> translator: peace in iraq, that every act of violence may end. and above all, for dear syria, for its people torn by conflict and it for the many refugees who a wait help and comfort. >> the easter mass marked the end to holy week during which pope francis washed the feet of a dozen youths at a detention center. >>> our talk back question, is it racist t celebrate confederate war symbols? your responses next. acceler-rental. at a hertz expressrent kiosk, you can rent a car without a reservation... and without a line. now that's a fast car. it's just another way you'll be traveling at the