thousands of migrants marching toward america's already strained southern border while white house officials meet with mexico's leaders.

some city mayors are taking a stand against efforts to bus migrants north the victory for donald trump in background michigan how it sets up a looming fight in the nation's court. holiday deals might cost you more than you realize. the nbc news exclusive report revealing how modern slavery is fueling the fashion industry comedy fans honor tom smothers, the irreverent half of the smothers brothers comedy team and a lost family treasure found inside the wall of a historic movie house join us on the mission to return the forgotten time capsule it is thursday, december 28 and "early today" starts right now good morning, and thanks so much for joining us, i'm jessica layton with cities across the country desperate for solutions to handle the mass influx of asylum seekers right now, this morning new york has a new plan.

new york city will start requiring charter buses transporting migrants to give a 32-hour advance notice before arriving mayor eric adams announcing new executive order at a meeting of blue city mayors all struggling with migrants being bussed in from southern states >> to make sure we have sufficient staffing, we are also requiring that these charter buses arrive only between 8:30 a.m. and 12:p.m monday through friday and to only drop off passengers at one spot unless directed otherwise by new york city emergency management >> migration is also on the aigsd at a top-level meeting in mexico city. alice barr has more. >> reporter: a clear illustration of the swelling numbers of migrants at the u.s. southern border, an estimated 8,000 men, women and children slowly moving north through mexico in the largest caravan in

more than a year it comes the u.she u.s. secretae of state are meeting, looking for solutions to what the state department calls unprecedented, ir-rell m irregular migration. as lawmakers on capitol hill struggle to make a deal on tightening immigration policy and boosting border security, the biden administration is hoping mexico can do more to beef up its southern border. the migrants in that new caravan are starting from southern mexico after making the trip from central america, venezuela, cuba and other countries, fleeing harsh conditions and seeking' seeking asylum in the u.s. republicans are pushing for restrictions on asylum claims as customs and border protection have been overwhelmed. crossings are down from record

highs last week when more than 12,000 migrants a day were crossing the border illegally. >> we're being overrun president biden has abandoned the border patrol. >> reporter: a potent political problem for president biden heading into a reelection year and a humanitarian crisis for thousands at the border. in washington, alice barr, nbc news in israel, more than 80 days into the war, there is increasing concern that a new front will open in the country's north. yesterday, hezbollah lebanon fired 30 rockets into an israeli border town. on x, an israeli government spokesperson threatened to forcefully drive the militant group away from the border and this comes as the war in gaza grinds on with absolutely no end in sight. here's josh letterman. >> reporter: we start our journey at the crossing, the

border checkpoint ransacked by hamas on october p 7 now in shambles the sounds of gunfire ricochet across the desert. as we pass a wasteland of mangled steel and concrete blocks the gazans call them mosquitos, and they are a daily reminder that everyone is being watched >> reporter: the israeli military has brought us here to show evidence of what it says is evidence of how hamas has burrowed itself. i'm about 5'8" it's probably about 10 feet tall nbc news can't verify what this tunnel was used for or when. but israel is under increasing pressure to prove its allegations about hamas especially after the deadly onslaught at gaza's largest hospital last month.

anal analyses raised questions. is this an effort to justify incredible numbers of palestinian deaths >> i think this is an effort to justify the fact that we have no choice but to be in gaza fighting hamas and that those civilians were condemned the moment that hamas built these tunnels underneath them. >> reporter: the war fueling tensions across the region an attack drone launched against u.s. forces in iraq. and yet more airstrikes in khan yunis, gaza's second-largest city josh letterman, nbc news, the gaza strip now to a legal strvictory f the trump campaign the michigan supreme court has rejected a case to remove the former president from the ballot just last week, colorado took him off their ballot saying he was ineligible for his actions on the insurrection on the

capitol. trump's own legal team has already said it intends on filing an appeal just over a year after narrowly winning reelection, congresswoman lauren boebert is jumping to the other side of her state. the colorado republican announcing wednesday that she'd be running for the state's fourth congressional district next year instead of her current seat in the third. ken buck, who retches colorado's fo fo represents colorado's fourth announced his retirement this morning, federal investigators are trying to figure out what caused a deadly helicopter crash in miami. fire rescue crews pulled two people from the water after that chopper plunged into the canal authorities say both patients were taken to the hospital one man was later pronounced dead the other person is expected to

be okay. we're learning new details this morning about a life-saving discovery in indiana two men were just looking for a good place to fish, and they spotted a driver who had crashed and was penned under a bridge for six days our chicago station has more on the rescue >> reporter: it was supposed to be just another fishing trip for mario garcia and his son-in-law the day after christmas. it turned out to and christmas miracle, when they discovered a truck that had crashed and found a body inside. >> i went to touch it, and he turned around. and i just, it almost killed me there, because it was kind of shocking, but he was alive, and he was very happy to see us. >> reporter: the male victim from south bend told them he had crashed the truck around i-94 last weekend he couldn't reach his cell phone for help >> he tried yelling and screaming. but nobody could hear him. >> reporter: the rescue proved to be difficult but eventually first responders were able to free the man believed to be in

his late 20s he was taken by helicopter to a south bend hospital with life-threatening injuries. >> our first priority is getting him help, getting limhim to a hospital to be treated right now we don't know. >> reporter: while they don't want to be called heroes these good samaritans shudder at what could have happened if their curiosity hadn't been piqued >> our thanks for that report. now to the winter storm still wreaking havoc for travelers across the great plains. the snow knocked out power to 20,000 people across nebraska while parts of colorado saw more than a foot of snow. dense fog coated new york city visibility was down to a quarter mile or less let's take a look at the map the soggy system that drenched part of the mid atlantic will continue to soak parts of new

england today. heavy rain is tapering off for places like washington, d.c., philadelphia and new york this morning. but boston will have heavy downpours throughout the afternoon. a messy winter storm we've been tracking all week will continue it weaken as it slowly moves south and east today it will bring a mix of light rain, snow and ice through illinois and missouri today. other areas expecting to see rain are florida and the west coast. a parade of pacific storms is set to bring rain, wind an moving west, boise, chilly at h 42 "early today" is back in a minute with the very real cost of fashion and turning back the clock

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or call 1-800-4pd-info. as the biggest shopping season of the year continues, not all bargains are the same. we learn how you can think twice when picking out your deals. here's richard lui >> reporter: deals are at your fingertips >> prices have been falling. >> reporter: stores are still tryi trying to woo consumers. these jeans, shirts and jackets, stylish, but some may be products of modern day slavery says the united nations, including some brands we've all come to know people forced to make garments to pay off unjust debts. products available in almost avenue state in america. online, too. fast fashion getting too fast. >> at the holiday season

especially we don't necessarily know where those clothes are coming from. >> reporter: former u.s. ambassador for anti-slavery. >> there's this thing called death bondage. u.s. is not immune we used to call it share cropping >> reporter: paying interest debt their debts with a share of the crop human trafficking survivor elijah describes the conditions he experienced >> there were dozens of boys and men packed like sardines, and to disobey meant severe punishment. days, sometimes weeks of fasting. or worse beaten till bones were broken. >> reporter: forced labor stories like elijah's are alive and well one study found migrant worker also to pay prohibitive recruiting fees to get their

job. pay back taking months or years in unsafe working conditions nbc news has not independently verified the conditions in mauritius. >> one worker estimated that he owed over $11,000. >> reporter: the equivalent of almost five years of wages says skinner. >> it's a devil's choice something they feel they have to do in order to improve their lives in order to improve their families' lives. >> reporter: when shown the investigation's results, some brands did nothing to help the workers. but then there are the other companies. >> pvh, barber, second clothing. those, those brands that stood up and made the hard choices to spend money, to do the right thing, to reimburse workers that wanted these factories >> reporter: while publicly not admitting all the findings, 11

did something, says skinner. for pvh, owner of tommy hilfiger, calvin klein and others, they decided to help workers by reimbursing them some h $400,000 in total. >> they need to be applauded rewarded >> see the person behind it. there is not one piece of clothing that anyof u of us wea that is wholly made by robots. >> reporter: a mix of buyer beware and buyers learning to care richard lui, nbc news, new york. still to many come, a tribuo tom smothers how he pushed the boundaries are being funny on tv. ing funny on . e to leave the couch. oof! being funny on tv. e being funny on tv. being funny on tv. o being funny on tv. f being funny on tv. on tv. f being funny on tv. ash. it's comeback season. ♪oh♪

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♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ color purple keeps raking in that green, just one day after scoring one of the highest christmas day openings in history, the musical adaptatio n took in $7.1 million on tuesda alone. comedy fans are remembering one half of an iconic duo. tom smothers has died at the age of 86 after a battle with cancer mourners left flowers on his star on the hollywood walk of fame in the '60s, the smothers brothers became the bad boys of tv >> my singing right now. >> no. >> how do you know >> because i -- >> reporter: tommy smothers made us laugh, first, that look on his face while listening to brother dick, then what came next >> mom always liked you best

>> reporter: in 1967, the smothers brothers got their own variety show >> we do everything as a unit. >> we do not just because we're brothers we don't do everything as a unit. >> listen, listen, you couldn't touch my wife with a ten foot pole >> that's right. >> mm-hm >> i'd use an 11-foot pole. >> reporter: they made clear their opposition to the vietnam war. >> if you ever get a war without blood and gore, i'll be the first to go. >> reporter: the show was a hit, but the network was not amused ♪ i guess it was something that we said ♪ >> reporter: after multiple run-ins with network censors, the smothers brothers comedy hour was canceled in 1970. >> we think it's a very, very grave thing when any network can take off a show that is reflecting these, maybe unpopular views.

>> reporter: the duo continued to perform for decades of tom, his brother dick said this in a statement. our relationship was like a good marriage the longer we were together, the more we loved and respected each other. we were truly blessed. harry smith, nbc news. when we come back, apple watches are back on the market and later, prisoner 24601 facing another run-in with the law. why hugh jackman's holiday cheer put him on our naughty list. chr put him on our naughty list. ma, ma, ma— ( clears throat )

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we're back with what you need to know "early today. apple can temporarily resume the sale of its smart watches after a victory in a u.s. appeals court sales of the watch were halted after a dispute john hall has moved on

pierce brosnan is due in court after allegedly walking off trails in yellowstone park and hugh jackman is on the naughty list after getting a little too close to our iconic tree he wrote on social media i did get in trouble for going beyond the barrier. but the security guard was nice and let me go with just a warning. we'll be right back. wain wel right back. mr. clean magic eraser powers through tough messes. so it makes it look like i spent hours cleaning, and you know i didn't. it makes my running shoe look like new! it's amazing. it's so good. it makes it look like i have magical powers. magic eraser and sheets make cleaning look easy. the all-in-one and done symptom relief of mucinex is delivered fast with doordash,

so you don't have to leave the couch. oof! that was fast. mucinex. available on doordash. it's comeback season. sometimes your work shirt needs to be for more than just work. like when it needs to be a big soft shoulder to cry on. which is why downy does more to make clothes softer, fresher, and better. downy. breathe life into your laundry. for decades, an atlanta movie theater has shown some of hollywood's biggest blockbusters, but none quite like the mystery discovered within its very own walls. tom llamas has the story

>> reporter: atlanta's plaza theater is a historical gem dating back to 1939. and knew, now for two families the center of a plot twist during a recent renovation, workers found something special hidden behind a bathroom wall. >> they came across this wallet, and it was covered in plastic, kind of buried in the far, far corner >> reporter: it was a ball et. awallet and inside, a glimpse of the past. even a library card and an i.d. with the name mrs. roy cull breath but who was that christopher's wife nicole set out to solve the mystery >> i searched out roy cull breath and found his obituary.

>> reporter: she trailced the ne and got in touch with mrs. cull breath's family. >> just over the moon. >> reporter: the families eventually met >> oh, my goodness, look >> reporter: that's thea chamberlain, the little girl whose photo was inside that wallet >> it was truly a glimpse of her in a little bit of a small capsule in her wallet. >> reporter: nthea says the wallet they'll treasure forever. >> our thanks to tom for sharing that story if you're getting ready to take down a real christmas tree t could find a new purpose on a farm in connecticut old trees become a healthy snack for these alpacas. it's not only good for the environment but good for the animals' digestive systems the alpacas get really excited

when they know it's time for the trees to come in it also time for times square to sparkle even more. we're getting our first look at the new design of the ball it feature as bow tie design when you look from above, you see a crossroads of the world. fan you look close, it really does look like a bow tie thanks so much for watching "early today." i'm jessica layton we hope you have a great thursday we'll see you back here bright and early tomorrow morning rly t.

is right now at 5:00, tracking dangerous surf. you can see a live shot from pacifica where the waves are expected to be massive. our team is tracking it