a disappointing december leaves retailers sweating it out and slashing prices with last minute deals to reel in shoppers and why this shopping season could make or break some retailers. from last minute shopping to last minute traveling. millions taking to the airports and highways today but will the weather wreak havoc on anyone's christmas plans? indra petersons is tracking the very latest this morning. breaking overnight. mission accomplished. edward snowden declaring victory in his first in-person interview in sharing surveillance secrets with the world.

good morning to you. welcome to "early start." i'm pamela brown. >> i'm miguel marquez. i'm a little more sure that of this morning. i'm having coffee and able to overcome it. 5:00 a.m. out here. how did that ever happen? we talk about our december pastime and i'm talking about shopping. one shopping day left until christmas and i think that is today. people get the sales this season have not been all of that fantastic. here to sort it all out for us is cnn's alison kosik. what is going on? >> it's kind of surprising when you go to the mall around this time of the year and it's packed and can't find a parking spot but retailers have other views. new numbers coming out showing this year has been disappointing for those retailers. sales at u.s. stores have been down each of the first three weeks of december compared with last year. that is according to shopper track, the company which gathers

all of the data at some 40,000 locations across the country. from december 2nd to the 8th, they were down 0.8% from the 9th to the 15th, sales down 2.9% and from december 16th to the 23rd, sales were down 3.1%. but all is not lost. november sales were strong. an initial momentum going on and this season is estimated to be up 2% from last year. the reason december and november sales figures are so important is u.s. retailers generate 40% of their annual revenue in these last two months of the year. the news isn't much better when it comes to online sales this holiday season which haven't measured up to expectations. between november 1st and december 15th, experts predicted internet sales would be up 14% but they only raised 9%. final figures are due in january. the retailers are going nuts

today sending out massive e-mails. sale, sale, free shipping. that is why that is happening. >> a last-minute push there. >> yes. christmas hours away, retailers are pulling out all of the stops. the silver lining for all of us procrastinators like me. sales could be as much as 70% off and that is just the way last-minute shoppers like it. >> i think that the best deals are right now. and maybe right after christmas. i don't go shopping right after christmas. i do all of my shopping right before. i was telling my cousin that there is no point in buying things that are full priced because almost everything is on sale. >> but you get a little stressed. i felt the stress yesterday at the mall. >> mall stress? >> mall stress. >> it's serious. one of the nation's biggest retailers target is still reeling from the data security breach that saw the theft of the debit card and credit card information for 40 million customers. target says the government is now investigating and people are lining up to sue the big box retailer. 15 lawsuits have already been

filed since disclosing the breach. shares of target have dropped almost 3%. if you do the numbers at home that amounts to about a billion dollars in market revenue. i'm also hearing that not as many people are shopping to target and kind of spooked by this. >> could couldn't come at a worst time for target. >> but they gave 10% over the weekend and i took part in that too! >> you're taking advantage. smart. >> perfect. >> the bottom line seems like customers have the edge, shoppers have the edge this holiday season? >> especially if they waited until the last minute as you heard that woman said. the proof is in the e-mails you're getting if you subscribe to all of these retailers as i do, you see just that last push and that is their really last push to meet their bottom line. >> get the inventory off the shelves. >> i'm a buyer's market. we know what the holiday shopping is like, time to know about the weather for the

last-minute holiday travelers. >> it has to be good, right? >> we hope so. better than it has been. >> if it's not good, do you know who is in trouble? >> you, right? >> is that what you're angling for, right? >> that's right. >> that's what i thought. let's take a look outside and see what is going on. the system we have been watching the last several days is making its way offshore and we are continuing to watch right now is the next system kind of making its way farther down to the south kind of going across the dakotas and going into the lakes today so that will be the clipper that we are going to be watching for. let's take a look at the radar right now. you can see this. a hint of a dusting here right around the lakes. we talk about so there is a chance. maybe in new york city. maybe a little bit of a flurry could be seen overnight tonight but most likely we are talking about lake-effect snow south of buffalo. the next story is going to be what is farther out there? we are going to be watching as that system or clipper makes its way across for several inches of snow so notice right across the dakotas and minnesota we talked about this yesterday around the lakes and as far as michigan we

have better chances for a couple of inches out there and in through iowa. there is the timing as we go in through overnight in through tomorrow. not a big system and shouldn't be a travel woe but maybe enough to make a white christmas for someone. a plus side and temperatures are down. at least it's not hot on christmas because i know that from california. i think you know that pretty well, miguel. people feel festive when it's hot so nice and cold. >> unless you're at the mall when they have fake snow. i love fake snow! indra petersons, thank you. >> thank you, indra. u.s. military officials say 150 marines are prepared to enter south sudan to help evacuate embassies and escalating violence in the country has an all-out civil war. four navy s.e.a.l.s were wounded when their helicopter was hit by gunfire as they tried to evacuate americans. the obama administration easing off a deadline to strike

an afghan security deal by december 31st. karzai has delayed signing that agreement which would keep a small american force there beyond 2013. those threats have so far done little to force karzai's hand. there is a new obamacare deadline. americans have until midnight tonight to sign up for health insurance coverage that begins january 1st. the white house says the one day extension is because of delays caused by record high traffic on the healthcare.gov on monday. here is more from athena jones. >> reporter: across the country millions of americans got an extra 24 hours to sign up for health insurance coverage on january 1st. the cutoff had been monday but the official extended that deadline until christmas eve for more time to pick a plan for

people. the president signed up for an individual bronze plan on wsh washington, d.c. exchange over the weekend. he didn't sign himself up. instead a staff member did because of the complicated nature of the president's case. >> one of the core functions of the website is confirm your identity. the way they do that is you submit your personal information and they check that personal information against a variety of government databases to make you are who you are. the president has a rather unique case. >> reporter: the president gets health coverage through the military so this sign-up was a symbolic show of support for the exchanges. the white house says the president monthly premium will be less than 400. despite the change to the deadline health officials say monday was a record day for healthcare.gov with a million people signing on to the site, that's in addition to the 1.2 million people who visited the website over the weekend.

>> athena, thank you. edward snowden says his mission is already published. in an interview with "the washington post" the former nsa contractor who was granted trae temporary asylum in russia. he leaked documents to the post and the guardian newspaper in britain outstanding the spy agency's collection of bulk phone records. in the interview snowden say what the government wants is something they haven't had before. they want total awareness and added is that something we should be allowing? we are couple of hours away from a christmas walk on the international space station. the cooling system is being repaired. two astronauts began work over the weekend and a second space walk was scheduled for monday

but nasa pushed it back for a days because of the one of the problems with the astronaut's space suits. >> did you see the video over the weekend? >> incredible. >> whether you're a space nut or what. >> just a nerd. >> i am too. it's all good. >> it's amazing to watch. >> it is. coming up here on "early start," anticipation growing at the vatican as pope francis gets ready to celebrate his first christmas as leader of the roman catholic church. we are live with that story. we are hearing the terrifying moments at a hospital campus when a gunman stormed in and opened fire. that story after the break. [ male announcer ] they are a glowing example of what it means to be the best. and at this special time of year, they shine even brighter. come to the winter event and get the mercedes-benz you've always wished for, now for an exceptional price. [ santa ] ho, ho, ho, ho! [ male announcer ] lease the 2014 e350 for $579 a month

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start a tax-free business at startup-ny.com. welcome back. excitement is building at the vatican as pope francis prepares to celebrate his first christmas as leader of the roman catholic church. on christmas eve, francis visited his predecessor at his vatican home to exchange christmas greetings. cnn's erin mclaughlin is live for us in st. peters square. how goes it? hello there. >> reporter: good morning, miguel. it's an absolutely beautiful day here at the vatican. there is a sense of excitement. thousands of pilgrims are in rome to celebrate and they say it's extra special, not just because it's christmas eve, but this is francis' first christmas as pope. take a listen to what they had to say.

>> it's amazing to be here and to be part of the party, the energy. we all love the pope. i think he brings people to the city and to the vatican. >> it's the center of our faith and we are all very close to this pope because is a people's pope. for myself and my children it's a great honor. >> it's so different than being in the states where it's so overcommercialized and here, back to the simpleness, the real meaning of celebrating christmas. >> reporter: the pope's celebrations began on saturday with a message to the governing body of the roman catholic church. he told them that he wants them to focus on service and to cut back on gossip and then he led by example spending three hours at a local hospital visiting with sick children and their doctors. now yesterday, history was made. the two popes met for the first time at christmas.

they exchanged christmas greetings. francis met with benedict for a total of 45 minutes and tonight, the big event is the mass here at st. peters basilica led for the first time by pope francis. there were a record number of requests to attend. those who weren't able to get tickets can come here to vatican square to watch the celebrations on the big screen. then tomorrow, of course, is pope's christmas message to the world, so that is the official schedule of events but vatican insiders tell me with this hope, we need to expect the unexpected so we will have to wait and see what other surprises the pope may have in store. >> i was going to say with this pope, i'm sure there will be more surprises. very interesting that his message was cut down on the rumors because that is, obviously, a big issue for the church. we just want to send our condolences to you for having to be in such a beautiful place for christmas. have a lovely christmas in rome.

lesbian couples in utah are supporting after a federal judge confused a state's request for a stay that made same-sex marriage legal in the state. it led to them tying the knot there and some calling it a christmas they will never forget. >> i never thought i would see this in my lifetime. i'm so happy to have the protection of the state to protect our relationship. >> thrilled that the judge decided to notch a rule on the stay and allow marriages to continue because it's a great day. so many people here and so sad to have people be denied so it's wonderful. >> this is really, really a wonderful christmas present. some 700 marriage licenses have already been i should to same-sex couples in utah since the initial ruling last friday which struck down the amendment

defining traditional marriage. a ruling by a federal judge applies only to death certificates, if you're legally married in one state another one cannot summarily take your license away. it's limited. the ruling could lead to more lawsuits challenging the ohio's ban. ohio's attorney general says they will appeal the judge's decision. a heart wrenching case of a california girl declared brain dead and her family who refuse to accept that diagnosis is back in court today. a judge ordered an independent physician to examine jahi mcmath. she was declared brain dead after surgery to remove her ton sills and adenoids in oakland. >> i feel like my daughter is on death row because i never know when they are going to pull the plug or make that decision.

>> this is obviously a tragic situation. a young lady has died and no one takes that in a callus or uncaring manager but she is dead. >> i can't imagine my daughter in the freezer on christmas. that is heart wrenching. >> that is tough to hear. the independent doctor is due back in court today to deliver the results of his examination of jahi. meanwhile, the court has extended a restraining order to prevent the hospital from making any moves until next monday. a settlement to create a hundred million dollar fund for victims of meningitis. the outbreak in 20 states was linked to the pharmacy's steroid injections blamed for 64 deaths and many ills. the owners deny any liability for wrongdoing but they say they want to play a major role for establishing a fund for those who have suffered or died.

a texas man wants his wife taken off life support but the hospital won't do it because she is pregnant. 33-year-old marlisemunoz is pregnant and the law says they can't pull the plug regardless of her wishes. >> we talked about it. we are both paramedics. we have seen things out in the field. we both knew that we didn't want to be on life support. >> we have a responsibility of making sure that we follow the laws whether they are state or federal when it comes to providing care to patients and that is what we are doing in this case. >> we have reached the point where, you know, you wish that your wife's body would stop. >> marlise is about 18 weeks pregnant and could be several more weeks before doctors could make a decision about taking the fetus out. we are hearing for the first

time 911 calls from a gunman who killed a doctor and wounded two other people before taking his own life. you can hear the fear in the voice of the female caller. >> did you see it happen or did you just hear it? >> we just heard it. >> he's coming? >> can you hide yourself? in case a shot is fired your way? >> police believe frazier was focused on the physicians at the office and we may not know the exact motive for the shooting. shifting our focus now. i can't get enough of these stories with reunions of soldiers coming home from combat. they never get old. a recent reunion in florida was one for the books. vazquez came home without telling his girlfriend of two

years. this past sunday, she went to a mall to watch a christmas show and was told she had won some gift cards. i bet you can guess where this is going. she went up to the stage where she got not one but two surprises of a lifetime. take a look. >> i didn't want to send a card. >> oh, god! oh, my god! >> the two will be able to spend the holiday together in a few months together as well. he is being deployed again in march. of course, we wish the happy couple well. >> that puts a smile our face. >> very sweet. the dallas cowboys could be in trouble. tony romo badly injured. could he be out for the season?

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welcome back. the last regular season game at candlestick parker, the san francisco 49ers went out in style with a wild win over the atlanta falcons. >> we love a wild win. >> we sure do. joe carter is here with more in the bleacher report. >> next season the 49ers are going to move to a brand-new 1.2 billion dollar stadium in santa

clara. so long candlestick park. thanks for the memories and a lot of them obviously. the 49ers have played at that iconic stadium since 1971. their opponent last night, the falcons, everyone knows have had a terrible season but they almost spoiled a party with 2:00 left in the game, the falcons went for the onside kick and they recovered it and put the falcons in position to tie or win but that is when matt ryan's pass went into the hands of navarro bowman who returns the interception 89 yards for the score. falcons give it up and the 49ers get the win. in the process, they also clenched a spot in the playoffs. how they are sided will be determined, obviously, on sunday. the big question swirling around the nfl right now will dallas cowboys quarterback tony romo start or is he too injured to play? i guess it depends on who you ask. reports yesterday ruled romo out for the rest of the season because of a back injury. but last night, cowboys owner

jerry jones said, it's just back spasms. head coach jason garrett says romo's status is day-to-day. that is pretty much code for "we're screwed." the cowboys face the eagles on sunday night. this is why this is important because the winner of that game will be headed to the playoffs as nfc champs. the loser will watch the postseason from the couch. talk a little boxing or form of boxing. a super fight does not look likely but mayweather is sending his best jabs through twitter to his rival. this is a christmas card. look closely. the champ offering 40 million fight and the next bottom left frame shows packyo knocked out. it's so popular it's been retweeted 21,000 times.

trending this morning on bleacherreport.com one of the more bizarre plays you'll see in the national hockey league. look closely. the puck is rammed in the air and into the hands of the goalie mike smith. it lands in his pants! mike smith has no idea where the puck went so he backs over the goal line and that is the game winning goal for the buffalo sabres! >> no! >> that's right. he gives up the game winner in his pants! get this, guys. this mishap is trending online. it's #buttgoal. >> i long had a butt goal! i don't know what that means. >> you know you're pucked when that happens. >> joe carter, thank you. the top headlines and everything, everything you need to know coming up after the

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na leader edward snowden on the record in his first in person interview since sharing the surveillance secret with the world. we are live with his shocking revelations. a dreary december for retailers. revenue falling as weary shoppers hold on to their wallets. the silver lining for last-minute shoppers right ahead. last-minute holiday travel in full force this morning after days of cancelled flights and ice covered highways. what can travelers expect today? indra petersons is tracking the latest conditions. i'm miguel marquez. >> i'm pamela brown, we think. >> barely awake. 1e minutes past the hour. >> great to have you along with us. merry christmas eve, everyone. >> to you too. merry christmas. mission accomplished already from nsa leaker and american fugitive edward snowden. it's snowden's first in-person

interview since being granted temporary asylum in russia. cnn's isa sorez is following those developments in london. >> the first interview he has since seeking asylum in moscow. he was interviewed by "the washington post" reporter who has received leaks from the former nsa contractor. the interview apparently took some two days and described as two days of unbroken conversation fueled by pizza, pasta, burgers, and ice cream. in that interview, he said, edward snowden says he has accomplished what he set out to do. these are his words. for me in terms of personal satisfaction, the mission is already accomplished. i already won. as soon as journalists were able to work everything that i've been trying to do was validated because, remember, i didn't want to change society.

i wanted to give society a chance to determine if it should change itself. he went on to say, miguel, i am not trying to bring down the nsa, i am working to improve the nsa. i'm still working for the nsa right now, he says. they are the only ones who don't realize it. now the interview also gave us some insight really to edward snowden. he was described as relaxed and animated. he described himself as a bit of a house cat who doesn't get out much. he never leaves his house, doesn't have a lot of needs. he lives off ramen moodlnoodles chips and he has access to the internet and journalists and two lawyers so very revealing first face-to-face interview that we have seen with edward snowden since he arrived in moscow. >> interesting stuff. sat down with 14 hours with bart gilman from the "the washington

post." i like the house cat and he just stays around. thank you. 150 marines on alert to enter south sudan if needed to secure the u.s. embassy there. 100 americans are believed to be in that country a country that appears to be on the brink of civil war. over the weekend four navy s.e.a.l.s were wounded when their aircraft was hit by ground fire as they tried to rescue americans there. u.s. official are stepping back from a hard deadline to strike a deal with afghanistan by the end of the year. they are trying to pressure hamid karzai so sign the deal which would keep a small american force in the country beyond 2014. threats to pull all u.s. troops after that date unless a deal is finalized soon have largely gone unheated. the white house has extended the obamacare website by a day.

you have until midnight tonight to sign up for coverage to start on january 1st. the president enrolled in one. he doesn't need it but with medical officials in the white house, 24/7 on call. >> i need a staffer to help me sign up. calling our procrastinators and you know who you are. one day -- >> less than that. >> less than one day for christmas shopping. no excuses. it's done. you have to get out there and to shop and help out this sluggish holiday season. our chief procrastinating correspondent is here, alison kosik. >> what better way to get great deals, right? wait until the last minute. retailers problems work in consumer's savers. this has been disappointing. you look at sales at u.s. stores, they have been down each of the first three weeks of december if you compare it to how last year did according to

shopper track. if you look, from december 2nd to the 8th, they were down 0.8%. from the 9th to the 15th, down 2.9%. from december 16th to the 23rd, sales were down 3.1%. all is not lost for the retailers. november sales were pretty strong. we saw good momentum there. sales are estimated to be up 2% from last year. the reason november and december sales figures are so important to retailers because that is when they generate 40% of their annual revenue the last two months of the year. so it's really, really important. you never know. the last push may do it for them. the news not better when it comes to online sales this holiday season which haven't measured up to expectations. november 1st to december 15th, experts predicted internet sales up 14% but they rose just 9%. they could still pick up and meet sppexpectations. the sales could do well if they

offer the free shipping offers sitting in my e-mailbox this morning. christmas hours away, retailers are pulling out all of the stops. a silver lining for last minute bargain hunters. you could find sales for as much as 70% off on some items. hey, that's just the way the procrastinators like it. >> i think that the best deals are right now. and maybe right after christmas. i don't go shopping right after christmas. i do all of my shopping right before. i was telling my cousin there is no point in buying things that are full price because almost everything is on sale. >> everything is on sale so you can scurry around like ants and find the bargains. target is still reeling from the data security breach that saw the theft of debit card and credit card information for 40 million customers. it says the government is now investigating and people are lining up to sue the big box retailer. there are 15 lawsuits that have been filed. since disclosing the breach, target shares have dropped almost 3% so if you're taking score, that amounts to about a

billion dollars in market value. the target mishap scaring away a lot of customers but not me. >> you took advantage of that 10% over the weekend? >> i did. it may go up in the final hours before everybody closes up shop. >> you only have a few hours left. >> that's right. >> i will be one of those last-minute shoppers. >> always open as i discovered. >> that's true. you'll be one of the little ants running around. >> amazon has the next day service and ebay. >> zappos last night also. >> now get out there and shop! thank you so much. >> apparently the lines are forming outside some of these stores according to our floor director phil, lines outside toys "r" us. we need to know what travel is like out there. >> it's not that bad. this is good news.

the bulk of ouvr weather was really over the weekend. so much better right now. take a look what we are seeing. noticing the system we saw yesterday and that is making its way offshore in the east coast but watching tiny wave over the lakes but the clipper about to make its way across is a tiny little hope for a white christmas. let's walk you through this. the wave over the lakes most likely 6 inches and south of the lake off of buffalo but tiny little chance we could see some flurries in through new york city overnight. very minimal. the bigger system we are all watching is the clipper making its way across. with that a good am. 2 to 4 inches around the lakes and dakotas and going through minnesota and eventually ending in through michigan. that's our bigger system there with the heavier amounts of snow and perfect timing. overnight tonight and in through tomorrow morning. you can see the timing there. for everyone else i think the bigger story is the cooler

temperatures. you're talking 40. talking about a difference of 30 degrees cooler than yesterday morning. i didn't like it too much. >> i had to grab the jacket. we have been spoiled the last two days. >> i wonder what the other west coaster has to say. >> oh, no! please! i will be texting you from california on friday. >> enjoy that when you walk out this morning. >> thanks, indra. coming up here on "early start," recovering from a struggling economy and disastrous snowstorm, the pilgrimage in bethlehem is coming up. ime. you can separate runway ridiculousness... from fashion that flies off the shelves. and you...rent from national. because only national lets you choose any car in the aisle... and go. you can even take a full-size or above, and still pay the mid-size price. (natalie) ooooh, i like your style. (vo) so do we, business pro. so do we.

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visit vwdealer.com today welcome back to "early start." people from around the world are making the annual pilgrimage to bethlehem. the cradle of christianity in the west bank as they prepare to celebrate this christmas, the ancient city is in recovery month beset by a monster storm and a stormy economy. ian lee is live in bethlehem for us this morning. tell us what it's like there, ian. >> reporter: right now it is pretty festive. we have had christmas carols all morning and people streaming in. they are expecting 90,000 people to come in over the course of the next two days. so a lot of people coming here to celebrate the christmas season and like you said there was a massive snowstorm earlier this month. they had almost two feet of snow and that damaged the trees, damaged the lights. they were able to quickly recover and get all of the

decorations back up but it really hit the economy. they had about a week there where they really weren't having any tourists come in and it has been a real time of struggle for the palestinian christians here in this area. israeli has that separation barrier that makes it difficult for people to go from jerusalem to bethlehem. despite that, they say they have about 2 million people visit bethlehem this year but when they do visit, they don't stay long, for roughly three hours they will be here and then go back to bethlehem. the palestinian government says it doesn't bring in the number they need and they have high unemployment and seeing christians exiting here to find employment elsewhere. is there a concern this exit will lead to the christian community eventually disappearing so that you have all of these sites that christians come to but none of the local people to keep them

going and really keep that community thriving here. >> ian lee, thank you for that. live for us in bethlehem. chilling 911 calls from last week's deadly shooting in a medical office in reno, nevada. the gunman 51-year-old frazier killed a doctor and wounded two other people before taking his own life. >> did you see it happen or did you just hear it? he's coming? can you hide yourself? put yourself under a cabinet or something in case a shot is fired your way? >> you can hear the fear in her voice. police believe frazier was focused on the doctors because of a botched vasectomy. a family refuses to believe

their daughter is brain dead. a judge monday ordered an independent physician to examine 13-year-old jahi mcmath. chef was declared brain dead after undergoing surgery to remove her adenoids and ton sills. the family do not believe she is dead and went to the court to prevent the hospital from removing jahi from the hospital. >> i feel like my daughter is on death row because i don't know when they are going to pull the plug or make that decision. >> this is, obviously, a tragic situation. a young lady has died and no one takes that in a callus or uncaring manner, but she is dead. >> i cannot imagine my daughter in the freezer on christmas. that is heart wrenching! >> oh, dear, it is heart-wrenching. the interest doctor is due back in court today to deliver the results of the examination of jahi. meanwhile, the court has extended a retraining order preventing the hospital from making any moves until next monday. a federal judge denies a

request to halt same-sex marriages in utah. the judge refuse to go stay his surprise ruling last week that overturned utah's voter approved ban on same sex weddings. as a result gay couples are tying the knot there in utah and enjoy being legal in utah. >> i never thought i would see this in my lifetime. i'm so happy to have the protection of the state to protect our relationship. >> thrilled that the judge decided to notch a rule on the stay and allow marriages to continue because it's a great day. so many people here and so sad to have people be denied so it's wonderful. >> this is really, really a wonderful christmas present. >> some 700 marriage licenses have been issued to same-sex couples in utah since the initial ruling last friday which satisfy -- they say the ruling has resulted in chaos. let's see what is coming up

on "new day." >> miguel and i kind of match there. >> we do! >> look at us! >> pamela, they left us out! >> i thought you were newsman number one today. i was going as number three. >> i'm number 17. see what is going on this morning. eyes on the sky. a space walk taking place on our watch. important mission trying to fix the international space station cooling system. they had issues with the suits and problems with the walk so this is one worth watching. we are going to have live coverage and an astronaut will join us to talk us through and he is done doing space walks himself. there are challenges we do not know but you when you watch us. a story we are tracking closely. what is next for kassim? his sentence was one year in prison but when might he be coming home? still seems to be unclear even

though he was sentenced early yesterday morning. we will talk to his mother and this is the first time she is speaking out since the sentence and we will talk about what this means for their family and how they are continuing their fight to get him back. >> thank you both. >> see you soon. coming up, the big stock market rally. good news for some wall streeters expecting bonuses on for the new year. that's coming up. so you can see like right here i can just...

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this will get you in the christmas spirit, won't it? merry christmas eve, everyone. welcome to "early start." it's "money time." and alison kosik joins us now. >> taking stock of the year for stocks. you look at the biggest 9% and a good chance after santa claus rally will continue to bring joy to investors. into the final days of the year and start of january the average gain for the market is 1.5% and futures are higher this morning. a new record -- the 48th of the year actually was hit on monday for the dow industrials. blue chip stocks gained 73 points and nasdaq and s&p 500 followed suit. some standout stocks on monday, apple rallied on news that it signed a deal with china mobile to sell iphones in a market twice the size of america's population. facebook also rallied on optimism that social media advertising is just beginning to come into its own.

twitter went along for the ride as well hitting a new record and roll it altogether and here is where the major indices for the year. dow up 24% and nasdaq up 37% and s&p 500, whew, up 28%. big rally in stocks likely to show up in wall street bonuses at two big firms. jpmorgan plans to boost bonuses 6 to 10% crease and larger share in cash. if you're a bond trader, no such luck. total pay this year is likely to be down by 10%. pinstripe prize fight continues.

jofs the takeover battle started soon after men's warehouse ousted the former you're going to like the way you look chairman. i know i can't do it. ousted him. joseph a. bank had a takeover bid and men's warehouse coming back. >> we can see the drama play out before our eyes. coming up here on "early start," a tragic scene playing out in texas. a husband in a bitter battle with a hospital to take his wife who is brain dead off life support. why they are refusing. that's just ahead. i'm nathan and i quit smoking with chantix.

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hospital won't do it. the reason? she is pregnant. 33-year-old marlise munoz was found unconscious and the law

says if she is pregnant, the pull can't be pulled regardless of her wishes. >> we talked about it. we are both paramedics. we have seen things out in the field. we both knew that we didn't want to be on life support. >> we have a responsibility of making sure that we follow the laws, whether they are state or federal, when it comes to providing care to patients and that is what we are doing in this case. >> we have reached the point where, you know, you wish that your wife's body would stop. >> marlise is about 18 weeks pregnant and could be several more weeks before doctors could make a decision about taking the fetus out. coming up on "new day" krans kate will talk with dr. arthur kaplin about this story. "new day" starts right now. it will be a miracle.

i got the linchpin on the first try. >> dangerous mission. astronauts step out into a volunteer. a critical space walk five plus hours and exposed to conditions you will not believe. we have it live. mission accomplished so says edward snowden speaking out overnight. what he says about the nsa before he went public. the two popes. historic meeting. two living popes exchanging christmas greetings as pope francis readies for his first christmas celebrations. we are live at the vatican. your "new day" starts right now. ♪ >> announcer: this is "new day" with chris cuomo can be kate bolduan and michaela pereira. >> good morning. welcome to "new day," it's tuesday, december 24th. christmas eve. 6:00 a.m. in the east. new this morning, high stakes in space. nasa astronauts are getting ready for a space walk. this is going to be a big deal. why? there are urgent repairs to the

international space station's cooling system that need to be made. if everything goes well, they will have a primo look at santa's flight. >> no doubt the the two flight engineers scheduled to do the space walk will have the best seat in the house for santa's flight as they finish up the work they started on saturday. >> you're welcome. thank you. good job. >> today astronauts will venture back out of the orbiting international space station. their mission, to replace a pump needed to cool the vessel. >> i don't know if you believe in miracles but i have the hitch pin on the first try. >> the two astronauts removed the faulty cooling pump, the size of a refrigerator. they now must install the new one. their task is a delicate one. the equipment contains a noxious cooling fluid, ammonia.