hacking in u.s. systems. this time, the target is a vermont utility company. burlington electric said it found a company laptop with the same malware that russian hackers alleged used to meddle in the election. >> meanwhile, donald trump is phrasing vladimir putin to not expel diplomats. here's the tweet, great news on delay by v. putin. i always knewle he was very smart. mccain has scheduled a hearing next week on cyberthreats by u.s. >> when you attack a country, it's an act of war, so we have to make sure that there is a price to say, so that we can perhaps persuade the russians to stop these kind of attacks on our very fundamentals of democracy. >> putin's decision not to retaliate for the u.s. sanctions signals that he is waiting, at least, until trump takes office

for his next move. cnn's chief national security correspondent jim sciutto has the details on that. >> reporter: russians vacating compounds shut down by the u.s. russian president vladimir putin, however, dismissing waugs's payback. instead, wishing president obama and his family a happy new year. saying in a statement, quote, we will not stoop to the level of irresponsible diplomacy. it is a pity that the president obama administration finishes its work this way. but nevertheless i congratulate him and his family a happy new year. russian foreign minister sergey lavrov recommended that putin expel 35 diplomats from russia. >> translator: we cannot let such escapades happen without a response. the russian foreign minute stli, together with our colleagues from other departments have made a proposal to declare 31 staff from the embassy of moscow and

four diplomats there the general consulate of st. petersburg as persona non grata. >> reporter: president putin likely waiting for a far present liar administration under donald trump did not take that advice saying in his statement, we will not create problems for american diplomatses, we will not send anyone away. with a stroke of drama putin even issued this invitation to american children. in response to new u.s. sanctions ice invite all children of the u.s. diplomats to the new year and christmas show at the kremlin signed yourself sincerely, vladimir putin. the u.s. shut down two russian-owned government compounds one in new york. and another in maryland, a 45-acre property purchased by the soviet government in 1972. vehicles were seen leaving the maryland estate and returning to the russian embassy in washington. the white house says the russians working at the compounds were spying on the u.s. >> what these individuals were doing were basically collecting

intelligence. they're intelligence officers operating here and using these compounds, one in new york, one in maryland, for intelligence collection purposes. >> reporter: russia, however, refutes that the escapes were being used for espionage. >> i thing it's quite scandalous that they chose to go after kids. they know that those facilities mentioned in the notes are vacation facilities for kids. this is christmastime. >> reporter: four of the russians sanctioned by the u.s. are part of the intelligence unit known as the gru one is the u.n.'s chief. >> it's assigning blame to russia's military service that the actual perpetrators of these hacks are contractors, if you like. people who have been found by the russian government to do their dirty work for them. >> keep in mind that election hacking is not the only issue of disagreement between the u.s. and russia. you have the annexation of crimea, the bombing of civilians in aleppo and elsewhere. those are issues that donald

trump will have to fate as president as well. jim sciutto, cnn, washington. >> jim, thank you so much. i want to bring in cnn's matthew chance from moscow. and ryan maines, thank you for being with us. matthew, i'm going to get to you in a moment. but i do want to start with what has happened in vermont that we've been talking about today. we are just getting a reaction here from governor there in vermont he said vermont and all americans should be outraged that one of the world's leading thugs vladimir putin has been attempting to hack our electric grid which we rely upon to support our quality of life, economy and health and safety. the episode should put an end to the russian meddling. ryan when you heard about what was happening with burlington electric, what was your first thought and what is the thought

of danger in the malware being present? >> wiell, this isn't the 30 tha russia has done it. china has done it, too. and i'm pretty sure we've done it as well. it's using a probing kind of exercise to show that they got in. but they wouldn't cross the line and knock our power out. that's something that -- where a red line has been drawn. and if russia went through and kinetically knocked out our power, than things would escalate and we would retaliate in kinds. these kind of things are espionage probes, kind of cyberpolitics. so, i don't think anything happening beyond the malware getting in. but nothing is really going to happen after that. >> since they found it. matthew, i want to listen to something that congressm mcongr

mundi said. listen to this. >> i am scared. i am frankly very, very scared that our next president hasn't a clue about what russia is actually up to. >> matthew, does the u.s. have a gauge of what russia is actually up to? >> the intelligence services say that they've got a good gauge on that. i think the point that your earlier guest, the other guest on the show was making, was a really good one. that these hacking exercises, these hacking attempts, they take place all over the world. china does it. britain does. united states, definitely the russian do it as well. the scandal, remember, was the data dumping. the dumping of the information acquired through that hacking in an alleged attempt to influence the outcome of the presidential election. that's what the scandal was all about. in terms of, you know, whether

united states has a gauge or not, well, clearly, it's got intelligence operatives working here. assessments they're making and digitalest that have led them to the conclusion that it's russia behind the hacking attacks. and, you know, it's pretty incomprehensible that donald trump didn't taking those findings which he would be aware of. >> is there some sense that president putin may be holding back on these retaliations that had been recommended yesterday morning because he thinks that donald trump may be easier to manage, so to speak, easier to manipulate, because he is not a regular politician? >> i think that's one interpretation of putin's motivation for not responding in

kind for the expulsion of 35 russian diplomats. another interpretation would be he's finished, basically dealing with the obama administration. there's no further progress he can make with president obama. in the last few weeks of his administration anyway. he uses it as an opportunity to reach across the administration and appeal directly to donald trump in the white house in the next two weeks. putin clearly believes that donald trump is someone who he can negotiate with on a whole range of issues. syria ukraine, nato expansion, things like that. donald trump has fueled this idea that he shares russia's view of many problems in the world, like international terrorism, for instance. he wants to work with russia to combat isis in syria for example. and i expect that's what -- that's what vladimir putin was trying to do. you know what, it seems to have worked in the sense that donald trump responded. he may have -- he faces a laud of headwinds in the congress or

his own republican party as well. but he responded very positively. saying great in the delay. vladimir putin is very smart. putin would be happy with that tweet. >> no doubt. >> ryan, i want to ask you about the utility that's been hacked. homeland security reporting that the then alerted the company and they found the malware at that point. how confident are you in an individual company's ability to spot these operations? these hacks, before any damage is done? and what specifically can the u.s. do to prevent it? >> well, the fancy bear attacks on the dnc as well as the vermont facility were socially engineered. cyber security's weakest link is the human link. what i know by socially engineered, it got in by a

socially engineered e-mail that was sent to an employee that clicked into that e-mail and the malware spread into the system. so when it comes to attacks like these, we need to train our human beings a little better being able to spot the ma limlis e-mails. and just be more conscious of being on the networks in your place of employment. this happened both at the dnc and the vermont facility. so i would say the private sector, as well as government should start promoting better cyberhygiene practices that will -- it won't eradicate all hacks like this, but it can definitely reduce the chance that these types of attacks get in. and i'd add to the fact of the previous guest, that putin, when it comes to these sanctions, what he's doing is playing chess. obama thought he could bait him

into responding to these sanctions. but putin didn't bite. putin knows trump. and when putin made this decision not to retaliate, it played right into his hands. what obama tried to do is divide the gop over the russian issue before -- >> okay. matthew chance and ryan maness, thank you for being here. >> thank you both for the insight. there's a massive manhunt under way in pennsylvania this morning after a state trooper was shot and killed in the line of duty. authorities are searching for this man, jason robison. he's considered to be armed and dangerous. state troorm brandon weaver was responding to a domestic zment when the suspect opened fire. the pennsylvania governor issued a statement saying i have full confidence that the person who committed this senseless act of violence will be brought to justice. two people shot and killed

after rapper meeks mills concert in connecticut. two other people were injured. it happened in the parking lot outside of the toyota oakdale theater in warrington. the choir set to join the trump inauguration. one member quit the choir and why. and it is new year's eve around the world. sydney, australia, getting ready to ring in 2017 at the top of the hour. we'll bring you the official countdown and celebration when all of that happens. meanwhile, auckland, new zealand was the first to ring in the new year a little over an hour ago. what a beautiful sight. >> five, four, three, two, one!

the world is full of surprising moments.

they're everywhere. and as a marriot rewards member, i can embrace them all. the new marriott portfolio of hotels now has 30 brands in over 110 countries. so no matter where you go, you are here. join or link accounts at members.marriott.com. 15 minutes past the hour. another performer is refusing now to participate in donald trump inauguration. >> this time it's a member of

the mormon tabernacle choir. they're slated to join the radio city rockets. along with the 15-year-old jackie evancho. a member of the tabernacle choir is quitting and comparing trump to hitler. sharon wrote, to sing for trump is endorsement for tyranny and fascism. for more on what was said, we're joined by cnn politics reporter eugene scott. good morning, eugene. here's part of what chamberlain said in her post. let's show you that. i have tried to tell myself that it will be all right and that i can continue in good conscience before god and man. i only know that i could never throw roses to hitler. and i certainly could never sing for him. this is coming after the rockettes had to deal with dissension in the ranks there. i wonder, is this a growing

problem for trump? >> well, this certainly is another name and another member of an organization who is expected to perform at the inauguration who has had concerns with doing so. but the reality is that we haven't seen an overwhelming number of people from the rockettes and from the mormon tabernacle choir come out and express frustration with their company's decision. with that being said, we also have not seen a large number of groups sign on to participate in this event. >> well, donald trump says, of course, he wants his inaugural ceremony to be focused on the people. many presidents actually say that. you can see the strategy in an early list of groups that has come out. those at least who have accepted the invitation to join the inaugural parade. could there be, i guess, bigger names coming? >> well, they certainly hope so, to be fair to the inauguration committee, they're still working on bringing names on board. granted in, previous

inaugurations, there were bigger names announced by this time. but there's still time to attract guests that the people would love to see in the national event. >> i'm sure they would. part of all of this is to see a nation coming together. instead, we're hearing more and more headlines about those who don't want to be a part of it. eugene scott, thank you very much. >> thank you. and retired members of the renowned dance group the rockettes threatening the boycott of donald trump's address. we've heard about this in the past few weeks from different people. >> we have. we'll get more of that. >> reporter: donald trump and the radio city rockettes, both new york city icons. ♪ but the rockettes are kicking up controversy over the upcoming presidential inauguration. one dancer speaking out after feeling pressure to perform at the ceremony for a candidate she

does not support. quote, we do a lot of events, but there have been no events that could cause trauma. and doing this could cause trauma for some people. that said to journalist in a marie claire report. >> emotionally, people were crying on stage. >> reporter: some of the dancers full time were told they had no choice but to perform in next month's scheduled event. word created a firestorm in social media. marie claire reports the backlash is what changed the minds of the dancers' union. madison square garden who employs the dancers added we have more requests to participate than slots available. >> a lot of artists have not wanted to participate, and the rockettes have. it's making it seem like they stand by him and his policies.

>> reporter: others favor the boycott like his former rockette who appeared on democracy now. >> the rockettes represent a legacy of strong, intelligent and classy women. and to associate this with mr. trump who has a public history of degrading women, objectifying women, in my opinion, rail tarnishes what the rockettes embody and stand for. >> the radio city rockettes! >> reporter: the famous dancers were all on board for george w. bush's celebration both in 2001 and 2005. this year, they're not the only ones wanting to skip out. sources tell cnn president-elect donald trump's transition team is having a tough time booking talent. cnn, new york. >> so you may be wondering why are global leaders known as strong men already reaching out to president-elect trump before he even takes office? we'll talk about it. we're rapidly losing credibility as handymen.

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donald trump has made no secret of the fact that he admires russian president vladimir putin. and after his election win, putin and other leaders with strong man kind of images have center him messages of praise.

>> and our correspondent set out to find out why. >> reporter: in the aftermath of the election, messages of support come from presidents with tough guy personas who have had tense relations with the u.s. the russian president equals trump a successful entrepreneur, a man who's, quote, probably clever. jumping to the support always anti-trump street protests, quote, a disrespect to democracy. and then there's the president of philippines who not long ago told president obama he could go to hell. >> i'd like to congratulate president trump. [ speaking in foreign language ] >> really good.

>> reporter: why do these strong men seem to like donald trump? >> i would call it capacity to provide simple answers to very complicated questions. but what we're seeing at the moment in the world today is a lot of threats and crisis and uncertainty. and what these leaders are providing is simplistic answers, close the borders, no fmore foreigners. >> reporter: vladimir putin first came to power in 1999, delighting those with his promise to hunt down and kill chechan rebels in their toilet. on pious working class voters were often demonizing his critics. and in europe, several far-right politics embrace trump's tough talk on immigration and islamist

extremism, hoping for their bump as they compete for the top jobs in dutch and french elections scheduled next year. but not everyone welcomes this new hunger for nationalist politicians. here in the tiny eastern european country of latvia, u.s. soldiers are training alongside the latvian military. it's part of an effort to better protect this nato ally, from its much bigger neighbor to the east, latvia's former so far ruler russia. with trump so focused on making america great, people here fear the u.s. will no longer protect them. the rise of nationalist strong men leaves some of the little guys clearly worried. ivan watson, cnn, riga. all right. 7:26 right now. and there are 2 million people expected to watch the ball drop in new york. i want to give you a live shot

at times square right now. you know the stages are set. people are filtering in because you got to get that spot or you're going to lose it. we'll take you there live, too. authorities are doing a few things very different this year to try to keep everybody safe. nothing. only glad has febreze to neutralize odors for 5 days. guaranteed. even the most perceptive noses won't notice the trash. be happy. it's glad. afoot and light-hearted i take to the open road. healthy, free, the world before me, the long brown path before me leading wherever i choose. the east and the west are mine. the north and the south are mine. all seems beautiful to me.

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♪ 7:29 on a saturday morning. and i'm surprised you're up if you plan to be up late tonight ringing in the new year. >> yeah, i know. if you're up this early, you really niece to pace yourself. >> a little bit of a nap. i'm christi paul. >> i'm martin savidge in for

victor blackwell. >> we're talking about plans that have new york city on high alert. for its celebration there. >> as many as 2 million people are expected to fill times square for the big countdown. that's where where we find correspondent jessica schneider. jessica, let's talk about what's being beefed up securitywise and what are you seeing there? >> well, martin, this is the place to be in new york city. the nypd says this is the safest place you'll find. that's box of all of the security measures, the enhanced security measures. take a look at the numbers as i break it down for you. there will be 65 sanitation trucks filled with sand. those will line the perimeter of times square. that's a precaution, of course, for what we're seen overseas in the recent months for the truck crashes that have gone into crowded areas. the most recent being in berlin, germany in the christmas market. the nypd taking that precaution.

in addition, they'll have 100 blocker vehicles all over. they range from police cruisers to larger trucks as well. 7,000 nypd officers will be stationed throughout the city. that includes 550 new graduates. and there will be 65 viewing pens all over times square from 42nd street. all the way to 59th street. the amazing thing about those viewing pens is that the nypd aims to fit about 3,000 people inside each of those pens. so it will be quite a gathering out here. you can see just behind me, some of the pens out here. these are all of the barricades put in place by the nypd. they'll open up this area in a little bit. that's actually, if you can believe it, the crowds will start gathering here, despite the fact that we're still about 16 1/2 hours until that big ball drop there. but this will be an extremely safe area. they'll have counterterrorism teams. heavy weapons teams will be very visible from this area.

they'll be patrolling by air. helicopters will be out. and also different members of different agencies one at headquarters will be monitoring the video feeds from around here. so, this will definitely be a safe spot. of course, the nypd instituting some of those enhanced security options as a precaution, there were weren't any threats here in new york city or times square, of course taking precautions from some of the attacks we've seen overseas. martin and christi. >> is this the first time that sand trucks have been deployed? >> it's the first time in times square. but they actually but out the perimeter trucks in the perimeter at the macy's thanksgiving day parade about a month oago or so. yes, they're doing it as a precaution due to the truck attacks they've seen overseas. like always, we always see a lot of security right here in times

square on new year's eve. >> obviously wise to caution. jessica schneider, thank you very much. happy new year. cnn's anderson cooper and kathy griffin will co-host the new year's coverage. 8:00 p.m. eastern to 12:00 a.m. don lemon and brooke baldwin will also be counting down from the music club in new orleans. the party begins, again, at 8:00 p.m. eastern right here on cnn. and a kennedy cousin could be headed back to prison for murder, after a connecticut judge overturned an earlier ruling that freed him. now in 2002, michael skakel, remember, was convicted of killing martha moxley, a 15-year-old neighbor back in 1975. skakel was the nephew of ethel and robert kennedy. the ruling said that skakel's

lawyer hadn't represented him well. now, that decision was overturn by a judge who disagree. skakel's current lawyer sent a statement to cnn. we want to read it now. it says we haven't had time to fully digest the opinion at this juncture. but, of course, it's a setback. we're going to be dealing with other procedures that are available to avail michael of any and all of his constitutional rights. we're joining by a criminal defense attorney in dallas. thank you for being with us. >> thank you. >> i want to talk about the forensic evidence. there was an awful lot of it. none of it pointed to michael skakel. he was initially convicted primarily on witness statements. where do you think this has the potential too with no forensic evidence, in this 40-plus years, after this case, after the murder? >> well, we got to respect the jury's decision in convicting

michael skakel during the three-week trial that he had. the appealate court said the representation of michael skakel was so inadequate. it went up to the supreme court in connecticut. they said, no, no, this decision is wrong. in fact, the defense attorneys proved to demonstrate that mickey sherman's representation was so dwishts as to deny him a fair trial. so, what they did is, reinstate his conviction. what that means is, that is going to re-establish skakel's status as a convicted murderer. >> so, where do they go from here? i mean, when you discuss that statement from the attorney, it says that they're going to be revisiting every aspect. what aspects are there? what could avail him? >> i mean, at this point, i

think they've exhausted so many grounds for appeal. but there's so many other other procedures that they can look for. right now, what the state is going to want to do is request that the trial court has skakel remanded back to prison. and the defense attorneys, i would presume, would ask the court to let him remain out in the free. because he's been out for three years and has presumably complied with all of the requirements that he was given on the condition of being released. so, right now, it's the question of whether he's going to be remanded back to prison and for how long. >> there was a composite sketch that was drafted after neighbors had given reports of a man that they saw in that area. and it was held up at one of the trials. and it does not look like -- most people would say it does not look like skakel. the defense was trying to pinpoint it to somebody else. does that tactic work, trying to pull in -- trying to incriminate

someone other than who is requesting here in terms of defense? >> absolutely, that's what you want to do. at the trial court level, did it work? no, it obviously didn't. the accusation of skakel and his team was that mickey sherman didn't do enough to pinpoint someone else. someone would argue that he did enough, and that he did try to, one, establish an alibi for skakel. and to pinpoint another possible murderer at the time. it didn't obviously work. the jury still felt that the evidence was so overwhelming and pointed towards his guilt. and that's what they rendered. and that's something that we have to respect. now, they raise that issue on an appeal, and that still failed. they went all the way to the supreme court. the u.s. supreme court in 2006 and they deny to even review the case. as it stands right now, they is a convicted murderer. >> so, what do you think should

happen at this point? do you think -- >> as a former prosecutor, i'd definitely ask the court to remand him back to jail. remember, he's only completed half of the sentence. he was sentenced to 20 years to life. before he was released he only completed ten years. so, as a former prosecutor, i would want to defend the integrity of my case and my victims. my victim's family. and i'd want to have him remandzremandz ed and finish out that sentence. absolutely. >> we appreciate you so much. thank you. >> thank you so much. up next, the transatlantic war of words. why the israeli/palestinian conflict is drawing a wedge between america and one of its oldest allies great britain. question, are my teeth yellow?

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the u.s. state department was caught off guard by a rebuke from one of america's closest

allies, uk prime minister teresa may scolded secretary of state john kerry. phil black is in london following developments there. phil, good morning to you. why did the prime minister attack john kerry for saying the settlements are an obstacle? >> it's really an extraordinary development now, because this is not the way a so-called relationship is supposed to be conducted. teresa may has scolded, as you say, john kerry for going in too hard on the issue of jewish settlements on the west bank. but more than that his comments where he described the israeli government with the most right wing in history driven by elements. this is an excerpt from the statement. it says we do not believe the way to negotiate peace is by focusing on only one issue.

and we do not believe to attack the composition of a democratically elected government of an ally. we are surprised by the uk prime minister's statement given that secretary kerry's remark which is covered a full range of threat to a two-state solution including violence incitement and settlements. what the state department is saying there, hang on, where does this come from. we haven't said anything that you guys yourselves haven't said before. and in fact long believed in as longstanding policy. the question as to why, well, it's been interpreted here as perhaps an effort by prime minister may to ingratiate herself with the incoming u.s. administration and president-elect trump. perhaps in an attempt to appease the israeli government as well because britain didn't just abstain from the vote on israeli

settlements agency the u.ss the. it voted in favor of the security resolution. there's a view that perhaps britain has making up to do with the government. perhaps britain is attempting to maintain relationship with the new administration, the incoming one and the israeli government in the hope of guiding them more towards a two-state solution. >> real quick, i would expect that brexit plays a role in the sense that great britain doesn't want to feel completely cut off by everybody? >> i think that's right. with britain looking to leave the european union and lose a lot of trade, it's looking to the u.s. that relationship has always been important. and in the brexit context, you could say it's never been more important. certainly not in recent history. >> phil black joining from us london. thanks very much. happy new year to you. anyone on life-saving

medication needs to see this. there's an ohio family fighting to change prescription laws across the country. how this family is hoping that the loss of their son is going to save somebody else. stay close.

the last hour, we introduced you to the houdeshell family. they had no idea they were spending their last christmas with their son kevin.

>> he just said, kevin died. i just screamed and couldn't believe it. >> when they said he died of ketoacidosis. and i said, what? he said, i have no explanation for that. other than that he was noncompliant. that he wasn't taking his medication. >> his mother contends kevin who was a diabetic was faithful about taking his insulin. it turns out kevin tried to get more when he ran out but he was denied the medication. in the meantime, he thought he was really getting the flu. what was really happening his organs were shutting down. he was dying and he didn't even know it. he died alone in his apartment. that's how the houdeshells know that they couldn't let any family go through what they were going through. >> kevin did not want to die, kevin took care of himself. >> reporter: kevin houdeshell, a son, a brother, a diabetic, died

because he ran out of insulin and in the midst of the holiday >> it's not just insulin. it affects other people with other diseases also. so we did some investigating and found ohio law as it was at the time was in an emergency situation. pharmacists could give 72-hour emergency prescription, up to 72 hours. problem being is that insulin is not packaged in that small a quantity. >> how can this be? how can someone be on a life-sustaining drug and be turned away? >> and with that question, their mission dubbed houdy's law was born. it's a proposal that anyone suffering from diabetes would be able to get an emergency supply of insulin from a pharmacy if their doctor couldn't be reached.

they worked feverishly. got contacted to pharmacist who had this on his mind ironically. >> this had to go broader. >> their local tv station in cleveland aired his story and overnight the bureaucratic wheels started turning faster. >> the next day we were getting phone calls from columbus, mostly pharmacy lobbyists that wanted to know more and the law got fast tracked, we think, from that point. it only took 14 months to get it passed. >> when they gave their personal testimony to the legislature in columbus, they knew kevin's story would save lives. >> they credit senator burke and then newly elected representative nathan manning with putting their urgency into physical motion. >> on this bill, he hauled every other representative personally to garner support to get this passed. >> he was a tiger and he pushed.

>> judy says it was a sign from heaven. the day governor john kasich was on the campaign trail took a moment to sign the bill into law. >> that was december 22nd. kevin was born on 2-22. kevin was the sacrificial lam and there's still so much more that needs to be done. >> their new mission, to make sure a diabetes test is included in every child's well visit to the doctor. it's a simple blood test, just a prick on the finger that could keep your child healthy and alive. >> diabetes is an epidemic. the numbers support it. and it's not being treated as an epidemic. >> no. >> and it needs to be. >> this is what they hope will be kevin's legacy. and they hope somehow he's proud of what they're doing. what do you think ehe'll say to you now? >> keep making memories. keep living my life and that he's always with me and he'll be

my guardian angel until it's time to meet again. >> howdy's law is prompting other states to look at the issue and take tlax. florida passed their version of howdy law last spring. pennsylvania just admitted senate bill 1409 and at least a half other dozen states are looking to enact similar legislation. for more information, go to the family's facebook page in memory of kevin, howdy, howdy shell. well, it was supposed to be ronda rousey's big comeback fight, but her dreams of winning back her ufc title were over very quickly, less than a minute. andy schol will have all of the highlights coming up next.

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talked about that before. and after this movie, you might not see her in the octagon again. but the comeback was short lived. roussy got pummelled from amanda nunez. taking shots right to the face. the ref had to jump in and stop the fight after 48 seconds. roussy was guaranteed 3 million dollars for this fight compared to $200,000 for nunez. roussy made about $63,000 a second to stand there and get punched in the face. roussy, once again though, did not speak with the media after the fight. ufc president dana white said he doesn't know if roussy will ever fight again in the ufc. the college football playoffs are finally here. top four teams are going to square off later today 3:00 p.m. eastern. we'll have alabama taking on washington in the peach bowl. the undefeated crimson tide won four of the last seven title games. nick saban not looking past the

pac-12 champs. >> well, i think that this is by far the best all around team that we played all year long. they score 44.5 points on offense. they have a really good quarterback. they have really good skill players on offense at the receiver and running back positions. they have lots of speed. they make a lot of explosive plays. >> the other playoff game we have number two clemson against third ranked ohio state in the fiesta bowl. this is one of the most anticipated bowl games of the entire season. both sides hungry for a shot to play for the national title. the first game is a bowl game. you say you want to have fun, but at the same time it's a business trip because you want to get yourself to the national championship and when ever it gets to that crunch time, you know, the details and the little things really come in handy. >> that's why you come to ohio state to win championships and to play for championships.

so, it's just another great, great honor to be a part of the playoff and it's going to be fun to take another swing at it with my teammates. >> here is the playoff schedule, the peach bowl kicking off at 3:00 p.m. eastern and the night cap the fiesta bowl at 7:00 p.m. you can check out lamar jackson taking on lsu in the citrus bowl at 11:00 a.m. eastern. >> we know where he will be today -- >> watching football. >> tough job. thank you, andy. cities across the globe are getting ready, people, they're saying good-bye to 2016 and some people would say it's not soon enough. >> including we should say sydney, australia, where the new year is just seconds away. you're taking a look live at sydney harbor, a beautiful venue, by the way, the world's biggest fireworks show apparently getting ready to start. as we get ready for 2017, we're taking a look at some of the good news, yes, there was good news that came out of last

year, truly. >> researchers found new genes that may help cure als. and it's all thanks to money raised by the ice bucket challenge, remember that, alouing for new research. >> did you do the ice bucket challenge? >> no, di manhattan. pandas are no longer an endangered species. the giant panda population is finally on the rise. >> this is a little bittersweet for merks but the cubs finally won the world series beating my cleveland indians. the city of chicago threw a party with millions estimated at the championship parade. the high school graduation rate is at the highest, the teen birthrate keeps falling and americans gave to charity more than ever so. we have a lot of news to tell you about this morning as we ring in the new year in australia. >> the next hour of "new day" starts right now.

♪ good morning, everybody. so grateful to see you here on the last day of 2016. i'm christi paul. >> good day, i'm martin savidge in for victor blackwell. >> nice way to step up, there, mr. martin. the countdown, here it is, sydney, australia, ringing in the new year. there they go, folks, live to sydney harbor. >> the count. ♪ ♪