counting their blessings this christmas day and beginning to put their lives back together after thunderstorms and tornados in tennessee. total of 14 killed bite storms as they swept over tennessee, mississippi and arkansas overnight and christmas as well. thanks for joining us in the america's news headquarters. >> i am leland viter. >> and abbey huntsman, that

weather system tracked east and and made a mess on christmas eve. north carolina at the foot of the appalachian mountains, the rain caused a mud slide that closed the road for hours. this nasty weather is creating huge problems. rick, how are you? >> reporter: conditions are not good for moment in alabama, arkansas and tennessee and kentucky. in the wake of the tornados, there are prolonged downpours and deaths. a 7-year-old in a car was picked up and thrown by the end. they are surveying the wreckage of hundreds of homes and businesses especially in mississippi when one man heard the tornado, it was less than

ten minutes an hour. >> my wife jumped in the tub and i jumped on top. and we heard everything demolished. >> there is a concern about flooding. it is expected to taper off later today. it is a rough christmas for folks down south. >> the northeast is unseasonally warm in new york city. breaking records. >> they were smashed. high of 72 in central park and warmest christmas eve ever recorded since they tracked temperatures in 1871. boston hit 69, breaking it by eight degrees. and sir cus up ten. and philadelphia 71, up seven. and norfolk was 82 yesterday and 68 in burlington, vermont.

and some folks in the northeast went surfing and finding fight foot waves and they were ice skating or doing last shopping. more records will be broken in weekend. it may be 68 before it is like winter. >> and now utility company and workers are working to get lights back on in michigan and cross the border in canada. all of them were knocked out on christmas eve. tens of thousands are in the dark in michigan and ontario and quebec. they clocked up to 60 miles per hour and knocking over the tree branches and trees fell in power p loips. some people may be in the dark

all the way through the weekend. workers hustling to deliver last-minute work after shipping was delayed thanks to stormy weather. fedex, will work tonight to get them before the end of christ s christmas>> reporter: fed exis blaming it on bad weather. and that is not good enough for people who department get their gifts. grinch of the season for fed exfor a toys r us. >> and ten days and still not here. thanks for ruining a 12-year-old

christmas. the company asked for volunteers to come in and start delivering packages. and people can come in and pick up the packages in person. fedex, is doing everything they can to get the shipment in by christmas. despite the bad weather. the hub is in memphis, tennessee and that city has been hit hard. the company hasn't said how many deliveries in time for christmas but it is estimated to be in the tens of thousands. we appreciate it. >> just months after signing the historic deal to restrict iran's nuclear program. there is iowa ran in a dam

outside of new york city. it may not sound like a big deal and gives iranians access to the american power grid. the cyber security expert from the australian navy joins us now. how is it possible they broke in two years ago and we're just now learning about it? >> good afternoon and merry christmas. we are just learning about it right now because they wanted us to learn about it right now. the iranians have been flying under the radar because they were negotiating the iran nuclear deal. and now they have everything they want, they can take the gloves off. they don't hide it anymore.

and so the attack that fits in your critical infrastructure. and they kept the cyber jihadi group and now they got the deal and long- range missile program and millions of dollars. they can say we did hack the evil empire america. what will you you do about it? >> is there any ideas what they may be doing right now or will we have to wait until they grace us with a dump of information: >> i think my colleagues in the united states government are working heard to counter the iranian attacks. and let's be clear. iran killed more americans should i say than hesbollah and al-qaeda and isil put together. they are an enemy of the united

states. and we are in an agreement and nuclear deal and gives them capabilities and they have the administration in a position of weekness. without the deal, the administration doesn't have a foreign follows deal to look back on. they will do that despite how bad it is for our national security. >> you take the fierce of what the nuclear deal. now the administration tied its hands when it comes to dealing with iran. >> and right. this is business as usual for ivan. they are going after the commercial enterprises.

they were happiest and attacking us on the battlefield. and they have opinion a surge in suber attacks gaebs the state department and against iranian for thes in the administration. >> when you are talking p this. you are talking about hacking the critical inextra structure. and these are iran. are we that bad or are they that good? >> you know, let's not forget we are the united states of america and we are powerful. and we can strike back against iran and pretty much in any form we wanted be on the other us sidement >> what is missing is the california to to something and

how it is can kasicate being a -- did it is a word said. the a yatolla it is death to america this and that knows that the administration will not push back. >> at least so far we haven't heard going to see them push bavenlth god knows what else they have hacked into. merry christmas to you j and yours. >> thank you, merry christmas. >> and abbey. after years of fighting for compensation, the americans will get it. hear how much and who is paying the bill. guess what, it is not iran. >> hundreds of isis fighters

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>> welcome back. the hostages held in iran will finally get compensated for their ordeal. 50 were taken captive by the iranian students and held 440 days and the crisis consumed the final months of jimmy carter's president see. and each will get 10000 for each day held in captivity. and the same fate will go for the hostages that have since died. it comes from a penamenty paid for a french bank. >> and a deal over seen by the

united nations is allowing isis fighters to relocate that are seen as strongholds. they are traveling from moderate areas in damascus to ra qqa. and others will end up ini sis controlled areas. the u.n. said agreements like this could lead to a nation wide truce in syria. >> kevin is live in honnolulu where the president is vacation. tell us about the state of affairs in syria and how the u.s. is able to deal with them. >> reporter: merry christmas to you, leland. it speaks to a desperate reality on the ground. what is going on there is a humanitarian nightmare. and this is important. it frankly speaks to the fact, when you have warring factions,

they can come together to figure out a way to humanely get people out of a desperate situation. the u.n. broker deal is important if it holds. it will create safe passages. and experts said we should not be surprised despite major differences in the parties, that deals like this can be made. >> sometimes, warring factions are at each other's throats will accept subdeals. it brings interest to both of them. and so they would agree on this and next day resume the fight. we had our conversation. this tells us that we should not

expect a unified syria. we are looking at a fractured country. >> not only syria but iran. and as you are in honolulu. what is the first family up to? >> not working. food and family and fun. and before they opened presents with the kids, yes, they were a little busy. the president and first lady had a chance to video record the annual address to the nation on christmas day. they are asking us to do something that is important. help them in joining with others to help veterans and families by going to joiningforces.gov. you can find out how you can can in fact impact the lives of many

veterans around the country. >> it is called joining forces.gov. >> i am assuming you will go to the website and be diligent. >> reporter: i promise i will not answer that question. we will not make you. >> merry christmas, my friend. >> classic american cars have been carousing cuba for decades. and how is lifting the ban may create a business opportunity. plus a misdial from the middle of space. it happen to one astronaut trying to call family back to earth. wait until you hear who picked up.

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>> most of us have been called by a wrong number. but usually that caller is not in deep space. a british astronaut misdialled from the international space station. and he said i would like to apologize to the woman who i called by mistake, saying hello, is this planet earth?

not a prank call, just a wrong number. >> you can't make this up. i would have loved to been on the end. >> is this earth and is your refrigerator runny. >> hilarious. what a surprise call. classic american made calls filled streets in cuba. and theus put an embargo in place, they were unaushl to sell in cuba. now a business opportunity is presenting itself. rich is live from dc to explain. >> reporter: abbey, they are incredible to see. pre1960 cars. the bodies are american but the parts are international. they have been patched together

since the eisenhower administration. and cheaper japanese diesel motors run them. american autoparts companies are exploring the cuba potential. >> there is a lot of things for us to do to do business. we are trying to see what is going on and how it will develop and hopefully after the change happens we'll go with it. >> reporter: and the demand with the american collectors. these franken stien cars are a segment that interest many especially with a long history. they have been kept running fest plus year. and they are not the original but a great story to tell. opponents of the stronger ties

with with cuba. and cuba is a restricted communist country with a state controlled economy. >> very cool to get my hand on one of those cars. they are awesome. >> perhaps, he did a few test drives. >> i hope he did. >> coming up. donald trump attacked the media that loves to cover him. now his fellow anti- establishment candidate bernie sanders is speaking out about the coverage donald was getting. and why he doesn't think that mr. trump is at fault. busy as the pope is at the christmas, he shares the true meaning of the holidays and only the pope could tell us. he worries about the holiday ruining.

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>> welcome back. sanders is saying trump makes controversial comments because he knows that's what the media wants. he compared trump 81 minutes of a time to his own 20 seconds. trump's numbers are soaring and it shows out front with 35 percent. and joining me now is miller, a investigative reporter and fox news contributor and washington bureau chief of the sun times. thank you for being with us. >> and judith. what is your reaction to what bernie sanders is saying. he has a point here and saying it is not trump's fault he's getting the media coverage he's

getting. >> bernie sander's frustration must be shared by all of the republican contenders. but really focusing on the media for broadcasting and publicizing trump's oduous and anti- muslim and anti- women message is misplaced. it is not our fault that donald trump said those things and they are news worthy. and failure to concentrate and focus on racist statements is a derelection of doubt on our part. and so, i am sorry bernie sand ares if you had said the horrific things, we would, too. but instead you are saying other things that are not being covered and it is not donald trump's fault or hillary

clinton's fault. you talk about trump you get more clicks and ratings go up. and you are talking about an election cycle that is boring. he brings the excitement to the race that people find erpt takening to watch. he's leading in the polls. he's entertaining and a guy that is on top. he is someone we should be talking about p. and that will be the trump coverage >> and there is a difference that trump is saying the things as they said have to be reported on and he said things that are not true. and of course, you're going to pay attention to that. it is part of the political phenom nan that is done with

trump in the campaign cycle. and one thing he craves to be taken seriously. and everything you say is subject to skrutinny. >> and he said because it is happening, he hates the media, but the media will not go anywhere. >> and you have the other candidates saying we are out here talking about issues that people care about. we are talking about the issues. and donald trump continues to. there is a real conunned rum. >> donald trump is getting ratings from the g.o.p. voters. and that is over all they turn out to be a small group of americans. and he's leading in the polls. but when the republican fold

narrows and the republicans wake up. and they are nominating someone who doesn't beat hillary clinton, they will get source and the other candidates will get the publicity they crave and deserve. >> come 2016. it is it a fresh start. and they will say that was fun while it lasted. and do you think that it will happen? >> that will be predicated on what happens in iowa and new hampshire. trump constructed his campaign he is a winner. a lot of candidates could do well coming in second. and you could be the nominee. bill clinton never won there and

became president. that will have a big domino affect. that is part of the candidacy. >> it will be interesting to see how things shape up in the month of january. merry christmas to both of you. >> same to you. back to you. pope francis is calling for people to it dial back on indulgen indulgence. it is a time with overconsumption and excess. he said this. in a society so often intoxicated by consumerism. and jesus calls us to act soberly. it is not just e.g. noe nothing and presence. >> reporter: whether you are a christian or catholic, the

words of pope francis in this case are true. and another thing he said. he called the international community to act to help the christians in syria and in the middle east. he said that a year ago. >> are you surprised by how political the pope is becoming? >> no, popes do that when there is tragedy, even a attempt to extinguish christians, we need people, not just popes but to stand up and say it is not happen. our president and political leaders to be fair love to quote pope francis. a yearing on he called the international community to stop

isis and use force if necessary to stop isis. i hope they will quote about what pope francis said about the tragic situation. >> when isis executed christians. the president caught a lot of flack not talking about the christians. we have a quote talking about the persecution of the christian faith. this year in the middle east where church bells have rung for centuries on christmas day the bills are silent. >> those are on the middle east and christians are eradicated

and that is in israel. and yes, there has to be action and it is not the pope's job. and they carry out. and they have to make a decision. are we going to stop isis or talk about it. >> this is good talk from the president recognizing the reality. and that's the role of the politician. >> and you did celebrate mass. and you feel they understand what christians in dozens of countries go through simply because they identify themselves as christians. >> some do and most don't. and that's why we elect people. in this christmas day celebrating the fact that god will become man, to be with us and get involved in our

messiness and give us a chance for redemption. according to the roles and poll tugzs, and world leaders need to take responsibility and say let's not talk approximate it and stop it. >> you have to wonder if we upheld our end of the pargain on that. a very merry christmas to you and your mother who you are off to see. abbey what is next. >> fire breaks out in a place our president lived. and how bad the dangerous is. and the danger of hover boards. and our legal panel takes a look be and what you need to know if you plan on getting one. canned passed it is important to

understand that if something is to cheap and too good to be true, it probably is. at planters we know how to throw a remarkable holiday party. just serve classy snacks and be a gracious host, no matter who shows up. do you like nuts?

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merry christmas. what is now afternoon here in new york city. officials down in arkansas say a fire damaging the childhood home of a former president may not be an accident. the flames broke out early this morning. it was at bill clinton's old house. smoke and water damaged much of the inside. clinton spent first four years living in the home with his grand parents. it is a national historic site. investigators are treating it as a potential arson and called in the feds to help. a lot of people may have

found a hoverboard under the tree. they are a hot item this year. but they may be too hot. retailers are dropping them and airlines are banning them. are they a lawsuit waiting to happen. >> thank you for being with us. >> good morning. >> and good afternoon to and i am sure people received a hoef every board under the tree. amazon sites have pulled it down. and one caused a and how long before p the company is sued for this? >> what is interesting. they predicted all of the great products we are going to have.

but they didn't talk p how much they would be making from the hears. under strict liability. the retailers and directors are liable as well. only thing they need to prove is using it for the intended use. >> how does that work? who's fault is it? >> the company said they overchashlged and is that fare, though? >> it could be the manufacturer overseas. can we sue them? >> the case that governs this. and there has to be minimum contacts in the u.s. and foresee believe that these products are coming in the u.s.

and through a strict liability theories. it could be the manufacturer or distributor or >> would that be art of p it. >> what do you advoez people who are looking to buy one. ? they should buy from best buy or amazon. they would be insureed in case of a lawsuit. if it happen, they would seek relief in the u.s. and one, research your brand. and also buy from a reputable retailer so that you can seek compensation. >> chris angels sued by exfiance

gonzalez, saying she deserves the value of her engagement ring. she reportedly tlou it at the midfreak star when they broke up. does she have a case here. good thing that marriage did not go through. who gets the ring? >> and here's how it works. in nevada, it is a conditional gift theories and so, if you are in a happy and you buy a t- shert or car. that is a gift. you can't say here is what you owe me. and what it means is, you give the individual a ring and you are doing it on the condition is

to be married. that means the condition is not met. and chris angel has right to the ring. and the ex- if i apse doesn't. and she will not be in court. >> this she have congress is sandra dht gonzalez's attorney. the that is chris angel. he can sue for the return of the ring. if they are looking at a lawsuit, i would urge him to file a big counter lawsuit and get back the five caret ring and all of the other gifts. >> you might be met with a lawsuit and no ring. merry christmas to you. >> thank you. leland? >> boy, it sure did not feel

like christmas here in the noeast. and now now pounding california. we'll tell you what it means for california. and holidays are wrapping up but what you can do to make a difference. we'll have that next. >> i wanted to wish all of my friends and family merry christmas and's happy new happy

christmas and's happy ne happya rrn

. well can be their iconic red kettles and bell rings were out during christmas but the salvation army works year-round to help these in need. helping with the hungry to providing is help to those in disaster relief. so how did the christmas season turn out for you guys? >> well, it's a little early to know. going into the final week we were just about 1% behind last year on christmas kettles. that's real close. and we really feel like that with some the good weather we've had around the country, and big shopping days, that hopefully we pass last year. last year we raised $144.7

million. this year we hope we pass that in the kettles. >> retailers talk about how the time from black friday to christmas is compressed this year because thanksgiving was so much later. did that hurt you guys same way it hurts retailers. >> oh, it does. and everyday, when there are fewer days. and when we don't have those christmas kettles out there, there are some 23 to 25,000 locations everyday between thanksgiving and the -- and christmas eve. and you lose a day and that can have significant impact. >> and i can also imagine with more people doing on-line shopping and less shopping out in malls and in stores and on main street, there are less people with kettles. do you have a way to combat on-line shopping with on-line giving? >> we certainly have pushed on-line giving. we have seen double-digit growth

the last five years in on-line giving and more and more people are doing that. but those iconic red kettles have been around for 125 years and people see them and they see them and they think i need to make a donation to the salvation army. sometimes they may not have the cash in their pocket but go home and go to either salvation army usa.org and make the gifts over the phone or over their computer. and we've seen some good growth in that area over the past five years. >> you make good point. it is hard to walk past one of those kettles without feeling like you need to put a couple dollars in. whether you do or not is up to you. but where does it go once it hits the kettle? >> well every year the salvation army serves about 30 million people, that's a person about every second. even though unemployment is low there are still families out there are struggling.

don't have the means of providing a nice christmas dinner. don't have the means of providing new toys and clothes for their children and so the salvation army is there. millions of children during this holiday season will get a gift from the salvation army because of the generosity of the american people. >> there's a lot of generosity as we have seen on the streets there and also because of the generosity of you and others at the salvation army, and doing good work and doing good work at this time of year and we appreciate your service, sir. >> thank you very much. have a wonderful christmas and god bless you. >> merry christmas to you and yours. abbey, what's coming up? >> he just makes you want to be a better person. >> he does. >> good man. >> and that's hard for me. let's move on now. >> this is sad news here. deadly shooting at a mall on one of the busiest shopping days of the year. shoppers forced to evacuate as the mall went on lock down. what we are now learning about who was responsible for starting that conflict and what event led

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a weather pattern leads with el nino. we are seeing heavy snow in the west and temperatures 30 to 40 degrees above average all along the eastern seaboard. good afternoon, everyone. a very merry christmas to you. welcome to this special edition of america's news headquarters. >> doesn't feel like christmas in new york city. >> no, it's hot, hot, hot. >> shorts weather. this not a typical christmas here in new york. people can walk around without a coat. people in coats are sweating. but on the west coast, there is so much snow, that the ski slopes are overwhelmed. but if you ask a skier, there is not too much powder.

you can see the temperatures there across the country. 62 in new york. 44 all the way up in northern maine. will is live in los angeles. willie, is it possible it is colder in l.a. than here right now? >> reporter: yeah, quite possible. you mentioned a reversal. normally here it is clear but we are seeing a lot of rain and snow. there is an el nino, that could be one of the strongest we've ever seen. a welcome christmas gift as california is still in the four-year historic drought which cost the state more than $1.8 billion and more than 10,000 jobs in 2015 alone. also decimated the state's snow pack. we have an image to put it in perspective for you. check out the side by side pictures from nasa. you can see the snow pack in 2010 compared to 2015. a lot of that snow is simply vanished. bad news because california gets 60% of its water from the snow pack in the sierra nevada mountain range but a bit of good

news though because california and a lot of the west coast seeing more snow than it has in previous years thanks to the el nino. the sierra nevada snow pack is higher than average for this time of year. something that hasn't happened in quite sometime. but experts say that we need more and that this point, leeland, the drought is far from over. >> we will see what el nino has to do about that. now on to a topic near and dear to both of our hearts here. what does this mean for skiing up in the high country? >> yeah, that's right. as you can imagine, a lot of people around here haven't seen much snow in recent years. new that we are getting that powder. people are racing out to enjoy the snow as much as possible on christmas eve. we saw people all up and down the west coast. skiers, snowboarders, taking on everything from the green to double blacks, including in mt. hood in oregon where they say the conditions were perfect. >> last year was so bad. we didn't get to see last year.

so we're looking forward to it. >> there is way more snow for last year's whole total at this point. it well surpassed it. a great year! came up for skiing and snowboarding. mother nature hasn't disappointed. >> hasn't disappointed so much that even santa claus right there on a snowboard took on the action in big bear, california. just slicing up the powder there. having a great christmas eve before he had to take off and get all those gifts to all the kids all around the world, leeland. >> will, i'm glad you cleared it up that it was santa who headed out because i thought maybe it was you in the costume. you've got some moves out there, man. >> i'm a skier, you know. see, i can't do that. >> will, with presents as well. we will work on it for next year. thanks, will. >> yeah. merry christmas. >> you too. >> all right, sad news here. christmas tragedy in nigeria. as many as a hundred people killed in a gas plant explosion.

waiting in line it get cooking gas for the holiday. a tanker truck sparked the gas, claiming the operator just dropped off fresh gas but failed to let the vehicle cool down before driving away. many victims burned beyond recognition. >> and deadly christmas eve shooting at north carolina mall packed with shoppers and sparked by a fight. police say a shooting in north carolina was no act of violence but two groups of people who knew each other got into a fight around 2:00 in the afternoon. it ended when an off-duty officer shot a teenager who pointed a gun in his direction. the 18-year-old died. there was plenty of chaos. >> i was running for my life. i didn't know. >> you see like this mass crowd running into our store and we hear about five gunshots right there probably within 20 or 30 feet from our door.

>> the officer who fired his weapon is now on administrative leave pending the outcome of an investigation there. >> abbey has been telling me she got me a christmas present -- >> i have? >> yes. it hasn't arrived yet but there is still hope for those still waiting for our christmas packages. fedex said bad weather and last-minute orders are slowing down deliveries but some employees are spending holidays volunteering, or so the company says, to make sure your gifts make it under the tree. kristin fisher, not exactly volunteering today, but she is working and figuring out what fedex is doing it catch up. hey, kristin. >> hey. fedex has asked volunteers to come in on christmas day to deliver packages. it also opened up fedex express offices across the country so people could pick up packages in person if that's what they wanted to do. a spokesperson says fedex is doing everything possible to

deliver things on christmas despite heavier than planned shipments. part of the problem has been that the company's main hub is based in memphis tennessee. as you saw, that city was hit hard in days leading up to christmas. that's one reason we see so many fedex delays and as many as ups. ups has had a few delays but nothing close to fedex. >> ups had all these problem before and this year fedex. it has to be blowing up social media when people are taking pictures of their free and saying, where is my presents, fedex. >> it hasn't been a pretty response for fedex on social media. the fedex twitter account is inundated with folks who are furious their packages didn't make it in time for christmas morning. one person wrote on twitter, grinch of the season is fedex who doesn't meet the 4:30

deadline. ten days to get one one-pound package 51 miles and it's not here. thank for ruining a child's christmas. this woman wrote, fedex just delivered a package on christmas day. merry christmas fedex workers working on christmas day. i can't end with a bad tweet on christmas. >> that's your personality. hashtag thanks, kristin. >> pope francis delivered his annual christmas message calling for peace around the world. including an end to brutal acts of terrorism impacting millions across the globe this year. meantime, amid ongoing violence in the holy land, worshippers there praying for peace during mass at the church.

john huddy is there live in jerusalem. john, good afternoon to you. >> yeah. good evening. it's evening now here. seven hours ahead of you guys. but that said, praying for peace. yeah, peace and fractured region. fractured by the ongoing political unrest. and of course the ongoing violence. as we've been showing, there was the traditional christmas mass at the church of the nativity. latin patriarch of jerusalem leading mass as he does every year. the message was about peace. and justice. and hope for reconciliation. you could hear the choir there very serene, very serene scene. while there is hope that today would remain calm that was not the case. palestinian protesters as we saw clashed with israeli border police, not far from the manger square, the nativity, an area

where we have been in before, in fact in october rioting. it has been a violent week all together with attacks on israelis in the west bank and also a deadly attack here in jerusalem. now today you mentioned pope francis's christmas message. he also appealed for peace here in the holy land, calling on israelis and palestinians to resume direct dialogue and reach an agreement that he said quote, would enable the two people to live together in harmony under conflict which has long set them at odds with grave repercussions and the grave repercussions continued here. israeli police shot and killed a palestinian woman in the west bank who they say tried to ram her car into a group of israeli police. >> sad news there. thanks for that report, john. >> as we get closer to the primaries, yes, they are coming. five weeks to iowa. some republicans are growing concern over what nominations

would donald trump or ted cruz could mean for senate seats across the country, controlling the senate. of course up once again. plus, deadly batch of storms sweeping through the southeast. people are spending christmas cleaning up and mourning those left dead by these twisters. >> just start here and just took the house. >> i have something. my neighbors have nothing. their whole house is gone. gone.

merry christmas to you and yours. thanks for staying with us. this december, the iraqi government is looking ahead to its fight geps isis. the prime minister there says troops will move to retake mosul from isis once they have regained control of ramadi.

which as you can see on the map is just west of baghdad. it is edging toward the center of the city with help from u.s. ksh led air strikes but snipers, bombs and booby traps have significantly slowedite racky's progress. military leaders and launching offensive and to retake mosul, isis held ramadi from back in may and according to experts isis losing ramadi would be a major blow to that terrorist group. >> all right. presidential race may be getting the most headlines heading into the primaries, but not the only race going on. republicans have 24 senate seats this november. ten of them in actually very competitive states. growing concern at the potential impacts that nominating donald trump or ted cruz would have on efforts to retain those seats. joining us now, the bureau chief

at talk radio news services and fox news contributor, former campaign aide and aide to george w. bush. hello and merry christmas. >> thank you. >> thank you. >> obviously everyone is talking about the presidential election but there are very important seats we should be following including senator ayotte of new hampshire, senator kirk of illinois. what do you see happen in these two races if you do see a nomination for donald trump or ted cruz. more on the conservative end of things. i think a gift to the republican party because donald trump sp bringing huge crowds an big interest. and as kelly ayotte, because of her record, because of her more moderate record in voting for things that perhaps president obama versus conservatives. i think that donald trump and ted cruz and especially donald trump will be the saving grace

for those people. because if they are going to barely win, i believe that donald trump can move the people to vote and help put them over the edge so he is really a gift to them whether they know it or not. >> how are democrats watching this, are they thinking, let's get someone more conservative as a nomination because that harder to win in a general election that will therefore impact other local races going on or could you see it as the opposite? >> well, first of all, all politics local tip o'neill, though he didn't invent the phrase, and what is happening in new hampshire is an absolute tie between the democrat and republican. the republican being the senator. democrat been the governor of the state and so what we're going to see is how do these people impact locally. now if donald trump were to win the race with a big amazing amount of people or the presumptive nominee hillary clinton wines a lot they may have what is called in the business coat tails. that the possible. but i think really what the

going to happen is the people are going to vote by who they know and all of that is local. this all obviously impacts what happens in washington, d.c. what is the impact of potentially republicans losing some of these local races? what does that then mean for the house and senate? >> it is never good. politics is local. ellen is exactly right. with donald trump in the movements and he is moving the masses and that's going to have it down to the local level. so people aren't concerned or crazy. this is a good thing. and when president bush got elected, people were excited about him. and we pulled it out. unfortunately with romney and also with mccain, the heart wasn't there. people weren't really into it. and now with donald trump, we're seeing the pendulum turn to the other side. so it is good on the local level, good on the state level,

federal and of course, presidential. i think republicans are on a sweep. and donald trump, this movement is very good for the republican party. >> this excitement, does that translate to general election success. >> it depends of course who the candidate are and how they present themselves. we have never seen anybody who is in this stage, this far ahead, and winding up being the nominee and in recent times so we don't know whether donald trump is the noe nominee or whether it is is not tore cruz or rubio or somebody else. the big poll is on voting day. however, the sweep is going to depend on whether people are excited and get out of their houses and get to the hol. >> we have seen on the polls, and where he does does in recent poll says going up against hillary clinton as the republican that has worked on presidential candidates and does that concern you in he is nominee that he is unable to win a general election.

>> i cannot wait. >> and they debate and i think she will be a pop gun up against a rocket launcher. she has no chance it win the debate. it great and wonderful even he is a winner. >> it will be interesting to watch. thank you so much for being with us. we appreciate it. >> thank you. >> merry christmas. >> back to you. >> and check out this. stuck in a time warp, a beautiful biproduct. where vintage american cars still roll down the street. why you may want to stock up in american auto parts. i will tell you why coming up. hey, everybody. i wanted it say merry christmas to my wife kelly in aurora, colorado and the rest of my family in michigan.

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hard to imagine time flies but it a been a year since the u.s. moved to reestablish ties with cuba. now car collectors and auto parts dealers both see an opportunity in the island nation. nation that for decades have made-do with preembargo automobiles. think cars, people. rich recently travelled to havana to check it out.

rich, are these american car collectors excited about what they might find in cuba? >> absolutely, leeland. the potential is limited. there are 60,000 pre1960 american cars in cuba. so the regime inhibited imports since the eisenhower administration. many are peaced together with other international parts. still, one american classic car insurer says there could be a market for collectors in cuba. he said quote the holy grail would be finding one of the race cars in the cuban grand prix from 1957, 1958, 1960, secondly would be to find that ultimate barn find, pre1960s car stashed away to make a perfect survivor car or perfect car for restoration. even with the cars rigged with modern parts they could have parts with quintessentially cuban, leeland. >> it may be some time before they can bring cars here, but it

is an opportunity for folks to send car part and everything else needed back down there in cuba? >> u.s. companies are beginning to explore cuba. there is more potential for some industries over others. american auto parts companies are beginning to establish relationships on the island. hoping to sell cuban car owners american parts for their american cars. >> you can see cars here from the late '60s you know. a lot of cars from russia. a lot of cars from korea. so very diverse. not the same as the states but we can adapt to that. >> as with other businesses, the u.s. embargo is in place and still has defenders in congress, would enrich the castro regime and even if they scrap the embargo, they remain overly bureaucratic and state controlled. leeland? >> we will see what the next president has to say about all of this as well. rich edson on christmas day

after coming back from havana. still working on the tan. thanks, rich. >> absolutely. >> american soldiers serving in afghanistan celebrating christmas at bagram airspace today just days after a suicide bomber took the lives of six american serving in nato operations. while they are away from their friends and family, keeping loved ones close in their minds. >> i wish i was there having dinner with him. i have a job i have to do. so that's the sacrifice i have to make. >> bagram is one of the main bases for u.s. soldiers serving with nato forces. >> it is amazing when you talk to american service members that come home from overseas. one thing they say that means so much to them is the lengths the military goes to give them a christmas dinner. they fly turkeys in. >> right now, they are cleaning

up after a series of deadly storms swept through that area. we will tell you the latest on the severe weather and also where it is heading next. also, the things our next says will definitely happen to your business. something will definitely happen. we will put it to the test, coming up. ♪ play hard, work hard ♪ play hard, work, work, work

a severe storm slamming the midwest leaving at least 14 people dead and many more injured. people are now cleaning up the mess left behind by twisters, high winds and flooding. seven people killed in mississippi, six in tennessee and one in arkansas. and rough weather could last through the weekend. rick is live for us from the new york city newsroom. the worst may be over but they are not out of harm's way yet. >> the misery continues, heavy rains today causing flooding, mudslides and road closures in alabama, georgia and north carolina. soaking some who are still recovering from this week's twisters. >> planes on ground determining the amount of damage that has

occurred not only from the amount of homes that have been destroyed or heavily damaged and we can help bring in the primary or preliminary damage assessment teams. >> governor of mississippi speaking after nearly 20 tornadoes reporting across 10 states. more could develop with prolonged downpours and thunder storms and at least 40 people have already been hurt along with the 14 killed that you mentioned. and a boy found in a fan but was thrown by the wind. >> in the northeast all about the sun seasonably warm weather. leeland, can't stop sweating in here. >> it is hot in the building and outside as well. this is a christmas unlike any other. hundreds of marks falling yesterday and today including the christmas eve high of 72 degrees in central park, warmest

ever for at least the past 150 years and we want to show you some other new record-high numbers. boston, hitting 69. that broke the old record by 8 degrees. syracuse, 68. up 10 from the previous high set 40 years ago. philadelphia up 7 degrees. norfolk up to 82 yesterday. some folks in the northeast went surfing yesterday. others hit the ice or did last-minute shopping. some wearing t-shirts and short. >> too hot and i can't figure out if i need a vest. if it's of getting cold again. >> it will. soon enough. forecasters do expect more rortds to be broken this weekend with an expected high of 67 in new york city on sunday but we will see temperatures dip into the 40s and maybe even 30s next week, abby. >> unbelievable. i can't say many of us are

complaining. rick levanthal, thank you for that. >> of course. isis sanctioned harvesting of organs from captives. said to provide religious backing for organ harvesting under the group's interpretation of islam. also in the middle east, palestinian protesters clashing with police in bethlehem on christmas day. this after months of rising violence there and reports of yet another attack in the west bank where israeli police shot and killed a palestinian woman. they say she tried to ram her vehicle into a group of officers trying to then control the rioting. president obama enjoying christmas with his family in hawaii in between rounds of golf. first family is visiting veterans. president and first lady also used his weekly address to highlight the importance of helping our troops.

>> who gets predecks when we can have sure things and a columnist has a list of six things he says will definitely happen to your business come next year. that columnist gene marks, also a cpa, joins us now. you're sure about this? >> 100% sure. everybody is making predecks about what is going to happen next year. but now i got six things that are absolutely going to happen. particularly if you're running a small business. >> go ahead. >> number one, health insurance. that's one of the biggest line items from business owners running a company absolutely going to be increasing next year. average cost for small business will go up between 8 and 12%. if you are unlucky enough to run a business in tennessee or montana you can see increased rates between 30% and 50% next year. >> people saying in nashville, prices are skyrocketing. >> beautiful place to run a business but not so great if you're looking to pay. >> that's one guarantee.

what's next? >> cost of employee is go willing up. >> and coming down? >> guaranteed in 2016. department of labor will be issuing new rules for overtime. so right now, if you are paying somebody more than $20,000 a year but less than 50,000, you're not paying overtime as salaried worker, that will change. if you pay them up to $50,440, you have to pay them overtime as well bp that's a guaranteed thing to happen in 2016. that's going to increase compensation. >> and consumers, credit cards, mortgage, everything else going up. >> yes. small interest rate increase. next year predicting it is either .25 or .20 or 50 cents on the dollar. but my prediction is, interest rates are going up next year. if you are looking for capital or loans for your business it will cost you more in interest. >> you have these three issues affecting small businesses in particular that create so much of the economic engine of

america. what does this mean for people who don't own a business but who work for all these businesses. for a, woulder, do i care that my employers pay for health insurance? >> what does it mean that it is more? they are not motivated to employ more people or make those investments. what they do is turn around for them employees and say listen, we need you to work harder or outsource more work as well. it impacts you. it will have that impact. . >> if you look at the presidential spectrum and we won't get into the individual politics but we think about what a bernie sanders presidency versus a ted cruz presidency or marco rubio presidency would mean for economically in america, what is that uncertainty over the next year mean for business owners? >> there is some certainty for business owners in washington because the congress is only going to be in session, leeland, like 111 days. which means they are taking about eight months off.

>> they couldn't agree to much with a lot more days this year. so who knows. >> from a congressional and legal standpoint, not a whole lot of legislation passed that will be affecting my business or a lot of clients. that's good thing. however, the presidential election, that's a lot of uncertainty. i tell my client, if you are happy under president obama administration, and i have plenty of client who have done well mr. obama, you will see the same under hillary clinton or bernie sanders, which is worse in my opinion. however, we have a lot of client that has not done well over president obama. it has been a slow economy. so you will probably look at republican candidate. look at the election year. a big election affecting 28 million small business owners. >> gene added to the list of sure things in addition to debt and taxes. we have your prediction. we will see you here next christmas to see how you did. all the best. thanks so much. >> abby, what's coming up? >> a shocking story of rape on

the campus of one of the most historic universities. only problem, rolling stones rape on campus story was not true. now some men implicated by the discredited stories are suing. vikings are suing wells fargo because they put a sign on one of their buildings, but where it is located could be the bases of a photo bombing. a brand new stadium. that's next. feel secure in your dentures... feel free to be yourself all day. just switch from denture paste to sea-bond denture adhesive seals. holds stronger than the

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welcome back. rolling stone this week asking a judge to throw out a lawsuit, a group of fraternity brothers filed against a magazine over

its feature "a rape on campus." the story detailed an alleged gang rape on the university of virginia. but the story was challengeed. police could find no evidence to back up its claims and rolling stone eventually retracted the piece and had to apologize for it. the suit the magazine wants tossed from three fraternity brothers who claimed the piece implicated them and damaged their reputations. thank you both for being with us. >> thank you. >> let's start with the fact we saw this coming, right, erin? it was only a matter of time before the magazine would be sueed. they've been sued by multiple parties. and i think in this particular case, the rolling stones have a very good strong argument for getting this case dismissed on the grounds that these parties have not been injuryed. when you're suing for defamation you have to prove four things. first prove there was a publication, falsity, that there

was injuries and in the case of a private individual, you need to show negligence on the part of the publisher. here, rolling stone is saying, you don't have standing. you're not identified by name. while that may not necessarily be fatal to a claim for defamation, the fact of the matter is, if no one can identify you, you couldn't have been injured. if the only people who knew it was your room in the fraternity were the alleged assault took place were your mom and pop and buddies, there's really no way to know how could you have been injured. a potential employer for example wouldn't have known it was your room. to say, wait, that the alleged rapist in the rolling stone article, we're not going to hire him. i think rolling stone has a fair point to get this case dismissed. >> these three guys suing rolling stone, they feel they have a good case here. they feel they were treated wrongfully. they think they can win this. >> absolutely. well, the issue is, we live in a different age.

we live in the age of social media. so as soon as their individual friend did identify the fact that this took place in their room and involved these particular boys, they published that information and that became the source of the rumor that started this whole thing. that is injury. they will always be a associated with this incident. this is a major news outlet. rolling stone magazine is a huge publication that reaches so many people. so to be the subject of this story is absolutely -- >> i have a feeling this is not ending any time soon. stick with us. i want your thoughts on this story. the minnesota vikings building a new multibillion dollar stadium set to open next season. giving prime naming rights to broad. but knowing how much they love the fly-over aerial shots one of the competitors wells fargo bought signage right next door. the minnesota vikings now suing wells fargo saying the bank is trying to photo bomb its new

stadium. does the team have a case here in erin, help me understand what wells fargo is doing wrong here. >> well, i think the vikings are trying to show that wells fargo is basically infringing on its property rights by putting up a sign right in the vantage point of where the stadium will be built. usurping the vikings rights to be able to advertise as it wants. and to have the right of publicity. >> are they? wells fargo is paying for their space. >> but they are are right next door. they are not -- you're not allowed to infringe on another person's property rights even though you happen to be right next door to them. >> erin, i will read a quote from the vikings complaint saying wells fargo recently started installing mounted and illuminating rooftop signs that do not conform to the agreement

to. >> if there's an agreement that's one thing but at the end of the day the vikings have the right and unilateral right to determine how they are going to show signage, how they will advertise. and are not going to be able to -- they don't want to allow another party coming in and basically just contradict everything that's been agreed to and trespass upon their own rights and their own rights of property owners. >> all right, how do you get out of this one? >> our sign is on private property. no infringement. no standing to be sued in this incident and just because our sign happens to be in your vantage point doesn't necessarily mean that we should be subjected to a lawsuit for that. that would be my argument. we put it on our property. there is no infringement. no violation of contract. no agreement that's been violated. therefore, have you no right to sue us. >> interesting. thank you for being with us on christmas. we appreciate it. >> thank you.

merry christmas. >> of course. thanks for having us. >> isis militant to stop aid intended for a refugee camp could finally be allowing it to go through. we will tell what you the u.n. brokered deal could mean for the fight against terror in the middle east. and the first family is spending the holidays in hawaii, of all places. that wasn't hawaii. we will tell you what the president is spending his day doing and his message to americans this christmas day. >> hi i'm corporal hammersmith. i would like to wish my family and wife shannon a happy holiday. you never know when it'll be your moment to shine.

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there's some new efforts to tell you about this to help refugees escaping the ongoing war in syria. the plan is now in the works to restore aid to a refugee camp in the city of damascus. aid was denied when thousands of militants ill fill transplanted the camp. the militanted and their families could be forced out. kevin cork is with 0 president obama, and the united states is part of the deal. kevin, merry christmas. second of all, what is the idea behind giving all these isis militants safe passage out of a camp to their capital? >> there's no easy way to sort of frame this. you're talking about thousands of people that are stuck in the area, stuck in a cross-fire between competing interests.

what is happening now when you have militants stuck in that area, they're preventing international aid from getting to the people who most desperately need . so they're trying to broker the deal, the u.n. to get the milosevic tenants out to raqqa and get the aid to those who need it. experts are telling us that the fact that damascus is making side deals with isis and even some moderates i troublesome for u.s. policy. >> at some point, the regime will find that freeing and liberateing it southern flank in damascus, they would like to see less isis and more isis so they would cute the deal -- would cut the deal even though they will reinforce isis in other areas. each one has their own specific agenda. >> bottom line, my friend, think of it this way. if u.s. policy is enhanced it is so if assad is either further

isolate or if somehow you marginalize what he is able to do, but as he is able to make more deals that would seem to embold 'him and that's a net neglect tv for -- negative. >> you're in hawai'i, 10:00 a.m. there in hawai'i. any idea how the president is spending his day? >> reporter: my man, he is not out here with us. he is probably over at the compound relaxing with his family. he comes here every christmas and if today is any indication of what we expect, it's going to be more of the same. food, family, and fun for the commander in chief and the first family. however before they opened gifts the president and the first lady actually had a chance to record the annual address for the nation on christmas. a christmas message always one of giving more than getting and in this case encouraging us a towel do what you took help out

veterans by going to a web site that they set up, joining forces.gov, an opportunity for you at home and for me here in hawai'i to think about how we can do more to help those who are really in need, among them, our most precious resource in many ways and that is the veterans who make it possible for us to be safe and to enjoy holidays like these. it's joining forces.gov. >> spend time thinking about that while you're on the beach drinking a pin ya co latta for us. >> you got it. >> merry christmas, kevin, all the best. >> see you, bud. >> i absolutely love the story. a philadelphia high school lunch lady revealing a hidden talent completely bringing down the house. listen to this. ♪ ♪

>> wow. she blew away the crowd but is apparently no stranger to singing in front of people. her secret, being a music director at her father's church for 30 years. you know, this is why i love those reality talent shows we have these days because you realize just how many people among us that never get recognized, how incredibly talented they are. i'm not saying that you're one of these talents. >> i heard that you had a hidden talent. >> not be singing on this show. >> there we go. >> coming up ahead, shep are smith hosts a special hour look back at the top stories of 2015. everything from the california terror attacks to "deflategate" to llamas on the loose, coming up on the fog news -- fox news channel. try alka-seltzer heartburn reliefchews. they work fast and don't taste chalky. mmm...amazing. i have heartburn. alka-seltzer heartburn reliefchews.

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hehow was the playdate and sleepover? dad, it was great! awesome! ok, i'm on my way. hey guys! what are you doin'? we're going swimming! we're going biking! yeah! i'll see you in a little bit, guys!

i love you! hi babe! how was school today? hi dad, it was great! ok, honey, i'll be home soon. remember, you're never too far away from your kids, to be a dad. reach out and take a second to check in... because sometimes, the smallest moments can have the biggest impact on a child's life. >> the surf was up on christmas eve with hundreds of santas on surfboards, catching some waves

for charity at the seventh annual surfing santa event. >> it is hot out there. >> it's hot in the northeast. hope you had a great christmas. >> have a good day. >> this year we saw widening wars, and terrorism overseas. [sirens] >> and violence that hit us at home. >> they yelled down the hall and said, there's a shooting downstairs. >> we saw images of agony. and scenes of hope. along with wild times in politics. >> we will have so much winning if i get elected, that you may get bored with winning. >> and don't worry. we didn't forget about the llamas. >> we seem to see all kinds of we'reness in new york, but not llamas. >> now some of the most