>> no? that's what's making news in america this morning. ♪ making news in america this morning, rail disaster. the new details on what happened just seconds before this amtrak train derailed sending cars crashing onto a busy highway killing at least 3 people and leaving more than 100 injured. >> there was a point where the shaking got extremely violent, and that's exactly when i knew something bigger was going to happen. >> one survivor explains how he escaped with his train car suspended in the air, and this morning, the hero driver below who pulled so many to safety. decision day on capitol hill. the republican tax plan moves one step closer to becoming law. supporters respond to a new estimate claiming the richest 1% of americans will see most of the benefits. resign?

the new push to get al franken back in the senate despite accusations of sexual misconduct. plus, redefining green energy. how scientists are creating plants that can glow in the dark. and drinking with dunkin. one of america's top coffee brands brews a whole new kind of adult beverage. a good tuesday morning. investigators have revealed that amtrak train that derailed in washington state was speeding going 80 miles per hour in a 30-mile-per-hour zone. >> yeah, we learned that just a few moments ago, and three people were killed and dozens injured on a track that was just recently upgraded. this morning the survivors are sharing their terrifying details about the moments before the crash. >> and we're hearing the here roaric stories of those who rushed in to help as that train dangled over a busy expressway. abc's maggie rulli joins us from dupont, washington. maggie, good morning. >> reporter: diane and kendis, good morning.

right behind me you can see that is where that train jumped off the tracks crashing directly onto cars traveling on this highway below. authorities here now are desperately trying to figure out exactly what went wrong. an early morning commute interrupted by chaos. >> amtrak 501. emergency, emergency. >> reporter: amtrak train 501 had just left seattle and was heading towards portland. the ntsb says preliminary findings from the data recorder show the train was traveling at 80 miles per hour near the curve where the speed should have been reduced to 30 miles per hour. >> they're requesting all possible units. there are bodies on the freeway. >> reporter: 136 its cars careened off both sides of the overpass crashing directly onto interstate 5 below. >> oh, my god. that train is derailed. >> and my car started shaking really, really badly. >> reporter: daniel and his girlfriend were on their way to work when they saw the derailment. he rushed in to help. >> people were in shock, and a lot of them initially when they

got out of the train, they just went and they sat down with their heads -- with their face in the palm of their hands. >> reporter: the crash happened on a new line for amtrak. this train carrying its first paying customers. just last month in the nearby town of lakewood mayor don anderson warned about the possibility of a crash. >> when there is an accident because this project -- >> reporter: a federal report following a 2015 amtrak derailment said there were safety lapses at amtrack. >> it's something that was mandated by law long ago but amtrak has been slow to implement it. >> reporter: crews have been out here working throughout the night. one officer i spoke to said he could not believe what he saw on the scene. that it almost looked unreal like someone had just taken toy train cars and tossed them around. diane and kendis. >> yeah, they certainly look like that was the case and the rain is not making it any easier

for those crews out there, maggie, thank you. the derailment highlighting how train technology in the united states has not kept pace with other countries like japan where there is more automation and speed control. >> the president tweeted the train accident shows more than ever why our soon-to-be submitted infrastructure plan must be approved quickly. his budget plan has proposed slashing certain subsidies for amtrak in favor of future transit projects that are locally funded. >> of course, we'll keep our eyes on that. in the meantime, new concerns being raised after that travel nightmare at the atlanta airport after that power outage which led to 1,100 flights being canceled being blamed on a fire inside a tunnel. the investigation is expected to take days. but the big question is why one tunnel carries both the main power lines and 9 backup lines to the airport. operations are returning to normal today, although some passengers will have to wait until thursday for a flight. the outage could cost delta air lines an estimated $30 million.

congressional republicans are counting down to the biggest tax overhaul in decades with the first vote just hours away. every gop senator is now a yes on the bill which president trump is eager to sign before christmas. meanwhile, a new nonpartisan study predicts the wealthiest 1% of americans stand to benefit the most. abc's arlette saenz has more from washington. good morning, arlette. >> reporter: hey, good morning, diane and kendis. republicans are on the brink of handing president trump his first major legislative win but some argue the gop tax plan won't be a win for all americans. president trump is ready to push the gop tax plan over the finish line. >> it will be the biggest tax cut and tax reform in the history of our country. >> reporter: but on capitol hill, protesters urged lawmakers to say no. [ chanting "this is what democracy looks like"] >> reporter: who benefits and who loses out? the bill is a boon for big business and permanently slashes the corporate tax rate from 35% to 21%. for the wealthy, the top tax

rate is lowered for more than 39% to 37%. republicans insist the tax plan is aimed at the middle class. >> if people are out there working for a living and feel more money in their pocket they'll like the tax cut. >> reporter: but the individual tax cuts expire after eight years and a new analysis found in a decade 70% of middle income americans would see a tax hike while 76% of the wealthiest would receive a tax cut. and that year, the wealthiest 1% would reap 83% of the benefits. >> that's just cherry-picking the numbers. we've just finished eight years of washington spending your money. let's try eight years of you spending your money. >> reporter: those living in states with high property and income taxes like new york could also lose out. the bill caps state and local property and income tax write-offs at $10,000. >> nothing good. especially for the republicans. >> reporter: the bill also repeals the obamacare mandate requiring all americans buy insurance that could lead to 13

million more americans uninsured. as of right now no republican senators oppose the bill and only a small group of house moderate republicans are expected to vote no. the bill could likely be on president trump's desk by the end of the week. diane and kendis. >> all right, our thanks to arlette saenz there in d.c. it looks like the russia investigation won't be ending any time soon. sourcers tell "the washington post" the investigation could last for at least another year. the report comes as white house lawyers prepare to meet with special counsel robert mueller's office this week. the trump team is apparently looking to find out where things stand. but mueller is under no obligation to share that information. and the trump administration is now blaming north korea for a massive cyberattack last may targeting hospitals and schools. a top security official says north korea is directly to blame for that ran some ware attack that crippled many

he warns north korea is increasingly resorting to cyberattacks calling for the public and private sectors to work together to boost protectioned. meanwhile, north korea is rejecting rex tillerson's offer to hold new talks and kim jong-un's regime dismissed the offer as an attempt to shift responsibility for current tensions. >> time now for a look at your weather on this tuesday morning. there are new fears of another extreme drought in southern california. los angeles has seen less than 1 inch of rain in ten months. the thomas fire north of l.a. is now 50% contained, and we've learned a cooking fire at a homeless camp is now blamed for starting a fire in riverside county, as well as the one in bel air. as for the nation's temperatures, they're mostly moderate. a storm is bringing rain and thunderstorms from texas to the carolinas through tomorrow. atlanta will see 64 degrees. miami 82. coming up, a decision from president trump's nominee for a federal judge after he struggled to answer some basic legal questions.

and also ahead, caught on camera, a home goes up in flames. how a high-tech doorbell sounded the alarm. and a 5-year

(tiffany) ask yourself what your children or cigarettes. for as long as i can remember, my mother smoked. she died from lung cancer when i was 16. i could not take the chance of continuing smoking and not being here for my daughter.

i know how much i needed my mom still, and i didn't realize it until i had lost her. you can quit. for free help, call 1-800-quit-now. have you ever tried a jury trial? >> i have not. >> civil? >> no. >> criminal? >> no. >> bench? >> no. >> that, of course, was one of president trump's judicial nominees being questioned by republican senator from louisiana, john kennedy. >> matthew petersen had been nominated for a lifelong seat but struggled in the hearing to answer basic legal questions and now petersen has withdrawn his nomination. >> yeah, he's saying that he doesn't want to be a continued distraction. senator kennedy said he had no idea that petersen lacked experience for this post.

>> but just because you've seen "my cousin vinny" doesn't qualify you to be a federal judge, and he has no litigation experience. >> all right. he brought up "my cousin vinny." >> two utes. >> yes. so, senator kennedy says that president trump told him that white house staffers chose petersen as a nominee. >> wish he had worn the "my cousin vinny" suit for the apeerpts as well. some democrats may be floating the idea of al franken remaining in the senate. franken announced he was stepping down because of sexual misconduct allegations, but he hasn't yet set a resignation date. now, fellow democrats including senator joe manchin say the pressure put on franken to resign was wrong, and democrat patrick leahy has reportedly said he regrets calling for his resignation. the salvation army says donations to its annual red kettle drive are down but this will help. someone dropped a $200,000 check into a red kettle in minneapolis. the donor wants to stay

anonymous. officials hope this generosity will inspire others. >> very nice. and forget coffee. something new is brewing at dunkin' donuts. the company is releasing a coffee-inspired beer made with dark roast beans. for now it's only available at a massachusetts brewery this thursday to celebrate the official start of winter, but we'll see if it catches on. they're even offering doughnut and beer pairings. >> i like the idea. when we come back kobe bryant's big night l.a. first a lawsuit fueling a new debate. can they charge you for posting a bad review. and why was meryl streep accused of staying silent on harvey weinstein? but when we brought our daughter home that was it. ♪ now i have nicoderm cq. the nicoderm cq patch with unique extended release technology helps prevent your urge to smoke all day.

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>> we took down our smoke detector because we just repainted the entire house, and so without the ring system in place and me getting these alerts, i probably wouldn't have woken up. >> no word yet on what caused that fire, but you can see how much damage was done. we're going to turn now to a story about the consequences you could face when you write a bad review about a company online. >> a woman from indiana claims a hotel actually charged her after she wrote a bad review. katrina arthur says her room at the abbey inn and suites in indianapolis was dirty and the hotel e-mailed her for a review and didn't hold back. she said after that they charged her $350 and then she got a letter from a lawyer threatening legal action. >> i was honest, and i wanted people to know not to waste their money, not to go there because i know people save money for special occasions. >> the state's attorney general filed a lawsuit against the company that owns the hotel. according to the lawsuit, the

hotel policy said customers could be charged for negative reviews if the hotel is not given the opportunity to address the problem first, but the attorney general says customers were never told of that policy. well, actress meryl streep is responding to accusations that she stayed silent about harvey weinstein's alleged sex crimes. streep is among the actors set to wear black at the golden globes to protest sexual harassment. actress rose mcgowan in a now deleted tweet said the silence of people like streep is the problem. streep released a statement which reads in part, not every actor, actress and director who made films that harvey weinstein distributed knew he abused women. he needed me much more than i needed him, and he made sure i didn't know. and we have some new details this morning about the weekend arrest of sarah palin's oldest son. palin called the police herself and police say the victim of the alleged assault was palin's husband who allegedly showed a gun during the dispute. todd palin and 28-year-old track palin were supposedly arguing about a truck. the younger palin was already on

probation for another domestic violence arrest. well, turning now to sports and some drama at the end of monday night's football game. >> and it was a very special night in l.a. highlights from espn. good morning, america. i'm scott van pelt. on monday both the tampa bay buccaneers and los angeles lakers paid homage to the past and we begin on monday night football as jon gruden is welcomed into the buccaneers' ring of honor and they remembered obviously super bowl xxxvii in the victory but it's the falcons that got the win in this one, devonta freeman had a huge night and they got into field goal range and patrick murphy from 54, and it just slides wide and atlanta moves to 9-5. they're currently the last team in the playoffs in the nfc. meanwhile, in the nba kobe bryant had his jerseys, both 8 and 24, retired, and the young lakers squad was inspired to play one of its better games of the year. they're tied with the champion

warriors. off the durant miss here comes kentavious caldwell-pope for the win. missed everything but the floor. the bryants, they got a young kid. they got to go, and ball who had a good game pushes to the rim and david west, huge block, and that seals the victory for golden state as they win it by a score of 116-114. durant, by the way, went for 36 in this one. up next in "the pulse," the former baseball player's unusual and very generous donation to a charity. also ahead, talk about going green. the new plants that glow in the dark. >> ooh. plus, a little boy's 911 call to save christmas. the doctor's office, just for a shot. but why go back there, when you can stay home with neulasta onpro? strong chemo can put you at risk of serious infection.

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♪ okay, "pulse" time here on a tuesday, and you can find president trump at disney world today? >> kind of. it'll actually be his silicone twin. the magic kingdom's hall of presidents is re-opening after a year-long renovation and the president's likeness was just unveiled but plenty of critics are saying it's not the most flattering likeness. >> yeah, so each president has recorded a speech for the attraction since it opened in 1990. mr. trump's figure says in part that to be an american is to be an optimist. a little different message than his inauguration about american carnage. >> so this is kind of like the wax figure taken to a new level because they actually move. they do the robot. >> it's kind of creepy. he's over there above your shoulder. >> you didn't like my robot? i'll just move on. scientists at m.i.t. are on track to redefine green energy.

>> they developed plants that produce light and not just a faint glow but enough to light up streets, parks, even homes. so far they have been successful with spinach, arugula and kale and use an enzyme that make fireflies light up. >> that's leaving us wondering would a salad like this give you a healthy glow? >> or if you go with it, they can do it with tulips, then you could grow a 60-watt bulb. >> i should move on. >> a bulb. okay, former world series mvp cole hamels and his wife are making a massive donation. they donated a 32,000-square-foot house to a camp. >> the camp is for children with special needs and chronic illnesses. the house and land is worth nearly $10 million. hamels and his wife say they made the donation to help make kids' dreams come true. and a little boy in mississippi is breathing a sigh of relief after reporting a would-be thief. >> yeah, 5-year-old tylon here called 911 because he was afraid the grinch would steal christmas and the police showed up at his house and the officer said she

wanted tylon to know that she would not let that happen after hearing his call for help. >> i just want to tell you something. watch for that little grinch because the grinch is gonna steal christmas, okay? >> okay, do you have any adults there with you? >> ma'am, i'm sorry, this is my son playing on the phone. >> no, no, it's fine. it's fine. he called in saying that the grinch was trying to steal his christmas, so it's definitely been the most interesting thing that's happened as far as 911 hangups for me. >> luckily christmas is just fine. fibromyalgia may be invisible to others, but my pain is real. fibromyalgia is thought to be caused by overactive nerves. lyrica is believed to calm these nerves. i'm glad my doctor prescribed lyrica. for some, lyrica delivers effective relief for moderate to even severe fibromyalgia pain. and improves function. lyrica may cause serious allergic reactions, suicidal thoughts or actions.

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let's get up and get going. >> this is abc 7 mornings. >> 4:27 in the a.m. and you're wake with us. good morning to you, it is tuesday, december 19th. >> we will start with mike nicco. >> quiet this morning, but won't be that way this time tomorrow. you can see the clouds, the gray starting to move across the north bay as our next storm is starting to approach. temperatures freezing cold in novato at 32, pretty close in places like san ramone and livermore at 33. oakland, 40, san francisco about 48. take a look at your 12-hour day planner coming up next. how are you watching the roads this morning? >> it's pretty quiet for 4:27. that's how we like it. san matteo bridge the taillights headed across the causeway, looking good for a 15 minute drive over towards san matteo. your east shore commute moving

nicely at the limit. pretty much just road work out there. we will tap around on that when we come back in another couple minutes. we are tracking details on the death of a san francisco police officer who killed himself after being pulled over by police in richmond. >> abc 7 news reporter amy hollyfield live at the richmond police department. >> reporter: her here at the police department planning to get more information about that san francisco officer. here is a look at this crime scene, this is a view from sky 7 above the hilltop mall above the parking lot where a nine year veteran of the san francisco police department shot himself. the license plate is registered to antonio cacatian who is an officer with the san francisco police department. according to the san francisco chronicle, the officer was under an investigation that involved multiple jurisdictions. no other details were released.

the suicide happened at 1:30 yesterday afternoon. we will keep working this story for details. the san francisco police department did offer condolences to the family and a comment to the chronicle. reporting live in richmond, amy hollyfield, abc 7 news. the family of a san bruno woman will hold a news conference in hopes of finding the driver who hit and killed their daughter one year ago today. the news conference will be held it at the intersection of san bruno and cherry avenues where a car hit carly flynn when she was crossing the street. she was walking home from starbucks where she went every day. police believe a white midsized suv hit flynn. the house set to vote on the most sweeping tax overhaul in a generation. if this passes the measure will go to the senate for a vote and that could happen as early as today. as of right now no republican senators oppose the bill and only a small group of house republicans are expected to vote no. this bill could be on the

president's desk by the end of the week. a new analysis of the bill finds in a decade 70% of middling income americans would see a tax hike while 76% of the wealthiest would receive a tax cut. it is 4:30. if you are just joining us let's get a quick update on weather and traffic starting with meteorologist mike nicco. >> we will go back to live doppler 7. i put the clouds into motion. you can see they're going to encroach our neighborhoods from north to south today. let's jump into my accuweather 12 hour planner. temperatures not nearly as warm as they have been. 37 to 44 this morning, 56 to 58 at noon and becoming mainly gray at 4:00, 54 to 58 and by 7:00 we will start tracking light rain in the north bay. more on that next. here is sue. we're headed to the bay bridge toll plaza for our first look at 4:30. a couple cars paying cash at the left hand lanes. otherwise looking good. just a heads up that tollbooth 14 that was taken