making news in america this morning, a senior white house official, one of the president's closest aides, resigns amid allegations of domestic abuse. his ex-wife now speaking out. >> he came and grabbed me by the shoulders here and pulled me out of the shower in a rage. >> new details about when the white house knew about the accusations, and this morning, chief of staff john kelly's new statement after calling him a man of true integrity. an eye-opening warning about a risk on the road. a new study suggests the shocking number of car crashes blamed on drowsy drivers and what needs to be done about it. amazon scam? a couple keeps getting mysterious packages sent to their home even though they didn't order any of them. how this could be tied to a major fraud.

plus, forget facial cream. snails may be the trick for new healthy skin. a sketchy artist. an overly simple drawing is just enough for police to crack the case. and what's happening now to the eagles fan who just had to steal this purple stadium seat from the super bowl? just put that on my luggage. no one will notice. >> nobody will notice at all. >> nothing to see here. >> as we do say good morning, everybody, on this thursday. we'll start with some tough questions for the white house this morning after the resignation of a top aide to the president. >> rob porter is leaving his post as staff secretary after his two ex-wives came forward with allegations of domestic abuse. now critics are asking why porter's departure took so long. abc's kenneth moton has the new details. kenneth, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, diane and kendis. white house staff secretary rob porter acted as a gatekeeper to

president trump. sources say while top aides knew about the domestic abuse allegations against porter since last year, they were unaware of the extent of the accusations. this morning, sources say top white house officials knew for months about domestic violence allegations against one of president trump's most trusted advisers, staff secretary rob porter. >> the president and chief of staff have had full confidence and trust in his abilities and his performance. >> reporter: porter accused of abusing his two ex-wives. the women first coming forward to tell their stories in "the daily mail" and "the intercept." chief of staff john kelly first defending porter calling him a man of true honor and integrity but then the release of this image, porter's first ex-wife colbie holderness claiming he punched her a decade ago. overnight, a new statement from kelly expressing shock saying there's no place for domestic violence. i stand by my previous comments and believe every individual deserves the right to defend their reputation. porter resigned releasing his

own statement, these outrageous allegations are simply false. i took the photos and the reality behind them is nowhere close to what is being described. i have been transparent and truthful about these vile claims. it's unclear when trump knew about the allegations, but the white house says porter was not forced out. porter's second wife, jennie willoughby, told "the washington post" about an alleged attack after their first anniversary. >> he came and grabbed me by the shoulders here and pulled me out of a shower in a rage and immediately i'm seeing the terror in my face retracted and apologized. >> reporter: in 2010 that second ex-wife got an emergency protective order against porter. he's called the allegations against him a coordinated smear campaign. diane and kendis. >> and, kenneth, what are you hearing about these reports that porter is romantically involved with another white house official? >> diane, porter has been linked to white house communications director hope hicks. the couple has recently been seen out on the town.

"the washington post" reports that hicks was involved in the white house's defense of porter. diane and kendis. >> all right. kenneth moton for us live in d.c. thanks, kenneth. all right, now to the other big story in washington. another shutdown is looming. the deadline midnight tonight. but something rare has happened. democrats and republicans have reached a deal. the question now, will it be enough? a breakthrough on capitol hill. the senate agreeing on a rare bipartisan agreement to fund the government for two years. >> this budget deal is the first real sprout of bipartisanship. >> i hope we can build on this bipartisan momentum. >> reporter: the deal includes billions for opioid treatment, disaster relief and infrastructure and a big boost to defend spending, but it puts off immigration for another day and that's not cutting it for house minority leader nancy pelosi. >> every day courageous patriotic dreamers lose their status, every day the american dream slips further out of reach. >> reporter: the democrat delivering a speech in support

of dreamers, the undocumented immigrants brought here as children, for more than eight hours, the longest continuous house floor speech in modern history. the agreement also doesn't include funding for the president's border wall. just two days ago president trump emphatically called for a government shutdown if he didn't get that money. >> let's have a shutdown. we'll do a shutdown. i'd love to see a shutdown. without borders we don't have a country. so would i shut it down over this issue, yes. >> reporter: but now the white house says the president welcomes the senate deal, even if it doesn't include an immigration fix. >> the focus for us has always been to get a two-year budget deal. we've made no secret the president wants funding for the wall, and he wants border security, and we expect to see that reflected in the budget. >> but he said he wanted to shut the government down if he didn't get it. now that's no longer the position? >> no, the position hasn't changed. we've laid out exactly what we want to happen. >> well, now the plan heads to the house where it already faces

opposition from both parties. congress must agree on a budget before midnight tonight to avoid another shutdown. there are new details about russian interference in the election. the head of cybersecurity for the homeland security department has revealed russia successfully hacked voter registration rolls in several states prior to the 2016 election. but there's no indication those rolls were altered. secretary of state rex tillerson has warned russia is already trying to interfere in the upcoming midterm elections, and he admits the u.s. is ill-equipped to stop it. at the olympics in south korea team usa has announced who will be carrying the flag at tomorrow's opening ceremony. it'll be erin hamlin, a four-time olympic luger and bronze medalist. she'll become just the fourth luger to serve as u.s. flag bearer. now, the north korean cheerleading squad has arrived as well for the games wearing red and black fur uniforms. more than 220 women crossed the border as kim jong-un's cultural ambassadors although the official kickoff to the games isn't until tomorrow.

there was some action that took place today. the brother and sister team curling team of matt and becca hamilton took the ice for the mixed doubles tournament beating the team from russia. and another winter storm is moving into the upper midwest this morning with snow expected to arrive in chicago by tonight. drivers in the northeast had a rough go of it on wednesday. watch that fedex truck in connecticut. it completely loses control. luckily no one was hurt. in maryland officials say black ice caused this truck to drive right through a bakery. no people or pastries hurt in that incident. >> whew! >> now let's take a closer look at your thursday forecast. good morning. that winter storm is wrapping up in the northeast, and we have drier air settling in, drier air but colder air. expecting to see morning temperatures in the 20s around the time that we're all heading on into work. so take it carefully on those roadways as black ice will be a concern. some tips for you if you're going to be heading out the

door, do not slam on your brakes if you do wind up sliding. i'm meteorologist julia weiden with your accuweather forecast. coming up, the morning coffee cup used by millions of americans is getting a makeover. but first a danger behind the wheel that's far more risky on the road than we feared. and a new warning about those so-called smart tv

a two-day shooting rampage is now over after sheriff deputies shot the suspect dead. it happened there on interstate 95 near west palm beach, florida. the suspect allegedly shot and injured two men in west palm and in boynton beach and then killed a woman in lake worth.

he then drove the wrong way down i-95 crashing into three cars before the deputy fatally shot him. police are still searching for a motive. in the meantime, a manhunt is under way in las vegas for a serial shooter apparently targeting the homeless. the suspect was caught on this surveillance camera here executing a homeless man under a bridge. police believe that same shooter is behind four attacks in four days. two of the victims have been killed. and we have a new safety warning for drivers. being tired may play a much bigger role in crashes than previously thought. a new study by aaa suggests drowsy driving is the cause of nearly 10% of all car crashes. that's nearly eight times the estimates from the federal government. aaa says drivers should be getting seven to nine hours of sleep before getting behind the wheel, and if you can't remember the last few miles you've driven, pull over and get some rest. harley-davidson is recalling nearly 175,000 motorcycles because their brakes could fail. more than 30 models of bikes with anti-lock brakes made between 2008 and 2011 are affected.

some police models are also being recalled. well, this is creepy. "consumer reports" magazine is warning that your smart tv could easily be hacked and used to spy on you and spy on what you watch. a new report found smart tvs made by samsung and roku failed a basic security test making it easy for hackers to take control, change the channels, raise the volume and even install new apps. both brands say they take security seriously and roku insists there is no security risk with its products. and your morning coffee cup is about to get a whole new look if you're a regular customer at dunkin' donuts. the company is rolling out a plan to stop using plastic foam cups starting in new york and california this spring. the goal is to phase them out worldwide by 2020 and replace them with a more environmentally friendly paper cup double sided for insulation. just last month mcdonald's made a similar pledge. all right, coming up, the weight loss program offering free memberships. but first a couple inundated

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you want a piece of me? good, i'm delicious. creamy, delicious, 100% real cheese. mini babybel. snack a little bigger. ♪ this is gro ♪ this is ground control to major tom ♪ ♪ you've really made the grade take a good look. that's all we'll be seeing from the dummy known as starman. it's his last photo posted by elon musk, of course, the ceo of spacex. starman and his tesla roadster are now cruising through space heading for mars' orbit and then the asteroid belt. they're expected to reach mars in july. their adventure started tuesday as the cargo on the company's powerful new rocket. >> bye, starman. safe travels. >> we just got to know you. now to a growing scam manifesting itself in an unusual way. >> okay, so victims get free stuff from amazon, but not in a good way. mike and kelly gallivan from

acton, massachusetts, say they keep getting packages even though they haven't ordered them. amazon says the merchandise was bought with a gift card with no sender's name listed. >> and i opened it up, and i said, what did you buy this stuff for? >> what then concerned me is that my name and address is floating around in this business environment that commonly illegal things are done. >> yeah, it's concerning and the gallivans now fear that they are being used for a so-called brushing scam. that's when manufacturers boost their profiles on amazon by sending people free stuff so they can then post fake reviews under their names. of course, it's illegal and amazon says it's working to crack down on it. in medical news a new study claims the apple watch can detect diabetes with 85% accuracy. it uses data from a heart rate sensor that's also used by android wear devices. doctors say the research is important considering an

estimated 100 million people in the u.s. either suffer from diabetes or are prediabetic. about one-quarter of them are undiagnosed. and weight watchers is joining the battle against childhood obesity with a new promotion aimed at teenagers. the company is offering free memberships this summer to anyone between the ages of 13 and 17. the goal is to help teens develop healthy habits. oprah winfrey, weight watchers' spokesperson and major shareholder, says the changes are part of a broader focus to improve the lives of americans. an unusual sports headline this morning. a famous nfl quarterback has been traded to the new york yankees. russell wilson of the seahawks played football and baseball in college and was actually drafted by the texas rangers. well, now the rangers have traded him to the yankees, so wilson plans to work out with the team at spring training and watch games from the dugout, but he has no plans to leave football. and philadelphia will see a sea of green today and white as the city holds its first super bowl victory parade.

fans started lining up at the museum of art last night. 2 million people are expected to line the route. schools, government offices, virtually everything in the city except for a wawa location is closed for the celebration. >> you need to go to the wawa to buy the beer. >> you need to go to the wawa, yeah, and get a couple of yuenglings while you're at it. >> and there was some buzzer beater excitement last night in the nba. >> highlights from espn. good morning. it's "sportscenter" from los angeles. stan verrett along with neil everett. did you see what lebron james did wednesday night? you didn't? we're going to show you. >> i got the cliffsnotes for you right here. you know, it's cliffsnotes, plural. >> i did know that. i spent a lot of time with them in high school. >> oh, yeah. and that was my textbook. >> i was watching games instead of reading books. >> that was a textbook block by lebron james in the final seconds of an overtime game with minnesota. one second left. inbounds, touchdown, cavaliers, james, the buzzer beater over

jimmy butler, instant classic. got it recorded on my phone. st. john's, 0-11 in the big east. did have a nonconference win saturday at madison square garden taking on the number one team in the country here, villanova. 30 seconds left. four-point game. colin gillespie. that will help. villanova cuts it to one. 15 seconds left. of two-point game, and it's not going to happen for villanova. st. john's holds on to win it, 79-75. shamorie ponds, 26 points for st. john's in that one. >> back to you. all right, thank you. well, up next in "the pulse," the new emojis coming to your phone. also ahead, have you seen this man? well, see how a police sketch widely mocked actually worked. plus, a slithering beauty secret. why people are putting snails on their face. why people are putting snails on their face.

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♪ ♪ time to check "the pulse" and police in lancaster, pennsylvania, were lucky to have the artistic skills of a witness who drew this. >> yeah, it's the sketch of a suspect in a crime at a farmers market. people thought the picture was a joke, but investigators say it actually worked. they've identified the suspect. >> yeah, they say it's this man, hung nguyen. he's wanted on two counts of theft. now, they just have to find him. there's a warrant out for his arrest. a u.s. senator can take credit for helping to create a new emoji. >> maine senator angus king successfully lobbied for a lobster emoji. he wrote the organization that creates emojis highlighting the lobster's economic and cultural value to maine. >> he got his wish actually.

the lobster will be 1 of 157 new emojis this year. the new list also includes redheads, a lacrosse stick, a skateboard and a mosquito. >> e., mosquitoes. some people are going to a creepy new extreme in their quest for a flawless complexion. >> yeah, i'd say. a bizarre beauty regimen involves real snails sliding their way across your face. it turns out the trail of slime they leave behind can do wonders for your skin because it's chock-full of properties that promote anti-aging and rejuvenation. >> they excrete things like hopper peptides, hyaloronic acid, which is a great moisturizer, antimicrobial peptides and molecules. if you've got something you want to treat with a snail slime, if you've got a snail, put it on your face. i dare you. >> you first. snail slime has triggered a new craze in beauty products, but the studies were done in labs, so doctors say the medical jury is still out on this one. >> ah, i see. >> you'll try it? >> you first.

>> all right, no. finally thousands of eagles fans were inside u.s. bank stadium in minneapolis for the super bowl and one guy liked his seat to history so much he took it with him. >> at one point he left it at the coat check and then you could see him carrying it out. take a look at the seat on the guy's luggage too. well, he's now paid his punishment for that. he had to give the stadium $125 to replace the seat. not too bad for a priceless souvenir. >> yeah, but how did he get it all? i don't know. awkward. d.

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this is abc 7 mornings. good morning. 4:27 on this february 8th. that feels more, like, what, july, august, in some places september? >> do you like that move by the way? >> she's a busy girl. >> in for mike nicco. >> it's a seat as well. okay. good morning everybody. yes. we're starting out with cool conditions. in fact, the coast has dropped into the 40s. we have numbers in the 50s and 50s inland. the front has pulled away from the shoreline. visibility 4 miles in petaluma. numbers in 50s in san francisco to the low 40s half moon bay. 45 in napa. grab the jacket heading out. sue has an update on your commute. hi there. >> good morning. yeah. we're going to highway 92.

first we'll check in with the san mateo bridge which is moving nicely along the cause way and towards the highrise. let's go to the san mateo highlands. 92. this is by skyline boulevard. we a van getting into an accident in the center divide and a couple of the lanes blocked there. they are trying to clear that. it's early enough, it looks like traffic is getting by okay after skyline. a couple of other accidents we'll update for you in a couple of minutes. now, a live desk update from abc 7 mornings. a house fire in the south bay has sent three people to the hospital. look at this new video that we have here from overnight. heavy smoke coming out of the duplex in los gatos. this is on dardanelli lane. it started at around 10:00 last night. firefighters tell abc 7 news when they arrived, two people were injured but made it to the frontline. they later found a third person who needed to go to the

hospital. the extent of the injuries not known. the flames were mainly in the attic unit. the cause is still under investigation. meanwhile, the next door unit had smoke damage. right now, a total of five people are displaced and they have to stay somewhere else this morning. >> we expect to learn more about a lawsuit being filed over damage from last year's massive flooding in san jose. >> it's been almost a year since the rain-swollen anderson reservoir caused coyote creek to overflow its banks. it flooded many homes. they claim officials warned them too late about the impending disaster. water officials say they've taken steps to prevent future flooding. the dmv office near the oakland coliseum will remain closed until monday following a flood caused by copper thieves. abc 7 news was on 85th avenue as officials were checking out the

damage and crews vacuumed water from the floor yesterday. a thief stole copper tubing from the roof and it caused water to cascade in the dmv ceiling. >> what a mess. lisa argen is here with a check of your weather. >> you may have noticed subtle differences yesterday. we had a little fog at the coast and slightly cooler at the shoreline, in the 40s. look at the afternoon temperatures. any records? perhaps. we could see numbers hovering around record territory. total sunshine today. 60s at the coast. upper 60s around the bay. 70 noontime. once again, look at the afternoon highs. mid-70s out there. so another mild afternoon and it looks like a cooling trend in time for the weekend. sue? >> mild conditions for your commute. if your travels take you past university avenue, into the macarthur maze, everybody is moving up the