>> i actually want this job. good morning, america. abc news exclusive, michael cohen, the president's former lawyer and fixer, speaks out for the first time since being sentenced to prison. >> so you're done with the lying? >> i'm done with the lying. i'm done being loyal to president trump. >> the man would once said he'd take a bullet for the president now implicates him in a crime. >> he was trying to hide what you were doing, correct? >> correct. >> and he knew it was wrong. >> of course. >> his message for the president. >> how does this end for donald trump? >> the interview only on "gma" this morning. also this morning, that dangerous storm on the move. lightning, flash flooding and snow. now the system heading east. cbs bombshell. the $9.5 million payout to the actress who lost her role after

she said one of the most famous men on tv sexually harassed her on set. the secret deal revealed overnight. mysterious murder. the american student studying abroad stabbed to death. what her mother is saying this morning. and only on "gma," the 17-year-old race car driver who flew through the air at 170 miles per hour crashing into a fence, miraculously surviving, now telling her story for the first time. wait until you hear what she wait until you hear what she plans to do next. good morning, america. happy friday to everyone out there and, cecilia, it is great to have you here. happy friday. >> thank you. happy friday to you guys. >> it has been a monumental week in american politics, and done .

this starts with your huge interview overnight. >> this thing came together very quickly late yesterday, of course, a day after michael cohen received his three-year prison sentence which he says was the worst day of his life. and then those attacks from president trump started early yesterday morning and continued throughout the day. at some point cohen who wasn't planning to speak out felt he had to respond. now, there some things he can't answer because he's still cooperating with prosecutors, but he directly contradicts president trump's claims about those hush money payments to porn star stormy daniels and playmate karen mcdougal and as you'll see he's emotional, remorseful and determined to tell what he says is the truth about president trump. >> michael, thank you for doing this. >> george, good to see you. >> emotional day in court yesterday and i was struck by that line you had. you said you felt like you have your freedom back. >> yes. >> how does it feel today? >> like i have my freedom back. though i have to be honest, it's been very rough, you know, to be before the court with my family inenda mthmy father, my wife, my children, my sisters, my brother, my niece,

cousins, friends, it was a very rough day. >> then you wake up today and the president is tweeting from very early in the morning several different things. what struck me most is his claim that you agreed to this plea deal for this reason, he said, those charges were just agreed by him in order to embarrass the president and get a much reduced prison sentence. >> i know which tweets you're talking about. first of all, it's absolutely not true. i did not do it to embarrass the president. he knows the truth. i know the truth. many people know the truth. under no circumstances do i want to embarrass the president of the united states of america. the truth is, i told the truth. i took responsibility for my actions and instead of him taking responsibility for his actions, what does he do?

he attacks my family and after yesterday, again, being before the court and taking the responsibility and receiving a sentence of 36 months, the only thing he can do is to tweet about my family? >> he said in the tweets he repeated in an interview later on that basically he says, his claim, you're lying about him to protect your wife, to protect your father-in-law. >> inaccurate. he knows the truth. i know the truth. others know the truth, and here is the truth. the people of the united states of america, the people of the world, don't believe what he is saying. the man doesn't tell the truth, and it's sad that i should take responsibility for his dirty deeds. >> you lied for him for a long time. >> more than ten years. >> why? >> out of loyalty, out of loyalty to him. i followed a bad path and hence

how we started this conversation. i have my freedom and i will not be the villain as i told you once before. i will not be the villain of his story. >> he's saying very clearly that he never directed you to do anything wrong. is that true? >> i don't think there's anybody that believes that. first of all, nothing at the trump organization was ever done unless it was run through mr. trump. he directed me as i said in my allocution. and i said as well in the plea. he directed me to make the payments. he directed me to become involved in these matters, including the one with mcdougal, which was really between him and david pecker and then david pecker's counsel. i just reviewed the documents in order to protect him. i gave loyalty to someone who truthfully does not deserve loyalty. >> he was trying to hide what you were doing, correct? >> correct. >> and he knew it was wrong? >> of course.

>> and he was doing that to help his election? >> you have to remember at what point in time that this matter came about, two weeks or so before the election, post the billy bush comments, so, yes, he was very concerned about how this would affect the election. >> to help his campaign? >> to help him and the campaign. >> you mentioned dirty deeds in your allocution yesterday. when you think about it, when you look back, did you know what you were doing -- >> i'm angry at myself. because i knew what i was doing was wrong. i stood up before the world yesterday, and i accepted the responsibility for my actions, the actions that i gave to a man who, as i also said in my allocution i was loyal to. i should not be the only one

taking responsibility for his actions. >> so he's still lying? >> yes. >> do you know why you were loyal to him at the beginning? >> no. no. it was a blind loyalty. it was to a man i admired but i -- i do not know the answer to it. and i'm angry at myself. my family is disappointed that they have taught me, my mother, father, right from wrong and i didn't display good judgment. >> you call it blind loyalty. the prosecutors seem to suggest it was -- southern district prosecutors i should add seem to suggest it was your being driven by greed and ambition. >> no, that's inaccurate but, again, i took responsibility for my actions, but i didn't make my money working for donald trump. i had made a substantial amount of money years before working for donald trump, and anybody who knows me knows that to be the truth.

>> so what do you say to people and, you know, there are a lot of people watching who are going to be thinking, but, wait a second, he lied for so long. why should we believe him now? what's the answer to that? >> what do you mean lied? lied about what? at the trump organization it's a microcosm of even just the new york real estate market. what did we lie about? it's new york real estate. yes, it's the greatest product ever created. is that a lie? >> well, but you pleaded guilty to lying to congress. >> yes. >> so why should we believe you now? >> because the special counsel stated emphatically that the information that i gave to them was credible and helpful. there's a substantial amount of information that they possess that corroborates the fact that i am telling the truth. >> so you're done with the lying? >> i am done with the lying. i am done being loyal to president trump. and my first loyalty belongs to

my wife, my daughter, my son and this country. >> you know, that's what he first said to me back in july. it wasn't on camera. and as i said, he's still cooperating with prosecutors so a lot of things he can't talk about right now, but he clearly felt he just had to come out after those attacks yesterday from the president and say something. >> i mean he is still cooperating with the special counsel so a lot he can't say but he did say a lot and seems like he's doubling down on his claims from before. >> no question about it. i want to bring in dan abrams, especially on the payments. in the next half hour we'll talk about russia as well but, dan, you see there right now you have complete contradictions between what he's saying about the payments and what president trump is saying about the payments. >> i think the most important thing that he said in that interview was there is a substantial amount of information that they possess, meaning the prosecutor from the southern district of new york, that corroborates the fact that i am telling the truth. that's the big question, what else do they have? when michael cohen is saying they have a substantial amount of information that corroborates

that he's telling the truth, that's got to make the trump team very, very nervous. >> they are other cooperating agreements, the southern district. >> that's the other thing i think was one of the most important points in this interview was he is saying that the deal to pay off karen mcdougal was made directly between donald trump and effectively david pecker from ami. so, now you have david pecker and ami cooperating in this investigation. you've got michael cohen saying, i just reviewed the legal documents. if that's true, that means pecker could end up being a critical witness against president trump and the question becomes what other corroborating evidence do they have to support pecker's account? so this is a very dangerous commentary coming from michael cohen if what he is saying can be verified. >> let's bring in jon karl at the white house on this as well. this has become a death match now between the president and michael cohen. >> reporter: and, george, you just cannot emphasize enough how

much of a fierce defender michael cohen was of donald trump over the years and, remember, his office was there on the 26th floor of trump tower about 20 feet from donald trump's office. this is as loyal -- we call him the fixer but this is as loyal an individual as trump ever had working for him and the loyalty wasn't returned and now to see this back and forth is just remarkable. >> it's also stunning to see the shift in his demeanor. this was the president's pit bull, his attack dog, the guy who recorded phone calls, who did the dirty work, and the president says, what you see now is not what you are really getting. he says this is all an act. >> people have to make up their minds about that. i spent an awful lot of time with michael cohen for a long time and as i said people have to make up their own minds. i think he has been on something of a journey. we'll show more in our next half hour about -- he admitted right there he knows what he's done wrong about how he intends to make amends for that.

that will be coming up in just a bit. >> cannot wait to see that, george. we're going to turn now to that dangerous storm that is barrelling across the country, taking aim at the south with rain, snow and wind gusts up to 70 miles an hour. ginger is tracking the storm, and ginger, it's a nasty start to the weekend for millions. >> for so many people. it's circulating in texas but impacting people from indianapolis to gainesville, florida. look at sweetwater, texas, up to 7 inches of to snow in west central, texas, from the backside of the storm but then it was flash flooding ahead of it. places like little rock had their wettest day on record for that date. more than 4 inches, prosper, texas. in oklahoma city, the will rogers airport, seeing that lightning strike. there is a severe storm component for orlando, tampa, even jacksonville. t5 ches wilfae paandlup thrrangn, d.c., to 4 inches anstear the northeast this weekend.

>> you are going to be very busy, my friend. we want to turn to that wave of bomb threats targeting schools and businesses across the u.s. and canada. abc's gio benitez is at the bronx high school of science right here in new york, one of the many schools evacuated because of this threat. so, gio, all these threats appear to be hoaxes. >> reporter: yes, cecilia, no credible threat. that's what police are saying right now. you know, this school received a call saying a pipe bomb would explode within 20 minutes, not true. didn't happen. the school was cleared. there was no threat. now, the call was very similar to others that we've heard about across this country that said that bombs would be detonated unless there was a $20,000 bitcoin payment. take a look at this map right now. we've heard about threats in at least 14 major cities including los angeles, portland, dallas, detroit and more than 36 locations in chicago alone. schools, city halls, libraries, medical centers all receiving calls like this. the fbi was made aware as local police departments rushed to investigate.

we also know that similar bomb threats were made across canada. but, again, right now police are saying no credible threats. >> but you see that panic that this ensued after that. they have no idea who is behind this? >> reporter: no idea yet, cecilia, but you know what, if they catch that person and when they catch that person we're talking about up to five years in prison for a hoax like this. >> all right, gio, thanks so much this morning. we've got another big story we want to tell you about, one making headlines at the border. we're learning about the death of a 7-year-old migrant girl from guatemala who died of dehydration and shock while she was in u.s. custody after crossing illegally with her father earlier this month. customs and border patrol tells "the washington post" before she crossed she had nothing to eat or drink for several days. eight hours after she and her father were taken into custody, she started having seizures and she was taken by helicopter to a hospital. her temperature was over 105 degrees. she later died. the department of homeland security says border patrol

agents took every possible step to save the child's life under the most trying of circumstances. but the reaction coming in overnight from lawmakers is pretty stunning including the incoming chairman of the house judiciary committee, jerry nadler. nadler says in a tweet he is demanding immediate answers to this tragedy from homeland security secretary kirstjen nielsen. we will see what they have to say about that. >> heartbreaking story. >> yeah, it is indeed. michael. >> thank you, cecilia. we'll turn now to that bombshell report about a $9.5 million settlement at cbs paid to an actress accusing the star of sexual harassment and abc's linsey davis is here with the story. good morning to you, linsey. >> reporter: good morning, michael. more fallout from the investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct at cbs. this confidential settlement just one more incident that's resulted from this probe that started in august and it's now bringing new concerns to light. eliza dushku, an actress best known for her role in "buffy the vampire slayer" signed on in

march of 2017 to play in three episodes on "bull" starring michael weatherly. there were plans to make her a full time cast member but dushku confronted weatherly about several comments she says he made on set that made her uncomfortable. jokes and suggestions about her appearance, sexual assault as well as sexual innuendo. shortly after she spoke to weatherly about his comments, she was written off the show. cbs agreed to pay her a confidential settlement of $9.5 million, roughly what she would have made as a cast member for four seasons. her story came to light after cbs hired outside counsel to look into accusations of sexual misconduct made by multiple women against les moonves, cbs' former chief executive. an internal investigation of moonves turned up evidence of sexual misconduct as well as lying and destruction of evidence. this morning cybill shepherd is coming forward saying moonves cancelled her show "cybill" after she turned down a sexual proposition from him.

>> my show could have run another five years but i didn't fall on the right side of les. >> reporter: she claims moonves during a business dinner, complained about his wife and girlfriend to her, and offered to drive her home. when she refused, he claims he immediately became critical of her show and it was canceled a short time later. according to investigators, cbs' chief compliance officer provided outtakes thinking it would help the company showing dushku cursing on the set but according to her lawyers, that backfired because some of those clips showed the very harassment she had reported. for his part, weatherly issued a statement apologizing for his behavior. they just keep peeling back the onion. >> a lot there. thanks, linsey. let's go back to ginger. that storm is heading east. ott orng atlanta. atlanta hartsfield airport, this is what it looks like. visibility less than a half mile. so far no delays but keep an eye on that if you have a flight that goes through there. move that low, and by this afternoon and evening, it goes

through the mid atlantic, and by tomorrow into sunday it's the northeast and will become frozen up in the upper elevations in new england. but up to 4 inches of rain, y'all. all right. your local weather in 30 seconds. first, this weekend's getaways sponsored by walmart.

coming up, more of our interview with michael cohen. what he is saying about the president and the russia investigation. >> the special counsel did say that you were doing your best to tell the truth about everything related to their investigation, everything related to russia. do you think president trump is telling the truth about that? and we've also got another exclusive. that 17-year-old race car driver who lost control of her car flying into a fence at 170 miles per hour. she is now speaking out for the first time. you do not want to miss what she's got to say. she tells us what she wants to do coming up next. do coming up next. aging power grids, ...aging everything. we also have the age-old problem of bias in the workplace. really... never heard of it. the question is...

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hi, good morning, i'm jessica castro from abc 7 mornings. happening today, e-scooters will try to get back on the san francisco streets. lime applied for and is was denied a permit to operate under a one year pilot program. the company has filed an appeal. the chronicle reports some applicants were denied because of perceived bad behavior. all right. and taking a look at the roads right now, we have a crash at the golden gate bridge toll plaza. southbound 101. a semilipped one oth ot. 're working on clearing that right now and they're inspecting the booth. lane 4 is blocked. really not causing a major delay

though. this crash cleared, northbound 85 before winchester boulevard. that backup is pretty lengthy. >>

good morning, back to back storms rain on us this weekend. one today and tomorrow and a stronger one for sunday into monday. here's the timeline for today's. from 7:00 to noon, random light showers. the air is dry below 14,000 feet. moving into the north bay during the afternoon hours and then spreading southward as we head into the evening commute. it lingers there through the eveningrstarts back north overnight. our best chance of rain will be in the north bay. the rest of us are getting soaks sunday. coming up, that abc news exclusive, president trump's former lawyer and fixer, michael

cohen one-on-one for the first time since being sentenced to prison.

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and - snap a free picture with santa this weekend at kohl's! give joy, get joy - at kohl's. welcome back to "gma." you're looking at the wedding of the year, prince harry and meghan markle saying "i do." well, this morning we have a brand-new never-before-seen photo behind the scenes. what a beautiful photo it is. take a look. that right there is the royal christmas card and coming up, we'll show you prince william and duchess kate's with george, charlotte and louis. >> a tease? >> good tease. >> baby george. that's all coming up, but first, the other top headlines we're following right now. that dangerous storm is on the move barreling across the country at this hour. millions from texas to maryland are on alert for severe storms as we head into the weekend. after that deadly terror attack, the christmas market in strasbourg, france, is now open. police found and killed that

29-year-old suspect last night. and we've got some huge football news. strahan, i am coming for you. you better watch out. >> here we go. >> here we go. get ready. let me know how i have done. you're making me nervous. for the first time in five years the los angeles chargers have clinched a trip to the playoffs. see, he was like all up in my space. after this play last night, with less than three minutes left against the kansas city chiefs, the chargers marched 60 yards down the field. i can't even look at you -- and score on this touchdown catch. but instead of kicking the extra point to tie, the chargers make a very gutsy call and go for the two-point conversion. in the commercial, if you're lucky, i will explain what a two-point conversion is. [ laughter ] >> i can only hope to be so lucky. >> know it's coming. done. >> didn't need a prompter at all. >> i was not reading that. what are you talking about?

we'll switch gears and get more of my exclusive interview with michael cohen. we talked about the russia investigation. how he intends to make amends going forward and the changes he's seen in president trump. >> you worked for him for a long time. i was around you many, many years ago where you seemed to be having fun. >> there was a lot of fun going on at the trump organization. >> working with donald trump? >> i enjoyed working with my colleagues there as well. >> when did it change? >> you know, i can't give you a specific time that it went from point "a" to point "b." it was just a change. i will tell you that the gentleman that is sitting now in the oval office, 1600 pennsylvania avenue, is not the donald trump that i remember from trump tower. he's a very different individual. >> what's happened to him? >> i think the pressure of the job is much more than what he thought it was going to be. it's not like the trump organization where he would bark out orders and people would blindly follow what he wanted

done. there's a system here. he doesn't understand the system. and it's sad because the country has never been more divisive and one of the hopes that i have out of the punishment that i've received as well as the cooperation that i have given, i will be remembered in history as helping to bring this country back together. >> the special counsel did say that you were doing your best to tell the truth about everything related to their investigation, everything related to russia. do you think president trump is telling the truth about that? >> no. >> it's a big statement. if he were sitting in this chair right now, what would you say to him? >> lay off twitter. run the country the way that we all thought that you would. be able to take the democrats, republicans, bring them together and bring the country together instead of dividing the country. >> you think he has ears to hear that?

>> i don't know. i don't think so. >> was yesterday the hardest day of your life or is that going too far? >> it's an understatement. >> yet you feel you've turned a corner? >> i know i have. >> when you look back at the michael cohen who spent ten years with donald trump, what would you say to him on that first day? >> what were you thinking? you knew better. you know better. >> how does this end for donald trump? >> you know, that sort of gets into the whole investigation right now between the special counsel's office, the attorney general's office. you also have the southern district of new york. i don't want to jeopardize any of their investigations. >> you're still cooperating? >> if they want me, i'm here and i'm willing to answer whatever

additional questions that they may have for me. >> right, but you're saying there are certain areas you can't get into because you're still cooperating with them? >> correct. and out of respect for process. >> why do you think president trump is lashing out against you in such a personal way daily almost now calling you weak, calling you a liar? is he afraid? >> seems like it. that's what he does. that's what he does. >> are you afraid of him? >> it's never good to be on the wong side of the president of the united states of america, but somehow or another this task has now fallen onto my shoulders and as i also stated i will spend the rest of my life in order to fix the mistake that i made. >> how are you going to do that? >> i don't know. one day at a time. >> very honest there at the end. he wants to make amends, does not know exactly how to do it. >> is that why you think he's talking right now? >> i think that's part of it. i think he's in a lot of pain.

it's been painful for him, painful for his family and as he just said right there, to be on the wrong side of the president of the united states is something that most people don't go through, and he just feels he has to get his side of the story out. >> to hear him say trump is not telling the truth on russia is a very big deal. >> yep. >> great job by you, george. very, very good job by you. >> thank you. now we're going to go to those new developments in that mysterious murder. an american student studying in the netherlands found dead in her apartment. abc's whit johnson is here with the story. the student's roommate is now in custody. >> reporter: michael, that's right. good morning to you. investigators though still trying to figure out what led up to this brutal stabbing. sarah papenheim's mother talked tell us she was growing increasingly worried after her daughter expressed concerns about her roommate's strange behavior. this morning, new details in the mysterious murder of an american student studying abroad in the netherlands. 21-year-old sarah papenheim from minnesota found stabbed to deat

wednesday roughly a block from erasmus university. police say witnesses heard screams coming from the third floor where the attack happened, arresting her roommate, a 23-year-old dutchman, joel schelling, at a train station 60 miles away shortly after her body was found. >> she could make friends with anybody. my daughter started playing drums at 6, 7 years old. she loved playing the drums. she just shined. >> reporter: her mother overwhelmed with grief, describing her daughter as a talented drummer who met her roommate, an alleged killer, through music. she says there were warning signs that her daughter had recently complained about the suspect's growing temper. >> mom, he's my friend. i'm his only friend. but then she brought up, you know, that his anger, he'd get angry, but i always can talk him down. >> reporter: police say papenheim and the suspect were not romantically involved.

and don't know of any motive. papenheim was studying psychology and was just days away from returning home for christmas. >> since i heard she was coming i raced to put my tree up. i couldn't have christmas without it. i just want answers. until i see her i will not feel it's real. i have tons of people to help but it's kind of like how do you let them do -- because they don't know your daughter like you do. >> reporter: sarah's mother told us she's leaving today for the netherlands. friends in the minnesota jazz scene are also trying to help out, raising money for the family, already raising more than $18,000 on a gofundme page. the mother and others going to the netherlands to get answers. >> that's tough at this time of year around the holidays. >> absolutely. coming up that miracle survival.ed this horrific crash. you remember that video. well, she is now telling her to most, he's phil mickelson, pro golfer. to me, he's, well, dad. so when his joint pain from psoriatic arthritis

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we are back with that abc news exclusive. the 17-year-old race car driver behind the wheel during -- you'll remember it -- this terrifying crash speaking out for the first time as she recovers from very serious injuries. she spoke with our eva pilgrim who is joining us from munich, germany. eva, she says she's ready to get back out there? >> reporter: oh, yeah, she is not hesitating. she had no idea just how bad this crash was. this morning she tells us that she knows she's lucky, not just to be alive but to be able to still do all the things she loves.

it was a horrific midair crash that made headlines around the world. behind the wheel 17-year-old sophia floersch flipping, flying at more than 150 miles per hour, backwards. her airborne car punching through the catch fence, slamming into a booth full of photographers on this track in macau last month. the teen miraculously surviving. this morning, speaking out about her near-death experience. >> every race driver knows the risk. i brake with my hands off the steering wheel and went into the wall on the right side first which turned me around and i went backwards at a high speed so my speed measurement was 276 and then i was just sliding like backwards, then there was those big sausage curves coming.d sausage curves because they are really big, and they actually

made me fly. i started flying because of them, and it made me nearly hit another driver, and then hit the fence. i hit the house and was landing again. >> reporter: the accident left her with several spinal fractures. the teen in surgery for 11 hours. sophia is known for her spunky personality and daredevil antics on the track. the formula 3 racing phenom has been driving since she was 4 years old racking up wins and a reputation as one of the hottest up and coming drivers in racing. >> at what point do you think when am i going to get back in a car? >> so the next week it's going to be build up the body again to build up the muscles again, to get the body working. i really hope to be back in the car again in february, beginning of march. also the doctors say it could be possible. >> reporter: she says despite the crash nothing will hold her back. >> there's no difference between women or men in the car so i always answer the same as any other man in the car and maybe

outside i'm a different type but in the car no one cares and everyone is a driver and everyone is fighting to win. >> what is the big dream, ultimate? what is it you hope to accomplish? >> my big dream is to drive in f1 and have success there and also be a world champion and, yeah, that's where i want to get in the next couple of years. >> reporter: and as all of this was happening and she's recovering. sophia celebrated her 18th birthday so now she's actually legally able to drive on the roads here in germany alone. guys. >> amazing. thanks, eva. the fact she's driving out there and doesn't have a driver's license yet. pretty incredible. >> so casual in her description. i mean, i'm more animated when i talk about my back pain, but we're happy she's okay. that's the bottom line. >> yeah. coming up, everybody, the early christmas gift. money flying into the highway. people racing to grab it. what we just learned this morning. ♪ i got bills

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♪ [[clap, clap]] ♪ hey, jen, which tie says, "trustworthy but also fun"? gold down, oil up. oil down, gold up. this is too busy. we need to make sure people can actually use this stuff. which one says, "hours of free live streaming coverage without cable or subscription fees"? aluminum, aluminum? you ready, zack? oh, we're ready. welcome to the show. let's make finance make sense. ♪

♪ ♪ connecting people... ...uniting the world. ♪♪ ♪ i got bills raining, it's raining, it's raining money on us right here in our studio. we are back now with that early christmas gift. a brinks truck spilling money onto a new jersey highway. the drivers jumping out, racing to grab the cash and the man that knows all about it, t.j. holmes, is here with what happened next. >> ginger needs to be here because cash is in the forecast. it's a christmas miracle. it is a christmas miracle. driving down the highway weeks before christmas and a brinks

what ye supposed to do right there, george.you get out. >> it never happens. >> you get out and get cash. this caused a couple of accidents. nobody injured. but get this, some people got out and they actually collected the cash for the brinks drivers and gave it back to them on the spot and some people have called police to say i picked up some cash and i want to return it to you. you want to call them good samaritans? no, police call them thieves. because what this is is something that's called theft of mislaid property. you have the obligation to return it to that owner, so they are going through that video, folks and trying to identify cars that took off with cash. >> how many people didn't give it back? >> yeah, and then, you know, a lot had the hoods on. that literally was right outside metlife stadium where the giants and jets play. >> how did this happen? >> malfunction on the door. you got all that cash and a malfunction on the door. >> is the cash just sitting open in the back? >> what do y'all want from me? >> you gave us all you could give us.

>> we'll be right back. [ laughter ] >> you gave us all you could give us. >> we'll be right back. [ laughter ] our holiday shopping is complete. it's time to celebrate. [♪ ] [♪ ] ♪

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪

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castro from abc 7 mornings. meteorologist mike nicco is here with our forecast. >> it all revolves around the commute that is this evening's rain. the rain will move in this afternoon and evening. we have back to back storms. today up to a half in in the north bay, some areas of the south bay may not see any rain, but they'll get soaked by the next storm with a .50 to an inch and a half. hey, alexis. overall it's been quiet on the roads. we have a new problem emeryvil emeryville. we've got a clash blocking the left lane. very heavy on the approach if you're coming in from berkeley. if you're pealing off to the right it's not as bad.

southbound 101, still a crash on the golden gate bridge. coming up on gma, the new test that can help woman trying to get pregnant. we'll have ♪ ♪ i'm gonna let it shine.e, ♪ it's energy saving time, ♪ i'm gonna reduce mine. ♪ californians all align ♪ to let our great state shine. ♪ let it shine, ♪ the power's ours to let it shine!

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good morning, america. it's 8:00 a.m. abc news exclusive. michael cohen, the president's former lawyer speaks out for the first time since being sentenced to three years in prison. so you're done with the lying? >> i'm done with the lying. i'm done being loyal to president trump. >> the interview only on "gma" this morning. new this morning, after the stunning caught on tape footage of a teacher cutting a student's hair and singing the star-spangled banner, her family breaking their silence and what they're saying about her condition, her remorse and the new message this morning. fertility breakthrough. the technique that can tailor treatments to the mother's dna offering new hope for couples trying to get pregnant. royal christmas cards. the brand-new photos just

released. will, kate and the kids with george trying to steal the show and harry and meghan in a never before seen wedding snapshot. ♪ and are you ready to rewind on the most memorable moments of the year? the biggest news, the biggest fun and the moments we threw it all up in the air that made this year one to remember. all ahead as we say, good morning, america. ♪ good morning, america. thanks for being with us on this feel good friday. those texas fans outside are feeling good about their chances against the jets this weekend. >> a big game. >> a big game. yeah, what's a two-point conversion? okay. [ laughter ] >> you set yourself up for that. you could have let it go. >> that was funny but you know something that was great that we did yesterday, we'll have an

update on our guinness world record attempt yesterday. we iced cookies to raise money for cancer. well, we officially broke the record and in just an hour we iced 1,696 cookies and the company so yummy went above and beyond donating $15,000 to cookie for kids' cancer. amazing donation by them and amazing event and thanks to all the volunteers who helped out yesterday. >> our cookie correspondent sam champion. >> a good title. we have more on that exclusive interview with michael cohen, the president's former personal lawyer and fixer. he's speaking out for the first time after being sentenced to prison. this was really big. >> that steinwednesday, he life. you recall's see he's emotional and very angry. he's also a man in some pain steeled for what's coming. most significant for president trump. he directly implicates the president in a felony, contradicts the president over those hush money payments to the porn star stormy daniels and the

playmate, karen mcdougal. >> he directed me to become involved in these matters including the one with mcdougal, which was really between him and david pecker and then david pecker's counsel. i just reviewed the documents in order to protect him. i gave loyalty to someone who truthfully does not deserve loyalty. >> he was trying to hide what you were doing, correct? >> correct. >> and he knew it was wrong? >> of course. >> and he was doing that to help his election. >> you have to remember, at what point in time that this matter came about, two weeks or so before the election post the billy bush comments, so, yes, he was very concerned about how this would affect the election. >> to help his campaign? >> to help him and the campaign. >> you know, the president was active on twitter yesrd attacking michael cohen and his family. nothing so far this morning. >> not yet. >> not yet.

full interview tonight on "nightline." michael. now to that dangerous storm barreling across the country. it's taking aim at the south where there are flood alerts and wind gusts up to 70 miles an hour. ginger, this will affect millions. >> it absolutely will. anybody from really tallahassee this morning up through baltimore, has the potential to see this because flash flooding happened already with this storm in prosper, texas. just got world in charleston, south carolina, has roads underwater so it's already happening. this comes along with the chance for storms. severe storms possible in labrado orlando. 70 miles per hour in winds and it could end up closing in or surpassing the wettest year on record. i got breaking news and want to share with you from new jersey. apparently josiah has seen his first snow. yes. i just wanted to make sure we all saw that joy and elation.

>> trying to eat the snow. >> trying to eat it. he's got it down pat. unfortunately it'll be all rain. i'm glad you got to see it. >> glad you shared it. thank you. coming up, another abc news exclusive. the family of that teacher cutting that student's hair is speaking out. plus that fertility breakthrough that could help women struggling to have a baby. what you need to know about precision medicine. we're getting your home ready for the holidays, easy ways to spruce up your space for less. plus, we've got a great audience upstairs. i'm not going to say come back. i'm just going to say, don't go anywhere. we'll be right back. [ applause ]

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welcome back to "gma." this is a happy audience on friday morning. >> yes. >> you guys will wish you were here on monday. emily blunt, the new mary poppins will be here live. [ cheers and applause ] >> i can't wait to see it. >> i know. >> a little "pop news." >> "pop news," you ready? [ applause ] good morning, everybody. we begin with our first look at the royal christmas cards. oh, my goodness. kensington palace released new photos of the families to be featured on their holiday cards. here's the duke and duchess of cambridge with their adorable kids, george being playful, charlotte, always ready for a picture and prince louis looking like the little man he is. so adorable. their first holiday card as a family of five. i love these. >> george is goofing around back there. >> so cute. it was taken on the grounds of their country home in norfolk,

england and here's meghan and harry's card, the duke and duchess. they watched the massive fireworks display, so beautiful romantic with baby on the way next year's card will look a little different. i haven't even sent out one card. do you send out holiday cards. >> i think they arrive today. >> better late than never. >> i'm going to be one of those who never. a little ho, ho, ho from hollywood. goldie hawn posted this. never thought i'd be sleeping with santa. hubby kurt russell is playing mr. claus in "the christmas chronicles" and josh gad got in with his elf on the shelf. >> is it frozen. >> yeah, with -- it looks like elsa, frozen in a block of ice by -- >> i get it now. >> you see her hand like don't even think about it. >> josh gad. >> the caption is a sneak

preview of "frozen 2." we'll wait to see when that comes out. josh, always funny. >> a lot of people into that. [ applause ] finally, this christmas will be a very special christmas for a guy named cody. you know that mom who is always trying to play match maker. we all have one in our lives. listen, charisma valdez tweeted this after rather meeting a fellow student's mom at the grocery store. if your name is cody, you're 6'4", you go to utsa, you live at the outpost, a sophomore majoring in global affairs your mom is truly your wing man. she just showed my roommates and i your picture at heb trying to find you a girlfriend. guess what, it worked. here's the tweet. >> whoa! >> the update y'all have been waiting for with code

they'll be kissing under the mistletoe somewhere. >> momma knows best. i tell you that right now thank you, adrienne. now to our "gma" cover story, that abc exclusive with the family of a teacher what was caught on camera cutting a student's hair. now her sister is sharing details about that teacher's past and what may have led to that incident. abc's paula faris is here with more. good morning, paula. >> good morning. when she says for the first time her sister is seeking treatment. she's undergoing a full evaluation. she says as tough as that video is to watch, it's this incident that finally forced her sister to get the help she has needed for so long. ♪ so proudly we hailed >> reporter: this morning the sister of the teacher seen in this video singing the star-spangled banner while chasing her students around with scissors is speaking out. >> no, miss g. >> reporter: beth says her

sister, 52-year-old margaret gieszinger has willingly checked herself into a hospital and is seeking a psychological evaluation. ♪ bright stars >> reporter: gieszinger was sent to jail and charged with six misdemeanors including one for appearing to forcibly cut the hair of one of her high school students. >> she's very ashamed and remorseful for her behavior. let's be clear, there is no tragedy. yes, she had scissors but she didn't hurt anybody. >> reporter: according to state records gieszinger's teaching credentials have been suspended twice in the past. though the reasons why have not been made public. her family says she's experienced situations before where her mental health became an issue. >> she has had outbursts of bizarre behavior since she was a little girl. it wasn't so surprising really. it was just shocking that it had, you know, this video had gone viral. >> reporter: according to a police report days before the

scissors incident the school received complaints from students and a parent about her actions towards getting students to not use their cell phones in class. the principal who said he talked to gieszinger before class that day said she appeared a bit anxious that morning but nothing that caused him any concern. when questioned by police, gieszinger told them she brought scissors to her class to give a foreign exchange student who was living with her family a haircut. in that police report she states that he had been acting hike a ding-dong. her family now hoping she's getting the help they say she's needed for so long. >> unfortunately this video is out there and she does look like the crazy science teacher but she really is a very good-hearted, loving person. >> now, she is still in the hospital. she's due in court next week. if convicted she could spend 3 1/2 years in jail. the school says they're taking the most severe employment action appropriate in this case.

>> wow, does her family feel like they should have done more. >> thee feel responsible. she's had outbursts since she was very young and said we didn't do anything about it. we didn't have an intervention and should sne becausit'sental one wants to talk about it. it does not just affect one person but families. we need to awe be aware of it. we want to turn to that fertility breakthrough that could be a key for women who are struggling with miscarriages. a new technique featured in "national geographic" magazine offers new hope and amy has more on precision ivf. >> good morning, according to the cdc 12% of women in the u.s. are dealing with infertility issues and for many of them, this new test could be an answer to their prayers like it was for this couple. when carolyn and tim met three years ago, it was love at first sight. >> a couple months later we decided we knew we wanted to

have children. >> reporter: but after two miscarriages and carolyn pushing 40, they sought help from a fertility specialist in chicago who recommended in vitro fertilization. their first attempt failed too. >> i think it was just so devastating because we didn't anticipate that. we thought the hard part would be getting pregnant, not swaying pregnant. >> and the frustrating thing was you didn't learn anything from the previous miscarriage so there wasn't what could we do differently? >> hello. good to see you. >> reporter: but then learned about a new way to tailor fertility treatments to the mother's own dna. a test that can help couples figure out the perfect time for conception. using a tissue sample the era or endometrial receptivity test finds the optimal time to conceive. for her it was two days later than the average woman. >> so this is what we are trying to do here by personalized

medicine. we can make sure that the uterus is ready and optimize a time for implantation. >> this is wesley. >> wow. >> reporter: the result was their beautiful baby wesley. now 9 months old. >> we're so lucky, we're so blessed. >> congratulations to them. now this era test can cost around $800 to $1,000 and right now it is not covered by insurance, cecilia. >> okay, amy, thanks a lot. we want to bring in now dr. jessica shepherd let start with this era test. why is this such a surprising and exciting development? >> infertility in general can be such an emotional turmoil and journey. this is so exciting. what we're finding this is so much personalized medication or medicine rather and so what they're looking at is women who have gone through recurrent

miscarriages and recurrent losses so not so much getting pregnant, it's staying pregnant. and so this is good for women using their dna to look at their endometrial lining to determine when is the best time to implant the embryo. we have this wonderful demo, the perfect way to visualize. if you think of the cavity the tissue needs to be perfect priming for that implantation. this is a little too little. this one has a little bit too much. but as you'll see here, this is just the perfect amount of soil for this flower to bloom which is just like the endometrial lining. in order to have that implant but to have a successful pregnancy. >> amy used the number 12% of people struggling with infertility. that's a lot of people. who is this test best for? >> so this test is best for not necessarily just going through ivf as we discussed earlier but actually it's best for women who have recurrent miscarriage, recurrent pregnancy loss and are suffering from that type and using personalized individual medication and medicine that can tell them when is the best time

toplan the embryo. >> are there risks? >> with any technology, new technology there's going to be risks and so risks you'd have, women can still miscarry potentially after having a procedure or testing like this but the emotional journey women go through in infertility is so important, we have to take account for that emotional turmoil that they go through and also the risk is it's newer so hasn't been done on a lot of women, per se so need to have a little more of the testing done to see exactly how well it can do. >> so many women and family looking for hope and so perhaps this gives them some of that. >> yes, absolutely. >> great to have you here with us. >> thank you so much. >> that january issue of "national geographic" magazine is a special one-issue edition about the future of medicine available online right now and hits newsstands later this month. now to you, ginger. >> from hope to christmas joy and a moment we wanted to share with you from the children's hospital of colorado with none other than michelle obama.

yes, up there she's actually, you know, enjoying time with the kids and santa and then decides, you know what, i'll show off a little dance. yeah, she's doing the orange justice dance, the fortnite dance. she got santa in on it. if you can get santa to do you've won the holidays. thank you so much. we want to see your "gma" moments. i've been trying to get that

i can't believe how close christmas is. it's right around the corner but getting your home ready doesn't have to be stressful. our sponsored target and their home style expert right here with me, emily henderson, here with some quick and easy ways to get festive in a flash without breaking the bank. good morning, emily. >> good morning. >> i have a party this weekend. help me. >> okay, i've got tips. start in the living room with the sofa. so your goal is to have it be cozy but festive so we'll layer, layer, layer. here, you can help. >> please, please, i love helping? >> a big dose of holiday color. >> i don't have any of this so i'll have to do some work. >> you can put a coordinating pattern and then pop it off with a cute festive pillow. >> all the way there. >> so this was new. don't forget to look up while you're decorating. >> it's a general design tip but it is good to draw your eye up ke the room feel taller. so it adds a little bit of

drama. just watch. we'll place a wreath on top of a mirror over the mantel. it is graphic. it's simple and it's holiday. >> i'm doing it. >> it doesn't have to be holiday shopping stress. i use order pickup. we order everything on line then it is ready and waiting. pick it up later. you can send. i send my husband to pick it up and it's just so easy. >> you don't have to do it yourself. >> let's walk over to the dining room. >> uh-huh. >> so what do we do here? >> a tablescape. my rule is start with a consistent color palette. it's white and gold. so easy. >> i love it. >> then to bring the holiday we'll add a little holiday plate. look how cute that is. >> that's the best. all of that could be used for other times of year. >> these are your basics then you layer on the holiday cheer. >> and then on top of that, this is one of my favorite tips. use an ornament for something

other than hanging on the tree. >> it can be a place card holder so we are going to take our cute little wonder shop ornament and our name tag, mine says emily appropriately and just tie it around this and put it right on the plate. >> i love it. finally we talked about saving time. getting festive in a flash and you have one last final tip on that. >> yeah, i think one of the biggest challenges is time around the holidays especially trying to put up with kids so i use drive-up. you can put your kids in the back and use the drive-up app where you order everything and pull up to target. it takes two minutes --r. yodon't even have to get ok. >> iak much faster. >> it's my least favorite thing on the planet. i'm taking that with me. such a beautiful way to up my game at my party this weekend.

>> you can do it. >> thank you so much. coming up here, we look back at 201. this is one of my favorite things we do all year, the best moments of the year feeling full of gratitude this morning on "good morning america." we hope you join us. stay with us and i'm going to sit here. here, have a seat. "gma's" holly jolly home sponsored by target. expect more, pay less.

good morning, it's 8:27 i'm reggie aqui. your pg&e bill could be going on. they are asking regulators for a 12% rate hike in 2020. the average bill would go up by $10.50 per month. they say they need more money for wildfire prevention. the company says none of that money would go towards claims filed by victims of recent wildfires. friday light? >> we were for most of the morning. we've got heavy areas to talk about right now, including emeryville. folks heading towards oakland, we have a disabled vehicle blocking the left lane that's causing a delay from central avenue.

a crash involving a motorcycle getting into san francisco on northbound 280, that's north of the 101 merge. reggie? >> thank you, meteo ♪

♪ connecting people... ...uniting the world. ♪♪ back to back storms start today and last through monday. today's a 1, sunday's going to be even stronger, a 2 on our storm impact scale. you can see a few sprinkles this morning, but by noon, yellow in the north bay, by 4:00 all of us

have a chance of rain. it moves north and comes back ♪ [ applause ] we call it the year-ender. it's a look back at the biggest news, the biggest fun and those moments that grabbed our hearts. enjoy. ♪ ♪ the rest of my life gonna start today ♪ ♪ it's a brand-new day the rest of my life going to start today ♪ ♪ good morning, good morning ♪ good morning ♪ the rest of my life gonna start today ♪ >> but first we have breaking -- >> breaking news. >> here in windsor. >> nashville. >> jackson, mississippi. >> pyongyang. >> santa fe.

♪ >> that is the school right behind m mry snen dougs gh schoo at least 17 people have been killed. students and adults. >> this is a time for our country to take a look in the mirror and realize there is a serious issue here. >> contact, shots fired. >> get back! >> 11 people that were killed there in pittsburgh in the synagogue. >> the alleged shooter is facing 29 charges. >> big breaking story out of tennessee. gunman who killed four people at a waffle house. >> someone is shot. units respond. >> james shaw jr. with his quick action stopped the gunman. you put your life at risk to save others. >> yes, sir, thank you. >> desperate rescue effort to save a young soccer team trapped in a flooded cave in thailand. >> how many of you? >> they're all alive. >> 13. >> the british divers came and you could hear them. >> translator: i was in shock. ♪ >> passion and activism of

students protesting in washington. >> huge march for our lives. >> we have seven short years until we too have the right to vote. >> the first meeting between an american president and the leader of north korea. >> complete denuclearization of the korean peninsula. >> they'll get rid of their nuclear weapon, george. >> border crisis. >> shelters housing migrant children. >> is that the image of this country that you want out there, children -- >> the image of this country is an immigration system that secures our borders. confirmation battle for president trump's supreme court nominee. >> an historic he said/she said hearing. >> mr. kavanaugh had sexually assaulted me. >> i have never sexually assaulted anyone. >> back now with more on the midterms >> tomorrow will be a new day in america. >> your husband most likely will run for re-election. are you looking forward to possibly six more years in the white house?

>> i believe that my husband is doing an incredible job for this nation. >> michelle obama. [ applause ] >> 2020. 2020. >> at this point everybody is qualified and everybody should run. >> are you saying that because of what we currently have? you went there. >> you went there. >> no, you went there. >> no, you went there. >> stormy. >> stormy. >> stormy daniels. >> the fbi raided the home office of michael cohen. >> why don't i just fire mueller? >> robert mueller. >> mueller. >> the mueller investigation. >> we're in the midst of a serious investigation and i don't think the president has an option to fire jeff sessions right now. >> the firing of attorney general jeff sessions. >> he should have certainly let us know if he was going to recuse himself. >> the panhandle of florida about to feel the heaviest impacts of hurricane michael. >> authorities this morning are

begging families to stay in their homes. >> i just saw something i have never seen in real life. i saw an entire home taken off its foundation and rolled down the street. >> please, god. please let me out. >> devastating fires in california. >> this is a statewide event, though. it's been going on for days. >> authorities are trying to put this fire out right now. >> this entire neighborhood has been obliterated. ♪ >> i've had the good fortune to spend 60 years in service to this wondrous land. >> former first lady barbara bush. >> america's 41st president remembered. >>heeson he had. awkward but there's nothing self-conscious in my love of country. >> anthony bourdain.

>> this is the path to true ppins. >> famous designer kate spade. >> comic book legend stan lee. >> i guess one person can make a difference. ♪ r-e-s-p-e-c-t >> spur of the moment. you just do and you just diva do. ♪ you make me feel like a natural woman ♪ ♪ >> sunday night at the golden globes. >> i'll leave this and take the rose. >> cheers. >> cheers. >> oscars after party. >> oprah winfrey tweeted at you. >> she did? >> yeah. >> the wedding of the year. >> you guys should have taken my advice and eloped but that's your business. >> excitement is growing for bts, the biggest boy band on the globe. ♪

welcome back. >> i love you, man. >> ah. >> i'm sorry. did you want any? ♪ hear you say >> aaagh! ♪ somebody loves you ♪ ooh somebody loves you >> sorry. >> sorry. >> no, that's you. >> okay. >> all right, mary, thanks so much. mary, michael. >> i look like mary. >> see, it says me right here. >> but it says me right here, revision two. now the top headlines we're following this morning. >> cecilia, thank you -- cecilia? paula. >> i will take a cecilia comparison any day. you just made my day. >> it's fine. thanks, robin. >> you're welcome. >> good morning, america. it is a cold one here. want to go outside to ginger. >> i got my it's way too cold bounce going on. can i come in now? >> look at the little girl in the window.

>> who in the audience thinks a marriage performance review is a good idea? [ applause ] what do you think your review will say? >> i get in trouble for not being handy around the house. i would fail at that. >> really? >> yes. >> you got to be good at something because she's keeping you around all those years. >> uh-huh. >> i didn't mean it that way, george, i'm so sorry. i'm going to leave now. i am so sorry. [ laughter ] ♪ we could do this all night >> good morning. >> good morning. >> good morning. >> good morning, america. >> yes. >> we've had the best audiences. >> you guys are loud this morning. [ applause ] ♪ ♪ we can do this all night. >> pick any card, literally any card. show the crowd your card. good. now, put it in here. as you see there's no way that i

could know where it is and then i do this and then i do that. is that your card? no, it probably isn't. i don't know magic. i'm an actor. [ applause ] ♪ just put your arms around me tell me everything is okay ♪ >> you know how much i love my family and my sister sally-ann. she is an icon in new orleans. has been on the morning show there for so long. she is retiring. >> this is the right time for me to start the next chapter of my life. >> she's the reason i'm doing what i'm doing and these are tears of joy. they really are. ♪ darling told my hand >> saying good-bye to ginger for a little while. a little baby shower this morning. >> thank you, guys. >> we have some guests here. >> ah. >> areito baby broth >> yeah. >> yeah? >> big "gma" welcome to ginger's new baby boy miles. >> lara's fiance popped the question.

[ applause ] >> yes. >> so happy you found each other. >> thank you. >> thrilled with the love you share. [ applause ] >> thank you. >> our amy tackling one of the biggest challenges in the world, mount kilimanjaro. >> five years ago i had to battle breast cancer. instead of living in fear i decide to live defying fear. >> i'm just so proud of my family who came with me. when i called they all said yes. you guys are also my family and you've been with me every step of the journey. you were with me on the mountain. you were with me at that peak. ♪ >> for the first time ever a wedding is going to be broadcast live in front of cinderella castle. >> after being together for nearly five years, alexis and jay had to put their wedding plans on hold when hurricane harvey destroyed alexa's home. you are winners, guys. >> oh, my god. >> of our fairly tale wedding.

>> you may kiss your bride. [ applause ] >> we're all gearing up for a challenge. >> best friends chris and dylan are checking items off their bucket list. after 20-year-old chris was rediagnosed with chronic myeloid leukemia. what's it meant to you? >> it's been incredible. >> we wanted to help you set a world record for most donors added to their bone marrow registry in 24 hours. >> we said challenge accepted. >> go! ♪ i'm going to stand by you ♪ 'cause i'm going to stand by you ♪ >> t.j. holmes is there in ohio with a map whose life is about to change. >> dave was living with a serious kidney disease. like so many people in this country he's on the organ transplant waiting list. longtime friend and neighbor nancy got tested to see if she

and dave were a match. >> your wait is over, dave. you're getting a kidney. ♪ we can find a way to break through even if we can't find heaven i'll walk through hell with you ♪ >> i wouldn't have it any other way. ♪ you're not alone because i'm going to stand by you ♪ ♪ tell you something >> are you ready to get this party started? >> hit it, people. >> stay straight. >> i like that. >> put your chest out. >> a new dance move. ♪ really, really, really like you ♪ >> you got to dance too. >> you want to dance with us. ♪ oh, did i say too much >> go, michael. don't hurt yourself. don't hurt yourself. >> clap, man. clap. there we go, george. whoo! that was unbelievable. what a spectacle. ♪ >> teamwork that makes the dream work, right? >> yes, it does. >> thank you at home. >> good morning. >> good morning. >> good morning, america!

[ cheers and applause ] >> is there another story? i'm happy to go on. [ applause ] >> that was something. you know but they missed my dance. >> they did. >> your dance? >> you'll have to do it again, george, in 2019. >> maybe next year. big team to thank for all this. they worked so hard to put it together, matt, stacia, dan, sabel, marcello, liz and seth. what a great job, guys. [ applause ] we'll be right back.

welcome back to "good morning america." it was so sweet looking back on our incredible year here and, yes, i did get tears in my eyes there but we have something else so sweet for you. our christmas cookie of the day. preppy kitchen's holiday cooking tree. so look, it's really simple. you can assemble it like any other gingerbread house but so different from any other gingerbread house. look at that thing. that would make me feel like i was actually baking and i think i might be able to pull that one off. check out the recipe on our

this weather report has been sponsored by ancestry.com. and we're not done yet. coming up, high school musical alum vanessa hudgens one-on-one.

♪ when you have doctors working as a team for your health, you get the care you need to help you thrive. ♪

visit kp.org to learn more. kaiser permanente. thrive. ♪ [ applause ] yep, i'll see you at 1:00 p.m. as well today. we're back with vanessa hudgens taking on the big screen with jennifer lopez in a new movie

"second act" and, adrienne, you had a chance to speak with her and she told you she had her own second act in her life. >> haven't we all? i mean, really we've had to reset, restart and start a new chapter. first of all, happy birthday today to vanessa hudgens. it was a great conversation about how we've all had those second chapters in our lives to change things and discover who we really are. ♪ >> reporter: vanessa hudgens is celebrating big time starring alongside jennifer lopez in the film "second act." >> i truly admire you. kind of who i want to be when i grow up. >> reporter: and celebrating her big 3-0 today. >> we wanted to be the first to wish vanessa hudgens happy birthday so we wanted you to blow out a candle and make a wish. >> thank you. yay. >> i love that you intentionally made that wish. >> yeah, of course. if you're not, you're wasting one.

>> reporter: the "high school musical" alum cast with lo's real-life best friend. >> who's the champ? >> i'm the champ? >> you're the champ. >> stop it. >> how is it working with j. lo and leah? >> it's hysterical. i love them so much. what you see in the film is what they are in real life. >> when you look at someone like j. lo who has reinvented herself in so many different way, do you study her or see her more as a peer? >> i think a little bit of both. i have grown to just love her as a friend so dearly. my character is a little bitter and quite harsh with j. lo and i'm like, girl, just be nice to j.lo. come on. >> i think i've seen enough. thank you for coming in, maya. >> yeah, okay. thank you. >> that was great. >> that was hysterical. >> the hand up. >> oh, my god. >> do you have any moments in your life that were a second act where you were having a fresh

start? >> after high school musical it was an interesting time because i was overwhelmed with this worldwide success. i got to kind of have my second act and go off and do these dark independent films and work with filmmakers like harmony corrine and do "spring breakers." i feel like it kind of changed the mold and perception that people had of me. >> reporter: she says she gets to show more of her range and says all of us will relate to the theme of starting a new chapter. >> it's such an amazing story that hopefully will inspire women to lift each other up and to take a chance to look inwards and to figure out if they are truly happy with their lives and if they're not to too something about it, that it's never too late to make a change in your course of life. >> reporter: and for her own journey, she talked about going into her 30s as something she's giddy over. super focused. grateful tbeorkingit talent, ndarus women like jennifer lopez and leah remini. >> i would be so happy to go

back to my 30s. >> it only gets better, and the movie comes out december 21st. >> she is awesome. happy birthday, vanessa. >> happy birthday, vanessa. whoa! the mercedes-benz winter event is back and you won't want to stop for anything else. [ barks ] ho! lease the c 300 sport sedan for $399 a month at your local mercedes-benz dealer. mercedes-benz. the best or nothing.

♪ ♪ connecting people... ...uniting the world. ♪♪

>> announcer: can you believe it? since we started we collected over 2 million coats. >> helping people in need to stay warm. >> announcer: from celebrities and people like you. >> thank you. >> announcer: come on, america. join us. go to any burlington store to donate a coat and share the warmth this winter.

[ applause ] >> and before we go, after a decade here at abc news and most recently as my producer for the last five years, sara is heading to nashville for her next big life adventure with her husband luke. >> yay. >> and sara, she's been with me from the moment i joined "gma." i could not and would not be able to do this job without you. >> ah. >> i'm going to miss you. you will be extremely missed and -- she looked at me and she said don't you say anything. don't make me talk but you know what, we love you here and you always have a home here. you always have a family and i want to put you on the spot. anything you want to say? >> don't make me cry on national television. thank you guys. this has been the ride of a life. >> it's not over. not over. >> thank you. i did it. >> i love you. [ applause ]

you made it to friday. it's 8:59. mike nicco has a look at your forecast. >> hi, everybody. we'll start with the storm impact scale. back to back storms today and tomorrow, and then sunday and morning. today's storm light, sunday's storm moderate. it moves into the north bay, all of us will get rain around 4:00. it will keep raining through 11:00 and then it moves into the north bay for tomorrow but it comes back heavier sunday afternoon and evening. we're looking at a pretty empty bay bridge toll plaza right now. the metering lights are still on, but i think everyone's caught in a backup. we've got a disabled vehicle blocking the left lane. this drive time not pretty, 55 minutes. much better across the bay bridge at 13. no delays if you're heading to

sfo. time for live with >> announcer: it's "live with kelly and ryan!" that today, from the new film "private life," kathryn hahn. and star of "ben is back," lucas hedges. and we will wrap up our holiday hits week with the incredible michael buble. if plus, we will announce the winner of the shopping spree. all next on "live!" and now, here are kelly ripa and ryan seacrest! [cheers and applause] ♪