for free help, call 1-800-quit-now. that's what's making news in america this morning. >> bye. making news in america this a government shutdown now just hours away. the president refusing to back down on his border wall demand. meanwhile, the bombshell resignation of defense secretary >> everything that indicates stability is leaving this administration. and breaking overnight, a major change in afghanistan. what president trump is now planning. also this morning, holiday getaway. flooding and heavy winds hampering travel for tens of millions and a major development overnight after a drone sighting shuts down one of the busiest airports in the world. plus, the dramatic 911 call. >> i'm really scared.

>> okay, the police are coming in the back door. ?>>ses helpedally going hear >> the controversy over the super bowl halftime show and who may be joining it. and beer battle settled. the dispute over miller lite. does it really have more taste? and we do say good morning on this friday, everyone. we begin with several developing stories from washington. a capitol in chaos today. >> just hours after severance secretary james mattis stepped down citing his differences with the president, the government now appears headed toward a shutdown at midnight tonight. the stalemate is adding to the turmoil over the resignation of mattis, who protested the president's decision to pull syria. learning the president plans to withdraw thousands of troops from afghanistan, about half of the current force. >> and as the world watches washington, many americans are

watching their 401(k)s, another sell-off, big sell-off on wall street thanks in part to the uncertainty in washington. >> grab your pepto-bismol, everybody. we've got it all covered starting with the mattis resignation. abc's lana zak joins us from d.c. lana. >> reporter: good morning to you, janai, and i cannot believe i'm saying this for the very last time, good morning to you, kendis. >> thank you, lana. >> before we get to the other high-profile resignation, i just want to say on behalf of everybody here in washington and myself personally that we've loved waking up with you in the morning. >> thank you, it's been fun, and a busy morning, indeed, in d.c. >> reporter: exactly. so, let's get to the news. >> yes. >> reporter: in his resignation letter general mattis says that he doesn't think that the united states should be policemen of the world but that the strength of our nation is tied to the strength of our allies. just one day after president trump announced his decision to pull all u.s. troops from syria, the secretary of defense, general james mattis, announced he will leave the trump administration. >> he and the president have a

good relationship, but sometimes on to make. >> reporter: in his letter to president trump, mattis specifically addresses disagreements with the president over russia and china and says he will be leaving, quote, because you have the right to a secretary of defense whose views are better aligned with yours on these and other subjects, i believe it is right for me to step down from my position. >> i am shaken by the resignation of general mattis, for what it means to our country, for the message it sends to our troops. >> reporter: political leaders from both parties reacting with shock. senate majority leader mitch mcconnell, who is usually publicly circumspect with the president, called russia a foe writing, i am particularly distressed that he is resigning due to sharp differences with the president. and senator marco rubio tweeted, just read general mattis' resignation letter. it makes it abundantly clear that we are headed towards a series of grave policy errors which will endanger our nation. for his part the president tweeted, a new secretary of defense will be named shortly. i greatly thank jim for his service. abc's martha raddatz has covered the middle east and has known

mattis for years. >> secretary mattis is a man whose life has been about service and sacrifice. he cares deeply about our troops and this country. he said he would never leave the post as long as he felt his service to the president was valued and productive. that no longer was the case. it seems clear that the situation was intolerable for mattis. >> reporter: now, mattis and the president have also disagreed on the role of nato, the transgender ban announced on twitter, korea policy and the president's recent decision not only on syria and afghanistan but also to send u.s. troops to the border. mattis will officially leave the administration in february. kendis, janai. >> so many republicans and democrats expressing concern about that resignation. lana, thank you. and former defense secretary william cohen says he's a friend of general mattis and spoke to him the night before he resigned. >> he tells cnn that mattis was most concerned about betraying our allies in syria. >> and i can tell you he was distraught just in our

discussions. we didn't talk about resignation, but i can tell you what he felt that there is a betrayal of our ally, not only in syria but all of the allies who have supported this battle against isis, and the war is not over. they have not been defeated, and what he was concerned about is our credibility and our reputation for reliability has now been called into question. >> well, cohen says the decision to send troops to the southern border also frustrated mattis. retired general stanley mcchrystal, who is the former commander of u.s. forces in afghanistan, has also raised concern about mattis leaving saying, quote, the kind of leadership that causes a dedicated patriot like jim mattis to leave should give pause to every american. if you'd like to read the entire resignation letter from secretary mattis, it's now posted on our website, atmfans.com. now to the other big story in washington, it looks like the government could shut down at midnight tonight. president trump is demanding congress fund his border wall but it does not look like the senate will agree. this morning, shutdown cliffhanger. overnight house republicans

passing a short-term funding bill with more than $5 billion for president trump's border wall, but the holdup now is in the senate, which is expected to reject the plan today. >> president trump is plunging the country into chaos, throwing a temper tantrum and creating the trump shutdown of the government. >> reporter: that means 800,000 government workers could be without a paycheck over christmas. it's all a dramatic about-face for the president. >> we need the wall. the democrats know it. everybody knows it. >> reporter: earlier this week it appeared he was ready to accept a short-term plan to keep the government running through february, essentially kicking the can down the road without money for his border wall. but then a conservative revolt. >> looks like a lot of people's worst fears may be realized and that the president is getting ready to cave. >> not funding the wall is going to go down as one of the worst, worst things to have happened to this administration. >> reporter: accused of backing down from his one of his top campaign promises, the president

changed course and summoned house speaker paul ryan and top republicans to the white house. >> the president informed us that he will not sign the bill that came up from the senate last evening because of his legitimate concerns for border security. >> reporter: on capitol hill overnight the president's party scrambling to find a fix. but this morning senators aren't budging. the uncertainty along with concern about the trade war with china and rising interest rates sent stocks in a nosedive. the dow losing another 464 points dropping to its lowest level in more than a year, and asian markets were down overnight, and with a government shutdown looming, some private citizens are now trying to help pay for the border wall. an air force veteran launched a fund-raising site online and has already raised $10 million. a major traveling. over last year. rain and gusty winds will interrupt some of that travel

along the i-95 corridor from d.c. to boston with heavy meanwhile, this was the scene in seattle during a massive windstorm. waves of water crashed into the bay breeze restaurant. all those customers were evacuated. no injuries were reported. well, let's take a closer look at your friday forecast. good morning. right now we are very mindful of the flood watches that run rampant throughout the entire east coast as far north as bangor all the way down towards tampa, tallahassee, charleston and wilmington. also we're concerned about flash flooding as well as river flooding. we have a monster of a low pressure system. a mix behind it with heavy rain continuing along the east coast staying windy throughout the mid-atlantic region and then as far as what we're expecting going into saturday, still expecting to stay cool but widespread winds that continue to be a thorn in our side.

i'm accuweather meteorologist paul williams. all right, well, coming up, a stunning new image from the surface of mars. but first a developing story thousands of travelers stranded, all because drone sightings have shut down a busy airport. what's being done to find who's responsible. and later the rescue effort to save two men left hanging from this crane.

we're back with an airport meltdown caught on camera. this happened in memphis. a woman flipped over furniture, knocked over loading poles and set off a fireiss poedly upset over a $20 baggage fee. she's been charged with vandalism and disorderly conduct. man.

>> $20. >> $20 for a baggage fee. well, some planes are now flying at london's gatwick airport after drone sightings forced the airport to shut down thursday because of security concerns stranding thousands of travelers. the british military is considering shooting down the drones. armed snipers have been lined up along a runway. >> the flight left 15 minutes late, taxied out towards the runway, and then it just stopped and said there's a lockdown on the airport, and there we stood for four hours. >> ooh, police say there's no indication terrorists are behind the drone disruptions. british laws are slowing down the effort to find who's responsible because drone owners in the uk do not have to register their devices. officials have not confirmed whether they're using high-tech jammers or any other methods to stop the drones, which may pose legal challenges. a new indication this morning of the growing cyberthreat posed by china. the justice department has charged two chinese nationals with stealing information from

nearly 50 government agencies and tech companies. u.s. officials say the cyberattacks were run on behalf of china's main intelligence agency. china calls the accusations a y nett whitaker is rejecting advice that he should recuse himself from overseeing the russia investigation. a top ethics official at the justice department says whitaker should step aside and said the appearance of a conflict of interest is a close call. whitaker previously criticized robert mueller's russia probe before joining the trump administration. we're seeing some new images this morning from outer space, and they look like a winter wonderland on mars. this massive crater on the red planet is 50 miles wide and filled with ice. now, the water stays frozen all year locked in what's called a cold trap even as the season changes. >> fascinating. >> yeah, on this first day of winter here on earth. >> yeah. here on earth. well, coming up, the entertainer who has now agreed to perform in the super bowl halftime show. >> they found somebody. but first the dramatic 911

call from two young kids locked inside their bathroom by an armed burglar. what they did to catch him. and later how a college student is accused of trying to poison his roommate. trying to poison his roommate. bathroom by an armed burglary. it was a no-brainer. i switched to geico and saved hundreds. that's a win. but it's not the only reason i switched. the geico app makes it easy to manage my policy. i can pay my bill, add a new driver, or even file a claim. woo, hey now! that's a win-win. thank you! switch to geico®. it's a win-win. forget about vacuuming for weeks. the (new) roomba i7+ with clean base automatic dirt disposal empties the roomba bin for you. so dirt is off your hands. if it's not from irobot, it's not a roomba. what sore muscles? what with advpounding head? ..

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we switched to tide pods free & gentle. it's gentle on her skin and out cleans the other free and clear detergent. dermatologist recommended. it's got to be tide. a frightening night above el paso, texas, for two contractors. they were stuck inside this crane that malfunctioned while they were fixing lights on a tower. one worker was rescued quickly. the other was left dangling nearly 400 feet in the air. he was eventually brought down after about two hours up there. to atlanta now and four people are dead after a small plane crashed into a park. the plane heading to memphis had just taken off from fulton county airport. it broke a yards. no official word on the cause of that crash as yet. we turn now to a terrifying ordeal for a young brother and >>ea they called 911s armed burglar kicked in their back door. they were home alone but were

able to keep their cool, and now they're being rewarded for it. abc's alex perez has more. >> reporter: for the first time we're hearing the harrowing 911 call 10-year-old erik francisco and his 9-year-old sister onayda made after an armed intruder broke into their alabama home last may forcing them into a bathroom. >> i'm really scared. >> the police are coming in the back door. you're eventually going to hear us say police, okay. >> reporter: the gunman not realizing little erik snuck in a cell phone. >> he's right near my room. my puppy's barking at him. >> reporter: the operator working to keep the kids calm. >> the police are inside, but i need you to get into that bathtub and lay down in the bathtub, okay. >> but we're scared to come out. >> okay, don't come out. >> reporter: now the police department praising the brother/sister team as heroes rewarding them with gifts. >> the only thing i want to say to them is merry christmas. thank you so very much. >> reporter: authorities say the siblings' quick thinking was key. that intruder now awaiting trial

on burglary and several other charges. alex perez, abc news, chicago. police have returned to the home of a colorado mother missing since thanksgiving. overnight invest boxes and bags out of kelsey berreth's house in woodland park and police have also searched the property of her fiance who was the last person to see her. they say he is not considered a suspect. a former student at lehigh university is accused of trying to kill his roommate with a chemical once used in a rat poison. now, police in pennsylvania say yukai yang laced his roommate's food and drinks with a substance called thallium. yang was an international student from china majoring in chemistry. now, police say the poisoning continued for months last spring and his roommate's symptoms got progressively worse. >> this was over a period of time where small amounts of this poisoning was occurring. this victim is still experiencing, you know, physical symptoms from this poisoning that occurred.

>> yang is also charged with scrawling a racial slur on the desk of his roommate who says he thought he once had a good relationship with yang. a new act is being added to the super bowl halftime show. reports say rapper travis scott is being added to the show alongside maroon 5. the show has been controversial since the league's national anthem protest. many artists saying they won't perform. jay-z was reportedly trying to persuade scott not to perform in the show though he says that's not the case but that scott is big enough to not be a side act. up next in "the pulse," the rock star who suffered a health scare while playing "jeopard bizarre tweet ever. and attention, beer drinkers, a dispute over the taste of miller lite finally has been settled.

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♪ your friday "pulse" now starts with president trump's most bizarre -- i don't know why i was doing the electric slide -- most bizarre tweet yet, and that's saying a lot. >> he signed the $860 billion farm bill that affects people who get food stamps, but before he signed it, he celebrated throwback thursday by tweeting this. ♪ green acres is the place to be farm living is the life for me ♪ ♪ land spreading out so far and wide ♪ >> oh, wow. >> yeah. >> once you see it, you can't unsee it or unhear it. so the president singing, of course, "green acres" from the tv show during an appearance at the 2005 emmy awards. and poor megan mullally was there on stage with him. in response yesterday she tweeted, omg, if you guys need me, i'll be in a hole in the remember that

moment, though, so many years ago? >> yeah. next to the rock star champion on "jeopardy." >> so jackie fuchs' win streak on "jeopardy" ended last night but she won four games in a row. and it wasn't until after her third appearance when her true identity was revealed. >> as we discovered on yesterday's program, she was once malibu barbie and was also a performer in an all girl rock band. >> i was the bass player in the '70s all female rock band the runaways. >> wow. so, wait a minute, you're in a rock band playing bass. you were malibu barbie, and now you're an attorney and a writer. how did you make that switch at some point? >> i just get bored easily, i guess. >> i guess so. fuchs is better known as jackie fox, the bassist for the band the runaways.there.song

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hi. good morning. it is finally friday. it is december 21st, the friday before christmas. >> you got it. a lot of people are anxious to maybe have their last day of work before the new year. for a lot of people. >> a lot of people are already off, i'll tell you that. >> it looks like a lot of people took this week off and stretched it into monday and tuesday. a week and a half. good for them. for those of us not in working, we have to travel through wet weather. scattered showers are out there this morning. strongest in marin, across the san pablo bay, heading towards . e coming east. sliding to the south. expect scattered showers throughout the morning commute. and temperatures running in the

low to atha wet commute with alexis. good morning, mike. live doppler 7 on top of the traffic map. it is not extremely heavy or widespread. we have wet pavement. san rafael, 101, a little hazy as well. it is not looking bad volume-wise. san rafael to san francisco, green in the green, just 17 minutes. alexis, thank you. it is likely the government could shut down tonight. >> president trump demanding congress fund his border wall, but it doesn't look like the senate will go along with it. >> reporter: this morning's shutdown cliffhanger. house republicans passing thesh more than $5 billion for president trump's border wall. but the holdup now is in the senate, which is expected to reject the plan today. >> president trump is plunging

a temper tantrumnd800,000 government workers could be without a paycheck over christmas. it's all a dramatic about-face for the president. >> we need the wall. the democrats know it. everybody knows it. >> reporter: essentially kicking the can down the road without money for his border wall. bt then a conservative revolt. >> the president is getting ready to cave. >> not funding the wall is going to go down as one of the worst, worst things to have happened to this administration perform. >> reporter: accused of bagging down from one of his top campaign promises, the president changed course and summoned paul ryan to the white house. >> the president informed us he will not sign the bill that came from the senate last evening because of his legitimate concerns for border security. >> reporter: on capitol hill overnight, the president's party scrambling to find a fix.

but this morning senators aren't budging. the uncertainty, along with concern about the trade war with china and rising interest rates, sent stocks in a nose dive. the dow lowest level in more than a year. kendis gibson, abc news, new york. so obviously there's a lot of worry, including here in the bay area where parkgoers will feel the impact of a shutdown the most. golden gate national recreation area muir woods and point reyes parking lots, unfoe centers, would all be shut down. alcatraz island will remain open. but on a reduced schedule. the