right now on "america this morning" -- high-stakes call. president biden and president putin, one-on-one, amongst concern that russia is about to invade ukraine. what the director of the cia is saying and what the u.s. response could look like. covid concerns confirming the omicron variant. and the new report this morning indicating president trump may have been far sicker than we thought when he had covid. what a former aide is revealing. abc news exclusive. new insight into what happened on the set of alec baldwin's "rust" before the sdeadly shooting. what the father of the armorer

on-set happens that day. battle in buffalo. why the real winner on "monday night football" was mother nature. and what david letterman said on the broadcast. could you get your groceries delivered to your home within 15 minutes guaranteed? the company that claims it can do it. good tuesday morning, everyone. >> we begin with a very important call. >> president biden and vladimir putin are scheduled to speak today amid growing concern that russia could be prepared to invade ukraine, a u.s. ally. >> last night, the head of the cia addressed those concerns and what might happen. this morning, just hours before a call between president biden and vladimir putin, the director of the cia is giving an interview about the high-stakes

meeting. >> we've seen a military buildup by the russians. >> reporter: these satellite images show the russian troops gathered on ukraine's doorstep. >> biden is in a bind. if he pushes too far and tries to do things, support ukraine militarily, that looks provocati provocative. if he backs away, he looks like he hasn't stood by a friend. >> reporter: conflict has been simmering between russia and ukraine since 2014, when russia seized control of crimea. william burns last night says putin has not made up his mind whether to use force against ukraine. but he said he would never underestimate the risk a p tight. >> i would never underestimate the risk appetite on ukraine. this is an opportunity to reinforce, re-emphasize the

casts of the use of force. also emphasize renewed military aggression. and importance of de-escalation. t >> reporter: the white house is considering options if russia were to invade, including sanctions or meeting our nato allies request for forces. president biden will warn putin of very real costs should russia invade ukraine. the president will also make clear there is a respectful way forward. the last known call between the leaders was in july, when biden pressed putin on hackers launching cyber attacks. a storm system could dump more than two feet of rain in some areas of hawaii, triggers landslides and blocking highways. thousands have lost power. some ignored blizzard warnings

on the tallest mountains. we turn to the pandemic and the race to contain the omicron variant. we learned that texas is the 19th state to confirm the variant. it comes as they announce a strict vaccine mandate. em nguyen is here with the latest. >> reporter: the delta variant is still the dominant strain. but omicron could change that. scientists are scrambling to learn more of the severity ahead of the holidays. covid-19 case surging in the u.s. up 27% in the last week. the omicron variant popping up in a growing number of states. >> we've had an incredible covid surge and also a covid surge of those that are critically ill. >> reporter: at leas 19 states have confirmed cases of the omicron variant. the latest in texas and hawaii, where the patients reported no

travel. others, like in minnesota and mississippi, reported recent travel to new york, where mayor bill de blasio just announced a vaccine mandate. >> vaccination is the central weapon in this war against covid. >> reporter: effective december 27th, all private sectors employees would will have to one dose of the vaccine. children 5 to 11, will need one dose to enter restaurants, gyms and entertainment venues. anyone 12 and older will need to show two doses. >> it's p e's protective of oury and other people. >> reporter: last week, another 133,000 children tested positive. more than 7 million children have contracted covid since the start of the pandemic. as winter nears, the cdc, urging people to use rapid tests before heading to an indoor gathering.

starting this weekend in france, nightclubs must chose for four weeks. a new tud study claims a chg gum could help fight covid. this gym is made from a protein. they're hoping to conduct clinical trials to test it. one expert told us, it's worth studying. president trump when he had covid, it was more dire than the white house said. according to "the new york times," a new book by trump's former chief of staff, said his oxygen level dropped to 86%, which is low. he had to convince trump to go to the hospital. he reportedly says that trump was so weak, he had to sit down

and rest every few minutes. the justice department is suing texas over the redistricting plans. the lawsuit claims texas violated the voting rights act. the texas attorney general calls the lawsuit absurd. china is firing back after the u.s. announced a diplomatic boycott of the beijing olympics. the chinese embassy tweeted, no one would care if these people come or not. the u.s. dignitaries will not attend in protest of human rights abuses. the white house says it didn't feel right to penalize the athletes. >> we're going to root for the athletes from home. this is sending a message that given the human rights abuses, we can not proceed with business as usual. >> other countries are

considering a similar boycott. three more hostages released by a gang in haiti are reportedly safe. the missionaries were set free sunday. but 12 of 17 abducted are being held. kidnappings have spiked in haiti. the u.s. navy has shut down a passive fuel storage complex in hawaii, after complaints it's contaminating the local drinking water. many military families have recently complained the water smells like fuel. some reported getting sick. the entire system is being flushed. time for a look at your tuesday weather. in addition to the flood emergency in hawaii, rain lingers across the southeast today. and showers are expected in the

northwest and in the pacific northwest. a cold blast is stretching from the dakotas to the carolinas and off to the northeast. a windchill of eight degrees is expected in chicago this morning. 27, washington, d.c. 23 nashville and cincinnati. to 20s in the midwest. and mild across the southwest. coming up, a new prediction about gas prices. >> ahead, the abc news exclusive. the father of the woman in charge of guns on the set of alec baldwin's movie speaks out. and later, what we're learning about the ceo who

back, now, with the runaway suitcase. this was the scene at the dallas-ft. worth airport during heavy winds. the suitcase fell off the trolley and made a run for it. the ground crew took it back into custody. good news for drivers. prices at the pump are finally heading down. the national average is now $3.34 a gallon. one expert says, prices could drop by $3 at christmas. experts say more supply is hitting the market. the cost of natural gas is falling. prices have dropped 40% since october, thanks in part warm weather expected in much of the country. now, to the deadly shooting on the set of an alec baldwin movie. the father of the woman in charge of gun, claims it was an act of sabotage.

a key person connected to the movie set shooting is speaking out. >> she does a good job. that is my little girl. >> reporter: he served as an armorer or weapons specialist on 4 projects. his daughter was the armorer on the set of "rust," when a prop gunfired a live round. it was only the second time that gutierrez-reed filled the role of armorer. >> did you think she was up to the job? >> i assumed that because she was there and hired, she was up for the job. >> reporter: last week, a search warrant revealed that ammunition once in his possession, quote, may match the ammunition found on the set of "rust." the former colleague supplied guns and ammunition to the "rust" movie set. he gave kenny 200 or 300 live rounds on a different project.

he said he never got it back. kenny denies giving live ammo to the production. he claims it was the result of sabotage, claiming that someone put a live bullet into the gun. >> i wasn't there. i can't get into it. >> we believe there is motive. we've given that to the sheriff, given the information on that. there's text messages. there's other information. there's going to be more that comes out. >> the district attorney says she has seen no evidence of sabotage. later, he'll discuss how he thinks the tragedy could be afre avo avoided. david letterman's role on "monday night football" last night. night. >> ♪ thousands of women with metastatic breast cancer are living in the moment and taking ibrance. ibrance with an aromatase inhibitor

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detectives have interviewed the artist whose studio served as a hideout for the parents of the michigan school shooting suspect. they executed a search warrant and seized several devices to determine if charges are appropriate. meanwhile, the oxford school district has rejected an offer from the state's attorney general to investigate the actions before the shooting that left four students dead. now, to the case of jussie smollett, the actor accused of

staging a hate crime against himself. here's christine sloan. >> reporter: this morning, jussie smollett, taking his own defense. he denied hi staged an attack against himself. testifying there was no hoax, similar to ha he said in 2019. >> i have been truthful and consistent on every level. i would not be my mother's son if i was capable of what i have been accused of. >> reporter: two brothers testified that smollett paid them to carry out the assault. including placing a noose around his neck. >> you want to take it off or anything? >> i don't want to -- >> can we turn it off? >> yeah. >> reporter: in court monday, smollett testified he did pay one of the brothers. but for advice on nutrition and training.

he said they met in a club. both worked on the set of "empire." they both big drugs and had a sexual relationship. his lawyer suggested the brothers were motivated by greed and a dislike of smollett. the brothers aspiring actors say they worked with smollett, in hopes of advancing their careers. smollett staged the attack, supposedly for publicity. the charges carry a three- year prison p sentence. if found guilty, he would likely face probation or community service. mona? ike? in sports, it wasn't the bills or the patriots who won the battle in buffalo last night. it was mother nature. look at the espn crew on the field. >> started the show, on the normal set. winds gusting to 50.

>> nearly blown other by wind gusts. the patriots running game fared best. matt jones threw the ball three times all night. new england beat buffalo, 14-10. david letterman appeared on peyton and eli manning's simulcast last night. >> did you play a lot of football growing up? >> have you seen me? did you ever get a look at me? did you ever see me in the shower? >> no. >> i didn't play a lot of football. >> i weighed 150 and was 6'2". running laps, i would be snapped in two. >> he showed up late, saying he had internet issues. a faster way to get

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time to check, quali"the pu" door dash raising the stakes in the delivery business. >> the company promises to get the order to your door in less than 15 minutes. it includes groceries and >> door dash is hiring full-time employees, offering full ben fits and offering $15 an hour. >> i love that. we're learning more about the boss more famous for all of the wrong reasons.

>> he fired 900 employees over a zoom meeting. >> his communication has sparked controversy. in a leaked e-mail, he reportedly told employees they were too slow and called them dumb dolphins. he claimed his workers were embarrassing him. next, scientists in the u.k. are telling cat lovers something they likely know. your furry friends are likely psychopaths. they found most cats have psychopathic tendencies. >> and finally, a brush with a celebrity creating an oh, deer moment. >> look at this stag poking its head into a car. >> he is getting friendly with the

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careful. wet roads out there. lisa argen is here with your forecast. >> and concern about covid cases. the newly revised recommendations for your family and friends for the holiday. reggie: and mixed messages over whether one county is enforcing their own mask mandates. good morning. you are watching abc 7 mornings live right now on abc 7, hulu live, and wherever you stream. >> let's start with a check on the forecast. lisa, go morning. lisa: good morning. did you guys see the rain? here is a look at life doppler 7, where the activity is thinking south of us already. a few pockets of fog, but nothing too sub