whit: good morning, america. breaking overnight, new clues in the manhunt for the suspected killer of the unitedhealthcare ceo. this backpack recovered believed to belong to the gunman. possible new dna evidence with the search expanding nationwide. >> gio: jury deadlocked. the judge dismissing the top charge against daniel perry, accused of using a deadly chokehold on a new york city subway passenger after jurors said they couldn't reach a

decision. what happens next. >> janai: polar plunge. millions of americans in the east waking up to subfreezing temperatures reaching as far south as florida while another clipper system takes aim at the northeast that could bring another foot of lake-effect snow. somara's tracking it all. >> whit: running down the clock on tiktok. a decision upheld that the chinese company must sell the popular app or see it banned in the u.s. could president-elect trump take action to stop it? >> gio: championship weekend. college football's critical conference games, deciding who moves on and who doesn't. espn's desmond howard previews the matchups and makes his predictions. ♪ santa, tell me if you're really there ♪ >> janai: and santas that slay, the new looks for kris kringle. >> santa claus, he's like weirdly hot. >> janai: so fashion forward and trading the belly for buff.

♪ he won't be here ♪ >> gio: santas that slay, i like that. >> janai: ho, ho, ho. >> gio: good morning, america. so good to see you. we've got a big morning ahead and a farewell of sorts for taylor swift fans, the end of the "eras" tour this weekend. everybody speculating on the set list and whether swift has any surprise announcements in store. i'm going to guess, yes. >> janai: i would think so. vancouver a couple of weeks ago was already excited for that. it's going to be on fire tonight. we will go live to paris where they're about to re-open the world famous notre dame cathedral, which was nearly leveled by a fire five years ago, a gathering of world leaders are on hand including president-elect trump. >> whit: more on that ahead. new details in the manhunt for the suspect in the shooting death of the head of one of the nation's largest health insurers. abc's morgan norwood is here

with the latest. morgan, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, whit. yes, the suspect behind that brazen ambush of ceo brian thompson earlier this week likely took a bus out of the city, but he left behind a critical piece of evidence, his backpack, and as investigators comb through it for clues, the fbi is joining what's now a nationwide search and offering a $50,000 reward. this morning, the frantic search for the killer behind the assassination-style murder of unitedhealthcare's ceo brian thompson now turning into a nationwide manhunt. according to sources, investigators believe the suspect escaped new york city, last seen at 6:59 a.m. on wednesday riding a bike out of central park after the shooting. police say the suspect hopped into a taxi, headed to a bus station, and made his getaway. friday nypd officers combing central park doing a grid search by drone and on foot, eventually leading them to the suspect's backpack. now detectives sifting through it for clues. >> that image, that picture of

him, and this could be blasted all over the country, and the phone calls will be coming in. someone knows this guy from somewhere. >> reporter: police say they believe they have a clearer time line of the suspect's steps before the murder telling abc news they think the suspect arrived in new york city november 24th, ten days before the shooting on a greyhound bus boarding somewhere between atlanta and washington, d.c. investigators using facial recognition technology on the only clear images of who they believe to be the suspect captured during a flirtatious exchange with the hostel clerk who asked him to smile to check his i.d., which sources say was fake, also turning to dna pulled from items left near the murder scene including a cell phone and a smudged fingerprint from a water bottle they say the suspect bought at a starbucks minutes before the shooting. this video showing the suspect tossing an item in the garbage. >> he's methodical, but everybody makes mistakes and you got to find those mistakes. >> reporter: as the search intensifies police working to determine a motive. police believe the gunman is a disgruntled ex-employee of

unitedhealthcare or an angry client. >> today value-based care is the centerpiece of our growth strategy. >> reporter: now other corporations and insurance companies on high alert reassessing security for their senior executives, and investigators are looking into the possibility that the gunman used what's known as a veterinary gun, typically used on farms and ranches, but now that the suspect may have skipped town, they're really leaning on the public for help. you know, those photos that we've shown are the clearest ones yet and hoping someone can recognize him, whit. >> whit: other companies are taking notice and taking action when it comes to security now. >> yeah, this has really shaken up corporate america. we have several companies, insurance companies alike, scrubbing bios of their top executives from their website. just this morning we're learning that another major insurer announced it's not going to do its in-person investors meeting, but instead they're going to move it virtually. all of this to protect employees and executives so, again, we

have heightened alert not just in corporate america but among insurance companies. >> whit: ripple effect across the country. thank you so much. gio. >> gio: unbelievable details, thanks to you both. now to the weather, cold and colder seem to be the words of the weekend, and somara theodore is here with the frigid outlook. good morning, somara. >> somara: oh. >> gio: it is cold. >> somara: it system. cold, colder and coldest. coldest in st. joseph, michigan. look at this. a beautiful shot and does make for absolutely gorgeous visuals, but it's better looked at from inside. the windchills, what it's actually going to feel like. that cold stretching from st. joseph michigan to down south in the carolinas cold weather advisories and parts of georgia, 27 degrees is what it will feel like in columbia. 19, asheville. we're monitoring the clipper system. this morning still seeing lake-effect snow along the great lakes. this clipper system drives through only enhancing that situation, but also bringing snow to parts of new england and upstate new york by 4:00 a.m. sunday morning. you can see where the worst of it is, and then by 3:00 p.m. tomorrow, that's starting to move out. that's a look at the forecast for now.

janai, back to you. >> janai: all right, a lot of people also saying brr, somara. now to the judge in the subway chokehold trial dismissing the most serious charge in the case as the jury says it's deadlocked. the latest from abc's jaclyn lee. jaclyn, good morning to you. >> reporter: janai, good morning. daniel penny's attorney tried to get it moved to a mistrial. the jury deadlocked on the charge of manslaughter, but they will resume deliberations on a lesser charge come monday. this morning, a new york city judge dismissing the top charge of manslaughter for daniel penny who is a marine veteran accused in that deadly chokehold a new york city subway. the judge's ruling coming after jurors made up of seven women and five men said they were deadlocked despite four days of deliberations, unable to come to a unanimous vote on second-degree manslaughter. 26-year-old penny is now facing a lesser charge of negligent homicide in the death of jordan neely. >> defense attorneys and prosecutors are going to be negotiating that the case has drastically changed. it's no longer a high-level

felony that daniel penny is facing but, in fact, the lowest level felony that new york state has. we could come back on monday with a plea deal. >> reporter: penny is charged charged in the may 2023 chokehold death of neely, a homeless man penny and witnesses say was acting erratically making threats on the subway. >> how did he end up in this state? >> i just put him out. >> reporter: according to prosecutors, penny grabbed neely and did not let go for almost six minutes prosecutors say. at trial the defense claiming penny acted to save people who were frozen with fear when neely came onto the subway filled with rage. >> he was like, i'm ready to go to prison for life. i'm ready to die. i'm ready to die. >> reporter: while penny did not testify, he has long defended his actions. >> you can see in the video there is a clear rise and fall of his chest indicating that he's breathing. i'm trying to restrain him from him being able to carry out the threats.

>> reporter: but the prosecution arguing penny used way too much force for way too long telling the jury he kept going until a man died. again, the jury will resume deliberations on monday, but instead of facing a maximum of 15 years behind bars for manslaughter, penny is looking at a maximum of four years behind bars if convicted of criminally negligent homicide. whit. >> whit: all right, jaclyn lee, thank you. the accused stowaway who allegedly snuck onto a jfk flight to paris without a boarding pass is now free on bond but with some conditions. a federal judge released svetlana dali on a reconnaissance bond on friday to live with a friend from church in philadelphia. the 57-year-old will have to wear a gps monitor. she will have to follow a curfew and is not allowed to leave philadelphia except to attend court or meet with her lawyer in new york. gio. >> gio: all right, whit. now to the mideast and new hopes for an american kidnapped in syria 12 years ago. this as islamic state rebels make new advances in the country now.

some major new advances. abc's matt gutman is in israel with the latest for us. good morning, matt. >> reporter: hey, good morning, gio. those rebels have just blitzed through the countryside, and at this point it appears that the dictatorship of bashar al assad is crumbling. those rebels have made enormous gains in the east in the south and now islamist rebels are right on the doorstep of the key city of homs, and if they do, the entire regime could collapse. they took down statues of bashar al assad's father and droves of people fleeing the cities of government troops just surrendering, and the two main sponsors of syria, russia and iran, have reportedly been telling their personnel in damascus to get out. and it's not just russia that has a major base in syria. the u.s. also has multiple bases there, about 900 troops have been fighting isis in the east of the country, and amidst all of this chaos, the family of austin tice, an american journalist kidnapped at a

checkpoint in damascus in 2012, now says they have a significant source who they claim has been vetted by the u.s. government who tells them that austin is alive, and he's being well treated. the family met with officials at the white house yesterday. multiple administrations have been demanding austin's release, but nothing has happened so far. the family saying that u.s. government sources are telling them not to say more about the source, and while the family has been so hopeful, probably more hopeful than at any point over the past decade, u.s. sources are telling us at this point they have no intelligence about tice or his whereabouts. janai. >> janai: unimaginable being held away from home for a dozen years. matt, thank you for your reporting. to politics in this country now and the trump transition. as the president-elect takes the world stage again, donald trump is in france this weekend. abc's maryalice parks has more on that and his troubled pick for defense secretary. good morning to you, maryalice. >> reporter: yeah, janai, good morning. we know president-elect trump landed in paris just a few hours ago. there's still over a month

before he takes office, but he's been moving quickly already taking several meetings with foreign leaders and now this first foreign trip. of course, he's promised to shake up u.s. foreign policy making those threats about tariffs and raising real questions about how much the u.s. will continue to back ukraine. this morning, president-elect donald trump on his first foreign trip since his election win. in paris, france, alongside dozens of other heads of state to celebrate the re-opening of the notre dame cathedral. the grand and high-profile event fitting for his style as he makes his extraordinary return to the world stage. trump has promised to dramatically shake up u.s. foreign policy, specifically trade policy. >> to me the most beautiful word in the dictionary is tariff. >> reporter: he campaigned on sweeping tariffs on goods coming from abroad, spooking allies and leading economists who warn of potential price hikes for consumers, but this week trump boasting of how leaders in canada and mexico were already responding to his threats.

>> i spoke with canada, and justin came flying right in because we talked about 25% tariffs. that's just the beginning. >> reporter: with france trump and french president emmanuel macron have had a close but complicated relationship. macron, one of the first foreign leaders to congratulate him on his election win. trump honored him with his first state dinner during his first term and visited france several times, but this trip comes as macron and other european leaders worry trump might reverse u.s. support of nato as well as ukraine and its fight against russian aggression. the biden white house rushing to get as much aid to ukraine as possible right now. white house press secretary karine jean-pierre underscoring that funds to ukraine were passed with bipartisan support. >> we can't take russia off the hook here, right? they are the aggressors here. they are the ones that went into a sovereign territory. >> reporter: now, trump nominated his son-in-law jared kushner's father, charles kushner, to be the u.s. ambassador to france.

it's a very coveted post. trump actually pardoned kushner back in 2020. he had been convicted and served time in prison for tax evasion and witness tampering. whit. >> janai: i will take it from here, maryalice. and a quick question for you. overnight president-elect trump also continuing to back his embattled defense secretary nominee, and pete hegseth is not backing down. >> reporter: yeah, i mean, trump conceded that he has not gotten reassurances from senators that hegseth will definitely be confirmed. they know this is still going to be a challenge, but trump said that hegseth has a tremendous track record. he called him a good student. he pushed back on some of those allegations against him and said that at least for now he would keep trying to get hegseth confirmed. janai. >> janai: maryalice, thank you so much. >> whit: janai, now to paris, and the grand re-opening of notre dame, the iconic landmark rebuilt five years after that devastating fire that nearly took down the entire cathedral known around the world. abc's james longman joins us from paris with more. james, good morning. >> reporter: yeah, good morning, whit. this is the day the world has

been waiting for, the re-opening of notre dame. millions of people across this country and around the world all remember the fire in 2019 when the spire crashed through the building. take a look. there's huge security on the streets. police everywhere and all the streets have been closed because they're expecting 35 heads of state for the re-opening and delegations from around the world. president-elect trump will be here. jill biden, her daughter ashley, prince william will be representing king charles and know that trump will be meeting with president macron of france and after that with prince william owe a flurry of diplomacy as well. after the opening ceremony there will be a concert right outside the cathedral. yo-yo ma will be among the musicians playing and the first mass notre dame will receive worshippers again. metal workers, 2,000 people working over five years to get it done and even refurbished parts of the church not affected

by the fire so it's even better than it was before. if you want to visit you got to go online and get a booking. they're expecting 40,000 visitors a day. gio. >> gio: so good to see that rebuilt. thank you for that update. back home now and agriculture department's decision to test the nation's milk supply for bird flu. let's get the latest now from abc's perry russom in washington. perry, good morning to you. this is serious. >> reporter: yeah, gio, good morning to you. this is going to happen all across the country, and with this new order, raw milk will be collected and given to the usda so they can test it for bird flue. the agency says it wants samples from dairy farms, those who transport milk, and processing facilities. the reasoning behind this is so they can test and stop and control any viruses from spreading among dairy cows. it comes after bird flu was found in raw milk on a farm in california. the farm issued a recall days ago and was placed under quarantine by state health officials. yes, some people drank raw milk. there has been a spike in sales

recently even as the fda has issued warnings about drinking milk that is not pasteurize. that process kills off viruses and bacteria. robert f. kennedy jr., president-elect trump's pick to run health and human services, he says he is a drinker of raw milk and accused the fda of having a war on public health including the suppression of raw milk saying it advances human health. >> janai: all right, perry, thank you for that. now to that warning from the fbi to iphone and android phone users. this is about the security of your communications. abc's alexis christoforous is here to explain. alexis, there's a lot of debate between iphone and android users, but this is actually serious. >> this is big-time serious. texting is a way of life, right? it's sort of second nature for us. well, now the fbi is warning that if you are texting between an iphone and an android, the chinese government may be able to see your messages. u.s. officials say the chinese have hacked their way into the sms system that sends those green bubble text messages between users of different phone systems, so to keep your text

messages safe cybersecurity experts recommend using encrypted programs like whatsapp, signal or telegraph. there are lots of them out there and recommend using a cell phone that automatically receives those operating system updates, and be careful not to text sensitive, personal information like social security numbers, credit card info or your passwords. of course, a foolproof way to protect your techs is just to pick up the phone and call. we just don't do that anymore. this fbi warning comes after the white house said a global cybersecurity attack occurred this summer in which they say chinese hackers breached at least eight telecom companies including at&t, verizon, and t-mobile in order to spy on top u.s. political figures. u.s. officials say they are still trying to help those telecom providers get the hackers off their networks. they don't have a time line for when that will happen. guys. >> janai: so, the hackers are still on the networks. >> gio: that's wild. >> janai: wow. >> gio: those green bubbles always trouble. >> janai: green bubbles. >> whit: they're tracking my

messages with my mom now because she's got the android. i've got the iphone. it's not that compelling. >> janai: our thanks to alexis for that. i hope they never get their hands on our sanderson sister group chat either. time now for the weather, though, and somara theodore. hey, girl. >> somara: hey, girl, yes, we are talking about warm and cold. a little fire and ice here, so let's head out to south padre island, texas. actually rain. very heavy rain coming down there. winds reaching 30 miles per hour as far as the wind gusts go, and they saw swells as high as eight feet. when it comes to this rain, we actually have a threat for some flash flooding in a few cities so i'm walking you through sunday. rain starts to move through louisiana into parts of arkansas and mississippi there, and then look what happens by monday evening into monday night, we see some of the heaviest rain hitting places like new orleans and middle georgia, that's macon, georgia, as well, the florida panhandle, and there there is a potential for flash flooding through wednesday, in fact. we could see anywhere from three

to five inches of rain coming down pretty quickly, and that could lead to the risk of flash flooding, and just to note that farther north we're also tracking the threat for six plus inches of snow through wednesday in parts of the northeast. that's a look at the forecast >> somara: that's a look at your local forecast. and just for the record, guys, i too have an iphone. i am team blue. >> janai: team blue. >> somara: my dad has green too. so i understand. >> whit: it's really complicated. yeah, the text messages with mom. she thinks it's my wife, and then it gets out of hand.

>> janai: what? >> whit: good luck. this is the android/iphone text messages. >> janai: she thinks it's your wife? >> whit: because the contacts don't line up. i didn't want to get too deep in the weeds. but here we go. let's get to the wnba. >> janai: shall we? >> whit: the newest team has officially completed their draft locking in their inaugural roster with standout selections like kate martin from the aces and temi fagbenle from the fever. the golden state valkyries are ready to make waves in the wnba. now the team can trade, sign free agents, and prep for the 2025 wnba draft with the number five overall pick, but the roster isn't set yet. expect plenty of moves as they gear up for their exciting debut season, and the wnba just been on fire. >> gio: on fire. >> janai: on fire. so, but you never text your mom thinking it's your wife. >> whit: no, she texts me. i text her. she thinks it's my wife. good grief. >> janai: i'm just making sure. i just want to get my facts straight when i start sharing

this story with others. >> whit: while the hackers are like, wait a minute, we give up. >> janai: championship weekend in college football, our favorite, espn's desmond howard, joins us to preview the big gameday matchups including the georgia/texas grudge match. >> whit: and a key ruling in the future of tiktok in the u.s. what it means and what the social network's next move may be as it fights a potential ban here. >> gio: checking out the evolution of santa. the jolly old saint nick is definitely not what he used to be. he's got abs now. this is what we do on "gma" on a saturday morning. we'll be right back. come on back. >> whit: a lot of protein. th. (tobias) you can get a great vehicle and support a good cause. (taylor) it helps us connect with our community; it shows our true meaning, our core values. (tony) it's really in our dna. it's amazing. (taylor) nearly three hundred and twenty million dollars donated to charity. (tobias) nearly twenty-three hundred hometown charities supported. (taylor) all because of the share the love event. (tony) you're part of something bigger when you get a subaru. (vo) get 2.9% for seventy-two months, and subaru and our retailers will make a minimum

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seven mornings. >> good morning. i'm stephanie sierra. we're following new developments in the scandal involving the san mateo county sheriff. a source tells abc seven news that sheriff christina corpus has rejected an offer of $1 million to walk away from her job. according to that source, the sheriff and her lawyer rejected the offer. both san mateo county attorneys and sheriff corpus are refusing to comment on the report at the moment. to weather now. there's a bite in the air. let's check in with lisa. >> oh, there certainly is stephanie. and some high clouds. you can see them here from mount tam, where we also have fog. it's 50 downtown and from the golden gate. we'll see more high clouds in the north bay. upper 30s there. look at the visibility reduced there in novato. low to mid 60s today. around the bay. stephanie. all right. >> thank you. and thank you all for joining us. gma is next

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♪ all i want for christmas is you ♪ >> janai: woo! >> whit: don't sing it, janai. we love your singing, but it's mariah carey, for crying out loud. welcome back to "gma" on this saturday morning. the queen of christmas is celebrating a merry milestone.

mariah carey's "merry christmas" album, which features her record-breaking classic, "all i want for christmas is you," that one right there, just turned 30 years old on friday. >> gio: stop. 30? >> whit: yes, she marked the occasion with the release of the "merry christmas deluxe digital edition," and, guys, i did a little research on this. it includes a 24-page photo booklet of mariah's famous christmas photos and a mariah carey christmas card. >> janai: really? you going to order it? >> whit: thinking gift ideas. >> gio: all right. >> janai: all right. >> gio: we love janai's singing, but do we? do we? >> whit: great harmony with mariah carey. >> janai: thank you. >> gio: the fbi now joining the nationwide manhunt for the suspect behind the assassination of unitedhealthcare's ceo brian thompson. overnight, new york city police finding this backpack, they say, belongs to the suspect and the fbi offering a $50,000 reward. >> janai: also right now, a motion to impeach south korean

president yoon suk the move threw his country into chaos. in a televised address yoon apologizing saying he said actions stemmed from the urgency he felt as president but caused anxiety and inconvenience to the public. >> whit: chrysler recalling 300,000 ram pickups because the braking system could fail and affects 2017 and 2018 ram models. owners should return to the dealer for a fix that's free of charge. fiat chrysler says it is not aware of any accidents or injuries related to the issue. >> gio: and princess kate stepping out in public for the second time this week, the princess alongside her entire family including her children george, charlotte, and louis hosted her christmas carol concert. an event very special to her. the royals posting the festivities on instagram. the princess opening up to a guest discussing her cancer diagnosis.

kate said that this time last year she didn't know what 2024 would be like. >> janai: wow. >> gio: yeah. >> janai: wow. all right, well, it is great to see her doing well and out and about again. and we start this half hour with a busy day in college football, and espn's "college gameday" coming to you from atl, site of the s.e.c. championship. joining us from there is espn football analyst, desmond howard. des, it is good to see you. we love that you ran into our boss this week, so we heard you'll be here eventually, right? you're going to visit us, des? >> yeah, looking forward to coming into the studio, yeah. >> janai: now i got you to say it on tv, so it is going to happen. so, the s.e.c. championship features georgia against texas. georgia actually beat texas in austin earlier this season. what do you think texas needs to do differently if they're going to win this time around? >> yeah, georgia didn't just beat texas, i mean, it was like they caught texas in their backyard trying to steal their

bikes, and they beat them down. it wasn't even competitive, and it was in austin, and here we are now, we're in atlanta, which is a de facto home game for the bulldogs. the longhorns' offensive line, they're going to have to come to play, and that was the story line the last time they met. they were dominated. you're looking at the quarterbacks, they were sacked seven times, whether it was quinn ewers, arch manning, it didn't matter, they were under pressure the whole game, so the matchup in this game, if texas is going to win, sarkisian will have to make sure his offensive line is up for the task and able to protect quinn ewers. >> whit: man, not the bevo -- [ laughter ] iowa state versus arizona state. give us a scouting report for each team. >> so, the scouting report for this game is that iowa state's defense, they're really good pass defensewise.

you can't throw the ball on them. they can give pressure on an offense by bringing four and playing coverage on the back end. why this is important is because arizona state, they come into this game without their leading receiver, jordan tyson. since week six he was the most productive receiver in all of the fbs. he is going to be missing, so the matchup is how sam leavitt and the sun devils' offense going to move the ball through the air without jordan tyson at receiver today. keep an eye on that. >> gio: all right, des, so tonight it's clemson against smu in the acc championship. clemson has to win to make the playoff. it's a little trickier for smu, so do you think the mustangs can still make the playoff if they lose a close game to clemson tonight? >> that's the million dollar question. everyone has been asking all week long, especially since the cfp selection came out on tuesday night. can smu get in there with the

loss? they will have two losses, and you're starting to judge them against teams in the s.e.c. like an alabama or an ole miss, or maybe even a south carolina with three losses. i think that they should be able to get in. i think there's an argument for both sides, but if they lose against clemson, obviously clemson would be the acc champs and will say, well, our resume includes a loss against a champion in the clemson tigers, so i think there are arguments on both sides. personally, guys, from what i've seen from smu, they have been one of the most consistent teams week in and week out. we've said it repeatedly on "college gameday." i think that there is a strong argument that even if they lose in the acc championship game, that the mustangs can get in. >> gio: well, i'm glad to hear that that was the million dollar question. i am the expert on this desk. >> whit: well done. >> gio: thank you, desmond, for confirming that. appreciate you, my friend. hey, tune in to "college

gameday" at noon on abc, the place to be, the big 12 championship at noon and the s.e.c. championship at 4:00 and acc championship at 8:00. >> whit: and we got des on the record. >> janai: and thanks to the writers for giving gio that. >> whit: let's check the forecast and get back to somara theodore. winter has arrived, and she is angry. >> somara: yes, whit, look at this video. imagine this, saddleback, maine. they just opened the resort. you run into a moose ahead of you. how -- look how picturesque the trees are. they look like they're from "the grinch" or put shaving cream all over the trees. gorgeous. that's in the east. where is the warm hiding out? out west. burbank, 69 degrees on sunday, but 70s this afternoon. phoenix, mid to upper 70s throughout the weekend and we're looking at record highs up in helena, 54 degrees this afternoon potentially. now, this is the climate prediction center's forecast for the week of december 14th through the 20th. and they're saying, look at this, a little bit of a warm-up. much warmer than normal for a large chunk of the country. that's a look at the forecast around the count

>> somara: and that's a look at your local forecast. imagine skiing for fun and then skiing for your life, right? with that moose, right? >> whit: it seemed like the moose was the one running away. i'm out. >> janai: goodness. all right, still coming up here on "gma," are we ticking down to the end of tiktok in america? the latest ruling and how the case could end up in the supreme court. nothing dims my... ..light like a migraine. with nurtec odt, i found relief. nurtec odt can provide relief in two hours which can last up to two days when used... ...for the acute treatment of migraine with... ...or without aura in adults. to those with migraine... ...i see you. don't take if allergic to nurtec odt. allergic reactions can occur even days after use,

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[upbeat music] ♪ yeah, baby, i like it like that ♪ ♪ i like it like that, i like it like that ♪ ♪ si a ti te quiero mi amor, i like it like that ♪ ♪ eeeeeh, baby, i said i like it like that ♪ ♪ stomp your feet if you think i'm neat ♪ ♪ clap your hands if you want some more ♪ ♪ i said i like it like that ♪ >> gio: and welcome back to "gma" as we look at what's next for tiktok. it's a popular app, of course, but it could be banned in the u.s. next month following an appeals court move, and zohreen shah has more on the legal battle. zohreen, good morning. millions of people are looking at this now. millions, gio, and tiktok is slamming the decision saying it was pushing inaccurate and fl flaws -- flawed hypothetical

information resulting in an outright censorship of the american people, and now they're indicating they will fight the court's decision. >> let's go! >> reporter: this morning, another major sign that the countdown clock might be ticking for tiktok. >> tiktok is getting banned. >> reporter: a three-judge appellate panel upholding a lower court's decision stating the wildly popular chinese owned app could be banned in the u.s. if its parent company, bytedance, does not sell the app after fears that china could steal personal information from its 170 million american users, fears that tiktok has long described as speculative and overblown. >> for a lot of us, this is going to be a huge income loss. >> reporter: now some users are panicking that bytedance will not meet the january 19th deadline set by the court. >> there are a lot of us who make a living off this app and are very blessed to be where we are but also have worked pretty hard to get to this point. >> reporter: with only 43 days to go, bytedance saying it will appeal to the supreme court writing in a statement, the supreme court has an established historical record of protecting

americans' right to free speech, and we expect them to do just that on this important constitutional issue. >> the supreme court may take it. they may not. >> reporter: if the court takes up the case, they could postpone the ban until the justices make a decision. >> it makes me so sad thinking that it might just all go away. >> reporter: bytedance could also try to find a buyer for its u.s. operations. >> i don't think they're going to sell. i think they're going to try to fight this, but it looks like it's a fight they might not win. >> reporter: if the sale is not made, then on january 20th, users will not be able to update the app, so overtime the app will be glitchy and won't be able to be downloaded again. >> this happens, and the law is supposed to go into effect the day before that happens. the big question is, what is donald trump going to do? >> and that's the big question. trump was for the ban. he's indicated more recently that he supports tiktok. there's a few things he could do, though. he could push the ban 90 days if there's significant progress

towards a sale, but that doesn't seem to be the case right now. he could also take executive action and override the ban. whit. >> whit: a lot riding on these decisions. zohreen shah, thank you so much. coming up on "good morning america," from "hot frosty" to slimmed down santas -- andrea and i actually watched part of "hot frosty." your favorite christmas characters are getting major makeovers. we'll explain. we'll explain. sometimes the best beginnings start with a click. and yours starts right now. save up to $200 per night on a 3-night, 2-day room & ticket package at select disney resort hotels... and let the magic begin at walt disney world resort.

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♪ >> whit: we're back on "gma" with the santa >> whit: we're back at ♪ >> whit: we're back on "gma" with the santa that's not your father's kris kringle here. he's turned from jolly to buff

and ripped and shredded, and abc's will ganss is all of those things. >> i love all of those things. >> whit: and a whole lot more. >> now, listen, according to tradition, santa had a broad face and a little round belly that shook when he laughed like a bowl full of jelly, but these days he's swapping milk and cookies for muscle ups and crunches, and some fans are totally cool with that. from "miracle on 34th street." >> pull it. >> reporter: to tim allen's "santa clause." >> i'm in big trouble. >> reporter: kris kringle has always stuck to that bowl full of jelly aesthetic, but ho, ho, hold up now. >> santa claus, he's like weirdly hot. >> reporter: target's new holiday ad campaign has all the jingle ladies feeling some type of way about santa's new look including amy adams. >> if you don't know target santa, go look it up. >> reporter: #targetsanta has been viewed nearly 60 million times on tiktok since the campaign launched on november 17th with comments reading, just like that, i'm back on the

naughty list again. forgive me for asking, but is sexy santa a thing? >> we're very traditional but there has been an evolution of santa claus over the last number of years. now sort of a thinner, fitter santa is definitely in vogue. you know, people have always used santa to help their products, all the way back to coca-cola, and this version is just now speaking to a newer demographic. >> reporter: it's a trend towards a more sizzling santa. from fashion santa to kind of hot santa and santa's not the only one, frosty got a face-lift too in netflix's "hot frosty," but that wasn't enough to retain every viewer. >> whit: we started watching the movie. i'm telling you, my wife -- i fell asleep. [ laughter ] >> you can't win them all, but this is the year of the steamy st. nick flick on the big screen. we've got j.k. simmons playing an absolutely shredded santa on the small screen. chad michael murray plays a

reluctant yet ripped merry santa in "the merry gentleman" and we know how whit feels about "hot frosty". >> whit: maybe it was a fine movie, but i was just really tired. "hot frosty." my wife made we watch it. >> i'm not sure you're the target demo. >> whit: why not? >> janai: but you were? >> i did. it was journalistic research, janai. >> janai: right. naturally, naturally, i knew that's why you loved it. thank you so much, will, and we will be right back with our "play of the day." l be right back for our play of the day. ♪ higher and higher ♪ ♪ let me tell you, your love ♪ ♪ keeps on lifting me ♪ ♪ higher and higher. higher. ♪ ♪ you know your love ♪ ♪ i said your love keeps on ♪ ♪ lifting me higher. ♪ pandora.

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night she could imagine after playing 149 shows across the world. >> you know, this last city is about to be filled with so many different emotions. just for me, for my band, my crew, my fellow performers on stage, the dancers, and for anyone who's been with us and cared about this tour. >> janai: a lot of people have. it's the first tour to pull in more than a billion dollars in revenue. will ganss will have much more in our second hour as we count down to her final show tonight, and we're sending thoughts and prayers to george stephanopoulos because he is having a hard time with this. >> whit: coming up on "gma" in our second hour. zoey deutch and "juror #2." >> annou abc seven news starts right now.

>> good morning, i'm stephanie sierra. advocates for incarcerated women at the fci dublin women's prison have reached an historic settlement. several prison officials were accused of sexually abusing female inmates as a part of the settlement with the federal bureau of prisons. a monitor will oversee the treatment of 500 women who joined a class action lawsuit over the abuse. now, federal officials say the dublin prison will be shut down permanently. the fbi is now assisting in a nationwide manhunt for the man suspected of killing unitedhealthcare ceo brian thompson. investigators released these images of the suspect. they believe he boarded a bus out of new york city following wednesday's shooting. police have recovered a backpack in central park they believe belongs to him. there's now a $50,000 reward for any information leading to his arrest. to weather now and the chill in the air. good morning. lee. >> hi, stephanie. good morning to you. certainly. yes. we have some sunshine here from

emeryville. also noticing some high clouds. poor air quality. 50 in san francisco, 48 in hayward and 40 in redwood city. you can see the haze here. so certainly that ridge of high pressure still in place with the light winds and some fog. 39 santa rosa and livermore. visibility reduced from novato, where you can't see anything at all. three miles, half moon bay and about a mile. and a quarter out towards discovery bay. so there's a look at the moderate air quality that stays with us today. we're cooler. we're partly cloudy with mid 60s today in oakland steph. >> lisa thank you. up next, the latest developments in the ongoing scandal in san mateo county. details on an apparent attempt by the county to get sheriff christina corpus to resign. abc seven news at 8 a.m. is next.

a plea for pardons following a major legal victory against the now closed women's federal prison in dublin, plus the recent tsunami warning tested our response times. what experts say you need to do in case it happens again. good morning everybody. it's saturday and we are starting the day with a bite in the air. >> yes, it's really cold out there in spots and also visibility. not great. so we're