paul reiser, ladies and "jimmy fallon" happening right this morning on "early today" -- family feud. angry house democrats vow to block president obama's tax cut deals with republicans. battle royal. prince charles' car comes under attack during a wild student protest in london. and creature of the night. a hunting camera snapped a bizarre image in the woods of louisiana. captions paid for by nbc-universal television hello and good morning.

welcome to our viewers across the nation including the pacific time zone. i'm lynn berry. today, we begin with capitol hill countdown. there may be 15 days till christmas, but the holiday spirit appears to be in short supply in the nation's capitol. lawmakers have more than a week to wrap up a long and controversial list of unfinished business before they can head home for the holidays. incomes's tracie potts joins us from washington with those details. tracie, good morning. >> reporter: lynn, good morning. a lot of what happens and doesn't happen depends on what happened with the dpra micompro. democrats are united against the president. >> left. >> right. >> left. >> right. >> reporter: don't have don't tell. government spending in the nuclear treaty with russia in limbo. all on the back burner until democrats get their crack at the tax deal i. urge members of congress to move forward on this

essential priority. >> reporter: democrats want to take out a reduced tax rate for the rich and big companies. >> this was a take it or leave it deal. we're saying, leave it. >> reporter: shouting just say no, house democrats rejected the president's deal last night. this congresswoman said she was the only yes vote. >> what about all of these people that i represent? >> reporter: the senate votes monday and added energy credits to get more democrats onboard. the fear is that the nasty battle will end up in gridlock. >> look, i disagree. >> reporter: republicans are watching the showdown between democrats and their president. >> we've gotten the message. i only hope he convinces his colleagues and party. >> reporter: below freezing outside, inside, on ice. now, house democrats say in the next couple of weeks they are going to be voting on something, but, lynn, they say it may not be the president's plan. >> tracie potts in washington. thank you.

russian prime minister vladimir putin is accusing the u.s. and western countries of hypocrisy over their criticism of whistleblower website wikileaks. in a news conference yesterday, putin said the west had no right to preach to russia about democracy when wikileaks founder julian assange was in prison. that he should be awarded the nobel peace prize for his work. meanwhile, dutch police have arrested a 16-year-old boy for allegedly helping carry out hacker attacks. in a show of support for wikileaks in attacks on mastercard and visa. thousands of students took to the streets of london yesterday with some attacking a car carrying prince charles and his wife camilla. his rolls roiz was surrounded by demonstrators hurling firecrackers and paint balls.

the couple was obviously shaken up. but both the prince and his wife were unharmed. unrest took place throughout london after parliament passed a controversial vote to raise the college tuition, the second recent flare-up of violence regarding the controversial hike. >> now here's a look at other stories making news early today in america -- california firefighters ignited the house where local police found a stockpile of ammunition and bomb-making materials in nearly every room. officials said there were so many types of explosives in and around the house, the only way to make the area safe was to burn the entire house down. 120 homes in the area were evacuated and a two-story fire wall built before the planned inferno. the owner is suspected of a bank robbery. is the man accused of amassing explosives. neither police or federal investigators have offered a motive. drivers in maryland faced a

dangerous rush hour commute after a water main break spilled freezing water on to the roadway. drivers slipped and slid on the resulting black ice into some very close calls. after a number of complaints, a salt truck reportedly showed up hours ler. in california, a reindeer dashed, danced and pranced as it tried to escape from a southern california christmas tree lot. an officer in a patrol vehicle tried to corner the vehicle, but it was a wily cowboy lasso that eventually brought it in. this is bizarre. is it real on or just a hoax? you decide. a louisiana man claims his deer hunting camera snapped this shot of some half-man, half-woolly creature. a wildlife expert says he's heard some strange ones, but nothing like this. he says he hopes he doesn't run into it, but if he does, he hopes it's a vegetarian.

now for a look at your national and regional weather, here is nbc meteorologist bill karins with the weather channel forecast. >> i think i saw him coming into work this morning. good morning, everyone. on the west coast, we are warm and we are going to get wet. we have flood watches in effect for areas of washington state. it wouldn't surprise me some some issues in oregon state, too. we've got a plume of moisture coming off the pacific with us all weekend long. looks dreier pip hanging christmas lights, getting trees, running holiday air r errands it's going to be wet. into portland and eugene and seattle, it's rain. snow at the highest of elevations. what we call a warm and wet system for this time of year. our computers are projected as much as two to three inches of rain over the weekend here between medford and portland. that could lead to isolated flooding. it's warm. temperatures in the 40s and 50s.

the only areas who do not need the umbrella, l.a. back to phoenix. that's a look on and off rain today right through the weekend. >> we'll bring you the remaining forecast coming up. >> bill, thanks so much. also coming up, stocks nudge upwards but still set highs. your early morning business hoedlines are straight ahead. we'll tell you about this weekend's expected number one film almost didn't make it to the silver screen. coming up, a big night for auburn's cam newton, peyton manning worked out of the slump. you're watching "early today."

good morning, and welcome back to "early today." i'm lynn berry. here are some of your top headlines this morning -- the traditional gold medal will not be handed out during this morning's peace prize ceremony in norway to a symbolically empty chair. liu xiaobo is serves a prison sentence in china for advocating democracy. ahead of the event, tightened security, blocked several websites and broadcasts. on capitol hill, senate republicans have blocked a bill that would have provided medical benefits and compensation to emergency workers who got sick after working at ground zero. republicans complained that the $7.4 billion price tag was too high, while democrats argue the government had a moral obligation to those who put their lives at risk. the associated press reports the federal aviation administration is missing key information on who owns a third of the nation's private and commercial aircraft. a gap the agency fears could be

exploited by terrorists and drug traffickers. to fix the problem, it has ordered all aircraft owners to re-register their planes. and scientists say a new form of bacteria with a taste for iron oxide is slowly eating away at the historic wreckage of the titanic. formed from at least 27 strands of bacteria and known at rusticles. at the rate they're going, researchers fear the ship may be completely destroyed with 15 years. >> and now here's an early look at how wall street will kick off the day -- the dow opens at 11,370 after shedding two points yesterday. the s&p edged up 4 points. the nasdaq rose 7. taking a look at overseas trading this morning, in tokyo, the nikkei lost 73 points while in hong kong, the hang seng dipped 8. it's not just in washington. on wall street yesterday, everyone was talking about the tax cut deal. news of democrats fighting the

president's deal which wall street sees as good for growth kept investors cautious and trading flat. stocks had edged higher early after a report showed first time unemployment claims dropped last week to the second lowest level this year. despite low volume and tiny gains, the s&p 500 managed to close at a two-year high. and the nasdaq up for a seventh straight day closed at its highest level since december 2007. the nasdaq's teva pharmaceutical jumped almost 7% after saying it expects its multiple sclerosis drug to win regulatory approval within two years. back on the dow, bank of america led the way for a second day in a row. in the last month, bank stocks have risen over 12%. insurer aig skyrocketed 13% after announcing it's in the final stages of paying off a fed loan, paving the way for the government to sell its 80% bailout stake. the recently volatile bond

market called thursday. treasuries rose slightly causing yields to drop after getting crushed for two straight days. today, china may loom over trade. fears chinese interest rates may go up hit asian markets after a state-run newspaper said inflation there may have shot over 5% in november. keep an eye on united technology which is fell after the bell after announcing it expects 2011 revenue to fall short of expectations. and finally, thousands of john f. kennedy pictures by white house photographer cecil stauton, including a rare image of marilyn monroe with the president and robert kennedy at a democratic fund-raiser sold for $151,000 at auction yesterday and considering, actually, quite a deal. coming up, the celtics come up big in the clutch. dallas looks dominant and a freshman saves ohio state.

>> plus, peyton manning found the perfect cure for what ails him. the tennessee titans. your early morning sports headlines are just ahead. in weather, it's a stormy weekend forecast. i'll have that come right up. you're watching "early today." [ cow moos ]

♪ kids came out. they said, "johan, can i see the dairy? can i see how the cow get milked?" [ children shouting ] you should see the eyes of the kids in the barn. when the cows give their milk. or even i squirt milk to the kids. they actually love it. you know where the milk come from! all right, whoa! smokin'! [ children shriek ] uh-oh. okay, all right. good morning. if you're just waking up, this is "early today."

in sports, in response to critics who say his skills are diminishing, peyton manning responded last night in the best possible way. here's nbc's fred roggin with an early look at all your sports headlines. good morning. the colts' peyton manning snapped out of a slump in a big way against the titans. here we go to nashville and the titans coaches will do anything to pump up their players. unfortunately, it didn't work. peyton manning was crisp from the start from one yard out. colts led it. 7-0. manning, a perfect toss into the end zone, colts up 21-7 at the half. the titans made it interesting. kerrey -- kerry collins threw three touchdowns, but it wasn't enough. auburn's cam newton cleaned up at the college football awards. he won most outstanding player, player of the year, he's the favorite to win the heisman trophy tomorrow. sounds like cam will need a bigger trophy case. great game between the celts and sixers. crossover pause pearson got the

run into paul. 1. >> lindsay: -- 100-99. that was just enough time for the celts. to kevin garnett for the win, celts won their ninth straight, 102-101. straight taking on the net. dallas up 15 at the break. marion made an appearance in the fourth. mavs won it, 102-89. college basketball, downtown upset by temple. george, number ten. moore scored a career high 30. georgetown lost their first of the season, 68-65. ohio state's jared sullinger had a game to remember. he scored 40 against iupui. the cougars had no answer for sullinger down low. he also had 13 boards. second ranked ohio state, a perfect 7-0 after a 75-64 win. that's your early look at sports on "early today."

have a terrific weekend. i'm fred roggin. "early today" sports is brought to you by just for men mustache and beards. keep your edge. a new deal for howard stern. but who's telling the truth? did he get the same money or is sirius/xm giving him less? your early morning entertainment headlines are straight ahead. plus, 'tis the season. the first family and the nation's capital takes time-out to share the holiday spirit. you're watching "early today."

welcome back. we break down your forecast. wet weather that's moving to the pacific northwest. before i forget, the hawaiian islands had flash flooding overnight and yesterday also there you'll see more wet weather this weekend. today, medford, portland and seattle, going to deal with wet conditions. l.a. to phoenix, you are dry and you'll be looking okay. call it partly cloud any l.a. today. tomorrow looks nice from vegas to l.a. to phoenix to tucson. notice a split forecast. that plume of moisture continuing into sunday in northwest while much of southern california, nevada and ars will look nice. if you're watching us on kgw news channel 8, portland, oregon, make this holiday season merry an musical. a cappella quartet, the dickens carollers performs at pioneer place. that's your pick event of the day, lynn. >> bill, thanks so much.

now here's a look at this morning's headlines in entertainment. at the box office this weekend, a new release will be the sure fire number one. the chronicles of narnia, "the voyage of the dawn treader" is the third film adapted from the fantasy level. if you want more, you better turn out. disney gave up on the series after the second film cost more to make than it made in north america. so fox gave the series a new life with a drastically reduced budget. experts think it should take in about $40 million. well, think johnny depp and angelina jolie would be box office gold? "the tourist" isn't generating high interest. playing to the older audience. still, it will finish a strong second. over $20 million. finally, howard stern has signed another five-year deal with sirius/xm radio. stern claims he's not taking a pay cut.

stern says they didn't give him as much the first deal. analysts believe both are actually truth since it's rumored the shock jock won't get any stock. still gets the cash, just no shock. >> waiting for the ben still. demean other -- >> get that on dvd? >> i'm not sure yet. >> can we see that on dvd? play it safe, bill. i think it will be a winner. let's move on to our nation's capital, where the president and the first family warmed up the season with a holiday tradition. they flipped the switch. the president reminded the country of the story of christmas. a story of love and redemption for every human being. the tree lighting ceremony is a loan-standing tradition that goes back to 1923 starting with president calvin coolidge. i'm lynn berry, and this is "early today," just your first stop of the day today on your

nbc station.

dress code is essential for one art exhibit in moscow. well known sculptors are working in frigid temperatures to create masterpieces from blocks of ice. using chainsaws, they're shaping ice displays like this delicately decorated living room, but don't worry. if you can't handle the museum's 14 degree tip temperatures, visitors are being given coats to keep warm. if you think that story was cold, this one is colder. an ambitious mountain climber braved minus 22 degree temperatures to jump off a peak in antarctica.

the base jumpers reached two miles above sea level before taking the plunge there. he glided for about 45 seconds before pulling his parachute and safely landing at the bottom. winter weather has brought paris to a stand still, but some folks are making the best of the snowy situation. they gathered at a church to ski 500 feet down the snow covered steps. the weather has inconvenienced most of the city, shutting down airports, bus systems and even the eiffel tower. but for this crowd, transportation doesn't seem to be a problem. there you go. using your noggin. i like that. >> you didn't even use any disclaimers, like, do not do this at home. we didn't have any pictures of anyone falling, either. >> only the weather guy would think about that. >> safety first, kids. time now for an early look at some of the stories we'll follow throughout the day here on nbc. in washington, secretary of state hillary clinton will mark world human rights day by presenting the eleanor roosevelt human rights award to three

recipients for their work to end discrimination. today marks the 13th annual international animal rights day when activists encourage people around the world to treat animals with respect. and one of 48 rare copies of the emancipation proclamation signed by abraham lincoln will go on the auction block in new york city. the historic document was once owned by robert f. kennedy and could go for as much as $1.5 million. all day long, you can stay on top of the very latest developments in those stories and others as they break on msnbc. and tonight be sure to watch brian williams with nbc "nightly news." and, finally, here's a look at what's coming up later this morning on the "today" show. matt lauer goes one-on-one with the head of a website that reportedly turned down a $6 billion bid from google. and olympic gold medalist sarah hughes skates live on the rockefeller center ice rink. now keep it on this channel for continuing local news, weather, sports and more. i'm lynn berry. thanks for watching "early

today," just your first stop of the day today on your nbc station. have a good one. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com