this morning on "early today" -- rough start. both parties square off with a new discussion with russia. domestic disturbance. clashes break out in belarus in the wake of a disputed presidential election. and texas tumble. an implosion goes awry at a historic sugar refinery. 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 and today we begin with running out of time. lawmakers in washington are anxious to get home for the

holidays and with the fate of the nuclear arms agreement with russia at stake, the new-found spirit of compromise in congress may have run short ahead of tomorrow's final vote. nbc's tracie potts join us from washington with more on that. tracie, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, lynn. everyone's trying to get out of washington. president obama delayed his hawaii vacation to try to make sure this gets done. a vote scheduled in the senate for tomorrow to see if they can at least move forward. the s.t.a.r.t. nuclear treaty with russia would reduce both countries warheads with seven years and establish a verification and inspection system. some republicans think that system's too weak. other, concerned it will develop a treaty from missile defense. others don't agree with rushing this through before christmas. >> i don't think you can have a serious debate between now and january 4th. >> this treaty needs to be fixed. we don't have the time 20 do that. >> it's an important treaty and

should not be side tracked. >> we need to bring this to a vote. >> reporter: the senate will decide tuesday whether to bring this up for a final vote. two key republicans say they'll vote no. on sunday -- >> the ayes of 32, the nays 60. >> reporter: this would have effectively killed it. congress did repeal don't ask, don't tell over the weekend. president expected to sign that this week. but it's unclear when or how gay troops will be allowed to serve openly. as for government spending, the senate is expected to extend that again temporarily until march 4th. and that will set up a beginning of the year showdown between this president and republicans who want to make massive cuts in the budget. lynn? >> tracie potts in washington. tracie, thank you. well the south korea went ahead with planned artillery

drills despite a warning from the north of catastrophic retaliation for conducting maneuvers. the exercise protected by fight jerts took place on the same disputed border island shelled by north korea last month. four south koreans died in that attack. north korea called today's artillery drills "a wreck lis military publication" but in the end would not retaliation. the u.n. security council held an emergency meeting last night but failed to produce any agreement on how to address the potential confrontation. the u.s. and other members wanted the council to condemn north korea's recent attack, but diplomats say china strongly objected. in central mexico, an oil pipeline ignite add deadly inferno that claimed the lives of at least 28 people on sunday. amateur video shows a wall of fire followed by several more explosions that blacken the sky with think clouds of toxic

smoke. more than 115 homes were score mped, dozens reduced to smoking piles of ash and rubble. authorities say the explosion was caused by thieves trying to steal crude oil. so far, no arrest it's have been made. and now here's a look at some other stories making news early today in america. dangerously icy roads over the weekend in texas. the pileup shut down roads two hours residents awaiting help from street crews. nearly 200 crashes were reported in the spokane area. in texas, the walls came tumbling down at the historic imperial sugar refinery. sort of. during the planned implosion, one building collapsed without a problem, but the other stood for more than an hour, even after workers set off more dynamite. the site is the future home of a new minor league became stadium. a new york man landed behind bars after police found more

than 500 pounds of marijuana during a traffic stop. police say the suspect ran a red light and then fled when they tried to pull him over. the man has been charged with 50 counts of felony possession of marijuana in the first degree. and in the florida keys, santa took a short break from the christmas rush. he donned his scuba diving gear and went on an excursion at the florida keys national marine sanctuary. the oldest underwater preserve in the u.s. and old saint nick even got some face time with a goliath grouper that seemed equally fascinated. and now for a look at your national and regional weather, here's nbc meteorologist bill karins with the weather channel forecast. bill, good morning. those pictures out of spokane were crazy. >> putting grouper on my christmas wish list. i can't believe it's going to come true. >> stick him in a bag. >> this storm is grabbing headlines. impressive event. a once in every decade, once

every 15-year-type storm that hit southern california. now spreading moisture into a snowstorm in the northern plains. it's really southern california in the mountainous areas of california that have stolen the headlines. some of the pictures out there, because we are getting new reports of mudslides now and debris slides and, of course, river flooding. this is oceana. watching this area, it picked up about six inches of rain. other areas such as los angeles picked up four inches of rain and it's still raining. the weather pattern will continue to wednesday night. the next dry day won't be until thursday. let me go and take you into the details on this. the pick moisture, it goes all the way out to hawaii. our friends in hawaii dealt with normal flooding yesterday too. this is just a hose of moisture that is now over southern california. notice we're getting a little break in l.a. and san diego. just showers. heaviest rain up around santa barbara and bakersfield currently. mammoth mountain, the ski resort, reported 15 feet of snow. that's feet of snow. in the next 48 hours our

computers are saying we could see another three to five inch, maybe even right in downtown l.a. very rare event for this region and it's going to continue, as i mentioned, until wednesi'm sure snow at high elevations. a little better in tahoe today. lynn, we'll talk about the hawaii situation a little later in the show. honolulu yesterday, five inches of rain. >> that's unfortunate. all the folks who went throughout for the holidays. all right, bill. thanks so much. well, also coming up a look ahead at the holiday shortened week on wall street and second spot on the world's most expensive christmas tree. your early morning business headlines are straight ahead. plus it took 28 years but a sequel finally takes the top spot at the box office. coming up, the lady huskies

make history. a cy young winner on the move and a comeback for the ages. you're watching "early today."

good morning and welcome back to "early today," i'm lynn berry and here are some of your top headlines this morning -- election unrest has erupted in belarus. police clashed with protesters upset over the re-election of their country's president to a fourth term, with nearly 80% of the vote. opposition candidates claim that the vote was rigged. the u.s. is ordering all non-emergency staff to leave the ivory coast because of election violence there. americans are also urge not visit the west african nation there at least 50 people have died in recent days due to politically inspired violence. the u.n. says it's received hundreds of reports of people being abducted from their homes by armed assailants in military uniforms since the election. in israel, authorities suspect the deadly stabbing of

an american tourist this weekend was a political attack against jews, although they have not ruled out a criminal motive. a friend who survived the assault by playing dead says one of the attackers removed her star of david necklace before stabbing her. no suspects have been taken into custody. and weather permitting, sky gazers are in for a treat early tuesday morning when the first total lunar eclipse in almost three years is poised to turn the moon pink, coppery or maybe even blood red. the lunar eclipt will start about 1:15 a.m. eastern time will also be the first total lunar eclipse to occur on the winter solstice in 372 years. now here's an early look at how wall street will kick off the day. the dow opens at 11,491 after shedding seven points on friday. the s&p edged up a point.

the nasdaq rose five. taking a look at overseas trading this morning, in tokyo, the nikkei fell 87 points, while in hong kong the hang seng lost 63. a pretty safe bet many traders have already headed home for the holidays. markets will be closed friday for christmas eve, which means there are just four days to wrap up a week's worth of economic news. experts don't expect to see much movement in stocks, as investors look to hold on to the year's gains. but we'll find out how markets react to updated november sales of new and existing homes. we'll also find out whether home prices have stabilized and how the mortgage market is faring with higher borrowing rates. investors will also be looking for clues on the economy from a second revision to third quarter gdp. fresh data on durable goods, personal income and consumer sentiment. on the earnings front, nike, walgreens and bed, bath & beyond all report this week. overseas this morning, asian shares fell to their lowest level in over a week as shanghai stocks slid 2% in the wake of mounting tensions on the korean peninsula. meanwhile, moody's massive credit downgrade of ireland

dragged the euro to a two-week low. back home, according to com score online sales are up this holiday season 12% thanks to, in large part, sales of ipads and laptops. bank of america is the latest financial institution to cut off payments to wikileaks calling the website's activities, quote, inconsistent with our internal policies. and finally, remember that gem-encrusted christmas tree we told you about worth $11 million? well, it appears the abu dhabi luxury hotel that put up the decked-out tree is feeling a little guilty about its lavish display. the hotel now says it regrets, quote, attempts to overload the tree tradition. that's the understatement of the day. 88 feels great for uconn. the jets are sky high, and a pate tris goes where no lineman has gone before. plus, michael vick was impressive yesterday against the giants, but the big flow came from a less heralded teammate.

your early morning sports headlines are straight ahead. in weather we're tracking a snowstorm in the midwest and a historic rain event for the west coast. your monday forecast is coming up. you're watching "early today."

good morning. if you're just waking up, this is "early today."

and in sports -- the giants dominated the eagles for 53 minutes yesterday. the problem is, the game lasted 60 minutes. here's nbc's fred roggin with an early look at all your sports headlines. >> good morning. the new york giants did everything right for three quarters. then the eagles took over. new york was up by 21 when michael vick engineered a comeback. hit jeremy maclin from 13 yards out and the eagles tied the game. vick threw three touchdowns, ran for another. but the play everybody is talking about was by desean jackson. giants forced a punt with 14 seconds left. jackson, fumbled the ball, picked it up, hit a seam and was gone. 65 yards for the game-winning touchdown. the kicker matt dodge was told to punt it away from jackson. dodge played with fire and got burnt. eagles scored 28 unanswered in the fourth and won it. that was the beauty and here is the beast. patriots and packers. 310-pound lineman dan connally took the kick and watch the big man go.

rumbled 71 yards down the sideline before being tackled on the 5. it's the longest return by an offensive lineman in nfl history. we go to the fourth. tom brady, connecting with aaron fernandez for a second touchdown of the game. pats won it 31-27. jets have never won in pittsburgh -- until now. fourth quarter. fourth and one mark sanchez fooled everybody and took it himself. that tied at game at 17. they had a field goal and a safety to beat the steelers. 22-17. to indy. austin collie caught a pair of touchdowns against the jaguars. this put the colts up. however his day came to an end in the second quarter. hit hard he suffered a second concussion this season. thankfully he was able to walk off the field on his own power. colts win it 34-24. a quick baseball note -- the milwaukee brewers made it official and acquired former cy young winner zack greinke. 22 wins over the last two seasons. and finally -- the uconn lady huskies won their 88th straight game matching the men's mark set in the early '70s.

uconn beat ohio state, tenth ranked. they'll try to break the record tomorrow against florida state. that's your early look at sports on "early today." i'm fred roggin. we'll not only tell you who won at the box office this weekend, we'll also tell you who stunk up the joint. your early morning entertainment headlines are straight ahead. plus these are tough signs to see any time of the year, but we'll tell you about one man who is trying to make sure no one forecloses christmas. you're watching "early today."

it's a rainy monday morning that's going to lead to a rainy tuesday and wednesday. this is three more days left in california of this miserable weather, and we're still watching a lot of heavy rain up here around santa barbara to bakersfield. i mentioned hawaii. another rainy day out here in paradise, too. flash flooding yesterday. flash flood watches for all the islands. be careful driving. especially the hilly areas. today's forecast on the west coast, just about everybody has a chance of rain. the heaviest down in southern california. i mentioned it doesn't change even into tomorrow. if you're waging us on knsd, nbc 739 in san diego, california, see spectacular scenic design, costumes and artistry in a truly special christmas experience not to be missed as the moscow's ballet nutcracker at copley's

symphony hall. that's your pick event of the day. >> thanks so much, bill. and now here's an early look at this morning's headlines in entertainment. not a good weekend to be a new film at the box office. for the sixth weekend in a row, business was down compared to last year. "tron: legacy" the sequel and massively hyped to 1982 easily took number one with $43.6 million. on the low end of expectations. it earned $23 million more from number one openings in all 26 worldwide markets. still, it has a long way to go before earning back reported cost of $170 million to make, and the pesky $100 million in marketing. yogi bear, an update of the old tv cartoon, came in second, below expectations with just over $12 million. and boasting an all-star cast, the film nevertheless finished eighth with just $7.6 million. way below already low expectations.

finally, after a remarkable year for any star at any age, let alone the 88-year-old actress, betty white has been named entertainer of the year by associated press. this coming from chicago, illinois, lifting the spirits of those who have fallen on hard time. he hosted a party for more than 100 needy kids and their families including dozens evicted from their homes. at least twice in the last two years, he's ordered deputies to cease foreclosure evictions he says weren't fair, forced to resume those evictions working to give these kids a pleasant holiday memory. i'm sure he's done that. i'm lynn berry. this is nbc "early today."

it doesn't look green but one christmas tree is certainly eco friendly. in taiwan a christmas tree made of recyclable spoons lit up the holidays. the 39-foot tree is built with more than 80,000 plastic spoons. made by a team of students, its winning design is meant to encourage others to recycle all year long. well, what do you do with an olympic venue long after the games are over? put it to good use. artificial snow transformed the bird's nest into a winter wonderland for big and little kids alike. the 2008 olympic venue had remained mostly unused since then, despite a $500 million price tag. organizers hope the freezing festivities will draw more visitors. here at home, some are getting into the holiday spirit

by getting out of their clothes. dozens of runners in california stripped down for the speedo run. while less is more for the jog, the idea here is to raise as much as possible for a local children's charity. in spite of the nasty weather, the team managed to stay in high spirits, singing christmas carols, and hopefully explaining their good cause to call the people giving them strange looks. >> you being the official spokeswoman for speedo. just surprised you weren't there. >> yeah, you know, it's really unfortunate. i do get that hefty paycheck every year for my endorsement. >> yes. you don't wear much, and you get a lot of money. good job, lynn. >> let's not spread rumors. bill, let's not spread rumors. it is time for an early look at some of the stories we'll follow throughout the day here on nbc -- the holiday rush hits post offices. today marks the postal service's busiest mailing day of the year with customers expected to drop off more than 800 million pieces of mail. in texas, a sentencing

hearing is scheduled and former republican house majority leader tom delay's money laundering case. last month he was convicted of illegally funneling corporate campaign contributions to texas candidates in 2002. and minnesota vikings fans will have their first outdoor home game in nearly three decades. the vikings will play the chicago bears at the university of minnesota stadium, following the recent roof collapse at the vikings stadium, the metrodome. 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. what you need to know before hitting the road as the holiday week begins. and amanda knox's mother reacts to an italian court's decision to let experts review dna evidence from her case. and 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