guests, julie bowen, this morning on "early today," debate face-off. republican presidential contenders go on the attack in a tense campaign match-up. on the loose. dangerous animals escape from a wild animal preserve in ohio. and close encounter. a colorado cat gets into a staring contest with a curious a colorado cat gets into a staring contest with a curious mountain lion. captions paid for by nbc-universal television hello and good morning. welcome to our viewers across the nation including the pacific

time zone. and today we begin with a fiery debate. gop presidential candidates went head-to-head last night in las vegas for the fifth and final round of a six-week string of high-stakes match-ups. mitt romney and rick perry shared a heat exchange over illegal immigrants while herman cain's 9-9-9 tax plan came under attack. >> what happened in vegas did not stay in vegas. the fire was on display. >> you lose all of your standing. >> rick perry and mitt romney talked over where romney hired illegal immigrants. >> the newspaper. >> we hired a lawn company to mow our lawn and they had illegal immigrants working there and that was reported to us, we let them go.

you have a problem with allowing other people speaking. >> i understand that. you're going to get testy. >> santorum accused of both of being less than they appear. >> 84% of americans would pay more taxes under his plan. >> that simply is not true. >> go to new hampshire where they don't have a sales tax and you are fixing to give them one. >> the state tax is an apple. we are replacing the current tax code with oranges. >> i'm going to be getting a bushel basket that has oranges and apples because i'm paying both taxes. >> romney on defense, perry bouncing back and other candidates coming off the sidelines. this debate was called a game show. huntsman was in new hampshire.

>> thanks so much. and some of last night's criticism aimed at the 9-9-9 tax plan. on the heels of a new study that finds 84% of u.s. households would see their taxes go up in that plan. the tax policy center estimates families with an income between $10,000 and $20,000 a year would be hardest hit with a 950% increase in taxes. while most households making more than $1 million would have their tax cut in half. cain's plan would have a flat tax on business, income and national sales tax. president obama will wrap up a three-day campaign-style bus tour through battleground states of north carolina and virginia, where he's been promoting his jobs legislation. in north carolina yesterday, the president made an appeal for

bipartisanship, telling a crowd that he would work with gop lawmakers on any serious plan they put forward to help get americans back to work. today first lady michelle obama will accompany the president as he speaks about the importance of hiring veterans. residents in east central ohio have been told to stay indoors and some schools have been canceled after wild animals escaped from an i an exotic animal farm. police in muskingum say the owner was found dead and that the cages were left open. authorities haven't said which animals are on the loose but the facility housed lions, cheetahs, bears and tigers. between 30 and 35 animals including wolves that had been on the run, have so far been shot and killed. and now here's a look at some other stories making news early today in america. officials in texas discovered widespread damage in the wake of monday's massive dust storm.

on tuesday crews worked to restore power and clear city streets of remnants from the 8,000-foot high dust cloud. meteorologists believe the storm was a rare occurrence and don't expect another one to hit in the near future. traffic on rhode island's jamestown bridge came to a screeching halt after a cow fell off a truck. state and local police spent over an hour trying to round up the runaway cow before corralling it in a wooded area where it had to be euthanized. and in boulder, colorado, a house cat refused to back down from a much bigger distant relative in his backyard. look at that face-off. separated by only a glass door, zeus lived up to his name, staring down the mountain lion for several minutes, until the largest animal left. finally, a florida infant is drawing attention for entering the world with a little more bite than most babies. the baby's parents discovered two tiny teeth after bringing her home from the hospital.

expert say it's rare for newborns to have teeth but it doesn't cause a problem unless they come loose. a little smile, too. that made me smile this morning. now for a look at your national and regional weather here's nbc meteorologist bill karins with weather channel forecast. and a new dad. you can actually weigh in on this. you're an expert. >> i have read that it can happen. >> lucky for your wife, not your baby. >> brushing and flossing in the womb. >> yesterday was another gorgeous weather day in la. 71 in interior california. sunshine just about everywhere in the west. you really can't complain. this is a nicer day than some people saw all along. cooling off in the rockies.

it's going to be a warm afternoon. clouds and weak storm system. just a lot of high clouds not really picking up any radar activity. high pressure is retreating now a little bit so we will not see things quite as warm. a lot of sunshine. right along the coast we have got onshore flow. pacific northwest will cool off a little bit in areas. in sac remen toe, looking great. apple shares take a beating. b of a loses its title. and a christmas wish list for the fabulously wealthy.

your early morning business headlines are straight ahead. big day for actress lindsay lohan, could she be headed back to jail? the raiders pull off a stunning trade and one manager makes a world series guarantee. 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. thousands jammed the streets of an israeli town to welcome home a soldier that was held by palestinian militants for over five years. gilat shilad's father says his son is healthy but will need time to recover from physical and psychological wound. he was freed in exchange for

more than 1,000 palestinian prisoners. in new york, occupy wall street demonstrators marched against the nypd, accusing police of using excessive force when arresting protesters. a law enforcement source says the handling of protest incidents and being investigated. u.s. immigration and customs enforce many says the government deported a record number of people in the last year. nearly 400,000 were forced to leave. about 55% had felony or misdemeanor convictions. social security recipients will be getting a raise in january. their first bump in benefits since 2009. the cost of living increase is expected to be about 3.5%. and just as the world series gets under way, four democratic senators are asking the major league baseball players union to ban chewing tobacco during the upcoming series. they say the smokeless tobacco sets a bad example for all those young fans who see the players

as role models. now here's an early look at how wall street will kick off the day. the dow opens at 11,577 after adding 180 points yesterday. the s&p rose 24 points. the nasdaq gained 42. taking a look at overseas trading this morning n tokyo, the nikkei was up 30 points. while in hong kong, the hang seng climbed 232. >> stocks staged another late day rally thanks to another pendulum swing in the euro crisis debt watch. a report germany and france agreed to pump $2 trillion into a eurozone rescue fund lifted hopes a solution could come soon. spain suffered its latest credit downgrade. earnings will likely be the focus again today. apple shares fell in late trade after a rare earnings miss. elsewhere after hours shares of intel shot up thanks to better than expected earnings. results from united health group, coca-cola and johnson &

johnson did little to lift the mood early on the street but a surprising rise in optimism from the nation's home builder gave d.r. horton and linar a healthy boost. yahoo was down most of the day on so-so earnings but picked up steam in late trade on hopes of a future buyout. goldman sachs delivered its second quarterly loss since it went public in 1999. the end of an era for bank of america. despite an earnings win, it lost the title of the nation's biggest bank to jpmorgan chase. ford's new four-year labor contract with united autoworkers is a go, according to a posting on the local louisville union's facebook page. the cash-strapped u.s. postal service is upping the price of first-class stamp by a penny next year to 45 cents. samsung and google have launched their latest iphone rival, the android-driven galaxy nexus smartphone. and nothing says excess like the neiman marcus christmas book. among this year's fantasy, a $75,000 yurt, a $250,000 speed boat and a custom made ferrari

for a cool 400 grand. would that fit under the tree? i don't think so. coming up, the rangers and cardinals get ready for game one. the oakland raiders make a hail mary trade. plus, scary moments on the ice when bruins' defenseman joe corvo goes down hard. your early morning sports headlines are straight ahead. today's going to be the worst travel day of the week. we'll have windy conditions in the east along with areas of heavy rain. your forecast is coming up. you're watching "early today."

good morning. if you're just waking up, this is "early today." in sports, the cardinals and the rangers meet in st. louis tonight as the quest for baseball's ultimate prize gets under way. here's nbc's fred roggin with an early look at all your sports headlines. good morning. game one of the world series between the texas rangers and st. louis cardinals is tonight. cards' manager tony la russa is no stranger to championship and he didn't hesitate to make a guarantee. >> if there's one guarantee i can make, i guarantee our club is not going to change its attitude about competing. in the world series.

i mean, the rangers are going to get the best we've got. we'll have the exact same approach, dot best we can and see if you're good enough or not. >> maybe not the guarantee we expected, but we do know this, chris carpenter and c.j. wilson probables. game one tonight at 5 p.m. eastern. the raiders acquired carson palmer from the bengals trading a first and second round pick. if oakland makes the afc, he becomes a first rounder. would you expect anything else from the raiders. hockey, it's official. bruins are suffering from a stanley cup hangover. they lost again last night. pick anyone with a bomb. the capitals off to their best start in franchise history. alexander semin gave them the lead. proof you don't need to be drafted to play in the nhl. zolnieczyk scored his first goal in his first nhl game with the flyers. former ivy league player of the year studied economics at brown. no econ degree needed. that goal is money. that's your early look at sports on "early today." i'm fred roggin. >> announcer: "early today"

sports is brought to you by just for men mustache and beard. keep your edge. willie wonka's little helpers celebrate a milestone. your early morning entertainment headlines are straight ahead. you'll meet a group of athletes who bring new meaning to the word limitless. you're watching "early today."

welcome back to early today. not too many issues today. really nice weather pattern for

many areas up through california. a tad hotter than you probably like. instead of being near 100, call it 90 to 95. pacific northwest, that storm system went through dry last night. winds shift eed directions. temperatures are going to be down. if you are watching us in see at, washington, see an exhibition celebrating design and fashion held for the first time in the u.s. here's an early look at today's headlines in entertainment. decision day for lindsay lohan who's headed back to court. according to reports, prosecutors will ask a judge to send the actress to jail for

violating the terms of her probation. this after lohan was booted from a women's center where she was doing community service for a necklace theft conviction. there are reports 25-year-old actor shia labeouf got into a violent altercation outside a vancouver bar last week. internet video has been circulating of a man resembling labeouf on the ground being repeatedly punched in the head by a drunken man. this is go you don't see every day. and patrick swayze has been immortalized in wax at madame tussaud's. the late actor's widow was on hand for the unveiling. and finally, an interview clip of what appears to be harry this is go you don't see every day. a little frightening, especially if you're like me, oompa-loompa hit the streets of new york to celebrate the anniversary of the classic film "willie wonka and the chocolate factory." i know that we get really deep into my psychological issues on this show, but another thing

that i have a fear of. >> clowns, too? >> and the flying monkeys. >> that got everybody. i was crying under the bed. >> you still do. admit it. this comes to us from wrc news 4 in washington, d.c. where a team of haitian earthquake survivors provided special motivation for a group of american heroes. as a way of saying thank you for u.s. earthquake assistance, the haitian amputee soccer team put on a clinic for military service members who lost limbs in battle. using the game they love, team members preached encouragement, hoping their success stories will inspire america's wounded warriors on their long road to recovery. i'm lynn berry and this is "early today," just your first stop of the day, today on your nbc station.

in south korea the sky was the limit for ceremony. twirling fighter jets took over at this year's exhibition. it's a opportunity for companies to show off their latest technology in aircraft. this proved to be the largest air show in northeast asia in 15 years. some pampered felines from across asia and their owners gathered in beijing this week. the 13th annual cat show displayed over 16 purebred felines and over 40 different breeds.

a panel judged them not only on physical appearance and temperament and intelligence, too. a cat named legend took top spot. that's the same breed that inspired the cartoon garfield. an amazing story of survival straight out of a hollywood straight out of a hollywood movie. a russian sailor was rescued from a deserted island where he survived 17 days after his ship broke apart in a storm. living on rainwater and seaweed he stayed mostly in a cave to avoid the freezing temperatures. he was saved actually by a rescue helicopter that coincidently was searching for two other men from another wreck and they happened to see him on this island waving his arms. yes, tom hanks did not do that. >> he had a cave and -- >> he actually dug the cave himself because he had to find a way to get out of the freezing temperature. oliver stone is champing at the bit there. time for an early look at stories we'll follow throughout the day here on nbc. in california celebration in memory of apple's co-founder

steve jobs will be held at the company's headquarters. apple is expected to shut its retail stores for a few hours to allow employees to view a live web cast of the event. first lady michelle obama and vice president biden's wife jill will be at world series game one as part of the first ladies joining forces initiative and baseball's welcome back veterans program. and actor john lithgow turns 66. all day long you can stay on top of those stories and others as they break on msnbc. tonight be sure to watch brian williams with "nbc nightly news." finally, here's a look at what's coming up later this morning on the "today" show. matt lauer sits down with billionaire businessman donald trump to find out who he will be endorsing in the gop presidential race. music legend sting celebrates his 60th birthday with a live performance in studio. 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.