but coming up right now justin timberlake, happening this morning on "early today" -- holiday showdown. house republicans reject the senate's two-month extension of the payroll tax cut just days before it expires. out of luck. a utah man's thrill of a winning a brand new lamborghini is short lived. camera catches a fedex driver trashing a delivery. captions paid for by nbc-universal television hello and good morning. welcome to viewers across it is nation, including pacific time zone. i'm lynn berry. today we begin with payroll

politics. pushing back against a senate bill passed over the weekend, house republicans refuse to hold a vote that could have extended payroll tax cuts before they expire at the end of the month. instead they challenged senate democrats to come back to town to negotiate a new deal, a political gambit that could end up being paid for by tens of millions of americans. nbc's brian mooar reports. >> the nays are -- >> reporter: the senate payroll tax cut extension slammed into a republican roadblock in the house. house republicans are trying to shame vacationing senate democrats back to the bargaining table. >> i need the president to help out, all right? >> reporter: house speaker john boehner refused a direct vote on the senate bill. instead, sending the legislation to a conference committee. but democrats say they will not negotiate. president obama accused republicans of brinksmanship. >> the clock is ticking. time is running out.

and if the house republicans refuse to vote for the senate bill, or even allow it to come up for a vote, taxes will go up in 11 days. >> reporter: not only will 160 million americans see a tax increase, 2.2 million people lose long-term unemployment benefits and 48 million seniors could lose medicare doctor reimbursements. republicans are demanding a one-year extension. not just 60 days. >> fixing something for two months is not fixing something. >> reporter: democrats see other motivations. >> an excuse because they never wanted the tax cut from the beginning. >> reporter: on capitol hill, high-stakes drama with real-life consequences. brian mooar, nbc news, washington. elsewhere, a bloody crackdown continues in syria with reports of more than 100 deaths over the past two days, including dozens of defectors from president bashar al assad

forces. amateur video shows what is to be the result of bloody clashes between protesters and government forces in and around damascus. this week's surge in violence is believed to be a so-called last push by assad's regime before arab league monitors arrive in that country. in what's called the biggest women's demonstration in modern history, thousands of women fled streets in cairo, demanding the government military step down. marchers carried a photo of a woman whose clothes were partially pulled off by troops as a symbol of their outrage over the brutal treatment of female protesters. some 10,000 chanting women carried signs, turned out for the massive march throughout downtown cairo. this as 14 people were reportedly killed during a fifth day of clashes between protesters and military forces. back here at home, it may not officially be winter yet but a blistering snowstorm that plowed through the southwest and

southern plains was a bitter reminder of what's in store over the next few months. at least six deaths are blamed on the severe storm that's fizzling out as it moves toward the great lakes. roads were closed across kansas and the texas panhandle to allow crews to clear snow and treacherous patches of ice. further north, near whiteout conditions and fierce winds piled snowdrifts up to ten feet high. a flight headed for georgia ended tragically on a new jersey highway. parts of the small aircraft scattered after it smashed into a wooded area. the pilot, his wife, their two children and a family friend were killed. holiday tragedy also struck a georgia family in texas, when a small plane crash killed all five on board. the pilot, his wife, two children, and brotherdhe the ru.

and the wrath of a winner of a brand new lamborghini won't be showing off his toy this christmas. he wrecked the car after driving over black ice six hours after receiving the keys. the car was insured and will be repaired. fedex dealing with a public relations nightmare. security cameras show a brand new flat screen tossed over ary sipient's fence. yep, there he go. the shipping giant tweeted the careless treatment of the package "will be addressed." i should hope so. now a look for national and regional weather, here is meteorologist bill karins. good morning. there are cameras everywhere, just remember that. >> especial that will house with the nice gated fence. >> normally have cameras. >> yeah. >> hot! >> a little angry that day i'm guessing.

he'll pay for it. looking at a nice quiet forecast. traveling through the intermountain west, we'll see snow. coming down through areas of montana, northern idaho, into wyoming. but the quiet weather pattern for california and up in the cascades continues, and has not been a blockbuster season for snow. especially in areas of california and the mountains, compared to the last couple of years where it's blockbuster, kind of lacking. a snowstorm yesterday in kansas that is exiting. clear skies in the four corners region. and next little upper level low dropping down from canada. a decent snow producer in wyoming, montana, and in denver. cool. high pressure dominates. santa ana winds will kick in as high builds in over the top. and a chilly morning, especially over areas like medford, tiny area of patchy freezing dog. san francisco, 40, with a high of sunshine. 56. l.a. not bad this afternoon, and

temperatures at 64. a high of 61 degrees. nice day. no change means no bad. >> i like that. good news in the battered housing sector. authorities raid one corporate headquarters. and which city is breaking the record for tourism. early morning business headlines straight ahead. a much publicized student on skrooe screen, but is his school cooking his grades? and don mattingly like you have never seen him before, in a dress. 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. kim jong-un has received a crucial endorsement from china as the next leader of north korea. they are monitoring north korea for signs of instability or succession struggle. for the first time a government advisory board is asking scientific journals not to publish details of certain biomedical experiments. they believe details of two controversial experiments on the bird flu virus could provide information to terrorists for a bioweapon. american airlines is predicting 4.3 million travelers will fly this holiday season, down 1% from last year. the group blames the economy and high fuel prices but says planes will be packed due to reductions

in the number of flights and airplane size. some shocking numbers out of england. an informal study found 9 in 10 baby changing tables in public rest rooms tested positive for trace amounts of cocaine. whoa. and a penthouse on new york city's central park has sold to the 22-year-old daughter of a russian billionaire for a record $88 million. that's $13,000 a square foot. must be nice. now here's your early look at how wall street will kick off the day. the dow opens at 12,103 after skyrocketing 337 points yesterday. the s&p spiked 35 points. nasdaq surged 80. taking a look at overseas trading this morning, in tokyo, the nikkei climbed 123 points. while in hong kong the hang seng lept 336. surprisingly strong housing data and hopeful signs from europe sent stocks soaring tuesday. new home construction jumped

over 9%, best in a year and a half. building permits also rose. home builders, pulte group, mdc holding, and horton all rose. the euro gained against the dollar after spain's borrowing costs plunged after a short-term debt auction. consumer confidence unexpectedly rose in germany. europe's major markets were sharply higher. financials climbed, led by jpmorgan chase and wells fargo after the fed released new bank oversight proposals that were not as tough as feared. big ripples after at&t dropped its t-mobile bid. sprint nextel, which opposed, gained as did altell and juniper networks. general mills fell. sinking due too to higher costs. red hat plunged after forecasting lower than expected revenue. after the bell, nike rose on higher than quarterly profit. thanks to high shoe demand. oracle tumbled late as earnings

fell short of estimates for the first time in a decade. and jabil fell in late trade after missing on revenue. police raided the tokyo headquarters of olympus today, part of a fraud, corruption and coverup probe that has shaken faith in corporate japan. new york city will surpass a record 50 million visitors this year, providing an estimated $32 billion in tourist spending. finally, thought to be lost for decades, orson welles' oscar for "citizen kane" was sold at auction for $62,000. the loser was magician david copperfield. the buckeyes get bopped. college football bowl action. rangers and devils drop the glove almost before the puck hits the ice. plus, known as the hitman during his playing days, now you might call dodger manager don mattingly the nutcracker. is that for real? your early morning sports

headlines are straight ahead. we're still waiting for winter in the east. warm temperatures and rain today. your forecast is coming up. you're watching "early today."

good morning. if you're just waking up, this is "early today." in sports, ohio state, one of the nation's most storied

college football programs, will pay a hefty price for rule violations. here's nbc's mario solis with an early look at all your sports headlines. >> good morning. unless you're ohio state. the school's football team given a one-year bowl ban for violations incurred when players traded memorabilia for cash at an ohio tattoo parlor. it occurred between 2008 and 2010. the coach at the time, jim trestle, slapped with an penalty, making it unlikely he'll coach in college for the next five years. beef o'brady bowl. bo marshall and florida international in st. petersburg. game-stealing touchdown. they win 20-10. hockey in new jersey, devils and rangers don't really like each other. a bit of a skirmish on opening face-off and three seconds in, we've got a fight. 40 minutes of penalties handed out in the game's first two minutes of play. eventually they focus on hockey and the rangers beat up the

devil on the ice. carl hagelin with a goal. rangers take down their foes, 4-1. nba, last year's mvp handsomely rewarded. derrick rose getting a five-year contract extension worth nearly $95 million. bulls hosting the patriots. second quarter, rose on the run, pretty reverse layup. bulls win by eight, opening the season christmas day in l.a. against the lakers. finally, time to get in the holiday spirit with a little rendition of "the nutcracker" starring don mattingly. the dodger skipper and former yankee great wearing a wig and a dress for the role of mother ginger in the christmas classic. donny baseball took the stage in his hometown of evansville, indiana, and he had to know the video would surface, guarantee his players will never let mother ginger mattingly hear the end of it. that's your sports for today. coming up, a movie star is injured surfing.

a music star proves he's not dead. and a reality star is hit with a multimillion dollar lawsuit. your early entertainment headlines are straight ahead. plus, neither snow, nor rain, nor heat. you know the deal, right? grinch like orders not to wear a santa suit won't keep this courier from swift completion of his appointed rounds. you're watching "early today."

welcome back on this wednesday morning. watching quiet weather conditions. no one watching needs to watch their umbrellas. very tranquil. a little snow in areas of the rockies. anyone traveling up through montana, wyoming, and later today into tonight into colorado, we'll deal with snow. looking just fine with areas in the west. a decent day tomorrow with temperatures slightly cooler in the northwest. if you are watching understanding us on news channel 8, portland, oregon, nearby salem, enjoy thousands of twinkling holiday lights and entertainment for the whole family at magic at the mill at the willamette heritage center. >> thank you, bill. now here is an early look at headlines in entertainment. talk about biting the hand that feeds you. piers morgan sounded more like anything but a fan of celebrities. the former tabloid editor turned talk show host told england's

inquiry into media ethics, says he never authorized phone hacking and blasted celebrities who used the media for publicity and exposure and then whine about privacy. gerard butler is recovering after a weekend surfing accident in which he was dragged over rocks and held under water. after internet death rumors, jon bon jovi posted a shot of himself on facebook and twitter, heavy looks a lot like new jersey. >> hopefully not that drive around new york city. >> ouch! snooki hit her branding partner with a lawsuit. she's been smacked back with a $7 million countersuit. and finally, did james franco really get an easy "a" in grad school? a former nyu professor filed a lawsuit claiming he was fired for giving franco a "d" after franco showed up for only two of 14 scheduled classes. those celebrities, they think they can get away with anything. >> 2 of 14?

maybe 7 out of 14. >> i never did anything like that. >> never went to classes. >> good point. this comes to us from seattle, washington, where in nearby bellevue one postal worker is staging rebellion. this to keep his christmas tradition from dying. for the past decade, bob has delivered mail wearing a santa suit during the holiday season. after his noncompliance with dress code led a coworker to complain, his supervisor ordered him to shut down the st. nick act, but despite his job being in jeopardy, bob defied the order -- you go, bob -- hoping he's safe with his union and christmas on his side. i'm lynn berry and this is "early today," just your first stop of the day, today, on your nbc station.

animals at one circus in germany are especially tame, that's because they're made of ice. the circus-themed art festival has artists working ten hours a day in 17-degree temperatures for a month in advance using chain saws and files. sculptors carve 1300 ice blocks to create elephants, horses and jaguars. the clowns, though, were thawed out. in order to go green one hotel in china goes clear. opting out of the fir tree the hotel staff constructed one made out of used plastic water bottles. the tree is decorated with garland and lights and uses 20,000 containers. the staff hopes to promote recycling and the protection of

the environment. finally, looks like overnight teen sensation rebecca black has finally hit somewhat of a high note. the singer's "friday" video, named youtube's most watched of 2011, attracting 120 million viewers. the video went viral earlier in the year, becoming an off-beat global spectacle, whether or not that's a good thing for black is still up for debate because no one's really sure, do people watch it because they love it or because they hate it. >> you just got that in my head. >> i'm sorry. >> you need to apologize to everyone out there. >> wednesday, wednesday, wednesday. well, time for an early look at some stories we'll follow throughout the day here on nbc. in washington, transportation secretary ray lahood will unveil new rules designed to reduce fatigue among airline pilots, including more rest between shifts and fewer maximum hours in a work day. the rule will be the first change since the 1940's era

regulations since they were amended in 1985. a memorial will be held at arlington national cemetery, marking the 23rd anniversary of the bombing of pan am over lockerbie, scotland. killed 270 people. postal officials say today is the last day to ship anything by priority mail if you want it to arrive anywhere in the u.s. in time for christmas. 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." finally, here's a look at what's coming up later this morning on the "today" show. republican presidential candidate michele bachmann speaks out against her gop opponents and the current deadlock in congress. and musical legend tony bennett is live in concert with a special holiday performance. 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.