tens of millions are headed for planes, trains and automobiles today on what's one of the busiest travel days of the year. we're going to tell you what's ahead. the candidate and the president-elect appear to have almost two completely different platforms when it comes to key issues that won the election. new details about the school bus incident that killed five youngsters and about the man behind the wheel. stocks soared to new highs on the dow and s&p. president obama honors 21 extraordinary americans. we have the behind the scenes details. "early today" starts right now. good wednesday morning, everybody. i'm ayman mohyeldin. >> i'm frances rivera.

donald trump is waking up at his resort. south carolina governor nikki haley has accepted trump's nomination to become the u.n. ambassador. we have word that dr. ben carson, one-time 2016 campaign candidate has been offered the secretary of housing and urban development post. while "the wall street journal" reports mitt romney has emerged as the top contender as secretary of state. the big news from the sitdown with "new york times" is turning heads after he backed off major campaign pledges in an on the record discussion with the paper, key among them, prosecuting hillary clinton. and here's what he said back on the campaign trail. >> hillary clinton should have been prosecuted and she should right now be in jail. >> lock her up. lock her up. >> now then and this is now.

trump says going after clinton is, quote, just not something that i feel very strongly about saying he doesn't want to hurt the clintons adding, she went through a lot and suffered greatly in many different ways. well, trump's campaign manager kellyanne conway backed up trump's position saying this to msnbc's chris matthews. >> he said it was a vicious campaign and he just wants to unite the country and move forward, not backward. >> breitbart, the conservative site that backed trump throughout the campaign is blaring the title, broken promises. while the conservative group judicial watch says backing off clinton would be a, quote, betrayal of promises to the american people to drain the swamp for out of control corruption. during the campaign trump attacked the paris accord which was a major climate deal signed by nearly every nation in the world. >> we will cancel this deal so

that our companies can compete. >> now the trump campaign says -- the administration to be says he was, quote, open minded about the open deal adding that when it comes to global warning i think there is some connectivity between human activity and climate change. the president-elect also condemned and disavowed the recent gathering of alt right members when the conservative right group brought shock to many. trump tells the time it's not a group i want to energize and if they are energized, i want to look into it and find out why. we're now learning that the trump foundation in a new tax filing admits to violating i.r.s. rules but when it comes to trump's businesses and possible conflicts of interests the president-elect remains steadfast telling "the new york times," quote, the law's totally on my side, the president can't have a conflict of interest. residents in chattanooga, tennessee, are waking up with

very heavy hearts this morning after monday's school bus crash that killed five young children. 12 in the hospital, 6 critical, 6 in stable condition. a commune the community gathered tuesday night. kerry sanders has details on the driver. >> reporter: the driver of that bus, 24-year-old johnthony walker has been charged with five counts of vehicular homicide, reckless driving and reckless endangerment. according to the affidavit walker was driving well over the 30 mile per hour speed limit on a narrow, winding road when he lost control of the bus. nbc news has learned from state records that walker had his license suspended in 2014 for 25 days for failing to show insurance and he was involved in another minor school bus accident just two months ago. no one was injured. among the five children killed in monday's accident, 9-year-old zoey nash. her younger brother, 8-year-old zakaria was also in the bus. he survived but is in intensive

care. >> it's heartbreaking to see these images here especially knowing that it was carrying 37 students and the bus was not equipped with seat belts. the ntsb expects to complete the on scene investigation within 7 to 10 days. they have one key witness who was driving a car behind the bus and they're asking for any other witnesses to come forward. there's good news in the fight against terror this morning. a u.s. air strike killed a senior al qaeda leader last week according to a new pentagon announcement. >> this represents another blow to al qaeda in syria and represents continued u.s. representation to target al qaeda leaders wherever they pose a threat to the u.s. and our allies. >> he moved to a syrian affiliate. he had ties throughout southwest asia including those that had attacked u.s. forces in afghanistan. it is the day before thanksgiving so you've got your menu set, the bags are packed

and the cars are loaded. >> nbc meteorologist bill karins is here with us to tell us more. >> it's all good. >> take each other's lines. it's not going to be a horrible travel day today. we are going to see things improving in some areas. very happy to report we had a chance for tornadoes yesterday. we didn't have any of those tornadoes in areas of texas. on the weather map areas are in minnesota, wisconsin. areas of light snow. this light rain moves through the ohio valley. look through the major cities, we're talking chicago, o'hare, light rain this morning. later on this afternoon indianapolis to detroit. then on the west coast we have the front moving on shore here with some rain. deal with maybe some minor issues on i-5. nothing horrible. tomorrow morning looks like a steadier, heavier day. louisiana and texas up here and minnesota and wisconsin looking pretty good for the

maybe interstate 80 driving between nevada and utah. sacramento to santa fe will be just fine. the areas of greatest concern, guys, are going to continue to be tomorrow morning in the west with the heavy rain. we'll talk more about your thanks giving day. >> for the record, it was me who stole aymen's lines. the artists were celebrated by president obama. awarding them with the nation's highest honor from kareem abdul-jabbar, ellen degeneres, bruce springstein. the president admitted this may be the best group ever. >> today we celebrate extraordinary americans who have lifted our spirits, strengthened

our union, pushed us towards progress. first we came close to missing out on a bill and melinda gates incredible partner shn because apparently bill's opening line was, do you want to go out two weeks from this coming saturday? fortunately melinda believes in second chances and the world is better for it. in 1976 loren michaels implored the beatles to reunite on his brand-new show. in exchange he offered them $3,000. which was early proof that loren michaels has a good sense of humor. it's easy to forget now just how much courage was required for ellen to come out on the most public of stages almost 20 years ago. what an incredible burden that was to bear, to risk your career like that. people don't do that very often. from a philadelphia courtroom to normandy's beach heads to the

dark side of the moon, he has introduced us to america's unassuming heroes. tom says he just saw ordinary guys who did the right thing at the right time. well, it takes one to know one. there is a reason you call somebody the michael jordan of -- they know what you're talking about because michael jordan is the michael jordan of greatness. along with her honey voice, her soulful sensibility, diana exuded glam more and grace and filled stages that helped to shape the sound of motown. bruce springstein has brought us all along on a journey consumed with the bargains between ambition and injustice and pleasure and pain. the simple glories and scattered heart break of everyday life in america. i am the president, he is the boss. ladies and gentlemen, i want you all to give it up for the recipients of the 2016 presidential medal of freedom.

>> what an incredible -- and that was just some, not even all of those that were awarded the medal of freedom. congratulations to them. what an a-list of people. >> the icons and what a way to say good-bye to this administration. >> right before the holidays, too. really brings it back to country and patriotism. just ahead, from olympic gold to the mira ball trophy. laura hearn than dez. there's an investigation into brad pitt and his children. that's next. despite your best efforts. but what if you could turn things around? what if you could... love your numbers? discover once-daily invokana®. it's the #1 prescribed sglt2 inhibitor that works to lower a1c. a pill taken just once in the morning, invokana® is used along with diet and exercise to significantly lower blood sugar in adults with type 2 diabetes.

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she has the mira ball trophy and a gold medal from the olympics. >> 16 years old. i think also it helped that she has that gymnast background because she has the technique and style down. >> yes. former contestant vanilla ice and texas governor perry reunited their bromance. ♪ ♪ ♪ >> rick perry! ♪ ♪ >> when you can stop, collaborate and listen like that, rick perry, i have to hand it from him. i would never know that was rick perry. it's pretty impressive. >> very impressive i have to admit. leading the news on nbcnews.com, they're inquiring into the brad pitt child abuse allegations.

this comes 11 days after he was cleared of physical abuse on his children by the l.a. county department of family and children services. this stemmed from an issue on a plane. the most expensive destroyer in navy history and it broke down. it was active for a month. it was cruising through the panama canal when all of a sudden it lost propulsion. apparently the $4.4 billion warship has engineering problems with its motors and now has to be towed all the way back to port. >> a sleek looking ship. somebody has to be accountable. $4.4 billion. that's a lot. just ahead the dow and s&p soar to record levels. does that mean we're heading for a pull back. cnbc's landon dowdy is next. first stephen colbert mans the

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in today's quick hits, police dash cam video captured a massive fireball flying over central florida. the bright flash is believed to

have been a meteor. there were no reports of any damages. in fresno, california, a cat was rescued after being stranded atop that power pole for guess how long? nine entire days without any food, without any water. it still survived. the brave feline was -- >> needles to say she was hungry. >> got her favorite meal. >> one of her nine lives. today president obama will pardon his final thanksgiving turkeys as the "tonight show's" jimmy fallon points out, after eight years i think the president is probably over it. >> today i have the awesome responsibility of granting a presidential pardon to a pair of turkeys. >> we can't wait to pardon these turkeys. >> and with that, i think we are going to bestow the official pardon. >> most powerful position in the world brings with it many awesome and solemn responsibilities. this is not one of them. >> it is a little puzzling that

i do this every year. >> oh, boy. >> oh, boy. >> over it. >> i love it. the reaction. they've been over it since day one i think. >> and so over the turkey pardon. like a turkey with extra stuffing, millions of americans retirement funds and 401ks just got fatter but not all workers are celebrating. cnbc's landon dowdy tells us why. >> they were certainly not tired of these record highs that we're getting over here on wall street. the market will push further into unchartered waters today. the dow closing above 19,000 for the first time ever while the nasdaq and s&p 500 also hit new record highs. the retail sector helping to move stocks higher and investors may be keon several economic reports today on unemployment, durable goods, housing and the consumer. meanwhile, a federal judge is blocking a new rule that would have made about 4 million

more americans eligible for overtime pay on december 1st. the court says the labor department exceeded its authority. the white house wants to shrink the so-called white collar exemption which allows employers to skip overtime pay for salaried workers that make more than 23,600 a year. if you're among the hearty individuals who wait in line for those black friday door busters, you could get your hand on some. jcpenney is offering coupons for 500 bucks on a purchase of $500 and more. cabellas is giving away prizes of gift cards and kamt ras while macy's is offering a slow cooker and waffle maker which is free after you mail in a $10 rebate. good deals this week zblend i know where you'll be friday morning. >> here. >> i won't be here. >> i'm right there with you. >> you'll have a head start. you'll be getting off the air just in times as the stores open up. >> i'll be getting your gift. >> thank you very much. just ahead, a preview of the

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here's the thing, ellen almost didn't make it inside. she forgot her i.d. so she had to wait for clearance into the white house before she got her award and was able to do this. she later tweeted this, barack obama just awarded me the medal of freedom. i hope it serves as i.d. i have no idea how i'm going to get home. >> hard time getting back on her flight if she doesn't have an i.d. >> you're riding high anyway, never mind the flight after you win the medal of freedom especially with the a-listers that were there. if you're heading to the theaters this thanksgiving, here are the movies to see. brad pitt plays a secret agent in "ally." and then you have the r-rated comedy and "rules don't apply." so a lot of good movies out there. enjoy the weekend, catch a movie. >> shopping and movies, all set. >> turkey, too. >> you're watching "early today." per roll

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seattle as we move throughout the day with possibility of rain later on. the heavier rain. then on the roads it looks like the worst of the roads will be in the areas of the ohio valley. chicago o'hare, light rain, that will be improving later in the day. also as we mentioned, the northwest. as far as highways go, across 80 a little bit of snow possible and through 90 and the inner mountain west. i wouldn't cancel any of my plans for any of these weather events. i think everyone will get to their destination, maybe a little delayed. >> thank you very much. president obama is making a

standing of mercy for non-violent drug offenders. he granted clemency to another 79 convicts pushing his total number of pardons to 1023. that's more than the last 11 presidents. the majority of them will be released sometime next year. 20 of them were serving life sentences. after traveling more than 42,000 miles the "u.s.s. dallas" has returned home from the holidays. sailors were embraced by their loved ones on its final journey. they made stops in scotland, france, along with other ports. now the ship had a glimpse of hollywood fame. you may recall this back in the 1990 thriller "hunt for red october." now after 35 years in the fleet this is the last scheduled deployment. hopefully it ends up in a place where generations of young americans can learn more about it, more about the navy. >> how special to have those families back in time for thanksgiving. spending it in d.c. or out in outer space like nasa astronaut

shane kimber. we shared details of how the i.s.s. will share thanksgiving. >> happy thanksgiving from the international space station. it will be a little different for us up here in space but i'm going to try to make it as much like home as we can. here's the turkey. in a pouch. we'll heat this up and it will taste good. one of our side dishes is candied yams, blueberry cobble ler. we'll have mission control send up live football games for us to watch to complete the experience of thanksgiving. >> there you go. they've got it all up there. this is the second time he will celebrate thanksgiving in space. very important reminder for everyone, powerball $359 million. that's more than 219 reasons to be thankful if you take the cash lump sum. let's get our tickets in order. it's the 11th largest jackpot in powerball history. >> thank you very much for joining us. i am ayman mohyeldin.

>> i'm frances rivera. i'lle back b the major announcement overnight

- surrounding president elect-donald trump and his future cabinet. laura/live plus - while yer . breaking news at 4:30. an unexpected pick for trump and his cabinet. while you were sleeping, the rain moved through. what impact the weather could have. "today in the bay" starts right now. thank you for joining us on this pre thanksgiving wednesday. i'm sam brock. >> i'm laura garcia-cannon. >> here we go. what is it called? the busiest travel day of the year. >> today with people flying out of town, who knows. >> it's looking pretty good as of now.