two a tag tag it was so hard to hear her. we could have easily taken two more steps and wouldn't have been able to hear her at all. >> a 14-year-old rescued after six hours in these lethal california mudslides that have now claimed over a dozen lives. search and rescue teams have been working through the night. >> bannon out. the president's newly nicknamed sloppy steve, the sudden and stunning fall of the man who helped elect the president. >> he has presided over the freak show wing of the republican party. >> nbc news investigates a birth tourism. russian women coming to america to have babies on u.s. soil. it's controversial, but all legal and accommodations are eyebrow raising.

>> and pole dancing robot has everyone talking at this year's consumer electronics show in vegas. "early today" starts right now. >> good morning. i'm phillip mena. >> i'm frances rivera. first, wildfires, now the deadly downpours. at least 13 people have been killed after a powerful winter storm pounded southern california. the torrential rains battered communities already devastated by last month's wildfires leaving them vulnerable to mudslides and floods. thousands have been forced to flee and dozens have been rescued as waves of mud and boulders rolled into neighborhoods. authorities described the scene as a world war i battle field. nbc's miguel almaguer has more. >> reporter: this is the life and death struggle playing out, rescue teams in santa barbara county. carving deep into a mangled mess. a home, a 14-year-old trapped inside. using the jaws of life, they

reach her after six hours. lauren kent brought from the rising mud and debris. >> i want to call my friend. >> reporter: a miracle rescue just in time. >> it was so hard to hear her. we could have very easily taken two more steps and wouldn't have been able to hear her at all. >> we have a mud lied right nsl now. >> reporter: hills crumbling dozens reported missing. all day long, daring rescue efforts, wading through thigh high mud with search dogs, first responders are desperate to find survivors. while checking on their neighbors, the johnsons heard a cry. >> found a baby. we got it out, got the mud out of its mouth. i hope it's okay.

>> reporter: rescue helicopters hoisting more than 50 to safety where ambulances couldn't get in. >> i went to step out and the mud came all the way up to my knees. >> reporter: 30 miles of highway 101 shut down near santa barbara. some first responders needed rescue themselves. thousands ordered to evacuate in the hills that just weeks ago burned. the largest inferno in state history obliterated more than a thousand homes. where there was fire, there is now floods and mud. >> now to some major news on immigration breaking overnight. a federal judge temporarily blocked the president's decision to end daca. the deferred action program for young immigrants, shielding them from deportation. while a lawsuit filed by california and other plaintiffs play out in court, it is a consequential development after attorney general jeff sessions announced that the program would be phased out just months ago. and it comes as the president sets up a fire storm within conservative circles after suggesting a comprehensive

immigration deal could be reached with democrats during a rare televised meeting with congressional leaders. >> i feel having the democrats in with us is absolutely vital because it should be a bipartisan bill. it should be a bill of love. truly, it should be a bill of love, and we can do that. >> for more we go to nbc's tracie potts koef tracie potts covering it all in washington. tracie, good morning. >> reporter: good morning. it is notable to point out how rare it is for cameras to stay in the room nearly an hour while president trump and democrats and republicans negotiate. he brought in these 22 lawmakers after they reached a stalemate on immigration here on capitol hill. while there he outlined his priorities. interestingly, dealing with daca first, the protection for young immigrants brought here illegally, and then chain migration, the visa lottery and border protection. the president said he wants to

do as you just heard, a bill that deals with protection for those young immigrants, and he said he'd be willing to take the heat for doing so. >> i really think this sells itself. when you talk about comprehensive immigration reform, which is where i would like to get to eventually, if we do the right bill here, we are not very far away. if you want to take the further step, i'll take the heat, i'll take all the heat you want to give me. the heat from democrats and republicans. my whole life has been heat. >> reporter: he may get some, too, because conservatives are already claiming the president is going soft on immigration here, fixing daca, and putting the border wall on the back burner. it was just last week that the president asked for $18 billion to deal with that border wall. he clarified in a tweet that he's not abandoning the wall, that it is a part of the border security plan, but it's not one

of the four priorities that he outlined in that meeting. back to you. >> all right. tracie, thank you. >> this morning former white house chief strategist steve bannon is out of a job. two jobs actually. after bannon stepped down as executive chairman of breitbart news, leaving behind the conservative site he pioneered while also leaving behind the sirius xm radio show he once hosted. it's a stunning fall for for the man who championed trump's populist idea to the white house. he made disparaging comments about the commander in chief and family even going so far as accusing the president's son of committing treason. he walked back those comments, but it wasn't enough. nbc's house correspondent hallie jackson has the details. >> reporter: a breitbart bombshell for steve bannon, stepping down less than 48 hours after trying to diffuse his verbal grenades, published in a new tell-all books, his explosive comments splaming the president's son and son-in-law, igniting furious response from donors and from his former boss,

the president himself nicknaming him sloppy steve. >> should breitbart part ways with steve bannon after the comments in this book? >> i certainly think that it's something they should look at and consider. >> reporter: bannon who left the white house in a sudden shake up this summer and resumed his role as breitbart's executive chairman, now says in a statement, he's proud of what the breitbart team has accomplished in so short a period of time in building out a world-class news platform. it's a controversial platform, too, with bannon the lightning rod telling 60 minutes. >> i'm a street fighter, that's what i am. >> reporter: an ally of the conservative base that supported 2kru7, he's also an enemy of establishment republicans who are nearly gleeful after his fall from grace in the eyes of the president and in the eyes of some conservatives who did not back bannon's pick in the senate race. >> he has presided over the freak show wing of the republican party. and that legacy of his is one that will continue forward.

>> reporter: bannon, self-styled as a shadowy master mind keeper of the nationalist flame, telling nbc news source he's ready to move more into politics post breitbart. hallie jackson, nbc news, the white house. >> in an abrupt change of course, the trump administration now says florida will not be included in a plan to expand offshore drilling. the reversal comes just days after interior secretary ryan zenke announced his plan to open up more federal waters to oil and gas drilling. zenke said he decided to remove florida and plans after talks with governor scott and called the state which was key in the 2016 elections obviously unique. >> amazon founder jeff bezos is now worth $105 billion according to the bloomberg billionaire's index. bezos made $6.1 billion in just 5 trillion days in 2018 and his growing fortune makes him worth more than microsoft founder bill gates whose current net worth is $94.3 billion according to the

index. 9:00 a.m. s 9: 9: 9:00 a.m. -- the amazon ceo continues to climb after the holiday shopping season. >> what a beast as we all contribute to that. let's turn to meteorologist bill karins with a look at the day ahead and what we can expect, bill. >> good morning. we led the show with the horrible news out of southern california with the mudslides. that storm heads into the central plains and northern plains over the next 24 to 36 hours. already winter storm watches, minneapolis, fargo, omaha, bismarck and the storm today will be over the rockies depending your elevation, some rain or some snow. here's the snowfall forecast. the snow areas near jackson hole going to get a good dose of snow as you'd expect. then it goes into the plains, light, only one to 3 inches. we will have a narrow band somewhere from omaha, rochester, minnesota, minneapolis that could be somewhere in the 3 to 6 range. that looks to be tomorrow morning at this time. today watch out for the fog, one day of warm air left for chicago to st. louis. bad visibility for driving and

flying. that the mid-atlantic today. temperatures very seasonable. and unfortunately, the storm that's in the northern plains is then heading for the ohio valley with ice and snow, going to be a messy friday. >> lot to watch there. bill, thank you. we were talking about amazon and the beast that it is. we all know if you're an online shopper, it's no surprise to hear amazon the company founded by even wealthier jeff bezos as we were talking about dominated online spending during the holidays. listen to these numbers. they're staggering. according to bloomberg the company accounted for 89% of online spending from thanksgiving through christmas. i knew a lot of us were amazon shoppers, but that number, i thought it would be like 60. >> i know, right? 9 out of 10 of us. i was one of them.

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all right. robots may be coming after the most unlikely of jobs. look what they're doing here. can you guess? that's at the 2018 consumer electronics show that kicked off in vegas this week. look at the pole dancing robot. >> all right, wow. >> can you imagine, this is vegas, got some pole dancers, you wouldn't know they're robots. they feature cctv security cameras for faces and if you look at their feet, yea, they're wearing high heels as their hips move in time with the music. tonight show host jimmy fallon had this to say about the possible problems people fay when trying to pay the robotic dancers. >> they said if you know anything about robot stripers is when you give them a dollar you have to make sure it's not crinkled and facing the right [ applause ] >> that's a good one. the annual trade show focuses more on artificial intelligence this year and featured over

20,000 cutting edge smart electronics. so, when it comes to the robots and the poles and the high heels and everything, when it comes to making it rain, i don't know. >> that's absurd. leading the news, an nbc news investigation into so-called birth tourism, women from foreign countries, many of them from russia, coming to the u.s. to give birth so that their children can become american citizens. in florida alone, foreign births have skyrocketed nearly 90% in the past decade. nbc senior investigative correspondent cynthia mcfadden has details. >> reporter: these russian women all came to miami to give birth. as a result, their babies are american citizens. that's right, russian mothers, american babies. >> i'm the type of mom who want to give her child the best what i can do. >> reporter: and the best is an american passport. to give birth in miami, a status symbol back in russia. while the practice is controversial, it's perfectly

legal. the 14th amendment to the constitution makes anyone born on american soil an american citizen. >> it's american citizen, american passport is a big plus for the baby, why not? >> reporter: among the pluses, these kids will have the right to live and work here, receive social services and when they turn 21, they'll have the right to sponsor their parents for an american green card. >> we're the only place, just about, stupid enough to do it. >> reporter: as a candidate, donald trump called for an end to birthright sit certain ship, declaring it, the biggest magnet for illegal immigration. >> you want to get rid of birthright citizenship? >> you have to get rid of it, yes. what they're doing, they're having a baby and all of a sudden nobody knows. you have no choice. >> reporter: but ironically, condo buildings bearing the name trump are among the most popular for russian birth tourists. >> i live in trump.

it it's very popular place. >> reporter: and housing and buildings with the trump name are advertised by birth tourism agencies catering to russian clients. some packages including medical care cost over $100,000 for a several-month stay. in moscow, we found an agency openly advertising american citizenship. it's called miami mama. the company estimates they bring around 100 russians here every year. do you advise your clients to be completely transparent with u.s. officials when they're applying for a visa to come? >> absolutely. >> absolutely. >> reporter: to say, i'm pregnant? >> yes. >> translator: we tell every client you have the documents. you have to tell the truth. this is america. they like the truth here. >> reporter: there are some americans who think that it's not right for russians to come to america, have their babies and have the babies become american. >> i understand them. but i'm not going to take

something from america. if i can spend my money, why not? >> quite a loop hole there. that was cynthia mcfadden reporting. >> al roker talked to one of the most iconic teachers and a teacher busted for asking a question at a town hall meeting. good luck out there, captain! thanks! but i don't need luck, i have skills... i don't have my keys. (on intercom) all hands. we are looking for the captain's keys again. they are on a silver carabiner. oh, this is bad. as long as people misplace their keys, you can count on geico saving folks money. fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more on car insurance. when you said youe, sir. were at the doctor, but your shirt says you were at a steakhouse... that's when you know it's half-washed. add downy odor protect with 24-hour odor protection. downy and it's done.

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this morning on today, al roker sits down with legendary

actor burt reynolds. >> you couldn't turn on a tv show, variety show. you couldn't look at a magazine. burt reynolds was there. >> it was confusing and it was scary. >> catch more of the burt reynolds interview including his relationship with dinah shore later on today. >> seen on camera a fury of outrage, a teenager at a board meeting asking a question about salaries. nbc's tammy lightener has the tape and the swift reaction. >> reporter: this is the shocking moment when a louisiana middle school teacher was removed from a school board meeting in handcuffs. >> wait. >> reporter: earlier in the evening she questioned the superintendent's $38,000 raise when teachers hadn't seen a pay increase in nearly a decade. >> i feel like it's a slap in the face while the teachers,

cafeteria workers and many other support staff we have -- >> reporter: but she was cut off. >> stop, stop right now. >> reporter: ruled out of order by the school board president saying the session wasn't meant for questions. a city marshal soon intervened. >> you're going to leave or i'm going to remove you. >> you're not. >> reporter: several audience members started recording as the visibly shaken teacher was escorted out of the room. on camera she ends up on the ground in cuffs. har graves was booked into the city jail on resisting an officer and remaining forbidden. nbc news has reached out to the school district as well as the superintendent and the board president, but did not get a response. no charges will be filed. board member spoke to us over skype. >> why would they arrest her? she didn't disturb the meeting. >> reporter: she likely has more questions about how she was treated. tammy lightener, nbc news.

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the count down is on to super bowl lii. it is february 4th right here on nbc. and the 200-year-old wisconsin tradition is making its way to minneapolis. minnesota reporter cory gives us the behind the scenes peek at what is in store for visitors. >> reporter: the american birka biner, the cross-country ski race, a 35-mile marathon through the woods of wisconsin that ends with a 200 foot bring into haywood, wisconsin. the international bridge is really our baby. it never leaves hayward. well, until now. the bridge is in pieces, loaded, strapped down, and trucked through town. headed 150 miles south to

downtown minneapolis for super bowl lii. today's we have the first sections of the america birka binner bridge. it will be built over 9th street, 16 feet high so traffic can still travel underneath it. once it's finished, they'll need 12 dump trucks of snow to cover it. then it will be ready for super bowl live. >> bike racing, cross-country skiing and opportunities for super bowl live visitors to get a flavor of winter in the bold north. >> reporter: that's bold because the bridge is big. it's going to take 12 semis to get all the pieces here and construction starts saturday. back in wisconsin, they're proud their heritage can help out. >> the history of the bridge goes back to 1206 and the two viking warriors rescued the prince that later became the greatest king of norway. >> reporter: vikings as the heroes, huh? we sure hope so. >> that's unique to minneapolis.

i'm going to see that when they have the super bowl in miami. >> don't complain super bowl goers. it's cold, you have fun activities like that. >> that's right. thanks to cory for that report. >> legendary actors meryl streep and tom hanks stopped by ellen degeneres and she gave them the chance to play their most iconic characters. >> you are a toy. you are the real buzz light year. you're a -- you're an action figure. you are a child play thing. >> i have done battle every single day of my life, and many men have underestimated me. this lot seemed bound to do the same. but they will rule the day. >> all right. you can guess. playing woody from toy story, and hanks playing margaret

thatcher. and ellen and the audience loved it. anything they do. >> that wig, though. thanks again for waking up with us. m' phillip mena.

ad lib live picture-- san jose a very good wednesday morning to you. taking a live look outside overlooking san jose. look at that, it's not raining right now. we have a break from the rain. no umbrellas needed. i don't think so, today. we are going to check in with kari in moments. good morning to you, thanks for joining us, i'm laura garcia. >> and i'm marcus washington. >> we needed to dry out a little bit. >> a little bit. there will be a quick moving rounds of rain moving through. it's not going to be a huge deal, it quickly moves across the bay area. as we look at what's happening out there, the showers are just to the north of us. that will roll across the bay area today.