wall street's nightmare before christmas. how the administration's efforts to ease the minds of investors led to a major market meltdown. kevin spacey breaks his silence after getting charged with a felony. the bizarre new video that has the actor reprising his role from "house of cards." not up against the ros. the family of a high school wrestler forced to cut his hair before a match speaks out for the first time. their message amid new revelations about the referee behind the controversial call. it will be a holiday -- >> merry christmas. >> -- they'll never forget. >> ho ho ho. >> get together and have a few laughs over a christmas classic. the minds behind die hard settle

that age old debate over whether it's a holiday movie or not. "early today" starts right now. good morning and merry christmas. i'm marlie hall. >> and i'm phillip mena. investors hoping for a christmas miracle this morning after another brutal day on wall street. stocks plunged in their worst day of christmas eve trading ever as the s&p 500 officially slipped into bear market territory. the dow also tanked, plummeting 653 points while the nasdaq didn't fare much better. the market meltdown coming in response to the turbulence in d.c. the shutdown showdown now entering day four with no end in sight. nbc's garrett haake has the latest as the administration tries to steady the ship. >> reporter: christmas eve, the stock market delivering investors a lump of coal. the market down more than 20% from its recent highs. experts say the turmoil in washington isn't helping. >> this has been something that the president has got toed a fi. he's basically continuing a trade war. he's getting into it with congress, leading to a shutdown.

and he is threatening to f fera. >> reporter: treasury secretary steven mnuchin making calls from his mexican vacation to the heads of the u.s.'s six largest banks, meant to be reassuring but having the opposite effect. the president hunkered down at the white house, his florida vacation canceled due to the shutdown, blaming the economy's troubles on the federal reserve, tweeting they don't have a feelfeel for the market. and with congress out of town, complaining about the shutdown stalemate too. i'm all lone. poor me in the white house waiting for the democrats to come back and make a deal on desperately needed border security. fighting back, democratic leaders blaming the market struggles and the shutdown on the president. it's christmas eve, and president trump is plunging the country into chaos, nancy pelosi and chuck schumer wrote. as the white house digs in for a fight that now seems likely to last intohe have a president who refuses to sort of go along to get along. >> reporter: the shutdown fight hinges on how much the democrats would be willing to spent on

border security. the magic number may be between $1.6 billion and the $5 billion the president originally asked for. >> that was garrett haake reporting. the death toll continues to rise in indonesia following that powerful tsunami linked to a volcanic eruption. the tsunami has killed at least 373 people, injured over 1,400 more, while another 128 are missing. and those numbers are certain to rise. the killer waves came crashing ashore on one of the largest islands in the country just days before christmas, and there are still fears that the worst is not over yet. people on the islands are being told to avoid the coastal areas because as the volcano continues to rumble, there are concerns there coulde coastal area that was a resort town. many people were out enjoying what should have been a fun evening. it was a bloody day in afghanistan as a suicide bomber and gunman stormed a packed bers could rise as , killing at smoldering complex. police comb through the nhe violence began

filled with explosives before the three gunmen launcd assault onhe offices. for the first time in over a year, actor kevin spacey is back all three gunmen were killed. on twitter, this time posting a bizarre video in what appears to be his house of cards character. this was right after prosecutors announced that the actor is facing felony charges for allegedly sexually assaulting a teen back in 2016. the alleged incident involved the 18-year-old son of a former boston tv news anchor at a bar in nantucket. nbc's gadi schwartz has the a massachusetts district attorney announced a felony charge of sexual assault against kevin spacey, a new video posted on his twitter account, speaking in the accent of frank underwood, a house of cards character killed off by the netflix show. >> some believed everything and have just been waiting with bated breath to hear me confess it all. >> reporter: it's unclear what he's addressing specifically. prosecutors in nantucket say

their case stems from allegations made by the son of a former boston tv anchor who told kate snow her 18-year-old son was groped by the actor. >> it wasn't until kevin spacey put his hand inside his pants that he really knew he was in trouble. >> reporter: a criminal complaint stating the victim told police he, quote, tried to shift away with his body, but sas spacey kept reaching down his pants, last year, his representative saying spacey was seeking treatment after numerous rthe. his only post on twitter over a year was this video. >> if i didn't pay the price for the things we both know i did do, i'm certainly not going to pay the price for the things i didn't do. >> reporter: a video now blurring the lines between television drama and allegations of real-life crime. gadi schwartz, nbc news, los angeles. new developments in the search for the missing colorado mom, kelsey bare ith. she's been missing since

thanksgiving day. investigators have found a new clue that's taking them across state lines. nbc's steve patterson has more. >> reporter: authorities working across state lines to track down any sign of kelsey ber eth's body. >> sadly, we do not believe kelsey is still alive. >> reporter: friday, they arrested her fiance. held without bond, the 32-year-old facing charges of first-degree murder and solitimurder. his public defender providing no comment. now sheriffs in twin falls, pinged, 800 miles from her tsst home. the solicitation charge may lead to more suspects. the district attorney says he's not ruling out a murder for hire plot. >> you don'teson charge, but yo have to show firmness of what you intended to do. >> reporter: the colorado mom last seen publicly on thanksgiving day, shopping with her 1-year-old daughter. police now say little kaley is with kelsey's relatives. her first christmas without her mother. steve patterson, nbc news. now to new details about the

controversial call at a high school wrestling match last week with one athlete forced to cut his hair or forfeit. now his family is speaking out. nbc's matt bradley has their message. >> reporter: the family of a new jersey high school wrestler is speaking out about what they call the shocking pre-match ultimatum. in a statement, the family of andrew johnson express the gratitude for the overwhelming show of support for their son, arguing that he was under duress and visibly shaken after a referee gave him 90 seconds to either forfeit his match or cut his hair. the johnson family's attorney now saying the ref, alan maloney, showed up late to the match. and when he did evaluate andrew, he failed to raise any issues with the length of his hair or the need to wear a head covering. johnson won, but that hasn't stopped the angry outpouring on social media. chance the rapper labelling the incident bogus. and olympic wrestler jordan burroughs saying it's sickening. >> in high school as you're establishing who you are, creating an identity, i know as

a young black man how much my hair meant to me. >> reporter: new jersey sports officials say they've opened a civil rights investigation and have sidelined maloney. a new jersey paper reported that in 2016, he called a fellow ref a racial slur. maloney later apologized and has not responded to our request for comment. now his latest call leaving a community to wrestle with controversy. matt bradley, nbc news. thousands of people who opened up their wallets for a homeless man on gofundme have gotten their money back. the crowdfunding site issued refunds just in time for christmas. the scam raised over $400,000 thanks to 14,000 donors. investigators alleged it was cooked up by katelyn mcclure and her then boyfriend mark d'amico. the couple went viral after they tried to raise money for johnny bobbitt, who authorities say posed as a homeless man. all three aris faing theft and conspiracy charges and could face up to ten years in jail if found guilty. bonnie schneider is here with our holiday forecast. >> good morning and merry

christmas. we are looking at a clipper system that hasn't brought too much snow to make it a white christmas for many. some in the great lakes are waking up to a dusting of snow or a little more than. it's raining in st. louis further to the west. if you're traveling today, it should be fine. we've got lots of sunshine out there with temperatures that are pretty seasonable for this time of year. there is some snow, and that's across the rockies where we'll see some snow accumulation, especially we'll see that at the higher elevations. but mild conditions elsewhere with highs in the 50s and really comfortable conditions in florida as we climb all the way up to near 80 degrees forand wa. in atlanta, lots of sunshine. highs in the mid-50s. the only place we're watching for some storms, i would say, is towards areas of texas, like san antonio. otherwise, a nice day to travel.

>> thanks so much, bonnie. victims of the camp fire in california gathered for a very special christmas church service. for paradise residents, this was the first large community gathering since a wildfire devastated the town in november. the paradise alliance church received special permission to host a community-wide christmas eve service that featured holiday hymns and visits from santa and mrs. claus. glad to see the christmas spirit is there aswe. new fears take flight over the dangers of drones and justice for otto warmbier, the landmark ruling against north korea for the death of the american student. is changing how the world treats and defeats childhood cancer. we freely share our science to help find cures and save kids with cancer everywhere. and no family pays st. jude for anything... because all a family should worry about is helping their child live.

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otto's parents, fred and cindy warmbier, filed a lawsuit last april seeking $1 billion in damages. a judge ruled monday that they are entitled to more than $500 million. the warmbiers said they are thankful kim jong-un's government was found legally and morally responsible for their son's death. on the same day as the ruling, president trump tweeted he is looking forward to his next summit with chairmas of america flying over the holidays, u.s. officials are growing increasingly concerned that our airports could face an illegal drone disruption like the one that shut down a major airport in the uk last week. nbc's pete williams reports on the push to protect the twice, gatwick airport south of london finally brought in a system designed by an israeli company to detect dronesdia. the challenge of keeping drones and planes apart is growing more difficult, and even accidentally bumping into a plane could be disastrous. >> a larger format drone 10 to 15 pounds could do a significant

amount of damage to an airplane, and if it were close to the ground, it could result in loss of the airplane. >> reporter: even more worrisome is the prospect of an intentional attack. isis terrorists overseas have been using hobbyist drones to carry explosives or drop small bombs. congress has been slow to respond to the drone threat. it only recently gave the federal government authority to disable drones that fly into restricted airspaces, sberts say areairports are not prepared to deal with them. >> reporter: a system uses radar to detect them and a drone hunter to bring them down. a company's ceo says it's not just airports that are unprepared. >> when we go into stadiums, there's all sorts of checkpoints. what we're learning now is that america needs to invest in airspace security just like ground security. >> reporter: it's a rapidly growing threat with 2 million drones estimated to be in the

hands of american hobbyists by the end of 2019. pete williams, nbc news, washington. just ahead, from wrecking ball to wedding bells. the picture that's sparking ru and spend christmas with the mcclains. the official answer to the age-old debate over whether die hard is a holiday movie. , but ruin my day. complicated relationship with milk? pour on the lactaid. just without thatoy mmm, that's good. lactaid. the real milk that doesn't mess with you. and for chocolate lovers, try rich, creamy lactaid chocolate milk. stop fearing your alarm clock... with zzzquil pure zzzs. a drug-free blend of botanicals with melatonin that supports your natural sleep cycle so you can seize the morning.

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this is charlie not coughing because he took delsym 12-hour. and this is charlie still not coughing while trying his hardest not to wake zeus. delsym 12-hour. nothing lasts longer for powerful cough relief. this christmas -- >> it's a time of miracles so be

of good cheer. >> only john can drive somebody that crazy. >> get ready to jingle some bells and deck the halls. >> holy -- >> fox has settled this question bait, okay. they have decked out the original trailer with a holiday twist. the new take is part of a promotion for the 30th anniversary release of the classic action flick. it's a gift that is sure toippe holiday season. this has been more of a debate than i thought it would be. >> if it was released around the holiday, i'd say it was a holiday movie. >> it was released in july. but he's trying to get home to his family for the holidays. it has a lot of christmas references. if they say it's a holiday movie, it's a holiday movie. >> right. well, the rumor mill is swirling this morning after photos surfaced of miley cyrus and liam hemsworth pafrntly

tying the knot. the photo shows the couple cutting what looks like a wedding cake. miley seems to be wearing a white dress while liam wears a tux. the longtime couple have yet to confirm or deny the rulos like . i heard an interview with her on howard stern's show not that long ago, and they're really into each ot malibu, and it burned down. they have another home they're living in in nashville right now. just by the way they've talked about each other, i think it's a legit relationship. >> you're keeping tabs on this one. >> i am. i'm still thinking about that relationship. am i thinking a little bit too much about that relationship? maybe so. let's talk about actor chris evans. he loves to share stories about his dog, dodger. he shared this video of his dog dodger bringing his stuffed lion

to bed every single night. the pup got a new lion for christmas, and this has caused some competition. [ laughter ] >> bedtime. should you get your lion? do you want this lion? are you going to bring this lion? >> in the end, dodger decided to his originalim for his loyalty. i don't have any pets. are they territorial that way? >> i have a cat, and he doesn't bring anything to bed, so i don't know. >> let us know, you guys that have dogs. chime in. is that normal? still to come, the raiders play what could be their final game in oakland. your monday night football highlights are next. that's because your home is filled with soft surfaces that trap odors and release them back into the room. so, try febreze fabric refresher. febreze finds odors trapped in fabrics and cleans them away as it dries. use febreze every time you tidy up to keep your whole house smelling fresh air clean.

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(vo) and vaporize it with an intense rush of vicks vapors. (acapella) ahhhhhhhhhhh! (vo) new dayquil severe with vicks vapocool. the daytime coughing, stuffy head, vaporize your cold, medicine. . we're back with monday night football and a bittersweet christmas eve for raiders fans. the team facing off against the broncos in possibly their last game ever in oakland. they are set to leave for vegas in 2020 and have no lease for next year though the raiders did give the crowd plenty to celebrate. this is the first quarter. dwayne harris returned a punt 99 yards for a touchdown after denver failed to downinally got board late in the third but not long after, the oakland defense picking off case keenum, and the broncos never recovers. the raiders win in 27-14. bonnie is back. it looks like a mild holiday in a lot of places. >> absolutely, marlie and

phillip. plentiful sunshine. great day to travel but not the great day if you're looking to build a snowman in many locations. gusty winds in the southwest and south central regions. temperatures above normal, and that milder air is on the move. it's working its way eastward so that the numbers should be above normal all the way further to the east as we go through the rest of the week. i guess nothing to complain about. >> that's right. thanks, bonnie. when we come back, home for the holidays. enjoy at airports all across the country as loved ones reunite on christmas. rebekkah: opioids has taken everything and everyone i've ever loved away from me. everything. i blew my ankle out and i got prescribed pain pills by my doctor. if making my detox public is gonna help somebody i'm all for it. i just wish i would've had a warning.

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importance of sharing, encouraging all people to break the vicious cycle of greed and consumerism and to spend more time focusing on simplicity and charity. >> i love that message. >> yeah. the pope always has those. >> true. as so many gathered together with their loved ones this christmas, we want to celebrate the true spirit of the season. those moments of joy shared with friends and family reuniting for the holidays. ♪ ♪ >> i haven't seen him in a long time, and i just really missed him. ♪

>> daddy! >> they live on the other side of the country, so we cherish the moments we have with them when they're here. ♪ >> where's my girl? come here. ♪ >> he's been stationed in saudi arabia for the last six months. so he gets leave to come home for six days for christmas. ♪

>> merry christmas. >> merry christmas. >> merry christmas to all and to all a good night. >> those family reunions, they get me every time. >> they do. you know what? it is pretty much the only time of year where the crowded airports, they're just so festive. everybody's happy. everybody's loving each other. it's that time of year. i love it. >> thanks for waking up with us pllip mena.stmas mornin go give a hug to someone thatbrf

bullets. holy [ bleep ]! >> breaking news, a barrage of bullets, shots fired in a san jose neighborhood overnight, this captured by witnesses. we are live on the scene. but first, all eyes on the

weather this christmas day morning. taking a look live at san jose, christmas in the park, starting off this christmas morning, with wet roads out there. good morning and thank you so much for joining us on this christmas day. i'm marcus washington. >> and i'm kira klapper, in for laura garcia. the "a" team is still here. is mike here, too? >> i'm mike, too. merry christmas and my fwift to