♪ there's more than just confetti in the air above time square this year. the new tools police are using to protect revellers that biggest new year's eve celebration. entering the new year with no resolution. la makers dig their heels in as the showdown goes on. tragedy strikes an animal shelter where an escaped lion killed a 22 year old. we'll have a look lat the new laws going into effect when the clock strikes midnight. which teams punch their

tingt to the post season? "early today" starts right now. good morning. >> we're counting doung down to the legendary new year's eve ball drop. of course added security measures are in place. the nypd will be in full force with heightened alert. we get more from matt bradley. this new year's eve the famous ball won't be the only thing over time square. new york city police keeping eye oz on the skies on what could be hundreds of thousands of revellers below. >> with the drone this is the first time year going to be using it a large-scale event. along with bombs, helicopters and snipers, and thousands of uniformed officers.

>> the bottom line is thi this people will be safe monday and they should feel safe too. one of the most well policed, best protected events at one of the safest venues in the world. >> reporter: are you excited? were aides? >> i'm excited. i'm not worried about anything. and this have my first time ever seeing the ball drop so i'm viu excited. >> reporter: in just a few hours the very first revellers are getting ready for a very long night. >> thank you. at midnight capitol hill will ring in the new year with no deal to end the shutdown. now law maker aren't scrambling to find a fix and instead pointing the finger at each other. and president trump digging in and comparing his demands for a

border wall to the fence around poemp president obama's house in d.c. nbc's white house spondent. >> reporter: the wall has become a metaphor for border security. lindsey graham said he spent two hours strategizing with the president. >> he was in a very good mood and i think he's receptive to making a deal if it achieves his goals of securing our border. >> reporter: he claimed president trump is open minded to a compromise that would extend legal status to qualified undocumented immigrants in exchange for billions to build border barriers mr. trump call as wall. the president spent a fourth straight day with no public events but active on twitter. the president blasting democrats

who left town and are not concerned about the safety and security of americans. >> what donald trump and the republicans want to do is waste $5 billion in taxpayer money on an ineffective medieval border wall that is a fifth century solution to a a 20th century problem. >> reporter: office moves are underway as democrats prepare to take power in the house. trump advisor kelly ann conway growing impatient. >> the senate's top republican on the appropriation's committee says the talks need get serious. >> if we blame each other this could last a long, long time. >> reporter: in another development senator graham says the president is in a pause situation. after his controversial and much criticized decision to pull u.s. forces out of syria.

he believes the president is committed to defeating isis and described mr. trump's christmas trip to iraq as eye opening and well timed, especially because he met with military leaders. the new year will bring a new chief of staff as john kelly officially departs the white house this week. on his way out he's getting candid on what he did and did not do over the it past 18 months and why the best measure of his success doesn't come from the policies he pushed but from the ones he prevented. >> reporter: talking candidly as white house chief of staff. in an interview with the los angeles times, general kelly says president trump long promised southern border wall is not what he is portrayed. to be honest it's not a wall and he blames former attorney general jeff sessions for the

policy separating undocumented immigrants from their children at the border. cell a saying the move took him by surprise. it's one of the many controversies he weathered during his time in the white house. >> the last thing i wanted to do was walk away from one of the great honors of my life but i did something wrong and god punished me i guess. >> reporter: hired to instill order, cell a was dogged by constant rumors of his firing. >> i'm not quitting today. i don't believe and i just talk thoods president, i don't think i'm being fired today. >> reporter: he says while mr. trump often pressed the boundaries of legal authority the president never ordered him to do anything illegal. he said his legacy is best measured by what he -- and

despite policy differences and personality clashes, kelly told the paper military people don't walk away. >> thank you. now to an alarming story invauvlting lions at an animal conservation center. a lion escaped from a locked space and attacked her. the woman, alexander black, had been interning for two weeks and cleaning a separate incloche whr it happened. the lion was shot and killed but it was too late to save the young woman's life. >> as soon as he got out the inclosed, he went straight to heir. it's unfortunate the loss of life of a young lady who's just starting out. >> the center remains close said during the investigation.

a deadly helicopter crashed. one resays it clipped a zipline in the area. to sports all the pieces are in place for the nfl playoffs. the colts punch their ticked thanks to a huge game from andrew luck. he threw three touchdowns in their prime time show down with the titans and wins it 32-17. and a brutal end to the season for the packers. quarterback aaron rodgers pulled off the game with a concussion, fall eoing a hard hit in first quarter. the lions win it 31-0. the bears locked the number three seat and ruined the vikings' dream of a post season run. kept minnesota out of the end zone until the 3rd but that would be their only touchdown of the day. bears win it 24-10. the stars alining for the eagles.

the defending super bowl champions got the break they needed. they shut out the redskins to secure the sixth and final playoff spot in the afc. the chiefs securing the biweek with an easy win over the raiders. patrick muhones made nfl history becoming the second player to ever throw for sgif50 touchdown 5,000 yards in a single season. the only other qb to pull that off was peyton manning. the ravens book their trip to the playoffs with a huge win over the browns. they picked off baker mayfield, wining it 26-24. it might have been the most exciting, inconsequential game thereof day. nothing but rivalry on the line. ezekiel elliott sat out.

dak prescott threw for three touchdowns including an unbelievable bullet. that was enough to knock off new york. cowboys win 36-35 and it's that time of year for the coaching carousel. the jets fired head coach tod bowls after an abizmal 12-4 season. they announced parting ways with heads coach dirk caughter after missing the playoffs for three seasons. meteorologist is here with your forecast. >> a little rainy. a lot of soggy celebrations. we're looking at heavy rain anywhere from the gulf coast, ohio valley, into the northeast. and anywhere from one to two inches. you want to wear lots of layers as you head out tonight.

in parts of the northern plains, upper midwest. and then mountain snow once again. we're looking at feet of snow as we go throughout the next up cannel of days. parts of florida algty degrees. and also the pacific northwest we had lots of sunshine as well. that's a look at youweather.r a little higher than we're supposed to be this time of the year. all right. we want to bring the umbrelus. we're going to see this exit finally on new year's day. >> people will go to time square anyway. >> they're probably already there. a group of divers braved freezing temperatures to place a

christmas tree under water to celebrate the 40-year-old tradition, the tree will remain under 40 for two weeks and taken back by the divers at the end of the holiday season. >> i like that. well, just ahead the top headlines of 2018 from nbc news.com and new year, new laws. from phone bans to a fake animal service crack down. with moderate to severe crohn's disease, i was there, just not always where i needed to be. is she alright? i hope so. so i talked to my doctor about humira. i learned humira is for people who still have symptoms of crohn's disease after trying other medications. and the majority of people on humira saw significant symptom relief and many achieved remission in as little as 4 weeks. humira can lower your ability to fight infections, including tuberculosis. serious, sometimes fatal infections and cancers, including lymphoma, have happened; as have blood, liver, and nervous system problems,

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companies. >> we need more people. >> reporter: connecticut and hawaii make it illegal to ask job applicants about their pay history. that brings to 10 the number of states with similar bans, >> i think there's an element about us competing and we don't want to be known as the state where women can be low balled. >> reporter: in new york sit a it's illegal to sell anything in foam containers made from that can't be recycled. >> plastic works just as good and a paper cup. same difference. >> reporter: washington state cracks down on people who misrepresent companion or emotional support pets as trained service animals. >> i've had my dog attacked twice in walmart and once with in lowe's by nonservice dogs who

were aggressive and bit my nose on the -- my dog on the noetds. >> reporter: they can assign joint custody based on what's best for the pet. georgia, iowa, louisiana and utah will have to pay sales taxes on what they buy from out-of-state retailers. and revellers wanting to toets 2019 in colorado can do it with beer in grocery stores. not just low alcohol brews, out with the old year a vestige of prohibition. just ahead we'll run down the top headlines of the year from nbcnews.com. and a star is born on the vegas strip. lady gaga's first. but did you know that 98% of us don't get enough of them? that's why megared advanced 4in1 packs more omega-3 power

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fight for your lives before it's someone else's job. >> on february 14th, 2018, a gunman opened fire on marjory stoneman douglas high school prompting a student-led movement. the biggest story on nbcnews.com for 2018. bill cosby's verdict was the second. next the investigation surrounding the nomination of a supreme court justice kavanaugh was widely reported and that's

spot number three and four. number five was the successful rescue mission to save thai boys from a cave. and once again kavanaugh's investigation, and the thousand oaks shooting and the terrible torture of 13 siblings in california. lady gaga is getting all of the applause. she wowed fangz during the debut of inigmu, her las vegas show. the run wraps up november 8th. it will be comprised of both inigma and a jazz and piano show with a stripped down version of her hits. >> she's so talented. i finally saw kwae "a star is born". she's terrific. curtis jenkins a bus driver in dallas, texas, asked every

kid on his bus what they wanted for christmas. every child got what they wanted. there was even a bicycle on the list. wow. >> i need a bus driver like that. i never had that growing up. ask and you shall receive. just ahead a new cast of characters running the sho. how the workers became the bosses. you're watching "early today." wow, that's an aggressive yellow. pretty great, huh?

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and welcome back to "early today." another holiday and right on cue another storm. soggy sell bragszs. we have an area of low pressure that will bring rain from the great lakes to the gulf coast states and a chance for severe storms. en the by monday we're going to see it move off the coast. tuesday looking much better. as we go throughout time, we're going to look at the rain starting this afternoon into this evening and we'll see it developing late overnight. drying out across the east. back in the west we're looking at snow once agon. we're going to measure the snow in feet. we're looking at rain but some of us are seeing snow tonight. just ahead the exciting new moves at a famous market known for its flying fish. more on that coming up. by using dish soap to clean grease on more than dishes?

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> 2 million people are expected to ring in the new year tonight. event organizers did a mock countdown and flipped a giant switch made of 32,000 led lights and waterford crystals. the folks at the famous fish market are doing just that. the day's catch is landing in new hands. >> reporter: in seattle celebrities don't walk on red carpets, they swim with the fish.

these are the famous fish mongers of pike place fish market. >> i liking the fish. >> reporter: drawing crowds daily. >> i've seen things on tv where they were throwing the fish and i said i got to see that. >> reporter: it's more than a gimmick. owner calls it a philosophy. >> our first intention is to create a relationship of love with our customers. after that we know we got them for life. >> reporter: that goes for the workers too. so when he decided to sell his legendary business, he knew exactly who should by. jason,anders, sam and reece. four of his employees are now the big fish. >> it's a dream come true, man. i'm living the dream. >> reporter: are these guys like your kids? >> they are my kids. >> reporter: he could have probably sold to someone else for more. but this just felt right.

>> johnny was very generous -- >> and accommodating. >> reporter: one of the guys was practically born here and his mom lived next door. >> i always thought it would be cool to own that fish market. >> it's exciting. we're going to keep the legacy going. >> reporter: an institution that's still flying high with a familiar win. nbc news, seattle. >> i wonder why it's so entertaining to watch fish being thrown about. it just is. well, think you had a good weekend? hundreds of dogs and owners in madrid took part in bow ties and tew tews. to promote adoption. although the festive event is set up as a race organizers. there's no medals, just a chance to enjoy their costumes.

well, we hope you had a great last day of 2018. >> thank you for watching "early today." keep it right here. more news is straight ahead.

as new york gets ready to ring in the new year, it won't be the plils dropping the ball. new high-tech security is in place for the celebration tonight as rain threatens to put a damper on the festivities. the shutdown showdown enters a new week and likely new year, but one senator sees light at end of the tunnel. john kelly gets candid. the outgoing chief of staff opens up about a bone-crushing job. punching their ticket to the playoffs. highlights from a wild day in the nfl, including another record-breaking game from chiefs quarterback patrick mahomes. "earod