all the same sorts of facts cause us to wonder, is there an inappropriate relationship, a connection, between this president and our most fearsome enemy, the government of russia? >> stunning claims against the commander in chief. why former fbi director anew mccabe says president trump may have broken the law. another dramatic twist in the jussie smollett case.oax or the actor himself. life after isis. the fate of the foreign fighters now trying to return home as the caliphate collapses. drama at daytona with just laps left to go, a massive crash wipes out nearly two dozen drivers. who emerged from the wreckage the winner "early today" starts right now.

>> good monday morning. i'm ip new explosive allegations against president trump this morning from a former top intelligence official. during an interview with "60 minutes" ousted fbi deputy director andrew mccabe suggested the president may have broken the law while trying to undermine the bureau's investigation into his campaign ties with russia. >> the president had gone to jim comey and specifically asked him to discontinue the investigation of mike flynn, which was a part of our russia case. the president then fired the director. in the firing of the director, the president specifically asked rod rosenstein to write a memo justifying the firing and told rod to include russia in the memo. rod, of course, did not do that. put together, these circumstances were articulable facts that indicate a crime may have been committed. the president may have been gained in obstruction of justice

in the firing of jim comey. >> mccabe also claimed deputy attorney general rod rosenstein discussed using the 25th amendment to remove mr. trump from office. senate judiciary committee chairman lindsey graham accused rosenstein of trying to stage an administrative coup and vowed his panel will investigate the matter. mccabe is currently promoting his memoir "the threat" which paints a dire portrait of the oval office. president trump's national emergency declaration is under siege from all sides this morning. a growing chorus of lawmakers from both sides of the aisle voicing concerns over the president's last-ditch effort to fund his border wall. now california and several other states are getting ready to sue to mr. mr. trump's move, the efforts setting the stage for another major showdown over immigration and president powers. nbc's tracie potts joining us now from d.c. with the very latest on this.

president is not backing down from this fight? >> reporter: no, he's not backing down. democrats and republicans are concerned the president is overreaching. the question on capitol hill is whether or not the president has the authority to do this, in other words, this is a real emergency? if they have the final say does the president get to build this wall. three days after the president declared a national emergency to build a border wall with mexico, lawmakers are debating whether it is really an emergency. >> he himself said it. he did not need to announce or declare a crisis. >> this is an emergency. what are we on now, the fifth caravan? >> i don't care if it's republican or democrat trying to get around congress.>> this wil >> he is a republican, but so is lipped seuz

lindssey graham, and he is supporting the president. the white house won't say if president trump will veto a resolution against his emergency declaration. >> yes, he will veto. >> he will protect his national emergency declaration, guaranteed. >> reporter: the next stop could be the u.s. supreme court. >> he is daring the court to strike this down. >> declaring an emergency is one thing. proving it could come next. >> and that could come with eight states preparing lawsuits against this emergency declarati declaration. phillip. >> tracie potts joining us from washington. tracie, thank you. the investigation into an alleged racist and homophobic attack against "empire" star jussie smollett has taken another strange turn, this time with chicago police saying that they no longer consider smollet assault. steve patterson has been following this story for us. steve, what's the latest?

>> reporter: marlie, this is yet another stunning turn in what events in this story. now sources close to the investigation are saying that smollett is no longer considered a victim, nor is he yet considered a suspect. and at this point they just want him to come in so he can clarify his story. police are now investigating if the actor famous for his role in the hit series "empire" paid two men to stage an alleged attack against him. in january jussie smollett filed a police report stating two masked men assaulted him while hurling racist and homophobic slurs before pouring bleach on him and tying a rope around his neck. he identified the attackers in this blurry surveillance picture. >> i don't have any doubt in my mind that that's them. >> reporter: friday night police said they questioned and released two men i.d.'d in the picture, confirmed by nbc news as two brothers, both followed by smollett on instagram, no longer suspects.

investigators say they searched the brothers' home and found a rope, bleach, and black masks. >> you do such a disservice when you lie about things like this. >> reporter: police issued a statement saying new information gleaned from their interview with the brothers shifted the trajectory of the investigation. law enforcement sources familiar with the investigation tell nbc news smollett is no longer considered a victim in the case, nor is he considered a suspect. and at this point police just want him to come in and clarify his story. attorneys for smollett categorically denied the notion that he staged the assault. he has now been further ct own attack. nothing is further from the and thisni remaining steadfast, standing by his story, despite the growing scrutiny. marlie? >> steve patterson, thank you. anthony weiner has been released from prison. the disgraced ex-congressman is now in a federal re-entry program.

he pleaded guilty in 2017 to transferring obscene material to a 15-year-old girl. he served 15 of his 21-month sentence at a massachusetts prison. as part of his plea agreement, weiner will be under three years of supervision in new york. he must register as a sex offender and also pay a $10,000 fine. the former politician will be held either in a halfway house in brooklyn or under home confinement until his official release on may 14th. with the u.s. set to declare victory over isis, president trump is calling on europe to take back hundreds of foreign fighters captured in syria onde president threatened the u.s. wants toome home.er says she we are joined by sarah harman in london. what are we learning about this young man? >> reporter: good morning. she was a london teenager, 15 years old, when she and two friends traveled to syria to join isis.

now he is 19 and living in a refugee camp. she has just given birth to a baby boy, and she wants to come home to britain. but she is also unrepentant about joining the terror group. >> i have my kids. you know, i did have a good time. it's just a lot harder. people should have sympathy towards me for everything i've been through. >> reporter: people like her propose a huge challenge for europe. many joined ives and have had children since they were now that the caliphate is crumble, there is a question. in a series of tweets he pushed europe to take back over 800 isis fighters and put them on trial. the president added that the u.s. does not want to watch these isis fighters permeate europe. obviously, this is

controversial. not everyone here in the uk wants to see someone like her welcomed home. marley, phillip. >> controversial indeed, thank you. a powerful winter storm is pounding the sierra mountains in california. officials are working to keep the major roads clear, but the snow has created difficult travel conditions for a lot of people. witnesses report seeing cars, trucks, and suvs sliding off the roads. california highway patrol is warning drivers to stay home. and they are also requiring all vehicles going through the mountains to use chains. all right. more winter weather on the way in some areas. bill, good morning. good morning. the storm is moving through the vegas. it happened twice this month. pretty incredible. a pretty rahif areas of new mexico, and the bottom half of the san juan mountains near durango and telluride.

this is the additional snowfall forecast we are expecting. notice four to six inches from flagstaff, near taos will g nailed today. that's the highest snowfall totals up to a foot. and southern mountains of the colorado rockies are going to do okay. as far as the forecast goes, it is chilly. we are chilling out in san diego, los angeles, san francisco. temperatures in the 50s and 60s. phoenix, 55. chilly by yd get you in. it's been pretty epic in many areas of the west. yeah, j gake a look at some of the pictures of the ski resorts like mammoth. >> bill, thank you.

another regional budget airline collaps collapses. apply bmi filed for bankruptcy. in pennsylvania, say dramatic effort to rescue two clydesdale horses, each weighing 1500 pounds. they broke out of their enclosure and fell through an icy pond into 10 feet of frigid water. emergency workers tied ropes and pulled them to shore after nearly an hour stkpwhraofp. a false alarm at a performance of "hamilton" after a woman's medical emergency led to fears of shots fired. the show had to be canceled after that happened. we'll be right back. ♪ all the ways, all the ways ♪ ♪ tell me all the ways ♪ and he said ♪ ♪ girl, you take care of me ♪ ♪ you are my thera♪y ♪ the better half of me ♪ say it again ♪ ♪ if you love me, love me, love me ♪ like you say ♪ ♪ darling tell me all the ways ♪ tell me all the ways ♪

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were thanked for their service. police say gary martin, the man who opened fire on his co-workers, had his gun permit revoked in 2014. but it is unclear what was done to make sure he handed over his firearm. several police officers were injured by gunfire before martin was shot and killed. as of sunday one officer was still recovering in the hospital. now to a mercy mission that means so much to so many. it's about the chance to get dental care for free. at a time when many people in this country can't afford it. this month one clinic in >> i'm the first one in line >> reporter: for thousands of oklahomans, it's like hitting the jackpot. >> it's awesome. >> it was an amazing experience. >> i'm glad i can smile again. >> reporter: some waitin dental clinic. >> it's feared that half of the people in oklahoma have dental insurance. they all see -- manypls a barri >> reporter: in ten years, mission of mercy has treated

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>> and i understand what it feels like to not have the care that you need. >> reporter: determined to prevent that from happening to another child. tammy leitner, nbc news, oklahoma city. >> so impoourt.body. >> self-esteem. >> that too. up next, a tech giant waves bye to blu-ray.physical media. why the award for best drama this year might go to the oscars itself. you're watching "early today." ♪ at walgree but we also know t don't take their daily medications as prescribed. that's why we're introducing a new way... ...to refill, pre-pay and skip the line... ...or have your prescriptions delivered. so you never miss a day. walgreens. trusted since 1901. text joinrx to 21525 to stay on track.

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oscar! >> oscar! >> we love you! >> we love you! >> all 24 awards will air live at this year's oscars after all. that's the word from the academy, who released a statement backtracking from its earlier decision to give out four awards duri breaks. the plans didn't sit well with so ol cinematic arts. after feeling the heat from some a-list directors and celebs the academy reversed the plans saying in a statement, all academy awards will be presented without edits in our traditional format. glad everyone gets their due and recognition. >> you win an oscar, it should be on tv at the very least. trade talks between the u.s. and beijing are sparking optimism. and what could be a very ominous sign for blu-ray. cnbc's karen tso joining from us london with the details.

good morning, karen. >> reporter: good morning, phillip. can you believe we're talking about trade optimism? it's gone on for weeks after the december meltdown we saw. it continues as global stocks are bouncing on hopes there may be a resolution on trade. if you consider last week talks took place all week in beijing at a junior and senior level, now rolled on to washington where talks will continue. so far both parties say that there has been consensus in principle on the main topics. now we saw wall street close out on a solid note last week. the dow pushing forward with its best weekly performance since november. asia has picked up on that. you satisfy bounce across china you see the bounce across china and japan today. some of the data out of china's been quite firm on loans. new loans have hit their highest level in january as banks effectively opened the floodgates to liquidity. elsewhere there may be early signals that is there is a physical demand showdown for disks. samsung has said it will no longer make blu-ray for the u.s. market. speculation as if this is just

an early sign. it will continue to make the players for other markets. perhaps it's like when vhs fell victim to dvds and subscription services. back to you in the studio. >> i know things are moving so fast, those new macbooks don't even have a place to put a disk anymore. that's the way it is. all right, karen, thank you. just ahead, bill is tracking the next major flood threat. the daytona 500 comes to a crashing halt with less than 10 laps to go. who escapes the destruction to come out on top? could switching to geico really save you fifteen percent or more on car insurance? did the little piggy cry wee wee wee all the way home? weeeeeeeee! weeeeeeee! weeeeeeee! weeeeeeee! max. maxwell! yeah? you're home. oh, cool. thanks mrs. a. geico. fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more.

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>> here's your week ahead forecast. snow in the northeast. boston picked up four inches of snow. four corners region getting a good amount of snow. as we go throughout the week, tuesday to wednesday, big storm in the middle of the country. notice we get a new storm coming into the west through weapons. that dips down through the four corner region towards arizona and new mexico on friday. back here with more on "early today." george has entresto, a heart failure pill that helped keep people alive and out of the hospital. don't take entresto if pregnant; it can cause harm or death to an unborn baby. don't take entresto with an ace inhibitor or aliskiren, or if you've had angioedema with an ace or arb. the most serious side effects are angioedema, low blood pressure, kidney problems, or high blood potassium. ask your doctor about entresto. ♪ the beat goes on ♪ the beat goes on that was great! nivea essentially enriched body lotion, with two times the almond oil.

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with just 10 laps left to go. the great american race in the final 20 laps. the late j.d. gibbs, who co-founded the race time along with father joe. he passed away after ballsing a rare neurological disease. we're learning more about this claim that president trump made on friday. >> prime minister abe of japan gave me the most beautiful copy of a letter that he sent to the people who give out a thing called the nobel prize. he said, i have nominated you, or respectfully on behalf of japan -- >> one of japan's largest national newspapers citing multiple government sources is reporting that japan did nominate president trump for the nobel peace prize after the white house informally asked.

the request allegedly came after president trump met with north korean leader kim jong-un last year. in south america, a show of support sunday by a u.s. congressional delegation for the interim president of venezuela, juan guaido. he's trying to bring down the maduro regime. just across the border in colombia, senator marco rubio called on president nicolas maduro to allow u.s. food and other aid into venezuela. he said preventing this was a quote crime against humanity. baby on board usually refers to a baby in a car. tk on a jet blue flight from san j. cell phones were recording as a woman gave birth to a boy assisted by members of the crew and medical professionals on board. both the baby and the mother are just fine. >> wow. wonder if they were able to resume beverage service thereafter. >> right? venice kicked off its carnival season with a magical

water parade. this happened over the weekend. this year's moon theme pays homage to dreamers and travelers featuring floating ships and fairy-like dancers. thousands from all over the world gathered on the banks of the canal to watch the procession. look at that, so cool. it's anu and runs until march 5th leading right up until lent. >> i like the women dancing around in the bubble. >> yeah, looks like something you'd see at disneyland or something. >> yeah, really cool. thanks for watching "early today." i'm marlie hall. >> i'm philip mena. don't go anywhere, the news continues here on nbc and our nbc station. enjoy your presidents' day.

a dramatic twist in the jussie smollett case. why investigators are now looking into whether the actor staged the alleged assault himself. declaring war on the president's emergency

declaration. the latest from the fierce fight over the border wall in both congress and the courts. a reality check for students. the new program teaching high schoolers how to spot fake news. terror on the track at daytona. a fiery crash wipes out half of the drivers in the final minutes of the race. who emerged from the wreckage a winner. can music strike apaents? the unique therapy offering hope to those fighting the disease. "early today" starts right now. good monday mena. >>