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the midwest gets its first winter wallop of the season, while the northeast and west coast get drenched by rain. michelle grossman is tracking all the action. embattled a.g. pick matt gaetz has dropped out of the nomination. trump's new pick to lead the justice department. the international criminal court has issued arrest warrants for benjamin netanyahu and his former defense minister. as nicotine patches take off, tucker carlson is launching his own competitor. and honoring the g.o.a.t. the uconn basketball legend who just made history on the hardwood. it's november 22nd. "early today" starts right now. hi, glad you're up early with me. i'm frances rivera. storms are striking coast-to-coast, bringing relief

on the east coast and worry on the west. the northeast finally seeing much-needed rain as a historic drought fueled hundreds of fires. and snow is on the way for some parts of new york, new jersey and pennsylvania later today. meanwhile, out west, washington residents are recovering from a deadly bomb cyclone that left a path of destruction. nearly 200,000 are still without power. officials now bracing for the possibility of catastrophic flooding and life-threatening mudslides. for the latest on all of this, let's bring in michelle grossman. a lot to watch as we end the week. >> yeah, we sure do, hi, there, frances. we are looking at life-threatening flooding. so we're unsettled in the northwest not only today, tomorrow into saturday, into sunday as well. heavy rain spreading into central california. where you see the darker colors, that's where we're expecting the heaviest rain. that includes san francisco. again, elevated flood risks,

especially in the sierra foothills. that is today. then as we go throughout tomorrow, still very unsettled. we're looking at rain and snow continuing. the snow is in the blue. the heavier snow is in the brighter blue areas. it's going to be a tough day tomorrow to travel along the pacific northwest into portions of central california. then by sunday, mountain snow continuing, the flood risk lower. that's good news, but we're still looking at tricky travel. where you see pink is the winter storm warning. we're looking at truckee. we're expecting heavy mountain snow and heavy rain once again, especially along the coast. frances, where you see the dark colors, that's where we're looking at the highest amounts of rain. we'll talk more about the rain threats in the northwest, also the northeast in just a few minutes. >> might be a tough weekend for many. thank you so much. president-elect donald trump has named a new candidate for attorney general. mr. trump wants pam bondi to

lead his justice department. bondi formerly served as florida's attorney general and was part of trump's defense team during his first impeachment. this came hours after matt gaetz announced he was pulling his name out of consideration for the role. alice barr has more. >> reporter: in a surprise move, president-elect trump's controversial pick for attorney general, matt gaetz withdrawing his name. the former congressman writing that his confirmation was, quote, unfairly becoming a distraction to the critical work of the trump-vance transition. gaetz faced stiff stiff opposit. >> i know enough people that were hell no in the conference to know that the path would have been very, very difficult. >> reporter: that as pete hegseth, the president-elect's choice for defense secretary is making a similar appeal for

senate support under his own cloud of scrutiny. nbc news obtained a 2017 police report detailing a woman's allegation that hegseth sexually assaulted her in a california hotel room. he maintains his innocence, while confirming hegseth paid the woman as part of a confidential civil settlement. the former fox news host and combat veteran was never criminally charged. >> the matter was fully investigated, and i was completely cleared. >> reporter: the trump pick for director of national intelligence, tulsi gabbard, also facing push back from nikki haley, who was u.n. ambassador in the first trump administration. >> this is not a place for a russian, iranian, syrian, chinese sympathizer. are we comfortable with someone like that? >> reporter: even before the

process begins for the next trump term. alice barr, nbc news. now to the war in the middle east. on thursday, the international crimes court issued arrest warrants for israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu, former defense minister gallant and deif. matt, good morning. what's the latest? >> reporter: frances, good morning. the icc has accused netanyahu and gallant of a variety of human rights violations in gaza, particularly, the scale of civilian casualties as well as the intentional deprivation of food and water to the population of gaza. health officials in gaza have estimated that more than 44,000 palestinians have been killed since the start of the idf operation more than one year ago. other allegations made by the court include, quote, the war crime of starvation as a method of warfare. israel has slammed the icc for

issuing these warrants. netanyahu's office has gone so far as to claim the decision is anti-semitic and accused the court of acting as a biassed and discriminatory body. they also issued warrants for mohammad deif. the court was moving to issue warrants against yahya sinwar and ismail haniyeh before both were killed earlier this year. the u.s. has joined israel in criticizing the court's decision, leading up to the decision to issue the warrants. president biden had characterized the effort as outrageous and a false equivalent between israel and hamas. netanyahu and gallant face arrest if they step foot on any territory of the oversight of the court. the u.s. is not a member of the icc. it does put washington in a

difficult position politically. russian president vladimir putin, for example, is also subject to an arrest warrant by the icc for alleged war crimes in ukraine. the u.s. celebrated that decision. frances? >> challenging situation made even more tough. thank you. on to a major twist that once captivated the country. actor jussie smollett claiming he was the victim of a hate crime and then convicted of making it all up. laura jarrett has more on yesterday's stunning ruling overturning that conviction. >> reporter: the conviction of actor jussie smollett tossed out nearly five years after a jury found him guilty of falsely reporting he'd been the victim after hate crime. illinois's highest court finding the state wrongly prosecuting the former star of the series "empire" after prosecutors agreed to drop charges. >> if this was the regular joe down the street, this case never would have gone to trial. >> reporter: the case dominating headlines with smollett claiming

two men brutally attacked him in downtown chicago, yelling racist and homophobic slurs, even tying noose around his neck. two brothers were arrested who said that smollett paid them to carry out the attack. but smollett maintains he was not lying. >> i would not be my mother's son if i was capable of one drop of what i was accused of. >> reporter: the state's attorney office dropped the charges. kim fox who leads the office but recused herself was criticized at the time but says what happened next, the appointment of a special prosecutor and fresh indictment leading to smollett's conviction and 30 months probation was clearly long. >> the snowball in this case had people taking positions that

were really upending criminal justice law as we know it. >> reporter: the court not weighing the evidence against him but unanimous it would be fundamentally unfair for the state to renig on its deal. the charges now dismissed. once and for all. laura jarrett, nbc news. now let's check back in with michelle grossman for your weekend forecast. >> we are looking really unsettled in the pacific northwest, also the northeast through tomorrow. and the pacific northwest through the weekend. we are looking at that slow-moving system in the northeast, still kind of lingering across the area. we're going to see snow piling up in the catskills. another round of rain and snow, so still a little unsettled if you have saturday plans. windy conditions. it's going to be chilly. kind of reality shock here. and we're looking at some showers continuing in some

spots. winter alerts for 14 million people in the northeast, down through parts of the mid atlantic, down through elkins, and we are looking at the chance for visibilities being reduced. we're going to see breezy conditions as well esally whe.pecire , but on the cooler side. in the southeast, temperatures in the 50s and 60s. 55 in charleston, 51 in raleigh. all right, that's your friday forecast. >> okay, thanks so much michelle. >> sure. time to check your fridge. a new ground beef recall over e. coli concerns. and how popular nicotine patches are dipping into the culture wars. e dipping into the culture wars.

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salvo in the culture wars. a conservative crusader is launching his own brand of nicotine pouches to take on the popular zyn brand. here's vicky nguyen. >> we got a brand-new zyn watermelon. >> good morning, boys. >> reporter: zyn, the tobacco-free nicotine pouch soaring in popularity, becoming a big hit especially mong men. tucker carlson was a fan. >> zyn is a powerful work enhancer, and also a male enhancer, if you know what i mean. >> reporter: a crude joke and questionable with no scientific basis. zyn owner saying the remarks were unsubstantiated and may inadvertently attract attention, they will ship 500 million cans this year, nothing to snuff at. >> it's been marketed as the brand of defiance. >> reporter: now carlson turning on the brand, launching his own

competitor, alp. why? he says some employees donated to kamala harris' campaign. >> i don't think men should use that brand. >> reporter: super charging what's called rage-driven capitalism. a growing number of companies getting caught up in america's culture wars. now new companies emerging from those battles. do you think it's a marketing ploy? >> it's amazing how much of an identity tucker carlson was building around this. >> reporter: jeffrey sonnenfield is a cnbc contributor. >> he gets to be the embodiment of defiance of the man, the establishment, the culture, and now he gets his own brand. >> reporter: he's not alone. >> you want to know what's wrong with being woke? i've give at any to you. >> reporter: trump adviser, vivek ramaswamy starting an asset management company, rejecting the focus on

environmental and social issues. then there's old glory bank and public square, an online market place that promotes businesses that quote, respect traditional american values. alp telling nbc news it doesn't consider itself a brand just for conservatives, saying it's for, quote, normal people. zyn says it's bipartizyn. >> it definitely put a bigger spotlight on t. >> reporter: will first tried out zyn 12 years ago and got hooked. >> my blood pressure was high, it was tough going to sleep. >> reporter: while nicotine patches aren't made with tobacco, doctors say there are still health risks such as g.i. issues, mouth ulsters and elevated heart rates. nicotine products are highly addictive. and they're reviewing marketing for nicotine pouches. they say the products are for

adults. the legal age to purchase them is 21. he says he stopped having stomach issues. he hopes carlson's new brand will spur more oversight. >> i can finally live free. >> reporter: freedom from addiction he hopes other people will never face. vicky nguyen, nbc news. still to come. follow the yellow brick road to theaters. wicked hits the big screen ahead of the holidays. we have a preview. the zendaya look-alike contest taking over oakland. lik contest taking over oakland. has wavy edges that tear so much better. i'm starting to get tearied away. designed with smooth tear edges, charmin ultra soft smooth tear has wavy perforations that tear so much better for a smooth more enjoyable go. plus it has more cushiony softness than ordinary squares. try charmin ultra soft smooth tear. voted #1 product of the year. (♪♪)

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you're the one the wizard has been waiting for. >> going down? >> you! >> i know. it's my granny. i'd give it away, but i don't hate anyone that much. >> hey. >> you should join us tonight. and don't tell me you don't have anything to wear, because you could wear this. >> ho, wicked finally hits

theaters today. the highly-anticipated film is set up for a battle for the top spot. i am team wicked. i know you and i both have tickets with our daughters. >> tonight. >> tonight. 7:00. all in, and a reminder, we will sing quietly. not to disrupt, right? >> that's such a good point. everything's live, and you want to hear it all. >> you don't want to drown it out. the angelic voice and the powerhouse of cynthia erivo. you want to hear them. >> that's really good advice. dozens gathered in the bay area for a contest to see who looks the most like actress zendaya. the doppelgangers strutted their stuff with a dance battle. the winner took home a cash

prize and hair products. timothee chalamet crafted his own look alike contest. >> i'm telling you, she is amazing. she does everything, right? she sings. she dances. she's a model. she acts. everything. right? true artist. >> when we come back, how some major universities are working to make college more affordable. and the man who brought the hotly-debated duct taped banana outwork is speaking out. ed bana outwork is speaking out. might keep us stuck on the couch. no way. ♪♪ if you have postmenopausal osteoporosis, and are at high risk for fracture, you can do more than just slow bone loss. you can build new bone in 12 months with evenity®. evenity® is proven to significantly reduce spine fracture risk. she said the evenity® she's taking builds new bone. builds new bone! evenity® can increase risk of heart attack, stroke, or death from a heart problem. tell your doctor if you have had a heart attack or stroke. do not take evenity® if you have low blood calcium or are allergic to it, as serious events

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butchering scams. they trick victims to invest in fake crypto currency ventures. next fall, the university of texas will expand its free tuition program to undergraduate opportunities to those whose families earn $100,000 or less. justin sun, the man who just spent more than $6 million on the artwork of a banana duct taped to the wall said he will eat the food in the coming days. it's part of the unique artistic experience. the unique artistic experience. grab bounty. (♪♪) bounty is made to be stronger... ...and more absorbent. so, while ordinary brands can't hold up, one sheet of bounty keeps working, even when wet. (♪♪) now that's the sound of value. bounty. the quicker picker upper.

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touchdown browns! >> it would take a snowball's chance in cleveland. cleveland did everything they could to lose it, blowing a 12-point lead. but nick chubb delivered the win. russell wilson was batted down. the browns come up big in a rivalry game, 24-19. uconn's legendary coach has cemented his place in history with a win for the ages, and he's not done yet. here's sam brock. >> victory number 1,217. >> reporter: by just about any benchmark, there are many to choose from, geno auriemma is a singular figure in college basketball. >> i remember each and every one of my players i've ever coached. >> reporter: the legendary force

reaching 1,217 wins, more than any head coach in the history of the sport, men's or women's, any division. his resume reads like a storybook. 11 national titles. 23 final four berths, six undefeated seasons. with numbers like that. >> and finally, from one goat to another. >> reporter: who needs a husky, when you can get a goat. a celebration for the greatest of all time. featuring students. even a state sign. >> home of the winningest coach! >> reporter: auriemma savoring the moment for his players. >> we always come back because of you, coach. we come back because of you. we love you. >> reporter: more than 150 of them over the years, from diana taurasi and rebecca lobo to brianna stewart and now page beckers. it's the basketball family that makes it all worth it. >> they all have a piece of it. it makes me feel really, really,

really good. >> reporter: sam brock, nbc news. >> that family extends the entire university and their fans. wow, four decades, and you say that could you actually do it for free? could you say that? well deserved. well deserved, and congrats to him. the boston celtics are taking another victory lap with a visit to the white house. the champions were welcomed by president biden for a celebration ceremony. the team defeated the dallas mavericks in june, making it a record 18th nba title for the team. president biden was even given a custom jersey. thanks so much for ending the workweek with "early today." i'm frances rivera. have a great friday and an even better weekend. hope you join us up early again next week. enjoy.giving week. ng week.en jo

and flooding wreaking havoc. we've got your updated timeline for thetm