millions digging out and bracing for more. the monster winter storm that dumped several feet of snow

across the great lakes region is not done. president-elect's trump to serve as defense secretary back on defense after shocking new allegations emerge. we're live in d.c. a surprise guilty plea in a dui crash that killed a bride on her wedding night in south carolina. the emotional message in the courtroom from the victim's family. new overnight, a deepening mystery over a missing woman from hawaii. the new footage showing her crossing into mexico by foot, raising new questions in the case. the world's richest man won't be getting richer r for w. why a judge slammed the brakes on elon musk's $56 billion compensation package from tesla. and, who needs defense? the browns and broncos put up a combined 73 points for a wild monday night football showdown. we have the highlights as we kick off this tuesday, december 3rd.

"early today" starts right now. good morning, glad you're with me. i'm frances rivera. millions across the great lakes region are bracing for round two this morning after an epic winter wallop over the holiday weekend. residents are still digging out from the lake-effect snow that dumped as much as four feet in parts of michigan, pennsylvania and new york. the storm has made for treacherous conditions on the road. michigan authorities say whiteout conditions led to a 17-vehicle pileup south of grand rapids, leaving at least one person critically injured. and, in erie, pennsylvania, a train plow ed into a semi truck that was stuck on the tracks due to the ice and snow. the driver made it out safely. let's turn to michelle grossman who is timing the next winter blast. >> the snow is still falling. today we're going to see snow falling over the next several days as well. we have a second system coming in as the clipper system is not

quite as robust. but still we'll see accumulating snow in the u.p. of michigan. 5 milln people impacted across the great lakes into the u.p. of michigan. new england will see some snow as well. this is what we are looking at. cold winds over warmer lake waters bringing snow, accumulating snow to lake erie, lake ontario. so by wednesday, the snow moving into the interior parts of the northeast, new england and enhanced snowfall with those bands crossing the great lakes. again, we could see up to a foot of snow in some spots. thursday we'll see that snow moving into portions of new england. it's going to be a tough travel day there. also really chilly in the east. >> it will be pretty, but hope it all stays safe for them. thanks, michelle. >> sure. happening today, matthew c. smith, former partner of ak abercrombie & fitch is to be

arraigned. they were arrested in october for allegedly luring men into drug-laced sex parties by promising them abercrombie modeling jobs. they have pleaded not guilty. new this morning, police say a woman from hawaii who was missing missing crossed into mexico three weeks ago. authorities now regard 30-year-old hannah kobayashi as a voluntarily missing person. but the case will be kept open until she is confirmed to be safe. her family reported her missing on november 15. and her father died by suicide after he travelled to search for her. she is being urged to contact her family. anger and grief in a courtroom as a woman pleaded guilty and was sentenced in a drunk driving case that killed a bride on her wedding night. priya sridhar has more. >> reporter: 27-year-old jamie

lee komorski, sentenced for killing samantha miller hours after she got married in april of 2023. she addressed the judge before the sentencing. >> i take full responsibility for my actions. hopefully one day you will be able to forgive me. >> reporter: prosecutors say she was bar hopping in folly beach. 30 minutes from downtown charleston, when she got behind the wheel and plowed into a golf cart carrying miller, her groom eric hutchinson and two other family members who were driving the newlyweds to their rental after their wedding reception. >> we've been sentenced to a lifetime of pain. >> reporter: prosecutors say komoroski's blood alcohol was three times over the legal limit and was driving 65 miles per hour in a 25 mile-per-hour zone.

>> reporter: miller's groom broke both his legs and multiple bones in his face and sustained serious brain injuries. miller's family speaking to komoroski. >> for the rest of my life, i'm going to hate you. and, when i arrive in hell and you come there, i'll open the door for you. >> reporter: the judge sentenced her to 10 to 25 years for each of the charges she faced. but she's letting them serve them concurrently. >> our thanks to priya for that report. a former kansas city police officer was found dead on the day he was set to start trial. authorities say he failed to appear at a federal courthouse in topeka, monday. he was found dead of apparent

gunshot wound. he was accused of targeting black women and girls for sex. the case has now been dismissed. his attorney did not immediately respond to request for comment. controversies keep mounting for pete hegseth. an article details a whistle-blower report. this was between 2013 and 2016 when he was president of the non-profit concerned veterans for america. for the latest, let's turn to brie jackson in d.c. good morning, brie, what else did the whistle-blower report say? >> reporter: it says that hegseth was frequently publicly drunk on the job, having to be carried out of events and restrained from going on stage at a strip club. it also says he fostered a hostile work environment where he and others made repeated

sexual advances toward female staffers. and another episode described in a separate letter of complaint from a previous job, he is alleged to have been drunk, chanting quote, "kill all muslims". it reports that hegseth eventually stepped down under pressure. nbc news has not independently verified the reporting or seen the documents. hegseth declined to comment to nbc news, but an advisor told "the new yorker" that the accusations are outlandish claims by a petty and jealous disgruntled former associate of mr. hegseth's, the whistle-blower report was contributed to by several employees at the non-profit. the trump transition team referred nbc news to a previous statement in support of hegseth. he was on capitol hill yesterday meeting with alabama senator, tommy tuberville who later told reporters that he was not concerned about the many allegations. >> no, i've looked at all the

personal stuff, and, again, i've known him for a long time. and i would, there's not going to be anything to this at the end of the day. >> reporter: and these recent allegations follow the revelation that hegseth was accused of rape back in 2017. hegseth says the encounter was consensual, and no charges were filed. he did, however, pay the woman an undisclosed amount as part of a settlement. frances? >> brie, thank you. the fallout continues from president biden's decision to pardon his son hunter. the unconditional pardon is for all past offenses and anything else he might have done effectively shielding him from any government investigation. the decision is drawing criticism from both republicans and democrats. here's kelly o'donnell. >> reporter: after wielding presidential power to protect his son hunter biden from a potential prison sentence with a full and unconditional pardon, president biden is facing sharp criticism from democrats and

republicans, even as some express sympathy for joe biden the father. >> if it was my son, i'd pardon him, too, but here's what i didn't like. don't lie to us. don't tell us you're not going to do it and then do it. >> reporter: arizona congressman democrat greg stanton. >> i'm pretty angry. because it's going to be incredibly important that political leaders of both parties stand up for the independence of the department of justice. >> reporter: president biden and white house officials repeatedly insisted there would be no pardon. >> i said i'd abide by the jury decision. i will do that. and i will not pardon him. >> we've been asked that question multiple times. our answer stands, which is no. >> reporter: on a three-day visit to africa, the president did not respond to reporters' questions. >> mr. president, will you answer a few questions! >> reporter: but at a white house christmas event, first lady jill biden expressed her support for the pardon. the pardon was first reported by nbc news sunday night. and shortly thereafter,

president biden explained his grant of clemency in a statement. the president asserted, i have watched my son being selectively and unfairly prosecuted. the pardon is sweeping, covering not only his son's felony convictions on firearms charges and tax evasion, where he faced potential prison time at sentencing this month. but the president provided more than a decade of blanket protection, preventing further prosecution for any offenses dating back to january 2014. months before the younger biden joined the board of a ukrainian energy company, while his father was vice president. blaming a heated environment, the president argued that t raw politics has infected this process. he invoked his son's recovery from addiction. there's been an effort to break hunter, who has been five and a half years sober and claimed his political adversaries could pose future risk to his family, writing, in trying to break

hunter, they've tried to break me, and there's no reason to believe it will stop here. enough is enough. >> our thanks to kelly for that report. now let's turn to the frigid temperatures settling across the country. michelle grossman is backtracking that. >> we're cold in the east, and we're going to be cold for quite a while. freeze warnings, frost advisories in the southeast for jacksonville, gainesville, albany, georgia. and look at these temperatures at the freezing mark in some spots. tallahassee. gainesville, right at the freezing mark. right above freezing in columbia, atlanta. we're going to be really cold once again in the east. temperatures well below normal. 10 to 15 degrees below normal. and out to the west is the flip side. temperatures 10 to 15 degrees above normal. keeping it chilly on wince.edne. what does that mean for

christmas inockefeller r of suns. the soutest, temperatures in the 70s and 80s. 81 in phoenix. that's your tuesday forecast. >> okay, we'll be ready for it, thanks, michelle. it was a shootout at 5,280 feet on monday night football. the broncos opened the third quarter with a 93-yard touchdown with a response of a score by jerry jeudy. denver's defense came up in the clutch. >> as he was headed out-of-bounds, here's a pick! intercepted! >> mcmillan intercepted jameis winston for the broncos' second pick six of the game.

denver keeps their playoff hopes alive. coming up, the comedy superstars closing out snl for 2024. and "early today" is back in a and "early today" is back in a minute ♪♪ when the day comes and you are down ♪♪ ♪♪ in a river of trouble and about to drown ♪♪. ♪♪ just hold on, i'm comin' ♪♪ ♪♪ hold on, i'm comin' ♪♪ [background chatter and laughter] jen loved her gain hibiscus hula flings. until brad moved in and brought along a few new exciting additions. and they discovered that when they mixed their scents. ♪♪ they were more than just soulmates. ♪♪ they were scentmates.

♪♪ ♪♪ mix match more happy with gain. president-elect trump is vowing to block a takeover of u.s. steel. but first, a judge is slamming the brakes on elon musk's bid to reinstate a $56 billion tesla pay package. cnbc's charlotte reed is here with the details. good morning. >> good morning, frances. indeed, elon musk lost the bid to have his $56,000,002,018 pay package reinstated. a delaware judge upheld a prior ruling that the compensation was improperly granted. now, at the time, tesla was being sued by tesla shareholders in order to avoid musk's pay package. in january, a judge ruled that the process was,s, qte, deeply

flawed with musk dictating the terms of his compensation to a board that didn't fairly negotiate. now the package was the largest compensation plan in u.s. history for a public company executive. tesla, which of course is owned by musk said on x it plans to appeal the ruling. now, to a different story, president-elect donald trump pledged to block nippon steel from buying u.s. steel, and he reiterated this on his social platform truth social. a pledge he has made already during his campaign for the presidential election. nippon steel and u.s. steel reached an agreement in december but have since faced opposition from unions as well as president biden. nippon steel previously said the acquisition would revitalize the american rust belt. >> all right, charlotte reed for us, thank you. still to come. a health update from sir elton john. and snl just dropped their host lineup to close out the year, and these choices slap. we take a look at the alums

we take a look at the alums returning to 8h. so you wake up ready to go. uhh, hank! try mucinex nightshift and feel the difference. are you tired of your hair breaking aft waiting years for it to grow? new pantene with more pro-vitamins, plus biotin & collagen. repairs as well as the leading luxury bonding brand. stronger, healthier hair, without the $60 price tag. if you know, you know it's pantene. ♪♪ [laughters] mom. ♪♪ mmmmmmm. repeat the sounding joy. [laughters] kinder joy. [laughters] open a world of surprise. [♪♪] looking for better hydration at half the price? [laughters] try curél ultra healing lotion. the dermatologist-tested formula contains an advanced ceramide complex, and provides 2-times more hydration at half the price. try curél. (♪♪) “the darkness of bipolar depression made me

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thank you, spirit! thank you for showing me the way! ah, ah, oh, oh, i'm as light as a feather, i'm as giddy as a drunken man. and i will change. i swear to it, i will change! i just hope it's not too late! >> as their christmas present for "saturday night live" fans, snl is closing out 2024 with two iconic alums. martin short, you just saw him right thayer. he'll return to studio 8h for the last show of the year along with hosier. and the week before, chris rock returns home for his fourth stint as host with gracie abrams. the run kicks off with paul mescal making his snl debut along with shaboozey. they've been great all season with the cameos of other people and other stars. i can imagine with these big names, some really great celebs will be along for the ride i'm

sure. >> it's going to be awesome. to not as happy news. sir elton john says he lost his eyesight over the weekend. he appeared at a musical version of "the devil wears prada", which he wrote the musical for. due to his failing eyesight, he wasn't able to watch the performance but enjoyed listening to it. he developed an eye infection earlier this year. >> he's suffered through so many health issues. some more serious than this one, and he's still standing all through it. hopefully that's the case with this as well. up next, a cucumber recall over a salmonella scare. and ac/dc is going on tour.

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biggest online shopping days of all time. from our nbc news station, lynda baquero shows us how they prepared for the big day. >> reporter: it's a busy day at this amazon fulfillment nter in new jersey with this cyber monday to be the biggest shopping day online this year. and expected $13.2 billion in spending. that's up more than 6% from last year. >> i did find some really good deals. williams sonoma has some good deals, vineyard vines. >> i was looking for a ring. great deals on amazon. >> reporter: how much of your shopping did you do on cyber monday? >> i do almost all my shopping online. so i haven't really done a lot today. but, you know, still got the rest of the day to go, you know?

>> >> cyber monday tends to be the biggest day of the year. >> reporter: the deepest discounts can be found on electronics and apparel. we found that air pods pro and this coffeemaker are the cheapest prices since at least july. >> we have up to 50% off on beats by dre. samsung tablets. >> reporter: holiday shopping kicked off on a high note friday. adobe analytics saying black friday sales rose over 5% from 2023. and while we saw folks headed to malls to shopping stores, americans are increasingly going online on black friday, leading to a record $10.8 billion in online sales. >> i may go home now and finish shopping. >> and our thanks to lynda

baquero for that report. mcdonald's popular mcrib is back. starting today you can get the mcrib at select u.s. locations for a limited time only. they were offering half-gallon jugs of mcrib sauce. they're already sold out. mcdonald's is looking to boost sales after an e. coli outbreak linked to quarter onions. kaylee hartung will take us behind the scenes at the team that creates the festive chchristmas corations. you don't want to miss it. you'll understand why so many hundreds of thousands of people come to see it this time each

ews on the way. the fallout continues after president biden issued a sweeping pardon of his