could family detention back on the table for the administration? live with the latest from the interview with donald trump's incoming border czar. aviation experts are pointing to a russian missile as a possible cause of a plane

crash in azerbaijan that killed dozens. how the kremlin is responding. a tesla self-driving feature that lets you summon your car at the push of a button proving not a smooth ride. a local investigation -- what a local investigation found and what self is saying -- tesla is saying. the bears took on the seahawks during a rainy thursday night game. who edged out in the low-scaring game? we've got the highlights. and netflix and the nfl set a new streaming record for football games this holiday even as the queen bey herself stole the show. on this friday, and 27th, "early today" -- december 27th, "early today" starts right now. good morning. it is good to be with you. i'm jessica layton. we begin this friday with new insight into the immigration policies of the incoming trump administration. nbc news interviewed the man chosen to serve as the border czar, thomas homan, asked about

what the plans for mass deportations could mean for migrant families. nbc's chris pollone is joining me from washington, d.c. good morning. it's sounding like the use of those family detention centers is back on the table. >> reporter: yeah, that's absolutely right. you might recall that this practice was ended shortly after president joe biden took office. but the incoming border czar, tom homa, says this is something the trump administration is considering. he says if family detention centers are used they would try to send immigration judges to the location and suggested these would not be jail settings with razor wire. there would be access to childcare, doctors, and education. immigration advocates argue there's no humane way to detain a child in prison. homan served as director of i.c.e. in the previous administration. in this interview with sam brock, he said he does not foresee this happening on a large-scale effort.

he says the parents who lose their cases would have a decision to make. >> we have no plans to separate children from parents. the parents will have to make a decision. that's parenting 101. but you, if you -- i'm going to say it again. if you choose to have a child in the united states while you know you're here illegally and have a court order to deport, that's on. >> reporter: of course there will be likely legal battles surrounding this. a lawyer for the american civil liberties union said that that organization plans to challenge any aspects of the deportation plans they see as unconstitutional. jessica, back to you. >> a lot of anxiety surrounding that. thank you. let's turn to the growing questions over that christmas day plane crash. russian authorities initially said the deadly crash in kazakhstan was caused by a bird strike, but industry experts say the plane may have been shot down. here's nbc's steve patterson.

>> reporter: speculation and skepticism swirling over the skies of kazakhstan. [ bleep ] as a mounting chorus of aviation experts and government officials supported by new video of the wreckage questioning what really happened. moments after the crash, a shell-shocked survivor miraculously stumbling out of the plane's wreckage, while stunning video from inside the plane as it was still in the air shows people calm, even after oxygen masks dropped. the flight took off om baku, azerbaijan, wednesday heading to grozy me to in southern russia. russian officials saying the aircraft was diverted due to fog and blaming the crash on an apparent bird strike. but enhanced video shows what experts say appears to be shrapnel damage. aviation expert matthew borie reviewed the footage. >> if there was a bird strike the presence of shrapnel inside the aircraft wouldn't be a factor, and the damage to the exterior of the aircraft would appear much different. the flight was likely shot down

by a russian air defense system of unspecified type and variant. >> reporter: the flight was in a region with significant military activity, and just 70 miles away on the same day, a ukrainian drone was shot down, sparking this fire at a mall. the crash comes after a dutch court recently concluded that a malaysian airlines flight was brought down in 2014 over ukraine by a missile fired by pro-russian fighters. the u.s. official telling nbc news there are early indications the crash may have been hilt by a russian -- hit by a russian anti-aircraft system adding more evidence of russian recklessness in the war with ukraine. the kremlin responding that it would be incorrect to make any hypothesis before the investigation comes to conclusions. meanwhile, a day of mourning in azerbaijan. red roses laid for the fallen. >> our thanks to steve for that report. now to florida where a pregnant woman is recovering after police say she was stabbed 14 times by a pizza delivery driver over a tip.

an arrest affidavit shows the 22-year-old delivered pizza at a motel in kissimmee to the victim and her family. investigators say the victim paid with a large bill and was denied change, so she looked for smaller bills and gave el vello a $2 tip. she returned a half hour later wearing a mask with a man that had a gun and attacked that woman. police say the victim only found out at the hospital that she is a few weeks pregnant. el vello is chasing charges of attempted murder with a weapon, home invasion, kidnapping, and aggravated assault. new this morning, a judge has ruled jay-z's accuser can remain anonymous for now. court documents showed the judge said that while the alabama woman can keep her identity hidden in the early stages of the case, she may have to reveal herself at a later time. the judge citing the woman's alleged mental health struggles and the nature of her allegations as some of the

reasons for the decision. earlier this month an attorney for jay-z, whose real name is sean carter, asked a judge to deny the request to remain anonymous and asked to have the case dismissed altogether. that was also denied. the woman has accused both carter and rap mogul sean "diddy" combs of raping her back in 2000 when she was just 13 years old. both men have denied the claims. carter called the allegations heinous and idiotic while lawyers for combs called suits against him shameless publicity stunts designed to extract payments from celebrities. a tragic discovery leads to a safety warning in new hampshire. authorities were asked to conduct a welfare check at a wakefield home on christmas day. officials say there were four adults found dead from suspected carbon monoxide poisoning. the state fire marshal is stressing the importance of having work willing detection -- working detectors and alarms in all homes. now on to the extreme

weather in texas. about rain, flooding, and are the of tornadoes as a series of winter storms make their way across the west. here's nbc's dana griffin. that is insane. >> reporter: multiple reported tornadoes in texas. >> there it goes. >> reporter: this one touching down 70 miles southwest of houston. a driver captures this stunning funnel on camera. wharton county officials say there's no major damage or injuries reported yet. northwest of dayton, texas, this reported twister spinning through fields. >> next to that highway. >> reporter: heavy rain and widespread flooding creating a post-christmas travel challenge snarling traffic, hundreds of flights delayed and canceled. millions are under severe storm risks in the southern plains. in the pacific northwest communities bracing for wind, rain, and snowy conditions as another atmospheric river takes aim at the region. some parts of the sierra saw eight inches of snow. crews clearing roads as holiday

travelers return home. >> came in hard and fast actually. we had a lot of holiday traffic. >> reporter: and in northern california where part of the santa cruz wharf plunged into the ocean, the restroom is sitting on the beach where onlookers turned it into a christmas day spectacle, taking selfies ahead of another high-surf warning as we head into the weekend. dana griffin, nbc news. and the severe weather risk continues as those storms are now moving toward the east this morning. meteorologist denise isaac is here tracking it all. hi, denise. >> good morning. yes, the line of storms continues to move toward the east. the risk later on this afternoon will be from new orleans up to tuscaloosa for the threat of some strong winds, hail, and we can't rule out a tornado. this morning dense fog advisory in place from fargo, north dakota, all the way down into wichita falls. and we're expecting around 24 million people to be affected

with the visibility a quarter of a mile while des moines down to half a mile visibility. make sure to drive carefully. we have travel impacts this morning around the upper midwest and the middle of the country with the fog and widespread showers expected this afternoon from chicago toward the panhandle of florida. the northeast will start to see clouds on the increase while travel impacts will continue to impact the pacific northwest wi morthe toward new england. while florida will be tracking some showers later on this afternoon with temperatures nearing 80 degrees in tampa. that was our look at your big weather picture. jessica, back to you. >> all right. thanks so much. coming up on "early today" in just 60 seconds, a tesla feature that leads you summon

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all you need is all free clear. tesla's self-driving app is raising questions this morning after a ride in maryland was anything but smooth. susan hogan from our d.c. station has more on that driverless crash. >> reporter: a quickrip to a maryland mall was anything but smooth this summer for tamera meyer. >> this is where the car ran into my bumper. >> reporter: she was parked, sitting in her car, when all of a sudden bam -- >> i couldn't believe what i was seeing. >> reporter: more like what she wasn't seeing. >> i saw no one in the car, no driver, no passenger. it was an empty car driving itself into my car. >> reporter: it kept going. >> it kept going after impact. >> reporter: the car that hit tamera was a tesla. the vehicle scraping her car as it pulled out. what was the car owner's reaction when this happened? >> i think he was as shocked as

i was. >> reporter: we talked to the owner of the model y tesla. he didn't want to go on camera but told us he was trying a new feature in an app he's never used before. it's called summon, and with the press of a button, the car is supposed to park itself and come to you. tesla put out an updated version called smart summon which allows the car to steer itself and find the driver within 200 feet using the phone's gps. on its website, tesla points out the apps are in beta feature which means still in development. >> they're not ready for primetime. >> reporter: michael brooks with the center for auto safety says he believes releasing any beta feature to the public is just dangerous. >> they're releasing them too early before they've been validated as safe or to work properly. >> reporter: we wanted to see how the feature works. we traveled to the insurance institute for highway safety, the organization known for crash testing vehicles and safety ratings, where david ahler, the

vp of safety testing, demonstrated for us. >> i'm going to open my app, select the summon feature. it -- come to me. as long as i'm holdi this button down, the vehicle will move. if i want the vehicle to stop, i need to release the button. >> reporter: and first time no problem. the car pulled right up to us. >> it says the summon is complete. >> reporter: a different story on the second try. >> we've got it between these rows of vehicles, and if it -- >> reporter: it couldn't seem to figure out which way to go. >> that i decided to have it stop. >> reporter: on the third attempt it almost turned into another vehicle. >> i'm going to stop that. >> reporter: on our final try, it almost jumped the curb. this begs the question why is this in a beta? >> the whole concept of beta is that it's still learning. tesla's still learning and using snarious to learn from that. >> reporter: tesla did not respond to our request for comment but on line said owners

must use only on parking lots and address located on private property, and that the operator must maintain a clear line of sight, continually monitor the vehicle to avoid close calls like the one tamera had. >> i'm so thankful i wasn't standing near my car. >> reporter: accidents like the one with tamera's car are getting the attention of the auto industry, raising questions who's to blame when no one is behind the wheel. >> our thanks to susan for that report. still to come, what's better than one thursday night football game with zero touchdowns? you'll see. seattle keeps their season alive while the bes ardo more bears things. we'll have the full recap after this. my active psoriatic arthritis joint symptoms held me back. don't let symptoms define you... emerge as you, with clearer skin. with tremfya®, most people saw 100% clear skin... ...that stayed clear, even at 5 years. tremfya® is proven to significantly reduce

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the last thursday night game of the season wasn't a blowout, but it sure wasn't a thriller. neither the seahawks nor the bears found the end zone on this rainy night inhicago. seattle's two field goes were enough to fend off the bears and hopes of a late game comeback. chicago suffers their tenth straight loss, 6-3. now from a game that couldn't get over fast enough to one that refused to end. thursday's game above sports bowl between toledo and pittsburgh couldn't be decided in regulation. all tied up at 30, the game moved into overtime and stayed there. it took six ot periods, the most in bowl game history, to declare a winner. in the end, the rockets got beer of the panthers, scoring their last two-point conversion and keeping pitt out of the end zone to get the win 48-46. to a quarterback who could get two championship rings in one season. on thursday, teddy bridgewater announced he's coming out of retirement and signing with the

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"early today" is back with what's making headlines this morning. another stowaway incident on a delta airlines flight. this time a person without a ticket snuck onto a plane going from seattle to hawaii. that person was caught before takeoff and arrested, but not before causing a two-hour delay. tsa and delta are investigating. systane brand eye drops are

over recall after serious i'm infections. it covers 25 count on-the-go single vials with the lot number 10101 and an expiration date of september, 2025. they were sold at publix stores. no reports of infections, but the fda is advising anyone who bought the drops to stop using them immediately. mary ann williamson has launched a campaign to lead the democratic national committee. the author and the former presidential candidate wants to replace the outgoing dnc chair, jamie harrison. williamson says she has been talking to democratic voters, too many of them don't feel supported by the party. williamson, by the way, is the first woman to jump into that race. it was a very merry christmas for britney spears. the pop queen posting on instagram that she saw her youngest son jaden for the holiday for the first time in two years. she called it the best christmas of my life. and in just a few days, you can defy gravity right for the

comfort of your couch. "wicked" is coming to amazon prime and apple tv starting december 31st for ent or purchase. your new year's eve just got a whole lot more exciting. "early today" will be right back after this. sore throat got your tongue? mucinex instasoothe sore throat medicated drops, uniquely formulated for rapid relief that lasts and lasts.

that's my babyyy! try our new sugar-free cough drops. instasoooooothe! (♪♪) skincare can start in the laundry room. that's why i always recommend all free clear for sensitive skin. it's free of dyes and perfumes. it's a key part of my self-care routine. and is gentle for my skin, and her's too. for an effective clean that's gentle on skin, all you need is all free clear. netflix and the nfl set new streaming record for the christmas day doubleheader according to nielsen. a combined 65 million people watched the chiefs top the steelers and the ravens route the texans. the nfl says those games were the most streamed football games

in history. this is the first season of the three-year partnership between the nfl and netflix to stream the christmas games. but it wasn't the football that everyone was talking about during that netflix stream, it was beyonce's performance which was streamed by 27 million viewers with no major reported tetech issues this time. it's what queen bey teased after that still has fans buzzing. here's more. ♪ >> reporter: beyonce bringing down the house during her nfl halftime performance on netflix dubbed "beyonce bowl." ♪ the grammy winner taking center field at nrg stadium in her hometown of houston for a show that pulled out all the stops. from riding in on a white horse to surprise guests like shaboozey and post malone -- ♪ -- even her daughter, blue ivy.

♪ fans were quick to weigh in. >> i'm shaking. like i'm literally in shambles. ♪ ♪ll the problems just ♪ >> reporter: it was first time beyonce performed songs off her "cowboy carter" album for a live audience and the first christmas day games of a three-year deal between netflix and the nfl. but in true queen bey fashion the surprises didn't end. the singer posting the date january 14th on her instagram. >> january 14th? january 14th? >> what does it mean? tour dates? >> reporter: fans wondering what could be on the horizon. ♪ a superstar performance now leaving fans waiting for more. nbc news. new york is preparing for new year's eve with a interest ball revamp. the new year's eve ball will have more than 2,600 newly designed crystal triangles just in time for r the iconic

celebration. in all the 12-foot ball weighs neararly 1 42,000 pounds -- 13, pounds. coming up this morning on "today," the goodyear blimp celebrates its 100th birthday. jesse kirsch takes us inside the famous blimp ahead of its big milestone birthday. that's coming up a little later on the "today" show. thanks so much for watching "early today." i'm jessica layton. hope you have a great weekend. we'll be back on monday. my name's dan and i live here in san antonio, texas. i ran my own hvac business and now i'm retired. i'm not good being retired. i'm a pain in the neck. i like to be able to have a purpose. about three or four years ago, i felt like i was starting to slip. i saw the prevagen commercials. after a short amount of time taking prevagen, i started noticing a difference-- i stopped taking prevagen and i found myself slacking back so i jumped right back on it. i've been taking prevagen for about two years now,

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