signs of strength. today's job report expected to show more improvement as lawmakers continue battling over tax cuts and unemployment benefits. snowbound. a massive storms buries buffalo, new york stranding hundreds of motorists for hours. >> only find a strategy, right? >> right. there's a good situation in everything. oh. and lebron's revenge, king james makes the most out of his hostile homecoming. this is the "cbs morning news" for friday, december 3rd, 2010.

good morning, everybody. thanks for joining us on this friday. i'm betty nguyen. the labor department releases the jobs report this morning. most economists predict good news, the second month of pliof employment gains and an extension on unemployment benefits may be part of a deal on extending the bush-era tax cuts. whit johnson is in washington with much more on all of this. good morning, whit. >> betty, good morning to you. today's jobs numbers expected to come with good news but also a mix of bad news. the good news, the private sector continues to hire. the bad news, not fast enough. david bailey isn't relying on hope to find him a new job. >> i don't have the luxury of hoping. i've got to do. i've got kids to feed and i've got a house to keep over their heads. >> reporter: the married father of four has been in and out of work the last three years and says the job hunt can be downright depressing. >> i've got applications out there and the phone's not ringing. >> reporter: today's jobs report

is expected to show some improvement. analysts predict private employers added 150,000 jobs in november but unemployment expected to hold steady at 9.6%. while there are signs the economy is gaining momentum, the white house warns that could come to a grinding halt if congress fails to extend jobless benefits. president obama told a group of governors thursday if lawmakers don't act, seven million people could lose their benefits next year. >> that's not just a potential tragedy for those individual families, it could have a huge impact on your local economies. >> reporter: an extension likely part of a broader deal to extend bush-era tax cuts, a compromise still being hammered out. despite that house democrats pushed through a measure thursday extending the cuts only for households making less than $250,000. that infuriated republicans, who want the cuts to stay in place for higher income earners, as well. >> trying to catch my breath so i don't refer to this maneuver

going on today as chicken crap, all right? but this is nonsense! >> reporter: tomorrow, the senate will vote on a similar measure as well as alternative bills. both parties say neither stand a chance. november is expected the 19th month in a row the unemployment rate has stayed above 9%. that would be the longest stretch on record since 1948. betty? >> whit johnson live in washington, thank you. the deficit reduction commission appointed by the president votes today on the controversial proposal from the commission leaders. the plan calls for raising the social security retirement age and scaling back popular tax breaks like the one on mortgage interest. the plan has the support of a majority of the 18-member commission but unlikely to get the 14 votes needed to send it to congress. it was a humiliating walk to the well of the house for new york congressman charles rangel. thursday evening speaker pelosi

read the formal resolution censuring the veteran lawmaker for financial misconduct, just the 23rd time a house member was censured, the most severe punishment short of expulsion. he admitted to mistakes but says he wasn't corrupt. >> i know in my heart that i'm not going to be judged by this congress, but i'm going to be judged by my life, my activities, my contributions to society. >> an effort to reduce the punishment was defeated. rangel, 80 years old was easily elected to a 21st term last month. crews still working to clear a stretch of the new york thruway near buffalo where hundreds of motorists were trapped by a brutal snowstorm. as of late last night an 11-mile stretch of the highway remained closed but crews rescued anyone willing to leave their cars or trucks. the storm blew in wednesday but the real trouble began when a truck accident caused a major

backup. hundreds were trapped in freezing temperatures. for some it was a 12-hour ordeal. >> from the official thruway radio it was saying traffic is heavy, it's stop and go and we've been stopped dead. >> i just want to be home. i mean, they're all home for a snow day and i've been up like 24 hours and want to go home. >> the massive storm dumped nearly three feet of snow in some areas. south korea's new defense minister says he will bomb north korea if it launches another attack like last week's. the new defense minister speaking this morning at his confirmation hearings. his predecessor resigned following criticism his response to north korea's attack was weak. the death toll from a devastating forest fire in northern israel reached 41. it is israel's deadliest fire. all the victims are israeli prison guards who got caught trying to rescue prison inmates.

firefighters from several countries are fighting the blaze. some 30,000 people have been evacuated from their homes. wikileaks is offline, late last night its domain service pulled the plug saying it became the target of cyber hackers that could have major consequences for its founder, julian assange, who remains in hiding, believed somewhere in britain where he's doing all he can to protect his website and himself. elizabeth palmer has our report. >> reporter: the legal net is tightening around julian assange. sweden's highest court turned down his appeal, which means an international warrant for his arrest in a sexual assault case is valid, although he hasn't yet been contacted by authorities. >> he has obviously read, like everybody else, about the allegations that are in the media. he's read about interpol notices, he's read about warrants but nobody's actually been in touch with him or any of his legal team. >> reporter: british police, who would carry out the arrest, say

they haven't yet because the warrant wasn't correctly filed. julian assange is one of the most reviled or, depending on your point of view, revered men on earth. he's in hiding somewhere in or around london and we're told working hard to keep the wikileaks site up and running. the site's come under multiple cyber attacks from hackers in the past few days. but assange and his team stayed one step ahead and they have a backup plan. supporters of wikileaks around the world are downloading a file the site calls an insurance policy. the files encrypted with a code so strong it's unbreakable, even by governments. but, if anything happens to assange or the website, a key will go out to unlock that file and there would be no way to stop the information from spreading like wildfire because so many people already have copies. >> what most folks are speculating is that the insurance file contains unreleased information that

would be especially embarrassing to the u.s. government if it were released. >> reporter: in other words, the arrest warrant may eventually stop assange but not the spread of even more wiki secrets. elizabeth palmer, cbs news, london. just ahead on the morning news, fears a tax vote delay could cause a stock market crash. plus, can you hear me now? a texas man says his brand new smartphone exploded while he was using it. you're watching the "cbs morning news." using it. you're watching the "cbs morning news." and the life you want to live. fortunately there's enbrel, the #1 most doctor-prescribed biologic medicine for ra. enbrel can help relieve pain, stiffness, fatigue, and stop joint damage. because enbrel suppresses your immune system, it may lower your ability to fight infections. serious, sometimes fatal, events including infections, tuberculosis, lymphoma, and other cancers, and nervous system and blood disorders have occurred.

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like freschetta. because no other pizza is made if you live for performance, upgrade to castrol edge advanced synthetic oil. with eight times better wear protection than mobil 1. castrol edge. it's more than just oil. it's liquid engineering. an fda advisory panel holds a hearing today to consider loosening the rules for lap band surgery to fight obesity. the maker of the most popular device, allergan, wants approval to market its product to obese adolescents 14 to 18 years old and to less overweight adults than now is the case. surgically implanted lap bands restrict the stomach making

wearers feel full with less food. to a story you may think about next time you make a phone call. the case of the exploding cell phone. a dallas-area man says he was calling his father thursday on his new motorola droid ii phone when he heard a loud pop. >> i didn't feel any pain initially. i pulled the phone down. i felt something dripping. i realized that it probably was blood. >> goodness. he got stitches at a hospital and considers himself lucky to have survived. motorola says it will contact him and investigate the incident. on the cbs moneywatch, a mixed day for stocks in asia. ashley morrison will break all that down for us. good morning, ashley. >> good morning to you, betty. asian markets saw late-day losses. japan's nikkei hung on to a gain, a fraction, and hong kong's hang seng lost half a percent. on wall street, the focus today, the government's november jobs report. analysts expect it to show the

private sector added at least 150,000 jobs last month. that would make five straight months of gains. still, the economy needs 200,000 a month to really put a dent in the unemployment rate, which is projected to hold steady at 9.6%. stocks are looking to keep the rally going after big gains thursday. the dow jumped 106 points, the nasdaq rose almost 30. if congress fails to extend the bush-era tax cuts, some think it could spark a major stock sell-off this month. a handful of analysts warned thursday if the capital gains tax rate remains at risk of rising many investors will sell their holdings soon to avoid a higher rate next year. while it is unclear how bad it could be could wipe out all the gains the market has made this year. nissan sent a launch date for its leaf, normerly introducing the all-lech kick car this morning in tokyo. it arrives in the u.s. right around christmas. it should retail for around $34,000 and taxpayers can claim

a $7500 tax credit. the leaf could drive more than 100 miles on a single charge. they may not be able to make a deal on tax cuts or jobless benefits but congress is working on one of life's great ann annoyiances. they did pass legislation thursday that would shield television viewers from that annoying jump in volume during commercials. the new industry standards will require commercials not be noticeably louder than regular tv programs. betty, that would save me a lot of time with that remote sitting there every time the commercial comes on turning it done and back up when the program comes back on. >> thank goodness. that is so frustrating, so annoying. now it will be over. in due time. all right. ashley morrison joining us live in new york. thank you. straight ahead your friday morning weather and in sports king james returns to his former domain and shows the crowd he still rules the court. [ male announcer ] it's simple physics...

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the deep south. later today, several inches of snow are expected in the plains. mild air is embracing the south from california all the way to georgia. but, to the north, chilly temperatures spread across the north and the northeast. in sports lebron james got the welcome he expected from his former fans last night. appearing for the first time in cleveland in a miami uniform. >> announcer: -- number 6, lebron james. >> yep, you heard it, james was jeered when he was introduced and booed when he di trademark talcum toss but took over the game leading the miami heat in a first quarter surge that left the cavaliers in the dust. in the end, james scored 38 points as the heat thumped the cavs 118-90. after the game, james was asked about the angry crowd. >> i have nothing -- nothing bad to say about these fans, at all. you know, seven great years, you

know, we grew from, you know, the year before i got here from a 17-win season to, you know, the last two years i was here to being the best team in the league in the regular season. so, i understand their frustration. >> talk about frustration, james scored 10 more points than the cavs' whole starting lineup. now to the nfl and the gritty performance by eagles quarterback michael vick. in philadelphia he opened the scoring with a touchdown pass in the first quarter and eagles led houston 20-10 at the half. the texans scored twice in the third quarter and took a lead. but then, vick took over throwing and running for three t.d.s in the fourth quarter. the eagles won it 34-24. when we return, another look at this morning's top stories and scientists announce a discovery that could redefine life as we know it. redefine life as we know it. for up to a year! ines juvéderm® xc is the gel filler your doctor uses to instantly smooth out lines right here. temporary side effects include redness,

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plus... tensions high as johannes mehserle makes a bid for bail. what he'll have to prove.. to get out of jail. why the secret to a long and happy marriage.. may include deleting a few facebook friends. and an alien life form.. found near the bay area. why nasa's calling it such a big deal. join us for cbs 5 early edition ... beginning at five. the ,,,, on the "cbs morning news" a

look at today's weather. there's more snow on the way for some areas near the great lakes. winter storm watches and warnings are being posted for a fast-moving system that will enter the midwest and there will be scattered showers in the northwest. here's another look at this morning's top stories. the labor department releases numbers for november dealing with the jobs report. most economists are expecting good news. another domain name provider has dropped the wikileaks website. the founder julian assange is wanted for questioning on rape charges and believed to be hiding in britain. called a major discovery in the search for extraterrestrial life. scientists say they have found an alien life form right here on earth, as don napp of our san francisco station kpix reports, it may not be e.t. but the finding could rewrite the rules of life. >> i'd like to introduce to you

today the bacterium gsa-1. >> reporter: it breaks the rules at least the ones we thought we knew from biology about the elemental requirements for life. >> all life that we know requires carbon hydrogen, nitrogen -- we've discovered in our organism that can substitute one element for another. >> reporter: how big a deal is this? a great big rewrite of a few paragraphs of the textbooks deal from a scientists who says she's always interested in interceptions to the rule. her laboratory for the discovery this famous lake north of san francisco. >> it's got very high levels of arsenic and teeming with life. this seemingly inhospital tiblt lake teems with life like bacteria and algae and is a major stopping point --

>> reporter: using mud from the environment, they watch the bacterium alter the building blocks of life. >> arsenic would be substituting for phosphorous. you see how critical this component might be. >> reporter: it could have implications for growing crops or growing energy or which planets to visit. >> so, here's an element, arsenic, we thought was very toxic and, boy, life can accommodate that. we need to know more about those types of things as we explore mars because it tells us which environments might host life even if it's a little different. >> reporter: will simon says they cracked open a door to a universe of potential. >> not about arsenic or about mono lake, it's about thinking about life in a planetary context and asking questions. >> that was don napp of kpix reporting. in florida, a daring police rescue caught on tape. officer jimmy jaleel, jr., was among the first to arrive at the scene of an suv rollover on wednesday. a woman was trapped in the front passenger seat of the burning vehicle. he tried to bust open the window with a fire extinguisher but that failed.

so, he ordered everyone back and fired two shots into the rear window breaking it and was able to carry the woman to safety. this morning on "the early show" an exclusive interview with that hero officer. i'm betty nguyen. this is the cbs morning news. cbs morning news. come on! wait for me! there it is. ah! hurry up. you're heavy. are you sure these letters will get to santa? yes, of course. hold still. almost there. a little bit higher. i can't hold you up much longer. ah! whoa! [ all giggle ] ♪ hi, fellas. hi, virginia. why are you on the floor? [ female announcer ] bring your letter to santa into macy's and we'll donate to the make-a-wish® foundation. together, we'll collect a million reasons to believe. and we'll donate to the make-a-wish® foundation. if you live for performance,

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after years of starring in the hit cbs series "walker: texas ranger," actor chuck norris is now a real-life texas ranger. thursday, the 70-year-old norris was named an honorary member for elevating the rangers to mythical status. norris says the show has had an incredible run and he would not have had it any other way. congratulations to him. in other news a vietnam war veteran is hoping to have his way. he wants to make sure that fellow servicemen and women returning from the wars in iraq and afghanistan get the hero's welcome they deserve. mark strassmann reports. >> reporter: night or day on the

tarmac, walt peters waits for welcomes and greets returning soldiers. >> thanks for your service, welcome home. >> reporter: his face the first they see setting foot again at hunter army air field near savannah. >> good job. everybody has a gift for something. i'm hoping that my gift is giving back something to my country. welcome home! >> reporter: since 2004, peters estimates he has greeted or sent off 90,000 soldiers. now, 66 and nearly blind, he can't see them. but, in them, he can see himself, 40 years younger. sergeant walt peters served three tours in vietnam and, in that divisive war came home to scorn. >> i've had rotten tomatoes thrown at me. it was my help by giving a soldier a flag and shaking his hand, that's my heaven, simple as that. >> reporter: 297 soldiers came home this time, members of the

3rd combat aviation brigade, back from afghanistan. peters and other red cross volunteers offered all of them a u.s. flag as another taste of america, hot coffee. to sergeant jean yarborough, the best cup ever. >> it ain't no italian espresso, but it's got the love in it. >> we wanted to give you the hero's welcome home, because you are my hero, girl. >> reporter: inside the hangar, families waited. >> there's some excited families here, right? >> reporter: and peters got ready to step aside for this moment. [ cheering ] >> reporter: their soldier was home, safe at last. >> as long as i can breathe and walk, i'm going to be here with these soldiers. >> give me one more hug. >> yes, ma'am. >> reporter: to peters, it's the homecoming they deserved, the one he always wanted. mark strassmann, cbs news, savannah, georgia.

a great story there. coming up later on "the early show" a live report from upstate new york as officials clear a massive traffic backup caused by a big snowstorm. also an update on the murder of hollywood publicist ronni chasen. we'll hear from a former lapd chief bill bratton. plus feeling broke from holiday shopping? well, tips on easy ways to save $500 by january. that's the "cbs morning news" for this friday. thanks for watching. i'm betty nguyen. thanks for watching. i'm betty nguyen. have a great weekend! -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com

your realtime captioner is linda marie macdonald. caption colorado, l.l.c. the wrecking ball about to come down on a piece of bay area history. we'll show you what's going up in its place. >> the