good morning, good to be with you. i'm anne-marie green. this morning, nato says five of its troops were killed in southern afghanistan. a local police official tells cbs news american and afghan forces were attacked by taliban fighters yesterday, but may have been victims of friendly fire. alphonso van marsh is with us. good morning. >> the international security force, isaf was briefed that five service members died in afghanistan on monday. there are unconfirmed reports we are waiting to get details on, but the isaf administered by

nato is not commenting on the reports, specifically about the nationality of the troops. many troops stationed in the southern part of afghanistan are american. u.s. president, barack obama, recently announced plans to remove all combat troops by the end of the year. this is days ahead of the run off of the presidential elections. last week, suicide bombers set off he is replacing afghan president, hamid karzai. it takes place saturday and the taliban are vowing to disrupt the vote. back to you. >> thank you. members of the house were briefed on the deal that freed bowe bergdahl. the white house defended the

release but many members are not convinced. tomorrow, secretary of defense, chuck hagel will testify before the armed services committee. susan mcginnis is in washington. good morning. >> reporter: anne-marie green, good morning. it was clear that anger among lawmakers keeps growing on who was kept in the dark about the prisoner exchange and who did know. the house armed services committee will investigate the circumstances that led the white house to release five high level taliban fighters from guantanamo. >> i hope we don't have a year from now a hearing on people that were killed because of the five that were released. >> reporter: at a tense 90-minute briefing they saw the proof of life video from bergdahl last year. the white house shows the video shows his declining health. officials say that and concerns

the taliban might kill the p.o.w. are the reasons the swap was pushed through. many lawmakers emerged angry that dozens of people in the white house, pentagon and intelligence agencies did know about the release in advance. >> they made it clear there were 80 to 90 people who knew ahead of time about the bergdahl release. not one of whom was a member of the united states congress. >> reporter: some democrats defended the white house. >> we leave no soldier behind. >> reporter: today, white house officials will brief the senate about the events leading up to bergdahl's release. the pentagon says bergdahl continues to improve every day at the military hospital and has still not spoken with his family. >> susan mcginnis in washington, thank you. a las vegas police believe the deadly shooting of two officers and a third victim was an isolated act not tied to a

broader conspiracy. the husband and wife shooters wanted to target police. one of the shooters was a convicted felon. yesterday, a vigil was held by the slain officers. we have the report. investigators describe them as anti-government and on a mission to kill police officers. the couple entered this pizzeria and shot the officers at point-blank range. the millers covered them with a swastika and the words don't tread on me. >> mr. jerad miller pinned a note to an officer that stated this is the beginning of a revolution. >> reporter: they walked to a walmart a block away. he ordered shoppers out. he was confronted by a shopper

carrying a concealed weapon. >> as soon as he confronted him, amanda miller removed her firearm and shot him in the ribs area where he immediately collapsed. >> she came up from behind him and shot him at close range. it angers me so much to imagine it. >> reporter: the couple barricaded themselves in the back of walmart and had a gunfight. amanda miller shot her husband, then herself. >> the suspects have an apparent ideology that's along the lines of militia and white supremacist. they believe law enforcement is the oppressor and they are associated with the nazi movement. gerad posted on facebook and about government drones on

youtube. >> they are wiretapping your phones, watching your facebook and everything. >> they lived with kelly fielder after being evicted. i'm scott daniels in las vegas. the widening crisis involving health care. a broader picture of the scheduling issues and cover up at v.a. medical facilities. tens of thousands were forced to wait months before getting an appointment and some never did. criminal charges are possible. craig boswell reports. >> reporter: the house committee grilled v.a. officials over the health care scandal that keeps gets worse. the hearing was held the day the v.a. released an audit of hospitals and clinics. 57,000 veterans waited three months for their first medical appointment. 63,000 requested an appointment, but never got one. >> i don't think this is the end of it.

>> reporter: they say there are too many questions that need answers. >> this has been going on for years after years and scheming, making up numbers and misusing the system. so, i can't believe this is the end of this audit. there's much more to come. >> reporter: they call out the 14-day maximum for patient waiting time. a growing demand made that target unattain million. 76% of v.a. clinics ordered supervisors ordered schedulers to hide longer wait times. lauren price waited six months for a check up despite a diagnosis of chronic lung disease. >> it's outrageous it takes this pressure for them to do the job they are adequately funded for. >> reporter: craig boswell, cbs news, capitol hill.

hillary clinton still hasn't decided whether she's running for president. in an interview, criticism of her handling of the attack on the u.s. consulate in libya is actually an incentive to run. >> it's more of a reason to run because i do not believe our great country should be playing minor league ball. we ought to be in the majors. i view this as, really, apart from or a diversion from the hard work congress should be doing about the problems facing our country and the world. >> four americans including chris stevens were killed in the attack. clinton isn't sure if she'll testify before the latest congressional committee investigating the attacks. this morning, the threat of severe weather extends from the golf coast to the ohio valley. pmany are at risk for severe storms including damaging winds, isolated tornadoes and heavy downpours.

in central mississippi, a round of thunderstorms knocked a utility pole down from wind gusts. no reports of injuries. los angeles clippers owner, donald sterling changed his mind again. now he says he won't sell the team and he'll pursue a $1 billion lawsuit against the nba. last week, he agreed to sell the team to former microsoft ceo for $2 billion. the deal was negotiated by his wife. in a statement, sterling says he never wanted to sell. a white hot wedding. a force of nature cannot stop this oregon couple from tieing the knot. this is the "cbs morning news."

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now try popped in white cheddar and sweet and salty. more than 800 people in bend oregon are joining the fight against the fire. so far, no homes have burned. the fire destructed a wedding saturday afternoon. michael and april quickly said their "i dos" as the flames approached. as if the day wasn't memorable enough, they have unique wedding pictures to look back on. a sleep deprived trucker is

to blame for the crash that critically injured actor tracy morgan. morgan is expected to be hospitalized for weeks as he recovers from several broken bones. alexis christoforous has the first calls made to 911 after the crash. >> a terrible accident. a car flipped. >> just calling it? >> no, i'm just calling it in. >> reporter: a calling describes it accident scene saturday morning on the new jersey turnpike. >> is it turned over? >> two vehicles and a walmart truck. >> reporter: tracy morgan and three others were injured when a semitruck slammed into them. it caused a chain reaction involving four vehicles. another comedian, 62-year-old james mcnair died in the crash. the bus was bringing them back from a show in delaware.

big rig driver, kevin roper faces one count of death by auto and four counts of assault by auto. roper didn't see traffic slowing down in front of him when he plowed in the back of the limo. roper had been awake more than 24 hours before the crash. walmart says roper is one of its employees and has obtained a lawyer. he was unhurt in the crash. walmart says the company will take full responsibility if their truck was at fault. alexis christoforous, cbs news. president obama signs off on a major initiative to help millions of americans pay back student loans. we'll have details in money watch. lockdown on a paris bridge held dear by thousands of couples.

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on the "cbs moneywatch," college loan relief and it is the biggest week of the year for gamers and gadgets. jill wagner is at the new york stock exchange with that and more. good morning, jill. >> good morning. new reports out on gas taxes. aaa found 52% of americans say they pay higher fuel taxes if it meant better roads, bridges and mass transit systems. 68% of americans believe the federal government should increase spending on infrastructure. asian stocks were missed despite profit making. the nikkei gained 1%. here on wall street, the string of record highs and improving economic numbers could send stocks higher. the dow road 18 points to

another record high. the s&p 500 was up one, also a new record and the nasdaq increased 14 points. president obama is expanding the program to help students paying back federal college loans. under an order he signed yesterday, all students only have to pay up to 10% of their income for the loans. after 20 years of making payments, any remaining balance would be forgiven. the president is supporting legislation that could save 25 million borrowers up to $2,000 each other the life of their loan. the e-3 convention opened today in los angeles. it's expected to move forward with games for the x-box one, play station four and wii you generation. about 200 exhibitors are releasing their latest games and software looking to become the next big thing. >> christmas for gamers.

jill wagner at the new york stock exchange. thanks a lot jill. when we return, shark stair. a teenager that suffered a shark oh no. who are you? daddy, this is blair, he booked this room with priceline express deals and saved a ton. i got everything i wanted. i always do. he seemed nice.

here is a look at today's forecast in cities around the country. the famous love locks bridge in paris is open today. a portion of the bridge collapsed sunday because of the weight of thousands of padlocks. cups latch them as symbols of their lasting love. city officials are looking for an alternative solution that isn't quite so heavy. a teenage girl in texas is recovering after a shark attack

over the weekend on galveston island. she was the only one in her family who decided to go into the ocean. >> the water was murky. a lot of seaweed. it felt like something bumped into my back. it could be a shark. >> she has teeth marks on her back. she said she didn't think it could ever happen and it could have been worse. in sports now, the los angeles kings are one win away from claiming their second stanley cup in three seasons. game three of the finals last night here in new york. jeff carter gets l.a. on the board scoring with less than one second less. the goalie completes a 32-save shutout. the kings win, 3-0. l.a. can finish a sweep of the rangers tomorrow night. coming up after your local news on "cbs this morning," the latest on the v.a. scandal and we'll speak with marco rubio. i'm anne-marie green. this is the "cbs morning news."

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marijuana appears to be playing a larger role in fatal traffic accidents. as more states consider legalizing itd, pot contributed to 12% of traffic deaths in 2010. that is nearly triple the number of deaths in 2000. at joshua tree national park, the last decade is the hottest on record. now the symbols of the southwest are beginning to rot off. danielle notingham reports. >> reporter: more than a million of them stand under the blazing california sun in joshua tree national park. these trees have survived here because their roots are capable of finding water deep in the

desert ground. there are early indications that rising temperatures and a severe drought have dried out their water source. josh is a park ranger here. >> this is one that's probably on its way out. >> reporter: what would the national park tree be without the trees? >> a different feeling? >> reporter: scientists now estimate 90% of the trees in this park could dry out and die by the end of the century. >> warmer is bad. it increases evaporation and is stressful on the plant its. >> reporter: is there a way to reverse what's happening? >> stop putting carbon in the atmosphere, that would reduce it. that will take awhile. >> reporter: they have been looking for signs of life and new growth, any clue the joshua tree has a fighting chance in the warmer world. donna thomas and her grandson are volunteer researchers that comb the landscape.

>> to think a couple generations from now, it might not be so beautiful. makes me want to contribute to do as much as i can to protect what is here. >> reporter: scientists have hope. new trees are growing at higher elevations and cooler temperatures. that could mean they are adapting to climate change. >> this is excellent. we are happy to find the reproduction. >> reporter: there's excitement for each new tree found, there's reality. they grow only a few inches a year, not fast enough to outtake those lost. danielle notingham, cbs news, joshua tree national park. coming up after your local news on "cbs this morning," more on the results of a v.a. hospital's audit. and we'll speak with senator marco rubio of florida. plus, an astronaut gaining a huge following through the pictures he's tweeting.

and the lloyd blank fien from goldman sachs joins us. i'm anne-marie green. have a great day.