finally going to victims of superstorm sandy more than two months after it devastated parts of the east coast. president obama signed a lbill into law, another bill is expected to be voted on next week to provide a comprehensive $51 billion aid package to cover damage from sandy and to prevent similar disasters in the future. secretary of state hillary clinton goes back to work today. she was released from the hospital last summer for treatment of a blood clot. her doctors expect her to make a full recovery, she has a full week of meetings schedule, including three at the white house. preliminary hearings begins in colorado today, when a judge will decide james holmes will

stand trial for murder. holmes will be in court this week. nbc's leann craig joins us now. good morning. >> good morning. hundreds of people are expected to attend the hearing where large amounts of previously sealed information will be revealed, including gruesome details of what happened inside the theater. more than five months after the theater massacre, attorneys will lay out the case against james holmes. >> the purpose of the preliminary hearing is to determine whether or not there's probable cause that he committed each and every one of the crimes against him. >> reporter: those crimes, killing 12 and injuring more than 70. jurors are expected to listen to witnesses. a ruling last week allows

defense testimony about the suspect's mental state. >> one of the problems for the defense in the holmes' case is by going through the preliminary hearing much of the highly inflammatory and prejudicial evidence will be made public in open court. >> these proceedings occur as controversy swirls about the planned reopening of the theater this month. >> none of us are interested in ever stepping foot in that theater, that killing field, ever again. >> reporter: others feel differently and support the reopening. >> i think it's something that needs to be done and we're going to keep these victims' memories alive. >> reporter: one more step in the legal process to deliver justice. the mental state of james holmes will be a crucial factor, whether there's a plea deal or if the case goes to trial.

>> thank you so much for that. the rash of mass shootings including the one at newtown is sure to set a fight for gun control in washington. a report from nbc's mark potter. >> reporter: in aurora, colorado, scene of last summer's movie theater massacre. >> the suspect was hit and he has been pronounced dead. >> reporter: this as lawmakers call for more action. >> we won't have as the new normal a mass shooting every month. >> reporter: gun shows near orlando and atlanta drew huge crowds this weekend. but the decision to hold a gun collection show near newtown, connecticut, drew mixed messages. joe biden's gun violence task force is expected to put guard

recommendations. the washington post could include the stiffer penalties for carrying guns near schools and track gun movement and sales and strengthen mental health and background checks. >> to keep the guns out of dangerous people. >> reporter: the white house may be working for ways to work around the nra. >> plenty of time to take a look at their recommendations once they come forward. what's going to dominate washington for the next three months here is going to and spending and debt. >> reporter: president obama has promised that gun violence is an issue that he won't put off. and now here's your "first look" at this dish of scrambled

politics. general stanley mcchris tall wris there was a quote deficit of trust over decisions about the war. he was fired in 2010 after an article in rolling stone quoted him and his staff making dismisive comments about the white house. former new york governor eliot spitzer won't stay with current tv. spitzer said that their mission will be different. as hillary clinton gets ready to step down from the cabinet the guessing may begin about who may play her in a movie. a petition on the white house website suggest a weekly reality tv show starring the vice president. it suggested that the show could feature some of the veep's funniest moments. a conservative coup

collapsed before john boehner was confirmed. and speaker boehner said that harry reid calling him a quote dictator that led him to say go blank yourself. the first family will be getting ready for the inauguration on january 21st. a distance of president obama will be there to present him of the president's irish heritage. ♪ ♪ he said yes we can ♪ but president barack is still the man ♪ all right, that's your morning dish of "scrambled politics." i have nothing to say about that. it's a lovely song. now for the weather, bill

karins. good morning, everyone. hope you had a wonderful weekend. the temperatures are going rising. the snow is melting. if you like these january thaws, this is the week for you, last week the cold air dominated all of the way down from canada. the jet stream really flipped. about 66% of the peak. the white line shows you where the snow line is. we're still locked in here in the northern plains, great lakes and the northeast. we'll melt a lot of that this week. the weather patterns have flipped completely. the cold air is locked up in canada. this southerly jet stream is going to pump some of the milder air into the northeast. we'll see temperatures well above average all week. the only problem we could have

the severe weather in texas, as we go through tuesday, from houston to brownsville. as far as the forecast goes, it's a cool, chilly morning, you need your jackets and gloves. this afternoon, enjoy this. upper 40s through the midwest. this is not normal, this could be one of the warmer weeks we'll see this month. >> thanks so much, bill. a big foreclosure deal, a google exec heads to china. plus, britain's prince charles opens up about royal fatherhood and his future grandchildren. you're watching msnbc. my insurance rates are probably gonna double.

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welcome back. here's some stories making news this morning. syrian president has once again rejected international calls for him to step down, saying he'll

continue his fight against rebel forces. he also proposed what he called a new peace plan that the u.s. state department said was quote detached from reality. another night of rioting from northern enireland in belfast. people fought with the rioters. off the coast of venezuela a search is in its fourth day carrying the italian fashion designer vittori missoni. in a new interview britain's prince charles discussed the responsibility he feels as his son prince william and his wife kate prepare to make him a grandfather. >> i didn't want to be confronted by my future grandchild saying, why didn't

you do something? to try to make sure that we leave them something that's not a totally -- >> prince charles also said that he worries every night about his son prince harry who's fighting with british troops in afghanistan. nasa has released an amazing image taken from the international space station of one of the most dangerous volcanoes in italy, mount vesuvius. now for a look at how wall street starts off the week. the dow closed at 13,435. the s&p 500 was up 7. as washington gears up for its next nerve-wracking budget battle, wall street will be about the corporate bottom line. earnings season kicks off

tuesday. alcoa is first on deck followed by wells fargo. claims of foreclosure abuse by more than a dozen lendsers is expected to be announced today. ho former new mexico governor richardson stopped in beijing today. the pair have called a private humanitarian mission. how much dough will hostess make on its bread dough, an estimated 3$350 million. starting this month, washington is the first state to charge electric vehicle owners $100 a year on wear and tear on the roads. according to the latest list

from career cast, military personnel have the most stressful jobs in the country. so where do you spend your stress-free retirement days? ecuador. good to know. finally paying a sky-high price for the first bluefin catch, a tokyo restaurant owner she would out over a million dollars for the catch. the nfl picture is set for next week. which teams have advanced? plus the ugly side of flash mobs as a massive stampede shuts down a louisiana mall. you're watching "first look" on msnbc. ♪

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child suffered serious burns. the fire is under investigation. and finally, officials in one vermont town are forcing a home owner to clean out her pig sty, she was ordered to remove over 30 pigs from her home. after town council heard enough squealinging from her neighbors. in sports, nfl wild card weekend. seattle's quarterback russell wilson threw a key block on the marshawn lynch's go-ahead touchdown. the seahawks beat the redskins. baltimore and joe flacco connected on two touchdowns against indianapolis for the victory. ray lewis celebrated 13 tackles following his announcement that he'll retire next season. next saturday baltimore will play against denver with peyton

manning. on sunday, seattle visit atlanta. and houston will be in new england. godaddy.com bowl. ark state took the lead before half and held on for the victory. tonight is the bcs national championship game. with notre dame facing number two alabama. there will be a national hockey season this year, they ended the lockout and play a shortened season that begins next week. the tournament of champions pga will try again to play some golf, wind gusts have delayed the start for three days in a row. >> that was funny to watch. >> all places in hawaii. >> one picture where the caddie was putting his finger on the golf ball for the guy to hit it. who do you got tonight, notre dame and alabama? >> i'll say notre dame.

no offense to alabama. >> all right. i'll go with alabama then. good morning, anyway, temperatures todays, very warm, very beautiful, just like yesterday, enjoy it in the northeast. no problems whatsoever. look at this forecast ahead in washington, d.c., the nation's capital has a chance on a wednesday to hit 60 degrees. all week we'll enjoy this january thaw. towards the middle of next week is it looks like the next shot of cold weather will come down. just ahead -- michael j. fox returns to tv. plus, find out where honey boo boo's money is going now that her family is raking in the big bucks. you're watching "first look" on msnbc. poured over rice! [ male announcer ] campbell's chunky soup. it fills you up right.

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michael j. fox is officially coming back to television in september in a new nbc comedy that features fox playing a new caster dealing with parkinson disease. it will closely follow his own personal life. just gin bieber has some explaining to do this weekend when photos of the pop star surfaced of him allegedly smoking some marijuana. french actor gerard depardieu was greeted by vladimir putin when he arrived in in his new home country. he was given a form-fitting russian shirt and toured a russian museum.

finally the mother of honey boo boo said that she's putting most of the reality show earnings are in trust funds. they're not able to touch the money for schooling oth. do you do reality show in general? >> oh, yes. >> oh, really? >> my guilty pleasure. just not that one. this is "first look" on msnbc. stay tuned. way too early starts right now. with regards to israel, iran

and all of the other positions that he has taken over the years, will very much be a matter of discussion. >> you're not predicting smooth sailing for chuck hagel. >> i think there will be a lot of tough questions of senator hag hagel. but he'll be treated fairly. president obama's expected announcement of his pick of secretary of defense. good morning. this is way too early the show that plays hurt when it has to. thanks for being up with us. speaking of playing hurt or maybe not, washington redskins saw robert griffin iii go down with a knee injury, some now are blaming mike shanahan for the loss. but first, let's get to news live at 5:30 a.m. here at 30 rock in new york city. today president obama expected to nominate former

nebraska senator chuck hagel, a republican, as his next pentagon topper. he would be the first enlisted soldier to hold that cabinet post. he's got the support of national security figures, but his senate confirmation is now shaping up to be a testy battle. republican senators suggested they'll challenge their former colleague on his tough record. he has opposed sanctions against iraq. on the sunday morning hagel's critics, including li lindsey graham will louder than his backers. >> i expect that the president to nominate people different than i would think, i'm going to vote for senator kerry, i think

he's very much in the main stream of thought. chuck hagel if confirmed to be secretary of defense would be the most antagonist secretary of defense. he has long severed ties with his party. this is an in your face nomination by the president. >> senator hagel has some criticism on the left. whether he questioned an openly gay nominee by president clinton was fit enough to represent the united states. >> who will. be the best job in helping to secure america? >> anything to disqualify him? >> not that what i see. i know chuck hagel. he's a patriot. he apologized for that comment. it's a testimony for what has