be healed, republican party, be healed. . good friday morning. right now on "first look," 50 years ago today the united state changed forever as president john f. kennedy was cut down in the premie of his life and career of public service. we have memories to share. plus some airlines are saying no way to talking on your phone while flying. others are welcoming the change. the senated a don' ed adopt nuclear option. good morning. i'm mara schiavocampo. 50 years ago today, the nation lost its 35th president when john f. kennedy was struck down by a bullet.

president and mrs. kennedy's rip to texas included a number of for thes around the state to various cities and jackie kennedy managed to steal spotlight among the excited crowds. brian williams reports on the events leading up to that shot heard round the world. >> reporter: at their third texas stop in ft. worth, even though it was late and raining, people lined the streets to see them. the kennedys spent their last night together at the hotel texas. the next morning, november 22nd, the president emerged to greet a crowd of 5,000 gathered outside. >> i appreciate you being here this morning. mrs. kennedy is organizing herself. it takes longer. but of course she looks better than me. >> reporter: and when she appeared, mrs. kennedy made a stunning entrance wearing the now famous pink chanel suit, wheat gloves and pill box hat. >> a few years ago i sbr drused

myself in paris by saying i was the man who accompanied mrs. kennedy to paris. i'm getting that same sensation as i travel around texas. nobody wonders what we wear. >> reporter: president kennedy almost never wore hats. in fact the hat industry complained he was turning other men against them. but that day, he was given a stetson. >> couldn't let you leave ft. worth without providing you some protection against the rain. >> i'll future it on in the white house monday if you'll

come up there, you'll have a chance to see it. >> reporter: that last flight from ft. worth to neighboring dallas took just 13 minutes. and the first couple emerged into bright spine. the crowds were big and the president and first lady headed over to the fence line to shake as many hands as possible. from there, it was into an open car and his drive into downtown dallas whered sadly history was waiting just ten miles away. >> nbc's brian william reporting. and that moment in history is forever captured in an iconic silent picture sequence. if you've never seen it, the video is graphic and it may be disturbing to some viewers. private set zen abe bra zam filmed the motorcade on his home video camera. she was tapping on a concrete pedestal. it stands out as perhaps one of the most important pieces of evidence gurg thduring this hor moment. the film captures the creep in graphic detail when the bullet fatally strikes president kennedy in the head.

today's anniversary is impacting americans coast to coast, but perhaps no other city is feeling it more strongly than dallas. today will be the first time that city officially marks the anniversary. jay gray reports from dealey plaza. >> reporter: the images still eche c can echo. the grainy film. the shock and pain from one of america's darkest moments.the g. the shock and pain from one of america's darkest moments.echo. the grainy film. the shock and pain from one of america's darkest moments. its that yet to fade. >> i was 13. i knew exactly where he was the minute he was shot. and if changed my outlook on the world. he was just stunned. couldn't believe it could happen in america. >> reporter: specifically dallas, texas. >> dallas was known throughout the world after the assassination by this stigma.

>> reporter: the events of that day still haunt the city. terrific legacy outlined by the buildings where the tragedy played out still in use today. the texas school book depository, parkland hospital where john kennedy was rushed, and where a nation learned its president was dead. and the texas theater where police arrested lee harvey oswald. >> when i heard the shots, i thought some idiot has fired it as a demonstration. it was inconceivable that the shots would have been directed at kennedy. >> reporter: a young reporter for nbc news found himself in the middle of a story that would change the country forever. >> it ushered in, sort of opened the door to all the nightmarish things that seized this country by the throat for the rest of this decade of the 60s. >> reporter: and that now a half century later still seems to have a hold on the nation's heart and soul. jay gray, nbc news, dallas.

>> msnbc will have continuing coverage of this anniversary throughout the day as america marks the 50th anniversary of president kennedy's assassination. tonight at 7:00 p.m., jfk the day that changed merg. at 8:00, the kennedy brothers. a hardball documentary. and at 9:00, refer represented al sharpton examines gun violence in miles an hour city cities. after that faetful dteful d the funeral and the reride arel horse was known as jack black. a young soldier was assigned to lead him that day. >> when i started working with black jack, i think he was about 16. calm. knew his job. when he was a young horse when he first got there, he was wild. barely controllable. he had gotten spooked. he was starting to dance, starting to throw his head. i said i don't know what's wrong

with this horse, but i'm in big trouble. >> carlton did everything he could to control the horse, but he said there was an up side to jack black's wildness. no one tried to crowd the procession. abraham was 25 when he joined the united states secret service, he became the first african-american agent assigned to white house detail when he was personally selected to the post by president kennedy in 1961. he says he had left the detail by the time kennedy was as says natu assassinated and still feels the stipg of his organization's failure to protect the president. >> whatever they did, i did. history is not going to look favorable on the united states secret service and i was a part of that. >> you can check out the full video interview as well as other stories on president kennedy's

impact on african americans. and president kennedy of course was beloved and remembered so fondly, but he did have a very strong impact on the african-american community, as well, just for his support for the civil rights. >> and you mentioned that so many people after his death purportedly 65% of americans said they voted for him even though that many people didn't vote for him. but the country was so much different. he had a 59% approval rating when he was killed. right now our president has only a 40% approval rating. >> learning a lot today. well, just ahead, we'll take you since one last week's powerful tornados. plus the bigger they are, the harder they fall. and shaq is certainly one of the big ones.

50 years ago today the united check it out.

i can't believe your mom has a mom cave! today i have new campbell's chunky spicy chicken quesadilla soup. she gives me chunky before every game. i'm very souperstitious. haha, that's a good one! haha! [ male announcer ] campbell's chunky soup. it fills you up right.

welcome back. time if sports. richard, good friday. >> good friday for you. it was no show for a-rod, but

attorneys did show for the final day of his appeal. ap arbitra an arbitrator will decide by january and rodriguez could sue baseball. saints jimmy graham dunking on the goal post after his touchdown. it tilts left. the grounds crew grumbling, but they do fix it. minutes left in the game, atlanta down by four. 34 yards needed for a touchdown. debatable decision to go for the field goal. not the td. it is wide. new orleans wins 17-13. used to play with action figures as a kid, now calvin johnson nicknamed megatron gets his own. a transformer called mega ttron and it comes with shoes.

thursday college football, number 18 central florida didn't need its typical late game heroics in this one. it easily beat rutgers 41-17. earlier this week, the dallas mavericks released a promo with the incredible hulk. love this. it was to pump up their game against houston. it worked. mavs with a comeback win 123-120. always fun to see those tv goofs, right? >> of course. unless they're us. >> who is that falling there? >> that would be mr. shaquille o'neal. >> over 7 feet tall, over 300 pounds. i think that was on the richter scale. >> whole studio shook. >> he said he's okay. he looks okay. a thunder fan sinking a $20,000 half court shot.

>> good for him. >> and it's the fifth this year. this time this guy got a handshake from jay-z worth 20 k. don't say it. >> what really would be worth 20 k, a handshake from beyonce. could have had it. wasn't paying attention. >> not predictable. >> thanks, rich arresteard. keep an eye on the wood framed house in the video. this shows a tornado blowing it away in a matter of seconds. looks almost unreal. officials now believe a total ever of 1500 homes were lost in one day across 12 states. never ceases to amaze me how strong these storms are. >> disintegrate before, but never like that.

let's start off with the temperatures. those plunge. it's made all the way down to texas and new mexico. that's where you'll have trouble over the day today with winter weather advisories from wichita to oklahoma city, even close to dallas we have a winter storm watch. you may see some wintry weather as we go throughout your friday and saturday. we have some freezing dri he will drizzle west texas, heavy snow on the border of colorado and new mexico. this weekend, we watch dallas today you're okay. saturday, it looks like we'll see temperatures warming up in a few spots. but some of that though could be right along that texas/oklahoma border and then look what happens on the east coast for sunday. 32 in new york a high, it will be windy, cold. and then day before thanksgiving, almost like a nor'easter type storm coming up the east coast on the busiest travel day of the year. >> that stinstinks. luckily i'm hosting. people are coming to me.

thanks so much, bill. the senate goes nuclear and president obama is thrilled. plus, a new trend using instagram to buy and sell guns. and stocks on a taker and xbox 1 hits the shelves this morning. all that coming up. [ male announcer ] this is jim, a man who doesn't stand still. but jim has afib, atrial fibrillation -- an irregular heartbeat, not caused by a heart valve problem. that puts jim at a greater risk of stroke. for years, jim's medicine tied him to a monthly trip to the clinic to get his blood tested. but now, with once-a-day xarelto®, jim's on the move. jim's doctor recommended xarelto®. like warfarin, xarelto® is proven effective to reduce afib-related stroke risk. but xarelto® is the first and only once-a-day prescription blood thinner

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fresh turkeys that are 16 pounds or larger. >> are you [ bleep ] kidding me? if my turkey is not at least 16 pound, why am i-of-i might as well eat a humming bird stuffed with a single crouton. maybe a caisen. >> we need our turkey. here are stories making news this morning. with a single vote on thursday, testimonies changed the senate rules in a way not seen in almost 200 years. senator harry reid called for a vote to he said miephe saiend t ability to filibuster and it passed. refer billy grand was released from the hospital and was in good spirits. instragram isn't just for

sell if is. more people are using to buy and sell guns. it's not imlegal, but authorities worry about potential legal loopholes. and the use of cell phones on airplanes is currently being reviewed. and while some will enjoy the connectivity, others will not be able to stand if. >> no. we've done surveys for the use a of cellular telephones and by far passengers do not want that. passenger ghots want cedo not w phones and flight attendants don't either. the dow jones finished above the 16,000 mark for the first time in history. today it's microsoft's turn with the release of xbox 1. playstation sold a million in their first 24 hours. we'll see if the xbox does so at $499.

and this ad from goldilocks is getting a ton of attention not because of the cool music or clever machine. instead, it promotes girls to become engineers. very cool. well, scrambled politics is coming up next, including rapped pa rand paul's alternative to the beer summit. plus someone forgot to give the vice president his lunch money. between a morning around the house and getting a little exercise. hi-ya! and i tried a baking class. one weekend can make all the difference. unlike the bargain brand, depend gives you the confidence of new fit-flex® protection. it's a smooth and comfortable fit with more lycra strands. it's our best protection. take your weekend on with a free sample at depend.com mom swaps my snack for a piña colada yoplait. and when mom said i was going out too much, i swapped it for staying in.

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time for your morning desh oig of politics. senator rand paul has an idea. during an event in iowa, he

offered to meet chris christie at a state fair. why? because they have fried twinkies there of course. john boehner officially enrolled in obama care. took him a few trirew tries, bus finally successful. it's hillary versus the heckler. mrs. clinton was speaking at a conference but not contactually what you might think. this heckler shouted hillary 2016. >> how do we get rid of the current mind set and get back to the beautiful art of governing that is compromise? >> there are some hecklers that i would never say anything bad

about. >> i think i saw her blushing. janet yellen's leadership at the federal reserve is almost a done deal. on thursday, the senate banking committee approved her nomination sending it to the full chamber. former president george w. bush made a surprise appearance before the republican governors association. governor chris christie invited mr. bush to appear. the former two term texas governor's remarks were closed to the public, but he spoke to leaders during lunch. and someone w45hose lunch w not closed is joe biden. the vice president was celebr e celebrating the opening of a sandwich short but he was short on cash and had to borrow from a staffer. and later today, ted cruz will meet donald trump in new york. no word if anyone will be able to get a word in edge wise. and that is your morning dish of scrambled politics. time for the first look of politics. join me is kevin cirilli.

so let's talk with the nuclear option. what pushed harry reid to this point and what calculations went into this decision? >> i think it was a clear calculation that he wants to get nominees through. three judicial nominees on the t.c. circuit court will now have a much easier time of getting through. but this could backfire on him. and we saw senate minority leader mitch mcconnell warning about this and saying be careful what you wish for because once this is reversed, if republicans ever take control back of the senate, perhaps some democrats yesterday who voted for this might be regretful to say the the least. >> to that end? have seen the filibuster rules as a way to protect the minority party. so could this be a net negative when it comes to the balance of power in the senate? >> three senators on the temperatu

democratic side voted with republicans against the reform. and i think that there are some concerns that this could backfire on them and it will be interesting to watch how this plays out in the next couple of years. >> and i want to switch gears to trey radel who is taking a leave of absence after pleading guilty to cocaine possession. do you think that move will be enough and he'll be able to keep his job or will party leaders ultimately force him out? >> i think it's a little too early to tell. he is in rehab and i do think it's too early to tell. but he is getting help and it remains to be seen what is next for his political career if anything. >> we'll be watching. it's interesting because you have others to compare him to, some forced out smrks w, some w managed to keep their jobs. kevin, thanks so much for your time. well, this is "first look" on msnbc. "way too early" starts right now.

white house press secretary has just announced that president kennedy died at approximately 1:00 central standard team which is about 35 minutes ago after being shot by annen known assailant during a motorcade drive through downtown dallas. 50 years ago today, youngest person every elected president killed in front of the eyes of a nation. whether you're old enough to remember or were only made aware through the history books, the

images of that day have been burned into our collective consciousness. he was a man who accomplished a lot but he was taken too soon and we'll never know what he could have done. today with events all across the country, america honors the moment the impact and the man. the assassination of john f. kennedy. brian shactman here. we'll have much more on the events planned for the anniversary as well as a look back at the shooting itself, including some conspiracy theories. we'll also touch on today's other top stories including what is being called the nuclear option in the u.s. senate and gorng george w. bush's visit to the republican governors association. but we of course begin with a day of reflection. ceremonies will