mortgages. and a big sar frtar from du dynasty in big trouble for comments in gq. never good to loosely paraphrase the bible. trust me on this one. this is "way too early". good morning. brian shactman here thursday, december 19. a few other interesting nuggets later in the show. which college football program is reportedly worth nearly $140 million? don't google it. stay tuned and find out. and justin bieber, can you actually retire before you can legally drink? but he's talking about retirement. whether it's a ploy or not, we'll have that story for you in the cooler. we want to begin with the ns after the. a task force recommending changes some of which the president says he is open to.

there are 46 recommendations. the government would have to request access to metadata. phone and internet companies can go public when they're asked to hand over information. the white house has already rejected a recommendation to put the nsa under civilian control. the panel had other surprising conclusions saying that the disclosure of some confidential information can be, quote, extremely valuable to public debate. the task force also found that bulk collection of telephone records is not essential to preventing terror attacks. senator rand paul is a krit it can of twent a step further cal on the director of national intelligence to resign over testimony he gave before the senate. >> the clapper's line to congress is probably more in-injurious to our intelligent

capabilities than anything snowden did because clapper has damaged the credibility of the entire intelligence apparatus and i'm not sure what it believe anymore when they come to congress. and i do think what our government is doing is unconstitutional and i really think in order to restore confidence in our intelligence community, i think james clapper should resign. >> you might want to check your 401(k) because the markets had a huge day yesterday all because of something just about everybody expected. yesterday the federal reserve announced it will begin reducing its stimulus program starting next month. the central bank says the economy is improving enough that it will drawdown its monthly $85 billion bond buying program. the fed's plan is to reduce the program throughout 2014 and ending it by next december. investors, they liked it. they think that the economy doing well is better news than the bad news maybe of the free and easy money on wall street being taken away a bit. almost 300 points to the up side

in the dow and both the dow and the s&p touching new closing highs. cnbc's geoff cutmore live for us in london. we talk about sometimes in the economy and joe scarborough doesn't like it when we say good news is bad news because good news means maybe they got a taper, but this time good news was good news. >> yeah, it really was here. and what was surprising is not only did you get that promise of $10 billion being taken off the monthly purchasing starting in january, you also got a revision upwards in growth expectations from the federal reserve. so there is the promise of the bright sunny uplands. and the markets have been nervous because they thought that punch boufl easy money was going to get taken away and that would mean less money going into equities in the short term. but as it's turned out, they sold the rumor, they bought the fat, we've traded higher on equities in the u.s. and we're higher here in europe, as well, at the moment. so it seems that investors are willing to take this on board

right now. >> well, let me ask you this because we talk about sometimes this inverse relationship between stocks and bonds. everyone assumes that mortgage rates will go up and all of that. did we see a movement on that side, as well? >> it's pretty difficult not to see that happening, isn't it really. we just had an earthquake on wall street. but not so much on main street. but at the margin, i think people will start to see the ten year treasury rate edging higher here as the markets begin to price in the idea of a normalization in the interest rate story. so if you have a mortgage or you are borrowing money in other ways, you're probably likely to start to see rates edging up here. but if you are a 401(k) holder, probably worth pointing out if the markets continue to like this story, you will benefit on the one happened even as you may find yourself having to pay slightly higher interest rates. >> and if interest rates go up, the savers of the world will start to get a little bit of yield on their savings accounts.

geoff cutmore live for us in london. thank you very much. let's move on to the ryan/murray budget heading to the white house. the bill passed with bipartisan support yesterday. the vote 64-36. nine republicans joined the democratic caucus. now the appropriations committee has fewer than four weeks to figures out discretionary spending levels for basically the entire federal government. that responsibility making some republicans the target of attacks from the far right. several lawmakers are already coming under fire from tea party groups and two republican appropriators in the house announced their retirement earlier this week. congressman jack kingston who was running for senate and currently the chairman of house appropriations subcommittee acknowledges the challenge saying it's tough to be in office today and run for either re-election or another slot because the safest bet is not to vote on anything. anytime you vote, there is a plus and a minus to it and the

gallery is full of critics with a vested interest. end quote. americans without health coverage appear to be more reluctant than the white house originally thought when it comes to embracing obamacare. a "new york times" cbs news poll finds 53% of those without coverage it is approve of the health care law. that's slightly higher than the 51% who have insurance. the poll also finds that then u. uninsured have mixed feelings about the benefits of obamacare. 33% say the law whether help them, 37% say it will hurt them. but 56% of uninsured americans say they are unlikely to get coverage before the march 31 deadline. yesterday senator john mccain provided his own alternative to oba obamacare. but harry reid tells the hill he believes obamacare will be a net positive for democrats running in 2014. the website has gotten

significantly better since that disastrous launch. a new movie trailer getting a lot of attention in the political circle this morning. a filmmaker spent six years behind the scenes with mitt romney during two unsuccessful campaigns for the white house. here is just a little piece of that trailer. >> how did you feel on the stage? >> i was tying. sglild not want to do this again. it's too much. >> they become a loser for life, all right? it's over. >> like trying to convince people that dan quayle is smart, all right? you're not going to convince them that dan quayle is smart. oh, you flip on everything. in which case i think i'm a flawed candidate. >> the film called mitt will begin streaming on netflix january 24th. senator max baucus expected to become the next ambassador to china. the six term senator from montana not seeking another term and the move comes at a critical time in chinese american relations. we have growing disputes oir air

right, trade, dueling economies and domestic political implications here, as well. the senate battle for his seat expected to be a tough fight. montana's governor likely to appoint the lieutenant governor to fill that seat. the appointment could give him a boost in the upcoming election against republican frontrunner congressman steve dades. john kerry has apologized to india's national security adviser after a top diplomat was arrested and strip searched in new york. the diplomat was taken into custody while dropping her daughter off at school. she's accused of submitting fake documents to get her indian housekeeper a work visa. she reportedly paid the worker just $3 an hour. u.s. marshals call the strip search standard procedure. and this video you're looking at right there, india responded right away to the arrest, they removed barriers from outside the u.s. embassy in new delhi and those barriers help protect from suicide bombing attacks. india also stripped u.s.

diplomats of perks like the ability to get alcohol and food at the embassy and vip access at airports. one of the stars of the hit show duck dynasty has been taken off the indefinitely after what he said in an interview with gq magazine. in the piece, phil robertson reflects on the bible and what he describes as sin that is becoming mainstream in american society. he says in part, quote, start with homosexual be hair and just morph out from there, bestiality, sleeping around with that woman and that woman and those men. he paraphrases a section of corinthians, don't be deceived, neither theed a dull terers, male prostitutes, the slanders, they won't inherit the kingdom of god. don't deceive yourself. it's not right. a and e says it's disappointed and that his views do not the reflect the network or the show's. we've talked lot about pope

francis' popularity, right? there is statistical proof of it. more than 2 million people have flocked to his events in st. peters square since his election in march. that is four times the number that pope benedict drew for all of 2012. fl his message has refreshed appeal for the church which had seen numbers waning even in countries known to represent its most dedicated supporters. so some amazing statistics from the pope there. in california, the store owner who sold one of the winning tickets received $1 million reward for that transaction. so yesterday a reporter was eager to break that news to the georgia store owner who sold the other winning ticket that she would receive a similar prize. >> you know by selling the winning ticket, there is also prize money for you? >> i don't know how much. $25,000. >> let me just tell you, it's a lot more than $25,000. >> it is? >> it is about $1 million that

you get. >> oh, my gosh. i never had that much money. >> life changing moment, but unfortunately eats not true. georgia lottery rules do not the have a retail payout meaning there is no bonus prize for selling the winning tickets in that state. two birthdays freaked us out here at "way too early". brad pitt is 50. keith richards, 70. i don't know which one is more shocking. some are amazed keith richards is still breathing. what is more shocking to you, that brad pitt is 50 or keith richards is 70? #way too old. we'll have the best answers later in the program. still ahead, the latest rankings are out, but could texas hold on to the top spot of most valuable college football teams despite

an all the coaching mess. and jon stewart kaut wind of the incredible case of fraud at the epa. why his favorite part of the scam involves a handicapped parking spot. is it has been a day of history books. though historians may not look kindly on what transpired behind me here today. william jefferson clinton is now the first elected clinton to be impeached by the house, second president in all of history. ♪

[ female announcer ] let betty do the measuring and get a head start on delicious homemade cookies. visit bettycrockercookies.com for fun holiday ideas. betty crocker cookie mix. just pour, mix...love. [ female announcer ] just about anywhere you use sugar, you can use splenda® no calorie sweetener.

splenda® lets you experience the joy of sugar without all the calories. think sugar, say splenda™ ♪ through 12 ice storms brewing ♪ ♪ 10 straight days raining ♪ 9 hailstorms pounding ♪ 5 mysteriously heavy holiday fruitcakes ♪ ♪ 4 actual tree houses ♪ 3 blackouts ♪ 2 weird to mention ♪ and a roaming horde of carolers ♪ ♪ with my exact same route [ female announcer ] no one delivers the holidays like the u.s. postal service. priority mail flat rate is more reliable than ever. and with improved tracking up to 11 scans you can even watch us get it there. and look for our limited edition holiday stamps. time for sports. we start in miami. heat and pacers. lebron in foul trouble, but he got warmed up.

final minute, lebron finds ray allen. just happens to be the best three point shooter in the history of the game. paul george had a chance. he'll miss the jumper. thought he was fouled. heat beat the pacers 97-94. they are a game behind indiana for the top seed in the east. countdown to the super bowl at 44 days. as kickoff getting closer, the new jersey snow contingency plan is coming to light. super bowl organizers say they will double the amount of workers available at met life stadium to help keep any snowy weather from interfering with the first cold outdoor weather super bowl in history. >> odds are it won't snow. it snows that the stadium maybe like two or three times a month. >> you're making that claim now that at the end of january you might not get a snowy day? >> i'm betting it won't snow. it's on record. everybody is making a big deal

about nothing. >> a website set it up where they're basically tracking where whether it the going to snow on super bowl sunday. let's go college football. texas longhorns may not the have a coach, but they do have a lot of value. forbes is reporting the football program is worth $149 million, nearly 20% more than any other team in the country. they have been the most valuable since 2009. they lead all schools in merchandise sales and the only one with its own tv deal. as far as the rest of the top five, notre dame, alabama, lsu and michigan. so how does forbes come up with these numbers? >> where is ohio state? how can ohio state not be on the list? >> they're not on the rest. top ten, but not the top five. magazine says they consider each team's value to the athletic department, it university's academic endeavors and its conference and school's local economy. so that's the whole picture. >> i think it's arbitrary.

>> it's not an exact science if you will. so you were illinois' college basketball coach hinson had a lot to say about his team and his wife. >> when you have a young team, it's a lot like house training a puppy dog. when your dog does something wrong, bad dog. well, i'm not going to hit them, i won't swat them, but -- bad dog. get on the treadmill. i think rebounding, size doesn't matter. and i really think when it comes to -- i just think it's heart and effort. >> size doesn't matter. >> "saturday night live" will have a field day. >> i covered sports and i coached college and high school sports. one thing you didn't use in that bite is that he called out a kid by name. when it comes to the college game, even though it's kind of a pro sport these day, you really don't want to -- that's the one

thing he said he regrets. he said he wished he hadn't called the kid out by name. what's going on? >> snow melting. >> i'm so mad about this. i bought my lift tickets in vermont. >> it will be cold, but just won't be good fresh snow like there is now. let me show you what is happening because we're doing a flip-flop. now the east is warm up and then we're getting colder in the midwest. that's where it had been warm. so where this will be a whiplash type week around here. as far as new york city goes, we go he frfrom 44 today to 71 on sunday. and then the temperatures start to tank. monday, 51. tuesday we'll be lucky to be 32 degrees. so we're litter l eerally going then down and a lot of snow melt. today snowing in salt lake city, it will go across south dakota, a little for minneapolis. not a lot. just enough to be a minor inconvenience. all the warmth is still down in

dallas and it will move through the southeast. chicago, if i had to pick one city that will be a really difficult traveling in upcoming weekend, could yyou could have g rain to snow. and remember i told you the cold air is coming? that 11 in chicago, that is the cold air that will come your way into new england tuesday. >> sunny is so deceptive. thanks very much. coming up on "morning joe," hillary clinton reveals her plan for 2016 to barbara walter. the moment you need to hear. and when we come back here, we huddle around the cooler. could it really be the end for justin bieber's singing career? ♪ ♪ [ female announcer ] may your holidays be merry and bright. merry pringles.

afghanistan in 2009. on the u.s.s. saratoga in 1982. [ male announcer ] once it's earned, usaa auto insurance is often handed down from generation to generation because it offers a superior level of protection and because usaa's commitment to serve current and former military members and their families is without equal. begin your legacy. get an auto insurance quote. usaa. we know what it means to serve. ♪ ♪

at the top of the show we talked about the federal reserve's plan to end the bond buying program by the end of 2014. if you want to sound smart today, tell your friends withholdings of almost $4.5 trillion worth of bonds, loans and other assets, the fed's total holdings are six times what they were when the financial crisis started back in 2008. let's put aside the news and go to mr. louis with the cooler. >> say it ain't show. a shocking revelation from justin bieber yesterday. >> the new album, what's up with

the new album? >> the new album, i'm actually retiring, man. i'm retiring. >> i'm glad you announced that. i'm not going to play nothing else but that. >> i'm retiring. i'm just going to take some time. i think i'm probably going for quick music. >> he looks pretty serious there. the internet totally freaked out. tmz says bieber confirmed he was just kidding. at least they hope so. although it didn't look like way. so i hope for the fans that was just a joke. let's head to the late night and talk a little customer service. many say it's getting worse and worse. and stephen colbert may have found out why. >> according to the acsi, this year's top customer satisfier was mercedes-benz, the cadillac of cars. so congratulations on the extra effort, mercedes, which of course was a complete waste because bloomberg business week

crunched the data comparing the satisfaction rankings with each company's stock price. and found that customer service scores have no relevance to stock market returns. the most hated companies perform better. and you are your cop tempt really truly doesn't matter. if anything, it might hurt company profits to spend money making customers happy. that's right, folks. the free market has spoken and it said [ bleep ] you. >> now let's go over to jon stewart who loves government waste if sprinkle a little case of fraud in there. >> this is the case of john beal who was the highest paid epa official there is and one of its top experts in climate change who has now admitted through his lawyer that he did absolutely no work for years by telling his bosses he was doing undercover work for the cia, it turns out he had no affiliation with the cia whatsoever.

how far will this man go to get how little? >> beale got a coveted parking space by representing that he had malaria. >> malaria! malaria! he has told people he has malaria so that he may park closer to the job he does not show up at. >> i think i have made layer ma. i need to park outside. >> thanks very much, louis. brad pitt is 50, keith richards is 70. we'll have your tweets, texts, e-mails and more th"morning joe moments away. ♪ i want to spread a little love this year ♪ [ male announcer ] this december, experience the gift of unsurpassed craftsmanship and some of the best offers of the year

at the lexus december to remember sales event. this is the pursuit of perfection. at the lexus december to remember sales event. if hey breathing's hard.me, know the feeling? copd includes emphysema and chronic bronchitis. spiriva is a once-daily inhaled copd maintenance treatment that helps open my obstructed airways for a full 24 hours. spiriva helps me breathe easier. spiriva handihaler tiotropium bromide inhalation powder does not replace fast-acting inhalers for sudden symptoms. tell your doctor if you have kidney problems, glaucoma, trouble urinating, or an enlarged prostate. these may worsen with spiriva. discuss all medicines you take, even eye drops. stop taking spiriva and seek immediate medical help if your breathing suddenly worsens, your throat or tongue swells, you get hives, vision changes or eye pain, or problems passing urine. other side effects include dry mouth and constipation. nothing can reverse copd. spiriva helps me breathe better.

does breathing with copd weigh you down? don't wait to ask your doctor about spiriva. peoi go to angie's listt for all kinds of reasons. to gauge whether or not the projects will be done in a timely fashion and within budget. angie's list members can tell you which provider is the best in town. you'll find reviews on everything from home repair to healthcare. now that we're expecting, i like the fact i can go onto angie's list and look for pediatricians. the service providers that i've found on angie's list actually have blown me away.

find out why more than two million members count on angie's list. angie's list -- reviews you can trust. [ male announcer ] the rhythm of life. [ whistle blowing ] where do you hear that beat? campbell's healthy request soup lets you hear it in your heart. [ basketball bouncing ] heart healthy. [ m'm... ] great taste. [ tapping ] sounds good. campbell's healthy request. m'm! m'm! good.® brad pitt is 50, skookeith richards is 70. natalie, what have you got? >> one of our viewers says it has to be keith richards, he's

around 490 in rock years. >> most are shocked that he's even breathing. >> and joseph says if i'd known i'd have lived this long, would i have taken better care of himself. >> and laura says seems like brad pitt yesterday was a walk board ad seducie ining gina dav. you're welcome. "morning joe" starts right now. ♪ if i look at my friends and former colleagues who are now in the senate, it was the women senators on both sides of the aisle who finally broke the fever over the government shutdown and the debt limit debate. they have been working across party lines. and we need more of that. >> i listen to you and i think you have to run. >> this is the way i talked to