like consugar. >> right now on "andrea mitchell reports," bracing for impact. a major storm takes aim at 100 million people from the midwest to the east coast. blizzard-like conditions, heavy snow, high winds and extreme freezing temperatures. already creating dangerous conditions on the roads. we will bring you the very latest forecast the travel delays, and storm preps. health care roller coaster. wild ride continues for the affordable care act. signed into law nearly four years ago. as of wednesday in full effect for nearly 2 million people. now there is another wrench thrown into the rollout. 11th hour decision by supreme court justice sonia sotomayor. antarctic mission accomplished. 52 passengers on the australian ship locked in ice and stranded since christmas finally hitching a ride home this morning.

>> helicopter to take us home! >> thanks, everyone! ♪ ♪ good day. i'm andrea mitchell. happy new year to all of you. not such a happy new year for a lot of people facing this winter blast. the midwest and northeast bracing for the first major snowstorm of the new year. expected to be a big one. more than 100 million people could be affected with substantial snow accumulations in the forecast and dangerously frigid temperatures to follow. joining me now is the director of the national weather service and assistant administrator of noaa. let's talk about what we are expecting. first of all, what the dimension

dimensions of the forecast is for the northeast. >> it is developing into a rather large system. it is coming in two phases. we have a band of heavy snows that have come out ohio valley working up in towards new england. even as we speak. and so some areas of new york have already seen four six, seven inches of snow. and now we expect a development tonight that will zoom in on the coastal areas to the major cities. >> which cities? we are talking about washington could get graced with this. it is philadelphia and north baltimore. >> the area around washington and philadelphia couple of inches four inches in baltimore and points north. but it is when you get between philadelphia and new york city and then especially up towards boston, you should see some very heavy snows approaching a foot of snow. as you noted very strong winds as they kick in tonight, will make for blizzard conditions. especially on long island and

into southeast new england. >> travel is a nightmare. also people are being told that you have got to start shoveling yourself out in the middle of the storm because it is going to become so cold and the winds will be so high. >> this is one of the dangerous aspects of this particular storm is that it is going to get very cold. even as the snow is falling. tonight and into tomorrow new york city long island southeast new england will sigh cold temperatures that they haven't seen in a couple of years. people have to brace themselves for that. >> the other thing that i was hearing is that some of the preparations put on the roads are not as useful in some kinds of snow. >> that's correct. so -- as cold -- as the temperature gets the less effective the pre-measures are and the salt that's put down on the roads while it is snowing and it is less effective. people will have to account for this fact that this particular storm, that it is going to be a very cold event and this adds to

the danger especially tonight into early tomorrow morning along the coastal zone and up towards boston will be particularly hard hit in that regard. >> with the snow this high this deep potentially, and the temperatures so sub-zero for large part of the northeast, also already in the midwest is suffering this we will -- will train travel other mass transit be affected? we know the roads and obviously air travel is going to be affect. >> air travel -- airlines take preemptive measures with respect to scheduling their flights. they have canceled a number of flights and allows them to recover a lot faster and this is particularly impactful in the northeast and in towards the midwest where mostly air traffic or a lot of air traffic originates. that's a problem. rail traffic will do likewise. that shouldn't be as impacted as the air traffic.

>> thanks very much. thanks for the update and we hope it is not as bad as forecast. those people in the affected areas it will be a tough couple of days. for more on this impending storm, sarah is in new york city. >> it is the calm before the storm here as crews work to get ahead of the snow. we have seen about 300 salt spreaders head out on the streets. we have about a thousand snow plows on standby. residents are going to the store and snapping up snow shovels, food and water and everyone taking the storm very very seriously. officials say that if you don't have to go outside, you don't have to travel on the roads, don't. stay inside. they say that if you absolutely must be sure to stock your car with essentials flashlight food water, extra clothing, just in case you get stuck overnight. we didn't see that last february when the fast-moving blizzard slammed into this area and people were stranded overnight

in their cars. always plan for that possibility. now, currently up here we are seeing weather from illinois out to here down to georgia, just a lot of states 22 to be exact, being affected by this bad weather. here in new york we are expecting to see about 5 to 8 inches of snow. could be several days before people get -- people are able to dig their way out and things return to normal. for now, the word is that just stay prepared and stay indoors if you can. andrea, back to you. >> good advice from you. thanks. just before she became the first supreme court justice to ceremonially drop the glittering ball in times square sonia sotomayor dropped a key ball. she granted a last-ditch plea from several elitist groups blocking a birth control mandate in the new health care play. it happen ad few hours before the law went into effect. the justice department has until friday to respond. joining me is tommy goldstein.

number of cases coming up this winter. but first of all, what -- tell us more about what sonia sotomayor did on new year's eve. >> sure thing. this is the most exciting period of time as we go into the second half of the supreme court's term. will is a big fight in the affordable care act over what kinds of organizations can be subject to the mandate that there be coverage for, contraception. what you do with religious organizations there is obviously an incredibly difficult question. the administration has carved out churches justices are going to hear a case about for-profit companies that are run according to religious principles and this kind of case that was dealt with by justice sotomayor, she put in place a stay for non-profit religious organizations that aren't churches. there is going to be a dispute over the course of a year probably over exactly how many kinds of organizations can be required to provide contraception care in insurance. >> when in fact in this case the sisters, nuns who filed the

complaint, they filed this appeal because they said that it would be back breaking for them to try to provide these -- this coverage for the few employees and they care for 65 elderly people. >> right. i mean, everybody agrees that they face a real moral dilemma and that is can they really say that they want contraception care if they believe that that is against their religious teachings. on the other hand, people generally do want to be able to have comprehensive care and there is a general recognition that health insurance should be included the o in these sorts of things. it is not clear where the courts will come down. >> the decision in march -- where that -- rather the argument in march over the for-profits demanding the same exception will not really cover this. so this will just be held her stay will hold or could the entire court overrule justice sotomayor's stay? >> i think it is unlikely the courts will do very much with this question until that case that's -- argued in march that you described about the for-profit companies. after that i think the justices will probably allow the lower

courts to think more about different kinds of religious organizations, who it is that gets an exemption from contraception care. >> what are some of the other arguments we are going to hear? they have big issues this spring. >> a big fight coming up in a few weeks over the president as power to make temporary appointments without a vote by the senate result of an obstruction in the stat by both parties. both parties trying to make appointments. a big argument about abortion protesters and how far it is that a state can keep protesters away from a facility. and also a big case on the future of public employee unions when it is that nonmembers can be required to make a payment to pay for collective bargaining activity. >> what about the utah december identification gay marriage? >> i do think we will probably -- we are still a year away on getting a december identification gay marriages. you will see a lot of cases percolate up to the justices where a state asks for a stay maybe if a lower court ruling which is what happened in utah.

a court recognized a constitutional right to gay charge and the state is saying wait, wait wait. don't put that into effect until we have a chance to take our appeal. but it will be probably another 12 months or so before the justices themselves hear an argument and issue a decision on whether that basic constitutional right exist. >> in this period could they for instance, grant a stay in utah putting in jeopardy those people who have gotten married in the interim? >> there is going to be a very difficult period of transition whether it is someone -- you are someone that believes that these marriages shouldn't be recognized or if you believes the a core principle of equality that these couples should be able to get married as well. i think that there's going to be uncertainty for a while. >> tom goldstein, that's why we love talking to you. you explain it all. >> thanks for having me. the weeklong saga for the 52 passengers trapped in that ship in antarctica is finally over. they are on their way home after a chinese helicopter came to their rescue this morning. the vessel was a on a scientific

mission when it sent a distress call on christmas morning after it was surrounded by sea ice. efforts to reach the stranded ship over the past week all failed. but today a helicopter from a chinese ice breaker was able to land nearby after the passengers stomped out of makeshift landing pad on the ice. 22 crew members will remain with the ship and we will wait for that sea ice to break. ♪ ♪ [ male announcer ] this man has an accomplished research and analytical group at his disposal.

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the supreme court's temporary injunction reignited the controversy over one of the most contested components of the new health care law. pitting some religious advocates, as we have been saying against women's rights organizations. joining me from new york is president of planned parenting federation of america. happy new year to you, cess eel. good to see. >> did you good to see you, too. >> this was a new year's

surprise from sonia sotomayor. >> there were huge religious exemptions already. i think that the court is just looking at one very specific relatively small area which is how religiously affiliated organizations are exempt and claim their exemption. the bigger question i'm glad it was talked about earlier, is the big case before the supreme court this spring which is over a much different issue. which is whether or not for-profit companies can in fact, because of the beliefs of their ceo refuse to provide birth control coverage of thousands of women in this country. so i think that it is important we don't mix these two up because they are very very different questions. >> there are certainly large numbers of women who will be affected during the stay. is there anything that planned parenthood or other advocates can do from women's rights and women's rights to contraception? >> well, i think -- >> pending a decision or an argument.

>> sure. there the beginning what planned parent hood has been focused on is making sure women's health care is covered by the affordable care act. as you know 99% of women in this country use birth control in this country. this is a health care issue and an economic issue. we have been very focused and very focused in talking about this because, again, the supreme court is going to have to decide whether or not for-profit companies, multimillion dollar companies, can decide they want to not actually provide birth control coverage to their employees and i think for women and who are working, you know minimum wages, hourly workers, this is a big issue. the good news is millions of women are already benefitting and we get new stories every day from planned parent hood saying i have no co-pay for my birth control coverage and allowing me to put my money towards my kids and rent and food. that's what should happen. >> i want to share with you a comment after the justice's stay order. he said the obama administration's hhs mandate is

an egregious and blatant violation of the religious freedom. i applaud justice sotomayor's move to block this onerous government overreach. >> this is a specific question judge sotomayor is asking the court to look at. i understand that. already, it is important that he is misrepresenting it. hundreds of thousands of religious institutions are exempt from providing birth control. is women's health care going to be dealt with equally as other health care. for women birth control, it is basic preventative care. it is an economic issue. it is a health care issue. it is what is allowed women to be in the work force and raise their families. >> do you think that the march case that tom goldstein was talking about, which is going to be argued before the supreme court is this the most important part? is that what you are saying? for-profits. you don't want to get into a political argument with the

little sisters of the poor. >> yeah. look, the big question is -- can a large for-profit company like hobby lob write, which brought the law sxut the case will be before the supreme court because of the ceo's personal objections to birth control, can he decide to deny birth control coverage for thousands of his employees? that to me is a question of what is fair? it is -- women -- at hobby lobby or other for-profit companies should be treated like all other women in america and make sure they can get the same health care benefits across the country no matter where they work. that's what we are standing for at planned parenthood. >> cecile richards thanks zblech good to see. >> did you happy new year. >> the same to you 37. from the first lady and the pope all the way to outer space p. 2013 was the year of the selfie. and on christmas day, prince william got into the act. even helping out a 12-year-old fan among well-wishers outside

of the royal's private church. madison lamb said according to the bbc, when she asked the duke of cambridge for a photo, the prince replied, quote, you can't beat a good selfie on christmas day. the girl was so nervous prince william had to snap the picture of the two of them. the photo has gone viral after she posted it on facebook. ♪ [ chainsaw whirring ] humans -- sometimes life trips us up. sometimes we trip ourselves up.

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deblasio. a moat towards mike bloomberg. the new mayor's inaugural address. now comes the cold reality as mayor deblasio pace as challenge of managing the big city during a severe snowstorm about to hit. joining me is chris,"washington post" political reporter omoti and kate taylor. welcome, all. first to you, kate taylor. we are talking about new york and bill deblasio's speech perhaps predictable in that it was strong progressive message. but hardly graceful towards the outgoing mayor. >> yeah. he is getting some criticism for how harsh the proceedings were in general towards the mayor. and it actually fell to former president clinton to say first nice words about bloomberg and about an hour into the ceremony when he said that bloomberg had really devoted a lot of his life to the city and the city was -- leaving eight lot stronger than when he had come. and afterwards deblasio said a

few nice words. it was very striking. harry belafonte tee and the new public advocate la tear a james described the city as very divided. and a chaplain for the sanitation department actually referred to new york city as a plantation. so there were very harsh words and through all of them mayor bloomberg sat there rather stone-faced, as you can imagine. >> chris, what does it foretell for the clintons and their connection to deblasio and this sort of split in the party between the progressive wing and the party and centrist democrats? >> right. i mean -- i think kate is exactly right in her analysis of the speech. i would say it is the speech that many democrats hope barack obama would give some version of after he was elected in wait. i think deblasio is in some way it is liberal that liberals thought they were getting with barack obama and have been somewhat disappointed. i think that's somewhat -- the base of whichever party the president comes from inevitably disappointed by what that person does or does not do while in

office. but you are right. there is this -- pop list many on the left and the right, i would say. but certainly on the left that deblasio, elizabeth warren these folks tap into in a way hillary clinton does not nature sxlif she knows that and this is an attempt to align herself with that movement even though it is not of her her whole life. >> that was a very public embrace from both clintons. >> it is but, you know it is sort of interesting. i think all of us were just as carefully watching the clinton who wasn't speaking because hillary clinton, if she does decide to run, is really going to have to identify herself within the context of the democratic party of 2014 and beyond. that she is not her husband's kind of democrat or even necessarily a continuation of the obama years. because the party is just in a very different place than it was when her husband was president.

>> kate there is no question in a lot of people's minds that she is doing everything building all of the stepping stones if you will, that she can then traverse to run. will is no real mystery about it. barring some unexpected event. >> yeah. i think as both chris and karen said, it was really significant for the clintons decided to be there for this inauguration. it is really -- strategic for them to align themselves with this new progressive wing of the party and, obviously, as clinton's remarks and paying tribute to bloomberg showed and she going to have a tricky path to row in terms of you know trying avoid a challenge from the left and bring along new progressives but also, you know clintons have always believed very strongly in being electable. and -- you know having to sort of be somewhat moderate in that sense. >> turning to the president's next agenda unemployment

compensation expiring for more than a million americans. long-term unemployed. that is a big political issue. it is an election year issue as well as minimum wage. >> yeah. i was going to say, i would think of unemployment insurance extension in the minimum wage pushes to two pieces of the same poll. i think that democrats recognize, particularly as it relates to the mid-term elections, tend to be base turnout affairs where your strongest supporters turn out and turn the tide. republicans have obamacare. it is in their back pocket. that's something that energizes their base and in a way no other issue does. i think what democrats are looking for, aside from the policy considerations, that are significant, from a political perspective, they are looking for something that matches that same enthusiasm within their base raising the minimum wage and extending unemployment insurance, that the -- the themes deblasio hit which is inequality is a crisis. he compared to it terrorism and

natural disasters that hit new york city. raising the stakes, i think, is what democrats are rag to do. mostly to send a message to the base had a they need to go this november. >> "the new york times" raised the stakes today by editorializing the major lead editorial that there should be clemency or amnesty for some sort of plea-bargain arrangement for edward snowden, he had done a service and not the traitor he has been described by many of thinks critics. will that have any influence on the white house? >> i doubt it. all show now it will be interesting to see in this next phase what edward snowden does. it was a pretty you know truculent christmas message from him. it would be interesting to see if over the -- coming months he -- he speaks about, you know what he likes about america and especially in the comparison he is taking asylum. >> thank you very much. good to see you, kate.

as we begin the new year yes, it is an election year we asked this question on our facebook page. what do you want to see president obama and congress accomplish in 2014? just a few of our response society far. larry said do something about income inequality. keith wants to see a massive public works bill to rebuild our country's infrastructure and pam says common sense government reform to protect our children and communities. you can join the conversation on the andrea mitchell's report facebook page. offs begins with arthritis pain... and a choice. take up to 6 tylenol in a day or just 2 aleve for all day relief. all aboard. ♪ ♪

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kind? you need a bunch of those to clean this mess. then i'll use a bunch of them. then how is that a bargain? [ sighs ] no that's too many -- it's not gonna fit! whoa! cascade kitchen and math counselor. here's a solution. one pac of cascade complete cleans tough food better than six pacs of the bargain brand combined. so you can tackle tough messes the first time. that is more like it. how are you with taxes? [ laughs ] [ counselor ] and for even more cleaning power, try cascade platinum. president obama is expected to make inequality a key issue this year. could start with more than 1 million americans that lost their long-term insurance at the start of the new year. $25 billion item left out of that short-term budget deal. gene sperling joins me now. from the warmth of the white

house briefing room. i'm glad you are not out on the lawn. thanks for joining us. >> that makes would of us. >> yes indeed. happy new year. >> thank you. >> what do you say to the 1 million people who were just left out of that negotiating deal? the white house and the democrats and the republicans came up with a short-term small budget. but what about long-term uninsured -- unemployment benefits? >> it is very difficult to know what to say to those americans. you are right. this is a time between christmas and new year's it is a time of community and where we look out for our neighbors and 1.3 million americans and their families who are still out there working hard. looking for jobs. and it is very unfortunate that we allow there in the united states congress allows their benefits, unemployment benefits to get cut off. that very week between christmas and new year's. we can analyze why that happened.

but the most important thing is to do something about it. so i think that -- we feel that if we want a good new year's resolution, let's make the first new piece of legislation extending that emergency long-term unemployment benefit for those 1.3 million americans and their families. unfortunately just as we left there's a bipartisan proposal to do just that from republican senator heller from nevada and democratic senator reid from rhode island. they said let's extend this for lee months and will take care of those 1.3 million americans and another 700,000, 800,000 from losing their benefits from february and march and give us more time to figure out a solution for all of 2014. you are right in the best of all worlds, would have been done as part of the budget agreement. >> suppose the dean heller plan hits the senate floor on monday. that's a three-month extension. what about the prospects in the house?

are you negotiating with john boehner and others to see whether it can also make its way through the house? >> well, you know, first of all, the president very much compliments senator leader reid for putting it up for vote on the first day back on monday. we heard from the house republican speaker was, you know, what is your plan? and we said we have a plan. let's extend this for 2014 and at the existing levels and they clearly weren't satisfied with that plan. now there is a bipartisan plan in the senate and it is a three-month solution. i does not take care of all of 2014. now we have that solution and i think that our view is let's pass that. we have something in front of us if we move quickly and we can prevent a lot of hardship. we can prevent a lot of these families from going through a gap. people are not getting rich on this. you know that. this is maybe -- $200 $300 a week. this is the base of support people use for their families. this is very important.

would things. one, people are only eligible for it if they are actively looking for a job. secondly, this emergency unemployment benefit naturally tapers off or designed to taper off as the economy gets better. as the unemployment rate in your state goes down then less people are eligible. this is there for the places and across the country right now and where there's a real almost historic problem with long-term unemployment. this is the least we can do and the most we can do is create more jobs in 2014 and have more compromises and things like the president said combining a corporate tax reform that lowers tax rates with an infrastructure bill. that's the type of grand bargaining on jobs we do more in the long term to create more jobs of -- help more of the long-term employed have place to go. >> is there a deal to be made on minimum wage? increasing minimum wage? something around $10 an hour. there seems to be republican and democratic support for that. >> you know i do believe that.

i think that there has been a resistance on the republican side but i think what happens is the more people go home and they see people who are hard-working americans, maybe they lost a job and are looking for a new job or they are working at the minimum wage, and they can barely support their family people start sewing this is not a pill soft kalish u. this is about smart economics and it is about our values and it is about saying to everyone in our country, you work full time and you should be able to raise your family and your children with a degree of dignity. i think traditionally you have seen democrats and republican presidents and democratic and republican members of congress come together. there has been a resistance so far. i think that the hark and miller bill, dla 10.10 staged over a few years is reasonable. without it do a lot more a lot of families who are working hard. these are people who are working and are having a lot of trouble making ends meet. >> gene sperling thank you very much. happy new year to you. >> happy new year to you.

we have an update on the health of former first lady barbara bush. the 88-year-old wife of former president george h.w. bush and the bush family matriarch, was admitted to a houston hospital on monday. she is being treated for a respiratory related issue. the bush family spokesperson wheated this today. mrs. bush is still doing great and is still at methodist hospital and is keen to get home to her dogs and her husband. she is in good spirits and visited by her husband and other family members. on wednesday, president obama released this statement while vacationing in hawaii. michelle and i send our best wishes to mrs. bush for a speedy recovery. barbara blessed to have both a loving supportive family by her side and a vibrant spirit that we hope will have her feelings better soon. we add our thoughts and prayers for mrs. bush and her family. the best to all. she keeps you on your toes. you wouldn't have it any other way.

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let me begin by saying to the people of israel that our thoughts, my thoughts are with the sharon family as they sit in vigil with the former prime minister of israel, ariel sharon. we remember his contributions, sacrifices he made tone the survival of the well-being of this world. >> secretary kerry in israel today reacting to the news that ariel sharon former prime minister is near death from kidney failure. the former israel write ad joining me now is msnbc analyst and diplomacy analyst dennis ross who oversaw these negotiations under so many presidents. and i know have you taken a deep look at all of this. we are at a critical stage where the palestinians are threatening

to walk out or go to the u.n. and break this agreement for a truce. >> right. >> if netanyahu proceed was plans for settlements. and we are told that he is going to proceed with these plans for settlement as soon as kerry leaves town out of deference to him not doing it immediately. perhaps linked to the prisoner release which is controversial so he is quieting the criticism. so how long can this tit for tat go on? at least keep these negotiations in play? >> would issues to keep in mind. one, you are right. with the deal that resumed the negotiations last summer was a deal in which the israelis agreed to release these prisoners, these are prisoners held prayer to the time of the oslo agreement in 1993. no israeli prime minister between 1993 and today have been prepared to release these -- >> it is a big step. >> it is a big step to do it. number one. in return the palestinians said

we will not go for nine months to see if negotiations works, will not go to u.n. or agencies for nine months. if they were at this point to walk away, i think that it would be breaking the deal they had done with secretary kerry. if what he is working on promises the palestinians and for that matter israelis enough of a possibility of a breakthrough whatever the palestinians say they will not walk away, do you walk away to take us to dash symbolic step when you have a chance for a breakthrough? i don't think go is it a breakthrough? we are told that they are hoping to achieve with martin your former colleague, who is now the chief negotiator hoping to achieve an axwraemt on a framework. to boil it down is it so much gob can gobbly gobblygook what they had in 2000? >> what would be different is if this represented a picture of

where you end up on each of the core issues if you have a vision of what the boarders are going to look like, what security is going to look like, what jerusalem will look like what refugees are going to look like -- >> it is more specific. you filled in the map. >> it is -- lit still be general in the sense you are basically getting guidelines for how to resolve each of the issues but still have to fill in the details. if you have a vision of how it ends up that's different than what you had before. when we put on the table was proposal how you end the conflict. in the end arafat did not accept. >> it in the end, yasser arafat did not accept it because he felt he was out on a limb and the arab leaders, mubarak and others, wouldn't -- he was afraid literally afraid to go back with his agreement without the sponsorship of the big powers. at the same time, if it is so hard to even get to a framework, how do you get to a final agreement by april which is the -- stated goal? >> i think if you get an agreement you don't get a final agreement. basically you probably have a new timeline. what this would represent would

be all right, look we have negotiations and negotiations have now produced a vision for how the conflict can end and even though the details of how you actually produce a treaty require as lot more time to produce. >> isn't that -- netanyahu today, though raising new issues about the palestinians? >> six months since the start of the peace negotiations the palestinian authority continues its unabated -- against the state of israel. the palestinians' government is granted, instead of preparing the palestinians for peace, palestinian leaders are teaching them this is not the way to achieve peace. president abbas must lead his people away from terror towards reconciliation and peace. >> is this rhetorical? is this a bum in the road?

>> well i think if you are going to get to a breakthrough you should not be surprised and before you get to a breakthrough you are going to have a sense that there are all sorts of problems. problems may be real and the problems could preclude a breakthrough at this point. you know, i don't know if we are on the brink of a breakthrough or not. i know that secretary kerry is exerting an he normous amount of energy to -- >> fairly remarkable. this is his tenth visit and is -- invested so much time and real commitment to this. >> i think if he didn't think he had a chance to do it you wouldn't see him making the effort. he clearly believes he has a chance to do it. again, even if what you are doing is providing guidelines for how to settle that's core issues that's a big leap for what it is to take. they are going to want to know that the other one is really prepared to take these steps and to -- in a sense take on this. that's what holds us back. if this was a technical set of questions we would have resolved this a long time ago. each leader carries the weight

of the history on their shoulders. i think that gets more and more heavy the closer you get to the possibility of making big decisions. >> to be continued. for decades and generations. we hope sooner than that. thank you. they were called wasps, women air force service pilots. they could also be called american hear owes. for their role as aviators. they were honored with their own float on new year's day. one sat down with our reporter to share her remarkable story. >> the rose parade in pasadena california, is a long ways away from the farm eloise grew during the great depression where she first told her father she wanted to fly like the soaring birds in the sky. >> he would always shake his head and says that's not something women usually do. but if you can figure out how, more power to you. >> her dream became a reality during world war ii when male pilots were called combat overseas leaving women to fill

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well brace yourself. the next 24 hours are going to be very cold and snowy for millions of americans in the midwest and across the northeast. winter weather advisories have now been issued for 22 states. the weather channel's mike seidel is in boston, where it has been snowing for the last 12 hours. mike, you look so cold. tell us what to expect. >> reporter: if i look cold now, andrea, tomorrow morning, you won't want to see me. we're sitting at 24 degrees. we've had three inches of snow so far. it's snowing lightly. this is really not the storm. it's well down off the coast, off the mid atlantic. the moisture is still down through the southeast and the carolinas. the wind is going to be a big issue here. then the heavy snow comes in mid-evening until tomorrow morning. that's where we're it's going to snow one to two inches an hour

with 45-mile-an-hour wind gusts. a blizzard warning for the south shore, cape cod, and long island. the wind will be a big factor not that it's not going to be a big factor here. for a blizzard, you have to have three consecutive hours, and one of the criteria is sustained wind of 35 miles an hour or higher. now, they still may issue a blizzard warning for the boston metro area. downtown, well down here at the hotel, andrea, they've got these spinning brushes, and their task is to take every flight as it comes down. they'll stay here until the last flake falls tomorrow. that's why there's snow still on the sidewalks here at the hotel. big issues already for travel. boston's logan airport, the airlines will suspend operations around 8:00 or 8:30 this evening. that will put the kibosh on getting in and out. they expect those airlines to ramp up operations by noon tomorrow. new york city airports are already a mess. newark's canceled over 400

flights today. laguardia, 200 flights. the worst weather in new york city comes in after the evening rush. now let's take you live to cleveland. look at the snow out here. talk about a white-out. we've got winds here on the lake front gusting to 43 miles an hour. it's 22 degrees. the windchill is 6. then in chicago, where we've had a bit of an overachiever the top number there coming in 18 inches of snow. most of the morning, midway and o'hare were under ground stops. over 1,000 flights canceled since monday. more to come tomorrow. so it's been bad there, but the snow is going to be winding down there. the worst of the weather, again, in the northeast. new york hartford boston will be this evening, overnight. tomorrow, the snow wraps up. on saturday morning, the coldest temperatures in central park and new york in about ten years, going down to about 3 degrees. here in boston monday morning will be down to 3 below zero one off the record and their coldest in about three winters.

a big snowstorm and then a lot of cold air. but the next storm, andrea will be what we call an inland runner. it's going to go west of the appalachians. that's going to bring warm air up the eastern seaboard. highs will be back in the 40s. most of what falls sunday night and monday here along the east coast will be rain. after that ends another shot of bitter cold air comes in the middle of next week. so it's up and down but travel and getting around after the sun goes down tonight through, say, midday tomorrow really not advised in these areas between boston and new york. andrea, back to you there in washington. >> in warmer washington. thank you very much mike seidel. thanks for the warnings and all the precautions and be safe out there. that does it for us for this new year's edition of "andrea mitchell reports." follow the show online and on twitter @mitchellreports. my colleague thomas roberts has a look at what's next on "news nation." happy new year. >> hi, andrea. happy new year to you.

it's a chicken noodle soup kind of night for dinner. we're going to cover more about what this weather means for so many americans. right now we are tracking the first major storm of the new year. two systems set to collide bringing these blizzard-like conditions to almost 100 million people. weather watches and warnings in effect for at least 22 different states. airports have already canceled flights. we're covering it all for you. it always creates a ripple effect with airport cancellations. plus a new year but the same congress. trying to tackle the same old issues. from a push to restore jobless benefits to the debate over immigration reform. will leaders be ready to compromise when congress returns on monday? and america's cannabis capital. other states now watching colorado where legal pot shops are open for a second day of business. watching, waiting, and wondering who could be next. that is all coming your way on "news nation."

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hi there, everybody. i'm thomas roberts in for tamron hall. developing right now, the news nation following blizzard warnings from a massive winter storm that's threatening 91 million americans. right now crews in 22 different states are busy prepping for a blast of snow strong winds, and bitter cold temperatures that go along with it. we take a live look in cleveland, where the snow continues to fall at this hour but the very worst is expected to begin tonight along the eastern coastline. already today, nearly 1400 flights have been canceled nationwide mainly in chicago, detroit, and new york. the last flight out of boston's logan airport is expected to leave around 8:30 this evening. several airlines are cancelling tomorrow's flights and are allowing fliers to rebook without those pesky fees. roads across the region are expected to be treacherous. the weather is blamed for an overturned car in maine, the one you see there, and two deadly crashes in the state of indiana. want to begin now with nbc's