minus 50 in minnesota, with the wind chill down right dangerous to be outside in more than half the country. >> two grills going, one for warmth. >> one for the feet, one for the food. >> those football fans in green bay, they braved the cold. we'll have a live report from chicago. plus, after a public family feud with her sister, liz cheney says she's dropping out of the race for wyoming's senate for other family reasons. we'll break down what this means for her political future. and is colorado causing other states to look at pot differently? new york's governor set to set new rules for medical marijuana in new york. is the tide turning for pot? good morning, i'm chris jansing, happy new year. the first big vote of 2014 in congress comes today, 5:00 this afternoon. what happens could set the tone for the coming year. will it be more partisanship and acrimony, or will there be a

compromise? what we're talking about is that senate vote on unemployment benefits. now the checks will not come this week for 1.3 million americans, but a bipartisan bill from senators jack reid and dean heller will provide a three-month extension, something the president says he would sign. >> for decades, republicans and democrats put partisanship and ideology aside to offer some security for job seekers, even when the unemployment rate was lower than it is today. instead of punishing families who can least afford it, republicans should make it their new year's resolution to do the right thing and restore this vital economic security for their constituents right now. >> for democrats, it's not just an important economic issue, it's an important political one, as well. playing into the new narrative of income inequality. >> if on the first day of the new session the republican party says they won't even support unemployment benefit extension, the original round was started by george bush when unemployment was 5.6%, they are going to show

themselves so far out of the mainstream, it's going to hurt them in the election. >> republican senator lamar alexander has already said he will not support it without the chance to debate more ideas for helping the unemployed. others have objections to the money. >> i've always said that i'm not opposed to unemployment insurance. i am opposed to having it without paying for it. >> i want to bring in our company, managing editor of msnbc.com. philip bump, writer for "the wire." good to see both of you. happy new year. we'll get to the specifics of this vote and what it means for both sides, but the big picture first, could this set the tone for 2014? >> absolutely. i think that's a really important question right out of the gate. if this is something they can't come together on and is going to be so difficult right now, just imagine the things that are coming down the road. that's really the fear here. this is an important test for everybody coming back from the holidays. >> and should it be easier than some of the other things we're looking at coming up ahead, like the debt ceiling, immigration?

>> clearly. this is something -- 1.3 million people who are desperate to have this be passed, and it is primarily voters who are traditionally in the middle class, older voters, voters both parties have been eager to get on their side. so this is definitely something which the democrats are hoping, certainly, it puts the conversation back on their playing field in terms of talking about economics and helping people, but something both sides should absolutely come together on, but it looks like they may not. >> history has shown they have come together on this time and time again. it was interesting yesterday when gene sperling was on "meet the press," 13 of the last 17 times unemployment benefits were extended, it was without strings. that's really the sticking point here, isn't it, for a lot of republicans. the question is, will they they? >> there's 600 more they need in the house, but it is really

important. the rand paul clip, i thought, was critical. we did a story early on from kentucky from his state, there's a lot of people who count on unemployment benefits right now in his own state and 1.3 million people is a lot of people and people are right now thinking about what do i need to sell, you know, am i going to get rid of my truck? we have a story today of voters trying to figure out how to make it through a single week while they are waiting for more debate as lamar alexander says, on benefits. >> is it clear if the democrats said, okay, here's how we're going to pay for it and somehow that gets written into the bill that republicans would accept it? >> that's exactly right. senator chuck schumer, who has been advocating strongly, we don't need to worry about the deficit anymore, we should focus on this thing, but the problem is, there's this mantra of cut government spending and makes it very difficult and pins the republicans, even republicans who might otherwise be sympathetic, they are pinned into a place where they can't say, yes, let's continue this

benefit just because they've got primaries coming up. one of the reasons the house is more difficult is because all of those people have to run for reelection next year and that makes it tough. >> that's one of the points chuck schumer makes. look, this is something that's going to come back to hurt republicans, to bite them at election time, but we have short attention spans, so i wonder if part of the calculation on some of these folks is even folks in districts where there may be a lot of people hurting as a result of this, you know what, a year from now when they go to the voting booth, that's going to be so far in the rearview mirror, it's not going to make any difference. >> i think for republicans, they are counting on things that are going to be more hurtful, like health care and where the rollout is, immigration, i think they are playing much more shorter games at the moment, and then, you know, we'll see what happens longer term. you're right, the short attention span is what everybody is banking on. >> the other big headline today is about liz cheney. she is in this race for the senate, it had gotten pretty

contentious, both within her family, within the party. here is the statement she issued this morning. "serious health issues have risen in our family and under the circumstances, i have decided to discontinue my campaign. my children and their futures were the motivation for our campaign and their health and well being will always be my overriding priority." your reaction? >> it is obvious that the campaign was going very poorly for liz cheney. she was behind by 40 points, you know, depending on the poll, it varied. and she was beset by problems the entire time. i don't think she is terribly sad the campaign is coming to an end. it is not clear how she can progress in politics after this. she tried to run in wyoming, where one of the challenges was that she was perceived as being a carpet bagger because she has a family background in virginia, and she was trying to run as an outsider with the name cheney, which is a nonstarter from the get go.

i think they are probably not terribly sad the campaign is coming to an end, just to the standpoint it was going as poorly as it was. >> except for the reason there are health concerns in her family and everybody wishes the best for that situation, but mark murray writes in first read this morning that in some ways it preserves her ability to run again, because if she was going to beat senator enzi, it was going to be ugly. no way she was going to overcome that deficit without it getting ugly. losing might have tarnished a future run. >> yeah, i don't think liz cheney demonstrated she's short on ambition or ideology. this was probably a important test run for her. i think the question is, does she stay in wyoming or go back to virginia now and try to seek -- >> wow, how do you do that? everyone says you're a carpet bagger and start to run from wyoming and then go back? >> that's the question. the possibilities are, you know,

probably better there. you know, you never know. i think it does, you know, open up some other possibilities for her. again, she's an extraordinarily ambitious woman, you know, she has very firm beliefs and ideologies. she opened up her wyoming campaign with a video about iran. she's got an agenda that she wants to see in the u.s. senate. there is a lot of conservatives, not a lot of neoconservatives left on the republican side in congress. there's a lot she wants to accomplish. >> well, it's going to be interested to watch. dafna, philip bump, thanks to both of you for having our first "j and co." of the new year. millions waking up to record breaking, mind numbing temperatures. cities in the midwest and all along the east coast can see the thermometer drop 30 to 50 degrees over the next day, shattering records. dangerously cold temperatures are forcing minneapolis public schools to close for the first time in 17 years. schools are also closed in

chicago, and that's where meteorologist alicia roman from nbc chicago joins me now. good morning and thank you for braving the cold temperatures. how is it there? >> reporter: you know what, it's cold here, chris. it's so hard to even smile and, in fact, it's the coldest temperatures we've seen here in chicago for nearly two decades. this morning we broke a record low, negative 16 recorded at o'hare. we brought out our thermometer to show you how cold, it's not working, it's frozen, i think. our crew's eyes were watering and they turned to icicles. speaking of the winds, wind chills this morning down to 35, even 45 below, and, of course, once it gets down to that extreme, 40 degrees below zero, only takes five minutes for frostbite to settle in. we're dealing with the cold now. as you can see mind me, not too many people out here. the first monday back to work after the holidays, but the people we have been seeing are

bundled up, even their mouths are bundled up. eyes are the only thing exposed. also, this is like a triple whammy we had in chicago. over new years, a foot of snow, yesterday a foot of snow, now we're dealing with the cold. it will get warmer, mid 30s, a heat wave, by the weekend. >> wmaq meteorologist thank you very much. secretary of state john kerry is wrapping up his tenth visit to the mideast today. kerry met with israeli and palestinian leaders and also traveled to jordan and aud ya arabia to garner support from arab allies. kerry says negotiators are making progress. meantime, pope francis is planning his first official visit to the holy land. he will visit aman, bethlehem, and jerusalem in late may. this will be the fourth visit by a pope. congressman peter king

rarely minces words, but he took aim at senator rand paul's decision to file a class action lawsuit against the nsa over their intelligence collection procedures. here he was on "morning joe." >> he's playing on some sort of -- >> fearmongering. >> isolationism, and rather than using television arguments, as people can well do, he's resorting to fear, appealing to the lowest common denominator. >> yesterday, congressman king went so far as to suggest congressman paul doesn't deserve to be a senator. pot is a full-time job in colorado. we'll talk to the new marijuana editor about the national pro pot movement. that's coming up. hi dad. she's a dietitian. and back when i wasn't eating right, she got me drinking boost. it's got a great taste, and it helps give me the nutrition i was missing. helping me stay more like me. [ female announcer ] boost complete nutritional drink has 26 essential vitamins and minerals, including calcium and vitamin d to support strong bones and 10 grams of protein

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harry reid has his hands full today trying to wrangle enough republicans to side with

the democrats before the vote on unemployment benefits. the bill already has the support of at least two republicans, but that's not enough. >> i'm saying, hopefully, hopefully, we can get four more republicans. gee wiz. i mean, this is something we've never stopped unemployment benefits. >> joining me now is democratic congresswoman karen bass. good morning. >> good morning, good morning. >> you heard harry reid. what do you think the chances are realistically he gets five republicans, since the demand that we hear from a lot of them that it be paid for is not part of this bill? >> well, i think he has a good chance in the senate, and i'm hoping that the budget agreement that was reached before we went on break is an example. i do think the bigger hurdle is going to be in my house, and frankly i believe in saying they want it to be paid for is a way of saying they want to have some cuts done quickly. we're in the process of appropriations. cuts can be done along the line, but that's never been the case

before. any time unemployment has been this high, we have responded to it as though it was an emergency and extended benefits and that's exactly what we should do now. >> in fact, they've been extended at times when unemployment is lower than it is now. let me play for you what republican congressman peter king had to say about the possibility of this getting through. >> sure. >> i would like to find a way to get a compromise -- i would like to find a way to get a compromise -- >> so, we have a problem with that tape, but i can read you what he said, congresswoman. i would like to find a way to get a compromise to extend unemployment insurance, at least for a brief period of time, but at the same time, the democrats should make compromises as far as burdensome regulations in an attempt to unleash the economy, because the ultimate answer is not unemployment insurance, the ultimate answer is more jobs. your reaction. >> you know, well, first of all, i absolutely agree the ultimate answer is more jobs, but that's not the way to bring more jobs

about. you know, we have lots of legislation that could be passed to bring about jobs, but to do things like that on an emergency basis in a very short time frame is just a way of pushing a policy agenda through, and to me, it's hostage taking. it's back to what they have been doing before. i think unemployment insurance should be extended, period, and then we should begin negotiations on any issue they want to take up. but you should not hold people's benefits hostage. people need the $300 to $400 a week to survive. this is just a very mean-spirited way to approach policy. >> it's not like you don't have a lot more on your plate, i want to turn to other deadlines facing congress. january 15th, lawmakers have to sign off on the detailed spending outline for the budget. obviously, got to raise the debt limit. there's always a risk of default. you have the rearly ritual of trying to pass spending bills. so, in an election year knowing

the realities where we are, where do you focus your efforts? where do you have the best chances of success, or can you get all three of these done? >> i think we have to absolutely get all three of them done and i think the republicans were hurt so badly last year with the government shut down for no reason that they do have more interest in governing this year and seems john boehner has more interest in being speaker this year and he's not going to allow, at least i think he's not going to allow a faction of his party to decide how he leads. so, if that's the case, i do think we can get some things done, but our focus needs to be front and center on jobs. it needs to be on income inequality. it needs to be on the minimum wage. it needs to be having a fair share for everybody in our country. >> let me ask you then in that context about immigration. do you think john boehner's break with the tea party on the budget last year bodes well for an immigration deal? >> i do think it does, because ultimately we could pass the

senate bill right away, if he would just break with the notion that the majority of his caucus has to be on the same page. i'm a little less optimistic about immigration reform, because what i hear is they want a piecemeal approach, and my problem with a piecemeal approach is i don't think you ever get to citizenship, and that's where the biggest hurdle is for them. they can get to legal resident, but can't get to citizenship, and i don't believe we should have a second class in our society. i believe it should be equal, and so there needs to be a pathway to citizenship and there absolutely needs to be comprehensive immigration reform, not a piecemeal approach. >> so, less than a 50/50 chance on immigration? >> well, you know what, i'm going to start the year out optimistic and say the republicans really might want to govern this year. they do have the reputation of the three years that they've been in power of having the title of the least productive congress in history, and that maybe in 2014, governing might be at the top of their agenda

>> congresswoman karen bass, always good to see you on the program, thanks. >> thanks for having me on. back to reality for president obama, the hawaiian vacation is over, congress is back. how does he get his mojo back in 2014. we'll talk with our strategists coming up. it's time for the "your business" entrepreneur of the week. derek lost his coat at a bar in college and thought, there had to be a better way. the entrepreneurship major decided to update the coat check process for the digital age using phones, tablets, photos, and q.r. codes. for more, watch "your business" sunday mornings at 7:30 on msnbc. brought to you by american express. new business owner, it would be one thing i've learned is my philosophy is real simple american express open forum is an on-line community, that helps our members connect and share ideas to make smart business decisions. if you mess up, fess up. be your partners best partner. we built it for our members, but it's open for everyone.

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but i am so stuffed up, i can't rest. [ male announcer ] nyquil cold and flu liquid gels don't unstuff your nose. they don't? alka seltzer plus night fights your worst cold symptoms, plus has a decongestant. [ inhales deeply ] oh. what a relief it is. that would allow limited use of marijuana by people with serious illnesses. 20 states already allow some use of medical marijuana, while full legalization is only in two states, including colorado, where it's so popular there are reports stores could sell out soon. ricardo is the marijuana editor for "the denver post." good to see you, good morning. >> thanks, good morning to you. >> if there was a question how popular pot would be in colorado, those questions are being answered. what, a million dollars on the first day? >> those are the projections, that's what's being said.

yeah, i think we're still seeing a lot of excitement around it, although we're expecting things to certainly calm down this week now that we're approaching the one-week mark. >> i know it's early, but as other states are considering loosening their laws, are there lessons being learned from colorado's implementation? >> i don't know that there are lessons yet. i think one thing that has surprised many people is that many public figures out here in the west have kind of come out and said, wow, this was surprisingly calm. this was surprisingly subdued. many people expected, you know, some sort of apocalyptic, you know, experiment going on, but really, it's just a bunch of very mellow people waiting in a line. it's pretty much what you'd expect. >> mellow and hungry. the only thing i saw was over the weekend a couple people arrested after sheriffs deputies found about 1,200 marijuana plants in their home. >> right, out in eastern colorado. >> is that right, or -- >> you can grow, so as an

individual, if i wanted to, i could grow up to six plants. with my fiance, i could grow up to 12 plants individually. >> but 1,200 is a little too many. >> definitely. if you're not connected to a commercial licensed grow house, then it's way too many, and, yeah, it looks like the sheriffs department out in eastern colorado is asking for some backup from the dea on what went down over there on saturday morning. >> part of the ongoing debate, and i know you've covered this in the lead up to the actual implementation of the law is about the actual benefits of marijuana, and dr. toby cosgrove was on "meet the press." let's hear what he has to say. >> we worry about it as a legal issue and health issue. i don't think it's been clearly defined where its benefit is, and i think it would be nice to have an opportunity to understand where it is beneficial. >> from the research you've done, from the people you've talked to, do you think it is clear either about the medical

benefits or potential downside to the public health and safety of legalizing marijuana? >> yeah, as a journalist, we absolutely defer to those people who know a lot more than us, and certainly, there's enough people in this state and this region who believe in the medical effects to have pushed pot to this point. it's an interesting -- it's an interesting dilemma of our times, for sure. >> and a lot more states looking at it. thanks so much for coming on. >> thank you. if you read only one thing this morning, it's the new year, and who's the cool voice everyone's listening to on capitol hill? well, believe it or not, it's pope francis. the story's up on our facebook page. you guys are already talking about it. rick feldman wrote, they may be hearing him, but listening to the message is another. i think maybe referencing income inequality. maurice's thoughts, his voice seems to be the only voice worth listening to.

let us know what you think. well, temperatures going from uncomfortable to dangerous. millions over the next 24 hours going to be effected by this cold weather. take a check at this live shot from minneapolis. the wind chill there, negative 46. nbc meteorologist bill karins with the sub-zero forecast just minutes away. ped by the house? uh-huh. yea. alright, whenever you get your stuff, run upstairs, get cleaned up for dinner. you leave the house in good shape? yea. yea, of course. ♪ [ sportscaster talking on tv ] last-second field go-- yea, sure ya did. [ male announcer ] introducing at&t digital life. personalized home security and automation. get professionally monitored security for just $29.99 a month. with limited availability in select markets. ♪

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her long day of pick ups and drop 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. ♪ back from his two-week vacation in hawaii and a bruising year politically, president obama is faced with a question like bill clinton before him, can he be the comeback kid? his plan is to focus on a core democratic message, income inequality. >> our focus as a country this year shouldn't be shrinking our economy, but growing it. not narrowing opportunity, but expanding it. not fewer jobs, but doing everything we can to help our businesses create more of the good jobs that our growing middle class requires. >> the president is set to lay out plans for year two, term

two, that includes raising the minimum wage, extending unemployment benefits, talking up obamacare, announcing reforms to the nsa. all this expected to be outlined in his state of the union speech later this month. let's bring in democratic strategist angela rie and former bush/cheney supervisor. look, the numbers are known very well, 2013 saw a big drop in president obama's approval ratings, and if you look at recent history, his trajectory is more in line with george w. bush than reagan and clinton before him, obviously, doing much better two years into their second term. angela, how does he get his mojo back? >> chris, i would argue he's never really lost his mojo. the president has had to face a number of crises, in part because he's dealing with an arm of the republican party who has practiced protest politics, meaning they are not trying to

engage whatsoever with this president. you see when the house comes back -- >> angela, even if it is because of the pressure put on by republicans or naysayers in congress, the fact of the matter remains, doesn't it, that his approval ratings are down, not just with republicans, actually more with independents and democrats. >> sure, and i would argue, chris, that the face of the independents has changed. there are a number of republicans who were once normal mainstream republicans, who are also now more affiliated with the tea party and, therefore, refuse to identify as standard gop. so, i mean, we can argue about polls, but we should also look at the facts. the president has had to deal with a shutdown, one that speaker boehner didn't even want to face, as you've heard him say. so, again, the things that would have normally been an ideal bay to go through an agenda, he hasn't been able to do because he's had to deal with crisis governance. >> that's looking back, but looking forward, you have the obama agenda, and that is a

theme that helped him, if not was the key reason that he was able to beat mitt romney. then you have the republican agenda outlined by eric cantor, focuses on attacking obama care, government funding, iran, conference reports, regulation reform. does that contrast help the president? >> i think it does help the president here, but let me go back, because i think this is important something you put up on the screen a couple minutes ago and that was the correlation between bill clinton and ronald reagan and president obama and george w. bush. the difference is, with ronald reagan and bill clinton, you had great communicators, people that connected with the audience, people that were very, very comfortable speaking in front of the american people, even with bill clinton, who had a republican controlled congress, similar to president obama. even with bill clinton, who had an obstructionist, if you want to make that argument, backlog with this president.

what obama does not have, unfortunately, is a connectivity with american people. i think we saw that with obamacare, with the rollout, a lot of americans said wait a minute here, this doesn't make sense here. you said one thing, but now obamacare is doing something different in terms of cancelling something that's very important to me. so what president obama needs to do is connect with the audience. has nothing to do with m ares, has everything to do with his vision and connecting that with the american people. >> is it a connectivity problem, not speaking about the internet here, angela? >> no, i don't think it's a problem connecting with the american people. the president does his best when he's out giving a speech. the challenges, ancillary nature of the white house, which brings me to my point, being able to articulate and relate to a body of people trying to protest you makes it difficult to accomplish anything. once again, the president today, they've rolled out today some mental health executive actions through d.o.j. and through hhs

to address gun safety, so i think we'll continue to see him trying to move his agenda along with or without republican support. >> chris, very quickly, that somewhat doesn't make sense. i remind everyone the president had a democratic controlled house and senate the first two years of his presidency and when the economy was the number one issue and the economy was going in the tank and i readily admit he was handed a bad bag, he had congressional approval to be able to get economic policies passed. >> and it was the most accomplished congress in history, robert. that's when you got obamacare, regardless what people say about it now, it was signed into law four years ago. >> i'm talking about the stimulus. >> you have t.a.r.p., every financial services agency in the federal government, so we can't say that he didn't accomplish anything. we could have passed the american jobs act, robert, under the gop-led congress when they took over. >> but -- >> let me ask you about

obamacare, because we have seen so many republicans, and i just talked about eric cantor, who are definitely going to focus on obamacare, the negative, what they see as the negative aspects of obamacare. pollster fred yang said it's probably fair to say has goes health care, so goes the obama presidency for the next year. do you agree with that? >> i'm not sure i agree with that. kids can stay on their parent's health care until 26, many people are able to afford it now, and if you have a pre-existing health care issue, you won't be dropped of that. however, however, and i go back to my earlier point here, and the facts prove this, there are tens of thousands out there that were told by this president several times that if you like your plan, you can keep it. that is not the case here and that is something that is very personal and something that is between you and your doctor and your health and that's going to be the nail in the coffin here when people say, wait a minute,

this is not what i was promised. this is not the bill of goods i was sold here, and this is something i reject. i think there's a direct correlation between that and the president's approval rating. there is a connectivity here and trust here the president needs to get back. >> robert, angela, lively way to start the new year. thanks to both of you for coming. i appreciate it. >> thanks. >> thank you. what we're seeing is not just any winter storm, more than half of the nation experiencing extreme temperatures that could bring record setting lows and what are called life threatening wind chills. bill karins joins me now with what is a sub-zero forecast. bill, it is going to be brutal. >> if you are 25 years or younger, you have never seen anything like this. last time was '96 or '94. this is the last time we saw something like this. 27 states with wind chill warnings about a combination of 35 with warnings and advisories. covers everywhere from the rockies to the east coast. this is the highlighted area of this, and at this hour, we are

at the peak right now of our arctic outbreak. the wind chills now from kansas city to st. louis to indianapolis in the minus 20 to minus 40 range, from chicago to duluth, we're in the minus 40 to minus 60. either this extreme or this large of an area being affected. it can go down to oklahoma city with a negative wind chill this morning. you get the picture. now it's heading to the east coast. hope everyone enjoyed their mild morning, because tomorrow it will feel 60 degrees colder than this morning. the question now, how long is it going to last? the good news for everyone is the january thaw is right behind, it looks like four to five days from now, mild air will cover the same areas that are so frigid. it will be cool in the northern plains, but won't be arctic cold or record cold. many areas like chicago that are now done around minus 11,

they'll be about 40 degrees warmer by the end of the week. >> something to look forward to. thanks very much, bill. we have breaking news out of the supreme court. let's go to nbc's pete williams. pete, what's going on? >> as you may recall, there's been a continuing back and forth court battle over same-sex marriage in utah. federal judge at the end of last year says the state's ban on same-sex marriage was unconstitutional. the state asked twice to put that on hold while it challenged that ruling, and then it went to the u.s. supreme court. and just within the last few moments, the u.s. supreme court has agreed to put a stay on that judge's ruling while the case is on appeal before the court of appeals out there in the west, the 10th circuit court of appeals in denver. now, this is the second time that something of the court of appeals has gone from one of the states has gone to justice sotomayor, who is the 10th circuit justice. she referred this particular one to the full supreme court and

the full supreme court has agreed that there should be a hold on same-sex marriage while this case goes to the appeals. this case will be heard probably within the next couple of months by the 10th circuit, then maybe four or five months after that we'll get a ruling from the 10th circuit, and depending what happens there, same-sex marriage could resume in utah, or whoever loses in the 10th circuit will undoubtedly go to the u.s. supreme court and ask them to take the full-up case. so, there are two tracks here to remember, one is the issue itself, which is now on appeal. the second track is what we're talking about, while the issue is on appeal, should same-sex marriage continue or not? and the supreme court has just said, no, it shouldn't. they put a stay on the judge's order while the case is on appeal. i don't know what the final number was, but there were probably 1,200 to 1,500 same-sex marriages performed after this judge's ruling. now they've come to a stop.

>> okay, pete williams with the latest from the supreme court. thanks. >> you bet. checking the news feed again this morning, an update to a heart breaking story we have been following, the 13-year-old girl left brain dead after a surgery last month has been moved to a long-term care facility. jahi's family has been in a legal battle with the hospital over whether she has shown signs of life. with a month to go until the winter olympics, the so-called ring of steel goes into place tomorrow in sochi. more than 40,000 police and special forces are inside keeping a watchful eye on everything, including phone calls and e-mails. the russian government said it will be conducting a massive electronic and video surveillance program during the games. deke chic will take

special -- it's all the talk around "jansing and co.," wearable tech, one of the highlights. >> wearable tech in 2013, sales were up to $10 billion. that includes things like hearing aids, but a research firm expects that number will triple over the next five years, as we've seen samsung, google roll out the google glass, samsung roll out their sort of dick tracy watch. one thing i'm interested in is health watch. fit bits, these things help you monitor your sleep, how many steps you take during the day, also sort of incentivize you to climb more stairs. some of these sensors are getting so small, what's going to be exciting is to see whether we have some of these that connect with real health issues like monitoring your blood glucose, also monitoring your health rate, heart rate, things like that. that could really help people to monitor and improve their health. using this for me, really helped me take off a few pounds over the summer.

>> really? >> it was pretty good. >> i'm the only one who hasn't gotten on to the bandwagon. don says don't do it. you don't want to know. from high-tech to low tech, people are light bulb hoarding. >> they are. there was an energy bill that switched over the u.s. to l.e.d.s and c.f.l.s, those bulbs with the spirals and things to try to save energy. that means a lot of incandescent bulb production is being phased out. initially, it was the 75 and 100-watt, the higher rate, now it's 46 and 60-watt, so folks who want to keep them are hoarding them. some people don't like the color of the other bulbs, also they are not dimmable a lot of times. one site said incandescent sales up 500%. >> we'll be right back.

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growing concerns this morning about the stability of iraq after al qaeda-affiliated extremists took over the key iraqi cities of fallujah and ramadi. the town of fallujah was considered so critical to the war in iraq that 146 americans were killed protecting the city. >> not, obviously, contemplating returning, we're not contemplating putting boots on the ground. this is their fight, but we're going to help them in their fight. >> i'm joined by medal of honor recipient and msnbc military analyst. good to see both of you. jack, are iraqi security forces equipped to deal with this? >> yes, but with this provision, there are usually two major phases when you conduct a military operation, one, is to

secure the objective, to take it. kill or capture the enemy, and drive the rest of them off. they can do that. the second part, though, is to hold on to it, and they are not prepared to hold on to it. they don't have the forces to do it. there are a lot of problems elsewhere in the country, so they can take it but they are not going to hold on to it. >> so, when secretary kerry says we'll provide help, but not boots on the ground, what does he mean, drones, missiles? >> ammunition, supplies, that sort of stuff, but no people. not even any advisers. we may provide some air traffic management from time to time, because we have those assets in the area, but don't expect americans to be doing anything to help out the iraqis. >> from what we know, help us to quantify this resurgence and how did it happen? >> well, it's been in the works for some time and gained fuel because of what's happening in syria. now, keep in mind that border between those two countries has become extremely eroded so fighters from both sides have

been moving back and forth. and more importantly, the sunni population in iraq has had a growing list of grievances over the last several years against the shia-dominated government in baghdad and have been protesting, mostly peaceful. but now in the last several months it's becoming more militant. when you look at the population size, it is a sizable part of the country, about one-third of iraq is sunni, but not all of the sunni population is supporting this militant insurgency. some of it is still very much in line with the iraqi government, so we're seeing fracturing within the sunni communities. >> is the geography helping these insurgents, syria and also lebanon? >> the geography is key in making this al qaeda group, if you will, reemerge in a much stronger way. they are able to transport weapons, explosives, it is very difficult for the iraqi government to secure that border, particularly because so many of the communities there

are sympathetic on both sides of the divide to each other, not to their respective governments in syria or in iraq. >> and it's a political hot potato. john mccain, lindsey graham blaming the white house for the resurgence. "when president obama withdrew all u.s. forces in iraq in 2011, many of us predicted that the vacuum would be filled by america's enemies and would emerge as a threat to u.s. security interests. sadly, that reality is clearer than ever." jack, how concerning is this for u.s. national security interests? >> any instability anywhere is a security concern to us, but particularly in this region, which is incredibly volatile, and actually strategically important geographically. but we have to remember one thing, that the requirement, what it would take to actually secure that area, for us to do it, is enormous. if you remember at the time, the

chief of staff at the united states army when he testified before congress before we went into iraq and invaded it, said that it would take 200,000 to 300,000 americans to hold on to that area. we're certainly not prepared to do it now. we weren't even prepared to do it then. strategically important, geostrategically important. instability is really, really bad, but we're not there to do it. >> thank you, good to see both of you. we'll be right back. not all flus treat all your symptoms. what? [ male announcer ] alka-seltzer plus severe cold and flu speeds relief to these eight symptoms. [ breath of relief ] thanks. [ male announcer ] you're welcome. ready? go.

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to politics now where steven seagal is considering a run for arizona governor. yes, that steven seagal, the actor and martial arts expert. while promoting his reality show, he told an arizona reporter he's already spoken to maricopa county sheriff joe arpio about his plans. angela merkel recovering at home after a cross country

skiing injury. she is using a walker to get around. meantime, vladimir putin had no trouble on the ice in a practice game, the 61-year-old proving he's still active and fit. his team competed against an all-star team of former russian gold medalists, and yet somehow putin's team won. dennis rodman, meantime, brought along a group of former nba players to north korea for an exhibition game. kenny anderson, doug christie, cliff robertson. he calls the game his version of basketball diplomacy. and congressman steve king is comparing himself to "duck dynasty" star phil robertson, saying both have had to handle intolerance by liberals. also says he's the last one standing among top targets of liberals. that's going to wrap up this hour of "jansing and co." i'm chris jansing. thomas roberts is up next. happy new year, my friend. >> happy new year to you.

the agenda, it's cold, how cold? record setting, dangerously, specifically linked to a polar vortex and bill karins will explain what that means, plus, reports out of chicago where the wind chill is minus 36, indianapolis where it feels like it's 30 below zero. how long it will last. and who's in, who's out, liz cheney, why is she pulling out of the race and is hillary clinton ready to officially throw her hat into the presidential ring? the behind the scenes shadow indications that point to yes. , but i am so stuffed up, i can't rest. [ male announcer ] nyquil cold and flu liquid gels don't unstuff your nose. they don't? alka seltzer plus night fights your worst cold symptoms, plus has a decongestant. [ inhales deeply ] oh. what a relief it is. i've got a nice long life ahead. big plans. so when i found out medicare doesn't pay all my medical expenses, i got a medicare supplement insurance plan. [ male announcer ] if you're eligible for medicare, you may know it only covers about 80%

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when they need us. plus, you could save hundreds when you switch -- up to $423. call... today. liberty mutual insurance. responsibility. what's your policy? hi, everybody, good morning, i'm thomas roberts. a weather report topping our news this hour. how low can we go? a deep freeze descending across much of the u.s. more than half of the country under some kind of wind chill alert this morning. now, think the inside of your freezer, except outside. records could be set in two dozen major cities, with

temperatures expected to tank more than 30 degrees over the next day or so. then you add in the wind chill, and it's going to feel like negative 50 degrees in certain spots. so, pull out every warm piece of clothing you have. it is so cold in chicago, they've given the windy city a new short-term nickname, chiberia, and in minneapolis, a city that has no fear of winter, they cancelled school because of it for the first time in 17 years. >> we've never experienced weather this cold, ever. >> real slippery, real icy, people falling. we almost fell. >> so, the delays and the cancellations at airports, they are already a nightmare, and it was after last week's storm that caused such a ripple effect. now these cold temperatures are making a bad situation worse. joining me now from chicago is nbc meteorologist alicia roman. i mention the people in chicago are joking that it's chiberia, but it is record low temperatures at o'hare, so explaiho