whodunit. a hacking investigation with one unlikely suspect. this is "way too early." un-likely. hi, everybody, good morning, i'm thomas roberts. it's tuesday, december the 2nd. welcome to "way too early." the countdown is on for our christmas party tomorrow. you're all invited. we even have an ugly christmas sweater over there. on gabriel. he's a day ahead. but we're very excited. i want to get straight to our top story. we begin with what's taking place in washington where the white house is proposing a series of law enforcement reforms in response of the unrest in ferguson, missouri. president obama is asking for $263 million over three years for additional training of police officers and other resources. that includes $75 million to purchase up to 50,000 body cameras for police officers across the country.

while president obama defended programs that provide police departments with military gear, he is promising to improve the relationship between minorities and law enforcement. >> i think ferguson laid bare a problem that is not unique to st. louis or that area and is not unique to our time. and that is a simmering distrust that exists between too many police departments and too many communities of color. in the two years i have remaining as president, i'm going to make sure that we follow through. not to solve every problem, not to tear down every barrier of mistrust that may exist, but to make things better. and that's how progress is always made in this great country of ours. >> politico reports the white house debated sending the president to ferguson after the

grand jury did not return an indictment. aides reportedly decided it would be disruptive with one official saying it was too complicated to get it right. meanwhile, attorney general eric holder says he'll unveil new guidelines aimed at ending racial profiling. he made the announcement at the same atlanta church where dr. martin luther king jr. holder was interrupted by protesters when he tried talking about the shooting of michael brown but received a standing ovation when he declined to criticize them. >> i cannot begin to understand -- i -- what we saw there was a genuine expression of concern and involvement.

>> so this is pretty bizarre because now there are conflicting accounts this morning whether or not a top official with the st. louis rams apologized for five players who made the "hands up, don't shoot" gesture before sunday's football game. county police chief john belmar says he spoke with the executive vice president of football operations and chief operating officer who apologized. the police chief said it was a heartfelt phone call with the official who regretted that the gestures may have minimized the work of the police departments and officers. kevin demoff, however, deny add apologizing saying, in part, in none of these conversations did i apologize for our players' actions. i did say in each conversation that i regretted any offense their officers may have taken. we do not believe it is possible to both support our players' first amendment rights and support the efforts of our local law enforcement.

head coach jeff fisher says the five players will not be disciplined by the nfl or by the team. >> as far as the choice that the players made, no, they're exercising their right to free speech. they will not be disciplined. by the club, nor will they be disciplined by the national football league, as it was released today. it's my personal opinion -- i firmly believe that it's important that i keep sports and politics separate. i'm a head coach. i'm not a politician, an activist or expert on societal issues. >> meanwhile, the protest gesture was also being used on capitol hill. look there. three democratic lawmakers held their hands up while speaking last night on the house floor. jeb bush says that he's going to make up his mind to run for president in short order and offered a surprising assessment about how republicans can win back the white house, one that's likely not going to sit well

with all republicans. >> i kind of know how a republican can win, whether it's me or somebody else, and it has to be much more uplifting, much more positive, much more willing to, you know, to be practical now in washington world, lose the primary to win the general without violating your principles. >> so bush was asked by the moderator if winning the primary ran contrary to winning the general, and bush replied, quote, no one really knows that because it hasn't been tried recently. senator rob portman's name has been tossed around as a possible presidential contender in 2016. no more. this morning the republican from ohio said he will instead focus on keeping his u.s. senate seat. it also keeps him in play as a possible vice presidential running mate. portman was on the short list for mitt romney in 2012. and he was instrumental in helping republicans retake the senate this cycle, putting in a lot of hours to help fund-raise

millions of dollars. republicans have improved their standing with voters according to a cnn/opinion research poll. though they are still upside down, they have moved more than ten points in the right direction with americans since last year. but in spite of big gains, voters overwhelmingly see the outcome less as a mandate but more as a rejection of democratic policies. and a majority of americans are pessimistic about republican control of both chambers of congress. bill cosby is no longer a trustee at temple university in wake of a series of sexual assault allegations. the legendary comedian announced he's stepping down from the board after 32 years. and in a statement, it read in part, quote, i have always been proud of my association with temple university. i have always wanted to do what would be in the best interests of the university and its students. as a result, i have tendered my resignation. cosby is a high-profile supporter of the university which he attended. he didn't graduate. he is a frequent commencement speaker, and the school offers a

scholarship named after him and his wife, camille. a former temple university employee is among the women accusing cosby of sexual assault. meanwhile, "the journal news" reports one of the three ticket -- one in three ticketholders to cosby's show this weekend in new york in a suburb have asked for refunds. and that's an offer that cosby extended to any show ticketholder. cosby has never been charged with any crime and has denied sexual assault allegations in the past. so we are now hearing from former baltimore ravens running back ray rice in his own words about the domestic violence incident involving his wife, janay, that led to his indefinite suspension by the nfl. here he is with nbc's matt lauer. >> i'm very sorry for everything that i had to put my family through. i took full responsibility for everything that i did. the only thingky hope for and wish for is a second chance. >> last week rice's suspension was overturned by a judge, and he is now free to sign with any

team in the nfl who is interested. we switch our gears and turn to business news where investors are hoping for a boost from a strong cyber monday showing. the strong sales numbers were released after the markets closed with double-digit loss as cross the board. we're going to get to that in a moment. first, a big trial involving apple and its ipod. that gets under way today. cnbc's geoff cutmore joins us live from london. geoff, as i understand it, jurors are going to hear from a major witness in all of this. who's the witness and explain more about the case. >> yeah. this is fascinating. and a little creepy because steve jobs will be speaking from beyond the grave, if you like. it's a video deposition that he put together as it relates to this case involving the ipod. this is a decade-old case. the argument is that itunes ran software that forced people to use the ipod to download the music, and therefore they paid

more. so the class action lawsuit alleges that people paid in excess of $350 million more than they should have done because they had to use the ipod rather than other technology. this obviously is a big case for apple. we will hear from or at least the court will hear from steve jobs in this video deposition. so that's going to be fascinating to keep your eye on. you were talking about the cyber monday sales here. well, good numbers. we think cyber monday sales probably up 16% against a year ago. but an interesting trend emerging here. people, it seems, are also buying right through the thanksgiving holiday. that's at least what adobe have found out as they've looked at these numbers. less and less people seem to be hanging on for the big cyber monday deal. they seem happy to buy before that. so i wonder whether cyber monday will lose some of its effectiveness for retailers as a sales tool.

but at least at the moment, the sales look strong on the early data. let's just leave you with a view on the markets. oil very much the story for investors at the moment. the price down again, and we're getting a lift in european equities. so i think you'll open stronger in the u.s. market trade. back to you. >> okay, geoff, thank you very much. appreciate it. and just to pass along for those fans of girl scout cookies out there, great news. the sweet treats, they're going to be available online for your purchasing. girl scouts will be able to sell boxes via digital cookie platform! jen, get excited! the move is expected to increase sales for the organization. thin mints, tagalongs and the rest. what about samoas? i love samoas! the rest bring in about $800 billion a year in sales. soon there will be an app for that. there will be an app for your girl scout cookies. still ahead, the dolphins try and keep their playoff hopes alive in "monday night football." we'll let you know how they held

up against the jets. an update on a story yesterday. a republican staffer who went after sasha and malia obama on social media saying that they were dressed to belly up to the bar. what the aide did yesterday after all the backlash. you know, she apologized. she actually preyed ee eed pra it. she spoke to her parents. she's an adult woman who spoke to her parents. anyway, just apologize. you don't they'd to talk to your mommy and daddy. that and a check on weather when "way too early" comes right back. the stunning collapse of enron. the giant energy trading company that went quickly from being a darling of wall street and a major player in american politics to the subject of a federal criminal investigation.

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we begin with the dolphins and the jets on "monday night

football." the ground game working for the jets as they try to get out to an early lead. takes the handoff 20 yards into the end zone for the first points of the game. miami would trail until the fourth quarter. lamar miller punches in a four-yard touchdown, tying it up at 13-13. the jets get a chance to go ahead on their next drive. you see that there, the kicker, nick folk, misses. the dolphins answer with a field goal of their own. >> perfect. >> perfect, there it is, a three-point lead with just under two minutes left on the clock. new york has one final drive to win it. but with 40 seconds to play, geno smith, pass intercepted. >> good job, jets. that's what we want, high draft pick. >> dolphins win it, 16-13. >> i thought they were going to blow it there and win. to the hardwood action. the spurs visiting philadelphia without duncan or parker, and that leaves it to leonard who led all scorers with 26 points in this game. it's enough to hand the sixers a 109-103 loss.

philly now 0-17. the franchise's worst-ever start to a season. but there's still time, bill karins. still time. hey, look at this. giants receiver odell beckham jr. dazzled the world with his amazing catches in the giants' loss to the cowboys last week. you know the three finger, two finger or a thumb and two fingers, three digits, anyway. but the star rookie has some more tricks up his sleeve. i didn't go to medical school, jen. don't laugh at me. video from practice shows that beckham kicking this spinning football through the uprights more than 30 yards away. and bill, i think this was his second try. is that correct? >> i mean, that's, like, a five out of ten. the catch was, like, a ten out of ten. >> i know, but that's still pretty sick. >> yeah. >> i mean, this kid's got talent. i like it. 'tis the season. one bills fan has it all decked out. their house for the holidays is a must-see. look at this. ♪ ♪ the bills make me wanna

shout ♪ ♪ kick your heels up and shout ♪ throw your hands up and shout ♪ ♪ throw your head back and shout ♪ ♪ come on now ♪ the bills are making it happen now ♪ >> look at that. it's bills house! bills! we could have karins along the windows. >> my neighbors would love me. >> i know. have that song playing at all hours of the night like when you wake up at 2:30 in the morning, you know? hey, neighbors! it's time for me to go to work. hey, look at that. i don't like that. >> you don't like that. >> no, the "way too early to party party" is tomorrow, and i don't need bad weather for this. >> no, it should be all over with. >> don't shake your head. >> interior sections of new england and also interior sections of virginia and maryland, just a little bit of wintry precip. not like last week with that big storm. you could get, like, a coating, a little ice, sleet mixed in. that's why they've issued winter weather advisories. already a little bit of that stuff across maryland. interior sections could see slippery spots especially higher

elevations, big cities, i-95 no problems whatsoever. the best weather story of the day is california. we're in this huge exceptional drought, one of the worst that we've had. and now it is raining in san francisco. so this is the start of about an all-day rain event. we're expecting about two inches of rain, thomas, in the cities, even los angeles, six inches in the mountains possible which is great because that's where the reservoirs are. >> and you said it's necessary. it's needed right now. >> they need, like, ten of these. >> appreciate it. coming up on "morning joe," a huge moment for the country, but now a fight over an apology or a nonapology. we've got the latest on the hands up controversy by five members of the st. louis rams. the organization calling the police head and the back-and-forth over the semantics of this discussion. then when we come back here, cyber war. is north korea hitting back at hollywood over a new comedy that depicts its leader's assassination? we're going to talk about what's taking place with sony and how the fbi is now involved with

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you voted against hagel's confirmation, as did i, at home, yelling at the screen. are you glad he's out? >> i think that chuck -- and by

the way, he is a friend, and he's a distinguished american. he fought as an enlisted man during the vietnam war, and i honor that, but he wasn't the right guy for the job. it's pretty obvious that all the decisions are being made within a small group in the white house. >> so we need somebody who's got experience. you're here for the colbert bump. is this a trial balloon to be secretary of defense? >> actually, i was thinking -- actually, i was thinking about running for president again. what do you think? >> you would have the full resources of the colbert report at your back in 2016, if it were still on the air. >> so senator john mccain having some fun on "the colbert report" last night. now let's get a check on the morning's other headlines for you. and a major shake-up is coming to afghan security forces as the u.s. preps to officially end its combat mission there at the end of month. according to the a.p., afghan president afghani plans to fire senior and civilian military

leaders in five of the country's most volatile provinces, areas currently controlled by the taliban. president obama has already approved an expanded combat mission if needed beyond the official end date of december the 31st. a complete u.s. withdrawal is set for the end of 2016. and for the first time, the u.s. is acknowledging the iranian military's role against ice nice iraq. according to the huffington post, a pentagon official said the obama administration is aware that the u.s. and iran are currently bombing a common enemy. the official says iran's attacks are happening near its border with iraq away from the american-led action. when reports first surfaced that iran was supplying iraqi forces with weapons to fight isis, the white house said it was neither cooperating nor sharing intelligence with tehran. well, the republican capitol hill aide who criticized the obama daughters has resigned. elizabeth lauton, communications director for u.s. congressman steven fincher of tennessee stepped down monday in wake of

criticism for her comments about sasha and malia obama. she had posted a comment on facebook telling the girls dress like you deserve respect, not a soon at a bar. she soon after deleted that post and apologized. well, the holiday season has arrived, and with it some of the biggest movies of the year. but at sony pictures entertainment, the news is not so merry after a hacking incident shut down e-mail systems and posted pirated movies online ahead of their release dates. now the fbi is investigating the source behind this hack and the trail may lead straight to north korea. nbc's jacob briscone has more. >> hello, north korea! >> reporter: the movie "the interview" was supposed to make people laugh. it's about a tv host and his producer landing an interview with jim jong-un and then being recruited by the cia to take him out. >> take him out? like for drinks? dinner? >> take him out. >> you want us to kill the leader of north korea?

>> yes. >> what? >> reporter: north korea, however, called the movie "an act of war" and promised a "merciless countermeasure" after the trailer's release in june. now someone has hacked into sony pictures that produced the movie. >> sony is actively investigating a link to a hacking attack that was carried out last monday. >> reporter: as recode first reported, hackers attacked in waves. first crippling sony's internal systems, then leaking five sony movies online, four of which like "annie" have not been released. >> light 'em up! >> reporter: together the pirated sony movies have been downloaded more than 2 million times. >> this hack attack is hugely embarrassing for sony because sony is the only movie studio that's owned by a technology company. >> reporter: sony pictures acknowledges the hack saying in part "we are working closely with law enforcement to address it." that includes the fbi. and according to a senior u.s. official, several additional law enforcement agencies all looking

at a possible north korea link. >> depending on how many people download and see movies like "annie," which is due out for release on december 19th, we'll see how much that hurts "annie's" ultimate box office. >> reporter: more than sony bargained for with a comedy. >> pretty interesting, right? that was nbc's jacob briscone. coming up, a look at the stories you'll be talking about in the day ahead. "morning joe" moments away. good morning everybody. we are about to make more deliveries to more places than anybody on earth. we have the speed. we have the technology. and we have the team. we made over 15 billion successful deliveries last year. 15 billion! football has a season. baseball has a season. this is our season. wow! [ narrator ] on a mission

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welcome back, everybody. let's get a check on the day ahead. homeland security secretary jay johnson is expected to take a grilling from house republicans when he testifies this morning at a hearing on the president's plan to shield millions of undocumented immigrants from deportation. and it's adrian peterson versus the nfl in a hearing involving his child abuse case. the minnesota vikings running back is appealing the league's decision to suspend him without pay for the rest of the season. and this comes as the senate holds a hearing to address domestic violence in pro sports. nfl commissioner roger goodell is not expected to attend, but his top lieutenant on football

matters is expected to testify. that's going to do it for "way too early." stick around. "morning joe" starts right now. ♪ ♪ good morning. it is tuesday, december 2nd. kind of a wet -- >> it's a perfect day. i love this day. i've never been happier. you know why? >> why? >> we have possible list zero prize winning columnist and msnbc political analyst and man about time. he's got a title for everything. eugene robinson. he's so sad. jeremy peters. jeremy needs to work. jane, can you give engine >> gene, can you give jeremy a couple of your titles. >> you can