relations with cuba. reactions from supporter and critics of the surprising move by president obama. the interview you won't see, the film pulled from theaters. sony holds release of the film amidst the threat of theaters as u.s. officials say north korea is behind the company's hack. and watch out, rand paul. if you think you can run for the senate and president in 2016, well, there is one woman in kentucky who is trying to stop you. this is "way too early." hey, everybody. good morning. i'm thomas roberts. it is thursday, december 18th. welcome to "way too early," the show that wishes north korea stopped the release of the adventures of pluto nash starring eddie murphy. remember that movie? alan remembers that movie. you think that was the worst movie ever? no. we'll get your -- who? joy sticks?

we'll have my hearing checked after the show today. joey, thank you. a lot to talk about this morning. first, thank you for being here. we want to begin with this stunning news coming out of sony, canceling the release of "the interview" on christmas day following a massive data breach and terror threat. the company confirming there are no plans to release the movie on video, on demand, or dvd. controversial move is now nowhere to be found on the controversial movie to be found on the picture's website. this announcement came just hours after the nation's five largest movie chains including regal and amc decided not to show "the interview" after alleged hackers threatened 9/11 style attacks in theaters that would play the film. while u.s. officials say there is no credible evidence of a terror plot, reuters is reporting the fbi warned theaters showing the movie of possible cyberattacks. meanwhile, a senior u.s. official tells nbc news that the u.s. has concluded north korea is behind the sony hack. officials are now gathering evidence to determine who

exactly is responsible. president obama also weighed in. >> the cyberattack is very serious. we're investigating. we're taking it seriously. we'll be vigilant. if we see something we think is serious and credible, then we'll alert the public, but for now, my recommendation would be that people go to the movies. >> meanwhile, mitt romney is urging sony to release the interview for free online and ask for a $5 donation to fight ebola. celebrities were also quick to criticize pulling this film in theaters that decided against showing the movie. judd apatow, jimmy kimmel and steve carell were among those reacting negatively on twitter and the uproar killed plans for a steve carell thriller that was to be set in north korea. a texas theater that planned to show "the interview" said it will show team america world police instead, one of the main characters in that movie was a

marionette version of kim jong-un's father, kim jong-il. apparently kim jong-il was not a fan of that film whatsoever. this brings us to our twitter question for you, do you think sony should have pulled the interview for movie theaters. were they smart to respond sympathy to a potential threat or un-american to cave to such pressure? tweet us your answers. we'll read the best responses later in the show when we check in with justine. now, president obama hailing a new chapter in diplomatic ties with cuba, five decades after the cuban missile crisis had the world on the brink of nuclear war. the groundbreaking developments began with yesterday's prisoner swap. cuba released american aid worker alan gross, imprisoned for five years, along with an unnamed u.s. intelligence agent who spent the last 20 years in a cuban prison. in return, the u.s. released three cuban spies that intelligence officers helped put in jail. the last of the so-called cuban five detained in 1998.

it is a move that president obama says puts an end to an outdated approach that he argues has failed to advance u.s. interests. >> neither the american nor cuban people are well served by a rigid policy that is rooted in events that took place before most of us were born. i've instructed secretary kerry to begin discussions with cube why to re-establish diplomatic relations severed since january of 1961. now, where we disagree we will raise those differences directly. as we will continue to do on issues related to democracy, and human rights in cuba. but i believe we can do more to support the cuban people and promote our values through engagements. after all, these 50 years have shown the isolation has not worked. it is time for a new approach. >> the president's plans are sweeping. they include reopening the u.s. embassy in havana, reviewing cuba's designation as a state

sponsor of terror easing travel restriction restrictions. the president also hopes to expand economic ties and says he looks forward to engaging congress in a, quote, open and honest debate about lifting the long-standing embargo. on another note, americans who travel to cuba will be allowed to bring back $400 worth of goods, including a $100 limit for alcohol and tobacco. now, a deeper look together at how this deal was reached because it all began back in the spring of 2013 when president obama approved secret negotiations between the u.s. and cuba, similar to how the u.s. began nuclear talks with iran. a majority of the meetings, they were held in canada, which president obama thanked the country for hosting. u.s. officials say no meetings occurred in either the u.s. or cuba. officials say then senator john kerry discussed changing the u.s. policy toward cuba in his first conversation with president obama about becoming secretary of state.

kerry had four phone calls over the summer with cuba's foreign minister, and one that relations that the two countries would never improve if anything happened to alan gross. and pope francis played a crucial role as well. the vatican hosted an important meeting in the fall and the pope personally wrote letters to both president obama and cuban president raul castro. >> when i had the meeting with pope francis for the first time, back in the spring, this was one of the items on the agenda. and so the assistance not only of him and his office in providing moral authority to the issue, but also his practical facilities in the vatican i think was very, very important. he is the real deal, a remarkable man, and inspiration to all. >> then on tuesday, a historic conversation, obama and raul castro speaking on the phone for about an hour about the terms of this deal. the two leaders shook hands, you

may recall, at nelson man dell w della's funeral. you see them talking to one another. this is the first engagement at the presidential level since the cuban revolution. the white house says president obama had numerous conversations with members of congress before agreeing to the deal and multiple lawmakers were briefed. president obama's historic announcement regarding cuba is already having an impact on the race for 2016. potential candidates were quick to weigh in on this including two senators with family ties to the country. >> this entire policy shift announced today is based on illusion, on a lie. the lie and the illusion that more commerce and access to money and goods will translate to political freedom for the cuban people. but this president has proven today that his foreign policy is more than just naive. it is willfully ignorant of the way the world truly works. this president is the single worst negotiator we have had in

the white house in my lifetime, who has basically given the cuban government everything it asked for and received no assurances of any advances in democracy and freedom in return. >> the castros are the ones who have decided to be brutal, repressive dictators. and we should not be taking blame for the fact that we responded to their active acts of war and hostility, they are a leading state sponsor of terrorism, and just like president obama did with russia, just like president obama did with iran, he does not understand the difference between our friends and our enemies. >> jeb bush also was critical saying in part, quote, the obama administration's decision to restore diplomatic ties with cuba is the latest foreign policy misstep by this president and another dramatic overreach of his executive authority. the benefactors of president obama's ill advised move will be

the heinous castro brothers who have oppressed cuban people for decades. but hillary clinton said, i'm deeply relieved by alan gross' safe return to the united states and i support president obama's decision to change course on cuba policy despite good intentions our decades long policy of isolation is only strengthened the castro regime's grip on power. as i have said, the best way to bring change to cuba is to expose its people to the values and information and material from the world. governor andrew cuomo's administration announced it would ban a controversial drilling method saying health concerns outweighed potential economic benefits, even in a state rich in natural gas resources. the decision deals a huge win to environmentalists who were pressuring cuomo to make a 2008 moratorium on fracking permanent. he said he would defer to his environmental and health commissioners. on that matter, he said it cape

with risks that haven't been sufficiently studied. u.s. stocks, great day on wall street, best day yet for the dow in 2014. look at that. up 288 points. all eyes are on russia this morning with vladimir putin giving his annual press conference among this teurbulen week for the currency, the ruble. what are we hearing from putin this morning? this is a live press conference taking place. i'm sure he's fielding a lot of questions about the currency and what that means for international markets. >> reporter: yeah, absolutely. this is a four-hour press conference that putin gives every year. and as you say, it is still ongoing. and he takes uncensored questions from international and domestic journalists. what we heard on the economy, he thinks there will be growth this year. he acknowledged the very rapid decline we have seen in the

ruble and the central bank has been a step too slow in dealing with the crisis. he broadly backed the government's position and the way they have come in now and stabilized the currency with this massive hike in interest rates to 17%. the president didn't, though, commit reserves from the government to further fighting ruble weakness. i think that's why we have seen a little bit of volatility around the ruble and some weakness, even as we have seen russian stocks react positively to the press conference so far. just very briefly, he also talked about the ukraine situation and i think those who listen to the speech really assessed it as handing out a bit of an olive branch to all parties here. he said moscow wanted to be part of the negotiations for a resolution and he said he would be speaking with petro poroshenko, the ukrainian president, over the next few days on video conference. so that was taken, i think, as

broadly positive in terms of trying to de-escalate the current crisis over ukraine. of course, president obama has a fresh set of sanctions sat on his desk, ready to be signed, should the white house decide that they still don't think moscow and president putin are giving enough at this point. but we continue to listen in to the president's speech and if there is anything fresh that we need to bring you, we'll do that. back to you. >> cnbc's jeff cutmore live for us in russia. thank you. this is a rolling live, four-hour press conference as jeff points out. we'll be turning sound this morning for you from the questions he's taking from an international audience of journalists. we have your nba highlights for you including an triple overtime for the grizzlies and spurs. we'll let you know who pulled out a win. and actor stephen collins admitting to sexual misconduct with three women who were minors at the time of the abuse. what he's saying now about those incidents.

when they announced the box office numbers, avatar is poised to dethrone this guy and all his ship mates. "titanic's" box office record will be sunk by the big blue people from pandora.

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spiriva helps me breathe better. sfx: blowing sound. does breathing with copd... ...weigh you down? don't wait ask your doctor about spiriva handihaler. that is true. hi, everybody. welcome back. time for sports. the san francisco 49ers released offensive lineman ray mcdonald, this comes after authorities announced they were looking into a possible sexual assault involving the player. no charges have been filed against mcdonald. mcdonald had been playing all fall, despite an investigation into an august incident of alleged domestic violence. last month, the district attorney's office said it would not charge mcdonald in that

case. the nfl will pursue an independent investigation into this new matter as the alleged incident falls under the league's new conduct policy. the 49ers might also need to think about a new head coach. san fran's jim harbaugh reportedly considering an offer to coach at the university of michigan. get this, a deal worth $49 million over six years. >> in other words, opening up the bank vault and saying, please, please, come here and save us. >> this will buy you a lot of property, yes. the salary would make harbaugh the highest paid coach in college football. >> does he do it, do you think? >> probably make his brother a little jealous too in baltimore. to chicago, the 5-9 bears are expected to bench the quarterback jay cutler on saturday against the lions instead going with their backup jimmy clawson, 1-9 in ten starts after being drafted by the carolina panthers in 20 10. cutler struggled all season.

he signed an extension with the team earlier this year. listen to this, worth more than $126 million. >> but only $50 million guaranteed. only. >> oh, that's it? >> that's it. >> how can he live? we switch gears to the nba, where the dwrgrizzly and spurs bonus time last night. memphis trailing by a basket with 2.5 seconds to play in regulation. then -- >> gasol for three. we got overtime. tim duncan, time. >> it's good. >> yes! oh, my goodness. i don't believe it! >> look at that. a pair of buzzer beaters sends this to triple overtime where the grizzly's zach randolph provided the spark to close it out. memphis wins 117-116. they're now 21-4 on the season. wow, what a game. the university of alabama

birmingham announced it was shutting down its football program citing financial concerns. the school is still feeling the love. a 5-year-old from ohio donated his allowance with the letter reading, i love ohio state, but i think you should have football too. here is one dollar to help. the university's athletic department sent the little guy a care package with a bunch of uab gear to say thank you. isn't that nice? >> very sweet. >> nice. >> good little kid. >> good little kid. let's get a check on the weather with nbc meteorologist bill karins standing by. >> next week, all eyes on the storm that will be coming across the country it looks like tuesday, wednesday, and thursday. of course, that's the busy travel time heading into christmas. so we're okay this morning. a little bit of snow, kansas city, first snow of the season, inch on the ground out there, few spots, two to three inches, careful driving there in missouri and also in kansas. as we head toward the northeast, we have a little bit of snow coming down in maine, new hampshire, vermont, massachusetts, a lot of it is

not sticking. too warm. the roads are just fine, just wet. for today, it is another murky day out there. a lot of rain in texas late today. if you're down there in louisiana, tonight you get drenched, and then tomorrow into the southeast. if you're flying in, out of atlanta tomorrow, you'll probably be all right. you'll be in and out of the rain. as far as next week goes, the cold air isn't in place yet. we won't see a big snowstorm. the cold air is nowhere to be found. comes down a little bit on wednesday. but the storm itself will be this big, huge storm, huge windmaker and that's going to be almost over the top of new york city on wednesday. so thomas, for everyone on christmas eve, if you're traveling christmas eve, northeast, great lakes, mid-atlantic, it is going to be windy and rainy. airports will be a problem next week. >> for santa, this means what? >> rudolph will put the rain slicker on and be just fine. >> his nose will guide the way. his nose is so bright. yes. like some co-workers we have who

have late nights. >> do you have storms to tell? >> i'm not looking at you. i didn't even make contact with you, barnacle. still looks guilty. >> was he hitting the bottle again late last night? >> no. early. so coming up at the top of the hour on "morning joe," live to havana for reaction on the ground to the new relationship between the u.s. and cuba. don't go anywhere. much more coming up on "way too early" right after this. ♪ wellllll... ♪ ♪ earlyfit ♪ latefit ♪ risefit ♪ fallfit ♪ ballfit ♪ wallfit ♪ pingfit ♪ pongfit ♪ pingfit ♪ pongfit ♪ rowfit ♪ throwfit ♪ slowfit ♪ olliefit ♪ oopsfit ♪ otisfit ♪ thiswayfit ♪ thatwayfit ♪ daddyfit ♪ pappyfit ♪ datefit ♪ weightfit ♪ goalfit ♪ gooooooalfit ♪ stepfit ♪ stairfit ♪ smartfit ♪ heartfit

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welcome back. we give you a chieck on the othr headlines this morning. alison lungergan grimes has now turned her focus to kentucky's other republican senator. kentucky secretary of state is now threatening to take senator rand paul to court in order to block him from running for both president and re-election in the senate for 2016. according to reports, paul's team has been working for months on developing a legal plan to defend a possible run for both offices. there is a state law prohibiting such a move, but paul has both announced his re-election bid and laid the ground work of a presidential campaign at the same time. however, lundergan grimes says here on her first tv interview since losing to mitch mcconnell in november that she has other

plans. >> well, the law is clear. you can't be on the ballot twice for two offices. i will not be bullied. i think the -- hopefully the people of kentucky understand that from the course of this past year and will not hesitate to seek help and assistance in the opinion of the court. >> all right. so paul's supporteres say there is precedent for simultaneous races in other states. congressman paul ryan and vp joe biden each ran on two ballots during their respective bids for the vice presidency. we switch gears now and actor stephen collins who appeared in the popular show "seventh heaven" admitted to sexual misconduct with three women who were minors at the time of the incidents. in a statement to "people ," he said, quote, 40 years ago i did something terribly wrong that i deeply regret. i've been working to atone for it ever since. he spoke to katie couric in an interview for yahoo! news. >> this came out. i didn't choose this to come out. i didn't want to have to deal

with these things publicly. i had dealt with them very, very strongly and committedly in my private life. but i think i'm a human being with flaws and i have done everything i can to address them. >> collins tells "people" he's apologized to one of the three women, but does not want to further victimize the others by contacting them. he's speaking out after a recording of him discussing the abuse was -- by tmz. we asked you, do you think sony should have pulled the movie the interview from the theaters or really caved to what the hackers wanted all along? justine is standing by to give us the best responses. >> good morning. so morgan says sony is caving, but at the same time the movie should never have been made. what would we say if it was the p otus instead of kim.

and kim says sony only wants to minimize losses, decision has nothing to do with threats, hackers hitting sony's bottom line and it hurt. >> the hackers promised potentially another christmas gift for everybody with more dirt, e-mails becoming public. that will do it for "way too early." "morning joe" on the way.

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pope francis behind-the-scenes had written letters to both president obama and president castro seeing an opening here and then the vatican brokered a secret meeting between the u.s. and cuban governments. >> come on, frank. is there nothing this lunatic won't heal with compassion? i'm sorry. that does it. i'm calling for a trade embargo on vatican city. americans will have to live without their major export, harlequin