for many children, survival depends on meals. >> the pack back problem is to feed the children when they go home. >> find out more about childhood hunger and what you can do about it at mbs.com. good morning, severe weather slams the south killing four people. flipping cars, damaging homes and knocking out power to thousands. it is not over yet. that weather system could mean major delays and cancellations for millions trying to get home for the holidays. sony has a change of heart saying it will release the film that has caused so much trouble. plus, a health scare for former president, george h.w. bush. viral video of a homeless man helping others in need. a controversial nativity scene. why the owner is being ordered to take it down. good morning, everybody. thanks so much for joining us on this christmas eve. i'm betty nguyen. we have breaking news

overnight to tell you about. tensions are once again flairing in st. louis, missouri. this, as another 18-year-old black teen has been shot and killed by a police officer. it happened in berkley, a town just outside of ferguson. the officer approached the teen and another male during a routine check near a gas station. the teen pulled out and pointed a handgun at the officer. police say the officer fearing for his life fired several shots and fatally wounded the teen. his male companion fled the scene. police recovered the teen's handgun and at this time are not revealing his identity. we will continue to bring you more as this story develops. it is a state of emergency in some parts of mississippi right now. a rare december tornado touched down there. at least four people are dead. thousands still without power. the storm system could impact half the nation's population over the next 24 hours. kurt gregory has more.

>> reporter: rare december tornadoes tore through southern mississippi, ripping roofings from businesses and pulling walls from their foundations. in the town of colombia, thousands were left without power. two dozen homes damaged. vehicles thrown to to their sides. >> we had reports of debris falling out to the sky off to the west and north of colombia. >> trees were completely snapped. buildings destroyed, ambulances flipped on top of another car. >> reporter: in louisiana, much of the same, downed trees and debris from damaged homes strewn across yards. it brought torrential rain to the panhandle of florida. more than 6 inches in tallahassee. the front moves to the north and east. it is promising to make christmas eve travel a nightmare. on tuesday, the flight aware misery map showed growing problems at airports in many cities. delays at those airports are only expected to get worse as

the storm moves through. as much as 6 inches of snow is expected in chicago for christmas eve. adding the windy city to the list of those expecting a white christmas this year. but, getting where you are going the day before by air or road may prove slow going. kurt gregory, nbc news. all right. speaking of the weather outside, let's go right to meteorologist, dominica davis to see how the forecast is shaping up. >> the good news is this is the las date of all this terrible weather. is we can finally stop talking about it. >> i am going to start with the storm reports. yesterday's severe weather was concentrated down from louisiana to georgia. that's where all our storm reports came in. there were over 14 reports of tornadoes that did span from louisiana over to georgia. a lot of damage with that wind and hail reports. that's over today. the threat is diminishing. we still have a tornado threat in northern florida until about

7:00 in the morning. other than that, the focus really is the northeast. because that's where the heavy rain, low visibility and the gusty winds are going to shift for today. i-95 to the great lakes is where you are going to have your travel troubles. 56 in new york, 59, philadelphia, the low 60s in d.c. that is some unusually warm christmas weather. >> it doesn't look like we are going to have a white christmas any time soon. former president, george h.w. bush, remains in a houston hospital this morning but just as a precaution. he was taken to the hospital after experiencing shortness of breath last night. president obama has sent well wishes to the 90-year-old former president. bush spent nearly two months in that same hospital this time last year for bronchitis-related cough and other health issues after criticism from washington and hollywood, sony

pictures will now release the interview at a limited number of theaters tomorrow. more than 200 theaters are expected to show the controversial comedy. this comes despite hackers from north korea. tracie potts is live. what does this mean for sony now that it has done an about face? >> reporter: it may mean they can recoup some of the $100 million they were expected to lose. president obama chided them for that. now, the white house says he welcomes the chance for americans to get out and see the movie and make up their own minds to exercise their free speech. sony says "the interview" will debut at more than 200 independent theaters. at some, tickets sold out in an hour. >> i was willing to go on christmas to go see it just to say, we're not going to stand up for this kind of bullying and this childish behavior.

>> reporter: the movie is about a fictional plot to kill north korea's leader. hackers referenced 9/11 and demanded it be pulled. >> threatening the blow of american families at sin aplex's around the united states, that's an act of terrorism. he is references the list of states that sponsor terror, one of the responses they are considering. the state department won't say whether the u.s. was behind north korea's massive internet outage in north korea. sony is bracing for another cyberattack. but says it is proud to stand up for free speech. the film stars james franco and seth roe abegan, tweeted victory and freedom has prevailed. it will appear in less than a tenth of the theaters that were supposed to screen the film. >> in case you can't get to the theater and see the film or you don't want to do that on christmas day, it looks like

sony is trying to work on getting it on the internet, streaming it or putting it on video on demand on some cable systems. >> i have a feeling dend ma is going to be strong. the christmas tree here at rockefeller center was among several landmarks to dim its lights for 5:00 minutes at 9:00 last night. the empire state building and one world trade center did the same at the request of the mayor. vice-president joe biden and his wife will attend the funeral service of officer raphael ramos on saturday. stephanie goff has the latest information on deescalating tensions between the mayors and his police force and protesters. >> reporter: they stopped at 2:47 to stop the moments that the officers were shot down. officer lui's tearful widow

thank td support irs. >> this is a difficult time for both of our families. >> reporter: the mayor called for aan end to protests over police tactics until after the funerals are held. some law enforcement officials link those protests to saturday's rampage. the 28-year-old suspect, ismaaiyl brinsley, had video on his cell phone of this december 1st demonstration against the police. new york police commissioner with matt lauer. >> it is quite obvious the attack of these two police officers was a direct spinoff of these demonstrations. brinsley also had a long criminal record and a hisvy of mental illness. before he killed the officers and hinl self, he first shot his ex-girlfriend. >> they say they are not to blame and they are back on the streets. eugene perrier helped organize the demonstration z to stop now

would only feed into their native that these protests have contributed to violence and chaos, which we believe is not true. >> what is true is that two officers denied senselessly. the city is left wondering how to keep it from happening again. stephanie gosk, nbc news. let's get down to business with cnbc's meg tirrell. >> the dow looks to march higher after closing above 18,000. stocks rose on a strong gdp which showed the economy grew more than expected. the dow went from 17,000 to 18,000 in less than six months. a short day of trading today. the mashlg kets close at 1:00 p.m. eastern. fedex and ups are reportedly capping express holiday deliveries after a surge in packages had some retailers to ago above their limits. 2 million packages didn't make it on time because of late

orders and bad weather. facebook has linked a deal with the nfl to run short video clips, including games highlights, news and or content followed by ads from verizon wireless. we are keeping an eye on santa's location. what a homeless man in california does after receiving $100 from a stranger. >> the cutest stocking stuffer ever. look at these quadruplets. they are adorable. born premature in september. thanks to staff at university of colorado hospital, they are doing just fine this holiday season. [coughing]

dave, i'm sorry to interrupt... i gotta take a sick day tomorrow. dads don't take sick days, dads take nyquil. the nighttime, sniffling, sneezing, coughing, aching, fever, best sleep with a cold, medicine. 13 minutes past the hour. some stories making news this morning. gay men can now donate blood so long as they have obstained from sex with other men for a year. it is the latest attempt by the fda to lift a ban that went into the effect at the start of the aids epidemic in the early '80s. illinois is the first state to legalize medical marijuana

for children. minors must get two doctors to sign off it will help treat their health condition. >> a self-described social experiment prankster thought he was going to catch a homeless person buying alcohol with money he gave him. the man goes into the liquor store and comes out with food and goes from park to park and shares it with other homeless people. the video has gotten 10 million hits since it was posted on monday. in cincinnati, a zombie inspired nativity scene. it is pitting town officials against a homeowner. it was brought to their attention by two anonymous residents that were offended by it. they v ordered it be removed by friday citing zoning violations. the homeowner says his goal wasn't to offend anyone's religious beliefs. it is a question on the minds of so many kids this morning. where is santa? well, starting tonight, volunteers at norad will be tracking his every step and so can you by going to their

website at noradsanta.org. a new app for smartphones. trailblazers took on the thunder in a thrill to the finish. he gets a good look. he popped it. a challenge. little lard knocks it down. >> damion lillard hits his seventh three-pointer of the night to force overtime. in the closing seconds, serge ibaka and lamarcus aldridge get tangled up under the basket. what went wrong? they are both ejected. blazers win it. 115-111. during the semifinals of the diamond head classic, the 11th ranked wichita state escapes a near upset with a one-point win over hawaii, 80-79. oregon quarterback and this year's heisman winner, marcus mariota, is also the a.p. college football player of the year. he received 49 of the 54 votes submitted by the a.p. top 25 media panel.

this year's nfl pro bowl selection was dominated by the afc west champion, denver broncos with 9 players selected. peyton manning was picked for the 14th time. the nfc east champion, the dallas cowboys, my favorite, were second with six selections. ♪ jingle bell, jingle bell rock ♪ ♪ jingle bells swing and jingle bells ring ♪ >> colts players showed off their musical chops caroling for patients at riley children's hospital. the st. louis blues had a little fun spoofing home alone with their mascot, louie. take a look. >> i feel like we're forgetting something. kevin? >> no, i'm right here. >> louie? ♪

>> you can't leave louie, no. this can be the most wonderful time of the year, as we know. when you are missing someone in your life, the holidays can turn into a really tough time. that is why there is a place to go for families of our fallen military. nbc's janet shamlian shows us how snowfall express works. >> merry christmas. look at here, jason. >> you can't buy a ticket for this flight or a dozen others like it. this is the snowball express. it's just touched down in texas. >> we love the welcome every year. it's so much fun. >> hundreds of children and mostly moms are invited for four days of holiday fun. they are the sons, daughters, and spouses of fallen military heroes. >> it's bitter-sweet, because you know why you are here.

>> reporter: for jennifer stratten, it's been five years since she lost her husband, mark, in afghanistan. she comes here every year from virginia with her children, who are now 7, 10, and 12. >> friendships develop and i get to know more and more of the widows. so you feel like you are coming home every time for christmas, which is very nice. >> as for volunteers, there is a cast of thousands. >> would you like a pork chop patty or a hotdog? >> reporter: the most significant of support comes from the people of ft. worth. moms and dads that load up their own children and wait by the side of the road to cheer on 50 busloads of military families as they drive by. >> i am here to tell them that we love them and we support them. >> reporter: it's a mess of undertaking, the flights, the hotel rooms, the activities and the food. it is all donated. no one pays a dime. >> we are here for the kids. we want to remember what they sacrificed for us.

>> reporter: for the parents, it's a shoulder to lean on. >> it has been 15 months, a long 15 months. we are grateful to be here. >> reporter: it is mostly all about fun. new memories in the making. janet shamlian, nbc news, ft. worth. what a great program. all right. so just ahead, details on a vandalism at the florida state capital. republican senator, rand paul, has some fun with festivus. the rock goes back in time. fanny pack and all just in time for christmas. when the game's on the line. hit him with a hard count, see if they'll tip their hand. the nfl trusts duracell quantum to their game day communication. they're blitzing up the gut! get out of the pocket! hut!

duracell quantum. lasts up to 35% longer than the competition. losing your chex mix too easily? deploy the boring potato chip decoy bag. with a variety of tastes and textures, only chex mix has twenty bags of interesting. pick your mix.

here is your christmas eve edition of scrambled politics. 6.4 million americans have enrolled for individual insurance plans for 2014 through healthcare.gov. the put the administration on track to outpace its goal of 9.1 million signups by february. michael grimm has pleaded guilty to felony tax evasion. now, top house democrat nancy pelosi is calling on john boehner to act. she released a statement saying. congressman grimm is finally admitting the truth to his constituents. clearly, speaker boehner must insist that congressman grimm re-sign immediately. senator elizabeth warren is

blasting the fda's new policy about blood donations from gay men. the fda must commit to building a bigger, safer, blood supply through risk-based screening and have courage to set policies based on science. a satanic temple display in the lob by of the florida state capital building was vandalized yesterday. susan henrik told the police she couldn't take it anymore. she began ripping apart the display. she has been charged with criminal mischief. republican senator rand paul had some fun celebrating festivus. he took to twitter and aired some of his own grievances. one of his many tweets was this picture of rick santorum. we all know having a fashion forward campaign is important to success as rick santorum showed us in 2012. he had a picture of a shirt with a rand paul 2016 logo. of course, everyone has to be themselves. i have my own style.

one of his later tweets was this one where he was holding up a puppies. politics doesn't involve enough puppies. people like puppies. #airingofgrievances. from boston, i'm joined by politico reporter, kevin robillard. i see you don't have any puppies with you. we will talk about some good news. the dow passed a record 18,000 yesterday for the first time ever. gas prices are down. the president's approval hits what, a 2014 high. is this a turn-around movement? >> it is a little too early to say that. the white house has done this before. it is a little too early to say that. clearly, a lot of things are going well. americans are now approving and saying the economy is headed in the right direction for the first time in a very long time.

consumer confidence is as high as that is been since the bush administration. clearly a lot of things are going well. whether it turns into political benefits for the president is an open question. how much he can gain considered the mid-terms have already happened is another open question. >> we reported earlier that nancy pelosi wants speaker boehner to insist that republican congressman, michael grimm, re-sign after pleading guilty of felony tax evasion. what are the real chances of that happening. >> the republican party has tried to get rid of grimm in the past. when he was first indicted, the nrcc cut off all of his funding. they weren't giving him any more money. he won re-election anyway. boehner could insist he wants grimm to re-sign. boehner and grimm talked. i wouldn't be surprised if that's what boehner actually told him. grimm has shown no indication that he is going to re-sign or that he could somehow be forced out of office unless the full house votes to expel him, which would be something that would take a long time to accomplish. >> why aren't we hearing more

from republicans that actually oppose a convicted felon representing their party in congress? >> right now, it is probably largely because they are just not in session right now. grimm probably negotiated when he was going to get indicted, when he was going to plead and negotiated it for the week of christmas. that was a smart thing on his part. the fact is that most members of congress aren't in washington, d.c. so reporters can't walk up to them and ask them, do you think michael grimm should re-sign? i guarantee you, quite a few would say yes. >> it is the holiday. thanks for joining us on christmas eve. >> yep. good to be on. >> happy holidays to you. now, for some entertainment news. forbes has released the top ten most overpaid actors in hollywood. topping the list for a second year in a row is, drum roll, please, adam sandler. johnny depp took second place,

ben stiller, third, rounding out the top five, ryan reynolds and tom hanks. really? >> helena bottom carter and tim burton are no more. they separated and say they will continue to be friends and co-parents to their two children. duane "the rock" johnson tweeted out this picture to get everyone in the holiday spirit, fanny pack and all. i'm betty nguyen. this is "first look" on msnbc. reminder, "morning joe" is coming up at the top of the hour. for many children in kentucky, survival depends on free meals at school. when they are not at school, some kids don't eat at all. >> the backpack program is to feed the children when they go home. >> find out more about childhood hunger and what you can do about it at msnbc.com. turn the trips you have to take,

into one you'll never forget. earn triple points when you book with the expedia app. expedia plus rewards. . good morning, welcome to ""morning joe." "2014 delivered a wide range of news events, the disappearance of a malaysia airlines flight t. unrest and shooting down of another malaysia airliner plane and, of course, this summer was just racked with violence in gaza, the ebola outbreak and the humanitarian crisis with children crossing america's southern borders. the rise of isis, the civil war in syria and the swing of power in the mid-term election, of cour,