at the moment. the floods in malaysia and floods in thailand. there is a lot of rain. that is something we have to look at more carefully because the weather is changing. >> family outrage. why did relatives first learn of the discovery while watching live images on indonesian tv. change of direction. cuba and u.s. talk about their new relationship. what will it mean for travel and trade? we will talk to the lead negotiator with havana. politically incorrect. a top congressman's likely appearance at a white supremacy offend causes a firestorm. each as another agrees to resign and not because of this unforgettable run in with a reporter.

i'm andrea mitchell in washington. we are following breaking news in indonesia while they recover the plane and bodies from the flight in the straight of northern channel in the java sea. the latest from singapore including some horrific moments for the families. the victims's families earlier today. >> we should start by saying they are calling it a search and

rescue and holding out hope there might be survivors, but today is a tough day in southeast asia as they confirm the wreckage and the bodies they found do belong to air asia flight 8501. they found it out by watching local and seeing bodies floating in the water without warning. there were 162 people on board this flight. 17 of them were kids and one was a baby. the search effort will begin tomorrow when it becomes light again. they'll send divers to an area where they saw a big dark shadow. they believe that's where the bulk of the wreckage is. # when they figure out if it was to blame. they will learn from the future. they made it to the final destination. to find out if they have insight into the matter. meanwhile tomorrow air asia

offered a charter flight for families if they can fly around the islands and pray in the location, the last known location of the flight. the bodies will be recovered and ided and sent off as soon as possible so they can give them proper burial services and observe religions and customs. >> thanks to you, katie, in singapore. the us samson and ft. worth are ready to assist in the search. responding to a request for help to the u.s. military, admiral john kirby is the press secretary and joins us here in the studio. thank you very much. what could the two ships do? what service could they provide if asked? >> our thoughts and prayers go out to all those affected and we are willing and able to help however we can. the destroyer samson. it wasn't outfitted and diverted to this cause. she does have a helicopter on

board so they could be used and they could help in the recovery of debris off the surface of the ocean as well. the other ship is a smaller warship and she is in singapore right now. she is outfitted with a side scanned sonar. sometimes it can be handled remotely. it can help you map debris on the ocean floor and help in the search for wreckage. that ship hasn't left yet and probably won't and may not be needed. we are in touch with the indonesian authorities to see what they require. >> what are assets do they have? >> the navy is on scene and doing quite a good job of debris recovery and search and rescue. this is a capability that virtually all navies around the world have to be good at and trained for. the indonesian navy is very skilled at it.

>> obviously key to discovering what happened is the black box. to find out why he requested to go to 38,000 feet presumably weather and why he wasn't able to climb that far, six other planes made it through that weather system. what equipment might we have that would help in hearing the pings? what sonar do we have in the area? >> we can deploy toad pinger locators. you might recall the deaf did deploy those and we will have them and make them available if they are needed to find the black boxes. they were aided in the search effort. it's 160 feet deep and probably won't be quite as hard to listen and to find the black boxes as it was in the other case. >> what about the bad weather systems. this is the bad season and the weather could have had an impact on the crash. >> it could have. that will be under investigation

and the weather could have an impact on the search and recovery as well although right now the weather is good. we are aided by the narrow body of water and fairly shallow as well. it shouldn't be quite as challenging. >> is there intelligence at all indicating this could have been some other event? >> nothing that i've seen. i haven't seen anything that would indicate that. >> i want to ask you about an unrelated subject. you put out a statement about an air strike in somalia against an affiliate that has been doing a lot of terror attacks into kenya and the african union forces. you were targeting a leader. the somalis say that the number three was the target and was successfully taken out. can we confirm that? >> i have seen the somali

statement and we are not in a position to confirm the results. there was an air strike that we took against a senior leader and we are assessing the results. when we know more we will talk. >> no ground forces involved? >> no. this was an air strike. >> civilian casualties. >> no indication of collateral damage as a result. >> thank you so much. wishing you a happy, peaceful new year. >> thank you very much. >> let's bring in nbc meteorologist bill karins about before the crash and the weather for the search. thank you very much for being with us. let's talk about the weather at the time of this incident. we don't know what happened to the plane, but we have been talking to some of your colleagues about how extreme the weather could be if they were trying to fly through an extreme storm and hail and other icing conditions. >> that's what we will find out.

we can speculate and we know for a fact it went from 34,000 and requested to go to 38,000. why? what did the pilot see on his radar in the cockpit that allowed him to think if he went 4,000 feet higher he would be safer. there was something in his path he didn't like. a radar echo of intense rains. that's what he was trying to avoid. the other issue is icing. what we learned with air france. that was an accumulation of ice. it stopped the gates that told the pilots how fast it was going. they didn't operate properly because the speed was not correct. now what happened with this one, they won't recover it yet. that's a possibility because the plane was flying through the thunderstorm at the time it was lost. super cooled water droplets can clog devices. it happened before and at least

five or six times in the last 20 years that brought planes down. that's one of the possibilities. the other is if it flew through the hail shaft like golf balls hitting the engine. i know everyone is curious what the forecast will be. right now it's okay. we mentioned the shallow water. that's warm water and it's good for the divers. they should be able to get them quickly. 80 to 160 feet is nothing for navy diver who is will be going in the water. once they find the ping they should be able to get it quickly. the only problem is we predict as much as to six inches of rain between now and friday over the search area. if they get more thunderstorms and heavy rain and rough seas that will delay the rescue and recovery effort. it's a blessing it's in shallow water, but the weather will not cooperate. >> bill is having it all covered. thank you very much, bill. >> have a good day. >> what will be the key element for the crew searching for clues

into what happened to flight 8501? we will talk to the former head of the ntsb up next here. this is "andrea mitchell reports" here on msnbc.

. for more details on the breaking news today about flight 8501, crews are going to expand their search across the java sea when operations resume as early as tomorrow, mapping the wreckage to locate the main source of the debris on the sea floor. joining me now is our crisis manager and former chairman. great to see you again. thanks for being with us. tell us what can we from the debris so far. we have seen the bodies. they didn't have life vests. what does that tell you about

what may have happened. >> of course my information has been mentioned and will come from the black boxes. it indicated the large piece of fuselage that might indicate that the aircraft came straight down. anything at this point is speculation. we should be able to have the recorders and have information in short time. >> if you can go back to what may have been happening in the cockpit. he asked to go to 38,000 feet and not to go to 34 or 36 but to 38,000 feet. presumably he was trying to go over the storm? >> andrea this accident if you excuse me it underscores two things. the need for cameras in the cockpit. that would be the best defense for the pilot in terms of error to not only have the words and

the information, but visually see what the pilot was seeing what operations were needed. the need for deployable and the board made a recommendation in 1999 for two recorders on the aircraft. it took almost three days. if there were any survivors of this accident this probably was unlikely that they were able to exist or survive for that long of a period of time. those were two issues that i hope that industry will again revisit. >> and what about for more of the advanced radar that the industry resisted. this plane was supposed to have it and department have it equipped. >> it's not a worldwide tracking system to not have the deployable, floatable recorders.

to not have the cameras in the cockpit. those are all things we have to as passengers and citizens of the world, we need to insist on it. because commercial aviation is really the life blood of the economics of most of the nations in the world. >> going forward, do you think there will be more pressure for better equipped airlines. this is the second incident. # >> i thought after air france. there would be action. with the aircraft and this is really the third incident. hopefully the international civil aviation organization and specifically in our country.

the faa will take action. the ntsb my formerancy is going to make recommendations in january in this area. i hope they will be heeded by the industry and government regulators. >> jim hall former ntsb chair, thank you very much. and 2015 will be the year of big changes between the united states and cuba. up next we will talk to the state department's lead negotiator with cuba's government on what will happen next. this is "andrea mitchell reports" only on msnbc.

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>> normalizing relations with cuba and it will have ripple effects over the next year. they will begin talks to reestablish relations with the castro government and political relationships. what will this relationship look like in 2015. assistant secretary of state

serves as the assistant secretary of affairs and leading negotiations in havana next month and joins me here. where do you start? is it starting with the political or economic side? what is the first part? >> she transforms the intersection in havana. # >> remember the embargo is still in place. it won't change dramatically. >> they loosened the regulations in terms of who can travel and how much trade whether there can be credit for instance. the first time they can be debit cards and that can make it

possible. cubans have been complaining that they can't do that because they have to pay cash. >> they will change the definition to make that a little bit easier for those cash transfers. he can't change the entire trade relationship because of the embargo. he made it easier for telecommunications to get on to the island. it's so important that cuban citizens get on board. they have the 12 categories for people who can travel to cuba. lots of things and areas of commerce that are permitted. >>. >> >> the travel and the 12 degrees of people who include artists and journalists. who can actually travel if they have a group or a tour? >> humanitarian groups are allowed to travel.

everyday cubans are providing support to the cuban people. cultural groups can travel and athletics are a broader ability to enter change and athletic opportunities. certainly there groups going from medical conferences and international organizations. things of that nature. are the cubans going to prevent that. there groups there that have internet and satellite access but the vast majority don't. >> right. internet access is very low. only about 5%. pda and text messaging and mobile phone penetration is higher now. i think this is a big question and that's what we are hoping will be increased. the cubans have access as millions of people do around the

world. >> there has been criticism from a prominent blogger that they should have been job one. this should not be normalized until there is more political freedom. >> the most important thing is that the centrality of human rights didn't change. that will be critically important and we will have deep differences. one of which its repression of we believe this is a better way to report the work. >> this was part of the original agreement? >> we have seen releases of those that we expressed interest in and we expect to see that continue. >> less harassment of the lates

in white? >> we have protested that and continue to speak out, but we are not going to pull any punches on what we speak out against. it will remain an area where we have grave differences. >> do you expect by the time the april summit of the americas takes place and president obama that there will be more of an agenda between the two? will you have an embassy by then? i would hope by that time you might have an intersection transformed to an embassy and in terms of an agenda, i expect we will have a robust agenda going

forward. # hopefully new areas for cooperation. >> finally briefly and how long would it take to get cuba off the terror list that will be a big deal with them? >> i am not going to prejudge whether they will be coming off or not. i know there is a process under way and the president asked us to undertake that under the secretary's guidance within six months. we will do that and see how quickly we will get that done and the results. we will do that as quickly as we can. >> it's a pleasure. thank you very much for being here. >> thank you so much andre a. >> now to the faux pas who displaced the dream hawaiian wedding. they planned to say their i dos on the military golf course with sweeping views of the pacific.

the president spoiled that plan by scheduling a round of golf that day. the bride and groom didn't mind moving to the base commander's lawn and they even got a call from the commander in chief. >> i feel terrible. i hope it wasn't a surprise. >> it was a blessing in disguise. get ready for some german engineered holiday excitement. at the volkswagen sign-then-drive event. right now, for practically just your signature, you could drive home for the holidays in a new volkswagen. like the sporty, advanced new jetta and the precisely engineered passat tdi. ah, the gift of clean diesel. for the new volkswagen on your list this year just about all you need, is a pen. festive, isn't it? hurry in to the sign then drive event and get a five-hundred dollar new year's bonus on select new volkswagen models. offer ends january 2nd. latte or au lait? cozy or cool? exactly the way you want it ... until boom, it's bedtime!

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you never dwell on how it was made... it's just a blanket after all... but when everything else has been lost, the comfort it provides is immeasurable. the america red cross brings hope and help to people in need every 8 minutes every day. so this season give something that means something. support us at redcross.org . >> we have breaking news from houston, texas where former president george h.w. bush has been released from the hospital. he was admitted last tuesday, december 23rd after experiencing shortness of breath. he is the holdest living former president at 90 and has a form of parkinson's syndrome. this is good news indeed that he

is out of the hospital. this is the file picture that he has been released from houston and will be back home for the new year. let's turn now back to that other breaking news from the tragic day from flight 8501 the passengers and the crew. the families first learned of the bodies found from a local television feed. they were watching live tv airing gruesome pictures while officials were trying to give them an uh date. that has been suspended until tomorrow morning. the search area will expand as the debris source on the debris floor. tom, what do we suspect from where the debris was found and the shaeddo was seen as to where the fuselage and the rest of the plane might be. >> they have a good sense of the exact area where this plane is likely resting. they will have to do some analysis of the winds and the ocean currents to back track and figure out okay, if we see

debris here, how far might it have traveled? they think they see a shadow in the water, suggesting they may have a good chunk of the fuselage identified. we will have to go down to probably remotely operate a vehicle and divers depending on the depth to determine what they have there. it's possible it broke apart into several pieces and what will be critical is to identify the tail section of the fuselage. that is where you will find the voice and flight data recorder. that will be the tale of this mystery. telling us what was happening with the flight control systems and what the conversations were like between the pilot and the copilot as this plane was experiencing trouble at 32,000 feet or so. we know that the pilot requested a change up to 38,000 feet because of severe weather, but was denied that because of air traffic control. we don't know what happened at that point. did he experience just

horrendous weather and winds and rain and that sort of thing and lightning? is it possible that the tubes experienced a failure? they are air sensors that every plane has. the trouble is on the airbus, they have been known to ice over in the past. that happened on air france 447. they iced over and gave bad data to the computers. the computers froze and then the pilots unfortunately went into a series of mistakes that brought the plane down. at this moment, clearly they are going to be looking at what happened to the air speed sensors. >> tom costello, great reporting. thank you so much. michael is the former chief of staff at the faa and joins me now. following up on that how do we learn -- here we are again. we didn't have cameras in the cockpit. didn't have the radar coverage. no actions have been taken.

>> there so many places here. they will find the black boxes soon. it's a modern aircraft. that will solve the essential piece of the puzzle. what did the pilot do to compensate and what happened on the aircraft. did the indicator fail or not? all that will come together. we still after and people streaming netflix and the pilots streaming in the cockpit and the entertainment system has it that the air traffic control has lagged behind. that has been a cost issue and the lack of leadership among the regulatory authorities here and abroad to mandate that airlines have the technology on all flights. >> for all of us who fly and experience updrafts and bad

weather and go through these electric storms, we are always reassured that everything will be okay. what do you say to us? al of rest of us who don't have -- >> i'm not sure it will make people feel better, but it's surprising how well it works given the difficulties. it's incredibly safe. it will not bring down the aircraft. it's a reaction to the weather that would cause the problem. there is another set of issues in southeast asia that we need to look at. they are selling billions of dollars of planes into authorities and airlines that are ill-equipped from the pilot and the air traffic controller standpoint to handle that explosive growth. the european union banned them for safety reasons. they have huge safety reasons. >> that's not an air traffic control issue.

>> that's a regulatory oversight to make sure they are safe. lots of questions about this in this incident. why it took two minutes to get back and the plane's distress and the pilot can always make independent decisions, but why did the plane take off in the first place. if you have that kind of weather all be it we don't have that size of thunderstorms, you do not fly. the pressure to fly in that region because of the middle class in indonesia and the numbers of people that want to fly, the roustest kind of weather creates safety issues. i think that going forward is going to be something that all of us need to look more close low at. >> thank you so much. >> more now on the breaking news. good news out of houston. a spokesperson confirm that is the former president has been released from the hospital and he is resting at home grateful to the doctors and nurses.

he was admitted a week ago after experiencing a shortness of breath. at 90 years old, he is the oldest living former president. we wish him a happy new year. . ♪ fifty omaha set hut ♪ ♪ losing feeling in my toes ♪ ♪ nothing beats that new car smell ♪ ♪ chicken parm you taste so good ♪ ♪ nationwide is on your side ♪ ♪ mmm mmm mmm mm mmm mm mmmmmm ♪

>> two republican congressman in the news and not for good reasons. steve scalise said it was highwayly likely he did speak at a convention by david duke when he was a state law maker in louisiana. he spoke to many groups at the time when he was opposing a local tax plan and he was not aware of what principals they stood for. jobby jindal said he is not a racist, but the group was widely known for the leadership by one-time ku klux klan leader david duke.

that was very controversial, of course. then new york is announcing late mnt minute he will resign from congress january 5th. they pleaded guilty and vowed not to give in to party pressure to step down. joining me now is the chief correspondent who covers politics at the atlantic. dan, first to scalise. for those of us who covered david duke back in the day, it's hard to believe anyone did not know who he was and what his group was. >> that's right. that's the big question that he still has to deal with and answer. we are certainly not anywhere close to having a resolution on this. there is more investigation that will be done. there will be reporters looking at his record on this and other issues. i think it's a question for the leadership of what they are prepared to do or ask him to do.

>> to those who say it's 12 years and there should be a statute of limitations on that. to say yes, i was part of this back then, but i changed my views or -- object to what they stood for. >> his story seems to keep changing. he didn't know if he had been there and confirm heed had been there and now said he didn't remember being there and he must have been there. in an interview he gave to a local newspaper last night, he seemed to be comparing this to a respectable liberal group, the league of women voters that is apples and oranges. we haven't heard from leadership yet because they are waiting to see what comes out and how strong his support is. we have seen a lot of support from the republican establishment, particularly in

louisiana. but a lot of conservative voices are skeptical. leadership is waiting to see. >> one of his former colleagues aides who was connected to david duke said on him, steve, this was "the washington post" reporting. he was someone who i exchanged ideas with on toll ticks. we wouldn't talk about race or the jewish question. >> i have come back today on this. they are quite pessimistic. there view is it's very difficult for him unless authorities a totally de9 explanation and they think he has about 48 hours to try to get the story out in full and to

satisfy the leadership. absent that, he could face pressure to step down from the leadership. >> he was in a competitive race for the leadership. back when he was running. >> it ended up not that -- >> not that much of a fight. nancy pelosi said with the group classified by the anti-defamation league and the southern poverty law center as a hate group is deeply troubling for a top republican leader in the house. so the democrats are clearly going to be criticizing and the question is how much within report he has. here is someone who only a week ago was saying he was not going to step down and had a conversation with speaker boehner. there were a lot of rules about what you can and cannot do when you are convicted and he pleaded guilt tow a felony. >> we don't know the contents of that conversation with the speaker, but we can assume that boehner was talking about the various sanctions that might have been applied to him had he

tried to come back after pleading guilt tow a felony would have been a hard road for him and he apparently saw the writing on the wall and it's now been announced he will be stepping down. the revelations are a surprise. the stuff is not a surprise. his constituents reelected him knowing he was more or less a criminal. it was a function of the personality loyalties he had and his opponent being lack luster. there will now be a special election for that new york congressional seat. >> he first came to national prominence the night of the state of the union when a new york one reporter was challenging him about the investigation and he threatened to throw the reporter off the edge of the balcony. >> and to break him in half like a boy, as he put it. what was picked up on the microphone. # it seemed inevitable he would

have to step down. he is a very determined person throughout his life and very forceful. everybody thinks is clearly the right thing to have done. >> happy new year to you. great to see you. and lots of luck to you. talk about out of bounds, a student assistant coach for texas a&m was told to stay in the locker room after hitting the opposing team's players in the liberty bowl. caught on camera michael richardson striking two west virginia mountaineer who is had run to the sideline and first it was an elbow and then a punch to the helmet of quarterback darrell worley. he was made aware of the incident at halftime and told the coach don't return to the field. as for the game, it was the aggies in a 45-37 victory over west virginia.

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>> about a minute after the launch, there was a huge bright ball of fire and explosion in the air about 28 miles west of the cape canaveral launch site. >> that was john palmer breaking the news of the challenger disaster. just one of the major stories he covered during 40 years at nbc. from beirut to washington, he was that rare soul in the rough and tumble world of news. smart, brave, but always courtly. a southern gentlemen in the trench coat of a foreign correspondent correspondent. >> paris without the eiffel tower is like a frenchman without wine. >> he covered war and summits from the field and from the

anchor desk on toechltds the pride of kings port tennessee, he got the first break in atlanta in 1960, just two years later he joined nbc news where he would spend the better part of the next 40 years. >> at times the fighting has been heavy using mortars and machine guns. >> his assignments were gritty. based in tel aviv, beirut and paris. until 1979 when he was named correspondent, covering five presidents jimmy carter ronald reagan, both bushes and bill clinton. >> the many chapters of his career are part of his memoire. written before he died last year. shared with us by his wife who we met while working here at washington bureau and nancy joins me now. >> it is great to see you. >> wonderful to be here. >> the story of your life with

john. your romance and you are in the newsroom. it's good to have you back. with so many chapters what was so memorable? what defined him? the white house correspondent, the anchorman? >> because of his boyhood in kings port tennessee, i have to say the civil rights movement. i have just seen the film selma, but i think it really defined him not only about where he was from in the south, but how to be a journalist and how to want to get involved and maintain a distance and get it right. >> the story that really catapulted him to washington fame was when he was the only correspondent that night at the white house. there was the failed rescue mission of the american hostages in iran and he got that story from the president of the united states. >> he did and told that story as well. they were going to give it to

him and they wanted to wait until after midnight and after johnny carson was over. he had been going to the tonight show. they said i'm going to tell the story anyway whether i have a lot of information or a little so. and they did. >> it's also the tradition. he was the first true broadcast journalist who never had been a print journalist of his era. you had to work at a newspaper and get into radio and television. his goal was really to be a broadcaster. >> to be a broadcaster. he started on the radio station in his hometown and not the local paper. so he was a broadcaster and that is a career. "today" show anchor too. >> tell us how ronald reagan

almost made him late for your wedding. >> you were around. >> i was at the wedding. >> john's best man was bill lynch known for doing a mean ronald reagan imitation. when the white house phone rang and they said it was the president and he thought it was bill lynch and just that shy of saying something not nice. it was the president who talked and talked about marrying his nancy and john was almost late to the wedding which is usually the bride's job. >> you had these three beautiful girls who grew up into wonderful young women. two of them here at nbc. >> molly is a producer with the "today" show in los angeles and helps us in this building where so much has gone on for all of us. >> we should point out that molly and hope are third generation of your family that your dad was the first director

the first time anyone carried a national convention and your mother was in the control room. >> she directed david drinkly here as well. it's always coming home to me when i'm here. >> we celebrate the life the wonderful life and contributions to all of us the friendship and the example and the mentorship of john palmer. i don't think i know i wouldn't have the career i have today if he was not guiding me through the early very difficult years in the white house when i was a correspondent there. >> he love and admired you. >> the book is news catcher and has been with the help of nbc news. we are so grateful that we have it and we have you nancy palmer. so many wonderful memories. and that does it for this edition of "andrea mitchell reports." i'm so happy to be with you. follow the show online on facebook and twitter@mitchell reports and ronan farrow daily

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>> 1:00 p.m. on the east coast and 10:00 p.m. on the west. we learned former president george h.w. bush has been released from houston medical center and is now at home. the 90-year-old was admitted after experiencing a shortness of breath. # this morning as rescuers pulled bodies and debris from the java sea, they confirmed that the wreckage is from air asia flight 8501. the u.s. military is accepting more help for the search and rescue operation. they had a navy aircraft that

will join as samson is already in the region and the u.s. will head there on new year's day. in the philippines, a second air asia plane overshot a runway and got stuck in a field. 159 people were on board that plane, but there were no reports of any injuries. we turn now to singapore where katie has the latest on flight 8501. >> the next step in the search recovery and rescue process will begin again tomorrow. they will be looking for debris and bodies. but they are also holding out hope they may find survivors. they are calling this a rescue effort and they haven't moved it over to recovery quite yet. they did confirm they found quite a few bodies and debris and they belong to flight 8501. they found out about this in the worst way possible. they were watching live television when bodies were found in the water and given no warning. it bears repeating that there were 162 people and 17 of them were kids. one was