tell us who you are, where you're from, where you want to play the friday night news dump. that's cheap stuff in our office with your name on it. week ends with alex witt starts now. new, six people charged in the u.s. on allegations they helped support isis. what exactly are they accused of doing? new details on the american-held hostage by eyes and claims of her death by the terror group. we are learning more about how she was captured in the first place coast to coast, more stormy weather threatens the east coast while a deluge has continued out west. plus it's fast food for a new generation. a new study tells us exactly where millennials like to eat on the run, and it's not what you might imagine.

good morning everyone. welcome to weekends with alex wit. first of all, prosecutors charged six people here in the u.s. with terrorism charges involving isis. the indictments were unsealed last night. the six are charged with conspiracy and providing material support to terrorists. three of those charged are naturalized citizens. the remaining three have either refugee or legal residence status. five are in custody in the u.s. the sixth overseas. what do we know about these individuals and what they allegedly were trying to do? >> reporter: alex good morning to you. well, the terror suspects all bosnian immigrants are accused of sending money and and equipment overseas. they provided firearms accessories, rifle scopes military clothing surplus military equipment and cash. some of the items were sheuptd to

shipped to people in turkey. they are accused of sending money through western union and pay pal. according to the justice department, this all began roughly back in may 2013. and the suspects allegedly used everything from e-mail to social media to communicate. so far no word who their defense attorneys are. some of the charges carry up to 15 years in prison, while others like conspireing to kill and maim people in a foreign country could carry life in prison. alex? >> i want talk to you about kayla mueller, the american aid worker. we still don't know definitively what her fate is. of course she was being held by isis in syria. they claim she was killed in a jordanian air strike. what are officials say? >> reporter: so far they say they are not able to confirm the claims by isis that the american hostage was killed yesterday. in a statement, bernadette told me "we are obviously deeply concerned by these reports.

we have not at this time seen any evidence that corroborates isil's claim." officials here also tell me a alex, there were streams of intelligence which show that kayla was a alive just a few weeks ago. so the intelligence community right now will be looking at those same streams of intel to determine exactly what happened to kayla. i'm told additional resources are being directed towards to this effort. this comes as the white house is writing a request that it will send to congress in the coming days in the next week asking for new authorization to use military force against isis. there are key sticking points. life of time for u.s. engagement and the scope. but still there seems to be broad bipartisan support to weigh in and give the president official authorization. there will likely be a robust debate around this. so final passage could still be ape few months out. alex? >> kristin welker appreciate that from the white house.

i'm joined by retired colonel jack jacobs msnbc analyst. do you think there will will ever be a way to fully learn what happened if kayla mueller is indeed dead? >> forever is a long time. unless we have intelligence on the ground isis people interrogated corroborated accounts all we're going to have is anecdotal evidence. maybe overhead imagery we can interpret. there won't be real corroboration without real people on the ground giving us testimony. >> what's the likelihood of getting it? >> really really low. maybe over time some of the stuff will leak out as more intelligence of people who have been interrogated on the ground by locals. it's all going to be anecdotal until all the pieces are put together and that's going to be a long time from now. >> king abdullah said it would

be relentless. do they have the supplies to do that? how long will that last? >> it's a good question. they can only do what they can do which so far means that just air strikes. they're not going to put a couple of hundred thousand troops on the ground and stay there a while and do all that. they're not going to do that. if anything is going to work it has to be a multinational operation with other nations in the region contributing. and i don't see any of that stuff happening. i think you might see renewed air strikes. but that's only going to be from jordan. just recently the united arab emirates, our staunchest ally decided it will pull out of doing that too. >> do you think the likelihood offer dane a yan boots on the ground is slim? >> slim to none. they are not going to be decisive. >> okay. let's talk about ukraine. sup, the u.s. is now actively considering sending military aid to ukraine. do you think that's going to happen? if it does how does russia

respond? >> we haven't even delivered the hue man tear aid we promised. saying we will deliver lethal aid to ukraine seems a little bit silly. we haven't even delivered on our promises yet. and the amount we're talking about, i think it's $60 million or something like that. the pentagon spends more than that on light bulbs. this is not going to be decisive that will assist the ukrainians. >> we'll see you again soon. thanks so much transasia pilots said all have be done proficiency tests. they have canceled 90 flights because of a government requirement that its pilots be retested. aviation experts say the pilot error could have been the cause of the crash. 15 people survived that crash, 7 remain missing. >> to mexico where officials say 61 # bodies have been found in an abandoned funeral home

near act pull qaa. they werenbalmed and doused with a chemical to mask the odor. authorities say the genders and ages of the corpses appear to rule out any possible link to the recent disappearance of 43 college students in that same area. with tax season right around the country, turbo tax is sending off unwanted press. on thursday turbo tax suspended processing on tax returns after finding an increase suspicious filings. customers across the country said they received online confirmation of their e file even though they hadn't begun filing their taxes. it is putting additional anti-fraud systems in place to prevent a repeat occurrence do take a look at this massive pileup in upstate new york. an estimated 30 vehicles and 4

tractor trailers lost control during heavy lake-effect snow. incredibly, despite this mess no serious injuries were reported. well up to 10 inches of rain is expected in parts of california this weekend. it's part of a vicious weather pattern. it's called the pineapple express. it has already knocked out power for thousands of people in california and nevada. miguel almaguer joins me with more from sacramento. good morning to you. what's it like there? >> good morning, alex. the rain has recently stopped. there were sheets of water, buckets of water yesterday. we made the drive down interstate 5 which was hammered with rain. it is all coming from the pineapple express. it could dump up to 10 inches of precipitation in the region. further north in seattle, or outside of seattle, they could get up to 14 inches. that area had experienced

localized flooding. there is also a concern up there that mudslides could be triggered next. back here in northern california we desperately need the water. but this may be too much water too soon. bad news it is not adding to our snowpack. that's what we need to pull ourselves out drought. the biggest punch behind us this area trying to dry out before the next weather maker moves in. >> what's the biggest challenge getting ready for that? how much can you sandbag? >> that's right. folks have done what they can do prepare their homes. it's the problem -- the problem is there is so much water coming in so quickly. when there's these lapses it simply doesn't last long enough. the next sheet of rain comes in. folks bracing, doing what they can do keep the water out. >> miguel almaguer thank you for the update in sacramento. meanwhile, on the east coast, another snowstorm looms.

it could drop more snow on the already battered new england area just in time for monday's rush hour. good morning to you, reynolds. >> well alex a hate to be the bearer of bad news. but more snow is on the way for the northeast. boston 12 to 18 inches of snowfall. it got plenty of moisture that's going to be coming through. the cold air from the north, moisture from the south. some locations when you get back towards, say. great lakes, it could be more of a wintery mix if you will. it will be here in parts of the northeast where it will all be snow. travel will be very difficult a as we get into monday. bangor to sport land boston even new york city right on the we are going to be dealing with icy weather. keep in mind your morning commute could be treacherous, crossing the george washington bridge. all overpasses and bridges will be susceptible to icing.

however, getting down towards the nation's capital and farther south, primarily talking a better rain situation for you. bundle up. keep the snow shovel handy. my apologies >> who is kayla mueller and how did she find her way to northern syria? ahead, we'll go through a timeline of events to show how the fresh-faced arizona woman was captured by isis militants the back story surrounding the new harper lee book. how did the mysterious novel stay hidden all these years? i bring the gift of the name your price tool to help you find a price that fits your budget. uh-oh. the name your price tool. she's not to be trusted. kill her. flo: it will save you money! the name your price tool isn't witchcraft! and i didn't turn your daughter into a rooster. she just looks like that. burn the witch! the name your price tool a dangerously progressive idea.

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keep her name out of the press so long. her name was released today. this news leaves us concerned yet we are still hopeful that kayla is alive. we have sent you a private message and ask that you respond to us privately. now as more becomes known, questions remain about how she made her way to syria. joe, with a good morning to you, what are people in prescott saying about all of this? >> well good morning, alex. you know there is still a lot of uncertainty, a lot of unanswered questions. her family has now released a couple of statements. one of them does offer more information on this young woman who was kidnapped a year and a half ago. someone passionate about helping syrian refugees. there were there are no visible signs mentioning kayla mueller in prescott arizona. this community long honored her family's request to keep her name quiet. in fact, some here are just learning that someone from their

own town became an isis hostage. >> i think it's totally sad. a young pepper like that trying to do good. and then this happens. >> reporter: a hue tear yan aid worker, she was captured in august 2013 after leaving a hospital near aleppo syria. u.s. official say right now there's no evidence corroborating claims. skepticism is also high on the streets of prescott. >> i think it might be a play on words. you don't know what they're thinking. >> i feel very sad especiallydened for the family that they have to wonder whether their daughter is alive or dead. >> reporter: it is documented in the local newspaper when she was in hospital. again in 2013 when mueller told the kiwanis club about her work in refugee camps along the turkey/syria border.

for as long as i live she had, i will not let this suffering be normal. they found this work heartbreaking but compelling. she is extremely devoted to the people of syria. in 2011 she took part in a virtual youtube sit-in. >> i am at solidarity with the syrian people. i reject the brutality and killing that the authorities are committing against the syrian people. >> in the life of this passionate 26-year-old woman, her family says the common thread is quiet leadership and the desire to serve others. relatives say last may was the first time they received any confirmation about her captivity. and alex as you mentioned in that latest statement released by her patients they are asking those responsible for holding kayla mueller to contact the family privately. >> joe, i'm curious, i mean this is a woman, her identity just coming to light here in the national media. do you think people there in

prescott, were they aware of the situation? do you get any sense that neighbors knew and was keeping mum about it? >> reporter: it's hard to say. people people did not seem to know. folks we were talking with yesterday, it was the first they heard of it. it doesn't appear to be common knowledge in prescott. certainly her close family knew. it's unclear if neighbors and friends were aware of it or everyone was kept out of the loop. certainly those who know the family well respecting the family's wishes, they are not speaking out about this. those outside that circle many of them caught off guard. they did not seem to know about it. >> joe fryer, thanks so much. the answer to the age-old question can you catch bubonic plague in a new york city subway station. the last part, yeah we added that one. alarming finds on that. before we go it's not just a kids toy anymore. >> to what do you owe your success? >> i exercise control of all

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...viagra is right for you. in today's three big money headlines, you're hired, at your convenience, and the high cost of love. joining me now to break it all day is "usa today" contributor. we'll start with you're hired and the january jobs report. >> really good news, alex. 257,000 jobs added. and the november and december

figures were revised to the up side really substantially. what happens to the unemployment rate is sort of interesting. that actually lowered to 5.7% because of the participation right. more people are getting into the workforce because those positions are opening up. quitting and going on to higher positions. that's happening across categories. here you see which is healthy to spot. on an average basis, $300,000 jobs added each month. if there is a catch it's on the wage side. wages went up 0.5% 12 cents per hour. not enough to juice your spending habits. >> for sure. let's get to at your convenience. in new study on millennials it's not going to make the fast food happy. >> no. young millennials are not necessarily going to fast food restaurants.

they go to fast casual like chipotle. the rest of the time they're going to 7-eleven wawa sheets. my kids never say, hey, can we stop at mcdonald's, burger king taco bell f. you're over 50 you never think of that. you think of the convenience store as gas. very interesting. >> definitely is. the high cost of love is getting even higher. only in america, right? the national retail federation reporting that americans will spend just about $19 billion. that's $142 per person celebrating valentine's day. seems really high to me except when you consider men spend twice as much as women. and younger people spend more having to do with the courting phase. here are the categories. a lot of players trying to get in on this. most significantly the last 24 hours, whole foods will start delivering flowers.

a lot of cash to be had there. even for your pets. 21% of people saying they buy valentine's day gifts for their pets. i say come on. $700 million in spending. because more pets in this country than children that only has to be $5.28 per pet, which according to the doggy love index is just an extra treat that adds up to $700 million in spending. >> dogs and cats. let's not forget the cats too. regina, appreciate it "to kill a mockingbird" will no longer be her sole novel. the newest released work 50 years in the making. pocket right now? i have $40 $21. could something that small make an impact on something as big as your retirement? i don't think so. well if you start putting that towards your retirement every week and let it grow over time, for twenty to thirty years that retirement challenge might not seem so big after all. ♪ ♪

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brutal execution is of its pilot. joining me is kira simmons. with a good day to you, how much activity are you seeing at that air base? >> the jordanian f-16 is not one of the airplanes involved in today's missions. you can see the 500 pound bombs attached to the wing. many we saw take off from the base. the jordanians are rejecting that isis claim that its bombed killed the u.s. hostage kayla mueller. they are describing it as project propaganda. all morning we have watched the bombing campaign continue. one by one jordanian jets took off. their target isis fighters and bases. the unconfirmed claim from isis that an american hostage has

been killed in these bombing raids has not shaken jordan's resolve. armed 24 f-16s are taking off from the air base here in jordan heading for isis targets in syria. there goes another one. we were invited to see for ourselves the professionalism of jordan's aircrews. the fighter pilot who was burned to death by isis had taken off from this very base. they say their retaliation will be relentless. >> we have to increase this and step up not just the air campaign but as we said and as we promised we will go after these guys. >> reporter: the public mood in jordan shifted decisively. thousands on the streets yesterday, a protest against the jihadist. >> the message is jordan will

never go down. you can never bring us down. >> reporter: the u.s. military is providing close support for the jordanians. two fighter planes landed here in jordan this morning alongside jordanian jets that have taken off laden with bombs. those jets landed two and a half hours later. in almost every case as far as we could see, their pay load is empty. their deadly message to isis delivered. >> all of those pilots returned safely. there have been an increased effort to ensure should one of the planes go down they will be able to rescue the pilot before he falls into the hands of isis. this is one of the bates the jordanians are using to launch this air campaign. >> keir i'm curious, do you get a sense this is a show of force, that the jordanian military and

the people will be able to continue and that people will support as a result of the brutal execution of that jordanian air pilot? do you think this is a long-term undertaking? >> i think that is the impression they are giving certainly. when we talk to the guys on this base, by the way, where that pilot came from they are utterly resolved to continue this campaign against isis. it does appear to be a real shift in public opinion here. remember alex it was not very long ago that the father of that pilot was out in public saying why is door january involved in this? it's not our war. but now we have seen thousands on the streets. one protest, as i mentioned, led by the queen herself. when we spoke to people, they said this is it, we have to stop this because it is happening right on our border. so there does to be a change.

isis is using all the propaganda it can. one of its intentions is to shift public opinion in the region so events can always change opinions. right now jordan seems united resolved to deal with this. >> keir simmons, thank you so much. let's go to washington now. another huge fight in congress could force the shutdown of the department of homeland security. lawmakers have until february 27th to fund the department. right now there is no clear path to a resolution. the spending bill is part of a strategy to pup issue the president for his executive action on immigration last fall. the house passed its version of the bill that undoes the immigration move. it is now up to the senate and majority leader mitch mcconnell. here's house speaker john boehner. >> the house did its work. we won this fight. now it is time for senate runs and senate democrats to come

together and hold the president accountable. >> listen, he has a tough job. a tough job over there. i have a tough job over here. god bless him and good luck. >> ed o'keefe, good morning to you, ed. >> good to see you, alex. >> the first questions that come to mind, will the department of homeland security be forced down? could national security be as a result? >> we have three weeks to go. which is is like three months in washington. a lot can happen. they started on this well in advance, knowing it will take up to the deadline to sort this out. at this point, as the speaker said there, it's in the hands of the senate. they still haven't come up with a plan. democrats in the white house have been laying at the feet of republicans saying if you can't come can up with a solution yes, airport security visa processing, port and border security, all could be at risk. as keir simmons just showed us

great risk in the middle east and possibly here in the homeland. we'll see what happens. so far senate republicans haven't signaled what they plan to do. you have one more week before the presidents' day week-long recess. then one week to go until the deadline. that doesn't leave a lot of time. republicans understand if they can't move anything they will get a little more blame than the democrats. >> it's going to go right up to the end.

and that may be the only thing they can do. the white house turns around and says the way to solve it is to mass border security legislation. there was an attempt to do that in the house when the border

security bill that was brought forth was deemed in sufficient. it shows you how difficult this is. >> let's switch gears here. the president is still getting heat from the comments he made at the national prayer breakfast this week. here's some of what he said. let's listen. >> unless we get on our high horse and think this is unique to some other place remember during the crusades people committed terrible deeds in the name of christ. and in our country, slavery and jim crow was justified in the name of christ. >> so what's at issue here and has the white house responded to the criticism? >> the white house hasn't said. . it's a very small group of conservative folks, christian leaders or politicians who are frankly trying to get their name

in the news what they are concerned about is the president was equating those things with what's going on in the middle east right now. that isn't necessarily what he was saying. he was trying to remind people while it's not what's happening right now in the past christianity has beenen sraeupblged at times. out of context or people dipping into what he said. it was a 25-minute speech about a lot of things. that isn't exactly what he was implying. every time he makes this kind of speech, people pick away. it is nothing now. this is confined to a small group of people. >> always good to see you, my friend. thank you so much. now to atlanta and the latest on the condition of bobbi

kristina brown. she fights for her life in an atlanta hospital. one cousin went online to talk about brown's chance for a recovery. gabe gutierrez has more from atlanta. >> reporter: family members continue their somber vigil for bobbi kristina brown. though it seems the odds are against her, though doctors don't see any hope for change though it looks impossible for her to stand again, still bray for her. citing a family source that relatives have been singing whitney houston hits in her hospital room, including the greatest love of all. >> this is a tremendous tragedy that have struck them. they are largely reeling from it and trying to figure out what to do next. >> emotions are apparently running high. >> how many people are fighting? >> it's got to be like 8 or 10 people. >> during a birthday party for

bobbi brown at this atlanta hotel, his sister tina brown hit her son in the head with a a bottle. no charges were filed. as for bobbi kristina doctors are not commenting on her exact condition. police are remaining tight-lipped about their investigation. a week ago at her home a friend discovered bobbi kristina face down and up responsive in a bathtub. an attorney that had been representing max said it was a visit from a cable technician that prompted him to look for her. >> they had a different security system. they were changing it over to cable based. that person had to access the house. that's how they found bobbi kristina. >> almost exactly three years after her mother was found dead in a bathtub, family members are keeping a close watch over her only daughter. gabe gutierrez, atlanta a potential puff of trouble. new research could put a drag on

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we did. esurance. backed by allstate. click or call. another snowstorm is headed for the northeast which is already suffering from snow fatigue. and boston is right in the middle of the storm's path as it is clean up still from a devastating blizzard. mike sigh dell from the weather channel is joining me from boston. how much snow are folks going to be getting? >> reporter: it is cold this morning, but not as cold as yesterday morning. today we're around 21. windchill is 9. but look at this. this is one of the smaller piles. last night, alex i went to dinner. you have to maneuver down cavernous areas. new york city and south not going to get much of anything. it's really the i-90 corridor from buffalo, syracuse, albany.

we are looking for at least a foot of snow. this will start tonight and go through late monday night. from an advantage standpoint it will not come all at once. it is not going to snow two or three inches an hour. again, that's a good thing. because they will be able to keep up with it with the plows. but adds insult to injury. boston had 54 inches of snow. their snowiest seven days on record. they have no where else to put it. they put it out to a big snow farm and melt it. they have lost six days of school. they already go until june 29th. a long duration event beginning tonight through late monday night. late next week everybody goes into the deep freeze including yours truly, you, alex witt in new york city. >> if you could see my face right now you would see the

reaction i have to that news. at least it's coming from you, my friend. thanks so much. stay warm. the healthy alternative to smoking. but a new study finds e cigarettes could have a deadly impact on those who have made that switch. vaping calls inflammation on laboratory mice. the studies focus on the freed radicals. how do they affect our lungs? >> the study was meant to show physiologically we're at a cellular level. it studied mice as well. what happens when they are exposed to e liquids and vaporized nicotine. the cells had more oxygen-free radicals, which are damage to go a cell. they cause cell stress.

they can change the viability of the cell can long term. they demonstrated much more inflammation. we know inflammation is bad anywhere in the body particularly in the lungs. so the message here is that and i always go on the record and say i believe they are safer than traditional cigarettes because they don't contain all the carcinogens that cause cancer. the issue is i always say to people you can't just assume you're inhaling something into your lung and you may not have chronic lung issues from it. people have copd. that can be very very damaging if not life threatening in the end. >> when we hear about formaldehyde getting into the lungs. >> it's not all of them. whether they do random sampling they find varying amounts of

contaminants. formaldehyde is one of them. things that are in antifreeze, aluminum and nickel. we always say how important it is we have the fda regulations so there is at least some responsibility and culpability they have to put down what's in these things. >> okay. this is interesting. all of us in new york were wondering this week how far commutes are, not for potential traffic but because of what we might be touching on the subways. this is awful. these long-held suspicions were confirmed. the subway is felty. it found evidence of bubonic plague and anthrax. >> the big message out there is none of the bubonic plague or anthrax bacteria was found in live specimens. it is not posing a risk to the public at all. they have not confirmed that it is the bacteria that causes bubonic plague. there were dna similarities.

and anthrax they say can be found in life stock. it is not necessarily going to cause human transmission of disease. >> i want to say also something i believe you heard is you couldn't even define the dna. you said ah proof that zombies do live on the subways. >> 2% of the dna that was found was human dna. so what does that suggest? we live symbiotically with our environment. the study demonstrated that. kind of gross but also interesting. >> kind of. thank you very much for that. appreciate it. more than 50 years after the release of "to kill a mockingbird", how did harper lee's long-lost sequel suddenly surface? ♪ "here i am. rock you like a hurricane." ♪ fiber one now makes cookies. find them in the cookie aisle. i'll never look back, i will just look younger new olay total effects

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james robertsons has been walking 21 miles to and from his job in rochester, michigan, for ten years because he can't afford aer car. his story from the detroit free

press inspired some to dedicate hundreds of thousands and a car. robertson was stunned by the gift. >> what do you think about being able to drive to work every day? >> you know that's a good question. every time i step into this whenever i step into it it reminds me of where i have been and where i'm going. >> a thoughtful man there. the gift was arranged by a banker who noticed him walking every day. pollock will administer the fund to help robertson which raised more than $300,000. that's the kind of story we like. the this news shocked the publishing world. a newly discovered novel by harper lee, author the of the prize winning novel "to kill a mockingbird." the work is titled "go set a watchman" and features many of the same characters. let's bring in russell berman from the atlantic. how did this go unnoticed for half a century?

>> harper lee said through a statement she thought the book was lost. it was found a few months ago in the fall by her lawyer and friend tanya carter who was going to look for the original manuscript of "to kill a mockingbird." saw attached to it at the end pages with scenes that didn't appear in the book. as she looked through it she realized this was an entirely different book. >> uh i know you have interviewed her publisher. what can you tell us about "go set a watchman". >> it takes place in the 1950s at the height of the civil rights movement. >> scout has grown up. >> she was living in new york city. she returned home to alabama. that's where it takes off. they don't want to tell too much about it and give away spoilers. >> i'm sure they are good at that considering what they have done with harper lee for the last half century. "to kill a mockingbird" became so much a part of the 196 oh 0ss

civil rights movement. it was representative of the culture from that time. the film adaptation of the book was critically acclaimed. gregory peck won an academy award for his portrayal of atticus finch. there were comparisons between the film which became popular and the book which remains popular. do you get a sense from your interview of uhhow it will stack up is this spp what's interesting is this is the original draft she submitted to her editor back late 1950s. the editor said it would be much better if you, instead of having scout as a woman, have scout as a girl because there were flashbacks in "go set a watchman." scout ebb remembers her childhood through flashbacks. her editor said why not feature scout as a child? that's how we ended up with "to kill a mockingbird." she went back basically rewrote the entire book.

i asked the publisher and there is no overlap. >> it's a completely separate stand alone. it's a prequel, but not realliment. >> the publisher said it was a presequel. >> what else can you tell us from the interview before we have to let you go? >> the book comes out in july. >> okay. >> there will be a print round of 2 million copies is. >> you have to catch your breath. what book starts with that? that's extraordinary. is this something you think will be able to be used in schools? "to kill a mockingbird" is standard reading for kids. >> the publisher said it won't be as accessible to children because scout is an adult. he thinks it will be able to be read in schools. >> good. that's exciting. we are so excited about this. thank you so much. >> thanks. >> that's a wrap of "weekends

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this valentine's day. (dog barks) verizon. more air strikes against isis. all right. good morning. thanks for getting up with us. another saturday morning. a big morning today of uh news and politics. a lot ahead in the next two hours including will democrats back a challenger to hillary? we'll get a clue on that this morning. also, some danger for chris christie. signs that new revelations are hitting him where it hurts with his party's big dollar donors. does 88-year-old harper lee really want her recently discovered manuscript published? a friend of the reclusive author will be here to join us and tell us what she thinks of