that's not a declaration of victory -- >> you've indicated that it's war. are we winning, mr. secretary? >> we will win. >> are we winning now? >> we're going to win. >> the secretary of defense gets grilled on capitol hill, as he announces plans to ramp up the fighting against isis. and thinking ahead. jeb bush may be down in the polls but it's something that he let slip that has some wondering about the future of his campaign. it's 5:30 on the east coast, 2:30 out west, and this is "way too early." good morning. it's wednesday, december 2nd, i'm jonathan capehart. we begin in chicago this morning. the city's police chief has been fired, amid outrage over the videotaped killing of a black teenager by a police officer. mayor rahm emanuel made the

announcement just hours after police superintendent garry mccarthy defended his job performance in an interview with our chicago station. >> i've been held accountable. you're looking at accountability. what people don't realize is that communities across this country have called for civilian oversight of police departments, and outside agencies to investigate police shootings. we've got both here in chicago. le. >> he has become an issue rather than dealing with the issue. and a distraction. i have a lot of loyalty to what he's done, and him. but i have a bigger loyalty to the city of chicago, its future, and the strength of that future. and no one person trumps my commitment and my responsibility to the city of chicago and its future. >> the case has raised larger questions about police abuse and lack of accountability. to address those concerns, the mayor announced a new task force on police reform and promised to deploy more police body cameras. but for some, that's not enough. nbc's stephanie gosk has more on

the latest calls for the mayor to also step down. >> reporter: emanuel's fiercest critics suggest city officials kept the video from the public for over a year for political reasons. basing their claim on this time line. on october 20th, 2014, laquan mcdonald was shot 16 times by police and killed. in february of 2015, mayor emanuel was forced into a runoff election. this as police shootings and black lives matter were grabbing headlines. on april 7th, emanuel won a tight race for re-election. eight days later, the city gave the mcdonald family a $5 million settlement. it would take seven more months for the video to be released, and van dyke to be charged. bernard hardcourt a former university of chicago law professor is calling for emanuel's resignation, writing in "the new york times." there's been a cover-up in chicago. >> i think that there's serious doubt that mayor rahm emanuel would have won the election if

this information had been available to the public. >> emanuel denies playing politics and says the release of the video would have hampered the investigation. >> mr. mccarthy has become a distraction. there are a lot of questions in this room about you and your office. have you become a distraction, as well? >> well you'll make that judgment. i think i'm doing my job and i try to do it every day and do it in a professional way. >> that was nbc's stephanie gosk reporting. the attorney general of illinois has now asked the department of justice to investigate the chicago police department. specifically, to review the use of deadly force. police investigations into the use of deadly force, as well as police training and whether a pattern of discrimination exists. defense secretary ash carter says the u.s. military will deploy more american special forces to iraq and syria. addressing congressional leaders yesterday, carter said the special ops forces will conduct raids and, quote, put more pressure on isis. officials tell nbc news the force would be compromised of

100 to 150 troops. during the hearing the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff disputed the president's claim that isis was contained. >> we are technically not at war. >> we're effectively not at war -- >> declared war. >> have we currently contained isil? >> we have not contained isil. >> have they been contained at any time since 2010? >> tactically in areas they have been. strategically, they have spread since 2010. >> senator john mccain released a statement after the hearing. he called carter's announcement another reactive and incremental step, adding, quote, a comprehensive strategy to defeat isil is totally absent, urgently needed, and long overdue. the white house is urging lawmakers to pass new legislation to give president obama authority to counter isis, but it could be a hard sell. during yesterday's hearing, democratic congresswoman gabbard suggested that the president's decision to put u.s. fighter

jets equipped to target russian planes on the border of turkey and syria could lead to nuclear war. >> russia's installation of their anti-aircraft missile defense system increases that possibility of whether it's intentional or even an accidental event, where one side may shoot down the other side's plane. and that's really where the potential is for this devastating nuclear war, for something that could blow up into something. >> meanwhile, president obama's former top military intelligence official, lieutenant general michael flynn, was asked on cnn yesterday if his warnings about isis in 2011 were ignored by the white house? >> do you feel as though your warnings were ignored? >> you know, i think that they did not meet a particular merit that the white house needed. and i'll be very candid with you. i have said and i believe that the people that were around the

president, his sort of inner circle that were advising him i think advised him incorrectly. >> and in an interview over the weekend syrian president bashar al assad weighed in on western efforts to fight isis. >> nobody is taking the western officials seriously anymore. for many reasons. first of all they don't have credibility. second they don't have vision. third they're not independent. they're going for the americans. so they're not serious. they don't exist -- most of them european. >> iraqi forces backed by u.s.-led airstrikes have reportedly surrounded the city of ramadi. according to the ap the troops appear poised to launch a new attempt to win back the city from isis control. but it could be a long siege. on monday, troops dropped leaflets warning civilians to flee. but residents told the wire service that militants are preventing anyone from leaving. meanwhile, "the new york times" reports that 56 people have been arrested in the united states. this year for helping to support or plot with isis.

according to a new study, that's the largest number of terrorism related arrests in a single year since september 2001. amid more pushback donald trump is demanding apologies and touting what he says is evidence supporting his claim from 11 days ago, after he called for surveillance of certain mosques. >> i watched when the world trade center came tumbling down, and i watched in jersey city, new jersey, where thousands and thousands of people were cheering as that building was coming down. thousands of people were cheering. >> now trump's claim has been widely refuted. and he and others have not produced the footage that the republican front-runner claims to have seen. yesterday trump tweeted a "new york post" editorial from three days after the attacks that said, quote, here in new york, it was easy to get angry listening to egyptians and palestinians, egyptians, palestinians and the arabs of

nearby paterson, new jersey, celebrate as they received word of the murderous attacks in new york and in washington. trump posted an image of the editorial with the comment, any apologies? but its author says he didn't personally witness the event. trump also sent out this video of radio host curtis doing tv commentary on september 13th, 2001. >> people celebrating, cheering, when they had actually heard that the world trade center had struck and more importantly, continuing to cheer when they heard that the world trade center, both towers had imploded. >> trump added, please send your apologies. but sliwa was speaking to a november 2001 mtv documentary about what callers said two days after the attacks in paterson, new jersey. sliwa says trump edited the clip to make him sound like he thought muslims were celebrating. trump stood by his claim last night. >> they were dancing, and they were happy. there were a lot of happy people

over in new jersey. and i saw it, and a lot of people saw it, and i'm getting hundreds of phone calls and a lot of other people are, too, and things are all of a sudden materializing. so people said you should apologize -- i said i don't apologize. hey, look, if i'm wrong about something i'm going to apologize. >> "the wall street journal" reports this morning on the increased worry among jeb bush's donors over his continued stagnation in the polls. the paper notes that a $30 million tv ad campaign by bush's super pac right to rise has barely moved the needle nationwide or in the early voting states. mike fernandez, a miami billionaire who has donated millions to right to rise, tells the "journal," quote, we know that governor bush is the adult in the room. and the one with a proven record. but unfortunately, the country doesn't seem to care. meanwhile, a closer look at the numbers show just how drastically the establishment candidates and their allied groups have outspent the outsiders so far this cycle. bush, rubio and kasich have combined to spend more than $47

million on ads. while trump, carson and cruz have together spent just $2.9 million. "the washington post" points out that trump has spent less than 1% what bush has on advertising. and it all comes as the bush campaign rolls out a new television spot in new hampshire, starring four medal of honor recipients. here's part of it. >> we joined the military, we fill out a check we say pay to the order up to and including my life. >> this is no reality show. this is serious business. this is about the livelihood of our kids and grandkids. this commander in chief requires training. >> this nation hungers for leadership. we need jeb bush. >> jeb bush will rebuild our military and make us proud to be americans. >> jeb bush is ready to take the role of commander in chief. >> jeb bush has the experience and those leadership skills. he represents the police of this country. he'll have the american people's confidence and he will be respected on the world stage. >> the campaign said it's

spending roughly $600,000 on the ad buy. meanwhile, bush did turn some heads yesterday with an answer to a question about the role of the vice president in his administration. here he is at a town hall in iowa. >> i think my dad loved ronald reagan. that his loyalty was proven out, and as a result he was given responsibilities that -- that allowed him to really add value to the -- to the relationship. that kind of relationship, i think, is really important. and should i be elected president, i would have my vice president, i think she will be a great partner -- did i say that out loud? we always talk about this with one gender in mind. i think we've reached the point i think in our country where maybe we should be a little less gender specific about this. >> now to the battle over gitmo. the white house has reportedly rejected a plan that would close the prison at guantanamo bay,

citing the exorbitant cost. "the wall street journal" reports the pentagon's cost estimate for building an alternative facility in the u.s. rang up to more than half a billion dollars. after getting the initial cost analysis for the blueprints, the president reportedly scrubbed the plan with defense secretary ash carter. now, operating the prison in cuba costs some $400 million a year. the new u.s.-based facility was projected to cost about $300 million a year. but that's after hundreds of millions of dollars in construction costs. according to the paper, 107 inmates remain at guantanamo bay who were detained in the war on terror in the years following 9/11. 48 have been deemed eligible for transfer to other countries. closing the facility was a key part of president obama's campaign back in 2008. up next, searching for a buyer. reporting this morning that yahoo! is looking at selling off the business that made it famous. plus, reports that controversial home run king barry bonds could be returning to baseball.

more on where he could be headed, next. those stories and a check on weather when "way too early" comes right back.

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the lexus december to remember sales event is here. lease the 2016 es350 for $349 a month for 36 months and we'll make your first month's payment. see your lexus dealer. let's turn now to business where yahoo! is reportedly weighing whether to sell its core internet businesses in a series of meetings this week starting today. cnbc's nancy hulgrave joins us live from london for more. nancy, this can't be good news for marissa mayer, can it? >> it's not being received as good news for marissa mayer but investors on the hand received just this word that some action is on the table as good news. and yahoo! stock has been getting a nice pop in the aftermarket trade, currently up around 7%, and this because the core internet business has been struggling, especially when you consider that the likes of its competitors such as google. so any news that the company could potentially send this off is good news for investors, but

the big question is, who would the potential buyers be? several analysts have suggested that some pe firms in the private equity space, or other internet companies outside of the united states including japan's softbank have been named as potential buyers. the other issue under discussion when the board meets from today until the end of the week is what to do with the proposed ali baba spinoff. yahoo! has been trying to get out of thisallybaba stake and try to raise some money with that. but one activist investor has pushed yahoo! to suspend that proposal altogether, so a lot under discussion. we'll have to wait for the outcome of that meeting on friday. but some analysts have gone as far to suggest that the company should consider a sale of yahoo! altogether, rather than just a spinoff. but as you said, some big decisions ahead for ceo marissa mayer. back to you. >> live from london, nancy hulgrave, thank you. time now for sports. and we begin with a mega deal in the major leagues. the boston red sox have

reportedly reached an agreement with lefty pitcher david price on a seven-year deal worth $217 million. it's the biggest deal for a pitcher in mlb history and the largest contract in the history of the red sox. the 30-year-old ace led the american league with a 2.54 e.r.a. last season. an official announcement is expected on friday. >> in other mlb news, baseball's embattled home run king could be making a full-time return to the game. the miami marlins are reportedly nearing a deal to hire all-time home run leader barry bonds as a hitting coach. the 51-year-old worked as a guest hitting instructor for the san francisco giants during the past two preseasons. back in april a federal appeals court overturned his felony conviction for obstruction of justice for testimony he gave about his connection to peds. in college sports it looks like the university of georgia has found a replacement for former head coach mark rikt.

according to the atlanta journal constitution, kirby smart will be hired for the job. a georgia native smart played safety for the bulldogs from 1995 to 1998, and then returned as running back's coach in 2005. this season, with alabama, the crimson tide defense ranked second nationally, and is set to take on florida in the s.e.c. title game. let's get a check on your weather now with nbc meteorologist bill karins. bill, so great to see you again >> jonathan. you're my little weather reporter in d.c. was there a lot of fog driving in this morning? >> a lot of fog and a little bit of rain. >> you're not the only one. a lot of reports of foggy weather up and down the east coast this morning. so, yeah, this is the white house. you can see the visibility definitely down there, a lot of the lights in the distance look very, very dim. so be careful, give yourself a little extra time. i'm sure there will be a lot of airport delays, too. this is all associated with our last soggy today. similar today to yesterday with a lot of moisture up and down the east coast. as far as the tree lighting

ceremony at 30 rock, we're at 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. a few showers, it will be damp but it will be very warm at least. this is unusually warm for this time of night in december. mid 50s for the tree lighting. so it won't be a washout by any means. let's time the rain for you here. this is the radar at 10:00 a.m. this morning. charlotte getting wet. and then the rain will begin to make it towards the east coast as we go throughout this evening, 7:00 p.m. this is right in the middle of the tree lighting. hit and miss showers, steadier rains in northern new england. it's amazing. we're not even dealing with the mountains of new england. snow at this point. looks like into thursday morning enough cold air will mix in for a little bit of snow. only areas that should get accumulating snow will be northern new england. so the big warm-up continues in the middle of the country, jonathan. they had a really cold end to november, and i tell you what, jonathan, this start to december looks very warm throughout much of the country. a lot of people are going to struggle to get a white christmas this year. >> hey, bill, is the tree lighting tonight at 30 rock? or is that later this week? >> tonight, 6:00 to 9:00 >> and the weather there, rainy? >> it will be all right.

>> i'm sorry. all right, bill, still ahead the birth of a baby is usually a time when couples start saving. but when you're among the wealthiest people on earth, like facebook ceo mark zuckerberg and his wife, they're increasing their giving in an incredible way. we'll explain when "way too early" comes right back. it takes a lot of work... to run this business. i'm on the move all day long... and sometimes, i just don't eat the way i should. so i drink boost to get the nutrition that i'm missing. boost complete nutritional drink has 26 essential vitamins and minerals, including calcium and vitamin d to support strong bones and 10 grams of protein to help maintain muscle. all with a great taste. i don't plan on slowing down any time soon. stay strong. stay active with boost. now try new boost® compact and 100 calories. at ally bank no branches equalsit's a fact.. kind of like mute buttons equal danger. ...that sound good?

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now let's get a check on the morning's other headlines and for that we head to the control room and louis burgdorf. >> good morning, jonathan. facebook ceo mark zuckerberg and his wife announce the the birth of their first child max yesterday. and a facebook post written as an extended letteo their daughter. that parents pledge to donate 99% of their facebook shares over their lifetimes. it will go to a new philanthropy project aimed at advancing human potential and promoting equality. those shares are currently valued, jonathan, at $45 billion. it's pretty incredible. now we haven't seen too much of david letterman ever since he left the ed sullivan theater this year. on monday he returned to his alma mater ball state university in indiana where he plans to donate his set and other props as part of a major exhibit. but letterman's look has changed a lot since he signed off. he's now sporting a long, white beard and took some time to do what he does best, interviewing

guests. he also was joined by directors bennett miller and spike jones and they took some time to direct the students on stage. >> how are your grades, by the way? >> we're graduating on time. >> yeah, we're moving forward. >> graduating on time. >> wish i'd have thought of that. >> look at that beard. maybe he's auditioning for the nutcracker. earlier in the show we showed you donald trump braving the elements campaigning in new hampshire. now i'll leave you this morning with a lighter moment between donald trump, and a future voter. >> what will my life be like when i'm older if you become president? >> that's a great -- that might be the best question. here's what my hope would be. that if i become president, your life will be much better than it would have been if i didn't become president. it's as simple as that. you know? it's as simple as that. and i'll go one step further.

if somebody else becomes president and they're not good, they don't do the job, they don't do what they have to do, your life will not be as good. it just won't be as good. >> it's just as simple as that, jonathan. you're absolutely terrific. >> all right, louis, thanks very much. that does it for me and "way too early." coming up on "morning joe," the military announces stepped-up efforts to fight isis. but that wasn't enough to save defense secretary ash carter from a grilling by the house armed services committee. plus, the latest from the campaign trail. a fascinating look at which candidates are spending the most money so far, even though it's not translating in the polls. and republican presidential candidate mike huckabee joins the conversation. that and much more coming up next on "morning joe." who wants to try? before earning enough cash back from bank of america

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we're sitting here talking

about some really important issues of recovery, and addiction, that are ravaging families across the country. and you all, quite frankly, should be ashamed of yourselves. all you do is ashamed. all you do is ask about donald trump every i wplace i go. why do you think donald trump is doing so well? if you talk about him 24 hours a day, anybody can do well. whatever donald trump has said for today is nothing i have any interest in responding to. zblp and good morning. it's wednesday, september 2nd. >> mika, somebody was sending