plus, court-martial. the army brings down the hammer on the army sergeant who was captured by the taliban while walking off his post. it's 5:30 on the east coast, 2 can 30 out west, this is "way too early." good morning, it's tuesday, december the 15th. i'm louis burgdorf. we are just hours from the fifth and final republican debate of 2015, and the candidates are gathering just as the polls show the most lopsided race yet. "the washington post"/abc news poll finds donald trump with a 23-point lead, a new high to ted cruz's 15%. ben carson ties with marco rubio at 12% while jeb bush and chris chris east are at 5% and 4% each. this after trump racked up a

27-point lead his biggest yet in monmouth university's national poll, 41% to 14% genz cruz. a 13-point increase from october for trump. at 61% according to the monmouth poll he has the highest favorability rating with voters in the republican field. that is a complete reversal from when he entered the race about 26 weeks ago in june, when his favorability among republicans was just at a mere 20%. trump also got some better news out of iowa yesterday where the quinnipiac poll shows him with a one-point advantage after recent polls showing cruz pulling ahead into the lead. now, trump did not specifically mention cruz at his predebate rally in las vegas last night where he celebrated his new poll numbers with supporters. >> let me just tell you, if that were against three people i'd be happy because that would mean i won pretty much, right? but this is 15 people we have. a couple have left, a lot are

going to start leaving, which is nice. it will be nice to have some more time to talk. so many people. there's so many people. and many of them don't have a chance. you say, what are you doing? just go home and relax. go home and relax. i'll be honest, i think tomorrow night, i think it's going to be big. oh. ooh. and they're all coming after me. i heard today, i'm watching i'm saying, man, this is like crazy. who's going to attack trump first? will it be this one? you know, he's taken down seven so far. so watching television before we're hearing all these announcers saying well who's going to take on trump tonight? who's going to hit him hardest. and i'm going to say bring 'em on, who cares, what difference does it make. but i would say, it won't be -- this will not be like an evening in paradise for me. do we agree? >> it's not going to be an evening in paradise now while trump is riding high in the primary polls there are signs he

could face a tough general election. in a head-to-head match-up with hillary clinton, trump loses by 13 points, 53% to 40% among all adults. and six points among registered voters. 50% to 44%. now 69% of americans say they would be very or somewhat anxious with trump as president. only 29% would be comfortable. now the split is almost even for clinton at 51% to 47%. the poll also found that nearly two-thirds of americans oppose trump's plan to temporarily ban muslims from entering the united states. but the numbers flip when you focus only on republicans. army sergeant bowe bergdahl could spend life in prison for walking away from his afghan military post back in 2009. the army announced yesterday that bergdahl would face a cart martial on charges of desertion, and endangering other troops. this comes as less than a week after a popular podcast called "serial" aired taped interviews with bergdahl. in those interviews he explained publicly for the first time why

he left his post six years ago before being captured by the taliban. nbc's news chief pentagon correspondent jim miklaszewski has more. >> my name is bowe bergdahl. >> reporter: held hostage by the taliban for five years, sergeant bowe bergdahl could now face life in a military prison. the army ordered bergdahl to face court-martial for desertion and endangering the safety of his fellow soldiers. >> 20 minutes out i'm going good grief, i'm in over my head. suddenly it really starts to sink in, i really did something bad. >> reporter: in his first-person account for the podcast "serial" bergdahl describes how he walked away from his outpost in eastern afghanistan. to warn army commanders of leadership problems. but was soon captured by a group of heavily armed taliban fighters. >> i'm not stupid enough to try to knife off a bunch of guys with ak-47s. >> reporter: bergdahl was released in a controversial prisoner swap for five taliban prisoners held at guantanamo bay.

that same day, president obama welcomed bergdahl's parents to the rose garden. >> wonderful. good day. >> yes, it's a good day. >> reporter: bergdahl's attorney called the charges against his client excessive. >> the government had shown probable cause for one thing only, which was a one-day awol. >> reporter: the army itself is split over this case. many believe that bergdahl should be punished for putting the lives of his fellow soldiers at risk. but the investigator in the case suggests that any jail time for bergdahl would be inappropriate. bergdahl remains on active duty. no date has been set for his court-martial. a new polling reveals just how dramatically fears over terrorism are reshaping the national landscape ahead of the 2016 election. according to our nbc news/"wall street journal" poll terrorism and national security are now the top concern of 40% of americans, up 19 points from when the question was asked back in april. just 37% approve of the

president's handling of foreign policy. and even fewer approve of his handling of isis. those numbers have helped drive the president's approval rating down to 43%. its lowest level in more than a year. as for tactics, americans believe we should be fighting the islamic state. the nbc news/"wall street journal" poll finds that 42% are in favor of using u.s. combat troops. that number is identical to the result in a new associated press/gfk poll released yesterday. the survey also found that just 28% of americans think the president has clearly explained the united states' goals in fighting isis while nearly 7 in 10 think he has not. president obama spent monday at the pentagon for an in-depth strategy discussion about how to defeat isis, and sought to explain the progress the u.s. has made so far. >> we are hitting isil harder than ever. coalition aircraft, our fighters, bombers and drones have been increasing the pace of airstrikes.

nearly 9,000 as of today. last month, in november, we dropped more bombs on isil targets than any other month since this campaign started. we're also taking out isil leaders, commanders, and killers, one by one. the point is isil leaders cannot hide, and our next message to them is simple, you are next. but we recognize that progress needs to keep coming faster. no one knows that more than the countless syrians and iraqis living every day under isil's terror as well as the families in san bernardino and paris and elsewhere who are grieving the loss of their loved ones. >> defense secretary ash carter left washington for the middle east right after the president's remarks to the pentagon. according to the president he'll be working with coalition partners on securing more military contributions for the fight against the islamic state. meanwhile, secretary of state john kerry is in moscow this morning. he has already met with russia's foreign minister and later he'll be meeting with president vladimir putin. secretary kerry is there to help narrow the gap between the u.s.

and russia over plans to end the conflict in syria. and the future of the syrian president bashar al assad. 33 they're also expected to discuss ways to restore the civility in eastern ukraine. now today's meeting comes after a series of intensified russian airstrikes in syria. humanitarian aid agencies say recent strikes hit major border crossings and highways used to deliver supplies, as well as hospitals, and bakeries. new overnight saudi arabia has announced the formation of an islamic military coalition to fight terrorism. 34 nations have come together in an alliance. some of the countries include egypt, qatar, turkey, malaysia, and pakistan. when asked if the alliance would focus on isis officials said they would confront not only that group but quote any terrorist organization that appears in front of us. now let's turn to business, where stocks closed out a choppy trading session with modest gains lifted by a rebound in crude oil prices. oil came back up slightly after rapidly approaching 11-year

lows. c nbc's louisa boysen joins us live in london for more. tell us what you know. >> hi, louis. it's interesting, isn't it? because if you look back about a year, year and a half, the price of oil very much was driving us. we had all this oil volatility. it seems that's happening. the gains were limited. we have the fed's two-day meeting kicking off today. could end in the first rate hike in more than a decade tomorrow once we get that announcement. nymex currently trading at $37 a bottle, brent here in europe. nobody wants to call the bottom on oil even though we have seen this flushing out since opec decided to remove their production levels. you have the hedge fund community remaining very, very short of their positions at the moment as well. when looking over on some of the other business stories out there, amazon, they're now pulling their hoverboards over safety fears, essentially they're looking at whether or not the batteries in these hoverboards potentially can explode. there was an incident in washington at a shopping mall

where this happened. nobody was hurt. but it has led to a lot of fears regarding safety. so, a number of models on amazon have now been pulled. it is christmastime, and what happens is that they're manufactured in bulk in china, then they're bought up by resellers who repackage them, remarkate them and then they're sold on to consumers. 88% of the tested hoverboards outside the eu failed basic safety checks. just be aware of that if your kids are wishing for hoverboards for christmas. louis. >> hoverboards the story of this holiday season. louisa live from london, thanks so much. turning to a story we've been following bill cosby is responding in court to some of the women who have accused him of sexual assault now the legendary comedian has now filed a countersuit in the defamation case against him, alleging that seven of his accusers have caused him quote severe emotional distress for talking about the allegations against him. the filing repeatedly casts him as a victim and accuses the women of trying to interfere with his career and destroy his

legacy. an attorney for the women tells msnbc that he believes cosby is trying to retaliate against his clients. now cosby has repeatedly denied all accusations, and has never been charged with any offense. still ahead on "way too early" an nba referee announces his lgbt status after becoming the target of a player's slur. more on what both men are saying this morning. plus -- ♪ >> i just got chills there. stars and storm troopers take hollywood by storm. we'll take you to the premiere of the highly anticipated "star wars" sequel. those stories and a check on your weather when "way too early" comes right back.

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so wi got a job!ews? i'll be programming at ge. oh i got a job too, at zazzies. (friends gasp) the app where you put fruit hats on animals? i love that! guys, i'll be writing code that helps machines communicate. (interrupting) i just zazzied you. (phone vibrates) look at it! (friends giggle) i can do dogs, hamsters, guinea pigs... you name it. i'm going to transform the way the world works. (proudly) i programmed that hat. and i can do casaba melons. i'll be helping turbines power cities. i put a turbine on a cat. (friends ooh and ahh) i can make hospitals run more efficiently... this isn't a competition! welcome back to "way too early." time now for sports. we begin with the dolphins hosting the giants on monday night football. a must-win for new york in order to keep the pace with the

redskins and the eagles tied for first place in the nfc east quarterback eli manning rose to the occasion with a career high completion percentage, tossing four touchdowns and including a pair to star receiver owe tell beckham jr. beckham showcasing his talent as he stays in bounds while hauling in a six yard td to tie the game in the third quarter. and then beckham finds an open field on an 84-yard reception to put things away. in the fourth quarter. what a catch -- >> that was like you and i covering that. >> what a catch, what a play. look at that route. bang. the giants snapped a three-game skid while dash dg the dolphins playoff hopes. 31-24 g-men. turning now to some high school athletics. former texas high school assistant football coach matt breed pleaded guilty to misdemeanor assault charges yesterday for his role in an incident where two players blindsided a referee back in september. he was accused of ordering the players to hit the referee after

the official allegedly used a racial slur on the field. now watts denies that claim. the former coach will pay a fine and serve 18 months probation. prosecutors are also preparing to charge the two players who tackled watts. that's a crazy video there. now let's go to some college sports missouri lawmakers have introduced a bill that would revoke scholarships from college athletes who refuse to play for reasons unrelated to their health. that comes after university of missouri football players threatened to boycott the team's activities last month in protest of handling several racially charged ironsy dents on campus. now let's head to the nba and referee bill kennedy. he revealed that he's gay in an article published on yahoo! sports yesterday, this comes days after the league suspended kings point guard for using a slur and a comment directed at that official. kennedy told yahoo! sports quote i am following in the footsteps of others who have self-identified in the hopes that it will send a message to young men and women in sports that you must not allow anyone to make you feel ashamed of who

you are. >> now he took to social media to apologize saying his actions were out of frustration and his words do not reflect his feelings for the lgbt community. now let's go to major league baseball, pete rose's lifetime ban for the game will stand commissioner rob manfred said in a letter yesterday denying that the hit king's plea for reinstatement he wrotes quote mr. rose's public and private comments including the initial admission in 2004 provide me with little confidence that he has a mature understanding of his wrongful conduct. rose, whose -- who began in 1998 -- his ban began in 1989 after he was caught gambling on baseball while managing the cincinnati reds is expected to address the public later today. and finally, the san francisco giants have bolstered their starting rotation signing righty free agent johnny cueto to a six year, $130 million

contract. cueto played a significant role in the kansas city royals championship postseason including a two-hitter in game two of the world series. now let's get a check on your weather with nbc meteorologist bill karins. >> morning. >> good morning. how you doing, buddy? >> someone was out in the hallway saying it's been a little warm lately. >> yeah, a little bit warm. i like it, though. >> you do? >> everybody around here -- >> doesn't it make you feel a little weird? >> it's a little weird. >> -- for the season. >> everyone is at the rockefeller center christmas tree. >> in shorts and t-shirts. >> that is definitely strange. but people are still ice skating so they can keep the rink going. >> it's amazing that they can do that. the incredible warmth from yesterday, it's still going to be warm but we're not going to see record shattering highs across the region. cold front is going to swing through new england. a little bit of a mess in northern maine. a little bit of light rain left over on the mass pike heading toward boston give it about another hour or two and even that will clear out and then it will be windy and a little bit cooler. not a lot. but a little bit. yesterday was off the charts. it was 71 in buffalo.

their records go back to the late 1800s. so it's a second warmest temperature they've ever had in december. and it was 16 degrees warmer than phoenix the southeast was pretty warm, too, yesterday with 80s in florida. cold front is going to cool everyone off. only cool you off. not cold. the only cold air in sight is up here in the northern rockies and northern plains. and that by the way is where our storm is today. salt lake city still snowing lightly. had about six to seven inches of snow on the ground. it's now snowing in denver from pueblo to denver to cheyenne. denver should pick up a couple inches. enough to shovel and make it slippery for the morning commute. here's the snow forecast for the rest of today and tonight. mostly sections of north dakota, south dakota and nebraska. minneapolis looks to avoid it but saint cloud northward, three to six inches likely for a lot of areas. so that's the winter stuff. everyone in the east is still warm. 61 today in new york city again, 70 in atlanta, and even boston at 58 is well above average. and then tomorrow, it continues. wednesday looks like a great day on the east coast. won't be windy and it will still

be 50. >> if you want to go skiing or snowboarding. where is the best place in the country to go right now? >> the pacific northwest is fantastic. whistler's been great, and also anywhere in the northern rockies. >> going to whistler. okay up next on "way too early" done trump releases a rert from his personal doctor attesting to his quote extraordinary health. dr. jimmy kimmel is in to decipher the medical charts. we'll have that and much more when "way too early" comes right back. opportunity has no slow season. no off-days, or downtime. opportunity is everything you make of it. this winter, take advantage of our season's best offers on the latest generation of cadillacs. the 2016 cadillac srx. get this low-mileage lease from around $339 per month, or purchase with 0% apr financing.

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this is the same letter released today from dr. harold n. bornstein, to whom it may concern i've been the personal physician of donald trump, please report he has no medical problems. his physical strength and stamina are extraordinary and his blood pressure is quote astonishingly excellent. and he finishes by saying if elected mr. trump i can state unequivocally will be the healthiest individual ever elected to the presidency. how can he say that? has he examined all the other presidents? this is like a medical evaluation of kim jong-un. this is not a normal -- >> jimmy kimmel on donald trump's doctor. it did in fact say all those wonderful things along with a few specifics the letter says that trump has lost 15 pounds over the last year. takes 81 milligrams of aspirin in a daily low dose of statin. it says his only surgery was an

appendectomy at age 10. so i guess he's pretty healthy. now the force is strong with this one last night's hollywood world premiere of "star wars: the force awakens" was a huge hit and speculation about what the film might do at the box office when it opens worldwide friday is only building. with $50 million already sold in presale tickets officials estimate that the film could break every sales record from opening day to highest grossing film of all time. that's a title currently held by 2009's "avatar." the premiere was attended by cast and characters both new and old from george lucas showing the love to new director j.j. abrams to stormtroopers and chewbacca himself to harrison ford and last night was the massive display of "star wars" and the hollywood elite there only hollywood could produce. now we told you yesterday on "morning joe" that ted cruz is a die-hard fan of the princess bride so, so much so that he's found ways to work in those lines into this speechers at

fund raisers and campaign stops. >> so, so what is you have that's so worth living for? >> what you got here that's worth living for? >> oh, la -- >> oh, la --. >> what he said was -- >> as we all know to blaze means to bluff. >> liar! >> liar! >> liar! >> get back witch. >> his confidence is shattered. >> i told you not to say that name. i can't hear you! >> one of the fichl's biggest stars is not impress, mandy patton kin who played the master swordsman in the film he told "the new york times" the texas republican isn't putting forth ideas that are at the heart of what that movie is all about. quote, i would like to be with senator yuz for a moment and i would like to respectfully ask him since he quotes all the lines from the princess bride

and certainly all of my character's lines i would like to know why he doesn't quite my favorite line. that line was among the last his character utters in the film. >> you know, it's very strange, i have been in the revenge business so long, now that it's over, i don't know what to do with the rest of my life. >> the actor says he would tell cruz if you're going to say those lines you've got to say the other line, too. that does it for me and "way too early." coming up next on "morning joe," republican debate number five and donald trump is stronger than he's ever been. is there anything the front-runner can say to knock a surging ted cruz off his game? we'll talk to congressman steve king of iowa who's already endorsed the senator. that and much more coming up next on "morning joe." the flu virus hits big. with aches, chills, and fever,

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ideas exxonmobil scientists are working on to make energy go further... ...no matter how many tries it takes. energy lives here. ted cruz has so far been very careful not to say anything bad about donald trump. but some audio was released last week of cruz questioning trump's judgment at a private

fund-raiser. of course, donald did not like that. and on fox news sunday he said ted cruz acts like a little bit of a maniac. that isn't the pot calling the kettle black and then demandsing to see his birth certificate. he sat down with chris wallace and defended his plan to ban muslims from the country. >> you say this will be temporary until we figure out in your words, quote, what the hell is going on. you call our leader in washington losers. >> i didn't say losers. they are stupid. >> okay. >> okay. >> glad he cleared that up. >> oh, my gosh. >> there's a big difference. >> it's unbelievable. welcome, everybody. good morning. it's tuesday, december 15th. with us on set we have former communications director for george w. bush.