>> al qaeda in iraq claimed responsibility for that terrifying, coordinated attack, which took place 2 1/2 years after coalition forces first entered iraq. it's thursday, december 31st. right now on "first look," the image was jarring. once america's father figure, now facing serious charges of sexual assault. thousands of cops, a million revellers, safety on everyone's mind as some new year's celebrations overseas have been canceled over security concerns. the political infighting on candidates about to get a whole lot more personal. plus, no rest for millions in the line of extreme weather. the affluenza mom leaves mexico for the u.s. and comedians in cars getting coffee. this you got to see. "first look" starts right now. good morning, i'm dara brown. bill cosby, a man who once personified family values now

faces charges of sexual assault. they stem from one woman's accusations involving an incident that allegedly took place more than a decade ago but she is far from the only woman to accuse cosby of wrongdoing. 55 women have made accusations against the entertainer. the theme of this morning's new york daily news cover. stephanie gosk reports. >> reporter: the spectacle felt out of place at a small court house in pennsylvania. >> mr. cosby, how do you feel, sir? >> reporter: bill cosby, once known as america's favorite dad, arrived to face multiple counts of sexual assault. the first time the 78-year-old has ever been criminally charged. the comedian walked gingerly using a cane and saying nothing. he posted a million dollar bond. and was processed, mug shot and all, at the local police station. cosby is accused of three felony counts of aggravated indecent assault, dating back to an incident in 2004. when prosecutors say former temple university employee, andrea constand, went to cosby's

house to discuss her career. >> mr. cosby urged her to take pills that he provided to her and to drink wine. the effect of which rendered her unable to move or respond to his advances and he committed aggravated indecent assault upon her. >> reporter: constand filed a criminal complaint but the prosecutor at the time said there was not enough evidence to charge. a year later, she filed a civil suit, revealing 13 more alleged victims. one of them, barbara bowman, spoke with nbc's kate snow. >> i cried when i found out there were 13 women. i didn't think there were two. i thought there was one, me. >> reporter: the civil suit was settled out of court. but since then allegations piled up. now, more than 50 women say they were abused, too. many tell a similar story, they were given incapacitating drugs and then assaulted. cosby denied the allegations, and in a statement his lawyer

said, make no mistake, we intend to mount a vigorous defense against this unjustified charge. and we expect mr. cosby will be exonerated by a court of law. but the flood of new accusations prompted authorities here to reinvestigate constand's claims. gloria allred represents 29 other alleged victims, whose cases fall outside the statute of limitations. >> seeing him criminally charged and having to face a trial is the best christmas present that they have ever received. >> nbc's stephanie gosk reporting. let's take you now to a live shot of times square, where a million people are expected to ring in the new year tonight. most will enjoy the festivities outside, though. some spent hundreds of dollars with for a table with a view of the ball drop. with the increased terror threat around the world this year, expect an increased security presence keeping everyone safe. chris malone joins us live from times square. chris, good morning.

>> good morning, dara. you know, it's shaping up to be an unusually warm new year's eve in new york, and a crowd of about a million people is expected to start gathering here in times square over the next several hours. 6,000 police officers will also be here to make sure that everything goes off without a hitch. the world's most famous crystal ball tested and ready to go. it will welcome in 2016 at the stroke of midnight tonight. amber shepherd and joe tal bert from south carolina plan to take it all in, their first trip to new york. >> don't seem real. doesn't seem like we're actually here. >> reporter: to say they're not worried about security and the nypd says they shouldn't be. >> people should feel safe this new year's eve because we're there. you're going have one of the most well policed and safest venues in the entire world, given all the assets we deploy there. >> reporter: times square will be protected by 6,000 officers. they'll have radiation detectors, metal detectors and

bomb sniffing dogs. a counterterrorism team will guard entry points with long guns. a thousand security cameras will help keep an eye on it all. >> new york is ready. we're the best prepared city in the country. we know how to do big events. we've shown it time and time again. >> reporter: security fears didn't stop crowds from packing the cross roads of the world wednesday. >> i mean, something is going to happen. i'm pretty sure everybody feel safe every day. you can't live your life in fear. >> i love times square. all the lights and stuff. i just come in, and it's just like, you don't know where to look first and it's just like everything is going on, there's so much to do here. >> happy new year. >> reporter: a party atmosphere with thousands looking out for anyone who might want to ruin it. >> and the nypd says despite terrorism threats abroad, they have detected no specific credible threats for tonight's event in times square. live in times square, i'm chris pa loan, dara, back to you. >> thanks so much and happy new year.

these are live pictures from sydney's harbor. sydney is one of the first cities to ring in the new year. look at that great, beautiful fireworks celebration as they ring in 2016. ♪ meanwhile the terror threat appears to be more immediate overseas with evidence of at least two terror attacks being planned. one in europe and one in turkey, resulting in a number of arrests. so it's not surprising that some new year's celebrations are being scaled back. nbc's bill neely has more. >> reporter: across europe, police are on high alert. in belgium two men have been arrested for planning suicide attacks in this historic square due to be filled with new year crowds. authorities canceling fireworks, citing a terrorist threat. in turkey, more arrests after a suicide vest and a backpack filled with explosives were

found at an isis safe house in the capital ankara. two men suspected of planning a new year massacre. and in paris, authorities are scaling down celebrations, canceling fireworks, fearing a repeat of november's attacks. in london too, security is tight. police in london have considered a terror attack highly likely for the past year. but based on new intelligence, they've now doubled the number of police officers on these streets. the threat is real. this british couple was jailed for life for planning suicide attacks in london. they tested explosives in their backyard. they were isis supporters. radicalized like the couple in san bernardino who carried out their attack. europe is a continent on edge. bill neely, nbc news, london. at least 14 people are dead in missouri from historic flooding in a situation so bad officials say they don't know how many homes have been destroyed.

and there's no letup in sight. 13 of those killed were in cars when rising floodwaters swept them away. one kayaker figured a boat was the best way to travel and captured this footage of a flooded high school. only the tops of the football uprights remain visible. a soccer goal almost completely under water, nearly nothing visible on the school's scoreboard. parts of the merrimack river are two feet higher than the so-called great flood in 1993. in illinois, seven people are confirmed dead from the flooding, 12 counties in illinois are under a disaster declaration. meteorologist bonnie schneider is here with more on that severe weather. good morning to you, bonnie. >> good morning, dara. we are tracking not ohm the threat for storms, as we work our way through areas along the mississippi, but right now, we're looking at very heavy rain coming through panama city. this is important to note because along interstate 10, if you're driving we could see flooding. it's all part of a cold front that's actually going to tap into lots of moisture from the gulf of mexico. you can see the storms firing up

along the front. and eventually we will start to see this flood threat in the southeast diminish, because the front will push to the south. in the mean time, though, temperatures in advance of it are going to stay really, really warm. look at this, 82 degrees in miami. we are looking at really mild conditions there. much colder to the west. chicago, only at 25 degrees today. and as we start looking at what we can expect going forward we're going to be seeing much colder air coming in from the west in to saturday. you'll see 31 degrees in billings, and 28 in minneapolis. so the cold air is working its way in to the forecast. >> cold air for the new year. happy new year. >> happy new year. the mother of the affluenza teen is back on u.s. soil after being deported from mexico. tonya couch faces charges of hindering apprehension for helping her son, ethan, flee the country. although it was expected that ethan would also be deported, he remains in mexico city after a mexican judge issued an injunction blocking his immediate deportation. after the couch's attorney filed

what is known in mexico as an am paro to avoid extradition. the injunction is expected to take weeks, if not longer to resolve. the tarrant county sheriff dee anderson said they expected to take ethan couch into custody yesterday but added, we're patient people, we'll be waiting. severe turbulence rocked an air canada passenger jet forcing it to make an emergency landing in calgary. the boeing 777 was carrying 332 passengers, and 19 crew members from shanghai to toronto when it hit a rough patch. 21 people were taken to hospitals. some with possible neck and back injuries. >> suddenly the flight is going down and everything is really scary. >> i fly a lot for work. it was the most turbulence i've ever felt. >> air canada says it's investigating the incident. this is it. tomorrow we officially enter an election year and it's starting off with a bang. strong new language from donald

trump. candidates brawling over early voting states. and today, a crucial mile marker. nbc's leonard -- try that again, nbc's edward lawrence has more from washington. >> reporter: senator ted cruz toured the damage tornadoes caused in texas. he's the first candidate to do so. also, before president obama. >> we've heard stories of people in their homes that were just standing in the one spot that didn't collapse. >> reporter: at the same time he raised a whopping $20 million in the fourth quarter, far surpassing the previous quarters. only ben carson beat that amount in the fourth quarter. senator marco rubio brought in $6 million. this as donald trump amps up his attacks on the democratic front-runner for president, hillary clinton. >> she wants to accuse me of things, and the husband is one of the great abusers of the world? give me a break. give me a break. >> reporter: the other republican establishment candidates duke it out for third place, behind trump and cruz.

>> if they think this is tough now, we're nowhere close to tough. >> reporter: in a drastic move, jeb bush cleared out his campaign staff in miami, and shipped them to early primary states to get his supporters out to vote. edward lawrence, nbc news, washington. in sports, we didn't get a winner until early this morning. usc versus wisconsin in the holiday bowl. they kicked a field goal with just 2:27 left in the fourth quarter to take the lead. the trojan comeback fell short as wisconsin defeated the trojans 23-21. steph curry's golden state warriors were anything but golden. curry was resting a bad leg as the mavericks routed the nba's best team by a whopping 114-91. and the celtics faithful gave lakers kobe bryant a heartfelt send-off as the retiring veteran played his last game in boston. kobe finished with 15 points, as los angeles won 112-104. now to chicago and overtime. a last second three pointer by

ellis ties the game with 3.7 seconds left. chicago inbounds the ball, then a beautiful lob to jimmy butler for what would be the winning basket. chicago 102-indiana 100. and who are the best athletes of all time? according to the latest harris poll starting at number ten, wayne gretzky, tom brady is number nine, tiger woods, lebron james at seven. and joe montana. here's your top five, peyton manning, serena williams, the only woman in the top ten, then to muhammad ali at number three, babe ruth at the number two spot, and in number one, his airness, michael jordan. well there are big changes ahead for the chicago police department. the mayor speaks out. plus a touching image, the little boy who gave a final salute to his hero father. you're watching "first look." it takes a lot of work... to run this business. but i really love it. 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.

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that's why i switched from u-verse to xfinity. now i can download my dvr recordings and take them anywhere. ready or not, here i come! (whispers) now hide-and-seek time can also be catch-up-on-my-shows time. here i come! can't find you anywhere! don't settle for u-verse. x1 from xfinity will change the way you experience tv. yesterday, it was an emotional tribute to an nypd detective who was a hero on the streets of new york and on the

battlefields of afghanistan, and to his family. nbc's harry smith has the story of one final salute. >> reporter: the streets of midtown manhattan came to a standstill for the funeral of new york police detective joseph lemm. along fifth safe near st. patrick's cathedral, a sea of blue stood in silent tribute for a cop his colleagues called superman. lemm was on patrol with five other americans in afghanistan when they were attacked by a suicide bomber december 21st. it was lemm's third deployment to afghanistan with the air national guard. yes, he was a cop and a reservist. for whom duty meant everything. two years ago, local news cameras were there when he surprised his family at a restaurant coming home early after his second long deployment. lemm was a big country kid from nebraska, who thrived as a cop in some of the roughest sections of the brongz. his little boy, ryan idolized

him and high on the shoulders of a new york city police officer the 4-year-old saluted his pop. during the funeral, police commissioner bill bratton said this. >> today we say farewell to a hero of our time. and a hero for all ages. a patriot who centered his life on protecting others. >> reporter: and that sure sounds like superman to us. harry smith, nbc news, new york. enrique marquez jr., the longtime friend of syed farook has been indicted by a federal grand jury. the indictment includes conspiring with farook to provide material support to terrorists. he's also being charged with marriage fraud along with making false statements to purchase two assault rifles and on immigration paper work. marquez is scheduled to be arraigned on january 6th. chicago mayor rahm emanuel has announced sweeping changes to the chicago police department which will focus on de-escalation tactics to reduce explosive situations. emanuel also wants every squad

car to be equipped with a taser. >> we have about 700 tasers in the city. we're going to go to 1400. to make sure every vehicle out there during the night has a taser in that vehicle. >> the season premiere of jerry seinfeld's comedians in cars getting coffee features president obama, talking about why he's so popular with kids. >> i do really well with the 0 to 8 demographic. >> oh, really? >> yeah. they love me. partly i think because my ears are big. and so, i look a little like a cartoon character. >> well, political jabs are getting more personal and sarah palin has a deal for you. that's up next.

time for your final "scrambled politics" of 2015. today the state department will release thousands of pages of hillary clinton's e-mails during her time as secretary of state. the new year's eve dump will be the second to last segment with a final set released just before the iowa caucuses on february 1st. senator rand paul is telling chris christie to resign as governor of new jersey. paul says christie has been out of the state campaigning for more than 200 days, adding, quote, he may not even be a resident. never mind, governor. as for christie, perhaps a read my lips moment yesterday. according to bloomberg he told a crowd, quote, i will not raise taxes on the american people because we're already overtaxed. sarah palin's arizona home is up for sale. the asking price, $2.5 million.

t the "l.a. times" says its 8,000 square feet with a pool, lighted sports court and synthetic lawn. president obama has some life lessons for interns gathered at the white house, what he'll be thinking of on his death bed may not be what you think. >> i'm not going to be thinking about even passing health care, as important as that was -- that has been. but what i remember is me ho holdi holding my daughter's hand and seeing the sun go down and pushing her on a swing. >> and kids are a big theme here, too. before we start 2016, a bit of a look back. official white house photographer released his favorite photos of 2015. some are funny, some are emotional. and you can hear from him on the "today" show over on nbc this morning. and then there is this one.

jerry seinfeld peeking in to the oval office. and on that note, more from the brand-new comedian's "in cars getting coffee." >> get out of bed -- >> brush my teeth, shave, put on some work clothes, i go up, work out >> shave, then work out? >> i believe in shaving before the workout. >> okay. >> because -- that's how i do it and i don't really need a reason. >> are you still doing stand-up? >> are you still making speeches? >> you still get hecklers? who's your theory of handling hecklers? >> you know what? you seem upset. i'm so sorry. i know that's not why you came in here. let's talk. >> and that is your final dish of "scrambled politics" for 2015. in washington i'm joined now by political reporter erin mcpike. good morning, erin. >> good morning. >> well, presidential candidates are making their final push for campaign funds, and the numbers are now rolling in. for ben carson his poll numbers are dropping but his

fund-raising is rising, pulling in $23 million. even topping ted cruz. can carson turn his sinking numbers around? >> dara, most likely not. what we know from political strategists is that small donors keep campaigns running, even when they're going through tough times. and ben carson has been in a tough spot for most of the fourth quarter, he's had a lot of negative headlines, but small donors who make these donations of $50 to $100 will continue to support you when times get tough. and that's what's happening here. it doesn't look like ben carson's poll numbers have any hope of turning around. they continue to decline. ted cruz is overtaking him. that's true in iowa, that's true in many other states. and it doesn't look like ben carson at this point has any real hope of being the nominee. >> and jeb bush is taking trump on more, doing more selfies, spending more time glad-handing voters. plus he's pulling staff from some states to put them into early voting states, changing where he'd be spending ad dollars. will any of this help him catch

fire? >> no. and dara, what's really going on there is jeb bush is having a lot of trouble. this is really the last gasp of his campaign. he's running out of money is what this suggests. they're pulling those ad dollars from a number of these states because the campaign doesn't really have the money to fund them. that's what that really says. jeb's super pac, right to rise, they do have the ad dollars to keep funding. those ads. but this is really just that the bush campaign is running out of steam at the end of the year. >> well, next week voters will get a full taste of donald trump attacking bill clinton. trump says he's confident that bringing up the former president's affair will come out very well for us. what do you think about this and how will it play out? >> i think this is something that donald trump's republican supporters probably would like to hear from him. i don't know if it's going to change the race any. but there are lots of republican voters who don't like bill clinton, and wonder why republicans and democrats, for that matter, in 2007 and 2008,

when hillary clinton was running then, didn't really bring it up at the time. i don't think this is going to change the race any. what will matter is if bill clinton is asked by a reporter at some point in the next couple of months what this means and how he responds to it will be important. >> it's going to be interesting to see his response. thank you, erin mcpike. i'm dara brown. this is "first look" on msnbc. don't forget to like us on facebook. happy new year to all of you.

it's thursday, december 31st, right now on "first look," the image was jarring. once america's father figure, now facing serious charges of sexual assault. thousands of cops, a million revellers, safety on everyone's mind as celebrations overseas have been canceled over security concerns. the infighting is about to get a whole lot more personal. plus no rest for millions in the line of extreme weather. the affluenza mom leaves mexico for the u.s. and comedians in cars getting coffee. this you got to see. "first look" starts right now. good morning, i'm dara brown. bill cosby, a man who once rs