want in our country? >> you're talking about a candidate for the presidency of the united states. isn't it up to the american people to decide whether his views are objectionable, not you guys. >> less than two weeks until the first votes of the election season and things are really getting interesting. bernie sanders borrows a page from donald trump's playbook while british lawmakers debate a ban of their own. also, this morning, relatives of a former fbi agent who disappeared in iran nine years ago say they're happy for the recently freed americans, but wish they also had something to celebrate. and -- the loss of another music legend, the co-founder of the eagles this morning, we remember detroit's own glenn frey, it's 5:30 on the east coast, 2:30 out west. this is "way too early." ♪ well i'm running down the road trying to loosen my load ♪ ♪ i got seven women on my mind

♪ four that want to own me two that want to stone me one says she's a friend of mine ♪ ♪ take it easy >> good morning. it's tuesday, january 19th, i'm louis burgdorf. we begin with politics. the republican race for iowa is on with just 13 days to go and less than two weeks before voting begins in the hawkeye state, kaepts are seeking to make their mark. especially with evangelical voters, a big swath of the early voting electorate. yesterday donald trump spoke at liberty university in lynchburg, virginia, where he softened his tone, though still mixing in a few mild swear words, bungled an attempt to quote scripture, and got a ringing introduction from the university's president and son of its founder, jerry falwell. >> my father was criticized in the early 1980s for supporting ronald reagan over jimmy carter because president -- for president, i should say, because ronald reagan was a hollywood actor who'd been divorced and remarried and jimmy carter was a

southern baptist sunday school teacher. my father proudly replied that jesus pointed out that we are all sinners, every one of us, and while jesus never told us who to vote for, he gave us all common sense to choose the best leaders. and the ability to choose the west leaders. dad explained that when he walked into the voting booth, he wasn't electing a sunday school teacher or a pastor. after all, jimmy carter was a great sunday school teacher, but look what happened to our nation with him in the presidency. sorry. >> it's an honor to be here, and especially on martin luther king day, we -- we broke the record. you know we had the record for about three or four years, the last time, and the first thing i said to jerry and becky when i got here, did we break the record? they said yes, you did. by quite a bit. so we'll dedicate that to martin luther king. a great man, and that's a little bit of an achievement. i will tell you.

one of the people i'm running against, i won't use names because we don't want to insult anybody and this is really such nice, religious people. i love it. such great christians. i can't say bad. am i allowed to say bad in this room? no. okay. we're going to protect christianity. and i can say that. i don't have to be politically correct, or -- we're going to protect it. you know -- and i asked jerry and i asked some of the folks because i hear this is a major theme right here, but 2 corinthians, right? 2 corinthians 317 that's the whole ball game. where the spirit of the lord -- right? where the spirit of the lord is, there is liberty. and here there is liberty college. but liberty university, but, it is so true. >> trump also sat down yesterday to talk about why he would be a better president for evangelicals than ted cruz. invoking ronald reagan and garnering this response. >> ronald reagan wasn't a, you

know, totally he didn't read the bible every day, seven days a week, but he was a great president, and he was a great president for christianity. and frankly, i would say that i will be a far better leader, i'll be much stronger on borders, i'll be much stronger on protecting the evangelicals. i'll be much, much stronger in protecting our country. >> donald did an interview where he described that he thinks he's bigger than ronald reagan. you know, i think the american people will make that determination. you know, i would note, that ronald reagan spent decades as a principled conservative. spent decades traveling the country, sharing his conservative free market views, defending the constitution. ronald reagan did not spend the first 60 years of his life supporting democratic politicians, advocating for big government politics. supporting things like the t.a.r.p. big bank bailout. supporting things like expanding

obamacare to turn it into socialized medicine. that's not what ronald reagan did. >> we've got new polling this morning that's putting this primary season's change versus experience battle into clearer focus especially on the democratic side. our nbc news/"wall street journal" poll reveals that 55% of democrats prefer experience in their candidates, while 40% say it's change they prefer. but among all voters, 61% say they prefer change. among democrats who want experience out of a candidate, hillary clinton beats bernie sanders 77% to 19%. there's a big gap there. among democrats who want change, sanders is on top 52% to 39%. now, the continuity verse revolution theme was on full display during sunday night's debate with clinton repeatedly tying herself to president obama, senator sanders took on that strategy yesterday, before doubling down on a line of attack he used during the debate. senator do you think secretary clinton hid behind president obama last night?

>> well, you know, you might say that. what i have tried to do from day one is to run an issue-oriented campaign, and the reason you run is to show the differences of opinion you have with your opponents. hillary clinton and i have differences of opinion. it's called democracy. but i'm not into personal attacks and mean-spirited acts. >> last night you brought up -- >> i think it is a fact. it's a fact. anyone disagree with me? she has received $600,000 in one year in speaking fees from goldman sachs. if that's not true, i will apologize. it's true. >> both leading democratic candidates were in south carolina yesterday for a ceremony at the state capitol commemorating dr. martin luther king jr. and from there sanders traveled to birmingham, alabama, where he addressed an overflow crowd of about 7,000, while clinton headed to iowa where she pitched a quote sensible achievable agenda. >> i don't want to overpromise. i don't want to come out with

theories and concepts that may or may not be possible. we don't need any more of that. what we need is a sensible, achievable agenda where we roll up our sleeves and we work to the. >> as many of you know, we began this campaign about nine months ago, and when we began we were 50 points behind. we were 50 points behind the inevitable -- inevitable -- democratic nominee. well guess what? that inevitable candidate ain't so inevitable today. >> let's turn now overseas this morning. three of the five americans released by iran in a prisoner exchange over the weekend are undergoing evaluations and treatment at a u.s. military hospital in germany. it's not clear yet when they will be discharged and allowed to return home but family

members say they are adjusting to life outside of iran. "washington post" reporter jason rezaian was reunited with his wife, mother and brother yesterday, after spending nearly 18 months behind bars. over the weekend iranian officials held his wife and mother and told them that couldn't leave iran with him. but after last-minute negotiations, they boarded a plane on sunday. rezaian also met with his editors from "the washington post." describing his treatment. he told them he was imprisoned in a 15x20 foot room for 18 months and spent 49 days in solitary confinement. former u.s. marine amir hekmati in the blue sweater here met with his brother-in-law, two sisters and congressman dan kildee yesterday. the congressman posted a personal note from hekmati on his twitter page it reads dear mr. president thank you for making my freedom and reunion with my family possible. i'm humbled that you were personally involved in my case, and proud to have you as my

president. now, sayed abedini a pastor from idaho is also in germany. he's expected to be reunited with his wife today when she arrives there. iranian officials have repeatedly denied the knowledge of robert levinson's whereabouts, and have offered to help in the search for him. the former fbi agent disappeared in iran almost nine years ago. his family members insist he is still alive. >> every day i wake up and i think about him and i know he's alive out there somewhere, trying to make his way home. i hope that he hasn't lost hope but i want to tell him that we are going to keep trying to bring him home. >> meanwhile, here at home, michigan governor rick snyder now acknowledges he's made mistakes in his handling of the water crisis in flint. calling it a disaster, snyder conceded in an interview with ron fortunatier of the national journal that it's quote not unfair for credit sicks to call the crisis his katrina referring

to then-president george w. bush's handling of hurricane katrina which epitomized government mismanage. snyder admitted he knew about concerns related to lead in drinking water last summer but not to a level where action was needed. snyder also acknowledged he and state officials should have done more to get better information. but according to reports the epa became aware of the problem as early as february. and snyder said, quote, there were multiple failures at multiple levels. the republican governor will deliver his sixth state of the state address tonight and he says he won't be resigning. all right. let's turn now to business, the world's second largest economy grew at the slowest pace in a quarter century last year. that's according to the latest figures released just this morning from china. cnbc's nancy hulgrave joins us live from london with more. what are the numbers? and can we really trust them? >> well, louis, that's the big question. but on the surface the numbers were largely in line with expectations. it was 6.9% economic growth for

the full year of 2015, and for the last quarter of the year we're looking at about 6.8%. as you mentioned that is the slowest growth rate since 1990s. just to give you a reminder of what 1990 actually looked like at the time the soviet union still existed, george h.w. was president and this is one you may remember "home alone" was in the box office. one of the box office hits. so that gives you an indication of how long ago it was that the chinese economy was growing at this pace. nevertheless, asian markets cheered the data because some see this level as enough to bring about further stimulus from the central bank, which would, in effect, really, support global markets. one reason we're seeing a rebound in european stocks here today, and we're expected to finally get a bit of relief rally in the u.s. as well as traders get back from the three-day holiday. investors still keeping an eye to the oil price. we are getting a little bit of a rebound here in the european session. that comes despite some news from iaea that they expect oil prices to continue to trend downward this year. for now we're looking at a

rebound. >> a little rebound in oil nancy hulgrave live from london. thanks so much. now still ahead on "way too early," serena williams and roger federer weigh in on a new bombshell report from the tennis world. players accused of throwing matches for money, and apparently eight of them are competing in the australian open right now. and rocked by a diversity issue the head of the academy awards takes action. now all eyes are on this year's host chris rock amid calls to boycott. those stories plus bill karins is tracking what could be the first major winter storm for the east coast when "way too early" comes right back.

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always discreet underwear so bladder leaks can feel like no big deal. because hey, pee happens. get your free pair and valuable coupons at always discreet.com welcome back to "way too early." we start with a somber note here singer songwriter, guitarist, actor and co-founder of the eagles glenn frey has died. he helped write some of the biggest songs on american rock radio in history from "take it

easy" to "hotel california." he and the eagles sold out practically every major rock venue in the world and helped define the l.a. sound of the '70s. the band was inducted in the rock 'n' roll hall of fame in 1998, had four consecutive number one albums, five number one hits, and america's best-selling album of the 20th century, their greatest hits. which has sold 29 million copies to date. now according to the band's website glenn frey died of complications of rheumatoid arthritis, acute us rater colitis and pneumonia. he was just 67 years old. >> >> i grew up listening to the eagles with my family. i'm sure fans across the world are shocked and saddened this morning. okay. time now for sports. let's start with ten 'tis, the australian open is under way, but instead of the action between the lines, it's a scandal off the court that's stealing the spotlight. nbc's miguel almaguer has the story. >> reporter: with the australian open under way, the biggest

names in tennis are here, just as one of the sport's biggest scandals is playing out. buzzfeed and the bbc reporting tennis officials have failed to deal with widespread corruption. saying at least 16 players, all ranked in the top 50, have fixed matches, losing for money. >> this is a problem across the depth and the breadth of the game. it's widespread. it's happening at all levels. it is quite deliberative. the bombshell report says eight of the suspected players are now competing in the australian open. some of the accused grand slam winners, roger federer said it's time to name names. reaction from serena williams. >> i can only answer for me. i play very hard and every player i play seems to play hard. >> reporter: the allegations are based on leaked documents from a tour investigation, showing evidence of match fixing by gambling syndicates in russia and italy, uncovered in 2007. it's the same year the world's best player novak djokovic, said

members of his team were approached about throwing a match. the sport's top officials are accused of ignoring the claims, and failing to investigate. >> the tennis integrity unit, and the tennis authorities, absolutely reject any suggestion that evidence of match fixing has been suppressed for any reason, or hasn't been thoroughly investigated. >> reporter: in australia, it's not just players taking centre court. so are questions about corruption. >> as a tennis fan it's just hard to even believe. now let's go to the actual competition on the women's side, if there were any lingering questions about the health of maria sharapova, they've been dispelled the fifth ranked sharapova cruised into the second round after winning in straight sets, and top ranked serena williams was back in action after a four-month hiatus following the u.s. open. she advanced to the tight straight set victory as well. but things did not go as well for her sister venus. the number eight seed on was

bounced by great britain's player 6-4, 6-2. meanwhile on the men's side, novak djokovic, andy murray and roger federer each advanced to the second round. okay let's get a check on your weather now with nbc meteorologist bill karins. bill, there is a winter storm i hear headed our way, and it's going to be bad. >> you can't not hear about it. >> it's all over the place. >> we have yet to determine who exactly is going to see the worst of it. first let's take you into areas of yesterday. we saw a lot of snow areas of ohio, also the great lakes. unfortunately car pileups were an issue. there were a couple early in the morning in new england with the busting of snow and this in ohio from the lake effect band interstate 90. the windchills, it is a cold morning. one of the coldest mornings we've seen so far of the winter. area from north dakota to tulsa to charleston to atlanta, all the way up to vermont. everybody has ver cold windchills. it's scarf, gloves and votes for the kids today. as far as the snow, a little clipper system snowing in areas of nebraska will bring some

snow. this is kind of the warm-up act for the big snowstorm coming this weekend. this will produce 2 to 4 implgs of snow from kansas city to st. louis, paducah, today, tonight and into tomorrow. again that's the warm-up act. the bigger storm is going to be as we go through friday, saturday, and maybe even into sunday morning. this is our american computer model, has the storm just off of the virginia coastline, with very high winds, possibly even damaging winds, areas of delmarva and the chesapeake. the heaviest snow would be back here into the west into roanoke, possibly the mountains of virginia, west virginia, i-95 westward. the european computer model is actually in pretty good agreement. a little further to the south with the biggest wind threat damage the norfolk virginia beach area and as far as the snow goes with that system, it's not bringing it so much into new england. so the biggest question marks with the storm are going to be how far north does it get? do we get the heavy snow from new york city northwards? right now it's very questionable. but louis, it's going to be hard to miss. the roanoke area, richmond northward, d.c., baltimore, philadelphia and back to the

mountains of maryland, someone's going to probably get two feet of show. >> looks like a whopper. >> yeah. >> we'll keep our eye on it. governor chris christie secures the vote of ninth graders all across the country. no not with his dance moves but with this position on school lunch. we'll play the presidential candidate's comments about the first lady's signature initiative to fight childhood obesity when "way too early" is back in a moment. when you get your business a refund, do you insist on being called the taxonator?

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welcome back to "way too early." as the backlash against this year's oscar nominations continues to grow, the academy now says it needs to do more to promote diversity. the response came after director spike lee and actress jada pinkett smith both said they plan to boycott next month's ceremony because of the glaring lack of diversity. in an instagram post spike lee said in part, how is it possible for the second consecutive year all 20 contenders in the acting category are white? academy president cheryl boone released a statement saying at least in part in the coming days and weeks we will conduct a review of our membership recruitment in order to bring about much-needed diversity in our 2016 class and beyond. let's turn to chris christie. he's been quite a frequent critic of president obama's policies out on the campaign trail. but yesterday, he went after michelle obama's signature initiative. after a question from a fifth grader in iowa about changes to his school's lunch menu, christie lit into the first lady's healthy eating program,

saying she has, quote, no business being involved in what schools serve. the comments represent a slight shift in tone from what christie has said previously about the issue. here's what he said yesterday, followed by what he told cbs' bob schieffer back in 2011. >> what are you going to do about the lunches? because, okay, they were fine when mrs. bush was the first lady. but now that mrs. obama is the first lady, they've gone down. >> this is interesting. this is the second time this has been brought up to me in two days. here's the thing, the first lady has no business being involved in this. okay? i mean, really. she has no business being involved in it. she wants to give her opinions, that's fine. she can give her opinions about what people should have for breakfast or lunch or dinner. she's like any other american. she can give her opinions. but, using the government to mandate her point of view on what people should be eating every day is none of her business.

this intervention into our school system is just another example of how the obamas believe that they've got a better answer for everything than you do. >> what do you think about this criticism coming from the wife of michelle obama because she's trying to get people to eat better? >> i think it's unnecessary. i think it's a really good goal to encourage people to eat better. i've struggled with my weight for 30 years and it's a struggle. and if a kid can avoid that in his adult years or her adult years, more power to them. i think the first lady is speaking out well. i mean i don't want the government deciding what you can eat, what you can't eat. i still think that's your choice. but i think mrs. obama being out there encouraging people in a positive way to eat well and to exercise and to be healthy, i don't have a problem with that. >> all right. that does it for me and "way too early." coming up next on "morning joe," remembering a man who dominated the music charts for nearly half a century. glenn frey, founding member of the eagles, has passed away. a look at his contributions to one of the top-selling bands of

all time. plus, crunch time. 13 days until the iowa caucuses, and there is now polling this morning on both sides of the race. joe and mika will speak with senator lindsey graham after his endorsement of jeb bush, and later former defense secretary bob gates joins the conversation, all that and much more on "morning joe." i drive a golf ball. i drive to the hoop. i drive a racecar. i have a driver. his name is carl. but that's not what we all have in common.

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♪ ♪ ♪ well i'm going down the road trying to loosen my road i got seven women on my mind ♪ ♪ one says she's a friend of mine ♪ ♪ taking it easy ♪ taking it easy good morning it is tuesday, january 19th. on the set manager of