state. and that is our broadcast for tonight. thank you so much for being with us. good night from nbc news headquarters here in new york. new overnight -- the senate passes the sweeping gop tax bill but the house has to vote again. the chambers, parliamentarian ruled that three provisions violated rules. plus, new details about the train derailment in washington. investigators are looking into whenever distraction was the cause. and new virginia legislators, one single vote during the recount. ♪ good morning, everyone, it's wednesday, december 20th, i'm

ayman mohyeldin alongside yasmin vossoughian and louis burgdorf. republicans in the united senate narrowly cleared a tax rate and vice president mike pence announced amidst shouts from the gallery. >> on this vote, the ayes are 51, the nays are 48. the senate recedes from its amendment and concurs in hr 1 with further amendment, the tax cut and jobs act is passed. >> now, this as new polling finds by a margin of almost 2 to 1 americans believe the tax bill actually is a bad idea. 41% told the nbc sluice "wall street journal" poll that president trump's tax poll is a bad idea of six points, and 41% say it's good, roughly the same from a few months ago. >> but with comments to

reporters. >> do you believe there's a need for republicans to go out and sell this bill, even because of that? >> absolutely. we're looking forward to it. my view of this, if we can't sell this to the american people, we ought to go into another line of work. >> and as the senate debated into the midnight hour, chuck schumer collided his colleagues for making noise in the background. >> the joint committee on taxation just released a report that found by 2027, nearly 145 million middle class families under 200,000 will either get tax hikes -- may we have order, mr. president? >> the senate will be in order. >> this is serious stuff. we believe you're messing up america. you could pay attention for a couple of minutes. when did you ever hear that

americans are against a tax cut bill? well, you're hearing it now. republicans will rue the day that they pass this tax bill. >> the democrats have said that the american people will remember this night. i hope they do. because we passed one of the most important tax breaks in this country's history. >> all right. procedural violations in the house bill requires them to take a new vote on the bill today. house speaker paul ryan celebrated yesterday's resolution in what he thought was a final victory. >> on this vote, the ayes are 227 and the nays are 203, the conference report is adopted without reduction. it's on the table. >> all right. if all goes to plan, president trump said he will take reporters' questions today. the president tweeted his reaction shortly after the

senate voted early this morning. quote, the united states senate just passed the biggest in history tax cut and reform bill. terrible individual mandate obamacare, repealed. goes to the house tomorrow morning for final vote. if approved there will be a news conference at the white house at approximately 1:00 p.m. eastern. the tax cut bill has implications with appeal to individual mandate penalty which is the cornerstone of the affordable care act. a recent report found that the number of people with health insurance would decrease by 4 million and 13 million in the next decade. mitch mcconnell commented it's not a total replacement but takes the heart out of obamacare. >> the white house made a surprising claim about how the tax bill would affect president trump. since trump has not released his

tax return. the precise benefit on hiss for the tune is still unknown. announced from nbc news the research found that the administration would save trump and his family more than $1 billion. but sarah sanders said it will have a negative effect. >> it's said that the tax bill is going to cost him a fortune. how does he figure this is going to cost him a lot of money? >> we expect it likely will, certainly on the personal side could cost the president a lot of money. >> for tax reductions, top rate, state tax exemption is doubled, he's going to make money on that? >> look, again, this is a tax plan thathope benefits all americans. in some ways, especially on a personal side the president will likely take a hit. on the business side, he could benefit. but it's to make sure all americans are better off.

>> the president did say that this tax cut bill would cost him a fortune. that was false, right? >> no, because on the personal side, this actually could impact the president in a large way. >> and the search for answers continues for the deadly amtrak derailment in washington state. officials with the ntsb said the train was traveling toward the curve at 80 miles per hour, 50 miles over the speed limit when it derailed off the overpass killing three people. two victims have been identified as zack willhoite and jim hamre, both train enthusiasts and excited to be on the inaugural ride. investigators are looking into when the train's engineer may have been distracted by an employee in training at the time of the derailment. officials say it's difficult to determine why the train was going so fast but the company said last night that the company is dedicated to ensuring that another accident doesn't occur.

>> we have to keep this as a walkup call. it's not acceptable that we are involved in these kinds of accidents. we're terribly sorry to the people that are involved. >> now, crews have been working to remove the derailed cars overnight. safety technology known as piloted train control was installed on the tracks, but it wasn't operational yet. all right. so this one is a reminder that every vote counts. it's a recount shocker in the state of virginia. yesterday the house of delegates picked up one more seat after a recount revealed that shelli simons appeared to have won her seat by sangl single vote. it will alter the balance of power in virginia's legislature. splitting power evenly between democrats and republicans. the last time they both shared power was back in 1988. simons was said to be trailing the incumbent david yancey by

ten votes. her win means democrats will have flipped 16 skeets in the last month alone. two more recounts being held this week. we'll have more on her incredible victory as she joins "morning joe" this morning. joining us a political reporter for the washington examiner, laura barone. good to see you this morning. republican lawmakers as we were showing earlier sort of celebrating this victory. but it's pretty unpopular according to the polls. how tough of a sale it is the american people? >> well, i think it's going to be a tough sale to be honest with you. as you said it's a very unpopular bill. it's increased in inpopularity in the last two months. even though mitch mcconnell said he's eager to take this to the people and sell this, it's not something that they wanted to

begin with. right there with him are going to be democrats saying, look, this bill also provides a temporary tax cut for individuals. it also explodes the deficit. and this is also something that trump used to hit obama on when exploding the deficit which is what this tax bill would do. that then is china's gain. so that's something that we're already hearing democrats talking about, they're going to hammer that heading into 2018. so, they're hopeful with this, on top of, of course, inside of it the obamacare repeal mandate, repeal of the mandate, that they'll be able to make gains in the house and senate. >> laura, let me ask you quickly about the impact that this tax bill will have on obamacare. it's effectively dismantling a big part of it. where does that actually go from here? where does obamacare go from here? could this drive democrats to the negotiating table to replace

it all or for all intents and purposes is the obamacare bill dead? >> well, you know, it's not exactly dead yet. what republicans have done so far this year, they're slowly starving the law. and with this repeal of the mandate, you know, this is going to destabilize markets. that's something that experts have said. it's going to increase premiums. there was discussion of trying to get the alexander murray bill attached to the year-end spending measure and pass that before the end of the year, but it's looking like house republicans are not interested in doing that. sm that's something that they said should get pushed to next year. a few senate republicans are not going to be happy about that. but when it comes to driving them to the table, democrats have said for a year, we're trying to work on trying to fix issues with obamacare, and republicans have been going it

alone. i think you'll see democrats saying, looking now is the time for you guys to really include us in these discussions. >> jut st as a reminder to peop, this tax, under $1.5 trillion in the deficit over the next ten years. laura barron-lopez, thank you. if an election was held today, donald trump would likely lose to a democratic candidate. that's a poll of nbc news. a watchup said trump would lose by 16 points. according to a quinnipiac university poll, the poll found 6 in 10 voters believe that trump does not care about average americans. is not honest. does not have good leadership skills. and does not share their values. and 70% of voters said they believe trump is not level-headed. still ahead, a new report finds epa chief scott paulson

spent billions of dollars sweeping his office for bugs. and winds could keep things. we'll get a check of the forecast when we come back. ( ♪ ) more people shop online for the holidays than ever before. (clapping) and the united states postal service

delivers more of those purchases to homes than anyone else in the country. ( ♪ ) because we know, even the smallest things are sometimes the biggest. even the smallest things this ♪s electricity. this is a power plant. this is tim barckholtz. that's me! this is something he is researching at exxonmobil: using fuel cells to capture carbon emissions at power plants. this is the potential. reducing co2 emissions by up to 90%... while also producing more power. this could be big. energy lives here.

we're on a mission to show the new keurig k select brewer is the strong way to start your day. pop that in there. hit strong. press brew. that's it. strong. bold. rich. i feel like you're toying with me. show me how strong you are. (screams) lift me up! dan! lift me up!

welcome back, everybody. the chairman of the senate judiciary committee is called for the fbi's deputy director to be fired. republican iowa senator grassley said mcgabe and mccabe. grassley said yesterday, trump ought to stay out of it.

mccabe was interviewed yesterday. it comes amidst anger by republicans over text messages say show anti-trump bias. and something outgoing new jersey governor chris christie addressed yesterday in his trademark blimp style. >> a person of honor and integrity in all of my dealings with him. i believe he's an honest guy, i think he'll do a good, fair, honest, just job. i think if we discredit him anything we have could discredit him. i don't think it's a smart play. you're attacking a guy who has great credibility and has done nothing to make you believe he shouldn't have the benefit of doubt on things. again, let me say it's not that he's done it perfectly. he's made some mistakes here. but it doesn't mean it impugns the credibility. ignorance of that way bothers me

more than anything else. the high-tech locks of additional security and epa chief scott pruitt spent $9 million for surveillance security. by an employee speaking on anonymity. pruitt's previous purchase of a custom soundproof booth is under investigation by the office of inspector general. pruitt said he needs a secure phone line to communicate with officials at the white house. a spokesman for the epa defended it on monday citing unprecedented threats made against pruitt, adding while the associated press attempts to trivialize his safety there's nothing nefarious made by the epa's protective detail. a bus carrying a royal caribbean passengers flipped

over yesterday killing 11 passengers and injuring others. investigators are looking to investigation the cause of the crash of the mayan ruins about 110 miles south of mexico. a video dane after the crash shows some survivors lying on the pavement and others walking around. officials say seven americans and two swedes were among the injured. incredibly tragic there. the thomas fire burning in southern california has now become the second largest wildfire in the state's history. as of last night, the fire has scorched 272,000 acres. and more than 8500 firefighters are battling that blaze. the fire is 55% contained. but winds are expected to pick up again today. so far, the fire fight is estimated to have cost $136 million. with that, let's get a check of the weather with nbc

meteorologist bill karins. bill, what's the forecast for the winds there? also, you've said there might be a place in the northeast that might have a white christmas. >> yeah, we're going to get to that. as far as the fire weather goes. the big storm that moved into the west has brought a little bit of rain and wet weather to the sierra in north california unfortunately, there's no rain heading to southern california. they're not going to get any help from that so all of the storm misses to the north. when the cold front itself, that's the blue line here, that's the leading edge of the cooler air, when that sweeps to the south the winds do pick up and the winds do change directions so fire fieshl offie worried about that. this is the leading storm leading into the holiday weekend. through today, difficult driving mostly mountain passes in montana and salt lake city as the storm system kicks on through. tomorrow, we move the storm to the midwest. there's not a lot of moisture available so we're not talking about a big snowstorm to

rainstorm. but precip from madison, milwaukee, des moines, possibly areas of nebraska. again, possibly delaying travel to chicago and denver. not guaranteed. then mostly a rainstorm on friday. we start to pick up heavier rains, memphis to nashville. then on saturday, airport plans to the east coast, looks like steady winds, gusty winds and steady rain for charlotte, jfk and boston. so keep that in mind. today, the old travel problems are down in the south just with fog and heavy rain, tennessee into the carolinas. still ahead -- this year's pro bowl selections are out. and the saints are making some history. and women's college hoops. sports is next.

welcome back. time now for sports. and news that everyone all-star game, the nfl pro bowl. the nfl released the roster of 86 players including tom brady, julio jones, zach ertz, the pittsburgh steelers with the most, eight, including ben roethlisberger, antonio brown, le'veon bell and chris boswell. the eagles for six selections. and the saints the first team in 42 years to send two running backs to the pro bowl with the selection of mark ingram and alvin kamara. switching over to the nhl, two the best teams squared off.

it came down to the final seconds, tampa bay lightning to the new expansion team the golden knights. a pair of goals by steve stamkos. both coming on power plays and vegas would respond taking a 2 to 3 lead by a goal during a power play in the third period. however, the lightning would tie the game again, 3-3 with seconds remaining. on the assist and eric halo, with that the golden knights win 4-3 over the league best, lightning. and an historic game in college basketball as two coaches join the 2,000 win club. sylvia hatch led a win over grambling state. and a milestone, gino our yem la reaped 1,000 career victory.

rutgers women's coach c. vivian stringer two shy of the mark should also be joining them this season. pretty incredible, guys. >> absolutely heartwarming for them to hit that 1,000th win. >> awesome for coaches. still ahead, with congress on the verge of passing tax reform measures, we're looking at what's next. we'll break down the agenda that. plus, south korea pitches the idea of u.s.-led military drills ahead of the olympics. we'll talk to an expert. and here's something "morning joe" editors put together for the holidays. >> bing -- bing. ♪ bing bing bing bong bong ♪ merry merry merry christmas ♪ bing bing bong

more people shop online for the holidays than ever before. (clapping) and the united states postal service delivers more of those purchases to homes than anyone else in the country. ( ♪ ) because we know, even the smallest things are sometimes the biggest. even the smallest things ♪ even the smallest things let out your inner child at the lexus december to remember sales event. lease the 2017 rx 350 for $399 a month for 36 months. experience amazing at your lexus dealer. this is not a cloud. this is a car protected from storms by an insurance company

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♪ welcome back, everybody. i'm yasmin vossoughian alongside ayman mohyeldin and louis burgdorf. it is the bottom of the hour. let's start with the morning's top story. the voting didn't take place until after midnight. earlier this morning, senate republicans narrowly passed a 1.35 tax bill. providing new breaks for businesses. 15 minutes into it, vice president mike pence announced the final tally as a protester began shouting from the gallery. >> on this vote, the ayes are

51, the nays are 48. the senate recedes from its amendment and concurs in hr1 with further amendment, the tax cuts and jobs act is passed. >> but new polling finds that americans believe the tax bill is a bad idea by a margin of almost 2 to 1. 41% told nbc/"wall street journal" poll that the tax bill is a bad idea. while 24% say it's a good idea. the senate debated into the late hours. chuck schumer said republicans would rue the day they pass this bill. but mitch mcconnell had complete confidence in questions by reporters. >> do you believe there's a need for republicans to go out and set this bill? >> absolutely, we're looking forward to it. my view of this, if we can't

sell this to the american people, we ought to go into another line of work. >> after a procedural mistake, house republicans will vote on the bill again today. and president trump is counting on a 1:00 p.m. news conference after the passage. and new lawmakers will avert a government shutdown with the midnight deadline fast approaching and democrats appear to be backing down from their pledge to get a deal to fix the daca program. according to "the washington post" a group of vulnerable democratic senators facing re-election in conservative states next year look like they may not withhold their support on a spending bill to force a vote on the dream act. the program would allow roughly 1.2 million immigrants to stay in the states legally. including claire mccaskill and joe marchen. tweeted overnight that a bipartisan daca bill will be on

the senate floor in january. and earlier action by the democratic counterpart -- >> senator schumer discussed, we'll not be doing daca this week. we have to march to address that issue. we have plenty of time to do that. >> the time to act is now. bipartisan negotiations continue to seek a compromise to ensure daca protections as well as provide additional border security, we democrats are all for that, real border security that makes a difference. we should strive to reach a deal as soon as humanly possible. >> despite the republicans' efforts to plan a daca fix next year, it looks like the white house may already be getting the ball rolling on a possible deal, according to politico, white house chief of staff john kelly seen on capitol hill yesterday. politico said that kelly attended a meeting with more than a dozen senators from both

sides the aisle telling them that the white house will pursue a list of border security and other policy changes that it actually wants as a broader bipartisan deal for daca participants. and the battle may throw a wrench into republican efforts to get that spending bill approved by the fred deadline. senate majority leadermen mcconnell is expected to add that to stabilize the obamacare markets to the spending bill. the payment's reimbursed bill ensures for requirement play and reduction for low-income. and after susan collins vote for the tax bill in part that the promise that the alex sandy murray measure would become law this year but some house republicans are rejecting that deal refusing to support anything that helps prop up the health law, especially if it does not include language restricting federal funding for abortions.

one of the top members of the freedom caucus said adding murray to the bill would be, quote, a problem. senator collins is calling for immediate coverage of her support for the tax bill unbelievably sexist. collins reportedly made the comments to a reporter in a hallway near her office in the senate. she centered on coverage after meeting with protesters with grave medical conditions saying, quote, i can't imagine a reporter writing that about a male senator meeting with the same group. back with us, laura barron-lopez. laura, great to have you back with us. let's talk about what the democrats have going forward, as far as the playbook for the 2018 midterm elections. how much are they planning on campaigning on the unpopularity of the tax bill. it's not unpopular by any stretch of the imagination, and

it's certainly not going to have an impact on obamacare. >> that's right. it's not popular. and republicans are facing this gargantuan task, one, they have to explain to the voters what this tax rewrite does, explaining to the american people the intricacies of the tax system isn't easy to begin with. on top of that, they're facing, you know, the fact that it's unpopular. climbing out of that is going to be difficult. it's something that democrats are definitely going to grab on to. they're not going to stop talking about this. outside groups are going to be hammering this home, on top of what republicans have to throw on republicans including their attempts for obamacare some of which they did successfully in his tax bill including the russia probe. >> all right. let's turn to daca on that as we know and remember democrats sort of backing away from the idea

threatening a government shutdown if they couldn't get a legislative fix for daca before the end of the year. we're now actually hearing that the white house is going to present a list of policy changes as part of a broader deal that would cover daca as well. what are you hearing about this? >> well, so, as you said, it's looking like a daca fix isn't going to be includes in the year-end spending bill which is a short one. it's only going to mid-january that -- you know, a number of democrats aren't going to be happy about. they wanted to see this pass by the end of the year because they're worried as we get closer to the march deadline, more and more daca recipients are going to be facing deportation, they're going to be losing their jobs. and so, it seems that the holdup is surrounding these border security measures. we're going to have to wait and see from the white house what exactly they want. if there's any money going towards the democrats they're not okay with that, they're okay

with technology for a wall or other money going towards other border security but not interior enforcement. so, a lot of this is going to play out in mid-january, it looks like. and democrats think that they have a lot of leverage when they're going to be working out a larger spending bill with republicans. >> laura, let me ask you really quickly about democratic congressman tim ryan, one of the names bounced around as a possible 2020 candidate. what's the reaction inside the democratic party about this potential rise to the nomination. >> what i find striking which is what i reported on today that a number of house democrats are talking about him. they're voluntarily mentioning him. some of them have called the white male whisperer. they think that he can speak to that -- add to that voting bloc that democrats lost to trump in 2016. >> right. it's something definitely something that we need to try to

win back. laura, thank you. in an exclusive interview with nbc's richard engel south korean president moon jae-in said he hopes the olympics could send a message of peace to the world. north korean athletes have been invited to the games, although it's unclear if they actually will attend. president moon also said that he has suggested to the u.s. that the two nations postpone military drills ahead of easing tensions. adding the u.s. is reviewing the idea. and a rocket was fired by houthi remembers yesterday. saudi arabia destroyed the rocket with patriot missiles before it hit its target. there are no reports of injury. and it's the latest instance of escalating tensions between saudi arabia and neighboring iran which the united states and saudis say back the houthis with arms, something iran denies.

it comes about a week after ambassador nikki haley displayed what the white house is an iranian-made missile fired by houthis into yemen back in november. the aembassador admonished them after the attack. joining us now, this is the second that the united states are alleged that houthi rebels have fired into saudi arabia. what does that say about the state of affairs in this ongoing conflict that has now reached its 1,000th day? >> this is occurring within the context of a region that's in dramatic change. the region itself, but also dramatic change within saudi arabia itself. a generational change of power. >> right. >> so, a lot of the action that you're seeing, particularly from the saudi side is done within that context. the young crown prince has to prove himself at home in the

region and abroad. this is the war, you could say, the crown prince. and it's been categorized as his war in many ways. he needs to prove that he's strong and the iranians in the context of this global proxy war just not involving yemen, looking at syria, iraq and many parts across the region that the crown prince has to prove himself. i don't see this proxy conflict ending anytime soon. i think the iranians and saudis realize they want to avoid a direct conflict -- >> using proxies. >> yeah, using proxies. that will continue to escalate. >> as we saw ambassador haley in the background of that shot, with the missile, we know she's trying to drum up support for new u.n. security council sanctions with iran. with in mind, sort of the veto power with russia and china considering haley's own veto with regards to the jerusalem

capital just the other day, what do you think the chances are she can get the support? >> very difficult, because of two countries you mentioned, the chinese and russians. the chinese take more of a role if they don't vote against it, they'll generally abstain. but the russians have a direct stake. russian influence within the region particularly shifted in 2015 when they launched air support from the assad regime. from that point onwards things have changesed ed changed in t. the russians are far more pragmatic and they want a relationship with the saudis and other regions. they want to be a power broker. but with regards to something like this, the russians will play a clear role to make sure there's no unanimity at the table. is this just doesn't involve the united states. this involves other issues. security council is only effective when the five powers converge at the table.

>> yeah. >> and with that objective there in russia to vote against additional sanctions as well. it's great to see you. >> thank you. still ahead, the latest on that deadly amtrak derailment in washington state. as investigators search for answers, the role that new technology on the tracks could have played on the tragedy. plus, bill karins has a track of the weather for the weekend. [ keyboard clacking ] [ click ] [ keyboard clacking ]

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who knew a scalpel could work thousands of miles away? (dr. vasquez) it's going to be life-changing, and life-saving. welcome back, everyone. the search for answers continues following that deadly amtrak derailment in washington state. officials with the ntsb say the train was traveling toward a curve at 80 miles an hour when it derailed off an overpass. two victims identified as zack willhoite and jim hamre both train enthusiasts and excited to be on the train's first inaugural ride. according to the associated press investigators are looking into whether the train's

engineer may have been distracted by an employee at the time of the derailment. >> heartbreaking. all right. officials say it's too early to determine why the train was going too fast but there are questions to be raised about safety. new technology known as positive train control was on the tracks in washington but wasn't operational yet. nbc's news' tom costello has more. >> reporter: among the questions for federal investigators did the engineer know the track he was on? had he done the test run before monday to familiarize himself with speed limits? did something or someone distract him at the very minute he needed to slow the train from 80 to 30. veteran engineers said he would have needed a quarter mile to slow an amtrak train before the curve. >> you got to slow down slowly, otherwise, you're going to have forces that jackknife your train. >> reporter: the train's two black boxes like this one should tell an investigator if the engineer hit the brakes. >> all you have to do is wait

for the train to stop. >> reporter: safety measures may have prevented the crash by automatically applying the brakes when the train failed to slow down. >> i have no control over it at this point. the train will come to a stop. >> reporter: congress first ordered railroads to install ptt ten years ago. but congress has extended the deadline to 2018 now possibly 2020 because they've complained about the cost. >> at the end of the day, crashes like this one and the dozens that happened before cost even more when it comes to the toll in human lives. >> reporter: speed played a role. four dead in the bronx. eight dead in philadelphia. one dead in hoboken. >> i still can't believe it when i see the images there. let's get a check of weather with nbc meteorologist bill karins. bill, some rain in the south but

we really care about is where in the country there's going to be a white christmas. >> you're dreaming of a white christmas? that's your priority. the southeast is where the rain is and so or anything like that, unfortunately overnight, quincy, louisiana had a tornado go through overnight. there's reports of trees down and homes. we'll bring that to you. this rain is a soaking rain and eventually in atlanta we could have airport delays with that. even nashville with steady trains. the rainfall prediction, one to two inches from northern georgia to south carolina. charlotte a lot of rain too, so let's get into the white christmas forecast. technically, you have to have one inch of snow on the ground for official white christmas. most of the northern rockies, none minnesota -- it's interesting some of the dakotas don't even have an inch of snow.

plenty of snow in northern new england. southern new england has barely any at all. the big question mark, will we get any snow in southern new england? how about portions of the great lakes and ohio valley? here's the christmas day forecast. bitterly cold in the middle of the country. we do have potential for snow, maybe a snowstorm northern portions of new anengland. maybe central portions of new england. here's the potential program for potentially a white christmas. fingers crossed in pittsburgh. new york city, you're too far south. >> oh! >> bill, it's very misleading. >> there's other places besides new york. boston is possible. >> bill, you're being carve cal out. go ahead, yasmin. >> the map that you showed before showed snow all throughout new york state. i'd appreciate some snow or some accuracy. >> there's a chance that you

will see snowflakes. >> that's all we need, a flake or to. >> yasmin is bringing in a meteorology expert to take over your staff, bill. internet. >>ias nine and i, ayman,ty you bring so much holiday cheer to us and viewers at home. so i will give you a little bit more a. huge surprise from a bell ringer in the form of a very generous do nation. officials say someone dropped a gold bar into one of their kettles in ontario, oregon on pond. they say the bar is no bigger than a domino and estimated to be worth over $1,200. it will be a huge boost to help local residents there that is a nice thing. how did you pang to get back to oregon so soon? >> i just wanted to hear it ring when it got in the yetle. >> i know there is better snow in new york

still ahead the ripple effects of that massive power outage continues to be felt days later. >> the a, one major airline plans, hundreds of flights cancelled. plus the other stories driving your business day.

welcome book. the fit to restore net neutrality begins, in a bill filed tuesday by law maker marsha blackburn aims to bring

the fight to congress. how are net neutrality advocates reacting to the bill? >> reporter: well the rest is mixed, luchlts congressman black brunburn's proposed law is not allowing them to block content ore throttle speed. critics say because it does allow providers like comcast from charging extra for faster speeds, that will mean the content providers to refuse to pay extra could end up with comparative service. sow have the same result t. law prevents the fcc from regulating net neutrality and will block controversy of states who, press interest if their net neutrality laws. >> also, delta ceo is reportedly seeking compensation for the airline's lost revenue during a 12-hour atlanta blackout. how much money are they looking for and do you think is this a legitimate claim? >> well, the ceo o delta was speaking last night at an event,

he says the number is between $25 million. they had to split tens of thousands of passengers up at hotels in atlanta. there will be a companytation he says with himself the powers that be at hartland jackson airport and the people oofk at georgia power. >> that controversial accommodation is one i'd love to be a fly on the wall to be honest with you. >> i'm sure that would be extremely interesting. thanks so much. we both have flown out of atlanta. we can tell you how busy it issings not just because you go into atlanta. a lot of money was at stake up next the country's overhaul on the tax code the house prepares to vote on the measure, give trump a victory and the full breakdown and the legislation's impact on next year's mid-terms could be chairman of the house freedom caucus mark meadows and chair of the house democratic caucus

joseph crawley weigh in on whether lawmakers will get a bill done in time. "morning joe," everyone, is moments away. people would stare. psoriasis does that. it was tough getting out there on stage. i wanted to be clear. i wanted it to last. so i kept on fighting. i found something that worked. and keeps on working. now? they see me. see me. see if cosentyx could make a difference for you- cosentyx is proven to help people with moderate to severe plaque psoriasis... ...find clear skin that can last. don't use if you're allergic to cosentyx. before starting cosentyx, you should be checked for tuberculosis. an increased risk of infections and lowered ability to fight them may occur. tell your doctor if you have an infection or symptoms. or if you have received a vaccine or plan to.

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welcome back. before we toss it over to "morning joe," here are the stories we were telling you about t. house is set so to vote once again in a few hours on the republican tax reform bill t. revote is considered a formality. president trump is expected to sign the bill before the week is out meanwhile, ahead of that vote the white house economic counsel gary coen will take part of a forum held by actionios. he will also layout his administration's agenda for 2018. sending an anti-manifesto to the white house, he will be sentenced. he sent a 161-page manifesto to president trump, if convicted on the charges related to stealing those weapons he will face a maximum sentence of 24 years in police zbln who has time to write 161 pages? >> that does it for us this

morning. "morning joe" starts right now. >> the joint committee on taxation, just released a report that found by 2027 nearly 145 million middle class families under $200,000 will either get tax hikes -- can we have order, mr. president? >> the senate will be in order. >> this is serious stuff. we believe are you messing up america. you can pay attention for a couple of minutes. >> do you believe there is a need for republicans to go out and sell this bill given how america is currently viewing it? >> absolutely. we're looking forward it to. my view of this, if we can't seth sell this to the american people, we might as well go into another line of work. >> senator mitch mcconnell agrees they have work to do, it's a good thing. most