>> thank you for having me. >> you bet. tonight in our telephone survey -- or text survey i asked, do you have faith that congress will have the heart to extend the unemployment benefits? that's it for the "the ed show. unemployment benefits 26% of you said yes, 74% of you said no. that's the ed show." up next, "first look." face it-to-face, president obama set to have his first big meeting with republicans ahead of capitol hill's power shed. damage control, washington scrambles to deal with the leak of hundreds of thousands of secret documents. and picasso's stash, how a retired electrician claims he ended up with hundreds of never before seen works by the master. good morning. i'm lynn berry. those stories and more straight ahead. this is "first look" on msnbc.

we begin this morning with meeting in the middle. for the first time since the gop's midterm election victory, president obama will sit down with congressional leaders from both parties this morning in the hopes of finding common ground on several political sticking points. nbc's tracie potts joins us from washington with more on that. tracie, good morning. >> reporter: lynn, good morning. there are two things on their agenda today. whether or not congress can get the s.t.a.r.t. treaty with russia ratified before the end of the year and also those bush tax cuts, extend them for everyone, for the middle class only, for the wealthy. president obama has said that they're going to have to budge, both sides, on their deeply held positions and compromise on this. republicans now want an up or down vote on a permanent extension of these tax cuts for everyone. democrats say that there will

probably be a vote just on the middle-class portion some time this week. all of this a day after president obama announced a federal pay freeze for 2 million federal workers. he specifically said that does not include the military. the president hopes this will save $28 billion over five years, which is really just a drop in the bucket of last year's federal deficit. republicans say they want a permanent hiring freeze and we learned yesterday from the congressional budget office that the wall street bailout, that $700 billion, is really only going to cost taxpayers about $25 billion because they're paying the money back. lynn. >> there we go. a little good news. thanks. the u.s. government is launching a criminal investigation into the whistleblower website wikileaks after its release of more than a quarter million sensitive state department documents. of course this comes as the white house orders government agencies to impose new security safeguards making it harder for any one

person to download secret files. nbc's kristen dahlgren has the latest on efforts to stem the diplomatic damage. >> reporter: after hours on the phone with world leaders secretary of state hillary clinton in front of the cameras. >> i am confident that the partnerships and relationships that we have built in this administration will withstand this challenge. >> reporter: but they will also have to withstand embarrassment. the documents released contains unflattering descriptions of foreign heads of states. north korea's dictator a flabby old chap. >> in my conversations want least one of my counterparts said to me, well, don't worry about it, you should see what we say about you. >> reporter: the document also detail how clinton and predecessor condoleezza rice reportedly ordered diplomats to collect data, dna, even computer passwords from foreign dignitaries. the white house condemned the leaks saying they put americans and our allies in danger.

>> to the extent that we can find anybody who was involved in the breaking of american law, and who has put at risk the assets and the people that i have described, they will be held responsible. >> reporter: wikileaks founder in hiding and speaking via video phone to a conference in jordan was defiant. >> that is a highly unusual and concerning shift by the obama administration into a regime which doesn't believe in the freedom of the press. >> reporter: the whistle blowing website promising more documents, as the government begins its review of how agencies share sensitive administration. kristen dahlgren, nbc news, washington. last night on "hard ball" chris mathews dove into some of the strategic details revealed in the leaked documents. in particular, he asked senator claire mccaskill if she was stunned by the way some islamic leaders appealed to the u.s. to intervene with iran.

>> well, i think what i'm stunned about is that someone that had access to this information, decided it was a great idea to make it public. that, to me, is terribly damaging to our national security, it's damaging to our alliances around the world. people need to feel like that they have the ability to speak freely in certain places about their fears and frustrations about leaders around the globe, and i don't know how we get our allies to trust us if we can't protect the information that they give us. it is extremely unfortunate and i really do think it's time that we take a look and make sure that our laws are strong enough in terms of going after people who leak this kind of classified information that can kill americans if it's used improperly. each night chris plays hard ball with some of the nation's

most prominent poll it ittitions, news makers and leaders. watch "hard ball with chris mathews" week nights at 5:00 and 7:00 eastern, only on msnbc, the place for politics. your first look at some of the other news around america today. an arizona detention officer is on paid leave and another charged with aggravated assault against inmates in a psychiatric ward. surveillance shows the arresting officer with his foot on the neck of a restrained inmate. soon after, the other officer forcibly pushes the inmate's head. the first officer is seen, again, punching the inmate four times. he is also accused of hitting and possibly injuring another inmate. in kansas, a major fire gutted the millburn golf and country club yesterday. fire crews battled the flames, fanned by high winds, but could not save the building, founded back in 1917. the historic club has been the local venue for u.s. open qualifiers. no word yet on what caused the fire.

in colorado, a mountain lion and her two cubs took up residence in a woman's backyard for seven days. the lions played around for the most part, even got curiously close, making the mother understandably uncomfortable at one point. wildlife officials say they were more than likely in search of food. the world's largest solar powered boat made a quick stop in florida on an exhibition around the world. the swiss-made 100-foot long yacht runs entirely on solar energy. while it does cut the cost of gas, living a luxuriously green life will set you back $17.5 million. now for a look at the national weather let's turn to nbc meteorologist bill karins. there's a busy weather channel forecast. good morning. >> dangerous morning out there, lynn. mississippi especially we've had overnight tornadoes and they're it continuing this morning. we've had mobile homes that have been destroyed, a couple houses destroyed. we've heard about numerous injuries.

thankfully so far no reports of any fatalities. but these triangles where the tornados have been reported overnight and these overnight tornadoes are always the ones that are the scariest. people are sleeping, not expecting them and rolling through and people don't have time to get into their storm shelters. the areas that were hit the hardest, yazoo city outside of jackson, mccomb had a strong storm go through. we're i want to hear how bad the damage was there. southeast of tupelo a tornado that did some damage. some reports in alabama, because the storms are progressing to the east. tornado watch continues for the birmingham area. looks like a new tornado watch was issued that includes the new orleans area up to hattiesburg and we'll watch these lines of storms. everywhere you see the red colored counties here that's where we have current tornado warnings. at least four or five possible tornadoes on the ground right now. as far as the radar goes, also the rain, with the northern end of the system not tornadic, not severe, but a soaking rain today.

ohio, west virginia, eastern portions of kentucky and now that is moving into pittsburgh, you notice d.c., that rain will be soon to arrive for your morning commute too. it's a big, powerful storm. the backside has had some pretty significant snows now in northern minnesota and the colder air is moving into minneapolis. rain is changing over to a little bit of snow for you. here's our storm system on the map. and this will slowly push off the east coast today and tomorrow. we're talking heavy rain too, a possibility of up to two, three inches of rain today right along the appalachians. traveling out there today, lynn, the worst of it, of course, severe weather in the southeast and that heavy rain in the ohio valley. of course the christmas tree lighting tonight in new york city, rain will unfortunately be moving in during the ceremony. >> bill, thanks so much. wall street worries about europe, holiday shopping figures sparkle, and a burger made with what? your first look at this morning's business headlines is straight ahead. coming up in a minute -- push comes to shove between the heat and the wizards, 49ers

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welcome back to "first look." i'm lynn berry. here's some of the top stories making news this morning. there is no word yet on the condition of a wisconsin high school student who police say shot himself after holding a teacher and nearly two dozen other students hostage yesterday. after a five-hour standoff, all of the hostages were freed unharmed. a somali born teenager accused of trying to bomb a tree lighting ceremony in portland, oregon, has pleaded not guilty. to a charge of attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction. lawyers for mohamed mohamud suggested federal officials may have entrapped his client. a possibility which u.s. attorney general eric holder has specifically discounted. a retired french electrician has shocked the art world. coming forward with more than 270 never-before-seen works by pablo picasso.

the electrician who worked for picasso says the paintings were a gift. however, picasso's son disputes that and all but specifically alleging theft has filed suit to gain possession of the art with an estimated $80 million. the electrician is being questioned by police. and a rare 14 karat diamond nicknamed the perfect pink has sold at a hong kong auction for more than $23 million, making it the most expensive jewel ever sold in asia. experts say it is unusual to find pink diamonds with such an intense color that's over ten carats. >> and now here's an early look at how wall street will kick off the day. the dow opens at 11,052 after falling 39 points yesterday. the s&p shed a point. the nasdaq dropped 9. taking a look at overseas trading this morning in tokyo, the nikkei sank 188 points while in hong kong, the hang seng lost 158.

losses on wall street over european debt worries were kept in check monday thanks to a late rally in energy and bank stocks. while the european union came up with a loan package for ireland, investors worry that they'll have trouble handling a wider crisis with spain and portugal. wall street's gauge of fear, the volatility index, rose 3%. the euro fell to a two-month low with investors flocking to the safety of the dollar and u.s. treasuries. gold also rose. dollar buying sent the price of oil shooting up 2% higher. more good retail news according to one survey. the number of shoppers in stores over the long thanksgiving day weekend rose almost 9% over last year. shopping optimism helped amazon.com which rose on a record high to expectations of cyber monday sales. according to ibm's tracking service, as of early yesterday afternoon, overall online sales for cyber monday were running 15% ahead of last year.

it's expected sales for the day could top $1 billion. holiday shipping optimism helped fedex which added almost 5%. bank stocks jumped with little exposure to europe's problems. it's thought they may be able to take advantage. wells fargo, bank of america and jp morgan all rose. a note of caution when it comes to banks stocks wikileaks founder julien assange tells "forbes" magazine early next year a fresh leak will target a major u.s. bank. finally, mcdonald's has its mcribs but the french fast food chain quick has its supreme foie gras. for three days the chain will offer a burger with the normally expensive and very fattening duck delicacy stopped with relish and lettuce and it's all for the bargain price of a little over six bucks. that is if you like foie gras. may not be worth six bucks.

the 49ers condition their resurgence, the thunder sting the hornets and the nfl lays down the law for fighting. plus, miami finally showed a little fight of its own as things got heated last night in south beach. your first look at sports is straight ahead. you're watching "first look" on msnbc. gecko: 'specially the auto repair xpress. repairs are fast and they're guaranteed for as long as you own your car. boss: hey, that's great! is this your phone? gecko: yeah, 'course. boss: but...where do you put...i mean how do you...carry... waitress: here you go. boss: thanks! gecko: no, no i got it, sir. anncr: geico. 15 minutes could save you 15% or more on car insurance. makes ray want to show off his moves. [ spanish music strumming ] ♪ ♪

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♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ [ male announcer ] at&t covers 97% of all americans. rethink possible. welcome back to "first look." i'm lynn berry. in sports since losing their first five games to open the year the san francisco 49ers have turned their season completely around.

here's nbc's fred roggin. good morning to you. the 49ers and cardinals are two of the worst teams in the nfl. but believe it or not, one of them could make the playoffs. the niners took a big step with a win in arizona. cardinals fumbled on their first play from scrimmage and that set this up. troy smith to michael crabtree. on the very next play, the touchdown niners and they led it 7-0. san francisco manhandled arizona's defensive line, brian westbrook up the middle for the score. they had 261 total yards on the ground. 49ers won it 27-6. the texans andre johnson and courtland finnegan threw punches sunday. yesterday the nfl had them where it counts in the wallet. the league fined both players 25,000 but did not suspend them after their scrap in houston. speaking of scraps the wizards and heat in into a testle. armstrong fouled anthony, juwan howard came in. to the game, lebron james may be feuding with his coach but not

affected his play. he scored 30, the heat won 105-94. to oklahoma city where westbrook did about everything for the thunder. alley-oop to durant. had 11 assists. westbrook started with a steal, dished to durant for the dunk. russell had five steals. saved the best for last, scored 12 of 25 late in the game. thunder beat the hornets. finally a classic moment from the go-cart championships. he crossed the finish line and tried to keep it together. he lost it. lost control while celebrating on his victory lap. fortunately he was okay except for a bruised ego. got to say the worst thing that can happen to a man, premature celebration. that's your first look at sports i'm fred roggin. and now for another quick look at the weather here's nbc meteorologist bill karins with another look at the forecast. >> an interesting forecast the next two days. the rain is on its way in. it's raining hard in pittsburgh,

that's going to continue all day. temperatures are in the 50s. this isn't like a winter event. it's just kind of more like a mild november rain. it's going to be windy on wednesday too. now the rain is not yet in d.c. but will soon arrive during the morning. by about noon or so into the early afternoon, philadelphia should get some rain. new york city should be dry for most of the day, but as we go through the late afternoon to the evening, some showers will pop up and then some lighter rain into the evening. of course that 7:00 to 9:00 east coast time is when the celebration outside here at 30 rock is for the tree lighting ceremony. looks like some light rain will be developing. as i mentioned wednesday looks wild around here. strong cold front, showers, maybe thunderstorms, downpours locally. wednesday is going to be a difficult travel day. it all clears out by the time we get to thursday. check with the airports today, especially if you're traveling in the southeast or mid-atlantic or ohio valley today. >> good advice, bill. the kardashians want out. there will be a big shift this

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welcome back to "first look." i'm lynn berry. last night on "the tonight show" jay expressed concern over the safety of the commander in chief. >> well, the homeland security threat level back up to high, it's at high, that's just the gym where president obama plays basketball. i guess you heard about that. president obama, oh. 12 stitches in his lip. he got an elbow on a pick-up basketball game. is that the last time he plays with sarah palin. i'll bet you that.

that is the last time. and the other night matt lauer interviewed kim kardashian for the nbc "people of the year 2010" special. kim really has an effect on people. i think matt was affected as well. take a look. >> so many people seem to grav state to you, why? you must have thought about it? >> i mean i think that they feel like they can somehow relate to me or maybe a member in my family. people feel like i'm relatable. i think -- i think -- >> with jay tonight, tv host chelsea handler, "twilight" actor kellen lutz and musician rod stewart "the tonight show with jay leno" on your local nbc station. time for your first look at entertainment news. the kardashian sisters have finally found something they can say no to. their attorneys are looking to cut ties with prepaid debit cards that feature their name and likeness.

after coming under fire for the card's high fees, connecticut attorney general richard blumenthal is investigating and calls the card's fees, quote, predatory. florida released video from earlier this month of a wobbly and confused david cassidy failing a field sobriety test. in it the former partridge family singer tells the trooper he has a wandering eye condition, but other coordination tests convince the troo trootser that cassidy was impaired. he pleaded not guilty to dui and other charges. finally, in a move seen as appealing to younger viewers, james franco and anne hathaway have been chosen to host hollywood's biggest party, february's oscars. they returned the show which is usually hosted by comedians to hosts who are movie stars. both are getting possible oscar buzz themselves. what do you think, bill? >> i like the beginnings with

the commehdi sketch and they do the routine. >> supposed to hook you in and keep you watching, the funny jokes and awkward laughs. >> probably have a lot of people helping them, comedians will do skits with them and stuff. >> we'll see how it turns out. it's worth tuning in. >> yeah. >> this is "first look" on msnbc. stay tuned, "way too early" starts right now. >> bipartisan breaks out all over our nation's capital as the republican leadership visits the white house today for the first time. the question is, will this lead to more cooperation than that time when they all watched the super bowl together? meanwhile, the state and justice departments continue to manage the wikileaks dump of diplomatic cables as more documents seep out of the organization. the question is -- does the attorney general have a case to prosecute here? and what kind of a punishment does a fight like this get you