for prosperity group the conservative activist group funded by the billionaire activist koch brothers and tonight it was overturned by voters in wake county. a small sounding election with important consequences. "first look" is up next. damage control -- republican presidential candidate, herman cain, goes on the offensive as another sexual harassment accuser goes public. storming the castle -- there are reports news corp.'s news of the world spied on england's future king. and riding high -- could this 90-foot wave be the largest ever surfed? good morning, everyone, i'm lynn berry, those stories and more are straight ahead. this is "first look" on msnbc.

and we begin this morning with a defiant denial. at a news conference yesterday, republican presidential hopeful, herman cain, insisted he has never sexually harassed anyone. blaming mounting accounts of inappropriate behavior on a quote democrat machine. meanwhile, as cain's camp worked to discredit his first accuser to go public, we learned the identity of one of the first women to actually file a complaint. nbc's steve handelsman reports. >> i don't even know who this woman is. >> reporter: herman cain went after his first accuser to go public. the day after sharon bilic said cain groped and pushed her in 1997. simple charges. >> they did not happen. >> cain's campaign listed lawsuits against her. >> the democrat machine in america has brought forth a

troubled woman to make false accusations. >> but bielic denied her motivation is political or financial. >> i expected this, this is what happens. it's not about me. i'm not the one running for president. >> cain insisted he'll keep running. >> as far as these accusations causing me to back off and maybe withdraw from this presidential primary race? ain't going to happen. >> but as cain spoke, another accuser went public. karen said she's one of those who got a settlement in 1999 after accusing cain of hara harassme harassment. >> the cumulative impact of all of these accusations have got to be a killer for cain. >> but defiant, the gop front-runner in last week's poll said he'll be in detroit for the debate. i'm steve handelsman, nbc news, washington. well last night on the "last word" with lawrence o'donnell,

gloria allred, the attorney representing one of cain's accusers told lawrence what she would like to see next regarding these sexual harassment allegations against herm be cain. >> i think that the united states senate or the house of representatives should explore whether the laws against sexual harassment need to be strengthened. and in their pursuit of examining what kind of legislation might be needed. they should subpoena witnesses like herman cain right before the committee let him testify under oath, under penalty of perjury, let him be asked the specific questions that you, lawrence o'donnell, very rightly said he should be asked and more. i want to know every allegation that's ever been made against him in his employment history that involve sexual harassment. i want to know what the allegations were, what his response was, what every investigation of every employer showed and what the result was and how much money was paid. and then let's see what his answers are and i'd be willing to have my client go, 'sheed be

willing to testify under oath and my guess, although i haven't talked to the other women is they would be willing to do that as well. >> you don't want to miss the "last word" 10:00 p.m. eastern. only on msnbc. the place for politics. and just a reminder, you can watch tonight's republican presidential debate, live beginning at 8:00 p.m. eastern time on cnbc. elsewhere yesterday folks across the country cast their votes in an offyear election that handed state democrats a victory on several lightning-rod issues, ranging from collective bargaining rights in ohio, to an anti-abortion initiative in mississippi. nbc's tracie potts joins us from washington with highlights. tracie, good morning. >> lynn, good morning. when you take a look at some of these initiatives, it seems clear that the measures that passed or didn't pass show that the electorate seems to be moving to the left. take a look at what happened in ohio.

republicans wanted to restrict the collective bargaining rights of 350,000 public workers, a big government union issue up there. but ohio voters struck that down. and it lost by a wide margin. allowing those government workers to unionize. in mississippi, an amendment that would, they call it the personhood amendment, that would have defined life beginning at conception, that was rejected, in fact by a handy margin there as well. despite the fact that both gubernatorial candidates, the democrat and the republican, backed it. it would have restricted abortion and in some cases, some forms of birth control as well. and finally, in maine, voters restored a four decade-old policy that allows voters there to register to vote on the same day. here on capitol hill, democrats are calling on hearings on those very types of policies. >> tracie potts in washington, thank you. here is your "first look" at

other news going on around america today. a gun-waving suspect's heist inside a los angeles hotel ended with a surprise take-down. two mixed martial arts fighters wrestled with the man after walking in on the hold-up. they held him down until police arrived to make the arrest. heavy rain and floods turned being okay city roads into rivers. placing many drivers in deadly situations. swift rescue crews stayed busy with calls for help from motorists who had been washed off the road by high water. luckily no deaths have been reported. promotion erupted inside a georgia restaurant sunday when a deer barrelled through a window, showering diners with flying glass. the deer eventually found an exit and scam perred into nearby woods, no injuries were reported. ouch. and finally, artistic expression ran rampant on the streets of sarasota, literally for the 2011 chalk festival. over 100 artists from around the

world transformed sidewalks into their canvas with an elaborate array of drawings. unfortunately upon completion of each year's event, city crews wash away the artwork. so enjoy it for now. now for a look at your national weather. let's turn to nbc meteorologist bill karins, with your weather channel forecast. are you awake over there? >> i was trying to remember back, i remember walking in new york and someone had done one of those, but they made the sidewalk look like a big hole in the ground, so when you went up to it, you would stop and hesitate because it looked so realistic. >> that's creative. >> a little sidewalk art. up in alaska, a huge storm system is moving in and it's moved in overnight. we saw hurricane-force wind gusts, we had huge waves in nome, alaska, the downtown area was expecting a storm surge about eight feet. the worst of it occurring right now or over the last couple of hours, the storm system is now

going to the north of the area. the winds are moving in. the heaviest have moved onshore. far to the north now, we're getting reports of blizzard conditions with snow, because the winds are so intense. the storm is one of the strongest and biggest that alaska has ever seen. it wasn't so bad around juneau and anchorage, but northwest alaska. in the lower 48, pretty good storm system yesterday cranked through oklahoma, more severe weather in texas, arkansas and louisiana. today we don't have severe weather, just rainy conditions in new orleans, all the way through mississippi, heading for alabama. if you're in the memphis area, you've got rain showers, you're from nashville you have to lexington to louisville, you'll have to deal with rain. and areas of illinois are soggy. davenport, quad city areas, it's rain for you. but the back side, cold enough for snow around the des moines area. up to ames, up from there to

waterloo, you'll change to snow. and up to areas of central wisconsin, you're expecting maybe one to three inches, not a big deal, but for some, the first snow of the season. the wisconsin area, the white is the snow. madison, milwaukee and green bay, this looks like a rain event for you. the travel troubles around chicago, great lakes, that's where it's going to be wet and windy. dallas you'll be fine. and the east coast, enjoy, this is it. yesterday was gorgeous, today will be similar after we burn off the fog. 67 from d.c. to southern new england. silvio berlusconi bows to pressure. internet giants join forces and santa is saved, big relief. "first look" at business headlines is straight ahead. coming up, the nba players are on the clock and the biggest wave ever ridden. you're watching "first look" on msnbc. this new at&t 4g lte is fast.

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welcome back to "first look," i'm lynn berry. here's some top stories making news this morning. the bbc reports that rupert murdoch's "news of the world" paid a private eye to spy on prince william and other high-profile targets. on monday, news international, admitted its staff had ordered surveillance of two lawyers of victims suing the company over phone hacking. senior administration officials say the u.s. is preparing additional sanctions against iran, after the release of a new u.n. report that says the country is carrying out activities relevant to the development of nuclear device. iran's president called the report baseless. saying his country won't retreat an iota from its nuclear program. three air force officials have been reprimanded after the loss and mishandling of the remains of u.s. service members killed in afghanistan. the u.s. office of special counsel found evidence of gross

mismanagement at the mortuary. hundreds of fans have staged a rally outside the home of penn state football coach, joe paterno in the wake of a widening sex abuse scandal involving his former assistant coach. "the new york times" cites unna departure. and russia's space agency says a probe intended to collect soil samples from one of mars' moons has gone offcourse. the spacecraft took off this morning. scientists will try to fire its engines for a course correction. and now here's your "first look" at how wall street will kick off the day. the dow opens at 12,170 after adding 101 points yesterday. the s&p rose 14 points and the nasdaq climbed 32. taking a look at overseas trading, in tokyo the nikkei gained 99 points and in hong kong, the hang seng jumped 335. after a choppy day of trade tuesday, hopeful news about debt-ridden italy sent stocks up

late. clearing the way for leader who will more aggressively tackle the country's debt problems. prime minister silvio berlusconi said he would resign after a new budget law is approved. still yield on italy's ten-year bond spiked close to 7% tuesday, a sign markets still question whether italy can avoid default, which would cripple europe and the global economy. nevertheless, berlusconi's vow prompted wall street's so-called fear index to drop almost 8%. financials climbed, led by regent's financial, wells fargo and citigroup. employers advertised the most jobs in september in the last three years. a new antidepressant failed in clinical trials, sending targacept plunging 60%. a strong outlook and results from activision blizzard as it begins selling its latest "call of duty" video game.

and microsoft and aol have partnered to fight google and facebook's online ad dominance. each will sell the other's unsold inventory. the companies don't expect issues with the government over reduced competition or price fixing. a judge ordered raj rajratanam sentenced to 11 years in prison, to pay a record $92 million civil penalty. and finally, some good news here, the suffolk county new york santa we told you about yesterday, laid off due to budget woes has been rescued. we love this story. a radio station and other donors raised money to keep the retired world war ii vet who plays saint nick on the job. coming up, while the nba only makes the air waves for lockout updates, hockey highlights dominate. plus what's said to be the greatest example ever of hanging ten. your "first look" at sports is straight ahead. you're watching "first look" on msnbc.

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well welcome back to "first look," i'm lynn berry and in sports, with a month of the nba season already lost, there is no sign of any movement or change in the nba owners lockout. here is nbc's fred roggin. >> good morning, the nba players are not blanks, they rejected the late earth offer by the owners yesterday and are hoping to have another meeting before today's 2:00 ultimatum. but as of now, the lockout

continues. no basketball, plenty of hockey. jets and sabres, paul gos ted with a pass of the night. to jason pominville. on to overtime they went, pominville with a blast that was timed by thomas vanek in front of the net, his 10th of the year, one up for buffalo, 6-5. rough day to be a goalie in washington, kerry lehtinen had his bell run. but moments later, the stars jamy ban returned the favor. got the caps goalie right near the neck, but he took it in stride. the only thing michael ryder hit was the back of the net. panthers took advantage of sloppy play by leafs goalie gustafson, florida up 1-0. in the second, gustafson misplayed the puck behind the net. hard to win when your goalie gives up goals like that. florida cruised 5-1. the dany heatley finished it

with a goal, minnesota 2-0. nicholas backstrom made 42 saves, the wild won their fifth straight. while you were at work, jared mcnamara was surfing one of the biggest waves in the world. was towed in and rode a massive 90-foot wave off the coast of portugal. that's taller than an eight-story building. the video is amazing, believed to be the biggest wave ever ridden. we're going it take his word for it. that's your first look at sports, i'm fred roggin. totally rad. now for another look at the weather, here's nbc meteorologist bill karins. >> would you hit it with your long board or short board? >> the long board, man, right? i have no idea. >> i was going with that assumption. >> good morning, everyone, we have a mild start for you today. in the northeast, maybe you can get away without the jacket in a few spots, the suburbs are chilly, you want to put a coat on the kids in the 40s in many

spots, new york city the warm spot on the map at 52, buffalo, 50 degrees to start your morning. we have clear skies, we'll see clouds increasing. buffalo and pittsburgh during the day. but everybody else will remain dry. look at this, 70 in buffalo for a high, 67 in new york. close to record highs in a few spots, just like we did yesterday. then the cold front goes through. thursday a day with some showers. kind of chilly and windy friday and then the weekend looks nice again. so nice weather pattern for much of the east coast. all the cold air is locked up in the rockies, it's moved down even into texas and the stormy spot today, definitely the great lakes. bill, thanks so much. coming up, one director sticks his foot in his mouth, while another sues for $1 million on broadway. plus it could be another sign that ashton kutcher has lost his luster on "two and a half men." your first look at entertainment is straight ahead. you're watching "first look" on msnbc. and my job is easy. hide big things. you're good...

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well welcome back to "first look," i'm lynn berry. last night on late night with jimmy fallon. jimmy got a kick out of one pilot who nearly took flying high to a whole new level. >> this is just insane. this story is a true story. a pilot in russia was busted for smoking pot right before a flight. people could tell something was up when he told passengers that they would be making an emergency landing at white castle. get this, several counties in oregon are letting people vote on ipads to make it easier for the elderly. which explains the new state motto, oregon, we know nothing

about old people. did you see this? in a new interview, hugh hefner said lindsay lohan's pictures in "playboy" are quote, very classy. and he was like, but don't worry, we're reshooting. don't worry about it. don't worry about it. >> poor lilo, she can't catch a break. tonight jimmy welcomes comedian kathy griffin, and new york chef david chang. 11:35 central time. first look at entertainment news, is losing product placement privileges another sign that ashton kutcher is losing power at "two and a half men"? bill, thoughts? >> yes. >> on the show, his laptop is used to feature logos of companies he's invested in. but suddenly the logos are gone, as is the disclosure in the credits of his investments.

>> what exactly do you sponsor? >> nothing, yet. >> it hasn't been a good week for film maker brett ratner, first his latest movie, "tower heist" bombed in its debut. next he apologized for lying about sleeping with an actress on howard stern now he's been forced to resign as next year's oscar telecast producer for using a gay slur. on the eve of being honored as latin grammy person of the year, columbia clom bowian singer, shakira got a star on the walk of fame. and julie taymore is suing the producers of "spider-man" for at least $1 million. for money she said she did before she got fired. and actually, spider-man was notorious for being a huge bust. but now it's expected to make a lot more money than people

expected and it will be a huge hit. >> they say any press is good press. even spider-man falling from the ceiling? >> we'll see. i'm lynn berry and this is "first look." stay tuned for "way too early" with willie geist. a busy political morning with important ballot initiat e initiatives changing the game in several states across the country and nationally. the leading republican candidate giving a completely defiant press conference in response to charges from a group of women who say he harassed them in the 1990s. the question is -- will herman cain live to regret saying -- he has never even seen sharon bialek, the won who went public on monday. we'll see. meanwhile, the united states says it's considering new tougher sanctions on iran after a new u.n. report says the country now has what it needs to make a nuclear weapon. the question is, what other pressure can be brought to bear by the international community. it's been tightening the screws on ira