center here in new york city. captioning funded by cbs it's wednesday, december 23rd, 2015. this is the "cbs morning news." a campaign trail clash. hillary clinton responds to the latest round of insults thrown her way by gop front-runner donald trump. weather worries, as the number of travelers heading out for the holidays hits a record. and mysterious lights illuminates the western skies. star gazers grab their cameras to record a fireball streaking along the horizon. so what was it? good morning from the studio 57 newsroom at cbs news headquarters here in new york.

i'm anne-marie green. donald trump is denying he used vulgar language to mock hillary clinton but his later, more personal attack, on clinton is raising eyebrows and creating headlines. clinton told "the des moines register," she is not surprised and not sure trump has any boundaries at all. weijia jiang has our report. >> reporter: hillary clinton fired back at gop front-runner donald trump during her recent campaign trip to iowa on tuesday night. >> the rhetoric has been hateful towards so many people. we are better than that and we need to stand up and demonstrate it all the time. >> reporter: trump launched his latest attacks at clinton during his monday night rally in grand rapids, michigan. first, he critiqued clinton's weekend appearance when she sdashed away to use the restroom. >> i'm watching the debate and she disappeared! where did she go?

i don't want to taught about it. >> reporter: then he used a vulgar, yiddish expression to her loss to president obama in 2008. >> she was going to beat obama and she was favored to win and she got -- she lost. i mean, she lost. >> reporter: republican rival jeb bush took a swipe at both candidates as he campaigned in new hampshire at clinton. >> she is great at being the victim, you know, the victimology status. >> reporter: then at trump. >> trump is not going to be president because he says these things. it turns people off. >> i hope you'll come caucus. >> reporter: the candidates will soon find out whether the strong language on the campaign trail will matter to voters. the iowa caucuses are a little more than a month away. weijia jiang, cbs news, washington. well, trump blames the, quote, dishonest main street media for giving the word he used a false meaning. in a tweet trump refused to back off and he said the word he used means got beaten badly.

often used in politics. meanwhile, ted cruz is lashing out at "the washington post." cruz was respond to go a cartoon which portrayed him as an organ grinder dressed as a monkey. it followed an advertisement and cruz reaching christmas stories to his daughters. "the washington post" makes fun of my girls. stick with attacking me and caroline and catherine are out of your league. now to the weather. another round of harsh storms is expected to pound the west. there is heavy snow in the mountains of utah, california, and washington, while some areas have been soaked and battered by powerful winds. >> i heard a loud boom, but didn't really know what it was, and then the whole house, it was like on a little trampoline.

everything went flying. >> reporter: along the east coast, it's unseasonably warm. record breaking temperatures are expected for christmas eve and christmas day. well, today is get-away day for millions of holiday travelers but some of that severe weather could put a damper on their travel plans. a large storm system has moved over the southeast, bringing rounds of heavy rain and travelers along the east will have to deal with heavy rain as well. don champion is here in new york at laguardia airport. don, good morning. >> reporter: good morning. the lower gas prices and the improving economy are expected to help make this one of the heaviest traveled holidays ever ps as you can see behind me so far at laguardia, things are off to a smooth start, but as you mentioned, weather could create some headaches elsewhere. from the road to the friendly skies, people across the u.s. are making their way home for the holidays. >> it's always levels of craziness. >> there is a long line on the

i thought, oh, no, how long is this going to take? >> reporter: for the first time, aaa predicts the number of people making a journey 50 or more miles between christmas and new year's will top 100 million making it the seventh consecutive year of growth. >> we thought we would go today instead of tomorrow. i know tomorrow will be a nightmare. >> reporter: the holiday rush comes as severe thunderstorms and tornadoes threaten parts of the south and midwest. >> cold dry air coming down across the plains and very unusually warm moist air out of the gulf of mexico so watching this particular area. >> reporter: storms grounded several flights at san francisco international airport on tuesday. christina and her kids were on their way to disney land. >> a christmas gift from their aunts in san francisco. yeah. and this is the first time we are supposed to be together, you know, for christmas. >> reporter: rounds of heavy rain are expected across the eastern part of the country,

christmas day. now there is one bright spot for air travelers this year. aaa actually reports that air fares are less expensive this holiday season, with the average round trip costing $174. not too bad. >> not bad at all, don champion at new york's laguardia airport. thanks a lot, don. we are learning more about the americans killed in monday's attack at a u.s. base in afghanistan. six americans were killed. the deadliest attack on u.s. forces in afghanistan this year. the americans were killed by a suicide bomber at bagram air base, one of the largest u.s. facilities in afghanistan. margaret brennan reports. >> reporter: after his first tour of afghanistan, joseph lemm came home to surprise his children and his wife. but his second tour came to a tragic end this week. he was among the six u.s. service members killed by a taliban suicide bomber who drove a motorcycle packed with splos

lemm was a 15-year veteran of the new york police department and a member of the air national guard. major adrianna vorderbruggan was killed. peter taub also lost his life. his mother runs this washington restaurant and posted a note on the door saying they were closed to mourn this horrible loss. a regular customer vivian ramgate, left a teddy bear and a christmas tree at the front door. >> i'm grieving for my friends. and i'm truly devastated. >> the three other airmen killed were michael cinco, chester mcbride, and louis bonacasa. only a day after the northwestern ambush, they went to the aid of the afghan army trying to hold off the takeover of taliban. the taliban has been gaining strength ever since the end of the u.s. combat mission and drawdown.

the bomber they claimed attack the american. these deaths are especially heart breaking for so many families. coming right before christmas and just months after president obama decided to extend the longest war in american history. margaret brennan, cbs news, the pentagon. iraqi forces say that they are on the verge of retaking a key city from isis fighters. ramadi is the capital of anbar province and it'ss loss was a major blow to the iraqi government. yesterday, they entered the city's outskirts but they expect a tough fight. it's estimated up to 10,000 civilians remain in the city. coming up, we will discuss the situation in iraq with cbs news senior security contributor and former cia deputy director. that is on "cbs this morning." army sergeant bowe bergdahl has delayed his plea for leaving his post in afghanistan in 2009.

at ft. bragg on charges of desertion and misbehavior before the enany. he was held by the taliban for five years until being free inside a controversial prisoner swap. bergdahl faces a possible life sentence. coming up on the "morning news." miracle survival. a victim is pulled out alive from the rubble of a massive landslide. and, later, police want your help in finding the grinch of chattanooga. this is the "cbs morning news." when heartburn hits fight back fast tums smoothies starts dissolving the instant it touches your tongue and neutralizes stomach acid at the source tum, tum, tum, tum

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the suspect entered a watch store at the roosevelt field mall yesterday and flashed a gun and was mauled by security guards. as they wrestled the gun went off and hit a bystander who is in stable condition. the search for a christmas grinch who swiped packages. a new security breach involving the secret service. those are some of the headlines on the morning newsstand. a blik lives matter protest set for america's biggest mall. today's demonstration is over last month's deadly shooting of clark. mall of america sought a court order blocking the protest. a judge yesterday barred three organizers, but said she couldn't stop everyone else. "the washington post" reports on a new embarrassment for the secret service. police say an agent's handgun, radio, and badge were stolen from his car in washington.

the agency's headquarters. a congressional investigation recently called the secret service -- robert dear is back in court today. at a hearing two weeks ago, dear yelled out at least 15 times, declaring himself guilty. his attorney may seek to have dear declared mentally incompetent. he is charged with killing three people in the attack and he vowed to refuse a psychological evaluation. the los angeles review journal reports on the driver accused of deliberately plowing into a crowd. lakeisha holloway is expected in court today. prosecutors charged the homeless woman with murder, child abuse, and hit and run. sunday night's crash killed one person and injured dozens more. "the chattanooga times free press" reports on a grinch accused of stealing packages

police are searching for this man who is suspected of swiping packages off front porches after they have been dropped off by u.p.s., fedex, or the postal service. they have dubbed him the grinch of chattanooga and they are urging him to turn himself in. still ahead, unidentified flying object. a mystery light that is seen streaking across the sky and causes panic on social media. first, a skier nearly escapes a drop from the sky as a drone crashes down. the life behind it. those who have served our nation have earned the very best service in return. usaa. we know what it means to serve. get an auto insurance quote and

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a very close call for a world cup skier in italy. he was nearly hit by a drone that crashed down behind him on the solemn course. it was carrying a tv camera that was shooting the race. herber finished the race and didn't seem to notice. he came in second. on the cbs money watch. a boost for obamacare sign-up. stock exchange with that and

more than 8 million people have signed up via the federal insurance exchange. that doesn't include sign-ups in states with their own exchanges. this is the third obamacare open enrollment and more people are participating. gains by energy companies led a broad rally on wall street. the dow jones gained 165 points. there has been another hollywood hacking. alonzo knowles is accused of stealing private sex videos and he is held without bail. he tried to sell the materials when undercover agent claimed he had materials from 130 entertainment stars and executives. we are learning that twitter filed a patent for a drone that

the messaging enabled unmanned vehicle. the patent application says drone control may be determined through democratic means. that means a bunch of people trying to control the same drone. chances are, the faa probably isn't going to go for this. >> i'm thinking that drone isn't going anywhere either. hena daniels at the new york stock exchange, thanks a lot, hena. social media goes wild after a bright light is scene streaking over three western states. later, the university of florida's one-handed guard makes a basket of a lifetime. and that is where soup comes from. campbell's fresh-brewed soups. oh, i thought we were talking about babies. made for real, real life. mom! coughing...sniffling... and wishing you could stay in bed all day. when your cold is this bad...

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what is that?

>> it's something bright. [ inaudible ] a lot further than that. >> yeah. what is that? that was the question a lot of people were asking last night all over the southwestern united states. this fireball lit up the sky from california to arizona. the u.s. strategic command says it was debris from a russian rocket that launched on monday. people captured the unusual event and posted their videos on social media. it's unknown where the debris landed, if any actually reached the ground. zach hodskins is probably the most celebrated walk-on player in college basketball history. and despite being born without a left hand, hodskins is a member of the university of florida's team. last night, the second-year player scored his first point as a collegiate. hodskins drives the hoop and scores in the final minute of florida's victory over jacksonville. that is how you want to do it.

not in the holiday spirit all last night. good thing the announcer was. >> ho, ho, ho! this could be something! we wish you a merry christmas. we wish you a merry christmas we wish you a merry christmas and a happy new year >> randall gets up and is bunches! i love the holidays! >> boston bruins announcer jack edwards providing the backing vocals for a fight between reaves. coming up after your local news on "cbs this morning," holiday travel tips from peter greenberg. i'm anne-marie green.

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a house in kirkland, washington, helps christmas lights to a new level. he uses 175,000 lights to decorate his hawk house for the past five years. but some neighbors are fed up with the traffic and noise. mitch received a letter from the city warning him that he could be fined for not having a permit. it's a lot. operation secret santa is under way at a louisiana police department. instead of handing out tickets, officers are spreading holiday cheer. ashley roddrick of our local affiliate reports. >> reporter: deputy chief doug aerowood is on a stakeout. he and the rest of the police department are following special orders. >> today is a gloomy day outside.

going to brighten it up. >> reporter: the mission comes with an arsenal of 50 100 dollar bills to spread cash throughout the community. >> it speaks volumes of your character. you're not giving your hard-earned money for any type of recognition. you simply want to make a difference in someone's life. jingle bells jingle bells jingle bells all the way >> reporter: he surprised kimberly waurltslters. >> i was wondering if i could help you out with a little secret santa cheer. you get a hundred dollar bill. merry christmas. >> thank you! >> reporter: walters who works with special needs children, says she is planning to use the money on them.

>> merry christmas. >> thank god! thank you! >> reporter: since the program continues to grow in donors and dollars, he hopes to spread more than christmas cheer. >> i would like to see other agencies do the same thing. that would be fantastic. >> thank you, thank you, thank you. >> have a merry christmas. here i am with a hundred one's to brighten up your day coming up after your local news on "cbs this morning," we will have much more on the space debris that lit up the western skies overnight. plus travel expert peter greenberg has tips on surviving your trip this holiday season. and we will talk with kennedy center honoree. >> the genius? not if you ask him. it's just hard work. this is what you were studying this morning? >> yeah. studying. >> reporter: throughout most of

5:00 a.m. reading music. even on the day we met at the age of 80, he had been studying an opera. you study other parts of his life? >> right. >> that's all ahead on "cbs this morning." that is the "cbs morning news" for this wednesday.

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