on select vehicles. see your local ford dealer. good morning. tough job. president obama creates a new top position. a white house official whose sole job it is to take on isis, but is it too little too late as world leaders gather in paris under unprecedented security looking for a breakthrough on another global threat. countdown to iowa. the first votes in the presidential race two months out. >> if you're ready for me, i'm ready for you. >> hillary clinton rallies with democratic female senators with one noticeable absence and donald trump joking he is so popular he should charge to appear in the next debate. >> i won't do the debate unless

which money goes to the wounded warriors or go to vets. >> this morning where the race stands, and republican hopeful ben carson joins us live for the first time on "today." mounting misery. heavy snow blanketing millions across the midwest. roads now sheets of ice. signs seeing double, while the southeast braces for flooding rains. and all smiles. the first photo of oscar pistorius inside his house arrest as an appeals court considers a ruling that could send him back to jail, a decision that may come as early as today, tuesday, december 1st, 2015. >> announcer: from nbc news, this is "today" with matt lauer and savannah guthrie live from studio 1a in rockefeller plaza. and good morning on a rainy day, tuesday morning right here on "today." >> here we go. two months out from the iowa caucuses looking forward to

live in a couple of minutes. overseas, president obama wrapping up his trip to paris making headlines for a new step in the fight against isis, appointing a new adviser to lead that charge. nbc's kelly o'donnell joins us from paris this morning. kelly, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, savannah. in another effort to show that the white house is taking concrete steps to battle isis, the president has tapped a longtime national security expert, rob malley, to run the operation inside the white house as the president is looking for tangible contributions from other world leaders. this morning president obama began his second day in paris. with the president of turkey which has become a frequent transit point for radicalized isis fighters headed to the west. >> we all have a common enemy, and that is isil, and i want to make sure that we focus on that threat. >> reporter: the president among 150 world leaders here, met

putin monday but only the kremlin sent out a photo to prove it. obama urged putin to step up russia's strength against isis targets inside syria. and the president linked the purpose of this summit, climate change, to the headline-dominating fight against terrorists. >> what greater rejection of those who would tear down our world than marshalling our best efforts to save it. >> reporter: the city of lights also saw the unmistakable flashes of the obama motorcade. french president hollande hosted president obama and secretary of state kerry at a premiere restaurant, dining out, another small act of defiance to show paris is back in business after the isis attacks. while white house officials pressured congress to move quickly on funding more aviation security and tightening visa requirements. >> ensuring that we have the homeland defenses in place to disrupt and prevent any attacks on our homeland.

president today, a news conference to wrap up his time in paris. expect him to be asked about the current threat level from isis and as he heads back to washington expect more pressure on congress to put in place some of the steps the white house would like to see. savannah, matt. >> let's see what happens there. kelly, thank you. let's go on to the presidential race now where on february 1st voters will gather throughout the state of iowa and cast the first votes of the 2016 campaign. >> this, of course, will be a major test for the candidates to see who is breaking through and made a connection with voters. we've got the race covered from all angles this morning, and we'll talk to dr. ben carson in just a moment. >> let's start with the democrats though and the front-runner hillary clinton. this morning the largest release to date of e-mails from her time as secretary of state is out, and she tries now to court her base, although there appears to be one key holdout. nbc's kristen welker on the campaign trail with hillary clinton. she's in montgomery, alabama. kristen, good morning. >> reporter: matt, good morning

in just a few hours hillary clinton will appear at this church where martin luther king was once a pastor. she's going to mark the 60th anniversary of the montgomery bus boycott, and it comes as she's touting her strength among female senators, but in a sign she still doesn't have this race locked up, there is still one critical senator she has yet to win over. hillary clinton trying to showcase her strength, 13 democratic women senators embracing her monday night as she steps up her attacks over the shooting at a colorado planned parenthood. >> i will defend planned parenthood. >> reporter: but noticeably absent, progressive champion senator elizabeth warren who hasn't endorsed anyone yet. the clinton campaign downplayed warren's absence, noting clinton's vast support, but warren's no show underscores that clinton still struggles to court the more liberal wing of her party, many who have gravitated to vermont senator bernie sanders.

lead in most polls, and she's courting her base at every turn. >> thank you all very much! >> reporter: releasing this new campaign video featuring school-aged girls. >> it is ridiculous that there's never been a female president before. >> reporter: but as she looks forward, clinton continues to contend with her past, the largest batch of e-mails yet out overnight, nearly 8,000 pages from 2012 to 2013 from the personal server clinton used as secretary of state, some sent night of the 2012 benghazi attacks including when clinton e-mailed her daughter. the ambassador whom i handpicked has been killed by an al qaeda-like group. chelsea writing back in notably formal language. i am so sorry. such anathema to us as americans. but in the e-mails clinton also poked fun at some republicans in the 2012 race, referring to mitt romney as mittens and calling

in another exchange, she asks aids where she can sign something for julia louis-dreyfus for veep. >> reporter: e-mails classified after the fact, republicans say that's an indication that secretary clinton mishandled sensitive government information. the clinton campaign says that's just not the case. there will be two more releases of e-mails including one right before iowa. matt, savannah. >> kristen welker, thank you very much. talk about the republicans now, donald trump still dominating the polls. nbc's katy tur is here with what he's saying. >> reporter: two months until the iowa caucus and despite all predictions donald trump is still ahead in all the polls. as the voters get serious trump is betting on trump refusing to apologize, back down or even soften his language no matter who asks. in front of 5,500 supporters in macon, georgia, late monday, donald trump predicting which rivals will pounce next.

he will. he has to. he has no choice. at some point rubio's got to hit me. there's only one way you get to the top and it's all through trump, let's face it. >> reporter: trump issuing a challenge ahead of the next gop debate two weeks from today. >> how about we do this with cnn. i won't do the debate unless they pay me $5 million, all of which money goes to the wounded warriors or go to vets. >> reporter: billionaire feeling and acting invincible as poll after poll show him solidly in the lead despite his increasingly inflammatory rhetoric, rhetoric he had to face up to monday afternoon during an at-times contentious private meeting with dozens of black pastors and religious leaders. many angry for what they see as race-baiting. >> beautiful thing about the meeting is they really didn't ask me to change the tone. >> reporter: meeting was supposed to result in an endorsement from 100 black leaders, but in the end only

>> going to pray to god about it as ministers do. >> reporter: these days trump seems less concerned with rival ben carson whose iowa poll numbers have started to slip after the terror attacks in paris and a string of foreign policy flubs. and now the neurosurgeon is struggling to defend his own words, this time on planned parenthood monday night on fox news. >> look at my record, you know. i've spent my whole life as a pro-life advocate trying to save lives. >> reporter: as for that meeting, some demanded an apology, not just to african-americans but mexicans. whether trump will acquiesce is unlikely and others said they were surprised how little he talked guys and how much his advisers ended up answering the questions for him. >> all right. >> surprising. >> katy, thanks very much. let's bring in dr. ben carson who joins us live from west palm beach, florida. dr. carson, good to see you.

>> thank you, it's a pleasure. >> let the me start by talking about polling in the last four to six weeks you've gone from number one in iowa to number three, and your decline seems to coincide with some very troubling world events that have been taking place, the syrian refugee crisis, the downing of the russian jet, the downing of the russian military plane and, of course, the paris attacks. one republican commentator called the paris attacks a commander in chief moment. is it a coincidence that your numbers are going down as americans are coming to terms with moments like that? >> well, you know, poll numbers will go up and down, you know. it's a marathon. it's not a sprint, and, you know, it's not about me, quite frankly. the american people have the privilege of selecting their president, and over the course of time they'll evaluate what each one of us has to say and see how it fits with their

i think there's plenty of time to make the appropriate arguments. >> well, chris christie, the governor of new jersey, picked up a key endorsement over the weekend from "the new hampshire union leader" and in the endorsement they cited his experience as a prosecutor and governor and said he was right for these dangerous times and also wrote, quote, we don't need as president some well-meaning person from the private sector who has no public experience. you or donald trump or miss fiorina. how do you combat that perception? >> i would simply say that our system was really designed for the citizen statesman and not for the career politician. i know the career politicians wanted to believe that they are the only ones who have the ability to solve our problems, but it's not true, and i believe that the ability to assess a situation quickly and to utilize the correct people and the correct resources with wisdom is much better than many, many

and i know many people in washington who have been there for decades, and i'm not sure that they could solve our problems. >> let me ask you about this. you just got back from jordan and visited a syrian refugee camp there. you had a chance to talk face to face with some of the refugees, look them in their eyes and hear their stories. would you be comfortable allowing any of the people you spoke to personally into this country as refugees to escape the war in their home country? >> well, honestly, i don't think that's the issue. you know, the issue is if we bring in tens of thousands of refugees into this country, have we solved the problem? the answer to that is no. why do things that just make some people feel good and say that we've done something when in fact it's an inadequate solution. >> you said you want to bar them from coming to the country. you've spoken to some of them

do you have the same opinion of that group of people now, or have you changed your policy at all? >> well, first of all, you say that i say i want to bar them from coming to this country so i don't accept that premise. what i have said is that bringing them into this country does not solve the problem and it exposes us to danger. you know, isis has already said if we bring tens of thousands of people here, they will infiltrate them with their people, and we already have good solutions. the jordanians are very generous people. they have camps and they have places that work very well. they have camps and places that work well. people are not giving enough money and the hospital is not being utilized. why not take advantage of the things that are already in place before we start trying to come

>> they are still refugee camps. just because they are schools and refugee camps, doesn't make them homes. a lot of people have moved through jordan and they want to come here, although they prefer to stay or go back to syria. these camps are not a place where they can make their future. >> and that's something that we can work on, you know. but many of them tell me. i asked them specifically what would you like to happen. two questions. what would you like to happen and what can the united states do? and the answers i got were pretty consistent. they would like to go back home to syria, number one and what can nations like the united states do, support the efforts of places like jordan and others that might offer them a safe place to inhabit until such time as they can return home. >> dr. ben carson joining us this morning from florida. doctor, i appreciate your time.

>> thank you. >> another big issue, planned parenthood and that issue in colorado. we are learning more about the victims from last week's tragic incident. on monday the suspect was in court and we're learning more about the suspect. nbc's miguel almaguer is here with more. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. robert dear is being yelled in held in the county jail without bond and it's the first time he faced the judge saying very little on closed circuit television. >> the charge is murder in the >> reporter: a judge advises robert dear of his rights, the reaction. >> any question about the rights, sir? >> no questions. >> reporter: representing dear is public defender dan king, one of the attorneys for james holmes, convicted of killing 12

remember? >> we've got shots coming out of planned parent hood. >> reporter: police say dear opened fire outside a planned parenthood clinic on friday and continued inside the clinic leaving three dead. on monday a procession outside the coroner's office for garrett swasey, a police officer killed while responding to the scene. another victim, iraq war veteran ke'arre stewart. a fellow veteran and friend describing stewart as a hero. >> there are domestic terrorists here, the same kind of terrorists we would face on the battlefield, somebody with blatant disregard for life. >> reporter: jennifer markovsky's husband confirming the mother of two was at the clinic to support a friend when she was killed, saying in a statement to nbc news she was a very caring and compassionate person and patient and understanding parent. meanwhile, increased security presence at planned parenthood locations across the country, on alert after the latest in a series of recent attacks on their clinics. >> we'll be looking at the

there's anything more that we could learn from this to ensure that women can access care across the country without fear. >> reporter: the district attorney will file charges in eight days when robert dear is charged with murder. the minimum sentence will be life in prison, the maximum, the death penalty. savannah. >> miguel almaguer, thank you. millions of people in this country, especially the midwest, are dealing with very dangerous travel conditions because of a big storm. dylan is in for al this morning. what have you got? >> the midwest and plains have been dealing with this for quite some time. this you seen this picture, a 25-mile-per-hour sign that at one point was frozen and started to warm up just enough. do you add them together, does that turn into 50 miles per hour? >> tell that to the police officer. >> or the judge. >> i don't think he'll buy that one. those are the types of conditions we've been dealing with. we also had some snow through

with about 8 inches. south dakota saw its second major snow storm was up to 6 inches and the blowing snow reduced visibility and cars were skidding off the roads. roads very dangerous and slippery and now we're seeing the whole storm system wind down, but next area will be northeastern minnesota where we'll see some of our heavier snow. up near duluth where the snow is coming down and banding near north and south dakota where we'll still see minor accumulations. winter storm warnings are in effect through eastern and central south dakota for potential of the blowing snow and this area of low pressure will continue to move to the north and east. heaviest snowfall this morning and as the snow winds down we'll start to see the winds begin to increase. they could gust up to nearly 40 miles per hour and that could create blowing snow. isolated amounts up to 4 to 6 inches and for the most part the heaviest snowfall accumulations are just about over and tack on 1 to 3 inches, just enough to make everything slippery. that's a look at the weather across the country.

in just 30 seconds. >> and that's your latest forecast. >> winter is really getting going out in the midwest. we should send someone out in the thick of it. >> if only there were someone. >> right, that's you. >> all right, dylan, thank you. coming up, the first photo of oscar pistorius inside his house under arrest, house arrest there, as he awaits the judge's decision that could send him back to prison. we're live in south africa. >> and salt shaming, the sodium warnings appearing on restaurant menus starting today, but will they help you make better choices, but, first, this is

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7:30 now on a tuesday morning. the 1st of december, 2015. 25 days till christmas. we're going to help ring in the season tomorrow night when we light that tree in the background there, the rockefeller center christmas tree. big monitors for, i don't know, several hundred, several hundred thousand people who will cram this area. >> the jumbotron, that's exciting. >> look forward to that every year. it happens tomorrow night. >> that's right. back inside studio 1a a look at stories making headlines today. the chicago police officer charged with murder in the shooting of a black teenager is free on bond today.

cook county jail last night and did not speak to reporters. posted 10% of his $1.5 million bond jirkt final report on last year's deadly crash of an air asia flight into the java sea was released overnight. investigators say the problem began with a faulty rudder control system and the pilot's subs kwentd response caused the plane to stall. and lawyers for boston marathon bomber dzhokhar tsarnaev headed to court today. they will ask the judge to grant him a new trial. he was sentenced to death back in june and is being held in a super max prison in colorado. also this morning, we're getting a first look inside oscar pistorius' house arrest as he awaits a highly anticipated court decision tied to his case. today, national investigative correspondent jeff rossen is in johannesburg for us this morning. jeff, good morning to you. >> reporter: hey, savannah, good morning to you. right now oscar pistorius is holed up inside his uncle's mansion in south africa on house arrest. he was released from prison, you

october, and he's been keeping a pretty low profile, but now our first look at pistorius since his release. want to show you this photo tweeted out by a relative. oscar celebrating his 29th birthday having a party at house with family and friends. we're blurring out kids' faces, as you can see, but look at pistorius himself, smiling, seems happy, certainly a far cry from those days in court when he was hysterically crying. important to note here, since he's on house arrest he really can't leave his uncle's compound unless he's going to places like church or community service so we have other photos for you here, a rare sighting outside. pistorius reporting for that community service, sunglasses on wearing a black hat and a white t-shirt carrying that backpack. he is looking very thin here. i saw him every day during the trial, look at these photos, no question about it, lost some weight since then and this is a huge week for him make or break

only convicted of involuntary manslaughter for shooting and killing his girlfriend revaeva steenkamp steenkamp. the appeals court took the case and heard the case, and we're told the ruling is imminent. it will likely happen this week. if the judges convict him of murder pistorius could be plucked from his uncle's home and sent back to prison and the minimum sentence for murder in south africa 15 years. our nbc news team is in place here in south africa. we'll bring you that ruling when it happens. >> all right, jeff rossen, thank you very much. want to turn now to oklahoma where the university president is getting a lot of attention for a surprising blog post that he aimed at students. his message to today's youth grow up and stop being so self-absorbed and narcissistic. here's nbc's kerry sanders. >> be quiet! >> reporter: political correctness on college campuses

loudly exploded on to the national stage. >> you should not sleep at night. you're disgusting. >> reporter: this confrontation at yale was over the issue of pc halloween costumes. at university of missouri protests over perceived systematic racism forced the resignations of the school's president and chancellor, a reporter trying to cover one event was not welcome. >> you need to get out. >> i actually don't. >> all right. hey who wants to help me get this reporter out of here! >> reporter: many now seeing the growing lack of reasoned discussion on college campuses as a disturbing trend. this blog post by the president of oklahoma weslayan university titled this is not a day care, it's a university, hit a nerve. it's sharply critical of kids who are self-absorbed and narcissistic. any time their feelings are hurt, they are the victims. >> what we really have today is a demand that you must be one of

submit and if you don't we will you and we wi >> reporter: president obama ll recently told students they should not be protected from different points of view. >> i've heard some college campuses where they don't want to have a guest speaker who, you know, is too conservative. i've got to tell you, i don't agree with that either. >> reporter: comedians jerry seinfeld and chris rock and bill maher won't play college campuses because today's politically correct students cannot take a joke, even about halloween costumes. >> halloween is supposed to be politically incorrect. that's why we say trick or treat instead of placate and coddle. >> reporter: but for many political correctness on campus these days is no laughing matter. for "today," kerry sanders, nbc news, miami. >> we saw this online, his blog, and it just got more and more attention and more and more comments throughout the day. >> well, the headlights, it's a

it's an interesting debate. good one to have on college campuses everywhere. >> all right. let's get a check of the weather from dylan who is in for al. >> and we do have a lot of rain through the eastern parts of the country today, and it's going to rain through tomorrow, too. we've got our heaviest rain right now falling through eastern tennessee, eastern kentucky and this will move through the appalachians as we go through the day today, increasing in intensity at times. in the northeast it should be scattered showers and shouldn't accumulate all that much but flood watches in effect two chattanooga and western north and south carolina, atlanta included in the flood watch, too. as we go through the day, the whole system will continue to slide to the south and east. here you see through the night the heaviest rain is down across the southeast where there's a subtropical jet that pumps into the moisture. in the northeast though, we're not looking at widespread heavier rain, just spotty showers and lots of clouds around, and we're also looking for the potential this morning of some freezing rain because it is a little bit colder, especially through central and northern new england. this is where we're looking at our highest rainfall amounts.

3 inches of rain and could see another 3 in northern georgia and western carolina through the day today, even through the early part of wednesday. we also have that snow moving into northeastern minnesota though it's winding down and the winds will start to get gusty on back side that have system. that's a look at weather across the country. now here's a peek out your that's your latest forecast. >> all right, dylan, thank you very much. coming up, a new concern over those popular hoverboards, one of the holiday's hottest gifts and the family now claiming their board exploded

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label, you know that that item has more than the total amount of sodium that you should consume in a single day. >> reporter: it's become known as salt-shaming rule, what the city calls an attempt to give more transparency to consumers for items that exseed 2,300 milligrams or about a teaspoon of sewedup. as for the worst offenders, it might not be who you think with some chain restaurants racking up more shakers more than fast food places. chipotle's chicken burrito with the usual toppings has over 2,400 milligrams of sodium. subway's spicy italian sandwich has almost 3,000 milligrams. while panera is now changing the amount of salt in their new york city locations, take the bacon turkey bravo which previously had 2,830 milligrams of sodium. now just 2,090, a 740 milligram decrease. the applebee's in new york starting putting salt warnings on its menus earlier last month. >> i think it's important that

make the right decisions. >> the national restaurant association says they plan to file a lawsuit against the new york requirement saying it, quote, goes too fa-far too fast. >> it puts a certain number of restaurant in a competitive disadvantage. they are saying they are going after large business owners and large franchises, but most of the restaurants that are related to a franchise in new york are franchisees, small business owners. >> while new york city is already known for banning trans fat from restaurant meals and forcing chain eateries to post calorie counts on menus, research on how much these changes impact consumers is mixed. >> when you've already walked into aburg tinge wherever you are and you see this kind of warning and you hopefully already know that what you're getting is somewhat unhealthy, i don't know if a salt label is going to deter anyone. >> well, the american heart association recommends that americans corn sume less than 1,500 milligrams of sodium. that by the way, is per day. bottom line.

that americans tend to consume too much salt, and a lot of that happens at restaurants and when we're eating position sesed food. >> do you eat a lot of salt? >> yeah. >> a lot. >> a lot. >> too much. >> everybody here take a salt shaker on vacation with them? >> just one person i can think of. >> they serve the fries with no salt and i need to bring salt. >> you go to places on vacation where they don't have salt. >> like by the pool, and they serve you french fries. >> do you check your salt shaker or carry it on? >> it's a carry-on item just in case the plane food is not enough. >> learning a lot but, dyl. coming up, how would you like to live next to this? the story behind the building that will not stop humming. all right. up next, the trouble that millions of cyber monday shoppers had checking out. we'll explain so what's your news? i got a job!

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your hand if you did some cyber monday shopping. >> like confession time. >> we can't see them. >> a good one. >> i did a little bit. if you did, you may investigation appearanced a couple of problems. go over to sheinelle in the original room. what happened? >> good morning. shoppers have had all year long to gear up for cyber monday. this year it's actually the tenth anniversary of the day for online deals, but due to high traffic, many weren't able to get to the checkout with their virtual cart. social media lit up with images of website outages like this one from target saying, quote, please hold tight. others saw this from the retailer. there's a line for this item. target wasn't the only site to

and h & m were both down for a period of time and neiman marcus, footlocker and victoria's secret all had outages. a target spokesperson clarified that their side never actually crashed, but it was intentionally slowed down. here's their quote. as we experience spikes in traffic, our systems place guests in a queue and prompt them to access the site later. we apologize to guests for the delay. before 10:00 in the morning target websites had reached volumes twice as high that were the busiest ever. seems like when you're online you can still be in line. people weren't expecting that. >> and how to stop from overspend overspending during the holidays? the emotional roller coaster, is cyber monday, don't overspend.

here she is right here. before it was honey in these honey nut cheerios, it was honey being collected. and honey getting made. and honey that was

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it's 8:00 on "today." coming up, to screen or not to screen? new information that has some asking if those whole body skin cancer checks are unnecessary. what you need to know. plus, the secret to saving. how to stop overspending this holiday season, including the four letters you need to avoid. baby, i'm perfect >> and from stand-up to pinup, comedian aim schumer on how she became a model with a message. >> women that are part of calendar this year are just some of the most inspiring, powerful,

>> inside the calendar girl change decades in the making, today, tuesday, december 1st, 2015. >> happy holidays! >> hi, mom, hi dad, back in iowa. >> good morning, albuquerque, new mexico. >> hi, y'all, we're here from brandon, mississippi. >> hello to all our friends in omaha, nebraska. >> from new york city. >> happy 60th birthday, mom! >> and good morning, everybody. welcome back to "today." the 1st of december, 2015. it's tuesday, not just any tuesday. it is giving tuesday out here on our plaza. >> thank you. >> that's right. and look who is here joining us. that is katie holmes collecting new and unwrapped toys for our holiday toy drive.

a second. this is our 22nd annual toy drive. >> just getting started. hoping to have a good one this year. find out more about it if you go to today.com. and coming up, we'll set the holiday mood with a live performance by leann rimes, our official christmas song today is christmas. >> try to get it out of your head after we jingle and jim angel our way through that. first, let's say hello to miss katie holmes. >> doing elf duet they morning. >> good to see you. >> you're here not just with a glad bag and a message of getting people out and giving today. >> it's giving tuesday, a wonderful project that glad started. you can go to glad.com and get your yellow bags and get out there and give today to everyone in need. >> you know, we talk about this, katie, a lot. we have kids and we're always trying to communicate the spirit of giving. at home you have a daughter. how do you work it out in your household?

very generous and very sensitive, and so she's always, you know, mom, let's give this to -- let's give my old toys to people who need it so we're -- we're always doing that. >> you're fortunate that way. >> yeah, yeah. >> what are your big plans for the holidays, any traditions that you do every year? >> aside from today i'll be giving all day, family. >> yeah. >> air lot of family time. >> and you've been busy acting. what's next for you? i know you're hitting the big screen soon. >> thank you. i have a move called "touched with fire" coming out in fire and i'll "the kennedys" again this spring. >> great. nice having you here. i know a lot of people are happy to see you on the plaza. will you come back and see us soon. >> absolutely. >> good to have you here, katie. thanks so much. let's go inside and get check of the top stories with tamron who is in for natalie. >> president obama's eslating the fight against terror by creating a new position to deal

he's appointing robert malley, a national security council official, who helped negotiate the nuclear deal with iraq. the president is speaking today about global cooperation against isis while wrapping up the world climate change talks in paris. he has called efforts to save the planet a rejection of those who would seek to tear us down. breaking overnight. a chaotic scene in atlanta after gunfire erupts outside a downtown hotel. [ gunfire ] police say one person is dead after a brief chase that ended with an officer-involved shooting t. it started when police tried to pull over a jeep going the wrong way and the jeep eventually slammed into a hotel shuttle pass. the driver surrendered and the passenger ran away. there was an exchange of gun fireworks and the passenger was killed. police say three weapons were recovered at that scene. nearly 4 million people will

this year, making it the most common cancer in the united states, but now a government panel of doctors is updating their recommendation saying full-body visual skin checks may not be helpful. nbc news medical contributor dr. natalie azar is here with us to tell us what you need to know. good morning, good to see you. >> hi, good morning, tamron. >> obviously this will be confusing to people. so many of us have gone to the dermatologists to get full body scan yearly. what's the deal here? >> the message is in the wording. what the statement is saying there's insufficient evidence to weigh the benefits of the benefit and harm versus screening. this is not a recommendation for or against the screening. they are simply saying that the available evidence out there in the literature, we real can't say whether or not doing the skin check is changing the outcome of people. meaning is it actually decreasing mortality. they claim the data is just not there. i want to echo though the sentiment from the american academy of dermatology and a few

strongly endorse early treatment and diagnosis because that's the best way to beat skin cancer, and the way you can do that really importantly is also to do self-checks, to look and see if moles are changing. are they itching? are they bleeding? certainly the people who need to be screened are the people who have a personal history of an atypical mole or a history of cancer, a family history of cancer and certainly people who have a typical mole need to get screened. please discuss with your physician whether or not you're a candidate for screening. >> thank you very much for clearing that up. now to a story that's sparked outrage across the country and the world. a woman who posted a picture of her dog with its mouth taped shut now faces charges in north carolina. the image was posted on friday. within 24 hours that post was shared hundreds of thousands of times from as war away as australia. police charged 45-year-old cat rin lemaskey whose facebook page listed her as katie brown with cruelty to animals.

the home after they found it was generally well cared for. a louisiana mom claims that one of the season's hottest gifts destroyed her family's home. jessica horn says her son was so excited she let him try his new hover board as soon as it arrived from amazon, but she says he used only once and then when he plugged it in to recharge it sparks shot out and set the room on fire. the consumer product safety commission says there have been no reported injuries related to hover board fires. so, that's pretty frightening. >> are you sure it was the hover board? >> i think they will probably look into that. >> i think they have to look into that. >> tamron looking for an excuse not to get one. >> look what happened. >> tamron, thank you very much. appreciate that. for decades the pirelli pinup girls have made a statement. the tire company's annual calendar is known for its edgy scantily clad models. >> this year it's a little bit different.

with more on that. good morning. >> amy schumer tweeted thought photo from the calendar and that's serena williams there. the photo tweeted on monday they are two of the women featured in the 2016 calendar, women well known for their many accomplishments but not necessarily their photo shoot. it's a switch pirelli says is the brainchild of celebrated photographer annie leibowitz. they are trailblazers, stars in their field. >> women that are part of the calendar this year are just some of the most inspiring, powerful, unapologetic women alive. >> reporter: capturing their strength was an assignment renowned photographer annie leibowitz embraced. >> just knew it was going to be completely different. >> reporter: pirelli calendar launched in 1964 is known for its often risque shots. leibowitz shot the cal as it's known in 2000 with a much different focus.

are turning a new page. >> i thought that women -- the women should look good and strong, and it should be simple. >> reporter: shot in black and white the photographs show quite simply success. businesswoman melody hobson, tennis champ serena williams, yoko owno, "selma" director ava dubernay and writer and leader fran leibowitz. >> this is taking a look at real women who are work and making a difference in the world. >> i love that they are embracing the moment we're in, a very powerful moment for women around the world. >> amy schumer who graced the month of december tweeted this photo on monday with the capture beautiful, gross, strong, thin, fat, pretty, ugly, sexy, disgusting, flawless woman. thank you, annie leibowitz. powerful words from a woman who earlier this year revealed her

>> it's been a struggle for me my whole life. sometimes i would just want to kind of throw in the towel and be i'm not going to go do standup tonight. >> reporter: after her photo shoot for the calendar a much different view. >> i felt i looked more beautiful than i've ever felt in my life, and i felt like it looked like me. >> reporter: it's a picture body image experts applaud. >> we don't want to just see one type of woman represented and say that is what beautiful is. we want to see the widest definition of beauty. >> having this opportunity to take this space and make it extraordinary and really herald who we are as women, it was really great. >> so we should point out calendar, you can't buy it. it's become this very exclusive thing why it's called the cal and why it gets handed out. launched last night in london and already a very positive

picture from amy schumer. >> how do you get the calendar? >> you've got to know somebody who knows somebody. >> okay. >> matt? >> get a calendar with four tires. i have 45 tires at home. >> erica, thank you. coming up next, we'll reveal the top baby names of 2015. plus, psy took over the world with "gangnum style." i remember doing it one time. wait until we show you his newest video. >> and holiday season savings, the surprising places you're spending the most money and how to stop those bad habits, but, first, these messages. look at you, saving money on your medicare part d prescriptions. at walgreens, we call that "carpe med diem." that's almost latin for "seize the day to get more out of life and medicare part d." from one-dollar copays on select plans... ...to now reward points on all prescriptions,

so drop by and seize the savings! walgreens. at the corner of happy and healthy. the holidays bring many challenges to the feet. by day they must stay warm. but by night, beautiful, smoother and ready to impress the other party animals.

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when you can give him so much more? johnson's. so much more earning unlimited cash back on purchases. that's a win. but imagine earning it twice. you can with the citi double cash card. it lets you earn cash back twice. once when you buy and again as you pay. it's cash back then cash back again. and that's a cash back win-win. the citi double cash card. the only card that lets you earncash back twice on everypurchase with 1% when you buy and 1% as you pay. with two ways to earn, it makes a lot of other cards seem one-sided. back now. 8:14. let's trend. >> this is one of my favorite trending lists, top baby names of the year. ready, everybody. this comes from the folks at babycenter.com. the names at top of the list, not a surprise. once again for boys, jackson is

this is the third year in a row. sophia wins among girls. this is the sixth straight time for that. >> wow. >> there are some surprising trends. get this. instagram is influencing newspapers. more parents are naming their kids after filters like lux. >> really. >> up 75%. >> valencia, 26%. >> the royals are always popular. the name royalty jumped 90%. >> chris brown named his kid royalty i think. popular. >> duchess, always have to do an ego check, matthew, i'm sorry, you're down 15%. dylan for girls, on the rise, my friend. list. tamron and sheinelle. >> that's a zero. >> our names are --

>> my mom is sheila and my dad is darnel. >> good, because lux isn't a made-up name. >> lux is like my parents had their first date in cameron, texas, so that's where tamron came from. >> thank god they weren't in hobo, texas. >> i think it's because of you. >> you're a trend setter. >> that's very cool. >> any reason to pick up a picture of vale. >> let's go on, you bad at giving gifts? >> i feel like i am. >> you give nice gifts. if you know someone who is, "the wall street journal" analyzed several studies to come up with a gift-giving tips for this year. first, forget stocking stuffers. people tended to appreciate gifts less when they were bundled were smaller items. >> interesting. >> next, you absolutely should give to charity, but you may be overestimating how much people appreciate a donation made in their names. some say they would prefer a simple travel mug.

just not in other people's names. and finally be careful what you give the men in your life. one study found that when men didn't like a gift they started to view a relationship negatively, but for women it was the opposite. >> wow. >> a gift good or bad did not affect them. this is not right. this is not correct. >> opposite day? >> not correct. >> you would disagree with that. i feel like for women gifts are often more emotionally significant and braided with meaning and men are like, oh, whatever. >> a thoughtful note in a card. >> if you get a bad gift, do you see a relationship differently? >> i don't know. >> why would you think -- why would you think i like this. >> you tonight know me. you tonight know me. the gift saul wrong. >> don't send your tweets to me. we all agree. next we know what it's like to live in a noise building.

take a look. >> i want to say ohm. the architect has apologized for that noise. apparently it's caused by winds rushing over the building's glass blades and it makes that sound when it's windy. >> i love it sitting here in the studio. >> would you want to hear that all the time? >> no. it sounds like "star wars." they can say this is the buildup to darth saider. >> sounds like the tibetan bowl kind of. >> by the way, you live next door to it. >> the architect lives in the top floor of the building. >> really. >> for 50% off i'd deal with it. >> exactly. new to gwen stefani's emotional performance on "the voice" and michael buble's holiday gift for advance. sheinelle, "pop start." >> gwen stefani is winning rave reviews after her emotional performance monday night on "the voice." i used to love you

i won't, i won't, i don't know why i used to love you i don't, i don't, i don't >> gwen singing "us aed to love you" written after her split from gavin rossdale. blake told "access hollywood" he was proud of gwen for performing the song. man who gave us the massive hit known as "gangnam style," you remember psy. "gangnam style" now has more than 2 billion views, so what will psy do for an encore. >> reporter: here's the new song he just dropped called "daddy." hey, where did you get that body from where did you get that body from i got it from my daddy i got it from my daddy >> listen. >> i am locking myself in a room right now. >> i'm instantly obsessed with it. >> here's the deal. the video went up overnight. >> can't wait to see matt do that dance. >> just get ready because it's going to happen.

he has a hard time topping it but he's trying. bod? i get it from my daddy. anyway. >> special treat for you this morning. michael special. here on nbc. it's called christmas in hollywood. and guess who is here this morning? good morning to you! >> good morning. >> i'm so in love with you in a healthy way. >> happy holidays. >> congratulations! >> i was hiding behind the television. this is the second time -- once oprah had me hide in a bathroom for a few hours. >> well, how are you feeling going into this? do you feel pressure to top yourself or excited to do it again? >> no, i'm excited. it's a blast. with what's going on in the world right now, not to get down, i think it's nice to have a chance to take people on an escape. and this holiday season, we need it. >> the best tradition of the specials i watched -- you're much younger than i am, but peri combo and bob home and bing crosby and johnny cash used to do specials.

>> i aware of the history that much, but the music is obviously something important to me. being a new dad and having a kid that can't wait for santa claus, it's brought even a bigger joy into it for me. as a parent, it sort of just gives a new sense of how great the holiday can be. >> you've got the little one and another little one on the way. >> yes, i do, yes. >> we look forward to it. you can catch michael bu buble's christmas in holiday.

>> that's and that's your latest forecast. matt? >> all right, dylan, thank you very much. this week on today's hassle-free holiday season savings, we're bringing tips to help you curb your bad spending habits. the first steps, admitting you have a spending problem and identifying why you're overspending and where your money is going. >> if this sounds a little too familiar, and this looks a little too familiar, it may be time for a spending reality check. we asked our viewers to come clean about reasons they overspend. and the response was overwhelming. there were this and that spenders. >> $78.28 at outback steakhouse. a student loan payment for $28.74. something from rite aid for $7.99. >> technology gurus. >> i always seem to need and want to have the latest technological gadget.

there is another ipod. there is a third ipod never opened. there is a digital camera, never opened. >> and a shopoholic or two. >> retail therapy is something i have turned to in the past to feel better. >> i have a shopping problem. here are my receipts from shopping. i alphabetize them in catalog folders, as you can see, they're a mess. so while retail therapy may not do your bank account any favors, it's not the biggest weight on your wallet. according to a recent bank survey, restaurants were the top culprit in american overspending. followed by coffee dates or lunches. and you guessed it, shopping. in fact, half of all those surveyed admitted to indulging on impulse purchases regularly. the age group most likely to shop until they drop, millennials. so even though there is a time and place for this -- >> clothes. treat yourself. fragrances. treat yourself. massages. treat yourself. fine leather goods. >> treat yourself.

spending enthusiasm and give your bank account a breather before the holidays. the big question now, how do you kick the overspending habit? that's a good question. retailers clamoring for your money. what is the secret? jean chatzky is today's financial editor. nice to see you. >> nice to see you. >> you have the aspirational spenders, the life happens spenders. they have things that come up. you've got tips for the people who spend just because. let's start. >> first tip, road blocks. you need things in your way so that you think about it before you spend. so don't save your credit card info online. make yourself type it in every single time. wrap a reminder around your credit card. if you want to go to hawaii, wrap a picture of that beach so you think about it. tell somebody what you're trying to do. your buddy, your wife. >> you need help. >> yeah. help me. don't let me spend. and i'm subscribed from the e-mails and get out those apps. yesterday we said get on them so you can find the sales. today get off. >> when we talk to people about

have a lot of different reaches. what are the biggest culprits? >> food. top of the list, all of the time. one in three people spends $2,600 a year they don't need to be spending just at the grocery store. so if you're one of those people, make sure you shop your pantry before you go to the store. and just -- chew gum while in the store so you get rid of those smells. listen to your own music. their music slows you down. >> swipe for here. i want to look at a couple other tips you have here. what's the one in, one out rule? >> before you buy that next pair of pants, that next ipod, get rid of one. sell it. use the money to fund that new purchase. also, if you know you've got one thing that is just so high on your list that you have to have it, give yourself $20 a week, $50 a week, whatever makes sense to -- and make a no-cost plan so that you go for a run instead of going shopping if you feel like you're getting emotional. >> keep that 30-day list. good tips to avoid overspending

jean, as always, thanks. >> thanks.

and coming up we're back now 8:30 on a tuesday morning. you know what. it's the 1st day of december. 25 days until christmas. >> good morning. >> and a little rain on the plaza this morning. but look things are brightening up with leann rimes and she is here to sing some holiday music for us. nice to have her here.

>> and we know kids love getting presents but how do you get them to be generous, grateful, and understand the true spirit of giving. we'll have some tips for parents who are facing this holiday season and hoping to raise some kind kids. >> and beth sterns is here with a look at the next chapter in the story of yoda, no, not that one. >> this is an animal lover through and through. we'll talk to beth in a little while. first, let's go to dylan with a special guest. >> well, guys, it is the season of giving. it is giving tuesday, and i am joined by arguably one of the busiest men in show business, nick cannon is here. >> yes. >> and you're talking a giving spree with the salvation army. what is that all about? >> absolutely. if you go to redkettlereason.org. we've been doing, it giving our

giving back and now we have the top five finalists that are actually getting ready for a big shopping spree for kids all over for the salvation army to have toys under the holiday tree >> the salvation army does so much to help people in need. >> yes. >> how can people at home help out with this whole thing? >> obviously you go to redkettlereason.org and out shopping see the red kettles donate because it will make somebody's holiday better. >> and you'll join us in the 9:00 hour? >> i will. i will be here. >> we'll talk all the things that you have going on. >> outstanding. >> awesome. >> thank you so much. as for the weather across the country, today it is going to be a little bit rainy in the northeast and heavier rain down across the southeast. snow is likely through the upper midwest, especially minnesota where we could have another 4 to 6 inches of snow. windy behind the system. rain up and down the east coast, heavy at times, up to 3 inches of rain is possible, and tomorrow night it's christmas in rockefeller center. it's not going to be the best night, but don't let that stop you.

season with the tree lighting here in rockefeller center. rain is likely. temperature about 56 degrees, but the rain and the clouds keeps temperatures in the mid-30s so it's not going to snow unless you want >> and that's your latest forecast.

and now to today's parenting scene. it's easy to get wrapped up in the presents this time of year, but parents also want kids to learn about the gift of giving. how do we raise kind kids. here's what the parenting team to say? any time we catch someone doing something kind we put some coins into the jar. once the jar is full, you decide as a family where all this money is going to go. >> we talk about being kind. we often talk about our buckets that are right here, right? >> yeah in, our hearts. >> and what does it mean when you fill up the bucket? >> it makes people happy. >> this year we went shopping as a family to buy a thanksgiving meal for a local homeless shelter. our boys were busy counting the produce and putting it in the cart, the canned goods and box goods and empowers them that they can make a difference. >> and we're joined now by dana kaplan, author of "the gratitude diaries." good morning. >> good morning. >> seems like toys the perfect time to have the conversation with your kid and kind of the

often be focused on gift getting, not gift giving. >> right, and one of the things that's so important is indeed for kids to feel grateful in their own lives because when they appreciate what they have, that's the way they can start to want to be giving and kind to other people, too. >> you've got these three steps centered on how to get your kids feeling and talking about gratitude. number one is do just, that talk about what you're thankful for. >> talk to your kids about it. we're all so good about complaining, about what went wrong. how about if at dinnertime someone says something that went right in the day and before bed, have the child, even the smallest one say what happened that day that they were grateful for. make it part of every day. stop to appreciate a pretty snowfall and just make appreciation part of their lives. >> another tip you give is to give kids a bigger view. what do you mean by that? >> whether kids know what they see in their own lives, they know mom and dad give them food and a home. not such a big leap to assume mom and dad are also supposed to

so let me see a bigger world, let them know there are people out there not as lucky as they are. >> and i like your final tip, leading by exam. appreciate your kid. >> to raise grateful kids be grateful for our kid. we love our kid. how often do we tell them we appreciate how terrific we are. we can tell them what her doing wrong. just tell them what they are doing right and say, boy, i'm so grateful to be your mom. >> i feel like this conversation we're kind of talking about the little ones and we're talking about the tweens and the teens, does this change? do you give a little different advice for that generation? >> i think kids who grow up with gratitude keep that, but, sure. teenagers are a little bit different because sometimes they want to be able to do things themselves so they are grateful for what their parents can do, and they are a little bit resentful. one young woman i spoke to for my book said, you know, guilt outweighs the gratitude. would i rather be able to be more independent so i think as parents realize that, they can be a little bit more generous with their teenagers and no teenager every became more

ungrateful. >> that doesn't work. you say use social media, too. explain. >> right. when your kids do something great, when the family decides to donate and when your kids volunteer, brag about it and use social media for a positive -- gratitude and giving are contagious so tlaet be an example for them and other people too. >> have a nice ripple effect. janice kaplan, thanks so much. thanks to all of our "today" parenting team and join that conversation at today.com/parentingteam. let's send it over to sheinelle. >> thank you. in the spirit of giving tuesday our sponsor johnson's is partnering with save the children, an organization dedicated to helping kids reach their full potential. here's the deal. you can give back by simply uploading a baby photo to a donate a photo app using the the #somuchmore, you, one of your kids, any child in your life and for every photo shared johnson's will donated $3 to provide resources for early childhood development, reaching

look at these, a few of our own baby photos for inspiration. here's little matt and savannah. we have baby dylan and tamron, and here i am. these are a lot of fun and now we want to see our pictures so head to today.com for more information on how to take part. matt, you were a cute baby. >> all right. sheinelle. thank you very much. up next, beth stern on her love of kittens and a brand new book "yoda is back." we'll find out what's happening

"today" on nbc. if you're doing everything rightbut find it harder and harderto get by, you're not alone. while our people worklonger hours for lower wages, almost all new income goes to the top 1%. my plan -- make wall street banks and the ultrarich pay their fair share of taxes,

ensure equal pay for women. i'm bernie sanders. i approve this message because together, we can make a political revolution and create an economyand democracy that works for all and not just the powerful few. all right. we're back now. 8:40 with actress, model and animal right activist beth stern and her newest children's book is "yoda gets a buddy" based on her and her husband's real life

>> i'm not an actress, by the way. >> don't ever hire me. >> who are your friends here? >> current fosters. we have 18 fosters in our house right now, plus our six resident cats. yes, i've turned crazy, but i've found them all homes already. >> i don't know crazy is in the eye of the beholder. spent a lot of time at your home with you and howard. practice what you preach would be the way i put it. >> thank you. >> and you're very good at this because when people come to your house you're very smart, a room dedicated to these kittens. never take guests in there until late in the evening. >> when everybody is drunk. >> because you know you would never get them out of there if you put them in there early in the evening. where did this start for you? >> growing up my family was all about animals. we've rescued animals our entire lives. cats i feel need help. work at the shelter on a regular basis. i feel like there's so many cats in shelters.

start doing this and make cats cool. >> you found a way to take this passion, and it is a true passion, and also use it to raise money and also entertain this children's book now, this new yoda book. >> yeah. >> is the follow-up to the last one. >> right. >> and we talked about that here on the show. what's happening to yoda now. >> yoda, the story of our cats and kitten, yoda was in heart failure miraculously cured for his love and a true merial in the foster room. because i'm in the foster room day in and day out and miracles happen. we had a foster who had both of his eyes removed due to a severe infection and you met him. howard named him buddy. in the foster room for a lot longer than the other kittens because he needed to heal. kittens came in and bullying going on and buddy accepted the one kitten that looked kind of funny. he had a big wound so i think he smelled kind of funny in reality

people saw cool buddy loving the other kittens and it was a story i had to share with children. >> it's messages and lessons you can move on to humans as well, animals. i should also mention that all the proceeds go to a great cause. >> 100% goes to north shore animal league north america. >> i was thinking about you and howard, i know you both pretty well. you have a lot of differences. you're not the same in every way, but what i think makes you the same two the same is when you both get passionate about something, you go all in. >> yeah. >> you with animals and him with photography and parenting now. do you think that's what's behind the chemistry? >> you know what, yeah, maybe. something interesting to think about, but i have to say howard is all in with my work, my rescue work and my devotion to animals. he's in the foster room with me, matt, cleaning litter boxes and letting them crawl through his hair and he's right there and as devoted and allow this to happen in his house. >> and he just decided he's not

talent." >> the more time. >> for me and the kittens. >> you looking forward to that. >> i've been wanting this to be over for a while. it took up his entire summer and now i have my howard back. >> the new book is wonderful called "yoda gets a buddy" and it's out today. beth, thanks. happy holidays. >> happy holidays. and she will be up later with kathie lee and hoda and up next, leann rimes gets you in the spirit with a very special performance but first on this

on nbc. this is fun. grammy award winner leann rimes has penned a new holiday favorite "today is christmas" written especially for us, actually our first official christmas song.

time, the tuitele track on her brand new christmas album called "today is christmas." leann, take it a. today, today, today, today, today is christmas if we live it like, live it like, live it like, like every day is today, today, today, today, today it christmas if we live it like, live it like, live it like, like every day is why does it take the holidays to make us go, jingle jim angel we don't need the snow the twinkling lights will go, jingle, jim angel it only takes a little spark to ignite and you'll go, jingle, jim angel

hold on to them tight and go, jingle, jim angel today, today, today, today, today is christmas if we live it like, live it like, live it like, like every day is today, today, today, today, today is christmas if we live it like, live it like, live it like, like every someday down in your pocket and you got something to give that goes, jingle, jim angel down in your heart go make some room so you can forgive and go, jingle, jim angel we heard it said that an angel gets its wings when we go, jingle, jim angel what are we waiting for, let's

goes, jingle, jim angel today, today, today, today, today is christmas if we live it like, live it like, live it like, like every day is today is christmas today, today, today, today, today is christmas if we live it like, live it like, live it like, like every day is if we live it like, live it like, live it like, like every day is >> all right. leann rimes, thank you so much. we'll chat with leann in just a

"today" on nbc. it's time to rise and shine. at kum & go, we're doing morefor you to start your day right. like serving up a friendly "good morning" along with breakfast sandwiches & breakfast pizza, yes pizza, & donuts & muffins & coffee that are all made fresh & hot inour store's kitchens every day. kum & go. where & means more. this month, get any breakfast sandwich and we just heard her sing and now we'll chat with leann rimes. happy holidays. >> thank you. >> the we have all been not complaining, but we can't get it out of our ear. >> the jingle jim angel thing, almost annoying to me now because oh, my god, i'm the same way. walking around going, jingle, jim angel.

>> i find myself carrying this. >> can't sneak up on anybody. >> we were in your video. tell us about the matt lauer solo. >> oh, my gosh. >> you guys got him and pranked him a little bit. >> yes. >> the only one that had a solo. >> he did. >> and he's been practicing. >> he was so good once he found he got into it. you rocked it out. >> i was a little aggravated at first. >> wait a minute. i've got a solo and next to leann rimes, this is very cool. were there very awful outtakes in that video? >> no. >> nothing was awful. you were fantastic. >> that was fun. that really was. >> what did you do for thanksgiving? did you have some fun? >> we were in montana with eddie's boys and it was really nice. i mean, the kids are great and to be with family like that before i had to kind of just go into this craziness of touring and every. it was nice. >> you're starting a tour, was it next year?

we're starting next week. >> oh, yeah. >> this week, sorry. >> we're starting in washington actually and going all the way down the west coast. man, this is like sneaking up on me. oh, yeah. just a few days from now. we're touring the whole record and it's a whole christmas extravaganza. >> it will be fun. >> the family gets to go along. >> they will be there hopefully a couple of days. the kids are still in school so right up until christmas so hopefully they will come out for christmas. >> a pleasure to be part of your song. >> thanks for doing it and being such good sports. >> are you kidding. we've arrived. >> okay. >> i go up to people and say have you seen my music video? >> okay. >> did you see my solo? >> you can find her new album right now on itunes and at target. she will have more holiday music a little later on in the show. >> no one sings this great this early in the morning. >> oh, thank you. >> let's get some special birthday wishes. willard scott is on duty. hey, willard. >> we've got you, new york. got our birthdays standing by.

kentucky, 100 years old today, and she says her secret to longevity pinto beans. live forever. florene watkins from youngstown, ohio, home of the warners brothers. did you know that. bugs bunny comes from that town. anyway, 100 years old today. loves to go camping, loves camping. >> dick downing of venice, florida, the circus and everything in that area, 100 years old today. loves to read mystery novels. bill balyeat from traverse, city, missouri, 100 years old. a photographer and will take your picture while you're standing still. that's all for right now. please don't go away. we've got some winners. >> all right, willard. thank you. coming up, spike lee. >> oh, awesome. >> and a lot more ahead, but, first, a look at your local news and weather.

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this morning on today's take, leann rimes has a merry christmas medley. and find out how nick cannon is on a giving spree. and spike lee on his new film that has everyone talking. coming up now. from nbc news, this isis today's take with al roker, natalie morales, willie geist and tamron hall. live from studio 1a in rockefeller plaza. welcome to "today" on this tuesday morning, december 1st, 2015. a beautiful crowd out there to say hello.

girl dylan, and look who we have, "extra's" aj calloway helping us out this morning while natalie and al are on assignment. you say -- i feel like a slacker. somebody has to hold down the fort. >> your fort is in trouble. >> yeah. holding down the fort. >> we like that you're here and i love dylan's song pick, jam of the morning, "sound and color" by alabama shakes. >> alabama shakes is so incredible. i saw them last february when i went to "saturday night live." and i was like, what is this? oh, my god. and the sound that comes out of their mouth is incredible. and this song is just -- it's popular right now because -- part of a commercial. and every time i hear it -- just zone out. >> it's good. when they performed at snl, i wasn't lucky enough to be there because getting a ticket even if you work here -- to give your first born, a pint of blood, secret handshake. so i thought i would buy tickets

york. that didn't work out either. so the closest i've gotten to alabama shakes is a hand shake. so aj, you agreed to hang out with me and dylan. >> i did. >> you watch the take every day, right? >> i do watch you all of the time. i do! i text you and you don't respond after i see you do things on the show. and i'm like, i liked that. that was interesting. >> yes. is it awkward now? >> yeah. >> no, okay. -- >> but you did invite me, so thank you. >> dylan and i discussed -- we had a list of men that we wanted on the show. >> alphabetically, you were at the top. >> that usually happens. >> so we didn't even make it past a. j. >> thank you. >> i just found out that we grew up in the same town. in new jersey. >> yeah, i was born there. >> yeah, he was -- >> what's the town? >> freehold.

was right on the border. >> went to high school with bruce springsteen. >> they dated, right? >> ooh. >> that was the rumor. >> really early in the morning, i like this. >> there was a rumor started by matt lauer. >> yeah. >> and it made my story so much cooler. >> and you have two beautiful daughters. >> i do have two daughters. >> so they're amy belle and ava claire. that's their beautiful family there. >> and my wife deion. >> and your wife deion. >> patient and amazing woman. >> she is. an amazing woman, without a doubt. >> tell me about the girls. >> they are absolutely adorable. amy belle calloway, abc and acc. avis claire calloway. >> so close to christmas. >> my wife's birthday is december 18th. my daughter's birthday is january 1. and christmas falls in between. >> ooh. >> it's going to be rough. i'm august 29th. >> so they don't remember -- it's all about the ladies.

you've got to save up for the end of the year. fourth quarter, december. >> i'm cutting out starbucks, i'm not buying anything for myself. so what's the christmas plan? what's the plan? because you're a big cook. you love a good party. >> i do love to cook. i was actually down in virginia with my wife's family and i deep fried two turkeys. >> isn't that the best? >> it's amazing. >> i love deep fried turkey. >> it's a religion where i'm from. >> and i season it. it's intense. >> usually -- >> christmas i'm going to smoke. >> did you bring anything? >> tamron is throwing me -- do you see that bus that i'm being thrown over? >> she brought ice cream, john cena gives us tickets for his match. >> i'm under the bus. >> so you're with "extra" so give us the hollywood scoop. >> hollywood scoop? >> yeah. >> i will always take hollywood scoops, yes. and i usually will wait until

>> okay. i just came back from berlin for the world premier of "hunger games" with jennifer lawrence and the entire cast. at the after party, me and jennifer talked about the movie that's she's doing with amy. amy schumer. >> schumer. they're best friends. >> they are. >> so that's real. they're not -- >> that is beyond real. that is beyond real. and the film that -- well, they're showing "hunger games" now. that is unbelievable. >> i haven't seen it yet. >> no, it's the best one of the franchise. >> really? >> the best one in the franchise. it is absolutely incredible. >> what is she like? i've never had -- i've never met her, have you met her? >> no. >> she is one of the coolest people ever. you would get along with her. both of you all. amazingly. she is really cool, down to earth. that's one thing i love about her. she doesn't put on the airs. she is extremely successful but so down to earth and cool. and that's why i think she is going to continue to rise as an amazing star.

>> clearly on her christmas list. >> the film she's working on with amy schumer, it's a jennifer lawrence you do not know yet. i will leave it there. >> more of a comedy. >> very dirty comedy. >> because i told dill ylan, i watched "train wreck" on the plain this sunday. and there was an 8-year-old child with her mother on the side of me, so there was like an angle. and there was a john cena scene at the beginning, if you've seen the movie you know. and i started to slowly move my eyes. as if i was watching. and i started scooting over. but i can't stop watching and the kid -- i'm like, okay, just -- >> this new movie is something you won't watch on a plane either. >> no, that's probably pg in comparison to what i have heard. >> ooh, j-law goes dirty. we'll see what happens. you're a big music fan, we both know prince very well. you love prince too. >> i adore -- no pun intended. i love prince.

>> i don't send him pictures in the morning of what i'm wearing. >> oh, you do watch. >> you do watch. >> i do watch. >> girl code, dylan. >> no comment. wait, i'm going to sip my tea. >> supposed to talk -- spotify. >> top artist songs for 2015. most streamed artist of 2015 was drake. >> really? >> the hot line bling? >> the hot line bling. i like that. drake is an amazing artist. he's really taken over the airwaves. so i can understand why that is the most streamed. most streamed female of 2015. any guess? >> right there. >> dylan? >> you can read it off there. >> is it rihanna? it is rihanna. and she's probably my favorite place on earth, barbados.

>> what's cropover? a festival? >> it's a carnival. and reihanna is an amazing artist. >> winter is over and dylan has been assigned -- >> do you want me to give you >> yeah. >> i'm inviting you all to cropover with me. i will take care of you. you come to cropover with me. look -- people -- i give. i give something extra. >> i'm concerned, because i've seen pictures of rihanna. do you wear -- you wear nothing. it's like carnival. >> it's carnival. i was with her in cropover this year. a little paint. >> i don't know about -- >> we have to talk to natalie. i'll figure it out. >> i don't know if i'm cool enough. >> you could do it. look, you can handle it. >> okay. all right. you know what, we have the most streamed song of 2015. i don't -- i feel bad, because i don't know this song. >> what? >> i wonder if you've heard it. . >> you know this song. >> oh! i didn't know it until i heard it. >> lean on.

>> okay. >> that's a great song. >> that's a great song. >> all right. so you know what else we have? this is an amazing story of generosity that we have been talking about. this couple, they choose to remain anonymous. they dropped a $500,000 check into the salvation army red kettle outside a grocery store in rosemount, minnesota, 20 miles outside minneapolis. the red cross, they know who the people are -- the couple. but the couple has decided, which i love, to remain anonymous. they say that they relied on discarded food from a local grocery store as a young couple and now they can afford -- and i would say afford, to help other people. $500,000. >> that is beautiful. >> and anonymously. it means it's all about giving. >> right. no airs, we don't want any publicity. with your kids, how do you teach them, because we're talking about giving tuesday.

generous children? >> to give back? i donate a lot of my time all of the time and this is actually the first thanksgiving -- i usually deliver meals with my fraternity to elderly people throughout new jersey. so we go north and east orange and hand to hand to deliver the meals and this year a lot of them brought their families. and it's beautiful. every year i'm going to bring my girls, and you know, deliver the meals. it's all about giving back. >> so maybe we'll join you there, and -- >> there you go. >> for vacation. because it's getting chilly a lot of places and we need to go to cropover with you. what's going on, dylan? >> before we get there, can i say it's my husband's birthday? i just want to throw that in. he is turning the big 29. he has not even hit 30 years yet. >> break into song. >> happy birthday? >> i don't sing. i need to get to the weather. but i just had to throw that in. >> happy birthday. >> happy 29th birthday. and looking at the weather across the country, we are looking at a little bit of snow,

minnesota. some wrap-around moisture, too. the whole storm system is fizzling out. we'll see 4 to 6 inches near duluth but it's on the back side where we'll get gusty winds. rain is a big story. 3 inches in appalachian and western north carolina, northern georgia. so watch out for the potential of flash flooding. that's a look at the weather and that's your latest forecast. a picture of dylan's husband here. thank you very much.

up next, it is giving tuesday, and america has got talent host nick cannon is in a giving mood. he'll tell us all about that. plus, his new movie with spike lee after this., his new movie with spike lee after this. just head around the corner to walgreens when you're searching for that perfect little something. walgreens has great gifts like toys, beauty gift sets and photo gifts, and it's all just a hop, skip and a bark away. walgreens. at the corner of happy and healthy. right now, save 50 percent on the gift of the week. i did it.... i did it too...

it's a vitamin supplement that nourishes from the inside... with biotin for beautiful hair and strong nails. and vitamin c and e for vibrant skin. give it a month, if your hair, skin and nails don't look and feel more beautiful, we'll give you your money back. i did it...and i feel beautiful. take the nature's bounty hair, skin and nails challenge, visit naturesbounty.com for details. in delicious gummies too!. i think when people hear about memory care they're scared, they think that it's sad. i think it's important for everyone to know that there is so much more to memory support than the stigmas you hearabout. that these residents still have lives and their lives still matter and that they are still living their lives. that they're not locked away and that they still have a lot to live for, you know, that they have people that care about them and they have people that love them and i love them, so their lives still matter. that is what i do this for. we give you relief from your cold & flu.

tylenol cold helps relieve your worst cold & flu symptoms... you can give them everything you've got. tylenol giving tuesday on "today" is sponsored by the salvation army.

busiest guys in entertainment, the actor is part of the nbc family as host of the hit reality competition, "america's got talent."talent." >> you'll also be seeing him in the new spike lee film alongside jennifer hudson, samuel l. jackson and angela bass. >> and he's helping underprivileged kids this holiday season and is here on behalf of our sponsor, salvation army. nick, good to see you. >> good morning. >> congratulations on this giving tuesday. >> thank you. >> everything you've got going on and you take a pause to be part of the salvation army effort to help so many people who need it this time of year. >> absolutely. i mean, i've been a true believer. to much is given much is required and especially during the holiday season. you know. we all want to put our red kettle reason of why, you know, we do what we do for the holidays and why we give back. you know, we're getting ready for this big shopping spree for

to have a better holiday season and top five finalists bringing out here to new york city. >> phenomenal. >> sound like fun. >> real cool. >> and speaking of how busy you are. you watched "shiraq" and talk about a transformation. >> what do you mean? >> there's "america's got talent" nick cannon and the shiraq nick cannon. what was it like being in the film? >> the first thing, our great director spike lee before he told meet story line or plot line, said he wanted to save lives in the south side of chicago. i'm in 100% and when you see the artistic approach where he took, you know, from over 2,000 years ago into modern day chicago, it's a real beautiful piece of art. >> tamron is asking about your workout routine. >> let's face it. see you, always happy and this

every time you see nick a smile on his face and very dapper and know that side of you and this character in addition to being very intense, you were in the gym a lot. like you're buffing out in that suit. >> all the tattoos are real. a lot going on in the suit. >> do you recognize yourself in him? >> look at that. >> we have different sides of the coin, you know. >> it's like an onion, layers. >> layers and layers. >> largs of ab b -- layers of abs. >> you're making me blush. >> you're in new york. >> amazing. spike knows how to bring it together and a lot of fun and people coming out and the film comes out this week so we're really excite sfld what do you think of simon cowell joining the team over at "america's got talent." >> first of all, always been there, the creator of the show, the boss and now he's going to jump into the seat where he always wanted to be in the first place because when you think

talent ". >> the a nice simon or a hard simon? >> is there ever a nice simon? kind of always to the point. i feel like that judging seat has always been like the real harsh to the point honest. you had piers morgan, howard stern and now simon. i think he has to be that guy, and he's guy who created that guy. he is that guy. >> he's the original meany on all the shows. real quick with the kids. saw cute pictures on instagram of you and rock 'n' roll for the christmas season. >> doing a lot of cool stuff. obviously we had thanksgiving so that was amazing, and the personalities all over the place and they were helping me deejay at halo awards, so they are doing their thing at 4 years old. already taking over. >> you work very hard and now the kids are working hard. >> they have to. it's in the family. >> nick cannon, thank you so much for beingngere and all you're doing with the salvation army, too. up next, today and every day is christmas for leann rimes who is celebrating the season with a new holiday album.

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singer and songwriter leann rimes is out with a brand new album of holiday music. >> called "today is christmas" and is out right now. leann rimes, good morning. >> hi. >> thanks so much for being here. "jingle, jim angel" stuck in my head along with the sound of bells bells. >> i feel a little left out i didn't get the invite. >> next time. >> we expect you to do a christmas song every year now. >> which, i don't know -- today, tomorrow, yesterday, like do i just continue to write something like that. i don't know. we'll come up with something, i'm sure. >> i'm sure we could. >> got to be fun. you love christmas, don't you? >> i do. i don't know, my god parent and the my parents always like really celebrated the holidays. my god patients especially and i just kind of adopted that. it was really special for me, too, because i was always on the road so it was nice to -- that was the time of year i got to be home and grounded.

right after halloween? >> yeah. >> i've gotten a lot of grief. >> this year for reason, people are really divided, you can either decorate like right after and before thanksgiving and people are adamant about you waiting and, yeah, people. >> the tree goes up? >> the tree -- the tree went up last week actually so it -- i've been a little busy, and we have definitely -- we love to decorate the tree with the kids and so it was the one time everybody was at home and we could do it so we waited a little later this year so it was maybe a little bit more appropriate. >> your place is ready for christmas. >> my wife is obsessed with christmas so the decorations go up right away. >> we'd get along so well. you come home to it, right? >> i come -- i just came back from atlanta and came home and ribbons up and little trees. wants another tree. she wants two trees. >> we have a picture of a santa.

>> i did 'tis my country christmas and he drove by. i love doing that, so fun. >> anything special you want for this christmas? >> gosh, i don't know. i haven't even thought about it. >> no time. >> very busy right now. >> yeah. >> the yeah, no. i'm going to be on the road and touring for the next like two and a half weeks so my december is packed and all in a good way. really, really excited about the tour. >> you're going out to promote the new album. >> yes. we head out and start this on the 4th i think coming up in washington and going down the west coast this year. >> what do you love about hitting the road? >> i love the -- obviously the live experience is unlike any other. i mean, it's -- once you have experienced that, it's like it is almost like a drug, like you want -- you love being on stage and i've been doing it since i was a kid so it's always fun to go out and real kind of be able to play these songs for, you know, the people that have been listening live for them. that's the fun part of it. >> you'll sing another song for us in just a few minutes.

>> can't wait for that, but, first, we've got y with ingredients like roasted hazelnuts and cocoa, there's a whole lot of happy in every jar of nutella. spread the happy. feel a cold coming on? new zicam cold remedy nasal swabs shorten colds with a snap, and reduce symptom severity by 45%.

police have identified suspect in a double homicide in des moines... officers are looking for 35 year old michael john wanchanic. as you can see... he has brown eyes and brown hair. police say he's about five foot ten inches... weighing 150 pounds. they want to talk to him about the deaths of 36 year old bryon howard and 31 year old heather belieau. their bodies were found inside a home in the 39 hundred block of center street yesterday. a des moines student is accused of making threats against a local school district... police say the threat was posted on the urbandale middle school's "p - t - o" facebook page sunday night. police identified the suspect through that posting. a 15 year old is in custody... charged with first degree harassment. more than two hundred people will soon be without jobs in the quad cities... john deere's seeding and cylinder facility in moline is ordering the layoffs. they take effect on february 15th. the announcement comes after last

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taking a look at the headlines, technology company v-tech says the personal information of about 5 million of its customers and their children may have been stolen by hackers. the company disclosed the breach late last week, but did not say how many people could be affected until monday. the affected database includes the names, birth dates and photos of children. v-tech makes a variety of popular tech-related toys, including tablets and smart watches. a government panel of doctors is stirring debate with a draft of updated recommendations about skin cancer screenings. the draft says there is not enough evidence to recommend for or against visual full-body screenings for melanoma. that recommendation does not apply to patients with a history

the preventative services task force says there are potential harms that go along with screening, including unnecessary biopsies that can lead to scarring or other damage. hundreds of scientists and ethicists from around the world are gathering to debate the boundaries of human gene editing. it is letting scientists learn to rewrite the genetic code aiming to alter dna in ways that could erase disease-causing genes. there is plenty of debate on how far these experiments should go to fix only the sick or make changes that future generations could inherit. and good eating habits can sometimes fall by the wayside this time of year. but dieticians have several tips for avoidinging holiday weight gain. eat before going to a party so you don't fill up on fatty foods, choose a smaller plate and take small servings of food

don't eat standing up because it's hard to keep track of what you're eating while on your feet. who knew? it's time to play the name game. here are the top baby names of the year, courtesy of the folks at baby center.com. for boys, jackson is top for the third year. that's followed by aiden and liam. for girls, sophia wins again for the sixth straight time. emma was second. and olivia was third. i love all of those names. another name we love, dylan. and she is here with a check of the weather. i'll shimmy out. >> never on any list. it's -- i love it, though. we are looking at some pretty messy weather, especially across the northern plains in the upper midwest. this area of low pressure is producing snow in minnesota. rain across the southeast, heavy for the appalachians with up to 6 inches of rain total between the rain we saw yesterday and the rain we'll see through wednesday. freezing fog also an issue through parts of oklahoma.

the roads could be icy. tomorrow we'll see a little bit of lake-effect snow. the rain heaviest across the southeast with spotty showers across the northeast. even icy through parts of northern maine. and in the northwest, another storm system will make its way onshore that produces rain and mountain snow. for the tree-lighting in rockefeller center, 6:00, a little bit of rain. temperatures in the mid 50s and even by 9:00, spotty showers. some could be heavy.

and that's your latest forecast. the citi convert series on "today" is proudly presented to you by citi. >> grammy winning singer/songwriter leann rimes is getting us into the holiday spirit this morning. here she is singing a medley of her brand new album "today is christmas." have a holly jolly christmas, it's the best time of the year well, i don't know if there will be snow, but grab a cup of cheer have a holly jolly christmas and when you walk down the street say hello to friends you know

oh, ho, the mistletoe, hung where you can't see somebody waits for you, kiss them once for me have a holly jolly christmas and in case you didn't hear oh, by golly have a holly jolly christmas this year frosty the snowman was a jolly happy soul with a corn cob pipe and button nose and two eyes made out of coal frosty the snowman had to hurry on his way well, he waved good-bye saying don't you cry i'll be back again, thumpity, thumpity, thump, thump, look at frosty go thumpity, thumpity, thump, thump, over the hills of oh, the mistletoe, hung where

somebody waits for you, kiss them once for, kiss them once for me we will have a holly jolly christmas and in case you didn't hear oh, by golly have a holly jolly christmas this year this year >> thank you, leann and will be back with another song for kathie lee and hoda. the powerful new film taking on tough topic from the acclaimed director who never shies away from when the flu hits, it's a really big deal. the aches. the chills. the fever. an even bigger deal? everything you miss out on... family pizza night.

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movies like "malcolm x" and "do the right thing" and has never shied away from subjects like race and politics. >> and now he's wrote and produced a new movie called "chiraq" based on an ancient greek play though this time it's about the modern day crisis in chicago. spike is here with us. good morning, good to see you. >> had your star nick cannon. >> yeah. >> on the cast, sam jackson. >> jennifer hudson. >> angela bassett. >> was this your dream cast because a lot of them have ties to chicago and also are activists less. >> especially jennifer, john cusack, so we got the people i wanted and everybody came through and from the get go we told people this film got to save lives with this film. that was the premise from the beginning. >> and it couldn't be more timely with the tape of laquan mcdonald that came out and everything that's happening in chicago right now. who did you make this film for?

gun violence affects all americans. sometimes we just think it's just in the hood, just black folks, but gun violence affects everybody in this country. >> the name of the film "chiraq," i lived in chicago for ten years and there's a lot of controversy behind that name and what did you want it to be the title? tell people what does it mean? >> the term "chiraq," local chicago rappers came with that term because they felt that chicago's west side, south side was more dangerous than iraq, so it's -- it's a mishmash of chicago and iraq. >> your career obviously speaks for itself, but you recently got a big award. it's called an oscar i think, the honorary oscar. you had sam jackson, denzel washington and wesley snipes, john singleton there as well. your entire family. >> right. >> your kids are both in college now. >> yes.

that oscar? >> well, sam cook wrote a song. >> a great song. >> but i don't want to sing it though. >> well deserved. >> i was honored, and i really got a good shout-out to the president of the academy, african-american woman, whose agenda is really to bring diversity to the academy, to the voting members and everything else, so i'm almost humbled. >> you spoke about that in your acceptance speech. a lot of people talked about that afterwards. >> yeah. i said that -- that it's easier for african-americans, the black person, to be president of the united states and be president of a hollywood studio or tv network cable. >> well, you're in the afraid of controversy, but are you afraid of having an empty net? >> whoa, whoa, whoa, why is that controversial? >> i think it is because some people don't realize that and not ready to ingest that.

you're avoiding talking about it but certainly something people don't think about all the time. >> my sister, give me a hand. >> thank you. >> i'm just saying. >> i feel like i -- i get it. i've been black for a long time, for 45 years, i get it. >> i'm just saying. i think that people just word that word controversial and slap it on everything, controversial, controversial, controversial, controversial, you know. >> but sometimes it's applicable and true, right? >> you going to the knicks game sunday night? >> okay. >> i do have to bring up your kids because what people don't know and i know your wife very well, she's amazing. >> thank you. >> you have an empty nest. >> mm-hmm. >> what's the lee house like now with no children? are you getting on her nerves? are you making her not say controversy? >> here's the deal. well, my daughter satchel was an exchange student in france, in

of the massacre, she flew from charles de gaulle airport to l.a. for the oscar. >> wow. >> so she left that morning, and my son, he goes to school -- the school is here in new york city so he's home all the time. >> so you don't have an empty nest because he's there all the time? >> not really, no. >> well, congratulations, spike. >> new york premiere. >> new york premiere. >> and we'll both be there. >> and i would like to say for the first time since 1986, we're not going to have a party. we're having a march tonight, an anti-gun and anti-violence march after the -- no party, no dancing, no drinking, we're going to mark. >> keep the focus. thanks so much, spike. the movie opens friday. up next, another friend of ours, the comedian who got president obama to kick back with him in a garage? yes, this man.

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he's a tv star, one of the best podcasters on the planet, and just saying, you know, okay human being. according to him. >> there's something between -- >> comedian marc maron. >> also the man who got president obama to sit down in a garage with him. now marc is about to debut a new stand-up special called "more later." >> the marc, good morning. >> hi. >> good to have you here. >> i'll talk to you, which of you? >> okay. >> we'll direct questions and you can i guess talk to whoever. so to start of course, i feel like -- and you've said yourself you have a river of rage running through you. >> yes. >> why so angry, what's wrong is. >> it's just something i nurture and maintain. i don't know if i'm really angry anymore but sometimes creativity comes from that and sometimes charm and sometimes intensity and sometimes, you know, pure rage which i try to avoid. i don't know who put it there, maybe my mom. installed early. >> there's a source somewhere.

can i be nice to her for a minute. hi, mom, happy thanksgiving. i love you. how does that feel? >> has anyone made you mad today? >> today, maybe a little. no, not bad. nod bad today. but it happens very quickly and for no reason, and sometimes when you get angry for no reason, like if you're just waiting on line, starbucks or perhaps when a host comes up to you and say why are you twittering, why are you tweeting like that? >> who said that. >> what's wrong with your twitter followers, remember when that happened five minutes ago? >> your twitter followers are convinced that we have something going on. >> well, i thought we did, okay, and maybe it's -- >> oh. >> no? >> okay. >> i think we did that night. no, i'm kidding. >> whoa. >> i'm kidding, in garage, you know, you interviewed me. >> and knew girlfriend is like what's happening? >> no, no, just kidding. but you did get this that garage of yours president obama. >> yes. >> he just dropped by, casually dropped by. >> how does that happen for you? >> yeah. >> that's an interesting way to

>> i don't know. i guess -- i guess he felt like i needed some attention, you know, and he just took time from his national agenda. >> that's a huge fet for you. >> no, it was huge. >> for anyone. >> it was about a year in the making, sort of reached out and feeling whether he could do it and whether he wanted to do it and when it was happening it's happening. not a casual thing when the president comes over, like there was something i never thought i would have to do is ask my neighbor if it would be okay if we put some snipers on his roof he was excited. >> true story? >> he's rered, too. yeah let m. gave h aatch terwar, and e presintas ver -- yeah, aittle sper patch,n offici nghbo snirelper. minutes,t's overw. >>owou can g t. >>he speci ater" premis thriday o epic >> ah, good.

this i"today" onbc. our annual toy drive could not be a success without generous contributors, and one them cindy monrow, the founder and president and ceo of 31 gifts. cindy, good morning. good to see you. >> good morning. >> got your kids here with you. >> i do. >> which is perfect because part of the donation tweens gifts, the hard-to-shop for crew. >> yes. >> and sometimes are forgotten. >> yes, we will be donating great products, lunch thermals, duffel bags to take over to their friends' house or on sporting events, zipper pouches, so over 150,000 teens and kids this holiday season. >> retail value over $32 million in gifts. >> well, that has been over like the last six years, yes. we just keep coming back for more. >> well, we love that. thank you so much. >> and let me bring my co-hosts in here, a.j. and dylan. thanks for filling in.

>> want to int when they told me that i was diagnosed with cancer, all i could think of was my kids and that i didn't want to leave them. i beat cancer, but it is still scary. now i have a pre-existing condition. so, if republicans take away obamacare, breast cancer survivors like me could be denied coverage. if hillary's in the white house, she's going to continue obamacare, so that i don't have to worry anymore. i trust her, and i know she's going to fight for all of us.

des moines leaders are trying to put a stop to violence along court avenue... after a deadly shooting. 21 year old edmanuel perez was shot and killed on court avenue sunday morning. 23 year old andrew boyd was also shot... and is recovering in the hospital. leaders are considering additional lighting and security cameras in the area... but they say area businesses bill. iowa state's new football coach is promising to turn the team