making news on this monday, november 15th. new reality. the president and congress return to washington with one major issue on the agenda, whether to extend those bush era tax cuts. seaside explosion at a luxury resort popular with americans. the breakfast time blast and debris. even bodies flying. and a new view of seiche rappelen. her reality show debuts. but will it help or hurt her chances for a political future? good morning, everyone.

thanks for being with us on this monday. congress returns to work now in just a few hours for some members it starts a final few weeks at the capitol. >> the replacements began to arrive. there's a lot to get to in just a short amount of time. emily schmidt has details from washington. >> vinita and rob good morning to you. today's beginning of the lame duck session is the first to see if that message is actually sinking in. this monday morning means back to work for many in congress seem to be out of work after democrats lost dozens of seats in the midterm elections. president obama reflected on the vote on air force one. >> in that obsessive focus on policy, i neglected some things that matter a lot to people and rightly so. >> reporter: the president said

he will tell republican leaders voters didn't give them a mandate for gridlock. but ms. plenty of division, especially about tax cuts that expire at the end of next month. >> i don't think there's any room to negotiate on raising taxes, particularly on smaller businesses. i hope we can get a permanent extension. >> what if we moved up to $1 million. everyone below $1 million will get a tax cut. >> reporter: other challenges, lifting the don't ask, don't tell me policy. voting on a strategic missile deal and banning earmarks. >> it's time to finally hit the ground running and start to do the people's work. >> reporter: orientation for new members of congress is under way, they're overwhelmingly republican and tea party support. >> our friends in the tea party are patriots. >> had a lot of support from tea party members because a lot of the things i was saying they agreed with. >> the lame duck session will

stretch this week and continue after thanksgiving. it extends until they're done or gridlocked. >> and obviously a very political climate on capitol hill. how does the president plan to deal with that? >> the president talked about that on air force one. he said some things have to get tackled. tax cuts and also a spending bill sole the government can keep running. there will be plenty of time for the philosophical political debates. >> thank you. two washington newcomers will actually get to start their new jobs today. chris coons of delaware and manchin of delaware will be sworn in. coons. a mysterious kidnapping case in columbus ohio, a 13-year-old girl was found gagged and bound

in a basement on sunday. but her mother, a brother and a family friend are still missing. mac through hoffman is charged in the kidnapping and more charges are likely in the court appearance later today. and other news, a deadly explosion at a popular mexican tourist resort is being blamed on a buildup of gas. that blast ripped through the lounge in cancun. the blast sent the floor through the ceiling and rattled diners in nearby restaurants. >> where we are sitting, the whole restaurant has a half-inch wall all the way around. there was a very large bang and seconds later, the windows were blown in and shattered everywhere. >> investigators believe the gas emitted from a swampy area under the lounge. they're now checking to see if the building which sat on a concrete pad had been properly

constructed. after more than a year of being held captive by pirates in so mall yashgs a retired company is finally free. the chandlers were taken hostage last october. they say even though they thinner fine. friends and relatives reportedly raised $400,000 for their release. in saudi arabia, the pilgrimage is under way. it's called the hajj. they say they expect more participants this year lan thaft. new this year is a light rail system to move all the people around. it was an especially deadly day for troops in afghanistan. at least 11 nato troops were killed in a wave of violence. e latest attack came sunday in eastern afghanistan when five service members were killed by mill tavnlts. most of those who died were u.s. soldiers. the number has tripled since

president obama took office. and we're learning that one of the marines who died last week was the son of a three-star general. robert kelly died in a roadside blast. his father lieutenant john kelly is now the highest ranking officer to lose a child in wars in iraq and afghanistan. the general said his son's body will be met at dover air force base by his other son, a marine captain and brought to arlington national cemetery. and britain's prince william paid a trip to troops. william says he's still hopeful of one day serving in afghanistan like his brother did, but that is considered highly unlikely. back here at home, maybe you saw it. a lighting problem caused delays in the cowboys/giants game. the lights went out causing a momentary stoppage. the venue will host the super

bowl come february 2014. by the way, the cowboys turned out the giants' lights 33-20. and weather around the country on the gulf coast drenching houston, mobile. and lighter in nashville and the carolinas. rain and mountain snow in consider consider, montana, snow in the cascades. showers meanwhile in spokane and sacramento. >> fargo and minneapolis hover around 50 degrees. 60s from kansas city. high of 60 here in new york. 55 in boston and 80 in miami. and when we come back, a big change being announced today by facebook. and back to that family mystery out in ohio. the mother and son missing for days. the daughter found over the weekend bound in a basement. what we could learn later today. and tv's newest reality show gives us a day-to-day look

inside the home of sarah palin.

wall street goes to work today looking to rebound from a down week. investors will be looking to some key reports on manufacturing and retail sales, beginning with today's numbers on shopping in october. they'll also get earnings from major retailers this week, including home depot, walmart and target. the dow tumbled 251 points last week with the biggest drop

friday. the nasdaq dropped 61 point. tokyo's nikkei climbed 1%. hong kong's hang seng is lower. in london the ftse opened lower. facebook's 500 million members could have more time to spend on the site. they're wildly expected to open their own e-mail system. members will be able that sign at their own at facebook.com addresses. the animated featuring the voice of will ferrell took in $30 million. "unstoppable" opened in second. "due date" slipped into third. shoes, slipper, jewelry and other items took in $2 million. the most expensive item, ruth madoff's 10 1/2 carat diamond

ring. the money will go to victims of madoff's scam. what about the monogrammed underwear? >> i'll confess to that. next on this monday, back on dry land after treading water at sea for a day and a half. and from espn, the gridiron. sunday highlights coming up. ♪

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the same way again. for a powerful clean against a full range of stains, use new wisk. fight stains with science. use new wisk. parts of the upper midwest retain covered with more than a foot of wet and heavy snow, after the first major storm of the season. about 8 inches fell in minneapolis, st. paul over the weekend, triggering hundreds of accidents there. it's already starting to melt. and an icy morning commute on i-94 and i-5.

. slick on i-5 from portland to seattle. and if you're flying today, expect airport delays in seattle, salt lake city, houston, new orleans and atlanta. more now on that disturbing kidnapping case near columbus, ohio, a teenage girl is in the hospital after being found tied up in a suspect's basement. >> but what happened to her mother, brothernd a family friend who also disappeared? >> reporter: in this house, ten miles where four people disappeared, police rescued one of them. 13-year-old sarah was being held in the basement bound and gagged. >> she was being held against her will. she was in good condition. she was taken to the hospital for evaluation. >> reporter: and they arrested a suspect, 30-year-old matthew hoffman. >> matthew is charged with one charge of kidnapping. additional charges are expected to be filed.

>> reporter: police aren't sure how hoffman was connected to the missing people. neighbors were stunned. >> the s.w.a.t. team came and then the blast i heard. they blasted the door. and went in. >> we did not want to give him time to cause any harm to her so we did use a tactical team. >> reporter: the fate of sarah's mother, tina, her brother codey and family friend stephanie sprang is unknown. the four disappeared from this home where police found an unusual amount of blood. tina's friend's car was parked in the garage and search parties have fanned out on foot and planes looked from the skies. dispute the good news, the mystery of three others missing has yet to be solved. chuck sivertsen, abc news. three men are glad to be back home after an ordeal at sea. randy waldorf and two friends

left friday. they ended up treading water in the gulf about 18 hours after the motor on that boat died. they were finally discovered by a charter boat sunday night. and the counting continues in the still undecided senate test. lisa murkowski is getting an overwhelming percentage of the write-in votes. it's expected to take over joe miller as early as today. and a more famous alaskan is getting more time. sarah palin's show debuted on the learning channel. the eight-part documentary showing palin and her home state is sprinkled with political inonuendo innuendos. >> todd and his buddies got out there and built a 14-foot fence.

by the way, this is a good idea for others to say this is what we need to do. >> it also shows palin and her mom from going upstairs with her daughter. they don't know whether the show will help or hurt a possible run for president come 2012. and any michael jackson song is coming out today. a year and a half, after his death. ♪ tell me what you're waiting for ♪ >> that is michael jackson with rapper producer akon. the single called "hold my hand" was produced and released. fiddy cent will also be featured on the album titled "michael." >> and "monday night football" is tonight and with the eagles

hosting the redskins. good morning, i'm steve weissman with your espn news update. it was a big sunday in the nfl. mark sanchez and the jets vitting the cleveland browns. less than 30 seconds in overtime, fir and ten. sanchez to santonio holmes. that's your game, folks. take another look. the jets hang on and come back in o.t. 26-20. they improved 7-2. how about the patriots and steelers. first quarter, no score. pats' opening drive. brady to rob gronkowski, this would be the theme of the game. third quarter, brady, play action. yep, gronkowski, another touchdown pass. 17-3, new england. this time, tom takes it in on his own. third rushing touchdown for brady. 23-3. fourth quarter, back to the

combo. brady to gronkowski, he has three touchdowns for the season coming in. three in this game. pats go on to win 39-26, they're 7-2. finally, cowboys and giants, jason garrett debuts as the head coach for dallas. second quarters. giants down 9-3. eli manning. the completion, but it's to bryan mccann, and he played for the cowboys. going to go all the way. team record 100-yard, touchdown on the interception. cowboys win 33-20. just their second win of the year. that's your espn news update. i'm steve weissman. back to you in new york. also from the nfl, the jaguars and texans were headed for overtime but that was until jags' qb david garrard unloaded it. jacksonville's smallest player,

5'8", turns in the team's biggest play of the year. >> impressive. coming up next, the stories we're following today, including the return of congress. meaning one member will face the music today. details coming up. tends to stay in motion.n n staying active can actually ease arthritis symptoms. but if you have arthritis, staying active can be difficult. prescription celebrex can help relieve arthritis pain so your body can stay in motion. because just one 200mg celebrex a day can provide 24 hour relief for many with arthritis pain and inflammation. plus, in clinical studies, celebrex is proven to improve daily physical function so moving is easier. and celebrex is not a narcotic. when it comes to relieving your arthritis pain, you and your doctor need to balance the benefits with the risks. all prescription nsaids, including celebrex, may increase the chance of heart attack or stroke, which can lead to death. this chance increases if you have heart disease or risk factors such as high blood pressure or when nsaids are taken for long periods.

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president obama is back from asia and ready to battle lawmakers over extending those tax cuts. however, the leading republican now says there may be a way to work with the president. and also in the house, charles rangel has before the house at the proceedings. and we'll get a new look at how the recession is affecting our kid. the new report out today is the large the yet showing the effects on the economy on the well-being of the nation's children. facebook will be expected to unveil a new e-mail service with more than 500 million facebook users already, it could be the biggest in the world. and tonight, diane sawyer anchors "world news" from china. she's talking to locals and checking in on activities shared by hundreds of millions of chinese. english lessons. coming up later on "good morning america," our exclusive look at the commander in chief's

new book of the essay "a letter to my daughters." this is aimed at an audience which can't even vote. >> that's on "gma." for everyone, your local news is next. chocolate and high fashion. let me check. oh fudge, nothing without a big miles upcharge. it's either pay their miles upcharges or connect through mooseneck! [ freezing ] i can't feel my feet. we switched to the venture card from capital one -- so no more games. let's go see those grandkids. [ male announcer ] don't pay miles upcharges. don't play games. get the flight you want with the venture card at capitalone.com. [ loving it ] help! what's in your wallet? - this is for cindy. i wanted to get her something special this year. - you went to kay. she'll love it. [chuckles] trust me. i know. - more milk? - thanks, dave, but i got to fly. ho-ho-ho-ho-ho. - gift-giving experts agree on kay. save 25% on bulova watches, one more reason kay

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and finally this morning, a sweet tooth dream come true. imagine wall-to-wall chocolate, more than you could ever eat. >> dozens of chocolate makers from around the world ascended on new york over the weekend. if you didn't want to eat it, you could wear it. >> this is the price. there are people that buy the chocolate and make chocolate. you can go to demonstration and learn a lot of things. >> hi, i'm george duran i'm the host of tlc's "ultimate cake boss." what you're seeing is artisans around the world coming to new york city and showcasing their chocolate. we've had a chocolate fashion show to start up the entire event where we've actually had designers, clothing designers, and chocolate artisans come together to make clothing out of chocolate.

>> there's my dress that on the model, she has bugs and spiders and butterflies and flowers. and she has this huge boa constrictor and it's made out of rice krispy treats and chocolate. >> americans as creative as we are, we're starting to make mixes of chocolate. this is something that kids would probably love, if you love peanut butter and jelly. >> something at the show, i would never imagine people to create the couture gowns out of chocolate. and these incredible trains. just the best chocolates you've ever had. they ask to do a demo and come back and make these amazing chocolate brownies. thank you, rob and vinita. >> of course, she sent some back with us. >> of course. take a look at that. like little miniature art. >> that's