to fully focus on running the country. critics have been skeptical about whether trump's plan to turn over operations to his children is enough to avoid conflicts of interest. and election officials in nashl north carolina have ordered a partial recount in the governor's race. mccrory is refusing to concede the race and raising questions about voting irregularities in do planned parenthood and other groups are suing several states, challenging their abortion laws. the suit claims that laws in north carolina, missouri, and alaska, place unconstitutional restrictions on abortions. attorneys say the lawsuits are a follow-up to a major u.s. supreme court decision that struck down tough abortion laws in texas. the house has passed a bill that aims to help drug and biomedical companies get faster

health programs. some say the bill amounts to nothing more than a hand-out to drug companies. despite that, the measure is expected to pass in the senate. and martin scarrely was scorned around the world for raising the price of a drug to $750 for just one pill. some australian high school students outraged by that 5,000 percent price hike, sayhe lab. their cost, about $2 a dose. >> interesting. philadelphia called off its game with sacramento wednesday night because of condensation on the court in philadelphia. players grabbing some mops, but the 76ers determined it was just way too dangerous. no makeup date has been set. but just imagine being the kings. you travel all across country for the game, and you had to sit

>> they should just bring oup te basketball court, put skates on the players and keep up the net to see what happens. >> that would be fun to watch. you might have seen our happy birthday shout-out to the world's oldest person yet. 117-year-old emma murano who lives in italy. >> this morning, we salute lil hanson, only 105 years old. she marked the occasion by teaching her usual yoga she leads the class every week and she said, she may be 105 years old, but she has no intention of stopping. >> i don't feel any different. i'm just a little more careful than i was years ago. but i don't feel old. i don't think about it. i just keep going. >> good for you, lil. so most of the people in her yoga class, they are in their

children. >> as lil calls them, youngsters. she lives alone in the home that she grew up in, and lil not only teaches yoga, she's also the president of her local bridge team. and she can do moves that i can't do. >> i want to hang out with lil. can we get her in the studio? >> just for the record, she was born in 1911. amazing. >> so the oldest living woman was time. >> just for perspective. >> good for you, lil. happy birthday. coming up, the manhunt up and down the east coast for a leprechaun that is on the lam. the pot of gold, stolen in broad daylight from an armored truck parked on a busy street in manhattan, worth more than a million dollars. and would you be on board to try doing this? that's balancing a bicycle 650

happened. first here's a look at today's temperatures. "world news now" weather

first kid you ready? by their second kid, every mom is an expert, and more likely to choose luvs than first time moms. live, learn, & get luvs. virise above joint discomfort with move free ultra's triple action joint support for improved mobility and flexibility, and 20% better comfort from one tiny, mighty pill... get move free ultra, and enjoy living well. ugh, it's only lunchtime and my cold medicines' wearing off. i'm dragging. yeah, that stuff only lasts a few hours. or, take mucinex. one pill fights congestion for 12 hours. no thank you very much, she's gonna stick with the short-term stuff.

is that a bisque? i just lost my appetite. why take medicines that only last 4 hours, when just one mucinex lasts 12 hours? start the relief. ditch the misery. let's end this. >> three, two, one, go! [ cheers and applause ] revellers gathered in new york last night to watch the annual lighting of the christmas tree in rockefeller center, despite some extra tight security, the celebration went off without a hitch. this year's tree is a spruce, 94 feet tall. big tree. >> and against that holiday backdrop, police from new york to florida are on the hunt for a modern day leprechaun who stole a pot of gold. >> he brazenly took it off an

crowded street in mid town manhattan. >> reporter: an investigation police are calling operation lucky charms. detectives say this man actually stole a pot of gold worth more than $1.5 million. >> do you think he knew it was a bucket of gold? >> i think he believed it was of value. it was in an armored truck with armed guards. >> take a look at the video. it happened in new york city's diamond district. the barrel taken out of the vehicle when one of the armed guards turned his back. >> so it's gold flakes, what would somebody do with that? >> it would be melted down, and put into cubes and sold. >> reporter: the barrel nearly 90 pounds. so heavy, the thief had to keep putting it down. police say so far, they believe the end of the rainbow for this real life leprechaun may be florida. >> the armored car company is offering a $100,000 reward for

merchandise. linsey davis, abc news, new york. brazen. coming up the new chapter in the battle between leah remini and the church of scientology. >> hear what she's releasing in

? it has been a long painl battle with the church of scientology. >> she's been a critic of the church she left three years ago. now she has a new series for a&e, but the church is firing back. here's dan harris. >> i'm going to get there first. >> during her nine seasons on the hit cbs show the king of queens, she appeared to be the ideal scientologist. famous and fiercely loyal. but behind the scenes, she says

including about the world's best known scientologist, tom cruise. >> i think it's a privilege to call yourself a scientologist, and it's something that you have to earn. >> being critical of tom cruise is being critical of scientology itself. you are a person who is anti- -- the aims and goals of scientology. you are evil. >> reporter: leah said she entered his orbit as her own career sky rocketed. get the laser in on you and you're the most important thing that ever happened. it's what are you doing, how you doing, and yeah, great, great. great great, great. >> reporter: but leah said her exposure to cruise, this is them hugging at a movie premiere, opened her eyes to his vast influence within the church. an influence that was exemplified by a call she got one night by a church official. >> tom wants you to come over

angelo arrived at cruise's home, they say two high-ranking scientology officials were there with tom and his new girlfriend katie holmes. >> he was forcibly kissing katie. i said, get a freaking room and i was written up for that. >> reporter: that's right. one of those church officials essentially tattled on her. she said church members regularly write knowledge reports on one another for breaking rules. answer the allegations in auditing sessions. >> does it create an atmosphere of mistrust? >> you can assume if you say something that is critical to the church, you will be written up. husband, wife, mother, daughter. it's what the group does to regulate itself. >> reporter: leah admits to writing knowledge reports herself. >> did you ever write up a report on your husband?

about to hit shelves, the church hand-delivered a packet of information to abc news, containing a series of damning claims about leah, including that she was actually expelled from scientology for ethical lapses and claims that she tried to stay. leah insists the separation was her idea. >> reporter: so that is one of their main arguments, that you're just trying to stay relevant. here, let me read you something. >> please. >> reporter: given her desire for attention, it surprise that for two years, she has been uncapable of moving on with her life and remains obsessed with exploiting her former religion in a pathetic attempt to get publicity. >> yes, i agree, i wish i could get over 30 years of this. unfortunately, it's going to take some time. >> dan harris, abc news, new york. coming up, we'll show you what's being called the latest extreme sport. >> would you try this?

>> now you have me. i'll do it. >> coming up, this happened, straight ahead. you're watching "world news

ugh, it's only lunchtime and my cold medicines' wearing off. i'm dragging. yeah, that stuff only lasts a few hours. or, take mucinex. one pill fights congestion for 12 hours. no thank you very much, she's gonna stick with the short-term stuff. 12 hours? guess i won't be seeing you for a while. is that a bisque? i just lost my appetite. why take medicines that only last 4 hours, when just one mucinex lasts 12 hours? ditch the misery. let's end this. ?living well? rise above joint discomfort with move free ultra's triple action joint support for improved mobility and flexibility,

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delivers mega support. ? ? time for another edition of "this happened." >> some interesting and bizarre attention, like this one. pack your drama mean for this one. >> i guess we can call this bike balancing. this is a man named fabio riding his bike on a railing that happens to be 65 stories up on an austrian dam. he rode 650 feet across it. >> the video lasts for three minutes that he's doing this. this is all for a contest called gopro world contest. it looks amazing, but i should

there was a guy walking next to him with a rope that was tethered to him just in case. it still doesn't mean i would do it. >> so if we tether you and i'll hold the rope -- no? >> i wouldn't even walk like this with -- tethered. >> i think we have a new segment coming our way. >> i think we've tried that. okay, not too many people can say they bowled but shaun osborn can say it happened to him. >> shaun was on a roll last week, when he bold three, 300-point games in a row. shaun said he couldn't believe it, and never thought it was possible. before this, he was just your average league bowler, doing it for fun. >> i'd say he's no longer just your average league bowler. he said he's starting to believe a little bit more every day that he's good.

and never before in texas where he lives. that's impressive. >> congrats. and if bowling isn't your thing, maybe chess is. we have a new world champion there. >> after three weeks t came down to two guys who were locked had in a back and forth battle of high-speed tiebreakers. they were stressed out. in the end, two-time world champion magnus carlson won his third title after he defeated the russian challenge ner new york. his win, which came on his 26th birthday. so he gets to take home most of his $1.1 million gift. not a bad better gift. >> not bad at all. and finally this happened. a british lad has a new best friend. a wild fox. >> henry hoffman was walking around london when out of nowhere, this fox appears, dnts want to let go of his bag. at one point it cozies up to him

my favorite part about being a dad -- just to see their faces in the morning when i wake them up. the first thing you think about is your wife and your kids and your family. so i had surgery locally, and it came back after my follow up that i needed a second surgery. and that's when i said i need a second opinion. everyone, from the moment i walked through the doors, they're smiling and i love the fact that included me in the whole process. the diagnosis of cancer is one of we can do now here. rod was great. i mean, he did everything that we asked him and more. the treatment plan was for him to have chemotherapy and radiation followed by surgery. i feel like this was the right way for me and the right treatment for me. at cancer treatment centers of america, we treat cancer, every stage, every day. call or go to cancercenter.com.

this morning on "world news now," get your tickets for the trump tour. the president-elect heading to the midwest, today kicking off his thank you tour and touting his role in keeping jobs in the usa. all while a familiar face gets some attention thanks to a possible role in the upcoming trump administration. and violent weather in e atlantic coast. some of the heavy rain is doing firefighters in tennessee a lot of good. the husband of the california woman who disappeared for weeks, speaking on camera. what he's saying about the ordeal she just survived. then lifestyles of the rich and kendis goes international. he spared no expense to show us some heavenly hotel suites. see the trip of a lifetime on