making news in america this morning, breaking overnight, the attorney general facing a firestorm despite his denial during confirmation hearings jeff sessions did have meetings with the russian ambassador during the campaign. the calls for his resignation growing overnight. what the white house is now saying this morning. record run. the stock market hits another milestone. the outlook for today, what's behind the surge and why it hinders on the government following through on promises. >> severe storms on the move. warm weather fueling strong winds and heavy rains. you can see and hear it there. where it's heading right now. officially a couple, the widow of joe biden's son now dating the former vice president's other son. what the family is saying overnight about the romance.

and we do say good morning, everyone. that breaking news, attorney general jeff sessions facing growing calls to reveal what happened during his two meetings with the russian ambassador to the u.s. >> the conversations taking place before the election as russia was accused of meddling in the presidential race. at his confirmation hearings, sessions denied under oath he had communicated with the russians regarding the trump campaign. >> word of the meetings fueling new calls for sessions to recuse himself from the investigation into contacts between russia and the trump campaign and some democrats say he should step down. over night attorney general jeff sessions under fire. at least one new york tabloid calling it a bombshell. at the heart, this exchange, sessions in sworn testimony at his senate confirmation hearings. >> if there is any evidence that anyone affiliated with the

campaign communicated with the russian government in the course of this campaign, what will you do? >> senator franken, i'm not aware of any of those activities. i have been called a surrogate at a time or two in that campaign and i did not have communications with the russians and i'm unable to comment on it. >> reporter: this morning the justice department confirmed he did have contact not once but twice most recently as senator. he reportedly met privately with the russian ambassador in his capitol hill office last september but overnight releasing a statement saying i have never met with russian officials to discuss issues of the campaign. i have no idea what this allegation is about. it is false. this, of course, follows other revelations of top trump officials with ties to the russians. national security adviser michael flynn resigning after lying about his communications with the russian ambassador, as well. and

leader nancy pelosi and elijah cummings calling for sessions to step down. >> i can tell you one thing, i know just based upon all the information that i have read and heard this evening it sounds like he did not tell the truth. >> reporter: overnight republican senators grilled as well about the russian contacts. >> i don't know. it may be an innocent contact. i don't know if he has to disclose everybody he's ever talked to, but a special prosecutor. >> i think we have to know more. >> reporter: white house officials are calling these new reports part of a partisan attack. and one more thing that statement from the white house also says that sessions met with the ambassador in an official capacity as a member of the senate armed services committee, which they say is consistent with his testimony. >> meanwhile, white house lawyers have instructed president trump's aides to preserve any materials that could be connected to russian interference in the election. the directive following a request by senate democrats, but

abc news the white house is simply taking proactive steps to push back against false and politically motivated attacks. new details about president trump's revised travel ban. the new executive order on immigration which remains on hold is expected to remove iraq from the list of banned countries. sources say defense secretary james mattis and others are concerned that keeping iraq on the list could hinder the fight against isis. it's still not clear when the president plans to sign it. warning overnight from former george w. bush, he said the country's isolationist tendency is dangerous to national security. this comes as the trump administration faces questions about its commitment to international partnerships. >> the world is a dangerous place and, again, this may be taken as criticism of one of my successors and i don't really mean it to be. there is a lesson, however, when

the united states decides to not take the lead and withdraw. >> bush also defended the media from criticism saying the nation needed an independent press but added that it needs to be accurate. the president's speech this week boosts stocks. all of the main stock averages opened this morning at their highest levels ever, ever. the dow starting above the 21,000 mark for the first time after climbing 303 points. analysts say the more moderate tone of president trump's address to congress helped fuel the rally. the president's plan for lower taxes and less regulation also is helping. and the dow is up more than 15% since election day and in the last four months it has added to the average 401(k) as much as $11,000. a lot of happy investors this morning. abc's rebecca jarvis on what's ahead. >> reporter: we're in the midst of the longest running bull market in the history of time. since march of 200

tripled and the biggest risk ahead is washington not delivering on wall street's expectations. if that were the case you might see stocks tum. >> that was rebecca jarvis for us overnight most of the averages over asia posted gains and stock futures indicating another positive open for stocks right here in the u.s. we turn to the killer storm system that spawned a swarm of tornadoes in the midwest. well, it is now in the east. strong winds from mississippi to connecticut may damage homes and other buildings and knock over trees. that's what happened near charlotte where a massive tree fell causing major damage to two homes, incredibly no one was injured. the storm system also brought high winds and hail to the national area. you can hear it there. some buildings were damaged and there were debris on roadways. let's find out what's in store from that storm system. accuweath accuweather's justin povick tracking it all. justin. >> kendis, adrienne, thanks and

now that storm system responsible for all the severe weather and the tornadoes well off the coast at this point but now talking about some gusty winds and this could cause travel delays of its own. along with that, we're also going to be talking about some much colder temperatures, in fact, this will be the coldest air mass we have seen in quite some time continuing into friday along with perhaps some snow showers in spots. kendis, adrienne. >> just when you packed away your winter gloves and coat. >> i know. all right, well, still ahead who is now banned from the oscars following that epic blunder from the show? that awkward moment. maybe an awkward affair. joe biden's son reportedly dating the widow of this late sn beau.

well, this frightening scene from the florida panhandle where a second floor condo balcony collapsed injuring 11 people. a birthday party was under way when that came crashing down. emergency officials say the injuries do not appear to be life-threatening. a development in the murder investigation of the estranged half brother of kim jong-un. overnight authorities in malaysia saying they are releasing a north korean man held in connection with that fatal nerve agent, that poison attack on kim jong-nam. a reason for the man's arrest was never given being deported because he doesn't have valid travel documents. the wife of the orlando nightclub gunman ordered released from jail.

helping omar mateen plan the attack which left 49 dead. a judge says salman is not dangerous and there's no proof she has ties to isis or holds extremist views. her release was delayed so prosecutors can appeal. the arrest of a woman in mississippi raising questions about president trump's claims that he's only targeting the bad ones in his immigration crackdown. so after her father and brother were picked up by immigration agents, daniela vargas made a public statement on their behalf. wait till you hear what happened next. >> today my father and brother await deportation while i continue to fight this ballot as a d.r.e.a.m.er to help contribute to this country which i feel is my country. >> mopes later after that vargas herself was arrested. and now she faces deportation. she was brought to the u.s. from argentina as a child and was granted temporary legal status by daca, deferred action for childhood arrivals and immigration officials say

arrest complies with federal law. two accountants have been banished for that oscars blunder. brian cullinan and martha ruiz were tanked with standing backstage and making sure presenters received the right envelopes. at the end of the night cullinan handed warren beatty the wrong one. you saw that. if you haven't you saw it on your facebook feed. neither will work at the oscars again. they remain partners at pwc which has been handling the voting for 83 years but maybe not much longer. the academy is going to review that relationship. i kind of feel bad for them. i mean i understand it was their job but it's like, ooh. >> one job. >> one job. when we come back the desperate search to find a young nurse's killer. the family pleading for help. plus new available video. a tiny animal causing big problems. what was found on that plane delaying the flight for hours. ekes. ergies.

complete allergy relief in a gentle mist you may not even notice. using unique mistpro technology, new flonase sensimist delivers a gentle mist to help block six key inflammatory substances that cause your symptoms. most allergy pills only block one. and six is greater than one. break through your allergies. new flonase sensimist. ♪ my swthis scarf all thatsara. left to remem... what! she washed this like a month ago the long lasting scent of gain flings the best moment to be happy... ...is the one happening right now. life. enjoy all of it. of your brain can make it hard to lose weight? contrave is an fda-approved weight-loss medicine that may

or struggle with obesity lose weight and keep it off. contrave is believed to work on two areas of the brain: your hunger center... (woman) i'm so hungry. (avo) to reduce hunger. and your reward system... (woman) ice cream. french fries. (avo) to help control cravings. across three long-term studies, contrave patients lost approximately 2-4x more weight than with diet and exercise alone. contrave is not for everyone. one ingredient in contrave may increase suicidal thoughts or actions in some children, teens, and young adults within the first few months. other serious side effects include seizures, increase in blood pressure or heart rate, liver damage, manic episodes, glaucoma and allergic reactions. do not take with opioids. reduce hunger, help control cravings. contrave. the #1 prescribed weight-loss brand. go to contrave.com.

sped through tennessee yesterday. the first day of peak tornado season including this twister in cool springs south of nashville. homes and businesses damaged. trees and power lines knocked down. no injuries reported. road conditions in tennessee should be fairly good this morning but further north near the great lakes, roads could be slippery. drivers should watch for standing water in northern florida and washington state. snow in the cascades and northern rockies. if you're flying airport delays most likely in boston and new york. the search is intensifying for a killer who brutally stabbed a young nurse in nashville, tennessee. >> tiffany ferguson dedicated her life to helping others found murdered in her home just a couple of days ago and police believe her killer was caught on camera. abc's eva pilgrim is in nashville. >> reporter: police on the hunt for the man seen in this surveillance video who they suspect fatally stabbed 23-year-old tiffany ferguson in her nashville apartment early tuesday. the video showed the hooded figure walking near the

around 5:20 a.m. the suspect attempted to break into several cars before checking for unlocked apartment doors according to police eventually making his way into ferguson's home raiding it for valuables and stabbing her to death. the intensive care nurse had been out with friends the night before. her sister telling abc news she'd been having problems with the lock on her door. ferguson's roommate waking up to her screams rushing to her room where she found her friend suffering from multiple stab wounds. eva pilgrim, abc news, nashville. according to ferguson's sister the police have questioned several people but no one is in custody. much more on this story later on "good morning america." former vice president joe biden's son is now dating the widow of his other son. the late beau biden according to a new report, "the new york post" reporting hallie biden and hunter biden began seeing each other after hunter separated from his wife months after beau's death and "the post" saying the couple has the full

president and his wife jill. seven baltimore police officers are under arrest accused of operating a racketeering and conspiracy. the officers stole money, they say, from citizen, filed false police reports and inflated time sheets. because of the arrests local prosecutors say they have dropped five criminal cases brought by the officers who are now charged in that racketeering conspiracy. using a gps is no substitute for looking out your window. that's how a woman ended up in an eastern pennsylvania lake. she was paying way too much attention to the map on her phone and not to where she was driving. it's a twisting road that requires a lot of attention. she wasn't hurt but it's certainly the talk of the town. all right. so it was not your average delay. i should point out boeing 777 is one of the world's largest airplanes flying from london to san francisco with hundreds of passengers on board and somehow one tiny little mouse was able to upset all of that. the british airways flight landing in california several hours late. ye

board the plane. they were originally meant to fly on. the plane had to be replaced because of safety concerns like the mouse possibly chewing through the wires. i did the math. that delay apparently cost british airways more than $300,000. a tiny little mouse. sorry, siri. i was checking -- i was doing the conversion. thank you. >> speaking of excitement there should be no apologizing for the basketball motion you're about to see. >> let's get right to it from our guys at espn. >> good morning. it's "sportscenter" from los angeles. stan verrett, neil everett, anchors on duty. great nba game to show you. >> college i'll do. back to school, man. so it's northwestern hosting michigan. northwestern has never made the ncaa tournament. they've hosted one but they've never made one. and michigan is going to kill their -- no, they're not. we're going to

no, we're not going to overtime because we have 1.7 seconds left. so northwestern had a chance. michigan had a chance. now we're going to go to overtime because with 1.7 you have next to no chance. oh, wait, rewind, rewind. derek pardon from nathan taphorn. they're a lock. great nba game. lebron james and cavaliers taking on the celtics. one-two match-up in the eastern conference. >> reading, that's great. >> isaiah thomas reading the defense. kyrie irving, how did he do that? >> yeah. >> 28 points in the game. there goes thomas, he gets fouled there. made both free throws and put them up by two. cavaliers trying to take or take the lead. lebron had a triple-double in the game and deron williams, in his first game with the cavalier, he can't hit it and the celtics win it, 103-99. >> never get a second ch

make a first impression. >> no. >> that's all we got. back to you. >> words to live by. up next in "the pulse," world of weird weather including a blizzard warning in hawaii. it's true. what a shot. the must see full court buzzer beater. i was wondering if an electric toothbrush really cleans... ...better than a manual, and my hygienist says it does. but... ...they're not all the same. turns out, they're really... ...different. who knew? i had no idea. so, she said look for... ...one that's shaped like a dental tool with a round... ...brush head. go pro with oral-b. oral-b's rounded brush head surrounds each tooth to...

...oral-b crossaction is clinically proven to... ...remove more plaque than sonicare diamondclean. my mouth feels so clean. i'll only use an oral-b! the #1 brand used by dentists worldwide. oral-b. brush like a pro. no one burns on my watch! try alka seltzer heartburn relief chews. they work fast and don't taste chalky. mmmmm...amazing. i have heartburn. alka seltzer heartburn relief chews. enjoy the relief.

id mixing food, with not food, become food? thankfully at panera, 100% of our food is 100% clean. no artificial preservatives, sweeteners, flavors, or colors. panera. food as it should be. ♪ all right. time for your thursday "pulse." some of the weird weather that we're seeing here in mid-february. so we've had heavy rain in california and short sleeves in boston. >> yeah. but, you know, it's feist to change, right? this is how you picture hawaii this time of year, right? beautiful sunshine. warm temps and light breeze. >> there's a blizzard warning. >> okay. >> yeah. >> what? >> a blizzard warning for hawaii on the big island. granted it's up here at the top of the two

where we have our scientists but they're expecting 6 to 10 inches of snow and winds up to 65 miles an hour right there in hawaii. >> not pina colada weather. >> no. >> not at all. >> it's heavy bourbon weather. >> right. yes, march is summer in antarctica but 64 degrees? we just got confirmation of that high temperature two years ago. if it continues maybe the penguins will trade in their tuxedos for tank tops. alec baldwin came up with a new way -- >> after impersonating trump on "saturday night live" he's co-authoring a satirical book called "you can't spell america without me." >> of course, playing off his "saturday night live" stint. the book will cover things like backroom strategy sessions with white house advisers and triumphs over the dishonest media. you know, there's been a lot of talk about him subbing

president trump at the white house correspondents' dinner which mr. trump said he will pass on. >> we'll see who is there in april. if you thought the end of that college basketball game we saw earlier was exciting, well, a high school game in indiana has it beat. >> yeah, here it is. a missed free throw. the kid throws the ball from 75 feet away and it goes in. >> that won a playoff game for the students from central christian academy. >> yeah. >> do it it's march second.. and it's friday eve. eileen whelan will have your early weekend forecast in just a moment, but first here are some stories we have been following overnight. breaking overnight. attorney general jeff sessions is speaking out about a new report claiming that he met twice with russia's ambassador to the u-s during the presidential campaign, but never disclosed that to members of congress. that's according to the washington post. overnight-- sessions released a statement calling the report false, and saying that he never met with russian officials to discuss camp

several democratic lawmakers, including maryland representative elijah cummings, are now calling for sessions to resign. also breaking overnight -- police are investigating a reported home invasion and stabbing in hyattsville. it happened just before midnight. police say the suspect forced his way into a home on capital view terrace. a person inside was robbed and stabbed, before the suspect fled. that resident is now hospitalized, and there is no word on that person's condition. good morning washington. toss to eileen wind advisory in effect until 10am. gusts 35+ mph. - much cooler today - few flurries friday - cool first weekend of march - 60s return next week today: mostly sunny, windy to breezy, and much cooler. highs: 48-54 winds: nw 15-25 g 40 falling to 30 mph tonight: increasing clouds. cold. lows: 29-35 winds: nw 5-10 mph friday: partly sunny. flurries, light snow showers. breezy and cold. highs: 39-45 winds: nw 10-15 g 30+ mph

wind advisory in effect until 10am. gusts 35+ mph. - much cooler today - few flurries friday - cool first weekend of march - 60s return next week today: mostly sunny, windy to breezy, and much cooler. highs: 48-54 winds: nw 15-25 g 40 falling to 30 mph tonight: increasing clouds. cold.

winds: nw 5-10 mph friday: partly sunny. flurries, light snow showers. breezy and cold. highs: 39-45 winds: nw 10-15 g 30+ mph e president's ecutive order regarding a temporary travel ban is delayed once again.

revised travel ban from president trump wednesday-- but the order was delayed following his congressional speech tuesday night. the original order sparked massive backlash... and was put on hold by a federal appeals court. white house officials say the new order removes iraq from the seven previously targeted countries. right now there is still no word on when the order will come out. an update now on a former secret service agent-- arrested in a "sexting" case. lee moore has pleaded guilty to charges that he sent sexually explicit messages and photos to minors while working at the white house. moore thought he was sexting a 14-year-old... but prosecutors say he was actually communicating with the child predator task force. moore could face life in prison. the washington wizards are on a two game winning streak after taking down the raptors last night. and the next time they step onto the court-- they will have a little more help. the wizards have signed veteran point guard brandon jennings who was recently waived by the knicks. jennings will be availble to play on friday. in seven-plus nba seasons, jennings has averaged 14

per game. it's xx and we're just getting started. under fire. attorney general jeff sessions-- is speaking out as several congressional leaders demand his immediate resignation. we'll tell you why they are accusing him of lying under oath. good morning washington. wind advisory in effect until 10am. gusts 35+ mph. - much cooler today - few flurries friday - cool first weekend of march - 60s return next week today: mostly sunny, windy to breezy, and much cooler. highs: 48-54 winds: nw 15-25 g 40 falling to 30 mph tonight: increasing clouds. cold. lows: 29-35 winds: nw 5-10 mph friday: partly sunny. flurries, light snow showers. breezy and cold. highs: 39-45 winds: nw 10-15 g 30+ mph