this morning on "world news now," the high stakes negotiations overnight in washington. the republicans' original tax cuts are now possibly scaled back over concerns of how much they'll add to the deficit. we have a status report just ahead. and there is a rex it strategy for secretary of state rex tillerson to move him from his post. the conflicting reports that president trump wants him out. mean while, a diplomatic mess is brewing with america's closest ally. british parliament members unleashing anger over the president's tweets. and a late night craving led a man to a waffle house. when he got there, everyone was sleeping.

next. >> and call it the perfect remix. we're getting our first listen to the collaboration between ed sheeran and beyonce, the duet that's melting our hearts and moving our souls. that was deep for a friday. it's december 1st. from abc news, this is "world news now." >> melting our souls. >> can i get a breaking news banner for that? beyonce -- >> ed sheeran, beyonce -- oh, i see. it's part of that. >> featuring beyonce. it's not beyonce's new song, even though she's always dropping a new song here and there, right? >> you sound like you want to talk about this a lot. >> that is not our leading story. >> we are going into get into this, but we have to start things off with a little news and start the last half hour with the scramble to push tax reform over the finish line. >> the gop tax bill is in a

republicans are trying to scale back some of the cuts to secure crucial support from senators worried about adding to the deficit. they're also working on a major new rewrite but holding out hope of passing it today. >> reporter: this is not how republicans were hoping to kick off their tax reform votes. they have to make changes to this bill that are so big and so significant that they called off votes all together last night they say votes will start again today, but we don't know exactly what they'll be voting on or how much the bill changed overnight. the big sticking point is from senator bob corker who doesn't like that this bill increases the deficit by so much, $1.5 trillion to be exact. senators have been working towards a deal to get him on board. they wanted to include an option to raise tax down the road if the cuts don't lead to the sort of economic growth republicans are hoping for. this option had been known as the trigger. but when senators brought the

parliamentarian who is basically the referee, she said it violated the chamber's rules. so they went back to the drawing board, negotiating, running back and forth trying to make a deal on more permanent tax increases. but there was too much work to do so the vote got punted to 11:00 a.m. last night republicans seemed confident that they'd get a deal done, but on what? we don't really know, and we're not sure they know either, diane, kenneth? >> thanks. breaking overnight, president trump is blasting the not guilty verdict in san francisco. >> the murder of kate steinle made headlines. during the presidential campaign and just hours ago the president tweeted that the acquittal is quote, disgraceful. he said no wonder the people of the country are so angry with illegal immigration. jose zarate says he never meant

saying the gun discharged accidently. the bullet then ricocheted into steinle. he had been deport the five times before the incident. his attorney says his immigration status had no relevance to this case. >> this case was used as a means to foment hate, to foment division. to foment a program of mass deportation. it was used to catapult a presidency along that philosophy of hate. of others. and i believe today is a vindication for the rights of immigrants. >> attorney general jeff sessions is blaming san francisco's sanctuary city status for steinle's death calling it preventible. the justice department is now considering filing federal charges against garcia zarate,

criticism is coming in from some democrats, including eric swalwell who says he couldn't disagree more with this verdict. democratic lawmakers looking into russian election meddling are growing increasingly frustrated with attorney general jeff sessions. after a closed door meeting with sessions, they said he refused to answer when asked if president trump ever instructed him to block probes. but congressman adam schiff acknowledged that three can't force sessions to speak without the help of the republicans. meanwhile, the "new york times" is reporting that the president had repeatedly urged top republican senators to end the investigation. richard bird told the times that the president told him he hoped he could conclude the probe as quickly as possible but bird said he did not feel pressure. sources say the president expressed similar concerns to others over the summer but they down-played it as actions of a political newcomer. rex tillerson said he didn't

initially want the job. he may not have it much longer. the white house is working on what could be a rexit strategy. cecelia vega has more. >> reporter: in the oval office, hardly a vote of confidence from president trump. do you want rex tillerson on the job, mr. president? >> he's here, rex is here. >> reporter: but the question, for how much longer? abc news has learned white house officials have a plan to replace rex tillerson, an ouster that could come in a matter of weeks. they've even lined up a possible replacement, cia director, mike pompeo with tom cotton possibly replacing pompeo at the cia. the state department downplaying the news. president trump has repeatedly and very publicly undercut his own secretary of state, saying tillerson was quote, wasting his time trying to negotiate with north korea. even calling him weak. >> sometimes i'd like him to

a little bit tougher, but other than that, we have a very good relationship. >> reporter: and there was the report that tillerson told colleagues his boss was quote, a moron. >> i'm not going to deal with petty stuff like that. >> reporter: the president responding, if he did that, i guess we'll have to compare i.q. tests, and i can tell you who is going to win. publicly at least, the white house maintains tillerson still has a job. can we deduce from that that the president has confidence in the secretary of state? >> i think i address thad pretty clearly just now. >> is that a yes? >> as i've just said, when it comes to questions like this, of senior staff, when the president loses confidence in somebody he'll no longer be here. >> reporter: now what is being said publicly and privately about rex tillerson's fate are two different things. sources say he could be out by the end of the year, but the state department made it very clear and public when they said john kelly called over there to let them know that the rumors

cecelia vega, abc news, the white house. now to britain, where there's plenty of anger at president trump. le many british officials are outraged at the president's retweeting of three videos. >> british prime minister theresa may called trump's retweets the wrong thing to do and he told her to focus on radical islamic terrorism in the uk instead of him. now some members of parliament want may to revoke an invitation for trump to visit england. >> action is needed now, not a slap on the wrist! cancel the state visit. >> by sharing it, he is either a racist, incompetent or unthinking or all three. >> so far, all may has said about the state visit is that there is an invitation extend and accepted.

but no date has been set. trump will not be invited to address parliament whenever his visit occurs. if you haven't checked on your investments in a while, surging stocks may make it a good time to do that. the dow jones stopped 24,000 for the first time. it took just 350 -- 30 days to move 1,000 points. the other major averages posted high gains. there are several reasons, including strong earnings and the possibility of a tax break. a south carolina man had a decision to make when he tried to cure his late-night munchies with a trip to the waffle house, but after waiting and waiting and waiting, he finally realized the staff was asleep. >> anyone here? >> so alex bowen decided to take matters into his own hands, jumping into the kitchen,

his own breakfast. >> scattered, smothered, diced hash browns. >> covered! >> he didn't make any hash browns. he cooked up a double texas cheese steak melt with pickles. all while snapping selfies. after he ate he cleaned up and left. >> he said he even cleaned up the grill. he photographed the sleeping employees, which they probably didn't appreciate. that night he didn't pay, but he did go back the following afternoon and gave the employee $5. >> down the hill from my alma mater. >> we feel you, we feel you. the hunt for a pint sized jewel thief. see how much they got away with. and dwayne the rock johnson sports a new look for the holidays. what

for him on christmas eve after he comes done the chimney. that's ahead in "the skinny." but first, here's a look at today's forecast. "world news now" weather, brought to you by points of light.

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police in arkansas are looking for a woman who they say used valuable mother/son time to steal valuables from this jewelry store. surveillance video shows the young boy crawling behind a display case and mom pointing out what she wants. he managed to get about $30,000 worth of jewels according to police. mom faces charges of contributing to the delinquency of a minor if she's caught. turning now to that rare 4.1 earthquake that rattled the east coast. >> it was felt from virginia to new england. >> reporter: surrounded by new jersey, philadelphia and baltimore, it was centered northeast of dover, delaware, more than four miles under the surface. >> i heard a loud bang and saw the fence in front of us shake. >> our neighbor came running out wanting to know if we felt it. i didn't feel it but i heard t. >> reporter: unlike the west coast,

in the mid atlantic. >> we have seen quakes in every state of the eastern sea board with the exception of florida. don't think that you are immune. you just get them a lot less often. >> reporter: the quake 200 miles from the epicenter of the august 2011, 5.8 virginia quake, which rattled washington, d.c., causing $200 million to $300 million to the washington mon y monument and other buildings. there were no reports of damages or injuries at dover air force base. this may not have caused any serious damage. david kerley, abc news, washington. >> what are you doing? >> earthquake. >> oh, i see. it's okay. we're going to be all right. >> we're not used to that out here. >> this is like when other areas get snow and buffalo just laughs. the west coast is laughing at the east coast right now, freaking out over this. >> cecelia vega laughed at us. you kn

ed sheeran and beyonce. and prince george's christmas list directly to santa. "the skinny" is coming up next. christmas list directly to santa. "the skinny" is coming up next. s but they're not all the same. 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 gently remove more plaque. and unlike sonicare, oral-b is the only electric toothbrush brand accepted by the american dental association for its effectiveness and safety. my mouth feels so clean. i'll only use an oral-b. oral-b. brush like a pro.

♪ skinny ♪ so skinny time for "the skinny," starting with ed sheeran's new remix of "perfect." and he's getting a little help with this one. >> he s the original version is on his third album, and the new version has an acoustic guitar duet and beyonce. take a listen. ♪ i found a man ♪ stronger than anyone i know ♪ he shares my dreams ♪ i hope that someday we'll share our home ♪ >> woo! >> yeah. >> so nice. >> that's good stuff. >> by the way, this isn't the first time sheeran and beyonce have collaborated. think performed two years ago

>> sheeran also told jemmy fall fallon that he hung out with them over pizza. >> basically, they're besties. >> i would like to go to their house for pizza. >> by the way, ed sheeran's the man, he's best friends with everybody, taylor swift, katy perry. people from "game of thrones," they love ed sheeran. next, to the sexiest santa claus ever. my best friend, dwayne the rock johnson stripped-down to his santa vest and brought the little hat and candy cane for the latest cover of "entertainment weekly." >> last year, the sexiest man alive called him self dewanta. telling the magazine, let's spread some much-needed holiday joy. he

chimney. >> i'll remember that. he's still the sexiest man alive. just because people didn't rate him that doesn't mean it's not true. meanwhile, johnson's production company hit the record for most cereal boxes toppled, 2,686 boxes in total. it is sent to charities. that feed the lome homeless. >> nice. is my cinnamon toast crunch in there? can i get a few boxes of that? >> i've got a few boxes of tequila. dewanta. because you're third in line for the british throne does not mean you don't have a christmas list to santa. >> he said he has it written down. should i do this in an english accent? >> yes, please. >> he hasn't written down many

is probably -- okay. >> i wish we could turn the cameras around to get our floor manager's facial expression right now. >> cheerio. >> laughing hysterically. >> i'm sorry. >> that is the worst british accent. >> i didn't say the hip, hip cheerio. >> young prince george reportedly asked for one thing under the tree this year, a police car. he even left three of the four lines on the note conspicuously empty after circling nice on that list. now to a tv moment that could have been a disaster. >> almost as bad as his accent. >> a scientist in australia was showing how to make a little rocket using liquid nitrogen when this happened. this just seems like it's going to go bad. >> standing by, totally harmless. >> oh! >> she pointed it down. don't do -- >> see, he gave it to her to hold but didn't quite tell her what t

>> oh, yikes. >> and it nearly smacks her right in the face. we think this is tragic, our producers think it's hilarious. finally, jason alexander. >> look who i ran into. jason alexander. >> look who i ran into. so when i found out medicare doesn't pay all my medical expenses, i looked at my options. then i got a medicare supplement insurance plan. [ male announcer ] if you're eligible for medicare, you may know it only covers about 80% of your part b medical expenses. the rest is up to you. call now and find out about an aarp medicare supplement insurance plan, insured by unitedhealthcare surance company. like all standardized medicare supplement insurance plans, it helps pick up some of what medicare doesn't pay. and could save you in out-of-pocket medical costs. to me, relationships matter. i've been with my doctor for 12 years.

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and learn more about the kinds of plans that will be here for you now - and down the road. i have a lifetime of experience. so i know how important that is. my shoulders carry some i deserve others i don't but in the end only one name really matters because shoulders were made for greatness, not dandruff

almost everything. you know, 1 i n 10 houses could get hit by an expensive septic disaster. but for only $7 a month, rid-x helps break down waste. avoid a septic disaster with rid-x. ♪ from renewed nuclear worries ot of north korea to the toppling of a tell administration mainstay, this has been a busy week for headlines. >> but there was time for a royal engagement and learning first hand what it takes to be a rockette. in tampa, a suspected serial killer in custody. a basketball player from st. john's. >> police in florida say they have the man who terrorized a tampa neighborhood for weeks. >> i assure you, this is the man who did this. >> b t

kill four people at random over five weeks, all walking alone within the dark of night within blocks of each other. >> if he is found to be guilty, he should die. >> north korea says their new missile could reach the entire u.s. mainland with a nuclear warhead. >> it stayed higher and longer than any missile everybody tested by the north koreans. the icbm could potentially reach all the way across the continental u.s. >> i will only tell you that we will take care of it. it is a situation that we will handle. >> we have just learned that nbc's matt lauer has been fired because of reports of inappropriate sexual behavior. >> this is a sad day here at "today" and nbc news. our colleague matt lauer has been terminated by this get work. >> lauer once gave an employee a sex toy and explicit note. he had

that allowed the door to be locked their the inside without getting up. an american princess. prince harry asks a woman he met from the u.s. to be his wife. >> he got on one knee. >> she didn't let me finish. i was like, can i give you the ring? she's like, oh, yes, the ring. the little diamonds on the side are from my mother's jewelry collection to make sure she's with us on this crazy journey together. >> if you want to be a rockette, you have to be ready to do 300 eye-high leg kicks. >> 300? >> 300. >> okay, ready? one, two, three. >> does that count? >> we made three. >> wow, good job. >> work on that. >> we'll keep our night jobs, i suppose. finally, a celebrity sighting. >> oh, my gosh. >> we missed this in "the sk

jason alexander had a big day. >> george costanza. >> did he say oh, m

making news in america this morning, not guilty. the undocumented immigrant charged with killing katie steinle is acquitted of murder. >> from day one, this case was used as a means to foment hate. >> this morning the president's response and the new action that could bring it back into the spotlight. tax plan setback. a late night drama on capitol hill after a new estimate reel veries how much the republican tax cuts will add to the deficit. this morning the frustrating for a deal and the word one lawmaker is using to describe the process. new details in the matt lauer sexual misconduct scandal has more accusers come forward. th