this morning on "early today" -- holiday showdown. house republicans reject the senate's two-month extension of the payroll tax cut just days before it expires. out of luck. a utah man's thrill of a winning after brand new laomborgini is short-lived. camera catches a fedex short-lived. camera catches a fedex driver trashing a delivery. captions paid for by nbc-universal television hello and good morning. i'm lynn berry. today we begin with payroll politics. pushing back against a senate bill passed over the weekend, house republicans refuse to hold

a vote that could have extended payroll tax cuts before they expire at the end of the month. instead they challenged senate democrats to come back to town to negotiate a new deal, a political gambit that could end up being paid for by tens of millions of americans. nbc's brian mooar reports. >> the nays are -- >> reporter: the senate payroll tax cut extension slammed into a republican roadblock in the house. house republicans are trying to shame vacationing senate democrats back to the bargaining table. >> i need the president to help out, all right? >> reporter: house speaker john boehner refused a direct vote on the senate bill. instead, sending the legislation to a conference committee. but democrats say they will not negotiate. president obama accused republicans of brinksmanship. >> the clock is ticking. time is running out. and if the house republicans refuse to vote for the senate

bill, or even allow it to come up for a vote, taxes will go up in 11 days. >> reporter: not only will 160 million americans see a tax increase, 2.2 million people lose long-term unemployment benefits and 48 million seniors could lose medicare doctor reimbursements. republicans are demanding a one-year extension. not just 60 days. >> fixing something for two months is not fixing something. >> reporter: democrats see other motivations. >> an excuse because they never wanted the tax cut from the beginning. >> reporter: on capitol hill, high-stakes drama with real-life consequences. brian mooar, nbc news, washington. elsewhere, a bloody crackdown continues in syria with reports of more than 100 deaths over the past two days, including dozens of defectors from president bashar al assad forces. amateur video shows what is to

be the result of bloody clashs between protesters and government forces in and around damascus. this week's surge in violence is believed to be a so-called last push by assad's regime before arab league monitors arrive in that country. in what's called the biggest women in cairo, demanding the government military step down. marchers carried a photo of a woman whose clothes were partially pulled off by troops as a symbol of their outrage over the brutal trooement of female protesters. some 10,000 chanting women carried signs, turned out for the massive march throughout downtown cairo. this as 14 people were reportedly killed during a fifth day of clashes between protesters and military forces. back here at home, it may not officially be winter yet but a blistering snowstorm that plowed through the southwest and southern plains was a bitter

reminder of what's in store over the next few months. at least six deaths are blamed on the severe storm that's fizzling out as it moves toward the great lakes. roads were closed across kansas and the texas panhandle to allow crews to clear snow and treacherous patches of ice. snow drifts were up to 10 feet high. well, now here's a look at other stories making news early today in america. los angeles police rushed in to rescue a 4-year-old little girl who was allegedly kidnapped by her father. the suspect led officers on a long pursuit after the girl's mother reported the alleged abduction. he was eventually arrested and the girl was not harmed. a flight headed for georgia ended tragically on a new jersey highway. part of a small aircraft scattered after it smashed into the wooded area. the pilot, his wife, their two children and a family friend were killed. holiday tragedy also struck

a georgia family in texas when a small plane crash killed all five on board. the pilot, his wife, two children and brother perished in the rural area crash. the winner of a raffle, which gave him a brand new la lamborgini wrecked the car after driving over black ice, only six hours after receiving the key. the car is insured and it will be repaired. you should see bill's face. finally, fedex is dealing with a public relations nightmare. security footage of a delivery man tossing a brand new flat-screen over a recipient's fence has gone viral. we can't make it up. the shipping giant tweeted the careless treatment of a package, quote, will be addressed. now for a look at your national and regional weather here, here is meteorologist bill

karins. we see his face. jaw closed. >> i had a funny face. >> only when -- >> i was making a funny face. yeah, very good. >> you know i'm trying to be nice. trying. >> trying. still hoping santa will put you on the good list. good morning, everyone. i want to start with the snow map around the country. a very warm morning everywhere in the east. the blue shows where you there is snow on the ground. there's really none of it east of the mississippi. you have to go up to northern portions of michigan, wisconsin and extreme northern new england. that's it. there's no snow throughout the appalachians. you can see where the snow fell from the big storm yesterday. new mexico got nailed and through the oklahoma panhandle into kansas. that's where the snow fell. that's the fresh snow on the ground. all the other snow out here is mostly up there in the rockies. only 27% of the country has snow on the ground right now. most of that is the mountainous location. it's a mild morning once again. just feels weird. it's 50 degrees to start your morning in washington, d.c. we've got an area, a large area

of rain. it's hit and miss, though. the heaviest, thunderstorms coming on shore down here. the panhandle down in florida but all these showers are going to play throughout the day today. many areas of the east, no real snow with that. the snow's going to be in the rockies over the next 24 to 48 hours. the forecast today, if you're in the eastern u.s., bring the umbrella. that's a look at your national forecast. here's a look at the weather outside your window. on and off rain showers, maybe some drizzle at times. areas like philadelphia and d.c. up i-95, new york, boston, hartford, later on today. we'll be dry in areas in the middle of the country. the storm is moving out. nice day in oklahoma city. still really no arctic cold air heading anywhere in the eastern u.s. the winter's in the u.s. >> don't jinx it for everyone on the east coast. coming up, good news in the battered housing sector. authorities raid one corporate headquarters. which city is breaking the record for tourism? your early morning business headlines are straight ahead. plus, he's a much publicized

student offscreen but has his grad school been cooking his grades? one of college football's most prestigious programs and don mattingly like you've never seen him before, in a dress. you're watching "early today."

good morning and welcome back to "early today." i'm lynn berry. here are some of your top headlines this morning. kim jong un, kim jong-il's youngest son, has received a crucial endorsement from china as north korean's next leader. they are monitoring north korea for signs of instability or succession struggle. for the girs time a government science board is asking journals not to publish

details of two controversial experiments. they believe it could provide a recipe to terrorist for a bioweapon. american airlines is predicting 4.3 million travelers will fly this holiday season, down 1% from last year. the group blames the economy and hooil high fuel prices but says planes will be packed due to reductions in the number of flights and airplane size. some shocking numbers out of england. an informal study found 9 in 10 baby changing tables in public rest rooms tested positive for trace amounts of cocaine. whoa. and a penthouse on new york city's central park has sold to the 22-year-old daughter of a russian billionaire for a record $88 million. that's $13,000 a square foot. must be nice. now here's your early look at how wall street will kick off the day. the dow opens at 12,103 after skyrocketing 337 points

yesterday. the s&p spiked 35 points. nasdaq surged 80. taking a look at overseas trading this morning, in tokyo, the nikkei climbed 123 points. while in hong kong the hang seng lept 336. surprisingly strong housing data and hopeful signs from europe sent stocks soaring tuesday. new home construction jumped over 9%, best in a year and a half. building permits also rose. home builders group mdc holding and dr horton all rose. the euro gained against the dollar after spain's borrowing costs plunged after a short-term debt auction. consumer confidence unexpectedly rose in germany. europe's major markets were sharply higher. financials climbed, led by jpmorgan chase and wells fargo after the fed released new bank oversight proposals that were not as tough as feared. big ripples after at&t dropped its t-mobile bid.

sprint nextel, which opposed, gained as did altel sxlchlt juniper networks. general mills fell. red hat plunged after forecasting lower than expected revenue. after the bell, nike rose on higher than quarterly profit. oracle tumbled late as earnings fell short of estimates for the first time in a decade. and jabil fell in late trade after missing on revenue. police raided the tokyo headquarters of olympus today, part of a fraud, corruption and cover joup probe that has shaken face in corporate japan. new york city will surpass a record 50 million visitors this year, providing an estimated $32 billion in tourist spending. finally, thought to be lost for decades, orson welles' oscar for "citizen kane" was so you

would at auction for $62,000. the buckeyes get bopped. college football bowl action. rangers and devils drop the glove almost before the puck hits the ice. plus, known as the hitman during his playing days, now you might call dodger manager don mattingly the nutcracker. is that for real? your early morning sports headlines are straight ahead. we're still waiting for winter in the east. warm temperatures and rain today. your forecast is coming up. you're watching "early today."

good morning. if you're just waking up, this is "early today." in sports, ohio state, one of the nation's most storied college football programs, will pay a hefty price for rule violations. here's nbc's mario solis with an early look at all your sports headlines. >> good morning. unless you're ohio state. the school's football team gwynn a one-year bowl ban for violations incurred when players traded memorabilia for cash at an ohio tattoo parlor. it occurred between 2008 and 2010. the coach at the time, jim trestle, slapped with an penalty, making it unlikely he'll coach in college for the next five years. bo marshall and florida international in st. petersburg.

final minute, avoids the sack and finds the maim-stealing touchdown. hockey in new jersey, devils and rangers don't really like each other. a bit of a skirmish on opening face-off and three seconds in, we've got a fight. 40 minutes of penalties handed out in the game's first two minutes of play. eventually they focus on hockey and the rangers beat up the devil on the ice. carl hag lund with a goal. nba, last year's mvp handsomely rewarded. derrick rose getting a five-year contract extension worth nearly $95 million. bulls hosting the patriots. second quarter, rose on the run, pretty reverse layup. bulls win by eight, opening the season christmas day in l.a. against the lakers. finally, time to get in the holiday spirit with a little rendition of "the nutcracker" starring don mattingly. the dodger skipper and former

yankee great wearing a wig and a dress for the role of mother ginger in the christmas classic. donny baseball took the stage in his hometown of evansville, indiana, and he had to know the video would surface, guarantee his players will never let mother gingerly matting hear the end of it. coming up, a movie star is injured surfing. a music star proves he's not dead. and a reality star is hit with a multimillion dollar lawsuit. your early entertainment headlines are straight ahead. nor snow nor rain nor heat, grinch-like orders tontd wear a santa suit won't keep this career from swift completion of his appointed round. you're watching early today.

welcome back to "early today" on this wednesday. bring the umbrella just about everywhere east of the mississippi, especially down in the southeast. heavy rain and thunderstorms. as we look at tomorrow, we're going to see a decent snowstorm coming down through the rockies. denver you're expected to get significant snow out of that. more showers down in the southeast. well f you're watching us on wbre tv in wilkpennsylvania, go the holiday light show at nay aug park. now here is an early look at headlines in entertainment.

talk about biting the hand that feeds you. piers morgan sounded more like anything but a fan of celebrities. he told england's inquiry into media ethics he never authorized phone-hacking and blasted celebrities who used the media for publicity and exposure and thin whine about privacy. gerard butler is recovering after a weekend surfing accident in which he was dragged over rocks and held under water. after internet death rumors, john bone v jon bon jovi posted a shot of himself on facebook and twitter, heavy looks a lot like new jersey. snooki hit her branding partner with a lawsuit. she's been smacked back with a $7 million countersuit. and finally, did james franco really get an easy "a" in grad school? a former nyu professor filed a

lawsuit claiming he was fired for giving franco a "d" after franco showed up for only two of 14 scheduled classes. this comes to us from seattle, washington, where in nearby bellevue one postal worker is staging rebellion. for the past decade, bob has delivered mail wearing a santa suit during the holiday season. after his noncompliance with dress code led a coworker to complain, his supervisor ordered him to shut down the st. nick act, but despite his job being in jeopardy, bob defied the order hoping he's safe with his union and christmas on his side. i'm lynn berry and this is "early today," just your first stop of the day, today, on your nbc station.

a

>> live, local, late-breaking, this is wbal-tv 11 news today. >> the last day of the fall season, but it feels like the end of summer. a very warm temperatures. all of the storm system approaching from the west. warm air is pushing in. you have pockets in western maryland and a few around d.c. the storm will be heading our way. we will timeout the temperatures when i come back. >> 4:57. a guilty verdict in connection with a corruption scheme involving jack johnson.

>> police identified the victim of a murder outside the towson town center appeared to live report is coming up. >> congress leaves town for the holidays. i am kate amara in washington. >> we're problem free for the moment on that area roadways. moment on that area roadways.

[captioning made possible by constellation energy group] captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org-- >> live, local, late-breaking, this is wbal-tv 11 news today. >> good morning. i am mindy basara. >> i am lisa robinson. jointhank you for joining us this morning. >> another mild morning. >> 46 at the airport. our normal high temperature is about 44. we are above