america this morning. good morning columbia. thanks for joining us. i'm eric weisfeld. and i'm from main and gervais. the time's now 5:00. there's some light showers to start off the day... but good news is it's not too cold out there... yeah...

but you'll definitely want to grab your rain jacket before you head out the door. lets turn things over to

stay. 33 we want to give you a quick traffic update as you head out

are some trouble spots that you might encounter. south carolina highway patrol is reporting a collision with no injuries on i-26. this is going to be at mile marker 109 in the westbound lanes. and as always... we will continue to update you if anything else changes for your morning commute a-b-c columbia wants to help you jump start your day. we have a quick rundown of your top morning headlines. it's a political gamble. g-o-p presidential candidate front runner donald trump is re- affirming... he will not be taking part in tonight's final debate before the iowa caucuses. instead, trump will take part in a benefit for military veterans not far from the debate. the candidates taking the main stage tonight... include ted cruz, marco rubio, ben carson, chris christie, jeb bush, john kasich... and rejoining the main stage... rand paul. that debate starts at nine. carly fiorina, mike huckabee, rick santorum... and jim

the under-card debate... set for seven tonight. trump's competition is now poking fun at the republican front runner... for his decision not to take part in the debate. trump says s he's skipping tonight's debate... because he believes fox news... who's hosting the debate... has mocked him. he's also criticized fox news anchor and moderator megyan kelly. senator ted cruz is now taunting trump... for deciding not to attend the debate. 33 cruz wants to take on trump in a one-on-one debate. he extended the invite for a debate... which would take place in siox city, iowa... saturday night. and now republican presidential hopeful carly fiorina.... is looking to get in on the action. she took to twitter saying, "my campaign will also donate one-point-five million

join the debate saturday in siox city... fiorina even "upped the ante," saying, she's free tonight at eight. she tweeted, "my campaign will give two-million to veterans' cause to debate at drake university." no word yet if trump plans to take up either one of the offers. he may be passing on the debate in iowa... but trump is hard at work shoring up support here in the palmetto state. thousands flooded harmon's tree farm in gilbert last night for trump's rally. polls show trump holds a seven-point lead over senator cruz among south carolina voters. his visit also came with another endorsement. south carolina's lieutenant governor henry mcmaster... threw his support behind the republican frontrunner. mcmaster 33 previously supported our own south carolina senator lindsey graham... before he dropped out of the race last month.

political spectrum... a newly- scheduled democratic debate is in the works. m-s-n-b-c and the new hampshire union leader are partnering to host the event. it would be moderated by rachel maddow and chuck todd and be held february fourth. that's five days before the new hampshire primary. the democratic national committee has yet to give its approval for the event. back here at home... a measure moving through the state house that would require refugees to register and be tracked by the state law enforcement division. the bill faces an uphill battle. democratic senator kevin johnson of manning placed a minority report on the bill which blocks a floor debate. also, republican katrina shealy of lexington says she cannot support the measure.... unless a requirement to post the registry of refugees on the internet is removed. senators are also hard at work hammering out the details of a bill to increase funding for roads. a specific bill has not been put together. but, senators agree that it needs more money for bridges

elsewhere, and a change in the structure of the state department of transportation. meanwhile, lawmakers are making progress in the house. they've passed legislation... proposing the state pay for high school students and the unemployed to train for available state jobs. governor haley endorsed the legislation. one goal of the bill is to make it easier for high school students to take classes that count toward their diploma and a technical certificate or associate's degree. and lawmakers are hoping south carolina state's board of trustees can get moving. democratic representative gilda cobb-hunter says its time for the financially troubled university to find a permanent president. the suggestion came during the school's 1-hundred 28 million dollar budget proposal. s-c state currently has an interim president and an interim board. board vice chairman james clark says the board will begin its search at its next meeting. still to come... the candidates have their sights set on iowa. we're

final g-o-p debate before voters head to the polls in the hawkeye state.light rain and temps in the mid 40's as you wake and head out this morning. expect cloudy skies and scattered showers for much

from main and gervais. 33 here's a quick look at stories that are making headlines across the country. even off the stage... donald trump is casting a long shadow over tonight's final republican debate before the iowa caucuses. a-b-c's ray

vote 20-16. 33 it's a match-up against ole miss for the lady gamecocks. eric, what can you tell us about tonight's game? u-s-c women's basketball is back in action tonight at home against ole miss. this year the gamecock men and clemson basketball are both stepping up their games. tim hill has that and more in this

it. 33 still to come... the capital city is glowing. what the columbia fireflies will be donning when they head out to the baseball diamond.

from main and gervais. township auditorium yesterday. supporters saw the auditorium of students as undeniable proof of school choice success. many feel the choice, allows for catering education

each student. 33 and while many support the choice... some public school advocates argue that school choice increases

funding for public schools. 33 we're 33 checking out what will be making headlines later today. here's eric with your "look ahead." we're one step closer to playing ball. the "columbia fireflies" unveiled their team jerseys yesterday... and there's no way you'll be able to miss these guys with that bright green. high school baseball standouts from across the midlands modeled the shirts for the media. we also learned who's on the roster for the team's coaching staff.

ready to take the field. 33 the fireflies first game is april seventh at charleston. their first home game is april 14th against greenville. still to 33 come... it's falling snowflakes... chilling cocktails... and exquisite cuisine... it's a gala full of fun... and it's all for a good cause. stay with

gervais. mild but you'll definitely want to grab your rain jacket before

lets turn things over to meteorologist jonathan kennedy

stay. 33 we want to give you a quick traffic update as you head out and about this morning. and good news at the top of the hour... there are no incidents to reoport in or around the capital city. but as always... we will continue to

for your morning commute. a-b-c columbia wants to help you jump start your day. we have a quick rundown of your top morning headlines. so, let's get started. it's a political gamble. g-o-p presidential candidate front runner donald trump is reaffirming... he will not be taking part in tonight's final debate before the iowa caucuses. instead, trump will take part in a benefit for military veterans not far from the debate. the candidates taking the main stage tonight... include ted cruz, marco rubio, ben carson, chris christie, jeb bush, john kasich... and rejoining the main stage... rand paul. that debate starts at nine. carly fiorina, mike huckabee, rick santorum... and jim gilmore... will take part in the undercard debate... set for seven tonight. trump's competition is now poking fun at the republican front runner... for his decision not to take part in the debate. trump says he's skipping tonight's debate... because he believes fox news... who's hosting the debate... has mocked him.

anchor and moderator megyan kelly. senator ted cruz is now taunting trump... for deciding not to attend the debate. cruz wants 33 to take on trump in a one- on-one debate. he extended the invite for a debate... which would take place in siox city, iowa... saturday night. and now republican presidential hopeful carly fiorina.... is looking to get in on the action. she took to twitter saying, "my campaign will also donate one-point-five million dollars to veterans' cause to join the debate saturday in siox city... fiorina even "upped the ante," saying, she's free tonight at eight. she tweeted, "my campaign will give two-million to veterans' cause to debate at drake

trump plans to take up either one of the offers. he may be passing on the debate in iowa... but trump is hard at work shoring up support here in the palmetto state. thousands flooded harmon's tree farm in gilbert last night for trump's rally. polls show trump holds a seven-point lead over senator cruz among south carolina voters. his visit also came with another endorsement. south carolina's lieutenant governor henry mcmaster... threw his support behind the republican frontrunner. 33 mcmaster previously supported our own south carolina senator lindsey graham... before he dropped out of the race last month. on the other side of the political spectrum... a newly- scheduled democratic debate is in the works. m-s-n-b-c and the new hampshire union leader are partnering to host the event. it would moderated by rachel maddow and chuck todd and be held on february fourth. that's

hampshire primary. the democratic national committee has yet to give its approval for the event. shifting gears... we have an update on the charleston church shooting this morning. about 6-hundred charleston-area residents will be summoned to court as potential jurors for dylann roof's death penalty trial. roof is the man accused in the deadly shooting at emanual a-m-e church. circuit judge j-c nicholson issued an order yesterday, laying out the pool-size. a computer will randomly pick the participants. staying in the lowcountry... victims of childhood abuse are renewing their call for the roman catholic diocese of charleston to publish a list of priest accused of misconduct with minors. a spokesperson for the diocese says the release of dead priests names won't help protect children. in 2014, the diocese said 32 priests have been accused of abusing minors in its jurisdiction since 1950. tracking homelessness in south carolina. that was the goal

across the state to tally-up the number of homeless people in our communities. the annual survey, conducted by the south carolina homeless coalition, started last night. the group's count last year found there are more than six-thousand homeless people in south carolina. more than a-thousand of those are children.33 still to come... a force of nature passes through florida. and while the danger has passed... it may lead to quite the headache for their morning commute.light rain and temps in the mid 40's as you wake and head out this morning. expect cloudy skies and scattered showers for much of the day.details next.live

it's a force good morning. topping "america's money" -- a possible change coming to your cable box. >> under a proposal, could purchase the device. >> reporter: right now, everybody must lease the box from their provider. wendy's investigating a possible security breach. the fast-food chain said it has reports of unusual active/of cards that had recently been used at its locations zblmpbl and just for the look of it. diet coke is hoping to refresh of its brand with some splashy

>> it creates it's mine, to implode colors on cans. no two cans will be alike. >> okay if you say so. that's "america's money." >> have a great day, everyone. before earning enough cash back from bank of america to help pay for her kids' ice time. before earning 1% cash back everywhere, every time. and 2% back at the grocery store. even before she got 3% back on gas, all with no hoops to jump through. katie used her bankamericard cash rewards credit card to stay warm and toasty during the heat of competition. that's the comfort of rewarding connections. apply online or at a bank of america near you. when heartburn hits fight back fast tums smoothies starts dissolving the instant it touches your tongue

tum, tum, tum, tum smoothies! only from tums ever look at a squirrel and think, "yeah, i could use that kind ofenergy? pretty sure that's how nuts werediscovered.

33 of nature in florida that officials say is the cause of overturning a number of vehicles... yeah... the national weather service says they believe a tornado did hit the coconut creek area yesterday. but no official determination yet as they perform a storm survey. the storm even picked up a southbound vehicle on florida's turnpike and dropped it in the northbound lanes. the strong winds overturned at least six vehicles in a parking lot at an area college.

roadways had to be closed due to the possible twister... 33 we're now going to turn our attention to your health. rochelle dean has a look at what is making headlines in the medical community. it's the 33 season of embracing pale skin... but despite the warnings, many may be heading indoors for that golden tan. and now, new evidence shows that young women could be placing themselves at more risk than they realize.

doctor timothy johnson. 33 still to come... the commodity crash may be coming to your local cafe... we're talking about a rise in

pick-me-up. stay with us.

gervais. ies" for a free replacement charging hub. and your morning pick-me-up is getting a lift this morning... prices for coffee beans are at their lowest point in nearly two years. this means coffee farmers will most likely have a huge harvest season this year, creating an oversupply of beans. a pound of arabica coffee... the type starbucks buys and serves to customers... has fallen by about a third in just the past year... due to this. however... officials say don't expect those latte prices to come down because of this. now lets turn things over to eric for a look at what's making headlines in hollywood... daily show host... trevor noah... says he cannot find a good book about himself... so he's writing one on his own. an imprint

a book deal with the 31-year-old, who took over the daily show from jon stewart in september. one major media outlet reports the deal is for more than three million dollars. the collection of personal essays will chronicle noah's time growing up during the last days of apartheid. michael jackson is being cast by white actor...... joseph fiennes... in an upcoming comedy, according to "the guardian." the half- hour t-v show will air on the british channel "sky arts. " it will center around a fabled road trip... in which jackson... elizabeth taylor, and marlon brando... try to get home from new york to los angeles, following the terrorist attacks on september 11-th. it's not clear if that road trip ever happened... but in a 2011 interview with "vanity fair"... one of jackson's former employees insisted it did... and that the three of them made it as far as ohio. still to come... it's blankets of a blooming favorite... and a pop of color for your thursday morning... next in your day in history. stay

main and gervais. 33 out the day in history. -american recording artists gather to record "we are the world" in 1985-the space shuttle "challenger" explodes after lift off in 1986-clint eastwood is honored by directors guild of america in 2006 today is... pop up art day... national daisy day...

day. that's all 33 the time that we have for the first hour of good morning columbia. but we're coming right back. so be sure to

from main and gervais. good morning, columbia. today is thursday, january 28. the gop front runner casting a shadow on tonight's gop debate. we'll have more on a political gamble as candidates make a final push for a vote in iowa. plus all talk and waiting for action. the latest out of the state house as law makers focus on fixing the state's infrastructure. and a night full of falling snowflakes all for a good cause. we have all the details on edventure's frost gala. "good morning, columbia" starts right now. captioning provided by caption associates, llc www.captionassociates.com. eric: good morning columbia. we're glad you are waking up with us on a thursday. dean. gervais. the time's now 6:00. >> eric: light showers to start off your thursday but definitely jacket. >> rochelle: if any silver lining it's the fact we have

heading out this morning but you still will need that jacket. let's turn things over to meteorologist jonathan kennedy to see exactly what we can expect for the rest of the day, if the rain is here to stay. >> jonathan: the rain is here to stay, opposite yesterday where we saw very few showers, today we will see more constant activity here this morning but it is very light rain, not heavy rain as you head out. good news it's not warmer, not freezing cold rain. satellite and radar have been relatively busy, we are seeing the rain move in from the south and southwest as this system moves in from the gulf of mexico, that will bring chances for rain for a good portion of the day. we're noticing no orange in the reflect ifty, we notice the rain, it not moving overly fast. not bringing a lot of rain with it, but a relatively quiet rain for us today.

the north, upper 40s to the south, 10 degree spread from winnsboro to orangeburg. over the span of four or five counties there is a little temperature gradient but that will cause the wind to move in the north as well, look for cool air to come our way as we move throughout the day today. temperatures will be stable today, in the upper 40s and low 50s, not much warmer than around 50, not much cooler than around 45. constant day today with pretty consistent rain, consistent temperatures. what you are seeing is what you can expect for much of the day today. stationary front off the coast, that will keep things a little interesting for us, we have the low down toward the florida panhandle, around the tampa area, that will ride up the coast and that will keep with the counter clockwise flow, moisture coming from the ocean. we will keep an eye on showers for us but i think the heavier total will be out toward the coast.

trajectory towards atlanta that continues come our way. it shifts more to the east, more a coastal system by dinner time and then tomorrow absolutely nothing to worry about, nothing but sunshine and into the upcoming weekend. we'll look at a forecast, upper 40s and low 50s, cloudy conditions, northeast wind 5 to 10 miles a a hour and that scattered rain around the area. wet today but all in all not too bad, certainly could be a lot worse. thankfully this weekend it will be better. >> rochelle: yes. >> eric: with the rain traffic could be worse. >> rochelle: here are some trouble spots that you might encounter. the south carolina highway patrol reporting a collision with no injury at bluff road and i-77. >> eric: we will update you if anything else changes for your morning commute. >> rochelle: abc columbia wants to help you jump start your day.

it's a political gamble. gop presidential candidate front runner donald trump is reaffirming he will not be taking part in tonight's final debate before the iowa caucuses. instead, trump will take part in a benefit for military veterans not far from the debate. the candidates taking the main stage tonight include ted cruz, marco rubio, ben carson, chris christie, jeb bush, john kasich and rejoining the main stage rand paul. that debate starts at 9:00. carly fiorina, mike huckabee, rick santorum and jim gilmore will take part in the undercard debate set for 7:00 tonight. trump's competition is now poking fun at the republican front runner for his decision not to take part in the debate. >> rochelle: trump says he's skipping tonight's debate because he believes fox news, who's hosting the debate, has mocked him. he's also criticized fox news anchor and moderator megyan kelly. senator ted cruz is now taunting trump for deciding not to attend the debate. >> cruz: apparently mr. trump

scary. and you know donald is a fragile soul. >> rochelle: cruz wants to take on trump in a one-on-one debate. he extended the invite for a debate which would take place in sioux city, iowa, saturday night. and now republican presidential hopeful carly fiorina is looking to get in on the action. she took to twitter saying, "my campaign will also donate $1.5 million to veterans' cause to join the debate saturday in sioux city. fiorina even upped the ante saying she's free tonight at 8:00. throwing it in his face a little there. she tweeted, "my campaign will give $2 million to veterans' cause to debate at drake university." no word if trump plans to take up either one of the offers. we'll keep you posted. >> eric: we always do. rochelle: he may be passing on the debate in iowa, but trump is hard at work shoring up support here in the palmetto state. >> eric: thousands flooded harmon's tree farm in gilbert last night for trump's rally.

lead over senator cruz among south carolina voters. his visit also came with another endorsement. south carolina's lieutenant governor henry mcmaster threw his support behind the republican frontrunner. >> we want everybody to get out and vote and when you do, do like i do, vote for donald trump for president. >> eric: mcmaster previously supported our own south carolina senator lindsey graham before he dropped out of the race last month. eric: on the other side of the political spectrum, a newly-scheduled democratic debate is in the works. msnbc and the new hampshire union leader are partnering to host the event. it would moderated by rachel maddow and chuck todd and be held on february 4th. that's five days before the new hampshire primary. the democratic national committee has yet to give its approval for the event. eric: back here at home, a measure moving through the state house that would require refugees to register and be tracked by the state law

>> rochelle: that's right, the bill faces an uphill battle. democratic senator kevin johnson of manning placed a minority report on the bill which blocks a floor debate. also, republican katrina shealy of lexington says she cannot support the measure unless a requirement to post the registry of refugees on the internet is removed. rochelle: senators are also hard at work hammering out the details of a bill to increase funding for roads. a specific bill has not been put together. but, senators agree that it needs more money for bridges and highways, a tax-cut elsewhere, and a change in the structure of the state department of transportation. rochelle: meanwhile, the house. they've passed legislation proposing the state pay for high unemployed to train for >> eric: governor haley endorsed the legislation. one goal of the bill is to make it easier for high school students to take classes that count toward their diploma and a technical certificate or associate's degree. eric: lawmakers are hoping

democratic representative gilda cobb-hunter says it's time for the financially troubled university to find a permanent president. the suggestion came during the school's $128 million budget proposal. s.c. state currently has an interim president and an interim board. board vice chairman james clark says the board will begin its search at its next meeting. eric: still to come, new developments in the oregon wildlife refuge standoff. >> rochelle: we'll have more on the case that's landing more protestors behind bars. >> jonathan: and a mild start in the mid-40s and light rain as you wake up and head out. cloudy skies and more of the same. i'll have details.

main and gervais. >> jonathan: 6:11 on your thursday morning, waking up with light rain and cloudy conditions. good news is it's relatively warm in the mid-40s as you wake up and head out. we are likely to see temperatures stay in the 40s and 50s, some areas won't hit 50, we are under a wedge, wind from the north will keep things on an even keel. skies clear, we will see a dry forecast and that will be cooler as the cloud move out, look for temperatures to dip to 35 overnight tonight. >> rochelle: thank you, jonathan. rochelle: here's a quick look at stories that are making headlines across the country. new overnight, authorities in oregon say three more people have been arrested in connection with an armed group that seized

in oregon. the fbi say the men turned themselves in at a checkpoint on a road near the refuge. this is in addition to eight other protestors already arrested. the leaders of the armed group were arrested tuesday and one activist was killed. fbi officials say they're working around the clock to empty the refuge of armed occupiers in the safest way possible. rochelle: the man accused of killing three people at a planned parenthood clinic in colorado is waiting in a state hospital for a mental competency exam. court records show 57-year-old robert lewis dear is awaiting the exam after a judge refused to delay it as defense attorneys' request. the judge ordered the exam last month after dear said he wanted to fire his public defenders and represent himself. the exam will show whether he's mentally capable of making that decision. rochelle: the mayor of flint, michigan, says the city has hired a virginia tech professor who helped expose the lead contamination in the city's tap water.

when the state switched the source to the flint river to save money. now children are showing elevated blood levels of lead. bottled water donations continue to pour in from across the nation. even celebrities such as mark wahlberg, sean "diddy" combs, eminem and wiz khalifa are pledging to send millions of bottles of water to flint, michigan. rochelle: it's a match-up against ole miss for the lady gamecocks. eric, what can you tell us about tonight's game? >> eric: usc women's basketball is back in action tonight at home against ole miss. this year the gamecock men and clemson basketball are both stepping up their games. tim hill has that and more in this morning's sports minute to win it. >> clemson basketball back in action for the first time in more than a week looking for a bounce back from their first loss in the calendar year. a 8-point lead over pitt. making it a 12-point lead. he scores 13 on the ball game

lead at the half and go onto win it. they are now 5-2 in acc play. a lot of carolina panther's fans showing their support for cam newton during practice. even though there are plenty of haters around the country, he thinks he knows why. >> i'm an african-american quarterback that play scare a lot of people, they haven't seen nothing they can compare me to. >> super bowl 5010 daysten days away. that's your minute to win it. eric: still to come, the capital city is glowing. what the columbia fireflies will be donning when they head out to the baseball diamond.

main and gervais. rochelle: welcome back to good morning, columbia. thanks for waking up with us on this thursday morning. the time is 6:18. >> jonathan: let's take a bite out of your morning menu, sponsored by bojangles'. students and supporters are rallying for national school choice week with education as the forefront >> rochelle: that's right. state superintendent of schools molly spearman addressed a crowd at township auditorium yesterday. supporters saw the auditorium of

of school choice success. many feel the choice allows for catering education to the individual needs of each student. >> some may really need to consider going to a two-year technical college first because there are so many great jobs and careers here in south carolina now where you need a special skill. >> rochelle: and while many support the choice, some public school advocates argue that school choice increases segregation ananreduces funding for public schools. >> jonathan: and it's been an interesting week weather-wise. >> rochelle: we've seen a little of everything. >> jonathan: we've seen temperatures in the 60s, winter weather last week, finally we will see things take a quieter note. it will be rainy today, temperatures will be cool, not overly cold for your morning standard but by this afternoon it will be seasonably cool,

you are. we will stick with sunshine through the upcoming weekend, absolutely gorgeous conditions, in the upper 60s, i think we will hit 70s a couple days next week. we are booking it by rain and on wednesday next week, chances are for rain but between then and now it will be a lot of nice weather. >> rochelle: i guess we should start filter go through those boxes we packed away, we said put away your sweaters but it's close to 70, you can pull out flip-flops on sunday. >> jonathan: i never wear flip-flops but i will wear the shorts. rochelle: we're checking out what will be making headlines later today. >> jonathan: here's eric with your "look ahead." >> eric: what we need too do is start playing basketball. baseball. the "columbia fireflies" unveiled their team jerseys yesterday and there's no way you'll be able to miss these

from across the midlands modeled the shirts for the media. we also learned who's on the roster for the team's coaching staff. team officials say they're ready to take the field. >> we had our low go out there for a while but we had questions on the field, it was great to share it with the community and have great local high school talent around here helping us with that. >> eric: the fireflies first game is april 7th at charleston. their first home game is april 14th against greenville. just about to say "play ball." >> rochelle: it's around the corner. >> jonathan: it's amazing the things they have done getting the stadium ready. looks like they bought a couple extra weeks with the first home game in two weeks. >> rochelle: did you see the renderings as you drive by, it looks nice. >> jonathan: i'm excited about it. rochelle: still to come, it's falling snowflakes chilling cocktails and exquisite cuisine. it's a gala full of fun and it's all for a good cause.

main and gervais. hey there in today's "techbytes" a first for amazon. >> the company running an ad on super bowl sunday. >> all right, let's hear it. cheerleaders. >> marino again, i thought you were the expect at this party. >> alec baldwin and dan marino. >> they're planning the party with amazon echo. samsung may be ready to launch its own phone upgrade program. >> lease their devices for one year and exchange it for a newer model. and facebook's like button is about to get more emotional. >> the new reactions feature

simple thumbs-up with an emoji. there are five new symbols. >> thumbs-up to that. those are your "techbytes." have a great day. look, the wolf was huffing and puffing. like you do sometimes, grandpa? well, when you have copd, it can be hard to breathe. it can be hard to get air out, which can make it hard to get air in. so i talked to my doctor. she said... symbicort could help you breathe better, starting within 5 minutes. symbicort doesn't replace a rescue inhaler for sudden symptoms. symbicort helps provide significant improvement of your lung function. symbicort is for copd, including chronic bronchitis and emphysema. it should not be taken more than twice a day. symbicort contains formoterol. medicines like formoterol increase the risk of death from asthma problems. symbicort may increase your risk of lung infections, osteoporosis, and some eye problems.

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main and gervais. we are joined by kristy barnes. >> thanks for having us. >> we are talking about a draw for the capital city. every year you have the frost gala, this year no exception going to the second annual event. what makes this year different. >> this year we are doing it at the museum which is cool, allows people to explore the museum, see what it is about if they don't come on a regular basis. >> rochelle: that's right. >> it is important to us because it allows us to change it into a beautiful place for our guest, we will have food, a band, and we have cool exclusive auction items. the auction items.

through the air like peter pan with the columbia ballet, that is neat, who can say they can do it? the new columbia fireflies, an experience with them. and then a jaguar you can use for a weekend, go to the hotel in charleston, have a nice get away there. face of adventure, if your kid is 12 and under you can get a chance for them to be a star. we have a lot of cool experiences, disney passes -- >> rochelle: panthers. >> yes, i signed panthers' football, that will be big this year. there is a lot of buzz who will bid on it. it's important because frost is a nice evening but what it benefits is what it is about. >> rochelle: i want you to talk about i before you go. it great there are all these incentives but what is the heart of this event for? >> the reason we do this is for

families in the midlands and state. edventure is to bring joy to every child, that means community out reach, book distributions, things our children need. when we have event like our galas and fund raisers it helps us to do that. >> rochelle: it presents art to children who might not otherwise have a chance to engage in it. >> recently we've done a lot of book distribution in the community, these kid are excited to go home and have an opportunity to read with their families. we have free days or reduced admission days. we have a lot of people to come out, people like frost help us to do it, people come out and support it. >> rochelle: thank you for being here with us. we will have all this information on our website at abccolumbia.com.

what time? >> saturday at 7:00 p.m. you can get details on our website.

eric: good morning columbia. we're glad you are waking up with us, one half hour left with our show. i'm eric weisfeld. >> rochelle: and i'm rochelle dean. we're live from main and gervais. the time's now 6:32. >> eric: and there's a little rain out there. >> rochelle: keep the umbrella close but it's shaping up to be mild. for what you can expect stepping out the door, here's jonathan kennedy. >> jonathan: light rain moving the mid-40s, temperatures not too bad but we won't see too much improvement through the day, either drying out or seeing warmer conditions. we're looking at a semi rainy set up for your thursday, rain moving in from the south and southwest. that will be much of the case throughout the day. light rain at the moment, notice the coloration, light green, no orange or yellow, temperatures not overly warm.

you can see the cooler air starting to filter in, we have cooled off about 5 degrees since we joined you right at 5:00 a.m. cool air from the north coming in, temperatures likely to stay in the 40s for much of the rest of the day. we saw -- your high today is probably what you saw a few hours ago. not expecting a lot of variation throughout the day. low pressure off the coast, in the gulf of mexico, in the tampa area as you slide to the east. looking at the system to stay put, obviously stationary front, it's stationary, that will take over once the low starts to move and kick the otherow out. for now we are seeing the moisture to flow inland, we'll keep the rain chances throughout the day today but not expecting a ton of rain for really anybody. maybe the coastal areas will see a higher output but a quarter

extremes for us as we see the light to steady rain head out. after we get to later this afternoon, nothing to worry about at all. you can see the time stamp can get slipped and moving to the east. throughout the day we are not expecting a ton of rain and certainly tonight no rain involved at all, no rain for friday and no rain for the weekend. should be a beautiful forecast for us once we get past today. temperatures in the upper 40s and lower 50s, the win will keep us cool throughout the day, we will see wind and cool temperatures. we will see the cloud and cool temperatures hanging around but it will be relatively mild for us, we will have the umbrellas out and about. >> eric: we want to give you a quick traffic update as you head out and about this morning. >> rochelle: here are some trouble spots that you might encounter. the south carolina highway patrol is reporting a collision with no injury at the interest section of bluff road and i-77. they are reporting a collision

be at mile marker 28 in the eastbound lanes. >> eric: also a collision with injuries-26 in the eastbound lanes. we will continue to update you if anything else comes our way on a thursday morning. >> rochelle: that's right. and abc columbia wants to help you jump start your day. >> eric: we have a quick rundown of your top morning headlines. it's a political gamble. gop presidential candidate front runner donald trump is reaffirming he will not be taking part in tonight's final debate before the iowa caucuses. instead, trump will take part in a benefit for military veterans not far from the debate. the candidates taking the main stage tonight include ted cruz, marco rubio, ben carson, chris christie, jeb bush, john kasich and rejoining the main stage rand paul. that debate starts at 9:00. carly fiorina, mike huckabee, rick santorum and jim gilmore will take part in the undercarddebate set for 7:00 tonight. >> rochelle: cruz wants to take

debate which would take place in sioux city, iowa, saturday night. and now republican presidential hopeful carly fiorina is looking to get in on the action. she took to twitter saying, "my campaign will also donate $1.5 million to veterans' causes to join the debate saturday in sioux city. fiorina even upped the ante saying she's free tonight at 8:00. she tweeted, "my campaign will give $2 million to veterans' campaign causes to debate at drake university." no word if trump plans to tata up either one e the offers. i did check out his twitter page, no comment yet. rochelle: he may be passing on the debate in iowa, but trump is hard at work shoring up support here in the palmetto state. >> eric: thousands flooded harmon's tree farm in gilbert last night for trump's rally. polls show trump holds a 7-point lead over senator cruz among south carolina voters. his visisialso came with another endorsement. south carolina's lieutenant governor henry mcmaster threw his support behind the republican frontrunner. >> we want everybody to get out and vote and when you do, do

for president. >> eric: you may remember, mcmaster previously supported our own south carolina senator lindsey graham before he dropped out of the race last month. eric: on the other side of the political spectrum, a newly-scheduled democratic debate is in the works. msnbc and the new hampshire union leader are partnering to host the event. it would moderated by rachel maddow and chuck todd and be held on february 4th. that's five days before the new hampshire primary. the democratic national committee has yet to give its apprpral for the event. eric: shifting gears, we have an update on the charleston church shooting this morning. about 600 charleston-area residents will be summoned to dylann roof's death penalty trial. >> rochelle: that case is coming roof is the man accused in the church. circuit judge j.c. nicholson issued an order yesterday, laying out the pool size. a computer will randomly pick the participants. rochelle: staying in the lowcountry, victims of childhood abuse are renewing their call

of charleston to publish a list of priests accused of misconduct with minors. a spokesperson for the diocese says the release of dead priests names won't help protect children. in 2014, the diocese said 32 priests have been accused of abusing minors in its jurisdiction since 1950. rochelle: tracking homelessness in south carolina. that was the goal of volunteers who spread out across the state to tally-up the number of homeless people in our communities. >> eric: the annual survey, conducted by the south carolina homeless coalition, started last night. the group's count last year found there are more than 6,000 homeless people in south carolina. more than a thousand of those are children. tough numbers to look at this morning. >> rochelle: puts it in perspective. eric: still to come, niagra falls under construction? >> rochelle: did we say that right? the plan that would stop this natural wonder of north america from flowing. >> jonathan: right rain and

you wake up and head out on this thursday. cooler temperatures and scattered rain.

main and gervais. >> jonathan: good thursday morning, 6:42, we are seeing light rain across the area. we will continue to see high near 50, a lot of spots may not make it back to 50. we were at 50 and cooled off in the last couple hours. when the sun comes up we won't see a lot of it, it will be an overall cool day with rain. >> eric: a little rain will help. >> jonathan: any sun will help. eric: we may be see rain falling from the sky this morning, but along the

falling from one of the world's most famous attractions. >> jonathan: that's right. there's a plan to stop niagra falls from falling. a project is in the works to replace two 100-year-old bridges over the falls. but to do that crews would have to basically shut down niagra falls. to "dewater" the american side of the falls, officials would have to build a temporary cofferdam to redirect the entire river flow to horseshoe falls that's on the canadian side. and as it stands, about 85% of the niagra already flows over the horseshoe falls. so, it would kind of charge up that side a little more, but certainly interesting. that would be a hard job to stop all that water. >> eric: i wouldn't want to do it. you don't see cofferdam. eric: we're now going to turn our attention to your health. >> jonathan: rochelle dean has a look at what is making headlines in the medical community. good morning, rochelle. >> rochelle: goooomorning, jonathan. good morning, eric. there's more victim reports of the zika virus this morning a man in denmark has been diagnosed with the mosquito-borne illness. doctors believe he contracted the virus on a recent trip to

hospital today. brazil is considered ground zero for zika which has now spread to 24 countries and territories in central and south america. the epidemic disease h h also been linked to a serious birth defect. due to the continuous travel of the zika virus, a spokesman says the white house is making a more concerted effort in the days ahead to communicate with americans about the risks associated with the virus and steps they should take to avoid it. the world health organization says links between the virus and birth defects haven't yet been proven but are advising pregnant women to avoid travel to territories with zika outbreaks. rochelle: still to come, we're counting down until super bowl 50. but we've got a way for you to show your team spirit before the big game. stay with us. we're live from main and gervais. "i knew at that point that god

"it's only because of god's grace that i'm sitting here." "i can only say that the lord sent an angel and removed lisa from the car." "god can conquer everything, even death itself." "i love god

sick." >> rochelle: welcome back to good morning, column by a-thanks for waking up with us, your time is 6:48. there's less than two weeks until our carolina panthers take on the denver broncos in santa clara. and the bay area is getting geared up for more than a million fans who will invade for super bowl 50. the game is on february 7th, but starting saturday, visitors can check out "super bowl city." the attraction is along san francisco's waterfront. inland, levi's stadium is getting a make-over to cater to

there on game day. but once all those fans are done cheering on their team, they'll need a place to rest their head. business is booming for air bnb's in the bay area. according to the lodging website there are currently 6,000 listing in the region. the average listing in san jose will set you back $220 a night. the company says compared to last year's super bowl in arizona demand for super bowl 50 is roughly three times greater. but, of course, we all can't head out west for super bowl 50. but there's still plenty of excitement closer to home. this is just a peek back at the panthers' first super bowl run and a good idea of what things could look like tomorrow in charlotte. if you're in the mood for a shorter road trip there will be a "panther pride rally" tomorrow in the queen city. panther fans are invited to cheer on the team at "romare bearden park" in uptown charlotte. there will be live music,

sir purr, the top cats, purrcussion and the black and blue crew. the fun starts at noon. rochelle: when it comes to the oscars, we all dream in gold. but could the recent scandal have have the president seeing red? eric, what can you tell us? >> eric: from the red carpet to the white house, the oscar debate has made it all the way to the commander in chief. abc's jason natanson has that and more in your showbiz wrap. >> reporter: the oscar diversity controversy has made it to the oval office, president obama telling kabc in los angeles -- >> pres. obama: i think that when everybody's story is told then that makes for better art. it makes for better entertainment. it makes everybody feel part of one american family. >> reporter: and he said he thinks the industry should make sure everyone is getting an opportunity. >> pres. obama: i think the oscar debate is really just an expression of this broader issue of are we making sure that everybody is getting a fair shot. >> reporter: and speaking of diversity and the oscars, why not just get rid of the awards? danny glover posed that thought

"mr. pig" at sundance. >> glover: you know, judging a film or judging performances, it's so subjective in so many ways. and one of the problems, you should do away with it. in all honesty, do away with all of these things where we talk about winners and winners in some sort of way. >> reporter: and controversial casting news, british actor joseph fiennes is going to play michael jackson, and given all of the talk about diversity in hollywood right now, some aren't happy about it. it's for a british tv project. the official bet account tweeted, quote, a white actor will play mj. because we aren't whitewashed enough in hollywood, apparently. and fiennes told "entertainment tonight" that jackson, quote, was probably closer to my color than his original color. and that's what's happening in hollywood. i'm jason nathanson, abc news, los angeles. eric: still to come, it's t all about the pigskin when it comes to super bowl 50. we're talking about a commercial classic that may be getting an adorable addition. stay with us. we're live from main and gervais.

light rain on the way, looking at a cool day today. i'll let you know what to expect in a few minutes.

eric: it's the carolina panther's versus the denver broncos for super bowl 50. but when it comes to february 7th big game, the broncos aren't the only horse in this race. >> rochelle: that's right. the budweiser clydesdale family is welcoming its newest member. meet mac. the company says his name is in honor of its clydesdales being "the most macro" of all icons." it's also a nod to the company's tagline: "proudly macro beer." the budweiser clydesdale have become a fixture in some of the company's most heartwarming commercials. and while mac still may be al little too young for television he's arrived just in time for super bowl 50. >> eric: very cute, they are all the range. >> rochelle: they are all the rage, i want to call them miniature ponies but they are not. eric: still to come it's blankets of a blooming favorite. and a pop of color for your thursday morning next in your day in history. >> jonathan: and more light rain for us, we saw rain on and off

us this morning. i'll have details up next. stay with us, we are live from main and gervais. "i knew at that point that god himself rescued me." "god had a

grace that i'm sitting here." "i can only say that the lord sent an angel and removed lisa from the car." "god can conquer everything, even death itself." "i love god

sick." >> jonathan: a rainy thursday forecast, temperatures in the mid-40s, light rain continuing to move across the region and we will see more of the rain as we move this morning into the early afternoon. by supper time i think we will

allow us to cool down to 35. this weekend temperatures in the 60s and i think next week wewill be in the 70s with more sunshine on the way. you get through the day, it will be the weekend, warm and sunny for us. >> rochelle: the temperatures go up and up and look better and better and better, i love it. i think the temperatures are just getting better. rochelle: let's check out the day in history. american recording artists gather to record "we are the world" in 1985. the space shuttle "challenger" explodes after liftoff in 1986. and clint eastwood is honored by directors guild of america in 2006. >> eric: today is pop up art day, national daisy day, and national blueberry pancake day. chocolate chips are better. >> rochelle: pop up art, what is that? the cards that you open jump up at you. >> jonathan: i thought it said pop art but it pop up art.