wk took over custody of chelsa and savannah, not the way they expected to spend their 80s, anymore than they expected to have to defend their son. >> well, he's made some this morning on "early today," first hurdle. lawmakers gear up for a key test vote on the president's tax cut deal with republicans. snowed under. a massive storm system buries the midwest. collapsing the roof of the minneapolis metrodome. and suicide? scientists may have unraveled one of the solar system's scientists may have unraveled one of the solar system's greatest mystery captions paid for by nbc-universal televion good morning to you, i'm veronica de la cruz. today we begin with testing the waters. the senate will get its first crack at the president's controversial plan to

temporarily extend tax cuts for l americans today. the test vote paves the way for a final vote later in the week, and then is on to the house where critics say the real battle will begin. nbc's tracie potts joins us live from washiton with the details. tracie, good morning to you. >> reporter: veronica, good morning. good morning, everyone. the senate vote today will tell us whether or not there's enoh support to get this passed in the senate. they expect to take a final vote perhaps as early as tomorrow. now, dick durbin, the number two democrat in the senate, is urging the house to get this passed. he says they won't be in as good a posion to fit it next year when republicans take over. meanwhile, house democrats say they'll bite the bullet on tax breaks for the wealthy, but it's the estate tax that they're really frustrated about. republicans say they need to stick to the president's deal, but democrats say it is excessively generous. they want a sarate vote on that, but admit they won't stop the overall deal from passing,

as a result of it. also, in the last cole of days, president obama has gotten a key endorsement. former president bill clinton, at the white house, appearing with president obama saying that thiss a good deal f americans. he endorsed him saying at this point it is the best bipartisan deal that they could have reached. we'll watch out for that test vote later today sprerpen ka? >> we sure will. tracie potts live for us in washington. a massive snowstorm buried parts of the midwest over the weekend wreaking havoc on roadways and runways across the region. at least four deaths are being blamed on the wicked winterlike weather that brought biting winds and dumped nearly two feet of powder. nbc's frances coe has a report. >> reporter: the great digout has begun in hard-hit nnesota. >> i've never seen it this pad before, i don't think. >> there's a lot of snow on the ground. >> reporter: more than 17 inches of snow piled high and snarled traffic, as blizzardlike conditns swept through minneapolis over the weekend.

residents spent most of their sunday trying to free their cars and their homes from the snowy mess. >> this one seems a lot more packed down from the wind blowing, so the snow is really heavy. >> reporter: that weight brought big troubles to the home of the vings. >> three roof panels ruptured. >> reporter: early suay morning the inflatable roof of theikings stadium collapsed. >> one of the key issues that hurt us, is the very high winds. and that, with the high ow accumulation, really impacted us. >> reporter: the storm that dumped so much snow in minnesota, also brought wier's worst to iowa and wisconsin. where officials are warning residents of some counties to stay off the roads. anas the stormoves eastward, winter weather warnings have been issued for parts of illinois. all this, with winter's official start still nine days away. francesco, nbc news. elsewhere, flooding remains a serious concern in the pacific northwest this morning where record rainfall has triggered

mudslides along se western washington rivers. flood watches and warnings sent several residents rushing to g sandbags in place yesterday, while hundreds of others were told to consider evacuating. no injuries were reported but scores of homes were flooded as rivers rose. the national weather service says the water in some places could go as high as 22 feet before it starts to fall later today. and now here's a look at some other stories making news "early today" in america. in washington, d.c., the presidenand his family spent the evening spreading the holiday spirit. they were greeted by a group of tiny elves at a fund-raiser at the national building museum. one got into a little mischief but it wasn't anything that the first lady couldn't handle. the family was there helping to raise money for the children's national hospital. in connecticut, about 500 kids in grades 5 through 8 took part in a lego building competition. but, these weren't your run of the mill lego designs.

they were robot legos. the theme was biomedical engineering, so teams created robots that did things like distense medicine. the kids enjoyed the friendly competition but teachers stress that lessons in teamwork and science are building blocks for a successful future. and in california, 30 tons of snow was dumped on to hermosa beach for the first annual snow festival. kids of all ages had fun sledding up and down the icy slope, and although they were dressed for the wintry weather, take a look, it was actually a balmy 83 degrees outside. huh. now for a look at your national and regional weather, here's nbc meteorologist bill karins with the weather channel forecast. bill, i don't know about you, but if my mom put me outside in a parka and a scarf and mittens and it was 83 degrees outside, there would be a prlem. >> yeah, probably you'd be sweating at the same time if you fell in the snow you'd be drenched, too. >> looked fun, though.

>> not fun for everyone else this morning, though, vonica. we're talking one of those morning that you just feel bad for the kids that have to stand out at the bus stop or for anyone that has to spe any extended time outdoors. all the delivery men and women for the holidays, too. this cold blast of air has moved all the way to t gulf, sweeping through the east coast. our storm is exiting. the snow part of it is just about over. but now we're just dealing with the temperatures and the wind. now the windchill right w, the worst of it coming down from canada, thugh the dakotas, minnesota to illinois. the windchill in atlanta is 8. so you can see just how far to the south that cold air has now made it. the heart of it, the worst of it, everywhere in white is in negative windchill values from chicago to st. louis, kansas city northward. the worst of it up here arnd international falls at minus 25. not much better there in minneapolis at minus 15. now, there is still some snow, in areas that don't get a lot of snow have some this morning. national's got light snow, roads are definitely covered.

same for knoxville, tennessee, cincinnati, louisville, indianapolis, columbus, all those areas have had some snow overnight. definitely be careful as you head outside. as far as new england goes, just some heavy rain left over now from boston up into areas of main so not a lot of snow left. just the temperatures are just bitterly cold in so many spots. that's a look at your monday forecast. now re's a look at weather outside your window. snow showers in chicago, but our accumulating snows for the most part are over with. temperature, high of only 13 today. cleveland, ohio, you're under a winter storm warning. you're going to get heavy lake effect snow. you could see at least another six inches. well, the active weather pattern is in a slowly beginning to get more tranquil. we'll he that forecast coming up. >> t crazy thing, winter hasn't even officially started yet. so -- >> i know. just imagine what january and february are going to be like. >> i don'tant to. a deal in the works. whato look for on wall street this week. and a fashion debate in english proper. your early morning business headlines are straight ahead.

plus, one film winning and losing all at the same time at the box office over the weekend? coming up, snow helps the patriots while it collapses the roof of onefl stadium. and the jets prove cheaters never prosper. you're watching "early today."

good morning to you and welcome back t "early today," i'm veronica de la cruz. here are some of your top headlines this morning. six american troops and two afghan soldiers were killed yesterdayhen a suicide bomber detonated a mini bus packed with explosives near the gates of a new military installation in southern afghanistan. the taliban claimed responbility for the bombing, which is the deadliest attack on coalition troops this month. london police are investigating reports that a suicide bomber with twin attacks in sweden lived, studied and worked in englandntil

recently. saturday's explosion came as christmas shoppers crowded a busy area of the swedish capital. new researc suggests that saturns mysterious rings may be the result of a cosmic suicide. scientists say that a boomed moon hurled itself into the plet about 4.5 billion years ago. hover, as it made its way, gravity just likely off the moon's icy outer layers forming the w famous rings which stretch across sat en's equator. and anticipation is building for next april's royal wedding. england's prince william and his fiancee kate middleton released two official photographs to mark their engagement. they were taken by mario castino who is also famous for taking beautiful shots of william's mother, the late princess diana. and now here's an early look at how wall street will kick off the day. the dow opens at 11,410 after adding 40 points fray. the s&p edged up seven points and the nasdaq climbe 20.

taking a look at overseas trading is morning in tokyo the nikkei rose1 points while in hong kong, the hang seng climbed 154. is a big holiday ack business significance the kind of spark that will help wall street keep its so-called santa rally going today? the financial times reports general electric, the current owner of this network, may announce a $1.2 billion takeover of the englishil services company early as today. also the great atlantic and pacific tea company, more commonly known as a&p filed for bankruptcy sunday. once america's lgest grocer the chain plans to keep stores open with no interruption of business during reorganization. today starts the last full week of trading before christmas. the s&p 500 stands at its highest level since september 2008. and the nasdaq sits at its best point since late decemb 2007. november's inflation numbers will dominate the week's economic data with the producer price idex due tuesday and the

consumer price index out wednesday. in the nation's capital, the federal reserve's open markets committee gathered tuesday for s last meeting of the ar. recent stronger economic data could spark a fed debate over continuing the central bank's $600 billion stimulus plan. also, in washington, wall street will eye the battle over tax cuts. although extending the cuts appears headed for passage, traders will watch f bumps in the road. reporting quarterly earnings this week, best buy, fedex, general mills, oracle, research in motion, and home builder. finally in england, particularly on the soccer field, lightweight scarves known as snoods are vored by players from warm weather countries not used to england's damp chill. but manchester united's famed coach has put the big chill on the fashion fad, banning the scarves on his team, calling them unmanly. hmm. bah, hum bug.

>> theetsit major turbulence and a fan is the man in oklahoma city. plus it's been a rough year for the dallas cowboys, and last night a divisionival rubbed salt in their wounds. your early morning sports headlines are straight ahead. the latest actic blast continues to push to the south and east. i'll have your tuesday forecast coming up. you're watching "early today."

and good morning to you. if youe just waking up, this is "early today." in sports on sunday against one of the nfl's hottest teams, the chicago bears got caught hibernatin here's nbc's fred roggin with an early look at all your sports headlines. good morning. the patriots and bears are two of the nfl's best teams bu yesterday the pats pulled off a snow job. awinter wonderland in chicago didn't stop tom brady. two touchdowns including this 59-yarder to dion branch end the first half. patriots won 36-7. they improve to 11-2. jets and dolphins in jersey watch closely as conditioning coac trips dolphin quarterback nolan terrell during a punt return. they called the jets cheaters. cheaters never prosper. sancheto santonio holmes who brought the sure suchdown. last seconds between the redskins and bu in the

nation's capital. convan mcnabb to santana moss for the scar with just nine seconds to play. they just needhe ext point to tie. oh, boy. the holder couldn't handle the ap. tampa beat washington 17-16 to keep their playoff hopes alive. in a moment of silence for don meredith before the cowboys and eagles. he would have liked this one. michael vick to desean jackson and he did the rest. turned on the after burners despite the best efforts of a couple of cowboys. he was a little showboaty, turned around at the goal line and fell backwards into the end zone while taunting the cowboys. they lead 9-4. incredible video from minnesota where the inflatable roof at the metrodome collapsed under the weight of snow from a heavy storm that passed thrgh the twin cities on saturday. because of that the vikings and giants game postponed. it will be played tonight in detroit. and finallyo the nba halftime in oklahoma city, thunder fan with a half-court shot to win $20,000. not a bad night for roberts. check out the reaction from

formerklahoma and cowboys coach barry switzer. the thunder won the game 106-77. that's your early look at sports on early:. i'm fred roggin. >> good for him. a preview of which film may win best picture at theoscars. your early morning entertainment headlines are raight ahead. plus coming up, it is a dream come true for kids who deserve to have some dreams come true. you're watching "early today."

welcome back on this monday morning. for those people from new york city up through new england, enjoy your warm morning while it lasts, as the cold air will rush in during the day today. and tomorrow morning you'llfeel the chill. still some green, this is the rain on the maphere. up through maine and areas of new england with light rain, it will change over to sw showers a little later today. now, as far as what we're dealing with around the rest of the country today and tomorrow, big rush of cold air continues here. there's going to be a lot of snow off the great lakes. except for that we should be okay. be careful driving this morning. a lot of areas of tennessee and kentucky have seen a coating of snow overnight. well, if you're watching us on wnne-tv 31 hanover, new hampshire in neay norwich, vermont, find out how toys work and even how to create your own. visit toys: the insidetory at the montshire museum of science. that's your early "today" event of the day. >> now here's a look at this morning's headlines in entertainment. there was good news and bad news

this weekend at the box office for the number one film, "the chronicles of narnia" took the top spot. for fox which took over the series after disney abandoned it. however at $24 million this latest chapter came in way below exctations. still it took in $80 million in 85 other countries significantly softening the blow, i guess you could say. in second place, a tourist starring johnny depp and angelina jolie, it also came in below expectations at $17 million. elwhere, the influential los angeles film critics association has added to the growing oscar buzz surroundi the facebook drama "the social network" picking it as the year's best film. finally, paris hilton's one-time reality tv bff nicole ritchie finally married her rocker boyfriend joel madden over the weekend in los angeles. the couple, who have dated for more than four years, have a 2-year-old daughter harlow winter kate and a 15-month-old

son farrow midnight. is there some kind of unwritten rule that says if you're a celebrity your kids can't be named something nice and normal like matt or bill, maybe? >> actually you get to a point where like a normal name would be story? >> i'm like a what? huh? yeah, you're probably right about that. this comes to us from wkyc channel 3 in cleveland, ohio, where a group of extra nice boys and girls visited the airport for an early holiday treat. thanks to continental airline employees kids from a local pediatric hospital got to take time off from fating what ill ails them to take a magical flight to the north pole. santa, mrs. claus and the elves welcomed the group to their home filled with giant candy canes, lights, and holly, where for just one day nothing else mattered. i'm veronica de la cruz and this is "early today," just your first stop of the day, "today," on your nbc station. lightning fast. lightning strong.

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taking an icy look outside rit now. we have 3 degrees. it's 4:28. the washington metropolitan region is under ainter weather advisory. tom kearnsis tracking the dropping temperatures and the snow. i'm joe krebs. >> i'm eun yang for this monday, december 13th, 2010. your commute could be a slippery one this morning. here's a live look at the roads in virginia. the combination of wet pavement and dropping temperatures could cause slick spots to form.

on top of that, snow is on the way. we'll talk about the preparations coming up. and it is affecting flight all around the country. more than 1,600 flights were canceled as more snow continued to blanket that city. they experienced long delays because of the weather. passengers at reagan national faced delays for two hours because of snow in the other cities and our own rainy and cold weather. one man flew from d.c. to st. louis where he said conditions were bad. >> it iced and they had to pull us off on the tarmac. >> a reminder to call your airline to make sure your flight is on schedule. my brother in st. louis said the snow was blowing sideways. the wind was the worst of it. watching the chicago -- >> thetv. >> the wind and snow was crazy. 50-mil