jimmy fallon happening right [ cheers and applause ] this morning on "early today" -- on the road again. president obama begins a three-day bus tour, bashing republicans over stalling his jobs bill. high sign. surprising new numbers on american support of the legalization of marijuana. and designated driver? a michigan man is in hot water after handing his keys over to a michigan man is in hot water after handing his keys over to his 9-year-old daughter. captions paid for by nbc-universal television hello and good morning. i'm lynn berry.

and today we begin with turning up the heat. president obama is using his campaign style bus tour to take jabs at republicans. standing in the way of his jobs proposal. not surprisingly, the gop is firing back. for more on that we go to nbc's tracie potts in washington for us. good morning. >> reporter: lynn, good morning. some of that criticism is about his jobs plan. some of it is about this campaign-style bus tour. the bus alone cost over $2 million. republicans are questioning whether that's a good use of taxpayer money. president obama visits a community college in north carolina and a virginia high school today. >> pass this bill. we need to pass this bill. >> reporter: he's pitching $35 billion to save nearly 300,000 jobs, teachers, police, firefighters, first responders, part of his bigger jobs bill the senate rejected. >> we're going to break up my jobs bill. maybe they just couldn't understand the whole thing at all once.

>> reporter: republicans are livid about this campaign-style tour. >> he's traveling around on a canadian bus, touting american jobs. is that appropriate on the taxpayers' dime since it is clearly campaigning? >> if we're not playing politics f we're not focuses on the election 13 months from now but we're focused on what can help the economy right now. >> reporter: analysts say it's no coincidence he's traveling through two battleground states. >> he's trying to win backswing voters. >> reporter: but will this tour through the south make a difference in washington? >> this thing boils down a handful of people making a decision behind closed doors, which has nothing to do with the masses of folks that you're in front of at the hoement. >> reporter: you can bet we'll hear more about at tonight's republican presidential candidate debate in las vegas. by the way, jon huntsman will be not there. he'll have a town hall there instead.

he's boycotting the debate because nevada moved its caucuses ahead of new hampshire es primary. >> tracie potts in washington, thank you. an elaborate prisoner swap involving the exchange of hundreds of palestinian prisoners for one israeli soldier is now under way in the middle east this moelgdz. a hamas leader in gaza says an israeli soler, who was held captain since 2006 has been officially turned over to egypt. meanwhile, buses of palestinian prisoners have been moved from israel also into egypt. after the exchange is complete, 477 palestinians held by israel will have been freed today while another 550 will be released in two months. the world's population is expected to reach a sobering new milestone bit end of this month. the u.n. population fund estimates 7 billion people will be sharing the earth's land and resources as of october 31st. the agency says subsaharan

african nations with the world's highest birth rates continue to drive that number upward. that's despite family size decreases in china and also slowing birth rates in india. still, india is expected to overtake china as the most populous nation by 2030 with an estimated 1.6 billion people. now here's a look at some other stories making news "early today" in america. a jaw-dropping moment was all caught on tape after a drunken father had his 9-year-old daughter drive him to a michigan gas station. the visibly intoxicated father even boasted about his daughter's driving ability to an attendant before they returned home. a 911 call led police to the vehicle where they arrested the father on child abuse charges. adventurous billionaire richard branson celebrated the dedication of the world's first space port by splashing a little bubbly. commercial space flights from

the virgin galactic gateway are expected to begin after testing runs are complete in late 2012. high-speed rindz churned up a reminder of the dust bowl dates in the lone star state. reducing visibility to zero in some parts and causing major property damage there. meanwhile, a blast of winter hits part of colorado. leaving approximately 8 inches of snow on the ground. weather forecasters believe this is just the first stage of the storm and actually expect it to intensify before dropping off. and finally, salem police were recently called into break up a small fray between zombies and witches. can't make this stuff up. the feud stems from a battle brewing between two competing haunted houses in the same strip mall. and now for a look at your natural and regional weather here's nbc meteorologist bill karins with your weather channel forecast.

good morning. >> good morning. will are you a fan of hawned houses? >> no. i can't even watch preview ares for scary movies. in salem, massachusetts, this is big business, so you can see how the two would be competing. >> one of the theme park things where you go and they have the haunted horror -- >> have we not delved deep enough into my fears, bill -- >> we need a counselor to sit right here. >> the couch. >> good morning, everyone. we have a big rain-maker heading up the eastern seaboard as advertised. he we haven't seen any tropical development down in the gulf but this area of low pressure has a lot of moisture with it. it drenched florida yesterday. this is the cloud top showing the thunderstorms still out over the gulf. this over the eastern gulf will head over florida today up into georgia. all the sgreen heavy rain. in the keys, heavy thunderstorms and this big mass off the coast will move inland during the day today. that's why we're prepared for a big, wet weathermaker that will combine with these two storms merging on the east coast and drench new england with a pretty

good size storm wednesday into thursday. a lot of rain around st. louis, southern illinois, little rock rainfall this morning. it's light for you. had thunderstorms roll through northern portions of louisiana even shreveport ducking the rain drops early this morning. the forecast today, if you're in the southeast, an umbrella day four. the ohio valley, the rain should be creeping in, even areas like chicago have a chance to see a little wet weather. the worst by far, areas around arkansas, tennessee, and then down here in the florida. eventually the whole east coast. that's a look at your national forecast. here's a look at the weather outside your window. so, if you're in philadelphia or new york or even d.c., we can get away without the umbrella for at least one more day. tomorrow you'll definitely need it, maybe even later on tonight. other areas of wet weather today, memphis, tennessee, a chance of a storm. so, we had record highs yesterday in areas like atlanta and now the cold front and rain's coming in. >> reality sets. well, europe sinks stocks again.

a blackberry peace offering? and the app that nailed a cheating wife. your early morning business headlines are straight ahead. plus, hollywood cat fight. a war of words between two women who apparently have been feuding for quite some time. coming up, a pro bowl wide receiver is traded. the jets get a much needed lift. a victory that was 15 years in the making. you're watching "early today."

good morning. welcome back to "early today." i'm lynn berry and here are some of your top headlines this morning. according to a new gallup poll, a record high of 50% of americans now support legalizing marijuana use. that's up from 46% last year. support is highest among liberals and adults under 30. texas law enforcement officials say several mexican drug cartels are leauring amerin children as young as 11 to work

in their smuggling operations. a texas public official says the gangs have named these children the expendables. the lapd is red-faced after announcing 30 guns have been stolen from a s.w.a.t. training facility, including 21 submachine guns can be converted back to lethal use. and according to nbc affiliate wbbt in richmond, virginia, a truck filled with $200,000 worth of equipment for the president, including his podium, was stolen ahead of a campaign-style stop in virginia. the vehicle was later recovered. it's not clear if anything was taken but officials say no classified information was inside. and now here's an early look at how wall street will kick off the day. the dow opens at 11,397 after dropping 247 points yesterday. the s&p was down 23 points. the nasdaq fell 52.

taking a look at overseas trading this morning n tokyo the nikkei dipped 137 points, while in hong kong the hang seng plunged 797. when european leaders promised to solve the region's debt crisis in less than a month, it sounded too good to be true. it turns out, it was. the painful reality is that the broad rescue plan will not come this week and will likely take a while longer hit markets hard yesterday. lackluster earnings also helped stock see their worst day in two weeks. the fallout could continue today after a rare revenue miss from ibm, which dragged its shares lower in late trade. after the bell, analyst expect apple's earnings to shine on news it sold more than 4 million new iphones in three days. wells fargo lost 8% after its disappointing report, first one, in two years. meanwhile, traders sold off citigroup despite its impressive report.

a prominent analyst brewed up trouble for green mountain coffee calling the stock overhyped. shares fell 10%. kinder morgan's $21 million el paso energy buy outsent both companies higher. el paso gained 24%. american airlines' failure to strike a new deal with its pilots sent its shares skidding 6%. retailer lowe's is cutting 20 weakest stores, cutting 20,000 jobs. a troubling report shows five of six top credit card issuers say late payments are on the rise. blackberry maker research in motion's offer to give people $100 in free apps as a peace offering for last week's outage has gotten a mostly sour reception. finally, a new york city man is divorcing his wife after apple's new gps-based find my friend app showed she was lying about where she was. and led him to her secret meeting with another man.

coming up, another nfl receiver is traded. on the ice, winnipeg rejoices. plus, the lackluster new york jets' offense suddenly comes alive. running over anything in their way. your early morning sports headlines are straight ahead. well f you're on the east coast, be prepared for wet weather the next two days. pretty big storm system heading your way. your forecast is coming up. you're watching "early today."

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good morning. if you're just waking up, this is "early today." in sports, after three ugly road losses and rumors of team friction, last night home-cooked dolphin is just what the new york jets needed. here's nbc's fred roggin with an early look at all your sports headlines. good morning. the new york jets desperately needed a win and the dolphins were up to the task. the dolphins have not won all year and it wasn't going to happen last night. matt moore looking for brandon marshall but instead he found darrelle revis, first of two interceptions. reavis took it up the middle, end zone to end zone, 100-yard pick six. that touchdown tied a franchise record. jets' defense allowed two field goals all night. we'll move to the fourth and mark sanchez feeling the pressure. slings it out to holmes. picked up a block and cruised 38 yards down the sideline. jets running away with it, up

24-6. so, you think it's easy being an nfl official? when was the last time had you a 230-pound run over you at work? shawn greene took out referee fred brian. fortunately, he popped right back up and he was chuckle being it afterwards. the jets win a laugher 4-6. one last nfl note. broncos traded brandon lloyd to the rams for a sixth round pick. lloyd expected to play sunday against the cowboys. the nfl trade deadline, today. hockey, the winnipeg jets picked up their first franchise win and kyle wellwood gave the fans reason to cheer. eight seconds into the game. that goal nearly blew the roof off the building. after a 15-year absence, the winnipeg jets get their first win, 2-1. to tampa bay, florida bragging rights on the line between panthers and lightning. v versteg scored his first goal. finally, the avalanche are the surprise team of the young

season, picked up another win with an overtime win over the maple leafs. david john jones scored the game-winner. colorado a perfect 5-0 on the road after a 3-2 win. that's your early look at sports on "early today." i'm fred roggin. what susan sarandon says that has national organizations calling her dumb and arrogant. your early morning entertainment headlines are straight ahead. we haven't even carved the thanksgiving turkey yet so it's way too early for tinsle? we'll till why one oklahoma family gets a pass. you're watching "early today."

good morning. welcome back on this tuesday. we are looking at a lot of heavy rain today in the southeast. right now, a lot it-s down in south florida but will spread northward during the day. a cold front going through areas of arkansas, northern louisiana with rain and eventually that will work into tennessee areas like memphis and all of alabama and mississippi. and then as we go towards tomorrow, those two storms merge. heavy rain likely around d.c., baltimore, philly, new york and eventually boston. well f you're watching us on wvir nbc 29, charlottesville, virginia, see a collection of drawings and photographs that explore motion at the dancer and the dance at the university of virginia art museum. that's your "early today" event of the day. >> thanks so much. now here's an early look at this morning headlines in

entertainment. susan saran dan has never been shy about offering opinions but she's taking extreme heat over comments he made last weekend. in a film interview she referred to pope benedict xvi as a nazi. while the pope did grow up in nazi measure mane, he said he was registered against his will in the hitler youth and had no choice but to serve in german infant infantry. sarandon has drawn heavy. steven segal is an official texas border patrol. it has nothing do with the reality show. don't choke, bill. apparently for a long time christina aguilera seen here last weekend at michael jackson tribute has been taking shots at kelly osbourne over her weight. now that she's slimmed down she's dishing it back saying about aguilera, quote, she called me fat for years.

i was never that fat. you know, this is always disappointing to see, especially between women, that aren't even obese, that they would give that example to young girls. it's just a ridiculous conversation. >> good for kelly osbourne for getting healthy sxbing healthy. >> absolutely. this comes to us from kjrh 2 news works for you in tulsa, oklahoma, where in nearby broken arrow one family was determined to celebrate christmas together in october. just days before a seven-month deployment to afghanistan, jarod's family surprised him with a christmas celebration sendoff with all the trimmings. the family decked out their home, inside and out, even placing gifts under the tree. also the marine, who won't be home for the holiday, won't miss a thing. i'm lynn berry and this is "early today," just your first stop of the day today on your nbc station.

time now 4:28. we've got just 58 degrees. another cloudy day on tap, nothing like we're going to see tomorrow. tom joining us with our full wednesday, perhaps washout forecast. good morning. i'm jim handly. joe krebs has the morning off. >> and i'm eun yang, this tuesday, october 18, 2011.

police are searching for a suspect who shot and killed a bicyclist. police are not releasing the victim's name. so far no arrests have been made. in just a few hours, montgomery county police will begin a third day of searching for a missing germantown boy. no one has seen william mcquain since september 30th. that was the last time he was at school. investigators found his mother, jane mcquain, beaten and stabbed to death inside her home. they will concentrate their search on the grounds of the old comsat building on route 270 in clarksburg. the man charged with jane mcquain's murder could be back in maryland as early as today. after finding mcquain dead, police tracked her husband curtis lopez and her missing suv to charlotte, north carolina. lopez had his first court