super committee members face rising pressure as the clock ticks down to a critical deadline. up in smoke. surveillance video captures an explosion of a suspected mobile meth lab. and onset scuffle. two lebanese politicians come to blows during a debate on live two lebanese politicians come to blows during a debate on live television. captions paid for by nbc-universal television hello and good morning. i'm lynn berry. today we begin with a ticking clock. time is running short on capitol hill this morning as a congressional super committee struggles to come to terms on $1.2 trillion deficit reduction plan. they have one week left to reach an abefore harsh mandatory kicks in and so far no signs of a deal. nbc's tracie potts joins us from washington with all the details. good morning to you.

>> reporter: good morning. this is like deja vu from last spring except this time we are the automatic cuts looming. senate majority leader harry reid says he doesn't see any sign of compromise yet but aides also say there's not a stalemate. both sides, democrats, republicans on this committee, working very hard to try to find a solution. the committee is seeking $1.2 trillion to cut from the budget. and the arguments haven't really changed much from last spring. democrats to want see more revenue coming in. republicans fear that could mean tax hikes. they actually want to drop tax rates and cut medicare and medicaid, cut those rates down. corporate tax rates down to 25% as the top rate. now, the committee itself hasn't met in about two weeks but lots of meetings going on behind closed doors, including with house speaker john boehner who sat down with democrats and republicans yesterday. he says if they come up with a deal, he'll push it through. lynn? >> tracie potts for us in

washington, thank you. well, elsewhere, wall street protesters in new york have been allowed back into lower manhattan zuccotti park, a day after they were cleared out in a late-night raid by city police. this time, however, occupiers returning to the birthplace of the movement yesterday were allowed to bring only a small bag with them. tents and camping gear of any kind are prohibited after a judge ruled that demonstrators have the right to protest in but not occupy the park due to intolerable health and safety risks. seattle cops pepper sprayed a group of marchers marching in solidarity with occupiers yesterday. four people were arrested. an e-mail from one of penn state's football coaches is raising new questions this morning in the penn state sexual abuse trial. in an e-mail obtained by the associated press, then-graduate student mike mcqueary says after witnessing former coach jerry sandusky allegedly sodomize a

young boy in a shower room in 2001, he stopped it and then reported the incident to police. the e-mail conflicts with mcqueary's grand jury testimony where he did not specifically say he stopped the act or went to police. meanwhile, "the new york times" is reporting former head coach paterno yp recently fired over the scandal transferred full ownership of his $600,000 home to his wife for $1 back in july. his attorney says the transaction was part of the couple's ongoing estate planning and was not tied to the scandal. president obama is in australia this morning where just hours ago he and australian prime minister julia gallard announced a joint security pact. beginning next year, about 250 u.s. marines will begin a rotation in northern australia which over the course of several years would reach a full force of 2,500 military.

addressing concerns over china's economic presence in the region, the president maintains china needs to accept the responsibilities that come with being a world power and, quote, play by the rules of the road. now here's a look at some other stories making news "early today" in america. surveillance camera footage shows the eruption of a massive fire ball inside an alleged mobile meth lab. last sunday's blast inside a tennessee hospital parking lot killed one man and sent bystanders running for cover. investigators say the charred remains have all the makings of a drug factory on wheels. a brazen auto thief almost killed a chicago car salesman driving off the lot. in october incident is part of a string of auto thefts where the suspects steal the vehicles during test drives. the salesman suffered broken ribs but police arrested the suspect after he abandoned the car. fears of an earthquake rapidly spread after a two-train collision rocked topeka, kansas,

residents. the crash left railroad crews with a clean-up job. 32 cars derailed and over 600 feet of track needed to be replaced. the world's bravest have arrived in myrtle beach. hundreds of firefighters from america and abroad are if town for the firefighter combat challenge. dressed in full gear, they competed if a variety of events that showcase the talent and skills they use to save lives. well, now here's a look at your national and regional weather with nbc meteorologist bill karins who shows his skills as preparing you for your day. good morning to you. >> they should have the weather challenge. we'll do it like in vegas. >> you carry umbrellas and see who you can fend off? i'll participate in that. >> maybe like the news anchor challenge like in the kay mcaym islands. >> who can read the fastest? >> good morning, everyone. we are watching rain headed through the east and southeast,

watch out for thunderstorms this morning. maybe even a few strong thunderstorms. areas down there in mississippi and alabama under a tornado watch as you actually start your morning. so, potential for isolated tornadoes is going to be the rule this morning. i'm not expecting any big tornadoes or anything devastating. cold air moving through the northern plain. one last little mild morning for areas of the mid-atlantic and the southeast. that cooler air and the rain is on the way over the next two days. here's that tornado watch, goes from southern mississippi up interstate 59 into tuscaloosa area. we haven't had any tornadoes as of yet but it is possible throughout the morning and even looks like down around new orleans we're under a tornado watch now. a new one has just been issued. that will continue into the early morning hours. a big shield of rain for the second morning in a row, traveling through all of kentucky, downpours from bowling green that will head for louisville, cincinnati and lexington. it's cold. minneapolis, windchill at 21. windchill of 10 in denver. a day of change around the country. a lot of people going to return

to typical late fall conditions. that's a look at your national forecast. here's a look at the weather outside your window. if you live on the eastern seaboard, be prepared with that umbrella today. eventually that rain later today will make its way into southern new england, new york city, philadelphia, washington, d.c. and all of virginia. but the rain this morning is pretty much confined to the tennessee valley and the deep south. a little active weather day. chance of tornadoes is slim but still a minor threat. >> thanks, bill. coming up, super mario smashes through italian grid lock. more blues at the post office. and hiring astronauts without a spaceship in minor technicality. plus, the situation slaps a lawsuit on abercrombie & fitch while snooki slaps choice words on him. coming up, the nba cancels more games, the a.l. cy young winner is crowned and coach k. moves to the head of the class. you're muching "early today."

good morning and welcome back to "early today." i'm lynn berry. here are some of your top headlines this morning. the secret service says a bullet hit an exterior window of the white house while an additional round of ammunition was also found on the exterior of the white house. this follows reports friday of gunfire near the white house. the u.s. park service believes the shots were fired from a passing car that was later found seven blocks away. authorities are searching for a 21-year-old man connected with the vehicle. a wave of violence has left as many as 90 people dead across syria in a single day. activists say suspected army defectors gunned down nearly three dozen sole dears and security force members in an ambush meanwhile. the subject of syria sparked a

malee, they hurled water and through up a host. a russian soyuz capsule carrying an american and two russian successfully docked with the international space station. they'll begin a four month stay aboard the floating lab. the associated press reports long lost air force win recordings made in the aftermath of john f. kennedy's assassination have been found and up for sale. the two plus hour recordings come from the estate of a former kennedy aide and going for $500,000. the dow opens at 12,096 after adding 17 points yesterday. the s&p was up 6 points. the nasdaq gained 28. taking a look at overseas trading this morning n tokyo the nikkei fell 78 points while in hong kong the hang seng dropped 387. good news from italy and here at home had wall street on the upside of its recent seesaw

run tuesday. with italy racing to avoid financial crisis, prime minister sdeg nat mario monty is expected to finish forming a government in what by normal italian standards is almost lightning speed. still with italian benchmark bond yields once again closing above the critical 7% level and spanish and french yields also higher, euro worries could drive wall street through more up and downs this week. here at home, retail sales rose for a fifth straight month on more spending than expected. more proof the economy may be gaining steam, new york city manufacturing rose for the first time since may. tech stocks led with hewlett-packard pacing the dow. intel rose after warren buffett revealed he bought a stake in the company. apple was up for only the second day after eight. in earnings, after nine consecutive quarters of declining, walmart reported a revenue gain.

staples dropped on short sales and a lowered full-year forecast. department store saks rose on stronger sales. and after the bell, despite a jump in profit, dell sank after low revenue. elsewhere, the postal service lost $5 billion this year and says it could run out of cash by next september if congress doesn't help. finally, need a job? nasa is hiring astronauts. only problem, nasa doesn't own a spaceship anymore but the agency promises getting on one of the few flights they'll hitch onto these days will be well worth the wait. coming up, the latest on the nba lockout and college hoop highlights for all you basketball star fans out there, including a record-breaking win for duke's coach k. your early morning sports headlines are straight ahead. in weather a soggy morning for the east coast. thankfully your thursday is looking much improved. you're watching "early today."

good morning. if you're just waking up, this is "early today." in sports with each day that passes it seems the likelihood of a settlement to the nba's owners lockout becomes more and more remote. here's nbc's fred roggin with an early look at all your sports headlines.

good morning. while the nba was canceling games through december 15th, history was being made in college hoops. number six duke beat michigan state and with that coach mike krzyzewski became the winningest coach. picking up win 903 to beat bobby knight. the two shared a special moment embracing on the sideline. memorable night at madison square garden as coach k. picked up 903 and counting. kentucky showed everyone why they're ranked second in the country giving number 11 kansas more than they could handle. tied at half and wildcats jumped all over the jayhawks. 17-point lead and didn't look back. they cruise 75-65. another great match-up, number three, ohio state, eighth ranked florida. gators have never beaten a top three team on the road. william buford scored game high 21. jarod oliver with 16. buckeyes won it 81-74. baseball as expected justin

verlander unanimous winner of the a.l. cy young award leading the majors in strikeouts and wins with 24-5. hockey bragging rights in new york. sean avery a pest around the net, got a rebound and scored a second goal. to the third, islanders turned it over and brad richards made them pay for their mistake. unleashed a rocket. rangers on fire winning their seventh in a row 4-2. streaks after a dismal start to the season bruins have now won six straight. pouliot scored the eighth. the champs have got their swagger back winning 4-3. that's your early look at sports on "early today." i'm fred roggin. the star of "glee" speaks out and brad pitt says not so fast. your early morning entertainment headlines are straight ahead. bring becoming a new dad brings a lot of responsibility, especially if you're called on to deliver the child yourself. you're watching "early today."

welcome back to "early today" on this wednesday. weather update. a slight chance of tornadoes this morning if you live in areas of southern louisiana, especially new orleans up through mississippi and eventually into alabama. so, we're going to watch those storms as we go throughout the morning hours. one of those rare cases we actually have a chance of those storms as you're heading to work or school. now we'll watch rain moving through the mid-atlantic up into the big cities of the northeast.

an umbrella day for everyone on the east coast. we clear it out on thursday. the cold air dominates the map in the northern plains. if you're watching us on wmgt tv's in macon, georgia see a collection of different animals at mini zoo tours at museum arts and sciences. and now here's an early look at this morning's headlines in entertainment. brad pitt is backtracking from saying he'll retire from film roles at 50. he says it's not an exact deadline and was stressing his interest in producing. when it comes to aging, pitt added, given the choice he would take the wisdom that comes with age over youth. she tells allure she's not a diva and says, quote, i'm half italian. i can eat some under the table. he says he's deeply proud of his james bond films, pierce brosnan refuses to watch them, ever, even when his sons ask him to. brosnan says, quote, i find no

nourishment in them. and finally, here's a "jersey shore" update. the situation sued abercrombie & fitch tuesday over what he claims was a publicity stunt in which the company offered to pay cast members not to wear abercrombie & fitch. the scandal ensues. meanwhile, on the recent claim he hooked up with cast mate snooki, she told wendy williams she thinks he's disgutting and would rather cut off her legs than date him. >> i'm all over this -- >> you were trying to fill me in -- >> on the show she denies it, but after the show she admitted they were together that night but then weren't together-together. >> i feel like i need to have an intervention with you right now. i'm not quite sure why you know all that. i didn't report it, so why would you know? well, this comes to us from wvit nbc connecticut in hartford where nearby hamden an early

arrival forced a first-time dad to play the role of delivery room doctor. things got moving quicker than expected after sharegan experiencing contractions. with no time to head to the hospital, her boyfriend, randy, took over. >> you go, randy! >> yeah. after two minutes of coaching, randy delivered his first child, a little girl. >> two minutes? >> -- who has given her new dad an amazing and memorable start to fatherhood. a bet a lot of women are jealous of that. i'm lynn berry, this is "early today."

our time right now is 4:28. we have 58 degrees here in the nation's capital. this is a wet stay. >> a wet stay? >> i'm joe krebs. >> good morning to you. i'm eun yang, and welcome to "news 4 today" for this wednesday, november 16th, 2011. new from overnight, two men are dead from two shootings in prince george's county. police do not believe the shootings are connected. the latest one happened on the 2100 block of county road in district heights. investigators found the man shot and killed on the grounds of an apartment complex. the man's body was found on the playground. earlier, police found a man shot on the 700 block of murray avenue in oxon hill. officers checked it out after reports of shots fired. they checked out a man with a gunshot wound lying in the street. they took him to the hospital where he later died. police have not released any

suspect information in these cases. the secret service says one of the bullets from last week's shooting near the national mall may have actually hit the white house. two bullets were found on white house grounds yesterday. one round hit an exterior window and was stopped by ballistic glass. the other was found on the exterior of the white house. the secret service was trying to figure out whether the bullets were connected to friday's shooting along constitution avenue. u.s. park police issued an arrest warrant for oscar ortega hernandez who's believed to be connected to the shooting. we are also on top of a developing story out of new york, where occupy wall street protesters are vowing to continue their social movement despite being evicted from a manhattan park. a judge ruled demonstrators' free speech rights were not violated when they were forced from zuccotti park. they are allowed to protest in the park, but they cannot set up camps. they will continue to rally against corporate greed and inequality.