black friday goes beyond deep discounts in stores or online. this year airlines and hotels are offering huge sales on flights and vacations. >> and block buster "the new york times" report former national security advisor michael flynn may be fully cooperating with special counsel robert mueller new details ahead. >> a 68-year-old grandfather is caught up in a sex tape controversy. >> then to newton, the annual winner of the thanksgiving national dog show. look at his face. does he remind you of anyone? "early today" starts right now. good to be with you on a friday. i'm frances rivera. >> and i'm richard lui. a state trooper has been shot and killed in texas and a suspect is now in custody. police arrested

brett black shooting. they say trooper damon allen pulled him over on interstate 45 about 90 minutes south of dallas. as allen walked back to his patrol car black allegedly fired at him with a rifle. he died at the scene. police say black fled but was captured near houston. allen was a 15 year veteran of the force and leaves behind a wife and three children. the texas department of public safety said we ask for your prayers for his entire family and his many friends and colleagues during the difficult days ahead. >> new developments in the russia probe led by special counsel robert mueller. lawyers for former national security advisor michael flynn have formally cut ties with president trump's personal legal team saying they can no longer discuss mueller's investigation. the news was first reported by "the new york times". the paper says this could be a sign flynn is cooperating with the special counsel. legal experts tell nbc news it is not unusual for defense teams to share common information for

party is unwilling or unable to do so under the law. president trump's personal attorney refused to give specifics regarding the discussion between the two legal teams, but said the change came as no surprise. he added, what was not entirely unexpected was that flynn may be discussing a plea with special counsel. and no one should draw the conclusion that this means anything about general flynn cooperating against the president. the white house special counsel had no comment on the matter because it involves private defense of the president. flynn's attorney also declined to comment. >> the shopping frenzy is officially on. black friday sales are projected to hit $682 billion this year, but all that shopping may not be so effective in burning the calories from thanksgiving dinner. more americans are shopping online than ever before, according to adobe analytics. americans have already spent over $1.5 billion online on thanksgiving day. and 46% of them are shopping on smartphones. nbc's s c

california. it is early, but folks are >> reporter: they are, richard. and, you know, some people still do actually come out to the stores to get the deals because they've sort of set it up that way. it used to be black friday was just that one frenzied day. it is now a five-day period. this best buy store is typical. they open at 5:00 on thanksgiving. they'll close shortly for a few hours and reopen at 8:00 in the morning with more of the so-called door buster deals that you can only get in the stores and not online. and we've seen a lot of people coming here bringing out flat screen tvs and all kinds of things. and of the shoppers are also employees. >> i mean, i was almost dripping sweat. literally, it's just a grind. we prepare all year for this day. we kind of love it. it's our super bowl. before we open the doors, we did our cheer, let's do the super bowl. all the associates, we take it as our day to bring the best service we can to you guys. it's all about having it red and i available for you guys when

prepping, as much as we can. >> reporter: national retail federation says 69% of us will shop at some point during this five-day period. they are also predicting that all in all holiday sales will be up about 4% from last year. that would be a healthy increase. we'll see. this five-day black friday period, though, is crucial for the retailers. richard? >> if you have to work, why not have fun like that guy. thank you so much, scott cohn there in oakland california for us. >> if you have a case of wander luft, now might be the time to book your travel. airlines are jumping on the black friday and cyber monday bandwagon offering incredibly cheap deals on flights and vacations. nbc's business correspondent jo ling kent is in jersey city with a look at how you can snag the best deals. jo, good morning. >> reporter: richard, frances, good morning. officially black friday is underway. we're here at a pretty busy target in jersey city and there are already customers flowi

deal. the best deep discounts. but i've got to tell you, it's not just retail that's rolling out the big deals for this holiday shopping weekend. it's travel as well. the sky is the limit for black friday deals. beyond deep discounts in stores or online, this year airlines and hotels are offering huge sales on flights and vacations. when you buy on black friday and cyber monday. fly from the u.s. to europe, including london, amsterdam, and dublin. on wow airline for $99 each way, round trip purchase required. on delta go from minneapolis to las vegas, $137 round trip. united offering flights from new york to fort lauderdale for $80 round trip, including taxes. to find the best get away deal, travel experts recommend being flexible with your dates and do more than just check airline websites. also use the hopper app. airline watch dog, and google

flights. certain millennials, we see gifting travel and something to experience with me together as gifting. >> reporter: for those who want to gift under the tree aggressive deals for many retailers capitalizing on the new iphone. wal-mart is offering a $300 store gift card with a purchase of an iphone 8, 8 plus or 10. target giving out $250 gift cards with a purchase of an iphone 8 or 8 plus. major retailers slashing prices. and their holiday season on a high note. this holiday shopping season is critical for busy stores like these, these physical stores. even though overall spending is expected to go up by about 4%, not all of it necessarily will happen in these brick and mortar stores, especially as more customers choose to spend on the store websites or amazon. back to you guys. >> all right, jo, thank you. >> now to that other annual thanksgiving day tradition, the national dog show. this year newton, there's newton, a

out the competition for best in show. kn newton was a big shut saying he has a celebrity look alike. chubaka? >> look at that. >> i don't know. let's bring some someone else. >> you don't know? look at the split screen. looks exactly like him. >> what do you think, bill karins? >> i think a little insulting for our best of show to be compared to jubaka. >> he's best of show. >> the best looking dog in the whole world and you're comparing him. >> i need a sound check to find out. >> i'd have to agree with richard. >> true, i paid him a lot of money. yesterday we had fantastic weather. warm weather through the mid of the country. florida had storms yesterday. there is a little bit of light rain heading over the state. it's going to improve as the day goes on. notice a little bit of the computer showing up around daytona beach, heading up there shougt of jacksonville. there will be clouds

by noon. but as we go through the afternoon, the clouds begin to break up so it should be a really nice friday afternoon in the sunshine state. we'll return you to some of the your sunshine. look at the east coast. after a nice morning, afternoon, d.c., philly, new york, middle of the country incredibly warm this time of year. 77 degrees in oklahoma city. perfect for any time of year let alone the end of november. that's a look at the big weather story of the day. now here's a closer look at your day ahead. well, that warm air goes all the way north. we're heading 54 degrees in minneapolis. that doesn't happen often this time of year. look at the southeast. this is a picture-perfect type day out there for your friday. get all those errands done, shopping, whatever else. well, the staff at busch gardens in tampa, they have something extra special to be thankful for this thanksgiving. how about a newborn giraffe? now, this little itty bitty baby stands at 6 feet tall weighing in at 150 pounds. busch gardens officials relea

to be named baby giraffe, saying from our growing family to yours, happy thanksgiving. >> what's cuter, giraffe or newton? >> it's amazing born at 6 feet? >> giraffe kind of looks like jabaka. >> i don't know what i'm doing. >> come on. >> thanks, bill. >> ahead, actress uma thurman reveals her feelings about harvey weinstein. mom" per roll more "doing chores for dad" per roll more "earning something you love" per roll bounty is more absorbent, so the roll can last 50% longer than the leading ordinary brand. so you get more "life" per roll. bounty the quicker picker upper.

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leading the news, actress uma thurman has broken her silence on the ongoing allegations against disgraced hollywood producer harvey weinstein. in an instagram post thurman wished everyone a happy thanksgiving, but pointedly called out weinstein saying, quote, except you, harvey. i'm glad it's going slowly. you don't deserve a bullet. thurman worked with weinstein in several movies including her academy award nominated roll in pulp fiction and kill bill

when initially asked about the stream of about weinstein on access hollywood, thurman chose her words carefully then, saying she was waiting to feel less angry before speaking out. she ended her post by saying, stay tuned. so, there may be more to come on this. harvey weinstein spokesperson has repeatedly said weinstein unequivocally denies any allegations of nonconsensual sex. >> minnesota al franken is issuing another apology in the wake of new allegations of groping by several women. the latest allegations came from two women who anonymously told the huffington post he touched them on the backside while posing for a photo. he said, i met tens of thousands of people and taken thousands of photographs. i've learned from recent stories that in some of those encountsers i crossed the line for some women. i made some women feel badly and for that i am sorry. let me say again to minnesota ans that i'm sorry for putti

trust. >> capital police have opened an investigation into the leak of nude photos of a texas congressman on social media. representative joe barton issued an apology for the photos earlier this week. he says a former lover threatened to make private photos and messages public. now his constituents are reacting to these salacious controversial pictures. nbc's kelly o'donnell has more. >> reporter: a public life overexposed, texas republican congressman joe barton, a 68-year-old grandfather, is caught up in a sexting controversy, making constituents back home shake their heads. >> it wasn't a good idea. even if you're looking for love, it's not a good idea. >> reporter: barton's nude selfie photo and intimate text messages splashed on the internet wednesday, an embarrassing disclosure that could be what's called revenge porn. barton said in a sthamt t

investigating the sexually charged material as a potential crime against him. the 17-term congressman explained that during the break-up of his second marriage a few years ago, he had consensual sexual relationships with mature adult women. barton apologized to voters for not showing better judgment. >> for someone to do something as silly as that, really should not be in washington writing laws to legislate what we have to live by. >> reporter: but barton's trouble is political, not legal. >> all this seemed to have been done in a consensual way, such that there's no crime really having been committed by congressman barton. it certainly is a humiliating and embarrassing situation. >> and our thanks to kelly o'donnell for that report. >> straight ahead, president trump gives thanks and talks up the economy, plus he is the dancing grandpa that got millions watching around the globe. that's next.

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that is pete the dancing grandpa, 634 years ol years old his groove on. might be a dance at a wedding or church location. he can pop and lock it, can't he? >> he can and then some, too. under high security millions of americans celebd

the the president also took time to thank u.s. troops overseas and with the u.s. coast guard near his vacation home in florida. some of the biggest feasts today were in areas hard hit by recent storms where people are especially thankful to have loved ones around them. nbc's rehema ellis has more. >> reporter: good morning, richard. as people start to think about shopping today, they have great memories of a safe thanksgiving day parade here in new york where security measures are still intense. >> minnesota, woo-hoo. >> reporter: from across the country. >> california. >> reporter: and around the world, millions gathered under clear skies for the country's biggest thanksgiving celebration. what's the best part about the parade? >> um, everyone comes together. >> reporter: four new balloons joined the lineup this year. behind the scenes and along the route, new york was well prepared to keep the crowd safe. officials say there was no

or the parade added extra level of security on the ground and in the air. elsewhere in the nation -- >> i just want to thank you on behalf of the whole country. >> reporter: -- president trump is spending his holiday inn florida. he and the first lady made a stop by a coast guard station in riviera beach. >> hello, everybody, and happy thanksgiving. >> reporter: also sending a message of thanks to our military serving overseas. in puerto rico, a great spot for an area still reeling from hurricane maria. volunteers spent all week dishing up what they're calling the biggest thanksgiving dinner the island's ever seen. >> gravy, gravy for how many people? 40,000 people. >> reporter: similar efforts underway in houston hit hard three months ago by hurricane harvey. in southern california, they got a roaster of a different kind. >> it's a nice day. >> reporter: record breaking heat this week, mid 90s meant some

feet tall, 150 pounds. now that the busy holiday tourist season is underway here in new york, authorities say expect heightened security measures especially in high-profile areas like where i am right now, in times square. richard? >> nbc's rehema ellis. thank you so much. it's the feel-good story of the day. a healthy dose of good karma for one homeless man. plus why you may want to run out and buy that christmas tree early this year. you're watching "early today" can we do this tomorrow? (grunts of effort) can we do this tomorrow? if you have heart failure symptoms, your risk of hospitalization could increase, making tomorrow uncertain. but entresto is a medicine that was proven, in the largest heart failure study ever, to help more people stay alive and out of the hospital

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with kellogg's rice krispies. a new jersey woman has raised over $250,000 for this homeless man here who helped her. kate mcclur ran out of gas while driving on i-95 into philadelphia one night. the homeless man named johnny offered to help and used his last 20 bucks to buy gas for her. mcclur said johnny didn't ask her for any money but she started a gofundme page to express her thanks. she only aimed to raise $10,000, but has now raised over $250,000 from donors and plans to help johnny find ape stable home and then some. >> that's fantastic, frances. >> got him back on his feet. >> give a little, get a lot. do something because you don't expect anything in return. certainly a thanksgiving gesture. >> karma coming right back to her. >> although thanksgiving

ended, but you might want to start shopping now for your christmas tree. yeah, a nationwide shortage of trees is driving up the prices and this tree farm owner in austin is warning you and us as well, not to wait until the last minute. he says for the first time in his 37 years of business he will not have enough trees to go around. and he predicts rather just about everyone in the market will run into the same issue. he says the wholesale price of trees he imports from the northwest jumped nearly 50% this year. >> so, yeah, some people don't like to get theirs early, it's going to dry out. but it's going to save you some bucks. may be worth it. >> it's going to be run up on fake trees i think. >> other options as well. >> folks doing it online. >> easier clean up. still ahead the eagles celebrate a milestone plus president trump's busy agenda after he returns from mar-a-lago. happy thanks for giving! thanks for giving lien the strength to outrun her brother. thanks for giving victor the energy to be the rowdiest fan.

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good morning. i'm molette green. in 90 seconds, we're working for you all black friday shoppers. are you ready to go this morning? what you need to know before you head out to the stores. molette, i need to know which places have the good deals first. if you are about to step outside to go shopping, the good news, its cold i

it is the day some people wait for all year. others avoid it like the plague. bargain hunters are already up

their holiday themselves. >> of course. i think i would do more for myself. i want to see if there's good deals because i want perfume. i'm not thinking -- >> i'm molette green with sheena parveen. we're talking about good weather. people started at midnight after they ate turkey. >> at least we had good weather for that. the weather is cold outside. we have a lot of areas in the 20s. look at these numbers here. 33 degrees in washington. it doesn't feel colder. through the refts day today, it's going to stay pretty chilly. these temperatures this morning, 20s for many suburbs. 26 -- 23 in manassas. 24 in gaithersburg. >> coming up, what you can