today is the day tt we're goin maybe it's cold outside o this thanksgiving morning. the massive macy's parade could be hindered by those high winds and single digit temperatures. do not let that dampen hearty fans. es>> and crowds and l that are hopefully getting shorter and moving along as millions will be arriving at theirestinations today for a thanksgiving feast. >> president trump wakes up at mar-a-lago in the midst of a battle he started with the chief justice of the supreme court. >> do the lottery winners who almost missed out on their jackpot. if not for a holiday cleaning that uncovered their winning ticket. >> and a shout out to america's brave est, our men and women in uniform as we give thanks your service to america on this special thanksgiving edition of "early today."

good morning to you. i'm richard lui. >> and i'm marlie hall. ppy thanksgiving. and pack your patience before you head out on the roads. this year is expected to set holiday travel records. aaa estimates more than 54 million americans will travel 50 miles or more this weeken the most in 12years. the skies also crowded asve thanksgivingl got into full gear. airles have addedat 158,000 s each day through sunday in anticipation of an estimated 2 1/2 million fliers per day. >> also some records you may not like. the ice cold temperatures, the northeast and mid-atlantic are waking up to their colde holiday inn over a century. meteorologist bonnie schneider is here with more d on thp freeze, what people can expect on this turkey day. >> they can definitely expect the coldest thanksgiving in the northeast ever in their lifetime. these numbers are going to be 20, 25 degrees below normal a the windhill, that's going to be in the single digits. and notice the cold temperatures will stickot around only for thanksgiving, but for black friday as well. the big question is, the parade. those wind parameters getting

very close to having to lower the balloons, but i think overall i think we'll be okay because notice the wind gusts are at 30. if they get above 34 that would ground the balloons. temperatures are going to be so cold, the mainanhing is you to bundle up. i'm going to talk more about this frigid forecast and what we ca expect for holiday travel in just a bit. >> all right, bonnie, thanks so much. in not york city, only will it be ice cold but high winds are also threatening a beloved tradition at the macy's thanksgiving day parade. organizers set toer decide whe they'll need to ground those famous balloons for the first time in 47 years. nbc's stephanie gosk isn the parade route with more. hey, stephanie. >> reporter: hey, marlie. well, parade organizers certainly hope the weather is going to be aet little bitr than this. the wind is the issue, and the fe is that if theind is blowing strong enough, these balloons might not make it into the parade. this year the macy's thanksgiving day parade will be for the brave and the bundled. >>ase saw it going to be

very cold and went and got long johns and everything before we ready. i hope we're >> reporter: there's a chance the balloons, even the six brand-new ones, will have to sit it out altogether. last timehat happened was 1971. in 1997, wind blew the cat in the hat onto ap post. four peoplju were inred. after that, the niep.y.p.d. cred a new rule. lower or remove thealons if winds reach 23 miles an hour with 34 mile an hour gusts. >> based on the wind conditions, we have different levels that the balloons will fly. >> reporter: the n.y.p.d.ill closely monitor wind meters along the way. together with the wind, potentially historic cold. here in new york, the temperature will feel like the teens. >> really, really cold weather can present a life-threatening situation. so everyone's got to take the cold weather seriously. >> reporter: and boston could have a high just 21, which would break a record set in

1901. >> make sure you cover your face, make sure you cover your hands. just be careful when you're out there. >> reporter: every onc in a while, thanksgiving in the northeast can feel like january in grminnesota. the hand warmers and layer up. even if the win doeset so strong that they have to ground the balloons, it doesn'tlo necessarily away all the fun. you still have all of the floats anthe bands. it will be a great parade. marlie, back to you. >> all right, stephanie, thank o you. t miss the macy's thanksgiving day parade hosted bid savannah guthrie, hoda kotb and al roker at 9:00 a.m. iceastern and pac time. that is followed by the national dog at show at noon easternn c. >> chief justice and john roberts defending the independence of the courts saying judges do not makesi des based on politics. and late yesterday the president fired back. nbc's pete williams has more. >> this has -- >> reporter: john roberts is cautious and restrained inis

public statements. but a comment from president trump tuesday provoked a highly unusual response from the chief stice. the president criticized a ruling from a federal judge in san pfrancisco,art of the 9th circuit, that put a hold on the president's planning to crackdown on asylume seekers on outhern border. >> you go to the 9th circuit and it's a disgrace and i'moing to put in a major complaint because you cannot win if you're us, a ase in the 9th circuit. this was obama judge. >> reporter: it's true that the judge john tiger w appointed by president obama. but when asked about the comment by the associated press, the chief justice said we do not have obama judges or trump judges, bush judges or clinton judges. what we have is an extraordinary group of dedicated judges doing their level best to do equal right to those appearing before them. roberts added that independent judiciary is something we should all be thankful for. sorry, president trump tweeted back, obama judges have a much different view than the people harged with the safety of our

country. 9th circuit rulings, he said, make the countryun fe. pete williams, nbc news, washington. >> president trump also doubling down on his support for saudi arabia. after he signalled the saudi royals will notd be punis for the murder of journalist jamal khashoggi. nbc's kristen worker is in flida, traveling with the president. >> reporter: despite mounting pressure tounh saudi arabia, president trump is ramping up his support for the kingdom. o tweeting prices getting lower. great! like a big tax cut for america and the world. en thank you to saudi arabia. but economists point out saudi arabia isn't solely responsible for lowerin oil prices. still, it comes after the president broke with the cia assessment that the crown prince, mohammed bin salman, directly ordered the killing of jamal khashoggi. >> the cia has looked at it. they've studied h it a lot. the nothing definitive. the fact is maybe he did, maybe he didn't. >> reporter: and defense secretary jam mattis now says

he does not think the cia orov saudinment have fully established who is responsible. adding, presidents don't always get to work with unemished partners. but a sharp backlash. >> i am astounded at the typ of response that was put out by the white house. we have a crown prince that i believe directed the killing of a >> that is a huge blow to our intelligence community, which at the end othe days what keeps us safe. >> reporter: the saudi government remains defiant. >> we have made it very clear that saudi arabia as a government is not involved in this. the crown prince is not involved in this at all. >> reporter: and anotheroo controversyng large. the white house has officially given the okay to troops stationed at the southern border to use lethal force to protect border agents if necessary. it's a move that could face lawl challenges because the prohibits the military from engaging in law enforcement here at home.

richard? >> kristen welker, thank you so much. >> today hundreds of strangers in ico, california, are coming together to serve 15,000 thksgiving meals toildfire survivors. the event is hosted by world central kitchen. the city of paradise, chico state universy and sierra nevada brewery. they'll be serving meals at twoe locations at niversity and one at azizirad era nevada brewery. seating times will be at 11:00, 1:00, 3:00 and 5:00 p.m. celebs are also showing upliith donation kim kardashian. >> to know that youe lost your home, kanye and adidas wanted to donate $200,000 sohat you guys -- [ cheers and applause ] so that you guys can, you know, up the pieces. >> appearing on ellen, she surprised a firefighter who lost his home with a $100,000 check. she and hubby kanye west also donated $0,000 to two separate

california firefighters organizations. green bay packers and chico native aaron rodgers announced he's donating $1 million. and he's also partnered up with state farm to make an additional donation of up t $1 million. the camp fire is now at 85% containment with the number of fatalities up to 83. meanwhile, the woolsey fire is thankfully 100% contained. >> the founder of bayeta health care showed a $1 milli show of appreciation. more than 26,000 people in this home health care company, financial gifts from chairman mark baeta personal funds range from $50 for new hires to tens of thousands for long-time staff members. baeta said he spent a lot of time reflecting on what he's grat.ul for certain >> all right. bonnie snyder is back. what else can we expect on this holiday? >> marlie and richard, we're watching for travel. a lot of people heading out on the road tod and on the west coast watch out for some rain, even some mountain snow.

ose frigid temperatures and strong winds may cause delays in the airports in the northeast. and that holds true if you're driving. just be careful out there. look at the temperatures. record cold expected across a good portion of the northeast, including new york city where we are watching the parade socl ely. it looks like we'll be just below those parameters. so the bloongz calloons can fly. o you're out and about thanksgiving, make sure you bndle up not just for thanksgiving da black friday as well. here's parade forecast. it will feel like it's in thw tooenz. make sure you wear layers if you're out and about. that's a look at the big weather story of t's day. now he closer look at your day ahead. temperatures are so cold ins the northet, but that's really the only place in thery cou where we're seeing that bitter cold. notice it's nice and mild and comfortable across the gulf coast. and warm with 80 degrees in florida. looking warm there. temperatures are also cold enough for some mouain snow in e rockies, but generally speaking it's really the

northeast and partst of the w that will be dealing with some tough weather on this thanksgiving. >>.alrigh but good for that fire fighting. >> yes. >> all right. now to aus guy who doesn't seem to age, in the midst of his 21stba season,he hawks vince carterow appropriately thrs down a monday steph curry dunk there heeaches another milestone. carter becomes jt the 22nd player in the nba history to surpass 25,000 career points. the 41-year-old appropriately reached this goal against the toronto raptors where carter began his career back in 1998. congrats to vince. all right. just ahead meet the cple that almost missed a million dollar lottery jackpot. stay with us. eblind. he thinks it smells fine, but his mom smells this... luckily for all your hard-to-wash fabrics... ...there's febreze fabric refresher. febreze doesn't just mask, it eliminates odors you've... ...gone noseblind to. and try febreze unstopables for fabric. with up to twice the fresh scent power, you'll want to try it... ...again and again and maybe just one more time.

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and learn how janssen can help you explore cost support options. remission can start with stelara®. explore cost support options. ♪ introducing the all-new corolla hatchback. toyota. let's go places. if you have some oldn forgot lottery tickets sitting around your home, do yourself a favor and check those numbers. kerry sanders tells us about a jackpot win this week that almost didn't happen. >> reporter: one lucky louisiana ore to bes a lot grateful for and it's all because of some pre-thanksgiving

chores that used to be a bore. >> i just sat there with receipts and other lottery tickets and just accumulated. and wrere sitting tor a long time. >> reporter: aaronberg tide iing their hbese re relatives arrived this week when they literally cleaned up. one of several unchecked tickets on their nightstand was a winner, $1.8 million. >>e lucky numbers drawn back in june. handed the ticket to him. i said i'm going to call out the numbers and l me know what you think. >> i thought something must have been wrongnd >> in this case timing is everything. the louisiana lottery ticket would have expired in just two weeks. >> we were that close. >> we were close. the moral of the story is, check your tickets. don' wait. >> reporter: talk about a little extra gravy on thanksgiving. rry sanders, nbc news. >> wow. good for them. oh, yeah. they're going to have a great thanksgiving. more to come including some late night advice for avoiding awkward dinner tableer

cotion today. plus a shout out to all the men and women in uniform sving overseas on this thanksgiving day. stay with us. you're watching "early today." (avo) when a nasty cold won't let you sleep, try new nyquil severe with vicks vapocool. (acapella) whoa! (avo) and vaporize it. (acapella) ahhhh! (acapella) shhhh! (avo) new nyquil severe with vicks vapocool. the vaporizing, nighttime, coughing, aching, stuffy head, best sleep with a cold, medicine.

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p> americans are more divided alongty lines than ever so i would avoid controversial bjects, like politics, religion, sports, movies, and how much voter i.d. you need to buy cereal.

[ laughter ] also, for god sake, do not open up the yam/swe potato debate. for the record, there are no usms. they're different colored sweet potatoes. anyone who says otherwise is lying to you. >> well, better to argue about sweet potatoes than litics, right? >> absolutely agree. i like both of them no matter what you call them. countless thanksgiving dinner aubles and gatherings, millions of americans will as well for a thought. perhaps to raise a glass to give thanks for our military and especially to remember all of our men a women in uniform deployed all over the world. they wod, no doubt, love to be home with their families, but they are deployedy. to and when a family member serves in the military, the entire fami. serves as we that includes the 6000 active duty military at our southern rder today, including elements of the 82nd airborne. so please keep the men and women in uniform and all of their families in your thoughts on thanksgiving and always. >> absolutely. portant reminder. >> yes.

>> how long does it take toow mie a 25 pound turkey? it's the question that's taken the internet by but don't worry, it is just a prank. it's been dubbed the 25 pound turkey challenge. young adults hosting their first thanksgiving flustered their parents by texting the question, how long do i microwave a 25-pound turkey? a mom saying, it has to be cooked in a oven. it's a big no. others had a feeling somethiit was up this mom even asking her daughter if she had been drinking. of course, there wer o plenty sassy responses. this mom advising, wrap i in foil. microwave for 30 minutes, then go to the store and buy a precooked one because you'll have to feed the entire fire department. >> that's a good one.o >> according butter ball, it's totally feasible as it turns out. they say 4 minutes per pound, then another 8 minutes per on the other side, but you'd probably need a smaller bird. >> or a gargantuan microwave.

i saw another response, don't do , exclamation point. stay away from that. philadelphia fliers mascot gritty shared his thoughts on thanksgiving in an interview with "time." when asked about his favorite side dish, he said boat of grave i with a straw. when it comes to his choice of white or dark at, his response was boat of gravy with straw. gritty also shared hisfo advice fans looking to microwave a turkey since we were just talking about that, saying it takes 4 hours 13 seconds plus one popcorn cycle to cook a 12-pound bird. you're welcome,oms. gritty always the fount of information and advice. >> interesting character, that gritty.ha well,happens when you combine a hotel room and car?driving according to design studio, it's the future of travel. the toronto-based company has designed what they call the autonomous travel suite or e at. nner of this this year's

ctions as ard ats f mobile room. it comes complete with a bed, working area, a lounge, bathroom, a tiny kitchen. it can make trips from 6 to 10 hours long and is controlled by an app. however, ats won't realistically be in f place at least another decade. so don't get your hopes up, richard. >> because, marlies suvren't big enough. look at this thing. >> i know. it's massive. >> iou actuallyn't mind drive ing it and trying it. still ahead, on your mark, get set, shop. we'll tell you when to score the dabest deals for your holiy shopping list. ok, i'm ready...

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well, to help us digest our turkey or not, a full helping of nfl games starting at 12:30 eastern bears, lie john i don't knows, redskins, cowboys, falcons and saints. guess where you're going to do that? right here on nbc. >> all right.ll bonnie is back with the frigid forecast. what else can we expect? >> well, marlie and richard, we are looking at record cold, not just for new york city, but for boston, much of the northeast facing temperatures that are going to be 25 to 30 degrees low normal. if you're traveling on this busy thanksgiving, look for mountain snow in the rockies, but warm temperatures and pretty comfortable conditions elsewhere in the country. so we're just watching out for that cold and watching the parade of course. >> thanks a lot, bonnie snyder. news you can use if you're headed out for black friday. sea, stelara® works differently. studies showed relief and remission,

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kicking off this thanksgiving morning with a live look outside right now. u can't really see the cold, but believe me, iis there and it feels cold. it could be the coldest

thanksgiving the d.c. region has seen in decades. decades, aaron. that's many years. >> that's multiple years across time and space. >> good morning, everyoniv happy thankg to you. i'm eun yang. >> and i'm aaron gilorrist. thanks spending part of your holiday with us. hopefully your thanksgiving turkey will warm you up because it is cold outside. the bird goes in the oven nowo be reaor later. >> don't put itn e microwave, laureyn. just saying. you keep talking about this microwaving turkey. >> there's been a question about that on the internet. >> oh, i saw that. there's a text message going arhand. i gett. >> let's do talk about how cold git's going to today though. >> it is going to be chilly, guys. we got of things going on this morning. we have the turkey trot, people waking u early to go out there and exercise. it's going to be chilly. the sun comes up just after 6:30. we've got clear skies tonight. it's a beautiful looking night out there, but it's cold. 37 degrees right now. we're g