happy new year from around the glob revelers are out with the old and in with the new as 2019 started off with a bang. even a few rain drops couldn't dampen thexcitement in times square. >> five, four, three, two, one. ♪ >> while hal a world away, north korea's kim jong-un delivers a pointed new year's day message to president dond trump. and with the govdonment shut showdown, no sciences of a solution. the president and democrats are jockeying for pitical advant ie. plust's the

mother-daughter act you've got to see. the story our producers in tears. now.ly today" starts right welcome to 2019 if you're just getting up or never went to bed. i'm frances rivera. >> and i'm marli >> happy new year to you. just a few hours ago, we watched the ball drop here in soggy and foggy new york city. that's where about 2 million people gathered to ring in 2019. >> dubai illuminated the skyth light show on the tallest building i the world. and rio's copacabana beach partd welc 2 million spectators. and on the west coast, the seattle spaceeedle glowed at midnight. firework burst over the las vegas strip and san francisco's bay lit us from fireworks from a boat. dan scheneman has more from around the world. >> reporter: in new york, revelers rused toet the rain dampen aood time. a crowd in the hundreds of thousands jammed intoes t

square to say good-bye to 2018 and welcome the newyear. but before 2019 was celebrated in new york, i arrived in new zealand and australia. across the globe, fireworks filled the sky from pyongyang to paris. while at the vatican, pope francis welcomed the new year in prayer. 2018 is now history, and 2019 ha juststarted. happy new year. dan scheneman, nbc news. >> all right, dan,hank you. and it's a new year, but it's the same old drama in d.c.s thetdown showdown is still raging on capitol hill, but democrats are planning to vote the gislation to reopen government tomorrow. however, it looks like that proposal could hit a wall witht presidenp. he doubled down on his demands of border wall funding during a phone iew with fox news. w we have to have border

security, and al is part of border security. aboutow, i hear so muc the wall is old-fashioned. no. the wall is not d.old-fashio the wall is 100% fool proof. >> in thatheinterview, president did say he is eager to make a deal. nbc's garrett haake has the latest. garrett, g rd morning. orter: good morning, frances. the two sides didn't get any closer on monday to t endins now 11-day-old government shutdown. but with congressin c back into session later this week and democrats taking control of the house, we're leaing the democrats do have a plan to reopen the government. and now they also have a top tier presidential candidate getting into the race. with the federal government still partially shut down, thet parties divided over funding for the president's border wall, still n talking. >> the house will be in order. >> reporter: the house and senate in for just minutes with most lawmakers still out p town. >>ou the senate stands aed

until january 2nd, 2019. >> reporter: the president telling fox news -- >> i'm here. i'm ready to go. it's very important. a lot ofe are looking to get their paycheck so i'm ready to go anyme they want. no, we are not giving up. we have to have border security, and the wall is a big part of border security, theiggest part. >> reporter: but what does the president actually want? mr. trump has shifted from a concrete wall that mexico would pay for to discussing steelsl s or fencing. on sunday, chief of staff john kelly called the wall not lltually a wa and senator lindsey graham said it was a metaphor. >> happy new year. >> repter: back on capitol nancy ncoming speaker pelosi and house democrats plan to vote thursday to fully fund all of thelosed government departments through next year except the department of homeland security. dhs will b funded until february with $1.3 billion for border security, none o i for a wall. daring senate republicans and the president to keep the government closed. >> this dark path doesn't have to be our future. democracy work for all of us.

>> reporter: opposition to the ll could become a theme among democrats challenging the president on the campaign trail. massachusetts senator elizabeth warren becoming the most prominent docrat yet to say she's planning to take on mr. trump in 2020. >> we want a government that works not just for the rich and the powerful. we wantt government t works for everyone. >> reporter: on fox news, the president welcoming warren te ace in typical trump style. >> do you really think she believes she can win? >> well, that i don't know. you'd have to ask her psychiatrist. >> reporter: last night the country's largest union fra fe employees announced it's suing the government on behalf of esstial employees who have been required to work during the shutdown without pay. many of them in dangerous jobs including along t border or as prison guards. they say it's unsafend fair. just one more wrinkle in this ongoing shutdown. frances. >> many wrinkles there are. garrett, thank you. a u.s. citizen is inst russn y this morning accused of spying. top kremlin officials say he was

caught during an espionage operation, but didn't elorate. spying charges carry a prison sentence of up to 20 years in russia. the u.s. state department confirmed that it' aware of the arrest and is pushing for access to the detained officials have not yet released his name. the arrest comes amid tensions between the u.s. and russia over the ukrainian crisis and allegations of election meddling. north korean leader kim jong-un issuing a warning t the united states in his new year address. kim saying that if the u.s. doesn't keep its promises, then north korea will seek a new path. although it's not clear what exactly that new path would be. the pair vowedo work together towards denuclearization, but since then, progress has stalled. now kim says he'd welcome a meeting with trump again at any time, and it t looks likt may happen. just weeks ago, trump said a second summit with kim will likely take place this or next month. now turning to a tragic lion

attack that took one intern's life. the deadly moment happening during a routine cleaning after the lioness caped its enclosure. the sanctuary remain closed as investigators searc for answers. this as peta released a statement speaking out against the conservation center, calling it a siro zoo. here with more is nbc's catie beck. >> reporter: instead of celebration, a new year will begiil in grief for f and friends of 22-year-old alexandra black. >> she lov everybody that she met and loved all the animals she came across. >> reporter: the north carolina sanctuary where she was killed by a lion remainso closed t the public. investigators trying to understand how the animal was able to get out and kill black, wan intern had started just ten days ago. >> the person that was attacked, how bad are they hurt? >> they're incapacitated. >> they're incapacitated? >> reporter: the lion, seen in this online video, was shot and killed by deputies.

now animal rights group peta urging the unaccredited center's closure, calling it a roadside zoo. the conservator center passed two recent inspeheions by usda and has no reported safety complaints. black's former co-worker at an indiana wildlife park says she died for a cause she loved. >> the world has lost a person who really was able to speak one-on-one and understand their connection with >>animals. eporter: black's family remembering her as a beautiful young woman who died following her passion. atie beck, nbc news. desperate manhunt is under way this new year in texas. a ndyear-old girl was shot killed while riding in a car with her mother on an early morning coffee her mother was hit in the arm and is still in the hospital. sheriff's deputiess released thi surveillance image of the mysterious redtrk. piupeking f thegunm,ck possibly a w hite man with a beard, in his 40s. ainter blast is wreaking

havoc on kansas farms. temperatures have dippedelow freezing, and that's threatening cattle and crops in the central part of the state. it's another reminder that mother nature did not go easy on us in 2018. all over the world, hurricanes, wis, floods and tornadoes. all told, they've cost us too billions innd recovery efforts. nbc's kerry sanders looks back. >> reporter: 2018, a year of seemingly back-to-back-to-back global natural disasters. just named fourth costliest year ever. in economic loss, $155 billion. from the record s wildfires in california, more than 22,000 homes destroyed. 100 people killed. to hawaii's volcano, a billion dollars in damage. to t songest hurricane in 26 years. i'm kerry sanders. hurricane michael, 155-mile-per-hour winds making landfall at mexico beach.

>> the eye has come ashore just to the east of us. >> reporter: mexico beach is still a scene of catastrophic devastation. scientists warn as global temperatures continue to rise, extreme see more weather just like they experienced here. >> this is perhaps the biggest a existential t facing human population. >> reporter: butch alley and mexico beachundeterred. >> do you wonder about rebuilding here with what nature could do again? >> no. we made the dision a long time ago that this is going to be home. to measure harder than a disaster's cost, the human misery that lingers for years. kerry sanders, nbc news, mexico beach, florida. >> safe to s the hope for 2019 is that it won't be as devastating as we saw this past year. let's seertow we're sg the year. kind of quiet out there. here's bill karins. ar good morning. happy new we haven't talked a lot about this winter of big bli anything like that.

the last two hurricane seasons, we can definitely use a break about six to seven months from now. we saw the heavy rain in aas of the northeast. we're getting rid of that storm. the next storm is down here, now beginning in areas of new mexico. it's not going to be a huge storm. it's mostly going to be a snowmaker in new mexo and eventually a big rainmaker throughout all of the southeast with the heaviest rain being in areas of louisiana and mississippi. in like what we dealt with 2018, just one rainstorm after another. that's a look at the big weather story of the day. c here's aser look at your day ahead. well, ts far as theperatures go, still very mild in areas of east coast and the southeast but look at where the cold air is it's settled into the northern plains. minneapolis around 9 degrees. denver aroun 20. salt lake city, 23. so the cold airit is us in the plains and it will arrive on the east coast starting >> bill, thank you. deputies near tampa, florida, have recovered half al n dollars worth of stolen tequila.

the 966 cases of patron -- that's the good stuff -- were found sunday night in a semi trailer that hadreviously gone missing from a truck stop. authorities caught the thieves as they were transferring the loot to their own truck. the men were arrested and charged with theft andburglary. half a million dollars worth of tequila, that's a lot. time to celebrate now. get na salt and lime ready. still ahead, the miracle discovery that's got people talking. plus lester holt with the story of the day, a mom and daughter relationship that can endure almost anything. i bet you think bigger is better. actually, it's bulkier. always discreet doesn't need all that bulk to protect. because it's made differently. the super absorbent core quickly turns liquid to gel, for drier protection that's a lot less bulky. looks like good things really do come in small packages. always discreet. for bladder leaks.

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for robes. they're both cushiony, comforting, and add elegance to your home. but quilted northern is not a robe. it's just really nice toilet paper. i had this chest cold, but my medicine kept wearing off. (coughs) ah! i missed you! then i discovered mucinex. one pill lasts 12 hours, and i'm good. mucinex releases fast and lasts 12 hours, not 4. let's end this. if you'renk still tg of a new year's resolution, here's a little instration. >> the f ast mothernd daughter physically challengedeam to finish an iron man, and t onlyhe second female team ever. nbc' lester holt introduces us to the inspiring duo. >> reporter: this has always been beth and lizaja s' special mother/daughter time. o when she was an infant, i would take her in a jogging

chair. >> reporter: but when liza was 6, the family was in a horrific car acngdent, leavier unable to speak and walk. >> i'm beyond thankful that she isith me and i'm determined to give her the most beautiful life. >> reporter: so she began taking liza out for runs just like before. liza loved it. they started doing 5s, 10ks, then triathlons and marathons. beth felt together they could do anything, even an iron man. the 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike ride, and 26.2 mile run is a formidable challenge for any athlete. but53-year-old beth also has to pull liza and her adaptive equipment. for months, beth tirelessly trained for this, race day. >> we're so ready today. >> reporter: the swim starts before 7:00 a.m. two hrs later, they're oute of

water. >> love you guys. reporter: and on to the next leg, their biggest challenge. nine hours to finish the steep bike course. beth pushes up hill after hill, barely finishing in time. and there's still a full marathon to go. >> here's your number. >> reporter: exhausted, they log 5 miles, then 10. as night falls, bethhusband's joins for the final push. then as midnight approaches, the roars. they've done it. >> i want to do it again. >> reporter: and it would be worth it just to see liza's face at the finis line again. >> i have seenan many, forms of a mom's love, but never something like that. >> soin insp right? >> and more. and more. and they're going to continue to inspire because beth and liza have already signed up for another iron man in co rado. we'll cheer them on as early as now. > just ahead, a miracle

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i want to thank reverend moore for that great introduction. >> the ebenezer baptist church in atlanta, georgia, welcomed 39th president, jimmy carter, his wife rosalind, and 43 family

members at their sunday service this weekend. mr. carter took a moment to speak to the congregation, praising the church and its mission, ending the year off in at y. still strong and out there. >> yeah, 43 members of his family. wow. ut> well, christmas in the rearview mirror b we'vean got her gift for you. the unbelievable story of two strangers who by a stroke of luck found each other and something precious this holiday season. nbc's kristen welker has more on the christmas miracle in washington ate. >> reporter: on christmas day, joanne johnson overjoyed, picking up a precious gift from a total stranger, the wedding ring she lost shopping in ocasber. >> i convinced after the first couple days that i would never see it again. >> that stranger, shiloa avery had posted on facebook she had found a ring in her brand-new insta p that morning. the emotional moment caught on cell phone.

>> you are such anonest person. thank you. >> reporter: for johnson, this christmas was already a miracle. fourhe years ago was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer. >> instead of only having 6 to 18 months to live, i'm now four s living with cancer. and now to find my ring, it was like, okay, frosting on the >>ter: johnson, who once cake. didn't think she would live to see this christmas, now has one more reason to celebrate the magic of the season. >> merry christmas to you too. oh, golly. gee whiz. >> the oh,he the joy oface.>> kristen welker, thanks for that report. still ahead, whiplash on wall stet. how markets fared in the last day of trading for the year and the impact on your 401(k). when diagnosed with cancer, alexander went to st. judeoshildren's researchtal.

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good morning. the new year will have you reaching deeper into your pocket to drive a busy road in virginia. this one right here. the new toll prize you'll be paying. that's straight ahead on news 4 today. right now we're at 62 degrees.

♪ here.he new year is massive crowds packed times square to ring in 2019 with a huge party. if you were watching last night you might have missed one big part of the new york tradition.

police say the person responsible for this crash that may have killed three children may have been drunk at the wheel, but this morning he is free. g the year starts with the federal government still shut down. the democrats say they're ready to pass a spending plan when they take over the house this ek, but getting the president to sign it still seems like high hopes. good morning. welcome to the new. ye i'm chris laurence. >> i'm mlet greene thank you for starting the year with us on news 4. it's a calm t startthe day. we're thankful to be done withte the w year the d.c. area has ever seen. >> it's been crazy. >> let's check the forecast with amelia a do we get break from