jack black, kevin get rdy f a winter blast today with millions in the path of dring snow and plenty of flash flood watches and warnings. we've got your forecast. at no time has the white house asked for nor hav i provided any promises or commitment concerning the special counses investigation or any other investigation. >> this morning several news stories and fresh revelations swirling around the white house in an ever growing case of he said/he said. plus a major new nomination at the justice department. nbc news is reporting on a number of new twists and turns in the jussie smollett saga. the search for the fountain of yoh. people going to extremes to lool and f younger.

a new warning from the fda about so-called youngblood transfusions. ariana grande just did something to match the legendary beatles. and if for some reason you wanto get that donald trump or kim jong-un look, we've got the barber f t you. "earay" starts right now. good wednesday morning. i'm phillip mena. >> and i'm marlie we are following a massive winter storm moving across the country. the system dumping snow and ice could impact as many as 200 mi 3ion people in9 states. the snowfall rped up tuesday afternoon in kansas, and a woman in georgia shared thi video of a hail storm last night. the winter blast is expected to reach from the south to the southern new england today. for more, let's go to nbc meteorologist janessa >>bb. ood morning, everyone. we have severe weather out towards the south. also tracking that heavy snow. but timing, it's really going to be key on this system. it depends on your location. out towards washington, you're

going to seer possibly f to six inches really impacting you for yourly e morning commute. it then transitions into rainr fohe northeast, really impacts us as we step into your evening commute. so roadways definitely dicey and some delays definitely possible. out towards the uer midwest, we could see up to six to eight inches. so this is impacting over 100 million people here thr aghout yourernoon into your evening with winter weather advisories and winter storm warnings in place. >> all right. thanks for heads up, janessa. the wayjor shake-up on for the justice department. president trump is nominating a top transportation official to replace deputy attorney general rod rosenstein when he leaves next month. jeffrey ros is thed.o.t.'s chief operating officer and previously sved as general counsel. he also spent nearly 30 years at kirkland and ellis llp, the same law firm as the new attorney generrl, william meanwhile, the man barr replaced

is back in the headlines this morning. according to "the new york times," president trump may have asked his hand-picked acting attorney general, matthew whitaker, to interfere with the investigation into hush money payments. nbc's tracie potts joining us this morning with the latest from d.c. tracie, the president is denying this report, calli it fake news. >> reporter: right, phillip. he says it never happened. and matt t whitaker former acting attorney general, who the president supposedly made this reques of, testified on capitol hill a few weeks ago that he was neveressured to influence any case. this is coming from a "new york times" story tha cites multiple sources saying that, in fact, the president called matt whitaker, this man, who was in charge of the justice department, asking for a change at the top of the michael cohen case. michael cohen, the president's being attorney, who was investigated for the hush money payments that he made for the president. the president wanted someone different in charge of that investigation according to the "times." that person, u.s. attorney

geoffrey berman considered an ally according to the "times." but whitaker said no because berman had already been recushe from case. now, we're already hearing from the former actingbi director, who has been talking a lot book. about his upcoming he's commenting on this "new york times" report. >> it's not surprising at all, right, especially when you're familiar with the hisry we went through in may of 2017. it's not that different fromki director comey to just let go of the investigation of mike flynn. of course one of the cruci steps that caused us to believe that this president might, in fact, berying to obstruct justice. >> reporter: and there's another report this morning.n "the washingst" reporting that the president may be about ready to get rid of his directo of national intelligence, dan coats. some friction there after coats testified on capitol hill several weeks ago, the president's view of security threats against the united states. you might remember that was the

hearg wherehey did not mention the southern border at all as the president wasg say that the southern border where he wants to build the wall was one of the biggest surity threats against the country. we remember that. new day, new drama. thank you, tracie. justice ruth bader ginsburg is bac on thebench. she returned to the courtroom tuesday for the first time since havingart of onef her lungs removed after cancer was found. reports sayhe looked as fit as ie did before the surgery. and as her custom, she asked the first question. while she was recovering a home, she participated in the consideration and decisions of 11 cases by reading legal briefs and transcripts of oral arguments. a bombshell twist in the jussie smollett case after thee st attorney, kim fox, recused herself from the investigation, citing potential tions of impartiality. the unprecedented move catching ffchicago police guard. yesterday the two brothers accused of carrying out the attack met wit police and prosecutors. but police still want to re-interview smollett.

nbc's miguel almaguer gets into the lainrs of this vestigation. >> reporter: law enforcement jussis tell nbc news smollett is no victim, and he could face criminal charges. the two men c who heims attacked him, ola and abel osundairo say they were hired by the actor to stage the attack. the brothers could be called to teify in frontf a grand jury. the osundairos are nowop ating with detectives after they were arrested and released withouts, charge with authorities tracing allio communicat between smollett and the brothers. investigators seized stamps and a magazine at the brothers' home. ollett says he received this death threat before the attack. cbs chicago citing multiple soces reports he concocted the assault because the letter didn't receive the attention he desired. >> did i make that up too? >> reporter: immediately after the attack, smollett received a wave of support on social media. now a deafening silence.

house speaker nancy pelosi deleting her tweet. with smlett's story unraveling, a new twitter storma nikky posting he must repay resources used to investigate and serve time for the division he caused. police and the public are waiting to hear from the once outspoken activist who remains silent. miguel almaguer, nbc news. overseas now, new developments in a story we first brought you yesterday. a british womang pleado go home to the uk after fleeing to join i is losing her citizenship. now, will the u.s. do the same to an american isis bride? here's nbc's keir simmons. >> reporter: as this former isis wife and alabama mother pleads to return to america, a dcimatic on from the uk government. stripping citizenship from this british isis mother, effectively banning her from britain. despite joining isis in 2015,

she had claimed she was not a threat. >> i'm a 19-year-old girl with a newborn baby. don't have any weapons. >> reporter: now the u.s. must decide how to respond to this woman's request to come home. she went to syria and joined isis in 2014. even allegedlyng threate america with terrorism in tweets she claims she didn't write. but her family representative says she was brainwashed by onlineepropaganda. s pleading for a secand ch. >> i know i ruined my future and my son's future, and i'm deeply, deeply regret it. >> reporter: the state department leaving the door open by not commenting on this specific case. >> repatriating these foreign terrorist fighters to theirun ies of origin, ensuring that they are prosecuted and detained. that's the best solution. >> president trump has cled on european countries to take back isis fighters, but the uk t appear be ignoring that request with the fate of many r

dangerous for isis members far from clear. chilling new details in the case of coradoom kelsey berre berreth. she disappeared three months ago and is presumed dead by authorities. prosecutors laid out their case agait her fiance. nbc's steve patterson has been following the case. >> reporter: graphic newon revelas in court. for the first time, investigators how he allegedly bludgeoned her to death, saying he h blindfolded with a swaert, asking the mom to guess the scent of candles bstore king her in the head with a baseball bat. the story told to investigators by frazee's girlfriend, crystal kenny. after the alleged murder, kenny says frazee called her, saying get out here now. you've got a mess to clean up.s prosecutay frazee then burned her body along with bags of evidence. kenny took a plea deal, agreein to testify against frazee after pleading guilty to tampering with evidence. now prosecutors say frazee lied on kenny in previous

attempts to kill berreth, months before two the alleged murder, frazee instructed kenny to poison berreth with a drink from starbucks. a separate wrongful death lawsuit filed against frazee claims a motive that she was killed because frazee wanted custody of their 1-year-old daughter. with baby kay lee now in the care of berreth he's parents, the case again her father builds steve patterson, nbc news. his picture sparked a nationwide debate,nd now a fierce legal battle. 16-year-old nicholas sandman is the covington catholic high school student who made headlines hast month afteris encounter with a a nativerican activist during a protest in d.c. now the family of the kentucky teen is suing "th"washington or defamation, seeking $250 million in damages. the suit claims the post targeted and pulleyed the teen in an attempt to embarrass president trump. sandman and several of his

classmates were wearing make america great again hats at the swtime. a spoan for the post responded to the suit, saying, quote, we are reviewing a copy of the lawsuit, and we plan to mount a vigorous defense. back with us now, janessa webb. >> we're still in that winter season here, o and it'sy to talk about snow, even some rain. but ice is never fun here. really we're going to see not significant amounts but at least a tenth of annch out towards west virginia into virginia. could see some icing across portions of the northeast. that's a look at the big weather story for today. here's a closer look at your day ahead. we're watching this next winter storm as it transitions into snow and rain across the gh northeast thrt your evening commute. also watching for flooding rain. ook at these temperatures out to the south. we're in the 70s. so the next 24 hours reallyad hair day. >> very bad. thanks, janessa. a phenomenon known as the

fire fall is bac at yosemite national park. for a short time each february, when conditions are just right, the setting sun l causeht to catch the water at horse tail fall at an angle that makes it look like lava o fire flowing down the mountain. because of deep snow this year, firefall chasers say reaching this point is dangerous. looks cool, though. >> #nofilter on that. just ahead, a 7-year-old stirs up site controversy his hot chocolate fund-raiser. and bad news, drak eula. why thefda is warning against blood transfusions to look younger. ♪ if you love me, love me, love me like you say ♪

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marshm for an extra 50 cents. his parents say he raised $1,400, but virtual online sales have taken his donations to over $5,000. i wonderhy he named the marshmallows after democrats. >> i wond. the 7-year-old. he got that ideall by himself. leading the news this morning, the fda is thsoundsing alafrm on an unusual blood treatment that some clini claim can dramatically preserve youth. n >> reporter: the eternal search for the fountain of youth, procedures to pills t potions. and now young blood? geing transfusions from teenagers is the latest obsession among high-tech hipsters. spoofed here on the hbo series silicon valley. >> it' my transfusion associate. >> reporter: in a real company, ambrosia, had planned to lsnch

in cit around the country, selling two liters of young blood plasma for $12,000. >> that's an interesting idea if you can get past the grsomeness of using blood. >> the founder touting benefits for people age 30 and up. ik reporter: peop >> they don't lookthey're 20, but their wrinkles are better. >> reporter: the fda warning proven andsions are not guided by evidence and can pose significant risks. >> this thera is not a fountain of youth. it's not a proven therapy in any way. and for most people, this is just a waste of money. >> reporter: ambrosia announced it had ceased patient treatments. for now, driving a stake into the so-called vampire cure for aging. dr. johntorres, nbc news. >> wow, what people wil do to stay young. >> greatlengths. just ahead, how one girl scouts teaming up with aquaman to sl cookies and still supporting the team. a seinfeld favorite hits the ice

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♪ i see it, i like it, i want it, i got it ♪ ♪ i want it, i got it ♪ i want it, i got it >> ariana grande got it. she made history claiming the top three spots on this week's billboard hot 100 charts. this is a feathat hasn't been done since 1964 by a band called the beatles. grande's hits are from her new

album thank u next. the beatles heald it down for 55 years wh can't buy me love, twist and shout, and do you want to know a secret. ariana admitting when she saw the chart, she thoughtha someon photoshopped it. >> it's for real. >> she is on some kind of ride. you may recall this classic sce from seinfeld. >> so what do you think? >> what is that? >> i painted my face. >> you painted your face? >> yeah. >> why? >> you know, support the team. >> that's actor patrick warburton playing quirky devils fan david puddy. puddy was at it again last night, supporting the team by dropping the ceremonial puck when the devils hts the pittsburgh penguins in new jersey. he even took off his devils jersey tor reveal the lette "d" painted on his chest. as he was leaving, he missed a step and fell behind the bench. he thentood up aave a bow in true seinfeld fashion. don't know whether that fall wao intel or not, but either

way it was funny. >> we've been debating that morning. good cause, though. $25,000 he received for his appearance going straight to st. jude's hospital. good move a clever girl scout in colorado knows her audience. with one little adjustment, she's blown her competition out of the water. pasting a picture of the shirtless aquaman star jason momoa on boxes of the popular samoa girl scout cookie. the firfth grader and her mom came up with that idea. named them momoas. once they shared these images on social media, as you can imagine, demand grew, and the cookie sales went through the roof. you got to think outside of the cookie box t make that happen. >> my favorite girl scout cookie are samoas. just ahead, how one barber is capitalizing on the upcoming summit between president trump and north korea's kim jong-un. s. with neulasta onpro patients get their day back...

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good morning, everyone. i'm eun yang. >> i'm aaron gilchrist. who is now calling for law enforcement, not lawmakers to investigate the allegations against him. how about a weather check. >> storm team 4 weather alert expectin

news 4 begins with a storm team 4 weatht. al >> here it comes. the d.c. region's latest blast ofintry weather has started moving in. this storm is bringing a bit of everything with it. snow, in, sleet, slush,

puppies, kittens. >> n puppies. puppies falling from the sky at would be a different story. >> i'm aaron gilchris >> i'meun yang. this is the forecast we have been watching for and preparing for the weekend. toilet papers, all kinds of things. >> the federal government is closed today. telework employees should continue to work. every major school district in our aa is closed already this morning. let's take you through here. allegheny, washington, montgomery, anne arrundel. >> in virginia manassas, manassas park city, fredericksburg and shannon doa, page,