captioning funded by cbs it's thursday, december 14th, 2017. this is the "cbs morning news" . a kentucky lawmaker facing sexual assault zblagss died in an apparent suicide. and -- >> i have never groped, inappropriately exposed myself, or approached any colleague in in my career. >> they pull tavis smiley off the show but the host is vowing to fight back.

57 newsroom at cbs news headquarters here in new york. good to be with you. i'm anne-marie green. a republican kentucky lawmaker accused of sexually assaulting a teenager four years ago has apparently killed himself. dan johnson died last night from a single gunshot wound on a bridge in northern kentucky. monday there was an article published that johnson allegedly assaulted a girl in the basement of his home. tuesday in a church where he was a pastor he called the allegation totally false. he admitted he was gruff with the teen on the night of the alleged incident, but denied that he sexually assaulted her. >> before these accusations came up, i don't want to get into any details, but it was nothing to do with me or anything sexual. >> johnson said the allegations were politically

people to care for his life. he said ptsd will take my life. i cannot handle it any longer. an autopsy will be performed today. president trump invited doug jones, the democrat who beat roy moore to the white house. moore continues to insist the race is not over. brook silva-braga is here this morning. brook, good morning. >> this was a close race, but not that close. they called it soon after polls closed. alabama's secretary of state didn't agree, but it's two weeks abay, and so the battle of this seat drags on. roy moore, the republican candidate for alabama's highly contested senate seat sri fusing to concede defeat. last night he posted this video message. >> in this race we have not received t f

and we're awaiting certification by the secretary of state. >> nearly everyone else agrees democrat doug jones won. unofficial returns show him up 20,000 votes or 1.5%. that's three times the amount needed to avoid an automatic recount. >> when he calls me to congratulate me, i think he feels like we did the right thing. >> i wish we would have gotten the seat. a lot of republicans feel differently. they're very happy with the way it turned out. as the leader of the party, i would have liked to have had the seat. >> after moore was accused of sex yule misconduct, many withdrew their support. many were happy to see him leave. >> i hope it sends a message we can do bet e republicans can do better

>> if the current tally is certified, jones can be sworn in in january. certification of the vote will happen somewhere between december 26th and january 23rd. he needs to be seated in washington. the democrats are happy for it, republicans not so much. republican congressional leaders agreed on a plan to overhaul the nation's tax laws, and you could feel the effects early next year. president trump is selling the deal as a boost for the middle class, but corporations and the wealthiest americans benefit the most. weijia jiang has the details. >> president trump made his final pitch for the republican tax plan surrounded by people, he says they'll reap the benefits by early next year. >> the typical family earning $75,000 will see an

slashing their tax bill in half. >> the president's remarks came shortly after the house and senate republicans reached agreement in principle on a final tax package. >> we're so close right now, so close. in fact, almost -- i don't want to talk about it. maybe we should. talk about it. >> taxpayers will also be able to deduct the first $10,000 from either their property taxes or their state and local taxes. president trump wants congress to send him a bill by christmas to secure his first major legislative victory. >> i think i can say we're very close. we're very, very close. >> utah senator orrin hatch and texas representative kevin brady met with president trump at the white house wednesday as they worked behind the scenes with other lawmakers to hammer out the final details. gr we continue to reach common

excited about this tax plan. >> democrats are calling on republicans to delay their tax plan vote until their colleague, alabama senate elect doug jones is seated. weijia jiang, cbs news, capitol hill. also on capitol hill, deputy attorney rod rosenstein defended special investigator rob mueller that the testimony is bias. it comes after anti-trump text messages. rosenstein said the investigation is not a witch hunt. >> if you were ordered today to fire mr. mueller, what would you do? >> as i explained previously, i would follow the regulation. if there were good cause, i would act. if there were no good cause, i would not. >> and you've seen no good cause so far. >> correct. >> some texts called

an idiot and loathsome. net neutrality makes sure all are treated equally. opponented say that will allow broad band providers to block rival apps, slow down competing services, or offer faster speeds to those who pay. senator john mccain is at walter reed medical center being treated for the side effects of treatment for brain cancer. he was diagnosed in july. on "the view" yesterday, former vice president joe biden, his son beau had the same diagnosis consoled john's daughter. >> your dad -- you may remember when you were a little kid. your dad when he

became friends with beau and beau talked about your dad's courage, not about illness, but about his courage. >> mccain's office says he hopes to return to work as soon as possible. talk show host tavis smiley says he'll fight allegations of comments that lead pbs to dismiss his show. early this morning on facebook smiley said he was shocked by the so-called investigation. >> pbs investigators refused to look at any of my documentation, refused to talk to any of my current staffers, refused to give me the names of any of my accusers, and refused to give me any semblance of due process. it is clue that this has gone too far, and i for one intend to fight back. >> smiley says he has the utmost >>spect for all women.

is denying allegations that he sexually assaulted three women. the women told "the new york times" simmons raped them. in a statement simmons said i vehemently deny all of these allegations. it's shocked me to my core and all of my relations have been consensual. the allegations stem from the '80s and '90s. in each case, they said they had been told of the incidents at the time. coming up on the "morning news" now, breaking her silence. selma high shares her story of harvey weinstein and omarosa is out of a job. this is the "cbs morning news." ♪ psoriatic arthritis tries to get in my way?

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try parodontax toothpaste. it's clinically proven to remove plaque, the main cause of bleeding gums. for healthy gums and strong teeth. leave bleeding gums behind with parodontax toothpaste. a russian soyuz space capsule returns to architect after undocking a few hours

space station. it carried randy bresnik and a russian cosmonaut. they were on board for nearly six months. there was drama at the white house and selma hayek speak out about harvey weinstein. in an op-ed for "the new york times," actress selma hayek said for years harvey weinstein was her monster. she said she repeatedly turned down weinstein's requests for massages, showers, and sex, and she claims he would turn up at her door at all hours of the night at different hotels. she says he even threatened to kill her. a spokesperson denied hayek's depiction of the relationship. and ahead on "cbs this morning," more on the issue of sexual harass management. alex wagner leads a panel of five men who are leaders in their field who share their thoughts on the manner. ni

omarosa was allegedly escorted out of the white house after her firing. officials tell cbs news the chief of staff john kelly fired omarosa on does. swhenlt to the residence on tuesday and tripped the alarms. kelly had her escorted from the building. >> the "los angeles times" reports on the continuing battle of the southern california wildfires. they've made good progress of the thomas fire, which is now 30% contained. but officials warn nearby communities there's still a risk if the winds whip up again. and the "hartford courant" honors those killed in the sandy hook attack. the photo exhibit at the newtown municipal center displays the 26 students and a

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bands, the cars. they were inducted in the 2018 rock and roll hall of fame. joining them, bon jovi, dire states, and nina simone. and sister rosetta tharpe will be awarded. on the "cbs moneywatch," a cell phone company is launching a payee service. diane king hall is at the new york stock exchange with that and more. good morning, diane. >> good morning, anne-marie. as expected the fed raises rates for a third time this year. besides raising it by a quarter point, it continues to shrink its bond loan. the central bank also says it expects the job market and economy to get stronger. the major averages finished mostly higher here

street. dow gained 80 points, closing at its third record high in as many days, the s&p 500 shed a point. the nasdaq ended 13 points higher. walmart is giving workers the option of getting paid before payday. they're offering the employees an app that allows them to access cash before payday up to eight times a year. critics say the move is another sign that walmart doesn't pay enough. new workers earn $9 an hour. and t-mobile says it's launching a tv service next year. they bought the cable tv startup layer three which is currently available in five cities. keep in mind many t-mobile wireless customers are getting netflix for free. anne-marie? >> diane king hall at the new york stock exchange. thank you so much, diane. >> thank you. still ahead, young guns. why some parents are

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here's a look at today's forecast in some cities around the country. dreams of joy from a 16-year-old louisiana student and his friends and family. it's the moment he found out online he was granted early admission to harvard university. he posted the video on twitter saying all the hard work was worth it. his older brother, by the way, was accepted to stanford days earlier. the question of whether kids should be around guns is a controversial one. nikki battiste visited a class where children are learning how to

risen is pulling the trigger for the very first time. he's learning how to load and fire a .22 caliber handgun during this class called first shot. it's designed for children as young as 8. the goal of this two-hour lesson is to teach gun safety while satisfying a child's curiosity about fire arms. brodie's father is a gun owner. >> i think the younger you are and the more comfortable you are around them, the better they are to handle them. >> in kansas city, kansas, this company offers birthday parties. sharon han by is studying the impact of guns on children. >> impulse control and maturitity and cognitive capacity are all different

development, you have to say mid-20s. >> they lost their 14-year-old son juwan last year. his 13-year-old cousin accidentally shot and killed him at a relative's house with an unsecured handgun he thought was unloaded. >> even if they go through safety classes, it's not going to prevent them from showing their friends, like what i can do. >> reporter: as for brodie, he hit the bull's-eye. >> what did you learn today? >> i learned the four safety rules. >> which are? >> never point the gun somewhere or in danger. >> but there's a lot to remember. >> i got got. >> his dad says they'll be back. neck nikki battiste, cbs news, kansas city, kansas. coming up on

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with a crucial vote looming there are reports mike pence has postponed an over seas trip to help get tax reform passed. there are new headaches for riders on metro's busiest

rail line. >> plus denying allegations of sexual misconduct as his show is taken off the air. we are talking about the weather outside. what can we expect for the day. >> good morning larry. good morning everyone. a chilly start to the day and a few flurries mainly north and west of d.c. 33 in gaithersburg and 33 in manassas. you'll have time before the system will fall. we already have snow showers developing over western maryland and a few of them around the hagerstown area so should not slow you down too much but if it does look like it will slow you down for traffic we will issue the yellow weather alert. this is at 6:00 a.m. we can see flakes and flurries popping up between gaithersburg and the baltimore area north of d.c. wouldn't rule out a stray one flying in and after 11:00 th

flurry goes out the window. a breezy day with mix of temperatures highs around 40 degrees. ellen. >> you can keep saying that all morning. if you are out on the roads we did have a pretty serious crash that just cleared. northbound and southbound lanes have been impacted at rockville right at route 28. pretty big section there. that's why they were investigating. i am seeing delays on 355. at least the sensor is picking up on some. it just cleared before we went to air. 66 heading westbound by the beltway we have construction. however if you have coming in on the beltway heading on the outer loop or inner loop i am seeing delays around that construction zone. >> thank you ellen. right now we are awaiting confirmation that mike pence has delayed his planned trip to israel this weekend. >> leaders say he will not arrive in time to celebrate the

he was supposed to arrive on sunday but will not head there until the middle of next week so he'll be available if he does need to cast a tie breaking vote on tax reform. >> this really cool video from the russian capsule undocking from the international space station. in the past 30 minutes they did touch base on board after 139 days in space. their replacement crew will take off on sunday and the crew that's currently at the station will be able to leave. flurries coated the streets of philadelphia overnight but only about an inch of snow is expected so the commute shouldn't be too ugly for those getting ready to head out the door. they have a winter weather advisory but we are not sure what we have here. we are going to check in with mary to see. let's get to the news at 4:30 that starts right now.

on wusa 9. >> you know what? we are happy because it's friday eve. good morning everybody thanks for joining us i'm jan jeffcoat. >> i'm larry miller. we are off on our best foot possible. >> we are happy that snow went to philly and not here. i know topper was upsee. areas north of d.c. are more favored to see this. let's put this into motion at 6:00 a.m. flakes and flurries making their way around the gaithersburg or north of baltimore. as the morning progresses this system quickly pushes over to the east and does not leave us

much snow. by 8:00 a.m. well to the north and west of us around oakland and western maryland. by noon a break from the clouds, a little sun coming in and returning by 6:00 this evening. by that time shouldn't have to worry about any flurries on that drive home. 43 days, breezy, winds switch in from the northwest at 10 to 20 miles per hour. a stray flurry possible this morning. breezy by noon down to 38 degrees. >> we have construction on 66 at least at 4:30 in the morning it's not slowing you down. i'm seeing delays because construction heading westbound on 66 right at the beltway so quickly the outer loop through that stretch or heading northbound the inner loop you'll see a slight back up here with those crews out there blocking a couple lanes. we are seeing delays on the beltway. also 355 a pretty serious crash overnight they have just now cleared northbound and southbound lanes on rockville