nbc's tracie potts is live in washington. tracy, there's outrage, but no one is giving any direction on what's next. >> we're not quite sure what's going to happen to the people who were involved, although there are a lot of opinions about that, dara. we're also hearing new reaction this morning from china, often accused of human rights violations. they're now saying the u.s. needs to follow the rules. this 500-page summary of the report is raising a lot of questions about what happened behind closed doors. keeping terror suspects naked in dark dungeons for days, slamming them against walls, sleep deprivation and simulating drowning did not help the u.s. track down osama bin laden, it was found. president obama called it brutal torture. >> the cia set up something very fast without a lot of forethought to what the ramifications might be. >> reporter: ramifications for troops and diplomats now on alert all over the world. >> and the good guys air their dirty laundry. >> it could be used to insight unrest and even attacks on our

. >> nbc's tracie potts is live in washington for us. good morning, tracie. what is the next step here with efforts to hold this officer accountable for garner's death? >> reporter: the next step is since they're not going to have a state trial for now, this is for the federal government to get involved, washington's already announced a federal investigation and the d.a. up in new york wants to get some of those grand jury transcripts released so people who are upset about this can see what it was that the grand jury used to make the decision. that phrase, black lives matter, is trending on twitter this morning after a night of protests that snarled traffic in new york and washington. there were protests down south and on the west coast. >> our history, sadly, requires us to say that black lives matter. >> reporter: video of eric garner in a police choke hold shouting i can't breathe was not enough to indict. the coroner calls it a homicide complicated by health issues. the obama administration reacted quickly, ordering a federal civil rights investigation. >

. >> nbc's tracie potts is live in washington. good morning to you, tracie. >> reporter: dara, good morning. we're expecting to get that report to actually see it sometime by midafternoon. but the state department, the pentagon, they're already preparing their people abroad, telling when this report comes out to watch their back. u.s. embassies and 2,000 marines in the gulf and mediterranean are on alert this morning as the senate intelligence committee releases a report detailing interrogation techniques used after 9/11. waterboarding, sleep deprivation and more. against suspects like kalid sheikh muhammad. it compares internal cia memos to what the public was told and the congress. >> there is a big gap between the two. >> reporter: critices say no one from the cia was interviewed, calling this reckless and irresponsible, putting american lives in danger. >> we know we have international leaders who said this will incite violence in their country, please don't do it. >> the attacks on 9/11 were evidence of the peril that a small

>> tracie potts live on capitol hill for us. tracie, thank you. >>> meece in st.ouis are demanding a very public apology from the st. louis rams. take a look here. if you didn't see it during this pregame introductions, five rams players walked out and stood in the hands up don't shoot pose referencing the protest in ferguson. police officers association call it tasteless, offensive and inflammatory. they say the the players should be disciplined. a spokesman for the rams said they're not sure if the demonstration was replanned >> lawmakers return after a lame duck session. lawmakers will debate the president's request to fight isis and ebola. the the new republican lead in congress takes control in january. >>> a fire leaving eight people of a new home. you can see the house on glacier avenue in capitol heights gutted by flames yesterday. the family, including four children, did make it out safely. >> this just in. uva president just canceled her appearance at today's national press club lunchon amid the controversy surrounding the university over those rape alle

tracie potts, nbc news, washington. >>> headlines that caught our attention this morning. obama library semifinalists submit final proposals. the proposals come from the university of hawaii and three others all with ties to president obama. >>> next up, happy holidays from the bidens. the vice president and his family rafting. and inside the card it says, listen up, america, hold on tight, we have had a bumpy ride, but i've got this. >>> another holiday card idea. a gun range in georgia features a santa who is packing heat. gun lovers of all ages had the option of choosing the kind of firearm santa poses with. >>> and in time, all dogs do go to heaven. according to pope francis, the pope had just comforted a young boy who lost his dog when he said, quote, parabadise is openo all of god's creatures. you're watching "early today." >>> in the news this morning, it is a bold move that could open the door for legal pot sales in every single state. the justice department is now allowing native american tribes to grow and sell pot on reservations, even in states where it is ille

nbc's tracie potts is live in washington. tracie, the u.s. is offering support. any word on specifics? >> not really. we haven't heard that from the white house yet as the families in pakistan begin three days of mourning for their children. candles are lit across pakistan as the country prepares for mass funerals. 141 people, most of them children. >> this morning wherever you live, wherever you are, those are our children, and this is the world's loss. >> reporter: in a statement president obama cited the depravity of terrorists behind this attack. as it was happening, a u.s. drone strike killed four taliban militants next door in afghanistan where most u.s. troops will be leaving by year's end. >> the president is committed to ensuring that we remain on track. >> we better be wary of thinking that things are good enough for us to leave afghanistan. this is a very unstable region. >> after tuesday's school attack the u.s. is offering counter terrorism expertise. just three days ago congress approved billions of dollars for security. the country launched more ai

nbc's tracie potts is live in washington. tracie, what does this mean for sony. >> reporter: it could mean they could recoup what's thought to be $100 million they would lose by canceling the full release. president obama criticized them for making the decision so quickly. now white house says he's applauding this limited release saying people should be able to go to the movie theater and make up their own minds, exercising therrell own free speech rights. >> hello, north korea! >> reporter: sony says "the interview" will debut in more than 200 independent theaters across the country tomorrow. at some, tickets sold out in an hour. >> i was willing to go on christmas to go see it just to say, you know, we're not going to stand up for this kind of bullying and this childish behavior. >> reporter: the movie is about a fictional plot to kill north korea's leaders. hackers referenced 9/11 and demanded it be pulled. >> threatening to blow up american families around the united states, that's an act of terrorism. they ought to be on

tracie potts is live in washington with more. good morning to you, tracie. >> reporter: good morning. looks like a couple of the major government websites, primarily a lot of the information coming through north korea, are back up this morning. and the u.s. isn't confirming or denying we were involved. internet, which is always sketchy in north korea, was down for more than nine hours on monday, was it the u.s. making good on a promise to deal with whoever hacked sony pictures? the state department won't say. >> as we implement our responses, some will be seen, some may not be seen. >> reporter: the u.s. believes north korea was behind the sony attacks. north korea denies it, but says they are targeting the white house and pentagon. the u.s. says there is no credible information about that. meantime, one washington lawmaker is inviting sony to screen its postponed movie "the interview" at the u.s. capitol. >> we're not going to be deprived of seeing what is either a good or bad movie just because of threats from north korea. >> re

tracie potts, thanks so much. >>> orion could one day tay humans to mars. yesterday after a few tries, the launch postponed. in just two hours they'll try again. nbc's jay gray is at the kennedy space center in cape canaveral, florida. good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning, todd. you're right. the team back in place at kennedy space center they say ready to take another shot at history. day two, and orion still towers above launch 37, mission managers hopeful conditions will line up and allow them to make a run at history. >> go make sure we have a happy rocket. as soon as go that, send orion off to a very, very successful test flight and are looking forward to doing that. >> reporter: it was not happy yesterday here. >> we are scrubbed for today. we will proceed into operation 80. scrub detank operations. >> reporter: the launch scrubbed after more than two hour, and three countdown holds. >> the wind scrubbed us on our first two attempts. that's what knocked us out, and on the third attempt tshs w, it scrubbed because of the valve. >> reporter: f

nbc's tracie potts joins us live from washington. tracie, the former vp, he didn't hold back one bit. >> reporter: no gray area at all for dick cheney here. he says this program, the interrogation techniques that we're talking about here, that they were authorized, that they were legal and they worked. >> i would do it again in a minute. >> reporter: former vice president dick cheney with the strongest defense so far of the cia's enhanced interrogation techniques. >> what they did to 3,000 americans on 9/11, that was brutal, bloody murder. it is absolutely can't be compared with what we did. >> reporter: cheney claims that the justice department approved that what the u.s. learned did prevent attacks and help track down osama bin laden and that contrary to the senate report, president bush knew what was happening. >> he authorized it, he approved it. the statement by the senate democrats, partisan purposes, that the president didn't know what was going on is just -- just a flat out lie. >> reporter: a former cia official explained why

. >> nbc's tracie potts is live in washington. what's the next efforts told this officer accountable? >> reporter: we know washington's getting involve. they've announced a federal civil rights investigation and the d. a.up in new york wants people to know that question that you just heard garner's family answer what did this grand jury see or hear that convinced them this case should not go to trial, the d. a.up there is asking to have some of those grand jury transcripts released. that phrase, black lives matter is trending on twitter this morning after a night of protests that snarled traffic in new york and washington. there were protests down south and on the west coast. >> our history, sadly, requires us to say that black lives matter. >> reporter: video of eric garner in a police chokehold shouting i can't breathe was not enough to indict. the coroner called it a homicide complicated by health issues. the obama administration reacted quickly ordering a federal civil rights investigation. >> this is not a new york issue nor

. >> nbc's tracie potts is in washington with more on the timing of all of this. good morning, tracie. >> reporter: well, angie, the timing is significant. congress is gone. it is the end of the year. they'll have to get involved. and the government is going to have to review and likely remove cuba from its list of terrorist states after 50 years. both countries now ready to put the past behind. three cuban spies released by the u.s. arrived in that van ha exchange, one american spy was released, alan gross, he supports opening relations. >> two wrongs never make a right. >> reporter: the trade embargo will not be lifted right away. congress mandates that. but soon you'll be able to use your debit card there, travel will become easier for families and tourists, eventually cuba's famed cigars now banned could make their way legally to the u.s. >> neither the american nor cuban people are well served by a rigid policy that is rooted in events that took place before most of us were born. >> reporter: conservatives fear u.s. security could be at risk. >> it is disgrace

as nbc 10 national correspondent tracie potts explains, there is now fear those terrorists may fightk and u.s. lives overseas could be in danger. u.s. embassies and 2,000 marines in the gulf and medterrarian are on alert as the senate intelligence committee releases a report interrogation techniques used after 9/11. waterboarding, sleep deprivation and more and khalid shake mohammad osama bin laden's right hand man. compares memos to whatx?iç the agency told the public and congress. >> the fact is there a big gap between the two. >> reporter: no one from the cia was inert viewed. they call this report reckless and irresponsible. danger. >> this will insight violence in their country, please don't do it. >> the attacks on 9/11 were evidence of the peril of the small group caused from the far side of the globe. >> reporter: secretary of state john kerry in this speech last night and did call committee chair dianne feinstein to discuss timing reportedly asking for a delay. >> a report coming out. no, not now. i will tomorrow. >> reporter: the report claims three cia officials lied to co

. >> nbc's tracie potts is in washington. the timing of this is significant. >> reporter: well, right, frances, congress is gone and they're going to have to get involved, but step one here in washington is removing cuba from the state department's list of terrorist states and that's something we're told could happen fairly soon after a year and a half of secret meetings. both of the countries now say they're ready to work together and put the past behind. three cuban spies released by the u.s. arrived in havana, in exchange, one american spy was released in prison for 20 years, alan gross. he supports reopening relations. >> two wrongs never make a right. >> reporter: the trade embargo will not be lifted right away. congress mandates that. but soon you'll be able to use your debit card there, travel will become easier for families and tourists, eventually cuba's famed cigars now banned could make their way legally to the u.s. >> neither the american nor cuban people are well served by a rigid policy that is rooted in events

tracie potts, nbc news, washington. >>> president obama in burlington county yesterday to mark the endof combat operations in afghanistan. nbc 10 at joint base mcgwire as air force one arrives. the president stepped off the plane and received a rousing reception from thousands of military men and women. the president said every american who served in afghanistan should be proud of their accomplishments. taking out osama bin laden and winding down the 13-year war responsibly. >> because no other military in the world is as good as you. as ready as you. as capable of you. able to go as far. able to go as fast as you do and perform your basic missions. nobody. >> the president also expressed his gratitude to those who recently aided in the fight against ebola and the terror group isis. >>> bill cosby's wife is defending her husband of 50 years and rejecting the claims for more than 15 women who say the comedian drugged and raped them. camille cosby released a statement yesterday reading in part, "the man i met and fell in love with and whom i continue to love is the man you all knew throu

tracie potts, nbc news, washington. >>> we are continuing to follow breaking news locally. we are live on the scene where police officers have shot a suspect in the mayfair section. nbc 10's jesse gary is live on the scene. we'll get an update in one minute. you are watching nbc 10 news. "nbc 10 news today" at 5:00 a.m. starts right now. >>> and again, that breaking news we're following out of philadelphia's mayfair section, where philadelphia police shot and killed a man after a struggle. we're live on the scene with details on what led to that shooting. >>> and more breaking news in australia. a gunman takes hostages inside a cafe. some escaped, but others are still being held. >>> and a tough loss in south philly last night. the eagles fought back but could not pull off a win against the hated cowboys. we'll tell you what this means for the birds' playoff chances. >>> we may see some sunshine today after a cloudy weekend, but we may not see it last too long, because there is some rain moving in for later in the forecast picture, as we took a live look at boathouse row th

tracie potts, nbc news, washington. >> we will see.f you're shopping online today, you need to protect your money. >> and experts have some ways you can do that. first off, you should use a separate credit card while shopping online. that way, if hackers get your information, your bank accounts will be safe. also, pay attention to your statements and check for those micro charges. hackers hope you won't notice one or two dollars missing from your account. >>> well, after black friday, small business saturday, cyber monday today, there's a growing movement to give back this holiday season. it's called giving tuesday. and in philadelphia, several charities, businesses and volunteers will participate. an e-mail campaign is being created to boost online giving. use #givingtuesdayphl. >>> and the irs has some tips for you if you plan to make a donation this holiday season. first, make sure you're giving to an eligible charity. it has to be an approved 5013c charity. also, make sure you have documentation of your donation and if you're givin

tracie potts is live in washington, d.c. this morning. what is the president expected to address today? >> reporter: well let's start with cuba. it was his big announcement this week. we're expecting the president will be peppered with questions on how he's going to implement new thawed relations with the island to our south. the state department said they are ready to go it will be a matter of weeks, not months before they put some of the changes in place. as for that trade embargo, congress will have to lift that. so the president will have to convince them to do so. so reluctant republicans already on record with that. and then the president also likely today to be addressing the sony hack the white house says that he considers it a serious national security matter. they believe that north korea, as you just said may be behind this. jay johnson said they're considering a range of options to deal with it. immigration, the secret service report could both come up today that report suggested changes in and around the white house and withi

tracie potts, nbc news, washington. >>> at 4:47, the family of a black man who was shot and killed byte police officers in a walmart store is suing the officers involved. >> the shooting happened last august in ohio. the federal lawsuit filed in federal court claims the police were negligent and violated the victim's civil rights. officers shot john crawford inside the walmart store as he held a air rifle. police say he didn't respond to commands to drop the rifle. the grand jury did not indict the officers. >> still pursuing justice, because to me, that is justice. you have to be held accountable. you don't get a pass because you have a sidearm and a shield. >> the officers have not commented on the lawsuit. walmart issued a statement, offering condolences to the family but offering no comment on the case. >>> the los angeles police department could be the country's largest law enforcement agency to equip its officers with body cameras. they're planning to arm 7,000 officers with the technology by next summer. some as early as next month. >>> well, a t-shirt with the slogan "i can't

i'm tracie potts, coming up, when the government will now run out of money and is there any chance of getting a budget before the holidays? we'll talk about that next. >>> and dianne feinstein has a visceral reaction to the cia's torture report and the director response to the tactics. >>> well, the rain's not going away. that means water isn't draining fast enough. that's going to create serious flooding concerns. take a look what it looks like around the bay area. so foggy on the bay bridge, as well. >> that's one thing after another. after buckets of rain fell yesterday, we are still getting a few more drops right now. meteorologist anthony slaughter watching the system. anthony, you know, folks are looking forward toward the weekend, looking to pick up some of the branches and the leaves that fell. will they have a chance to do it? >> i think they will. right now, looking at heavy rain still falling across the bay area. once we get rid of this main batch, we will be done with the heavy widespread rain, but this is really coming down, especially creating very slow conditions out ac

. >> nbc 10 national correspondent tracie potts is following the backlash from those murders in brooklyn and what led up to that violence. >> reporter: in a city already on edge over the death of eric garner -- >> we want you to not use eric garner's name for violence. >> reporter: now, more protests, another vigil for nypd officers rafael ramos and wenjian liu, a father and a newlywed, shot to death in broad daylight by a man who posted references to garner and michael brown on instagram with #shootthepolice. there's plenty of finger-pointing. >> there's blood on many hands tonight. those that incited violence on the streets under the guise of protest. >> blood is not on the hands of the mayor. blood is on the hands of the sick person that took the life of two innocent police officers. >> reporter: with tensions rising, there are calls for peace. >> let's bring the temperature down. let's have more dialogue, more reflection. and less emotion in general. >> so that we can move forward and find an amicable path to a peaceful co-existence. >> reporter: we've learned that the suspect who ki

tracie potts is live with more. ie, good morning. >> reporter: one big, tough question and that is when did graco know the seats were th were recalled earlier this year, more than 6 million infants and toddler seats. that's not the issue. the issue now nhtsa wants to know did graco know about this before they reported it? the law says they have five business days to do that but now they have opened an investigation into how long it took to make that report. graco says they've cooperated, will continue to cooperate, that they thoroughly analyzed data about the seats and the defect in the belts in those seats sud do and went ahead and made the report. no further, in fact, the govern finds that they delayed the transportation secretary says that is totally unacceptable. graco to be looking at a $35 million fine. e eun? >> tracie potts, thank you. >>> breaking news out of lebanon u bakr al re getting baghdadi. he has not been seen lately. >>> 6:34. today president obama plans to take the fight against ebola to the nation

tracie potts is live where the obama administration has to react quickly now. good morning, tracie. >> reporter: they've announced a civil rights investigation that's going to be headed by loretta lynch, the u.s. attorney there in new york and poised to take over here in the justice department if she's confirmed. that investigation will look at some of the same issues the grand jury looked at. the new york d.a. is trying to get some of those issues released. we heard from a number of democrats saying the real underlying problem there are the differences between police and communities. president obama talked about that as well, saying he didn't want to comment on the investigation but the level of mistrust,s th that's something wants to deal with. >> do you think this situation has the potential of becoming another ferguson? >> it possibly could. the fact that this whole thing was on video from beginning to end really have raised more questions than you might think it would answer. there's been a lot of discussion here in washington about body cameras and police

nbc's tracie potts will have more in about 20 minutes. >>> now to our weather. we have cloudy skies out there. it's mild this morning. storm team 4 meteorologist tom kierein join us. >> i just took a stroll and it is dreamy for the first day of december. certainly not feeling like a winter day. you can check out the latest big change coming our way. the storm team 4 weather app, get it on google play and the i-apps store. right now, nearby suburbs in the low 60s in prince georges montgomery, fair fox counties, fredericksburg all the way up to 70 degrees. southern maryland in the low 60s. upper 60s around the bay. shenandoah valley, mild day there too. it's in the mid to upper 60s as this system gets closer to us. we'll have the clouds on the increase. that's a live view from our tower camera. later today hovering in the mid-60s around much of the metro area with those increasing clouds. look at the new timing on when that wintry mix arrives. barbara. >> thank you, tom. >>> right now, you'll want to avoid downtown upper marlboro. section of main straight shut dow

>> tracie potts live on capitol hill.hank you attorney eric holder is pushing for trust between civilians and police today. he will be speaking at the church where dr. martin luther king jr. used to preach. >>> a fire destroys a prince george's county home. you can see the house on glacier avenue. the family, including four children, made it out safely. it was a busy holiday weekend for firefighters in prince george keeps at. a local mother is asking her son's murderer to turn himself in to police. it's been a month since someone shot johnson outside his apartment. investigators say surveillance video shows the suspect walking into johnson's building. seconds later he ran out and drove away in a car. >> i know you've got a mother. i know you've got family. and i'm pleading with you now to come forward. >> prince george's county memorial attended a memorial. they don't believe johnson's killer knew him. >>> police arrested a couple and three others in atlanta. they found a 13-year-old boy hidden behind a fake wall camoufla

tracie potts, nbc news, washington. >>> pretty mild conditions morning.sey shore from our camera. see the sun shining brightly there. brittney shipp here with the forecast. is that low 50s in mid december? i love it. >> we will take it. as we head into tomorrow, temperatures will drop back down. a mix of sun andóñ?nd clouds throughout today. clear along the shore but cloudy skies in philadelphia. closer to the poconos, unsettlev weather. a look at temperatures now. 40s for the poconos. 49 in allentown. 51 in mount holly. as we head into the rest of today, our temperatures will stay in the low 50s. here is how it will break down hour by hour. by noon, 49q,!r degrees. temperatures at 48 by 4:00 p.m. we will be in the low 40s by 7:00 p.m. and as we head into the next few days here, we are going to drop back down into the 40s by tomorrow and then i'm tracking another storm system that could bring us the possibility or snow or a wintry mix for the weekend. >>> a huge boulder crashes down on a highway injuring two people. this happened about midway between l.a.

and nbc's tracie potts reports some police departments at home are already on alert. >> reporter: what happened in sydney is what america fear, attack by a loner, not sent by isis, but inspired by them. >> showing the power of isis is the power of their words. >> reporter: and the power of social media. this gunman's posts are full of radial ideology. the tsarnaev brothers in the boston marathon bombing be the parliament attack in canada. and the hatchet attack on police in new york. all working on their own but influenced by radical islam. anyone inside the united states who would be inspired by isis could under that banner carry out attacks like this. it's very easy to do. and it's very -- it's almost impossible to stop. >> certainly, the potential for violence here is great because of the amount of weapons available on the street. >> reporter: how does the u.s. prevent attacks like this? >> ultimately, you have to take the offensive. the offensive is not enough. you have to go on the offense. you have to deal with isis. >> reporter: boots on the ground or like the european cancellin

tracie potts joining us from capitol hill now.sident has plenty to discuss and address before he leaves. good morning. >> reporter: no question about that. this lame duck president whose party has been swept out of power seems to have a full plate, and he'll talk about that with the media in just a few hours. today president obama is expected to address opening relations with cuba. the state department says change will happen quickly. >> we're talking about weeks. days or weeks, certainly not months. >> reporter: but can the president convinces new republican-control congress to lift the trade embargo? >> it's a terrible trade-off. >> the president considers this to be a serious national security matter. >> reporter: the administration thinks but won't say publicly that north korea is behind the sony hack. >> the u.s. government is actively considering a range of options that we'll take in response to this attack. >> reporter: immigration and the secret service could come up today. the independent panel's report is out. they're re

tra tracy potts. >>> this woman filed a defamation suit against bill cosby. cosby's lawyer issued a statement that reads -- cosby has never been charged in connection with any allegations against him. >>> the official start of winter is more than a week away. some parts of the country have seen a lot of snow this season. look at this. this is in new york, just outside of syracuse. bands of snowfall in our area today. a wicked storm slamming the west coast. residents struggling with downpours, wind and snow. we learned tens of thousands of people are without power in the san francisco bay area. the super soaker could bring up to three ink inches of rain. eight inches in the mountains. the storm will continue through today into tomorrow. many san francisco schools have canceled classes for today. high water levels have many residents on edge. >> be careful. judge the water. we have grown up here. it can be really dangerous. >> it's fascinating. it's amazing. but it's very, very dangerous. they are telling us waves will be 25 feet. >> most of california has litt

nbc's tracie potts explains. >> reporter: half of congress left congress overnight after a nasty budget fight. >> this is the way i don't want to do business. >> reporter: the house is done until next year. lawmakers left with no spending plan for the country. it's up to the senate now. they could vote as early as today. >> this is a bill we should vote for. this bill needs to pass. >> reporter: the $1.1 trillion budget almost didn't get this far. most republicans like it. >> first of all, it continues to prioritize the right type of budgeting and reduce spending. >> reporter: some democrats are angry because the plan allows wealthy campaign don'ters to give ten times more. >> seriously? >> reporter: it brings back wall street bailouts. >> what in the world are my republican colleagues thinking? >> if you think the american public is going to stand for a bailout of the biggest banks in america one more time, you are wrong. >> reporter: white house chief of staff came to capitol hill himself to get democrats on one page. it didn't work. >> i'm voting no. i'm a no vote. >> here we are in

tracie potts joins us live from washington, d.c. there are concerns more extreme elements may respond violently to the reports. good morning. >> sure. the concerns about retaliation not only with the embassies that you mention, but the military. there are 2,000 marines that have been put on alert in the mediterranean. when this report comes out, it will tell us what is going on behind closed doors. but some republicans say the world doesn't need to know that and, number two, the report is inaccurate. they say it's irresponsible to release it but no one from the cia was even interviewed for this report. senate democrats like dianne feinstein are behind it. she's in charge of the committee releasing the report, hasn't said a lot but will speak here on the senate floor later today. we do know that the report says that the cia -- that some officials with the cia, at least three of them, lied to the white house, to congress, to the public, and that there are big gaps in what internal memo show is going on and what they were saying in pub

nbc's tracie potts reports from >> reporter: internet, which is always sketchy in north korea, was downore than nine was down for morumonday.ine was it the u.s. making good on a promise to deal with whoever hacked sony pictures? the state department won't say. >> as we implement our responses, some will be seen. some may not be seen. >> the u.s. believes north korea was behind the sony attack. north korea denied it but says they are targeting the white house and pentagon. the u.s. says there's no credible information about uçt/. meantime, one washington lawmaker is inviting sony to screen its postponed movie kwshgs the interview" at the u.s. capital. >> we're not going to be derived of seeing what's a good or bad movie just because of threats >> reporter: the u.n. ambassador cited the sony attack and a list of abuses. >> silence will not make the >> reporter: she's urging the u.n. to refer north korea to the international criminal court. new this morning, china says they had nothing to do with the sony attahq and any suggestion otherwise is irresponsible. tracie potts, nbc news, washing

nbc's tracie potts is live in washington for us. tracie, what are you hearing about today's announcement? >> reporter: well, we're hearing it likely will happen today and carter is fairly well known here inside the beltway, not so much outside the beltway, but he's the man that the white house thinks can handle a number of issues now facing the military. isis, afghanistan, ebola, sexual assault, the military's got a full plate. >> the next two years is another -- another zone, i think, of kinds of challenges for this country. and leaders have to be wise enough to know that. >> reporter: defense secretary chuck hagel is out, and there are strong indications his former deputy ashton carter will be named today as hagel's replacement. >> whoever that person is they will be very clear about what the chain of command is. >> reporter: the white house won't confirm, but praised carter earlier this week. >> he's somebody that certainly deserves and has demonstrated strong bipartisan support. >> reporter: but the outgoing democrat and incoming

nbc's tracie potts is live in washington this morning. tracie, the former vp seems very confident this program actually protected americans, right? >> reporter: no doubt about it from his standpoint, milissa. he says there is no gray area here, this was authorized, it was legal, and, yes, it protected americans at a time after 9/11 when the country was vulnerable. >> i would do it again in a minute. >> reporter: former vice president dick cheney with the strongest defense so far of the cia's enhanced interrogation techniques. >> what they did to 3,000 americans on 9/11, that was brutal, bloody murder. it absolutely can't be compared with what we did. >> reporter: cheney claims that the justice department approved that what the u.s. learned did prevent attacks and help track down osama bin laden and that contrary to the senate report, president bush knew what was happening. >> he authorized it, he approved it. the statement by the senate democrats, partisan purposes, that the president didn't know what was going on is just -- just a flat ou

nbc's tracie potts reports from washington. >> in a city already on edge over the death of eric garner. >> we want you to not use eric garner's name for violence. >> now, more protests, another vigil for nypd officers rafael ramos and lui. shot to death in daylight by a man who posted references on instagram with the hash tag, shoot the police. there's plenty of finger pointing. >> there's blood on many hands tonight. those that incited violence on this street under the guise of protest. >> blood is not on the hands of the mayor, blood is on the hands of the sick person that took the life of two innocent police officers. >> with tensions rising, there are calls for peace. >> bringing the temperature down. let's have more dialogue, more reflection. and less emotion in general. >> so we can move forward and find an amicable path to a peaceful coexistence. >> reporter: we've learned that the suspect who killed himself, 28-year-old brinsley had a history of arrests and accused this weekend of shooting his girlfriend. tracie potts, nbc news, washington. >>> in the wake of the deadly police

. >> nbc's tracie potts has the latest from capitol hill this morning. >> we cannot beat ebola without more funding. >> reporter: president obama toured n.i.h. to draw attention to his $6.2 billion request. money to fight ebola in west africa. >> it's a good christmas present to the american people and to the world. >> reporter: the u.s. is ramping up efforts here. there are now 35 treatment centers across the country, up from just three a few months ago. and n.i.h. says initial safety tests of this vaccine saw no serious side effects, but the president says we need to do more. >> we can't just fight this epidemic, we have to extinguish it. as long as this disease continues to rage in west africa, we could continue to see isolated cases here in america. >> reporter: congress has until next thursday to pass a big bill to fund the government, including ebola. >> we'll be ready to sign a bill, hopefully, early next week. >> i'm confident the senate will do that before we depart for the holidays. >> we're not asking them to do anything heroic, we're asking them to do their job. >> reporter

and nbc's tracie potts is in washington for us this morning. what was the biggest take away from the president's meeting? >> reporter: well, it seems to be that he really wants to push some action, not a lot of sitting around the table as the president put it. also new this morning, more fallout in the social media dispute over what some of the st. louis rams players did on sunday. there are new tweets just a few hours ago from st. louis county police, disputing whether rams executive apologized for players don't shoot demonstration. >> they're exercising their right to free speech. they will not be disciplined. >> michael brown! >> reporter: protests continued coast to coast. >> we're trying to get people to look at this and see what's going on. we need a dialogue. >> reporter: we learned overnight seven people were arrested in new york. in atlanta last night attorney general eric holder was interrupted. >> no justice, no peace! >> what we saw there was a genuine expression of concern and involvement. >> reporter: the first ferguson commission

tracy potts is live if washington. good morning, tracy, how is the u.s. responding? >> reporter: well, we know they're going to offer help. that's what the obamaed a m administration has said as pack tan mourns dozens of children who were kill. candles are lit across pakistan this morning as the country prepare force mass funerals. 141 people, most of them children. . >> this morning, wherever you live, wherever you are, those are our children hand the is the world's loss. >> reporter: in a statement, president obama cited the depravity of terrorists behind the track. as it was happening, four drone strikes killed militants next door in afghanistan, where most troops will be leaving by year's end. >> the president is exited to remain on track. >> it's better to be of the thinking that things good enough for us to move out of pakistan. this is a very serious unstable region. >> reporter: just three days ago, congress approved a billion dollars to help pakistan with security. the country launched more airstrikes on the taliban late tuesday. there is growing pressure on

from washington, i'm tracie potts. back to you. >>> up next, the injuries more e.r. doctors are seeing in kids and what's going on, what you need to know about to keep your little ones safe. >> great. >> bay area artist is helping people in a big way by thinking small. coming up, how he's inspiring an international movement in today's bay area proud. >>> and it's the talk of the town, and there is more on the way. i'm talking about rainfall. this time, we're going to bring in some thunderstorms. and potentially so much rain that we're actually expecting localized flooding. we'll tell you where and how much we're expecting where you live when nbc bay area news at 11:00 comes right back. >>> the number of children hurt by their own toys has risen 40% since 1990. your think toys would get safer, but scooters are skewing the numbers. >> when they were introduced in year 2000, there was a rapid increase in the number of injuries. in fact, i will say that i've never seen anything like it in my career. >> an analysis of emergency room records found the child is treated ever

"today in the bay's" tracie potts joining us washington, d.c. his condition is this morning? >> well we hear that he's probably going to be fine. and that's good news. but he will likely stay in the hospital through today. that's the latest information that we have from houston methodist after this morning, when he woke up in the hospital last night is when he experienced shortness of breath. they put him in an ambulance, got him over to the hospital and the doctors there, after checking out the former president, decided to keep him overnight for observation. abundance of precaution is what the spokesman said. it was two years ago around this time he was in the hospital, over the holidays. but that time, much more serious than what this appears to be so far. he had bronchitis, ended up staying for seven week, it was january before he got out of the hospital. but now hearing possible that -- he'll likely stay through today, but that he seems to be doing well. certainly good news. >> encouraging to hear. thank you, tracie potts, from washington. >

nbc's tracie potts has more from washington. >> black lives matter. >> reporter: that phrase "black lives mater" is trending on twitter thus morning. after snarled washington in the south and west coast. >> our history sadly requires us to say that black lives matter. >> reporter: video of eric garner saying i can't breathe was not enough to indict. a coroner called it a homicide. >> this is not a new york issue nor a ferguson issue alone. >> this isn't a black issue and it isn't a white issue it isn't a latino issue, it's an american issue. >> when anybody isn't being treated under the law. >> i'm determined to get justice for my husband. how can we put out trust in the justice system when they fail us like this? >> reporter: daniel pantaleo the officer who was not indicted said in the statement, it is never my intention to harm anyone and i feel very bad about the death of mr. garner. we've also learned that lore lore rest that lynch the nominee will be leading the justice department investigation. >>> there are new developments in the ray rice scandal. the baltimore ravens denied his w

nbc's tracie potts joins me now. tracie, what was the biggest takeaway from the president's meeting? >> reporter: betty, it seems to be the president is calling for less talk and more action saying he's going to stay personally involved and new this morning, betty, a social media dispute over that display at the rams game sunday. there are new tweets just a few hours ago from st. louis county police disputing whether a rams executive apologized for players "don't shoot" demonstration. >> they're exercising their right to free speech. they will not be disciplined. >> justice for -- >> michael brown! >> reporter: protests continue coast to coast. >> we're trying to get people to look at this and see what's going on. we need a dialogue. >> reporter: we learned seven people were arrested in new york. in atlanta last night, attorney general eric holder was interrupted. >> what we saw there was a genuine expression of concern and involvement. >> reporter: the first ferguson commission meeting proved the community is at a bo

"today in the bay's" tracie potts joining us washington, d.c.entioned last time we spoke to you he had a similar scare a couple of years ago. any word on his condition? >> hearing that he will probably be in the hospital through the day but think he's going to be fine. doctors kept hem overnight in an abundance of caution for observation, after he checked in last night. he showed up in an ambulance, sent to the hospital, complaining of shortness of breath. so we'll hopefully get more details about his situation later today. you're right, it was two years ago, right now around the holidays, back in 2012, he landed in the hospital with what at the time seemed to be more serious than what we're hearing so far now. he had bronchitis, he was there for seven weeks, january before he got out. complication related to bronchitis that he was dealing with. then he got out and bounced back and went parachuting for his 90th birthday this past year. hoping he's doing well. latest word that we got this morning was that he will likely be in today, but he is exp

will ultimately decide whether to lift the half century-long embargo, nbc national correspondent tracie pottsre from washington. >> reporter: three cuban spies released by the u.s. have arrived in havana. in exchange, cuba released one american asylum prisoner for 20 years and alan gross. he supports relations. >> two wrongs never make a right. >> reporter: the trade embargo will not be lifted right away. congress mandates that. soon you'll be able to use your debit card there. travel will electrical easier for families and tourists. cuban-banned cigars will make their way legally to the u.s. >> neither the american nor cuban will be serves for a policy that took place before most us were born. >> it is disgraceful for a president who claims to treasure human rights and human freedoms. >> most might have colleagues still it's long past due. 50 years. 50 years. >> reporter: there's mixed reaction in cuban communities across america. >> i think it's way overdue. >> the time has come to allow cuban-american people of all places, to go to virginia ha n van vanna, to go to cuba. >> very, very disa

tracie potts is live. what does this mean for sony now that it has done an about face? >> reporter: it may mean they can recoup some of the $100 million they were expected to lose. president obama chided them for that. now, the white house says he welcomes the chance for americans to get out and see the movie and make up their own minds to exercise their free speech. sony says "the interview" will debut at more than 200 independent theaters. at some, tickets sold out in an hour. >> i was willing to go on christmas to go see it just to say, we're not going to stand up for this kind of bullying and this childish behavior. >> reporter: the movie is about a fictional plot to kill north korea's leader. hackers referenced 9/11 and demanded it be pulled. >> threatening the blow of american families at sin aplex's around the united states, that's an act of terrorism. he is references the list of states that sponsor terror, one of the responses they are considering. the state department won't say whether the u.s. was behind north korea's massive internet outage in north korea. >

tracie potts is live in washington for us. she has been following this. what does this mean for sony that it has done an about face here. >> it may mean they can recoup some of the $100 million they were expect the to lose after they canceled the release. president obama chided them for that. now, the white house says that he welcomes the chance for americans to get out to see the movie and make up their own minds to exercise their free speech. >>> hello, north korea! >> reporter: sony says the interview will debut in more than 200 independent theaters at some s tickets sold out in an hour. >> i was willing to go on christmas and say, we are not going to stand up for this bullying and childish behavior. >> reporter: moostvy is about a fictional flot to kill north korea's leader. hackers reference 9/11 and demanded it be pulled. >> threatening the blow of american families at sin aplex's around the u.s. >> reporter: he is representing the states that sponsored terror. the state department still wasn't say if the u.s. is behind north korea's massive output

tracie potts is live in washington. so this internet black out comes a week after the fbi accused north korea of the hack attack at sony. >> and a few days after president obama said the u.s. government would respond. we don't know if it was something technical which often does happen in north korea to bring down their internet services. the state department is not confirming or denying that the u.s. was involved. >> internet which is always sketchy in north korea was down more than 9 hours monday. was it the u.s. making good on a promise to deal with whoever hacked sony pictures? the state department won't say. >> some will be seen and some may not be seen. >> the u.s. believes north korea was behind the sony attack. they deny it but say they are targeting the white house and pentagon. the u.s. said there's no credible information about that. meantime one washington lawmaker is inviting sony to screen it's movie the interview at the u.s. capitol. >> we're not going to be deprived of seeing what's a good or a bad movie

nbc's tracie potts is live in washington for us this morning. tracie, the house had a tough time getting the spending bill through. >> they did. and it was mainly because of democrats. they missed the midnight deadline and gave themselves two more days to get it done. half of congress left washington overnight after a nasty budget fight. >> this is exactly the way i don't want to do business. >> on this vote, the ayes are 219. the nays are 206. >> reporter: the house is done, until next year. lawmakers left with no spending plan for the country. it is up to the senate now. they could vote as early as today. >> this is a bill we should vote for! this bill needs to pass! >> reporter: but the $1.1 trillion budget almost didn't get this far. most republicans like it. >> first of all, it continues to prioritize the right type of budgeting and reduce spending. >> reporter: but some democrats are angry because the plan allows wealthy campaign donors to give ten times more. >> seriously? >> reporter: and it brings back wall street bailouts. >> what in th

tracie potts has the story. >> reporter: there are new tweets just a few hours ago from st.is county police disputing whether a rams executive apologized for players' don't shoot demonstrati demonstration. >> they're exercising their right to free speech. they will not be disciplined. >> reporter: protests continue coast to coast. >> we're trying to get people to look at this and see what's going on. we need a dialogue. >> reporter: we learned overnight seven people were arrested in new york. in atlanta last night, attorney general eric holder was interrupted. >> what we saw there was the genuine expression of concern and involvement. >> reporter: the first ferguson commission meeting proved the community is at a boiling point. >> don't waste our time with the same rhetoric. >> reporter: president obama's promising action. >> what i heard today was real change. real change in the making. >> reporter: the president is asking congress for $263 million for community policing. including 50,000 new police body cams. new rules for when officers can use military equipment on the st

nbc's tracie potts is live in washington to talk more about this. good morning to you. we can see another cliff hanger ending here. some democrats are refusing to vote, is that correct? >> well, you're right about that. and it's because some democrats are fed up with how things are working here and particularly they're concerned about some of the last-minute things that have been added to this budget. this $1.1 trillion spending plan cuts millions for protecting the environment, makes school lunches less healthy, big campaign donors could contribute ten times more, and rules to prevent another big bank bailout would go away. >> this is a lousy way of doing business. >> reporter: minority leader nancy pelosi's pushing to renegotiate those last-minute changes. >> we would hope that they would consider taking them out. >> reporter: congress woman elizabeth warren says there's no way she'll support a budget that's soft on wall street. >> this is about reckless behavior. it is about a give-away to the largest financial institutions in this country. and it's up to us to say n