i'm mary bruce. have a good night.3, and the la "gma" in the morning. i'm mary bruce.ight. right now, well, this person committed a terrible assault on the city. >> the spirit of our new orleans will never, never, never be defeated. >> optimism from president biden after the deadly attack in new orleans. plus an explosion outside the trump hotel in las vegas. >> a cyber truck, the trump hotel. there's lots of questions that we have to answer as we move forward. >> good evening and thank you for joining us i'm dion lim. deadly attacks on new year's day. and the common thread is the bay area connection. overnight, a man drove a pickup truck through bourbon street in new orleans, killing 15 people and wounding dozens more. hours later, someone drove a cyber truck to the trump hotel in las vegas, where it exploded. both of the vehicles were rented through the same app. now the app is called turo and the headquarters are in san francisco. today, abc7 news went by the offices on new montgomery street, and turo is like the vehicle version of airbnb. car owners list their vehi

>> david: all right, mary bruce leading us off tonight. mary, thank you. >>> meantime, the images in new york city today. president trump's sweeping mass deportations. the operation here in new york and the bronx. federal agents joining the nypd there. an alleged venezuelan gang member taken into custody. right there observing the arrest, the newly sworn in homeland security secretary, kristi noem. another operation ending in an arrest in maryland. and near miami police stopping two vans. 26 suspected undocumented chinese migrants believed to be inside. tonight what our team has learned about what's coming next. here's our senior investigative correspondent aaron katersky. >> reporter: tonight, the trump administration's vow to carry out the largest deportation in u.s. history expanding to the nation's largest city. federal agents marching into this apartment in the bronx, leading a suspect out to a waiting car. lights flashing. newly sworn in secretary of homeland security kristi noem on the scene, posting video of the operation online an

abc's mary bruce pressing the white house. >> how many have a criminal record? >> all of them, because they illegally broke our nations laws and they are criminals as far as this administration goes. >> reporter: this is the scene in the bronx of this morning's big arrest, one of three dozen around the city. immigration officials do not want to be shy. they want to make a splash with these enforcement operations, and we're told that the plan is for i.c.e. to hit three major steps each week. david? >> david: aaron, thank you. >>> tonight, car line kennedy, jfk's daughter, and her blistering letter about her cousin, robert f. kennedy jr., on the eve of his confirmation hearing to be the next secretary of health and human services. kennedy with a warning tonight for senators, calling rfk jr. a predator. tonight, rachel scott asking rfk jr. if he has a response. >> reporter: tonight, in a scathing letter, caroline kennedy, daughter of president john f. kennedy, urging the senate to reject her cousin robert kennedy jr. as the next secretary of health and human servic

here's mary bruce. >> reporter: tonight, president biden says a long-sought deal to release the hostagesas in exchange for a ceasefire in gaza is finally within reach. >> we're on the brink of a proposal that was laid out in detail months ago finally coming to fruition. >> reporter: with just days left in office the white house working closely with donald trump's mideast negotiator to broker a deal. the president-elect has been blunt. >> if they're not back by the time i get into office all hell will break out in the middle east. >> reporter: sources tell us the deal would see hamas releasing over 30 hostages including some americans. the administration believes there are seven american hostages in gaza, three of whom are thought to be alive. in exchange israel would pause fighting so desperately needed aid can get into gaza clearing the way for hostages to be released and ultimately a new governing body to be established. the white house says they are closer than they've ever been to getting this deal done, but it is not there yet and they are racing against the clock hoping to get this

mary bruce with us now. we saw elon musk in a front row speak in the rotunda today. the kraud at the capita one arena. tonight you've learned he's in the west wing. >> reporter: david, elon musk has been spotted inside the west wing tonight. he's been given what's essentially an all access security pass. and he is likely to get an office there in the west wing as well. >> david: in the west wing as well. mary, thank you. >>> president trump meanwhile on track to scores of executive actions on this day one of his administration. among them, declaring a national emergency at the southern border, declaring an energy emergency, and reversing many of former president biden's initiatives. rachel scott tonight at the capital one arena. >> reporter: tonight just hours after he was sworn in, president trump getting right down to business, signing a record number of executive orders. at capital one arena in front of a crowd of supporters, trump putting into motion his day one actions. >> i'm about to sign some very important executive orders of our new administration. >> repor

removing his official portrait, even though it was just unveiled a few weeks ago, david. >> david: mary bruce at the white house tonight. mary, thank you. >>> we turn tonight to the deadly fire at a popular resort while hundreds of guests were sleeping. the horror playing out in northwest turkey. the images. this breaking out in the middle of the night. more than 230 guests, some tying bed sheets together, just to try to escape this. here's britt clennett tonight. >> reporter: tonight, dramatic video of guests desperate to escape as their hotel goes up in flames in the middle of the night. watch closely as people use bed sheets tied together to get out. flames can be seen shooting through the windows. the fire breaking out at this popular sky resort in turkey, while many of the 234 guests would have been sleeping. at least 76 people killed when the blaze tore through that 12-story building. some of the guests reportedly attempting to jump to safety. others screaming they don't know how to leave. it's not yet clear what caused the fire, but local authorities are suggesting it may have started

i'm mary bruce, in for david. and we begin with the urgent search for answers, after the horrific and deadly terror attack in new orleans. the fbi now believes the suspect, shamsud din jabbar, acted alone, and he was, quote, 100% inspired by isis. surveillance video showing that rented white pickup truck on canal street, then turning onto bourbon street, evading a parked police car. then speeding down three blocks, people scrambling to get out of the way. the truck slamming into a construction crane. the driver killed in a gun battle with police. on the back of his truck, an isis flag wrapped in a gray jacket. and tonight, we are seeing the faces of some of the 14 people who were killed. and hearing from their families about their loss. before the college football sugar bowl game, postponed until today, players and fans observing a moment of silence for the victims. and tonight, the fbi also says they have surveillance video showing the suspect planting explosive devices elsewhere in the french quarter. fortunatel

>> david: mary bruce live at the white house.ary, thank you. >>> tonight, the fallout from president trump's sweeping january 6th pardons, and this evening, the head of the oath keepers, who has now been freed, up at the capitol late today. he says he was there to meet with republican lawmakers. and rachel scott is there. >> reporter: tonight, the backlash against president donald trump's decision to pardon the rioters who attacked police officers on january 6th is growing. >> ahh! >> reporter: capitol police officer daniel hodges, who the world saw screaming for help, now joining other officers and democrats to denounce the president's move. >> i was beaten, crushed, kicked, punched, surrounded. someone reached underneath my visor, tried to gouge out my eye. and all these people were just pardoned by donald trump. who says they were the real victims. that they were the patriots. i don't understand how anyone can believe that. >> reporter: but tonight, an astonishing sight on capitol hill. the leader of the far right militia grou

i'm mary bruce. good night.ight now at four, it's a rainy start to the first few days of 2025. light showers, slick roads are popping up in some spots around the bay area, and that same system is making a mess of the commute to tahoe. if you're heading that way for the weekend. chain controls, spinouts and traffic being held on part of interstate 80 near truckee. good afternoon. thanks for joining us. >> i'm dan ashley and i'm julian glover, a mix of clouds and sun around the bay area as we take a live look outside. >> right now, though, the rain is sticking around a little longer in some spots. so let's go to abc seven news meteorologist sandhya patel for the accuweather forecast. sandhya. >> yeah, and dan and julian, you're probably looking outside going the sun's out. what showers. we're not done yet. let me show you a live view right now from our homewood camera up in the sierra. you can see just how snowy the ground is right now looking at live doppler seven. snow is falling in the sierra as you just heard

>> david: our chief white house correspondent mary bruce. >>> now to the f-35 fighter jet crashing at an air force base in alaska during a training exercise. the images all on camera. the pilot ejecting just moments before. here's martha raddatz. >> reporter: tonight, dramatic video circulating online showing the military's premiere fighter jet, the f-35, plunging to the ground and bursting into flames. the pilot seen parachuting to safety after ejecting from the aircraft. >> plane was going straight up. i knew there was something wrong. it fell like a rock towards the ground, right by the highway and just blew up in the biggest fire ball i've ever seen. >> reporter: the air force said the pilot had reported a malfunction during a training mission at eielson air force base in alaska yesterday afternoon. >> the pilot did declare an in-flight emergency prior to what ended up being the crash. >> reporter: look closely. you can see that the landing gear on the jet was down. >> it was almost right on the runway, which suggests that the pilot was troubleshooting some kind of problem and the

>> david: mary bruce in the briefing room today.ary, thank you. >>> when we come back here, the other major news of the night. news coming in on the hostages, in fact, eight have been released in gaza. >>> and right here in the u.s., millimeters are on alert right now for severe storms from texas right up until the northeast. we'll take you through it. i fe. but zepbound means change. zepbound is for adults with obesity, to help lose weight and keep it off. activating 2 naturally occurring hormone receptors in my body, it works differently. it's changing what i believe is possible when it comes to weight loss. it's changing how much weight i lose. up to 48 pounds. and changing what happens. don't take if allergic to it, or if you or someone in your family had medullary thyroid cancer or multiple endocrine neoplasia syndrome type 2. tell your doctor if you get a lump or swelling in your neck. stop zepbound and call your doctor if you have severe stomach pain or a serious allergic reaction. severe side effects may include inflamed pan

this is an abc news special report. >> good evening, i'm mary bruce.ing your regular programing because president biden is about to speak on the attack. earlier today in new orleans, at least 15 people were killed and dozens injured when a man in a white pickup truck slammed into people celebrating in the city's iconic french quarter around 3:00 this morning, one official saying the suspect was hell bent on carnage. witnesses describing a horrific scene, victims lying in the street. surveillance video shows the truck before it veered right into a crowd of pedestrians. the driver racing down bourbon street for three blocks, shooting at officers and people in the street. the suspect, who is dead, has been identified as a 42 year old military veteran who was born in texas. authorities say they found an isis flag in the truck he was driving. and tonight the fbi say they don't believe he acted alone. we are going to be listening to president biden here shortly. we know he has been updated throughout the day. and while we are waiting for the president to com

let's bring in mary bruce. the president talked about this cease-fire and the deal to bring the hostages home, something he's worked on for months. the deal coming with days left in his administration. >> reporter: david, president biden and his administration worked tirelessly for months to reach this agreement. it was his top priority before leaving office. >> this plan was developed and negotiated by my team, and it will be largely implemented by the incoming administration. that's why i told my team to keep the incoming administration fully informed, because that's how it should be. working together as americans. >> reporter: david, the timing of this deal is certainly hard to ignore. it's coming together days before trump takes office and as he made those threats. president biden did bring the trump team into these final negotiations. while tonight donald trump is taking credit, the white house insists it was president biden who got it done. david? >> david: mideast negotiators thanking president-elect tru

mary bruce, abc news, the white house. >> all right, mary, thank you for that. okay, let's head back to the nfl and lions fans continuing, continuing to go head over heels for one of their favorite players. >> we say head over heels because you may remember detroit's amon-ra saint brown celebrating a score with a headstand. unfortunately, this was in lambeau. >> two packers. does that hurt? >> oh it stings. the move has spawned tributes ahead of the lions upcoming playoff game. >> that's pretty incredible. how did it do that? >> and then the way he falls two on his back is pretty awesome. wow. >> last week the pistons mascot stood on its head right in front of saint brown as he was taking in a game there. >> over the weekend, drones were spotted recreating the scene as they flew in formation across the detroit river over windsor, ontario. >> also, a detroit bakery with a different take on an upside down cake. the saint brown visited. look at that. >> and the newest offering, a father and son sculpting their take on the move out of snow. i knew when he did it bec

chief white house correspondent mary bruce starts us off. morning, mary. >> reporter: good morning, george. well, donald trump is starting the day at blair house trb presidential guest house. in just a few hours he will again be sworn in, becoming the 47th president of the united states. but the day not going as originally envisioned. the bitter cold here is scrambling plans at the 11th hour, forcing the swearing in ceremony to move indoors to the capitol rotunda for the first time in 40 years. it means far fewer people will be able to attend the ceremony. the guest list has had to be slashed. and there will be no parade down pennsylvania avenue. it also means trump will be able to avoid the potential for smaller crowds because of the dangerous weather. now, in addition to former presidents, dignitaries and members of congress, tech billionaires elon musk, jeff zuckerberg made the list. >> george: mary, we're going to have the traditional departure from blair house in just a little bit for a ceremony at the church, st. john's church, this mo

and our chief white house correspondent, mary bruce. he made it very clear.e said, history essentially is now in your hands. to the american people. >> exactly, david, this was a chance for president biden to tout his accomplishments and try to define his own legacy, but also argue the importance of american democracy and the need to protect it, saying the ideals of america are constantly being tested. he issued a harsh warning to the oligarchs. he said, in this country who are taking shape, that are threatening our democracy. and of course, while he had hoped to continue the job and finish it himself, h

here's abc news reporter mary bruce at the white house. >> president biden honoring civilian heroes whoheir own lives at risk to save others with the medal of valor. >> they saved children. they saved people in serious distress. they jumped into freezing water. >> they did it all like sergeant two tran of the lincoln, nebraska police department, honored for saving a woman who was drowning by jumping into a frigid pond. >> they literally put their lives at risk. some of them at the point that you wonder how they could have had the nerve to do it. >> five officers with the nashville police recognized for running towards gunfire to take down an active shooter at covenant elementary school last march in the east room of the white house. the president also honoring seven u.s. army veterans with the medal of honor, the nation's highest military decoration. >> these are genuine to their core heroes. heroes of different ranks, different positions, and even different generations. but heroes who all went above and beyond the call of duty. heroes who all deserve our nation's highest and oldest mil

here's abc news reporter mary bruce at the white house. >> president biden honoring civilian heroes whout their own lives at risk to save others with the medal of valor. >> they saved children. they saved people in serious distress. they jumped into freezing water. >> they did it all like sergeant two tran of the lincoln, nebraska police department, honored for saving a woman who was drowning by jumping into a frigid pond. >> they literally put their lives at risk. some of them at the point that you wonder how they could have had the nerve to do it. >> five officers with the nashville police recognized for running towards gunfire to take down an active shooter at covenant elementary school last march in the east room of the white house. the president also honoring seven u.s. army veterans with the medal of honor, the nation's highest military decoration. >> these are genuine to their core heroes. heroes of different ranks, different positions, and even different generations. but heroes who all went above and beyond the call of duty. heroes who all deserve our nation's highest and oldest

chief white house correspondent mary bruce starts us off. morning, mary. >> reporter: good morning, george. immigration was central to president trump's campaign. and this morning his administration is eager to show he is following through, signing a flurry of orders sending troops to the southern border and highlighting ice raids. along the southern border this morning, signs of president trump's long promised crackdown on immigration. as the 1,500 troops sent to the border begin their new mission. the white house now saying military deportation flights have begun. marines from california's camp pendleton at the border wall with heavy trucks and wire. abc's matt rivers on the scene for their arrival. >> reporter: right there. part of the very first step of the u.s. military being deployed down here. those taking off from camp pendleton making their way to the u.s./mexico border. >> reporter: the troops to address what trump declared a national emergency. >> what exactly do you want them to be doing right now? >> making sure that the border

. >> good evening, thank you for being with us on a very busy friday, i'm mary bruce in for david. we begin with major developments in the investigation into the man behind the cybertruck explosion in las vegas. late today, police saying the drive left notes on his phone, detailing his actions and clues to a possible motive. army green beret was on the trip to las vegas, the chilling video of the final destination. authorities say he died by suicide just before the blast, and say in the notes he left behind, he railroad against the united states, but held no animosity toward the president-elect. he wrote this is not a terrorist attack but today wak >> reporter: tonight authorities saying the highly decorated green beret suspected of using explosions to blow up the cybertruck left behind notes on his cell phone with clues to a possible motive. >> we are the united states of america, the best country and people to ever exist, but right now we're terminally ill and headed towards collapse. this was not a terrorist attack but a wake-up call. americans only pay attention to spectacles a

mary bruce, abc news, the white house. >> all right, mary, thank you for that.s head back to the nfl and lions fans continuing, continuing to go head over heels for one of their favorite players. >> we say head over heels because you may remember detroit's amon-ra saint brown celebrating a score with a headstand. unfortunately, this was in lambeau. >> two packers. does that hurt? >> oh it stings. the move has

abc's chief white house correspondent mary bruce leading us off. >> this next order relates to the definition of birthright citizenship. >> reporter: tonight, a federal judge temporarily blocking president donald trump's executive order ending birthright citizenship. calling it blatantly unconstitutional. trump signing the order just hours after he was sworn in. >> birthright. that's a big one. >> reporter: birthright citizenship is protected by the 14th amendment. now 22 states and two cities filing suit to block trump's order from going into effect. today, seattle judge john coughenour. >> obviously, we'll appeal it. they put it before a certain judge in seattle, i guess, right? and there's no surprises with that judge. >> reporter: that judge, appointed by president ronald reagan. while over at the cop toll, stinging words from two republican senators for trump's controversial pentagon pick, former fox news host and veteran pete hegseth. lisa murkowski of alaska and susan collins of maine announcing they will vote against his confirmation, citing concerns about his management experience an

mary bruce, he heads back to the white house now, and he'll continue to sign more executive actions, executive orders that we are told given our reporting earlier in the day will affect those who were prosecuted for january 6th, and that this will be sweeping, most if not all. >> you heard massive applause he got there in the crowd for his promise to do just that, to go back and to pass these sweeping pardons for the january 6th. he calls them hostages. they are convicted criminals for their actions on january 6th. just how sweeping they will be, we will have to see. but the president clearly trying to send a message that he's being incredibly aggressive straight out of the gate, trying to show the american people and his supporters that he's delivering. >> jon karl, in many ways even though this was changed given the weather situation outside, you didn't have the inaugural parade, but what you got instead is something much more uniquely trump. very much a part of the dna of th campaign rallies that led to his success and his election victory a second time. >> it was pure trump. it w

mary bruce is here tracking the story. ry, this has major ripple effects, everything from jobs to the prices consumers pay. good morning. >> good morning, rebecca. it really could. president biden is officially blocking the sale of u.s. steel to a japanese buyer. biden saying without production and domestic steel workers, our nation is less strong and less secure. the president had publicly opposed this for months. with just weeks left in office, and could damage u.s. relations with japan. u.s. steel had argued the merger would provide critical funding to key plants but the union resisted the deal saying it was bad for workers. now president-elect trump had also opposed the takeover and gives them the chance to abandon the deal. >> george: the other big washington story today, will mike johnson be elected speaker again? >> george, there's a lot of uncertainty in washington today. look, publicly he is projecting confidence but we know, even with endorsement from donald trump behind the scene, the speaker is scrambling to con

chief white house correspondent mary bruce is with us tonight.been here all day with us since this morning. there was a couple of moments i want to talk about with the audience tonight because they were striking. outgoing president, president biden and first lady jill biden at the white house awaiting to welcome donald trump and melania trump, something that wasn't afforded to them four years ago. they wanted to do it, donald trump wanted it, too. and joe biden flying over washington a final time after 50 years. start with the moment at the white house. it was significant. >> it was something that joe biden was adamant that the country see, this peaceful transition of power that he was not afforded. these moments were important to donald trump as well. then that other moment, joe biden's helicopter, no longer marine one, circling over washington for a final look as half a century in politics winds to an end after one term in the presidency, a job he spent most of his life pursuing and hoped to do another four years. >> you covered the biden white

we have coverage starting with chief white house correspondent mary bruce. morning, mary. >> reporter: good morning, george. well, it is clear we are in a whole new era. donald trump declaring his inauguration liberation day and immediately getting to work, with a remarkable show of the use of executive power, granting a blanket pardon to virtually everyone charged or convicted on january 6th and moving to undue the generation of his predecessor. overnight with the stroke of a pen, president trump moving swiftly and aggressively to make good on his campaign promises issuing sweeping pardons to nearly all of the rioters charged for their actions on january 6th. >> so this is january 6th. these are the hostages, approximately 1,500 for a pardon. full pardon. >> reporter: the full, complete and unconditional pardons include the former leader of the far right group the proud boys, henrique tario, sentenced to 22 years. trump also commuting the sentences of 14 others charged with division including stuart rose founder of the oath keeper militia, sentenced to 18 y

chief white house correspondent mary bruce is standing by with a preview of the inauguration.st senior congressional correspondent rachel scott is on capitol hill. good morning. >> reporter: george, good morning. president-elect trump's pick for secretary of homeland security, south dakota governor kristi noem, will cap off a marathon week of confirmation hearings right here on capitol hill. if confirmed as dhs secretary, noem would oversee fema, secret service and the coast guard. her key focus will be donald trump's top campaign priority and that is immigration overseeing ice and border patrol. noem will also be tasked with helping implement the president's signature campaign promise of mass deportation. today she will be pressed on her experience, but also her own scandals and controversies. she was once considered a potential running mate for the president-elect but her star ultimately dimmed after writing she had shot and killed a family dog. that same memoir also included false claims like saying she met north korea's leader kim jong un. but republicans do have a razor t

we're going to the white house, our chief white house correspondent mary bruce with reaction from the president. good morning, mary. >> reporter: good morning, michael. president trump has been continually updated throughout the night and is monitoring this closely. in a late night statement, he called this a terrible accident thanking the first responders and of the lives lost, said may god bless their souls. later on social media he questioned why, on a clear night, the helicopter wasn't able or instructed to avoid the plane, saying, this is a bad situation that looks like it should have been prevented. not good. of course, the new transportation secretary, sean duffy, was at faa headquarters monitoring this. his first full day on the job. he's ordered his department, of course, to provide full resources. it's also an early test for pete hegseth. he said his department is actively monitoring the situation, adding that the pentagon and army, of course, have launched immediate investigations. but still just so many questions about how this could have happened and what the federal gove

i'm mary bruce in new york. have a good morning. (box thuds) (water boils) (packet tears) (tea bag clanks) (water pours) - listening to people that drink bigelow tea is so important to my family, because making that perfect cup, it's the reason we do what we do hi, guys! - hi! - hey! - so what are you guys drinking? - constant comment. - when i'm drinking bigelow tea, it's just a moment for me. it's just me time. - that's what a cup of tea is. - it is. - a moment for you, someone you love. - aw! (customer sighs) - it tastes really great. - yes! it was always bigelow tea - wow! that's what my family hopes for. cheers. - cheers. (bright upbeat music) ♪ >>> we're back now with our holiday shoppi iping has come t end. tiffany is here to break down how to approach debt recovery. good to have you. >> good to be here. >> for whatever reason, every year people keep spending more and more and more during the holidays. where do you actually begin to try to tackle that debt? >> you have to take stock of where you are now. look at your bank and

we have abc's chief white house correspondent, mary bruce, and the newest member of our abc news whiteent rachel scott, and politico's senior political columnist, jonathan martin. mary, let me start with you. the inauguration is inside, big change. >> yeah. they're starting from scratch. it's a huge change, and look. there's no duty that donald trump clearly wanted to have that image of him out on the west front of the capitol taking the oath of office, and now that is all completely changed. the forecast we know is going to be brutal. the president-elect says he's doing this because of the danger. it's certainly though also letting them avoid the potential for smaller crowds because of the cold. it means he'll have less interaction with his -- with his supporters. we know that image of the crowds is important to him, and these things are in the works for years. they have been putting up the reviewing stands since before the election. >> jonathan: yeah. >> and now they have to redo everything. the guest list of 1,600 has to be scrapped to 600. that is a nightmare for every party planne

. >> good morning, i'm mary bruce.re interrupting regular programing because services honoring the late president jimmy carter are underway in georgia. the 39th president of the united states passed away on sunday at his home in plains, surrounded by his family. he was 100 years old, our longest lived president. but we are about to see. this morning is the beginning of the state funeral services, which will conclude with president carter's burial in his beloved hometown of plains, georgia, on thursday. this morning, the carter family will arrive at the phoebe sumter medical center in americus, georgia. current and former special agents in charge from the secret service will also be there. they were invited by the carter family, and they will carry the former president's casket to the hearse and walk alongside as the former president's remains depart the medical center. from here, the motorcade will travel through plains to his boyhood farm in archery, georgia, where it will pause for a bell ringing ceremony. after the

let's bring our chief white house correspondent mary bruce. ry, as we saw, the ntsb not ready to make conclusion about how this happened. yesterday president trump did. >> reporter: he certainly did, george. look, as investigators are racing to determine what caused this tragedy, the president is making claims blaming dei policies, using this moment to underscore his own agenda. this morning with the investigation just beginning, president trump is claiming, without any evidence, that democrats diversity programs are to blame for the tragedy. >> we are going to have the most competent people in the country in our control towers, not people there for any other reason. >> reporter: karen travers pressing him. >> mr. president, to be clear, are you saying that race or gender played a role in this tragedy? >> it may have. i don't know. incompetence might have played a role. we'll let you know that. we want the most competent people. we don't care what race they are. >> reporter: in the briefing room, the president accusing his predecessors of hirin

chief white house correspondent mary bruce starts us off. ning, mary. >> reporter: good morning, george. well, president trump is moving at a break neck pace to reshape the federal government and root out what he calls the deep state. this morning taking unprecedented steps to push out people and programs that aren't in lock step with his agenda. this morning more than 2 million federal employees are facing a choice. resign and be paid until the end of september or risk being fired. in an e-mail with the subject line fork in the road, those interested in the buyout told to reply with one word, resign. and given until february 6th, just eight days. there are a few exceptions including military personnel, postal staff and immigration and national security officials. the plan, designed not just to trim the federal budget but to ensure a work force that is reliable, loyal and trustworthy according to the e-mail, which also says workers who do lose their job will be treated with dignity and afforded the protections in place for such positions. the

we turn to our chief white house correspondent mary bruce for more on that. good morning, mary. >> reporter: good morning, rebecca. president trump is moving swiftly and aggressively to enact his agenda including his promised crackdown on immigration. this morning his efforts are already being challenged in court. >> this next order relates to the definition of birth right citizenship under the 14th amendment of united states. >> reporter: one of president trump's executive orders will face its first legal test tomorrow. a judge in seattle considering a temporary restraining order against trump's directive ending birth right citizenship, which is protected under the 14th amendment and declares that any person born on u.s. soil is an american citizen. 22 states from connecticut to california have filed lawsuits to block the move estimating some 150,000 children would be impacted each year born disenfranchised. >> i have one message for president trump. i'll see you in court. >> reporter: trump has promised historic mass deportation. his administration revoking

our chief white house correspondent mary bruce joins us now with more. morning, mary. >> reporter: good morning, michael. the president used this speech last night to tout his accomplishments and try to define his own legacy. he did acknowledge many of his policies haven't resonated with americans, saying he has planted the seeds and it is going to take time. what stood out most was the way he used these remarks to underscore the importance of american democracy and the need to protect it. the president, with a stark warning about unchecked power. >> i want to warn the country of some things that give me great concern. this is a dangerous -- that's a dangerous concentration of power in the hands of a very few ultrawealthy people. dangerous consequences if their abuse of power is left unchecked. today an oligard is taking in america of extreme wealth, power and influence that literally threatens our entire democracy. >> reporter: the president issuing a plea to protect democratic institutions like a free press, warning of the dangers of misinformation. as

want to go to chief white house correspondent mary bruce with the latest from the administration. good morning, mary. >> reporter: good morning, george. the president has been briefed continually and updated overnight. he is there in los angeles. he was there to announce two new monuments. those plans have been scrapped and he will be returning to the white house later today. the president, in a statement, saying he has offered any and all federal assistance needed. fema has already approved a grant to support the impacted communities and reimburse the state for fire fighting costs. biden is urging residents to stay vigilant and listen to local officials. the vice president, kamala harris, a california native. she has a home in brentwood. she says her heart goes out to everyone impacted. she is thanking the firefighters and urging everyone to evacuate immediately if they are told to do so, guys. >> robin: luckily, people are doing that. mary, our thanks to you. we're going to stay on top of the story, of course. we're also going to talk about the sky rocketing egg prices and shorta