bo obama doing his part in the preparations. tis the season.ng through the halls of the white house inspecting the decoration, coming face to face with a few bo lookalikes. simple fun stuff, don't you think? it's a far cry from the blockbuster days of barney bush. >> the president is counting on you. i don't want you pushing that soccer ball around while playing with those golf balls until everything is done. >> it's really difficult to judge where to hang this wreath. where should i hang this wreath? barney? barney? where's barney? >> i have to go back to work in the oval office over here. i've got to job to do and so do you. i think it's time for you to quit playing and getting exercise and go in and do the job that the chief of staff told you to do. when somebody gives you a job, barney, and you agree to do it, you're supposed to do the job. >> barney? barney? >> barney, it's time for barney cam. are you ready for it this year? say, what's the plot about? i can see from the look on your face, barney, you haven't even thought about the plot.

she'll tell us which dog actually had a military rank. >> did you call him bo obama?e sky. a fireball streaking across the texas sky has people buzzing. and nasa explaining that. but first, "gangnam style" goes to washington after the singer is forced to apologize for anti-american lyrics from years ago. that though, there's a kick to it. wahlalalalallala! smooth, but crisp. it's kind of like drinking a food that's a drink, or a drink that's a food, woooooh! [ male announcer ] taste it and describe the indescribable. could've had a v8. without freshly-made pasta. you could also cut corners by making it without 100% real cheddar cheese. but then...it wouldn't be stouffer's mac & cheese. just one of over 70 satisfying recipes for one from stouffer's. to provide a better benefits package... oahhh! [ male announcer ] it made a big splash with the employees. [ duck yelling ] [ male announcer ] find out more at... [ duck ] aflac! [ male announcer ] ...forbusiness.com. ♪ ha ha! since ameriprise financial was founded back in 1894, they've been committed to putting clients fir

a "bo" in lower case. barack obama, as in i the president wrote this tweet. if it was a dog, it would be the paw print. the president was writing his own tweet this is afternoon. the string of twitter messages about the budget negotiations in washington. the white house announcing in advance today that the president himself would be answering people's questions about the negotiations in washington. he would be answering them directly on twitter starting at 2:00 p.m. eastern. it is kind of awesome that regular people can ask direct questions from the leader of the free world. it's like a town hall but you don't have to go to new hampshire in the winter to do it. but doing this shows the unique risks of totally unmediated communication methods for high profile people. like there was this exchange this afternoon which does make sense and it is on message, even if at first it doesn't seem that way. the person who's writing the president here is called, don't be a prat. that's their name on twitter. here's the president answering the question. @barackobama. as a r

obama read to children in washington, d.c. and a creature were stirring. [ laughter ] >> this is exactly what he does at home. he tries.... >> that creature is bo the obama family dog. she read the night before christmas to the children. that is it for this edition. for all of us here, i'm dan ashley. merry christmas. i hope you have had a wonderful day with your family and hope to see you again at 11:00 tonight. good night. >>> my heart starts beating fast and i don't feel good. >> because i have one arm. >> i was coming here. >> nice job, well done. >> something remarkable is happening here in the bay area and the beautiful rolling hills and vineyards of livermore. it's camp arroyo. >> abc7 is proud to bring you the stories of some incredibly courageous people battling life-threatening diseases. in our special program called i just like me." ♪ >> it's amazing to be here with all these kids. it's exciting and reminds me what i need to do. >> the taylor family foundation brings kids together like these through camp arroyo. >> thank you fay legislator family foundation! >> they partnered with the east bay regional park district in 1997 to build

obama read to children in washington, d.c. and a creature were stirring. [ laughter ] >> this is exactly what he does at home. he tries.... >> that creature is bog. she read the night before christmas to the children. that is it for this edition. for all of us here, i'm dan ashley. merry christmas. i hope you have had a wonderful day with your family and hope to see you again at 11:00 tonight. good night. [cheers and applause] >> hello, everybody, and welcome to millionaire. we continue to raise money for alzheimer's today, which is why this absolutely beautiful audience is wearing purple and giving such great support to all of our celebrities. thank you, guys. hoping to add to our total is best-selling author and one of america's favorite cooks. please welcome paula deen. [cheers and applause] >> thank

at least bo obama came back with the president there. thanks so much for being on the show.te it. >>> we're five days away and john boehner has released the house telling the senate it's up to them to come up with a deal that his chamber will pass. paul contain, chris frazier, they both join me now. paul, i want to start with you. one thing that we all seem to be hearing is that -- and the markets start to tank, it will spur these guys to figure out some sort of deal. >> dow jones had a three-month chart that showed where the dow has been. we see there, went down, up, now it's steadily going down towards since plan b failed. do you think that's the only hope of getting a deal. >> it's not the only hope, but it has been sort of a missing actor for the last five or six week. that when it started going back up the market, that basically cued off a white house meeting that president obama has with big congressional leaders. they came out and talked a lot about optimism. from that moment on, the dow went up 800, 850 points. a slow, steady climb until early last week when speaker

snow covered bo obama running across the white house north lawn. >> oh. >> did you practice if?ve never done this before. >> well, that's the president's top strategist david axelrod squinting as the stash gets slashed in front of everybody. the first time he's had a completely clean face in 40 years, he says. it was all for a good cause after raising a million bucks for the epilepsy charity he founded. could mark sanford be making a political comeback? the former governor of south carolina not ruling out a run for jim demint's seat in 2014. he told "the wall street journal" it's not a no, but not a yes. he was once a rising star in the rising party before an extramarital affair derailed his career. nikki haley gets to pick a replacement. comedy central's stephen colbert hinted at another unlikely candidate. >> but who will she pick? let's see. want somebody young, somebody conservative, somebody from south carolina, maybe somebody who had a super pac. wait a second. [ applause ] watch where you point that thing. it's powerful. okay. >> that wandering f infinger. colbert took hi

obama sit down for an intimate and revealing first interview together since the election. only with barbara walters. >> how do you keep the fire going? >>> trimming the trees with the first dog bo. inside a special tradition. how they deck the halls at 1600 pennsylvania avenue. >>> and ask mrs. obama. first graders with a very special connection to the white house tree ask their questions of the first lady. >> do they give each other presents? >>> from the global resources of abc news, with terry moran, cynthia mcfadden, and bill weir in new york city, this is "nightline," december 26th, 2012. >>> good evening, i'm terry moran. for a holiday, this has been a busy time in washington. as the negotiations surrounding that looming fiscal cliff come to a fever pitch just before the new year. but this is also a time of tradition and celebration in the nation's capital, and nobody decks the halls like the team at the white house for christmas. christmas is there, has come to mean a special visit every year, not just from santa claus, but from abc's own barbara walters. barbara? >> terry, in what has become one of my favorite holiday traditions for the fourth year, i had the privilege

obama recently read "'twas the night before christmas" and a creature was stirring, namely the obama family dog bo. he jumped on her lap. the white house said visiting patients at the children's hospital is a hl day tradition that dates back to the 1950's. >>> we're taking you inside a local mall for a look at the post holiday sales. >>> snow. slow down, drivers, but is there more winter weather on the way? >> a man in taneytown was killed after an officer involved shooting. >>> first, we are tracking the weather. snow, freezing rain and sleet. meteorologist wyatt everhart

that is bo obama, looking rather cool as he makes tou

once again, here's abc's barbara walters. >> when first lady michelle obama, her daughters, and bo welcomedfficial white house christmas tree, they didn't notice tag that said blue ridge elementary school, but we did. and as a dozen parks department workers wrestled the 19-foot frazier fir into the white house, raising its to its place of honor in the blue room, we tracked it to its roots at this tree farm in jefferson, north carolina. >> it's bunches and bunches and bunches of trees. >> meet the first grade class that visited the farm and put the tag on the tree destined for the white house. >> i would be so excited to go to washington, d.c. and see the white house. >> we couldn't take them to the white house, but we could take their questions. we asked some elementary school children in north carolina if they had some questions. >> yes. >> and they did. >> do they give each other presents? >> absolutely, we exchange presents. but presents are not the highlight of christmas for us. the kids get -- they get to ask santa for a couple of things, but we often -- we spend our christmas every ye

bo is back. front and center on the white house holiday card. michelle obama picked a personal could. running across the snowy lawn. she called the moment very surreal. >>> she was married to peter jennings and the late ambassador peter holbrook and now she's written a memoir about her own amazing life. we hear about her after this. >>> as a mother of a young child, i'm always looking for something fun and educational to do together. nature spot quest is our spot. opened in march 2011 with more than 7,000 square feet of interactive educational things to do and see, the exhibit has the feel of a playground and the educational tools of classroom. every nook and cranny offers children a new adventure. unlike traditional museums, at naturequest children are challenged from self-discovery to explore and be curious in a hands-on environment just like real scientists. with over 100 interactive encounters to choose from, a few of my son's favorites include the clubhouse build in the trees and human fossils and the simulating river that seems to be swimming when they step on it. >> naturequest

a creature was stirring, namely the obama family dog bo. the dog jumped on a lap and made himself right at home. the white house says visiting patients at the children's hospital, it is the first lady's holiday tradition dating back to the 1950s. >> it does not matter the size, all dogs think they are lap dogs. >> all dogs are lap dogs. >>> a puppy named john almost never got to be home with his family. >> thanks to the power of social media, he got there just in time for christmas. the adoption papers at the oregon humane society were signed and the belzer family, they were ready to take their puppy home. when the staff went to go get him, he was gone. he'd been stolen. the humane society put out a plea for help. >> folks in oregon care deeply about pets, and the social media pressure was outstanding. so i think when they realized they had a hot puppy so to speak, they were eager to return him to the shelter. >> we brought him in and our eyes just lit up and we were just really happy. >> the belzer family says john is their best christmas

there is one tree dedicated just to the obama family dog, bo.g chan dell leers. with the country in budget crisis and many in the northeast not able to get a christmas tree this year thanks to sandy, you would think they would tone it down a little bit. that's what i think. we want to know what you think. does the white house need 54 christmas trees? log on to gerriwillis.com and vote on the right-hand side of the screen. i will announcethe results at end of the show. with all the talk about the white house christmas tree and rockefeller christmas tree you would think they're the bigge and brightest around but they areot. here are the top five tallest christmas trees in the country. number five, the mayor's christmas tree in kansas city, missouri. 100 foot tall tree in the city. not bought but grown by the mayor himself. way to go. number four, the christmas tree at the grove in los angeles. th may not have a white christmas but they certainly have the spirit thanks to 110 foot white fir adorned with 10,000 lights and 15,000 decorations. number

obama." colleen, it's great to have you here. let's talk about boause he is certainly a major member of the obama family, and he played a big starring role in christmas this year as we point out from the christmas card to this video. why is bo getting elevated? >> right? everybody loves bo. he made his first appearance in the gingerbread house as an oversized addition to appearanc the jiginger bread house and th the paw print on a card one year and now there are, you know, big sculptures of bo and the video which actually the bushes made the pet video popular first with barney. >> when we talk about bo, though, and appearance at the white house, i had friends that went to some partyings this year and there's a life-sized bo to take your picture with. correct? >> exactly. this is so popular and started making children happy visiting the white house and there's bo flakes, special bo ornaments that hang on each of the 54 trees and kids are encouraged to try to find them. it's bo mania at the white house. >> bo, obviously, has a larger platform, especia

obama sit down for an intimate and revealing first interview together since the election. only with barbara walters. >> how do you keep the fire going? >>> trimming the trees with the first dog bo. inside a special tradition. how they deck the halls at 1600 pennsylvania avenue. >>> and ask mrs. obama. first graders with a very special connection to the white house tree a

obama has a dog. but is it a pit bull? is it a rottweiler? no. it's a portuguese water dog. and he named him bo. r one of the dukes of hazzard. let's not forget, barack obama is whiter than snooki, the tanning mom and tara reid. even mitt romney is blacker than obama. this is obama's family. and these are the romneys. look at that. kids, cousins. aunts, uncles. mitt romney's family has more people in it than a tyler perry movie. and if you're still not convinced, check this out. >> i, barack hussein obama, do solemnly swear, i am a white guy. so help me god. >> if you want a white president, i've got a polo-wearing, hawaii-living, home beer brewing, league bowling guy for you. barry obama. he's just white. paid for by chris rock the vote. [ cheers and applause ] >> jimmy: he makes a good point. back to the hurricane. you know, most of the national focus has been on new jersey and new york, but it affected a lot of cities along the east coast. this clip comes to us from providence, rhode island. three counties in rhode island are asking for federal disaster relief. they got hit pretty hard, but no

bo makes christmas. >> i'll try to make you help it stick. watch the obamact the famous white house christmas decorations. lack at this. ♪ ♪ ♪ >> that is my favorite piece of video that i've seen in several weeks now. >> i love it. >> he's so. cocks his little head and ends up with a santa hat. is it me. >> just strolls through, blue room, we're good. red room, all's well, and he's not rushing around. a really well-behaved dog. >> it is. even on the video, he gets some great close-ups of his paws, he's a great dog. if you're a dog lover, even if you're not, a great video. check it out. it's on cnn.com as well if you want to watch it again for fun. >>> well, we all buy the occasional $4 latte, but would you fork over three more for plain black coffee, none of that fancy flavor, any special milk? starbucks is hoping you will, and we're trying to find anyone who will buy it. >> yeah. none in here. but first, if starbucks coffee isn't your thing, maybe it's time to take a trip to paris. that's where we find our alina cho in this week's travel insider. >> reporte

afterwards the obamas and dog bo will give a tour of the white house.dreds of people are already gathering at the state capital in lancing, michigan as the city prepares for what could be the largest demonstration in history. the legislature has now rushed through right to work legislation, and governor rick snyder is expected to sign it today. police are on hand and limbed the number of people allowed in the common areas of the capitol. president obama said the right to work bill is not about economics and has everything to do with politics. taxpayers have now made a total of about $22.7 billion overall from the government's investment in the bank rescue. aig is now fully private again. and the british bank is going to pay the u.s. a $1.9 billion penalty for breaking u.s. sanction laws. they have transferred money through every day presents another exciting issue. from financial regulation, fraud on wall street. things everyday exploding around the world that leave no shortage for exciting conversations. at the end of the show, you know what has happen

bo. >>> no sunny skies for president obama as he left for michigan today.ed air force one. he's on the road to push his plan to avoid the fiscal cliff. where the skies any sunnier in detroit? want to bring in chad myers. just foggy through the. >> not foggy in detroit so much, but certainly it is cloudy. so, no, not sunnier. the fog was everywhere. like from maine down to atlanta. >> why? >> because there was so much humidity in the air, feels like spring out there now. skies cleared above. when that happens, all of the cold air sinks to the surface and that cold air makes it -- the clouds on the surface, wall it fog, just everywhere. the visibility in d.c. was down to a quarter of a mile. some planes were very slow. trying to get back tonight, going to be very slow again. >> slow travel. >> the rain will be all the way from new york city down to the d.c. area later on tonight. here we go. that's what the rain looks like right now. rain in pennsylvania, west virginia, ohio, out to west, where the president is. it is clearing out but still cold, about 35 deg

obama's 2012 holiday card? it is outrageous. let me show it to you. it has bo the dog on it. offended, i don't know where to start. partly because i didn't know what the problem was. but don't worry, fox news contributor will explained it to us. quote, the 2012 card made no mention of any specific holiday nor did it include a bible verse noting the birth of christ. former president bush did not mention christmas on his card but that was back in the day when jesus was the reason for the season, not the portuguese water dog. that's awesome. do you want to see president bushsh carddro 2 25?5? be evbeevha tt is incredibly similar and has a dog and does not mention christmas, just like president obama's card. but wait until you get a load of the demigod himself, ronald reagan's christmas card in 1983, of course it will have christmas--outrageous! man, these people amuse me to no end. they're incredibly similar but president obama, oh, how could he do this! it turns out on the issue of religion the nuns made a huge difference. not the nuns on the bus but those who do not have a rel

bo, merry christmas, everybody. >> happy holidays. >> unless president obama and congress takes action, taxes will go up on january 1. the sequester will go into effect that will harm national defense. that is currently the law of the land. a house is done its part to avert the fiscal cliff. we have passed legislation that would replace the sequester with responsible spending cuts. he also passed a bill to stop all of the january 1 tax cuts. -- we also passed a bill to stop all of the generally when tax cuts. the american people reelected president obama on election date. the also elected the republican majority in the house. they gave us a mandate not to raise taxes on families and small businesses, but a mandate to work together to solve the massive debt that threatens our country's future. unfortunately the president and senate democrats have vowed to reject indeed all of our proposals while failing to offer responsible solutions of their own. what the president has offered so far will not do anything to solve our spending problem and begin to adjust our nation's crippling debt. instead he wants more spending a

i think bo might be getting into the obama supply of centrum. >> it's hard to believe that accordingyans in 11 days we will all be dead. the mayans have predicted that the world will come to an end on the 21st, which is a friday. how much does that suck? end it on a monday. at least you get the weekend, right? got to work all day and then friday, you're dead on friday. in our history, there's no mystery more enduring that the mona lisa. researchers are not trying to piece together the puzzle. that's easier said than done as ben wedeman found out. >> reporter: this has perplexed historians for centuries. the priceless masterpiece, the mona lisa. in the frigid bows of what was once a convent in florence, a research is leading the project to find and identify the remains of the woman who polesed for did i vin tea more than 500 years ago. lisa, other known as mona lisa, was buried. beyond that, it's all a mystery. the remains of five females have been found here. the skull may be that of lisa, the second wife of a wealthy silk merchant. the remains will be identified with two remains bur

. >>> no sign of president obama, the first lady, sash has or malia, this year it's all about bo.ard was designed by iowa artist and dog lover lorissa cable. >>> a holiday surprise for some walmart shoppers in south florida. secret santas paid off their layaway bills. >> my layaway is paid? >> yep. the rest of your balance is paid off. >> are you serious? >> yes, very serious. you no longer own a balance. >> tell santa thank you very much! >> an athletic club pitched in $500 which helped six families. several layaway shoppers say they wish they could meet their secret santas to give them a hug and kiss and say thank you. >>> time for your early reads. your local news making national headlines. we begin with tacoma's news tribune which says day one of legalized marijuana was pretty chill. there were no run on doritos, increased in car wrecks, no crazy displays of joy. >>> to florida, the sun sentinel newspaper, florida wildlife officials announcing the 2013 python challenge. it's a hunting contest that begins next month because the burmese python population is posing a big threat.

obamas? >> the first dog is traveling with them. bo is here and he's really quite the hit, you know?big part of christmas decorations at the white house. all of the christmas trees have a lot of bo flakes, as they're called. snowflakes with bo in the middle so he factors big into the holiday. holiday cookies shaped like bo at the christmas party so christmas isn't really complete without the white house dog. and he, also, i wanted to show you some video that we have just released yesterday by the white house. this is the first lady visiting the children's national center in washington, d.c., reading "twas the night before christmas" and getting a little bit of help from bo. check it out. >> good afternoon. i'm the president and ceo of children's national. >> this is exactly what he does at home. he tries to beat malia and sacha to my lap. this is one of my favorite things to do during the holidays is coming to the children's hospital to see all of you. and i want to thank my escorts. gordon and a.j. you guys are awesome. >> he's a little big to be in the first lady's lap but don't te

the first family, also by bo, the dog. [ light laughter ] i thought it was odd when he added the line, "humps and kisses." [ laughter ] you don't have to do that. speaking of obamas just ranked the president as the world's most powerful person. in response, obama issued this statement, "suck it, bieber." [ laughter ] [ as obama ] suck it, bieber. uhh -- [ laughter ] i got to work on the "uhh --" >> steve: suck it, bieber. >> jimmy: everyone can do it. try that as obama. [ as obama ] >> steve: uh, suck it, bieber. [ laughter ] >> jimmy: pretty good. can you do it? [ as obama ] >> uh, suck it, bieber. [ laughter ] >> jimmy: poor, justin bieber. he's like -- what's you're problem? [ talking over each other ] i like justin bieber. i don't know what to make of this, guys. did you hear about this? a series of forbidden love letters and drawings that "peanuts" creator charles schulz sent to a young woman while he was married are about to go up for auction. yeah, he was like, "hey baby, how'd you like to come over to my place and" -- [ as teacher from peanuts ] [ laughter and applause ] i always wanted to do that. >> steve: come on. >> jimmy: did you see this? while ann

obama said he hopes this season reminds all of the spirit of brotherhood. >>> someone else at the white house is getting into the holiday spirit too. bothe first family's dog, is taking center stage on the official white house holiday card. this is actually a painting of bo. it was done by an artist from iowa, larassa kabel. she specializes in photo realistic pieces. the white house invited artists across the country to submit their work for consideration. i like the dark fur against the white house background. it's really nice. >> i've got to get my holiday cards out. >>> 5:26. it is now 41 degrees. plunging on the tracks. the moment a metro rider's windchill malfunctioned. there is no mass-produced human. every human being is unique. and there is one store that recognizes it. the sleep number store. the only place in the world you'll find... the extraordinarily comfortable sleep number experience. an exclusive collection of innovations that totally individualize your sleep. perfectly comfortable pillows that adjust to your size and shape. temperature-balancing bedding. dual warmth comforters. all designed around the sleep number bed

president obama told the crowd he hopes the season reminds us all of the spirit of brotherhood. >>> someone else at the white house is getting into the holiday spirit. bothe first family's dog is taking center stage on the white house christmas card. this is a painting of bo done by artist larassa kabel. this came after the white house invited artists across the country to submit their work for consideration. >> you can tell it's a painting because of all the snow. haven't seen that around here. >> we're getting a little rain though. no snow in the forecast for now. >> let's go to meteorologist chuck bell. hey, chuck. >> yes, indeed. anything coming out of the sky this morning is raindrops, not snowflakes. the last time we had anywhere near enough snow for that picture to be realistic is february of 2010. it's been a long snowless stretch for those of us who are snow lovers. >>> it's going to stay chilly through much of the day. spotty showers primarily in the morning hours. still a chance of one or two sprinkles in the afternoon, but the bulk of the rain will be in the front half. we should be dry for your plans to get outside and enjoy your friday ev

was stirring the obama family dog making himself as home as the first lady sat down to read to kids at a washington d.c. children's hospital. a first lady tradition since the 1950s. bonded up stealing the show. >> that's sweet. >> cute. >> looks at home. >>> a young bay area couple thanks anonymous donors for saving their dog. >> christin ayers reports. >> reporter: it was two weeks to christmas when nick and lindsey anderson realized that their 7-month-old siberian husky escaped from their bag yard but it was what they discovered when she came home that was devastating. >> she started barking at the back door and that's when we knew that she was hurt. she couldn't walk. she was dragging her paw. just crying. >> reporter: shasta had been hit by a car. her pelvis was broken in three places and surgery was going to cost $5,000. >> can't afford that. >> reporter: the only option was euthanasia so they got on craigslist to find someone to pay for the operation. instead, they found a woman named mary. >> a guardian angel set up this fundraising site on giveforward.com. mary, whom the andersons never met, spread the word on facebook urging strangers to get money for surge

bo cookies. he is a big, big part of the white house at christmas. >> colleen christian burke, the book is called "christmas with the first ladies, the white house decorating tradition from jacqueline kennedy to michelle obamahat a great idea. i wish you the best of luck with this book and merry christmas. >> merry christmas. >> thanks so much. >>> ahead on "starting point," eight days left to make a deal. does president the obama want to go off the cliff? why some say that's been the plan all along. we will talk to grover nor kwift, president of americans for tax reform top of the hour. this holiday, share everything. share "not even close." share "you owe me..." share "just right." the share everything plan. shareable data across 10 devices with unlimited talk and text. hurry in for a droid razr m by motorola for $49.99. ♪ ♪ [ male announcer ] everyone deserves the gift of all day pain relief. this season, discover aleve. all day pain relief with just two pills. this season, discover aleve. excuse me, sir i'm gonna have to ask you to power down your little word game. i think your friends will understand. oh no, it's actually my geico app...see? ...i just uh paid my bill. did you really? from the plane? ye