joining us is lisa bloom, she represents the woman that filed the complaint.nts to be released from a confidentiality agreement so she can speak. >> good morning. >> we talked so much since the harvey weinstein about confidentiality agreements and nondisclosure agreements that women are often forced to sign and then silence them. explain to us what would happen if your client were to break her confidentiality agreement, what if she were to speak out freely. then what? >> certainly congress should not be a victim silencing machine. that's the process that complainants go through. so my client settled a case with congressman conyers a couple years ago. she was required to sign a document, even before the process started, guaranteeing confidentiality of the entire process. then, when it was resolved, had to sign a confidentiality agreement that binds her but not him. he has been speaking out, giving his side of the story, that there was no sexual harassment, his attorney is speaking out, and she is prohibited. if she violated that, she could face breach of contra

had already been done someone else with the now damaged reputation is the los angeles attorney lisa bloom who made a name for herself advocating for women's rights but that didn't stop her from representing harvey weinstein when the storm of sexual harassment allegations broke i thought i had a chance to make a difference here on the other side he wanted to be respectful to women and he still wants to be respectful for two women bloom left weinstein in october amid widespread outrage saying it had been a colossal mistake and then there's new york times reporter glenn thrush a self-proclaimed advocate for female journalists when harassment claims were leveled against prominent political journalist mark thrush was vocal in his condemnation young people who come into a news room deserve to be taught our trade given our support and enlisted in our calling not betrayed by little men who believe they are bigger than the mission but now it turns out threshed himself stands accused of sexual misconduct so it seems that the higher your professed standards in public life are the further you risk fa

. >> lisa bloom joins me now. how are you going to crack this, lisa? she signs that agreement. the lawyer has made no indication she will be let go from her agreement. what's going to happen next? good elwith, first of all it's completely offensive to suggest that a woman who signs a confidentiality agreement is somehow lying about sexual harassment. 95% of civil cases in this c country including sexual harassment cases end in setmments. is he suggesting all of those women are lying about sexual harassment? and what's come to light in the last few days is the silencing machine that the office of compliance has become. anybody who wants to file a complaint, they go effect 11 to hr for congress, which is the office of compliance. they immediately have to agree to confidential mediation. they have to agree to keep their allegations krchls. and they reach an agreement, they have to keep everything confidential, again, not just the aamount but the underlying allegation. which i can tell you as a sexual harassment attorney for 31 years, that is very, very broad. so here's how we inte

attorney lisa bloom represents one of the women who says conyers harassed her. >> he has said that he's entitled to due process and he is. and the accuser is also entitled to speak out to share her story. >> reporter: and tonight questions about whether congress will make any real changes to hold itself accountable. the house does plan to vote wednesday to require sexual harassment training in all offices. it's not mandatory right now and they plan to hold a hearing next week to look at that secretive process that can discourage some congressional staff from coming forward to report harassment. >> thank you. >>> roy moore holding his first public event tonight in 11 days amid allegations of unwanted sexual advances from at least nine accusers including the sexual assault of a 14-year-old girl. president trump all but endorsed the republican last week, but today the white house says the president has no plans to campaign with him. >>> now to the holiday shopping wars already shattering records this cyber monday. it's huge and not over yet. deals still pouring into your e-mail and numbers

actually received shorter sentences than white men yeah so hey when it comes to getting thrown in jail lisa bloom got a little bit of a leg up on the rest of us a little bit but the thing is it's based on very sexist ideals because the idea is that they think oh a women should be at home with baby is or whatever the had they been doing so they tend to give us lighter sentences because well more harassment lighter sentences that's the even out there i just doesn't refer to as we go to break hard watchers don't forget to let us know what you think of the topics that cover the facebook and twitter see our full shows that are dot com coming up sean stone steps down with the famed historian peter cosmic to discuss the fifty fourth anniversary of the assassination of john said those that you can confirm music is quite easily. to keep in mind no assets i mean there are places. in america. college degree requires a great deal. a decades long dead. study so hard it requires. going through humiliation to enter an elite society. and. sometimes quite literally. want of the true colors of universities in the

attorney lisa bloom represents one of the women who says coniers harassed her. >> he has said he's entitled to due process, and he is. the accuser is also entitled to speak out to share her story. >> reporter: and questions about whether congress will make any real changes to hold itself accountable. >>> the house plans to vote wednesday to require sexual harassment training. right now it is not mandatory. and they'll hold a hearing next week into that secretive process that can discourage some staffers from coming forward to report harassment. frances? >> kasie hunt for us. kasie, thanks. >> wedding bells are in the air in london after prince harry and meghan markle announced they are engaged. the happy couple opened up in their first official interview giving fans some insight into their whirlwind relationship including how the prince popped the question. >> the standard typical night for us. >> a cozy night. what were we doing, roasting chicken? >> roasting chicken. >> trying to roast a chicken. it was just an amazing surprise. it was so sweet and natural and very romantic. he got on one

. >> lisa bloom who's defending one of the accusers.mom facing five years in prison on a felony charge for putting a recorder in her 9-year-old daughter's backpack. her zaugter told her she was being picked z on at ocean view elementary school. sims says she called and e-mail the the school repeatedly but her messages were ignored. >> so she took matters into your own hands putting a digital recorder in the backpack to catch the bullying when the recorder was discovered, her daughter was kilked out of class and a month later sims was arrested. >> if i'm not getting an answer from you, then what am i left to do? i don't even think surprise is the right word. i was mortified. i was terrified. next thing i know, i'm a felon. felony charges and a misdemeanor. i'm trying to look out for my kid. what do you do? >> the norfolk school district says electronic devices are prohibited. charges sim's attorney believes will not hold up in court. >>> bad news nor mace's. an electronic glitch. details on cnn money treatment next. indulges hair with mo

professional enabler lisa bloom, ambulance chaser if there ever was one, allegedly tried to silence and the victims of harvey weinstein. she's making a half-hearted effort to apologize and make it go away. >> let me say i very much regret ever being involved in. this i'm mortified i was connected with him in any way. all of the people who reached out to me to say lisa, we're hurt, disappointed in you. like, i get it. and i'm very, very sorry. i will tell you that when the sexual assault allegations came out, it was absolutely devastating to read those stories of the women who went on the record with those stories for the first time. i represented women like that for 31 years, i still do, i know the kurnl that it takes. and i was -- courage that it takes. i was shocked. i think like we all were. >> tucker: that's a lie by the way. she was paid cash money to discredit those accusers. is she going to return the money? how much was she paid? single most disingenuous appearance of the year. the lapd has formed a special task force to investigate sexual allegations. a couple of tracks here. t

. >> lisa bloom, the attorney for that accuser, said she'd like to see john conyers remove that provisionnt so she could speak out. is there a loud and clear call on capitol hill for that to happen? >> the change in nancy pelosi's own take on this just today is pretty amazing. she called conyers an icon on "meet the press" a he nd then conyers stepped down and she said zero tolerance means zero tolerance. one of the other factors is not is this an important position, conyers is known on capitol hill for not being fully there all the time and i can speak to my own encounters with him over the years and thinking of one about two years ago when i was asked him some questions about obama and the difference and the p presidents that they've seen and he seemed to lose the thread of the conversation over the course of it. so all of that gets put into the cauldron here of what is going on overall with congress and our culture and this new attention to what is obviously a very big issue, not just on capitol hill but all over the place. importantly, going through republican party, the democratic pa

she is the woman who had signed the non disclosurdisclosure agr her lawyer lisa bloom had been asked for her to be released from that nondisclosure agreement. to our knowledge, that has not been agreed to and conyers' staffers have said everyone has agreed. the signing of those agreements is one place of focus for congressional leaders and critics who say that process effectively silences accusers. it can work both ways because as we have been experiencing here at nbc news oftentimes these accusers, they want this to remain private. so those agreements could protect them as well. but a potential problem as well for the lawmakers. >> casey, thank you very much. let's step back for a second because as we're talking about it, it's not just happening on capitol hill and in the world of media, including right here in our own home here at nbc news. it's happening everywhere. you have got everything from -- everyone from members of congress, from john conyers, al franken facing new allegations, somebody speaking to cnn. you have matt lauer coming out and essentially breaking his silence, ta

. >> as we look at the reaction here from the accusers, lisa bloom who is the attorney for conyers accusers here has a statement. i'll read part of it here for you. saying, mr. conyers and his attorney have spoken to the press and said that mr. conyers never sexually harassed anyone. my client was forced to sign a confidentiality agreement at the time the matter was resolved, which bars her from telling her side of the story. we call upon mr. conyers and the office of compliance to release my client from her confidentiality agreement so that she may have a voice to tell had own story. basic fairness dictate that if mr. conyers can speak freely about the matter. the woman should be free to do so, as well. rachel, will that help us get to a better point. leader pelosi on "meet the press" said if the accuser does ask for in these situations related to congress to be released from this nda that they should be allowed, should be considered. do you agree with that? >> yeah, i think that would be hugely significant. i think we are at a point of national reckoning where we learn to talk about sexua

>> i want to play part of the statement from lisa bloom who represents the first accuser. she said, quote, we call upon mr. conyers and the office of compliance to release my client from her confidentiality agreement so that she may have a voice to tell her own story. basic fairness and decency dictate that if mr. conyers can speak publicly about the matter, the woman should be free to do so as well. that to me would make a lot of sense. i would think congressman conyers would want that. let's get all of this information out in the open. >> i would think, stephanie, in all due respect, that this individual, if that was the case, would have had legal counsel before this alleged agreement was signed, so i would think going back to when this agreement was signed, that would have been thought about, or it would have been thought about -- >> all right, well, sir, hold on a second -- >> -- take this matter to trial -- >> -- if this woman was harassed -- >> allegedly harassed. you don't know that for a fact. allegedly harassed. let's get the facts straight now. in fairness, let's

. >> reporter: attorney lisa bloom represents one of the accusers. bloom says her client signed a confidentiality agreement barring her from speaking publicly. >> we're calling upon representative conyers to release my client from her confidentiality agreementment. >> reporter: after private backlash from democrats, pelosi making a new statement saying, "zero tolerance means consequences. no matter how great an individual's legacy, it is not a license for harassment." the question now -- whether there's more to come from congress. anita hill, whose bombshell 1991 allegations against then-supreme court nominee clarence thomas, rocked the nation's capitol. she's skeptical anything will change. >> 26 years ago, washington wasn't ready to lead on this issue. i'm afraid even today washington cannot lead the q1 country on t issue. >> reporter: at this point democratic sources telling me it's unlikely that conyers will return to the powerful post. this coming as congress tries to decide whether to change the secretive rules that discourage staffers from spe

. >> reporter: lisa bloom represents one of the accusers.loom said her client signed a confidentiality agreement. >> we are calling john conyers to release my client from her confidentiality agreement. >> reporter: pelosi saying zero tolerance means consequences. no matter how great an individual's legacy it's not a green light for harassment. more to come from congress. anita hill whose bombshell allegations against then-supreme court nomination clarence thomas, says she is skeptical anything would change. >> 26 years ago, washington wasn't ready to lead on this issue. and i'm afraid even today, washington cannot lead the country on this issue. >> reporter: at this point, democrat sources are telling me it's unlikely that conyers will ever return to that post on the senate judiciary committee. all of this putting increasing pressure on congress to do something to change the secretive rules that discourage staffers from reporting sexual harassment. savannah? matt? >> kasie hunt starting us off. thank you. >>> there's new developments in the

one of those women, marion brown, joined us this morning along with her attorney lisa bloom.felt to be coming forward publicly. >> well, it's a sad day, you know, i don't feel good but i feel determined and i feel purposeful. and i felt compelled to stand up and speak out, to be a voice behind, you know, these allegations that are made. i want everyone to know it was serious, i did it three years ago and congressman conyers came out and called me a liar, basically so i'm here to say that i'm not a liar. >> there was a settlement that was paid and that's the revelation that came out and that's how it is that people in the public became aware these allegations were out there. can you tell me what you say john conyers did when you were his employee? some of the things that he did were -- it was sexual harassment violating my body, propositioning me, inviting me to hotels with the guise of discussing business and then propositioning me to, you know, for sex and he's just violated my body. he has touched me in different ways and it was very uncomfortable and very unprofessional. >

. >>> a programming note lisa bloom will be on "the view" exclusively addressing her initial decisiont harvey weinstein after those sexual harassment allegations. hear what she has to say about him now at 11:00 a.m. eastern right here on abc. >> she said it well, this is a seismic shift. we're seeing fallout everywhere. >>> one of the facebook founders now has a warning about social media. how it could affect your children. p coffee drinkers, it's time to wake up to keurig. wakey! wakey! rise and shine! oh my gosh! how are you? well watch this. i pop that in there. press brew. that's it. look how much coffee's in here? fresh coffee. so rich. i love it. rig man! full-bodied. are you sure you're describing the coffee and not me? do you wear this every day? everyday. i'd never take it off. are you ready to say goodbye to it? go! go! ta da! a terrarium. that's it. we brewed the love, right guys? (all) yes. and right now take an extra 15% off we brewed the love, right guys? give joy with a star wars sweatshirt a coco comforter or a frozen toy and when you give joy you get joy, with kohls c

lisa. >>> last year was pokemon go. this year another augmented reality game is about to burst onto the scene. jonathan bloomreason you might see people running around pointing those smartphones everywhere. >> reporter: to the rest of the world, it's two guys running around with their smartphones. to them, it's a fight to the finish. >> like you see in counter strike, over watch or call of duty, but this time in real l e life. >> reporter: this man loved video games since he was a kid. >> can i have another one? i finish this one. no, no. no. >> reporter: it isn't named after his dad. it's a game that gets players out of their chairs and into the streets. >> we think it's more social. we think it's much more healthy. we think it's much more fun to play with your friends or even with strangers. >> reporter: he soon realized it wouldn't be easy. smartphone cameras are hardly as accurate as the laser guns of the future. he began raising money. >> i discover that we were absolutely astonishingly famous in china. i don't know how we get there railro. >> reporter: it raced more than $2 million. now brookstone plan

lisa, thank you. >>> aisha curry's new restaurant in san francisco is in its first week of operation. abc 7 news reporter jonathan bloomulinary mentor before the grand opening of international smoke. >> reporter: beyond their love of foot, aisha curry and michael mina have something in common. a love of family. >> what's more family than barbecue? everywhere you go in the world, every family has their version of a barbecue. whether you're going to china or korea, whether you're going to thailand. >> reporter: international smoke pays tribute to all of them. >> we won't barbecue the way my father does it. he burns it on the outside. sorry, dad. >> and to be able to work with my mentor, with the chef, it's a such a dream come true. >> reporter: ayisha curry is no stranger to the culinary world, on her way to becoming a celebrity chef in her own right. >> she has a tv show, a book, a line of cookware. >> before this i would walk into a restaurant and think it just happens, and it doesn't just happen. >> reporter: international smoke is a big change from the restaurant that was here before. if you ask its creators, they're

lisa, that you're. >>> aisha curry's new restaurant in san francisco is in its first week of operation. abc 7 news reporter jonathan bloomnd her culinary mentor before the grand opening of international smoke. >> reporter: beyond their love of food, ayisha curry and michael mina have something in common. a love of family. >> what's more family than barbecue? everywhere you go in the world, every family has their version of a barbecue. whether you're going to china or korea, whether you're going to thailand. >> reporter: international smoke pays tribute to all of them. >> we won't barbecue the way my father does it. he burns it on the outside. it would be raw in the middle. sorry, dad. >> reporter: instead the kitchen here cooks meat with traditions from all over the world. from the american south to southeast asia. >> and to be able to work with my mentor, with the chef, it's a such a dream come true. >> reporter: ayisha curry is no stranger to the culinary world, ellen fort told us she's on her way to becoming a celebrity chef in her own right. >> she has a food network show, a book, a line of cookware. >> reporter: but

lisa, thank you. >>> aisha curry's new restaurant in san francisco is in its first week of operation. abc 7 news reporter jonathan bloom her culinary mentor before the grand opening of international smoke. >> reporter: beyond their love of foot, aisha curry and michael mina have something in common. a love of family. > what's more family than barbecue? everywhere you go in the world, every family has their version of a barbecue. whether you're going to china or korea, whether you're going to thailand. >> reporter: international smoke pays tribute to all of them. >> we won't barbecue the way my father does it. he burns it on the outside. it would be raw in the middle. sorry, dad. >> reporter: instead the kitchen here cooks meat with traditions from all over the world. >> and to be able to work with my mentor, with the chef, it's a such a dream come true. >> reporter: ayisha curry is no stranger to the culinary world, ellen fort told us she's on her way to becoming a celebrity chef in her own right. >> she has a tv show, a book, a line of cookware. >> reporter: but as for starting a restaurant? >> this is my first experi

lisa, thank you. >>> a 99-year-old filipino man received a long overdue medal for his service to the united states in world war ii. abc 7 news reporter jonathan bloomins his story is a remarkable one of survival and bravery. but he's not the only one who waited this long to be recognized. >> i have a very special presentation to make to you. >> reporter: it's not every day that a member of congress makes a house call. then again, it's not every day you run across a man like amado ante. among his many virtues -- >> longevity. 99 years old. >> you smile when you say that. >> reporter: ante has survived more than just a long life. he's one of the filipinos who fought alongside american forces in world war ii. >> together our fighters ensured that freedom would triumph. >> reporter: at a ceremony on capitol hill, congress honored the veterans. >> it is the highest civilian honor that this body can bestow. >> reporter: the congressional gold medal. congresswoman jackie speier delivered ante's in person. >> thank you very much. >> you're a great american hero. >> reporter: and a humble one tattle. -- humble one at that. he survived the bataan death march

lisa, thank you. >>> a 99-year-old filipino man received a long overdue medal for his service to the united states in world war ii. abc 7 news reporter jonathan bloomremarkable one of survival and bravery. but he's not the only one who waited this long to be recognized. >> i have a very special presentation to make to you. >> reporter: it's not every day that a member of congress makes a house call. then that you see an american hero. amado ante fought in world war ii. say teller mon at a ceremony at capitol hill, congress honored the veterans. the congressional gold medal. congresswoman jackie speier delivered ante's in person. >> thank you very much. >> you're a great american hero. >> reporter: he survived the bataan death march. >> he contracted malaria, his feet were swelling. >> reporter: he took his one chance to escape. >> to escape you had to be brave. you had to be brave. >> reporter: he hid in a ditch until nightfall when locals rescued him. >> people in the area, they helped. >> reporter: ante is among a number of filipino veterans in their 90s who are finally getting a long overdue honor. congresswoman spears says the honor is only the

lisa, thank you. >>> a 99-year-old filipino man received a long overdue medal for his service to the united states in world war ii. abc 7 news reporter jonathan bloomkable one of survival and bravery. but he's not the only one who waited this long to be recognized. >> i have a very special presentation to make to you. >> reporter: it's not every day that a member of congress makes a house call. then again, it's not every day you run across a man like amado ante. among his many virtues -- >> longevity. 99 years old. >> you smile when you say that. >> reporter: ante has survived more than just a long life. he's one of the filipinos who fought alongside american forces in world war ii. >> together our fighters ensured that freedom would triumph. >> reporter: at a ceremony on capitol hill, congress honored the veterans. the congressional gold medal. congresswoman jackie speier delivered ante's in person. >> thank you very much. >> you're a great american hero. >> reporter: and a humble one tattle. he survived the bataan death march. thousands of prisoners forced to walk more than 600 miles. >> he contracted malaria, his feet were swelling. >> reporter:

lisa, thank you. >>> this weekend could bring a decent amount of snow to the sierra, and with it a race to open ski resorts as soon as next week. but abc 7 news reporter jonathan bloomins those resorts are working together in one area, keeping you safe. >> reporter: ike is a 9-year-old avalanche rescue dog. >> which makes him about 65 years of experience. >> reporter: in people years, it's been more than half a century since the skier's responsibility code was written. >> things like staying in control, stopping to avoid objects of all time. >> reporter: after last year's epic snow season, more than two dozen resorts will be handing this guide out. >> parents can show kids, kids can look at it, but it's everybody, all skiers and snowboarders of all levels. >> reporter: from how to safely ride a chair lift to how to stay safe in snow. there's even a section on avalanches. >> it's very rare that avalanches occur because of that work that we do ahead of time. >> reporter: ike's handler chase is up at dawn with other ski patrollers marking boundaries. the guide starts before you get to the mountain. >> the best part about it is that it's also waterproof. >> reporter: th

lisa, thank you. >>> this weekend could bring a decent amount of snow to the sierra, and with it a race to open ski resorts as soon as next week. but abc 7 news reporter jonathan bloomre working together in one area, keeping you safe. >> reporter: ike is a 9-year-old avalanche rescue dog. >> which i think in dog years makes him about 65 years of experience. >> reporter: in people years, it's been more than half a century since the skier's responsibility code was written. >> things like staying in control, stopping to avoid objects at all times. >> reporter: after last year's epic snow season, california's ski industry is taking the next step. >> we're here today to launch our mountain safety guide. >> reporter: it looks like a trail map and it's packed with information. this season more than two dozen resorts will be handing this guide out. >> it's for all skiers and snowboarders of all levels. >> reporter: from how to safely ride a chair lift to how to stay safe in snow. there's even a section on avalanches. >> it's very rare that avalanches occur because of that work that we do ahead of time. >> reporter: ike's handler chase is up at dawn with other ski patrollers

lisa, thank you. >>> this weekend could bring a decent amount of snow to the sierra, and with it a race to open ski resorts as soon as ne week. but abc 7 news reporter jonathan bloomresorts are working together in one area, keeping you safe. >> reporter: ike is a 9-year-old avalanche rescue dog. >> which makes him about 65 years of experience. >> reporter: in people years, it's been more than half a century since the skier's responsibility code was written. >> things like staying in control, stopping to avoid objects at all times. >> reporter: after last year's epic snow season, california's more than two dozen resorts will be handing this guide out. this season, more than two dozen resorts will be handing it out. >> we've designed this so parents can show their kids, but it's for everybody. all skiers and snowboarders of all levels. >> reporter: from how to safely ride a chair lift to how to stay safe in snow. there's even a section on avalanches. >> it's very rare that avalanches occur because of that work that we do ahead of time. >> reporter: ike's handler chase is up at dawn with other ski patrollers marking boundaries. the guide explains what those markings