abc's mary bruce traveling with the president, and she joins us from beijing, mary? >> reporter: good morning, tai, good morning, t.j. or i guess i should say good afternoon from here in beijing. the president touched down here last night. kicking off a dizzying week of summit meetings here in asia. the president coming off those bruising midterm losses is trying to shift his focus to foreign policy. it's been three years since the obama administration said it would pivot its focus to asia. then, of course, it got distracted by a host of international and domestic crises. with just two years left in office, this week, in many ways, presents the best final chance for the president to cement his foreign policy legacy here in asia. he'll meet with the president of china, the two world's largest economies colliding here. next, the president goes to burma for his second trip to the fledgling democracy as president. and the trip, of course, wraps up down under in brisbane, australia, where president obama will likely come face to face with russian president putin at the g-

mary bruce is there. >> reporter: good morning, tai, good morning, t.j. or i should say good afternoon. the president touched down here last night. the president coming off those bruising midterm losses is trying to shift his focus to foreign policy. it's been three years since the obama administration said it would focus on asia. then it got distracted. with just two years left in office, this week, in many ways, provides the best final plan for the president to cement his foreign policies in asia. he'll meet with the president of china, the two world's largest economies colliding here. next, the president goes to burma. the trip wraps up down under in australia. he'll likely c lly come face to with president putin there. the president will attend three international summits in eight days, traveling to three countries and 16 time zones. buckle up, it will be quite a trip. >> thank you, mary. >>> now a bit of mystery this morning, surrounding the fate of the leader of isis. he was supposedly critically wounded this week by an air strike. the pentagon says

and i want to invite a group of folks who have done after national service, mary bruce and her colleagueswelcoming them to the stage. [applause] >> my dad dropped out of high school. he went back in his early 20s. i remember him telling me he took it much more seriously a second time around and there was another student who was being distracting in class. my dad found that kid in the hallway, grabbed him by the caller threw him into the lockers and threaten him within an inch of his life. my dad said he hoped that kid paid attention. my dad later went to college but he didn't finish and he always regretted that. so in our household growing up college was not optional. my dad story and is hope for us made us pay attention. so when our college acceptance letter came we were thrilled. no matter how we ran the numbers we found that we couldn't afford it and it was devastating. so very late in my senior year of high school i found americorps and it changed my life. i moved from suburban ohio where 99% of my peers went to college to watch -- to attend d.c. public schools where at that time fewe

abc's mary bruce has the latest from beijing. >> reporter: president obama is getting down to business visit with xi. trade and the economy at the top of the agenda. also a hearty discussion on thornier issues where there may be a potential for agreement such as climate change and cybersecurity. president obama will also bring up areas of staunch disagreement including human rights. president obama is spending a lot of one on one time with xi as he tries to nurture and develop this oftentimes tense relationship. this coming out after china pulled out all the stops to welcome world leaders with a lavish over the top ceremony. it looked like a scene out of "the hunger games." elaborately costumed performers dancing on either side. china has gone to extreme measures to prepare for this summit here in beijing, including this rare clear sky. government agencies have been closed, workers sent home. drivers told to stay off the roads in attempts to clear some of this city's notorious pollution. it's so extreme, locals are calling this apec blue. reena and t.j.? >> mary bruce, thank you. >>> b

mary bruce is in washington with more. >> reporter: good morning and happy thanksgiving. well, despite the recent political firestorm over the president's executive action on immigration reform, president obama yesterday was at it again. using the power of his pen to take action on an issue so important it was a matter of life or death. >> i am here to announce what i'm sure will be the most talked about executive action this month. >> reporter: the president sparing the lives of these two lucky birds. mac and cheese from a horrible but delicious fate. >> i know some will call this amnesty. but don't worry. that's plenty of turkey to go around. >> reporter: only one could be crowned the national turkey. it was a close competition. the two birds were beak to beak on twitter as the public cast its vote. in one corner, mac, a real feather shaker with a melodious gobble. in the other corner, cheese who has been described as a grand champion of a bird. >> cheese, you are hereby pardoned from the thanksgiving dinner table. >> reporter: mac was also granted his freedom as the of

. >> abc's mary bruce is traveling with the president and joins us from bejng. mary? >> reporter: good morning, tai and t.j. i should say good afternoon from here in beijing. president obama touched down here last night kicking off a dizzying week of summit meetings in asia. the president coming off those bruising midterm losses is trying to shift his focus to foreign policy. it's just been three years since the obama administration announced it would pivot its focus to asia. then it got distracted by a host of international and domesting crises. this week in many ways, presents the best final chance for the president to cement his foreign policy legacy. in beijing, president obama will meet with president xi of china and the two largest economies colliding when they sit down here. next he goes to berma. and the trip, of course, wraps up down under in brisbane, australia, where he'll likely come face to face with russian president putin at the g-20 summit. in all, the president will attend three international summits in just eight days traveling to three countries and

. >> mary bruce joins us from burma this morning. mary?visit here comes at a fragile time. president obama was the first u.s. president to visit burma, also known as myanmar, just two years ago as it emerged from a long military dictatorship. now this visit comes as reforms are stalling and in many ways moving backwards. during a packed day of summit meetings, the president will urge the government here to continue to make democratic reforms and fully transition to a civilian government. he'll also press the president on him human rights concerns when they meet one-on-one here later today. and tomorrow he travels to rangoon to meet with aung san suu kyi about her unique role in the reform process. obama considers the opening of this country to be one of his crowning diplomatic achievements, but now has to walk a fine line showing support for the civilian government while also chastizing it on its stalled progress. reena and t.j.? >> mary, thank you. >>> u.s. investigators are trying to determine if chinese hackers broke into the computer s

abc's mary bruce is in beijing where both presidents have just held a news conference.er: good morning. president obama spent two days in close one on one meetings with president xi trying to take their relationship to a new level. after all that, when the two leaders held a joint press conference, it was abundantly clear they have a long ways to go. xi refused to respond directly about a direct question to obama's pivot to asia. xi rarely speaks to the press and it is usually scripted. the critical importance of their relationship. they were able to make progress this week on several areas including climate change, vis as and i.t. obama acknowledged there are areas of staunch disagreement between the u.s. and china and said he's been pressing xi about human rights. china has carefully crafted obama and xi's public appearances. as is often the case, it's what happens on the sidelines or sometimes what you don't hear that's often the most interesting. t.j. and reena? >> mary, thank you. >>> we are hearing gripping new details about the night bin laden was killed. two of

and mary landrieu in louisiana. bruce braley in iowa. but republican joni ernst could win it.sends a message about the top democrat. >> i think it is probably a vote against obama. >> reporter: that's a factor in tense governor races today. in 435 elections for the house of representatives, republicans seem sure to enlarge their majority. it's been ad nauseum. >> pretty soon you'll want to do this to your tv. >> i have not watched tv for two weeks because i can't stand to watch the ads. >> reporter: what to watch tonight, if incumbent new hampshire democratic senator jean shaheen loses to republican scott brown, that could signal a win for gop. but if the republicans do take over control of the senate, they still won't have enough votes to override obama vetoes and end the gridlock up here. on capitol hill, i'm steve handelsman, "nbc 10 news." >> remember there's still time to vote if you haven't already. the polls are open in pennsylvania, new jersey and delaware until 8:00 p.m. and you can get realtime election results on your mobile device using the free nbc 10 news app. go

incumbent mary landrieu in louisiana. bruceilly in iowa, where democrats have the senate seat, but the republican could win it. many voters say their ballots send a message about the top democrat. >> i think as much as anything, it was probably a vote against obama. >> reporter: that's a factor intense governor races today. and in the 435 elections for the house of representatives, where republicans seem sure to enlarge their majority, it's been ad nause nauseam. >> pretty soon you are going to want to do this to your tv. >> reporter: 3 to $4 billion worth. a record. >> i haven't watched tv for about two weeks, because i can't stabbed to watch the ads. >> reporter: what to watch tonight, if incumbent new hampshire democratic senator jean shaheen loses to republican scott brown. that could signal a wave of wins for the gop. but if republicans do win control of the u.s. senate, they still will not have enough votes to override obama vetoes, and end the gridlock up here. i'm steve handelsman, news4. >> thank you, steve. >>> he's h

a brand-new des moines register poll gives joni ernst her first commanding lead against bruce braley and mary landrieu is neck and neck with bill cassidy. if the race is being closely watched by political insiders including john roberts, who joins us now live from new orleans. good afternoon, john. >> good afternoon to you, shannon. senator mary landrieu is doing everything she can to push it over the top on tuesday in the face of the latest polls which show she would like the 50% to avoid a runoff next tuesday and would likely lose that runoff on december 6th. she brought out the hammer yesterday. hillary rodham clinton in a big get out the vote rally in new orleans. at the same time, a bid some people think to motivate african-americans to come out to the polls. part of f the reason president obama is so popular in louisiana is because of racism. >> african-americans have had a difficult time in the south, not the only region, but most certainly here and other places. women have had a difficult time showing the leaders that we are and he read the statement. i don't think anyone would actual

>> the top search candidates include rick scott from florida, bruce ronner from illinois, scott walker, and maryurke from wisconsin, and then chary christ who is also in florida. we see there are a couple of ways to look at them. number one people looking at their professional history and voting record, so how they voted on abortion, what their stance is on legalizing same-sex marriage or marijuana. if it is a relatively new candidate, we see a trend towards looking up their personal history, their family, and in both cases whether it's somebody who has been in office or not, we often see people looking up their net worth, and in some cases this is very high, in other cases it is rather modest, so it's hard to see if there is a correlation around choosing that person if they are worth more or not, and how old they are. the age of cap dates is something we see pretty universally. >> so jake, do they predict what is going to happen? i mean the people at google probably know who is going to win? >> right. google has in the past been able to predict the outbreak of, say, a flu, using search activity

mary burke. charles, thanks very much. finally, to iowa, where democrat bruce braley and republican joni ernst are reportedly in a neck-and-neck race for the open senate seat. there's a brand new poll out this morning that indicates ernst has a seven-point lead. luke russert is standing by in des moines. luke, that had to be a stomach punch to democrats last night when the final poll came out with that margin. >> reporter: yeah. you are completely right, chuck. this poll, considered the gold standard ahead of elections here in iowa. real worrisome news for bruce braley. two things that stood out, braley will have to campaign to turn out the vote if he has any chance. the other thing, joni ernst, the republican, actually polling better on the issue of who cares more about people like me. that is something democrats ordinarily do better on. in this case, she's doing a good job. she also adds this novelty to her candidacy, she's a combat veteran. she would be the first woman nt

and the council chairman say that the city's send off for mary will stress off the contribution for the mayor and the council member and our bruce johnson that will be back to the building today where the colleagues and the stf were making plans, to send barry home with one kind of special thing. >> and if people will be lining up because they want to know which way they could come as you can imagine that they would say that whatever the motivation is going to be. that it will take all day. okay? >> reporter: and we don't have any figures just yet. but i'm told that they will pick up the tab for a lot of the expenses for their contribute to the memorials with the long-time barry associates. the family members are meeting as recently as this afternoon to begin raising the private dollars to cover the remaining expenses. >> and signing one of the two condolences for barry today. that they have been friends for decades. and to run run to the dc council chairmanship. >> and that they will be sitting there, we're not talking about politics, but we'll be talking about you. >> reporter: they said that he served on the dc council for as

bruce springsteen not use these songs. >> well, you're not getting peter, paul and mary.it is not like the marines haven't heard salty language. >> i think the star of the night was carrie underwood. and for great reason. she is the american jewel of nashville right now. that was the best hire they made for last night. >> thank you, dana. >> yes, dana, thank you for that. >> on that positive note, bob, focus. >>> ahead on "the five", can money really buy happiness? bob, up next, finally giving us that answer. i know you can't wait. >>> and later, brand new information about what may have caused robin williams' death. stay tuned. . . . female narrator: it's posturepedic versus beautyrest it's posturepedic versus beautyrest with up to $400 off. serta icomfort and tempur-pedic go head-to-head with three years' interest-free financing. mattress price wars are on now at sleep train. ♪ your ticket to a better night's sleep ♪ >>> can money really buy you >>> can money really buy you happiness? we'll have to ask eric who is rolling in it. the research saying the answer is yes to

mary burkee 52-47. >> in florida, rick scott narrowly beeting charlie crist 48-47. >> greg abbott easily defeating wendy davis. that was 59 to 39. in illinois republican bruce rauner taking down pat quinn 51-46. >> now to maryland republican larry hogan grabbing 54% of the vote. anthony brown just 45. and in massachusetts charlie baker nar l baker narrowly defeating his democratic opponent 48-47 and paul lepage defeating mike michaud 48-44. >> hilary clinton, bill clinton and michelle obama all went to that state to campaign for michaud. the time now is 4:38 and 38 after the hour is what it s. it's early. democrats using tactics like this to sway voters. >> i'll be honest with you. the south has not always been the friendliest place for african americans. >> did her comments backfire in louisiana? a closer look at how race played a role in the midterms. >>> taking a look at the 2014 midterm exit polls how have american voters perceptions of race relations changed since barrack obama was elected the nation's first black president? well, voters are twice as likely to say that things have gotten worse. then they say has improved. so did race play a factor in t

bruce gordon fox 29 news. >> great story. especially during the holidays. how about this kindness. a good deed going to cost a woman from michigan pretty hefty fine. her name is mary just driving yesterday hadn't a plate full of thanksgiving leftover her goal was to give it to someone who could use it as she approaches an an intersection she sees a japan handler coming towards her vehicle. she decides he'd be a good person to gift the food to. she pulls over puts on her hazard lights and found out not a good idea. >> and i said, why are you pulling me over, sir? he's like, well, you stop in the middle of traffic and you endangered the people behind you. i said but, officer, i was just, you know, giving food to a homeless person instead of wasting it. >> well, the officer said still not a good idea. still not safe. the ticket right there, $170 it will set her back. she says she does not plan to pay it. she is going to fight that one. good for her. >>> i think good for all of us we've seen nice changes domeni domenica. >> really nice forecast. i'm excited about this because it's a big warmup. we've been sitting blow normal for so long with temperatures in the 30s an

bruce braley and joni ernst. tied at 48%. another comment for a g.o.p. pick-up. in louisiana, that election will head to a run-off. the top two go getters. bill cassidy and mary landrieu. that will not be decided until december. taking a look at the race in giorgio, associated press predicting that republican david prideaux has won the race in georgia, with 55%. this is chandler's defeat. that seat staying in republican hands. looking at the close, close race in virginia right now, senator mark warner, 49%. ed gillespie 49%. again, if the differential between these two candidates is less than 1%, there'll be a recount in virginia. >> looks like it in virginia. >> thank you. let's go to robert ray in atlanta. watching the race in georgia. when the night began, it could go in a run off. everything shows that. this is neck to neck between michelle nunn, the democrat, and the republican. neither one of the candidates held a public office. they've been at each other with the most ads in all of the country. 55,000 commercials. david prideaux taking this with no problems. 64 years old, never in office. an ex-c.e.o. of rebook and dollar general and called michelle nu

involving castrating animals as a metaphor for dc against bruce braley, and the member of congress for indiana. it's neck and neck. louisiana, where mary north carolina, kay hagan looks like she's going to take it away. kansas is the wild card. in a situation where the democrat withdrew from the race, you have an independent named greg orrman, hasn't said democrat or republican. democrats are pouring a lot of money into that. pat roberts say he went back to kansas if he had an opponent. that's neck and neck. watching all those, the democrats if they can take kansas and hold up to, you know, four or five of the others, they're going to be okay. but if they lose candidates and they lose three or four others, it's all over, and that's what obama is worried about right now. >> right. and so, you know, he's facing the possibility of a gop controlled house and senate. >> right. >> so what's his role been if because he hasn't been out there campaigning a lot. >> the common wisdom is when you have a president who's a little unpopular and he's a little unpopular right now, you don't send him out on the campaign trail. you send him out to raise