. >> announcer: this is "nbc nightly news" with lester holt. >>> good evening, everyone. it has been quite the day. news of a bombshell indictment of a key trump ally in the mueller probe was quickly overtaken hours later by even bigger breaking news, that the government is finally reopening. for a border wall and agreeing to end the shutdown as it i we depend on. just today flights grounded in the northeast because of air traffic control staffing issues. tonight back pay will soon be on the way for affected government workers. their joy tempered, however, by the fact this deal is only temporary. our hallie jackson starts us off tonight. hallie, good evening. >> reporter: lester, good evening. the president is expected to sign that bill to reopen government once it reaches his desk. and despite the personal pain for so many people over these last five weeks, politically it's like the last 35 days never happened, with the president right back where he started. it's a deal and a defeat for president trump. >> i am very proud to announce today that we have reached a deal to end the shut

. >> that was fun. thanks for joining us. >>> tonight, an nbc news exclusive as president trump doubles down, planning a primetime address. nbc news has learned only six people in the national terror database were stopped at the southern border in early 2018. the white house has repeatedly claimed 4,000 known or suspected terrorists were stopped last year. >>> also, the deepening impact of the shutdown on american families. their paychecks cut off and the ripple effect on the airport security line. >>> major storms bearing down. mudslides in the west. a big snowmaker rolling into the east. al roker is here. >>> ruth bader ginsburg missing supreme court arguments for the first time in 25 years. pete williams has late details. >>> a surprise victory for a woman who's been in prison for nearly half her life with no chance of parole for 50 years. >> so i hugged her and whispered in her ear, you're going to get out. >> why she's now getting an unexpected second chance. >>> kevin spacey in court pleading not guilty to sexual assault and revealing a potentially big clue to his defense. >>> the

san francisco. nbc bay area's tom jensen is live along the embarcadero with what turned out to be a really tricky day for travelers and for first responders, tom. >> reporter: it really-d anoushah. serenity after the storm, and before that next wave of rain comes through tomorrow. but boy, you're right. earlier today it was really crazy. and that storm left all sorts of headaches in its wake across the bay area. in daly city tonight a driver on northbound interstate 280 discovered the hard way that water on the road plus high speeds are a dangerous combination. >> we're advising drivers to slow down, especially in inclement weather like this. >> he was rushed to a nearby hospital after he lost control, hit construction equipment, and then crashed through a guardrail, careening toward a busy street below the interstate. the windy conditions and high tides led to flooding on the embarcadero this morning, even closing pier 14 for a time. at san francisco international the weather led to nearly 500 delayed flights and more than 80 cancellations, even those passengers whose flights were

billboard charts. >> announcer: this is nbc "nightly news" with lester holt. >>> good evening. we're on the eve of what could be a gutcheck moment in this government shutdown standoff. the pain hits home tomorrow for hundreds of thousands of federal workers who won't receive their scheduled paychecks. pawns in a political tug of war. today as president trump sounded crisis alarms on the border, posing with halls of smuggled contraband, government workers from across the country took to the streets to draw attention to their own more immediate crisis. paying the bills. tom costello starts our coverage. >> reporter: from d.c. to utah to kentucky, thousands of demonstrators were today demanding an end to the shutdown. >> shut the shutdown now! >> reporter: working without pay, 3,000 air traffic controllers whose jobs are already stressful. today received their first pay statements, zero dollars. >> on behalf of more than 61,000 pilots of the airline pilots association, we stand in solidarity with you. >> reporter: pilots and flight attendants today joined hundreds of controllers on capitol

opening the door for a temporary solution. let's get right to nbc's kasie hunt on the hill. what do we know right now? >> reporter: lester, good evening. tonight lawmakers are doing something they haven't in weeks, they are talking, trying to negotiate an end to this government shutdown. at the center of it are mitch mcconnell and chuck schumer. mcconnell actually invited schumer to a meeting in his office late this afternoon after competing proposals to open the government failed on the senate floor. our sources are suggesting that this could be a temporary three-week reopening while they try to negotiate around border security. the president has said that he wants a down payment on the border wall. house speaker nancy pelosi, as she left the capitol this evening, saying stay tuned. what we don't know right now is how serious these negotiations are, or how quickly they could reopen the government. lester? >> all right, kasie, thank you. >>> let's go to the white house where president trump spoke just a short time ago about the possible shutdown deal in the works. this comes on the eve

service and the disruption there, you can view the alerts on usps.com. >>> let's turn now to nbc meteorologist bill karins to see when this is going to come to an end. >> historic doesn't even begin to tell the story of this. negative 70 windchill yesterday in eli, minnesota. chicago had its second coldest day ever recorded in their city's history, which goes back to late 1870s. very historic stuff. today is the third day of it. yesterday was the peak. today is still bitterly cold. we're going to slowly come out of this. friday and saturday a lot of recovery. windchill warnings continue still from the dakotas all the way through the northeast. windchill advisories for all the big cities and i-95 as the cold pushed in with those snow squalls yesterday. right n tempat far and also northern portions of minnesota. green bay at negative 40. chicago, negative 39. you probably won't even notice the difference if you head outside today. the negative numbers have arrived in new york city and also in boston. i'm going to give you the forecast windchills as we go throughout the day today. t

tonight from authorities after explosive allegations against music star r. kelly. >>> my nbc news exclusive. the first man released under the new criminal justice reform law. his roller coaster journey to freedom. >> it's something i've been dreaming about for close to 21 years now. >> tonight, his amazing story and his message about second chances. >>> the vaping epidemic. so addictive, some teens are going to rehab to kick the habit. >>> and a heart-stopping close call. the split-second leap right in the nick of time. >> announcer: this is "nbc nightly news" with lester holt. >>> good evening, everyone. backed against a wall that many call his wall, president trump will try to go around it tonight. in a prime time speech on border security, he'll try to describe a situation so urgent, so threatening to american security that it justifies the partial government down as well as the financial harm to all those who won't see a paycheck on friday. by tradition, oval officeddress are reserved for issues of weight, and yes, national crisis. tonight democrats, who are equally dug in on

is nbc "nightly news" with lester holt. >>> on the heels of a deadly winter storm in the east and midwest tonight, millions of hunkered down in the face of the season's coldest and most dangerous temperatures yet. an arctic blast that sent morning windchills plunging anywhere from 15 to 35 degrees below zero. right now windchill advisories in effect from northern pennsylvania to maine. a brutal second punch for areas still reeling from a major snowstorm. our kathy park is in it tonight. >> reporter: millions of americans this morning braving the burst of arctic air. temperatures plunging to dangerous levels for nearly two-thirds of the country. windchills of minus 32 in montpelier, vermont. feeling like negative 26 in rochester, new york. >> i have like four layers on right now. but it's not really helping. >> reporter: emergency responders taking no chances in the cold. >> we're trying to also, every half hour or so, just cycle crews out so hypothermia doesn't set in. >> reporter: the deep freeze bringing down power lines and slick conditions causing hurejet jolted off the runway

, the life-saving history. >> announcer: this is "nbc nightly news" with lester holt. >>> good evening, everyone. days or years, president trump offering both rosy and dire estimates how long it will take to solve the budget problem that closed the government. the president met with democratic leaders today. a committee of white house negotiators will work this weekend but his price to reopen the government seems to be the border wall and today a threat ht do hallie jackson has late d. >> reporter: two weeks into the shutdown, a two-hour talk and two versions of how it went. >> he said he would keep the government closed for a very long period of time, months or even years. >> we just completed a lengthy and sometimes contentious conversation with the president. >> i thought it was really a very, very good meeting. >> reporter: the president, in a surprise appearance in the rose garden revealing he's considering going around congress all together by invoking emergency national security powers to get the wall he wants. >> we could call a national emergency and build it very quic

safety alert your family needs to know. >> announcer: this is "nbc nightly news" with lester holt. >>> good evening, everyone. as we come on the air in the west, cities are virtually paralyzed tonight in the midwest as the polar vortex holds millions in a dangerous and icy grip. a blast of arctic air sweeping across the upper tier of the country now rapidly pushing toward the northeast. the weather blamed for at least six deaths so far. windchills are dipping as far as 50 below zero. so cold in chicago that fires were actually lit to keep commuter rails from freezing. our miguel almaguer is in the frozen zone tonight. >> reporter: it's not just the winter whiteout conditions and treacherous roads making headlines. it's also the bone-chilling deep freeze. hard to see but easy to feel. >> it's like stinging, it's like having a needle into your skin. >> reporter: today 210 million americans below freezing by morning. 58 million of them waking up to subzero temperatures. records shattered in more than two dozen cities. among them chicago, the windy city a frozen tundra feeling like ne

to younger voters. kristin welker, nbc news in washington. >>> let us turn now to the american being held in russia. the u.s. ambassador able to visit him there today. his family says he is anything but a spy. nbc's hans nichols has the latest. >> reporter: tonight, american paul whelan getting the first visit from u.s. embassy officials in a moscow jail, a relief for the form er marine's twin brother. >> i'm relieved. >> reporter: questions remain about why he was arrested for espionage. >> i'm 100% confident paul was not a spy. >> reporter: whelan was discharged in 2008 for bad conduct after being court-martialed for attempted larceny. a background experts say doesn't match the profile of a spy. >> it's very unlikely the cia would use someone like this. first, he apparently had a rocky tenure in the marine corps. second, he also had no diplomatic immunity. >> reporter: his family saying he was only in russia to attend a friend's wedding. hans nichols, nbc news, washington. >>> netflix is under fire for pulling an episode of a show in saudi arabia that criticized the crown pri

colorado, nbc bay area news. >> thank you very much, melissa. in spite of all the warnings against it, illegal fireworks once again lit up the sky overnight all over the bay area. and we are learning tonight that some may have started a fire that nearly burned down a san jose home. nbc bay area's damian trujillo is outside the home with a look damian? >> reporter: well, garvin, firefighters just left the scene about five minutes ago. they returnedthe windows and do complex here. the smoke alarm alerted folks inside to get out. tonight investigators want to know if fireworks are to blame. >>> flames shot through the roof of the home on 5th street near julian. the people who live here gathered outside as crews bat lds the fire. >> first my mom noticed the alarm, then she woke me up. all of a sudden we saw the smoke. right away we got out. >> reporter: the smoke was so thick it also apparently affected the neighbors next door. >> our alarm was actually going off in our house, yes. our smoke alarm was going off. we panicked and ran outside. >> reporter: on the sidewalk in front we found t

powered by nbc bay area )s ready. the next batch of rain is heading our way. a live look at our doppler radar powered by nbc bay area storm ranger. the morning commute was soggy and right now we are drying out but don't put the umbrellas away just yet. >> keep them handy. >> you better. joining so much for us. i'm marcusam washington. >> i'm laura garcia. let's take a live look outside at san francisco. a nice - view. the clouds just kind of hanging there. meteorologist kari hall tracking now the next storm heading our way. >> we are waiting for the clouds the parayor and going to have some nice temperatures to go with it for the afternoon. you should get out there and enjoy it because this is the break before the next storm system moves in and we are enjoying fairly mild weather. we will have a big dip in the temperatures going into the weekend. the rain that we had this morning moving across southern california. and we are seeing some drying conditions here as we open up the picture we have a couple of storms lined up in the pacific with the next one storm and then another one

gymnastics superstar, hear her amazing story you haven't heard. >> announcer: this is "nbc nightly news" with lester holt. >>> good evening, everyone. first we marvelled at her brave and dramatic escape to freedom. now tonight we're hearing absolutely gripping details of jayme closs' three-month-long kidnapping ordeal. new court filings describing the murder of her parents. how the 13-year-old was targeted by the suspect. how jayme was spirited away right under the noses of police. the accounts coming from jayme as well as the suspect himself. our ron mott takes us through it. >> reporter: chilling confessions from an admitted killer. today 21-year-old james thomas patterson made his first court appearance by video. >> upon conviction shall been imprisoned for life. >> reporter: charged with killing james and denise closs and kidnapping 13-year-old jayme. >> we have two parents of a 13-year-old who are deceased. we have a 13-year-old who was abducted for 88 days against her will forcibly. it doesn't get any more serious than that. >> reporter: soon after jayme's daring escape last thurs

people who depend on the government for their food. nbc's hans nichols has that part of the story. >> reporter: for families that rely on federal help for food. the shutdown could leave them with an empty table. >> it's going to affect me, i won't be able to come in here and buy my groceries. >> reporter: absent a deal between president donald trump and congress, federal funds for food assistance could run out next month, affecting some of the 38 million americans who rely on the program for their basic needs. >> a lot of people are one paycheck away from being in the situation of needing food assistance, and it's really a challenge for us to get people to realize how broad an issue it is. >> reporter: the department of agriculture has only guaranteed that eligible households will receive monthly supplemental nutritional assistance program benefits for january, but made no promises for february. a "washington post" analysis says the program has only $3 billion in reserve, which would cover just 64% of february's obligations. >> if the shutdown continues, you will literally have mi

very latest. >> announcer: this is "nbc nightly news" with lester holt. >>> good evening, i'm kristen welker in for lester tonight. we begin on this new year's eve with the desperate manhunt under way in texas after a 7-year-old girl was shot and killed while riding in a car with her mother on an early morning coffee run. her mother is still in the hospital but tonight she is speaking out through grief and tears with a powerful message to the public, a plea to help find her daughter's killer. nbc's gabe gutierrez has the very latest. >> reporter: the gunshot wound in laporsha washington's left arm only begins to tell the horrifying story. >> i turned around and my 7-year-old was shot in the head. >> reporter: 7-year-old jazmine barnes was among her four daughters in the car around 7:00 a.m. sunday. from a hospital bed in houston, her mother tells us she was going to get coffee when a red pickup truck pulled up next to her near this walmart and a man she says she did not know started shooting. >> i told everybody to get down in the car and i reached over to take my daughter because she

casualties include u.s. troops and civilians. nbc's richard engel is in syria tonight with new details on this stunning attack. >> reporter: multiple witnesses tell nbc news u.s. troops were at a restaurant halfway down this street, and then this happened when a man in civilian clothing approached the door. a suicide bomber apparently lying in wait with a powerful explosive vest. four americans were killed. two u.s. service members, a civilian working for the defense department, and a contractor. as rescue helicopters came in, witnesses told nbc news u.s. forces may have set a dangerous pattern coming to this same restaurant repeatedly. isis almost immediately claimed responsibility. the group, it seems, trying to show the world president trump is wrong. >> we've beaten them badly, we've taken back the land, and now it's time for our troops to come back home. >> reporter: but u.s. troops are still here in syria for now. and their allies, kurdish forces, who took us into the battle zone, say the u.s. is leaving a war that's not finished. these areas here on the front line are completely

that's not all. nbc bay area storm ranger is tracking stronger storm on the winds roll through. microclimate weather mayeda. >> stronger cells rotating somewhat offshore, national weather service highlighting the coast as might see water spouts. that one showing signs of rotation. lightning also, could see, isolated thunder. model outlook has brought rainfall totals up, quarter to half inch of rain. flood risk is relatively minor, contrasted with wednesday. wind gusts up to 60 miles per hour, hills and all across the bay with powerful wednesday storm. full look hour by hour in 15 minutes. >>> breaking news out of solano county, investigators closing in on a suspect needed intabbing. stretch of vacaville closed down, search for holland, stabbed people he lived with. taken to hospital, expected to be okay. four-year-old inside the home burned on face and chest. condition unknown. unclear his relationship to the victims. if you see him, call 911. >>> armed and dangerous, piedmont police looking for three suspects involved in early morning home invasion. cheryl hurd is live with de

is "nbc nightly news" with lester holt. >>> good evening. as hundreds of thousands struggle to get by on no pay, the people who could p them back to work seem more focused on power plays and retaliation. president trump today in an apparent move to humiliate speaker nancy pelosi canceled her military transportation for an official overseas trip at the last minute. a day after pelosi threatened to postpone his state of the union dr moves rich in political theatrics but hardly amusing to those in the crossfire of this standoff. our peter alexander has details. >> reporter: tonight democrats grounded, boarded on this bus but going nowhere. less than an hour before nancy pelosi and others were set to begin a planned trip overseas, including a secret stop in afghanistan -- >> we're going to afghanistan. >> reporter: president trump writing the house speaker, i'm sorry to inform you that your trip has been postponed, calling it a public relations event, arguing the top democrat should stay in washington negotiating with me. the president's move apparent payback for pelosi's call to postp

brexit deal. europe plunging deeper into crisis. >>> an nbc news exclusive. richard engel tonight inside syria with an american caught in isis territory. >> with the beheadings, okay, that's execution. i'm from the united states, from texas. they like to execute people too. >> a chilling encounter on the front lines. >>> the manhunt for a hit-and-run driver running down a gas station attendant while trying to leave without paying. >>> the shocking moment a baby falls out of a car and into the road. the child is okay. her mom, behind the wheel, not even realizing her child was gone. >>> taking on bullying and sexual harassment and sparking an intense backlash. >>> and goodbye dolly. tonight famous friends and fans bidding farewell to the legendary carol channing. >> this is "nbc nightly news" with lester holt. >> good evening, everyone. president trump's pick to be the next attorney general vowed today he would quit if the president ordered him to fire robert mueller. william barr, who held the job in the '90s, promising to protect the russia investigation during his senate confirmation h

adamant saying this was no concession. nbc bay area's jean elle is in san francisco with the latest details. >> reporter: raj, it's going to take time for things to get back to normal. trach attractions run by the national park service remain closed. in alameda, a foot pantry for coast guard personnel will continue offering help. >> hand goods over here -- >> reporter: despite a deal, need remains. nicole is picking up groceries for her family at a food pantry for active duty coast guard personnel in alameda, something she'll do till her husband is paid. >> i think that's why everybody's so grateful that this is remaining open for us until those paychecks do come, because it allows you to come in, grab the items that you may need, and not have to worry about going to a grocery store. >> reporter: federal workers missed two paychecks during the government shutdown. today was day 35, the day president trump signed a deal to end the stalemate. >> i am very proud to announce today that we have reached a deal to end the shutdown and reopen the federal government. >> reporter: but the dea

with the heroes who helped save him. >> announcer: this is nbc nightly news with lester holt. >>> good evening. it's a new playing field in washington politics tonight with new faces, but a familiar arena. democrats led by new house speaker, nancy pelosi, officially now the majority in the house of representatives. 116th congress, the most diverse ever with more than 100 women. pelosi's leadership being tied for second time as speaker immediately tested by the partial government shut down and a president staring her down in a high stakes showdown over the border wall. our hallie jackson has the latest. >> congratulations, madam speaker. >> today belongs to her. >> i now call the house to order on behalf of all of america's children. >> but nancy pelosi's second speakership may be shaped by him, a president confronting a new political universe. >> congratulations each and every one of you. >> as a triumphant pelosi and her party take over the house. >> let us pledge when we disagree, we respect each other and we respect the truth. >> sworn in a shut down standoff, the promising pgress o

. how people can secretly find your location by tracking your cell phone. >>> an nbc news exclusive. the american adventurer, the first person in history to cross antarctica alone, 900 miles. tonight he tells us how he pulled it off. >> announcer: this is "nbc nightly news" with lester holt. >>> good evening. we have come here to frame the crisis rocking america. not the one the president speaks of at the southern border but the crisis of dysfunction here in washington that has ground so much of the government to a halt. and the crisis around kitchen tables where families try to figure out what they'll do come friday when the government paycheck doesn't arrive. a day after the president's primetime appeal for border wall funding, his face-to-face meeting with democratic leaders here ended in disappointment. the president walking out. and with cracks beginning to emerge of support from his own republican party, the president still holds a final card, declaring a national emergency. let's get more on that extraordinary meeting and all the day's developments from nbc's hallie jackson,

the year that tourists visit the final frontier? >> announcer: this is "nbc nightly news with lester holt." >>> good evening. i'm kristen welker in for lester. >>> we begin this new year with growing tensions between the united states and russia, after a marine corps veteran was arrested last week in moscow on spying charges.tonight, his twin brother is speaking out, insisting he is innocent and demanding his safe return. nbc pentagon correspondent hans nichols starts our coverage tonight. >> reporter: for the former marine gone missing in moscow, a mystery. russia arrested 48-year-old paul whelan for spying. but his family says the russians have the wrong man. >> paul is your tourist who happens to be in apparently the wrong place at the wrong time. it's inconceivable he took the actions that the russians have alleged. >> reporter: the state department requested access to whelan and expects russian authorities to provide it. in moscow for a follow marine's wedding, he was last seen giving a tour of the kremlin, which he has visited at least once before. whelan's arrest threatens to

nbc news. >> do you feel that you owe anybody an apology? do you see your own faults in any way? >> what he says about the moment at the lincoln memorial. >>> your money your life, and americans so desperate for life-saving medicine, the costs so high here that they're crossing into mexico to get it for thousands less. >> that year's supply of insulin in the u.s. would be $1400. i bought it here for $104. >> why do we pay so much more here? >>> and a hail mary from saints fans. the new court challenge after the blown call leaving a cloud over the super bowl. >> this is "nbc nightly news" with lester holt. >> good evening, everyone. there is breaking news from here in the new york area, one of the busiest corridors for air traffic in the country. late today landing shut down at newark airport because of drones suspected of getting way too close to planes trying to land. ron allen with late-breaking details now. ron, what can you tell us? >> good evening, lester. this happened late this afternoon. just before 5:00 p.m. a southwest pilot reported drones around teterboro airport in

for their kids. ♪ >>> this is nbc "nightly news" with kate snow. >> good evening. the president has made no secret of how he feels about people entering the country illegally, but tonight there's evidence that another of his golf clubs, this one just 30 miles north of manhattan, was employing house keepers, maintenance workers and other staff who presented phony documents when they were given the job. the story first reported by "the washington post." it's not unusual to find workers, and it's still owned by the president and managed by his sons. >> for 14 years gab ryll cedano worked in at the trump hotel club in westchester, new york. >> painting, plumbing, with everything we have to fix? he showed us his uniforms and years of pay stubs. >> maria was a seasonal housekeeper both from but ebb well, mexico, they crossed the border on foot. >> why did you come here illegally? >> to give them a better life. >> you wanted to work. >> yeah. do i want to work. >> maria and gabriel both say they presented forged green cards and social security cards when hired. >> they didn't ask any quest

>>> breaking overnight. a tornado strikes in florida. details are still coming in to nbc news. we'll have the latest as record cold temperatures are striking sections of the country from part of the polar vortex that broke away. >>> to an nbc exclusive. kate snow speaks to directly to a number of undocumented workers recently fired from trump owned and managed properties. >>> today in court, the two men arrest for involvement in a road rage incident that reached point? miles an hour will face the judge. >>> race and the nfl. most of the coaches recye black their replacements so far are white. what the nfl has to say about it. >>> plus, the big w moments fro. awards. "early today" starts right now. good morning. i'm marlie hall in for frances rivera. >> and i'm phillip mena. officials are confirming that a tornado briefly touched down in miami-dade county, florida. the winds were powerful enough to topple over a large truck and knock trees to the ground. homes in the area suffered minor damage. as of 10:00 p.m. last night, nearly 800 households across broward and miami-dade cou

restaurantt camera. >> as you can imagine it horrified everyone inside that mcdonald's. nbc bay area's is in san francisco with more on this bizarre and creepy surprise. >> i looked and there was a guy with what i thought was a dog at first but after further examining i saw it was a raccoon. i ran. >> reporter: chris brooks ran out of mcdonald's sunday morning and then took this video. an elderly man with a bloody raccoon inside the restaurant. >> it's gross. and especially if you don't know if it was alive or not. >> reporter: the raccoon was dead. brooks says the man was asking for help. mcdonald's staff told him to leave. when he did, he left the carcass on the table. someone eventually put it in the cdonald's says "the restaurant was clothe rest. the health department visited the restaurant this afternoon and cleared the restaurant for ull operations." was busyhiners tonight. brooks says he won't be eating there again and has some direction for peoplecorol's a b away. why stop here? you could have went to animal control. >> reporter: animal care and control says you can call monal pic

with strangers. >>> this is "nbc nightly news" with jose diaz balart. >>> good evening. as we begin our broadcast tonight, a third of the united states is in the path of a major winter storm. from oklahoma to maine, making for a chaotic and messy holiday weekend. the storm is bringing rain, brutally cold, life-threatening temperatures. it's already causing major nbc's kathy park is following it all and has the very latest. >> reporter: severe winter weather is slamming much of the country. >> we finally landed, and the next thing we know, we were off the runway and stuck in snow. >> reporter: in the midwest, travel troubles. this united airlines flight slid off the runway at o'hare this morning. more than 1,700 flights canceled nationwide today. and nearly 1,000 already grounded for tomorrow, as the same system heads northeast. in new york, prepping for rain, snow, sleet, and freezing temperatures, even possible power outages. how are you starting to spend your weekend? it sounds like you already have the weekend planned out already. >> we got all the food, the grocery shopping is d

" owner jeff bezos who he dubbed jeff bozo. nbc's kelly o'donnell has more on this drama in d.c. >> reporter: snowed in at the white house, a bitter chill swept across washington. with disturbing allegations reported by "the new york times" and "washington post." that prompted this startling question from a friendly fox news interviewer. are you now or have you ever worked for russia, mr. president? >> reporter: president trump did not answer directly, but appeared indignant. >> i think it's the most insulting thing i've ever been asked. i think it's the most insulting article i've ever had written. >> reporter: at issue, the times reports that fbi investigated the president directly, suspicious that he might be aiding russia. and th p officials described the president as curiously secretive about his conversations with vladimir putin. even keeping interpreters' notes from senior advisors. the secretary of state rejected those claims. >> the notion that president trump is a threat to american national security is absolutely ludicrous. >> reporter: but democrats demand more answe

right along the coast. we even somehow flooding along the embarcadero in san francisco. nbc bay area with more coverage. it caused pier 14 to close for a short time. >> reporter: that's right. it's calmer right now, and that is why people are back out on pier 14. earlier, this area was closed because wild waves were crashing over near the sidewalk. along the embarcadero, water rolled over the sidewalk from the bay due to high tides and choppy water. caution tape was up blocking a place where visitors typically enjoy the view. >> i'm shocked, surprised. >> reporter: dominic staccato lives in the city but has not seen this before. his group took pictures. >> this is so cool. like we don't get stuff like this in iowa. >> reporter: port workers urged people to avoid the area, but they still wanted to look. on the street, water blocked a section of the roadway. pier 14 was temporarily closed. >> like seeing how rough it is right next to like the road and like all the civilization, it's like a little awe inspiring, humbling, i guess. that also makes it scary. >> reporter: near the coast, r

girls to reach for the stars. >> announcer: this is "nbc nightly news" with kate snow. >>> good evening. president trump is a man who has long been in a public eye, reality tv star, businessman who sought the spotlight, a leader who frequently breaks news on twitter this weekend, though, two reports raise questions not about his very public life, but about what he has done in private. "the new york times" reports the fbi once investigated whether the president himself was working for russia. "the washington post" raised questions about five meetings between the past two years between trump and russian leader vladimir putin. we begin tonight with kelly o'donnell at the white house. >> reporter: snowed in at the white house today. a bitter chill swept across washington, with disturbing allegations reported by "the new york times" and "washington post" that prompted this startling question from a friendly fox news interviewer. >> are you now or have you ever worked for russia, mr. president? >> reporter: president trump did not answer directly, but appeared indignant. >> i think it

for joining us at 5:00. as a reminder, lester holt is next with "nbc nightly news." >> see you at 6:00. bye. >>> tonight, states of emergency. the coldest blast in two decades has arrived. chicago colder than antarctica, and 85% of the country below freezing. in some places it feels like 50 below. >> your corneas can actually freeze, and contacts can freeze to your eyes. >> and the big chill is set to get even worse. >>> a shocking ambush on the star of tv's "empire" who says he was beaten by men hurling racist and homophobic slurs while wrapping a rope around his neck. tonight hollywood rallying around, advocating civil rights as authorities investigate. >>> the nation's intelligence chiefs contradicting the president on north korea on nukes, on isis, on russia, on iran. the president saying one thing, and our top spies today issuing very different views of what threatening the u.s. >>> the tragedy on the subway. a young man carrying her baby in her stroller down the stairs falling to her death in the shadow of times square. so many asking why do so many stations not have elevators

the ride. to a spectacular winter wonderland. >> announcer: this is "nbc nightly news" with lester holt. >>> good evening. there's breaking news out of florida as we start tonight. police reporting at least five people are dead after a shooting inside this bank. late word after a tense standoff with s.w.a.t. officers. a suspected shooter is in custody. let's get the latest from kerry sanders on the scene in sebring, florida. >> reporter: tonight, terror in a florida bank as an armed man opened fire, taking hostages and lives inside a sun trust bank in sebring. >> we're sorry to learn we have at least five victims, people who were senselessly murdered as a result of his act in this bank. >> reporter: the suspect, who is still alive, 21-year-old zephen xaver. according to police he dialed 911 himself at 12:36 this afternoon to report the shooting while still barricaded inside the bank. deputies rushed to the scene. a s.w.a.t. team moved in quickly, storming the bank after authorities say negotiations were unsuccessful. they say xaver eventually surrendered. >> this is an individual t

trump alluded to about 30 minutes ago, this deal might be short-lived. nbc bay area's jodi hernandez is at oakland international with the latest. jodi. >> reporter: raj, a spokesman for the he shutdown has been incredibly tough for the more than 300 tsa workers here at oakland international airport. while they are relieved tonight that they will soon be getting a paycheck again, they realize their future is still very much up in the air. >> no more shutdown! [ crowd chanting ] >> reporter: fed-up federal workers and fellow union members marched right into oakland international airport this afternoon, hoping their message will travel. >> no more shutdown! [ crowd chanting ] >> reporter: tsa workers have been without a paycheck for 35 days, though the president announced the shutdown will end temporarily. their stress level is still soaring. >> we don't know how we're going to pay our car payments, our house payments, our rent, our child care. we can't keep doing this. and no one should be allowing us to keep doing this. >> stop playing games with workers' lives! >> reporter: tsa offic

will reconvene with still no real end in sight to the government shutdown. nbc's tracie potts joins us from d.c. with the latest. tracie, president trump has a message for lawmakers, tweeting, quote, let's make a deal. >> reporter: deal to be had. this is a complete showdown over the border wall,wants, the $5 b democrats now coming in to take over give to president trump. he's having some of the top leaders, democrats and republicans, to the white house today to talk about that border wall. the white house calls it a briefing. democrats, according to one aide, are skeptical that the president's ready to negotiate over this. and democrats do plan a vote tomorrow. they have two different plans. neither of them would fund the wall. both of them would reopen the government for these 800,000 workers who are either working without pay or not working at all. we're also hearing from mitt romney, who is criticizing the president and wondering whether or not this is something that they might be willing to work out. in a new op-ed, he raises that question. but again, as he slams president trump s

in san francisco. two people critically hurt after a fire in an abandoned building. we have nbc bay area sam brock out there live at the scene on the hill, blocks away from zuckerberg sfo general. what happened? >> reporter: scott, this was an abandoned unit in a building where there were other people living. and look, it was a fire scare the day after new years. as you mentioned, two people critically injured, two men, not sure what their ages were. this could have been so much worse if not for the heroic actions of the grounds crew members. you'll see over my shoulder the scarred building, the char that has just gone up the side of the wall, the unit where the fire started. they are not entirely clear as it how it started with the exact point of origin. but it was in a vacant unit in this building. there was a family of five living next door that were displaced. they described the smoke and feeling the warmth from next door. they were able to get out at 8:00 this morning. the good news, there was a maintenance crew worker, a manager who heard what was going on from a colleague, ca

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probe. nbc's susan mcennis joins us now from d.c. with what we can can expect to the. good morning. >> reporter: that's right, good morning. lawmakers very eager to hear from fired in lawmakers are sure to zero in on the russia investigation and whether barr can fairly oversee it. now, he has written testimony that nbc got hold of. it says he finds it vitally important that mueller his investigation, but it wasn't too long ago that barr sent a memo unsolicited, 20 pages long, to the justice department, talking about being highly critical of the mueller probe and questioning its scope and saying in its memo the president should not be questioned about obstruction. so that has a lot of lawmakers here worried about his views on presidential power and among those who are concerned, senator dick durbin. >> i'm worried about it. i mean, clearly he's a good lawyer, no question. but when it comes to this delicate political situation, the power of the presidency, whether this investigation is worded, bill barr had better give us some rock ironclad rock bottom assurances in terms of his inde

arrested. nbc's lucy kov nafanov joins ush the latest. will whelan be able to come home anytime soon? >> quite the opposite actually. the judge is expected to extend paul whelan's arrest. his family is preparing for a long and drawn out case, at least two or more years, they say. they've been raising funds through a gofundme page because the legal bills are expected to skyrocket. this is not a trial to determine whether paul whelan is guilty or innocent of the espionage charges. they haven't said exactly what he's accused of doing, but if he's convicted, that could keep him in prison between 10 and 20 years. that's a very long sentence. whelan's appearance in court is to see whether or not he can be released on bail or whether he'll have to remain in the prison where he's spent the past three weeks. we do expect a u.s. embassy representative to attend the public portions of this hearing. and while four countries, the u.s., ireland, canada, and the united kingdom all claim paul whelan as a citizen, only diplomatic corps from the u.s. and ireland from seen him so far. o millions of ame

, nbc ba. >>> well, some breaking news in silicon valley tonight. cnbc is reporting that apple ha working on a project called titan. that's apple's group. the project won't be completely shut down, but apple says some employees are moving to different sections of that company. >>> now to a developing story that the world is watching closely. after years of crisis in venezuela, the opposition leader has declared himself president of the south american country. and president trump is backing him. nbc bay area's sergio quintana is in palo alto this evening with how the local venezuelan community is reacting. sergio? >> reporter: raj, well, there are a lot of people in the bay area who have long opposed venezuelan president nicolas maduro and his predecessor hugo chavez. so president donald trump's announcement of support for the opposition to their regime is welcome news. at a coffee shop in palo alto a couple dozen people crammed into a small conference room to get a grasp on what's happening about 4,00 ay in venezuela. organizer grass yellea juarez says president donald trump as no

nc and why one of his advisers tells nbc news cohen is living in fear for his witness that is trying to tell the truth -- >>> a second summit is on between president trump and kim jong-un. we now know when it will happen. >>> late word on the fate of daca. pete williams at the supreme court with details. >>> controversy on the eve of the women's march as big names cut ties over accusations of anti-semitism among the organization's leaders. >>> outrage over a high school dance invitation showing students doing apparent nazi salutes. the latest incident after this prom photo that sparked a firestorm. >>> and a plane scare in a big american city. people terrified by the low-flying military aircraft whizzing by downtown buildings. tonight a mystery solved. >> announcer: this is nbc "nightly news" with lester holt. >>> good evening. it's looking like winter it across a good swath of the country this weekend. a one-two punch of snow followed by bone-jarring cold. already pummeling the midwest this evening, sending a southwest airlines jet sliding off an icy runway in omaha today. there wer

according to two federal law enforcement officials involved in investigation of the matter. nbc news has not yet confirmed the report. the sources told buzzfeed that mr. trump "had at least ten face meetings with cohen about the deal during the campaign." >> anthony cormier, who was one of the two reporters on the story, spoke with msnbc's ali velshi about the depth of the president's involvement. >> behind the scenes he was encouraging mr. cohen to set up a meeting overseas in russia with vladimir putin. he was encouraging him to pursue the deal. and he was made aware of sort of granular details about the project, what it would look like, where it would be, where they would acquire the land. he was definitely read into this project to an extent he has not admit on the campaign trail. >> the buzzfeed report contradicts president trump's repeated claims that he did not have any dealings with russia. >> i have nothing to do with russia. to the best of my knowledge no person that i deal with does. >> that i have nothing to do with russia. i have no investments in russia. none whatsoever. i

moon, why so many people tonight will have their eyes on the sky. >>> this is nbc "nightly news" with kate snow. >>> good evening. across the northeast and midwest people were shoveling out today. in some spots in upstate new york more than 20 inches of snow fell there was rain and sleet that left streets and sidewalks in a slushy mess. shots of the hudson river in toy new york telling another part of the city, the ice contributed to hundreds of car accidents in missouri and beyond and frigid temperatures are rolling in creating a real danger tonight for icy roadways. we begin with kathy park in albany, new york. >>> a blast of winter weather buried parts of the northeast today dumping a foot of snow in albany, new york, even plow drivers bowled over. >> how does this storm compare to others that you've had to cover? >> biggest one for me. >> nearby, a stunning sight, the hudson river frozen. where there wasn't snow, water was a problem. heavy rain flooded areas of new york city today. strong waves slamming the eastern seaboard and parts of coastal massachusetts arecities will m icy m

beginning. the official inaugurn ceremony starts tomorrow morning here at the state capitol, and nbc you the latest beginning bright and early with "today in the bay." in sacramento, thom jenson, "nbc bay area news." >> our coverage continues through the morning. the program starts at 11:15 with the oath of office around noon. we'll bring you it live here during our midday newscast. >>> the attorney for a dog owner accused of biting a woman on the arm is speaking out calling the bite an act of self-defense. >> grabbed my client by the hair, kneed her in the groin and began attacking her, and when she had my client's hair in her hand -- >> east bay park police say she bit a jogger. the joggeratacd her. that's when the dog owner bit her. the dog owner's attorney says the jogger did the attacking pepper spray bottle. >> grabbed my client by the hair, kneed her in the groin and began attacking her and when she had my client's hair in the hand, my client bit to get her to release her. >> the woman who was bitten has not spoken to anyone other than police. >> 4:36. >>> a murder/suicide und

day. >>> new at 11:00, one person day died in a fire. we have new video from nbc bay area sky ranger. you you can see overednehead it happened not far from east san jose. we are live from the scene. so sad here. what happened here? >> well, we just learned in the last of minutes that the woman who died was an elderly woman. she was on the second floor of her family's apartment. arson investigators are trying to of fur the moments when fire was just raging. it is burning through the front and througapareent building. jos fire department told me they don't know how the fire started but that it did burn very fast. the first call was just before 7:00 this morning. within minutes that fire was at a second alarm. they were calling in more resources. one man was getting his kids ready for school and said he was thankful it didn't happen because he didn't hear any alarms. four apartments are unlivable. she lived next door to the woman that died! how difficult will it be? >> i only have a certain amount -- i don't know how long i have to get my stuff out. two knows afterwards. >> and y

mcsweeney, "nbc bay area news." >>> san jose police searching for two men for a shooting inside a liquor store. video shows the men entering el rancho liquors on december 14th. police say inside the store, shots were fired, a man died. no word if he was a customer or a worker. the two men seen here ran from the scene. police still don't know the motive. >>> police in san francisco hope this new sketch can help solve a recent brutal attack that left an elderly woman near death. it happened a week ago in vasation valley. the woman 88-year-old yiko wong is said to be on life support after suffering severe head injuries. police say her attacker also broke into her home across the street from where the attack took place. >>> 4:36. follow-up for you this morning, we should know in the next few weeks whether a small north bay school district will change its controversial name. members of the dixie school district held a public meeting session yesterday in san rafael. "today in the bay" previewed that story yesterday. group backing the name says dixie refers to a native american woman fro

>>> nbc news exclusive. our kate snow speaks to undocumented workers who were just fired from a trump-managed property. here what they had to say about the president. >> and the u.s. xptbreak. with 349 cases in 26 states in the past year. >> and new evidence in a custody dispute that ended with police killing a parent at a school in oregon. >>> and kamala harris makes it official as thousands turn out to support the 2020 white house hopeful. >>> and "black panther" dominants at the s.a.g. awards. early today starts right now. good monday morning. i'm frances rivera. cracking down on illegal immigration is a cornerstone of president trump's platform. now there's new evidence that another one of his golf clubs was employing undocumented workers. this one 30 miles out of manhattan. several former employees at the westchester county are coming forward to tell their exclusivey with kate snow. >> reporter: for 14 years, she worked in westchester county, new york. >> i liked painting, plumbing, everything we have to fix. >> in the apartment he shares he shows us his uniform and years o

leaving them rolling. get ready to laugh. >> announcer: this is "nbc nightly news" with lester holt. >>> good evening. it is payday in name only for a lot of americans who didn't get a check today as t shutdown ofn the eve of becoming the longest ever. we'll have full coverage in a moment, but we want to begin with stunning new developments breaking in the case dramic escape after being kidnapped three months ago. tonight a community is celebrating the safe return of jayme closs who helped police track down the man they say killed jayme's parents and kidnapped her back in october. our ron mott is in barron, wisconsin, now with the latest. >> reporter: tonight 13-year-old jayme closs is alive and safe and even police here are stunned. >> my legs started to shake, man. it was awesome. >> reporter: three months after she disappeared, jayme turning up 70 miles from the wisconsin home where her parents were brutally murdered. police say she escaped her alleged captor who's now under arrest for those murders and her kidnapping. >> it's amazing, the will of that 13-year-old girl, to surviv

control of the house, there is no telling how long the partial shutdown could last. nbc's tracie potts joins us with the latest from d.c. reopen the government last hat . >> reporter: it went nowhere because republicans on the other side are calling it a political stunt. they won't even consider it, even though they interestingly passed something on a temporary basis last fall. but now they say without any money for the wall, the president won't sign it. so they will not consider it. so, everyone heads back to the white house today to try to negotiate a way out of this shutdown, but the question this morning, where does that negotiation begin? because the new house speaker, nancy pelosi, says president trump will get not one dime for this wall. >> is there any situation which you would accept even a dollar of wall funding for this president in order to reopen the government? >> a dollar? [ laughter ] a dollar? $1, yeah, $1. >> how high will you go -- >> you said a dollar. that's not your question. you said a dollar. i'll answer your question. the fact is a wall is an immorality. it's n