. >>> plus to the white house, a top senator warns the president not to fire robert mueller. something that one congresswoman said would happen tomorrow. >>> and we have an update after a police officers what forced to hold on for dear life, quite literally. he was left clinging to the side of a car as a suspect sped off. we have good news about his condition. >>> there's a special place for you. rudolph's rage room. if you're not feeling so holly jolly, you can step right up and beat the crap out of a christmas tree. oh, sweet baby jesus, cover your eyes. >> it's the most wonderful time of the year. ♪ it's the most wonderful time -- ♪ >> something like that. on this thursday, december 21st. >>> from abc news. this is "world news now." >> i can't. >> no, it only is supposed to happen in the confines of that room. >> only in the room? it's been staring at me for so long. i'm sick of that damn tree. >> i bet that's what a lot of people's actual christmas looks like. >> it's just like, ah! well, good morning. merry christmas. >> we're all going to be okay. >> insanity later.

>> this is an abc news special report -- >> major news in the russia investigation -- >> robert mueller has charged lieutenant general michael t. flynn -- >> the president himself learned of it when he read it if the news. >> reporter: the cloud of suspicion hovering over the wh >> make no mistake, mueller approved this deal to get something. >> flynn's extremely angry at the white house tonight -- >> reporter: shortly after 10:00 a.m., potential national security adviser michael flynn pleads guilty to lying to the fbi about his contacts with the high-level russian official. flynn telling associates he's prepared to testify against president trump and his closest advisers for special counsel robert mueller's investigation. >> the next president of the united states, right here! >> reporter: according to a flynn confidant, he's willing to say it was trump himself, as president-elect, who directed him to reach out to russian leaders about fighting isis. reaction to the stunning development was swift. >> clearly he's willing to lie about those contacts. and lie to the fbi. and i'm anxious

now cooperating with robert mueller. the president now saying, i feel badly for general flynn, going on to say of the fbi and flynn, that they destroyed his life. and tonight, the president and a new legal strategy from his team. arguing a president cannot obstruct justice. abc's chief white house correspondent jonathan karl leading us off. >> reporter: at the white house today, the president offered words of sympathy for his former national security adviser, michael flynn. >> wel i feel very badly. he's led a very strong life. >> reporter: over the weekend, a decidedly different tone from the president, when he was asked if he stands behind flynn. >> do you stand by michael flynn sir? >> we'll see what happens. >> reporter: flynn's plea bargain is a big red flag for the white house. he has agreed to cooperate fully with special counsel robert mueller. >> i think what we're beginning to see is the putting together of a case of obstruction of justice. >> reporter: the president seems determined to undermine that case, by

he says he has no plans to fire robert mueller. here is david wright with the latest. >> this weekend, a new land of attack on robert mueller's russianation into meddling and possible collusion by trump associates. this seven-page letter sent to key committee leaders claims mueller's team illegally obtained emails from 13 members of the presidential transition team. the letter says the general services administration, which provides office supplies and bureaucratic support to the federal government, should not have handed the material over to the special counsel. >> i think republicans should end their efforts to undermine the muellerity of ve says it followed standard procedures. gsa officials say they followed standard procedures. after aaccusations, drumbeat of criticism about the russia probe. >> they are spending millions of dollars. there is no collusion. >> the president calls the investigation a witch hunt, questioning the integrity of the special counsel's investigators. >> it appears some of the president's allies are lay

go to getfios.com an fbi developing now, agent has been removed from special counsel robert mueller's he was removed over the summer but we are just learning the details. the inspector general is investigating. robert mueller is looking into russia's possible efforts to influence the elections last year and possible ties to the trunk campaign. president trump said he is not worried about what his former national security advisor michael flynn might tell robert mueller. michael flynn pled guilty yesterday to lying to the fbi about conversations with the russian ambassador and he is cooperating with the special counsel's office. news investigative reporter brian ross has been suspended. the network says he will be off the job without pay for four weeks after what they are calling a serious error in a story about michael flynn. told viewers during a special report yesterday morning that flynn was prepared to testify that donald trump as a candidate for president told him to contact russia. pirate almost gets away. a woman was caught on surveillance stealing a package from a home in washi

mueller. >> are you still considering firing robert mueller? >> no, i'm not. no. what else? what, are you surprised? >> reporter: his lawyers, however, launched a new attack. in a seven-page letter to congressional investigators, president trump's transition legal team accuses mueller of wrongfully obtaining "tens of thousands" of e-mails from the president's inner circle in the weeks before he took office "including," they say, "a very significant volume of privileged material." they say career government workers broke the law by giving mueller's team those "e-mails" plus "laptops, cell phones, and other materials." >> not looking good. not looking good. it's quite sad to see that. so, my people were very upset about it. i can't imagine there's anything on them, frankly, because as we said, there's no collusion, there's no collusion whatsoever. >> reporter: the charge from the president's attorneys prompting a rare public rebuttal from the usually secretive special counsel. in a statement, a spokesman says the e-mails were obtained with quote

and he was asked, has he faced any pressure to fire robert mueller? here's abc's senior justice correspondent pierre thomas tonight. >> reporter: tonight, the fbi on the hot seat amid questions of fbi bias, after hundreds of text messages, some of them ant anti-trump, between an fbi agent and fbi attorney, have been made public. the messages were exchanged during the primaries between peter strzok and lisa page, shown here in a daily mail tv photo. long before the russia investigation was under way. donald trump often the target of the fbi employees' too. in august 2015, page texts, "i just saw my first bernie sanders bumper sticker. made me want to key the car." agent strzok responds, "he's an idiot like trump. figure they'll cancel each other out." three months later, strzok writes, "at some point the rep party needs to pull their head out of their expletive." the day after a republican primary debate, page writes this "god trump is a loathsome human." "he may win," agent struck responds. "america will get what the voting public deserves." at anothe

. >> they're claiming bias in robert mueller's russia investigation. overnight for the first time abc news reviewed the anti-trump text messages that were sent by a former member of mueller's team. gloria riviera has more on that. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. how are you guys? well, you know, it's not exactly certain how much of these 375 text messages robin reviewed but a lot was said and now attorney general jeff sessions has asked a lawyer to review everything and make a recommendation to him as to whether that second special counsel does need to be appointed to review the impartiality. a conflict of interest for the fbi. god, trump is a loathsome human from lisa page on march 4, 2016, one day after the republican primary debate. her colleague spebl agent peter strzok replaying, he may win, he's an idiot. another reference to the absolute bigoted nonsense of trump. special counsel robert mueller dismissed strzok for allegedly sending anti-trump texts. page is also no longer on the team and lawyers are pushing attorney general jeff sessio

at this point, for people i been charged as a result of robert mueller's investigation. absolutely --n, absolutely no collusion, so we are very happy. kellye: president trump says he is not worried about the probe of his former national security advisor by robert mueller. yesterday to lying to the fbi about conversations with the russian ambassador. flynn is preparing to testify. news investigative reporter brian ross has been suspended and the network is apologizing after an incorrect report about michael flynn. ross first reported then-candidate donald trump directed flynn to make contact with the russians. ross later said trump asked flynn to contact the russians as president-elect. theou take i-66 inside beltway to get to work, your commute may look different monday morning. as amy aubert explains, if you -pass you will ez have to hit the brakes before hitting the road. amy: a number of people came out saturday to pick up an e-z pass for the commute. >> i want to make sure i do not receive a ticket. amy: i-66 generally in the afternoons and says the toll lanes going

. >>> new information about the fbi agent fired from special counsel robert mueller's russia probe for sending potentially critical messages about president trump. the key role that agent played in the hillary clinton e-mail investigation plus the new bombshell about paul manafort. >>> sign lgu >> police updating on the public on a suspected serial killer revealed the interpreter was a phony. how did she get there? >> plus, oprah trikes a new tv deal. we have the details on the agreement and how many millions she stands to make. >>> this is not your father's lamborghini. the new suv being called the world's fastest and what it will cost you. >>> we do say good morning to you, everybody, on this tuesday. we start with the breaking news out of southern california. that deadly fast-moving brush fire exploding threatening homes forcing thousands to evacuate. >> that fire burning north of los angeles has expanded so quickly it's now covering more than 10,000 acres as it races toward the city of ventura. now, about 2,000 homes have been evacuated along with nearby thomas aquinas college. >>

the question being asked, will president trump fire robert mueller? his answer coming up in a short time. here's david wright at the white house. >> reporter: tonight, president trump expressed concern about a new letter, about materials protected by attorney/client privilege. >> it's not looking good. not looking good. it's quite sad to see that. my people are very upset about it. this seven-page letter from an attorney for the trump transition team. >> they're spending millions and millions of dollars. there's absolutely no collusion. i didn't make a phone call to russia. i have nothing to do with >> reporter: even before this, the president dismissed the information as a witch hunt, and a democratic hoax. >> the fix is in against donald trump from the beginning, and they were pro-hillary. >> reporter: the new letter raises concerns about career staffer, accusing them of breaking the law by handing over to the special counsel e-mails, laptops, cell phones, and other materials. the special counsel's office insists they did nothing wrong. democrats wo

jon, robert muellers team interviewing hicks. this is clearly the president's inner circle. >> reporter: and mueller's team has talked to jared kushner. i expect he will interview him before long and likely donald trump jr. as well. david. >> jon karl on a friday night. thank you. >>> now to roy moore and the alabama senate race. for weeks the white house has been asked whether president trump will travel the campaign for roy moore. the president throwing his support behind moore saying i like a fighter, go get them roy. the president making a appearance not far from where he's been campaigning. right across the border in florida where many voters will see the president on their local news. here's tom llamas tonight. >> mr. president, can you talk about roy moore? >> reporter: tonight the president is heading to florida but alabama is likely on his mind. earlier the president tweeting "vote roy moore" saying "last thing the make america great again agenda needs is a liberal democrat in the senate." but tonight moore's own comment

mueller and his team? >> reporter: that's right. this would be a rare sitdown for the two sides. the president's private lawyers are hoping to get an update on where the investigation into possible collusion stands hoping to get a sense that that investigation might be drawing to a close but it's not at all clear whether robert mueller will give them that reassurance. >>> thanks. the confirmation hearing going viral. one of president trump's nominees for federal judge questioned about his experience admitting he has ever actually tried a just went downhill from there. here's david kerley. >> have any of you not tried a case to verdict in a courtroom? >> reporter: it is the viral video viewed roughly 5 million times. a nominee to become one of the country's top jurists, a federal judge. have you ever tried a jury trial? >> i have not. >> civil? >> no. >> criminal? >> no. >> bench? >> no. >> state or federal court? >> i have not. >> reporter: mathew petersen, a lawyer who serves on the federal election commi

>> special counsel robert mueller closes in. what information did flynn give up to get his deal? was he speaking with russia at the president's direction? will his testimony incriminate the president and others in the white house? all the fallout with our legal experts and the top democrat on the intelligence committee. >>> plus -- >> the tax cuts and job acts as amended is passed. >> the president one step closest to his biggest win >> we have pasted in the history of the country, the largest tax cuts. and reform. >> the senate republicans pass the 479-page plan. >> the american people have a right to know what is in the proposal. >> whoa will benefit? whoa gets burned? what does it mean for the wealthy, the deficit, the economy? will the gop pay a price or get a boost with the voters. senate majority leader mitch mcconnell joins us live. we'll baek down the facts. smoke out the spin. >>> good morning. for president trump friday must have felt like a scene straight out of dickens. the best of times. senate republicans delivered trump's biggest victory yet. passing the tax vote w

the president told the times that robert mueller and his team are making the united states look very bad. on china, he voiced frustration about secret oil imports to north korea. but went on to say that chinas president treated him better than anybody has ever been treated by china in history. to taxes, he told the times he knows quote the details of taxes better than anybody. better than the greatest cpa." it should be known, president trump has not dont a sit down television interview with a major network since last may. that's reaction from taxpayers in virginia ... some of them - finding out from seven on your side... that they aren't eligible to claim a property tax deduction this year, after all!! that's after an i-r-s bulletin telling taxpayers that, in order to do so -- their assessments must be sent out by the first of the year... something most localities haven't done yet. the only ones that have: d-c and falls church. so taxpayers there can claim the deduction. it's official-- roy moore has lost the senate election i 11th hour lawsuit, claiming voter fraud. democrat doug j

the two were indicted in october, in special counsel robert mueller's russia probe. they each pleaded not guilty to their money laundering and foreign lobbying federal criminal charges. those charges pre-date their involvement with the trump campaign. f-b-i agents seized more than 400-thousand items, after executing 15 search warrants. jury selection begins today in the trial of a former metro transit police officer accused of helping isis. 37-year-old nicholas young of fairfax was arrested last year in a government sting. prosecutors say young bought nearly $250 in gift cards he intended to give to the islamic state.. but handed them over to an f-b-i agent instead. young faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted on federal terror right now at 5xx one of five wildfires still burning in southern california is growing by the hour. sam sweeeney is at the live desk.. and sam, this morning firefighters say they're losing ground. the santa ana winds and low humidity are fueling these flames. the thomas fire has now burned more than 270-square miles. that's bigger than ch

. >>> president trump says he is not considering firing special counsel robert mueller even as his transition team takes aim at mueller and the russia probe. they are accused of improperly gaining thousands of transition e-mails. >> reporter: as he arrived back from camp david, president trump expressed concern about a new letter accusing the pegs counsel of illegally obtaining tens of thousands of e-mails from the president's inner circle during the transition, including, quote, materials protected by attorney/client privilege. >> not looking good. not looking good. it's quite sad to see that. my people were very upset about it. >> reporter: the seven-page letter addressed t committee leaders comes from an attorney representing the trump transition team, a new line of attack against robert mueller's investigation. >> they're spending millions and millions of dollars. there is absolutely no collusion. i didn't make a phone call to russia. i have nothing to do with russia. everybody knows it. >> reporter: even before this, the president dismissed the investigation as a witch hunt and a democra

trump's transition lawyers say robert trump's transition lawyers say robert mueller's team-- acted unlawfully. but the president says he has no plans to fire mueller. coming up -- a final salute to a fallen hero. hundreds gathered to remember a firefighter killed during the california wildfires. a look at the final farewell. plus, the carolina panthers for sale amid sexual harassment claims against the owner. the singer, and the basketball star who are interested in y hey, guys. where are the cookies for the... bake sale? bake... bake sale? need to bake in a hurry? use new country crock buttery sticks with sunflower oil. there's no softening required. so baking is delicious and easy. ooh, cookies! ah, ah, ah! (laughter) today: partly cloudy, milder highs: 50-56 winds: southwest 5-10 mph tonight: mostly cloudy lows: 38-42 winds: light tuesday: partly sunny & mild highs: 56-62 winds: sw 5-10 a secret u-f-o program from the now revealed. why the military is spending millions of dollars to look into sightings, and what officials have found so far -

mueller. the top democrat on the senate intelligence committee issuing a strong defense of special counsel robert mueller against critics trying to shut down the russia investigation. after recently being questioned for nine hours, donald trump jr. now suggesting there is a conspiracy against his father. here's abc's senior justice correspondent pierre thomas on that tonight. >> reporter: tonight, that warning from the top democratic senator investigating allegations of russian collusion. >> firing mr. mueller or any other of the top brass involved in this investigation ul only call into question this administration's commitment to the truth, but also to our most basic concept, rule of law. >> reporter: warner responding to mounting criticism of special counsel rob mueller from some congressional republicans. >> i call on my republican colleagues to join me in calling for the firing of bob mueller. and look, it's time for mueller to put up or shut up. >> reporter: president trump asked this we

robert mueller a seasoned hand as possible? >> reporter: david make no mistake, mueller approved this deal to get something. he is an aggressive, cagey prosecutor who is now targeting the trump campaign, the transition and potentially the white house inner circle. flynn now faces hours of fbi interrogations in the coming months, subject to lie detector tests along the way to prove he's telling the truth. mueller wants to know, did other trump campaign officials and white house advisers know about any illegal contacts with the russians? to impact the election. and david, those transition advisors mentioned in today's charges face the possibility of being called before a grand jury. and if they have already been interviewed, they better have told the truth. david? >>> pierre thank you. >>> we move on this friday evening to your money and taxes. president trump's tax plan at this hour, does the president have the vote? the republicans believe he does. tonight the bottom line for you. how will the middle class fair and what about w

robert mueller continues to build his case in the russia investigation. this after flynn struck a deal entering that guilty plea friday. >> that plea agreement does not to me indicate that there's very much else there. >> reporter: but top democrats on capitol hill believe we're beginning to see an obstruction of justice case. comey wasn't the only one that defended the fbi against the president. sally yates tweeted, the only thing in tatters is the president's respect for the rule of law. diane and kendis. >> kenneth, thank you. >>> moving on now to more news from washington. republicans will in congress will begin the compromise on tax reform. the bill passed by the senate must now be reconciled with the one passed by the house. republicans insist there are no major differences between the bills but the differences amount to hundreds of billions of dollars. for example, the senate bill would keep the alternative minimum tax for corporations. also would lower the corporate year and the senate bill only scales back the estate tax. unlike the house bill wh

flynn says he's cooperating with special counsel robert mueller's office in its russia probe. happening today- the house is expected to vote on it's tax reform plan. this comes after the senate's narrow passage of a massive tax overhaul this weekend. now republicans are racing to get the final bill on the president's desk before christmas but there are some major differences between the house and senate bills to negotiate. both bills would reduce the corporate tax rate to 20%... in is different. in the house bill.. the mortgage interest deduction for new homes is capped at $500,000. the senate keeps it at $1 million the house bills repeals the medical expense deduction.. the senate bill expands it. and the house bill makes the individual tax cuts permanent, while the senate bill would allow them to expire in 7 years. right now.. a woman is in critical condition after getting hit by a car in prince george's county. it happened late last night on contee road at laurel bowie road in laurel. we're told the driver did stay on scene. roads are now back open. the search is on for the

luke represents robert mueller. darth vader represents michael flynn. and emperor pallpatine shooting lightning out of his fingers, that's donald trump. now flynn used to take orders from trump. but his ledge jans is flipped now. and so he might be about to pick trump up and throw him down a shaft into the death star. [ cheers and applause ] now i guess we just wait for the other shoe to drop. unfortunately, since it's the trump family, that shoe's being made in china so it could be awhile. it is the end of the week now. the cast of the new "star wars" movie is here. since you can see all the "star wars" films at moviesanywhere i.com we went through it. it took a lot of work but this is a very special "star wars" edition of "this week in unnecessary censorship." >> my son is with them. >> are you sure? >> i have [ bleep ]ed him, my master. >> let me see your [ bleep ]. >> you don't need to see his [ bleep ]. >> you don't need to see his [ bleep ]. >> don't go. >> [ bleep ] yourself. >> you know i got to leave, i can't stay any more. >> you're a good [ b

over the summer, the special counsel robert mueller, fired one of his top investigators after he sent out potentially anti-trump text messages to a colleague. the president is very interested in that story. he retweeted a story about that just this morning. >> a lot of questions. thank you, david. >>> the other big story out of washington. the senate passing its version of a massive tax bill. that bill is facing serious scrutiny this morning. >> it's hundreds of pages long. the fine print could have all sorts of impacts on american families. stephanie ramos is in washington as well taking a look at some of the more unusual provisions here. stephanie, good morning to you. >> reporter: dan and cecilia, good morning. this bill is hefty. now to get this senate tax bill passed, it took a full day of republican leaders making amendments to the bill so that certain senators would get on board with the measure. the majority of eventually did. and this morning, the president is taking credit for it. this morning, president trump taking a victory lap of sorts. after the senate passed a sweeping

plea in the robert mueller russia meddling probe. this one-- is by far the biggest. president trump's former national security adviser michael flynn, pleading guilty, and now working with federal investigators. the white house playing defense over the weekend.. as president trump slams the fbi on twitter. abc's kenneth moton has more from nortwest. a-b-c news investigative reporter brian ross is suspended and the reporter brian ross is suspended and the network is apologizing after an incorrect report about flynn. ross first reported then-candidate donald trump directed flynn to make contact with the russians. ross later said that trump asked flynn to contact the russians as president-elect. he's now suspended without pay for a month. saturday the president congratulated abc news and suggested more networks do the same with their quote "fake news." happening today-- a tax reform plan on the way to the house-- where gop lawmakers will attempt to hammer out an agreement to send to president trump. the senate narrowly passed a bill earl

>>> plus, the new challenge to robert mueller's investigation. did his team illegally obtain thousands of confidential documents? >>> escaping the flames. new evacuations as the raging wildfires explode. thousands of people forced to evacuate as flames bear down. celebrity homes, like oprah winfrey's and rob lowe's threatened. and the critical danger ahead. >>> caught on camera. scare on the slopes. >> three-fourths of the way up the mountain there is approximately 20 people pinned. >> skiers dangling from chair lifts. crashing into one another. >> my jaw dropped. and i was like, oh, my gosh. >> rescuers rush in to help. what wept wrong? >>> and real life x files? the secret pentagon program looking into ufos. revealing fighter pilots encountering strange objects in the sky. >> look at that thing! >> it's rotating. >> the new videos this morning. what did they find? >>> wow. >> and even the camera shot's coming in from outer space. >> i know. good morning. this broadcast, we promise, will be out of this world. we can't get enough of the video. so

mueller. one special agent who mueller removed from his team over the summer-- allegedly sent anti-trump text messages during the campaign. the president's lawyers say that's just one of several "obvious conflicts of interest". democrats say the president is questioning the fbi's integrity because mueller's team has been stepping up its pressure. happening now.. less than 2 weeks before christmas-- experts say packages to get to their destinations on time. and you can blame the booming economy. for the first time ever, online holiday sales are expected to top 100-billion dollars. that's putting a strain on the postal service.. and delivery companies, including u-p-s. crucial deadlines coming up. december 19th-- that's the deadline many retailers say you must order by to guarantee standard delivery by christmas. u-p-s is going a step farther. they say customers need to get those packages in the mail by tomorrow! coming up-- major developments in california where crews are battling huge wildfire

on friday, special counsel robert mueller's probe extracted a guilty plea from flynn for conversations with the russian ambassador. flynn pled guilty to a felony, his sentence reduced in exchange for his continued cooperation in building a case. some believe that probe is now zeroing in on trump and his inner circle for possible obstruction of justice, for reportedly telling comey to back off. >> i think what we're beginning to see is the putting together of a case of obstruction of justice. >> reporter: here's news max ceo and trump ally, christopher ruddy's take on the latest developments. >> my view is that robert mueller pose the an extension threat to the trump presidency. >> reporter: but the president continues to fight back. david wright, abc news, washington. >>> well, today's a big day. it is the deadline for the president to make a decision on the location of the u.s. embassy in israel. now his son-in-law, jared kushner who isn't out in publish often told a that the president hasn't made up his mind yet. the president can delay the decision. israel wants the embassy in jerus

he repeated his quizzes and of the bureau, but did not mention james comey or robert mueller. the president fired comey earlier this year and now robert mueller is the special counsel investigating russian interference into last year's election. the president called investigation a scam, and evidence of a collusion "a democrat hoax." james feels is not charged with first-degree murder. he is accused of hitting heather heyer with his car in august. she was protesting against the rally. hittingso charged with one dozen other people. parents are disgusted after a school and posted a video of a disabled student getting undressed in the bathroom. the 23-year-old was fired is charged with voyeurism. the student is nonverbal and has multiple disabilities. the student said she recorded her to document her stressful day. #metooing now, the movement continues, with five women accusing dustin hoffman. two-time academy award winner dustin hoffman known for film classics like "the graduate," under fire following explosive new stories detailing allegations of sexual assault and misconduct.

flynn is cooperating with the special counsel robert mueller as part of a plea deal. flynn is the fourth person connected to the trump campaign charged as part of about the man impersonating a police officer and raping a man he pulled over. brad bell was in court when michael bell appeared this afternoon. brad: this man michael leon bell charged with impersonating a police officer and rape. the p.g. police allege last week bell used the security guard badge and the police car look alike ford to lure a man in a ride home. ride which toned in to a brew -- turned into a brutal assault. police now fear it may not be the only time it happened. >> it's key for people to look at the picture, the car and at that badge. >> we went to the scene of the alleged crime and showed people his photo. many knew him instantly. >> that is crazy. >> bell was notorious for frisking people. >> all the time. >> yeah. >> we are told that bell was well known in the community not just for padding people down. >> in wheaton they had found a man stabbed 100 times but now two more are in custody,

. >> my view is that robert mueller poses an extension of threat to the presidency. but the president continues to fight back. abc news, washington. kellye: and the fight over the travel ban goes back to court this week. judges in seattle will hear arguments on wednesday. then, judges in richmond will take it up on friday. in hawaii and maryland, judges blocked the ban. new developments in the investigation and the firing of matt lauer. the network now looking at who may have known about his alleged behavior and not reported it. nbc news executives say they r weeks before an accuser came forward after hearing that several news outlets were pursuing stories about potential misconduct. lauer denied any potential wrongdoing. coming up, a stadium still standing after explosives go off. plan to do -- crews plus, this. a home explodes into flames. announcer: you are watching abc 7 news at 6:30 p.m., on your side. gave birth to a baby, and they took the mom and newborn to the hospital, and we are told they are doing as well as can be expected. grinding] least: officials say

flynn is now cooperating with special counsel robert mueller's investigation into russian meddling in the 2016 election. flynn accepted a plea deal, and pleaded guilty to lying to the fbi. still ahead, we are starting what will be one of the coldest days of the year. and there is morning trouble on the way. decades - subfreezing temperatures to ring in 2018 today: sunny and very cold. highs: 24-27 winds: nw 5-10 mph tonight: partly to mostly cloudy. lows: 13-21 winds: n 5 mph friday: am clouds. pm sun. remaining unas there are good dates.. bad dates... and criminal charges what one woman did-- that had police scratching their heads. russian president vladmir putin now confirming that a deadly explosion at a supermarket in st. petersburg-- was terrorism. no group has claimed responsibility for the blast that injured more than a dozen people. president putin previously has spoken about russia's operation in syria as a pre-emptive strike against terrorism at home. happening now-- police issuing a warning to drivers-- after a sharp spike in car thefts. melissa dipane is live in northwest

flynn says that he is cooperating with robert mueller's office in the russian probe. onria: president trump he arrived in utah this morning where he is expected to shrink to massive monuments there. people protested the move, but others celebrated, saying that will allow for more energy development in utah. a third democratic candidate for the virginia house of delegates has filed for a recount. joshua cole ran in the 28th district. he lost to republican bob thomas by just 80 two votes. now election officials say that voters were given the wrong ballots and it may have cost him the election. >> whether we win or lose or not is that the issue, the problem is making sure that people's voices are heard. also filed campaign a restraining order in federal court to keep the state board of elections from certifying the race until the issue was resolved, but the race was certified anyway. if the current results hold, republicans would have a 51 to 49 advantage in the chamber. adrianna: in november, now prince william county delegate elected danica oem is with us after we make

. >>> plus to the white house, a top senator warns the president not to fire robert mueller. something that one congresswoman said would happen tomorrow. >>> and we have an update after a police officers what forced to hold on for dear life, quite literally. he was left clinging to the side of a car as a suspect sped off. we have good news about his condition. >>> there's a special place for

sources say special counsel robert mueller has subpoenaed the deutsche bank. it could be a sign that they are looking into trump's finances. they had loaned him over $300 million to the president. but the white house says this is false. and donald trump jr. is heading to the hill today to meet behind closed doors and is expected to answer questions about the 2016 meeting with the russian lawyer. she is expected to say that don jr. asked her if she had evidence of illegal contributions to the clinton foundation. he lost interest after she had >>> tens of thousands in california are spending their night in shelters because of wildfires. >> you can see the smoke from space. the smoke is creating unhealthy air quality, even for those away from the flames. >> the biggest fire is in ventura county, the thomas fire, as it's called, has destroyed dozens of buildings, including many homes, including an apartment collectimplex and a psychiatric hospital. >> the creek fire has shut down the 280 freeway and destroyed at least 30 homes right there in the los angeles area.

robert mueller is investigating into russian election meddling. the president firing off tweets about the case from his florida estate, including references to wife and the hillary clinton email investigation. attacksp, a pair of planned for christmas day foiled. plus, other countries weighing in on the trump administration's plan to give weapons to the ukraine. ♪ [ splash ] [ horn sounds ] dang! ok, i gotta run. hey, wait, there's something i need to tell you- dang. dang! dang! dang. dang. see zero in a whole new way. get zero down, zero deposit, zero first month's payment, and zero due at signing on select volkswagen models. now with the people first warranty. >> you are watching abc 7 news at 6:00. kellye: the first astronaut to float untethered in space passed away thursday at the age of 80. he logged hundreds of hours in space that was best known for deployment, flying alongside the space shuttle challenger untethered. a suspected terror attack foiled by the fbi, and the person behind it is a former marine. image a miss and reported

this coming after the release of text messages exchanged between two former members of robert mueller's team. in one conversation the agents called then-candidate trump an "idiot" and "a loathsome human". mueller removed one of the agents immediately after learning of the messages. the other had already ended her assignment. trump's lawyers say the messages show a conflict of interest. trump has denied anco russia during the campaign. democrats say the president is questioning the integrity of the fbi because mueller is amping up the pressure. president trump has signed a defense spending bill for next fiscal year into law. the national defense authorization act authorizes about 700-billion dollars for the defense department for 20-18. the bill passed with overwhelming bipartisan support. the measure also authorizes a two-point-four percent pay increase for u-s troops next month. that's the largest annual increase for the military since 20-10. the money will also go towards an increase of 20-thousand active duty and reserve troops across the u-s military. the white house is denying that

he oversees special counsel robert mueller's russia investigation and was repeatedly asked whether that investigation was biassed against the president. he said the investigation is not a witch hunt. >> if you were ordered today to fire mr. mueller, what would you do? >> as i explained previously, i would follow the regulation. if there was good cause, i would act. if there were no good cause, i would not. >> and you've seen no good cause so far. >> correct. >> thank you. >>> ros >> rosen stein's testimony came a day after text messages were revealed. >>> the fc sdrchc is expected t repeal net neutrality they prohibit your internet provider from slowing down ze certain sites. some call it reckless. >>> former "apprentice" star omarosa has resigned from the trump administration and in dramatic fashion. her last day is supposed to be january 20th. but sources say she was actually fired and then escorted off the white house grounds. she was the communications director for the office of public liaison. and she was one of the most high-profile african-american staffers in the administration,

before the committee today the man who appointed the special counsel robert mueller defended the probe. >> have you seen good cause to fire special counsel muler? >> no. >> thank you. if you were ordered today to fire mr. mueller what would you do? >> i would explain previously i would follow regulations. >> you see no good cause so far? >> correct. >> the white house called for a second special prosecutor to investigate the anti-trump bias in the f.b.i. and the special counsel office. jonathan: president trump fired omarosa manigault newman for the fourth t fired. there are reports after learning from the termination of chief of staff john kelly the former "apprentice" contestant cursed him out and tried to enter the first family residence. she didn't get in. she has been forcibly removed from the property. michelle: covering metro tonight. there are signs of life for a long dormant proposal to put another tunnel under the potomac river. stephen tschida joins us. under this plan there would be two rosslyn stations? how would that work? >> we are here at the rosslyn metro station. in t

robert mueller's team improperly obtained thousands of transition emails. mr. trump says he's upset, but: the president's transition lawyer the president's transition lawyer says the emails were improperly obtained, and include privileged information. the general services administration gave the documents to mueller in september, in response to requests from the f-b-i. but that lawyer says the transition team didn't learn about it until last week. president trump is again stressing, there was no collusion with russia. president trump will outline his national security strategy in a speech later this afternoon. the president is expected to lay out his "america first" policy. national security advisor, h-r mcmaster says the plan will focus on u-s military and economic strength overseas. there are also reports the presdient will accuse china of being an economic aggresor. breaking overnight flames tearing through a fairfax county home.. this was the scene late sunday on burnside landing drive in burke. we know at least one alarm was called but we're still working

kimberly: the transition lawyer said that robert mueller's team acted unlawfully. president said he does not have plans to fire mueller. new misconduct claims against msnbc host chris matthews. a spokesman said a woman complained the "hardball" host had sexual woman was tied to her leaving her job, not a settlement for a claim. the company said that matthews was given a formal reprimand as a result. the carolinas panther owner said he will sell the team amid his own sexual misconduct investigation. the announcement after a "sports illustrated" story saying the panthers settled with at least four former employees regarding inappropriate workplace behavior. the nfl is now investigating as well. developing now in d.c., the investigation into a shooting in northeast d.c.. gunshots rang out on 51st street and two people were injured. no word on their conditions, but the police are searching for the person who pulled the trigger. the police are asking for your crack a cold a -- case and get a killer off the street. jefferson wash in southeast just after 10 a.m. the same

mueller's russia probe. he has come to the defense of flynn - who pleaded guilty to lying to the fbi. trump has said before that he fired flynn because he lied to the vice president. but this weekend he tweeted - that flynn was fired also because he lied to the fbi - something trump previously never acknowledged. new information in the deadly shooting of a mclean man, by u-s park police. we're now learning the incident was captured on dashcam video inside a fairfax county police cruiser. bijan ghaisar was shot by u-s park police on november 17th... after police say -- he hit another vehicle... and led officers on a chase, that ended along g-w parkway. fairfax county police chief ed roessler said -- he wants the video released, once the f-b-i is finished investigating the shooting. he wouldn't elaborate on what he saw on the video. while the shooting happened in fairfax county, the chief says he is deferring to the f-b-i on this. coming up - winter has arrived! waking up white house conditions in the midwest.

nancy: his admission, the second guilty plea tied to robert mueller's investigation into russia's meddling in the 12016 election. new information coming out about flynn's ties to the president's son-in-law. jonathan: and scott thuman left the white house and is in the newsroom. what are you hearing? there is a lot going on with this. scott: plenty going on. i was at white house and i saw the president. the only appearance he made today in front of reporters. no remarks made about michael flynn's guilty plea. i spoke to a senior member of the president's team who says they are no more concerned today than yesterday. however, they know that there are likely other shoes to drop on this one. michaelflip admitting he lied to h during the transition period. that means after, of course, of course the election but before inauguration. i spoke to the facebook who says it's likely -- i spoke to someone on f.b.i. who he spends very it will if any time in prison because he promised full cooperation with the special counsel. a senior member of the trump team directed imto make contact with the russians

mueller. pres. trump: it does not bother me. i think there is no collusion. he is going to be fair. >> i think president trump trust him in the way he says he finds me or my if he starts to get closer to the president, i think donald trump's to will change. >> the president also reversing course on his china stance, saying he has been soft on china, but now he is reprimanding the country for sending oil to north korea with this warning -- if they don't -- help us with north korea, i will do what i always said i would do. : i do not think the president wants to get into a trade war. he does not want to get into a situation where he pushes back to her. >> he says we started taxes and we don't hear from the democrats. we hear b.s. from the democrats. the president saying he helps to work with democrats to overall health care, improve if the structure, and other issues. adrianna: next at noon, the glitches that got away with guns. details on this christmas in one community living in fear. what cou

. >>> new information about the fbi agent fired from special counsel robert mueller's russia probe for sending potentially critical messages about president trump. the key role that agent played in the hillary clinton e-mail investigation plus the new bombshell about paul manafort. >>> sign lgu

the president maintains he is not trying to push robert mueller out, thinks that republicans are trying to undermine the investigation. >> any of the top brass involved in the investigation would not only call into question this , butistration's commitment also the most basic concept of rule of law. alison: senator warner warned the president not to issue any pardons related to the russian investigation. >> it means jobs. jobs, jobs, jobs. it will be a very special period of time. jonathan: the president is calling it a christmas gift for the mayor can people come his first major legislative act a recent's all trump has to do is now sign it. lindsey mastis has who will see the biggest cuts and when. lindsey: it may be january before he signs it area the white house says there is a process before it reaches his desk. in a scene that not see very often, republican standing outside of the white house cheering. while the white house calls it a middle-class miracle, critics insist that it helps the wealthiest more. republicans say that it will result in pay raises for the middle class, tax c

mueller. >> hillary clinton lied many times to the fbi. nothing happened to her. flynn lied and they destroyed his life. i think it's a shame. >> any plans to pardon general flynn, mr. president? >> thank you very much. >> the international community is blasting president trump's decision to recognize jerusalem as the capital of israel. >> the fear this time, if people really thought that the peace process is there -- >> steve bannon, the president's former chief political strategy defending moore against those allegations he sexually assaulted two teenage girls and taking on republican establishment stalwart mitt romney. >> judge moore has more honor and integrity in the pinky finger than your entire family. >> i am announcing that in the coming weeks i will be resigning as a member of the united states international committee banning russia from the games in february, allowing some russians to compete but not under the russian flag. >> tis the season for christmas competition. >> this just shines such a light. when you come into this dis

mueller. >> no, i'm not, no. what else? what, are you surprised? >> reporter: his lawyers, however, launched a new attack. in a seven-page letter to congressional investigators, president trump's transition legal team accuses mueller of wrongfully obtaining tens of thousands of e-mails from the president's inner circle in the weeks before he took office. including they say a very material. they say career government workers broke the law by giving mueller's team those e-mail, plus laptops, cell phones and other materials. >> not looking good. it's not looking good. it's quite sad to see that, so my people were very upset about it. i can't imagine there's anything on them, frankly, because as we said, there's no collusion. there's no collusion whatsoever. >> reporter: the charge from the president's attorneys prompting a rare public rebuttal from the usually secretive special counsel. in a statement, the smokpokespen says they were obtained with the account holder's permission or regular access. he is expected to

president trump denying reports that he plans to fire the special counsel robert mueller. the denial comes after a lawyer for the trump transition team sent a letter to members of congress claiming mueller's office illegally obtained e-mail protected under attorney/cloipts privilege. >> not looking good. it's not looking good. it's quite sad to see that so my people are very upset about it. >> reporter: mueller's office insists their investigation -- their investigators followed the law. in the meantime, last night the president once again denied any inclusion with russia. >>> russian president vladimir putin is thanking president trump for sharing intelligence that helped prevent a terror attack. a tip from the cia apparently helped russian authorities stop a bombing plot in st. petersburg. during a thank you call putin promised the president that russia would also turn over any information about potential terrorist threats against the united states. >>> well time for a look at your weather on this monday morning. it's going to be a stormy week ahead across the country. s