Im philip mena. Im frances rivera. This morning your credit cards, mortgages, car, even student loan bills could see an immediate Interest Rate hike. After the feds raised rates across the country. But it is another major Financial Change in the wings thats leading our program this morning. Your taxes are on the verge of some sweeping changes. On wednesday republicans reached a major deal to push through their 1. 5 trillion tax plan and now were finally getting some specifics on what that tax overhaul will look like. With the president out shilling for the proposal looking to get this passed before christmas. For more on this we go to nbcs tracie potts in washington. Good morning. Philip, good morning. Lets talk about whats in this tax plan and how it might affect many americans. First of all, the wealthiest americans get a break. Their top tax rate goes down from 39 to 37 . Thats according to multiple republican sources. Some of those popular deductions that people were worried about, the state and local Tax Deduction capped at 10,000. The mortgage Interest Deduction is protected for loans up to 750,000. Those were two of the biggest concerns. And then business taxes. That tax rate will drop to 21 . And that is a little bit higher than republicans had wanted. The Obamacare Mandate to buy health insurance, that goes away. President trump said its going to get done before the holiday. Were very, very close to a historic legislative victory the likes of which rarely has this country seen. It will be bigger than anything ever done in this country, bigger than the reagan cuts, bigger than any cuts, and it will also be reform and there are also some other things in that bill that are very, very big that are somewhat unrelated but ultimately i think its all related. Reporter democrats say this is a bad deal for the middle class. Theyre pushing to delay the vote until their newest member doug jones gets here from alabama. Not much incentive for republicans to do that. Theyre already short one vote with john mccain in the hospital. Philip . All of us eager to see how this plays out. Tracy, thank you. Now to alabama. The controversial judge roy moore is still not backing down even after major news organizations including this one called the special election there for democrat doug jones. Moore remaining defiant this morning, releasing this message to his supporters. Abortion, sodomy, and materialism have taken the place of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. We are indeed in a struggle to preserve our republic, our civilizati civilization, and our religion. And the battle rages on. In this race we have not received the final count to include military and provisional ballots. This has been a very close race, and we are awaiting certification by the secretary of state. But moore could be the only one in alabama believing he still has a chance to eke out a win. Nbcs Gabe Gutierrez reports on the political upset of the year and the impact it has on the ground. Reporter ruby red alabama is sending its first democrat to washington in 25 years. Doug jones is now urging his opponent, republican roy moore, to concede. I would say do the right thing, roy. Reporter exit polls show about half of voters believe the allegations of Sexual Misconduct against moore. The claims involving teen girls decades ago which he denied disgusted . Registered republicans. Alabama needs somebody that is going to make us proud, not be an embarrassment. Reporter joness victory relied heavily on strong support from women, crossover suburban republicans, and africanamericans, who made up 29 of the electorate, up slightly from when barack obama was last on the ballot. Do you feel people dont give black voters enough credit . I think a lot of times were looked at as oh, theyll just vote democrat anyway. Reporter t. Marie king is a Community Activist in birmingham. I think people stood up and said we dont agree with that and we stood up in numbers. Reporter turnout surged in the states socalled black belt. In historic selma annie avery walks the Edmund Pettis bridge much like she did a half century ago. It frightened me to think there was a possibility we might have someone like that in as a senator. Reporter she remembers the Birmingham Church bombing in 1963 and thanks doug jones for prosecuting the kkk members responsible. This was what the fruits of my work had done for you know, my years working in civil rights. Reporter a remarkable upset still sinking in. Gabe gutierrez, nbc news, birmingham, alabama. Now to dramatic news from the white house that has us harkening back all the way to 2004. I dont like excuses. In this case omarosa has to go. Youre fired. Well, that was then, and this is now. Former apprentice star turned white house staffer Omarosa Manigaultnewman forced out of her job according to a Senior Trump Administration staffer even though the white house official line was that she had resigned voluntarily multiple news outlets quickly threw water on that narrative. The wall street journal reporting newmans departure was abrupt and that newman was physically dragged and escorted off the campus. A source close to the white house tells nbc it was chief of staff john kellys decision to terminate newmans employment. And an official telling us that newman was escorted off the white house grounds after trying to reenter the residents to debate the terms of her departure. That debate seemingly never taking place. Newman is set to speak out on her fire later this morning. The suspect in the new york subway bomb plot made his First Court Appearance since mondays explosion. Akayed ullah appeared Via Video Conference from his hospital bed where hes recovering from burns and cuts from the blast. Hes facing five federal terrorism charges including use of a weapon of mass destruction and providing material to a terrorist group. The 27yearold could get life in prison if convicted. Hes being held without bail until his next court date in january. Now to the latest on the russia investigation. With the republicans now setting out to discredit special counsel Robert Mueller. After two fbi officials who worked on his team were dismissed for their antitrump communications. And now the man in charge of overseeing the special counsels Russian Investigation says he has full confidence in mueller. Even as we get a look into the newly revealed batch of Text Messages that forced mueller to remove those two fbi officials. Nbc news justice correspondent Pete Williams has more. Reporter as Donald Trumps campaign was building steam last spring, an fbi lawyer sent a text message to one of the bureaus top agents, who was working on the russia investigation. The lawyer, lisa page, wrote, god trump is loathsome human. And the agent, peter struck, says hillary should win 100 million0. A few months later she texted maybe youre meant to stay where you are because youre meant to protect the country from that menace. They frequently called mr. Trump an idiot. When clinton won the primary, he wrote about damn time. And when it appeared trump won the election strzok tested omg this is expletive terrifying. Until july strzok was part of Robert Muellers special counsel investigation. He was dismissed from the team when mueller found out about those texts. Rod rosenstein, the Deputy Attorney general who oversees muellers team, was hammered by house republicans. They say the texts show that muellers investigation of the Trump Campaign is biased. This is not just political opinions. This is disgusting unaccountable bias. And theres no way that could not affect a persons work. And im here to tell you mr. Rosenstein, i think the public trust in this whole thing is gone. Reporter but rosenstein says he and mueller are determined to make sure that despite anyones personal views the investigation is impartial. We will ensure that no bias is reflected in any of the actions taken by the special counsel or in any matter within the jurisdiction of the department of justice. Reporter Rod Rosenstein says he has complete confidence in how Robert Mueller is doing the job, running the office of special counsel. And he says no one including President Trump has ever urged him to fire mueller. Philip . Pete, thank you. A hiker in poland stumbled across a rare weather phenomenon over the weekend. Have you heard of a i cant even say it. Because were not used to saying it. A snownado. A snownado. He was climbing in the mountains of poland with his fiance on sunday. The man says in his seven years of climbing hes never seen anything like it before and in my years of doing news ive never had to say snownado which is why im having trouble this morning, bill. I dont know how many times youve said snownado. Youve heard of dust devils. You get a vortex of wind you can pick up light fluffy snow too. Usually no ones there to capture it. Usually too cold and too windy. Pretty cool. This morning snow overnight. Winter weather advisories continue in long island, parts of new jersey, ohio and pennsylvania. The snow is going to be ending quickly this morning. Only expect another inch in a few spots. But the roads its really cold so a lot of it was sticking. Especially any untreated roads, bridges, sidewalks, driveways. Its going to need a little shoveling this morning. Only about an inch in most indications, two at most. At 7 00 a. M. Not a lot of snow left, long island, southern new england. By the time we get to noon it is gone and the sun will return. The roads will continue to get. Were also looking very cold, even behind this little storm, from grand rapids to detroit. Wind chill values are very low. All right. Hes a mean one, mr. Grinch. But he dislikes speedy drivers almost as much as christmas. If the grinch catches a motorist in the florida keys going over the speed limit, they have a choice. You can either get a ticket or thats an onion. The officer hopes the onion serves as a smelly reminder to obey speeds limits, especially in school zones. The, quote, grinch Speed Enforcement is now in its 15th year. That thing pulls me over theres no way im stopping. You see that in your Rearview Mirror youre like, nah. Thanks, bill. Just ahead, a new Sexual Misconduct allegations in the tv and entertainment world. Plus how some pilots are getting into the holiday spirit. See ya. Take care. 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Skin smoothing venus razors. Gewith a sparkling new sweater this weekend at kohls for the girls a holiday dress or a ceramic cookware set plus take an extra 20 off when you spend 100 or more youll get kohls cash too presents for them, kohls cash for you give joy, get joy at kohls the holiday spirit was in the air in germany. Literally. A group of airbus pilots spread some seasonal cheer during a test flight of an a380 aircraft. You can see the pilots zigzag with incredible precision from hamburg all the way to stuttgart. And they drew that Christmas Tree you see there. It was decked out with perfectly round ornaments too. The planes festive course was captured on flight tracking websites like flightradar24. And airbus tweeted an image sending some early seasons greetings. Is it too much to ask for a star, though . Right. All right. Leading the news this morning, taking a turn, more Sexual Assault allegations that are rocking the tv and entertainment world. Three women have come forward to the New York Times accusing hiphop mogul Russell Simmons of rape. The alleged incidents are said to have happened between 1988 and 1995. All say they were pursuing careers in the music business but that they left the industry or had their careers derailed after the alleged assaults. These latest accusations come just weeks after two other women publicly accused simmons of Sexual Assault. Simmons vehemently denied the allegations to the times saying, these horrific accusations have shokds me to my core and all of my relations have been consensual. Meanwhile, pbs announced it is suspending distribution of talk show tavis smalee after an investigation in a Sexual Misconduct against the host. The network says it hired an outside law firm to investigate the allegations. According to variety citing sources close to the production, the firm found that smiley engaged in sexual relationships with multiple subordinates. Smiley responded early on facebook saying pbs never informed him an investigation is ongoing and he has never groebd, coerced or exposed himself inappropriately to any workplace colleague. It is decision day for Net Neutrality and the fccs push for repeal. Details on that next when early today returns. Hildhood cancer. I have cancer. And you also have st. Jude. Discoveries at st. Jude have helped to increase the overall Childhood Cancer survival rate from 20 . To 80 . And we freely share our research everywhere. You want one . Si, thank you for freely sharing. And thank you for giving. Visit stjude. Org or shop where you see the st. Jude logo. vo more dper rollres for mom bounty is more absorbent, so the roll can last 50 longer than the leading ordinary brand. So you get more life per roll. 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Nikki haley plans to hold a News Conference this morning. According to a statement Ambassador Haley plans to lay out irrefutable evidence that iran has deliberately violated its International Obligations and has tried and failed to cover up these violations. And the today show says goodbye to its puppy with a purpose charlie as he begins serving his wounded warrior. Also happening today, the fcc is scheduled to vote on a floepz to repeal Net Neutrality rules that require Internet Service providers to give equal access to online content. The repeal is expected to pass but the backlash has already started. Nbcs Liz Mclaughlin reports on how it could affect consumers. Reporter you when you pay that internet bill, youre paying for a service. Access to the web, whether youre browsing, gaming, or streaming. The concept of Net Neutrality as we refer to it these days really means that Internet Service providers, the companies that give you Internet Access to bring those wires into your home, should treat all the content that comes across those wires equally. Reporter but the federal Communications Commission is voting on a proposal by ajit pai, the chairman, to repeal the rules protecting that equal treatment. They were heavyhanded regulations that were adopted two years ago. Were trying to solve a problem that simply didnt exist. Reporter a problem that Net Neutrality supporters say could exist without regulations. The fear is that Internet Service providers could create fast lanes, giving preferential treatment to certain content and may charge more for access. Its created a backlash including protests. In a letter signed by 32 senators urging the fcc to reconsider the proposal. There could be a lot of favoritism with partnerships between Service Providers and content providers or news organizations or political organizations. Reporter the fcc will still require transparency from Internet Service providers, but if consumers arent happy with the terms they may be stuck with them. According to fcc data, about 40 of the country only has one option for Internet Service. I dont think its going to be end of the world immediately but it definitely opens the door to a lot of things we may not want to deal with. Reporter the repeal is expected to pass with a 32 vote along party lines. Liz mclaughlin, nbc news. Just ahead, meet the newest members of the rock and roll hall of fame. Youre watching early today. And at our factory in boston, 1,200 workers are starting their day building on over a hundred years of heritage, craftsmanship and innovation. Today were bringing you americas number one shave at lower prices every day. 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Three generations of clothes cleaned in one wash. Those are moms. Anybody seen my pants . Nothing cleans better. Put those on dad its got to be tide. Did you guys hear about this . Apparently George Clooney once gave his 14 best friends a Million Dollars each. They were thrilled. While his 15th best friend was like what the hell, man . Are we cool . Are we having a barbecue or something . Come on, man. Remember we had that thing that one time . Were kind of buddies, right . Come on. Very generous. There were reports also that when they fly that he and his wife give out passengers their headphones because theyre traveling with their twins to make it easy. What a cool guy. But youre right, fallon does make a point, where do you draw that line of demarcation between giving a Million Dollars and sorry, buddy . Its a tough one. The rock and roll hall of fame is getting an allstar class with the 2018 inductees. New jersey rock icon bon jovi along with soul singer and activist nina simone. New wave rock band the cars. And british rock band the moody blues and dire straits. As well as gospel singer and guitarist sister rosetta tharp. Shell be given an early influence award. Chosen from a group of 19 nominees, these artists will be inducted at clevelands public hall in april. Thatll be happening. So really only familiar with bon jovis work and the moody blues. Dire straits too. Money for nothing. So a lot of classics. Theres a lot of classics out there. Whole lot of talent being inducted in there. Well deserved too. Kind of surprised if you think how long moody blues has been around, then youve got somebody like bon jovi, now its ready for its 25 years or so before theyre eligible. Still to come, the reallife Charlie BrownChristmas Tree and the girl who knew all it needed was a little love. Mean i knew they werent perfect, but, ugh. Oh well, all hope is lost oh thanks clearly my whitening toothpaste is not cutting it. Time for whitestrips. 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Reporter among the hundreds of almond trees neatly lined across the gensoli Family Orchard you might notice the scrawny one on the corner which was moments away from removal until danielle gensoli intervened. She had a fit. She was like no, you cant do that, all this tree needs is a little love and care and it deserves to live, dad. Reporter danielle called it her Charlie Brown tree. I never thought it was such a bad little tree. Reporter like the one in a Charlie Brown christmas, the tv special and book. Maybe it just needs a little love. Reporter touching words for danielles mom, kimber. Because thats what she said about her tree. Reporter you see, 12 years ago at the age of 16 danielle was in a car accident and died. It just took our hearts away. Reporter understandably her parents werent in the christmas spirit. Until someone hung an ornament on that tree. A simple idea that grew into a christmas tradition. I wonder who brought this. Reporter now every year the Community Covers the tree in ornaments and lights. Thats a new one. Its danielles Charlie Brown tree, but its also a community tree. Reporter its even decorated for valentines, st. Patricks day, and halloween. But this time of year means the most. Two, one [ cheers and applause ] reporter they always light the tree on danielles december birthday. What color is this one . Reporter a scrawny tree with surprising strength. Most of us may not have seen it. Thank goodness danielle did. We made it the brightest and the best of all. Thanks to danielle. Reporter joe friar, nbc news, houston, california. That is beautiful. So danielle is there during christmas and for the other holidays too. Such a powerful story. Lets turn now to nbc meteorologist bill karins with a look at what we can expect. Good morning once again. Looking at southern california, no rain in sight. Unfortunately, the winds are picking back up. I feel for the firefighters out there. Especially down there in those fires with the thomas fire. Winds can gust up to 50 Miles Per Hour once again and the fire danger elevated back up to the critical areas. And its not just the los angeles area. All the way down to the mountains outside of san diego too. Low humidity and about 11 Million People included in that. Forecast for travel today we had that early snow exiting areas of new york city. That will clear out as we go throughout the morning and then the rest of the southeast actually the rest of the countrys actually looking for a pretty nice day. All right, bill. Thank you very much. And we thank you for watching early today. Im frances rivera. And im philip mena. Be sure to follow us on facebook, twitter and insta ggr. Dont go anywhere. The news continues rig he on nbc hteran taking a live look outside, san rafael, folks already up and about on the s curve. Its another cold start to our morning this bay area thursday. Good morning to you, thanks for joining us. Im laura garcia. And im marcus washington. I dont know if it was just me, but it felt warmer. I know its still cold. Yeah, that was just you. It was you. We have the clear skies, its just been really chilly to start out. We have had a lot of spots starting out with some freezing temperatures. No different today. So as you get ready to head out, were also talking about the spare the air alert once again. No wood burning today, its unhealthy to be outside if you have bhi