Transcripts For MSNBCW The Rundown With Jose Diaz-Balart 20141219

President today. So far, Administration Officials have not publicly said who they believe is responsible. But a senior u. S. Official told nbc news the u. S. Has concluded north korea is to blame. Here is White House Press secretary josh earnest. I can tell you that regardless of who is found to be responsible for this that the president considers it to be a Serious National Security matter and its been treated as such both in the course of the investigation but also by leading members of the National Security team here at the white house. Stunning information about how much sony could lose after shelving the interview. Joining me holly jackson, in los angeles, for business insider, michael kelly. Lets start with the hollywood side. Whats this going to cost sony . So some Industry Analysts jose estimate this could cost sony upwards of 100 million when it comes to the interview which was pulled after much theater chains refused to show it given those threats. You talk about the reaction in hollywood. Overnight, we heard from George Clooney telling deadline a couple of things. About a petition he and his agent circulated to try to get some of the major studios stand together against this. Sony furious that nobody would sign it. Saying, quote, this is a silly comedy but the truth is what it says is a whole lot. The responsibility to stand up against this. We talked about president obamas press conference later on today where he may discuss, is likely to discuss how the u. S. Could respond to this. Clooney says this is all new territory. Nobody knows how to respond. Clooney of course just the latest of hollywood talent alisters to talk about this and speak out about this. So far, no official Public Statement by the u. S. Government on whos to blame. What does that tell you . Well, it tells me that theyre taking their time. Senior Administration Officials did tell the New York Times that they believe north koreas centrally involved and intelligence officials told the New York Times earlier in the week that this is by far the most keydestructive hack on u. S. Soil. Its clear as the administration decides what to do next and craft a policy for this new age of cyber warfare that theyre just taking their time and being a little coy. Halle, how shellshocked is sony . First the emails, personal information of their employees and now this project pulled from distribution. Its huge. Its hard to overestimate just what this means for the studio. Once the major theater chains started pulling the interview, the writing was on the wall at that point. Not going to be shown in theaters. Probably not on dvd, netnetflix, that type of thing. The ability to recruit top filmmakers that could be lost for sony. One of the folks from the Hollywood Reporter is telling us she thinks people are going to be leery signing on with sony given the fact that their employees personal information was lost is out there, and what is sony doing to protect that. One person weve not heard from since the interview was pulled seth rogen. He codirected and costarred in this. Hes back in los angeles now. The paparazzi caught up with him. We will see if that changes today. Its amazing. Theyre really black listing this movie. Its going to be impossible to see it. This is no citizen kane apparently. Your latest on this is titled now that the u. S. Government hacked soundy well what do you suggest . Anything they do has risks. If they do nothing, it emboldened state actors like this. If they go with some senators, that risks messing up relationships a little bit. If you go for cyber retaliation, that risk escalating. So theres a lot of risks involved with anything they do. But its clear that they have to do something along a coherent policy. Thank you so very much. In the next hour of the rundown, what response should the u. S. Be. And its likely the president will talk about it. The state Department Said policy statements will go into effect in weeks, just months. One of the most outspoken, Florida Republican senator marco rubio. I spoke with him last night to get his take on what he thinks should have happened. What i felt the president should have done here is incremental changes based on steps taken on the cubans. If the cubans were going to allow, for example, labor unions or political parties, maybe then we should have made a step towards them. Free elections or the process to allow freedom of the press, then additional steps. I thought they should have been steps taken side by side towards that sort of democratic opening in cuba. What the president has done here is given the castros everything theyve asked for. In exchange, given nothing when it comes to democracy and freedom. Lets go to havana right now. I want to get a sense of what people there are really thinking. Something thats not easy to do. Do you think this could be a better feud are for them . They really do. Something thats very unpopular here. Weve been to the richest restaurant owner, to the poorest of the poor. This is good for the economy here normalize relations. They believe it will be a big economic boost in cuba. Normalize relations, ideas, many people who have family in the United States they believe could believe to better and normalized relations. You dont get any disagreement wherever you go. The wealthy, the poor. Some have imaginations of American Businesses coming here of real tourism here. Who wouldnt want to be right now an American Business man looking for an opportunity like marriott, like jetblue, like cocacola, for an opportunity to come here and really put something into the economy here. And those on this side cuba they welcome that. Another issue of course is the internet. It is available. So limited here. They have some twitter. They want to feel like theyre connected to the receive of the world. Thats the big issue here. One other thing i want to bring up is when raul castro spoke, his headline was not the normalized relations, but he said first, the announcement was those are the cuban five in florida are now free. He gave a nod of course to fitdel fidel. That was his headline. Thats another reason they look excited here look to them as almost gods. They just give them unlimited time on the air waves to speak. Weve been listening to state tv as they speak about as they really look like a hero a god. Its really good. State controlled media wants you to see and hear if youre living in cuba. Well get a fascinating perspective on all of this. From a dissident who spent nearly 20 years in a cuban prison. Now, another matter of Foreign Policy. The war with isis. The pentagon says it has dealt not one, not two, but three major blows to the organization. Well go to nbcs Jim Miklaszewski at the pentagon. You have to imagine the president will get a decision about the strategy today. Absolutely in this u. S. Led air war, its going on five months now. Progress has been difficult to gauge. In this case they took out their key leaders in that isis organization. The deputy to the top leader of al qaeda, abu bukr al baghdadi. The top military man in iraq and isil. Thats the highest at isis at the current stage. But nobody here is saying this is a game changer. First of all, there are plenty of other isis members who are going to step in and take their place. Maybe not as experienced in the short run but theyll get on to it pretty quickly. Real game changer here will be when the Iraqi Military is in position to actually retake much of the territory that isis seized in a rapid sweep through iraq and nobody here is under any illusion that thats going to happen any time soon. Again, we just heard yesterday from the top u. S. Commander there in iraq working with the iraqis that this is a battle an effort thats going to take a minimum of three years, jose. Wow. Jim, also the fact that American Forces will have to work closely with those iraqi troops if theyre going to fight successfully. You know what is still missing in a lot of peoples minds i think is just how complicated this situation is. Think about this. The u. S. Is flying air missions while iran fighter bombers are also flying air missions. Now, theyre not fighting in the same area. But who would have thought six months ago that wed be flying bombing mission, against the same enemy in the same country of iraq with iranian aircraft. Jim miklaszewski at the pentagon. Thank you so very much for your time. Were just Getting Started. Well dig deeper into the major shifts in relations between cuba and the u. S. As we hear from one of the negotiators behind the deal. Were waiting to hear from the president just hours from now. Cuba terror threats. All the issues were expected to hear about this morning. Chuck todd will join me to run through all these questions. Heres a quick throwback. Fidel castro on meet the press just three months after toppling the batista regime. An american magazine published a story this week which says that dr. Castro really hates america. Will you tell the American People how you feel about the United States . Why am i going to hate the people of the United States . I dont hate anybody. I have a cold with terrible chest congestion. I better take something. Theraflu severe cold doesnt treat chest congestion. Really . New alkaseltzer plus day powder rushes relief to your worst cold symptoms plus chest congestion. 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From overseas threats from syria and russia and iraq to political challenges like the immigration fight and the republican takeover of congress. President obama has had a big year. Hell put it into perspective and set the stage for 2016 in his end of the Year Press Conference. Expected at about 1 30 eastern time today. Chuck todd the moderator of meet the press is with us. President obama heading into 2015. This is a white house that feels as if theyve never been in a better position. The president almost wants to take a victory lap with this press conference. When you look at the things hes done since the election shellacking, immigration in cuba in particular, but also getting his spending bill without having immigration gum that up. There was a lot of thought that politically his announcement would make it impossible to work with congress and get a spending bill threw. I think he feels as relevant as ever. Its beyond just saying im not a lame duck. Its saying i still can dictate the agenda. And i think hes made clear, at least these last six weeks, he can. The question is how does he do it going forward. What does he hint at today at how he plans on working with the Republican Congress, which he has no choice to do in 2015. For example, the nature of how he has timed his decisions and what the decisions have been. I mean who would have told us in november after the shellacking, to use your word that today, the agenda as you said would be set by well immigration and the domestic and Foreign Policy cuba which has been something that has been part of the National Discourse since 1959. No absolutely. And i think that, you know today its going to be i am curious, i want to focus on cuba for a minute. I was just in spend a lot of time with some old miami friends wednesday and thursday being in miami. You know at a minimum, does he at least change his tone in how he announced it. I talked to many of my longtime friends in miami who are fine with the change in policy but didnt like the way he presented it. Ill be curious today if he has more beingacknowledgement of the Exile Community and more skepticism of the castro brothers than he did a couple days ago. Tell me about that. What is it about the wording or the semantic that some found difficult . I think it was more this idea of selling look making the case, the policy wasnt working, saying it was inconsistent with what we were doing with china, with vietnam, with myanmar. Intellectually, that made a lot of sense to folks. It was the more personal aspect of things. Of being able to say, you know what saying that, you know, maybe you dont trust dont make it seem as if you dont trust the castro brothers to make some changes. That this policy change is being done with skepticism. So it was more in the presentation of the policy change. But also look the fact is a lot of people in south florida either have family or know somebody who has family who were personally hurt by the castro regime. Either physically or financially or in another way. And not addressing that enough i think is what made it a lot easier to see what looks to be almost certainly allow lily allow opposition in miami, even louder one than some people expected. I asked what it would take to set things in motion that would cause relations to be restored between the United States and cuba. In january of 2013 freedom of the press, and liberty of political prisoners. You also delivered the commencement address at the university of miami. I did. Said something interesting, the university of miami looks like america in the 21st century. Explain that. Well, i mean when you look at look south florida, we talk about this demographic change thats taking place in america. Well, i grew the south florida i grew up this happened in south florida in the 80s and 90s. I went to a high school that was a third hispanic a third africanamerican, a third caucasian in 1987 okay. So thats what i mean. You look at the university of miami, it attracts a very global miami being the capital of latin america. I think it attract, a Global Student body as well. When you look out there, its, you know, i look at the immigration fight for instance. It was painful in the 80s. The same pain youre seeing politically in the midwest, we went through, jose in south florida in the 80s. Thats what i look at okay this is what americas going to look like 20 years from now swreering in the you remember chuck, those bumper sticker, will the last american to leave miami please bring the flag . The anger about two languages being spoken any time you went to a store. Look, i remember all of those. Again, all of the debates and the hyperbole we see nationally on immigration today we saw in south florida in the 80s. Chuck todd always a pleasure to speak with you, sir. Were going to be looking forward to meet the press as we do either sunday. Our coverage of the president s Yearend Press Conference begins at 1 30, by the way, right here on msnbc. Dont forget you can see meet the press this sunday on nbc. And then in the afternoon, switch over to telemundo and catch this program, its kind of meet the press in espanol. And Stephen Colbert says goodbye to one show and gets ready for another primetime slot. Even the president had a little fun on the show last week. Nation as you know i, Stephen Colbert [ laughter ] have never cared for our president. The guy is so arrogant. Ill bet he talks about himself in the third person. Thank you for being my hero and my dad. Military families are uniquely thankful for many things the legacy of usaa Auto Insurance could be one of them. 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Because boiling an egg. Isnt as simple as just boiling an egg. Life takes energy. Energy lives here. A manhunt for militants, heart break down under, and a new battle brewing over pot. At least 59 militants were killed in separate attacks in northwestern tribal regions near the of an began border. It comes days after taliban fighters killed 148 people most children, at a school in pakistan. The assault was the deadliest single attack in the groups history. In australia, strangers are leaving flowers outside a home where eight children were found dead today. Police say me were called to the scene after receiving a report of a woman with serious injuries. When egg vaers showed up they found the body of children ranging in age from 18 months to 15 years. The woman is receiving treatment for her injuries. A big pot battle brewing out west. Nebraska and oklahoma filed a lawsuit asking the u. S. Supreme court to declare colorados legalization of marijuana unconstitutional. Suit argues the drug is being brought across borders into neighboring states undermining those states marijuana bans and burdening their criminal justice systems. Its too early to tell whether the Supreme Court will even accent the case. And from finale to santa claus rallies on wall street. Just ahead of the opening bell stocks are coming off their best day in three years. Cnbcs mandy drewry. Its been nothing short of incredible, right. Weve had the best twoday rally for the s p in three years. Its gained 4 1 2 percent in that time. The best day of 2014. The dow jumped over 4 . So everybodys asking what now. It wouldnt be strange to see a bit of a breather. But if youre expecting another massive rally today, dont hold your breath. We are watching oil naturally very closely. The really interesting thing here is yesterday we watched the stock market decouple from oil. Oil fell into the close as stocks continued to accelerate. Congratulations because gas prices have now fallen for the 84th day in a row. Youll pay a whole lot less than you were this time last year. Thank you so much. Well keep an eye on the opening bell just minutes away. Were just Getting Started on the rundown. Coming up some bad timing for holiday travelerings. Messy weather hitting the northeast. Take a look at a rain soaked houston. Parts of texas and louisiana getting drenched. Your holiday forecast ahead on the rundown. Im mike and im very much alive. Now my doctor recommends a bayer aspirin regimen to help prevent another heart attack. Be sure to talk to your doctor before you begin an aspirin regimen. When mr. Clean started writing a book about his magic eraser he found it cleans everything. From stove tops. To scuffed shoes, and more. And when ran out of pages, he made a website instead. Share your tips at mycleanbook. Com the Holiday Season is here, which means its time for the volkswagen signthendrive event. For practically just your signature, you could drive home for the holidays in a germanengineered volkswagen. Like the sporty, advanced new jetta. And the 2015 motor trend car of the year allnew golf. If youre wishing for a new volkswagen this season. Just about all you need is a finely tuned. Pen. Get zero due at signing zero down, zero deposit and zero first months payment on select new volkswagen models. A look at the new york stock exchange. The opening bell is sounding off after a monster rally yesterday which sent the dow up 420 points. You can see reps from portfolios with purpose there to ring the bell. The Charitable Organization holds a stock picking contest with proceeds going to various charities. Well keep an eye to see if the santa claus rally continues. Maybe well inch closer to 18,000. I want to go back ton the imagine the major shift in diplomatic relations. June 2013 the president s deputy National Security adviser ben roads and his adviser on latin america traveled to canada for what would be the first of eight meetings with cuban counterparts. In march of 2014 pope francis enters. Ur raising the idea of the shift. Followed by letters to the president and raul castro. Then in october, one final critical meeting between american and cuban counterparts at the vatican. All culminating with president obamas tuesday phone call with raul castro. Yesterday, i sat down with someone in the room for that call. One of the president s key negotiateors in all of this his adviser in latin american. He talked about what happens next in cuba. The bottom line here is that we have policies that we have control over that we believe we can change that are going to help cubans gain greater control over their lives. Thats what we control. We cant dictate what it is the cuban government determines to move in a position in a direction that we believe they should take. Of course you can see much more of my interview this sunday on telemundo at 1 00 p. M. Eastern time. I want to bring in another voice in all of this. The first cubanamerican to serve in the United States senate. Former republican senator mel martinez. Senator, thanks for being with me. Good to be with you. What do you see as the consequence of this shift in diplomatic relations between the two countries . Look i think its a dramatic change. I mean i will echo what everyone that knows cuba and knows cuba policy has been saying which is we gave away the store and got really nothing in return. The question is implementation. We need to look beyond the immediate whats done is done. The United States government, this administration has a tremendous responsibility to implement this in such a way that it doesnt foster oppression that it doesnt foster the kind of failed system cuba has had but encourages change. How do you do that . Well i think you need to insist that the cuban people be able to work for their employer and not for the government. Your reporter from havana was talking about how great it would be to invest in cuba. I think its imperative. Companies are not going to want to invest in cuba if their employees are working for the cuban government and theyre paying the cuban government a certain wage and the employee is receiving a very small portion of that. Ive talked to business men and others who have told me over the years they feel bad doing business in an environment like that. Theres no law in cuba. We need to insist on changes that will help in the long run to set up circumstances in cuba for an opportunity for the cuban people to live in freedom and prosperity and enjoy the rest of the things the receive of peoples in latin america can enjoy, fruit of their labors. Senator, thank you. Iokay buddy, good to be with you. I want to bring in our next guest. Good to see you. So give me your read and some of the folks that read your very popular blog site. What do you think of this change . Once everyone got over the shock, because no one saw it. One of the things that people have been talking about is people tend to forget that cuban history, you know, there was cuban history before 1959 so you have to look at this in the context of latin america. The fact that this has been a history of the right versus the left. So its definitely a third rail issue. A lot of people were relieved almost sort of looking forward to having real honest conversations about this issue. Given the context of u. S. latino politics and the context of a lot of, you know younger cubanamericans that might think differently about what the older generation is saying. So what is that conversation . What do you think the conversation should be . What were hearing is the role of the United States. Where is the United States going to play into this . Are we talking about a United States, you know, for all the people to bring out a movie reference . The godfather part 2 where you have him cutting up the island of cuba. Are we going back to that . Are we going to have real real change in the sense of families reconnecting again, sort of, you know that idea of, you know coming from the ground up of acknowledging the fact that the cuban government is actually out there and actually exist and were the only country in the world that actually has not been part of this, you know the fact that cubas recognized. One of the things i often think about. Are we all being a little ethnocentric about our views . Its always about the americans and what the americans do. You know theres a broad im so glad you brought this up. Theres a big world out there. There are a lot of countries out there. Its not just about what americans think and do. Its all i think the responsibility of each country to make a difference in their own future. Exactly. And lets not discount jose the whole issue of the stories of the Exile Community. Chuck todd brought it up. Ive been at those dinner tables in miami, san juan new jersey and its very important. That voice needs to be heard. I think within the context of what the Exile Community is saying and also the fact that what senator martinez said is i think people want the best for cuba. Theres a love of cuba. Its so embedded in our psyche both as latinos, as americans. Theres this global sense that, you know, water bigger than this now. Its time to really think about policy in a way, you know, that really hasnt worked for 55 years. Julio thank you, my friend for being on. Of course latino rebels go to check it out. Its an important voice you need to hear. Thank you very much. Lets hear many voices. Thats really part and parcel of our mantra on this show. I want to go to a voice inside cuba. In 1990 when he was 25 years old, he was jailed literally, because he spoke out for democracy in his country. He was released 17 years later and continues to be a strong voice of opposition in the island. He is here in south florida with me today. He only speaks spanish so i will translate this conversation. [ speaking Foreign Language ] thank you for being with me. First of all, your reaction ton this news of the normalization of relations. [ speaking Foreign Language ] translator my reaction is emotions. It was never a surprise. There were things we were waiting. [ both speaking at once ] a message send to the dissidents that theyre alone, that were alone. [ speaking Foreign Language ] translator an indefensive situation because today right now in cuba theyre charging an important leader of the resistance. The oppression is increasing against political prisoners. For denouncing an infiltration of spies that were coming in the United States. These people are now being given 30 years in prison as we speak. [ speaking Foreign Language ] the United States Administration Says this is only to help the cuban people. [ speaking Foreign Language ] translator what happens if sometimes theres confusion. If they confuse people with the regime but the people of cuba and cuba is not the regime. Its not fidel castro. This will help. It will help the people who want to make money off the cuban people. It will help people who are in the United States who want to exploit the pain of the cuban people. But to the exiled that are here the patriots the people who want to live in freedom, it will help them not at all. It is a message of leaving them alone. Of unloyalty. It is a cruel treasonious thing that leaves us without any defenses. There is one benefit. The tyranny of castro that well feel like a green light to increase its oppression. [ speaking Foreign Language ] thank you very much for being with us. A voice of someone who served 17 years in prison for asking for democracy. Up next, we will head back to the white house and the alarming details buried in the new secret Service Report highlighting problems in the agency protecting our president. Those details, plus what Homeland Security head has to say about it next. Is the president is the president s family are they safe . I believe theyre safe yes, absolutely. I know the president himself has the highest confidence in the level of protection that he and the first family receive from the secret service. Thanks. 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Live look at 1600 pennsylvania avenue where president obama will hold his end of the Year Press Conference in just a couple of hours. He may face questions about the new secret Service Report highlighting problems entrenched in the agency. The panel found an organization starved for leadership. That rewards innovation and excellent and demands accountability. We heard a common desire. More resources would help. But what we really need is leadership. Nbc news senior White House Correspondent Chris Jansing inging has more. Reporter the panel of four independent investigators bluntly lays out the high stakes for this secret service. A single miscue or even a split second delay could have disastrous consequences for the nation and the world. Its 100 accurate. Its absolutely critical these changes are made now. This is a zero sum environment. There are no do overs in the secret service. Reporter the recommendations are dramatic. A fence at least four feet taller to delay intruders. A bigger force. 85 new agents. 200 new uniformed officers. More training time. Shockingly, in 2013 uniformed officers were trained only about 25 minutes each. And oversee the changes. A shakeup at the top. Including a director from outside the service, removed from traditions and personal relationships. That may not sit well inside the agency as the acting director told brian. We dont have time to train someone in this role. Youve got to have someone who has some history and knows where we need to go in the future. Reporter director Julia Pierson was fired after Omar Gonzalez made an unprecedented breach into the white house and clancy has started to make changes, including reinforcing the fence. But jay johnson says its just the start. This is not something in my judgment based on the recommendations ive seen that can change overnight. That was nbcs Chris Jansing. Coming up from russia with love. Vladimir putin delivers an epic speech and offered a rare glimpse into his heart. Look at him. There he is with a suit on. No tigers or leopards around. Plus, a live look at Houston Texas this morning. Another messy weather system moving through right when you might be hitting the road. The forecast coming up on the rundown. Europe is flexing its muscles in the ongoing showdown with Vladimir Putin whos trying to keep the russian economy from spiraling into a free fall. From brussels where european leaders are continuing their gettough policy. Good morning. Good morning, jose. Whats interesting to note a couple of things that came out of this meeting. This huge end of year eu summit. Eu leaders all gathered together. One thing, they could hardly keep smirks from their keep their smirk from the face. They see the sanctions are working. The sanctions were worth it. They decided to ban investment in crimea. That takes place tomorrow on saturday. And, of course, you have to remember were talking about the e. U. Here. We have 28 separate countries, 28 separate competing agendas. Finding consensus on anything is different for the guys at the best of times. The message is clear from brussels is there going to stand firm. Theyll keep the pressure on with putin. Of course, so you to remember that european economies have been tied to russia even more so than ever before over the last fife years. Especially german exports and imports to russia over 100 billion last year. You have to remember at least 10 of e. U. Exports went to russia in 2013. All of that is gone at least for the foreseeable future. If you listen to mr. Putins comments at least the next two years. Despite the fact they are tightening belts they are seeing the sanctions are worth it. Thank you. I want to bring in russian expert. Pleasure to see you. Hi. Let me get your reaction to what we heard from the European Union today. Theyre getting tough. They see the sanctions may be working and they think more should be done. Sanctions are working. Theyve been working its just our expectations were wrong or the west expectations, i would say, are wrong. The expectations were putin will go on his knees very quickly. He wouldnt but it certainly, i mean, the markets show that the markets show. You cannot control them and thats what putin is seeing right now. In my opinion, i think pushing for more sanctions right now is a mistake because putin can be negotiated with. Its a really good time to use diplomacy as a leverage over him, and i think more conversations rather than less is probably going to be the right approach. And nina, i want to talk to you, you say the west or some of the west thought that any kind of sanctions would get putin to be on his knees. When you look for example, russian voters and im looking at this ap poll in the latest ap poll putin has an Approval Ratings of 81 . The ruble may be going down into the tank but he certainly is not. How do you explain that . Well, it depends who you ask and how you ask them. Certain polls say hes 80 . Certain polls say hes in 60 . Still not bad. 60 percent is a pretty high number. For a democracy it is absolutely. I think any western leader would kill for the leaders. We should remember that russia is a very centrally oriented country. It looks at the saver. For solutions to various problems, it looks for the crime lynn to defend itself. Russia, lets say is a czaroriented country. Any Approval Rating over 50 would be something that russians would always have. There would not much below 50 . Thats one thing. But another thing is that people now ask questions. But also they got more afraid. They really look at their government to save them but at the same time what they see around them is not something that should be very happy about or very unhappy about. I think in those in the disparity of polls you can see a lot of conflict. Some people hope and some people think its not going to work for them. Talk to me about the ruble going in the tank as one indication of very difficult economic realities for russia and the president said yesterday in his press conference it could be two years before they see any kind of better situation. Do people, i mean, i guess what youre saying is theyre used to this and they dont think that two years is a long period to wait, you know . Well, i mean, hes shooting in the dark. He doesnt know. A month ago he was saying sanctions are not working and we are great and fine. Which, of course was clear that was absolutely not the case. People are used to hardship. He had a social contract a deal with the people. Hes going to make their lives better but they would have to surrender to the government in, you know giving up certain freedoms. So now this contract has been broken. He can blame the west all he wants, but people do see what is going on around them. When the ruble is at 59 per dollar, that is a problem. I have to say i looked through russian news today and they were saying, well putin is such a great economist. Does he stabilize the ruble because it used in the 70 just a few years just a few days back. So good for putin. Yeah. And nina on a final thing, but in the history of russia and the soviet union, it was rare to see the leaders talk about or share their stories. And a journalist asked russian putin about his love life. Well nina theres an unusual thing. Its not unusual for putin. Its certainly unusual for soviet leader but hes not a soviet leader. Hes autocrat. Did you ever see soviet leaders riding horses bare chested in siberia . He didnt. He looks good like that. He looked back then. Now he doesnt look as good. Its been 15 years. So yes, its his signature trade. He gives something personal but at the same time he remains a strong leader of the people. Hes of the people but for the people at the same time. Thats his gift. Nina crew he receive, a pleasure to see you. Coming up as we take the turn on the rundown. President obama is expected to address the hack attack on sony pictures. Its get away a day for the president. But the road on 1600 pennsylvania is Getting Started. Well look at who may be making a run for the white house 2016. The calm before the holiday storm. At lot of people traveling today. Were live in La Guardia Airport with todays details on the weather and travel and so much more. Stion for you when electricity is generated with natural gas instead of todays most used source, how much are co2 emissions reduced . Up to 30 . 45 . 60 . The answer is. Up to 60 less. And thats a big reason why the u. S. Is a world leader in reducing co2 emissions. Take the energy quiz round 2. Energy lives here. Many americans who have prescriptions fail to stay on them. Thats why we created programs which encourage people to take their medications regularly. So join us as we raise a glass to everyone who remembered today. Bottoms up, america. 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Has concluded that north korea is responsible but so far Administration Officials have not publicly blamed that country. Right now the administration is considering how to respond. It is also been the subject of a number of daily meetings that have been convened here at the white house that have been led by the president s Homeland Security adviser and occasionally by his cyber coordinator. Including senior members of our Intelligence Community and Homeland Security officials of military diplomatic, and Law Enforcement officials as well. The white house said it did not pressure sony to cancel the release of the film the interview. U. S. Officials believe the cyber attack was routed through computer servers in taiwan. In an effort to mask it all within its after it was launched in north korea it went through taiwan. Joining me now is senior writer. Why do you think the government is not public blaming north korea for the hack attack if they have information it was . I think theyre waiting if to scare make sure for certain it was north korea. And we heard for the last two weeks we heard it will be north korea. We think sony and the government have remained silent who it is. We think theyre 100 certain. Talk to me about the cost doctor. It goes beyond cancelling the film the north korea doesnt really like. Absolutely. Its costly decision for sony because, you know, we reported yesterday it could cost up to 75 million because the movie costs 44 million and spent about 30 million on advertising. But also its completely damaging because five movies were leaked relationships have been damaged, sonys president amy pascal has been in the news. The ending of the new james bond movie has been leaked. We dont know how much it will cost sony but it will cost a lot. Its going take a long time for them to recover. And to think its not a leak. Its stolen stuff that theyre putting online and for the world to see. Its still stolen property. Talk to me about what you think the longterm effect it could have on sony and the Motion Picture industry. I think the big news out of the story last night George Clooney gave an interview and he said that sony asked other studios to join them and to come together and fight this hack and the other studios were scared to sign the letter of solidarity. And i think what we are seeing in hollywood is at lot of fractured relationships and sense of loss as we enter the Holiday Season. Its tough year for hollywood. For this to cap off the year and the movie going experience its a scary time. It is. Thank you. Let me bring in Republican Congressman Marcia Blackburn of tennessee. Good morning. Good morning. You said Congress Needs to crack down on cyber attacks. What do you think congress can do . There are several steps that we can take. First of all, dealing with what we know to be a part of what is happening in north korea. They have bureau 121, this is information weve gotten through south korea after they suffered the attacks in 2013. Bureau 121 has about 1800 hackers and theyre scattered around the globe. Thats why you may have seen the push forward to the site in taiwan where north korea gets their internet access. What we can do is put in place some guidelines so the private sector has the ability to share with government when they spot the algorithms they think are problematic and give it to u. S. Intel agencies. We also need to make certain that there are penalties on the book. There are enforcement provisions on the book and there is a way to adjudicate these cases. You know jose,ed in the physical world for theft, for exposure you have penalties that are there. These need to be applied for readily, and equitably to the virtual space. You have taken aim at sewnony for the cancellation. I would go ahead and put the film out there. It just difference of opinion that i have with them. Its interesting ive heard from many of my friends on the west coast or new york. Theyre saying its a blow to creative expression which we treasure hered in the United States. Yesterday i was over on music row in nashville and people were concerned about sony caving in and cancelling the release of that film. Of course there are more people who know about the film the interview than ever would have then it gone to release and on to one of the sites for streaming. Congressman Marcia Blackburn, thank you. Thank you. And were looking forward to hearing from president obama just about three and a half hours from now. The press will get to grill the commander in chief one more time before he heads to hawaii for the holidays. Theres Nbcs Kelly Odonnell at the white house with me this morning. Good morning give us a preview. Good to be with you. All of us in the workplaces have the rachael. The last thing you do. It means on your feet for probably an hour taking questions to cap a year that has certainly been eventful. We expect the president , as he does by tradition, make opening remarks that will frame how he views the year gone by and perhaps previewing some of the relationships he might want to have congress. A new congress in just a matter of weeks. Expect the president to be questioned on everything both domestic and international, and we have not heard the president on the sony hack issue. It will be an interesting opportunity to see the president weigh in on this about what the u. S. Can do. How corporations and the United States need to protect themselves, and is there a way that the administration can respond given all the discussion weve had about not necessarily knowing who the actors involved are in terms of bringing about that breach at sony. When you look at immigration, the year that was. Looking at what happened in cuba in just recent days. The president will take in some ways a lap some are see it as victory, others will see it as marking time in his administration that has been monumentous monument. But the president did claim he made progress on the major achievements in terms of goals he set. Still plenty of work to do but for people who thought the president might have been weakened by the Midterm Elections, hes also showing that the office of the president is always consequential and hes using that power. Some say in ways that goes too far. Hes using that power to advance his agenda. At the white house kelly odonnell. Thank you very much. Good to see you. And msnbcs coverage of the president s press Conference Begins at 1 30 eastern. Thats 10 30 pacific. Stay tuned. You wont want to miss it. Coming uptake a look at the brand new video just in of alan gross. Courtesy of the u. S. Government. You can see alan walking off the plane. Back in the u. S. After five years in a cuban prison. This of course the event that united the shift in u. S. Cuba relations. Well go back to havana cuba for that and more. And more of my interview with marco rubio. Here is part of our exchange in english. Senator, the fact is that for 54 years, the american embargo against the castro regime hasnt worked. The two brothers that were in power in 1961 in january of 1961 when the u. S. Broke relations with cuba are still in power today. The embargo, they say, doesnt work. The president and his supporters think its time to try something new. I would say two things. For 50 some odd years the castro regime hasnt worked even with soviet subsidies. Theyve been a disaster for their country. No freedom and the people trying to flee. Half the population of cuba would leave tomorrow if they had the chance. That should be changed as well. My second point, is the embargo in the 21st century is different purpose than the 20th century. It had to do with the cold war. In the 21st century, the embargo is about first and foremost con deeming human rights abuses and dictator shims but about leverage. Able to go to the cuban government and say we know you want economic relations and diplomatic recognition from the United States. In order for that to happen you have to take concrete steps toward democracy. Thats not what the president did. Its one sided. Thats what happens when you send a speech writer to negotiate a deal with an experienced dictator. Thank you for being with me. [ female announcer ] hands were made for talking. Feet. Tiptoeing. Better things than the pain stiffness, and joint damage of moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis. Before you and your rheumatologist decide on a biologic ask if xeljanz is right for you. Xeljanz tofacitinib is a small pill not an injection or infusion, for adults with moderate to severe ra for whom methotrexate did not work well. Xeljanz can relieve ra symptoms, and help stop further joint damage. 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Regenerist luminous. U. S. Businesses are closely following the obama plan e soing the huge opportunity to expand their market. Travel zoo sent out the email urgeing americans to visit cuba through the peopletopeople tours allowed through the embargo embargo. Were live in havana. Weve seen a number of companies putsing out statements welcoming new developments. What kind of opportunities are we talking about . I think were talking about billions and billions of dollars worth of opportunities. First of all, when it comes to the Tourism Industry we know the cruise industry has wanted to get in here for a long time. Airlines for sure. Remember what has happened here though. There isnt a wholesale allowance of americans being able to get on planes to go to cuba. They need to apply for a license through the treasury. They have to do that either through firm that specializes in doing this. So its still pretty difficult even though with the changes announced two days ago to make it easier and speedier to do that. Its probably going to be less costly as well because theres going to be some of the bureaucratic issues being removed. Its more likely going to be airlines that already do charter flights. A lot of americans dont realize theres a lot of planes that leave miami every day and fly directly into havana for the people traveling under the certain licenses. It f it became easier there might be other parts of the country. Cruise ships they havent changed anything when it comes to passenger ferry service. Its not clear they would be able to get in here right away. And, michelle talk to me about the infrastructure that exists there as far as employees, for example. If you are an American Company and you want to invest in cuba, how does that work . How do you get the employees how do you set up shop there . So first of all, being able to put money into an investment here for an American Company is extremely difficult. Right now and even under the new rules right now you you can sell products into the country and one change that has happened under the new rules is before you had to be paid in advance now you dont have to be paid in advance. You can be paid under transfer of title. So weit get to the port. If you dont get paid you center to fight through the cuban legal system in order to get paid. Thats going to be difficult. Putting Foreign Direct Investment here for a u. S. Company is difficult. Thank you for being with me this morning from havana. And joining me here in our south florida studio is florida congressman elect whose district inside key west 90 miles from cuba. Thank you for being me with. Let me pick up where michelle left off. What are your thoughts about the Economic Opportunities for American Businesses to in the future invest in an island nation just 90 miles away from the United States . Well, look, first of all, what happened a couple of days ago, the president announce is not good for the United States. Its not good for the cuban people. Why . Its not good for business. Why . Cuba is a country theres no rule of law. There are no guarantees. There are no property rights. So who in the right mind would want to invest there to begin with . Congressman, every single country except the United States has been investing to cuba. Every single country except the United States has full and complete relations with that country. And theyre still doing it. Because until two days ago, jose, the United States had a policy of standing in solidarity with the cuban peoples. That all changed. Many people specially in my generation. Our generation jose of course we care about the cuban people. Of course we care about the future of cuba, but were americans. Were born in this country. It hurts us for the first time in 56 years our country threw its president is on the wrong side of history on this issue. My question was specifically on american investments. Youre saying its a bad thing. I havent figured out why i want the United States businesses and companies to invest in cuba when cuba is free. There are guarantees in kpu baa. When the cubans that American Companies are going to hire arent castros slaves. When they are actually free people that can make their own choices and work at the businesses and we need to have labor unions in cuba. And you dont think the relations with the u. S. Would prompt the changes . These enhanced relationships with the United States that the Obama Administration announced is going to help one people. Maybe two people. Fidel and raul castro. And the most important part it hurts u. S. National security interests in the short term and the longterm. Let me ask you something. We hear a lot of talk about the generational divide that twists in cuba. The older folks are staunch in the support of the embargo but younger people are not. Theyre changing their perspective. Its time to see that the new generation sees things differently. You represent the youngest voting district in the state of florida. Youre not a old guy yourself. Im 364. Tell me about the again rational divide that exists between cubanamericans. What upset most people in my generation is to see our country, the United States in a position of weakness. To see our country give up three convicted spies. One of whom was found guilty of committing murder against three american citizens freed to. To see our country give everything the swap that was the pretext or the reason for all of these changes in policy. So i think all the generations of cubanamericans are united of course, there are differences between us. I didnt feel the pain of having my home taken away. I didnt see my grandfather while he was in political prison for 12 years. Yet, as americans, it hurts to see the United States role in the world diminished and it hurts to see our president , for the first time in 56 years from ken i do bushnedy to bush. Its the first president on the wrong side of history. What do you see for the role for example, of congress in coming up in january on this issue . Congress has to lead. Just like we have to lead on every other issue or where the president acted unilaterally and not consulted with the United States congress. By the way, jose there are eight cubanamerican members of congress. Not one of them was included in any of these discussions. That includes bob menendez, everyone who was excludeed. Thats wrong. Were going to show the president that he has to count on us. And that congress does have a major role. You heard about defunding efforts. I think youre going to see mostly on immigration were talking about, by the way. And cuba. Lindsayey graham and mauro rubio announced they have a plan to defund of what the president announced. Theres a clear message from the United States congress that is u. S. Law. There are conditions for engaging cuba and the president disregarded all of them. Thank you very much for being with me. Its a pleasure to see you, sir. Up next we zoom through some of the other top stories making news including a pot battle heating up out west. And why some states are fighting colorados Marijuana Legalization saying it turned into a problem for them. First, a live look from the top of the rock on an overcast december day in new york city. Take a look. At any time is fabulous . Its live. The price of gasoline is down. Theres no relation to what i said. I like to reinforce gas is coming down. Its under 2 a gallon. Hey i guess were going to need a new santa the music builds to a climax. more people are coming to audi than ever before. See why now is the best time. Audi will cover your first months payment on select models at the season of audi sales event. Visit audioffers. Com today. Emma, its simple, when you are in a place like this, the best way to capture the moment is to feel it, even if you cant see it. In a race, its about getting to the finish line. In life, its how you get there that matters most. Like when i found out i had a blood clot in my leg. My doctor said that it could travel to my lungs and become an even bigger problem. So he talked to me about xarelto®. Xarelto® is the first oral prescription blood thinner proven to treat and help prevent dvt and pe that doesnt require regular blood monitoring or changes to your diet. For a prior dvt i took warfarin, which required routine blood testing and dietary restrictions. Not this time. 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Xarelto® is proven to reduce the risk of dvt and pe, with no regular blood monitoring and no known dietary restrictions. Treatment with xarelto® was the right move for me. Ask your doctor about xarelto® today. We got married, we became a family of five. Without the time and money to wash all this stuff separately. So we wash it all in cold water with tide. Even saras shorts. Those are mine. Seriously . Throw it all in. Really . Because tide cleans better. Even in cold. A manhunt for militants and limb began on trial, and a new battle brewing over pot. Lets zoom through the top stories. At least 59 militants were killed in separate attacks in a northwestern triable region near the Afghan Border of pakistan. Comes ss days after taliban fighters killed people at the school. Officials in los angeles now saying that massive fire in an apartment complex under construction this month was arson. No one was hurt in the fire that caused up to 10 million in damage. A. A pot battle out west. Declaring colorados legalization of marijuana unconstitutional. The suit argues its being brought across the border undermining the marijuana bans. Its too early to tell whether the Supreme Court will accept the case. 18time olympics champion Michael Phelps will be arriving in court. Character charged with dui. He registered. 14 after he was stopped for speeding violation in late september. He could face up to one year in jail if convicted. After nine years on comedy central, Stephen Colbert signed off from his popular cable talk show the colbert report. Dozen of celebrities joined for a sign off for the comedian signed off. This, in fact is your last time tuning into the colbert report. Until no. No. Folks, until ten years from now when they reboot it directed by j. J. Abrams. Colbert will take over for the cbs the late show host david leathert letterman. Not before we bless him in todays five things. Coming up the Weather Forecast isnt looking very pleasant. What you need to know for your holiday travel. And later im talking 2016 after jeb bush ignited more speculation this week. What are the chances for another president bush . Thats next. Another great thing about all this walking ive been doing is that its given me time to reflect on some of lifes biggest questions. Like, if you could save hundreds on Car Insurance by making one simple call, why wouldnt you make that call . See, the only thing i can think of is that you cant get any. Bars. Ah, thats better. Its a beautiful view. I wonder if i can see mt. Rushmore from here. Geico. Fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more on Car Insurance. [ narrator ] mama sherman and the legion of super fans. Wow [ narrator ] on a mission to get richard to his campbells chunky soup. Its new chunky beerncheese with beef and bacon soup. I love it. And mama loves you. The Holiday Season is here, which means its time for the volkswagen signthendrive event. For practically just your signature, you could drive home for the holidays in a germanengineered volkswagen. Like the sporty, advanced new jetta. And the 2015 motor trend car of the year allnew golf. If youre wishing for a new volkswagen this season. Just about all you need is a finely tuned. Pen. Get zero due at signing zero down, zero deposit and zero first months payment on select new volkswagen models. Turning to the weather. Bad news for the holiday get away. Both this weekend and next week. Some storms could cause major delays. Joining me now reagan medgie at the La Guardia Airport. How is it looking now . Right now, jose its looking pretty good. People are driving smoothly up into skies. It looks pretty good. At la guardia were not dealing with too much bag log right now. Its not reportedly too bad. Ill walk you inside to show the boards. Its the best description i can give. Arrival and departures. Arrivals mostly on time. A couple are delayed it could cause a later on today. The departures a lot on time. Jfk and newark a different story. Right now reporting about an half hour delay. We talked about that messy weather. If youre going to be travel for the holidays you might want to think about doing it sooner than later. Specifically today, tomorrow or sunday. Because once monday hits were going look at storms from boston all the way to ohio and down south beyond atlanta. Thats when youre probably going to get some rough weather. Thats when you could possibly see delays. Now what were looking at here at the airport you can see a lot of people packing in lining up. If youre going to be taking to the skies as your mode of transportation, youre going have to go to through tsa. And a couple of things you should know. It tsa has a 311 program. You want to have items, you know, 3. 4 ounces and less if youre carrying it on in one zip lock bag like a quart. Its one per person. That makes it quicker when youre going through tsa with the check point. If you have, you know, baby formula or medication that is over 3 ounces you want to declare that immediately because thats, you know, likely will be checked by tsa. Because, of course security is pretty tight at la Guardia International airport. Everybody is getting ready to go home for christmas break, to go and see their relatives. If youre packing gifts, one last thing. Dont wrap them. Because if tsa sees a wrapped gift and think they might be suspicious they will unwrap it and likely, unfortunately, the gifts are not intended for the tsa agent. It might be nice to bring something for them. Theyre working like all of us. Thank you very much for that report. Appreciate it. Now to the race for 2016 and everyone is talking about it even David Letterman. All right. So what letterman joked about i cant because im not funny. Its about jeb bush. All that has been talked about since he announced that he was actively exploring a potential run for the presidency. Meaning hes thinking about thinking about running for president. That set off speculation on both sides of the aisle. On the right reaction for potential rivals like ted cruz who said a moderate candidate like bush will lose to Hillary Clinton. On the left new soul searching whether a candidate like Elizabeth Warren should be challenging Hillary Clinton. Lets frame the debate. Two of my favorites msnbc contributor Jimmy Williams and gop strategies noel. I miss you. Merry christmas like wise. Lets start on the right, jim ji. Talk about the ripple effective about the bush announcement all the way through the gop. Ted cruz it delusional. I think he has prooun that over and over again. If you dont believe me ask Senate Colleagues after last week. And so the idea that jeb bush is a moderate could lose is what the conservatives were saying about george bush. He won twice. I dont necessarily buy into the idea theres bush fatigue or American People dont like dynasties. I think they dont mind that at all. I think they like competent people. Jeb bush ran florida for eight years and did a decent job. Can he run the country . That was, by the way, seven or eight years ago. Hes going have to track far to the right to win the primary. A go up against ted cruz or rand paul. Thats going to be hard. Im not sure how gets out of the primary. It he does, hes formidable. Thats a fact. Lets talk about that. Jeb bush in the past said hes a strong promotor of common core. He thinks that Immigration Reform should include legalization of the 11 or 12 million people. Not clear exactly if he wants a pathway to citizenship or not. But those are two issues that maybe for the more conservative aspect of the gop dont play well. Youre right. Theres been a lot of discussion about how jeb bush is going to handle those two issues common core and comprehensive Immigration Reform. I think that he is going to be a formidable candidate. I think that once, you know a lot of candidates kind of wash out. I think youre going to see that not only can jeb bush do well. He was a good governor for florida. Hes a lot of he has a lot of establishment that will back him because of a legacy and the last name. Hes a good candidate. He really is a good candidate. Can he get through can he get through iowa New Hampshire, georgia, North Carolina South Carolina . Thats going take a wicked turn. If he can get through iowa. Can he get through New Hampshire . I dont know. He can take florida. By the time he gets to florida and, you know, jimmy, can he get through. Can he get through iowa New Hampshire, North Carolina, South Carolina, georgia before he gets to florida . The only way to get through iowa is to bow down to steve king. You cant be more extreme than that fool. Hes a fool no doubt about it. Iowa is its own special thing. New hampshire probably easier for him. South carolina . Thats a tough state. I mean dont forget gingrich won South Carolina last year. Bush family is liked in South Carolina where im from. And so you to get through the three states first. Once do you that for the most part you have momentum if you won all three. I just dont see how jeb bush actually gets through iowa. And its a caucus by the way, not a primary. Right. Lets swing to the Democratic Party. You have Hillary Clinton if she decides to run, clearly the frontrunner. But there are some on the left that are saying maybe shouldnt be a given thing. That maybe someone like Elizabeth Warren or others should even present a challenge. Do you think thats a possibility . Yes it is a possibility. And number hillary has some, you know, chinks in the armor, so to speak. You know dings in the armor. You have benghazi that is probably going to come up again. You have, you know recently they released thats going to come up by the gop not by the democrats. Come on okay. And you have an article that came out in politico about she and bill spent 1. 5 million on traveling when they were surrogates for the Midterm Elections. The other thing is Elizabeth Warren and Elizabeth Warren is someone that can sneak up and actually present a threat to her. Number one, you know, it takes away from her being the only woman candidate in the race. Number two, shes going get support, i would think, from people like tom steyer who is a big epa pac. She stood up for the epa when the stimulus bill was coming out and she said how, you know, she was upset they were taking money away from the epa. Shes far left but she stands true to the far left as a true candidate. So, jimmy, were talking about names matter. The clinton name and the brand is very very strong and inside Democratic Party and throughout the country, really. Do you see her as being threatened at all by someone like the senator who said shes not running for president . Shes not running for president. She said shes not running for president. He said last week shes going to finish out the senate term. Barack obama never said that. And the idea that Elizabeth Warren is running is not true. She did say she wasnt going to president in the future. I wont mind seeing her run in the future. At the end of the day, its remarkably simple. Its Hillary Clintons race to lose. Bernie sanders is probably going to get in. Martin omalley may get in. The democrats expect her to perform. I expect her to perform. By the way, on the issue of benghazi, shes talked about that and shes been cleared of any wrong doing. I welcome that debate. I love you both. Thank you for being with me. Breaking news to tell you about. Were expecting to hear from the fbi shortly on the sony hacking scandal. Following all the developments on the story. Well bring you the statement as soon as we get it. Coming up president obama gets off to hawaii this afternoon for his christmas get away before be he says alhoa. Hes taking questions from the press. Just ahead a break down of the topics the president is expected to hit in his final News Conference of 2014. [ soft holiday music ] can you help me up . [ snow intensifies ] [ sleighbells ring in the distance ] aleve. All day pain relief with just 2 pills. Get back to being you. Its more than the driver. Its more than the car. For lotus f1 team, the Competitive Edge is the cloud. Powered by microsoft dynamics, azure, and office 365, the team can gain Real Time Insights and instantly share information around the globe. When every millisecond counts, staying competitive begins with the cloud. This is the microsoft cloud. Ring ring . Progresso you soup people have my kids loving vegetables. Well vegetables. Shh taste better in our savory broth. Vegetables . No. Soup oh soup loaded with vegetables. Packed with taste. Her smile is so white. I was pretty stunned myself. Removes fourteen years of stains. See . Crest whitestrips work on a deeper level than paste. Whitening toothpaste only removes surface stains, but whitestrips go below the enamel surface to safely remove deep stains. Dont miss our buy one get one free offer this Holiday Season and were following breaking news for you. The fbi is expected to deliver a statement on the sony hacking scandal short willly. Well bring it as soon as we get it. It may put the issue at the top of the list for president obamas end of Year Press Conference which is coming up at 1 30 eastern, 10 30 pacific. Theres no shortage of topics for him to discuss. We figured we would bring in some of our favorite reporters to go through them. Ayman sakuma has been following immigration. Ben ji looks ahead to 2015 and alex looks at 2016. Amanda, it seems like the next big focus for immigration is getting policy changes in place, right . Good morning, jose. Exactly. President obamas executive actions are supposed to kick off the application process as early as february next year. There are a number of issues and factors already standing in the way. There are some 24 states who have signed on to sue president obama over the measures. Legal experts say their argument is relatively thin. It could stand to put on a very lengthy legal process. Now another lower court judge this week wrote a very scathing memo this week saying it went as far as unconstitutional. The judicial briefing doesnt have any type of bearing on the implementation of the president s actions, with it stands to give kind of a wind beneath the sails of conservative arguments against president obamas actions. Hell likely speak to these issues later on today. Hes reiterated many times that his executive actions are within his authority but hes calling on congress to also find a legislative solution that is more permanent through comprehensive Immigration Reform. Well see if they tackle that in 2015. Benjamin, what do you think the president should say today to ease tensions with the Republican Congress coming in . Its not entirely clear what he can do. The Midterm Election was six weeks ago, hard to believe, given how much is happening in the white house. One thing it has in common the china agreement, immigration. All of these have completely avoided congress. So at some point, congress can try to throw up a roadblock on all of these issues. They can try to repeal regulations, try to block, for example, the funding of an embassy in havana. And president obama will have to deal with it some degree or another or find another way to route around which could enrage the gop further. Right now the dynamic is pretty clear. The white house is going move forward regardless of what republicans in congress think. Until that attitude changes, its hard to imagine how theres going to be much bipartisan. Do you anticipate president obama weighing in at all on 2016 race . I suspect hell get asked. Hell be asked if theres anybody out there who can do what he did in 2008 and beat Hillary Clinton in a democratic primary. The campaign to try to draft senator Elizabeth Warren of course major progressive star in the senate has been ramping up. They kicked of in iowa this week. Last night keith el sis ellisno endorsement from obama today. Probably praise for all the potential democrats looking at the race including his own Vice President joe biden. I think hell avoid weighing in specifically too much. And i want to ask you about you were saying about the need for congress to fund some of the things that the president has, you know, unlatically announced and, for example, on the embarrassembassy issue in cuba whether the house could, you know, not fund it. Theres already a intersection in cuba. Its a big building that is really essentially the americans have been in for years since carter reestablished that intersection. It seems like the president pretty much dotted all the is before he took the decisions as far as the possible repercussions congress could do to cut into that . Yes and no. The white house has been pretty clear they think theyre okay on funding already when it comes to an embassy. There already is an institution in there that can serve the role. But the senate does have to confirm an ambassador. That could be a problem. Marco rubio is talking about fighting that tooth and nail. And in addition to fully lift the embargo as far as lifting the trade and travel blockade, that would take an act of congress. That mane means he would have to deal with republicans that have not sounded too enthused about the idea. He can accomplish a lot on his own but there are still limits. And amanda on the immigration issue. The session that is wrapping up in the house one thing they did get together on the house to pass a bill that go nowhere saying they should defund and deport dreamers. So do you think theres any possibility that Immigration Reform could come out of the house and the senate after the president s statement on immigration or even before . You know, is this a highlight of their session in the next year . You know, last right before president obama announced his executive action there were Republican Leaders who were saying they wanted president obama to hold off until the next legislative session mainly because thats when republicans will be taking over the upper chamber. Now theres nothing right now that shows there is a chance of Immigration Reform coming through congress but as far as we know so far, they will be fighting tooth and nail against these executive actions that will be as i said starting off as early as february and another round will come as early as may. So there are a number of factors they can do. Theyve already held the department of Homeland Security funding. Theyve only funded it for a short amount of time. Secretary jay johnson was speaking to this yesterday and pointing out its not just immigration that is under the departments per view. They also deal with the tsa. They also deal with the sony hacking and they need this funding for more than just immigration. And alex, lets talk about Hillary Clinton. You know we heard jeb bush announce he was thinking about thinking of running for president and that changed the whole dynamic of the gop. Hillary clinton has yet to announce. Shes clearly been declared shes thinking about it. But yet how does her schedule look in the coming year to maybe be a tea leave reading behalf she may be expected to announce or when . Yeah. In 2007 during her first president ial run she announced january 20th. Initially a lot of people were expecting she would announce around at the same time this time around. Thats not the case. Shes scheduled paid speeches as late of march. From what im hearing its Something Like an april announcement getting her past the First Campaign finance report deadline. Thats fine for her. Theres outside groups and super pacs working 0en her behalf. It creates an opening on the republican and democratic side. Jeb bush dipping a toe in the water so he can build an apparatus, and on the democratic side those groups trying to draft Elizabeth Warren saying the extra days will be precious as they try to convince Elizabeth Warren to change her mind and get in the race. Bernie Sanders Campaign is saying the same thing. Thank you so much for being with me. Breesht your time. Thank you. And stay with msnbc for president obamas end of the Year Press Conference from the press conference he goes on ward to hawaii. Its expected at 1 30 eastern time. Thats 10 30 pacific time. Of course youll be able to watch it. You must watch it here on msnbc. Stephen colbert wrapped up nine years on the Series Finale of the colbert report. When we come back, its five things colbert. Thank you for taking some of your rapidly dwindling time on earth to be with me. Ive been sitting here for either two minutes or 200 years. I cant still the difference anymore. Sheila you see this ball control . You see this right . Its 80 confidence and 64 knee brace. Thats more. Shh. I know thats more than 100 . But thats what winners give. Now bicycle kick your old 401 k into an ira. I know, i know. Listen, just get td ameritrades rollover consultants on the horn. Theyll guide you through the whole process. Its simple. Even she could do it. Whatever, janet. For all the confidence you need. Td ameritrade. You got this. I will take beauty into my own hands. Where it belongs Olay Regenerist renews to reveal new skin in only five days. Without drastic measures. Stunningly youthful. Awardwinning skin. From the worlds 1. And keeping you up to date on breaking news. The fbi will release a statement on the sony hacking scandal shortly. We will bring it to you as soon as we get it. First, here is stephen. Well meet again i dont know when i dont know when but i know well meet again some sony day fading to black. We will meet again Stephen Colbert. Getting a lot of help as he wrapped up his final colbert report after over 1400 reports. Lets send stephen off in our own way. The politicians for them the reporter was no joke. President obama even making a trip to the show earlier this month to send him on his way. Number two he crashing the party at the 2006 White House Correspondent Association Dinner making things a bit awkward for george w. Bush with joikkes like this. I believe the government that governs best is the government that governs least. Serious stephen. Testifying before congress on the right of immigrant farmworkers. All while staying in character, of course. Number four how about cobertd trivia. Did you know hes got his own ben and jerrys ice cream flavor . He introduced it in 2007. Now you can join me internally as well as externally. Every delicious bite is full of crispy fudgecovered waffle cone the only time i waffle ribbons of caramel, and number five finally we will meet again. He wasnt lie last night. He takes up the reigns for David Letterman sometime next year. Out character. A big question will he go by Stephen Colbert . That remains to be seen. That wrapping up thethe rundownon msnbc msnbc. I wont see you until next year 2015. Have a great weekend newsnation with tamron hall is up next. See you soon. Im angela and i quit smoking with chantix. People who know me they say i never thought you would quit. but chantix helped me do it. Along with support Chantix Varenicline is proven to help people quit smoking. It gave me the power to overcome the urge to smoke. 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Ask your doctor if chantix is right for you. I take prilosec otc each morning for my frequent heartburn. Because it gives me. Zero heartburn prilosec otc. The number 1 doctorrecommended frequent heartburn medicine for 9 straight years. One pill each morning. 24 hours. Zero heartburn. vo nourished. Rescued. Protected. Given new hope. During the subaru share the love event, subaru owners feel it, too. Because when you take home a new subaru we donate 250 dollars to helping those in need. Well have given 50 Million Dollars over seven years. Love. Its what makes a subaru a subaru. [ narrator ] mama sherman and the legion of super fans. Wow [ narrator ] on a mission to get richard to his campbells chunky soup. Its new chunky beerncheese with beef and bacon soup. I love it. And mama loves you. Go go wow go power. Oats go made from oats cheerios cheerios go, go, go go power oats go cheerios go power go. Power yayyyy good morning. This is newsnation. We begin with breaking news. Were expecting an fbi statement very soon where sources tell nbc news they will attribute the massive cyber attack against sony sicktures to north korea. Something officials have only been willing to say privately. The white house is calling it a Serious National Security matter. Im joined by People Magazine writer and wire Magazine Technology writer. Thank you for joining us. Our own Pete Williams may be joining us very soon as were waiting new details regarding the fbi investigation. Initially this was the gossipy story about emails that were leaked from sony. Weve learned that the white house had been contacted by officials at sony white house officials consulted. At least there were a few people that saw it as something bigger than gossipy emails from the beginning. Yeah. There were warning signs this could have been a nation state attack. The issue is this doesnt have the markings of a typical nation state attack. Usually theyre conducted quietly. It changes everything we know about the nature of a state attack. Weve had National Security advisers discussing the fact that perhaps the new front on terror would be cyber attacks. We know the ongoing issues with china, on Property Protection patents, et. Cetera et. Cetera. There were people who have attempted and are people i should say, attempted to sound the alarm on the greater concern of these terror type cyber attacks