Theyre going back to iraq where so many thousands of americans have already served the country and died. And this time their mission could take them into syria as well. Megan hughes tracking from washington. Megan, good morning. Reporter reena, kendis, good morning. A u. S. Official tells abc news a new task force being created could require roughly 200 personnel in iraq. The u. S. Is stepping up the fight against the islamic state, defense secretary ash carter laying out the plan to congress. Were defending the homeland, acting to defeat isil at its core in syria and iraq. Reporter carter announced the u. S. Is establishing a special operations targeting force. It will be based in iraq and conduct raids, gather intelligence, free hostages and aim to capture isis leaders. Even before the attacks on paris, carter had planned for a broader role for u. S. Special ops forces after a raid in iraq u. S. Forces held 70 hostages and one american was killed. Joshua wheeler, at a discussion at Harvards Kennedy center he disputed boots on the ground. A lot dont think were putting boots on the ground and doing a lot from the air but there are boots on the ground. Reporter with nearly 200 countries coming together to talk Climate Change in paris, president obama used the opportunity to drum up international support. I am confident that we can continue Building Momentum and adding resources to our effort to degrade and ultimately destroy isil. Reporter the British Parliament is expected to vote today on whether that country will join in launching air strikes against isis. Reena, kendis. Megan hughes live in washington, thank you so much. Of course, you heard megan mention the u. S. Led coalition against isis. In a new and rare interview in english syrias president Bashar Al Assad is criticizing the u. S. For its effectiveness against the terror group. A coalition started attacking it but said isis has suffered losses since russias Bombing Campaign began. Assad also mocked the countries working with the u. S. Nobody is taking the western officials anymore. First of all they dont have credibility credibility. They dont have vision and theyre not independent going for the americans. So theyre not syria. They dont exist under that. Most of them europeans. We look at the master. The master is the americans. He criticized frances response to this years terrorist attacks saying it didnt learn from the massacre at the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo and expressed sadness at seeing of hundreds of thousands of refugees leaving his country. This morning caughts top Police Official is out of a job amiding growing outrage over the death of a black teen at the hands of a white Police Officer. Garry mccarthy was fired a week after the release of the dash cam video seen here showing the 16 times. Mayor rahm emanuel called the firing the first step in restoring public trust. He said it was time for fresh eyes and new leadership. He has become an issue rather than dealing with the issue. And a distraction. Now the entire police force may soon be under scrutiny by the Justice Department. The illinois attorney general has called for a federal investigation into Police Department practices there. For the first time were hearing from the Cleveland Police officer who shot 12yearold tamir rice. In a Statement Released by the sheriffs department, officer Timothy Loehmann insists he was aiming for rices weapon, loehmann and his partner say they repeatedly warned rice to show his hands but instead he reached down into his waistband. Rice was carrying a pellet gun at the time. He was shot seconds after the officers exited their vehicles. Theyre deciding whether they in the race for 2016 your voice, your vote and reaction to this new claim by republican ted cruz about criminals and their party affiliation. Now, listen, heres the simple and undeniable fact, the overwhelming majority of violent criminals are democrats. The Cruz Campaign telling abc news the senator based his statement on a study conducted in three states that showed a majority of excons in those states registered as democrats. He made the comments in connection with the deadly shooting at a Colorado Planned Parenthood clinic which he accused the democrats of politicizing. Frontrunner Donald Trump Tells a New Hampshire crowd that he sometimes feels guilty about not serving in the vietnam war. Trump says he got several deferments and came close to being drafted before the war ended. And for the second time in 24 hours new Jersey Governor Chris Christie has made a jab at trump. If donald starts yelling and screaming in the middle of the sit down and shut up. He criticized reporters for repeated questions about trump and not, quote here, serious issues. The soaking rains crawling across the country. Spreading across the radar you can see a large system bringing downpours from alabama to maine. A few inches expected in some areas. Behind it all a cold front that will bring. Cooler temperatures to the east coast. Still ahead, forget the big screen tvs. It appears Something Else was the big seller on black friday. Vanishing without a trace, the mystery surround the disappearance of a hollywood producer. The emotional plea from his parents. A Police Officer falling off youre looking at nearly 9,000 gallons of gasoline up in flames. This tanker caught fire south of los angeles forcing the i15 freeway to shut down in both directions, but the driver managed to escape without injury and no one else was hurt. It took about two hours, however, to bring the fire under control. On the other coast, a deadly crash in new jersey last night between a car and a school bus. The car collided headon with the bus carrying a High School Swim team. Two men in the car were killed. Eight students were treated for minor injuries. Police say the car was speeding and may have been trying to pass other cars. November used to be a slow month for auto sales but not anymore. Black friday promotions helped push sales to near record levels last month. Hyundai led the way with sales jumping 12 and no surprise volkswagen saw the biggest decline. Sales off almost 25 hurt by the companys admission that its diesel vehicles cheated on well, black friday was busy for one federal agency, the fbi processed a Record Number of firearms background checks on that day, the same day three people were shot and killed at a planned Parenthood Office in colle could. Previous spikes came after Mass Shootings like the one at sandy hook elementary. Mcdonalds is trying something a little different at hundreds of restaurants across southern california. Customers will continue ordering at the counter but then they can sit down and when their food is ready an employee will serve it to them at their table. The new Table Service option will be tested at more than 600 restaurant, no word right now on if or when it could go national. Fancy. Yeah. Fancy for mcdonalds. When we come back dramatic rescue. A mother and her three children trapped in their car. Surrounded by water. And are Christmas Lights look at you, saving money on your Medicare Part d prescriptions. At walgreens, we call that carpe med diem. Thats almost latin for seize the day to get more out of life and Medicare Part d. From onedollar copays on select plans. To now reward points on all prescriptions, walgreens has you covered. So drop by and seize the savings walgreens. At the corner of happy and healthy. Quilted northern works so well people can forget their bathroom experience. Just like they forgot conductor randy, who sees all and forgets nothing. Heres a viewpoint most of us will never see in person. A massive danish rescue ship battling high waves this weekend during a storm. The the storm packed hurricanestrength winds which damaged roof, even knocked out power on land, the ship is part of denmarks coast guard. Your morning Road Conditions wont be that rough for sure. Gulf coast all the way north through new england, slippery around the great lakes, wet also in the northwest. If youre flying airport delays possible along the northeast corridor from washington up to boston as well as in chicago and detroit. Well, some new details about a harrowing rescue of a family caught in their vehicle over thanksgiving weekend. A womans suv had been swept away by floodwaters into a frigid creek in oklahoma. She was inside with her three children. Between 1 and 6 years old. They crawled out of a window on to the suvs roof and made this desperate 911 call. The cars under the water. We need help. Ive got my kids and my grandma. The water was so high and i just kept telling him, just keep your head up. Wow, rescue teams found them after 45 minutes in the freezing water pulled to shore with a rope treated at a hospital and they are okay this morning. Well, the search is on for a missing hollywood producer. Out of work in gardena without his wallet. His laptop or his bag. He never came back. His range rover last spotted at a nearby Grocery Store but no signs of him. His heartbroken parents have come down from Northern California to join the search. Its not my son. He would never do that on his own accord. He would never just throw it away. I want my son back. I want him to come home. I cant find him. As you can imagine theyre hoping someone will come forward with information about their son. It was a hard landing for a cop on the job in utah. Oh. All right, hold on. What youre watching and listening there, a suspect on the roof of a strip mall after his charge, the officer wearing a body camera lost his balance and fell ten feet to the concrete below. But is doing fine right now. The suspect was arrested and understandably facing several charges. Well, a Senate Investigation found the company that came up with the cure for hepatitis c has priced its drugs beyond the reach of average americans. The two senators who presented the report on the hepc drug sovaldi says it costs a thousand dollar i a pill. It puts the burden on medicare, medicaid and the patient, this he say. Well, now sports starting with kobe bryant and exclusive interview with abcs Robin Roberts. He says it was his dream to be an l. A. Laker and that being on the team for 20 years has actually that made that dream come true. Bryant, of course, is retiring at the end of this season and tells robin he realized it was nearly time to hang it up while he was meditating. Normally what happens with me is my mind would always drift to the game, always. Then i found myself sitting there. The game anymore and i started realizing, you know what, its getting close, its getting close because now im not obsessively thinking about the game anymore. Kobe bryant speaking with good morning americas Robin Roberts in philadelphia. You can see the entire interview this morning on good morning america. Who knew, meditation. Its the key to a lot, i guess. Also happens that bryant and his laker teammates were on the court last night. Yep, we get the details on how that went from our guys at espn. Hey, its the sportscenter set here in los angeles. Stan verrett along with neil everett. We got College Basketball to talk about and also a breakthrough win as the nba says goodbye to kobe bryant. You were fired up at the beginning there. Fired up in philly. Kobe was back this town. Going to be his last trip as a laker, of course, he grew up there. There he was, they gave him a huge owe vegas. Listen, he was touched, man. He said he was genuinely touched and we have to believe he was being genuine. He came out, had 13 in the first maybe this retirement thing came too early. Not so much. The 76ers hadnt won a game since the Millard Fillmore administration. They win the first game of the season, 10391. Everybody wanted to hug kobe bryant. It wasnt hawk ward. And the lakers fall to 215. Ouch. College basketball, number two maryland, number nine north carolina. Marcus paige returning for his first game of the season. Had that broken bone in his right hand, he came out ready to go, though, 20 points for page in this game. Tumble answered rye back. 12 assists for him. Got fouled there. Made the free throw. Maerld up by one. Justin jackson misses. Keep an eye on jackson, saves the ball, comes back in and Kennedy Meeks able to get it to him. Carolina wins, 8981. Maryland missed eight of its away down the stretch. Anything else. I got chapped lips. And on that note, well send it back to you. Get that fixed, neil. Thanks, guys. Great news to report about a young girl whose story weve been following for quite some time. Youre probably familiar with lea still, the daughter of lineman devon still. Diagnosed with advanced stage cancer in june of last year. The bengals kept her dad on the team to help pay for her treatment. The great news, shes still cancerfree. Tests over the summer showed her cancer was in remission and now her father says followup exams show no evidence of the disease. Shes a real ray of light. Always throughout the entire ordeal. She had such a bright smile on her face. Up next in the pulse, big baby news for Mark Zuckerberg along with his 45 billion pledge. The pout seen around the go viral. The pursuit of healthier. It begins from the second were born. Because, healthier doesnt happen all by itself. It needs to be earned every day. Using wellness to keep away illness. And believing a single life can be made better by millions of others. As a Health Services and Innovation Company optum powers modern healthcare by connecting every part of it. So while the world keeps searching for healthier were here to make healthier happen. My moderate to severe chronic plaque psoriasis made a simple trip to the Grocery Store anything but simple. So finally, i had an important conversation he explained that humira works inside my body to target and help block a specific source of inflammation that contributes to my symptoms. In clinical trials, most adults saw 75 skin clearance. And the majority were clear or almost clear in just 4 months. Humira can lower your ability to fight infections, including tuberculosis. Serious, sometimes fatal infections and cancers, including lymphoma, have happened; as have blood, liver, and nervous system problems, serious allergic reactions, and new or worsening heart failure. Before treatment, get tested for tb. Tell your doctor if youve been to areas where certain fungal infections are common, and if youve had tb, hepatitis b, are prone to infections, or have flulike symptoms or sores. Dont start humira if you have an infection. Ask your dermatologist about humira. Time to check the pulse starting with that unique baby announcement from the founder of facebook. Maxima zuckerberg was born early last week. Max for short. I like it. In the letter to their little girl proud papa Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan announced theyre donating 99 of their wealth to charity. About 45 billion. The initial focus is on education, disease prevention and building strong communities. Very cool. Zuckerberg also said that he plans to remain facebooks ceo for a long, long time to come and says part of the reason for the donation, they want a better theyre starting at home. Hell take two months paternity leave and help out. Im sure they need the help. Well, instagram is inspiring baby names. Baby center is out with the most popular names. Topping the list, jackson for boys and sofia for girls. But a new trend is naming babies after instagram filters like lux. That name is up 75 . Interesting. The same goes for ludwig. That name is up 42 . Do you know that ludwig is the german form of louis. Juno, the name jumping 30 on the boys name list. I didnt know you spoke german. I didnt either. So tis the season to deck the halls. Might want to go easy on the lights. Theyre being plamed for slowing down wifi. A british watchdog says complaints soared during the holidays and they say its okay, so experts recommend keeping your lights as far away as possible from your router. Thats good to know. Ive never had a slowdown but i might call up to see if i can get advanced speed. Good deal. Bargain hunter. Finally an old rod stewart song is called every picture tells a story and that be used to wrap up the pulse. Take a look. This photo. Whats wrong with it. An australian politician, his wife and two kids there posing for their Christmas Card. Their youngest son there on the left, well, lets just say he wasnt having any of it. That little guy pouting as he sits there, oh, poor thing. Needless to say if it wasnt for him we wouldnt even be mentioning the whole thing so quite frankly i think this was a Christmas Card success. They sent it out anyway. Those are the best Christmas Cards, not the perfect posed ones. More news after this. Fe. So when my asthma symptoms kept coming back on my longterm control medicine, in my asthma treatment. Oncedaily breo prevents asthma symptoms. Breo is for adults with asthma not well controlled on a longterm asthma control medicine, like an inhaled corticosteroid. Breo wont replace a rescue inhaler for sudden breathing problems. Breo opens up airways to help improve breathing for a full 24 hours. Breo contains a type of medicine that increases the risk of death from asthma problems and may increase the risk of hospitalization in children and adolescents. Breo is not for people whose asthma is well controlled on a longterm asthma control medicine, like an inhaled corticosteroid. Once your asthma is well controlled, your doctor will decide if you can stop breo and prescribe a different asthma control medicine, like an inhaled corticosteroid. Do not take breo more than prescribed. See your doctor if your asthma does not improve or gets worse. Ask your doctor if 24hour breo could be a missing piece for you. See if youre eligible for checking our top story, defense secretary Ash Carter Says more u. S. Special operations troops are heading to iraq to battle isis. They will work with iraqi forces as well as unilaterally inside syria. Opening statements will begin as early as today in the first trial of a baltimore Police Officer in connection with the death of freddie gray. Officer William Porter is charged with failing to get medical help for gray. Chicagos Police Superintendent has been fired amid outrage over the shooting death of a black teenager. Now the Justice Department is being asked to conduct a federal investigation into the entire Police Department. And taking a look at todays weather rain and snow from Northern California into the northwest. Sunny across the southwest and texas, rain along the east coast. Well, president obamas back in washington this morning after attending the Climate Change conference in paris. But chinas dealing with an immediate pollution crisis. Five days in a row of hazardous air quality. Indoors and many people bore face masks. Bob woodruff is there. Reporter this is today in china. Most people staying off the normally crowded streets in Tiananmen Square the background barely visible. This is what it normally looks like as the sun goes down and the cars turn on their headlights. But the sad news is, because of all this pollution, this is noon. That heavy smog stopping traffic on the highways. That sign right there is a warning to drivers reading visibility low. Slow down the speed. The government issuing an alert advising residents to avoid being outdoors ordering factories to shut down temporarily. Schools keeping the kids inside. This playground empty. As we walked around the city everywhere we looked masks. Even on chinas youngest as this country desperately grappling with how to keep its people safe. Bob woodruff, abc news, beijing. The fact we take air quality for granted here all the time. Some amazing images coming out there. Hey, were partying. We are. Were celebrating a new milestone on facebook this morning. We want to thank you, bring on the confetti. We have passed 1 million likes. Thank you so much on facebook, everybody. And, remember, if you havent liked us yet, you can always like us at atmfans. Com. We like to be liked. Least send us comments. We read the bad ones and good ones. Michael says, love this mornings show. Thats good enough. Or watch every morn when cant sleep. Liked very much. We hope you suffer insomnia lots, meryl. Thats whats making news in