an erupting volcano. spewing ash and smoke 12,000 feet in the air. there are at least five dead and dozens injured, and there are americans who still have not been accounted for. it happened on new zealand's white island. that is a popular tourist attraction where more than 10,000 people visit every year. and there are questions tonight about why people were allowed to set foot on one of new zealand's most active volcanoes just weeks after geologists warned of volcanic unrest. ian lee leads off our coverage tonight. >> reporter: the eruption sent violent clouds of pulverized clouds and steams into the mid- afternoon sky. >> no. no, no, no, no, no. >> reporter: covering white island's moonlight surface in more then a foot of ash. this webcam footage taken just beforehand shows a group of people exploring the top-most reaches of the volcano. another group can be seen huddling on the shore below. within minutes, first responders navigated treacherous conditions to rescue 34 people. many of those evacuated were seriously injured, some with severe burns. eight people are still missing, five were killed. new zealand prime minister jacinda adern. >> no signs of life have been seen at any point. >> reporter: the island is a major tourist destination, drawing in nearly 10,000 people a year, among them, lauren barham and matthew urey, on a royal caribbean cruise for their honeymoon. both are now hospitalized. >> this was ridiculous. this is absurd. people died. >> reporter: rick and barbara barham heard from their daughter just before she left for the island hike. >> had my daughter known that there was any risk involved, she wouldn't have gone. >> reporter: the cruise line markets the trip by focusing on the adventure of exploring hot volcanic streams, but geologists recently saw an increase in dangerous gas, prompting them to raise the alert level. >> on the screen of things of volcanic eruption, it is not large, but if you're close to that, it's not good. >> reporter: experts warn that there still could be more eruptions from this volcano, but norah, one of the big questions this evening is with increased volcanic activity, why were people allowed on the island in the first place? >> o'donnell: deep question indeed. thank you. and there is no evidence of political bias. that's the conclusion of a hotly anticipated report about the start of the russia investigation that says the f.b.i. didn't plot against president trump. but the report also uncovered serious flaws in the investigation. our catherine herridge is deep- diving into the details. >> reporter: the nearly 500-page report from the justice department's inspector general concluded the f.b.i. acted with authorized purpose when it opened the investigation into the trump campaign's russia ties. >> they had no nothing. it was concocted. >> reporter: the president who for years has called the probe a witch hunt, alleging he was illegally spied on, dismissed the findings. >> this was an overthrow of government. this was an attempted overthrow, and a lot of people were in on it. and they got caught. >> reporter: the report was heavily critical of the f.b.i., finding fault in the four surveillance warrant applications for trump campaign's carter page, finding 17 inaccuracies and omissions in the warrant requests, including exculpatory evidence favorable to page. >> i think spying did occur, yes. >> reporter: attorney general bill barr, a staunch defender of the president, took issue with his own inspector general's report, saying it is clear the f.b.i. launched an intrusive investigation on the thinnest of suspicions. the report also criticized the f.b.i.'s reliance on christopher steele's dossier, used by agents to justify parts of the investigation, saying much of its information was uncorroborated. but in one twist, steele, who has been attacked repeatedly by the president, told the inspector general he was favorably disposed toward the trump family before he began his research and even had a personal relationship believed to be with ivanka trump. >> o'donnell: catharine joins us tonight. how did the f.b.i. respond to this report? >> reporter: well, norah, in an interview f.b.i. director christopher wray seemed to distance himself from attorney general barr's criticism, saying he agreed with inspector general horowitz that the russia investigation was appropriately opened. wray also conceded that some of his employees made serious mistakes and he's ordered at least 40 steps of corrective action, but that's not the end of it, because later this week horowitz will testify on capitol hill. >> o'donnell: more to come. thank you so much. tempers flared today on capitol hill in impeachment hearings as democrats said the president's actions posed a clear and present danger. that's also the democrats' justification for fast tracking articles of impeachment which could be voted on by the full house before christmas. nancy cordes is on capitol hill. >> he's badgering the witness. >> reporter: republican frustration boiled over today as democratic lawyers laid out their impeachment case based on witness interviews. >> because donald j. trump, the 45th president of the united states, abused the power of his office. >> reporter: they started with that july phone call between president trump and the president of ukraine. >> witnesses who listen to the call described it as unusual, improper, inappropriate, and concerning. >> reporter: president trump urged ukraine to investigate his campaign rival, joe biden, even as he withheld millions in ukraine aid. >> by early september, the president's scheme was unraveling. put simply: president trump got caught, so he released the aid. >> reporter: but the top republican lawyer argued the evidence is riddled with hearsay and speculation. >> there are conflicting and ambiguous facts throughout the record, facts that could be interpreted in different ways. >> let me tell you, those that think you've done something special here, you have set the bar so low i'm afraid it's irreparable. >> reporter: democrats are expected to release articles of impeachment by mid-week, explaining their haste this way: >> this process is moving at the speed of constitutional democracy because there is a clear and present danger to this presidential election. >> reporter: those provocative words refer to the fact that the president's personal lawyer, rudy giuliani, continues to travel to ukraine to investigate mr. trump's political rivals. he says he even wants to provide evidence to capitol hill. one of the president's top defenders here on the hill described that, norah, as "weird." >> o'donnell: all right, nancy. thank you. we should note as congress prover hs impeaching the esident t in paris for the first tiith russia's presidenladimir putiin to pursue a ceasefire in a war that's killed 14,000 people. elizabeth palmer reports tonight from paris. >> reporter: in the company of veteran european politicians and russia's ex-k.g.b. spy master president, ukraine's leader volodymyr zelensky was clearly a novice. in fact, it was president putin who reminded him to face the cameras. this is a high-profile summit, and as expected, there was no diplomatic breakthrough. but it was also political theater. everyone watching to see if zelensky would blink in the face of russian pressure. relations have been poisonous since russia seized the ukrainian territory of crimea in 2014 and then sent weapons to ukrainian separatists. the u.s. sided with kyiv against moscow and sent military aid to the ukrainian army, the very aid that is now central in the impeachment hearings. ultimately the kremlin wants to expand its influence in ukraine, but crowf angry ukrainians have made it crystal clear they won't have it. president zelensky came here to paris vowing that he would face down russia, but he still could have used some visible support from his most powerful ally, the united states. however, fallout from that now- notorious phone call left him looking very much alone. norah? >> o'donnell: that's why it matters, liz. thank you. tonight the f.b.i. is investigating a possible act of terrorism in that shooting by a saudi national at the pensacola naval air station. many are demanding answers as there is outrage and anguish over the loss of three young sailors. david begnaud reports tonight from pensacola. >> reporter: it was a somber ceremony. the bodies of the three fallen service members arrived at dover airforce base in delaware last night where a dignified transfer took place. the u.s. navy identified the men as 24-year-old ensign joshua watson, 21-year-old airman apprentice cameron walters, and 19-year-old airman mohammed haitham. haitham followed his mother'sep. this is his mother, evelyn brady. >> i love you. i love you. i am so very proud. >> reporter: tonight the f.b.i. confirmed that the shooter, 21 - year-old mohammed alshamrani, a member of the royal saudi air force, was active on social media. law enforcement is still looking for a motive. barely two hours before the shooting spree, someone matching alshamrani's identity posted this on twitter, "oh, american people, i hate you, because every day you supporting funding and committing crimes not only against muslims but also humanity." the associated press has reported that the shooter held a dinner party days earlier where he watched mass shooting videos with three other saudi students. the f.b.i. says alshamrani carried out the shooting with a legally purchased nine millimeter handgun. florida governor ron desantis wants the federal government to close loopholes. >> the second amendment applies so that we the american people can keep and bear arms. it does not apply to saudi arabians. >> reporter: investigators arem. the associated press reports days before the attack in florida, the gunman went to manhattan, visiting places like the rockefeller center christmas tree. there is no evidence tonight to suggest he was planning an attack there. one of the sailors who was shot and survived told his story to the local newspaper. he says he was in his office with two other coworkers when the gunman came right by them and actually shot through the door, wounding all three of them. they jumped out a window, ran to a coworker who put them in a truck, took them to the main gate where a police officer rushed them to the hospital. norah, all of them are still alive. >> o'donnell: all right, david. thank you. videos posted by a san diego man looked to police like a dry run for a mass shooting. that man is facing felony weapons charges. but in an exclusive jailhouse interview, he says none of it is real. janet shamlian has more on his disturbing videos. >> reporter: the man suspected of practicing for a mass shooting plead not guilty today to six felony charges filed against him. >> you drop one mag. you pick up another, right? >> reporter: 30-year-old steve homoki allegedly posted two threatening videos to youtube simulating an attack, loading assault rifles and aiming them outside the window of the sofia hotel, police say, right in the heart of downtown san diego. >> a little bit surprising. >> reporter: in an exclusive jailhouse interview with cbs station kfmb, homoki called the situation overblown. >> reporter: police found a cache of weapons in his home when arrested thursday after a tipste authorities say homoki booked a hotel room under an alias in march, posting the videos in september with the caption, "nothing is real." >> reporter: the hotel sits on a busy street with thousands of people traveling there every day. janet shamlian, cbs news, san diego. >> o'donnell: tonight newly released documents raise serious questions about whether the american people were lied to about the progress of the war in afghanistan, the longest in our history. david martin reports what we're learning from interviews with more than 400 senior officials. >> reporter: it's as blunt as can be, "we didn't know what we were doing," said now retired lieutenant general douglas lute, the afghan war czar for presidents bush and obama. first reported by "the washington post," more than 2,000 pages of interviews belie repeated assurances given byeaw. >> the past eight months have seen important b or w begans a campaign to destroy al qaeda after 9/11. donald rumsfeld, secretary of defense at the time, mocked reporters who asked if afghanistan could become a vietnam-like quagmire. >> all together now, quagmire. >> reporter: but five months later he was warning his staff, "we are never going to get the u.s. military out of afghanistan unless there is stability. help." the war in afghanistan has cost $1 trillion and 2,300 american lives, but there is still no good answer to a question asked by now-retired lieutenant general michael flynn, who served as the chief intelligence officer in afghanistan. >> we're all doing a great job. really? so if we're doing such a great job, why does it feel like we're losing? >> reporter: but, norah, military commanders insist the war has achieved its primary goal of preventing afghanistan from being used as a base for another attack like 9/11. >> o'donnell: david, thank you. and there is still much more ahead on tonight's "cbs evening news." dozens of cars and trucks collide on a slippery highway. where is this dangerous storm headed next? and why some parents want their kids to cry on santa's lap and the photographer who makes it happen. happen. ! bend at the waist! i'm tryin'! keep it up. you'll get there. whoa-hoa-hoa! 30 grams of protein, and one gram of sugar. ensure max protein. and i like to question your i'm yoevery move.n law. like this left turn. it's the next one. you always drive this slow? how did you make someone i love? that must be why you're always so late. i do not speed. and that's saving me cash with drivewise. my son, he did say that you were the safe option. and that's the nicest thing you ever said to me. so get allstate. stop bossing. where good drivers save 40% for avoiding mayhem, like me. this is my son's favorite color, you should try it. 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ask your doctor if it's time for xarelto®. to learn more about cost and how janssen can help, visit xarelto.com. >> o'donnell: all right. have you ever had your kid pose for pictures on santa's lap? smiles all around, right? didn't think so. mark strassmann met a photographer in atlanta who embraces the holly and the not so jolly. >> reporter: santa's workshop, where everything is picture- perfect. >> great job. that's a good one. >> reporter: this is photographer jeff rothman's studio. in here, a white christmas often turns blue. >> we have parents coming in here hoping their kids will cry and they're disappointed if they don't. >> run, everybody. >> reporter: turns out crying kids make hilarious holiday photos. kriss kringle meets chris cringe worthy. >> i think i'm going to cry no matter what. >> reporter: when you look at your portfolio, you would think, this photographer is not good with kids. he's a jerk. >> yeah. >> reporter: rothman was floored parents wanted his kids to cry. he had 7,000 photo shoots available over six weeks. they sold out in ten minutes. what age is the sweet spot? >> one to two is... >> reporter: water works? >> it's perfect. >>s real yeah, this is what they do. they're not smiles and perfect. >> reporter: santa meets three new crying kids every ten minutes. >> reporter: if you really want to feel how a child cries, it hurts, and, yeah, it does tug at my heart. >> reporter: but within seconds, all is calm, all is bright again. >> when they get older and their kids get older, they can sit down and share those photos and laugh about it. >> reporter: but until then, it's anything but silent night. ( crying ) >> o'donnell: i have one of those. post your crying santa pictures and tag us, and we'll repost it. we'll be right back. us, and we'll repost it. we'll be right back. let's be honest, quitting smoking is freaking hard. like quitting every monday hard. quitting feels so big. so, try making it smaller. and you'll be surprised at how easily starting small... ...can lead to something big. start stopping with nicorette oh, come on. flo: don't worry. you're covered. (dramatic music) and you're saving money, because you bundled home and auto. sarah, get in the house. we're all here for you. all: all day, all night. (dramatic music) great job speaking calmly and clearly everyone. that's how you put a customer at ease. hey, did anyone else hear weird voices while they were in the corn? no. no. me either. whispering voice: jamie. what? doprevagen is the number oneild mempharmacist-recommendeding? memory support brand. you can find it in the vitamin aisle in stores everywhere. prevagen. healthier brain. better life. yeah right. iand the earth is flat. ahhh!! treat your cough seriously with robitussin cf max. nothing lasts longer and treats more symptoms for your cough, cold and flu. robitussin. because it's never just a cough. ♪ ♪ the calming scent of lavender by downy infusions calm. laundry isn't done until it's done with downy. >> o'donnell: and tomorrow, holly williams reports from the front lines of the war between ukraine and russia and shows how political games in washington have life-and-de real reporting. that's tonight's "cbs evening news." i'm norah o'donnell in washington. we'll see you right back here to ♪ >> announcer: this is the "cbs overnight news." >> i'm tom hanson, and we've got a lot more to tell you about this morning, including a preview of this weekend's broadcast of the kennedy center honors. for 42 years, the center has been recognizing groundbreaking performers for their lifetime contributions to american culture. one of those being honored, singer linda ronstadt. during her more than four decades of performing, ronstadt recorded more than 40 songs on the hot 100. parkinson's disease took away her ability to sing. the kennedy center calls ronstadt the defining voice of a generation. the singer discussed her life and career with tony dokoupil. >> reporter: with that voice -- ♪ whenever i'm with him >> reporter: not to mention that personality -- ♪ starts me burning >> reporter: linda ronstadt dominated american pop music in the 1970s. ♪ like a heatwave >> reporter: she went on to sale more than 50 million records, leaping between genres and even languages. ♪ >> reporter: you won't get far trying to explain all that success to her toughest critic, first name linda. you go back now and you listen to some of your old stuff to remember? >> and i go what was i thinking. >> reporter: so if you go back and listen to one of your records today, you'll be thinking of all the things you should have done differently? >> i'll think i'm a terrible singer, i never could sing. it will ruin my week. maybe my month. ♪ i'm going back some day come what may to blue bayou ♪ >> reporter: even worse, ronstadt says is the thought of her music living forever online. >> it's terrifying. all those bad performances to start with frozen in time. not plastic, not elastic, not growing, not building, not maturing, not learning. not improving. >> you remind me of these authors who write manuscripts, and they and in their family members burn them when they die. >> i burn letters and all that. i never keep thinking. >> what? >> nobody's business. >> reporter: all the look and magazine covers were just a by-product she says of songs she simply had to perform for her own reasons. >> there will be a line or two in the lyrics that i really relate to and i think i have to sing that or i'm going to die. >> you to? >> i have to. share the feeling, share the sentiment, and it tells my own story. >> born and raise nasdd in tucs ronstadt moved to los angeles in the early 1960s where she established herself as a rare performer. ♪ it's so easy to fall in love >> the kind that didn't write her own songs but owned the songs of others through that singular voice. you could write you're a co-author of every one of your hits. that's not a cover. it's a linda ronstadt song. >> no, i just interpreted them 2 best i could. sometimes i did them justice. sometimes i did them disservice. >> while she is critical. two members of her backup band, glenn frey and don henley went on to form their own group, the eagles. and ronstadt shared the stage with other stars. ♪ in a career defined by change. ♪ forget about you baby because here to stay ♪ >> linda coulder s anng ady h tried more different styles and nailed it than linda has. >> i tried to make a list of the different genres you've played in. could you help me? >> cajun music, americana, and standards. ♪ revisiting '60s style wall of sound music. >> '60s style. >> mexican music. ♪ >> and pop covers, rhythm and blues covers. ♪ ♪ that will be the day when you say goodbye ♪ >> traditional cowboy song. >> cowboy song. ♪ >> country. >> country. >> i'm out of fingers. ♪ >> i sang some classical music. i forget about the classical music i produced. latin. >> we're on my toes now. ♪ if you look closer, it's easy to trace the tracks of my tears ♪ . >> but after decades of singing it all, ronstadt noticed a change in her vocal chords. >> i tell them to do something and they unit do it. >> the diagnosis in 2013, parkinson's disease. having spent a lifetime building your instrument, what was it like emotionally to feel it fall away? >> well, it's not as bad as being a ballet dancer. they only last to 30. >> that's one way of looking at it. >> i had a longer turn with the trough. i miss singing with my family. i miss singing with my friends. most of the music i sang was not in public. it was in the shower, the car, driving, sitting on the sofa, working out. i sang all the time. and the best of it was the stuff i did with my friends in the living room. >> see, we're never working to please the fans. you're working to please yourself. >> never working to please the fans. because if you do that, it's already artificial. you're already pandering, you know. ♪ desperado >> now a kennedy center honoree, linda ronstadt admits it's nice to see her work so celebrated, even if she is not quite ready to celebrate it herself. >> the only thing i can say about my career is that i wasn't very good when i started out and i got a little better. >> that's it? that's the whole thing? that's the linda ronstadt story? >> sucked when she started. improved a little bit. >> you can see the kennedy honors this sunday at 8:00 p.m. right here on cbs. more an that show when we breathe freely fast, with vicks sinex. my congestion's gone. i can breathe again! ahhhh! breathe on. 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"shining star" pretty much just broke the door open. ♪ you're a shining star >> reporter: "shining star" first topped billboard's top 100 in 1975, and the hits kept coming. ♪ dance, boogie wonderland >> it was an electrical time where there was nothing we could do that was wrong. >> it was hitting on all cylinders. ♪ after the love is gone >> reporter: though it would be years before he acknowledged his illness, maurice's diagnosis of parkinson's disease forced him from touring in 1994. he died in 2016. >> we had to make a decision, could we go on without maurice? would the audiences accept us without maurice? so the three of us took it forward. >> mind you, getting out of that hole he had was huge. so we had to really put it together, which we did. ♪ got to get you inside my life, into my life ♪ >> reporter: verdine white, philip bailey, and ralph johnson continue their mission to bring music to the masses. and now this. when you see this -- ♪ >> and they've seen that mission accomplished. >> wow! >> reporter: more than 12 million people have watched this video on youtube featuring earth, wind & fire fans of all ages and backgrounds. what does that say to you? >> it says that music is a powerful tool. >> we are very blessed to be a part of something that was and is so well received around the world. ♪ sing >> reporter: sitting in that audience at the kennedy center. the rainbow ribbon signifies cultural impact more than just music. >> yeah. it's more than just music. >> you changed music and enriched the lives of generations to come. >> kind of gets back around to maurice's intent. >> that's right. >> from day one. >> yep. to render service to humani the. i'll bhiut maurice a lot. i'm thinking about it now. he left it in our hands, and he was proud of it and he was proud of what we accomplished. so i'll beou heard, cbs will be when you humble yourself under the mighty hand of god, in due time he will exalt you. hi, i'm joel osteen. i'm excited about being with you every week. i hope you'll tune in. you'll be inspired, you'll be encouraged. i'm looking forward to seeing you right here. you are fully loaded and completely equipped for the race that's been designed for you. children of all ages are mourning the passing of one of the most famous tv actors you've probably never seen, puppeteer caroll spinney. for half a century, he played big bird and oscar the grouch on "sesame street." spinney died sunday at his connecticut home. he was 85. spinney won six daytime emmys, two grammys, a library of congress living legend award, and a lifetime achievement award from the national academy of television arts and sciences. he was also celebrated at the kennedy center honors. anthony mason reports. . >> reporter: as the kennedy center honors celebrated the legacy of "sesame street" -- >> i'm big bird. >> reporter: big bird was front and center. the show's cast members all wore yellow feathers to remember caroll spinney, the man who spent nearly 50 years as the iconic canary. >> they say what do you do? i say well, you have heard of "sesame street"? i'm big bird. >> reporter: spinney was born just outside boston in 1933. he started puppeteering as a kid, but it wasn't until three decades later that an encounter with muppets creator jim henson helped him land a life-changing role. >> i nearly laid an egg right here on "sesame street." >> reporter: big bird debuted on "sesame street" in 1969. the puppet was more than 8 feet tall, and the 5'10" spinney used his hand to move its mouth. as big bird became a household name, so did another of spinney's characters. >> oscar? >> i'm not home. >> reporter: the grumpy, albeit endearing oscar the grouch. ♪ yes, love trash seeet"ast year. big bird, what kind of bird are you? >> oh, well, i'm a big yellow bird. >> reporter: in october, we spoke to his successor, 49-year-old matt vogel about the puppeteer's influence. at did you learn from apprenticing under him? >> learned about how big bird is this innocent, kind, sweet, curious kid, and caroll is like that as well. >> reporter: when he retired, spinney said he hoped big bird helped make the world a better place. ♪ thank you, thank you, thank you for being our friend ♪ ♪ for being my friend >> if you want to learn more about caroll spinney, he published a memoir some years back called "the wisdom of big bird and the dark genius of oscar the grouch, lesson from a life in feathers." that the over"overnight news" from our center in new york. i'm on ttom hanson. it's tuesday, december 10th, 2019. this is the "cbs morning news." announcing articles of impeachment. democrats plan to reveal at least two of them this morning, abuse of power, and obstruction of congress. reaction and what's next in the process. authorities in new zealand are opening an investigation after a tourism disaster on a live volcano killed at least five people. and a winter preview. an arctic blast brings snow and rain to the east and south. captioning funded by cbs good morning from the studio 57 newsroom at cbs news

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