hacking the dnc and john podesta. as vladimir putin declares himself and his armed forces the strongest on earth. plus, another e-cig. caught on camera. hazards you should potentially worry about even if you do not smoke. good afternoon, welcome to "the lead." i'm jake tapper. three days since the devastating terror attack rocked berlin. there is still no trace of 24-year-old ahnis amri, the man officials say drove a tractor-trailer through a crowd in a christmas market in the heart of germany's capital. 12 people were killed and 48 wounded including two americans. amri was known to u.s. intelligence officials and had been placed on a no-fly list in this country. german security services knew amri had spoken several times about carrying out an attack and at one point had been under government surveillance. do the german authorities have any leads on his whereabouts at this point, erin? >> reporter: it's unclear at this hour. german authorities being very careful about what information they share with the public so as not to compromise this ongoing investigation. we know that there were police raids today in the berlin and cologne areas. it seems highly likely that authorities are entertaining the possibility that members of a pro-isis recruitment network are helping him hide. tonight cnn has learned police had been tracking for months the man they suspect of mowing down 12 and injuring scores, impie compiling hundreds of pages of intelligence. saying he had spoken several times about committing attacks. raids continue tonight across germany for the most wanted man in europe. investigators say they found amri's fingerprints on the door of the truck used in the deadly attack, adding to their confidence that he carried it out. as more is discovered about amri's background and his links to radical islamists. >> we have additional indication that the suspect is the attacker. in the driver's cab, we found fingerprints. and there are additional indications to support this. >> reporter: the lengththy investigative file connects amri directly to a terror cell in germany. other members of the group also talked of carrying out attacks, including driving a truck full of gasoline and loaded with a bomb into a crowd. five men connected to the cell, including a close friend of amri, were arrested in november and charged with terrorism offenses. two of amri's brothers say, before he left tunisia as a teenager he was a very different person, drank alcohol and didn't pray. they say they believe he changed in prison in italy. he served a four-year sentence for setting fire to a refugee center and other violent oy fins. when released in 2015 authorities tried to send him back to tunisia but officials refused to let him back in citing improper documentation. he moved to german and connected with an isis recruiting network. he was arrested for trying to travel to italy with fake documents. police were aware of his attempts to obtain a gun. german attempts to deport him also failed and a judge ordered him set free. tonight german officials fear several people could have been involved in monday's attack, despite all that authorities know about amri, he remains on the run, likely armed and dangerous. the christmas market just behind me, the scene of the attack, reopened this morning. it was a somber atmosphere. people stopping by a make-shift memorial to light candles and play flowers, remembering the dead, an incredible seen of resilience despite so much uncertainty. jake. >> all right, erin mclaughlin for us in berlin. as we mentioned, ahnis amri was known to u.s. intelligence officials and had been placed on a no-fly list in the u.s. how did he get on the radar for u.s. intelligence? >> german intelligence agencies provided the information on the suspect to the u.s. and the u.s. added him to the no-fly list. german authorities identified him as a group of jihadist supporters operating in central europe. this was a network helping to recruit fighters to join isis in syria. and intelligence agencies in europe and the united states found some of them were communicating with suspected isis members in syria. these are isis members who the intelligence agencies believe are helping to plot and to direct attacks in europe and turkey. >> evan, presumably u.s. intelligence is offering to help german authorities and european authorities. what kind of assistance can they provide? >> absolutely. the fbi has a legal attache in berlin who is in touch with germany in offering the u.s. assistance. there is a lot the u.s. can do to help. we d in belgium and france the u.s. provided key assists. with the attack and the man hunt that's ongoing, perhaps they'll welcome the help. the fact is that the intelligence agencies here and in europe are very concerned that isis has command and control capabilities in syria, they're still able to communicate and direct attacks in europe despite the pressure in syria and iraq, jake. and perhaps even because of that pressure, the authorities believe that there are more attacks on the way. >> evan pérez, thank you so much. appreciate it. joining me now democratic congressman adam schiff of california, the ranking memberimember on the house intelligence committee. you were just briefed on this investigation. what can you tell us? >> well, this is part of the problem we have seen in france in the past where you have people who are known to the intelligence agencies, known to law enforcement, they don't have the resources to continually surveil the suspects, even when there are very good reasons to do so. and at some point they're free to launch an attack. that very much appears to be the case here. as evan was reporting, and i have no reason to doubt this, we have been informed by german intelligence of much of what they know. we are sharing information with them as well. our system appears to be working in terms of the precautions we need against some of these folks coming to the united states. but plainly germany has this surplus of people, some who have returned from the fight, others, as we saw in france, who are radicalized while in prison. it shows the magnitude of what europe has to deal with. the other point i would make is that germany has capable intelligence services. they by and large do a good job. the legal challenges are enormous. as evan pointed out, the devotion to privacy is such that they don't always want some of the assistance we can offer. and that poses some constraints. but we have a very productive working relationship with the germans. >> let me drill down on that. what exactly do you mean? because obviously, if we knew of -- if the u.s. knew enough about this person to put him on a no-fly list, we would not necessarily have admitted him into the united states, one would think. was this an intelligence failure by the germans? what do you mean when you say that they have good intelligence but there are legal constraints? >> i don't know if you could say it's an intelligence failure. this suspect was on their radar and knew a lot about him. it was more of a legal problem. they couldn't deport him. they had a problem with the deportation efforts and there was no mechanism to around the clock surveil the person or to have a basis for detention of the person. so germany was stuck in this place where their intel was good, they had someone of concern, and yet, they couldn't either detain the person or deport them. and they were ordered released. >> it seems weird that tunisia would just deny that this individual was tunisian when you saw in that piece we just ran his family is in tunisia. he is obviously tunisian. you are not an expert on international law so maybe this isn't a fair question but why are they allowed to say, no, we don't want him when he's obvious obviously tunisian. >> tunisia has sent per capita as many or more into the fight in iraq and syria. >> the fight for isis. >> to fight for isis. they're having trouble with all of those people coming back. i am sure that there is a lack of interest, when they have somebody who is potentially involved in terrorism, to want to say he's one of ours, send him back because they've got plenty already there. >> talk about the concerns that americans watching right now might feel, or canadians. there is an increase risk or security alert going on right now in the united states with hanukah and christmas approaching? >> there is no specific or credible information that there is a plot, say, in new york or los angeles against a particular target at a particular time. nonetheless. we're always worried about copycats when something like this happens. will there be truck attacks or attacks around the holidays here? law enforcement is paying attention and taking additional steps. but there is no specific and credible information. what i encourage people to do, as hard as this is, is to put the threat in context. the most dangerous thing i face every day is to get on the l.a. freeway. nothing else comes close. people ought to go about their ordinary business, be mindful but not let it intrude on their appreciation of their family and the holidays. >> so don't avoid going into a crowd or to a christmas market type situation? >> i wouldn't. my family -- >> you wouldn't avoid it. >> i wouldn't avoid it. we went to the thanksgiving day parade last year when there were the same concerns. i would encourage to not shay away from public events. be vigilant. if people see something, they should alert authorities if they're worried about it. nonetheless, the risks are still relatively small in this country. >> i know it's early but this tunisian suspect had contacts with an isis recruiter, we are being told by german authorities. is it possible that this was an attack that was not just isis inspired but maybe even isis directed? >> it certainly could be. germany has been an isis target for quite some time. and for a number of reasons, among other things, it would cause real divisions within germany, it would weaken angela merkel, cause a lot of strife with respect to the refugees who are there, it might turn germans against the refugees. and of course, isis wants to prompt this kind of conflict. it wants to put forward this narrative that there is no place in the west for muslims. so germany is a logical target for isis, a strategic target for isis. from that perspective, it makes sense for them to try to organize a plot there. we just don't know enough yet to make that conclusion. >> congressman adam schiff. trump tweeting about nukes and expanding nuclear capabilities. his transition team is now trying to clarify what he said. stay with us. see me. see me. don't stare at me. see me. see me. see me to know that psoriasis is just something that i have. i'm not contagious. see me to know that... ...i won't stop until i find what works. discover cosentyx, a different kind of medicine for moderate to severe plaque psoriasis. proven to help the majority of people find clear or almost clear skin. 8 out of 10 people saw 75% skin clearance at 3 months. while the majority saw 90% clearance. do not use if you are allergic to cosentyx. before starting, you should be tested for tuberculosis. an increased risk of infections and lowered ability to fight them may occur... ...tell your doctor if you have an infection or symptoms... ...such as fever, sweats, chills, muscle aches or cough. or if you have received a vaccine or plan to. if you have inflammatory bowel disease, tell your doctor if symptoms develop or worsen. serious allergic reactions may occur. see me. see me. see me. on my way. find clear skin... and a clearer path forward. for a different kind of medicine, ask your dermatologist about cosentyx. won't replace the full value of your totaled new car. the guy says you picked the wrong insurance plan. no, i picked the wrong insurance company. with liberty mutual new car replacement™, you won't have to worry about replacing your car because you'll get the full value back including depreciation. and if you have more than one liberty mutual policy, you qualify for a multi-policy discount, saving you money on your car and home coverage. call for a free quote today. liberty stands with you™. liberty mutual insurance. welcome back to "the lead." our politics lead. president-elect donald trump flushing out his white house staff this afternoon, announcing who will run the communication shop that black listed media outlets over the course of the campaign. hope hicks to be white house director of strategic communications. and dan scavino social media director. jim acosta is in washington with us. huge international issues going on. sources telling the donald trump transition team is talking about the possibility of imposing tariffs through executive action on foreign goods entering the u.s. >> they could be as high as 10%. with donald trump this may be just the beginning of the negotiations, not the end. jake, donald trump has kept busy in mar-a-lago. the president-elect and his advisers signalling he is about to get much more aggressive on a range of issues from trade to foreign policy. he is smacking down one of his biggest supporters for suggesting trump is ready to give up on draining the swamp. >> amazing people. >> reporter: on the shores of mar-a-lago, donald trump is generating waves, but the president-elect's team making it clear a fight is coming on trade. >> china, which has been ripping us off, the greatest abuser in the history of this country -- >> reporter: sources tell cnn trump is considering an executive action to impose up to a 10% tariff on imports to strengthen u.s. companies. critics warn it could spark a trade war. peter navarro, the man tapped to lead the trade council warned trump will crack down on countries that engage in unfair trading practices. >> donald trump doesn't want to slap tariffs on anybody. neither did ronald reagan. but if they cheat us, he will do that. >> reporter: top republicans like house speaker paul ryan have sounded cool to such talk. >> i'll tell him what i've been saying all along. we can get at what he's trying to get at better through a comprehensive tax. >> reporter: one day after newt gingrich said trump was ready to give up on his campaign battle cry drain the swamp -- >> drain the swamp of washington. we'll have fun doing it. >> he says it was cute but he doesn't want to use it anymore. >> reporter: trump putting gingrich in his place stating. someone incorrectly said that was no longer being used by me. we'll always be trying to drain the swamp. >> i made a big boo-boo. i talked with president-elect donald trump and he reminded me he likes draining the swamp. i mischaracterized it the other day. >> reporter: other trump loyalists rewarded with kellyanne conway named counselor to the president while sean spicer selected as white house press secretary. one of a slew of new staffing appointments. his children, they're making moves designed to tamp down on questions about conflicts of interest. trump's son eric explained to the "new york times" why he'll stop directly raising funds for his charitable foundation saying as unfortunate as it is i understand the quagmire. conway said it's a new posture that will hurt the trump children's charities. >> the idea that these folks are trying to help people in need and those people are going to suffer now. >> reporter: trump's family is under a new microscope as daughter ivanka found out on a jetblue flight when one of the passengers tweeted his husband intended to harass ivanka and her husband jared. the passengers who allegedly made the threat were removed from the plane. he may have one big problem with imposing tariffs. congress. a source telling me revenue measures come from the house, as in the house of representatives not the white house. >> jim acosta. thank you so much. to the world lead. a trump tweet about nuclear weapons has foreign policy and nonproliferation experts wondering in trump will soon lead the nation into a nuclear arms race. barbara starr is at the pentagon. both trump and russian vladimir putin talked within minutes of each other about ramping up nuclear capabilities. >> it's extraordinary, jake. both leaders talking about ramping up, but at the end of today, still not really clear what either man was talking about. did vladimir putin and donald trump just have their first nuclear standoff? today, russia's president vowing more nuclear weapons are needed. >> translator: we need to strengthen the military potential of strategic nuclear forces, especially with missile complexes that can reliably penetrate any existing and prospective missile defense systems. >> a clear shot at u.s. defense plants in europe, something russia believes is a threat. within hours, president-elect trump tweeted, quote, the united states must greatly strengthen and expand its nuclear capability until such time as the world comes to its senses regarding nukes. the two declarations raising the specter of an arms race renewed. donald trump briefed just yesterday by senior air force officers on the need to modernize the aging nuclear infrastructure. during the second presidential debate, a hint of his thinking. >> russia is new in terms of nuclear, we are old. we're tired, we're exhausted in terms of nuclear. a very bad thing. >> nuclear weapons are limited by treaty. today, russia has 7300 warheads. the u.s., just over 6900. the obama administration gave up on the idea of a u.s. pledge for no first use of nuclear weapons, worried the idea could embolden russia and china. u.s. dismantling of its own nuclear arsenal has slowed in recent years. putin's nuclear vow came as he boasted of russian military superiority, after a year which saw successful russian hacking of the democratic national committee by the russian military, sustained air strikes in syria and continued occupation of crimea. >> translator: today we are stronger than any potential aggressor. i repeat, any aggressor. >> now, you know, the trump transition team issued a statement late today saying that the president-elect was referring to modernizing the force, nuclear proliferation, and keeping nuclear weapons out of the hands of terrorists and rogue nations. still not entirely clear whether mr. trump may advocate for an increase in the nuclear arsenal and on the question of whether russia is in fact the strongest military, i will tell you there are many u.s. military officials tonight, jake, who disagree with that. jake? >> barbara starr, thank you. joining me now to talk, republican congressman from california, darrell issa. thanks for coming on today. we appreciate it. >> thank you, jake, you led in with an important issue, our aging nuclear weapons fleet. back in 1971/72 i was going through bomb disposal school in the army, and the technology that they were showing us then is the technology we have in place today. >> let me ask you about a report from crowd strike, which is a cyber security firm. they say that fancy bear, a russian hacking group, is likely affiliated with russian military intelligence. they cite as evidence a piece of malware used to infiltrate and create information. it's been determined in june that the same fancy bear group had infiltrated the dnc's network in april of this year. does this information make you any more confident about the intelligence community's conclusion that russia directed the hack of the dnc and the phishing and hack to john podesta? >> well, i think where the confidence wanes is, if you look all the way back several years ago when i was still on the select intelligence committee, and we knew that cyber was an active effort by the russians, and here we are these years later and we are not able to intercept it in realtime. we are not able to advise potential attacks in -- at a time in which they can do something, and we have no counter-measures. i think i have a high confidence that the russians and others, the chinese and others, have successfully hacked a great many both public and private servers in this country, and that we have not prepared the appropriate response, either defensive or offensive, and i think that's the story going into january 20th of next year. >> as you know, the head of centcom and others have said that russia is the number one geopolitical foe of the united states. a recent statement by the director of the u.s. counter intel engines and security center says russians are estimated to have 100 spies on u.s. soil. how concerned are you about russia right now? >> if it's 100 russians and we know it's thousands chinese, we have to look at both. president obama did a pivot to asia, and that pivot was all about the expandive behavior of china. i think president-elect trump is dealing with two fronts, a very activist, small power, russian, for all of its military strength has an economy about the size of italy. and china. they're both flexing their muscle after eight years of feeling emboldened by the policies of this administration, and in fairness, the previous eight years in which much of it america was distracted with two wars. >> the united nations security council could vote on a resolution to demand an immediate halt to israeli settlement activities. sources are telling us the u.s. was planning to either abstain or vote yes on the measure. what do you hope the u.s. does should the resolution come to the floor of the u.n.? >> i think we have to use this resolution as an opportunity to bring the real resolution in the region. the behavior that is known as settlements, both legal and illegal, if you will, under israeli laws, is the result of not settling this issue, not dividing up the land into a two-state solution. something that president bill clinton worked very hard on and almost achieved, and then we have had a hiatus of 16 years now. so, no matter what happens in the u.n., the secretary of state and his team are going to have to work on reestablishing the kind of comprehensive peace agreement that allows the israelis to have their land, the palestinians to have their land, and live in peace. >> what do you make of this new nominee to be u.s. ambassador to israel, daniel friedman? he has said some fairly disparaging things about j street, which is a progressive group in the united states that works for a two-state solution, as well as a number of other things about the u.s. state department being full of anti-semites. what do you think of him? >> well, i think that j street is in fact a group that is very much outside the mainstream of american jewish policies toward a free and fair relationship between the israelis and the palestinians. >> how so? >> apec would be considered the center or center left. j street was formed because a group of pacifists felt like a group was not represented. >> you said center left? >> apec is center left, i think. there is a republican jewish coalition that was formed, in fact, to counter, if you will, a tendency of apec to look to both sides but to favor one. having said that, all these three groups and more need to have their concerns heard so that we reinvigorate the peace process, because only through getting that process going are we going to get moved beyond, if you will, a 16-year hiatus in any real negotiations by either side. >> all right. congressman isa. thank you so much. merry christmas to you and your family. >> happy hanukah. the hits may keep on coming. we'll a talk to the incoming governor who calls the efforts to repeal the bathroom law a failure. the cameras roll when a device in a man's pocket explodes. the device exposing a danger that you might want to know about. take one. directv now. stream all your entertainment! anywhere! anytime! can we lose the 'all'. there's no cbs and we don't have a ton of sports. anywhere, any... let's lose the 'anywhere, anytime' too. you can't download on-the-go, there's no dvr, yada yada yada. stream some stuff! somewhere! sometimes! you totally nailed that buddy. simple. don't let directv now limit your entertainment. only xfinity gives you more to stream to any screen. . more on the politics lead. republican legislators in north carolina have not exactly been rolling out the welcome wagon for the new democratic governor. they returned to the capital in raleigh to repeal the so-called bathroom bill but failed to offer legislation to do so cleanly. the surprise decision sparked outrage from democrats who claimed republicans failed to hold up their end of the bargain and slipped in language that would have made this only a partial repeal. the city of charlotte agreed to repeal its own lgbt protection ordinance which of course had prompted the bathroom bill in the first place with the understanding that the state general assembly would get rid of the bill requiring individuals to use the bathrooms pertaining to the gender on their birth certificate. bringing in north carolina's democratic governor elect roy cooper. first of all, governor elect cooper, congratulations on your victory. >> thank you very much. i am looking forward to it. >> so you brokered the deal between the city of charlotte and the state legislature. you are obviously not happy about what happened. >> no. well, the republican legislative leadership broke its word. it said that, if the charlotte city council would repeal its ordinance, then they would fully repeal house bill 2. but what happened was they refused to put a house bill 2 repeal bill onto the floor of both the house and senate. there were enough republican and democratic votes to get that done. people in north carolina are tired of house bill 2. they're tired of north carolina being on the late-night comedy shows. it's a stain on our great state's reputation, and it's got to be wiped out. i'm going to work hard, continue to work. this was our best chance to do it. it cannot be our last chance. we've got to keep working. >> governor-elect. why did 16 democratic lawmakers vote against the repeal? >> well, no. that's just not true. what they did was added to repeal of house bill 2 a moratorium on any city or county passing anti-discrimination ordinances. that's essentially what house bill 2 does. so it was a legislative trick. the democrats saw through it. they knew that, if this moratorium on any local anti-discrimination ordinance passed, that it wouldn't work, that the nba woouldn't come bac, the ncaa wouldn't come back, that businesses would still say no to north carolina in many cases. they knew this. so they were trying to stop something that wasn't full repeal, and it wasn't their agreement. we had enough republicans and democrats together to get this done, and this was a failure of the republican legislative leadership. they went back on their word. what we have to do now is to find another path. >> so let me ask you about the outgoing governor pat mccrory. he signed the last-minute legislation to curb your gubernatorial power. republicans in charge in actual election years. in response you said, quote, they'll see me in court. are you still planning to sue? >> yes, sir. and i'll tell you this. they can try to do those kinds of things, but we're still going to move this state forward. we still have plenty of authority to help us raise teacher pay, to help us get better-paying jobs in this state. i am going to fight them on this because it was not just a power grab. it was an attempt by them to be able to change who controls education policy, tax policy, elections. and i am not going to let them do that. we will see them in court, and what we're going to do also is, on many issues where we can find agreement, we're going to work with them. people want us to work together. and in fact, during this turmoil of this big fight, we were talking -- i was talking to the house speaker and the president pro tem about repealing house bill 2. we had a sit-down and an agreement even with this turmoil going on. i think people want us to work together. i'm going to do that, but i also need to keep an eye on the fact that i was not able to trust what they were able to say in this piece of legislation, but it's time for us to go forward. it's time for us to move north carolina forward. we are a great state. we just need to show that. >> governor-elect roy cooper of the great state of north carolina, thank you so much and good luck to you, sir. >> thanks a lot, jake. in today's buried lead. the suicide hotline. a whistle blower sounding the alarm on potential problems after some calls may have been missed. this thing is a beast. steel or aluminum? steel. why? science. it's gonna hold up over aluminum, big time. you can get special holiday pricing and when you find your red tag, you get thousands more cash back. that's two deals in one. two deals sound better than one. that's a for-sure thing for me. during the red tag sales event, get two deals in one. find your tag for an average total value over ninety-six hundred dollars on chevy silverado all stars. find new roads at your local chevy dealer. won't replace the full value of your totaled new car. the guy says you picked the wrong insurance plan. no, i picked the wrong insurance company. with liberty mutual new car replacement™, you won't have to worry about replacing your car because you'll get the full value back including depreciation. and if you have more than one liberty mutual policy, you qualify for a multi-policy discount, saving you money on your car and home coverage. call for a free quote today. liberty stands with you™. liberty mutual insurance. welcome back to "the lead." i'm jake tapper. the buried lead. that's what we call stories that we think are not getting enough attention. it's estimated that 20 american veterans kill themselves every day. for many, their only life line is the emergency hotline at the department of veterans affairs. it should be obvious that the bare minimum this country can do to fulfill its commitment to veterans is to pick up the phone. we found out there are still problems. it still may not be happening. >> thank you for calling the crisis hotline. >> 2016 has been a troubled year for the understaffed veterans crisis line, which was profiled in an academy award winning documentary the year before. >> i am not going to lose you. i'm not going anywhere. i'm going to stay with you. >> in february, the v.a. inspector general revealed that some calls routed to backup crisis centers were answered by voice mail and callers did not always receive immediate assistance. in september congress learned the former director of the crisis line said in an internal e-mail that more than a third of calls are not being answered by front-line staffers. instead, they are being rolled to backup call centers where staff may have less training. the v.a. tried to fix this problem. this week a new 200 person call center in atlanta was celebrated with much promise from va deputy secretary sloan gibson. >> i have to tell you, getting stuff done inside the federal government is really hard. the idea that in about 150 days these guys went from a standing start to answering calls down here and hiring more than 200 additional staff, in the federal government, that's like light speed. >> i urge the committee -- >> two years after testifying before congress, scott davis tells cnn that there remained big problems that may not be easily solved. problems like this. highlighted in an october complaint to the va inspector general from a suicidal veteran claiming the person on the line left the call twice, or in november when a troubled veteran called the atlanta office and davis' colleagues could not patch him through. >> it is so bad that, when our own office tried to call the crisis line, no one answered the phone. someone actually had to walk up from the fourth floor to go to the fifth floor to get someone to take a veteran's call. >> if february the general noted not enough is being done to track how effective the centers are when it comes to patient outcomes or other quality indicators. davis says this remains a problem. >> currently we don't have a standardization for quality assurance. that's something basic that you would have for a call center, for a credit card company, for a cable company. >> in the past, it was difficult for us because we didn't have the management information that would allow us to go back. okay. what responder did they speak to? how much can that responder reconstruct the phone call? >> now what we have to do is use the foundation, leverage off of it to deliver better outcomes. >> an internal memo shows the number of abandoned or unanswered calls did not decrease from april to september of this year. >> we're not going to be perfect, but we are trying to build as much rigor into the system and process as we can so that we operate more like a high reliability organization. we are within days of being at a point where pretty consistently we are not rolling any calls over. >> with stakes this high, davis remains concerned about the cost of failure. >> if this isn't addressed, you're going to have the number of veterans that commit suicide on a daily basis remain at 20 or more a day, which is simply unacceptable. >> one thing everyone agrees on, we should give the phone number of the hotline for anybody watching right now. 1-800-273-talk. or 8255-veterans-choose option one. let's turn to breaking news in the world lead. syrian forces loyal to president assad say they are in complete control of aleppo. all rebel fighters along with tens of thousands of innocent civilians have been evacuated or chased from the city. syrian war planes and troops on the ground have been relentlessly pounding opposition enclaves of eastern aleppo. cnn's muhammad lila joins us from the border. >> reporter: jake, whenever one side in the conflict makes a statement you have to take it with skepticism. we have confirmation from a leading rebel negotiator all saying the same thing. all of the civilians and the rebel fighters and their families in eastern aleppo have been evacuated. what that means is that the government and syria's president, bashar al assad, now controls the entire city. for many years it was divided ben the rebel part of the city and the government forces part of the city. the divide is no longer in place. it's a stunning turn, jake. i remember when the revolution began. we thought bashar al assad would last three, six, or nine months. it's been a dramatic turn. it's now looking like assad will outlast president obama. something most of us thought was unthinkable just a few years ago. >> there are obviously still pockets of resistance throughout syria, but the fact that aleppo is in complete control of the government seems to suggest that he will hold on to power. >> there is no question. you can't underestimate the importance of eastern aleppo. for more than four years since the rebels took hold in the eastern part of the city it was their base of operations. they directed operations out of there, they had communications. they with activists in touch with people across the city and in fact around the world. what happens when you take that base away? what happens to the revolution? we know they're now in the countryside and a province called idlib. idlib also has a strong isis presence and a strong al qaeda presence. these are groups that have all been fighting each other in this kind of weird mess of syria's civil war. what happens to the opposition against assad. will they unite or continue to fight amongst themselves, no one really knows. next, caught on camera, an e-cigarette exploding in a man's pocket. what's shaping up to be a lack-luster inauguration celebration. just 29 days away. stay with us. see me. see me. don't stare at me. see me. see me. see me to know that psoriasis is just something that i have. i'm not contagious. see me to know that... ...i won't stop until i find what works. discover cosentyx, a different kind of medicine for moderate to severe plaque psoriasis. proven to help the majority of people find clear or almost clear skin. 8 out of 10 people saw 75% skin clearance at 3 months. while the majority saw 90% clearance. do not use if you are allergic to cosentyx. before starting, you should be tested for tuberculosis. an increased risk of infections and lowered ability to fight them may occur... ...tell your doctor if you have an infection or symptoms... ...such as fever, sweats, chills, muscle aches or cough. or if you have received a vaccine or plan to. if you have inflammatory bowel disease, tell your doctor if symptoms develop or worsen. serious allergic reactions may occur. see me. see me. see me. on my way. find clear skin... and a clearer path forward. for a different kind of medicine, ask your dermatologist about cosentyx. welcome back to "the lead." i'm jake tapper. the national lead now. an explosion caught on camera that's raising concerns over e-cigarettes. watch as one burst into flames in fresno, california, on a city bus. this is not the first time this has happened. that's why chuck schumer is not only calling for an investigation but a recall. rene marsh joins me now. lithium batteries from the source of other explosions. is that what's going on here as well? >> it appears but we don't know for sure because e-cigarettes have fallen outside the scope of federal oversight for many years. an increase in explosions is causing concern that regulators are not doing enough to ensure the more than 3 million people using them are safe. >> you can't vape on the bus, man. >> seconds after this fresno, california, bus passenger places his e-cigarette in his pocket -- it explodes. severely burning him. the battery was likely the cause. >> they have a wrap on the outside that needs to stay intact. if the battery gets torn and it touches metal, there is some loose change in your pocket, it can short out the battery. >> surveillance cameras captured the terrifying moment in november when an e-cigarette exploded inside a new york city man's pocket causing third degree burns. earlier this month a 24-year-old was severely burned when a pair of e-cigarette batteries exploded in his pocket. attorney sanford rubenstein represents both men. >> it explodes multiple times over and over, like fireworks. there should be a ban on the possession of e-cigarettes and e-cigarette batteries until such time as the manufacturers determine what's causing them to explode. >> between 2009 and january 2016, there were 134 incidents of overheating, fire or explosion involving e-cigarettes in the united states. more than 50 people were injured. just days before the latest incident, incoming senate minority leader chuck schumer called for more federal oversight. >> it's time to take a hard look at requiring a recall of certain brands if they are much more likely to explode than others. >> the concern is, as e-cigarettes become even more popular, the number of people injured will grow too. despite the explosions, there have not been any recalls. the fda just got regulatory authority over e-cigarettes seven months ago. the agency telling me today it's now collecting information about incidents. they will then investigate and take the necessary steps to keep the public safe. we should note that they are banned in checked luggage. and now some people are saying, besides the aircraft, they want to see it banned on maybe mass transit. you saw what happened on board that bus. >> i don't want to be sitting next to that guy. in our pop culture lead, it remains doubtful that we'll see musical performances at donald trump's presidential inauguration of the caliber that some would consider big league. elton john already said no to the invitation. stephanie, is the trump team having any luck getting "a" listers to perform? >> today they said the radio city rockettes will join the lineup. as for the big names, still looking for a lot of them. >> beyonce, james taylor, brad paisley, those are just a few of the "a" list entertainers who sang at president obama's last inauguration. over the years, presidential inaugurations have become celeb studded celebrations. less than a month away from the president-elect's inauguration, and sources tell cnn that donald trump's transition team is having a hard time booking talent. >> this was an incredibly divisive campaign. there is a lot of hurt feelings out there. and even if you supported donald trump, you may have some hesitation over what kind of response you're going to get from your fan base that did not vote for him. >> a vice chair for the inaugural committee said in november elton john was set to perform. his spokes woman said in quote, he will not be performing at the inauguration. capitalization, hers. it would have been a change for john who performed at the hillary clinton campaign. >> the view among many in the music industry is donald trump is not on ordinary republican in his rhetoric, and they're very put off by that, and they -- they -- it follows through with the inauguration that they don't want to touch it, i guess, with a ten-foot pole. >> entertainment news website the wrap reports garth brooks will not perform. no doubt he will have performances, but with a lot less pop. >> i don't doubt that there will be people there at the inauguration. i don't think, though, that they're going to get people out there who were on the campaign trail for hillary clinton. i also don't think that they're going to get the level of celebrity star power that you saw for barack obama's first inauguration. hollywood leans left, and donald trump has to work against that. >> the trump team is downplaying any difficulties getting a listers. confirming they booked the mormon tabernacle choir. also, jackie evancho of "america's got talent" fame. she'll sing the national an them at the swearing in. musicians who have stumped for trump like ted nugent and kid rock are other possible performance. we've just learned from the beach boys that they say they've been asked to participate but haven't made a decision yet whether or not they'll show up for trump. as far as whether or not big stars will turn out, the trump camp is down-playing this, saying it's not a big deal to them because they're not putting on summer jam or woodstock, that the trump supporters are a different breed and what they really care and who they really care to see, donald j. trump. >> interesting. stephanie. i heard there is an organization trying to put together a counter-performance on inaugural day of all these left-leaning performers who oppose donald trump. it could become another chapter in these culture wars. >> exactly. who will people tune in to see, the inauguration or will they look to see the event happening in florida at the same time as the inauguration. >> yikes. president-elect donald trump tweeting about nukes minutes after vladimir putin talked about nukes. state department spokesman john kirby on that right after this. with my moderate to severe ulcerative colitis, the possibility of a flare was almost always on my mind. thinking about what to avoid, where to go... and how to deal with my uc. to me, that was normal. until i talked to my doctor. she told me that humira helps people like me get uc under control and keep it under control when certain medications haven't worked well enough. 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 you've been to areas where certain fungal infections are common, and if you've had tb, hepatitis b, are prone to infections, or have flu-like symptoms or sores. don't start humira if you have an infection. raise your expectations. ask your gastroenterologist about humira. with humira, control is possible. just serve classy snacks and bew a gracious host,iday party. no matter who shows up. do you like nuts? happening now, breaking news, terror on tape. new video for the first time shows the deadly truck attack on a berlin christmas market while security files show the suspect was well known to german authorities and had discussed carrying out an attack. nuclear showdown. the trump transition team rushes to explain a tweet by the president-elect saying the u.s. must expand its nuclear capability. this follows a call by vladimir putin for russia to boost its nuclear forces, and it comes as experts linked to the russian military a cyberattack in the u.s. teariff