Rowdiest party of the year. And were so ready were already here in l. A. Today, friday, january 10th, 2014. Announcer from nbc news, this is today with matt lauer and Savannah Guthrie live from studio 1a in rockefeller plaza. And good morning, everyone. Welcome to a special split edition of today on a friday morning. Im Savannah Guthrie up here in los angeles. And im willie geist along with al roker and kate snow here in studio 1a. Matt and natalie on assignment. You mentioned Chris Christie, savannah, i think he was hoping that press conference would put some of this story to bed. Not the case here in new york. Here are the front pages of the New York Daily News calling the performance pathetic and the New York Post saying ignorance is chris. This is a long way from over. And that is todays top story this morning. The political payback scandal that is raising questions about Chris Christies political future. He says he played no role in shutting down traffic as a means of political retribution. But this morning, the new jersey governor is facing a new lawsuit, more evidence to be released today. Lets get to Nbcs Kelly Odonnell at the state house in trenton this morning. Hi to you, and good morning. Reporter good morning, savannah. More headaches and more problems today for governor christie. About 1,000 pages of documents will be released about the lane closures. Just as he is trying to get control of this crisis. Governor christie making a road trip seeking forgiveness. A personal visit to visit with the mayor of ft. Lee, new jersey. Im here today to also apologize to the people of ft. Lee. And, you know, terrible thing. And were going to work to regain their trust. Reporter thrust in the spotlight, mayor sokolich took his apology. He said he had nothing to do with it. Reporter emails suggest it was planned as political punishment for the ft. Lee mayor who did not support christies reelection. Christie fired his deputy chief of staff and parted ways with his campaign manager. His appointee at the Port AuthorityDavid Wildstein resigned and took the fifth. Christie says he feels betrayed. Im just stunned. And what does it make me ask about me . It makes me ask about me what did i do wrong to have these folks think it was okay to lie to me . Reporter the governor said he skds asked top aides and was told no one on his team caused the traffic mess. Christie says he knew nothing until a new jersey paper published the emails wednesday morning. I was standing there in my bedroom with my ipad looking at that. How incredibly sad and betrayed i felt. Adding, he has yet to reach the anger stage. Im sad. Im sad, thats the predominant emotion i feel right now. Is sadness. Reporter this feeds to critics perceptions that christie fosters hardball tactics. He denies that. I am who i am, but i am not a bully. Reporter part of what he will have to face today is a lawsuit filed by some Bergen County residents saying they were treated as trapped rats unable to get work where their pay was docked. Also today, the governor does not have public events. He says he will continue to talk to employees and work to find out more answers, and he expects as he is seeking more facts to be coming out. Savannah. All right, Kelly Odonnell this morning. Lets turn to david gregory. Good morning to you. Good morning, savannah. If they kept records of such things, 108 minutes for a press conference would have to set one. I guess the strategy was, let reporters knock themselves out, wear themselves out asking every single question and maybe this thing will go away. Did it work or backfir and do you think he shouldve gotten off the stage sooner . I talked to republicans and democrats who think he bought himself some space. The bottom line question is was he involved . If he wasnt involved, perhaps he can avoid political death. If he was involved, most professionals think in the business, he couldnt survive if he was involved. But if you take him at his word, he was not involved. The press conference was about being judged. He knows hell be judged now on crisis management. This is a cultural question. How did this rogue operation if were to believe what the governors saying, take root in his own office and exact this kind of petty, political revenge without him knowing or without his countenance at some level. That his deputy chief of staff do something she thought would not be supported by the governor . I think thats really the thrust of the question right now. Yeah. Thats the question of whether first the question of whether he knew and then theres whether he shouldve known. And even though this was bubbling up over the last couple of months, did christie do enough and say enough to show he was actually interested in getting to the bottom of it or was he uncurious about it . Well, first of all, at the time, this thing is going down. It just smells bad. It looks like petty, political retribution at the time its going down. Why didnt he inquire . Why didnt he try to stop something thats a big traffic problem on the first day of school impacting ems vehicles and all the rest. Its a former u. S. Attorney, what hes telling reporters yesterday, i said when this thing came out, you have an hour to tell me if we were involved. How about saying, tell me everything. I want to know everybody who was involved at every level. I think thats going to keep these questions going there. Federal investigations and obviously the state house in new jerseys going to keep the pressure on. Again, it comes down to do you believe that he had no knowledge of a rogue political operation . Or did people think this was something ultimately the governor would want if he was denied an endorsement by a democratic mayor in ft. Lee to go ahead and do Something Like this. And you mentioned this federal inquiry going on. That could go on for some time as prosecutors look into whether there was criminal activity here. Does that put the brakes on something he would otherwise be doing for 2016 should he seek the presidency. Well, theres a lot of time until iowa. And the top democrat David Axelrod said we have a tendency to look at these moments in the moment when there are very few of those. Were too far away to look at that kind of longterm impact. It will certainly fortify critics who think that christie peaked too early in his popularity after a good reelection. And republicans in the party who dont think hes that electable anyway. A northeastern governor, there are comparisons to rudy giuliani. But overall, too early to really judge that impact, i think. David gregory in washington, i know you have a lot more on this on sunday on meet the press. Lets go to willie now back in new york. Savannah, thank you. Now to a really alarming situation, West Virginia, a Chemical Spill leading to a state of emergency overnight and serious warning to Business Owners and residents there. Anne thompson is the chief Environmental Affairs correspondent. Good morning. Good morning, willie. President obama has authorized fema to coordinate Emergency Rescue efforts. American water has a clear statement to the residents. Dont use the water. A Chemical Spill thursday has up to 300,000 people in West Virginia putting down their Drinking Water after concerns over its safety. A chemical called 4methylcyclohexane methanol spilled into West Virginias elk river on thursday and contaminating the water supply and putting 300,000 people at risk. The source, a leak from a nearby coal Treatment Facility making the water unsafe for drinking, cooking and bathing. The governor declared a state of emergency in nine counties as the Health Department shut down schools, restaurants and bars. Residents are rushing to local stores to stock up on bottled water, but the supply cant keep up. They had a limit of one so i wouldnt be so greedy as to steal all the water. Buys ice to use for Drinking Water. The chemical is a colorless liquid that some say smells like black licorice. And while its not lethal in the current form, may be harmful if inhaled or ingested. My hands are swollen and im having hard time breathing. Reporter there is nothing to be done to clean up the mess. An environmental spokesperson says the chemical floats on the water and will eventually dissipate, but cant actually be removed. So for now, its bottled water or no water. A state of emergency will be in place until the water is safe to use again. Officials dont know when that will be. Until then, theyre asking people to be neighborly. And those who live in unaffected areas fill up bottles with clean water to share with those who are living in areas where the water is no longer clean. Willie . Boy, thats really scary. Lets hope everybody heeds the warning and stays safe down there. Kate snow is in while natalie is out on assignment. New developments on the amanda knox story. Amanda knox has told an italian newspaper if shes again convicted of murder, she will become a fugitive rather than return to an italian prison. Keir simmons is in london with the details. Good morning. Amanda knox made these comments in a newspaper interview from seattle while an Italian Court is hearing the closing arguments of her retrial for murder. Reporter jailed for murder in 2009, amanda knox cried tears of relief when her conviction was finally overturned. Thank you for being there for me. Now, shes suggested she will not leave her home in seattle even if an Italian Court finds her guilty again. What will you do if they sentence you, an italian newspaper asked her. In that case, i will become, what do you call it, a fugitive, she reportedly replied. Last year on today, matt asked amanda if she would go back if she was convicted. I was already in prison as an innocent person in italy. And i cant reconcile the choice to go back with that experience. Reporter her coaccused, former boyfriend raffaele sollecito, is in the Italian Court for the retrial convinced they will be acquitted of the murder of british student Meredith Kercher in 2007. What little dna evidence there was to tie the pair to the killing was later found to be the result of contamination. Amanda knox says one day she would like to visit Meredith Kerchers family. So far, they have made clear they would not welcome that, still believing she was involved in their daughters murder. Now, this morning in a statement, amanda knox clarifies what she said. She says if she was convicted, if she was, legally i will be defined as a fugitive, but i will continue to fight for my innocence, adding i will not willingly submit myself to injustice. Keir, thanks. Weve got new video this morning of a very rare public appearance by former cuban president fidel castro. Castro attended the opening of an art studio in havana wednesday night. Its the first time hes been seen in public in nine months. The 87yearold led cuba for 48 years before getting sick in 2006. He handed over power to his brother raul. Dash cam video captures a dramatic chase in oregon. Fit for a hollywood move. Troutdale police chase a woman who refused to pull over a woman on routine traffic stop. Turns out the car was stolen. But watch what happens. She gets to the bridge, climbs over the rail and jumps into the river below before the police could get to her. She was eventually fished out of the river and taken to the hospital with minor injuries. She is facing several charges. A houston firefighter is being praised for his sixpack solution. Captain was off duty monday when he stopped to help a trucker put out a fire on the rig. The truck was hauling beer, so he started shaking up the cans and spraying them at the flames and it worked. No. Yeah. Thank goodness, he says, they were all tallboys. Im not making this up. And they may be big, tall and strong, but that did not stop the nba stars in houston from being scared silly. It was all a prank by the Houston Rockets inflatable mascot. Clutch the bear. Players had no idea that somebody was actually in the suit as they walked out of practice and they soon found out the hard way. Maybe the best reaction came from Dwight Howard. Tossed his phone in the air. Thats a good scare. Kicked him right in the honeycomb. Thats good stuff. Wow. He did go right there, didnt he . Al, little good news bad news with the weather. Its warming up but that brings problems. Absolutely. Weve got an amazing live shot right now. Take a look at this video, i should say. This is the Niagara River. You can see theres a rainbow there right outside the niagara falls, Niagara River now freezing up. And theres there are flood watches in effect in and around the buffalo area. All right. Lets show you what else weve got going on. Down south, look at this, last 24 hours near boynton beach. Up to 12 inches of rain. It is still raining a bit. I95 closed southbound. It is a mess. You come to the north, weve got freezing rain advisories and flood watches from the virginias all the way into new england. Look at all this starting to make its way into the area. Its going to be an icy mess for the morning commute. Baltimore, washington, on into philadelphia, look at this, weve got the ice accumulations of up to 1 4 inch from West Virginia all the way into new york through later this morning. So weve got a real mess as far as the commute is on hand. And by the way, one more thing really quickly, weve also got Severe Weather coming in. And thats going to cause big problems tomorrow. Were going to be looking at maybe some flooding and weve got the risk of Severe Weather coming up. In fact, the risk of tornadoes as we make our way into the southeast tomorrow. Were going to get to your local forecast coming up in the next 30 seconds. Happy friday to you. You made it to the end of the work week and temperatures are going to be pretty nice. We have rain for tomorrow. 62 in San Francisco to start the day. Clear sky, beautiful sunrise. The oranges and the reds, same for san jose. Beautiful start to the day here. For san jose. Milder start out in san jose than yesterday morning. As we head throughout the day today temperatures are going to climb into the 50s and 60s. East bay 67. And we have Nbcs Joe Fryer here with a look ahead. Good morning, savannah. Weve got five movies that are competing for best drama, five more competing for best comedy, and many of them are still considered strong contenders in a year where the field is wide open. Reporter its hollywoods very public alist party. Only at the Golden Globes do the Beautiful People of film rub shoulders with the rat face people of television. Like the movies and shows created by the stars, the globes themselves are famous for comedy, a little drama. I already did my coming out about 1,000 years ago back in the stone age. And this year more than ever, mystery. Lots of films with lots of nominations. But theres no film thats emerged as the big favorite. I survived. I will not fall into despair. Reporter 12 years a slave remains a favorite along with gravity. Do you copy . But other movies on the comedy side are picking up steam. I believe you should treat people the way you want to be treated. Did you say that . American hustle which also earned seven globe nominations was named best picture by the new york film critics circle. And two l. A. Critics honored gravity and her were honored. The story of a man who falls in love with his computer operating system. Its going to be a big year for us. You can say computers are stealing the hearts of tv viewers with netflix shows that werent even on tv this year. House of cards, orange is the new black, and arrested development are up for awards. Youll start to see more outlets trying to compete in that game. Outlets like amazon, hulu. But ultimately, the odds may favor cable shows like breaking bad which drew huge ratings with the series finale. Biggest Hollywood Party of the year, lets do it. No mystery surrounding the hosts, tina fey and amy poehler are back. Beyond that, we have to see what shocking plot twists await. In addition to the best picture, the acting categories are really all up for grabs this year. Now, last years globes did do a nice job of foreshadowing the oscar winners, but thats not always the case. Who are you wearing this morning . Practicing my red carpet. I have my calvin klein along with my grandfathers vintage cuff links. Lovely. Thank you so much. And were going to hear from nominee Bradley Cooper. And a reminder to all of you, matt, carson and i will get the night started sunday 7 00 p. M. Eastern. We will have the arrival special and then, of course, we will have a full wrapup monday morning right here on today. Guys, lets send it back to you in new york. Savannah, he just won over the Fashion Police here. Savannah, thanks. Carsons over in the orange room right now tracking reaction to the story about governor Chris Christie. Is it bad when you have to look to see who youre wearing . Robert hall. Governor Chris Christie, the press conference yesterday, that was the talk of social media. We have some data to show you thanks to our friends at twitter. It received as a whole the conversation almost 500,000 hits. The bridgegate caught on later. 80,000 mentions there. Its a serious story, but we did the math, it was