and that suggests that the chinese were willing to make some concessions on transparency, which is a key sticking point from them on the commitment of financial resources, $100 billion a year beginning in 2020 that hillary clinton, the secretary of state, laid out yesterday. >> and again, john, so the key details are going to be the obama administration had been pressing the chinese to allow essentially an independent body to verify when the chinese say they're cutting down on emissions, they don't want the chinese to be saying they want an independent body, and the united states will essentially kick in more money? >> reporter: yes. the chinese insisted it was an infringement on their of sovereignty and affront to them to not have other countries take on faith. the united states was very firm on that point. one of the questions is going to be, what is the near term target for the developed world in terms of cutting carbon emissions. the united states individually has laid down a goal of 17% reduction, which is not as much as the european countries wanted the united states to do. nevertheless, it does appear that they're within the range of what advocates of an agreement wanted in terms of carbon reductions, and so there are three elements, and it seems as if at least a minimum form of agreement on each of those three areas has been reefd. >> and john, some of the comments that are coming in off the record, but from officials unnamed, no country is entirely satisfied with the agreement, but it is a historic step forward. unnamed officials here. it is saying it's significant, but again, not everyone's happy with this. we were talking with ann thompson, also in copenhagen with you, she said this 48 hours would be chaotic. but it was in the benefit of the large countries, united states and china, to come out of this with something. otherwise it would have been seen as a tremendous failure, especially for president obama. >> reporter: no question about it. and it is true that nobody's completely satisfied with the agreement. but it's really a commitment to keep going and trying to build enough confidence that negotiations over the next year, there will be another meeting of this kind in mexico city, will bear fruit. it's also important, tamron, politically in the united states, because john kerry, leading the effort to pass carbon reductions and climate change legislation in the senate said, if there was a failure in copenhagen, he could not get the votes to do that. we don't know if he can get the votes to do that under any circumstances, but that one obstacle appears to have been averted. >> john, to tamron's point how incumbent upon the president to come back and show progress, not to be cynical, but given it's an administration official that says it's an agreement between the u.s., china, india and south africa, perhaps there not being an agreement, say, with the eu? >> reporter: there's no question that those op the left, the environmental community wanted a more aggressive agreement than is likely to have been reached here. so you will hear people say from the left, that this isn't enough. and from the right, of course, in u.s. politics, we had republican congressmen here denouncing this initiative by the administration. they're going to say it's too much. it will hurt the economy, cost consumers money. and it's not proven scientifically. all of those arguments are going to take place. >> john harwood in copenhagen. john, thank you. again, as soon as the president steps into the room where john harwood is and briefs reporters, and gives some details about what the agreement is, we will take that live. >> to john's point about the republican opposition regarding jobs, he spoke with speaker pelosi in an interview there and she really hit the jobs, jobs, jobs, green jobs, whatever comes out of this will result in jobs here in the states. so they're already anticipating that pushback after whatever deal is announced comes out. we'll be on top of it. more developing news now. a major winter storm is expected to dump heavy snow along the east coast starting tonight. it is already snowing in some places. parts of the mid atlantic region could get a foot and a half of snow. it's expected to have a big impact on people traveling and shopping in this final weekend before christmas. the same storm system has already dumped buckets of rain in south florida. many areas got more than half a foot of rain causing some major flooding. they're still dealing with a power outage. chris warren is in roanoke, where i heard it was a little of snow. that's a lot of snow behind you. what's going on there? >> reporter: you may have heard just a little bit ago that it was a little bit of snow. that would have been true. because it's only been snowing for a little more than two hours right now. and as you can see, it's really coming down. the airport was on the horizon not too far away. we can't even see it now. we could see the tower earlier, the planes. down below we have cars moving along. they're not moving as fast as they were earlier. two and a half hours ago, not a snowflake in the sky. it was completely dry. all day long the temperatures have been a degree or two around the freezing mark. around 31 to 33 the warmest it got. by 3:00 we were down to 28. you have the cool air, snow coming down, keeping things very cold. now, the problem with the temperature really close to the freezing mark is the snow's pretty wet. so that makes the roads extra slippery. especially at the onset. we're already getting reports that the roads are slippery. it's only been going for a couple of hours now and we're expecting it to pick up tonight and into tomorrow. when it's all said and done, we're looking at 12 to 15 inches of snow right here in roanoke. it's going to be a pretty big deal. many spots will see totals like that as well. the advice that the department of transportation is saying, wait it out. let the crews do their job. and let the roads clear out. it's going to take more than a day. >> chris, speaking of waiting it out, as the storm moves up the east coast, how slowly is it moving? how long is this going to continue? >> reporter: well, it's going to continue to work on up the coast during the day tomorrow. so once it gets going, you can expect maybe in the last, depending on where you are, at most, about 20 hours. so this is a situation where we get buckets of snow in many spots. and up around new york, we get the winds going, we could have some issues with the blowing snow and blizzard conditions as well. >> chris, to the point, we're looking at the rain in florida, the snow where you are and the other things in the middle, i imagine air travel, we were talking about, you know, shoppers, you can stay in your car, but if you've got a flight and you're planning on leaving, this is not good. i almost said another word. but it's really not good. >> reporter: no, it's definitely not. we were at the airport a little while ago, and already seeing some flights were being canceled. so let your fingers do the typing so you can find out if your flight is still on. you know, the big problem oftentimes getting to the airport can be extremely dangerous. that's something you have to think about as well. >> the weather channel's chris warren, the snow is coming down in roanoke, virginia. thank you very much. >> tamron, it is really ducking out there, i must say. another story we were following closely. this one developing in northern california. a crumbling cliff forced residents to grab what they could and flee an apartment building on top of a coastal bluff. this is in pacifica, california, which is just south of san francisco, not too far from the sfo airport. the cliff was saturated by recent storms, and has been pounded by giant waves. officials ordered residents out over fears the entire building could slide into the pacific ocean. portions of the building have already plunged over the 50-foot bluff into the ocean. we're joined by pacifica california building inspector doug ryder. doug, how dangerous is this situation there? >> we've actually had a -- the building survived the latest high tide without any additional erosion to the cliff. contrary to your statement, that parts of the building have fallen over the cliff, that's not really true. we still have about between three to six feet of cliff left, or land left before the cliff on the back side of the building. >> so maybe it was just some of the things there on the side that fell off, or some of the rocks holding the cliff. in any case, how many people live in the apartment building, how many have been forced to move? >> there were 20 residents. it's a 12-unit apartment building. i had to tag the building until we can -- until the ownership can stop the erosion of the cliff itself. >> and how does one stop erosion? do you just try to build back the cliff there? how do they deal with this? >> what they're doing right now is i'm standing here, if you can hear this motor revving in the backside, they're bringing in a very large crane from the street side of the apartment building to pick up very large boulders that are going to be lifted up and then placed onto the beach to dissipate the energy of the waves. so that the waves will hit these boulders, as opposed to hitting the base of the cliff. >> interesting engineering challenge in pacifica. inspector doug rider, thanks for joining us. >> what a sight. up next, a man finally free from prison three decades after he was convicted of a crime he never committed. police search the home of a missing utah mother for a second time, as the investigation focuses in on her husband. another crime caught on tape. a crook smashing his suv into a store. then he flees. high-priced items. a heart atk caused by a completely blocked artery, another heart attack could be lurking, waiting to strike. a heart attack caused by a clot, one that could be fatal. but plavix helps save lives. plavix taken with other heart medicines goes beyond what other heart medicines do alone, to provide greater protection against heart attack or stroke and even death, by helping to keep blood platelets from sticking together and forming clots. ask your doctor about plavix. protection that helps save lives. people with stomach ulcers or other conditions that cause bleeding should not use plavix. taking plavix alone or with some other medicines including aspirin may increase bleeding risk, so tell your doctor when planning surgery. certain genetic factors and some medicines, such as prilosec, may affect how plavix works. tell your doctor all the medicines you take, including aspirin, especially if you've had a stroke. if fever, unexplained weakness or confusion develops, tell your doctor promptly. these may be signs of ttp, a rare but potentially life-threatening condition, reported sometimes less than 2 weeks after starting plavix. other rare but serious side effects may occur. if you take plavix with other heart medicines continuing to do so will help increase your protection against a future heart attack or stroke, beyond your other heart medicines alone. you may be feeling better, but your risk never goes away. help stay protected. stay with plavix. i just want fewer pills and relief that lasts all day. take 2 extra strength tylenol every 4 to 6 hours?!? taking 8 pills a day... and if i takeit for 10 days -- that's 80 pills. just 2 aleve can last all day. perfect. choose aleve and you can be taking four times... fewer pills than extra strength tylenol. just 2 aleve have the strength to relieve arthritis pain all day. ♪ [ female announcer ] get the taste of a home-cooked meal at work with new marie callender's homestyle creations. marie callender's homestyle creations -- a little touch of home for lunch. welcome back. we're following breaking news in "the big picture" right now. we're waiting for president obama to speak where they're having the climate summit. word came a few minutes ago that the president had reached a climate agreement with india, south africa and china. they're already describing this as an historic step forward in combating global warming. that is according to an unnamed u.s. official. and they're saying here as well, no country is entirely satisfied with each element. but this is a meaningful and as i said historic step forward and a foundation to make further progress. that is what the official went on to say this. we're waiting on the president. he had several meetings with the premier of china today. the negotiations between these two countries obviously very significant. and the president being able to come out with some type of deal. we will continue to follow the breaking news out of copenhagen and bring you the president's comments as soon as he starts them. david? tamron, we've got breaking news related to the weather. you were mentioning a few minutes ago the problem that the airlines are going to have. we're getting word of the several airlines already canceling flights, moving aircraft out of the mid-atlantic region. delta just issued a statement to nbc news saying that they will not run any planes into the d.c. area tomorrow. dull less, philadelphia and richmond will not operate. aircraft are already being moved. continental airlines are suggesting they will not fly into the new york area airports tomorrow afternoon. so again, the effort has begun to move the aircraft. and all the airlines are urging passengers to check the websites for the latest updates on their travel. tamron, a fascinating and amazing story out of florida. two and a half-minute hearing erased a life sentence for a man by the name of jamie bain. >> mr. bain, i am now signing the order, sir. you are a free man. congratulations. >> bain spent the last 35 years behind bars for a crime he did not commit. in 1974, he was convicted of kidnapping and raping a 9-year-old boy. yesterday in that florida courtroom, dna results cleared him for good. despite spending most of his life in prison, mr. bain told reporters he was not angry or bitter. amazing. >> that is amazing. police in utah make a rare request in the case of the missing mom, susan powell. they've asked all news agencies to not destroy video of josh powell, that is susan's husband. they would not explain why they're making this request. josh is the only person of interest in the disappearance of his wife at this time. susan was reported missing 11 days ago, so far police have no strong leads as to where she is. miguel has been following this story since the beginning. he has the latest out of west valley city utah. >> reporter: good afternoon. relatives of josh powell say they wouldn't be surprised if josh was arrested in the coming days. police say they still want to talk to him, as they continue to cover more ground in their investigation. yesterday ochsers were back at the powell home for the third time. they remained for several hours and left with a few bags of evidence. all of this was going on at the exact same time susan powell's family was holding a press conference in washington state. >> as a father, i can't give up the hope that she is alive. >> we don't have all the facts. we don't know everything there is to know. we're left to speculate about some things as much as everybody else is. so our are ax is, it breaks our hearts. but we're not surprised. >> reporter: police are suspicious. he told detectives he took his two young boys camping in sub-freezing temperatures at 12:30 in the morning on december 7th. police were never able to verify that story. but we now know they have questioned his 4-year-old son. he did tell police he went camping with his father. officers say they are evaluating that information. detectives say they are also looking at a notepad that sources say was discovered at susan powell's work. it is said to contain information that may have some threats against her. this investigation still very fluid here in utah. back to you. >> in upstate new york, police are stepping up their search for a missing 4-year-old boy. investigators say mark anthony bracal wandered away from his apartment on monday. that is the story according to his mother's boyfriend who was caring for him at the time. they've been using dogs and dive teams checking nearby hudson river. the boy's mother's boy friend is behind bars for endangering the welfare of a child. the boyfriend is being questioned by police regarding this case, david. tamron, still ahead, watch mother nature's fury. thousands of feet below the ocean surface. incredible pictures and details on the underwater eruption coming up next. how much would you pay to satisfy your sweet tooth? 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'tis the chevy red tag event. ♪ now's the time to get a chevy♪ and nobody has more consumer's digest best buys than chevy. ♪ more best buys, more best buys, nobody has more.♪ not toyota. not honda. not anyone. ♪ not anyone! not anyone! not anyone! not anyone! not!♪ ah...warms the cockles of your heart. now during the chevy red tag event, get 0 percent apr for 72 months on most '09 models. see red and save green. now at your local chevy dealer. the last day of school for a lot of kids who are headed off on their winter break. for a lot of families, travel is not going to be very easy tonight or tomorrow. the airlines are already letting us know that they've started moving aircraft away from the mid-atlantic region. washington reagan national airport, dulles, they started moving aircraft and canceling flights. delta airlines said they will not fly any aircraft into this particular region tomorrow because of the foot and a half of snow that is predicted for the area. the storm system, of course, is going to move off towards new york. and continental airlines is saying they will not fly into the new york area tomorrow afternoon. again, the airlines repeatedly urging passengers, tamron, check the website, check and see, because some of these flights are going to be canceled even before some of the snowflakes start appearing. >> david, weather.com meteorologist tim, he's posted that 50 million people are in the path of this storm. and that it is becoming increasingly dangerous. this winter storm complete with high snowfall rates, blinding snow, strong and damaging winds. especially in jersey, delaware, long island, and southern new england coastline. 50 million people in the path of this storm. tamron, here's news that can keep people entertained if they're stuck. it's over. today a judge announced that jon and kate gosselin are officially divorced.