the affair started back in the late 1990s. while herman cain does acknowledge that he knows her, he's denying her claims. so what impact will this newest allegation have on him and the gop race? we'll have more on that straight ahead. also this is a big day for dr. conrad murray. how is he feeling as he prepares to be sentenced for his role in the death of michael jackson. coming up, his friend and former assistant opens up about her recent jailhouse visit with dr. murray. here's a story i think a lot of people can identify with. imagine being the parent of an obese child and being told by social workers that your kid would be better off living in foster care. basically they say you neglected your own son or daughter by allowing them to get so overweight. it happened to a family in ohio. >> no surprise, a lot of people are outraged by this. others think it's a good decision. so how do today's professionals feel? we'll tackle that topic and a lot more later on. let us begin this tuesday morning with herman cain facing an allegation of an extramarital affair. lisa myers has the latest on this story. lisa, good morning. >> reporter: good morning to you, matt. cain's latest accuser says she had an on-and-off affair with him for 13 years and that the physical part of the relationship ended eight months ago, right before cain announced for president. >> i didn't want to come out with this, i did not. >> reporter: with that, atlanta businesswoman ginger white told a local atlanta tv station, waga about what she says was a 13-year affair with herman cain. >> i was aware that he was married. and i was also aware that i was involved in a very inappropriate situation, relationship. >> reporter: white says she met cain in the late '90s in louisville, kentucky, where he was speaking as ceo of the national restaurant association. she says they had drinks. he invited her to his hotel room. after that she says for 13 years he flew her to meet him in hotels and lavished her with gifts. >> he made it very intriguing. it was fun. it was something that took me away from my sort of humdrum life at the time. >> reporter: even before white's allegations aired, cain went on tv admitting he knew her bedue but denying the affair. >> i acknowledge that i knew the woman but the accusation that i had a 13-year affair with her, no. >> reporter: after the report the campaign issued a statement. detractors are trying once again to derail the cain train with more event of past events that never happened. >> my wife's reaction was very similar to mine. here we go again. we will basically show when the details come available that i didn't do anything wrong. >> reporter: white said she had planned to keep the relationship secret, until she saw what happened to the four women who accused cain of sexual harassment. >> these statements are all false. all of these women are all lying? they're all lying? >> did not happen. >> they are all lying? >> yes, they are. >> it bothered me that they were being demonized sort of or they were being treated as if they were automatically lying, you know, and the burden of proof is on them. so i felt very bad for them. >> reporter: as evidence of her relationship with cain, white produced records of 61 phone calls and texts over four months to cain's private cell. cain told waga he was just trying to help white financially. court records reviewed by nbc news show that white has had financial problems, including a bankruptcy filing and eviction notices, a lawsuit by a former business partner also accuses her of slander. the former business partner told nbc news that white told lies about her. we reached out to white's lawyer, but got no response. one other curious note, matt, as this story was breaking, cain's lawyer issued a statement which stopped short of denying the allegations and instead argued that this was none of our business. he said alleged consensual conduct between adults goes to a candidate's private sex life is not something the media has a right to question and that the public has a right to know. matt. >> lisa myers in washington on this story. lisa, thank you very much. david gregory is moderator of "meet the press," chuck todd is white house correspondent, guys, good morning to both of you. >> hi, matt. >> the first reaction is this is almost anticlimactic after the first drip drip drip of the last month or so. what impact do you think this story has on this race? >> i think some of the impact from the allegations has already started to materialize in cain's poll numbers. he's fallen some, particularly in early states and in the national rankings. whether it's among women or social conservatives in an early state like iowa, and they are really important in the iowa caucuses. some of that support has started to fall away. herman cain got on the political map because he was talking about tax reform, 9-9-9. now he's had gaffe after gaffe when it comes to foreign policy. i think he's being taken less seriously so there's less conversations about these kinds of personal allegations although their impact will be felt. >> before i turn it over to chuck for a second, the statement from lynwood, the attorney for herman cain saying this is basically none of our business and an alleged consensual sexual relationship between adults falls outside the media's right to know, does that statement raise more harm than good? >> it certainly raises those questions. those other allegations were legitimate things we can deal with and this is a private affair. i don't think that's going to work in this case. it suggests maybe he doesn't want to get into this. maybe something really happened even though cain denies it. i think it's a way to target the media again, this is another example of coming after herman cain. >> this is not about that lawyer telling the media to back off, this is for the people who don't trust the media in the first place, especially what they consider to be the mainstream liberal media. they're firing up the base with that statement. >> they are, and the first time that did seem to work when the first round of allegations, the sexual harassment stuff, because they were anonymous accusers and so you could rally the base there, the tea party conservatives that are really -- that were really behind herman cain. they got into that and they loved attacking the media. this, though, the accusation is not really coming from the media, it's coming from this woman. and i've already noticed you're not seeing the same rallying around cain that you saw the first time. but just to go to the point that you started with earlier, matt, this was a campaign that was withering on the vine. now we're in sort of the sixth sense mode. everybody knows this candidacy is basically dead except the campaign. >> so 36 days to go until the iowa caucuses. is herman cain at this point doing damage? i mean he's talking about everything but policy right now. is he doing damage to the rest of the gop field or in some odd way, guys, and david, you could tackle this, is he helping some of the other candidates? >> well, i think to the extent somebody like newt gingrich who has told people i'm not going to attack herman cain for his problems but wait patiently for his supporters to come to the point of view that he can't win as chuck says and get some of that support and look where newt gingrich is in the polls right now. he's on top. i think power begins to consolidate against the one anti-romney candidate. for the moment it's newt gingrich. it gets difficult to come back a second time. >> chuck, your take on that? >> i think that cain is not necessarily hurting the field anymore. he's become a sideshow. it's almost a shiny metal object at this point. the campaigns themselves, the other ones, newt gingrich was asked about this yesterday and said no, no, no, i'm not talking about it. yeah, it really is a distraction but i don't think it's hurting the field. i think it actually was hurting the entire field during that week of focus on sexual harassment. >> guys, thanks very much. i appreciate it. it's nine after the hour. here's savannah. now to another big political story. after more than three decades in congress, massachusetts representative barney frank has announced his plans to retire at the end of his current term. congressman frank is with us this morning. good morning to you. >> good morning. >> when you talked about why you are retiring, you said your district has been redrawn in a way that would make it more difficult for you to win re-election. my question is are you leaving your fellow democrats in the lurch? it won't be any easier for any other democrat to win this seat, right? >> right, but that's not exactly what i said. i didn't say i wasn't running because i was afraid i couldn't win. what i said was i had decided over a year ago i was going to retire. i'll be 72 in a couple of months. i didn't think staying until i was almost 75 was ideal. but i then wenhen we took over e house i thought i should be here to fight financial reform and to make sure military spending reductions of an appropriate sort are part of deficit reduction. that's what i planned to do. when i saw the new district, there were two responses. because it's 325,000 new people, it would include full-time campaigning, including raising a couple of million dollars. >> so for those who think this is a signal that you don't think democrats will win back control of the house in 2012, your response would be what? >> that i wish we could talk substance sometimes in the media. i know that's against the rules. i'd like to talk about public policy. i regret that we can't. no, i am making a personal decision here. i was going to retire. i changed my mind because i felt i could spend this two years most effectively if i was a candidate for re-election fighting to protect financial reform and reduce excessive overseas military spending. now that i would have to spend most of the year in campaigning, fund-raising, et cetera, those reasons are no longer valid. so, no, this doesn't mean that we're not going to take back the house. in fact i think we're likely to win this seat. again, i don't know, did you think i would serve until i was 106? i'm 71 years old. the question is i have decided not to serve until three months before my 75th birthday. i guess i don't understand why that is so hard for people to grasp. >> you've talked about the tone in washington among the media but also members of congress. you have served in this institution for 30 years. during that time i don't have to tell you congress's approval has gone down to the single digits. how does that make you feel about your life's work? >> well, you exemplify what i think is a change in the tone. you manage to ask all sort of negative questions. i understand that's the media's current role. it didn't used to be that way. that's part of the way for the low approval. it's gotcha this and gotcha that, it's gotcha journalism and gotcha politics an it does lessen our chances to get things done. i may have a big ego but never identified myself as the entire congress. i'm very proud of the financial reform bill and proud of the progress we've made, for example, in protecting gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people against environments. i'm proud of the role in helping impeach bill clinton. the fact that institutions in america today are less popular, the media is less popular, congress is less popular, i don't tack that personally. >> back to the tone, you make a fair point about the media, on the other hand, you certainly are known for your sharp tongue at times. do you feel any responsibility for your own role in kind of that tone that we do see in washington, whether it be media or members of congress? >> well, congratulations, you're four for four in managing to find a negative approach. no, i will say this. in 1981 when i got to congress, i was very cooperative in a bipartisan way. newt gingrich actually boasted about the extent to which he changed things. he forced out the minority leader and said, no, we have to challenge the democrats as our enemies. look, there was a poll taken a couple of years ago, 2010, i believe, or 2009 and people were asked who was the most partisan member of congress and who was the most bipartisan and they asked the republicans to rate democrats and democrats to rate republicans. i was rated as the most partisan and the most bipartisan. i think that's what's appropriate. where you have areas of disagreement, you ought to articulate those. where you have areas of agreement, you ought to work together so i think i've been able to do both, be sharp where there were differences, which is appropriate in a democracy, but reach out and be cooperative on those areas where we can work together. >> congressman barney frank, congratulations on your retirement. thanks for being with us this morning. we appreciate it. >> you've welcome. >> how's the rest of your day going? >> i don't think i'll be invited to the retirement party. let's go over to the news desk. natalie is standing by with a check of all the top stories. >> good morning, matt and savannah. good morning, everyone. we've got some breaking business news. american airlines and its parent company had filed for chapter 11 reorganization. the company's ceo is also stepping down. he will be replaced by the company's president, tom horton. retail came to the rescue and cyber monday said sales soaring up 18% from the same time last year and that in turn sent stocks soaring. mandy, what is it looking like there this morning? >> reporter: at this stage we're looking a little positive but who knows by the end of trade today. as for cyber monday, you're right, it was a booming success for retailers showing americans growing confident using their tablets and smartphones and pcs to shop online. it's also very important that black friday and cyber monday are good for the retailers because some of these retailers make up to 40% of their annual revenue during the annual shopping season. big news from facebook with that report saying it's considering raising about $10 billion in an ipo in april to june next year which would value it at d.$100 billion, which would be twice as high as what it was back in january. back to you. >> that is unbelievable. mandy drury at the new york stock exchange. thank you. the second mile charity that was founded by jerry sandusky is asking its donors to contribute elsewhere, in particular an organization for victims of sexual abuse. prosecutors say the former penn state assistant football coach met many of the young boys he's now charged with sexually abusing through that charity. this, as the young man known as victim one in the case against sandusky, has hired a legal team known for representing victims of the clergy sex abuse scandal in the philadelphia archdiocese. the chairman. u.s. joint chiefs of staff has refused to apologize for the nato air strikes that killed 24 pakistani soldiers this weekend on the border with afghanistan. general martin dempsey acknowledged that islamabad has the right to be angry but cited the need for an investigation. this morning pakistan pulled out of a conference on afghanistan slated for december. officials say it is a boycott to protest those nato air strikes. and three wealthy money managers from the posh new york suburb of greenwich, connecticut, just got a lot more money to manage. they won more than a quarter of a billion dollars on a single powerball ticket. that's the largest jackpot in that state's history. they took the after tax lump sum of $103 million cash and say they are putting it to good use. they are planning to give a significant portion to charity. there are some reports that say the trust is a front for an anonymous winner who hired the men so he could keep his own identity secret. it is now 17 minutes past the hour. big mystery, though, because it took almost a month to come forward. they even put billboards up asking them to make themselves known. maybe because they don't need the money? >> a lot of papers say rich get richer, with the whole occupy situation going on not going on well in some quarters. you guess right, you get a buck and a dream, right? >> except for savannah. >> all right, all right. >> who sees the glass half empty rather than half full. >> you're going to gang up on me too? >> try to get that positive attitude back. time for the tree lighting. let's go you what's positi attitude back. tennessee, getting socked with snow, and in places like denmark, tennessee, five inches of snow. schools all over the state having delayed opening or closing, and tennessee, mississippi, alabama, arkansas, missouri and kentucky. go to the map, and basically we have a storm system getting itself together. you get some of the snowfall totals. and wilson, arkansas, three inches of snow. there you see the wrap around system, and ahead of it, warm air in new york city, and winter storm watches and winter weather advisories in effect throughout parts of the mid planes, and also in the upper great lakes. we're talking from six to nine inches of snow in the next 48 hours. that's what's going on around the country, and here's what's going on in your neck of the woods. >> good morning. rain creeping closer to the metro area and coming in from the south and west. i am meteorologist, tom kierein, and we have sprinkles in northern montgomery county, and then we will get chillier. right now mild throughout much of the region in upper 50s and low 60s, and 62 at reagan national, and then chillier as rain and that's your latest weather. matt. now to los angeles where the doctor who was found guilty of causing michael jackson's death will be sentenced today. dr. conrad murray faces up to four years in prison for involuntary manslaughter. nbc's kristen dahlgren has the latest on that. kristen, good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning, matt. we're all watching to see what happens today, but even if the judge throws the book at conrad murray, a court order to reduce prison overcrowding here in california means he may only serve a fraction of any time. >> find the defendant, conrad robert murray, guilty -- >> reporter: for many of michael jackson's fans, the day a jury convicted dr. conrad murray of involuntary manslaughter marked the end of a long, difficult struggle for justice. but for murray's friends and supporters, the verdict signalled the beginning of an uncertain new chapter of time he'll spend in state custody. his friend and former medical assistant stacy rug els visited him in jail. >> he was extremely positive. he told us he had read the bible from front to back twice already. >> reporter: according to tmz, murray has been placed on suicide watch while in jail, reportedly telling friends that he's lost the will to live. the sheriff's department refused to comment on murray's physical or mental health, but ruggles says those reports don't sound like the man she's known more than a decade. >> i'm sure anybody that were to go to jail that's never experienced anything like that may at some point feel defeated or may feel that they're at a breaking point. >> reporter: in an interview taped before his trial ended, murray told savannah guthrie that he wasn't mentally preparing for life behind bars. >> have you thought about what it would be like to spend four years in jail? >> that is a chapter that i have not thought about. because i do not have any plans for any such activity. >> reporter: now murray's future lies in the handle of judge michael pastor. >> dr. murray's reckless conduct in this case poses a demonstrable risk to the safety of the public. >> reporter: legal experts say the judge's decision to hold murray without bail indicates that he may be inclined to hand out the stiffest sentence he can. >> we'll give h