piggy: eeeeee, weeeeeee, eeeeee, weeeee weeeeeeee. this morning on "early today," new reality. with congress back in session, president obama returns fm his whirlwind tour of asia to face an emboldened republican party. free at last. somali pirates release a retired couple aft more than a year in captivity. and what's in a word? which newly coined words and phrases t the list for 2010? which newly coined words and phrases t the list for 2010? 55 captions paid for by nbc-universal television hello and good morning, i'm lynn berry. today we begin with back to work. lawmakers will tackle a long

list of to-dos during a lame duck session of congress that gets under way on capitol hill today. however, expectations are low that we'll see much post election progress during the democrats' swan song, as the majority in the house. nbc's tracie potts joins us from washington with all the deils. tracie, good morning. lynn, good morning. the old congress is coming back. the new congress is coming in. dozens of new members of the house of representatives d new senators hoping to make a difference. they're already filing in to washington. fresh-faced members of congress, armed with public support, ready to make big changes. >> i'm not going to be bullied. >> reporter: but before they're sworn in, this congress has to decide whether to let your taxes go up at the end of this year. >> there's no bend on the permanent extension of tax cuts for the wealthiest americans. >> reporter: but the white house has signaled it may support a temporary extension for the wealthy. >> well, if that's all we could get out of the president, then he is the president, so we'll work with him on that. >> reporter: president obama,

just back from asia, said sunday he'd like to know how republicans plan to pay for that $700 billion. congress also needs to pass spending bills to avoid a federal government shutdown. and deal with the budget's big ticket items, medicare, preventing another cut in what doctors are paid, and social security. >> we've got to come to grips with social security, medicare and medicaid and find bipartisan agreement before it'soo late. >> reporter: democrats are hoping they can squeeze in $250 social security checks to make up for no cost of living increase next year. , is there really compromise in the air here on capitol hill? here in washington, we'll get a better idea of that later this week when president obama meets with the new leaders of the democrat and the republican parties here on capitol hill. lynn? >> tracie potts in washington, thanks so much. afghan president hamid karzai is drawing heat from american lawmakers and military leaders over his criticism of the u.s. war strategy in afghanistan.

in a "washington post"interview this weekend, karzai said he wanted the u.s. to reduce military operations, and end special operations raises. however, those raids are a key part of the u.s. counterinsurgency strategy. according to "the post," general david praeus expressed, quote, astoshment and disappointment with karzai's remarks. meanwhile, according to this morni morning's "new york times" the obama administration will be laying out a plan that ai to end the mission in afghanistan by 2014. the u.s. would start handing over security duties tofghan forces over the next 18 to 24 months. president obama is praising israeli prime mister benjam netanyahu for trying to win approval fromis cabinet of a new proposal to freeze construction in the disputed west bank. the plan would see israel enforce a construction ban for 90 days, in exchange, washington would give israel military aid and support at the united nations. if approved by the israeli

government, the deal could help revive peace talks with the palestinians, which collapsed at the end of september. and now here's a look at some other stories making news "early today" in america. in colorado, three u.s. soldiers were arrested after their attempted raid of a medil marijuana dispensary hit a snag. security video captured the panic when they realized they accidentally locked themselves inside. they've each been slapped with burglary charges. a three-mile stretch of one california beach is littered with thousands of llyfish. officials are investigating but say a similar event happened about seven years ago with a smaller type of jellyfish. they believe these are moon jellyfish which are about a foot in diameter. heavy snow in minnesota didn't stop a group of 300 cyclists from compeng in the state cycle-cross championship. racers did their best to keep warm, but unfortunately that didn't prevent the inevitable wipeouts.

the race promoter offered this observation, there's a reason it's called the hardest hour in cycling. i'd say so. and in new york, competitive speed eating champs. kobayashi failed to break the world record for downing a 12-inch ms. today in the fastest time. the hot dog eating champ said it was the beginess rule of using a knife and fork, as well as the soft dough, that threw off his time. kobayashi was 17 seconds short of a recordbut still clocked in at an impressive 2 minutes 3 seconds. now for a look at your national and regional weather, here's nbc meteorologist bill karins with the weather. >> that was a struggle. >> you know, it's always the knife and fork. i just gofor the hands and just shovel it in. >> that's me with chop sticks. just wasn't happening. >> how's that for a little side dish with the cheerios this morning? >> actly. well, i hope you had a wonderful weekend and everyone else, too. we showed you the video from minnesota. pretty impressive snowstorm. many people still with snow on the ground. we had as much as a foot of snow

reported in central minnesota. minneapolis was right around 8 or 9 inches. that was the first snowstorm of the season. this week, i don't think we're going to see much in the way of any heavy snow. this is a rainy weekend. at least the beginning of it for the eastern seaboard. heavy rain this morning. almost the entire state of uisiana is getting wet rain now along with missisppi. that's all heading for alabama and georgia. we've already had some rain this morning right around atlanta. just cool in the great lakes. and maybe a shower or two in northern new england but nothing significant. here's that first batch of rain that's heading through the atlanta area as we speak. it should be gone here ortly. but there's a lot more behind yo look at all filling in here. all the gen is the rain. the yellow and the orange is the moderate to heavy rain. reall driving anywre from the gulf northwards almost to tennessee, expect wet weather during your day today. new orleans should pick up a significant amount of rain. now there's not a lot of cold air out there but it's still cool, especially around minnesota with the snow pack on the ground. a little chilly around chicago this morning. but the eastern sea board is at least going to be mild. not going to be too cold of a

rain as we go throughout the next couple of days. your monday forecast. maybe a chance of drizzle in new york. temperatures will be mild, up arund 60 degrees. same with d.c. the rain is relly from new orleans up to atlanta, florida, you avoid the rain at least for today. that's aook at your monday forecast. now here's a look at the weaer outside your window. new orleans, as we mentioned, a good chance of thunderstorms possible. airport delays. rlando, looki pretty good. charlotte, north carolina. not bad day. it will be cloudy, 65. your rain will arrive tonight and be with you all day tomorrow. lynn, i'll pinpoint where that rain is headed for on your tuesday coming up. >> all right, bill, thanks so much. also coming up, another no-go for four loko. and want to look like a rock star? you may want to try being a college president. your earley morning business adlines are ahead. plus you're not going to believe how former president bill clinton spent this past weekend. >> a hail mary for the ages, a fall on broadway and new coach,

new results for the cowboys. you're watching "early today."

good morning. welcome back to "early today," i'm lynn berry and here are some of your top headlines this morning. how police say a 13-year-old girl who disappeared with her mother, brother and a family friend last week, was found bound and gagd in a man's basement. but otherwise in gd condition. the homeowner, 30-year-old matthew hoffman, was arrested yesterday on one count of kidnapping, but authorities have not been able to locate the girl's family. the death toll in haiti's cholera epidemic continues to climb, reaching more than 900 over the weekend. in addition, the disease has been found in six of ten provinces in the earthquake-battered country. a btish couple kidnapped from their yacht by somal pirates are free this morning, after spending more than a year in captivity. the couple were handed to local offials in a somali town yesterday after they reportey paid a $300,000 ransom.

and a new survey finds that silk ham and vuvuzela were the top words of 2010, reflecting the global impasse of the gulf oil dsaster and that noisy south african horn at the world cup soccer tournament. also in the top ten was a mistaken mix of dispute and repudiate coined by sarah palin. here's a look at how wall street will kick off the day. the dow opens at 11,192 after falling 90 points on friday. the s&p lost points. and the nasdaq dropped 37. taking a look at overseas trading ts morning, in tokyo, the nikkei rose 102 points. but in hong kong, the hang seng fell 195. > after a bumpy stretch that putn end to wall reet's recent rallies, this week investors will be on the watch for any sign of the economic strength from a number of factors. economic data on deck th week

includes fresh industrial production numbers, and an updated outlook from home builders on the still struggling housing market. inflation will be in focus on the whalesale end consumer level. both are expected to show prices on the rise. retailers reporting october sales are expected to be slightly stronger. we'll also find out how those numbers impact earnings with quarterly reports from walmart, home depot, and target. a totalf 10 companies are poised to go public this week with general motors leading that impressive lineup. gm is hoping toaise at least $1billion with sres expected to go for upwards of $29 apiece. the federal reserve plan to energize the economy wll remain on the radar. according to "the wall street journal," a group of gop strategists, economists, and politicians are launching a newspaper ad campaign calling for the fed to drop its $600 billion stimulus. as of friday, shipments of the caffeinated alcohic beverage four loko will no lonr arrive in new york state.

the controversial drink is under investigation by the fda, and has already been banned in washington, michigan, utah, and oklahoma. meanwhile, new york senator charles schumer is asking for a federal investigation into lead levels in some reusable grocery bags. and finally, where does all that pricey college tuition go? well, according to the latest annual survey by the chronicle of higher education, a record 30 presidents at private colleges ok home home compensation packages worth $1 million or more in 2008. and that's seven more than the previous year. well, a thrill in jacksonville. the patriots rebound, and the jets work oveime. again. plus, just when everyone has written them off, the dallas cowboys play lights out against one of the l's top teams. your early morning sports headlines are straight ahead. going to be a rainy start to ou week in the southeast, the d-atlantic and the northwest. your monday forecast is coming

up. you're watching "early today."

good morning. if you're just waking up, this "early today." and in sports, a new coaching era is under way for the dallas cowboys. and the new guy has already paid giant dividends. here's nbc's fred roggin with an early look at all your sports

headlines. >> good monday morning to you. earlier this week jerry jones sent his team a message, firing their head coach and the cowboys responded in a big way against the giants. let's go to new york. a power outage stopped playn the third quarter. no problem for the cooys, they had plenty of energy. eli manning picked off in the end zone by brian mccann and he was off to the races untouched. 101 yards down the sideline for the score. jason garrett earned his first win as head coach. cowboys won it 33-20. straight finish, jags and texans, last play of the game tied at 24. david garr ard threw up a prayer and it was answered. right to mike omas. game over. jags won it 31-24. now to cleveland, justin brown's final minutes, mccoy found the end zone and tied it at forcing overtime. no field goal needed to win this one. mark sanchez connecting with santonio holmes. holmes did the rest, 37 yards to the house. jets won in o.t.

patriots had their way with the steelers. tom brady hooked up not once, not twice, but three times. the pats made a statement in pittsburgh 39-26. finally, ugly moment in the rangers/oilers game sean avery dropped his gloves and he just leveled. the referee quickly broke things up, words were exchanged. avery headed to the locker room. that's wh the fun began. grab a partner, it's a brawl. even the ranger bench got involved. when it was all said a done, 124 minutes in penalties handed out, including four ejections. the fight was a draw. but the rangers won the game 8-2. that'your early look at sports on "early today," i'm fred roggin. well, mega mind has another mega weekend at the box office. your early morning enteainment headlines are straight ahead. plus it is every bride's nightmare. a last-minute scratch at the altar. but we'll tell you about one young woman who madethe best of it. you're watching "early today."

welcome back on this mnday morning. if you're heading outside this morning, if you live in the deep south, we're talking louisiana, mississippi, alabama, georgia, you're going to have to deal with in today. there's a lot of heavy rain right throu all of louisiana currently and it's all sliding through mississippi, and now even into alabama. from atlanta to montgomery to jackson doxpect on and off rain right through the day. now, later on today, some of that will start moving into the

carolinas. and then during the day tomorrow, that's where the heaviest rains will be. so possibility for two wet days in a row around atlanta. eventually on tuesday, that rainfall is going to move into washington, d.c., philadelphia, and probably tuesday night into wednesday for areas of new york city and new england. so it's pretty big swath of rain. in fact, much needed in the southeast, which has been really dry so far this fal if you're watching us on nbc news in charleston, south carolina, from closing to decor get a glimpse of everyday lifestyle during the civil war at threads of war at the charleston museum. that's your "early today" event of the day. >> thank you, bill. now here's an early look at this morning's headlines in entertainment. family power spoke at the weekend box office earning the animated 3-d comedy "mega mind" top spot fr a second straight weekend. foweeks there have been virtually no films for younger audiences. until "mega mind" d families filled the theaters again to the tune of $30 milln. $90 million in just two weeks.

stifled by "megamind" and others, denzel washington's usual box office mojoouldn't push the debut of "unstoppable" past second place with $23.5 million. another opener, the invading aliens of "skyline" managed fourth with just under $1 million. and the debut of "morning glories" struggled into fifth with less than $10 million. touchdown for jessica simpson. she's engaged to former nfl player eric johnson. and tmz reports that former president bill clinton shot a cameo appearance in thailand this weekend for the upcoming film "hangover i which i just find fantastically hysterical. >> yeah, not for everyone. a little risque. but it had its funny moments. >> i would love to see that. >> nick lachey just got engaged, too. >> did they get engaged or were there just rumors they were going to get engaged? >> well -- >> they did, i guess. i -- i -- i don't know.

>> i know what i'm talking about. >> all right, all right. well this comes to us from koaa news first 5 in colorado springs, colorado. where, for the father of one bride, even though t night didn't go as planned, he couldn't have beenprouder. his daughter was supposed to be married by now, enjoying a reception surrounded by family. t when the wedng fell through, the bride h an idea. instead of all the reception food going to waste, she donated the hot meal to homeless families in the area through the salvation army. a selfless act of giving that dad says makes him the luckiest man. turning lemons into lemonade. >> just a reminder, at that ime, a lot of people, thanksgiving, christmas coming up, a lot of food shelters need some goods. >> yep, very true. i'm lynnberry and this is "early today." just your first stop of the day, today, on your nbc station.

his is what a monday morning looks like in the nation's capital. 46 degrees on this 15th day of november. good morning to you. i'm joe krebs. >> i'm eun yang. welcome to this monday, november 15th, 2010. prince george's coty executive jackson is expected to return to work after he was arrested with his wife leslie. tracee wilkins is live with more.

tracy, good morning. go morning, eun. i was here when he took jackson and his wife leslie into custody. the cars are gone. the home is dark. is supposed to be inside that house. he's under electronic monitoring. he is allowed to go to work, though, and that is what he is expected to do today. they returned to their mitchellville home friday night after the two were charged with accepting kickbacks and bribes in exchange for favorable treatment. johnson and his wife leslie, newly elected county council member were taken into custody friday afternoon. fbi and irs agents then stayed in the home for several hours leaving with several boxes of evidence containing records and clothing from inside the home. johnson had this to say after leaving federal court on friday. >> i am absolutely convinced without a shadow of a