as part of the 50 nation coalition that president biden has built or whether congress will ignore the lessons we've learned from history and let putin prevail. it is that simple. it is that stark a choice and we hope congress on a bipartisan basis will make the right choice. >> that's national security advisor jake sullivan laying out the high stakes of a vote on more aid for ukraine. we'll look at where support stands on capitol hill for president biden's $106 billion foreign aid plan just ahead. plus the latest from the middle east. israel says its troops are advancing on hamas in gaza's largest southern city. but the ground offensive leaves civilians in that part of the territory with few places to seek shelter. and also ahead we'll get expert legal analysis on a supreme court case that involved a family who owned a company in helping to create the nation's opioid crisis. good morning and welcome to "way too early" on this tuesday, december 5th. i'm jonathan lemire. thanks for starting your day with us. the israeli military appears to have begun its ground offensive in southern gaza. new satellite photos show israeli tanks and armored personnel carriers in the area. the move sets the stage for w will likely be one of the biggest battles of the war, this taking place in southern gaza's largest city. israeli officials believe the military leadership of hamas has been seeking shelter there. israel's defense forces have declined to comment specifically on these developments, but they say they're operating all over the gaza strip. air strikes were launched in the south over the weekend. the plan to invade the area has been met with stark warnings from u.s. officials to protect civilian lives. the invasion is expected to worsen the already dire living conditions in the area. just yesterday gaza's two main internet service providers announced another near total blackout. officials say it was caused by a cut of the main fiber routes. service started gradually returning this morning. israel, this also now accusing the united nations of hamas carried out widespread at sexual abuse against women during that october 7therror attack. israeli authorities say they have collected extensive testimonies of rape and sex crimes from witnesses and first responders who were present during or after the atrocities took place including accounts of mutilation and torture. u.n. secretary-general said last week that accounts should be vigorously investigated and prosecuted, but israeli officials are saying he should have spoken out about this weeks earlier. here's what state department spokesperson matt miller had to say about why he believes hamas did not release the remaining female hostages. >> only because we haven't made an independent assessment of our own. we've obviously seen the reports that hamas has committed sexual violence. they've committed rape. we have no reason at all to doubt those reports. when you look at all the atrocities that hamas carried out on october 7th and the atrocities that they have carried out since, the fact that they continue to hold women hostages, the fact they continue to hold children hostages, the fact it seems one of the reasons they don't want to turn women over that they've been holding hostage and the reason this pause fell apart is they don't want those women to be able to talk about what happened to them during their time in custody. certainly there is very little that i would put beyond hamas when it comes to its treatment of civilians and particularly its treatment of women. >> in another development from the middle east, some u.s. officials believe the biden administration is deliberately down-playing this weekend's attack against commercial vessels in the red sea. on sunday houthi rebels in yemen launched missiles and drones against three separate ships. a u.s. navy warship then fired back taking down three unmanned aerial systems. the department of defense says it, quote, cannot assess whether the u.s. was the target of the attack, but officials with knowledge of the incident are telling politico that u.s. naval forces are clearly under threat there in the red sea. they argue at the white house is down-playing the seriousness in an attempt to avoid escalating tensions in the middle east amid the israel-hamas war. joining us now pentagon reporter for politico, laura seller. laura, great to see you again. we'll ask about those red sea attacks in a moment. i know you've got reporting on that. first let's start with what's going on at this moment in gaza, really escalating the attacks in the southern part of the region. give us the update as to what we know in terms of the level of bombardment and also what does the biden administration believe? >> good morning, jonathan. thanks so much for having me. as you said this does mark a new phase-in the war that could be decisive. the israelis are pushing into the south of gaza. it's setting the stage for a showdown in the southern city which is where israel believes hamas' military and political leadership is hiding. this next phase of the fight could be the most intense. that means potentially thousands of additional civilian casualties. this is a point that the administration is clearly growing frustrate would the israelis. you saw over the weekend defense secretary lloyd austin said they'd been pressing israel to do more to protect civilians. he says israel faces strategic defeat in gaza if it does not do more to protect civilians. clearly he's drawing on his experience commanding u.s. forces in iraq there, so h does know what he's talking about. if this is indeed the beginning of the end of the war, though, that does bring more urgency on officials to discuss what happens to gaza after -- after israel does destroy hamas, if that does happen. israel has ruled out allowing the palestinian authority to gufblern gaza, which is that's the authority that governs parts of the west bank. although this may be something that the u.s. is continuing to think about. there are proposals to have a -- some sort of peacekeeping coalition that may be led by the saudis. so a lot of proposals, not a lot of answers right now. >> so let's circle back now to the red sea. it was your reporting that indicates some dod officials are frustrate would the white house's response to those warship attacks over the weekend. tell us more what these officials would like to see the biden administration do. and give us the bigger picture, if you will, as to how the white house is viewing this seeming escalation. >> it does seem like the fighting in the middle east is drawing in u.s. forces even more right now. there's been 76 attacks on u.s. forces in iraq and syria so far. and on sunday you saw this massive four-hou long fire fight in the red there were three different coercial ships that came under fire from houthi missiles and drones and the uss carny, the is guided missile destroyer, responded to those shooting down three drones itself in the process. so the biden administration has been very deliberate about its language, and some say they're actually down-playing it threat to u.s. forces. the biden administration said that the carny was -- they could not assess a at this time the carny was a target. my sources are saying, well, if you're a commander of a ship in the red sea and you see a drone coming at you, you're going to assess it as a threat and take it down. there are others that are saying that the biden administration needs to do more to respond directly to the houthis after these threats, but this is something the biden administration is being very careful to not escalate the situation right now. that's why you're seeing language like that. of course we do have to say that the u.s. has retaliated in some cases to some of these iran-backed attacks. just on sunday you saw u.s. forces took action against five militants that they saw preparing to launch a drone at its positions in iraq. so they're not doing nothing, but people are calling them to do more to prevent these attacks. >> terrific reporting as always from one of our real stalwarts, pentagon reporter for politico laura seligman, thank you. the u.s. office of budget and management is warning without congressional action the united states will run out of resources to help ukraine by the end of the year. that's according to a letter from the department head who says the u.s. is out of money and nearly out of time. but future aid to ukraine or israel appears t depend on whetheressial republicans can inc policy changes and border spendin in a potential national security supplemental package. sources are telling nbc news that birtan talks to tiate a package of border policy changes tied to the supplemental have broken down. on the senate floor last night majority leader chuck schumer moved to force a threshold vote on a shell bill tomorrow. prior to the vote, senators will attend a classified briefing with ukrainian president volodymyr zelenskyy. still ahead here on "way too early," we're learning more about the gold bars that the fbi says agents found inside the home of new jersey democratic senator bob menendez. and we'll show you how senator john fetterman trolled menendez for his bribery charges. those stories and a check on weather and sports when we come right back. come right back a few years ago, i came to saona, they told me there's no electricity on the island. we always thought that whatever we did here would be an emblem of what small communities can achieve. trying to give a better life to people that don't have the means to do it. si mi papá estuviera vivo, sé que él tuviera orgulloso también de vivir de esta viviendo una vida como la que estamos viviendo ahora. es electricidad aquí es salud. 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[ting] ♪♪ live in the moment. ask your doctor about otezla. welcome back on this tuesday morning. turning to other headlines now, at least frold bars that the fbi says it found in new jersey senator bob menendez's home are being linked to a businessman who is accused of bribing the senator. menendez and his wife were charged in september with accepting hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes in exchange for the senator's influence. in the indictment prosecuto included photos of the gold bars with engraved serial numbers, which match those recorded in a 2013 armed robberyeport filed by the new jerse businessman. police later caught the robbers and recovered those gold bars. but to get the bars back, the businessman had to sign release forms certifying they belonged to him. meanwhile, democratic senator john fetterman enlisted the help of recently outed congressman george santos to troll the embattled senator. fetterman used campan funds to hire santos to record a sarcastic cameo video targeting menendez's bribery charges. fetterman posted to social media this -- i thought my ethnically challenged colleague could use some encouragement given his substantial legal problems, so i approached a seasoned expert on the matter to give bobby from jersey some advice. >> hey, bobby. uh, look, i don't think i need to tell you but these people that want to make you get in trouble and want to kick you out and make you run away, you make him put up or shut up. you stand your ground, sir, and don't get bogged down by all the haters out there. stay strong. merry christmas. >> it sure didn't take long for santos to getn cameo, did it? meanwhile, nbc news reporter ught up with menendez yestda on capitol hill. here was the senator's response. >> have you seen this cameo that -- the santos video tha the fetterman folks bought? ve me a reaction to that. >> well, i don't think mr. clickbait's donors would appreciate him enricng george santos. i'm surprised he didn't ask his >> oh, boy. the money. fetterman was the first democratic senator to call for menendez's resignation. since then more than half of the senate democratic caucus has also called for the new jersey senator to resign. he is refusing to do so. elsewhere, we're learning more about a mysterious illness causing severe sickness and even death inseamingly healthy dogs across the united states. now doctors may have found some critical clues. nbc news correspondent priscilla thompson has more. >> this is naple. >> 7 month old australian shepherd maple was a happy, healthy puppy until her owner noticed a cough. >> she's coughing pretty much every other minute. >> as maple's cough grew even worse, she panicked and rushed to the vet. >> i was really scared. >> maple was sent home with antebotics. the vet told april the dog had symptoms of an illness plaguing the country. the doctor began stutd yg the illness after she saw a rash of cases in the spring including herb own puppy. what should dog owners be looking out for? >> something like discharge with a eye, a soft cough like actually what he just did. >> reporter: an online database shows dog owners are now reporting suspected cases in 37 states with at least a dozen deaths. the cause of the surge in cases experts say could include a new pathogen, low vaccination rates, or lower immunity levels after pandemic isolation. the doctor found one bacteria alone present in 75% of the severely ill dogs she tested and in reviewing x-rays noticed adpattern. are the patterns we're seeing here important? >> they're really important. a lot of the pattern are sort of the brightness we would see wasn't in the spot we would normally see it. it was occurring further back in the chest. >> reporter: understanding the pattern, she says, could be key for vets to know what medication to prescribe, a treatment dog lovers may need to help their best friends. >> that's nbc's priscilla thompson reporting. still ahead here on "way too early," we're going to turn to sports with a look at the stunning win for the cincinnati bengals on monday night football. >> plus, the nba's in-season tournament is halfway to the final four. we'll show you who advanced last night and which team didn't. that's next when we come right back. d which team didn't. that's next when we come right back “it's happening”! if you're worried about your protection, it's not the right protection. always discreet protects like no other. with double leak guards that help prevent gushes escaping from the sides. and a rapid dry core that locks in your heaviest gush quickly for up to zero leaks. and it contours, to everybody. now this, is protection! always discreet- the protection we deserve! what is cirkul? cirkul is the fuel you need to take flight. cirkul is the energy that gets you to the next level. cirkul is what you hope for when life tosses lemons your way. cirkul. it's your water, your way. there's something going around the gordon home. good thing gertrude found delsym. now what's going around is 12-hour cough relief. and the giggles. the family that takes delsym together, feels better together. third down and about a yard and a half. this one floated, caught by chase. and he is gone! touch down cincinnati as he takes it into the end zone. >> that's bengals receiver jamar chase burning the bengals defense for that touch down on cincinnati's first drive in the second half. it was part of a 354-yard night through the air for quarterback jake yarding much better than his four-sack two turn over last week. a 48-yard field goal right there in over time was the difference. the bengals beat the jaguars, upset on the road winning -- and the bengals beat them 34-31. and get this it's their first monday night football game win since 1990. and they ended a three-game losing streak on the season. but it was a potentially very costly outing for jacksonville. not only did they lose the game, the afc leaders may have lost quarterback trevor lawrence. he went down with a sprained right ankle in the fourth quarter. he had to leave the game. he was later spotted in the locker room in a walking boot and crunches. good news the additional x-rays last night came back negat unclear how much if any time he'd miss. meanwhile it's alsounclear who will play quarterback for the new york jets on sunday. according to the athletic the team is leaning toward wilson, but ligsen to this, wilson is reluctant to step back into the starting role because of perceived injury risk. so if true, that's a quarterback saying, no, don't put me in. saleh, however, he did push back against the report saying wilson approached him yesterday afternoon and expressed desire for the job. we shall see. let's turn now to the nba in-season tournament which we've started to figure out. we've got a pair of teams advancing to the semifinals. we'll go to indianapolis first. he knocked the first triple-double in his career including a tie breaking 4-point play with 1 1/2 minutes left to lift the pacers and knock out the boston celtics from this tournament. and in sacramento the new orleans pelicans also punched a ticket to the final four in los angeles. the pelicans erased an early deficit and never trailed the second half on a way to 127-117 win over the kings. there are two other quarterfinal matchups tonight. the milwaukee bucks will host the new york knicks and the phoenix suns take on the lakers in los angeles. time now for the weather and let's go to meet yrlgsologist angie lassman for the forecast. i know you've got your eyes out west. >> we do. and that's where we're going to see the busiest weather over the next few days. we've got atmospheric rivers we're going to track bringing plenty of rain to folks there. quick note we do have light snow possible across parts of the great lakes and additional rain. when we look out west flood alerts urld up. for the pacific north west 9 million people included in this. all under these flood alerts this morning. and those are likely in some spots going to last through the next couple of days. probably until thursday. we've got plenty of moisture working in right now. seattle and portland dealing with that heavy rain. and a couple of storms on tap for folks coming into the pacific. there's the one on thursday, another one on saturday. so we've got rounds of rain on already saturated soil that's going to leave us with the flood concern. the higher levels i think will be for snow, most it is going to be really in those higher elevations because it is a warm system for today and tomorrow, but we'll still pick up some additional snow, and we could see gusty winds upwards of 40 miles per hour along the coast. by the time we get into saturday there's another atmospheric river event possible. we'll see the timing and strength come into view the next couple of day. a cascades could have a half of a foot, 3 to 5 inches towards the coast and the heads up for the flooding there. here's that little system, the alberta clipper going to work through the great lakes and eventually into the mid-atlantic bringing a little snow and a little rain for folks in that region. >> angie lassman, thank you so very much. still aheadoon "way too early" we'll get a live report from dubai in what's seen as a major milestone in the fight against climate change. plus bitcoin appears to