0 machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades. in the fierce battle the petty officer took a single bullet and later died from his wound. in the heat of that battle they miraculously rescued dr. joseph. he had earned a bronze star and two other awards. he's a native of monroeville, pennsylvania. he was widely admired by coaches and classmates alike. >> i remember nick real well. he was one of those guys you loved to have on your team. >> and he's a special, special person, so he won't be forgotten. >> reporter: dr. joseph works with an american relief organization morningstar providing free medical care for afghan civilians. he was flown to the nearby air b.a.s.e. and is expected to return soon. jim miklaszewski, nbc, pentagon. there was more snow that piled up in wisconsin over the last two days than that state saw all of last year, with up to 16 inches falling in some air yas. and while some enjoyed the wintry white settings, slippery roads and bitter conditions were blamed for at least four deaths, 600 crashes and more than 1,100 spinouts from minnesota to the texas border. new york's democratic governor andrew cuomo, a potential candidate in 2016 will not say whether he would endorse hillary clinton. he says that's a long way away and she hasn't decided if she will run. if u.n. ambassador susan rice is nominated for secretary of state to replace hillary clinton, senator john mccain said he will be part of theirings. conservative glenn beck is now joining republicans who support gay marriage. he said, quote, it's not whether they should be married or not. the question is why is the government involved in our marriage. former house majority leader dick armey talking on cbs talking about the 2012 election said, quote, we had a lot of candidates, quite frankly, that did dumb things out there. the republican national committee is planning an autopsy on the campaign to exam what worked and what didn't work in 2012. a new politico poll finds that romney supported him by 47% and 650% put romney on their night list. meanwhile the president and his family got in the spirit at the christmas concert with diana ross and koenen o'brien and they got to meet some of the former patients who dressed up as santa's little helper elves. >> release the elves. hey, elf, what's your name. >> olivia. >> everybody look up and say cheese. >> cheese. >> cheese. >> say merry christmas. >> merry christmas. >> ho, ho, ho. >> ho, ho, ho. >> he does a good santa. and that's your morning dish of scrambled politics. and now for a look at your national weather, let's turn to nbc meteorologist bill karins, he has your weather forecast. incredibly cute. did you see the kid up front. >> try saying broccoli next time somebody takes a picture. that's a lot of fun. >> you have way too much time on your hands. >> well, good morning, everyone. the snow pack continues across the northern half of the country. we watched this stack last week for this time of year. only 7% of the country had snow. the northern plains were snow-free, new england, the great lakes. well, we had this big snowstorm go through the plains and the rockies. the snow plains go down the border, omaha, north of chicago, the northern great lakes have snow, all of the upper midwest, and we've even got snow down through colorado and even new mexico. now we have 32% of the country covered by snow, which is where we should be for this time of the year. that's what it took. one big storm. will the cold and the snow remain? doesn't look like it. it's a little better than yesterday. the colder air finally made its way to the east coast. it does have some rain showers with it. some are moving through philadelphia right now and a also down in south florida and we had the tornadoes pretty nasty down in areas of florida. now, as far as radar, you can see philadelphia, through new jersey. this will come through the next hour, hour and a half. and then through connecticut it should be all gone by 8:00 a.m. definitely cooler on the east coast. in the midwest, you definitely remain on the chilly side but everything should have a dry afternoon. the exception, again, lynn, florida, low 80s and dodging showers. still hard to feel bad for them. >> yeah, it is. thank so much. bright lights over texas, colorado's rocky high, and, bill, who is hoarding all the donkey cheese. i've been asking that question all morning. i will tell you coming up. it's not me. it's not me. plus, new government warnings, how governments may be collecting large amounts of data on your kids. you're watching "first look" on m s msnbc. [ male announcer ] it's that time of year again.