breaking news tonight, the president-elect donald trump agrees to pay $25 million to settle lawsuits accusing his trump university of fraud. a stunning reversal on a day we learn major new picks for the trump administration. tonight, battle lines are drawn. >> nearly half a dozen states and more trouble ahead for the holiday rush. hits to the head. surprising news from doctors tonight about treating concussions. the new approach parents and kids should hear. foam mystery. a massive blob creeps through streets sending firefighters scrambling, captivating the web. what authorities say it is. and food fights. families bracing to talk turkey and politics at the thanksgiving table.

good evening, what had been the headline of the day -- president-elect trump naming his picks for attorney general, national security advisor and cia director was eclipsed by mr. trump himself. with a surprising turnaround in a high-profile legal showdown. the soon to be president agreeing to pay $25 million to sett now-defunct trump university, something candidate trump declared he would never do. word of the deal comes ten days before the start of a trial that could have seen a president-elect testifying as a defendant. there's a lot to cover tonight, including the faces behind those big job announcements. but first, nbc's hallie jackson on that stunning legal settlement. hallie, good evening. >> reporter: remember, this is a case that led donald trump to attack the mexican heritage of

for-profit university accusing the president-elect of scamming them with false promises of a real estate education. now this case appears to be part of the past. tonight, donald trump's team reversing course, trying to tie up loose ends on a legal headache that dogged him for years -- a new settlement in the lawsuit against him from former students of trump university who claim he defrauded them. the president-elect agreeing to pay $25 million even though on the campaign trail he insisted that would never happen. >> i don't want to settle cases when we're right. i don't believe in it. and when you start settling cases, you know what happens? everybody sues you because you get known as a settler. the people that took the course all signed -- many, many -- signed report cards saying it was fantastic, wonderful, beautiful. >> reporter: the new york attorney general's office says the president-elect is not admitting wrongdoing with the attorney general, a democrat

today's result." a spokesperson for the trump organization says "we have no doubt trump university would have prevailed at trial" but added "the resolution lets the president-elect devote his full attention to the important issues facing our great nation. donald trump avoiding the possibility of having to take the stand, closing one of the highest-profile cases against him, one that became an attack line for his political rivals. >> he really tricked vulnerable americans, veterans, widows of veterans, people who were trying to get ahead. >> what it suggests is either because he's president-elect or because that was a bluff the whole time, he doesn't actually want to defend himself in court, he would rather pay to make this go away. this is, now, going away. >> reporter: a "usa today" analysis finds the president-elect still has more than 70 open lawsuits against him. unfinished business two months before inauguration day. the president-elect trying to

another. after ivanka trump joined her father for his first private meeting with a foreign leader, a move now raising new conflict of interest questions since it's trump's children set to take over his business and not get involved in governing. >> people think you're going to be part of the administration, ivanka. >> i'm -- no, i'm going to be a daughter. >> reporter: the president-elect himself is now out of new york city for the first time in eight days for a working weekend here in bedminster. trump is meeting every hour or so all weekend with potential prospects for cabinet members, for cabinet positions, all coming to visit. lester? >> hallie jackson tonight, thank you. now to the other big story involving the president-elect today, his choices for three key positions, national security advisor, attorney general, and director of the cia. andrea mitchell tonight on the vital roles and the men trump has tapped to fill them. >> reporter: donald trump

his first foreign policy hires live up to that promise. for national security advisor, a job that does not require senate approval, retired three-star lieutenant general mike flynn, a decorated combat veteran who rose to the top of military intelligence before being fired by president obama two years ago, criticized for ruffling too many feathers. a life long democrat drawing attention for his strident takedown of hillary clinton at the republican convention. >> lock her up, that's right. yeah, that's r. lock her up. >> reporter: stunning former colleagues by cozying up to vladimir putin at a lavish dinner in moscow for putin's propaganda arm, flynn is outspoken against radical islam. >> there is a disease inside of this islamic body, it's like cancer. >> reporter: he'll be the last person talking to the president about national security decisions, running an office that has exploded to 400 staffers. >> the national security advisor role is the most pivotal because

general flynn is a good and important choice to have given his experience and background. >> reporter: some are questioning whether flynn can be an honest broker inside the cabinet. >> can general flynn make that leap to understand the diplomatic side of things? i think those are some of the questions being asked. >> reporter: then there's president-elect trump's pick for attorney general, veteran alabama senator jeff sessions, a hard-liner on immigration, rejected by the senate 30 years ago for a federal judgeship comments. >> i am not a racist, i am not insensitive to blacks. >> reporter: decades later, after ferguson and black lives matter, tonight civil rights lawyers are speaking out. >> he has demonstrated hostility towards our nation's civil rights and equality. and that is cause for concern. >> reporter: but supporters point to sessions' vote to extend the voting rights act and to confirm eric holder and trump's choice for cia director, kansas republican mike pompeo,

veteran, lawyer and tea party republican who took on hillary clinton over benghazi. >> how come no one has been held accountable to date? >> they could not find a breach of duty. >> ma'am, i'm not asking what the arb did, i'm asking what you did. >> reporter: pompeo helped mike pence with the debates and said edward snowden deserves the death penalty. >> he's hardworking, he understands the agency very well. he's a solid pick. >> reporter: with republs running the senate, donald trump's aides believe these nominees will get confirmed because democrats won't be able to challenge a new president so early in the administration. lester? >> andrea, thank you. as we head into the weekend, millions are watching the weather. a deadly blizzard sweeping across the upper midwest, a big winter blast in the middle of fall, and there's more trouble on the way that could impact holiday travelers. we have it all covered starting with nbc's blake mccoy. >> reporter: today in minnesota,

across large swaths of the state, wind gusts over 70 miles per hour as many are getting their first dose of winter weather. >> we're not talking about the light fluffy stuff. we're talking about what they call the back-breaking snow. >> reporter: road conditions are treacherous. >> i'm expecting a two hour and fifteen minute drive to turn into a five-hour drive. >> reporter: already today, more than 300 crashes and two deaths in minnesota blamed on the storm. >> if you get blasted by these strong winds -- >> reporter: in sioux falls, south dakota, people we this and warnings to stay indoors as long as possible, school canceled. in colorado, the storm wreaked havoc with a 20-car pileup thursday shutting down part of i-70. two people killed in that state. the storm has intensified as it moves east. 5.2 million americans currently under some sort of warning or advisory. more than a foot of snow in some areas. for much of the country, this is expected to be a colder and

19 massive salt piles placed throughout the city. they've been stocking up. >> it is payback for last year. it was a very mild winter last year, we had below-normal snow. not this season. >> reporter: this winter storm brings behind it a burst of cold air. and a message -- winter is coming. blake mccoy, nbc news, chicago. nbc meteorologist dylan dreyer is here with us keeping an eye on the blizzard and the next wave to come. what's it >> well, blizzard conditions are likely to continue across minnesota with some areas picking up 20 inches of snow. as the storm moves eastward we are going to see cold air cross over the relatively warmer great lakes. that's going to turn on the lake-effect snow machine. first across michigan on saturday, then through the

could see some significant snowfall totals, especially across upstate new york. so while we're looking at just an additional one to three inches through the upper midwest, the focus will shift to upstate new york where we could see more than a foot of or a foot and a half of snow, especially in syracuse and watertown. that will kick off what will be a very tricky travel week leading up to thanksgiving. another storm system develops across the rockies on monday. as this moves eastward we are looking for heavy snow through the upper midwest on tuesday with storms stretching through the plains and wednesday we could see several delays at airports through the midwest down through the gulf coast with heavy rain and strong storms. so a lot to keep in mind for those traveling for their thanksgiving holiday, lester. >> dylan, thanks very much. in tennessee, scary moments today when a school bus crashed and rolled over on a highway off ramp near nashville. students were evacuated through the bus's emergency exits. 23 were taken to the hospital, thankfully none with life-threatening injuries. in california, something went terribly wrong with a small plane trying to land at an airport in the bay area.

airport, killing one person and injuring another. the cause not yet known. some startling numbers tonight from the cdc about the number of sports injuries. there are more than eight and a half million every year, mostly with people under 25. concussions are among the most dangerous and tonight we're learning about a new approach to treating them that challenge what is we've always told works best. >> r elijah fitch is used to getting hit by foul balls, but when the 16-year-old took a baseball to the head -- twice in one game -- he couldn't shake the dizziness and headaches. were you scared when it happened? >> is this going to be, like, the rest of my life? am i going to go back to normal? >> reporter: turns out elijah had a concussion, the type that affects balance. >> for that type of concussion, the way to get better is by movement. >> reporter: doctors say there are actually six different types of concussions. they can affect your

headaches, nausea, and even affect your mood. the type of concussion dictates the type of recovery. >> having some form of activity is going to be important in probably at least four or five out of those six different types of injuries. >> reporter: new research finds physical exercises as well as brain exercises can help patients recover faster. one study found children who exercised within a week of getting a concussion reported when dr. collins prescribed elijah active recovery for six weeks, his mother was initially skeptical. >> it's going to work. >> i thought just the opposite of it. i wanted him to rest and get his strength. >> keep your head still. >> reporter: but vision exercises helped the teen's eyes and head work in sync again as well as physical exercises. his headaches and dizziness disappeared thanks to a game-changer approach to

take care. >> reporter: nbc news, pittsburgh. still ahead tonight, putting her hopes in the future. the teenaged girl who gets her dying wish to be frozen in time in the hope of one day waking up and being cured. also, the strange massive sight that appeared in california today and, no, it's

we're back now with a story

victory for a british teenager with terminal cancer who had a dying wish -- instead of being buried, she wanted her body frozen when she died so she might be brought back to life, even if it takes hundreds of years. nbc's tom costello has more. >> reporter: the letter to a british judge from a teenaged girl suffering from cancer was heartbreaking. "i'm only 14 years old and i don't want to die, but i know i'm going to die. i think being cryopreserved gives me a chato and woken up, even in hundreds of years time." after consulting with her family, the judge agreed. >> it was about respecting the wishes of a bright and intelligent and articulate 14-year-old. >> reporter: the unnamed teenager died last month, her body quickly rushed to the cryonics institute in detroit where it was frozen and placed in a supercooled container like this one. the cost, $28,000. how does it work? another facility in phoenix says

the body is packed in ice. technicians administer a cocktail of 16 different drugs and rush the patient to a facility where fluids are replaced with a kind of anti-freeze. the body is then placed in a special tank where the temperature drops to minus 320 degrees. >> at that temperature you can wait for decades or a century and you will be in pretty much exactly the same condition as when you started. >> reporter: hundreds of people have already been frozen, including baseball great ted williams. but there's no guaranthe able to revive the dead and medical ethicists worry patients are clinging to false hope. >> the only people promoting this are the people who want to freeze bodies, mainstream science doesn't think anybody knows how to do that right now. >> reporter: the girl's father openly worried if she were revived 200 years from now, she may have no relatives, left in a desperate situation given that she'll still only be 14 and in the u.s. but her dying wish was for a second chance at life. tom costello, nbc news,

we'll take a break. when we come back, some much-needed home updating that will cost the royals half a

we're back now with a strange scene in santa clara, california, today, where a massive blob of foam came pouring out of an industrial building next to the airport today. the mystery foam spread through much of the day. first responders for some time were unclear in what it was or how to stop it. glued to the images on the internet, including our own miguel almaguer. >> reporter: at first glance in sunny santa clara, california, it's beginning to look a lot like christmas. but it's an illusion. that's not snow, that's a sea of foam. >> i mean literally driving down i'm like what's going on? i'm like the largest bubble bath ever. >> reporter: the suds began spewing out of an industrial building near the international airport.

fire suppression system. but there was no blaze. >> the system functioned exactly the way the system is supposed to in the event of a fire and it filled the building with foam. that foam is now flowing out on to the street. >> reporter: the tidal wave of bubbles, officials say, not hazardous for people but dangerous to the environment. foam pouring down the street, blowing in the wind, swallowing cars and street signs, and nearly those daring enough to pedal through it. >> i don't knot >> reporter: soon it had its own hashtag "foamnado" the suds taking over the streets and the internet. foam party in santa clara. kntv reporter michelle roberts is there. >> i did used to work in boston. it looks like a blizzard a little bit but we talked to the fire chief and he says he's never seen anything like this. >> reporter: tonight the bubbly is still in the streets but the party is over. the road closed to the public. >> this is incredible.

fluid. miguel almaguer, nbc news. well, even the clean needs to clean up, but it's difficult. buckingham palace say the place needs a facelift, infrastructure work to fix plumbing, electrical, cables, heating, things that haven't been upgraded since just before world war ii. it will cost british taxpayers $450 million over ten years. there during the renovations but she'll have to move to a different part of the palace when her private apartments are renovated. when we come back, surviving the family food fights that will likely take on a whole new

>> jim: coming up at 6:00. more exotic animals found in a home in pahrump. why authorities say it was the wild animals who were in danger. >> reed: a man takes off from die. how you can help catch the fair to say there's likely to be a little more tension than usual at some dinner tables this thanksgiving after the election. with that in mind, kevin tibbles tonight on how some families are going to extremes to keep the turkey and the politics separate. >> reporter: surrounded by loved ones at thanksgiving. oops.

i wouldn't keep it on but i'd wear it in. >> then he'd be standing around saying "why hasn't anybody offered me a drink yet?" >> what do i have to do to get a drink? take your hat off. >> reporter: meet the stang family of kansas city. son and host mark with parents. on tuesday they'll be joined by 30 other equally opinionated relatives which is calls for new rules around the table. >> put a sign up with a no and noit >> following an intense and divisive election, passing the politics with the gravy just won't do. it used to be a battle between potatoes and stove top stuffing at turkey time. not this year. >> talk about other things like the brad and angelina divorce. >> yes, we should keep calm and carve the turkey. >> reporter: here's this psychologist's recipe. >> recognize these battles

>> reporter: he says you should shift for the discussion, ask for the cranberry sauce and nod knowingly. otherwise you might end up like the cast in "home for the holidays." >> into the house, everyone, before we're in the evening news. >> reporter: there's one in every family and you know who you are. >> her. >> reporter: remember, freedom of speech is a good thing. >> we're thankful that we are in a country that we can have not be persecuted for them. >> reporter: and that's what it's all about. oh, and this, too. nbc news, chicago. and that's going to do it for us on this friday night. i'm lester holt. for all of us at nbc news, thank you for watching, have a great

>> reed: right now on news 3 live at 6:00, another bizarre case of exotic wild animals found neglected inside and out of a pahrump home. some aggressive -- too aggressive to capture. >> jim: a one-on-one with president-elect donald trump's vegas buddy. and a new kind of desert dweller attraction opens in southern nevada. a camel safari. we're there as the first guests get to see it for themselves >> announcer: news 3 starts right now. >> jim: exotic animals seized from a pahrump home for the second time this week. good evening everyone. glad to you are with us. i'm jim snyder. >> reed: i'm reed cowan. police say the animals were found in absolute filth. >> jim: faith jessie has our top story tonight.

home on black rock street. nye county sheriff's department and animal control officials were alerted yesterday to multiple reports of animals living in poor condition. they found lions, tigers, lynx, a fox and a panther. many lives in areas of the home surrounded by their own urine and feces. the owner of the house and err friend cared for the couple and the couple were spotted here today as animal control continued the remova the sheriff says the scene was disturbing. >> the smell, the odor and just visually seeing the conditions they were living in is of course very disturbing and concerning. >> reporter: still the sergeant says freeman legally owned the animals. >> the owner of the property do in fact have a current special condition animal permit for those particular cats. that permit is currently being reviewed and possibly could be revoked. >> reporter: carl mitchell an