NBC Nightly News with Tom Llamas - Friday, July 26, 2024

Episode Date: July 27, 2024

Spectacular Opening Ceremony kicks off Paris Olympics; Massive fire rages in Northern California; Obama endorses Harris for president as Trump meets with Netanyahu; and more on tonight’s broadcast.

Tonight, let the games begin. The opening ceremony kicking off the 2024 Summer Olympics here in Paris. The first ever floating opening ceremony. Team USA led by flag bearers LeBron James and Coco Gauff. As more than 7,000 athletes sailed along the Seine, Lady Gaga performing in pink, and the stunning sight, the Olympic cauldron lit and floating up into the sky. Then the incredible comeback, Celine Dion cauldron lit and floating up into the sky. Then the incredible comeback, Celine Dion, her first live performance in years after a debilitating health battle. All of it coming hours after a massive attack paralyzed France's train network. Chaos for hundreds of thousands of travelers.

Who was behind it? Also tonight, California's largest wildfire of the year doubling to 178,000 acres in 24 hours. More than 100 homes and structures destroyed. In Oregon, an air tanker crashing while battling a blaze. Kamala Harris getting a big endorsement from the Obamas. And our exclusive reporting, Harris' phone call to the family of an Illinois woman fatally shot by police. Her message to them. Donald Trump's meeting with Israel's Benjamin Netanyahu and what he said today about returning to the site of his attempted assassination. And one of Team USA's biggest stars, Katie Ledecky.

Can she shatter her own records as she swims for gold here in Paris? This is NBC Nightly News reporting tonight from the Olympics in Paris. Here is Lester Holt. Good evening and welcome from beautiful Paris where the opening of the 2024 Summer Olympics was celebrated in spectacular and very much French fashion. Tonight the lavish opening ceremony turning the entire French capital from its iconic landmarks to the River Seine into its stage. Team USA athletes clad in ponchos on this rainy night in a floating procession unlike anything we've witnessed at an Olympic opening.

The spectacle playing out against a security threat that brought Paris to a virtual halt earlier today, just hours after a coordinated sabotage attack directed at France's high-speed rail network stranded thousands of travelers. And Tom Yamas is here to lead our coverage. Tom, Paris was in full display today. That's right, Lester. Paris had planned every second of this opening ceremony, but even they were surprised, including with that rail attack this morning, but also something they couldn't stop, the rain. Paris promised the world a show like no other, and they delivered. It was as spectacular as advertised. On a rainy night in Paris, the first ever floating opening ceremony featured a zipline to Notre Dame,

a light show at the Eiffel Tower, and performances by Lady Gaga. And Celine Dion, returning to the stage after battling serious health issues. Leading Team USA's vote through a downpour and down the Seine, flag bearers

LeBron James and Coco Gauff. The atmosphere on board electric, if a little wet. We are out here in Paris getting ready to go on our tour of the world. Sprinter Noah Lyles sharing an inside look on social media. People gathering to watch on balconies and at parties. NBC News' Keir Simmons was along the route. In the pouring rain, four TVSA under the open tower. There's so many of them. While an estimated 300,000 spectators in 124 grandstands lined the Seine, some 45,000 police officers on hand. But today, Paris' security apparatus tested. Just hours before the opening ceremony, a massive coordinated attack targeting

France's high-speed railways. French officials say it was an act of sabotage. Fiber optic cables at three locations were set on fire. This is one of the main reasons why the French are calling this a massive attack. Look at all these people sitting here waiting for hours. They're looking up at the boards at trains that are not taking off, and the frustration is building. It's quite paralyzed. We're dependent on our train system.

Two senior law enforcement officials tell NBC News early intelligence indicates far leftist groups may be behind the attack. Repairs are now underway. Officials say travel for up to 800,000 people could be impacted through the weekend. But they insist the attack won't have a direct impact on the Olympics, which already have an unprecedented level of security. This was the scene earlier in the day. The streets of Paris are a bit chaotic right now.

Thousands of people trying to get to the opening ceremony. Police have it under control, but there are so many people, intersections are being blocked. Some of these people have tickets, but many do not. The Olympic spirit, though, winning out, ignited at one point by Snoop Dogg, one of the final torchbearers. Tonight, two French Olympians used that flame to light a giant floating Olympic cauldron shaped like a hot air balloon, marking the official start to the Paris Olympics. Tom Yamas, NBC News, Paris. In the American West, a pilot fighting a wildfire was killed when his

air tanker went down. It comes as massive wildfires are burning out of control. Morgan Chesky is on the front lines of the Park Fire in California. Lester, we're under that red flag warning tonight because, as you can see, conditions are absolutely prime for these flames to catch just a little wind and take off. In less than 24 hours, this park fire has doubled in size, and tonight, crews are absolutely racing to contain it. Day three of a fierce firefight and a frightening reality setting in. Zero containment on California's largest wildfire this year. Flames tearing through hills north of Chico,

where gusty winds and bone-dry fuel have turned this park fire into a monster. Propane tanks warning with a fiery hiss before the inevitable. So far, the blazes scorched more than 170,000 acres, destroying at least 130 buildings and threatens up to 4,000 more. Cameras caught a rotating plume, likely hiding a rare fire tornado. This is an extraordinarily rugged terrain. It is a very, very hard fire for them to fight. Authorities blaming all of it on this man, 42-year-old Ronnie Dean Stout II, arresting him on suspicion of arson.

He set the car afire, then put it in neutral and pushed it over a ravine, and people were witnessing that. Tonight, nearly a million people remain under red flag warnings along the West Coast. In Oregon, west of where crews are fighting to contain the massive Durkee fire, an air tanker crashed, killing the solo pilot on board. Back in California, evacuees wait and worry, not knowing where the fire will go next. If I go home and there's nothing, it's going to be really bad. Morgan Chesky, NBC News.

We'll turn to the presidential race now and a formal endorsement of Kamala Harris today by the Obamas as former President Donald Trump met with Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Kelly O'Donnell has late details. 2024's power of relationships. Former President Trump welcomed Israel's prime minister to Mar-a-Lago one day after Netanyahu's White House meetings. Mr. Trump used the formal setting to criticize Vice President Harris. She's a radical left person, San Francisco, destroyed San Francisco. She's really a destroyer. For Kamala Harris, today's power relationship is a new endorsement from Barack and Michelle Obama, phoned in for a campaign video. Michelle

and I couldn't be prouder to endorse you and to do everything we can to get you through this election and into the Oval Office. Harris spent today on internal meetings as her campaign said vetting potential running mates has begun in earnest. I'm proud of the work that I do here in Pennsylvania. Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro among a dozen Democrats under consideration. The vice president has a deeply personal decision to make. Trump running mate Senator J.D. Vance was asked today about his 2021 comment that referenced Harris and said this. We're effectively run in this country via the Democrats,

via our corporate oligarchs, by a bunch of childless cat ladies. And today. Obviously, it was a sarcastic comment. I've got nothing against cats. Then he said he had a broader point. This is about criticizing the Democratic Party for becoming anti-family and anti-child. Potential Harris running mate, Arizona Senator Mark Kelly fired back. Utterly ridiculous and obnoxious and wrong. What I really worry about is what he would do being one heartbeat away from the presidency. And tonight the FBI says that it finds that Mr. Trump's ear injury was caused by a bullet

or a bullet fragment from the gunman's weapon. After the FBI director had said it may have been shrapnel at a hearing this week, Mr. Trump posted that he intends to go back to Butler, Pennsylvania for another rally that would honor the victims of the assassination attempt. Lester. All right, Kelly O'Donnell, thank you. Also today, Vice President Kamala Harris called the family of Sonia Massey, the black woman who was shot to death in her Illinois home by a sheriff's deputy. Massey's father tells NBC News Harris expressed her condolences as we learn more about the shooting and the deputy. Here's Maggie Vespa.

Tonight, a new chapter in the tragic saga of Sonia Massey. Autopsy results showing the 36-year-old mother of two was shot in her left eye, the bullet exiting the base of her neck. How can you justify this? Civil rights attorney Ben Crump alleging the report confirms then-deputy Sean Grayson, who responded to Massey's Springfield, Illinois, home July 6th about a possible prowler, fired downward as she crouched to the ground. Massey, seen on body camera video just before the shooting, picking up a pot of boiling water. I killed you in a building. You better f***ing answer or I'll f***ing shoot you right in your f***ing face.

Okay, I'm sorry. Drop the f***ing pot! Grayson firing moments later. Drop the f***ing pot! There was no humanity. He was fired and pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder charges. Records obtained by NBC News show Grayson's worked for six different law enforcement agencies since 2020. His last job in nearby Logan County, where records show two complaints filed against Grayson for inappropriate behavior and abusing his power.

Records show Grayson rebutted the allegations, which are marked unfounded. He left the job in good standing. An application for that job shows Grayson admitted he'd been intoxicated a lot in his life and abused alcohol in the Army where he served from 2014 to 2016. During that time, court records show he pleaded guilty twice to driving under the influence. One department's personnel records list his discharge from the Army as misconduct, serious offense. In response to NBC News' inquiries, the Sangamon County Sheriff said Grayson's application was reviewed and sent to a merit commission, which certified Grayson for hire. He said a state training and standards board reviewed the information, which included the DUI convictions, adding he was given a general honorable discharge

from the military. The sheriff said Grayson passed a drug test, criminal background check, and psychological evaluation, and graduated from a 16-week training academy before serving as a Sangamon County deputy. It's your opinion that he never should have been hired for that job? Never should have been hired. Never should have been hired. Grayson's attorney has repeatedly declined to comment on the shooting and his client's employment and criminal history. Lester. Maggie Vespa, thank you. We'll take a break in 60 seconds. As the Olympics get underway, we'll take a look at Team USA athletes to watch. But I'm joined by Mike Tirico here in Paris. Stay with us. Back now from Paris, the Olympics here now officially underway.

The U.S. has sent nearly 600 athletes to compete at these games. And earlier, I had a chance to talk with NBC Sports' Mike Tirico about some of the big stars to watch. Redemption seems to be a common theme for a lot of these athletes. Start with Simone Biles, right? The way it ended three years ago in Tokyo doesn't match up with her career, which is seen by most as the greatest gymnast of all time. So the opportunity to get back and be performing

almost at the level she was at, if not better in some cases, is pretty remarkable. I think that would be the number one redemptive story. The U.S. men's gymnastics team has not had any of the success that the women have, but there are a couple of different athletes in Frederick Richard and Brody Malone who have given the U.S. real hope that they could win a bronze medal in the team and some of the individuals could win. How are things looking in the pool? Well, the swimming story has one real overarching rivalry, USA versus Australia. The Australian team is not only really good,

they love beating the Americans. And they've thrown a little chum in the water, if you will, and the Americans have gone right back. And when you go individual in the pool, Katie Ledecky's story is incredible. And the headline to me is the 800 meters. If she wins that, she becomes the first individual to win the same event in four different Olympic Games.

Let's talk about, if we can, a couple of team sports, basketball and soccer. How does the U.S. fare? So men's basketball is interesting because you have some of the big names that you know, LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Steph Curry, who's never played in the Olympics. They're all together on a team with younger players like Jason Tatum, who's on the NBA champion Celtics. I think you're seeing a changing of the guard, but the older guys, if you will, they want to get one more gold around their neck before they go out. U.S. women's team might be the most successful women's team or team, period, in Olympic history. They're going for an eighth straight gold medal. And women's soccer is a team that is in transition right now. But I think this U.S. women's team

has a new coach who they like. They won their first match. They're a group that might surprise the world. It does have a chance to end up in the gold medal match. Our friend Mike Tirico from NBC Sports coming up. We'll talk more about Katie Ledecky. Can she become the most decorated American woman in Olympic history? Why she's racing against herself here in Paris. That's next. We welcome you back now from Paris. Team USA superstar swimmer Katie Ledecky is already a 10-time Olympic medalist. So one of the toughest competitors she's had to beat here in Paris is herself. She spoke with Stephanie Goss. We expect Katie Ledecky to win this race by around 30 seconds.

The 1,500-meter freestyle is a monster of a race. 30 laps, over 15 minutes of grueling effort. I try to just stay focused on what lap I'm on and stay consistent with my rhythm and my stroke. Katie Ledecky somehow still keeps it fresh and continues to wow us all. There's a decent chance Katie Ledecky could break the 1500 meter world record in Paris, but the competition is fierce.

She'd have to be faster than herself in 2018, 2015, 2023. In fact, Katie Ledecky holds the top 19 fastest times in history. You're in competition with yourself a lot. Yeah, I mean, I've been in competition with myself for many years. This summer, the 27-year-old is swimming in her fourth Olympics. The winner of the 800-meter free. Back in London, she was just 15.

So you go to London and you are the baby. And now you are the veteran. What is the biggest change in your swimming since then? I think the biggest change is just all the experience that I have under my belt. Remarkable experience. A 21-time world champion, seven Olympic gold medals and three silver. President Biden awarded her the Presidential Medal of Freedom this year. And with three more medals in Paris, she would become the most decorated U.S. woman in Olympic history, in any sport. Are you surprised to find yourself in that position? I guess so. I never

thought that I would even make one Olympics when I first started swimming. Another gold medal in the 800 and a world record. That humility is part of what makes Ledecky so special, combined with natural talent and a fierce work ethic. Is it really true you've never had a beer? Yeah. Not even a sip? No, no wine, no beer. For the Paris Games, she moved across the country to train here at the University of Florida. Are you kind of a gator now? I am. I think I'm an honorary gator now. Doing laps alongside some of the fastest male swimmers for Team USA, like Bobby Fink and Kieran Smith.

They get nervous sometimes when I start creeping up on them. I mean, nine times out of ten, they'll beat me, but I find that 10 percent, I can get up there in their face. And you're relentless. I'm relentless. Katie Ledecky will win her third straight Olympic gold. Ledecky says she hopes to swim through the 2028 Olympics in LA, if not longer. I think that even beyond my competitive career, I'm always going to find myself back in the pool. And it's just a place that I've loved since I was six years old, starting to swim.

What happens if you're out of the pool too long? I get a little antsy. I start to miss it and I find myself back at the pool pretty quickly. And when she's there, at least for now, very few people can catch her. Stephanie Gosk, NBC News, Gainesville, Florida. And up next for us, could the Paris Olympics come at a better time? Now the games have brought us together throughout history. And we return.

And we're back now in Paris, which after tonight's spectacular opening, feels like a co-star in these Olympics. But after covering 11 Olympics over the last 20-plus years, one thing I've learned is that history can be made where you least expect it. The places for these games are decided years before we can ever know who will compete or the environment they'll compete in. Coming to you today from the Deer Valley Ski Resort in Park City, Utah. My first Olympics, Salt Lake City 2002, took place less

than six months after the 9-11 attacks. The unprecedented amount of security became the story. Before September 11th, this balloon or any airplane would not be allowed to get within three miles of that site. That is until the athletes wrote their own chapters in the snow and ice, much of it etched in gold. Here in France, Paris itself has stolen the show for now. Its undeniable charms have already made this one of the most talked about Olympics in recent memory, maybe even a welcome tonic for a world in turmoil. Paris is a city in which you are constantly surrounded by history. Well, now the old and the new come together. This is the Place de la Concorde,

a place of public executions during the French Revolution. Now it's an urban stage for the Olympic debut of the sport of breaking, along with several other modern sports. In 20 years, I've covered Olympics shadowed by conflict, shadowed by the threat of terrorism and disease. I've been required to have a special app on my phone that monitors some of my movements and my health. But when the games were over, that's not what we were talking about. Once again, it was the athletes.

My favorite part of covering the Olympics is the surprises. We never really know what's going to happen. A favorite part of covering the Olympics is the surprises. We never really know what's going to happen. A favorite can have a bad day. An underdog can suddenly come from behind. At the Olympics, hopes and dreams can be made or lost in a hundredth of a second. It will be a dive. There is no room for distractions. We'll still love Paris when it's all over, but only when the athletes have left it all on the field will the final history of these games be fully written. And that is nightly news for this Friday.

The opening ceremony airs here on NBC at 7.30 Eastern Time. It is going to be a spectacular night. Thank you for watching, everyone. I'm Lester Holt. Take care of yourself and each other. Good night.