NBC Nightly News with Tom Llamas - Monday, March 17, 2025

Episode Date: March 18, 2025

Judge criticizes Trump admin over deportation of migrants the White House says are violent gang members; Deportation case is latest point of tension between Trump administration and courts; Deadly tornado outbreak claims 42 lives; and more on tonight’s broadcast.

Tonight, President Trump's deportation legal battle. The president invoking a rarely used authority to deport hundreds of alleged undocumented migrant gang members. A judge directing the flights back to the U.S., both sides facing off in court. The South and Midwest reeling after days of extreme weather, leaving dozens of people dead as tornadoes ripped through 11 states. Entire neighborhoods leveled. Dust storms, wind, and wildfires wreaking havoc and making for dangerous conditions. One step closer to home, the mission to bring astronauts Butch Wilmore and Sonny Williams back to Earth,

how they are preparing tonight. The latest on the college student missing in the Dominican Republic and the legal battle of the American tourist seen with her just before she vanished, why his lawyers say he should be released, and the FBI's new warning tonight for spring break travelers, how federal funding cuts could slice into healthy school lunches across the country. Forever 21 set to shut down, the mall staple filing for bankruptcy as fast fashion rivals and economic challenges squeeze the industry. Plus, the new details out just today on consumer spending.

This is NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt. Good evening and welcome. The Trump administration's widening crackdown on illegal immigration taking on new dimensions tonight, including challenging the authority of courts to dictate such matters and arming the president with new tools. In Washington this afternoon, a hearing concerning the administration's decision over the weekend to use the Enemy Aliens Act to deport from the U.S. hundreds of individuals said to be affiliated with Venezuelan and El Salvadoran gangs without due process. Today's hearing over whether the government violated a court's directive to order deportation flights to return to the U.S.

Those flights instead flown to El Salvador. The White House saying they paid $6 million to detain them there. President Trump saying the gang's presence in the U.S. amounts to an invasion. It's the latest flashpoint over the president's aggressive moves to carry out mass and targeted deportations. Kelly O'Donnell has details. Tonight, a federal court seeking answers from the Trump administration as the White House mounts a vigorous defense of its mass deportation of undocumented migrants it says were charged with violent crimes, pushing back against a federal judge. I would think without question the most unlawful order that any district court judge has issued in our lifetimes.

Posting a cinematic, music-backed video of the operation, the White House touted the removal Saturday night of nearly 300 migrants. Officials said investigators determined these are violent members of Trend de Aragua and MS-13 gangs classified as foreign terrorists. The White House said the U.S. government paid El Salvador $6 million to detain the deportees. We're not stopping. I don't care what the judges think. I don't care what the left thinks. We're coming. At issue whether the Trump administration complied with a federal judge's order to temporarily delay deportations, including whether any flights took off after the order was issued. The White House says it complied.

All of the planes that were subject to the written order, the judge's written order, took off before the order was entered. President Trump invoked a 1798 law, the Alien Enemies Act, which does not require due process in wartime. However, the U.S. is not at war with Venezuela or El Salvador. Mr. Trump defended his approach. That's an invasion. They invaded our country. So this isn't, in that sense, this is war. In a separate deportation case, a Brown University professor of medicine with a valid visa was detained, then sent back to Lebanon. The Department of Homeland Security posted that Rasha Alawiya had admitted she attended a funeral for the leader of Hezbollah,

considered a terrorist organization by the U.S., and said she supported him. Her removal called common-sense security. Her attorney could not be reached. These actions come as new NBC News polling shows 44% say the country is on the right track, the highest number in 20 years. Still 54% find the U.S. headed in the wrong direction. The president's 47% approval rating is his highest across both terms, while a majority, 51%, disapprove. And Kelly, we mentioned at the top of the broadcast that court hearing was underway. It has just ended. And I understand the judge had some pretty tough words for the Trump administration. That's right, Lester.

The administration said it could not answer when deportation flights happened, which would have affected compliance, claiming they could not answer due to national security. The judge called that one heck of a stretch and said his authority was valid even if the planes were outside U.S. airspace. Lester. All right, Kelly, thanks for more. I'm joined by senior legal correspondent Laura Jarrett. Laura, this deportation case is just the latest point of tension between Trump and the courts. Yes, Lester, today it's an immigration case, but we've seen this same tension bubble up a few times now, including when a judge stopped the administration from withholding federal funding from states. Now, so far, DOJ appeals every ruling that doesn't go

the administration's way. But at the same time, officials keep making statements that they don't think some of these court orders are legitimate, all raising the specter of how the judiciary can continue to serve as a check on this White House if defiance starts to become a pattern, Lester. All right, Laura, thank you. Tornado season, typically March through June, is off to a deadly start after an outbreak of severe storms killed more than 40 people this weekend. Kathy Park now on the destruction left behind by a reported 99 twisters. Tonight, parts of the Midwest unrecognizable and so much of the South,

a debris field. The devastation from a weekend of extreme weather spawning destructive winds. There goes another one. Downpours, even dust storms. A dangerous and deadly outbreak of tornadoes ripped through 11 states. The deathS, A STAGGERING 42. THE STRONGEST TWISTER STRIKING DIAZ, ARKANSAS, AN EF4 WITH 190-MILE-PER-HOUR WINDS. DAMAGE SO WIDESPREAD IN MISSOURI, ENTIRE STRIP MALLS HAVE BEEN RIPPED APART. NEIGHBORHOODS LEVELED. NEAR ST. LOUIS, THE AS-DEUZ TOLD NBC'S ADRIAN BRAUDUS THEY HAD JUST MOMENTS TO SPARE BEFORE THE ROOF BLEW OFF. Diaz-Dews told NBC's Adrian Broadus they had just moments to spare before the roof blew off.

We barely made it to the basement within seconds. And then the windows blew and we were just crouching down, covering our heads. Felt like the house was coming down on us. In Mississippi, back-to-back tornadoes in Waffle County displaced hundreds of residents. Grayson Baker found his mom wedged in a small cubbyhole with the entire house collapsed on top of her. Was your mom just panicking? Panicking, just scared to death.

Nearby, a mother's instinct kicked in. Did you have a game plan in place? There's always a game plan, and this room is the best in the house. Sabrina Farage and 11 members of her family took cover in their bathtub. And we were hollering at the storm to go away and dissipate and not tear us up or not hurt anybody. It was like a jib and everything was like all down and crazy. Facing extraordinary loss, neighbors are now forced to start over together. We got each other. Kathy Park, NBC News, Magnolia, Mississippi. The clock is ticking for Sonny Williams and Butch Wilmore as they prepare

to leave space after their 10-day mission turned into a nine-month stay. And the world is watching. Here's Tom Costello. On the International Space Station tonight, last-minute packing for a long-awaited trip home. It was a wonderful day. Great to see our friends arrive. Sonny Williams early Sunday morning and fellow astronaut Butch Wilmore on the far left. Dragon contact and soft capture complete. After the replacement crew arrived in a Dragon spaceship just after midnight. I cannot tell you the immense joy of our crew when we looked out the window and we saw the space station for the first time. After their 286 days in space, Sonny and Butch will join Crew 9 astronauts Nick Hague and Alexander

Gorbunov and close their hatch at 1045 Eastern Time tonight. At 105 a.m., they'll undock from the station, beginning their return to Earth, splashing down in the Gulf at 5.57 p.m. on Tuesday after breaking a few space records. You can see NASA astronaut Sunny Williams. Williams has now carried out nine spacewalks in her career, spending more time in the vacuum of space than any other woman. Yet both Butch and Sonny admitted to feeling the pull of Earth. Eventually we want to go home because we left our families a little while ago. I want to hug my wife. I want to hug my daughters. And everyone craves a favorite food. I want a good pizza. That's what I missed the most when I was in space. Former astronaut Mike Massimino says coming home also means new priorities like missing shingles on the family house.

It's like, oh, we had a storm while you were gone. Like, well, what the heck? You know, why don't you why don't you call the guy? And she's like, you're the guy. So I was looking at the roof the next morning. And Tom, I'm mindful of something you've talked about here before. There is a physical adjustment to being back on Earth. Yeah, that's right. And Mike talked about it, right? Astronauts say they often feel wobbly and nauseated when they return to Earth because

the ear's vestibular system has to readjust. But all astronauts go through a very thorough medical exam when they get to Houston, and they will not be allowed to go home until the doctors clear them, Lester. Well, we look forward to welcoming them back to Earth. Tom, thanks. The FBI warning people traveling for spring break to stay vigilant. It comes 11 days after an American college student went missing in the Dominican Republic. Jesse Kirsch is in Punta Cana. Police say Joshua Reby was with Sudiksha Kunaki just before she vanished in Punta Cana. Tonight, the 22-year-old from Iowa is fighting for his freedom. A source in the Dominican Republic Attorney General's office tells NBC News

Reby's lawyers have filed a petition that's normally used to argue for release from detention. Eleven days after Kunaki disappeared, police say no suspects have been identified. But Ribi's lawyers say his passport has been confiscated and he has been confined to the hotel since the investigation began. He is permanently escorted by the police anywhere he goes. He is not free to leave. The U.S. State Department would not comment on Ribi's status. We won't discuss a private situation, a private case, certainly when it comes to diplomacy, diplomatic relationships between one country and another. Kunonke, a junior at the University of Pittsburgh, vanished early on

the morning of March 6th, soon after she was seen walking with Reby in a group to the beach. Investigators interviewed Reby as a witness last week. According to a transcript obtained by NBC News, which we translated from Spanish, he said after a large wave swept them out to sea, he was able to eventually get her back to the shore. But he says he then started vomiting. Later, he says he looked around and didn't see anyone. This weekend, Reby was back on the beach, this time surveying the area with investigators. Meanwhile, some in Reby's Iowa hometown are now coming to his defense. He wouldn't even hurt a fly.

An anonymous group of friends of Reby's family, writing in part, the Rock Rapids community stands behind and supports Joshua Reby and his family. Joshua has an unwavering devotion to his faith and genuine kindness towards others. Reby's attorneys have not commented on that filing, but that AG source says Ribi is expected in court tomorrow. Lester. Jesse Kirsch, thank you. Now to President Trump's efforts to end the war in Ukraine. Ukraine agreed to a ceasefire, but Russia's President Putin has cast doubts, with Trump set to talk to him tomorrow.

Keir Simmons is inside Russia. Tonight, President Trump just 24 hours away from a high-stakes call with Russia's President Putin. But it's a bad situation in Russia, and it's a bad situation in Ukraine. We're going to see if we can work a peace agreement, a ceasefire and peace, and I think we'll be able to do it. The president this weekend saying they'll talk about more than just stopping the fighting. Ukrainian territory and assets are on the table. I think we have a lot of it already discussed very much by both sides. You'll ask him.

Ukraine and Russia. You'll ask him. We're already talking about that. Dividing up certain assets. Tonight, we're in Kursk, part of Russia taken over last year by Ukrainian forces. Once seen as a Ukrainian bargaining chip, but much of it has been taken back by Russia. The fighting over Suzhou in Kursk, so fierce, Russian videos show it in ruins. We drove into the Kursk region on a road teeming with Russian military to a frontline town full of soldiers. Many locals, hardened by years of war,

are suspicious of President Trump, who now appears on the front page of newspapers here. Peace should be done the Russian way, not the U.S. way, he says. There'll be a ceasefire, this woman says, when we win. Meanwhile, Ukraine's President Zelensky, who has already accepted President Trump's ceasefire proposal, tonight is accusing Putin of dragging out the war, saying pressure is needed on Russia and that Ukraine needs long-term security. Today here in Kursk, we saw

evidence of battles, Russian trucks carrying bodies and U.S. Bradley fighting vehicles seized from the Ukrainians. Now comes the bitter negotiations. Lester. Keira Simmons near the front lines tonight. Thank you. In 60 seconds, the ripple effect from government cuts, how school lunches could be impacted by changes at the Department of Agriculture. That's next. We have to do a local vendor spotlight every month. At schools across the country, many students enjoy free lunches with community-sourced ingredients. But that focus on fresh and local food may change after federal cuts.

Erin McLaughlin now with that story. At thousands of schools across the country, deliveries like this one are a lifeline. This morning, it's butternut squash grown just miles away, brought directly to the Chicopee High School cafeteria, where two-thirds of the students are eligible for a free meal. There's no healthier food than local food straight from your local farmer. Melanie Wilk is the district's director of food service. Children who eat healthier food will be healthier and learn more. Exactly. Part of a billion dollars in USDA cuts that helped fuel millions of students nationwide

with fresh locally grown food. In Massachusetts, over 12 million million slashed. In the letter that we received, it said that the funding no longer effectuates the priorities of the administration. This is the money item. Forcing Wilk says items like fresh local meat that are pricier but considered more nutritious onto the chopping block. Is this in jeopardy? This could be in jeopardy. Wilk says that's a serious setback for students like senior Nair Wilson. Do you know of kids that rely on this? This is their one fresh meal for the day? Yes, I know. Numerous, numerous. And what do these cuts mean to them? It means that they're not being

taken care of. No one cares and we're not priority and local businesses aren't the priority. Giving back is not the priority. NBC News reached out to the USDA and has not heard back. It's not just the students who will lose out. Local farmer Rosendo Santizo says a third of his business could be impacted by recent USDA cuts. Are you worried you're going to lose your farm? I'm like half and a half. An immigrant from Guatemala, now a U.S. citizen, Rosendo worked his way up from farm hand to farm owner. To be a farmer means a lot. So I enjoy to grow food, to feed people. You also feed kids. Yeah, I feel like that's why I came here. Now he fears his American dream is in danger. I'm going to fight really hard to keep my dream alive.

So this is a huge setback. It is. But it's not over. No, absolutely not. We're going to feed the kids no matter what. That's the ultimate goal. The kids will get fed. Erin McLaughlin, NBC News, Chicopee, Massachusetts.

There is more to talk about tonight. We'll tell you why Forever 21 just announced it won't be around forever. Who it's blaming for low sales. They say nothing lasts forever while retailer Forever 21 has filed for bankruptcy. Brian Chung explains why the company blames foreign competition for its demise. Forever no more. For four decades, Forever 21 prided itself on cheap, trendy clothing. But now, the American fast fashion giant announcing it's filing for bankruptcy and liquidating its assets. Honestly, I think it's gone kind of downhill.

The closures come with deep in-store discounts and up to 80% off online. In its bankruptcy filing, the retailer blamed in part fierce competition from Chinese retailers Shein and Timu, which keep prices low withheld from a trade exemption that allows them to skirt import taxes and tariffs. Their clothes are at a way lower price than Forever 21. So it made it extremely difficult for Forever 21 to operate. Forever 21, founded in Los Angeles, survived a bankruptcy five years ago, restructuring and closing more than 100 stores. Unable to find a buyer for the remaining 350 stores, this new bankruptcy is likely to be the end. Store closures like ones at Forever 21 are happening at a time of concern for the U.S. economy, and the U.S. consumer accounts for about 70% of U.S. economic activity. February figures show a tiny uptick in consumer spending, up 0.2% for retail

sales, but below a Dow Jones forecast for a 0.6% rise. Forever 21 joins the likes of Party City and craft store Joanne as iconic retailers now going bust. Me as a teenager, it really was like, let's go to Forever 21. But now I'm almost 30, so I'm like... Not Forever 21 anymore. Not Forever 21. But now I'm almost 30, so I'm like... Not Forever 21 anymore. Not Forever 21 anymore. Brian Chung, NBC News, Jersey City, New Jersey. And that is nightly news for this Monday. Thank you for watching. I'm Lester Holt. Please take care of yourself and each other. Good night.