NBC Nightly News with Tom Llamas - Thursday, May 9, 2024

Episode Date: May 10, 2024

Stormy Daniels clashes with Trump’s attorney during the former president’s hush money trial, fallout grows from President Biden’s threat to cutoff weapons from Israel if it invades Rafah, the family of an airman who was killed by a Florida sheriff’s deputy is speaking out, and more in tonight’s broadcast. 

Tonight, the tense cross-examination. Stormy Daniels clashing with Donald Trump's attorney at his hush money trial. The adult film actress sparring with the former president's defense team as they accused her of making up a sexual encounter with Mr. Trump and profiting off it. Daniels denying those claims, the defense asking for a mistrial but rejected again. And a star witness no longer expected to testify. Also tonight, new reports of tornadoes today in the southeast after severe storms left a deadly trail. We're tracking it. The growing fallout from President Biden's threat to cut off weapons to Israel

if it invades Rafah. The defiant response from Prime Minister Netanyahu. The U.S. airman fatally shot at his Florida apartment after his family says a deputy went to the wrong home. The body cam showing the deputy knocking and announcing himself. The airman answering with a gun by his side. And the deputy firing multiple shots. The airman's family speaking out to us tonight. The jetliner skidding off the runway in Senegal, the plane on fire as people jump down the emergency slide. Our NBC News report the women suing over chemicals in hair products they say gave them cancer. And the idea of

taking root across the world. A little pocket of nature coming to the big city. This is NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt. Good evening and welcome. After listening to a second day of testimony from adult film star Stormy Daniels in his hush money trial, former President Donald Trump wants to respond, but apparently from outside the courtroom. Today, Mr. Trump's lawyer is asking the judge to exempt the ex- president from the gag order he is under so he can respond publicly to Ms. Daniels' testimony, the request denied by the judge. The actress, who earlier testified that she had a sexual

encounter with Mr. Trump in 2006, which he denies along with any wrongdoing, faced more cross-examination by defense lawyers who suggested she made the whole thing up and was now profiting from it. Daniels, however, pushing back as she tried to give Trump lawyers as little ground as possible. Prosecutors believe her account is critical to their contention that Mr. Trump unlawfully disguised business records to cover up hush money payments to her to buy her silence during the 2016 race for president. Laura Jarrett was in the courthouse today where Trump lawyers once again asked that the case be dismissed. Tonight, Stormy Daniels leaving court

after a blistering cross-examination. Former President Trump's defense team suggesting she's been trying to cash in on her story of sex with Mr. Trump at a celebrity golf tournament 18 years ago, which he denies ever happened. The defense today accusing Daniels of lying. Trump attorney Susan Necklace hammering Daniels years of acting and directing in the porn industry, saying it gave her, quote, a lot of experience in making phony stories about sex appear real. Daniels fighting back that if the Trump story was untrue, I would have written it a lot better. Their exchanges growing heated. You've acted and had sex in over 200 porn movies. But according to you, seeing a man sitting in bed in a T-shirt and boxer shorts was so upsetting that you almost fainted. Daniels, defiant, noting Mr. Trump was twice her age and bigger.

Necklace saying you made this all up, right? Daniels forcefully responding no. Necklace pressing your story has completely changed, hasn't it? Daniels again answering no, saying this signed statement where she denied an affair with Mr. Trump was done while she was trying to comply with the terms of a nondisclosure agreement in which she was paid to keep silent. Today, the defense argued Daniels has a financial stake in trying to take Mr. Trump down after making more than a million off her story and books, a strip club tour and various other merchandise on her website,

like a $40 Stormy Saint of Indictments candle. Necklace accusing her of trying to make money to sell a story that you promised will put President Trump in jail, right? Daniels responding, no. Much of the testimony far removed from what the presumptive GOP nominee has been charged with for allegedly falsifying his business records to hide a $130,000 payment to Daniels ahead of the 2016 election. Prosecutors say the payment was meant to keep her quiet so she couldn't derail his campaign. The defense says there was no crime. It was all a shakedown. Daniels testifying today, quote, I was asking to sell my story to publications to get the truth out. Necklace saying she could have just done that with a

press conference for free. Daniels responding, I could have. Necklace asserting you chose to make money, right? Daniels saying I chose to take the nondisclosure agreement. The jury today again hearing a phone call between Michael Cohen and Daniels' lawyer, who negotiated the NDA. That lawyer saying she wanted this money more than you can ever imagine. On redirect by the state, Daniels told the jury money didn't drive her motivation for signing that NDA. Quote, we're all happy to take money. It was just a bonus. Later, former Trump aide Madeline Westerhaus testifying about Mr. Trump's reaction when the story about the hush money deal first broke, saying, I remember he was very upset. Late today, the judge denying the defense's renewed request

for a mistrial. Mr. Trump's attorneys had argued Daniel's salacious testimony was prejudicial and irrelevant. The judge also refusing to change the gag order, which currently bars Mr. Trump from commenting on Daniel's testimony. Everybody saw what happened today. I don't think we have to do any explaining. I'm not allowed to anyway. I got to get back on the campaign trail. I'm not supposed to be here. We are so innocent. There's never been anything like it. And Laura, you've been sitting in the courtroom for prosecutors. Could this be considered a bit of a gamble to put Stormy Daniels on the witness stand?

It was always a risky move, Lester. And the judge acknowledged that some of her testimony might have been problematic, but not so problematic that he thinks the entire case should go away. It's really hard to know watching the jury. What are they to make of all of this? But one woman that we know will not be testifying at this trial is Karen McDougal. The prosecutors made that clear. She, too, has alleged that she had sex with Mr. Trump. He denies it. All right, Laura, thanks very much. There was more violent weather today in parts of the South after at least 10 people were killed by severe storms we've been seeing all week. Priya Shrether is in hard-hit Tennessee

for us tonight. Tornadoes, severe floods, and hail pummeling communities in the South and Midwest. Violent tornado. The twisters ripping trees from the ground and reducing homes to rubble in Tennessee. Here, one hour south of Nashville, six buildings on this one property completely destroyed. One of those buildings strewn 30 yards from its foundation before their tornado ripped through this house. Now, power crews are working around the clock to restore power to the tens of thousands of people here who lost it. People here are now confronting the storm's heartbreaking aftermath. My bedroom's in that area. Tammy Johnson still lives in the same house she grew up in. She was in bed with her dog when the tornado tore through. What was going through

your head when all of this was happening? That I was going to die. To be honest, that's the only thing I can think of. I was going to die. Nearby, 10-year-old Asher is fighting for his life after getting swept into a storm drain. Tonight, the community is praying. We pray and lift up Asher. There it is. From Oklahoma to Alabama and Michigan, almost 80 tornadoes have been reported across 17 states in the last three days, causing widespread damage. Large tornado. Back in Tennessee, Breanne Lovett took cover at home. The next thing we knew, we heard, just seen Scott. My house is gone. This is gone. Rescuers had to use chainsaws to remove them from what's left of their house. This morning, she still hadn't found her mother. I just want my mom to be okay because I didn't

see her house. Her house is gone. And Priya, hard to believe, but the threat for severe weather isn't over yet. That's right. As many communities are grappling with destruction like what you see behind me here, more than 30 million people here in the south are bracing for yet another night of potential severe weather. Lester. So much heartbreak. All right, Priya, thank you. President Biden is facing a range of reactions tonight for his threat to Israel that if they invade Rafah, the U.S. will stop sending some weapons. Peter Alexander has more for us from the White House. Tonight, growing backlash after President Biden's sharp warning that the U.S. will block the delivery of certain offensive weapons to Israel if it intensifies its assault on Hamas in southern

Gaza. If they go into Rafah, I'm not supplying the weapons that have been used historically to deal with Rafah. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu defiant tonight. If we have to stand alone, he says, we will stand alone. If we have to, we will fight with our teeth and nails. But we have much more than nails. After halting the shipment of 3,500 bombs to Israel last week amid fears of more civilian casualties, President Biden is for the first time acknowledging the impact of those U.S.-supplied weapons.

Civilians have been killed in Gaza as a consequence of those bombs. But former President Trump is slamming the decision to suspend arms deliveries to a close American ally. I wouldn't do what Biden did. He just abandoned Israel. Still, some Democrats are praising President Biden, saying he's protecting the more than one million Palestinians in Rafah. We must now use all of our leverage to make, to prevent the catastrophe in Gaza from becoming even worse. The United States of America must not be complicit in this atrocity.

Tonight, the White House insists the president's commitment to Israel's security remains ironclad and that it would still supply defensive weapons. Lester. Peter Alexander at the White House for us. Thank you. In Florida tonight, newly released police body cam video shedding some light in what unfolded when police responded to a report of a disturbance and ended up shooting an Air Force airman to death.

Sam Brock reports. And a warning, the video is disturbing. In the moments before senior airman Roger Fortson is fatally shot by police, an Okaloosa sheriff's deputy knocks on his apartment door. Sheriff's office, open the door. Identifying himself twice. Fortson opens the door with a gun by his side, but not visibly raised. And a split second later.

Six shots are fired, killing the 23-year-old. Officials say the deputy reacted in self-defense after he encountered a 23-year-old man armed with a gun and after the deputy had identified himself as law enforcement. He shot up. My baby was shot up. He was shot six times. Officers say they were responding to a disturbance call reported in apartment 1401, which is Fortson's unit. Are they fighting or something? A woman seen on camera when a deputy first arrived said she also heard disturbances weeks earlier,

but couldn't confirm from where. Fortson's mother, whom we spoke to before body camera was released, says deputies went to the wrong apartment. Roger was the only person in his apartment. They said it was answering to a disturbance. Was he fighting himself? She said FaceTiming with his girlfriend when law enforcement arrived. How this tragedy happened to Roger Fortson, who was an American patriot. He was a role model.

Boca Lucia Sheriff's Office did not respond to questions as many lives. Sheriff's Office, open the door! Now changed forever. Tonight, Fortson's attorney, Benjamin Crump, issued a statement right after the body cam release, saying that in a heavily redacted four and a half minute video, no verbal commands were given to drop the weapon before shooting. Lester. All right, Sam Brock, thanks.

In 60 seconds, the shocking link between top Border Patrol officials and a tequila maker. Did they violate ethics rules? Our investigation is next. Terrifying moments today aboard a jetliner skidding off the runway during takeoff in Senegal. The image is showing the nearly 30-year-old 737 plane on fire as people evacuated down the emergency slide. At least 10, including a pilot, were injured aboard the Air Senegal flight operated by Transair. The airlines have not commented on the incident.

Now to our NBC News investigation. Top Border Patrol officials facing questions about whether they crossed ethical lines after spending time with a Mexican national at his tequila factory. Here's Julia Ainsley. Tonight, these top Border Patrol Mexican national at his tequila factory. Here's Julia Ainsley. Tonight, these top Border Patrol officials pictured at a tequila distillery in Mexico are now part of an internal investigation into whether they violated ethics or security protocols. Current and former officials tell NBC News. These photos, which were posted on social media, shows Border Patrol Chief Jason Owens, Rio Grande Valley Sector Chief Gloria Chavez, and others with Mexican tequila maker Francisco

Javier Gonzalez. Sources with knowledge of the relationship between Gonzalez and the officials say he was working to create a Border Patrol tequila to be unveiled at the Border Patrol Centennial Celebration. Internal investigators now asking whether the CBP leaders properly disclosed their contact with Gonzalez, a foreign national, and whether they accepted anything that would violate ethics rules, officials tell NBC News. The tequila project has been shelved amid the ongoing investigation. When you saw those pictures, what did you make of that? So this looks a little odd.

This is not the sort of thing that normally happens even with people off duty unless there's some plausible explanation. In a statement, CBP says it has confidence in its leaders and thoroughly investigates all allegations and takes appropriate action to address any issues identified throughout the course of investigations. It all comes during a tumultuous period for Border Patrol. In the last year and a half, two top officials left the agency after allegations surfaced of sexual misconduct. And a whistleblower report recently questioned why a top medical officer tried to order fentanyl lollipops to bring with him while providing security for the U.N. General Assembly.

While Border Patrol tequila is now off the menu, the agency is still preparing for its 100th anniversary later this month. The celebration includes two golf tournaments, a parade, and a black tie gala, all sponsored by DHS contractors who get hundreds of millions in government contracts. Customs and Border Protection said its finance and ethics officers are conducting careful reviews around the centennial events. Julia Ainsley, NBC News, Washington. There is more to tell you about up next, the link between chemicals in hair relaxers and cancer. Now more lawsuits filed by women who say they got sick.

The FDA says it's working to ban certain chemicals in hair relaxers, which are often used by black women at home and in salons. Tonight, Zinkele Asamoah meets several women who say they got sick from using them and didn't know the risks. What made you say, I want to get a chemical hair relaxer, a straightener? I wanted a job. She wanted a job. I had just graduated from college. Going to an employee with an afro back in those days would not have cut it. These five women used chemical hair straighteners for decades. They eventually noticed changes to their hair and health. Some chemicals in hair straightening products, like formaldehyde,

are now linked to an increased risk of cancer, according to multiple studies. If you all had known the risks associated with the chemicals found in hair straighteners, relaxers, would you have still used them? No. No. No. Definitely no. Marnita Ballard was diagnosed with endometrial cancer at 37 years old. It made me feel like my womanhood was taken away because I don't have children and I couldn't have children.

So, you know, tovarian, uterine, and endometrial. All of these women have had one of those cancers. It's very personal. It's very painful. Of all of you here, who has had a hysterectomy? Now, they're each taking legal action, joining a growing number of other women around the country. Several companies being sued say the allegations have no legal or scientific merit. If it's something that will hurt us, then it needs to be removed. In 2022, the NIH released a decades-long study about chemical relaxers and uterine cancer. Shortly after, the FDA looked into a ban on formaldehyde in hair-straining products.

The agency planned to propose a ban by April 30th of this year, but that deadline was missed. The U.S. is markedly behind others. Canada, China, and the European Union have issued bans or restrictions on the use of formaldehyde in products. Late today, the FDA told NBC News it's still working on a proposed ban, saying it continues to be a high priority, but the rulemaking process takes time. Adding the FDA's new estimated deadline for the proposed ban is July. If there had been no awareness, we would have had an opportunity to make a better decision. And I think some of our story may be different. A temporary hairstyle with what these women say are permanent consequences. Zinclea Samoa, NBC News, Atlanta, Georgia. And after a short break, planting the seeds of a future forest,

a tiny oasis right in the middle of the big city. Finally, the little piece of nature is springing up in an unlikely place right in the middle of the big city. Here's Savannah Sellers. In the shadow of the concrete jungle, soon to be a tiny forest on Roosevelt Island.

It might look small, but it is mighty. Elise Van Midlum has been helping communities plant pocket forests, little havens of biodiversity. We've been doing this on six continents in 42 cities. I mean, look, with the skyline behind us to come here in New York, it's a dream come true. Oh, that's a big one. Volunteers plant using the Miyawaki method,

a way of forest planning where soil is meticulously prepared and native trees and shrubs are planted closely together. And then you just want to go ahead and cover. Ensuring rapid growth, achieving maturity in just a few decades. My big motivation is that I want him to have connection to the city. In 20 years, he can come back here and say that I participated in the planting of this forest. Local leader Cristina Delfico brought the project to her own neighborhood. The roots underneath are actually baby trees, and they fuse together,

and they support each other and boost each other. So I think whatever's happening underground, humans can try that above ground. And the benefits to the environment? They clean the air, they cool the air, they bring back the birds, bring back the pollinators. What do you see this do to people when they visit them? When you're here today to plant and when you come back, they transform the land, but they transform the communities with it. One native plant at a time. Savannah Sellers, NBC News, New York. That's nightly news. Don't miss Cynthia McFadden's investigation on toxic water at Camp Lejeune and its impact on women debuting on NBC News Now.

Thanks for watching, everyone. I'm Lester Holt. Please take care of yourself and each other. Good night.