NBC Nightly News with Tom Llamas - Monday, August 4, 2025

Episode Date: August 5, 2025

Texas Republicans threaten to arrest Democrats who left state to block redistricting bill; Severe weather impacting tens of millions across the country; White House on defense over President Trump’s firing of official responsible for jobs data; and more on tonight’s broadcast.

Tonight, the Texas-sized political battle with leaders calling for lawmakers who have left the state to be arrested to bring them back to vote. As Republican leaders look to gerrymander congressional maps, Democratic lawmakers flee the state to delay the vote. Why some leaders are calling for Democrats who are at a state to be hunted down and arrested, as some Democratic governors vow to do what Republicans are doing in Texas. Wildfire season blazing out West in California, Colorado and Canada. Thousands of acres burned as crews take on windblown ridges of fire and even smoke tornadoes. And now the skies over some of the nation's biggest cities filled with smoke and haze, even shutting down flights in Boston as heat advisories mean danger for parts of the US. This just in the Attorney General calling for a grand jury to look into

the Russia investigation during the president's first term, our former Obama officials the targets. Also tonight the graphic images of Israeli hostages in Gaza. We talked to one man's family about hope to return him after hundreds of days in captivity. And while leaked comments from a top U.S. envoy may preview a new strategy of dealing with Hamas. The Montana manhunt for a suspect and Army veteran federal officials say killed four people in a small town bar. The new headline on Luigi Mangione, why he was just granted a laptop in prison and grandma's excellent

adventure. How her family brought a whole new meaning to companion ticket travel ahead of the trip of a lifetime. Nightly News starts right now. This is NBC Nightly News with Tom Yannis reporting tonight from Miami. And good evening tonight from Miami, one of the hottest places in the country in more ways than one. We're going to have more on that later in the broadcast, but we do want to start with that high stakes drama in Texas where work ground to a halt in the state capitol after Democrats fled to avoid debating a controversial gerrymandering redistricting map. The remaining members opting to send for the missing lawmakers under warrant of arrest.

At issue, the Republican majority's plan to redraw the state's congressional lines, opening up a whole new can of worms. The move sending more than 50 Democratic lawmakers fleeing to the state, to other states around the country. Texas Governor Abbott signaling he could send law enforcement after them or further test his legal authority. And tonight some Democratic governors vowing to quote, fight fire with fire. Ryan Chandler reports tonight from Texas. Members, a quorum is not present. Tonight, Texas Republicans issuing civil arrest warrants for the Democrats who left the state in a Hail Mary move to block a controversial redistricting bill. The Constitution says the members of the Legislature shall show up to do their jobs.

More than 50 Texas Democrats headed to Chicago, New York and Boston over the weekend, stalling a Republican push to redraw congressional districts in their favor. Why do you believe it is important for Texas to take this rare step of mid-decade redistricting? Oh, because we have the opportunity. We have the time, we have the opportunity. We have the time, we have the opportunity, and we have the advantage. In New York, flanked by Texas Democrats, the governor said she'd push her state to consider redistricting in response to what's happening in Texas. This is a war. We are at war. And that's why the gloves are off. Governor Greg Abbott today ordering state troopers to find an arrest the Democratic lawmakers who today dared him to try. Subpoenas from Texas don't work in New York, so he gonna come get us how?

Subpoenas in Texas don't work in Chicago, he's gonna come get us how? The decisions that come from this chamber could reverberate nationwide. Law enforcement now empowered to bring Democrats back to their empty seats. House rules allow Republicans to lock members inside until they get a chance to vote on this bill. In July, President Trump pushed his allies in Texas to redraw the map to pad the tight Republican margin in Congress.

Just a very simple redrawing. We pick up five seats. Some Democratic strongholds would be absorbed into red districts, including downtown Austin, one of the most liberal parts of the state. Under the proposed map, it would be in a deep red district drawn into a massive rural area stretching 3.5 hours East. Representative James Tallarico is camping out in Chicago. It's almost like two football teams

heading out of the locker room in half time and the team that's ahead says they want to change the rules to the second half so they can win the game. I mean, that's cheating, plain and simple. And if they're going to cheat, we're not going to play. Ryan joins us now live. Ryan, walk our viewers on how this standoff could end. Well, Democrats in Chicago tell me they packed for three weeks hoping to run out the clock on this special session. Republicans say, well, Democrats may be able to stall this bill.

They can't stop it, Tom. Ryan Chandler leading us off tonight here. Ryan, we thank you. Now to the severe weather impacting tens of millions tonight from massive wildfires burning out west to poor air quality alerts happening in the Midwest and right here in Miami in the South, extreme heat everywhere you look.

Midwest and right here Miami in the South extreme heat everywhere you look. Out West dozens of wildfires burning out of control the Gifford fire in Santa Barbara County has burned more than 60 thousand acres forcing emergency evacuations even producing a smoke tornado this ominous photo showing a scorched section of the Los Padres National Forest today. In Arizona firefighters continue battling the dragon

Bravo fire near the North Rim of the Grand Canyon one month after the fire started that blaze is now the largest in the continental us burning more than 123,000 acres. Meanwhile the smoke from hundreds of Canada wildfires triggering air quality alerts in more than a dozen states today from the Great Lakes to New England. I can't breathe. I'm dying, and I need to see blue sky. Really just relentless smoke plaguing the skies.

Thick haze visible in cities like Boston, even forcing a brief groundstop at Logan Airport earlier today. And in the South people are sweating it out as excessive heat is gripping parts of Florida. In places like Miami you have to stay under the shade even at the beach because there's a heat advisory in effect so even though the temperatures are in the 90's that feels like it's

about 109 that means even if you get in the water, it's still gonna be hot. Describe to me what it feels like when this kind of heat hits you. It feels like an oven. Like when you open the oven and it just all hits you at once in the face, that's exactly how it feels.

You can't really be out in the sun for like more than like 20 minutes at a time. And there's no sign of cooling off. Forecasters say heat records could be broken in the southwest this week. We turn to politics now and some breaking news as senior Trump administration official telling us Attorney General Pam Bondi is calling for a grand jury expected to investigate Obama era officials handling of the Russia interference in the 2016 election. Garrett Haig joins me now live and Garrett, this would be a major step.

Yeah, Tom, this is a significant escalation of a probe that the president had publicly pushed for and which gained momentum after DNI Tulsi Gabbard filed criminal referrals with the Justice Department last month. Democrats have dismissed this new investigation as a distraction, lacking in evidence, and it comes as the Trump administration may be looking to shift focus from disappointing economic headlines and the president's Friday firing of the official who oversees monthly job report data. Tonight, the White House on defense over the president's Friday firing of the federal official responsible for monthly jobs report data.

Trump just strikes a match and sets it on fire. He tells the entire world, don't trust data coming out of the United States. The president posting this morning without evidence that Friday's jobs report, which showed a significant slowdown in hiring over the past three months, was, quote, rigged with fake political numbers. Do you believe that to be true?

You know, as an economist, I like to go for what I can prove. And what I can prove is that the data have become very unreliable. But economists say jobs data has actually gotten more reliable in the seven decades the BLS has conducted their monthly surveys. They're reports critical for policymakers and businesses making hiring and investment decisions. In last week's report, the Bureau made revisions to some of its previous estimates, which is typical.

When you see revisions coming in month after month, what do you see? I see a successful survey because we're getting more information. I don't see a problem. It's just the normal course of events. Trump's first BLS commissioner, William Beach, says it would be impossible for a commissioner to rig the jobs data. The claim made by President Trump is that the commissioner led that conspiracy and was basically shaping the data.

That is not possible in my view and in the view of anybody who served in that position. Garrett Haake, NBC News, The White House. We thank Garrett for that. We want to turn overseas now and Hamas releasing a new video showing Israeli hostage who appears to be fighting for his life, just skin and bones on the heels of another release propaganda hostage video. A warning. The images you're about to see are very graphic. Here's Matt Bradley. Two new propaganda videos showing emaciated Israeli hostages in Gaza have outraged Israelis, triggering fresh calls for their release.

Palestinian Islamic Jihad posted the video of 22-year-old Ram Braslovsky last week before Hamas released video of 24-year-old Aviatar David. The images came as US Special Envoy Steve Witcoff visited Israel in the Gaza Strip. In a leaked audio recording of Saturday's meeting with hostages' families, the diplomat signaled a new approach to long-stalled ceasefire negotiations with Hamas. No peace deals. Now we think that we have to shift this negotiation to all or nothing. Everybody comes home. But Aviatar's brother, Ely, who met with Witkoff at the meeting, told me his brother is running

out of time. My father couldn't recognize his voice in this video. And doctors are saying it can be a matter of days if we don't give them now the medical care they need. As aid trickles in, Gazan's running to get their hands on any food, but aid groups say it's not enough. According to Gazan Health officials, hunger has killed 180 Gazans,

more than half of them children. Evyatar's brother said his brother's faith is keeping him alive. Did you watch the video? No. Why? I just know that if I watch that video, I'll collapse. Officials from the Prime Minister's office said tonight that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin

Netanyahu will push to occupy the whole of the Gaza Strip, including areas where hostages may be held. Tom? Matt Bradley, with that major escalation in the war tonight, Matt, our thanks to you back here in the States to Montana now. The search is in a man accused of killing calling the suspect armed

Here's Morgan Chesky. Ton scouring the woods near a for Michael Paul Brown, a killer after authorities inside a bar Friday morning. This is an unstable individual who walked in and murdered four people in cold blood for no reason whatsoever. Officials say this photo showing Brown without a shirt or pants captured him before he escaped in a stolen pickup. Investigators say he's likely found clothing and is now believed to be on foot.

An Army spokesman tells NBC News, Brown served from 2001 through 2005 and was deployed to Iraq, adding he served in the Montana National Guard until 2009. We have to believe he is still armed. We don't know that he is for sure, but we certainly don't know that he isn't. This is a person who had access to firearms. Obviously he's had training with firearms.

As the search intensifies, Lacey Groesvold is keeping her nine-year-old daughter close. We all have to be prepared. You think, well, what would happen if he came up the driveway or if he tried to get into my house? I mean, every single person in this community has to think about those things.

Over the weekend, authorities identified the four victims, the family of Nancy Loretta Kelly sharing she recently retired. She just like people. She was definitely a people person. And tonight the U. S. Marshals say they're now offering $10,000 for any information leading to Brown's arrest. Investigators adding that his motive still remains unclear. Tom Morgan, our thanks to you to you this summer health officials are urging people to stay vigilant amid a big increase in tick

bites but is a vaccine on the way and Thompson reports. In the woods of New York's Westchester County researchers use a piece of corduroy and a link brush to measure the density of this summer's ticks. Every week we sample 2 to three times in our woods to monitor the tick population. On a scale of one to ten, the Fordham Tick Index hit ten three weeks in a row last month. Dr. Thomas Daniels has studied ticks for 40 years. How is 2025 shaping up?

The numbers of ticks that we've seen this year are at least 30% higher than we've seen in previous years. That increase seen in America's emergency rooms. In May, the CDC says ER visits due to tick bites were at their highest levels since 2019. Of particular concern, the black-legged tick that can carry up to five pathogens, including Lyme disease. Just last week, pop superstar Justin Timberlake revealed he has Lyme disease, calling it relentlessly debilitating both mentally and physically.

He is one of nearly a half million Americans diagnosed and treated for Lyme every year. You get it when you are bitten by a bacteria carrying tick, often leaving a distinctive bullseye on the skin. Dr. Daniel says the best thing you can do is limit skin exposure when out in wooded areas. Long pants if you can do it, wear repellents, they are effective and when you come back inside make sure that you check yourself thoroughly. As for a Lyme vaccine, Pfizer is working on one and says it hopes to apply for approval next year. Until then, experts say be vigilant

to ensure your summer souvenir isn't a potentially fatiguing disease. Anne Thompson, NBC News, Armont, New York. And still to come on the broadcast, a whale in shallow water near the Jersey Shore nearly capsizes this boat. Nightly news, live from Miami, continues. We're back now with the scary collision between boaters

and a 20-foot whale off the Jersey Shore. Sam Brock on the moment, all captured on camera. Stay here, stay here. Oh my God, they're going over! Mayhem at sea, unfolding off the Jersey Shore. and brought on the moment all captured on camera. Mayhem at sea unfolding off the Jersey shore. After a 20 foot mink whale nearly capsizes this motorboat in Barne get Bay Saturday. You can see one of the voters trying to climb back in as the

whale thrashes in the water. Charlie not with towboat us captured the incident on dash cam. I was actually just observing the whale commenting to my co-worker that like that's pretty crazy to see that in the bay. And it's it's not like a particularly normal site. And all of a sudden you see one of the boats starting to spin from the whale. Yeah, so kind of started to spin around like

one. He says at one point the impact knocked a woman into the water once we got over that they said that she was all right they were getting her out of the water to give me a big thumbs up and that was kind of the whale began doing a circle around behind us. The injured marine mammal moving to a nearby boats and leading to some tense moments. The encounter happening in a popular part of the bay.

It's very common for boating fishing clamming on this area because you could go from 10 feet right up to a foot of water. Captain Walter bonds team at sea to respond to calls from the Coast Guard and state officials. These passages are very narrow. It's very simple and very easy for well that could possibly get you know beach by itself and get stuck on there. The team finding the whale deceased and moving it to a

New Jersey State Park this morning where the marine mammal stranding center received it for further examination. A rare glimpse of a face to face with a stunning creature. Sam Brock NBC News. A wild moment in the water there all right up next the monster volcanic eruption is it related to that massive earthquake from last week? And as we go to break here in Miami, volleyball in iconic South Beach.

Nightly News from Miami, right back after this. We are back now with a big update in the Luigi Mangione case. The man accused of shooting UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, scoring access to a laptop while behind bars. His attorneys asked for a specially formatted computer so he can review discovery evidence as he awaits trial.

Already the prosecution has handed over seven terabytes of discovery material. For the first time in centuries, take a look at this. A volcano in Russia's far east is erupting long dormant It's set massive plumes of smoke and fire and ash nearly four miles into the sky It follows that massive earthquake you may remember last week that set off tsunami waves and alerts across the globe All right up next when a grandmother was ready to go on the trip of a lifetime to Ireland She had no idea how many friendly faces would be joining and as we go to break a go on the trip of a lifetime to Ireland. She had no idea how many

friendly faces would be joining. And as we go to break, a look at the home of the Miami Marlins, who had a very big weekend against the New York Yankees. We're back right after this. It feels like you can never be sure what to expect when you get to the airport. But Savannah Sellers reports a great grandmother had the surprise of her life when some familiar frequent flyers showed up. Oh my god! It was the surprise of a lifetime for this great grandmother from Illinois. Oh god, that kid looked like Finley.

Kicking off an 85th birthday trip with a couple unexpected travel partners. Her two great grandsons, Finley and Wyatt, making the trek from Colorado. Mary McCarthy's granddaughter, Sarah Giannini, asked her to name any destination. She told me Ireland instantly. So off to the motherland they went and Mary was ready for adventure. Hiking Blarney Castle, holding an owl, even a hawk. Well I saw them everybody do it. I thought well heck I'm gonna do it. Sarah your grandma is with it. I think that's why we knew we wanted to make it a surprise because she has the best reactions. And the best dance moves.

Dancing. Yeah, baby. I loved it. Overjoyed to spend her first vacation with her great grandkids, normally 1,000 miles apart. Some lucky, lucky, lucky lady. One who's already dreaming of going back. Dropping the hat.

I'm ready. Until then, Savannah Sellers and BC News. Grandma Mary, what a trip. Maybe next time here in Miami. That's Nightly News for this Monday. I'm Tom Yalmas. We thank you so much for watching. Tonight and always, we're here for you. Good night. ["Pomp and Circumstance"]