Top Story with Tom Llamas - Friday, July 21, 2023

Episode Date: July 22, 2023

The Department of Justice threatens to sue the state of Texas over their border buoys installed last week in the Rio Grande to deter migration. Alabama Republican state legislators vote for a new congressional map that Democrats say violates a U.S. Supreme Court ruling ordering them to create at least two majority-Black districts. A kidnapped girl uses a handwritten sign to escape her captor in California. A violent attack on two women in India sparks outrage across that country. And Tom takes a look back at the life and legacy of Tony Bennett.

Tonight, the Department of Justice threatening to sue Texas over a controversial border barrier. The DOJ saying these buoys recently deployed in the Rio Grande to deter migrants violate federal law and raise humanitarian concerns. Texas Governor Greg Abbott firing back accusing the Biden administration of not doing enough to protect the border. This as cities nationwide, try and house an influx of migrants as a caravan with more than 1,000 people heads towards the southern border. Also tonight, that oppressive and relentless heat wave, the father in Texas, smashing his windshield with a tire iron to free his infant son from a hot car as temperatures hover in the triple digits. 84 million Americans under heat alerts as we head into the weekend. Our Bill Cairns is standing by.

Plus, DeSantis' culture clashes, the Florida governor taking on budd light over their partnership with a transgender influencer. This, as the Florida Education Board approved a controversial black. black history standard that includes teaching students the idea that slavery helped people develop useful skills that they then used for their benefit, the fiery response from the vice president. India ethnic violence, the horrifying attack on two women sparking outrage around the world. The region consumed by tribal warfare with more than 130 killed, India's prime minister now breaking his silence.

Kidnap teen rescue, a 13-year-old girl disappearing in Texas, discovered more than two weeks later in California, how she used a handwritten sign to escape her captor at a laundromat. Plus, beloved singer Tony Bennett dying today at 96. Our Tom Yamis takes a look back at his incredible career, including his classic hits and iconic duets with Lady Gaga. And Barbenheimer has arrived two of the summer's most anticipated blockbusters, Barbie and Oppenheimer, now in theaters. The eye-popping ticket sales they've already reeled in. Top story starts right now. Good evening. I'm Ellison Barber in for Tom. We begin top story tonight with the Department of Justice promising legal action against the state of Texas over those buoy barriers in the Rio Grande we've been reporting on.

Texas installing those buoys last week across a massive stretch of the river, a popular crossing between Mexico and the United States. The DOJ says the barriers, which are about four feet across each. violate federal law and pose serious safety concerns. But tonight, Texas Governor Greg Abbott defiant, saying Texas has a right to defend its border and slamming the Biden administration for an influx of migrants. The threat from the DOJ comes days after a Texas state trooper came forward with disturbing allegations of mistreatment of those migrants at the border. The whistleblower saying border officials ordered him to withhold water from migrants in extreme heat

and push some of them, including young children, back into the race. River. But border officials are bracing for a new caravan of migrants making its way north through Mexico. The group, roughly 1,000 people strong. And in major cities across the country, a struggle to house the migrants that have already reached the United States. New York City Mayor Eric Adams announcing this week that his city shelters have no more room for asylum seekers. So let's get right to Priscilla Thompson, who leads us off in Texas. Tonight, Texas Governor Greg Abbott, not backing down. After the Department of Justice threatened to sue over a 1,000-foot wall of buoys, now dividing the Rio Grande between Mexico and Eagle Pass, Texas. The DOJ firing back against the buoys that

Governor Abbott deployed earlier this month in a letter writing the state did not receive proper authorization for them. Adding that the buoys violate federal law, raise humanitarian concerns present serious risks to public safety and the environment. four feet in diameter, the buoys prevent anyone from climbing over them and extend at least a foot underwater with no netting attached for now, officials say. The first 1,000 foot segment costing just under a million dollars. Abbott firing back against the DOJ, writing Texas has the sovereign authority to defend our border, vowing to continue using every strategy to deter smuggling and illegal crossings. Adding, we will see you in court, Mr. President. Advocates,

like IDI Nio Mujica warn the buoys won't stop migration and are dangerous. They will attempt to go under the barriers and they are going to die, he said. Texas Department of Public Safety Lieutenant Christopher Olivares showed us the buoys as they were being installed. He says they're a vital deterrent that could save lives. When we look at the amount of drownings, the amount of people that have continued across this river, women and children, we need to try to prevent that as much as possible. And Priscilla joins us now from Galveston, Texas. Priscilla, what could happen if Governor Abbott and the Texas government are found in violation of the Rivers and Harbors Act?

Yeah, Alison, if that happens, the buoys would almost certainly have to be removed. And it's important to note here that it's not just the DOJ. The government in Mexico has also sent a letter to the U.S. government saying that these buoys violate international treaties. And so there is pushback on many fronts about this. And the DOJ says that they are giving Governor Abbott until Monday to respond to their letter and to begin to show that he is removing those buoys or else they say that they will sue. Ellison? Priscilla Thompson in Texas.

Thank you. The other major headline tonight, that relentless heatway baking so much of the country tonight. Parts of the south and west still seeing temperatures pushing the triple digits. New video from South Texas shows a father. desperately breaking his car window after accidentally locking his infant inside. Luckily, that child was okay, but experts say when temperatures near 100 degrees outside, temperatures inside a car can top 170 degrees. Meanwhile, in northern California, skies are hazy from smoke drifting down from Oregon,

where nearly two dozen small wildfires are burning. Let's bring in NBC News meteorologist Bill Carrens, who has the latest on what you can expect this weekend. Bill, the question on everyone's mind. will this heat break anytime soon? Yeah, this abnormal heat, this long duration, not just its summer, continues. All the way from Tucson to South Florida, we added up the numbers. And so far for this July, we're on pace for our hottest July ever recorded.

And if you're living in any of these areas, that shouldn't surprise you one bit. So we're still stretching from Florida with Jacksonville, Florida, and excessive heat warning. There was a location in coastal sections of southern Georgia that had a heat index of 119 today. That is extreme. And then in areas of the west where it's a dry heat, we just continue day after day. So how are we going to do tomorrow? We're going to be close to records once again all the way in Florida. We'll be close, Orlando.

Miami should break their record high tomorrow. Houston should be close if not breaking it. Tucson should break your record high. Vegas, same for you. It's just rinse and repeat day after day in these same areas. And as far as the weekend into next week goes, the heat's going to build up to Boise, 102 degrees. And we're also working at August, warmer than average in the west and in the south. So it's just no relief.

On top of that heat, Bill, there are some parts of this country that are seeing flooding right now. Which areas are expected to have severe storms this weekend? Yeah, this has been a daily occurrence about this time. Right now, we're watching Atlanta closely. They're under a flash flood warning. You're also in a severe thunderstorm watch, and these thunderstorms are training. They're going over the same areas here just north of Atlanta. So here's the downtown area, and you can see here all the dark red.

This is where we have flash flooding ongoing in the northern half of the metro area of Atlanta. So that's going to cause a lot of problems at the airports. In Conway, Massachusetts, we have water in homes and in basements from earlier flooding. Now thunderstorms have returned to these areas, too. And of course, we've got our eye on Vermont, too. This area is under a flash flood watch. And look at all these flash flood warnings here in Massachusetts. Just outside of Boston on that 495 loop, that's not a fun Friday evening drive either.

So the way your weekend looks, we dry out in the northeast, a few strong storms in the southeast. And by the time we get to Sunday, that's when the heat begins to build. Next week, Alison, we'll be talking about areas like Kansas City up around the mid-105 to almost 110. Wow. All right. Bill Cairns, thank you so much for that. The U.S. is not the only country facing extreme weather right now. In Greece, wildfires continue to burn for the fifth straight day. A heat wave there has only intensified as authorities race against the clock to contain fires that have reignited. NBC News Foreign correspondent Josh Letterman is on the ground in Athens with the latest.

Tonight, the Greek countryside is scorched earth, a dystopian vision of a future ravaged by climate change. In this village west of Athens, a sea of charred black and a chemical factory burnt to a crisp. This is all that's left of this home outside of Athens after a fire ravaged this village two days ago. Residents here now picking up the pieces of their lives. This resident lost six dogs, several chickens, and a goat when the flames devoured his family home. How quickly did this house go up in flames? In 10 minutes. Ten minutes.

Were you scared for your life here? Yes. It's not over. Greek authorities say 52 new fires erupted today. As firefighters play whackamol, almost as soon as a fires contained, the heat and winds pick up and the old fires are reignited. We have been watching for the last hour as firefighting helicopters like this one have been dumping water on this hot spot here in the outskirts of Athens. While Europe sizzles under some of the hottest temperatures ever recorded, the U.S. also grappling with triple-digit temps, a staggering 86 million Americans across the South and West under heat alerts tonight. Dramatic video in Texas shows the moment a father busted his windshield with a tire iron after his baby was accidentally locked in the vehicle.

As the city of Miami bakes amid a 41-day streak of 100-plus degree heat index. Tonight, millions of Americans flocking to Greece in Italy to escape the heat, only to defyce. find hot seas and air thick with smoke, an unrelenting summer, with no break in sight. And Josh Letterman joins us now from Athens, Greece. Josh, we have seen you all day out as all of this is happening, as those helicopters have been trying to get these fires under control. How long is the heat expected to last? This is just going to get worse, Alison, with temperatures expected to surge to 115 degrees

Fahrenheit here on Sunday. A third consecutive heat wave set to hit Greece next week. That one is shaping up to be the longest in Greece's history. Alison. Josh Letterman in Greece, thank you for that. Now to a key update in the classified documents trial for former President Donald Trump, a federal judge announcing the trial will begin May 20th, 2024. The move ignoring requests by both sides, with prosecutors hoping it would start in December of this year. And Trump's defense team hoping that it would be pushed until after the election. NBC's Garrett Haak joins us now from Washington. Garrett, if we think about the electoral calendar here,

the GOP primaries start in January, but the Republican National Convention will take place in July. How could this date impact the Trump campaign and the whole election as a result? Well, Alison, if this date holds, and I think that's a pretty big if, it actually works out fairly well for Donald Trump and his campaign. The campaign is certainly reacting that way,

talking about it being a victory over what called a Department of Justice Crusade to have an unfairly early trial. But if you park this trial in May, you basically would have, if you think Trump's going to be the nominee, the nomination all but sewn up by then, but you haven't hit the conventions yet. You haven't hit that kind of pivot to the general election. No campaign strategist wants to have their candidate on trial at any point, certainly not in the middle of the election. But there are much worse places you could park a trial than right where this lands in the electoral calendar. So President Trump's new attorney appeared on Fox today.

Let's listen to a little of what he said. There's no need to appear in front of any grand jury right now. President Trump did absolutely nothing wrong. He's done nothing criminal. And he's made his case that he was entitled to take these positions as president of the United States. When he saw all these election discrepancies and irregularities going on, he did what any president was required to do because he took an oath to do exactly that. All right. So the other case the president is dealing with is the one he got a target letter for related to his actions around the 2020 election and also January 6th. Listening to his attorney there, Garrett, what did you make of that? Do you think we're getting an indication into how the president's legal team is going to defend the president in some of these different inquiries?

I thought the appearance itself was fascinating, Alison, in part because this attorney, as best we can tell, was only added to the legal team this week. And he's already on television doing what the former president likes best, defending him in public. He also argued that there should be cameras in the federal court for this trial if it comes to that on the January 6th and 2020 election-related case. That would be a huge departure from the norms for federal trial, but it speaks to what has always been kind of the Trump strategy on this, which is to tie the legal and the political together. They want to make a political argument about what happened on and around January 6th in the aftermath. of the 2020 election, not a legal argument. And the fact that you have an attorney, ostensibly hired to defend the former president in court on Fox News, defending him to Fox News viewers instead is just the latest example of that.

As someone who has covered all of the investigations into the former president, what do you think people should be watching out for as we head into the next couple of weeks? Look, I think the likelihood of an indictment sooner rather than later is the biggest story in politics right now. The idea that Donald Trump got a target letter on Sunday and we're just kind of waiting to see what happens with it. To me, covering covered the Department of Justice and having covered kind of these other investigations, it's hard for me to imagine a development like that, which surely the special counsel understands, is functionally the same as sending Donald Trump a press release when you send in that letter, that they're going to sit on their

hands for very much longer. So for folks who are watching this closely, you know, keep your television's on and your phone in your hand in the early part of next week. All right. We will do that. Garrett Hake, thank you so much. With the trial date finally set for the classified documents case, former President Trump's GOP rivals are looking to move ahead in the polls. Florida Governor Ronda Sanchez looking to hit the reset button on his campaign after a fairly rocky start. NBC's Gabe Gutier, as explains. Tonight, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis on the trail in Utah as his presidential campaign plans a reboot. We need to win this battle.

Campaign officials exclusively tell NBC News the new aim would be to run more as an insurgent candidate rather than an incumbent governor and focus on leaner, more intimate events. Campaign filings have shown that DeSantis team is burning through cash and is tapped out top donors. It's also fired about a dozen staffers leading to questions about whether his team hired too many people too quickly. No, look, I think at the end of the day, when you start, there's certain investments that you make. The governor is still doubling down on culture wars, launching a state inquiry into Bud Light's parent company, which Florida's pension fund had invested in. Bud Light has faced conservative backlash for briefly partnering with a transgender social media influencer. When you start pursuing a political agenda at the expense of your shareholders,

that's not just impacting very wealthy people. It impacts hardworking people. Bud Light's parent company now says it takes its responsibility to our shareholders seriously. Meanwhile, in Florida today, Vice President Kamala Harris slammed the DeSantis administration over new African-American history teaching standards that require middle school students learn how slaves develop skills, which, in some instances, could be applied for their personal benefit. They insult us in an attempt to gaslight us, and we will not have it. Florida's Board of Education called the changes factual and well-documented, while DeSantis is accusing Democrats. having an agenda of indoctrinating students. Gabe Gutierrez joins us now. Gabe, the Florida governor also made some other headlines

as it relates to what happened in the Capitol. Yeah, that's right, on January 6th. Today, he insisted that the attack on the Capitol on January 6th was not an insurrection, but rather a protest that devolved into a riot. Now, earlier in the week, he also made some headlines by saying that former President Trump should have done more,

should have acted more to stop the attack on the Capitol on January 6. But he's been very reluctant to talk about the issue saying that voters should move forward. Gabe Gutierrez, thank you. And now to the ongoing debate in Alabama over redistricting maps. Just hours ago, the Republican-led Congress voting for a new congressional map that Democrats say goes against a U.S. Supreme Court ruling. The court previously raised concerns that the state was violating the rights of voters and ordered them the state to create at least two majority black districts. Tonight, Republicans say they've reached a compromise, but some say it is not enough. NBC's Jane Tim has more. Tonight, Alabama lawmakers voting to move forward with a new

congressional map after Republicans refused to include a second majority black district despite court orders. You all have basically dropped the F-bomb on the United States Supreme Court. The move comes after the U.S. Supreme Court and a federal court ruled that the state congressional map was violating black voters' rights, noting that while the state population is more than a quarter black, only one of seven voting districts is predominantly black. The court ordered the state to redraw its maps to include two majority black seats or something quite close to it. But after a special session this week, the Republican-controlled legislature claiming they came to a compromise, maintaining a single majority black district, and including a second one that's 40 percent black.

This is what we call an opportunity district on results of the elections. If you have a candidate that's well-funded and well-organized, it is an opportunity district. Anybody can win it. Throughout the week, lawmakers considered two dueling maps. The House suggestion included a second district that is 42% black, while the Senate map included a district that is 38% black. But Democrats and voting rights advocates argued the map doesn't go far enough, and they say it ignores a Supreme court ruling. They don't give all of Alabama's citizens a seat at the table for their voices to be heard. Alabama is proven to be continuing to be a very racist state. This statewide battle

coming with huge national implications. Republican Speaker of the House, Kevin McCarthy, keeping a close eye on the debate. I've talked to a few to see if they're going to do something about it. We've watched that we have a couple redistrictings out through all the places. like to know where they're going to go. NBC news confirming he has talked to Alabama legislators as they drew district lines with an eye towards maintaining his house majority. All eyes are now on Alabama as dozens of other redistricting battles plays out in states across the country. Jane Tim, NBC News. Still to come tonight, kidnapped teen found the 13-year-old found in California two weeks after she went missing in Texas, how she got away from her kidnapper using this handwritten note.

A heart-stopping new body camera video. An officer in Michigan arriving seconds after a mother and father pulled their two-year-old son from the bottom of their pool. How he saved that child's life. And the search for two men who tied a New York City couple up inside of their home. How authorities say the men tricked the couple into opening the door. Stay with us. A 13-year-old girl allegedly kidnapped at gunpoint and held captive for days. How a two-word note and a good Samaritan in the right place at the right time might have saved her life. NBC's Maya Eaglin has more. Armed with just a scrap of paper and a red marker, a quick-thinking 13-year-old girl writing herself to freedom.

Those two words, held me, held up to the window of a car, parked at the easy-wash laundromat in Long Beach, California earlier this month, and spotted by a good Samaritan. She's my customer. She always come watch here. She told me that, yeah, yeah, I think there's a girl need help. The eagle-eyed customer immediately calling 911 as the man now accused of kidnapping that young girl did his laundry inside. The owner of that laundromat, Touch Vang, were calling the unsettling encounter. A scary face, yeah, he looked up, down to me. I said, in my head, I said, oh, maybe something, something, yeah. Officers swiftly arriving on the scene, placing 61-year-old Stephen Robert, South. Sablin under arrest. According to a criminal complaint, the harrowing ordeal began more than a thousand miles away in San Antonio, Texas. Sablin accused of pulling up alongside the 13-year-old

girl holding a gun to her head and saying, if you don't get in the car with me, I am going to hurt you. The girl telling police the alleged kidnapper held her captive, driving her more than a thousand miles away from her home until that faithful moment in a California parking lot. A pair of handcuffs, as well as a BB gun, recovered from that car, according to the the complaint. Sablin, who remains in custody tonight, charged with one count of transportation of a minor with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity. He is due in court later this month. We've reached out to his attorney, but we haven't heard back. I shocked, but I have people call the police here. I risk you hurt. Tonight, relief in Long Beach, that those two simple

words and the bravery of this young girl brought that nightmare trip to an end. Maya Eaglin, In Northern California, two administrators are under investigation tonight after a video surfaced of them making disturbing comments about students, including those with special needs. NBC's Bay Area reporter Jody Hernandez has more. Happy second day. We are at the Valley View Bar and Grill right here because some of our little college park friends like to come over here and smoke and drink. This is the video that has many parents in the Mount Diablo School District reeling. Two college park vice principals making disparaging remarks about. students including special ed or sped kids and i think some of them are sped too but

we won't ever be able to get rid of them you know what not your problem no no not your monkey not your circus it's a very hurtful and very emotional this mother of a college park high special ed student didn't want to reveal her identity but she says she's uphauled what was very disturbing was the fact that they're making fun of special ed children and then another statement which i found really offensive was monkeys in a circus, so referring to our children are monkeys in a circus. Like in my statement that I put out today, I apologize to any parent or any student who had to witness that video. Mount Diablo Unified School District Superintendent agrees the remarks are disturbing.

He says a formal investigation is underway and insists the district is 100% committed to supporting students with special needs. We're going to use this as an opportunity to, you know, to retrain, to look at our processes and our procedures, and to continue to work on our mindset, on how we work with students who may be different than what we are. One of the women in the video was recently named principal of Diablo View Middle School. This mother says she hopes the district rethinks that. With those kind of point of views and that mentality, they don't belong in an educational system where there are children who do need help. The superintendent says they take the matter very seriously. He says in cases of employee misconduct, anything from a letter of reprimand to dismissal could take place. We tried to reach out to both of the women in the video. I spoke to one on the phone who told me neither of them could comment. In Contra Costa County, I'm Jody Hernandez, NBC Bay Area News. Coming up, outrage in India, the violent attack against two women sparking protest across the country.

What that nation's prime minister is saying tonight as tribal warfare engulfs part of the region. Stay with us. Back now with top stories news feed. New York City are searching for a pair of thieves, they say, posed as FBI agents. New video shows the thieves walking into a couple's home wearing suits and carrying guns in their waistband. Police say the suspects tied the couple up and tased them while inside, making off with tens of thousands of dollars in luxury items. A life-saving rescue in Michigan caught on police body camera footage. Video shows an officer outside of Detroit racing to administer CPR to a two-year-old little

after the child was found unresponsive at the bottom of the pool. The officer then flips him over and manages to get the child breathing again. That child was taken to the hospital, but is okay. Ocean temperatures around Florida continue to remain scorching hot, and scientists are sounding the alarm. Some parts of the Atlantic Ocean at this hour, measuring 97 degrees Fahrenheit. Scientists say extreme ocean temperatures like this

are in immense threat to coral reefs, because the coral can bleach eventually killing it. And President Biden has chosen Admiral Lisa Frenchetti to lead the U.S. Navy. If confirmed, Framchetti would also become the first woman to be a U.S. military service chief. She's currently the vice president of Navy operations. The president's decision goes against the recommendation of his Pentagon chief. Turning now to the latest on the war in Ukraine, the cluster munitions that the U.S. sent over last week have already been used on the battlefield, and according to U.S. officials, they are having an

impact. Meanwhile, Ukraine says Russia launched almost 70 missiles and dozens of attack drones this week, primarily launching them from ships in the Black Sea. This after Russia pulled out of an agreement allowing ships carrying grain to sail past its blockade in the Black Sea, a decision the UN says could ultimately lead to a global food crisis. Now, let's bring in Lieutenant Colonel Daniel Davis. He is a senior fellow and military expert at defense priorities. A good evening. Thank you so much for being with us. Let's start with the news on cluster munitions.

These are incredibly controversial munitions, banned by a lot of countries, but the U.S. made the decision to send them to Ukraine with a bit of agreement in terms of how and where they would be used. What do you make of the White House saying that these are being used and they are actually having an impact? Well, they're definitely going to have an impact. Actually, when I was on active duty, in fact, I fought in the Desert Storm in the 1990s and used these weapons. These, they called them D-P-I-C-M for dual-purpose-improved conventional munitions, where it has 88,

well, that really that round you see on the screen there, it has 88 bomblets inside of it, that it will go over the target, drop it on there. Some of those bomblets blow up in the air and shoot shrapnel down on blackskin vehicles of cable. The other ones hit the ground and send a shape charge down to potentially take out. tanks. So that's much more than you'll get from a single impact of a 155mm shell that they have been using. The problem is that it's also spread out over a large area, and it takes a lot more of them to have a lot of damage. So it's very powerful, but only if used in combination with other offensive operations in coordination and in sufficient numbers. The U.S. said they made

the decision to send these munitions in part because it was a way to give ammunition, but ammunition that would go further than kind of the one-for-one situation they were having before. But there are often a lot of civilian casualties associated with cluster munitions. There's always the risk that they don't all go off. And then you have a situation where kids can pick them up, not knowing what they are, and they can really harm people. Do you think the U.S. made the right decision sending them? Yeah, you know, when you get into a war, a lot of things that you might prefer to do get set aside because of necessity. And in this particular situation, too. There's a couple things at play. Number one, we don't have enough of the regular

conventional shells to send. We've almost given more than we should already to deplete our own resources, and there's not enough on the Ukraine side. So this is what we have handy and what we're going to use. The Ukraine side on their, for their part, where these are going to be used, have said, look, there's already millions of mines already on the ground. And this is something we'll have to deal with later. But in their view, they can't do with the insufficient quantities because it might help them lose the war. And that's something that it's not willing to do and the risk they're willing to take. And only the people on the ground really can make that call. Let's talk about what we're seeing since Russia has left the grain deal. There are reports that

about 60,000 tons of grain was destroyed and an attack launched by Russia in ports in Odessa. There are also reports that Russia has said it plans to consider all vessels sailing toward Ukrainian ports on the Black Sea as military cargo. The White House warning about the possibility of Russia targeting civilian ships in this area. Where do things go from here? Yeah, like everything else here, this has got to be viewed in context. And in the context, Russia has been saying adamantly since May, when this was last, the grain deal was last extended up until this July here, then look, if the West will meet the conditions that they agreed to earlier, which is that they want ammonia pipeline opened up, they want their

agricultural banks back on the SWIFS situation and limited sanctions relief on the agricultural sector. Apparently, the West has agreed to this, but they haven't done it. And so the West said then, or the Russians said, then we're also going to pull out of the grain deal. In terms of the attack on the ports, Russia is stepping it up. And they are definitely escalating the situation by saying, if you're not going to do the grain deal, if we can't benefit, then you're not going to either. They've knocked out a lot of those port facilities. In terms of the last point you mentioned there about Russia saying that they would consider anything military that was going into Ukraine. Ukraine hours later made the same statement. So both sides have claimed

that they could potentially hit civilian ships going in either direction. And all those things are, you know, concerned to us because anything that could potentially escalate this war is bad for everybody involved. And I think this is a very concerning situation. Lieutenant Colonel Daniel Davis, thank you so much for that important context. We appreciate it. Thanks, sir. We move on now to the growing anger in India, where a deeply disturbing video showing the shocking treatment of two tribal women at the hands of a mob has ignited nationwide protests. The incident, part of a growing conflict between two feuding ethnic groups. A warning tonight, some of the details may be difficult to heal.

Tonight, outrage across India. As distressing video appearing to show the brutal treatment. of two women catapults a bitter ethnic feud into the national spotlight. These screenshots taken from a cell phone video showing two women paraded naked through the streets in the Montepur region of India by people police describe as unknown armed miscreants. Out of respect for the women, we are not showing that video in full, but it was allegedly taken in May, moments before they were sexually assaulted. One of the victims told the Associated press, quote, they forced us to remove our clothes and said we will be killed if we do not do

as told. They abused us. They touched us everywhere. The violence depicted, emblematic, of the near civil war in a region that has seen villages rampaged and homes torched to the ground by mobs. More than 130 people have been killed and tens of thousands displaced since May. A bloody battle between the Kuki people, a tribal group that lives in the hills and the Métis, the majority group that recently demanded special tribal status, which would allow them to buy land in those hills and strengthen their influence in government. Militias on both sides taking up arms to defend what they believe is their homeland. Of course, we're scared. Who's not afraid of that? We all are afraid of dying. But when there is no option, what do we have?

What often do we have? The women in the video belonged to the Kukizzo community and were attacked by a mob of maitie men, according to the indigenous tribal leaders forum. Today, they are set to be safe in a refugee camp. My radha, pida's from hugh-ho-ho-ha-hru-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha. The video is so shocking and seen so widely, it forced Prime Minister Modi to break his months of silence on the tribal feud. He's vowed that they.

the guilty will not be spared. Saying whatever has happened with the daughters of Manipur will never be forgiven. Monipur's chief minister says police have made an arrest in the case. But it wasn't enough for some. According to state officials, some have tried to take justice into their own hands, setting fire to the house of the main suspect in the case. With more than 60,000 people displaced in Manipur so far. far.

We are not safe here. They take anywhere, anytime. Locals on both sides of this violence are trying to rebuild and remember those already lost. The National Human Rights Commission of India now ordering a full report on this incident to be completed in the next four weeks. When we come back, farewell to a legend. Tony Bennett has died today at 96 years old, the incredible hits that defined his career and the iconic

duets with his friend lady gaga stay with us in other words please be true in other words i love you was, of course, the great Tony Bennett. The legendary crooner has died at 96 years old. Tom Yamis has a look back at his incredible life and legacy. Tony Bennett had it all, the looks, the style, and that voice. Somewhere over the rainbow. A butterscotch baritone that enveloped audiences.

The legendary crooner was born Anthony, Dominic Benedetto in Queens, a kid of the Great Depression raised by a single mom. At 16, he dropped out of school and was later drafted by the Army to serve in World War II. I decided that when I get out of the Army, I'm going to go into show business. And that's exactly what he did. I love my whole life. I love what I do. Bob Hope discovered him in a New York nightclub and hired him on the spot, introducing him on stage with a new name, Tony Bennett. His career skyrocketed. In 1962, a special song released as a B-side sent him into the stratosphere.

I left my heart. At the height of his fame, even Frank Sinatra, a friend, but also a rival, told him. Life magazine. For my money, Tony Bennett is the best singer in the business. But performing night after night, the dark side of fame eventually caught up to Bennett. Addicted to drugs, he took a step back from music. He returned in the 80s, refusing to change his style. The throwback sound was a hit. He toured relentlessly. I'm always sold out throughout the world wherever I play. And it's beautiful.

Becoming a master of duets, sharing the stage with music's biggest stars. I'm in a New York state of mine. Bennett also had a great sense of humor. My name is Phony Bennett. And love to paint. When you get lucky enough to nail one painting that really looks good, it's really a quiet celebration. In 2021, the singer revealed he had Alzheimer's and announced both a final album and concert with Lady Gaga to celebrate his 95th birthday. That's why the lady is a trap.

I just love being alive and I love that I'm still performing. And boy, did we love watching him. San Francisco. Tonight, all of us have left a little bit of our hearts in San Francisco. Tom Yamas, NBC News. When we come back, a special edition of Bingeworthy. Barbie and Oppenheimer now in theaters. How much have the dual blockbusters already raked in?

Stay with us. We are back now with a special edition of Bingeworthy. Our look at the best things to watch and listen to this weekend. We're joined now by friend of Top Story in NBC News, Internet Culture Reporter Callan Rosenblatt. Callen, we usually stick to what you can stream on binge-worthy, but this week we have to start with Barbenheimer. I mean, we must. Barbenheimer and Barbie, both of them officially in theaters as of today. Already bringing in a whole lot of money.

Look at these numbers. So just in the Thursday preview, Barbie brought in $22.3 million. Oppenheimer brought in $10.5 million. That's a combined $32.8 million. And the movies are projected to bring even more. Barbie's expected to hit over 100 million, and Oppenheimer is expected to hit around 50 million. And another crazy stat for you, the National Association of Theater Owners estimate that 200,000 moviegoers will see a double feature of Barbie and Oppenheimer. It's a whopping five-hour if you

don't take a snack break in between, right? So I know you have seen Barbie, not once, but twice. I've seen Barbie twice. Did it live up to the hype? Oh, my gosh. It lived up the hype in ways I can't even articulate. I mean, Alison, you and I chatting ahead of time just about, you know, how this movie, first of all, I won't give any spoilers, but it just touches on womanhood in such a unique and interesting way. I left the theater crying. My sister-in-law left the theater crying. A lot of women I know left having an existential crisis. I actually interviewed women on Wednesday as they were leaving the theater, and a lot of them said that it was such a blast. It's such a joyful movie, but they left saying

that it was such a meditation on womanhood that they weren't expecting, that it's actually better that they broke up Oppenheimer and Barbie because they need a little time to decompress. That's awesome because when you said that it made me want to see Barbie and I've been a little bit of a skeptic just because anything that gets a lot of hype, I'm like, wait, but... Which is totally fair. But it is true. There's so many complexities around Barbie for most women in this country especially and to maybe see some of that unpacked is really fascinating. What are you expecting for Oppenheimer? Will you see it? Oh, I'm already I have my ticket for Oppenheimer for Saturday.

I am so excited to see this movie. You know, I think this also is going to be really powerful. and really impactful in a totally different way. I heard in an interview that the script is actually written in first person. So rather than saying, like, Robert Oppenheimer goes to the window, says, I go to the window. So it's really told, not necessarily, I mean, historically accurate, but historically accurate from the perspective of Robert Oppenheimer. So I'm so curious to see how Christopher Nolan pulls us off. I'm a huge fan of his work, and I am so excited for the duality of these two films.

But you were not on board with the double screening. I just didn't realize how much time I would need between Barbie and off and hiring. I mean, you've got to clear your whole day. If you have kids, you've got to get extra babysitter. It's a lot. You need to take a brunch between the two. Yes, you do. Okay.

So let's get into what people can stream this weekend because there's a lot out there, despite the fact that we're in the middle of a historic strike. Yes. There is a new season of Sweet Magnolias, right? At season three, that airs on Netflix. Let's take a look. New relationships and new challenges are good for the soul. This is the beauty of all friends.

You meet me wherever I need you. Three of us are forever. And a day. In a darkened land, there was a woman who was trying to do the right thing as Bashir. So, Ellison, as you mentioned at the top, Netflix is a struck company, so we want to say that up at the top. But this series, you know, preceded by two big cliffhangers. The first season ended with a car accident. Second season ended with an arrest.

So this season picks up on those threads and continues them. I've seen a lot of people saying, if you're a big fan of Lifetime movies, if you like Hallmark, you have to watch us. It's maybe not the most serious show in the world. If all those three friends who've been friends since high school, their small town called Serenity, and, you know, just the ins and outs of womanhood and, you know, just their everyday lives. But I've seen a lot of people saying, if you kind of want to turn off your brain, this is a great one for that. Okay, sometimes we need that, especially after a long week. Yeah, exactly.

For me, I would take it. Okay? So Paramount Plus, they also have a new series out, special ops, lioness. It's inspired actually by the real CIA Lioness program. We can take a look at this. You have no family. You have no friends. You were abused until you gave yourself to me.

Now you have a purpose, and it is noble. I'm doing everything different this time. She's your field, agent, to what you think's best. I'm intrigued by anything with Zoe Saladonna. I love her, love her. Also, Nicole Kidman and Morgan Friedman in this one, which is exciting. There's a little bit of a duality of a response to this particular show. A lot of people are loving the performance from Zoe Saladonna, loving the performance

from Nicole Kidman. But there are reviews especially, I believe it came from, it was either, I believe it was a variety that said, suddenly to the effect. of this feels a little bit like propaganda or, you know, military propaganda, that it takes, it isn't based on a true story, but that it follows a woman who is abused and sort of sees the military as her way out of that situation. So there's some conflicting reviews about this, but a lot of people really praising the performances in this one, and really exciting to see a female-led movie that is about, you know, conflict

and war zones and is a rarity that we see that in media. Yeah, absolutely. And just a reminder also that Paramount is also. a struck company as well. Okay. So this next one we have, this is a documentary about none other than Steph Curry. Are you excited? I am a huge basketball fan. I've said it a million times on the show. I'm a Miami Heat fan, but I love basketball and I love basketball narratives. This I'm excited. Okay, well, let's watch a clip of it. How did I get here? I was the undersized scrawny kid that was just trying to figure out how to make it. Steph Curry is hurt. I was overwhelmed by everything.

How would I respond? Let the work begin. When you are an underdog, you have to take what is yours. This documentary, it's called Stephen Curry underrated, and it's Apple Plus, right? Apple Plus, again, just a reminder struck on Betty. This follows Steph Curry. It's a combination of archival footage, interviews. I saw someone on social media say, this is cinema, but this is a masterpiece storytelling of Steph's, you know, his upbringing, his story, his rise to being one of the greatest, basketball players of all time. I think it's worth having a conversation. Is he the greatest

basketball player of time? He's the greatest three-point shooter of all time. What would you say? What's your answer? Well, I think Dwayne Wade is the best basketball player of all time, so I am incredibly biased. I saw the other day somebody asked Steph Curry about like, would you, what about this Miami thing? After Loreni was like, I know, I know to see them all together. Yeah, I would take anyone. I would take anyone. Okay, you never know. So let's switch gears to reality TV. Another, if you want to turn your brain off this weekend option. Netflix is back for the fifth. season of the popular show too hot to handle. Here's a look. These super-sexual hellraisers think they're sailing off for a party tour of the Caribbean. It happens in international waters.

Say it in international water. But in reality, there's only one cone-shaped stuff. Let's go, let's go, let's go. So this was British first, right? I believe so. I had in like a moment of pandemic weakness. absolutely binged a couple seasons of the British version. Yes. What's going on with the American one? Well, it's all the same ridiculousness. Again, we've talked about if you need to trick a brain off, this is a great one for that.

But also, I was kind of scouring social media for reactions to this, and people are saying, how do people keep falling for this show, showing up, not knowing the premise, and then having to, you know, go through the whole... I mean, it's pretty big. Like, how do you not know? Right.

So I wonder if they're... I mean, this is all purely speculation. I wonder if they're kind of setting it up differently when they sign on. But people are real, it's so hilarious to see these people try to, you know, struggle with the concept of the show. So it's a really fun watch. Again, turn your brain off. There's a lot going on in the news.

And, you know, even if you come out of Barbie and Oppenheimer and you need a little decompression, this is a great one. All right, good option. So we have some music to talk about this weekend because there are a few collaborations that are out today. First one, Britney Spears and Will I Am. They have a new song that's called Mind Your Business. Let's listen. There she go, there she go, there she go, there she go.

What she do, what she do, what she do, what she do, what she do. Too much watch you, watch, watching me, watching, watching you. Manjogi, Manjoki, Manjubi, Manjopi, Manjopi, Manjopi, Manjopi, Manjopi, Manjopi, Manjopi. What's your vibe? You like it? Alison, I put it on you. Yeah, no, I'm gonna be honest. I've been following the reactions, obviously, on social media. People are always rooting for Brittany, but not a fan of this song.

People are just saying it's just not to the level that they expect a Britney Spears song. You know, I don't know that there's, like, concerns about it, but they just wanted something a little bit better than this. So it's just not meeting the level of social media's expectations. Hopefully we'll get more music from Brittany. I'm really eager. I, you know, will always listen to Brittany. But this was just not sort of making the cut.

Not quite hitting that level. Okay, so there is another collaboration. This one I'm interested in, so it's Travis Scott, Bad Bunny, and the Weekend. Epic Collab. Yes, an epic trio, and the song itself is called K-pop. Listen. I mean, it's a good pairing you back on this song. I wish you get back on.

We might get back one, two. I'm going to be your one. You know. I mean, it's a good pairing. Yeah. I like it. I really like it. I know, I'm a Miami girl, so this really has, like, my kind of vibe.

But also, I like that it's bilingual. I like that it has the weekend. Has Bad Bunny ever made a bad song? No, I don't think so. I don't think so. It's, like, kind of crazy. It doesn't matter if you don't understand it. It's like you can't not just drop along. It's so good. It's so good. I love everything bad bonny does. Again, I don't speak Spanish, but he can do no wrong by me.

None. He is amazing. I'll be listening to this one. I will add this to my playlist as well. Thank you so much for being here. Callan Rosenblatt. Thank you at home for watching Top Story. In for Tom Yamis. I'm Ellison, Barbara in New York. Stay right there. More news now is on the way.