Top Story with Tom Llamas - Friday, May 3, 2024

Episode Date: May 4, 2024

Tonight's Top Story has the latest breaking news, political headlines, news from overseas and the best NBC News reporting from across the country and around the world.

Tonight, tears at the trial, one of former President Trump's most trusted confidants, taking the stand in his hush money trial. So why did she break down? Former White House Communications Director Hope Hicks needing a moment, pausing the trial as she grew emotional. Hicks pressed on the scandals that shook up his campaign, one of which ultimately landed him in that courtroom. But did her testimony help her former boss or hurt him? Why, some are saying it was a win for both sides. Also, tonight, catastrophic flooding, triggering evacuations in Houston. Torrential downpours, washing out roads and flooding cars, emergency crews in helicopters, rescuing people trapped, and it's not just flooding. Tornadoes carving a path of destruction

in this region. We're on the ground in Houston as floodwaters continue to rise. Surf trip horror to Australian brothers and an American vanish while on vacation. Authorities taking three people in for questioning the warning tonight from the U.S. to avoid this area of Mexico. Wild Ride will show you the jaw-dropping video as an ATV rider slams into a police cruiser why the officer purposely cut him off. Plus, Nestle's sugar scandal, a new report finding the company is adding sugar to infant formula in poorer countries. They're even accused of using influencers to promote those products. What may be behind this and why health officials are sounding the alarm over the report. And Dr. Ape, for the first time ever, an orangutan is recorded healing his own facial wound with a plant.

The rare sight leaving scientists in awe. Top story starts right now. And good evening, Hope Hicks stuck by former President Trump's side, guiding him through nearly every scale. leading up to and during some of his presidency. Now, instead of being next to him, she's coming face to face with her former boss, tearing up and nervously laughing as she testified in his hush money trial. Trump's former White House communications director was one of his most trusted confidants during his 2016 campaign, and while he was in the Oval Office, Hicks was the former president's

first line of defense as the Access Hollywood tape and articles about adult film star Stormy Daniels emerged. Her testimony was a riveting play-by-play of the damage control of efforts behind the scenes. Hicks revealing the last time she spoke with Trump was back in 2022. Tonight, legal analysts are torn on who she helped more, the defense or the prosecution. Let's start tonight with NBC's Vaughn Hilliard, who breaks down the bombshell testimony. She was one of former President Trump's most trusted advisors. Hope. We want hope.

But today, Hope Hicks walked into court as a... a prosecution witness in her old boss's hush money scheme trial. Mr. Trump, without smiling, stared on, first directly at her, before turning his attention toward a monitor and papers in front of him. Hicks, today admitting she was nervous, at one point becoming emotional, tearing up and needing a break. Hicks telling prosecutors the release of the Access Hollywood tape weeks before the 2016 election was a crisis. I was concerned, very concerned, she said. Everyone was just absorbing the shock of it. Hicks testified, adding its impact on women voters was a major concern. Prosecutors say the release of the tape helped propel the hush money scheme, but Mr. Trump

today, arguing none of it is related to the charges he's facing, that he allegedly disguised reimbursements to Michael Cohen for hush money payments to Stormy Daniels as legal expenses in his company's internal books. Mr. Trump, who's pleaded not guilty, slamming a corrupt, ancient, and highly political attack that he says has nothing to do with this fake case. I'm not allowed to comment on any of that, as you know, I'm under a gaggle. I was very interested in what took place today. On cross-examination, Hicks was asked about a Wall Street Journal report days before the 2016 election on payments allegedly made to Karen McDougal.

She said Mr. Trump did not want the paper delivered to his home that day. She said he really values Mrs. Trump's opinion. And saying of Michael Cohen, he likes to call himself a fixer. It's only because he first broke it, that he'd fix it. Notably, Hicks testified she was not engaged in negotiations nor was aware of the hush money payments before they were made and saying she had nothing to do with the Trump organization business records. Okay, Vaughn, Haley, joins us tonight live outside the courthouse. So, Vaughn, reading some of the reports about today's testimony, it seems like Hope Hicks was actually good for both sides.

The defense wanted to paint Trump as a family man. Did Hicks' testimony back that up? Right, and she testified there that she was concerned before the 2016 election about Melania Trump learning about the taxes, Hollywood tape, and learning about these other allegations of extramarital affairs. But then also Hope Hicks, notably, she did testify that she was not aware of the hush money payments herself until November 4th, about the allegations of Karen McDougall being paid and that she didn't become familiar with Stormy Daniels allegation until four days before the election as well.

And so the prosecution has been looking to build the case that Donald Trump was aware. It was directing Michael Cohen to make these payments. But notably, Hope Hicks was not one of those witnesses that directly corroborated that herself here today. And then, you know, Vaughn, it's interesting. Something else that stood out was when Hicks was asked about Michael Cohen, right?

She said, yes, he was a fixer, but only because he broke it first. That was in your report as well. Did she nail Cohen's credibility there? Yes, and she said repeatedly that Michael Cohen was not always a trusted figure, right? He was never actually brought on to Trump's 2016 campaign in a formal role, and that he would sort of voluntarily go and do his own thing here and there. But she knew that he had relationships with people like David Pecker and the National Enquirer and TMZ, And yet her testimony, though, also made it clear that Donald Trump was very familiar with what Michael Cohen's work was on his behalf.

Yet, did that exactly mean that he was familiar that Michael Cohen, for example, paid $130,000 in the month before the election? That is not clear. But she did effectively testify today the fact that there was much concern in that final month about how the impacts of these types of allegations and the Access Hollywood tape, particularly with women voters. impact it would have on the election, which the prosecution is intending to make the case of the jury that Donald Trump sought to have these hush money payments stalled out for the purposes of influencing his electoral prospects in November of 2016, Tom. And then finally, Vaughn, we both met Hope Hicks back in 2016, 2015, really, when she was working for Donald Trump in that campaign press secretary role.

It was a very hard job back then because the campaign, as we all remember, wasn't really well put together. I want to talk about the moment she broke down on the stand because obviously cameras aren't allowed in court so we couldn't see that. What is your understanding of what exactly happened at that moment? Right. She broke down right about the first minute within the cross-examination.

That's when Donald Trump's own defense attorney began asking her questions. And for Hope Hicks, I think it's important. You know, if you look at her through a sympathetic lens, well, she said that she hasn't talked to Donald Trump Since 2022, she was paying her own legal bills at the same time. In 2014, she was brought on by the Trump organization by Donald Trump. She was elevated to press secretary of a major presidential campaign

and then brought on its communications director in the White House all before the age of 30 years old. By and large, she was a close confidant on what you just said. You know this so well was a very small insular campaign team for Donald Trump. She was a confidant not only of him but of his family. And so for her today, coming to testify under oath before Donald Trump about him and his family, it was understandably a difficult day and one about events that were so very real and ones that she was very clearly at the center of, Tom.

All right, Von Hilliard, great to have you out there covering this trial. We appreciate it for more on the major takeaways from today's testimony. I want to bring in our all-star legal panel tonight. NBC News legal analyst Danny Savalas, we call him Danny C, and criminal trial attorney, Sarah. Azari in Los Angeles live for us. We thank you both for joining Top Story. Danny, let's play Top Story Court House, if you will. I'm going to have you play the prosecution here. Talk to me about why you think this was a good day for the prosecution. Because Hope Hicks lines up testimony

from characters that are maybe less credible than Hope Hicks than your Keith Davidson or your eventual Michael Cohen. Some of the other characters who may have credibility issues, someone like HOPEX, who has virtually none, she lines up their testimony and deflates any attack that the defense makes on those credibility issues of the other witnesses. Hope Hicks introduces also the concept of the chaos after the Access Hollywood tape and the need of the campaign to do something about it. Up until now, we've mostly heard testimony establishing the transaction between Cohen and Stormy Daniels. That's what occupied the last few days. Now the people appear to be moving into the phase of proving that this transaction was motivated by Trump's

and specifically Trump's desire to preserve his campaign. Sarah, let's talk about the defense now, right? And we talked about some of these things with Vaughn as well. It sounds like they scored some points there, right? She discredits Michael Cohen, but she also talks about Melania Trump and that Donald Trump was concerned about Wall Street Journal headlines getting in front of her. Yeah, by the way, that's Sarah A, if that's Danny C. Yeah, so listen, this, I call her a chameleon witness, you know, I mean, she even went as far as using the terminology for the defense, President Trump, whereas before on direct, she was saying Mr. Trump.

It was incredible, and this is just shows how, as defense attorneys, we dismantle what the prosecution builds. And there were a lot of good points today, both on direct and on cross. And I think some of the ones that stand out to me is that she completely described it. discredited Michael Cohen. On the one hand, she was the bridge between Cohen and Trump. She was in most of the rooms. But then she said he's a liar. He's cheap.

There's no way that I believe the fact that he paid hush money out of the goodness of his heart. And then she sort of made this whole thing about a personal reputation issue as opposed to a political gain issue. She said that, you know, President Trump deferred to Melania and was very concerned about how she would take this kind of news that he didn't think that the Access Hollywood tape was that big of a deal. And so almost like distancing himself in a way that if people did things unbeknownst to him,

they were just going rogue. It wasn't anything that he had directed. I mean, it was really incredible to watch, and I think that the way her cross-examination started and ended was very strong for the defense. It really, while she was a corroborating witness, she was also helping

Donald Trump, and not in a biased way. Danny, is the prosecution getting to the point here, right? It feels like a lot of pretext, right? It's a lot of Godfather too. It's the story leading up to what happened. Are they getting to the point with the jury of connecting the dots? Here's the crime. Here's what they did. They haven't established guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. They're far from that. Where I think they are getting close to is enough evidence to beat a motion for a judgment of acquittal. In other words, when the prosecution finishes its case, the defense will make a motion for a judgment of acquittal. And the judge will

apply this standard. The judge will say, had they introduced any evidence on the elements that they need to prove? Not beyond a reasonable doubt, not saying they win, but any evidence on those elements. And I do think they're starting to get there. But I'll just say, if I may rip off my prosecutor helm for a moment, Hope Hicks, I did expect that the people would have more out of her than they did. She was a big question mark. They established some good points. Explain that, though, the people. Explain that part right there. Hope Hicks was a question mark. because we don't, she hasn't been like Michael Cohen or Stormy Daniels talking to every media outlet that will hear her talk. She's been virtually silent.

Zero interviews. We don't know what she was going to say. Only the grand jury maybe knows. So when she came in, anything was possible. She could come in and say, I was in a meeting where Trump is on the phone with Stormy Daniels. So something like that, which obviously didn't happen and wouldn't happen. But the point is, I was expecting anything. and they got some good stuff. If I'm the prosecutors, I'm feeling good enough. They shored up some motivation, the campaign, some meetings, matched up with David Pecker. They did a good job with her. But I did kind of expect that someone that close to Trump for that long might have a bombshell.

And that didn't happen. Sarah, you've seen this case now for more than two weeks. Is it truly about prosecuting Trump for crimes he committed? Or is it about embarrassing him publicly, reminding voters of what he did? during that first election, and making sure it's on headlines in front of all the voters as we get to November. Well, I think that's a question depends on who you ask, right? His supporters are going to call every criminal investigation or prosecution a witch hunt. And so I don't think it's going to matter to them one way or another.

But I do think there's a real case here. And even to the people, the sort of the lay audience who was questioning whether this is really a case, it's so weird, it's so cryptic, what kind of law? I think it's starting to become more and more clear that this is about election interference and not just impacting, you know, your chances in an election and that it's not personal. And I think this is just the beginning, right? She's like witness number five or six out of 41. Again, that tape is really bad.

And one of the things that work for the prosecution, I think, today is that it just showed how bad that tape is. She focused on that Access Hollywood tape a bunch. And so I think I think this is just the beginning. I think the fact that we have two lawyers on the jury is going to help, you know, educate the jury on any complications with the instructions. And so I think both things can be true. I think that, you know, it could be a real case and it could also harm him with respect to certain voters, but not his followers. Because we're running out of time.

Danny, I'm going to start with you just from observing the case. Who is in the lead here? Who do you think is on top? Well, the government, the prosecution is always in the lead during their case in chief because it's their show. They're putting on witness after witness that's just bashing. the defense over the head. But they're going to need more. They're not there yet at all. And the defense is actually probably feeling not too bad this Friday evening, although they're probably at the offices. Sarah, your take, who's ahead here, you think? I think it's too early. There's a number

of times where I thought I'm winning and then things went south and vice versa. And I think that today's witness, Hope Hicks, shows us how you can expect one thing and then it turns out to be a different thing. Sarah, A, you're always winning here on Top Story, all right? Just know that much. Thank you guys both for being here. We want to turn out to our other big story that we're following tonight, the severe floods sweeping across parts of Texas. Tonight, officials in Houston ordering mandatory evacuations as heavy rain leaves highways and roads completely underwater.

The Red Cross now setting up emergency shelters with residents warned of more flooding to come. NBC's Kathy Park has more. Tonight, millions in Texas in the crosshairs of catastrophic flooding and dangerous tornadoes. Oh, my gosh. In the past 24 hours, dramatic lightning strikes like this one caught on camera. Oh my God, he's going in the water. Oh, my God. And nearly a foot of rain in the Houston area, stranding drivers, even washing away roads, and part of this nursery.

It's hard to tell exactly how much we've lost, but it will be estimated hundreds of thousands of dollars of product washed away. In Harris County, officials declaring a disaster and urging residents who evacuate Thursday night, or prepare to stay for days. This threat is ongoing, and it's going to get worse. It is not your typical river flood up. Dozens have been rescued so far. And one family escaped by swimming to safety as a rushing waters filled their home.

When I seen it lift, I refrigerate up, and I could sit on and it and float around my house like a surfboard. That's when I told her this was time to go. 14 rivers are now at major flood stage, including the San Jacinto. So if you open your front door, I mean, the river is right there. It is.

Evelyn Lowry says she's still repairing the damage from 2017, brought on by Hurricane Harvey. How tough is it to see this type of damage again? I'm just crest falling. I don't know if we can get back up again. I really don't. Now she and so many others are reliving the nightmare as it brings for more severe weather expected to last through the weekend. Okay, with that, Kathy Park joins us now live from the scene there in Conroe, Texas. So, Kathy, I want to start first on the conditions.

I know you just finished your report saying that there's more bad weather on the horizon. Tom, that's right. Meteorologists are saying that more severe weather is expected through the entire weekend. And obviously, the ground is so saturated right now. Any sort of rainfall or moisture could only make matters worse. Right now, we're actually standing in someone's backyard. This isn't lakefront property. This actually transformed overnight.

The homeowner was telling us that the water came rushing in during the overnight hours. There was a lot of storm damage inside her home. And Tom adding insult to injury, she said she just wrapped up renovations from Hurricane Harvey back in 2017. And now she has to pick up the pieces once again. Yeah, well, I wanted to ask you about Hurricane Harvey, right? How are people comparing these two disasters? Yeah, you know, when we talk to a lot of folks on the United States, the ground today. They were drawing a lot of comparisons because that was the biggest natural

disaster that they can recall that caused this type of damage. Obviously, this is bad, but it wasn't as bad as Harvey, which is certainly good news. But like I mentioned, a lot of folks are still recovering from that storm. We're in this one particular neighborhood. A lot of folks are still doing renovations and construction from the damage from more than six years ago. They actually showed me the water line from Hurricane Harvey. In fact, this home where we are standing, at, we're told that the water got to the second level of their house. So obviously, not like that this time around, but, you know, this is just kind of an example of what severe weather can do in this area. Kathy Park, you and your team stay safe out there.

Okay, we have a major update that's just come in on those college campus protests. This is first on NBC News. Columbia University is now rethinking its commencement plans and may be canceling the main commencement ceremony. That according to a source at the university and two members of the student government. It comes amid backlash for the NYPD response at Columbia earlier this week. NBC's Aaron McLaughlin has more. Tonight, the crackdowns on college campuses continue. In New York City, two more schools inviting the NYPD to clear pro-Palestinian encampments

at NYU and the new school, where demonstrators turn their backs on police. More than 50 were arrested. Today, police pointing to disturbing leaflets they say they found during both. crackdowns, one of which included violent threats. And at Portland State University in Oregon, new video shows damage done during the occupation of its library. And today at Columbia University, President Mnus Shafik releasing this video message. A group of protesters crossed a new line with the occupation of Hamilton Hall.

It was a violent act that put our students at risk as well as putting the protesters at risk. This week's raid raising new questions about outside involvement. The university reports that of the 44 arrested in the building, 13 were unaffiliated with the university. Among them was 40-year-old James Carlson, a longtime figure in the anarchist world, according to a senior law enforcement official. He's also being investigated for a possible hate crime after he allegedly set fire to an Israeli flag at Columbia last month.

He's pleaded not guilty to charges of trespassing. A protester, Merriam Alwan, was not part of the group that occupied Hamilton Hall. The cause of the student body is to call for divestment from bombs that are dropping on our friends and family. I think the police violence has only strengthened the central mission. Tonight, students and faculty are outraged over the use of force. After police say an officer accidentally discharged his firearm during the raid inside Hamilton Hall. There was nobody in danger. There was nobody struck. And for us, this is an accidental discharge.

Meanwhile, on the West Coast, the UCLA campus is also rattled. After the intense crackdown yesterday, student protester Blair Battle, was among the more than 200 arrested. The police get the order they start to move in. With their batons, they start to push and shove. After about 10 minutes of that or so, I'm knocked down and I can't get back up. And last night, back at Columbia, the traditional pre-final screen was relocated to outside Shafiq's residence. as a form of protest. What I take to be the kind of like existential despair and frustration,

that there is simply no way that they can be heard. Tonight, Columbia's President Manu Shafeek says that she's going to work to rebuild the campus community, but students and faculty we've spoken to say too much damage has been done. Tom. Okay, Aaron McLaughlin for tonight, Aaron, we thank you for that. Net of power and politics. Longtime Texas Congressman Henry Quayyar and his wife had been indicted on

bribery, money laundering, and foreign influence charges. The Department of Justice accusing the Democratic Congressman and his wife of accepting $600,000 in bribes from two foreign entities. The alleged scheme took place from 2014 to 2021. They've both been released on a $100,000 bond, if convicted, they could spend years or even decades in prison. In a statement, Quayar denied any wrongdoing. Okay, we want to stay with politics. Now, South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem is building her case to be the running mate this fall for former President Donald Trump. But her biggest obstacle right now might be her own book, which isn't even out yet. Noam now backtracking on a claim in her upcoming memoir that she met with North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un,

which White House officials say is highly unlikely. Last night, Noam's spokesperson appearing to concede that the meeting did not happen, saying, quote, we've been made aware that the publisher will be addressing conflated world leaders' names in the book before it's released. But that's not the only part of her memoir that's been raising eyebrows. Last week, the Guardian shared excerpts where she talks about killing a dog,

one of her dogs. Nome wrote that her 14-month-old dog was untrainable, dangerous, and had to be put down. NBC News Senior National Politics reporter John Allen joins us now. So, John, you know, the dog story aside, let's talk about this.

First, how did this story come out if the book's not even out? And how do you get something like meeting Kim Jong-un wrong? Well, number one, And sometimes reporters are very good at getting copies of those published books before they hit shelves. So that's what happened. In this case, the reporter got the book ahead of time, went through it, found something very interesting.

Obviously, that's been a big piece of news the last week or so, certainly the last several days about her shooting her dog. Getting the meeting the wrong world leader, you know, there's a case being made by her team that there was a quote-unquote conflation of world leaders. I find it hard to imagine that somebody felt that they met the leader of North Korea, perhaps the most reclusive country in the world, and did not actually meet him. So, you know, we'll have to see how this goes, but for now it's been very difficult for Nome to manage before her book even comes out. She's getting a lot of publicity, but it's not the kind of publicity she would want. There are some people in formerly, or maybe they still are in Trump World,

who have been pushing the governor very hard to be the running mate. How do you think something like this affects her chances because we know an NBC News has been reporting that Trump is taking his time and picking a running mate, but I got to think he doesn't love these headlines. Yeah, I mean, there's one person, as you point out, that will make this decision of ultimately it's Donald J. Trump, and so we don't know necessarily how he's going to react to this, but certainly there are two elements to it. Number one is the basic set of stories, right? She shot her dog. There are a lot of Americans that won't like that. She said she met with Kim John. I'm sorry, Kim Jong-un, and clearly did not do that. There are some other items in the book that are not great. But the second piece of it, of course, is that she put these things out there in the first place, that the judgment that she displayed in deciding to tell people that she had shot her dog,

that she had shot a goat, you know, that she had met with a world leader. She hadn't met with an attack on Nikki Haley in the book that we haven't even mentioned so far. I think there's a lot to say, you know, that there are going to be a lot of people in the political world who look at the judgment that she's displayed here and the way that she's reacted to it as being less than ideal in normal political circumstances. Again, it's Donald Trump that makes this decision, and so it's a little hard to predict what he will do. She had shot the goat. I had not heard that one. Okay, Jonathan Allen, always great to see you here on Top Story. We thank you for that. Still ahead tonight, the tragedy out of Mexico. Three men, including one American, vanishing, while on a surf trip, the late-breaking details just coming in tonight and the new video from the bow of the Dolly ship from Baltimore.

More than a month after it crashed into that bridge, the operation now to remove a section of the bridge from the ship, we're going to show you more of the video. Stay with us. Okay, we're back now with the investigation into the disappearance of three surfers who went missing during a trip to Mexico. Tonight, the FBI confirming three bodies have been found in the Mexican state of Baja, California. This after the men, including one American, vanished for nearly a week. Here's Blaine Alexander.

Tonight in Mexico, a remote surfers paradise has become the grounds of a growing mystery after three travelers disappeared. Now, Mexican officials are questioning at least three people they believe may have been involved. Late today, authorities say they have located. three bodies in the area. Mexican officials have identified the three missing men as American Jack Carter and Australian brothers Jake and Callum Robinson. According to the family, they were last heard from on Saturday and were in the area on a surfing trip.

The Attorney General for Baja, California, Mexico says officials found a cell phone that may have belonged to one of the missing men and other evidence, including a white pickup truck. Among the missing, Callum Robinson, a professional lacrosse player and, along with his brother Jake, an avid surfer, according to social media pictures. In a Facebook message, their mother says the three men never showed up to check into their Airbnb, now pleading for any information. With its picturesque Pacific beaches, the Mexican Peninsula of Baja, California, has become hugely popular among surfers. But as recently as last summer, the U.S. State Department has urged Americans to reconsider travel to the Mexican state, citing crime and kidnapping. Tonight, Mexican officials say they are working with authorities in the U.S. and Australia. Blaine Alexander, NBC News.

Okay, when we come back a sugar scandal, a new report accusing Nestle of adding sugar to baby food products in poor countries, while those same products in places like Europe are sugar-free. Researchers say could be the reason and how Nestle is responding tonight. Stay with us. Okay, back now with Top Stories News Feed, and we begin with an update on the bridge collapse in Baltimore. Look at this. New footage shows a section of the bridge lying on top of the Dali cargo ship's bow. Crews are now working to lift that piece off the ship. The removal operation is a vital step in reopening access to the port of Baltimore. Baltimore, which has been partially blocked since the cargo ship crashed into the bridge back in March.

And some wild video of an ATV crash in Connecticut. Look at this. Dash cam footage showing the moment of police car turns to block a speeding four-wheeler from hitting pedestrians. The ATV losing control as it swerves to avoid the cruiser throwing its 19-year-old driver onto the windshield. Police saying the incident is a reminder of the dangers of illegal ATV riding. Police say the rider of the four-wheeler survived but had to be taken to the hospital. I want to turn now to a new report by Human Rights Watch that says the federally run smartphone app, CBP1, is leaving migrants vulnerable as they wait for an asylum appointment. Many of the migrants reporting that the long wait times are exposing them to smugglers and cartels. NBC's Julia Ainsley has more on the report.

Tonight, human rights advocates are calling out the Biden administration for what they call a Trump-style policy at the U.S. southern border. Pointing to the CBP-1 app, the application that was meant to expedite asylum claims, but instead, advocates say, is putting migrants in the hands of cartels. The report from Human Rights Watch sheds light on why so many migrants have given up hope with CBP1 and instead crossed illegally into the United States to flee unsafe and overcrowded conditions in northern Mexico. Human Rights Watch claiming that after over 100 interviews with migrants, border officials, and activists, they found that while asylum seekers waited for appointments in Mexico, they reported kidnappings, extortion, sexual violence, disappearances, and other types of harms. A senior customs and border protection officials says CBP1 has actually decreased the number of migrants waiting in northern Mexico, and violence against migrants waiting to cross the border predates the app.

You are now ready to use the CBP-1 mobile application. The app was put into widespread use in January 2023 and requires migrants to make appointments for asylum screenings on their phones before crossing the U.S.-Mexico border. But ongoing glitches and limited appointments have pushed thousands to cross the border illegally instead. Ongoing issues that NBC News has documented firsthand. It says, please choose, he has a Spanish, please choose date and time, but then it says, there's no date and time available, come back tomorrow at 10 a.m. A year later, the Biden administration has kept the application in place. The greatest challenge with respect to the CBB1 app is not a technological challenge,

but rather the fact that we have many more migrants than we have the capacity to make appointments for. But as time goes by, the report pointing to growing concerns, some migrants saying they didn't have a phone or know about the app, Some adding they had no place to stay in northern Mexico to wait as shelters were full and felt racially or ethnically discriminated. Black and brown asylum seekers had problem submitting pictures with the app's facial recognition technology. And migrants who spoke languages other than English, Spanish, or Haitian Creole could not read its instructions. And Tom, we should point out that according to CBP's statistics, nearly 30,000 migrants every month are able to successfully book appointments through the CBP one ad. and come to the U.S. border to claim asylum.

But advocates, like human rights watch, say that it's still too restrictive on asylum because if you look at the numbers of migrants who are crossing illegally between ports of entry and are apprehended by Border Patrol, those numbers are regularly above 130,000 per month, sometimes over 200,000. Tom? Okay, Julia Ainsley for us tonight,

Julia, thank you for that. Now to a special edition tonight of Top Story's Global Watch, an alarming new report accusing Nestle of adding sugar to baby foods that sold only in middle-to-lower-income countries. The investigation sparking new concerns over infant health around the world as Nestle doubles down on their commitment to equity and food safety. NBC's Maya Eagland has this report. Tonight, Nestle under fire. The parent company of popular global baby food brands, such as Serial Acunito, accused of adding sugar to its infant products in middle and low-income countries. average four grams of added sugar in cereal, that's more or less one sugar cube.

Researcher Laurent Gabral with the independent Swiss investigative organization public eye making the discovery, partnering with the International Baby Food Action Network by testing sugar levels in global Nestle baby products that bring in billions of dollars in profit. When we check the product that Nestle sells in Switzerland, they're sold without any added sugar. So the same product, the same cannot brands. One example in the report, Nestle's biscuit-flavored cereals in Switzerland is promoted with no sugar added. However, the Cereal Act cereals with the same flavor in Senegal and South Africa contain six grams of sugar per serving. Public Eye also alleging Nestle promotes these products through paid partnerships

with social media influencers in these countries. What do you think is Nestle's motivation for continuing to do this? It's basically because they know that. babies like the sweet taste. And so they will lack the product and they will come back and they will want more. So the main objective is really to increase the sales and get babies and kids hooped on the product from a very small age. Most of the countries impacted are in Africa, Central America and South Asia, where food regulations tend to be more lax. According to the report, there's an average of more than six grams of added sugar in certain baby cereals. Each variation based on recipe and regulation.

The highest amount that we found was 7.3 grams of added sugar in one serving, and that wasn't a product that is sold in the Philippines for babies from six months. But the research, finding those same products sold in Europe, have zero added sugar. Discoveries, Gabrell says, ignore international guidance. Including the World Health Organization, but also the US FDA and many, many other nutrition guidelines around the world, which are pretty clear. There's no place at all for sugar and baby food. On its website, Nestle says our products comply with all applicable local and or international regulations.

And a Nestle spokesperson writing to NBC News, quote, supporting the right nutritional start to life is fundamental to who we are and how we operate. All our early life foods and milks are nutritionally balanced as defined in the commonly accepted scientific guidelines and dietary recommendations. What can happen to young babies and infants? if they consume sugar at such a young age. We have decreased the amount of sugar recommendations in especially young toddlers and children because we know that we're in a crisis of obesity,

not only in this country, but around the world. Dr. Sarah Siddiqui of NYU Langone has been a pediatrician for 25 years and says creating healthy eating habits at a young age is essential. It is really important to start off young and try to decrease our relationship with sugar because it does have some addictive qualities to it, and it can change your brain. Babies are equal, no?

And what is good for babies in Switzerland should also be good for babies in low and middle-in-gun countries. And with that, Maya Eagland joins us now in studio. So, Maya, I know the news has been out there and people are very upset about this. What is the reaction like in those countries? We've been hearing some strong reaction from India, for example, The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India has launched an independent investigation there, and they're actually vowing to take action against Nestle, depending on what those findings are. Laurent Gabriel, the researcher we spoke to, says he believes there's an easy solution to this,

and it's to stop manufacturing the products that have these added sugars because sugar-free ones already exist. And then I guess that leads me to my next question. What is Nestle going to do after this investigation? Nestle says they're working on reducing the amount of added sugar in their baby and infant products, and also looking to expand the amount of sugar-free options worldwide. All right, Maya Eagland, Forrest. Maya, great to see you here, top story. Coming up, you've heard of King of the Jungle, but what about Doctor of the Jungle? New video capturing a male orangutan in his 30s,

crushing up leaves of a medicinal plant and using the liquid to treat his own wounds. What experts say about the self-medicating ape, and if they think other animals are also doing this, the fascinating video and story when we come back. All right, we're back now with a fascinating story that could change the way you think about primates. An orangutan spotted using leaves to treat a gash on his face. It's the first time researchers have ever observed an animal using a medicinal plant to treat a wound, which we do want to warn you is a little gnarly.

NBC Stephen Romo has more on why this discovery has made the scientific world go bananas. Deep in the Indian. Indonesian rainforest, a small step for a wild orangutan and a giant leap for our understanding of how alike we are to non-human primates. That's where researchers say Rackus, a male orangutan in his 30s, was injured in a fight back in 2022. The team documenting this quarter-sized wound under his right eye and another in his mouth. Dr. Isabella Laumer, a behavioral biologist, and one of the studies lead researchers, says they followed the orangutan to observe what he would do. and were astounded to see him chewing the leaves of the Leanna plant. So it's quite rare that they eat from it.

Known to local humans for its pain relieving properties. The researchers' findings published this week in the journal Scientific did not end there. They then spotted Rackus using the plant to make a paste from the crushed leaves and sap and applying it to his facial injury, marking the first time an animal has been seen using medicine to treat a skin wound. This discovery adds to growing research, suggesting animals may self-medicate with varying degrees of sophistication. The researchers with the Max Planck Institute say this behavior could even be traced back to a common ancestor between humans and other primates. Does this tell us anything about our own connection to these non-human primates? I mean, it also shows again how similar great apes are to us.

So we share 97% of our DNA with orangutans. They say RACUS medicinal treatment may be his own innovation, or, more intriguingly, something he learned culturally from other orangutans earlier in life. Sometimes they also watch from a distance, but sometimes they go super close, sometimes even up to 20 centimeters, and watch the other doing something. And Rackus treatment worked. The researchers say his wound never showed any signs of infection and closed up within a week. The fascinating finding giving more food for thought on how similar we are to our primate cousins.

It really is so important to create more protected forest areas for these animals. It would be so sad to have these wonderful, astonishing animals leave this world. Stephen Romo, NBC News. Our thanks to Stephen Romo for that very cool story. When we come back and look at what you can binge watch and listen to this weekend, the hit series Hacks returns for its third season, Plus, the highly anticipated movie, The Idea of You Now Available to Stream and new music by Dua Lipa and Kane Brown.

TV journalist Baker Machado, just out of the boxing ring. Now in the streaming ring, he's in the house to walk us through Bingeworthy, his top picks for this weekend. Stay with us. All right, welcome back. It is Friday, which means it is time for Bingeworthy. Our look at what to watch and listen to this weekend. And we want to bring him someone new to Top Story.

His name is Baker Machado, an entertainment journalist. Baker, we thank you for joining us here. Thank you so much, Tom, and thank you so much for the popcorn for this thing. It's great in here. I'm reading in my show notes, you used to be a boxer fighting under the name. It's name, yes, exactly. Baker's dozen. You hit people 12 times and knock them out?

I wish I could. I wish I had the hook to be able to do that. It's like a ball player. I wish it was my name, yeah, to be honest. We can try it anytime. So we're going to start with a show a lot of people. We're actually a movie a lot of people are talking about. Some people say it's sort of loosely based on Harry Styles.

I don't know if that's true or not. Here's a clip. It may look familiar to you. Let's roll it. Hi. Hi. This is your trailer? Yeah, I'm in the band.

We're performing on the main stage. August moon? Yeah. I met someone tonight. I feel a little inspired. I just want to come closer. All right, the film's called The Idea of You, stars Anne Hathaway, as you saw there,

and she's essentially a mom who takes her daughter to a concert and somehow falls in love with the lead singer? Oh, not just any concert, Tom. We're talking Coachella. She goes to Coachella. She's a 40-something divorced single mother. Goes to Coachella with your daughter, as you mentioned, and then she falls in love with this Harry-Siles-esque boy band performer

played by Nicholas Gillotson. This obviously is getting tons of great reviews so far. It's on Prime right now. But what I thought to be so funny about this is how they developed chemistry with one another. They both were just on the Today Show earlier this week. And they said that the way that they created chemistry was by locking themselves in a bedroom together and serenating each other with song and dance for hours on end. And that's how they were able to sort of build the chemistry in this movie together.

It's based on a book called The Idea of You, Same Name. That was very, very popular. Yes. Some people read it. A lot of people apparently didn't. She mentioned it on a talk show the other day, and no one had read it. But a lot of producers here, top story read it, and they love it. And by the way, it's getting great reviews. As I mentioned, 86% right now on Rotten Tomatoes. And this debuted at South by Southwest so far to pretty good critics. Next up, a show I have never seen, but people love. It's on Hulu, I think. Hacks. No, Max. It's on Max. Max. I've never seen it. Oh, it's called Hax. It's supposed to be really funny. Let's roll it. Deborah, after your special, your career's never been hotter. Did you ever think you'd be back on top? Yes. Yes.

I'm going to move. Deborah's here? You're here? She hired new writers. You know what? She hired two. All right, Gene Smart here. It's season three.

What's the premise here for people all not familiar? All right. So basically, Gene Smart, the first two seasons, she is this comedian who's basically having this new rebirth in terms of her finally getting some traction back in her career. She has this rider played by Hannah Eimbinder, who basically is going and developing her comedy career as well. So this show has been on hiatus for a while, Tom, because of the rider's strike and Gene Smart had a health scare where she had open heart surgery. So this hasn't been on in a while. So the season three picks up after this huge cliffhanger in season two,

where now both Deborah Vance, played by Gene Smart and Hannah Einders' character, are now thriving in their new career. and they're reconnecting. This has been getting amazing reviews. Up until this morning, I had a perfect 100% score in Rotten Tomatoes. Somebody messed it up. Now it's 96%,

but still incredible reviews so far. And the guest, celebrity guest list in this is amazing. Jay Smith, Cameron, from Successions in this, Christina Hendricks, Tony Goldwyn, Helen Hunt. I mean, you absolutely have to see this, Tom.

I can't believe you've never seen this. No, no, it's three seasons, so you can really, you can binge it more. And there's only like 10 episodes. So you got to, and they're like 30 minutes. So this will take you like one afternoon to get through it all. You ever have breakfast, like, go for the Pop-Tars. Yes, always.

What is the story behind this delicious breakfast tree? I didn't even know this story. Went all the way back to the 1960s, but Jerry Seinfeld, and his directorial debut, is showing us what's happening in this new Netflix series called Unfrosted, basically pitting Post and Kellogg's in the 1960s and the race to create the very first toaster strudel and getting it out to mass market. Faker, you took that layup finish. should just dunk it. Tell them to roll the clip. I go. Roll the clip. Watch this. It's amazing, Tom.

It's Post. They did it. I'm about to find him crush the big Red K that never stopped glaring at me. How do you think Post did it? There's always a surprise inside the box. I'm just to use Anthem gum. Samptham. Kellogg's is entering the race to reinvent breakfast with the help of Steve Schwinn, Chef Boyardee, and Jack the Lane.

It has everyone I love. Everybody. Jerry Seinfeld is so funny. Yes. I know the reviews have been mixed. Why? You know, some people say it's the writing's not very funny. Some people say it's a little bit slow. I mean, it's not doing too well on Rod Tomatoes, but really some of the best movies out there, you know, cult classics. People like themselves and they don't really go with what the critics reviews. Why is Ron Tomatoes? The Gold Standard for you. No. No. The Gold Standard is whatever you like, Tom. That's the gold standard. So you go by Rotten Tomatoes. You think it's pretty solid. I feel like it's the best, in terms of curation of a lot of the critics reviews and audience scores. I feel like it's the best one. that's out there. How can this not be good? Listen to this. Melissa McCarthy, Jerry Seinfeld, Jim Gaffigant, Hugh Grant, Amy Schumer, Peter Dinklage, Dan Levy, James Marzen, and that's just scratching the service. That continues to go down to Christian Slater and so many others. It's crazy. All right. Also only 90 minutes, so if you really want to shorten it, that's great for you.

We're going to take a big turn here. But, you know, we have so many great producers on Top Story that we have the Spectrum. And this is a very cool animated series on Disney Plus about Star Wars. Let's roll that. My world has been burning. Since I was a child, you cannot stop what has begun. Star Wars, Tales of the Empire Disney Plus. May the fourth be with you. Tomorrow, it's a very big day.

What is this about? So basically, this one is an animated one, as you mentioned, that follows a woman who turns to the Galactic Empire. This after her village, is completely destroyed. And it also has another storyline of another person that's a former Jedi that's living under galactic imperial rule. So it's basically telling both of those stories at the same time. And obviously Disney waiting to sort of announce this on a big day like Star Wars Day like tomorrow where they can announce some of these big Star Wars projects on Disney Plus.

Is Anakin Skywalker in this? I don't know if Anken Skywalker is in this, but it doesn't sound like it. It sounds like a lot of these. Trick question. He is. He is. He is. He is. All right. That's all I know about Star Wars. Wars. A lot of music out this week. It's summer's getting started. Oh, yes. Duolip, a new album. I'm into it. It's a little different. Some people are on the fence of Bethes. I agree with you on that one. Because a lot of people I think with Duolipa expect the dancey pop hits that we're

accustomed to. And there are some of them that are on here. Houdini's on here. A couple other ones. Play it for the viewers. Yeah, let's listen to this. Come on, Baker, do it. Yes. Go to this song. It's so good. So it's an interesting video, it's just her at the beach, at the pool, just Duolipa. If you love Duolipa, you probably like the video. The song, it's a little different, because she's had these sort of these dance bangers. Yes, forever. And it's been hit after, hit after hit.

This one's a little more mellow. She's even said in an interview, she's evolving as an artist and she wants to sort of change up her tune just a little bit, which is growing. This is a little bit more of like the chill pop, but if you still want some of the dance, bangers that you're accustomed to. I mean, it's got Houdini, training session, illusion, which are all good dancing songs along there. But it's been four years since she released that last album, which was Future Nostalgia, which was amazing, but was during the pandemic, so it was hard to go out and dance to that one.

Next up, Gracie Abrams, new? Has she been on, or is it? She's been out for a while. She's been up for a while, but this album doesn't come out until June. This single just came out this week. The album, by the way, is called Secret of Us. Good news for you guys. She's going to be premiering this next week live

on Jimmy Fallon on the 8th next week, which is going to be really excited. We can listen to this. It's a great song. Let's play it. Watch this be the wrong thing. Classic, but I'm jumping in the deep end. It's more fun to swimming.

The risk is drowning, but I'm going to take it. I'm going to bend till I break it. I love someone that can just go after a cake like that. Me too. I think it's a very catchy song. She may have a very bright future. We'll see. Finally tonight, what I think may be the song of the summer.

I know that's a bold, bold statement. It is Cain Brown, marshmallow. Yep. The mix up, let's listen. I said, hey, baby, slow it down. Let's make it last. You said, where's the fun in that? Yeah, let's go put some miles on it.

Back of the Chevy with the engine running. Just you and me. Baker, you ever want to put some miles on it? I think you do, right? Yes, after that one, exactly. That dropped just this morning, which is amazing. This is the second song they've done together since 2019's One Right Thing. Kane actually did an interview recently where he said he was so excited,

more excited than any other time for a song than this one when this got dropped. You heard it here first, the song of summer. You heard it here first. Well, so I wanted to disagree with you, because I still think espresso from Sabrina Carpenter. Somebody else said that a couple of weeks ago. Guess what? They were wrong. But can we also say Paris Hilton, Stars are Blind, is still the song.

of the summer for the last 20 years. It's the best song ever. Baker Machado. The boxer. They know him as Baker's dozen. Two scoops, Machado. Baker, we thank you so much for being here. Thanks.

I hope you had a good time. We did. And we thank you for watching Top Story all week. I'm Tom Yammis in New York. Stay right there. More news on the way.