Top Story with Tom Llamas - Friday, November 7, 2025

Episode Date: November 8, 2025

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. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Tonight, America's travel headache. It's getting even worse. Hundreds of flights canceled as airport staffing shortages caused disruptions nationwide. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy now warning 20% of flights could soon be canceled if the government shutdown presses on. The delays and cancellations stacking up at major cities, we hear from passengers beyond frustrated. Also breaking tonight tragic new clues in the fiery UPS plane crash, the black box. capturing a bell going off in the cockpit, cockpit seconds before disasters.

Off the airs, Fox Sports confirming ex-NFL star Mark Sanchez is no longer with the network as he faces charges tied to a violent fight in Indiana last month and the NFL legend they've already hired to replace him. The house cleaner and mother of four shot and killed in Indiana after she knocked on the wrong door why her shooter may not face charges. Melody's mother arrested the new video tonight.

The mom of that nine-year-old missing girl in California taken into custody by police on unrelated charges. Could it be a tactic to get her to talk? The dramatic stolen ambulance chased through the streets of Chicago, the suspect crashing into a squad car swarmed by officers. And New Heights, the college basketball player breaking records as the tallest player to ever compete will tell you how tall he stands. And Cindy Sweeney speaking out for the first time over her controversial. American Eagles jeans ad, why the sitdown itself is now drawing backlash. Top story starts right now. And good evening. Tonight, travelers from coast to coast are paying the price for the government shutdown as America's air traffic controllers are forced to work without pay.

Hundreds of flights canceled today at dozens of major airports and a growing list of airlines announcing they're canceling hundreds more each day. Staffing shortages have pushed the FAA to order 4% of flights nationwide canceled today. Okay? Next Tuesday, watch this. That number grows to 6%. 8% on Thursday, and one week from today, one in 10 flights could be ordered canceled by the government. It comes as more and more air traffic controllers are calling out sick on the verge of missing a second paycheck next week. And for the passengers, they're charged with keeping safe, the frustration is mounting. It's a blame culture. That's all I can say. Nobody takes responsibility for anything. So it's a big mess, and we have to deal with it. The holidays are coming up, and if this continues, this is going to end up being a big problem. Today, Transportation Secretary Duffy said, even if the shutdown ended immediately,

it would take time to recover from the staffing shortages as those controllers come back. And his new warning, look at this. Flight cancellations ordered by the FAA could reach 20%. That's one in five trips. if the shutdown presses on. With each passing day, the impasse on Capitol Hill sets a new record. We're now 38 days into the longest shutdown in American history and still counting. Our Maggie Vespa has been talking to frustrated travelers.

She leads us off tonight from Chicago O'Hare. Tonight, government-inflicted travel chaos mounting coast-to-coast. So just like everybody else in America, my flight got canceled for tomorrow. Air traffic control staffing shortages today, triggering. major delays in Houston, Phoenix, and at Reagan National Airport in Washington, where delays averaged four hours. That's on top of the hundreds of flights already canceled after the FAA began reducing airspace because of the government shutdown. Four percent of flights cut today. American Airlines says it's canceling 220 flights per day through Monday. United canceling more than 300 flights this

weekend alone. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy says cuts will ramp up to 10 percent next week, warning if the shutdown drags on. If this continues and I have more controllers who decide they can't come to work, we might go to 15% or 20%. The FAA saying the cancellations are needed to ease the burden on air traffic controllers who are working without pay. Flyers frustrated from Chicago. How frustrating is this that we're in this scenario where it's all so unpredictable?

Oh yeah, it's wicked frustrating. Everybody should just get along. Let's figure it out. These air traffic controllers, my safety is in their hands. to Philadelphia. This is like the worst that I've ever seen. It's unbelievable and it's embarrassing for our country. At United Airlines Network Operations Center, staff are figuring out which flights to cancel

and how to get passengers rebooked. I would compare the 188 cancellations that we're currently doing, like a mid-sized winter storm. Mid-sized winter storm. Mid-sized winter storm. The closer we get to the holidays, obviously the available seats will be less. So I think that that's a little bit more impactful. Maggie, you feel for all those passengers out there.

I think people at home are going to be wondering, how are the airlines deciding which flights are going to cut? Yeah, it's really interesting, Tom. They're really zeroing in on routes that basically go back and forth several times a day. So, for instance, American Airlines typically has 10 flights between Tampa and Miami. And today, they canceled two of those, and they only had eight. I'm really seeing this across the board. In the meantime, airlines are stressing if passengers are on these pencil flights,

all the affected passengers, they can get compensation for this through kind of multiple means. Number one, they can get rebooked and have all the typical fees for that completely waive. Obviously, this isn't their fault. Or if they want, they can scrap their trip altogether and get a complete refund. And they said that applies to all the flights that are impacted by this government shutdown, no matter how long this goes on, Tom. Yeah, let's hope it doesn't go on too long. All right, Maggie, we appreciate that.

Now to the other big headline tonight. More on the government shutdown, day 38, as the Trump administration, issues a major reversal on funding the food assistance program for those in need. NBC's Peter Alexander has that report. Hello, thank you for coming. Tonight, as food distribution centers face another crush of customers in need, the Trump administration says it will comply with a federal court order, fully funding food assistance or SNAP benefits for November.

Still, it's unclear how soon that money gets to the 42 million Americans who rely on it. I'm going for bread and eggs, you know, necessary things that I'm, But on Capitol Hill, the longest federal government shutdown is set to stretch into its seventh week. Republicans blasting Democrats for repeatedly blocking a funding bill that would reopen the government. This is Trump derangement syndrome. Nothing more, nothing less. Senate Democrats now say they'll vote to end the shutdown if Republicans pass a one-year extension of Obamacare subsidies. Democrats are ready to clear the way to quickly pass a government funding bill that includes health care, affordability. Republicans call that offer a non-starter. We have a shutdown, as you probably know,

because the Democrats have gone, they're crazy. But days after Democratic election wins, the president acknowledged were largely about affordability. They lied because they talked about, oh, prices are up. No, no. Prices are down under the Trump administration, and they're down substantially. Since the president took office, crude oil is down 16 percent and gas down six cents a gallon. But Grocery prices overall are up slightly. Staples like ground beef up substantially 13%. Orange juice up 17%. The president also touting Walmart's Thanksgiving meal deal.

It's 25% less this year than it was last year. And that's true. But only partially true. It is cheaper, but that Walmart package is also much smaller, with six fewer items. Unlike last year, no sweet potatoes, no whipped topping or pie. All right. With that, Peter Alexander joins us. Peter, I have a couple questions for you. Let's start with some new reporting you have out of the White House about a high-profile pardon.

That's right, a name you're probably familiar with, Daryl Strawberry, a White House official telling NBC News that the president approved a pardon for Strawberry. A three-time World Series champion, an eight-time All-Star familiar for having played with multiple teams, the Mets, the Yankees, and other teams throughout his career. He pleaded guilty, Strawberry did, to tax evasion back in 1995. The official noted that Strawberry has become active in Christian ministry. and started a recovery center, Tom, actually, that still operates today, notably. Strawberry, thank Trump on social media, on Instagram, posted several pictures of the two, said that he got a call from the president who detailed the clemency plan for him just yesterday. One thing that was particularly interesting here is Strawberry is now the second veteran of Trump's old reality TV show,

Celebrity Apprentice, after Rod Blagojevich back in February to receive a pardon from the president. Some good Trump trivia there. Let's go back to the shutdown. We went into your piece highlighting this is day 38. You talk about the calendar leading into Thanksgiving weekend and the holidays right around there. Is there time for these guys to come together and reach a deal? Well, they would say there's certainly time if they can get it done. Obviously, this stuff doesn't just happen overnight.

There is indications. We have now heard from Mike Johnson, the speaker, that the House is not going to be in session again next week. That means even if the Senate does something, the House isn't there. All of next week as well. That's the present plan right now. Things can certainly change. Notably, the House is someone. posted earlier today, I think has only been in session for 20 days over the last four or five

months, right? That's the way lawmakers work so often as it relates to their recesses. Now they're dealing with this significant issue. You've seen the impact on flights, on SNAP benefits, and beyond. There's a real urgency, and I think they're going to start to feel more and more pressure as the holidays of price. We hope so. All right, Peter, so great to have you here in studio. We're going to turn out of the latest on that deadly crash of a UPS cargo plane in Louisville. Today, the federal investigators revealing some of what they've learned from the plane's black box. Here's Tom Costello. From a drone and on the ground, NTSB investigators are mapping the scorched debris field from Tuesday's crash and revealing the black box recordings captured a bell going off in the cockpit, 37 seconds after the plane began its takeoff roll, lasting until the recording stopped 25 seconds later.

During this time, the crew engaged in efforts to attempt to control the aircraft before the crash. Among the missing, Megan Washburn, a mother of two, and John Lauchs both worked at the scrap metal business that was hit. The three pilots on board also died. Captain Richard Whartonberg, First Officer Lee Truitt, and Captain Dana Diamond. I made the difficult three phone calls to the spouses of our pilots, our colleagues. UPS pilot union president Bob Travis. They were just wonderful human beings. They were fun to be around. They were happy, go. lucky people. They were funny. At a vigil here Thursday night, the community gathered to remember those who were lost. He's like an angel on earth. The last time you spoke to him?

Probably like two weeks ago. The question, why did the left engine and the pylon attaching it to the wing of the plane break free before the crash? We don't know at this point in time. Is this an airplane-specific issue, or is this a fleet problem? We don't know that. The talk among aviation experts and veteran investigators really is the haunting similarity between this crash on Tuesday and a 1979 crash involving an American Airlines jet. Now, that was a DC-10, the previous model of the MD-11. In that case, also, the engine and the pylon came off the left wing, just like this time. And that was because of a maintenance mistake. The question is whether this MD 11 on Tuesday suffered a similar fate, same plane, same engine, same pylon, and if so, why? Tom?

An eerie coincidence, if it is one. All right, Tom Cassell, we thank you. We're also following breaking news tonight in the case of that nine-year-old California girl missing for nearly a month. Authorities arresting Melody Buzzard's mother, but she's not being charged with her disappearance. Our Steve Patterson explains. Tonight, new video showing the mother in the middle of the maelstrom of her own daughter's mysterious disappearance, now under arrest. Authorities today putting handcuffs on 40-year-old Ashley Buzzard, but on unrelated false imprisonment charges. In his statement, the Santa Barbara Sheriff's Department says, detectives

learned of a recent incident where Ashley prevented a victim from leaving a location against their will, which constitutes false imprisonment. Adding, although the arrest occurred during the course of the missing person investigation, it is not directly related to Melody's disappearance. Former police chief, Cedric Alexander, is an NBC News law enforcement analyst. Is the hope that while she's in custody, she will give them something that they can use for this case that they're already investigating? She is the link to solving this case at this point.

So hopefully through investigation and through their questioning of her, they're able to come to some resolve around this. The arrest comes one day after deputies released new surveillance video showing Ashley with her daughter Melody at a rental car counter during a road trip, both appearing to be wearing wigs. Detectives say the investigation is centered on that road trip in early October. The pair seen in a white Chevy Malibu on October 7th. The rental car's license plates swapped from California to New York during the trip. Melody was last seen on October 9th, spotted near the Utah Colorado border. The search now spread out over at least five different locations in four

states while a mother waits behind bars. All right. See, Patterson joins us tonight from Los Angeles. So some real developments in this case, Steve, and now authorities are asking the public for help. Explain. Yeah, that's exactly right, Tom. But the problem is that that route means the search area now is sprawling, including at least five separate towns spread out over four states from Utah to Arizona, Nevada, to California, and the FBI we know now involved, scouring gas stations, rest stops, and hotels, looking for anyone with any shred of information, no matter how small, to come forward.

Okay, Steve Patterson for us tonight. Steve, good to see you. We are going to turn out of the latest on former NFL quarterback Mark Sanchez because there is a development tonight. He's now out of a job at Fox Sports. It comes as he faces charges over a late-night fight that left him stabbed

and another man hospitalized. Stephanie Gosk has the latest. Picking up a big road victory. In the middle of the NFL season, football analyst Mark Sanchez has been sideline. Fox Sports confirming to NBC News, the former pro quarterback is no longer with the network.

Sanchez pleaded not guilty to criminal charges, including one count of felony battery, after a late night fight with a delivery truck driver in an alley in downtown Indianapolis, the early October incident leaving both men with serious knife injuries. TMZ sports obtaining this video that appears to show Sanchez bloody and stumbling away. Sanchez spoke with local station WXIN after being released from the hospital and booked at the courthouse. I want to see my wife. I want to see my son, my two baby girls. He did not respond to questions about the charges. Sorry, I can't answer all your questions.

The police say the fight was over parking. The truck driver telling authorities he pulled a knife in self-defense and thought, this guy is trying to kill me, according to the probable cause affidavit. Two days later, prosecutors announced they were charging Sanchez with a felony. I don't care who you are. I don't care what you do for a living. If you come into our city, commit. violence, we will use all the tools at our disposal to hold you accountable.

The news that Sanchez is no longer with Fox Sports coming the same day the company announced a new hire. Former quarterback and Super Bowl MVP Drew Breeze will soon join the analyst team. Mark Sanchez, meanwhile, has to prepare for a criminal trial that is set to begin December 11th in Indianapolis. And the charges are serious. If he's convicted, he could be facing prison time. Tom? All right, Stephanie Goss for us. Stephanie, thank you. And tonight, the first real taste of winters on its way, and Arctic blasts expected to send temperatures plunging for much of the country. Millions under frost and freeze alerts and new video just in as severe storms. Look at this. Wow. Plow through parts of Tennessee, strong rain and hail quickly reducing

visibility there. Let's get right to NBC News meteorologist Bill Karens. Bill, walk us through what you know. Yeah, so first of all, that was a tornado watch that's issued in areas of Tennessee. So no tornadoes have been reported just a few strong thunderstorms. We'll keep an eye on that. As far as this cold outbreak. We're going to call this, you know, December and November, because that's how it's going to feel for everyone. The cold Arctic air is now building. It's going to be diving south. So you may want to know how we get it. Why? It seems a little early for this. While our polar vortex holds all the cold air in place, and it's weaker than normal right now, and this piece right here is breaking off. And that's what's heading our way. So it's a piece

of our polar air. And it's going to make it dive through the Hudson Bay, through Canada this weekend. And eventually, by the time we get towards Monday night and Tuesday morning, it makes this way all the way down to the Gulf Coast. That's the unusual part of this. You know, wind chills are going to be very cold, single digits. So if you haven't gotten the leaves up yet, and you know the snow is going to fly near the lakes, do that this weekend because you don't want to be doing it in the middle of this or even with snow on top. And even though on the Gulf Coast, temperatures are going to be down in the 20s and 30s for wind chills. Now during the day on Monday it gets a little bit better, but then Tuesday night is just as cold. And that'll be the peak

of the cold. Even in central Florida, the wind chill feel like temperature will be there in the 30s. And as far as snow goes, a lot of people are going to see their first snowflakes, the areas that will actually be shoveling and having to plow snow is going to be off of Lake Michigan, typical Lake Erie and Lake Ontario. Northern New York's going to get it, northern Vermont, and even areas as far south time. Down towards Asheville and Boone, the mountains of North Carolina are going to get snow too. First snowfall there in November. All right, Bill, we thank you. We're back in a moment with the accidental mixup turning deadly. Imagine this, a house cleaner killed after trying to enter the wrong home.

Is the shooter protected under the law? We're going to break this down. And the head coach of the Miami Heat speaking out for the first time after a massive fire destroyed his home, what he's saying tonight. And the wild police pursuit caught on camera, driver, get this in a stolen ambulance, leading officers on a chase through Chicago, how it came to a dramatic end. That's next. We're back down with a deadly shooting in Indiana. Housekeeper shot through a door and killed after police say she made the mistake of going to the the wrong house. Aaron McLaughlin on why the shooter may not be charged. Tonight outside Indianapolis, the family of Maria Florina Rios Perez in tears.

After the 32-year-old house cleaner from Guatemala was shot and killed Wednesday morning, while attempting to enter what police say was a mistaken address. Perez's husband, Maricio, who cleaned houses with her, was by her side when it happened. It's not easy, he says, at the moment seeing my wife in my arms, Already lifeless, covered in blood, I felt like they tore everything from me. Video shows the bullet hole still visible in the front door of the suburban home. Police say officers responded to a 911 call at 649 a.m. Reporting a possible residential entry in progress.

Ken Eastwood is the county prosecutor overseen the case. They were there as part of a contract to clean the home. They were just at the wrong home. Is the homeowner claiming self-defense? Yes. The shooter's name currently being with. Withheld. Tonight Eastwood tells NBC News, criminal charges are being considered. At issue, Indiana stand your ground law covering self-defense if a person has reasonable belief of being threatened

with imminent serious bodily harm. How do you determine what's reasonable and what's not? In any type of self-defense claim, it's a difficult standard to understand given how we are in our world today and what's reasonable. The family she leaves behind, including her four children, now demanding justice, wondering how a simple misunderstanding could have cost Perez her life. All right, terrible incident. Aaron joins us live in studio. So, Aaron, did the prosecutor give you any sense of where this case is headed? Well, the prosecutor told me he still needs to go through all of the evidence. In fact, 25 minutes prior to the interview, the final report had landed on his desk. He said he had a lot of video evidence to go to. There were taped statements from both

the shooter and his wife. He said that both of them are cooperating with the investigation. There's police body camera footage that he needs to review. Also, he said that there is ring camera footage captured from the house across the street. He said he wasn't sure of the quality of that footage. All of that he needs to work through before determining next steps. Okay, Aaron McLaughlin first. Aaron, thank you. I'm sure you have a lot of questions about this story. We do too, so we want to bring in NBC News legal analyst, Danny Savalos. Danny, thanks so much for joining us. Indiana has strict stand-your ground laws. So walk us through the legal merit here and what it all means. Well, interestingly enough, this is less a standard ground law, which has to do with when people walk out into the world and whether or not they have this force bubble of the ability to use violence or deadly force to defend themselves.

It actually goes back to something called Castle Doctrine, which Indiana does base its standard ground law on. So really, Castle Doctrine is based on the idea that a person's home is their castle. And here's the key, Tom. It all comes down to one word. And that word is reasonable. Under Indiana law, a person is privileged to use deadly force to prevent someone from entering their home unlawfully if their belief that the use of force is reasonable. So key, the fact that, as Aaron pointed out, there are ring cameras. They may have captured this incident. So the key is going to be factors like, did a man and a woman knock on the door with a broom and a mop and cleaning supplies? And did they knock on the door and ring the door ball?

because burglars typically don't ring the door, but they might to see who's home. But other questions are going to be what kinds of alerts or what kinds of warnings were given. Those are all going to factor in to one fundamental analysis. Was this use of force reasonable?

What are you thinking from the facts that we have so far? And again, we don't know if they were trying to get in. They had the key. It wasn't working. Were their earphones in played? Could she not hear? Did the homeowner or the shooter even try to communicate? I mean, there's so many unknowns here. where do you think this case goes? And I know it's very hard with the information we have.

Exactly, Tom. And every factor that you just listed is something the prosecutor is going to look at. I think one of the key factors is going to be what kind of warning was given. Now, maybe there might have been a language barrier. But how much warning was given? Obviously, I mean, if there was a 911 call and they were trying to get in, but if the key didn't work, they weren't getting in without the key in, presumably, and I know I'm jumping ahead here, but presumably they weren't going to break a window to

get in. The key is what was happening at the moment the homeowner decided to take a gun in his hand and use deadly force. That is the key inquiry. And fortunately, for the prosecution in today's era, even if there isn't a ring camera on their home, there may be several others in the neighborhood. And so you may get a clear answer that will guide the prosecution as to whether or not this was a valid use of force in self-defense. You know, it looks like there's a window right next of the door there, which is sort of interesting, but you also know that the shooter apparently called 911 as well. So there's a lot at play here. As the prosecutor sort of choose this one over to figure out if he's going to charge or not charge, it sounds like from what you're telling

us, because of Indiana, the law, the bar is going to be pretty high to charge here. It could be. I mean, Indiana does use the magic word reasonable. And it's not entirely clear whether the reasonableness is a subjective one. In other words, is it just a matter. of whether or not the person, the homeowner himself, thought that he was in danger. Well, no, reasonableness is an objective test. In other words, reasonableness is not satisfied by me, myself. I believed I was in danger,

no matter what any other people may think looking at this. Reasonableness is a test of what everybody else, what the general public, what everyone would think if they were confronted with the same facts. And that may be a problem for this owner, or homeowner, if there are facts like they knocked on the door, they rang the doorbell. They tried a key that didn't work. So it sounds like we all know, I mean, you know, I live in an apartment building. People have tried to use the wrong key. I've done it,

Tom. I'm guilty of doing it on other apartments. I'm not paying attention. I get out of the elevator and go to the wrong door. It's a sound that you recognize. And you pointed out a good thing. Did they look out the window? Should they have looked out the window? Did they announce who they were? Did they say, go away? And here's the key for me. Were they knocking on the door with a mop, of broom cleaning supplies, and are those the kinds of things the homeowner could have seen? These are all common-sense things that the prosecution is going to look at to see whether or not the use of force was, and this is the magic word, reasonable. Yeah, all right, Danny Savals for us. Danny, great to have you on the show to break this down. We appreciate it. Coming up, the U.S. carrying out new deadly strikes on suspected drug boats are Richard Engel is live in Columbia tonight with the latest on those attacks.

And the shocking scene in Florida, SWAT team arresting a man after he came crashing through the ceiling. We'll show you more of that video. But first, top story's top moment, the world's tallest teenager, becoming the tallest college basketball player ever. Standing at 7 foot 9, yes, 7 foot 9, 19-year-old Olivier Rieu, making his college debut for the Florida Gators, the crowd going wild. The moment he was put in the game, take a listen. has just taken the shirt off, and he's getting set to not only enter this game, but break the record officially for tallest basketball player.

This is as loud as it's been all night. That's a big boy right there. Here's a look at how the freshman's height compares to his fellow players on the court. The Gators won that game. Stay with us. I'm sure we're going to cover him a lot more. We got more on Top Story also. We're back now with reporting on a new U.S. military strike in the Caribbean.

The target, another boat allegedly carrying drugs to the U.S., that according to the Pentagon. Our Richard Engel is in the region in Colombia tonight, speaking with the country's defense minister about the strikes. The U.S. military carried out another lethal attack on a boat in the Caribbean carrying drugs to the U.S., the Pentagon said, providing no evidence and few details. So far, President Trump has authorized nearly 20 attacks on boats and an improvised submarine. Every time you see that happen, you're saving 25,000 American lives. In addition, he's deployed more than 10,000 troops, warships, drones, and fighter jets to the region, all while fiercely criticizing Venezuela and also Colombia.

Colombia is a drug den. It's a drug den, and it has been for a long time. President Trump's lethal strikes and military buildup are being felt all across Latin America. He's even promised to cut all military and financial support for Colombia, where troops like these have long been considered among the U.S.'s closest and most effective allies in the war on drugs. Pedro Sanchez is Colombia's defense minister. I asked him if he agrees with President Trump. Trump's assessment that the boats are actually carrying drugs. From the news that we analyzed, we agree that those are boats carrying drugs. That's your assessment as well, that they're carrying drugs. All right, Richard Engel joins us tonight live from Bogota, Columbia.

Richard, great to have you there in the region for us. I'm curious, I know you've been talking to both defense ministers, but also people there throughout Colombia. Is there a sense that President Trump wants to have a military strike on land in that region somewhere? Maybe Venezuela, maybe Colombia? So, Tom, we've been speaking to a lot of people, diplomats, former government officials, people on the street, the defense minister. And there is absolutely a sense that it is perhaps just a matter of time before President Trump orders some sort of ground strike in Venezuela against the cartels, against drug manufacturing operations, that that is expected,

that you don't bring this much firepower to the region without the intention of using it. It could be just a threat to try and pressure the Maduro government, but that there is some expectation that in the coming weeks, perhaps in the coming months, there might be some sort of surgical strikes in order to pressure Maduro's inner circle to turn on him, to collect the $50 million reward. And here in Colombia, they're worried that they're going to be tarred with the same brush. They don't want to be associated with Maduro. They don't want to be associated with any kind of narco-trafficking.

They already experienced that in the 80s. They experienced it in the early 90s, and they don't want to go back to those very dark days. So there is a sense or an expectation that there will be some sort of military action, just not directed at Colombia, but next door in Venezuela. Richard, I do want to ask you, and I don't know if we know the answer to this yet because it's so early, but do we know if these strikes on these alleged drug boats, have they slowed the drug trade at all in the region or into the U.S.? Or is it still early to figure that question out?

They have changed the drug routes because sending the drugs through the Caribbean is only one possible route. But you couldn't cross the border with Venezuela. You can go to the south through Ecuador, you can go to Peru. Colombia is a very large country. Venezuela is a very large country. These borders are generally quite porous and open. In some cases, it's just dense jungle. So by carrying out strikes in one area, you're forcing the cartels and the different gangs that work with them to redirect their operations. So the flow of drugs is still continuing. But the According to officials who monitor this closely, the strikes are forcing these organizations to change their routes and to change their patterns. Okay, Richard Engel for us tonight. Richard, we thank you.

Now at Top Stories News Feed, Cornell University reaching a deal with the Trump administration to restore hundreds of millions of dollars worth of research funds. The university says it plans to pay the government $30 million over three years and invest another $30 million in research aimed at strengthening U.S. U.S. agriculture. The Trump administration withheld funding from Cornell after accusing it of committing civil rights violations which the school denies. In Chicago today, a driver in a stolen ambulance, leading police on a wild chase. You can see the vehicle cruising dangerously through the streets. The chase goes for several miles before the suspect slams into a car. He hops out and tries to escape, but he's quickly swarmed by more than a dozen officers and taken into custody. And after hours of hiding in an attic from a SWAT team in Florida,

a burglary suspect's escape plan came crashing down. New body cam video shows the man dangling from the ceiling before falling right into the officer's arms. Officials say he bought lumber from a store while using a stolen truck. He's now facing multiple charges. And after more than 200 years, the farmer's almanac is officially folding. It says next year's edition, it's going to be its last. The publication best known for its weather predict.

and planting tips, but it says it's shutting down because of financial reasons. To be clear, the old farmer's almanac is a completely different and older publication. That one is still going strong. Okay, so the old one surviving. In Florida tonight, the head coach of the Miami Heat, Eric Spolstra, speaking out for the first time since his home burned down. You remember, we brought you these images yesterday. Video from that night showing massive flames engulfing the house, leaving little behind

except for charred rubble. Here's some of what he had to say with his kids by his side. As you can see, I have my kids up here right now, so things in the house, those things can be replaced. And if they can't be replaced, what does it really matter? You know, this is really what matters. I want to bring in NBC's Jesse Curse, who's at the Miami Heat Stadium tonight for us. Jesse, walk our viewers through the explanation here. Did Spoe basically say what caused this fire?

He did not get into that, Tommy, made clear that his kids weren't in the house at the time, his dog wasn't in the house at the time, and everyone is okay, which is the key in all this. And the fire department still has not put out any official cause for that fire right now. You can see fans starting to gather. The heat are about to be playing the Hornets from Charlotte here, not getting any sign that people are holding up banners or anything like that in support of Coach Bolster in that way, perhaps, but he did make a point of saying that the community has been with him. Here's part of what he said a short time ago. I'm appreciative for staying on the routine. The kids wanted to come to the game tonight. So I figured if they

want to come to the game, then I better work the game. We're just really grateful to be here and have a great night like this. The NBA is amazing. And he even made a point of saying, Tom, that he had been asked if he wanted to be at the game, if he needed some time off, and he wanted that routine. And so he is going to be coaching the heat tonight. Did you get tickets to the game, Jesse? We're working on it, Tom. We're working on it, hoping to be in there to see it in action. Tell people you're on Top Story.

Maybe they'll feel sympathy for you. Give you some tickets. All right, Jesse Kirch for us. We thank you for that. We'll be right to the sidelines. All right, man. Still ahead on the broadcast tonight. Cindy Sweeney breaking her silence about the American Eagle Lad campaign.

What she's saying about the political firestorm, it sparked. That's next. We're back now with that GQ interview with actress Sidney. Sydney Sweeney responding for the first time to the American Eagle ad that caused a political firestorm over the summer. Here's NBC's Chloe Malas with the mixed reactions. American Eagle jeans. Sydney Sweeney Hasbert Keynes. Actress Sidney Sweeney responding for the first time after that much talked about American Eagle

jeans ad. My jeans are blue. The Euphoria star speaking with GQ magazine. Were you surprised by the reaction? I did a gene ad. I mean, the reaction definitely was a surprise, but it was, I love jeans. All I wear are jeans. I'm literally in jeans and a t-shirt, like every day of my life. Jeans are pressed down from parents to offspring. The commercial igniting a political firestorm this summer, criticizing both the message and the messenger.

Some even accusing the ad of promoting eugenics. Those Cindy Sweeney American Eagle ads are. weird, like fascist weird. My genes are superior. And by that, I mean white with blonde hair. While others saw the debate as being blown out of proportion. You're going crazy trying to find hidden sins and racism wherever it's possible. Controversial opinion, but I don't think the Sydney Sweeney American Eagle ad was about eugenics. At the time, American Eagle responding, saying the ad quote is and always was about the genes and that great genes look good. on everyone. The gene debacle, even making its way to the White House.

If Sidney Sweeney is a registered Republican, I think her ad is fantastic. The president later sharing his support for Sweeney and the ad on Truth Social, calling it the hottest ad. I think I know how you're going to answer this, but I'm going to ask anyway. I mean, the president tweeted about the jeans ad or truth social about the jeans ad. And that just seems to me like a very good. crazy moment for anyone and I wondered what that was like. It was surreal. The interviewer Catherine Stofel receiving criticism for not letting the gene issue go. Some commenting, this entire interview was set up around asking her to condemn the commercial. Interviewer was shocked she

couldn't outsmart the pretty girl. Is there something that you want to say about the ad itself the Sydney Sweeney has great genes do you have the ad spoke for itself you think the ads put for itself okay and the criticism of the content which was basically that maybe specifically in this political climate like white people shouldn't joke about genetic superiority like that was kind of like the criticism broadly speaking and since you are talking about this I just wanted to give you an opportunity to talk about that specifically I think that when I I have an issue that I want to speak about, people will hear.

And while some applauded Sweeney's responses, Sidney stood on business, don't apologize, and Sydney won. Others not satisfied. How hard is it to have replied and been like, well, I don't think white jeans are superior. Chloe Malas joins us now in studio here in Top Story. So Chloe, this comes at an interesting time, right, for Sydney, Sweeney, because she's got this new movie that's being promoted like crazy. I mean, her movie, Christy, which is about Christy Martin, who is a boxing legend, one of the first mainstream female boxers.

Cindy Sweeney is getting Oscars buzz here. I mean, her portrayal is getting standing ovations, and she did this massive body transformation. And so many are wondering, could this American Eagle ad be perhaps influencing those in the Hollywood foreign press, though the Academy voters, right? But we know that Hollywood is no stranger to controversy. In my opinion, over the years, I feel like uncovering entertainment, I feel like Hollywood is a forgiving place. But let me just remind you, do you remember a Calvin Klein ad from 1980s starring Brooke Shields? Oh, okay, okay, okay. Now, she was 15 at the time, but remember the tagline, nothing comes between me and my Calvin's, right?

Well, look at her career, how it went on to become so successful nominated for two Golden Globes over the course of her career. I mean, if you just juxtapose that with Sidney-Sweeney, obviously it's a different sort of controversy, both denim controversies, I'd say. But, again, she is such a great actress. I've seen her in many roles. I think that she's going to be just fine. And again, she had to toe the line in this GQ interview

with kind of coming out and saying some, but holding back just enough. Because if she does get too political there and really takes a stand, then you could really see it overshadow a potential golden gloamer Oscar nom. Chloe Malas, always great to have you here in studio. When we come back, a look at everything worth binge watching and listening to this weekend.

From a new take on the classic Frankenstein to the hit comedy series, I Love L.A., plus Hillary Duff back on the music scene with her first single in more than a decade. And we'll break down who's leading the pack in this year's Grammy nominees. Stay with us. Welcome back. It is Friday, which means it's time for binge-worthy. Our look at the best things to watch and listen to this weekend. And joining us tonight is a friend of Top Story, Ralphie Aversa, the host and producer of USA Today's Entertain This. Ralphie, is this back-to-back for you? I think we had a week in between because didn't you have a celebrity guest here?

Oh, we did. We had the ventriloquist. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. We did. How could I forget?

Sorry. How could I forget that? That was very memorable. You know what it was? It was Halloween and I was technically off, but that's why I didn't watch that night. Anyways, the audiences need to know this. We'll start with you, Ralphie. Love that you're here.

This is so great. We're going to start with the scary. movie, even though it's after Halloween. Right. Frankenstein, this is a reimagining of the classic horror tale. Let's take a look. If you are not to award me, love,

then I will endorse in rage. Ralphie, big fan of Frankenstein, the original novel by Mary Shelley. I know this has been remade several times, including once with Robert De Niro. Talk to me about this one, because I was watching the trailer. I noticed there were some love scenes. It looked like with The Monster.

Little odd, haven't seen that take on Frankenstein. Talk to me about what's happening here. We got Guillermo del Toro in the mix here, so right off the bat, you know it's going to be high level. And then we also have a great director, Jacob Allorty as well, of course, starring as his thing in this. He starts as The Monster? Yes, and one of the interesting parts of this film is its ending. Obviously, you don't want to spoil it. Is it a happy ending?

Maybe bittersweet, but that's what everybody's talking about that has started to stream this already and have reviewed it. It's on Netflix. Talk to me about the scientists, one of my main guys from Miami, right? Oscar Isaac, right? South Florida. How's you do? Good job? Yes, yeah.

Dr. Frankenstein? Yeah, and the movie as a whole is getting good reviews right now. Although I will say, you made the point beforehand. It is interesting that we're getting this after Halloween, but we have a lot of things. Did you like it? Is it worth it? Yes, it is. Okay, love it.

I definitely going to check this one out. Next one, this is my pick. I don't know how I stumbled across. This one, I know a lot of the youngsters are talking about this one. Wait, wait, wait, this is your pick? I love L.A. I know. It's weird. Let's watch. Why do I feel like I've been in this apartment before? This is the place that we were going to move into together.

You're still here? Mm-hmm. Did you guys teach the whole this happening campaign? Like, I made her successful. I can do it for other bitty. You should buck her. Okay, so this is definitely for a younger generation, but it's really well done. It's really funny. Talk to me about it. It's on HBO Max right now.

of course, starring in it, kind of the it girl here. She wrote it too, right? Yeah, so she kind of lives out her it girl and influencer and Gen Z fantasies throughout this. Very, very funny, but like a, you know, not super complex either. I will say, a little bit polarizing online. Wait, was that a little knock, not super complex? Like, like that, it feels like a little bit of a knock. It's all right, Ralph, you can knock it, I mean, you're pro.

Sometimes you don't want the most, you know, extravagant thing. You just want to laugh. You want something simple. You want comfort. I think you might find that in I Love LA, but yeah, it's definitely geared towards a younger audience. Why is it polarizing? What are people complaining about? Some people are just like, you know what, is the writing's really not that good? You know, like the big critique right now is, oh, the writing's not that good.

It sounds like AI spit it out. Like that's what you're going to critique a show. That's typically what you do. So this is a little bit polarizing. Here's my hot take. Here's my hot take. And I'm not you. I'm not an entertainment journalist.

Don't have a pedigree in that. But I will say this. Some people are like, oh, it's girls for L.A. It's not. It's actually great. It's funny. It's different. To me, here's why I liked it. It gives you a snapshot into the lives of people who are in their 20s right now and social media. And how much that influences literally every part of their life. Every single decision making almost is like how does it affect their social media page? And I was talking to some young people on our staff, some of our great journalists, who tell me, yeah, some people live their lives like that. And it's become sort of like part of the way you live and breathe. You hit the nail on the head. When the buzz around the show first started, people thought, it was the next girls, and it is not. And that's, I think, a part of the reason why some of the backlash has happened. But you know what? I liked it. It's okay. Okay, next one up. You know all about this one.

I'll let you toss to it. It's from the mothership. Peacock. We love Peacock. All her fault. Set it up. And then give me one of those Ralphie Averza double plays right into the clip. All right. Sarah Snook, of course, you know where is Shiv, the Emmy Award winning actress from Successions. She stars in an executive produces this one alongside alongside Dakota Fanning. You talk about the pressures that this world puts on mothers. Well, that manifests itself in this limited series stream. on Peacock. Let's take a look.

Bye, mommy. Bye, sweetheart. 99% of the time when a child goes missing, it's a misunderstanding between parents, grandparents, nannies. Hi, I'm Marissa. I'm here to pick up my son Milo. There's no Milo here. But Milo's been missing for nearly five hours now. It's not a misunderstanding.

Well, I love Grandma. Whoever that is go. No Milo here. Yeah, nice. looking for her child. You have kids, I have kids. Is this one of those that's going to make you be like, oh, wow, this is like too heavy? Or can you watch it? 100%. No, it's heavy. It's heavy. It's intense. It is excellent. Eight episodes streaming now on Peacock. I mean, it's a mother's worst nightmare, a parent's worst nightmare. Abby Elliott also in it, who I love, I think she's super talented. Basically, mom goes to drop off her child, child disappears. Yeah, it's a play date that never was. And so then you figure out, okay, where is the child? How did the child get kidnapped? And and all of the other things that unravel in this.

Again, it is really, really fascinating. Sarah told me, I interviewed her in Dakota for this. She told me that in between takes, she needed like a little bit of a break because of how heavy some of this material is. On Peacock, check that out this weekend. If you need something heavy, but that's very good, too. Next up, Death by Lightning.

So many people are talking about this one. Cover of the arts page in the New York Times. All-Star cast on Netflix. Let's take a look. Mr. President, I'm begging you. Tell me how I can be great. Men like us, we have to claw our way up. I can't make an impact.

There is a greater destiny out there for me. This will show him and the rest. Story of James Garfield, for you history buffs. What president? The 20th president. And I know that because of this note right here. So this is an interesting, obviously historical drama on Netflix. The cast is, I said All-Star, but is amazing, including Nick Offerman,

including Michael Shannon and so many others. Yeah, it is really, really something else. They filmed this in Budapest. I chatted with Michael McFadion and Michael Shannon for USA Today about it. One of the interesting things is that as they were filming this, and they're filming this convention that happened at 1880 where Garfield gets the Republican nomination, and here in the states, while they're filming that,

we're trying to figure out, is President Biden going to be the Democratic nominee or not? Then they're obviously filming this series where Garfield gets assassinated. And Trump assassination. Wow, I didn't know that. happens as well while they're filming. So some really eerie parallels. And Michael was telling me, and we've seen this time and time again, history does repeat itself. Four episodes, Netflix.

And the acting, you said, is amazing. Oh, this is, Emmys all day. Emmy's all day for this. So do my parents, so I'm sure they're going to be binge watching that one. Okay, next up, Alex versus A-Rod, HBO Max, documentary about the man, the myth, legend, A-Rod. Let's take a look. Let's talk a lot about this afterwards.

pressure to produce and play at a really high level at all cost breaking news tonight we are learning that baseball is about to announce its most sweeping set of suspensions for use of performance enhancing drugs why rich and powerful people cheat part one all right a rod i've been waiting to watch this with my little guy because he loves baseball he's also had a lot of questions about the steroid use in baseball and how come some great players he hears about like Barry Bonds, A Rudd, they're not in the Hall of Fame. You've seen this, you're a Yankee fan. I'm going to ask you now, did it deliver for you? Not entirely. Okay. Not entirely. And maybe my expectations were a little too high. Maybe I just had different expectations

and what the filmmakers and what Alex set out for. Matter of fact, I kind of did because I spoke with a lot of the parties involved, including Alex. Alex really just wanted to tell a story about his baseball career and about the lessons that people could learn from his downfalls. And I think he does do that. He opens up quite a bit in this, too. That sounds pretty revealing. I mean, well, he opens up about his father, who left when he was 10 years old, and he only saw him one other time after he left when he was 10.

He talks about that in the doc. I won't spoil it. He also opens up extensively about the therapy he's gone through since 2009 to get to the place where he is now. So it is revealing. Is it a kiss and tell doc? Is he going to talk about Madonna and Jennifer Lopez and Cameron Diaz? No.

That's not what you wanted, Ralphie. What did you want that wasn't in there? I think what I really want to was, okay, he got this incredible sentence, you know, suspended for an entire season in 2014 for performance-enhancing drugs. Yet, he never failed the test. How did he do it? You don't get that. You get a little bit of why he did it, which he hadn't really set up to this point, but you don't get the how. And I think I was looking for the how.

Okay. All right. But still worth it to watch HBO Max. Three-parters. The first part's out now. We'll get the following two parts on the next two Thursdays. Yes, still worth it. Okay. All right, I've got to look forward to that. Going to watch it as well. Turning now to music, we're going to take a tough turn here. But hey, you know what? We need to lighten up a little bit. Hillary Duff. She's back. First song I've been told in like 10 years. It's called mature. Let's take a listen. All right, talk to me about it. I got to tell you, it's a very catchy song.

I mean, it's really well sung. Lyrics are interesting. Produced very well. I love that pop music. True mainstream pop music is like back in a sense and being celebrated, being maybe awarded as well. We'll talk about that in a second. But yeah, this one, Hillary Duff, is back first time in about a decade.

And talking to her younger self in this song, Mature, which is really, really good. Okay, we're going to check that one out. Let's talk Grammys. You hinted at that. You gave us a tease. We're only going to talk best albums of the year. What's the list and what is Ralphie versus Pick?

All right, so you got a lot of big names here. You got Kendrick Lamar, who leads the entire pack as far as Grammy nominations are concerned. You got Bad Bunny. You got Sabrina Carpenter. Who else he got in there? Lady Gaga, of course, as well. In addition to Justin Bieber. Come on, the Bebes.

Don't forget him. For me, let God sort him out. The Clips album with Push a Tea and Malice. and then, of course, Leon Thomas as well, Tyler, the creator, rounding out the list. My pick here is going to be with Bad Bunny. I was going to say, dude, if you didn't pick Bad Bunny, you were going to leave. This is going to be your last binge-worthy. I agree with you.

He's the best. I think it's the best album in a long time. And what a moment that would be for him to win album of the year and roll it right into the Super Bowl the following weekend. That would be something else. But obviously, you've got to keep your eyes on Kendrick Lamar. And then again, as we were just talking about, I love the Gaga nomination. I love the Sabrina Carpard nomination as well. I just don't think anything compares to that album.

But look, we'll have to wait and see and we'll see how people voted. Ralphie, always a pleasure to see you. We thank you so much. We thank you for watching Bingeworthy and Top Story all week long. Stay right there. You know there's more news on the way. Thank you.