Top Story with Tom Llamas - Friday, October 6, 2023

Episode Date: October 7, 2023

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, a surge of migrants pushing border resources to the brink. States stepping in to handle thousands of arrivals every day. This, as the White House takes heat for moving to build more border wall, Biden's own party blasting the decision, saying the president is breaking promises. Trump playing kingmaker, the former president picking his favorite for the next speaker of the House, Republicans still torn between House heavyweights to lead the party. Hopeful's working the phones, looking for allies to try and pull ahead. While the former speaker is reportedly considering resigning from Congress altogether,

will the Republicans be able to unite behind someone? New fentanyl bust, four arrested after police blow open, another fentanyl operation in New York, this time in a residential area near a school. The raid uncovering drugs and a pill mill. This happening just weeks after a toddler died of fentanyl poisoning at a daycare. His father speaking out. Grim Discovery, Colorado police finding over 100. bodies at an eco-friendly funeral home, now accusing the management of improperly storing remains,

complaints coming in about an abhorrent smell. We talked to a widow reliving her husband's death. Stalker in the skies, a man accused of flying a plane over a woman's home, now pleading not guilty to several charges, including stalking and resisting arrest. A police officer even accusing him of throwing tomatoes from the plane, what we know about the new restraining order. Plus, an Australian rower rescued a hundred miles from shore, attempting to shatter a world record in a homemade boat. His journey starting last year in Peru and ending in the last leg. The rower found dehydrated and sunburned, but amazingly alive. How his emergency distress beacon saved his life. And Florida boaters usually see gators and manatees, but here's a captain, nobody there expected.

A black bear caught on camera hanging out on a catamaran at a ritzie yacht club. voters in the area watching the bear for nearly an hour right next to a busy downtown area. Top story starts right now. Good evening. I'm Ellison Barber in for Tom Yamas. We begin top story tonight with growing pressure at the border, strained communities from Texas to California asking for federal help and the White House facing increasing fallout for this growing crisis. This is the reality. On average, over 9,000 migrants arrive at the border every day this week. Even cities, hundreds of miles from the border, they are starting to feel the strain. And now the White House taking steps to build

more border wall, the decision kicking up a political firestorm. The president laying blame on Congress saying only they have the power to stock construction. Now members of his party are furious with Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez saying Biden has broken a promise. And today, a stark reminder of the dangerous journey migrants take to get to the United States. A bus crash today in southern Mexico killing at least 18 and injuring dozens more, including children. The migrants on board from Peru and Venezuela. That was the second deadly crash in Mexico this week. A truck carrying Cuban migrants turned over on a highway just a few days ago.

NBC News correspondent Morgan Chesky is on the ground in Texas with more. Tonight on the border, the ongoing surge in illegal crossings, averaging more than 9,000 a day in just the last week. Border officials tell NBC News. And now new fallout after that broken campaign pledge from President Biden, funding nearly 20 miles of new border wall in Star County, Texas. The president again today defending the decision. Well, I was told that I had no choice. I can't say I don't like it. I'm not going to do it.

The money allocated by Congress during the Trump administration. Mr. Biden saying he tried to get lawmakers to change it, but they refused, and the law required the wall money to be spent. Now he's facing bipartisan criticism, including from key Democrats, upset over the new wall. I think it's a terrible idea. I think it's a broken promise. After then-candidate Biden said this during the campaign. There will not be another foot of wall constructed on my administration. While Republicans say Biden border policies are encouraging the migrant service, Reactions tonight here in Star County, where the additional wall would go up.

We need more, more 20 miles, make it 40 or 60. County Judge Eloveris says he still has not been told where exactly the wall would go. We have a lot of questions, and personally, a lot of things that I don't agree with. The Rio Grande Valley needs a solution, but you don't believe the wall is the answer. Exactly. The move comes, as so many keep making the dangerous trek north. At a border shelter, we met Gracia from Venezuela and Rosa from Ecuador, who say they were robbed in Mexico and frightened, but want to work hard here for their families, a dream shared by so many others that today, while visiting Mexico City, New York City's mayor Eric Adams shared what he says is the sobering reality, with New York City's resources stretched thin by 120,000 migrants. We want to give a real picture of what's happening in New York City.

We are at capacity. And Morgan joins us now from Mission, Texas. So Morgan, there seems to be a lot of differing opinions where you are in Texas about this wall being built. What more have you learned from the community there? Allison, they're confident that it will go up. As for when this border wall portion, about 20 miles will actually be placed in Star County. That is a very big question. I didn't speak with the county judge here who says that while he's seen a layout of where it would

potentially go, he still doesn't know its exact track, although he is hearing that it could be movable, which would certainly be a departure from the permanent portions of border wall that we've seen installed, especially during the Trump administration here in the Rio Grande Valley. Allison? And Morgan, what else do we know about why the Biden administration had to act on this right now, or at least why they felt that way? This is interesting. The White House is saying that by law, they had to spend these appropriated funds by the end of the fiscal year in 2023. That happens to be September 30th. So despite the president saying that he essentially didn't want to do this, by law, they had to spend that money by that date or face an even bigger issue of breaking the law that has been. in place now for decades. And so that is why we heard the president say repeatedly,

he wish he didn't have to do this, although he felt his hands were tied. But an important note to bring up here, Allison, that despite that the Biden administration did still waive 26 federal laws in order to facilitate the building of this border wall extension. Allison. Morgan Chesky in Texas. Thank you. Next to Capitol Hill and the showdown over who will be the next House Speaker. Republicans hoping to elect a speaker early next week with two high-profile members pushing for the job. But former President Donald Trump could be putting his thumb on the scale by endorsing one of the two. Garrett Haake has the latest. Tonight, the race for the speaker's gavel intensified, with former President Trump weighing in,

declaring conservative firebrand Jim Jordan has his, quote, complete and total endorsement. He's a great guy. He's been very successful, very respected. He's doing a fantastic. job right now. And he's been with me all the time. I mean, literally from as I was announcing that I was running, he was endorsing me. And there's something nice about that. Some House Republicans had pushed for Trump to run for Speaker, with Jordan facing off against the House GOP's current number two, Steve Scalise. I've got a long proven record. Somebody who knows how to unify Republicans. Republicans hoping to select a speaker next Wednesday. This time next week, do you think this is settled? Look, I think it's going to take a little bit of time. Is it possible to get there on

Wednesday? Sure. Is it likely? No. But many are also pushing for rules changes. So the small handful of Republicans who joined with Democrats to remove Speaker Kevin McCarthy cannot do it again. Mad Gates and those hardliners, they're a real problem. And I don't think the pyromaniacs are going to be satisfied after they've burned down one house. I think they're going to have an to go burn down a couple more. And with just weeks until the government once again faces a possible shutdown, President Biden saying today, he's willing to work with whoever emerges from the chaos. Whomever the House speakers I'm going to try to work with, they control half the Congress. Garrett Haik joins us now from Capitol Hill. Garrett, earlier some outlets were reporting that

former Speaker McCarthy is actually considering resigning from Congress before the end of his term. What can you tell us there? Well, Alison, I was with a group of reporters outside his office when McCarthy came out to try to dispel those rumors. He told us in no uncertain terms he intends to keep serving, said he would serve out the remainder of his term. Even when press said he's planning on running for re-election, the only other recent speaker to stay on the job after losing the speakership in one way or the other has been Nancy Pelosi, McCarthy's former foil. I'll be interested to see whether Congressman McCarthy feels the same way around Christmas time or so. after several months, not having all those perks and trappings of leadership. But for now, the Congressman from Bakersfield says he's sticking around, Alison.

Garrett Hake, thank you. Now to former President Trump's ongoing legal troubles and the civil trial in New York that could bring down his business empire. On the fifth day of the trial, a former Trump organization, Senior VP, Jeffrey McCona, testified that Alan Weisselberg, the former CFO, asked for his help in committing tax fraud. NBC News legal analyst Danny Savalos joins us now. So, Danny, let's start with this fairly dramatic testimony we heard in court today, right? You had McCona take the stand and testify, not just that fraud occurred or he witnessed it,

but he basically said he felt like it was a requirement of his job that his boss asked him to do this. If he didn't do it, he thought he was going to be fired. What did you make of it? I'm glad you mentioned some of the earlier testimony because the whole Weisselberg ordered me to do it part really came at the end in a kind of blockbuster. But throughout McCona's testimony, he spent a lot of time talking about essentially what are, of course, alleged fraudulent valuations. And the ledger domain, the sleight of hand that was used to value these properties is tricky to understand. But once you realize what they were allegedly doing, it was quite a racket they seemed to have going there.

And then at the end of the day, you bring in that testimony about Weisselberg. And he's essentially saying, keep in mind, McCona is one of the defendants. He's saying essentially, that guy made me do it, which, look, a lot of times witnesses get on the stand and they try to foist the blame somewhere else. But either way, that's a good piece of testimony for the AG's office. So it's interesting because the judge in this case, or at least it is to me as an outsider, he previously did issue a ruling that basically said, yep, fraud occurred here, let's proceed with the trial. But fraud absolutely occurred and didn't mince words when he made that determination previously. But then the appellate court, they've issued a temporary stay, right, that pauses the cancellation of the former president's business certificates in New York City, something that we thought

with that last determination was going to just go into effect immediately. Is that surprising? Is that interesting? And what does it mean for the business moving forward? It's not surprising to me. In a sense, this is kind of like a decision on a restraining order. Look, if we hit a pause button on canceling these business certificates, will we prevent some irreparable harm. And when you think about it, it makes sense. If you cancel those business

certificates today before the outcome of the trial, maybe even before what happens in the appellate courts, then a lot of businesses are left in kind of limbo about how they're owning properties and people's jobs are involved. So I think it was the prudent thing for the appellate division, the first department, to issue a temporary stay until the outcome of the trial. Now, if you were betting on the outcome of the trial in which the trial judge has already said fraud occurred and there's only a few issues remaining to decide at trial, if you're betting, then probably the cancellation of the business certificates will hold. But it is the prudent, safe thing in situations like this where you have this kind of irreparable harm that could occur. It doesn't surprise

me. But keep in mind, they tried at the trial court, and the judge wasn't going for it. So they had to go to the first department, the appellate division, and they were more receptive. But also, the attorney general themselves had said, look, we're open to this. We're open to waiting on the cancellation of the business certificates. So let's just wait and see what happened. So for that reason, it wasn't a surprise. Okay, so we have so many different newspegs that mentioned the former president today. We had him on Capitol Hill related to the speaker stuff. We're talking about the New York civil trial. There's also this other scenario that allegedly took place in Florida at Marlago. This is new reporting from the New York Times and ABC News, where they say,

according to sources, the former president mentioned classified information related to nuclear submarines and some sort of conversation he had with an Australian billionaire, a businessman. Based on that reporting, the New York Times, they say this is something that special counsel, Jack Smith, and his team were aware of and that they have perhaps already interviewed this businessman. What do you make of that scenario for viewers who are looking at that and saying, wait a minute, that guy's name, Pratt, that wasn't in any sort of indictment we already saw where a lot of other names were mentioned. What does that mean for the special counsel's investigation as it relates to the classified documents case at Mar-a-Lago?

It could mean that the special counsel is interested in possibly using Pratt as a witness to generally talk about that Donald Trump was somebody who was loose with classified information. Now, that's not an easy thing to get into evidence because the defense would probably argue, hey, that's what we call character evidence. You're basically introducing other bad things that he did to say that he did this bad thing. And normally, that's not allowed. But, Alison, I can tell you with firsthand experience, that that rule has. so many exceptions, you could drive a truck through it. And the government will certainly find a way to get in that evidence. I mean, the real rule in my mind is the judge thinks it's interesting enough. It's probably coming in, even if it might be improper character evidence. The judge

might just call it something else, such as his propensity, or I should say, the lack of mistake and the fact that this was not an accident and he had done it before. All right, Danny Savalos, thank you for helping us make sense of all of that. We appreciate your time. Now to the forecast and post-tropical cyclone, Felipe, taking aim at New England, bringing more wet and windy weather to the area that was already hit hard. Heavy rainfall totals potentially reaching five inches with wind gusts threatening flooding. So let's get right to NBC News meteorologist Bill Karens. Bill, what's the latest on the track?

Could we see a repeat of last Friday? We hope not, right? That was only seven days ago that we had like waterfalls in the subways in New York City. And once again, the region is under a flash flood watch. It's almost a similar type setup. We got a cold front. We've got tropical moisture. We're going to have slow-moving storms.

It's not going to be widespread. It's going to be very narrow. So it's not even going to be through this whole region, but it's going to be somewhere near New York City. Could be New Jersey, it could be the Hudson Valley. It could be over Nassau County or in Connecticut. But someone's going to get a significant amount of rain. The heavy rain band will be from the south to the north. This computer model has it over Queens, Westchester, and right along the Connecticut border.

But again, we'll see where that develops. It's going to be like 5 a.m. to like 10 a.m. That's the threat period. We'll see where that sets up in the morning. But the ground is so saturated. Rivers are still a little high. It's not going to take a lot to get significant flash flooding all over again. So we had Felipe, and then that got absorbed by this huge ocean storms.

Now all this tropical moisture is heading northwards. At the same time, this cold front's kicking through. They're going to collide, and that's why we're going to get so much rainfall this week. And another washout. I saw someone post that it's been seven weeks since Boston had a dry Saturday and Sunday. I mean, every weekend, it's been like a period of rain. Saturday is the worst for Boston and all of Northern New England. Sunday is a little bit better.

It's also a huge financial loss for this area. too. These leaves are at peak in northern New England, and we're going to pick up one to three inches of rain. Saturday is just going to be a washout for the region. Sunday's a little better, Allison. But hopefully in New York City, we'll find out just how bad it will be tomorrow morning. Good reminder there, too, how significant the weather is and impacting so many facets of life. Thank you for being here and breaking that down. Bill Cairns, we appreciate you. Now that the ongoing fentanyl crack down right here in New York City, law enforcement raiding a suspected drug mill just three doors down from a daycare. The raid, just the latest law enforcement

after the death of a one-year-old boy at a nearby daycare. NBC Stephanie Gossk reports. Tonight, another major fentanyl bust in New York City, state and federal agents wheeling out pill presses like this from a Bronx home. This type of equipment often used to make pills laced with fentanyl. I'm baffled. I am truly baffled with everything that's going on here. Senior law enforcement sources telling NBC New York four men are under arrest in connection with the ongoing investigation. Just three doors down, a daycare center. They live right next to, what is that, like a head start, and, you know, it's like three buildings down.

Come on, that's crazy. This bust coming just weeks after the tragic death of one-year-old Nicholas Domenici at a different Bronx daycare, after officials say he was exposed to fentanyl. Nicholas's father breaking down as he held up a photo of his son. We are really emotional because we remember. every single detail from this tragic day it's really hard to us. Investigators say six kilos of fentanyl, heroin and other controlled substances were found under this trap door at the daycare, concealed under a padded mat where children napped,

including Kiara and Abel Garcia Penna, seen in this photo taken prior to the incident. Come on. The eight-month-old and the two-year-old were among the three children who were also exposed and rushed to the hospital. Well, I'm very upset. I feel very sad. I feel very sick because I think about it every day. That is the same thing, the same thing.

Day and night. A moment I'm okay, moment I'm not okay. What we have to do is make sure that this never, ever, ever happens again to another child. The daycare's operator, Gray Mendez, her husband, Felix Herrera Garcia, and brother-in-law, Carlisto Brito, appearing before A Bronx judge yesterday all pleading not guilty and have been held without bail. The Bronx District Attorney announcing a grand jury has indicted all three for Nicholas' murder, among other charges. Our sorrow is matched only by the outrage because these babies were used as shields to protect

a narcotics operation. This is death was entirely excruciatingly needless and avoidable. Stephanie Goss, NBC News. Now to the promising new jobs report just out today, the U.S. adding roughly 336,000 new jobs in September. That's doubling market projections. Today, President Biden touting his economic policy, saying they're responsible for that growth. We have the highest share of working age Americans in the workforce. in 20 years.

And it's no accident. It's Bidenomics. We're growing the economy from the middle out, the bottom up, not the top down. For more on this new jobs report, I want to bring in Tom Costello to help us break down some of these numbers. Tom, this report, everybody seems to be saying, wow, great news, crushing expectations, a lot of big buzzy phrases around it, right? Good news for the American workforce. Break it down for us, though.

How do these numbers compare to other jobs reports? as good as everyone seems to be saying? This is a blowout report. Make no mistake about it. September had very strong job growth, and that means employers continue to hire, and that may suggest a recession is not on the horizon. Now, the unemployment rate remains a 3.8 percent, and that's close to a 54-year low. And you heard President Biden taking some credit for that today, but the bottom line here

is that this economy continues to turn out jobs. That's dramatic. And July and August, jobs numbers were also revised up. More jobs then. Hourly wages have increased moderately. But here's the problem now. The Fed has been hiking interest rates to try to slow the economy and bring inflation down, right? The Fed wanted to see fewer jobs created as a sign that inflation is cooling.

Instead, it got this hot number. So will the Fed continue to hike or might it pause? that's what the big issue is right now. Now, higher interest rates have already helped push mortgage rates to a dramatic 7.8% for a 30-year fixed rate, the highest in 23 years. So we'll see how this plays out. All eyes are on the Fed right now.

Do we have a Goldilocks economy? Not too hot, not too cold, and in fact, adding a lot of jobs. So, Tom, is all of that why we've seen a reaction from Wall Street? Talk to us about the stock market. Yeah, you're absolutely right. At the beginning, when the numbers first came out, Wall Street tanked, right? And then as the day progressed, people started thinking, wait a minute, we may have a Goldilocks

economy. Maybe it is possible that we can continue to create jobs, have a low unemployment rate, 54-year low, despite high interest rates. This is kind of going against all the conventional wisdom about economics 101, and they're now having to rewrite the textbooks. books. But that's why this is such a really a confounding economy. And now people are thinking maybe we should think of this more as glass half full rather than half empty. All right. Tom Costello, thank you. We appreciate it. You bet. Still ahead tonight, an urgent man hunt in Philadelphia.

Police issuing a warrant for a man who they believe shot a journalist in his home, why they say he's their primary suspect. Plus, a grim discovery in Colorado. Why hazmat teams had to move in at this funeral home that claims to be environmentally friendly. And stalker in the skies, a pilot accused of flying over a woman's home, even throwing tomatoes at her, how he's explaining that strange behavior and what we're hearing from his alleged victim. Stay with us. Back now with a story of an alleged stalker in the sky, a New Hampshire man arrested after a woman

accused him of flying his plane over her home, taking pictures of her property and even throwing tomatoes from the sky. NBC Boston's Kirsten Glavin spoke to that man and his alleged victim and has that story. Do you believe that you're a stalker in this case? Absolutely not. Long-time pilot Michael Arnold denying all claims that he's been stalking a woman in New York by circling his small plane around her house for the past four years. She's a saying I'm stalking her. How do you stalk somebody from the air? The whole thing is ridiculous. She's a nut. The Manchester man arrested in Bennington, Vermont on Tuesday after a lengthy FBI investigation. Arnold claims he was just taking photos for the town's Facebook community page.

I post pictures on the Skylarville community page. In November, I was sitting in the park for Hardy Park in Schuylerville. Mine did my own business. And the next day I got arrested. The beef beginning when Arnold says he got food poisoning from eating bad food at the woman's restaurant in Skylerville. And I sent her a couple of nice e-mails, no swearing or nothing in it, and just basically told her to grow up. But according to that woman, Cassie Willis, that wasn't what he sent. I all of a sudden get an email. I open it up and it's bondage photos of him. and young Asian women just a full thread. Willis says she blocked Arnold, but that he continued to send her photos of her house from the air,

and at one point even dropped tomatoes on her car and in her neighbor's yard. It just sounded like huge droppings, and when they went out, it was tomatoes and just like, just from the sheer, you know, force coming down from an airplane, which could potentially impale a small child. With a restraining order and countless complaints, Willis says matters only escalated. State troopers asked him to see his phone, and it was locations that I had been, that he had been following me and he had photos all of me. So at that time, instead of harassment, they were able to charge him with stalking. Arnold now facing felonies and other criminal charges, including violating a protection order. The 65-year-old pleading not guilty in court,

again on Thursday. At this point, I'm just trying to stay out of jail. Yep, that's him. Willis saying she's hopeful her nightmare will end for the sake of her daughter and women everywhere. It's been part of our life. We've just been so used to, like, me having a soccer and him being in my life. I'm very blessed.

I'm so lucky. And I know that. But like, any day could be my unlucky day. Kirsten, thank you. Now to a shocking story out of Colorado, investigators finding more than 115 improperly stored bodies in a funeral home near Denver. Hasmat teams called in after neighbors complained about a terrible smell coming from the property. NBC's Valerie Castro has this story. Tonight, a gruesome discovery inside this Colorado funeral home.

Without providing too much detail to avoid further victimizing these families, there of the funeral, home, where the bodies were improperly stored, was horrific. More than 115 bodies found improperly stored inside the 2,500 square foot site, according to the Fremont County Sheriff. Hasmat teams called to secure the building as law enforcement executed a search warrant. It is a very tragic situation, and as I've stated, there are a lot of decedents there, but I don't really want to go into the scene itself. The disturbing discovery made at the return-to-nature funeral home in Penrose, about 100 miles south of Denver.

The business's website offering green burials without embalming. Bodies often laid to rest in biodegradable caskets like this one made of Wicker, or in some cases, buried in nothing at all. State records show the funeral homes registration with the state expired on November 30th of last year. The State Department of Regulatory agencies documenting complaints about an abhorrent smell emanating from the property on October 3rd, according to this report. When investigators reached the owner John Holford by phone, he acknowledged that he has a problem at the property and claimed that he practices taxidermy there. The Hallfords did not return our requests for comment. We want to process this scene as quickly as possible. The county sheriff declaring a local emergency

disaster calling in state and federal agencies, including the FBI, to provide specialized support. These are teams with additional training and specialized equipment that serve to process scenes of national magnitude to include the response to 9-11 and major airline incidents. The county coroner tasked with identifying the remains and notifying families. Forensic identification through fingerprints, medical or dental records where possibly DNA will need to be completed. This could take several months. Return to Nature also operated a second location in nearby Colorado Springs. Mary Simon says she entrusted her husband Daryl's remains to that facility for cremation in August and was still waiting to receive his ashes. I'm devastated. I feel like I've lost my husband all over again.

Now she's nervous about where he could be. I'm terrified that my husband's in that mess there. I'm terrified that he didn't get cremated. And Valerie joins us now in studios. So Valerie, listening to that woman, you can understand. her anguish, her worry? What sort of charges, if any, could the owners be facing? So right now the sheriff's department says that's unclear and that will all be part of this longer investigation, but that could take several months. The state regulatory agency that wrote up that report, they do allege that the owner attempted to conceal the improper storage of human remains. So that will probably play into that investigation. The FBI is also

launching a federal investigation to see if any federal laws were violated. And Ellison, we should note that in the state of Colorado, it is not required to have a license to be an individual funeral home operator, only the businesses require to be licensed with the state. Valerie Castro, thank you. When we come back, a consumer alert, two popular candies pulled off the shelves after the death of a child. Why authorities say these Swedes could be fatal. That's next. We're back now with Top Stories News Feed, and we begin with the urgent manhunt for a murder suspect in Philadelphia. Police tonight issuing a warrant for 19-year-old Robert Edmund Davis, who they say is the primary suspect in the murder of journalist Josh Krueger.

Kruger, who is an LGBTQ-plus activist and advocate for the homeless, was shot in his home on Monday. Investigators believe the two were acquaintances, but they have not yet identified a possible motive. Police say Davis was seen in the area at the time of the murder. Body camera footage capturing the arrest of the man who police say orchestrated the murder of Tupac Shakur. The video shows police nabbing and unsuspecting Duane Keith Davis as he went on a walk in his Las Vegas neighborhood last week. Davis has been charged with murder with a deadly weapon for the 1996 killing that stunned the rap world. He is due in court for a plea hearing later this month. And a consumer alert tonight, two companies record.

calling popular candies after the death of a young child. The recall affecting 70 million units of the slime, liquor, sour, rolling liquid candy, and the cocoa candy rolling candy, which are sold in stores across the country. They contain a small sour ball that rolls on the tongue, but one of them caused a seven-year-old to choke in April after it got stuck in her throat. And a black bear getting in some R&R on a boat, members of a Ritzie Yacht Club in nature. Florida recording in absolute amazement as this unexpected guest hung out on a deck. Patrons saying they have never, ever seen this before, but experts believe the fuzzy visitor was likely just searching for food. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission has been notified and is tracking

the bear's movements. Now to a look at the labor movement and an update on the United Auto Workers Strike. The union reporting, quote, significant progress in contract talks today, announcing it would hold off expanding its strike for now. The decision comes after General Motors agreed to put its EV battery cell workers under the union's national contract. Jesse Kirsch joins me now from Streetsboro, Ohio. Jesse, let's start with that win for the UAW. Walk us through what we mean when we're talking about this inclusion of battery cell workers in the national agreement. Yeah, Alison, the UAW's president is calling this transformative. And I do want to note that General Motors is not confirming, nor are they denying this claim from the union. So we only have an official

comment from the union on this, the company not engaging on this at this point, which is important to note. But if this is in fact true, this is potentially historic for this industry, Alison, because what we're talking about here is giving the union a seat at the table for negotiate on behalf of workers in an electric vehicle battery space, something that is still being developed, something that is still growing in this country across the industry. And so this would potentially mean that the union is able to get more workers joining its ranks as there are fears about the union losing workers in its ranks with a move to electric vehicles.

These are vehicles that could potentially require fewer jobs to make them. You can hear horns honking. We've heard this all day here, this strike continues now going on for weeks. But we won't be hearing honking at additional sites for the time being because the union said it is not expanding its strike against any of the big three automakers with progress being made with GM, Ford, and Stalantis. But this news about electric vehicle batteries is really something to keep an eye on Ellison because we could see this ramp up the pressure on Stalantis and Ford to potentially try to meet what GM is now apparently offering. But again, the company not commenting on this yet. Yeah, we see the honk for the UAW sign behind you. So it's interesting to hear the reaction of community members as they're driving through

and seeing all of this still taking place for three weeks now. Jesse, the union, they were threatening to expand this strike, right? To include GM's crucial truck plant that's in Arlington, Texas. This negotiation based on what we know right now from the UAW is that move paused for now. And if you can elaborate a little more on what UAW president, Sean Feene, had to say. Yeah, so Sean Fein earlier said that just before making his announcement, GM came to them with updated offerings that led them to not expand the strike against what the union says is a highly profitable facility for the company, which makes the likes of a Chevy suburban. So large SUVs, that kind of vehicle, the union is describing this as calling the company's bluff. So that's how Sean Fain described it.

And also just want to point out one other thing, he had a T-shirt on Ellison today that said, eat the rich. So no question, there is still some pretty heated rhetoric being put out there, even as he says that progress has been made, but still no agreement. So clearly from the union's perspective, at least, there's still more work to be done. Jesse Kirsch, thank you. Coming up next, rescued at Sea, a Rower. Stranded in the Pacific Ocean, the record he was trying to set before he went overboard. Stay with us. Back now to some disturbing news out of Greenland.

Dozens of women there are demanding compensation from Denmark after they were implanted with IUDs when they were teenagers without their consent. Records show thousands of indigenous women underwent forced contraception in the 60s, as well as the 70s, an effort by the Danish government to limit birth rates. NBC's Valerie Castro has this story. Tonight, the contraception scandal in Greenland, a group of about 67 women now demanding compensation from the Danish government after they say they were forced to undergo involuntary procedures as young teens to prevent pregnancy. Najalibirth telling Danish broadcaster DR that when she was just about 14 years old,

An intrauterine device or an IUD was implanted without her knowledge of what it was under the direction of Denmark, which was Greenland's colonial ruler. I'm not doing it, I'd go out of wood, mehrave, so it's al-lipas-us-u-sou, soly, I'm not going to go back. Last year, a Danish podcast entitled The Spiral Campaign, bringing to light the effort by Denmark in the 1960s and 1970s to limit birth rates in Greenland, including among indigenous women. DR uncovering records that show 4,500 intrauterine devices were implanted without consent or knowledge in girls as young as 13, about half of the country's fertile population at the time.

Birth rates in Greenland began a steep decline in the 1960s. Both countries launching an investigation last year after the podcast with a final report expected in 2025. But the women, now in their 70s and 80s, say they've worked. waited long enough, filing a claim of compensation against the Danish government. Each asking for compensation now, about $42,000 each according to their attorney. The Minister of Interior and Health calling it a deeply tragic matter and saying in a statement, it is imperative that we thoroughly investigate this matter, which is why a team of researchers currently is conducting an independent and impartial investigation.

Denmark's Prime Minister visiting the country earlier this year. I'm really glad for we have opened the capitled about experiment children. It was necessary. Valerie Castro is back in studio with us now. So Valerie, walk us through the outcomes here. What have been the outcomes for these women? So it's been various for these different women. Some women say that they believe that they were never able to conceive,

believing that they suffered complications after having these IUDs removed. Some women say they were. adults before they realized they still had them and only found out when they went to the doctor, when they were having trouble conceiving. The woman in our story, she says she did have difficulty getting pregnant, but she was able to give birth to a child when she was 35 years old. Valerie Castro, thank you. We appreciate it. Now the top story's Global Watch, and we begin with tense moments in the South China Sea. Footage shows the Chinese Coast Guard coming within feet of a Philippine vessel, one that it was apparently trying to block. China claims the ship entered the

waters without the permission of the Chinese government as both countries continue to fight over who controls that critical waterway. And then Australian rower trying to set a world record rescued in the Pacific Ocean, 24-year-old Tom Robinson clinging to this capsized boat for more than 14 hours after getting knocked over by a wave. Robinson was attempting to become the youngest person to row across the Pacific in a homemade boat. He was pulled onto a Pacific explorer cruise ship about a hundred miles south of Vanuatu. After a distress signal alerted authorities to his location, it was sunburn, dehydrated, but is expected to be okay.

When we come back, what to watch and what to listen to this weekend, the new docu series about soccer legend David Beckham, plus a new comedy, totally killer on Netflix just in time for Halloween, and the new solo music from a member of Black Pink. Stay with us. We are back now with binge-worthy, our look at the best things to watch and listen to this weekend. Joining us tonight is entertainment journalist and pop culture expert, Brian Balthasar. Brian, thank you for joining us on Top Story, as always.

So excited to get started because I've seen little teasers for this first one. This is a docu-series on Netflix, Beckham, which is about David Beckham. The icon. Is there another Beckham? One of the best living football players. We say football over there, right? Okay? Sorry, let's look. Yeah, let's look.

Yeah, yeah. My life had become something different. We were worried that he'd lose all what it'd work for because football come first and all of a sudden it wasn't. Okay, David. It definitely didn't change me. Well, it changed. There's no doubt about that.

David. It's a red card for David Bickleckle. I don't think I've ever talked about it just because I can't. Okay, so, I mean, this is. This is an incredible story because he was, first went onto a team at age 17. He has an incredible career, but it's really the story of how celebrity and his fame and then infamy because of a big moment at a World Cup game where he was red flagged because of this kind of ill behavior really put him into a deep depression and just how celebrity and fandom

and all of this affects a person, really. But there's also one viral moment that's true. I was going to say that's what I was talking about the viral moment. Yes, please, it's the best. That is what made me be like, maybe I'll watch it. Okay, so Victoria Beckham is talking about. about how she and David were both coming from working-class families. And David pops in, he's like, no, tell them, tell them the car your father drove.

And she's like, no, well, it's a long story. And eventually she's like, well, for about a year, he drove a Rolls-Royce. And we're like, okay, I love that they kept that in. I do. And I'm surprised they kept it in. It is a good moment. He pokes his head and he's like, what was it? She's like, a Rolls-Royce briefly in the 80s, and then he just pops back out like, Point Maid.

Working-class, people. But it's really interesting sort of four episodes, and I'm interested in seeing this one. It seems interesting to see the dynamics and just the totality of it. Okay, so this next one that we have, this is a spooky movie, which is just in time for Halloween. It's October. We love a spooky one. This is called Totally Killer. It's on Amazon Prime.

Let's take a look. What the f***? Excuse me. What year is it? 1987? So, as you can see, it's not just horror. It's funny. It's a funny, funny comedy.

Karen Shipka from Madman. I don't know if you watched Mad Men. She was the daughter. I'll remember him. Then see Sabrina the Teenage, which she was on. We were a great actress, actually. And so she's basically going back in time, kind of back to the future style, as she says in it, that her mother, her friends were part of this kind of teen killing, this sweet 16 killing.

the sweet 16 killings, and she goes back in time kind of by accident to then try and save them and change the course of history. But it's fun and funny and like the perfect kind of horror. I will say I am a sucker for any movie that we've done like a little bit of just like here we are in another era. Like I love the full 80s commitment. 80s are right for retelling. Like how did I wear that? It just feels good to be like, that's fair. I love it. Okay, so this next one, it's return of a series that is called Our Flag Means Death. It airs on Max. This is season two. I've never seen Blackbeard like this. I think I heard I'm pretty bad.

Yeah, I had a very rough night last night. It's a new day. No more booze. No more drugs. And more importantly, no more steed. Hello, Edward. Hi. All right, you two know each other.

Shipmates. Former. Okay, so this I've never heard of, never seen. What is this? This is an interesting one. It's about an aristocrat named Steed who becomes a pirate, right? But he's not so good at it. So the story of how he's kind of like becoming a swashbuckler. Of course to me, I don't even know what swashbuckling means, like our buckles being swashed. But there's also this kind of weird romantic tension between Steed and Blackbeard.

So there's like kind of an LGBTQ love story happening too. So this is season two and it kind of kicks off with this kind of awkward tension that they're dealing with and how he acts out on that. Is it a drama or a comedy? It's definitely got comedic to it, yeah. Okay, so like a pirate rom-com, just like all the things? I don't even know that the genre is, but it's kind of, there's kind of nothing like it.

And to me, it was an unknown, but season two, here we are, so people really enjoy it. I'm intrigued, you've sold it well. So this next one, this is a cooking show. It is Return of Kitchen Nightmares at stars Celebrity Chef Gordon Ramsey. It airs on Fox, but you can catch it on Hulu after it airs there.

Let's watch a clip. What is that? The smell. Oh my gosh, this place is a death trap. Shut it down. I can't let the business fail. I put everything I have here. It's a disaster.

If it doesn't change, it's going to kill up. I came here to help you. Welcome to your new home. It is fire! The menu is going to be shortened. And the standards go up. We're both struck by the photographer because they see it a lot and they go to a lot of places. And them all gagging.

I almost had like that reflexive, like, joint gags. I was like, why would? What are they trying to do to me? Right. So he's going to repair and help these restaurants that are in trouble. It will make you never want to eat at a restaurant again. You know, like, did you see what I just saw? And like, you know, what's happening in the restaurant when you're sitting. I'm still trying to process what that meat was. Right, but he saves some, right, I know.

He saves some of these restaurants. A lot of them that don't listen to him actually do eventually fail if they don't listen to what he says. So these are fascinating stories. I love this show. Okay. That can be a fun one, especially if you kind of want to turn your brain off a little bit. Yeah, cooking shows are good for that. Okay. So this next one, this is if you want to have a heavy, long movie. I enjoyed it in the movie theaters.

I don't know if I would watch it again, but do remember how popular that was? It is now available to stream on Netflix. You inherit too much power. You have proven you can rule yourself. Now you must learn to rule others, something none of your ancestors learned. My father rules an entire planet.

He's losing it. He's getting a richer one. You'll lose that one, too. I don't even know how you describe it in, like, 30 seconds, but Timothy Chalamee in this remake of the original epic film. So it's from a noble family that are trying to control the most valuable. What is the, it's the powder on the planet, which creates, you know, it controls travel, space travel, intergalactic travel.

It's also a psychotropic drug. Like, there's a lot going on in this movie. It's long, but it's well, really well, I think it made up over $400 million at the box office. And it's part one. There's going to be another one coming. So now's the time to watch this in the comfort of your own home. Yes.

We love that any movie that is over an hour and a half. Yeah. I'm like too long. I know. Especially with pre-me. It was like two hours of my life. I really have to think it over now because I love being at home. So this is an epic film you can watch right at home.

You can pause, take a break, get a snack, come back. Okay, we love it. So let's move on to music. Blink 182, which for me, like a peak 90s kid, I love me some Blank 182. They have a new song out. This one is called Dance With Me. Listen. in New Jersey, I have the exact same brand, which they're wearing there.

You are the music icon right now. I'm not saying I'm super cool, but I'm saying I'm like as cool. Obviously, this is a tribute to the Ramones. It's a love letter to the Ramones and the video recreates iconic parts of their career. In fact, the scene that starts this video out is an interview that the Ramones actually did and it's kind of parodying that. And so they love the Ramones. And so the whole video is a tribute to that. That is really cool. And I do love that kids these days, whatever, however you say when you're I'm getting what are listening to music. I do, yeah, exactly.

And it did slap back then. Still good now. Still does. Okay, so this next one, this is Jenny. She is from the K-pop superstar group Black Pink, but she's ventured out on her own. She has a solo song out. It's called You and Me.

I really like it. Nothing in the world you'll make me feel the way you do the things you do. I love you and me. Dancing in the Moonloon. Why can't you, it's just you and me, to know. I love you and me, dancing in the moonlight, nobody can see. Why can everybody dance nowadays? I know, right?

I know. Everyone has abs and everyone can do this. I can't take it. But this is a bop, right? It's it really is. And what's so interesting, often when artists go on a solo bout there, that is kind of separate from the group. But this is kind of in partnership with Black Pink,

because she performed this song to open up a Black Pink concert. So it's kind of a friendly collaboration where there's sort of a friendly collaboration, collaboration where they're supporting this, because her last single was maybe four years ago, so she doesn't do them very often, but she's clearly very popular, and she's got a movie career going right now and an acting career. So for Black Pink fans, this does not mean Black Pink is done. I do not believe that it is done. I think they're going to let that cash cow keep on mooing for a long time. It's doing quite well. Yeah. All right. Brian Balthazar, thank you so much for being here. We appreciate it. Always fun. And thank you at home for watching Top Story for Tom Yamis. I'm

Ellison Barber in New York. Stay right there. More news now is on the way.