Top Story with Tom Llamas - Monday, July 24, 2023

Episode Date: July 25, 2023

The Department of Justice sues Texas over the controversial buoy border installed in the Rio Grande. The Obamas confirm that the man who died while paddleboarding off Cape Cod was their personal chef. A former Northwestern University quarterback sues the school alleging that he was the victim of sexual abuse. New images show hundreds of migrants trapped inside trailer trucks in Mexico. Elon Musk rebrands Twitter as "X." And Barbie and Oppenheimer take the box office by storm on opening weekend.

Tonight, breaking news. The Department of Justice has now sued Texas over buoys placed in the Rio Grande. The civil lawsuit alleging Texas has violated federal law by building the barrier and is asking a judge to order its removal. The state's Republican governor Greg Abbott, defiant, writing a letter to President Biden saying Texas has the right to protect its, quote, sovereign territory. So what happens next? Our team on the ground at the southern border tonight. Also breaking, former President Obama confirming one of his longtime important. employees died while paddle boarding that was near the Obama's home in Martha's Vineyard. The late details just coming in. Police dog mauling, the disturbing body camp footage showing a canine attacking a suspect whose hands were raised in surrender.

Another trooper heard on video telling the dog's handler not to release it, but he does anyway. The dog's handler now had administrative leave and some questioning why he was allowed to stay on the job for weeks. New hazing lawsuits at Northwestern University, a former quarterback now also, detailing allegations of violent sexual hazing within the football program, including alleged sexual assaults on a minor. This complaint coming two weeks after the school's long-time football coach was fired over more hazing claims. And now a volleyball coach at the university also coming under fire.

Plus the surveillance videos capturing the moment that a car sped through a San Francisco neighborhood crashing through an embankment, then tumbling down to the street below. What witnesses say happened next? and Twitter rebranding, Twitter ditching its iconic Bluebird logo, and now known as just X. What that change will mean for users. Top story starts right now. And good evening. I'm Sam Brock in for Tom Yamis tonight.

We begin with the DOJ, suing Texas over its floating barrier in the Rio Grande. Now, the growing legal battle right now centered on a thousand foot stretch of the border. in Eagle Pass, Texas. Those buoys intended to deter migrant crossings connected by razor wire and extending a foot underwater. The White House calling the barrier dangerous and unlawful as the DOJ's lawsuit alleges it was illegally built

in federal waters. The state's Republican Governor Greg Abbott defiantly penning a letter to President Biden today, writing in part, Texas will see you in court, Mr. President. Priscilla Thompson is on the ground in Eagle Pass, and she leads us off tonight. Tonight, a battle over border. border security now poised to play out in court. With the Biden administration suing Texas

over these floating barriers in the Rio Grande between Mexico and Eagle Pass, Texas. A thousand foot line of buoys that this Honduran couple told us they saw and avoided as they crossed into the U.S. this afternoon. She's eight months pregnant. Why did you decide to come to the U.S.? Because my brother was killed in Honduras, he told us. Tonight, the Justice Department demanding Texas remove the barriers. The White House calling them dangerous and unlawful, saying they put migrants and border agents in danger. Governor Greg Abbott put the barriers up at this hot spot for illegal border crossings, saying the Biden administration was not doing enough to stop migrants. Abbott writing today, Texas will fully utilize its constitutional authority to deal with the

crisis you have caused. Texas will see you in court, Mr. President. The buoys spin if you try to climb over them and extend a foot underwater so you cannot swim under them. Hugo Urbana owns a pecan orchard on the river where that Honduran couple crossed over and says migrants cross here all the time. He agrees with Abbott that more should be done to secure the border, but says the buoys are not the answer. It's not keeping anybody from not crossing. Migrant advocates say they worry about migrants drowning while trying to cross the

floating barriers. We ask Congressman Tony Gonzalez, who represents Eagle Pass. Do you support the buoys? You know, the buoys are a deterrent, and I think it's a positive deterrent. But it's one, once again, it's a quarter of a mile out of over a thousand miles of border. So it's really the shiny object in this. Do you believe they will cause more deaths? I don't know if it's going to increase in numbers, but it's certainly not going to help.

All right, and Priscilla Thompson joining us now from Eagle Pass this evening. Priscilla, we know those buoys are right there behind you at the center of this controversy. Texas Culey has taken its stance. So the question now, what happens next? Do we know if the barriers are actually going to stay in place while this legal battle is playing out? Well, Sam, no court date has been set for now, and the Justice Department has not filed for an emergency injunction, which means for now the buoys will stay in the water. Sam? All right, it is ongoing clearly.

Priscilla, thank you so much. Joining us now is Kate Lincoln Goal. Now, she is an immigration attorney in Texas to break this all. down. Kate, obviously there are a lot of layers here. The DOJ saying that the buoys, quote, raise humanitarian concerns. That's one component. But it also sounds like the legal argument might be around the rivers and Harbors Act, this law that is over a century old and building buoys in federal waters. So can you sort of delve into the details of this lawsuit for us? Sure. And it's rare to see the DOJ step in like they have after actions like a governor is taking

in the situation. And I think that's because this is such an egregious situation. There's the environmental concerns, the humanitarian concerns, and the legal concerns. And the DOJ is saying this violates the Rivers and Harbors Act, which allows the federal government to decide when structures are placed in water that might impede the flow of water. It might impede the flow of, you know, commerce. And so they are filing this lawsuit in federal court. I think we will see very quickly probably an injunction in place because it's very clear

that what Abbott is doing is violating federal law. It's not within his jurisdictional authority to place these buoys. Any arguments that he's making are not well steeped in the law, and it's inevitable that after spending more tax and taxpayer money, Greg Abbott, will be forced to remove these buoys from the water.

Okay, so that's interesting, Kate. You do think an injunction is a possibility in this case. And also, can you respond to the sort of characterization from supporters here that it's a deterrent to having people across the border when, in fact, some people are dying. How is that going over? I mean, it's horrible. If you listen to the whistleblower reports, these are guardsmen who have been told to push

mothers with infants back into the water. A four-year-old girl was pushed back into the water. She later passed out from heat exhaustion. A woman had a miscarriage. She was entangled in the razor wire. There are photos of children caught in the razor wire. it is absolutely horrific to see. And I think certainly we're seeing both the government of Mexico saying we are not in line with this action. We're seeing the government of the United States saying we don't

agree with this action. Meanwhile, Greg Abbott is getting a lot of political attention. He's gaining mightily from this action. He's spending a lot of taxpayer money. And meanwhile, migrants are dying. You laid out the urgency of the situation, Kate. How long do you think this legal battle could take to actually resolve? In my opinion, the law is so clear on the jurisdiction. This is firmly within federal governmental authority to manage. And I think that any judge is going to issue a quick injunction. I imagine we will see quickly that these borders are ordered to be removed under an injunction.

And maybe we'll see appeals happening. And we'll see how much, how double down is Greg Abbott going to be? how much more money will he spend fighting this battle that he will ultimately lose? All right, a lot up in the air at the moment. Kate Lincoln, Goldfinch, thank you so much for your expertise there. We move now to the deadly heat wave sweeping the country, tens of millions still unable to escape this oppressive heat that has turned increasingly dangerous, killing dozens since the start of the summer.

Miguel Almagher is following all of it from a sweltering Arizona. More than just record-breaking. Tonight, these blistering, unbearable summer conditions continue to turn deadly. Every time I step in the sun, I just think about how I'm getting cooked alive. As the sun rose and records fell today, 49 million people across 12 states are under heat alerts. From the beaches of Miami... I mean, there's nothing compared to something like this. To the desert of Phoenix.

Both cities have been smashing historic heat records for weeks. Across the globe, extreme temperatures, fueling epic wildfires in green. where our Josh Letterman reports thousands have been evacuated. We're watching the flames slowly creep up over this hill behind me. The heavy winds kicking up those flames. This area being evacuated, it is now eerily quiet here. With dangerous triple digit temps expanding across much of the U.S., tonight a new study says the risk of a fatal heart attack may double on days with both extreme heat and

high levels of air pollution. A dramatic rescue was captured on the Citizen App in Los Angeles as firefighters airlifted two hikers, overcome by heat. 24-year-old Kai Torres Bronson lost his life after helping others on a trail while mountain biking in San Diego. It brings the family some comfort knowing that our Kai Kai died the way that he lived, going out of his way to help others. Doctors warn older adults are at greater risk, but even the young must have. precautions. When our core body temperature raises to above 106, which is our definition for that heat stroke, that stresses all systems on the body. With a troubling and growing number of heat-related fatalities reported in national parks and on popular local trails, tonight a record-breaking

summer and a deadly heat wave threatening lives. Park rangers across the southwest tonight are worried about hikers and trails for the first time in a long time. This trail outside of Phoenix was actually shut down, but not before we saw dozens of people make the four-mile loop in triple-digit heat. As you can see out here, if you don't have shade and you don't have water, this trail can quickly turn deadly. Sam? Incredibly daunting, to say the least. Miguel Almaguer, thank you so much. We move now to power and politics and the growing controversy over new black history standards right here in Florida, Governor Ron DeSantis, facing some heavy criticism from Democrats and also a fellow GOP

candidate after a state's education board approved a curriculum teaching that slaves, quote, benefited from the skills they learned while enslaved, understandably, many people very angry about that. For more on the fallout, let's bring in Gabe Gutierrez, who's been covering the DeSantis campaign for us for weeks here for NBC News and joins us now from New York. Gabe, it seems like there has been some efforts on DeSantis's part to deflect here. How is the DeSantis campaign responding to this criticism of these new black history standards? Well, hey there, Sam. Governor DeSantis is trying to distance himself from the new state. late last week during a campaign stop in Utah, saying he didn't have anything directly to do with a revised curriculum. Still, he called them probably the most robust African-American history standards in the country, and he labeled Vice President Kamala Harris' criticism absolutely ridiculous. Basically, his administration is arguing that the new standards don't teach students that slavery was generally beneficial, but rather that some slaves ended up learning trades that they ended up using to their advantage later on. life. Still, Sam, as you can imagine, even that interpretation is becoming very controversial.

Yeah, we're definitely seeing that reaction playing at in real time, Gabe. And now let's talk a little bit about the politics of this as well. Democrats have been hammering DeSantis for the decision. Kamala Harris, as you mentioned, has been out front very vocal leading the charge on the criticism. How much do we expect this to play into the party's sort of overall campaign strategy moving forward? Well, yes, Sam, Democrats are definitely lashing onto this issue, but both at the state and national level. The vice president spoke about it Thursday, Friday, and just today in Chicago. Take a listen.

They now push forward revisionist history. They push propaganda. They suggest that enslaved people benefited from slavery as they insult us in attempt to gaslight us. Well, we will not have. As you see right there, this is yet another culture war that both the DeSantis administration and his Democratic opponents are not backing down from, Sam. All right, and here's another really interesting question, Gabe.

We know that you mentioned Governor Christie, former governor, was very critical about this, but how was the rest of the GOP primary field right now reacting to these new black history standards? Well, yes, Chris Christie definitely slammed Governor DeSantis in an interview yesterday saying the governor started this fire and now doesn't want to take response. responsibility. Another GOP candidate will heard says that slavery was not a jobs program. Still, mostly silence from the rest of the GOP field, Sam. All right, that's silence speaking of volumes. Gabe Gutierrez, thank you so much for that report tonight. We turn now to some breaking news out of Martha's Vineyard, a man who died while paddleboarding off of Massachusetts coast, identified late

today as President Obama's personal chef, George Solis, says the details and the reaction coming in from the former first family. Tonight, tragedy at the Obama family estate on Martha's Vineyard. Mail, it's on a paddleboard, no life preserver. They have not had eye contact on him. They have recovered the board as well as a hat. Former White House sue chef and personal chef to President Obama, Tafari Campbell found dead after an apparent paddleboarding accident,

according to Massachusetts State Police. We got a little limited to my daylight to try and identify where the industry. Former president and first lady writing in a statement. Tafari was a beloved part of our family. Our hearts are broken that he's gone. Discovery made an Edgartown Great Pond of body of water that borders the sprawling estate the Obama's purchased in 2019. Police got the call Sunday night and never came up. Two law enforcement sources tell NBC News the Obamas were not home when the incident occurred.

Two days earlier, another disaster in the water, just roughly 30 miles away. 17-year-old Sadie Morrow, a standout lacrosse star, killed in a boat crash that left five others injured in Cape Cod. Her high school principal, writing in part, our school community is devastated and heartbroken. She had a heart of gold and the sweetest spirit. The director of her lacrosse team telling NBC News, Sadie brought light and positivity to every game, win or lose, and that she was someone who celebrated everyone's success. In Missouri, this pile-up of debris in the Ozarks may look. like storm damage, but it's the aftermath of a wild boat crash.

Amazingly, no one was killed, but eight people were injured. Very chaotic. A lot of EMS. It was very busy sorting this out. Police say the boat went airborne and flipped after hitting the shoreline. A California man at the helm now charged with boating while intoxicated. These individuals suffered some pretty life-changing, life-altering injuries. And it all, in my opinion, in my opinion, opinion could have been avoided. Last year, the Coast Guard recorded more than 4,000 accidents that led to more than 630 deaths on the water with more than 12 million registered recreational vessels in the U.S.

Experts stressed the importance of wearing life jackets, abiding by boating laws, and exercising good judgment went out in the water. George Solis, NBC News. And obviously so much tragedy, George, over the weekend you mentioned the statement a second ago, But what else right now are we learning about what the Obama's said? And also back to the paddle border who died in Martha's Vineyard. Are they really expounding a little bit on the life that he lived in their relationship? Yes, Sam, the former first family is absolutely devastating. You get that sense from the statement.

I'm going to read a little bit more about what the Obama's had to say about him. They said when we first met him, he was a talented sous chef at the White House, creative and passionate about food and its ability to bring people together. In the years that followed, we got to know him as a warm, fun. extraordinary kind person who made our lives a little brighter. That's why when we were getting ready to leave the White House, we asked Defari to stay with us, and he generously agreed. He's been a part of our lives ever since.

He leaves behind a wife and two twin boys, Sam. So tragic. George, thank you very much for that. We head overseas now to Israel, where Israel's parliament has passed the first part of a controversial plan to overhaul the country's judicial system. The decision coming despite months of widespread protest. Roth Sanchez has the very latest from Jerusalem. Today, the streets of Israel erupting into chaos.

Protesters blocking major roads, chaining themselves together in front of the country's parliament. A last-ditch effort by opponents of the government's controversial plan to weaken the Supreme Court. But it wasn't enough. Israeli police are using water cannons to try to clear the roads. They're cracking down hard, but the protesters say they'll stay on the street. A car appearing to ram protesters. Police say three injured. The first part of Prime Minister Netanyahu's judicial overhaul passing 64 to zero.

His conservative religious government voting for it. While opposition lawmakers walked out in protest. The plan takes away the Supreme Court's power to nullify some government decisions. Netanyahu allies say liberal judges had been incorrectly overturning actions of the conservative majority. Netanyahu tonight saying, fulfilling the will of the voters is not the end of democracy. It's the essence of democracy. But opponents of the plans say they're afraid for their country. I'm worried about my future and my children's future.

These military reservists say they'll no longer serve in protest of the new law. Some of them, veterans of Netanyahu's old commando unit. I think he's the first dictator over Israel. And Raf Sanchez, joining us now from Jerusalem. Ralph, we know a lot of these protesters have been begging for President Biden to intervene and try to stop this judicial overhaul. The question becomes, how much weight would that carry and what are we hearing, if anything, from the White House tonight? Yeah, Sam, it has been really unusual watching the White House repeatedly weighing in on the domestic politics of a U.S. ally. But President Biden, last night before the vote, issued this kind of unusual appeal calling on Netanyahu to hit pause on this legislative.

to seek a broader consensus in Israeli society. That appeal was ignored by the prime minister who rams this legislation through parliament earlier today. And the White House tonight saying, it is unfortunate that the vote took place with the slimmest possible majority. And then, Raf, you know, you also mentioned in your story, this is just the first part of Netanyahu's plan

that the Israeli parliament has passed. So what are the next steps here? Yes, and we are really, in kind of uncharted constitutional waters in Israel right now. The Israeli opposition leader says he is going to take this law that weakens the Supreme Court to the Supreme Court and ask the judges there to strike it down. If the judges do that, nobody from the constitutional lawyers to the protesters on the street to Netanyahu himself knows what happens next.

As you said, there are a couple of other elements of Netanyahu's proposed judicial overhaul. We will see if he brings those up for a vote. One of them would give the government more control over the committee, which actually appoints judges to the Supreme Court. Sam? So a fragile position right now for the preeminent democracy in the Middle East. Ralph Sanchez, on the ground for us in Jerusalem. Thank you so much. Stang oversees now, and escalating tensions near North Korea, the country firing two ballistic missiles into the sea off its east coast late Monday.

That decision coming just hours after a U.S. nuclear nuclear. nuclear-powered submarine arrived at a naval base in South Korea. Matt Bradley is reporting on the ground from South Korea, joining us now. And Matt, what more have we learned about those short-range launches and specifically the motive or motives behind them? Yes, Sam. Well, we heard this is actually the third launch we've seen in just the last week.

And this is all a reaction, as you mentioned, to the United States stationing not one but two nuclear submarines here in South Korea. That enraged the North Koreans. and they're doing this in retaliation. And this is part of the typical modus operandi for the North Koreans. They will fire these missiles off when they feel as though they're provoked. And actually they released a statement last week saying that these two nuclear submarines, they're tantamount to some sort of nuclear provocation.

Sam? And it's not the only situation right now, sensitive situation going on for that country. Are there any updates on private second class Travis King, the U.S. soldier, who of course, was reportedly detained in North Korea, after he bolted across the border? Yeah, well, it's a good question, Sam, and we've had some really conflicting answers. Just earlier today, we heard from a top United Nations general.

He said that they had opened a conversation, the United Nations, with North Korea. Now, that was something of a breakthrough, because that would mark the first time we've actually seen or heard about real contact with the North Koreans regarding private Travis King. But then later in the day, we heard from the US State Department saying

that there had been no fresh communication in the past couple of days. that this dated back to really just a couple of days or hours right after Private Travis King bolted across the border. But you know what? No matter who you believe here, the fact of the matter, based on what I was just explaining about ratcheting up of tensions between the U.S. and North Korea, Private King chose a very bad time to dash across that border. Sam? Indeed, with conflicting information as well, still going on. Matt Bradley, thank you very much. And still ahead tonight. Police dog mauling, brutal. Body camera video showing an unarmed man attacked by a police canine.

What authorities are saying about that dog's police handler? Plus, new hazing lawsuits at Northwestern University to disturbing allegations from a former quarterback and a member of the women's volleyball team. And the urgent search going on for a missing four-year-old how his family helped to track the toddler down from the sky. Stay with us. And we're back now with the disturbing body camp video, showing an Ohio police officer releasing a canine on a black driver who was unarmed and had his hands up.

That officer is now on paid leave. NBC's Jesse Kirsch has the details. A state trooper repeatedly warned a local officer outside Columbus, Ohio, to hold on to his canine. Do not release the dog with his hands up, don't? In this edited video released by the Ohio State Highway Patrol, you can see. a suspect raise his hands in an apparent surrender. But officials say Circleville officer Ryan Speakman still unleashed his dog on the unarmed man. Get the dog off of him! Get the door! Get the out! Get the house of me! Nothing like this should ever happen to anybody. Circleville's mayor says following the July 4th incident, the officer was placed on paid administrative leave, but not right away.

Why was he not immediately put on it? I cannot answer that question. I don't know. Also new tonight, authorities releasing 911 audio. They say is from around the incident's time and location, with the caller not identifying himself, but appearing to be the suspect. Now I'm trying to figure out why they got their guns pointed to me, and they are all white people. State police say 23-year-old Jedarius D. Rose was driving this semi when an attempted traffic stop turned into a nearly 30-minute pursuit. All of them got their guns pointed directly to me. You do the lesson to what the officers are telling you. They ain't told me nothing.

They ain't told me nothing. I don't know why they're pulling me open. Then that disturbing canine Mali reminded some of the 1960s civil rights struggle. We were mortified by that behavior. I would hope that race is not a part of this incident. I can't imagine it being. Do you understand where that concern from some people comes?

Of course I understand it. Jesse joins us now from Circleville, Ohio. Jesse, obviously, that was so difficult to watch. Do we know what's happened to the suspect, Jadarius Rose, who was pulled over? Yes, Sam. Authorities say he was treated at an area hospital and charged criminally.

Records show he has been released from jail and his attorney has declined to comment to NBC News. We've also reached out to the K-9 officer involved, Officer Ryan Speakman, but we have not heard back. Sam? All right, glad to hear he is at least out of the hospital. Jesse, thank you so much. We move now to the latest on the hazing scandal at Northwestern University that continues to just add chapters.

A former quarterback now suing the school alleging he was the victim of sexual abuse. His attorney hoping that others will come forward and spark a Me Too type of movement in college sports. NBC's more, Barrett has the details and a warning that the allegations are disturbing. Tonight, hazing allegations mounting again at Northwestern University. I want protection for future players. Northwestern failed to protect us. Former quarterback and wide receiver Lloyd Yates filing a 52-page lawsuit. The pages riddled with allegations of homoerotic and violent team practices within the football

program from 2015 to 2019, including a sexual assault on an unnamed minor in 2015. Naked rope swings, naked pull-ups in front of groups of individuals. The suit describes an event called the Car Wash, where new players were four. forced to strip naked in the showers while being smothered and forced to walk in close proximity to the other players in the line. It goes on to say consequences for refusing to participate in certain activities included a practice involving a team member being forcibly dry humped by older players. The suit alleges assistant coach Mack McPherson, quote, witnessed these incidents of naked pull-ups along with other forms of hazing. The university says they are currently

reviewing the claims against McPherson. We were physically and emotionally beaten down. In some players have contemplated suicide as a result. The abuse of culture was especially devastating for many players of color. These latest allegations come two weeks after 17-year veteran football coach Pat Fitzgerald was fired. An internal investigation conducted by an outside law firm found widespread knowledge of and participation in hazing activities across football players. Fitzgerald's attorney saying no one has alleged any facts or evidence to show that Coach Fitzgerald had any knowledge whatsoever of hazing within the Northwestern football program. And yet another lawsuit set to be filed this week by a female volleyball player accuses that

team's coach of hazing and then retaliation for reporting her mistreatment. She was made to run essentially endless ladders where at each line that existed on the court, you'd have to dive on the ground. It resulted in some serious injuries to her elbows and wrists. She needed medical attention. She was bleeding. And this was all in front of her entire team and coaching staff. So it was a humiliating experience. The lawsuit alleges a history of hazing, harassment, bullying, and retaliation within Northwestern's volleyball program. Northwestern needs to absolutely get their house in order. They need to do what is necessary to restore credibility within its athletic department. There needs to be accountability for how

these things have affected athletes in the past. And then they need to do what's necessary going forward to ensure that this is over, period, and stop. The university tells NBC News that conducted an investigation about this hazing allegation in 2021, which confirmed hazing had taken place. The coach and coaching staff was suspended and, quote, appropriate disciplinary action was taken. Attorneys representing these student athletes hoping this moment will serve as a turning point. Join this Me Too moment for college sports, and let's make a difference. And Maura Barrett joining us now from Chicago. Maura, it's stunning, it's shocking, it's jarring for so many people. We know Benjamin Crump says he wants us to be the beginning of a Me Too-like movement. Does it look

like any kind of movement is catching on now that Lloyd has actually come forward? Well, that's what we're starting to see, Sam, with this volleyball player set to file her lawsuit, this week. Her lawyer told me that she gained confidence by seeing the other lawsuits that have come to light. Now, as for Yates attorney Ben Crump, he says they expect to file over 30 lawsuits in the coming weeks and months. Sam? Well, 30. Perhaps this is just the tip of the iceberg. Maura Barrett for us. Thank you so much. And coming up, a deadly Listeria outbreak in Washington State. At least three people have died so far what health officials are saying about its origin. And rapper Cuevo, reportedly on a yacht in Miami, when police were called in, the threats allegedly made by other passengers to the crew and the captain.

And back now with Top Stories News Feed, and we begin with a deadly Listeria cluster in Washington State officials in the Tacoma area say that five people have been hospitalized due to the bacteria, and three of them have done. Investigators think that the infections originated from the same place, but have not released the details so far. All of the hospitalized patients were over the age of 60 and immunocompromised. Now, Listeria is commonly found in food preparation services and in leafy greens, unpasteurized cheese, and cold cuts. A frightening crash caught on camera in San Francisco. Look at this video, which shows a car, breaking through a barrier, going off of a hill with you see from the other angle, and landing upside down. That is in Dolores Heights. It's called Heights for a reason.

Neighbors rushing to help the occupants of the car. None of them were seriously injured, thankfully. All of them fled the scene. An investigation tonight into a possible robbery on board a yacht. Here in Miami, a police report says that passengers allegedly threatened the boat's crew and the captain when they were told that their time on board was up. Eyewitnesses also claimed that the captain was robbed. Nigos rapper Cuevo was reportedly on board at the time, but he was not named in. any reports. And a toddler, good news here, rescued after he went missing for hours. An aviation

team, this is with the Ohio State Highway Patrol, spotting that child in a field. There's the aerial view. You see him right in the middle of your screen. Officers are managing to reach the child. Nobody was hurt. They say that he climbed over a fence while playing in his backyard and then just took off. We go now to the Americas, and the image is showing hundreds of migrants rescued in Mexico, new video, capturing those migrants. being trapped inside of truck trailers, abandoned on the side of the road. In the last week, Mexican officials have rescued more than 600 migrants, many of whom claim they were either sedated or drugged along the way.

Alison Barber has all the details. This is the heartbreaking moment. A group of migrants, including a child, were rescued after being abandoned by their guide on their journey to the United States. The group moved to tears after being located. located alive in the unforgiving Baja California terrain. That rescue just one in a string of operations by Mexican officials that helped recover more than 600 migrants last week.

On Friday and Saturday alone, Mexican authorities say they located more than 320 migrants, left inside, trailer boxes, all abandoned by their drivers. You can see them climbing their way out after officials say they were left behind. In addition to the precarious conditions, migrants have reported being medicated along the journey. in those conditions that crudas and desprecable as how it's traffickers.

Last week, Mexican officials say they heard similar reports after they found more than 200 migrants in the back of an abandoned truck. There, some claimed they were sedated, medicated to inhibit their basic needs. Many seen with bracelets wrapped around their arms to identify them

and crammed in the back of a trailer box, adapted to avoid X-ray detection. Ellison Barber, NBC News. Hard to even comprehend those conditions. We move now to Top Stories, Global Watch, and we begin with a deadly gymnasium collapse. This is in Northeast China, where 11 people were killed when the roof of a middle school gymnasium just caved in on Sunday. Many of those victims, young girls on a volleyball team. The team's coach found alive in the wreckage.

State media says that illegal stacking of materials on the roof might have been what caused it to cave in, but an investigation is ongoing. Russia right now accusing Ukraine of launching drone strikes directly on Moscow, footage showing the aftermath of the damage done to two non-residential buildings. One of the aircrafts reportedly falling near the Russian Defense Ministry building. Moscow's mayor says that no casualties were reported. Ukrainian drone also targeting an ammunition depot that was in Crimea. And now to the soccer world, and a Saudi Arabian soccer team offering a record-breaking bid

to try to get French soccer star, Killian Mbapé. Now Mbapapé offered 300 million euros, which equates to about 331 million U.S. dollars, if he signs with the Al-Halal soccer club. His current team, PSG, confirming the offer was given and has given him permission for the club to open negotiations directly with Mboppe. But Mbapé would become the second European soccer star to sign with the Saudi Arabian team after Cristiano Ronaldo, but he is not expected to accept that offer. Coming up next, Twitter rebrands, why the company is saying goodbye to its bird logo and hello to X.

And what does that mean for the future of the social media company? Stay with us. We're back tonight with the big announcement from Twitter, at least Twitter for the time being. The company is officially going to be rebranding to X and losing its iconic bird logo. It's the latest shift since Elon Musk purchased the social media company. But obviously a lot has happened since the first. first tweet was sent out more than 15 years ago. NBC's Maya Eagle and has this look back. It started with a tweet. A lot of amazing things started. Twitter co-founder and then CEO Jack Dorsey

launching the new social network in 2006, simply writing, just setting up my Twitter. Have you tweeted today? The new website limited posts to just 140 characters for compatibility with text messaging. I'm just going to send another little tweet. Its popularity exploding a few years later, Thanks to celebrity users like Oprah and Ashton Coucher. I believe that we're out of place now with social media where one person's voice can be as powerful as an entire news network. But its ability to share immediate breaking news from the death of Whitney Houston to the Arab Spring protests and uprisings propelled Twitter into the mainstream.

It is the easiest way to see what's happening in the world right now, live. And it breaks news for so many people. A lot of people just use it to see what's breaking and what's new in the world. In 2011, the word tweet was entered into the dictionary. And two years later, the company went public in an IPO that raised $1.8 billion. Twitter also front and center during the 2016 election, with both Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump using the site through their campaigns. And once elected, former President Trump tweeting everything from policy changes to attacks on the media. Jack Dorsey defending Twitter's longstanding policy of freedom of opinion and expression to Congress a few years later.

Our early and strong defense of open and free exchange has enabled Twitter to be the platform for activists, marginalized communities, whistleblowers, journalists, governments, and the most influential people around the world. That changed in 2021 following the January 6 attack on the Capitol when Twitter joined other social media platforms in banning Trump, quote, due to the risk of further incitement of violence. Through the years, Twitter hashtags also the center of social movements, including Black Lives Matter and Me Too. Then last year, billionaire Elon Musk bought Twitter for a whopping $44 billion after a public legal spat with the company's board.

I don't want to disrupt something for the sake of disrupting it. It's more like if there is a better product, that's great. Musk's tenure has been marked with massive changes at the social media giant, including laying off over half the staff and taking away verified account check marks unless users pay for it. And then Musk stepping down as CEO after just a few months. And in June, Linda Yakarino taking over as the company's CEO. The general idea is Linda will operate the company and I will build product. Now Twitter is facing new competition from Meta's Threads app. And the site is losing that iconic bird logo and rebranding as just X. CEO Linda Yaccarino says the move is just

the start of the company's new direction, tweeting, X is the future state of unlimited interactivity, centered in audio, video, messaging, payments banking, creating a global marketplace for ideas, goods, services, and opportunities. All right, that was my eagle and a lot to get into here. So for more on the future of Elon Musk's Twitter rebrand or X in the future of this social media company, let's bring in Tim Higgins. He is a Wall Street Journal reporter and author of PowerPlay. Tesla Elon Musk, and the bet of the century. And this is, speaking of bets, Tim, kind of an interesting one. Why now? I know is the question many people are going to be asking, why rebrand the company now?

And we've been calling it Twitter for a long time, decades, so or at least one plus decade. Is it fair to wonder, I guess, if it's still going to stick? Or people are going to be comfortable now with just X? It's going to be a name that I think a lot of people are going to take a while to kind of absorb, adopt. And for many, it might always just be that company that was known as Twitter. But the question of why now, well, it's been kind of a controversial run here in the last few weeks. You remember the month began with Elon limiting the amount of tweets that a person, a user, could read because he was in a battle with companies scraping the company's data for their AI purposes. And then we had Facebook apparent meta properties, meta platforms announced they were going to do their own Twitter rival and they launched threads.

And so really kind of a stretch of just some bad news. and here we have him essentially kind of trying to come out with something new and sparkly, the new name. I'm glad that you brought that up. Speaking of new, right? So Facebook or now meta does come out with threads. Do you think that might be the impetus for sort of rethinking the presentation of this platform? Well, Elon has had some big ambitions and big ideas for Twitter, for this property for a while. It is not just a platform for free speech, as he talks about a lot, but he sees it as kind of a building.

building blocks for something much bigger, a so-called super app, an app that would be something like WeChat in China, where a user's digital life would be at the center. It wouldn't just be for social media. It would be for communication. It would be for banking. It would be for commerce. It would be your digital life, something we see in China, but here in the U.S., we haven't seen that quite exactly play out. He thinks there's a market for it. It gets back to that original idea of one of his original startups so many years ago, which was X.com. That idea was to be the the digital bank of the, of the future, something that was really kind of ahead of its time. And now he seems to be adopting a lot of those favorite ideas and bringing them to Twitter

to X, whatever this will be. We're not quite sure. But that's kind of the bigger, broader vision for this company. So it's like this limitless potential type of idea, right? But I think a lot of people are also going to be wondering the language. I mean, this has been part of our lexicon and culture for so long. Can we not talk about tweets anymore? Do users have to think of a different way to articulate what it is they're putting out on social media? Well, is it Xing? I'm not sure. To your point, if you're a startup, you dream of having this kind of vocabulary where somebody says, I'm going to tweet, or I'm going to PayPal you, or I'm going to Venmo you, something. You want that. When your name becomes something like a

verb, that's a very good sign. And that's why a lot of analysts and critics today are questioning why Elon would want to give up this great brand name of Twitter, this almost iconic bird logo, why kind of throw that away? Well, it's Elon Musk, and he has a vision, and he is often kind of going against the grain. So we'll have to see what it really means for him and it means for us, the users. Well, is that also the point? I mean, is he trying to erase the legacy of Twitter?

Because, you know, I lived in San Francisco for a long time. I understand the vibe of the city and where this company came from. and when you talk about tweeting, it's kind of like tongue in cheek, but this X situation feels a little bit more ominous and maybe they're saying big picture. But does this fit with the vibe of the company in general? It's a new vibe. It's a new day for Twitter for X. Definitely kind of he's trying to mark a new era. And there's no doubt about it. Elon has been pushing back against the company's traditional culture, that kind of more liberal, perhaps leaning culture that you see in San Francisco. He feels like perhaps Twitter,

had been pushing back against some more conservative voices. He wants it to be a platform for everybody, for all kinds of speech, even speech you disagree with. That's kind of his bigger vision. The idea of X, though, that name really has a long history with him. As I mentioned, one of his early companies was X.com, but he named one of his cars at Tesla, the Model X. He's even named one of his children, X. Which is definitely taking it to another level. Let's go big picture, Tim. And lastly, You know, you've obviously written the book on Elon Musk and his leadership. How do you think this latest big shift at Twitter is going to impact sort of all of his businesses and his legacy in general?

Well, the long-term legacy will be, you know, years to come here as he's doing so much many different things. But this is yet another example of his enormous risk appetite, his willingness to take just huge gambols on something that he thinks he sees as the potential where a lot of people do not understand it, right? First, it was rockets to go into outer space, making electric car sexy. Now he's taking this thing, Twitter, which everybody knows and kind of understands and saying, no, I'm going to turn it on its head. I'm going to throw away its name, and it's going to be something new and potentially bigger, potentially worth way more than you thought it could be. And apparently, as journalists will be Xing in the very near future.

Tim Higgins, thank you so much from the Wall Street Journal for that. Still ahead tonight, Barbenheimer Blackbuster, the double feature, filling theaters across the globe this weekend. So how much exactly did both of these movies rake in and which flick is now the number one movie in the world? The answer is coming up. And finally, tonight, Barbie Land breaking records.

This weekend saw the biggest box office debuts of the year with the simultaneous release of Barbie and Oppenheimer. The double header dubbed Barbenheimer brought millions to the theaters in numbers not seen in more than four years. NBC, Steve Patterson, has more on this blockbuster showing. Hi, Barbie.

Barbenheimer striking box office gold and bringing fans back into theaters. Didn't they to charge. The dual release of Barbie and Oppenheimer expected to be the movie event of this summer. And living up to the hype. Both movies bringing in a combined more than 235 million in U.S. ticket sales, the biggest opening weekend of the year, and the fourth highest grossing weekend ever in America, only behind the Avengers and Star Wars. Close and I am!

Barbie, the nostalgic comedy starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling, now the number one movie in the world, raking in a worldwide total of 337 million. The film, helmed by director Greta Gerwig, is also the largest opening ever in North America for a movie directed by a woman. The fan excitement, even carrying into the film's soundtrack, with three of the movie's songs quickly climbing into the top 10 in the U.S. You are the man who gave them the power to destroy themselves. Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer also breaking records,

the three-hour thriller on the man behind the atomic bomb, seeing 180.4 milken in global ticket sales, the biggest opening ever for a biopic. In the most successful movie in IMAX this year, the way Nolan intended the film to be viewed. I know they have the IMAX 1570, and I really enjoy that. I try to see all the Chris Fernolan movies that way. AMC theaters, reporting 7.8 million moviegoers went to one of their theaters this weekend,

the best weekend for the chain since July 2019. It's essential. It's just selling movie tickets. It's the food pairings and the drink hearings. We have cocktails for adults and young people. It's all the experience that generates the revenue, which keeps us afloat. Fans also leaning into the experience. Fans also leaning into the experience, a sea of pink scene heading into Barbie screenings, one fan even designing an outfit for both movies. A five-hour double feature, tens of thousands of fans chose to do. It was a very highly anticipated watch, especially with Oppenheimer, too. The double feature is really legendary.

Yeah, they went all out with the marketing, and it just made me really want to see it. However, even amidst Barbenheimer's much-needed boost to a sluggish 2023 box office, It remains unclear when the next blockbuster event will be, with a writers and actor strike shutting down major production and already delaying 2023 releases. Steve Patterson, NBC News. I will say, after streaming for so many years, it is nice the idea to actually go back to watch movies in a movie theater. And I tried to get my wife to go see Barbie, and she said she did not want to go into a movie theater where everybody was wearing pink. So there you have it. Thanks so much for watching. Top Story for Tom Yamis. I'm Sam Brock here in Miami. Stay right there. We have more news coming up for you on the way.