Top Story with Tom Llamas - Monday, March 2, 2026

Episode Date: March 3, 2026

Tonight's Top Story has the latest breaking news, political headlines, news from overseas and the best NBC News reporting from across the country and around the world Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

A new round of punishing strikes today. This operation is a clear, devastating, decisive mission. The dramatic video in American F-15 dropping from the sky, shot down by friendly fire. New images of those pilots safe on the ground. By air, sea, and land. American forces taking out Iranian ballistic missile sites and Navy ships. And our new reporting on the decision. to launch the attacks.

This was our last best chance to strike. The go message from the president. Operation Epic Fury is approved. No abortes. Good luck. Iran hitting back across the region. Their new threat tonight that could send gas prices even higher.

Plus, what were learning about an Iranian school full of children that was hit and the growing questions about the war's objectives as more U.S. forces go in. We'll go as far as we need to go to advanced American interests. Our correspondence spread across the region. This is a special edition of Top Story. US Strikes Iran.

Here is Tom Yamas. And good evening. Tonight war expanding rapidly across the Middle East. Already at least six U.S. service members killed and more than a dozen seriously wounded. As President Trump tonight signals, this is just the beginning. At this hour, bombs continue to pound Iran. the U.S. operation hitting more than 1,200 targets so far, even striking in the heart of Tehran. You can hear it right there, a new video inside the city of nearly 10 million people showing him bombarded over and over again.

And the U.S. military releasing this video of a strike targeting military equipment inside of Iran, all in an effort to end the country's nuclear capabilities and destroy its ballistic missiles. Plus, chaos in the skies, videos showing an American fighter jet spinning out of control. one of three planes shot down accidentally by Kuwait. Those pilots ejecting themselves and parachuting down safely. And right now, the growing conflict consuming even more of the Middle East. Take a look at this. The countries in yellow on this map, all dealing airstrikes launched from Iran, and in the past 24 hours, a new front of the war opening up as Israel and Lebanon exchange attacks.

Israel targeting Hezbollah and Iranian-backed militant group, intensifying bombardments triggering a mass-execis. cars bumper to bumper as families seek refuge from the barrage of strikes. A big question tonight, will more Western nations get dragged into this war? A drone hitting a British base in Cyprus, forcing fighter jets to scramble. Our reporters spread out across the Middle East and tracking the major developments out of the White House and the response back at home, including rising gas prices. Our Richard Engel starts us off in Tel Aviv tonight. New strikes across Tehran tonight as the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran.

is expanding, systematically destroying Iran's military, blowing up its missiles and killing its leaders. President Trump saying it could last four to five weeks. We will easily prevail. We're already substantially ahead of our time projections, but whatever the time is, it's okay. The Pentagon today announcing it's sending more troops and fighter jets to join the operation, which President Trump launched at 3.38.

8 p.m. on Friday. The president directed, and I quote, Operation Epic Fury is approved. No abortes. Good luck, close quote. But the war is also spreading to new countries with new risks. In Kuwait, three U.S. fighter jets were shot down and seen plummeting from the sky. The Pentagon said it was friendly fire that the jets were hit by Kuwaiti missile defense systems. The crews all ejected and survived. In this video, you can see a point. parachute on the ground and what appears to be an American pilot in the back of an SUV, looking healthy but rattled. As the Pentagon announced, at least six American service members have been killed.

The Pentagon saying it now has total air superiority over Iran, allowing the U.S. to hunt down the missile launchers Iran is using to carry out attacks, including against Israel. where an Iranian missile made it through air defenses this morning. Prime Minister Netanyahu touring a town where nine Israelis were killed by another Iranian strike. Iran is not just hitting Israel, but multiple Arab countries. Iranian fighter jets attacked Qatar but were shot down, according to the Qatari military. In Bahrain, Iranian drones hitting residential high-rise buildings. Kuwait, the international airport, damaged by an Iranian drone strike.

And tonight, Iran targeting Saudi Arabia, with damage seen in these oil fields. The Washington Post reporting over the past month, Saudi Arabia's crown prince, Mohamed bin Salman, has urged President Trump to attack Iran, according to four people familiar with the matter. And we've learned the U.S. and Israeli strikes were launched on Saturday because intelligence showed Iran's supreme leader would be at a meeting of senior officials that morning, according to two sources, briefed on the matter. In addition to Ayatollah Khomeini, the U.S. says 49 leaders from the Iranian regime have been killed.

Iran has not confirmed all of the deaths. We also projected four weeks to terminate the military leadership, and as you know, that was done in about an hour, so we're ahead of schedule there by a lot. While inside Iran, officials say a girl's school was hit this weekend with dozens killed. The U.S. says it's investigating. There have been demonstrations supporting the Iranian regime, but also Iranians celebrating the death of the Ayatollah. His government deeply unpopular among many Iranians. All as President Trump laid out the objectives of the U.S. mission.

We're destroying Iran's missile capabilities, and you see that. that happening on an hourly basis. Second, we're annihilating their navy. We've knocked out already 10 ships there at the bottom of the sea. Third, we're ensuring that the world's number one sponsor of terror can never obtain a nuclear weapon. And finally, we're ensuring that the Iranian regime cannot continue to arm, fund, and direct terrorist armies outside of their borders. President Trump saying Iran walked away from negotiation. But a senior negotiator directly involved tells NBC News, talks were making progress, and were scheduled to resume. For now, no U.S. ground troops appear to be involved, although the Pentagon is not ruling them out.

This is not Iraq. This is not endless. I was there for both. We'll go as far as we need to go to advanced American interests. But we're not dumb about it. You don't have to roll 200,000 people in there and stay for 20 years. while Secretary of State Rubio suggesting this operation is about to intensify. The hardest hits are yet to come from the U.S. military. All right, Richard Engel tonight joins us from Tel Aviv. So Richard, Israel and U.S. forces are still very much on alert? Absolutely on alert. This is still an ongoing war. And the U.S. State Department issued a blanket warning that covers most of the Middle East,

telling Americans in 14 countries to evacuate by commercial means. And those countries include Israel, the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, and Egypt. And the Israeli military just warned Iranians living in certain neighborhoods in Tehran that they should also evacuate. So it does seem set to escalate. Yeah, and then, Richard, what do we know about this weekend strikes and who exactly is left in charge in Iran? So after the death of Iran,

Iran's supreme leader. Iran has formed a three-member council, and this council has the authority of the supreme leader, which is military authority, political authority, control of the entire country. And this council is expected to elect a new supreme leader within days, they say, but it is possible that they will not be able to do that because all of their leaders right now are potential targets, as the U.S. and Israel is trying to disrupt the entire command structure. of Iran. All right, Richard Engel for us. Richard, thank you.

I want to bring in Courtney QB tonight who covers the Pentagon and the military for us. Courtney, we're learning more tonight about how this operation unfolded and the assets used by the U.S. military. Yeah, that's right.

So 3.38 p.m. last Friday, President Trump gave the order to the military to move forward with this operation, saying that it was a go. You can see what his exact words according to the chairman of the Joint Chiefs Operation Epic Fury is approved.

No abortes. Good luck. Only a matter of hours later. later, 1.15 a.m. Eastern time was when the first bomb started dropping. We learned today that those were in the form of Tomahawks. They were the first ones to go in. Now, those are long-range precision missiles fired from U.S. Navy ships. The U.S. also had aircraft in the air outside of Iran that fired standoff weapons, missiles that were also targeting essentially air defenses and any kind of defenses that Iran would have that would make it dangerous for the U.S. military to send in manned

aircraft, and that was the next wave we saw. B-1s, B-2 bombers flying into Iranian airspace once the path was essentially cleared for them and dropping huge bombs on Iran's missile sites. That includes the hardened sites inside mountains, underground, vertical silos, the kinds of things that take really big explosives to penetrate deep down and take them out. We are seeing a wave right now or a phase that includes the U.S. really taking out Iran's ballistic missile program. Tom. And then, Courtney, in an interview earlier today with CNN, President Trump said the big wave hasn't even happened yet. The big one is coming soon. Secretary of State Marco Rubio just echoed that sentiment. We just got that warning for Americans to leave the countries that they listed their 14 countries. Do we know what is going to come next? No, and officials don't want to speculate about exactly what it is. But when you look at what's been hit already, and that includes this real targeting of the ballistic missile program, it is not done. They have a lot that's spread out around the country. The launchers.

the missile stockpiles themselves, the space program that would be involved in longer-range missiles, they still have to hit all of those, and the U.S. is already targeting the Iranian Navy. So one phase that could be upcoming that we have not seen the U.S. hit at all yet is the nuclear program. We have heard all the Trump administration officials who have spoken about this operation talk about how Iran cannot have a nuclear program. Tom, there's only two ways to accomplish that. One is with a diplomatic solution, with Iran agreeing to no nuclear. nuclear program. The other is what we are seeing unfold with the ballistic missile program, and that is the U.S. carrying out strikes against it to try to decimate it.

All right. Courtney, QB for us here on Top Story. Courtney, we thank you. Now to the White House where the Trump administration is defending its decision to attack Iran. NBC's Gabe Gutierrez is there for us tonight. Gabe, Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaking to lawmakers late tonight. What have we learned? Well, Tom, Secretary Rubio did say that there was absolutely an imminent threat to justify this operation. He argues that the Trump administration knew Israel was preparing to strike Iran and that if the U.S. had waited for Iran to retaliate, Americans would have suffered higher casualties. Still, there has been mixed messaging here.

Rubio and Secretary Hegset saying today that the regime change is not the goal, although, Tom, the administration would like to see it happen, it says. Now, those comments coming after President Trump urged Iranian protesters who recently faced a brutal government crackdown to take to the streets again and topple the regime. Now, Tom, Rubio and other top officials, they briefed top congressional leadership tonight. They're expected to continue briefing Congress tomorrow, Tom. Yeah, and then, Gabe, the U.S. and Iran, talking at all at this point? I mean, war has started. Sometimes there's diplomacy. What do we know?

Well, Secretary Rubio was asked about that a short time ago. He says no. He said, now, There may be some people who have reached out from inside the Iranian government, but it's really not clear if they're even authorized to do so. It's pretty chaotic, Rubio says. And the secretary says that on a diplomatic level, there is no dialogue at this point as the regime struggles to hang on, Tom. All right. Gabe Gutierrez first Gabe.

Thank you for that. For more on Operation Epic Fury, I want to bring in Colonel Steve Warren. He's a former Pentagon spokesperson and an NBC News military analyst. Colonel, so great to have you here on the show. Critics are pointing out that the Trump administration's reasoning for these strikes seem to be evolving. Do you think this operation is about regime change or about stopping Iran from building nuclear weapons? Yeah, the reasons are evolving, right? It started as really focused on certain things, capabilities. The idea of regime change has been in there, into the mix the entire time.

And recently, we've also heard from people on the hill that say, well, the threat was imminent because there was going to be a strike on Israel. or if Israel struck, then the Iranians would strike elsewhere. And so that's what we had to do it. So it's completely unclear right now. What I think we're looking at is truly a desire to achieve the military objectives and then a hope that by achieving the military objectives that we've listed out, that will create the conditions for regime change. I don't think the president or the United States military is prepared or interested

in sending a large force, several hundred thousand troops that it would be necessary to really overthrow this regime. I think it's weakened them and let them fall on their own. And then we heard from Courtney that the president is signaling a larger strike. Do you think that's the case, or is he just trying to threaten them into submission? Well, I think there's certainly a lot of threat there, and I think that's a powerful tool. It's part of the information domain. But I think Courtney is spot on when she brings up the fact that we haven't yet struck the nuclear capabilities that we know exist. And the other piece of this puzzle, you know, the president said early on that one of his goals,

one of the military objectives is to sink the Iranian Navy. I can see that also being sort of a much more focused effort. We've sank about somewhere between five and ten ships already, but a focused effort on eliminating the Navy. I can see that in the near future. Colonel, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and the State Department just issued this one. for Americans in about 14 countries to evacuate if they can. They urge them to depart out of these countries. What do you think they know? Do you think there's some type of intelligence they've gathered, or do you think this is just a general warning because the region is at war?

I think it's a general warning tied with a smart assessment. The Iranian leadership is beginning to crumble. It's difficult to determine who's in charge of what. Most likely there are independent nodes throughout the government and military infrastructure. that are now making their own decisions. So I think it's smart to have civilians and American citizens move out of the area because at the end of the day, desperate people often will do desperate things. And I believe the Iranians are beginning to get desperate. Yeah, so, Colonel, I want to ask you about those three U.S. fighter jets that were shot down by friendly fire over Kuwait.

What do you think happened there? I mean, how common is this in the fog of war? And there is so much technology these days. Kuwait, obviously an ally. We know that very well. How do you think something like this happened? You hit the nail on the head, fog of war. It's always friction.

There's always fog. While we do train with all of these nations, our partner nations, regularly, training under pressure is very difficult to simulate. I think this is the type of thing that, unfortunately, you are going to see at the beginning of an operation, whether it's combat operations that we see now or often even in exercises and training operations. The early days, there's always additional confusion and friction.

the pressure is on. Training is one thing, but when there's, you know, bombs flying, missiles flying, it becomes very confusing. So I think this is probably something that we'll see less of as time moves on, and just an unfortunate mistake. All right, Colonel, so great to have you on Top Story tonight. We thank you for your perspective. Right now, millions across the Gulf are on edge with a growing number of Middle Eastern countries targeted by Iranian attacks. The chaos triggering thousands of flight cancellations and stranding travelers, as places like Dubai are, still coming under attack tonight. And that's exactly where Akir Simmons reports from. Tonight, conflict is spiraling and spreading. To Iraq, Lebanon, and as Gulf countries

threaten to join this growing war. Iran targeting major cities in the Middle East with hundreds of missiles and drones, including this one in Bahrain, first the buzz, then the blast. Dubai's iconic hotels hit many Iranian munitions still being shot down today. Here a burst of smoke beside the world's tallest building and the moment of impact at another hotel. I just heard this really loud bang. Alex Bouquet, who runs an American firm, fled to an Airbnb in the desert. We grabbed our passports as well and we just started driving off.

This was Dubai airport over the weekend and nearby Abu Dhabi. Thankfully, passengers have been evacuated. Thousands of flights canceled in a region that is a critical hub for the world's commercial airlines. Sarah Meti from Tennessee is in Dubai for her 20th wedding anniversary. She found herself filming munitions exploding outside their hotel. What are you thinking when you're filming this? That I've got to be in a dream.

This can't be real. I never in a million years thought this would happen. They've been urged to stay inside. I just want to get home to the kids. I miss them terribly. Iran's objective in all this to pressure its neighbors to tell Washington call off the war. Keir Simmons joins us now live from Dubai tonight here on Top Story. So, Kier, as we're reporting now, I know that Dubai is still under attack tonight.

What have you been hearing? Yeah, we've heard a series of booms here tonight here where we are in Dubai, Tom, tonight. and there has clearly been a barrage of missiles, governments across the region reporting from Doha to Kuwait and here in the United Arab Emirates. So it looks as if the Iranians have launched another wave and another wave of strikes. It's just after 4 in the morning here in Dubai,

that kind of time across the region. So it looks like they've chosen to fire while people are sleeping and hoping ISIS, I guess, that the authorities are not as alert. Yeah, and then, Keir, talk to me about life right now in Dubai. Are our schools closed for families? Are our stores open? What are officials they're telling you? We just got this warning from the Secretary of State warning Americans to leave places like Dubai.

Yeah, there are tens of thousands of Americans who live in this region. And they, you know, call this place their home. And for them and for so many of us here, it is a shock. Now, I will say that here, for example, in the United Arab Emirates, the defenses against these missiles and drones have been pretty striking. Very, very few have got through. And that tells you something, doesn't it? That despite the fact that it has felt very safe here,

and largely continues to feel so, there was preparation knowing that Iran had these thousands of missiles just a short distance away. Keir Simmons for us, Kier, please stay safe tonight. Still ahead, we'll have much more on the escalating war in the Middle East, plus the deadly shooting outside of a bar in Austin, why investigators are looking into it as a potential act of terrorism in the wake of the attacks on Iran.

And the new video just in from the depositions of the Clintons, what they told lawmakers behind closed doors about Jeffrey Epstein and the Dary and rescue nearly a thousand feet in the air. Look at this. Crews racing to save people after their hot air balloon hit a cell phone tower. Stay with us. We're back now with a deadly attack outside of Beer Garden in Austin, Texas. Two people killed and 14 others wounded by a suspect that sources say was wearing an Iranian flag t-shirt and a property of a la sweatshirt.

Priscilla Thompson has more. Tonight, authorities are investigating the deadly rampage at an Austin Beer Garden as a potential act of terrorism. The gunmen police say was a 53-year-old naturalized citizen from Senegal with a possible history of mental health issues. Multiple sources say he unleashed the attack wearing an Iranian flag shirt and a property of Allah sweat shirt, the day after Iran's supreme leader was killed by the U.S. and Israel. We reached out to our federal partners to assist in this resource-intensive sense. scene and to address concerns of potential terrorism. Investigators are searching the suspects home and sifting through this massive crime scene

searching for a motive and potential ties to terrorism. This is a around the clock 24 hour investigation. 21-year-old Savitha Sean and 19-year-old Ryder Harrington were killed. More than a dozen others wounded. While police worked to determine if there's any connection between what happened here and the war in the Middle East, many are on high alert. As long as this war is going on, make sure we all remain vigilant. Priscilla Thompson is live at the scene in Austin tonight.

And Priscilla, what more are we learning about the victims? Yeah, Tom, as folks are coming tonight to lay flowers at the memorial, the president of the University of Texas at Austin confirmed that there were several students who were injured. Some of them very seriously. We know that 14 people were taken to the hospital, three of them in critical condition. And police today said that one of those victims is expected to be taken. taken off of life support. Now, as for the investigation, police say that it is going to take time, but that they expect to release body cam footage from this incident later this week. Tom?

Okay, Priscilla, we thank you for that. Now, in Washington and newly released videos of Bill and Hillary Clinton's closed-door depositions about Jeffrey Epstein. Their testimonies posted online by the House Oversight Committee revealing hours of questioning about the late convicted sex offender. Ryan Nobles has been pouring through the interviews with his team and has more on what the Clinton's had to say. Tonight, the House Oversight Committee, releasing all nine hours of the depositions of Bill and Hillary Clinton as part of their investigation into Jeffrey Epstein. Have you ever engaged in sexual activity with a person introduced to you by Jeffrey Epstein?

No. Bill Clinton testifying he had no knowledge of Epstein's crimes, and he had no reason to believe that President Trump knew anything either. The only conversation I have with President Trump about this. within the early 2000s. And I have no information that he did anything wrong. Clinton, pressed by both Republicans and Democrats, about his repeated appearances in the Epstein files, including this photo of him in a hot tub with a woman.

Yeah, I don't know who that is. Did you engage in any sexual activity with this person? Both Clintons have denied any wrongdoing and have never been accused of any crimes related to Epstein. The former Secretary of State's deposition got off to a rocky start when she discovered Congresswoman Lauren Bobert took a picture of her and shared it with a conservative influencer. I'm done with this. If you guys are doing that, I am done. You can hold me in contempt from now until the cows come home. She denied ever meeting Epstein, at times growing visibly frustrated with the questioning. I am so tired of answering that question. If you have one scintilla of evidence to the contrary, put it forward. I have never been.

on his island, period. I've never been in his homes, his offices, his anything. Republicans asking her off-topic questions on issues like UFOs and even internet conspiracy theories. All right, Ryan Nobles joins me live. And Ryan, the committee asked Secretary Clinton, if she thought they should investigate the possibility that Jeffrey Epstein was an intelligence asset, how did she respond? Yeah, Tom, the former secretary told the committee that the possibility, that the possibility of Epstein working for intelligence agencies was, quote, an absolutely essential question for you to try and examine and get answers for. This comes after Congresswoman Anna Polina Luna and Congresswoman Nancy Mace has suggested

that Epstein was working for a foreign government and running a honeypot operation to try and entrap American officials in an intelligence operation. They haven't provided the evidence connected to that, but Secretary Clinton saying, this is something that they should look into. Tom. Okay, Ryan Nobles, with what's come out of those depositions. Ryan, we thank you. Still to come tonight here in Top Story, the terrifying moments at LAX. Did you hear about this?

Hundreds of passengers forced to evacuate a smoking United plane. What happened? Plus, pain at the pump what the war in Iran means for the price you pay for gas. We'll break it down right after this. We're back tonight as the impact of the conflict in the Middle East is already being felt here at home. Gas prices are going up across the U.S. It comes as Iran's military makes new threats against boats traveling through the Strait of Hormuz,

one of the most critical shipping canals in the world. I want to bring in NBC's Brian Chung to help us break it all down. So, Brian, explain to our viewers why the Strait of Ramos is so important when it comes to oil prices, because Iran's just issued this very dangerous threat. Yeah, and the threat is that they'll set any boat that goes through there on fire. But again, if we back up here, what is the Strait of Hormuz? It's a very narrow channel by which you can only get access to countries like Kuwait, Iraq, Iran. And so for those reasons, those are all major oil-producing companies, you can imagine that all those boats that are trying to carry oil out of there will now be choked up from accessing the strait of Hormuz. Now, excuse me, I think the point here is that there were already concerns going into this weekend about whether or not the insurance companies are going to insure boats going into there.

But now that you have the Iranians saying they're going to set any boat on fire, that just only further chokes up an area where 20 percent, Tom, 20 percent of the world's oil is traveling through. Yeah, so this means that gas prices will go up because people are. aren't able to get 20% of that gas and the oil and the gas coming out. Yeah, and we're seeing that happen already. So prices at the pump on average are now about $3.1 in one cent, according to gas, buddy. And that is already up almost 10 cents from what we saw just last week. Now, again, this is all about what's going on here in the Middle East. And the concern here is that if these types of elevated risk do persist over the next four to five weeks,

which is the president said, is a real risk here. Well, that could certainly make oil prices go up even further from here. the estimate that for every $10, a barrel of oil goes up, that's going to be 25 cents that you and I pay at the pop time. Wow, that's a lot. Okay, we thank you for that, Brian. Thanks for explaining that one. So the economy, of course, a major concern for voters here in the U.S. as we head into the critical midterm elections. So how will the president's war with Iran land here at home as gas prices creep up? To discuss, I want to bring in Democratic strategist Amisha Cross and Hogan Gidley, two good friends of top story. Hogan, I'm going to start with you. This war has a potential to sort of

wipe out one of the bright spots in the economy, which was gas prices. We also have a snap poll taken this weekend by Reuters and Ipsos. They found that 43% of Americans disapprove of the strikes, just 27% approved, and 29% said they're not sure. Is this a bad political move for the president so close to the midterms? No, and I would argue that as is typical with these types of engagements, whether they be a full-out war or some type of military strike, you can argue for them, argue against them, the question becomes, are we going to be successful or not? And if we are, the American people typically support the action. If it's a failure, they won't. Now, that also includes the gas prices, as you just mentioned, and the economy. I, for one, believe the gas prices

will continue to come down, even though Iran is acting the way they are right now, because in large part, more of these nations will depend on us for gasoline, more oil on our side. That is going to matter for us and bring the prices down for the American people, because as you know, foreign policy is about 2 to 4 percent as far as polling is concerned about major cares for the American people in midterms. The economy is still by far number one. Yeah, Hogan, I don't necessarily agree with you. In history doesn't agree with you either, right? The first Gulf War, the first President Bush, was incredibly successful in that war, and yet he still loses to Bill Clinton. I understand that there was a three-person race, and Ross Perot

had an effect in that race. But the bigger problem, you know, the bigger person race was a three-person race. point is that people voted their pocketbook. The economy was still paramount even when there was a successful war. So don't we have a problem here with history repeating itself when it comes to this? The president could be successful in Iran and the Middle East and solving and giving peace to all these other different countries. But at the end of the day, the American people sometimes just vote what their pocketbook is. Well, that's exactly what I said. We're in agreement, actually, here because my point was, should we win this war, which I think we will, and we'll do it quite easily, thanks to our incredible military, which has been surgical, strategic, and lethal at this

point. The American people aren't going to vote on that necessarily come to midterms. They care about the pocketbook issues. Now, if this war affects their pocketbook and Democrats try to successfully tether some type of issue to that, that could be really problematic. But right now, it's all about the economy and costs. Are they coming up or are they going down? I get done with you, Hogan. One more data point, okay? This is from Matt Boyle from Breitbart, right? This is somebody who reports on the MAGA base, who's connected to the MAGA world. This is in his radio show on Saturday over the course of three hours. This is what he tweeted. We basically, we had basically zero callers on the Iran strike, suggesting that listeners are more concerned with other things. So my question to you, Hogan, is even if his base is not into what he's doing in Iran, how are you going to motivate people to get to the polls for the Republican side? Well, I know, Matt, and I don't think what he was saying was they don't care about the issue. What his point was, a majority of his callers are going to vote on the economy. They're going to vote on immigration, which is exactly what I'm saying.

The MAGA base understands that. But this was something that the president thought was necessary for the safety and security of America and our assets around the globe. He took the strike. We'll see how long it lasts. No one wants a long protracted war, and I guarantee you Donald Trump is not going to have one of those. So the fact is the people when they go to the polls will always vote what matters to them most. And that's their own personal economies, the economy of this country.

Do they have more money? Do they have less money? And what politicians they thank or blame for their current state? Amisha Democrats will play politics with these strikes and with this war. How do they use it to their advantage? Well, to a message you mentioned a moment ago, everything is about affordability and the economics of it all. The American people ask to have lower food prices. They asked to have lower utility prices. They asked to have lower cost of living when it comes to housing.

What they did not ask for is another war. What Trump ran on was America first policy and no more endless wars. What we got was putting everybody first except Americans and a war that could last for the next few decades. There is still a very bad taste in the mouths of Americans, whether they're Democrats, libertarians, far right, whether they are conservative, around Middle Eastern wars because of the legacy of Iraq and Afghanistan. because of an understanding that once we get into the quagmire, it is very hard to get out. And it appears that Netanyahu goaded President Trump into doing exactly what he wanted to. Netanyahu has been trying to get the United States involved in an incursion with Iran for the past four and a half decades through two Bush presidencies, including HW, in addition to the Clinton presidency,

the Biden presidency, and the first Trump presidency. This is the only time that there has been a nudge forward on this. And I think that, quite frankly, the Democrats are going to run on it because it's excessive. It is a multi-trillion dollar incursion that will not only result in money thrown in the air, but also the lives of American soldiers lost under a provocation that they still cannot tell us how we even got here or how we will get out. Amisha, but even Democrats can't figure out the strategy here. This is what I'm talking about. Let's roll the tape. Bombing cities, killing civilians, opening up a new theater of war, Americans do not want this.

Americans do not want another war in pursuit of regime change. We want an answer to the affordability crisis. We want peace. And then you had Senator Mar Kelly say this. I mean, it's a good thing that the Supreme Leader is gone and some of the folks around him. And I have to give a shout out to the young men and women of the U.S. military who, you know, by their skill and, you know, focus on the mission and determination and patriotism, were able to conduct the military. to conduct this operation.

So Amisha, it looks like the Democratic Party are on both sides of sort of this argument. And you're 100% correct. On the one hand, Democrats don't want to look like pacifists. On the other, Democrats recognize that the midterms are just a few months away. What I would love to see Democrats do is sing from one accord here. The American people do not want war. The American people are very open and honest about the way they view this and don't want American intervention at all. So I think that Democrats as a whole need to come together.

speak the way Mandani did, but several others as well who have come out against this, grow a spine and tell the American people that we stand by them because this war is unnecessary. It is uncalled for and it doesn't put money in your pockets. Hogan, as the clock ticks towards the midterms, this war now in Iran, this larger regional war, potentially, we're just getting reports now that the U.S. embassy in Riyadh was hit by a drone. The reports we're getting right now is that no U.S. personnel were injured or killed, luckily. But as the president has to focus, on this war and making sure that this is under control. How does he keep his eye on the economic game here back at home? Well, I think he can do both because he's shown an ability to do so, not just in his first term, but in this second term already to this point as well. Listen, he's already brought what, eight wars to succession and brought peace in those different areas and regions around the globe, not to mention, the fact, costs have come down in this country for a whole host of things. Gasoline, top of months. that list, as you just point out, the cost for groceries is down further than it was under

Joe Biden, of course. So there are successes out there, but the question is always, do the American people feel that? Sometimes when I get my own ideas about what I'm going to do politically and what I'm going to support, I don't necessarily think about who else stands with me. I think about who stands against me. And right now, when you have Iranians around the globe in London and Paris and all over this country and Los Angeles and Chicago, standing with people on the right saying, great job Donald Trump, even pulling Jews along with them to say, thank you, this is a good thing to get rid of this Ayatollah who's been a murderous, treacherous person for decades in this region. I look at the other side and I say, who's against this?

Russia, China, and the Democrats. That's all you need to know. Hogan, I do want to turn to the midterms now and ask you about what's happening down in Texas. There's a primary tomorrow in the Republican Senate race. Trump has not endorsed the incumbent there, Senator John Cornyn. It has gotten to be very ugly. It's gotten to be very expensive. What's going to happen to Republicans there? Will they possibly lose the Senate seat? I don't think they lose it ultimately. But again, candidates do matter. And this is a dicey, dicey primary by any stretch. And look, Wesley Hunt making a surge, too, most likely assuring a runoff. So your guess is as good as mine as to what happens here.

There are a lot of people in the MAGA base who don't think Cornyn is, is, is so. sufficiently maga enough. There are plenty kind of in the moderate middle and also on the right who have a problem with Paxton and his record, his checkered personal past as well. So there are a whole host of issues going on in that primary. Your guess is as good as mine as I mentioned, but tomorrow and I know we're going to cover it from start to finish, so that should be a fun one. Amisha, do Democrats smell blood in the water there in Texas? Will it be the first time, I think, I don't know how many decades that they elected a Democrat to the Senate? They absolutely see blood in the water.

I think that part of this is because of the excitement on the ground for Democrats that typically does not exist in a primary. They're seeing new voters. They're seeing younger voters. They're seeing all of the attention brought to this race. So they're believing that there is a chance. I will say, as somebody who was always called Texas Senate Fools Gold, I personally don't think that I am on the side of that.

But I do think that it matters to have Democratic candidates that actually makes sense to the people because what this race will show us, come hill or high water, is the type of candidate that needs to be run to be competitive in a place like Texas. Amisha, I noticed you didn't pick a winner either on the Democratic side. So who do you like, Representative Jasmine Crockett or Representative James Tauroico? I will not say I am an Illinois voter. Oh, interesting. I have no dog in the fight for the Texas race.

All right. That race will be interesting to watch. I'm sorry. Go ahead, Amisha. No, it's going to be interesting to watch. watch. What we do know is that there are certain demographic challenges that both sides have. Tala Rico has not made a quake in the black community. And unfortunately, Jasmine Crockett has a really hard hurdle to overcome when it comes to the Latino community. Right now, we're seeing

them close in on their messaging strategies and may the best one win. All right. We'll see you both probably tomorrow. We thank you both for being here tonight. Now to Top Stories News Feed and a look at some of the other major headlines we're following, beginning with an update on the search for Nancy Guthrie. It's now been one month since she went missing. And today, our colleague, Savannah Guthrie, her sister and her brother-in-law, visited the memorial outside Nancy's home in Tucson, laying yellow flowers, which have become a symbol of hope. It comes as investigators are still working several leads in searching for clues into her disappearance. Closing arguments just wrapped in the trial of Colin Gray. He's a Georgia father whose son is accused of shooting and

killing four people at Appalachie High School in 2024. Prosecutors say the father gave him a rifle for Christmas and ignored warning signs about his mental health. The defense are argues that his son, Colt Gray, is to blame for the shooting. Jury deliberation is expected tomorrow. A United Airlines flight forced to evacuate due to a possible engine fire. Here you can see smoke billowing and people scrambling down the slides onto the taxiway at Los Angeles International Airport. United says the flight was headed to Newark, New Jersey, with nearly 270 people on board. They say the plane landed safely and that nobody was seriously hurt.

And a dangerous rescue in East Texas caught on camera. Look at this. Video shows firefighters racing a safety. two people after their hot air balloon hit a cell phone tower over the weekend. The incident leaving them dangling nearly a thousand feet up in the air, authorities say they had to use multiple rope systems to help get the passengers safely back on their ground. All right, coming up next, we'll have more on the escalating war with Iran, including a closer look at the deadly attack on an Iranian school full of children.

Stay with us. We're back now with a closer look at the shocking attack on an elementary school in southern Iran that left more than 160. people dead. Reports inside of Iran is incredibly controlled. Almost all images and details are released through the state media. But our team reviewed satellite imagery and spoke with a mother who lost her son in the attack. So many of the dead are children. Here's Molly Hunter with what we know at this hour. Tonight, new video released by Iranian state media shows the grim work in Manab has already begun, digging tiny graves for some of the littlest victims of this three-day-old war.

Iranian officials say airstrikes hit an elementary school Saturday, killing more than 160 people, mostly children. This man showing the camera what looks like a notebook with children's drawings. This book is stained with the student's blood, he says, we can see school bags on the ground, a classroom destroyed. NBC News spoke with the mother on the phone who said her son so hell was killed in the attack. back just two days before his eighth birthday. By the time we arrived, she said the entire school had collapsed on top of the children. This school is called Shahri Taibe. According to Iran's education ministry, it had 264 students, both girls and boys. It's also right next to a former Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps base.

You can see it in this satellite image from 2011 on the same compound. But the mother we spoke with and a local official tell NBC News, the base hasn't been active for 15 years. As recently as December 2025, you can see what looks like a schoolyard here full of people. And tonight, Iran's foreign minister pointing the finger directly at America and Israel. Tom, schools are protected spaces under international humanitarian law. And at this stage, no one has taken responsibility for this strike. In response to questions from NBC News, the Israeli military told us they were not aware of any operations in this area. A spokesperson for U.S. Central Command told NBC News, we are aware of reports concerning civilian harm resulting from ongoing military operations. We take these reports seriously,

and we're looking into them. Tom? Incredibly sad, our Molly Hunter for us. When we come back on the special edition of Top Story, what comes next for Iran? Our Yasmin Vosuvian, who has deep ties to the country and to the Iranian-American community here, joins us to discuss what she's hearing from, Iranians on the ground and, of course, in the United States. Stay with us. Finally tonight, this defining moment in history sparking a mixed reaction for Iranians overseas and here at home.

For some, it's a sigh of relief while others hold their breath for what happens next. Very super, shocking really, that this regime is going after 47 years. August. I was so august in terms of the aggression. and consequences of it. This is an incredible moment. For my entire life, I've never been to Iran. I've been afraid of possibly going there, being seen as an American spy,

and having freedom for the country is just amazing. I want to bring in our own Yasmin Basuvian with more reaction from Iranians inside the country and abroad. So Yasmin, you've been in contact with people in Iran since this has happened. What are you hearing lately? Yeah, so the last few hours, I haven't been able to get in touch with anybody

because there has been an internet blackout. It seems like since the death of Khamne, they've been able to kind of get control, gain control again, of the internet waves or the airwaves unable to keep people from communicating from the outside to the outside. But I will say that there are two emotions going on. You heard some of that there in those interviews with Morgan Chesky on the ground in Los Angeles for us. But there is fear and there is hope, right? There is hope for the possibility of change, right? This regime, this murderous regime, this brutal regime has been in power for 40 plus years now. There is a hope that there could feasibly be down the road regime change, possibly a democracy,

and I use that word very strongly, possibly. But there is also a real fear that just to get to regime change, the country could be destroyed. This is a 3,000-year-old nation, rich in culture. And there's just so much there that the Iranians want to be able to share with the world. And they fear that, having looked at their neighbors like Afghanistan and Iran, and seen what's happened there over the two decades plus in which the United States occupied those countries and what was left of it, right? You see now Afghanistan at war with Pakistan because of the Taliban in charge

and not wanting that to happen to Iran. And they fear that that will happen before they could actually ever see regime change. And those are two very difficult emotions to reconcile for Iranians. that do ultimately want to see this regime completely gone. And there's the Israel aspect to all of this, right? Because a lot of Iranians that I've spoken to feel uncomfortable knowing that there's this Israeli IDF military incursion into Iran. Obviously, there were a lot of people in Iran who were not happy with Ayatollah, are happy to see them go, but they want to know what this means going forward.

There is an inherent distrust, and we could get into the history of Iran and Israel and the United States. But at the end of the day, Iranians are nationalists. Right? So they want to kind of be able to do this on their own terms. They couldn't do it alone without these strikes carried out by the United States and Israel. The question is, can they do it on their own terms now? Right? I think that is going to be the biggest question. It's one of the reasons why I kept asking, you know, I keep asking on the air, and especially as we speak to officials, how far is the U.S. willing to go? How long are they willing to remain? Because Iranians are in arms, and they are up against the Revolutionary Guard, who are armed, who are brutal. We saw what they did in general. with these protesters, and they're willing to go further. They will fight to the death to remain in power because they all benefit from this current regime. And so the Iranians will, if they do rise up, they'll be fighting with their lives, right? They'll be putting their lives in the line, many of whom are willing to do that because they have no other choice. Are there debates within the Iranian-American community? I think there are. I mean, I know there are. Because there were a lot of

Iranian Americans that came here when the Shah fell. And maybe they were in favor of one, form of government in Iran, but over the past few decades, several other Iranians have come over, right? And they weren't necessarily in favor of the Shah either. And the question is, who's going to run Iran right now? Because we know that the son of the Shah is out there and he's, you know, putting his name out there, and he's trying to get conversations with the president and things like that. Are those conversations already happening here in the U.S.? Absolutely. I mean, so Reza Path-Levi, who you've been speaking of, is the son of the Shah of Iran. He left when he was a teenager. So he, you know, a lot of folks are worried about his lack of leadership, experience,

He hasn't lived in the country for an incredibly long time. That was a monarchy. And there were a lot of negative aspects to the Shah's time. It's one of the reasons why the revolution happened in the first place. And just to quickly say this, when Khomeini came to power in 1979, he had convinced the people that he was going to be the spiritual leader of Iran. He didn't tell everybody that it was then going to also be political, right? That kind of was the turn that was made that subsequently led to theocracy that we now see.

But there is a lot of internal debate as to who is going to be the next leader. Will it be a democratically elected leader? Who is that? There are certainly many individuals or in Iran who are currently imprisoned inside their own homes. Because the opposition is constantly crushed there. So it's impossible to get your name out. Exactly. Exactly. But Rezipath-Levi has risen.

And in part because a lot of Iranians feel as if there's nobody else. Right. And they know that he actually has been speaking with the White House as well. I think the big question that we have to ask, and that many Iranians are asking themselves, is is his plan, if he were to come back to power to resume a monarchy? Or would he remain at, would he be more of a transitory or transitional, I should say, leader to get to a more democratically, you know, run government? I think that's the big question that a lot of Iranians are wanting to know. And you mentioned this a little bit in the beginning, but it's so hard for Iranian Americans here to get answers because, like you said, they can't even communicate.

and people are terrified to even put stuff in messages, right? Into emails. People are talking in code. If they are able to get through on the phone, how are you? I'm fine, I'm good, life is good, life is fine, nothing's happening, that kind of thing. There are encrypted apps that we won't get into.

There are ways in which you can communicate, which I've been doing with folks on the ground there, but it's spotty and people are very worried that they could be geolocated, targeted, imprisoned. In a moment's notice, yeah. All right. Yes, we've been assuming incredible reporting all weekend.

Thank you. Yeah. And we thank you for watching this. edition of Top Story. I'm Tom Yamis in New York. Stay right there. More news on the way.