Top Story with Tom Llamas - Monday, May 6, 2024

Episode Date: May 7, 2024

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

Tonight, deal or no deal in Gaza as Israel begins its assault on Rafa. The strikes coming after Israel issued evacuation orders where more than one million seek refuge. This has a ceasefire deal gained steam, Hamas proposing new terms, but Israel casting doubt on the proposal saying it doesn't meet their demands. Are Richard Engel in Jerusalem with the breaking details? Also tonight, Day of Rage demonstrations over the Israel. Israel-Hamas war, ignite at more U.S. colleges. A stunning blow for students at Columbia University as the school cancels its main commencement. Over the weekend, graduation ceremonies interrupted by protests.

And in New York City, police on high alert as a-listers make their way to the Met Gala, the arrests now being made concerns demonstrators could steal the show. Former President Trump threatened with jail time. The judge in his hush money case issuing that warning after finding Trump in violation of his gag order once again. Could Trump actually end up behind bars? Houston underwater hundreds rescued after catastrophic flooding inundates the region. A mother describes the tragic moments her son was swept away by rushing waters. And tonight, severe storms take aim at 18 million in the central U.S.

Tonight, the big fear, life-threatening long. track tornadoes. Buffett's warning, billionaire and legendary investor Warren Buffett, sending a message of caution comparing AI to an atomic bomb. In a dramatic shift, Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway reducing its stake in Apple, why he did it predicting a financial shot to the tax code. And is a big change coming to Starbucks, the former CEO of the coffee giant, saying it is time for a revamp to turn around disappointing earnings. What it has to do with you, the customer, the tall order he's suggesting to brew new hope for the global chain. Top story starts right now.

Hey, good evening. We are following two major headlines out of the Middle East tonight. Israel carrying out new strikes on the densely populated city of Rafa. Despite global pleas against an attack, that move coming, just hours after Hamas announced it had a great. agreed to a ceasefire proposal. Negotiations have been ongoing for weeks, but Israel saying the current terms do not meet their requirements. Despite that announcement, they will send a delegation to continue that conversation. And this new video just in,

showing the bombardment in Rafah as Israeli forces begin to target that region. Just this morning, Israel announced evacuation orders for parts of the city, where 1.4 million are currently seeking refuge. Crowds celebrated in the streets of Rafa over the news of a potential deal, and in Israel, protests broke out as pressure mounts to accept the proposal and bring the hostages home. NBC chief foreign correspondent Richard Engel. He'll start us off tonight. In Gaza tonight, they're celebrating their salvation after Hamas announced it had accepted a sweeping ceasefire. But it seems they're celebrating too soon.

Israel says there is no deal yet that the terms Hamas accepted are far from Israel's necessary requirements and are not the original offer Israel had on the table. But Israel is dispatching a delegation to negotiate. While its war cabinet has also unanimously approved a targeted operation against Hamas in the southern city of Rafa, our crew capturing it starting this morning. There has been a response from Hamas to the hostage deal. We're currently reviewing that response. While the details remain unclear, a senior Arab negotiator directly involved in the talks tells NBC News Hamas's position has shifted greatly over the past 48 hours. And that the deal Hamas says it accepts would see it free 33 hostages in exchange for a roughly 40-day

ceasefire, followed by further hostage releases and the freeing of more than 1,000 Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails. But the source notes, with Israel, not at the most recent negotiations, Hamas agreed to its own terms, using its own interpretation of the offer. Israel believes 93 hostages captured on October 7th are still alive in Gaza, and that many of them are being held in Rafa, the only remaining city in Gaza where Israel has not yet conducted major ground operations. Israel, this morning, ordered roughly 100,000.

Palestinians to evacuate from part of Ruffa, using leaflets to announce that intense counterterrorism operations were about to begin. President Biden opposes a full-scale assault on Ruffa because it is packed with more than a million civilians who fled there for their safety. Richard Engel joins us tonight from Jerusalem. Richard, let's go back to that reporting you have on that proposal from Hamas. Do we have any more details and do we have any reason to believe these Israelis will agree to this?

Well, Israel is sending a negotiating delegation, and that is something I think that Hamas wanted. It is certainly something that the negotiators in Cairo and Doha wanted. So that's something of an accomplishment that they'll be able to get back to talking about concrete terms. What Hamas says it has agreed to is more than what Israel says it has agreed to. They talk about releasing hundreds of senior prisoners, people who've been convicted of life sentences and are serving life sentences in this country.

They talk about reconstruction. They talk about lifting the siege on Gaza. So the proposal that they've accepted is quite sweeping. Now we will see what happens when Israel goes to Cairo, and that's where these next rounds of negotiations are taking place. how much Israel is able to whittle back. But by making this announcement, by making it public, Hamas and the negotiators have put quite a bit of pressure

on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is already under pressure for not taking a deal under pressure from protesters and from the hostage families, who tonight, by the way, are very optimistic. They see this as a moment of hope. They want their government. They want Netanyahu to find a way to make, way to yes to make a deal. Yeah, the world is watching and hopefully we can move in a positive

direction. I do want to go back to another sort of very pressing point in your story, which is the 100,000 Palestinians being ordered to evacuate Rafa. I mean, explain to our viewers, do these people have anywhere to go? Not really. They're being sent to an area called Almwasi. That's the area where they've been told to go. It is not very far away. It is also on the Mediterranean coast. And it is an area that Israel is designating a safe-ish zone. Israel says it will, if necessary, continue to carry out attacks, including al-Moasi. If it sees an opportunity, it will attack there.

But it will be limited. So it is a safer zone. But Palestinians say that there's nothing there. It is just a beach, desert area. There's no infrastructure. There's no tents. There's no food. There's no humanitarian supplies, and many Palestinians have been displaced multiple times already.

So we interviewed, or our crew in Gaza interviewed Palestinians today who were leaving, and they were upset, they were outraged. They said, we've already moved several times. We've finally got ourselves settled in makeshift accommodations in Rafa. Now we're being told once again to pack up and move to effectively the open desert. So, no, they are not going to a well-equipped area, and the 100,000 could be just the beginning. If Israel moves in in force, as Prime Minister Netanyahu has said he will do, you could have hundreds of thousands of people on the move. Richard Engel, following all those developments from Jerusalem tonight, back here at home to campus protests, showing no signs of easing around the country.

Tonight, Columbia University, the home of some of the most intense protests, now the latest school to cancel, its main commencement ceremony. NBC's Maggie Vespas following the latest. The tidal wave of protests on America's college campuses now colliding with commencement season. Columbia University today canceling its main graduation, opting instead for individual school ceremonies. It's been a tough time, honestly.

It's been really, I think, I think it's been demoralizing. Free Palestine! Also tonight, Emory, University. announcing it will move its main commencement off campus, citing safety concerns. Last month, police clashed with demonstrators there. Meanwhile, commencement season marked by disruptions. A pro-Palestinian protester covered in fake blood stormed Northeastern University stage this weekend, while demonstrators marched through the University of Michigan's ceremony.

At UCLA today, dozens of arrests. Demonstrators calling on the school to divest from Israel, marching and holding sit-ins. The administration saying classes would move fully remote the same day campus was supposed to be back to business as usual after police cleared an encampment there last week. Today, officers called in to clear tents at UC San Diego, police arresting 64 protesters. NBC News now tracking protests at more than 75 campuses nationwide arrests close to 2,500. Protesters at the University of Chicago erecting a fence around their camp after negotiations with the administration collapsed overnight, faculty calling on the school to avoid bringing in police. Our most immediate concern is for the well-being of our students. We don't want them getting beat up just because they're camping on the lawn. The school saying students' demands were inconsistent with the university's principles.

We're not going away. We're not giving up the fight. Maggie Vespa joins us tonight from the University of Chicago. Maggie, I want to go back to those students and parents you were talking to that they now have no commencement. Many of these students lost a lot of great high school memories because of the pandemic. Are you sensing frustration from students or relief that a canceled commencement might lower the temperature? We haven't heard anyone kind of expressed relief. We've really heard frustration and we've heard sadness. And that's from people who feel, you know, all different types of way about the protests.

about the encampments like the one that you see behind me. A lot of people, kind of the consensus is they're frustrated with the schools saying they thought the schools should be able to handle security concerns like this without flat out canceling commencement ceremonies. And by the way, Tom, it's worth noting here at the University of Chicago, commencement is set for next month. So we have about a month until that actually happens. But it's set to take place on the very spot on this quad where that encampment still sits tonight. Tom? Yeah, it's a problem that's facing a lot of colleges all across the country. Okay, Maggie, we thank you.

Here in New York City, as we were telling you, the NYPD on high alert, as protesters take to the streets as part of that, quote, day of rage. Just moments ago, the NYPD told us several people were arrested just blocks away from the big Met Gala, one of the biggest nights in fashion attended by some of the biggest celebrities in the world. They were part of a group that had formed at Hunter College on New York's Upper East Side, marching through the streets calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. That group just growing in size throughout the day, now appearing to be hundreds strong.

Those protesters kept outside a perimeter several blocks wide surrounding the Metropolitan Museum of Art. NBC Stephen Romo is on the streets of New York City tonight. He's joining us via FaceTime covering those protests outside the Met Gala, which obviously has been on the calendar and a big target for those demonstrators. Stephen, what do you see and have you heard about these arrests that the NYPD is telling us about? Yes, Tom. We've actually seen at least three arrests so far. These protesters are trying to get close to the Med Gallag. But they're actually sort of being hurted now by the NYPD, by all the blockades that are up in this area, unable to reach it. But they do want to reach the Med Gallo to have their voices heard. They know there's a lot of media coverage. There are a lot of celebrities. And they want their message to get out there. They've been protesting all day. There are hundreds of people at one point trying to go through Central part to get to the Med Gala, but they were unable to reach it. They don't seem to be showing any signs of stopping, though, getting our steps in today trying to keep up with them as they try to get their message out there. Steve, and we appreciate that the image you're showing us

there of those protesters on your cell phone covering this for us. I do want to ask you, walk our viewers through how far you are from where the Met Gala is actually taking place. And I understand I'm being told we have live pictures of the red carpet right now, of the METGala, if we can see those as well. Yeah, what a contrast, that must be, Tom. The, we are probably, we're on a 79th now, so we're in Lexington, so it might be four or five blocks away from the Med Gala. They were, the protesters were not able to give by.

We actually counted the number of streets blocked up there, but I think eight, eight to ten blocks of actually keeping people back from where the Med Gala is. And these protesters are filling the streets. So traffic is stopped not only from the Medgala, but from these protests that are going through. Lexington, for example, is shut down right now at 79th Street. People getting very frustrated in their cars trying to get around. But certainly seeing the message that these protesters are trying to share

through their signs, through their chance, that they want divestment, they want a ceasefire right now. Stephen, are these protesters just running down random streets or this is part of the protest perimeter? It seems like they've been trying to. to find different routes to get to the med gala. That's what they've been trying to do. It does feel a bit random. I'm not sure if there has been a plan. The person leading the chance earlier today at Hunter College declined to speak to us to answer questions about what their

plans are today. So it's not exactly clear. One thing that is happening is the protesters are encountering the spectators who are nearby trying to see celebrities outside of the Medgala. So these two groups coming together and a lot for the NYPD to handle. Yeah, and it looks like the celebrities at the MetGall are doing just fine. It doesn't look like these demonstrators are anywhere near them. We're watching live pictures of the red carpet on our split screen here. Before you go, Stephen, around how many protesters have you seen on the streets of Manhattan tonight? Very difficult to count.

I'd say hundreds, at least a couple hundred so far. They're at one point in Central Park, two of the group we were with, and another group converge. So they were starting at different points and converging together, right there in Central Park trying to access the Met Gallo. Stephen Romer reporting from the streets of New York City tonight on those demonstrations as they try to interrupt the MetGala. Unsuccessful so far, but again, arrests are underway. Stephen, we know you're going to stand by. We'll take you if anything happens. We do want to turn now to another major headline that's happening in another American city.

A new severe weather threat taking aim after that flooding emergency in Texas led to more than 600 rescues in the Houston area alone. Officials saying two people were killed, including a four-year-old boy. The flooding leaving home submerged, cars floating, and lives devastated. Priscilla Thompson has more from the flood zone. Right now, the water got, like I said, 18 inches, so about right here. In Kingwood, Texas, residents like Austin Juneau are returning home. Trying to save whatever we could. Tossing couches and ripping up floorboards. Scenes like this playing out across southeast Texas after four days of relentless rain and flooding, submerged homes. Oh, that was floating. Set cars afloat. And officials say killed at least two,

including four-year-old Lucas Warren. Video shows rescuers near Dallas searching desperately in the dark for the boy. After he was swept away by fast-moving water Sunday, while clinging to his mother, she says. His body was recovered hours later, leaving her heartbroken. Nothing's ever going to bring Lucas back. Nothing's ever going to fill that hole. Since Friday, first responders have conducted more than 600 rescues and evacuations in the Houston area alone. Even using jet skis to save a man and three dogs trapped in eight feet of water. What does rebuilding look like? Well, it's starting all over again.

Now, with floodwaters receding, attention is turning to what comes next. You sound certain you'll rebuild. Yeah, I grew up on this water out here. I grew up making memories out here with friends and families, and how do you give all that up? Priscilla Thompson joins us tonight from Kingwood, Texas. Priscilla, what are the biggest needs right now where you are? And what are the days ahead looking like as far as weather goes there for that community? Yeah, so here in southeast Texas, the good news is there's no more severe weather expected.

The water is already beginning to recede. We're not far from the lake here, and it's already. going back in there. But the big concerns for the community here are going to be getting into their homes and gutting them before any molds is able to form. That is a big concern for folks, as well as standing water. Officials are very concerned about possible standing water that can lead to mosquito problems here. Tom? Okay, Priscilla Thompson. Priscilla, we appreciate that. For more on the high-risk tornado threat and the dangerous night ahead, NBC News meteorologist Bill Cairns joins me now live in studio. And Bill, explain this to our viewers here, these long-track

tornadoes. Yeah, these high-risk events are rare. We only get maybe one or two of them in an average year. We haven't had one in over a year and a month. So this is a big deal for these areas. And it just gives everyone a heads up that at least we have the potential for the type of tornadoes that can just take out of town. Those are the scary ones, obviously. Any tornado is scary, but these are the big ones that can be on the ground even after sunset. So we do have one active tornado warning and a tornado was just confirmed, a little one. And the thing with nights like this is this may stay with us now for about the next couple hours. We could be tracking this, what we call a supercell, this little hook right in here, is where the tornado was just reported.

So we're going to take that up here just near the Pond Creek area. They'll probably be under a tornado warning shortly. These are moving at about 30 to 40 miles per hour. We have about another two hours until the sun sets in Oklahoma. And that's when things will get really dangerous that night because the storm chasers really won't be able to tell where the tornadoes are as well. We're also continuing to monitor the hail with these storms. Pidential, particularly dangerous situation. These are rare too. We only get these when we expect the big tornadoes, widespread tornadoes that can be on the ground for a while. And that's going to be up to 11 o'clock this evening. The timing of this looks like Kansas City to Tulsa, to Oklahoma City. These storms aren't going to arrive in those areas,

Tom, to probably maybe 11 p.m. tonight and then into Missouri after that. So it's going to be a long evening, a dangerous evening. Hopefully these storms will miss, but they have the potential to hit. And if they do, they'll take everything out in their path. Bill Cairns for us, all right, Bill. We know we're going to stand by and keep an eye on all that. Still ahead, we're going to stick with some weather in the jaw-dropping new video from last month's tornado outbreak.

Take a look at this. New dash cam footage showing the moment a tornado tore the roof off a warehouse in Nebraska with 70 workers still inside. What happened next? Plus, a judge in Trump's hush money trial threatening to throw the former president in jail. We'll tell you what that judge said. Stay with us. Back down to former President Trump's hush money trial. The judge in that case today threatening Trump with jail time for violating his gag order once again after Trump claimed the jury was 95% Democrat.

Mrs. Vaughn Hillier has the latest. tonight former President Trump facing a new threat of jail time at his hush money trial after his 10th violation of the judge's gag order he's taken away my constitutional right to speak the judge directly addressing the possibility of putting mr trump behind bars over future violations the magnitude of such a decision is not lost on me you are the former president of the united states and possibly the next president as well adding as much as i do not want to impose the jail sanction, I will, if necessary and appropriate. Frankly, you know what? Our Constitution is much more important than jail. It's not even close. I'll do that sacrifice any day. The judge finding Mr. Trump an additional $1,000 for complaining about the jury in deep

blue Manhattan, saying it's 95% Democrat. The judge saying the former president wrongfully called into question the integrity of the jury. Mr. Trump has pleaded not guilty to low-level felony. charges for allegedly disguising reimbursements to Michael Cohen for hush money payments to Stormy Daniels as legal expenses in his company's internal business records. If convicted, Mr. Trump could face anywhere from four years in prison to just probation. Taking the stand this morning, Jeffrey McCawney, who oversaw the Trump Organization's accounting department at the heart of the prosecution's case of falsifying business records, testifying about invoices describing the reimbursements as

legal expenses, saying he was ordered by another Trump organization executive to reimburse Cohen $420,000 for the $130,000 payment to Stormy Daniels, most for Mr. Trump's personal account. But on cross-examination, McCona said he had not spoken to Mr. Trump directly about the business records. Another Trump organization employee, Deborah Terraceoff, testifying about Mr. Trump's process of signing checks, including to Cohen, which were shown to the jury, saying, If he didn't want to sign it, he didn't sign it. It was signed in Sharpie, and it was black, and that's what he uses. All right, Vaughn Hillier joins us tonight from the courthouse outside Lower Manhattan.

Vaughn, we got a sense today of how much longer possibly this trial may go. Right, this was the beginning of week three of testimony, and the prosecution from the district attorney's office today indicated that they still have about two more weeks' worth of witnesses to bring to the stand. At that point, once they rest their case, the defense can call up their own witnesses on behalf of Donald Trump. So we still got a little ways to go in this thing, Tom. Yeah, and Vaughn, there's the potential that the defense doesn't even put on a case, right? They could say the defense rests, and then it goes straight to the jury. Absolutely.

Especially the big variable here at play is whether Donald Trump, the defendant himself, testifies. He has suggested repeatedly that he would be keen and eager to do so, but ultimately will his own legal team, ask him to take the stand. That's sort of outstanding. So you're right. It could well go to the jury in short order. Okay, Von Hilliard for us, for more on that new threat of jail time for former President Trump, NBC News legal analyst, Danny Savalas, joins us now live in studio. Danny, the question is simple. Do you think Trump goes to jail? No, I think he even gets one more chance, because my prediction is Trump will reel it in so that if there is a future gag order hearing, it will be a close call.

Trump's not going to obviously step over the line and say something outrageous about a member of the jury at this point. He's going to hue close to the line, and it might still land him back for a hearing because it's up to the prosecution to make that motion. But I think he's going to be careful. And if it's a close call, I don't think the judge is going to throw him in jail. Let's say it's not a close call and he does throw him in jail. What would that process look like? It would be an administrative nightmare because putting a former president in a jail cell, even if it's in the same building, requires an outland. amount of logistics. I mean, he's flanked by Secret Service everywhere he goes. And in addition,

the optics are really bad. Nobody wants that to happen. I don't care what Trump says. He doesn't want it to happen. And the judge obviously doesn't want it to happen, which is what I think a lot of us suspected for a long time. If he wasn't Trump, they essentially take him out of the courtroom right to jail. That's usually the process, right? Oh, yeah. I mean, I would say that he's even getting a little leniency because, I mean, there's a reluctance to hold him in contempt and put him in jail. I mean, judges will put other defendants who you've never heard of in jail. They've got no problem with that.

Yeah, the former president there stepping on the line. We'll see if he eventually crosses it. Danny, always great to have you here. When we come back, staying with politics, the list for President Trump's potential running mate seems to be shortening. The new details on who could appear on the Republican presidential ticket. We will bring you that new reporting.

We're back now with Top Stories News Feed. We start with another American detained in Russia. In a statement, a U.S. Army spokesperson saying a U.S. soldier has been detained in Russia. According to four U.S. officials, he's been accused of stealing from a woman. They say he had been stationed in South Korea and allegedly traveled to Russia on his own and not an official business. There are currently several American civilians detained in that country right now. Shocking tornado destruction caught on camera in Nebraska last month.

at this. It just came out. New dash cam footage showing the moment of tornado tore the roof off a warehouse to nearly flatten the building. Here's the thing. More than 70 workers were still inside of the time, but somehow none were seriously injured. That is incredible. The plastic manufacturer laying off 62 employees today saying its entire facility and the equipment inside were destroyed. Okay, and Starbucks's ex-CEO saying the company needs to revamp its stores after decline in profits and start thinking about customers again. The coffee chain suffering a 17% drop in sales after it underperformed in its latest quarterly report.

You might remember this guy, former CEO Howard Schultz, saying he believes the coffee chain will recover, but only if it improves its mobile order experience and overhauls how it creates new drinks. Okay. Now, of power and politics, as former President Trump continues to face down legal troubles, the GOP frontrunner also weighing his option. for running mates. New details emerging on who that pick could be after a handful of prominent Republicans joined the former president at Mar-a-Lago this weekend. NBC's Dasha Burns has some of

the details. Tonight, former President Trump tied down in a Manhattan courtroom. The government just said that they want two to three more weeks. That means they want to keep me off the trail for two to three more weeks. But still preparing for a critical choice, who will be his VP? We're learning new details after several potential picks. joined him at a Mar-a-Lago weekend donor retreat. Mr. Trump praising Senators Marco Rubio, Tim Scott, and J.D. Vance from the stage, as well as representatives Elise DeFonick and Byron Donalds

and North Dakota's Governor Doug Bergam, according to audio of Trump's speech obtained by NBC News. Also getting a shout-out, South Dakota Governor Christy Noem, despite facing backlash from key Trump backers after describing how she killed her family's dog in a new book. That's the purpose of telling the story was so that people would know I don't pass my responsibilities on to anybody else. It was extremely hard for me.

South Carolina Senator Tim Scott was pressed by NBC's Kristen Welker on whether he'd accept the election results in November. Just yes or no. Will you accept the election results of 2024? I look forward to President Trump being the 47th president. Kristen, you can ask it multiple times. Senator, just a yes or no answer. So the American people, the American people will make the decision. Mr. Trump's hand-picked RNC chairman Michael Watley telling me Republicans have already filed more than 80 election lawsuits across 25 states.

What do you say to critics who argue that these lawsuits are just sort of paving the way for former President Trump to claim the election was stolen in 2024 if President Biden wins? They're absolutely not. Look, we're trying to do through these lawsuits is get states to implement common sense election integrity programs that has nothing to do with voter suppression. Wattley, adding Mr. Trump's trial, not harming him on the trail. He can have an impromptu press conference at the courthouse, and every camera is going to be on him. So this is a guy who absolutely can communicate directly with the American voters. And Tom, even though some of those lawsuits that we mentioned there are actually targeting how and when mail and ballots can be counted, Chairman Watley told me that the Republican Party is very much focused on trying to get Republican voters to vote early and to vote. by mail. That is a priority. Of course, the former president has been vocal about mail and ballots

that he doesn't like them. He said in the past, he believes that they're cheating. However, in a recent truth social post, he did encourage people to vote by mail. Wotley believes they've gotten him to come around on the issue, and they are very much pushing a banker vote, voting by mail effort on the part of the RNC. Tom? All right, Dasha Burns, we appreciate that. For more in Trump's Veep Stakes, let's bring in Republican strategist and former Trump. Trump White House deputy, principal press secretary, Hogan Gidley. Hogan, always a pleasure to see you. I want to put up that list of VP contenders, okay?

I know you didn't pick Mystic Dan over the weekend in the Kentucky Derby, but who are you picking out of this list right here? Give me your top two choices you think that are real contenders. I hate to be that guy, but I don't think I can. I mean, the bench is deep. We've got a lot of talented folks up there. Trump likes them all. It depends on what he wants in this position.

You want someone who's going to keep that, you know, make America great, again, agenda going, the America First policies, not for four years, but for 12. Do you want someone who's going to be thought of to have the inside track to be the potential next president should you get elected as your VP? Does he want someone who's going to, you know, be able to undergird all of his policies prescriptions, fight for him in front of the mainstream media, take on the detractors, be able to work with people on Capitol Hill, have those relationships. that you're going to need to get things done in the House and the Senate.

These are all things I think a lot of people would look at. But I want to say something about geography, because for a long time, people will think you always want to pick a vice president that could potentially pick you up a state that you wouldn't get normally. But that kind of theory has been out the window for a long time. George W. Bush was never going to lose Wyoming, right? Barack Obama was never going to lose Delaware. Joe Biden was never going to lose California.

It's more about picking someone. who fills a gap that you have, either with the electorate, with the American people, who, you know, can pick up a messaging point that you need them to take and carry it through to the finish line. That's what people look for in vice presidents. I mean, Biden needed somebody younger. He wanted someone diverse. That's what he said with his own mouth. So the fact is, I think Trump's going to fill it with someone, you know, that can take up and carry that America First agenda forward and really kind of take it to the mainstream media, because you know he likes to do that one way or the other. Hogan, you're sounding more like a politician than a

political analyst. Let's get real tonight. Please, you know, I just gave you the, I gave you the microphone there. You went off. Here's, look, I've been told three things. He wants someone who looks the part. He wants somebody who he can trust. And he also wants somebody he likes. Now, if those are the three things that he's going to use to choose his next running mate, who do you think is on that list there? Who does he like? Who do you think looks the part? By the way, I think trust is a big one in that list. And right now, those people that are kind of consistently talked about, the Tim Scots, the J.D. Vance's. And yes, Christian Ome as well, they're on that list. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, someone not on that list that I think a lot of people in Trump world really

do like and respect that think that she kind of understands the orbit, for example. So I think the list is getting smaller and smaller by every single day and every passing moment. But he's got a long list to choose from. And you saw a lot of that kind of played out. You know, he likes to get up on stage and kind of feel out the crowd a little bit. And, you know, he's taking stock in his mind when he says someone's name, how that reaction is from the crowd. Are they really excited, kind of excited, lukewarm? He watches all those types of things. I agree with that. We got about 20 seconds left, Hogan. Who on that list? Our fine director is going to put it back up on the screen here. Who on that list do you think is not going to be the pick? Give me one, because you've given me

zero names tonight. I don't know. I don't want to to say a name because I don't want to say anyone's not good enough to be there. I think they're all ready to be his running made. But look, do you have the charisma to get out there and do it? Do you understand Trump world? Will you go to the map for the president when times are tough? That list gets shorter and shorter as you take a look at what some of those candidates actually said about him when they were running against him. That makes it a little bit more difficult for him to kind of choose that. But I will say if there's one thing he loves more than someone who's supported him from day one, it's a convert. If he can get you on his side when you weren't,

before, I think he likes that because he appreciates his own ability to kind of make that deal, if you will. Hogan Gidley, we always appreciate you. Thank you, my friend. Coming up, the Oracle's warning, billionaire Warren Buffett speaks out about artificial intelligence and the signals he's sending about what's going to happen with the markets, what it could mean for your investments. That's next. We are back now with money talks. What consumers and investors need to know from the business world and beyond. Billionaire and legendary investor Warren Buffett addressing the growth of artificial intelligence at the annual Berkshire Hathaway shareholder meeting, comparing it to the invention of the atomic bomb. Here's what he said.

I don't have any advice on the world handles it because I don't think we know how to handle what we did with the nuclear genie. But I do think as someone who doesn't understand a damn thing about it, But it has enormous potential for good and enormous potential for harm. For more on Buffett's warnings and more headlines from the annual meeting, NBC News, business and data correspondent Brian Chung joins Top Story tonight. So Brian, first of all, let's talk about AI, right? Because he also said this is going to be a huge growth sector for all the scams that are going to come out of AI. Yeah, and when it comes to AI, this is really important for the Oracle of Omaha because it has attracted so much investor attention.

because stocks that are attached to AI have really shot up over the past few years. But when it comes to AI, Warren Buffett said that he himself saw a deep fake of himself that basically creeped him out. And he said that basically the genie is out of the bottle. And from that clip that we just heard from, it sounds like he admits that AI is already exploding. It's already growing, but that he has some serious ethical concerns with the way that it's being used. Could somebody use a deep fake to trick someone into wiring them $50,000? That's something that he's very concerned. But he thinks there's also a business potential there.

I guess people that can stop that. kind of deepfakes as well? Yeah, and that's an important distinction here, right? Because he's an investor at the end of the day, not an AI ethicist, but I think that his point is that, look, there are maybe some business opportunities that are out there, but you have to make sure you're investing in the ones that aren't going to be doing the bad stuff, and maybe there's some actually defensive types of companies in cybersecurity that might be investable opportunities. You know, investors love to go to this annual shareholder meeting and also love to read the tea leaves because he gives so much information, right? And so the Oracle looked into his crystal ball,

and he kind of shared with us what he sees as far as the macro economic picture is concerned. And he explained it with what he's doing with his Apple stock, right? He's selling his Apple stock, not because he doesn't believe in the company, he says, but it's because of tax reasons. Yeah, explain that. Yeah, so I mean, right now, they're face of 21% capital gains tax. Every time you sell a stock, you're going to take that hit. And he's selling a lot of the stock because of the expectation or the concern that maybe tax rates could go higher in the future. Could that be an administration change? Could that just be something that has to do with where interest rates are? And the deficit, right? He's concerned. He's that we

just owe too much money. Taxes are going to have to eventually come up. And it's always debate about how much investors, especially large ones like Warren Buffett, need to shoulder in terms of helping to pay the deficit by paying larger taxes. But again, Apple stock, which is so important to Berkshire because it's their biggest holdings, selling 13% is significant. But we have to remember that it's still, and he expects it to remain Berkshire Hathaway's largest hold. We lost Charlie Munger, right? Warren Buffett's partner, his best friend. We hear Warren Buffett there. He's up there and age.

How does he address the future of Berkshire Hathaway? Yeah, I mean, he's 93 years old, so no spring chicken. And he joked at the end of the meeting that he hopes everyone comes back next year and that he hopes he does too. But when it comes to just the overall story, again, you know, he lost his longtime business partner friend Charlie Munger. And at events like this, he's always talking about broad investment strategies. It's usually a fool's errand to try to predict whether or not stocks are going to go up or down. Berkshire Hathaway has had more success than anybody else than being able to do just that because of their massive growth over his lifetime. And one thing that he imparted, quote, Charlie and I missed a lot of things.

We never worried about missing something that we didn't understand the reason why they always did. the research that was, that's why they said out of crypto, too. But he also tried to give investors some reassurance that there is sort of, there are leaders in place if something were to happen to Warren Buffett, right? Yeah, and Greg Abel, who is someone that has managed a lot of their investments, is kind of essentially the next in line at Berkshire Hathaway. Again, you know, Warren Buffett has been planning this for a long time. It's not like Charlie Munger's death is kind of the next point towards needing to name a

successor, but they have the pipeline in place. This is a storied organization with a lot of names that have been. there for decades. It's a succession plan, but again, he's the greatest inventor of maybe any lifetime. Investor, I should say, any lifetime, you just wonder what's going to happen to that share price that company. You don't get Oracle as a nickname out of nowhere. Brian, great to have you, as always. When we come back, a special interview for Holocaust Remembrance Day, a survivor who was born in a Holocaust ghetto tells us about how she's dedicated her life to helping other survivors and the importance of this day and to never forget the horrors of the Holocaust. The powerful interview

coming up right after this break. Tonight we want to end our show, remembering the 11 million people killed during the Holocaust, including 6 million Jews. In just a few minutes, I'm going to sit down with a survivor of the Holocaust, born in Hungary's Budapest ghetto. But first, a look at some of the atrocities her family lived through, and why she believes the message to never forget is more important than ever. Today, sirens sounding over Israel, but they were not warning of missiles. Instead, they brought the country to halt for Yom Haashoa, Holocaust Remembrance Day.

Israelis stopping wherever they were, including on highways, to observe an annual two minutes of silence. To remember, the six million Jews, including more than one million children, murdered at the hands of the Nazis. Remembrance events also happening in Europe and here in the U.S. The Holocaust spanning from 1933 to 1945 when Adolf Hitler, his SS forces and allies carried out his so-called final solution. A genocidal plan to rid the world of Jews and also targeted others based on sexuality, race, and political beliefs. The Nazis would find a cruel and willing partner in the far-right government of Milosh Horti in Hungary. 1939, then the life of Jewish people, the life quality, the possibilities decreased dramatically. You could not work for the government anymore.

You had to give up leading your own businesses. You had to give up your wealth. You couldn't work in intellectual positions. By 1944, 800,000 Jews were living in Hungary. But that year, fearing further defeat to the Allied forces, the Nazis actually toppled Hortes government, putting in place the violently anti-Semitic Aero Cross Party. Wherever they would find Jews, they would torture and kill them. In just eight weeks, more than 420,000 Hungarian Jews were transported to Auschwitz.

Thousands more sent on death marches to Austria. In Budapest, an estimated 80,000 Jews were shot on the banks of the Danube River, and 70,000 were crammed into a 0.1 square mile radius, known as the Budapest ghetto. Many perished from cold disease and starvation. These people found themselves in the middle of the coldest winter of the 20th century with practically no heating, no water supplies, no electricity. Hungary was liberated by the Soviet Army in April of 1945. Less than a year after deportation started there.

Still, according to Yadbashem Holocaust Memorial Center, and estimated 568,000 Hungarian Jews died in the Holocaust. If you go to the countryside in Hungary today, you will find no Jewish people. Today, nearly 80 years later, there are estimates of 245,000 Holocaust survivors still alive. But according to the report, the median age of survivors is 86 years old. Organizations around the world working to collect their stories, making sure the world never forgets what happened. It's very important to remember every name of them. And tonight we are lucky to be joined by a survivor of the Budapest ghetto.

Susan Kalev was born there in 1944. She and her mother are survivors of the Holocaust. Susan also works as an active member of the Holocaust Survivor Speaker Bureau at the Museum of Jewish Heritage. And she's the co-author of Remember Us, a book written about stories from Hungarian Holocaust survivors. Susan, thank you for joining Top Story. Thank you for having me. It's very exciting for me.

It is Holocaust Remembrance Day, and I know this is always a significant day in your life, but maybe it has a different meaning because of what happened on October 7th and the war right now inside of Gaza against Hamas. Talk to me about what today means for you. Well, I think even more than ever before, I think the importance of speaking out and not being silent, I think that's what it's about for me. That's what it always has been for me, because those family, my family who perished, were silenced.

And the people who survived were silenced by the trauma. There was no telling. I didn't know. I didn't know anything. My parents never talked about it. And this is why I feel that I cannot keep silent. I need to share. I need to tell the story.

I need to remember the past. Because that's the only way that we can honor that. And we have Memorial Day, which is for memory, which is coming up soon, to remember all the people who fell, who fought. We have July 4th. It's also memory. It's all about memory. Does the time now, though, with the protest and the war, what does it make you think about the time we're living in right now? It makes me very sad. It makes me scared. I'm scared of the way. happening. I'm scared that it escalates. I'm also scared that it's not achieving of what they really want to achieve, which is justice and the end of violence. I think that to,

like you and all are sitting down talking. To sit, to talk, to listen to each other is the only thing that's effective. And I'm scared of what's going to happen. Are you scared of the anti-Semitism that you're seeing out there. I know a lot of anti-Semitism has sort of come to the forefront with some of these protests, not all of them, but it has come to the forefront of some of them. Yeah, it does scare me, but, you know, the thing is that I'm used to it as a young Jewish child in a town where I was the only one surviving was a Jewish child. And I didn't know what that word meant. I didn't know why they were calling me names. And then after the war,

the communists took over hungry, and again, you could not talk about being Jewish. When I first came here, I was 12, and it was like, people said, I'm judged. They can actually say that. You could say that in the school. You could say that in front of other people. It was amazing. So what keeps me hopeful is that here you can say it. It's okay.

This is free. And I don't think that I can be persecuted for being that. It is Holocaust Remembrance Day. I know you lost your father and your sister in the Holocaust. You were born in the Budapest ghetto? Yes. Do you remember? I know it was in the shadow of the Holocaust,

but do you remember life at all over there? Well, I was an infant so that I don't remember, but what's amazing is that there is a phenomenon where I remembered my mother's memories. It's called epigenetic or generational transmission of trauma. And there is an Israeli psychologist. Eric Felsen, who has documented that second and third generation can actually inherit the trauma. Even the DNA can change so that I remembered as if I remembered my mother's story and trauma.

Explain that to people who may not understand that. It was difficult for you to talk about, or you had memories, or you and your mother would talk about this? How do you describe that? I had memories when I knew that there was a separation and a terror in my mother's life. But she was a parent who never spoke about it, and I was a child who never asked about it. Why do you think that happened? Because I know that was pervasive in the Jewish community. Why do you think the Jews were like that?

Why they didn't talk about it afterwards? Yeah, because, you know, you talk about post-traumatic stress syndrome, and that's something that sort of came up after World War II, mostly in Vietnam and stuff like that. You didn't hear about sort of Holocaust support groups. You don't really hear about that. Maybe a little bit now, but back then I know that wasn't a thing. No support groups, like we have PTSD, what you went through, and we're going to have to keep it inside.

I think they kept it inside. Number one, they felt that people wouldn't believe what happened. It was so atrocious. People couldn't believe one human could do this to another human. Exactly. And number two was, I think, that it was too painful to bring it. it up. And also, like my parents, they wanted to go forward into a new life. They had another child. They came to America. It was a new life. And you didn't want to go back there. That's,

that generation felt that way. Why is today so important to you? I know you mentioned about talking about this, never forgetting the Holocaust Remembrance Day. You mean, you mean in particular today? Yeah, yeah. Why? I mean, I know it's important, obviously, to all just. especially in Israel, but for you and this time right now, yeah. Yes, I mean, first of all, I'm happy to be here to talk about it. I mean, that makes it important. And also all over the world, especially in Israel, there's a lot of memorials. There's a lot of testimonials, Holocaust survivors who still remember that they were present when it happened.

And especially in light of what's happening now, and the upheaval and the protest, to commemorate this kind of atrocity and to remember what can happen, really, when we don't speak up, when we're not remembering it, when we're not talking about it, when we're not taking action, what can happen? Does it hurt you? Can you see it? Do you turn it off when you see the images from some of the protests, if they're burning the Israeli flag, if there's posters that say something that could be interpreted as anti-Semitic? There's Jewish students we've talked to here in our show who said they, They don't feel safe on campus. I've got to think that that bothers you.

Yeah, I think also what bothers me is that what I read, that the students who are very active and very intense actually don't even know the story of Gaza and the story of Israel of how way back this originated and the history of it. They're responding to what's happening now, but it's a little bit naive and there's a little piece of ignorance. They're not enough information to know what's really happening. What do you hope happens in Gaza?

I mean, you're somebody who suffered in a ghetto in Hungary. You lost your family. There's a lot of people that are dying in Gaza. And I know this all started because of the Hamas terrorist attack. But I have to think maybe you feel for people in Gaza, too. There's 100,000 people trying to figure out where to go in Rafah right now, no place to go. Absolutely. I feel that having the history that I have,

I think I have so much compassion for those mothers who lose their family. I mean, I could just sit and cry about it. This is why sometimes I do shut it off. It's the suffering and the injustice is everybody. They lost the son just like the Israeli mother lost the son. It's innocent lives, caught up in this timing of history here and now. Yeah. You have a lot of wisdom.

and in the studio right now, these photos, these are the photos of your family, right? Over the years, I saw you come in here and sort of look at them and take a moment. My goodness. When you look at them and you think about your own life, what have you learned? When I look at these photos,

they are... I didn't know, I had no idea. I didn't know that this was going... I'd want to be surrounded by my past. It makes me very emotional, But it also makes me happy that there is evidence that this happened, that this is where I lived, this is where I got married, I don't even know what's behind me, that this was my life.

This was my mother's life before it happened and also after it happened. And it also tells me that even after this happened, you can make a new life and you can bring forth a new generation, and you can teach people, and you can be in your life again. Susan, we thank you so much for being here, and we thank you for sharing so much. What a life, and we thank you for continuing to speak on what you believe in. That's what I do. And you've had wonderful questions. Thank you. I try. And it's so nice to meet you. We'll continue the conversation. Susan, thank you so much again. And we thank you for watching Top Story tonight. I'm Tom Yamis, New York. Stay right there. More news on the way.