Top Story with Tom Llamas - Monday, November 20, 2023

Episode Date: November 21, 2023

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

Tonight, Thanksgiving travel danger, reports of tornadoes touching down as millions hit the roads. Heavy winds, rain and hail wreaking havoc on highways across the south. A massive funnel cloud, take a look spotted in Louisiana late today. A sign of what could be a very dangerous night ahead. Millions in the risk area from Texas to Arkansas, the dangerous storm on the move, expected to create treacherous conditions up and down the east coast. rain, sleet, and snow expected what you need to know if you're heading out

for the holiday. Also tonight, signs of hope? For the hostages held by Hamas in Gaza, President Biden saying a deal to secure their release could be near. What we're hearing tonight about those negotiations, including plans for a pause in fighting, plus an update on those

28 premature babies evacuated from Al-Shefa hospital in Gaza after it lost power. And the chilling new video released by the IDF showing hostages held by Hamas inside that same hospital on October 7th. L.A. arson manhunt authorities in California releasing these images of a person of interest,

wanted in connection to the raging fire that shut down one of the nation's busiest highways, and the major progress tonight, parts of that highway now reopened in time for the holiday rush. The new face of Argentina, Javier Mille, a polarizing right-wing politician often compared to Donald Trump, winning a runoff election to become Argentina's next president,

how he went from an economist to a TV personality to the leader of the third largest economy in Latin America and the key economic policies he's planning to put in place and what your dollars have to do with it. Plus, an earthquake in the Philippines causing this crane to snap, sending shards of metal plunging to the ground, the damage it did to the neighborhood below. Back here at home, a dramatic rescue

after a suspect fleeing from police crashed her car, igniting a massive fireball, the hard-stopping moments an officer rushed in to pull her from the flames. And a Minnesota woman receiving hundreds and hundreds of boxes from Target, and no, she's not getting a jump start on Black Friday shopping. How a glitch in their system left her buried in other people's packages. Top story. Starts right now. And good evening. We begin Top Story tonight with that. severe weather threatening plans for millions of Americans at the start of one of the busiest travel weeks of the year. Multiple tornado watches in effect across the south with warnings

popping up by the hour. Blinding rains and heavy winds creating treacherous conditions for drivers in Chopin, Louisiana. A likely tornado detected on radar late today. In nearby Faraday, intense wind gusts and golf ball-sized hail forcing drivers to pull over on the side of the road. And this possible tornado, take a look, spotted in Colfax late this afternoon. Eight million people still in the risk zone tonight, bracing for potentially dangerous overnight tornadoes. And this system is on the move, headed towards the busy I-95 corridor over the next several days, bringing rain, sleet, and even snow. And here's why this matters. 30 million people expected to take to the skies this Thanksgiving week, and another 55 million will travel by car.

This wild weather could put a wrench in many of those plans. I want to get right over NBC meteorologist Bill Karens, who joins us now live in studio. Bill, I'm looking over at your radar, and I can already see those tornado, those twister symbols you have up and down, Mississippi and Louisiana. Yeah, we know we've had tornadoes on the ground in the last hour or so. We have this chance for happening now. What's different now is that the sun has set. These are now nocturnal storms. The storm chasters can't give us that heads up as much.

We're really based just on radar what's going on. So if you hear the tornado sirens in your area, take your family, get to your shelter, do you get to your safe room and just wait out these storms. So we have a couple tornado warnings that we're watching here. Other very strong thunderstorms near Alexandria, Louisiana. Let's get a closer look. This is Interstate 55, slicing right down the middle of Mississippi. This is Crystal Springs, and this is Hazlehurst.

These are towns where the tornado sirens are going off currently, as this storm is showing rotation in here. So we don't know if it's a confirmed tornado or not, but it's possible there could be a tornado on the ground, and that's heading your way within the next five to about 10 minutes. And, of course, for everyone traveling on the highway and Interstate 55, hopefully they're getting their notifications on the radio or on their phones, because they won't even know about it, and they for sure won't be able to hear the sirens in most

cases. So the storms to the north of theirs. Here's Interstate 55 in northern Mississippi. This has some rotation with it just exited canons. This is over a pretty rural area here heading towards Carthage. That's the other radar indicated tornado that we're on the ground right now, Tom. And then, Bill, you know, we're going to stay on top of these tornadoes throughout the broadcast. But looking at tomorrow, one of the busiest travel days of the year, how much much of a mess are you expecting? Not tornadoes, not severe weather. We're not going to worry about damage, but delays certainly. So let's pause this at noon tomorrow. Areas of yellow is pouring rain, Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Detroit, on and off thunderstorms, Atlanta to Charlotte to Raleigh.

These areas, we're going to have airport delays too. And then this entire mess as we go throughout the evening all on I-95. So if you want to pick the worst time to be driving on I-95 is after work, after school, in torrential rain, heading towards the holidays. So that's, again, Roanoke, Richmond, DC, Baltimore, New York City. The timing for Boston looks to be more late 10 or 11 p.m. So if you can get your travel done before that, then on Wednesday morning, early in the day, we have some issues in Boston, maybe out in Long Island, but then it clears out during the day. So Wednesday is a much better choice.

A lot less delay is Wednesday than tomorrow, which should be a ton. And finally, if people aren't keeping up with the news and they're just going to watch tonight, what are you forecasting for those travelers heading home at the end of a long week? Yeah, so Thanksgiving looks good, just a little bit of snow in Wyoming. And then as we head all home, starting on Friday. That storm is in Denver. Colorado could have some issues. No problems. Friday, Saturday, east of the Mississippi, West Coast looks great, too. This is Saturday. And they say Sunday is going to be the busiest travel day of them all. And we are almost storm-free, Tom, from coast to coast. We just have to get through tonight and get through tomorrow.

And then hopefully everyone can have a nice, safe, enjoyable holiday. We hope so. Okay, Bill, we thank you for everything. The severe weather, obviously, prompting new concerns ahead of a busy travel week. More than 80 million people are expected to hit the roadways and the skies between now and Thanksgiving. NBC's Tom Costello has more on what you need to know before the travel rush. The TSA calls it the 12 days of Thanksgiving as more Americans travel early and work remotely before and after Thursday. 2.6 million passengers flying today and Tuesday and Wednesday. Then a record Sunday crescendo, nearly 3 million flying home. We get out on a Monday and we come right back after before the crowd's come.

What could slow things down? Mother Nature, of course, is the X factor in all of this. If you can fly in the slow season between Thanksgiving and Christmas, airlines have millions of empty seats to fill. Now, many are offering cut-rate deals as low as $29 one way on Southwest. So far this year, only 1.3% of flights have been delayed, the lowest in a decade. Most blamed on weather and airline issues. But amid record passenger levels, pilot and controller errors have led to 23 high-preference. profile near misses this year. On runways and in the air, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.

Is the system right now really being stressed beyond its capacity? Well, demand is growing. It's going to continue to grow. So the system has to grow with it. For this week, the FAA is opening 169 new fast lanes in the sky as departing commercial flights get priority over private planes. The FAA also opening up closed military airspace off the East Coast in the Gulf of Mexico and curtailing rocket launches in Florida to help move things along. Tom? Stella on the travel beat again for us. Tom, thank you. We turn now to the latest on the Israel-Hamas war and signs of a potential deal

emerging for some of those hundreds of hostages still held by Hamas. Our interview with the father whose two daughters were taken tonight, still holding out hope. Ralph Sanchez is on the ground for us. Tonight, families of the hostages held captive in Gaza, daring to hope, and so is President Biden. Mr. President, is it hostage deal near? I believe so. I'm not prepared to talk to you.

Do you know? Yes. Thank you. But so far, Hamas refusing to release the over 200 hostages held since its October 7 terror attack, including a three-year-old American girl and a 10-month-old baby. Sources tell NBC News a deal would involve a pause in the fighting in exchange for the hostages, though cautioning, talks could still collapse. Among those praying, Yoni Asher.

I am a father of two little girls, Raz and Daviv. This chilling video showing his daughter's wife and mother-in-law all being kidnapped by Hamas. It's been 45 days with no word. Are you allowing yourself to be hopeful? I have to. This family has no other member but me. I am the father. If I would not be their voice, nobody will.

While in Gaza, gunfire outside this hospital, where many Palestinian civilians are taking shelter. The Palestinian Authority says 12 patients were killed by Israeli shelling. Israel says it shot back after militants opened fire from inside the medical facility, but denies shelling it. Israeli tanks seen surrounding the hospital. And today, 28 premature babies carried out of Gaza to the safety of Egypt. Tiny lives younger than the war they were born into.

Palestinian doctors say at least eight babies have died since their incubators lost power at Al-Shefa hospital last week. Israel in the U.S. maintain Hamas used the hospital as a command center. Israel releasing this security footage timestamped from the morning of October 7th, saying it shows Hamas gunmen forcing one hostage into the hospital. Another hostage is seen bleeding, wheeled in by men with AK-47s. Israel also showing images of what it says is a Hamas tunnel below Al-Shefa, 10 yards deep, 55 yards long, and leading to a blast door with a firing hole.

NBC News has not been able to independently verify the assertion. Raf Sanchez joins Top Story tonight from Tel Aviv. Raf, you mentioned the top of your piece that it seems we're getting closer to a for at least some of those hostages. Have you gotten any sense from Israelis or U.S. officials of what that deal might look like? Well, Tom, sources familiar tell NBC News that the broad outlines of the deal are that Hamas releases some, but not all of the hostages, most likely a couple dozen, and most likely the women and children.

And in exchange, there is a pause in the fighting, likely for several days in Gaza, as well as a massive influx of humanitarian aid. What we don't know at this point is whether this deal also includes Israel releasing prisoners from Israeli jails and allowing them to go back into Gaza. That's something that we have seen in previous deals, not clear if it's happening here. But Tom, sources stressing and officials on the record saying nothing is agreed until everything is agreed, and this deal is not yet finalized. And then, Raf, we have seen so many heartbreaking images over all these weeks of war, right? And one of those that is going to stand with people. And it sticks with me is the image we saw tonight of those babies, those premature babies being taken from the hospitals in Gaza.

You reported they were taken to Egypt. Do we have any update on how they're doing tonight? So, Tom, 28 babies crossing from Gaza through the Rafah crossing into Egypt. Egyptian medical authorities say they are particularly concerned about 12 of them, who they flew straight away from the border to Cairo for intensive care there. And Tom, these are little children, younger than the war, born into chaos that they had nothing to do with, and the whole world right now is hoping and praying that these little babies pull through. Tom. Us too.

All right. Raf Sanchez from Tel Aviv again for us. Raf, thank you. Now to the Americas in Argentina, right-wing economist and former TV talking head, Javier Miele has won the presidential election after a fierce runoff. The nation has been plagued with soaring inflation. An issue Malé has promised to tackle head-on. Our Stephen Romo gives us a look down to the new president with a unique style and an ambitious plan to help Argentina, which is in a crisis mode.

Argentina's fiercely polarized presidential election is over. And populist Javier Malay came out ahead. Right-wing economist and TV personality securing the presidency after running an eccentric campaign promising to reign in soaring inflation and fight socialist values. Supporters flooding the streets of Buenos Aires, hopeful for change at a time when the poverty rate has reached 40 percent in the country with the third largest economy in Latin America. Mele is securing the famous Casa Rosada after a contentious runoff with more than 55 percent of the vote compared with his rival, Argentina's economy minister, Serio Masa, the largest margin of victory

since the country returned to Democratic elections in 1983. A controversial figure, known by his fans as the crazy and the wig, for his larger-than-life personality and hair. At times, compared to Brazil's president, Jair Bolsonaro, and former U.S. president, Donald Trump, who congratulated Malay on his victory, writing. quote, make Argentina great again on his truth social platform. Before rattling Argentinian politics, Javier Millet was a TV pundit, love for his hot takes on the economy and politics that boosted ratings.

What do you see as his biggest challenge going into office? Getting forward some of his critical proposals through the Argentina Congress is going to be a challenge, as well as the financial situation overall. The Argentine peso is viewed by many as, you know, as essentially being worthless. He's a self-declared an acro-capitalist, a libertarian and staunch supporter of the free market. His fight against inflation, which is topped 140 percent, is centered around closing the nation's central bank. Dollar is the economy is obviously incredibly problematic and so far as how to actually do it. And also a country of the size of Argentina is challenging.

challenging as well. Argentina's recent legalization of abortion is also in Malay's crosshairs. Malay has proposed a plan to repeal the law while juggling the notion that climate change is not a human-made issue. The sizable victory of Javier Malay shows the discontent of the Argentine people with their current status. All right, Stephen Romo joins us in studio now. Stephen, he's called Brazil's president, a quote, angry communist.

What does that say about his style? obviously Argentina and Brazil share a border. Yeah, the relationship between Brazil and Argentina obviously very important. That sort of harsh words they've had back and forth raised a lot of concerns. But Lula actually congratulated the new government of Argentina, hoping that things will smooth out. But the expert we talked to for this piece is saying that the ideological differences between Malay and the rest of the region could cause quite a bit more tension, something we're going to have to watch going forward. Okay, Stephen Romo first. Stephen will appreciate that.

Still ahead tonight, the arson manhunt in California. Police releasing an image of the person they believe intentionally started a fire on I-10 in Los Angeles. What we're learning about that suspect as the freeway reopens. Plus, a New York teenager killed while studying abroad overseas the charges his roommate is now facing. And the former CEO of OpenAI and creator of ChatGPT hired at Microsoft right after he was ousted from his own company, why hundreds of his former employees are now threatening to walk off the job. Stay with us. Back now with that massive Los Angeles freeway fire, authorities are asking the public for help, identifying a person of interest in the case.

This plea as the highway reopens to commuters just before the Thanksgiving travel rush, NBC's Liz Kreutz has the latest. Tonight, an urgent search for the person who intentionally started this massive inferno under a Los Angeles freeway. We still are looking forward to anyone that wishes to. come forward with any information around this suspect. Cal Fire releasing these images over the weekend of a person of interest in the arson that caused one of the city's busiest highways to shut down, creating a logistical nightmare for drivers and business owners in downtown L.A. and beyond. Authorities describing the suspect as an approximately six-foot-tall man, weighing between

170 to 190 pounds, black hair wearing a black hoodie, blue shorts, and a knee-brae. They say he also appears to have a visible burn on his left leg. As the manhunt continues, for many residents, a welcome Thanksgiving surprise. The good news is there was more good news. Just in time for holiday travel, overnight, the damaged stretch of Interstate 10 reopening, days and even weeks earlier than previously expected. You know, it was a week or so ago that we were here, not knowing if we would be here at this moment announcing the reopening for. six more months. Governor Gavin Newsom sharing the news of the expedited timeline on Sunday,

alongside local officials and Vice President Kamala Harris, who praised the construction teams working around the clock over the last eight days. The work that happened here is extraordinary, and the estimates were that this was going to take a long time. There were some who said that a three-to-four-week estimation was ambitious. Officials say the repairs could cost an estimated $3 million and will be covered by federal funds. Authorities are also investigating the private company that leases the area where the fire started, with state officials looking into how they manage the property. Now, as travelers hit the road this holiday week.

We wouldn't have to wait until Thursday to give thanks, to give thanks for the opening before the Thanksgiving holiday of the I-10. A massive sigh of relief in a city already notorious for traffic. All right, Liz Kreutz joins us now. Liz, local, state, even national elected officials there for this reopening. Sort of interesting, but I do have to ask you, I mean, do we know why it opened up so fast? I mean, was this sort of classic politics where you, you know, under promise and over-deliver? Yeah, I mean, obviously all three of them there with local, state, federal, all together, saying that they work together to make this happen. And Governor Newsom, though, really said the reason that they were actually able to open up so much faster than expected was because of a handful of factors that just worked in their favor, including being able to get certain materials and supplies that they needed quickly.

But ultimately, he said it came down to construction workers who worked overtime. He says in total over the past eight days, workers put in about 10,000 hours of labor to make this happen, Tom. Pretty incredible. All right, Liz, Croyd's for us from L. Actually, Liz, before you go, I do have one more question. Do we know if there's a motive yet in this as far as the arson's concerned? Yeah, obviously, Tom, that's still the really big question, and it's unknown as they continue to search for the suspect. Okay, Liz, Liz, we appreciate all your reporting. We're following a major shakeup, though, there in California in Silicon Valley, Sam Altman, the creator of ChatchipT and the company that developed OpenAI ousted.

Then Microsoft announcing it hired Altman to be on one of their boards. Now, hundreds of OpenAI employees are threatening to join him. NBC senior business correspondent, Christine Romans, has the details. Sam Altman, the face of chat GPT and artificial intelligence in a messy boardroom ouster. Altman's the Zuckerberg to social media, must to electric vehicles. He's the golden child. And he's out at OpenAI, the company he co-founded, the board vaguely blaming transparency. Altman and his co-founder then scooped up by OpenAI's biggest investor, Microsoft, with most of the 700 Open AI employees vowing to walk to.

This is probably the biggest example of disaster of corporate governance that I've seen in 25 years. It's going to raise eyebrows in the Beltway. It's going to raise eyebrows in Brussels and the EU, just given how important this technology is. It's a boardroom drama that crystallizes the push and pull in Silicon Valley, the rush to commercialize AI versus the need to go slowly to protect society from unintended consequences. OpenAI's chat GPT is a tool that can be used to write a best man's speech, a holiday recipe, even help research on a midterm paper. It even has the potential to be a new industrial revolution. Think drug development and testing, curing cancer, even tackling climate change. There's downside, though. AI has been a tool for weaponizing disinformation, impersonation fraud, deep fakes, online harassment, and consumer scams,

with the potential for untold millions of jobs replaced by this technology. It's a new frontier controlled by a small group of people, and the drama and dissent show there's no real agreement over how to proceed, with a technology that is changing more rapidly than Congress's ability to understand it and regulate it. Back to you. Christine Romans for us tonight, Christine, thank you for that. For more on what Altman's departure for OpenAI means for the industry and the future of the company. I want to bring in Stephen Levy.

He's editor at large at Wired, who had the scoop on this story for Wired.com. He wrote the article, OpenAI staff threatened to quit unless board resigns. Stephen, thanks so much for coming on. I appreciate it. I guess the first question, just to keep our viewers at home, you know, not to get into panic mode. This is not a Terminator sequence here. The CEO has been ousted is the AI technology, the Open AI technology. Is that still in good hands tonight?

Well, yeah, it is. And it's nothing we have to worry about at the moment. Right now, it looks like. the human shenanigans are much more worrisome that the AI is pulling off. Do we have any insight? I'm going to get to your article in a second and your exclusive reporting, but do we have any sense yet of why he was ousted? Well, we have a reason given, but there's no evidence behind the reason. The board of OpenAI said that they were dismissing Sam Altman because he was insufficient candor. Basically, they used corporate speak for saying he lied to us, and we don't

trust them anymore, so he's got to go. They never gave an example. And the people at Open AI who kept asking, well, why did you fire him? They didn't get any concrete evidence for it. Is there any reporting out there that, to use your words, the line possibly, or whatever corporate speak they used has to do with the technology, or was it versus his outside business interests? They actually did specify that it had nothing to do with outside business interests or personal misbehavior. It was something to do with the company, whatever that was. But as people looked into it, they realized it really reflected a conflict that had been brewing within the company for a while due to the very weird way that the company

is constructed. It is a nonprofit company which has a profit arm underneath it, which is worth billions of dollars. And the nonprofit board, just a few people, governs the whole for-profit wing. And this is where some of the employees are upset. I want to put some of your reporting on screen. Now, it was a letter that those employees sent right. In it, this is a portion of it, they write, the process through which you terminated Sam Altman and removed Greg Brockman from the board

has jeopardized all of this work and undermined our mission and company. The letter reads, your conduct has made it clear you did not have the competence to oversee open AI. So what is the state of the company now? These workers, which I believe you reported is about 95 percent, have they revolted? Are they still employees? Well, they are still employees, and they signed it, including the person who, until very recent, until hours before, had been the interim CEO, the person the board pointed to be running the company after they kicked out Sam Altman.

She signed this letter, and also the person on the board who, kind of led the insurrection against Sam on the board, he changed his mind and said, I no longer feel that way anymore. This seems so chaotic, and I think what's worrisome is that it's a company that deals with what may be, right, the most advanced technology that we've ever seen on this planet, at least up to this point,

and now there's no leadership. What does that mean in a big tech company like this? It's really disturbing. The whole point of why OpenAI was founded, And I talked to Sam Altman and Elon Musk, who was the co-founder when they found that in December 2015 was to bring transparency and safety to the development of artificial intelligence. And they said they were going to be as open as possible, and they were going to be a counterweight to the big companies like Google and Microsoft, which was developing the technology because they were non-profit and open. it would be something that allowed AI to be developed for the benefit of all, not for profit. And now the whole game is turned around.

And the strange part about this, Microsoft owns 49% of Open AI, right? So for-profit version. The for-profit version, the largest investor. And now they've brought Altman on to be an employee there. What is going on? Yeah, yeah. So basically when they, you know, the board fires Altman and they demote, you know, the press, President, Greg Brockman, and Altman and Brockman say, well, maybe we'll, first they were going to start a company, but then Microsoft went to them and they said, maybe we'll just move to Microsoft and anyone who wants to leave OpenAI can come join us. Well, the people who signed that letter, which was, you know, as you say, 95% of the 770 employees of Open AI, they all said, unless the board resigns and appoints a couple people who we like to take it over, brings back Sam and Greg.

We're going to Microsoft. This is so strange. How do you think this plays out? Does Alton go back to Open AI, you think? I think it's about 50-50, whether he's going to go back to Open AI or whether he'll go to Microsoft. Now, here's the thing. In the letter, it said the board told them that they would rather that the company die

than to have Sam and Greg come back and the company go on. Of course, it was previously. That's kind of amazing, isn't it? Do you think this is the equivalence of, say, a Steve Jobs? leaving Apple at the time when he came back and took it right into a different stratosphere. Is it comparable here as all been that kind of leader? I think so. People were talking about him as the Steve Jobs of the 2020s. He recently did a big keynote speech in a developers conference where people made the direct comparison. They said, boy, it's like Steve Jobs

doing a product introduction. And he is the face of AI right now. So dismissing him, in a way, is crazier than Apple firing Steve Jobs in 1985 because at that time, the Macintosh, the computer be introduced, was floundering. It wasn't doing well. Some people say this is like getting rid of Steve Jobs after the iPhone. Right. Stephen Levy from Wired Magazine, Stephen, we appreciate that. When we come back, lucky to be alive, a driver fleeing from police

when she crashed her car, causing it to burst into flames, the moment those officers then race towards the fiery wreckage to save her life. All right, we're back now with Top Stories News Feed, and we begin with the deadly stabbing of a Long Island teen who was studying overseas. Authorities say 19-year-old, Sachin Hawkins, was stabbed by his housemate at their home near the University of Paul in the UK. He later died at the hospital. 24-year-old suspect fled the scene, but was found shortly after he's now facing murder charges. Dramatic new video showing a burning car rescue.

just outside of Atlanta. Take a look at this. Dash cam capturing the moment, an officer approached a car engulfed in flames, a vehicle he'd been chasing just minutes earlier. The car exploding into an even bigger blaze, and he rushes over. The officer then breaking the window and pulling the driver to safety. No details on their conditions have been released so far. A health alert dozens of people nationwide sickened after eating cantaloupe linked to a salmonella outbreak. U.S. health officials say at least 43 people have been infected so far, including 17 who had to be hospitalized. According to the FDA, the infections are connected to recalled cantaloupe from three brands, TrueFresh, Aldi, and Vineyard, the agency warning

consumers to throw away affected products. And with people starting to gather for the holiday season, the government is offering another round of free at-home COVID test. Starting today, U.S. households can request four free tests, and those who have not ordered tests in a previous round this fall can order up to eight. The test can be requested through COVID-test.gov and will be shipped directly to your home. Okay, time now for power and politics and another batch of troubling poll numbers for President Biden. Our brand-new NBC News poll out this weekend with multiple warning signs for the White House. Take a look. First, President Biden's approval rating now sitting at 40 percent, the lowest

it has ever been in our poll, since the start of his presidency. The major issue that seems to be driving this, the Israel-Hamas war, at least right now, just 34 percent of voters approve of his handling of the conflict, while 56 percent disapproved, Even more troubling for the president, a whopping 70% of voters between 18 and 34 disapprove of how he's handling that war. A shocking lack of faith from young voters who will need, he will need to win re-election. Which brings us to this, the Biden-Trump rematch. For the first time ever in our poll, former President Trump is now leading Biden head-to-head 46 to 44. That's still within the margin of error, but points to a larger polling trend that has been developing for weeks for President Biden.

To break down all of these numbers, I want to bring in our panel tonight, Democratic. strategist Amisha Cross, Matt Gorman, former senior communications advisor to the Tim Scott campaign, and Tara Palmyra, a senior political correspondent for Punk News. Thank you all for being here. Amisha, I want to start with you. You're the Democrat on this panel. How concerned are you and your fellow Democrats with these poll numbers for the president, the lowest approval rating of his presidency, and now losing to Trump and the general, and it's not an outlier. This is poll after poll this month. Well, we're still talking about a year outside of the election. I think that the part that is the most alarming to Democrats, as well as those who are working on the Biden campaign

themselves are going to be the breakdown of those polls. When we talk about the black vote specifically, when we talk about younger people, these are core demographics for the Democratic base. These are core demographics that sizably helped Joe Biden make it across the finish line last time, not only within the primary, but also within the general. And I think that his approach to the Israel war has been one that has been, quite frankly, off-putting to a lot of of younger voters. And they think that what we're seeing from him is a posturing in which he's trying to speak to the moment in terms of protectionism of Israel, but also one in which he has to speak to the word, what's happening on these streets, where young people are mobilizing

against what they see as war crimes, what they see as instigation of violence against innocent Palestinian people. Those are very real issues, and that's a needle that this president has to threat. Terah, I want to talk to you about the Biden bunker and the trouble within there. over the weekend, New York Times, columnist Marine Dowd wrote this in a piece called The Axis Sharp. She was defending David Axelrod, a well-known Democratic strategist who helped get Obama

and Biden elected in 2008, and has since asked Biden to reconsider running next year. She writes, Biden craves the affirmation of being reelected. He doesn't want to look like a guy who's been driven from office, but he should not indulge the Irish chip on his shoulder. He needs to gather the sharpest minds in his

party and hear what they have to say, not engage in petty feuds. I know you done reporting on the fracture in the Democratic Party. Is this real? I mean, is there a reality where we may see another Democrat in 2024 on the top of that ticket? I mean, anything is possible, right? This politics, Murphy's Law. But it's interesting to hear this from Maureen Dowd, who's known the president for a very long time and really has been a champion for him throughout her column. And so to hear her this second year in almost defending David Axelrod in his take. Exactly. She's not going so far as to say, we need a new nominee, which is what David Axelrod said in

that tweet. But she's really. calling out an issue that is happening in Washington where the people around Biden are reaffirming that, you know, he's a strong candidate. They keep telling him, oh, these are the haters. Remember when they told you that you wouldn't win in Iowa or New Hampshire last time? These are the people who told you not to run in 2016. You know, it's kind of like this very, like, this is a bunker mentality. And there are Democrats outside saying, like, listen, this is real. We have a, there's a chance. The polling is obvious that Trump is doing well. And historically, Trump doesn't do as well in the polls.

Like before 2020, he was way behind Biden. Biden was up 10 points, and in the end of the day, it was a much tighter election. So I think that there's a real desire to break through to him and get him to see that they could be giving the election over to Trump and be frightening. Matt, I want to transition over to Republicans because I think something's happening here with all these polls, right? You have Trump now beating the president, again, within the margin of error, but it's not the first poll. and all the Republicans that are running for the nomination against former President Trump, their argument is that, oh, I can beat Biden. But now it's looking like former President Trump also beats Biden.

How hard does that make now the arguments for Nikki Haley and Governor Ron DeSantis? It certainly makes it a lot tougher. Look, I can tell you firsthand, everyone on that stage pretty much would agree with the idea that Trump couldn't win a general election. To your point, it's not just this poll. It's in New York Times, others. It's a trend now. the idea that he can't win a general election, at least at this point in time, is false. Might change six months from now? It might not. But it certainly hampers their ability to make an argument based on electability.

And candidly, if you're Nikki Haley, if you're Rhonda Santis, that is and hopefully will be your best argument going forward. There's not a lot else that's really a Trump card, no pun intended, with voters that might like him but worry that he can win. can't win. Amisha, if Democrats had their choice, who do you think they'd want to run against in 2024? Well, 2024 is going to be Joe Biden, so I don't even want to prognosicate beyond that. 2028 is a different election cycle. Joe Biden is going to be the nominee, plain and simple. What he has to do is make sure that he is speaking truth to power, that he is aligning those younger voters, that he is bringing out the black voters. Again, this base that made sure that he got through the primary Alaska round, but also made sure that he got through the general.

he has to reestablish himself. He's got to showcase to them what he has done for the communities. He's got to be out in front of the communities. And I think that he also has to speak to some of the concerns that they have about their personal economic condition, those pocketbook issues, as well as being very strong on why the protection of our democracy is so important. Because it's beyond January 6th, talking about the black voters and the black poll workers who literally had targets on their back in Georgia as it relates to former President Trump trying to overturn that election. That is what we're fighting against. We're fighting against the Republican Party that was absolutely fine hoisting up judges who are dismantling civil rights of black people every day.

These are the types of things that get your voter base out. He has to stay true to those things. Tara, you know, Amisha brought up some really good points here. As far as strategy goes, she's saying she's got to get the president out in front of these groups, which means he has to campaign a lot. He just turned 81 years old. And then you have this issue that she brought up earlier about the Israel-Hamas war. How much is that hurting him? And I mean, is he going to be in a position where he campaign and be out there in front of the people, pressing the flesh, and do what he does best because President Biden is a good campaigner. He was. It's unclear where that's going to look like this time around. You're right. He is a good retail campaigner, but they also are aware

that this is an 81-year-old man, and like they've already got him wearing sneakers, going like, up the short step into Air Force One. I have heard this is going to be a campaign that is largely run out of the White House. I mean, how much does he have to shake hands to get votes? I'm not really sure. But he's got a real issue with the Israel-Hamas War. because it actually divides the youth vote, and he can't afford to lose. He can't afford to have a divide. And there might be this issue of double haters,

people who hate Trump and hate Biden, which is what we're seeing in all the polls, and they end up going to the independence and it hands it over to Trump. Matt, speaking of Trump, what does Trump have to do to sort of keep the momentum, keep his poll numbers up, and not screw up what is an ultra frontrunner status right now

and polls that are working in his favor? That's a great question. I mean, Trump can sometimes be in as well. worst when he's that far ahead. I mean, look, it was not that long ago that Ron DeSantis, so it was earlier this year that Ron DeSantis was within 10 points of him head-to-head nationally. Ron DeSantis was winning in New Hampshire. Look, I think some of this is the simple fact that folks, no matter what party in, don't like voting for a loser, so to speak. That's why you see folks on the edge of a primary caucus might pull at 5 or 6 percent, but then on primary caucus night

get 2 percent in the vote. I also think part of it is the fact that folks were open to an but they surveyed the field, said, you know, they can't get their stuff together. And it's like, well, I'll shrug my shoulders and go with Trump. So I think if this field consolidates and one person can actually make a convincing case, they can get it close. No guarantees here, but it can be closer than it has been before. There's chunks of vote to be peeled off here. Amisha, I'd ask you earlier, but I think you misunderstood me a little bit.

Who would Democrats want to pick to run against? Essentially, which of those Republicans running right now do you think is their dream choice? Is it Trump? And I also want to ask you about Governor Gavin Newsom because we just did a story earlier in the week. And that happened earlier in the day, I should say, former vice or vice president Kamala Harris was there side by side with him over this highway issue 910. He keeps popping up in the national spotlight. And I just, you got to wonder if this is all part of a strategy to move in if Biden is not the nominee. So I do think there are some pipe dreams that are rolling around.

And Gavin Newsom's head, he's kind of like an unofficial candidate who's making the moves of a candidate but isn't a declared. candidate. But beyond that, and the upcoming debate that he's going to be having with Ron DeSantis, the Florida governor, it's a little bit murky in the waters as to what his thought frame is around this. But I think that we also have to go back to, and I say this, you know, polls don't vote, people do. We do a lot of talk about the polls. We don't do a lot of talk about what just happened two weeks ago on Tuesday, two Tuesdays ago in this country, where Democrats running on the same platform and policy issues that President Biden has actually passed one sizeably in election after election. I think that we have to be very strategic

in how we talk about this and how we frame it because those young voters and those black voters came out and they voted two weeks ago. And I think that that showcases a lot more of where America lies in terms of the policies that they, that matter to them versus what we're seeing in some of these polls. When push to the polls they show up. Yeah, Tara, finally, what do you make of that debate coming up between Governor Gavin Newsom and Governor Ron DeSantis? I mean, Governor Ronda Sanchez also needs a boost going into the primaries as well. It could be good for him, frankly, because he's really fallen. He's been sliding in the polls while Nikki Haley rises up.

It gives him a chance to show off his debating skills. But frankly, I don't think his debating skills are that great. He comes off very rehearsed and robotic. I think Gavin Newsom is a much better performer, frankly, and I think he's probably a better debater. So I think there's a lot of risk for Ronda Santos to get up on that stage. There's a lot to win for Gavin Newsom as the guy who's waiting in the wings. And, you know, the chatter in Washington, of course, is that, like, this is. isn't over. If the polls are this bad in July, the Democratic Party with its super

delegates could pick another candidate at the convention. Is he the guy? Is he the one? Do you think he's in a poll position? He's up there. It's Gretchen Whitmer. It's J.B. Pritzker. It's Gavin Newsom. It's these very popular Democratic governors across the country that could possibly win swing states. And that's what they care about. Tara, before we go, plug your new podcast. Yes. I have a political show called Somebody's Got a Win on Spotify, Apple, all the podcast networks is with the ringer. We'll make sure to check that out. Thank you.

Amisha Cross. Matt Gorman, we thank you so much for joining Terry the same to you as well. Coming up, the shipping night near, wait until you hear this. Hundreds of packages from Target showing up at one woman's home, but she didn't order any of them. How a delivery glitch a year ago left her buried in boxes by mistake and what's being done to fix it. Stay with us. Back now with Top Stories Global Watch and the deadly flooding in the Dominican Republic. New video shows rescue workers trying to reach trap cars after torrential downpours

caused a highway tunnel wall to collapse in the capital of Santo Domingo. At least 24 people have died across the country. Thousands of homes have been destroyed and more than 10,000 people displaced with more rain in the forecast. A powerful earthquake rocking the southern Philippines. New video shows a crane snapping in half, look at that, and smashing into a high-rise building and then toppling to the ground. There were no reported deaths or injuries from this incident, according to police. However, at least one person was killed and dozens were injured from the quake.

And pop star, Shakira, has reached a deal with Spanish prosecutors on the first day of her tax fraud trial. The pop star will avoid prison time, but will have to pay a fine, equivalent to about $8 million. She will also pay additional fines about $500 a day for three years as part of a so-called suspended sentence. As part of the deal, Shakira admitted to six counts of failing to pay. the Spanish government almost 16 million in taxes between 2012 and 2014. Okay, back here at home to a shipping error that's taken over one Minnesota woman's home and live for the past year. A target vendor has mistakenly flooded her with hundreds of other people's packages. Kent Erdall from our Minneapolis affiliate K-A-R-E has more on the gift that is driving her crazy.

Do I have box rage? The last week has been a bit of a blur. I do now for Kelly Witter. But to understand how her tiny apartment came to be filled. Some of them have three pairs in them. With boxes filled with all sorts of reading glasses. Foldable glasses? What? You have to look back a year.

Those are kind of cool. I ordered one. Oh, they're up here. One pair of glasses from this company. She ordered the glasses from Target.com, but they came from I see you eyewear. And then they just kept coming by mistake. That's who it's supposed to go to all over the U.S. So many different states and recipients.

But Kelly Whitter, Kelly Whittor. So they stuck a sticker over another sticker and sent it to me. Kelly was never charged. And the first few times, it was just a few packages. Every time I would call them, they were like, we're sorry for the inconvenience. We apologize. We're going to look into this.

and we're going to fix it. Okay, next month, more packages. Next month, more packages. And then it stopped for two to three months. To say it started up again last weekend would be an understatement. Kelly came home to find 133 boxes stacked outside her door. And just a day after moving them inside, 10 more stacked at my door.

And I said, if any more show up, I'm going to go berserk. So when three more boxes did show up, a day later, Kelly got to work and got out her calculator. Let's just say it's over $3,000. It might be $4,000 because I was just like, done, done, done, where do I put this? I just started organizing them because I'm like, if you're not going to get back to me, I'm going to donate. Target has now responded telling us these products were shipped in error from a target vendor, and we've worked with that vendor to stop the shipments immediately. and to understand how this mistake occurred in the first place.

We've made arrangements for all of the mistaken packages to be picked up for Ms. Witter's home promptly, and we've offered her a gift card for her inconvenience. We're also donated all of the mistakenly shipped glasses to charity. When Target contacted me and said they're going to donate them, that's why I'm holding them with all the invoices behind because these are not mine to give. She also says they're not hers. to take, at least without permission. These are my favorite pair, and I'm just going to say they're wearing out.

When Target shows up to pick all of this up, I'm going to ask them, can I pick a pair, please? We thank Kent and care for that story. Target did finally arrive today, we're told, at Kelly's house to pick up all of those mistaken packages. When we come back celebrating a trailblazer, Rosal and Carter changing what it meant to be of First Lady of the U.S. and continuing her humanitarian work long after she left the White House, how she's being remembered tonight after her death at 96 years old. Finally tonight, remembering Rosalind Carter, the former First Lady and wife of former President

Jimmy Carter, died yesterday at the age of 96. The Carter family now inviting members of the public to celebrate her life and work as a tireless humanitarian at the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and museum where she'll lie and repose next week. Andrea Mitchell with a look back at her legacy. There are so many ways to remember Rosalind Carter, a trailblazer redefining the role of First Lady, her legendary partnership with Jimmy Carter, serving humanity around the world and at home.

But perhaps her greatest legacy is her work is the first great champion of mental health care in America. It is widely recognized that the mental health system in our country is in a crisis. This is heartbreaking to me. Her advocacy began when people approached her on the campaign trail to confide their struggles with mental health. I was able to see some of the things that are going on in the country,

see some of the needs, see some good things too, but so many needs. She served on Georgia's first commission on mental health, then a presidential one, boldly fighting the stigma surrounding mental health treatment when it was still in the shadows, especially in politics. I can't imagine that we would have made the progress we have made, both in the legislature, in the court of public opinion, even in financing, if it were not for Mrs. Carter.

In 1979, Mrs. Carter became the second first lady to ever testify before Congress, pushing for mental health legislation. I have learned the challenge that it is and the complexities involved with providing care for those who are mentally afflicted. She dedicated herself to lifting the state. and then put legislative muscle behind that. Long-time friend Jill Stuckey says her two greatest passions were her family and her work on mental health. When Rosalind Carter gets her mindset on something, she's not going to let go.

She's tenacious. And she made it her life's work. Helping generations of Americans get the care they need. I want my mental health work to carry on, even after there is no more stigma. Tonight, that legacy continues. Andrea Mitchell, NBC News, Washington. And our thoughts and prayers with the former president and his family. We thank you for watching Top Story.

I'm Tom Yamerson, New York. Stay right there. More news on the way.