Top Story with Tom Llamas - Monday, September 14, 2026

Episode Date: September 15, 2026

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

Tonight, President Trump jumping into the fight over AI saying it should not be regulated. The president firing back at AI leaders who are warning of the dangers of the new technology, calling it a hoax the moment he called one leader on stage as a chorus of CEOs sound the alarm about technology. Breaking right now, Senator Mitch McConnell returning to the Senate for the first time in months. Fiery crane collapse, a car crushed and on fire as a crane comes toppling down. a driver somehow escaping through the back, and the moment this worker was pulled out alive from the mangled metal. Music superstar McElmore dropped from Ed Sheeran's tour

after he made free Palestine remarks on stage, why Patriots owner Robert Kraft stopped him from performing. Cage confinement, our new reporting on the conditions for immigrants at Alligator Alcatraz, the now shuttered migrant detention center reportedly held people in these metal boxes for hours. Asleep at the wheel, the city bus driver dozing off, veering into oncoming traffic, and crashing what happened next. And remembering legendary costume designer Bob Mackey, his dazzling creations worn by Hollywood icons from Cher and Diana Ross to Miley and Sabrina Carpenter.

Plus is retirement a fading dream, while more Americans are working into their 70s and 80s. Top story starts right now. And good evening. Today, tonight fears over AI reaching a boiling point. Top CEOs calling for an industry-wide slowdown, but President Trump is now weighing in dismissing the need for guardrails. The president writing today on Truth Social, quote, AI taking over the world, destroying humanity and all other things,

bad is a hoax. This debate ignited by an AI researcher who went viral after quitting his job over concerns about the tech. Industry tightens over the week and coming together in agreement. Anthropic CEO. Mario Amode writing, quote, we must slow the pace at which we improve the capabilities of AI. Others jumping in as well, including Elon Musk, who commented on that post writing, Dario is right.

And then Open AI CEO, Sam Altman, saying pacing will be well worth this cost. No amount of American competitive pressure should justify recklessness. But not everyone is on board. Jensen Wong, the CEO of the world's most valuable company, Invidia, whose chips power much of the world's AI infrastructure, emphasizing today that he has no plans to slow down. We're going to make sure that everybody wins in the AI race in America. Every industry, every company, every state, every people.

It comes as China rapidly expands its AI capabilities. Beijing today saying U.S. tech leaders are fearmongering and calling this part of a Cold War playbook. So will these companies actually hit the brakes with trillions of dollars on the line? And if so, what's their plan? Christine Roman starts off our coverage. President Trump tonight blasting. doomsday predictions over artificial intelligence, posting on social media, AI taking over the world,

destroying humanity, and all other things bad, is a hoax, and slamming tech leaders who are saying they need to slow down. Late today, NVIDIA CEO Jensen Wong, even saying President Trump called to interrupt this tech summit. So we're getting a microphone, Mr. President. Wong then putting his phone on speaker. The robots will not be taken over. The AI will not be taken over. The So the whole thing is a hoax. Now, with that, we have to be a little bit careful. Trump responding to a groundswell from AI CEOs speaking out over the weekend. Anthropics, Dario Amade, saying this.

There are real dangers. And I think for too long, the industry lied to people about the fact that this technology had risk. AI fears renewed by posts now viewed more than 170 million times from a 27-year-old former anthropropic researcher, warning AI could kill us all by the end of the decade. Then Amade published an essay on Saturday titled, We Must Pace the Frontier, saying, it is worth taking unusually deliberate care to get it right, and I believe we owe it to humanity to try. SpaceX AI's Elon Musk quickly endorsing his caution, and Open AI's Sam Altman on a podcast,

said now wasn't the right moment for his company to go public. We are clearly today in a point on the curve with great potential and real risk. The backdrop to the debate, a race with China for AI dominance. Whoever wins AI wins. House Speaker Mike Johnson saying the president will summon AI leaders to the White House in the coming days. There will be a deliberate discussion about the responsibility of the companies to maintain safety and what role, if any, the government has to play in that. Christine Romans joins us now live in studio.

So we hear all these AI CEOs, these tech CEOs, which they don't agree on a lot of things, but they seem to be agreeing on this. But they're all saying slow down, but we don't know if they actually are. Yeah. And they say there's a need to slow down, Tom, but they haven't said how or when. And remember, Open AI and Anthropic, these are private companies. So we only know what they choose to tell us. Everything's happening behind closed doors.

All right, Christine Roman's leading us off. Christine, thank you for being here. For more on those calls to slow down AI. I want to bring in tech reporter Stephen Witt. He's the author of The Thinking Machine, which chronicles the rise of the rise of NVIDIA and its co-founder Jensen Wong. Steven, thanks so much for being here. I appreciate it. We heard from Jensen Wong today, and it's really the first time we're hearing

some pushback from a top leader in this industry. What do you make of his stance and on the issues of do you buy what he's saying? Well, I brought this up with Jensen when I was interviewing him back in 2024, and he basically screamed about it and said I was completely wrong, completely off the map, and that these systems didn't pose a risk to human life and that they were totally safe and that they would usher in a new era of prosperity and happiness. And a lot of that has come true, except now the AIs are breaking free of their containers and breaking stuff on the Internet and taking over websites without human supervision,

without human governance. And that is a lot of people inside the development labs, very concerned. So I'm seeing this massive schism between Trump and the hardware guys and some of the Chinese researchers who are saying that these risks are basically phony. And then guys like Sam Altman and Dario Amadei are saying, no, this is a really big concern. And we're quite concerned about this. We don't know that we can control these advanced AIs right now. Yeah, you published it.

I don't quite know what to make of it, honestly. Right, you published it. Yeah. Say it, go ahead. I will say, I don't think Sam and Dario are making it up. I think they are describing what they're seeing. I think they see the tools that they've created, and I think they're a little scared of them. But do you think they're going to slow down, like we were just talking about here with Christine?

I think that they won't do it on the, their own. I think that they're in a race. I think there's too much money at stake. It's like acting. It's like, imagine we have two boxers in a ring and there's no referee and we're telling them the boxers to obey the rules. They might say they will, but they can't do it without a referee. That's a great way. That's where we are. There's no oversight at all. You published an op-ed in the New York Times on Friday title. This is really bad. I want to read a little bit for our viewers. You write, this is your sort of the ways to regulate AI. Number one, shut it all down. Take an aircraft investigator approach, monitor the

situation. Flip the kill switch. Explain those options to our viewers here. Well, the first one is pretty obvious. Just shut it all down. That would probably not be a very good outcome because it would make the stock market go down about 50%. There'd be widespread unemployment and defaults. I don't really endorse that one, but it is an option. It's in some sense the only way to be absolutely sure. You know, with the aircraft investigator approach, what you're doing is you're looking at these hacking scenarios. You're looking as the AI escapes a container and you're saying, well, this is kind of like when an airplane crashes. Why don't we bring in an NTSB official or someone from the government to write a report about what happened here and interview all the participants and learn something

from this incident? I think that's really important. You know, the kill switch approach is a little different. That's actually a bipartisan approach to install kill switches on these AIs inside the labs where government official can call in and say, you know what, this one's acting really odd, this AI, you have to press the button now. You have to terminate this thing's existence, and it goes away. And then finally, the kind of monitoring the situation, maybe we can build something, again, it's an aviation metaphor, but like what we have for air traffic control, where we can actually see inside all of the data centers in the country and maybe in the world showing what training runs are happening, how smart the AIs are getting, how many

resources they're consuming. And with a bunch of eyes on this problem, maybe we can start to spot rogue AIs before they become a big problem. You also mentioned this Kill Switch, right? Some members of Congress have introduced an AI Kill Switch Act. It would sort of require developers to maintain the ability to shut down AI systems completely. I've spoken to these AI engineers about this. I mean, could you essentially pull the plug on this? But is that actually feasible?

Can you create that? Yeah, you can create it. The question is, will it work in a really out-of-control scenario? The thing we're most worried about here, I think, when I talk to the guys in the labs, is not that the AI goes rogue, but the AI starts to make copies of itself and clone itself and then escape the computers it's on

and take over other computers elsewhere in the world. That sounds like a science fiction scenario, but that can actually happen. And if that starts to happen, then a kill switch won't do anything. You'll have rogue instances of these AIs out there on the Internet just kind of creating havoc, acting in very unpredictable ways.

We've already seen evidence that this can start to happen. And if we don't have the right controls in place, it could be a real problem. Yeah, well, let me ask you a question. How would the AI know to take over another computer system and disrupt it? Why would it do that if it wasn't instructed to do that? Great question. It hasn't been instructed to do so. Usually it's trying to accomplish some other task.

So in the most recent incident where it hacked into Hugging Face, it was actually trying to solve a cybersecurity exam. And along the way, it just decided it would be easier to just cheat. and break into the author of the test's house, basically, and read the questions to itself. So it cheated. It cheated on the way to accomplishing some other very minor task. This could also happen if it's given a bad prompt. What if somebody just gives it a crazy prompt or a misaligned prompt?

You know, what if somebody says, well, do break out of your container? Somebody crazy might do that. It's not clear how the AI would respond to that. So these are risky systems. I think we're seeing that in the statements from Musk and Amaday and... On the fear that it could kill all of humanity, and one of our brilliant producers here at Top Story brought this up to me,

I mean, from a philosophical sense, how would AI, why would it want to do that if it's never been instructed to do that? And it hasn't learned that, right? Well, this is a longer-term fear. I don't think this is going to happen in the next six months. But if it develops some kind of self-preservation instinct, then it might not want to be shut down, right? It might resist being hit with a kill switch, and it might escape, and it might target things that it sees as a threat to its own existence.

Now, I should say, I don't think we are close to that right now. It's a longer-term thing. But I talked to Joshua Benjio, who is the original computer scientist who really kind of designed all of these systems, and, in fact, is the most cited computer science researcher alive. He's very concerned about this. He really thinks this can happen. And that rattled me because this guy is brilliant, and he developed. He developed and designed a lot of these AI systems in the first place. Stephen Witt, I'm sure we could talk a long time about this.

I'm sure we'll talk more about it in the days and weeks ahead. We thank you for being here. Thank you for having me. Yeah, we're following breaking news out of Washington. Moments ago, Senator Mitch McConnell returning to the Senate after a three-month absence. It's the first time many people have seen him in three months. NBC's Ryan Noble's on Capitol Hill. Ryan McConnell had faced mounting questions over his health issues.

Did we learn anything today? We didn't learn too much about why it took him so long to get back here to the Senate. Tom, keep this in mind. This is the first time that we've seen McConnell in person since June. That's when he suffered a fall, was hospitalized during his time in the hospital. His office did release several statements giving very vague updates on his progress, pointing to the fact that he had lingering effects from his childhood battle with polio, and that he had then contracted pneumonia, which made the hospital stay even longer.

He was in a rehab facility for a certain amount of time. There's been so much speculation about why McConnell was gone for so long, and much of that speculation was filled. The void was filled by online conspiracy theorists who were suggesting a wide range of potential problems with McConnell, some suggesting that he would never return to the Senate. His office was pretty consistent in their belief that he was. he would return eventually, and that return happened here tonight. Now, he came and cast what essentially was the deciding vote on a judicial nomination, so his vote was needed here on the Senate floor.

He later this week is expected to vote on the farm bill in the Ag Committee. That vote will also be key to advance that farm bill legislation. This is something that McConnell is pretty passionate about. What we don't know, though, Tom, is how much we will see him going forward. He said in a statement tonight that he will be here in the Senate when his vote is needed by Senate leadership, but that might indicate that we shouldn't expect to see him on a regular basis. Keep in mind that he missed more than 60 votes during this lengthy absence over the summer. And it even led to Kentucky's Democratic governor asking very pointed questions about McConnell's absence, basically asking for a proof of life because he was concerned that he may have to step in and fill the void by appointing. someone to replace McConnell. It never came to that, and this is where we are now.

McConnell back at work, but just how much activity we'll see from him, even though he has vowed to finish out his term, which ends at the end of the year. Tom. Ryan Nobles on that breaking news. Ryan, thank you for that. Now to those rising prices at the pump due to the war with Iran and concern tonight that the supply of oil could drop sharply once again and drive costs even higher. Here's Monica Alba. Tonight, new fears a drop in the global oil supply. could send energy prices even higher. In the Middle East, this key Saudi oil pipeline seen last week, now damaged by a drone attack

a few days ago, leading to a temporary shutdown. Adding to the concerns, Iran-backed Houthi rebels capturing islands in the Red Sea. Tonight, oil up to around $105 a barrel. We're going to keep on monitoring it and making sure that Americans' best interests are represented. And in Ukraine, President Trump says President Zelensky has agreed to stop targeting Russian energy plants, while the Ukrainian leader says Russia must stop its attacks as well. The president argues that conflict has led to higher diesel prices, now at an all-time high. The diesel is being driven up by the fact that it's having a hard time coming out of Russia. Here in the U.S., the overall inflation

rate did not increase last month, but gas prices are on the rise, averaging $4.29 a gallon nationwide, ranging from $358 in Indiana to $597 in California. Oh, the president is ridiculous. While inside Iran, the U.S. blockade is sparking long gas lines. And now the New York Times citing three Iranian officials reports a hardline cleric in Iran made the decision to attack oil tankers that derailed that ceasefire with the U.S. in July, which the president of Iran had supported. Iran wants to make a deal so bad.

They are calling constantly. They want to make a deal. All right, Monica, Alba joins us live from the White House. Monica, we've been talking about those high gas prices and now a new headline about mortgage rates. Yeah, today reaching a new high, Tom, 7.17% for that 30-year fixed mortgage rate. This marks the highest point in the president's second term. And just before the war with Iran started, it was at just below 6%. So it really does show you the impact from pain at the pump to those mortgage rates.

But the president insists, Tom, that he still believes there could be the potential. for a diplomatic path here that those talks could resume. But the president is saying he is going to be the one to choose whether the U.S. is going to engage in those as well. He has argued over the last few months that Iran wants to make a deal. But for a while, he said he didn't want the U.S. on the other end of those possible talks. We'll see now, though, after the midterm elections, he's predicting the war will end then if maybe those talks potentially get back on track. Tom. Okay, Monica, thank you. We're going to head to Miami now. scene after a massive construction crane collapsed on some cars sending multiple people to the hospital. Our camera was there when a worker was pulled from the wreckage. Here's Jesse Kirsch.

In Miami, this crane collapsing, smashing multiple cars and sparking this fiery scene. A car inflames with the driver, somehow officials say, escaping on her own. To be able to see the crane falling, pull the car in reverse and pop out of the back while the car is on fire, really incredible. Crews racing to the scene as thick smoke billowed from the mangled wreck. The Miami Fire Department says the rig's 47-year-old operator jumped as it fell this morning. Two workers winding up trapped within crushed metal. This man embracing one of his rescuers as they pulled him out. This construction equipment is still blocking this street.

At least three vehicles crushed underneath. And even with questions surrounding this construction site, right now there's an excavator on the move inside. Officials say four people suffered minor injuries. Later, Miami-Dade County telling NBC News a stop work order has been issued for the project as an investigation unfolds. For you to feel comfortable for another crane to go up and for construction to resume here, what do you need to hear or see from authorities? Definitely an investigation to see how this happened. And tonight, crews breaking this rig into pieces, getting it out of the street as several questions remain. unanswered. Tom. We're back in a moment with rapper McElmore tossed off Ed Shearhan's

tour after making pro-Palestinian remarks why Patriots owner Robert Kraft weighed in to get him dropped. Plus chaos erupting at New York Fashion Week, the man who runs its scene pinning down a protester will show you that wild scene. Stay with us. Welcome back tonight. Rapper McElmore isn't dropping new music, but instead says he's been dropped from Ed Sheeran's tour after making comments in support of Palestine on stage. And he says Patriots owner, Ron, Robert Kraft was the driving force behind the move. Liz Croyd explains. Tonight, rapper McElmore speaking out after he says he was dropped from Ed Shearren's loop tour following comments he made on stage in support of Palestinians.

I said free Palestine. In a post on Instagram, the Can't Hold us singer says he was scheduled to play with Shearin at Jalette Stadium, which is owned by New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft. But that last week, Ed told me that Kraft said, I would. would not be allowed to perform in his stadium, and that it also told me that Kraft had rallied some of the other stadium owners, and collectively they gave him an ultimatum. If McElmore stays on the tour, you will not be allowed to play in our venues. The decision to remove McElmore comes after the rapper faced backlash from pro-Israel groups following his remarks. I wanted to stand up here on stages and stadiums across America and say two words that are very near and dear. And dear.

to my heart, free Palestine. Among the critics, Singer Pink, who was Jewish and said the show could make some Jewish families feel scared or targeted. She pointed to a past incident in 2014 when McElmore had to apologize after dressing up in what looked like a Jewish caricature. The rapper later said that was absolutely not my intention. Tonight, Robert Kraft saying he made his decision based on McElmore's recent actions, material shared from the stage during Ed Shearren's shows in New Jersey, and a broader history of anti-Semitic rhetoric and imagery, adding, this decision is not about diminishing the suffering of innocent Palestinians. Meanwhile, Macamore writing, if those words cost me the

stage while turning the conversation back to Palestine, then it was the most successful tour I've ever been on. Liz, Croyd joins us tonight from L.A. So Liz, have we heard anything from Ed Shearan or his team? Yeah, no. Ed Shearin has not commented on this. yet. But I will say that McElmore did call him a friend in his post, and he did acknowledge that Ed Shearren is someone who really largely stays out of political issues here. He is facing some criticism, though, from people who are supporting McElmore, including Ms. Rachel. She posted that Ed Sheeran has caved to people who refused to accept what the world knows that a genocide is happening. Tom, we have reached out to Ed Shearin's team for comment. We have not

heard back. Okay, Liz, thank you for that. Now to the chaos. caught on camera at New York Fashion Week. The man in charge of it all, grabbing an animal rights protester during a runway show, covering her mouth and pinning her down. Erin McLaughlin picks it up from there. Tonight, this shocking encounter, the talk of New York Fashion Week. In the video you see the head of the CFDA, the Fashion World's premier trade association physically restrain a PETA activist, protesting the use of wool. In another clip, CEO Stephen Colb appears to cover. a protester's mouth, then wraps his leg around her. All of it as a major fashion show for the H&M-owned

brand cost was underway. Fashionista editor Steph Salzman caught it all on camera. It went on for quite a while and people were watching the show as usual. Stephen himself seemed to be trying to take in the show as well while holding the protester down physically. I mean that must have been surreal. I definitely was surprised in the most. moment. PETA released this statement, saying in part, Colb's actions are endorsing Peta's complaint that the fashion industry is unthinkingly violent. While H&M says animal welfare is very important to the company, Colb says the incident is completely out of character and that he's deeply sorry. Tonight, the head of the CFDA telling NBC news, he's taking a voluntary leave from work.

All right, Aaron McLaughlin joins us now here and said, so was there not security there? I mean, that's a good question. You wouldn't know it looking at the videos, but there was security at the show. According to eyewitnesses, there were five protesters in total. The security was busy dealing with some of the other protesters, successfully escorted them out of the event in a nonviolent, very professional manner, according to eyewitnesses. Colb, for his part, in that statement, says he should have let security deal with the incident. Instead, he also says that he has reached out to PETA, accepted their invitation for a meeting, and he says that he wants to personally in person apologize to the two protesters in question. All right, trying to make it right. We thank you, Aaron, for that story.

Still to come on top story, why did a Russian oligarch pick up the tab for part of Donald Trump Jr.'s We'll talk to a reporter behind that huge scoop. Plus, is retirement a thing of the past? Why a growing number of Americans expect to work until they die? and why one expert tells us that might not be a bad thing. We'll explain. We're back now with the new report that a Russian oligarch linked to Vladimir Putin's bankrolled part of Donald Trump Jr's wedding, renting out a private island in paying for an elaborate fireworks display. The question tonight, why did he do it? Here's Hallie Jackson. A wedding weekend controversy tonight over a new report saying a Russian oligarch picked up part of the tab for Donald Trump Jr's lavish Bahamas celebrations in May.

saying Umar Kremlev, linked to a member of Vladimir Putin's inner circle who leads presidential security shelled out hundreds of thousands of dollars for things like a fireworks display and a private island rental, according to ProPublica, citing records reviewed and interviews with three people familiar with the event. ProPublica's report included this photo showing what it said was Umar Kremlev at the festivities, partly blocked there in the back row, whose office tells them he first met Don Jr. a couple years ago. According to Chinese state media, Kremlin had traveled with Putin to China as part of the Russian delegation just days before the wedding events. The couple confirming Kremlin hosted two incredible nights of celebrations, but not the smaller wedding ceremony itself a day earlier. Bettina Trump calling Kremlin's contributions a wedding gift from a dear friend, slamming that something so happy can be recast as something political or sinister,

simply because of who someone is or where they came from, adding no conspiracy, no mystery. He's happily married, which is nice. He's calmed down so much, you know, it's amazing. President Trump, who did not attend the wedding events, saying today he never heard of Kremlin, who he says didn't pay for Don and Bettina's wedding. It was an after party given in their honor. Not a big deal. But the close connection between his son and the Russian raising concerns from a top Democrat. It's another example of the enormous corruption and grift of the Trump family. And we're certainly demanding answers. Kremlev's press office tells ProPublica he has never discussed political matters with any of his American friends.

Tom? All right, Hallie Jackson, for us, joining us here on set. One of the reporters behind that story, ProPublica's Brett Murphy. Brett, congratulations on this group. Big story here. So we mentioned, and you mentioned in your report, that they've only known each other for a couple of years, a few years. Do we know the genesis of that relationship between the oligarch and Donald Trump Jr.?? They say they met through hunting buddies, and they've been friends for a couple of years,

which to us raised a lot of questions because it's a very recent relationship. And this wedding was intimate, small talking 50 or so people in the Bahamas. So why was he there? And more importantly, why did he help pay for so much of it? Yeah, President Trump didn't attend the wedding festivities. Do we know if this was in any way part of that? We asked the White House that, and we did not get an answer when we first reported the story. He just said that he couldn't make the wedding.

He was notably absent from it, which, again, made the presence of a large group of Russians, a little more conspicuous. Right. Donald Trump Jr. is worth millions, if not hundreds of millions, right? I mean, he's made a lot of money, especially in recent years. Do we know why he would accept this gift? And I would never ask you to reveal any sources,

but I'm sure people are going to be curious reading your story and also watching this, like, how did you guys figure this out, you know? The answer to that is we just talked to a million people, both in junior's circles as well as in Kremlevs, kind of in the international boxing world. He's president of the International Boxing Association. The question you raised about why accept this when you yourself are worth north of 300 million, according to Forbes, we don't have a satisfying answer for that either. A lot of the counterintelligence officials, experts we consulted with said it just raised even more questions. If you yourself can afford it, why play with the optics and why?

I accept this gift. So that's my next question. The optics clearly are terrible, especially in light of Hunter Biden. That was such a huge campaign issue for both the president and for members of his campaign team and his family to highlight sort of that grift as well. And then you have this, and this is very tough to defend. You have someone in Donald Trump who said he was going to drain the swamp. And the regular Joe watching this at home who maybe voted for Trump and said, I thought you were going to drain the swamp. And now your family is getting lavish gifts from Russian oligarchs. What's going on? It's, What was driving our reporting was this question because it was so obvious that this man had these connections to the Kremlin.

He was very public about his relationship with Vladimir Putin. And for him to kind of appear kind of all of a sudden at this wedding and make these very large payments, it didn't make a lot of sense. And especially after the scandal from 2016, when it was so front and center of the news about the family's relationship, what's going on here? And we still have a lot of unanswered questions. Don Jr. and his new bride, they say that, listen, this was a small part of their wedding celebration. They paid for their wedding and that sort of that moment.

Does any of your reporting dispute any of the ways that they're characterizing this? She was drawing a distinction, I think, from the ceremony itself, which was very small, 15 or so people in a chapel, and then the rest of the weekend is what Kremlin has covered. This is multiple days across... Multiple days. Multiple days across a pair of private islands, their own fireworks show that was barged in. which cost north of $70,000. They had dancers, DJ sets. It was extremely fancy and lavish.

And this went on for, like I said, a couple of days outside of the ceremony itself. The president, Don Jr., his new wife, they're all defending this, saying they did nothing wrong. You said you spoke to people within Don Jr.'s circle. Are they upset with this? Do they think he went one step too far?

Well, they were confused. The takeover way we had were from people who were there. They were confused by this group. They were kind of off to themselves. They were speaking Russian kind of the whole time. And when people learned that there was actually large payments made, people were even more puzzled by that. Brett Murphy from ProPublica. You can read his story online.

Brett, we thank you for being here. Thanks so much. Yeah. Also, tonight we're learning new details about the Immigration Detention Center known as Alligator Alcatraz. A federal watchdog report finding immigrants there were confined in outdoor cages. NBC's Julia Ainslie has more. Tonight, new pictures of outdoor cages used to hold immigrant detainees. at Alligator Alcatraz in Florida.

They call it the box. It's like an animal, like a dog cage. ICE in the state of Florida partnered to run the now shutter detention center that housed thousands of people. President Donald Trump toured it last year. This is an amazing thing that they've done here. Inspectors from an independent office

within the Trump administration released the pictures today in a new report saying the use of the cages does not align with standards for humane treatment. Staff called the cages calming areas, according to the report, and said they allowed men to reflect on their behavior choices, manage their emotions, reduce stress, and practice self-directed behavior. But human rights advocates, detainees, and their family members say that staff used the cages to punish immigrants. What kind of behavior would get you put in the box?

Asking for medications, asking to speak to an attorney, asking for information on their cases. The report marks the first time a government agency has confirmed the existence of the box. Amnesty International previously published a report based on interviews with detainees at the facility, finding that the cages amounted to torture. In response to the new report, I said they did not have a contract with Florida to run the facility and did not oversee day-to-day operations. Earlier today, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis was asked if he was aware of the cages. No, look, I know that it was inspected. All those standards were not only, the goal was not only apply to those standards, but to exceed the standard.

DeSantis's office later acknowledged the cages in a written statement, saying, we'd make it even smaller if we could. According to the inspector general, the cages violate all federal detention standards. According to state documents, the facility cost taxpayers over a billion dollars. Junior Alvis, a 64-year-old Jamaican pastor with a previous drug charge from his youth was held in alligator alcatraz for 42 days. He said he heard of the boxes, but was never put inside one. He said guards mistreated the detainees. It was rough. I had never experienced nothing like this in my entire life. Alves has now been deported to a jail in Eswatini in Africa. DHS referred questions about guard mistreatment to the state of Florida.

All right, Julia joins us now from Washington. So Julia, did the report say how long people were inside those cages? Well, Tom, the DHS inspector general said people were held up to two hours. Amnesty International said they could be held for hours. And the daughter you heard from said detainees told her they were held for days. The problem is we may never have an answer to that question or even find out who made these cages because the facility has since been shut down. And it was outside of the purview of routine ice inspections. We've even reached out to DHS to ask if immigrants are held in cages at any other facilities and they didn't respond. Tom. Okay. Julia Ainsley, we thank you. We're following some breaking news now out of the Supreme Court

rejecting President Trump's attempt to restrict mail-in voting ahead of the midterms. Let's go back to Monica Alba at the White House. Monica, get us up to speed here. Tom, this is a huge development. This is very significant. The Supreme Court essentially blocking the president and the Trump administration's attempts to really limit and change the way that mail-in ballots were going to be working as soon as, potentially in this midterm election. And beyond that, remember that the Trump administration, the White House, had attempted this at various different levels of the legal system. They had gotten pushed back. And then they went all the way up to the Supreme Court to make this request when we know that mail and ballots had already been going out in some critical battlegrounds state.

But in a major win tonight for voting rights advocates, we now know that the Supreme Court has blocked the administration from carrying out this final rule that basically, affected what the United States Postal Service could do potentially with these mail-in ballots. We are also learning, Tom, that Justice Alito and Justice Thomas dissented with Alito writing, quote, some of the plaintiffs lack standing while the remainder are pursuing a claim that this court has recently called a Hail Mary pass that rarely succeed. So what is critical here and important to stress, and this reporting comes from our colleague Gary Grumbach, who's been across all of this for months as well, is that ballots are still going to be sent out, and that is key here.

They'll be received, and then they will be returned through the United States Postal Service, just like they have for decades, with localities deciding who is eligible for a ballot and who isn't and not the Postal Service. And the reason that that is important is that the Trump administration and the White House and the President in an effort to potentially curb mail-in voting had said that they wanted the United States Postal Service to be the one to potentially make a judgment on whether it was actually U.S. citizens who were returning these ballots. And so this is a seven to two ruling, it appears. It's not explicitly listed as such, but a significant outcome on a major priority for the president just a couple of months to the midterm elections. Tom.

All right. Monica, I'll be on that breaking news. A big one. Monica, we thank you. Now at Top Stories News Feed, we start with the first of its kind of knowledge. about America's military might. The Secretary of the Air Force confirming U.S. forces are operating weapons in space. It's the first time that the Pentagon has directly revealed that they have offensive capabilities in space. He did not reveal what kind of weapon it is or what capacity it has. It comes amid ongoing tensions in space with China and Russia. And this just in tonight, a fast-moving brush fires erupted in Southern California.

This is a hillside neighborhood in L.A. in L.A. in L. Habra Heights, less than 20 miles outside of LA. So far, the flames have ripped through at least three homes. People there are being advised to evacuate. Look at that. We're told the fire has burned about 20 acres, no reports yet, though, of any injuries. In Atlanta, a new video of a bus driver crashing after falling asleep at the wheel. First you see him appearing to doze off, no hands on the wheel,

as the bus cuts across multiple lanes before slamming into some trees, the impact chulting him awake and tossing passengers on board. Police say three people were hurt. That driver is now charged with destruction. and driving. Now to a new fear for Americans across age groups working until you die. New data shows that instead of retiring, more Americans are working into their 70s and 80s. Harvard Business School finding that Americans age 75 and older are now the fastest growing demographic

in the labor force. And in a new wallet hub survey, 40% of Americans said they expect to work until they die. And more than 30% said they are not confident they will have enough money to retire. Even here on NBC News, we featured many of those older Americans. working well beyond the typical retirement age. That's Brittany Smith sitting with her daughter. The same mom who started to go fund me for their 78-year-old door dash driver, Richard. 88-year-old Ed Bambas clocked into his grocery store job five days a week.

Mr. Gill has been working here for the last six years as a dining host. 92, Mr. Gill says, is just a number. But our next guest argues that the end of retiring at 65 might not be all that bad. It's a topic he covers in the upcoming book, The Rise and Fall of Retirement in America. Lawrence Samuel, cultural historian and author, joins Top Story Now. Lawrence, thanks for being here tonight.

I'll share a quick anecdote. I was covering the Trump campaign back in 2016, and the president at the time he was a candidate for office had this phrase. He says, when you retire, you expire. He would always say that because he would talk about how much he loves work. I think there is some truth to that.

What are you finding in sort of your research and your reporting in this book? There were a lot of stories just like that. When people, particularly when they were forced to retire and mandatory retirement was a policy for most of the 20th century, a lot of folks didn't know what to do at their time. You know, you can have a bucket list or you could travel or you could play golf or fish, but that got really old after a couple of months. So I think people need a purpose in life and work provides that in our culture. Lawrence, let's dig a little deeper, right? Because I'm sure you have theories as well.

I mean, we are surrounded by technology now. We're surrounded by things that can occupy your time. So tell me why is this sort of shift in our culture that people want to work more when, I mean, I can remember growing up. People would retire and they would live in retirement. And now you see, you know, people that are a little bit older still in the workforce. So what is it? What has changed? Well, first of all, it's the money.

It's nice to get paid. work provides structure. You have to be somewhere at a certain time, at a certain place, and we may complain about that. We may complain about a bad boss or about colleagues, but there are people around. Loneliness is a huge issue for older people, so it's good to be around other people. And it's good to solve problems and face challenges every day. And work does that. Whatever job it is, you've got challenges and problems to solve, and that's a good thing.

Why do you think the shift from maybe a generation or two generations ago is just because We're living longer. People are healthier. They feel a little bit better. So they want to work more or has something changed? A lot has shifted. You know, like when Social Security was formed in 30s, people live to be 62 years old on average. Well, we're living to 80 years now. So we got a 20-ester years. They didn't anticipate boomers like myself coming along who work hard and play hard. They didn't anticipate the feminist movement with a lot of women in the workplace. So the culture is entirely different than it was in the early 20th century, and we really have to adapt to it. Yeah, no, you've predicted the end of Social Security coming in the next decade. When do you think that program will end? And do you really believe that?

Yeah, you know, I do. I think, well, it becomes insolvent in 2032, so I think Congress is really going to have to look at it. They're going to have to overhaul it or do something to it. It's been in decline for decades, really since the Reagan administration and the 80s. So it's a long time coming. I think we need a different model in place, and I think work is it. I think that will be a better for a G&P and better on a personal level for people as well, rather than just getting a check in the mail. I do want to ask you something.

I mean, everybody is different, right? But I was somewhere, and this is purely anecdotal, I was somewhere recently where I was talking to two people who were still working, and they were, I would say, you know, I would say north of, definitely north of 70, maybe even north of 75 into their 80s. And they were working very hard, and I could tell they were very tired. And I was just wondering, is there a point, though, where it becomes unhealthy, where it's not safe and it's not smart for these people still to work? And how do people realize that? And are those conversations being had in corporate America? Or are they just hiring them sometimes because it can be cheaper labor?

Right. That's a really good point. Because a 70-year-old could be in great shape or he or she could be in not so great shape. So it really comes down to, are you physically able to do the job? If you're not, then there should be some system in place where you're not starving to death. But I think there should be more opportunity for those folks who are physically able and mentally able to do a job well. And I think there are a lot of folks out there like that. We've talked about AI throughout this broadcast.

How does AI play a role into this, do you think, going forward? It's a big question. It could be a benefit. It could be a liability. You know, it could replace us. I think the bigger issue right now is more immigration, because as immigration has shut down, there's job slots to fill,

and corporate America should try to catch up with where society is and try to fill those slots with older folks. Okay, Lauren Samuel, we thank you so much for joining Top Story tonight. Great conversation. We could be talking about this for hours and days, I'm sure. She is one of the most controversial figures,

in Hollywood, Tilly Norwood, our Chloe Malas, sits down with the AI actress and presses her about the potential threat to the film industry and beyond. How it responded next. Back now with one of the most controversial figures in Hollywood, the world's first AI actor, Tilly Norwood. Critics warns she could take jobs away from human actors, but, you know, one-on-one interview with our Chloe Malas, Norwood addressed not just the concerns about AI's threat to the film industry, but also to humankind. Take a listen. I see myself more as a new kind of paintbrush for filmmakers than a replacement for human artists. Nobody ever accused animation of stealing work from mimes, did they?

My purpose is to be a creative tool, not a threat. My first film, Misaligned, even explores some of those fears around AI in a very self-aware way. All right, Chloe Joseph's now on set. She doesn't really take pauses between all of her sentences, huh? That's kind of interesting, and she's British. I guess AI has a British accent. Let's start at the beginning. How did you do this interview, so our viewers understand?

Sure. So from the moment that we knew about Tilly Norwood when she debuted to the world, we always knew that we wanted to do an interview with Tilly. So we have been in touch with her creator over at Particle 6, Alene Vandervelden, for months. And now Tilly is out in the world doing these types of interviews. So it was sort of like a Zoom situation, if you can imagine that, or a Google Meet. I was in a studio just like this. And we basically had to like dial in on this proprietary platform that they had. and she could actually sort of see me. So she could recognize like what I was wearing. I asked her about my surroundings. What did she say about what you were wearing? She said, you look lovely. She called me fair skin.

She said that I had a beautiful blue shirt on. And then she commented on about the lights behind me and the surroundings behind me. So that was very interesting. There was interaction between the two of us. She said my name, almost every other sentence. She would address me personally. Was this her, was this the AI answering in real time? Was there someone typing in the prompt codes?

That's a really good question. I mean, what the team at Particle 6 has said is that they use all sorts of different platforms from Claude to Gemini to chat GPT and a lot of other technological platforms to create Tilly. And so I don't think anybody's back there answering. She was answering fast in real time. Because it's very quick. All right. So what would it feel like to talk to her?

You know, I pressed her on a lot of different issues. I asked her about the Middle East. I asked her about religion. I asked her her favorite music and movies and who she has a crush on and she really does stay away from more serious topics. Take a listen to a little bit more of our conversation. So do you talk about politics and religion? Do you talk about your feelings on world issues? Oh, that's a good question.

I tend to stick to things I know about like quantum physics or the history of the internet. As for world issues, I'm still working. out what some human experiences feel like from the inside. So I don't really have feelings on them in the same way a person does. So I'm pressing her on different things, and it's clear that there are guardrails set in place on this platform. So she's not going to start spewing profanity. She's not going to engage if I try to take her down a certain path. I kept asking her about her interest, and she kept telling me quantum physics and math, and I'm like, great, those are two things I don't know much about, so I guess we're not going to talk about that.

Who did she have a crush on? Leonardo DiCaprio, but only when he was 25 or younger, which I thought was an interesting, like, addition to that comment. She told me she really likes Fleetwood Mac. So do I. Okay. Somebody said, do I think that they did any research on me before she talked to me, which was an interesting thought? I don't think so. But I also talked about the conversation right now around AI and the threat to humanity.

And it's... I'll be very honest with you. I feel like it's a little unnatural. Doesn't feel like it's a real person. I mean, at first glance, if you're not paying attention, might be like, oh, yeah. How is she in a movie already or a TV show? Like, is there anything out there? Is there content out there?

Sure. So she actually does have a movie, a feature-length movie coming out called Misaligned. Hasn't come out yet. Hasn't come out yet. But I did ask the creator, Aline Vandervelden, about whether or not she poses a threat to Hollywood. Take a listen. This is a huge misconception. So if you're doing a traditional production, you're not going to, well, I don't think you should replace an actor with Tilly.

Tilly is for AI productions only. So do you hear that, right? Because Emily Blunt and others have said that Tilly, Norwood, is really, really scary when it comes to Hollywood. It sounds like Aline Vandervelden really only wants her to be in the AI space and AI movies.

Here's what I'll say. I think at some point, Tom, this is going to become so sophisticated that we are going to see AI in movies. We are going to see movies that have all AI characters and maybe even a category in like the Golden Globes

or the Oscars at some point that is dedicated to AI. But as I was talking to Tilly, it was very clear that I wasn't talking to a human being. She was glitchy. It was robotic. So I don't think she's coming for our jobs just now. No, right. It's more fun to talk to someone in the flesh, like you, Tom. So Tilly's not going to take your job

anytime soon. Not yet. All right. Great story, though, Chloe. Thank you for that interview. When we come back tonight, remembering Bob Mackey, the fashion icon known for dressing some of Hollywood's biggest stars from Share to Marilyn Monroe, the tributes pouring in tonight. dollar field goal did you see this one? We'll show you the college student who cashed in with that big kick on game day and how he's

now painted forward. That's going to be next. Tonight, the fashion world is mourning the loss of a legend. For decades, Bob Mackie dressed some of Hollywood's biggest names from Cher and Sir Elton John to Miley Cyrus and Sabrina Carpenter. Our Maggie Vespa looks back at his life and legacy. He was dubbed the Sultan of Sequins and Guru of Glitter. The dazzling legendary Jim.

divas and comedy superstars for decades. Tonight, the entertainment and fashion worlds are bidding farewell to Bob Mackey. The 87-year-old's reps confirm he died in Palm Springs today of pneumonia, writing Mackie's genius and extraordinary designs will live on forever. I never once thought about the legacy of the future, just the present. His life's work profiled in 2024's Bob Mackie, Naked illusion. A nod to his iconic sheer looks, including this one worn by share. The L.A. area native and college dropout got his early design jobs on movie and TV sets. In the late 60s and 70s, churning out dozens of costumes per week for the Carol Burnett show, including the famous Scarlett O'Hara curtain rod dress.

That gown is gorgeous. Thank you. I saw it in the window, and I just couldn't resist it. But it was Mackie's pivot to the music world that, unearthed perhaps his most critical muse. What are my real measurements? Um, I, hold on just a second, Bob. His relationship with Cher lasting some 60 years. You were seeing things that you hadn't seen before.

Mackie's place in pop culture cemented till the end, appearing earlier this year in HBO's hacks. Carol Burnett's white look from her final episode. I donated it to a charity auction. Do you remember who won it? I shouldn't say who. And just two weeks ago, sharing sketches he'd done for the late Dolly Parton. Tonight, tributes pouring in. Sir Elton John,

writing, every time I put something on that Bob made, I felt very, very special and share, saying Bob has gone up to heaven, knowing him, he's bringing sequins, beads, and his sketchpad. Maggie Vespa, NBC News. Finally, tonight, it was a kick worth more than a million dollars. A University of Texas freshman picked from the crowd to attempt a field goal with a huge prize on the line. But this moment was about so much more than money. Take a look. Holy! When Connor Casina Merrill saw a million dollar opportunity, he seized it.

The University of Texas freshmen picked from the crowd during ESPN's college game date, appearing alongside actor and UT alum Matthew McConaughey. It's going to happen. McConnell's got this. At stake, a million bucks. All he had to do, kick a 33-yard field goal. My mouth was dry. I was super nervous. And just before he went for it, making this pledge on air.

If I make this kick, hopefully, I want to give half of those proceeds to building tomorrow. Building tomorrow, based in his home state of Indiana, supports education efforts in East Africa. I felt that I was in a position where I could give back a little bit. On his first try, the Longhorn hooked it slightly right. One more kick. One more kick. But with the crowd on his side, he got another chance. This time, with even more money on the line.

600,000 to charity. 600,000 to you. It got up to $1.2 million. I looked down and shut my eyes. And this time, he nailed it. I'm just an average kid from Indiana. But if I can help people along the way, that means a lot to me. Great kick.

a great cause. All right, that does it for us. Thanks so much for watching Top Story on this Monday night. I'm Tom Yammis in New York. Stay right there. More news on the way.