Top Story with Tom Llamas - Thursday, August 13, 2026

Episode Date: August 14, 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 breaking news, the new twist in the Luigi Mangione case, the alleged CEO killer now expected to plead guilty in federal court. The surprising reversal in the high-profile case, with plea negotiations ongoing, what Mangione could plead to and why it could bring an end to his New York state case as well, what we're learning tonight. Also breaking the disaster emergency in Indiana, new evacuations, rescue crews using a front-offromise. outloader to save people, other families returning to destroyed homes, and the threat is far from over. Plus, Hawaii bracing for a rare and dangerous weather event. Tropical Storm Lala could become a hurricane on track to slam the islands as Kilauea is now erupting. Shipping out, the USS Lincoln set to head home from the Middle East amid concerns over poor conditions for sailors, the concerning man overboard incidents and new images of their meals aboard as families sound the alarm.

The murder suspect known as the master manipulator for her elaborate disguises finally caught. Our series, The Cost of Denial, the Labor and Delivery Units closing down across the country, while this mom-de-be says it's making her rethink, having more children. Bear in the bistro, the animal caught on camera, taking a seat, at an Aspen restaurant. Plus, the head turning comments from Secretary of State Marco Rubio, is he eyeing a presidential run? And can he get past Vice President J.D. Vance?

Top story. It starts right now. Good evening. We begin tonight with that stunning reversal on the Luigi Mangione case. The accused CEO killer now expected to plead guilty as soon as tomorrow, according to sources familiar with Friday's planned court hearing. The 28-year-old will be back in federal court tomorrow morning where he's expected to enter a guilty plea for one or more federal stocking. charges. Related to this moment, of course, Manjone is accused of shooting and killing former United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson in 2024. The details of the deal still unclear at this hour,

and he could change his bond at any point. A reminder, he already pleaded not guilty to those same charges. And he still will stand trial separately in New York State, where he faces another slew of felony charges, including second-degree murder. So the big question tonight, why the change in strategy, and what does it mean for one of the most high-profile murder trial? this country has ever seen. Our Laura Jarrett is tracking it all and leads us off. Tonight a dramatic reversal for Luigi Mangione now expected to plead guilty in federal court, according to sources familiar with Friday's planned hearing. The 28-year-old had pled not guilty to federal stalking charges accused of killing

United Health Care CEO Brian Thompson on a Manhattan sidewalk in 2024. But the exact terms of any proposed plea deal with prosecutors unclear tonight. Mangione's lawyers in the Justice Department declining to comment. There's a conference scheduled for 11 a.m. on Friday, and that's all we can say at this time. Sources caution plea talks continue. Mangione met with his lawyers this morning and can still back out. The judge overseeing the federal case would also have to sign off on any agreement to make it official. But the specter of a deal comes at a crucial time for Mangioni.

He's currently set to go to trial in New York State Court early next month. Prosecutors here are pursuing second-degree murder and gun charges, and he's pled not guilty in the closely watched case that's already seen twists. Earlier this summer, the defense team briefly floating the possibility of arguing Mangione was suffering from an extreme emotional disturbance, only to withdraw that suggestion a day later. But his attorneys have consistently maintained he's been treated unfairly, facing both federal and state charges at the same time. Double jeopardy is a big thing here, right? Mr. Mangione is being charged in three different cases for one incident. All right, Laura Jarrett joins us now alongside our good friend NBC legal analyst, Danny Sabalos. We thank you both for being here.

Such a big day, right? Laura, walk our viewers through, why are they doing this now? There's a real strategy here. Well, the defense certainly wants to try to get the state case thrown out, Tom. And the federal case, obviously, there are different issues. There are different charges. There are different elements. The federal charge here is as it relates to stalking.

Now, he may plead guilty to something else tomorrow. We just don't know. We don't actually know the terms of the deal, but that's what he's currently facing. The state charge is about second-degree murder. His attorneys will say they arise from the same act, the same criminal transaction. At the core, it's all about the killing of Brian Thompson. And therefore, double jeopardy should be triggered, and therefore the state should be wiped out. If the federal is already gone, the state should not go for it.

State prosecutors are going to push back very hard on that, as we would imagine if this all actually happens. state prosecutors will say, no, no, no, these are different harms, these are different things. It's just all going to be up to it. And just to be clear for our viewers, when we say stocking, it is a serious stocking charge. Serious stocking resulting in death, something that carries up to the potential of life in prison. So he has a lot on the line here, no question. Danny, walk our viewers through the difference between the state and the federal cases, because, as Laura said, there is a difference. Huge difference. The charges are completely different. And that's going to be a key argument of the Manhattan prosecutor,

when the defense inevitably moves to dismiss or to bar the New York State trial because of double jeopardy. Not federal double jeopardy, but New York's own double jeopardy law, which is actually broader than the federal double jeopardy protections. And the argument they're going to be making, as Laura pointed out, it's going to be, look, stalking is something that happened right up until the murder. Murder is something that happened that we all saw in that video. Those are two separate crimes. from the same transaction as that word is used. Therefore, there's no bar, there's no double jeopardy. The state's going to argue they can go forward.

So this is a huge gambit by the defense. There's no sure thing they're going to be able to stop the New York prosecution by pleading guilty. And lastly, federal prosecutors are not known for their generosity when it comes to plea deals. So I'm very curious to see what, if anything, Mangione's team got. He may just be pleading straight up to the indictment with no deal. So I want to ask you which judges ultimately get into some. ultimately get to decide this. Well, so there are going to be different issues, right?

Tomorrow it's going to be in front of a judge in federal court, and that's going to be about does Mangione actually understand what he's doing? If he pleads guilty, does he understand it? Is it knowing, is it voluntary? He's going to go through a whole host of questions. Then it's going to go to a state court, because of course, as we mentioned, the defense is going to run into state court and say, let's try to get that tossed out.

Then the state court judge will decide, okay, can the state court actually go forward with this prosecution? Because it's supposed to start in September 8. Mangione is going to say, no, no, no, no, no, let's not go forward with it. That judge is going to have to say, okay, is this double jeopardy? And he could potentially be making new law here. The real question, I wonder, is like, why is the federal prosecution, why are they interested in going forward with this? Right?

They came in guns blazing. Remember Pam Bondi said, we want to do the death penalty. The defense was very, very, I think, strategic in getting it all whittled down. Why are they going through with this now? I wonder whether, once they looked at it, they actually thought there were some weaknesses in the stalking charge, and they decided to do it now. Danny, give me the ultimate worst case scenario for Luigi Mangione, the ultimate best case scenario, for him. Worst case scenario, he's walking in tomorrow and pleading guilty with no plea deal in place, and the judge launches him, because federal judges have a lot of discretion when it comes to sentencing.

They can go right up to the max. Then the next worst outcome is that they are not successful asking a court to bar the New York state prosecution based on double jeopardy. And to do that, they would have to fail in arguing that these are the same transaction. That means New York won with their argument that these are different events. happened before, the murder happened when the murder happened. They're different. Therefore, judge, the state statutory double jeopardy rule does not apply. And the best case for Luigi Manjuni? What could happen? That could actually help him tomorrow? I've been talking a lot about this. You know, it's very likely that Luigi Mangione will be convicted in both courts.

And yet, his defense team, and I'm biased, I'm a defense attorney, has done a remarkable job at chipping it away at both of these cases. So I would consider a massive win, a sentence for Luigi Mangioni in federal prison, and he gets, you know, assuming the state court case gets thrown out, that's measured in decades and not life. That would be a huge win. And that's a possibility. You know, it's hard to say, we'll know more tomorrow when we know what exactly he's pleaded. Right. It's going to be a big day tomorrow. Laura, and we'll be covering it. Thank you both for being here. Appreciate it. Matt, our other major headline, the disaster emergency declared in Indiana as relentless floods trigger new evacuation orders. It comes as devastating images of destruction begin to emerge.

Maggie Vespa is live from the storm zone and Maggie you've been speaking with residents all day some returning to their homes completely ruined yeah Tom it's definitely just a crazy patchwork of destruction here across the state here in this area where we are in Anderson floodwaters are still rising but in other parts of the state as you talk about it's receded enough that people can get back into their homes

tour of the devastation and for a lot of those people they've just spent hours today wrapping their minds around horrible how horrible all of this has been And all of this, by the way, with more rain in the forecast. Tonight, families across the storm zone bracing for new rounds of heavy rain and dangerous flooding as they try to clean up the damage already left behind. East of Indianapolis in Cambridge City, Indiana. The whole house is trash. We were with Brooke Boomer Shine and her boyfriend Timothy as they returned to their home for the first time.

after swimming to safety Wednesday morning. That's their blue house right there, surrounded by rushing waters. A man rescued from his marooned boat out front. I'm so sorry. How are you even taking this in right now? I'm not. I have six kids. You have six kids?

Yeah, they were supposed to start school yesterday. We worked our whole life for this. The couple telling me they have flood insurance, but just learned most of their possessions aren't covered. Indiana's governor now declaring a statewide disaster emergency after scenes like this in nearby Hagerstown, a front loader rescuing multiple people. This as conditions have forced authorities to suspend the search

for a missing teenager in the Mississinua River, one of four jumping off a bridge overnight. Three others rescued uninjured. It's all hands on deck. Rivers are still rising right now. Powerful floodwaters washing away. part of Interstate 70, crews racing to repair and reopen that major thoroughfare. And we're seeing new video from Tuesday's massive system to South Dakota Highway Patrol

troopers nearly struck by lightning. That's wild. Maggie Vespa joins us once again from Anderson, Indiana, just northeast of Indianapolis. So Maggie, families and parts of that city where you are, order to evacuate? Yeah, Tom, that's right here and other parts. And we showed you. And you can see how much this waters like creeping up around these homes here. This is the White River, which by the way, isn't expected to crest until several hours later, like basically the overnight hours. And it's expected to crest at a record 24 feet. It's still a ways to go. Tom. Okay, Maggie Vespa tracking all the relentless damage there. Maggie, thank you. I want to get

right to meteorologist Bill. Cairns. Bill, you're tracking a lot right now. Let's start with those relentless storms slamming the Midwest. Let's start where Maggie is with that river behind her. Where she is tonight, they're going to have training storms with an additional three to six inches of rain. I mean, that's insane amount of rainfall in that area. It's just causing so many problems as we wait for the rivers to rise, plus new additional flash flooding is possible all throughout this region. I mean, just look at these bridges. We're afraid that, you know, the worst of it in some areas has yet to happen. So here's the first line of storms that's rolling through into Kentucky. We're actually watching some new storms beginning to fire up. This will be

the beginning of a long night tracking a lot of heavy rain from the Quad Cities, Des Moines included, all the way through central Illinois. Maggie's located right here in areas of eastern Indiana. This region all the way into areas of southern Ohio and West Virginia, someone has a chance of getting at least six inches of rain tonight into early tomorrow morning. So you notice the Davenport area up to about three inches. And in central Indiana where Maggie is at least two to three inches of rainfall as possible. We do get a break finally after we get through tomorrow. But Tom, we're going to have to watch those rivers closely.

Yeah, and Bill, over in the Pacific Tropical Storm Lala. It is aiming for the Hawaiian islands, right? For a direct landfall, does it look like this could become a hurricane? There's a chance, and that would be for the history book. So when I record a history of the big island, they've been hit by two tropical storms, never a hurricane. So there's a chance that Lala could make history here. Right now, it's kind of weak, 45 miles per hour. But it's going to strengthen as it approaches the big island.

It looks like Saturday morning is when it makes its closest approach. If you go by the center line, it looks like just missing to the south. But you notice a good chunk of the lower half of the island here. the big island is in that cone of uncertainty. And the problem is that the peaks in the volcano there are like the peaks that you'd get in like the Colorado Rockies. And they're just going to wring out that rainfall. They're predicting up to 25 inches of rain in the eastern half of the big island. We also in areas like Maui could see really heavy rain on the higher peaks there. We're definitely no matter what, even if we don't get that direct landfall, Tom, we are going to have

some serious flash flooding issues. Yeah, Bill, this is somewhat interesting, right? You have kilo way that's been erupting and sending lava and ash shooting into the We've been covering it here. What happens when a possible hurricane collides with a volcano? Yeah, this isn't something that's happened many times before. Now, Kilaue has been erupting. We just got done with what they call the 53rd eruption. So it erupts, and then the pressure builds back up and it erupts again. It just stopped this morning. So it doesn't look like we're going to have like an active fountain right over the top of Kilaway as this happens. But we will be watching one to two feet of rain on top of that hot lava. And what happens is water cools off the lava quicker than the air does. And so it

Hisses. It forms like a crust on the outside of it. And it'll, Tom, it'll be the biggest steam bath you've ever seen as we watch all that rain. Yeah, it's going to be a wild weather event. I'm sure we're going to be covering it. We thank you for that, Bill. We want to turn out of the growing concerns about the poor conditions on board the USS Abraham Lincoln. The ship's supporting a war with Iran. It hasn't made a port call. Get this in more than 200 days. And troops on board are telling their families are getting limited meal portions. Now tonight, the Trump administration planning to replace the ship. Here's Gabe Gutierrez. Tonight, with growing concerns about deteriorating living conditions aboard the aircraft carrier critical in carrying out strikes against Iran, a U.S. official telling NBC News that USS Abraham Lincoln is now set to sail home after a lengthy deployment.

The switch comes amid alarming complaints from service members and their families, including these limited meal portions. And now a U.S. official says one sailor went overboard and was quickly rescued. The ship has not made a port call in 244 days. a record. It's been difficult. It's longer than she's experienced. Typical deployments have been six to eight months. Melanie Stowe says her daughter has been aboard the Lincoln since last October. They had hangar bays that would not close. So they were taken on water into the lower hangers. I know that they've had some issues with some of the plumbing. Two U.S. officials tell NBC News, Joint Chiefs Chairman Dan Cain has warned President Trump and Defense Secretary Hankseth about

lengthy deployments and declining morale. Today, Hegset was asked about conditions aboard the Lincoln. Completely misrepresented. Listen, we make sure that every ship, every crew, every captain, has everything we can provide them at every single moment. Some deployments are longer than others, and I have more respect and gratitude for those sailors than anybody. Gabe Gutierrez joins us now from the White House.

Gabe, explain now when the Lincoln comes home, how exactly it's replaced and how long it could take. Well, Tom, the Lincoln will now head home to San Diego. It will be replaced in the Middle East by the USS George Washington, and that process typically takes several weeks. Tom? Okay, Gabe Gutierrez, I want to bring in another parent tonight whose son is on board the Lincoln. Danielle Rapa, we thank you for joining us on Top Story.

Danielle, we just heard there the ship is set to sail home. What is your reaction to this news tonight? It's been long anticipated. This has been really difficult for Paul and our family. Yeah, I understand you've been communicating with your son who is still on that ship. What has he been telling you about the conditions on board? I mean, 200 days without a port call seems like a lot. At first he was in good spirits, but once it started going past what they anticipated to be their return date,

I could definitely see a change in his overall mental health and where he had been very positive. it started getting very dark. He describes the overall experience as a scene out of the American horror story, or he feels like everybody is dead, but they don't know it yet, and a lot of concern about when they're going to go home. I mean, you sort of left me stunned with what you just said there. As a mom, when you hear that, and you know your son is over there fighting against Iran, there's no way you can go and help him.

What's that been like? It's been a feeling of powerlessness. And I'm not just talking on one isolated incident where he complains about the conditions. This has been trending and spiraling downward since about March or April with no supplies, food shortages, low morale, a lot of talking about death. It's been concerning. I know your son has been on that ship. There's been some reports of man overboard incidents. Has he spoken to you about that?

And what exactly he's heard? He confirmed that there was somebody who went overboard, but that was all he said. He didn't know the sort of the context of what happened, whether it was an accident or was intentional? I don't think that he was able to give me any further context outside of being able to confirm that that was truth. Did he say what they told him once the sort of,

the dates had been extended and while they were still out there and not coming back? Sure. My son was scheduled to be separated. He's been in for five years and he was due to get out end of this month, August. And they decided to extend his service until November. So he has really no idea when he will get out or when he will be home. So it's been a huge disappointment for him since he has fulfilled his contract. Your son is defending our country, right? And I know that sacrifice. It's not only his.

It's your sacrifice as well. So you have the right to say what you want to say. And what would you say to the Navy tonight? This isn't just about, you know, him not having fresh food or salads or one bad meal. This has been a supply problem for extended periods, no washing machines, exhaustion, uncertainty. Gosh, how do I say this? I've watched my tone of my son's messages change. This is a young man who can tolerate an enormous amount.

When he starts describing his life to his mother as American horror story and talking about being completely exhausted, I listen. I want them to take care of these sailors, feed them properly, give them basic living conditions, give them honest information about when they're coming home, These people are sons, daughters, husbands, wives, parents, not just numbers on a deployment roster. They're doing their jobs, and I'm asking that the people who are responsible for them do theirs. Danielle Rapa, we thank you for your son service. We thank you for being brave enough to come out here and to speak on behalf of your son and all those sailors that are going through the same thing.

We know this has been so hard, but again, we thank you for your sacrifice to this country. Thank you. We're going to take a turn now to a story that's generating a lot of headlines out of Texas. It involves a custody battle between a baby's biological parents and the surrogate who carried him. The surrogate arguing she should be able to keep the baby after the parents asked her to terminate the pregnancy. Our Ryan Chandler explains. In Dallas, a boy's birth triggering a dramatic custody battle, pitting the baby's biological parents against the surrogate who carried him.

The boys California-based parents faced a devastating. stating decision after a diagnosis at 20 weeks. They learned the baby who was being carried by a surrogate from Alaska at a serious heart condition called hypoplastic left heart syndrome. They chose to terminate the pregnancy. But gestational carrier McKenna West objected, fleeing to Texas for medical care and legal refuge. I didn't think that I could live with myself doing that. West sharing her story with the anti-abortion organization live action. She's fighting for legal parenthood, the baby she carried to term in Texas. I just know that he, he's a fighter and he deserves to be surrounded by people who are 100% willing to fight alongside him.

The boy was born Wednesday. West is calling him Gabriel, but he's roomy to his parents who want to take him back to California for medical care. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton intervening to support the surrogate, urging a court to prohibit the child. removal from the state. The court cited with the state in part, blocking any attempt to transfer the child, while also prohibiting the gestational carrier from asserting any parental rights over him. Tonight, the biological parents' attorneys telling NBC News,

as if the heartbreak of his condition were not enough, they are devastated to see their family tragedy transformed into political theater. Adding, our clients only focus at this time is ensuring that their baby receives the medical care medical care that he vitally needs and that they, as his parents, are able to spend every precious moment they can with their beautiful newborn son. And with that, Ryan Chandler joins us now.

So, Ryan, do we know where the baby is right now? Well, Tom, the good news in this heartbreaking story tonight, we are told the baby is doing well tonight in the arms of his biological parents who were able to travel in and meet their boy after it was delivered. In fact, according to the surrogate's attorney, per that Texas court order, the surrogate was not even allowed to hold the baby after she delivered it. Given the baby's condition, we do expect him to receive some very needed surgery very soon. And then after that, if all goes well, he could be expected to go on to lead a relatively normal life, Dom.

A very complicated case on both sides there. Okay, Ryan Chandler for us, Ryan, thank you. We're back in a moment with the gruesome discovery in a Philadelphia home. Investigators finding disturbing video of two missing women. what officials are saying the House of Horrors, saying about that House of Horrors. And the powerful explosion rocking a factory near Rome, the blast sending the fireball into the sky, what caused it. Plus, our series, the cost of denial and the challenges

some expected mothers are facing as more labor and delivery units shut down. Stay with us. We are back now with a grim story out of Pennsylvania. Police discovering a disturbing trove of videos that they believe are connected to the disappearances of two women. Valerie Castro has this one. Tonight, two missing women now believed to be dead after police uncovered what they say are graphic videos from this Philadelphia home. It's real dark. But what we saw is these two girls alive. There's a period of time and what appears to us that they're deceased.

The women, Gabrielle Amarando, reported missing in 2012 and Maribel Friesis last seen in 2018. Their bodies have not been recovered, according to police. The videos, which have not been made public, part of a massive trove of digital evidence seized from the home in June. 600,000 images, 70,000 videos, and over 10,000 pages of writings. Investigators zeroing in on the property following the arrest of 44-year-old Eugene Horsh, after police say they found drugs and weapons in his car along with a fake DEA badge. Search warrants executed at the home, also turning up five urns with cremated remains, drugs and a gun, according to police. Horsh remains in federal custody on a weapons charge and fake federal credentials. His attorney did not respond to an NBC news request for comment.

He has not been charged in connection with a homicide. Usually when we have a homicide investigation, we have a body. We have body parts. This time we do not. All right, Valerie Castro joins us live in studio. Valerie, I'm almost concerned asking you this question. about the answer. Do we know what else was on those videos? So in addition to videos of those missing women, police say they also found videos of people

who are alive and they have actually interviewed those people as part of this investigation. But they say they've reviewed less than 10% of all of that digital evidence that was gathered more than 70,000 videos. So now they're asking for the public's help. Anyone with a missing loved one who may have a connection to that home to give them a call or anyone who may have spent time inside that home to call police. Okay, this is a weird one. I know you'll see on top of it for us. Thank you, Valerie. Still ahead on Top Story, the murder suspect, known for dressing up in different disguises, to stay on the run, finally captured what we're learning tonight. Plus, the wild scene at a swanky restaurant, a bear running through the dining room jumping on top of tables, how they finally got Boo Boo back outside.

But first, top stories, top moment, and the patriotic package delivery in Kentucky going viral. Take a look at this, an Amazon driver was dropping off a box on a porch when she noticed the homeowner's American flag was all out of sorts. So instead of just walking away, she decided to untangle the stars and stripes before taking a moment to salute that beautiful flag. Listen to what she had to say. If I see a flag that is wrapped up or anything like that, I feel like, you know, I can't just look at it and walk away. This is an amazing country. We live in the best country in the entire world. And I just hope that other people will have the same inclination to do the same thing. Amen to that. What a beautiful show of respect.

even when she thought no one was watching. Stay with us, more top story after the break. All right, we are back now with Buzz about a potential presidential run after Secretary of State Marco Rubio sat for a wide-ranging interview. He and his wife, Jeanette, sharing jokes and stories on the Katie Miller podcast, discussing everything from his diet to UFOs to his taste in music. Who's your favorite rapper? Of all time?

Yeah. I mean, just from an artistic standpoint, point at where obviously he would never live long enough to know what he would have turned into, but Tupac was very, very talented. I don't know who it is, I don't know what it is, but there are things flying over our military installation and they're not ours and we should look into this. I'm in favor of Maha. Like, I think people should be healthy. No, he is not. But I think ultimately, at the end. He is completely not. What's he eat? Pop-Tarts. I tried this thing called keto. You've heard of this. Yeah, keto. And you just eat all this protein. And so you go through

this massive withdrawal from sugar and carbohydrates for the first 72 hours. It was a near-s, psychotic event for it. It's true. If I did this in this job, I would be in a Mr. President, we must bomb, you know, Paraguay. And it's like, why? I don't know. I'm just really mad. I haven't had any sugar. All right. Some are saying that conversation could be an attempt to show Marco Rubio's personality, raising questions about whether he's got his eye set on the White House in 2028.

We should point out, though. Katie Miller, of course, is probably friends with the Rubio's. She is the wife of Stephen Miller as well, one of the top aides to President Trump. Joining us to discuss all of this, our political pros tonight. Mark Caputo is a White House reporter at Axios, who has covered Secretary Rubio for years, maybe decades. I'm not going to make them that old. Matt Gorman is an NBC News analyst and former communications director for the National Republican Congressional Committee. And Yemisi Egbaweil is a senior fellow at Third Way and a former chief of staff to the press office for President Biden. I thank you all for being here.

Mark, I'm going to start with you. You know Secretary of State Marco Rubio. You've covered him for a long time. What was this about? Is this just maybe doing a favor to Katie Miller getting on his show with Jeanette? Something I don't know if they've done a lot of, or is this someone who's trying to plant the seed? Yeah, I'm going to go with the first one, and I'll probably wind up eating my words if he does run for president. I don't think Rubio's running for president.

He says he's not. He doesn't want to run against JD Vance. If JD Vance doesn't run for president, that'll change. But until that happens, yeah, this is Rubio being Rubio. He had an opportunity. The pitch was right for him to go on the show. free form relaxing. Katie Miller's show is a safe space for cabinet officials on or in the Trump administration.

You can learn a lot about them by watching it, but it's not a hard news show. So it just gave Rubio and his wife, Jeanette, an opportunity to just sort of showcase who they are, what they're thinking, how they're sort of real people. Again, not a lot of news created, but certainly a hell of a lot of buzz. Matt, some people may be watching this and saying, if they're going to vote in the Republican primary, may look at this and say, wow, you know, Secretary of State Mark Rubio, he may be, he looks a lot less awkward than J.D. Vance sometimes in free-flowing interviews. We do know by all accounts at every single poll, J.D. Vance is the frontrunner for the Republican primary for President

2028. We know he does want to run. And you've been pretty bullish on J.D. Vance. You don't think this is a two-person race. You think this is J.D. Vance's race's race's race to lose. No, I agree with actually much of what Mark said. I don't think Rubio and Vance will run against each other. I think this is Rubio's race, to be blunt and honest, to lose if he wants it. Now, that being said, there will be serious people. You mean vances. Sorry. You mean vans. Excuse me. Vance. Yes, exactly. There will be serious people to challenge Vance. I mean, look, Trump got serious people to challenge him in 2024, but one of them won't be Marco Rubio. I mean, look, Mark and I worked in the 2016 campaign when I was running with Jeb Bush's campaign against Rubio.

He's gotten better as a communicator since then. He's probably gotten better as a candidate since then. Doesn't necessarily mean he won't be on the ticket, but I don't think barring Vance possibly not running, which I think we might underestimate, candidly, he will be at the time of the What you mean? Why would J.D. Vance not run? Look, I mean, I think he, uh, Vance is somebody who has lucrative private sector opportunities. I think he is not in love with the game as other professional politicians are. I don't think it's likely he doesn't run, but just talking to people around his team. I don't think it's an automatic, without a doubt, 100% he is in the day after the midterms. All right. That's the first time I'm hearing about that. Interesting.

Yeah, Macy, who would the Democrats want to run against? I almost don't want to say who they would want to run against, because I don't want them to rest on their laurels. But I don't think it's a hidden secret that people think that Markerubio has a more competitive edge than J.D. Vance. I think 2024 and Kamala Harris's race has a lot to do with that. That was a vice president that took the lead contending role and had a very hard time differentiating herself from the Biden White House. That might happen to J.D. Vance in the same way where Democrats will hammer and hammer and hammer that contrast. I think Marco Rubio as Secretary of State, not really having to focus on a lot of the domestic issues, gets to have some separation from that. He can still maintain the coalition.

And those Republicans that are a little frustrated and tired with the current Trump administration, he could bring them back as well. If you're sitting in that war room, right, for this presidential campaign for the Democrats, what are you going after Vice President J.D. Vance over? I'm going after how he started when he first came on the scene, when he was running in the Senate for Ohio, and where he's ended up. I don't think he's remained consistent throughout his time in politics. You think he's a flip-flopper, he's a political chameleon? He is, and I think that's in comparison to Marco Rubio. We know a lot of his upbringing as a Cuban-American has driven his politics. That's a very genuine connection to the Latino base that we all really want to recapture as Democrats as well, because we were underwater with them, especially on the issue of immigration.

I think that Marco Rubio leads by a lot of how his life, his life journey and his path, and that makes it the way that he engages with policy come across as much more genuine than a JD-Vance. If J.D. Vance becomes the man, the vice president, sort of the crown prince of the Republican Party, Mark, and he gets the nomination. Do you think Mark or Rubio would join him on the ticket if he's offered it? I think if he's offered it and it's a heartfelt offer, yeah, I think Rubio would take it. It's going to be a very difficult campaign, to Matt's point. One of the things that J.D. Vance is kicking the tires on right now,

outside of the fact that, yeah, the midterms aren't over, so it's not really time to really give this the really serious thought. is the fact that this is an unpopular war, the Iran war that was launched by this president and this administration. And it's caused gas prices to rise. And it's sometimes as simple as that. I think one of the reasons, one of the main reasons that Kamala Harris lost wasn't because she was vice president, not to disagree with the other guests. It's the fact that inflation was bad and people were angry, right? Well, people are now angry at this administration. And that's a really difficult thing to navigate around. I do think Rubio is talented enough to be able to navigate around that.

And I can see where Vance would see Rubio as an addition to the ticket. But Ego's come into play. Maybe Vance really doesn't want it. Maybe Vance's team doesn't really want it. Maybe Rubio doesn't really want it. And, you know, who knows? Let's get through the midterm first, and then we'll have a much better picture. Mark, I'm kind of hearing this, too.

Is this really being battered around Vance? world not to run in 2028? Sure. Part of this is just setting expectations. I'm with Matt on this one. If you look at the polling, J.D. Vance, unless he royally screws up, and I don't think he will, and unless things drastically change in the Republican Party, which I don't think it will, he is the odds on favor to be the nominee. And once you're the nominee for a major party in a presidential race, it's essentially a coin toss if you're going to become present or not. And it's hard for me to see J.D. Vance passing that up. But yeah, there's chatter out there.

They are floating various trial balloons and setting expectations. And it's creating a certain amount of drama around the chatter and the conversation circles where the chattering class likes to talk. Matt, does anything happen in the midterms that sort of pushes the vice president one way or the other, do you think? No, I actually don't think whatever happens in the midterms. I mean, look, he has a young family, just had a fourth childing. That's far more impactful to whatever that decides.

And again, I think, too, one of the points is, Rubio, oddly enough, has been inoculated somewhat from some of the more unpopular parts of the Trump presidency, certainly on domestic policy as Secretary of State, but he also hasn't been out front as much on Iran as he has in areas, say, in this hemisphere, like Venezuela or possibly Cuba. And that's a unique thing and unique position for somebody who's sitting in the cabinet right now. Yeah, quick answer. If I had to ask you right now, Matt, I'm going to ask everybody this. If President Trump had to have his way, who would he pick Rubio or Vance, do you think? Vance, and he already has in the summer of 2024 as VP. Mark, what do you think? I'll go with Matt's guess, but I think it's less of a simple answer than that. I think Trump himself, we've reported, has repeatedly asked people, played a game, a parlor game.

Who do you like better? Who do you like best? You don't do that unless, well, unless you're Donald Trump and you sometimes like to pit people against each other. But yes, Vance is the likely era parent. but us Donald Trump, you never know what he's going to do. Yemise, what do you think? I might go with the contrarian and pick a Donald Trump that we don't know what he might do in St. Marco Rubio. Okay, all right. Yemisi, Mark and Matt, thank you.

Great conversation. We thank you all for being here tonight. We're going to move on now to Top Stories News Feed, and we're going to start in Italy where a powerful explosion ripped through an ammunition factory. You can see that huge fireball sending a cloud of smoke into the air. This happened in a town near Rome, according to local reports. The blast went off as firefighters and police were already responding. to a fire there. No word yet on what caused it, but thankfully the plant's operator says no one was hurt. Back at home in Florida, the search is now over for a murder suspect, where authorities described as a master of disguise. The Walton County Sheriff's Office says the woman, Isabel Johnson,

has been captured after a month's long search. Officials have called her a master manipulator who disguises herself well. She's wanted in connection with the death of a man whose remains were found in a shallow grave. And an update on that terrifying situation on board a Ryan airplane, head was sucked out of the window. Investigators now say broken engine parts shattered the window, adding that it appears the plane hit some birds. As it took off from a city in Greece last month, the 61-year-old man suffered injuries to his head and shoulder before fellow passengers pulled him back inside. And in Aspen, Colorado, a high-end restaurant got quite the unexpected guest. Look at this. Surveillance footage shows a black bear running and jumping right into those tables.

Restaurant staffers say it wandered through one of the side doors. They called police, but by the time officers showed up, a worker had already shoed the bear back outside. They must have had plenty of berries and honey on the menu that night. All right. I don't write all the videos here. We're going to take a serious turn to the cost of denial, which follows the struggles

people face with access to health care. Tonight we're looking into a troubling trend for expectant mothers as labor and delivery units increasingly closed down across the country. Here's Ann Thompson. In the picture postcard twin villages of Coastal Maine, Newcastle,

and Dam Rescada, signs of trouble ahead. Main Health announcing the closing of the only hospital labor and delivery unit in Lincoln County. I think it's going to have a deeply negative effect on our community. Pregnant with her first child, this area is where 33-year-old Leslie Wolfe and her fiance Ben chose to build their family. Their baby boy due in mid-November. I can see the little face. We got a little side profile here. Could be one of the last deliveries at Maine Health Lincoln Hospital that locals call Miles. Less than a 10-minute drive from Leslie's home. Living rural comes with certain compromises.

Businesses close earlier. You have to drive further to get to the grocery store. But this labor and delivery unit has existed for so long, for 84 years, and its closure did not need to happen. You're not willing to compromise on that. Completely not. Many must. A new report from the March of Dimes finds more than half of U.S. counties lack a hospital with labor and delivery services, affecting 370,000 births a year. I don't know that we would have moved here knowing that we couldn't have given birth here necessarily. Banding with other women.

Keep birth local. Leslie is trying to stop the closure scheduled for just a few weeks after her due date that would make the next. nearest delivery unit about an hour away. If that is, all goes well. Towns on the route like Wisconsin, often packed with tourists in the summer, snow and ice in the winter. I just shuddered to think about being the potential of being in labor and being stuck in traffic in Wiscassett on that single lane road. It's terrifying. Miles will be the 10th Labor and Delivery Unit to close in Maine since 2020. Maine Health declined an interview, but in his statement cited, low birth volume at the hospital and an inability to hire enough doctors and nurses to safely support a reliable 24-hour

labor and delivery program. Its decision now weighing heavily on this mother to be. Is your concern so great that you would move out of Lincoln County? It's something that my partner and I have talked a bit about. I think it's a concern so great that we might just consider not having a second child. The future of a hospital impacting the future of this family. Ann Thompson joins us now. And the report you referenced raises more questions than just delivery. It does. In fact, when it comes to OBGYNs, the March of Dimes report, Tom, says that in 10% of the counties in this country, there is only one such doctor. In more than a third of the counties, there are no such doctors. And we know that lack of easily accessible care raises the risk for both mom and

baby before and during the birthing process. Wow. Okay. And Thompson, first hand, we thank you for bringing us this story. When we come back tonight growing tensions in the West Bank, Israeli settlers trapping Palestinian families in their homes while a U.S. ambassador is calling it a horrific act of terror. Plus, it's decision day for Count Binface. The comedian dressed as a trash can now locked in a political showdown. So could he actually win? We'll break down the UK special election right after this. We're back now with Top Stories Global Watch and the siege unfolding in the West Bank. A group of Israeli settlers trapping Palestinian families inside their homes, cutting them off from food, water, and power. Matt Bradley traveled there. It has this report.

Tonight, a tense standoff in the West Bank. Security camera footage from Palestinian homes shows Israeli Jewish settlers trapping two Palestinian families in these houses, using rocks to block Israeli military trucks from reaching the site, and even fighting with Israeli soldiers and border guards sent to clear them away.

But this latest sighting of settler violence attracting global condemnation. U.S. Ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, known for his pro-Israeli, called the settlers' terrorists whose thuggish behavior should be punished. The IDF said today that it had dispersed

the settlers, but when we went, we found several were still there. You can see right now there are settlers running right along in black just below those homes that are now under siege. The settler siege depriving families inside of food, water, and cutting off their electricity. All we have left is a little bread, the little halawa, this cheese, a tomato, said the home's owner in a video asking for help. Would you accept me coming into your home living there and forcing you out? at the town's mayor. We keep speaking out, but no one listens to us. No one tells our story

to the world. Kareem Hassan's children are in the houses. To keep watch on his daughter, he's sleeping here. He says this has been his house since January of this year. His car. Hours ago, he was told that soldiers took his daughter's phone. After an anxious wait, he finally got through to her. Are they harassing you, he asks? No, they aren't, she says of the soldiers. soldiers, but they told us not to go outside. The residents here say the soldiers haven't been doing enough to protect them.

They accused the military of working with the settlers to force out the Palestinians. They point to a video earlier this week that showed IDF soldiers praying with the settlers, inciting accusations of collusion. The IDF said disciplinary action would be taken against the security personnel involved, but for the Palestinian families who live here, discipline seems in short supply. Matt Bradley is back in Tel Aviv tonight and joins top story. Matt, this is part of a larger trend of settler violence. Yeah, that's right, Tom.

This has been going on for years. It's actually spiked ever since those October 7, 2023 Hamas attacks into Israel. That really emboldened a lot of the Israeli settlers in the West Bank. And according to the United Nations, the deadliness of those settler attacks against Palestinians reached its highest point just last month since records started. Tom? Okay, Matt Bradley for us, Matt. Thank you for that story. Now to the UK, where voters are heading to the polls to decide whether to elect a comedian, get this, dressed as a trash can. Count Binfaces in a political showdown with a prominent

right-wing populace. But does he have a real shot at Parliament? Our Janice Mackie Freyer takes another look. A political showdown in a seaside town is pitting one of Britain's most divisive politicians, Nigel Farage, against, well, a trash can. Yeah, my name's Count Binface, and I've ended the race, but Blackton's new MP. Meet Count Binface, a self-proclaimed Galactic Space Warrior and comedian, who emerged in body armor as Farage's main rival in a special election that came

to epitomize voter discontent here. Thanks, buddy. you who will stand up for you some of count bin faces policies are a bit out there like building at least one affordable house nationalizing the british singer adele and capping the price of croissants and of course move the hands dryer in the jents toilets at the crown and treaty pub uxbridge to a more sensible position because as you can imagine that's a national issue the vote comes as Nigel Farage finds himself in a political bind, facing an investigation over not declaring a multi-million dollar gift from a crypto billionaire before he was elected to Parliament in 2024.

Farage denied doing anything wrong and resigned, saying voters should determine if he keeps his job. I've decided that the people of Clacton should be the judges of my actions. This will be a people versus the establishment by election. But mainstream party. candidates boycotted the special election, accusing Farage of playing political games. Nigel Farage is having a hissy fit because the first time he's actually having to deal with some real scrutiny. Enter Count Bingface, whose real name is John Harvey. He's no stranger to the sort of trash talk that comes with politics having run against Prime Ministers before. Yet this time BinFace has oddly been gaining support as the ultimate protest vote. As the ultimate protest

Who you voted for? Bimface. Bimface? Absolutely. Is that because you want Count Bimface to be your elected representative in Parliament? I have looked at his manifesto and there is a lot of rubbish in there. Don't get me wrong. Is it basically a vote against Farage?

It's a vote against Farage. Still, Farage, an ally of President Trump, appears unlikely to be thrown out by a garbage can. Farage's strong positions on immigration and Brexit, building momentum for his populist right-of-center reform party. party. Who about voting for? Nigel Farage, of course. It's the best, simply the best. Regardless of the elections outcome,

the unlikely rise of Count Binfays captures a mood here, among those worn down by politics, finding a laugh and maybe a bit of hope that even a man in a can might change things. Janice Mikey Breyer, NBC News, London. We thank Janice for that one, and we are eagerly awaiting those results still to come tonight.

The special surprise for one grandma wrapping up her last round of chemo, the emotional moment. Next. Finally tonight, it was already an emotional day for Grandma Barb, who had just completed her final cancer treatment. But when her granddaughter drove through the night to surprise her at the hospital, she was an utter shock. Here's Jesse Curse with that moment and the story of their unbreakable bond. Welcome to your last treatment. With one chemotherapy treatment to go, Barb Ewers had every reason to celebrate. But she had no idea someone would be crashing her party.

Barb's granddaar, Faith Dyer. I would do anything for her. We've always been very, very close. They stayed close when Barb's breast cancer returned more aggressively. And for Barb's big day, Faith in Airmen at Joint Base Andrews drove seven hours overnight from Marrb. to Ohio. I just cannot wait to see her. That was proud of her.

And she was there to see Barb declare victory. It was just utter shock. I just, I couldn't believe it. The moment taking off on TikTok, one user commenting two warriors in one room. That really struck me and touched me. After a long cancer battle, this hug might have been the best medicine of all. I felt very loved. loved and very special that day.

Jesse Kirsch, NBC News. All right, that does it for us. Thanks so much for watching Top Story. I'm Tom Yamerson, New York. Stay right there. More news on the way.