Top Story with Tom Llamas - Thursday, November 14, 2024

Episode Date: November 15, 2024

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

Breaking tonight, President-elect Trump tapping Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to be his next Secretary of Health and Human Services, Kennedy, an anti-vaccine activist, would become one of the most influential figures over the nation's public health policy. The move met with mixed reaction and concerns over what policies he would bring to the table, including the potential rollback on food safety regulations. The late-breaking details will tell you who was just selected to head up Veterans Affairs, and Trump's hush money case attorney selected as Deputy Attorney General. Also tonight, the trouble with Gates, Trump selecting former Congressman Matt Gates to lead the Justice Department igniting a political firestorm. Gates' abrupt decision to retire from

Congress effectively bringing an end to a House ethics investigation into his alleged sexual misconduct and illegal drug use. The demands from both sides of the aisle to see that report and the mounting questions tonight on if he will get confirmed. Tropical storm Sarah gaining strength in the Caribbean. The system expected to bring major flooding to portions of Central America. Will it take a turn towards Florida? Meteorologist Bill Carrion standing by. Crisis in Haiti, critical aid cut off after the FAA issued a flight ban

in the wake of three U.S. flights taking gunfire. Haitians rushing to find a safe place to go as gang violence surges. The ambulance ambushed as it was rushing gunshot patients to the high. hospital. The FBI raid at the home of Polly Market CEO, the crypto gambling site gaining popularity for betters during the U.S. presidential election, now caught up in controversy. Investigators seizing cell phones and other electronic devices of the company's founder. What did and didn't Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu know about the October 7th attack as it unfolded? Bombshell New York Times reporting detailing the investigation into his closest aides accused

of manipulating records, blackmail, and leaking top secret documents to preserve their boss's reputation and response to the attack, what we're learning. And the highly anticipated showdown in the ring, former heavyweight champion Mike Tyson, set to take on YouTuber turned boxer Jake Paul, Iron Mike coming out of retirement, swinging at someone half his age. Will we see a knockout? The generational boxing event taking center stage and how you can watch. Plus the McDonald's E. coli outbreak growing what we're learning about the new.

new number of cases. Top story starts right now. And good evening. We come on the air tonight with breaking news once again. President-elect Trump nominating Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for Health and Human Services Secretary. And at this hour, Trump revealing additional picks to the cabinet. This is just coming in. Trump tapping his lawyer and his hush money, New York City hush money case, Todd Blanche, to serve as Deputy Attorney General. And former Congressman, as Doug Collins as Secretary of Veterans Affairs. But it's the Kennedy name drop causing the most concern tonight.

He exited the presidential race before backing Trump and has repeatedly promoted debunked health remedies. RFK Jr. is one of the nation's most prominent vaccine skeptics who has widely criticized COVID vaccines and childhood immunizations. The environmental lawyer has no public health or medical degree, though he would be overseeing agencies such as the CDC, the FDA, and the National Institutes of Health and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. The move does not come as a surprise as Trump has touted his support for Kennedy while on the campaign trail.

I'm going to let him go wild on health. I'm going to let him go wild on the food. I'm going to let him go wild on medicines. Arvonne Hilliard speaking to Kennedy last week, pressing him on what he would do if he were to take on the role. Take a listen. You say clearing out the corruption in your terms. Would that mean clearing out the top-level federal service workers that are currently at the FDA and the CDC? In some categories, I would say. What does that look like? Yeah.

In some categories of workers, their entire departments, like the nutrition departments at FDA, that have to go, that are not doing their job. They're not protecting our kids. RFK Jr. has attacked the FDA promoting raw milk, which his experts have linked to deadly E. coli outbreaks. He's promoted a number of unproven COVID cures, and he has falsely claimed that vaccines are tied to autism for decades. Studies have proven otherwise. Other ideas he has discussed include expanding stem cell research, stem cell research.

The decision drawing differing reactions from lawmakers on social media. Alabama center, Tommy Tuberville, saying, quote, brilliant pick. Missouri Senator Josh Hawley saying, bad day for big pharma. But Connecticut Senator Ed Markey calling Kennedy, quote, dangerous, unqualified, unsirious. At this hour, more fallout over the president-elects Picks for Attorney General. Now former Florida Congressman Matt Gates igniting a firestorm on Capitol Hill. His decision to step down from his role abruptly ending the House Ethics Committee investigation into his alleged sexual misconduct and illegal drug use. Both accusations we should mention, he denies.

But senators on both sides of the aisle pushing to see that report. Do you not on the House Ethics Committee release that report? Yes, I do. I think when you, at this point, at this point, given, particularly given his abrupt, you know, departure from Congress just prior to that report coming out, considering the job that he has been, you know, appointed to, considering that the FBI is going to do a background check anyway, I can't imagine that the committee's not going to want to see it. And take a look at this, Trump's second administration really filling up. Many of these positions will need Senate approval and some of the people selected for top spots will face intense scrutiny,

despite Republicans controlling the Senate. At this hour, a number of notable positions left, including his whole economic team. Could more names be released? Maybe even tonight. We have much more to get to on this busy evening. Let's start with NBC's Von Hilliard. He leads us off.

Tonight, after teasing a potential administration role for weeks... RFK, Jr., he's going to help us on health and the health of women and men and children, and he is so good. Trump selecting Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to be his next secretary of health and human services, writing, Americans have been crushed by the industrial food complex in drug companies who have engaged in deception, misinformation, and disinformation when it comes to public health. Kennedy is a former Democratic and independent presidential candidate who dropped out and endorsed Trump.

But he's faced criticism because of his history of vaccine skepticism, publicly espousing discredited assertions that vaccines cause autism. Vice President Harris slammed Trump for praising him. He has indicated that the person who would be in charge of health care for the American people is someone who has routinely promoted junk science. Kennedy telling us last week that he would not block any vaccines. Are there specific vaccines that you would seek to take off the market? Oh, I'm not going to take away anybody's facts.

vaccines. I've never been an anti-vaccine. You will not take any vaccine that is currently on the market. I'm not. If vaccines are working for somebody, I'm not going to take them away. During the campaign, Kennedy also made headlines when he said that 15 years ago, doctors told him he had a parasitic worm in his brain that died. Kennedy is a critic of U.S. healthcare policy, who's advocated for big changes to food and drug regulation, writing last month, the FDA's war on public health is about to end, telling us he would eliminate parts of the FDA.

The nutrition departments that have to go, that are not doing their job. They're not protecting our kids. Okay, Vaughn Hillier joins us tonight. So, Von, let's start with, you know, is the Trump team confident that RFK Jr. will get approved? That's an outstanding question for Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and several of his other picks. Right now, there is a Republican majority with 54 senators. In order to get your nominee confirmed, you just got to get a simple majority. And J.D. Vance would, if, in a tiebreaker situation, be able to have a vote.

So, really, Kennedy can only afford to lose the support of four Republicans. And that's if every Democrat voted against him. And that's no sure bet. Right now, I think that they're looking at a pretty good situation with Kennedy. Of course, he'll go through those confirmation hearings. There are undoubtedly going to be questions about his position on vaccines and the extent to which he may or may not use the FDA to block access to them. But this is a figure who is undoubtedly going to shake up not only Washington,

but specifically the Health and Human Services Department and those 13 health agencies from the FDA to the CDC. Yeah, I want to kind of ask you a little bit more about that. You know, RFK Jr. has a long list of complaints, and he talked to you about some of them. What do you think are the first issues he's going to tackle? That's why he was really, to your point, an interesting presidential candidate because he kind of had a grab bag of issues. But he was an environmental attorney.

Let's be clear. Donald Trump said that he would not be able to touch the oil. That was going to be out of his purview. But he is part of being an environmental lawyer. He's big on clean air and big on clean water. And he has really gone on the attack against pharmaceutical companies making the case that they effectively own and operate out. of the FDA and other health agencies that people come in from the pharmaceutical companies, work in the public sector, and then they go back to those private pharmaceutical companies. But he's also really taken on American obesity and the over processing, highly processed foods

from the U.S. food industry and also the amount of chemicals that are used within the U.S. agricultural system. And so really it's going to be a comprehensive of look for somebody who has really been trying to be on the forefront of this for many years now. He's now getting the chance to run the department. Vaughan Hillier, leading us off tonight, Vaughn, we thank you for that. For more on the appointment of RFK Jr. to the position of Secretary of Health and Human Services, I want to bring in Dr. Nahed Badalia, former senior advisor for global COVID-19 response for the White House and founding director of Boston University Senator on emerging infectious diseases.

Dr. Badalia, thank you for being here tonight. You worked with HHS in your capacity at the White House. What's your reaction to this decision? I think, Tom, just as a physician, someone who works in. public health. I think what we all want is whoever takes this position, whether it's Mr. Kennedy or somebody else, appreciates the miracle in improving our quality of life and saving lives that public health has made. A lot of what you're hearing in terms of cleaner water, cleaner air, safer food, you know, in principle, those are all great aims for public health that we're

already pursuing. This is what our agencies do. They have staff who are career staff who understand the processes and understand the science. The concern maybe for many in public health community is vaccines in particular. COVID-19 vaccines made an incredible impact during the pandemic. They saved over 3 million lives, right? They saved over 11 million hospitalizations and potentially saved the U.S. a trillion dollars in costs, additional costs, by decreasing those hospitalizations and potential morbidity and mortality that comes from that.

And that's just COVID-19 vaccine. And not only that, but Tom, that was the first Trump administrations, one of their largest public health successes, was COVID-19 vaccines. The incredible work that they did around Operation Warf Speed. So I really hope the Trump administration recognizes that it was their investment that made this possible. Well, let's talk a little more. Yeah, Dr. Bedean, let's talk a little more about vaccines. Here's what RFK Jr. has said about vaccines, at least when he was on the campaign trail on the COVID-19 vaccine. And as we all now recognize the COVID vaccines were neither safe nor effective.

Well, here's the problem is they have all these vaccines and they recognize that it's going to be really hard to get a vaccine that does what people say that we would think it's going to do. So they have been reducing the standards to make it so that they can pass a vaccine no matter what. So what are your take on that? Well, what is incredible is that we were able to pass those vaccines so quickly during the penny. But the reason we did that is because we had 20 years' worth of science behind it. And what allowed us to pass it is, you know, getting all that energy during the Trump administration, during the Biden administration to move those vaccines to a point where they could be delivered to so many people. Those vaccines are safe.

Anytime you have any intervention, you know, the safest of intervention, when you expand it to a larger population, you could see rare side effects. And we saw that in some of the COVID-19 vaccines. But they are, there are, by and large, vast majority, completely safe. And they, as I mentioned, saved incredible numbers of lives, saved hospitalizations, and they continue to do that as we take on the boosters that are coming on annually, just like our flu vaccines too.

Dr. Bedelia, you know, there'll be people across the country who want government to be smaller, right? And they may look at health and human services and say it's ballooned in some cases, right? Some departments have gotten too big. Does he have a point when he says some departments maybe aren't needed or need to be shrunk? This is the one thing where I could tell you in my time in government. The thing that I've noticed is that our public health administration at every level is a lot more understaffed than people think it is, particularly given the challenges we've faced, not just within public health, but also infectious diseases, which is my background, and potentially infectious diseases threats on the horizon like H5N1.

And not only that, but the other thing that, you know, most people may not realize is that our public health is a federated structure. So it's not just the HHS. Majority of the work for public health is done at the state level. Even CDC's budget, 80% of it ends up going to state to support their activities. So HHS is actually a lot smaller than people think it is. And the people who are currently, they're actually probably doing a lot more per person than people realize that they are. Dr. Bedele, we thank you for joining Top Story tonight. Really great insight.

We appreciate it. Okay, the news about RFK Jr. coming as Capitol Hill is still processing another bombshell nomination. Now, former Florida Congressman Matt Gates, to be Attorney General of the U.S., many lawmakers, including Republicans, expressing skepticism about Gates in the role. The timing of this nomination now also called into question. Gates was under a House Ethics Committee investigation for allegations of sexual misconduct and illicit drug use. That committee's report was set to be released tomorrow, but Gates resigned from Congress shortly after Trump's announcement last night. ending the House probe. Now some senators who will be voting on Gates' confirmation are asking to see that report

before they make their decision. Republican Senator John Cornyn of Texas who sits on the Judiciary Committee that will vet Gates saying he'd be open to subpoenaing the report if necessary. I think there should not be any limitation on the Senate Judiciary Committee's investigation, including whatever the House Ethics Committee is generated.

So you want to see it? Absolutely. For more on Matt Gates' Road to Confirmation in the Senate, want to get right over to Capitol Hill correspondent Ryan Nobles. Ryan, I want to dive right into that. You heard Senator John Cornyn right there. I mean, I don't want to say it's surprising, but you have somebody who's aligned with

President-elect Trump saying he wants to see this report. Yeah, I think that that's the feeling that most senators have, that regardless of who's being confirmed for a position as important as Attorney General, that they want all the facts before they have the opportunity to vote on a confirmation like this. And that's why even those senators that are inclined to say yes to Matt Gates want to see that report and they believe that it should be an important part of that conversation. And the other thing that I found talking to many of these senators today, Tom, is that even if they don't get the report itself, what they absolutely need is the underlying evidence that went into that report. And they can get that through a variety of means. It could come up through the FBI background investigation that will take place before confirmation that is usually a standard part of this process.

So these senators are pretty confident they're going to get that information, and they hope that it will help inform their decision before they make that vote. Yeah. What is your take? I mean, what does your gut tell you? Do you think he will get the votes? Will he get there? Does President-elect Trump have enough juice still? Listen, Tom, my feeling is until five or four senators come forward and definitively say that they're voting no, you have to assume that Matt Gates is going to be the next attorney general. It is striking to me, while we have seen a great deal of skepticism from a wide range of senators about this pick, a lot of questions about it. There hasn't been one senator that's come forward and said that they're at absolute no vote, at least on the Republican side. And so, you know, Gates can afford to lose four senators and still win confirmation. And you're absolutely right. We are in a period of time in Washington right now where Donald Trump is running the show.

The results of that election were convincing. He did not hide how he feels about any of the big issues of the day. He presented that to the American people, and the American people still elected him. And I think that there are a lot of senators who, under normal circumstances, would raise serious questions about someone who has such an unbelievable lack of qualification when it comes to being the nation's top cop, who are then looking at the election results and saying, this is Donald Trump's administration, and we need to give him whoever he's. wants because that's what the voters told us to do. Yeah, Ryan, what are the chances that we get to see that House ethics report or that it's released or that it's leaked? I think it's very likely that we're going to see it for a number of reasons.

Tom, you're right. First of all, that there's just the opportunity for an enterprising reporter to come in contact with it and get the information out there. But also, because the Senate is insistent that they'd like to see it, I think the House Ethics Committee has a number of options here. First of all, there's precedent. They have done this on two different occasions that we know of, where they've released a report regarding a member of Congress that they were investigating after that member had already left Congress. In fact, in one instance back in 1987, it was two months after that member of Congress left office, so there's precedent for it. Secondly, they could refer the report to the Senate Ethics Committee, which could make it part of their confirmation process. They could also refer it to another law enforcement agency, perhaps the FBI, as part of their investigation into his background check to become the next attorney general, or maybe even a law enforcement agency

in the state of Florida, which wouldn't be bound by the Department of Justice should Matt Gates become the attorney general. So there are so many options to get this report out into the public. I'd be very surprised if it doesn't see the light of day. And real quick, before you go, what's the timeline on the confirmation process? When can America start getting ready to tune in? So they can't begin it in earnest until the new Senate takes their seats and, in January 3rd, but they could begin the hearings and the confirmation process shortly after that. He can't officially be sworn into office until President-elect Trump is formally inaugurated. So basically after the holidays and into the new year is when we'll know whether or not Matt Gates has

got a real shot of becoming the Attorney General. Ryan Nobles, that's going to be a busy time for you and all your colleagues here on Capitol Hill. All right, Ryan, we appreciate it. For more of the confirmation battles for both RFK Jr. and Matt Gates, I want to bring in our political pros tonight. Our good friend, Carlos Grubello, Florida, former Florida congressman and an NBC News political analyst, and Megan Hayes, a Democratic strategist, and former special assistant to President Biden, also a good friend. We thank you both for being here. Carl, so I'm going to start with you, right?

Like Matt Gates, you also represented Florida in the House of Representatives. What do you know about Matt Gates and how well is he regarded in Florida GOP circles? Well, Tom, I was serving in Congress when Matt Gates joined the Congress, and he actually came with a very, you know, team attitude to the job. He helped some members raise funds and get elected. I was interested in his politics because even though he came from a very conservative part of the state, he had a libertarian streak to him. He was in favor, for example, of cannabis legalization, marriage equality. He acknowledged climate change and said the government had to play a role in contributing. So that was Matt Gates. And then he got into the MAGA movement and became

someone else started making a lot of enemies in the Congress, started just kind of focused on trying to get on TV as often as possible. And I can tell you that in Florida, Matt Gates, you know, has plenty of allies, and he comes from a family that's very well regarded here, the Gates family. His father has served in the legislature for many years and is going to serve again. But in Washington, D.C., in Congress, Tom, Matt Gates has almost no allies. enemies. If they could vote secret ballot, whether or not to confirm Matt Gates, I think it'd be tough for him to get 10 Republican votes.

Megat Democrats have sounded the alarm about a number of Trump's picks here. What do you think or who do you think is the biggest concern? I think Matt Gates and Tulsi Gabbard are probably the biggest concerns for Democrats. I think that they this is what the confirmation hearing process so is for and all the stuff will come out and then

Republicans will have to decide whether or not they vote. But I think that Matt Gates has all the things that we've talked about here and, you know, his Ethics Committee report, but I also think that Tulsi Gabbard has been a known Russian asset and, you know, likes conspiracy theories a little more than I think people would be comfort with. And so those are the two that I think are the most concerning to Democrats at the moment. Carlos, you know, talk to me about the process to get him confirmed. Something interesting happened, you know, in the last two hours where we learned that Trump's personal attorney

is now going to be Deputy Attorney General, Todd Blanche, who's a very experienced attorney there. Is Trump sort of signaling that he's going to have Blanche sort of watch? the henhouse, if you will, while Matt Gates is there? And do you think Trump has enough juice to push Gates over the line to get confirmed? Well, that is the big question here. Of all of the president's nominations up to now, Gates is by far the most controversial. And you've heard a lot of resistance, not direct resistance from Senate Republicans, but certainly a lot of skepticism, people wondering if he can even get the votes. So this is going to be a big test of Senate Republicans. I can tell you, I know that most of them do not want Matt Gates to serve

as Attorney General. This is the conflict they're in now, right? Do they follow those instincts? Do they follow their judgment? Or are they going to be intimidated, essentially, by Donald Trump to give them this choice for Attorney General, someone who's been very loyal to Donald Trump, but who has also been extremely controversial and is surrounded by these cases? And I do think, that the House ethics investigation will find a way to make this report public. Again, Matt Gates has very few allies in the House in either party. Megan, you know, a Republican strategist, when I asked him about this Gates nomination, said that Trump was playing chess here.

And there's the theory floating out there that he nominated Gates so other sort of nominees can skate on in and the focus is in on Gates. And if Gates doesn't get past, he'll get somebody else. He's got Todd Blanche right now on deck. You think that's the strategy here, or do you think Trump truly wants him to be the Attorney General? I mean, who knows who can get in the mind of Donald Trump. But I do think that is some of this. If you look at the shiny object over here, you might not notice these things over here.

But that's why the Senate does hearings. That's why these process, this is not just everyone just goes up and there's a voice vote on everyone. They have to go through hearings. There's compromise. You know, it's a process that they have to go through. And I agree that the Ethics Committee report will get out. And I'm not even sure that Matt Gates is going to get a vote. because I think once that report comes out, Trump might rescind his nomination and just move on to the next person.

So not to put the Republicans in the situation to have to take a vote for him. Megan, how concern are Democrats, right? You have President-elect Trump, you know, who won a huge victory. You have the Senate in the Republicans' hands. You have the House in the Republicans' hands. And Democrats, you know, they obviously still love this country. They're going to want to push through their legislation as well. What do you think the Democratic Party is thinking right now?

I think that they're thinking that the House and the Senate are on slim majorities, going to have to make some compromises here. But I do think that there are some Republicans that will vote with Democrats on certain things in both chambers. And I do think that the more people they take out of the House, the better chances that Democrats have to take over the majority later on in the session. But I do think Democrats are realizing that they're going to have to compromise. They're going to have to work together. But, you know, that's what's unique about Congress is this isn't the first time they're going to have to work together. So they'll find those opportunities. And then the rest of it will just kind of go by the wayside.

Carlos, before we go, is President-elect Trump wasting some political capital here, right, by pushing some of these nominees that are getting so much attention and attention not in the best way? Without a doubt, Tom. Look, even someone as powerful as Donald Trump, who completely owns the Republican Party now, he has limited political capital. And by putting senators, members of Congress, in difficult positions, you start spending that capital. So with each time, there's a little bit less. and they have a very ambitious agenda.

They want to pass tax reform again. That is a very heavy lift. So Donald Trump is spending some political capital early. I think he has a lot. How much we'll see soon. Megan and Carlis, so great to have you guys here on Top Story. We appreciate this great discussion. I do want to turn to the weather we've been following all week,

and those fires, they continue to burn across the northeast. It's a story we've been following all week. The Jennings Creek Wildfire on the New York, New Jersey border still raging. The fire now 75% contained on the fire now 75% contained on the New Jersey side, but dry conditions making that firefight very difficult. And tropical storm Sarah, nearing the Honduras coast, lots of developments there. Florida expected to feel the system's effects maybe by next week. Tracking it all, you know our man is here.

NBC News meteorologist Bill Carrion's. Bill, good to see you. Let's start with those wildfires. Yeah, no good news. The next three days are going to be very dangerous. We're going to have low relative humidity. The winds are going to be up, and there's no rain throughout at least the next five, maybe six days. So you can see where the fires are located, winds tomorrow afternoon, in the 20 to 30 mile per hour range with the low relative humidity.

So for that reason, red flag warnings were up all the way through central Vermont and New Hampshire and all the way back down through southern New England. 42 million people included in that time will have a lot more of those small brush fires. And the firefighters are getting tired. They're just fighting these things one after another. Yeah, and then Bill, I want to ask you about Sarah. What are the latest developments there? Yeah, so the biggest thing with Sarah is that it's going to be close to the Honduras coastline.

And that means a weaker storm. So the fears that long term into next week for Florida have really diminished. But for our friends down in Honduras, this is a nightmare scenario. A slow-moving tropical storm can dump feet of rain. And that's the forecast over the next three to four days. Then it may just dissipate here over the Yucatan. And even if it does survive the Yucatan in the Gulf, conditions are not going to be favorable for it to redevelop and get stronger as it heads to Florida. So, you know, Honduras, we'll be showing you pictures over the next couple of days.

It's very life-threatening mudslides just about as bad. as bad as it can get with two to three feet of rain. And these spaghetti lines do look scary, Tommy. Normally, if we're at the peak of the season, we'd be like, oh, no, this is going to go through the Gulf and the Florida. But the water temperatures have cooled off, upper level winds are not favorable. Right now it looks like just some rain heading for Florida, probably Wednesday next week, but nothing that's going to cause anyone to change their plans or cause any damage.

Okay, we'll be thinking about all those folks, though, in Honduras and in Central America. Okay, Bill, we thank you for that. Still ahead tonight, trapped under the rubble. Rescuers in Kentucky, racing to save a construction worker trapped, who fell down a 12-foot hole, on a demolition site, why officials say it will be a slow and long process. Plus, the FBI raiding the home of Polymarket CEO, why his lawyers claimed the raid was connected to the betting website correctly predicting the presidential election. And satire publication, The Onion, now the owners of Alex Jones' conspiracy theory website

Info Wars, what they plan on doing with the site. Stay with us. Back down with the FBI raid at the home of a man who says his company predicted the outcome of the 2024 election. Shane Copeland, the CEO of the online betty site, Polly Market, says the raid is a form of retaliation from the Biden administration. But the company, which could only legally take bets from outside of the U.S., has come under federal scrutiny in the past. NBC's Valerie Castro has this one. While poll after poll showed the presidential election in a dead heat... Look, this is our running average of the polling averages in the battlegrounds, States, they're all close. In the world of online prediction betting, a different picture emerged.

Crypto gambling site Polly Market showing that a majority of users thought Donald Trump would win in the final weeks of the campaign. Supporters including billionaire Elon Musk citing those numbers saying they were more accurate than polls. Either too early to call or too close to call. On election night, as our NBC News decision desk carefully analyzed the vote and was hours away from projecting Trump as the winner, Pauley Market declaring on X, the profit. has been fulfilled. Shane Copland, the 26-year-old CEO of Polly Market, taking a victory lap on CNBC's squawk box.

The thing that is undeniable was the night of the election, Polly Market was the first destination to basically convey that Trump had won. And it was a good two, three hours ahead of media. In a stunning turn, that CEO coming face-to-face with federal agents as they raided his New York City apartment Wednesday morning, seizing a cell phone and other electronics, according to a source familiar with the matter. Copland, who was not arrested or charged, joking on X after the raid, new phone, who dis? A source tells NBC News it is not clear if Copland or Pauly Market is under investigation.

Betting on elections was made legal in the U.S. for the first time in nearly a century this year, but only in markets regulated by the federal government, which means Polly Market is only legal for users outside the U.S. So Polly Market had a deal with the CFTC, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, which regulates all betting platforms, that they were not allowed to have U.S. users on their site because they were not officially and properly registered with the agency. But Coplin, blaming the Biden administration for the raid, writing, it's discouraging that the current administration would seek a last-ditch effort to go after companies they deem to be associated with political opponents. The people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones who do. Then posting this video writing, Polymarket called it, you called it, in the face of adversity we build. It becomes this really digestible mass market concept that even now we're just starting to begin to see the potential of. Earlier this year, Polymarket faced scrutiny over single betters placing huge bets.

One anonymous user in France, known as the whale, betting $30 million. A lot of the critique was, you know, are people trying to manipulate the market? Right. Could one or two big whales, you know, do something. There was obviously you did your own investigation into this. Right, right. France, apparently. Yes.

That whale's final takeaway, an estimated more than 80 million in profits spread out across several accounts, according to the blockchain analysis firm, chain analysis. A polymarket spokesperson telling CNBC in a statement, The Whale is a French national with, quote, extensive trading experience and a financial services background. All right, Valerie, Castro joins us now in studio. So Valerie, explain to our viewers how exactly this app works, right? Because they have a deal. Like, you have to be in another country to sort of use the app, but people might have a work around here?

Yes, and if that is found to be the case, our legal expert says, Polly Market could be held liable if U.S. users have found a way to circumvent that security. they might be hiding or blocking or encrypting their location online to be able to access this site here in the U.S. Essentially changing the location so they can then access the site even though they're in the U.S. Gotcha. All right, Valerie Castro for us, Valerie, we appreciate that.

When we come back, the search underway for the suspect linked to a string of ballot box fires. The new surveillance video is showing the moment one ballot box was set on fire. Officials hoping it leads them to an arrest. We'll be right back. All right, we are back now with Top Stories News Feed. We begin with the race to rescue a worker in Kentucky.

The man trapped for hours after he fell nearly 12 feet into a void space at a demolition site in Louisville earlier this morning. It's believed he's pinned by debris, that according to officials. And the man is breathing and communicating with rescuers, but the process to save him will be slow to avoid shifting debris. This is a separate incident from the factory explosion that killed two in Louisville that we reported on earlier this. week. An update tonight on the deadly E. coli outbreak tied to McDonald's quarter pounders. The CDC now reporting at least 104 people have been sickened with, have been sickened with 34 hospitalized and one dead. As we've reported, the FDA says the likely source of outbreak was sliced onion supplied by Taylor Farms. Health officials add that there is no longer a food safety concern.

McDonald's resumed selling quarter pounders in the states where they were pulled with a different onion supplier. Okay, the FBI offering a reward of up to 25. $5,000 for information leading to the suspect behind ballot box fires in the Pacific Northwest. Newly released surveillance video shows a car pulling up to a ballot box in the Portland area and throwing something inside. Seconds later, the box begins smoking before an explosion is set off. Devices were placed inside ballot boxes in Portland, Oregon, and Vancouver. Hundreds of ballots were destroyed. Authorities say they're looking for a dark-colored Volvo S-60 sedan, likely from 2003 or 2004, driven by the mail.

suspect. And a satirical news company, The Onion, has purchased Alex Jones's Info Wars in a bankruptcy auction. This is not a joke. The Onion gaining control of Jones's free speech media, the far right conspiracy-minded website Info Wars, was shut down less than two hours after the sale. It will reportedly be replaced with a website featuring internet humor. Funds from the sale will go towards the damages Jones owes after he was found guilty of defaming the families of Sandy Hook victims. Okay, now to the Americas, and the latest out of Haiti. More residents fleeing their homes as gangs expand their control in the nation's capital. But it comes as the FAA banned flights to Haiti for 30 days after a series of planes were struck by gunfire.

The turmoil now threatening civilians who are reliant on non-profits aid from abroad. NBC's Marissa Para has more. Tonight in Port-au-Prince, masses of Haitians are fleeing to safety. seen frantically packing their lives into cars, escaping what had once been considered one of the few areas in the capitals safe from gang violence until now. Nonprofits like Agape Haiti are left unable to fly aid in. There's a massive concern. We've got 20,000 pounds of supplies sitting on the floor that need to move. It goes from here.

It was days ago when a Spirit Airlines plane was struck by bullets seven times as it was preparing to land in Port-Prince Monday. instead diverting to the Dominican Republic, leaving one flight attendant hurt and the dozens others on board terrified. The FAA the next day pausing all civil U.S. flights to Haiti for a month, while Haiti's capital city weather is a week of violence amid political instability. It's been three years since Haitian President Jovanel Moise was assassinated, and almost seven months since Ariel Henri resigned as Prime Minister, leaving behind a vacuum of power. Gangs have been violently fighting for control ever since.

The Transitional Council fired the interim Prime Minister Sunday. And on Monday, as Alex Didier Filami was being sworn in as the new Prime Minister, the State Department said gang-led efforts that erupted that day led to violent disruptions to airports, seaports and roads. Everyone is very scared. Everyone is very concerned. And I think everyone is tired of the situation. Christoph Gurney from Doctors Without Borders says an ambulance of theirs was ambushed on Monday.

The charity says vigilantes violently attacked the ambulance as three young people were being rushed to the hospital for gunshot wounds. Two of them instead executed just outside the hospital waiting to treat them with volunteers and workers nearby. They are traumatized, shocked. It's really the first time like MSF staff is directly assault. aggressed by anyone in IT and this is very shocking for us. The aftermath of the violence left Port-au-Prince paralyzed, offices, schools, closed, and with one in two Haitians facing acute hunger, any pause and aid to the country could be devastating. If we really have to stop or to stand by our activity, it will be a huge disaster for the civilians here.

Haiti hasn't seen a presidential election in years. The embattled transitional council was created earlier this year to restore democracy, but trust in the council is razor thin as violence wears on in Haiti. The UN reports close to 3,700 people have been killed from the violence since January. Tom. We thank Marissa Parra for that report, and we're thinking about all the people there suffering in Haiti. Coming up, an explosive report about the lead-up to the October 7th attack in Israel. According to the New York Times, Israeli officials are investigating

where the Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's inner circle of AIDS forged his phone transcripts from the day of the Hamas terror attack. Why, when we come back? We are back now with a report in the New York Times on an investigation of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's inner circle in the response to the Hamas terrorist attack. According to the paper, investigators are assessing if Netanyahu's AIDS forged October 7 phone records, leaked documents, and intimidated

military officer. The Times spoke to multiple officials on the condition of anonymity because they were barred from speaking publicly about this matter. Their reporting says on the morning that Hamas raided Israel last year, a top Israeli general called his prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, to tell him that hundreds of militants appeared to be preparing to invade. Now, aides to the prime minister are under investigation for altering details about that call in the official record of Mr. Netanyahu's activities that day, according to four officials briefed on the investigation. Investigators are also looking into an alleged instance of blackmail, saying there are fears that an aide to Mr. Netanyahu intimidated a military officer who controlled

access to those phone records we were talking about, that according to four officials briefed on the incident. The officer was filmed on a security camera installed in the prime minister's headquarters committing an act that could cause him personal embarrassment. The official said, and officials say a top aide threatened to use that video against that military officer. The third aspect of all of this, Netanyahu's aides are also accused of secretly giving a sensitive document to a foreign news outlet, according to six officials briefed on the case. The reported investigation will question what Netanyahu knew about the October 7th attacks and when exactly he knew it, which could play a key role in his political future. We should note that NBC News has not been

able to independently confirm the New York Times. For more on this, though, I'm joined by NBC News correspondent Danielle Hamamjin. Danielle, the New York Times is reporting, right, that Netanyahu himself is not under investigation, but how is the prime minister's office responding to what seems like a damaging story tonight? Yes, it certainly is, and the prime minister's office will likely call this a witch hunt like it has on previous and recent accusations of wrongdoing. As you mentioned, he's not under investigation. Officials in his office are for trying to bolster his reputation throughout this war

by allegedly doing a number of things. leaking classified military documents, altering official transcripts, intimidating people who had access to those transcripts. Now, take a step back for a moment prior to October 7th, and there was a time when Benjamin Netanyahu was known as Mr. Security. People didn't necessarily like Netanyahu the man, but they liked Netanyahu the politician because he was the man who was going to keep them safe. October 7th happened, and it was the biggest failure in the Israeli security system. establishment. And Netanyahu's poll numbers sank in the weeks following October 7th. More than a year later, Tom, his poll numbers are back up. Yeah, so I want to ask you about that, right? Because I know so much of sort of the critical

criticism, I should say, of Netanyahu is about the hostages and getting them back and where the war goes from here. With stories like this, either piling up or coming out, how does this affect his viability as prime minister? Well, listen, the family members of the hostages certainly have said that he is beholden to his right-wing coalition ministers, and they have accused him of prioritizing his own political survival over the survival of the hostages and their rescue. And as you mentioned earlier, the New York Times piece points out that what Benjamin and who knew when when he found out might determine his future.

And I have to tell you, when I read this piece, one person came to mind, and that is Ronnie Eschel. She was a female soldier in one of the guard towers. And I spoke to her parents last year. And they told me that for months and months, Ronnie and her female colleagues alerted or tried to alert their superiors that something was going on. They saw Hamas fighters trained. They saw unusual activity. They reported it to. their superiors and nothing happened. She, along with so many others, was killed that day. Danielle, I'm Amgen, reporting from Lebanon tonight. Danielle, we thank you for your reporting and being tonight here on Top Story. Okay, now at Top Stories, Global Watch and a check of what

else is happening around the world. We start with an explosion outside of Brazil's Supreme Court building. Authorities say a 59-year-old man was attempting to get inside the building in its capital, Brasilia, but was stopped by a guard. Then he started to throw explosives at the building and one near himself. The suspect died, but no one else was hurt. A court justice blaming far-right extremism for the attack, which is now being investigated as terrorism. South Africa's government says it will not help hundreds of illegal miners inside of a closed mine. Authorities have cut off the entrances used to transport critical supplies, including food and water underground. The miners are now unable to obtain basic necessities. Authorities are trying to force

the miners to return to the surface and surrender. Police say no officer or government official will be sent in to the mind to assist. All right. And Australia's Parliament proposing a ban for children 16 and under on certain social media platforms. Under this new law, children under the age limit would not be allowed on X, Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok. Supporters of the bill say the platform affects young people's mental health.

Critics say removing children from social channels removes incentives for safer online communities. Okay, when we come back, ready for fight night? Boxing legend Mike Tyson set to face off against, turn boxer, Jake Paul, in about 24 hours. The fight delayed for months over Tyson's health. Will Iron Mike be able to hold his own against a man more than half his age? How he looked during opening workouts.

That's next. Finally tonight, it's the boxing match fans have been waiting so long for. Iron Mike Tyson going up against the polarizing social media star Jake Paul, who's also a professional boxer. The two trading words at a press conference, as millions gear up to watch a fight like no other. Our Steve Patterson has all the details. Jake Paul, Mike Tyson. It's expected to be the showdown of the season. This is no ordinary fight.

Jake Paul, a YouTuber turned pro fighter, squaring off against none other than boxing legend Mike Tyson, who's more than twice his age. The fight being held at Arlington's massive AT&T Stadium and will stream. exclusively on Netflix. I want to fight this young motherfucker. Mike is the greatest heavyweight of all time, in my opinion. But it's my time. The event originally scheduled for July, but postponed after Tyson was hospitalized for a stomach ulcer.

The 58-year-old forced to take a break from training and said in a recent documentary, he lost 26 pounds while recovering. But during an open workout, Tyson proving he was. Tyson proving he's still iron Mike and pressing the crowd inside the ring. Paul there, too, leaning into his new boxing persona as El Gairo, or Rooster. It's going to be a short night for Mike. And taunting Tyson through media events, wearing a diamond-encrusted ear cover, a nod to Tyson's infamous fight against Evander Holyfield.

I'm not getting my shit off on Friday night. Meanwhile, Tyson saying few words, but confident his age or health won't be an issue. I am not going to lose. Did you hear what I said? This would be his first professional fight in 20 years. Yeah, he's looking pretty fit for a guy in his 50s. We'll see if he, you know, has the raw power to hold his own here against this much younger guy. The fight also a big play for Netflix, which hopes to draw in more viewers and ad revenue for live boxing and wrestling events. Netflix is getting more and more into sports content.

You know, they've got two NFL games coming up on Christmas Day this year. So they're looking to see how their audience reacts to live events. Now, viewers on the edge of their seats to see if Paul will upset a boxing titan. I'm the best, you know, I mean, I sometimes I don't want to believe in myself, but it's the truth. Or end up like others who've tangled with Tyson. All right, Steve Patterson joins us now from Los Angeles. So, Steve, is this a professional fight? know at one point, even Tyson was calling it an exhibition, but he quickly sort of corrected

himself. So what's the deal? Tom, make no mistake. This is a sanctioned professional boxing match, period. Tyson is putting his official all-time 50 wins, six losses record on the line 20 years after his last professional match. It's part of the reason why they're in Texas, because it's hard to find a state that will actually sanction a 58-year-old man in about with a 31-year-old age. difference. And by the way, the rules reflect that. 14 ounce gloves instead of the normal 10 for more padding in a fight with eight, two-minute rounds instead of 12, three-minute rounds. So age is a huge consideration. But it's also Iron Mike Tyson. I don't know about you, but I'm always

worried about the other guy. Yeah, no, I hear you. And so I was going to ask you, who's your money on? My money's on Iron Mike. Look, I don't care about the age difference. If you've ever seen Mike Tyson fight, you know he has it in him. And I'm afraid for Jake Paul. Yeah, I agree with you. I'm right there with you. Regardless of age, Iron Mike is a mean dude. Okay, Steve Patterson, good to see you.

We thank you for that story. We thank you for watching Top Story. I'm Tom Yamous in New York. Stay right there. More news on the way.