Top Story with Tom Llamas - Tuesday, February 11, 2025

Episode Date: February 12, 2025

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

Tonight, tech billionaire Elon Musk in the Oval Office defending his role in the new administration as an appeals court just rejected the president and Musk's bid to reinstate that funding freeze. President Trump giving Musk the floor to explain the Doge blueprint and his efforts to overhaul the federal government. The admission for Musk over potential for mistakes as his team claims billions of taxpayer dollars have gone to waste without offering any proof. Also, tonight, American teacher Mark Fogle released from Russia after being wrongfully detained. Marine veteran Paul Whelan, who was just freed months ago after spending six years in a Russian prison, joins top story tonight. His relentless push to get Mark out and what life has been like since his return to the U.S. South Carolina rep Nancy Mace unleashing explosive allegations on the house floor, accusing her ex-fiance and several others of assault and rape.

We speak with the Attorney General she claims deliberately delayed investigation into the allegations. Confronting hate, neo-Nazis demonstrating, holding guns and yelling out racial slurs on the border of a historically black community, how residents were able to drive them out. Growing outrage over video showing a parent aggressively shoving two teenage hockey referees to the ice. The moments leading up to the heated moment and the charges that dad could face. And the winter slam racing towards the East Coast with two more storms right behind it. White out conditions blinding drivers in Kentucky. Freezing rain, crippling power lines are nation's capital, blanketed in snow. Plus breaking tonight, the astronauts stuck in space might return back to Earth sooner than expected.

We'll explain. Top story starts right now. And good evening. Tonight we start with the world's richest space. man side by side with the president defending his efforts to slash government spending. This says a federal appeals court refuses the Trump administration's request to restore his spending freeze. Tech billionaire Elon Musk, his son X right by his side, taking questions for the first time about Doge and his actions shaking up our nation's institutions.

It comes as President Trump orders all agencies to comply with Doge to shrink the federal workforce. Musk claiming without evidence that his team discovered billions of dollars in fraud while also admitting that he won't always get it right. Nobody's going to bat a thousand. I mean, any, you know, we will make mistakes, but we'll act quickly to correct any mistakes. Democrats have long questioned Musk's potential conflicts of interest. One reporter pressing him on those concerns this evening. I need just have to follow up to the Pentagon contracts. If you have received billions of dollars in contracts from the Pentagon, and the president's directing you to look into the Department

of Defense. Is that a conflict of interest? Are going to do at the president's request. Does that present a conflict of interest for you? No, because you'd have to look at the individual contract and say, first of all, I'm not the one filing the contract. It's people at SpaceX or someone who will be putting for the contract. Take a look at this.

Just some of Musk's key businesses, including SpaceX, Tesla, and X have all come under some sort of investigation, even lawsuits from a number of government. agencies, and not all reporters were allowed inside the Oval Office today. The executive editor of the Associated Press, the AP, writing, Today we were informed by the White House that if AP did not align its editorial standards with President Donald Trump's executive order renaming the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America, AP would be barred from accessing an event in the Oval Office. This afternoon, AP's reporter was blocked from attending an executive order signing.

NBC News Senior White House Correspondent Gabe Gutierrez covering it all tonight from the White House. Tonight, tech titan Elon Musk with his young son in the Oval Office. If we don't do something about this deficit, the country's going bankrupt. Defending his aggressive push to downsize the federal government. If you have rule of the bureaucrat, if the bureaucracy is in charge, then what meaning does democracy actually have? But the leader of President Trump's Department of Government Efficiency, or Doge, The wealthiest man in the world whose businesses have massive federal contracts was also pressed about potential conflicts of interest. All of our actions are fully public. I fully expect to be scrutinized and get a daily proctology exam, basically.

Might as well just camp out there. So it's not like I think I can get away with something. Following criticism from Musk, the Department of Homeland Security today firing several FEMA workers, accusing them of circumventing leadership by using taxpayer money to pay for New York City hotels for migrants. The public is saying, why are we paying all this money? This is for years this has gone on. But Musk was pressed about what Democrats call a hostile takeover of government. You couldn't ask for a stronger mandate. The people voted for major government reform, and that's what people are going to get. Democrats also argue a constitutional showdown may be brewing as the Trump administration faces mounting legal challenges over its cost-cutting moves.

Public employees who serve this country well, you should be respected, not rejected. Over the past week, judges have temporarily hit the brakes on President Trump's freezing of some federal spending, which was challenged by several blue states and offering federal workers buyouts, opposed by some unions. And now a judge who's an activist judge wants to try and stop us from doing this. Why would they want to do that? campaigned on this. I campaigned on the fact that I said government is corrupt. Today, Vice President J.D. Vance in Paris, after suggesting judges aren't allowed to control the president's legitimate power, setting up a new battle over presidential authority.

The issue here isn't the courts trying to control the president. It's the president trying to control the law. I agree wholeheartedly with Vice President J.D. Vance. What Doge is doing is making sure that your taxpayer dollars, all of us, are spent in the way that they're intended to be spent. President Trump tonight. Maybe we have to look at the judges. I think it's a very serious violation. Saying he'll follow court rulings. I always abide by the courts, and then I'll have to appeal it.

All right, Gabe Gutierrez joins us from the White House. Let's pick up right there from a snowy evening in D.C. Gabe, he was talking about appealing, and we've just learned that another court has ruled against the Trump administration's federal funding freeze. Walk our viewers through what we know. Yeah, Tom, it may be an incremental step in this legal saga. But today, a federal appeals court rejected the Trump administration's bid to pause a lower court's order that temporarily halted a massive freeze in federal funding. Now, you remember that yesterday, that judge in Rhode Island blocked the funding freeze for now. And it's ruling today, a three-judge panel for the first U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals wrote that the defendants do not cite any authority in support of their administrative state requests.

So this legal battle will continue, Tom. Yeah, I know there's a lot of news coming out of the White House tonight. I want you also to get us updated on the Trump administration negotiating the release of American Mark Fogel from Russia. We understand he's on his way to the White House now. Yeah, Tom, that broke this afternoon. Fogel was flying back tonight on a private plane of Trump's special envoy, Steve Whitkoff, who led the negotiations for Fogger's release in Moscow. Now, the Pennsylvania native was sentenced to 14 years in prison for,

possession of cannabis, which his family says was to treat back pain. The U.S. has considered him wrongfully detained, and President Trump said today that the U.S. gave Russia not much in return for Fogger's release. Meanwhile, Fulg's family is saying tonight that they are beyond grateful for his release, Tom. Yeah, still a lot of questions there. Gabe, we thank you for that. And because of those questions, as Gabe just reported there, Mark Fogel tonight, becoming the first prisoner released by Russia during the Trump administration. It comes after several prisoner swaps in recent years with that country. WNBA star Brittany Griner was freed from Russian custody in December of 2022. And just last August, another group was freed, including Wall Street Journal

reporter Evan Gerskovich. And Paul Wheelan, a U.S. Marine veteran who was detained in 2018 while attending a friend's wedding, he was sentenced to 16 years in a penal colony and espionage charges that the U.S. denied. He was freed after nearly six years in captivity. Tonight, Paul Wheelan joins Top Story Live in our spotlight. interview. Paul, it is a pleasure to have you here. We thank you for giving us some of your time tonight. Talk to us about what this day is going to be like right now for someone you also fought to get out of a Russian prison. Yeah, thanks for having me. It'll be a surreal moment for him coming from a third world country back to our first world country. All the, you know,

the pleasures, the things that we take for granted will be at his back and call. He's going to have food. He'll be, you know, coming back malnourished because the food in these labor camps is really bad. He'll need medical care, dental care, things like that. But he will enjoy being free. I think, you know, with his friends and family, he'll be just, you know, loving life. Yeah. Can you give us a few more details right on what it's like to be detained in Russia? You mentioned even dental care, the food. I mean, what are some of the conditions that that mark has been going through over these past three years? Well, the Russians say that the poor treatment is part of the punishment.

The camps are labor camps. They're really bad. You know, just the facilities are bad. They're old. The one I was in was a prisoner war camp in World War II. You know, you have cold water. It's very irony. Everything is just in bad condition. And you're putting up with a lot of corruption from the prisoners, from the prison administration, as well as the government.

You know, Mark was lucky that he had lived in Russia for nine years, so he speaks Russian, he understands the culture. But it's difficult, and it's hard when you're there, knowing that other people are being traded and that the U.S. government's doing things, and you're being left behind. So a lot of us worked to get him back. And if you remember, about five months ago,

I stood on the steps of the U.S. Capitol with Congressman Haley Stevens, and we were speaking to some of your journalist colleagues. And I was asked a question about Mark, and I said, you know, we are coming for him. He just needs to be patient. Well, six months later, he's coming home. And that's because there's a bipartisan effort on the Hill, as well as people in the NSA and the State Department, to get Americans home, especially when they are wrongfully detained.

You know, you kind of opened the door there, and so I want to ask you about this. Mark was left out of multiple prisoner swaps before his release. you were also left out of two exchanges and called it a, quote, serious betrayal at the time. What was it like when people like Brittany Griner got out before you did? And do you hold any resentment

that other people got out earlier? You know, I don't. I fully understand the situation now. Russia was dangling things in front of the Biden administration and they were taking what they could get. Obviously, the FSB colonel, the assassin, was in Germany. And the Russians kept change the goalposts to wanting different things.

So for me, they wanted the assassin, and that's why they ended up taking Evan also to kind of sweeten that deal. For Trevor Reed and Brittany, they wanted other things. It was disheartening to be left behind. But, you know, when Brittany got home, she did a lot to help me. Trevor, the same thing, speaking out on my behalf.

So, you know, I give those two some credit for helping. But it is demoralizing when, you know, especially, you know, the four and five year mark goes by, you're still sitting in prison, and nobody's, you know, seeming to do anything. Luckily, for me, Secretary Blinken and Ambassador Carstons from the State Department were doing a lot. They worked with our European allies to put together a huge trade and got Evan, myself, and Alsu, Kermasheva, another reporter, back from Russia. I interviewed Ambassador Carstons, and he talked to me about the moment that he had to call you

when Griner was released. Do you remember that phone call? I'm sure you could never forget it. What do you remember about that? Because that had to be an incredibly tough conversation. You know, I took the phone from the prison warden. I was in his office. I had five FSB officers standing around me. There were a couple of prison officers standing around.

And I took the phone, and the person on the phone said it was the U.S. Embassy, you know, please hold for the White House. And they transferred the call to the White House, and I spoke to a person I'd never met, just somebody I knew from phone calls and whatnot. And, you know, I was told that there was bad news, that Brittany was going home and I was staying. And, you know, we had a frank discussion about what that meant and the fact that the U.S. had nothing else to trade with Russia for my release, you know, with Victor Boote going home. So that it was an interesting call. I think it was professional on both sides.

But, you know, my message was clear to the White House that, you know, it was time for me to come home. And I give them credit. It did take them another year and a half, but they did get me home. Did Russia play mind games with you saying, oh, you're going to be released, you're not going to be released? I mean, was there some of that at play as well? Oh, yeah. There was a lot of psychological torture, if you will. You know, they weren't stupid enough to hurt me physically, but every night they would come and wake me up every two hours to check to make sure that I hadn't escaped. So, you know, for the last four years, I never slept more than two hours.

And this is something that they do to harass people, but they would tell me that I was going home or I wasn't going home or they would tell me about things. that were happening in the news, the FSB would come to visit. And, you know, although we had, you know, a professional relationship, I could tell that they were trying to get under my skin with, you know, the political situation. I also had means of communication home. We had burner phones and whatnot. So I was speaking to Ambassador Carstons and Secretary Blankin as well as journalists. And I knew what was happening, you know, to some extent on our end, which really helped.

But, yeah, psychologically, I feel sorry for, for more. because he's been there for three and a half years putting up with this nonsense. And then, you know, Russia has used Americans as bargaining chips over the last decade, right? And now they seem to be running out of high-profile detainees. Should Americans be worried they'll be charged with false crimes if they visit Russia?

Well, if you go to Russia, you may not come back. So my advice to U.S. citizens and the advice of the State Department is don't go to Russia, stay home. I mean, go to Canada. It's a lot safer. Russia is just not a place for Americans to go. for Americans to go. You know, 1986 was the last time before my arrest that the Russians had done this. But now they're doing it, you know, every year they're grabbing Americans.

I think there are 20 Americans in prison in Russia. Some had been living there. Others are tourists. You know, there was Andre Kachorian. He was going from the U.S. to Armenia to visit family. He was just transiting through the Moscow airport and the FSB arrested him on a made-up charge. You know, it's ridiculous, but he's there, and he's waiting for help from the U.S. government to come home. Paul Whelan, we thank you for your time tonight.

We thank you for being here on Top Story. Thank you very much. I appreciate it. Next tonight, we're going to bring it back here at home in that shocking moment on the floor of the House of Representatives. South Carolina Representative Nancy Mace publicly accusing her ex-fiance and three other men of serious crimes, including rape and sexual abuse. Mace also accusing South Carolina's attorney general of failing to prosecute the men. MBC's Ryan Noble spoke to that AG and has more from the Capitol. South Carolina Congresswoman Nancy Mace taking to the House floor to publicly accuse four men, including her ex-fiance, of what she described as heinous crimes against women, including herself.

I'm going scorched earth. So let the bridges I burn this evening light our way forward. Mace, without specific evidence, spent close to an hour. detailing allegations, including rape, and filming women and young girls without their consent. She accused her ex-fiance, Patrick Bryant, of being at the center of the scheme, which she says she uncovered on his phone. I found myself face to face with the darkest corners of humanity. Bryant, who Mace was engaged to until 2023, vehemently denied her claims. I categorically deny these allegations.

I take this matter seriously. cooperate fully with any necessary legal processes to clear my name. The other men named by Mace in the speech also forcefully denied the allegations and called them untrue. Mace also attacked South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson. There were deliberate delays in an investigation in what I turned over. Wilson, who could be a future political rival of Mace's and the South Carolina governor's race, said the Congresswoman has her facts wrong. She's never voiced any concerns about her case. And had she raised any concerns, I would have been completely shocked because I was unaware that she had a case being investigated. By giving her speech on the House floor, Mace has

wide latitude under the Constitution's speech and debate clause, which protects members' comments from lawsuits. But those comments need to be part of legitimate legislative activity. Mace argued the allegations were part of her rationale for introducing bills related to the protection of women. A source with direct knowledge tells NBC News she consulted with a lawyer to make sure the speech was constitutionally protected. Ryan Nobles joins us tonight from Capitol Hill. So, Ryan, are these been charged with any crimes related to this? And what else did the Attorney General tell you in his interview? So the answer to that is no, Tom. There have been no charges filed, but we have confirmed

with the South Carolina law enforcement division that her ex-fiancee is under an active investigation. But they say that investigation is ongoing. And as we pointed out before, no charges have been filed. As for the Attorney General, he was very clear that if there is something that is, if there is merit behind these claims that she is making and those charges are brought to his office, he will investigate them. But he makes the point that it's not his responsibility to be involved at this stage of an investigation. It would be up to law enforcement to investigate these claims. And then there's a real possibility that if a law enforcement entity finds enough credible evidence to move forward with a charge, that it wouldn't come to the Attorney General.

it would come to a local prosecutor. All right. Ryan Nobles is there with a very big interview as well. Ryan, we thank you for that. For more on the explosive allegations by South Carolina Representative Mace, I want to bring in Meg Kinnard. She's a national politics reporter for the Associated Press and has covered South Carolina politics extensively. Meg, it's great to see you again here on Top Story.

I want to ask you first. I mean, this was so explosive. How is this news from Washington playing out with Mace's constituents in South Carolina? Hey, it's great to be back with you. to say that there are a lot of South Carolinians right now who either woke up today after learning about what happened overnight or who watched this live and were very surprised by what they heard. Now, Nancy Mace has often spoken dating back to 2019 about some previous

sexual assault that she said she experienced as a teenager. And so she's been kind of open about that part of her life and speaking very personally. So it's not that part that's surprising. But it is seeing that U.S. House floor used in this manner to see a member of Congress not giving a one-minute speech, which we're used to seeing, but going on for nearly an hour to talk about personal experiences and also to make these allegations against her ex-fiance and others. That is very surprising. And so for South Carolinians who may be represented currently by Nancy Mace or who

may be those voters that she may be trying to reach out to if she runs for governor, they're kind of getting a new side of learning exactly who she is as a person and seeing her use this place of politics to talk about these personal issues. Are people asking questions about the men who have been accused and whether they're going to be investigated or not? I think that there's probably some conversation happening about that, but it's still kind of the shock, really, of seeing all of this unfolding and, you know, kind of wondering where the investigation is maybe going, that comes next. Yeah, the strange part, if that's even the right word, is that there is talk about Mace possibly running for governor, correct? Somebody she might be running against would be the Attorney General, who we just heard from in Ryan's piece there. She is accusing the Attorney General of really not looking into this. Among the leading candidates right here, the state's Attorney General Alan Wilson is currently leading, right?

Along with the state's current lieutenant governor, Pam Evitt, how would this play out in the race, do you think? Let's keep in mind that there's more than a year until actual filing happens in this contest. It doesn't even occur until 2026. So there's a lot of runway left, but you're right that Alan Wilson is a well-known politician in South Carolina, son obviously of Congressman Joe Wilson, and in his fourth term currently as State Attorney General. So he's well-known, Lieutenant Governor, and there are others, some state lawmakers who are potentially thinking about jumping into a GOP primary. So with politics underneath everything that's happening here, that is important context for people, who are thinking about how they feel about what Nancy May said on the House floor and then

spinning forward to that GOP primary, which will be the first time that South Carolina has had an open primary in the governor's race in quite a long time since Nikki Haley was first elected back in 2010. So it's going to be a very active race regardless, but at this very early moment, there are already plenty of people interested, including Nancy Mace. Yeah, Meg Kinnart, I'm sure we're going to check in with you as that race develops and as these allegations grow as well. We thank you for being here tonight. We want to turn out of that high-stakes meeting at the White House between President Trump and Jordan's King Abdullah, it happened earlier today, where the president doubled down on his controversial plan for the U.S. to take over Gaza. NBC's Andrew Mitchell has the late details.

Jordan's King Abdullah at the White House. After President Trump threatened to cut off aid to Jordan if the king doesn't take in Palestinians from Gaza, which Jordan has opposed. King Abdullah offering instead to take in thousands of sick children from Gaza. I think one of the things that we can do right away is take 2,000 children that are either cancer children or in a very ill state to Jordan as quickly as possible. That's really a beautiful gesture. That's really good. And we appreciate it. The president also doubling down on his plan to own Gaza and rebuild it. We're not going to buy anything. We're going to have it. We're going to keep it. And we're going to make sure that there's going to be peace. And there's not going to be any problem. I can tell you about real estate. They're going to be in love with it.

King Abdullah is saying Egypt will present a plan in response to the presidents, who then suggested he won't withhold aid to either country. I don't have to threaten with money. We do. We contribute a lot of money to Jordan and to Egypt, by the way, a lot to both. But I don't have to threaten that. I don't think, I think we're above that. Meanwhile, President Trump also doubling down on his threat to Hamas. After seeing how emaciated three Israeli hostages were when they were released last week. They look like Holocaust survivors.

The president repeated his demand that Hamas not just release a few hostages this week, but all of them by noon Saturday. They either have them out by Saturday at 12 o'clock or all bets are off. Israel's Prime Minister Netanyahu has now put his troops on alert along the Gaza border, saying if Hamas doesn't live up to their end of the hostage deal on Saturday, Israel will resume intensive combat operations. Tom? We thank you for that. A lot to discuss here. The refusal of Jordan and Egypt to accept Palestinian refugees is rooted in a complicated history. I want to give you a visual of the region to help you understand a little more. The Gaza Strip, you see it here. It's located on the Mediterranean Sea. It does share a border with Egypt and the Rafa crossing is the only Gaza border crossing not shared with Israel. Jordan, on the other side, shares a border with the West Bank. Now, Jordan has accepted Palestinian refugees since the 1948 war surrounding the creation of the state of Vietnam.

Israel. The country currently holds more than 2 million Palestinian refugees the most in the world, according to the UN. But since October 7th, both countries, which have peace treaties with Israel, have rejected the idea of accepting more Palestinian refugees, saying they support the creation of a Palestinian state and fear the permanent displacement of Gaza's population could make that impossible. After President Trump's suggestion Jordan and Egypt taken Palestinians, both countries, along with other Arab nations, releasing a joint statement rejecting any plans to move Palestinian saying, doing so, would, quote, threaten the region's stability, risk expanding the conflict in the region, and undermine prospects of peace and coexistence among

its people. For more on this conflict, NBC News special correspondent and former Tel Aviv Bureau Chief for NBC News, Martin Fletcher joins Top Story once again today. Martin, it's great to have you here. This is really complicated, right? And we want our viewers to understand what's happening here, because the president is sort of throwing out a lot of ideas, some which may not have. reality in others, which may. Why, if we can answer this question, why won't Jordan and Egypt take more Palestinian refugees? Well, that's a great simple question, and with a complicated answer. But the bottom line is that Jordan simply believes it's got too many Palestinian citizens. A large proportion of

Jordan is already Palestinian. Some say 50 percent of Jordan are Palestinians, right? That's right, a very high number. So if more Palestinians come, the monarchy fears that they will threaten the stability of the country. And for the same, a similar reason in Egypt, they both are the same reason. They don't want Palestinians from Gaza in their country for the same reason.

And they're both also afraid that Islamic militants could join the crowd coming into their country further destabilizing things. And President Trump, when he says, you know, things like, and I'm paraphrasing here, that he's going to take over Gaza

and they're going to move the Palestinians. I mean, what is the plan there? I mean, is that even possible? It seems impossible. Look, you've got two million Palestinians. in Gaza, where are they going to go? Actually, one important point is that actually 100,000 Palestinians from Gaza have already gone to Egypt.

They're the ones who could buy their way out. It costs $5,000 for an adult and $2,000 and $2,000 per child. So 100,000 Gazans have already gone to Egypt. They're the ones with money, obviously. They're ones left behind are the people who would then need to be somehow. persuaded or forced to leave. What did you think about President Trump? Yeah, what did you think about King Abdullah there side by side while President Trump is saying these things?

Well, the offer of accepting 2006 Palestinian children. Children, right. Yeah, I thought he was just trying to get on the good side of President Trump trying to say something positive. And it is something very positive, of course. By the way, sick children can also go from Gaza to Egypt. And they have been going to Israel. So it helps. But I thought it was more of a way to get on the positive side of President.

Trump rather than anything else. You've covered the region for decades. We see those images of parts of Gaza that are completely decimated. You see the tents, people now living in tents. What do you think happens there? Well, it's an extraordinary situation. You've got hundreds of thousands, even a million people going north of the line that Israel drew to those towns, which are devastated. So where are they going to live, they're going to be intense, what are they going to eat, what kind of food will they have?

The questions of what they will do is beyond below. And my question would be, let's ask those people. Has anybody asked them, what do you want? Do you want to leave Gaza? Would you accept to go somewhere else if any country could be persuaded to accept you? Or do you want to stay in that world of destruction? And, you know, there's no schools, there's almost no hospitals,

there's very little food, the situation the Palestinians will be in in Gaza is indescribable and inconceivable. What do they want to do? I would love to know. But have any of these Arab nations, Muslim nations, nations, Muslim nations, Iran, have they offered? They have not offered. And the opposite, they want them to stay in Gaza for the reason you mentioned earlier,

which is that if they leave, does that make it easier for Israel to take over Gaza? Will they be allowed to go back again, according to President Trump and the Israeli government? Not so clear. They'd ever be allowed to return. While I have you here, and I know we're running out of time, do you think this ceasefire deal is going to collapse, or do you think the threats are going to force Hamas to release more hostages? I think that it may well collapse this weekend, even though it's, you know, it's pretty much each side is maneuvering in order to pressure the other side. As you'd probably

remember, I have what my wife has one family member who is still a hostage. So obviously everybody's hoping they'll be, they'll be returned. But I don't know. It doesn't look very good, does it right now? Martin Fletcher. Always great to have you here, and we'll be thinking about your relative as well. Still ahead tonight confronting hate, the standoff in Ohio white supremacist wielding Nazi flags and yelling out racial slurs confronted by residents held a historically black community successfully forced them out. Plus the hockey dad's serious foul on the ice. Look at this. What led to this father violently shoving two teen referees onto the ice? And the serious health warning tonight, the cans of tuna you need to hear about being recall that several popular retailers will explain next. We're back now with a troubling story out of Ohio, where tonight a community is uniting

after confronting a group of white supremacists who wave swastika flags on a highway overpass. The confrontation happening on the outskirts of Lincoln Heights, a historically black community. NBC's Antonia Hilton has more, and a warning this report contains offensive images. A hateful demonstration unfolding on an overpass in. Cincinnati. As more than a dozen people gathered, donning all black and waving Nazi flags, weapons and yelling racial slurs. Community members quickly confronting the group. Traffic camera video showing the moment those demonstrators rush back into a U-Haul truck and leave. Social media video appearing to show the same moment from the perspective of the demonstrators.

The crowd that drove them away, burning the swastika flags left behind. Local police responded to the incident on Friday around 2 p.m. but made no arrests in a statement calling the gathering offensive but legal. The reason that I made the decision when I first encountered them that I was not making an arrest was because there was no law being violated. I'm sorry? They were open carrying. They were open carrying in accordance with Ohio's open carry. Reverend and community leader Julian Cook demanding answers. Were you surprised that no arrests were made? Absolutely.

We had questions about why there was no arrest made when there were clear violations of the law. For example, in the state of Ohio, it is illegal to ride as a passenger in the back of a cargo truck. We wanted to make sure had these individuals been checked for warrants, these signs that were hung on the bridge, that's government property, that's vandalism. The racist demonstration took place on the border of the historic black community of Lincoln Heights, The first black self-governing town to form above the Mason-Dixon line, America's dividing line between the north and south. To black residents, this location was no coincidence. It is very clear. There's no way around it. This was an act of violence. We must not push that under the rug. It is not by chance that this happened in this community at this time.

The Jewish Federation of Cincinnati saying in part, we will not be intimidated. We urge all citizens of Cincinnati to stand with us in rejecting hate and building a community where all people can live without fear or intimidation. Anger boiling over as residents reel from those blatant images and words of hate. It cannot be legal to stand in the middle of the street and stop my truck and call me that word. But remain determined, the reverend and dozens of other community members marching to the overpass to show that hate has no home here. We wanted to go to that spot to make it clear that we are resolute, that we are not afraid, that hate will not win here, that love will triumph.

Antonio Hilton joins us now. So, Antonio, we heard there in your report. No arrests were made. But what happens to this community? I mean, are they going to have to keep seeing these hateful protests right there in front of their face? They'll be living with this for some time, Tom. Look, what they've been told by law enforcement is that a full investigation is going to be completed. And what typically happens in these cases is officers are going to have to go out.

Find people who might have dash cam video who are driving by. Neighbors who have ring cameras who saw the U-Haul pass through, for example. That can take some time. They'll have to review all of that and see if any crimes were committed. But of course, part of the challenge here, right, is as days go by, the pain is very much still there. Trust can be lost, and that is what the pastor is worried about right now, Tom. All right. Antonio Hilton, we thank you for that report.

We went ahead to Seattle now in the moment that landed one hockey dad in police custody. The father arrested after walking onto the ice and pushing two teenage referees to the ground. NBC's Morgan Chesky has that troubling video and why the dad said he did it. Tonight, the father you see here facing assault charges for walking onto the ice in the middle of a youth hockey game and shoving 13 and 14-year-old referees to the ground in a violent outburst. In my 40-plus years of hockey, I've never seen anything as disgusting and repulsive as what this parent did on the ice. Seattle police say they're also looking at this angle of the incident, which shows the father walking onto the ice while play was stopped, 12-year-old players looking

on as he shoves the rats. The crowd gasping as the man walks away, while one ref holds his hip in pain. Refs typically do wear less padding than the players. It's hard. It hurts. It's pretty similar to dropping on to concrete. One of the teen refs complaining of pain to his rear-right and neck, which he said felt stiff, according to a police report, the other experiencing pain in his right elbow. The father, whose name was redacted in the report, was arrested shortly after leaving the venue. Police say he told him he acted in defense of his son, who he says was punched and kicked

by an opposing player while the referees did not intervene. Adversity teaches a lot of great life lessons. When you interject as a parent and try and assist your kid through adversity, you're not helping you're hurting. For hockey parents, Jennifer and Kyle, who frequent the ice plex, the incident, leaving both in shock. Terrified and appalled, like so disgusting. And it feels extremely disappointing that that happened. That father has since been banned from league facilities and events until an investigation is completed. The iceplex where this occurred, also the official practice facility and headquarters for the city's NHL team, the Cracken. The Iceplex

saying in a statement in part, there is absolutely no place in hockey or any sport for the behavior that occurred on Sunday. It is a place for the kids to come out and have a great time, enjoy their friends, enjoy the game that we all love, and just take a deep breath, everything's going to be fine, your kid's going to be okay. Morgan Chesky joins us tonight. So Morgan, where do things stand with criminal charges for that father? And how are those young referees doing? Yeah, Tom, this father is currently facing two counts of misdemeanor. or assault that has now been submitted to a local prosecutor. It's really at their discretion at this point as to whether or not this dad could be facing actual criminal charges. But if he does

and if he's convicted, that charge carries up to a year in jail and upwards of a $5,000 fine. As for those two young referees here, Tom, a 13 and a 14-year-old, both of whom were knocked down. We have had a chance to hear from a league official who says he's spoken to both of them. and both young men say they are more than ready to get back out on the ice and referee their next hockey match year. Tom? All right, good. They want to get back out there. Morgan, we thank you for that. When we come back, the tornado just touching down in Florida. We'll tell you about it. New video of that twister ripping across a construction site, sending debris flying. Bill Caron's standing by. That's next. All right, time now for Top Stories News Feed. We start with Defense Secretary Pete Higgseth,

renaming the U.S. military base Fort Liberty back to Fort Bragg, but there's a caveat. The North Carolina base's original namesake was a Confederate general and slave owner, Braxton Bragg. It will now be renamed for a World War II Battle of the Bulge hero whose name is Ronald Bragg. The Biden administration changed the name to Fort Liberty in 2023 while removing base names honoring Confederate leaders. The FDA issuing a precautionary recall for tuna cans sold at Walmart, Trader Joe's, and Costco over a botulism contamination threat.

The recall products you see them here were sold under brand names that include Genova, Van Camps, Trader Joe's, and H.E.B. A pull-tab defect in the tuna can lids risk exposure to the bacteria causing botulism. The illness attacks nerves that can lead to death or paralysis. Consumers are encouraged to throw out or return the can. for a refund. And Google is making major changes to maps and calendars on their apps and services that you may notice, including removing holidays and renaming the Gulf of Mexico. Holidays removed from Google Calendar include Pride Month, Black History Month, and the Holocaust Remembrance Day. Google says they began to make the changes in mid-2020-4

because they're now working in collaboration with another website instead of entering holidays manually. but this comes as the tech giant rolls back on DEI practices after Trump's executive order dismantled federal DEI programs. And on Google Maps, you'll notice this as well. You may have seen this. Google adhering to Trump's Gulf of Mexico name change to now Gulf of America. Okay, and the FAA reopening two runways

at Washington, D.C's Reagan National Airport that were closed after the fatal crash between an American Airlines jet and an Army Black Hawk helicopter. The NTSB's investigation of that collision is winding down at the airport so the runways can now be reopened. The FAA also increasing flight arrival rates to 28 planes per hour. Flight arrivals were reduced amid probes into that crash and closed runways.

Okay, now to the back-to-back winter storms putting more than 90 million people across the country on alert. In Madison County, Kentucky, blinding snowfall. Look at that. Decreasing visibility and causing slick roads, a travel nightmare, as you can imagine. And in our nation's capital tonight, heavy wet snow is. is piling up forcing some school closures for tomorrow in the DMV area, as they call it. NBC Sam Brock is there in the thick of it tonight covered in that snow, Sam. I want to say you look great, but you don't. You look pretty miserable.

First of all, thanks for being here on Top Story tonight. We appreciate it. But I understand that snow is coming down so hard. It's crippling the nation's capital. It is. It's definitely having an impact, Tom. It's dense. It's heavy. It's wet. We were out here earlier this afternoon, one or two o'clock in the afternoon, thinking, This isn't that bad. What's all the fuss about? Well, things have changed pretty dramatically in the last several hours. You'll see definitely probably three to four inches, if not more, behind me right now. That seems to be the floor. Many parts of the D.C. area expecting six plus inches of snow. Over my shoulder in the distance, that's Connecticut Avenue. Pretty significant thoroughfare that runs through the heart of D.C. It's actually clear at the moment. The reason that it's clear is we've seen these snow plows and salt trucks that have come through and then taken that snow off the roadway, which is so key. because there's already been a preponderance of accidents throughout the area. The mixing bowl, for example, which is in Springfield, Virginia, a really high congestion area where you're seeing the intersection of $4.95 and $95.

They had an issue on one of their off ramps, totally snarled traffic. That's exactly the kind of thing you would expect to see in a storm like this. You mentioned in your introduction the school closings. We've seen closings for Loudoun County, Arlington, Montgomery County, and Maryland. Some of the biggest school systems in the area, not yet for D.C., but I expect that's coming next. Tom. All right, Sam Brock, there in the thick of it. We appreciate having you on tonight. For more on the forecast, I'm joined tonight by NBC News meteorologist, Bill Karens.

Bill, before we get to that snow, let's talk tornadoes because we saw some of that damage there earlier in the broadcast. What's happening in Pensacola? Yeah, this was unexpected. This was at 4 o'clock this afternoon, and these are just showers that were coming through. This wasn't even produced by like a powerful tornado, a powerful thunderstorm with the tornado. So this is ferry past just north of Pensacola, and that came through very quickly. It was short-lived, but we should. showed you the damage there. Some people would call it like a noodle tornado or a drill bit. It was really small and narrow, but it was intense. Thankfully, no reports of any injuries or fatalities, Tom. And then back to that dangerous winter weather where we just saw Sam Brock

out. What should we watch out for as we head into the middle of the week? Yeah, so we're watching the storm off the East Coast. This is going to be exiting quickly overnight. So by the time the sun comes up in the morning, it's done with. Then it would be the big cleanup. Additional snowfall, D.C., another two inches on top of that four you already have. Southern New Jersey could pick up another four inches too. And then tomorrow we focus on the middle. of the country, from Kansas City to Des Moines, the Quad City, Chicago, Milwaukee, all of these areas are going to have a plowable snow out there. Some areas could get up to 10 inches of snow, so significant travel problems in the middle of the country. And then, Tom, this will be

a big story going through Thursday. We already have some evacuations in Santa Barbara County for a burn scar area from the lake fire. We can expect significant debris and flash flooding in areas outside of Los Angeles. There'll be probably more evacuations coming tomorrow. The least thing these people need to worry about, but it's coming. All right, Bill Cairns. I know we're going to be watching it throughout the week. We thank you for that. And we're going to be right back. We're back now with the new weapons and tactics changing the modern battlefield. The key technology in Ukraine's years-long fight against Russia, drones. And now the U.S. Army is updating its own doctrine and training. NBC's Megan Fitzgerald traveled to Germany alongside NATO troops in training to see how those lessons are being put to use. War has been raging in Ukraine for nearly three years.

Ukrainian armed forces desperately trying to hold on to their land. It's a rapidly evolving battlefield and a race to keep on top of the latest technology and tactics. And with no boots on the ground, the U.S. is taking notes. The character of war is changing at a speed we've never seen before. It's unprecedented. The last three years, the lessons we observe, we observe from the Ukraine war and also some from the recent Israeli experience. Lessons American troops are using in training here in Germany.

Just pan your camera down. One key takeaway from Ukraine, drone warfare. Ukrainian soldiers hiding in trenches using drones to not only identify the enemy, but also attack. The machines used on the battlefield in Ukraine, and to take the fight to Moscow. That's going to be the next part of it. For experts in warfare, it's been a game changer. What is like the single most significant thing that we've learned from the Ukrainians?

Probably for me, it's so using drones to spot targets. So as an example, using artillery strikes. What you generally do is fire a couple of rounds on the bearing that was given by the forward air controller. forward air controller, and then based where you see the splash on the ground, you test and adjust and you then can target the enemy. Now you can just do that with a drone up in the air. In other words, there's nowhere to hide on the battlefield, but new technology could keep soldiers safer as modern methods merge with traditional warfare.

So now we can look very deep with unmanned sensors and replace tasks that humans soldiers used to have to conduct with a lot of unmanned sensors, electromagnetic war-shunders. air systems. Including new lighter and more compact communication systems that are allowing soldiers to use vehicles that are smaller, more agile, and messaging systems that are easier to use and more secure. But one of the key breakthroughs for Ukraine, which doesn't have a large Navy fleet, has been its ability to dominate in the Black Sea coast, using marine drones to destroy Russian

ships and infrastructure and keeping vital shipping lanes open. The significance of the maritime capabilities that you've seen is probably more significant to land capabilities at the moment. What the Ukrainians have been able to do effectively without a Navy and deny the Black Sea to the Russian Black Sea fleet. I mean, that is remarkable. U.S. soldiers applying lessons that have come at a cost as the world of warfare rapidly evolves. Megan Fitzgerald, NBC News.

All right, now to Top Story's Global Watch, in Sicily, a massive mafia sting leading to roughly 130 arrests. New video from Italian authorities shows police searching apartments, detaining alleged members of Palermo's crime syndicate. They're charged with crimes ranging from drug trafficking and attempted murder to extortion. Investigators say they were using encrypted communications to coordinate in some cases from behind bars. In northern England, more than 170 unexploded World War II bombs. were discovered buried in a playground. Construction workers uncovered the first explosives while servicing the park.

A local official says the site could have been used as a military training area during the Second World War. Authorities say they've only cleared a third of the playground and are still searching for more bombs. And officials in Sri Lanka are blaming a nationwide power outage on a monkey. Officials there say the primate got into a power station south of the country's largest city, Colombo.

The primate reportedly interfering with the grid transformer triggering the blackout, the stability of Sri Lanka's infrastructure back in question years after suffering, rolling blackouts you may remember during an economic crisis back in 2022. Okay, when we come back, back to Earth. The announcement late today from NASA and SpaceX, that could mean two NASA astronauts who have been stuck in space for several months could return home sooner than expected. We'll explain.

Stay with us. Finally, tonight, potentially some good. Good news for those two astronauts who have been stuck in space for several months. Late today, NASA and SpaceX announcing they are moving up the launch of a SpaceX flight heading to the International Space Station. The mission is then expected to carry back astronauts, Butch, Wilmore, and Sunni Williams, meaning they may be able to return back to Earth a little earlier than expected. There are return coming after multiple delays due to technical malfunctions caused a week-long

mission in June to last until now, yes, eight months later. NBC senior aviation correspondent Tom Costello joins Top Story tonight. So Tom, walk us through exactly what's happening. And should the astronauts have hope on this mission? Oh, I think so. Listen, the bottom line, you may recall last June 5th, they lifted off on the Boeing Starliner spaceship, right? They were supposed to be on a 10-day mission, and just like Gilligan's Island, they got stuck

there on the space station. But don't say stuck. NASA really hates when you say stuck, because in truth, they could have come back on like a lifeboat if they had to evacuate the station. Regardless, they'd been on the space station since last June and as a part of this really kind of juggling the entire system of missions up to the station and coming back, they were not coming back until February. It's February now. What happened? Well, SpaceX delayed the mission that's supposed to go up to the station so then Butch and Sonny could come down. Now it's going to be in March. That was the plan all along. Coming back in March,

But President Trump weighed in and said to Elon Musk, I want you to bring them back quicker. While they were already coming back in March, they may be coming back now a few days earlier. Nonetheless, it's going to have been a nine-month mission by the time they come back, assuming that they do, in fact, get back by mid-March, more or less, Tom. You know, Tom, you opened the door there, so I want to ask you this. Can then Elon Musk take some type of victory lap once the astronauts return safely to Earth? Elon Musk and SpaceX were already in the limelight, in the spotlight, because Boeing failed with Starliner. And that meant Elon Musk and SpaceX way back in September was already designated as the only way back for Butch and Sunny, right?

That's been the plan all along. Now, did they move it up anymore because of the pressure that President Trump applied? Maybe a few days? Essentially, they're going to take an older rocket and put it on the pad. and replace a newer rocket, which was going to take more time to process. It's still SpaceX. SpaceX had the delay for, you know, the delay anyway. The bottom line is that's their only way home. There's no other way to get back to Earth unless they go back with the Russians, and that's not going to happen.

Yeah, it's not like they can check kayak and catch the next flight coming back to Earth. All right, Tom, we appreciate that. We hope they get back here safely. We'll be watching that as well. And we thank you for watching Top Story tonight. I'm Tom Yamas in New York. Stay right there. More news on the way.

Thank you.