Top Story with Tom Llamas - Wednesday, March 15, 2023

Episode Date: March 16, 2023

U.S. officials say Russian leadership approved aggressive actions of jets that damaged U.S. drone, Michael Cohen testifies again before grand jury investigating Stormy Daniels hush money payments from former President Trump, clashes erupt in Pakistan as police try to arrest former PM Imran Khan, podcast host killed by stalker as police tried to deliver a protection order against him, and the group of Mexican women helping to feed thousands of Central American migrants.

Tonight, a legal storm brewing for former President Trump. Will it throw a wrench into his 2024 campaign. Adult film star Stormy Daniels meeting with Manhattan prosecutors in New York as they investigate hush money payments she received after allegedly having an affair with the former president. Those payments made ahead of the 2016 election by former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen, who testified before the grand jury once again today. But will Stormy do the same? And what does that mean for the last?

of criminal charges against the former president. What we're learning tonight, downing the drone, the U.S. and Russia, racing to recover the wreckage after two fighter jets collided with an American drone over the Black Sea, those jets passing the drone 19 times even dumping jet fuel on it. So was this an accident or an act of aggression? The new reporting, Justin, about who Greenlit Russia's aggressive actions? Winter blackouts, back here at home, hundreds of thousands without power in the Northeast after a record-breaking storm dropped three feet of snow,

thousands of flights grounded as wind speeds, top 70 miles per hour, and another storm making its way across the country. We'll time it all out. Overseas catastrophic flooding in Turkey in the same spot where an earthquake killed nearly 50,000 people last month, rushing floodwater sweeping away cars

and people, the death toll climbing. Plus, danger on duty, the dramatic moment, a semi-truck, slammed into a police cruiser, just seconds after an officer jumped out of the way. And Grand Theft Chopper, a helicopter crashing onto the tarmac of a Sacramento airport after someone jumped inside and tried to steal it. The manhunt now underway for that attempted thief.

Top Story starts right now. Good evening. We begin Top Story tonight with that breaking news here in New York. Former President Donald Trump's past. seemingly coming back to haunt him as he makes his third run for the White House. Adult film star Stormy Daniels meeting virtually with Manhattan prosecutors today as they investigate hush money payments she received ahead of the 2016 election. Payments she claims were to hide an affair she had with Trump years before.

The person who facilitated those payments, former Trump attorney Michael Cohen, who testified in front of the grand jury today for the second time this week. The big questions tonight, what did Michael Cohen tell that grand jury? and will Stormy Daniels soon follow suit here to walk us through what we know NBC's Bonn Hilliard, who joins us from West Palm Beach, Florida, near Trump's Mar-Lago home. So, Vaughn, Trump's former lawyer and fixer Michael Cohen returning to testify before the grand jury for the second time this week. He spoke to reporters afterwards, a total of five hours in front of that grand jury over two days.

Tell us about what he said outside of court and what we think he told that grand jury. Right. This is the major development here in this potential case. Tom, you have the Manhattan District Attorney, who is essentially providing evidence and testimony from key witnesses like Michael Cohen to a grand jury, who will then ultimately determine whether to charge the likes of Donald Trump on the potential charges, misdemeanor, and even a potential felony charge. And for Michael Cohen, after more than five hours, he walked out of that grand jury room here today.

Take a listen to a little bit of what he said. This isn't a question of vindication. It's not a question, as I stated before, about revenge. This is not about him. This is about holding accountability, truth to power, and everything else in between. Now, of course, this all comes down to those weeks before the 2016 election, when Michael Cohen transferred $130,000 to Stormy Daniels, who alleged having a sexual affair with Donald Trump. Donald Trump has denied having that affair, and he is suggesting that.

that that financial transaction was simply to silence what was, he says, a defamatory story against him. But now what is going before the grand jury is up to them to determine whether this was actually potentially an illegal campaign contribution, an in-kind campaign contribution meant to benefit Donald Trump's presidential candidacy there right before you ultimately beat Hillary Clinton in that presidential race. And then, Von, earlier tonight, we got word that Stormy Daniels, who did didn't speak to the grand jury just yet, but she did speak with prosecutors. She confirmed that on Twitter thanking her lawyer.

What more do we know about what she told prosecutors or what the next steps are here? Right. This was big late-night news here out of Manhattan because Michael Cullen was believed to be the final major witness before the grand jury was to determine whether to indict Donald Trump or not. But now with the news that Stormy Daniels is at least meeting with prosecutors, This suggests that she may potentially go as soon as next week to meet with the grand jury and provide testimony herself about that transaction with Michael Cohen, but also about potentially the details of what she says was that sexual relationship with Donald Trump. If she does go before that grand jury, this would suggest that we may not be as close to the grand jury deciding whether to indict Donald Trump or not, but it would suggest that

the district attorney in Manhattan still feels that they have a case worth presenting. It is a complicated case, but they clearly are talking to all the main players. Right, Vaughn Hilliard with us on that breaking news. Vaughn, we appreciate it. I want to bring in now attorney Angela and Senadela. She's also known as the lawyer on Angela with more than 1 million followers on TikTok. So Angela, just very simply, walk our viewers through what happens usually with these grand jury meetings because we know they're usually secretive.

They're obviously they can't talk about it. The prosecutors can't talk about what they tell the grand jurors. But if Stormy Daniels is speaking with prosecutors, usually what happens next? Well, it is likely that it were possible that she will testify, but as you said, these are secret. They are not contentious. There is no cross-examination. She's likely going to go up there and give her opinion of Donald Trump's character and allegedly say things about how he's lied, about their intimate relationships, et cetera.

But the irony is that whether or not they even had this relationship, which is really what Stormy's been talking about to the press for years, is not even relevant to this trial. No one's putting him on trial for having an affair, having a relationship. It's all about this misdemeanor and the felony stacked on top of it about falsifying business records. Yeah, and the hush money payment is also not illegal, but it could violate campaign finance law, and then there could also be business fraud. So it's a complicated case, right, to kind of combine these two misdemeanors, felonies, if you will, to bring the charges against Donald Trump if he's convicted.

It's four years in prison, but it's going to be a hard case. And I want to talk about one of the star witnesses, who was Michael Cohen. We heard from him there in Vaughn's piece. And I ask about this because Michael Cohen literally was convicted of lying to Congress and also campaign finesse for this very act. He also wrote two books, right? Disloyal and literally another book called Revenge about his time with former President Trump. So what type of witness is he?

I mean, if I'm a defense attorney, I would love to cross-examine Michael Cohen because clearly he has a lot of baggage. Yes. And when we actually go back to his own federal trial for the same criminal charge, which was campaign finance violations, the judge in his sentencing said that he is not a trustworthy person. The prosecutors at that time in that federal investigation said they were not flipping him as a witness and using him as a witness because they did not trust him. So that will cross-apply here. In the grand jury hearings, it's not as big of an issue because, again, there's no cross-examination. It's almost more of a conversation. is solely asking him questions.

The grand jury members can just raise their hand and also ask questions that are clarifying. But nobody is putting him on the stand to question his credibility. So when it comes for the trial, that's going to be very detrimental to the prosecution. The past has come back to haunt former President Trump, whether he thinks this is old news or not.

The reason why we're putting such an importance on this, in part, is because President Trump is again running for president for a third time. It's incredibly important that the timelines and the dates could all sort of merge at a really tough time for the president and for Republicans, depending if he becomes the nominee.

I say this because do you feel things are snowballing? It seems like they're getting closer and closer to something, and they're bringing in all the big fish. Yes, I mean, it seems likely an indictment as possible. It seems that it is likely going to be political in some way. But the question is, is it going to be political in the favor of Trump or against him? That's what nobody knows, because if he does get indicted and gets put on trial but walks away with an acquittal, that could actually galvanize his.

user base there, his fan base. So it's unclear what the political ramifications will be. Is there an artificial timeline or a real timeline that the Manhattan DA would have to follow if it was colliding with his campaign duties, if you will? Almost likely, the trial, if it happens, would be in early 2024. So that would be right at the time. That would be very impactful. Oh, okay. That's good to know. Did not know that. All right, Angela Senadella, we appreciate that. We're going to talk more about the political fallout later in the broadcast. We turned out of the growing tensions among superpowers after that mid-air collision between a Russia fighter jet and an American drone over

the Black Sea yesterday. A new warning tonight from Russia to the U.S. not to fly aircraft near its airspace, but the U.S. accusing the Russians of reckless and unprofessional behavior. Peter Alexander, with some new reporting from NBC News tonight. Tonight, for the first time since that stunning confrontation in the sky between two Russian fighter jets and an unmanned American drone, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin revealing a rare phone call with his Russian counterpart. And the United States will continue to fly and to operate wherever international law allows. Russia tonight says it's trying to retrieve remnants of the Reaper drone in the Black Sea,

but the Pentagon says it erased sensitive information. It probably broke up. There's probably not a lot to recover. The U.S. says those Russian jets made at least 19 passes by the drone in international airspace Tuesday, even dumping jet fuel on it, before clipping and damaging the drone's rear propeller. The U.S. then downed the $32 million drone into the sea. Tonight, officials here say it's unclear whether Russia's actions were intentional. It is possible that this was just a reckless, incompetent piece of aviating by the pilot,

but we don't know for sure. Russia insists the incident was an American provocation and that its jet never touched the drone. But top Republicans are demanding the White House warn Russia about specific consequences if it happens again. President Biden, you're the Rodney danger field of rural leaders. Nobody respects you. And if you don't change your game and up your game, we're going to have World War III. What consequence will Russia face for its action? We have communicated our deep concerns over this and our condemnation of this to the Russians.

And I would also say that we are going to continue to fly in international airspace. Number two, we're going to continue to support Ukraine. All right with that, Peter Alexander joins us now live from the White House North Law. And Peter, I know you and our NBC News team of Washington have some new and exclusive reporting about who actually green lit this for Russia. Yeah, Tom, that's right. Three U.S. officials familiar with the intelligence tell NBC News that Russia's aggressive actions Tuesday, including dropping jet fuel on that drone, were approved by the highest levels of Russian leadership. But the actual collision with the drone, they say, was likely.

not intentional. One of the officials telling us that he had not got an indication that the sign-off went all the way to Russian President Vladimir Putin. The other officials declined to provide specifics beyond saying it went to the highest levels. Tom. Peter Alexander at the White House for us tonight, Peter, we thank you. For more on these growing tensions, former U.S. Ambassador to Russia and NBC News International Affairs analyst Michael McFaul joins us now. Ambassador, thanks for joining us. As Peter mentioned there, Russia and the United States both blaming each other right for this crash. The U.S. saying it's part of Russia's growing aggression, but also, quote, profound incompetence. Which do you think it is, or is it a combination

of both? Well, I think it's both. I think it's profound incompetence and also an illegal act. We weren't violating their territory. We weren't in their waters. We had a right to be there, and they chose to harass this drone and then drive it to the ground, drive it into the ocean. They should not do that again. And I think the Biden administration has reacted properly with the demarches, that is to say, in Moscow and in Washington, telling the Russian government that this is behavior we won't tolerate, but also not overreacting. This is not a tripwire to some war between the United States and Russia, and I think the response has been just right. Ambassador, on that point, the overreacting, I think it's important to have sort of a sober discussion because as a student of history, you know, there have been times when wars have begun because of quote-unquote accidents or finger-pointing

or, hey, you guys did this to us and maybe it was planted, but now it's set off a war. You don't think that this is the case here. You think there are cooler heads will prevail? I don't think it's a case. I really don't think it's a case. If Russia, if Mr. Putin wanted to go to war with NATO, he's had plenty of opportunities to try to attack a NATO country, a supply line of weapons going from Poland to Ukraine, something like that. And what's been very striking during this horrible barbaric war inside

Ukraine is it hasn't bled to other countries, other NATO allies, outside Ukraine, because Putin understands perfectly well that he would be in grave trouble. His army would be in grave trouble if they had to go to war with the entire NATO alliance, anchored by the most powerful military in the world. So I think it's very unlikely it'll lead to an escalation. The U.S. has said it's going to keep flying these surveillance missions. If Russia keeps being aggressive, what would your advice be to the White House and to the Pentagon? Should we change strategy at all or just sort of keep doing what we're doing and see how Russia reacts? My advice would be to give jets to Ukraine, give attack thems, give long-range missile systems

to Ukraine, weapons that we haven't provided so far. Because the way to defeat Putin and push back is to help the Ukrainians win their war inside Ukraine. So not just responding tip for tat, but thinking about a different kind of response that would really matter in terms of pushing Putin back. On that point, before we go, since you brought up the weapons issue, does it frustrate you that it takes so long

for the U.S. weapons sometimes, and I'm speaking mainly of the tanks, to get over to the Ukrainians? Yes, two things frustrate me. One, we should be providing all kinds of weapons systems, especially these long-range missile systems called attackums, that I think could be a game changer for the battlefield, the counteroffensive that Ukraine is planning. And two, the weapons that we say we're going to supply, why are we building them from

scratch when we have them in other places and other countries, including the United States, I think we need to speed it up. 2003 is a critical year for this war. I don't think the Ukrainians want to, I know they don't want to fight a war for years and years, and I'm not even sure they have the capability to do so. So push for breakthrough now rather than planning for a long war later. Okay, Ambassador McFaul, we appreciate your time and your analysis. Next night, the market's on a roller coaster today. Down big earlier before rebounding just a little bit. The Dow, you can see to hear, down 280 points. There's renewed concern about the banking sector weighing on the markets, the collapse of both Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank,

Still being felt. Concern now turning to Credit Suisse once a powerhouse European bank struggling to hold on. Brian Chung is here to help us understand it all. And so, Brian, you know, I want to ask you, so Credit Suisse, the shares hitting an all-time low. And then I understand Switzerland's central bank coming in saying they will back them up, that sort of calm the markets a little bit. But a lot of people are worried about a domino effect here, right? Yeah, and this is important because Credit Suisse is one of the largest banks in the world, one of the top 50. And for what it's worth, Credit Suisse has had a history of issues, the latest issue that is. dealing with is a bleeding deposit base as people take money out of that bank and then also an admission from Credit Suisse management earlier this week that they had material weaknesses

in the way that they were reporting their financials. So that's a big issue with Credit Suisse and that comes alongside here in the United States concerns over First Republic Bank. We saw SMP and Fitch two ratings agencies downgrade First Republic because they're worried about deposits fleeing from that institution as well. For the government's part, the U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, I'm told, is monitoring development. and communicating with other regulators in D.C. to monitor all these things. Yeah, that's the message she's putting out both to Wall Street and to journalists. Brian, we have the Fed meeting next week, right?

I think you were just telling me they're going to meet on Wednesday decisions on Thursday. Tuesday and then Wednesday. Okay, I got that a little wrong. But tell us, how do we think this is going to impact the Fed's decision? There's a lot of reporting out there that the Fed may say, okay, we see the signs. We know people are worried we're not going to raise rates. Yeah, well, prior to the last week, it was a single-track mind for the Fed, right? inflation was high. You raise borrowing costs to take steam out of this economy and make inflation

come down. Now you have banks that exploded over the weekend, which by the way, one of the dominoes that led to that happening, not the only reason, but one of the dominoes was higher interest rates. So the Federal Reserve might not be as aggressive as originally thought in that meeting next week. The expectation is maybe a quarter percentage point where you have some Walsh firm saying they might not move at all. So we'll have to see on Wednesday, Tom. All right, Brian Chung, we appreciate your time, as always. We want to turn out of power and politics in the 2024 campaign for president. A lot of events this week could impact the way voters may cast their ballots. We mentioned that potential indictment looming over President Trump at the top

of the broadcast. And now his chief rival for the Republican nomination, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, facing scrutiny for his position on aid to Ukraine. It comes as President Biden is facing a major leadership test about what me and Brian were just talking about here, the fallout of those two major bank collapses and the finances of the country in general. I want to bring in our political panel tonight, Democratic strategist, Amisha Cross, and MSNBC political analyst and former chief communications advisor to House Speaker Paul Ryan, Brendan Buck. Brennan, I'm going to start with you. Start with what we talked about at the top of this broadcast. Stormy Daniels is back in the news, back in sort of the world of the GOP, speaking of prosecutors and likely probably

going to testify in front of a grand jury. How nervous is this case making Republicans at all? Because I think it could affect President Trump, former President Trump in two ways, right? It could hurt him with voters, or it could galvanize the MAGA movement. Yeah, and we've seen that time and time again. I don't have a whole lot of confidence that this is going to be the thing that's going to send people fleeing from him. Obviously, we've known about these allegations for a long time. It feels like this is one of those things that's baked in. Now, if there is an indictment, however, that may be a bit of a new thing that is going to be hanging around the former president's neck.

I think that there are enough Republicans out there who are one. wondering, is this someone with all this baggage that can beat Joe Biden? And that's a real question you'd have, especially when you have other potential indictments. And it may not be just one thing that breaks the cameals back, but it could be an accumulation of issues that enough people have enough doubt that they maybe start looking for an alternative. And that could be an opening for someone like Ron DeSantis. Amish, you know, we can't take the politics out of this for Democrats as well. The Manhattan DA, Alvin Bragg, obviously.

In my opinion, whether he gets an indictment, whether he doesn't get an indictment, he's not going to lose any political points because he was criticized early on for not being tough enough on Trump, right? And now he has this investigation that's ongoing. I think either way it's likely going to help him with his base, correct? Absolutely. Elvin Bragg made a very smart political and, quite frankly, job calculus in this sense because he did not jump when many in the party wanted him to jump. He waited. He waited until there was more evidence. He waited until he was able to fill full faith in bringing bringing a case forward against former president Donald Trump.

And whether this ultimately ends in an indictment or not, I think that the way that he has handled this case, one that is highly political, one that is highly polarizing, has been quite frankly exemplary to a point that you said a moment ago. What we've seen with all of the legal cases around Donald Trump that have been going on for quite some time at this point is that a lot of them get media attention, but they don't actually end in there actually being a focused criminal charge

against Donald Trump or an actual indictment. And they think that waiting and finding things out, investigating, getting as many people, witnesses aligned as possible, and making sure you have evidence before you bring this forward is exactly the right thing to do. Yeah, it may win him some political street cred, but it will also be embarrassing if he goes all the way down this road with all the major players and they decide not to indict. I want to move on now to Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. Brendan, back over to you. He's facing some heat from his party following comments he made to Fox News about Ukraine. here's what he said, or I should say, filled out in a written response. While the U.S. has many vital national interest, DeS. right,

securing our borders, addressing the crisis of readiness within our military, becoming further entangled in a territorial dispute between Ukraine and Russia is not one of them. So Governor DeSantis being criticized for using that phrase territorial dispute. I want to play some sound from some U.S. senators up on Capitol Hill, Republican senators, and their take on this. I haven't seen the governor's comments that are full of context. I know how I believe that the aid to Ukraine is not charity. I think it's an actor of self-perimentation.

I'm very disturbed that he feels that way. I just think that's a misunderstanding of the situation. This is not a territorial conflict, this war of aggression. And it really didn't end there with some U.S. senators. But Brendan, you know, Governor DeSantis may be playing chess in the situation because if you look at some of the polls and we have one from our NBC News poll, this is support for Ukraine among GOP voters. Now, should Congress provide more weapons to Ukraine was the question. GOP voters 63 percent said should not. So Governor DeSantis may actually be saying something that voters want to hear.

What's your take? Was this a mistake or was this strategic? No, absolutely. I think if we've seen anything from the way Ron DeSantis runs the state of Florida, he knows how to read a poll and knows what Republican voters are looking for. I don't think this is actually going to be a problem for him with the Republican base at all. But what I do think it shows is that nobody gets to just glide into being the Republican nominee, and there's going to be scrutiny over some of his statements. Look, the statements that you hear these kind of statements all the time in Congress. You have sort of gadflies in the House who say, well, we shouldn't get involved. It's not our problem. Usually the adults in the The more serious people don't take that kind of stand. And you certainly don't use language like territorial dispute, which is what Russia would like us to talk about. So I think he's going to get a lot more scrutiny.

I think this kind of my actually, my big takeaway from this is that he seems scared of Donald Trump. He was scared that Donald Trump would get to his right or whatever left, however you look at it these days. This could have been an opportunity to stand up, show you have some views of your own, that you're going to stand up and be a serious person. But instead, he was clearly too afraid and wants to. to match up his policy just the same as Donald Trump.

I think that will be very interesting to watch going forward. Amisha, I want to ask you, you know, and obviously I don't want to ask you about Governor DeSantis' political positions, right, because you obviously disagree with him. You work with the Democrats. But as a politician, how is he doing so far on a national stage? It's a great question because on the state level, he's knocking it out of the park. Nationally, he is going to have a much harder time. The issue of him on the national stage is very interesting because this is a

who was a congress member. This is a man who, should he ascend. He's somebody who actually served in the military. The majority of people, actually everyone we know of right now running, does not have military experience. So for him to make the kind of statements that he did on Ukraine, I think are quite frankly disturbing. But beyond that, the types of politics that work in essentially the Republican capital of America, Florida right now, do not play well outside of that. And Florida is not the first primary state that he even would have to win in the Republican primary. think that he's going to have to modulate himself a little bit. This will prove whether he is a nimble politician or not, seeing how he decides to become, you know, how he decides

to morph, for lack of a better term, when he is outside of the deep south, when he is outside of this place where he feels basically beloved, and he gets to run, he gets to run the state how he wants. It's going to be very different when we see him in Ohio, when we see him in Pennsylvania, When we see him in some of these other states where he's really going to have to shape-ship quite a bit. Okay. And finally, I want to talk about President Biden and the economy right now. Brennan, you were a top advisor to both John Boehner and Paul Ryan, speakers who were both in Congress during the 2008 financial crisis. How would you assess the president's handling of this financial crisis so far when it comes to these banks failing? And what has history taught us about sort of a president in this situation?

I know 2024 is very far off, but what he decides now, his work now could have far-reaching employment. implications. Yeah, I think the long-term risk is always on doing too little, and so I think that's the reason why you've seen them act quickly and act aggressively. We have a long way to go. We don't know exactly what this is going to look like weeks and months from now, and maybe this is just a blit, but I do think that it was smart to act quickly. If something were to spiral out of control, obviously significant economic consequences for that.

But look, a financial crisis is devastating politically. I went through this in 2008. I think 2008, you can draw a straight line from what happened then to Donald Trump. It created a lot of the populism that exists today. Certainly anything that requires federal taxpayer intervention to saving the financial markets is going to get a lot of people thinking that Donald Trump's right, that the elites do well, taxpayers never do well. That sentiment, I think, has its roots in.

in the last crisis. So very important to act quickly, act strongly. If you can knock this down quickly, I think we'll all forget about it. But if you don't, and this is with us for a while, I think there would be a significant price to pay for President Biden. Amisha, finally, in the road to possibly re-election for the current president, he's had some serious speed bumps, right? He's had issues with these documents. He's had other hiccups. And now we have this issue with the banks, and he has to be very careful here, make sure he makes the right decisions. Do you think all of this is delaying his presidential announcement? I think he's being very strategic in when he announces.

This is a president who has just introduced a budget that was basically re-invigorating a bill back better. This is a president who does have a list of accomplishments to run on, whether we're talking about reducing the cost of prescription drugs like insulin or a lot of the work that he did in the infrastructure and the infrastructure deal in the infrastructure package that is going to bring millions of jobs across America. This is a president who has America's faith. But I do think that the banking crisis, because we saw it in 2008, it will create some ripple effects.

At the end of the day, people are going to be voting on the economy, their personal economy. Regardless of how many jobs are created, people are voting on whether or not they can pay their rent, whether housing is affordable, utility costs, and quite frankly, a lot of things in America are really hard right now for people's pocketbooks. And he's still facing inflation besides all those accomplishments you mentioned, along with other things, and a lot of investigations happening right now in the House. All right, I want to thank you both. I do need to turn now that severe winter weather sweeping across the country. hundreds of thousands are without power tonight. After two major storms slammed across both

coasts out west, thousands remain evacuated while the northeast millions are digging out from some feet of snow. Here's Emily Aketa. Tonight, the northeast digging out from a dangerous deluge of rain and snow. This is the worst snowstorm I've ever plowed. It's crazy. Parts of the region unrecognizable, now buried beneath three feet of snow from Alaska's winter wallup, marking a preliminary record for Massachusetts. The treacherous conditions didn't stop state police from rescuing a pair of hikers stranded overnight. And while the snow has now tapered off, high powered winds gusting above 60 miles an hour, continue to wreak havoc on travel plans. It's delayed until 920 and it was supposed to depart at 315. Thousands of more flights today delayed. This is the result

of that heavy snow and whipping winds across the region, a tangled mess of down trees and power lines, leaving many families without heat in frigid temperatures. People with families, kids, there's elderly, and we have no heat. It's pretty crazy. The race to restore power for tens of thousands underway on both coasts. Back-to-back storms blasted in already waterlogged California. I was devastated. I just started crying. I want to cry now. Relentless rain collapsing this hillside today carrying apartments along with it. And in Northern California, hurricane force winds. Uprooted towering trees, ravaging apartments and crushing cars. It seemed like lightning, but then there was a big sun. Today, California's governor in Monterey County, where neighborhoods

have remained flooded for days. A coast-to-coast cleanup as winter leaves a lasting mark. Here in upstate New York, this is an area familiar and used to winter weather. But as you can see in the drooping tree branches behind me. This colossal storm dumped heavy snow problematic, not just for the cleanup process, but also power lines. Tom? Okay, Emily, a lot of snow there. For more on the forecast, NBC News meteorologist Bill Cairns joins us now live. Bill, walk us through what we're looking at. And again, we are just parked on California. I know that northeast storm is gone. California is getting a little bit of a break. We even look at near Las Vegas and Death Valley thunderstorms in the deserts this evening. This storm is heading through the four-corner

region. We're going to get the snow in the typical areas in the mountains. They're going to get it in some powder in Utah and Colorado. Ski resorts will love it. And then tomorrow, this comes into the Midwest. And we're going to get more snow here from Nebraska all the way up to Minneapolis. This will be during the afternoon and the evening hours tomorrow. Nothing major but just enough to be annoying. Two to four inches of snow, slippery travel you have to deal with as you go throughout tomorrow evening.

And then on top of that, this same storm is going to produce some severe weather tomorrow. Thankfully, it doesn't look like a big tornado threat, but we are going to get super large hail. Maybe hail is as large as baseball size. The area of concern here, Dallas to Fort Worth, all the way up to the Red River, southern portions of Oklahoma, and this will be right around 5 p.m. to about 9 p.m. tomorrow night. So we'll be watching that closely. Our next severe weather threat is this endless winter parade of storms, Tom, continues. Okay. Thanks so much. Appreciate it there, Bill. Still ahead. An update on that NBA star, the Grizzlies guard seen waving a gun in a nightclub on Instagram live stream. What's the league has now decided about his future on the court. Plus, danger on duty will show you the moment a semi-truck. landed into a police cruiser, and a chilling story out of Seattle, a podcast host, stalked and later murdered by a regular listener, why police weren't able to help her despite repeated pleas. Top story. Just getting started on this Wednesday night.

We're back now with new details in the stalking and murder of a podcast host, a man connecting with her online, and then messaging and calling her obsessively before he traveled across the country to kill her and her husband. The couple filing a protection order just days before their murders. Valerie Castro has this one. Tonight, newly released documents shedding more light on the slaying of a 33-year-old

podcast host and her husband murdered in their Seattle area home, police say by her alleged stalker. Redmond police say Zora Sadeghi and her husband, Mohamed Malad Nassari, were shot and killed Friday by this man, Rahman Hoda Karamazai, before taking his own life.

The Redmond Police Department is familiar with both the victim and suspect in this case because of an active stocking investigation that was occurring. Only a week before the murder, the couple desperately filing for an order of protection against the man. They claimed was harassing Zedgi to the point that she was, quote, suffering from a deep-seated fear for her safety. Police say the man initially reached out to Sadeghie on a chat platform as a listener and fan of her audio streaming. But his actions soon intensified. She said he delivered flowers to her home, sent jewelry, and gifts, parked in her neighborhood to catch a glimpse of her and repeatedly called her husband,

friends, and neighbors. Sadeghi's petition documenting the dozens of phone calls, voicemails, and text messages she received, despite blocking his number and social media accounts. In one of the reports, she reported over 100 contacts in a single day. Sadeghi writing, his voice messages to me have been the cause of anxiety and insomnia for me. They include him crying and begging for me to pick up, him threatening to burn him, and the tree in front of my house. She asked that the order remain in place for 99 years because he has said many times that nothing short of his own death would make him leave me alone. Police say they were in the midst of trying to serve the order of protection, but the

suspect who lived in Texas and was a long-haul trucker was difficult to track down. Even then, that civil order of protection can only go so far. Stocking is really difficult because you have to show their intent is to harm or harass or cause that. Some Washington state lawmakers are hoping to change that just this week debating a bill to lower the standard to prosecute stalking, calling for proof of substantial emotional distress. The Redmond Police Chief testifying in favor. The reasonable fear that the language in this bill talks about, that fear is real, as is the emotional distress that is caused upon the victims and their families. All right, Valerie, Castro joins us now live. So Valerie, we heard it there in your report.

It's hard to combat stalking. What should people do, especially women who find themselves in these situations? So the police chief in this case, says the couple did everything they were supposed to do. And our expert says you really need to document everything. Every phone call, save every voicemail. If you have a ring camera and someone is stopping by your home, save those security videos. Because all of that becomes evidence to build the case that stalking is happening. The sooner you can get that evidence to police, the better.

Although in this case, the question becomes, is there any intervention that could have happened earlier in the suspect's life at some point before he, got to this level, but it's tough to say. Yeah, because you wanted if a restraining order would have even stopped him at this point. He was clearly demented. Okay, Valerie, thank you so much when we come back. Grand Theft Chopper, a thief trying to steal a helicopter, but crash in instead, there's a manhunt underway now and oversees that catastrophic flooding in Turkey.

The devastating images coming in, including in areas that were hit by the earthquake. Stay with us. All right, we are back now with Top Stories News Feed, and we begin with the manhunt in California after a thief attempted to steal a helicopter. Video taken at the Sacramento Executive Airport shows a mangled helicopter laying on its side after an apparent crash. Authorities say a person broke onto that helipad between 4 and 6 a.m. attempting to break into multiple aircrafts before getting this one to start, that suspect in fleeing the scene, no injuries were reported. The Memphis Grizzly suspending John Moran for eight games after he was. record himself waving a gun around in a nightclub. Brent live streaming that incident on his Instagram page earlier this month.

The guard will be benched without pay for what the NBA calls irresponsible, reckless, and potentially very dangerous behavior. Three games he has already missed will count toward that suspension. He's expected return on Monday. And in New Jersey, a state trooper lucky to be alive after a near miss with a semi-truck. Take a look at this. Newly released video shows the trooper responding to the scene of an accident in Warren County when the truck came speeding directly toward him in a lane that was closed.

The officer attempting to shine a flashlight at the driver before jumping out of the way. Seconds before, that semi smashed right into the police cruiser. You see it right here. It's crazy. It's amazing. Luckily, no one was injured. Okay, we now want to head overseas to the growing unrest in Pakistan over the attempted arrest of the country's former prime minister. His supporters clashing with police getting pelted with water cannons and tear gas.

Our Megan Fitzgerald has this report. Chaos erupting in the streets of Pakistan. Protesters clashing with police over the attempt to arrest of former Prime Minister Imran Khan for failing to appear in court last week on corruption charges. Earlier this week, Khan urged his supporters to fight. They're this thought that when Imran Khan jail in jailed, then the combe so jayi. You have them to prove them. Hundreds surrounded his home throwing rocks and bricks while taking swings at police.

Security forces firing back with water cannons and tear gas. Khan later posing for cameras at a table full of spent canisters. The 70-year-old was removed from office in a vote of no confidence last April. Now the opposition leader, his failure to appear in court to answer the charges of illegally selling state gifts and concealing his assets sparked the skirmishes. Pakistan's interior minister said, today he is hiding in his house like a mouse, but we will take him out today.

We will arrest him today and present him in court. But Khan has claimed the string of cases against him are all employed by the government of his successor, Prime Minister Shabash Sharif, to discredit him and block elections. Violence was also reported between, Kahn supporters and police and other major cities. The Punjab provincial government saying more than 100 police officers were injured.

I guess I'm lethal terrorist. That's that amount of force outside. The former Premier has avoided appearances in court since being shot in an alleged assassination attempt last November. But he told Sky News it's not to evade the justice system. The government itself, the interior ministry has warned that my life is a danger. So my lawyers ask the judges that, look, if you want me to be appearing in courts, then at least provide security. Kahn's lawyer said he has agreed to appear later this month.

When the court requires him to appear in person on the 18th, he will appear. Khan is urging calm. I have told our workers that any violence does not suit us because we want elections. It suits them. We're trying to get out of the elections. Pakistani police also backing off withdrawing from Kahn's home after two days of clashes. But they say they'll attempt another arrest Thursday, leaving the country on edge. Con's popularity is rising, and he has his sights set on winning back the premiership

when Pakistanis head to the polls in October. But if he's convicted of the charges he's facing, he could be barred from holding public office. Tom? Okay, Megan Fitzgerald for us, Megan, we appreciate it. Not at Top Story's Global Watch. And we begin with that urgent search for survivors after a deadly coal mine blast in Colombia. At least 11 people killed several others trapped when a buildup of gas ignited by a spark from a worker's tool exploded. At least two people have been rescued so far. Officials say the mines, which are about 40 miles north of Bogota, are legally operated. We head to Argentina now, where the inflation rate at this has soared past 100% for the first time since the 90s. The latest surge driven in large part by the cost of food and beverages. Meat prices

is rising 20% in just one month due to a prolonged heat wave and drought. This comes as Argentina has been struggling economically for years, with 40% of the population living in poverty. And devastating floods have killed at least 14 people in southeast Turkey, with a death toll expected to rise. The videos coming in are truly catastrophic. You see them here, raging floodwaters, carrying away people and cars, roads crumbling under the force of those torrential rains.

Urgent efforts now underway to save residents trapped in. buildings. This area is still reeling, you'll remember, from a powerful earthquake that killed nearly 50,000 people last month. And the people of Syria also still suffering from that earthquake, but the natural disaster is only part of the problem. A civil war now just hitting its 12 years, compounding a hunger and homelessness crisis. NBC's Keir Simmons has the latest and some new video on it with a nation in dire straits. Dawn in Aleppo. After more than a little bit of...

a decade of destruction. It's hard to distinguish between devastation from 12 years of war and last month's earthquake. These people who've been buffeted by so much for so long, and now they've been hit again, and really you feel that breaking point within them. 36,000 buildings, mostly homes, are uninhabitable, according to the World Food Program, which provided NBC News with these images. My husband and brother were killed in the war, Sabah says. Even those days were easier than now.

The World Food Program tells us people are foraging for food. The hunger here now worse than at any time during Syria's long conflict. Prices so high, onions are a luxury. It says it is distributing food rations to around 650,000 people month. We spoke to Ken Crossley from the World Food Program. He's in Damascus, having just returned from Aleppo. I can't only imagine the devastation and the pain. that you just witnessed?

No, it truly is. It's heartbreaking and it's tragic. What we're seeing even now is we're seeing so many people whose lives have been really thrown into upheaval. They've left their homes. They're living now in shelters, in mosques, in schools, in gymnasium, some sleeping out in parks. They're clearly unable to go back home.

The massive earthquake that struck this region had its epicenter at the Syrian-Turkish border. But after a devastating civil war, Syria is harder to reach. Still, last month, this video from Aleppo province was seen around the world. A new-born baby, taken from the rubble, born more than 10 hours after the quake hit.

There was that moment of hope for that baby, Afra, but you need much more hope than that for many more people. You need not just a moment. You need a sustained commitment. You need the whole community and all of the apparatus coming together for the sake of that child, but that's also what the people of Syria right now.

They need not just a moment of hope. They not just need a sort of a glimmer, but we need sustained efforts, sustained support, and thoughtful ways of supporting the people of Syria. With 2.5 million Syrians still severely food insecure. The hunger for recovery continues. Keir Simmons joins us now in Keir, those compelling pictures only tell part of the story.

Has there been any relief to bring in food and supplies? because we saw right after the earthquake, as you mentioned in the report, it was nearly impossible for aid workers to get in or NGOs because of this war. That's right, Tom. The World Food Program has had an operation in Syria, so it has been able to do something, but ultimately there are 12 million people in Syria who don't know where their next meal is going to come from. Tom, the UN Special Envoy for Syria says, as a first priority, there needs to be a nationwide ceasefire. That's essential to resolving the conflict and then getting help in. There have been fewer air strikes, but it's still a dire picture. You know, Tom, I've got to tell you, you know, 10 years ago, all of my focus was on Syria, going there, reporting on what was happening.

Now, of course, the focus is on Ukraine. I spent a lot of time in Russia. It's really worth remembering that when we move on, when the TV cameras move on, when the spotlight moves, people are left behind and they still need help. And on that point, though, Kier, sometimes all of these places are still. connected, right? We know the head of Syria, Bashar Assad, recently met with Vladimir Putin. What do we know about that meeting, and do we have a readout? Yeah, that's some cynical diplomacy right there, Tom. I mean, we know that President Assad has been

trying to kind of rehabilitate himself after this earthquake in the eyes of the world. But also, what we're seeing is President Putin and President Assad trying to renew ties between Syria and Turkey, Erdogan there. Now, you'll know that Turkey is part of NATO. So if they can pull Turkey away from the West and towards their orbit, that will be a diplomatic victory for them and bad for the West. So, you know, that meeting, we don't know exactly what they said to each other, but you've got to look with some concern of what they may have been planning. Yeah, exactly. All right, Keir Simmons, with a lot of new reporting for us. Kier, we appreciate you bringing us that story. Coming up, we have a very special report from our series.

the Americas. They call themselves Las Patronas, Mexican women offering a lifeline to migrants making the dangerous journey for a better life. How they're helping weary travelers survive. Stay with us. We are back now with

the Americas in a dedicated group of Mexican women making it their personal mission to feed the hundreds of thousands of migrants crossing through Mexico each year. They don't do it for politics or choose sides in the immigration debate. They do it to be humane, to help people in need. NBC's George Solis spoke with one of the founding members of this group,

known to many in the region, as Las Patronas. It's a transaction that only takes a few seconds. It has to, for the safety of all involved. This train carrying more than cargo. Here, lives literally hang in the balance. Fathers, mothers and their children, risking everything to escape crime, poverty, and war, crammed in at a top box cars, the goal to reach the U.S.-Mexical border for a chance at a better life. But along the way and on the ground, a group of women with a lifeline in a plastic bag that can make the difference between life and death. Norma Romero is one of the founding members of Las Patronas,

a group of women whose name is left open to interpretation to some, are patrons of good fortune, supporters, or even boss ladies. Norma says they've adopted the nickname as an extension of their town saint, Our Lady of Guadalupe. The number of Patronas has fluctuated over the years. Now, there are about 10 women making home-cooked meals, bagging and tossing them to hungry and weary travelers throughout the day. Here, they say hope is cooked and dreams are fed.

Their aim is not to help people cross borders. but instead help them survive. Over the years, they've built a shelter located in Veracruz, Mexico, a popular stop along the treacherous train route that starts in Chiapas and heads all the way north. For nearly three decades, these women have been helping feed strangers, setting shop on the side of the train tracks. Their mission starting in the mid-90s,

when a group of men on board the train spotted women with bread in their hands and begged for a meal. Nowadays, they are feeding about 800 migrants. It's daily, still a shock after all these years. They say, no, it's not possible? What's what? Their interactions often just seconds, but she feels a connection to each one. Because, really, for me, these chichos, today are like my kids, no?

My kids, because every day they're, every year they're, I'm, I'm going to them, the weight, sometimes too heavy to bear, especially when it comes to mothers looking for their loved ones. I mean I've talked to be to be a lot of having to get to recognize in the ways that is very dolorous

and that when they're to come here is to cobihaas, it's to say, your dolor is my dog. It's very difficult. It's very tough.

Las Patronas have been able to survive largely in part thanks to donations. Even the land on which Norma's home sits on, which serves as a center of operations,

donated by her father, which she plans to donate herself. But I want to this is for something. This of the love and of hope, the people that get to this space. Thanks to social media, word of their efforts is reaching a global audience. Norma says, in a perfect world, Las Patronas wouldn't be needed.

Yeah, I imagine the best day for you would be necessary. Sure that, yeah. Okay, like there some day, all this could be to change, but it's very difficult. I don't know how fast. George joins Top Story in studio tonight. And George, from that last exchange, you know, you get that it's not about politics for these women. It's just about helping people who need that food as they make this dangerous journey across countries.

I'm curious, they've been doing this for so long. Do they say that the people riding those trains are now different? Yeah, absolutely. Norma, who you heard from there in the story. She says over the last 30 years, she's seen this switchover from mainly men making this perilous journey to now women and children really speaks to the desperate. here, Tom. Does Norma ever say that they stay in touch somehow? I know sometimes these exchanges are very fast, the interactions, but they're providing a lifeline, so there's got to be some type of bond there. Yeah, and that's kind of the beauty of the social media component through all of this. Right before these exchanges were just so fast, now she's able to go online and actually communicate

with some of the people that actually make it into the U.S. She said she's actually been here in the States and met with some of the people that she's helped, and she plans on many more visits in the future. All right, George Solis for us, George, we appreciate that. A 911 call from a nine-year-old, the child being hailed a hero. Saving her mother's life, you'll hear that incredible call and the emotional mother grateful for her daughter's calm under pressure. Stay with us. Finally tonight, this week marks National Girl Scout Week,

and in Aurora, Illinois, one nine-year-old scout is being hailed as a hero for her quick thinking during a medical emergency, likely saving her mother's life. Maggie Vespa has this story. Tonight, a Chicago area Girl Scout is trading her brownie sash for a superhero cape. We've heard of the superman. Have y'all heard of Super Ariana? Supergirl? Hey, Supergirl. The city of Aurora celebrating Aria Lehman's historic feat, coming to the rescue last month when her mom needed her the most after collapsing on the floor. My mom was trucking to me and she passed out. The nine-year-old quickly calling 911 and keeping calm.

How old are you? I am nine years old. You are doing great. Even telling dispatcher Tracy Whalen about her mom's allergies and medications. She did better than 90% of the adults I talked to. Is she still passed out? Yes. She's still breathing, but she's passed out.

Arias incredible composure, critical during a medical emergency. For her to do what she did and stay. calm. It's amazing to me. I am super proud of her. I was super, super worried. Her mom who spent 16 days in the hospital is now home recovering. Aria receiving the mayor's award of excellence. Your courage and calmness made all the difference. Congratulations, young lady, and thank you very much for all this. While not all heroes wear capes, some deserve to, at least for the day. And I'm happy that you're okay.

Because of you. One very special little girl. We thank Maggie Vespa for that report. 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.