Top Story with Tom Llamas - Wednesday, March 18, 2026

Episode Date: March 19, 2026

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

Tonight, the price of oil now the highest in years after new attacks on energy sites across the Middle East, with top intelligence leaders under fire on Capitol Hill. A devastating strike setting an Iranian oil field on fire. You see it there as the U.S. launches a new wave of attacks on Iran. President Trump telling our reporter Iran is going down as they launch new strikes on Saudi Arabia. Our correspondent is there as their capital is hit. Plus, the nation's intelligence leaders, pressed by senators, was Iran an imminent? threat to the U.S. Their controversial answers. Airport breaking point. Passengers waiting hours,

lines weaving around baggage carousels. The urgent warning tonight, could some airports be forced to shut down? The unprecedented heat wave out west, dramatic rescues on hiking trails as temperatures soar to triple digits in March. Explosive new reporting on civil rights icon Caesar Chavez. Disturbing allegations of abuse against women and girls after decades of silence. One accuser saying he secretly fathered two children with her. The deadly crash in the Alps, terrifying video of a gondola in free fall down the mountain. So what went wrong? The threat to the world's most famous hippo, Mu Deng, the viral sensation in a standoff with a man who broke into her enclosure.

Plus, robot gone rogue, the race to contain an out-of-control dancing humanoid inside a California restaurant. And the urgent search for an American college student vanishing after a night out on. on Spring Break in Spain, where he was last seen. Top story starts right now. Good evening. I'm Hallie Jackson in for Tom. And tonight, the escalating war with Iran triggering another spike in fuel prices as new strikes from both sides target key energy infrastructure. Look at this here, an Iranian gas field just up in smoke after it was hit.

And across the Gulf, Iran also taking aim at oil facilities. New video shows massive explosions after apparent strikes in Saudi Arabia with scenes like these sending oil prices soaring yet again today. You've got the U.S. military unleashing another wave of brutal strikes inside Iran. The Pentagon says it's hit nearly 8,000 targets there. And in a phone call with NBC News today, President Trump, reiterating to our team that Iran is, in his view, in his words, losing big. The escalating violence overseas stoking a political firestorm here at home. Here in Washington, the director of national intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, challenged by lawmakers on both sides of the aisle today about the rationale for the U.S. to get into this war in the first place.

Her testimony coming just one day after a top counterterror official, Joe Kent, stepped down in protest of the war. What he told Tucker Carlson just moments ago in just a second, all of it, as the fight between Israel and Hezbollah escalates in Lebanon, Israeli missiles, taking down this building. It collapsed. Israel had warned to evacuate beforehand. We've got our team of reporters across the region tonight covering it all, But we start here at home with Gabe Gutierrez leading us off from the White House. Tonight, the devastating wave of U.S. air strikes in Iran. The Pentagon saying nearly 8,000 regime targets struck so far.

More than 120 Iranian vessels sunk. In a phone call with NBC News, President Trump dismissing Iranian retaliation against Israel overnight. Telling me the attack was nothing compared to what happened to them. They're going down. They're losing big. Meanwhile, a strike on an Iranian gas. gas field, which Iran is blaming on Israel, and an Iranian attack on oil facilities in Qatar, causing oil prices to spike. Vice President Vance today calling those rising prices a temporary blip.

We're going to take care of business. We're going to come back home. And when that happens, you're going to see energy prices come back down to reality. All is Israel overnight killed Iran's intelligence minister, who helped launch that recent brutal crackdown on Iranian protesters. As of this moment, the regime maintains power within Iran, even though they are vastly degraded on almost every front. Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard and CIA director John Ratcliffe testifying on Capitol Hill describing the threat from Iran before U.S. air strikes. If left unimpeded, yes, Senator, they would have the ability to range missiles to the continental

U.S. Though he did not give a timeline. Still, Ratcliffe pushing back on high-ranking counterterrorism official Joe Kent, who resigned in protest over the war with Iran, arguing there'd been no imminent threat to the U.S. In fact, intelligence reflects the contrary. So you disagree with Mr. Kitt? I do. Iran has been a constant threat to the United States for an extended period of time and posed an immediate threat at this time.

Later, Democrats pressing Gabbard, who'd previously been a skeptic of U.S. intervention abroad. Was it the assessment of the intelligence community that there was a, quote, nuclear threat posed by the Iranian regime, yes or no? Senator, the only person who can determine what is and is not an imminent threat is the president. You're evading a question because to provide a candid response to the committee would contradict a statement from the White House. Gabe is joining us now from the White House. And Gabe, let's talk about the critical straight of Hormuz. There's a focus on getting that back open, and I know you have some new reporting on that front tonight.

Yeah, that's right, Halle. U.S. official tells NBC News that the military drop front. five thousand pound depenetrating bombs. They're often called bunker busters and that they slammed into facilities holding Iran's cruise missiles along the strait. But that those missiles did not wipe out the entire inventory yet, those bombs rather. Now, this is the first known time that the U.S. military has used these bunker busters in combat handling. Gabe, there's also, you mentioned Joe Ken, who left his role, his counterterror role in protest the war with Iran. He's saying late tonight that a good deal of key decision makers were not allowed to come express their opinion to the president when he was in this conversation with Tucker Carlson late today.

Here's what else he said in this podcast. Iranians have posed a threat in the past, and the Iranians have a way of threatening America. They have the capability. And we always talk in the intelligence circles about capability and intent. When they struck back after Midnight Hammer, it was very deliberate. They fired an equal amount of missiles as we dropped bombs on the nuclear facilities. And they basically hit a part of a base in Qatar that they knew we didn't have any troops on. Yes.

They didn't want to escalate any further. Based on your conversations behind the scenes there at the White House, Gabe, how much is this administration tracking Kent's comments? Look, at this point, they're really distancing themselves from Joe Kent. You heard President Trump yesterday, Halley, saying that they didn't really know him, that he still thought he was a nice guy, but that he was weak on security. Now, the president himself has not responded why someone who he thought was weak on security was in such a high-ranking job. But at this point, it seems that at least, you know, recently in this administration, Joe Kent, in this new interview with Tucker Carlson, he is seeming to say that there were

gatekeepers that were preventing him from even speaking with the president. And so his views weren't really expressed. At this point, though, the White House is moving forward and insisting that Iran did pose an event threat and dismissing any of his concerns. Gabe Gutierrez here in Washington for us tonight. Gabe, thank you. We talked about Iran unleashing this new wave of attacks on neighbors in the Gulf region. Well, the Saudi Ministry of Defense says it thwarted multiple drone attacks from Iran and intercepted ballistic missiles launched toward Riyadh. NBC's chief international correspondent, Keir Simmons, is on the ground in Riyadh forest tonight,

and it's happening as a moment when we've got leaders from across the region holding key talks there. That's right, Hallie. This is the most intense bombardment that the Saudi capital has suffered so far. Those pictures from here combined with the Saudis saying that they did intercept. every missile that's been fired by Iran on Saudi Arabia tonight, but that four people have been injured, that there was falling debris. Halle, as we flew into Saudi Arabia today, we had to circle for 90 minutes, hold until Riyadh airport was reopened.

When we did get here, we heard boom after boom. As you say, just as those foreign ministers were gathering here, they're still meeting now. It's late into the night, early morning now, here. They're still meeting. meeting, but we heard those missiles being fired on the Saudi capital here. We had where those ministers, foreign ministers were meeting, even as the Saudi foreign minister said that what he is trying to do is to de-escalate, Halley.

You talk about the potential for de-escalation, but look, we've seen the attack on oil facilities in Qatar. Now they're expelling Iranian diplomats. I mean, it keeps spiraling upwards, even with some discussion of how to get it to spiral downwards. Yeah, and one of the reasons for that is the way that this, region is so interconnected. So, for example, just take Qatar, they share a gas field with Iran, and yet it was their gas installation that was hit by Iran. Iran, as you mentioned earlier in the show,

saying, well, hold on, we are having our oil and gas installations targeted once again. So they say that it's kind of quib pro quo. That's not how Iran's neighbors see it. They are furious. As you mentioned, Qatar expelling a number of senior Iranian diplomats tonight and other countries, here are saying that their concern is this. It is that if Iran now is left with the capability to fire these kind of missiles, the kinds of drones are on its neighbors, that that will be a serious threat to this region for a long time ahead. That's the question for these foreign ministers tonight here. How do they find a path between de-escalation and ensuring that the future is better? We'll be looking for more your reporting there from Riyadh, Kyr. We're glad you're there on

the ground. Thank you for being there. Back here in Washington now tonight, the Fed is holding interest rates steady after a key meeting today, but there was an acknowledgement about the uncertainty right now, given the future of what's happening with Iran and where things are economically. Obviously, the war there continues to drive up prices, and some new Labor Department data reveals the highest wholesale inflation rate in a year. We're going to explain what that means with our business and data correspondent Brian Chung, who's going to break it all down. Bottom line is this. We just spent the last 10 minutes talking about the war against Iran. That is creating uncertainty now in the U.S. economy here.

We're seeing energy prices spike, oil prices spiking yet again with these renewed attacks. And here comes the Fed saying we're keeping interest rates steady. Yeah, and look, when you talk about inflation data that we just received earlier this morning, as the Fed was making its decision, you have producer price indexes showing that prices are rising by 0.7% for wholesalers in this country. That was well above what economists were expecting. And that's data. So that was just as a put, that's more than what economists thought was going to be. more than what economists expected, but more importantly, that report preceded the war in Iran.

So it tells us that in this economy, prices were already becoming an issue prior to the conflict, and now you have oil prices making everything more expensive and potentially making the trafficking of all these products around the world a lot more expensive as well. But look, when it comes down to Main Street, it's all about affordability. I think in these Fed press conferences, they tend to be very pie in the sky, big econ language. Are you calling them dry, Brian? My goodness. Well, look, as someone that used to work at the Fed, there's no shame in being a little dry every now and then. But I did ask the Fed chairman directly, what about affordability?

What do you see as the issue there? Take a listen to our exchange. You're well aware of the history of inflation running above target. It seems like that might be what's underpinning the affordability problem that we're hearing a lot about on Main Street. Are there any signs to you that that's impacting the psychology of the consumer, especially given that they're a big driver of overall economic activity? Hey, you know, I'm not sure what that's all about, but I'll tell you what I think and what we see. in surveys, and that is, you know, people, there were big price increases all around the world,

and it will take some years of positive real earning gains for people to feel good again, we think. But you're right. But when you talk to people, they do feel squeezed. So he's acknowledging right there that affordability is an issue, but the question is, with the Fed not lowering interest rates, as they did today, how is that going to help the average American that's facing these higher borrowing costs? Well, they don't want to, lower interest rates while there's still this concern that inflation could go up, it's a real kind of rock and a hard place situation the Fed's in right now. What's also interesting here, and what's part of it makes it's complicated, you and I talk a lot

about gas prices being a thing. You go out every week and fill your tank, right? That's a constant pain point if gas prices are spiking. We talk about, obviously, energy prices with Iran, and no real timeline, right, Brad? I mean, that's part of what makes this so difficult, is that it's a little bit unclear when anything is going to wind down. Yeah, and the third chairman faced many questions about what do you see is the impact of this war, or do you see it bleeding into overall inflation? He said, nobody knows. That's the verbate from the Fed chairman.

Again, someone that runs the arguably most important economic institution in the world, he said, nobody knows. And so when you throw your hands up in the air like that, that explains why markets were down today. Because that uncertainty is higher now. The Fed chairman is validating that we don't know where this ends. Jay Powell is not prone to dramatics, and yet he has found himself in the middle of drama with Donald Trump,

with the president here. Pressure from the president to step down. He's not budging. Well, look, just to wind up a little bit. We have to remember that the Fed chairman, term ends in May. Now, we do have a nominee, Kevin Warsh, that the president has named as his successor, but the challenge is that the Senate Banking Committee is not going to advance that nomination while outgoing Republican Senator Tom Tillis says, I'm not going to advance this while the Department of Justice is investigating the Fed Chairman for potential overspending in a big capital improvement project for a building they have on Constitution Ave.

So for that reason, there was a lot of questioning over whether or not the Fed Chairman would stay in that role. He said in the press conference today, Hallie, he is not going to leave. until the Department of Justice investigations. Can I just ask an annoying logistical timeline question? What happens if the DOG investigation is not over and his term ends? Does he have to go or can he stay on or does that mean we have no Fed share? If Kevin Warsh is not going through that committee, then in theory the Fed chairman, J. Powell, stays in until the committee moves, which could be, Hallie, when the Congress turns over in January of next year.

Midterms, all important, it all comes back to that. Brian, thank you so much. Appreciate that. Let's take you to the West now where this history-making heat wave is happening as we speak, millions of people under heat alerts, as sky high temperatures store under the triple digits, and it is still winter officially. Liz Croyd says this one. Across the west tonight, a scorching March heat wave making winter feel more like the height of summer. From California to New Mexico, 38 million people under heat alerts. Cities like Tucson and Phoenix bracing for triple digit temps.

Neither have ever before seen a 100-degree day in winter. Those are June. Those are July temperatures. The Phoenix Fire Department says already this, week they've had to make at least two heat-related rescues on their hiking trails, which the city is now closing during the day through Sunday. Multiple spring training games in the area are also moving to evening hours. Take breaks every 45 minutes. Get in a cooler environment and cool yourself down. In L.A., the blazing sun beating down on these construction workers in Altadena. If it comes about one or two o'clock, we are dying out here. I mean, it is hot. We rolled up yesterday at 2.30 because it was so

hot. We drank four Gatorades each, four water. It was like, you can't get enough fluids. Some ski resorts now forced to close for this season early. These images from Vail, Colorado, show parts of the slopes so melted you can see the grass. And in Nebraska, the warm, dry, and windy conditions continue to fuel those massive wildfires that have now turned deadly, claiming the life of 86-year-old Rose White, a grandmother who died trying to escape. Liz Croix is joining us now from Altadena. And Liz, I mean, you said it. It's the end of winter here. And there's really not much relief in sight from this heat for folks. Yeah, Holly, that's right. This heat wave is expected to last through at least Sunday. And we can already feel it here. It is well into the 90s right now. We're finally starting to get a little bit of a breeze, but it is not going to let up. And Hallie, just to the east of us in Palm Springs, they might break a record of 109 degrees. If that happens, that will be the highest temperature ever recorded in the U.S. in the month of March, Halley. That's really something. Liz, thank you. Also tonight with spring break in full swing. Some of the worst. TSA lines we've seen yet during this Homeland Security shutdown, and the man picked to lead

that department next, facing heat on Capitol Hill. Here's Tom Costello. Five weeks into the partial government shutdown and some of the longest TSA lines we've seen yet, hours long lines in Miami. We always get here like three hours early, but some of these people are really scary. Same in Atlanta, the line weaving around the luggage carousels. If you have a flight out of Atlanta today in the next couple of hours get here as soon as possible. And New York, LaGuardia. Get here about three hours before your flight. Making matters worse, an airport ground stop and power failure in Denver.

The TSA says nearly 10% of its entire workforce called out Tuesday. Also working without pay, the Coast Guard, FEMA, and U.S. cybersecurity. Democrats and Republicans both insist they want to fund Homeland Security. Why are we not funding these agencies that protect Americans? We have put on the floor bills to fully fund TSA. And my Republican colleagues have objected. But Republicans object to Democratic demands to include ICE policing reforms. Part of a contentious confirmation hearing for Senator Mark Wayne Mullen to replace outgoing DHS Secretary Kristy Nome.

Today, Mullen refused to apologize for calling Senator Rand Paul a snake and saying he understood why Senator Paul's neighbor attacked him in 2017, causing serious injuries. I just wonder if someone who applauds violence against their political opponents is the right person to lead an agency that has struggled to accept limits to the proper use of force. As far as me saying that I invoke violence, I don't. Mullen softened his position on some immigration policies while defending federal officers who should, shot and killed two Americans in Minneapolis, though he said he regrets making statements blaming Alex Prattie for his own death. I went out there too fast. I was responding immediately without the facts. That's my fault. That won't happen as Secretary. Would you want to apologize to the family of Alex Prattie?

Well, sir, I just said I regret those statements. Is that the same as an apology? I haven't seen the investigation. We'll let the investigation go through. And if I'm proven wrong, then I will absolutely. Tom is here with us now in Washington. And Tom, stick with this hearing here because there was some there's this war zone claim that some senators still seems skeptical about with him right yeah i think there's a high degree of skepticism here the bottom line is mullen has claimed that in the past he has been in or near a war zone and smelled the smell but he's been very opaque about this people don't quite know what he's talking about he never served in the military right he then today said he can't go into specifics he was on a

classified mission while he was a house member a house mission Well, the senator said, the House doesn't classify things as secret. What are you talking about? He refused to talk about it. He said, I'll tell you what, we'll go into the SCIF. In other words, the secure briefing room where you can't bring electronics in. And you can't talk about it after, by the way, because it's classified. And he said, I can only give you kind of a thumbnail sketch of it in the SCIF.

So I got to say he had a pretty skeptical audience, both Republicans and Democrats, not quite sure what he's talking about there. And whatever was discussed in that private setting, the secure setting, we just don't know. If he does get confirmed, he will lead a department that is currently, as you know, in a shutdown right now, which is why we're seeing some of these tremendously long lines at airports across the country. And there's this warning now from TSA that some airports could have to stop operations. Yeah, I mean, first of all, let's also remember that TSA is the administration. TSA has also, you know, they have an agenda that is here as well. But regardless, the TSA is saying, listen, we've got across the whole country 10% call out rates with our officers right now.

Some airports, 30, 40, 50% are calling out. In Philadelphia, they've already had to consolidate the TSA gates or the TSA checkpoints from multiple down to even fewer because they don't have enough on staff. And in some airports that could continue to get worse if officers are working without a paycheck, right? So the longer this funding crisis goes on, officers aren't getting paid. What the TSA is saying, more likely more and more and more will call out to take a second job to make ends meet, and then smaller airports are more likely to see simply no TSA gates. We'll see how it goes, but that's where they are right now, as we're day 33 on this. Plenty to watch. Tom Costello, Tom, thanks for being here. Appreciate you.

We are back in a moment with more, including the search for an American college student who went missing during spring break in Spain. The growing questions tonight about where his phone may have been found. Plus, the disturbing new allegations against Caesar Chavez, one of the most prominent labor leaders in our country's history. What we're learning now. Plus, the deadly scene at a Swiss ski resort, a gondola breaking loose, crashing down the mountain. That very scary video just ahead on top story. We're back now with the disappearance of an American college student on spring break in Spain. His family all but begging for information tonight after he went missing during a night out in Barcelona. Here's Maggie Bespa. These are the missing person flyers blanketing Barcelona tonight, where American college students are frantically searching for 20-year-old Jimmy Gracie. The Chicago area native and University of Alabama Jr. Who mysteriously vanished from this beachfront nightclub.

Last seen around 3 a.m. Tuesday, this is a photo of Jimmy taken that night. It's overwhelming, right? It's one of those things you think isn't going to happen to your family, especially a country you don't speak the language. Jimmy's aunt, who says they're working with Spanish authorities and the U.S. State Department tells us Jimmy was on spring break visiting Theta Kai fraternity brothers studying abroad. Chapter President Kevin McLeay is also visiting. He wasn't with the group Monday night, but learned what happened the next morning. My heart sank to my stomach.

Immediately invoked some pretty scary thoughts. McLeigh says the brothers had shared locations and quickly tracked Jimmy's phone. This location was at that police department, and that's how we came to find his phone was there. Neither police nor family are saying how officers recovered Jimmy's phone, and tonight there's no trace of him. He's a great kid. He's responsible. He typically makes very good decisions. And that's really why we're really worried about him right now. I want to bring in Maggie, who's joining us now from Chicago. The family has told you, Maggie, that there may be surveillance video. Do you have any sense of if that exists, if it's going to get released, et cetera? Yeah, Halley, great questions. There's been a lot of reporting about this today. And we've been in touch with the family all day. So here's what we can tell you who's confirmed right now. The family telling us that they have been told, seemingly by authorities, that there may be surveillance video. showing Jimmy outside the club. So take that to potentially mean as he was leaving. But they want to be

very clear. They said this has not been confirmed to them by authorities, nor have they been shown any kind of video. So right now it's just a potential that authorities are looking into. They say it may be owned by the club and that could be why there's a bit of a delay here. But suffice it to say that this family is just again in agony waiting for any morsel of information. Jimmy's dad right now, for what it's worth, has made his way to Spain, while his mom and four younger siblings wait and cling to hope here in the Chicago area. Pally. Maggie Vespa, we're watching this one, and I know you'll continue to do that. Thank you. Still to come here on Top Story tonight, the new season of the secret lives of Mormon

wives put on pause, according to a source, as the show's star speaks out during allegations of abuse. We'll tell you what she's saying. Plus, searching for ET answers. Is the government gearing up to drop a bunch of UFO files? The new domain name raising questions. But first, Top Story's top moment. And the excellent. Extra special birthday surprise for Ohio mom Lori. Her husband Mark planning a special trip to Florida for her 65th birthday. What she didn't know is that all three of their kids

would be joining them. Here they are surprising her one by one. Look. Can I come? No. Her daughter tells us they were all in town to see mom's favorite singer, Darius Rucker. What a great birthday surprise.

Happy birthday to her. Stay with us. We've got more top story on the way. Now with disturbing new allegations against civil rights icon Caesar Chavez, the prominent labor movement leader who died more than three decades ago, now facing allegations he sexually abused women and girls.

Now some are calling for his name to be removed from the schools and streets named after him. Here's Camila Bernal. I think that it is a fair contract. Tonight, shocking allegations that Latino labor rights icon Caesar Chavez, whose name is on schools and monuments across the country, sexually abused women and girls. Decades after his death, Dolores Huerta, now 95, who co-founded the United Farm Workers Union with Chavez, revealed in a statement he sexually assaulted her twice.

The first time I was manipulated and pressured into having sex with him. The second time I was forced against my will and in an environment where I felt trapped. Werta says the encounters resulted in two children with Chavez. I chose to keep my pregnancy secret and after the children were born, I arranged. for them to be raised by other families that could give them stable lives. Her statement came after the New York Times published an investigation detailing Wirtas' account, along with two other women who say Chavez, sexually abused them beginning when they were 12 and 13 years old. NBC News has not spoken with the women.

One, Anna Morgia, is seen here next to Chavez during a March in 1975. The Times said it found extensive evidence to support the two women's claims through a interviews with more than 60 people, union records and confidential documents. Neither the paper nor NBC News have been able to corroborate WERTA's claims, which she said she kept secret for 60 years. Chavez, together with Huerta, led a movement widely credited with transforming farm labor in the United States. It is a pleading for social change for social justice. Guaranteeing union protections, health, safety, and social services. Tonight, his family acknowledging the allegations,

calling them deeply painful, adding they wish peace and healing to the survivors and commend their courage to come forward. Camilla is joining us now from Los Angeles. You look ahead to the end of the month at Camilla Chavez's birthday. This is a day where there's usually a number of commemorations here, but we've seen cancellations already

since the publication of this piece. Yeah, that's right, Halle. It's actually a state holiday here in California. and so many organizations and political leaders struggling to process and come up with explanations. Even Governor Gavin Newsom saying that there's likely going to be difficult conversations moving forward. And even the union that he co-founded now saying that they're not going to celebrate on March 31st and actually encouraging people to instead of going to Caesar Travis events to go to immigration justice events, They're also saying to focus on acts of service towards farm workers here in the United States.

So it's very difficult for these organizations as they grapple with this new reality and try to merge it with the man that they believed that he was and the things that he accomplished in the movement. One thing that's very important here is that Dolores Huerta's did make it very clear that it's not about one man. She said it's important to remember that it's bigger. It's bigger than one individual. It's about every single person that marched and that did all of this to get those rights for farm workers here in the United States, Hallie. Camila Brunall, thank you very much for that. I want to bring in Matt Garcia, Professor of History at Dartmouth College, author of the book from the jaws of victory,

the triumph and tragedy of Caesar Chavez and the farm worker movement. He also consulted with the New York Times reporters who broke this story. Matt, thank you for being with us. It's a pleasure, Halle. Of course. So let's start with, I think, big picture here. I know that again, you consulted with the team that worked on this from the Times. And this is, I think, for many people, and I've heard from some folks, for a lot of folks, it's a very heavy moment, considering Chavez the movement he led, the revelations now, the accusations that have been put forward in this Times piece.

Can you just put into context the influence that he had on so many people for so long? Yeah, Caesar was someone that achieved the impossible. There was no collective bargaining rights for farm workers in this country. He was able to achieve it with the Agricultural Labor Relations Act in California. It didn't go national, but it was very instrumental in bringing justice to farm workers in California. And then it was embraced throughout many other states, Arizona, Texas, Oregon. They all sought to uplift the farm workers' movements in those states. And Caesar is an icon to them as well.

And Dolores Suerreta, she worked so closely with him and to have their legacies linked and then have this happen is incredibly significant. Talk us through that piece of it. Yeah, that was a revelation to me. In fact, I knew about some of this after publishing my book in 2012, and some of the young women came forward in closed discussions amongst veterans. But the revelations that came forth in the New York Times were shocking because Dolores has been very much a defender of Chavez's legacy.

When I published my book, she was very critical of my book and refused to shake my hand. I hope that we can, you know, get by that now because I see her as someone who deserves sympathy, and I've always thought she deserves appreciation. And when you talk about the women who come forward, I want to read a piece from the Times in which they say that many of the women stayed silent for decades, both out of shame and for fear of tarnishing the image of a man who has become the face of the Latino civil rights movement. image on school murals, his birthday, a state holiday in California. As Camilla talked about a moment ago, it speaks to why it would have been so difficult for these women to raise their voices previously, perhaps. Yeah, and it was happening within the families. A lot of these people

lived in La Paz, which was a closed community. In the mid-1970s, Caesar moved to try to make it an intentional community based on a now discredited drug rehabilitation center known as Synanon. And so, So this was not just the place where they worked and had their passion for justice, but it was also their homes. And so they didn't have really an outlet to express things like this, troubling discoveries and troubling experiences. It took several generations for this to come out. And we're already seeing the fallout now.

You heard Camille talk about some of that. But I wonder if you can reflect a bit. You know, this is his name is on buildings. You know, it's on schools, it's on streets, et cetera. I wonder if you can reflect on how you see, perhaps, the way that this fallout sort of continues to develop in the days to come. Yeah, I think Caesar must fall in terms of his image, his leadership role for farm worker justice in this country.

There are numerous organizations that have been struggling in the shadows of the UFW. And the UFW has not been a real effective organization since the late 70s. There are organizations like migrant justice in the state that I live in Vermont that are leading the way with innovative protest and, you know, relationships with businesses like Ben & Jerry's creating the food justice movement here. So that's just one example. And I think what's going to happen now with Chavez kind of moving away, We can focus on all those organizations throughout the country that have really, I think, fine-tune the efforts to bring justice to farm workers today. Okay.

Matt, we're so glad to have you with us. Thank you very much for your perspective and for bringing that context. We really appreciate your time. I want to take it out of Top Store's news feed, starting with a huge train crash, not far from Houston. Some 26 train cars scattered across the tracks after it went off the rails. Nobody was hurt. You see it there. but it messed up traffic for hours.

Officials say two of the cars started leaking ethanol. That has now been contained, but the NTSB does plan to investigate. In Orlando today, crews tearing down the Pulse nightclub, nearly 10 years after an attacker walked into that club and opened fire, killing 49 people and leaving dozens of others heard. This was one of the deadliest mass shootings in American history. Now the city is planning to build a memorial to commemorate those who were killed in that massacre. And an unexpected twist during a police pursuit in Florida.

sprinting away from officers before jumping into a river to try to get away. Deputies didn't let him get far. They hopped on paddle boards. Yes, that's right, to chase him out on the water. They ended up paddling fast enough to catch up with him. They brought him to shore. We're told he's now charged with loitering, prowling, and resisting arrest. And have you seen the new domain name that the government just registered for a website? Alien.gov. If you go there, this is what you're going to see. Clearly, it's not live right now, but you know it's raising questions. Remember, just last month, the president said he's ordering the Pentagon to release a bunch of files related to UFOs and aliens. We are out to the White House for comment.

They got back to us writing, stay tuned, exclamation point, alien emoji. I'm just quoting it. That's what they said. Plus, a very scary incident in Switzerland, too. A gondola at a ski resort crashing down as intense wind picks up. This crash turning deadly. Our Danielle Hamimjean has more on the investigation into what happened. This is the terrifying moment a gondola comes crashing down a mountainside.

Video capturing the cable car overturning multiple times at this ski resort in Engelberg, Switzerland, after it detached from the cable and plunged down the mountain. The winds blowing it more than 50 miles an hour as a helicopter was dispatched to the scene and people rushed to help. Police confirming only one person was on board, a 61-year-old local woman who later died of her injuries. Police saying, as a result of the accident, operations had to be suspended and passengers had to be evacuated. The fatal crash, coming after a particularly difficult season in the Alps. The new year began with a fire in a club that killed more than 40 people, many of them teenagers. Then weeks later, a series of deadly avalanches.

Back in central Switzerland, the cause of this gondola crash still under investigation. Danielle Hammamjian, NBC News, London. Coming up here on Top Story, much more to get to, including Mood Dang Mania, apparently still going strong, how somebody managed to slip inside an enclosure to get some close-up time with the viral pygmy hippo. And remember this classic line from Finding Nemo? Fish are friends, not food. Turns out maybe Bruce the friendly shark was right after all.

We'll explain next. We are back with the real-life reality TV drama, with the star of the secret lives of Mormon wives responding to domestic violence allegations. After sources say Hulu pressed pause on filming for the show's latest season, and as she's set to debut as the newest bachelorette. Here's Valerie Castro.

I'm Taylor Frankie. Paul, your new Bachelorette. Tonight, the newest face of ABC's The Bachelorette speaking out amid allegations of domestic violence with her former boyfriend. Honestly, it's been a heavy time to see the headlines. Taylor Frankie Paul asked on Wednesday about the allegations involving Dakota Mortensen, the father of Paul's youngest child. I'm a person that will always speak my truth, and I'm, you know, that's what I'm known for. And so when the time is right, I will be. you could ever want.

Paul is no stranger to television. She catapulted to fame after starting on the Hulu series The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives. I said a boom, chick a boom. The show centered on a group of women in Utah made famous by their mom-talk videos. Filming for season five now put on hold after Paul and Mortensen are said to be involved

in an ongoing investigation. This according to three sources close to the matter telling NBC News. Honestly, I don't call the shots with production. And so as of now, I have gotten word that it also has been paused. As far as I know, it was, but I don't know for how long and I know. But overall, I still think we love each other. It's toxic.

I know it is toxic. Paul and Mortensen's volatile relationship playing out on season one in 2023, which also aired this police body camera video. The neighbors called in. They heard a bunch of yelling. He did it. You? Sorry.

Oh. It's sorry. She was launching those metal chairs at me. Left and I mean, put hold of the wall. Because I was so scared him in my garage. He pushed me into the wooded thing. So I reacted. That incident leading to Paul's arrest on multiple charges,

including assault, according to the Salt Lake County Sheriff's Department. Paul has said all the charges were dropped. The Draper Police Department in Utah declining to give specifics on this latest incident, saying its practice is not to release details related to details related to active investigations. However, a police spokesperson told People magazine there is an open domestic assault investigation regarding the pair. NBC News has reached out to Paul and Mortensen, along with ABC Hulu and their parent

company Disney. None have returned requests for comment. Paul's latest headlines making for a thorny situation. What is going on behind the scenes there as far as damage control? The reality has managed chaos. I think that there's a lot of fear around every single decision. Valerie Castro is joining us now. Okay, Valerie, Bachelorette, I think it's premiering or airing this Sunday over on ABC, and Bachelor Nation is always very invested on what the bacheloretts do. This is no exception here. That's right, Hallie. And some are actually already calling for the show to be canceled before it even premieres on Sunday in light of all of these allegations.

But some are also calling out Taylor Frankie Paul for something she posted on social media, and it appears that she might have revealed a little bit too much. Take a look at this clip that she posted to TikTok. You see here they're dancing, and then you see the arm of an unidentified mystery man. It's unclear if that is a contestant on The Bachelorette, but eagle-eyed fans might be able to, by process of elimination, figure out if he is on the show, if that's the person that she gave the final rose to, who knows. But Frankie Taylor-Paul this morning said that it is someone who is currently in her life, but she says she couldn't give too much away. We should note that Cineban had a partnership or a brand deal with both of the shows, The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives and The Bachelorette.

But in light of everything that's happened today, they said they are pulling that partnership, that collaboration, the company in a statement saying, recent developments and allegations surrounding the lead cast member led us to reassess this collaboration as it no longer aligns with our brand values. Hallie. Okay. Valerie Castro, thank you very much for all that. Appreciate it.

To top stories, Global Watch Now. Police in London say they've busted a criminal network connected to a series of smash and grabs. Look at this video here. A suspect taking a sledgehammer to the outside window. Another, they're using a car to break into this fancy clothing store, clothes boutique. In all, police say they made off with about $130,000 in stolen stuff. We're told seven people have been arrested and sentenced to a combined 22 years in prison. And big celebrations in Venezuela after that country won their first title in the World Baseball Classic. Fans very excited dancing and cheering in the streets of Caracas.

Venezuela upset a star-studded team USA squad, beating him three to two in the championship game last night in Miami. Venezuela's acting president Delci Rodriguez declaring today a national holiday. And scientists have long believed that sharks were solitary creatures, right? You probably know that they're alone, that that's how they prefer to live their lives. Turns out that may not be the case. A new study out of Fiji looked at bull sharks. super aggressive and found that they're actually pretty social. In other words, they like to have friends. Researchers say that finding could help us better understand how sharks survive, especially in their

younger years. Got to take you over to Thailand now where a man's been arrested after climbing into the enclosure of Mu Deng, the viral pygmy hippo sensation. Sam Brock has the story of what happened next. Tonight, this Thai man is behind bars and facing charges for breaching a zoo enclosure outside Bangkok where he appears face to face with one of the most famous animals in the world mu dang the ridiculously adorable pygmy hippo who first gained virality more than a year ago she is so adorable drawing throngs of crowds to her southeast Asian stomping grounds one of many popular animals that have won our hearts over along with punch the monkey pesto the penguin and those pandas bow lee and Qing Bao none of

whom have seen a security breach. The unwanted visitor in Thailand, jumping into the enclosure when officials were handling evening care for the animals. The director saying the man stayed for a minute or two before staff noticed him and did not attempt to flee while the zoo called police, according to the Associated Press. In a post on Facebook, the zoo adding, based on an inspection by the keeper, Mu and her mom, Jonah, are unharmed, but they may have been slightly alarmed by the encounter with an outsider. But despite this incursion,

so cute, very cute. The internet's favorite animal is back to what she does best, making people smile. Sam is joining us now. It's a heck of a story, Sam. And I think everybody wants to know. How did this guy get over the barrier or the fence or the gate or whatever it was?

This is the million dollar question in the entire conversation, Hallie. You're talking about one of the animals that is the biggest attractions in the world in zoo life. How did someone just just jump into the enclosure according to the zoo. The staff was actually in the middle of animal care, and he, quote, took advantage of a window to go to an unauthorized area. It's only authorized for personnel and use that area as a springboard to get inside of the enclosure. So it sort of explains

how this all happened. The zoo hallie says that they're going to be pursuing every legal means available to them. So trespassing might just be the first step in all this. And the zookeeper even said, these are hippos. They are dangerous. I get nervous walking into this. enclosure. It's amazing this person wasn't injured, but you might say it's a moo point because it's not going to happen again. She didn't actually say that. Back to you. Okay. All right, we'll let you have that one. Sam Brock, thank you very much for that. Appreciate you. When we come back, robots going rogue will tell you why this dancing humanoid had to get dragged out of a restaurant. Plus, some of the unexpected words of wisdom. We'll introduce you to the teacher who got some marriage

advice from her young students. Stay with us. We are back now with a viral moment out of California after one restaurant's dancing humanoid robot got a little two foot loose and arm loose and well you got to let Jesse Kirsch explain this one. This is the moment things started heating up in Cooper Tito, California. At this hot pot restaurant, a humanoid robot's attempt to bust a move just going bust. Items flying in the air. Restaurant workers appearing to try to rein in the robot with little luck. The way this played out, it's funny, but what are the potential risks of a robot like that going haywire in a tight restaurant setting?

No, my reaction was first laughter, and then I immediately said out loud, this is very scary and very unsafe. I wouldn't worry too much about this robot sort of going rogue and leaving the restaurant and doing anything. I think it's just much more of a physical fear here. NBC News chief tech analyst Joanna Stern says this humanoid should have a kill switch that its operators do not seem to know how to use. It was likely on in entertainment or dance mode and then something just went wrong in terms of the connection. This Bay Area scene just the latest reminder that technological leaps come with headaches. This Russian humanoid debuted with a face plant.

These Chinese soccer playing robots are not ready for prime time either. But still, many companies are racing toward the future of tech. In China, these robots are even helping police. But Stern says both the hardware and AI have room to grow. This can be a huge billion trillion dollar business for companies all over the world. But it also is going to change the economics and the way people work. This latest take-up happened at a Bay Area Heidi Lau restaurant. For years, the company has pitched itself as a technology innovator, leaning into AI and robotics.

Tonight, Heidi Lau telling NBC News the robot is part of a pilot setup. The company riding in part, in this case, the robot was brought closer to a dining table at a guest's request, which is not its typical operating setting. The limited space affected its movement during the performance. The company adding, we remain committed to providing a safe and enjoyable experience for our guests. Our Bay Area NBC station visited the restaurant after the video surfaced and found the hot pot robot seems to have finally cooled off. Jesse Kirsch is joining us now. Jesse, it may be an unknowable question. How many bizarrely dancing robots or strange robot move videos does the world need? What do you think?

I don't know how many cringy moments we have in our future, but I can tell you about how many robots who might be capable of this we might be seen in the future. According to a 2025 piece of research from the Bank of America Institute, we could be seeing three billion humanoid out in the world by 2060, with almost two-thirds of those being in people's homes. But we need to take a moment and do a reality check here. When we think about robots today, as Joanna Stern our colleague points out, a lot of them are in factory settings, right? Controlled environments, you're doing the same movements again and again. You know largely what's happening in those spaces. But when you go into a restaurant, when you go into someone's home, that's improv. You cannot predict that. That requires a lot more technology potentially. And then if you want to be a good dancer, I mean, you can't teach that, Halley.

So who knows when will be seeing that? And you would know, Jesse, as I know you know, it's in you or it's not. People are just going to have to take our word for it on that. We're not showing them tonight. Jesse Kirsch, appreciate you. Thank you, pal. Finally, tonight you've got one teacher turning to some unexpected experts, right before her wedding.

Those experts, her second grade students. For second grade teacher Clarissa Trevino, her most personal class assignment yet. I love my students, I absolutely love them. They're the funniest kids. I just wanted to have them involved with something with the wedding. When her boyfriend Omar proposed,

Trevino immediately started thinking about how to include the class. So she turned to them for marriage tips. The marriage advice I give my teacher is carefree. each other and look for to give her flowers. Get her Starbucks every day. Not eating each other's snacks. Oh yeah. That one's very important too. Now happily on their honeymoon, the couple says they've already started putting the advice to good use. To take her on a date and go to a five-star restaurant. Yeah, like he's going places. He knows. And I did just that when we got to Vegas where we had our wedding. I went ahead.

and got the corner table at the Eiffel Tower. Trevino posting the words of wisdom on TikTok, where it now has half a million views. The marriage advice I give my teachers to be kind and love each other. You know, these are seven and eight-year-olds talking about, you know, love is kind, you know, so it was really nice to kind of see how they thought. You know, kids are amazing. Thank you so much for watching.

top story. I'm Hallie Jackson in Washington. Stay right there. We've got more news now on the way.