breaking news. the first american combat deaths in the middle east since the war in gaza began. three soldiers killed and dozens more injured after a drone attack in jordan. it's a major escalation in the region. we're live with the latest

boeing 737 max 9s back in service. the planes are carrying alaska airlines passengers once more. the company's saying it's safe. now hear how travelers feel. a new concern over a.i. misinformation during the 2024 election. what you need to know to spot the fakes. and why did the camel cross the road? because the police officer told it to. see the rescue that unfolded on an indiana highway. the super bowl is set. it will and red and gold showdown in las vegas. the biggest plays from the conference finals, and what to expect from the big game. it's monday, january 29. "early today" starts right now. glad to be with you. i'm frances rivera. we begin with gbreaking news. three u.s. service members were killed in a drone strike on their base in northeast jordan. for the latest, let's go live to

claudio lavanga. what do we know about what happened? >> reporter: good morning, frances. the u.s. central command issued a statement saying that the attack happened at a logistics support military base in the north of jordan, close to the border with syria where about 350 u.s. troops are stationed doing a lot of things, giving support among things to the coalition fighting against isis. now two u.s. officials told nbc news that drone-laden attack with explosives landed near a shelter where the american soldiers were sleeping, killing three and injuring at least for now 34. now right after that attack, president biden paid tribute to the fallen soldiers. let's take a listen. >> last night in the middle east, we lost three brave souls in the attack on one of our bases. and i ask for a moment of silence for all three of those

fallen soldiers. >> reporter: in a later statement, president biden blamed iran-backed militias operating in syria and iraq for that attack. and, in a separate statement at the same time, the islamic resistance of iraq, an umbrella group that gathers all those iran-backed militias in that country says they carried out four different attacks along the border of jordan and syria, but it's not clear whether one of those attacks led to the killing of those troops. president biden vowed to hold those responsible of the attack at the manner and choosing of the united states, but some u.s. lawmakers are already pressing him to target iran for its role in backing those militias that carried out the attack. among them is lindsey graham, who, on heis x account said hit

iran now. hit them hard. this is a dangerous escalation in the middle east as you mention, this is the first time american troops are killed in the area since the start of the israel-hamas war. >> we'll be watching closely what the u.s. response will be. claudio, thank you. now to the battle here in the u.s. over our southern border. republicans in congress announced plans to pimpeach the homeland security secretary. >> reporter: alejandro mayorkas in republicans' cross hairs. the house homeland security committee releasing articles of impeachment against mayorkas, charging him with refusing to uphold the law and breaking public trust. the committee preparing to consider the resolution that the white house calls unconstitutional as soon as tuesday. >> breach of the public trust is

sufficient to impeach, and, you know, i think it's important that we respond to the american people. >> reporter: but at the same time, afterweeks of closed-door talks, a deal is brewing. >> if that bill were in law right now i would shut down the border right now and fix it quickly. >> i do feel very positive about it. >> reporter: fine it passes in the senate, house speaker meike johnson reveals it's likely dead in his chamber. former president trump weighing in. >> i'd rather have no bill than a bad bill. >> reporter: pressuring republicans to kill any border agreement. a move many hbelieve would help hem campaign against president

biden >> i am hopeful that we will still have enough republicans in the senate who want to fix the problem at the border rather than just do donald trump's bidding. >> our thanks to ali for that report. nikki haley has revealed that her house in south carolina was the victim of a swatting attempt about a month ago. armed police responded to a prank call about an emergency at the property. haley described the ordeal on "meet the press s" sunday. >> the last thing you twroont see is multiple law enforcement officials with guns drawn pointed at my parents and thinking that something happened. it is an awful situation. >> she is just the latest politician to fall prey to the dangerous prank. marjorie taylor green and florida senator rick scott have also been targeted. another airline is clearing the 737 max 9 for takeoff.

it is the fleet's first time back in the skies since the faa sgroum sgr grounded them after the terrifying incident earlier this month. >> reporter: the big push to put the max 9 back in the friendly skies now in full flight. passengers landing on flight from vegas to portland caught offguard. >> when i saw the seat card that it was a 737 max 9, i thought oh, okay, we're flying again, and i didn't think too much about it actually. >> reporter: alaska putting them back in the air three weeks after that door plug blew out over portland, with some passengers showing apprehension. >> i would have asked to change to another flight. i think she they should have tos at least. >> reporter: they deem each plane as air worthy. the airline showing its confidence by seating its own coo next to the plane's door plug on the first flight back in

service. >> we're going to put a higher bar for boeing, and we're going to hold their feet to the fire in terms of aircraft quality and delivery. >> reporter: boeing's quality and safety standards called into question, the faa investigating what went wrong while several passengers filed suit. thursday, boeing stopped all 37 max production to focus on quality. the ceo saying our long-term focus is on improving our quality. all of this as more passengers put their trust and lives in vows to maintain sky high expectations. >> our thanks to steve for that update. an arrest warrant has been issued for a reckless driver in texas. police say he posted this incriminating evidence online. the youtuber can be seen driving over 150 miles per hour with some of the other cars on the road. the drive from colorado springs to denver usually takes more

than an hour, but he appears to complete the trip in about 20 minutes. now facing multiple charges. police rescued circus animals from a burning semi truck from grant county, indiana this weekend. the state trooper came upon a burning trailer and quickly realized camelas and zebras wer inside and worked to get them out. those unrelenting storms seem to calm down this week and the temperatures are picking up. michelle is tracking this for us. >> finally a quieter start to our workweek and really the biggest story will be the record temps throughout the middle of the nation into the west. we're looking at temperatures 10 to 20 degrees above normal. this morning seeing a few lingering flurries. t the biggest story will be the

warmth in place. a little spring preview for many. temperatures in the 60s in the plains. wichita 19 degrees above normal. near 70 degrees in dallas. into the 70s in sacramento. phoenix nearly 80 degrees. and we're going to see the warmth spreading east. temperatures in the 60s. once again in the southern plains, 64 in little rock. wednesday, that will be the big story once again. another quiet day. close to records in the northern plains, central plains into portions of the west. a little flurry action in the mid atlantic on wednesday, and then we're watching another storm system bringing rain and snow into portions of the west. and that will expand on friday whertlantic.

and above normal in the south central plains. 60s in dallas. 66 in houston. all right, frances, finally, that's your quieter monday forecast. >> we'll take it. >> we'll take it. we'lsh or weighed down? could be a sign that your digestive system l have the heartbreak. but a little metamucil everyday can help. metamucil's psyllium fiber gels to trap and remove the waste that weighs you down and also helps lower cholesterol and slows sugar absorption to promote healthy blood sugar levels. so you can feel lighter and more energetic. lighten everyday the metamucil way. feel less sluggish & weighed down after just 14 days. sign up for the 2 week challenge at metamucil.com (bill) we made a promise to our boy blue that we would make theweighed healthiest foods possible... ...with the finest natural ingredients and real meat first.

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>> reporter: like this phone call to voters just before the new hampshire primary. >> it's important that you save your vote for the november election. >> reporter: it sounds like president biden, but the problem is, it's not real. a fake likely created by artificial intelligence. >> they are compelling and convincing. they sound real. they look real. >> reporter: video and audio deep fakes powered by a.i. are on the rise, and according to public citizen, right now there are no federal laws that make them illegal. >> so there's massive possibility for fraud and really introducing electoral chaos. >> reporter: ben coleman is the ceo of reality defender, a software company combating a.i. deep fakes. is it a wild west right now? >> i think it's absolutely an arms race, yes. >> reporter: free tools on the internet give anyone the ability to manipulate someone's voice. ♪ now i, i will survive ♪ >> reporter: whether it's these viral clips of a fake donald trump singing or something more

sinister. what do political deep fakes stand to ruin? when it comes to our trust in the election system? >> i think they try and change the narrative in real time right before an election. >> experts say these scams can really happen to anyone. >> reporter: using audio of my voice from social media and news broadcasts, we saw first hand how it works. let's type in a sentence, like hello, i'm vicky nguyen, and i'm running for president, and let's see what it sounds like. >> hello, i am vicky nguyen, and i am running for president. >> a voice match of you. >> reporter: then he does it using his own voice. >> hi, this is vifcky nguyen, ad i'm asking you for your vote for president. >> hi, this is vicky nguyen, and i'm asking you for your vote for president. >> reporter: coleman warns it's hard to detecti what's fake.

if you're not sure, don't sthar. >> now she wants to remain neutral. >> reporter: fact versus fiction. consumers facing new a.i. deep fakes, having to dig deeper to find the truth. still to come on "early today," the stage is set for a vegas showdown. we break down all the action, including the defending amchps looking to bejewel themselves with another super bowl ring. good thing the general gives you a break when you need it. yeah, with flexible payment options to keep you covered. so today is your lucky...day [crash] so today is your lucky...day for a great low rate, go with the general. this new charmin ultra soft smooth tear is soooo soft and soo smooth. new charmin ultra soft smooth tear has wavy perforations that tear so much better for a smooth more enjoyable go. charmin, enjoy the go. always dry scoop before you run.

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and they may have been underdogs, but the chiefs were ready for it on a rainy championship in baltimore. the top-seeded ravens had few answers for patrick mahomes and travis kelce. after a first half filled with misaccuse, lamar jackson managed

to get his team in scoring position but disaster struck for the purple birds in the red zone. >> second and eight from the nine. jackson. to flowers, he dives. the ball came out! it's recovered by kansas city. >> theraphie ravens never recov. the game was all but sealed for kc. and the defending champs advance to their fourth super bowl appearance in five years. later that night it looked like a historic rout in santa clara. the detroit lions pounced to a 17-point lead in the nfc championship against the top-seeded san francisco 49ers, but with just 30 minutes standing between detroit and their first super bowl appearance in franchise history, the niners got to work. >> here's purdy with a lot of time. steps in, watching deep, going for brandon aiyuk t is, oh, he caught it off the ricochet!

penalty! >> that incredible catch by brandon aiyuk sparked a run of 24 unanswered points from san fran who took advantage of several second half miscues from detroit. the magical playoff run comes to an end one game short of the super bowl. the it has been a history-making season for the lions hardwood counterparts. despite the single digit win total, the detroit spispistons still finding ways to shake up the world. thanks to a 22-point rebound game and the pistons handed okc the upset and earned their hard-fought sixth went of the year. when "early today" comes back, michael jordan's

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genie, oysters and a 10% discount if you pay with cash. >> we came one this idea to push sales and give an incentive. >> reporter: they started offering it during the pandemic and it's been so successful they kept it. >> we have seen an incould crease. >> reporter: at isabella's pizza pub. a 3% discount if you pay with cash. >> we put the discount in place to help reduce our fees as a business. to incent the customers to pay in cash, which will help me increase the pay of my employees. >> reporter: for businesses like cathy's, those fees can add up. she paid over $30,000 last year to credit card companies. the cash discount has long been common at gas stations, and often your plumber will offer you a better cash deal as well. the amount of cash purchases with a discount soared 66% from 2015 to 2022.

andrews young has only been using cash for two years and saves $50 a month. >> i can get a discount, why not? >> reporter: now you can find discounts discounts at places you wouldn't expect. if you're getting married, you're in luck. many wedding vendors will give you a iscount if you pay in cash. and for andrews? bowling. >> some of the places i'm seeing the cash discount useful is in gas and entertainment and service-based work. >> reporter: and we're not talking chump change. they can range from 3% to 10%. most transactions are still put on credit cards, so cash may not be king just yet. it won't build your credit score, but it does offer one other benefit. when you use cash, there's no interest rate on it either if you can't pay it off. >> correct. so once you use it, it's paid

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breaking news. a major escalation in the middle east. the first u.s. military deaths if the region since the war in gaza began. three killed and dozens more injured. the secretary of homeland security concerned