test test test. test test test. tonight, two major stories. the special counsel report on president biden's handling of classified documents. and donald trump's attorneys fighting at the supreme court to keep him on the ballot. first, that report just out from special counsel robert hur after a more than year-long investigation, finding president biden willfully retained

classified documents by recommending no criminal charges. new photos what was found in the garage and what the report said about mr. biden's memory and how he would look before a jury. also tonight, the supreme court hearing in the landmark case over whether donald trump can stay on the ballot. what the justices seem to signal today. the military tragedy. the five u.s. marines missing after their helicopter crashed in california, now confirmed dead. the grim discovery in the house fire near philadelphia after a police shootout, the family of six feared dead. just in, new video of the officers attacked by a group, including migrants in new york's times square. the charges announced. the urgent race to rescue a woman in california after she fell down a 25-foot hole. a scare at boston's airport. two jetblue planes colliding on the de-icing pad. and three days until the big game. how taylor swift has changed the whole playbook for the super bowl. >> announcer: this is "nbc nightly news"

with lester holt. >> good evening and welcome, everyone. no criminal charges, but at the same time, little to celebrate for president biden today after a special counsel investigation found he willfully retained and disclosed classified materials after leaving the vice presidency. a scathing report centered on documents, some classified as top secret found in mr. biden's home and former office. that special counsel robert hur says presents serious risk to national security, but the report also raising serious questions about the president's recall, saying his memory was significantly limited in interviews with investigators. tonight the president says he cooperated completely, threw up no roadblocks, and sought no delays. the special counsel, meantime, drawing a sharp distinction between the president's document troubles and the criminal documents case pending against former president trump. the controversy providing another split screen moment in

the race for president on the day the supreme court heard oral arguments over whether donald trump belongs on the colorado ballot. gabe gutierrez leads off our coverage. >> reporter: tonight the long-awaited report by special counsel robert hur concludes that no criminal charges against president biden are warranted. but the investigation uncovered evidence that president biden willfully retained and disclosed classified materials after his vice presidency when he was a private citizen, including marked classified documents about afghanistan and notebooks with sensitive intelligence sources and methods, which he shared with a ghost writer. a report says that posed serious risks to national security. and that at a time when polls show most americans have concerns about the 81-year-old president's mental and physical health, a special counsel's report offers scathing details of what it calls his diminished

faculties and faulty memory, writing "if charged, mr. biden will likely present himself to the jury as he did during his interview with our office as a sympathetic, well meaning elderly man with a poor memory. it would be difficult to convince a jury they should convict him. according to the report, mr. biden did not remember when he was vice president, forgetting on the first day of the interview when his term ended, and forgetting on the second day of the interview when his term began. he did not remember, even within several years when his son bo died. the president's attorneys writing we do not believe the report's treatment of president biden's memory is accurate or appropriate. >> the extraordinary circumstances here require the appointment of a special counsel. >> reporter: attorney general merrick garland appointed the special counsel in january of last year after president biden's attorneys first discovered classified documents at one of his former offices on november 2nd, 2022. the white house waited until after the midterm elections to tell the public. and the report includes these photos of where prosecutors say more classified documents were improperly stored in a badly damaged box near a collapsed dog crate

in mr. biden's garage. a separate special counsel investigated former president trump for allegedly mishandling classified documents found at his mar-a-lago estate, some boxes found inside a bathroom. mr. trump was charged with 40 criminal counts to which he has pleaded not guilty. tonight the former president is calling the lack of charges in the hur report a two-tiered system of justice. but the report argues the two cases are different. and while mr. trump was given multiple chances to return classified documents, he allegedly did the opposite and obstructed justice by enlisting others to destroy evidence. in contrast, the report says, mr. biden alerted authorities. tonight the president says he cooperated completely. >> bottom line is the special counsel in my case decided against moving forward with any charges. this matter is now closed. >> and gabe, the biden campaign is now responding to the comments in the report about the president's memory. >> yes, lester. a source close to the campaign tells me gop

attacks on the president's age are nothing new. democrats argue robert hur is not a doctor, but clearly, this will be another challenge the biden campaign faces. lester? >> all right, gabe, thank you. just before that, the supreme court heard arguments about whether colorado can ban republican front-runner donald trump from the ballot, with the justices sounding skeptical. here is laura jarrett on the potentially landmark case. >> reporter: tonight, the supreme court weighing a monumental decision that could decide the presidential election, whether republican front-runner donald trump should be banned from the ballot. but many of the justices today seeming highly skeptical of colorado's decision to disqualify him. >> it doesn't seem like a state call. >> reporter: the justices forced to grapple with mr. trump's for office after six voters in colorado successfully sued to get him removed from the state's primary ballot. but pointing to his actions on january 6th, and a provision in the 14th amendment that disqualifies

those who engaged in insurrection or rebellion from holding public office again. >> the attack was incited by a sitting president of the united states to disrupt the peaceful transfer of presidential power. >> reporter: all nine justices both conservative and liberal appearing to bristle at the potential far-reaching consequences of colorado's argument. >> the question that you have to confront is why a single state should decide who gets to be president of the united states. that seems quite extraordinary, doesn't it? >> chief justice john roberts later raising the idea of the 14th amount being used as a political weapon by democrats and republicans alike. >> it will come down to just a handful of states that are going to decide the presidential election. that's a pretty daunting consequence. >> reporter: mr. trump's lawyer arguing congress, not states must decide who is eligible for the presidency, and that the former president did not engage in insurrection. >> this was a riot. it was not an insurrection.

the events were shameful, criminal, violent, all of those things, but it did not qualify as insurrection. >> reporter: but 91-year-old norma anderson, one of the voters who brought the case, says she is not backing down, even if she loses. >> we just have to work hard to beat donald trump, because he will destroy our democracy. >> at the ballot box as opposed to the courthouse? >> yep. >> reporter: mr. trump also reacting to today's oral arguments. >> i thought our arguments were very strong. can you take the person that's leading everywhere and say hey, we're not going let you run? you know, i think that's pretty tough to do. but i'm leaving it up to the supreme court. >> reporter: laura, when could we see a decision here? >> well, lester, the justices are well aware that the voters are going to the polls on super tuesday on march 5th, including in colorado and more than a dozen states.o see a decision well before then. lestertt, thank you. federal judge ordered

former trump white house adviser peter navarro to begin serving a four-month prison sentence while he appeals his contempt of congress conviction. navarro was convicted for refusing to testify and provide documents to the committee investigating the january 6th attack on the capitol. in southern california, sad news. five marines confirmed dead after their helicopter crashed east of san diego as it returned from a training mission. dana griffin reports from san diego. >> reporter: a heartbreaking end to the search for five marines, missing after their helicopter crashed tuesday night in california. >> elevation, has visual on the crash site. >> reporter: all five now confirmed dead. >> our hearts go out to the devastating loss of those five marines. >> reporter: the ch-53e super stallion military helicopter, along with the crew were discovered wednesday. beyond this campground entrance is the remote crash site where today recovery crews are setting out on foot through muddy

frigid conditions to recover their fallen marines. >> their fellow marines have remained by their side and took shifts over the night, keeping watch over the fallen, despite the hazardous weather conditions. >> reporter: the crew, members of the third marine aircraft wing's flying tigers were on a routine training flight from nevada to california when the aircraft disappeared from radar nearly 50 miles from its destination. the same type of helicopter crashed nearby in california in 2018, killing four marines. their families later reached a confidential settlement with the manufacturers and suppliers who provided parts to the military. the question now, what went wrong this time. >> we'll have to understand what the reality, the objective facts were on the ground, but extreme bad weather, bad terrain, night conditions, they're normally capable of handling all this. but in this case, obviously, something went badly wrong. >> reporter: one thing

investigators are likely be looking at is if severe weather played a role in the crash. the marines confirming the names of all five victims will be released friday. lester? >> all right, dana griffin, thank you. just in, dramatic video from that attack on two police officers in new york's times square. the footage showing the officers trying to detain a man in a yellow jacket when he appears to resist. the officers taking him down to the ground, other men kicking and punching the officers. seven suspects, some of them migrants, were indicted today for last month's attack. manhattan's d.a. faced criticism for not requesting bail for nearly all of them. a grim search and discovery today at a suburb of philadelphia after a house burned down following a violent police standoff. george solis is there for us tonight. >> reporter: tonight, a community left reeling. a family of six presumed dead after a house fire just outside philadelphia. >> i can't even begin to tell you or estimate how long it's going to take for us to continue to do that work.

it's a very unsafe scene. >> reporter: wednesday afternoon, authorities say they received a call that an 11-year-old had been shot. >> shots fired, shots fired! >> two officers shot. >> reporter: responding police officers encountered a hail of gunfire at the scene. officers david schiazza and john meehan were shot but not seriously wounded. officers say the shooter retreated into the home and the house was set on fire. today the delaware county district attorney said the house belongs to the lee family, where three adults and three children were living. authorities say the remains of three people and a rifle were recovered at the scene. the d.a. not naming the shooter or his relationship to the family, but the shooter is related to lee family? >> we believe it could be a member of the family. but we don't know. everyone who was in the house at that fire is presumed dead. >> reporter: neighbors left waiting for answers. >> you seemed fairly emotional. >> i'm very emotional. because that's horrible. it's sad. it's very sad. it's crazy. >> reporter: this afternoon, officer schiazza was released from the hospital surrounded by law enforcement from

around the region. authority say two additional family members were at the home but left at some point. searching the home for evidence will resume tomorrow, but officials warn the process could take days. lester? >> all right, george, thanks. a dramatic rescue today in southern california after a woman fell 25 feet into what turned out to be an abandoned septic tank. she is there in the yellow helmet after the fire department hoisted her to safety. the woman told authorities she was walking in her yard when the ground gave way. she was taken to the hospital with nonlife-threatening injuries. in 60 seconds, we'll go to nevada, where tonight's republican caucuses could shed light on how a key group, latino voters, are thinking about the presidential election, right after this. ringing) customize and save with libberty bibberty. liberty bushumal. libtreally blubatoo. mark that one. that was nice! i think you're supposed to stand over there. oh am i? thank you. so, a couple more? we'll just...we'll rip. we'll go quick. libu smeebo.

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increasingly up for grabs, heading to november. >> i grew up around the corner, maybe five minutes. >> reporter: erica castro is from las vegas, zip code 89030. seven out of ten people here are latino, and this flea market is where many spend their weekends. >> got my clothes here. my mom would decorate the house from here. >> reporter: castro can't vote. she is undocumented. but as a political organizer, she'll be pushing hard for others to reelect president joe biden. are you worried about the election this year? >> yeah. people are feeling a little bit discouraged because they haven't seen the results that they were expecting from this administration. >> reporter: in nevada and nationwide, latinos are not a monolith, but in recent presidential elections, they have voted overwhelmingly democratic. that could be changing. mr. biden and former president donald trump are statistically tied according to a poll. talk to enough people in north las vegas, and you start to understand why. >> everything is so expensive. >> reporter: mario alvarez, who sells old

video games at the flea market voted for biden in 2020. now because of his views on the economy, he is flirting with the other side. >> you know, i think donald trump, he can be a good president for the country. >> reporter: other voters telling us no politician should take them for granted. >> they want our votes. now they want something from us. but they don't want to give us anything. >> reporter: also top of mind, decades of unmet promises by the demonstrates on a pathway to citizenship for people like castro. she says that's making it harder to get even her friends and family excited to vote democrat. >> democrats have historically been able to count on the latino vote here in nevada. is that still true? >> i think they're going to have to really work for it. >> reporter: of course, she told us the same goes for the other side, and whoever wins this swing vote inside a swing state could wind up winning the white house. lester? >> david noriega, thank you. up next, another airport collision.

this time two jetblue planes on the tarmac in boston. plus, the critical shortage of air traffic controllers, and the rush to train people who keep our skies safe. inside the faa academy, next. is getting smaller because of my sight. but now, i can open up my world with vabysmo. (♪♪) vabysmo is the first fda-approved treatment for people with wet amd that improves vision and delivers a chance for up to 4 months between treatments. which means doing more of what i love. (♪♪) vabysmo is the only treatment designed to block 2 causes of wet amd. vabysmo is an eye injection. don't take it if you have an infection, active swelling, or are allergic to it. treatments like vabysmo can cause an eye infection or retinal detachment. vabysmo may cause a temporary increase in eye pressure after receiving the injection. there is an uncommon risk of heart attack or stroke associated with blood clots. severe swelling of blood vessels in the eye can occur. (♪♪)

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ask your doctor or pharmacist about the pfizer vaccine... ...for pneumococcal pneumonia. you want to see who we are as americans? ask your doctor or pharmacist about the pfizer vaccine... i'm peter dixon and in kenya... we built a hospital that provides maternal care. as a marine... we fought against the taliban and their crimes against women. and in hillary clinton's state department... we took on gender-based violence in the congo. now extremists are banning abortion and contraception right here at home. so, i'm running for congress to help stop them. for your family... and mine. i approved this message because this is who we are. scary moments today at boston's logan airport. jetblue saying two of its planes collided in the de-icing pad lanes, and passengers were on board both aircraft at the time. the damage visible to the wing of one of the planes. the other sustained damage to a tail section. the flights were canceled and the planes taken out of

service. and staying in the world of aviation, to the urgent push to hire air traffic controllers after a shortage contributed to massive flight backups at times last year. tom costello goes inside the faa academy trying to quickly train the next generation of controllers. >> tower, runway 28 right and cleared for takeoff. >> reporter: for a high stress, high stakes career. >> fox trot is on frequency. >> reporter: it all starts here. >> left turns, expect further clearance. >> reporter: the air traffic control academy in oklahoma city is full as the faa pushes to staff up understaffed towers and centers. the faa says it needs 1300 more controllers. the controllers union says 3500 are needed. the faa is struggling to keep up with mandatory retirements at 56. >> how long will it take you to get to full staffing? >> our goal is five to seven years to be fully staffed and comfortable.

>> reporter: every year, 1500 new students go through the academy. it's here the controller candidates are trained for either the control tower or an en route center, handling air traffic at 18,000 feet or above. the students who seem to do the best are often video gamers. what is it about gaming skills that could make you a good controller? >> the ability to take in all of that information quickly, make a quick decision, and if that decision is not the right one, being able to come up with a plan b or a plan c. >> reporter: but the academy washout rate is high, 30%. after the academy, up to three years of on-the-job training where another 30% quit, often over stress and long shifts, working weekends and holidays. 2019 graduate janessa millner now controls los angeles airspace. >> it was one of the most intense things i've done in my life. just because you're try so hard to make it through. >> 7350. >> reporter: the

simulations as real as possible. >> now is the time to make mistakes, right? don't be nervous, okay? just follow through with everything, okay. >> delta ready for departure. >> reporter: tabletop exercises teach spacing and runway orientation. the faa is also recruiting veteran military controllers and college program grads who go straight to on-the-job training. >> to think three to four to five steps ahead. that is the type of person that it takes to do this job. >> reporter: in a business with little room for error, every detail matters. tom costello, nbc news, oklahoma city. coming up, call it the super bowl, taylor's version. how swifties are boosting the nfl ahead of the big game. ♪ ♪ i got the power of 3. i lowered my a1c, cv risk, and lost some weight. in studies, the majority of people reached an a1c under 7 and maintained it. i'm under 7. ozempic® lowers the risk of major cardiovascular events such as stroke, heart attack, or death in adults also with known heart disease.

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finally, it's shaping up to be a super bowl like no other, thanks to one super fan. emilie ikeda tonight on the swift effect. >> reporter: america's biggest sporting event of the year is about to get even bigger with the help of swifties. [ screaming ] flourishing fans of football since taylor swift started publicly dating chiefs tight end travis kelce. driving the nfl to score its highest regular season viewership among women on record. >> taylor is obviously a dynamo. everything she touches, there are people following. >> reporter: particularly in the chiefs' hometown. >> she has put kansas city, missouri on the map. >> reporter: everyone loves a love story, especially small

businesses like the pink dinosaur here, now seeing unprecedented sales. >> it's never been like this before. kansas city is so excited. we have the chiefs. now we have taylor. >> reporter: references to traylor are stitched into shirts. strong on bracelets. >> super cute. >> even baked into cakes and cookies at mclane's. >> we really do have a whole new customer base. we're getting calls from gals getting together having taylor swift super bowl watch parties. >> reporter: and there will be plenty of those on sunday. >> i really didn't enjoy football the same until taylor was involved, i'll be real. >> reporter: with lyrics, games, and of course -- >> we have friendship bracelet station. >> reporter: one marketing group estimates the pair's budding romance has generated a brand value of more than $330 million for the chiefs and nfl, a courtship catching attention around the world in japan, where swift is performing this week. >> go, go, travis! >> reporter: before she is expected to return for a super bowl of swifties' wildest dreams. emilie ikeda, nbc

news. and that is "nightly news" for this thursday. thank you for watching, everyone. i'm lester holt. please take care of yourself and each other. good night.

dangerous, new drugs, near san jose. police say it was being dealt out of a donut shop. >> good afternoon. welcome to nbc bay area news