on the brost on the broadcast tonight, conduct unbecoming. an airline apology after slamming soldiers coming home from afghanistan with baggage fees. end game? difficult questions tonight over whether the u.s. should continue the long afghan war. heat and smoke. another day of record temperature as the arizona wildfire blazes on. and "making a difference." tornado-ravaged joplin gets help from some folks who know a thing or two about disasters. "nightly news" begins now. captions paid for by nbc-universal television good evening. after almost a decade of war in

afghanistan and the stunningly high price paid by those fighting it, we have a reality check tonight that is rumbling across the political landscape. there are 100,000 u.s. troops on the ground in afghanistan, fighting the taliban. but the hope has been to create a stable environment for the afghan government to stand on its own. a new congressional report out tonight is dashing those hopes, suggesting there has been little in paufs for the billions in aid that has been spent there. more on that in a moment. the story causing the most outrage at home is a story about soldiers returning home from the war. tom costello joins us with that story. all right lesser, good evening to you. this is sentiment to the power of youtube, and the proceed this country feels for the soldiers fighting overseas. it's a youtube video turning out

to be a public relations disa disaster for delta airlines. >> i just returned from afghanistan yesterday. >> staff argent walker and bill o'hare were forced to pay extra for their baggage because they each had four rather than the three they were each allowed. >> for me, it was a weapons case. three rocket launches and a .9 millimeter. the tools i used to protect mimeself and the afghanis while i was deployed. >> how much was it? >> over 2,800. >> back home in colorado, sergeant o'hare's wife says they're on a very tight budget. >> to find out $200 is being taken out of your check that's should be paid for by your job, it's a financial burden, it

really is. >> reporter: there was outrage on the internet today. on the stars and stripes site, they said, they're aeour arms a faces. there should be no fees no matter how many bags they have. >> shame on delta. delta got the message, reducing the three bag law to four bags. coincidentally, that was the very day outlets were made from custom customer satisfaction. tired of united airlines. jetblue doesn't charge for baggage. they have charged the soldier s $2,800.

>> delta has regrets that this incident caused the soldiers anything but welcome home when they got to the states. it also says it honored their service and they thank them for their sacrifice. >> in washington, there's a question being raised about the war itself. 1,599 have been killed since the war began in 2001 with. now, osama bin laden's longtime number two has surfaced with a eulogy of sorts for the al qaeda leader. jim miklaszewski reports on the difficult issues raised tonight. >> reporter: after battling for taliban for nearly ten straight years, the u.s. military is now engaged in the most intensive and deadliest fighting ever. even as the political battles of the war in afghanistan are heating up back home. on chill today, a

confirmation for the new ambassador to afghanistan, ronner crocker, turned into a full-on debate about the war itself. democratic senator john kerry declaring the cost for the war, the troops and treasure, is too high. >> it's neither proportional to our interests or sustainable in my opinion. >> reporter: still, questioned u.s. support for an afghan government that remains inefficient and rife with government. >> when i see karzai talk about them as a combat force, i have real problems having american lives shed. >> the reports came on the same day that senate received a report that after getting $billions in support, afghanistan has shown little influence in building anything. and for crocker, the u.s. ambassador at the height of the iraq war, it's all too familiar.

>> it's illusions of how to get done with the challenge. if iraq was hard, it was hard. faek afghanistan in many respects is harder. and today, a reminder of why the u.s. went to war in afghanistan to stay there in the first place. a video from al qaeda's number two, ayman al zawahiri, promising revenge for killing osama bin laden. in a half-hour rant, he urged jihadists to destroy new york, bury washington, and bring airlines down on their heads. >> dwling what you're seeing here is coming out of a sort of desperate move to establish a population that has another direction. good the congressional debate over afghanistan will pick up again tomorrow. in confirmation hearings for leon panetta to become the new secretary of defense. and it's shaping ipto be a real battle over democrats and republicans oufrb how many

americans forces should start coming home next month. in washington tonight, the scandal of congressman anthony wein weiner's gets difficult. >> an extraordinary few days for congressman weiner for his career and places. now, there's pressure that atsdzed to the prershz he's under. they have confirmed from multiple sources that congressman wynne ewynner and h are expecting their first child. abidine is an official with secretary of state, hillary clinton. she was not by her husband's side maenonday when he confesseo years of ludz behavior with women online. the couple was married last suppsu sumger in a celebration

officiated by bill clinton. >> democrats in congress are pulling for his resignation. they say it's not a real concern right now. >> thank. >> the record-setting heat wave spread east today. ten cities set new high records for this day. 102 in wichita. 97 in st. louis. 99 in washington, d.c., and a steamy 94 here in new york. now to the wildfire in arizona which has grown to 600 quer miles, an immediate danger to local residents and a potential threat to a big section of the country. nasza images shows smoke from this fire pouring over the rocky mountains and kansas to the great lakes region. george lewis joins us now, it looks like mars is where you are, george. >> it is surreal, lester. the sun is blautded out by thick smoke, and this play, summerville, along with eager,

are under a new evicuation order. everybody told to get out, this as firefighters battle to save the homes around here. the fire just keeps growing and growing. and firefighters say there's very little they can do to contain it right now. >> these are east of greer. >> many of the 2500 people on the fire lines have been busyieg backfires to protect from the monster blaze, even as the winds kicked up again. >> they're doing a good job of corralling what they can. >> all of their hard work can be mainlined by the strong wind. >> it's a big deal. we have to really watch the clouding and pay attention to where the winds are going. sdwr it's the afternoons and evenings that bring the worst conditions. >> red-flag warnings are posted for 11:00 a.m. to 8:00 pmg. that's when the winds are the

highest. >> just last night, residents of sou sou south eager, arizona, got the order to head out of home. as they headed out of town, they had to wonder if their homes would be there when they returned. some residents ended up at this shelter. the mayor of eager is among the evacuees. >> it's difficult because i feel separated from the community. that's where i really want to be. >> reporter: but there will be no returning for the residents of eager until the fire danger is over. and tonight, the flames are endangering a poll of fire lines. those lines, if they're damaged, could cause rolling blackouts in texas and new mexico. lester? >> george lewis in arizona for us, thank you. in the upper plain starts states, it's not fire or winds. it's water.

six dams have caused massive amounts of water to go to into the missouri river. >> the missouri river is rising, putting intense pressure on the already fragile levee system here. and now the promise of two inches of rain up north in montana will only bring more strain here as well as off the river. >> communities along the missouri river holding steady along the landscape now changes. half a mile from here in south dako dakota, a city edgar sees. >> they have been asked to evacuate several states in a flood marriage. that was a dramatic rise well before its crest, swelling to record levels. divers look to unplug storm drains, houses are emptied while levees are fortified.

>> darryl lived through the historic flood of 1952. the river swallowed businesses, sank homes, and forces 100,000 to flee. >> nobody really thought this was going to happen. >> reporter: downriver in dakota dunes, a community sits deserted, and look to be faceing the most imminent threat. although evacuees can only watch and wait, the spirit along the missouri remains high. >> this shelter takes in pets from evacuees on the move marilyn had to leave behind mystery. not sure when she'll see him again. >> we don't have power, but we're surviving. all is well. we care more about our dogs than ourselves. >> communities may be dry, but lives certainly have changed, and folks who lived here along the river are worried not only about the levees but the rain and snow. much more in montana. >> thank you. and a quick look at a couple

more dramatic wind moment today. cameras from the canadian broadcasting company caught lightning striking the cnn tour yesterday. show you what nasa caught, an impressive looking solar flair. nasa called it a medium-sized event, and that could have some effect on radio communications on earth tonight and tomorrow. when we come back in a moment, we go back to japan where the nuclear disaster is worse than 1st told. and later, experts making a comeback, and the tragedyied that's making a difference. making a difference where it counts. we're having mexicanonig, so another pill then? unless we eat later, then pill later? if i get snack now, pill now? skip the snack, pill later... late dinne pill now? aghh i've got heartburn in my he. [ male announcer ] stop the madness. take prilosec otc for frequent heartburn. one pill a day. twenty-four hours. zero heartburn.

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e the disaster of fukushima's nuclear plant is back in the headlines after revelations that radiation released after the march 11th tsunami might have knin twice as bad as prior estimates. we went back to the region to report on how the people are doing nearly three months after the disaster. >> reporter: this man drives three hours every day. from an evacuation center to feed his pride breeding cow. his village is 24 miles from the crippled reactors. the government ordered the area evacuated in april because of rising radiation levels. it's now mostly a ghost taupe.

the farmers have a hard time selling their animals. this man's wife led with him, his children and grandchildren left the area. his guard station marks the border of a major evacuation zone. the reactors are 12 miles down the road, and nobody goes in without permission. many remain in sheltders, including more than 900 in this convention center 35 miles from the plant. this man, his wife and their children were forced to flee in the hours after the accident with only what they could carry. volunteers at the center entertain the children and the adu adults, but the family has been living on these mats for three months. >> translator: i never thought it could ever be as bad as this. i always thought nuclear power was safe.

>> reporter: they were told they would get an apartment soon, but the chemical plant where he worked was near the reactor. company will transfer him, but so far away, he'll be separated from his family. this woman and her husband just got an apartment. her son is 4 months old, and infants get more priority. >> when i was born, the reactor was already there. i never thought about it. >> reporter: now she worries about the raediation's effect on her children. already, the radiation has effected tens of thousands of lives. robert bazell, nbc news, fukushima, japan. and one more piece of fallout connected to the fukushima disaster rr switzerland's parliament today voted to phase out nuclear plant, gradually shutting their plan between now and 2024. germany is also going to close the rest of their plants by

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carole king joining the "today" show family today and paying tribute to meredith vieira as she signed off as five-years as "today" co-host. the morning was filled with tears, laughter, and music. and was inspired with a power walk through the center to journey's "don't stop believing." we'll continue to see meredith around these parts, but we know a lot of people will miss seeing her every day. at the same time, we want to thank our good friend ann curry for taking over for meredith alongside matt tomorrow morning. up next, a lesson in southern hospitality and resilience from new orleans. fidelityelped us get to this point,nd now we're tking abouwhat comes next. man: wworked together toreate a plan to help our money last. woman: so we canave the nd retement we want. now, you know how this works. just stay on the lin

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with an irregular heartbeat called atrial fibrillation, or afi that's not caused by a heart valve problem. today we have pradaxa to reduce the risk of a stroke caused by a clot in a clinical tria pradaxa 150g reduced stke risk 35more th wfarin. and th praxa, there's no need for ose regular blood tests. adaxa is progress. pradaxa can cause seris, sometimes fatal, bleeding. don't take praxa if you have abnormal bleeding, and seek immediate medical re for unexpected signs bleeding, like unusual bruising. pradaxa may increase your bleeding risk you're 75 or older, have kidney problems or a bleeding condition, like stomach ulcers. or if you ke aspirin products, nsaidsor blood thinners. tell your doctor about all medicines you take, any planned medica or dental procedures, and don't stop taking adaxa without your doctor's approval, as stopping y increase yo stre sk. other side effects include indigestion, stomach pain, upset, or burning.

if you have afib not causedy heart valve problem, asyo doctor if pradaxa can reduce your risk of a stroke. we return to we return to join sgroo we return to joplin, missouri, still digging out of the devastating destruction from the tornado last month. last night, they gault a breather from folks who know a lot about bouncing back from disaster. >> reporter: after a heaping helping of disaster, joplin's

resvents and volunteers had a warmer welcome. >> a taste of new orleans brought to town by chef regio's cooking up ingredients donated by the seafood industry. >> we're lifting speirit and seeing how can we help out. when every is gone, we can say, we still have your back. >> they filled bellies with jum bulia, crawfish, even galter. and a sffiddler, amanda shaw. for those whose homes were redir reduced to rubble, they want to rebuild. >> we want to rebuild. it's positive vibes, i guess you can say. >> obviously, the massive damage that happened here can't go away in one day, but the folks who survived katrina said they need the break and a return to

normalacy. >> he helps people in katrina without the water. >> he should know, he lost his home to the hurricane and hasn't rebuilt. thaz hope their recovery isn't as long. they sunk their life savings into this 100-year-old house, only to see it vanish. >> this is just soulful, a delight, like i can make it through tomorrow. really can. >> reporter: dancing, dining, smiling, and as they say -- >> can i have a hug? >> reporter: overcoming. monrot, nbc news, missouri. >> that's our broadcast for this wednesday night. we hope to see you back here tomorrow evening. good night.

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