[ cheers and applause ] this morning on "early today" post raid roundup. pakistan arrests cia informants who helped lead the u.s. to osama bin laden. burn notice. for the first time in more than 30 years the government rewrites the rules on sunscreen. and hats off. the u.s. army ditches a much and hats off. the u.s. army ditches a much hated part of their uniform. captions paid for by nbc-universal television hello and good morning. welcome to our viewers across the nation including pacific time zones. i'm lynn berry, and today we

begin with asking for trouble. in a development that's certain to increase tensions between washington and islamabad, the "new york times" is reporting pakistan has arrested several cia informants who provided information that led to the killing of osama bin laden. for more on the report we go to nbc's tracie potts. she's in washington for us. tracie, good morning. >> reporter: lynn, good morning. five in all, according to "the new york times" report this morning including an army major who apparently was writing down license plates as they were going in and out of the bin laden compound. we've just gotten news this morning that a senior pakistani official says that this report is not true. he denies that they've arrested the major, but he made no comment on the other four people believed to have been arrested as informants of the cia. this was apparently discussed during secretary of defense

gates' trip to islamabad. a cia official says that the relationship between the u.s. and pakistan is about a three on a scale of one to ten. since that raid, the big concern here we need pakistan's help in the war on terror to root out and fight al qaeda. here on capitol hill, though, there are still concerns about the $2 billion we're giving to that country every year. >> tracie, thank you. house speaker john boehner is demanding the obama administration come up with answers soon about the ongoing u.s. military operations in libya. in a letter to the white house the republican charges the administration will be in violation of the war powers act by this weekend and urges the president to explain the legal grounds for the continued u.s. military involvement, setting a friday deadline for the commander in chief's response. the white house maintains that it has been in compliance with the war powers act and has

called the resolutions unhelpful and unnecessary. nevertheless, nbc news has learned a new presentation of information may be made available to congress as soon as today. wisconsin governor scott walker has been handed a victory regarding his anti-union law that triggered protests in the state capitol. in a 4-3 decision wisconsin supreme court overturned a lower court which had ruled that republican lawmakers violated the state's open meetings law when they passed the measure which strips most public employees of their collective bargaining rights. the republican governor has argued the measure was needed to help balance the state's budget. now an avalanche of lawsuits is expected. here's a look at other stories making news early today in america. a scuffle erupted inside a rhode island courtroom after a murder suspect made an insensitive comment towards the victim's family.

the son and ex-husband of the victim lunged at the suspect after he told the judge the victim's family would help pay his attorney's fees. the family members were not charged for the disruption. tornado victims in joplin, missouri, suffered a devastating setback when a fire destroyed a building used to store their belongings. dozens of firefighters battled the blaze for several hours before gaining control. the industrial building also housed several businesses which were also destroyed in the fire. a florida motorist is lucky to be alive after pulling over to ride out a storm. two trees fell on the 85-year-old's car moments after heavy rain forced him off the road. live power lines also collapsed on the car, forcing the man to sit in his vehicle until an emergency official told him it was safe to exit. he did not suffer any serious injuries. and, finally, a new jersey

kosher food company may have baked their way into the record books with a monster offering of matza. the business set what they believe is a new world record, cooking up the world's largest. new york's mayor was all too happy to taste the 25-foot jewish treat. deliciousness! now for a look at your national weather. here's meteorologist bill karins with your forecast. >> that's beautiful. >> thank you so much. >> good morning, everyone. around the country, the heat has been building. finally we've gotten to the 100s in the las vegas area. i say finally because it's actually taken a long time compared to normal. we were 103 in vegas. this is the heat season has finally begun. phoenix 106. beginning to build in the desert southwest. we've got a little warmer. san francisco, the valley was

easily up into the 80s. for today nothing much going on in the desert southwest or in california, but a weak storm system moving up to british columbia dragging a cold front through. that will give us showery weather. nothing that will soak your day. but there are sprinkles out there. that will keep temperatures cool, too. but once you get out of the clouds. today vegas and phoenix both predicted to be about 108. we'll take a look at some rain in alaska and a look at your thursday forecast coming up. >> all right, bill, thanks. also coming up, so-so data thrills the street. big ben weighs in on the debt ceiling, and an action figure

that tweets but will not resign. your early morning business headlines are straight ahead. plus, for the first time arnold schwarzenegger's mistress tells her side of the story. coming up, justin verlander flirts with another no hitter. jeter's pursuit of 3,000 is put on hold, and a manager climbs to new heights to earn an ejection. you're watching "early today."

good morning. welcome back to "early today." i'm lynn berry. here's some of your top headlines this morning. president obama visited puerto rico on tuesday making him the says first u.s. president to officially visit the commonwealth in 50 years. the trip was widely seen as a campaign swing courting the 4.6 million puerto rican voters who live on the u.s. mainland. a government investigator tells congress the social security administration made $6.5 billion in overpayments in

2009. most of that money went to supplemental income recipients who underreported their worth. a federal judge in san francisco has upheld last year's ruling by a gay judge that struck down california's same-sex marriage ban. the federal judge ruled the gay judge's sexuality and ten-year same-sex relationship did not affect his ability to be impartial. more flights have been grounded from south america to new zealand as volcano in chile continues to spew ash. the volcano roared to life earlier this month after lying dormant for decades. and starting today, the u.s. army will be sporting a new look. after ten years of complaints from soldiers about their berets being too hot, awkward and unable to block the sun, the army is ditching the black wool hat in favor of its old patrol caps. berets will still be worn by

rangers, airborne troops and special forces. now here's an early look at one of your top health headlines on msnbc.com. broad spectrum is the government's new buzz word to describe sunscreen products that do an acceptable job of blocking all types of damaging sun race. current standards of protection apply to only ultraviolet b rays which sauce sunburns. under new rules published tuesday, products will also have to protect against more penetrating ultraviolet-a rays associated with skin cancer. for more information on this and other health stories, you can check out the health page at msnbc.com. >> narrator: early today health is brought vagisil screening kit. lets you test for vaginal infections at home. >> now here's an early look at how wall street will kick off the day. the dow opens at 12,076 after climbing 123 points yesterday. the s&p added 16 points. the nasdaq rose 39. taking a look at overseas

trading this morning, in tokyo the nikkei gained 26 points, but in hong kong the hang seng dipped 152. tuesday almost seemed like old times on wall street as stocks roared, posting their biggest gains in nearly two months. however, most analysts say the upward trend won't necessarily last. ironically, bad news that wasn't quite as bad as expected, drove buying. retail sales in may dropped for the first time in 11 months, but less than forecast. as a result, department stores and other retailers moved higher with nordstrom and home depot up 4%. also in retail jcpenney zoomed 17% after naming ron johnson, the man who pioneered apple's retail stores, its next ceo. traders worried about the stalled recovery also got a boost from data showing wholesale prices rose in may by the smallest amount in ten months. best buy rose 5% after reporting results that beat

forecasts. avis budget group says it will take over avis europe in a $1 billion deal, raising suspicions avis budget is backing away from its bidding war with hertz for rival dollar thrifty. in a rare offering of political advice, tuesday fed chief ben bernanke warned congress to raise the u.s. debt ceiling, saying not to do so would increase the possibility of economic instability and risk a potentially disastrous loss of confidence in america's creditworthiness. nokia said tuesday apple has agreed to pay royalties for using nokia technology, ending their ongoing patent disputes. finally, you knew it was only a matter of time, right? a connecticut company is now offering an anthony weiner action figure. actually, two versions. one censored and another uncensored. not for kids there, folks.

the cubs walk-off winners. the blue jays rely on the long ball, and a minor league manager climbs the walls, literally. plus, great pitching performances usually include great plays like this one by austin jackson in the field. your early morning sports headlines are straight ahead. in weather we're continuing to watch the impressive heat in the desert southwest and thunderstorms will be widespread today. your forecast is coming up. you're watching "early today."

good morning. if you're just waking up, this is "early today," and in sports derek jeter on the verge of a major career milestone found out tuesday he's about to take a spot on the bench. here's nbc's fred rogan with an early look at all your sports headlines. good morning. derek jeter needs six more hits for 3,000 in his career. he was hoping to reach that milestone sometime this week, and now he will have to wait until july. for the first time since 2003 jeter placed on the 15 day dl with a strain in his right calf. one of those nagging injuries that can take a week or month to heal. the yanks did fine without him against the rangers. nick swisher added to the lead with a solo bond to left. check out the fan. he was there to make the grab, but the ball bounced off his hands, and that's why you always bring a glove to the game. yanks won it 12-4.

first place on the line in detroit. the tigers justin verlander was dealing. struck out 12 indians, and got a little help from his friends. shin-soo choo with a shot to center. he made a leaping grab at the wall. verlander had a no hitter when in the eighth cabrera said enough is enough. lined one into center. that was about it for cleveland's offense. verlander pitched a two-hitter. the tigers won it 4-0. orioles and blue jays needed 11. adam lindh to make sure they didn't play 12. walkoff homer to right. the jays ended a four-game skid with a 6-5 win. not as dramatic but just as effective. castro ended it with his first career walkoff. chicago rallied from three down to beat milwaukee 5-4. finally aaa manager gary allen climbed to new heights to make a point. in this game the empire changed a ninth inning homer after he discovered it landed between the wall and the padding.

he was so furious he climbed the outfield wall in search of the ball he thought landed over the fence. we sped up the video for the sake of time, but allenson was unable to locate the baseball. gary allenson scaled the wall to earn a lofty ejection. that's your early look at sports on "early today." i'm fred rogan. coming up, kim kardashian's wedding gift tab and hugh hefner's wedding is off. your early morning entertainment headlines are straight ahead. plus meet one boy who is not letting the tough breaks that may have come his way stop him from shining on the diamond. you're watching "early today."

welcome back on this wednesday morning. in alaska, it's been interesting. while the west coast of the united states has had a cool spring, you've had a mild spring and pretty dry in some places. today showers from fair banks t anchorage. as far as the forecast for the west coast, mild weather if not hot conditions for much of california down to the desert southwest. cool up around seattle and portland as that front went through. it will linger with clouds. 70 in seattle. if you're watching us on king 5 news, seattle, washington, see the classic comedy "abbott & costello meet the mummy" at the nonprofit grand illusion cinema. that's your who's on first event of the day list. bill, thanks so much.

here is an early look at this morning's headlines and entertainment. arnold schwarzenegger's one-time housekeeper and mistress has given her first and only interview. she said she did it to set the record straight. mildred baena tells "hello magazine" that when her son was told about a year ago that schwarzenegger was his father, he just said cool. baena said she cried together with maria shriver when she confessed the boy was arnold's. she says she sympathizes with schwarzenegger and hopes with time he and shriver can work things out. elsewhere "people" magazine reports that natalie portman has given birth to a baby boy. e! online reports that kim kardashian has registered at a posh beverly hills store. if they get everything they ask for, it will set back friends and family a whopping $172,000. one wedding i'm excited to not

be invited to. the marriage of 85-year-old playboy founder hugh hefner and 25-year-old crystal harris is off. hefner disputes a tmz report the split resulted from a fight between the two, tweeting, she simply had a change of heart. they were too young to get married anyway, though. this comes to us from wsls 10 in roanoke, virginia, where one child's loss of a leg has not stopped him from taking part in america's pastime. a birth defect forced doctors to remove one of nathaniel's legs, but his disability hasn't slowed him down on the diamond. look at him go. using heart and hustle, the 10-year-old doesn't let a prosthetic leg stop him from making plays, whether on the field or on the mound. nathaniel gives his all. i'm lynn berry. and this is "early today."

one light bulb in northern california brings new meaning to energy efficiency. inside this firehouse a 60-watt bulb has been shining bright for 110 years. that's right. other than a few power outages, the oldest known working light bulb hasn't failed for more than a century. no one is quite sure how it's possible, which has made it a mystery and a tourist attraction. it can be tough to find the perfect home, but one duck in canada seems to have it all figured out. lucy has made her nest in the middle of a garden center's parking lot where store employees have made sure the mom to be is well fed. she's guarding her six eggs and refuses to move, but wildlife officials say after they hatch, mom and duck and crew will be

moved to a safer spot. a routine traffic stop in germany became anything but after officers took a closer look. police stopped a minivan that seemed overloaded only to find there was another car stuffed inside. the driver said he used a forklift to stuff in the compact so they could transport it to the baltic region. however, the police stopped the trip because the van wasn't secured properly. i hate it when that happens. i usually put my compact car in my back pocket, so it's strange. >> remember kit and knight rider where the car would come out of the back and slide down? >> not as high-tech as that. >> that's what they were going for. >> it's time for an early look at some of the stories we'll follow throughout the day here on nbc. the "uss carl vinson" is scheduled to pull into a san diego port, returning after a historic deployment to bury osama bin laden's body at sea.

bin laden's corpse was transported to the aircraft carrier last month after navy seals shot and killed the terrorist. nasa will host a briefing today to discuss black holes in the universe. a special satellite recently located a super sized black hole and a galaxy 425 million light-years away. on this day in 1864 arlington national cemetery was established in virginia on confiscated land belonging to confederate general robert e. lee. all day long you can stay on top of the latest developments in those stories and others as they break on msnbc and tonight be sure to watch brian williams with "nbc nightly news." the very latest on the anthony weine scandal as his wife returns from an overseas trip, and he faces new calls to step down. details on arnold schwarzenegger's mistress who is finally speaking out about their affair and love child. and now keep it on this channel for continuing local news, weather, sports and more. i'm lynn berry. thanks for watching "early today," just your first stop of the day today on your nbc

stations. the day today on your nbc stations. have a good one. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com