on the broadcast tonight. applying the pressure. we're waiting for a vote tonight in the debt debate that's angered so many americans. and will it fix anything? also more of our exclusive behind the scenes access with the power players in congress. close call. an angry soldier goes awol and is now accused of trying to stage an attack at a u.s. army base. tonight police are crediting a guy who had a gut feeling that led to the arrest. feeding the hungry, the food is there, but the problem is getting it to those who need it in an extraordinary humanitarian crisis. and "life in a day." an extraordinary video project gives us a time capsule of our lives. also tonight, a change is coming for tylenol.

"nightly news" begins now. captions paid for by nbc-universal television a special good evening to our viewers in the west. well, we'll save you some of the drama and begin with the bottom line. there may be a vote in the house of representatives tonight as part of the effort to fix the debt ceiling. but it probably won't fix anything. if anything, it may prove that the speaker of the house has the votes to deliver his own party. but insiders are telling nbc news it may still be days yet until this titanic struggle is over, until some sort of solution is reached in what has become an ugly partisan fight to stop what most fear would be an economic disaster. and none of what's happening in d.c. tonight is doing anything to lessen the anger across the country. to help us lay out what is

happening in washington at this hour, we want to begin once again with kelly o'donnell on capitol hill. >> reporter: the hour is late, and it's been a power struggle inside the office of speaker boehner. he needed a handful of votes to make the statement for republicans in the end game of this debate. he just doesn't have it. to give you an idea, there are dozens of pizza boxes arriving here. and at the same time, house members, a group of them had gone to the chapel to pray. that gives you an idea how long a night this is. >> do you have the votes? >> reporter: the house speaker's job is not chief vote counter. but today john boehner led both a public and private get out the vote operation. >> let's end this crisis. >> reporter: boehner met one-on-one with undecided republicans. while nancy pelosi campaigned to keep democrats from making the difference. >> i feel very confident that if

they're going to have 217 votes, whatever it is, they're going to have to be republican votes. >> reporter: one of those republicans turned out to be veteran indiana conservative mike pence. >> i announced this morning that i would support the boehner plan. and i believe it's an opportunity -- i think we have an opportunity today to make progress on fiscal discipline. >> reporter: boehner's plan would cut spending $917 billion over ten years and raise the country's debt ceiling in two installments. that would mean another debt limit vote within months. outside the capitol, some republican freshmen from the tea party class switched from uneasy to on board. >> is this as big as we wanted to go? heck no. we wanted to go bigger. we ran on going bigger. but this is the only proposal on the table that accomplishes the goals we set out to do. >> reporter: arm twisting failed to persuade some conservatives. >> i know that there are people in my party that want to keep

beating up on me, because i can't vote for a bill that only cuts $1 trillion. >> reporter: ready to blunt any perceived boehner momentum, senate democrats came out hours early to declare that option dead. >> it will be defeated. they know that, the american people now should understand that clearly. >> reporter: and we've seen member after member coming out of the speaker's office, most of them still saying they're nos. one saying he's a beaten down, bloody no, but not willing to change his mind. they're in a holding pattern until the house does something, before they can take some sort of action on this too. everyone's on pins and needles, frustrated, tired, unsure of the end game, but really surprised it is this painful for this late tonight. >> all right. stay where you are, kelly o'donnell. let's go across town to chuck todd. what's the view like at that end of pennsylvania avenue, chuck? >> reporter: everything's on

hold. there were report that is they would start reporting out to the country, how it might work. all of their plans are on hold. they're watching with baded breath to see if boehner can get this through. this thing is going to die in the senate. why do they care? if boehner does get it through, it means the republicans have the leverage to sort of get most of what they want in the last-ditch compromise deal. if boehner fails, then all of a sudden harry reid and mitch mcconnell put a deal together very quickly that's more weighted toward what the democrats want. they don't want a second vote on the debt ceiling in six months. that's the sticking point the whole time we've been here this week. >> back to kelly, briefly. democrats rung the white house and the senate. what are they going to get out of this when it's all over? >> reporter: for democrats, what they want to do is limit the damage to the programs they hold dear. when the cuts do happen, over

time, that would be part of this package, they want to limit the chances that it's medicare, the social programs that would take the biggest brunt. they're just trying to hold the line on some of the things they consider important. up until now, it seemed republicans, especially tea party republicans had had such a disproportionate impact on this whole debate. >> all right. your government at work. some see it as why washington is badly, badly broken. kelly o'donnell, chuck todd. we'll keep watching, and thanks to you both. of course, we are just back from washington where we spent yesterday on capitol hill, all over capitol hill in fact. nbc news cameras were given special access for a special broadcast this sunday night. we talked to nearly every member of the leadership, including the gop leader in the senate, senator mitch mcconnell of kentucky. and i asked him about a hot topic, no tax increase in any of

these plans being discussed. >> why shouldn't rich folks pay more? >> they do. they pay an extraordinary amount more. and, in fact, about half of americans don't pay any income taxes at all. that isn't a sticking point. the president, in signing a continuation of the current tax rates back in december, made the argument that republicans have made, which is that raising taxes in the middle of a recession is not a good idea. i don't know that anybody thinks the economy's in better shape now than it was six months ago. but all of those issues are being discussed in conjunction with how we put together a package here that will actually begin to get us to head in a different direction. >> mitch mcconnell on what has become a big charge from the left that in any of these debt ceiling deals, the poor are likely to get hit while the rich are likely to get a pass. we will have more from him, from all the players in this, in our prime time special, "taking the hill inside congress" that's sunday night, 7:00, 6:00

central. now, to a developing story about a u.s. army soldier under arrest tonight accused of plotting to attack fellow service members outside ft. hood in texas. the same army post that, of course, was the scene of that awful attack back in 2009. this time disaster was averted, the fbi says, because a man saw something and said something. we get details tonight from our justice correspondent pete williams in washington. pete, good evening. >> reporter: brian, law enforcement officials say an army private, who wanted out of the service because he's a muslim, plotted this attack, saying he wanted to get even with the military for the fighting in iraq and afghanistan. investigators say his targets were fellow soldiers at the army's sprawling ft. hood. texas police revealed today they arrested naser jason abdo yesterday at a motel near ft. hood.

in his room, atf agents found enough explosives to make at least two timebombs. the police chief called abdo very dangerous. >> i can tell you that we would probably be here today giving you a different briefing had he not been stopped. >> reporter: in fact, federal officials say abdo planned to set off bombs today, just outside the army post. it was a tip from the owner of this gun store that led to his arrest. they believe abdo was acting suspiciously, asking too many questions. it's the same store where investigators say army major hassan bought the gun used in the 2009 shootings at ft. hood. last year while stationed in kentucky, abdo asked to be classified a conscientious objective. >> if you feel being in the military, goes against your conscience, use this army regulation, because that's what it's here for. >> reporter: that was put on hold after the army found child pornography in his possession. he then went awol and turned up earlier this week.

no comment from any lawyer for abdo, brian. we turn to libya, where we learn that the rebel's military commander was killed today, just hours after being arrested by the rebel counsel. they suspected him of being a double agent with ties to the gadhafi regime. it's not clear tonight who is responsible for the killing, but rebel security forces say they have a suspect under arrest. meanwhile, of course, the fight goes on, every day, every hour. and our own mike taibbi is with rebel forces in the mountains outside tripoli, in the town of nalut. a place they've controlled almost from the start of the conflict five months back. and as mike reports tonight, the rebels have launched a new assault on gadhafi forces just today. >> reporter: we saw rocket after rocket fired by rebel fighters from mountain top positions to the valley below. the plan was to once and for all clear gadhafi forces from two valley towns where they were stubbornly dug in. from those towns gadhafi's troops had been bombing towns like nalut, and they threaten to

try to retake the nearby border crossing with tunisia. if the rebels were to lose that crossing, a run to tripoli would be an impossibility. in the early morning haze, the rebels pounded their targets for hours. at this range it's an artillery war. these are soviet made rockets seized from gadhafi forces now aimed right back at those same forces. the rebels cheered each on target hit. though some were reluctant to show their faces with gadhafi forces hardly vanquished. >> do you know if they've retreated yet, gadhafi forces, or are they still there? >> i think they're still there, hiding in house and farms. >> reporter: the heavy artillery barrage did the job. dozens of these rockets and additional shelling by these seized gadhafi army tanks. the rebels have better weapons, including gadhafi's own, and better command and control. and by midday, they heard their ground forces had taken the first town and soon the second. they had suffered losses, these

medics handled one casualty. >> how did the man die, was he shot, was it a mine? what happened? and nalut's hospital treated the wounded from both sides. >> translator: i was surprised gadhafi's men put up so little resistance, this rebel fighter told us. but this wasn't the taking of tripoli, only an essential operation to protect key ground won months ago. a victory, but not the victory. mike taibbi, nbc news, nalut, libya. in this country we have a tropical storm coming to the texas coast, churning across the gulf of mexico tonight. it's not a big storm, and it lost some of its steam today. but it's headed for landfall late tomorrow night along the south texas coast. forecasters say the storm named don will come ashore as a tropical storm not a hurricane. whatever rain it brings may actually be welcomed in drought-parched parts of texas. there's a big change coming to tylenol.

as you may know, too much of it can damage the liver. and it's often easy to get too much of it if you take multiple medicines that contain the main ingredient acetaminophen. so to reduce the risk of accidental overdoses, johnson & johnson is lowering the maximum dose of extra strength tylenol from eight a day down to six. you will see new directions on the bottle starting in the fall. beginning next year, the maximum daily dose of regular strength tylenol will also be lowered. so this is a big change for something a lot of people take across this country. when we come back here tonight, there is food there that's intended to feed starving people in a terrible crisis. what's behind the holdup that could cost lives? and later, life on earth, all that can happen in one single day around this planet. we take it a day at a time. that's how it is with alzheimer's disease. she needs help from me. and her medication.

the exelon patch -- it releases medication continuously for twenty-four hours. she uses one exelon patch daily for the treatment of mild to moderate alzheimer's symptoms. [ female announcer ] it cannot change the course of the disease. hospitalization and rarely death have been reported in patients who wore more than one patch at a time. the most common side effects of exelon patch are nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. the likelihood and severity of these side effects may increase as the dose increases. patients may experience loss of appetite or weight. patients who weigh less than 110 pounds may experience more side effects. people at risk for stomach ulcers who take certain other medicines should talk to their doctor because serious stomach problems such as bleeding may worsen. people with certain heart conditions may experience slow heart rate. [ woman ] whenever i needed her, she was there for me. now i'm here for her. [ female announcer ] ask the doctor about your loved one trying the exelon patch. visit exelonpatch.com to learn more. toi switched to a complete0, multivitamin with more. visit exelonpatch.com only one a day women's 50+ advantage

has ginkgo for memory and concentration, plus support for bone and breast health. a great addition to my routine. [ female announcer ] one a day women's. is there a prize in there? oh, there's a prize, all right. is it a robot? no. is it a jet plane? nope. is it a dinosaur? [ laughs ] [ male announcer ] inside every box of heart healthy cheerios are those great tasting little o's made from carefully selected oats that can help lower cholesterol. stickers? uh-uh. a superhero? ♪ kinda. [ male announcer ] and we think that's the best prize of all. ♪

we are back tonight with the news of a heartbreaking roadblock in a part of the world where millions are desperate and starving. the horn of africa. the frustration tonight is that food has arrived to help with the famine, but getting it to the people who need it is a struggle. soldiers are trying to secure a safe route for relief workers, trying so hard to save children and families. it's not easy. and again, our report tonight contains images that may be disturbing for some to watch. rohit kachroo is with us from

kenya. a center of the refugee crisis. good evening. >> reporter: good evening, brian. the famine and the drought took another heavy toll today. not just here at the giant refugee camp, but among soldiers across the border in somalia trying to secure a safe route for aide workers. a sign of the dangers facing those trying to help the desperate. five brothers and sisters, together yet very alone, with a father feared dead and a mother they'll probably never see again. she sent them from somalia to kenya to seek refuge at dadaab, knowing that had they stayed, things might have been much worse. across the border in somalia, help is finally getting in. aid flights were received in mogadishu with gratitude. >> there's quite a lot -- a total of 100 tons of this special ready to use food. 80 of it for mogadishu.

>> reporter: but that's nowhere near enough. today government troops advanced on fighters from the militant group al shabab. it has blocked foreign help from getting to the neediest areas. six people were killed in a gun battle. and so the exodus continues. many heading toward kenya, walking by day, sleeping in the bushes by night. facing death or attack. at the border crossing, a somali police commander says he's doing his best to provide security. but he wishes he could provide food. this is the border between kenya and somalia, the kenyan forces over here, and the somalian forces in this direction. refugees are flowing across the border with dadaab just 60 miles over here. the problem is getting aid much further in this direction, across the border. at the refugee camp, the

suffering grows. but for many of the sickest victims, treacherous journeys from distant homes, where there is no water and little food might have saved their lives. tonight the somali government accused the united nations of not doing enough to distribute food aid. the u.n. responded by saying it's doing everything it can. brian? >> rohit kachroo reporting for us, one of the few television journalists there helping us get the story out. thank you for your reporting, rohit. up next, we'll take you to a hollywood movie premiere that ended up looking like the filming of an action movie itself. and not in a good way last night. [ male announcer ] it's a fact: your nutritional needs can go up when you're on the road to recovery. proper nutrition can help you get back on your feet. three out of four doctors recommend the ensure brand

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same coverage, more savings. now, that's progressive. call or click today. constipated? phillips' caplets use magnesium, an ingredient that works more naturally with your colon than stimulant laxatives, for effective relief of constipation without cramps. thanks. good morning, students. today we're gonna continue... energy is being produced to power our lives. while energy developement comes with some risk, north america's natural gas producers are committed to safely and responsibly providing decades of cleaner burning energy for our country, drilling thousands of feet below fresh water sources within self contained well systems and using state of the art monitoring technologies, rigorous practices help ensure our operations are safe and clean for our communities and the environment we are america's natural gas. ♪ this is for all the lonely people ♪ music fans will long

remember the voice dan peek. he was one third of the group america. he gave us "a horse with no name," "ventura highway," "lonely people," as you hear there "sister golden hair," "don't cross the river," and a lot more songs. he grew up an air force brat. he formed a group in london with other kids of americans stationed overseas. their group america was big for a time they were produced by sir george martin, who produced the beatles. he quit the group in 1977 and he turned to christian rock later in life. he died in his sleep at age 60. hideki irabu has been found dead of an apparent suicide in los angeles. his name is well known among baseball fans, especially yankees fans. he played three seasons with them, signing for a $12 million deal initially. while he pitched in only one postseason game, he had two world series rings as a yankee. his career in the u.s. was followed very closely back home in japan.

he also played with the expos and rangers. he's been retired since '02, had a few run-ins with the law in recent years. hideki irabu was 42 years old. in l.a. last night, the premiere of a movie about a technomusic festival spiralled out of control when a d.j. threw out an open invitation on twitter. thousands of people then showed up. witnesses said when police responded to the growing crowd, they were taunted, some bottles were thrown. then the riot squad came out, dispersed the fans with nonlethal bean bags fired from guns. the movie is called "the electric daisy carnival experience." it documents a party that is controversial in itself. a 15-year-old girl died of a drug overdose at last year's event. when we come back, from the mundane to the joyous, to the life changing. a day in the life of our world. [ slap! ]

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we help them save money with generic prescriptions. we talk to them about prescription safety and -- help them save money. plus we discuss possible side effects and -- help them save money! we help them save money. get care 1 on 1 and talk savings, safety, and side effects when you transfer or fill a new ongoing prescription. i'm carla, and this is my cvs. and his, too. coming soon to a movie theater near you. a documentary about all that happens all over the world in a single day. the project started last year when hollywood heavyweights ridley scott and kevin mcdonald invited everyone to videotape whatever was going on in their

lives, wherever they happened to be, and submit it, and they did. as mara schiavocampo tells us it started out as a social experiment and ended up as a beautiful and moving portrait of all of us. >> reporter: on a summer's night under a full moon, a world of stories is unfolding. for many, just another day is dawning. for others, it's their very first day. or the beginning of a new life. >> oh, my god! >> reporter: it's all part of the groundbreaking new documentary, "life in a day." sv y ment was shot by ordinary people who are in the movie. partnering with youtube. filmmakers asked people all over the world to shoot a slice of their life on july 24th, 2010 and submit it online. they also sent 400 cameras to some of the most remote places on earth. 80,000 submissions, 4,500 hours of video poured in from practically every country in the

world and every continent. >> the plan was to have no plan in a way. try to find some way to let the material tell you what it wants to be. >> you get a sort of honesty, i think, from this footage that is also very moving. >> reporter: 350 contributors made the cut, including bob and kathy lesinski. >> we're documenting everything. >> reporter: shooting day just happened to be when kathy came home after having a double mastectomy, beginning her recovery from breast cancer. >> it's been very healing for me. we look back to that day and see how far we've come as a family. >> reporter: while the film provides an intimate look at individual lives -- >> who do you love? >> my silly boys. >> i fear -- >> any kind of monster. >> dogs. >> growing up. >> it scares me more than anything. >> reporter: -- it says far more about the shared human spirit. >> it just felt like, sort of one soul, but inhabited by so many different bodies.

>> we're usually told that our cultures are so different. but beneath the culture is similarity. >> reporter: "life in a day" through the lens of the many people living it. mara schiavocampo, nbc news, new york. that's our world on a thursday night. thank you for being here with us. i'm brian williams and we hope to see you right back here tomorrow evening. good night. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com doling out a side of whiskey. how bartenders could be the next step in make sure our nation's veterans are mentally fit. and they're booing in philadelphia but they're cheering in philadelphia. thanks