on our broadcast tonight, mean season. anger erupts on the campaign trail, mitt romney gets heckled on t at the state fair, the president blasts congress, it's starting to get rough out there. the terrible toll in afghanistan just got worse. more americans were lost today raising more questions about our longest war.r. amazing recovery. for two years after she was mauled she was so disfigured she hid behind a veil. now after a rare and risky surgery, she reveals her new face. and pitch perfect. a woman gets the surprise of her life at a ballpark when she discovers who's behind the catcher's mask. discovers who's behind the catcher's mask. "nightly news" begins now.

captions paid for by nbc-universal television good evening, these have been a strange few days in our country leaving a lot of folks feeling unsettled and demoralized after the u.s. lost its credit rating and then lost 30 of its very finest in uniform overseas. today we suffered more losses and we also got a glimpse of the anger in the country after what we all have just witnessed in washington. gop candidates are in iowa tonight, what they thought would be some straight up campaigning, some at the iowa state fair. they smell opportunity as you may know in 2012. but one man, at a mitt romney rally had another idea and it kind of set the tone for the day. we have two reports and we begin with chuck todd in ames, iowa tonight.

chuck, good evening. >> reporter: we're in the middle of the single most important 48 hours to date. on saturday a new candidate gets in, texas governor rick perry. tonight a very contentious debate is likely. why? because the iowa straw poll could end some candidacies. even before tonight's republican debate in iowa, gop front runner mitt romney found himself on the defense. >> i'm going to let you speak in a moment. >> you came here to the listen to the people. >> i came here to speak. and you'll get to ask your question. hold on a second. >> reporter: visiting a state where he has spent very little time this year, romney showed a rare burst of emotion when challenged on taxes by a group of democratic activists. >> i'm not going to raise taxes, that's my answer. i'm not going to raise taxes. if you want somebody that's going to raise taxes, you can vote for barack obama. >> reporter: moments later he was heckled again, this time over the issue of corporate taxes. >> one is we could raise taxes on people. >> not people, corporations. >> corporations are people, my friend.

we can raise taxes on -- of course they are. everything corporations earn ultimately goes to people. where do you think it goes? >> reporter: for months romney has had the luxury of staying above the fray. >> all righty. >> reporter: but with the formal entrance of texas governor rick perry on saturday, former aides say romney will be forced to engage more. >> when you're the front-runner, you don't like any strong opponent, but you like clarity. and perry could bring some clarity to the race for romney. >> reporter: romney is not the only one feeling the heat, former minnesota governor tim pawlenty has struggled to get out of the shadows of minnesota congresswoman michele bachmann. he has invested heavily in this weekend's straw poll and observers say it could be a make or break moment for him. >> he's got to do very well in order to stay alive. >> reporter: pawlenty is not alone, all the announced candidates are crisscrossing the state acting as if this might be their last day on the trail. and to top it all off, sarah

palin and her bus tour rolls into town tomorrow. chuck todd, nbc news, doyle. >> reporter: i'm kristen welker at the white house. the tough talk wasn't just on the campaign trail, the commander in chief was also fired up. >> there's nothing wrong with our country. there is something wrong with our politics. >> reporter: speaking at a factory at holland, michigan, president obama tried to tap into the frustration that has been expressed by people all across the country that say the government isn't working hard enough to fix an economy in turmoil. >> people are frustrated. maybe you're hearing my voice, that's why i'm frustrated, because you deserve better. >> reporter: mr. obama pointed the finger squarely at congress, saying it was partisan wrangling that led to the recent downgrade of the nation's credit for the first time in u.s. history. >> this downgrade you've been reading about could have been entirely avoided. if there had been a willingness

to compromise in congress. >> reporter: house speaker john boehner reacted this afternoon releasing a statement that says president obama likes to talk about being the adult in the room but there's nothing adult about political grandstanding and even the president's space has lashed out showing that mr. obama hasn't shown enough leadership. >> the republicans know that this president will compromise they know he will capitulate and they have his number and the american people want to see the president fight. >> reporter: now some critics are calling on the president to cancel his vacation to the upscale island of martha's vineyard later this month. the white house says that's not in the cards right now, nor is calling congress back from their five-week recess. >> the last thing we need is congress spending more time arguing in d.c. >> reporter: and tonight the president is attending two fund-raisers in new york. tickets for each, $35,000. when asked if these fund-raisers might give the wrong impression, the white house press secretary said americans understand that politicians need to raise money.

>> speaking of congress, house minority leader nancy pelosi named the final three members of what they're calling the joint select committee on deficit reduction, the supercommittee on the hill. six democrats, three house members, six republicans. they have until late november to come up with a plan to reduce the deficit by $1.5 trillion a should be easy. the pressure is on them in effect to do washington's dirty work. it will then be subject to an up-or-down vote before christmas. if their plan is not adopted, then automatic spending cuts including cuts to medicare and defense spending will kick in. no one will blame you if you get dizzy watching the stock market this week, stocks surged higher on wall street today. the dow gaining 423 points, the nasdaq s&p 500 also up, more than 4.5%. but look at it this way, so far this week, the dow has been down, 635 points, up 430 points,

down 520, now up 423, which somehow brings us to cnbc's sue herrera. sue, is this just the way it's going to be for a while? >> i hope not. maybe for a little bit longer. what we have seen so far this week is unprecedented. never before in history has the dow had four 400-point days, either to the up side or to the down side. i have never seen this kind of volatility. >> all this talk about congress, of course, reminds us what's at stake here is, forgive the expression, it's not just wall street? >> it's absolutely bigger than wall street, it's a global problem, it's a debt problem over in europe. it's the investor's perception that washington is not serious about the debt here in the united states. and all of that has created an enormous amount of uncertainty, on wall street itself but also on main street. and that's not good if we're looking for an economic recovery. >> and the head of the feds seem to be saying pretty directly that the forecast looks like two

down years. >> it does and that's why the federal reserve is going to keep interest rates low for the next two years. wall street liked that news initially. but now wall street is coming to grips with the fact that the reason the fed is keeping interest rates low for two years is because the economic recovery has stalled, housing is not improving. the jobs numbers are not good. a lot of people are out of work. all of that is a combination that wall street right now is worried about. >> sue herrera, it's been great to have your wise counsel this week. thank you. always good to see you. the terrible price being paid for america's war in afghanistan got even higher today. six more americans were killed, in addition to the 30 shot down in that chinook helicopter over the weekend. in all, 41 americans have died in afghanistan just this week. the single worst week of our nation's longest war. word of these latest deaths came just as the pentagon was releasing the names of those killed in that chopper shootdown.

nbc's chief foreign correspondent richard engel with us tonight from kabul. richard, good evening. >> reporter: good evening, brian. there's been so much talk recently about navy s.e.a.l.s, but today it was army soldiers who were killed in what appears to be a spike in the violence. >> reporter: this is where the single deadliest attack in the afghan war took place, a remote valley southwest of kabul. a crater and pieces of a chinook transport helicopter are the only traces of the 30 americans who lost their lives here. and just before 9:00 a.m. today, 300 miles to the south, five more american troops were killed by a roadside bomb and small arms fire. all week and across the nation, americans have been mourning. long embraces in nebraska, wooden crosses by a road in dover, delaware. and in virginia beach, friends lined up to honor navy s.e.a.l. kevin houston who was laid to

rest today, one of at least 41 american troops killed so far this week. but why? >> if our objective was to have a centrally governed afghanistan, we have lost the war. >> reporter: the white house does not agree and says a withdrawal is already underway. the u.s. military says it is weakening the taliban. but recent internet videos show the militants appearing organized in large numbers and well armed. some analysts say the united states needs to decide what the goal really is. >> some of the military chain of command needs to convince the president that leaving large numbers of conventional troops inside afghanistan is accomplishing absolutely nothing, since what we're really trying to do is chop the taliban and al qaeda up into little pieces, using unconventional means. >> reporter: and the costs are mounting. >> i worry that during the long

run, even after we withdraw troops, we will continue to have to pump in tens of billions of dollars a year to keep afghanistan stable. >> reporter: but regardless, brian, of the debate about the war, what can't be lost tonight is that so many american military families are mourning. >> richard, i talked to one veteran commander, speaking of the mission that was shot down over the weekend who said an estimated six to ten of those a day go on, either attacks or extractions using some of our very best and chinook helicopters going on and hopefully coming out. any evidence that number has changed, is changing or will change? >> no evidence that i have been able to see. chinooks are used all the time and when they are used at night, generally you can't see them, they come in generally without any of the lights on and this was a lucky shot i was told by the taliban. chinooks are big, they are slow, but with their lights out, they are pretty stealth as well. >> they are certainly ubiquitous

in both of these wars, richard in kabul tonight, thanks. now we turn to london, the streets are calm tonight, some of the police officers who have been dispatched to keep the peace spent today raiding homes and rounding up suspects that have been identified from those four straight nights of violence, riots, fires, looting. meanwhile prime minister david cameron said today he would look here to the united states for help in preventing a repeat. he specifically mentioned a familiar name in the police business, william bratton, the former chief of police here in new york and l.a. and boston as someone who might offer some solutions. when our broadcast continues along the way on a thursday night, it's been two years since she was viciously attacked and disfigured. tonight her new face, a new chance at life revealed to the world. and later, at the ball game, a soldier's wife gets the surprise of her life.

it was two years ago that a vicious attack by a chimpanzee

left a woman named charla nash badly injured, so disfigured she wouldn't show her face in public. but tonight after a rare and life changing surgery, and a lot of personal determination, charla nash is able to open a wonderful new chapter in her life and she's showing her new face to the world for the first time. and the story is gaining wide attention. our chief medical editor dr. nancy snyderman has the medical back story of a remarkable woman's remarkable recovery. >> reporter: for two years, charla nash lived behind a veil, after being violently attacked by a friend's 200-pound pet chimpanzee, nash lost her face, her eye and almost died. she underwent surgery and is a modern day medical miracle. >> charla is doing very well. she's meeting all her milestones and has been every day both physically and mentally stronger. >> you relax and rest tonight.

>> reporter: milestones that include regaining her ability to smell, taste and swallow, all things doctors doubted she would ever be able to do. >> can she smell yet? or is she going to be able to? >> yeah, can you smell charlie? yeah. >> reporter: the surgery involved replacing her nose, lips and eyelids. for 20 hours, a 30-member surgical team transplanted the face from anonymous donor. and in so doing, gave charla nash a new life. >> charla should be able to no longer be afraid to go to her daughter's graduations or parties or whatever it may be, wedding, in the future, who knows? she will feel human and she will feel from the environment that she's considered human again. >> reporter: charla nash is now only the third person in the united states to have successfully undergone a full face transplant. a testament to her personal strength and the skill of the doctors and nurses who

persevered to do more than just save her life. charla nash still has months of rehabilitation and she's going to have to work on her swallowing and speech and getting her strength back. but right now at this point there is no looking back, only forward, brian. it's really an amazing story. >> it's one of those milestones we see from time to time. nancy, thank you as always. when we come back here tonight, a woman who is making a big difference for other women in one of the saddest and toughest places on earth.

in our "making a difference"

report tonight, a woman who's helping other women caught in the dire famine and drought we have been covering in the horn of africa. tonight the united nations is sounding a new alarm about what's happening to some of the women and girls making the journey out to the kenyan border. nbc's kate snow visited a refugee camp in kenya, met a woman who's trying to make a difference for other women who need to tell the world what has happened to them. >> sardosa muse is always on the move. every morning as an organizer for the aid group c.a.r.e., she heads to the far reaches of this camp. we want to know your problems, she tells groups of women. and she means it. cardosa asks about their journey to get here, their darkest moments. a few days ago, 18-year-old abshira came to sardosa for help. she asked us not to show her face. she was in somalia on the trek with her grandmother, sister and three tiny children when they were surrounded by gunmen. 15 men and they were all armed.

they took turns raping me, she says, in front of my kids. you're providing them with counselors and people they can talk to? >> we took them to the police and the medical professionals. >> sardosa is in a way one of them, an ethnic somali from kenya who speaks their language, her father was uneducated and had multiple wives and had 40 children, but he made sure all his daughters were college educated. sardosa isn't afraid to speak out about somalia's repression of women. in somalia, it's a wash. the culture itself agrees to violence against women. >> reporter: the culture allows women to be violated? >> yes. >> reporter: and yet here she

is, a 26-year-old confronting men, preaching that rape is a crime. you don't seem afraid to talk about any of these. >> i have always said that the situation is a bit overwhelming situation. >> it gives her immense satisfaction, she says, to help women move on. >> you cannot move on if you cannot live peacefully. women need to be left alone. >> reporter: so you're trying to teach them to stand up for themselves? giving a voice to a group of women who desperately needed. kate snow, nbc news, kenya. >> of course c.a.r.e. is just one of the organization gratefully accepting donations for the women of somalia. we have compiled a list for u you at nightly.msnbc.com. the statue of liberty turns 125 years old this october, which seems like a good opportunity to get a little work done. lady liberty is getting a $27 million interior makeover so the statue will be closed for a year after the upcoming birthday celebration.

new stairways and elevators are planned and water and mechanical systems will finally be upgraded. closure won't change most people's tourist experience, though, only about a third of visitors make reservations to actually go inside. next up here tonight, who's that man behind the mask? wait until you see what happened at home plate at this game.

finally tonight, people have grown to love one of the new traditions of the youtube era, a returning war veteran surprising his unsuspecting loved ones while a camera records it all. when you think about it, it's one of the few good things to emerge from our wars. there are now so many of them, there's a cable show devoted just to show these surprise reunions. but we really love the one you're about to see because it took a lot of work and it came off perfectly. darla harlow and her daughters thought they were picked at random by the team to have a special night at the mississippi braves game friday night. in fact darla got to throw out the first pitch which went fine and as always, the catcher started forward to give her the ball and then it happened. the catcher was major marco

harlow of the mississippi national guard and that would be her husband, just back from afghanistan, a number of us actually thought the major bears a resemblance to mickey mantle, number 8. hey, major, way to make it tougher for husbands everywhere. it turns out dad used his two beautiful daughters as co-conspirators, and it was two weeks in the planning while he was in afghanistan. major harlow, well done, welcome home, thank you for your service. that's our broadcast on a thursday night. thank you for being with us. i'm brian williams and as always, we hope to see you back here tomorrow evening. and in the name of all of those who are serving in uniform overseas, we want to share something with you as we go off the air tonight. today the pentagon released a list of all of those lost this weekend when that chinook helicopter was shot down on a navy s.e.a.l. mission. because it was the worst single

loss of life in the war, because there was such sadness and high interest in this country, we hope you'll join us in looking at their names, their ages, their hometowns. for every name, there's a family and friends grieving still tonight and our thoughts and prayers are with them. good night. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com

good evening, everyone. thanks for joining us. i'm janelle wang in for jessica aguirre. >> and i'm raj mathai. we begin some some developing news on the paeeninsula. we're getting new information on a pregnant woman mauled to death by her own pit bulldog. we have a crew arriving at the scene. the attack happened at a home in the 500 block of