on the broadcast tonight, the job hunt, startling news for older americans looking for work. and the challenge for those over 55 who don't have a job. the man to watch tonight as the republicans roll the dice in vegas. herman cain is the biggest target. he's up in the polls, and suddenly he's up for a lot of scrutiny. the swap. celebrations in the streets today. but is one israeli soldier for 1,000 palestinian prisoners a fair trade? and the mighty wind. what it was like when an 8,000 foot high cloud of dust rolled through one american city. also tonight, helping children understand one of life's toughest lessons. "nightly news" begins now.

captions paid for by nbc-universal television good evening. we want to begin tonight with the new evidence that the recession has been especially cruel to americans in the age group once considered to be entering the comfort zone, the victory lap years. those aged 55 and older. folks over 55 have not recovered from the recession, in fact their unemployment rate has doubled since 2007. half the folks at or near retirement age think they won't have enough money to retire. half of seniors experiencing money trouble have put off medical or dental care, or stopped taking their medications. it would be nice if it was temporary, but nobody can bet on that as retirement approaches. and we begin here tonight with nbc's anne thompson. >> reporter: this recession has spared no one. but a new government report shows it's devastated older workers. people 55 and up who lost their jobs are less likely to find new

ones. the amount of time to find a job tripled for workers 65 and older, going from 11 weeks in 2007 to 31 last year. a lag that continues today, says the ceo of retirementjobs.com. >> we do see that it takes people over the age of 50 about 30% longer to find work once they've lost their job. >> reporter: 64-year-old mary coangelo knows just how hard it is. >> i send in applications all the time, i get no response from them. >> reporter: it's been more than two years since this florida office manager had a full-time job. >> i think it's my age. i think a lot of companies feel that the younger people have more time to offer, whatever. but i don't want to retire. >> i never planned to be broke. i never planned to be out of work. >> reporter: gail ruggles told the congressional hearing today, she couldn't make ends meet with a series of part time jobs. >> you don't shop for new clothes, you don't get your glasses fixed.

you are supposed to take a medication seven days a week, you take it four, so you can stretch it out. >> reporter: sometimes the money can't stretch far enough. an aarp survey reports almost a quarter of people 50 plus say they exhausted all of their savings between 2007 and 2010, and many of them had jobs. 53-year-old chris williams is so frustrated he's joined the occupy protest movement. >> nobody wants to be out of work, it's demoralizing. >> reporter: since losing his job at a corporate law firm three years ago, the document handler scrambles for odd jobs and things he once took for granted. >> you eat when it's necessary. sometimes there are days where i go with only one meal a day. >> reporter: and then there is the time crunch. older workers have less time to recover from financial hits. and many are already suffering from declines in the value of their homes and investments. this report paints a very scary picture for people looking at growing medical bills and shrinking opportunities.

brian? >> awful news to start off with. anne thompson here with us in new york. thanks, as always. even with all of this to contend with, there's still no agreement in washington about remedies for the unemployment rate. and a funny thing happened to president obama on the road today, pushing his plan. some bad news regarding a big store chain got in the way. our own kristen welker traveling with the president tonight, joining us from emporia, virginia. kristen, good evening. >> reporter: good evening, brian. well, this is day two of the president's campaign style bus tour, which has been billed as a trip to sell his jobs plan in these key swing states of virginia and north carolina. president obama had harsh words for congressional republicans again today. >> their plan says we need to go back to the good old days before the financial crisis when wall street wrote its own rules. our plan says, we need to make it easier for small businesses on main street.

>> back in washington, republicans kept up their counterattacks. >> i know he's desperately interested in trying to blame anybody else. but he's the president of the united states. he sets the agenda, he got everything he wanted, and it didn't work. >> reporter: but as mr. obama rolled into emporia, virginia, he encountered a stark reminder that it's not the republicans, but the economy, that may be his biggest roadblock to re-election. the local lowe's hardware here is one of 20 lowe's stores closing down by thanksgiving, leaving almost 100 out of work in this small community. and 2,000 unemployed across the country. >> i feel very, very sorry for them. because, like you said, no place is available in this area that you can make that kind of money. >> reporter: just one reason many of virginia's independent voters who propelled candidate obama to victory in 2008, have now soured on him. >> i can't say it's his fault the economy has really gone down hill, but it's really gone down hill.

>> reporter: residents insisted this trip is not about the election, during a one on one interview with nbc station wcnc in charlotte. >> we're not focused on the election 13 months from now, but we're focused on what can help the economy right now. and the american jobs bill fits the bill. >> reporter: brian, president obama just finished speaking at this virginia high school a short while ago. one more sign that this trip is political. the first lady will be joining him at a military base tomorrow. brian? >> kristen welker, traveling with the president in emporia, virginia tonight. thanks. for the republicans who want to replace president obama, there's another debate tonight in las vegas, and it comes as herman cain and his ideas and his sense of humor are getting more scrutiny these days. our chief white house correspondent and political director chuck todd with us tonight from our d.c. newsroom. chuck, good evening. >> good evening, brian. some members of the republican establishment may believe herman cain is in the middle of his 15 minutes of primary fame.

but that 15 minutes now includes close scrutiny and could spell a surge of attacks at tonight's debate. former godfather's pizza ceo herman cain has seen his poll numbers surge thanks to three other numbers. >> my 9-9-9 plan. >> reporter: tonight's nevada debate is another opportunity for opponents to raise questions about cain's plan to replace the current tax code with the 9% income tax, 9% corporate tax and 9% sales tax. he's had to defend the national sales tax part of his plan most. >> who will pay more, the people who spend more money on new goods. >> reporter: 11 months ago, columnist herman cain argued against the idea of a national sales tax. something cain's conservative critics seized on today. cain's argument then was based on the assumption that a sales tax would not replace the current tax code. the worst idea, cain wrote, is a proposed national sales tax on top of everything we already pay. also tonight, cain is likely to

face questions about his recent comments about an electrified fence on the mexican border. saturday in tennessee. >> electrified. with a sign on the other side that says, it can kill you. >> reporter: sunday on "meet the press." >> it's a joke. >> that was a joke? >> it's a joke. >> that's not a serious plan? >> that's not a serious plan, no, it's not. >> reporter: monday in arizona. >> i apologize if i offended anyone. >> reporter: then he went on to readvocate the electrified fence. >> i don't apologize for using a combination of a fence -- and it might be electrified. i'm not walking away from that. i just don't want to offend anybody. >> reporter: that kind of blunt talk and new scrutiny hasn't hurt cain so far. another nationality poll today has him essentially tied with front-runner mitt romney. brian, a little note on the primary calendar, believe it or not, we are now 77 days away from the iowa caucuses. yesterday the iowa republican party announced that despite

every effort in the national party to not have this season start off with a january schedule of events, it's going to be on january 3rd again. just two days after new year's day, and one day after all the bowl games. this thing is in the middle of the primary season now, believe it or not. >> the first thing you think of on new year's eve, chuck, is the iowa caucuses. thanks, chuck todd from our d.c. newsroom. to the big news out of the middle east today, it was a prisoner swap, one man for 1,000 others. gilad shalit, an israeli soldier captured by hamas and kept for five years, was exchanged today for 1,000 palestinian prisoners who spent years in israeli jails. there were joyous welcomes for those released, the questions about this deal started almost immediately. we get our report tonight from nbc's ayman mohyeldin. >> reporter: corporal gilad shalit returned home to israel a national hero.

saluted by his country's leadership, welcomed by friends and neighbors, embraced by family. his first words as a free man came even before he was back on israeli soil, in an interview on state tv in egypt, the country that brokered today's release. israel is a nation where every man and woman serves in the military, a society that promises to leave no soldier behind. and shalit's freedom had become a national obsession, starting with his capture by palestinian fighters five years ago, when he was a frail 19-year-old conscript. but some in israel say his release came at a very high price. in return, israel promised to release more than 1,000 palestinian prisoners, many of them serving time for terrorism and murder. 477 were freed today, and the streets of gaza were filled with tens of thousands of joyful palestinians eager to welcome them home.

there were emotional homecomings in the west bank as well. among them, a woman who was serving a life sentence in israel. she got a hero's welcome of her own. shalit's captors, hamas, called today's release a victory for the palestinian struggle. and vowed to capture more israeli soldiers in order to secure the release of the more than 5,000 prisoners still in israeli jails. israel is celebrating too, an overwhelming majority of israelis support the swap, even if some are worried it may encourage more attacks. as both sides celebrated today, clashes between palestinian youths and israeli soldiers in the west bank served as a painful reminder, peace is no closer than it was when shalit was first captured. now, that interview gilad shalit gave with egyptian television was not part of the deal, brian, and caused quite a bit of controversy in israel. the world is really interested in hearing what he has to say. >> we want to welcome you to our

family, ayman, for our viewers just joining us, a native and veteran of the region. great to have you. thanks for your reporting. the new transitional government in libya got a high level show of support from the u.s. today. secretary of state hillary clinton made an unannounced trip and high-risk visit to tripoli to meet with the people that used to be called rebels. at one point during her remarks, in fact, gunfire could be heard in the background. she said the u.s. wants to see moammar gadhafi captured or killed and soon. secretary clinton is the highest ranking american official to visit libya since the fall of tripoli now two months ago. an update tonight on our lead story here last night. the death of indy car champion dan wheldon in that awful wreck at the las vegas motor speedway on sunday. the local coroner has ruled that death came due to blunt force trauma to the head. and indy car said in a statement today, an investigation is underway, and results should be available in a few weeks. a photo has since emerged of wheldon and his wife suzie. they had each other's initials

tattooed onto their wrists. this was the night before the race. dan wheldon leaves behind a 2-year-old son sebastian and a 7-month-old son, oliver. up next here as "nightly news" continues, an epic dust storm descends on an american city. even people who thought they had seen it all there, couldn't believe what they saw. and later, story time for some brave kids who discover they're not at all alone.

the folks in west texas say it was the worst dust storm in decades and it swept through lubbock yesterday in a way that reminded some of the veterans, the old timers, of the dust bowl storms back in the 1930s. the story tonight from texas and nbc's jay gray.

>> wow! >> reporter: home video captured the scene in west texas. the horizon looked like something from a science fiction thriller. >> that is terrifying. >> reporter: but for residents in lubbock, texas, it was no movie. >> it was horrible. scary, really. just a big old black cloud of dust. >> reporter: that 8,000 foot high wall of dust washed across the high plains, pushed by hurricane force winds. >> we had wind gusts of 74 miles an hour. let's show you some video, this is from our towercam during our 6:00 news catch. watch the wall of dust. >> reporter: the winds bent power polls and ripped buildings apart. >> we saw a third of our roof get blown across the back parking lot. it landed on several cars, and some of it ended up 100 yards away. >> reporter: a severe gust left a massive cargo plane with its nose in the air. at first many thought it might be a tornado. but it was actually a fast moving cold front whipping up

wind and dust. the latest consequence of the devastating drought that continues to grip this entire state. >> look at all the dust. oh, my god. >> i've never seen anything really this severe in west texas. >> it's 5:30 in the afternoon right now. >> reporter: as the seasons change and the drought continues, texas runs the risk of more scenes like this, when dust turns day into night. jay gray, nbc news, ft. worth. there's a new warning tonight from the nation's pediatricians, and it may surprise a good many parents who think those baby dvd's, even educational television can benefit even their youngest kids. they say children under two should not watch television or videos. because any kind of media watched passively on a screen could delay their children's ability to talk. instead the doctors recommend parents should talk to their young children, interact with them, and leave the television off even if it's just on in the background. coming up next here tonight, what was that furry thing

walking all over the lettuce in the produce department. exactly what you think it was.

well, we have another dying satellite to look forward to. this time it's an uncontrolled german satellite. our website, shown here briefly, has a great animation tonight that's more fun to watch once you learn that the path of this thing is not expected to bring it in over the u.s. or europe. it is expected to begin its reentry starting friday of this week. four u.s. senators are asking the major league baseball player's union to ban chewing tobacco during the upcoming world series. they were joined by health officials in the two host cities for the series, arlington, texas and st. louis. they've noticed the use of chewing tobacco and dip is way up.

they know "this would send a strong message to baseball fans who look toward the players as role models, that tobacco use is not essential to the sport of baseball." well, for the first time in the history of the gallup poll, 50% of americans now believe marijuana should be legalized. of that number, more men than women, more westerners than easterners, more young people than old answered affirmatively. but half of the american people now favoring legalization is what you might call an all-time high. well, you don't expect the national book award people to screw up, but they have. in the award category of best young people's literature, they nominated a book called "shine." they meant to pick a book named "chime." it's never good when that happens. they had to notify the author of "shine" that her book was chosen by mistake and the nomination was withdrawn. you don't see this a lot, or ever actually, come to think of it. this is a bear cub in the produce department of a food store of ketchikan, alaska. he walked right in like the rest of the customers, through those

automated glass doors, and hopped up into the produce. he was small enough an animal control officer scooped him up by the scruff of his neck because he had no intention of paying. he was escorted out the same doors he entered. when we come back here tonight, a touching story about kids finding just what they need to calm their fears and make them stronger.

> we end t broadcastonight with another aspect of how this economy is hitting various aspects of american society. how about it's effect on kids, who in some cases no longer have a home, and are having a rough time keeping their heads in their schoolwork and staying happy. some of them, however, are finding comfort and solace in a place kids have always turned to, and that's stories. our report tonight from nbc's chris jansing. >> ricky, you had something to add? >> reporter: for months, brooke was keeping a big secret. >> it always hurt every single day, just thinking about it. >> reporter: she was worried about what her friends would think if they found out. then her fifth grade teacher, mrs. nelson, read a book about a family who was living in their car. >> i pretended i hadn't washed my hair in the bathroom of the texaco gas station that morning.

>> reporter: suddenly, brooke, who never told anyone that her own family lived in a tent in this field in minnesota, felt she wasn't alone. >> i thought i was the only one that had to go through this. but then i realized there's other people too. >> reporter: a recent study found that compared to five years ago, 49% of teachers are seeing more students arrive at school hungry. 36% are seeing more students who are homeless. >> now, authors are writing books about kids facing these challenges from pre-school through high school. with teachers and patients using them as a kind of therapy. >> i'm seeing more books like this than i have seen in a career that spans decades. >> reporter: when 7-year-old kaylin's dad was laid off, she was terrified she would have to move away from texas. >> this house has a lot of memories to me. and i just love it so much. >> reporter: so mom read to her daughters. >> what he had lost was his job. >> reporter: the stories calmed

kaylin's fears. and her mom's too. >> i can't come up with all the scenarios that are going to allow my children to understand. i need the help of others. >> reporter: and back in minnesota, just one day after mrs. nelson read that book, brooke told her and then her friend that she had been homeless too. >> i've seen understanding. the kindness just irradiated out of them. >> reporter: brooke's family is now in back in an apartment, and she sees good coming out of the bad times. >> it doesn't matter where you live or what you do, what you wear or what you look like. it's what's in the inside that matters. >> reporter: a life lesson that's truly a happy ending. chris jansing, nbc news, keady, texas. that's our broadcast for a tuesday evening. thank you for being here with us, as always. i'm brian williams. and we hope to see you right back here tomorrow evening. good night. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com