on the broadcast tonight, high price. millions of college students and their parents could be forced to pay for a nasty political fight as the clock runs out. health scare on a plane full of passengers. what if the threat had been real? what we're learning tonight about the emergency response. splitting up dramatically on the rise for couples over 50 in search of happily ever after. up in the skies, a sentimental journey over manhattan. and late news tonight, the secret service tells its agents how to behave on the road. "nightly news" begins now. good evening. tonight, the united states secret service in the midst of the embarrassing scandal involving prostitution overseas has put out guidelines and internal reminder of how personnel should behave when they're on the road.

while we should emphasis the secret service personnel at the center of this scandal are first wave advance people and not the core agents who travel with and surround the president, still, for this agency, to give out these instructions regarding life on the road for people whose bottom line job description is to protect the life of the president and others, some people will find stunning. kristen welker has been covering the story since the start. she's with us again from the white house. kristen, good evening. >> brian, good evening. late this afternoon, the secret service released a list of what it's calling 11 new enhanced standards of conduct. they go into effect immediately and come two weeks after the scandal in colombia. made headlines here. secret service personnel will now be briefed on these standards before every trip. among the rules, foreign nationals are now prohibited from entering the hotel rooms of secret service personnel excluding hotel staff. secret service personnel are also prohibited from patronizing

non-reputable establishments, like strip clubs. alcohol can only be consumed in moderate amounts while off duty and is prohibited within ten hours of reporting for duty. and the laws of the united states will now apply to the secret service while abroad. translation there, if they're assigned to a country where prostitution is legal, it's off limits for a secret service agent to solicit a prostitute. the new policy comes as the cret service continues its investigation into exactly what happened in colombia and as it looked into new allegations of possible misconduct in el salvador. >> so much is common sense, but they can't get out from under the embarrassment of the scandal, not yet. kristen welker from the white house on a friday night, thanks. on capitol hill tonight, another standoff between democrats and republicans. this time over student loans. the interest rate on a popular loan program is set to double in a couple months. both parties want to stop that from happening. when it comes on how to pay for it, that's where they're butting

heads again. nbc's kelly o'donnell has been on this story today. kelly, good evening. >> good evening brian. you wouldn't think this would be controversial, right? both the president and mitt romney agree that this particular student loan interest rate should be kept low and extended. but when the president went on a college tour and called on congress to pass something to prevent the hike right away, that raised the stakes for boat parties. >> a fired up speaker of the house vented frustration and dismay. >> for political gain. >> that a student loan interest rate has become a volatile issue. >> people want to politicize this because it's an election year. but my god, do we have to fight about everything? >> this latest washington clash is all too real for college students and their parents. >> if the rate doubles for student loans, i might have to switch colleges. >> 7.4 million undergrads from moderate income families currently rely on student loans subsidized by the federal government.

the interest rate now, 3.4%, is set to double in july. >> i have a lot of fears i'm going to be paying off college for a long time. way past when i've graduated. >> let's put aside the cynicism, stop playing games, and do the right thing. >> easier said than done. despite the fact both parties agree the lower rate should be extended, the fight is over how to pay for it, $6 billion. >> we got caught up in politics today. it makes me so angry. i'm so angry i could spit. i'm trying to bring my blood pressure down. >> today, house republicans passed a one-year extension that takes the money from a preventive care fund. house democrats fought to take the money from tax loopholes that benefit the oil industry. republicans refused. >> unfortunately, they came back with what seemed natural to them. let's take money out of women's health rather than big subsidies to big oil. >> to accuse us of wanting to gut women's health is absolutely not true.

>> while the speaker blamed democrats for stirring things up to appeal to both women and young voters. >> and pick this big political fight where there is no fight is just silly. give me a break. >> republicans argued that the president's own budget made cuts to this same preventative health care fund. the white house said they can't support what republicans passed today and they say they're really politicizing this, too, by targeting the president's health care law. >> another working friday on capitol hill, kelly o'donnell with the story tonight. kelly, thanks. in the campaign tonight, the republicans are attacking the public image of the president. this came up in the last campaign when candidate barack obama was labeled a celebrity. in the years since, as his critics see it, his celebrity has only grown. they say that's a bad thing for him and the presidency. our report from the trail tonight from nbc's peter alexander. >> in presidential politics,

image may not be everything, but the campaign between president obama and mitt romney has sparked a heated battle over substance versus style. with supporters of both candidates this week trying to exploit what many see as a stark contrast between the two. the super pac backed by republican strategist karl rove just unleashed this new web ad trying to paint the president as superficial. for its part, the obama campaign is out with its own video, framing the president as a strong and serious leader. with bill clinton touting mr. obama's decision to green light the osama bin laden raid. >> he took the harder and more honorable path. and the one that produced, in my opinion, the best result. >> john mccain targeted then candidate obama's celebrity in 2008, peppering this ad with pictures of britney spears and paris hilton. it didn't work then, but with the economy still struggling to recover, could it now?

>> now he's the president. we still have high unemployment, so republicans are hoping that very same attack can deliver much better results for themselves. >> candidates looking to connect with voters have tried to lighten it up before. richard nixon on "laugh in" in 1968. >> sock it to me? >> humor is such an effective tool, and just really appealing to the broad masses of people. you can just reach people if you can get them to smile and laugh and like you. that goes a long way towards success. >> perhaps that's why romney, who argues his strength is his resume, has recently taken his own crack at comedy. >> it's a hairpiece. >> there you go. mitt romney, ladies and gentlemen. >> and hoping to get the last laugh in november, he's now considering a cameo on "saturday night live." and president obama will get a chance to make his own jokes at the white house correspondents dinner here in washington tomorrow night. romney having finally wrapped up the nomination, brian, will spend this weekend at home. >> peter alexander in our d.c. bureau tonight.

peter, thanks. a program note, david gregory goes inside both campaigns in sunday's "meet the press" with strategists for president obama and mitt romney. that's sunday morning on "meet the press." it was a dramatic day at the criminal trial of former democratic senator and presidential candidate john edwards as his lawyers ripped into the prosecution's star witness. our report from the courtroom in greensboro, north carolina, tonight from lisa myers. >> john edwards arrived for the fifth day of his trial looking calm and composed. >> good morning. >> but inside, the most dramatic testimony yet. as edwards' lawyer, abbey lowell maneuvered to shred the credibility of the prosecution's star witness, andrew young. they battled over young's last meeting with edwards on a country road in august 2008 when edwards denied knowing about hundreds of thousands of dollars young had collected from heiress

rachel bunny mallon, he says to cover up edwards' affair. "i was scared for my life," young said. "you thought mr. edwards was going to physically harm you?" lowell asked. "not mr. edwards personally." "you thought he was going to have somebody there to shoot you?" "that did cross my mind, yes, sir." young also testified he was extremely angry because edwards had broken his promise to tell the truth, that he was the father of the daughter of his mistress, rielle hunter. >> andrew young in his testimony today showed some passion and fire about how badly he was hurt and betrayed by senator john edwards. in what experts say was a blow to the prosecution, young admitted he pocketed about 80% of the money the government claims were illegal campaign contributions to edwards to cover up his affair, a charge edwards denied. much of the money went towards this $1.5 million house for young. "about $1 million, that's the money you kept?" lowell asked. "that's the money that was left

over after paying rielle hunter's expenses," young shot back. >> i think the government's theory of the case is in serious jeopardy. >> lowell closed by asking young if he was a cold blooded schemer motivated by ego and greed or the desire for power. young, looking lowell in the eye, said he was not. lisa myers, nbc news, greensboro, north carolina. as you may know, there was a scare last night at chicago midway airport. emergency vehicles surrounded a delta flight that had come in from detroit. it was kept on the tarmac while the passengers were quarantined as a precaution. until the all-clear was given. turned out to be a false alarm, but it's a good reminder of what is supposed to happen in a situation like that. our report from nbc's kevin tibbles. >> two and a half hours of high anxiety for passengers onboard delta flight 3163. >> a bit of panic. everyone was pulling their shirts over their faces.

>> panic over concerns a passenger onboard the flight from detroit to chicago's midway airport had contracted monkey pox on a trip to africa. >> they're bringing a guy on wearing a mask to evaluate one of the passengers. >> the jet was quarantined on the runway, surrounded by emergency personnel, and boarded by health officials working with the centers for disease control. >> two men came on with protective gear. they spoke with the passenger in question. they took photographs. >> the passenger, lisa sievers, had been in uganda and picked up nasty bed bug bites but fortunately, not monkey pox. >> other than itching, i feel fine. >> but if she had been seriously ill -- >> she would have been taken to a hospital and put in a negative pressure room and isolated, had attempts to make a rapid diagnosis and offer treatment. >> and those on the plane would have been instructed to follow certain health guidelines. depending on the illness. being able to respond quickly and efficiently to perceived

health threats is vital to the containment of contagious disease. in recent years, the outbreak of the sars virus, bird flu, and swine flu have seen health officials and travelers worldwide taking extra precautions. >> vaccination strategies are available to prevent many of the diseases people are exposed to. good hand hygiene, careful food preparation and precautions. >> lisa sievers is just thankful her fellow passengers understood. >> the passengers were there for two hours and didn't complain. >> while the system may not have been needed at midway, the system is in place for when it is. kevin tibbles, nbc news, chicago. up next as we continue, what's driving the new census numbers? why breakups are becoming surprisingly common for couples over 50. and later, for all of those people who never thought they would get to see the space shuttle fly, there it is. an extraordinary sight in the skies today.

the baby boom generation, loosely defined as those born from the mid-1940s to the mid-1960s, has often led the way in modern times in terms of modern trends and now there's another one. census department figures show an astounding number of divorces. our report tonight from nbc's john yang. >> for martha mcdowell's 33-year marriage, there was no happy

hollywood ending. >> it was all of a sudden we had this union and we believed it was for life, and all of a sudden, it's ripped, literally ripped apart. >> robert said unhappiness in his 17-year union had been building. >> i was frustrated, ready to move on, and that's when, you know, i started thinking about changing my life and doing other things. >> two divorces, two different reasons, but one thing in common. they're part of the growing number of married couples in their 50s and 60s calling it quits. researchers at bowling green state university found the divorce rate among those 50s and older nearly doubled from 1990 to 2009 while the overall divorce rate held steady. sociologists say baby boomers may feel less pressure to stay married and for working women boomers. it may be easier for them to set

out on their own financially. >> women in particular don't feel that they have to stay with someone they may not like very much, simply because they need to be supported. >> he made wholesale changes in his life, moving from southern california to florida and starting his own business. at first, he says, it was frightening. >> and then it became liberating. and you started realizing some of the freedom you had and some of the things that maybe you always wanted to do in your life. >> after recovering from her initial shock, mcdowell has come into her own, working at a local college and participating in community theater. >> i am right now enjoying the freedom and independence to do activities that i'm involved in. >> both getting used to going solo at middle age. john yang, nbc news, washington. up next, the story behind a few simple words that millions remember and still repeat from 20 years ago.

it has now been 20 years since the brutal beating of rodney king by four lapd officers, all of it captured on videotape. when those officers were acquitted by a jury, it triggered some of the worst and most destructive riots this country has ever seen. this week, lester holt sat down with rodney king, asked him about the six simple words he spoke after that verdict that became part of the american lexicon. >> someone had prepared remarks for you. but you decided not to use those. >> i said, no, i'll come from the heart and speak what's in my heart. >> can't we all just get along? >> can't we all just get along? i meant that from my heart, you know. i still mean it to this day. >> more of lester's interview with rodney king tomorrow morning on "today" and then tomorrow evening on "nbc nightly news." there's a threat of severe

weather in the midwest this evening and through the weekend once again. our friends at the weather channel are going to be watching it very closely. tonight, we have new video from oklahoma as a tornado passed through the city of norman earlier this month. this video is from a police squad car dash cam as an officer raced back to the safety of the police station with destruction behind him. the maker of the chocolate hazelnut spread nutella has run ads claiming spreading the stuff on toast is a healthy way to start your kids off in the morning, but enter parents who read labels, and you end up with two class action lawsuits that point out nutella has the same amount of calories, fat, and sugar as a three musketeers bar first thing in the morning. today, the nutella folks backtracked on the ads and agreed to a $3 million settlement for false claims.

the first of boeing's generation of 787 aircraft to be built in charleston, south carolina, rolled off the assembly line today. the dream liner, as it's called, has been plagued with development and manufacturing problems. it's about three years behind its original production schedule. its main plant has produced 11 of them for use around the world. that aircraft you see there headed to air india. still ahead tonight, another once in a lifetime view in the sky. this time in the skies over gotham.

finally here tonight with all of the towering buildings and snoiz noise and distractions that surround them every day, not much causes new yorkers to look up. but today, it was a sight too rare to pass up. the unmistakable profile against the sky of a 747 carrying a space shuttle on its back. our report tonight from nbc's anne thompson. >> the symbols of freedom and power that make up new york's iconic skyline today provided a backdrop for the space shuttle "enterprise." the statue of liberty and the empire state building, city group center's distinctive angled top. >> it was amazing.

and it looked like you could reach out and touch it. >> tourists lined the hudson river. white and blue collars stopped working, and everyone looked up. and a few looked back. as it passed ground zero and one world trade center. >> just like the memorial here. not the end of an era, just a new beginning. >> the "enterprise" was to be named the "constitution." but star trek fans persuaded the ford administration to take their suggestion. >> these are the voyages of the starship "enterprise." >> in 1976, leonard nimoy and others in the show's cast watched the rollout, but this "enterprise" would be a perpetual bridesmaid. always the test shuttle, never soaring into space. but no less important, says former shuttle commander mark kelly. >> it's very striking, an incredible machine that only americans have been able to build and fly. >> it had boldly gone to new york city before in 1983. today, it flew by its new home, the intrepid sea, air, and space

museum. >> the shuttle's amazing journey will resume in june when a barge will bring the "enterprise" up the hudson river. a crane will place it on the "intrepid" and in july, the public will gets its first close-up view. until then, it will stay at the kennedy airport. a city where the "enterprise" will live long and prosper. >> it was pretty cool. >> anne thompson, nbc news, new york. that's our broadcast on a friday night. thank you for being here with us. i'm brian williams. lester holt will be here with you this weekend. we, of course, hope to see you right back here on monday night. in the meantime, have a good weekend. good night.

good evening. i'm jessica aguirre. >> i'm raj mathai. we see it almost every day. now it is being called a national public health crisis. driving while texting. tonight, there is a new effort to target teenagers. here is jodi hernandez from concord. >> pulling up to his left here. >> reporter: if you're texting or have your ear to the phone while driving, california highway patrol is looking for you. we rode along with c hchl p hp targeted distracted drivers. we spott