on the broadcast tonight, crisis in egypt, thousands pour into tahrir square protesting a new power grab. and tonight, mubarak is reported to be near death. our own richard engel is in cairo tonight. in this country, taking the stand. jerry sandusky's wife speaking out for the first time under oath. the question is, could he be next? heat wave. 's early yet, and yet it is painfully hot, and it's moving east. hooked, the hidden epidemic. you may be shocked to see who is addicted now. olympic dreams. she's cleared a lot of hurdles to get this far. tonight an exclusive look at the all-out push to get a shining star on to team u.s.a. "nightly news" begins now. captions paid for by nbc-universal television

good evening. and tonight it looks like chaos in egypt. they have no constitution, no parliament. two men are insisting they are the next president. and reports have been swirling all day that the last man in charge, hosni mubarak, is clal though to be fair, he's been gone from egyptian life for some time. once again tonight, tahrir square filled up with people. once again, there's the threat of violence in the largest arab nation in the world. the home to 90 million people fresh from its own revolution, and still tonight not on course. it's also posing a big problem for the united states. we have it all covered tonight, beginning with our chief foreign correspondent richard engel in cairo. and richard, what is going on there tonight? >> reporter: good evening, brian. egypt's official state news agency reports that mubarak was unresponsive to attempts to restart his heart and is

clinically dead. but his personal lawyer told us that mubarak is still clinging to life. either way, here in egypt an open power struggle is now underway as this country's transition to democracy is in crisis. in tahrir square, the muslim brotherhood is sending a message, that it's candidate mohammed morsi won the presidency this weekend with a 52% majority. and that the islamist group will not accept an 11th hour decree by the secular egyptian military, that makes the army and its budget immune from presidential authority. the muslim brotherhood thinks it won and now wants full power. but across town, a rival claims the campaign of ahmed shafiq, the military's choice, president mubarak's old prime minister, said he really won the elections. in tahrir, the brotherhood is crying foul. this man says we know that morsi

won, no matter what lies they say. they say the military backed by the united states with billions in aid is starting a coupe. as this struggle grows more tense, the man once at the center of egypt's political life, claiming former president mubarak is clinically dead. earlier tonight an ambulance transferred mubarak from a prison infirmary to a military hospital. his lawyer said he had multiple strokes but remains alive. in tahrir square, there's no sympathy for mubarak or his military clinging to power after an election now in dispute. the official election results are expected to be announced here on thursday. and in this uncertain and tense climate that announcement could trigger violence. brian? >> well, richard, that was my question. we've seen close elections in this country, disputed elections, we've seen them turn into a mess. how much of a mess could it be in egypt? >> reporter: a very big one,

especially if ahmed shafiq, mubarak's old ally emerges as the victor in this election. all the people here in tahrir square will say they were cheated out of their victory, and there could be violent clashes with the military forced to intervene, something it never wanted to do during the actual revolution. brian? >> that scene looks very familiar there tonight in tahrir square. richard engel back in cairo for us, starting us off. richard, thanks. and all of this, as we said, is making for anxious viewing in washington. the u.s. has a lot on the line here. our chief foreign affairs correspondent andrea mitchell is in our d.c. newsroom. and andrea, let's go through the exposure for the united states. >> well, this is very messy. and what officials are saying is, democracy is messy. look at what happened. they will not say this publicly, they're not going to declare a victor until it is declared in egypt. they believe also that the muslim brotherhood, that mohammed morsi, did win this

election. and they are warning the military publicly and privately do not steal this election. they are very worried, though, that the military is going to try to steal back power. the only leverage they have is money, a lot of it, 1.3 billion, which is now in a federal reserve account. it will be dolled out only if the military does cede power to whoever really wins this, and u.s. officials think it is the muslim brotherhood, which presents other problems. but they're willing to deal with that, because they think that is what democracy is all about. also, just briefly, chuck todd is reporting from mexico, this did come up between vladimir putin and the president. the president wants to get putin's help to ease assad out of power in syria. he says, look at what's happening in egypt? what is your plan b if we get rid of assad? it's very complicated. >> watching this at the g-20 summit among other places. andrea mitchell in our d.c. newsroom, thanks. in other news across this country, we turn now to that courtroom in pennsylvania, where jerry sandusky is on trial.

today his wife took the witness stand to defend him. nbc's john yang has our report. >> reporter: dottie sandusky, jerry sandusky's wife of 45 years, spoke out for the first time since her husband's arrest, appearing as a defense witness. under questioning from defense attorney joseph amendola, she said she never saw her husband behave inappropriately with any of the eight men who have accused him of sexually assaulting them when they were young boys. sounding nervous and often pausing before answering, she said she never heard a boy cry out for help. a reference to the man known in court documents as victim nine, who told the jury he called out while being assaulted in the sandusky's basement. sandusky's pleaded not guilty to more than 50 related charges. in cross-examination by prosecutor joseph mcgettigan, she gave her memories of the boys who are now her husband's accusers. victim four, he had his problems, he was very demanding. victim one, very clingy to jerry.

victim nine, he was a charmer, he knew what to say, when to say it. mcgettigan asked if she knew of any reason why any of them, plus former assistant football coach mike mcqueary, who testified he saw sandusky in a locker room shower with a young boy in 2001, would lie about her husband? dottie paused before answering, i don't know what it would be for? >> rarely is it a case that a wife ever brings anything to the table beyond her mere willingness to testify. >> reporter: a defense psychologist testified that sandusky has histrionic personality disorder, defined in part for an excessive need for attention. and that that explains some of his behavior. but a prosecution psychiatrist said another diagnosis is possible, a psychosexual disorder with a focus on adolescence. tomorrow we'll find out if sandusky will testify in his own defense. brian? >> john yang outside court in pennsylvania tonight. again, john, thanks. the weather is making news tonight.

summer starts officially tomorrow, but especially in the midwest, it is hot and it is early. just today 94 in chicago, along with not nearly enough rain. and that's causing problems. and the whole mess of it is headed east. our report from nbc's anne thompson. >> reporter: chicago is on a hot streak, and we're not talking about the cubs. >> we'll get this boat going, get a little breeze. we're good. >> reporter: today, for the 12th day this year, the temperature rose above 90 degrees, making the city's famed architectural boat tour even more popular. >> we had a summer a couple years ago where it was 75 into july and i was out here in a coat and pants. that was terrible. >> reporter: it's a different story for farmers in southern iowa. barry's corn is already rolling up from lack of moisture and hot dry winds. >> we've had some hot and dry years, nothing quite like this. >> reporter: he says he needs at least an inch of rain. fears of a smaller harvest pushed corn prices up 3.5% monday.

the cost of a mild winter that brought little rain or snow. >> the ground is hotter, it's just baking, and all that heat is capped into the low levels of the atmosphere. >> reporter: that heat is making the pressure packed job of fighting wild fires even tougher. at the high park fire, the air temperature tops 90 degrees for crews working around the clock. but there is a silver lining to the jet stream's four month retreat north. a tornado season that's lost momentum after its deadly start in february. >> we've had below average numbers in terms of tornados for april, may and june. may was the lowest since 1979 in terms of the numbers of tornados. >> reporter: and all that heat that's in the midwest is headed east. tomorrow and thursday here in new york city and up and down the east coast, it could feel like 100 degrees. already tonight there are heat advisories along the atlantic seaboard and at least one air quality alert. brian? >> anne thompson on this eve of

the arrival of summer. anne, thanks. a big change has arrived in this country, after building slowly for many years. there is now a huge shift to report. asian immigrants have surpassed hispanics as the fastest growing racial group in this country. the economy and broader enforcement have played a big part in that, as hispanic immigration dropped more than 30% between '07 and 2010. our report tonight from nbc's mike taibbi. >> reporter: 29-year-old austin wan is busier than he's ever been. he runs an agency in los angeles called perfect student service, that helps young students in china get a foothold in high schools and colleges in the u.s. >> these are outstanding, amazing kids, who are really motivated and who have a world of potential. >> reporter: asian-americans already living in the u.s. have been urging others in their home countries to join the crowd, even through these years of recession.

>> when you have asian-americans as being perceived as the fastest growing minority group, that means there will be more attention paid to asian-americans. >> reporter: according to the poll, at the turn of the century, hispanics made up nearly 60% of new immigrants, asians less than 20%. by 2010, asians were 36% of new arrivals, hispanic 31%. deportations and tougher border enforcement have been a key factors in drop in hispanic arrivals. but asia's new arrivals have seized the opportunities. >> it's the fastest growing race group in the country, it's the best educated race group in the country. it's the highest income race group in the country. >> reporter: in contrast to the huddled masses of old, the poor and the desperate, asia's new arrivals are among the best and the brightest. that's who bill remoto recruits on behalf of fortune 500 companies looking for employees and customers across the u.s. >> the asian-american population has grown by double-digits in 4 out of 50 states. >> reporter: not surprising to robert ahn, a developer in

l.a.'s koreatown. >> the ultimate goal would be to see asian-americans playing a larger role in mainstream society. >> reporter: and no surprise for austin wan, swamped by applications from the young and the hopeful, looking to leave china for a chance at the american dream. mike taibbi, nbc news, los angeles. a big day today for the 16 million member southern baptist convention, which elected new orleans pastor fred luder as their first african-american president. when it was founded back in 1845, the southern baptist convention supported slavery. and long favored segregation. it wasn't until 1995 that the group publicly denounced racism and apologized to african-americans. there's more on this milestone, including an interview with reverend luder on our web tight tonight, that's nbcnightlynews.com. still ahead for us along the way on a tuesday evening, look who's doing heroin. they look a lot like middle

class american kids. our special report on a growing addiction in this country. and later, the star who still has to prove herself on the world stage. tonight an exclusive look at a secret weapon in her arsenal.

we're back now with news about a growing problem in this country, especially in the suburbs. one that may shock a lot of parents, because it involves young people hooked on a drug more commonly associated with the mean streets of city life. tonight, kate snow got a firsthand look at this hidden epidemic. >> we have our l track over there, which is mass transit. >> reporter: you can see the city skyline over there. four miles from downtown chicago, there's a different kind of rush hour. 6:30 in the morning, what are we going to see at 6:30 in the morning? >> you're going to see people coming and getting their morning fix. >> reporter: sergeant mostic is

our guide on what's known around here as the heroin highway. >> people come from the suburbs, they'll come to the west side here, and it's easy access. you get off the l or off the expressway, you buy your heroin, and you get right back on. >> reporter: we watched the sellers on a corner, just a block away from the school. and the buyers may not be what you picture when you think of a heroin addict. >> this young female over here, she's going to be walking through the neighborhood. she's anybody's daughter. >> reporter: what's she doing here? >> unfortunately, i think she's looking for heroin. >> reporter: the number of teenagers seeking treatment for heroin abuse has skyrocketed. and the number of deaths from heroin among high school and college aged kids more than doubled from 1999 to 2009. what's happening here in chicago reflects the trend nationwide, an increasing number of young people coming into the city from the suburbs to buy heroin that's cheap and more potent than ever. look at all these bags. >> here you have pink bags. under here, these are blue devil logos.

>> reporter: one hit, one bag costs just 10 bucks. >> they'll snort the heroin out of the little $10 packet. >> reporter: unlike the past you don't have to cook it or inject it. >> we'll get eyeballs there. we're going undercover. >> reporter: the sergeant sends an undercover officer to that corner to buy drugs. there they are. then they arrest the dealer. but no matter how many arrests they make, he says, a new dealer always seems to pop up. and the kids from the suburbs keep coming. in 2009, just one year, more than 30,000 teenagers 12 to 17 started using heroin. we had to blur their faces in the piece. most of the young people we saw out there, they looked like the same kids you would see in a suburban shopping mall. and tomorrow night, the parents dealing with this epidemic. >> and part of it, it's no longer the strung out people with the needle and the spoon we all grew up associating with it. thanks very much, kate, for your reporting. we'll see you tomorrow night. fighting back at the airport security line. and one woman takes matters into

her own hands.

much of southern california is under a red flag warning for wildfires tonight. they're entering a dicey time due to dry conditions, temperatures reaching 100. wind gusts up to 55 miles an hour, all making this a bad time for lives and property if wild fires break out in the southland. well, this woman spoke for a lot of people and she did it with her hands. this happened at the ft. myers airport in florida. she was enroute to her brother's funeral, she was groped by a tsa agent she says. and so she put down her bags and groped back, to show what had happened to her. she never made the flight. her lawyer, and she has one because she's been charged with battery, says she didn't touch the tsa agent as intrusively as she was with touched herself. the woman has pleaded not guilty.

we should add here, please don't act out against the professionals of the tsa. register a formal complaint instead. this is sad to watch for art lovers. a woman texting with her phone at the art museum in houston shot video that unfolded right in front of her as a picasso was vandalized. someone stencilled the word conquista on the artwork, which is picasso's woman in a red arm chair. museum workers immediately started repairing the painting and say it could be back on display if all goes well, later this week. well, how do you get 5,000 ducks to follow instructions? they do appreciate being talked to nicely. this farmer in china managed to herd all 5,000 to a nearby pond with just one other helper. and he makes this trek with his duck friends on a regular basis. the folks there are used to holding up traffic for a while as they pass by. up next here tonight, miles to go, an american woman's quest to make the team and the podium at the olympic games.

getting close. the summer olympics in london are just over a month away. and this week, american track and field hopefuls are in oregon

trying to make the team. one of them is hurdler lolo jones who's become a celebrity in her own right, but not before enduring a whole lot of hardship. kevin tibbles has our countdown to london. >> reporter: overcoming life's hurtles is the m.o. of lolo jones. >> when you're hurtling it's like an airplane taking off. there's so much that can go right or wrong. if you set it up right, the rest of the flight will go nice and smooth. >> reporter: a favorite for gold four years ago in beijing, it was smooth flying until the >> she can see the gold, but the ninth hurdle gets her, and that's it. >> reporter: then jones fell back to earth crushed. for the london games, she's striving to keep the turbulence to a minimum, seeking the perfect form by utilizing something that sounds as top secret as it is technical. project x, created by her sponsor, energy drink red bull.

>> we basically have a three dimensional computer model we can look at from any angle, play back at any speed. >> reporter: using 40 specialized cameras, project x breaks down lolo's racing with the precision that can't be seen with a naked eye, to shave time off the clock. >> it makes a huge difference in a race, where we can lose a race by just 1/1000 of a second. >> making a slight change in her lower leg angle will decrease the breaking effect and give her an extra couple 1/100 of a second. >> reporter: all heddy stuff for the native of iowa, who learned to overcome obstacles before she ever took to the track. as a child, jones attended eight schools in eight years, while her single mom lori jones held multiple jobs to feed her five kids. >> it's just like survival. you know, you're thinking about how your kids are going to eat. one time we were just driving around. they thought we were just taking a ride to the park, because i didn't want to tell them we didn't have anywhere to go. >> reporter: where are you taking me?

>> this is where we stayed when my mom lost her house. >> reporter: jones' family for a time lived here -- >> when i was a kid it was the dungeon. >> reporter: -- in the basement wash room at the salvation army. >> they put army cots down, right around this area. >> reporter: has it changed? >> no, not at all. >> reporter: in spite of all the high flying she's done since. those days and her mother's influence keep lolo's feet firmly on the ground. >> i just wish i could go back in a time machine and just hug her and whisper in her ear that like, mom, it's going to be okay. one day you're going to have a daughter, and she's going to go to the olympics and she's going to represent team u.s.a., it makes me quite emotional. yeah. >> reporter: from life's darkest moments comes the passion and the desire to fly faster and further than ever before. kevin tibbles, nbc news, des moines. and that is our broadcast on a tuesday night.

thank you for being here with us. i'm brian williams. and we sure hope to see you right back here tomorrow evening. good night. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com thank you for joining us. >> first the hoax now the search. the santa clara police department picked up a