this morning on "early today," blazing trails. medicare takes center stage as accusations fly from both presidential campaigns. family affair. a man leads utah police on a high-speed chase with his wife and children in tow. and cosmic supermom. scientists discover a galaxy that gives birth to more stars in a day than ours does in a that gives birth to more stars in a day than ours does in a year. captions paid for by nbc-universal television hello and good morning. welcome to our viewers across the nation including the pacific time zone. i'm lynn berry. and today we begin with getting down to business. after brutal blows from each side, by the end of the day wednesday, it seemed the candidates on the campaign trail were easing up on the personal attacks and zeroing in on one issue, medicare.

nbc's claire leka joins us now from washington with more on this. claire, good morning to you. >> good morning to you, lynn. yes, that's right. it has been a war of words between president obama and gop rival mitt romney with words being tossed around like "unhinged" and "hate," and both candidates now going at it in blistering fashion on the latest hot campaign topic. both campaigns spent the day firing at each other over medicare. president obama was joined by the first lady on his third and last day of campaigning in iowa. he attacked gop claims that his health care plan reforms cut medicare by $700 billion. >> i propose reforms that will save medicare money by getting rid of wasteful spending in the health care system, reforms that will not touch your medicare benefits. >> paul ryan at his alma mater, miami university in ohio, hit back at the president, inviting a challenge on the issue. >> the president, i'm told, is

talking about medicare today. we want this debate. we need this debate. and we will win this debate. >> according to the congressional budget office, obama's health care reforms and ryan's medicare plan, both slow medicare growth by $700 billion, but neither plan cuts program benefits. both republican candidates have been hammered on the ryan versus romney medicare plan this week. >> the medicare issue has been a big seller for democrats since the 1980s. given all that, they should have expected this and should have been better prepared. >> now today obama and biden are back at the white house for meetings with secretary of state hillary clinton and treasury secretary timothy geithner. that while mitt romney heads to south carolina, and his running

mate will be in canton, ohio. we're live in washington. i'm claire leka. lynn? >> all right, claire. thanks so much. well, elsewhere a judge in pennsylvania has decided not to block a new state law requiring specific kinds of identification to vote, which could have a big impact on the presidential race. opponents of the voter i.d. law say it will prevent a million registered voters from casting their ballots in the fall. groups opposing the law say they will appeal to the state supreme court to try and stop it before the november election. voter turnout could play a crucial role in what may be a tight race between president obama and mitt romney in pennsylvania. well, thousands of undocumented immigrants have started applying for the right to legally stay and work in the u.s. the government is now accepting the applications for the new obama administration program for deferred action, a two-year reprieve from any threat of deportation. it would give them work permits but not legal residency or a path to citizenship.

meanwhile arizona governor jan brewer has signed an executive order directing state agencies to deny driver's licences and other public benefits to those in the new program. right now dozens of wildfires continue to burn across the west, fueled by searing heat, dry weather, and strong winds. in california the u.s. marines are sending in helicopters to help battle a cluster of san diego county wildfires that have prompted orders to evacuate 180 homes. meanwhile in washington authorities say a wildfire that's destroyed dozens of homes across 35 square miles is now just 25% contained. well, now here's a look at some other stories making news early today in america. and this is just disturbing. in utah troopers say a dad driving a minivan with his three kids and wife inside just took off during a traffic stop, leading a chase at up to a hundred miles an hour. when he finally pulled over, dad claimed he thought someone was after him.

both parents were arrested. the kids, who thought they were just going fishing, are now in protective custody. in new york there is no outrunning the weather. torrential rain poured inside subway stations, causing a wet wednesday for commuters. in rhode island the wild weather created a water spout just offshore. this view was captured from an airport, and a car with two people inside fell into a sinkhole, but they made it out okay. and, finally, in massachusetts, this is one bad bird. a parrot swooped down from a roof and dive-bombed an unsuspecting man, smacking him in the head. but quickly through right to a nearby list car and surrendered. the jail bird has been turned over to a foster parent until authorities can find its owner. well, now for a look at your national and regional weather, here's nbc meteorologist bill

karins. he has your weather channel forecast. good morning to you, bill. >> only three puns is all could you come up with is this. >> i had a couple more, but decided to spare you. >> pollely wa ly wants a cracke somehow. good morning, everyone. i had to dust off one of my weather maps. i don't think i've used this in the long time. excessive heat warnings in the pacific northwest. remember when you couldn't buy a day in the 80s? we were roasting credit. excessive heat warnings will continue for the next two days here all the way town through seattle, greater portland area, south of portland. yesterday it was 96 in portland. medford 102. 88 in seattle. we'll be even hotter today in almost all locations. one spot that did cool off with clouds and there were showers around yesterday with that monsoonal moisture was in the phoenix area. and we actually have a low spinning off the coast here dragging our monsoonal flow more towards california this morning.

so even areas town around san diego, more clouds, even a few showers up in the hills. we're starting off the morning around 71 in seattle and this afternoon we should get you up into the low to mid-90s with just about 100% sunshine, portland should be near 100 degrees. showers should be numerous in arizona including tucson. as i mentioned, friday looks just as hot. >> all right, bill, thanks so much. well, coming up, cisco drives, a bank scandal widens, and a nike t-shirt that has critics up in arms. your early morning business headlines are straight ahead. plus, the fur flies as lady gaga fires back at animal rights group peta. perfection in seattle, a

giant suspension, and a historic win for usa soccer. you're watching "early today."

good morning and welcome back to early today. i'm lynn berry, and here are some of your top headlines this morning. a passenger jet flying from jfk to moscow made an emergency landing in iceland after a phone call was made claiming there was a bomb on board. all peoples have been vak aaeee and are undergoing normal security searches. the mayor of dallas has declared the city's west nile virus outbreak to be a state of emergency after more than 200 cases and ten deaths have been reported. the husband of england's queen elizabeth prince philip is back in the hospital for a bladder infection after being treated for the same condition in june. the 91-year-old is expected to remain hospitalized for several days. the u.s. air force has

confirmed the launch failure of the x-51a wave rider aircraft, which is intended to fly at more than five times the speed of sound. now after being launched from a b-52 bomber, there was a problem with the cruise control fins and it was lost. and scientists have found what they are calling a cosmic supermom galaxy. it creates about 740 new stars per year compared to our milky way galaxy, which produces only about one new star a year. well, now here's an early look at how wall street's going to kick off the day. the dow opens at 13,164 after falling 7 points yesterday. the s&p was up a point. the nasdaq gained 13. taking a look at overseas trading this morning, in tokyo the nikkei shot up 167 points, but in hong kong the hang seng dropped 89. well, on wednesday the street got a few signs that the economy is improving, albeit

slowly. fresh data showed homebuilder sentiment hit a five-year high, which added to good news that industrial production picked up last month, and consumer prices, which affect inflation, remained unchanged. on the earnings front, cisco posted a jump in quarterly profit and raised its dividend. elsewhere in late trade, lenovo, the world's number two p.c. maker, reported a healthy jump in quarterly profit. farm equipment maker deere delivered an earnings miss and slashed its yearly forecast, thanks in part to the nation's ongoing drought. weak sales pulled staples' earnings below expectations. meanwhile target reported better than expected earnings and announced its first expansion outside the u.s. on the deal front, private equity firm carlyle group is buying getty images for $3.3 billion. the "associated press" reports seven banks have been subpoenaed by the attorney's general of new york state and connecticut. jpmorgan chase, hsbc, citigroup, and ubs are among those under investigation over a

transcontinental interest rate fixing scandal. after recently vowing to remove formaldehyde from its baby products, johnson & johnson is now including its adult brands neutrogena and aveno in that ban. keep an eye on facebook. the so-called first lockup of post-ipo shares will flood the market today, freeing up insiders to sell additional shares for the first time. and, finally, kanye west may disagree, but nike is under fire for this olympic-inspired t-shirt. critics say the gold digging logo is offensive to women. well, coming up the rangers avoid the broom, an umpire gets a spike to the face, and another doping scandal in major league baseball. plus, 75 years of u.s. defeat in mexico comes to an end. your early morning sports headlines are straight ahead. and we're tracking the cool air coming through the middle of the country, and sooner or later it's going to go into the east. your forecast is coming up. you're watching "early today."

good morning. if you're just waking up, this is "early today." and in sports, seattle's king felix managed to pitch his way into the history books. here's nbc's fred roggin with an early look at all your sports headlines.

good morning. for years the mariners' felix hernandez has been one of the best pitchers in baseball, and now he's perfect. here we go to seattle where king felix joined baseball royalty. overpowered the rays from start to finish and got stronger as the game went on. struck out the side in the eighth. king's court going crazy. hernandez on the verge of making history. completes perfection with his 12th strikeout, 27 up, 27 down. felix hernandez pitches a 23rd perfect game in baseball history and the third this season. mariners won it, 1-0. yanks and rangers. josh hamilton hit a pair of homers. now has the league-leading 34, but not enough. texas lost their third straight in the bronx, 3-2. scary moment, angels'/indians' play at the plate. torii hunter tried to slide around a tag, clipped umpire greg gibson in the face with his cleat. gibson went down like a ton of bricks. cut around the eye. luckily he was okay. it could have been much worse. angels went on to win it. nats and giants. pick it up in the third. danny espinosa taking tim lincecum deep. all lincecum could do was watch it go over the wall.

washington up, 4-2. stephen strasburg picked up his 14th win of the year. nats won it, 6-4. more bad news for the giants. melky cabrera has been suspended 50 games for violating the league's substance policy. he tested positive for elevated levels of testosterone. the all-star game's mvp having a career year. now we know why. and last but certainly not least, u.s. men's soccer team accomplished something they have never done before. they beat mexico in mexico. grabbed the lead in the 80th minute. check out the nifty heel flick by terrence boyd to michael orozco fiscal. usa up, 1-0. tim howard made the lead stick. a couple of huge saves in the final minutes. after 75 years of futility, the usa finally beats mexico south of the border, 1-0. that's your early look at sports on "early today." i'm fred roggin. well, a surprise for elvis fans at graceland marking the 35th anniversary of his death. your early morning entertainment headlines are straight ahead. plus, we'll tell you about

one minnesota teen's brave quest to fight cyber bullying. you're watching "early today."

welcome back to "early today." excessive heat warnings today. just as warm today in portland as we are in arizona in some spots. clouds and showers around phoenix and tucson, but the heat

incredible up in the pacific northwest. and we'll do it all over again on friday. just like today, if not maybe slightly hotter, and of course we have the fire burning out there. you're watching us on ktuu channel # 2 in anchorage, see wt drives people to conquer america's tallest peak. head to the anchorage museum and that's your pacific event of the day. well, now here's an early look at this morning's headlines in entertainment. elvis presley fans are marking the 35th anniversary of the king's death in memphis. they did this last night, and they got a special surprise. presley's ex-wife priscilla and their only daughter lisa marie stunned a crowd of thousands unexpectedly greeting fans holding a candlelight vigil at graceland. well, elsewhere chris brown and drake are being sued for $16 million over a bottle-throwing night club brawl last june by the owners of the night spot.

more than a decade after he left to fight parkinson's disease, michael j. fox is reportedly planning a return to tv. there's a comedy in development for next year. >> finally, lady gaga is fighting back at the animal rights group peta, which labeled her a turncoat for wearing fur. in a statement she snapped she doesn't support, quote, violent, abusive, and childish campaigns for any cause, referring to kim kardashian being flour-bombed by the group earlier this year. she said save your flour to make bread for the children who are hungry, and kim kardashian is fabulous. sounds like this won't end anytime soon. >> is she just powerful that she can speak out and not be afraid of consequences? >> it's lady gaga. she can do whatever she wants. >> she'll get flour bombed. and this comes to us from k-a-r-e, kare news 11 in minneapolis where in nearby osseo, a teenager has beaten cyber bullies at their own game. this is fantastic.

kevin is a high school senior who was tired of reading anonymous online slurs about his classmates, so he quietly started a twitter page singling out students for praise, complimenting them on their accomplishments or anything else. it was such a hit that the idea has now spread to neighboring schools. kevin's football coach was so impressed he named him team captain. hopefully a lot of other kids will follow suit. >> you see your name on there and it's happy? yeah. minute can post something. could i start one for you. one nice thing a day. >> that would be a good start. an example for kids at home. well, i'm lynn berry, and this is "early today," just your first stop of the day, today on your nbc station.

a zoo in berlin is celebrating its newest edition. a baby elephant made her first public debut just three days after being born -- wow, she's adorable -- weighing in at 350 pounds. zoo visitors watched as she interacted with her mom. born healthy the zoo staff hopes the calf will be strong enough to ward off a common elephant virus that's claimed the lives of three others. well, if you have a sweet tooth, one museum in ukraine is the spot for you. from mayan monuments to the city's train station, everything at the museum is made from chocolate. it took owners six months and 2,500 pounds of chocolate to make all these exhibits. one of the largest creations is a life-size statue made from over 400 pounds of white chocolate. well, have you ever wondered what happens to all those unclaimed lost and found items at the airport? well, let me tell you.

at indianapolis they end up here at this auction recently held in an airplane hangar. lost items along with anything else the airport wants to sell are open for bidding. items include laptops, luggage carriers, and, yes, even x-ray machines. and apparently a really dirty vacuum cleaner. what might you want these things for? >> well, they had like the indianapolis fire truck there too. hopefully they know where it is now, and maybe they can go and get it. >> yeah. and if you're bidding on my cell phone from 2004 that i lost, please, let me know. send me an e-mail. it's time now for an early look at some of the stories we'll follow throughout the day on nbc. aerial mosquito spraying is set to begin in some portions of texas after that deadly west nile virus outbreak. trucks began spraying insecticides for the first time this week ahead of the aerial assault. as we mentioned earlier, today marks the 35th anniversary of the death of elvis presley.

a tribute concert will be held tonight in memphis. and happy birthday to "today" anchor kathie lee gifford and coincidentally her husband, football hall of famer frank gifford. she turns 59, and he turns 82. all day long you can stay on top of the very latest developments in those stories and more as they break on msnbc. and tonight be sure to watch brian williams with "nbc nightly news." and, finally, here's a look at what's coming up later this morning on the "today" show. natalie morales sits down with elvis presley's ex-wife priscilla and their daughter lisa marie for a special interview live from graceland, and r & b legend lionel richie performs live on the plaza. and now keep it on this channel for continuing local news, weather, sports, and more. i'm lynn berry. thanks for watching "early today," just your first stop of the day, today on your nbc station. have a good one.