i am jim cramer, and i will see you tomorrow. this morning on "early today," worst week. mitt romney tries to contain the fallout from his leaked comments in which he dismissed nearly half of all americans. in harm's way. dramatic video shows a close call for a texas officer and a bystander. and piece of work. a spanish woman whose restorations have ruined a 19th century fresco now wants to get paid. captions paid for by nbc-universal television hello and very good morning to you. welcome to our viewers across the nation, including the pacific time zone. i'm veronica de la cruz. today, we begin with campaign battleground. president obama and mitt romney are campaigning in the swing

state of florida today, where both candidates will likely play up their policy on immigration and trade more jabs over comments each has made in the past. nbc's brian mooar has details for us live from washington. brian, good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning, veronica. the romney campaign is pulling a page from the 2008 playbook accusing president obama of trying to redistribute the wealth. as president obama and mitt romney cross paths today in the critical battleground state of florida, their war for the white house has shifted to a skirmish over videotapes. romney's assessment of obama supporters secretly recorded during a private fundraiser earlier this year is still causing problems for his campaign, so republicans are firing back. they're using a 1998 recording of then state senator barack obama talking about making government more efficient at a loyola university chicago conference. >> i think trick is figuring out how do we structure government systems that pool resources and,

hence, facilitate summary distribution, because i actually believe in redistribution, at least at a certain level to make sure that everybody's got a shot. >> he said some years ago something which we're hearing about today on the internet. he said that he believes in redistribution, all right? [ booing ] >> if you want to talk about redistribution, governor romney and congressman ryan would redistribute wealth from middle class families to the wealthiest americans. >> reporter: a war of words over some old words caught on tape. but some of their most important words in florida today might well be in spanish, as each candidate courts that all-important hispanic vote. veronica? >> brian mooar in washington. brian, thank you. a top u.s. security official told a senate panel wednesday the deadly attack in libya on september 11th in which the american ambassador and three others were killed was a terrorist strike. senators also registered doubt the attack started as a

spontaneous protest as well as disbelief over the consulate's lack of security. nbc's danielle leigh has more from washington. >> senator, you have been -- >> reporter: sitting before the senate homeland security committee, three of the top u.s. security officials called this scene last week, that deadly assault on the u.s. consulate in benghazi, libya, where four americans died, evidence the u.s. continues to be vulnerable to terrorist attacks. >> they were killed in the course of a terrorist attack. >> reporter: much else remains unanswered or under dispute. was al qaeda involved? >> we are looking at indications that individuals involved in the attack may have had connections to al qaeda. >> reporter: was the attack planned like the libyan government insists or was it spontaneous like u.s. intelligence officials believe? >> i just don't think that people come to protest equipped with rpgs and other heavy weapons. >> we are conducting interviews, gathering evidence, and trying to sort out the facts.

>> reporter: as investigators sort out the facts, the families of those men killed are laying their loved ones to rest. scenes of sadness republican senator susan collins says could have been prevented had the consulate been better protected. >> i'm just stunned and appalled that there wasn't better security. >> reporter: one of the many factors under evaluation as the u.s. tries to prevent a similar attack. in washington, i'm danielle leigh, nbc news. france has closed embassies in 20 countries in anticipation of islamic protests over cartoons in a french newspaper. the french government is on high alert, also closing cultural centers and french schools after a satire magazine published cartoon images of the prophet muhammad poking fun at the muslim reaction to an anti-islamist made in the united states. while reiterating france's protection of a freedom of speech, the foreign minister accused the magazine of pouring, "oil on the fire." and now, here's a look at some other stories making news early today in america.

in texas, split-second heroism by a police officer saved a woman after an alleged drunk driver plowed his car into a patrol car! the officer had stopped to help the woman when the speeding van crashed, sending the wreckage of the police car straight at the pair. both are recovering. in florida, a school bus camera captured a violent confrontation. police say a mom went after a 17-year-old boy who had allegedly been in a fight with her son the day before. investigators say the mom chased the teenager onto the bus and then started pulling on his hair. she's charged with child abuse. finally in kentucky, you can call this devotion. a mad dash by university of kentucky basketball fans who waited all night and then raced to find a place to camp out for three more days in hopes of landing tickets to the first open practice of the season. the tradition grows every year, and this year, with good reason, after the wildcats took home their eighth national title in april.

and now for a look at your national and regional weather, here's nbc meteorologist dylan dreyer with the weather channel forecast. wait, let me guess, it's gorgeous outside. >> you got it, yep. i mean, we're not looking at a whole lot of anything going on, especially across the entire west coast. we are going to see just a lot of sunshine like we've been seeing a lot of lately. although in the dakotas, we are seeing some fire weather danger still. i mean, we really haven't had a whole lot of rain to speak of, so the ground is dry. we have humidity values down around 20%, so the air is dry, too, and that's why we could see fires basically in the upper plains develop and perhaps spread very quickly. we also had some wildfires out through interior sections of washington state and oregon. so, because of that, things are quiet and we could end up with just smoke getting stuck in the air. so, you, i'm sure, have been noticing it out that way for quite some time, just that smell of smoke in the air. but high pressure's still in control. things are going to remain quiet all across the west coast. little cool in seattle at 51, but warmer at vegas at 76

degrees right now. temperatures should top out in the 70-degree range in seattle, portland about 80 degrees, and then across most of california, highs today should be in the 80s, close to 90 degrees. that's a look at the weather across the oregon. and temperatures in crescent city, california, 56. and that's the latest check on your weather, veronica. >> it is pleasant outside. >> very pleasant. >> thanks, dylan. housing sparks, oil sinks, and mirror, mirror on the wall, who is the richest of them all? your early morning business headlines are straight ahead. plus, sound familiar? late-nightclubing, driving, and then an arrest. lindsay lohan's latest legal run-in, this time in new york city. coming up, pennant races, history chases, and a fond farewell for one american coach.

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well, ghm good morning to you and welcome back to "early today." i'm veronica de la cruz. here are some of your top headlines this morning. a justice department report says there is no evidence attorney general eric holder knew about the "fast and furious" gun-tracking operation. lower-level officials were criticized for not briefing holder. the highest ranking atomic energy official in iran said two nuclear facilities there were the target of sabotage. explosions knocked out electrical power to the plants including the underground site american officials say would be the most difficult to bomb. aung san suu kyi, the leader of the democracy movement in myanmar, met with president obama at the white house and was given the congressional gold

medal, the highest civilian honor bestowed by congress. the nobel peace prize winner called it "one of the most moving days" of her life. in california, about 20 people were stuck for about four hours, 300 feet in the air on a ride at knott's berry farm. they were eventually taken off and there were no injuries. and the spanish woman who recently damaged a fresco of jesus in what she called a restoration now wants money from the church. suddenly, the painting has attracted a dramatic increase in tourists and admission revenue, so now the self-appointed restorer is demanding royalties. and now here's an early look at how wall street will kick off the day. the dow closed at 13,577 after adding 13 points yesterday. the s&p was up a point and the nasdaq gained four. taking a look at overseas trading this morning. in tokyo the nikkei sank 145 points, while in hong kong, the hang seng dropped 250. a pair of encouraging

housing reports gave stocks a little boost on wednesday. existing home sales and housing starts last month reached the highest level in more than two years. that drove homebuilders dr horton, beazer and kb home all sharply higher. meanwhile, the sinking price of crude slowed down the energy sector. oil prices slid another 3.5% yesterday to just below $92 a barrel, bringing the week's total loss to 7%. overseas, china's manufacturing output dipped to its lowest level in ten months. meanwhile, more data showed japanese exports to china were down 10% over last august. according to "the wall street journal," bank of america is ramping up a cost-cutting plan that could result in a loss of 16,000 jobs by the end of the year. industrial bellwether 3m followed in the footsteps of fedex, throwing up a caution flag over weak economic conditions. and on the earnings front, general mills got a bout from strong sales of yogurt overseas. after the bell, bed, bath &

beyond fell 5% on softer-than-expected earnings. also lower in late trade, adobe systems, the software maker putting its new subscription based model will take a toll this quarter. american airlines has canceled hundreds of flights this week as it struggles with an increase in pilots calling out sick. and finally, microsoft co-founder bill gates has retained his spot at the top of "forbes"' 400 richest list, thanks to his $66 billion net worth. meanwhile, facebook's mark zuckerberg is the year's biggest loser, tumbling from number 14 down to number 36. still, i guess you can say it's not a bad place to be, right? extra-inning magic, closing in on the triple crown and a double-dip victory in the bronx. plus the u.s. women's soccer team sends off their coach in style. your early morning sports headlines are straight ahead. and rain will move through the eastern great lakes. the rest of the country looks sunny and dry. your forecast is coming up. you're watching "early today."

well, good morning to you. if you're just waking up, this is "early today." in sports, the orioles continue their late-season surge last night, beating the seattle mariners in baltimore's 15th straight extra-inning victory.

here's nbc's fred roggin with a look at all your sports headlines. good morning. the wild card leading orioles needed 18 innings to beat seattle on tuesday, so why not another extra-inning affair last night? sleepless in seattle again. that solitary oriole fan will never say die. top of the 11th, adam jones put this one to bed. baltimore won it 3-1. second straight extra-inning victory. they've got a 3 1/2 game cushion in the wild card. off to the bronx, yanks and blue jays in a doubleheader. early game, andy pettit's first start since breaking his leg nearly three months ago. broke the blue jays' backs yesterday. blanked them for five. yanks won game one 4-2. in the ninth, game tied in the eighth, ichiro made the difference. seven hits for ichiro yesterday. that one put new york on top. yanks won it 2-1 to sweep the doubleheader. they're now a half game ahead of baltimore in the east. tigers making a run at the a.l. central. detroit hosting oakland. and miguel cabrera making a run at the triple crown. leads the american league in batting average, runs batted in, and after that home run, just one behind josh hamilton for the league lead.

no one has hit for the triple crown since carl yastrzemski in 1967. tigers won it 6-2. they're within two games of the white sox. washington, d.c., nationals took the first of their double header with the dodgers. game two, the nats came back from a 6-0 deficit. scored six in the eighth to tie things up. but matt kemp kept the dodgers afloat. a solo homer in the ninth. dodgers win it 7-6. they're two back in the wild card. finally to soccer. u.s. women's coach pia sundhage, her final game leading the red, white and blue. the ladies sent their coach out in style. 63rd minute. healthier mitts to alex morgan, header into the net. americans showing off on their gold medal victory tour, beat australia 6-2. quite the farewell for the coach sundhage. now she's going home to coach the swedish national team. that's your early look at sports on "early today." i'm fred roggin. a famous former couple is said to reunite and the international superstar who can do no wrong receives greetings from the stork. your early-morning entertainment headlines are straight ahead. plus, what would it take for

to you jump in the water and go at it with one of these guys? a florida senior citizen did it and we're going to tell you why. you're watching "early today."

and we are starting off the day with temperatures seasonable for this time of year. we're in the 40s and 50s all across the west coast and it's very hot down through phoenix into las vegas, right now up around 80 degrees to start off

your thursday morning. we are going to see highs today very hot, above 100 degrees in vegas and phoenix, seattle only 70 today. again, inland areas of washington state and oregon will still be smelling and seeing that smoke in the air from area wildfires. and if you're watching us on kobi nbc 5 in medford, oregon, in nearby ashland, climb your way across a rock wall that doubles as a time line of the fossil record at "climb through time" at the scienceworks hands-on museum. and that's your "pacific event of the day." >> i've never been able to do that, climb the rock wall. >> i've never tried. i feel like i would just try to grip on something and slip right off and that's the end of that. >> you and me both. >> yeah. now here is an early look at this morning's headlines in entertainment news. shakira has taken another big step towards having it all. the 35-year-old colombian superstar posted on her website wednesday that she and 25-year-old barcelona soccer star boyfriend gerard piquet, "are very happy awaiting the

arrival of our first baby." the grammy winner and soon-to-be judge on nbc's "the voice" is taking time out to enjoy the news including canceling a performance tomorrow in las vegas. big congratulations to them. the robert pattinson/kristen stewart reunion has apparently turned into a reconciliation. meme magazine reporting friends of pattinson are saying "they're going to be a couple again." "us" magazine reports the two are back together after a, "dramatic makeup in los angeles." and finally, lindsay lohan has been arrested again, this time in new york city, for leaving the scene of an accident after allegedly clipping a pedestrian with a borrowed porsche. the man claims lohan was slurring her words and reeked of booze. lohan claims she is being set up. and this now comes to us from west 2 news in orlando, florida, where in a nearby villages, a community was gator versus dog until a senior citizen literally risked life and limb. steve saw a 7-foot alligator grab his terrier named bounce and drag it into a pond.

steve, who is 66 years old, bounced into action, diving in and struggling with the reptile, pinning his nose under water and grabbing its tail until bounce was freed. steve says he did it for one reason, because his dog is his best friend. and you see all the pictures of his dog and you totally get it. >> look at how happy he was, how could you not? and we all have small dogs. you can relate to how in an emergency like that, you could step into action. >> well, they turn into family. >> they really do. >> and you can't -- yeah, you definitely would wrestle a gator for your dog. >> absolutely. i'm veronica de la cruz. this is "early today," just the first stop of your day today on your nbc station.

one new york city living room boasts more than just a park view. a japanese artist has transformed the famous statue in columbus circle into a sky-high art exhibit, complete with furnishings. it's basically a living room built around a figure of christopher columbus. entry to the 75-foot-high space is free and it runs through mid-november. one elephant in england has become quite the picasso i guess you could say. karishma, the asian elephant, is using her trunk to create some pretty abstract paintings, all for charity. elephants use their trunks for smelling, drinking, and apparently, holding paintbrushes. the art will be auctioned off this weekend. some of last year's paintings sold for over $300. and one man in india must be using some serious shampoo. the 45-year-old successfully

pulled a toy train engine and four coaches using his hair! the 82,000-pound train was dragged just over eight feet. he already holds records for pulling a truck and two buses with his ponytail and hopes to be recognized by the guinness book of world records. i just can't even -- i just don't even know what to say. >> how do you even know you have that talent to be able to do that? that's something i've just never tried before. >> i guess you've got to try it, right? the only way. all right. time now for an early look at some of the stories that we're going to follow throughout the day on nbc. accused aurora theater shooter james holmes will be in a colorado courtroom for a motions hearing today. a judge in the case will decide whether to approve prosecutors' requests to add ten charges to the 152 counts holmes already faces for the alleged murder of 12 people at the midnight showing of "the dark knight rises" back in july. 58 others were injured. on capitol hill, a joint congressional committee will

hold the so-called first nail ceremony to mark the beginning of the 2013 inaugural platform construction. finally, happy birthday to actress sophia loren who turns 78 years old today. happy birthday. and all day long you can stay on top of the very latest developments in those stories and others as they break on msnbc. tonight, be sure to watch brian williams with "nbc nightly news." finally, here's a look at what's coming up later this morning on the "today" show. "gossip girl" star kelly rutherford will be live in studio to share the emotional story of her ongoing battle for custody of her children. and former "cosmopolitan" magazine editor in chief kate white gives tips on how to make it big in the business world. now, keep it on this channel for continuing local news, weather, sports and much more. i'm veronica de la cruz. thank you so much for watching "early today," just your first stop of the day today on your nbc station. have a terrific thursday. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com