good tuesday morning. coming up on "early today," moral obscenity. that's how secretary of state john kerry described the attacks on civilians with chemical weapons in syria. will the u.s. send in the military? it's one of the biggest wildfires in california history. over 3700 firefighters battling a blaze that's just 20% contained. american hero ty carter receives our highest honor. we'll tell you his incredible story of bravery. plus, president obama's likely nominee for new fed head. a major dogfighting ring busted. and marking 50 years since this man and his message changed the world. "early today" starts right now. >> announcer: this is "early today" for tuesday, august 27th.

very good morning. i'm richard lui. secretary of state john kerry saying the evidence is clear and the amount of human suffering undeniable. >> it defies any code of morality. let me be clear. the indiscriminate slaughter of civilians, the killing of women and children and innocent bystanders by chemical weapons is a moral obscenity. >> the u.n. is getting closer to confirming whether the syrian government used chemical weapons against its own people. nbc's ayman moyheldin is live in cairo for us on this tuesday. we're hearing syria's foreign minister saying the u.n. inspector's second trip to the alleged site has been delayed. there is that and then the question of a timeline on potential military action. what are you hearing? >> reporter: well, that foreign minister press conference is still ongoing, and syria's foreign minister has remained very defiant, saying the syrian government would use all options

available at its disposal to defend itself in the face of any possible military intervention. he also went on to say that what is happening right now is an international conspiracy. a plot that was driven to weaken syria to advance israel's regional interest. he said the syrian government has been throughout all of this process in the last few days cooperating with the u.n. inspection team. now that team was expected to go back out today, but as you mentioned, it seems to have been delayed. no clear timeline as to when it will resume its work. yesterday it did manage to get to that site of the alleged chemical weapons attack. it was able to get interviews, to get samples. but no clear timeline on whether they will make their findings public and, if so, when and where. more importantly, some of syria's regional allies, including iran, say they, too, would predict that the region would be engulfed in a further round of violence if, in fact, there was any type of military intervention against syria.

richard? >> ayman covering that story from kir ocairo, egypt. there's a different fight going on out west in this country. a fight to save yosemite park. the flames getti inting eerily do to the giant sequoia trees. this morning there's word of small progress, though. the rim fire is 20% contained but there's still the need to protect the hetch hetchy reservoir. it splupplies 85% of san francisco's water supply and is being slowly polluted. at the white house on monday, an army soldier received the medal of honor for uncommon bravery. staff sergeant ty carter was reck nid for his courage in action during a deadly firefight in afghanistan. nbc chief pentagon correspondent jim miklaszewski has more for us. >> reporter: surrounded by soaring cliffs, combat outpost keating in afghanistan was under

constant attack. but in october 2009 the taliban launched the fiercest assault yet. ty carter was jolted from his sleep. >> there was something very different. the sound of the gunfire was nonstop. more than 400 taliban unleashed an avalanche of rocket, and mortar and gun fire on those below. >> we were low on ammo. and everyone around us who was friendly was either wounded or dead. >> reporter: stephan mace was on the ground, seriously wounded, crawling toward the humvee pleading for help. >> that's the first time i asked, can i get to mace. he's right there. he says, no, you are no good to him dead. >> were you angry, frustrated? >> i was insane. there's no true pain until you've seen your family member suffer in front of you. that is real hell. >> reporter: eight americans were killed, 25 wounded. under heavy fire, carter eventually carried mace to

safety. but he later died of his wounds. >> when i found out that he had died, i believe that i was a complete failure. not just in combat or in the army, but in life. >> reporter: even now staff sergeant carter still suffers post-traumatic stress. president obama hailed carter for his efforts to help others struggling with ptsd. >> look at this man. look at this soldier. look at this warrior. he's as tough as they come. >> reporter: and a true american hero. on and off the battlefield. jim miklaszewski, nbc news, the pentagon. more than 350 pit bulls have been rescued in what's being described as the second biggest raid on illegal dogfighting in u.s. history. after a three-year investigation, the fbi raided several suspected dogfighting compounds in multiple states across the southeast. hundreds of wounded and neglected dogs were found living in inhumane conditions. 12 people have been arrested in connection to the ring. they now face multiple charges ranging from dogfighting to gambling. new school year brings a new

start for children whose lives were forever changed on december 14th in newtown, connecticut. students from sandy hook elementary returned to the classroom today. they'll be at a different school in nearby monroe renamed just for them. the task force has approved a plan to demolish the original school and rebuild on the same site. it's awaiting approval by the newtown community. if monsoon rains weren't enough, phoenix was slammed with massive dust storms on monday. gusts of up to 68 miles an hour created a wall of dust hundreds ofeet high and miles wide followed by heavy rains and lightning. the storm left thousands in the area without power. bill karins, our nbc meteorologist, you look at these pictures. they are called a haboob, right? >> if you get a big enough one. if it moves fast enough. some are small. some are big. we get these storms daily. it continues this morning. there's even more storms after that race through arizona overnight. i'm sure they did produce some gusty winds that kicked up the

dust, too. let's show you what's going on with the fires. 33 uncontrolled blazes continue to burn. california now has the most. you've passed idaho. you have eight fires burning uncontained at this time. of course, the biggest one of them being the rim fire. that was 20% containment. still burning in very rugged terrain. dry conditions. that's not going to stop any time soon. additional storms last night. there was a little lightning with these storms. they did miss las vegas through cedar city and southern portions of utah right now. we'll see additional hit and miss storms in the desert areas from vegas northwards from flagstaff up to salt lake city. even boise has a chance of a storm or two. with these thunderstorms, the lightning is -- the bad part, you want the rain but we could get some additional fire starting with the lightning strikes. hopefully we'll avoid that. that's you just still burning s

areas that it's still going to help. the pacific northwest is one of the coolest spots in the country today. but everyone else still feels like summer. >> and those wildfires, right, go through september, october. >> i talked to a lot of people who have been flying in and out of the west. you just fly in an airplane, everywhere you look you just see smoke, smoke, smoke. concerns over syria push stocks below the 15,000 mark and could cause gas prices to rise. plus, a measles outbreak is causing major concern. details on that in two minutes.

welcome back. there were celebrations over the weekend but tomorrow is the official 50th anniversary of dr. martin luther king's "i have a dream" speech. tracie potts is in washington. what's in store for the anniversary that we're hearing. >> reporter: there are very big

plans to commemorate this anniversary tomorrow. on the other end of the national mall, a big program planned. several hours. and at the end, a speech by president obama on the very spot where martin luther king gave that speech 50 years ago. but behind the scenes there's a lot going on, too. today, first lady michelle obama is hosting an event at the white house on civil rights history. she's previewing a film there. there's an educational conference going on. faith leaders have been in town talking to president obama about education and unemployment and other issues that they hope they can move forward. the big focus, the event and the speech tomorrow. richard? >> what an anniversary it will be. thank you, tracie potts. george zimmerman's legal team wants the state of florida to cover the cost of some of his legal fees. the legal team is seeking between 200,000 dld in $300,000. a second washington state teen accused of beating world war ii veteran delbert belton to

death appeared in court on monday. the 16-year-old is being held on $2 million bail. he was charged with first-degree murder and first-degree robbery. monday marked the first day of school for chicago children and the first day of the city's safe passage program. it's meant to keep students safe as they walk to school every day, sometimes through gang boundaries due to recent school closings. and kate gosselin has filed a lawsuit against her ex-house. that suit says he stole and hacked his way into her private information. kate says her ex jon gosselin gained access to e-mails and bank accounts in order to publish a tell-all book. turning to health news for you -- one church in texas is at a tricky crossroads after an outbreak of the meeseles. the eagle mountain international church is being linked to at least 21 cases of the disease. it's the same church where leaders have warned against vaccines. they site the debunked theory that they cause autism.

they are now hosting vaccination clinics to try to stop it from spreading. the senior pastor is now encouraging everyone to get vaccinated unless you have got it covered by faith. >> announcer: "early today" health is brought to you by vagisil ph balance wash. let's get our business news now with jackie deangeles. >> president obama will likely name former treasure secretary larry summers as the next fed chairman in a few weeks. summers would replace ben bernanke who is expected to step down before his term ends in january. starbucks ceo howard schultz says they won't follow in other companies' footsteps, cutting benefits. the law requires companies with more than 50 employees to provide coverage to those who work 30 hours or more per week. mcdonald's adding chicken wings to the menu for a limited time on september 9th. wings are one of the fastest

growing categories for fast food and casual dining chains with sales topping $8 billion last year. richard, back to you. >> alas, jackie. more chicken wings. straight ahead, we can ask for this. more sports and highlights when "early today" returns.

all right. let's get you to sports.

the struggling mets got some devastating news overnight. matt harvey has a partially torn ligament in his pitching elbow. he's hoping to avoid tommy john surgery. that would likely take him out for this and possibly next season. harvey is second in the majors in earned runs. he is fourth in strikeouts. and started in july's all-star game. >> i'm going to do everything i can so i don't have to get surgery, whether it's strengthening areas in my shoulder and elbow and, you know, stretching. a lot of stretching and making sure that, you know, i obviously stay out of the doctor's office. >> yeah, the mets hoping for the best there. the nfl players association wants the new england patriots to pay $82,000 in workout bonuses. and they are doing it for tight end aaron hernandez indicted last week for murder. the players association says it wants to protect future players pay saying, quote, we are not tone deaf to what the allegations are in this case but

for the benefit of all players, there are important precedents here we must protect. serena williams dominating at the u.s. open opening round. italy's schiavone the target. how badly? so badly she says i need a hug from the ball boy. he's like, a little sweaty. the defending champ williams walloped, 6-0, 6-1. raphael nadal beat american ryan harrison for the men. also in straight sets. this was nadal's 16th straight win on the hard courts. look out for him. would you pay $6500 for somebody's stitches? how about if they come from chicago blackhawks forward andrew shaw's cheek? somebody did do that. the stitches come from the puck to the face in the stanley cup finals with the proceeds going to cancer research. want to win a year's free tuition? why not? just do this. a half court shot by a 19-year-old at colorado state university. he had three chances. only needed one.

and a year's tuition, by the way, worth about $23,000 if you are an in-state resident. out of state, $40,000. he called mom. she didn't believe it. just ahead, we've got your top stories, bill's weather and the richest entertainers on the planet. you're watching "early today."

welcome back. this is an all too familiar scene across so many spots of the west right now. pictures from the rim fire. a lot of aerial assault is

needed on this fire because these hotshot crews are really in some rugged terrain. finding it very difficult to fight the fire lines. they are protecting a lot of the structures and doing the best they can. as far as the forecast today, it's really not all that hot or windy for those fire conditions but it's just been such a bad drought that's continued here ever since about december that that's the reason why these are burning so fast and out of control. the northwest is also deal with a cool day today. 75 with some rain. seattle tomorrow, not bad. a little warmer. upper 70s and low 80s. tomorr temperatures pretty much where they should be. this incredible summer stretch there in seattle. you have to wonder if the 80s are finally done in seattle. you know, this is still all right, though. >> it's been a great summer. they've had those 70s, 80s in the northwest all summer. they are like, if it gets taken away right now, they had so much. probably should have put it in a bottle. thank you, bill karins. reps for khloe kardashian and lamar odum have stepped up

to squash rumors. the nba star not missing and his wife is affair of their whereabouts. it became ripe for fodder after she reported odum was missing for 72 hours and possibly suffering from drug addiction. miley cyrus, that performance at the vmas, it created historic buzz on twitter. the twerking and grind fest generated over 300,000 tweets per minute on the east coast. the explicit act also garnered criticism from the parents television council which accused mtv of marketing sexually charged programming to young children. and then lady gaga who was off camera and what she was doing. "forbes" ranked the material girl as the highest paid celebrity in 2013. madonna topped the list with 12 -- >> am i the only one shocked by this? what did she do? >> she did have concerts,

though. $125 million here. her closest competitor is director steven spielberg. music mogul, simon cowell, e.l. james and the king of all media, howard stern. but that is surprising. >> madonna. >> "saturday night live" is expected to add five new faces to its cast. one of them could be beck bennett best known for playing the moderator in these adorable at&t ads. all right. and the hollywood foreign press is asking for a second act from tina fey and amy poehler. they had record ratings. >> who is your favorite host of all time. billy crystal. >> billy crystal is a classic. i would have to say they did a great job. i would not mind seeing them come on back. >> they are good together. >> like you are, bill karins. you are good with everybody. i'm richard lui. this is "early today." we hope it's just your first stop of the day on nbc.

leading the news in "the new york times," in obama's high-level appointments, the scales tip toward men. president obama has appointed about as many women to high level positions in the executive branch as president clinton did 20 years ago. and in the denver post recreational marijuana denver council set sales tax, retail rules. the proposal includes a 3.5% tax rate. and if approved would generate well over $3 million a year to pay for regulation. topping our news now as the syrian government denies using chemical weapons against its own people, secretary of state john kerry says the evidence itself is undeniable. kerry says the u.s. government has additional information and will be releasing it in the days ahead. u.n. inspectors, meanwhile, are meeting with alleged victims. they're gathering blood samples and other evidence. russian president vladimir

putin is banning protests at the 2014 sochi olympics. the ban on all gathering, rallies and demonstrations not associated with the olympics comes on the heels of outrage over russia's anti-gay laws. the ban takes effect january 7th and lasts for 2 1/2 months. some critics are saying it violates human rights. for some, flooding is the perfect excuse for water sports. a group of thrillseekers in las vegas decided that the floodwaters were, hey, just perfect to test out their whitewater rafting skills. maybe not. didn't go so well as you see there, bill. since they spent most of the time outside of their raft. since the flooding started, over 20 people have been saved from the floodwaters. there are better things to do when you see white waters like that. some folks just like -- >> it's a novelty for them. they want to get out and play and they are probably kids. >> when we see hurricanes, the same thing. >> as soon as they cross the line and they need to be rescued, that's when it becomes an issue. >> i go with whitewater rafting.

it's a little safer. time for a look ahead and a look back. secretary of homeland security janet napolitano says farewell this morning. napolitano leaves to become the first female president of the university of california. on this date in 2008, barack obama was nominated for president at the democratic national convention in denver. the delegates celebrated as senator obama became their candidate. happy birthday to cesar milan, the dog whisperer who is 44. paul rubins, aka pee-wee herman turns 61. and actress barbara bock, mrs. ringo starr, is 66. he still wears that bow tie, too. savannah guthrie talks to new york attorney general eric schneiderman about the lawsuit he filed against donald trump. and matt lauer and savannah get a lesson in doubles tennis. i'm richard lui. have a very good tuesday.

a live look from san francisco's bay bridge, a very early morning. find out what kind of day we have ahead on this tuesday, august 27. this is "today in the bay."