>> see you at 6:00. > growing backlash over that secret prisoner swap with the taliban. the army requested an investigation as high level democrats and republicans accuse the president of breaking the law. a violent outbreak right now. warnings of a dangerous night ahead for millions. hidden risks -- a stunning new health warning tonight the cdc says what you can't see in restaurants all across the country is making a lot of people sick. and off the clock. how some companies are now going to extremes to give employees their free time back. "nightly news" begins now. from nbc news world headquarters in new york this is "nbc nightly news" with brian

williams. >> good evening everyone, i'm ann curry in for brian. on a day in fast-moving developments in the bowe bergdahl story. with three days ago the white house recovery of an army sergeant shifted dramatically today with the army announcing that they are having a high level inquiry how the soldier was captured in the first place. today senators from both sides of the aisle publicly questioned whether president obama violated a law in a prisoner swap with bergdahl that released five top taliban commanders from guantanamo and before bergdahl has even made it back to the u.s. after almost five years in taliban captivity. tonight we report this story from all angles beginning with chuck todd who is traveling with the president in poland. chuck, good evening. >> reporter: good evening. traveling here in warsaw to

reassure nervous eastern european allies the u.s. won't waiver from hits commitment to stand up to russia. the president found himself playing defense on another sticky national security issue, the deal to free sergeant bowe bergdahl. what began as a triumphant rose garden announcement 72 hours ago, has now explodeed into a full blown political firestorm. with the president facing sharp questions about bergdahl's disappearance, the threat of the taliban's commanders in exchange and bypassing congress. traveling in warsaw the president waved off questions. >> regardless of the circumstances, whatever those circumstances may turn out to be, we still get an american soldier back if he's held in captivity. period. full stop. >> reporter: he played down the

risk of the taliban commanders release. >> is there the possibility of some of them trying to return to activities that are detrimental to us? absolutely. that's been true of all the prisoners that were released from guantanamo. >> reporter: the president said the need for secrecy and speed trumped the need to inform congress in real-time but he claimed the idea of this exchange of something congress knew about for three years. on capitol hill senate intelligence committee leaders from both parties said that didn't qualify as consultation and accused the president of violating the law. >> it comes with some surprise and dismay that the transfers went ahead with no consultation, totally not following the law. >> i haven't had a conversation with the white house on this issue in a year and a half. if that's keeping us in the loop, then, you know, this administration is more arrogant than i thought they were. >> reporter: speaker boehner today promised congressional hearings. the white house expected blow back over the taliban release. what aides didn't expect was so much public doubt about bergdahl's intent on leaving his unit. on sunday susan rice said this. >> he served the united states

with honor and distinction. >> reporter: today a more careful tone. >> we want to get him well and have an opportunity to tell us what happened. >> reporter: the political fallout from home is clear. >> the turned out to be a hot puerto rican otato for the white house. >> reporter: the president gave a billion dollar pledge to bolster ally security over the continent. to get that billion dollars he needs the approval of congress and right now congress isn't happy over bergdahl. >> chuck, thanks. meanwhile the pentagon today responded to the growing questions about how bergdahl ended up in enemy hands. top defense officials say they intend to get answers that part of the story from jim miklaszewski. jim, good evening.

>> reporter: good evening, ann. bowe bergdahl is still at a u.s. military hospital in germany tonight where he continues to receive medical and psychological care while here at the pentagon the army is gearing up for what could be a criminal investigation. >> scared i won't be able to go home. >> reporter: the army announced today it's prepared to launch a thorough inquiry into bergdahl's actions when he disappeared from this base five years ago. in a rare move the military's top commander, joint chief general martin dempsey also weighed in on facebook. like any american, he is innocent until proven guilty. but dempsey pledged our army's leaders won't look away from misconduct if it occurred. this gentleman was a medic and believes bergdahl should be kilometres per hour mar -- court-martialed for desertion.c.

>> he walked away from his duty as a united states army soldier and he needs to be held accountable for that. he needs to go through the due process. >> reporter: desertion is considered one of the most severe charges. >> it's the heart of the matter. you have to have g.i.s who stay at their duty stations and don't wander off. who dare to perform their duty. otherwise there's no way you can achieve a military mission. >> reporter: the army is set to review the circumstances behind the deaths of six soldiers killed in action during search operations for bergdahl. one of those killed was bergdahl's platoon leader, jared andrews. his mother sandra wants to see bergdahl brought to justice. >> he's not a hero, he's a traitor. he's a deserter. he left his post in war. >> reporter: his father andy does not want his son's death to be in vain. >> he died doing what he believed in. that gives me pride. >> reporter: public anger over the controversy has reached

bergdahl's hometown hailey, idaho where preparations are under way for a joyous homecoming later this month. >> he'll be a celebrity when he gets back. >> reporter: but the chamber of commerce president is being bombarded by what she says is hate calls and people cancelling their vacation reservations. >> i just find that shocking. you know, we're americans. and we need to act like americans and to me that's unamerican. >> reporter: as for any investigation defense officials tell us it's highly unlikely that bergdahl would be subjected to any questioning until he's fully recovered from his five years in captivity, ann. >> jim, thank you so much. turning now to a warning from the national weather service about a huge outbreak of severe weather. 35 million americans are in the high-risk zones and tonight already there are reports of 100 mile-per-hour wind gusts and baseball size hail moving through parts of the midwest. jim cantore is monitoring all of this for us. jim, good evening. >> good evening.

we have a long night ahead of us. we'll see more of these winds race all the way across the state of iowa into illinois. trees pretty much pushed over, snapped off and toppled on top of automobiles. we've had many, many gusts and many reports of hail tonight, now topping over 200, even 11 tornadoes. and we are not done. look at the action from south dakota and nebraska into iowa and missouri. right now, most of this is severe wind, okay? we've had many wind reports. as a matter of fact, we watched one storm come all the way from south dakota through nebraska. four statest has traveled. tonight, with that continuing, much of iowa, much of missouri, not surprising at all to see this same wind damage storm come all the way to the mid-atlantic

tomorrow. the damaging winds are going to extend hundreds of miles. there may be as many as 500 reports of hail and wind. it's going to be a long night. back to you. all right, good to know. jim cantore, thank so much. strong economic news tonight about auto sales. despite all the recent headlines about recalls and safety issues, new numbers show dealers are doing gang buster business. may is a strong month for car sales and now with americans in the mood to buy the auto industry is on track for its best year since 2006 and an indicator on where our economy may be going. a report tonight from kevin tibbles in chicago. >> reporter: it is pedal to the metal for new car sales. with the top seven automakers leaving analysts expectations in the dust.

>> the auto sales last month were much stronger than anybody was predicting. what you saw last month was a re-emergence of the american consumer. >> reporter: 1.6 millon cars sold in may. 11.3% up from last year. best overall gains since the recession. the big three are the big winners. chrysler up 16.7%. general motors even after several high-profile recalls up 12.6%. and ford's may sales rose 3%. at fox ford in chicago they are building a brand new showroom. >> i don't have a customer complaining about down payment, monthly payment, they are not saying anything about recession. they are out buying cars. >> reporter: why the enthusiasm? some analysts suggest in a recovering economy many buyers are flocking to the lots after a long and cold winter. this student is shopping for his first car. >> do you feel comfortable enough right now to put the

money down? >> yeah. i mean, you know, i'm going to have to work to repay it but absolutely. >> reporter: the most sought after models are trucks, suvs and crossovers and buyers are not deterred by the rash of recalls. >> they are looking at the recalls and saying that was then, that's not what i'm seeing in the showroom now. >> reporter: for years people have satisfied themselves by kicking the tires and dreaming. it's now clear many have waited long enough and they are putting their money down. kevin tibbles, nbc news, chicago. tonight the centers for disease control is out with disturbing new information about the leading cause of foodborne illnesses. the norovirus is extremely con tashs and contagious and often associated with cruise ship outbreaks.tagious and ofte with cruise ship outbreaks. we learned today the vast majority of norovirus cases can be traced back to restaurants

and food workers many who were so sick who shouldn't have shown up for work. question get our report tonight from tom costello. >> reporter: it was a memorial day weekend rebekah brooks would like to forget. she and her husband confined to their new york apartment for four days with the norovirus after he ate contaminated pineapple. within 24 hours they were both sick. >> it's pretty much makes you incapable about going about your life until it flushes out of your system. >> reporter: 20 million people each year are sickened, 800 die from the norovirus most often from eating contaminated food. now cdc says food workers are responsible for 70% of those outbreaks and one in five workers admit going to work with severe gastrointestinal illness. >> over the court of an individual's lifetime they may have five different bouts of norovirus illness. having one bout in your life doesn't protect you throughout the rest of your life. >> reporter: the norovirus is hard to kill remaining for up to two weeks on kitchen surfaces, utensils and foods. even at freezing temperatures it

can remain infectious. so infectious 1,000 people can be infected. >> at this restaurant in metro d.c., they are so serious about cleanliness they conduct monthly hygiene and seminars. holding a yearly hand washing competition. to keep up with how well employees are washing their hand, managers check them using this uv light looking for areas on their hands that are not clean. lotion glows under the light. >> it's really making it a priority. but talking about it. using clean, fresh cutting boards. knives. utensils. >> reporter: employees are also told to stay home if they are sick. but not every restaurant, school or nursing home is as individual gent. and the norovirus is persistent and dangerous. tom costello, nbc news, rockville, maryland. >> still ahead extreme measures how a growing number of companies are helping employees put down their cell phones and back away from emails to get back to time they deserve.

later an unbelievable close call caught on camera, a lot of people wondering what the pilot was thinking.

a lot of americans looked jealously across the pond after a french court ruled it was illegal for some employers to e-mail their workers after hours. something like that is probably far off in this country there are some american companies beginning to realize giving their employees time outside the office without staring at their smart phones may be good for their bottom lines. we get the story now from cnbc's sharon epperson. >> reporter: be honest. how often do you check your e-mail? >> 24/7. >> while i'm in the bathroom. if anybody tells you they don't check it in the bathroom they

are lying. >> reporter: we headed to north carolina to check out bandwidth that offers a unique perk, guaranteed time to unplug. strictly enforced vacation embargo policy bars any contact with employees while they are off. on his first vacation after joining the company it took lon france some time to adjust. >> i went six hours without having my smart phone and that's a first. >> reporter: you want people out of here by 6:00. david morken said he values his time as a parent outside of the office and wanted everyone at the company to be able to enjoy their free time too. >> it's part of our business to allow people to always be connected and yet we're realizing it's important to disconnect. >> reporter: one study found 38% of american workers check e-mail routinely at the dinner table while 50% check it in bed. and many are working on them at least 13.5 hours a day. >> in the short view you can say look i can get all this extra work out of people. but i'm finding that employees are starting to say, you know what? people are leaving. people are burning out. >> reporter: a handful of companies are catching on to

this idea. finding ways to recharge and retain talent. new york's start up quirky closes their office for a week three times a year, giving their employees an e-mail black out period. boston consulting group guarantees one e-mail free ending a week for its consultants. ed barber is thankful for the time away from his phone. >> it's really important because these moments, there's only so many of them. >> reporter: when they do happen, you won't want to be reading your e-mail. sharon epperson, nbc news, raleigh, north carolina. and we're back in a moment with a wedding to remember, the bride and groom and everyone else taking the plunge.

lawmakers in baltimore voted for one of the strictest curfews

in the country. it will require anyone under the age of 14 to be indoors by 9:00. teenagers, age 14 to 15 need to be inside by 10:00 p.m. on weeknights and 11:00 p.m. on weekends. as you might imagine, not everyone is happy about it. supporters of the bill say it will help children from falling victim or or from violent crimes. they say that rain on your wedding day is good luck, but we're not so sure what it means when your entire wedding party gets soaking wet. that's dan and jackie anderson from minnesota lined up on a dock with all of their brides maids and groomsmen smiling for pictures. then the dock collapses. 22 people were standing on it. most of the wedding party ended in the water up to their chest. the ceremony started late but

gave everybody time to dry off. another incredible piece of video this one from an island in germany. the pilot of a small plane coming in for a landing just barely misses a sun bather laying face down in the sand trying to shield himself. the plane clipped the fence before landing on a small air strip. the pilot later apologized said he misjudged the landing and came in a bit low. when we come back our trip to the ballpark. a big celebration for a group of american originals.

finally tonight celebrating something little. this week marks the 75th anniversary of the little league, that source of summer joy to young boys and now also girls all across america. the very first little league game was played on june 6th, 1939 and some of the first players, the original boys of summer are still around to tell harry smith all about it. tonight mr. smith goes to the ballpark. >> reporter: it's hard to walk

through a park and not stop to watch kids play baseball. we can see ourselves on the field. >> when i hit that ball i'm like yes, i got a hit. >> reporter: we remember what it was like just to be on a team. how great. imagine it to have been these guys the first boys to ever play little league baseball, 75 years ago in williamsport, pennsylvania. >> we had bats, we could swing. we had an umpire. we were really living that first game. >> reporter: until then baseball was strictly sand lot stuff and then a man came along and said do you want to be on a team. >> we said yes. >> this is great.

this is like a dream. >> reporter: charlie smith. huck frazier. dave henneman. bill bexar. dick howser. they played on real teams with real coaches. >> they were all volunteers. >> reporter: the men remember the games like they were played yesterday. >> i got waffled the first game. >> reporter: you got waffled? >> yes. >> reporter: heck, yes. that was the beginning of little league. >> little did we realize back in 1939 that it would blossom into a big thing like this. >> reporter: little league is played by boys and girls, more than 160,000 teams in 80 different countries and if they are really good they make it to

the little league world series. >> japan wins the little league world series championship! >> reporter: those original boys of summer grew up in the depression. they all served in world war ii and to this day that game, that sport they shared, to them it was a gift. >> we were just the luckiest guys in the world. that's all i can say. >> reporter: funny, that's pretty much what these kids told us too. harry smith, nbc news, williamsport, pennsylvania. and that is our broadcast for this tuesday evening. i'm ann curry in for brian. for all of us here at nbc news, thank you and good night. nbc bay area news starts now. you know, being the fact that we were trying to evict him for legal fraud, i think, he may have wanted to get me. >> only on nbc. he fears he was the target of a man who federal agents say had the ingredients to make a bomb in his home. good evening, and thanks for joining us. i'm jessica aguirre. >> i'm raj mathai. we have new details concerning that fbi man hunt. that landlord thinks he may have been the intended target of ryan

chamberlain. federal agents searched a second location just today linked to chamberlain. the documents outline why chamberlin may have had the makings of a bomb. it included a power source, wire conductors and a switching system. jodi hernandez joins us at the apartment they searched today. >> reporter: we were the only news agency there when police arrested him last night. they say i was formally charged in federal court with possessing explosives. >> we had information that he had items of great concern to us in his residence. >> reporter: tonight we're learning what those items are. according to the affidavit unsealed this morning. agents found a messenger bag filled with items used to make an explosive device, including a screw top glass jar containing