coming up on "early today," a whirlwind day for the democrats, as president obama throws full weight of the party. memorial fit for the man known as the greatest of all time. david letter man goes one-on-one with our own tom brokaw. plus slow jamming the news with jimmy fallon on the tonight show. "early today" starts right now. good morning, everyone, i'm alex witt. the leader of the free world and head of the democratic party finally throws his full support behind a single candidate to take over as president of the united states. in a highly produced three minute video, president obama

lays out the case that hillary clinton has the judgment, toughness, commitment and experience, which makes her one of the most qualified candidates to ever run for office. >> i know how hard this job can be. that's why i know hillary will be so good at it. in fact, i don't think there has ever been someone so qualified to hold this office. she has got the courage, the compassion, and the heart to get the job done. >> clinton reacted, telling bloomberg news, it means so much to have a strong substantive endorsement from the president. over the years of knowing each other, we've gone from fierce competitors to true friends. the campaign endorsed her just minutes after he sat down with bernie sanders. a meeting that left the idea of party unity on sanders' mind. >> donald trump would clearly, to my mind and i think the majority of americans, be a disaster as president of the united states.

i will work as hard as i can to make sure that donald trump does not become president of the united states. >> senators harry reid and chuck schumer also met with sanders, as did vice-president joe biden, after he offered it this off e cuff endorsement last night. >> god willing in my view it will be secretary clinton, but whoever it will be -- >> many democrats feel it is a matter of time before bernie sanders calls it quits and unites behind clinton. >> he knows how important it is to win the election and beat donald trump, and i have every bit of faith that we are going to be working together with senator sanders to achieve that goal, and the goal of taking back the senate. >> my understanding is that senator sanders wants to be respectful of the process until the end, until the people have spoken. >> president obama will join clinton on the campaign trail on

wednesday, in green bay, wisconsin, the home of rooem house speaker, paul ryan. meanwhile, the most "wall street journal" poll shows the president with a 51% approval rating, and 88 approval rating among democrats. donald trump was quick to react to the president's endorsement on twitter, saying obama just endorsed crooked hillary. he wants four more years of obama, but nobody else does. to which, the clinton campaign replied, delete your account. those three words are the campaign's most re-tweeted so far, but it was another key endorsement that overshadowed the feud. coming earlier than expected, elizabeth warren endorsed clinton last night with the announcement on "rachel maddow." i'm ready get in the fight and work my heart out for hillary clinton to become the next president of the united states and to make sure donald trump gets any place close to the white house. >> this morning, we now have new

reporting from the "washington pos post". warren will meet with clinton, a meeting to fuel speculation about the vp prospects. democratic unity, they were silenced yesterday, as warren and joe biden delivered slams from every angle. >> for a candidate to call a judge a hater, a total disgrace, this behavior in the president smacks of thortarianism in addition to this, it is racist. in addition to this. >> trump is picking on someone who is ethically bound not to defend himself. exactly what you would expect from a thin-skinned racist bully. and we will not allow a small insecure thin-skinned want to be tyrant or his allies in the senate to destroy the rule of law in the united states of

america. we will not. >> house speaker paul ryan told nbc's andrea mitchell he remains a trump supporters, despite his comments. >> look, i think his stage presence is something that's different than what i would do. but my personal interactions, i find him to have very evenhanded temperament. >> you have even said that what he said about judge curiel was a textbook definition of racism. how can you then say, but you know, he he is okay to be president? >> i think we all, not just republicans, should disavow comments like that. i'm glad he walked it back. this is a long campaign with a long way to go. he has a ways to go to give us a campaign we can all be proud of. >> despite a political day, it was president obama who got the final word last night, as he slow jammed the news with the tonight show's jimmy fallon. >> through the actions of my administration, we were able to stimulate the economy, and get our country back on track.

>> oh, yeah. president obama stimulated long-term growth. tom barrack lit some candles and silky sheets. the first two terms ended in such a hurry. wish he could go for three like my man steph curry. >> there will be no third term. i can't stay forever. besides, daddy's got a hawaii yan vacation booked in about 223 days. but who is counting. >> exactly, whose counting. well, thousands of fans are set to pack a louisville arena today to said goodbye to muhammadi muhammad ali. bryant gumbell will also speak.

sarah, i imagine the stage is set in the final goodbye? >> reporter: good morning, alex. muhammad ali, laying out his desire for it to be open to the public and people of all faiths. >> a final fair well this morning to the man who inspired millions with his skill in the boxing ring 18,000 people expected to fill this basketball arena in muhammad ali's hometown. >> they come all over the world to pay respects, because he meant so much to everyone. >> he wanted to en could you are range of one to do the same. >> reporter: it will move slowly through the city, a final trip past his family home, he'll be

a euligized bill clinton and bryant gumble. on thursday, thousands gathered for a muslim funeral prayer service. >> we welcome the muslims, we welcome the members of other faith communities. we welcome our sisters, our elders, our youngsters. >> the people's champ, bringing together those who worshipped with him, those who trained alongside him and those who cheered him on always. >> reporter: and security here at the venue will be tight. some 500 law enforcement officers on scene, and all people entering the arena, alex, will be screened. >> understandably, thank you so much for that from louisville. president obama will not be at the service. instead, he'll be attending his daughter's high school graduation.

arizona wildfire that began wednesday, fire officials say the tenderfoot fire in yarnell is just about 10% contained. gusty winds and warm dry air have made it spread. 300 residents remain under an evacuation order. structures have been destroyed and the fire is still under investigation. let's get to bill karins, who has the friday forecast. >> yarnell, you know, that was a tragedy three years ago. >> a hotshot. >> that close buy again, you feel bad for them. the weekend forecast, cooling it offer in the northwest, without a doubt. the upper level low, off the coast, cooler air, bringing in all into the northern california, showers heading up there towards spokane. there is where all the severe weather will be today, tomorrow, that heads to the east coast. so we will see some reports of severe weather today. minneapolis, green bay, madison, wisconsin, 9 million people at

risk. huge population centers by saturday and saturday night from chicago all the way through areas into the midatlantic, philadelphia, new york. air travel across the country because of the effects late saturday could be problematic. so your weekend forecast, we mentioned the storms in the east on saturday, strong storms possible, montana, north dakota, cool, portland, not bad in california, coastal sections in the 70s, even into sunday, we'll still see stormy weather, so remember last weekend how hot it was and sacramento with temperatures in the 80s. also, of course, on nbc, coming

on saturday, 5:00 p.m., the final leg of the triple crown, could be thunderstorms. >> that's going to be a i big one. >> exaggerator, big favorite. o.j. simpson's murder trial, the moment he tried on those gloves shoots and burns its way into your day, . that makes ordinary tasks extraordinarily painful, i hear you. make sure your doctor hears you too! i hear you because i was there when my dad suffered with diabetic nerve pain. if you have diabetes and burning, shooting pain in your feet or hands, don't suffer in silence! step on up and ask your doctor about diabetic nerve pain. tell 'em cedric sent you. every ingredient is the main ingredient. the strawberry poppyseed... romaine, mandarin, pineapple, blueberry, strawberry, strawberry...

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through a town at 4:30 monday morning. five officers spent 45 minutes rounding them up. according to the police, the escapees made a break for it when their shepherd fell asleep. cameras caught an armed robber shoving a gun in a woman's face sunday night. she wrestled with the gunman. they managed to get his gun and fight him off. police later found the 19-year-old with a garb sh in h bash, meanwhile, the woman thought the gun was fake, until she pulled the trigger. a new isis video shows the terror group demolishing a 3,000 year old temple in iraq. it has not been authenticated by nbc news, but satellite imaginary shows. in england, unlucky seagle, looking for dinner at a food

factory when he fell into chicken tika masala. he is nearly ready to blend back into the crowd, though. in an nbc news exclusive, tom brokaw goes in-depth with david letterman after leaving the spotlight. here is a preview of their conversation. >> do you miss it every night? >> no, you know, i don't. and it's interesting. i thought for sure i would. and then the first day of stephen's show, when he went on the air, an energy left me, and i felt like, you know, that's not my problem any more. i couldn't care less about late night television. i'm happy for the guys, men and women, there should be more women. i don't know why they didn't give my show to a woman. that would have been fine. >> did they ask you who should replace you? >> no, oh, no. they didn't ask me about anything. they were just happy i was

going. >> i don't think so, but any way, catch the complete on assignment ex exclusive interview, including david letterman's thoughts on nbc. just ahead, san jose tries to fend off elimination. punishments handed out for this brawl. you see it there. we've got the details. oh, throwing a punch. ♪ of course you go all out for date night... ♪ ...even if you're just staying in. ♪ walgreens has all the beauty products you need for whatever makes you feel beautiful. walgreens. at the corner of happy and healthy. now buy two select skin care products, get the third free. in stores and online. ...one hair color wants to to help you keep on being you.. nice'n easy. natural-looking color...

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this morning on "today," new details about a former stanford university athlete who received a jail sentence of six months for sexual assault, while vice-president joe biden has a letter for the victim. in sports, taking you to the ice. pittsburgh trying to put away san jose. san jose scored three in the first, and packed on another one for good measure. standing games, finishing with 44 saves. sharks win 4-2, game six is sunday at 8:00 on nbc. tuesday's night brawl between kansas city and baltimore. suspended nine games, while manny machodo, and also fined an undisclosed amount. england's national team brawled ahead of a match this

weekend. it started out at an irish pub just before midnight. lasted about a half an hour or so. they cheered for each other, and exchanged punches too. police used teargas, and broke everything up. just ahead, a sequel to mel gibson's passion of the christ. plus, more slow jam with jimmy fallon and president obama. you're watching "early today." r. like 50 to 60 percent off sonoma goods for life apparel 50 percent off izod golf apparel. give him a new electric razor just $79.99. or pick him up a new pair of shoes for the summer. and on top of these great sale prices take an extra 20 percent off your purchase. everyone gets kohl's cash, too! now that's the good stuff. kohl's. quilted northern works their bathroom experience. just like they forgot conductor randy, who sees all and forgets nothing.

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entertainment news. mel gibson may be planning a "passion of the christ" sequel, focused on the res krugs. it is one of the most successful independent movies of all time. deadline reporting jennifer lawrence in a new movie about elizabeth holmes. one of the youngest self-made billionaire, and making headlines for potentially lying about the technology of her blood testing business. rob lowe selected for roasts. the premer date has yet to be announced. sequels and theaters. four horsemen back. woo woody, 1970s london and warcraft expands its franchise based on

the popular video game. finally, barack obama joined jimmy fallon to slow jam the news. look, jimmy, the tpp allowed american businesses to sell their products both at home and abroad. the more we sell abroad, the more higher paying jobs we provide here at home. it's that simple. >> so what you're saying is this trade deal will help put everyday americans back to work. >> work, work, work, work. >> work, work, work, work. >> he can do it. he doesn't have to run again. when you're looking at retirement, your attitude is just a little -- >> he is having a good time i think, which is good. i'm alex witt, and this is "early today." be the you who doesn't cover your moderate to severe plaque psoriasis. be the you who shows up in that dress. who hugs a friend. who is done with treatments that don't give you clearer skin.

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leading the news in nbc news.com, hundreds claiming donald trump doesn't pay his bills in full. small business owners to his laws who claim they haven't been paid in full, a usa today special report discovered 60 lawsuits, and when asked for a response, trump said this. we have hundreds of millions of dollars of construction projects under the way with with contractors who get paid quickly. it would be irresponsible, and he doesn't do that. cavalier fan loses his job, tweeted on route to cleveland, the fan replied with vulgar remarks, mentioning curry's

3-year-old daughter, which led to the fan's termination. i kind of like that, actually. a 5.1 magnitude earthquake has rocked southern california, berrago springs. no reports of damage. people living in areas with the zika virus should delay pregnancy altogether. tom friedan, says epidemics can spread in weeks and even days. north carolina left some visitors stranded, in fact, hundreds of feet in the air. first responders spent the evening trying to bring people to safety. finally, this photo going viral on social media, hallie, turning 19 in july, described as sweet, caring and smart and has autism. last year, she invited classmates to celebrate her 18th birthday, however, no one showed up. that is so not cool.

this year, her cousin, very different outcome. she encourages everyone, you go ahead and send hallie a birthday card. a camera in the louisiana home caught the cutest little guy. the owner posted the video. look at his tail wagging. a neighborhood mother said oh, that's my son josh. he had some selfies with the dog. >> he have themselves a dog walker if they want. >> great idea. >> that dog loved him. celebrating birthdays today, model and austin powers, elizabeth hurley, 51, jean triplehorn, geena gershin, 54, and the duke turning 95 today. still going strong. now, keep it right here for more news weather and sports. i'm alex witt. thanks for watching "early today." have a great friday and an even better weekend. where a moderate- 5- point-2

earthquake >>. >> we begin with breaking news out of southern california with a moderate 5.2 earthquake struck overnight. it happened shortly after 1:00 this morning. the shaking was felt for miles. there are no reports of damage or injury at this point, but at least four aftershocks struck the same area since that earthquake overnight. we'll continue to track that latest information from southern california. we will bring you updates as they come into the newsroom. we are not shaking things up too much when it comes to our forecast today, but the weekend is another story. let's get a check of the forecast with kari. >> we'll have the coolest d