we like to deliver this kind of message. beautiful weather today. communication on fbi investigation. just this morning, president trump's volatile response, once again hammering the u.s. intelligence community and the media. fluid situation. residents near the troubled dam in california, being allowed to return home. the mandatory evacuation lifted for now. but with the new storm approaching, is the danger over? under investigation. the faa looking into a scary incident involving harrison ford. the actor landing his private plane on a taxiway instead of a

runway, flying right over a packed passenger jet. the trouble he could be facing. ♪ from nbc news, this is "today," with matt lauer and savannah guthrie. live from studio 1a in rockefeller plaza. and good morning, everyone. welcome to "today" on a wednesday morning. i'm matt lauer alongside sheinelle jones in for savannah. >> good morning. such a busy week. >> it has been. >> seems like every morning we're waking up to new developments. >> we have one this morning and a story we have been covering. the stunning new report that members of president trump's campaign team and other associates were communicating with senior russian officials during the election. we have the latest on that,

beginning with nbc's hallie jackson. what can you tell us? >> hi, matt, good morning to you. this morning the president appears furious about leaks that led to the new report, looking at possible connections between campaign staffers and moscow. president trump tweeting today, a comparison to russia, adding, the real scandal here is that classified information is illegally given out by intelligence, like candy. very unamerican, he writes. new this morning on capitol hill, a growing chorus of questions about the trump team and its connections to moscow. overnight, the "new york times" citing current and former u.s. officials, reporting trump campaign aides and senior russian intelligence officials were in contact repeatedly during the campaign, something the administration has previously denied. "the times" also suggesting the communications were uncovered at the same time accusations that russia was meddling in the president election began to

surface. nbc news has not independently confirmed this reporting. at the white house, meantime, new revelations vice president mike pence didn't know mike flynn may have misled him about a call with the russian ambassador for two full weeks after the president was notified about potential inconsistencien. >> this was an act of trust. whether or not he misled the vice president was at issue and ultimately led to the president asking for and accepting the resignation of general flynn. >> reporter: but nbc news was the first to report the vice president was in the dark until this past thursday, when media reports surfaced, indicating the new former national security adviser may have talked sanctions in a call with the russian ambassador. that call made on december 29th, the same day at obama administration announced those sanctions against russia. the next day vladimir putin said he wouldn't retaliate. president trump praising putin, tweeting, great move.

i always knew he was very smart. two weeks later, vice president mike pence publicly denied the call between flynn and the ambassador was about sanctions. >> it was strictly coincidental. >> reporter: nearly two weeks after that, the white house says, the president's team was told by the justice department, flynn may not have told the truth about those discussions. the president spent the next three weeks evaluating whether he could trust flynn. three weeks in which flynn sat in on meeting after meeting, even delivering a stern warning to iran. >> as of today, we are officially putting iran on notice. >> reporter: as concerns grew, a senior administration official tells nbc news, the white house starting distancing itself from flynn, by bringing in other top advisers to handle key duties. top staffers even talking about who might replace flynn last week. now democrats are demanding to know more. >> the president learned weeks ago that his national security adviser, not some low-level federal employee, his national security adviser, had lied, and

that lie was conveyed to the american people. and, you know what, they were okay with that. >> reporter: and as if it weren't already busy enough in washington, the hill will get a visit today from israeli prime minister, benjamin netanyahu after the prime minister meets with president trump over at the white house, expect peace talks to be on that agenda. with the white house now backing off the need, apparently, for a two-state solution. a senior administration official saying a two-state solution without peace is not a goal anyone wants to achieve. wouldn't be surprising if iran came up in the discussions, too. by the way, both leaders will be holding a news conference for president trump, his second in just the last three days. matt? back to you. >> all right, hallie jackson. thanks so much. nbc news has also learned michael flynn was interviewed by the fbi about his phone call with russian's ambassador. and lawmakers from both sides of the aisle want it to be investigated. pete williams is, of course,

nbc's justice correspondent. pete, good morning to you. when exactly did the fbi talk to general flynn. what kinds of questions did they ask him? >> well, senior officials say, matt, it was within just a few days after he became the national security adviser. just after the inauguration. and they want to talk to him, they say, about his conversations with russia's ambassador to the u.s. but these officials say they were not investigating flynn, that they were investigating russia's meddling in the election, matt. >> all right. and we know that michael flynn lost his job in the administration, because he wasn't completely honest with vice president pence and the administration over that phone call. if it's determined that he wasn't completely honest with the fbi, what could the consequences be? >> well, if they determine that he was lying to the agents, that's a crime. but the senior officials that we have talked to, two of them, say that it did not appear that flynn was trying to mislead them. they say it's partly a matter of incomplete memory and so forth.

but two officials have told us they do not believe he'll be charged with a crime. either for that interview with the fbi or for talking to the russian ambassador before the inauguration, matt. >> all right. pete williams for us on this story in washington. pete, thank you very much. want to turn now to steve kornacki. steve, good morning to you. let's start with this "new york times" reporting that during the election and in the transition, trump officials and advisers were in contact with russian officials. this is something the team trump has denied in the past. how can they explain this now? >> yeah, well, i mean, it's important to say two things. one, up front, they say in this article there is no direct evidence that's emerged of inclusion between the campaign and russia. but i think the bigger challenge this raises for the white house is the question how do republicans react to this. so far, with a few exceptions, a john mccain, lindsey graham, critical of trump before. about trump, the administration and russia. the question, does this snowball? is there enough curiosity

provoked by this report today that other republicans who have not previously been critical come out and say it is time for a bigger investigation on this. that's the question i'm looking for today. >> let's go back to the resignation of flynn. why did the president wait two full weeks to ask for his resignation? keep in mind, this is after being warned by the justice department that flynn had misled the vice president. he was vulnerable to blackmail. was he just trying to ride this out? >> if you want to look at this and come to the conclusion that donald trump and the trump a administration thought this would go away, he did not tell and no one told the vice president until this emerged in the press. >> what do you make of that? he was in the dark. >> and that the fact that it came out in the "washington post," there were reports that there actually was a conversation there about russia, about the sanctions between the ambassador and flynn, and only then was mike pence, who had been sent out on national television to vouch for mike flynn, only then, was he informed of this. that creates a lot of suspicion. this was an administration thinking it would go away.

>> so go back to that day that then president obama imposes those new sanctions on russia for hacking and meddling in our election. we know that's the very same day that michael flynn called the russian ambassador. we have to remember, after those new sanctions were imposed, russian's leader, putin and others, said, we will retaliate. and then suddenly, after that phone call with michael flynn, no retaliation. the vice president said it's coincidence. are we supposed to believe it was a coincidence? >> think about this. four events in a 24-hour period at the end of december. trump is not yet president and you have the announcement of sanctions from obama. you have the phone call between flynn and the russian ambassador. then you have putin saying something that surprised everybody. no retaliation. and then what? donald trump tweeted and said, great move by putin. i've always thought he was a wise man. >> and would the russians have gone against retaliating if they thought michael flynn was simply freelancing in that call, that he wasn't being backed up by the power of the incoming administration?

>> and that's the other thing that makes this so suspicious to people. it's not like flynn, if he was delivering some kind of message like that, would be delivering a message that was discord ant with anything trump had said during the campaign. trump missed every opportunity, went out of his way to miss opportunities to criticize putin during the campaign, and then this. >> real, real quickly. the administration backing off the two-state solution in terms of settling the violence in the middle east as netanyahu arrives here. what's the significance? >> i mean, this is benjamin netanyahu, one of donald trump's early biggest allies on the international stage. if you look at the support trump has in israel. he's saying they want to hear. also new this morning, crews in northern california still working to shore up the emergency spillway at the nation's tallest dam before more rain pounds the region. but officials are now lifting the mass evacuation order for nearly 200,000 residents. nbc national correspondent,

miguel almaguer, has the latest. good morning. >> reporter: sheinelle, good morning. now that the sun is up, that road over my shoulder is about to get extremely busy. the helicopters are looking to shore up that emergency spillway. it has been a beehive of activity over the last 48 hours. hundreds of construction crews are out here on that emergency spillway, trying to shore it up. of course, the big concern was that 30-foot wall of water that could cascade into communities below if it wasn't shored up in time. meantime, the massive release of water here at lake oroville continues. they have dropped the water already 20 feet to make room for more rain that is definitely on the way here in this area. and as you mentioned, those mass evacuations, 188,000 people that were sent out of their neighborhoods on sunday, they have lifted them, they can now come back to their neighborhooded today. we have seen the mass population make their way back up here. the big concern moving forward, though, is rain. we are expecting several days of rain here in the forecast.

that is why they are trying to make so much room for the reservoir. but they do believe that emergency spillway will hold. it will be a tight up couple of days. >> miguel almaguer, thank you. more rain. two words, people don't want to hear. >> two big storms ready to hit that area. let's take a look. this atmospheric river stretches basically from japan all the way across the p hawaii, all the way to the west coast. we're talking more than 6,000 miles. almost twice the length of the united states. now here we go. we're going to be watching this rain, first storm comes in over the next 24 hours. 1 to 3 inches of rain. second storm brings another couple inches. right around the oroville area, 3 to 5 inches. and the second storm also brings heavy rain down into southern california. flash flooding, mud, debris, flows 4 to 8 inches of rain for the south-facing mountains. this time yesterday, we were telling you about tornado watches for southern texas. well, guess what?

here's that line of thunderstorms in the houston area. take a look at some of the video we've got from van vleck, texas, three unconfirmed tornadoes touching down. that severe weather continues to move east. in fact, it's along the southeastern atlantic coast, bringing strong storms to the southeast from charleston to jacksonville. if that's not enough, we've got one more storm making its way across the northern tier of new england. we're looking for 7 million people under some winter weather advisory. rounds of heavy snow, another 8 to 16 inches of snow, guys, for northern new england, parts of maine. they have really got to worry about the weight of snow on roofs throughout much of maine. we're talking tons of snow across that area. >> all right. we'll keep our eye on that. now to a story that's been in the news for nearly four decades. pedro hernandez, a former convenience store check convicted on tuesday in the 1979

murder of etan paetz. hernandez's first trial ended with a hung jury. after the verdict, his father, stan paetz, said we final found justice for our little boy. in the meantime, the faa is now investigating a serious incident involving harrison ford. on monday, the actor was flying his private plane, coming in for a landing in california, but instead of landing on the runway, he mistakenly landed on a taxiway and flew right over the top of an american airlines jet. nbc's tom costello covers aviation for us. tom, good morning. >> hi, matt. the passenger plane was a 737, when ford's plane flew right over the top of it. what some are calling a close call with american airlines taking a formal step notifying the faa and the ntsb. in aviation circles, harrison ford is celebrated as much for

being an accomplished pilot as a hollywood star. but american airlines has now reported to both the faa and ntsb a potentially serious, even dangerous incident involving a 737 passenger jet and ford's single engine husky. it happened in orange county, california, on monday. ford had been cleared to land on the short runway at john wayne airport, 20 left. but instead he lined up and landed on the parallel taxiway, charlie, where planes taxi before takeoff. in the process, he flew right over the top of an american airlines 737 that was holding at the end of the taxi way before preparing for departure. the flight was loaded with 110 passengers. mr. ford radioed air traffic control, "was that airliner meant to be underneath me." he was told, "you landed on taxiway c." landing on a taxiway is a clear

faa violation. so how did it happen? >> operating in and out of this airport, it's a small airport, there's a lot of traffic going in and out of it. it's a complex bit of air space that requires a lot of concentration. >> reporter: it was just two years ago that ford was injured when his vintage plane crash-landed on a santa monica golf course. >> 53178. failure. immediate return. >> reporter: investigators blamed the crash on an engine failure. ford joked about it on the "ellen" show. >> you crashed a plane -- >> it wasn't a plane crash. i was aboard the plane and it crashed. >> thankfully on monday, what may have been a close call but no injuries. ford is not commenting on the incident. the faa will now investigate, and likely interview him. experts say it's possible he could have his pilots license suspended, but if he cooperates with investigators, we're told that is really not -- it's not likely. it's more likely he would receive a written reprimand or warning. >> >> tom, thanks very much.

breaking news out of texas. emergency crews at the scene of a pipeline explosion. the blast so strong, it could be seen up to 30 miles away. the flames lighting up the night sky. some residents who live an hour away say they felt their homes shake. the explosion happened southeast of san antonio. officials say no one was injured and the fire has been put out. a fast-thinking police officer getting credit this morning for saving a fast food restaurant near dallas from catching fire. this was caught on camera. the officer was called to a jack in the box where he found a truck in the drive-thru, fully engulfed in flames. so he jumped a curb and used his patrol car to push the truck forward, away from the building. no one was injured in that incident. >> wow. quick thinking. al? >> well, let's take a quick look and show you what we have around the rest of the country today. we are looking for heavy rain, that heavy rain moving into the pacific northwest. unseasonably mild through the plain states. look for that developing storm in the northeast, in between the coast, weather looks awfully

nice. we're going to get to your local forecast, coming up in the next 30 seconds. core. so your sleep goes from good to great to wow! only at a sleep number store. and right now save 50% on the ultimate limited edition bed. go to sleepnumber.com for a store near you. . >> wednesday morning. i'm meteorologist kari hall. light rain moving into the far north bay approaching santa rosa. elsewhere, mostly dry weather today. and heavy rain moving in later on tonight. meantime, we will see breaks in the clouds. very warm temperatures for this time of year. the line of heavy downpours arrives overnight, into tomorrow

morning. tomorrow morning's commute very wet with widespread heavy rain. and that's your latest weather. matt? >> all right, al. thanks very much. coming up, an overnight arrest in the bizarre murder of the half brother of north korea's jim jong-nam. were female assassins ordered to kill him? and are you sure your smoke alarms really work? jeff is going door to door to make sure you're save.

coming up studio 1a overflowing with stars from the sports illustrated women chu chute -- swim suit models. but first your local news on a wednesday morning. so sorry, excuse me. let me just get through here, sorry. oh wow, quite a turn out. tami. marcus.

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with scott 1000's long-lasting roll, we'll keep on going, too. scott 1000. america's longest lasting roll. a very good wednesday morning to you. i'm laura garcia-cannon. police are investigating an early morning homicide that shut down streets near van ness corridor. it happened a block from van ness. video shows the car that crashed into a parked car. police are only saying the person driving that car suffered some type of head injury. that person later died. no word who police may be looking for in connection to that homicide. >>. we have nearby rain, laura. we are starting to see that move

into far north sonoma county. spotty showers for the north bay. breaks in the clouds as we get a little bit sunshine. warmer temperatures. then the wet weather moves in. very heavy rain expected for tomorrow morning. 3:30, it will be rolling through the tpharbgt bay. widespread showers by 6:00 in the morning. we will have more updates on that. head over to mike to see how the roads are moving. >> bart delays. 10 minute delays through dublin. an equipment problem. ace train, no service. same thing yesterday. hopefully service will be restored tomorrow. no more problems across the dumbarton bridge.

back to you. all right. that you can very much. another update in half an hour. we'll see you then.

♪ i feel it coming 7:30 on a wednesday morning. it is the 15th of february, 2017. day after valentine's day. nice people out on the plaza. we'll go outside and say hi to them in a little bit. inside studio 1a, here's a look at today's headlines. according to a "new york times" report, current and former u.s. officials say aides and associates of president trump made repeated contact with russia's intelligence community during the campaign, something the trump camp denies. there is no evidence so far that trump's campaign worked with russians on their efforts to influence the election. this morning, president trump is reacting on twitter, calling the story nonsense and

claiming information is being illegally given to the failing "new york times" and "washington post" by the intelligence community. he says nsa and fbi, just like russia. the mandatory evacuation order for nearly 200,000 people around the oroville dam in northern california has been lifted but a new one could be issued. crews are racing to repair erosion scars to the dam's emergency spillway before more storms roll in. residents in southeast texas are cleaning up this morning after a powerful storm tore through the region, producing at least six tornadoes. one of them caused extensive damage to neighborhoods 20 miles outside of houston. another twister destroyed four homes in another nearby town. an overnight arrest with the bizarre murder of kim jong-un's half brother. it happened at a malaysian airport with reports that he was targeted by assassins.

nbc's keir simmons is in seoul, south korea with the story. >> evening here in asia, where it feels like we are getting a glimpse into the secretive world of spying here, and of government-trained killers. one woman has been arrested after two women allegedly carried out a brazen assassination, that many people here believe could have only been ordered by north korea's leader. >> reporter: kim jong-un's estranged half brother, allegedalleg allegedly murdered. two women struck at the airport at the malaysian capital, kuala lumpur, with a strange liquid. the murder like a scene from "jason bourn." was this an execution by spies for the north korean government? that country's supreme leader, kim jong-un, had his own uncle tried and executed. his brother at one time was the

heir apparent and had been critical of the brutal regime. >> i think more tensions will be in north korea. >> reporter: we travel to the tense north korean border, a decades long sensor of espionage. across this border, described as the most dangerous in the world, north korea even fired radio waves to take out south korea's gp svr prk gps. >> people say this border is the one place the cold war never ended. >> reporter: north korea tested a medium range missile. the likely aim, to provoke donald trump. in 2014, its spies were accused of hacking the entertainment giant sony. north korea denied this cyber attack. in turn, u.s. intelligence keeps a sharp eye on north korea, monitoring its nuclear capability. no small task for a country that is mostly off the grid. >> you can't launch a cyber attack on north korea's nuclear

program because it is not plugged in, you know, to the internet. >> reporter: north korea, one of a number of countries around the world, with a foreign intelligence agency allegedly operating a secret license to kill, now perhaps exposed again by the strange death of a brutal dictator's brother. >> kim jong-un is said to have ordered 340 executions since he came to power in 2011. but this one, guys, was in the full view of passengers at an airport. there are only a few governments that allow agents to kill. mostly, they want it to be done in a way that can't be traced. guys? >> brazen to say the least. keir simmons, thank you very much. let's get another check of the weather now from al. >> all right. we're going to move the calendar forward as far as the temperatures are concerned. a little time travel. we've got this expanding warmth in the planes and the midsection of the country. billings, 58 for the high. that's the average temperature in april. denver, april, 64.

topeka, 53. tomorrow, you'll see the temperatures moving east. st. louis, your average temperature, 65. that's what you'll reach tomorrow. memphis, 62. by the time we get to friday, you can see april and march across the map. getting into saturday, washington, d.c., a high of 67 degrees. that's mid to late april's average high. louisville, 63. by sunday, new york city is going to see a temperature of 62 degrees. hmm.

>> don't forget, get that weather any time you need it. check our friends at the weather channel on kabcable. ahead, american girl making history with its newest doll. we have it with us on trending. first, an important new rossen reports. >> hi, good morning. i'm jeff rossen f. coming up, more of our series, winter fire dangers and the common mistakes most of us are making. we're going house to house to show you what they are. plus, the simple tips you can do tech: at safelite, we know how busy your life can be. mom: oh no... tech: this mom didn't have time to worry about a cracked windshield. so she scheduled at safelite.com and with safelite's exclusive "on my way text" she knew exactly when i'd be there, so she didn't miss a single shot. i replaced her windshield giving her more time for what matters most. tech: how'd ya do? player: we won! tech: nice! that's another safelite advantage. mom: thank you so much! (team sing) safelite repair, safelite replace.

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for the homes that do, another big problem, many don't even work. in fact, firefighters say so many of us have been doing it wrong all these years. just hitting the test button on it, waiting for it to chirp, you think the battery works. turns out, that isn't enough to know the entire thing works. it may still not when you need it most. what should you do? this morning, i'm about to show you. >> reporter: i'm going door to door. >> hi there. jeff rossen from nbc news. the "today" show. >> i recognize you. >> reporter: spot checking. >> you think you had a working smoke alarm and you didn't. >> scary. >> reporter: it is a dangerous threat, more common than you think. in fact, 3 of every 5 people killed in a house fire didn't have a working smoke alarm. so is your home prepared? to find out, the orlando fire department is out in force, checking homes for safety risks. >> hi. >> hi. >> jeff rossen from the "today" show. how are you? >> good. >> we're here with the fire

department, checking for people's smoke alarms today to make sure you're safe. can you come in? >> sure. >> reporter: right away, a problem. >> we want to push the button on it, just to test the battery and the audible portion of the alarm. >> not working. >> this detecter doesn't work. >> the one in your bedroom isn't working. what's that like to see? >> up setting. that's the first place we'd hear it go off. >> reporter: we're not just finding problems. firefighters are fixing them, installing new alarms for free. >> i'm glad we came. >> i'm glad you guys came, too. >> reporter: next door, we meet peggy. her detecter is not working either. >> i don't do ladders anymore because i'm afraid of falling. >> you can't check those detecters. >> right. i always forget when someone else is here to get them to check it for me. >> that's why we're here for you today. >> good. >> reporter: then, an even bigger problem. >> so here we are in the kitchen, which is the source of a lot of residential fires. no smoke detectors.

>> you're supposed to have one here? >> within ten feet of the kitchen. >> none here. >> no smoke detectors. >> reporter: the fire department installing two new alarms for peg peggy. >> it works. >> reporter: we check house after house. finding problems in nearly all of them. >> there's no battery in here at all. >> no battery? i probably used it on something else. >> reporter: but the biggest tip of the day, one i've never heard before. inside this man's house, he thinks his detecter works fine because when he tests it, it beeps. >> that tells me two things. your battery is good and tells me the alarm works. >> reporter: he says what it doesn't test is the sensor that actually detects smoke. >> your detecter was manufacturmanufactur manufactured in 2002. it won't see the smoke now. >> reporter: there is an easy way to test the sensor. the candle test.

light a candle and blow it out. put your alarm over the smoke and it should go off. >> it isn't going off. >> this sensor probably has dust on the sensor. >> i had no idea. >> it blows my mind. i just put a battery in it a couple days ago when it was chirping. >> it helped. >> reporter: sounding the alarm so your family stays safe. >> thank you so much. >> happy to help. you should be changing your batteries twice a year. if you're like me, you're worried about forgetting to change them. buy lithium batteries at any big box store. the cool thing is, they work for ten years. >> whoa. >> you want to test the alarm after you put those in to make sure they work. >> note to selves, we'll go home and check that out. >> the candle test is cool. >> smart. >> thank you, jeff. up next, last night's big winner at the westminster dog show. carson explains the connection between this year's best in show and one of the most popular stars in the world. right hi, thanks for coming.

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7:48. carson is in the orange room with an incredible rumor to tell you about. >> i see what you did there, matt. nice work. over the course of several days, nearly 3,000 dogs competed in westminster's dog show at madison square garden. unfortunately, only one gets best in show. that honor, ladies and gentlemen, went to a 5-year-old german shepherd named rumor. this is only the second time a german shepherd has won best in show in the competition's 141-year history. pretty cool. ♪ rumor has it >> rumor, named after adele's "rumor has it." she has great taste in music and quite the comeback story. she was rumored to win it all last year and fell to c.j. rumor impressed more than judges. she won the fans of people watching from home. ashton tweeting out, i shouted and did a victory lap when rumor

won best in show. rumor's fans are not limited to humans. social media, we saw pictures here. dogs following along with the competition. here is jessica's pup, captivated by the action. check out chance's poodle. that is a standing ovation, ladies and gentlemen. this was rumor's last major show, as she settles into retirement. maybe next year. >> yeah. >> charlie, we'll have to work on your energy. >> i was going to say. >> he's saving himself. >> could be your year, my friend. contain that excitement. guys, back to you. >> that's good. >> carson, thank you very much. ever want to see a concert by your favorite band and couldn't get in? >> of course. >> wait till you hear what one fan did to pull off entry to a concert. and a celebration of the "sports illustrated" swimsuit issue. kate upton is here along with christie brinkley and her daughters. >> are they bringing those with them. >> yes. >> first, your local news and weather.

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we're coming up on 7:56 on this wednesday morning. starting to see clouds moving in. there will be peeks of sunshine. this is ahead of our next storm system. it will bring in rain. spotty showers across parts of the north bay. elsewhere, it will stay dry throughout the afternoon. 64 degrees in san francisco. rain moving in during tomorrow morning. several waves of rain in the forecast heading through next week. inland areas will be up to 68 degrees today but then turning cooler once the rain arrives for tomorrow. and expect four storms to move in during a seven-day period. it will get busy the next several days. more heavy rain expected. we'll be keeping you up to date on that. now as we head of to mike, let's see what's happening on the roadways. >> a lot more traffic in the last half hour. we have something on either side of the bay. northbound 880 and ace street.

one lane blocked there. and hayward on the other side of the. 101 really jammed up at willow road. the live camera. i loved it up to the top. northbound slow. southbound right behind the trees. just north of marsh, south of willow. that will be the problem. a sticking point for 101. 280 is cleared. >> it does look pretty bad. engineers are awaiting the first real test new stabilized emergency spillway at lake oroville. a new storm is expected to roll in tomorrow. details of what one expert is calling patch and pray technique. the lights went out on the bay. facebook page, you can find some of the pictures. images of an attack in davis that led to the arrest of a cal

grad student. more news in 30 minutes.

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it's 8:00 on "today." coming up, russian connection. a new report claims aides to donald trump made contact with russian intelligence officials during the campaign. something the trump team has consistently denied. new questions this morning about that and the growing fallout from the resignation of national security adviser michael flynn. we're live at the white house. plus, cover girl. kate upton swings by studio 1a to talk about her brand-new "sports illustrated" covers. and we'll talk to christie brinkley about making her return to the issue alongside her two daughters. and team gwen. >> i'm so grateful to be here right now. >> you taught me to spell

bananas. >> you can be on team gwen and i can teach you to spell everything. >> we'll catch up with music superstar gwen stefani about her return to the "voice" and her head to head with blake. >> it's good. >> today, wednesday, february 15th, 2017. ♪ >> we just got back from island and we're on the "today" show. hi, mom. >> good morning to our daughters, mckenzie and emery. we love you. >> we'll be back in okc soon. >> it's my birthday, and i brought you a present. >> the big 11 with the "today" show. >> hi to our boys in philadelphia. >> hi, mom! we're back now. 8:00 on this wednesday. the 15th day of february, 2017. we're without the coats again. kind of nice out here. >> it is.

>> al, thanks. >> we really like this. we have sheinelle jones in with us while savannah continues on maternity leave. >> we have a big show today. >> a lot of stars in the studio today. >> a lot going on. >> kate upton inside. just revealed that she is the cover model for the 2017 "sports illustrated" swim suit issue. we'll talk to her about that and some other models from inside the pages of that magazine. >> excited about that. let's start with the news at 8:00. >> i'm peter alexander at the white house where this morning president trump is firing back at new questions about the trump campaign's interactions with moscow. the president tweeting this morning, this russian connection non-sense is nearly an attempt to cover-up the many mistakes made in hillary clinton's losing campaign. he added in a separate tweet, information is being given illegally to the failing "new york times" and "washington post" by the intelligence community. nsa and fbi, he asks.

just like russia. >> reporter: new scrutiny between members of donald trump's 2016 campaign and russia. the "new york times" reporting overnight, citing current and former officials, that senior aides and russian officials had repeated contacts throughout the campaign, something the trump administration previously denied. the "times" reports the communications were intercepted around the time when u.s. officials were uncovering russia's meddling in the election by hacking the dnc. nbc has not confirmed the reporting. the president abruptly asked his national security adviser, michael flynn, to resign. >> there needs to be an independent and transparent investigation. >> reporter: democrats taking aim. republicans urging restraint. >> i don't think we need to go through setting up a special committee, but we are going to look at russia involvement in the u.s. election. >> reporter: now, the white house is acknowledging new

details about the timeline. it was back on january 26th when president trump and his top aides were first informed flynn had misled vice president pence and others about his calls with russia's ambassador. they were warned flynn could be vulnerable to blackmail. nbc news learned 15 days passed before the white house notified the vice president. only then because a news report was being published that would cast doubt on mr. pence's credibility. the white house is defending the president's decision to stand by flynn until monday night. >> the question wasn't, did he do anything improper or illegal, but the question was could he be trusted further? the erosion of the trust was the issue. >> reporter: in an interview with a conservative website hours before his resignation, a defiant flynn insisted he crossed no lines, instead blaming leaks to reporters based on classified information. officials confirm the fbi interviewed flynn after taking office about his contacts with the russian ambassador. as concerns about flynn grew, white house aides tried to reduce his influence on the

president's thinking during mr. trump's security briefings. inviting nia director, mike pompeo, and keith kellogg to take part. robert harward is the front runner to replace flynn. he met with the president and vice president monday night, the same night as flynn's departure. so far, no decision has been made. >> today, president trump is hosting israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu here at the white house. their first face-to-face meeting since president trump took office. last night, a senior official said the path to peace between israelis and the palestinians does not have to include a path to a two-state solution. that's a break from decades of u.s. policy. today, trump and netanyahu will take questions at a press conference. president trump's third in the last six days. >> peter alexander, thank you

very much. president trump approved the use of federal funds to help with emergency repairs on the nation's tallest dam out in northern california. on tuesday, officials lifted a mandatory evacuation order for nearly 200,000 people who live near that oroville dam. however, they're warning residents to stay vigilant in case approaching storms put additional strain on damaged spillways. engineers have been releasing water from the lake behind the dam to ease the pressure on that structure. police in los angeles now confirm that $2 million worth of jewelry and other valuables have been stolen from the home of singer alanis morissette. burglars broke into the mansion and took a safe and also caused damage to the house. she was not home at the time of the break-in. no suspects at this time. something new in the american girl collection that might surprise you. we'll talk to christie brinkley and her daughters about gracing the pages of the "si"

swim suit issue together. and kate upton will join us for trending. and superstar and returning coach on the "voice," gwen stefani stops by. first, these messages. returnin returnin coach on returnin coach on hi! hey! i've made plans for later in case this date doesn't go well. likewise! but, funny story. on top of that? my mom is my best friend. uh oh. yeah. oop! there's the rescue text from my roommate saying she needs me. wouldn't it be great if everyone said what they meant? the citi double cash card does. it lets you earn double cash back: the citi double cash card. wecage-free eggs.ng and we care about amazing taste. because at best foods, we're on the side of food.

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all right. it is 8:09. we're back and it is a great time for trending. guess what, guys, ladies, we're joined by a special guest, who is a big trending topic right now. kate upton is here, the cover model for the 2017 "sports illustrated" swim suit edition. >> welcome. >> congratulations. >> going on sale with a bunch of different covers. we'll talk about that in a second. congratulations. >> thank you very much. >> you can weigh in on trending. >> i'm ready. >> we're familiar with american girl dolls, like, stand by, this one. for the first time ever, the company is releasing a baby boy doll. not a baby, but you know. this is logan, part of a new series of dolls going on sale tomorrow. american girl says a boy character has been a top request for fans for many, many, many years. logan, as you see here, comes with a drum set. you can't see that. he's meant to be paired with this doll. this is tinny.

a country singer. the company says logan is meant for boys and girls. noting parents having asking for a more diverse selection. >> did you have a doll growing up? >> i was a huge american girl fan. >> which ones did you have? do you remember? >> hmm. >> sorry. didn't mean to put you on the spot. >> i had kirsten, i think. is that a name? >> my daughter had addy. >> you dress like them. it's special. >> it's a whole thing. >> it's a big deal. have you ever been down the block when they're breaking out a new doll? it is wild. >> logan, you're the only one. i have a feeling, carson, you're right, there will be more. >> a new vertical for business, american boy. >> look at you, vertical for business. >> technical. have you ever had a rock group you love and wanted to go to a concert but couldn't get great seats? >> of course.

>> how far would you be willing to go to get into the vip section? >> i stood in an alleyway to see stevie nicks. i waited for her limo to pull up. almost got arrested to get in, and she let me in. i was 15 years old. >> she let you in? >> me and my buddy. >> because you looked like a nice guy. >> or were you aggressive? she was like, okay. don't kill me. >> you've only known him for five minutes. >> how about this? a guy had a smartphone and quick thinking. a teen in the uk was unhappy with his seats while seeing the sherlocks. he waits outside the arena and edits their wikipedia page to read, the first single was influenced by the main singer's vocalist, boyle. he convinces the guard he was deserving to be in there. >> little scary.

>> you think he is aggressive? that's scary. >> inventive. >> you have to be careful about that. that could be used in a lot of bad ways. >> someone changed my wikipedia page once to read that i went to indiana and i was in the school band or something. i went to an interview after and they were like, we hear you were in the school band. i was like, i don't play an instrument. at least they're not sneaking in to something. >> might have been raised by wolves. carson, pop start. >> kate, we'll start with another kate here. kate hudson doesn't sing often, but when she does, it is worth a listen. the actress marking valentine's day with a cover of rihanna's "love on the brain." ♪ don't stop loving me ♪ don't quit loving me ♪ just start loving me ♪ oh, baby, fighting fire with fire just to get close to you ♪

>> she has a great voice. pay no attention to her son slinking across the couch during the performance. a scary atv accident. spears posted this of her daughter, writing, they're thankful to celebrate valentine's day after everything that happened. maddie was in the hospital after flipping her atv earlier this month. good news there. last, actress olivia wilde shared family photos on valentine's day. one of them was unintentionally hilarious. posted this of her and her fiance, jason sudeikis. the same for her son. and finally, her and her 3 month old daisy. she added, hashtag, giant baby hand. it looks like her hand belongs to daisy. >> it does. >> funny. >> that's your pop start. >> we were listening to every

word you were saying. >> every word. >> let's get back to kate upton. your third cover, is that right? >> yes. >> first was when you were 18 years old. do you remember the excitement of that morning, when you saw your first "si" cover? old. do you remember the excitement of that morning, when you saw your first "si" cover? >> it was crazy. my first "si" cover i found out in the green room of david letterman. >> well, now. >> and this year, they gave me a phone call before i went on jimmy kimmel. i was happy for a little heads up. >> does it feel different this time around, or just as sweet? >> it always feels great to be a part of "sports illustrated," but especially this year. because of what the issue is all about, having women of every shape and size, beauty in every way, every age of beauty. it felt special when they asked me to come back for this issue. >> you ended up on -- you got three different covers this time. >> yes. i got -- >> kind of cool.

>> thank god. >> going to cost carson three times the amount of money. >> i don't know if you realize the impact of these. any cover for a model is a big deal, but the "si" has a storied history with the great women on the covers. for instance, february 11 th, 1985, paulina graced the cover. not that i remember. it was on my wall. >> not that i remember or anything. >> exactly. >> you're a huge part of this great history. >> yeah. it is really incredible. growing up in such a sports-oriented family, "sports illustrated" always meant so much to me. seeing all these amazing women who were so confident and love their bodies. i feel honored to be a part of the issue. >> the more years you do it, the more seniority you get. this year, you got a much better location than you did last year. >> right? >> you were in antarctica last year and fiji this year. >> i felt spoiled this year. >> tough work. someone has to do it. >> should i go snorkeling today? >> you mentioned all different body types and age groups. we're going to talk to christie

brinkley in a second. she doesn't mind us saying, she is 63 years old. >> wow. >> incredible. >> she's back in the magazine. what message does that send, do you think? >> it is inspiring to see her back in the issue and looking incredible. >> absolutely. >> it shows you no matter your age, you always have your youth and your spirit with you. >> cheers to that. i love that. thank you, kate. >> last time, kate was complaining her shoes and feet were killing her. she's in a better mood today, i have to say. >> it was the beginning of the night. never good when you're like, my feet are hurting. >> congratulations. >> thank you so much, you guys. thank you. >> glad you could join us for trending and pop start. >> thank you. mr. roker, check of the weather. >> i'm on the cover of "popular mechanics" this month. >> nice. >> thank you very much. more rain into seattle, mountain snows. more heavy rain moving into

northern california today into tomorrow. late tonight, that rain moves in and continues on into thursday, causing big problems. thursday into friday, rounds and round of rain coming into southern california this weekend. this could be really a very difficult situation for both the northern section of california, upwards of 5 to 6 inches around the oroville area by the time we get into sunday. also friday to saturday, down through southern california, 4 to 8 inches of rain possible for the south facing mountain slopes. we're going to be watching that very, very closely as those storms move through. rest of the country, developing storm coming across parts of northern new england, bringing more snow. some places in maine could see another 8 to 12 inches of snow. severe storms along the southeastern coast. unseasonally mild conditions through the planes that stretch down to the gulf. things drying out for our friends around the houston area wh

good morning. we continue to see the overcast skies over san francisco. the temps now are in the 50s. 56 degrees. we will continue to see mostly cloudy skies throughout the bay area. current temps now, palo alto 54, san jose, 53. half moon bay, 55. we're tracking this incoming storm that is expected to bring some rain through tonight and into the next couple of days across the bay area. >> that's your latest weather. sheinelle? >> al, thank you. christie brinkley is a modeling icon, gracing the covers of more than 500 magazines in her career. a list that includes three straight "sports illustrated" swim suit editions in 1979, 1980 and '81. >> at the age of -- she's given me permission -- 63, christie brinkley is returning to the pages with her daughters at her side. they're all with us this morning.

ladies, what a pleasure. >> good morning. >> great to see you. >> morning. >> "sports illustrated" swim suit issue. be honest with me. raise your hand when you first found this out, if you were nervous. just a little nervous. >> i was completely freaked out. >> two hands, three times. >> excited. >> nervous or excited? >> i wanted this my entire life. >> you guys are professional models. >> were you nervous? >> well, i mean, i kind of thought, hmm, i like the challenge. with these two gorgeous girls next to me, who is going to be looking at me anyway? >> please, mom. everybody. >> i figured -- >> come on. >> i couldn't ask for better conditions. >> what was the shoot like? i mean, did you kind of say, mom, take it away? tell us what to do? did you say -- >> no. >> -- girls, do what you want to do? how did you work it? >> it was a mixture of all our personalities and all of who we are and how we act in front of the camera. >> it was colorful. we have different personalities.

>> she takes over. she's a boss. >> i'm a control freak. i brought the extensions, the skin care masks. if you're ever in a pinch, i had the bug spray, all organic. i was prepared for everything. >> i'm a mover. she doesn't like me to move. >> she's a mover and shaker. she was like this the whole shoot. i was like, mom, sit still. i have my angle. >> i don't hold still. i have to move. >> i'm looking at these pictures and the videos. the thing is, when you're in a bikini, there is nowhere to hide. there's only so much you can do. >> no. you have to work with what you've got and work the angles. >> right. >> that was the story the first time i ever did "sports illustrated." i immediately was like, oh, my gosh, what do i do with my hands? i don't know where to put my hands. so i was squirming. julie campbell looked at the photographer and said, oh, my god, her moves. there was like a woody allen crawl going along underneath. my brain was going, i don't know

where to put my hands. i wish i could put this arm somewhere. >> you're always thinking ahead. sailor knew what to do. she was calm. she was the sporty one, ready to get in the water and going. i was trying to stay still and focus. i'm new at this. i'm a musician. it is all different. >> not just about the photos. the fact you guys are in here, you've opened up a discussion of sorts, about other topics. it is interesting, sheinelle said there is nowhere to hide in a bikini. there is also nowhere to hide, figuratively, when you are growing up as a daughter of extremely famous parents and a supermodel. >> nowhere to hide at all. >> you talked about some of the issues you faced as young ladies. you're still young ladies. with body image and self-esteem, can you explain that a little bit? >> growing up just as a girl, as any young girl, you deal with body image issues and deal with seeing people on billboards that have these tiny bodies and these perfect, air brushed figures.

you look at yourself and you're growing up and go through the phases. you go through awkward phases and don't feel good enough. i definitely didn't. but then i went through everything. i went through, like, every phase. i went from too skinny to too fat. i don't like using those words. but i went through everything. then you sort of get to an age, get to a time where you say, this is my body. i go to school. i workout every day. i can do so much. who cares if i don't look a certain way that people tell me to look. >> the one thing that is hard growing up in the public eye is when you happen to catch the criticism at about 9 years old for a girl. it is crucial. you know, that's the age where they're sort of separating from their parents. they're getting -- gaining their own identity. to suddenly see a newspaper that calls you a name, that puts you down -- >> i went through that.

>> she had to deal with that. >> you retreated a while. you didn't want to be out. >> yeah. well, i -- you know, not to rehash too much, and i don't want any pity, i have a great life and i'm very privileged to be where i am, but i certainly went through it. in a different way than sailor. i didn't have so much issues with my body, but they did used to call me bowwow face. i went through it. i grew into myself later in life. this one is just grown up and blossomed beautifully, earlier than me. >> as a mom, when your daughters are struggling like that, how do you deal with it? >> it was excruciating as a mom. i could cry now. >> she cries at the drop of a hat. commercials. >> if i could urge just one thing for, you know, the media, is to lay off the kids.

you know, it's like, we're celebrities. we're fair game. say what you want, you know. but lay off the kids. you know, let them have their moment to grow up and become who they're going to be. when they decide to step out, then they're fair game. >> then they're up -- exactly. when you're doing normal, average things, like when i was moving out of my home and moving into my first apartment, going to college, i got all these comments about how my college is for trust fund babies and all of that. it's like, i never asked for anyone's opinion. i think that's the worth parst >> this magazine layout is a powerful layout about self-confidence. am i blamed for make ling kriei brinkley cry again? >> every time, matt. >> great to see you. it is. >> thank you very much. >> "sports illustrated" swim suit issue is on sale now.

carson? the biggest names in the business. gwen stefani and tracy morgan. we'll chat the "voice" and san francisco police now are investigating an early morning deadly shooting. it shut down several streets near the vanness corridor. video shot shortly after shows a car crashing into a parked car. right now police are saying the person driving that car was shot in the head before crashing. the victim later died. police so far have not said anything about the victim's identity or who police may be looking for in connection to that shooting. let's get a look at the morning commute on this wednesday morning, midweek. how are we looking? >> a problem midpeninsula. 101. still seeing slowing as you head south. pretty standard as far as the

south bay goes. we had an issue, one lane partially blocked at willow road. much better traffic flow after they cleared the other remaining lanes in the area. we have the northbound route throughout the south bay slow and santa cruz mountains, highway 17, mudslide areas, still one lane in each direction. live look at oakland, traffic jammed around the coliseum slow north from 98 up past high street. then you're okay through downtown. backup to the bay bridge toll plaza. >> thank you very much. another update coming up in half an hour. have a great morning.

i am extremely proud of jackie, gaby and stephanie. we worked with pg&e to save energy because we wanted to help the school. they would put these signs on the door to let the teacher know you didn't cut off the light. the teachers, they would call us the energy patrol. so they would be like, here they come, turn off your lights! those three young ladies were teaching the whole school about energy efficiency. we actually saved $50,000. and that's just one school, two semesters, three girls.

together, we're building a better california.

♪ 8:30 on a wednesday morning. it's the 15th day of february, 2017. weather in new york city, not bad when you consider we're in the middle of february. pretty mild. we'll take it. that's a cute one right there. >> uh-huh. >> coming up, lots of stars. >> yes, this is a good one. we'll talk to gwen stefani about her return to the "voice" and why she said she woke up in the last year. and more of our where are they now talk show titan series. there he is, jerry springer ch there and there is going to be a fight that breaks out during the interview. >> no, no. >> just kidding. we'll talk to jerry in a bit. good to see tracy morgan, who is here to tell us about his

movie, "fistfight," which is hilarious. he is returning to the big screen which is an important thing for me. mr. roker, the weather. >> we are looking at some strong storms making their way along the coast. icy conditions in the mountains. unseasonably mild from the planes to the gulf. windy conditions in the northeast. heavy rain and mountain snows moving into central california, northern california, where we're worried about the oroville dam. that's w good morning, bay area. we're waking up to overcast skies across the bay area. south bay right now at 53 degrees. peninsula, 54. the trivalley at a 50 degree mark right now. san francisco, 54 degrees. east bay, 56. north bay, 51. may be seeing a few showers moving in as we can see, tracking the series of storms

making their way toward the bay area. today's highs, in palo alto, high of 57 degrees. half moon bay, 62. san francisco, 63. >> that is your latest weather. don't forget, get the weather any time you need it. go to the weather channel on cable. who is that? >> dallas. >> dallas, all right. they've got good weather, too. back to you guys. >> al, thank you very much. now to the "voice" on "today." as emmy-award winning show gets ready to return for season 12. >> a great show. >> we're happy to have gwen stefani, a music superstar and successful fashion designer returning as a coach. we'll talk to gwen in a moment. first, a sneak peek at season 12. >> i'm 13. >> whoa! >> come on. 13. >> never had someone 13. >> so i was listening, and this is overwhelming, being back. i'm so grateful to be here right now. >> like i'm ecstatic you're

here. this is crazy. >> i'm so grateful. >> you taught me how to spell bananas. >> there you go. listen to me, you could be on team gwen. i can teach you how to spell everything. >> you use all the tricks in the book, won't you? >> can you imagine. >> you should be there. >> come on. >> it is your show. go ahead. >> i'm glad you showed the clip. this is the first time we lowered the audition age to 13. you saw that young man. unbelievable. gwen has a son, kingston, who is 10. watching you with the young group, what is it like? >> it is talea hard to remember they're that age. the pressure and ease they take it with. i had some -- i'm not going to say because i can't say who is on my team yet. it is unbelievable, the talent and at such a young age and that they're so calm. that blows me away.

>> you feel like this time around, you have more to offer your team. what do you mean by that? >> i think i had an extraordinary year last year. i got to make a record and do new music and go back on tour after, like, seven years. i hadn't toured. that exchange of love that i had and that whole experience to bring that now, because it is fresh, you know. the first season, i literally had just given birth, which is a whole different vibe, right? >> right. >> second season, i was in, like, this crazy, crazy transitional place. and then this time, i did music. so to be around all that music and have that new music come out, it was just a different place, you know. and three seasons, you get comfortable. also, the chemistry between the coaches, i mean, alicia keys is just so magical. adam and i, we know each other now for a while. of course, blake, who i think is the greatest guy ever. it is so fun. it is so easy and comfortable. >> she really teed it up.

>> it is well documented, you and blake. i was curious when we were shooting the blind auditions and the knockouts, what would the chemistry be like? >> i was nervous at first. this is going to be awkward. how am i going to act? but it's natural. >> how do you feel it played out? >> it is natural, you know what i mean? i feel like sometimes, it is a little like, we're driving home and i'm like, do you think i should put them together? i'm like, wait a minute. i'm not talking to you about this. i don't know if you are the enemy or -- it is confusing. >> natural jokes built in. if there was a steal and an artist went from team gwen to team blake, there would be the joke of, well, you didn't really leave teams. you went from one to the other. >> it is true. i think we actually help each other, you know what i mean? i've learned a lot about country music through -- just in the last year through him. it is interesting. >> what did the cowboy do for you for valentine's day? >> i thought you said cowboy

duf. i was like, whoa, carson. >> nicknames. >> we weren't together. >> did he remember? >> he forgot. no, just kidding. i got some beautiful flowers and lots of texts. it was fun. >> nice. >> i mean, you know. i'm in new york and he is in oklahoma. it is okay. >> i'm reading a lot of interviews about you. >> you are? >> yeah. you said you woke up in 2000 or were woken up. you referred to it a second ago, what an amazing year you had. how do you try to top that? >> i'm not going to try. i think i'm going to continue to just be on that kind of -- i feel like i woke up spirituality, you know what i mean? when you do that, everything is in color and you're sort of seeing things with new eyes. you just sort of -- you just see everything through gratitude. you know what i mean? you check everything all the time. i don't know. that's kind of what i've been doing. it saved me. you know what i mean? that's what i mean by that.

i'm just awake, like all the time, going wow. even right now, i think about this guy and trl and how am i sitting here right now? >> weird for both of us. >> we're tripping out because we're in l.a., here's here. >> in '96, i was a dj, k-rock in l.a., hometown station, playing her band's music. now we're on the "voice" together. >> we have babies. >> ten kids between the two of us. it is so fun to watch you on the "voice." you have so much optimism to offer because last year was a crazy year for you but came out on the other side. you make a choice when life is tough and you chose the brighter path. it is inspiring. >> i feel like it. music is healing. to be able to tap into that for me, to have that outlet was a lifesaver. like i said, to be able to share it and share the experience. music is universal. it is just such a gift we have. >> plus, you're dating blake shelton, which is weird for me. >> i'm so lucky. >> what do you see in the guy? it's crazy.

>> what are you talking about? >> he's a good kid. >> you'd love him. >> i love him. i love you more though. >> he loves you. >> you can catch the season premiere of the "voice" on nbc. monday, february 27th. up next, the talk show titan known for pushing the boundaries. we'll catch up with jerry springer. first, in tthis is "today" in n. where in the world is

back at 8:40 with more of our special series, where are they now, talk show titans. this morning, one of the biggest names from the 1990s who never left the limelight. jerry springer. >> reporter: outrageous and provocative but it wasn't always

that way. >> this is our first show. >> reporter: a tame start in 1991. by the third season, the jerry stringer show was like nothing else on day time tv. sex, lies and lots of feuds. salacious topics were ratings goals for springer. at one point, the show had more viewers than oprah. by the late '90s, some of his competitors were revamping their own shows to keep up. >> it is only the grown-ups, such as you, that teach our children to not like that person because of the color of their skin. >> reporter: a former mayor of cincinnati and local news anchor, day time talk was a departure for stringer but was a lasting career. the sprawls continued 26 seasons later. >> everything i've done for you! >> good morning for you. >> i'd like to apologize for that. i've ruined the culture. >> don't apologize now. >> i've ruined the culture. >> let's begin with a quote. you said this on your 25th

anniversary show. let's be honest, virtually anyone can do what i do. you said, which is basically three things. you did what? come on out. >> and we'll be right back. that's all you have to do to be -- >> clearly, there is more than that. why has this show lasted for 26 years? >> well, probably -- well, first, it's stupid. you know, it's got a niche. and no one else kind of goes in that niche. so i think that's one of the seasons it lasts. the personality of the guests. no one is watching because of me. they're watching because the stories are crazy. and the people are outoutrageou. you ca >> you called your show chewing gum. it won't hurt you. you had little people wrestling in slime, women pretending to be men, fights. is there a line you won't cross? >> the show is no censorship. we'll bleep out the bad language

and cover up the nudity or whatever. >> but nothing where you'd say, no. >> when our show started, the executive producer, by the way, was the one that kind of found me and said, do a talk show. when it started, we were a serious show. but then all of a sudden, it started going crazy. when universal brought us, they said, from now on, only crazy. there is no censorship. look, we've had on our sho sho show neosenate zeeshow ne show neo-nazis. my family was exterminated by the nazis. if i let them go on, what am i going to say no to? >> why do people come on your show? >> i don't know. i always say, my closing prayer for everyone, may you never be on my show. >> oh, no. >> yeah. i think if i had to guess -- >> okay. >> -- it is for so many of our guests, no one ever asked them a

question. they live their lives -- they don't have kids who ask them their opinion. they don't have parents who ask their opinion. they're not in a job where their opinion is valued. it is like, for one day in their life, people are really paying attention. they're talking about something that is important to them. we take it for granted. every day of your life, someone asks, what do you think? nice job. so many of these people, no. they don't come on to be famous. they don't use their names. >> jerry, they come out and sometimes you can't get a word out before somebody is knocking you in the head with a chair. i'm no expert but it isn't the way to solve a problem. >> i'm not allowed to know what the show is about. they hand me a card with the names of the guests. i'm supposed to ask questions you'd ask sitting at home and make jokes. that's all. i'm never allowed to know the subject matter. but when they come on, they're not coming on to be famous. they don't use their real names in most cases. they wear disguises, though the wigs come off, which by the way,

is why we don't have trump. he doesn't want his hair pulled. >> oh, my goodness. >> sorry, i didn't mean to go in that direction. of course i did. >> jerry, jerry, jerry. >> yes. this is about dating. we don't deal with serious issues. truthfully, we don't do pregnancy tests or anything like that. they're angry, legitimate. the next day, they're dating someone else. it is not a life-changing issue. >> final thoughts? where did it come from, the take care of eayourself and each oth. >> i anchored the cincinnati news and i ended every broadcast like that. we shouldn't just take care of ourselves but each other, as well. the whole show is crazy. everyone is doing crazy stuff, throwing food and everything. at the end of the show, i wanted to do something, hey, you watched all this. this is my opinion of how it ought to be dealt with. that's all. >> i have to end here. you're 73 years old. you have your grandson, your podcast, your "price is right live."

>> yeah. >> any chance of slowing down, or maybe jumping into politics in. >> i am today announcing my candidacy. you know, if i ran against trump -- >> you have four seconds. >> you'd have a wall built -- >> okay. bye, jerry. >> you need one to keep americans from getting out. >> jerry springer, take care of yourself. >> and each other. >> i've always wanted to say that. we should note the "jerry springer show" is produced by nbc universal. tomorrow, another talk show titan not slowing down. maury povich will be here. ahead, we'll talk to tracy morgan about his much-anticipated big screen comeback. first, this is "today" on nbc.

we are back now. 8:48. one of our favorite guests around here, tracy morgan. the new movie "fistfight," he plays a high school coach

helping a teacher get ready to take on another teacher in an after-school fight. >> he'll be aiming for the target in the center of your skull, which will scramble the gray and white matter in your brain that controls logic, personality, social and sexual behavior. so at 110%, oh, he most definitely is going to knock all the sex out of you. >> oh, jesus. >> maybe you duck and he misses. >> if he does, i'll just run. >> no. i never said nothing about no running. who is you, sea biscuit? >> tracy, welcome back. good to see you. >> you, too, matt. >> the last couple years have been a series of small steps for you. this is the first time you got back on a movie set after the accident we've talked about here so much on the show. what was it like? >> well, it was kind of scary. because i hadn't been in front of a camera. i didn't know. i didn't know if the timing was going to be there, if the instin instincts, the comedic instinct would still be there.

i didn't know. you have to understand, a lot of studios don't -- won't mess with a person who just came out of a coma. >> they won't take a chance. >> no. >> but my boy, richie, i love you, richie, young director, put it on the line for me and gave it a shot. when i got in front of the camera, we did one, two, three takes, and then i had to have a moemt moment. he gave me the moment. i stepped back and let it all out because i was here. i let it all out. then we went to work. my cast, ice cube, charlie day, they gave me a lot of love and support. ri richie gave me the room to be myself. he said, i don't want nothing else. i want tracy morgan. when he said that, i knew i could have fun. >> the premise of the movie is funny. it brought back memories, i'm sure for you, too. >> matt, if you were in high school and heard two teachers were going to fight, wouldn't you be there? >> absolutely.

>> i have to see this. >> let's reverse it. how many times were you in school and because you were a little bit of a wise you know what, you probably got in a few fights yourself, right? >> i got into a couple of fights. i remember one time, i liked this girl named mertis. i didn't know how to express it. i punched her arm and she whooped my behind. she has the big sonny liston hands. shot the jab. my fights were epic. i had a cut man. i had a corner man. there was contract disputes. >> do you remember that -- >> lots of promotion. >> do you remember the feeling during the school day when someone called you out after school and time stood still, knew you were going to get beaten up after school? >> i had one guy named harold. terrorized me, man. he would come -- every period, he'd come to my class and go -- and it was on. i'd sit in class and fart like

it was grade card day. nervous. >> if you picked your record of high school fights, how did you do? >> in my mind, i was 4-0 but i was actually 0-4 though. >> i know the reality of it, i was 0-3. then the sense of humor kicked in. i started losing the fighting, i made them laugh, the bullies. keep them off my behind. i make them laugh and take them upstairs and cook them hot dogs. especially on the 1st and the 15th. when my mother got her welfare check. >> coach -- >> true story. >> coach trcrawford, did you pattern him after anybody? >> my defensive line coach in high school. that was him. >> really? >> he had a chipped tooth. chipped tooth. he had a gut. he talked like al green. he had those shorts, you know

the gym shorts with the hernia balls. >> what? yeah. >> just like my grand dad. >> you paint a really nice picture. >> he had the vince lombardi cleats. so i patterned him after ben wright. i love ben wright. everything was, hit the track. he didn't just tell you to do a lap. he'd say something personal. i don't care if your uncle fixed my transmission. hit the track. it was always, your aunt didn't text me back. hit the track. he took everything personal. >> i mentioned it's been a series of small steps. my friend, you made giant steps and we're happy to have you back. >> thank you. >> we are. >> thank you. >> "fistfight" opens nationwide on friday. we're back in a moment. this is "today" on nbc. talk to me about the

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barely made it through tracy morgan. >> big show at 9:00. jamie alexander will be our co-host from "blind spot." give sheinelle a tattoo. >> tattoo, yes. >> the plane, the plane. and we've got james spader coming. >> and the harlem globetrotters. >> great. >> of course, your girl gwen e

stefa stefani. >> perfect. >> tattoo. >> the tattoo. >> fi good wednesday morning. 8:56. i'm sam brock. for people who live in the shadow of the oroville dam and the nearly 200,000 folks who have been allowed to return to their homes, it is now watch and wait. another storm set to roll in tomorrow. engineers will get a first real look at how rapid fire repairs hold up on the dam's emergency spillway. for the third day in a row, crews worked through the night to shore up the emergency spillway with gravel and those

large boulders we watched them break up. water levels have dropped. and the immediate danger of flooding has passed. it is also hoped that the water levels will drop by another 50 feet before the next round of rain comes in. happening now, keeping tabs on all that. pete is monitoring the situation at lake oroville, live report for our midday newscast. home page, details on what one expert is calling a patch and play technique. and what happens when the lights go out on the bay bridge. it happened this morning. the commute was still pretty smooth. on the facebook page, link to some of the eerie images. in our twitter feed, pictures of a vandal attacking davis that now led to the arrest of a cal grad student. we'll have much more news for you coming up in 30 minutes. we'll send you back to the "today" show.

this morning on "today's take," "blind spot" star jamie alexander in full view as our co-host. and gwen stefani dishing on her valentine's day with blake. the "blacklist" james spader. "sports illustrated" model kate upton,ing up right now. >> announcer: from nbc news, this is today aes ta"today's ta from studio 1a in rockefeller plaza. >> wednesday morning, february 15th, 2017. we have -- we're thrilled to have as our guest co-host "blind spot" leading lady, jamie alexander. >> thanks for having me. >> so great having you. >> i'm so excited. well, we called each other last night so we matched.

>> of course. >> got the blue going. >> is it fair to say -- i don't want to make this awkward -- but you're a girl crush of mine. >> what? >> good thing there is somebody between us right now. >> that works out for me. >> it does. >> listen here. can i explain? >> yes, please. >> please. >> you exude girl power. >> thank you. >> i just, from the top of the show -- >> thank you very much. >> you can cheer to that. >> thank you very much. >> you are included, all right? >> with that, let's dig into your life, shall we? >> wow. that went awkward. almost did a spit taste. >> icebreaker. >> you're a strong character. we're going to play a game. >> okay. >> it's called, jamie on the spot. >> '. >> we recently read fun facts about you and want to know what's behind them. >> is it true you do a great chewbacca imitation?

>> ding, ding, ding. that's true. i should apologize to the sound department. >> that's impressive. >> how did you discover you could do that? >> i got a lot of time on my hands between sets. i like to make people laugh. i constantly do dumb stuff all the time. one day, i kind of let out this weird growl. i was like, you know, that sounds like chewy. i perfected it over the years. >> all right. >> why did you randomly let out a growl? how does that happen? >> that's probably the more interesting story. i'm sure it was something between a burp and a growl and it happened. it was a thing. >> could have been worse. >> could have been a lot worse. oh, yeah. >> you have -- is it true you have -- you do have the letters es tattooed on your wrist. >> yes. >> does it stand for elephant shoe? >> yes. it is like you're saying i love you if you mouth it. >> no way. >> yeah. cameras are on me. you have a lot of cameras in here. >> yes, we do. >> if you mouth it, it looks

like you're saying, i love you. i'll start with you. right? >> look at me and go like this. >> try this one at home. it's the only thing i do you can try at home. >> es, seriously, that's why? >> yeah. i have all my brothers on this arm. brady, david, chance and matt. i should say hello to them and hi mom, because she'll kill me if i don't. i have a lot of letters. am over here, a good friend of mine. that's another show. >> this was natural, you'd be in a show where your whole body is tattooed. >> yeah. >> and provides clues to something going on. >> yeah, it is insane. i have a lot of tattoos of my own. lucky for my mom, i would be sleeved if i could. this is me living out what i want, and she also gets to see me, you know. >> in watching the show, you do a lot of physical stuff. >> yes. >> so i would have to think this is true, that you were on your high school wrestling team. >> yes. >> really? >> yes. watch yourself. >> were you the only girl on the team? >> no. there were a couple other girls. >> co-ed team?

>> we started the girls division. i just wanted to, like, kind of -- i was a little bit of a misfit growing up but i wanted to give my fellow misfits a place to learn self-defense and, you know, discipline and perseverance and things. i was always into sports. we did that. then we competed. a lot of us did really well. it was a lot of fun. then my little brother followed in those footsteps and ended up winning state and going to nationals and wrestling for ou. >> wow. >> could you show sheinelle a couple moves? >> listen. >> listen now. >> i just think it would be -- >> doesn't say that in the teleprompter. >> put her in a half nelson or something. >> during the commercial break. >> that was my pin move actually. >> really? >> i'm so tall. i'd straprawl and do the half a nobody could reach my ankles. at my weight class, i was the tallest one. >> i don't know what that is. >> it is a guy named nelson, cut in half, hits the floor. >> ouch. >> and you tattoo nelson right there. >> boom. >> is it true you've broken the

toes on your left foot six times and broken your back? >> yeah, yes. i've broken a lot of things. i broke my nose in august or september. i can't remember. when was i hear last? broke my nose. broke this finger, so i had to learn to shoot left-handed, which was comical. i've broken both my feet. >> in the course of the show? some of it? >> most of it. i haven't broken my back on the show. that was something else completely different. it goes with it. i do so many fights and you're moving fast and stuff happens. >> it is crazy stuff. i'm not surprised you would. look at that. >> this one was rough. >> what happened? >> well, i have to kick him back into a wall. i forgot i'm connected to him in a way. when he hits the wall hard, i'm going to hit it hard. >> good reaction. >> yeah. that was a rough one, too. >> is it choreography and you remember the order of the moves? >> i do like one little section at a time. a lot of times, i don't have time to rehearse.

that's tough. i'll get in there and they'll be like, here's the fight. we'll do the first five beats and move on. i alternate with my stunt girl, who is a beast, heidi. she's amazing. >> you've kissed an alligator on the mouth. >> listen, it was a one-time thing. yes. sometimes i do things for just shock value. and i was at arnold schwar schwarzenegg schwarzenegger's christmas party a few years ago. >> of course. >> he had a tiger and a camel and a penguin. it was weird. it was a lot of fun. >> get to the zoo! >> get to the zoo. but then, what happened was, you know, i just -- i don't know. hey, fella. i kiss him. what i'm trying to say is i'm a cheap date. but he didn't have a trap on his mouth and i didn't realize it until i backed up. i was like, i can't feel any legs. >> did you see the teeth? >> he was smiling. he was enjoying that.

look at that. >> i'd be happy. >> he's like, i'm going to eat your face. he didn't, thank god. i had to pose for a picture. that was a three-second situation. i clearly closed my eyes because i didn't want to look death in the face. >> wow. >> what's next? >> what haven't i done? >> wow. we've been interrogating you. i think we've got -- there is a new episode of the "blind spot." we have a clip of you interrogating somebody. >> okay. >> take a look. >> i'm actually pretty busy trying to investigate the spiritual plane and reclaim my tattered soul from eternal damnation. >> we have questions. >> true answers come from within, jane. >> cooperate and we can make your incarceration far more comfortable. >> what can you offer the man who wants for nothing? >> the rest of your time in prison becoming a living hell if you don't cooperate. >> every home is a prison. every prison a home. i have no home. i have no prison. >> so you're a religious fortunate cookie? >> ease y to hind de behind sim

jokes. >> tell us what this is. >> how did you get this? >> good. >> simple. >> that was a more delegate interrogation scene compared to what i am used to. but he is great. he's everybody's favorite hacker. he's so funny that we have to keep having him back on the show. >> awesome. >> i wish we could go to a comedy at this point. that airs tonight. it'll be great. >> "blind spot" airs tonight, 8:00/7:00 central here on nbc. good luck. another favorite show, segments on the james corden thing, is car pool karaoke. there is going to be a series coming to apple tv. look at the unbelievable duos in the mix. ♪ i keep on falling in and out ♪ of love with you ♪ suddenly see more

♪ yes, you can ♪ you're beautiful like diamonds in the sky ♪ ♪ shine bright like a diamond >> it's not that hard. ♪ this is a story all about how my life got flipped, turned upside down ♪ ♪ i'd like to take a minute, just sit right there, and tell you how i became the prince of a town called bel air ♪ >> we need a bigger car. >> we can make it work. >> this is the next level. ♪ i believe i can fly ♪ i believe i can touch the sky ♪ ♪ i think about it every night and day ♪ >> wow. >> that's genius. >> that is pretty amazing. >> would you like to car pool karaoke? >> yeah. but i can lip sync, i can't sing. i can yodel. >> whoa, you can yodel? >> man, i did it again. >> wait for it. >> we have to hear a little yodel. >> listen, i have the voice of a 13-year-old boy going through

puberty so it cracks all the time. i can sort of yodel. >> we're ready. >> all right. i have to block my mouth because i'm nervous. >> yodel lay he. >> i get the puberty thing in it. >> she gets it. >> you get ten points for trying that. >> impressive. >> clearly, i'll do anything. you've seen it on my instagram. >> bring out the crocodile. i'm kidding. just ahead, we have the supermodel everyone is talking about, kate upton. we'll reveal her unusual connection to jamie. plus, grammy-winning plus, grammy-winning superstar gwen stefani on the ♪

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spot"'s jamie alexander. i'm thinking of the "blacklist." >> that's coming up. >> kate upton revealed as the cover model for the "sports russophobia report. here's les . good day from new york, we're coming on to bring you president trump's joint news conference with prime minister benjamin netanyahu just moments ago the president and melania trump welcomed his wife, sarah to the white house. soon, we'll see the two leaders in the east room where many of the gathered reporters are there to question the president about the turbulent past 36 hours which includes resignation of security advisor general michael flynn after he misled the administration about his contacts with russia.

i see the first lady is there. i also note this press conference is coming before the two leaders meet. talk about the optics of the morning. criskristen welker is there. this press conference is coming before the two leaders meet. . talk about the optics. >> reporter: they clearly want to emphasize the close relationship between the u.s. and israel in addition to the first lady, as you mentioned, benjamin netanyahu's wife is also here. this is taking place before the two leaders hold their bilateral meeting. this wasn't the first meeting the white house was hope iing f. given all of the turmoil of this past week. given the fact that president trump's national security adviser resigned. this also deprives not only the president of the national security adviser being at the table at this critical moment, but also prime minister benjamin netanyahu, who sees flynn as a close ally in terms of pressuring iran. >> here is the president and the prime minister. >> thank you very much.

thank you. today i have the honor of welcoming my friend, prime minister benjamin netanyahu to the white house. with this visit the united states, again, reaffirms our unbreakable bond with our cherished ally israel. the partnership between our two countries built on our shared values has advanced the cause of human freedom, digty and peace. . these are the building blocks of democracy. the state of israel is a symbol to the world of resilience in the face of oppression. i think of no other state that's gone through what they have gone and of survival in the face of

genocide. . we'll never forget what the jewish people have endured. your perseverance in the face of hostility, your open democracy in the face of violence and your success in the face of tall arts is truly inspirational. the security challenges are e enormous, including the threat of iran's nuclear ambition, which i have talked a lot about. one of the worst deals i have ever seen is the iran deal. my administration has already imposed new sanctions on iran and i will do more to prevent iran from ever developing, i mean, ever, a nuclear weapon. our security assistance to israel is currently at an all-time high ensuring that israel has the ability to defend itself from threats of which

there are unfortunately many. both of our countries will continue and grow. we have a long history of cooperation in the fight against terrorism and the fight against those who do not value human life. america and israel are two nations that cherish the value of all human life. this is one more reason why we reject unfair and one-sided actions against israel at the united nations. which has treated israel, in my opinion, very, very unfairly. or other international forms as well as boycotts that target israel. our administration is committed to working with israel and our common allies in the region towards greater security and stability.

that includes work iing toward peace agreement between israel and the palestinians. the united states willen courage a peace and really a great peace deal. we'll be working on it very, very diligently. very important to me also. something we want to do. but it is the parties themselves who must directly negotiate such an agreement. we will be working with them. as with any successful negotiation, both sides will have to make compromises. . you know that, right? i want the israeli people to know that the united states stands with israel in the str struggle against terrorism. as you know, mr. prime minister, our two nations will always

condemn terrorist acts. . peace requires nations to uphold the dignity of human life and to be a voice for all of those who are endangered and forgotten. those are the ideals to which we all and had will always aspire and commit. this will be the first of many productive meetings and i, again, mr. prime minister, thank you very much for being with us today. mr. prime minister? >> thank you. >> president trump, thank you for the truly warm hospitality. . you and melania have shown me, my wife sarah, our entire delegation. i deeply value your friendship.

to me, to the state of israel, who is so clearly evident in the word you just spoke. israel has no better ally than the united states, and i want to assure you the united states has no better ally than israel. our alliance has been remarkably strong, but under your leadership, i'm confident it will get even strong er. i look forward to working with you to dramatically upgrade our alliance in every field. in security, technology, in cyber and trade and so many others, and i certainly welcome your forthright call to ensure that israel is treated fairly in international forums and that the slander and boycotts of israel are resisted mightily by the power and moral position of the united states of america.

as you have said, our alliance is based on a deep bond of common values and common interests and increasingly those values and interests are under attack by one force. radical islamic terror. mr. president, you have shown great clarity and courage in confronting this challenge head on. you call for confronting iran's terrorist regime, preventing iran from realizing this terrible deal into a nuclear arsenal. and you have said that the united states is committed to preventing iran from getting nuclear weapons. you call for the defeat of isis. under your leadership, i believe we can reverse the rooizing tide of radical islam. in this great task, as in so many others, israel stands with

you and i stand with you. mr. president, in rolling back militant islam, we can seize an historic opportunity. because for the first time in my lifetime and for the first time in the life of my country, arab kocountries in the region do no see israel as an enemy, but increasingly as an ally. and i believe that under your leadership, this change in our region creates an unprecedented opportunity to strengthen security and advance peace. let us seize this moment together. let us bolster security. . let us seek new avenues of peace, and let us bring the remarkable alliance between israel and the united states to even greater heights.

thank you, thank you, mr. president. >> thank you. >> we'll take a couple questions. david brody, christian broadcasting. >> thank you, mr. president. mr. prime minister. . both of you have criticized the iran nuclear deal and called for its repeal. i'm wondering if you're concerned at all as it relates to not just the national security adviser michael flynn, who has recently no longer here, but also some of the events going on with kmoun indication with russia whether it would keep iran from becoming a nuclear set. are you both on the same page? how do you term that as it relates to the settlement issue? thank you. >> michael flynn, general flynn is a wonderful man.

i think he's been treated very unfairly by the media. as i call it, the fake media, in many cases. i think it's really a sad thing that he was treated so badly. i think in addition to that , from intelligence, papers are being leaked, things are being leaked. it's criminal act and it's been going on for a long time. before me. but now it's really going on. and people are trying to cover up for a terrible loss that the democrats had under hillary clinton. i think it's very, very unfair what's happened to general flynn, the wait he was treated and the documents and papers that were illegally, i stress that, illegally leaked. very, very unfair. as far as settlements, i would like to see you hold back onset lmentes for a little bit. . we'll work on that.

but i think a deal will be made. i know that every president would like to, most of them have not started until late because they never thought it was possible. it wasn't possible because they didn't do it. but we have known each other a long time. a smart man, great negotiator, and i think we're going to make a deal. it might be a bigger and better deal than people in this room even understand. that's a possibility. so let's see what we do. doesn't sound too optimistic. good negotiator. >> that's the art of the deal. >> i also want to thank, sarah, could you please stand up. you have been so nice to melania, and i appreciate it very much. thank you. your turn.

>> mr. president, in your vision for the new middle east peace, are you ready to give up on the notion of two-state solution adopted by previous administration? and will you be willing to hear different ideas from the prime minister and some of his pa partners are asking to do, for example, an annexation of the west bank and unrestricted settlement? are you going to fulfill your promise to move the u.s. embassy to jerusalem? and if so, when? and prime minister, did you come here tonight to tell the president that you're backing off the two-state solution? thank you. >> so i'm looking at two-state and one-state and i like the one that both parties like. i'm very happy with the one that both parties like. i can live with either one. i thought for awhile u the two-state looked like it may be the easier of the two.

but honestly, if bb and the palestinians are happy, i'm happy with the one they like the best. . as far as the embassy moving to jerusalem, i would love to see that happen. we're looking at it very, very strongly. we're looking at it with great care, great care, believe me. . we'll see what happens. >> thank you. i read yesterday that an american official said that if you ask five people what two states would look like, you'd get eight different answers. mr. president, if you ask five israelis, you'd get 12 different answers. but rather than deal with labels, i want to deal with subs substance. it's something i hoped to do for yoorz in a world that's fixated on labels and not on substance. so here's the substance.

there are two prerequisites for peace that i laid out several years ago. and they haven't changed. first, the palestinians must recognize the jewish state. they have to stop calling for israel's destruction. they have to stop educating their people for israel's destruction. second, in any peace agreement, israel must retain the overriding security control over the entire area west of the jordan river, because if we don't, we know what will happen. because otherwise, we'll get another radical islamist terrorist state. unfortunately, the palestinians vehemently reject both for peace. . first, they continue to call for israel's destruction inside their schools, inside their mosques, inside textbooks, you have to read it to believe it. they even deny, mr. president,

our historical connection to our homeland. i suppose you have to ask yourself why are jews called jews. the chinese are called chinese because they come from china. the japanese are called japanese because they come from japan. jews are called jews because they come from jew dee ya. jews are not foreign clonists. they not only denied the past, they poison the present. public scare squares in honor of mass murders who murdered israelis and i have to say also murdered americans. to the families of murders like the family of the terrorists who killed a wonderful young american, a west point graduate who was stabbed to death while visiting israel. this is the source of the conflict. the e persistent refusal to

recognize a jewish state in any boundary that's persistent rejectionism. that has to change. i want it to change. not only have i not abandoned these two prerepublic wi sit ises of peace, they have become oon more important because of the rising tide that has swept the middle east and also unfortunately infected palestinian society. so i want this to change. i want those two prerequisites of peace, substance, not labels. i want them reinstated. but if anyone believes that i, as prime minister of israel, responsible for the security of my country would blindly walk into a palestinian terrorist state that seeks the destruction of my country, they are gravely mistaken. the two prerequisites of peace, recognition of the jewish state and israel's security needs west of the jordan, they remain pertinent. we have to look for new ways,

new ideas on how to reinstate and how to move peace forward. and i believe that the great opportunity for peace comes from a regional approach from involving our newfound arab partners in the pursuit of a broader peace and peace with the palestinians. i greatly look forward to discussing this in detail with you, mr. president, because i think that if it we work together, we have a shot. >> we have been discussing that. it is something that is very different. hasn't been discussed before. and it's actually a much bigger deal, much more important deal, in a sense. it would take in many country asks cover a very large territory. so i didn't know you were going to be mentioning that, but now that you did, it's a terrific

thing. i think we have some pretty good cooperation from people that in the past would never, ever thought about doing this. so we'll see how that works out. katie from town hall, where's katie? >> thank you, mr. president. you said in your earlier remarks that both sides will have to make compromises. you mentioned a halt onset lmentes. can you play olay out a few mor compromises you have in mind? and mr. restroom, what expectations do you have from the new administration about how to either amend the iran nuclear agreement or how to dismantle it altogether? and how to overall work with the new administration to combat iran's increased aggression not only in the last couple months, but the past couple years as well. >> it's actually an interesting question. i think that the israelis are going to have to show some flexibility, which is hard. . it's hard to do.

they are going to have to show the fact that they really want to make a deal. i think our new concept that we have been discussing actually for awhile is something that allows them to show more flexibility than they have in the past because you have a lot bigger canvas to play with. and i think they will do that. they very much would like to make a deal or i wouldn't be happy and i wouldn't be here and i wouldn't be as optimistic as i am. i can tell you from the standpoint of b brks sb standpoint of b brks sbb and isk they want to make a deal. i think the palestinians have to get rid of some of that hate that they are taught from a very young age. they are taught tremendous hate. i have seen what they are taught. you can talk about flexibility there too, but it starts at a very young age. it starts in the school room. and they have to acknowledge

they are going to have to do that. there's no way a deal can be made if they are not ready to acknowledge a very, very great and important country. and i think they are going to be willing to do that also. but now i also believe we're going to have, katie, other players at a very high level, and i think it might make it easier on both the palestinians and israel to get something done. thank you. . very interesting question. thank you. >> you asked about iran. one thing preventing iran from getting nuclear weapons, something that president trump and i i think are deeply committed to do, and we are obviously going to discuss that. i think beyond that, president trump has led a very important effort in the past few weeks just coming into the presidency he pointed out their violations

on ballistic missile tests. they are inscribed in hebrew. israel must be destroyed. the iranian foreign minister said our ballistic missiles are not it intended against any country. they write on the missile in hebrew, israel must be destroyed. so challenging iran on its violations of ballistic missiles, imposing sanctions on hezbollah, preventing them, making them pay tr the terrorism that they do throughout the middle east and well beyond. i think that's a change that is clearly evident since president trump took office. i welcome that. i think -- let me say this openly. i think it's long overdue. i think that if we work together, and not just the united states and israel, but so

many others in the region who see eye to eye on the great mag any tud and danger of the iranian threat, then i think we can roll back iran's aggression and danger. that's something that is important for israel, the arab states, but it's vitally important for measuring. they are developing icbms. they are developing a nuclear arsenal, not a a bomb. they want to have the ability to launch them everywhere on earth and including and es herbal pece united states. this is something that's important for all of us. i welcome the change. i intend to work with president trump very closely so we can thwart this danger. >> do you have somebody? >> mr. president, since your election campaign and even after your victory, we have seen a

sharp rise in anti-semitic incident across the united states. i wonder what do you say to those among the jewish community around the world who believe and feel that your administration is playing with racist tones. and mr. prime minister, do you agree to what the president just said about the restrain or to stop settlement activity in the west bank? and a quick follow up on my friend's question. do you back off from your vision to the conflict of two-state solution as you lay out in the speech or still support it? thank you. >> i just want to say that we are very honored by the victory that we had. 306 electoral college votes. we were not supposed to crack 220. you know that right? there was no way that 220 won. but then there was no way to 270. there's tremendous enthusiasm

out there. we are going to have peace in this country. we are going to stop crime in this country. we are going to do everything within our power to stop long simmering racism and every other thing that's going on. there's a lot of bad things that have been taken place over a long period of time. i think one of the reasons i won the election is we have a very, very divided nation. very divided. hopefully i will be able to do something about that. it was something that was very important to me. as far as jewish people, so many friends. a daughter who happens to be here right now, a son-in-law and three beautiful grandchildren. i think that you're going to see a lot different united states of america over the next three,

four or eight years. i think a lot of good thing its are happening. and you're going to see a lot of love. you're going to see a lot of love. thank you. >> i believe that the issue of the settlements is not the core of the conflict. nor does it really drive the conflict. i think it's an issue that has to be resolved in peace negotiations. i think we also are going to speak about it, president trump and i, so we can arrive at an understanding so we don't keep bumping into each other on this issue and we're going to discuss this. on the question you said. you just came back with your question to the problem that i said. it's the label. what is two states? a state that doesn't recognize the jewish state? a state that basically is open for attack against israel?

what are we talking about? are we talking about costa rica or another iran? it means different things. i told you the conditions necessary tr an agreement. it's the recognition of the jewish state and it's israel's security control of the entire area. otherwise we're just fantasizing. otherwise we'll get another failed state, another terrorist dictatorship that will not work for peace, but work to destroy us, but also destroy any hope for a peaceful future for our people. so i have been very clear about those conditions and they haven't changed. i haven't changed. if you read what i said eight years ago, it's exactly that. and i repeated that again and again and again. if you want to deal with labels, deal with labels. i'll deal with substance. and if i can respond to something that i know from personal experience. i have known president trump for many years.

and to aloud to him or to his people, his team, some of whom i have known for many years too, can u reveal how long we have known you? he was never small. he was always big. he was always tall. i have u known the president and his family and his team for a long time. and there is no greater supporter of the jewish people and the jewish state than president donald trump. i think we should put that to rest. >> thank you very much. that's very nice. . i appreciate that very much. [ applause ] >> president trump and benjamin netanyahu leaving the room after about a 40-minute news

conference. on matters certainly that they will be discussing regarding the future of any peace deal. the president calling for a great peace deal, not laying out the necessary framework. he talked about the settlements. he asked israel to back off on the settlements and any note they had been treated unfairly in the united nations. we want to go right now to kristen welker, who is in the east room. he also made a a little bit of news about michael flynn, the now former national security adviser. the president asked for his resignation and got it, but the president said today he had been treated unfairly by the media. do we know what he's talking about? >> it was striking, lester. that was his reaction to the fact that it he asked for his own national security adviser's resignation saying he was treated unfairly. he was reference iing what he cs leaks in the media.

leaks by the intelligence community to the media. but he didn't address the key question here. the fact that his former national security adviser apparently had a conversation with the russian ambassador about sanctions before president trump was even sworn into office. also worth noting, the president was impressed on this at all. so he didn't really have to answer tough questions about why it took him nearly three weeks to fire flynn, despite the fact he was warned by the department of justice. there were a few other headlines, lester, worth noting. the fact that you heard the president say he would be open to both a one or two-state solution, that's a large departure from u.s. middle east policy. >> let's go to our chief foreign correspondent in tel aviv. certainly the eyes of israel on this news conference tonight. what are the points that will draw great reaction there?

>> i think we're talking about iran and we're seeing the u.s. president and prime minister benjamin netanyahu both laying out a very aggressive policy toward iran. that is something you didn't have before when the obama administration was looking for a negotiated settlement with iran. the other part going back to what kristen was saying. a a new framework for addressing the very old israeli palestinian conflict. for decades and as long as i have been covering this conflict, there was talk of a two-state solution and there would be talks between israelis and palestinians that would create something called palestine. h how big is up to negotiation. now they are talking about a different framework where you're negotiating with the countries around israel, with the arab partners, and potentially having a larger israel with palestinians having some sort of autonomy short of statehood

within the borders of israel. . a very different framework and something the palestinians say they do not accept. >> richard engel, thank you. we'll have full coverage orn all of this throughout the day on of this throughout the day on msnbc and nbcnew ♪ of this throughout the day on msnbc and nbcnew for color this bold are you ready... and hair this nourished? garnier nutrisse ultra color with avocado, olive and shea oils. it nourishes hair to boost color. from dull brown to our bluest black. nutrisse ultra color. nourished hair. bolder color.

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that's focused on women and loving yourself is and confidence and loving yourself no matter what you look like, what shape or size, is just really an honor to be on the cover. >> there was so much positivity the first time around. people started talking about body image and you can have curves and it is okay. going in the third time, did you go in with a different perspective? >> i really think that in my life, not even just for the magazine, i went in with a different perspective because working out with -- we share a trainer -- ben bruno -- >> hi, ben. >> hi, ben. i started working out for, you know, myself, my myself to feel strong, to get through the day. it was less about fitting into a dress size and more about me feeling good. and me feeling strong. and it changed my perspective completely. >> what is the message now? because, you know, it seems now, more than ever, body diversity, body type, color, everything is on the table now. it is like, you know, everybody is good. >> yeah.

there's so many different types of perfect. the only type of perfect you can be is your own. and so it is really important for you to find who you are and that can define you and what makes you different from everyone else. otherwise, we're all going to start looking the same, and that would be a bore. >> i agree with that. can i ask, you're planning your wedding right now. is that true? >> well, yes. trying. >> justin verlander, right? >> yes. >> you posted a fun picture. do we have the picture? to instagram of your wedding plans. fun, party, tequila and food. first, when can we expect an invite? secondly, what can you tell us about the big day? looking for something traditional, casual? when you're a supermodel, i feel the world is your oyster. i don't know. >> we were talking about it, like what does the other person want in a wedding. both of us were like, we really want a party. so that's as far as we got in

the planning. let's definitely have some tequila. what kind of food should we have? >> pigs in a blanket. >> clearly, we were planning before dinner. it's like going to the grocery store when you are hungry. it was bad. >> when you look at this, they're going to -- there are going to be a lot of young women who see this magazine and think, you know, i want to be her. what is your advice? what do you say to the young women who come up to you now? >> that say that they -- >> they would like to be on that cover or they would like to achieve what you've achieved. >> well, i think that that's such an honor because i worked very hard to be on the cover. i'm very proud of it. but the only way for someone to be able to achieve what i've achieved is to be themselves. >> yeah. >> good advice. >> jamie, you said the same thing, didn't you? >> excellent advice. we're all different and, you know, it would be boring if we were all the same. >> we like that advice. >> i concur. >> we have a quorum.

kate, thank you so much. we'll be back in a moment. did you know 90% of couples disagree on mattress firmness? fortunately there's a bed where you both get what you want every night.

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awaiting the arrival of jennifer nettles. >> any moment. >> i heard you came in today after a 17-hour day yesterday. >> i did. i'm just now waking up. i don't know what just happened. no, yeah. >> it is impossible that anybody can look like that. >> jamie, you were fantastic this morning. >> thank you for coming.

good morning. wednesday is off to an overcast start in parts of the bay area, a combination of sun and clouds. 57 degrees and 54 degrees in the trivalley and 54 degrees.

we are tracking a storm system expected to make its arrival in the next couple of hours. it looks like for the most part we will be enjoying one more day of dry conditions before we see this storm system move in. today's forecast, we're expecting upper 60s and lower 70s for san jose. here's a live look at that doppler radar, parts of the north bay could be seeing sprinkles. how's the traffic looking? we are looking at a slow drive heading towards university. look at your map. see the middle section of the peninsula as well, that's the one stretch of red with the speed sensors. at least one lane blocked and activity is that section. and from 680 toward highway 87 easing by the time you get past the airport and 280 crash clearance. back to you. happening now, engineers are waiting for the first real test of the now stabilized emergency

spillw spillway. evacuations are now lifted. at our home page you can find details what one expert calls a patch and pray technique. plus, what happens when the lights go out on the bay bridge? it happens this morning and the commute was relatively smooth. find out more on our facebook page.

. from nbc news this is "today" with kathie lee gifford and hoda kotb live from studio 1a in rockefeller plaza. ♪ >> hello, everybody. it is wines day wednesday. it's february 15th. hoda is on a well deserved vacation, so grammy winning artist and great actress jennifer nettles is my co-host today. great to see you. i was so embarrassed. this is her newest single. let's hear it a little bit. ♪ coming back around >> "heart break" off her latest album "playing with fire." she's been dabbling with acting.