ranger up on the scene, trying to deduce where they stand right now in getting the fire out. again, as kris mentioned, mead and san pablo avenue. >> we'll be back in 30 minutes. good morning. blame game. president trump going after republican lawmakers for failing to replace obamacare. but who is really responsible for the biggest setback yet for the white house? spring storms. baseball-sized hail near dallas. this funnel cloud spotted in oklahoma. severe weather pushing east this morning with six more states bracing for more bad weather. frightening scene. an escalator going up suddenly reverses direction sending shoppers tumbling. at least 18 people injured. an investigation leading to two

arrests this morning. and fantastic finishes. north carolina edging out kentucky with this game-winning shot. south carolina upsetting flor a florida. join gonzaga and oregon in the final four. this morning al is catching the college spirit with the kickoff of number three. >> announcer: from nbc news, this is "today" with matt lauer and savannah guthrie live from studio 1a in rockefeller plaza. >> good morning, everybody. welcome to "today" on monday morning. the stage is set, the competition is intense. rokerthon 3. there you go. it's the most exciting time of the year. we also have the final four to talk about.

al roker told us he would not do rokerthon 3 unless it could surpass 1 and 2. so al, how have you done that? >> how is that for an entrance? >> that's a good one. >> whew! i've got to tell you. i'm not going to get down from here because that would be embarrassing. we're here at the university of oklahoma. the boomer sooners, baby. that's it. we are going to attempt a guinness world record where we form the largest human weather symbols ever attempted. it's going to be big. we've got the whole school, everybody hanging out. it's going to be big as we kick off rokerthon 3 storming into the madness. there's boomer and sooner right there. oh, my gosh. oh, this is exciting. >> all right, al.

>> hope he works out some energy. >> some enthusiasm for later in the show. al, thank you very much. we're going to check win him in a bit but let's begin with infighting and intense blame game with republicans over the failed bid to pass an obamacare replacement. so where do the replacement and his party go from here? we're going to get perspective on that from former white house secretary josh ernest but first nbc's peter alexander has the latest on this. good morning. >> good morning. after al's opening we have to work on our entrance from the white house. republicans k licking their wounds, the president trying to shake off defeat and move on even as budget director allowed is the republican party capable of governing. only a limited window to focus on less obstacles learned before looking ahead to trick, a agenda issues like keeping the government funded and cutting taxes. more fallout after last week's health care collapse. the president feeling a bit drained by the swamp.

f first, the defeat, now the finger pointing. >> what happened was washington won. what we learned was qusht a lot more broken than we thought. >> democrats are smiling blaming freedom caucus for the loss arguing they saved planned parenthood and obamacare. the debacle a stinging failure for house leader paul ryan. directing 7 million followers to tune into this prod cast. judge jeanine's opening statement. >> paul ryan needs to st. patrick's down as speaker of the house. >> mr. trump's team indicating that was a coincidence not conspiracy. telling nbc news the president wanted to show support for her show. that's it. but when the show aired, president trump himself was out to dinner at a d.c. hotel with his daughter ivanka and son in laul. still aides say the president's partnership with the speaker remains strong. the two spoke twice this weekend.

>> he doesn't blame paul ryan. he thought paul ryan worked really hard. >> republican senator lindsey graham said president trump should reach out to democrats. >> i don't think one party is going to be able to fix this by themselves. >> looking to regroup, mr. trump and his team are now eyeing another presidential priority, tax cuts. after a tumultuous first ten weeks the obamacare replacement bill pulled, two travel bans blocked, even though he disputes that. >> he doesn't accept it. >> president trump is going to be proved correct. >> reporter: new expanded role for trusted advisers his son-in-l son-in-law. the president tapping jared kushner to lead the new white house office described as s.w.a.t. team of consultants. it will empower business executives to help the government run more smoothly and efficiently. also new this morning a congressional aide tells me senate intelligence committee

plans to interview jared kushner as part of its broad inquiry into any russian connection. one of the top aides said kushner volunteered to be interviewed adding he has nothing to hide. matt and savannah back to you. >> all right. peter alexander, thank you very much. serving as white house secretary under president obama, we're pleased to announce he's joined nbc news as a political analyst. welcome to nbc. >> welcome to the family. >> good to be here. >> now you have to wear your analyst's hat not democrat's hat. >> that's right. >> looking at what happened, transpired over health care. who is to blame? at first president trump said it's the democrats. then, no, hard-liners, right, freedom caucus. what went wrong? >> turns out governing is more complicated, in many ways more difficult than campaigning. the challenge of this starts at the top. if you're going to be president of the united states and you want to solve problems for the american people you have to figure out a way to get it done. if you are not going to be willing to make calls to the other side and build bipartisan legislation, then you're going

to have trouble as long as your party remains so divided. >> let's get specific. you know how the white house works. was this a problem with chief of staff reince priebus, steve bannon, the vice president who knows congress pretty well? who missed the stop sign? >> i think they it's clear that there are fissures in the republican party that can't be breached even by mike pence who has great relationships with conservative republicans. there wasn't willingness with anybody to work with democrats to improve obamacare and address problems we know can be solved and improved. we couldn't be in a situation where the president of the united states -- it's not tenable to be in a position where the president of the united states is going to accept the obamacare is going to explode. the american people expect you to solve problems not stand by while people get hurt. >> paul ryan said this is a major setback. we're trying to go from a party of no to a party governing and we're not there yet. the president has said supportive things about the

speaker of the house to date but there was that tweet about the jeanine piro show. is speaker ryan's job safe in your opinion? >> what is clear for republicans in congress, they haven't been safe in sometime as long as their party is so divided. the one unifying principle of congressional republicans over the last 10 years has been instinctive, reflective opposition to everything related to president obama. that's why it's easy for them to vote to repeal obamacare. when it came to replacing it, building a coalition to do something pro active and positive for the country there's no consensus in the republican party. again, as long as you're unwilling to work with democrats to try to find common ground, we're going to be stuck in the mud here. >> now the shoe is on the other foot, isn't it? democrats have a choice to make, some soul searching to do. on the one hand there may be opportunity to work with president trump on infrastructure, tax reform, perhaps a replacement bill for health care, but there's not a lot of appetite on the left wing

of the democratic party to give trump a victory. what would be your advice to fellow partisans. >> it's clear democrats in congress are holding a much stronger hand than it looked like they were holding 65 days ago. the question is how are they going to play that hand? they have some leverage now and they should use it. if there are oportunities to make progress on their terms in support of values and priorities democrats identified they can look for those opportunities but they don't have to fold to republicans right now. they are playing the strong hand. >> this is so unfair to do to you on your first day, in ten seconds left, josh, the relationship between donald trump, president trump and president obama started out cordi cordially, is it completely over? i'm not aware they had any conversation since the president took office. the telephone still works. if he wants advice or insight i'm confident president obama who is interested in the success of the country would be willing to answer questions from president trump. >> sounds like press secretary answer.

programming note south carolina senator lindsey graham will be with us live. health care and the president's supreme court pick, russia and a whole lot more. senator lindsey graham live on "today." taking a look at other news, we're hearing from the family of the american thoorist who died in last week's terror attack in london will there's no developments in the investigation as well. nbc's kelly cobiella is in london as well. kelly, good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning. really emotional news conference in london. the family using words like awful, horrible, gut wrenching to describe what they are going through. a family grieving. >> this has been a humbling and difficult experience. but we felt the love of so many people during these past several days. >> for brother, son, husband, curt cochran, he was killed. his wife melissa badly injured in last week's terror attack. >> the most difficult part of

all of this is that curtis no longer with us. and we miss him terribly. >> we're getting ready to get fired up so stick around, guys. >> the 54-year-old cochran ran a music studio in utah with his wife. the couple in london to celebrate their 25th wedding anniversary when a terrorist mowed them down on westminster bridge. four killed, dozens injured in an attack police say lasted just 82 seconds. the man responsible, they say, 52-year-old khalid massoud, a man with criminal past but by all accounts a happy childhood born in england to a single mom. over the weekend another arrest. two people still being held this morning, their alleged ties to massoud unclear. police say massoud september a message on whatsapp before his killing spree. the british government now pushing for access to encrypted messaging services. >> we need to make sure

organizations like whatsapp and plenty of organizations like that don't provide a secret place for terrorists to communicate with each other. >> reporter: in london this weekend, a moment of silence, prayers and defiance on westminster bridge. >> somber friends still in shock that he's gone. this morning melissa cochran's mother said she has a broken rib, cut on her leg but she is doing better. the family thanked emergency workers and the public. so far $70,000 has been raised in support of this family. matt and savannah. >> kelly cobiella, kelly, thank you. hundreds of protesters in russia, calling for their release. tens of thousands took the streets of moscow in anti-corruption demonstration

against the government. police say more than 500 people were arrested by the human rights group, says that number is actually closer to 700. among those detained alexei navalny opposition leader who is president vladimir putin's most prominent critic. dozens of high school students and 12 teachers at the resort 100 miles north of tokyo when it struck. more than 30 people were treated for nonlife threatening injuries. hours before the incident, the local meteorological agency issued alert warning for heavy snowfall and polling avalanches. back to the video at the start of the show, an escalator at a hong kong mall reverses direction at high speed sending people tumbling to the bottom. at least 18 people injured. two people still in the hospital in stable condition. the reason behind that malfunction still unknown but two technicians who were called

in to help with the investigation were later arrested, accused of tampering with the escalator after the incident. >> let us get back to march madness and final four. thomas roberts is here. if you tell me that you had oregon, south carolina, gonzaga and north carolina in the final four, i'm calling you on it. >> no i'm married to uk grad. i have to put uk. i don't fill out brackets. for millions of americans your brackets are possibly busted just like yours. your voices may be gone like mine. those exciting elite eight games producing two first timers in the final four and one finish for the ages. >> this morning the madness marches on with the final four now set. north carolina will face off against oregon while cinderella south carolina takes on gonzaga. two match-ups few fans could have predicted. north carolina eking out a win over kentucky in dramatic

fashion after wildcats maliek sunk one as time running out. north carolina responded with their own buzzer beater. the tar heels beating wildcats 75-73 in the final nail biting seconds. and in another wild game, south carolina. coming from behind in the second half against the florida gators. their defense dominating. south carolina defeating florida 77-70 bringing heartbreak to their opponents. and joy to their fans, including country music star darius rucker crying tears of joy in the stands. south carolina's coach martin sharing this touching moment with his mother.

>> i'm the luckyest human being in the world. god continues to put incredible people in my life. >> reporter: their victory making south carolina's first trip to the final four. they are not the only ones. the gonzaga bulldogs also making history this weekend. >> first time in history gonzaga is headed to the final four. >> passed xavier in 83-59 victory, their matchup with south carolina next saturday guaranteed to be historic. but the oregon ducks looking to make history of their own returning to the final four for the first time since 1939. hoping to dash north carolina's dreams of returning to the championship and bringing home the trophy for the first time in nearly 80 years. >> we will all know coming up next saturday. south carolina going against gonzaga, oregon versus north carolina. now fill out your brackets. >> it's a little easier now. >> all right, thomas.

thank you very much. >> i don't know if we can stand the excitement but there's more on college campuses because al has stormed into the madness. he's at the university of oklahoma for the start of rokerthon 3. al, good morning again. >> well, good morning, guys. we've got everybody here gathered. i've got to tell you, it was ironic we're starting off here in norman because on campus here at university of california is the severe storms lab all housed in the national "weather center" here on campus and they had a lot going on yesterday. in fact, take a look right now. this is iona, oklahoma, south of here. damaging hail, upwards of softball-sized hail, did a lot of damage to homes and caused a lot of problems. this lake looks like it's boiling. they also had tornadoes reported, again, just southeast of here. ada, oklahoma, we had twisters reported. there were reports of damage to mobile homes but thankfully no injuries. let's look at what's going on today.

we've got more severe weather to talk about. in fact, it's already firing up in the midsections of the country. the stuff that happened here yesterday moved to the east. look where we have the risk of severe weather including an enhanced risk from nashville all the way down to memphis. tupelo, mississippi. 12 million people at risk for isolated tornadoes. tomorrow it moves further to the east as it continues to push eastward storms rumble into the tennessee valley, damaging winds, hail, downpour. for tomorrow oklahoma city again under the gun. wichita falls down to san angelo, texas, 11 million people at risk, 60-mile-an-hour winds, large hail and tornadoes possible. we're going to get to your local forecast coming up in the next 30 seconds. when wolf woolfs, george gorges. and when moose mows down his meal,

cuddles cuddles up to a bowl. you buy any bag, we'll give a meal. it's that simple. good morning. i'm meteorologist cary hall. it's 50 degrees in the peninsula and 46 degrees in the tri-valley. a heavier jacket needed especially in the north bay. we dropped down to 40 there, but it's 50 in san francisco. going to see the highs today reaching into the mid 60s with a lot of sunshine. the storm system that we had very early this morning has since cleared. and we are going to still be cooler than average, but our temperatures will be warming up as we go through the work week. >> all right. that's your latest weather. when we come back, you are going to see the national map as you have never seen it before. interactive, made up of college students. what could possibly go wrong? it's going to be fantastic, as

rokerthon 3 storming the madness comes your way. >> all right, al. see you in a little while. also ahead, an uproar of two girls are barred from a united flight for wearing leggings. why the airline says there's more to this story. and we have "rossen reports" in the wake of the alabama woman's dramatic escape from the trunk of her car. would you know what to do if you found yourself in such a situation? but first, this is "todayon nbc." coming

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get symbicort free for up to one year. visit saveonsymbicort.com today to learn more. a good monday morning. 7:26. i'm sam brock. we continue our breaking news coverage that began in the early 6:00 hour this morning. this is live look from nbc bay area sky ranger of a massive fire burning near oakland city center. this is west of 980. not far from the city center. again, san pablo avenue and mead avenue. firefighters saying they're taking a defensive stance, calling the structure too unstable to attack. we saw huge flames earlier. now you're seeing mostly smoke coming out of the top of the structure. we learned the building is mixed use. pete is on the scene there talking to neighbors. they tell him it's low-income housing units that car fire. some residents did have to be

rescued. we haven't heard anything yet about rescues. they tried to get that blaze under control. pete suratos talking to firefighters. he'll have much more for us throughout the morning. let's get a check of weather and kari hall, you're watching wind levels. >> the winds are starting to calm down. they may get breezy after the storm system we had over night continues to clear. we're still seeing lingering clouds over the south bay as we're getting drier air moving in. looking at the forecast for today, we start out in the lower 50s and heading to the mid 60s this afternoon. let's head over to mike for an update on traffic. >> this is the smoke that visible behind the smoke from the oakland fire is 980. 980 and 580 close to the scene, but the traffic moving well. san pablo, avoid that as well as mead. use mlk jr. or market to get through the area. a standard commute in the south bay. crash at north 280. back to you.

>> mike, kai, thank you very much. we'll continue providing you up. we'll be back in 30 minutes.

♪ 7:30 on a monday morning. it's c ee's the 27th day of mar. big crowd out on our plaza on a rainy morning in the northeast. segue, dissolve, al is hanging out with the in crowd in oklahoma. this is the start of rokerthon 3. and we're going to check in with al and his friends in a little while. those folks had rough weather to deal with over the weekend. that tops today's headlines. powerful storm system hammered parts of oklahoma and texas on sunday. it is now moving east. that is baseball-sized hail,

crashing down near dallas. severe thunderstorms are possible today from louisiana to southern illinois. the search is intensifying for several suspects in a nightclub shooting in cincinnati. 1 person was killed, 15 were wounded. police say the gunfire erupted after a dispute of several clubgoers. they ruled out terrorism as a motive. the shooters were able to flee amid all of the chaos. and trump is creating a new office for streamlining the government. the so-called white house office of american innovation will be led by the president's son-in-law jared kushner. now, a story that is causing outrage on social media this morning. united airlines' decision to ban two girls from boarding a flight because they were wearing leggings. joe fryer has the story here. >> reporter: this one has a lot of people up in arms. two girls were trying to board a united flight in denver, when a

gate agent stopped them deeming their span decdex leggings were inappropriate. the outrage began at denver airport, when two girls were denied entry by the gate agent. the reason, they were wearing spandex leggings. >> she's forcing them to change or put dressing over leggings or they can't board. when does united policewomen's clothing. united responded, we have the right to refuse transport for passengers that are barefoot or not properly clothed. the girls were with an adult man wearing shorts and he wasn't stopped. the reaction on social media, fast and furious. since when are leggings inappropriate? is united airlines fashion police? even mom and oscar winner, patricia arquette weighed in. women and girls are in a no man's land about appropriate attire.

united clarified the girls were on the pass program, which provides free airline for friends and employs. they have strict requirements because they're considered representatives of united. the restrictions for them, no spandex, miniskirts, mid drifs and attire with holes or tears. >> the dress requirements for friends and family programs are common among all airlines. >> reporter: he sees nonrevenue passengers barred from flights all the time because of their clothing. but -- >> united's policy seems more sexist. they restrict mostly articles of clothing that women are wear. and men are free to go as long as they don't wear flip-flops. >> reporter: united says this stricter dress code policy for nonrevenue passengers is made clear to employees. it's up to ensure their family and friends follow it when flying.

united's dress code for paying customers is proper clothing and no bare feet. to our regular customers, your leggings are welcome. matt and savannah. >> matt is so relieved about that. >> thank goodness. let's check in with al. a little while ago he arrived on a speeding wagon. he is down in oklahoma for day one of rokerthon 3. al? >> that's right. university of oklahoma. the students and the band are going to show you the weather the way you've never seen it before. a giant human map. okay? these students, first we have sunshine in the southwest. the weather's looking pretty spectacular. as we make our way up to the northeast, we have showers. we have wind. it will be a bit of a mess there. but up to the plains. the plains we go. we got partly-sunny skies. it will be a lovely day. on the upper midwest, and into the mississippi river valley, we have showers and thunderstorms.

we've got wind. it's going to be crazy. again here in the midwest and norman, oklahoma, things looking good. up in the northeast, showers and snow. we're talking some areas in northern new england picking up up to five or six inches of chance of rain on thursday. other than that, all dry. we head into the weekend with highs in the low 70s, and for the inland areas, it will be in the upper 70s to near 80 degrees. ♪ >> that's your latest weather. get the weather anytime you need it. check out our friends at the weather channel on cable.

matt and savannah, i'm so bright, my momma calls me sun. >> al, wait a second. you're in texas right now. real quickly because we tonight have a lot of time. what's the weather in bangor, maine? >> we'll check back with you in an hour. >> it's a little snowy. it's looking good. >> all right, buddy. thank you. >> i'm exhausted. >> he's just beginning. coming up next, we have a new "rossen reports" that could be a lifesaver. >> hi. good morning. i'm jeff rossen. a kidnapping case making headlines. an ducter toughing a woman in the trunk of a car. would you know how to [ scratching noises ] hey scout, what's with the itchys and scratchys? it's these fleas and ticks. ow! i'm getting bit like crazy. got any ideas for me? well, not all products work the same. that's why my owner gives me k9 advantix ii.

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this morning, we're about to show you how. ♪ a daring escape just caught on camera in alabama. this nursing student jumping out of the trunk of a moving car, after she was kidnapped and thrown in. >> i'm like, i might have a trunk latch. i found the latch. i popped the latch. and i step out. >> reporter: the trunk latch that saved her life is required by law in all passenger cars since 2001. but would you know where to find it and how to escape if you were trapped inside? to find out, we've set up a dramatic experiment today. we're going to take volunteers and stick them into the trunk of this car, to see if they can turn their bodies around in the pitch black to find that latch, flip it and get out of the car. since we're sticking people in the trunk of a car, we thought it would be a good idea to bring the cops along.

>> we're here to help. >> reporter: i'm going to try it first. if we're asking people to do it, i'm going to try it. i have not done this before. this is as weird as you think it would be. >> ready? >> close it up. it is pitch block ack in here. we're using infrared cameras so you can see me. imagine if you were in a real kidnapping situation, how scared you would be. i would try to push my way in the passenger seats. what should i do? >> turn your body around to face the rear bumper in the car. >> reporter: i'll turn my body around. i'm six feet tall. that's not easy. now what? >> reporter: >> you want to look at the rear end of the truhunk and find anything that is glowing. >> this is the latch. i'll flip it. and here i am.

wow. that is frightening. >> it is. but knowing what to do makes it a lot easier. >> reporter: i knew what i was looking for. let's see if our volunteers can pull it off. climb on in. if you freak out and you want to get out. >> i'm going to try, though. i'm going to try to use my own knowledge to try to get out. >> exactly. >> and it's locked? >> reporter: it's locked. try to get out. >> after just seconds in there. wow. you did it. a few people get it. but most -- >> dark and scary. >> little freaky. >> reporter: can't. what's it like in there? >> i can't find anything. trying. >> how are you supposed to get out of this? >> reporter: this mother is trying to kick out the seat. >> it feels like it's closing in on me. >> reporter: this system woman seems to know there should be a latch. >> i'm trying to find a latch but i can't. >> reporter: most of our

volunteers, men and women of all ages couldn't figure it out. >> reporter: can i show you? that's the latch right there. look for the glow in the dark latch. >> if i was in an emergency, it would be good to know there's a latch here. >> reporter: now you know. >> now i know. >> reporter: what if your kid p kidnapper ties you up? retired special forces officer, michael hawk, is about to show us how to break free. >> i'm going to secure this zip tie on your wrist bones. it looks like you're not going anywhere. your mission, as soon as the bad guys take their eyes off of you, to execute the escape maneuver. you bring your arms up as high as you can. and you want to pull them down into your stomach with as much force as you can. while you're doing it, spread your elbows and push your stomach out. you're going to overwhelm the locking mechanism. >> reporter: and anybody can do this. >> this is what it looks like.

>> reporter: oh, my god. that's amazing. it's true. anyone can do it. we bring out some more volunteers. yeah. yeah. they snap the zip ties right off. >> yeah. >> reporter: nice job. >> thank you. >> reporter: was that easy. >> very easy. >> reporter: the simple tips that could save your life. we learned something today. >> yes, thank you. >> reporter: you're a great sport. >> thank you. ♪ >> reporter: here's another cool tip, something you can do right now. go outside to your car. pop the trunk and look for the latch, the latch you did not know existed because that woman in alabama was stuffed in her own trunk. why not know your own car, as well? that can happen. >> i'm equally as impressed by that zip tie thing. >> reporter: it gives you a fighting chance, just in case. >> hope you never get there. coming up, carson has more on the unbelievable march

madness finish. north carolina's game. and why folks in one c another lost sock.

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unless you can't see it. carson is in the orange room with that story. >> that could be a problem, savannah. the final four is set after a weekend of incredible surprises. none more exciting than the final minute of the north carolina/kentucky game. as millions of fans took in that nail-biting finish, here's what viewers in columbus saw. the cbs columbus station went to black for about a full six minutes to deliver news of a tornado warning over the final moments of that epic game. viewers not happy about it. here's jason tweeting in. here was my view of the buzzer-beater. the station responding, 10tv will air the last two minutes of the kentucky/north carolina game at 8:00 p.m. by then, the final four had been set. here's the real question, how are our brackets holding up? let's take a look at our bracket battle and see where things stand. graphics for the orange room. look at savannah in the lead, 73 points.

there's matt lauer -- jack lawyer in second, with 66 points. i'm in fifth. al has 49. matt, you're the only one with anybody in the big game. if north carolina should win on saturday, you would surpass savannah and win it all. early congratulations to little jack lawyeuer. >> they have to win on saturday. >> i'm pulling for them. >> talk about dumb luck. coming up, al is storming into the madness of rokerthon 3 with the oklahoma sooners. don't miss the guinness

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good morning. just a few minutes before 8:00. i'm kris sanchez. we continue watching the breaking news out of oakland where firefighters now believe someone may have died. pete is there on the scene. what else do we know? >> good morning to you. we have moved towards 24th and san pablo avenue. let's get to that video or give you a look from overhead from the nbc sky ranger. you can see the fire is still active. as you mentioned, we did speak with oakland fire. they're telling us there were seven total rescues. three people injured and potentially one fatality on the third floor. now, they mentioned when they arrived here at the scene for this fire, there were victims hanging from the third floor and second floor fire escapes. they were able to rescue at least seven. three were injured and one potential fatality. the fire was contained to the residential building. at this time, they don't know

what caused the fire. we'll bring you more updates throughout the morning. back to you. >> thank you very much, pete. >> now let's get a look at the forecast as you get ready to start you day. >> we're going to see the clear skies and looking at some sunshine to start out. and it is cool, as you step out the door in the peninsula. 50 degrees there. and it's 43 degrees in the north bay. but after this cool start, it will be a very nice afternoon. reaching the mid 60s with a breezy wind, mostly sunny skies, up to 68 degrees in the north bay. over the next couple days, we looking at more dry weather in the planner for oakland showing our temperature trand cool to start but into the lower 60s today. mike. >> all right, we're looking at 20 minute delays out of the glen park station. an equipment issue. that's the problem on the rails. overall, the roads looking standard for a monday. we're following the fire because smoke is visible from the maze. back to you. >> all right, we'll have more local news for you in just a half hour.

we're monitoring that open fire.

♪ ♪ it's 8:00 on "today." coming up, the blame game. the backlash building following the health care bill's failure. >> i think there's plenty of blame to go around. what happened, is washington won. >> the president moves on. tapping son-in-law jared kushner for an expanded role at the white house. plus, rokerthon 3. >> i'm home, baby. >> al is storming into the madness, begunning his week-long adventure to break world records at college come campuses across the country. his first stop, oklahoma. >> let's hit it.

and celebrating 70. music legend elton john marks his milestone in style, with an epic star-studded birthday party today, monday, march 27th, 2017. ♪ >> hello to our family and friends in michigan. >> good morning, illinois. we want to be savannah's bff. >> matt lauer, we're here for you. ♪ >> good morning, south carolina. go, gamecocks. >> roll tide. woo. [ cheers and applause ] >> it's 8:00 on "today." monday, march 27th. good morning, everybody. hi. >> it was nice. >> nice to have everybody here. and it's so rainy and cold.

thank you. i'm a little dangerous with this umbrella. >> meanwhile, al is on the road. he's at the university of oklahoma for the start of rokerthon 3. and it's been an eventful morning. mr. roker? >> yes. i just got to -- i got a doughnut from sooner. boomer and sooner. we are about to set, not one, but two guinness world records. we spent the weekend here having a great time. singing "oklahoma." oh, man. it's fantastic. >> i'm getting tired here. ♪ ♪ oklahoma, okay ♪ >> it doesn't get any better

than that, baby. >> is there anyone better to tour college campuses than al roker? >> i am thinking going back to school. al needs to go back to school. >> i think al should have a marching band with him at all times. at all times. >> al, thank you very much. good luck. now, let's get to the top stories of the morning. here's your news at 8:00. good morning. i'm hallie jackson in washington. no marching bands at the white house today. but we are watching the blame game here. the fallout after republicans yanked their health care bill. as president trump looks to refocus on tax reform, the white house is talking down any riff between the president and house speaker paul ryan. today, back to work with backlash building. full-on finger-pointing, 72 hours after the health care bill failure. >> i think there's plenty of blame to go around. what happened was washington won. >> reporter: the administration, pitting responsibility on conservatives in congress. >> congress just wasn't ready. you saw it. >> reporter: and the president

this weekend, raising eyebrows by telling his 27 million twitter followers to watch judge janeane. her opening statement -- >> paul ryan needs to step down as speaker of the house. the reason -- he failed to deliver the votes on his health care bill. >> reporter: aides close to paul ryan said he talked twice over the weekend with the president, who made clear his tweet had nothing to do with the house speaker. press secretary sean spicer tells nbc news, he wanted to show support of her show. that's it. new fallout for the freedom caucus, whose members mostly oppose the health care bill. one lawmaker leaving the voting bloc altogether. the caucus chairman, reflecting on the revolt that sank the plan to kill obamacare. >> no one has been more self-critiquing than me. >> reporter: he is not the only one thinking about bipartisanship. >> i don't think one party is

able to fix this by themselves. >> reporter: and this morning, the president's influential son-in-law we learned is getting a bigger role. white house aides tell nbc news jared kushner will oversee the overhaul of the federal government, the office of american innovation. and we learned that kushner is willing to testify in front of the senate intelligence committee as part of their investigation into russia's interference in the election. >> hallie, thank you very much. there's new developments in the case of elizabeth thomas. she is the 15-year-old tennessee girl allegedly kidnapped by her 50-year-old married former high school teacher. they were last seen about two weeks ago. tammy leitner joins us from nashville. good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning, matt. it's been exactly two weeks since they disappeared and very few new leads. we're also hearing from the wife of the suspected kidnapper. in an exclusive statement to nbc news, jill cummins tells us nobody understands the pain and

the shock i am in now. she had a message directly for her husband. she writes, you know, you can't hide forever. for your sake and for beth's sake, please go to the police or just drop beth off somewhere safe. i know you are afraid and i know there's a part of you that's really sorry. it's not too late. also this morning, we're hearing for the first time elizabeth thomas' voice in an undated facebook video. she's seen with her brother. they're sewing a flag. let's listen to how she sounds. >> right here. and then, you -- >> yeah? >> you want to start from the back or start from the front? >> i don't see what you're -- >> reporter: investigators are also telling nbc news exclusively more about how the two of them were communicating. apparently they used a school e-mail account. they would write an e-mail, save it as a draft. and once the other person read

it, they would delete it. obviously, they were thinking that nobody was able to trace these. but investigators have gotten ahold of them. matt? >> tammy leitner. uber is talking about the weekend crash that has caused that company to suspend its self-driving car program. the driver of another vehicle o self-driving car program. the driver of another vehicle failed to yield the right of way. the collision flipped the uber suv on its side. thankfully there were no serious injuries. the car was in self-driving mode. it had two safety drivers in the front seat. in addition to arizona, uber's pilot program is on hold in pittsburgh and in san francisco. coming up next, does pushing your kids to take harder classes and take on all kinds of extracurricular activities help them get into college? what you need to know about the admissions process. and a look at elton john's star-studded birthday bash.

and al is breaking a record, start-to-finish on rokerthon 3 at the university of oklahoma. but first, these messages. lergies with nasal congestion? find fast relief behind the counter with claritin-d. [ upbeat music ] strut past that aisle for the allergy relief that starts working in as little as 30 minutes and contains the best oral decongestant. live claritin clear, with claritin-d.

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>> boomer. >> sooner. >> boomer. >> ♪ lucis a lucky dog. but not every pet is as lucky as lucky. so we came up with a little idea, this year, when you buy any bag of dog or cat food at petsmart, we'll give a meal to a pet in need. it's like this: when pearl eats, peanut eats. when wolf woolfs, george gorges. and when moose mows down his meal, cuddles cuddles up to a bowl. you buy any bag, we'll give a meal. it's that simple. when you're close to the people you love, does psoriasis ever get in the way of a touching moment? if you have moderate to severe psoriasis, you can embrace the chance of completely clear skin with taltz. taltz is proven to give you a chance at completely clear skin. with taltz, up to 90% of patients had a significant improvement of their psoriasis plaques.

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al is on the road. dylan is here. >> good morning. >> unexpectedly. just called her in. as a parent, have you ever done something, take something away from your child, something they really like, just to punish them? >> not yet. >> you're a little early. >> they're doing something bad with it. >> like a toy or something like that. >> not quite yet, no. >> we've been stories on the show in the past, about child shaming. kids do something wrong and parents in a public way express their displeasure. here's what one parent did. he let the world know about it. at the cavaliers/hornets game, this man was holding a sign saying thomas get your grades back up and next time you'll be here. love, dad. what do you think about that? >> if you're going to do it, that's the way to do it. he says love, dad. a little emoji, like, come on. i wish you were here. but you got to do what you got

to do. >> you take the softer approach. >> i'm not into public shaming. it's like airing your dirty laundry. but there's something comedic and lighthearted. >> it doesn't have your picture. >> i'm normally not in the shaming thing. but there's something good-natured about that. the tear and the love, dad, i would have felt differently. he's saying, this could be yours, too. we could do this together. it would be fun to share this. >> there's nothing about this that signals frustration or contempt on the part of dad. his motive seems to say, i would have a better time if you're here with me. >> and young people react to that. >> especially if it goes viral lyi like that. >> i have a sign that says, you don't win the bracket, you won't be here. >> he normally does, right? >> he does. this is the time of year that high schoolers are hearing back from colleges. just in time for next year, "the washington post" lookeded a some

myths surrounding the admissions process. myth number one, admissions essays don't matter. they do. if there's an admission officer that is on the fence, that essay could put you over the fence. especially if you're looking for something beyond. >> i needed that essay. i needed to write. that held some weight. >> i applied to rutgers because it didn't require an essay at the time. i can't wrigte. i do the mooath. >> the extra curriculars the better. >> they call that the vanity sheet. >> the resume padding. it limakes you look broad, unfocused. last one. was surprising. the average grades in hard classes are better than "as" in easy classes. a lot of people think that. but apparently, it's better to get the "a" in the easy class. >> i to don't.

>> they don't look in to see it's advanced? >> if you see a "c" or a "d" on a report card, what are they supposed to do with that? that was a.p. calculus. >> it's like in sports, winning means everything. all of the 52-0, is 52-0. we've seen dash cam footage of a car chase. but what about a cow chase. the police in temple had to chase down a cow. it escaped from a vet clinic. you see the cow in a fenced-off area. that's good. and the cop walks up and says, gotcha. and shuts the gate. the cow had other ideas. the cow runs through the gate. you can hear the cow saying, eat more chicken. as it ran down the gate. we checked in with the police department, we have not heard if

the cow has been captured. >> i didn't know cows were so fast. >> i didn't, either. >> don't fence me in. nobody puts that cow in a corner. let's do "pop start." >> i miss al's commentary. we start with antonio banderas. opening up about a recent health scare. the 56-year-old actor was rushed to the hospital for health reasons unknown to the public at the time. now, banderas has revealed the visit was due to a heart attack. speaking at a festival in spain, the actor said the heart attack was not serious. he did not suffer damage. he has downplayed the scare saying it hasn't been as dramatic as some have written. we're glad to know he's doing okay. big news for one direction fans. the band split up. you have some that started their solo music careers. now, looks like harry styles is jumping onboard. he dropped a teaser video during

a u.k. show "the x-factor." not much is revealed. a couple of keys on the piano. you can check this out, april 7th, appears will be the date. we'll see what actually comes in store for harry styles new music. finally, a day for elton john. the singer turned 70 over the weekend. and he celebrated in style. elton was sur rounded by some of the biggest name in the industry. katy perry, neil patrick harris, among others. and who song happy birthday to elton? stevie wonder and lady gaga. e! news caught that moment on camera. ♪ ♪ happy birthday happy birthday ♪ >> looks like the party was a good time. and happy birthday to elton john. >> carson, thank you very much. and thanks for being here. let's send it back to al in

norman, oklahoma, on the opening day of rokerthon 3. al? >> hey, guys. it's the moment we have been waiting for. we're not going to attempt to break one guinness world record but two guinness world records. we have from guinness world records michael embrekt that will be here to validate if we do it or not. the students from the university of oklahoma are going to try and create a sun, a cloud and a lightning bolt, a human lightning bolt and a cloud. we have the band forming a sun just before support. all right? they need to hold the positions for five minutes. we're going to start the clock now. >> one, two, three. >> all right. and while they're holding these positions, we are going to give you the official forecast. hold your positions, folks, as

we bring you your weather. first of all, we have to worry about severe weather to talk about. wet weather moving in the pacific northwest. there's the severe stuff in the mid plains that affected parts of oklahoma and texas yesterday. it is moving to the east. there's snowy weather making its way into the northeast in new england. 12 million people at risk for very large hail, damaging winds and isolated tornadoes today. and then for tomorrow, the same area that was at risk this weekend, at risk again. 65-mile-per-hour-plus wind gusts. hail and tornadoes possible from texas into oklahoma, oklahoma city on the northern fringe of that. the rest of the country, wet weather, making its way from the gulf, into the ohio river valley. snow and ice into new england. strong winds through southern california and the south good morning. we have a lot of sun icons here. we're in for a bright and sunny

day. as you step out the door, we're in the upper 40s to low 50s. still on the cool side. it's now down to 43 degrees in the north bay. next several days will see some more dry weather. a slight chance of rain for thursday. other than that, we're in for a very dry week. temperatures will be warming up too. in the low 70s in san francisco this weekend. >> okay. that's your latest weather. under 3:30 to go, as we get rokerthon 3 going off in style. all right. now, not only do we have this going on, but i got a chance to get a taste of the indomitable spirit of what happens here at the university of oklahoma. ♪ where the heck am i? >> al, you're at the university of oklahoma. >> who the heck are you? >> aside from being the student

body president, i'm your roommate, j.d. >> who the heck are they? >> they're with us. let's go explore o.u. >> okay. if you say so. >> it will be exciting. >> i'll take your word for it, j.d. ♪ ♪ oh, what a beautiful morning oh, what a beautiful day ♪ ♪ i've got a beautiful feeling everything's going my way ♪ ♪ >> did you know in a o.u. has more merit scholarship freshman than any other university in the country? >> that is awesome. >> shh. >> sorry. >> roker. >> so, al, how is your day at

o.u. so far? >> so far, it's going great. but i smell somebody getting a forecast ready for broadcast. >> you know what? i believe that's the students preparing for o.u. nightly. >> how do i get there as quickly as possible? >> the engineering students can help you out. >> that's what i'm talking about. i think i'm going to need more horsepower. boomer, sooner, let's go, boys. hit it. faster. faster. not so fast. >> al, this is our o.u. nightly broadcast. >> cool. >> rokerthon is officially coming to o.u. >> we're hoping for bright, sunny skies over the plains. >> we'll turn to sawyer wells. what can we expect to see? >> monday is looking great. here's what's happening in your neck of the woods. >> you have to say it a little deeper. your neck of the woods. >> your neck of the woods. >> your neck of the woods. >> excellent, sawyer. my job here is done. >> did you know that o.u. is home to the national weather

center. >> you bet i did. i'm home, baby. yeah. my people. my people. all right. what's the temperature in anchorage, alaska? >> 24 degrees. >> what's the wind direction in portland, maine? >> from the south. >> are we going to see rain for rokerthon? >> no. >> yeah, baby, yeah. >> so, this is the students' last rehearsal to break the record. >> you know, j.d. -- ♪ i've got a beautiful feeling everything's going my way ♪ >> boomer. >> sooner. >> oh, yeah. >> all right. let's take a look. how much time do we have left on the clock to break the record? we're coming down to ten seconds. here we go. ten, nine. eight. seven. six. five. four.

three. two. one. [ gunshot ] >> all right. all right. well, coming up in a few minutes, michael is tabulating. he will let us know, guys, if we have broken the record. not just one, but two records, as we continue rokerthon 3, storming the madness. back to you. ♪ >> well done. well done. and let me just say, from miss guthrie and carson, who are younger. there was a musical on broadway call eed "oklahoma." >> tell us about olden times. we'll check in with more madness after a check of local news and weather. i hope they made that record. >> they did. >> i think they did. ♪ ==x== our eakg ns:fifigersow lii

breaking news this morning. firefighters now belief someone may have died in a massive fire this morning in downtown oakland. for the latest, let's check in with pete who's been on scene. >> reporter: that fire started around 5:30 a.m. a very active fire. let me show you some of the most recent chopper video we have. for oakland fire, this started roughly around 5:40 a.m. they mentioned that residents were seen hanging from fire escapes and windows when they showed up. there were seven total rescues, three people injured and one potential fatality. there's no confirmation as far

as what caused the fire. we're hearing differing accounts from residents in the area. but they expect to be here for most of the day to conduct a thorough investigation. >> obviously a very heavy presence of firefighters there. best to avoid that area if you can. you are looking at something on the north bay, right? >> in addition to that smoke and distraction from the oakland fire, most of the bay looks pretty good, but this is a big problem for san rafael. all lanes are blocked by a crane.

[ cheers and applause ] it's 8:30 on this monday morning. it's the 27th day of march 2017. and if this is spring, take me back to winter because it's dreary here in the northeast. temperature about 40 degrees. it's rainy. >> you have this cold or whatever. >> who knows what is going on here. we're fine. and thank you for standing out in the rain. >> seriously. we're on the edge of our seats here because we just saw, we think, a world record being set down at the university of oklahoma, where al is. al, what's the verdict? >> well, we're going to find out now, savannah. joining us is osu's dean of students, clark stroud, and our

good friend, michael imperak. what's the news? >> al, i totaled the tallies. i went through all of our counts. and both of them are guinness world record titles. congratulations. >> you did it. you did it. yeah. >> i would like to welcome you to the guinness world record family two times over. >> not one but two. a lightning bolt and a cloud. that's impressive. and we have the band forming a sun just because we could. that's why. all right. now, we are not done just yet because we have a $5,000 rokerthon pure point financial scholarship to help one of these lucky students. let's bring in our drum major. we're going to pick a name out of the hat. [ drumroll ]

oh, no. kelsey hawk. kelsey hawk. here she comes. >> oh. >> all right, kelsey. congratulations. boomer sooner has the mic for you. we're going to write your name in here in just a second. where are you from? >> i'm from northwest oklahoma. >> what's your major? >> international studies. >> international studies. this time, we can use more international studies. kelsey hawk, congratulations. a big thank you to our friends at pure point financial for this. $5,000 for you. what? >> that's not my last name. >> hull -- >> h-o-l-k. wait. you're kelsey hawk.

where is -- where is barren beatty when you need him? oh, my. >> what just happened? >> they very close pronunciations. >> her name -- what's your last name, dear? >> at least kelsey's honest. >> it's hull. >> and she's kelsey holk. i think our friends at pure point financial are going to give them both a $5,000 check. yes. what's your major? >> arabic. >> arabic. all right. there you go. congratulations. oh, that's fantastic. guys, we're so thrilled you did this. thank you for coming out and being understanding. so, first of all, thanks again to pure point financial for being so generous.

and we're not done yet. crimson and cream, i should say, the school colors, we're going to be moving on from rokerthon. this has been a heck of a way to start off rokerthon 3. thank you guys so very much. all right. let's do your weather. see what's going on, as far as your weekend outlook is concerned. wow. how exciting. so, for the week ahead, we're looking at severe storms through the plains, storms out west. ice and snow in the northeast. as we look in the midweek period, we're looking at wet weather in the midsection of the country. wet weather in the pacific northwest. unseasonably mild in the east. and towards the end of the week, heavy rain, plenty of sunshine up and down the west coast. looking at sunshine from good morning. we do still see some cloud

across parts of the south bay but we're getting clearing elsewhere. we had some rain early this morning. now as we look at the temperature trend for the rest of the day, going to see the highs in the low to mid 60s and a lot more sunshine. the next several days in san francisco up to 64 degrees today. 68 degrees tomorrow and 70 degrees on wednesday. slight chance of rain on thursday, but then more dry weather as we head into the weekend. >> that's your latest weather. here's the clue for tomorrow. i'm hitting the road. stop number two. within sight of the northern lights, way up there, you might freeze. but it could be the source of your morning joe. so, ro shg, rokerthon 3 rolls o. thank you to everybody at the university of oklahoma. thanks so much. we'll see you tomorrow. day two, rokerthon 3. >> well done, al. nobody gets out of a pickle, by

the way, like al does. and our thanks to all of the sooners in norman. >> and congratulations to the kelseys, plural. rachel dolezal is here, talking about moving forward in the wake of her identity scandal. first, this is "today" on nbc.

back at 8:38. rachel dolezal gained worldwide notoriety in 2013 when questions about her race and ethnicity came to light. she said she identifies as a black person and intended to live her life that way. dolezal was accused of faking her black appearance, a claim she denies. and in the aftermath of that firestorm she lost her job in the naacp.

she wrote a story about her life, "in full color." good to see you again. i'm sure it's a mixed bag writing a back. i'm sure it was cathartic. but now, you're back in the spotlight again. any trepidation about that? >> yeah. the book was a difficult one to write, for sure. but i felt like it was -- you know, a little bit forced upon me as far as the need to tell the whole truth about my life. and the full story. >> and how has life been? you were here about a year ago. you were really honest about the impact of the revelations on your life and trying to find a job. you had a baby 13 months ago. how are things for you now? is it still as difficult to put your life back together? >> it's a big challenge. but i'm 100% committed to providing for my kids and finding my way back to the activism work that i'm passionate about. >> you changed your name legally. we will not reveal the name.

but why did you feel the need to do that? >> i felt like i needed to change my legal name in order to be seen for my qualifications and experience rather than just seen for the tabloid publicity that i got in 2015. so, when applying for a job, i thought people were just seeing rachel dolezal and not paying attention to the wide-ranging experience and qualifications that i do have. >> what are you trying to say in this book? what's the message you want to get out there? >> i want to advance the conversation about race and identity. and i really hope that readers are encouraged to be exactly who they are. and i also really hope that in some way, like i said, i want to tell the whole story of my life. and in some way, that is able to set the record straight because my life story was really warped beyond recognition by a lot of the negative press in 2015. >> i don't have to tell you. you're still very controversial,

rachel. a lot of people think, okay. even if i understand the fact she has ton of affection for the african-american community, she identifies with the african-american community, feels a part of it, why say that you are, in fact, a member of the african-american community? i think that's the disconnect people still have. what's your response? i'm sure you hear it all the time. >> right. well, i don't identify as african-american. i identify as black. i am part of the pan-african dioafera. i feel in america, even though race is a social construct and we've acknowledged this in academia and science, there is a line drawn in the sand. there's still sides. politically there's a black side and a white side. an i stand unapologetically on the black side. i have my own sense self and my values. i stand with a greater cause of

challenging the myth of white supremacy. >> it's interesting. you could stand there and take all of the same positions without saying, but i'm a member of this community. right? >> i really prefer to just be exactly who i am. and black is really the closest race and culture category, descriptive term, that represents the essential essence of who i am. so -- >> how are you hoping to live the rest of your life? you said you want to get back to your activism and some of the things you were doing prior to this. >> absolutely. i am still committed to racial and social justice work and education. and i am just looking for opportunities to kind of re-enter that field. and participate again. i'm hopeful. >> best of luck to you and your family. the book is called "in full color." rachel, appreciate it. coming up next, we talk to

ann romney about her passions, her families and her take on what's going on in washingto

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part suv. part sports car. all mercedes-benz. welcome back. 8:4 5. ann romney thrust into the spotlight when her husband mitt romney became republican nominee for president in 2012. if you ask her, it's not politics that define her, mother of five, grandmother of 24, 48 years of marjah passion for horse back riding and her 20 year battle with multiple sclerosis. she writes about that and more in her book "in this together." it's now out in paper book. good morning, mrs. romney, good to see you. >> hi, savannah. >> first of all, your book is about your struggle with ms. you look fabulous, how do you feel? >> i'm loving life. i'm at this point in my life it's time to get back and help others struggling with

neurologic disease. we have a great group studying als, brain tumors. good news we're making progress on all of those front. >> the book talks a lot about your diagnosis at the age of 49. you were very candid about dealing with that, how you got through it. what's the reaction you got originally to the book? what have people said to you about it? >> i still get people that just break down when they see me. they just want to hug. they are so grateful they know that someone has gone through what they are doing through and understands where they are coming from. so for me to write the book is about hope and giving those people that need that extra encouragement and say we're working on things, we're doing things, we're making progress. i know what your struggle is. i know how difficult it is. i just want to give people hope now. >> you give kind of a checklist at the end of the book. hope is definitely on the list.

faith is on the list. what duval most in terms of real practical tools to help deal with whether it's an ms diagnosis or really any challenge. >> it takes your rug getting ripped out from underneath you. you say who am i, what am i, how am i going to live my life, what's important in life, what you recognize. you have to strip away so many things. but the people you love, those around you, that's what matters in life. having a purpose in life, doing something that you love. finding joy. joy does not have to cost a lot. and have you to go back to simplicity and finding where the joy piece of life is. >> you know i have to ask a little bit about politics, of course. your husband was a front-runner and finalist to be secretary of state in the trump administration. what did you think of that process and the end result? ultimately obviously the job

went to somebody else. >> i'm thrilled about the whole thing, really. i thought mitt would have been terrific and we were very seriously considering it. i think he was very seriously being considered. so for mitt to have been able to shape foreign affairs would have been a very significant role for him, and i know he would have accepted it if he had been asked. >> it's interesting, because you know tongues wag in washington. you know that very much. some people thought, is donald trump kind of stringing along governor romney and having this very public process where he's considered for the role but knows all along he's not going to offer the job. >> no, i think it was very serious. i don't for a moment think that was the case. >> you've been married 48 years. the first anniversary is paper and the second is -- >> oh, dear, i don't know. >> what's 48? what did you do to celebrate? >> with a lot of grandchildren. you know what we did, roasted marshmallows. >> s'mores? >> we did s'mores with

grandkids. it's the joy, so much joy with having that family. i always tell people now really skip parenting, savannah, go straight to grandparenting. it's way easier. >> it seems pretty good. your son josh some talk about as a potential governor of utah. do you think? are you on board? >> i see it in the lights for josh. >> you do? >> i do. >> everything you've experienced in politics, you may go for it? >> yes, go for it. it's worth making a difference. it's worth trying to get involved, let your voice be heard. get in there, yeah. >> do you think your husband will get back in the arena in any way, shape, or form. >> you know, we're enjoying life the way it is right now. >> grandparenting is good. >> it's good. >> life after public life also good. >> very good. >> mrs. romney, thank you so much. once again the book is called "in this together" and it's out in paper back tomorrow. we should note all proceeds going to the ann romney center for neurologic diseases we

mentioned. also she'll be on facebook live so go for more of that. the new kid on "sesame street" with an important message to share. but first, this is "today" on nbc. message to share. but first, this i s

back at 8:51. "sesame street" has been a positive way for kids to learn and grow. >> now, a new muppet is joining the group. she's going to join us live.

first, jenna has oher story. >> diversity and inclusion has been a staple on "sesame street." now, they're tackling the autism disorder, with fun-loving julia. on one of the most storied streets around. ♪ on sesame street >> reporter: there's a new face in town. >> who is this? >> this is our friend, julia. >> oh, hi, julia. i'm big bird. nice to meet you. >> reporter: julia is a preschooler who has autism. >> what's autism? >> well, for julia, it means she might not answer you right away. >> she does things just a little differently. in a julia sort of way. >> reporter: julia is part of sesame see amazing. first introduced in 2015. she's now coming to life as a muppet on the show for the first time. what's he like?

what does she like to do? >> julia is a special little girl. she's 4 years old. >> boing, boing, boing. >> and not as verbal. she uses a communication device. she enjoys being part of the sesame friends. >> reporter: she's a component of sesame workshop's free tools, designed to show better understanding of autism disorder. tell me some of your favorite things to do together. >> we like to jump. a lot. we jump a lot. >> jumping. jumping. jump, jump, jump. >> autism is pretty magical because julia sees the world so differently when we play together, sometimes she finds different adventures for us. >> julia, you're so creative. >> i want julia to be a beautiful, likable, wonderful kid because that's what our kids are. >> reporter: stacy gordon is the puppeteer for julia. you have a personal connection

to autism. will you tell me about that? >> yeah. my son is on the autism spectrum. before i had him, i was a habilitater for kids with autism. my son hasn't had someone on television that represented him, especially in a positive light, like they're doing with julia. for me, julia is that representation that is important to our family. >> look who is feeling better. >> julia. >> reporter: "sesame street" as always been about diversity. >> we want to represent what our nation and global world really represents. ♪ we can all be friends >> reporter: a new friend for grover, elmer and abbe cadabby. what do you hope julia does? >> i hope that julia brings positivity and love and

acceptance around autism. ♪ it feels a little better when we all play together ♪ ♪ we can all be friends >> guys, look who we have here. we have julia, along with her friend, abby and sherri weston. >> good morning. >> good to have you all. >> happy to be here. >> julia, how are you doing? >> good morning. >> she likes being here, mr. matt. julia -- >> very exciting. >> my friend, julia, she has autism. so, it takes her a while to, you know, take in the environment. just a little differently. >> yeah. >> what do you guys like to do together, abby? >> we like to play. play. >> play, play, play. >> we made up a game called boing tag. >> boing tag. >> boing, boing, boing, boing. >> matt and al have that game, too.

>> sherri, why was it important for sesame workshop to do this with julia? >> as jenna pointed out, 1 in 68 children are diagnosed with autism. when we created the initiative, we created julia. she was a digital character online and storybooks. and the response from the autism community was so enormous, we brkinandhapning her to life oni it is 8:56. we are breaking news and happening now firefighters now believe someone may have died in a massive fire this morning in downtown oakland. our pete is there with the latest. this is not what we were hoping to hear. >> reporter: good morning. definitely not. this is still an active fire over there at san pedro and mead avenues here in oakland.

you can see fire crews working on all of this. according to oakland fire, they're saying that fire started around 5:40 a.m. when they showed up, there were residents hanging from the fire escapes and windows on the second and third floors. we're talking about seven total rescues, three injured and one potential fatality. there's no confirmation as far as what caused this fire. crews are expected to be on scene for the remainder of the day to conduct their investigation on what may have caused this fire. we'll have updates in our next live report. we also have word of another breaking story right now. bart, for the time being no service through the transb baba tube because of downed power lines.

this morning on "today's take," singing sensation selena gomez on her struggles in the spotlight and her message to young fans. plus, wwe champion john cena is our co-host. he has a big surprise for al. and the youtube star that has celebrities singing her praises, lily sing. coming up now. >> from nbc news, this is "today's take." live from studio 1a in rockefeller plaza. >> good morning. welcome to "today" on this monday morning, march 27th, 2017. i'm sheinelle, along with dylan. and our guest co-host wwe champ, john cena. >> is it monday yet? >> i should say, we're listening to "outside," by calvin harris. we're inside.

al is outside. >> he's outside. >> on the road, for rokerthon 3. we're going to check in with al coming up. they are -- >> they are getting rowdy down there. >> that's what you do in college on a monday morning, i guess. >> i guess so. >> when al roker rolls up on campus. >> there's been more giant heads across this country. >> al's face is everywhere in o.u. today. >> they will never forget this day. i'll tell you that. we'll get into that and his world record breaking coming up in a bit. >> good weekend. >> i was about to say. i felt it was a big weekend for you. >> it was. an i said big weekend, in amy mind. it was a huge weekend for my family. >> life-changing. >> it was calvin's baptism on sunday. an i had my entire family come into town. our whole family hasn't been together almost four, five years ago. sorry. there he is. we thought the hat looked like a

chrisening hat until everybody said, is he a chef? he's going to bake some cupcakes. that's brian's family there p the and also had my whole family there. it was a special weekend. that's my mom and dad. >> look at your smile. >> and cal there in the middle. it was so happy. a magical weekend to have. what's better than family and having them all together? that's my whole family there. >> we were just saying earlier, dylan and i saying, we work so much, sometimes you forget, it's wo worth it to take timeoff to see family on the other side of the country. >> and kids grow up very fast. >> that's usually the thing, when you get together and say, we should do this more often. and it doesn't happen for so long. you do enjoy the time you spent with them. >> you can have another baby and you get together again. >> my mother is asking for that. >> people are never happy. first you're dating. when are you going to get married. oh, you would know. >> look at that.

>> i promised i didn't plan that. you get married. when are you having a baby? when are you having another one? >> there's something down the road. >> i decided to slow things down. i work saturday. and everybody is, where is dylan? we go to church in the morning. we didn't leave the house. >> how did that turn out? >> i have a picture. they were outside playing in this. >> vibrant colors. >> all of the judgment from my neighbors, i'm sure. coll clara found the drawer of my grandmother's cooking aprons. and the twin on the other side, i tried to take their clothes that don't fit and put them in a bag to donate. he refuses to let go of the angry birds pants. >> those are awesome.

>> his paw patrol shirt. >> about to become shorts. >> there were no clouds expected. and i went to bed. and this little guy kept coming around. that was my weekend. >> good restful weekend. what about you? >> i got in a couple of street fights. wwe had live events in johnson city and raleigh, north carolina. and before the live events, i was able to film a commercial. i snuck on to "the tonight show." and i spic picked a street figh another one in raleigh, north carolina. >> i don't know if there's enough hours to get all that done. >> got all of it done. down to the microsecond. >> are you sore when you do the street fights? >> i did okay. in a street fight, you don't do too well, you get sore. if you do okay, you're all right. >> how is the other person? >> they're not good. i'm here. i'm great. they are not good. no. >> we're happy here.

>> if i didn't do well in the street fights, i wouldn't be here. >> my 7-year-old, he could care less. i told him you were coming on. can i come to work with you? no. i'll take a picture. but i want to see him with my own eyes. >> that's adorable. >> i'll take a picture for you. >> if you did bring him -- that's what they do. >> we were talking this morning. have you heard about this united airlines situation? >> this is interesting. >> all over social media. this firestorm. and it started after an incident in denver at the airport. >> yep. >> and two girls get on the plane. they're wearing leggings. and they're told they can't get on this flight becauseleggings. >> and everybody around sees it happening the they tweet it out. it goes viral. who doesn't wear leggings on a plane? that's how i fly. but apparently these girls, according to united, they responded to the tweets saying, we do have the right to refuse

passengers who are barefoot or not properly clothed. the girls were traveling on the pass program, which means that they're free flights for relatives or friends of people who work for united. they have stricter dress code requirements because they're nonrevenue passengers and they are representing the united company. that's why they weren't allowed on the plane. they said to the regular customers, your leggings are welcome. it's because they were on a special pass. at first i thought, were the leggings see-through. did you see their underwear? >> i don't know that they're on a special pass representing united at all. to me, they are other people on the plane. >> it's weird. i get the concept of united trying to establish a dress code representing the airlines. on the other hand, travel and travel attire had become so casual, how are you going to tell who is with united or who is not with united?

it's weird. i know they're trying to uphold their airline representatives, but at the same time, every person is dressed like that on the plane. for you to stop two people at random and say, you can't get on, that's weird. >> and it goes back to the whole thing. people used to really dress up to get on a plane. >> so true. >> and attire has gotten much more casual. but planes have gotten much more uncomfortable. not like we're getting fed on the plane. not like there's all this room. you have to pay for water on some flights. if you want to be comfortable, you're going to be comfortable. >> everybody in the crew -- everybody is nodding with you. last time i went home, i had holes in my jeans. that's the look. and my grandparents were like, did you fly like that? why would you wear holes in your jeans. i think you're right. >> this is a tough one, though. the company wants to uphold a standard of professionalism. but at the same time, they create an environment, i'm going to get on the plane as comfortable as i can. >> at the beauty of twitter, it changed everything. can you imagine, before twitter something like this happens and

nobody knows. now, it is like -- especially because they're young women. >> give the world a chance to weigh in. get on the tweet machine and tweet something. >> the tweet machine. >> speaking of weighing in, can we talk about ryan reynolds for a moment? >> i thought you brought a scale over. i'm holding a little bit of water. >> the wrestlers in high school used to eat peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. >> with the crust cut off. >> to gain weight? >> i like the taste. >> and running with garbage bags. >> no. i play in the dumpster every once in a while. i'm kidding. >> totally offtopic. we go back to ryan reynolds. "elle" magazine was asked what it is like to watch his wife kiss others on the screen. ryan didn't mind that much. realize, there are 50 or 60 tired overworked crew members behind him. and he reflected on his own sex

scenes in "dead pool" i remember shooting it and saying this will be tough playing in the headrest of every seat of the plane. speaking of which. >> john, you and nicki ever talk about that? >> well, i think in my case, because i had a very awkward instance in the movie "train wreck." but i think my biggest flaw in the situation was, i didn't consult with nicole or asked for her feedback. i just went and did it. and worried about the repercussions afterwards, which were not good. >> she didn't know the scene was coming? >> this was a bad idea on my part. i fully admit. >> you didn't wait until the movie came out? >> no. but that was the first time she saw it. and you don't know what to expect. i didn't have the conversation with her, are you comfortable with this? is this okay as a couple? lesson learned. but it was very trying. and i can understand that because as a couple, those moments are considered intimate. you want them to be shared -- >> hey, john?

>> yes. al? >> the students had a little bit of a reaction to your love scene. [ cheers and applause ] >> well, al roker, you -- you boomer sooner you. >> cena, cena, cena. >> thank you, o.u., for dumping a gallon of salt in the wound. appreciate it. >> should we mention that nicki is here? >> she is. >> she is standing in our kitchen. >> there she is. >> pretty hot in here. wow. >> indeed, it is. >> nicki -- we're going to ask you about that later. you didn't see it coming? >> no. >> once again, hey. you can -- i messed up. it's my fault. i messed up. this is a big messup. >> took a lot of therapy. >> we're not opening an old wound, right? >> it's been years. >> they put up that split screen. you're a beautiful couple. can i add that? >> she looks beautiful. >> you're welcome. they're going to make up during

the commercial break. stand by for that. she's coming back. coming up next, you are not going to want to miss this. >> al had a surprise for us. we have a surprise for him. >> going to reveal? >> no. and it's not a crowd chanting, ♪ lucis a lucky dog. but not every pet is as lucky as lucky. so we came up with a little idea, this year, when you buy any bag of dog or cat food at petsmart, we'll give a meal to a pet in need. it's like this: when pearl eats, peanut eats. when wolf woolfs, george gorges. and when moose mows down his meal, cuddles cuddles up to a bowl. you buy any bag, we'll give a meal. it's that simple. ♪ hey allergy muddlers are you one sneeze away from being voted out of the carpool? try zyrtec®

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liberty mutual insurance when liberty stands with you™. i'm not a customer, but i'm calling about that credit scorecard. give it. sure! it's free for everyone. oh! well that's nice! and checking your score won't hurt your credit. oh! i'm so proud of you. well thank you. free at at discover.com/creditscorecard, even if you're not a customer. he's asleep. i've got the gelato. is that ice cream? no, it's, uh breyers gelato indulgences. it looks like ice cream. it's not. can i have some? you really wouldn't like it. it's got caramel and crunchy stuff. i like caramel and crunchy stuff. it's not for kids. i'm a grown-up. breyers gelato indulgences. creamy gelato, rich caramel, topped with crunchy curls. it's way beyond ice cream. back with more of "today's take" and john cena. >> i thank you. the morning has heated up

already. full of surprises. >> you've got a big surprise for al. >> i do. >> we're turning the tables. >> al is at u. of oklahoma for rokerthon 3. he is breaking records over there. al, congratulations. >> congratulations. two records, right? >> yes. but i got a very special surprise for you. i know you're going to be all over the place for rockrokertho breaking records. and your finish line on sunday is wrestle mania. this sunday, wrestlemania is happening in the citrus bowl. and you're our special guest that's going to be there. i have a surprise for you, pal. wonderfully huge match in front of 70,000 people at the citrus bowl at wrestlemania. i get to fight alongside nicki bella. i know her as nicole. but we need the prognosticator of prognosticators. i need someone to stand in the middle of the ring at wrestlemania and be a guest ring

announcer. i know you're going to wrestlemania. do you want to be in wrestlemania as a special guest ring announcer? >> yes. yes. [ cheers and applause ] yes. >> the music is appropriate. al's time is now. and he is prepped and ready for the wwe championship. >> is that thing heavy? >> you can ask al. >> is that belt heavy? >> i'm sorry. say again. >> is that belt heavy? >> not that heavy. >> is he that strong. >> it's not good holding up your pants. it doesn't fit through the loops. >> i need wwe suspenders, actually. >> i know you're going to be our guest in wrestlemania. the world watching you on the wwe network. thank you, man. i appreciate it. >> i cannot wait. my gosh. it's almost a letdown having to

do the weather now. but i got to do it. wow. >> there's a storm coming to orlando. thunder and lightning. >> that's it, baby. there's a storm coming. be there. be there. let's get you your weather. show you what's happening for today. we do have some severe weather to talk about. again, making its way through the mid plains. more wet weather in the pacific northwest. winter won't let go in new england. we're going to see ice and snow. some areas picking up to three to four inches of snow in northern new england. look at the heat, down through texas and on into the gulf coast, with 80s there. 50s in the pacific northwest. we look for more wet weather in the pacific northwest. the threat of strong storms in the mid mississippi river valley. sunny skies in the mid-atlantic states in the southeast and make that florida, as well. 81 degrees in miami. you love john cena. who doesn't love john cena. that's what' good morning.

i'm meteorologist kari hall. here's a live look outside in san francisco. all bright sunshine and temperatures now in the lower 50s. we're seeing that as we look all around the bay area. 56 degrees right now in oakland. our temperatures will continue to warm up, making it up to 64 degrees in san francisco, even warmer tomorrow as the temperature trend continues to go up until we have a slight chance of rain on thursday. it all clears out in time for the weekend, and the inland areas will be up to 80 degrees on saturday. ting ready to get out of here. we have one more weather for you. and rokerthon 3 day two tomorrow. and, cena, i need a nickname. i need you to come up with a nickname for me, baby. i need a nickname. >> i will begin work on that now. it's pandemonium at o.u. you have a lot of energy.

>> something weather-related. >> like the weatherman. it has to be something better. >> more punch. >> tweet in suggestions. >> you tweet your suggestions. coming up, she's one of the biggest youtube stars on the planet, who has celebrities lining up to work with her. you're about to see what the buzz is about does your makeup remover every kiss-proof,ff? cry-proof, stay-proof look? neutrogena® makeup remover does. it erases 99% of your most stubborn makeup

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"bawse." >> you nailed it. >> and the difference between bawse and boss? >> you forgot the normal word. >> workplace, professional. bawse is all encok encompassing. >> these are actually very good tips. like, i would give them to a college graduate, an adult, who is trying to get ahead. >> yes. all of that. >> talk about -- you said this is your baby. >> this is my baby. this is the closest i'll probably get to having a baby. it's comedic but a guide book on not to survive life, but to conquer life. 60 easy to digest chapters. it's like playing anyonintendo. you can only control mario. you can't control everything else. when we live life, we control

situations that we can't. if we live life how we play inten doe, we would be happier. >> you talk about climbing ladders. you've been successful on youtube. at the pinnacle of the digital space. yet, you have ladders to climb. talk about that. >> as you mentioned, somebody in the digital space. when it comes to traditional hollywood, i'm doing pilot season, doing the auditions. still climbing that ladder. but understanding they're two separate ladders. >> successful in one venture, still on the ground floor in starting up something else. >> 100%. and when i come to wrestlemania, i'll be at the bottom of that ladder. >> handing out invites. >> i will be there. >> will you, though? >> we'll see. >> talk about the collaborations. selena gomez, the rock, even john's girlfriend, nikki bella. you have some fun, talented

partners. >> that's one of the coolest thing of my job. how do you define success? i would say the money and the views. but really, about making teenage lilly proud. i think, little lilly would be so proud of this. meeting all of the really cool people. they make up lessons. >> your favorite moment? >> i do. it's meeting the rock, duane johnson. >> i thought you were going to say michelle obama. i love the dynamic. he's mentioned in the book. he's my mentor and has taught me so much in life. >> and a nice guy. >> anyone you want to work with in the future? anybody on the to-do list? >> i would like to work with you. i heard amazing things about you. >> well -- >> maybe she will cheer you on. >> if i can get one of the golden tickets. >> love that segue. >> i love that little lilly is happy. up next, she is a total diva. nikki bella gets ready to step

into the ring with john, made for a match -- match made in heaven. wrestlemania. wrestlemania. >> it's listerine® kills 99% of bad breath germs. this is 100% useful for a 100% fresh mouth. just ask listerine® users. the very people we studied in the study of bold. people who are statistically more likely to stand up to a bully, do a yoga handstand, and be in a magician's act. listerine® kills 99% of bad breath germs so you can feel 100% in life. bring out the bold™. want a less intense taste that still cleans your whole mouth? try listerine® zero alcohol. ♪ lucis a lucky dog. but not every pet is as lucky as lucky. so we came up with a little idea, this year, when you buy any bag of dog or cat food at petsmart, we'll give a meal to a pet in need. it's like this: when pearl eats, peanut eats. when wolf woolfs, george gorges. and when moose mows down his meal,

cuddles cuddles up to a bowl. you buy any bag, we'll give a meal. it's that simple. wee flowg serabreingne stieshisg good monday morning at 9:26. i'm sam brock. we are following several breaking stories this morning. first bart service remains closed right now due to downed power lines on the track. there will be more on that in just a second. first, a massive fire in oakland this morning. pete is on the scene. pete, there were rescuers, and in the last few minutes, an update. >> reporter: good morning, that fire taking place at san pablo and meade avenues in oakland. we can confirm there was one fatality. there was the potential for one fatality and we just got that confirmed. we'll show you video from the scene this morning.

that fire started around 5:00 a.m. folks were seen hanging out their window. we do know altogether there were seven total rescues, three people were injured, and we can confirm there was one fatality. no word from the fire department what caused this fire, but we do know the majority of the fire has been contained at this time. crews are expected to be here on the scene for several hours to conduct an investigation. i send it back to you guys in the newsroom. >> all right, pete confirming a fatal fire in oakland this morning. thank you very much, pete. in the meantime, right after the break, mike will update us on a disruption of trans service in bart in one moment.

good morning. i'm meteorologist kari hall. we do still have some clouds over the south bay but we will get some clearing and the temperature trend shows we will be slightly cooler than average, reaching into the lower 60s. in san francisco to 64 degrees, 68 tomorrow. and it will be even warmer on wednesday. we will have a slight chance of rain for the north bay on

thursday. other than that, a mainly dry and very warm forecast towards the end. let's head over to mike for an update on the rails. >> reporter: that's right, bart service has been restored in the last few minutes. they are now gradually getting back service through the transbay, too. major delays expected around the system. this map shows where the fire was, so avoid san pablo and meade. there is trans service except at central san pablo where the fire is being contained. >> we'll see you in 30 minutes.

♪ wrestling, relationships and real-life drama. that's what you get with wwe superstar nikki bella. and nikki is also john's girlfriend. and they're pairing up to compete in sunday's live wrestlemania. >> that's a different type of date night. >> she stars in "total divas" which follows the lives of nikki, her twin and other wrestling superstars. hi, nicole. great to have you here. >> oh, happy to be here. >> i feel like we'll just watch you for the next two minutes. you can chitchat. >> we're like, oh, it's so cute. tag-team wrestling. how does that work in a coed environment? >> the way the wwe does it is

when the women wrestling the women, and the men wrestle the men. if i'm in there, we are in there with the mis, and nicole gets a chance to have action. >> it can get challenging if it was mixed stuff. >> i would take on the mis. i have no problem with that. that would be against the rules. >> she could take all three of our butts. >> we hear you like to tackle john. is that true? >> i love it. >> seriously? >> i do. it's become this little ritual before bed. and i get one tackle in. >> a real thing. >> and i get a running start and everything. >> do you have to catch him offguard? >> no. he stand there's. and goes, okay. really? and i run and tackle him. >> kind of adorable. >> he brings this little kid out in me, i guess. we have a lot of fun. >> this is a lot of tackle. >> probably just scoops me up. i think that's what i like about it. i feel small like, yay. >> there's a lot of flirting

going on. >> totally. >> we don't have a ring set up in the bedroom. we're not doing any of the moves or anything like that. >> no. >> apparently, i don't know if there's a -- on whether or not john will propose. >> first of all, what is it -- >> for what it's worth, the odds are strongly in favor of a prooez popr proposal. >> what's the prop bet? >> a side bet. >> this is a real thing? >> this is a real thing. >> okay. tip number one, never bet on wwe. ever. i mean, that's all i need to say about that. >> no pressure. >> no pressure. >> his palms are getting all damp. >> that's so sweet. >> you know, after we're going to get in the car, i'm like, so -- >> where do we stand on that? john, we let you off the hook. let's talk about "total divas." >> yes. >> what can we expect to see this season? >> we have a lot of women on cast.

and we come back april 5th, on wednesday. and i make my comeback. and you get to see my journey in the next six episodes of how i make it. and not only the struggle with my journey. but the other women to get back in the ring with me and put my life in their hands. >> nicole broke her neck. and that's what they mean by coming back. >> to wrestle. >> i had a small chance of getting back to the ring. the fact that i'm making that comeback and i did. >> it's superpowerful. we're going to play a little game. see how well you know each other. >> this is great. >> this one is to nicole. what's the worst gift john ever gave you? >> he never did. >> sweet. i have no idea. >> yeah. >> he's never given me a bad gift. and i'm not even being like sweet. >> we're going to give you that one. how about where was yours -- is that the next one? where was your first kiss? >> chicago. >> oh, sweet. >> on the same page. >> he remembered. >> yes. >> next. >> next one is to john.

what is nicole's guilty pleasure. >> doughnuts. >> we spelled it different. but good job. >> what is -- nicole, what is john's most irritating habit. >> i have way to many. >> i have say yes to everything. >> i have way too many. >> time doesn't allow for all those. >> what was your first fight about? >> me being a jerk. >> no marriage or kids. >> me being a jerk. >> about that bet -- >> a jerk. so, for more with nikki, head to facebook.com/todayhealth. you can watch us doing our thing at wwe, this sunday, 7:00 on the wwe network. and the mid season "total divas" 9:00 p.m. on e! coming up next, one-on-one with selena gomez. the pop superstar talks about what is up in the spotlight and what she wants every young girl

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♪ selena gomez is a global superstar. the most followed person on instagram with millions of fans, many teenage girls. last week, a lucky group of young ladies at a los angeles high school, got a big surprise if selena. and we got to tagalong. >> so excited. >> this is it, right? >> go, fight, win. >> hi. hi. >> it's not every day that a global superstar walks into your school. when selena gomez surprised a group of girls at a los angeles high school, their reactions were priceless. the students, all part of an organization called step up, which helpps empower young girl to realize their full potential. selena gomez teamed up with the organization as part of her work with the coach brand. >> if i'm your fair iry god motr

and i'm not, i would say, what do you want these girls to get from you? >> to learn from example. i want them to have the same dreams and goals. there's so much pressure for young girls. and i want them to feel like they're capable of doing anything. >> and there's celebrities that almost keep a veil up. we think everything is so perfect. you've chosen not to be that way and be authentic. was it healing to say, i have struggles. and this is what i struggle with. >> i didn't really have a choice. a lot of people saw my life whether i liked it or not. i have two options. i would succumb to what everyone was say organize assuming. or i could talk that opportunity and be vulnerable with my specific audience, which is the people who have been with me since the beginning. and i think that's what i chose to do. >> i hope that our girls see themselves in selena because i think she sees herself in them. and that they really understand that if they can get clear on who they are and what they want

out of their life, that there's a whole world of people that are willing to help them make that happen. and that these types of things do come true. >> for many of the students, the day was a dream come true. >> i'm going to cry. i promised myself i wasn't going to cry, too. >> and selena walked by. you look at the girls and go, oh, my god, she's real. that's my takeaway. you guys are so sweet. >> somebody that you grew up with. and it's amazing to meet you. yeah. >> so sweet. i have to hug you now. >> thank you. you're so sweet. >> the young girls here and the young girls who will see this story who, like so many, are obsessed with the twitter and the instagram, is there a message on how to handle that? sometimes it makes people feel bad about themselves and they don't realize it? >> they are worth more than an instagram like and a comment on any of the social platform. >> you're worth more than a like. can i steal that? that's pretty good. >> as for what selena is up to

now? >> i'm enjoying finding moments of myself. whether i'm in the studio and have been in the studio for a week-straight and haven't said anything about it, i like having mystery. that makes me feel empowered and in control of where i'm at. i'm taking time to have a personal life. i'm enjoying mixing that because i've been straight work. now, it's taking my time. >> last question to bring it back full-circle. you can be anywhere. you can be at home. but you're here at a high school with these kids. >> it reminds me of why i do what i do. girls inspire me every day. they give me strength in areas i didn't know i needed. >> she has a sweet spirit. >> very cool to see. >> it was so genuine. >> someone of that impact and the impression they have on other people's lives. >> it was like a beatle walked in the door. >> she is. >> those kids, for sure. >> a sweet moment. now, let's send it to al at the university of oklahoma. >> guys, thanks so much.

for our last weather here at the university of oklahoma, we're going to start with the week ahead. strong storms firing up in the mid mississippi river valley. strong winds in the southwest. rain in the northwest. ice and snow in northern new england. we have an area of severe weather, stretching in the plains. unseasonably mild weather makes its way in the eastern-third in the country. as we head towards the weekend, we're looking at heavy rain along the northeast and mid-atlantic coast lines. sunshine from the plains down to the gulf. and snow through the rockies. that's what's going good morning. i'm meteorologist kari hall. we are getting a lot more sunshine right now. as we take a live look outside over san jose, expect it to be a beautiful day. it's 54 degrees as you head out the door. it's 55 in staff sapphire and santa rosa, 49 degrees.

highs in afternoon will reach the mid-60s in san francisco. we'll continue to warm up for the next several days. a slight chance of rain on thursday and then we go back to more dry weather. we're heading out. thank you, rokerthon 3. you can see the northern lights, from where you're going. back to you guys. we'll see you tomorrow. >> thank you, al. looks like so much fun. >> exciting. >> i can never guess the next place. um next from "grace and um next from "grace and frankie," you totanobody's hurt, new car. but there will still be pain. it comes when your insurance company says they'll only pay three-quarters of what it takes to replace it. what are you supposed to do? drive three-quarters of a car? now if you had liberty mutual new car replacement™, you'd get your whole car back. i guess they don't want you driving around on three wheels.

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funny series, "grace and frankie." >> she is strong, independent and career-driven while her sister is married with kids. >> i do love your kids. they're your kids. >> you've got a weird way of showing it. >> i know, right? look, i am who i am. i'm never going to be good with them. i can't pretend their dumb stories make any sense. and i always gag when they get that gross dirt thing. but when they're teenagers and can clean themselves and speak correctly, they're mine. i mean, they're going to love their auntie. >> it's true. >> good morning. >> good morning. >> sheinelle said i can relate to that before i had calvin. >> i whispered to them, that was dylan before calvin. now, you're obsessed with them. >> of course. >> you shot right up until you gave birth. >> so, i was -- during some of

the final episodes, i was having contractions on set. when i watch it now, i look back and i can see just behind the eyes, like, something is happening. >> a twinge of pain. >> there's an elbow popping out at me. it shot up until friday i gave birth on a tuesday. >> wow. >> yeah. i was really pregnant. you know that. >> of course, i do. i walk around superpregnant most of the time. >> where does season three pick up then? >> the last time we saw your character, she got a dog. a boyfriend. >> the dog is still there. the boyfriend is more difficult relationship. as it usually is. so, we see her this season dealing with some of the strong life choices these made and her feelings about family. and seeing the repercussions of taking a hard line on some of the issues. and yeah. really season three follows my character's love life. or lack thereof. >> you are very funny.

you had us cracking up. >> finally, i get a compliment from you. >> it's well-deserved. obviously, you do a lot of impr improv, as well. do you do any on set? >> the scripts are already so funny. i don't have to improvise. it's so good. i love to throw some things here and there and keep it alive and fresh. >> you do your little bit of freedom. >> yeah. do me. i do me. >> all right. >> i do me. but they're already so good, i don't have. but, yes. i do. and sometimes the stuff gets in. >> and life is funny as home, as well. >> hilarious. hilarious. people say because my husband is a comedian, too, it must be a ton of laughs. it's not. it's not. >> not funny this. >> your husband posted on instagram and titled the picture parenting. what did he post? that was fun. >> that was fun. it's amazing the we're not doing jokes and bits all day long. we're parenting. we're in the thick of it. we have two, young babies.

and i think people have a disconception about people at home. we're staring at each other angry. that's what we're up to. >> you're working at another project with casey wilson? >> yes. we're watching a script for hulu called "unhinged." about a woman who has a rage problem. i can connect to it. >> about to say. sounds like something we can relate to. >> right from home. >> you're looking at me. was i supposed to say something. >> we're out of time. i was going to say thank you. >> i have more information to dig up. i don't want you to leave. >> this is vodka. and i realize what's happening. >> it knemade me nervous. >> can i read this? >> i want to ask you more questions. >> season three of "grace and frankie" on netflix

john, so much fun with you this morning. >> it was a fun, fun morning. >> it's all about john, isn't it? john is so great. he's so nice. hey, john. >> i didn't notice you over there. >> do you know each other? >> we go way back. >> we used to go out. you're welcome, internet. >> also college roommates. also not true. >> andrew

we have sunshine and 60 degrees. the only chance of rain will be

on thursday during the afternoon. then a very dry week ahead for the inland areas. we will see temperatures warm up to 80 degrees by this saturday. let's get an update on the morning commute as we check in with mike. >> traveling through the transbay was closed, but now they're restored. they'll still honor those tickets. the roads are also moving well across the span there. we do have one problem on the bay. the big problem is 101 still closed. that causes a big back-up on the bridge. back to you. we continue to follow that breaking news in oakland where firefighters are still trying to put out that massive fire at a low income apartment building. this is not far from the city center. san pablo and meade avenues are the closest intersection. firefighters believe there may

be one person who died in that person, but they haven't been able to confirm seeing that body there. we do know that firefighters rescued seven people and three of them suffered smoke inhalation. firefighters arrived around 6:00 this morning and the fire had already spread through most of the building. no word on the cause but we do have an update at 11:00.

. from nbc news, this is "today" with kathie lee gifford and hoda kotb live from studio 1 a in rockefeller plaza. >> what a fun way to start our fun day. craig's back. hide the babies. >> that's right. lock up the kids. but there's a ten second delay this morning. this is but half an hour ago. it's so much of a delay. everyone's very frightened i'm going to cuss. i'm not going to cuss . it's going to feel like i cuss. >> you make me nervous because right beforehand you did cuss. >> but i