president trump unleashes a twitter storm on multiple fronts. tragedy for one of the navy's elite leap frogs as a parachute malfunctions over new york harbor. unbelievable airborne crash at the indy 500 and drivers involved are all okay. caroline kennedy reflects on her nary 100 years after his birth. on this memorial day between the barbecuing and long weekend we say thank you to all who have served. "early today" starts right now. good morning. i'm gigi stone woods. >> i'm frances rivera. thanks for being us early on this memorial day and this

holiday. the president wakes up to a white house in crisis mode. president trump returned from nine-day overseas trip to chaos this weekend as the russian investigation looks to imperfectly his young presidency. and he's unleashing a barrage of tweets berating the fake news media overnight as new reports hit close to home with revelations centering around jared kushner. after reuters claimed kushner had three undisclosed conversations with russia's ambassador to the united states. that after "the washington post" reported kushner tried to establish back channel communication with russian operatives during the transition. and their communications, homeland security chief john kelly is defending. >> any time you can open lines of communication with anyone, whether they are good friends or not so good friends is a smart thing to do. >> our own team says west wing staffers are speechless at the kushner's news while kushner's attorney defended her client with this statement. mr. kushner participated in

thousands of calls in this time period. he has no recollection of the calls as described. however, former intel chief james clapper making headlines after he admitted to what he says were warning signs of possible trump-russia ties. >> just from the theoretical standpoint, i will tell you that my dashboard warning light was clearly on. i think that was the case with all of us in the intelligence community, very concerned about the nature of these approaches to the russians. >> this morning we get reports a war room is being set up at the white house while a massive staff shake-up is contemplated, that as the president plans to cancel a planned rally in iowa and looks to be pivoting towards his legislative agenda tweeting about health care and massive tax cuts reform package he says is moving along very well promising big benefits to all. he's expected to hold rallies in

the coming weeks to push his agenda. battle to retake mosul could soon be over. the iraqi military says it launched an operation to capture the last part of the city that is still held by isis. the terrorist group took over mosul in 2014. now the u.s. backed defensive to reclaim it has now entered its eight month. it's taken longer than planned because isis militants are dug in among civilians. the pentagon earlier acknowledged more than 100 u.s. special operations forces were working with iraqi units in and around mosul with hundreds more playing support roles farther from the front lines. here at home, a navy s.e.a.l. died in a tragic par chugt incident during new york's fleet week. richard lui has details. >> reporter: it was supposed to be a highlight of new york's fleet week a demonstration by the s.e.a.l. parachute team leapfrogs descending in

formation near the statue of liberty. instead something went very wrong. one of the s.e.a.l.s was killed when his chute malfunctioned. >> he landed near the state park. he was retrieved immediately by u.s. coast guard personnel and jersey city fire department marine unit. >> reporter: the s.e.a.l. was pronounced dead at a nearby hospital. a piece of the chute cut loose during the fall. recovered after dropping into a parking lot nearby. a celebration of service turning to tragedy on a weekend when the nation honors its military. richard lui, nbc news. >> in mississippi police are investigating why a man gunned down eight people including a deputy in a small town. that man, willie cory godbolt is in custody. he spoke out moments after his arrest sunday morning. >> suicide by cops was my intention. i ain't fit to live, not after

what i done. >> godbolt told a reporter he got into an argument with his estranged wife before the shooting spree started. he targeted three homes starting 11:30 saturday night. three women were killed in the first home along with deputy sheriff durham responding to a domestic call. in the second home two underage boys were killed. in the third home two miles away another man and woman were found dead. police have not confirmed whether he knew the victims but family members say some are related. he's being held on one count of capital murder and seven counts of first degree murder. mostly cloudy launched a short range ballistic missile according to u.s. military officials. this is their second launch in two days. nbc's blake mccoy is following all this from london. blake, what can you tell snus. >> reporter: frances, good morning. u.s. officials say the short range ballistic missile flew for six minutes before crashing in to the sea of japan. the japanese don't believe it

hit anything but it is the third missile test in three weeks. tensions in the region are already high. this morning, japan and south korea are vowing to take action. over the weekend north korean state media released these photos of leader kim jong-un overseeing military exercises, the isolated country and nuclear ambition is seen as one of the biggest national security challenges facing the trump administration. u.s. officials say they are working together with this late est move. there was a scary moment at the indy 500 on the 55 lap. jay howard crashed into another driver scott dixon sending him flying through the air on top of the safety barrier. fortunately, if you can believe it, both drivers survived the incident. they were examined and cleared. they didn't finish the race. takuma sato did taking first place becoming the first

japanese driver to ever win the indy 500. there he is, very happy, celebrating with the race's traditional milk poured gently over your head. >> not thirsty anymore, just pour it on you. >> unbelievable, that's the headline out of the french open. the number one female player in the world, angelique kerber made history. she was the first player to get ousted in the first round. she rose to number one after serena williams stepped off the court due to injury and pregnancy in january. now for a look at memorial day weather, here is bonnie schneider. not looking good. >> depends where you are. west coast summer like temperatures, 10 degrees above normal. things will change after memorial day, by tuesday, middle of the week, a cooler pattern will emerge to the pacific northwest. stormy across texas and louisiana. this is where we've seen a lot of lightning. if you're driving in this

vicinity be careful because we're likely to see slowdowns. san antonio, houston this morning, watch out denver, airport delays, a busy memorial day with lots of folks trying to get somewhere. temperatures across the west, unseasonably hot. looking hot with triple d, keep digit numbers, cooler along the coast. so frances and gigi depending where you are you're getting a mixed bag for memorial day. >> a lot heading to the water parks. something though think about after you hear this story. a little boy is lucky to be unscathed after falling off a water slide. watch here. he goes down, reaches the

bottom. suddenly he goes airborne, skids across the concrete. he was able to get up on his own and walk away with a few scratches. it happened at wave water park in california. the ride is closed until park officials figure out what went wrong and make sure it doesn't happen again to anybody. scary for him. luckily he's okay. >> people have to be so careful. just ahead, we'll hear from caroline kennedy on what would have been her father's 100th birthday. very touching. new arrests following last week's bombing in manchester. standing strong in the face of terror. stay with us. plus, snacks and drinks are gone, people. and one of us used up all the sunscreen. i wonder who. we're going to need some reinforcements... (on walkie-talkie) ...quick. copy that. walgreens makes it easy when summer needs a little help. your summer base camp is just around the corner, so you can get in, out, and back to those summer shenanigans. walgreens. at the corner of happy & healthy. today only, all military and veterans enjoy 20% off in store.

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the man accused of killing two people after an anti-muslim 's rant does not appear to be linked to any known hate groups. that's what southern law center says about jeremy christian. christian stabbed three people on a portland train killing two of them when the victims tried to protect two women from his hate-filled outburst. a vigil was held sunday for the two men killed. one witness who helped the victims says the severity of the attack must be made clear. >> it is labeled what it is and that is a terrorist attack. i want that to be clear. >> christian has been charged with aggravated murder and attempted murder. turning now to the investigation in last week's deadly bombing in manchester, england where more arrests have been made. fourteen people are now in custody as the country remains on high alert. armed guards were present as thousands took part in the great manchester run on sunday.

runners paused for a moment of silence to honor the victims. and u.s. homeland security john kelly severely condemned intelligence leaks that briefly halted information flow between the united states and britain. >> if it came from the united states it's totally unacceptable. and i don't know why people do these kinds of things but it's borderline if not over the line of treason. >> nbc's lucy kafanov has more for us in manchester. lucy, good morning. we know the country's terror threat has moved from critical to severe. how is that impacting the investigation? >> reporter: good morning, that's right. the threat level reduced from critical to severe but that still means one is still highly likely. that investigation continues. a live ongoing fast paced investigation. we saw more arrests and raids in the early hours of this morning. numerous properties being searched, one as we continue to

speak at this moment, including an arrest of a 23-year-old man, bringing the total number of people in custody to 14. authorities do believe they've now been able to piece together his final moments, identified the apartment where salman abedi, the 22-year-old attacker c compiled his bomb, but they are pleading with the public for health. more questions being raised whether they could have done more to prevent this attack. people reported that salman abedia in previous years but he was not investigated more closely by british authorities. this has not stopped manchester from coming together for the great manchester run, 40,000 people hitting the streets yesterday defying the face of terror. guys. >> nbc's lucy kafanov. lucy, thank you. switching gears now we need a little respite to something happy and cute. what better way to welcome the unofficial start of summer than with weiner dog races. 100 lightning fast dachshunds took part in the event in connecticut. all looking to be top dog. the race raised money for connecticut dachshund rescue and pet services.

hot digt diggity dog. it may look like something out of a comic book, the portuguese soccer cup final ball was delivered by a ref riding a dron. the drone rider managed a perfect landing. see the possibilities for drones are just beginning. i'm personally petrified where this is doing but it's pretty cool to land on top of the stadium. >> impressive. if you can manage that air surfing on a drone. just ahead, wait until you hear what europe is saying now that donald trump is gone. plus international flights may seem longer and less productive very soon. details next. when i look in the mirror everyday. when i look in the mirror everyday. everyday, i think how fortunate i am. i think is today going to be the day, that we find a cure? i think how much i can do to help change people's lives. i may not benefit from those breakthroughs, but i'm sure going to...

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inducted, sort of, in a the baseball hall of fame. he received a plaque that will hang in a new simpson exhibit. homer made his first appeal for the hall of fame ballot in the 1992 simpson's episode. just a little homage to the simpsons can't hurt. taken a while but finally it's done. u.s. stock markets are closed for memorial day holiday but a relationship with europe and even travel there could take a big turn. cnbc has the details on this. jenna, good morning. >> good morning, frances. yes, german chancellor angela merkel said that europe can't count on allies like it used to and must fight for the future. this after the g7 summit in which president trump refused to back what obama signed to. a tough negotiator ready to stand up to u.s. and uk ahead of elections this september. markets trading lower with london closed. meantime u.s. secretary john kelly said the ban on laptops in

cabins might be extended to some parts of europe. currently in some places in the middle east. definitely worth noting if we travel. thank you. coming up why belgian royalty is angry about a new burger king ad. and timberlake bromance takes on bro biking next. introducing listerine® zero alcohol™. it delivers a whole mouth clean with a less intense taste. so it has the bad breath germ-killing power of this... with the lighter feel... of this.

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>> bro biker! that's what you do here, justin timberlake and jimmy fallon. tan deny biking is their favorite best friends challenge. there you go, wouldn't be the same without that bell. >> they are a very special couple. burger king is challenging belgian royalty in a new campaign, ad campaign. the fast food chain launched a mock online vote titled who is the king. putting their fictional mascot against king philip. if king philip is selected the site asks, are you sure? the royal family expressed out to burger king to express their disapproval of the ad. a burger king representative tells efe it has not received any communication from the monarchy. the online election until june

19th. until then depending on the outcome the royal family will be more of a mcdonald's fan. >> shark week is coming soon and discovery channel is reminding us it's still a bad week to be a seal. i love it. featuring grammy winning singer seal. facing the unfortunate fate of being eaten alive. shark week is always a draw, always want to watch it. now they have promos to watch. >> when they do kitschy, cheeky, tongue in cheek like this, kind of a cult status. still ahead, full military honors for u.s. navy pilot killed in action long ago. a promise to bring him home finally fulfilled. you're watching "early today" on this memorial day. before we hit the beach, i've gotta hit the loo. we can't stay here! why?

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senator john mccain is commemorating memorial day in australia this year. he visited the australian american memorial and laid a wreath at the site honoring forces who fought alongside australians in world war ii. mccain praised australian-american military alliance. >> every since the battle, americans and australians have left the lands they love and gone off into the world and served together, for the together, loved together, lost together. on behalf of my entire nation, i want to take the opportunity to say something we americans can never tell you often enough,

thank you. >> senator mccain visited the parliament where the prime minister praised his service in the vietnam war. hall of fame baseball pitcher and former senator jim bunning has died. his death comes after he suffered stroke last october. his family said he died late friday due to complications. bunning played for detroit tigers, phillies, pittsburgh pirates and pirates and los angeles dodgers in 17 years. he's one of only 18 major league players to throw a perfect game in the modern era and went on to represent kentucky in congress for over 24 years before retiring from office. jim bunning was 85 years old. thousands of bikers rumbled into the nation's capital as part of the annual rolling thunder ride for freedom. since 1988 bikers and spectators have gathered in washington to honor military veterans and those missing in action. sunday's route started at the pentagon and finished up at the vietnam war memorial. today the bikers are scheduled to lay wreaths at the world war

ii memorial and tomb of the unknown soldier in arlington cemetery. >> on this memorial day one family making a remarkable contribution to the country. three brothers all graduating from west point's military academy. west point has not graduated three siblings in the same year in three decades. so their parents, who both served in the coast guard, couldn't be any prouder. a lot of us are saying the same thing. >> really, an accomplishment. it was an honorable homecoming for a u.s. navy pilot after a half century search. crosby left for vietnam war in 1965 where he was killed in action. his daughter deborah was only 6 years old but she never gave up the search for his remains. just two years ago military investigators found his wedding band near the crash site. how is that possible? this weekend lieutenant commander crosby was finally returned home for a full military burial funeral in san diego. incredible story.

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lysol. what it takes to protect. armed services. a day to remember the ultimate sacrifice made by the men and women of the armed services, as we take a live look at arlington national cemetery in d.c. you see the flags in front of the gravestones there. later today, we'll be covering the wreath laying ceremony and remarks from the president. good morning on this memorial day monday. thank you for joining us. i'm sam brock. >> i'm kris sanchez in for laura garcia-cannon. we want to get to breaking news off the top. a deadly crash on 580 that is blocking lanes. let's go to vianey arana. >> it appears this logged in overnight. chp put this in at about 2:27 around eastbound 580 near