a new report this morning that president trump against the advice of his own lawyers is pushing for a face to face interview with special counsel robert mueller. >> football coaching legend urban meyer is suspended pending an investigation into what he knew about alleged domestic violence charges involving a former assista. >> 65 years after the end of the korean war, the remains of dozens of presumed u.s. soldier personal late night tweet to north korea's president kim jong-un. >> we'll taketed passenger jet some of the 103 survivors. >> a friend's reunion in a revealing interview, jennifer aniston says she fantasizes about one. >> what do you do if a bear

happens to get inside your car? "early today" starts right now. >> good thursday morning. i'm frances rivera. >> and i'm phillip mena. breaking news overnight, code black, police swarming a california hospital amid reports of an active shooter, but thankfully it turned out to be a false alarm. >> this incident involving an active shooter inside the mercy southwest here has been unfounded. we want to report that there were no injuries to anyone located inside. there was no evidence of any shots fired of any kind. >> over 100 emergency officials arrived within minutes after a code black was called out for mercy southwest hospital in bakersfield. police say there is no threat to the 78-bed facility and roads around the area are being reopened at this hour. now to president trump who is takling the mueller investigation head on and raising new questions about obstruction of justice. he slammed the russian meddling probe in a tweet calling

attorney general jeff sessions to stop the quote, rigged witch hunt right now. the president although saying mueller is totally conflicted. nbc's peter alexander has the reaction on capitol hill. >> reporter: president trump tight lipped in person. >> sir, are you ordering the mueller investigation to be shutdown? >> reporter: but explosive on twitter. for the first time directly calling on the nation's top law enforcement official to end the russia investigation, tweeting, attorney general jeff sessions should stop this rigged witch hunt right now before it continues to stain our country any further. the president's critics pouncing. >> these kinds of threats are no accident. they reflect a state of mind and intent to obstruct justice. >> reporter: but president trump's team is offering its own interpretation from the white house. >> look, the president is not obstructing. he's fighting back. >> reporter: mr. trump's lawyer rudy giuliani saying it was an opinion, not an order. >> he used the word should, he didn't use the word must. he didn't direct him to do it. and he's not going to direct him to do it. >> reporter: still, it's the

latest in an extraordinary series of rebukes for the president against his own attorney general. a source close to the president telling nbc news mr. trump is constantly bashing sessions in private for recusing himself from the russia inquiry, that he simply can't get sessions out of his mind. sessions in to make light of it. >> send out orders pretty quick. if you know any serious about it, wish you would. >> reporter: the president again unloading on special counsel robert mueller right in the middle of trump campaign chairman tax fraud trial, charges unrelated to the 2016 election. president trump tweet being, why didn't the government tell me he was under investigation? slamming the case as a hoax. this morning the president's lawyers say they are in a back and forth with the special counsel about a possible trump interview. rudy giuliani is calling on mueller to deliver his final report. his message? put up or shut up. frances? about that, president ank youn. trump is reportedly pushing for an interview with special

counsel robert mueller against the wishes of his legal team. according to "the new york times" the president wants to set up a meeting so he can clear himself of any wrongdoing. for more on that possible meeting with the special counsel, nbc's tracie potts joining us live from washington. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. according to the times report, the president has said he is eager to tell his story to the special counsel in the russia investigation. his attorneys not so eager. according to three people who were briefed on this, the president is now pushing again to sit in that seat to do this interview as part of the russia investigation. the big question, will he be asked about obstruction of justice. the latest reports are that they are trying to pull together pieces of his public statements and tweets and private pressure to try to build an obstruction case and that's what his lawyers are concerned about so they've outlined the scope and the topics that they're willing to have the presidentnd mostly his

chief lawyer rudy giuliani quite skeptical about this. >> he's always been interested in testifying. it's us, meaning the team of lawyers, including me, that have the most reservations about that. i'm not going to give you a lot of hope it's going to happen, but we're still negotiating. we haven't stopped negotiating with him. >> reporter: now, they've been negotiating for eight months. the latest, a letter that was sent last tuesday outlining that scope and the topics that the president's team thinks that he could address without dealing with obstruction. we'll see where this goes. phillip? >> all right, as always, thank you so much, tracie. this morning one of college football's biggest names is on paid administrative leave amid reports ohio states's urban meyer m h about domestic violence accusations made against a former assistant. he denied knowing about a 2015 claim against wide receiver's coach zack smith who was recently fired after reports his ex-wife courtney was granted a

domestic violence order of protection against him. independent journalist brett mcmurphy reports he obtained text messages from 2015. they are between courtney smith and the wives of other coaches including meyer's wife discussing the alleged abuse. he says the text indicate coach meyer had knowledge of the situation. nbc news has not seen or verified those texts. the university said in a statement, it is conducting an investigation into these allegations. adding, we are folk used on supporting our players and on getting to the truth as expeditiously as possible. meyer also issued a statement saying athletic director gene smith and i agree that being on leave during this inquiry will facilitate its completion. i eagerly look forward to the resolution of this matter. >> after waiting more than 60 years, some families of fallen soldiers who never returned from the korean war may finally have some closure. in a solemn ceremony u.s. military officials escorted 55 cases of presumed u.s. remains draped in american flags at

hanger joint base. vice-president pence was there to welcome them and called this home coming the beginning. >> today begins a new season of hope for the families of our missing fallen and we pledge to you we will never stop striving until every hero lost in the korean war is home. >> president trump was not in attendance, but he thanked north korean leader kim jong-un on twitter for handing over the remains, making good on his pledge from their historic summit in june. with only one set of dog tags, officials begin the painstaking process of identifying them. spr experts say that could take months if not years. >> turning now to dramatic new footage from inside an aeromexico jet that crashed with 103 people on board, the u.s. state department confirming 65 american citizens were among the passengers. though dozens of people are still being treated at mexican hospitals, everyone did survive the harrowing crash and now some of those survivors are talking about the frightening ordeal.

nbc's tom costello has more. >> reporter: cell phone video captures the moment aeromexico flight 2431 begins its take off roll down the runway. the weather outside growing worse by the second. suddenly just as the plane begins to lift, it's violently slammed back down to the ground. skidding off the runway into the desert, frantic passengers stepping over each other to escape the burning plane. ramin parsa took the video. >> people were screaming and i was praying. i was praying to [ speaking foreign language ] jesus saved our lives. >> reporter: firefighters rushed to the scene as passengers and crew jumped down the emergency escape chutes. >> the cabin just started filling with father sanchez from illinois and 15 friends celebrating his birthday. >> yes, i do think it was a miracle. >> reporter: father sanchez now being treated for multiple arm fractures. we spoke to him by skype from his hospital room. >> if the plane was traveling a

little faster before it hit the embankment, or flew a little higher, i don't think we would have walked out with all of us intact. >> reporter: in all, 49 people hospitalized including the pilot and a passenger both in critical but stable condition. the regional jet, 190, was departing from durango in northwest mexico for mexico city. just as the weather suddenly turned violent, rain, high winds and hail. u.s. aviation sources say the plane may have been hit by a micro burst rolling across the air field. had it been any higher than 50 to 70 feet off the ground, there could have been fatalities. investigators have a lot of questions for this pilot, chief among them, why did he try to take off in this driving storm. a lot of experts say they would have simply waited it out on the ground. but this video will be very important. they have the black boxes that will tell them really the dynamics and the specifics of what was happening in the cockpit. but then in addition, a video helps them understand what was happening in the cabin and how

did so many people survive and what are the lessons that we can learn from that. phillip? >> we're thankful they did. tom, thank you. >> now that the legal battle involving controversial online conspiracy theorist, families of some of the 20 children killed at sandy hook elementary school are now suing jones over his claims that the massacre was faked. nbc's morgan radford has the story. >> i don't know exactly what happened. sandy hook is inconclusive. >> reporter: for years alex jones was behind the conspiracy theory that the sandy hook shooting was a massive hoax. >> they have one shot leaves blowing. you see the leaves blowing, they glitch. they're recycling a green screen behind them. >> reporter: a theory that they say turned their lives upside down. their 6-year-old son noah was killed during the mass shooting in 2012. ever since, they say they have been harassed. the abuse so bad they've had to move seven times.

now they're suing jones for the judge. to dismiss the case. she spoke to cnn about the lawsuit in april. >> if there is a choice that's made over a relentless period of years to peddle falsehoods and to profit from them, then there has to be a day of reckoning. >> reporter: in the lawsuit, de la rosa and poseener say he has disrupted their daily routine and caused a high degree of psychological pain. jones discussed his controversial views with megyn kelly last year. >> what do you do when they've got the kids going in circles in and out of the building with their hands up? i've watched the footage. it looks like a drill. >> reporter: jones says he now believes sandy hook did happen but argues his comments are protected by the first amendment. spotify pulled multiple episodes of his podcast for violating its hate content policies. jones's lawyers will be back in

court for a separate defamation case related to the parkland shooting. morgan radford, nbc news. >> from hot air to rain storms, let's toss it over -- >> could have said much worse. >> i was trying to restrain myself. >> being nice. good morning, everyone. we are watching the flood threat continuing today. it wasn't too bad out there yesterday. we have an area of red out there. some of the higher elevations at most risk through the spine of the appalachians includes roanoke and nashville. the ground is already saturated. more thunderstorms are expected. anywhere in the blue could be isolate the, too and that goes for the northern portions of the gulf all the way to pennsylvania. timif morning, numerous areas of rain but it spreads out by the time we get to thursday this afternoon notice most in the east of atlanta. hit and miss around washington, d.c. and then by the time we get to friday morning, still dealing with this area of moisture. then by friday afternoon it akarts to sne to the north. again, it's going to be widespread. just carry that umbrella and hopefully y

2 inches of rain. if you get caught in those storms, areas of florida will be dodging thunderstorms today, too. we continue to watch that fire threat out west. the heat is not going anywhere unfortunately for them. >> really tough to hear that. all right, bill, thank you. a bear in colorado trashed the inside of a car that was left unlocked. watch here, while looking for food, that bear cub broke into the subaru. got trapped inside. throwing stuff out. they opened the car door allowing the bear to run away. after all that destruction, the grizzly found a banana leaving half of it behind. you know, a little too cold, not too hot. not just right. >> i like that. just ahead, a hollywood taking on fox news, another a-lister. wildfires sweeping the west. latest trouble for firefighters.

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scorching wildfires continue to burn up the west coast leaving behind a path of destruction. in oregon the so-called south valley fire has burned over 3,000 acres. so far forcing hundreds of residents there to evacuate. according to the state's department of forestry, a person started that fire. a washington state known as the milestone 90 fire has grown to over 14,000 acres. firefighters have the flames 60% contained and some evacuation orders have been lifted. continuing to fuel the massive carr fire in california, nbc's a. miguel almaguer is there with more. >> reporter: this ferocious fire in mendocino county poised to make its biggest run. firefighters have been racing through this community all day long, but the blaze here is finally getting to the end of the road. 17,000 homes across california

under threat. in just a matter of minutes, this is one of several structures that we saw go up in flames. there's just nothing firefighters here can do. in redding, the damage is done. >> oh, honey. >> reporter: the kaplans lost it all. >> three children that were raised here and this is the only home they knew. >> reporter: immense loss and looming fear. miguel almaguer, nbc news. >> still to come, jennifer aniston reveals a personal fantasy that m be shared by millions. we'll explain as "early today" rolls on for a thursday. ♪harry's meeting clients...♪

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in today's quick hits, video captures a chinese family charging an electric scooter. it's smoking. the man tried to disconnect the charger, but seeing the smoke get heavier, he took his child and escaped just in time before that. >> goodness. according to variety, nicole kidman is in talks to play former fox news anchor grinch encarlson in the movie about the former fall of fox news chairman >> she is teaming up with steven spielberg to bring the woman's hours to the small screen. it is a book about women's fight for voting rights. >> jint ahead playing video games on your car's dashboard? tesla ceo wants to make it happen. plus a north carolina official is monitoring a growing sink hole. you're watching "early today." you got it from your parents. and they got it from theirs.

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welcome back. ooh, another big sink hole. the massive problem has been looming for five years in one north carolina town. the sink hole opened up when a drainage pipe beneath it wore out after a thunderstorm. residents have been anxiously watching it cave in deeper and deeper. also triggering flooding fears with more rain. lo to get it fixed. yeah, it's saying closed for repairs. we're heading out west where they would love a drop of rain. it's not going to happen. some are under fire weather watches. it's not just california. we have problems through many

areas of the interior west. the biggest fires are in california, but the firefighters are plenty busy in other states especially like colorado and oregon. we are going to see a change in the west. this is a much needed change for some, but not for all. the summer heat has been over the rockies today. no problem at all, redding 101. the pacific northwest, cooler a, a little trough will kick in and temperatures in redding by sunday should dip into the mid 90s which is a lot better. it was only about ten days ago they were about 115. >> i like that, i like hearing a lot better. bill, thank you. still ahead for those of you wishing for a friends reboot, you may have your wish. and parents playing fortnight. things that tell a story no one else could tell. because you're not cookie cutter. not just one thing. home is a tiny slice of earth that's all your own. so fill it with things that make it say, this is me.

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so there's this guy in a jail shower, right? maybe it's about prison rape. maybe it's about boys getting molested. either way, it's not getting the laugh you want. >> and then he says, it's not my soap. >> i'm here to tell you how to solve that problem. stop telling those [ bleep ] jokes. >> you're not funny. they've never been funny. >> you're a hack and ehe actor harry cruz with a fl frontal psa. you may recall cruz claimed he n entertainment executive. with humor only samantha bee and terry cruz can deliver. >> yeah. >> that's the way to do it. >> i wouldn't touch it. if you're a victim, you have some leeway. we have exciting news for you. que that famous theme song. looks like a friends reunion, there it is, could be in our future. that is if rachel green gets her way. a revealing interview with in

style magazine, jennifer aniston didn't shut down the idea of a reboot. she called the 90tion hs hit th greatest job she ever had. matthew la blanc may be the one holding it back. there are times she thinks about quitting, but more than anything the star says she's sick of being portrayed as a perpetual victim of har break. she points out when a couple breaks up in hollywood it's always the woman who is skorned and to that aniston says that's that. >> that would be great, though if this reboot actually happened with so many reboots these days. we'll see. >> come on, joey. >> you have heard of hiring tutors for math coaches for sorker. how about video games? "the wall street journal" reports parents are shelling out ten to $20 an hour for their kids to get expert training on the popular game fortnight. in june fortnight's player count reached 125 million. with its popularity parents say

there is growing pressure for their child to excel at it. with youtube videos playing and narrating, there are so many ways to go on every social media platform where they can make major bucks doing that. >> they can. it's like being a pro playeror . >> incentive. >> that's right. software could bring video game classic behind the wheel. tesla ceo elon musk tweeted the new v 9.0 software will allow drivers to play atari while in park. the update will be available in four weeks and includes three games. pole position, tempest and command. the update will begin to enable self-driving feech self-driving features in eligible features. >> in park, keyword safety first. >> thank for watching. than

well, good morning to you. happy thursday, august 2nd. we're more than halfway through the work week. this is a live picture of dublin. good morning, dublin, and good morning to you. thank you for joining us.

i'm scott mcgrew in for marcus washington. >> halfway through the year, too. i'm laura garcia. guess i'm getting ready for christmas. not really, not yet. have to make it through summer and the warm days. >> we're looking at temperatures in the 50s and 60s to start things off with patchy fog around san francisco, 52 degrees. here's your hououtlook nd have upper 80s in the forecast. but we'll be watching breezy conditions picking up for the