and they know it's a big fat con job. and they go into a room, and i guarantee you they laugh like hell at what they've pulled off on you and on the public. they laugh like hell. >> president trump attacking the democrats for going after his supreme court nominee. but in just a few hours brett kavanaugh will face a barrage of questions and be forced to defend himself from allegations made by multiple women, including christine blasey ford, who will testify first. we6 a p we have a preview of the blockbuster day ahead. the deputy attorney general's all-important meeting with mr. trump could now be in jeopardy. we'll explain. new ratgisele bundchen tell

about her allen's big toy story 4 reveal plus actor and comedian tim and how it was almost too emotional for him to endure. "early today" starts right now. good morning. i'm marlie hall. >> and i'm phillip mena. in just a few hours supreme court nominee brett kavanaugh and dr. christine blasey ford will testify under oath in front of the senate judiciary committee regarding ford's sexual assault claims. the highly anticipated hearing going forward even as new accusations surface, one coming from a client of attorney michael avenatti. in a sworn declaration julie swetnick says kavanaugh helped drug girls at high school parties who would then be gang-raped by others. kavanaugh firmly denies the allegations. and late last night a bombshell from the gop that could help support kavanaugh's denials. senator chuck grassley's office revealing committee interviews with two anonymous men, each of he was the one who assaulted ford, not kavanaugh. a democratic judiciary committee aide calling those 11th hour and

previously undisclosed revelations shameful a ofnd the. meanwhile, president trump is on the offense, slamming the new accuser and democrats. and as nbc's peter alexander tells us, republican senators are also skeptical. >> reporter: president trump defending his supreme court pick brett kavanaugh after a third woman's now come forward with accusations, blaming democrats for orchestrated partisan attacks. >> and they know it's a big fat con job. and they go into a room, and i guarantee you they laugh like hell. >> reporter: the comments after accusations made public by the woman's lawyer, fierce trump critic michael avenatti, who also represents porn star stormy ou have this other con artist, en ce oith another beauty. these are false accusations in certain cases. >> reporter: in a sworn statement julie swetnick says she attended more than ten house parties in the early 1980s and alleges she witnessed kavanaugh

and high school friend mark judge fondling and grabbing girls without their consent, saying "in approximately 1982 she was the victim of a gang or train rape." swetnick does not explicitly accuse kavanaugh or judge of being involved in her rape but says both were present and that she believes she'd been drugged. kavanaugh responding, "this is ridiculous and from the twilight zone. i don't know who this is and this never happened." judge's lawyer says judge vehemently denies miss swetnick's allegations. avenatti teased his release of this accusation for days. kavanaugh asked about it on fox news earlier this week. >> did you ever participate in or were you ever aware of any gang rape that happened at a party that you attended? >> that's totally false and outrageous. never done any such thing, known about any such thing. >> reporter: nbc news has not independently corroborated swetnick's claims, and avenatti would not make her available for an interview. top republicans expressing skepticism. >> here's what i think.

went to a party once with people being drugged and gang raped, you wouldn't go to the next one. she would tell someone. and you have an obligation if you see people being abused to come forward. >> reporter: it comes before kavanaugh and accuser christine blasey ford testifying. republicans hiring veteran sex crimes prosecutor rachel mitchell to handle questioning. ford's lawyers releasing the results of her polygraph test where she wrote down the details of her allegation and was asked if any of it was false. >> i'm extremely confident that dr. ford is being truthful when she answered those questions regarding her statement. >> reporter: polygraphs are generally inadmissible in court. meanwhile, according to his prepared remarks, kavanaugh will offer another forceful denial, writing in retrospect i said and did things in high school that make me cringe now. what i've been accused of is far more serious than juvenile misbehavior. i never did anything remotely resembling what dr. ford describes. peter alexander, nbc news, new york. >> and this morning news of yet

another allegation and denial from kavanaugh. this one an alleged physical assault happening when he was an adult. senator chuck grassley releasing an anonymous letter sent to another gop senator, claiming that in 1998 kavanaugh aggressively and sexually shoved a woman he was dating against a wall in front of witnesses. nbc's kasie hunt has more on how this allegation is stirring up the hill. casey, good morning. >> reporter: good morning to you. overnight, nbc news learning that the senate judiciary committee is looking into another anonymous allegation of physical assault against brett kavanaugh. now, he tells the committee that he denies it. the committee learned about it in a letter from a woman who says her own daughter witnessed an incident where judge kavanaugh drunk at the time in 1998 slammed the woman into a wall at a bar in washington, d.c. and this is one piece of why the mood on capitol hill could be changing. there are some republicans privately who are saying that while the public pushes full

speed ahead they're a little bit worried that things might be moving too quickly. and my sources are telling me that if there's another allegation, if it seems more credible, that it is possible that more republicans might voice their doubts about judge kavanaugh, and that would be especially true if there's a perception after today's hearing that he isn't telling the truth. >> all right. kasie hunt for us, thank you. today's hearing could ultimately decide whether kavanaugh is fit to serve on the country's highest court. this "new york daily news" cover spelling out the stakes as simply naughty or nice. the newest allegations prompting some democrats calling on kavanaugh to withdraw his nomination. here's nbc's kate snow with more on accuser number 3. >> reporter: on thursday in that senate hearing only one kavanaugh accuser will testify. but there are now three. the latest, julie swetnick. in a sworn declaration swetnick says she attended more than ten house parties with kavanaugh and his close friend mark judge in the early '80s and she observed

brett kavanaugh drink excessively at many of these parties and engage in abusive and physicallically aggressive behavior toward girls. swetnick says she witnessed efforts by mark judge, brett kavanaugh and others to cause girls to be inebriated and disoriented so they could then be gang-raped by a train of numerous boys. she then describes becoming the victim of one of these gang or train rapes where mark judge and brett kavanaugh were present in approximately 1982. "i was incapacitated without any consent and unable to fight off the boys raping me," she said. >> he doesn't know her. he's never met her. >> reporter: an attorney for kavanaugh called the new allegations outrageous. >> i've got to believe that if this was happening over two years with all these women and all these men someone else would have heard about it and would have reported it by now. >> reporter: all of the allegations involve drinking and multiple people on hand. christine blasey ford told the "washington post" last week that at a teen gathering in the early '80s kavanaugh pinned her to a bed on her back and groped her

over her clothes, attempting to pull off her one-piece bathing suit, as his friend mark judge laughed. mark judge has denied both ford and is swetnick's allegations. the other kavanaugh accuser debbie ram redd attend yale university with kavanaugh and told "the new yorker" a man exposed himself at a dorm room party. i remember a penis being in front of my face she told the new yorker, "and then hearing someone yell that kavanaugh did it." no one has come forward publicly to say they were present at the time of any of these three alleged incidents. kavanaugh's attorney today said if so many people were present during these parties in the latest allegation why wouldn't someone have said something? >> very common in the '80s. there were very few resources for victims of sexual violence. they were kids. possibly drinking or doing drugs, being in places they shouldn't have been. >> reporter: three women now coming forward ahead of critical decision. kate snow, nbc news, new york. the senate judiciary committee is laying out the rules for today's hearing.

while we know the opening remarks from judge kavanaugh and dr. ford, it's anyone's guess what will follow. for more on what might happen today let's get to nbc's tracie potts in d.c. republicans are bringing in outside counsel for this questioning. how's this going to work? >> so rachel mitchell is coming up with her own questions. she has consulted with the republicans who hired her but yesterday report thely worked through how she is going to question both dr. ford and judge kavanaugh. here's a rundown of what to expect today. this hearing gets started at 10:00 a.m. at that point we'll hear from both sides, the republican chair and a statement from the top democrat on the committee. dr. ford will be sworn in and give an opening statement. there's no time limit for her opening statement. and then later we'll see judge kavanaugh sworn in for his opening statement as well. each senator gets one round of five-minute questions and they're going to alternate between democrats and republicans.

the republicans will have to yield their time to the attorney to ask that question. now, in terms of how long this is going to last today, we have certainly seen some long hearings here on capitol hill recently. but there's no word on he exactly how long the full hearing may last. it depends on we know they're five-minute rounds of questions but it depends to some degree on what those questions are and how long the answers are. >> it's going to be a monumental day there in washington. tracie, thank you. nbc's live coverage of the hearing will begin this morning at 9:30 eastern. president trump says he may push back his planned meeting today with his embattled deputy attorney general. he's slated to talk with rod rosenstein for the first time since an explosive report from the "new york times." >> nbc's kristen welker has more on the president's comments. kristen, good morning. >> reporter: phillip, another remarkable moment. president trump said "we'll see" when asked if he plans to fire his embattled deputy attorney general rod rosenstein. adding he would certainly prefer not to remove rosenstein.

notably he said he may delay a meeting with rosenstein that was set for later today to keep the focus on the kavanaugh hearing. the drum roll started when "the new york times" reported rosenstein discussed invoking the 25th amendment to remove the president from office. rosenstein, who was summoned to the white house monday to meet with the chief of staff, has called the report inaccurate. and the stakes just couldn't be higher. the deputy attorney general oversees the russia investigation. phillip? >> another major story playing out there. kristen, thank you. jaw-dropping pictures from space show an off the charts massive super typhoon as it heads toward skrn. this powerful pacific storm is currently capable of striking with a force eke toll a caty 2ajor hurricane in the atlantic. trami as it's called has already brought widespread flooding across asia as it threats even more severe damage and enorms loss of life. this following on the heels of typhoon jebi which brought a record high storm surge to osaka, japan. the eye of superstorm trami is

expected to hilt japan by this weekend. >> we've seen japan bermsver th summer. bill, good morning. >> those pictures were incredible. the resolution of an eye in a typhoon that looked like that. that was good stuff. it could be an equivalent storm for them in the days ahead. what we're watching for us is on south texas getting soaked with a lot of heavy rain. we've finally seen much of the heavy rain exiting out of the nooeft northeast while a little storm, a little ripple's going to develop. we're going to see more rainfall in the next two days throughout the southern appalachians. two inches call it is going to roll through the southeast and up through the appalachians. washington, d.c., philadelphia,

and even new york city toward tomorrow morning. this weekend we're going to be talking about fall weather and some cool weather too. northern plains, break out the skrakts. >> we're looking forward to that, bill. thank you. in stayed's quick hits mcdonald's says it's going to be removing aufshl flavors, preservatives, and colors from their burgers. that includes the cheese, the mac sauce and its buns. so far nearly 2/3 of its restaurants have already made the switch. president trump's tariffs are hitting ford sales pretty hard. ceo jim hackett said his company has suffered $1 billion in lost profits thanks to tariffs on metals imported into the u.s. the city of akron, ohio is cracking down on pet owners whose dogs won't stop barking. the city counselsale propocounc proposing a $250 fine and a month in jail. rapid wrinkle rep® works in just one week. with the fastest retinol formula available. it's clinically proven to work on fine lines and wrinkles.

one week? that definitely works! rapid wrinkle repair®. and for dark spots, rapid tone repair. neutrogena®. see what's possible. jimmy's gotten used to his whole room smelling like sweaty odors. yup, he's gone noseblind. he thinks it smells fine, but his mom smells this... luckily for all your hard-to-wash fabrics... ...there's febreze fabric refresher. febreze doesn't just mask, it eliminates odors you've... ...gone noseblind to. and try febreze unstopables for fabric. with up to twice the fresh scent power, you'll want to try it... ...again and again and maybe just one more time. indulge in irresistible freshness. febreze unstopables. breathe happy. ♪ it looks like emily cooking dinner for ten. ♪ the beat goes on. it looks like jonathan on a date with his wife. ♪ la-di-la-di. entresto is a heart failure medicine that helps your heart... so you can keep on doing what you love.

in the largest heart failure study ever, entresto was proven superior at helping people stay alive and out of the hospital. it helps improve your heart's ability to pump blood to the body. don't take entresto if pregnant; it can cause harm or death to an unborn baby. don't take entresto with an ace inhibitor or aliskiren, or if you've had angioedema with an ace or arb. the most serious side effects are angioedema, low blood pressure, kidney problems, or high blood potassium. ask your doctor about entresto for heart failure. yeah! entrust your heart to entresto. ♪ the beat goes on. by the looks of it supermodel gisele bundchen has everything. millions from her modeling contracts, married to an nfl superstar, mother and stepmom to three kids. >> but for the first time bundchen is opening up about

private mental health struggles the public's never known about until now. here's nbc's anne thompson. >> reporter: in photograph after photograph gisele bundchen looks picture perfect. but in her new memoir the supermodel reveals at 23 she suffered panic attacks and suicidal thoughts, writing "i remember that i felt so helpless that i questioned whether i wanted to live." her life then seemingly charmed. a $25 million modeling contract with victoria's secret and dating actor leo dicaprio. the panic attacks, she says, made small enclosed spaces like subways and elevators, even her new york apartment unbearable. "maybe it will be easier if i just jump. it will be all over. there's a solution. i can get out of this." bundchen joins nba player kevin love, actress emma stone, nbc's carson daly, and other famous names revealing their struggles with panic attacks. >> it helps address barriers of

stigma that prevent people from getting the care they need to relieve their suffering and save their lives. >> reporter: panic disorder affects 6 million adults. women are twice as likely to be offended as men. bundchen says she gave up cigarettes and caffeine, took up yoga and meditation, and refocused her life. now 38, a wife, mom, and model, revealing the picture isn't always what it seems. anne thompson, nbc news, new york. >> i hope we've learned by now it doesn't matter what you look like, we all have problems that way. just ahead, it's not crying. it's sobbing. with style. buzz light-year himself, tim allen, opening up about "toy story 4's" emotional ending. new d-con. so d-licious mice risk their lives for it.

now 10 times tastier to mice than the lead competitor. mice love it to death. ♪ tired of wrestling with seemingly impossible cleaning tasks? using wipes in the kitchen, and sprays in the bathroom can be ineffective. try mr. clean magic eraser with durafoam. simply add water, and use in your kitchen for burnt on food, in your bathroom to remove soap scum, and on walls to remove scuffs and marks. it erases 4x more permanent marker per swipe. for tough kitchen and bath messes, use mr. clean magic eraser with durafoam. brand power. helping you buy better. this flu season, and your sister-in-law's... chatty coworker's... youngest daughter's... entire judo class. one shot can make a world of difference. walgreens has specially trained pharmacists, that know which flu shot is right for you. protecting the world... over 60 million flu shots and counting.

starts with protecting yours. walgreens trusted since 1901.

you've got to think real hard about this. you've got people that need you now. >> i'm taking the fight. >> the internet is hyped over the newest trailer for "creed 2." the video features adonis creed, played by michael b. jordan, back in the ring with his trainer, rocky balboa, played by sylvester stallone, preparing for his toughest fight yet. the movie hits theaters on november 21st. i can't wait. looks like it's going to be good. >> yeah. another movie that looks like it's going to be good. highly anticipated isy pixar's "toy story 4." but tim allen isn't giving anything away. the d actor who plays buzz lightyear appeared on "the is. >> i've got to resist getting

installment and just how good i emotional because i don't want to give it away, but this is an incredibly great story. it is so emotional. it's so funny. it's so big, the idea of what they've come up with. i'm startled -- 3 was i thought amazing. this -- couldn't even get through the last scene. okay? >> "toy story 4" will be in theaters in june. still ahead, flu deaths hit a 40-year high. plus, unleashing the beast. an inside look at the newest presidential limo when "early today" returns. take your razor, yup. alright, up and down, never side to side, shaquem. you got it? come on, get bac quem, you a second behind your brother, stay focused. can't nobody beat you, can't nobody beat you. hard work baby, it gonna pay off. you got this. with the one hundred and forty-first pick, the seattle seahawks select. alright, you got it, shaquem. alright, let me see. brushing only reaches 25% of your mouth. listerine® cleans virtually 100%.

helping to prevent gum disease and bad breath. never settle for 25%. always go for 100. bring out the bold™ mauntil i held her.diabetes wasn't my top priority. i found my tresiba® reason. now i'm doing more to lower my a1c. once daily tresiba® controls blood sugar for 24 hours for powerful a1c reduction. tresiba® is a long-acting insulin used to control high blood sugar in adults with diabetes. don't use tresiba® to treat diabetic ketoacidosis, during episodes of low blood sugar, or i don't share needles or insulin pens. don't reuse needles. the most common side effect is low blood sugar, confusion, and headache. check your blood sugar. low blood sugar can be serious and may be life-threatening. injection site reactions may occur. tell your prescriber about all medicines you take and all your medical conditions. taking tzds with insulins like tresiba® may cause serious side effects like heart failure. your insulin dose shouldn't be changed without asking your prescriber. get medical help right away if you have trouble breathing,

fast heartbeat, extreme drowsiness, swelling of your face, tongue or throat, dizziness or confusion. i found my tresiba® reason. find yours. ask your health care provider about tresiba®. i love you, basement guest bathroom. your privacy makes you my number 1 place to go number 2. i love you, but sometimes you stink. febreze air effects doesn't just mask, it cleans away odors. because the things and try febreze small spaces to clean away odors for up to 30 days. breathe happy with febreze. breathe happy with febreze. could light up the room? aveeno® positively radiantghhn for positively radiant skin that lasts. aveeno®. naturally beautiful results®.

oh, this is the scene in connecticut from flash flooding. road collapse. look at all that erosion. officials want residents never to drive through flooded roadways because that could be underneath. that's a very dangerous situation. thankfully we didn't have any injuries there. all right. the big story this weekend, fall arriving in a big way in the northern plains. cool air is coming down starting today. only 53 in duluth. it's warm to the south. that temperature still in the 70s and the 60s. as we go to friday look at that fog, o 4 a little cool through the great lakes. >> that time year, bill. thank you. just ahead our shot of the day. how a seal welcomed a kayaker to his neighborhood. my house, fool. to my parents. psst! craig and sheila broke up. what, really? craig and shelia broke up!? no, craig!? what happened? i don't know. is she okay? ♪ craig and sheila broke up!

craig and sheila!? ♪ as long as office gossip travels fast, you can count on geico saving folks money. craig and sheila broke up! what!? fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more on car insurance. no matter how much you clean, does your house still smell stuffy? that's because your home is filled with soft surfaces that trap odors and release them back into the room. so, try febreze fabric refresher. febreze finds odors trapped in fabrics and cleans them away as it dries. use febreze every time you tidy up to keep your whole house smelling fresh air clean. fabric refresher even works for clothes you want to wear another day. make febreze part of your clean routine for whole home freshness.

in this mornin faces up to 80 years in prison after pleading guilty in the deaths of her two daughters. investigators say 20-year-old amanda hawkins left her 1-year-old and 2-year-old in a hot car overnight while she visited friends in june of last year. she pled guilty to all charges including two counts of child endangerment. her sentencing is scheduled for december. federal officials are now opening up an investigation into discrimination against asian-americans at yale. a new jersey-based group is accusing the ivy league school of unfairly denying admission to asian-americans based on their race. while the education department dismissed the same group's complaints against brown and dartmouth it says there i yale's practices. this investigation comes just a month after the justice department sided with a separate asian-american group suing harvard over similar complaints.

the cdc is sounding the alarm as we approach flu season. a stunning 80,000 americans died from the flu last winter. that's the highest toll in at least four decades. last year's strain was especially dangerous for young children and the elderly. president trump's got a brand new tricked-out million-dollar ride. it's appropriately named the beast, and it is nearly 20,000 pounds. it's a stretch cadillac xt-6 sedan. it's built to withstand almost every kind of terror attack or assassination attempt. with a $1.15 million pricetag, the heavily armored car comes with an extensive range of medical supplies on board including a refrigerator stocked with the president's own blood type in case he's injured. the beast has eight-inch-thick walls and multilayered windows and can be sealed against biochemical attacks too. other james bond-like tricks include the ability to put out a smoke screen or fire tear gas, lay down oil slicks to send those chasing vehicles spinning out of control.

even the door handles of the souped-up car can be electrified to keep others from getting inside. i mean, that's cooler than the batmobile i've got to say. >> that is tricked out for sure. >> yeah. obviously it's got to withstand all those sort of terrorist attacks. just to be in it, you know, and to know you're so fortified. >> yeah. it's like a tank but better-looking. >> that's right. it's the slap being heard around the world. while kayaking in new zealand a man had a bizarre encounter with a seal. you see it there. an octopus. and it was all caught on camera. the unsuspecting kayaker got slapped in the face as he was paddling with friends. this incredible moment captured by a friend's gopro shows the seal coming out of the water, octopus in mouth, swinging the animal before slipping back into the water. i guess they didn't like him being there. >> that dude got totally fish slapped and we allks f starting thursday with us. i'm phillip mena. >> and i'm marlie hall. the news continues right here on nbc. ad lib live picture - sfo

good thursday morning to you. 4:30 right now as we take a live look out at sfo. good way to wake up. you're either going to work or coming here. thank you for landing right here with us on "today in the bay." >> i'm here. >> another nice day? >> another nice day. it's going to be one of our last days of seeing these really hot much anticipated change in the form of some rain. before i get to that, let me get to your temperatures right out the door. 53 degrees right now in san francisco. 55 in oakland. 57 in hayward. and 58 in san jose. notice the 40s in the north bay. again today it is going to be mostly clear,