breaking news. gunned down in cold blood, popular rapper nipsey hussle killed in a shooting outside his los angeles store. the suspect remains at large. >> former vice-president joe biden responds to allegations of an awkward kiss. this morning we'll hear from the democrat making the claims. >> hurricane flourence may have swept through north carolina six months ago. u.s. marines are still waiting for help to repair their base. >> new polls this morning on the mueller probe and president trump's approval ratings from nbc news and "wall street journal." >> plus miami duke falls as star player zion which wiilliamson p

to make millions. "early today" kicks off your april fools day. >> good morning. i'm marlie hall. >> i'm frances rivera. breaking overnight, the police manhunt continues in the shooting death of an influential rapper, nipsey hussle. his sudden murder has sent shock waves through los angeles and the music industry. >> we have lost a legend. we have lost someone who has inspired others, who have came from the ground all the way to the top. and we need you. >> police say hussle was shot 13 times outside his clothing store and two other men were shot and survived. a suspect remains at large. nipsey hussle, a grammy nominated rapper was known for much more than his music. he is being recognized for giving back to his community. the artist invested in the los angeles education center that gave people access to science and technology classes. director ava duvernay described him as bright, genuine and forward thinking. singer rhianna said this doesn't make any sense. my spirit is shaken by this.

and lebron james said he had just spoken to the rapper the other day, telling him how proud i was. authorities have not uncovered details about a motive in the shooting. the l.a. times reports a law enforcement source says it was probably a gun-related -- gang-related attack as well. hours before the incident. the hip-hop artist tweeted having strong enemies is a blessing. rapper nipsey hussle died at the age of 33. >> former vice-president joe biden is apologizing after an allegation emerged that he inappropriately kissed a woman in 2014. at the time, lucy flores was the 2014 democratic nominee for nevada lieutenant governor. she says before a campaign event, mr. biden placed his hands on her shoulders, smelled her hair, and gave her an uncomfortable kiss on the back of the head. flores spoke about the incident with our kasie hunt last night. >> i don't believe that it was a bad intention. i'm not in any way suggesting that i felt sexually assaulted

or sexually harassed. i felt invaded. i felt that there was a violation of my personal space. there has to be at least an awareness on his part that says, i might not have intended it in that way, but i understand because of the power difference there, because of the context, because we have absolutely no relationship, that i shouldn't have kissed you in that way. >> nbc's mike memoli has more on the response from biden. >> reporter: good morning, marlie. former vice-president joe biden hasn't yet announced his candidacy for the democratic nomination in 2020, but he's already on the defensive. responding sunday to allegations of an inappropriate campaign encounter in 2014. in a statement, the vice-president says, in my many years of on the campaign trail and in public life, i have offered countless hand shakes, hugs, expressions of affection, support and comfort. not once ever did i believe i acted inappropriately. if it is suggested i did so, i

will listen respectfully, but it was never my intention. the vice-president is responding to the claims of lucy flores, a nevada candidate for lieutenant governor in 2014. she says that at a campaign event just days of abobefore th election, the vice-president came up from behind putting his hands on her shoulders and kissed her head leaving her feeling confused. if biden is to be a candidate, she feels this is an issue that needs to be discussed in the campaign. aides to the vice-president are saying that at this point this is not affecting his plans. he intends to potentially make an announcement as soon as the next few weeks. marlie? >> all right, mike, thank you. >> the white house is ready to move past the mueller report and look toward 2020. president trump is gearing up for another big push to build the bordered wall this week with a trip planned to arizona. the white house also doubled down this weekend on the president's threat to shutdown the u.s. border to mexico.

nbc's tracie potts joins us from d.c. while the republicans are ready to move past it, democrats are saying not so fast. >> reporter: they aren't sure what will come out in this report. take a look at the numbers from the nbc/"wall street journal" possible. the majority of americans haven't cleared the president on this. 29 say it will clear the president of wrong dong, but 40% say no, and a whopping 31% is unsure. interestingly, in that 31% is a pretty good split of republicans, democrats and independents. meantime, president trump is threatening to shutdown the border with mexico. he's also trying to pull funds from central america, saying there are too many caravans headed to the u.s. shutdowning down the border could affect trade and raise prices here. they ask is he serious about that? >> it certainly isn't a bluff and you can take him seriously. 4,000 migrants apprehended in

one day recently. >> reporter: so, we are watching what happens this week on the border. and also on health care, the other big issue that congress is taking up. the president is promising a new plan. the administration is pushing the courts to get rid of the affordable care act, but it's not clear republicans have anything yet to replace it with. >> all right, tracie potts for us. tracie, thank you. >> a case of a mistaken uber ride may have led to the death of a 21-year-old college student. samantha josephson was found dead after a night out with friends. police say she called an uber ride around 2:00 a.m. after being separated from her roommates. josephson then hopped in the back of a chevy impala thinking it was her ride. her body was found hours later in a field. last night friends and family gathered at the university of south carolina's campus for a vigil. her father seymour says he wants to warn others. >> i've gone through this and i don't want anybody else to ever go through this again.

i can't tell you how painful this is. >> police have arrested nathaniel roland after finding blood in the car that matches josephson. he will be charged with kidnapping and murder. >> a malaysian woman is sentenced to death -- in the death of kim jong-un's 0 brother. she has received a sentence of three years and four months. her lawyer is optimistic she will be free by may. she is one of two women accused of using a nerve agent to kill the half brother of the north korean leader. her co-defendant unexpectedly walked free last month. >> controversy is brewing in georgia after the house of representatives passed a controversial anti-abortion bill known as the fetal heartbeat bill. the legislation would ban abortions after a heartbeat is detected in an embryo. it could be as early as six weeks into pregnancy. now the bill is still waiting to be signed by the governor, but

alyssa milano and other hollywood celebs are threatening to pull production from georgia if the bill is signed. she tweeted this letter urging governor brian kemp to vote against it. it is signed by 50 actors including christina applegate, amy schumer to name a few. the state rakes in millions or billions of dollars in revenue each year from tv and film productions. the governor is set to sign the bill on tuesday. >> all right. turning now to march madness and this is it. >> he's in attack mode. >> he gives it a face guard. open look. he hits it! >> gets it to barrett. he's in the paint. he splashes, he shoots! and he'll shoot a couple. >> with just five seconds on the clock and down two, duke's r.j. barrett misses the first of two free throws as michigan state inbounds the ball and runs out

the clock on the tournament's top ceded blue devils. the spartans take down zion and head to the final four 68-67. >> going to get a touch to go to their strength. >> and we are tied at 37. brown steps in. turns around, oh! bryce brown is smoking hot! >> that would post him in the starting lineup off the foul -- >> the battle for the midwest final, auburn forces kentucky into overtime. the tigers' momentum proved too much for the number two wild cats. auburn makes it to their first-ever final four 77-71. >> your final four match up on saturday will be michigan state against texas tech. and then virginia taking on auburn. >> a sign that spring is in the air, the cherry blossoms in washington, d.c. are near peak bloom. the cherry trees which were a gift from japan in 1912 are said

to have reached the puffy white stage. the park service says the next stage, peak bloom, can come any day now. the cherry blossoms are a huge tourist attraction that draws 1.5 million people annually. i can see why. they're beautiful. >> they're beautiful when they start to fall, too. it's like raining pink out there. let's see if it's going to start to feel like spring we're getting april started here. >> saturday was mobbed, by the way. one of the most crowded days was in the 70s. a traffic jamb. here's the deal. we had that cold front go through on sunday and we have 24 million people under freeze warnings from arkansas all the way through areas of north carolina. if we did some of that early planting may be paying the price. temperatures are already down in the 30s. in the 20s in the ohio valley, even as far south as mississippi and tupelo were at 35 degrees. as far as the forecast for today goes, this time of year with sunshine should warm up nicely. d.c. 53. we'll recover 48 this central

florida, only 60 degrees in jacksonville today for a high. people on spring break not happy in areas of south carolina, north carolina right down through florida. >> thanks so much, bill. in today's quick hits, the rolling stones' later tour is on hold while mick jagger receives medical treatment. the band didn't elaborate on the 75-year-old singer's condition but is said he is expected to make a complete recovery. >> lebron james is recovering from a groin injury. >> police officers in haymarket, virginia, are laying down the law. their new road sign is going viral this morning. it warns drivers to slow down or police will call their mother. that could be worse than jail for some people. we'll be right back.

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caught on camera, a stunning rescue by the coast guard after a boat capsizes in the gulf of mexico. it all happened about three miles off the coast of bay port, florida. three men and a 12-year-old boy were clinging to their life jackets after their fishing boat sank. the coast guard's infrared video shows them being carried up one by one in baskets to a rescue helicopter. there were no reported injuries. >> in florida, a wildfire spreads rapidly, fueled by debris from hurricane michael. it grew to at least 500 acres and forced several families to evacuate their homes. crews are struggling to reach the fire in a swampy area with many downed trees just outside of panama city. as of last update, the fire was 40% contained. >> six months ago, hurricane florence swept through north carolina leaving a trail of destruction in its wake. and while many in the region have begun to rebuild, the marines at camp lejeune are still waiting for critical repairs at their base. nbc's courtney cuby has more.

>> reporter: six months ago marines were training in this classroom. today ceilings are caved in, and mold is everywhere. more than one of 900 buildings here ravaged by hurricane florence. >> we're here doing our work, but the conditions we're working in are like we're in iraq or afghanistan. >> reporter: the colonel is one of the top officers. >> is this the way we want our marines and civilian marines to be working in these conditions? >> reporter: brig a dear ben watson oversees all the based on the east coast. >> none of the buildings have been repaired since hurricane damage? >> that's right. >> reporter: the price tag stands at $3.6 billion. but so far, these marines haven't seen a dime. in a memo obtained by nbc news, marine corps commandant robert neller warned that a lack of funds for hurricane recovery combined with negative factors, including unplanned southwest border operations, have imposed an unacceptable risk to marine corps combat readiness and

solvency. as the senate debates, ate disaster relief bill north carolina senator richard burr tells nbc news it is unacceptable that camp lejeune and other north carolina military bases are still waiting on disaster relief we first requested last fall. the marine corps has moved money around to pay for temporary repairs, like removing moldy drywall and replacing tarps on roofs. it's not just buildings on base affected. from the air we look down on oslo, beach, where marines learn to attack from lan and sea. but because of erosion, training has been scaled back. >> it just becomes harder and harder and we ask more and more of our service members and their families to accomplish the same mission. >> reporter: with so much to rebuild, marines are already bracing for the next hurricane season. now, less than three months away. courtney kube, nbc news, camp lejeune, north carolina. >> just ahead, carrie underwood's daughter just dised her back to grammar school.

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there were several questionable incidences involving the president's team, but we cannot prove a criminal connection. >> no collusion, no diggity. >> i'm bummed we're not going to

see more of robert da neniro no that the mueller report is done. a whole new heights, for real, they are adding a new height verification tool for men. the company says, quote, it has come to our attention that most of you 5'10"-ers -- actually 5'6", the charade must stop. users will now be able to input their height along with a screen shot of them stand being next to a commercial building. so if they put in the right number, the users will get a height verified badge on their profile. so who knew that this was such an issue? >> yeah. >> men, if you're going out on a date and you're somebody who is 5'6", the female and you're dating somebody who claims they're 5'10", that's going to be pretty obvious. >> right, the second you meet. all right. singer carrie underwood shared some fun mom moments this weekend. the country star welcomed a new

baby nearly ten weeks ago and shared a happy post workout selfie on saturday. but on sunday, she shared that her 4-year-old son called her carefree underwear saying it was basically elementary school all over again. bachelor star colton underwood shared his sympathies. try cotton underway. that's hilarious. >> anybody with that last name may have heard it all, all throughout life. it's kind of cute when you hear it from your own kid like that. they have nothing to worry about. their last name is fisher. mom is the underwood. >> there you go. >> still ahead, the fur that flies, man's best friend is coming to rescue in avalanches. you're watching "early today."

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the most common side effect is bone and muscle ache. if you'd rather be home, ask your doctor about neulasta onpro. pay no more than $5 per dose with copay card. welcome back to "early today." this is the part where we make francis and marlie and a lot of you happy here's our april outlook. the warm colors show we are expecting above average temperatures in almost all of the lower 48. we're not expecting below average anywhere. just average in texas and especially warm as we go through the areas of the southeast and up through the east coast. we'll see how that plays out as far as the rainy weather goes. it does look wetter than normal in areas along the gulf coast and the west coast with average type precipitation in the northeast and ohio valleys. i got smiles, little smiles. >> thank you very much for this april 1st april fools day. thank you. ahead, dumbo soars to the top of the box office. how much did movies make over the weekend?

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♪ ♪ disney's "dumbo" flew to the top of the box office over the weekend bringing in an estimated $45 million. jordan peele's horror film "us" earned more than 33 million in the second weekend. captain marvel took in an additional 25 1/2 million, making it about 10 million shy of earning $1 billion worldwide. >> and if you're craving some childhood nostalgia, the block buster store in bend, oregon, is now the only one in the entire world. all the corporate-owned stores closed by 2013, but this privately-owned store still licenses the block buster brand. it carries around 14,000 titles

featureling new releases and old classics. the planet's lone block buster still uses an ibm computer from the '90s. dvd rentals range from 99 cents to $9. >> a dog answered the call of duty after an avalanche. nbc's gadi schwartz showed how the four legged rescuer worked after the clock was ticking. >> reporter: every morning starts like this for franky. deep in the utah mountains at snowbird ski resort franky might not be aware but he and his trainer are waiting for the worst. >> a report of an avalanche. >> copy that, we're on the way. >> reporter: what he does know is that once on the mountain, it's full speed ahead. he's on a mission. franky's goal? to save me. i'm buried 7 feet under the snow. as part of a training exercise simulating an avalanche. >> if this was the real thing, i would be stuck in here in concrete-like snow unable to move.

>> search. >> reporter: but will franky be able to find me? his nose sniffing, feet digging. and tail wagging. soon -- he's digging his way down, his head finally peeking through. >> good boy, good boy clm. how did he find me? >> what he's searching for is the smell of a person under the snow and rising up out of the snow. >> reporter: man's best friend on the slopes and even buried under snow. gadi schwartz, nbc news, snowbird, utah. >> wow, that is something else, that franky around just for a companion, but knowing he's helping save lives even better >> right. and looks cute while he's doing it. speaking of cute, some cute giraffes got to experience the wonders of spring for the first time. the brookfield zoo in chicago shared this video of three giraffes having a field day and soaking up the sun as they were given access to their outdoor habitat for the first time this season. i can't wait to get out in my

outdoor habitat. >> no, i'm going to be running just like that as soon as we start feeling like spring with these temperatures. can't wait. >> thanks for watching. i'm marlie hall. >> i'm frances rivera. it's april fools it )s april foy

april 1st, 2019. a good morning to you. 4:40. happy friday. haha. april fool's. today is april 1st. take a look at the beautiful bay bridge. no joke about that. this is today in the bay. i'm marcus washington. >> i'm laura garcia washington. it is early a monday morning. vianey is in for kari. >> we have activity on our radar. tracking incoming rain again. we have showers. look on the doppler radar. a