it is a bad day and a bad week for this presiden country if he is asking for political dirt on an opponent. >> raising the stakes in the impeachment inquiry. democrats step on the gas in their investigation as president trump fires back with his most heated attacyet. a desperate manhunt under way this morning after four dangerous inmates escaped an ohio jail. the latest in the multi-state search terror on the school bus shocking new video of a washington driver, accused of dui with young students on board. the saints march past the cowboys with a defensive showstopper. highlights from a wild week four in the nfl "early today" starts right now >> good morning.

i'm gigi stone-woods. >> and i'm frances rivera. a new week and a new phase of the impeachment inquiry on capitol hill house intelligence committee chairman adam schiff early as th congress on a two-week recess. the members most focused on impeachment will remain in d.c. through the break. at the white house, president trump is mounting a fiery defense, lashing out with nearly 80 tweets throughout the weekend, last night directing his ire at the whistle-blower saying, quote, "i deserve to meet my accuser" and that he wants schiff questioned at the highest level for fraud and treason. the president also adding that he wants to meet not only his accuser, but also the person who gave the information ending with "was this person spying on the u.s. president big consequences." meanwhile, a cbs news poll finds that the majority of americans now back impeachment with 55% voicing approval of the inquiry. nbc's kelly o'donnell has more from d.c

>> reporter: the ukraine call whistle-blower, unseen, unidentified, but soon to have a voice behind closed doors at the house intelligence committee. >> you expect the whistle-blower to testify, and if so, when? >> yes and i hope very soon >> reporter: one hurdle, the whistle-blower's lawyers need security clearance to join him or her before the committee. >> and we'll keep obviously riding shotgun to make sure that the acting director doesn't delay in that clearance process. >> reporter: lawyers for the whistle-blower tell nbc news that all agree that protecting the whistle-blower's identity is paramount, and so far no date or time has yet been set. >> the president is the whistle-blower here. >> reporter: the white house defended president trump's conversation with ukraine's president as an appropriate request to root out corruption while attacking the whistle-blower's motives >> the president of the united states is the whistle-blower, and this individual is a

saboteur trying to undermine a democratically elected government. >> reporter: the presidenthims f accused the whistle-blower's sources of unpatriotic misconduct >> who is the person who gave the whistle-blower the information? because that's delos a spy. >> reporter: trump defender lindsey graham from saturday's partner. >> charmingly great host. >> reporter: to sunday morning advocate, questioning how the whistle-blower learned secret information used in the formal complaint secondhand >> what i want to know, who told the whistle-blower about the transcript who told the whistle-blower the united states between the and a foreign leader. >> reporter: nbc news has learned the acting chief of staff and white house counsel in coming days will make a presentation to the president to argue future a coordinated legal communications and political strategy, a rapid response team inside the white house to face impeachment.

frances? >> kelly, thank you. a multi-state manhunt continues this morning after are in ohio police say four inmates overpowered two correction officers and escaped with the help of at least one person on the outside. the sheriff believes that at least one of the men might be found driving a 2019 gray dodge charger. for more on this story, here is nbc's dan sheneman >> reporter: a manhunt is on authorities trying to zero in on four escaped inmates, searching in ohio, pennsylvania, and west virginia >> four prisoners escaped by assaulting a correctional officer, will be in a charcoal gray dodge charger. >> reporter: the inmates used a homemade weapon in the escape, stole a jail vehicle and drove to a getaway car that was waiting for them. >> our detectiveshave established that the inmates had the assistance icaping from at least one individual on the outside. >> reporter: the getaway vehicle was found in pennsylvania four hours away one escaped inmate, christopher clemente spotted at a shopping

mall in greensburg, pennsylvania the mall was cleared the escape in the ohio town of gallia police is the third since august the 22-bed jail is more than 50 years old. >> our jail was outdated and insufficient to meet the needs and the numbers of the criminals and the types of criminals that we are currently housing >> it's concerning it's an old jail they've been beating around the bush for years trying to -- all they do is talk about it building a new one, and you don't see no action. >> reporter: as the search for the escaped inmates guess on, a community's dan sheneman, nbc news new problems for boeing. the faa is ordering inspections after a crack showed up in some of the older 737 next generation jets the cracks appeared along the plane's pickle forks they attach the wings to the rest of the plane structure. in a statement boeing said the

issue was found on a small number othf ancompany hatiy afts dr wa dui. that driver, 48-year-old catherine macarone has since resigned from her job. a fifth grade student is being credited with calling police to report her being intoxicated now there is shocking new video of her alleged erratic behavior. here is nbc's sam brock. >> reporter: good morning. when this happened a few weeks ago, the 911 call from a 10-year-old boy was enough to raise alarm bells for parents, but now bus cam video which came through a public records request paint at whole new picture of the >> reporter: for the first stunning video coming to light of elementary students shrieking with terror earlier this month as their washington state school bus driver, allegedly drunk at erratically.>> am crazy. i am totally crazy i am so fun crazy.

because i love rides. >> she was drunk, because she passed three red light, and she got on side roads. >> reporter: a 10-year-old boy on that bus phoned 911 once he got home >> as a system, this should not have happened. >> reporter: the long view school district now promising to screen drivers before they get behind the wheel >> yeah, yeah! >> reporter: 48-year-old katherine macarone ran two routes, one with high schoolers, and then another with elementary students, in total up to 90 kids even continuing her rants to an empty bus. >> because my marriage sucks. >> reporter: before dispatch forced her to the side of the road according to the police report, her blood alcohol level level more than double the legal limit for a bus driver, and she advised deputies about taking anxiety and sleep medication she faces charges of dui and reckless endangerments, and is no longer employed by the school district >> we do have basic rules!

>> rthis day, many of those rules apparently smashed for some soul-searching ahead for district officials sam brock, nbc news. now a defensive showcase capping off a crazy day of football sunday night football set up shop in the bayou with the undefeated cowboys facing off against the saints both offenses sputtered. ezekiel elliott punched the only touchdown of the game in the third. ultimately, four field goals by new orleans was enough to win it, 12-10. another defensive clash in buffalo with the patriots taking on the bills new england jumping out into an early lead after blocking a punt and running it for the touchdown. buffalo's never really recovered, going on the lose 16-10. the bills may have lost, but two fans won over heartsr quarterbacy escorted the bride down the field and the couple said i do at the 50 yard

mark patrick mahomes brought their magic to the motown there. the lions and chief traded leads throughout the game. but matt stafford and company couldn't keep up the chiefs won 34-30 and for giants fans out there, it looks like danny dimes is a real deal. new york rookie quarterback blew the doors off. winning 24-3 and a quick look at this sunday's high-flying fantasy players. chris godwin put up 41 points in tampa bay's highest scoring victory every. nick chubb was behind with 39 points followed by the panthers christian mccaffrey. jordan howard and robert woods it may be fall, but parts of the northwest are feeling a winter blast snow has been piling up in parts of northern california, oregon, and washington state well, some areas continue to s morning.hreat of blizzard montana's governor declared an

intelligence reporting as much as 3 feet of snow has buried parts of the state well, in terms of how widespread and strong this storm has already been, the national weather service says it could end up being the strongest on record for early fall. >> crazy to see those images out there when we snoyrm normally se seeing pumpkins and leaf changing colors. the other side of the country is getting record-setting heat? >> i don't know where to start there is this big divide in the temperatures along with the weather pattern. we still have the snowstorm, the blizzard warnings and winter weather advisories they're going to start to expire this morning but now getting reports over 4 feet of snow for montana so you have this divide, record cold, record heat. let's first talk about the heat. it will continue to build across the south. midatlantic, northeast this is not a mistake. look at this by wednesday afternoon, washington, d.c. chighs, well a

average. so what do you like? the cold or the heat here? >> not loving the 80-degree weather, thank you very much well, listen to this elon musk unveiling a new spacecraft this weekend. it's a vessel aptly named starship, and it aims to start bringing space tourists to mars within a decade. an unmanned test flight is scheduled for the next month or two, but a japanese billionaire has booked a flight on it around the moon in 2023 he is changing the world, that's for sure. >> he is still ahead, hong kong rocked with another weekend of protests and catastrophe. caught on camera in south korea, the aftermath from massive tanker explosion that's next. and tremfya® was proven superior to humira®

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caught on camera, this dramatic oil tanker explosion. nkers. ten people were hurt in the blast. over 40 sailors were rescued from the burning ship. the fiery mushroom clouds were captured from a driver's rear view camera. two narrowly escaped that looks like special effects with the clouds and the bridge there. unbelievable sight leading the news, a fierce street battle between police and protesters in hong kong. they're continuing for the 17th consecutive week the violence took plac demonstration was in defiance of a police ban riot police fired tear gas and blew liquid as they tried to disperse thousands of protesters some in the crowd retaliated by throwing molotov cocktails aoli. the man accused of driving an suv through an illinois mall earlier this month has been charged with terrorism police have announced they

authorized a class x felony against havia garcia after they say he caused about $100,000 in damage when his car plowed through the mall he is charged with felony crawl damage to property police believe garcia acted alone and no motive has been determined if he is convicted he could face 20 years to life an investigation is under way in pennsylvania after a helicopter crashed at a local fair while police say a woman and child were on board with the pilot when this chopper went down in a parking lot. all three were taken to the hospital for treatment and are expected to survive. officials said the helicopter was giving fair goers short sightseeing rides. now federal authorities are working to investigate the cause of the crash still ahead, a dramatic new move to crackdown on those vaping epidemic and icing out the competition, "abominable" takes the box office crown, next on "early today.

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what are you doing up here >> hey, get away from her. okay i'm calling the police. >> he's not dangerous. look at him. he is a yeti cool >> what? no >> it's drea adventure. it's "abominable" an o the top downtown on the abbey and

hustler 11.5 million health officials are scramblinging to find the mystery of illnesses linked to vaping hundreds of people have reported injuries linked to the e-cigarettes, but now officials may be closing in on an answer for inside into the investigations, here is nbc's steve patterson. >> reporter: this morning the nation's sprawling and deadly vaping epidemic intensifies. startling new numbers released from the centers for disease control at least 14 dead and more than 800 cases related to lung illness but there is also new insight from health officials who may be closer to finding a cause for the outbreak a study of more than 500 patients with lung illness revealed that 77% use products containing thc, and many say they got their devices from the street. >> i didn't listen to the warnings >> reporter: 28-year-old texas resident christopher became seriously ill after using a thc vape pen for a few months to ease his crohn's disease >> all i remember is waking up

outside of my room, passed out on the floor yelling for help. >> reporter: fabian castillo got his vape pen from an uncle and just started vaping thc this past december. a hospital visit revealed severe lung damage. >> i couldn't breathe. i couldn't talk. i couldn't even who move my hand. >> reporter: they're testing cartridges from legal and unregulated sources. ten samples from the black market contained a fungicide that can transform into hydrogen cyanide when burned. although health officials say the specific chemical causing all the injuries isn't yet pinpointed >> you're putting yourself at risk by not buying legal. >> reporter: the health crisis sparking some action washington state governor jay inslee called for an emergency ban on all flavored vaping products on friday >> i am confident this executive order will save lives. i am confident it will reduce this epidemic of youthful vaping

that today is driving parents and grandparents crazy across the state of washington. >> and thanks to steve patterson for that report. up next, janessa will have your forecast for the week ahead. and the airline rolls out a new tool to avoid crying babies on planes. you're watching "early today." 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 (bubbles popping) 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.kn routine on planes. la la.♪ i'm jimmy dean, and only one like this any nicer.ning a hearty, hefty, good tasting breakfast. with eggs, bacon, sausage, cheese and taters. and when you finish, you know you had something to eat.

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nearly 10 to 30 degrees below average for is time of year. and the heat, it really is not going to be picking up for the pacific northwest. that snowstorm moves to the north, but on the other side, east coast, the midwest, the central plains daytime highs are 15 degrees above average. 92 for today for st. louis you make your way to the midatlantic. hot atlanta, 90 degrees. and that is not going to back off. we do have at least one more week so seven to eight days before that cold front makes its way in please take this in. by next week, the game changes completely. >> wow. >> the temperatures will bl ahe adding sales of a popular medication t everything clean. i tell them, it may be your detergent... that's why more dishwasher brands recommend cascade platinum. it's specially-designed with the soaking, scrubbing and rinsing built right in.

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in today's top story, cvs is discontinuing sales of zantac because it may contain traces of known carcinogens. the popular heart medication and seefs's generic version are being pulled off shelves earlier the fda warned heart medications containing small amounts of mdma which can cause cancer customers can go to cvs for a refund drivers across the country may have noticed a spike in gas prices the nationwide average jumped to nearly $2.73 acin, the increa i oil facilities. but regional gas prices are expected to drop> geing a reallt on a plane is not an easy deal, but one airline is making it easier, at least in one respect

for travelers. stephanie gosk explains. >> reporter: wbabyho those chubby little cheeks, so cute, except maybe in the next seat on an airplane. what is your reaction if you have to sit next to a baby >> i don't love it >> i like to sit somewhere else. >> reporter: japan airlines has a possible solution. its booking website lets passengers know where children under 2 years old will be on a flight before they choose their seats. watch out for seat 46 d. everyone knows the smile won't last long. japan airlines might be feeling a bit of the same guilt parents do when their kidse peace on apologetic goodie bags with earbags there wa time superstar couple george and amal clooney handed out fancy noise cancelling headp apparently celebrity children cry too.

in the end, the move by japan airlines could be a win-win. passengers don't sit next to screaming kids, and parents might just end up with a row to themselves stephanie gosk, nbc news, new york >> we have both been there >> i feel bad. what helps you stay away >> i've offered a few passengers, to buy some drinks just to help calm the crowd. well, listen to this when oprah winfrey comes to town, you know you could be in for a surprise >> that was it, the reaction after oprah told a room fullcal college fund she'll help area students attend historically blackround. >> you're bound to get something like that. >> thanks for watching

dark clouds over d.c. this morning amid a dramatic escalation in the impeachment inquiry. house democrats finalize plans to hear from the whistle-blower himself as president trump lashes out in a fiery tweet storm.

winter goes west montana buried in a record snowstorm just days after the end of summer. and the days could be numbered for forever 21. the new trouble in store for the latest retailer to file for bankruptcy. one step closer to the final frontier spacex unveils its spacecraf "e tstar right now. good morning i'm gigi s w