the u.s. surges past 2.5 million cases of coronavirus, causing an about face on beach openings in florida. in california, bars are ordered closed immediately and in texas, the governor says the state has taken a swift and dangerous turn calls for justice. can new rallies against the police following the death of elijah mcclain in colorado >> black lives matter. say it can't you say it black lives matter we should be saying it every day.

>> duke's coach k speaking out as calls for change grow louder across the nation. plus, an nbc news exclusive. behind the scenes at the university of notre dame we'll get a look at what they're doing to reopen safely a busy monday for you. "early today" starts right now good morning >> covid-19 is spiraling out of control. cases surging in several states as officials struggle to contain it it's take an dangerous turn, infecting 2.5 million americans. florida, texas, and arizona are on track to becoming epicenters. in florida, cases have jumped five fold with over 9,000 new cases. >> the governor of new york has issued an exec save order, warning any new yorker who visits a state will -- >> and over the weekend, artists came together for global

citizens unite the virtual event was broadcast over 180 countries global citizens says they raised $7 billion to fight racial injustice. one health official is sending a dire warning our dan chenniman has the details. >> reporter: as temperatures rise, the number of coronavirus surges >> but the window is closing we have to act and people as individuals have to act responsibly one ofthe largest spikes is in texas. nearly 150,000 cases, 2300 dead. >> covid-19 has take an very swift and very dangerous turn in texas over just the past few weeks. >> reporter: during face coverd urged others to do the same. >> and wear a mask wherever it's indicated. or wherever you're not able to practice the kind of social

distancing that would prevent the spread of the coronavirus. >> reporter: texas is not alone. in arizona, icu beds are at 87% capacity >> covid is going to break our health care system >> reporter: the growth in cases spread throughout much of the sun belt in florida, there are more than six new cases per minute officials say some beaches will be closed for the fourth of july holiday, including ft. lauderdale >> i'm encouraging everybody, you should stay at home, celebrate with your families, be grateful for the wonderful america that we have >> reporter: americans urged to celebrate the fourth safely. to slow the spread some of the surges we're seeing are being linked to younger adults going out to crowds there's new science on why bars can be super spreading events. >> reporter: as restrictions lift, the bars are back. and they're packed big crowds in states like florida, arizona, and texas.

where covid cases are on the rise primarily among young people in miami-dade county, the number of known coronavirus cases among 18 to 23-year-olds increased fivefold in just one month communities are now tracing these outbreaks back to bars and restaurants. 21-year-old adriana carter in texas went out for a few drinks with friends >> i had a really long, stressful week what harm could that do, you know just one night >> reporter: and came home with covid, passing it on to her roommate the rise in cases is coin dieding with a rise in spending. data shows that millennials spent more money last month than any other age group. places like bars are a perfect storm for transmission >> people in close proximity, poor air circulation, people not wearing masks or having to take their masks off to drink or eat.

>> reporter: this video shows what happens when two people are talking. particles enter the air. and if they carry the virus, it could spread the college town of iowa city has seen an uptick in covid cases since bars reopened without crowd restriction. >> i definitely wasn't taking i serious. >> reporter: jacob says he was exposed at a friend's house. would you change your behavior now seeing the effects >> oh, sure. if we just wore a mask, spaced out a little further and not shared a jewel >> reporter: a striking example that one night out is all it takes. dasha burns, nbc news, iowa city, iowa there are growing questions this morning about an alleged russian plot to have u.s. service members killed lawmakers on both sides of the aisle want to know what the president knew about the reports that russia was offering

bounties for killing american soldiers nbc news has not confirmed that the u.s. has verified that any such bounty payments were made overnight, president trump tweeted that the intelligence community did not find the information community and did not report it to him or the vice president. here's nbc's kelly o'donnell >> reporter: new fallout over allegations that vladamir putin put a price on the lives of american soldiers in afghanistan. president trump's first comment tweets claiming he was totally in the dark. nobody briefed or told me, vp dense or the chief of staff about attacks on our troops in afghanistan by russians. >> this is totally outrageous. you would think that the minute the president heard of it he would want to know more instead of denying he knew anything. >> reporter: the house speaker said she had not been briefed

and requested an urgent update "the new york times" was first to report that russian military intelligence offered cash boum y -- bounties to taliban fighters for killing u.s. troops, and u.s. intelligence had included the bounties in writing. the white house did not dispute the russian bounty itself, but denied the president was briefed. that claim surprised recently retired cia officials. >> there's no doubt something of this magnitude would be briefed. >> any sort of preparation for a principal, for a senior, so if it happened, there's a paper trail that will easily be discovered >> reporter: the larger threat is putin's brazen aggression, says john bolton >> when you go after american service members directly or indirectly, you are attacking

the united states. and i think it could call for some very severe measures against the russians >> reporter: president trump, with an offensive retweet. he thanked florida's included shouts of white power trump ally republican senator tim scott called it indefensible >> there's no question, he should not have retweeted it and should take it down. >> reporter: the president's retweet was deleted and the white house claimed the president did not hear the racist chant kelly o'donnell, nbc news, the white house. the night a protest turned into a fatal shooting in louisville, where a gunman opened fire filled with then administratstra - demonstrators. >> reporter: this louisville park where protesters have demanded justice for breonna taylor is now the scene of a deadly shooting. >> oh, my god.

someone is shot. >> reporter: a witness capturing the chaos saturday night, after a gunman appears to fire several shots into the crowd, sending people scrambling for cover. police say 27-year-old tyler garth died and a second is recovering the gunman is in custody police did not release the suspect's name >> this man had been participating in the protests and arrested a couple of times over the past several weeks. >> reporter: this night of violence followed months of protests, after taylor was killed in her home by kentucky police serving a no-knock warrant. one officer has been fired, two others placed on administrative leave. in minneapolis, where george floyd's death sparked protests, city leaders took the first step to change their approach to public safety, voting unanimously on a proposal to s dismantle the police force all four officers involved in

floyd's killing are expected to be back in court derek chauvin faces a second degree murder charge across the country, black lives matter event stretch into the fifth weekend. and in new york city, people at pride events are rallying for racial justice and end to police brutality. this moment of police reform in america set off conversations on a much deeper level. duke's coach k shared this message. >> say it. can't you say it black lives matter we should be saying it every day. it's not political >> reporter: as calls for change grow louder, more voices speaking out and standing up for injustices in our country. cathy parks, nbc news. the four ex-minneapolis police officers charged in the death of george floyd are set to make a court appearance today.

chauvin will appear remotely he's been held in a state prison on a minimum $1 million bail lane and king are both out on tail now and tao is held at the county jail on a minimum $750,000 bail. in mississippi, the state flag is getting a makeover after more than 120 years. after weeks of protests against racial injustice, mississippi lawmakers voted to remove the confederate battle emblem. the house passed a bill 91-23 on sunday and the senate followed suit with a 37-14 vote a commission will now design the new flag, keeping the show gan in god we trust. the bill now heads to the governor's desk who intends to sign it into law we're tracking some potential storms and fire danger area necessary

janessa. >> reporter: we have a storm system impacting northern new england, welcoming up to flooding in central new york even queens this morning losing power. but that storm system is making its way out of that area quickly. we're watching the ohio valley to the carolinas this afternoon with isolated storms popping up. and some of those pockets of rain wil jackson, mississippi, all the way into hot-lanta, in the lower 90s. humidity across the carolinas. across the country, the heat danger >> janessa, thanks in today's quick hits, macy's starts their fourth of july fireworks tonight each of new york's five

burroughs will light up for five minutes. princeton will remove wilson's statue. as the national women's soccer league kicked off over the weekend, players kneeled during the national anthem many of them wearing those black lives matter shirts over their jerseys. we'll be right back. oh, we love our new home. neighborhood's great. amazing school district. the hoa has been very involved. these shrubs aren't board approved. you need to break down your cardboard. thank you. violation. violation. i see you've met cynthia. at least geico makes bundling our home and car insurance easy. and it does help us save a bunch of money. two inches over regulation. thanks, cynthia. for bundling made easy, go to geico.com how hard? well, they developed the new persil oxi-power.

it cleans more stains better than the number one selling liquid oxi detergent. boom! new persil oxi-power. air wick scented oils arences to 60 daysagrance day after dayp boom! air wick scented oils. connect to nature. at walgreens, we know summer may look different this year. luckily, we are right around the corner with safer ways to shop so you can enjoy the moments you do make. like making sure you have pool toys the whole family can try out. ♪ and never running out of sunscreen before playing in the yard. and if you do spend the day indoors, always have enough snacks. this summer, walgreens is making shopping safer, with touchless pay and drive thru pick up, so you can keep your summer going. walgreens woah! hey donald! these are my mission tiger teammates. we're working to make sure sports come back strong

for schools like yours. is that cool, donald? yeah! more than cool... gr-r-reat! he always manages to sneak that in. he always manages struggling to clean tough messes with wipes? try mr. clean magic eraser sheets. just wet, squeeze and erase icky messes in microwaves and on stovetops for an amazing clean, get the power of mr. clean magic eraser in disposable sheets. all right. we have a couple of consumer alerts this morning. the company is expanding a recall of bagged salads because they may be contaminated they were distributed to eight states in the upper midwest, including illinois and missouri. and pilgrim's pride is recalling their chicken nuk ets because they may contain rubber material the bags were shipped to texas, oregon, arizona, and idaho lbgtq pride is being

recognized across the country. and to honor pride month and the 50th anniversary of the first pride march in new york city, the empired state building was illuminated in the colors of the rainbow sunday the black lives matter took center stage at the b.e.t. awards the show kicked off with public enemy performing an updated rendition of their classic hit "fight the power," along with other artists. the virtual event featured several other performances, as well from john legend, alicia keys they honored the lives of those lost to police brutality and wrapper lil wayne paid tribute to kobe bryant and michelle obama honored beyonce still to come, how one of the nation's's largest universities is going to welcome back students. and mounting cries for justice in colorado. the push to charge the police officers involved in the death of elijah mcclain.

you may have overactive bladder, or oab. not again! we're seeing a doctor when we get home. myrbetriq treats oab symptoms of urgency, frequency, and leakage. it's the first and only oab treatment in its class. myrbetriq may increase blood pressure. tell your doctor right away if you have trouble emptying your bladder or have a weak urine stream. myrbetriq may cause serious allergic reactions, like swelling of the face, lips, throat or tongue, or trouble breathing. if experienced, stop taking and tell your doctor right away. myrbetriq may interact with other medicines. tell your doctor if you have liver or kidney problems. common side effects include increased blood pressure, common cold or flu symptoms, sinus irritation, dry mouth, urinary tract infection, bladder inflammation, back or joint pain, constipation, dizziness, and headache. looking for a destination that isn't always the bathroom? ask your doctor if myrbetriq is right for you. and visit myrbetriq.com. neutrogena® rapid wrinkle repair®. we've got the retinol that gives you results in one week.

not just any retinol. accelerated retinol sa. one week is all it takes. mells fine, not just any retinol. accelerated retinol sa. but your passengers smell this. eliminate odors you've gone noseblind to for up to 30 days with the febreze car vent clip. wow, it smells good in here. so you and your passengers can breathe happy.

"early today" is on instagram. join us, won't you follow us for news and updates throughout the morning protesters across america are demanding justice for yet another black life lost by the hands of police. this time the name is elijah mcclain. the 23-year-old who died last year after misapplied a chokehold while taking him into custody. demonstrators are calling for

charges for the officers involved and now his death is bringing about sweeping changes >> reporter: protesters calling for change and charges hundreds marching in front of the police department and municipal building in aurora, colorado, demanding justice for elijah mcclain, who died after police detained him last august. police say three officers involved were moved to nonenforcement duties, reassigned for their own safety. >> likei said, charges should be brought against them. because it was murder. >> reporter: an internal investigation has found the officers followed proper protocols. the governor has now started a new, independent investigation mcclain was 23 years old, heading home from a neighborhood store. you can see him in this newly obtained surveillance footage. >> he was getting his juice and snack and buy with cash, and then give a bow before leaving

the store. >> reporter: after he left, he was walking and dancing, wearing a ski mask someone thought that was suspicious and called 911. >> stop, i have a right to stop you. >> reporter: the police stopped him and pinned him down, using the chokehold. >> i can't breathe >> reporter: during the struggle, paramedics injected him with a sedative. he died a few days later in the hospital >> he deserves justice he's been murdered and nothing happened they got to go back to work. >> reporter: in recent weeks, the state of colorado has passed sweeping new police reforms. >> 100% of the legislation is in direct relation to cases that happened in colorado, including elijah mcclain >> reporter: and many people hope this will lead to prosecutions when we come back, janessa is tracking fire danger in the southwest. an nbc news exclusive. behind the scenes as oneaj mor

university shows us what they're doing to reopen safely wearing powerful sunscreen? yes. neutrogena® ultra sheer. clinically-proven helioplex provides superior uva/uvb protection to help prevent early skin aging and skin cancer all with a clean, light feel for superior protection. it's the one. the best for your skin. ultra sheer. neutrogena®. see what's possible. a lotta folks are asking me lately how to get their dishes as clean as possible. i tell them, you should try cascade platinum plus the power of oxi. cascade platinum + oxi penetrates and breaks down food soils some detergents can leave behind, washing away even the smallest food residue, so it doesn't redeposit on your dishes. and oxi is cascade's most powerful clean, formulated without any chlorine bleach, for a deep hygienic clean you can see and feel. cascade + the power of oxi. the #1 recommended brand in north america.

hey donald! these are my mission tiger teammates. we're working to make sure sports come back strong for schools like yours. is that cool, donald? yeah! more than cool... gr-r-reat! he always manages to sneak that in. how hard? well, they developed the new persil oxi-power. it cleans more stains better than the number one selling liquid oxi detergent. boom! new persil oxi-power. do i use a toothpaste that or one that's good for my teeth? boom! now i don't have to choose. crest 3d white. it removes up to 95% of surface stains. and strengthens enamel. from the number one toothpaste brand in america.

crest. ...with air wick essential mist. nature... with kits starting at just ten dollars you can transform natural essential oils into mist at a price that is just right. i wish i could tell ya how i feel about a mornin' like this. and that includes a good hearty breakfast. you need somethin' to kinda warm the whole body up and gets it going. it's a great way to kick off your day. good morning, everyone we're watching the pacific northwest. the southwest, as well fire danger starts to increase it's the winds that will be an issue throughout your amp. 30 to 35 miles per hour, expecting these advisories and warnings to be in place all the way to the central plains. >> thank you up next, back to school. a look at the steps ing kebetan

at the university of notre dame to open up again year. luckily, we are right around the corner with safer ways to shop so you can enjoy the moments you do make. like making sure you have pool toys the whole family can try out. ♪ and never running out of sunscreen before playing in the yard. and if you do spend the day indoors, always have enough snacks. this summer, walgreens is making shopping safer, with touchless pay and drive thru pick up, so you can keep your summer going. walgreens to sleepy smudges... to shower-skipping. these days call for a quick clean. luckily, help is still one wipe away. love, neutrogena®. over time, you go noseblind to the odors in your home. (background music) but others smell this... (upbeat music) that's why febreze plug has two alternating scents and eliminate odors for 1200 hours. ♪breathe happy febreze... ♪la la la la la.

we're back with an nbc new os exclusive a look at the big plans that one university has for getting back on track and getting reopened safely during this pandemic. here's rehema ellis. >> reporter: notre dame, the famed catholic university in indiana, now taking steps to reopen and you feel you can manage the risks? >> i think we can. in fact, i'm confident we can. >> reporter: university president father john jenkins, is confident of the new safety protocols, and guided by advice from johns hopkins and cleveland clinic among the changes, daily temperature checks starting with an early opening on august 10.

>> they're going to stay here right till thanksgiving, and so we don't have the kind of going away and returning that we usually have for a normal semester >> reporter: 54,000 new signs encouraging students to keep their distance, and wear masks vice president paul brown helped craft the new protocol so it will be hard for a student to say they didn't see the sign. >> take me word for it, they're in the bathrooms, too. >> reporter: it's crowded in here >> that's how it is prepandemic. when students return, there will be half a many desks >> reporter: and in the university's 80 chapels, cutting capacity in half so even when you pray, social distance >>, pray healthy >> reporter: this dining hall for 725 students will be reduced by 70% how many people per table? >> each table of 12, it will be a maximum of four in the new configuration. >> reporter: in the dorm, still

two to a room, but more deep cleaning change is even coming here for the fighting irish they're still working out the exact number, but they know for sure it won't be 80,000 fans if there is a infection on campus, what will you do >> our contact tracing team will kick in to identify those who might have been in close contact with that person we have isolation in quarantine space. >> reporter: but not everyone is convinced. professor irene hunt-bunting wants to continue online learning >> it is not worth the risk, and it's not anybody's decision but the individual's to assess that risk >> reporter: if for whatever reason they're anxious, they have a special health condition, we're going to work with them. >> reporter: rooted in faith and guided by science, one university moving forward to bring students back.

rehema ellis, nbc news, notre dame, indiana. risky decision, clearly, right? can't just go to full online learning until a vaccine is found. thank yo the summer surge

coronavirus cases soar to new heights as the nation's top health official. >> russia put a bounty on erican soldiers. we're live with a response from president trump. >> unfurling a new future. mississippi votes to remove the confederate emblem from it