a bomb shell revelation from president trump captured on audio in his own words saying he knew how deadly and heegly contagious coronavirus was but that he deliberately downplayed it to avoid panic. and wildfires rage across the west coast skies lighting up orange as multiple states deal with massive evacuations and damage as far as the eyes can see the epic struggle of covid on both sides of the border. why so many are crossing into mexico for treatment >> and the nfl kicks off the

2020 season tonight right here on nbc we've got your preview "early today" starts right now good morning i'm frances rivera >> i'm phillip mena. dangerous wildfires continue to flare up and force evacuations on the west coast. officials confirming at least six deaths in the last 24 hours. a strong winds cause these infernos to spread across multiple states. some of the images look like they're from another planet. these photos were taken during the day in san francisco the sunlight blocked by the smoke and embers more than 14 now firefighters are hard at work in california battling 28 massive fires that have already destroyed a record shattering 2.5 million acres >> washington state is facing de station. one town south of spokane was almost completely marked off the map. >> i remember sitting on my couch praying and crying for australia and praying and crying

for paradise and yeah, you don't think it's going to happen to you. >> what did you lose inside? >> everything. >> oregon's governor is warning that this could be if greatest loss of life and property the state has ever seen. jake ward is on the ground there where he has gotten a closer look at devastation. good morning, jake >> reporter: good morning. when we arrived here it was the middle of the night in phoenix, oregon and all 4,600 residents of this town had been evacuated. we saw fires everywhere, but we had no idea the scale of the devastation. it wasn't until daylight hit that we could walk through this mobile home community. 131 homes ze stroied the next one after this also destroyed. i mean, really the devastation goes as far as the eye can see and that is because of the incredible southern california like wildfire behavior we are seeing here. an event the governor has called

an unprecedented once in a generation set of wildfire conditions it swept through here as fast as you could possibly imagine such that people barely escaped it's very much a scary new phase of fire for oregon >> all right thank you. even as the pandemic encoached upon the country president trump knew the dire threat posed by coronavirus and downplayed the dangers that revelation coming to light in taped excerpts. the president says he didn't want to spark a panic and last night he told fox news why he sat down for the interview in the first place. >> i figured you know, let's just give it a little shot i'll speak to him. it wasn't a big deal i don't know if the book is good or bad i have no idea probably almost definitely won't read it because i don't have time to read it but i gave it a little bit of a shot sounds like it's not going to be good >> joe biden's campaign seized on to the president's own words

and went on the attack >> 190,000 americans are dead. our economy crushed, our kids not safe in school and trump knew it all along. >> i wanted to always play it down i still like playing it down >> jeff bennett has more on what we learned from wood ward's new book >> the bomb shell revelations come in a new book from bob woodward in which president trump says he intentionally downplayed the coronavirus in public to avoid triggering a panic. woodward rights that on january 28th, the president's national security advisor worned him the virus outbreak in china was the biggest national security threat you will face in your presidency in audio excerpts released by the "washington post" the president revealing to woodward a surprising level of detail >> it goes through air, bob. that's always tougher than the touch. you just breathe the air and

that's how it's passed that's a very delicate one it's also more deadly than even your strenuous flus. this is deadly stuff >> three days later he was saying this publicly >> in theory when it gets a little warmer it goes away i hope that's true >> and this on february 267th. >> you do certain things that you do when you have the flu view this is same as the flu >> in another taped conversation admitting he was deliberately downplaying the danger >> i think, bob, really to be honest with you, i wanted to always play it down. i still like playing it down >> yes >> because i don't want to create a panic >> the president by his own admission in private on the record acknowledged the depth of this crisis and yet told the american people something very different. how isthat at its core not an abject betrayal of the public trust? >> the president has always been clear with the american people

>> we don't want to install panic. we don't want to jump up and down and start shouting that we have a problem that is a tremendous problem, scare everybody and i'll tell you the other thing t we immediately started buying all over the world we started buying masks and gowns and everything else and we don't want to cause pricing to go up >> dr. fauci saying the president was not misleading when we would get up in front of the press conference it is which were very common he really didn't say anything different than we discussed when we were with him >> but joe biden blasting the president's comments as a dereliction of duty. >> he knew how dangerous it was and while this deadly disease ripped through our nation he failed to do his job on purpose. it was a life and death betrayal of the american people >> meantime the trump administration today announced withdrawal of 2,200 u.s. troops

from iraq by tend of this month. cutting troop levels in both countries by half in time for the election >> okay. thank you. as the global race for a coronavirus vaccine continues, there are new details about why drug maker's promising vaccine was put on pause days after its final phase began. the company says a female volunteer in britain developed symptoms consistent with transf transverse miletitis and also an unrelated case of ms this summer. with tens of thousands of volunteers it is expected that some people might come down with an illness a new coronavirus relief bill hits capitol hill today but don't get your hopes up just yet. mitch mcconnell plans to force a vote on the slimmed down

stimulus package this legislation seems doomed to fail >> reporter: yeah, democrats are calling this the skinny bill and it does look like the vote happening today is going to go nowhere leaving american workers and owners and schools and governments in limbo just like they've been during these negotiations since july. the republican version would give $300 a week for unemployment and money for small businesses but it leaves out money for state and local governments and there are no direct payments to americans >> we're not going to let speaker pelosi and the democratic leader kill and bury coronavirus relief behind closed doors without putting every senator on the record. >> it's less than a skinny bill as chuck schumer and i have said >> reporter: the white house reportedly looking at more executive orders now, actions that the president believes he can take without congress with

these negotiations apparently going nowhere, but the vote happening today. >> thank you mother nature is wreaking havoc on both coasts from wildfires to floods and janessa webb is with us tracking it all. good morning, janessa. >> good morning. we do have a shift in our weather pattern that's going to happen for the pacific northwest. that's great news for at least 24 hours the elevated fire risk has started to die down. nowit's just for coastal areas but you're still going to be dealing with hazy conditions and air quality concerns throughout your day now down to 3 million people from seattle all digging out for colorado springs to the denver area also watching these storms that

are going to be sparking up across the northeast and it's thursday night football i'll have that forecast coming up >> excited in more ways than one. >> been waiting a long time for that all right. thank you so much. nba hall of famer steve nash addressed his critics that he did skip the line to become head coach of the brooklyn netanyahus >> i think leading an nba team is pretty unique, so while i have it -- >> the former mvp says he's benefitted from white privilege adding that people have to do better to find equality. doris burk will make history when she calls the nba conference finals. she'll become the first woman to call the plays and a hard fought three-set

match. on the diamond now, the braves beat the marlins by 20 runs they scored 29 runs. that broke the national league scoring record that stood for 91 years. again, the final score was 29-9. >> that is painful our reporters go on the front lines of the covid battle on the border >> and bring on the sand worms the trailer for the long awaited si film debuts. and caked-on grease from oven doors. now mr. clean magic eraser comes in disposable sheets. they're perfect for icky messes on stovetops... in microwaves... and all over the house. for an amazing clean, try mr. clean magic eraser, and mr. clean magic eraser sheets. try new nature's bounty stress comfort. three unique gummies for your unique needs.

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laid bare the vulnerabilities of the community. >> we have all the parameters for a perfect storm. >> the doctor who battled covid-19 himself is also the region's health authority. >> i walked into a unit with 9 ocadavers and i recognize that that grandfather as my patient was lying on top of his grandson. >> reporter: the loss of life he's seen haunts him along with the reality that it isn't over >> but here along the border some families are crossing into mexico in search of cheaper treatment which is where we find our calling who saw this firsthand. that's right with more than a third of the rio grande population uninsured many come here looking for medical treatment and medicines that can be much cheaper >> up to a million u.s. citizens come to mexico for that reason every year >> have you been crossing a lot during this pandemic >> because i bring medicine for my husband >> earlier this summer, her

husband developed high fever and difficult to breathing he tested positive for to vid 19 and was too sick to leave home so she traveled 25 miles to pick up medication from their doctor. >> so we are in mexico now. >> reporter: people with no health insurance flock to pharmacies and clinics just a few blocks from the border >> what's the cost of coming to the doctor here in mexico? $25? a visit to the doctor. >> after her husband got sick, she and her daughter also contracted covid-19. they still have lingering symptoms but health officials are trying to bring more help to impoverished areas >> they're trying to reach underserved communitieofs fering them access to health care clinics as well as free testing for covid-19 >> how important is it to have a

service like this in a community where a lot of people are uninsured. >> it is vital they're faced with that decision to get medical care or do away with medical care because of other necessities. >> a single mother of two without insurance. >> actually milagro. >> whatever i need, they're always here. >> this summer her father started showing symptoms of coronavirus when he was in mexico he tried to return to the u.s. for treatment but it was too late >> he just crossed over and that's it. he didn't make it to the hospital he didn't make it to the ambulance. >> so he crossed over the bridge and then he. >> he passed away. >> reporter: but as so many grieve there are signs of hope over 70% of the volunteers participating in one clinical trial for a vaccine. >> we need people to come together to continue to see the big picture, recognize that we're all in this together. >> reporter: doctors hoping ha when a vaccine becomes

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the nfl season is back in just a few hours the super bowl champion chiefs will tace off against the texans houston looking for some payback after the chiefs ended their season jay gray joins us. what can we expect today >> hey, good morning i think we've got a good game here, but we are not at arrow head stadium we're in downtown kansas city and the reason why, the area around the stadium locked down because of covid-19. just one example of how different this nfl season is going to be. >> the field is ready, so are

the fans >> they're winners and they're going to be winners. >> reporter: and the players >> you know, we're kicking it off so we're the head hon choes for the nfl as in the chiefs they'll be able to show and see what the 2020 season is going to be like. >> reporter: from the start this season will look very different than any in the history of the game instead of more than 76,000 fans on opening night because of covid-19 only 17,000 will be inside arrow head stadium. masks will be required concessions limited and fans spread out still the chiefs' coach expects a home field advantage >> i know they're going to be loud >> but the loudest message may be one of equality and social justice. the focus of last night's nbc nfl prime time special, inspire change >> i think everyone is at a position saying we need to do more and let's do more and make the change that is necessary,

which we all know has to happen. >> reporter: aer protests across the country players say they're eager to use their platform to continue the push for change. >> in order to move forward we're going to have to love each other. we'll have to listen to each other. we'll have to begin to understand each other. >> reporter: a game plan with a reach much further than the field. yeah, nieto "early start" team has revealed plans for the national anthem pregame. we do know that lift every voice and sing often referred to as the black national anthem will be played before each one nfl game >> thank you so much and unorthodox season. unlike any other but you can watch it it all starts tonight. coverage of texans/chiefs in kansas city begins 7:00 eastern. no fans in arrow head. going to be weird. the baldwin family just got a little bigger. this photo of their new baby

boy. they say he's perfect. this is the couple's fifth child together and the sixth child for aleck baldwin. they had their strugglings in the past a lot of miscarriages so great to see their family growing dear california... we know these are challenging times. rest assured, you are not alone. we've all had to adapt. and with summer here, your energy bills might go up with rising temperatures. together, we can save energy and money. try closing your shades during the day... setting your ac to 78° or higher... or cooling off with a fan when you can. united we are always stronger. stay well, california, and keep it golden.

. right now at 4:30 breaking records and bringing skies like we've never seen before. we've got a live look across the bay area at current conditions. today marks the 24th spare the air alert day. this after an eerie, ominous and orange glow filled skies yesterday. our team is tracking what's ahead and when this could possibly end. the air quality all depending on the fire still raging out of control. the race under way to contain those flames and the evacuations still under way. good thursday morning, i'm laura garcia. >> i'm