at gop presidential candidates prep for the debate stage, donald trump will be elsewhere. we're laying out the landscape at 2024 election season kicks off. in pakistan, a daring rescue caught on camera seven students and their teacher trapped nearly a thousand feet in the air see how onlookers and rescue

crews worked together in the dark of the students in some states say they are taking life-altering punishments without being able to defend themselves nbc investigates how some school districts are pushing kids out of the classroom the latest plan to help student loan borrowers is live and it's love all for the williams family. serena williams welcomes baby number two stick around to see her bundle of joy it's w august 23rd "early today" starts right now and good early morning to you. i'm jessica layton >> i'm frances rivera. we begin with the latest extreme weather threat to hit united states the system known as harold made landfall in texas a tropical storm before weakening to a depression but overnight, it's continued to bring the risk of heavy rain that storm hit as southern california continues to dig out

of the sludge left behind by tropic tropical hstorm hilary >> i went out to the river out there and had a white towel and the helicopter came over i started going like that, and i guess they came back and told them there was somebody to rescue >> stephanie and her dogs with finally found after being stranded for more than 48 hours. near palm springs, firefighters used bulldozers to rescue the elderly who couldn't make it to safety the mud is as deep as five feet in some places the first of the 19 defendantscharged in the jaf squlafrgets /* georgia elections k case surrendered they had mug shots released on

tuesday night. two other defendants were confirmed to have been booked early this morning trump faces 13 counts in last week's sweeping indictment and is expected to surrender on thursday the former president will be skipping the first g the first depa gop debate held in milwaukee tonight where eight candidates are trying to catch up >> reporter: as some candidates get preddy f ready >> reporter: as some candidates get preddy f for the fidebate i georgia, others are turning themselves in. that includes john eastman who's charged with nine counts in the case >> did they do a mug shot and everything inside? >> no comment. >> reporter: trump confirming in a truth social post he will surrender on thursday. court documents show hathat his lawyers already negotiate atid

$200,000 bond. >> wherever possible, i would pardon him i want to move this nation forward. >> reporter: trump is skipping the debate, claiming his lead in the primary is so large and policies so well-known there's no need to participate >> i think he owes it to people. >> reporter: for counter programming, the former president with an interview which former fox news' tucker carlson. he has been posting on x formerly known as twitter since being fired by fox earlier this year there could be a glimmer of hope for the challengers. a poll shows a majority of iowa republicans are open toa new candidate, making the wednesda debate a prime opportunity to steal the spotlight. drew petramoix, washington

>> another trump lawyer is expected to make his way to georgia today. sources familiar with the matter say rudy giuliani is planning to travel to atlanta, but not to turn himself in just yet the former new york city mayor has been attempting to find atlanta-based lawyers to represent him in the georgia election case and conversations are still ongoing about a surrender plan giuliani was hit with 13 charges in last week's indictment. now to tragedy in clark county, ohio where an elementary school student was killed and 23 injured in a bus crash the student who died was ejected from the bus one of the injured children is in serious condition the accident happened when a car veered into the opposite lane, clipping the bus and sending it off the road the driver and passenger in the car were taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries we are learning more details about the murder of a california store owner. authorities calling it a potential hate crime they say the victim was shot

after a dispute over a pride flag our maggie vespa has the latest. >> reporter: the california resort town consumed with grief after lori carleton was killed, confronting hate the san bernardino county sheriff says the man shot the 66-year-old at her shop, adding her death is now being investigated as a potential hate crime. >> he tore down a pride or rainbow flag hanging in front of the mag.pi store and yelled many slurs. >> reporter: nearby business owners say customers ran from the scene. deputies later killing the suspect in a shootout. he was armed with an unregistered semi-automatic handgun, noting his social media is rife with lgbtq posts >> it looks like the suspect acted alone.

>> reporter: carl eton dieton d identify as lgbtq. outside, a second store carleton owned, robin lyles was a close friend >> you can't make sense of it. it's senseless >> reporter: carleton's daughter calling her mom fearless, writing on instagram her flags had always been torn down before and she always responded by putting up a bigger one adding simply, our family is broken now to a close call and stunning story out of pakistan seven students and their teacher were rescued from a cable car left dangling 900 feet above a ravine this 14-hour ordeal was broadcast on television, gripping that nation let's go live now to claudio

lavanga who's been following the story for us good morning what more can you tell us about this very delicate rescue? >> reporter: good morning, jessica. well, in the early hours of tuesday, those students and the teacher were using that cable car to travel from a remote mountain village north of islamabad to a nearby school all of a sudden, one two cables snapped leaving it to dangle 900 feet over a ravine. that kick started, as you mentioned, a 14-hour rescue mission called difficult and grueling that was followed by millions of pakistanis live on television. initially, two people were rescued with a rope and plucked off that car, attached to the helicopter and the rest had to be brought to safety overnight through or using a zip line. now cable cars like this one are

very common in pakistan. they are used by villages who live in mountains. that's the only place to travel from one place to another. last december is s12 school chin were also rescued from a cable car. it's not clear what caused this incident the authorities are ordered to carry out safety checks on all the cars across the nation >> heart-stopping moments there. thank you. as the gulf coast recovers from tropical storm harold it's facing a new round of record-break temperatures. millions of americans are waking up to heat alerts. michelle grossmann is tracking thtemperatures on the way. >> we're looking at so many spots into the triple digits you factor in the humidity, it will feel like 110 in some spots. 97 million americans under heat

alerts the excessive heat warnings in the hot pink color, stretching from the south central states to the midwest to the ohio valley a lot of people seeing that extreme danger of heat today it's persistent. we're going to see it today, tomorrow, through the rest of the workweek triple digits for dallas, fort smith, topeka. we're going to see temperatures near 100 100 in tallahassee then tomorrow we're going to see more triple digits across the mid section of the country from the south central states to the midwest. once again in chicago near 100e looking at dangerous heat continuing into the triple digits for lots of spots

104 today in dallas. we're tracking stormy weather on this wednesday we'll look ahead at that help is here for millions of student loan borrowers and a nbc news investigation looked into school punishments what they found next punishments what they found next you know, it doesn't matter if you choose left or right because they're both chewy, crunchy and delicious. febreze! your bathroom... needs febreze small spaces... the always-on, odor-fighting air freshener you set and forget. no outlets used, no batteries needed, no effort required. so your bathroom stays continuously fresh for 45 days. that's the power of febreze small spaces. when target's good and gather groceries, that's the power of bring joy to the table for less. when sharing, the love starts with quality ingredients. and when great taste meets low prices. that's totally target. mr. clean magic eraser powers through tough messes.

so it makes it look like i spent hours cleaning, and you know i didn't. it makes my running shoe look like new! it's amazing. it's so good. it makes it look like i have magical powers. magic eraser and sheets make cleaning look easy. we're back with a new spotlight on school punishment as kids return to class. in some states, students who believe they have been unfairly suspended or expelled may not always get the chance to defend themselves priscilla thompson has our nbc news investigation >> here's the start of the situation. this is from the superintendent. >> reporter: what were some of your goals? >> playing my senior year, having my mom and dad walk me out for senior game day. taking my mom to prom. >> reporter: dreams that were shattered last november when cory jones of tuscaloosa, alabama was accused of bringing marijuana to campus, after police say they found weed in a

car he and four friends rode in. what has this process been like? >> hell. >> reporter: cj, who receives special services in school for a learning disability says he was called into the office and read his miranda rights, which he told police he didn't understand >> police asking me, who is it, who is it. they saying it's yours i'm like i don't know. i don't know whose it is >> reporter: police investigated and charged someone else, not cj, who had no prior disciplinary issues. but cj says he spent nearly two months in in-school suspension before getting a disciplinary hearing where his dad says cj was given little chance to defend himself >> reporter: why you all allowed to see the evidence against cj >> no, ma'am >> reporter: tuscaloosa city schools ordered cj attend alternative school for 45 days

>> i mainly was mad. i was hurt >> reporter: a nbc news investigation found students' ability to defend against what can be life-altering punishments largely depends on where they live several states, including nevadnevada virginia and alabama give broader authority to school districts. do you feel like you got any due process? >> no, ma'am due process does not exist in the school system here in alabama. >> reporter: cj's parents hired an attorney but district policy prohibited her from being inside the meeting where they tried to appeal his punishment. charles bell has spent more than a decade studying discipline in schools. more than 2.6 million students were expelled or suspended for the most recent year data is available.

black students affected more than the average though black kids don't misbehave more often >> you have to leave, you're guilty, and weighwe don't want from you anymore >> reporter: tuscaloosa city schools declined our request for interview, but they say their policies exceed due process requirements and when students violate, they're given notice of the violation, evidence supporting the violation and an opportunity to respond >> no one had the time to listen to him you accept what we give you. that's it. >> reporter: cj's parents refused to send him to alternative school >> i can see what i accomplished >> reporter: instead, he finished his superenior year on. >> i got to fight like hell. i'm not going to stop. >> reporter: as cj moves forward, his family continues to fight against what they see as a

broken system. priscilla thompson, nbc news, tuscaloosa, alabama. still to come. philly's school district is enlisting parents and they're getting paid to help a new student loan repayment plan is here how you can sign up. plan is here how you can sign up. showed up? - oh, i saw it. - sorry about the vase. - can we just say vase like normal people? - fine. - i always wondered what it would be like to have a tail. - maybe you did one time. and maybe a thousand years from now, i'll be tail-less using that chewy app to get you great prices on treats. - i'm pretty sure it takes more than a thousand years- - vase. - pets aren't just pets. they're more. - vase! - [announcer] save more on what they love with everyday great prices at chewy. (air whooshing) (box thudding) i used to wait to run my dishwasher 'til it was super full. now— i run it daily. weekdays— weekends— you might think that's wasteful, but it's not. even half loads use 80% less water than handwashing. saving $130 on utilities. cascade. dare to dish differently.

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will qualify and the average person will save a thousand dollar as year as long as payments are made, interest will not accrue those who had balances of $12,000 or less will receive forgiveness after ten years. >> borrowers will need to enroll in the next few days for payments to resume in october. a lot to throw at you. you see it on your screen. studentaid.gov/save. a bus driver shortage continues to wreak havoc philadelphia's school district has come up with a plan to help by paying parents to drive their kids to school parents and guardians who opt this children out of the bus assignments and drive them to and from school will get$300 a

month. and parent hos who take their k to school go the morning but use the bus in the afternoon will be paid $150. still to come, michelle's tracking the remnants of harold. and a little later, serena williams' team just gained a new player ms' team just gained a new player i heard her cooking skills are like supernatural, man. they say she can make things appear out of thin air. bro, she's not a witch, that's benny's mom. hey! you guys want to come in? my mom made dinner. (♪♪) this is too good to be true. make your table legendary, with country crock. the long-lasting scent of gain flings made it smell like dave was in his happy place... ...the massage chair at the mall. but...he wasn't.

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with 3 cleaning boosters... not found in traditional dish soaps that help break down, loosen and lift away food and grease... so much faster! after a suspension cost her a spot at the tokyo olympics, american sprinter, sha'carri richardson has made a spectacular return she won the 100 meter dash, becoming the fastest woman in the world. anne thompson has the story. >> are you capable of winning this race. >> reporter: sha'carri richardson took the worst lane, lane nine and made the best of

it world champion in the 100 meters a remarkable come back for the 23-year-old who had gold medal aspirations before the tokyo olympics >> it's just amazing it feels like everything paid off. >> reporter: in 2021, richardson nearly made the olympic team, until she tested positive for marijuana. after learning of the death of her mom. the subsequent suspension knocked her out of the tokyo games. >> i'd like to say to my fans and my family and my sponsorship, i apologize >> reporter: now her running does the talking >> i want my performance to speak all the words i need to speak myself >> reporter: trailing for much of the race she surged ahead of the jamaicans. a personal record that took a while to sink in >> this entire season, i know i belong i know i deserve to be here. and it feels amazing to execute that as well >> reporter: leaving the past

behind >> i'm better. >> reporter: sha'carri richardson is the fastest woman in the world anne thompson, nbc news. >> personal pr and a world pr. not bad in a day's work. she has played a fixer on tv and now carrie washington brings that to the picket line. >> we deserve to be paid a fair wage we deserve to be able to have access to health care. we deserve to be able to live a just life. we deserve -- >> "scandal" actress advocating for her kwlounion. yesterday's day of solidarity comes at writers guild is slowly negotiating with the studios, but there have been no talks for the actors since july. serena williams' family just got bigger she and her husband welcomed their new bundle of joy, a babe

b bab girl it come as year after her retirement from tennis it's great to see her with so much joy ophthocort. only a family can give >> thanks for watching "early

very shaky, my staff and i are nervous about who is coming into our business, we're overly cautious. >> tracking higher crime rates. the new action walnut creek police are taking to bring peace of mind to downtown businesses and visitors. plus, taking a big step toward the presidential election. the stage is set for eight candidates to square off in the first republican debate, minus one key contender. we'll preview the big night