debating the debating the rules of the debate. the trump and harris campaigns clash over whether to mute the

mic in their first face-to-face showdown in september. we're live with the fight and the former president's new legal battle brewing over classified documents. a popular tourist town partially buried in a landslide. why officials fear another could happen at any moment. breaking overnight, the u.s. soldier who fled to north korea last year strikes a deal. the charges he's expected to plead guilty to. paramount is finally ready to roll the credits on its merger drama. a live report from cnbc with how it all finally came to an end. and ever wish you could ignore your boss? the new law helping one country reclaim their off time outside of work. we're on the clock this tuesday, august 27.

"early today" starts right now. hi there, glaz d you're wit me. we begin with the growing debate over whether there will be a presidential debate. donald trump and kamala harris are expected to face off exactly two weeks from today. but donald trump is suggesting he may not show up. and the harris campaign is asking for a rule change. alice barr joins us now. what are the sticking points for the campaigns? >> reporter: good morning, frances. former president trump says he does want to debate vice president harris, but he has been criticizing the network that's set to host the debate, abc news, saying he believes that network is hostile to republicans. but there's also another twist here. the harris campaign is asking for a rule change. they want microphones to be on at all times, when president biden was still in the race his campaign had asked for the mics to be muted while the other candidate was talking. former president trump has indicated he's okay with the

mics being on. >> would you want the micropho microphones muted in the debate when you're not speaking? >> we agreed to the same rule -- i don't know, doesn't matter to me. i'd probably rather have it on. but the agreement would be that it was the same as the last time. the truth is they're trying to get out of it. because she doesn't want to debate. >> donald trump will be on that debate stage and he'll rant and rave. he agrees with our position, so we look forward to the debate on september 10 with live mics between the two candidates. >> reporter: and while the campaigns go back and forth over the debate, special counsel jack smith is trying to revive the classified documents case against donald trump. that's the one where the former president was accused of unlawfully taking classified documents to his home at mar-a-lago. federal judge aileen cannon threw out the case last month, ruling that no law supported the

hiring of a special counsel without senate confirmation. the justice department is calling that reasoning nonsensical. a trump campaign spokesperson said the dismissal should be upheld and joined by a dismissal of, quote, all of the witch hunts. the november election is going to come around long before these appeals are resolved. frances? >> alice, thank you. the task force investigating the attempted assassination of former president trump is beginning its work on the ground. the group of bipartisan lawmakers visited the site of the shooting in butler, pennsylvania yesterday. saying it was important to see the location up close. the director of the secret service resigned in the wake of the shooting. and others were reassigned to stra administrative duties. a judge has blocked a biden parole program that allowed illegal immigrants to apply for

green cards without leaving the united states. around half a million people are eligible for the keeping families together program. they can still apply, but the applications will not be processed until the stay is lifted. russia launched several missiles and drones targeting several ukrainian cities, including the capital kooiev, officials say. it comes one day after one of the biggest barrages targeting ukrainian infrastructure and killing at least seven. at least four more people were killed in the most recent assault. for the latest, let's turn to claudio lavanga. what more do we know? >> reporter: good morning, frances. we don't know yet how many weapons, which type of weapons, russia used in today's attack, but the ukrainian air force said they detected several groups of

drones, and super sonic bombers and intercepters took off from russian airfields. there were air sirens heard overnight for several hours in several regions and air raid sirens in several regions in ukraine, including kiev and also another area, where officials said that the, a hotel was completely wiped out by the attack, killing at least two people there, injuring four and leaving at least five other people trapped under the rubble. officials also said another two people were killed in the nearby city, or in the region of zaporizhzhia. now this comes a day after we mentioned, after russia pounded ukraine with 200 missiles and drones that killed at least seven people on monday. and also damaging seriously the energy infrastructure. now this seems to be a tactic that russia employs every end of the summer, beginning of fall. they seem to attack on purpose

the energy infrastructure to leave the, as many people as they can in ukraine without electricity and heating when they need it the most, which is of course winter. now president biden called monday's attack simply outrageous. back to you. >> claudio, thank you. a u.s. army private who ran into north korea last year will plead guilty to desertion as part of a plea agreement according to his lawyer. travis king was stationed in south korea when he crossed the dmz into the north. he was imprisoned in north korea for 48 days before he was released. he will plead guilty to five of the 14 offenses he was originally charged with. the rest will be dismissed. he will be sentenced before a military court at fort bliss on september 20. new developments in the super yacht that sank in violent weather off the coast of sicily. the captain is under investigation for possible manslaughter and causing a shipwreck. that's according to a lawyer for

the captain, who was questioned by sicilian prosecutors. is he one of the 15 survivors and has not been charged. back here at home, health officials are spreading the alarm about viruses spread by mosquitos. in massachusetts, officials are spraying for triple e. a man has been diagnosed with the virus. the mhealth official says it is rare but serious. >> even those that survive, neurological disorders and many health complications can happen. >> this new concern comes as the west nile virus has been reported in at least 31 states. experts say easy precautions include covering up, using repellant and draining any standing water. a community in alaska is on edge after part of their town was buried in a landslide. the mayor warning that even more of the town is still in danger.

he spoke to our morgan chesky about the emergency. >> reporter: frightening new gl glimpses of a town partially buried after a collapse. >> we were just at that house for a garage sale last weekend. this is terrible. >> reporter: the tragedy unleashing a deadly wave of snapped trees. toppled power poles. the slide sideswiping the town of ketchikan, a seaside destination on alaska's famed inside passage, and a frequent stop for cruise lines. officials confirming one person was killed while driving, when the slide swallowed their vehicle. >> i was stunned, because, in my 65 years here, i've never seen anything of that scale. >> reporter: the mayor calls the loss of life heartbreaking but stresses the current damage zone could spread even further. there's about a quarter of the town currently at risk for yet another slide. >> yes.

>> reporter: how frightening is that? >> it's very frightening. to be honest, i don't think any people in ketchikan walk about their daily lives thinking hey, that mountain's going to come down, and now we have to. >> reporter: as for any cause, officials say the landslide struck following an unusually dry august when a weekend storm left conditions soaked. >> it's definitely heartbreaking to see. it's traumatizing, for sure. >> reporter: leah canfield, one of several whose homes were damaged, all too aware this may not be over. >> our thanks to morgan for that report. and outsueide of alaska, a heat wave is complicating back-to-school plans. the midwest and ohio valley could see some of the hottest weather they've had all year. the heat alerts stretch across nearly two dozen states. let's get an update now on the forecast from nbc meteorologist angie lassman.

>> we've already seen some of these heat alerts be expanded to more parts of the northeast. 67 million people including major cities of chicago, st. louis, philadelphia and new york as well on there. and this is because our temperatures in some of these spots are going to be well over 100 degrees but feeling much warmer than that. notice st. louis, 100 on the mark but feeling like 108. chicago will be in the high 90s, feeling like 110. even washington, d.c. into the low 90s today. as we getna to into tomorrow, n much relief. washington, d.c. with a feels-like temperature of 102. we have a cold front that's going to work through. this system going to cause problems, specifically across the midwest and great lakes. we'll have the chance to see heavy rainfall. we're concerned about strong

wind gusts, specifically centered across michigan, illinois, wisconsin and indiana and ohio. the wind gusts are the main threat, but the hail and a tornado or two also on the table. as we get into tomorrow , we'll have another round of potential severe weather acros e digits for st. louis. sunshine from denver to colorado springs. i that's a look at your forecast, frances, back to you. >> angie, thanks. turning now to sad news for a pop icon. mariah carey announced that her mother and sister both died on the same day this past weekend. no details were revealed about the circumstances of either

death. despite having seemingly-complicated relationships with both of them, carey said she was heart broken over the loss of her family members. she added that she was blessed to spend the last week with her mother before she passed. pro wrestling fans areious remembering a legend vicious di battle with cancer. he was a star at the height of the '90s. his son remembered him as a man of strength and kindness. he was 63 years old. he was 63 years old. "early today" is back in with eggs, bacon, sausage, cheese and tators. and when you finished, you know you had something to eat. minute

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paramount buyout saga. steve sedgwick is here with the details. >> we'll get to the conundrum of the story in a minute. but it's been chaos in the whole bidding process. it looks clear for sky dance media to take control of the media empire, which includes cbs and nickelodeon, comedy central. the deal should be reached in the first half of next year, $8.4 billion. look, you and i, frances, have a great employer, but turning of off all mobile phones or computers are very difficult to do when you're not at work. now australians have the right to disconnect off hours. there's huge amount after overtime taken on by australians. they worked an average 281 hours of unpaid overtime annually last year as well. 281 hours. apparently more than 20

countries, mainly in europe and latin america have similar rules. the law does not ban employers from contacting those workers after hours, even if i had the right to turn off my phone, i don't know if i'm skoll psychologically ready to do it. >> when you're on vacation, the easiest thing to do as well as turning the alarms off as well. thank you. still to come. martin shkreli learns the true meaning of cream. what a judge just ordered for what a judge just ordered for tht one capsule a day. you are bountiful, it's in your nature. it ain't my dad's razor, dad. e pharma ay ! it's from gillettelabs. this green bar releases trapped hairs from my face... gamechanga! ...while the flexdisc contours to it. so the five blades can get virtually every hair in one stroke. for the ultimate gillette shaving experience. the best a man can get is gillettelabs.

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. i felt i nee . i felt i needed to do something, not just for myself, but for everyone else in the same condition. >> the fact that superman was in a wheelchair and willing to go public with it was huge. >> help is on the way. >> 20 years after his death, the

actor who brought the man of steel to life is being immortalized in his own film. the story chroniclese beloved se r of the late beloved stash with a foc after all these years, it is astounding as you see him and what he overcame. his son is going to be in person for this documentary and speaking about his dad. >> such an incredible life. he made such a difference with his work as an activist. the heart gently weeps for martin shkreli. on monday, a federal judge ordered the former pharma executive to turn over all copies of the album. he infamously bought the only copy of the album in 2015.

the so-called pharma bro was ordered to sell the album. the judge's ruling comes after he was sued in june by the crypto company that owns that record. they accused him of retaining digital copies of the record and streaming them for his followers on social media. the saga continues, but now he has to turn it over. who can make the story up. >> who knows if this is going to be the ending of it. i remember talking about what was streaming, how much of it, the public will be able to hear. >> exactly. >> so, dot, dot, dot. we'll see what happens next. up next, why spacex is pushing back the launch for its historic mission. historic mission. and stop alright, cryin, it's for ludacris? maybely. ludicrous. oh you don't tell ludacris what's ludicrous, ludacris tells you what's ludicrous. okay.

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with four private citizens, including billionaire jared isaacman. the crew is aiming to make history with the first civilian spacewalk. the next launch window is tomorrow morning. apple is planning an event for september 9. and oasis reigniting. they announced 14 concerts in they announced 14 concerts in the uk and ireland nex

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proved that winning isn't always about swinging for the fences. tom llamas spoke to the team. >> reporter: bottom of the eighth, extra innings in little league play. man on second, hunter alexander at the plate for lake mary, hoping to just advance the runner against chinese taipei when this happened. >> he gets it down, oh! >> reporter: what a bunt. chinese taipei along with the first baseman going for the ball, leaving the bag wide open. >> lake mary's going to win little league world series championship. >> reporter: once you made contact and the ball started to roll, tell me everything you were thinking. >> i was thinking stay fair, stay fair. and i look up, and nobody's at first. that was great. >> did you see him throw the ball into right field? >> yeah. i mean, right after i looked up. and i see that ball flying by me. i'm like, let's go. >> reporter: his teammate was the one who scored.

the day before he had to sit out because of a 102 fever, but on sunday when chinese taipei made that error, he ran as fast as he could. >> it feels pretty good. we won the little league world series, and i got the walkoff. >> reporter: the walkoff bunt a thrilling end for lake mary but devastating for chinese taipei. >> all the florida kids are gathered and holding and hugging and consoling the kids from taiwan. >> reporter: for lake mary, celebrations on the field, outside the stadium and all the way back in central florida. >> got like 100 texts right after the game from my friends, telling me great bunt, good game, congratulations. >> reporter: what do you think you learned from that game? >> they, keep fighting. we stayed alive, and we kept it going, and we never quit. >> reporter: a victory not only for these little leaguers but

for the state. the first title for florida after nine tries, all because of that bunt heard around the world. >> congrats to them. and what a great example of sportsmanship. thanks to tom for that report. on monday, coco gauff began le err her u.s. open defense taking on gar gracheva. after dropping the first round of the match to gracheva, gauff did what she does best, sweeping her opponent and advancing to the second round. she has the chance to repeat as open champ since serena williams. have a great chesky.

stay right here, more news now is on the way. w legal battle t a new legal battle to reopen donald trump's classified document