i'm tom llamas in new york. stay right there. more news on the way. re news on. the second round of winter storms socks the midwest with snow, ice and frigid temperatures. meteorolist angie lassman is tracking that storm's impact on the east coast this morning.

breaking overnight, the trump administration fires an unknown member of u.s. attorneys effective immediately. this as a judge gives the president the green light to continue federal worker buyouts. president trump holding a phone call with russian president putin about ending the war in ukraine. we're live with details of the call and what comes ne. an asteroid is heading toward earth within the next cade. nasa says the very slim chances of a collision are now doubled. why experts say there's no need panic. and the $10,000 shot that nearly wasn't. why the university of massachusetts decided to pay up from a contest. was disqualified it's thursday, february 13th. "early today" starts right now. hi there, glad you're with me. i'm frances rivera. the second storm of a winter one-two punch socking the upper midwest and plains wednesday. some areas seeing as much as 10

inches of snow. roads and highways across several states left a mess with wrecks piling up, and drivers stranded. more than 7,000 flights were delayed, and over a thousand canceled across the country. in virginia, more than 180,000 are still in the dark this morning. and the storm is still sticking around in some spots. nbc meteorologist angie lassman joins us now with the latest. so much to watch again, angie. >> so much to watch indeed, frances. it was a messy day yesterday, and we still have lingering effects from this. 63 million people under these alerts. we'll start to see some of those winding down through the day today as the system works its way further to the north and east. t we still have snow to deal with downwind of the lakes and extreme northern portions of new england. we'll pick up additional snow, anywhere from 4 to 6 inches. but we've also got flood concerns across the northeast.

notice the 14 million people under flood alerts at this time, including atnta. we'll pi up additional rain across parts of the southeast through the rest of the y today and into tonight. and then we'll finally see this system wrap up before we look out west for our next storm system, frances. >> angie, thank you. breaking news. the white house is firing united states attorneys. two sources tell nbc news that an unknown member of the nation's 93 federal prosecutors started getting notified last night. one source says the fired attorneys received a letter from the office of presidential personnel at the direction of president trump. a political appointee for the doj's press office tells nbc news they are looking into it. meanwhile, the white house says about 75,000 feral workers accepted a buyout offer to resign. the deadline cselast night after a federal judge allowed the program to move forward. but the white house faces more legal battles. many iolving the department of government efficiency. here's kelly o'donnell.

>> reporter: the debate over doge, a flash point in president trump's overhaul of government. >> the spigot is getting ready to be turned off. >> reporter: democrats held up for scrutiny elon musk. the billionaire head of the department of government efficiency. >> it's a dedemolition plan thas going to run through our government. rorter: the divide is clear. democrats call out an unaccountable overreach. >> donald trump and elon musk are recklessly and illegally dismantling the federal government. shuttering federal agencies, firing federal workers. >> reporter: while republicans praise musk's methods to slash spending. >> now that doge is taking real action, democrats are choosing to defend the bureaucracy and status quo instead of standing up for the american people. >> reporter: press secretary karoline leavitt showed what she called receipts for spending identified and terminated by doge. including diversity and inclusion programs. a $4 million training contract at job corps.

and a $2.3 million contract for diversity training at the air force officers school. but leavitt argued without evidence the spending she cited is not simply a policy dispute but suggested fraud, which is a crime. >> i would argue that all of these things are fraudulent. they are wasteful, and they are an abuse of the american taxpayers' dollar. >> reporter: a second move to halt funding for migrants. kristi noem clawed back $59 million that had been paid to provide hotel housing for migran in new york city. the city says it is exploring litigation to get the money back. >> our thanks to kelly for that report. in new york, the justice department is suing the state over alleged failure to enforce federal immigration law. u.s. attorney general pam bondi said the lawsuit includes governor kathy hochul, letitia james and the head of the

state's dmv. it targets a green light law that prevents new york from sharing licenses and information from federal authorities. governor hochul called it worthless and publicity driven. attorney general james said she is prepared to defend state law and the rights of all new yorkers. president trump says he spoke with russian president putin for an hour and a half yesterday, agreeing to negotiations to end the war in ukraine. earlier, at a nato visit, secretary of state pete hegseth previewed major concessions ahead of talks. >> we must start by recognizing that returning to ukraine's pre-2014 borders is an unrealistic objective. >> for the latest, let's turn to matt bodner. is the u.s. essentially giving away parts of ukraine? >> reporter: frances, good morning. this is exactly the question hanging over europe this morning. as trump's statements leave us with more questions than answers.

for example, what exactly is the u.s. negotiating position? what is russia willing to offer concessions on? most important, what role ukraine itself get to play in these negotiations? the issue of ukraine's territorial integrity has been central to this conflict since russia first invaded and annexed ukrainian territory back in 2014 since the start of russia's full-scale invasion in 2022. the u.s. and its western partners have constantly juggled ukraine's desire to liberate all of its territory with these so-called on-the-ground realities. the biden administration, for example, never committed itself to assisting ukraine in liberating crimea from russian control. if trump's statement yesterday represents a meaningful policy shift of any kind, it would move away from the nato stance. hegseth said restoring the 2014

borders was simply unrealistic and it would only prolong the war and bring about continued death and destruction. the vast majority of the people dying are ukrainians. it's happening in their homes and cities and towns every single day and every single night. ukraine is defending itself from an invasion that russia alone chose to launch. frances? >> matt, thank you. wall street watching this morning to see if wholesale inflation also picked up in january after consumer prices came in hotter than expected yesterday. costs rose 3%, compared to a year ago, driven by higher prices for food, energy and shelter. the big headline. egg prices almost doubling since last year. now nearly 5 bucks for a dozen nationwide. erin mclaughlin looks at the impact of bird flu. >> reporter: at wagon wheel farm in upstate new york, farmer jason touw knows his eggs are expensive. >> i never thought i'd see the day when a dozen eggs cost more

than a bale of hay. >> reporter: the $5 he charged in may became $7 in october. now it's $8 a dozen. touw says he has no choice but to pass along the price of protecting his flock of 500 chickens. across the country, more than 21 million chickens died due to bird flu since december. it was found a county away from wagon wheel. so touw is ring up security, san emphasizing footwear, installing roofs over his coops. >> we're always watching for it. >> reporter: the goal, to protect his farm from wild birds, known carriers of the virus. >> if there are any wild birds that land on top, they're not going to cross contaminate with any droppings down into the chicken runs. >> reporter: he spent thousands on biosecurity. the cost passed along to his consumers. he says the main price pusher for his eggs, replacing older hens that no longer lay profitably.

those costs have skyrocketed. and, for americans struggling with inflation fatigue, the doubling of egg prices is an added shock. >> i don't get it. and i can't afford it. so i eat a lot less and pay a little more. >> reporter: and that's when people can even find eggs. retailers trader joe's and costco limiting how many egging a customer can buy. meanwhile, back at wagon wheel farm. do you worry you'll have to charge even more if this keeps going? >> that's already on the horizon. >> reporter: to chicken farms across the u.s., they're scrambling to keep the bird flu at bay while bracing for the cost of eggs to climb even higher. erin mclaughlin, goshen, new york. now to heavy rain heading toward the west coast. nbc meteorologist angie lassman is back, tracking the storms for us. >> this is the next storm system we've been watching through the day. and we can see the heavy rain working into parts of northern

california. southern california going to see the action as well. we'll see flood alerts likely stay up and down the state for the extended period. 32 million people included in those, as this big push of moisture starts to work onshore, specifically through the day today. across those burn scar areas, we're concerned about the high flood risk. that's something we'll watch through the today today and into tomorrow. most of that snow will work across the sierra range and into the rockies. when it's all said and done, a good amount of rain across this region. notice the 6 to 10 jacksonville, degrees. charleston dealing with the rain as well, 74 degrees for your afternoon high today. that's a look at your forecast,

frances, back to you. coming up, the big names knocking on the door of the rock 'n roll hall of fame. and, is armageddon just years away? nasa's new warning about an asteroid hurtling toward earth. you don't want to miss a thing. we're back in just a minute. hin. we're back in just a minute. harn and aloe vera line is changing the game. up to five days of moisture and no wash days in between? let's see about that. day two, headed to work, but i feel like i'm about to drop a hit single. all the cuties are at the run club. good thing these curls are curling. can you believe this is day five? i think i could go even longer. up to five days of lasting moisture. endless possibilities. imagine what you could do in five days. mom's gonna love this! alright kids come on. it's time for bed! ( ♪♪ ) good morning, mr. snuggles. make breakfafast speci with the cocoa and hazelnutty goodness of nutella. ( ♪♪ ) can neuriva support your brain health? mary, janet, hey!

eddie, no. frasier, frank. frank? —fred, how are you? —fred! support up to 7 brain health indicators, including memory. when you need to remember, remember neuriva. we are back now with new details about this asteroid heading towards earth in about eight years. scientists say the probability for impact is still low, but that possibility has doubled in recent weeks. kathy park breaks it down for us. >> what hit us? >> small asteroid fragments. >> reporter: an asteroid on a collision course to planet earth? it may sound straight out of a science fiction movie. but this drama could be real. >> it's like being an outfielder at fenway, where you hear the crack of the bat. and you see the ball has left the bat. and you know it's a fly ball. but you don't know if it's to

center field, ft field or right field. and basically, for this asteroid, we're barely off the crack of the bat. >> reporter: astronomers first spotted the asteroid back in december. the sizable space rock stretching up to 330 feet long, at least the size of the statue of liberty and big enough to do catastrophic damage on impact. >> we, as a community, have to decide how we move forward with that. >> reporter: after studying yr4's orbit and trajectory, it could be on a path toward earth. initially putting the odds low, now the chances have doubled from 1% to 2.3%. >> the probability number is going to wiggle around a little bit. >> reporter: but expertsay we shouldn't panic. >> how worried should we be right now? >> this is an object that merits tracking by astronomers. merits our aention, and that's simply what we're doing. >> reporter: so what could it

look like if we hit rock bottom? yr4 is about the same size that created a masser crater look li?

yr4 is about the same size that

created a masser crater in arizona 50,000 years ago. in 1908, a similarly-sized asteroid plunged into the atmosphere before exploding over iberia. there were massive forest fires and millions of trees flattened for miles. >> at some point, an asteroid killed the dinosaurs. that's only going to happen an every few hundred million years. >> reporter: in 2022, nasa successfully proved it could change the trajectory of an asteroid using a spacecraft called dart, something that could be useful if yr4 starts heading too close. for now, the massive space rock is traveling away from earth. in april, telescopes will get their last chance to spot it until it comes back into view in 2028. it's a race against the clock for experts to study its every move. when it comes back in our sights it could be too close for comfort. >> our thanks to kathy for that

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♪ ♪ ♪ i'm sorry, ms. jackson ♪ ♪ i am for real ♪ ♪ never meant to make you cry ♪ ♪ ♪ >> they may call themselves outcasts, but they are on the verge of admittance into one of music's most prestigious clubs. the iconic hip-hop duo is one of 14 acts nominated for the class of 202 other first-time nominees include pfish and a mexican rock band. the first-ever spanish language nominees, too. other people, black crows, joe

crocker, billy idol. >> so much talent in one place. i would love for outcast to get it. they deserve a spot, you know? >> you always wonder how come some people, look at these names, take so long. they've been around forever. >> we'll see what happens with the finalization of that. now to an actor once playing churchill possibly taking up the wand of another iconic person. >> a person who is respectful, instead of wielding his murderous brush! >> sources say john lithgow is in talks to play dumbledore. the hogwarts headmaster was brought to life in the original film series with richard harris. hbo declined to coent on the report. the highly-anticipated series is expected to debut late next

year. harry potter fans of course will be thrilled about this. >> and he would be the first american actoro play dumbledore. you heard him with a british accent with the beard and whitehair. he's got the look. when we come back, the new york stock exchange is heading to the lonestar state. and backstreet's back. how the pop icons are making history in sin city. s are makin history in sin city. hi zoe. how can i help you today? do you know if there's a less expensive option for my new medicare prescription? medicare? really? i might have to see some i.d. mr. lee. here, let me check on that for you. okay, so i will give your doctor's office a call... this is not just help with a medicare prescription. thank you zoe. anytime. bye! this is the human kind of help. walgreens. swiffer sweeper dry* traps 2x more dust and hair for a clean even mom approves of. nice reach! brooms canus sh stuff around, but swiffer grabs dirt and en traps the hair.

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paramount telling reuters that youtube tv attempted to pressure it into accepting one-sided terms. youtube will offer subscribers an $8 credit if the outage lasts long. if the sphere wasn't already larger than life, the backstreet boys will be there. ticket sales start next week. ♪ ♪ ♪ up to five days of moisture and no wash days in between? let's see about that. day two, headed to work, but i feel like i'm about to drop a hit single. all the cuties are at the run club. good thing these curls are curling. can you believe this is day five? i think i could go even longer. up to five days of lasting moisture. endless possibilities. imagine what you could do in five days. can neuriva support your brain health? mary, janet, hey! eddie, no. frasier, frank. frank? —fred, how are you? —fred! support up to 7 brain health indicators,

including memory. when you need to remember, remember neuriva. a mystery! jessie loves playing detective. but the real mystery was her irritated skin. so, we switched to tide free & gentle. it cleans better, and doesn't leave behind irritating residues. and it's gentle on her skin. tide free and gentle liquid is epa safer choice certified. it's gotta be tide. we are back with a misstep that nearly cost a basketball fan 10 grand. the college student miraculously sinking a half-court shot to win the prize money or so he thought. here's steven romo. >> reporter: it was the halftime

contest that sparked a $10,000 dispute. >> noah, are you ready? >> reporter: u mass senior noah lee says he was plucked out of the crowd at a women's basketll game last wednesday and challenged to make four increasingly-difficult baskets in 30 seconds for a chance to win big. >> on your mark, get set, go! >> reporter: noah sinking the first layup, no problem. then, a free throw. getting a little more interest next, a three-pointer. now fans getting excited. >> noah for three! >> reporter: and then. >> one dribble, take a breath, and figured hey, let's have fun. >> reporter: the crowd going wild. >> holy [ bleep ]! >> reporter: he was about to take home the 10 grand. or so he thought. noah soon learning the company behind the contest, odds on promotions had a strict rule

that his foot could not touch the half-court line. >> u.s. athletics had seen the replay of video and mentioned it's going to be close. >> reporter: the school telling him the company would not pay out the reward. >> they were gracious enough to offer me gifts, seats in the front row. a gift card to the mullins center. >> reporter: many fans outraged. >> where are the rules telling him your foot has to be behind the line. he was on half-court. >> i would suggest paying noah. >> reporter: odds on promotions did not immediately respond to nbc news' request for comment. the managing director told the "washington post" it was, quote, not our decision not to give him money. and that the school never filed a claim. but, in a statement, u mass athletics said, quote, after their review of the four camera angles we provided, odds on promotions determined the half-court shot was disqualified. now to make the situation right,

the school deciding to pay noah the $10,000 anyway. noah planning to spend that money in true college student fashion. >> using the money first to pay off my student loans, kind of finish out those before i kind of enter a full-time job. then after that, with what's left, i would kind of like to have a really fun last spring break while in college with my friends. >> i know the rules are the rules, but he deserves that. glad he got it. thanks for tipping off your morning with "early today." i'm frances rivera. hope you have a great thursday. stay safe out there. stay safe o.

one person is dead following an overnight fire in the east bay. a live rep