prayers for pope francis from around the world.

the pontiff in critical condition, battling pneumonia and kidney issues. an update on his health and what's next for his treatment. the clock is ticking toward a midnight deadline for federal workers to explain their accomplishments to elon musk and his doge team or face termination. we're live in d.c. with the growing push back, as hundreds more layoffs hit usaid. a mid-air bomb scare aboard an american airlines flight. the threat that sent fighter jets racing to escort the plane to safety. a nfl player reportedly robbed at gun point after a night out in new york. and the oscars are just over a week away, but best picture is still anyone's game. how last night's sag awards to shake up the race. it's monday, february 24th. "early today" starts right now. good morning. glad you're with me. i'm frances rivera. we begin with pope francis'

health. he remains in critical condition as he receives treatment for double pneumonia and mild kidney issues according to the vatican. the pontiff is alert and well-oriented. even participating in holy mass with those caring for him on sunday. many around the world and across the u.s. praying for the pope's recovery. nbc's anne thompson has more. >> reporter: pope francis remains in critical condition at a hospital in rome. he is still getting supplemental oxygen as he fights double pneumonia. and there has been no new respiratory crisis, however, the 88-year-old did have mild kidney failure which the vatican says is under control. >> we worry about sepsis. once you develop sepsis, it can be a life-threatening condition. >> reporter: the global catholic church united in prayer for francis, from nairobi, kenya, to new york. >> wouldn't we love to have the

gift of more time with him. >> reporter: to st. john, rome's cathedral. in his hometown in buenos aires, his face emblazoned on the obelisk on the city's center. instead of delivering the traditional sunday prayer at the vatican he sent this message. i am confidently continuing my hospitalization at the hospital, carrying on with the necessary treatment, and rest is also part of the therapy. it means amy's church group will not see the pope as planned this week. how disappointed are you that you're not going to have that opportunity to see him? >> oh, i'm very sad. very sad. i hope he gets well. >> reporter: prayers offered with her cousin kathy gregory. >> i was very saddened and praying. scary moments in the sky when an american airlines flight from new york to new delhi was diverted to rome due to a security concern. fighter jets called in to escort

the plane. a source familiar with the matter tells nbc news that a bomb threat was sent by e-mail. law enforcement cleared the plane after it landed without incident. the threat was determined to be non-credible. thousands of employees as of midnight were put on leave from usaid. only a fraction of the workforce who serve in mission-critical role also stay. about 1600 were also let go. jay gray joins me from d.c many more are facing a midnight deadline to justify their jobs. >> reporter: you're absolutely right. most federal workers told they have until midnight tonight to respond to an e-mail they received over the weekend pushed by elon musk in the department of government efficiency with the subject line, what did you do last eek. asking them to send five bullet points detailing what they accomplished on the job. but employees getting some mixed

messages on all of this. e-mails obtained by nbc news show the fbi director telling workers to pause on any responses, and the state department says no employee is obligated to report activities outside the department's chain of command. still, the department of health and human services says the e-mail is legitimate, and employees should reply. elon musk says failure to respond will be taken as a resignation. now the federal government is the nation's largest employer, and the current layoffs could amount to the biggest job cut in u.s. history. americans speaking out now with some republican lawmakers feeling the heat at town halls back home. >> when are you going to wrest control as the congress back from the executive and stop hurting your constituents. >> the president has an agenda, and d he's doing things. doge is in the house, and our job is to do certain things.

>> reporter: now president trump and elon musk continue to defend doge at a conservative conference over the weekend. they've been promoting the idea of giving back some of the savings to americans. nbc news interviewing the advisor who came up with the idea of doge dividends. he explained that these would be different from stimulus payments. money would only go to households who pay more in taxes than they get back, meaning many lower income americans may not qualify, and it's also not clear at this time, frances, how much money doge has actually saved the government with these cuts. >> jay gray for us. jay, thank you. late last night, we learned o will be the next deputy director of the fbi. president trump says dan bongino is prepared to walk away from his successful conservative podcast to take on the leadership role at the bureau. he previously served as a new york city police officer and member of the secret service. the role of deputy director does not need senate confirmation.

german chancellor olaf scholz suffered a stinging defeat at the hands of voters, placing third in federal elections. the conservatives got the biggest share of the vote with around 28.7%. crucially, the far right party afd placed second with a fifth of the vote. for the latest, let's turn to foreign correspondent matt bodner. this was a high-stakes election. what were the take aways? >> reporter: these elections come at a critical time for europe and for germany, as the continent finds itself at a crossroads with the new trump administration, america's future relationship with europe as well as with russia and the ultimate outcome of the war in ukraine. this election saw historic turnout. 83% of the electorate. that is the largest turnout since 1990. the moderate conservative party known as the christian democratic union leads the vote with nearly 30%, putting its head friedrich merz in position to lead efforts to form a government. this is not necessarily a surprise.

he was expected to come out ahead in the election. what was a surprise, afd came in second place with 20% of the vote. to say that afd is a surprise is understatement. it i is right wing. the political spectrum has historically refused to work with them. but this commitment may be faltering. the party's star has been rising largely according to critics with the help of external actors such as elon musk, jd vance and allegations of support from moscow. afd talking points echo russian positions. it is unlikely that merz will bring them into government. already he has said they must achieve independence from the united states and consider a european replacement for nato. frances? >> thank you. tributes are pouring in for a heroic pennsylvania police officer killed while responding

to a shooting at a hospital over the weekend. maya eaglin spoke exclusively with his mother about his bravery. >> reporter: york, pennsylvania is a community in mourning. visitors offering flowers and prayers after the death of andrew duarte, shot and killed responding to a gunman at the hospital. his mom nancy remembering his bravery, telling us, andrew just celebrated his 30th birthday. >> andrew's my only child. and an amazing man. >> reporter: a doctor, nurse and custodian were held hostage . >> t /- >> it appeared to be targeted.

>> reporter: police killed the gunman. officer duarte is remembered as a hero. one nurse honoring him online, writing thank you so much for using your life to save mine. police rushed to the scene. >> i was locked in the bathroom. i wasn't sure, was there somebody, you know, loose in the building. >> reporter: and with so many unanswered questions about why the gunman came here, now only memories remain. how's it feel to see this outpouring of support and honoring your son? >> it's been amazing. i'm not surprised that he answered the call. i'm not surprised he was one of the ones in on the front. he was a mighty warrior. >> reporter: we know that at least five other people were also injured in this tragedy. some of them were medical staff. others were police officers. all of them right now are in stable condition, according to officials. back to you. >> maya, thank you. in new york city, at least three people are dead and two hurt after a boat capsized off

the coast of staten island. authorities say the u.s. coast guard and nypd pulled five people from the water and are still looking for a sixth person. two victims are being treated at the hospital with one in critical condition. no additional details on the victims are available. it is still february, but spring is in the air this week. michelle grossman is tracking the warmup. >> we can finally emerge outside without all the layers. most of us will see the warmup. we will see temperatures soaring 10, 20, even 30 degrees above what is normal for this time of year. looking at the northwest and northern rockies s staying acti with rain and mountain snow and gusty conditions. winds gusting up to 40, 50 and 60 miles per hour. a front is moving through in florida, it will be out of here by tomorrow morning. by tomorrow we're looking at a new system across the ohio valley and midwest.

but the big story will be the spring preview with record highs. temperatures in the 70s in the southeast. looking really good in the north atlantic too. by friday we're going to keep it dry. feeling like spring in parts of the southwest into the central and southern plains, near 50 degrees in spots. we will see snow falling in the upper midwest with some light snow in spots. hots of sunshine along the gulf coast, and really quiet day on friday. so that's good news. temperatures near 50 degrees, even above that in portions of too. but we are looking at rain with a front moving through florida. so rain in jacksonville, orlando

and tampa. that's your monday forecast. >> appreciate that, thanks so much, michelle. still to come, the big surprises and snubs from the sag awards. and back in a moment wh thite growing safety concerns for pro athletes after a nfl player was reportedly robbed at gunpoint. ! ( ♪♪ ) good morning, mr. snuggles. make breakfast special with the cocoa and hazelnutty goodness of nutella. ( ♪♪ ) [fighting scene] —ugh! here we go again —wait there's a red hulk now? excuse me... what do i do about this? —we use tide oxi boost. —it's a life saver. the most powerful clean in any universe. lookin good. thank you. see captain america: brave new world. ( ♪♪ ) feel the power of osteo bi-flex®. taken every day, it's clinically shown to improve joint comfort in 7 days, with significant improvement over time. ( ♪♪ ) even when us women's national team forward mallory swanson isn't on the field... ...she always makes the perfect play.

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disconcerting. >> reporter: this comes as police in wisconsin release video they say shows robbers breaking into the home of milwaukee bucks forward bobby portis jr. last year, stealing a million dollar championship ring, rolex and other jewels. here you see them leaving the house with what looks like a large safe. last week federal prosecutors announcing charges against seven chilean nationals who they say are responsible for burglaries at the homes including joe burrow. authorities say they were arrested with a car full of burrow's belongings. rob d'amico is a retired fbi agent. >> your schedule's out. like, they know where you're going to be. they know, again, that those people have high net worth items that are easy to fence.

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and the winner goes to conclave. >> white smoke emerged from the shrine auditorium as conclave won the top prize, clenching outstanding performance by a cast in a motion picture. earlier, timothee chalamet took home best lead actor for his role as bob dylan. adrian brodie declaring he wants to be one of the greats.

demi moore marked a win for best lead actress for her role in the substance. on the tv side, shogun added more spoils to its expanding empire. it won four awards, including best ensemble in a drama series. and it was a big night for "only murders in the building." not only did that hulu show take home a prize, but martin short won for best comedy actor. he could not attend after contracting covid at the snl 50th anniversary. survivor revealed that fans will get to weigh in on elements for the 50th season. polls open after the season 48 premiere this wednesday. viewers can vote on mainstays

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appearance since leaving office last month. mikaela shiffrin became the first skier in history to reach 100 world cup wins after she suffered major injuries after a crash in november. she said to reporters after sunday's historic win that she was thankful for this day. hong kong's newest additions, twin pandas made their public debut jed. the cubs so far have not been named. hi. i use febreze fade defy plug. and i use this. febreze has a microchip to control scent release so it smells first-day fresh for 50 days. 50 days!? and its refill reminder light means i'll never miss a day of freshness. ♪ even when us women's national team forward mallory swanson isn't on the field... ...she always makes the perfect play. thanks to the bank of america customized cash rewards visa card, she' earn 3% cash back on her purchase after choosing the online shopping category. ♪♪

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from josh allen, jose diaz balart has a little good news to start off your week. >> he stops, starts. good! >> reporter: this was a winning moment that brought long-time michigan state coach tom izzo to tears. his team's victory over oregon tying g legendary coach bobby knight for 353 big ten wins. >> i just want to thank each and every one of you. because we're not done yet now. i promise you, we are celebrating tonight! >> reporter: but the spartans' win one week later? pushing izzo into the record books, becoming the all-time leader in big ten wins. in buffalo, a life-changing shoutout by bills nfl mvp josh allen. >> i know this is an individual

award and says most valuable player, to slick rick in the mailroom. >> reporter: it got the world wondering who is slick rick? that's the long-time mailman, so touched that one of his heroes gave him a moment to shine. >> he mentioned my name. i started crying. i couldn't believe it. >> here's your very own chevy traverse. >> reporter: soon after, a local dealership stepped in, honoring slick rick with this car, after finding out he'd been taking the bus to work all these years. >> josh, you touched my for the rest of my life. i'm so proud of you. you look so beautiful. >> reporter: talk about staying strong. that's brianna garcia, holding back tears at her tap-out ceremony, a time-honored military tradition marking the end of basic training. >> one, two, three! >> reporter: brianna, who's in the army finally falling into the arms of her loved ones after months far from home.

>> oh, my gosh. >> reporter: brianna, so take me, then, to that ceremony, when you had your mom and your abueleta together. >> it was just real. they were here. >> reporter: brianna's dedication to service a personal victory she says she never could have achieved without all their support. what does that moment represent for you? >> felt like i accomplished something big, because, you know, i've never, like, thought i would be able to do that. >> our thanks to jose for those stories, and hope you carry those stories with you throughout the day and

pope francis still in