>> and that's the overnight news for this friday. from the captioning funded by cbs it's friday, september 20th, 2019. this is the "cbs morning news." tropical depression imelda turns deadly. parts of texas are under water this morning after heavy rain inundates cities and towns. blackface scandal backlash. canadian prime minister justin trudeau apologizes again for offensive photos recently brought to light. the one question he wouldn't answer about the controversy. and another death linked to vaping. why the fda is now using criminal investigators to search for answers in the mounting crisis.

good morning from the studio 57 newsroom at cbs headquarters here in new york. good to be with you.arie g this morning, floodwaters are slowly receding in southeast texas following days of rain brought by the remnants of tropical storm imelda. some areas have seen upwards of four feet of rain over three days. the storm killed at least two people including a 19-year-old who drowned and was electrocuted. more rain could be on the way for the area. laura podesta's here in new york. how are storm victims coping? >> reporter: anne-marie, this is an unfortunate case of deja vu for a lot of these victims who just finished recovering from hurricane harvey in 2017. they say this storm when it comes to rainfall may be even worse than that disaster. longtime residents of southeast texas are devastated by what imelda brought. >> the fact that there's cars stranded and people are getting high water rescue, that's never happened in our time that we've lived here. >> reporter: from houston to

beaumont, people say the flooding is worse than when hurricane harvey hit two years ago. >> we never flooded before, and we've had a lot worse rain than this, and it's never been this bad. >> reporter: more than 40 inches of rain fell in 72 hours. drivers were forced to abandon their cars. >> got the things that were important and put them in a backpack and just walked out. the water was about knee high. >> reporter: even this 18 wheeler couldn't handle the deluge. the driver was pulled up on to his truck by a man passing by who saw him in trouble. one man died when he drove his van into eight feet of floodwater. >> it was a good 20 minutes before they got him out, and it was just beyond -- you know, he was under water too long. >> reporter: officials in harris county say there have been more than 1,700 high-water rescues and evacuations. >> my god -- >> reporter: it was an emotional day for people like gene leblanc and his 12-year-old son adam.

>> back to ground zero again. >> reporter: lost almost everything when harvey hit. >> losing everything, my house and restarting everything again. >> reporter: houston officials city begins to clean up. and rescue teams are not letting up even in these overnight hours. they're working hard to clear freeways of abandoned cars. some places may not see floodwaters recede until this weekend. >> wow. laura podesta in new york. thank you, laura. now to canada where prime minister justin trudeau is vowing to continue his re-election campaign following a blackface scandal. it remains unclear exactly how many times he dressed in blackface. yesterday trudeau apologized again after more images emerged. one appears to show him wearing dark make-up, raising his hands in the air, and it comes after a 2001 picture in blackface surfaced on wednesday. trudeau says he regrets his actions. >> darkening your face, regardless of the context of the

circumstances, is always unacceptable. >> wes about just how many times he had dressed in blackface, trudeau refused to answer. with election day just over four weeks away, he is facing demands to step down. this morning, a new jersey man is facing terrorism charges for allegedly scouting landmarks for terror attacks on behalf of the terrorist organization hezbollah. alexis saab faces a nine-count indictment. authorities allege that he was trained in intelligence gathering techniques and bomb making. the 42-year-old is accused of photographing dozens of landmarks in new york including the united nations headquarters, the statue of liberty, times square, and the empire state building. he also allegedly surveilled local airports and tunnels. officials say saab turned over the information to hezbollah. he faces more than 100 years in prison if convicted. we're learning more about the whistleblower complaint allegedly about a promise

president trump made to a foreign leader. the "washington post" reports the complaint centers on ukraine. house democrats are already investigating whether mr. trump and his attorney, rudy giuliani, tried to manipulate the ukrainian government into helping with the president's re-election campaign. nancy cordes reports. >> reporter: the whistleblower's warning has to do with the president's communications with a foreign leader, but congress has been blocked from learning much more. >> that whistleblower material must be made available to congress. >> reporter: the intelligence community's inspector general determined last month that the information provided by an employee met the definition of an urgent concern and must be conveyed to congress within seven calendar days. but the president's acting director of national intelligence refused. house intelligence chairman adam schiff -- do you believe that the white house or the president himself are pressuring the acting director of national intelligence not to hand this information over to you?

>> we do know that they are making some claim that a privilege may apply. well, that narrows the category who may be intervening here. >> reporter: mr. trump speaks to range of leaders including the presidents of russa, ukraine, and china. he tweeted, "i understand that there may be many people listening. is anybody dumb enough to believe that i would say something inappropriate?" republicans backed him up. >> this is not something i'd ever see the president doing, and i would -- instead of jump to conclusions, actually get the facts first. >> reporter: the acting director of national intelligence says that he consulted with the department of justice and determined that he doesn't need to inform congress in this case because the subject of the complaint who we now know is the president doesn't work for him and isn't part of the intelligence community. chairman schiff disagrees and is now threatening to go to court over this or to withhold key intelligence funds. nancy cordes, cbs news, capitol hill. this morning the number of deaths from illnesses linked to

vaping has risen. missouri officials reported an eighth death. yesterday the cdc said 530 confirmed and probable cases have been reported in 38 states and one u.s. territory. most patients report using e-cigarettes with thc, the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana. still, health officials say the exact cause of the illnesses remains unknown. >> until we know more while this investigation is ongoing, if you have health concerns, we recommend you consider not vaping and not using e-cigarettes. >> the fda revealed it is using its criminal investigators to track down a possible link between the illnesses and black market vaping products. house speaker nancy pelosi unveiled a plan to lower the cost of prescription drugs. yesterday she announced the ambitious proposal. it allows medicare to negotiate prices for between 25 and 250 of the costliest drugs for seniors and younger people.

pelosi says the high cost of prescription medication is not a partisan issue. >> the issue of the cost of prescription drugs is one subject that can make grown men cry. just cry about not being able to deal with those costs, what it means, again, to the health and well-being of their families because of cost. >> pelosi says her goal is a deal that president trump will sign and that can pass the republican-controlled senate ahead of the 2020 presidential election. there is a big change in the policy of one of the country's oldest gun manufacturers. connecticut-based colt, the maker of the ar-15 rifle used in several mass shootings, announced yesterday it is suspending production of all of its rifles for the civilian market. the gun maker says there are enough of the weapons already available. the ar-15 is among the most popular models available for purchase in the u.s., as well as one of the most lethal. there are currently 11 million

of them on the sintration reportedly has a new plan to fund a border wall. and it started as a facebook joke, but alien enthusiasts are descending on nevada to apparently storm area 51. this is the "cbs morning news." ning news." each day a little sweeter. adp simplifies hr, benefits, and payroll for magnolia bakery, so employees like sarah can achieve what they're working for. jill jill has entresto, and a na heart failure pill that helped keep people alive and out of the hospital. don't take entresto if pregnant; it can cause harm or death to an unborn baby. don't take entresto with an ace inhibitor or aliskiren or if you've had angioedema with an ace or arb. the most serious side effects are angioedema, low blood pressure, kidney problems, or high blood potassium. ask your doctor about entresto. where to next?

pronamel repair can actively help repair weakened enamel. it takes minerals and it drives it deep into the tooth's surface. pronamel repair takes it to the next level. take a moment. to unwrap, and unwind... with lindor. a milk chocolate shell with a smooth, melting center. crafted by the lindt master chocolatiers whenever. wherever. lindor, only from lindt. you don't go home, you go viral. little leaks show up, wherever. poise® ultra thin pads are 5x drier than the leading always® period pad so you can stay you and stay amazing. poise®. the number one brand for light bladder leaks.

(vo) living with ammonia odor? not a pretty picture. (vo) luckily, tidy cats lightweight with ammonia blocker tackles tough odor, even ammonia. so long stankface! (vo) ammonia like that? there's a tidy cats for that. justin trudeau. test. the first lawsuit seeking damages from the deadly labor day dive boat fire off southern california has been filed. a crewman hurt when he jumped from the upper deck of the burning boat is suing the vessel's owner and the company that chartered it. ryan simms claims the boat was unseaworthy and operated in an unsafe manner. the fire killed 33 passengers and one crew member. alien enthusiasts are descending near area 51, and there's reportedly a new plan to fund the border wall. those are some of the headlines on the "morning newsstand." the "washington post" reports senior trump administration officials are considering a plan to divert billions of dollars in additional military funds to pay

for the construction of a border wall next year. officials reportedly say it is a way to get around congressional opposition to using more taxpayer money for the wall. mr. trump has pledged to complete nearly 500 miles of new barrier by the 2020 election. planning documents obtained by the "post" show that would cost about $18 billion. cbsnews.com reports nike has cut ties with embattled patriots receiver antonio brown. the nfl is investigating sexual assault allegations against brown. a former personal trainer accused him of rape and sexual assault in a civil suit filed last week. brown has denied those allegations. a nike spokesperson said, quote, antonio brown is not a nike athlete. brown played his first game for the patriots last weekend. he's expected to make his home debut on sunday. the "associated press" says earthlings are arriving in the remote nevada desert for the so-called storm area 51 event. it began as a joke on facebook

for people curious about the site and aliens, but it has turned into a music, movie, and space-themed entertainment festival near the mysterious military research site. two small nearby towns are preparing for possibly thousands of visitors over the next few days. hundreds have already arrived. decades of secrecy surrounding area 51 have fueled speculation that it's where the government studies space aliens. >> it's more about a gathering of like-minded people, having fun, sharing stories. and hopefully seeing some of those ufos they see out here all the time. >> the u.s. air force has issued warnings for people to stay away from the gates of the nevada test and training range where area 51 is located. police are posted outside the gate. and "rolling stone" says a new bob dylan bootleg series of feature songs that he and johnny cash sang together during a

two-day free-flowing session in 1969. on november 1st, columbia records will release the latest archival recordings from dylan's vault. much of the music has never been heard before. the set includes 25 tracks from the two music legends, and it also includes recordings dylan did later with bluegrass star earl scruggs and others. still to come, amazon walkout. workers at the online retailer stage a protest over the company's efforts to combat climate change. climate change. ♪ thousands of women with metastatic breast cancer are living in the moment and taking ibrance. ibrance with an aromatase inhibitor is for postmenopausal women or for men with hr+/her2- breast cancer that has spread to other parts of the body - meaning it's metastatic - as the first hormonal based therapy. ibrance plus letrozole significantly delayed disease progression versus letrozole. patients taking ibrance can develop low white blood cell counts which may cause serious infections that can lead to death. before taking ibrance, tell your doctor if you have fever,

chills, or other signs of infection, liver or kidney problems, are pregnant, breastfeeding, or plan to become pregnant. common side effects include low red blood cell and low platelet counts, infections, tiredness, nausea, sore mouth, abnormalities in liver blood tests, diarrhea, hair thinning or loss, vomiting, rash, and loss of appetite. be in your moment. ask your doctor about ibrance. (crunching) i'm an ice cruncher. so i was excited about colgate total. it has sensitivity relief, so i don't have to give up doing what i love. aren't we lucky. colgate total. do more for your whole mouth. here's a look at the

forecast in some cities around the country. ♪ facebook ceo mark zuckerberg made his first public trip to washington, d.c., yesterday since being grilled by congress last spring. zuckerberg met with several lawmakers on capitol hill to discuss his ideas on internet regulation after he met with president trump in the oval office. the president, who has slammed social media companies like facebook for censoring his views, tweeted a picture of the pair calling it a nice meeting. on the cbs "money watch," why your amazon package may be delayed, and impossible burgers will be available in grocery stores starting today. diane king hall is at the new york stock exchange with that and more. good morning, diane. >> reporter: good morning, anne-marie. a measure of household debt for the second quarter will be released later today, and

tween the u.s. and china will continue in washington. yesterday stocks paired early gains as optimism surrounding the new trade negotiations were muted. the dow lost 52 points. the s&p 500 ended flat, and the nasdaq lost five. -- snack in that case added five. according to freddie mac, the average rate of a 30-year fixed mortgage increased from 3.5% a week ago to 3.7%. a year ago the rate was 4.6%. the average on the 15-year fixed home loan climbed about .1% from last week to 3.2%. now about 1,600 amazon employees plan to walk off the job later today over what they say is the company's inaction on climate change. they say a pledge fromceo jeff bezos to make the company carbon neutral by 2040 and to use more electric delivery vans does not go far enough. the walkout comes as a global strike begins today. it calls on people to walk out of school or work to raise

awareness. this comes ahead of a climate change meeting next week. you could get deliveries from walgreens to your door by drone. there's a partnering to test drone home delivery service. starting next month, snacks like goldfish crackers or gummy bears as well as asprin for a sick child will be delivered by a ten-pound drone that flies up to 70 miles per hour. other cities will follow. and one company's making the impossible possible. impossible burger makes its grocery store debut today. the plant-based meat patty will be available at california-based gelson's markets. it was retail for $8.99 for a 12-ounce package. there are plans for the bioengineered meat to be available at supermarkets throughout the country by the middle of next year. anne-marie? >> yeah, for people who don't know, there's impossible burger and beyond burger.

these are the sort of big meat alternative burgers. >> that's right. >> impossible burger chose to only make their burger available in restaurants. beyond burger has always been available in grocery stores. this is a huge deal for people who like impossible burgers. now they can take them home, at least in california, and cook them at home. >> it's true. and eventually in other grocery stores, as well. and i for one have tried the impossible burger and like it a lot. in fact, it was so close to the real thing, i thought it was when i tried it. >> wow. that's interesting. i'm going to have like a burger-off or a meat alternative -- >> that's right. >> burger-off. like a long thing. it won't fit on an invite i don't think. >> i don't think so. >> diane king hall at the new york stock exchange, thank you so much. >> you got it. still to come, pinstripes are back. the yankees celebrate their first american league east title in seven years. your allergy pills? why accept it frm flonase sensimist. nothing stronger. nothing gentler. nothing lasts longer. flonase sensimist. 24 hour non-drowsy allergy relief

flonase sensimist. there's brushing and there's oral-b power brushing. oral-b just cleans better. it's the one inspired by dentists... with the round brush head. oral-b's gentle rounded brush head removes more plaque along the gumline... for cleaner teeth and healthier gums. oral-b. brush like a pro. are confusing quilted northern for robes. they're both cushiony, comforting, and add elegance to your home. but quilted northern

here's a look at the forecast in some cities around the country. ♪

a new study reveals birds are vanishing from our skies. scientists have found north america has lost nearly three billion birds over the past five decades. among the worst-hit species, sparrows and blackbirds. researchers blame pesticides and the loss of natural habitat. the results are published in the journal "science." and for the first time since 2012 the new york yankees are a.l. east champs. >> and the one-two. [ cheers ] swing and a miss, and the yankees win. >> chapman sealed the yankees' 9-1 victory over the angels after striking out albert pujols. this is the yankees' 100th win of the season. coming up on "cbs this morning," comedian cedric the entertainer joins us in the studio to talk about the new season of the hit cbs show "the neighborhood." i'm anne-marie green. this is the "cbs morning news."

to look at me now, you don't see psoriasis. you see clear skin. you see me. but if you saw me before cosentyx... ♪ i was covered. it was awful. but i didn't give up. i kept fighting. i got clear skin with cosentyx. 3 years and counting. clear skin can last. see if cosentyx could make a difference for you. cosentyx is proven to help people with moderate to severe plaque psoriasis find clear skin that can last. don't use if you're allergic to cosentyx. before starting cosentyx, you should be checked for tuberculosis. an increased risk of infections and lowered ability to fight them may occur. tell your doctor if you have an infection or symptoms. or if you have received a vaccine or plan to. if you have inflammatory bowel disease, tell your doctor if symptoms develop or worsen. serious allergic reactions may occur. see me now. i'm still clear. how sexy are these elbows?

our top stories this morning, residents in east texas are waking up to more rain as remnants of tropical storm imelda continues to deluge the area. some areas received more than four feet of rain. the storm has claimed at least two lives and thousands were stranded. and canadian prime minister justin trudeau is doing damage control after more images of him in blackface surfaced. yesterday video of him in the 1990s emerged and shows him wearing dark make-up and raising his hands in the air. trudeau is resisting calls to resign and is vowing to continue with his re-election bid. on capitol hill, activists demanded change during a heated hearing yesterday on police brutality. as nikole killion reports, they want lawmakers to take action now. we're not anti-police, we're anti-police brutality. >> reporter: reverend al

sharpton testified before a house hearing on policing imploring lawmakers to act. >> i'm here for white people and black people and any other people that are victims of the force -- >> reporter: sharpton appeared next to gwen carr, mother of the eric garner who was killed five years ago after he was put in a choke hold by a new york city police officer. >> how come no one was held accountable? no one was held and charged for my son's death. >> reporter: another man was tackled by a police after a case of mistaken identity. >> i actually was under the misguided opinion that this may have been someone coming to give me a hug or a fan in some regard. >> reporter: many of the witnesses called for more federal intervention including training, funding, and legislation to combat the use of excessive force. >> i do believe the federal government can play a direct role in helping to create standards.

>> reporter: some say law enforcement is only doing its job. >> there's no one, i believe honestly in this country, who wants bad actors who do bad things out of the police force more than the police themselves. >> reporter: garner's death and the deaths of other unarmed black men at the hands of police inspired national movements against police brutality. >> it's easy to point out and say that there's us and there's them. and the reality is there's people on both sides of this issue. >> reporter: activists hope thursday's hearing will be a step in helping repair the relationship between police and the communities they serve. nikole killion, cbs news, capitol hill. coming up on "cbs this morning," health concerns linked to vaping. tony dokoupil looks at research% being done to determine whether e-cigarettes are a safe alternative to smoking. plus, "48 hours" correspondent erin moriarty tells us about her podcast "my life of crime." and cedric the entertainer joins us to talk about the new

season of the hit cbs show "the neighborhood." that's the "cbs morning news" for this friday. thanks for watching. i'm anne-marie green. have a great day. ♪

live from the cbs ba