literally, but you can totally be one of our candidates. the massachusetts republican party has always been kind of pafg, but today, they just got fantastic. primary day, september 9th. good thursday morning everyone. right now on "first look," return the girls. the u.s. ups the ante to rescue the kidnapped nigerian teens. ignored and neglected. some american veterans aren't getting the care they were promised. some are actually dieing because of it. food prices worse than heat waves. the climate change's undeniable impact on the food supply. how this little boy's life was saved by his own dog. a top nfl draft pick is busy with jimmy fallon and a new type of relief pitcher. good morning and thanks for

joining us. i'm maggie nguyen. boka haram, the group behind the kidnappings is showing no sign of freeing the girls. first lady michelle obama is one of the big names lending support. she tweeted our prayers are with the missing nigerian girls. florida secretary of state hillary clinton is calling the kidnapping an act of terrorism. malala yousafzai is calling the kidnapped girls her sisters. she offers a message saying never lose hope because we are with you. other celebrities like amy poehler and chris brown are winning support on twitter. bring back our girls is a worldwide social media campaign with more than a million tweets being published using that hash tag. meanwhile nigerian police are

offering a $300,000 reward for information leading to the rescue of the kidnapped girls. the u.s., china, canada have offered to help free the girls. secretary eric shinseki is facing calls for his resignation after claims that veterans have been mistreated at va hospitals. let's get right to tracie potts in washington. shinseki indicated he is not going anywhere. what is he doing about these allegations? >> he's got the inspector general on it. he wants to wait for that report to see where they go next. shinseki is a decorated veteran himself, a four-star general. even the american legion which wants him out said he is applauded for his service, however, they think this was a problem from the top down.

>> whistle blowers claim thousands of requests were diverted to a secret list and records were destroyed. >> i am angry. >> reporter: but he's not giving up his job. >> general shinseki's time as secretary of veterans affairs has come to an end and he needs to step down. >> reporter: shinseki says he'll await for results of an investigation. >> the president remains condense in shinseki's ability to lead the department. >> reporter: the inspector general is looking into allegations that as many 40 veterans died waiting for up to a year and a half. >> you have to basically break through or do a full frontal assault to get an appointment. >> i don't have the 40 cases that the allegation is centered around. >> reporter: there are new

allegations that records were falsified at va hospitals in texas and colorado. >> it's absolutely infuriating. to have your son survive three combat tours to come home and to be treated like this. >> reporter: frustrating for vets out there and also lawmakers on capitol hill. they're already talking about holding hearings once that investigation is over. betty? >> frustrating and frightening for some. tracie potts in washington, thank you. an early heat wave is wreaking havoc on the central plains i.'s breaking records and debilitating crops. nbc's janet shamlian has more from wichita, kansas. >> reporter: it's the biggest crop in kansas, but in trouble all over the state. >> this is probably one of the worst crops at this stage i've ever seen in my 52 years. >> reporter: john jenkin son is an ag specialist, his family in farming for generations. he knows this year's harvest has

been hard hit just by looking at it. >> this harvest should be waist high. >> that's less than half. >> we'll have more than less than half of a crop. >> reporter: august-like temperatures in early may, it was as high as 103 last weekend. >> what you see on this map is where we expect temperatures to be either colder or hotter than they normally would be. of course, where the drought is so bad, temperatures will be hot as the atmosphere is going to continue to bake. we expect the drought to build even more so into the plains as we go through the summer months. >> reporter: in oklahoma it could be another 1930s-type dust bowl. 39% of the wheat crop there is in poor or very poor condition. a tour last week of farms in kansas forecast the weakest crop in 18 years in the top u.s. wheat-producing state. >> all the rain in the world isn't going to help this wheat. now let's get the latest in sports from francis rivera.

looking bright in that yellow today. >> good morning. let's start with the reigning nba in a special pregame feeling. kevin durant goes on a tear dropping 17 points in the first quarter alone. los angeles and oklahoma city shoot the lights out. we're talking literally here. there you go. combining for 117 points in the first half until the lights actually go out. they played the final seconds in a partial blackout. in the second half the lights and oklahoma city's offense returned. the semifinal match-up is tied at 1-1. indiana also evened their series where roy hibbert scored 28 points. the wizards had their chances but the pacers shut the door with this late basket. 86-82 indiana. it is 1-1.

>> go. [ cheers and applause ] >> jadeveon clowney hung out with jimmy fallon. fallon clocked in at 6.9 in his 40-yard dash. clowney's 4.5 and his ferocious tackles could make him the number one pick tonight, giving him enough millions to buy his mom her dream house. seattle seahawks richard share man with the $56 million contract, guaranteed $40 million in the deal but also making headlines with a "time" magazine interview where he explains why the nfl wouldn't have banned donald sterling. we have an nfl team called the redskins. i don't think the nfl is as concerned as they show. the nfl is more of a bottom-line

league. if it doesn't affect their bottom line, they're not as concerned. the hit streak extends to 27 games. he ties the colorado rockies franchise record and could break it. finally, it starts off very cute with this these wayward puppies, but then there's this guy, the goalie. as i tell my 1-year-old, gentle, gentle. the goalie doesn't get it. the pup is rescued by a kinder official. a 3-year-old boy is home safe thanks to a furry member of the family who was very gentle. hundreds of volunteers in north dakota searched pour the boy for nearly seven hours in the cold and rain. just as teams were about to give up their search, rescuers found the family dog cooper laying

with the boy keeping him warm. the 3-year-old was taken to the hospital. doctors say he is in good shape thanks to his loyal friend. that is a family friend right there. >> smart dog. >> exactly. >> are we going to be happy about this weather? >> we made it through last night. no fatalities last night. i didn't even see any injuries. we did have damage with some of the thunderstorms in the central plains. today will be a little more of a threat than yesterday. these pictures are from ardsmore, oklahoma. hail was the big story. there was big hail that fell from the sky. there were reports of baseball-size hail. let's show you what we're dealing with right now. we had 167 storm reports from texas all the way through the northern plains. as far as the lightning goes, they're starting to die off with those thunderstorms. this is the time of the morning where the sun dies off. heavy rain from abilene to wichita falls. that will push through oklahoma city this morning. this area has been very hot and very dry.

any rainfall is welcome. this is the map for today, areas of concern are in yellow. slight risk it goes from texas to minnesota and the area of red is at greatest risk of tornadoes. that includes areas of des moines to just south of minneapolis. again, it's not going to be as bad as last week, but we could still see one or two dangerous tornadoes today. >> not out of the woods just yet. meet the 90-year-old busted for a ton of cocaine. plus an australian wedding with a twist. you're watching "first look" on msnbc. ♪

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time to get down to business with cnbc's courtney reagan. >> twro senators told owners of gm cars not to drive them until they're repaired. secretary anthony fox says if owners follow advice to remove weight from their key rings, there's little safety risk.

a network of uninsured co-ops would help pot businesses shift giving them access to bank and legal services. google and facebook are urging the fcc to oppose new net neutrality plans to regulate how internet providers manage web traffic. they say the proposal presents, quote, a great threat to the future of the internet. betty, back to you. >> all right, courtney. like those glasses. looking good. south korean officials say they detained the head of the ferry company involved in the disaster three weeks ago. authorities believe improper storage and too much cargo are partly to blame. they say over 300 people are missing. doctors at rhode island hospital are saying it will take, quote, months for those injured in the circus accident on sunday. four of the performers remain in serious condition, two with spinal cord injuries.

the hospital say it is two can feel their legs but have only mild movement at this point. president obama spent much of yesterday surveying damage left by the deadly tornadoes in arkansas. the severe weather was part of a massive storm system that killed 35 people a week and a half ago. that storm system also moved through tupelo, mississippi, where we're getting a dramatic new look at the tornadoes courtesy of a mississippi church. watch as the high winds just plow through a children's playground. a man in detroit has been sentenced to three years in federal prison on his 90th birthday. the crime? hauling more than a ton of cocaine into michigan for a mexican drug ring. he was one of 19 people charged. two grooms men stole the spotlight at an australian wedding were taking pictures on the beach when they saw a capsized boots. the two men stripped to their underwear and swam back and finished the wedding photos with

a slight change in attire. campaigning goes high tech. "scrambled politics" is next. an irregular heartbeat not caused by a heart valve problem. that puts jim at a greater risk of stroke. for years, jim's medicine tied him to a monthly trip to the clinic to get his blood tested. but now, with once-a-day xarelto jim's on the move. jim's doctor recommended xarelto. like warfarin, xarelto is proven effective to reduce afib-related stroke risk. but xarelto is the first and only once-a-day prescription blood thinner for patients with afib not caused by a heart valve problem that doesn't require routine blood monitoring. so jim's not tied to that monitoring routine. [ gps ] proceed to the designated route. not today. [ male announcer ] for patients currently well managed on warfarin there is limited information on how xarelto and warfarin compare in reducing the risk of stroke. xarelto is just one pill a day taken with the evening meal.

plus, with no known dietary restrictions, jim can eat the healthy foods he likes. do not stop taking xarelto, rivaroxaban, without talking to the doctor who prescribes it as this may increase the risk of having a stroke. get help right away if you develop any symptoms like bleeding, unusual bruising, or tingling. you may have a higher risk of bleeding if you take xarelto with aspirin products, nsaids, or blood thinners. talk to your doctor before taking xarelto if you have abnormal bleeding. xarelto can cause bleeding, which can be serious and rarely may lead to death. you are likely to bruise more easily on xarelto and it may take longer for bleeding to stop. tell your doctors you are taking xarelto before any planned medical or dental procedures. before starting xarelto, tell your doctor about any conditions such as kidney, liver, or bleeding problems. xarelto is not for patients with artificial heart valves. jim changed his routine. ask your doctor about xarelto. once-a-day xarelto means no regular blood monitoring -- no known dietary restrictions.

for more information and savings options, call 1-888-xarelto or visit goxarelto.com. a short word that's a tall order. up your game. up the ante. and if you stumble, you get back up. up isn't easy, and we ought to know. we're in the business of up. everyday delta flies a quarter of million people while investing billions improving everything from booking to baggage claim. we're raising the bar on flying and tomorrow we will up it yet again. here is your first look at this thursday edition of scram 7b8d politics. the house voted to hold lois lerner in contempt of congress. learner invoked the fifth amendment twice refusing to testify to the house oversight committee on the irs alleged

targeting of conservative groups. president obama says climate change is affecting americans right now. according to senate majority leader harry reid, the koch brothers are to blame. >> these billionaire oil tycoons are contributing to climate change. that's what they do very well. they are one of the main causes of this, not a cause, one of the main causes. >> you can catch chuck todd's full interview on "the daily rundown" at 9:00 a.m. eastern on msnbc. koch industries is the makers of wonder bread. flowers has given 99.5% of political contributions to republicans. koch industries, 88.1%. the national guard spent $26.5 million to sponsor nascar racing but didn't get much in return for that money.

the guard received 24,800 recruiting prospects from the program in 2012. of that group, only 20 met the guard's qualifications for entry into the service and not one of them joined. well, it is tough to reach 800 million voters. one candidate found a solution. holograms. indian prime minister mody can hold 100 rallies simultaneously using the 3d technology. the next rally is set for tomorrow. toronto mayor rob ford tells the toronto sun that he is having an amazing time in rehab. that is a quote. also quoting here, it reminds me of football camp, kind of like the washington redskins camp i went to as a kid, also adding, i am coming back and i am going to kick butt. ly be on the ballot for mayor in october guaranteed, and i will do well. that is your morning dish of scrambled politics.

in washington i am joined by syndicated columnist bob franken. good morning, bob. >> good morning. about the wonder bread, it's not surprising given the makeup of the republican party that the epitome of white bread would dough note proceeds. >> bob, you tried really hard on that one, didn't you? >> i did. >> the oklahoma administration is set to unveil unprecedented emissions limits on power plants. several democratic candidates running for election in energy producing states, that could be problematic. >> it's really problematic because this is something that could cause a lot of pain for the energy producers, states like west virginia, for instance, and kentucky, the republicans are having a feast, accusing the obama administration of waging a war on coal, for instance. we had this climate change study that came out this week. we're talking about putting under control these carbon

emissions kind of plants that, in fact, use products like coal. it's going to cause a real political upheaval because you have the battle between the ecological concerns and the economic concerns. >> you're also in a race against time because the clock is ticking for the power plant rules. unless the president starts now, those rules won't be in place when he leaves office which will make it easier for his successor to stop them. is there no chance to push this or delay this until after the midterms? >> the short answer would be there's also a clock ticking when it comes to climate whang if you believe the new report coming out, so something has to be done and done really soon. >> yesterday -- let's switch gears, we were asking where is toronto mayor rob ford, well, today we hear he is, his words, enjoying rehab and mounting a political comeback. can he win re-election. >> it sounds like it. it's interesting to hear him

talk. from experience i can tell you football camp is not fun. and if he thinks it's fun, he probably needs more rehab than we thought. by the way, rehab is not supposed to be fun, so it sounds like he has a long way to go. >> all right, bob franken, as always, we appreciate it. thanks for joining us. coming up, bill and francis will be here for first buzz including oprah's resume take. and a new type of pitcher. that's next. scott: appears buster's been busy. man: yeah, scott.

i was just about to use the uh... scott: that's a bunch of ground-up paper, lad! scotts ez seed uses the finest seed, fertilizer, and natural mulch that holds water so you can grow grass anywhere! seed your lawn. seed it! my dad has aor afib.brillation, he has the most common kind... ...it's not caused by a heart valve problem. dad, it says your afib puts you at 5 times greater risk of a stroke. that's why i take my warfarin every day. but it looks like maybe we should ask your doctor about pradaxa. in a clinical trial, pradaxa® (dabigatran etexilate mesylate)... ...was proven superior to warfarin at reducing the risk of stroke. and unlike warfarin, with no regular blood tests or dietary restrictions. hey thanks for calling my doctor. sure. pradaxa is not for people with artificial heart valves. don't stop taking pradaxa without talking to your doctor. stopping increases your risk of stroke. ask your doctor if you need to stop pradaxa before surgery or a medical or dental procedure. pradaxa can cause serious, sometimes fatal, bleeding. don't take pradaxa if you have abnormal bleeding or have had a heart valve replaced. seek immediate medical care for unexpected signs of bleeding,

like unusual bruising. pradaxa may increase your bleeding risk if you're 75 or older, have a bleeding condition or stomach ulcer, take aspirin, nsaids, or blood thinners... ...or if you have kidney problems, especially if you take certain medicines. tell your doctors about all medicines you take. pradaxa side effects include indigestion, stomach pain, upset, or burning. if you or someone you love has afib not caused by a heart valve problem... ...ask your doctor about reducing the risk of stroke with pradaxa.

time new for first buzz. bill and francis are here. we're going to go way back in

the video archives. >> let's not say that too loud because oprah watches us. >> this is not something you see every day. >> we can all relate. think back when you were climbing the markets from one big city -- going from little city to bigger city. this is oprah when she was working in baltimore and she wanted to make her big break in the big city of chicago. she heard about this opening at a morning show in chicago. this is her resume tape. >> my name is oprah winfrey. oprah spelled oprah. my folks did not like harpo marks. we didn't even have a television set in my home for a number of years. >> she's so poised. >> the way she talked. we weren't even half that good. >> she's far from "a new car! ." >> and you get one and you get

one. >> this is another video. >> we've shown a million with the impossible basketball shots. an advertiser trying to one-up it. you be the judge. >> this is all in one take? >> they say it's all in one take. these are professional athletes in the european league, professional league. they say in one take. i watched it a couple times and i'm doubtful that shot there looks like a little bit of editing. >> look at you, investigative reporter. this may cause you to do a double take at petco park. they went jurassic literally. see who put out the first pitch right there. can you believe it? t rex did. actually this is a person part of the cirque du soleil, and it

looks real. >> the legs though, a little bit. >> a little bit. >> it's still quite fascinating. >> it's amazing. thanks for watching today. "way too early" with thomas roberts starts right now. could our commander in weak doesn't have what it takes to stair putin down. meanwhile putin told the ukrainians to withdraw all military units from the southeastern regions of their own country. that is bold. that is like telling your neighbor to withdraw to the couch because you want to annex the southeastern regions of his wife. will russia stand down? a military exercises on ukraine's border open a diplomatic dialogue or a red herring from the kremlin.

america's most powerful voices unite to help free hundreds of school girls in nigeria. the seattle seahawks richard sherman is no stranger to sharing his opinion. what the nfl quarterback is saying about nba owner donald sterling. this is "way too early." good morning. i'm thomas roberts. it is thursday, may 8th. welcome to wait wait, the show that not only loves the ladies of "the view" but will actually have one of their hosts live later in this show. >> whoo! >> believe it or not. so stay tuned for that. can you guess which one it is? i bet you can. let's start with this breaking news we're getting in this morning. there are reports of a massive explosion in syria. the a.p. reports a blast in aleppo has reportedly leveled a hotel and several other buildings in an area held by pr