first step. who knows what will happen next. watch this space. first look is up next. good friday morning, everyone. right now on first look, veterans scheme, whistleblower details a cover-up as the pressure on v.a. secretary grows. major damage left in the wake and major flooding as well. so, what's ahead for your weekend? we'll tell you. fighting back, a new audiotape surfaces of embattled nba owner donald sterling. dr. dre's beats and who are the most admired first ladies? hello. thanks for joining us today. i'm betty nguyen. secretary of state of veterans affairs has been called

to testify before congress. it stems from allegations of mistreatment at a v.a. hospital in phoenix whereas many as 40 veterans reportedly died while waiting for medical treatment. a house committee has voted to subpoena all records and correspondence. tracie potts from washington. good morning to you. the question really is what happens if these subpoenas come up empty? >> if the subpoenas come up empty, the lawmakers on capitol hill aren't buying that. there's been discussions between their staff and va staff about e-mail that is they believe the va is holding on to. every single democrat and republican on this house committee voted in favor of this subpoena. they're hoping to get more information about why some vets had to wait so long to see a doctor. >> i'm now going to sign a subpoena for production of e-mails. >> reporter: lawmakers are giving the va until may 19th to

turn over documents about who destroyed a secret waiting list at the phoenix va hospital. stephen cooper was a doctor there and had stage four cancer. the va said he had to wait three months for treatment. >> had i stayed the course of the va, i would be dead. >> they should be held accountable because it's a crime. >> reporter: president obama spoke about the controversy last night. >> if we are serious about making sure that our veterans are properly cared for, then we've got to fix congress. >> congress, democrats and republicans are backing va secretary shinseki. the american legion wants him to resign. >> i don't believe changing someone at the top is going to actually get to the solutions that many of us are looking for. >> we need good information before we start chopping people's heads off. >> reporter: the va's backlog of cases has been cut in half since last year.

a review of all va hospitals and he testifies here next week. >> and the testimony before the senate's veterans affairs committee is set for thursday. betty? >> a lot of questions. okay. tracie, thank you very much. a select committee to investigate the 2012 terrorist attacks in benghazi. the vote was split among party lines. seven democrats from conservative-leaning districts voted in favor of the committee. house democrats will meet to discuss how they're going to proceed. they were given five spots on the panel while republicans have been alotted seven. house minority leader nancy pelosi insists they should be evenly split while john boehner calls the 7-5 split fair. it is unclear whether house democrats will participate at all. dallas is drying out this morning after powerful thunderstorms moved through the area. heavy rain triggered flood advisories. at least five kids had to be rescued after getting caught in

a flooded creek. dallas fire and rescue team had to use rescue boats and ropes. the kids were playing and got overwhelmed by the rushing water. wicked weather in minnesota, too. a tornado touched down near st. james and it was all caught on camera. the storm system that caused this twister, generating tornadoes in nearby towns. luckily no one was hurt and no major damage was reported. two men are charged with throwing objects on the lawn at the same time. one man threw a cassette tape, the other threw miscellaneous papers over the north and south fence. pennsylvania avenue was shut down for about an hour and white houseworkers weren't allowed to exit the building. president obama was in california at the time. the white house was put on lockdown earlier this week when a vehicle following the motorcade came through the

greats. there is new audiotape of disgraced clippers owner donald sterling, secretly taped by one of his friends. in the days following the initial scandal, sterling, as we have seen, has been publicly silent. this new audio has not been authenticated by nbc news, but in it the man identified as sterling defends his ownership of the clippers. >> you think i'm a racist? you think i have anything in the world but love for everybody? you don't think that. you know i'm not a racist. >> sterling is banned for life from any association with the league and the clippers and has been fined $2.5 million. a powerful earthquake rattled the southern pacific coast thursday. it happened about 170 miles southeast of mexico city, but still felt in the capital. the quake sent people running into the streets. some homes and a bridge collapsed near the epicenter. so far, there have been no

reports of serious injuries. listen up. apple could be on the verge of striking a huge deal with hip hop artist dr. dre. the iphone maker reportedly is close to buying beats electronics for $3.2 billion. beats, founded by dr. dre and music producer jimmy ivine, is known for its high-end headphones. it would be apple's largest acquisition to date if it goes through. first round of the nfl, shall we? the draft there. giant men with tears of joy and vis visions of dollar signs filled radio music hall. the number one overall pick, first offensive player to go number one since 2006. some other notables, bills traded up to claim sammy watkins. eric ebron goes ten to the

lions. earlier in the day he proposed to his girlfriend on the observation deck. two of his teammates chosen ahead of him, johnny manziel got called up as the 27th pick to the cleveland browns. rounds three and four of the nfl draft are tonight. now to the nba, shocking surprise for the trailblazers f before the game, finding a three-foot baby rattle snake in his locker, shown in this picture taken by mo williams. no one was hurt, just a little rattled, as you can imagine. taking it back for the jumper. we'll see that in a second. what that's going to do is actually put the spurs up by 8. here it comes, right there. second half, parker to duncan, who really dishes it to ginobli for three. they win 119-37 for the 2-0 lead

in the series. nets, a three-point frenzy, making five great pointers before the half, eventually racked up six total for nets playoff record. but the heat rallied a late-night game. ray allen fires back with that deep shot right there. and, again, heat win it 94-82 with a 2-0 lead in the series. to the ice, shall we? ducks finally got their groove after losing both games at home. during a power play, in the third, ducks up 2-1. then lovejoy to seal the victory. ducks win 3-2. kings lead the series 2-1. check out this celebration after scoring this goal to tie the score. watch this lithuanian player run right past his teammates, up into the stands, sit down and applaud himself. that is one way to pat yourself

on the back. that guy has some confidence, wouldn't you say? >> yeah. i think he had that a little too planned out. >> proud of himself? he had to have thought about that, right? >> for a long time. >> what are you going to be thinking about with this weather? >> it's not going to washout the entire day. just have to kind of roll around them and duck for cover and head back outside. yesterday we did see numerous severe weather reports. seven tornadoes. we didn't actually see a lot of huge, huge hail. we had numerous reports in the minneapolis area and also through iowa this morning, we got rain down in louisiana and also through mississippi. there's numerous areas of rain through michigan. we've had downpours coming down in new york city area. couple of more in the catskills, sliding through the hudson valley, southern connecticut, back over toward new york city in an hour from now. on and off rain in many areas of the country. severe weather will be a problem today. not so much tornadoes. areas from dallas to little rock to memphis to st. louis,

indianapolis, almost near chicago. we will see a chance of some storms. weekend forecast for today, weekend forecast for today, notice how warm hey. i'm ted and this is rudy.

say "hi" rudy. [ barks ] [ chuckles ] i'd do anything to keep this guy happy and healthy. that's why i'm so excited

about these new milk-bone brushing chews. whoa, i'm not the only one. it's a brilliant new way to take care of his teeth. clinically proven as effective as brushing. ok, here you go. have you ever seen a dog brush his own teeth? the twist and nub design cleans all the way down to the gum line, even reaching the back teeth. they taste like a treat, but they clean like a toothbrush. nothing says you care like a milk-bone brushing chew. [ barks ] [ girl ] my mom, she makes underwater fans that are powered by the moon. ♪ she can print amazing things, right from her computer. [ whirring ] [ train whistle blows ] she makes trains that are friends with trees. ♪ my mom works at ge. ♪

time for us to get down to business. apple's deal with beats isn't the only thing in the news. there's also report that is the company will unveil the iphone 6 in august. promising your images will disappear forever has settled with the federal trade commission. at issue, some say the company deceived them about their disappearing images. offering to settle a class action lawsuit by reimbursing buyers up to $94 for every pair of running shoes purchased. the company made unsubstantiated claim that the glove-like shoes help prevent injury and strengthen muscles. despite protests from russian president vladimir putin, pro-russian supporters in eastern ukraine have said they will go ahead with this

weekend's referendum to ce krchc ce krchc krchcec secede from ukraine. a large majority of ukrainians actually want the country to remain whole. 77% say they think ukraine should stay united. only 4% say they want to allow regions to secede. deadly fire at the tampa mansion owned by former tennis star james blake. a man, his wife and two teenage children were shot before the home that they rented burned to the ground. a gun and fire works were found throughout that house. murder/suicide has not been ruled out. state of oklahoma says time is needed to investigate what was called a botched execution.

the delays only affect charles warner, who was scheduled to die right after that accident. oklahoma's governor says the state won't carry out any executions for the length of the stay. people protesting the socialist government as a security officer is dead after a predawn raid on several camps. 32 people now have died as a result of protestifies since february. scrambled politics is just ahead, including just in time for mother's day, our new nbc news, wall street journal poll on the most popular first lady. you're watching "first look" on msnbc. mell. mom! what? you're becoming a man. this bag filled with his baseball clothes... let's just say it's got a powerful scent. but with tide sport, i just throw the bag right in the wash, clothes and all and it comes out fresh as a daisy. makes this puberty thing easier on all of us. right? really? puberty makes it fun to say. acne's coming next. [ giggles ]

right? it is. please. [ female announcer ] tide sport. that's my tide plus. ♪ right? it is. please. (vo) oh.

my. tongue. finally. (announcer) all-new friskies saucesations. a taste experience like no other. in cheesy, creamy, homestyle, or garden sauce. friskies. feed the senses. nbr: scott - we're concerned. you just fed your lawn earlier this spring and now you're at it again. scott: (chuckles) indeed, a crucial late spring feeding helps defend the grass against the summer heat to come. nbr: we knew that - right guys? oh yeah! scott: feed your lawn. feed it!

first look this morning, scrambled politics. president obama said at a fund-raiser thursday he wants to see house minority leader nancy pelosi become speaker of the house again, according to "the washington post." federal election commission has unanimously decided that bit coin donations can be received as donations. voter i.d. law that requires state residents to show further identification. tea party has lost some steam over the last four years. among republicans, support has dropped to 4 %, down from 51% in

2010 and support nationwide has dropped to 22% from 32%. senate majority leader harry reid doesn't appear to be on the 2016 band wagon just yet. he told nbc's chuck todd he loves the clintons but wouldn't say if he wants hillary to be the 2016 nominee. >> i believe that the primary with obama and clinton was an extremely healthy process. i think it was wonderful. >> and you can catch more of chuck todd's exclusive interview on "the daily rundown" at 9:00 am eastern. most admired first lady over the last 25 years? nbc news/wall street journal poll finds it's a tie between barbara bush and hillary clinton for 27%, michelle obama comes in next at 24% and laura bush has 17%. if we look at just michelle

obama and hillary clinton, there is a narrow 3%. state senator dan patrick. ♪ won't let them see that i'm a phony radio disk jockey ♪ >> oh, wow, okay. that's your morning dish of scrambled politics. it is friday. that means kevin cerelli is with us. >> happy mother's day to my mom. >> an early one. you're such a good boy. let's get to that new nbc ne news/washington journal poll. actually a tie, as we mentioned, between barbara bush and hillary clinton as the most admired first lady in the last 25 years.

>> both of these women will have huge roles to play in the 2016 election, hillary clinton, former secretary of state, clear front-runner, but barbara bush has said she's not sure if she wants her son, on this mother's day weekend, to run for president in 2016. obviously i'm talking about jeb bush. both of these women have stayed in the headlines and will continue to do so. the american people are interested in what both of them have to say. >> barbara bush is very interesting, too. she is a straight shooter. she says what she feels and that's it. and this, too, is very interesting in a poll. michelle obama actually came in second with 24% overall, right? when you put her up against hillary clinton, she is preferred by a 3% margin. what do you attribute to that? >> that's a great question, betty. i think it really just speaks to how the current first lady is, in a less political role, if you

will, as compared to hillary clinton, the former secretary of state has left office. we've seen her take more of a position on various political issues. and i think we'll continue to see her do so, especially as she gears up for her book tour. as she gets back a hill bit into more partisan-type politics. >> any word on how the first lady will be celebrating mother's day? >> you know, i don't have any inside scoop on that. i'm sure she will be spending it with her kids. we'll all have to watch and see. it is a big weekend. hopefully, sasha and malia won't make all the rest of us look bad. >> it's a nice, all-encompassing mother's day, right? >> a family affair, betty. >> you already got a shout out to your mom in. good for you. you should still send a gift. >> thanks for having me. >> bill karins will be here with

our first buzz. we'll tell you what caught our eye today, including one sneaky crit critter. wife beats rock. and with two checks a year, everyone wins. [ female announcer ] switch today and get two safe driving bonus checks a year for driving safely. only from allstate. call 866-906-8500 now. [ dennis ] zach really loves his new camera. problem is...this isn't zach. it's a friend of a friend who was at zach's party and stole his camera. but zach's got it covered... with allstate renters insurance. [ female announcer ] protect your valuables for as low as $4 a month when you add renters insurance to your allstate auto policy. call 866-906-8500 now. what are you doing? we're switching car insurance. why? because these guys are the cheapest. why? good question. because a cut-rate price could mean cut-rate protection. you should listen to this guy. [ female announcer ] with allstate you get great protection and a great price, plus an agent! drivers who switched saved an average of $498 a year. call now and see how much you can save. just a few more ways allstate is changing car insurance for good.

[ female announcer ] call an allstate agent and get a quote now. woman: this is not exactly what i expected. man: definitely more murdery than the reviews said. captain obvious: this is a creepy room. man: oh hey, captain obvious. captain obvious: you should have used hotels.com. their genuine guest reviews are written by guests who have genuinely stayed there. instead of people who lie on the internet. son: look, a finger. captain: that's unsettling. man: you think? captain: all the time. except when i sleep. which i would not do here. hotels.com would have mentioned the finger.

time for first buzz and it's just me and bill today. i'll take that. ♪ just the two of us >> that's right. we can make it if we try. >> i don't like when animals mock us. that's exactly what this bear was doing. there's a trap. there's a tree. >> okay. >> and there's a bear. it almost looks like a guy in a bear suit.

scratching his back, hanging out. there's donuts in that bear trap. >> really? >> yeah. >> mr. bear sniffs around a little bit. why did the human actually put the donut only one foot in -- >> not much of a trap. >> yeah and then takes the donut and leaves. >> that was easy. >> it was a little easy. >> something a little bit harder, this fashion show is actually a pet fashion show. that's his real hair, believe it or not. do you believe what these pet owners did? look at the dreadlocks. >> that one is all right. it's doable. >> i don't know about the whole spray painting, dyeing, whatever they do, of the animal's hair. >> would be okay for halloween. >> did you see that? it looked luke a raccoon. cute little thing. >> you're not a dress up the dog type person? >> no. i had a little pooled. >> you did? >> i did.

fingernails were painted. >> you painted your dog's fingernails? >> i didn't paint her body. there's a difference. >> you painted the fingernails. >> shame me. >> i knew i would get to the bottom of this. "way too early" with thomas roberts starts right now. >> right across the street, we sent our writer, arthur, down there to get some opinions on the draft. the only catch was they had to dance the entire time. we call it questions and dancers. take a look. >> what is your team's strategy going into the draft? >> the packards always pick the best clear available. this year they'll probably pick defense. >> we need someone like mero or evan if we want to trade up.

>> offensive line really -- i think we should go -- >> but this year they're comfortable. >> once they get a skilled position player, maybe we could get a quarterback. they haven't won the first round since like 1985. >> not a lot of dancing at the draft. former heisman trophy winner johnny manziel, how far the texas a & m quarterback fell and the team that traded up to grab him. investigating the tragedy in benghazi, big decision from congressional democrats today. will they take part in a brand new select committee in the house? defying vladimir putin, the move by ukrainians as kiev goes on high alert. this is "way too early." good morning. i'm