continues air strikes on isis targets in iraq as the president is pressured by congress to do more. severe storms tear across the country bringing damaging wind, dangerous lightning and massive downpours, and today the midwest is expected to get walloped with large hail and possible tornados. will the weather ruin your holiday plans? nbc meteorologist bill karins brings us the latest. and california lawmakers approve a new plastic bag ban possibly changing the way you grocery shop. will other states follow suit? but we begin with that weather alert. the timing just couldn't be worse for travelers trying to get home at the end of the labor day weekend. look at that, imagine trying to drive anywhere in this. hail the sides of giant stones fell from the sky in kansas. that along with blinding rain and there's even more in the forecast. a tornado was confirmed in worcester, massachusetts. we're getting pictures of the damage there.

in pennsylvania, storms proved deadly when a teen age boy was struck and killed by lightning. in new york, rain fell so fast and furious yesterday, drivers were caught in floodwaters and another round could be coming later today. nbc meteorologist bill karins is joining me now with more. bill, this is a crucial next 12 hours here as people are headed home or trying to. >> a lot of people still having fun before they travel home. the biggest danger is going to be lightning. already this year we've had 21 fatalities from lightning strikes across this country. 18 of them, by the way, have been males, three have been female. the general theme, it's a little cheesy, but you hear it roar, you get indoors. that's pretty much the bottom line. lightning can travel as much as five to ten miles outside of a thunderstorm and people have been struck in perfect sunlight away from a storm. if you can hear it, that means you're close enough to get struck. as far as today goes, a lot of the lightning still continues in areas of kansas.

it's a very wet morning across areas of wisconsin and central and southern portions of missouri. looks like it's going to be a cloudy, light rain event for you this morning in st. louis, not severe storms. this is summertime stuff. it is hot, it is humid. we have some of the most humid air of the entire summer season covering the eastern half of our country. when it gets this warm and humid, you're going to get spotty afternoon pop-up storms. they're possible from florida all the way from maine today, back through the ohio valley and down to the south. but the highest concentration and if we have any dangerous strong storms, watch out chicago, indiana and areas in illinois. the other thing we have to mention is we are at the peak month, september now. welcome to september, of the hurricane season. september 10th is the day that we hit the peak and we are right there. this is when we should be tracking big storms and potential danger. we don't have much out there at all. we may get one little weak system spinning up heading for southern mexico and the bay of

kpee campeche. september is it, this is our big month. this is when there's not a weather person in sight that takes any days off this month because this is when we can have a lot of danger, and so far so good. let's hope this continues. >> i know you'll be watching the weather out there, especially today people headed home. bill karins, thank you very much. the other big story we're following this morning, the iraqi army is making significant gains in the fight against isis thanks to some critical support from the u.s. military. a new round of u.s. air strikes included isis targets in a town just a few hours north of baghdad, retaken by iraqi troops and kurdish forces. back in washington, president obama is hearing plenty of criticism from republicans jumping on the president's overall strategy on the isis threat. >> we're spending a lot of time talking about things that we won't do. that's the problem. the president wants to tell you what he won't do. he's having a hard time putting the coalition together to talk about what they will do. you're not going to humanitarian aid isis out of iraq and syria.

it's going to take more than that. >> nbc senior white house correspondent chris jansing has the latest on the administration's approach to the isis threat. chris, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, frances. well, the pressure is definitely building with new warnings from the leaders of both the house and senate intelligence committees that the threat posed by isis needs to be dealt with swiftly. even democrat dianne feinstein suggested that president obama has been, perhaps, too cautious in reacting to this threat. now one of the key concerns that's building now is that americans and other westerners who have gone to syria to join isis, thousands of people with passports, could then freely return and launch attacks here. it's important that no one is saying there is a specific threat. but the potential threat is great enough that in britain the parliament today is considering ways to make it easier to seize the passports of people who are believed to be isis sympathizers. that in response to the video showing the killing of american

reporter james foley. in addition, over the weekend, french officials announced the arrest of a 16-year-old girl suspected of trying to reach syria to fight alongside islamic militants. u.s. officials estimate 70 to 100 americans have joined the ranks of isis and some other extremist groups, so obviously that's the focus of that concern. the president, by the way, who's going to be making a labor day appearance in milwaukee today is considering a range of options. how do you deal with this, but no decision on targeting isis in syria, which another democrat calls the most dangerous place in the world. among the many considerations, what is the ultimate goal here. is it containing isis or defeating isis? obviously that would require a much bigger footprint. so far the white house has limited the ongoing action in iraq to humanitarian needs and protecting u.s. citizens and interests there. and one final note, the president will leave tomorrow. he is going to astonia and wales, the focus of a nato

meeting will be the threat of isis as well as the ongoing problems in ukraine. >> and how to address it as well. chris jansing, thank you very much. now to colonel jack jacobs, msnbc military analyst, medal of honor recipient and the author of "if not now, when, duty and sacrifice in america's time of need." he joins me now here in our studio. thank you for being with us this morning, colonel jacobs, we appreciate it. let's start with this. so much is being said about a strategy or lack thereof from the president. we heard chairman rogers talk about this and say the president is having a hard time putting a coalition together. what will it take or how big does that coalition have to be as far as the next step, especially when it comes to syria? >> well, it has to include our major european partners as a minimum britain and france. all of europe is a threat. they have no borders effectively. anybody who comes into the e.u. then has free passage all around europe. and it has to include muslim countries. particularly saudi arabia and

turkey, who's the 800-pound gorilla in the eastern mediterranean, but so far we don't find any evidence that any of these people are going to get involved. it's going to be extremely difficult for us to put a coalition together if nobody is willing to do it. in the interim, we're operating in support of an interesting coalition inside iraq that includes people who otherwise would be violently opposed to one another. >> you're saying no one is willing to do it. what will it take? jumping ahead to bashar assad and damascus, has the isis threat bought him some time there? what is he waiting for as far as fighting isis in that front? >> he's not going to be fighting isis as long as he continues to fight where he's located. it's extremely difficult for him to use his forces if he also has no support. first things first, though. i think our focus is going to be in iraq. it was an interesting comment made by general zenne yesterday

on "meet the press" in which he said all it would take to drive isis out of iraq is a couple of u.s. army brigades, maybe a division, i think i'm extrapolating, because you have to have support as well, and you could drive them right into syria. of course driving them out of iraq is only half the exercise. you've got to keep them out of iraq. >> you've got to keep them out and that's part of the debate here. let's talk about the victories in that same thought, victories with mosul dam, with the sinjar mountain and most recently in amareal. are these gains that we're making as far as targeting isis or do we just need to look at the larger conflict here? >> well, we always have to look at the larger conflict which is why the president got roundly and properly castigated for saying we don't have a strategy. i don't think we have a strategy. >> so are they just on the run when it comes to those smaller victories? >> oh, yeah. but i'm reminded of the

observation that getting there is only half the exercise. once you get there, you have to make sure that you stay there. so seizing the objective and having these small victories, that's one thing. you're not going to be able to maintain momentum unless you actually have a strategy, you have a coalition as you suggested in order to seize and hold terrain. just dropping bombs on people is not good enough. >> everybody is talking about the strategy, lack thereof needs to happen. the clock is ticking, how soon do they have to act? >> now, yesterday. we need to be very serious about deciding what it is we're trying to accomplish, when we want to accomplish it and then putting the assets to bear onto it. but so far there's a lot of muddling around in washington. by the way, from both sides of pennsylvania avenue. unless somebody really takes control of the situation and takes some leadership, i think we're not going to like the outcome in the middle east. >> we'll see with the president traveling, we'll see if that moves to the forefront even more so. thanks so much this morning. >> thanks for having me.

state department officials believe a u.s. embassy compound in tripoli is secure after startling video of libyan militia went viral. these are militia members on what appears to be the compound jumping from a second floor balcony into that pool. nbc news has thought authenticated that tape. u.s. personnel were pulled out of the area more than a month ago because of instability in the region. u.s. officials say they are working with libya's government and monitoring a fluid situation there on the ground. a small setback for the man poised to make a major breakthrough in nfl history. later, the latest on comic legend joan rivers' condition since being rushed to a new york city hospital last thursday. new details on what doctors are doing now. stay around. because a fresh start awaits. with exciting worlds to explore, and challenges yet unmet, new friendships to forge, and old ones to renew. it's more than a job.

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at this moment michael sam is a free agent.

the 24-year-old defensive end was poised to become the first openly gay player to make an nfl team, but on saturday the st. louis rams cut the defensive end three months after becoming the first openly gay player to be drafted boy an nfl team. >> this was a football decision. mike fit in very, very well. he was fun to be around. he was a good teammate. there was no issue there. again, as i said earlier, i was pulling for him and it didn't work out. it just didn't work out. >> sam tweeted, quote, the most worthwhile things in life rarely come easy. this is a lesson i've always known. the journey continues. now all eyes are on what's next for the history-making athlete, joining me now is costia kennedy. let's get your take this morning on what jared bell wrote from "usa today." in the final analysis, it was about skill and circumstance, not sam's sexual orientation. sam didn't make the 53-man roster saturday for the st.

louis rams because he wasn't good enough. so let's break that down. when you say he wasn't good enough, initially he was good enough to get picked. so what changed in that amount of time to say he's not good enough. >> well, he was taken in the seventh round and as of right now about 21 of the 41 players who were taken in that round did make the team so about half did not or are injured. so if you get picked in the later rounds, you're expected to compete for a spot but there's hardly any guarantee. most seventh rounders don't usually make it. >> do you think there's being too much made into making this a gay/straight thing versus a good football player and not so good football player. >> i do think it is a football issue, i really do. there has not been a lot of distraction around him. there is now that he got cut, there's news. he played the whole preseason and actually did quite well. he was one of the final four players cut. >> there was that its distraction about the whole

shower thing which got the controversy that swirled around that. >> that's true. there's been a little bit of that, but it doesn't seem like that penetrated the issues around whether or not he's going to make a football team. i don't think we've seen the last of him. i think we're going to see michael sam. he showed that he can play. he's kind of, again, not to get too footbally, he's kind of a special player. he made some plays and did well in the preseason and he'll be back. >> where will he be back? the deadline to pick up waived players was noon yesterday and no other team picked him up. what's next? >> they didn't pick him up because he's not very versatile, he doesn't play on special teams so he has to fill a particular need. but he's out there and he could be back with the rams, say. anybody could pick him up. we know the injury rate of attrition in the nfl, it's only a matter of time. >> he's so grateful for the rams, if he does come back he tweeted, i want to thank the entire rams organization and the city of st. louis for giving me

this tremendous opportunity and allowing me to show that i can play at this level. i look forward to continuing to build on the progress i made here toward a long and successful career. so when it comes to the progress, what does he need to do to improve -- to improve himself now so that somebody will take him or maybe the rams take him back. >> it's a good question. because of his side and speed, he's a little bit of a tweener as they say in football. he doesn't have a natural perfect position. and so it's a little bit difficult for him to do anything except for continue to work hard and do -- remember, it's a big thing to get drafted, period. that's why a big deal was made, gay, straight, whatever, to get drafted by the nfl. so he's got the talent. there's a lot of guys who can play and he's one of then. i think all he has to do is continue on what he's been doing. >> so you think you'll be reporting on him? >> i do think so. >> thanks for your time this morning. >> my pleasure. now to los angeles and a criminal investigation involving a usc football player.

josh shaw made up a story about being a hero and hurting his ankle in the process. now los angeles police are questioning him in connection with a domestic violence vase. nbc's katy tur joins us with more. >> reporter: good morning. he seemed to have everything going for him, but now he's under a cloud of suspicion and unclear what his future will be. while josh shaw's teammates at usc are already making a lot of noise in their bid for a national championship, the team's star cornerback is remaining silent after being hit with a suspension for lying to his coaches. it all started last week when shaw said he sprained both of his ankles while saving his nephew from drowning in his hometown of palmdale. then shaw's name turned up in a police investigation of a disturbance at his girlfriend's apartment on that same night, 60 miles away in downtown los angeles. >> this whole thing started on a radio call of a screaming woman

and our officers responded. ultimately took a burglary investigation, a burglary report that night. >> reporter: witnesses report seeing a man matching shaw's description scaling down the apartment balconies before running away. >> there's been an allegation made that there was possibly a domestic violence incident that occurred. >> reporter: shaw has admitted to lying about how he injured his ankles, but after two interviews with police, he has hired a criminal defense attorney known for representing celebrities like snoop dogg and rihanna. >> the reality is there's no domestic violence, there is no crime whatsoever. >> reporter: sources tell nbc news police believe shaw got into a heated argument with his girlfriend, but she had no visible injuries and the couple is no longer cooperating with the investigation. >> these are really very, very difficult cases for the prosecution to put together, especially when you have an uncooperative victim. >> reporter: as for shaw's comeback both on and off the field, some experts are saying it could take a hail mary. >> it's a very short fall from hero to defendant, but it's a

long climb back. >> reporter: the l.a. d.a.'s office will decide whether any charges are warranted. right now that's not clear. still a lot of questions as to exactly what happened that evening. >> all right, waiting for those answers. katy tur for us, thank you. coming up, after years of heated debate, california moves a big step closer to banning plastic bags. and it's out with the old and in with the new in atlantic city, new jersey. we'll explain. you're watching msnbc. you can eat that on looks amazing.rs? looks like my next dinner party. that's only 4 points? with weight watchers you can enjoy the food you really want. dine out on favorites or cook up something new. i can do this every day.

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bp supports more than a quarter million jobs. when we set up operation in one part of the country, people in other parts go to work. that's not a coincidence. it's one more part of our commitment to america. welcome back. here's a look at what's topping the news right now. president obama will celebrate labor day by promoting the economy and the country's economic gains with a speech in milwaukee. the president has been sounding more bullish about the nation's recovery from the great recession. the white house is encouraging democrats to share that similar optimism as they head into their november re-elections. ferguson police officers have started wearing body cameras according to the "st.

louis post dispatch." officers wore them on saturday when protesters marched in response to the shooting of 18-year-old michael brown. about 50 cameras were donated to the department by two companies. and the $2.4 billion rebel casino in atlanta city will shut its doors today just two days after opening. the famous showboat casino shut its doors yesterday as well. new moves in california could change the way people shop for groceries. this after lawmakers approved a new plastic bag ban. governor jerry brown has just a few weeks to decide whether to sign it into law. hailey jackson is live in los angeles to bring us more. good morning. >> reporter: good morning, frances. if this new california law goes into effect, you'd still have the option of paper or the reusable bags but you may have to fork over another dollar or two to carry your groceries home. this california grocery store

still offers plastic bags for those who forget their own. >> i have some in my car and some hanging on my front door and yet i'm here with the big plastic bag. >> reporter: but soon that option may be shelved for good, forcing shoppers who don't bring a bag and want one to buy one and pay at least 10 cents for the paper or reusable kind. >> you spend enough money in these stores, you know. now we've got to bring our own bags. >> reporter: california lawmakers just approved a bill to get rid of single use plastic bags at grocery stores and pharmacies, starting next summer, if the governor signs it into law. >> i think it's a win-win-win. good for business, good for the economy, good for the environment and hopefully be an example for other states to follow. >> reporter: massachusetts and washington are also considering similar plans and five other states are looking at taxes or fees, anywhere from 1 to 15 cents per bag. >> after years and years and years of them trying to get more people to recycle plastic bags, the recycling rate is still only

at like 5%. >> the new scam, what killed my job. >> reporter: but with ads like these, the plastic bag industry has been lobbying hard against the ban. >> these manufacturers will lose their jobs. there's just simply no question about it. >> reporter: and not all californians are ready for the rise of the reuseable bag. >> oh, god. some of them look disgusting when you -- you're behind somebody with those bags. it's ridiculous. >> this plastic bag for you, terrance, is just more convenient? >> yes. and it doubles as a trash bag when i get home. >> reporter: so while shoppers have no shortage of opinions, it's up to california's governor to decide if these bags get sacked. governor brown has until the end of this month to either sign this bill into law, frances, or not. but i tell you, a lot of different perspectives on this one. i don't always remember my reusable bag either. >> i don't know about the trash can thing either. thank you, hailey jackson, live for us in l.a. thank you. up next, the white house

mulling a major announcement on how to handle illegal immigrants before election day. plus the fate of former virginia governor bob mcdonnell and his wife, maureen, now in the hands of a jury. details on their bizarre corruption trial straight ahead. and tea parties. i'll have more awkward conversations than i'm equipped for, because i'm raising two girls on my own. i'll worry about the economy more than a few times before they're grown. but it's for them, so i've found a way. who matters most to you says the most about you. at massmutual we're owned by our policyowners, and they matter most to us. ready to plan for your future? we'll help you get there. wouldn't it be great if hiring plumbers, carpenters shopping online is as easy as it gets. and even piano tuners were just as simple? thanks to angie's list, now it is. we've made hiring anyone from a handyman to a dog walker as simple as a few clicks. buy their services directly at angieslist.com no more calling around. no more hassles.

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congress is returning from its five-week recess with a huge task of handling border funding. lawmakers left the capital last month deeply divided on how much they should pay to deal with the influx of immigrants. president obama requested $3.7 billion and so far congress' counteroffers have fallen far short of that. the house approved $694 million and the senate failed to move a measure worth $2.7 billion, so will congress come up with funding any time soon? i'm joined now by the congressional reporter for the hill, kevin cirilli. happy labor day. >> thank you for having me. >> let's focus on some house republicans who have suggested that the department of homeland security might not need the money since they can reallocate

existing funds. what's the truth to that? >> i think a lot of folks in congress would like to see congress do something, but the president and the administration has said that if congress does not act that the administration would take steps to perhaps allow folks that are already here to remain here but that, of course, two months before an election is not something that even some democrats would like to see for fear that it could tip the senate in republicans' favor ahead of november. >> that said, could congress go another month without addressing this issue at all? can they afford that? >> i think it's tough to see how congress passes an immigration bill so close to an election. when they get back next week, they have got a lot they have got to pass a budget resolution to keep the government open. they have a lot of things on their to-do list and you and i both know how tough it is to get anything passed and moved through this congress. >> if congress doesn't pass a funding bill here, are the president's hands tied here? is there any wiggle room there if that's the case?

>> well, it's almost like the president has to pick his political poison because on one hand he has to do something and in states like colorado where it's a very tough senate race, if he acts, it actually could help motivate the progressive base to get to the polls. on the other hand in states like north carolina where senator kay hag hagan, a democrat is up in a tough re-election fight, something like this could really actually backfire on democrats and have republicans get to the polls. and even senator hagan has said that she would prefer congress to act as opposed to the administration. republicans arguing that it would be too much power from the president if he were to act without congress. >> let's talk about numbers and the statistics here. homeland security officials have reported a sharp decrease in the number of people trying to cross into the u.s. we haven't been reporting or showing those really powerful images of the children and the facilities where they're being

held. will that affect the debate at all? >> that's a great question. really it can depend on the weather. when it gets to be closer to september and the weather, these temperatures, these hot august temperatures drop, you could actually see more immigrants trying to cross through the border and those tragic images that we saw just a couple of weeks ago really could return again and force more public outcry and more pressure on the president. just the other day former republican nominee mitt romney saying that he thinks that the president should have done more, so he's taking criticism from all sides. >> it's sure interesting that we're going to watch the weather and see how that affects a lot of that. a good perspective on that. kevin cirilli, enjoy your labor day. >> thank you for having me, have a great day. >> sure. let's take a look at the other political stories making headlines across the country. a federal judge in louisiana has temporarily blocked a state law requiring doctors who perform abortions to have patient-admitting privileges at a hospital within 30 miles of

their practice. critics of the law say its implementation would have caused all five abortion clinics in the state to eventually close their doors. a permanent ruling will be made after a later legal hearing. $36 million, that's how much money republican and democratic groups have pumped into the close senate race between minority leader mitch mcconnell and alison grimes. ads are flooding the kentucky air waves with hopes all those commercials won't frustrate voters to the point of keeping them away from the polls in november sglchb november. and rick perry was quick to explain a strange tweet. this image of rosemary lehmberg was sent out on his account with a text eh tu. he said the tweet in question was, quote, unauthorized and he did not condone it. well, the jury is expected to begin deliberating tomorrow in the corruption trial of former virginia governor bob mcdonnell and his wife, maureen. the five-week trial featured

details of the governor's failing marriage as well as testimony from the man accused of paying for influence within the governor's mansion. joining me now is criminal defense attorney eric gusser. thanks for being here. >> thank you. >> let's start with this. does this all hinge on the definition and interpretation of the word bribery, meaning said payment equals promise, specific promise here, or is it just kind of the understanding that, hey, you know what, maybe some gifts will come back and? exchange for something else down the road? >> well, bribery is based upon what we call the legal term is quid pro quo. you're giving something to get something back. this case is almost like a made for tv movie. there is a rolex watch that was given, $100,000 in loans, different payments for stocks and different things that were given to the mcdonnells from this -- from jonnie williams.

>> so not necessarily saying, hey, you know what, this is a great watch, great trip for you, in the hopes that somewhere down the road it will come back to me in the form of something. >> right. it's all about the timing. for example, there were private jet excursions to golf trips. hey, by the way, can you allow me to meet your secretary of agriculture or your secretary to get my product actually put on the market. there are so many things that were happening in this case that lead to whether it was bribery or corruption. jonnie williams was given immunity. he was a former ceo of star scientific. he was given full immunity for the prosecution for anything relating to this case, to any type of transaction, to any type of stock options that were given, any type of stock tips that were given, anything that he could be tied to relating to this case, he got full immunity. >> let's talk about this and look ahead when it comes to a conviction and the kind of

sentence the governor and his wife could face, his former wife could face. could the verdict be different for one against the other or is it going to be across the board they both get the same. >> that's the very interesting thing about this case. it could be different based upon what the evidence shows for each particular defendant because maureen, the wife, she was -- she is being painted as the one who was really pushing everything. she was the one who set up meetings. she was the one who sent the text messages. she was the one who asked for the rolex watch. so she used her influence to get these things for the benefit of the company. >> let's put this in a perspective here. has there been anything like this? if you think of it, if somebody in the position of a governor, i'm sorry to say wouldn't they know better that somewhere down the line this is going to come bite them? >> most people think they can get away with it. >> that's baffling to me. >> yes. >> that really is baffling. >> and people send messages via

texts that can be tracked or retrieved. even if you delete something, it is there forever. so they're leaving this electronic trail of information. even e-mails from different accounts that leave a trail for the federal government to follow to see exactly what happened and when. for example, maureen told her broker to dump a lot of stock before they had to report these stocks on their disclosures. so that shows that she may -- she probably knew that what she was doing was wrong. >> always a paper trail in this case i guess an electronic trail and everything else that follows along with it, right? >> yes. there's always an electronic trail. if you text something, if you e-mail something, which leads to wire fraud charges which a lot of us see those on federal cases, wire fraud and different electronic communications. if you're using electronic communications for fraud, it can be tracked and will be frakd by the federal government. >> what an interesting next few days watching this one. thank you very much. up next, college students

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ahh! four days? yep. find out how fast aflac can pay you, at aflac.com. now for a look at this morning's business headlines. u.s. markets are closed today for the labor day holiday and we're taking a look ahead at the job report out friday. rumors over the new iphone 6 and that announcement is right around the corner. on this labor day, how do americans feel about unions. joining me now is msnbc contributor, carmen wong. thank you for being with us, happy labor day to you as we both labor. let's talk about the august jobs report out on friday. companies have hired an average of 244,000 workers every month since february. so what do you expect, is that going to continue as far as this trend goes? >> you know, it may and it may not. here's the thing. if you look back into spring, we've seen some huge swings. so one month in the spring we saw 64,000 jobs, then we saw

closer to 200,000 so that is very much an average. but i love quality over quantity. so what kind of jobs are being added, that's really important to look. i like to look beyond those numbers. we see the markets really react to the number that's coming out on friday and that's an initial reaction. but if you're looking at long-term growth in the american economy and looking at americans in general and how they feel, what kind of jobs are being added. are they full-time jobs, are they more hourly jobs. we see a lot of bumps in the labor market and in unemployment, especially in the holidays, a bump up, but those are part-time jobs. what i know that americans would love to see is getting us out of that 6% range and getting us back to 3%, 4%. that would really make americans feel more comfortable. >> i love to geek out. 9-9, 2014, is the announcement of the you iphone is expected. we're hearing that you can use the iphone 6 as a wallet here. so i can take mine and leave the

credit cards at home. >> those who spend too much, watch out, this may make it a little easier. but here's the thing. if you can use your phone as your wallet, what's really interesting with the new iphone that i love with the biometric security. >> okay. >> we know we have so many security breaches, so many security issues, even if it's just my 7-year-old daughter trying to buy apps, but it's going to have your fingerprint technology. that is huge. that really means you can feel secure. >> can we trust it, though? >> i'm kind of like, oh -- >> let me tell you, i would rather have my fingerprint be the security than some password that we make up. >> that we use over and over again. >> how many of us know that we should be changing our passwords and keeping track but we don't. so here's the thing. the fingerprint technology is great. the wearable technology is coming out as well, there's an announcement about that. >> like a watch, right? >> it's a health and home. i call it the two hs. this is where huge growth is coming in tech. you know you have the fitbit. you're sleeping and your heart rate and all that. imagine if you've got the health

portion, but also home. so your electronics. >> i can change my temperature on my phone and on my watch? >> yes. price point is really, really high. just keep an eye on it and don't buy anything you can't afford. but the growth is expected to go over 100 times in the next four years in terms of those of us wearing these things. it's going to be huge. >> wow, i believe it because it's already started. >> i believe it because we're excited about it. >> it's already starting too. on this labor day let's talk about these numbers and look at how americans feel about labor unions. 53% approve of them while 38% of americans disapprove. your take? >> big changes in the past couple of decades, big changes in terms of labor. we've seen a lot of victories for labor unions. here in new york city we saw some with the school security, for women especially having equitable pay. you know, we have mcdonald's was in quite a bit of scandal in terms of pro labor and their treatment of pro labor so there is a mix of understanding labor

unions in today and today's market, so we'll have to see. >> great perspective on this labor day as you and i still go at it laboring. carmen, thank you. >> thank you. a new innovation hopes to tackle a serious problem on college campuses. a group of college students are developing a nail polish that can detect date rape drugs, allowing women to take their safety into their own hands. gabe gutierrez brings that story. >> reporter: it can happen in an instant. >> very easy. and in the heat of having fun or partying, you know you pick it back up or even accidentally pick someone else's drink up. >> reporter: now four male north carolina state university students are battling sexual assault by letting women take matters into their own hands. they're developing a nail polish that changes color when it touches drugs associated with date rape. women who wear it can swirl their finger to test their drink. >> i think it's a good idea. the world is a scary place these

days. >> reporter: a white house report estimates one in five women has been sexually assaulted while at college, but only 12% of student victims report the assault. so these entrepreneurs have already gotten quite a response. they have won an $11,000 prize from a contest on campus where they say they also met a $100,000 investor. the facebook page of their invention, undercover colors, has drawn more than 22,000 likes. one most reading as a rape victim and a mother of three daughters, i cannot thank you enough. last year another company called drink savvy created a glass that changes color when a drink is spiked. >> you're thinking how do i prevent this from happening again. >> reporter: but some womens groups say products like these though well intentioned don't work. >> i think it reflects the cultural reality where we actually put the blame on women, often when they are victims of rape. we put the onus on them to prevent rape when we very well know that's not an effective way

of actually reducing sexual assaults. >> that was nbc's gabe gutierrez. thank you. that nail polish is still in the beginning stages. no word on when it will be available. still to come, joan rivers fighting for her life as daughter melissa rivers says she's crekeeping her fingers crossed for a miracle. plus the massive hack attack that has dozens of celebrity photos circulating the web. alleged victims include jennifer lawrence and arianna grande. before using her new bank of america credit card, which rewards her for responsibly managing her card balance. before receiving $25 toward her balance each quarter for making more than her minimum payment on time each month. tracy got the bankamericard

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family members of joan rivers are keeping vigil by her side at a new york hospital four days after she was rushed to mt. sinai medical center. she went into cardiac and respiratory arrest on thursday during what was described as minor throat surgery. her daughter, melissa, said the family is keeping her fingers crossed and thanked the public for their continued support. joining me is senior editor for

"in touch weekly." thanks for being with us on this labor day. >> thank you so much. >> so what are you hearing about joan rivers' condition and reaction where from you are, especially knowing that her weekly show was based out of there. >> obviously she's got this outpouring of support from so many celebrities. you just look at the tweets coming in, everyone from donald trump to giuliana rancic to sarah silverman. she really touched so many people's lives and has worked with so many people. the "fashion police" she does on the e channel, she invented that red carpet interview, asking people who were they wearing and making judgments about what they were wearing. she's touched so many people's lives so people are just waiting to hear what melissa is saying. to hear that she's in a medically induced coma it's hard for people to grasp because she was just doing a show on wednesday night and scheduled to do another show the next day right after this throat procedure. >> the irony that even during one of those shows she was even

joking about her mortality and her death. i want to bring in more of the tweets from other celebrities there in support of joan rivers. seth rogen tweeted i really need joan to be okay. and also co-host kelly osbourne tweeted for the first time in years i got down on my knees and prayed tonight. i encourage you to do the same for joan rivers, my grandma, #inconsolable. america looks to poke fun at rivers but she is one of those people who garners a lot of respect from a lot of people. she is really a pioneer of comedy and women in comedy and people say, you know what, that snarky humor of hers is just part of the package, it's part of who she is and her charm. >> yeah, exactly. again, you look at who is tweeting about her. i don't know how many people would get the same kind of tweets from charlie sheen and donald trump and seth rogen at the same time. she's that kind of person that really paved the way for so many comedians, for so many women out there and really has her own

brand of humor. i think the one thing i hear from people is saying what is joan going to say. when she comes out of this coma, assuming she's going to be okay, the jokes that she will have about all of -- everything that was going on about what people were saying about her. and i think we can all imagine what she would come up with, the kind of humor she would have about this whole ordeal. >> let's talk about this other deal that's making entertainment news as well, the celebrity photo hacking scandal. we're just learning more this morning. racy photos of a-listers liar jennifer lawrence and kate upton were leaked online. what can you tell us about the apparent hacking scandal and what's being said about it. >> this is huge, another phone hacking scandal. this is a massive one. scarlett johansson had some problems, mila kunis, but these photos of jennifer lawrence were the ones that started showing up online. racy photos, some nude photos, also kate upton, victoria justice, ariana grande, a lot of other celebrities. but some of them had come out,

ariana grande, her rep said these are fake. victoria justice tweeted and said these are fake photos. but jennifer lawrence, her spokes people said anyone who publishes these will be prosecuted. the authorities are involved. they have been alerted. and this is a massive violation of privacy. a lot of other names mentioned as well. selena gomez, hope solo. the list goes on. apparently this was through the cloud. so you were talking a little while ago in your previous segment about passwords, security. >> it's all up there. >> here's another situation where you've got to be very vigilant about your passwords. >> yeah, fine line to walk, especially when you're a select and we're in this world of the selfie and getting those pictures out there. >> and who even knows if a good password would have saved this. it sounds like this is a massive hacking. >> all right, thank you so much. >> thank you so much. finally this morning, something you don't want to miss. my colleague, tamron hall's

adventure. from flying in a helicopter to rappelling off a cliff. here's a sneak peek at tonight's episode. >> oh, my god. oh, my god! oh, my god. >> okay. >> okay. it's good, it's good. it's good. >> oh, my god. >> oh, man, i can feel those butterflies for her. you will too when you watch tonight at 8:00/7:00 central on nbc and see how tamron survived "running wild with bear grylls. " unbelievable. got to hand it to her. that wraps up this hour on msnbc. i'm frances rivera. richard lui is up next. labor day storms are causing all

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with xerox, you're ready for real business. good morning. i'm richard lui. happy labor day to all of you. happening right now on msnbc, labor day washout. heavy thunderstorms, severe flooding wreaking havoc across the midwest. in the east, a confirmed tornado in massachusetts. nbc meteorologist bill karins tracking that for us. targeting isis. as new air strikes ramp up against strong holds in iraq, the pressure builds at home for president obama to do more to confront the isis threat in syria. back on track. just three weeks after striking and killing a fellow driver, nascar superstar tony stewart returns to racing but it all comes to a dramatic and disappointing end. we're going to start here with that weather alert. another round of severe thunderstorms hitting just in time to plague drivers and tie up air travel this labor day. in kansas, hail the size of giant stones slamming into cars and