outraged the officers involved have been suspended with pay and not charged, and others are questioning whether the police department's investigation will be fair. >> i have a son, and i would never want this to happen to my son, and i could empathize with freddie's mother. >> it's unfortunate you know in 2015 we're telling our children stories about black bodies and not being safe in their own communities. >> nbc's tom costello has more on the investigation and the fallout. >> reporter: yeah, hi, tamron good day from baltimore. as you know, this justice department investigation is going to run as the city conducts its own investigation. however, many people here in baltimore don't trust the police to investigate themselves and so last night we saw yet another big rally here, a protest march in baltimore from west baltimore, specifically from the neighborhood where this arrest occurred, down to the local police station. about 1,000 people or so many families were there with parents holding the hands of their

children saying they don't want this to happen to their children, and ultimately, they want accountability. they want to know exactly how it is possible that this man, freddie gray, had his spinal cord nearly severed while in police custody. they want accountability and answers. late last night the police commissioner said he understands those concerns. >> i think, again, they are sharing their thoughts and concerns and i hear them. and i understand. and if i was a parent and that was my child, i'd want to know and react but our job is also to have balance, and not to rush to a conclusion and that's what the direction is right now, get the evidence and make sure it's right, because we're only going to have one chance at this. >> reporter: the commissioner and the mayor are promising a transparent investigation. they say it will be wrapped up by may 1st. at that point they will give their findings over to the attorney, the prosecutor here in baltimore to determine whether she is going to file charges and, of course, now we've got the justice department investigation. six officers now on paid

administrative leave. they include a sergeant by the way, a lieutenant, also got veterans and relatively new officers who are all involved in this. this investigation very much is still front and center news here in baltimore and it is still a very contentious issue. tamron, back to you. >> thank you very much. and developing now, more emotional testimony on day two of the penalty phase in the boston marathon bombing trial of dzhokhar tsarnaev. on the witness stand this morning, the brother of the 27-year-old m.i.t. police officer sean collier, who was shot and killed in a confrontation with the tsarnaev brothers as they fled three days after the bombing. his brother describes the family's loss. prosecutors are presenting their case against tsarnaev with the defense to follow. and the jury will then decide if he gets the death penalty or life in prison. it all began yesterday though when emotional accounts from survivors and families, family members of victims, and graphic images presented by the prosecution. we certainly want to warn you some of the images are

troubling, even offensive. details from nbc news justice correspondent pete williams who is in boston. >> reporter: tamron good morning. prosecutors say the jury should impose the death penalty in part because the bombings were planned in advance to cause a maximum of death pain and suffering. and they showed a photo of dzhokhar tsarnaev that they say reveals a complete lack of remorse. prosecutors said dzhokhar tsarnaev's bombs killed three people on the streets of boston who had time to feel pain but no time to say good-bye. he was determined, they said, to become america's worst nightmare. the jury was shown a photo of tsarnaev at the holding cell of the courthouse as he awaited a court hearing three months after the bombing. it showed he was quote unconcerned, unrepentant, uncaring, and untouched by the grief and loss he caused. some jurors wept as victims told their story caused by the marathon bombs.

some of the most emotional testimony came from bill campbell, whose 29-year-old daughter crystal, was one of three people killed in the bombings. as his wife sop sobbed he said he passed out in the hospital when he realized a woman in surgery was not his daughter, krystal, they told him was dead. asked what he missed the most, i miss my hug every day. she never left the house without giving me a hug. the defense lawyers haven't spoken yet. they decided to give their opening statement next week when they begin presenting their case arguing why dzhokhar tsarnaev should not be put to death. tamron? >> thank you, pete. developing also now three months after a terror attack in paris left 20 people dead at charlie hebdo magazine and a kosher supermarket, new details about another attack that was prevented in the city. in a news conference just a short time ago the paris prosecutor gave new information about a man arrested sunday accused of plotting attacks against two churches.

the suspect is described as a 24-year-old islamic extremist who was busted with an arsenal of weapons in his possession. his alleged terror plot was foiled only after he accidently shot himself. nbc's kelly kobeya joins us now. kelly? >> reporter: that's right, tamron, the picture's becoming slightly clearer. prosecutors in that press conference that you mentioned said that they received -- police received a phone call about 8:50 sunday morning of someone who was a victim of an armed robbery or claimed to be. when they arrived at the scene they found a man, this suspect, in a car and they say he refused to open the door. when they finally got into the car, they found they say, a large stockpile of weapons, a kalashnikov, .9 millimeter

pistols, bullet proof vest and documents they say contained information on potential targets. at that point he was placed under custody, he was taken to the hospital he is still under police watch at the hospital and they then searched his home, tamron, and they found what they described as weapons of war, more guns, more bullet-proof vests. they believe that he was going after two churches that he had planned to attack two churches in his neighborhood sunday morning. and they described the attacks as imminent. what they believe happened was, he shot himself mistakenly in the thigh was not able to continue on with those attacks and, of course, then we hear about the 911 call in which he actually called an ambulance to help him. this man was known to french authorities. he had tried to express interest in syria in the past, but he was

not under surveillance, tamron. we'll continue to watch this story and bring you more as we get it. >> thank you very much kelly. we continue to follow what could turn into a showdown between the u.s. and iran in the waters off yemen, where american warships are positioned to block a convoy of iranian ships suspected of carrying heavy weapons for the rebels in yemen. president obama says the u.s. delivered a blunt warning to iran. >> what we've said to them is, is that if there are weapons delivered to factions within yemen that could threaten navigation that's a problem, and we're not sending them obscure messages, we're sending direct messages about it. >> chief pentagon correspondent jim miklaszewski joins us now. and at this point, this standoff continues this morning off the coast of yemen. >> that's right, the u.s. aircraft carrier theodore

roosevelt and a guided missile cruiser, the normandy, along with combat aircraft in the skies directly over that convoy. they are continuing to track those nine iranian ships including some warships and perhaps three to five cargo ships believed to be carrying heavy weapons destined for the iranian-backed rebels there in yemen. now, according to u.s. military officials, that convoy is chugging along at about 5 knots just outside the yemeni territorial waters which would be about 12 miles which keeps them out of violating any kind of sovereignty of yemen and could actually trigger reaction from some of the other coalition forces in the area. there's no indication that they intend to -- or they are not even close yet to the gulf of aden to run a naval blockade of egyptian and saudi ships and if that in fact, happened u.s. officials say it would probably

be the egyptians and/or saudis who would intercept and board the ships to inspect the cargo. now, it's believed anyway that they are carrying heavy weapons destined for those rebels. they have no direct proof and some people wouldn't put it past the iranians to have filled those cargo holds with provisions just in case they are boarded. nobody knows exactly what the iranians are up to at this point, tamron. >> all right, jim miklaszewski live with the latest on this continued standoff. thank you very much. and also coming up, the head of the d.e.a. stepping down after a report reveals agents went to sex parties with prostitutes paid for by drug cartels. a live report is next. plus this -- >> these people are essentially the lap dogs for president obama and i think they are sensitive about that. >> a war of words heating up between presidential candidate rand paul and the establishment wing of the republican party. he's not talking about democrats

when he says lap dogs. it's part of today's first read. plus, why ben affleck is now explaining, or his explanation for why he asked pbs to ignore the fact that his ancestors owned slaves for the very popular show "finding your roots." now the network is opening its own investigation. it is our "news nation" gut check. and this -- ♪ ♪ push it real good ♪ >> come on i know you remember the words, and hopefully the moves. the legendary hip hop group salt and pepper in the 1980s hit it with "push it," one of the first hip hop songs nominated, by the way, for a grammy. little factoid for you. now after taking time off to start families, the pioneering duo is making a return. coming up, they will join me live. you know what tweet your favorite salt and pepper song to us, just tweet a question, what would you like them to answer?

join the conversation, go to "news nation," twitter, facebook, instagram. introducing the citi ® double cash card. it earns you cash back now and cash back later. with 1% when you buy and 1% as you pay with two ways to earn on puchases, it makes a lot of other cards seem one-sided. i came up with so many reasons to put off losing weight... but then i joined

weight watchers, got the starter kit and i was like, hey, i can do this. now there's nothing holding me back, i can feel it. once you get started nothing can stop you. join for free at weightwatchers.com, and get a free starter kit when you sign up before april 27th. huh, 15 minutes could save you 15% or more on car insurance. everybody knows that. well, did you know that game show hosts should only host game shows? samantha, do you take kevin as your lawfully wedded husband... or would you rather have a new caaaaaar!!!! say hello to the season's hottest convertible... ohhh....and say goodbye to samantha. [ male announcer ] geico. 15 minutes could save you 15% or more.

[bulldog yawns] i can't wait to get to mattress discounters because the tempur-pedic bonus event ends sunday. choose $300 in free gifts, and get up to 48 months interest-free financing with any tempur-pedic mattress. ♪ mattress discounters ♪ female announcer: sleep train's interest free for 3 event! is ending soon! get three years interest-free financing on beautyrest black, stearns & foster serta icomfort even tempur-pedic. plus, get free delivery, free set-up, and free removal of your old mattress and sleep train's 100-day low price guarantee. but hurry! sleep train's interest free for 3 event is ending soon. ...guaranteed!

♪ sleep train ♪ ♪ your ticket to a better night's sleep ♪ welcome back we are back with a major shakeup in washington. the head of the dea is stepping down after mounting pressure from congress over her handling of a prostitution scandal at the agency. michele leonhart was given a vote of no confidence last week after telling lawmakers on capitol hill she did not have the authority to fire agents who admitted taking part in sex parties paid for by colombian drug cartels. chris jansing joins me now. chris, a lot to talk about but let's just start with this vote of no confidence from lawmakers.

that all but sealed her fate at that point. >> yeah, the writing was on the wall then because it was a bipartisan vote and because when she was really grilled on capitol hill, tamron she didn't have any answers for the questions about what was done as a result of this. in fact, what she said was, what i can do is build on and improve mechanisms. that wasn't enough. the committee members made it clear to the white house it was time for her to go. of course, what this all dates back to is a series of parties where dea agents who were in colombia at the time were involved in parties with prostitutes and not only were there reports that these prostitutes were paid for by the drug cartels themselves, the people the dea, obviously, is supposed to be fighting but while these parties are going on things like blackberries were left laying around which potentially could create a national security problem, so now the question is mid-may when she steps down who will be the new head of the dea, tamron. >> that's a big battle in

itself. you have one side pushing for someone to reflect the change that many want to see in marijuana policy while conservative lawmakers are opposing this move. >> similar kind of thing that we saw, right with the scandals involved with the secret service, would it be somebody internal, would it be somebody external, you know if you look at where we are with this, i mean, attorney general holder really has oversight on this. the dea is part of the department of justice, and remember when he had to send out a note a couple of weeks ago, it said this, i want to reiterate to all department personnel, including attorneys and law enforcement officers that they are prohibited from soliciting, procuring, or accepting commercial sex. raising a lot of questions, how deep is the culture that the attorney general has to send out a note like this telling people you should not engage in these illegal activities. but as you probably know tomorrow is the day that loretta

lynch, who is expected to be the replacement for eric holder finally will get her vote on capitol hill, we believe and she could be sworn in as soon as this week or perhaps next. and so the oversight of all this would go from eric holder to loretta lynch. tamron? >> all right, chris jansing live for us at the white house this morning. thank you very much, chris. developing now, after an outbreak of tornados last week, now severe weather, possibly even more tornados set to break out today. the latest forecast is next. also ahead -- >> american cities. >> what prompted that response from a california republican to an anti-immigration protester. it is one of the things we just thought you should know. and here's a look at what's happening today, wednesday, april 22nd america's newest surgeon general will be sworn in by vice president joe biden this afternoon. murphy says he hopes to reduce chronic diseases by promoting

physical activity. and tonight 10:00 p.m. eastern time msnbc will air the u.s. tv premiere of the award winning documentary called "just eat it," a food waste story. our food correspondent, tom colicchio will also hold a food twitter chat at 1:00 p.m. eastern time today. we'll be right back. if your purse is starting to look more like a tissue box... you may be muddling through allergies. try zyrtec® for powerful allergy relief. and zyrtec® is different than claritin®. because it starts working faster on the first day you take it. zyrtec®. muddle no more™ .

♪ building aircraft, the likes of which the world has never seen. this is what we do. ♪ that's the value of performance. northrop grumman. >>who... is this?! >>hi, i am heinz new mustard. hi na na na na >>she's just jealous because you have better taste. whatever. >>hey. keep your chin up. for years, heinz ketchup has been with the wrong mustard. well, not anymore. introducing heinz new better tasting yellow mustard. mmm! when a moment spontaneously turns romantic why pause to take a pill? and why stop what you're doing to find a bathroom? with cialis for daily use, you don't have to plan around either.

it's the only daily tablet approved to treat erectile dysfunction so you can be ready anytime the moment is right. plus cialis treats the frustrating urinary symptoms of bph, like needing to go frequently, day or night. tell your doctor about all your medical conditions and medicines, and ask if your heart is healthy enough for sex. do not take cialis if you take nitrates for chest pain as it may cause an unsafe drop in blood pressure. do not drink alcohol in excess. side effects may include headache, upset stomach, delayed backache or muscle ache. to avoid long-term injury, get medical help right away for an erection lasting more than four hours. if you have any sudden decrease or loss in hearing or vision or any symptoms of an allergic reaction stop taking cialis and get medical help right away. why pause the moment? ask your doctor about cialis for daily use. for a free 30-tablet trial go to cialis.com

now to developing weather news, a new round of severe weather fires up today for millions across the country and it's expected to last until saturday. the threat now large hail tornados and damaging winds stretching across more than 2,000 miles in parts of the south and friday it could get worse. bill karins joins us now. a loet to keep an eye on today. >> friday is the day for strong tornados, but it only takes one. even a day like today where i don't expect a lot of tornados if it happens over the wrong place, we could have big

problems. so far this morning we're okay, as expected, hail with this large thunderstorm complex across the red river, but that's fine, that's moving on. as far as dallas-ft. worth okay for at least the next five or six hours. as we go throughout the early afternoon, start to get storms forming and some of the storms have large hail and tornados. i don't want to forget the east coast, you may get some small hail with some of those stronger stormsers but it's really this greater risk around here, much of the state of texas southern oklahoma, southern arkansas and louisiana. the yellow is a slight risk area that means you could expect severe weather within that zone, but it's a more concentrated risk in the orange color here. that's an enhanced risk of storms that includes 6 million people. we could see the tornados, if they happen most likely in this orange area. two rounds of storms, one is going to affect this afternoon, hit and miss areas then a bow echo what we call, good risk of

straight line winds and thunderstorms that are going to sweep right across this region. probably two rounds of storms for the dallas-ft. worth area. here we go in multi-day, same locations, unfortunately. once again, 25 million people at risk, this is now thursday including dallas including austin, san antonio, houston, new orleans, and shreveport. i don't think it's going to be a tornado day on thursday, but friday this is the greatest concern, has more of a classic look and feel to it. this is the areas of kansas. that's already in enhanced risk. by the time we get to friday could be an upped category to moderate risk. hopefully not a high risk, but this is the area of concern on friday. so friday afternoon, evening, tamron, i know there will be hundreds, if not thousands of storm chasers out there on friday, a lot out there in texas today. this is a part of the country the time of year they expect it used to it have their family plans to get to safety sit and wait and hopefully everyone will be safe. >> bill karins thank you very much. coming up, president obama's pushing back against progressive democrats, including senator

elizabeth warren over what would or could become the largest free trade pact in the united states history. >> i love elizabeth, we're allies on a whole host of issues, but she's wrong on this. >> it is part of this morning's first read on politics. nbc's senior political editor mark murray is back. he'll join us. plus, why house speaker john boehner planted a kiss on minority leader nancy pelosi's check. there's a story one of the stories we just thought you might enjoy today. there's some facts about seaworld we'd like you to know. we don't collect killer whales from the wild. and haven't for 35 years. with the hightest standard of animal care in the world, our whales are healthy. they're thriving. i wouldn't work here if they weren't. and government research shows they live just as long as whales in the wild. caring for these whales, we have a great responsibility to get that right. and we take it very seriously.

because we love them. and we know you love them too. your kids get used to sweaty odors in their room. they think it smells fine, but you smell this... eliminate all the odors you've gone noseblind to with febreze fabric refresher. mmmm... so you and your guests can breathe happy.

jack's heart attack didn't come with a warning. today, his doctor has him on a bayer aspirin regimen to help reduce the risk of another one. if you've had a heart attack be sure to talk to your doctor before your begin an aspirin regimen. jeff... hey, scott! this is no time for lollygaggin', lad. the chickweed and the dandelions are reekin' mad havoc! now's the time to send in the scotts turf builder weed and feed, man! it kills weeds while it feeds and strengthens your grass. feed your lawn. feed it! we are back with our first read on politics this morning. a war of words between presidential candidate rand paul and the establishment wing of the gop. well, it is heating up. the kentucky senator upping the

stakes by referring to john mccain and lindsey graham as, quote, lap dogs for president obama. meanwhile, another 2016 candidate, ted cruz, is walking back comments he made about john mccain in new hampshire over the weekend. and president obama is pushing back against progressive leaders in his own party who oppose a trade initiative making its way through congress. joining me now, nbc news senior political editor mark murray. good morning mark, good to see you. >> good morning, tamron. >> let's talk about rand paul and this war of words. certainly escalating. what's in it for senator paul? >> well you know, i do think this is going to highlight one of the big issues on foreign policy where rand paul is going to be in a different place than many of the republican presidential candidates. referring to john mccain as lindsey graham as a lap dog he's watching a different reality than most of us are, given graham and mccain are criticizing president obama by not going far enough, but rand paul is trying to say president

obama, lindsey graham, and john mccain are on a more interventionist side of foreign policy than he necessarily would be. >> let me play the back-to-back back and forth between graham and paul. let's play it. >> rand's a libertarian he has a view of the world i don't share. he said that we shouldn't have any troops in iraq, he agrees with obama that was a disaster. >> this comes from a group of people who have been wrong about every foreign policy issue over the last two decades. they supported hillary clinton's war in libya. they supported president obama's bombing of assad. i'm really the one standing up to president obama and these people are essentially the lap dogs for president obama and i think they are sensitive about that. >> how does this factor into debates when they start? >> tamron i'm glad you hit on debates. this is going to be fascinating and we saw rand paul's father ron paul, make many of the same

arguments, but hearing rand paul particularly foreign policy becomes a bigger and bigger issue on a national scale, this is going to be must-watch tv where they are going to be duking it out on these issues, rand paul on one side, the other republican candidates on the other. >> and we mentioned senator ted cruz taking back comments he made regarding john mccain over the weekend in new hampshire. let's play it. >> i may have misspoken in new hampshire when i said i've been pressing john mccain and what i had been pressing is the armed services committee and john mccain is the new chairman of it and so i had sent a letter to the previous chairman, but i had not communicated that to john directly, although i had at a hearing and will continue to raise it with john mccain. >> so for those who don't know, senator cruz said he had pressed senator mccain on eliminating a ban on soldiers carrying concealed firearms. >> that's right, tamron. goes to that kind of legislation that ted cruz said he wanted to support, said i'd be working with john mccain on it. john mccain said you haven't been working with me on this i haven't even heard from you.

it should be noted john mccain and ted cruz kind of have a tricky relationship. remember john mccain referring to ted cruz and a couple other folks as wacko birds. this is the latest chapter in that. >> let's move on to the president's interview with chris matthews yesterday chris asking about his trade agreement that's caused definitely a divide between the president and members of their own party particularly the progressive wing of the party. let's play what he told chris. >> i love elizabeth, we're allies on a whole host of issues, but she's wrong on this. i would not be doing this trade deal if i did not think it was good for the middle class. and when you hear folks make a lot of suggestions about how bad this trade deal is when you dig into the facts, they are wrong. >> very strongly worded there from the president. what's next here mark? >> tamron this is a great strange bedfellows story president obama, house speaker

john boehner, house congressman paul ryan, all on one side. then you have the progressives like elizabeth warren, organized labor, even a handful of republicans against the trade authority and the trade deal. then caught in the middle is hillary clinton. tamron, i think this is the most interesting angle which side does she end up taking and right now she hasn't staked out a clear view. >> mark murray, thank you so much. good talking to you this morning. see you tomorrow mark. >> thanks tamron. coming up the nfl is one step closer today to returning to the los angeles area. it's one of the stories we are following around the "news nation" as controversy swirls around that. and a brave little boy and his parents open up about what it means to be a transgender child, but some are asking is 4 years old too young to transition? one family shares their personal story. but first, there is a lot going on this morning, and here are some things you should know. the vatican announced this morning pope francis will visit cuba before arriving in the

united states in september. the pontiff played a key role in the effort to normalize relations between the u.s. and cuba including hosting the final negotiations. his two predecessors also visited cuba. house speaker john boehner showed democratic leader nancy pelosi some love greeting her with a kiss on the cheek at a white house event last night. our nbc news producer also caught a close up of the kiss and posted this hilarious vine. the event was to celebrate the path -- but there was no love lost between congressman steve knight of california and protesters who confronted him at a meet and greet last friday. >> don't touch me. >> so the protesters were angry about their perception that congressman knight had voted in favor of amnesty for illegal

immigrants. the congressman insisted he never voted for amnesty. finally, the postal service is considering the use of drones to deliver packages. a drone known as the horsefly, the drone can carry up to 30 pounds at a speed of around 50 miles an hour. it's the result of a year-long project by the university of cincinnati and a private company. the postal service could use the drones by 2018. and those are some of the things we thought you should know.

♪ ♪ ♪ you're only young once. unless you have a subaru. (announcer) the subaru xv crosstrek. symmetrical all-wheel drive plus 34 mpg. love. it's what makes a subaru a subaru.

i came up with so many reasons to put off losing weight... but then i joined weight watchers, got the starter kit and i was like, hey, i can do this. now there's nothing holding me back, i can feel it. once you get started nothing can stop you. join for free at weightwatchers.com, and get a free starter kit when you sign up before april 27th. we are back with a story that has a lot of people asking what would you do, imagine a child you thought of as your daughter telling you that she was really a boy and repeatedly insisting she wanted to live as a boy. the parents of a young transgender child are sharing their very raw story, very personal one. their son jacob transitioned when he was just 4 years old.

it is raising questions about how young is too young. nbc's kate snow joins me with more of the story, and it's beyond, you know the age. it's also this new conversation that we're having. >> it is, right, much more openly in this country than ever before, but if i say the word trans transgender, you probably immediately think of an adult, a character from "orange is the new black" or "transparent," but you may not think of a 4 year old, but listen to the journey of this family. when they went to disney world last year, they let their 4 year old dress up as prince charming. >> he would be stopped everywhere, how handsome your son, he's so cute, and he just glowed. he was really happy in that moment. he was being perceived as he wanted to. >> reporter: and what he wanted was to be a little boy. jacob is transgender. you know what transgender means? >> yeah. >> reporter: what does it mean?

>> you are a girl and you want to be a boy, or you're a boy and you want to be a girl. >> reporter: like jacob at birth joe and mimi named jacob mia. >> ready to blow on the candle? >> reporter: but by age 2 their middle child was saying i'm a boy. >> he was talking about hating his body. he was saying, why did god make me this way, is god stupid? >> reporter: he rejected the matching dresses mimi dressed her three girls in, and it wasn't just the clothes. >> when people would give him things or speak to him what a good girl you are, you could just see him flinch. you could see him withdraw. and that never wavered. >> reporter: when someone brought up the term transgender mimi and joe were frankly, terrified, worried about their child's future. >> i remember crying, i imagined her being in the playground and nobody playing with her. i imagined her going through high school not having a date using "her," because that's what

she was at the time to me. now it seems very odd to say her. >> reporter: while driving home one day with the kids mimi nearly had a terrible car accident. >> i said to myself, if this was the moment where i lost her what would i have wanted to have done? would i have wanted to force her to be mia for that one last day? and i think at that point my mind was made up. >> reporter: last june they showed jacob a video about another transgender little boy. what did you think when you saw that? >> i think being transgender wasn't so bad after all. >> reporter: after watching the video over and over again, they gave their 4 year old a choice. >> i explained to him that we can bring you to a new school and everyone will know you as a boy from the beginning. >> reporter: what did you say to your mom and dad? >> i want to be a boy. >> reporter: he was only 4 when you made the transition. some people are going to say that's really young.

how can you be sure how could he be sure? >> he'd already spent half of his life telling us that he was a boy. >> reporter: he hasn't had any medical procedures, not on hormones, right? >> not yet. >> way too soon for that. >> the big place for gender is our brain, our heart and our soul. identity, who we are. which isn't parts. >> reporter: pediatricians like dr. michelle forcier who specialize in transgender kids are seeing more and more patients at a young age. how does a parent know it's not a phase? >> all kids experiment with gender roles and maleness and femaleness, but gender nonconformity is different, it's persistence, consistence, and insistence. >> reporter: what about people who say the parents should be in charge, kids shouldn't be able to dictate. you've heard this. >> i hear it all the time. parents do need to be in charge but when a kid is told i don't see you, i don't hear you, i

don't love you just the way you are, that's a pretty powerful message. >> reporter: mimi and joe say when they listen to their son, they realized there was no question about his gender. >> you look really handsome. are you ready for today? are you ready for school? >> yeah. >> okay. >> ultimately, jacob has made that choice in his mind and his heart. it's whether or not we accept it or not. >> accept it that's right. i want him to know how proud i am of him, how brave i believe he is, and how no matter what, i am in his corner. and i love him. and i always will. because he's my son. >> reporter: so to be clear the lamays won't have to think about medical intervention until he's approaching puberty and that comes whenever a child hits puberty. doctors we spoke with also said children who transition young

rarely change their minds but the family knows this is a whole new terrain and they are telling their story in the hopes it will help other families but they also know there are going to be some people that don't understand or agree with what they are doing. >> some people which would include people within your family, and they talked about that, as well. >> they have. they've had great acceptance, they live outside boston, and the school has been supportive, community and their family but that's been great, but even some of their own family hasn't -- they don't think they are doing the right thing they are worried that the parents are taking their cues from the child rather than the other way around. >> it's an incredible story incredible journey and for that little boy to speak so beautifully about his life at such a young age, it's very powerful. thank you very much, kate. up next pbs opens an investigation after ben affleck's request to ignore his ancestors' own slaves. the show of course, is "finding

your roots," but do you agree about the decision? it's our "news nation" gut check. and this -- ♪ ♪ let's talk about sex ♪ >> there you go that's the iconic salt-n-pepa and the hit "let's talk about sex," one of their songs that did not shy away from important social issues like aids at the time, but it may not have been accepted. they say the controversy, did it with style and they are going to join us up next. the trail blazing women of salt-n-pepa will join us. and some of you sent your questions and we've picked out some doozies. we'll be right back. ♪ building aircraft, the likes of which the world has never seen. this is what we do. ♪

that's the value of performance. northrop grumman. sometimes the present looked bright. sometimes romantic. there were tears in my eyes. and tears in my eyes. and so many little things that we learned were really the biggest things. through it all, we saved and had a retirement plan. and someone who listened and helped us along the way.

because we always knew that someday the future would be the present. every someday needs a plan. talk with us about your retirement today.

welcome back. time now for the "news nation" gut check. ben affleck is responding for the first time to the controversy surrounding his appearance on the pbs show "finding your roots" and his attempt to have part of it

censored. in a statement yesterday affleck says he regrets asking a show producer to omit parts of his family ancestry after discovering a distant relative was a slave owner. miguel almaguer has more on why he made the request. >> we piece together the lost family histories. >> reporter: the pbs show "finding your roots" traced ben affleck's family back generations. >> i'm sure that there's so much of people's history that gets lost over time. >> reporter: the segment featuring the actor/director aired back in october, but it's what didn't make the show that's now making headlines. >> this is a big surprise. >> reporter: after the show discovered one of his distant relatives was a slave owner affleck asked host and distinguished professor henry louis gates to censor his family history because he was embarrassed. affleck spoke out about the controversy for the first time tuesday night, posting on facebook. "i lobbied him the same way i

lobbied directors wrote affleck, adding i regret my initial thoughts that the slavery not be included in the story." what aired was dubbed a white wash. >> we wanted to see what we could find out about ben's more distant relatives. >> reporter: no mention of affleck's family history, the omission only going public after internal e-mails inside sony were hacked, then widely reported on. after the lobby by affleck, gates writes sony's ceo michael linton, we've never had somebody try to censor or edit what we found, he's a megastar what do we do? linton responds i would take it out if no one knows, but if it gets out you're editing the material based on this sensitivity, then it gets tricky. this morning affleck says he regrets the decision, while pbs says it's conducting an internal review. >> you have impressive roots. >> you know, i find this very powerful. >> the show is over, but the

controversy is not. miguel almaguer, nbc news, los angeles. >> so what does your gut tell you? do you agree with the decision to leave affleck's ancestors who owned slaves? they say they didn't delete it, they just had so much great information go. to newsnation.msnbc.com to cast that vote. okay. the moment has come. they are considered one of the most successful hip-hop groups of all time. and trailblazers for all women in music, now, music fans, that means you, celebrating the resurgence of salt n pepa. ♪ let's talk about sex baby let's talk about you and me ♪ ♪ let's talk about all the good things and bad things that may be ♪ ♪ sloop a shoop a ♪ >> the legendary anthems of female empowerment propelled them to iconic status in pop

culture. with grammy-winning songs like "let's talk about sex," they did not shy away from taking on important social issues including aids awareness at the time when it may not have been accepted. now nearly 30 years after their first album, salt-n-pepa and deejay cinderella are back and continuing -- continuing to use their music to push boundaries. joining us now good to see you ladies. >> good to see you. i'm impressed. >> we're still smiling at our clip. >> right. right. >> my producer, margaret, put that together. and she's just been living for this, as all of us on this show. >> that's a good one. >> when you look at the videos, when you look at the pictures and when you hear the impact you had on music how does it feel at this point? >> it feels great, though. to be -- first of all to be so blessed, so relevant still after all these years and do -- when i look at pictures, i say, i want to look like that again. >> you look better now. come on. >> are you kidding me?

>> thank you. >> it's amazing, there's salted and not there cheryl. cheryl's like -- and there's cheryl. cheryl's like, oh, my god, almost 30 years later. everyone's still in the music and still pushing it and shooping. it feels amazing, timeless music. >> it's interesting when you say it's timeless music and you look back at it. it is, and we look at nicki minaj and other artists and you see your imprint on all of them because you were bold women. you were unafraid to be exactly who you were. >> yeah. >> at home, in the neighborhood, and on the stage. >> that's what we always say. >> yeah. we were focused. we always say like the girl next door. we were always true to ourselves. >> yeah. >> we did us, you know. anything that we felt that we wanted to express we did it. >> i say we brought fun

femininity and fashion to hip-hop. and i just followed this one. shaved the head on the side, i shaved my head on the side. >> i'm going to post tomorrow my salt-n-pepa picture with my bamboo picture and earring at temple university living my life. with that said -- >> we've got so many girls in trouble. >> yes, you did get me in trouble. when i tried to wear the spandex pants -- a whole other level. it's interesting i look at the music world and there are so many groups and individual artists that are manufactured. if you came out today do you think you would have had that freedom and ability to do a song like "let's talk about sex," and just, you know shut down the game? >> yeah, i think there is kind of a difference between then and now. especially when women are concerned. back then we had latifah and salt-n-pepa and lauren hill and emcee light and even now we're like where's the girls? >> where are the girls? >> i feel like that's missing in hip-hop now. but back then, it was more

organic. you know, like pepa said, we were just doing us. whatever we were wearing we didn't have stylists we didn't have make-up artists -- >> no. >> the baseball jacket -- >> that was styling. and the boots -- you taught us all how to wear boots on the outside with tight jeans. we asked some viewers to ask questions. one of them from molly jo, any plans to team one today's female rappers? you mentioned eve, iggy azalea, nicki minaj -- no name specific. >> it can happen. i mean, we are very loved -- >> yes, you are. >> and friendly. >> friendly. and people do request that all the time. i can see it happened. >> you say no now when they request? >> well -- >> no. >> we haven't pursued it. >> okay. >> it's a great idea, right? >> it is. >> you have talked about it. teaming up with the girls and doing something -- >> a female empowerment song. >> remember -- that would be

incredible. okay the other one your lyrics are geared toward women empowerment. fast forward to today, what societal issues would you rap about right now? >> wow. for me as a mom of a daughter who's 23 -- >> she's 23. >> i think self-esteem body image issues accepting yourself for who you are. as a matter of fact, she has a blog that she's starting that's all encompassing of whatever your culture is your hair texture, your body. being able to love yourself the way that you are. and building female self-esteem is a big one for me. >> i've decided i want you to do a remake of "ladies first." >> oh "ladies first." yeah. >> love that. that was it, right? bring that back. also, i have to reveal there's

something possibly cooking -- you thinking about doing a cooking show? you were telling me you cook caribbean food. >> yes, i am jamaican born in jamaica, the island. i also grew up in jamaica -- and everything is about jamaica. jamaica is the best place on the planet. everyone gets mad, where do you want to go on vacation? jamaica! >> so you're thinking about this cooking show. >> yes. >> tell me the premise here. >> we're working with relativity putting it together. >> yes. >> and pepa's the jamaican cook -- >> who's the best cook? >> i am. we actually had a cook-off. >> i cook southern. she cooks jamaican. she threatened my kids. that's how she won. >> that's an episode on its own. >> yes. >> all right. >> trying to do something called jamerican. >> talking about the geico commercial, our booker fig said -- the geico commercial, the geico commercial. that was fun. >> it was. >> it was hilarious.

i'm studying to be a life coach also. putting that out there. this is my specimen. >> i remember her reality show. >> yes. i'm going to have a couch. >> thank you. good luck. i can't wait to see the cooking show. we'll will this in to existence. >> and my son's line "equally unique." >> are you jamaican. up next, andrea mitchell reports. time for entrepreneur of the week. aaron holland is the owner of a comic shop and geek easy in california. he attracts customers by having fun events at a geek easy and then turns them on to comic often turning them into regular readers.

american express for travel and entertainment worldwide. just show them this - the american express card. don't leave home without it! and someday, i may even use it on the moon. it's a marvelous thing! oh! haha! so you can replace plane tickets, traveler's cheques, a lost card. really? that worked? american express' timeless safety and security are now available on apple pay. the next evolution of membership is here. looking for one of these? yoplait. smooth, creamy, and craved by the whole family.

the new s6 hits the stores and i'm like... whoa. open the box and... (sniffing) new phone smell. jump on a video chat with my friend. he's a real fan boy, so i can't wait to show this off. picture is perfect. i got mine at verizon. i... didn't. it's buffering right out of the box he was impressed. i couldn't be happier. couldn't see him but i could hear him making fun of me. vo: you waited this long for the s6 so why settle for anything less than verizon.

when it comes to good nutrition...i'm no expert. that would be my daughter -- hi dad. she's a dietitian. and back when i wasn't eating right, she got me drinking boost. it's got a great taste and it helps give me the nutrition i was missing. helping me stay more like me. [ female announcer ] boost complete nutritional drink has 26 essential vitamins and minerals, including calcium and vitamin d to support strong bones and 10 grams of protein to help maintain muscle. all with a delicious taste. grandpa! [ female announcer ] stay strong, stay active with boost. right now, terror plot. french police arrest a 24-year-old man with weapons of war allegedly planning attacks on paris churches during sunday services. >> translator: