as i mentioned in the top of the show, here in u.s., officials in hawaii did issue a tsunami on msnbc. "first look" is up next. it's thursday, september 17th, right now on "first look," the gloves were off at the second gop debate. >> i didn't want -- excuse me one second. >> no. the simple fact -- >> jeb -- >> you cannot -- >> more energy tonight. i like that. >> but it was carly fiorina who continued to wow the crowd. but hillary clinton had her say with jimmy fallon while joe biden told certain republicans to just get out of the way. plus a major 8.3 magnitude earthquake rocks chile overnight. an explosion of attention for the texas teen wrongly arrested for a science project. that and much more on a busy thursday, "first look" starts right now. good morning, i'm dara brown. it was a showdown that had the 2016 gop hopefuls aggressively trying to make their mark on the

national stage. the candidates came out swinging with a focus on substance over style. and almost everyone took on donald trump, one of the most talked about moments of the night came when carly fiorina was asked to respond to donald trump's recent comments about her personal appearance. >> it's interesting to me, mr. trump said that he heard mr. bush very clearly. and what mr. bush said. i think women all over this country heard very clearly what mr. trump said. >> and earlier in the debate trump seemed to take a swing at rand paul's appearance in this fiery exchange. >> i think his resporns, his visceral response to attack people on their appearance, short, tall, fat, ugly, my goodness, that happened in junior high. are we not way above that? >> i never attacked him on his look. and believe me, there's plenty of subject matter right there. that i can tell you. >> the debate touched on issues ranging from the economy and taxes to the iran zeal but one

of the most talked about issues was immigration. at one point jeb bush demanded on apology from trump for suggesting his wife's heritage helped guide his stance on immigration. >> did mr. trump go too far in invoking your wife? >> he did. he did. you're proud of your family just as i am. >> correct. >> to subject my wife into the middle of a raucous political conversation was completely inappropriate. and i hope you apologize for that, dojd. >> well, i have to tell you, i hear phenomenal things. i hear your life is a lovely woman. >> she is. she's fantastic. she's absolutely the love of my life and she's right here. and why don't you apologize to her. >> i won't do that because i did nothing wrong. but i do hear she's a lovely woman. >> and in a discussion over drug policy jeb bush got a lot of attention for this confession. >> 40 years ago i smoked marijuana and i admit it. i'm sure other people have done it. my mom's not happy i just did. >> jeb tweeted out a short sorry mom that got retweeted more than

20,000 times. senator lindsey graham dominated the early debate. he was joined on stage by rick santorum, louisiana governor bobby jindal and former new york governor george pataki. graham seized on military strategy but his improved debate performance is unlikely to do anything for his struggling campaign. social media thoughs the three nonpoliticians, donald trump, carly fiorina and dr. ben carson got some of the most online attention. the carson campaign said he had earned a 300,000 facebook likes and raised $1 million on debate day alone. the next debate will be hosted by cnbc on october 28th. while republicans were in focus, it wasn't a day off for the democratic candidates. senator bernie sanders live tweeted the debate. he touched on a range of issues, including inequality, war and trade. plus, this veiled dig. trump, what a pleasant and humble person.

can't stop saying kind and generous things about his fellow republicans. then joe biden hasn't declared but he went after republicans yesterday anyway at a summit on solar power he called out candidates and lawmakers who deny climate change. >> i think if you pushed them they'd probably deny gravity, as well. folks we're getting in our own way. if some of these folks would just get out of the way. >> meanwhile hillary clinton continued her charm offensive on "the tonight show" after a short skit with jimmy fallon's fake donald trump clinton imagined what a real donald trump presidency might look like. >> imagine, you know, all of a sudden, you know, you're in the kremlin. and somebody comes rushing in and goes, oh, my gosh, did you hear what president trump said today? oh, my goodness, what does that mean? it might actually cause everybody else to just calm down because they wouldn't want to

get it to be too excitable. >> in fact clinton got some advice from donald trump. well, kind of. >> you want to win? here's what you got to do. first, yell. i yell all the time. next, pick three things everyone loves, and say you hate them. watch. puppies, stupid. rainbows, total losers. fall foliage, tree puberty. are you writing all this down? >> hold on. let me -- let me grab my pen. >> the first democratic debate is in less than a month. well right now a tsunami advisory is in effect for hawaii and parts of california as they wait for the dangerous aftereffects of this, a powerful 8.3 magnitude earthquake off the coast of chile. it hit last night just before 7:00 p.m. eastern. there were two big aftershocks a short time later.

five people are dead and 186,000 are without power. authorities ordered evacuations in low-lowing areas along the country's shoreline. quakes aren't uncommon in that part of the world but this one was its most powerful in 100 years. flooding is another concern. the pacific tsunami warning center says waves about ten feet above sea level are possible in nearby coastal areas. on monday, 14-year-old texas high school student ahmed mohammed was arrested after concerns about this homemade clock he brought to school. but yesterday social media lit up in support. the #istandwithahmed began trending with a lot of big names jumping on board. mark zuckerberg posted and ended with if you ever want to come by facebook, i'd love to meet you. keep building. hillary clinton tweeted her support, saying in part, assumptions and fear don't keep us safe, stay curious. president obama even invited the budding engineer to the white house, saying cool clock, ahmed, we should inspire more kids like you to like science.

school officials defended their actions yesterday. >> we were doing everything with an abundance of caution to protect all of our students. >> mohammed was released by police and no charges were filed, but at a news conference yesterday the teen said he is planning on transferring schools, while he pursues his goal of going to m.i.t. in northern california the so-called valley fire remains a volatile force. it's now spread to more than 70,000 acres and is only 35% contained. it's destroyed nearly 600 homes and is being blamed for at least two deaths. nbc's miguel almaguer was out with crews and saw its ferociousness firsthand. >> reporter: traveling out of middletown we could see flames in the distance. but quickly, without warning, we faced a tunnel of fire. this fire has burned for several miles and it's still so intense. and there's so much brush in

front of us it looks like it's never going to end. it was too dangerous to turn back. burning debris was falling on the road. you could hear the fury. and feel the intensity. crews, who were just in front of us, tell us these flames are shooting at 40 to 50 miles per hour in some places. even here in the vehicle you can feel the heat. everything became a blow torch. the inferno leaping the road. fire is able to create its own weather. it's shooting embers into the air but it's also the intense heat. and this is what we see every fee feet. another inferno getting set to take off. raining embers sent firefighters scrambling. a vehicle catching fire. these are the epic conditions crews now face every day. >> that was miguel almaguer reporting. terrifying video of a narrow escape in germany. yesterday the train slams into an empty school bus. the bus got stuck on the tracks when it made a sharp turn. fortunately the quick-thinking

driver evacuated all 60 students as the crossing arms came down on the intersection. the bus had been talking an alternate route when its usual road was blocked off. one person suffered minor injuries while exiting the bus. tense moments for a tight rope walker in australia wednesday. 36-year-old kane peterson was crossing between the two peaks of a sky skrieper in melbourne, 984 feet above the ground when he got a leg cramp. but he managed to push through the 69 foot walk, even laying down on the rope at one point. wednesday's stunt is now the highest tight rope walk ever completed in australia. let's get down to business now with cnbc's landon dowdy. good morning. >> dara, good morning to you. the fed wraps up its meeting this afternoon and we'll find out whether they've decided to hike interest rates for the first time in a decade. for consumers, they'll still have easy access to loans and low rates in the near term if the fed pulls the trigger. home sales could pick up as buyers lock in lower mortgage rates.

savers may not see much benefit as banks may keep rates flat on cds and other deposits. a settlement with gm today over whether the automaker had problems with faulty ignition switches. the courts say gm will pay a fine of about $1 billion. gm recalled 2.6 million cars last year to repair switches. are you looking for love? are you a bacon love? oscar mayor has created a dating app called sizzle. unlike tender it aims to create a connection based on users favorite types of bacon, thick, hardwood, smoked or maple. talk about a love connection, dara. >> thank you, landon so much for that one. now to sports. on the heels of last night's presidential debate, patriots tom brady was asked about donald trump. >> he's a guy that likes winning like you. you think he's got what it takes? >> i hope so. that would be great. be a putting green on the white house lawn, i'm sure of that. >> and speaking of tom brady,

the nfl permits the patriots to reinstate two new england patriots employees most connected to the deflate-gate scandal. the nfl jetwork's ian rapport says jast recommend ski is prohibited from handling footballs. rutgers university has suspended head football coach kyle flood for three games and fined him 50 grand for contacting a faculty member over a players grades. he accepted responsibility but said he cares deeply about his student athlete's academic performance. in phoenix one fan takes a fall ball off the noggin which shattered his glasses. but after a few pieces of tape the fan was back in business. well there are 108 nominees for this year's nfl hall of fame. class of 2016, among the first year big names brett favre, terrell owens, allen faneca and lawyer milloy.

and pacman jones was fined. jones is appealing the fine. in new jersey, police are investigating this incident when a defensive lineman pulled the helmet off an opponent and then hit him in the head with the helmet. the lineman needed ten stitches to close the gash. the player has been removed from the team and is subject to the severest disciplinary measures, says the school district. for details we'll have that later today and we'll look to the winners and losers of the latest gop debate plus jon stewart goes to washington to fight for a cause close to his heart. you're watching "first look." (dog) mmm, beneful healthy weight is so good...

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welcome back to "first look." thunderstorms in minnesota caused some problems yesterday. we expect more today. this lightning a little too close for comfort if that's your kid playing on the football field. we are going to be watching again the chance of more lightning and strong storms today in the central and northern plains. also, florida, once again

soaking rains this morning. off towards fort pierce heading northwards. flood watches right along the coast so the melbourne area, indian river, back up to daytona beach, on and off downpours. this area of rain now trying to approach the coastline around fort myers. further to the north, severe weather threat about 8 million people at risk of severe storms. haven't had a lot of severe weather in the last month, minneapolis, quad cities, des moines, ames, back up toward madison, may even see an isolated tornado or too. keep an eye to the sky late this afternoon. how about the heat in the east? expecting a record high today in burlington, vermont, mid to upper 80s. near record heat in areas like new york city. d.c. you're not near your record but you're still very, very warm. we have mid 90s still. dallas, 97 today. so summer doesn't want to end. >> no, that's still hot down there. bill, thank you so much for that. former daily show host jon stewart is fighting congress on behalf of first responders. stewart is pushing for the extension of the 9/11 health and

compensation act which partially expires at the end of september. >> it's a successful program. there is no fraudulent abuse. these guys are working to get the benefits that they need. >> the act provides medical treatment and compensation to september 11th first responders whose illnesses are linked to terrorist acts. a tense scene at the hungarian border. hungarian forces used tear gas and water cannons to push back the hundreds of mieg rants at their closed border crossing from serbia. migrants responded by throwing rocks and bottles at hungarian forces. according to "the new york times." comedian who told a 9/11 escape lied. he would frequently speak about narrowly escaping the 9/11 world trade center attacks on 9/11 as a former employee of merrill lynch. "new york times" confronted him this week with evidence countering his claim. merrill lynch did not have offices in the twin towers and they also didn't have any record of his employment. he responded through his

publicist, i was not at the trade center on that day. i don't know why i said this. this is inexcusable. i am truly, truly sorry. did jeb bush's debate performance stop his downward slide in the polls? and who got the best one-liners of the night? that's up next. cash back from a to take their act to the next level... before earning 1% cash back everywhere, every time... 2% back at the grocery store... and 3% back on gas... vince of the flying branzinos got a bankamericard cash rewards credit card, because he may earn his living jumping through hoops, but he'd rather not earn cash back that way. that's the spectacle of rewarding connections. apply online or at a bank of america near you. how much prot18%?does your dog food have? 20? nutrient-dense purina one true instinct with real salmon and tuna has 30% protein. support your active dog's whole body health with purina one.

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highlights. >> rand paul shouldn't even be on this stage. >> do we want someone with that kind of character, that kind of careless language, to be negotiating with business? >> after opening with an unprovoked attack doesn't trump mixed it up with jeb bush. >> when he asked florida to have casino gambling, we said no. >> wrong. >> we said no. and that's the simple fact -- >> don't make things up, jeb. >> don't cut me off. >> scott walker jumped in. >> we don't need an apprentice in the white house. we have one right now. >> reporter: as trump defended not knowing the names of terrorists, marco rubio pounced. >> and a president better be up to date on those issues on his first day in office, on her first day in office. >> reporter: there were differences on issues. iran. >> on the very first day in office, i will rip to shreds this catastrophic iranian nuclear deal. >> reporter: immigration. >> if we don't seal the border, the rest of the stuff really doesn't matter. >> reporter: jobs and the economy. >> at the end of the day, america's got to work. >> reporter: taxes. >> i think the fair tax makes

more sense. >> reporter: and hillary clinton. >> we shouldn't be fighting with each other. she's the real opponent. she's the real problem. >> reporter: tracie potts, nbc news, washington. let's bring in syndicated columnist bob franken. good morning to you, bob. >> good morning, dara. >> okay. let's start with the gop debate last night. once again, donald trump center stage. do you think that he's at a turning point where maybe trump the celebrity has actually become trump the candidate? >> well, you know, it's an interesting question. many of us, including i have to say me, have written him off several times before. but, one got the impression that maybe his act of sort of the ignorant putdown is beginning to wear a little bit thin. obviously carly fiorina was the big winner. particularly when trump decided he backed down and said that she, in fact, had a beautiful face and was a beautiful person. showing that, perhaps, trump maybe should be the president of the male chauvinist pigdom. >> let's talk about carly

fiorina for a minute here. is it a surprise that she came out with such high regard after last night? >> well, certainly it was -- it was, if not a surprise, it was certainly her chance to shine, and apparently she did. first of all, that she was very conversant on the issues. had a grasp of detail that donald trump has been criticized for not having. she certainly held her own. and since she had appeared in the undercard before, she has now managed to shine on the big stage. >> okay. someone who might not have shined so much, let's talk about jeb bush. languishing in the polls but he said he would forcefully take on donald trump. did he pull that off? >> well, i think so. not that he appeared particularly comfortable doing it. but, at least jeb bush seemed to awaken from his hibernation, and showed that, in fact, he does have life. >> well, let's wake up those pollsters in vegas now. so who do you think will be the next one to follow in rick perry's footsteps by pulling out? >> well, first of all we can talk about the junior varsity debate.

there are a couple of people on there who would be considered candidates who would go by the name what's their name. as far as the big debate is concerned, most of the attention is focusing on the dismal performance of scott walker. >> well, bob franken, thank you so much for weighing in. always appreciate it. >> thank you. just ahead, an update on that supposed call from vladimir putin to elton john. turns out it was too good to be true. details up next. how much protein does your dog food have? 18%? 20? nutrient-dense purina one true instinct with real salmon and tuna has 30% protein. support your active dog's whole body health with purina one. the only difference: that little blue thingy. you see it? that's a sensor. using ge software, the light can react to its environment- getting brighter only when it's needed. in a night, it saves a little energy. but, in a year it saves a lot. and the other street? it's been burning energy all night. for frank. frank's a cat. now, two things that are exactly the same,

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that's why at xfinity we're hard at work, building new apps like this one that lets you choose a time for us to call you. so instead of waiting on hold, we'll call you when things are just as wonderful... [phone ringing] but a little less crazy. we're doing everything we can to give you the best experience possible. because we should fit into your life. not the other way around. president obama is set to meet with the three american heroes who stopped an attack on a passenger train in france last month. the three were on a train from amsterdam to paris when a gunman opened fire.

they tackled the man until authorities arrived. the white house says president obama wants to express his gratitude for their bravery. now to some other stories that we're following. the man who set fire during the baltimore riots has pleaded guilty to federal charges. 24-year-old raymond carter will face four years in prison if the court accepts his plea. turns out elton john got pranked. earlier this week john thanked vladimir putin via instagram for reaching out to him to talk gay rights. two russian tv hosts said the whole thing was a prank and recorded the call. >> hello? >> sir elton, hello. >> hello, commitry, how are you? >> i'm fine. i'll be -- >> tell him i'm extremely honored to be -- that he's calling me and i'm speaking to him. it's a great privilege to be able to speak to one of the most influential people in the whole world. it's amazing. >> putin spokesperson said the men should apologize to the singer and that the hoax was not nice. >> it wasn't even remotely funny. it wasn't even like, i guess

putin handled it well, too, saying, you know, slap those guys around a little. >> this is "first look" on msnbc. don't forget to like us on facebook at facebook.com/first look msnbc. "way too early" starts right now. he said that, quote, if my wife were from mexico i think i would have a soft spot for people from mexico. did mr. trump go too far? >> he did. he did. she's right here. why don't you apologize to her right now. >> i won't do that because i said nothing wrong. >> short, tall, fat, ugly, my goodness, that happened in junior high. >> i never attacked him on his look. and believe me, there's plenty of subject matter right there. >> mr. trump, why would you be better at creating jobs than carly fiorina? >> i only say this, she can't run any of my companies. >> honestly, mr. trump, i find it quite rich that you would talk about this, and you were forced to file for bankruptcy, not once -- >> i never filed for bankruptcy.

>> not twice, four times. a record four times. >> but almost everybody in atlantic city is either in trouble or filed for -- maybe i'll blame chris. but atlantic city -- >> mr. trump -- >> is a disaster. wait a minute, carly. wait. i let you speak. >> this personal back and forth about the history of donald and carly's career. they could care less about your career. >> leadership is not a game. it's the issue in this election. >> carly, listen. you interrupt everybody else on this stage. don't interrupt me. >> fight night in simi valley. plenty of haymakers at last night's republican presidential debate with donald trump in the center fielding jabs and landing a few punches himself. it's 5:30 on the east coast. 2:30 a.m. out west. and this is "way too early."