breaking news right now on msnbc. a plane crashes in alaska with up to eight people onboard. there are reports that former senator ted stevens and the former head of nasa, sean o'keefe, are among passengers on that private aircraft. nbc news is working to confirm these reports and we'll have a live report coming up. police say it's a real-life bonnie and clyde. an escaped killer on the run with the help of his fiancee after his partner in crime was c captured. would you like some fries with that meltdown? what made this lady go off the deep end at the drive through? this incident is off the charts.

good tuesday morning to you, i'm chris jansing. we are following that breaking news this morning. officials in alaska are fighting severe weather to help victims of a plane crash in the southwestern part of the state. there are reports that former alaska senator ted stevens was a passenger, so was apparently the former nasa administrator sean o'keefe. reports indicate there were already some good samaritans on the scene helping victim passing planes in the air space and saw the wreckage and alerted the national guard. you can see exactly where dillingham is. there are reports that four of the eight people onboard that plane may have survived. kelly o'donnell covers capitol hill for nbc news. kelly, there is a long-standing relationship, as i understand it, between ted stevens and sean o'keefe. at one point sean o'keefe was a senate staffer and ted stevens actually nominated him when he was secretary of navy. >> well, when we talk about ted

stevens' career in the senate, it is really a remarkable one. he served longer than any republican in history, 40 years in the senate and left office after being defeated in 2008 and he has many friends in washington and we have been checking with some of his associates there today and still no confirmation and no word going to his close friends about the status of this plane crash. one of the most remarkable things when you look at ted stevens' life, he has been through a plane crash before and survived. chris, back in 1978, he and his first wife, ann, and several others were on a learjet that crashed in anchorage. his wife, ann, passed away. so did four others, but ted stevens survived that crash. here we are more than 30 years later and he is reportedly on a plane that went down. again, we do not have a statu s on his condition. there were reports that he was onboard along with sean o'keefe, who served as the nasa chief. when we look at the career of

ted stevens, he is really one of the great forces of the modern republican party. we had some trouble in these most recent years. he was indicted on several counts of failing to report gifts and he went to trial over that and later those convictions were oerb overturned because of how prosecutors conducted themselves. a very difficult period over the last several years. popular among his colleagues, a very powerful senator for so many years and among republicans he is the longest serving, the seventh longest serving in the history. that gives you a presence of him and the man who succeeded him, a democrat, again, a strange twist of how life works. his own father had been killed in a plane crash. of course, alaska is a rugged place and a great deal of travel by small aircraft to get to one point to another and there is a higher incidence of aircraft that have problems there. we're still trying to reach out

to people who know. certainly the senator and his associates waiting for some word. hoping for the best. the fact that he had survived once before is certainly a glimmer of hope, but he was born in 1923. he is an older gentleman. this must have been a very, very difficult experience. as we learn more details, chris, of course, we'll bring them to you right away. >> nbc news has not confirmed the passenger list and we're waiting to get that information and also tell people that a lot of the rescue operations are being hampered by very severe weather in that area of alaska. so, we're waiting to get more information out of there. but tell us a little more about ted stevens. he definitely, and i think the number speaks for itself, 40 years in the senate, is a survivor. >> a remarkable political career. and, really, one of the heavyweights in republican politics in alaska. and it's the kind of thing where you have that much signeniority you're able to deliver a lot for your home state and that

certainly enhanced his popularity. the difficulties with questions about ethics late in his career were certainly, certainly difficult and he was up for re-election and the then mayor of anchorage was able to defeat him and that was a real blow because it came at the time of the ethical charges. there was a question of how prosecutors conducted themselves and it was all about failing to report gibs. some things that were done at his home that he may not have properly reported. those sorts of things. during the time he was in the senate, he held powerful positions. that kind of thing. he has been a very big figure in republican politics and retired for only a couple years now. >> do we know what he has been doing since then? >> to be honest, i don't know exactly how he has been spending his time, but he has been a force. certainly when i talked to senator lisa makowski and her people they always kept in touch

with that staff and the legacy of his political work. he remains a very powerful figure. what we understand about this trip, it was a sporting type of trip and we're trying to get those details. certainly in alaska, ted stevens is a huge name. >> thanks very much, we appreciate that. kelly oo'donnell, we will stay on top of that story and report more as we get more information here at nbc news. other breaks news right now, the associated press is reporting two suicide bombers blew up a building in central kabul killing two company drivers. the building was rented by a private security company. the attack started with a gun battle in the middle of the fighting there was a huge explosion. as the bombers detonated explosive vests. more details about what happened as we get them. also coming up a little later this hour, lieutenant general jerry bicycoycon will t about the nine-year war in afghanistan. stay tuned. that is coming up, as well. the fbi now says it will

conduct autopsies on the six american workers ambushed in afghanistan. their bodies will be flown back to the u.s. as part of the criminal investigation. six americans and four relief workers were gunned down in a remote section of northern afghanistan on friday. secretary of state hillary clinton has been denouncing the murders. >> we are heartbroken by the loss of these heroic, generous people. and we condemn in the strongest possible terms these vicious murders. >> by the way, the taliban did claim responsibility. well, they think they're just like bonnie and clyde. two fugitives still on the loose and u.s. marshals are warning they're armed and dangerous. john mccluskey and casslyn welch. she helped her cousin, who is also her fiancee, break out of prison on june 30th.

they found province in a town of 300 people in wyoming where he had attended church and then mowed the lawn and was given 40 bucks for it. he told the pastor and a xhurch member he was headed to indianapol indianapolis, but had no money. >> i visited with them about 30 minutes and he was, on some things you could tell he was telling the truth and other things not. by watching him, you could tell that he was not a very good person and later called and told ron that this guy is a bad guy and i wouldn't have him around your kids because he was there doing some work for the church. >> nbc news correspondent george lewis is live in cody, wyoming. george, any leads on these two now that they found the other escapee? >> well, now that tracy province is here in the jail behind me, they are concentrating on that other escapee and his female accomplice. they believe they have gone from the yellowstone area up into montana, perhaps somewhere

around glacier national park and perhaps trying to get into canada. the u.s. marshal service says they have developed some information about this and they won't specify exactly what that information is, but, obviously, a major manhunt going on in wyoming and montana for this couple who describe themselves as a latter day bonnie and clyde and they think this is a great adventure, at least they told that to some people. the u.s. marshal service says this is serious business and they intend to grab mccluskey as soon as they can. >> it's quite a story on how he spent the last hours before he was taken into custody. >> yeah. he showed up at church in the little town meeteetse, sang hymns along with the congregation and asked about doing some part-time work. the pastor said that he could probably do some hauling of

trash. but then the church members saw his picture on tv and the internet. the pastor called the u.s. marshal service and they nabbed him yesterday. >> and as i understand it, he said he was happy to be caught. >> well, yeah. he's apparently told several stories, including that a sense of relief that he was, indeed, captured. he had a .9 millimeter pistol with him and it's a good thing this ended peacefully. >> no kidding, there is a lot of fear in that area. thanks so much, george. good to see you. >> okay. a fiery crash in california killed six people and police say some of the vehicles involved were carrying a college cross country team. it happened in bishop on u.s. highway 395. three vans with california baptist university students were heading north when an suv going the other way hit one of the vans and then burst into flames. then another car crash under to the burning suv.

one of those who was killed was a member of the cross country team. now, we all had bad days at work, but this one might take the cake. jetblue flight attendant steven slater has a court date after losing it on the job. he got into a profanity laden exchange with a passenger and popped open the emergency hatch and grabbed a couple beers and slid down the chute. nbc tom costello has the rest of the story of what happened at new york's jfk's airport. >> reporter: for steven slater it appears to have been one flight, one passenger too many. jetblue flight 1052 from pittsburgh, with 100 passengers onboard landed at new york's jfk airport at about noon monday when slater was struck in the head with a piece of overhead luggage a passenger was trying to retrieve, slater demanded an apology and the two got into a heated argument. that's when slater got on the plane's p.a. system and unleashed his own tirade, pulled

the emergency exit chute and reportedly grabbed two beers and slid down the chute and ran across the tarmac and through the airport to his car and then drove home. >> i see the gentleman in the jeep flying down the block and ran into his house. >> reporter: police arrested slater at his home and in custody he simply smiled as he was led away. >> people can be, you know, abusive to airline attendants. i just feel bad for the guy. >> reporter: in a statement, jetblue says at no time was the security or safety of our customers or crew members at risk. still, ground crews working beneath the plane could have been injured by the falling exit chute. former ntsb chairman said he's never seen anything like this before. >> to have a flight attendant unexplainably deploy a chute, leave the aircraft after cursing out the passengers. the only thing i can explain it is, perhaps a little too much

cabin pressure. >> reporter: for years flight attendants have been made fun of in popculture. >> i will be waiting for you outside the terminal. no, there's more. i'll pound your face in. >> reporter: at the hands of a traveling public that is increasingly unhappy and far less polite than in year's past. but flight attendants also undergo extensive and rigorous training to deal with emergency in-flight emergencies. they have proven they can make the difference as the miracle landing on the hudson in 2009. >> we have thousands and thousands of operations that occur every day. safely. without incident. routine. the people that do this work are excellent. they're highly professional and extremely skilled. >> reporter: what is not clear why a veteran flight attendant

simply decided he couldn't take it any more and literally pulled the plug on his own career. his last word to the passengers were, it has been a good 28 years. >> that was tom costello reporting and you can't believe the stuff on twitter about this. we'll read some of the postings later on. you want a hint, everybody supporting the flight attendant. they're mad as heck and can't take it any more. more to come, should the u.s. government be allowed to take out one of its own citizens accused of terrorism? dennis kucinich says absolutely not and he's trying to do something about it. plus, this was anything but a happy meal. we'll tell you what made this woman freak out at the drive through. me neither.

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he is reportedly on the

cia's list to be killed or captured. muslim cleric and alleged terrorist is accused of helping the christmas day bomber and inspiring the ft. hood shooter. but now that he is a u.s. citizen, lawyers will argue that he cannot be the target of a killing. joining me now congressman dennis kucinich to stop the extra judicial killing of u.s. citizens. congressman, thanks very much for joining us. >> thank you. >> you know, we have heard about this guy a lot that he is dangerous and representative jane harmine called him the terrorist who would be number one in terms of threats against us. so, why is this not justified? >> there is a higher principal here and that's the constitution of the united states. anyone who is a u.s. citizen has certain protections. under the law, no matter how bad a crime a person commits, there is no summary execution under u.s. law. and, so, you know, i would agree

with my colleagues who would describe this person as being someone who is not worthy of public respect or, in any kind of way, to be approved of. on the other hand, the higher principal here is the constitution of the united states. and what i'm working on with other members of congress is polling the constitution to say that, you know, you have to charge people. you have to go through a judicial process before you come to a sentence and if you decide to give capital punishment, that is the result of a jury trial and a judge's decision. >> you say you are working on this with other members of congress and the last time i saw a report, you had just a few, i think, five co-sponsors. is that still the number and how do you convince people to sign on? >> well, the bill has been recently introduced and congress hasn't been in for a couple weeks and will be back after today in september. but i am going to continue to reach out to members of congress

and explain to them the importance of protecting the constitution. when we start making exceptions and we say this is a bad guy. we have to deal with him and get rid of him. you can't make the law for one person. you set a precedent. think of what it is like if some other country, not the u.s., would decide they have a right to start assassinating people in this country that have citizenship or some other connection with the second country. we cannot be in a position of making murder the rule of the day. if this is what we object to, if we object to killing, then you don't show people that killing is wrong by licensing premeditated killing of american citizens. >> congressman dennis kucinich, thank you so much. i want to bring in chris right now. chris, does congressman kucinich have a point here? isn't every u.s. citizen entitled to due process? >> good morning, chris. i absolutely understand where congressman kucinich is coming

from. in fact, i admire his willingness to try to stand up and protect and defend the rights of every constitutional rights of every american. we need to understand, though, that right now we are at war with al qaeda and associated movements around the globe. that is as defined by president obama. quite frankly al alwaki poses an immediate threat to the united states of america and our leadership. >> you know, shouldn't we at least be shown, shouldn't there be some sort of process that has gone through before a decision is made about something like this? >> absolutely. the mere debate of whether or not the u.s. government should use lethal force in order to kill an american terrorist. that mere debate should be an absolute last resort for the

communicati communication. we have put our trust in the yemeni government. in fact we give them $150 million a year in order to go after al qaeda and the arabian peninsula leaders. unfortunately, they failed to produce any results and failed to capture or kill any senior leadership, including al awlaki. >> be interesting to see if, indeed, dennis kucinich can get any support for this as he said the bill was recently introduced. thank you. >> pleasure to be here. these are live pictures from the house floor. nu unusual sight this time of year. we'll tell you why. plus, levi johnston will not be marrying into the palin family any time soon, we hear. but, he does want to follow in sarah palin's footsteps. the incredible details, next.

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with fresh and deadly violence in afghanistan today on the heels of the ten relief workers killed just trying to do their jobs, selling the war in afghanistan to a skeptical american public may be mission impossible. but over the next week, general david petraeus will try to do just that. he's launching an all-out media blitz to drum up support for the war. lieutenant general william boykin joins me now. welcome, general. >> thank you very much, chris. >> this media blitz was planned before the murder of those aide workers and from the very beginning we said that general petraeus had two jobs. essentially one was the military job and the other was a pr job. is it mission impossible or can he change some minds here? >> well, first of all, it's not his job to sell the war. that is really the job for the political loeadership, but i think everyone including dave

petraeus hopes his time and efforts with the media will have that effect. americans are war weary and now they want to hear from the commander on the ground. >> they are war weary and, yet, "the new york times" is reporting that the general will cite initial progress and say things won't get better until 30,000 more troops get to afghanistan in a month. so, i think the question a lot of americans have is, you know, given what we've seen over the last several months, in particular, the deadliest months we've had since the war began nine years ago, the killing of six american aide workers and four others. i mean, is that really an argument that they're open to hearing? >> well, this is war time and there are casualties and unquestionably this is a very difficult thing for the american public to accept after nine years. having said that, i think petraeus after a month on the ground has done his own assessment and he will share

that, but he won't make the mistakes that william west morland made in vietnam by telling the american public that everything is going well. i think petraeus is going to be realistic in terms of the challenges and the fact that this is not over. the other thing, chris, i think that he will start to explain what next year's withdrawal really means and i think that he's going to explain to people that that is only the beginning of a phased draw down of troops there. >> general boykin, thank you very much. we do appreciate that. just a programming note that general petraeus will be on "meet the press" this coming sunday. of course, we're keeping our eyes on that plane crash in alaska. former senator ted stevens and the forchler head of nasa, sean o'keefe both said to be onboard that plane. ♪

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alaska. the report of a plane crash reportedly former senator ted stevens and sean o'keefe among the eight passengers onboard. nbc's tom costello is in washington, d.c., for us. tom, what do we know? >> our sources within the government are now saying nine people onboard this plane and we are told that there appear to be both fatalities and also the survivors. this happened late last night somewhere around 7:30 or 8:00 local time, actually. so 11:00 east coast time or perhaps even later. this is a plane that is described as an otter, built in 1957 an otter. a plane that can land on the water and is perfect for this kind of remote area in southwest alaska. the plane went down, as i said, 8:00 or so local time and onboard this plane there are reports that former alaska senator ted stevens is onboard and we also are told by the company that sean o'keefe works for that he was onboard. sean oo'keefe is the former nasa

administrator and now heads off as the ceo, the north american branch of airbus. the bottom line is rescue teams have been unable to get to this plane because it is in such a remote area and weather has not been cooperating at all. however, some first responders or good samaritans did make it to the scene and among those people, we're told, is a doctor. and that they have been with the victims of this plane crash through the night. again, rescuers still haven't made it there. the ntsb has dispatched a go team from washington. they left at 7:00 a.m. here in washington. headed for that region. and we can also tell you that the national guard is attempting to bring resources to bear, as well, in alaska. again, the weather and terrain are not cooperating and more questions, really, than answers. to be candid with you, a lot of people are saying a lot of prayers right now. all they know is that there are

survivors and fatalities and some people that are very well known on that plane, chris. >> so, the weather was bad, as well, when it took off? >> we don't know that. we don't know that the weather was bad even when it ran into difficulty. we just know that the weather has since been bad and rescuers haven't been able to get in there as a result of the weather and the terrain. >> thanks very much, tom costello, new report that nine people onboard that plane and we'll check back in with you. michigan police say there is a killer on the loose and his serial spree may reach outside the state. police believe the same suspect who stabbed five people to death and wounded 11 others in michigan is also responsible for three attacks in northern virginia. nbc scott is in flint, michigan, this morning and what else can you tell us? >> those three attacks are in leesberg in virginia and police there saw similarities. two black men and a hispanic man. two stabbings and one hammer

attack and police started looking around the country to see if there were similar crimes taking place anywhere else and it turns out the crimes taking place here in flint, michigan, since may. 16 men attacked. all of them stabbed and five of them did not survive. but the survivors did talk about the man who attacked them and they came up with very similar description. about six feet tall, muscular built and he drove a very distinctive vehicle. a chevy f-10 blazer. it is green but it has beige trim on it. that is not a usual vehicle out there. so, what police wanted to do was to get the word out here and to see if anybody knew anything about this. there is one other attack that may be related to this, it happened in toledo. they're not positive, but if you look at the map, between flint, michigan, and leesburg,

virginia, that is right on the way. to get the public phoning in tips and so far nothing definitive yet but they want the public to help to catch this killer and get him off the street. we have, apparently, some more information right now on that alaska plane crash and let's go back to tom costello in washington. >> chris, we want to make a clarification, as i said a few minutes ago nine passengers believed to be on that plane with both fatalities and survivors. we don't know how many have survived and how many have been killed. >> as you reported, aapparently a doctor on the scene. >> a doctor made his way to the scene, we're told along with good samaritans and has been working there through the night. rescue teams have been unable to access the area as of yet. >> important clarification there. here's a rare sight, lawmakers working in washington

in august and the house is back in session. members yanked back from their summer recess by speaker pelosi so they can vote on that $26 billion aid package to prevent thousands of teachers and state worker layoffs. republicans are calling it a bailout for the unions. now, this vote comes on the heels of a new "usa today" analysis that finds pay for workers has more than double the pay of private sector workers. the average pay package for a federal government worker, $123,000. in the private sector, 61 grand. now, in about an hour, president obama will make remarks from the white house rose garden urging lawmakers to give final approval to the aid package and msnbc will be there, of course, with live coverage, it could have been very serious, but, instead, one man's health scare is off the charts. a massachusetts man thought he might have been terribly sick, but, turns out, he had a pea seed in his lungs and it sprouted and it started growing.

ron has a good sense of humor about the whole thing. friends have been sending him peas as a joke. squealing, oinking, pigging out. this contest in a small french village asks contestants to dress up like pigs and imitate a pig throughout its life from giving birth to meating. the unusual contest draws people from all over the place and the big payoff, a pig and about 500 euros. watch this woman go absolutely berserk when an employee says she can't have her chicken mcnuggets. she is trying to hit the drive through girl and climbs through the window to get to her eventually grabbing a bottle and smashing it out the window. now, this happened back on new year's day at an ohio fast food joint and it landed her in jail and they just released this video. you know what they said to her, it's breakfast time, no

mcnuggets yet. we can give you a mcmuffin. but a woman needs her, apparently mcnuggets. check out this pillow fight between passengers and flight attendants on lufthansa. people threw around the tiny pillows and they probably charged them 20 bucks apiece. but everybody had a good time. big cheer broke out when the pillow fight ended. just to prove attendants and passengers can get along, no matter what happened on this jetblue flight. you know that. and, apparently, not everyone has beeper fever these days. take a look at what happened at one of his concerts. someone nailed him in the head with a water bottle. that didn't feel good, did it, justin? this happened last year and the video just turned up on youtube. oh, new phillips' colon health probiotic plus fiber.

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can sitting at your computer help you lose weight? a new study says people who regularly logged on a weight management website did better than those who used it less often. logging on to the site at least once a month. it is a banner day. are you ready for this? a banner day, we have not one but two stories involving team palin. the soon to be reality tv star levi johnston is looking for yet another gig. apparently, he's considering a run for mayor of ossilla. and if you think this is just a joke, listen to what his manager had to say. tank jones. this is not a spoof, this is not a joke. people question jesuses christ, he said, so i definitely do not care about these mere mortals questioning levi johnston.

end of story. well, we've got another story speaking of the palins. look at what's gone viral. video of sarah palin getting into it with a teacher in alaska after the woman had a banner that read, worst governor ever. >> i'm out there fighting for americans to be able to have a constitution protected so we can have free speech. >> in what way are you fighting for that? in what way? >> to elect candidates and to understand the constitution and to protect our military interests so that we can keep on fighting for our constitution those protections and freedoms. >> by using your celebrity status. >> how am i a celebrity? >> you're certainly not representing the state of alaska any longer. >> she's representing the united states. >> yes, i know, you belong to america now. that's fine. >> what do you do here? >> i'm a teacher. i also have a few other jobs.

i am married to a commercial fishermen. >> so am i. we probably have a lot in common. >> that teacher angry that palin left her job as governor before her term was over. sarah palin, by the way, was taping her own new tv reality show. the tea party could be a huge force in the 2010 midterm elections and already brought home primary victims and today, of course, voters are voting in a number of primaries, but will they help or hurt the gop? who really are these tea partiers? msnbc contributor and slate political reporter dave wigal wrote a piece called five myths about the tea party. good morning. >> good morning. >> let's go through each of them quickly and i'll let you comment on them. first, the tea party is not a reaction to president obama, it's a reaction to bank bailouts. >> i deposit that as a myth because the bank bailouts under george bush and that's what got them into full-time activism.

what started this movement is something that could drag hundreds of thousands of people to washington was barack obama's agenda and parts of the agenda that are not always economic. you talk to tea partiers who don't like him because he's too soft on the war on terror and he doesn't love this country the way he should love this country. it was, i think it's very character based. but if this was really about bailouts or was about spending, it would have begun under george bush. >> myth number two, the tea party is racist. >> something the tea partiers protest a lot about and they have a right to because whenever they encounter a racist at an event they purge them. it's actually, basically, an agreement between everyone now. they say at the beginning, if you see somebody with a sign, assume the guy is not really a tea partier. assume he is an infiltrator and kick him out. why are those guys showing up in

the first place. there are people in the movement that are more racially upset and there are polls that says this is a subset of the conservative movement, there are some people in this movement who don't like barack obama's race. but they're far outstripped and policed by the rest of the movement. >> sarah palin is the leader of the tea party. >> oh, yeah. i think you just saw a couple minutes ago why not everyone is comfortable with that. sarah palin brings in media attention and that's why tea party groups like the people who planned a convention like to bring her. you bring sarah palin in and it's worth 100 newt gingriches. they don't consider her, according to polls, the polling in the last six months show they like her, but don't consider her a presidential figure in a lot of cases and they don't want a political leader who tells them what issues to work on. when palin endorses candidates they don't like. >> we only have time for one more. i'll go through four real quickly. the tea party hurts the gop and

number five, the tea party will transform american politics. this is a myth? >> i think it's a myth in that we have seen lots of political movements that spring up, make a huge impact and then go away. tea partiers promise they're going to be around if republicans misbehave when they take over congress. we'll see. what usually happens is a movement, in this case, people who are already conservatives are already like republicans and who change the party that they wanted to change in the first place. they succeed and it's just hard to find that motivation. i mean, two years ago you wouldn't have expected supporters of barack obama to become so bored and distant from their own administration. just today robert gibbs making fun of the liberal base. two years ago when people were walking around with shirts with barack obama's face on them. you wouldn't think that is happen. right now tea partiers are in the streets devoting time and money to this cause. it's small government and devote itself to pulling back medicare,

and pulling back the department of education. they're going to fade. once republicans don't do that because that's usually what happens when a party wins an election, doesn't fill its promises, they're going to be annoyed and change the energy else where. this is what happens in politics when citizens get to take over. i think it's reminiscent to what happened with the obama campaign. tea party results are strongly otherwise and say they're going to be around forever, but we'll see. >> dave, thank you so much. >> thank you for having me. here's what everyone is talking about today. that flight attendant accused of telling off a passenger and grabbing some beer and releasing an emergency chute making a mad dash off the plane and eventually to jail. mow some people are calling him an american hero. hi, may i help you? yes, i hear progressive has

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a former jetblue flight attendant facing criminal charges after his meltdown on the runway. just after the plane landed at new york's jfk steven slater cursed out a passenger who hit

him on the head with luggage after they got into a little verbal brawl. then, the flight attendant grabbed some beer from the galley, popped open the emergency hatch and went down the slide. the "today" show matt lauer spoke with the passenger who overheard slater talking about the bizarre incident as he left on an airport train. >> he was happy he had done this. he was happy he was done with his job at jetblue and he said he worked there for 20 some years and he had been a flight attendant for a long time and was looking forward to whatever was the next phase of his life, his career. he seemed very happy about this. >> awful lot of reaction poring in on the social networking sites. most of it has been, good for you. here are some of the tweets. steven slater that jetblue flight attendant is totally my new hero. crafting my own american flag, says another person. using steven slater's face in place of every star. totally had steven slater as a flight attendant last saturday. i would have grabbed a beer and

slid down the chute with him. lots of laughs. what a hero. steven slater for snl host. that's a good idea. as a former airline employee myself, steven slater is my hero. what can you say about it? we're just a couple hours away from a critically important update on the economy from the federal reserve. wall street and main street looking to see if the fed has any more tricks up its sleeve to jump start a sputtering economy. ron insana joins me now. what is going to happen now, ron? >> it appears the fed -- >> what do you have against steven slater? >> not a highly productive move to leave. but it looks like the fed will likely downgrade its assessment of the economy and the big question whether it will offer any concrete moves to stimulate the economy. they may hint at some and it seems like the market is concerned that the fed won't go far enough in that it will do something to revive the economy which is slow, noticeably in the

last several months. >> the dow is down 117 points. what's going on? >> well, it's just that. there is some worry that the fed may not go as far as people have thought. they thought maybe the fed will put out a dramatic or more bold statement about what they plan to do in the near term. any decision to create more money or to loosen credit conditions a little bit more. it seems like the market is a little jittery. on this one, we'll have to wait until 2:15 to find out. that is going to do it for me, i'm chris jansing. see you back here at 3:00 eastern time. there is word that president obama will offer up an august surprise for voters and it could have a huge impact on the economy. thomas roberts picks things up next. what do you have coming up? >> we have a lot to cover in the next hour. more on the breaks news that chris was following in her show this morning. a plane crash in alaska. there are reports that ted stevens and former head of nasa sean o'keefe were passengers on that plane. nbc news is working to confirm these reports.

rescuers are heading to the site of that crash. more on that developing story, coming up. complete multivitamin with ginkgo to support memory and concentration. plus vitamin d to help maintain healthy blood pressure. [ bat cracks ] that's a hit. one a day men's.

hi, everybody, i'm thomas roberts on msnbc. the story that everyone is talking about that jetblue flight attendant and that dramatic exit that ended up with him in handcuffs. some people applauding his actions online. the question now, will he go to prison? two down, two to go in the hunt for the escaped convicts. police are searching a summer vacation hot spot. we'll explain. sarah palin faces a former constituent and really gets an earful, we'll let you take a listen. and your u.s. congress will soon vote on a new job's bill. democrats say it can save jobbess and republicans say it costs way too much. first, we begin with breaking news. rescue crew ses headed to the pe crash in alaska. the ntsb believes there are five fatalities and there are reports that the plane was