it's expected to be very clo. the don't ask, don't tell repeal is part of a larger defense bill that provides $725 billion for the pentagon and a pay raise for u.s. troops. the house passed a similar bill in may. the senate has been debating the bill for several hours now. a critical moment came not long ago when ski republican senator susan collins of may announced she would vote against the bill under the current circumstances. >> i think it's the right thing to do. i think it's only fair. but i cannot vote to proceed to this bill under a situation that will shut down the debate and recollude republican amendments. >> nbc's luke russert joins us from capitol hill. we were expecting the vote 2:30 eastern time. we understand that's been pushed back. the big question is do the democrats have the 60 votes needed to end the gop filibuster? >> right now the indications are

that democrats do not have the votes to end the gop filibuster. particularly because of susan collins saying she had problems with the parliamentary procedure going on. susan collins of may wanted an open amount of amendments on the floor for this bill. harry reid wanted only three. that's something they have to work out to discuss how the debate would go on the bill. collins felt the republicans were being shut out. that could mean a deal is being worked out that there's a delay on the vote. we don't necessarily know what is going on. but that's certainly a possibility. perhaps harry reid is trying to talk with other republican senators who may be on board this. there's been talk of a retiree from ohio on board. maybe lisa murkowski because of what happened in alaska. maybe she would be willing to go. democrats need to grab one republican senator and break

this filibuster. there's also a possibility that jim webb of virginia may not vote this guard because he has problems with the don't ask, don't tell legislation not having a thorough review done by the pentagon. those are the issues that democrats are finding now that could explain one reason for the delay. maybe there's a last stitch effort here at the last minute. quite simply, we don't know the specifics at this time. >> i know you'll keep us posted if you get any news on what is going on there, if a deal is in the works. luke russert live on capitol hill. joining me now is alex nicholson, discharged from the army in 2002, under don't ask, don't tell. he's executive director of service members united, one of the nation's largest groups for gay and lesbian groups. thank you for joining me. >> thank you for having me, tamron. >> i understand your concern on hour harry reid set up the bill, you believe he set it up for failure. why? >> this is an unusual way he's chosen to proceed. if susan collins is not on board, you know something is going wrong. susan collins voted for the bill

in committee against her party. she voted it out, obviously. but she's not with us on this minor procedural vote, the motion to proceed. if susan collins is not on board, something is wrong. harry reid didn't have to proceed this way. he could have allowed a few amendments, negotiated with senator collins, maybe. >> what amendments would be acceptable? what changes would you see as acceptable? >> to some this is clear. either it will be repealed or not. >> well, this is not -- it's murkier than that. you'll have a couple votes to get don't ask, don't tell to a point where it can be repealed. this is the first of potentially three or four. this is the motion to proceed on the vote, of course. but bottom line is he can easily negotiate with susan collins, mick mcconnell, to come to an agreement to move forward on this. susan collins wants this to go

forward. if she's not on board, something is wrong. >> let me ask you again regarding what is needed for a compromise here. you have john mccain being the target of comments by lady ga ga and others because he said in the past that if the military leaders say it's time to repeal, he will follow this. now you have mccain and others saying we need more study, we need more time. what is an acceptable compromise when you have men and women serving and are forced to hide their true selves from their clee colleagues? >> i think republican moderate votes want the ability to add a couple more amendments. you're right to point out the contradictions in their positions for a couple years ago to now. nothing will get them on board now. it's a bigoted position. they're not going to change. they're not worth negotiating with right now. but the moderate, susan collins,

these people are worth negotiating with. they're reasonable. they can come around. if senator reid will just budge a little bit and come to an agreement on a reasonable way to proceed, we could potentially get the votes. so far he's not been willing to do that. now let's bring in nationally syndicated radio talk show host michael smerconish. we thought we would see this vote at 2:30. we understand it's been pushed back to 3:30. luke russert believes there may be a deal in the works here. what do you make of what's going on hat this point in the debate? >> let me piggy back on something you heard from both alex and luke that i'll put my spin on. i don't like the fact that an important vote like this is tacked onto a defense appropriation bill of $726 billion. and then it breaks down on this parliamentary procedure because that gives cover to those soon

having to stand for re-election. on something like this, you ought to have to go home and stand up for your vote and be held accountable on whatever side you may come down. now a member of the senate has the ability to go home and say i didn't like the defense proep ration structure. i think it's straight up, straight down. everybody knows where you came out. the health care bill was headed in this same direction. but there was such a cry that at the end they changed it. i would like a clean vote by the time this runs its course. >> i want to play -- i know you talked about lady gaga yesterday. i want to play her comments. i read a headline that says john mccain versus lady gaga. let's listen. >> i'm more concerned that john mccain and other republican senators are using homophobia as a defense in their argument, as the nexus of this law, openly

gay soldiers affect unit cohesion, like it's okay to discriminate or discharge gay soldiers because we homophobic. we are uncomfortable and don't agree with homosexuality and i can't focus on the field of duty while i am fighting. >> set aside the costume, michael. because i know you were caught up looking at her in whatever was going on. what about her comments directed at senator mccain and others? >> there's room for reasonable dialogue, for a civil discourse without akuwaiting homophobia to john mccain's position. i'm closer to lady gaga on this than i tam to john mccain, but he's a war hero, and i give him more credit than to believe he's motivated by homophobia. >> michael smerconish, great seeing you. see you tomorrow. we'll monitor the senate and bring you the results of the vote to end the senate

filibuster. that is scheduled to begin at 3:30 eastern time. nbc news has learned that nine u.s. service members were killed in a helicopter crash early this morning in southern afghanistan. taliban is taking responsible for the incident. but nato says there are no reports of enmy fire when the chopper went down. john yang is live in kabul. what else can you tell us about the investigation to what happened there. >> this happened 2:00 local time, late on the east coast in the united states. it was in southeastern afghanistan. the taliban controls much of the ter tear in this area. it's also where coalition forces have been stepping up their efforts to drive the taliban out of the safe haven to try to get them out of the region.

they are not giving too many details about the crash because until the families are notified back in the states, this now has made this year, 2010, even though there are more than months left. 529 coalition forces have been killed. 351 of them, tamron, are americans. >> and we had an alert come through saying the taliban is low on supplies and moral in northern afghanistan and that they're "thinking about giving up." what does that mean? >> this was a teleconference briefing back to reporters. the northern eastern part of afghanistan has never been the natural territory of the taliban. their stronghold has been in the south and in the west.

they tried to show their strength elsewhere. increased operations up to the north. from the supply line to the nations north of afghanistan. what the two coalition generals were saying in the briefing is the pressure in the north is working. and that they are succeededing as separating off supplies to the taliban. they say the taliban is close to giving up their effort to show strength in the northeast. >> thanks, john. iran's president mahmoud ahmadinejad is lashing out at foreign media, foreign leaders and predicting capitalism will die out around the world. that was part of what he said this morning as he addressed a group of muslim leaders and clerics here in new york city. he arrived in the city this weekend. he will speak to the un general assembly on thursday.

it's good to see you in studio. these comments, while certainl down from comments we've heard from him in the past. >> maybe he's trying to portray a different image while he's here. he's trying to distance himself. but he may be saving it up for thursday. we'll have to see. >> do we have insight into what he'll say. >> he's doing to defend iran's nuclear program and their right to peaceful energy. he's going to say he's been browbeaten by the united states and everybody is against iran and this is terribly unfair. >> do you think he'll use the freedom of sarah shourd as a catalyst to say he is comprom e compromising or iran is somehow not this monster that he says the westerners portray it as? >> he's already said iran has showed great compassion letting

sarah shourd go free. he's made this clear. he's trying to get sensitive u.s. prisoners out of jail. he's trying to show how soft he's being and how hard the side is of being on iran. >> speaking of the other side, what may he say regarding sanctions and try to repeal not obviously to the united states, but the world, that the actions being taken against iran is wrong. >> well, he's always said the sanctions are terribly unfair. he also says they're not affecting iran. it's not entirely the case. "a", they're embarrassing. huge companies have pulled out of iran. they have a huge market in iran. that's going to make the cost of parts and other things go way up in the country. it will have an effect throughout the country. >> it should be an interesting day tomorrow. thank you, ali. great to have you in studio. developing now, eight former and current officials for the city of bell, california, get

this, they're under arrest and expected to face criminal charges. bell has been in the national spotlight since july when the los angeles times investigation revealed many of the city leaders were paying themselves huge salaries. i'm talking six figure salaries. the former city manager is among those in custodies. rizzo was collecting an annual salary of nearly $800,000 a year in this tiny town. we'll see what happens with that investigation. have you heard? there's a bedbug summit happening. if you're bit by a beg bud, you're not laughing. find out how experts plan on tackling the blood sucking pests hitting the city and suburbs across the country. plus, what does the tea party really stand for? we have a new video by sarah palin.

she's trying to clarify that question. >> the tea party movement is not a top down operation. it's a ground up call to action forcing both parties to change the way they're doing business. >> more of it coming up. [ female announcer ] you use the healing power of touch every day. ♪ now the healing power of touch just got more powerful. introducing precise from the makers of tylenol. precise pain relieving heat patch activates sensory receptors.

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but these days you need more than the book. you need website development, 1-on-1 marketing advice, search-engine marketing, and direct mail. yellowbook's got all of that. yellowbook360's got a whole spectrum of tools. tools that are going to spark some real connections. visit yellowbook360.com and go beyond yellow. federal reserve policymakers have decided to leave key interest rates unchanged. the decision was widely expected. the fed said the pace of the recovery has slowed in recent months and is likely to be

moderate in the near future. the fed also said it is prepared to take action if the economy slows further. let's check out wall street's reaction. stocks slightly lower just before the fed announced the decision. the dow is up slightly. the s&p down just a tinge and nasdaq as well. we'll see how the markets respond to the fed's decision to keep markets where they are. and bedbug university. that's not a school any of us really want to attend. but these days dpebding on where you are you may not have a choice. a two-day summit to tackle what officials are calling a bedbug pandemic is taking place in illinois. the event is so popular according to its website, it is sold out. kevin tibbles has the story from rosemont, illinois. did you check the bed before you set on it? >> i'm probably sitting on the safest bed in america right now, tamron. the beg bug summit, the first of its kind in america.

with all the stories we're hearing lately. the empire state building. bedbugs in nike towns. beg bugs on college campuses. bedbugs in military bases. it's becoming a serious issue. we used to think that when you went overseas on vacation you may come back with a few surprises in the luggage. because we travel so much on business and everything else, they are now here, and the folks in this room want to make sure they don't outstay their welcome. i want to introduce you to lauren with a little treatment this is -- hit me. this is a bedbug's worst nightmare. that's minus 100 degrees farn height. i like that. do that again.

>> wow. >> do you have to spray the entire bed, or are you targeting one bug at a time? >> we spray all the cracks. >> they get all the cracks. i'm doing the translation here. he's from knl. they do all the cracks and crevices. i guess it's called a mattress encasement. >> i'm curious, kevin. i'm curious what experts are saying, including the guy with you this that. remember the summer of the sharks, you have the shark attacks and fears spread everywhere. this bedbug situation, are they worried it's exaggerated, or has the media coverage that you've seen from people just talking about it everywhere is appropriate? >> reporter: well, in terms of whether or not the bedbug scare is exaggerated, i think i know what answer i'm going to get from him. >> yeah. >> but the bottom line is that once you get them and once you

start getting bitten, i'm not sure there's that much exaggeration going on. >> that's so true, kevin. if i get bit one time, it's a pandemic for sure. you're right about that. >> absolutely. >> very interesting. thank you very much, kevin. well, developing right now, we've now been told the vote will actually take place on the senate floor at 2:30. this is to see whether or not the don't ask, don't tell debate will proceed. a motion to proceed with the debate, we'll keep you up to date on what's happening. harry reid needs 60 votes to start a debate on the defense authorization bill which includes the repeal of don't ask, don't tell. the vote to proceed will take place at 2:30 eastern time. about ten minutes from now. we'll bring you the latest from the senate floor after a quick break. ♪ ♪ check your email messages ♪ check the money in the bank ♪ check the gas in the tank ♪ check the flava from your shirt ♪ ♪ make sure your pits don't stank ♪ ♪ check the new hairdo, check the mic one two ♪ ♪ 'cause i'm about to drop some knowledge right on top of you ♪

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governor once again promoting and cheering on tea party activists. here's a peek. >> this party that we call the tea party is the future of politics, and i am proud to get to be here today. >> nbc news political reporter joining me now, dominico, it's interesting. the president said in the town hall yesterday that the tea party needs to say what the solutions are. you can't just be angry. you have to offer up solutions. what do you stand for? is this a part of what sarah pac is trying to tackle here? >> she didn't off a lot new when you think of policy solutions. and surprise, sarah palin likes the tea party. i think it's more interesting that there's a camera crew following her around apparently and cutting a web video that looks similar to the ma na grizzly ad. they're repurposing her speeches. clearly this wasn't something new she's been saying.

this is something we've heard her say in other speeches. this was taken from the tea party function in arizona. so not a lot new in this. >> what's interesting, you pointed out domenico, i noticed as well the similarity with the mama grizzly ad. let's play that and people can judge for themselves. >> it seems like it's a long awakening in the last year and a half where women are rising up and saying, no, we've had enough already. moms kind of just know when something is wrong. >> obviously, domenico, that was directed at women. some of the outfits are the same. the same events used. the difference, obviously, women featured in the mama grizzly and in the new one with the tea party, you see a lot of big burly guys at the rallies. >> sure. she had campaigned for a lot of women. she endorsed a lot of men during the campaign as well. this ad, really, this web video. there's no money behind it.

this web video had been -- it's sort of a good bookend to the end of the primary season. she's touting the fact that the tea party is a movement that's here, that needs to be reckoned with. we've been talking about the biggest story line heading into this election, the lack of democratic enthusiasm. you can see all the people in that web video certainly fired up. they're going to vote. sarah palin attaching herself to this movement. she's been doing that for the past year or so. we saw her speak in nashville and boston, other places really leading parts of the tea party. not saying she's a leader. >> heavy on enthusiasm with this web video, but short on specifics of what the party means or what it plans to do. all right domenico, greatly appreciate it. an ethics group is accusing christine o'donnell of misusing a lot of campaign money. we have the details. and a new response from christine o'donnell about it.

plus, bristol palin, was she spoofing her own mom in "dancing with the stars"? that's what they were saying on the blogs out there. what the judges had to say about bristol's debut. my nasal allergies are ruining our camping trip. i know who works differently than many other allergy medications. hoo? omnaris. [ men ] omnaris -- to the nose! [ man ] did you know nasal symptoms like congestion can be caused by allergic inflammation? omnaris relieves your symptoms by fighting inflammation. side effects may include headache, nosebleed, and sore throat.

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since christine o'donnell, she's now responding to what could be one of the more damning accusations to her political future. a nonpartisan watchdog group filed complaints with the fec alleging o'donnell spent more than $20,000 in campaign funds to pay for personal expenses like rent and gas. o'donnell is denying she's done anything wrong. >> i am confident that we have been ethical. we have not -- i personally have not misused the campaign funds. we have our fec lawyer, a great

attorney answering those charges if it ever goes anywhere. >> nbc news capitol hill correspondent kelly o'donnell joining us now from the washington, d.c. bureau. i couldn't help to notice christine o'donnell says if this ever goes anywhere. is there an indication it is going anywhere? >> well, this outside group, a watchdog group has asked the federal elections commission to do an audit, has asked officials in delaware to examine it as well. they're able to look at the official reports filed from christine o'donnell's 2008 campaign. this is not the current campaign, but paper work going back to when she ran previously and lost that race. and they can examine it and try to find out if there are any discrepancies, things that don't qualify, that sort of thing. that campaign she was a small figure in the political scene. it didn't get a lot of scrutiny. now that she's become so prominent so quickly, people are taking a closer look. o'donnell has not had significant employment in recent years. that raised questions among some

about how was she making her living? might she have been using personal expenses funded through the campaign? she denies that and says she's been using her money leftover from selling her home, that that's how she's been paying her bills. she and her campaign say this is political. that it's motivated by those who don't want to see her succeed. it would take a long time, tamron, if they were going to pursue this. as we've been talking about over the last 48 hours or so, a lot she's had to answer to for things said long ago. some of them quirky, different, funny things she said when she was a guest on tv. i talked to bill maher, the host of a program on hbo now, "formally politically incorrect." >> i would not exactly put her on the intelligence committee, if you know what i mean, but she's certainly sincere, yes.

>> maher says he likes he, he enjoyed her on the show, that he feels she's sincere. you can tell politically he disagrees with her, but he says his role is to make jokes and have fun and bring this out for entertainment purposes, not political purposes. >> thank you very much. a programming note, bill maher will be a guest on hardball with chris matthews. a 58-year-old man is recovering today after being viciously attacked by a 150-pound bear. the victim is a city councilman from bellevue, washington. he was visiting his vacation home about 100 miles east of seattle in a rural part of the state. the man's wife saw the whole thing happened. she called 911 when the attack was still in progress.

>> well, the victim is in stable condition. he's got bite marks on his face, head, neck, and puncture wounds all over his body. authorities killed the bear. and a washington state woman who claimed someone threw acid in her face is now charged with three felons. bethany storro admitted she made up the story and the wounds were self-inflicted. >> bethany storro is charged with three counts of felon theft for taking money from the community trying to help her. she duped the community which donated $30,000 to help pay her medical bills. last month she told police a woman she didn't recognize approached her and threw acid in her face. the vancouver, washington, woman admitted to police her injuries

were self-inflicted and the incident was a hoax. doctors and police were skeptical of the story because the burn patterns were even, as if the acid was applied to her face. there were no splash marks on her body or clothes, and no physical evidence at the scene. the arrest warrant states storro's burns were self-administered and came from drain cleaner she purchased at the hardware store. she applied the acid with towels hours before she reported the incident. police also say storro told them she wanted to kill herself but once she realized it wasn't working, she attempted to alter her face. she used $1,500 of the donated money on personal items. >> it was clear from the evidence we had multiple felon crimes that were committed. a lot of people were in the community here that are very upset with her behavior, very angry and want to see her pay. others say this is a sad case.

>> storro's friends say she checked herself into a local hospital for treatment and will face charges once she's released. scary moments at an auto race in brazil. the bleachers they were sitting on collapsed. they were packed with spectators. six people were rushed to the hospital. two are still in serious condition. local officials are trying to figure out what caused that to happen. unbelievable. everything is back to normal on twitter. well, if you haven't heard, this morning hackers made a mess of the social media website. mysterious tweets caused pop-up windows to open, the tweets activated without clicking. all you had was roll over them with your mouse and reek havoc on everything. the official fear was computers could be damaged. i didn't notice it. >> i was hammered. >> courtney is here. the debut of dancing. and the return of "glee."

yay, a lot to talk about. >> we have a ton going here. paris hilton was delayed in an airport in japan. this is newsworthy because yesterday she was sentenced to a one-year delayed jail sentence and pled guilty to two misdemeanor counts. why was she held in immigration? it's because apparently in japan they have authorities to pick and choose who they want to allow into the country if there's just been charges, such as the ones she just faced. now she's sequestered into a hotel room. she's there to promote her fashion line. this is a contractual obligation she had prior to anything legal going on. we'll have more on that tomorrow when they reconvene. "dancing with the stars," you mentioned it. it was a big night last night. probably one of the most favorite comeback shows every single fall. we had the situation, for one. >> my guy.

>> your guy. exactly. also bristol palin is a big talker. a lot of people are saying she was imitating her mom. i think they're trying to say the outfit she began in was more conservative. then there it goes. >> was her mom there? there were reports sarah palin are going to be there. >> there were cameras there. she did tweet from home saying she was having a great party in the living room. party in the living room tonight. >> how did she do? >> she didn't finish at the top, but there's room for impruchlt there. i think she did just fine. i think she did better than the situation did. jennifer grey is one of the favorites. we know her from "dirty dancing." i said to thomas roberts, if you have anything resembling a professional dancing background or you've been trained in dancing, you shouldn't be on it. it should be total amateur hour. >> a couple athletes beat people with professional dancing on the show.

>> he had a huge advantage. i don't know if you tuned in to hbo sunday night. "boardwalk empire" premiered. we've only been getting the builtup for about two years, i think. it was fantastic. the show set in atlantic city, the dawn of prohibition. how did it do? it was the biggest premier since 2004. it got 4.0 million viewers to draw comparison. the last time an hbo show premier that had well, it was "deadwood." they're considering it a huge success. so much so they've already ordered a second season. >> good business. and speaking of things we like watching, premier week. what should you watch? i'm breaking it down for you every day today. tonight, watch parenthood. it premiered last tuesday, but it wasn't the big splashy premier week. this is your kpans to get caught up. it took me a few episodes to get into this show last year. it's like my tuesday night security blanket. it makes me happy.

i don't know why. it's a fantastic show. it is here on nbc. also you mentioned earlier, "glee" season two premier tonight. next week is the episode with britney spears. then my third pick, i'm going with "raising hope." just a fun kind of family show. >> cute baby. we'll check it out. >> cute babies, exactly. >> for the latest news onto to scoop.todayshow.com. the senate has started to vote to -- to start a debate on the defense authorization to see if they're going to start the debate on the defense authorization. we understand that is happening right now. these are live pictures, i'm told. harry reid needs 60 votes to start debate on the defense authorization bill. that includes, of course, don't ask, don't tell. repeal. i'm getting some information in. . i've been looking at the numbers, and i think our campus is spending too much money on printing. i'd like to put you in charge of cutting costs.

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more people are washing their hands after using public restrooms. researchers discreetly observed over 6,000 americans last month, and found 85% of adults wash their hands in public restrooms, the highest number since 1996. men do a lot worse than women when it comes to hand washing. only 77% scrubbed up compared to 93% of women. >> welcome back, the suspect in the murder of a north carolina police chief's daughter appears in court the same day his alleged victim lays to rest. hundreds are gathered at a funeral for 23-year-old valerie hamilton. it's in concord, north carolina, where her father is the police chief.

>> these eyes, a and her mama's eyes, she was perfect. >> the chief broke down at a vigil held for valerie. earlier the prime suspect in hamilton's murder waived extradition at a hearing in upstate new york where he was arrested on monday. clint van zandt joins us over the phone. >> caller: sure, tamron. >> this is another individual who served time for assault. he faced jail time before, and now he's accused of murdering this young girl, dumping her body, the details are unbelievable. this is something with a violent that's back on the streets. >> currently it costs about $37,000 a year to keep an offender in jail, in prison. somehow in this country we have

to identify repeat offenders. this guy, as you suggest, he had a long record. not just for sex offenses, drug offenses, weapons, breaging and entering. shoplifting. it goes on, possession and selling heroin. it went on and on. somehow, you know, if we had the magic ability to, we need to identify those repeat offenders that are going to hurt people, like this guy, and pay that $37,000 a year and keep them away. the challenge is the criminal justice system still doesn't have the wablt to separate the good from the really bad. >> in court he admitted to having a long history with substance abuse. he claims that he partied with valerie hamilton after leaving a pub. his relatives say he was taking her to the hospital. then he made a bad choice. when you look at his background and hi says he was a substance abuse -- had substance abuse

issues, is anything he could say credible at this point? i know he's just accused at this point and not charged or convicted. but looking at his background, again, how do you reconcile that with what he is saying happened? >> i think this is a desperate person trying to find some way to rationalize what appears to be murder. i think what we're going to hear is something that they were partying. she died an accidental death. he panicked and got rid of the body. if she died hypothetically as an overdose, was it something she willingly ingested, or was it forced upon her? >> as i mentioned, hundreds have gathered in north carolina to pay respects to this young girl, whose life was taken. thank you very much. >> thank you. in washington today, president obama ordered the

medal of honor to an airman killed during the vietnam war. he described in detail the 1968 mission where chief master sergeant richard etchberger lost his life. a radio technician with no formal training held off an enemy force while evacuating three wounded comrades from a mountain top. his three sons were on hand to accept the honor. >> today your nation acknowledged and fully honors your father's bravery. even though it's been 42 years, it's never too late to do the right thing. and it's never too late to pay tribute to our vietnam veterans and their families. >> well, the mission was kept secret for years because u.s. troops were not supposed to be in lohse. a british beauty wins a

competition called perfect american teen. replant a forest?

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welcome back. there's a lot going on today. here is one more thing we thought you should know. former president bill clinton shared details on his daughter's new marriage while on the late show with david letterman. he said he's glad there's another man in the family, and that hillary is happy, too, for different reasons. >> hillary wantd this marriage because she wants to be a grandmother more than she wanted to be president. she wants a grand baby. >> that's one thing we thought you should know today. crossing the line? you tell me. she's the glowing gorgeous winner of america's perfect teen contest. and she's from wales. only in america can a girl be crowned america's perfect teen, even if she isn't american. besides the part seeking perfection, which doesn't exist. michelle kosinski has the

interesting story. >> reporter: the smiles, the pink, feathers, sparkles, what does it take to be america's perfect teen? >> i'm the type of person that laughs at a joke three times. once when it's told, once when i get it -- >> how about -- >> what is your perfect facebook status? >> that's actually a really hard one. i don't really spend a lot of time on facebook. >> the perfect british accent. wait a minute. >> yes, the lovely and talented anisha looks pretty stunned herself. maybe because -- >> she came all the way from europe, and now she is america's perfect teen. >> america's perfect teen isn't american. she lives in wales. her parents do have a vacation home in florida, that's how she managed to take it all and the title, america's perfect teen. >> there is really no reason for

an uproar. when you say that girl had it, she truly did. >> now the pageant director is getting calls from sponsors after the british press started gloating about how she conquered the american wanna-bes. >> she has a beautiful black cape. she had a short, sassy haircut. >> you're telling me big hair doesn't win it anymore? >> some are saying it's un-american. she has won the crown, the cash, and a scholarship to win broadcast journalist right here in the usa. >> now she's going to take my job after this. >> who knows. >> what do you have to have? >> michael says he welcomes the contestants. >> it's about the glitz and glamour and stage presence. >> a smile like this? >> nothing like that. >> but if an american teen can't win america's perfect teen, what's to become of this nation? >> that's a very good question. >> still, he says if anyone is mad, they're probably just

jealous. >> jealous? what? or do you think it's crossing the line? you tell me. go to tamron.msnbc.com to vote. don't be worried about anyone calling you jealous. that wraps up this hour. chris jansing picks up after the break. - working out can be totally cool. - that's right, so we've got a list of things you can do to get active. - like jumping jacks. - or how 'bout push-ups? - sit-ups? - uh, maybe jumping rope? - yeah. or jogging. - uh, how about like a wheelbarrow race? - oh, yeah, that's a great idea. - but imagine actually trying to use him as a wheelbarrow, like stacking bricks on him and doing, like, doo-doo-doo. you know what i mean? - or yoga. - which is actually peaceful and quiet and not a lot of talking, so... - exactly. is he still looking at me?

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breaking news. this is the floor of the senate where a vote is happening right now that the democrats hoped would lead to ending the policy known as don't ask, don't tell. they were carefully watching the votes of a couple of republicans. senator collins, snowe and scott brown. let's go to luke russert. it looks now they're not going to get the 60 votes they need? >> that is correct, chris. but from what the no votes are from moderate republicans, it looks like the debate hon this