good morning. leaking again -- a combination of oil and gas seeping into the gulf from the bottom of that new sealing cap for the first time since it was closed. why is the obama administration not too concerned? battle at ground zero. sarah palin steps into the controversy over proposed mosque near the 9/11 attacks calling it unnecessary and asking muslims to reject it. it's her choice of words that's getting much of the attention. and low point -- lindsay lohan said to be a fidgety mess as she prepares to head to jail in just a few short hours.

there is word this morning her new lawyer, robert shapiro, has just quit the case which means she could be going it alone today, tuesday, july 20th, 2010. captions paid for by nbc-universal television and welcome to "today" on this tuesday morning. i'm meredith vieira. >> and i'm matt lauer. with lawyer once again leaking out of the busted pipe, the government is telling bp it can keep the cap in place by now but should be ready to open it immediatefully there's a sudden pressure change that's detected. >> engineers have determined the seep detected over the weekend is not related to the ongoing integrity test. also ahead, something we're going to cover later in the show, have you ever heard of hoarding? it's a disorder where people have the compulsion to collect

objects. one couple has 260 cats living with them inside their home. just stop and think about that. coming up we'll learn more about this troubling disorder from a woman who has suffered with it for years. plus, if you're monot one o the 66 million americans who care for their aging parents, chances are you will be. there is a big mistake most of them are making. let's begin on this tuesday morning with the oil and gas leak. nbc's chief environmental affairs correspondent ann te thompson's in venice, louisiana, with the latest. anne, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, matt. the cap and this well are not passing the test with flying colors. there are some problems but none serious enough for officials to want to open that cap and have oil flowing into the gulf again. for three months these are the sights that have sickened gulf coast residents and the nation.

oil polluting some of the most unique coastline and beautiful beaches in the world. the out-of-control well that spewed the oil remains te temporarily capped on the gulf floor, but there are signs of trouble. nearly two miles from the well head there is seepage of oil and gas on the ocean floor, but officials don't believe it's connected to the latest test. >> i think there is some natural seepage out there both of oil and natural gas and the question is trying to separate what we are seeing from what would be normally expected out there. >> reporter: there is also a leak at the bottom of the new sealing cap and bubbles at the base of the blow-out preventer. bp and the government say none of these issues point to serious trouble. >> i think with this extensive monitoring we have going, we're in good position to not have a catastrophic event. >> reporter: the pressure level inside the cap now reads 6,811 pounds per square inch, lower than what government scientists hoped, but they are encouraged by the slow and steady increase. >> if we thought that the

pressurization test itself potentially did damage to the sea floor, obviously we would stop that immediately. >> reporter: onshore in many places the damage is already done. t.j t.j.goss' scooter shop is a favorite in orange beach, alabama, when there are tourists. his business is down 80%. >> it's out of our hands. what do we do? what do we do? we're sick. we're sick to our stomachs. >> reporter: now bp has yet another idea to stop the flow of oil, something called a static kill which is basically top kill part two where they say they would pump heavy drilling mud through the blow-out preventer. they think it has a better chance of working this time because the cap is on the well. however, they do not have approval from the government to try this just yet. matt? >> all right, anne thompson in louisiana this morning. anne, thanks so much. it's four minutes after the hour.

here's meredith. matt, thank you. now to washington. the senate is expected to extend unemployment benefits to thousands of unemployed americans today after president obama blasted republicans on monday for blocking the bill. nbc's savannah guthrie is at the white house. savannah, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, meredith. the white house feels it has a real political winner here championing benefits for the jobless at a time when unemployment has dragged the president and his party down in the polls. accompanied by three out-of-work americans, the president tried to shame republicans into extending unemployment benefits. >> the same people who didn't have any problems spending hundreds of billions of dollars on tax breaks for the wealthiest americans are now saying we shouldn't offer relief to middle class americans like jim or leslie or denise who really need help. >> reporter: republicans say they support unemployment benefits but not unless they're paid for with spending cuts and won't add to the deficit. >> we're all questioning when are we going to get serious about the debt?

we recently passed a $13 trillion coupumulative budget threshold. when are we going to get serious about this? this administration has been on an incredible spending spree. >> reporter: but today's vote, the fourth, may be the charm for democrats with the replacement for the late west virginia senator robert byrd being sworn in later today, they have the votes they need. highlighting the issue, the white house hopes to drive a wedge between republicans and the jobless. >> it's time to stop holding workers laid off in this recession hostage to washington politics. >> reporter: persistent unemployment has dogged the president and his party in the  polls. democrats had hoped the economy would heal more quickly and over time the public would warm to huge reforms in health care and to wall street but analysts now say democrats are in serious danger of losing control of the house and perhaps the senate. >> time is running out on the democrats. they're starting to panic. they can see november.

they can also see losing their majority in the house and maybe the senate, too. >> reporter: well, the vote expected later today is going to pass. they have two republicans and that new west virginia senator to put democrats over the threshold. mat senate. >> all right, savannah. thank you very much. former republican speaker of the house, newt gingrich, is a fox news contributor and author of the new book "to save america: stopping obama's secular nuclear machine." good to see you again. >> matt, good to see you. >> let me ask you to help me on the math what savannah talked about, what the president talked about yesterday, has some republicans coming out saying we're not in favor of extending these unemployment benefits that carry a price tag of about $33 billion unless there are offsetting cuts in spending. they are the same republicans, newt, who didn't ask for those offsetting cuts when they wanted to make permanent the bush tax cuts with a price tag of over half a trillion dollars. is it funny math? >> i don't think so. the second biggest concern of

the american people after jobs is deficit spending and the fact this president has been like a teenager with a credit card who has run up -- if he serves eight years under current plans he will double the national debt. he'll borrow more than every previous president combined. the average american is beginning to respond with great concern about that amount of debt. >> but traditionally speaking when you cut taxes, don't deficits go up as well? >> only in the short run. that's the other difference. we proved with reagan, with the three-year tax cuts in the 1980s, we proved again with the contract with america, the first tax cut in 16 years that, in fact, job creating principles of cutting taxes are far better than job killing principles of big government and regulation. if you look at rick perry, the governor of texas, i think it was in 2007, texas created more jobs than the other 49 states combined. and the reason was simple. it's a much lower tax, much lower regulation state in which

people found it more convenient and easier to start a business, invest in a company or create a job. >> let's talk about cutting the deficit here. you said you're thinking more seriously now than ever about running for president. let's say i make you president right now. congratulations. and i give you what a lot of people are predicting -- a republican-controlled house and senate. that means you've got to make some really tough choices in terms of cutting this deficit. what are you willing to say? name it by name that you would be willing to cut right now to cut deficits. >> first of all, you just create add nightmare for virtually every democrat watching the show, so i apologize to them. to work out your scenario, in the four years i was speaker of the house, the average rate of increase was 2.9% a year including all the entitlements, the lowest rate of increase since calvin coolidge. we did it by carefully setting priorities. so we doubled, for example, investment in national health research at the national

institutes of health while we were being very tough on other spending. i would start and i'd go through this budget pretty dramatically and i would eliminate a great deal of federal bureaucracy. i would reform unemployment compensation. i would reform workers comp at the state level. i would have a very pro jobs, very pro savings, very pro take-home pay policy. when we reformed welfare, 65% of people on welfare went to work or went to school and we saved billions and billions of dollars. that's how we managed to balance the budget. >> would you take social security and medicare on? >> well, first of all, we've proven at the center for health transformation with a book called "stop paying the crooks" that there's between $70 billion and $120 billion paid to crooks in medicaid that comes out to $700 billion to a trillion in savings over the next decade by not paying crooks in the health care system. >> the loss of both the house

and the senate, how likely is it in your opinion? >> about 50/50. it gets worse every month partly because what you just showed was the president's very shallow politics, assuming the americans are dumb enough to follow the latest headlines and don't realize this is a job killing administration and a job killing democratic congress and that's why those people are unemployed. >> newt gingrich, good to see you. thanks for your time this morning. and now let's get a check of the rest of the headlines with ann curry. hey, meredith and matt. good morning, everybody. we begin with more news from afghanistan where the united states is set to begin withdrawing troops next year. the u.s. is reaffirming its support for afghanistan in a conference. the chief foreign affairs correspondent andrea mitchell is in kabul. >> reporter: hillary clinton acknowledged today there is growing international opposition to the war here. but she pledged the u.s. will stand by afghanistan even as u.s. troops begin to withdraw

next july. with kabul locked down and under threat of attack more than 70 foreign ministers gathered for the largest meeting ever held here. even as criticism mounts over the war strategy and over rampant corruption in the karzai government. >> citizens of many nations represented here including my own wonder whether success is even possible. and, if so, whether we all have the commitment to achieve it. well, we will answer these questions with our actions. >> reporter: karzai's timetable to take over all security for his country in four years. >> the after gap national security forces will be responsible for all military and enforcement operations throughout our country by 2013. >> reporter: the military and police face serious challenges and karzai's government negotiators with the taliban,

women fear they will once again lose their rights. so today clinton met separately with afghan women promising they will not be left out. >> we want to continue to support afghanistan, the afghan people, and particularly women and women's interests and rights. >> reporter: and one of the trickiest issues here is how and even whether to negotiate with the taliban. today there are reports that the white house is considering a policy shift to at least go ahead and bless secret negotiations with senior taliban leaders by third parties. ann? >> thank you so much. the senate judiciary committee is expected to approve elena kagan and send her nomination on to the full senate. confirmations begin today -- hearings begin today, rather, for retired air force general james clapper, nominated to become the new director of

national intelligence. a powerful storm tore through a fair ground in kentucky monday forcing hundreds of people to flee. three people were hurt. and ten people who were indicted monday after a daring heist in sweden last year that was caught on tape are accused of using a helicopter to break into a security company and then using explosives and a power saw to make off with more than $5 million. the money has not since been found. it is now 7:14. >> we are off to a fairly quiet start, but later this morning

and into the afternoon we will see scattered thunderstorms develop again. city% to 40% chance of in your neighborhood. over to you. >> stephanie, thank you so much. britain's prime minister david cameron makes his white house debut today. among the topics he will talk to president obama about, the growing controversy surrounding bp's possible role in last year's release of the pan am flight 103 bomber. justice correspondent pete williams is in washington with more for us. good morning, pete. >> reporter: in fact, the british government is under growing pressure to reopen the lockerbie case. senators from the new york area are pushing forward, so is the u.s. state department, but there's nothing to indicate that that's actually going to happen.

britain's new prime minister, david cameron, is leaving no doubt that he thinks it was a mistake for officials in scotland which has its own separate justice system to have released abdel basset ali al megrahi from jail last year. he was serving a life sentence for bombing a pan am flight that crashed in scotland in 1988 killing 270 people including 189 americans. he was allowed to return to libya after a doctor said he had cancer and only three months to live. but nearly a year later he is very much alive. >> i thought the decision to release al megrahi was completely and utterly wrong. he was convicted of being the biggest mass murderer in british history. i saw no case whatsoever for releasing him from prison. >> reporter: secretary of state hillary clinton traveling in pakistan said the u.s. is now encouraging scotland to review its decision, but a spokesman for the scottish government tells nbc news it has no such plans because there's no new information to justify reopening

the case. scotland also says bp, which was eager to get trade agreements with libya, played no role whatsoever in the decision to release al megrahi. but some u.s. senators insist that question should be examined further. >> we want to make sure they didn't improperly push the british government to allow the release of the terrorists in exchange for drilling oil off the coast of libya. >> reporter: and relatives of some of those killed in the terrorist attacks say they s failed from the beginning toon push hard enough on the british. >> and president obama should have picked up the phone and said he cannot be released. this will hinder our relationship and he would have not been released. >> reporter: prime minister cameron will also meet today with congressional leaders and four new york-area senators. they'll all urge him to press scotland to reopen the case but the lockerbie bomber remains safely in libya. meredith? >> pete williams, thank you. it is 7:17. once again here is matt. sarah palin is wading into the controversy surrounding a proposed mosque near the world

trade center site. and it's the language she used on twitter to express her opinion that's getting the most attention. nbc's peter alexander is in lower manhattan. peter, good morning to you. >> reporter: matt, good morning to you. this is what the battle is all about. a proposed 13-story building to go right here with a gym and auditorium and a mosque. but as we spin the camera around, let me show you what the problem for many people is. it's the proximity to what many americans view as sacred ground at ground zero, just blocks away. add sarah palin to the mix, and it's a full-blown controversy. she is america's self-proclaimed mama grizzly and now sarah palin is dipping her paws into another polarizing debate criticizing a proposal to build a mosque nerp the world trade center site in new york city. palin tweeted peace seeking muslims, please understand ground zero mosque is stabs hearts.ovocation. ease reject it in interest of healing. this latest controversy has unleashed a wave of strong opinions from visitors.

>> she does not need to be saying anything about anything that's over here. she doesn't even live over here. >> it's her personal opinion. i don't think she's speaking for, you know, speaking for new york or for alaska or for america. i think she is speaking out of her own opinions. >> reporter: developers of the planned $100 million community center and mosque have this response. >> i wish she would pick up the phone and come down and say hello to us. where we are today is all about healing. it is all about building bridges. it is all about outreach. it is all about reaching out to the communities to let them know that there is a moderate muslim, that there is a voice for the moderate muslim. >> reporter: the former vice presidential candidate is herself coming under fire for both her substance and style. palin tweeted ground zero mosque supporters, doesn't it stab you in the heart, as it does ours, throughout the heartland? peaceful muslims, please refeud yate. but, of course, refeud yate isn't an actual word, more like a blend of two words with

similar meanings. bloggers quickly pounced. if republicans can demand that immigrants speak english, can't we demand same for sarah palin? for what it's worth, palin has refudiated before. >> they could refudiate what it is this group is saying. >> reporter: the former alaska governor isn't the first politician to get creative with with words. >> they misunderestimated what our campaign is about. >> reporter: as she reminded followers in what is another tweet, refudiate, misunderestimate, wee-wee'd up, english is a living language. shakespeare liked to coin new words, too. got to celebrate it. sarah palin will have plenty of time coining new words. the scheduled groundbreaking of the site is still years away. >> all right. peter alexander in lower manhattan for us this morning. peter, thank you very much. just ahead, lindsay lohan's new lawyer reportedly quits. will anyone be representing her at a hearing today before she heads off to jail?

live with a report on that.

just ahead, could you imagine living in a home with 260 cats? we'll go inside the shocking world of animal hoarding and talk to a woman who suffered from that disorder. plus, the bitter custody battle between mel gibson and his ex-girlfriend heads back to court today. will those tapes make any difference? for something more nutritious to eat? i was! well, you could enjoy the taste of decadent dark chocolate, the crunch of almonds, plus 35% of your daily fiber... plus antioxidants in a kellogg's fiber plus bar. mmmm. right then. two more wishes? i'm good. oh. back to the lamp then. see ya! [ female announcer ] kellogg's fiber plus bars. you couldn't wish for more.

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white meat chicken, or seabass and shrimp in a delicate broth, prepared without by-products or fillers. fancy feast appetizers. celebrate the moment. >> live, local, latebreaking. this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am stan stovall. here is sarah caldwell and traffic pulse 11. >> still a mess on the west side but a little bit of progress on the inner loop. the accident scene at baltimore national pike. all lanes closed, a little bit squeezing by. you can also exit at baltimore national pike.

heavy delays on the inner loop. outer loop traffic calling outside the accident scene. we will switch to a live view of the tail end of this delay on the inner loop. frederick road, and it stretches back even further than that. it will be awhile before this alters out. 12th miles per hour on the inner loop. backing up traffic on southbound 795. we are tracking these closures. fire department activity on 170 between hoffman ave and henson ave. boulevard at belair road, delays developing on southbound 95 out of the northeast and on the north side. if you are going to get out in reisterstown, but low road and falls road. use caution at the intersection. tony has a check at the forecast. >> quiet in the weather

department. rain is showing -- no rain on baltimore, but we have some showers and the mountains and eastbound. in the afternoon there is a chance to see a few more thunderstorms pop up all around baltimore. a mixture of sunshine and clouds. 30% or 40% chance of a shower or thunderstorm. the forecast will stay about the same all the way through the beginning of the weekend. scattered thunderstorms in the afternoon each day. we might get into the upper 90s. a strong cold front will go by on saturday night. that should not temperatures back to the 80's on friday. >> we are back at 7:55 with >> we are back at 7:55 with another live update.

he inherited a $1.7 billion budget deficit... then an economic crisis. but martin o'malley went to work. cutting $5 billion in waste and government spending, while also making opportunities for middle class families a priority. freezing college tuition four years in a row,

record investments in our schools, and tax credits for small businesses to create jobs. while other states are still struggling, martin o'malley is making the tough choices... to move maryland forward. 7:30 now on a tuesday morning, the 20th of july, 2010. 41 years after man first walked on the moon, these folks have stepped on the rockefeller plaza. one small step for man. we're going to head outside. >> cheapening something that was so significant. that's what we do around here. ib side studio 1a i'm matt lauer along with meredith vieira. >> the troubled actress is set

to begin serving 90 days in jail. how is she feeling about it? coming up, what she had to say on twitter. plus the latest why her new high-profile lawyer robert shapiro has reportedly quit. also ahead, an unsettling disorder, animal hoarding. could you imagine living with more than 250 cats in your home? in a moment. the shocking story of a couple who did just that and we'll talk to a woman who is currently being treated for the disorder. plus, mel gibson and his ex-girlfriend take their bitter custody battle to court. let's begin with the day that lindsay lohan has feared for some time. she is scheduled to surrender for the start of her 90-day jail sentence. there are reports her newest attorney, robert shapiro, will not be with her. lee cowan has the latest. good morning to you. >> reporter: well, good morning, matt. yeah, it's true robert shapiro has, in fact, quit, that would be the second attorney in as many weeks to leave lohan's side.

robert shapiro of o.j. simpson fame, has said he would accept the case but only if she agreed to abide by the terms of her probation which includes jail time. jail time, some say, is something lindsay lohan is finding increasingly impossible to accept. since her last court appearance, aside from a few public outings, lindsay lohan has largely stayed off the tabloid radar even checking herself into a drug rehab facility where some say the waiting is wreaking havoc on her nerms nerves. >> she's had trouble eating, sleeping, she's been crying a report. >> reporter: "people" magazine reports she's a fidgety mess. the reality of jailhouse food and jailhouse bedding is now start to go set in. even her tweets sound different. the only bookings that i'm familiar with are disney films, she wrote last night. i never thought i'd be booking into jail. >> she's sort of been in denial about it right after she was sentenced. now she's thinking to herself, what is it going to be like in the cell by myself alone with not many things to do?

>> reporter: one possible strategy for limiting her jail time was getting her in rehab first. the sober living iffacility she preemptively checked herself into last week was the one robert shapiro opened himself after his son brent died of a drug overdose. but while the rehab may improve lohan's image with the court, it may not convince the judge to postpone jail time. >> most people feel like while it's a good thing she went into this sober living house, i think most people also think that it's too little too late and that's probably what the judge is going to think as well. >> reporter: it's not that rehab isn't part of lohan's sentence, it is. in fact, the judge ordered her to complete three months of in-patient care but only after jail. >> the only fear i have is that by going to jail first, she'll be hardened and won't be open to the treatment process and the fact the judge has only mandated three months when lindsay needs at least a year. >> reporter: now, matt, that is a live picture you're looking at of the jail in linwood, california, where lindsay lohan is expected to report later on today to be taken into custody

there. the reality is no one really expects her to do some three months there. the reality is most people think she'll probably do more like three weeks but, again, this is something most say she could have avoided had she just followed the terms of her original probation. matt? >> lee cowan, thank you very much. a former district attorney and former judge, dr. julie holland is a psychiatrist and author of "weekends at bellevue." good morning to both of you. >> good morning. >> let me start with you, first of all. rehab, sober living facility, what's the difference? and if you're the judge, and you are, do you want to take her out of that to make her go serve 90 days in jail? >> i tell you, i absolutely would take her out of it and i believe the judge will do just that. sober living is not a rehab facility and what you have is a woman who has been in rehab three to four times and gets arrested almost immediately after coming out. it's time to serve the sentence. >> this report robert shapiro

may have decided, no, thank you, i don't want to be a part of this case, just as i would imagine justice is supposed to be blind to the person representing you in court but does all this turmoil impact her case in some way? >> i don't think it does. i think the judge has made a decision she violated probation. the judge has bent over backwards to give her every opportunity. she has given her an alcohol education program that she lied about. she didn't go to. she goes to cannes, she parties. any judge would have put her in jail long before this. so enter robert shapiro, a guy with a great pedigree, but the bottom line is, it's about her pedigree and lack of respect for the court. it's time for her to go to jail irrespective of the change in lawyers. >> to go to jail for how long? prosecutors have asked for 30 days. the judge gave her 90 days. i think a lot of people raised their eyebrows at that. in reality, how much time is she going to spend behind bars? >> it's los angeles and there is no truth in sentencing and that's why people are skeptical. >> so three weeks. >> three weeks at the most. >> all right. doctor holland, this is a

troubled young lady. there have been numerous reports of her trouble with alcohol in the past. over the last several months according to published reports she has been on several prescription drugs including zoloft. if these had been prescribed for legitimate reasons, will she be allowed to continue taking them behind bars? >> you know, typically the prisons decide what the patient can or cannot take. and my assumes is they're not going to be okay with her taking addictive medications like stimulants and opiates. whether they decide to let her continue with antidepressants, i think she'll have to see a psychologist there and they'll make the determination. >> "people" magazine is reporting she is extremely fidgety and nervous, my first reaction is, good. you want her to be nervous about this. it's supposed to be a deterrent so it avoids bad behavior in the future, isn't that right? >> well, you know, this in some ways really is just what she needs. she needs to be -- she needs a

time-out. she needs to be pulled away from the attention and the gawking and the enabling. she needs to be with herself and have some time to really be present and cautious and self-reflecting and figure out what's going on in her life and where she can take it from here. i think in some ways the judge and other people are trying to help her. however, you know i really think that treatment is better than incarceration and, you know, what will be best for her is to have a good psychotherapist and psychiatrist. i don't know that lawyers and prison guards are going to do much to help her change her behavior. >> before i let jeanine jump on you, i've always heard addicts can't be cured unless they're ready to help themselves. if a court orders you into rehab and a court orders you to jail, is that the same thing? >> it really isn't the same thing. you're right. she has got to want to make changes in her behavior. she needs intensive psychotherapy, family therapy, new ways of behaving and coping. she's not going to get that sitting alone in a jail cell.

at least what she'll get is some time to self-reflect and i think she needs it. >> the court system didn't pick lindsay lohan and say, look, this is a woman with an alcohol problem, let's get her into rehab. she had blood alcohol 0.48, under the influence of cocaine, reckless driving, commandeering someone else's car. this is not about alcoholism and whether she should get treatment. it's about a woman who gets drunk and gets into a car and puts all of our lives in danger, who snubs her nose at the criminal justice system and says the rules don't apply to me the way they apply to everyone else. if she gets rehab, that's great. the bottom line is she's a criminal. she's been convicted. she's been given a break. it's time to go to jail. >> jeanine pirro. let's get a check of the weather from stephanie abrams who is in for al. >> announcer: "today's" weather is brought to you by advil. make advil your number one choice. all right. so what would possess someone to wear no makeup, curlers, and a bathrobe to platt za on national

television? that's what people at home want to know. what are you here for? >> my sister's 60th birthday is today and she's in florida and we wanted to say happy birthday to her. >> and no makeup. can you believe it? no makeup on national television. let's have a look at where we are going to see the sunshine across the country and it's going to be basically through t southern tier. forget about your makeup. leave it at home because the rain is going to was >> it is going to be another warm and the steamy day to day, and there is a chance for a few hit and miss showers and thunderstorms. some look at the rain, some will

and for your weather needs 24 hours a day, go to weather.com. matt, over to you. >> stephanie, thank you very much. up next inside the shocking world of people who hoard -- not objects but animals. one couple owned more than 250 cats. [ female announcer ] fact. when pain keeps you up, nothing is proven to help you fall asleep faster than advil pm liqui-gels. rushing real liquid relief to ease you to sleep fast. for nighttime pain, make advil pm your #1 choice.

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back at 7:42. what happens when the desire to rescue animals becomes more of a compulsion than a good deed? how many cats would be too many? five? ten? how about 260? a special series premiering this week on animal planet takes viewers inside the world of animal hoarding. >> they mean more to me than any human could. >> in six months, maybe not even that long, you'll see my name in the obituary because i can't live like this. >> i'm not going to be able to keep doing this. >> you spend more time with the dogs than you do with your grandkids. >> if i had to choose between my animals and my husband, i would pick the animals.

>> my cats are healthy and content with their life. >> i don't know how you can come home every single night and say this is my clean room. >> i would lose my wife. i would lose my house. i would lose everything if i went to jail over this. >> i think you have 150 too many cats. >> i don't have any desire to give up any of my animals. >> you don't care about yourself and i'm afraid you're going to die. >> robin, who was in that piece, is a recovering animal hoarder. dr. karen cassidy is a clinical sipsychologist specializing in hoard i hoarding and has been part of robin's treatment team. doctor and robin, good morning to you.

i think people are going to look that, robin, and say, first of all, not only why but how? how do you live with so many pets inside your home? how do you explain that? >> for me it's probably an issue of coming from a large family and so there was always chaos and, you know, disruption everywhere in our home when we were growing up. so the animals to me were part of that. they're part of the family to me. >> when people rescue animals, often you hear others say what a great thing you're doing. aren't you a wonderful person? is it a situation where you develop a need for that positive reinforcement and that's why you just keep going? >> partly. partly it is. for me and i'm sure a lot of other animal hoarders it comes down to an issue of feeling needed wanted, loved. sometimes there are situation that is go on in your life that you don't feel you're getting that from your human companions. >> and yet when it gets out of

hand, did you have a turning point? did you have a moment where you looked around the house and said, wait a second, this is no longer a good thing? >> no, i didn't. i didn't until the show came in and i realized at that point. >> so they were tipped off to you by someone else. >> by me. >> by you. so you went and said to them i have x number -- >> no, no, when i contacted the show, i thought it was going to be a different vein. i thought it was going to show me in a different light that, wow, i am this wonderful person who can handle all of this. and it turned into a different situation for me. >> dr. cassidy, where do you start with someone like robin? how do you point out this has crossed a line? >> the difficulty for all animal hoarders they have wonderful intentions. they are wonderful people and it's gone awry. and you want to help them understand that there's a big gap between their intention to love these animals and their ability to fulfill that love. and to help point out in a

gentle way that actually they're harming the animals and they're harming their human relationships. >> you can't go into a home like robin's home or that gentleman in the piece and clear the pets out. you just can't say, okay, all of these animals are gone. so how do you start? is it a one step at a time program? >> well, you start one step at a time. the first thing is to help the person understand how actually they are harmful to the animals and harmful to their family relationships and it shows them the avenue to really care and love these animals is to adopt them out and to have a small reasonable number that they really can care for well. >> robin, when you hear, and you've heard about this, this couple that was living with 260 cats, now you shake your head. so you can't imagine prior to contacting this show that you could have ever gotten that far down the road with something like this. >> no, i would not have been allowed to.

my family would have put a stop to it way before that would have happened. >> can you imagine the stench? >> oh, i know. we like cats but imagine walking into a home where there are 260 cats living. >> not even just that. it's like there's no surface for human contact. there's no safety for your food. there's no way to make a meal and not be sure there's going to be something in it other than what's supposed to be in there. >> you mentioned your family a second ago. what was their reaction when you were getting up in numbers with the pets you had? you had 20? 15, 16, your family was still okay with it? >> no, but i'm a stubborn animal rescuer, if you want to call it that and you saw in the piece they asked me would i get rid of the animals or my husband first and my logic was if my husband was thrown out or left, he could handle himself but my animals needed me. >> dr. cassidy, do people like robin, even as she is recovering, often have setbacks much like an alcoholic would? >> right. unfortunately without treatment, 100% of animal hoarders relapse.

and it's necessary to get treatment, to not just bring them to the attention of the criminal system but to understand they're people with needs. most hoarders have been through traumatic life disorders, initiated or exacerbated their hoarding issues. >> robin, you brought in a new dog recently, didn't you. >> yes, for four days. >> and? >> he was brought in with the intention of finding him a home and we did. it happened. he's gone to, i hope, a loving home. >> so what's your goal? how many pets? >> the ones we have now. >> which is what number? >> we have four cats and three dogs. >> and that would be fine, cap it at that? >> yeah. i'm okay. >> good. and i appreciate you sharing your story. i know it can't be all that e e easy. >> no. >> robin, thanks very much. thank you very much to you as well. > and animal hoarding premieres on animal planet tomorrow night.

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>> live, local, latebreaking. this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am stan stovall. time for another check of the morning commute with sarah caldwell and traffic pulse 11. >> a mess all morning on the west side due to accident on baltimore national pike. it is off to the two right lanes with a two left lanes squeezing by. still heavy delays in both directions. the accident has yet to be cleared completely. l.i. view of traffic at frederick road. saberi jammed from baltimore

national pike. -- very jammed from baltimore national pike. out of traffic backs up traffic on southbound 795 as its purchase from approaching owings mills to the beltway. -- as it stretches from approaching owings mills to the beltway. route 170 is shut down between hoffman ave and henson ave due to fire department activity. a crash coming in at route 27 at stone chapel road at westminster. all lanes closed there. tony has a check on the forecast. >> at least the weather is relatively quiet. showers in western maryland and west in hagerstown and allegheny county. nothing showing up around baltimore. stay quiet for the bulk of the morning. another warm and humid day. heights subeditors and the low 90s. 30% to 4% chance of showers

during the day. -- 30% to 40% chance of showers during the day. well off as we go to the beginning of next week. >> back at 8:25 with another live update.

8:00 now on this tuesday morning, the 20th day of july, 2010. right around 78 degrees on the plaza, but we are heading into the 90s later this afternoon. not a bad day. some serious sunscreen. alongside matt lauer, more drama for mel gibson and the mother of his youngest child. their custody case heads to court today and a sixth audio tape has surfaced. we'll have the latest on all of that just ahead. also ahead, if you are one

of the 66 million americans who is now caring for your elderly parents, well, obviously you're in good company but you may be doing something wrong. in fact, some people think most of the people caring for their eld elderly parents are making a major mistake. we're going to tell you what that is and give you some inters in just a little while. >> okay. joy bauer will answer your questions from everything how to calm a major food craving to lunch meat and how off actually you should be eating it. >> before we go any further let's go inside. ann is standing by at the news desk with a look at all the headlines. good morning once again, everybody. in the news the millions of unemployed americans who have used up their state benefits could be getting some relief soon. the senate is expected to approve extending federal benefits today and send it to the house. the extension would give people $309 a week on average. as the votes from west virginia democrat goodwin takes over the late robert byrd's seat today, to overcome a filibuster by republicans who have been arguing the benefits should be

paid for with spending cuts. with the cap on that ruptured gulf oil well holding now for a fifth day on monday, bp is now considering making a temporary fix, something more permanent. bp says that it's considering what it's calling a static kill, pumping a heavy amount of mud through the top of the new cap to seal the well. the government is urging caution so far on that idea. today the u.s. joined other nations in endorsing a plan by afghanistan's president to have his nation take charge of its own security by 2014. that is three years after president obama's deadline for the start of u.s. troop withdrawal. for the first time a gel has been shown to be effective in blocking the aids virus in women. the vaginal gel containing an antiviral drug cut the infection by 39% according to a study conducted in south africa. scientists are saying this finding is groundbreaking and a game changer. researchers are saying they're confident the gel can be improved before it is made

available. overseas markets are mostly high higher this morning. cnbc's erin burnett is at the new york stock exchange. erin, some real earnings jitters today. after an up monday investors here at least are a bit nervous and part of that is because of ibm. it's a huge tech company. earnings were a little bit short of what investors were looking for and that is setting a little bit of a negative tone this morning. it's not all bad news and it's a sign government stimulus has worked in many places. whirlpool which, as you know, makes maytag and kitchenaide appliances, says thanks to federal rebates for efficient appliances results are way better than anyone had looked for. there are good news news spots out there. will the good or bad win out? we're going to get housing data. we've seen a lot of weakness there and earnings from apple. how the ipad does and goldman sachs and whether the bulls or bears win today. and finally now broadway stars were shining at the white house last night during the celebration of "show tunes." president obama praised musicals

as an optimistic art form that calls on us to see the best in ourselves and the world around us. there you go. it is now 8:03. back outside to matt and meredith. >> remember the man from "seinfeld"? >> absolutely. >> based on a real business that went out of business and opening again today. today. >> i'm in the mood for a nice hot bowl of soup. >> no soup for you. stephanie abrams for weather. >> she's in for al. thanks, guys. who doesn't want to get a free college education, right? you can actually get one today? >> i can. if you go to richmont.edu and look at the wonderful university i go to, i could get free tuition. please help me, america. >> that was a pitch right into the camera. that was good. richmont. >> a wonderful graduate program

in counseling. >> let's take you across the country and talk about the weather and where we will see the nice weather. that is around the bay area. fog will gradually clear. otherwise gorgeous weather in the rocky mountains westbound. the southeast will >> it is going to be another war in the steamy day with high humidity levels. temperatures will make it to the 90s this afternoon and there is a matt, over to you. >> all right, stephanie. when we come back, the ongoing custody battle between mel

gibson and his ex-girlfriend heading back to court. how will those tapes we've all heard factor in? we'll talk about that after these messages. you know what, this looks just like the tree house i built with my dad. (girl) really? yeah. there you go. okay, i'm gonna work on the roof. dad, i'll be right back! (announcer) it's more than just that great peanut taste, choosing jif is a simple way to show someone how much you care. you made that for me? well you're making this for me.

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battle between mel gibb sob and his ex-girlfriend oksana grigorieva. the two are in the middle of a vicious custody dispute over their 8-month-old daughter. kristen welker is in los angeles with more. good morning, kristen. >> reporter: good morning, meredith. well, that custody hearing is set to take place at this downtown courthouse earlier today, later on today. in the meantime, radaronline.com has given nbc news a preview of tape six. now we have not been able to independently confirm the authenticity of this tape, but we have had an expert look at previous tapes for signs of possible tampering and he found none. but this latest installment shows just how bitter this custody battle really is. >> i'm just saving my child's life because you are a monster! that's all. you're a monster! >> reporter: in the latest radaronline reporting, the woman reporting to be oksana grigorieva is clearly fighting

for custody of the child she has with gibson. on the same day lawyers for gibson and grigorieva are due in family court, nothing fires up both parties as much as the discussion both share, their 8-month-old daughter. >> you have my child and she doesn't need a gold digging [ bleep ] russian [ bleep ]. >> you're acting as a crazy man right now, and you have been for many, many months, and you hit me and you hit her while she was in my hands. >> reporter: grigorieva has turned over the tapes to authorities and she has told l.a. county officials that gibson hit her while she was holding her daughter back in january. radaronline recently release this had photo claiming it shows grigorieva with damaged front teeth hours after. some dental experts say the picture is inconsistent with her allegations she was hit in the face. >> the main thing i'm looking at is the trauma to the face.

there are no cuts, no swelling of the lip because it's pretty instantaneous when there's that type of trauma. >> reporter: some in the gibson camp have reportedly said the questions surrounding the authenticity of the photos cast a cloud over grigorieva's entire story. they've also questioned whether grigorieva altered the tapes. but legal analysts suggest that's blaming the victim. >> it's too soon for the tables to turn against oksana, a potential victim of domestic violence, who made this tape in theory to get help for herself. >> reporter: it seems likely grigorieva knew she was being taped and gibson didn't. still, if it is discovered grigorieva faked allegations of abuse, she could face legal troubles of her own. for now, though, the most pressing legal issue is focused on who will end up raising little lucia. now it's still not clear grigorieva and gibson will appear in court later today.

in the meantime, l.a. county officials continue to probe those allegations of abuse but still no charges have been filed against gibson. meredith, back to you. >> kristen welker, thank you very much. dan abrams is nbc's chief legal analyst. good morning, dan. radar on line has released what seems to be one tape they've cut up and they're releasing installments of it. is any admissible in a court of law? >> maybe. the question is, was it even legal for her to make the tape? california is a two-party consent state. if she made it and he didn't know it was being made, which seems pretty clear, then she would have had to have believed that she was in imminent danger, that she was doing it to prevent violence to a child. she'd need a specific reason that she was making this tape without his consent to make it -- to even avoid criminal liability. then the question would be admissibility. but i think if she passes the first test, it likely would come in certainly in a custody battle. >> she said something in the

latest recording, we hear her saying, quote, you hit me and you hit her while she was in my hands. her obviously meaning the baby. that sounds like someone who is under a lot of duress there. >> absolutely. the question becomes, is that why she made the tape? meaning, if she made the tape effectively to get more money in a custody battle, then that's probably not going to allow her to introduce it. it could lead her to face criminal charges, et cetera. >> how do you determine that? is there anything that would suggest that it's extortion? >> it's always tough. it seems the gibson camp is now essentially claiming that this is extortion. her ka camp is going to claim this was totally legitimate, totally aboveboard, that this was a tape made because she feared for her safety. and i think you're right. based on what you hear on that tape she's going to have at least a very legitimate argument that she made it out of fear. >> and the fact when she said on that tape that he had struck her and he did not deny it, in fact, i believe he said you deserved it and certainly did not deny

the fact that he had struck the baby when she just said that as well, that can't work to help him. >> well, that's right. so let's even assume for a moment that no criminal charges are filed against mel gibson in connection with this. it could be in his custody battle. you look at the best interests of a child in a custody battle. the minute there's an allegation not just of striking a parent but of striking a child, that's a really big deal in assessing who should get custody. >> meanwhile, if the tape, the indication is it's not authentic, if they decide it's not authentic or the picture of her with the broken teeth is something that's doctored, could she be in real legal trouble? >> i don't think -- it depends on who she gave it to. let's say she submitted a picture of herself to the media and it isn't totally authentic. that's not going to get her in legal trouble. if, on the other hand, she is lying to the authorities and giving the authorities doctored photos and doctored tapes.

but, again, let's be krrl with regard to the tapes. it clearly was edited. radar on line clearly edited it putting it out in six parts. that doesn't mean it's not authentic. the concern, when i hear the word doctored, i think of someone literally taking words that weren't said and moving them around, moving questions, et cetera. that's significant. if there are literally chunks here that actually happened as we heard them, and let's say there was stuff that was taken out, well, that doesn't necessarily mean it won't be admitted. what it could mean, though, is that the court will say we need the whole tape. we want to hear everything here. you can't just give us parts of it. and then a ruling would be made as to admissibility. >> meanwhile, his soon-to-be ex-wife, robin, with whom he was with 28 years, i believe, reportedly gave a statement to the courts saying he was a good husband. he never abused her. how would that play into a

custody case? >> it's relative to a witness. just because he didn't strike his ex-wife doesn't mean that her allegations in this case aren't true. it's like in any case where you bring in effectively a kashg it ter witness. now when it comes, again, to custody, character witnesses are more important than they might be otherwise because a judge is really trying to make a broad determination of what's right here. what's going to be the best interests of this child. and so a parent, a mother who has brought up children with mel gibson would be a relevant witness. >> dan abrams, thank you so much. and up next, what you could be doing very wrong if you care for your aging parents. ♪ freedom is all that i need [ female announcer ] ladies, raise your spoons. now there's nothing left standing between you and a satisfying breakfast. introducing special k low-fat granola. with 50% less fat than the leading granola and 5 grams of fiber per serving, it's a satisfying way to help you manage your weight. special k low-fat granola -- a taste of freedom.

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dale atkins, a primary caregiver for her parent. good morning to you both. you said, dale, this affects millions of people. on the surface seems like a real role reversal. the child becoming the parent. your parent is still your parent. >> your parent is always your parent. >> so how do you take on this role of caregiver while allowing your parents to maintain their dignity and their independence? >> it's very important challenge and one that does have a lot of stress with it and so many caregivers become unaware how important it is to take care of themselves in the process. what you need to do is really try to understand where your parents are, what's important to them, and what they would like. and you have these conversations -- >> before they're in a position where they can't communicate? >> oh, you do. you have to. there are so many things that are important to talk about but really understand what you need, also, because it's not just a role reversal because your parents are always your parents. even if you're doing the most primary care giving but you have

a compassion for them and empathy for them and try to remember where they are, what their needs are and what your needs are. >> your dad is 86. your mom is 83. >> right. >> last year -- you live in virginia. you moved into the family home in arizona because they're in an assisted living facility close by and you are the primary caregiv caregiver. what has this past year been like for you making that kind of a change in your life and for your parents? >> it's been a huge change. i proved across the country. i changed my working situation. i left my support system back east. so it's been quite a journey for me and for my parents it's been a lot of change, too. they lived in their home almost 30 years so they moved from this nice big home to a much smaller apartment. they've had trouble with the dog adjusting to the transition as well. >> so, dale, what advice would you give somebody like amy in terms of managing care giving without losing a sense of themselves? >> you have to take care of yourself for sure and get a team of people you can rely on so

you're not doing this alone and be sure to talk about the kinds of issues that most people don't want to talk about that have to do with care and with eldercare, older care, end of life issues, financial issues, anything having to do with what you need to know, who their medical team is and you're there so you probably know but a lot of people who aren't there don't know and to have conversations that sometimes are very difficult but caring for yourself is one of the most important things to do and whatever that means, to understand that the aging process takes time and sometimes it seems like it drags on and sometimes it happens overnight so that you have to be aware that there's always change. this whole world is about change to get the support you need from online support groups. i know aarp has one that's quite wonderful. family caregivers association has one. you get information and you also get support. >> there's also the sibling component. you have three other sisters, but you were the primary

caregiver even though one of them lives close by and that's a struggle with families and oftentimes can break families apart. >> that's true. we need to work together as a family to do what each of us is capable of doing, what we have time for. my sisters have extenuating circumstances. they backed me up when they can and even do long distance research online for me sometimes. my sister orders the medications for my parents. that's something she can handle while she's working and has a daughter to raise. so we really try to be a family team. >> and one day at a time. we're out of time, dale atkins and amy, good luck to you. and now here's matt. thank you. it's 8:23. let's head down to washington and check in with mr. willard sco scott. everybody should blow out birthday candles and we have some to blow out today. 100 years old today, clifton, new jersey, frank scancarella.

and we have selma vonnoh out of chattanoo chattanooga, tennessee. worked out of the munitions plant to help defeat the nazis. and we have verda vanalstine of cobleskill, new york. 103 years old today. wish her a happy birthday. also goes to play the stock market and has fun doing it and loves ballroom dancing. you can't beat that. take a look at george. good old george gordon of lauderhill, florida, 100 years old today. played baseball when he was just a kid. happing greenberg was on the same team. and he says kosher hot dogs has kept him living 100 years. can't beat that. and ferne austin of laingsburg, michigan. lives on her own and says she has a sweet tooth for m&ms. and who doesn't? and finally virgie jarrett from

alexander, louisiana. a proud member of the alpha delta kappa sorority. keeps busy going to lunch. i've been doing that almost 100 years. that said, that's all. back to new york. >> hey, willard, thank you so much. while those people enjoy their birthday, someone else enjoying a birthday today. >> who might that be? >> it is our executive producer jim belle having a birthday today, busy at work in the control room. >> they're bringing in the cake. >> we wanted to sing to you but we're not allowed. we wanted to light the candles but we're not allowed. upside-down -- >> every morning in the control room. >> a big smooch. we love you, jim. >> thank you. >> happy birthday. >> hey, kathie lee and hoda? >> yeah?

>> if you had any guts at all you'd put that right in his face. >> they came close. >> came a little close there. >> live, local, latebreaking. this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am mindy basara. let's get a final check of the morning commute with sarah caldwell. >> a very difficult right this morning. we have problems on the west side. inner loop accident being cleared at baltimore national pike. two right lanes closed on the two left lanes getting by. this is impacting traffic on the south side. outer loop traffic completely stalled from 7.95 to the accident scene. northbound 83, north of the

beltway, on the harrisburg expressway, there are two separate accidents involving four vehicles and jamming up traffic. two right lanes are blocked in that area. we can look at the speeds the to the west side. 16 miles per hour, and northbound 95 is just a mess towards the beltway southwest. for about 83 past the beltway, watch for delays with that accident. westminster, stone chapel road, blocked in both directions due to a crash. 23 minutes on the outer loop west side, 18 from 32 all the way to the beltway. >> at least the weather is fairly quiet. nothing showing up on the radar in baltimore. we can see some rain on the mountains just west of hagerstown. as we had today, the chance for rain will increase as we go

through baltimore later on this afternoon. 30% chance for a shower or thunderstorm. some of the storms to develop would drop locally heavy amounts of rain. not a whole lot is going to change for the rest of the week. scattered thunderstorms through the beginning of the weekend. >> we will

8:30 now on a tuesday morning. it's the 20th day of july, 2010. smiling faces and warm temperatures. a good combination out on the plaza. and we're joining these nice people. i'm matt lauer along with meredith vieira and ann curry who is kissing babies and

running for office over here. and coming up in this half hour you're saying cabbage, move over. >> that's what you think of when you think of irish foods. the most popular is dish. today we're cooking up crabs and a seafood coleslaw on the menu. delicious recipes just ahead. >> we love him. >> the coleslaw includes sea weed. >> a lot of people love it. >> what about your people? >> my people eat mcdonald's and -- daniel silva is here, out with his tept novel featuring the spy/art in "the rembrandt affair." he has done something outrageous. >> take him to task.

also coming up, we have some diet questions people have. and now another check of the weather from stephanie abrams. >> down there. >> hey there, guys. we have a birthday. never too old for a crown, huh? >> never. >> do you think we should give this crown to jim bell? >> sure. why not? we'll pass it along to him. >> let's have a look at the weather and seeing the nicest of weather in the northeast. you're from indiana. unfortunately, severe weather in indiana. otherwise fan >> it is going to be another warm and the steamy day to day, and there is a chance for a few hit and miss showers and thunderstorms. some look at the rain, some will

for your birthday forecast 24 hours a day, all you have to do is logon to weather.com. meredith, over to you. >> stephanie, thank you very much. and still ahead, great activities to keep your kids occupied this summer. i spent my childhood in the summertime with my grandparents up at their farm, and that's where i learned all about vegetables -- when they're ready to be picked and the best time and season to eat them. nothing beats the taste of fruits and vegetables in the summer. that's why at giant, you'll find farm-stand quality fruits and vegetables at prices you'll love. this week, enjoy northwest cherries, $1.88 a pound,

and dole salad blends, 2 for $5. if something's in season, i know my store is going to have it, and that works for me. celebrate summer, every time you shop with your giant card. hey i'm donkey settin' sail far far away from far far away. we're out here in the caribbean. soakin' up some sun. woohoo shrek's got some move hi five boys, it's sushi time. i'm donkey, feeling the oce,

gettin' my vacation on donkey style. why aren't you? ♪ we're back at 8:35. this morning on "today's hot summer reads" the return much of master assassin in "the rembrandt affair." he is drawn into a web of intrigue when a portrait by the dutch master rembrandt is stolen. daniel silva is the author. he's also married to "today" national correspondent.

good morning. you have gone too far. >> what have i done now? >> i have three distinct problems with this book. one, you have defiled the art world. two, you have broken a long-standing personal principle and, three, you have threatened your marriage. how do you plead? >> not guilty. >> not guilty? where do you want to start? >> defile the art world. >> you have made up out of thin air a masterpiece by the artist rembrandt. it doesn't exist. >> it does not exist, but i have to give myself some latitude so that we should help our listeners. there is a portrait of rembrandt's mistress, a woman who was with him in amsterdam. and i created a fictitious portrait of a mistress. >> this is a master. this is a master. you don't just go around creating artwork. >> i didn't just go around creating artwork. i spent a long time looking at and studying all the paintings that he did during that period. i took a real -- >> a portrait does not exist, correct? >> it does not exist but a picture very similar to it does.

and i needed a clean provenance. >> thank you for explaining it. >> i had to help you with that one. i'm sorry. >> how does it fit into the plot, this portrait of a young woman? >> it connects a terrible deed that was done to a family during the holocaust in holland, and it is a conspiracy of evil stretching back to the darkest chapter of the second world war to one of the gravest threats facing the world today. i bet you can -- >> that's well put. that's good. >> can you figure that one out? >> yes, i can figure that one out. let me go to the second thing that bothers me, you broke a long-standing principle. you said you don't know how a book is going to end until you write it because you like it to unfold. you knew how this book would end. >> i did it backwards. i knew how it was going to end. i had no idea, and i mean no idea, how to get there. my wife and i would take our

children to europe to research hopping from art museum to art museum and tough cities like paris and geneva. it was drudgery. but we would ride around on trains and sit there and jamie is my primary editor, my sounding board. the four of us would sit there on eternal train rides thrashing out this plot, how is this all going to fit together? but i still -- there's points in every book where you're lying on the floor in tears with all your junk around you and i finally got there. >> it's a book about greed. >> it is. >> plain and simple. and your villain in this book was inspired by someone who became quite a villain in real life over the last year or so. >> his name is bernard madoff, and i was fascinated by the fact that bernie madoff was a pillar of a man respected by everyone, the person you wanted to give your money to. he gave away millions to charity through his charitable foundation. and underneath it all, he was a

thief. a criminal. one of the biggest thieves in history, arguably, and so that dichotomy, that split, how a person can go through life like that -- behind a great fortune there's a great crime. >> he served as the inspiration for my have i lynn t. >> called st. martin by a lot of people who love him. and finally, you have threatened your marriage with this book. you admit, ladies and gentlemen of the jury, he admits that in writing his heroine in this book, a woman by the name of zoe reid, that you fell in love with her. >> i did. >> a -- she's a work of fiction, like your rembrandt. >> not to me, though. to me she is a part of our family for six months to a year. she is a hotshot british investigative reporter. she makes mincemeat out of corrupt businessmen. but zoe has a secret of her own that she's keeping from her

colleagues. >> but you fell in love with her in the literary sense then? >> well, you know, these characters do take on a life of their own. they inhabit my world. they live with us in our hope. they really are there and we all fell in love with zoe, not just me. it's a platonic love, trust me. >> because jamie called me last week. >> i know. i know. >> not a good thing for you. >> i've had to retain counsel myself on this one. i think we're going to pull through it. it's a work of fiction. >> tenth in the series "the rembrandt affair." good to see you and your continued success. always a pleasure. a meal you might not expect from the emerald isle.

>> announcer: "today's" kitchen is brought to you by capri sun.

i can respect that. this morning on "today's kitchen" back to basics to the emerald isle. the land of meat and potatoes has far more to offer than you may think. the author of the country cooking of ireland, good morning to you. >> good morning. >> before i went to ireland with al for the "today" show, i just assumed it was all meat and potatoes but the irish love their fish. it's very popular. >> they have 3,500 miles roughly of coastline on the islands so there's anything you can imagine, any kind of north atlantic fish, shellfish, lobsters, crab, of course. >> and that's what we're cooking up. >> this is a man named ivan allen, a farmer, and he liked to prepare crab this way. there used to be crabs where the lobster men would say we have these crabs and can't sell them for as much and he'd make it like this. he went on to become the most important famous restaurant in the south of ireland. >> so what kind of crab are you using in this recipe today?

>> we have -- what they use is spider crab, the guys with the really long legs. these just regular, good quality, lump crab meat. what we're going to do, start mixing the crab meat with bread crumbs. i have more bread crumbs here with butter. >> you like to make your own, right? >> oh, yeah. and they're very easy to make. we're going to toast these, get them nice and but theory. irish butter is the best in the world and luckily you can buy it here. >> why is that? >> it just is. the dairy products are so good. the grass is so rich there and nutrient rich. >> so i have my crab and my bread crumbs. >> everything else here, tomato relish which comes from the restaurant, a little mustard, vinegar, butter. >> mustard is a little hard to get out. a little vinegar, a little butter. >> and this is white sauce, simple, made with cream, butter and flour, all of those good noncal orric things. bread crumbs that are but t theory. mix this all together. a little salt, a pinch of salt, as they say. a little pepper.

>> so it's to taste? >> exactly. >> pretend it's all mixed, blah, blah. >> into the dish here, we'll do this. into this dish. we're going to put it in the oven. >> for how long? >> about 20 minutes. >> you can also put these, you say, into dried crab shells. >> the shells. >> cleaned, dried shells. >> absolutely. >> now you put a little bit of the bread crumb on top as well. >> all of these nice bread crumbs on top of that. and we're going to get them nice and golden brown. >> what's the trick? i never do that. >> you trim the crust off the bread and you want the bread a little bit dry, a day or two old. put it in a food processor, get crumbs like that, melt the butter and you have those nice buttered bread crumbs. and we thought with the crab, nice to have a little coleslaw. this is unusual because it has sea weed or sea vegetables they prefer to call it. >> now dulce is irish? >> it comes from ireland.

they've eaten sea weed for many years, many centuries. the first was from st. columbia. >> that's pungent. >> when you soak it, chop it up, add it to the cabbage. >> you can't eat it the way i just ate it? >> no. i should have warned you. i thought it would be fun to see what happens. the dressing is great. it's mayonnaise and apple juice mixed together and it makes a wonderful dressing for coleslaw, a little unusual. that's really good. >> that goes well with the crab. >> great lunch dish or you can serve this as an appetizer. >> and then to wash it all down. >> that's the most important part. a good irish beer. >> why does this go good with crab? >> crab meat and beer, why do they go good together? come on. >> i don't know. i don't know. >> classic combination. >> i have sea weed stuck in my

teeth. >> i'm terribly sorry. >> that looks very good. the book is absolutely gorgeous. whether you're a cook or not you learn so much reading about the irish heritage. it's called "country cooking of ireland" with chef colman andrews. [ kid 1 ] wanna know some of our favorite things?

we love summertime fun! ...wearing our favorite colors... ...and jamming to our favorite bands! ♪ but we love eating totino's the most. we live for fun... ...friends... [ both ] ...and best of all... [ all ] ...our favorite... ...eating totino's! ♪ we're the kids in america ♪ oh, oh, oh ♪ we're the kids in... we're back now at 8:48 with

the overwhelming response to a story that first aired on "nbc nightly news" over this past weekend. it's about some of the innocent victims of the disaster in the gulf, the animals, and how many of you are stepping up to give them loving homes. here's michelle kosinski. >> reporter: they almost do speak for themselves, the puppies looking for their playmates, the soulful eyes of faithful friends more accustomed to beds than cages. there's frisky alex, shy meadow -- >> she came in with her two puppies. >> reporter: and big benny. >> that's okay, benny. there's somebody out there that wants you. >> reporter: it all started in may, hundreds of owners started heart wrenchingly handing over their pets. >> i just keep thinking that it's going to end soon, and it just doesn't. >> reporter: well, now something has changed thanks to you, our viewers, who saw these faces in the story we aired on nbc news

saturday. and the phones started ringing. full of second chances. >> the chihauhau's name is lucky. >> reporter: now lucky really is. meadow was terrified, now headed home with a new best friend. >> she looked sad, like she need add home, she needed someone to love her, like she missed her family. >> reporter: by far the biggest crowd pleasers have been these little puff balls, purebred maltese puppies brought in only days old with their mother. now, though, they've been getting dozens of calls to adopt them from as far away as massachusetts. and benny, 130 pounds of sweetness, yes, now someone really does want him. ten people, in fact, a waiting list for the dog who had to be downsized out of his owner's apartment. an outpouring from around the country making all the difference to the huge hearts and little bodies. >> he's going to be well taken

care of and i know he's a handful but we can handle it. >> reporter: for today, michelle kosinski, violet, louisiana. how can you resist? >> it's impossible, but we're happy our viewers have big hearts. we appreciate that. >> absolutely. and mao to one extremely opinionated guy this guy doesn't just spout ideas from his bar stool, he gets hurt in a big way. here's nbc's mike leonard. >> reporter: doing a story on 74-year-old gary boyd is a risky endeavor. >> identify the problem. >> reporter: well, what if i made a mistake? >> well, well, well. >> reporter: might that spur a letter to my boss complaining i messed up his scottsdale, arizona, home, that i didn't take more pictures of the replicas in the pool, that i never took a bite of the clam dip he made just for that? >> you have to be brief. >> reporter: sorry. g gary h. boyd, coast guard veteran, retired texaco executive, married to olga, four sons, three grandchildren, friendly guy, laughs a lot.

used to have a habit of pocketing motel keys. took a 33 on the same golf hole he had previously scored a hole in one. his take on the golfing disasser? >> 15 balls in the lake. i was on the green and two-putted for a 33. >> reporter: gary is good at summing things up concisely. >> yep. >> reporter: which is why -- >> i'm probably the king. >> reporter: getting letters published to magazines and newspapers all over the country. a hobby started ten years ago after his retirement from texaco. why did you start writing letters to the editor? >> because i was bored. >> reporter: and how many of your letters to the editor have you published? >> 561 as of today. >> reporter: major magazines, national newspapers, local newspapers, a lot of opinions. somehow gary has figured out the entry code in 200 words or less and now he's made a name for himself certainly at the arizona republic where editorial page

editor phil boas has come to recognize the work before the name. >> you're going, this is good. this is good. this is gary boyd. which means i don't know if i can run him because we may have just run him five days ago. >> reporter: do you write every day? >> yes. >> reporter: more than one topic? >> yes. >> reporter: its prose is civil. its technique -- >> i write it out and then he reread it and then i rewrite it and then i reread it and then i rewrite it. >> reporter: a simple formula that has paid off 561 times so far. when will 562 happen? >> that's a great question. i don't know. >> reporter: well, that was a monday and now it's tuesday and here he is again, published letter number 562 for gary boyd. >> he's prolific. >> you know, when he first started i thought, oh, i wonder

how long it will last. >> reporter: a decade later, dysfunction has seized america, gary h. boyd. is the thrill gone? >> of what, writing this stuff? >> reporter: yeah. >> no. hell no. >> reporter: for "today," mike leonard, nbc news, scottsdale, a arizona. >> i believe gary boyd wrote me a letter and kind of told me about his prolific letters to the editor campaign there and i think that's why we ended up doing that. >> that's a great story. a man of few words unless he's writing them. >> have you written a letter to the editor? >> i have never done that. have you guys done it? >> no, i haven't. >> a long time ago, yeah. >> about what? >> i don't know. ranting and raving about something. >> going to go through their files to find it. >> he now has 566 letters in print so he keeps churning them out. >> keep going, gary. >> i love the wife wondering how long this would last, one of

those silly hobbies a decade later. write it, reread it, rewrite it. >> we should get a second chance on this show. >> exactly. just ahead, we'll teach you some sneaky ways to save. i just reread it. only on "today," the incredible lady gaga. then enrique turned up the heat. this friday john mayer. the toy ota summer concert seris on "today."

>> live, local, latebreaking. this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am mindy basara. a maryland state trooper who spent eight years protecting maryland governors has been charged with possession and distribution of child pornography. baltimore county police arrested the 47-year-old bruce allen tucker on friday, charging him with a number of child pornography counts over several months. officials say that he served with the state police force for 13 years. he has been suspended without he has been suspended without pay.

he inherited a $1.7 billion budget deficit... then an economic crisis. but martin o'malley went to work. cutting $5 billion in waste and government spending, while also making opportunities for middle class families a priority. freezing college tuition four years in a row, record investments in our schools, and tax credits for small businesses to create jobs. while other states are still struggling, martin o'malley is making the tough choices... to move maryland forward. >> now let's take a look at the forecast with tony pann.

>> it is going to be another hot and steamy day to day. temperatures and the low 90s this afternoon. there will be hit and miss thunderstorms popping up. a 30% or 40% chance of running into those in your neighborhood. sun said at 8:29. low 90s on wednesday and thursday. by the time we had the beginning of the weekend, the core of the heat will come in and temperatures will make it into the upper 90s. we will get temperatures back into the 80s by monday of next week. >> we will have another update