i'm alex witt. here are your fast five headlines. ankle bracelet. she posted $300,000 bail. >>> authorities in sweden are questioning a man suspected of carrying explosives on a flight from canada to pakistan. but the search has turned up nothing so far. the plane was diverted to stoke home where he's being detained. >>> a fourth lawsuit has been filed against a popular atlanta area pastor accused of having sex with young male churchgoers. an attorney denies the allegations. >>> a federal judge has ordered the air force to reinstate a nurse discharged under the don't ask, don't tell policy. it calls margaret witt an exemplary officer. >>> the nation's drug enforcement agency is asking people to drop off their expired and unused prescriptions at more than 4,000 locations today. those are your fast five headlines. >>> a new report in "the washington post" said the risk of small scale attacks by al qaeda and its allies is on the rise. the reports cite senior obama administration officials who say the terrorist network is likely to attem

i'm alex witt. 34 past the hour, here are your headlines.hourd says the american returned to the u.s. this morning and will speak to the media this afternoon. shourd spent more than 13 months held by iran. hurricane igor is heading for bermuda and could strike the island nation tonight. although it has weakened to a category one storm, igor is still packing sustained winds up to 85 miles an hour. we have more on that in a moment. authorities in southern california are looking for 13 members of a suspected cult reported missing by their families. the five adults and eight children disappeared yesterday and left behind clues that they might commit mass suicide. overseas pope benedict is wrapping up his four-day visit to the united kingdom. earlier this morning he celebrated an outdoor mass before a crowd of 50,000 people. and it's ban deadly day in baghdad with car bombings in two different neighborhoods leaving 23 people dead. those are this hour's fast five headlines. >>> let's get more details on hurricane igor. that powerful storm is takin

i'm alex witt. welcome to msnbc saturday. bp says crews are now pumping cement to permanently seal the blownout well at the bottom of the gulf of mexico. it spilled 256 million gallons of oil into the ocean killing 11 workers. kristen dahlgren is live in venice, louisiana, with a good saturday morning to you. when are the crews expected to be finished with the permanent seal so it is a done deal? >> reporter: hey, good morning, alex. well, it is likely based on the timeline we have been given, at this point they would be waiting for it to cure, but bp has said it does expect later today to make the announcement that the well is permanently killed meaning it will never leak oil into the gulf of mexico again. we are talking about that relief well that they started drilling shortly after the disaster began. they drilled down about 2 1/2 miles beneath the floor of the gulf and intersected the well that had been leaking and they michigan to pump in the cement. that's the final bottom kill. after they permanent he seal this well, i

i'm alex witt. this morning, the influential pastor at the center of a sexual scandal will address the allegations against him this morning. four men now say bishop eddie young lurd them into sexual relationships when they were teens. bishop long has denied all of the allegations. i'm joined now live by the reverend eugene rivers, pastor of the izuzu christian community and a msnbc political analyst. how are you doing? >> i'm well, alex thank you. and you? >> i'm well, thank you. first of all, your reaction to what's happening there in georgia? >> first, prayers to the family, the wife and the kids and secondly, regardless of how this turns out, it's a tragedy. if it turns out that the allegations are false, he -- i don't know how he recovers. if it turns out that the allegations are true or some portion of them are true, he is effectively destroyed this multi million dollar ministry that he spent the last 20 years building. >> and it's a ministry that he went from 300 condegree gants to 25,000 peop

i'm alex witt. welcome to nbc saturday. this developing now after spending less than 12 hours behind bars, lindsay lohan is out of jail this morning. the actress was released overnight after a judge sentenced to her 30 days for failing a drug test. we'll go live to los angeles where kristen walker is standing by for us. a very early morning to you. why was lindsay released just hours after she was sentenced? >> reporter: really a stunning turn of events here, alex. you are absolutely right. essentially the superior court judge ruled that lindsay lohan was only facing misdemeanor charges. therefore, she was entitled to bail, which she set at $300,000. lindsay posted that and was home at 12:30 a.m. this morning. as you mentioned, alex, earlier in the day a judge ordered lindsay to jail for 30 days without bail. he was essentially holding her there until her next court date. she was in court initially because she had failed a drug test just weeks after she has been released from rehab. so that's why sh

i'm alex witt, and welcome to msnbc-w it's 11:00 a.m. here on the east coast, 8:00 a.m. out west. let's get to what's happening right now. the pastor at the center of a sex scandal in georgia speaking to his congregation today for the first time since four lawsuits were filed against him. four men claim bishop eddie long coaxed them into sexual relationships when they were just teens. the men say the bishop lured them with jewelry, cash, vacations, even cars. bishop long has denied all of the allegations. >> i have never in my life portrayed myself as a perfect m man. but i am not the man that's being portrayed on the television. >> for those of you who couldn't hear that, the first part of the pastor's statement said, "i have never in my life portrayed myself as a perfect man." and then he followed that up. anyway, i'm joined live right now from lithonia, georgia by nbc's than truong. good morning to you. i know you were inside that church this morning. talk about how the pastor was received today and anything else he had to say. >> well, ex, it was a packed house. more than 8,00

i'm alex witt. here are your fast five headlines. long told his congregation just a short time ago that he will preside over services next sunday as usual. and says he is not the man portrayed on television. bishop long is facing four lawsuits that claim he coerced four young male followers into having sex. he is expected to speak to the media at 10:00 eastern. we'll carry his comments live. >>> tropical depression matthew is bringing heavy rain and flooding to southeastern mexico and guatemala. the storm is also raising fears of mudslides and flash floods. >>> the first of three specially built capsules to rescue those 33 trapped miners in chile has arrived at the mine. two backup capsules will arrive next week. the rescue could happen in early november. >>> in australia, environmental protesters stormed the largest coal port before dawn today halting operations at three terminals. >>> and bounding for orbit, the air force last night launched a surveillance satellite that will be on the lookout for debris satellites and other space

>>> good morning, everyone, i'm alex witt. it's 11:00 a.m. on the east coast, 8:00 a.m. on the west. we have an exclusive interview on "meet the press." retired general and secretary of state colin powell says he hasn't yet decided to endorse president obama in the 2012 election. >> just as i did in 2008, when 2012 comes along, i will look at the needs of the country, the situation as i see it, and i will evaluate both candidates and see which one i think is best able to lead the country. >> nbc's mike bacquero at the white house. good morning. colin powell did back the president in '08. what is his view now? >> reporter: he did so on "meet the press." he called barack obama, then of course the senator, a transformational figure. he's not really backing away, he's saying let's wait and see, i did it in election year, i made the endorsement which incidentally angered people within his republican party. i'm going to wait and see. let's at least guest past these midterms. and when that election year does come up, we'll look at both nominees and make his decision. but it was

good morning, i'm alex witt. welcome to msnbc saturdays. workers are working to seal the bp spill. catastrophe began april 20th at the deep water horizon oil rig that led to the gushing well, gushing 206,000 barrels of oil into the gulf. what are the crews doing to get this thing wrapped up? >> good morning, alex. we could be hours away from hearing this well is permanently sealed off. we are talking the relief wells we have spent months and months now talking about. they have drilled the first one two and a half miles below the gulf. intercepted thursday and yesterday, they began pumping in the cement for the bottom kill. it's unlikely they are waiting for the cement to cure. once they do pressure tests, they will declare it dead. bp expects to do that sometime today. great news for bp here. it's a milestone to the recovery. the oil hasn't flowed into the gulf for about 65 days since they did the static kill. there's still a lot of oil out there. it continues to wash ashore here in louisiana, almost on a daily basis. just this week, they collected 25,000 gallons of oil or so here

i'm alex witt. at 32 past the hour, here are your headlines.the gulf of mexico are pumping cement into the blown out oil well. they expect it to be completely closed today. >>> polls are closed in afghanistan. the taliban launched a series of attacks that killed at least two people. >>> bermuda is bracing for igor. it could hit the island nation tomorrow night. >>> alaska senator lisa murkowski will run. she lost to joe miller last month. >>> lindsay lohan failed a drug test. she could wind up back in jail. those are the fast five headlines. >>> jail and rehab. the troubled actress lindsay lohan is maybe facing a trip to prison. she admitted on her twitter page last night. the bombshell revelation. let's get the news. good morning. >> good morning. >> i really want to know what's going on here. she just got out of rehab and previously jail three weeks ago. >> exactly. yesterday, multiple reports surfaced that lindsay had indeed failed a court mandated drug test. maybe more than one of them. her immediate response was to deny the allegations, sa

. >>> i'm alex witt. at this hour, bp crews are in the middle of a process to seal that blownout well at the bottom of the gulf of mexico once and for all. a temporary cap stopped the gusher in july and later by cement from the top. but the well can't be declared dead until it is sealed from the bottom. kristen dahlgren is live with us in venice, louisiana. are we given any timeframe before we know if the well has been permanently sealed up? >> reporter: good morning, alex. we know that bp thinks it will be today. we could be just hours away from that word that everyone is waiting for that this well will never again leak into the gulf of mexico. it's an announcement that's 151 days into this disaster now. but here in these louisiana communities, it is still far from the finish line. 150 days after oil first flowed into the gulf, the flow of cement started. in what has been a months-long effort to finally seal the well from the bottom up. the cement was pumped in through the relief well. and at some point

i'm alex witt, i'll be back saturday morning at 7:00 a.m. eastern.sta brewer is here. >> watching the voters -- values voters summit. it's in washington, d.c. a big deal among the divided conservatives. mitt romney speaking right now. the real question is, will the split between tea party supporters and establishment hurt the gop and help the democrats in november? >>> a stunning confession. remember the girl who said, oh, an unknown attacker came up and threw acid in my case. i'm so lucky i was wearing sunglasses. what she says now really happened. it's a stunner, in the next three minutes. stay with us. ♪ 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 ♪ ♪ you check a lot of things already why not add one more ♪ ♪ that can help your situation for sure ♪ ♪ check your credit score ♪ free-credit-score-dot-com ♪ free-credit-score ♪ you wo

i'm alex witt. just past 11:00 here on the east coast, 8:00 a.m. on the west coast. >>> that blown-out well on the bottom of the gulf coast could be sealed today. now they're working to make sure that well is stopped for good. kristen dahlgren is live for us in venice, louisiana. so another good morning. how is it going at this point? >> reporter: hey, good morning, alex. we're still waiting for any word to come from about 50 miles off the coast here where that operation is under way. the last we heard from bp was some time yesterday afternoon that they had started the cementing process. that started at about 1:30 local time. it was expected to take a few hours. then they needed to let that cement cure. after that they were going to do their pressure test. then at that point they would be able to declare this well killed, that it would never again leak any oil into the gulf of mexico. they did expect to make that announcement at some point today. so we are still waiting. this comes after a long summer of waiting for this bottom kill. the relief wel

i'm alex witt. welcome to msnbc sunday. we're talking about bermuda which is bracing for hurricane igor. the category one storm is expected to strike the island later today but already as you can see right there the big waves are pounding bermuda's beaches while islanders rush to board up windows and prep for the storm. let's get more details from the weather channel's jeff morrow. it's a busy time in bermuda. good morning. >> good morning, alex. yeah, they had better have those windows and doors boarded up by now because alex is on the door step. as you can see, here is the center of this hurricane igor and there is bermuda and it's not that far away. we're within about 12 hours or so of this thing passing almost directly over or very close to bermuda. now the good news here, alex, is that the winds are down to 85 miles an hour so it is a category one. it has weakened a little bit. it's going to be a long duration event here. it's such a big hurricane in coverage that it's going to take a while for these hurricane and trop

i'm alex witt. welcome to msnbc saturday. developing right now, a judge sentenced her to 30 days in jail for failing a drug test. lindsay lohan is a free woman this morning. the 24-year-old was released from jail overnight. nbc's kristen well kker is live hollywood outside lohan's home. why was lindsay lohan let out so soon? >> what happened, alex, and good morning to you, is that a superior court judge overturned a ruling that was passed down earlier in the day and essentially let lindsay lohan out on bail. let me trach you through the koufrs events. lindsay lohan went to court yesterday at about 9:00 a.m. a judge, judge eldon fox, sentenced her to 30 days in jail without bail for a probation violation. she tested positive for drugs just weeks after she had gotten out of rehab. he was trying to prove a point to say that you cannot keep making these mistakes and falling off of the wagon. however, a superior court judge said that lindsay lohan is only facing a misdemeanor and given that, she is entitled to bail. so she set bai

i'm alex witt. it's just about 9:00 a.m. here on the east coast. 6:00 a.m. out west. let's get to what's happening and developing from los angeles. lindsay lohan is out of jail this morning after only serving 12 hours behind bars for failing a drug test. the 24-year-old athres was rlgsed overnight and driven away in a black suv right back to her home. and that's where we find nbc's kristen welker. with a good morning to you, kristen, when did lindsay get home last night? wee hours? >> wee hours. good morning. she arrived here at her west hollywood apartment at about 12:30 this morning. all thanks to her attorney. a superior court judge and a lot of money. lindsay lohan released from jail just hours after a judge had ordered her back inside without bail. the troubled actress first reported to court friday morning dressed to the nines for yet another probation violations. this time she tested positive for drugs just weeks after she was released from rehab. before the hearing started, lohan was all smiles. but all that changed when ten minutes after the hearing started,

logistics ♪ ♪ there will be no more stress ♪ ♪ cause you've called ups, that's logistics ♪ >>> i'm alex wittur for you. the pastor of a georgia megachurch addressed his congregation this morning for the first time since four lawsuits were filed against him. >> i've been accused. i'm under attack. i want you to know, as i said earli earlier, i am not a perfect man, but this thing i'm going to fight. [ cheers and applause ] >> four men accuse bishop eddie long of pressuring them into sexual relationships back when they were teens. the bishop of course, you hear there, has denied the allegations. he is scheduled to appear at another service at 11:00 a.m. eastern time. >>> the administrator of the fund for the victims of the gulf oil spill is promising bigger checks and faster turnaround. kenneth feinberg was criticized recently from gulf residents and businesses, who say the payments have been too small and too slow to come. that being payments. >>> the d.e.a. and police departments received tons of prescription drugs turned in at sites across this country. in fact, people dropped off unused an

i'm alex witt. welcome to msnbc saturday. judge sentenced her to 30 days in jail for failing a drug test, but lindsay lohan is a free woman this morning. the 24-year-old was released from jail overnight. kristen welker is in hollywood outside of lohan's home. why was lohan let out so soon. that wasn't the case when we all were leaving for work yesterday. >> reporter: that's certainly true, alex. lindsay lohan was let out early because a superior court judge overturned a ruling passed down earlier in the day by a judge in beverly hills. i want to give you a chronology of what happened. first thing yesterday morning lindsay lohan appeared in court on a bench water hearing because she had violated her probation by testing positive for drugs just weeks after she had been released from rehab. well, the judge in that hearing, judge eldin fox, essentially remanded her to court custody, sent her to jail for 30 days without bail. he was basically holding her there until her actual probation violation hearing which is set for october 2