hoda. >> okay. all right, sam brock, thank you so much. >>> craig is off this morning, and we are delighted to welcome nbc's new senior national correspondent tom llamas. somebody we actually know well. >> you used to work across the street. >> i did, yeah. now i'm back here. this is great, it feels amazing to be here today. >>> we want to turn to a new controversy surrounding new york governor andrew cuomo. his governor chris, a cnn anchor apologizing on his show last night after it was revealed he's been advising his governor on how to deal with ongoing sexual >> reporter: good morning, tom, usually we bring you the latest in the slew of scandals su surrounding new york governor andrew cuomo, but this morning it's his younger brother, chris, a cnn prime time host, who is doing the explaining overnight cnn's chris cuomo defending the political advice he gave his brother andrew, new york's governor accused of inappropriate behavior or sexual harassment by at least nine women. >> i understand why tha

thank you, hoda.oing to be hearing so much more about mr. donovan. >> great, hoda. >> he is a cool, cool guy. by the way, when they leave seventh grade, he gives them his phone number he says, call me in high school. they call him in high school, they catch up. and just to launch his dream of making inspirational videos for kids, donovan is using his own money. he is moving in with his parents to use all his savings for this. we wish him the very best. the guy is going to be a success. i swear, meeting him, i was thinking about all of us in seventh grade who could have used a mr. donovan he's a cool guy. >> mr. donovan >> come on. >> we'll be hearing lots more from him thank you for that >>> by the way, we're just getting started. mr. donovan is the beginning tomorrow on "celebrating service," jenna bush hager is going to head to texas, a state she knows well she's ghg thgoing there for a le event to share the story of another teacher who spent, get this, ten years earning her degree can you say commi

hoda, i've got to be honest with you. i've been speaking with these drivers, last night, this morning, they're telling me that it's very difficult because the average commute time is 30 minutes in america. a lot of these people drive long distances to get to work, and they don't want to get stuck or miss work. hoda. >> i just want to say one more thing before we let you go. it's so great to have you back at nbc. your very first spot on the "today" show. we miss you. you haven't aged a bit. so welcome back to nbc, honey. >> i will definitely take that, thank you, hoda, feels great. >> all right, savannah, over to you. >> yeah, welcome, tom, we're really glad to have you back . >>> also this morning in washington, the biden administration is facing a new crisis on the world stage, the escalating deadly violence between israelis and palestinians it's the worst it's been in seven years. nbc's kelly cobiella has got the very latest. kelly, good morning to you skblort g >> reporter: good morning to you. more israeli air strikes

hoda. >>> thank you. a very brave 11-year-old who fought after an attempted kidnapping while she waited for the school bus the frightening scene caught on camera this morning she is sharing her story with us including the clever way she helped police catch the suspect. >>> and then after more than a year in lockdown, most families are ready for a summer vacation, but where can you go safely? will you need your vaccine card? tom costello has everything you need to know, but first this is [ sfx: ping ping beep beep bloop bloop ] lisa looks like you've... [ sfx: pop pop pop pop ] lisa, you might be on mute. [ sfx: pop ping bloop ] [ phone buzzing ] the day can wait... enter the golden state with real california dairy. findings into a investigation into princess diana's most explosive interview. we are live in london this morning with the repercussions it could have for the royal family but first, your local news and then some weather. one of the many things you can expect when you're with amex. she thought t

smith. >> thank you, guys. >> hoda, hoda? >> yes >> hoda, i told mrs.nda smith appreciation day. it should be every day you're going to come back and join us again on the fourth hour we love you so much. that was the most beautiful, beautiful tribute to a beautiful educator we got another surprise or two up our sleeves for later, all right? >> man >> you know there are folks watching right now who are so inspired by her. >> to god be the glory. >> to god be the glory >> wanda's story came back around never thought today would happen it's awesome. >> isn't it awesome? >> awesome. >> beautiful. >> we'll have more, hoda and i, in the 10:00 hour. >> love you. love you, jenna. >> our own mrs. smith who inspired us and pushed us on like that. >> boy, that was -- i mean, i expected an amazing story. i don't know if i was prepared for that >> i think over the last year, our teachers have gone above and beyond that was appropriate for us tog >> wow. >> every time she's in her classroom, her dream is coming true. >> wow. >> that's beautiful. >> we're not done. on

i've had a lot of those, hoda.a living almost like, why are you here? he must have asked me 20 questions, like, marketing, sales? it was like, no. it was so funny. i happened to be the keynote speaker for the private luncheon i assumed my position on the stage, and i just saw his face totally drain. i feel as if i'm going to teach a couple lessons through this, and i am going to be my best >> reporter: that drive was instilled at an early age. brewer grew up in detroit, the youngest of five kids. her parents worked the assembly line at general motors your parents didn't go to college, but they wanted to make sure their kids did. how did they make that clear to you, that that was the plan? >> absolutely. it was from day one. it was not -- there was no other option my dad worked three jobs, but for every event that i had in my life, he was always there. and i remember one event where i thought i was going to get, you know, the gold ribbon, and i ended up getting an honorable mention. i remember feeling guilty because

hoda?thank god for that hero teache erin mclaughlin, thank you. >>> now to the escal good morning. >> craig, hoda, good morning. things have reached a boiling point this week, with liz cheney, one of the party's highest ranking members of congress, facing a growing effort to remove her from leadership. everyone, from the former president to democrats, are weighing in. nbc's chief white house correspondent peter alexander has more. good morning to you, peter. >> reporter: sheinelle, good morning to you. despite his election loss six months ago, this may be the week that former president trump really cemented his control of the republican party, with the expected ouster of liz cheney, one of his most prominent gop critics. cheney calling this a turning point, but it appears increasingly clear that the republican party has already made its turn. with house republicans on track to expel liz cheney from her leadership post as early as next week, her likely replacement is already auditioning for

hey, richard, good morning >> reporter: good morning, hoda.a strip, but there were also israeli tanks and artillery firing into gaza they were targeting a tunnel network, according to the military, that hamas uses to move men, to move fighters around, and to help fire rockets. hamas has been firing not just a few rockets but dozens and dozens of rockets at a time, as it tries to beat theg to do is overwhelm the missile defense system, hoping that some of the rockets will fall through, and some of the rockets have been falling through. there have been some israeli casualties, at least eight killed so far since this conflict many more palestinians, around 120. >> richard engel for us there in tel aviv, richard, thank you >>> meanwhile, back here, lottery officials in california are investigating whether a ticket worth $26 million went down the drain the deadline for claiming the november jackpot was thursday. on wednesday, a woman goes into a convenient store near los angeles and says that she had the ticket but left it in her pocket, and it got

sam, good morning. >> reporter: hoda, good morning.e nation's first and second largest school districts respectively are opening up to full in-person instruction this fall mayor de blasio saying it was time we come together and do this the way it was meant to be done, assuring parents there are proven protections for the roughly 1 million students catered to in new york city's school district. there is no online remote option for new york this fall in los angeles, there will be an option for those who choose it the other big news, big developments has to do with the origins of covid-19. this coming as a lack of hard evidence showing the natural transmission from animals, in combination with intelligence reports suggesting there were researchers in a wuhan lab that fell ill to flu-like symptoms and had to be hospitalized in november before the outbreak of covid-19 is pushing calls this morning for a deeper investigation by the united states as to whether covid started potentiall in a wuhan lab they're trying to prevent a hamstringing of

steph, morning >> reporter: hoda, good morning. and not because of the competition on the field at two stops, tampa and baltimore, members of their organization have had to quarantine, including their shortstop. altogether, there are nine cases of covid and everyone got the vaccine. >> ground ball right side and through for a base hit. >> reporter: like a ground ball slipping through the infield, breakthrough cases, when fully vaccinated people get covid, are supposed to be rare. now, nine members of the new york yankees, including shortstop torres have tested positive for the virus in the last week. only one person was sick with just mild symptoms they all received the johnson & johnson vaccine. >> we've been rocked here the last several days. just trying to handle it as best we can >> reporter: it all started on may 11th in tampa, the beginning of a ten-day road trip before the game, the team announced the third base coach was positive by the end of the game, there were two more cases. the next day, the number was up to seven on

savannah, hoda, good morning. good morning to you. fans still smiling after phil mickelson's extraordinary victory at the pga championship at the age of 50 mickelson becoming the oldest major champion ever. he entered the record books in front of a raucous crowd there on kiawah island at the ocean course sam brock has more on the amazing achievement. hey, sam >> reporter: craig, good morning. just a great moment in sports. in the modern era of golf, only four players over the age of 50 had even led going into the final round of a major of course, mickelson won the player nicknamed lefty showing he still has plenty of surprises left even for golf's most ardent fans -- >> beats father time. >> reporter: -- sunday's pga championship ending felt that of left field one of the sport's most beloved athletes, phil mickelson, putting on a show at the age of 50 walking to the 18th green mobbed by spectators, becoming the oldest golfer ever to win a major championship. >> i love the game of golf i love what i do i love the challenge of competing

gadi, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, hoda.e month around the same area, but this time it was something flying near one of the navy's stealth ships when it suddenly plunged into the water and disappeared. >> wow, it's getting close. >> reporter: on a pitch black night off the coast of california, newly leaked video allegedly shows one of the u.s. navy stealth ships tracking an unknown object in the sky. after a few minutes. >> it splashed. >> reporter: the 2019 footage obtained by a filmmaker who last month released another video of an upside down pyramid ufo hovering above a navy destroyer. >> this is a larger series of events we are going to be learning about. >> reporter: the pentagon confirming the video was taken by navy personnel. the images now being reviewed by a government task force, set to brief congress next month on what they called unidentified aerial phenomenon. "60 minutes" speaking to pilots who reported seeing unidentified flying objects. >> every day for at least a couple years. >> reporter: former secretary

. >> announcer: from nbc news, this is "today" with savannah guthrie and hoda kotb, from studio 1a in rockefeller plaza. >> hey everybody, welcome "today." this isn't just any thursday. savannah guthrie. this is a big one. this is our very first time out >> this isn't thursday, this is the future. it has been 15 months since we have been standing right here on our plaza on a concert stage getting ready to listen to some great music. >> ryan tinder was rehearsing this morning with one republic. he is killing it. he's excited. >> and adding to that excitement is our audience. joined out here by dedicated nurses who have worked so hard throughout the pandemic to help make events like this even possible. >> yeah, we are going to celebrate. it's national nurses' day, and we are so happy to have you guys here. but we've got chills, and it is time to get our concerts back in business. we are going to start with our top story, encouraging news in the pandemic. health officials saying the u.s. could turn the corner this summer if vaccine goals are met and as nbc's miguel almaguer explains, the

hoda? crowded deck collapsing during a birthday party. it's the latest in a string of similar accidents, as friends reunite and start to enjoy the warmer weather. nbc's erin mclaughlin has that story. >> reporter: the horrifying moment that malibu party-goers plunged 15 feet to boulders below. what was once an ocean-front deck is now wreckage of patio furniture and splintered wood, after rental guests crowded onto a balcony on saturday. >> for residential homes, that would appear to be a lot of persons on that. potentially a lot of weight. >> reporter: the homeowner told nbc los angeles she rented the home out on vrbo and expected that only five people would be using it the party-goers say at least 20 people attended a birthday party held there, including this man he says he was inside the living room when the deck gave out. >> we were chilling at the birthday party you know, this back deck, like ten people on the back deck. we heard it crack. i literally saw all of my best friends and my g

good day around here. >> reporter: hoda, good morning. it's hard to believe, but it's been more than a year since we stood right here in an eerie, desolate times square. today, most capacity limits here in new york are a thing of the past this morning, new york, the one-time covid epicenter in the u.s., is officially lifting its mask and social distancing mandates for fully vaccinated people >> i think we've all waited long enough, and i think it's time for people to live and be happy again. >> we're back but stronger than ever. >> reporter: many large events including broadway and the new york city marathon are planning to roar back later this year >> i think what you're seeing is extraordinary. this comeback is ahead of schedule >> reporter: but across the country, mass confusion. while many major retailers announce ditching the face covering requirements, in texas, the governor issued an executive order banning mask mandates. violators face a possible $1,000 fine far cry from california, where the indoor mask mandate remains until mid-

>> hoda swears by the wow hair spray. thank you. >> thanks, guys. >> for more, head to today.com/shop by the way, chassie is bringing you even more deals live on our instagram page go to @shoptoday >>> up next, fire up the grill. >> let's do it. >> ready here we go we always learn something new, by the way, when the grill dads join us. oh, look at that we learned he can juggle this morning. we'll see what else they have, maybe not. they're going to join us to give when you're born and raised in san francisco, you grow up wanting to make a difference. that's why, at recology, we're proud to be 100% employee owned with local workers as diverse as san francisco. we built the city's recycling system from the ground up, helping to make san francisco the greenest big city in america but we couldn't do it without you. thank you, san francisco. gracias, san francisco. -thank you. -[ speaks native language ] let's keep making a differene together. in business, it's never just another day. it's the big sale, or the big presentation

. >> announcer: from nbc news, this is "today" with savannah guthrie and hoda kotb, from studio 1a inkefeller plaza. >> welcome to "today." thank you for joining us. happy to see you on this thursday morning. >> lot to cover this morning including the countdown to memorial day weekend, the unofficial start to summer. >> indeed it is off. here's a look at a busy i-95 outside of wilmington, delaware. and in the days ahead aaa expects traffic to reach near pre-pandemic numbers. a look at the holiday weekend that could feel a bit more normal. and dylan has her eye on the forecast after a night of really severe weather across much of the country. >> in the meantime there are new questions this morning tied to the origins of the coronavirus pandemic, with u.s. intelligence officials now re-examining the theory that the virus may have spread accidentally from a chinese lab. kristen welker in washington with the latest on that. >>> but we do begin in san jose, california. the site of yet another mass shooting. the death toll rising to nine overnight after a gunman opened fire at a rail yard.

>> reporter: yeah, there certainly are, hoda. kaiser family foundation did a survey with some interesting results. you heard that woman there, you have a third of families that agree, they're going to get their kids vaccinated right away. another third of parents say they're going to wait and see. 15% of parents say they'll only do it if schools require it. you can expect that conversation to heat up over the course of the summer. then there are 19% of parents who say they won't get their kids vaccinated. as we've seen, as the approvals come forward, hoda, those numbers tend to shift. we'll be keeping an eye on them. >> stephanie gosk for us at laguardia, thank you. >>> all right. this is shaping up to be a major week when it comes to the future of the republican party. the fate of one of its highest ranking members on capitol hill, congresswoman liz cheney, she's expected to face a vote to oust her from the number three position in party leadership. the top house republican is already endorsing her replacement. nbc senior washin

bye, val, we love you. >> bye, guys, love you. >> bye, honey. >>> coming up on hoda and jenna.ur goggles. >> after your local news. >> take a nap s.g. >> thank you, love ya. >>> good morning, it's 8:56. i'm marcus washington. we're following breaking news in contra costa county. firefighters are still at the scene at the concord church. it's on asbury drive, a few blocks from the concord police department. the fire happened at a infrastructure on the church's property. people are telling everyone to stay away from the scene. no word on a cause. bob redell is live on the scene and will have a report on our midday newscast. >>> the cdc granted emergency use authorization for anyone 12 to 15 to get pfizer's vaccine. we're tracking how bay county area residents say they're getting ready for that. this academic year has been, um, challenging. but i think there's so much success to celebrate. woman: it's been a year like no other. man: yet, for educators across california, the care, compassion, and teaching has never stopped. woman: addressing their unique needs... man: ...and provid

and update this wednesday morning with hoda abdel-hamid in occupied east jerusalem gaza 1st of all what is the team telling you about events there this morning. well as you mentioned earlier there is this situation where residents of a complex building near the center of gaza city between gaza city and jabalya refugee camp were told to evacuate usually that happens is what people refer to as a knock on the roof like a small explosion warning people that something bigger will happen now make no mistake that smallest closure is a really terrifying and schools damage to the upper floors at least some of the building now that complex of 2 buildings as i understand it is 16 stories high each floor has about 6 flats so imagine all these families running for their lives and trying to pick up as many belongings as they can because they don't know if they will ever return to that place or will what when they come back next it will just be. rebels and imagine just the panic among them and also all discussions of what's going to happen to them next now elsewhere around gaza city we just spoke to o

now, you'll handle hoda's "morning boost." >> i'm going to do my best, i'm going to try.dog just has to take matters into his own paws. the bride and groom had everyone's attention for the first dance. including the dog. the dog didn't want to be left out of the magical moment, so it got up on its hind legs, and all three of them slow danced together. >> how sweet is that? >> you have to wonder when that happens, who leads? >> they've clearly done it before, like, you can't do it without me, right? >> that's sweet. >> beautiful. >>> up next, tom llamas getting a hands-on preview of the excitement you can expect at sunday's indy 500. we are live at the brick yard right after this thousands of smarter towers, with the 5g coverage you need. broader spectrum for faster 5g speeds. next-generation servers with superior network reliability. because the more you do with 5g, the more your network matters. it's us...pushing us. it's verizon...vs verizon. and who wins? you. ♪♪♪ dive into summer with savings on outdoor furniture... outdoor games... and all the essentials to grill up

this morning on the "today" show, hoda kotb talks to oprah about our prime tame interview with harry and meghan markle and some of the criticism that followed. >> people have to speak out and prince harry has been speaking out. with his speaking out, oprah, he's gotten some criticism, i don't know whether it's for speaking out too much. he asked for privacy, and now people feel lik him everywhere. what are the not understanding about what's going on? >> you know, i asked for privacy and i'm talking all the time. so i think being able to have a life that you are not intruded upon by photographers or people flying overhead or invading your life. >> you can watch the entire interview coming up on the "today" show. >>> also coming up next on "today in the bay," we're going to cover some top stories including covid restrictions that are easing across the board as a lot of people in california are getting vaccinated now. why some bay area businesses say they're not ready to play ball just yet with some of the loosening rules. celebrate memorial day with the values you want on appliances. l

here is hoda kotb. >> one of the biggest attractions at the louisville zoo was a floppy eared baby, named scotty, cute and kind of cuddly, at least for an elephant. >> he has hair. >> he has hair is right. >> on this day, he shared the spotlight with another media celebrity, a spunky girl named erica, whose infectious laugh and incredible story captivated a city. >> that girl is a miracle child. >> why do you think they call her that? >> because she's been through a lot. >> we have a 2-year-old who was shot twice and lived. >> does she have an understanding of what happened to her? >> she knows she's been shot. >> if you would see her, you would say there's no way this child could possibly make it. >> louisville, the home of churchill downs, is famous for its big horse race, the kentucky derby. so, it knows a thing or two about long shots. but in betting parlance, the odds of this story ever finding a happy ending were off the board, virtually impossible. would a little girl ever gain the strength not only to recover, but to come back whole? and would a dedicated detective not only crack

. ♪ ♪ >>> from nbc news, this is ay" and hoda kotb.m studio 1a in rockefeller plaza. >>> hi, everybody. good morning. welcome to "today" on a wednesday morning. we're glad to have you along with us. >> yes, we do have a lot to cover this morning, savannah. >> we do. we will start with the memorials. it was a somber day around the country. millions marking yesterday's first anniversary of george floyd's death with memorials and marches, even as frustration is mounting over the lack of a senate deal yet on police reform. nbc's gabe gutierrez is in minneapolis with the latest on that story. >>> meantime, the u.s. is reaching new milestones in pandemic recovery. 50% of all adults fully vaccinated and covid cases are down to levels not seen since last june. morgan radford will have that part of the story from ohio where someone is about to get a million dollars for simply getting the vaccine. >> that's a good motivation. >>> while covid numbers are down, travel numbers for memorial day weekend are going way, way up. an expected 60% increase

222 palestinians have been killed since the military offensive began 9 days ago the latest now with hoda abdel-hamid in occupied east jerusalem. residents of a complex of buildings 16 story buildings were told to evacuate building now that's a building that. residential building each floor has about 6 apartments and so you can imagine now the panic of those families trying. to build maybe grabbing some belongings because they want they don't know whether they will be ever be able to return to their homes or whether that building will be flattened. with other buildings in the days before and in other news for the 2nd day in a row the number of coronavirus deaths in india has hit a record high more than 4 and a half 1000 recorded in the last 24 hours but the number of new cases has been coming down in recent days after reaching daily highs of more than 400002 weeks ago in the 2nd wave are seen hospitals in major cities running out of oxygen and migrants are continuing to travel from morocco to a spanish enclave in north africa despite poor conditions there around 8000 people have not cross

i will be hosting with savannah guthrie and hoda kotb.spiration list features stories of extraordinary people >>> that's "nightly news" for this friday. thank you for watching i'm lester holt. please take care of yourself and each other. have a great weekend, and good night and each other. have a great weekend, and good night. [cheers and applause] ♪ ♪ ♪♪ look at the stars ♪ ♪ look how they shine for you ♪ ♪ and everything you do ♪ ♪ yeah they were all yellow ♪ ♪ i came along ♪ ♪ i wrote a song for you ♪ ♪ and all the things you do ♪ ♪ and it was called "yellow" ♪ ♪ so then i took my turn ♪ ♪ oh what a thing to have done ♪ ♪ and it was all yellow ♪ ♪ your skin ♪ ♪ oh yeah your skin and bones ♪ ♪ turn into something beautiful ♪ ♪ and you know ♪ ♪ for you i'd bleed myself dry ♪ ♪ for you i'd bleed myself dry ♪ ♪ for you i'd bleed myself dry ♪ ♪ look at the stars ♪ ♪ look how they shine for you ♪ ♪ and all the things that you do ♪♪ [cheers and applause] >> kelly: [screams] all right, everybody. welcome to "the kelly clarkso

catastrophe is unfolding in gaza tens of thousands of people have been displaced from west to recent hoda abdel-hamid has more on the increasingly dangerous situation for families in gaza. they fled their homes for safety leaving behind all their belongings not knowing if they will ever return to live there or find a pile of rubble instead. then losses in. the narrative garden for. we were sitting at my wife children and i almost sitting in the same room we have free children one is a 9 month old baby all of a sudden the house was hit we couldn't get out. then came another strike and the house crumbled over us they were trapped under the rubble i started screaming but couldn't find them the ambulances could not reach the area 4 pounds an hour but it was too light my wife and free children died. his is a story that has become all too common in gaza this video shows people running for their lives after a multi-story building was hit in central gaza on monday people visibly shaken shocked and in fear. israel says it target is buildings used by hamas or other armed groups claims that often go

i will be hosting with savannah guthrie and hoda kotb.spiration list features stories of extraordinary people >>> that's "nightly news" for this friday. thank you for watching i'm lester holt. please take care of yourself and each other. have a great weekend, and good night other. have a great weekend, and good night. >>> right now, at 6:00. the tables have turned. too many vaccines, not enough people getting in line. >> we have this precious amount of vaccine that other parts of the world don't have, and we need to use it. >> so, can local counties take their surplus vaccine and give them to other communities and countries in need? we have answers. >>> plus, taking a drastic step to try and stop a new-covid surge from spreading. >> i want to be safe. and i want other people to be safe. >> the air-travel restrictions from india, and when they go into effect. >>> and rallying to stop evictions. the movement in contra costa county today, in hopes of helping a family of six. >>> the news at 6:00 starts right now. good evening, and thanks for

pull all of this together with hoda abdel-hamid in a sort of crossroads position there on to her in occupied east jerusalem 9 days into this conflict now the head of seeing no sign of aid getting through there's no sign of a ceasefire at all really sorry but when not hearing you not to show what's happened to your audio there i can see you speaking but we can't he just going to double check just. ok we'll try again the later part of the heat is there an occupied east jerusalem even if we could hear it still plenty of news ahead including a breath of fresh air the french enjoy their outdoor cafes again as coronavirus restrictions loosen up. an old shoes becoming high odds the train is that a selling for as high as 7 figures that option. for the perfect gentleman. with a strong suit point qatar airways hallow they were expecting more wet weather for china and that's thanks to may you front sitting across central and eastern areas that's going to bring some really heavy rainfall we could see some localized flooding across areas of the yancey river basin and you can see that stretching out into

. >> better costar, sharks or hoda . >> would have.rd on the door the star on the hollywood walk of fame. for emmys, thank you lord, and frank when he found out i was being nominated for that he sai aren't you on that already? >> what happened to that the way ? >> he should have been on that ten or 15 years ago. >> that's the world i live in. we been around we've survived the critics and you haven't bee scandalized so badly that peopl cancel you, i am just still her and they don't know what to do with me. >> kathy lee, i'm coming to nashville and i'm hanging out with you and were definitely having wine. to get the whole is moving here. you'll love the taxes. >> great to see you, thank you so much. >> god bless, thanks for having me. >> a lot more of my conversatio with kathy lee go to fox nation .com right now after the show and watch the full interview. when we come back, in exclusive interview i will tell you about for monday that will reveal terrifying government overreach. all tell you about it next. find more ways to grow at mirac

here are savannah guthrie, lester holt and hoda kotb. >> good evening. we're starting a new annual tradition. we're spotlighting the folk whose inspire us most. these aren't people to idolize or put on a pedestal. they wouldn't want that. these are people we've chosen to inspire all of us in our own lives. >> this group shows us we may not be as different or divided as we think. we can still work for each other and with each other. that inspiration we hope paints a virtuous circle. >> everyone is a powerful example of lending a hand, making a mark or taking a chance. someone who's done all three is lin manuel miranda, creator of the smash hit musical "hamilton." it's not just his words that inspire, it's his actions as he lifts people up and brings them together. >> how do you define inspiration? >> it's the thing that won't leave you alone, right? that notion that just kind of keeps coming back around and being, like, hello, hello. >> washington heights is the source of lin manuel miranda's earliest inspiration and the scene of the "hamilton" star's nex

former president bush earlier told hoda he was concerned. >> president biden came and explained to you> did you think that was the right decision? >> a lot of gains had been made, so i'm deeply concerned about the plight of women and girls in that country. >> reporter: and it's not just afghan women at risk. these men hiding their faces all worked as interpreters for the u.s. military. they went on combat missions with u.s. troops that killed taliban fighters or put them in jail. what about here in kabul, do you think you're at risk? >> definitely. we are safe. >> reporter: he translated american military insents for the taliban military. >> i was angered. the sniper shot on us. >> reporter: he was wounded, kept fighting for five days and received an medal from the american forces. now he's a marked man by the taliban. >> and nbc's richard engel joins us now. richard, the interpreters who risk their lives for the u.s. military, what kind of help can we offer them? just heartbreaking possibilities outlined there. >> they want to find them. they are out. part of what they did -- and i sp

. >> that's when you fell in love with hoda and jenna. >> part of the wedding >>> let's start with owen'sistics company. laying out the targets saying they hope to earn more than $6 a share. investors are loving it. up 33.8%. >>> cyber security company zscaler is up. >>> ziprecruiter going public. the job marketplace going public pricing at 18 and now slipped a little bit we were as high as 21. i think under $20 a share. >>> all right. ahead we reveal today's mystery chart. if you hunt for a high flying stock -- that is the hint -- look no further. we'll speak to the ceo of this company. >>> a new lease on looks as the country reopens and people get excited to hit the town a company is looking to drive consumers to clothing rental it is back "power lunch" lle ghwi brit back >>> welcome back dow up about 100 points at the highs and the underperformer today. it's barely positive right now the s&p 500 up the nasdaq up .6% looking to finish out one of the big down months and russell 2000 small caps up. >>> now rick santelli tracking the action at the cme. rick >> you know that old adage buy l

more about the special bond celebrating service week with hoda and jenna.e to go back and say thank you to the people who have made a difference in your life. >> i love it. >> love you guys, too. let's get on with the weather. how about a nice day ahead for us, kari? >>> i'm glad we had all of those positive stories. we're trying to balance it out. just got the update from a drought monitor and it has worsened for the bay area. we already knew that but saw it expanding across much of california as well as all across the west. so we are seeing those conditions turning bright red here which means extreme drought. now last week we saw it expand for parts of the east bay, but now it's including the south bay, the south county and much of the central coast. reservoirs are dropping only up 28% of capacity, very dry and water conservation is absolutely necessary at this point. we really do have to see what we're going to do as we head into these dry summer months. as we go into our forecast it will be windy today as our temperatures drop. at least we do have a bri

you told nbc's hoda kotb, that there were times people just assumed you were the girlfriend of a playeren kicked you out once because of that. talk about that experience and some of the challenges you faced to try to get to this point in your career. >> yeah, it's really tough. because these teams or players are not used to seeing women in this role, they don't automatically assume you're an agent. so when you're with the player, they assume you're the wife or the girlfriend or publicist or marketing rep. i've had a number of situations, whether at the nfl combine or that situation where i was with a team trying to see my player, where they're assuming that i'm a girlfriend sneaking in. so i'm hoping that one day that that becomes a part of the past and that women that look like me, it becomes a part of the norm for the agent community. >> yeah, absolutely. despite making some big, huge strides, black agents are now facing another hurdle here, convincing white players to sign with them. you said after last year's draft your goal for this year was to sign a white player so the question f

ramallah we're going to let our correspondent get to say see listeners see if we could check in with hoda abdel-hamid snow she is in key points east jerusalem. you are hearing the situation. is kicking off quite a bit it's getting very violent in this general strike. just walk us through what's happening where you are. well at the moment it is quiet but over the past hour or so this place here behind me just in front of the damascus gate was quite tense now it all started when a group of protesters came and basically stood on the upper steps of this sort of semicircle at this point there was someone an israeli policeman in a megaphone telling the protesters to leave this area but within i would say less than 5 minutes we should the police really move in through stun grenades and for a while they were they were sure of a lot of cale's the protesters were trying to cover to get some sort of safe place really and the israeli police was trying to push them as far as possible from this area we also had some water here being sprayed some people who were injured now we do have reports that maybe

this morning, my colleague hoda kotb shared the story of donovan taylor hall.lping kids navigate seventh grade, but their whole lives. >> catch ourselves when we say, i could never do that or i'm not good at that. >> when i watch you speak to them, it's like you take your heart out of your chest, you extend it in your hands and you say, will you hold that for me for a minute? >> kids are sacred. they are the most powerful people i know. i feel like they are so receptive to that. it feels like they are often not seen. thank you for being who you are. i love you all very much. 's a v. you got to move the phone in front of you like..like it's a mirror, dad. you know? alright, okay. how's that? is that how you hold a mirror? [ding] power e*trade gives you an award-winning mobile app with powerful, easy-to-use tools and interactive charts to give you an edge, 24/7 support when you need it the most and $0 commissions for online u.s. listed stocks. don't get mad. get e*trade and start trading today. what happens when we welcome change? we can make emergency medicine p

this morning on the "today" show, hoda kotb talks to oprah one with on one about her prime time interview with harry and meghan markle and some of the criticism that followed. >> people have to speak out and prince harry has been speaking out. with his speaking out, oprah, he's gotten some criticism, i don't know whether it's for speaking out too much. he asked for privacy, and now people feel like they're seeing him everywhere. what are the critics not understanding about what's going on? >> you know, i asked for privacy and i'm talking all the time. so i think being able to have a life that you are not intruded upon by photographers or people flying overhead or invading your life. >> you can watch the entire interview coming up on the "today" show. right after "today in the bay." >>> call it check mate for the season finale of "saturday night live." this weekend's host is taylor the star of "the queen's gambit." >> one new cast member andrew dismus says he's excited for tomorrow night's show. >> we had the table read yesterday and she did great, has great energy is going to be a really

hoda's is not here. this congress has increased funding for all dimers research -- alzheimer's research by five fold over the last seven or eight years. that has made possible all kinds of bold approaches we have not had. we have dozens of new drug targets that have emerged from the very careful analysis of who gets also mers and who does not. we are waiting to see what happens maybe next month when the fda makes a review decision about the monoclonal antibody from biogen. that will make a big difference if they decide there is something there. we are not depending on that, so yes. i might add that this proposal, which is part of the presidents budget, specifically calls out alzheimer's as an area of great opportunity to do some of these very bold, aggressive, nimble approaches that would probably not happen so easily by our standard grant mechanism. sen. moran: i was confused by what i was taught that all the directors were appearing cut, but thank you, you can pinch-hit for each and everyone of them. i