holt: thank you, madam chair. for 23 years congress had the benefit of a really excellent organization, the office of technology assessment. the o.t.a. helped congress look at the policy implications of new technologies. then 16 years ago o.t.a. was defunded. when congress turned out the lights, they argued that other organizations would provide what o.t.a. did. think tanks, academy, universities. we now have 16 years of evidence that we have not gotten from these other source what is we got from o.t.a. we need o.t.a. now more than ever and my amendment would shift a mere $2.5 million into o.t.a. to breathe life back into this important agency that had a great record of improving congressional decisionmaking, preventing tax dollar waste, and generally improving the debate on many policy issues. o.t.a. is still in the books. it was simply defunded. with this amendment can be funded again. the money comes from a well funded little used trust fund for capital building revitalization. . the o.t.a. produced nonpartisan

holt and mr. bishop is supported by countless associations of physics and chemistry, countless universities and institutions of higher learning, my own university of california campus at berkley, davis, riverside, san diego, san francisco, santa barbara, santa cruz and also around the country from university of chicago to u.s.c., to university of tennessee and university of virginia, all over the nation, not to mention princeton university. and why? because these institutions of higher learning have been leading the way in path breaking developments that have just boosted our economy and our understanding of energy and the world around us. this is a vital investment in the future and i urge support for my colleague's amendment. the chair: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. >> mr. chairman, i move to strike the last word. the chair: the gentleman is recognized for five minutes. >> mr. chairman, i appreciate the recognition and rise in support of the gentleman's amendment. mr. visclo

i'm lester holt in for brian.see you tomorrow morning on "today" and right back here tomorrow night. good night. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com >>> right now at 6:00, exactly who are they? what we're learning tonight about the men arrested in the bryan stow case. >>> also ahead, what park rangers say they won't do in the wake of the deadly accident at yosemi yosemite. >> and a rise in armed rob are yous. bay area at 6:00 starts right now. >>

outside of the plaza, i'm amy robach along with lester holt.ng american former student back in an italy courtroom this morning. as you know, the dna evidence in the case that convicted her has been hammered by experts. those experts are now on the stand today. both sides get to question them. but obviously, the amanda knox camp feels very good now about the key evidence. we're going to get the very latest in a report coming up. >>> and on a much lighter note, we have a very special guest with us today. his name is gamara. he's sort of an all-terrain tortoise. that's because he has a swivel wheel for a front leg, apparently hungry too right now. surgeons put it there following an accident at his home. he's doing great now. we're going to meet him shortly. and we're going to meet the vets who gave him a new lease on life with that wheel. >> hopefully it's not like those supermarket carts, the one that is always stuck. actually, it's pretty amazing, he took to it right away. >> he did. acted like it was always there from the beginning. >> we'll fi

holt: i thank both gentlemen. and this means a great deal to the people of new jersey whose lives -- to whom we owe a great deal for their military work. with that understanding, mr. chairman, i ask unanimous consent to withdraw my amendment. the chair: without objection, the amendment is withdrawn. mr. young: mr. chairman, five minutes to 11:00 p.m., i move that the committee do now rise. the chair: the question is on the motion that the committee do now rise. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. the motion is adopted. the committee rises. the committee of the whole house on the state of the union having had under consideration directs me to report that it has come to no resolution thereon. the speaker pro tempore: the chair reports that the committee has had under consideration h.r. 22319 and has come to no resolution. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from colorado seek recognition? the question is on the motion to adjourn. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. the ayes hav

i'm lester holt. >> i'm jenna wolfe. two big breaking news stories to get to this morning. we want to begin with casey anthony. after 1,006 days in jail and just 12 days after a jury found her not guilty of murdering her daughter, caylee, casey anthony is a free woman. >> this is the seen from inside the orange county jail in orlando at the moment she was being escorted out of the facility. she appears to say thank you to one of the law enforcement officers before she's led out the door by her attorney and facing a pretty angry crowd. nbc's kristin dahlgren was there and joins us live with the latest. >> reporter: good morning. news choppers lost sight of casey anthony's suv so this morning we don't know exactly where she is. for the first time in three years she's not waking up here at the orange county jail. you can probably hear protesters are still here. with all of the protests, all of the publicity, there was so much talk about using decoys or casey anthony sneaking out a back door. in the end, she walked right out the jail's front door. just minutes after midnight, a

. >> eric holt said it was just about 11:15 when the shooting began. when it was over, at least two bullets had entered his apartment, one hitting his 11-year-old niece, linda, in the chest. >> it's about waist high from indoors. so if she's a child, it reached the shoulder near the lung and went through her, exited her and went through the wall. >> reporter: holt immediately called 911 and huddled with the girl in a windowless hallway waiting for police to arrive, trying to keep the girl calm. >> she was -- she talked to me all the time while she was shot until the ambulance arrived. i told her to keep calm but stay awake. she didn't cry. she just said i'm shot. am i going to die? >> reporter: police took three people into custody right after the shooting and have since arrested two of them, an 18 and 19-year-old. no word yet on just what sparked the argument that led to the gunfire, but holt, who has lived in the neighborhood for nine years, says the crime has him ready to leave this public housing unit. he has tried before. >> i didn't know what to

back inside studio 1a, i'm amy robach along with lester holt. story we brought you last week, the searching of a mom of triple triplets. >> what happened to her? what does her estranged husband have to say about her disappearance? we'll talk live to the sister of the missing mom ahead. >>> the new family crisis for arnold schwarzenegger and maria shriver. they're headed for divorce but now focusing on their youngest son christopher who was seriously injured in a swimming accident in malibu. there are reports he suffered a collapsed lung while boogie boarding and is in serious condition. >>> and then survival camp. amy, jenna and myself did something we've never done before. we spent a couple nights at survival school deep in the heart of the utah desert. we didn't have a lot with us. we're city slickers. not only did we give up cell phones, we gave up thing like sleeping bags, flashlights -- >> tents. >> tents. it was quite an experience. you'll see how we did. we'll bring you along for our wilderness journey. i think we all learned a lot. >> we

. >>> i'm lester holt. for all of us here at nbc news, good night. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com >>> good evening. i'm diane dwyer. authorities are still investigating tonight what caused a crash that killed a family of four. relatives spoke to nbc about the loss and what happened and who the relatives blame. >> this was supposed to be the trip of a lifetime. a chance for a father to show the family the place he visited when he was a child. >> when i ran into robert or the girls, it brightened my whole day. they were happy and enjoying life. the family, were at the beginning of a three-week camping trip when something terribly wrong. the family was hit by a tractor trailer and there was an explosion. >> the driver of the other vehicle survived and i would say you can do everything right and have a bad outcome and i think that is what happened here. i think you know the road was slippery, the road was steep and sometimes these things happen and that, um, rather the lesson is to hold your loved ones c

i'm lester holt. >> and i'm amy robach. i was a little surprised this morning when i saw the news about jennifer lopez and marc anthony. they just renewed their vows last year. i think everyone thought they had figured it out. >> they were so likable together as a couple. we saw them together on "american idol" last. married since 2004 and the parents of two young children, they're now heading for divorce. this is anthony's second marriage. for lopez it's number three. we'll have more on their breakup just ahead. >>> also, some very serious economic news that matters to all of us, the fight over the debt ceiling. it's reaching a boiling point in washington, and president obama is warning of a financial armageddon if a deal isn't struck. the clock is ticking for both sides to reach an agreement. we'll have the very latest. >> plus, a family search for a missing mom. jackie waller is the mother of triplets. she hasn't been seen or heard from since vanishing back in june. where is she? is there a person of interest? we'll talk

i'm lester holt. >> i'm jenna work. another day, another heat record. you had had on a -- >> i'm about ready to say uncle. enough already. 100 degrees in new york city central park saturday. baltimore, 102. 104 in trenton, new jersey. millions have been caught in this july cooker. we hear there may be some relief in sight later today. so, i can get rid of the sleeveless jacket, we'll get the forecast coming up. >> good look on you. it's awkward. >>> also, we have sad news out of london. with the death of amy winehouse with her beehive hairdo, soulful voice, she skyrocketed to fame but it also came with strug. >> the same age as kurt cobain, janis joplin and jimmy morrison were when they died. >>> our great outdoor adventure. we spent two days in the utah desert. we showed you part one of the trip yesterday. i'm sure you were entertained. we could not bring cell phones, sleeping bags or pretty much anything else with us this morning. part two. were we able to make fire? were we able to find food? most importantly, obviously, were we able to make it out o

i'm lester holt. >> i'm jenna wolfe. not bad for a first trip to america. you got some polo, some red carpet, some celebrities, probably some free food, we should all be so lucky. >> probably got one of those great travel discount sites. >> i'm sure that is what it was. >> i hope they got some down time, though. southern california is a great place to just hang. >> they only had a couple days. there were a couple other states they visited. hopefully next time. >>> other news to get to this morning, including continuing efforts to reach a decision. underlining the urgency of the situation. this is plans for a larger $4 trillion deal scrapped. we'll get the latest from washington in just a moment. >>> for some he made a name as the super bowl mvp and for others he is a champion of "dancing with the stars" and hines ward now has an arrest to go on his record. what landed him an in atlanta jail this weekend? we'll tell you coming up. >>> then never-before-seen photos. the photographer was only 18 years old when he snapped them in 1964 but then he kept them in t

. >> really holt weather can stress the corn crops in the midwest, for example. we're concerned about the warm conditions in the overnight periods that strain the growth of the corn crop. we could see corn that's coming in below expectations and that's slight scarcity will adjust the prices upward. >> reporter: so corn needs the evenings to cool off, otherwise it doesn't grow? >> i need that kind of balance. the cooler evenings and the -- >> reporter: if it doesn't cool off? >> we noticed last summer, as well. depressed corn yield below the trend line. i think it's going to be a problem this year, too. >> reporter: cattle in south dakota have been falling over dead in the heat. 1,500 so far. and back in the cities? >> all of these air conditions running 24 hours a day. can we handle it? >> we can. but it will strain the utility grid and we will have some problems occasionally with rolling brownouts and things like that. but what a lot of people don't realize is we use other xh commodities. natural gas supply is running below last year's levels. >> reporter: it te

well, lester holt said it first. [ male announcer ] succeeding in today's market requires decisive actioni go to e-trade and tap into the power of revolutionary mobile apps to trade wherever. whenever. life isn't fully experienced sitting idly by. neither is investing. [ birds chirping ] diabetes testing? it's all the same. nothing changes. then try this. freestyle lite® blood glucose test strip. sure, but it's not gonna-- [beep] wow. yep, that's the patented freestyle zipwik™ design. did it just-- [both] target the blood? yeah, drew it right in. the test starts fast. you need just a third the blood of one touch.® that is different. so freestyle lite test strips make testing... easy? easy. great. call or click-- we'll send you strips and a meter, free. free is good. freestyle lite test strips. call or click today. >>> time for the "newsnation" gut check. well, what seemed like an amazing deal on sears.com went viral friday and sent online shoppers scrambling to get a brand new ipad. sears.com mistakingly advertised the apple ii ipad for $69 and many people took advantage including a mom w

own and at that very moment my leg was caught between the caterpillar tracks and the sound came to holt. now the form a bookkeeper has to use a wheelchair and receives a disability grant. i knew freedom was worth that sacrifice i have no regrets and believe it's my destiny at the. fourteen residents of vilnius died sacrificing their lives from lithuania as independence in one thousand nine hundred one. the new states government launched a vigorous campaign against the soviet legacy. bolton that equated soviet symbols to nazi ones. nowadays may even ninth the date marked by soviet republics for the victory of a fascist germany is seen as just another ordinary day by mostly few eons. developed in lithuania made a name for it is no occasion for festivities yes some people here did fight for that but this way has nothing to do with it russian politicians sometimes say we liberated the lithuanian people from nazi germany by responses the following yes you did but then you didn't bother to leave afterwards one occupation had given way to another. the fall if you a new got its independence war

i'm lester holt reporting from new york.e you tomorrow on "today" and right back here tomorrow evening. and right back here tomorrow evening. good night, everyone. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com >>> good evening, i'm garvin thomas in for diane dwyer. an 11-year-old girl is in critical condition tonight

i'm lester holt. >> i'm jenna wolfe. we're just 48 hours from the point where the nation is unable to pay all of its bills and risk default but this morning some signs of progress. >> we have details of a possible detail coming out last night when harry reid said the two senates were trying to nail down loose ends and complete an agreement. >> we should stress, there is no deal quite yet. the situation is still quite fragile, but both sides are hoping to end this bittal debt limit showdown before the august tuesday.ine oncc1: >> the senate delayed its critical vote until 1:00 p.m. today amid growing indications that this compromise could be in the works that would avert a federal default tuesday. we have the story covered from capitol hill to the white house. we begin this morning with nbc's luke russert. good morning. >> two days away from when the nation is supposed to default on its loans lawmakers on capitol hill are scrambling to find a compromise. today senator harry reid hopes enough republicans will support some

for lester holt and everyone here at nbc news, thanks for watching it. have a great holiday weekend. good night. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com >>> good evening, everyone. thank you very much for joining us.

i'm lester holt reporting from new york. see you tomorrow morning on "today" and right back here tomorrow evening. "today" and right back here tomorrow evening. good night. captions paid for by nbc-universal television

for lester holt and all of us here at nbc news, thanks for watching. have a great fourth of july. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com >>> good evening. i'm garvin thomas. we begin with developing news out of south san francisco. firefighters are mopping up after a car lot fire about a mile north of sfo. we're told the three-alarm fire in an overflow hertz rental car lot is out, but as many as 40 cars are either damaged or destroyed. the fire chief at the scene says winds had made it difficult to fight the fire which spread quickly because of dry grasses under many of the cars. it is not yet clear how the fire started, but there is a clue. >> at this point, we're guessing that it was fireworks, just from what people in the area have said that they heard and saw people in that area using fireworks. but we haven't confirmed it it at this point. it's under investigation. >> reporter: people inside a nearby motel 6 we$6 were evacua because of the smoke. they're being allowed back inside now. no one was hurt in the fire. if the fire were started by firewor

i'm brian williams, lester holt will be here this weekend. of course, hope to see you right back here on monday night, in the meantime, have a good weekend. in the meantime, have a good weekend. good night. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.co m m ? right now, did he walk on the edge? the wife of a bay area man killed in a freak accident speaks out. >> the eyes in the sky, the new cameras keeping tab on crimes. the news at 6:00 starts right now.

. >> and i'm in for lester holt. >>> the casey anthony trial comes to a dramatic end. >> it's been three years now since casey's daughter caylee disappeared from her florida home. the defense has been trying to punch holes into the prosecution's case, but is there reasonable doubt? the latest and a live report coming up. >>> look at this terrifying video that show as member of a bomb squad inspecting a suspicious car. at least it will, when the officer tried to open the door, the bomb exploded. that's not the end of the most amazing part of that video which you will see when we bring it to you just ahead. >> we are teasing that video. >>> plus, with the july 4th weekend in full swing, wildfires r prompting communities to cancel fireworks celebrations. conditions would make it too dangerous and don't want to take changes. how long will it last? scott williams joins us with the holiday forecast in a few minutes. >>> and then coming to america. talking prince william and prin sense catherine, this weekend traveling through canada but in a few days, partying it up in los angeles and the prin

i'm lester holt reporting from

i'm lester holt, in tonight for brian. in president obama's words, we are almost out of time, and as he made another appeal for compromise on a bill to raise the nation's borrowing limit, the house and senate were barreling down parallel tracks today, with the end of the line tuesday, the day after the u.s. could be unable to pay all its bills and risk an unprecedented default. after fits and starts, the republican-led house tonight passed its own revised plan to raise the debt ceiling and cut spending. >> ayes are 218. the nays are 210. the bill is passed. without objection, a motion to reconsider is laid upon the table. >> but that plan doesn't cut the mustard in the senate, which has its own bill. tonight, it seems almost certain that any compromise deal will be right up against the deadline. in other words, there is no more margin left. nbc's kelly o'donnell is on capitol hill to tell us more now. kelly? >> reporter: well, lester, the drama has been down to the wire, the political kind with all the fiery talk. the real

right now lester holt in for brian williams. [ female announcer ] at jcpenney, we're giving you a bighank you this friday and saturday with the simplest way to save extra! just use your jcpenney rewards credit card to save an extra 20% on everything storewide! no exclusions! save an extra 20% on styles for her, brands for him, and clothes for kids. plus get an extra 20% off shoes, too! no jcpenney card? we'll still thank you with an extra 15% off! the savings are that simple! go to jcp.com to see everything on sale. we make style affordable. you make it yours. jcpenney.

holt of new jersey. amendment number 9 by mr. moran of virginia. the chair will reduce to two minutes the time for any electronic vote after the first vote in this series. the unfinished business is the request for recorded vote on amendment number 2 printed in house report 112-173, by the gentleman from north carolina. mr. watt, on which further proceedings were postponed and on which the noes prevailed by voice vote. the clerk will redesignate the amendment. the chair: amendment number 2, printed in house report number 112-173, offered by mr. watt of north carolina. the chair: a recorded vote has been requested. those in support of the request for recorded vote will rise and be counted. a sufficient number having arisen, -- a sufficient number having arisen, a recorded vote is ordered. members will record their votes by electronic device. this is a 15-minute vote. [captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc., in cooperation with the united states house of representatives. any use of the closed-captioned coverage of the hou

holt, and the gentlelady from california, mrs. capps. our amendment would have fully funded this safety agency, by increasing the inspection fees on the oil and gas industry. the top five oil and gas companies made $35 billion in profits just in the first three months of this year. this week they will likely report similar profits for the second quarter. in fact, earlier today b.p. reported quarterly profits of $5.6 billion. that's just for the last three months, b.p. made $5.6 billion. yet the industry as a whole pays just $10 million a year in inspection fees for offshore drilling. and the republicans are putting it offshore today from any consideration by the members of this body. so our amendment would have, if the republicans had allowed us to implement a key recommendation from the independent b.p. spill commission, the b.p. commission recommended increasing the $10 million per year that the oil and gas industry currently pays in inspection fees significantly and that is what our amendment would have done. therefore my friends on b

i'm amy robach along with lester holt. we're going to be talking about the future for casey anthony. >> this conversation continues for days after the verdict. people across the country continuing on this saga days after the bombshell verdict. she is about to go free, a week next sunday, in fact. yesterday a new bombshell as she refused to see her mother, cindy, for a jailhouse visit. the story continues. the late nest a bit. >>> a story that's getting a lot of attention here in new york, it's hard to believe someone threw that little kitten out of a car while driving on the new york verazano bridge. the tallest bridge in the world. someone rescued the kitty on the roadway. the kitten is okay. adoption requests are pouring in from celebrities to politicians. we're going to meet the kitten. there it is in just a few moments. >> it's called the verazano narrows bridge -- it's a narrow escape. william and kate are in sunny california, historic visit for her and one that has tom hanks and nicole kidman attending a bash in thei