i'm lynn berry. today, we begin with a nuclear nightmare. radiation levels spiked in japan this morning in the wake of a series of explosions at the fukushima nuclear power plant. there are new concerns water inside the waste pool storage pool for one of the damaged reactors may be boiling increasing the possibility of fuel rods being exposed. just days after suffering its most crippling catastrophe ever, japan is now facing the world's worst nuclear disaster since chernobyl. for the latest we turn to nbc's kristin dahlgren in tokyo. good morning to you. >> good morning. the latest radiation levels appear to have leveled off some. despite earlier talking about levels that could affect human health. there is great concern here in japan today. here is the latest. in the past 24 hours we saw an explosion at the third nuclear reactor at the crippled plant and a fire in a fourth reactor at a spent fuel storage pond. reports it's leaking directly into the atmosphere. japan's prime minister made a national

i'm lynn berry.oday, we begin with a race against the clock. japan raise the the a virity rating of the nuclear crisis from four to five putting it on par with the three mile island disaster of 1979. japan is desperately trying to reconnect power to critical cooling systems at the fukushima power plant. fire engines are blasting tons of water into the hot zone. nbc's brian moore reports. >> reporter: tons of water, the difference between salvation and catastrophe at japan's stricken nuclear plant. >> the situation remains very serious. but there's been no significant worsening since yesterday. the cloud billowing from the fukushima plant on wednesday was all but gone thursday, but the possibility of a meltdown is still very real. president obama is promising whatever help the united states can muster. >> we're sharing expertise, equipment and technology so that the courageous responders on the scene have the benefit of american teamwork and support. >> reporter: u.s. experts believe it could be weeks

i'm lynn berry.oday we begin with tough talk. president obama is no longer mincing words, saying the time has come for libyan leader moammar gadhafi to step down and set the embattled country free, this as protesters gather for massive day of rage rallies after friday prayers. nbc's steve handelsman has our report. >> colonel gadhafi needs to step down from power and leave. >> reporter: president obama toughened his rhetoric after the escalation in libya. for a second day muammar qadhafi's war planes launched attacks near libyan rebel force who's were holding an oil region west of tripoli, the capital. no word on what, if anything, the jets hit. by the fighter jet had to be ordered by the libyan strong man. >> the violence must stop. moammar gadhafi has lost legitimacy to lead and he must leave. those who perpetrate the violence against the libyan people will be held accountable. >> reporter: president obama ordered u.s. military aircraft to help evacuate foreigners from libya. but he has not ordered

i'm lynn berry.oday, we begin with melting point. a skeleton crew working to prevent an all-out meltdown at the fukushima nuclear plant were forced out of the facility for nearly an hour today. it was following a dangerous spike in radiation that japanese authorities feared was a risk to workers' lives. nbc's dan shenaman reports. >> reporter: authorities in japan have worked to avert a tragedy. the work has centered on damage to the machine four reactor where spent rods were being stored in pools of water. sea water has been pumped into plants one, two, and three, and workers have tried to bring down temperatures in plant five and six. bloo if a fuel rod becomes exposed, it could become fragile, and there's a chance of it breaking when my shock is given. the radiation material, which is normally contained inside the container, could seep out of it. >> reporter: japan's chief cabinet secretary said japan will ask the u.s. military for help, but he did not elaborate. there are a few dozen workers who

i'm lynn berry. today we begin with no letups. for five straight days now, western war planes have been fiercely pounding libya in a crisis that's unified nations around the world against the regime of libyan ruler moammar gadhafi. in tripoli, anti-aircraft fire lit up the sky once again. the air strikes appear to have thwarted gadhafi's efforts to overtake his opponents for now. although there has been retaliation. in misrata, there have been reports of sniper attacks by pro gadhafi supporters. meanwhile, off the coast of libya, nato warships are now on patrol and forcing the u.n. arms embargo against the country. >>> meanwhile, as criticism of the administration's handling of libya mounts, today, the president meets with his national security team to discuss strategy. for more on that, we go to nbc's tracie potts in washington. tracie, good morning. >> lynn, good morning. no doubt, the question will be how do we get out? the president said we're not sending ground troops there. he said we want our

i'm lynn berry.oday, we begin with down to the wire. lawmakers in washington say they've made progress as they scramble to compromise on the nation's expiring budget. meanwhile, wisconsin's governor has laid down an ultimatum for democrats still hiding out over controversial budget cuts there. tracie potts has the latest from there. >> reporter: good morning from a misty capitol hill, as can you see, but the work goes on, and today the house will debate this -- what appears to be a compromise, a republican plan, to extend the current spending level for two weeks, but to cut $4 billion out of that spending over the next two weeks. all of that to avoid a government shutdown on friday. senate democrats seem to be on board with this, though some democrats are concerned that those cuts are wreck ands will disproportionately affect education. later this week they're also going to vote on the debt and whether we can continue to make those payments if we hit that debt limit in about a month or so. let's head

i'm lynn berry.oday, we begin with a brewing civil war. with no resolution in sight to the rebellion in libya, the country appears to be nearing a full on conflict. libyan leader moammar gadhafi is now trying to secure a buffer zone around tripoli. jim filed this report from libya late last night. >> reporter: preparing for war, a short drive outside tripoli and one sees the gauntlet close up facing any invading rebel force. hundreds of tanks and anti-artillery pieces have turned the city of 2 million into a fortress. it's fast becoming libyan leader moammar gadhafi's last strong hold. less than 30 miles away in the rebel held town of zawhi, protesters faced down a major counter attack by qadhafi troops and tanks and won. but qadhafi's son took the setback in stride. >> if you have one or two or 3,000, it doesn't mean that everything is gone and it's over. >> reporter: as the standoff continues, both sides are fighting to win a war of words and images. in benghazi international news cameras were brou

i'm lynn berry.oday we begin with duck and cover. opposition fighters in libya have been facing intensified counterattacks from forces loyal to libyan leader moammar gadhafi. this morning libyan war planes launched more air strikes on the heels of yesterday's air assault on rebels who have been regrouping at the oil port of ras lanuf. the bombs have either been missing their target or were being used successfully to instill fear. rebel fighters have been trying to drive toward tripoli, gadhafi's stronghold, but have been pushed back by government forces. >>> and while the u.s. tries to consider how best to react to the fighting in libya, the ç crisis is having major implications at home at gas pumps across the nation. nbc's steve handelsman reports. >> reporter: concerned about escalating warfare in libya and more air attacks against libyan civilians in what looks like a military comeback by moammar gadhafi, president obama reminded libyan generals they could be tried for war crimes. >> i want to se

i'm lynn berry.oday we begin with a military handover. secretary of state hillary clinton says the united states is taking the next step in military operations against libya, by handing over control of the no-fly zone to nato. yesterday, french fighter jets struck a military base about 155 miles south of the libyan coastline, as well as a libyan combat plane that had just landed outside the strategic city of misrata. more explosions could be heard before dawn this morning in the capital city of tripoli. for now we'll check out more details on how much control is being transferred to nato. we go to tracie potts in washington. >> make no mistake, the u.s. is still very involved in the operation. the u.s., britain and france will still be conducting the toughest parts of this operation but it does mean the u.s. is now not acting alone. the nato secretary-general has now announced they will be taking over the operational phase. they've made the political decision as nato says, they'll spend the weekend w

i'm lynn berry.day we begin with losing momentum. it now appears the rebellion against libya's moammar gadhafi has stalled, halted in its tracks by the libyan army. the drive by opposition fighters to qadhafi's stronghold in tripoli has been met with a heavy barrage of rockets in the east. in zawiya pro-regime forces threat tony capture the city. if it is retain, it would be a significant victory for qadhafi. meanwhile, in an interview broadcast on libya's state tv, qadhafi once again blames foreigners for the unrest, and answering possible u.s. and british plans for a libyan response, qadhafi told turkish tv libyans will "take up arms and fight if a no fly zone is empoe imposed on his country." back here at home the obama administration is carefully considering its next move in response to the shift of momentum in libya as the president collaborate with a key u.s. ally in finding the best solution to the violence. nbc's tracie potts from washington has more on that. good morning. >> reporter: lynn,

i'm lynn berry. and today we begin with targeting libya. american and european militaries spent the weekend launching intense strikes on libya in a mission aimed at halting the brutal attacks on anti-government rebels. although american officials say the u.s. is not trying to kill gadhafi, operation odyssey dawn appears to have hit close to home for the libyan leader. nbc news has learned that english forces conducted a strike on his compound. it was not known where gadhafi was at the time, but according to the "new york times," journalists did not report any casualties. meanwhile robert gates says that the u.s. expects to hand over control of the mission to a coalition in a matter of days. that coalition will probably be headed either by the french or english or by nato. for more information on the operation, we go to nbc's brian mooar. >> reporter: with a second day ç of fighter jet attacks and missile strikes, european and american forces have blinded moammar gadhafi's air defenses, crippled his a

i'm lynn berry.oday we begin with exit strategy. as japan's nuclear crisis deepens and reports about the status of one of its crippled nuclear plants differ, the united states has authorized the first evacuation of americans out of japan. nbc's tracie potts joins us from washington with the latest on this. tracie, good morning. >> reporter: lynn, good morning. good morning, everybody. we learned overnight that these will be voluntary evacuations, even though the airports have reopened, commercial flights are available, the u.s. state department will be organizing charter flights out of tokyo and other locations in japan to get americans out. the u.s. believes that the radiation levels, especially around the fukushima daiichi nuclear plants are extremely high. in addition, they have told americans to stay 50 miles away, much further than the japanese recommend. this is conflicting advice, but the white house says the u.s. is using a different standard of evaluating the information that they're getting

i'm lynn berry. today we begin with a power struggle. a fourth day of allied strikes have damaged moammar gadhafi's air defense systems, but so far, the attacks have failed to cripple gadhafi's confidence or put an end to his assaults. this against civilian opponents. anti-aircraft fire streaked the skies overnight over tripoli after a day of heavy fighting against gadhafi loyalists. despite some success in the south, the inexperienced rebels found themselves outgunned by government forces in the western city of misrata. and to the east of ajabiya. gadhafi spoke on tv yesterday and a defiant gadhafi predicted, and ever defiant, gadhafi predicted "we will win this battle. >>> meanwhile, president obama has cut short his tour of latin america amid criticism of his leadership of the attack on libya. the president says he has, quote, absolutely no doubt that a successful transition of power to coalition powers will take place in a matter of days. critics call that optimistic. tracie potts joins us from w

i'm lynn berry. today we begin with out maneuvered. the three-week standoff in wisconsin over a measure that would deal a huge blow to public unions has come to an abrupt end after a stunning move by republicans. until yesterday, republicans state senators couldn't pass governor scott walker's proposal because under the rules they were just one democrat short for the vote to happen. that's because all 14 minority democrats had fled the state in order to prevent a vote on the measure which would strip nearly all collective bargaining rights from public union workers. but on wednesday, republicans managed to push the plan through by resorting to a procedural maneuver that removed parts of the proposal related to nonspending measures. using that tactic, republicans contend the vote could take place without the missing democrats. assembly minority leader peter barca tried to fight the surprise move, arguing there wasn't enough notice. >> representative barca -- >> yeah. >> the gavel. >> clerk, call the r

i'm lynn berry. today we begin with crunching the numbers. as lawmakers face tough decisions on where to cut overweight budgets the latest nbc news/"wall street journal" poll finds americans are divided about how far they should go. nbc's tracie potts joins us from washington with the breakdown. good morning. >> reporter: this new poll tells us one thing for sure, americans are concerned about money the debt and the deficit. take a look at the numbers. a concern over the federal budget deficit, 80% of those who responded said they are concerned a great deal or quite a bit, but interestingly, what do americans want to cut out of the budget and not cut some they don't want to touch medicaid, medicare, social security osh education. some of the biggest areas of the federal budget. now, when it comes to the state budget issues we've been watching in wisconsin and other states, americans overwhelmingly think that it's okay for public employees to pay more for their retirement benefits. 68% said that's acc

i'm lynn berry.re are some of your top headlines this morning. despite the threat of a government shutdown next friday, senate democratic whip dick durbin says he is unwilling to cut more than $10.5 billion in domestic discretionary spending. republicans want over $60 billion in cuts. but durbin says the issue has been pushed, quote, to the limit. >>> new york congressman peter king will begin holding controversial hearings this ç thursday on what he calls the radicalization of american muslims. yesterday some 300 people gathered in times square to criticize the move saying it unfairly singles out muslims. >>> defense secretary robert gates arriveed in afghanistan this morning on an unannounced visit to assess a looming troop withdrawal this summer. secretary gates told troops that u.s. military involvement there with likely continue beyond the 2014 end of combat operations. >>> the space shuttle discovery undocked from the international space station today. this is after a successful week-long miss