"nightly news" begins right now. >>> from nbc news world headquarters in new york, this is "nbc nightly news" with lester holt. >> good evening. there will be no troop movements or a single shot fired, but nbc news has learned exclusively that the united states is poised for an unprecedented retaliatory assault against russia, in response to its interference in the u.s. election. tonight, high level u.s. intelligence sources are describing to us details of a cia-led cyber retaliation against russian computer systems. and it could get personal, targeting the russian leadership from vladimir putin on down, who the u.s. accuses of sponsoring a series of cyber attacks meant to undermine confidence in the american election. nbc's senior investigative correspondent cynthia mcfadden has details. >> reporter: nbc news has learned the cia is in the initial phase of a wide-ranging cyber retaliation, designed to be both clandestine and embarrassing. sources with direct knowledge of the operation tell us the target, the kremlin leadership, particularly vladimir putin. if ordered by the white house,

tells nbc news that the u.s. is confident it has cut off the flow of election-related material being hacked by the russians. the u.s. claims the kremlin has been behind the theft of a wide range of documents, many of them harmful to the clinton campaign. the highly placed intelligence official tells nbc news new defensive measures taken by the u.s. and its allies are choking off the cyberpaths the russians have been democrats and other prominent americans. >> i think it's credible that the u.s. government is doing everything possible to stop the cyberbleeding, to stop the exfiltration of information that the russians are getting access to. that doesn't mean that the russians don't already have a lot of information and it doesn't mean that they won't find ways of either disseminating that information, or getting access to more of it. >> u.s. intelligence officials also tell nbc news they are more confident than ever that the russianve julian assange, to help distribute the hacked material. telling nbc the u.s. con

"nightly news" begins right now. >> announcer: decision 2016, the presidential debate. this is "nbc nightly news" with lester holt. reporting tonight, from las vegas. >>> and good evening from the university of nevada, las vegas, where the blue debate set behind me may be about the only thing recognizable from when hillary clinton and donald trump first debated last month. tonight, the tone, the polls and the topics have all dramatically shifted ahead of their third and final showdown here. a slight underdog in a bloomberg poll going into the first debate, this evening bloomberg's latest poll puts clinton nine points ahead. also tonight, the campaigns telegraphing there will be none of the traditional pre-debate pleasantries for families, with trump laying the groundwork to sharpen his attacks. the questions tonight, can he have a game-changing moment? and can she avoid one of her own? let's begin coverage with nbc's katy tur. >> donald trump is going all in with the politics of distraction, inviting a new bill clinton accuser to the debate. leslie millwee told breitbart that clinto

"nightly news" begins right now. >> announcer: from nbc news, world headquarters in new york, this is "nbc nightly news," with lester holt. >>> good evening, the u.s. is promising to respond after an american naval destroyer came under missile attack tonight near yemen, the second time in less than a week. pentagon officials say the missiles were launched from territory controlled by iranian-backed rebels. the ship was not hit and there were no american casualties. but the attack have raised the stakes in the region and threatened to draw the u.s. into yemen's civil war. nbc's hans nichols has late details. >> it's the second time in four days missiles have been fired at the american destroyer. the "uss mason." the suspects behind the brazen attack? militias backed by iran. the latest incident began around sundown tonight. one missile was fired from an area in yemen controlled by iranian-backed rebels, the houthis. the u.s. officials did not confirm if the u.s. destroyer scored a direct hit. "the uss san antonio" was also in the vicinity. the "mason" was also fired on poefr the weeken

, world headquarters in new york, this is "nbc nightly news" with lester holt. >>> with 13 days until election day, it was down to business today. for donald trump in a way that you might not expect for a candidate behind in the polls, and running out of time. trump making a detour from the campaign trail and critical battleground states, to showcase his hotel business in washington, d.c. a questionable investment of time with two new tracking polls showing clinton with a nine-point lead over trump nationally. illustrating the urgent challenge before him. nbc's katie tur is in north carolina with more on trump's competing priorities. katie, good evening. >> donald trump is about to take the stage in north carolina, after another unconventional day on the campaign trail that began with a photo op. now critics are arguing that trump is using the attention he gets from his presidential campaign to advertise for his brand. >> this is what i want to do for our country. >> 13 days until the election, trailing in the polls and struggling to stay on message, donald trump took a break to adver

from nbc news world headquarter in new york, this is nbc nightly news with kate snow. good evening, it is been a weekend filled with news. democrats scrambling. we learn from the letter from fbi director comey, the fbi is reviewing a new batch of e-mails reulating to hillary clinton's use. donald trump calling this the biggest political scandal since water gate. there are still unanswered questions. how were the e-mails discovered or what did they contain and are they duplicates of e-mails known to the fbi. with few details made public, democrats accused the fbi director of playing politics. we have all angles. kasie hunt in florida. >> reporter: democrats upping the anti on the fbi. harry reid of nevada sending a letter accusing james comey of violating the hack act of so close to election day. >> hillary clinton did not mention the fbi issue at all. >> hillary clinton trying to stay the course in the face of the fbi's >> powering ahead like nothing's wrong and working to get out the early voters florida. >> you need to get out and vote. and on church on sunday. >> no

kristen welker, nbc news. pueblo, colorado. >>> there's been a shocking turn of events in a small plane crash in a connecticut neighborhood. federal investigators say the evidence shows it was crashed intentionally. so far, senior law enforcement sources say no link to terror has been found. our tom costello has more. >> it happened right on main street in east hartford. >> a twin-engine plane engulfed in flames and smoeg. on board a flight instructor who told investigators his student pilot intentionally crashed the plane. local and federal authorities say the leading theory is suicide. and the two had been arguing when the student said he no longer wanted to fly the plane. >> either one of the two occupants could have at any time the ability to control the plane. the instructor, arian prevalla, of the american flight academy was seriously burned. now in fair condition. the student, feras freitekh died. a jordanian national, he had earned his single-engine pilot's license a year ago. his name was the not on a

the highly placed intelligence official tells nbc news new defensive measures taken by the u.s. and its allies are choking off the cyberpaths the russians have been using to steal emails >> i think it's credible that the u.s. government is doing everything possible to stop the cyberbleeding, to stop the leaking of information that the russians are getting access to. that doesn't mean that the russians don't already have a lot of information and it doesn't mean that they won't find ways of either disseminating that information, or getting access to more of it. >> u.s. intelligence officials also tell nbc news they are more confident than ever that the russians have used wikileaks founder julian assange, to help distribute the hacked material. telling nbc the u.s. considers assange a quote willing participant in the russian scheme. assange has been holed up in the ecuadorian embassy in london for more than four years. >> they're frustrated because wikileaks has done a fair amount of damage in releasing classified information. and of course, assange has taken the courageous way out

. >>> from nbc news world headquarters in new york, this is "nbc nightly news" with lester holt. >> good evening, facing a host of women accusing him of unwanted physical contact, donald trump launched into an angry tirade today, lashing out at his accusers, the media, the clintons and decrying what he calls a conspiracy to undermine the will of the voters. he's not done the lewd things to women that he described in that infamous audio recording, several women have stepped forward to say he, in fact, had, to them. adding further turmoil to his troubled campaign. nbc's katy tur joins us from philadelphia with the latest. katy, good evening. >> reporter: good evening, lester. donald trump is blaming everybody but himself for the type of behavior that he bragged about both in private and on howard stern. now he's pointing to a keep him from office. donald trump is going nuclear. >> these claims are all fabricated. they're pure fiction and they're outright lies. >> reporter: facing down his accusers with an angry denial. >> we already have substantial evidence to dispute these lies. and it w

andrea mitchell, nbc news, cincinnati, ohio. hallie jackson in michigan, where on halloween, donald trump's supporters may be walking dead, but tonight their candidate is finding new life on offense. >> good job, huma. thank you, anthony weiner. >> reporter: the latest fbi story ging trump an opening. >> we can be sure that what is in those e-mails is absolutely devastating. >> reporter: but nobody really knows what's in those e-mails, not even the fbi yet. that's not stopping trump from hitting latest wikileaks release of stolen e-mails, which nbc has not authenticated, showing clinton's campaign may have been tipped off to a primary debate question by the now head of the democratic national committee. >> could you imagine if i did that? bobby, what would happen to me if i did that? electric chair, i think. >> reporter: trump getting backup from basketball coach bobby knight in michigan, one of several blue-leaning his goal, force clinton to make a defense play. and make a final play for rust-belt voters. the problem, polling sh

. >>> from nbc news world headquarters in new york, this is "nbc nightly news" with lester holt. >>> good evening, a major attack on the internet is under way at this hour. the fbi and homeland security are urgently trying to find out who is behind the day-long series of intrusions, targeting a company that acts as an internet switchboard. the attack cutting off access to countless websites, from social media and news sites to music and payment services, and preventing routine transactions. the intermittent outages began this morning, primarily on the east coast, but follow-up attacks have been felt across the country. it all comes amid heightened anxieties over cyber attacks, leading up to the u.s. election. nbc's miguel almaguer has late details for us. >> reporter: the powerful and sophisticated cyber attacks, coming wave after wave. internet users in at least six countries, but mostly here in the u.s., unable to load popular websites like twitter, netflix, amazon, paypal, and a long list of others. >> what we know is that a cyber criminal group or a group of people created the op

"nightly news" begins right now. >>> from nbc news world headquarters in new york, this is "nbc nightly news" with lester holt. >>> good evening. with his campaign losing ground and his party locked in a civil war over whether to even support him, donald trump has proclaimed the shackles are off. the republican nominee lashing out today and making it clear that any republican who isn't with him will pay a price. a brand-new nbc news/"wall street journal" poll taken after sunday's debate has hillary clinton with a nine-point lead over trump, 46-37, in a four-way match-up. to get back on track, trump appears to be reverting to the combative unscripted candidate we saw in the primaries. already today, demonstrating that nothing is off limits. nbc's hallie jackson has details. >> reporter: throwing red meat to his supporters, a donald trump tweet storm, hitting fellow republicans and hillary clinton. so nice that the shackles have been taken off me, trump writes. the last 15 months, apparently trump chained down. >> they're rapists. >> he's not a war hero. >> you got to see this guy, oh, i

, world headquarters in new york, this is "nbc nightly news" with lester holt. >>> with 13 days until election y, it was down to business today. for donald trump in a tha youight not expect for aidate b rning of time. um makingetou washington, d.c. ees timehwo new tracking polls showing clintonh nent ld over trump natial illustrating the urgent kie tur is in north carolina with more on competing priorities. katie, evening. >> donald trump is about to take the stage in north carolina, on the campaign trail that began with a photo . now critics are arguing that trump is using the attenon h ge from his presidentia mp t advertise for his brand. >> this is what i want to do for our country. >> 13 days until the election, trailing in the polls and struggling to stay on message, donald trump took a break to advertise his new hotel. >> with t notable exception of 1600 pennsylvania avenue, this is the mt real estate inashington, d. taken rorterso one of his p has properties since announcing. and although the campaign called it a cpora he was accompanied h campaig manager and senior adviser. >>

joe fryer, nbc news. portland. >>> that's going to do it for us for all of us at nbc news, thank you for watching and good night. >>> we begin tonight with team coverage of colorado's completely normal fall weather. rainy and drizly in the city. drizzle is like rain only >> if we can't pretend the weather is important, maybe we should look at who should run america. who says politics is important? a hot congressional race got hotter. brandon has this zesty truth test. >> what's morgan carroll thinking? >> that's one not an intention grabbing political ad, i know what is. this comes from national republican trying to help mike coffman hold onto his seat in congress and this comes by a vote of morgan carroll last year. >> carroll voted to allow welfare recipients to use your dollars. >> this is true but it needs more context. you might hear this and think carroll voted to change the law. she didn't do that.

. >>> from nbc news world headquarters in new york, this is "nbc nightly news" with lester hoflt. >>> good evening. exactly two weeks from election day, the center of gravity in this contest tonight rests in florida, where both hillary clinton and donald trump battled for votes today. for trump, behind in virtually every poll, the path to victory starts ands a must-win. the latest florida poll released over the weekend has clinton ahead by three points. today clinton tried to force her advantage by targeting early voters there, while trump tried to pounce on a potential new clinton vulnerability. let's begin with nbc's hallie jackson in tallahassee. hali, good evening. >> reporter: hi there, lester. this is donald trump's fourth rally in this state in less than 48 hours, as he turns focus on mobilization and messaging. trump hitting obamacare in an attempt to sharpen that message, but today still stepping on it. today donald trump's acknowledging political reality. >> i believe florida is a must-win. >> reporter: so to win florida like he says he has to, he's going after hillary clint

messages not verified by nbc news, today new emails fueling the narrative that clinton is not transparent, avoiding the press. last year campaign chairman john podesta writing, if she thinks we can get to labor day without taking press questions, i think it's suicidal. trump pouncing. >> wikileaks is amazing, the stuff that's coming out, show s she's a real liar. >> a bitter battle. kristen welker, nbc news. >>> a shocking turn of events in a small plane crash in a connecticut neighborhood. federal investigators say the evidence shows it was crashed intentionally. so far, senior law enforcement sources say no link to terror has been found. our tom costello has more. >> it happened right on main street in east hartford. >> report of an aircraft crash. in flames and smoke. on board a flight instructor who told investigators his student pilot intentionally crashed the plane. local and federal authorities say the leading theory is suicide. and the two had been arguing when the student said he no longer wanted to fly the plane. >> either one of the two occupants could have at any time the abil

not authenticated by nbc news. a new e-mail showing clinton's top aides disagreed with her push to hold a clinton global initiative meeting in morocco in return for a $12 million pledge from the moroccan government. top aide huma abedin writing, she created this mess, and she knows it. trump pouncing. >> she tried to get $12 million from the king of morocco for an appearance. >> reporter: tonight the clinton campaign saying ultimately clinton decided not to attend that meeting and they're accusing russia of weaponizing wikileaks. meanwhile, clinton is getting ready for a major swing through battleground states from now until election day. lester? >> kristen welker, thank you. >>> let's turn overseas now, where iraqi forces say they're within four miles of mosul. the mission to drive isis out of the city, but isis is fighting back, launching a deadly counterattack in another city our richard engel is on the front lines inside iraq with a look at the american role in the offensive. >> reporter: american jets launching

. >>> from nbc news world headquarters in new york, this is "nbc nightly news" with lester holt. >>> good evening. 29 days until election day, and our new poll numbers out tonight speak to the urgent crisis exploding inside the republican party from the top down. with donald trump's fortunes fading over his lewd comments about women, a gop civil war has broken out. versus self-survival. the crisis underscored by a new nbc news/"wall street journal" poll taken after the controversy broke and before last night's debate. it shows hillary clinton now with an 11-point lead over trump nationally among likely voters. nbc's hallie jackson has late details. >> reporter: tonight, abandonment and astonishment as the country's top republican walks away from the top of his ticket. his colleagues on a conference call, he won't defend donald trump anymore, won't campaign for him. essentially conceding trump won't win. sources on the call revealing ryan was forced to reiterate he won't unendorse trump after facing backlash from angry house members. >> i think we came away pretty united. >> how do yo

"nightly news" begins right now. >>> from nbc news world headquarters in new york, this is "nbc nightly news" with lester holt. >>> good evening. the october surprise that rocked the race for president on friday may not have rocked it enough to move the needle with voters, at least not yet. the new nbc news/survey monkey poll shows hillary clinton ahead of donald trump by six points in a four-way match-up. notably, there is no change between the monday through friday numbers and those from over the weekend after the news broke that the fbi was looking into newly discovered e-mails related to hillary clinton's time as secretary of state. fbi director james comey made his surprising announcement before those e-mails had been examined. but tonight nbc news has learned that process is under way. our pete williams has been breaking developments in the story all weekend, and has late details for us. >> reporter: the fbi's been at it now for about 24 hours, starting the work just after getting a search warrant to analyze the thousands of e-mails discovered on former congressman's anthony wein