al roker is here, and peter alexander is in hard-hit north carolina, and mark potter will start us off in atlanta tonight, mark, good evening. >> reporter: good evening, brian, the word here in atlanta, the weather is just miserable, and expected to get even worse tonight and tomorrow. already some 5500 flights have either been delayed or cancelled. the city of atlanta learned a hard lesson from the last big storm, when thousands of motorists were stranded on area roads, including i-85. this is that same stretch of highway today as people now heed official warnings and stay off the roads. still, there was no escaping the ice, the weather problems began today shortly before dawn when freezing rain became slush and ice, causing accidents. as trees grew heavy with ice, they began to fall. this one fell into a house where an 88-year-old woman was sleeping in this bed when the ceiling collapsed. her grandson said while injured she is lucky to be alive. >> and she was just covered with insulation and sheet rock. >> reporter: power crews spent all day repairing downed lines as more than 200,0

nbc's peter alexander is in charlotte, north carolina again tonight. hey, peter, good evening. >> reporter: brian, good evening to you. the snow didn't stop falling here until late this afternoon. in total, this was the worst winter storm to hit charlotte in a decade. nearly 9 inches falling all evening long. crews across the city are going to be picking up snow and trying to drop it off at dump sites like this. in raleigh, as you noted today, hundreds of drivers abandoned their cars in the peak of the storm today came back to try to find them. the state troopers and national guardsmen went door-to-door to make sure nobody was stranded so they could plow through. in atlanta things are slowly thawing there after the second major storm to hit the area in two weeks. and brian, back here, the real concern is that snow is going to melt and refreeze overnight, causing significant black ice. >> peter alexander in north carolina in charlotte again tonight. peter, thank you. >>> and let's go into the weather center. meteorologist janice huff is at the map. janic

peter alexander, nbc news, washington. >>> we're back in a moment to remember a legendary figure from daytime television. >>> if you didn't watch the dating game that must simply mean you were not old enough to back then. it was entertaining television and it was pretty out there even for the mid-to late '60s. well, today we learned that jim lange has died. he was the host for over ten years. he always kept it clean and civil with a wink. his fashions were something to watch over the years. he was a veteran deejay before and after his tv days. jim lange was 81 years old. >>> sign of the times on american airlines. they're dropping bereavement fares for those who must book a flight due to the loss of a loved one. they're blaming their merger with us airways. some carriers still do, but the passenger has to offer proof, and part of the problem is the web often offers even lower fares. >>> another decline to report. this has to do with america's consumption of orange juice, which last year hit a 15-year low. per capita, orange juice consumption among americans down almost 40%. the indust

peter alexander, nbc news, washington. >>> we're back in a moment to remember a legendary figure fromaytime television. you've reached the age where you've learned a thing or two. [ metal clanks ] ♪ this is the age of knowing what you're made of. so why let erectile dysfunction get in your way? [ gears whirring ] talk to your doctor about viagra. 20 million men already have. ask your doctor if your heart is healthy enough for sex. do not take viagra if you take nitrates for chest pain; it may cause an unsafe drop in blood pressure. side effects include headache, flushing, upset stomach, and abnormal vision. to avoid long-term injury, seek immediate medical help for an erection lasting more than four hours. stop taking viagra and call your doctor right away if you experience a sudden decrease or loss in vision or hearing. [ cellphone beeps ] this is the age of taking action. viagra. talk to your doctor. >>> if you didn't watch the dating game that must simply mean you were not old enough to back then. it was entertaining television and it was pretty out there even for the mid-to late '

peter alexander. just for the record, i think we both agree with mr.hat i'm saying. >> that's going to do it for this edition of "news nation." i'm craig melvin. don't go anywhere. "the cycle" is up next. cut! [bell rings] this...is jane. her long day on set starts with shoulder pain... ...and a choice take 6 tylenol in a day which is 2 aleve for... ...all day relief. hmm. [bell ring] "roll sound!" "action!" a steel cage: death match of midsize sedans. the volkswagen passat against all comers. turbocharged engines against...engines. best in class rear legroom against other-class legroom. but then we realized. consumers already did that. twice. huh. maybe that's why nobody else showed up. how does one get out of a death cage? vo: right now, get 0.9% apr on all passat models plus a total of $1000 in bonuses. are you still sleeping? just wanted to check and make sure that we were on schedule. the first technology of its kind... mom and dad, i have great news. is now providing answers families need. siemens. answers. as a police officer, i've helped many p

that is where nbc's peter alexander is in charlotte. ood morning to you. >> reporter: al, good day. the first snow was a preview that fell yesterday. the real act is today. in the last 15 minutes, it is starting to fall here in and around charlotte with 6 inches in the city. up to 12 inches in other parts of the state expected. just yesterday, the city official said i never want to have an atlanta in charlotte. hoping not to repeat the experience they had a couple of weeks ago. state officials this morning told me they prepped the roads across the state since sunday. hundreds of accidents across the region. so far, here specifically, they have been okay. north carolina and south carolina, governors declaring states of emergency and schools out for 141,000 kids in charlotte. al. >> all right. peter alexander in charlotte. thank you. as it makes its way up the coast, the 540 line is so important depending on where it sets up. that is the heavy snow to the west of that line. >> you will keep us informed. thank you. we appreciate it. >>> let

joining us now from the briefing room is nbc's peter alexander. have any sense of what the president may address, how much of it will be an echo of what the secretary of state said earlier today? >> yeah alex, not exactly certain what we will hear from the president a short time now when he does walk into this briefing room, he will certainly echo some of the comments we have heard from other administration officials, including press secretary jay carney who is in room only a short time ago said, in the administrati administration's language, intervention is, as he described tax grave mistake. he also emphasizedz that the u.s. supports the territorial integrity and the sovereignty of ukraine. we have been reaching out to administration officials over the course of the day, trying to find out more information about those forces that have been entering crimea that region within ukraine today and u.s. administration officials, as you have reported, cop firmed that uniformed russian forces, apparently a hybrid of military and paramilitary forces, are

that is where we find nbc's peter alexander. what is the latest?> reporter: obviously that hearing certainly turned into a lot of partisan finger pointing. republicans used words like devastating and terrible. the white house obviously is pushing back because there is so much more nuance than the headlines unusually published. and the three key words we heard today from anyone you speak to including jay carney are freedom, opportunity and choice. that is the way they want to frame this debate, frame what was indicated by the cbo. one fact we know that is not in fact the case is the argument republicans have made that obamacare is a job killer. there is nothing in there that indicates it will take away 2.5 million jobs. in fact what it says is that more people may choose not to work or may choose to reduce their hours. jay carney brought up a point to sort of demonstrate this. in specific he was referring to medicare where americans get their medicare coverage at age 65, he saw statistics that indicate that 63-year-olds are far less likely to start

nbc's peter alexander is with us from charlotte, north carolina.ally shut down right now. this is the worst winter storm, charlotte specifically in a decade. three more inches of snow on top of up to six inches that they had across this area yesterday. they prepped the roads days in advance, but a lot of drivers ignored the warnings and drove anyway. in raleigh, people today are going back and trying to retrieve their cars they had abandoned late yesterday as a result of the awful conditions. so much snow on top of the trees. that obviously causes some serious consequences. pulling trees down and power lines in places. at least 13 people have been killed as a result of this storm across the region. 600,000 homes and businesses without power. flights heavily affected as well. 4,800 flights cancelled for today. it's the kind of weather where it's not a good idea to stay only off the roads but stay inside. emergency rooms reporting a lot of injuries today for pedestrians as well. matt, that is the latest from here. now back to you in sochi. >> well, h

. >> i'm peter alexander in for andrea mitchell. you have been watching president obama and president hollande, no lack of english and french in the course of that conversation right now. joining us for immediate analysis, katy kay, anchor for bbc world news america and ms nbc contributor for the atlantic, steve clemens. steve, i'll begin with you, among the topics, the spiraling crisis in syria. the president said the state of syria is crumbling and expressed in his words enormous frustration about the situation in syria, directing most of his ire at russia as the lone as he described it holdout in the situation right now. let's play what we heard from the president a moment ago. >> the geneva proses recognizes that if we're going to solve this problem, then we have to find a political solution. we are going to continue to commit to not just pressure the assad regime but also to get countries like russia and iran to recognize that it is in nobody's interest to see the continuing bloodshed and collapse that's taking place inside tha

nbc's peter alexander joins us from the white house.s. [ speaking french ] >> what? >> what the what? >> i studied french just for this moment. they rolled in, smoking cigarettes and drinking champagne. >> as they were. >> the first state dinner obviously for president obama was memorable for those people who crashed the party, the salahis. this one may be memorable for a guest who was invited but will not attend, the unofficial first lady of france. the arrival ceremony will take place a short time from now. we were checking in with the white house social office a short time ago and they tell us that as of late last night they hadn't formalized the seating arrangement for the head table. the real drama today is less about diplomacy and as much about the scenic -- the sort of scene that will be set here tonight. traditionally, next to the american president, next to president obama would be the head of state, foreign head of state's partner. in this case, it's still unclear who exactly will be sitting next to president obama tonight. th

peter alexander is at the white house with a preview for us. good morning. >> good morning to you.dent obama's first state dinner is unforgettable after that couple that crashed the party and the drama has a lot to do with who is initially invited and not going to attend and the white house had to reprint the invitations after the break up with his original first lady because of an affair. the white house hasn't decided who wouldn get that coveted spo next to the presidentically reserved for the visiting spouse. tonight, hosted on the south lawn. caviar from illinois, a rib-eye beef from colorado and salad to honor the first lady's white house garden. marry jay blige performing as well, natalie. >> you just made me very hungry. >>> another hiccup on the obama care front. another delay in requirement for businesses to provide health care coverage to workers this time specifically for companies with 59-99 employees. the mandate supposed to take effect last month already delayed once before and now those employers do not have to comply until 2016. congressional republicans criticized

fox news's peter doocy is at domino's pizza in alexander, virginia.oni. >> i'm not going to but listen to this, if your favorite restaurant has more than 20 locations the next time you go out there is a chance on the menu right next to whatever you are deciding between you will see how many calories are in it, whether you like to, whether you care to or not. that is what restaurants are going to have to do to apcomply with the regulation in the affordable care act. and that's a problem for places like dominoes including one here in old town, alexandra. because domino's offers 34 million possible combinations of pizza. where is there wall space to list calorie counts for 34 million different pizza possibilities. so executives at domino saying this regulation would cost a lot of dough. >> our company, like many pizza enterprises is, individual, small business franchisees across the country. so, these are people that own three or four or one or two domino's pizza stores. to have to redo the menu boards every time something changes on a calorie count woul

peter. we are going to our next speaker. he spoke at our evidence before. well, again. >> thank you. i keep asking dr. alexander, why did you keep ticking me to come back? >> i will tell you. first of all, loyalty to the academic work. indicatertantly, to that the university really sponsors areas of interest to the society. when we talk about sports, we have to deal with security as well. not only on that list but also the audience and participants. it is all yours. >> i am always honored to come back. after hearing all the speakers prior to may, i have this sense of fear to come up here and share with you that our students go to the olympics every year and i am happy to say they are back today. i can talk about this a little more freely. they go and they experience all the olympic movement from a sponsorship, a marketing standpoint, a security standpoint which we never used to cover. they get to meet with ceo's from different sponsors and vendors. , but i wonderful program remember my students talking a couple weeks ago -- did you contact the state department? we have to get our names in. i remember 15 years a