peter alexander, nbc news, washington. >>> there is word of yet another recall today by gm. this time it's more than 218,000 small cars. most of them chevy aveos from the model years 2004 to 2008. gm says a faulty part of the daytime running lights could overheat and cause a fire. since mid-february, gm has recalled on average almost 1 million cars a week. >>> still ahead tonight, hidden fees, extra charges, cancellations. new rules announced to tackle some of the biggest complaints for air travelers. >>> and later, a song that has so many people getting happy.

we begin with peter alexander. peter, good evening. >> reporter: brian, good evening. days ago this was a quiet creek but as you see now, it's a rushing river. after several states collected historic rain totals in this massive storm. tonight there is a hole in the heart of baltimore, heavy rain causing the road to collapse, swallowing cars, and sweeping debris over this crucial east coast rail line. >> oh my god. >> reporter: tim rogers watched in disbelief as crews crushed his car and others to get them off the tracks. in maryland fed frederick lost 28 cars when flood waters went into his dealership and body shop. >> you see the dollars flying away. >> reporter: in this case floating away. >> exactly. >> reporter: that water came from this dam officials decided to open overnight to avoid a possible breach. from the plains to the northeast, violent wet weather, 159 reported tornados in 15 states. in new york city wednesday, the tenth rainiest day on record, close to five inches. still, that's nowhere near the eye-popping totals across the southeast. 11 inches in mobil

our report from national correspondent peter alexander. >> you are the new ms. teen usa. >> reporter: just as cassidy was enjoying this coronation, her moments at home were being violated. >> i received an anonymous e-mail from an anonymous person, he was basically extorting me and blackmailing me. he attached nude photos he had taken of me in my bedroom. >> reporter: that blackmailer had hacked into her room and used her webcam to photograph her. wolf is more than 700,000 cyber hacking victims worldwide whose personal computer were turned against them. today, federal authorities announced more than 90 arrests in 19 countries, from the u.s. to europe, a two-year investigation, one of the largest cybercrime crackdowns ever, among them, a swedish hacker living in muldova, who federal investigators say helped market the tool, called black shade remote access tool or black shades rat. >> black shades rat enabled anyone, anywhere in the world to instantly become a dangerous cyber criminal. >> reporter: they can be used to hijack computers and turn on webcams, access

we get our report tonight from peter alexander. >> reporter: in school cafeterias what belongs on theenu can be grounds for debate. >> it's important to eat healthy because if you don't you'll get diseases like diabetes and i don't want that. >> sometimes it tastes nasty. >> reporter: first lady michele obama who fought passionately to get healthier foods in the schools, is diving back in. >> we're seeing efforts in congress to roll back these new standards and undo the hard work that all of you, all of us have done on behalf of our kids. >> reporter: it's rare territory for mrs. obama waging a political fight against efforts backed by republicans and pushed by the food industry that would exempt some districts from federal rules requiring more whole grains, fresh fruits and vegetables in school lunches. >> it's unacceptable to me not just as first lady but as a mother. >> reporter: but some critics including school officials say schools can't afford to keep serving what kids won't eat. >> the students aren't accepting the meals that we serve. we'll see waste and participation going d

our report from nbc's peter alexander. >> reporter: they are the first class to graduate since the 9/11 attacks that may not be sent to iraq and afghanistan. at west point today, president obama argued for restraints before the u.s. commits to any future military action. >> just because we have the best hammer, does not mean that every problem is a nail. >> reporter: but today's speech also marked a public acknowledgement that syria now offers a haven for extremists so dangerous it's drawing comparisons to the threat posed by afghanistan before 9/11. >> as the syrian civil war spills across borders, the capacity of battle hardened extremists groups to come after us only increases. >> reporter: senior intelligence officials tell nbc news this suicide bombing last sunday was the first known attack carried out by an american citizen with ties to al qaeda since the syrian civil war. >> we let syria go so far down this path of violence and instability that there are absolutely no good choices in terrorism coming home to root in the u.s. from syria is a very real possibility. >> reporter: t

peter alexander, nbc news, washington. >>> there is word of yet another recall today by gm. this time it's more than 218,000 small cars. most of them chevy aveos from the model years 2004 to 2008. gm says a faulty part of the daytime running lights could overheat and cause a fire. since mid-february, gm has recalled on average almost 1 million cars a week. >>> still ahead tonight, hidden fees, extra charges, cancellations. new rules announced to tackle some of the biggest complaints for air travelers. >>> and later, a song that has so many people getting happy. yet a group of young men and women are arrested for dancing to pharrell, leading to backlash around the world. >>> we're back now with news for millions of travelers who bought an airline ticket online, only to be hit later with all the additional fees that can add big money to the price of a trip. the government today proposed requiring airlines and travel sites to be much more up front about the fees they charge. it comes as the airlines are lobbying congress for approval to advertise airfares without mentioning tho

we get more tonight from nbc's peter alexander. >> reporter: if the projections are right, newborn nia will witness big environmental changes during her lifetime. just think of all the extreme weather headlines in the last nine months. floods, tornadoes, record cold, and record drought. today's new white house report, the national climate assessment it's called, warns if we do nothing temperatures could rise up to ten degrees this century. president obama with nbc's al roker this afternoon. >> this is not some distant problem of the future. this is a problem that is affecting americans right now. >> reporter: across all regions. in the northeast heavier rainfalls and more heat waves are predicted. short winters are already affecting maple syrup producers. >> it didn't quite get cold enough at night. >> reporter: in the northwest, less snow and warmer more acidic ocean waterers cutting into oyster farmer bill taylor's catch. in the midwest, benefits of longer growing seasons may be wiped out by more extreme weather. more droughts and floods that could affect harvests and food prices. th

nbc news national correspondent peter alexander saying it could go down as the biggest in history. >> reporter: the database contained customer names, encrypted passwords, e-mails and home addresses, phone numbers and dates of birth. it was discovered two weeks ago. ebay says there is no evidence that any financial information was accessed or compromised, however, we are taking every precaution to protect our customers. former federal prosecutor mark rash. >> the hacker only needs to find one way in and the defender has to defend against every possible attack. we play a game called whac-a-mole. they pop up, we knock them down. and -- >> reporter: how are we doing? are wee keeping up? >> we're not keeping up. the hackers always have the advantage. >> reporter: hackers could be looking to take advantage by selling data like e-mails and birth dates to criminals who can use them to try to steal your identity. ebay owns pay pal, but says those accounts were not affected. cybercrime experts say it is not enough to change your ebay password. if you use the same password on multiple site incl

peter alexander is at the white house for us tonight, peter, good evening. >> reporter: cynthia, good evening. president obama honored the memories of the servicemen and women that gave their lives defending the country and in a clear reference, emphasized american veterans must get the care and benefits they have earned and deserve. at the nation's most sacred monument, a somber memorial day tradition 150 years after the last soldier was laid to rest at arlington national cemetery. president obama called this a pivotal moment for u.s. service members fighting overseas. >> our troops are coming home. by the end of this year, our war in afghanistan will finally come to an end. hours earlier, the president obama himself arrived home from afghanistan after a surprise overnight trip to thank the troops in person. >> the american people stand united. we support you. we are proud of you. we stand in awe of your service. >> reporter: here at home, the commander in chief is facing tough scrutiny how the u.s. served veterans with allegations of deaths from delayed treatments and other miss con

and nbc national correspondent peter alexander, live at the white house. peter, first to you. what we're being told by national security officials on background is basically the president's going to announce the withdrawal, 32,000 troops now in afghanistan, and they are drawing down and he is open to an agreement with the new president of afghanistan, the runoff elections still to be held. >> reporter: yeah, andrea. that is exactly right. this is all contingent on that new president in afghanistan with the run-off scheduled for june 14th going ahead an signing whats what's referred to as the bsa, that security agreement between the two countries which would basically allow for american troops to stay there afterward. what we will hear from the president today and what we are hearing from senior ed administration officials right now there, 9,800 u.s. troops still in afghanistan in 2015. by the end of 2015 the number will be shrunk roughly in half. by the end of 2016, roughly by the time the president ends his term in office, all of those troops will have come home. there will b

thank you, peter alexander. the president's methodical approach we've been talking about is engendering a lot of frustration, particularly from both the hill and from the military side. joining me now are those two voices for the military, medal of honor recipient colonel jack jacobs, and from capitol hill, we're joined by congresswoman stheel a jackson lee of texas. a big military state. and the site of some of these allegations about the va health care. colonel jacobs, did the president go far enough? >> i think it went far enough. he's a little late. he needs to get out ahead of the story. >> this was several weeks where all we heard from was aides and spokes people. >> that's correct. it goes back further than that. months and months ago, indeed years ago we had this problem. and when shinseki first took office, those people with pts, agent orange exposure, opened the doors to them and said, that they could sign up and come in for va benefits. and the fact of the matter is, the organization was not structure

joined now by be in national correspondent peter alexander at the white house. these 9,800 service people who are supposed to now stay after 2014, other former commanders have recommended higher numbers, maybe even 12,000 to 13,000 troops. how do you think this number is going to be received by the military brass? >> reporter: that's a good question right now. we know that the military brass has been pursuing a series of options waiting to hear exactly what the white house' orders would be. they were reviewing the potential what it would look like if they were told to keep 2,000 troops behind, 5,000 and roughly 10,000. this number 9,800 may as well be 9 hadn't 9 $9.99. right? there is some question among military brass whether that number is actually enough to maintain the training missions that are necessary at the same time as they fulfill that separate mission that the president will outline a little bit later which is to continue the support of the counterterrorism operations in efforts to root out al qaeda in that country. but for a long time folks have kno

. >>> good day to you, i'm peter alexander in washington in today for andrea mitchell. it's what u.s. officials believe is authentic, the first proof of life we have seen of those missing nigerian school girls kidnapped by boko haram almost a month ago. with that video comes new demands, asking for the release of imprisoned militants in exchange for the captive school girls. stephanie gosk joins me now live from cameroon where some of the girls may have been moved by their kidnappers. stephanie, thanks for joining us. first thing out of the gates, i want a sense of significance of this video. it seems to support the idea that some of these girls may have been separated, unclear exactly what happened but only about 100 or so young girls in that video. >> reporter: well, you know, peter, this is a hostage video we're looking at here. we've never seen one quite like this because it shows scores of teenage girls. as you say, there are about 100 there. that's by our count. we know 276 school girls were abducted from the school four weeks ago. it would be less than half of th

as nbc news national correspondent peter alexander reports, it could be the big nest history. >> customer names, encrypted passwords, e-mail and home addresses, and dates of birth. it occurred in late february, but discovered two weeks ago. no evidence that financial information was compromised. we are taking every precaution to protect our customers. mark rash. >> the hacker only needs one way in, and the defender has to defend. we play whack a mole. they pop up, knock them down. >> reporter: we keeping up? >> we are not keeping up. the hackers have the advantage. >> reporter: hackers could be looking to take advantage by selling data to criminals who could try to steal your identity. ebay owns papal, but they were not affected. it's not enough to simply change your ebay password. if you use the same password on mull. sites, change them. >> we are racing to change them before the bad guys can use them. >> reporter: another breach that could cause problems for consumers. >>> a missing california woman allegedly being held captive for a decade has been found. she vaned in 2004 as a teenage

. >> is joining me now is peter alexander, and now congresswoman tammy duckworth, disabled iraq vet and former v.a. department official has joined the chorus saying that general shinseki should step the down. >> yes, tamron. that is right. this chorus is a lot louder over the course of the last 24 hours or so and more than 110 members of congress and notably a lot of them are senate democrats included and at least 11 senate democrats are on board as well saying that eric shinseki needs to go. a lot of the democrats are facing re-election, and so it is a significant political issue for the white house as well. we are waiting to see when this meeting with shinseki wraps up whether president obama will walk out to the briefing room, and make any remarks about this. timing is significant here, tamron, because the president heads out of town next week, and of course, there is a d-day remembrance overseas, and we will be traveling with him when he makes the remarks on the 70th anniversary of d-day at norma y normandy, and the white house does not want this issue looming over their heads as th

america's war in afghanistan will come to a responsible end. >> peter alexander is live at the white more details on the end of war in afghanistan. >> reporter: he'll be giving that address wednesday at the military academy. the white house said we can expect to hear more detail about exactly what the u.s. intention is, the president's intention is, in terms of how many american troops remain in afghanistan at the end of 2014. more than 30,000 american troops serving there right now. obviously a lot of this relies upon the bilateral security agreement being signed by afghanistan's leader to let us stay. hamid karzai hasn't signed it. the president believes they will likely sign it. president obama dropped a hint saying there will be a limited american presence after 2014. that will seem to rule out the zero option that had been discussed at occasions in the past. >> we know that president obama did not meet with president karzai face to face yesterday but we're told he did have a phone conversation with him. at this point do we know anything about that conversation, any details? >> y

nbc's peter alexander. >> we're hearing from senior officials in the last few minutes. let's run down exactly what the numbers are. we expect to hear from the president today. the combat mission will end at the end of this year. there will be main about 9800 u.s. forces in afghanistan. at the end of the next year, 2015, it will be roughly half of that number. by the end of 2006, roughly the end of the president's presidency, it will be down to roughly embassy personnel and those to staff a security office. they said in the last five minutes or so to use their language that this is a moment of momentum in afghanistan where they say the afghan security forces have been stepping forward as have the afghan people, specifically referring to the successful election there a week ago, and a runoff that will take place in on june 14th. all of this requires that the bsa, the bilateral security agreement is signs, and the two candidates in that run off are believed likely to sign it. the president communities this decision to hamid karzai this morning by phone. >>> now to californ

. >> we're going to bring in now peter alexander. as i mentioned the president has a big commencement speech tomorrow. >> yes, i think this was communicated pretty cleanly. they want this to be the final chapter. down to just that security personnel, the security office, and at the u.s. embassy by the end of the president's term, that clears the plate for the president to focus on broader foreign policy goals going forward. in his remarks tomorrow that he will make at the u.s. military academy at west point. there is a couple notes i think are significant here. this is all contingent on the next president of afghanistan signing that security agreement as a senior administration official told us before. if that deal is not signs, there will be no troops in afghanistan at the end of 2014. beyond that, critics have questioned what that does in terms of tipping the u.s. hat. the taliban, and al qaeda, and senior administration to official said that signed up and promised to be a security force against the taliban. in the eyes of an admin

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shinseki and he is expect ed in the briefing room any moment, and now you can see the reporters for peter alexander, and now let's bring in kristin welker, and honorary jack jacobs, and kristen, any signal s from the white house about what we are expecting from the meeting? >> well, chris, i think that when president obama takes the podium he is going to express that and express his anger and frustration with the crisis at the v.a. and he has come under an immense amount of criticism for not speaking out about the issue in over e three weeks now, and that is going to be something that we will hear from him, and as you point out, he is currently meeting right now with the secretary of the v.a. eric shinseki as well as the deputy chief of staff rob nay bors who has been assigned to help sh shinseki and what went wrong and how to avoid it going forward and the white house has consistently said that they have confidence in secretary shinseki, and we will be listening closely to see if he reiterates that, and the calls for shinseki to resign have been growing louder, and the white house says they want t

this is just in from our peter alexander in washington, d.c., this afternoon president obama will make an announcement about the next steps in winding down the war in afghanistan. the president will announce that our mission will be over by the end of 2014, and the president will make clear that we are open to continued efforts in afghanistan on two narrow missions after 2014. given that the bilateral security agreement is reached. both of the afghan presidential candidates recently reiterated their intentions to sign the agreement despite opposition by hamid karzai and the president as you know made a surprise visit to afghanistan yesterday and had a brief 20-minute phone conversation with karzai. he will announce the numbers and the u.s. role in a combat mission ending in 2014, and also developing surrounding the v.a. scandal, lawmakers are now calling for the justice department to open up a full criminal investigation. right now the v.a.'s inspector general is investigating alleged wait time cover-ups at centers across the kun tcountry. he is working with one branch of the justice d

. ♪ mattress discounters >>> we're back with developing news, peter alexander is reporting that u.s.l travel to nigeria in the next several days as boko haram claims responsibility for the kidnapping of more than 300 nigerian school girls that outraged so many of us around the world. terror group's leader says i abducted your girls and i will sell them in the market by allah. some have reportedly already been sold into marriage as little as $12. these are their names scrolling on the screen right here. 276 are still in captivity. their fate hanging in the balance. each of these girls is a daughter whose parents are desperate for their safe return home. >> they are not doing up to now. they are promising us that these girls will be found but up to this moment i'm talking, nothing has been done. >> not with me at the moment, my parents have left, we are crying at home. >> over the weekend a call to action across the washington to new york to london, protesters demanding the government do more to find these missing girls. nigeria's president appealed for international help in the first

. >>> good afternoon to you, i'm peter alexander in washington in for andrea mitchell. for first time the u.s. department of justice has filed criminal charges for cyber economic he is pea onage against another country. this was attorney general eric holder in a press conference a short time ago. >> we are announcing an indictment against the chinese people's liberation army for serious cyber security breaches against six american victim companies. the five chinese military officers conspired together and with others to hack into the computers in the western pennsylvania and elsewhere in the united states. we have brought a charging indictment and it is our hope to get them to stand before an american jury and face justice. >> joining me now, pete williams. the five individuals charged, members of china's united 61398, that's the group tasked with these types of attacks. what are the specific individuals accused of doing? >> they are members of the chinese army and people's liberation army. what they are accused of doing is in the case of all of these companies, getting

and peter alexander is live at the white house. what are we hearing from the administration? administration says that the president has been briefed several times and the national security team is updating him on the latest of what is taking place of the missing young girls in nigerian. and before i came out to talk to you, i hung up from the phone of one of the senior officials who said that one of the top senior officials will travel to the region to help in the search for the young women, and the u.s. is presently going to be providing help in terms of the intelligence to try to get new information to try to find their whereabouts, but that is effectively where effectively where the aid ends and nigerian officials made it clear that's all the help they want at this time. we can hear another protest taking place where they are yelling shame on obama. that was a separate topic at hand. specifically what's important to notoriety now is that the u.s. is providing, they insist, all of the help that the nigerian officials requested and they will continue to have more conversatio

. >>> good day to you, i'm peter alexander in washington in today for andrea mitchell.als believe is authentic, the first proof of life we have seen of those missing nigerian school girls kidnapped by boko haram almost a month ago. with that video comes new demands, asking for the release of imprisoned militants in exchange for the captive school girls. stephanie gosk joins me now live from cameroon where some of the girls may have been moved by their

. >> peter alexander. >> mr.odesta is it possible for the president's aides have suggested to climate change be one of the key components of his legacy and also to support the keystone pipeline? are those two things and conflict? >> i think you know when i came here i said i'm not going to work on the keystone pipeline so i'll just defer that to a later question. >> bill. >> given the fact that most of the extraction stuff is regulated by state governments what can the federal government do to ensure that water quality is unharmed and geologic disturbances, all of this reported very much by people, local people whether fracking is taking place? >> well i think we have resources or the pa that certainly can support this and that the department of energy which has a major research program going on to provide state regulators up-to-date scientific knowledge about the best practices that can be utilized. but at this point i think we are trying to work with the states to ensure that people can be reassured. obviously

>> all right, peter alexander on this. peter, thank you very much.alking more about this subject later on. things parents can do. things schools can do. things law enforcement can do. none of them having to do with movies like that. >> warning signs that need to be caught early on. >>> coming up on "trending," do those comfort foods really make you feel better? the surprising truth behind our cravings. >>> and next, the twitter user stashing cash all around san francisco, and his plans to bring the hunt to a city near you, right after this. that, my . and with the quicksilver card from capital one, you earn unlimited 1.5% cash back on everything you purchase. not just "everything at the hardware store." not "everything, until you hit your cash back limit." quicksilver can earn you unlimited 1.5% cash back on everything you could possibly imagine. say it with me -- everything. one more time, everything! and with that in mind... what's in your wallet? they put the hash browns on the inside? yeah, so they can keep a hand free, they can do that tweeter t

peter alexander. >> do i dare disturb the clinton universe?estion that monica lewinsky said she grappled with years for sharing her story with "vanity fair." beyond this expectation, shame hung around my neck. every day i'm recognized. every day. lewinsky in the full essay obtained by nbc news is insists he's speaking out for herself, not anybody else. this is not about me versus the clintons. their lives have moved on. i wish them no ill. and i fully understand what has happened to me and the issue of my future do not matter to either of them. having turned 40 last year, lewinsky realized it was time to stop tiptoeing around her past and the future. lynne cheney, wife of former vice president dick cheney told fox news she believes the clintons had a hand in the articles released. >> i really wonder if this isn't an effort on the clintons' part to get that story out of the way. >> reporter: true or not, ruth marcus said lewinsky has dunhillry a big favor. >> now if there's a hillary clinton campaign in 2016, we can move on from the lewinsky sc

nbc's national correspondent peter alexander is at the white house. ter, good morning. >> reporter: carson, good morning to you. minutes from now, president obama will meet with secretary eric shinseki. a senior administration official tells nbc news that eric shinseki is on thin ice. within the last hour, shinseki talked about the systematic problems in the v.a. that were unacceptable. met by a standing ovation, eric shinseki apologized, but did not resign. >> i apologize to the people i care deeply about. the veterans, to their families. >> reporter: shinseki announced he was firing the management at the arizona facility and states he was misled about the bredth of the problems. >> it must be fixed. >> reporter: more than 100 members of congress have called for shinseki to go. all of them facing tough elections campaigns this fall. colorado's mark udall, secretary shinseki must step down. from louisiana's mary landrieu, new leadership is needed. still the top house leaders are reserving judgment. >> the real issue here is that the president is the on

nbc national correspondent peter alexander has made his way to the boardwalk in ocean city, maryland.od morning to you. what a gorgeous weekend to be at the beach and the boardwalk. we're here at ocean city, maryland. most popular beach destination in this state. 250,000 people expected to make the trek here this weekend. pretty good reason to head to the beach after the long winter that we've had. at miami beach, the occupancy in hotels 76%. that is up over last year. around the country, americans say 7 in 10 of them have beach plans somewhere in the course of their summer vacation. and this is prime season for these businesses. 15 weekends until labor day. that's where they've got to make the most of their income for the course of this year. if you go to ocean city, maryland, there's one business you don't want to miss, dolly's saltwater taffy. we've got a whole crate in the back for you. >> nice. love it. nice catch there, peter. peter alexander in ocean city, maryland. 8:06 right now. let's get a check of the weekend weather once again with al. >> thanks so much, nat. and we've go

peter alexander has the latest. peter, good morning. >> matt, good morning to you. this is serious business we're talking about here. three people were actually hospitalized, and this morning, food safety inspectors have expanded their warning. they now believe this potentially contaminated beef was sent to distribution centers nationwide. with many restaurants preparing to cook up burgers this holiday weekend, health experts warn this e. coli outbreak is the strain that worries them most. >> it can release a toxin into the blood that attacks the kidneys, and frequently, it can cause life-threatening illnesses for young children. >> already at least 11 people have been sickened in four states, michigan, missouri, ohio, and massachusetts, forcing detroit's wolverine packing company to recall nearly two million pounds of ground beef sold to restaurants. the company says no product tested positive, but it was prudent to voluntarily recall its beef and it's redoubling its efforts to assure safety standards exceed customers' expectations. it's the same strain that hit ja

nbc's national correspondent peter alexander has more on that. peter, good morning to you. >> matt, good morning to you. monica lewinsky was 22 when her affair started with president bill clinton. she is 40 now. after years of virtual silence and she insists the clintons never paid her off, lewinsky is now speaking out about the humiliation and also expressing her regrets. monica lewinsky and bill clinton, it nearly cost him his presidency. >> i did not have sexual relations with that woman, ms. lewinsky. >> monica, any comment at all? >> the former white house intern was at the center of a sex scandal that consumed the country 16 years ago, leading to clinton's impeachment trial even as the 42nd president avoided removal from office. now after more than a decade out of the limelight, lewinsky is breaking her silence with a column in the june issue of "vanity fair," writing, "it's time to burn the beret and bury the blue dress." and emphatically apologizing for her role in the scandal. "i myself deeply regret what happened." lewinsky insists her r

just like nbc's peter alexander. >> hoping you're having a good weekend.gorgeous weekend to be at the beach. we're at ocean city maryland. most popular beach destination in this state. 250,000 people expected here this weekend. across the country. it makes sense a lot of folks want to hit the beach. 72% of americans say at some point this summer they're going to go to the beach. in miami beach, 76% occupancy in the hotels there. that's up 5% over last year. it's obvious this is critical season for these atlantic ocean, these beachfront locations. for these businesses in particular, they've got 15 weekends until labor day to make the majority of their income. there's one business you don't want to miss. ooh, good toss right there. this is candy kitchen saltwater tafee. we've tried it, it's delicious. 99 million served they say. we'll take some home for you, don't worry, we have plenty of it. >> they'll be a little something extra in your paycheck, thank you. >>> putting new limits on the nsa. one of the lawmakers who voted for that bill join us next. produc

alexander -- peter alexander? >> thank you. is it possible for the president as suggested to have climate the keye one of components of his legacy and also to support the keystone pipeline? those two in conflict or can he accomplish both at once? >> i'll leave that one to jay. think you know, when i came here, i said i'm not going to pipeline.e keystone so i'll just defer that to a later question. >> bill? fact that most of the inspection stuff is regulated by state governments, the federal government do to ensure that water quality geologiced, that disturbances, all of this reported very much by people, frackingple, where the is taking place. >> well, i think we have that can at e.p.a. support -- and at the department of energy, which has a major research program going on this, to provide state regulators, you know, up-to-date, scientific about the best utilized.that can be at this point i think we're trying to work with the states to ensure that people can be reassured. obviously different states are going different ways on t

nbc's peter alexander has the story. g. >> reporter: natalie, good morning to you. just 30 minutes from here, actually, right outside d.c. is really one of the greatest collections dedicated to america's service men and women. this is a place that has never been open to the public, but for anyone who has a loved one who has served in the army, me included, this really is your family history. and we were given rare access inside. like indiana jones tasked to save treasure, the u.s. army has its own enormous collection of precious items. boots, shoes, walking through this heavily secured warehouse at ft. belvoir in northern virginia is like stepping into the army's attic. this is incredible. flags, radios, canteens. you name it. >> this collection is so important to us in the army, and also to the american people. >> reporter: chris oversees the center for military history. >> this is from the american revolution. where do you find stuff like this? >> it was found at a gun show. >> reporter: it feels like an episode of "paw

peter alexander has more. >> reporter: good morning.e former president bill clinton and hillary clinton and those folks who lost loved ones here, as well as survivors and first responders. president obama said no act of terror can match the strength and character of the u.s. here was the president less than an hour ago. >> at the great wall, a bed room that embraces us today, nothing can ever break us. nothing can change who we are as americans. >> reporter: president obama said that the true spirit of 9/11 was love, compassion and sacrifice. this site is filled with photos and keepsakes and it will open up to the public next week. >>> thanks. on a lighter said, paying cash for a new car not up heard of unless it's all in coins. a man in china bought it for the equivalent of $16,000, but he astonished the salesman when he brought in five tons of coins. the customer took a nap, watched a movie why they continued to count his money. it was such a huge chore. he finally agreed to pay only half in coins. he ended up putting the rest on his

peter alexander has more on this story. >> reporter: some are now calling this disinvitation season.s become increasingly intense. this trend is all the more stunning because commencement addresses are less about politics and more about sharing those pearls of wisdom with new graduates. >> congratulations to all of you. >> go forth, make a difference. >> this is your day. >> reporter: it's supposed to be a celebrated moment. speakers literally out of this world. maybe i should give the speech in a different orientation. but this commencement season, those caps and gowns can't cover up all the controversy. among the latest targets one of the world's most powerful women. christine lagarde. after student protest with blasting imf as imperialistic, lagarde backed out saying she wanted to preserve the celebratory spirit of commencement day. condoleezza rice withdrew from rutgers university saying she didn't want to be a distraction to students. and a human rights activist had her invitation yanked for her criticism of islam. >> throughout my life i -- >> reporter: even sean p. diddy combs

nbc's national correspondent peter alexander was there, as were we, and he's got the latest on it. good morning. >> reporter: hey, guys. fun to see you here saturday night. president obama's gotten pretty good at his correspondent dinner delivery, but this year's event had plenty of fun stirring up a little light conversation about who might be next in line. by now, president obama has this nerd prom deal down. >> in 2008, my slogan was "yes, we can." in 2013, my slogan was "control alt delete." >> reporter: sprinkling in some self-deprecating humor with plenty of jabs. >> the house republicans actually give john boehner a harder time than they give me. which means orange really is the new black. >> reporter: but did this year's dinner offer any real clues about who might be the next comedian in chief? joe biden teams up with hbo's veep julia louis dreyfus, seemingly taking 2016 out for a spin. rating the white house kitchen. >> what's in your mouth? >> carrots. >> reporter: and running into nancy pelosi before getting matchi ining tattoos. onstage, president obama plafly dropped h

we are joined by white house correspondent pete alexander, and also the correspondent to the white house for special affairs peter hollis. and peter, let me start with you, in getting the european i union to agree to stronger sanctions in rush sharks and is that what president obama is going to be pushing for the meetings with angela merkel today? >> well, she got here a while ago and i saw the motorcade arriving here, and they will have a private conversation prior to the news conference, but that is why angela merkel is so important, because she has been speaking to vladimir putin more than any other world leader, and president obama has not spoken to putin since the 14th of april, and merkel has spoken to him multiple timesk and germany is pivotal, because they are reluctant to go further with the further ek sectorial sanctions, because of the impact on the german economy. the trade between germany and russia was $1 billion and u.s. and germany was only $38 million. and germany gets roughly one-third of the oil and gas from russia, so a real concern within the german industry that they are the ones putting the