[ cheers and applause ] this morning on "early today," final push. president obama lays into republicans for holding up middle class tax cuts. grave situation, the army discovers at least two people buried in wrong spots at arlington national cemetery. and beast of burden. oregon firefighters race to rescue a camel stuck in a oregon firefighters race to rescue a camel stuck in a sinkhole. captions paid for by nbc-universal television hello and good morning. welcome to our viewers across

the nation, including the pacific time zone. i'm lynn berry. today we begin with getting down to business. primaries are over. midterm elections are just weeks away. and now president obama is slamming republicans for holding up his tax plan to prop up small businesses and the middle class. nbc's tracie potts joins us live now from capitol hill. good morning. >> good morning. republicans are digging in, not all of his own party members are on board. and all of this less than two months before a key election. how to win a tax fight and an election. first, solidify the base. >> don't forget who is standing with you and who is standing against you. >> reporter: then put pressure on your opponents. >> we simply don't have time any more to play games. >> reporter: extending tax cuts to americans earning over $250,000 has become the lightning rod for a nasty partisan fight heading into

november. more than two dozen democrats now disagree with president obama. republicans aren't wavering. >> republicans are united. no tax increases on nobody. >> reporter: even house leader john boehner who suggested sunday he might support the president is now backing off. >> if that is your only option, as you said sunday, would you vote -- >> i want to extend all of the current tax rates -- >> reporter: tuesday's primary appears to have spooked both sides. analysts say tea party wins could backfire on republicans. >> seems like it was a sense of voter nullification, like we're not listening to you. we, the republican party, we're not listening. that's inherently the problem. >> reporter: it could be a problem for democrats, too. a new cbs/"new york times" poll puts their disapproval rating at 58%. >> and it's 68% for republicans, even higher overall. bottom line in that poll, most americans said they want most of

lawmakers here in washington out. lynn. >> tracie potts there for us in washington. tracie, thank you. well, families who believe their loved ones were in their final resting places at arlington national cemetery have just learned that is not the case. the army has discovered at least two people who were buried in wrong graves. remains have been exhumed from the military cemetery following a recent army report detailing mismanagement that led to the handling of over 200 graves. a later senate report put that number up to 6,600. since the army's findings, defense officials have received about 1,100 calls from worried families. in an nbc news exclusive, chief foreign affairs correspondent andrea mitchell was granted an interview inside the presidential palace in tehran wednesday with iranian president mahmoud ahmadinejad. they talked about the fate of the american hikers held in iran. ahmadinejad wanted people to know that sarah shourd had been

released on compassionate grounds. but when it came to tough questions on the other two american hikers still in jail and iran's nuclear program, ahmadinejad remained defiant. be sure to watch andrea mitchell one-on-one later this morning on "today." now here's a look at other stories making news early today in america. >> texas police released dash cam video of an alleged beating of a motorcyclist who was pursued after he allegedly rode down a sidewalk. officers approach the man and deliver several blows. of the 22 officers involved in the case, one has been fired and along with two others faces possible felony charges. three are on restricted duty for the duration of the investigation. in michigan, police are looking for the suspect they say is the world's dumbest criminal. the man walks into a convenience store and, in plain sight of a security camera, dawns a darth vader mask.

though the dark lord got away with an undisclosed amount of cash during the heist, he's now in hot pursuit of the police force. oregon firefighters were called in for an unusual rescue. a privately owned 1200-pound camel stuck in a sinkhole. the rescue team used ropes and straps to pull the distressed animal to safety. so far, it seems to be doing okay. and in new york, guinness world records folks promoted the release of their 2011 book with a play date with one of its biggest and smallest stars. giant george, the world's tallest living dog, and booboo, the smallest. booboo needed a boost to meet george, but as you can see right there, there was an instant connection. now for a look at your national and regional weather, here's nbc meteorologist bill karins with the weather channel forecast. bill, good morning. i don't know if you were paying attention when i was reading. >> i was. >> did you notice the kamil's

privately owned, who owns a camel? someone who lives near a sinkhole? >> i don't know. i have no idea. but, yeah, sinkhole, either. rare camels, not many sinkholes. not good. the weather pattern changed here biological weapon had one storm kicked through. you notice one a second one off the coast here. it's going to stay a little more active. none of the storms are close to areas around the four corners regions or southern portions of the west. all of the fronts will remain up here to the northwest. british klcolumbia, that's goin to sleeve y to leave you steamy and hot. 110 in arizona and warm in nevada, too. the cool stuff is where the rain is falling. portland, for you, olympia, seattle, showers are going to try to sneak up your way shortly. and spokane, a shower or two.

the forecast today, wet weather is up here in the pacific northwest. look how hot we are from vegas bakersfield, california. ukiah, california, 85 and partly cloudy skies. oregon, rather cloudy. take a look at the friday forecast coming up, lynn. >> bill, thank you. stocks boost on earnings. more trouble for goldman sachs. and what's in a name? maybe a trademark infringement. your early morning business headlines are straight ahead. plus, it's the list everyone wants to make. "people" magazine's best dressed. a game saving catch, a high flying football player and who will get reggie's heisman? you're watching "early today."

>> good morning, and welcome back to "early today." i'm lynn berry. here are some of your top headlines this morning. open ben pope benedict xvi was greeted by queen elizabeth in scotland earlier today. his meeting with the queen is significant because of the historic divide between the officially protestant nation and the catholic church. former ebay ceo meg whitman, candidate for governor of california, now holds the record for personal spending on an election. earlier this week she added another $15 million of her own money to her war chest, bringing her own total campaign dollars to a staggering $119 million. the nbc family is mourning the loss of edwin newman, a celebrated anchor, commentator, correspondent and host for the network for over 30 years.

newman's family says the 91-year-old died of pneumonia in england last month. they delayed the announcement to spend time privately grieving. boeing says it's planning to offer private citizens a chance to fly into space on a commercial rocket that is developing. the spacecraft, which can carry up to seven people, is expected to be ready in five years, although boeing has not named an exact price, experts expect that one round-trip ticket to the international space station could easily cost $25 million. now here is a look at how wall street will kick off the day. the dow opens at 10,572 after gaining 46 points yesterday. the s&p added 3 points. the nasdaq climbed 11. taking a look at overseas trading this morning, in tokyo, the nikkei fell seven points. while in hong kong, the hang seng lost 34.

investors looked on the bright side of mixed economic data yesterday for the proof that predicting where the markets are heading these days is a tricky business. traders set aside weak manufacturing data out of new york state, focusing instead on a second straight month of growth in u.s. industrial production. this afternoon investors will have an eye on earnings with reports due out from oracle and research in motion. overseas, japanese officials did not step in to keep its currency trading lower for a second day. the bank of japan's surprise intervention wednesday drove the yen sharply lower and the u.s. dollar more than 3% higher. here in the u.s., the semi sector was dealt a blow by a downgrade to chipmaker micron technology. micron shares shed 4.5%. meanwhile, mastercard shares shot up 5% after the company predicted a 20% rise in income for 2010. elsewhere, a healthy earnings

outlook from kraft foods pushed its shares to a new high for the year. the world trade organization is condemning the u.s. for paying, quote, massive subsidies to boeing that violate international rules which gave it an unfair advantage over its european rival, airbus. the wto's preliminary finding is the latest in an ongoing battle over global aviation rights, which found airbus guilty of similar violations back in april. goldman sachs is facing a gender bias suit from three former female employees who claim the firm is ruled by a, quote, outdated corporate culture which underpays and fails to promote women. and finally, praise the lord and pass the pancakes? well, if you're talking about the international house of prayer in southern kansas, just don't call it an ihop. the famed pancake house is suing the house of prayer for trademark dilution and infringement. the rays reclaim first home

runs in bunches. and no heisman for vince young. plus, a game-saving catch in cincinnati leaves diamondback fans seeing red. your early morning sports headlines are straight ahead. today's weather trouble spot will be the great lakes with some heavy rain. your forecast is coming up. you're watching "earlday."

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good morning. if you're just waking up, this is "early today." in sports, another unsung hero came up big last night in the race for first place in the american league east between the yankees and the rays. here is nbc fred roggin with a look at your sports headlines. >> good morning. the first two games went to extra innings and the season finale between the yanks and rays lived up to its hypes. pick it up in the seventh. the ball hit the butt end of jeter's bat. ray's manager joe madden came out to argue his case. a few choice words for the umpire and he was sent to an early shower. wouldn't you know it. next batter, curtis granderson hit his 18th homer of the year. two-run bomb put them up, 3-2. stan johnson hit his second home ripped his second two-run homer of the night. the rays were up, 4-3. now to the ninth, tying run on third.

alex rodriguez at the plate. he struck out swinging. rays take over first place with a 4-3 win. it's a three-horse race for the nl race thanks to the rockies. troy tulowitzki hit a homer against the padres. rockies won, 9-6. they're just 2 1/2 behind the first place padres. great finish in cincinnati. diamondbacks down two. two outs in the ninth. adam la roche hit one high. he hit it deep. if it's out, it ties the game. jay bruce hustled to the wall and robbed him of a homer. what a way to end it. rays win in dramatic fashion, 7-5. the heisman trust has decided who will receive the 2005 trophy that reggie bush gave back on tuesday. and the heisman goes back to, no one. they will leave it vacant. a heisman could be in this kid's future. high schooler ashley lowery in kentucky. picked up the loose ball. watch him jump over the defender on his way to the end zone for a touchdown. lowery is expected to become a star in college and, after seeing that play, we know why.

another look, another angle. you can only imagine what the defender was thinking. lowery finished with three touchdowns, so i guess you can say the sky is the limit for that high flier. that's your early look at sports on "early today." i am fred roggin. >> that's one way to go. which actor is fighting mad over rumors he cheated on his wife? your early morning entertainment headlines are straight ahead. plus, a story you won't want to miss about a mother's love. you're watching "early today."

welcome back. we have a wet forecast, umbrella weather in the pacific northwest. eventually seattle should get some of that. raining in portland. down in the desert southwest, the heat is going to continue. that's not going to change tomorrow, either. l.a., not bad. 81. good deal of sunshine. hotter in the valleys. notice in friday, more wet weather lingers here in the pacific northwest. california, arizona and nevada look high and dry. if you're watching us on khq right now in spokane, washington, if you're looking to spice up your dance moves or experience new culture through dance and music, head to centerstage for a free argentinean tango lessons. a little spice in your life.

>> a little spicy picture there, too. this is morning tv. bill, thank you. and now here's an early look at this morning's headlines in entertainment. has "star" magazine gone too far with yet another he's cheating on her story? one hollywood heavyweight says yes. for the second time this month, "star" printed a story quoting a woman claiming to have had an affair with ashton kutcher. now he's tweeted threats to take the magazine to court saying, quote, you don't get to stand behind freedom of press when you are writing fiction. michael jackson's mother and his children are suing aeg live, claiming the company breached its agreement to provide physical care for jackson and was negligent in hiring dr. conrad murray. finally, "people" is out with its best dressed list. here you go. zoe saldana is the red carpet queen. gwen stefani is the hip mom.

rihanna is the runaway. olivia palermo is the uptown girl. jessica alba is the mix master. jennifer anniston, the american classic. rachel bilson is the denim darling. kate middleton, the princess in waiting. this comes to us from wlbt-tv3 in jackson, mississippi, where one cat just might win the mother of the year award. emmy, the cat, welcomed a squirrel to her brood when the abandoned critter fell from its nest and was too strong to climb back up. now, the squirrel is part of emmy's kittens. she's sleeping and nursing together. the only problem is now the adaptive squirrel thinks it's a cat and, according to the owner, it purrs like one, too. i'm lynn berry. this is "early today" on your nbc station.

for those short on time and on the go, it seems there's always a solution, at least according to one imam in france who has developed a mosque in a box for those too busy to make prayer services. the six feet high cardboard structure unfolds to create walls and is supposed to offer a calm environment in any environment. there are plenty of rare breeds in los angeles, and they just got 22 more. the litter of kimodo dragons made their debut at an l.a.

zoo after successfully breeding for the first time out of their native indonesia. don't be fooled by their small stature. they are the world's largest lizard species, expected to grow up to 9 feet and weigh 200 pounds. monkey see, monkey do. monkey work? well, it would seem so in southern thailand. apparently villagers need extra hands to harvest coconuts so they've turned to monkeys. one trainer has even taught the little guys to use their hand and feet to twist coconuts off the trees. for this specialized training, these primates need to enroll in monkey training college. enrollment is already up to eight students. while it's really cute, i have a feeling there are some animal activists that would have a problem with that. >> with the monkey getting the coconuts? >> with them being put to work. >> well, we could do that with apples. >> with what? >> apples. have the monkey climb the tree and chuck the apples down. climbing those apple trees. it's that time of year. >> there you go. okay. that's a good idea. time now for an early look at some of the stories we'll follow throughout the day here on nbc. a landmark nuclear arms control treaty between the u.s.

and russia faces a key test in the senate. the senate foreign relations committee is scheduled to vote on the new strategic arms reduction treaty, also known as s.t.a.r.t. meanwhile, the house takes on the issue of pilot fatigue. today's house hearing comes on recent federal aviation administration recommendations that include limiting flight duty time from 16 to 13 hours and increasing the amount of rest time between shifts. and singer susan boyle will serenade the pope as part of the pontiff's celebration of mass in scotland. all day long, you can stay on top of the very latest developments in those stories and others as they break on msnbc. and tonight be sure to watch brian williams with nbc "nightly news." and, finally, here's a look at what's coming up later this morning on the "today" show. the president of iran sits down for an exclusive one-on-one interview. and madman star john hand stops by studio 1a to talk about his new film. now keep it on this channel for continuing local news, weather, sports and more. i'm lynn berry.

thanks for watching "early today," just your first stop of the day today on your nbc station. the day today on your nbc station. have a good one. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com