National & International News
The day’s top national and international news
NBCNews.com
3 hours ago

Search, Rescue Winds Down a Day After Oklahoma Tornado

AP After a tireless day of searching for survivors from Monday's massive tornado in Oklahoma, officials said the search and rescue operation would end by nightfall on Tuesday, NBC News reported. Moore fire chief said at a news conference that crews will comb through the city at least three times before they're done. President Obama vowed to help victims get needed assistance "right away" after the category EF-5 tornado tore through the suburbs of Oklahoma City, killing at least 24 people. Gov. Mary Fallin said there were 237 injuries "that we know of" and there were no firm numbers on those killed. "It’s horrific,” the governor earlier told "Today." “It looked like somebody set off something that destroyed structures. Not blocks, but miles.” The Oklahoma Medical Examiner's Office said that nine children were among 24 confirmed dead, revising down an earlier death toll more than twice as high. Seven of the dead were children who drowned at Plaza Towers Elementary School in heavily hit Moore, and where a teacher said she huddled with students in a bathroom when the storm struck. Nine-year-old Ja'Nae Hornsby from Plaza Tower School was the the first victim to be identified in the aftermath of the twister, followed by 65-year-old Hemant Bhonde, who was separated from his wife when the tornado struck. The tornado tore a 20-mile path during its 40 minutes on the ground, while kicking up a cloud of debris about two miles wide. Get More at NBC News

NBCNews.com
2 hours ago

9-Year-Old Among First Tornado Victims Identified

Courtesy Angela Hornsby A 9-year-old girl is among the first of the Oklahoma tornado victims to be identified, NBC News reported. Third-grader Ja'Nae Hornsby, who was "always smiling" was one of the students who died when the tornado slammed into Plaza Towers Elementary School in Moore, Okla., on Monday afternoon. Grieving family members gathered Tuesday at a Baptist church in Oklahoma City to console each other after a night of anxious waiting ended with a devastating call from the medical examiner's office. Ja'Nae's father tried to race back home to pick her up from school and pick up his two-year-old from daycare as the twister bore down on the Moore suburb. By the time he got there, the school had been reduced to a pile of rubble and the parking lot was transformed into a triage area for surviving students. Click through to read more about the frantic search for Ja'Nae Hornsby. Get More at NBC News

NBCNews.com
2 hours ago

Immigration Bill Clears Hurdle with 13-5 Approval by Senate Committee

AP The Senate Judiciary Committee voted 13-5 Tuesday night on a sweeping bill to overhaul the nation's immigration system, NBC News reported. Three Republicans -- Sens. Jeff Flake of Arizona, Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Orrin Hatch of Utah -- joined the panel's 10 Democrats to vote in favor of the bill. Flake and Graham are both members of the bipartisan "Gang of Eight" that originally drafted the 844-page immigration legislation. Sens. Ted Cruz and John Cornyn of Texas, Chuck Grassley of Iowa, Mike Lee of Utah and Jeff Sessions of Alabama voted against the legislation. In an emotional moment shortly before the final passage of the bill, committee chairman Patrick Leahy announced that he would withhold a vote on an amendment that would give the spouses of LGBT individuals the same standing as heterosexual couples. The measure will now head to the Senate floor. Get More at NBC News

Tuesday, May 21, 2013 at 9:55 AM

WATCH: View of Tornado's Path of Destruction By Air

"Today's" Natalie Morales reports from a helicopter on the destruction left behind by a tornado that hit Moore, Okla., looking down on the rubble that used to be an elementary school. Get More

2 hours ago

Jodi Arias Pleads for Jury to Spare Her Life


Convicted killer Jodi Arias asked jurors to spare her life instead of sentencing her to death for the brutal killing of her ex-boyfriend, saying that if she's allowed to live she could contribute to society. The former waitress called the killing of Travis Alexander "the worst mistake of my life." "To this day, I can hardly believe I was capable of such violence,” she said. Arias said that she would like to begin a prison recycling program and "start a book club" to help other women become literate. Arias said she "lacked perspective" when earlier she said that she would rather die than spend the rest of her life in prison. She asked jurors to spare her life on behalf of her family. “I’m asking you, please, please don’t do that to them,” she said. “I want everyone’s pain to stop.” After the statement the judge gave the jury final instructions before making their decision. Get More at NBC News

NBCNews.com
2 hours ago

More Rough Weather Hit Country Tuesday

About 9.5 million people remained under the threat of more "large and devastating" tornadoes Tuesday as the storm system that devastated the suburbs of Oklahoma City moved east, forecasters warned. A tornado watch was issued for Dallas-Fort Worth as well as all of north and central Texas until 8:00 p.m. ET. Tornado watches were also issued for a large portion of the south including Arkansas, Missouri and Tennessee until 11:00 p.m. ET. Weather Channel meteorologist Kevin Roth said early Tuesday that the threat area appeared to be east and south of Oklahoma City. "Tornadoes, damaging wind gusts and large hail are possible throughout the threat area," Roth said. He added that cities including Dallas-Ft. Worth, Austin, San Antonio, Shreveport, Texarkana and Little Rock were among the cities "close to the the larger tornado threat." The National Weather Service said storms were expected Tuesday "from the Great Lakes across the Mississippi River Valley and into central Texas." Get More at NBC News

NBCNews.com
Tuesday, May 21, 2013 at 3:57 PM

Army General Suspended from Duties Amid Adultery Investigation

U.S. Army An army general being investigated for adultery and for being involved in a physical altercation has been suspended, NBC News reported. Army Brigadier General Bryan T. Roberts, the Commanding General of the U.S. Army Training Center in Fort Jackson, S.C. was allegedly involved in an altercation with an unidentified woman and is being investigated for reportedly having an affair with her, a U.S. military official told NBC News. The two were apparently making up after an argument when Robert allegedly bit the woman's lip, prompting her to seek medical help. While the investigation is ongoing, Brig. Gen. Peggy Combs, Commandant of the U.S. Army Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear School at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, will serve as the interim commander. Get More at NBC News

4 hours ago

IRS Official Asserts Fifth Amendment Right at House Hearing

AP A top IRS official scheduled to testify on Wednesday before the House Oversight Committee has asserted her fifth amendment right and refuses to answer questions, NBC News reported. Lois Lerner, head of the IRS unit that handles tax-exempt organizations, won't answer questions on what she knows about the targeting of conservative groups or about why she failed to alert Congress that such targeting was happening, according to a letter from her lawyer. Her lawyer wrote, "She has not committed any crime or made any misrepresentation, but under the circumstances she has no choice but to take this course." Some members of Congress have called for Lerner's termination and Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA) accused her of giving false and misleading testimony to Congress. Get More at NBC News

Tuesday, May 21, 2013 at 4:08 PM
NBCNews.com
Tuesday, May 21, 2013 at 3:22 PM

Senators Demand Answers from IRS Officials


U.S. Senators from both sides of the aisle demanded answers as to why action was not taken sooner to stop the IRS' practice of targeting conservative groups, NBC News reported. Senate Democratic leader Max Baucus (D-Mont.) -- who demand to know why those at the top of the tax agency did not take action -- called the conduct "outrageous" and "unacceptable." Former IRS Commissioner Douglas Shulman, the Bush-era appointee who served during much of the time that the IRS targeting of conservatives took place, testified Tuesday that he was not aware of all the facts surrounding the abuses until earlier this month. Steven Miller, the acting IRS commissioner who resigned last week amid outrage over the scandal, also testified before the Senate Finance Committee. He said he was responsible for having another IRS official, Lois Lerner, answer a planted question at an American Bar Association panel discussion to publicly reveal the targeting of Tea Party groups and other conservatives, NBC News reported. Miller said his original plan for was the IRS to simultaneously brief Capitol Hill about the forthcoming inspector’s general report that detailed the abuses. “Obviously, the entire thing was an incredibly bad idea,” Miller said. Get More at NBC News

nyc
59 minutes ago

2 Separate Attacks Target Gays Hours After Rally

2 Separate Attacks Target Gays Hours After Rally
A gay couple was attacked early Tuesday in the SoHo neighborhood in New York City and a man was beaten in the East Village, hours after thousands marched to protest the killing of a gay man and several other bias attacks that have shaken the community, officials said. Mayor Bloomberg said at a news conference Tuesday that "New York City has zero tolerance for intolerance." "We are a place that celebrates diversity ... hate crimes like these are an offense against all we stand for as a city, and we will do everything possible to stop them," Bloomberg added. Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said the two men in the SoHo attack were walking on Broadway between Prince and Houston streets at about 5 a.m. when two men started yelling anti-gay remarks in English and Spanish. The victims, 41 and 42, are Hispanic. The men were both punched, and one suffered an eye injury, sources said. Police said two suspects, 32 and 33, were arrested and face a charge of assault as a hate crime. Read »
Tuesday, May 21, 2013 at 3:22 PM

Apple CEO: "We Pay All the Taxes We Owe"


Apple CEO Tim Cook was grilled before a Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations hearing Tuesday after the subcommittee found that Apple had avoided paying taxes on billions in profits by keeping them parked in Irish subsidiaries. "We pay all the taxes we owe — every single dollar," Cook told lawmakers. "We don't depend on tax gimmicks." He stressed that Apple is the nation's largest corporate taxpayer and that he supports an overhaul of the U.S. tax code. Subcommittee staffers said before the hearing that Apple was not breaking any laws, Reuters reported. But committee chairman Sen. Carl Levin of Michigan urged closing "unjustified tax loopholes" that had allowed Apple to avoided $9 billion in U.S. taxes in 2012. Sen. John McCain added that Apple's tax strategy reflected "a flawed corporate system." Apple's main subsidiary in Ireland, "Apple Operations International," has not paid any corporate income taxes in the last five years, the subcommittee's report found. Get More at NBC News

NBC DFW
Tuesday, May 21, 2013 at 8:59 AM

Accused Fort Hood Shooter Paid $278K While Awaiting Trial

AP Accused Fort Hood shooter Major Nidal Hasan has been paid more than $278,000 since the November 2009 shooting that left 13 dead 32 injured, the Department of Defense confirmed to NBC 5 DFW. The Army said under the Military Code of Justice, Hasan’s salary cannot be suspended unless he is proven guilty. Meanwhile, more than three years after the Fort Hood mass shooting wounded soldiers are fighting to receive the same pay and medical benefits given to those wounded in combat. Click through for the full story. Get More at NBC DFW

On the Market
Tuesday, May 21, 2013 at 3:17 PM

Conn. Waterfront Estate Hits Market for Record $190 Million

Conn. Waterfront Estate Hits Market for Record $190 MillionDavid Ogilvy & Associates
One of the most expensive homes to hit the market in the United States is now on sale—in Connecticut. The $190 million Greenwich estate includes two islands in the Long Island Sound, nearly a mile of shore front property, and a rich history dating back to the late 19th Century. The 12-bedroom home was built in 1898 and purchased just after the turn of the century by the daughter of George Lauder, a partner in Carnegie Steel. It was then purchased in the early 1980s by timber tycoon John Rudey, who has decided to sell the property, the Wall Street Journal reported. An 1,800-foot driveway with cobblestone gutters leads up to the so-called Copper Beech Farm, which boasts a pool, a spa, a grass tennis court, a greenhouse, a stone carriage house and cottage on more than 50 acres of land. Inside, the home has all the marks of old world luxury: a library with a fireplace, balconies, a staff wing, staff kitchen, dumb waiter, wine cellar, skylights and marble bathrooms. It's unclear whether the home will actually sell for its asking price. The Journal points out that in 2009 Candy Spelling made headlines when she listed her Los Angeles mansion at $150 million—the home sold for $85 million. Read »
Mayoral race
Tuesday, May 21, 2013 at 1:30 PM

‪Voters Head to Polls for Historic L.A. Mayor's Race‬

‪Voters Head to Polls for Historic L.A. Mayor's Race‬Getty Images
After two years of campaigning bolstered by record contributions, the mayoral race between City Councilman Eric Garcetti and Controller Wendy Greuel comes to a close Tuesday as voters take to the polls. The winner of the run-off election to replace outgoing Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa will give the city of Los Angeles either its first female or first Jewish mayor—a leader who will inherit a city still struggling to pull itself from an extended fiscal slump. In their sprint to the finish line, both Democratic contenders with similar voting records tried to differentiate themselves from each other in down-to-the-wire pitches to undecided voters. “If you want an independent mayor with proven results, somebody who’s delivered neighborhood turnaround, who’s balanced budgets, I’m your guy," said Garcetti, who was leading by 7 percentage points in the most recent USC Price/Los Angeles Time poll released Friday. Greuel, who has racked up endorsements from high profile figures, including former President Bill Clinton and Magic Johnson, emphasized her experience as the city government's top critic for the last three years. The contest to succeed Villaraigosa, who leaves office at the end of June with high marks from his constituents, broke spending records Saturday as outside contributions topped $33 million. Click through to read more about this historic election. Read »
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