On a kill list reporter after a while, he got some help. I will read a series of tweets. So proud of rand paul standing up for whats right. Stand with rand. That takes me back to another modernday poet by the name of jayz. Reporter even democrats chimed in. Hes raising an important issue and i think its a legitimate question. Reporter paul couldnt leave the floor or even sit under senate rules. In the end, it was natures calling that stopped the filibuster. Thank you very much for the forbearance and i yield the floor. Reporter but today, success. The attorney general sent a terse but clear response this time to pauls original question about whether the administration would use drones against americans on u. S. Soil. The answer to that question is no. But while paul became a folk hero to some republicans, new highprofile colleagues took him to task. I find the question offensive. This president is not going to use a drone against a noncombatant sitting in a cafe anywhere in the United States. Reporter senators Lindsey Graham and john mccain also happened to be among the dozen republican senators who broke bread with mr. Obama last night. How did the meeting go . Just fine. Reporter the reviews by other senators also went very well. By the way, the president today had lunch with another republican, paul ryan. And john brennan, he has been confirmed. He is now the cia director, brian. Chuck todd, white house lawn tonight. Chalk, thanks. Also today, the president signed a reauthorization of the violence against women act, first passed back in 1994. But recently held up because of budget fighting, of all things. The law makes it easier to prosecute Domestic Violence crimes in federal court, provides funding for services, including battered womens shelters and hotlines. During todays ceremony, the president said, quote, all women have the right to live free from fear. This ongoing debate over abortion is making news again tonight. The effort by some states to reduce access to abortion has just reached a new level with arkansas passing what is now the nations toughest law, restricting access to abortions after 12 weeks of pregnancy. Nbcs Pete Williams reports tonight on this latest strategy by abortion opponents. Reporter abortion Rights Groups say theyre already preparing their legal challenge to the new arkansas law, now by far the strictest in the nation. This law is reflective of what the people in arkansas believe. And thats what were here for. Reporter enacted over the veto of the states democratic governor, mike beebe, it restricts access after 12 weeks of pregnancy when roughly 12 of the states abortions are performed. The sponsor of the law says 12 weeks is when a fetus has a measurable heartbeat, the sign of life. And my hope is, is that the conscience of america will awaken to this issue and that we will figure out a way to have more balance. And thats what the heartbeat bill is about. Reporter abortion opponents in other states say recent Research Shows that long before a fetus is viable, it can feel pain, though many medical experts say thats not the case. Eight states now have socalled fetal pain laws in effect, barring abortions after 20 weeks in all but exceptional cases, such as a danger to the mothers life. Similar laws in three other states, arizona, georgia and idaho, have been blocked by the courts. Abortion opponents are scoring other victories too, putting new restrictions on clinics, requiring more parental consent and imposing waiting periods. Anti choice politicians have been chipping away at access to Abortion Services for years. What arkansas has done with this ban on abortion within the first trimester is not just chipping away. Its taking a sledgehammer to the guaranteed rights of roe vs. Wade. Reporter after failing to get much traction in the courts, opponents of abortion are now finding success in state legislatures, still hoping to find the right case and the right time to get roe v. Wade overturned. Pete williams, nbc news, at the supreme court. Tonight, u. S. Officials say osama bin ladens soninlaw, an accused plotter in the 9 11 terrorist attacks has been captured in the middle east, is now in u. S. Custody here in new york. Officials tell nbc news hes been a prisoner in iran for most of the past decade. He is scheduled to appear in federal Court Tomorrow on charges of conspiracy to kill americans. Not everyone is happy about that. The republican chairman of the House Intelligence Committee says bringing him to stand trial in the u. S. Is a mistake, because hes an enemy combatant and should instead be sent to guantanamo. Now to north korea. A nation that has Nuclear Weapons and is tonight threatening to use them against the United States, vowing to attack washington and engulf the nations capital, quote, in a sea of flames. As you can imagine, this outburst has prompted a strong response from the white house. Our chief Foreign Affairs correspondent, andrea mitchell, monitoring developments from our d. C. Newsroom. Andrea, good evening. Reporter good evening, brian. Tonight the white house says the United States can defend itself against the north Korean Missile attack, even as pyongyang ratchets up its threats against the u. S. It was north koreas toughest threat yet, announced on state tv. Translator since the United States is about to ignite a nuclear war, we will be exercising our right to Preemptive Nuclear attack. Reporter a recent government video shows a north Korean Missile blowing up manhattan. Pyongyang defied the world with a nuclear test last month and a missile test in december, but experts say the regime has not proved it can put a Nuclear Warhead on a missile that could reach the u. S. And all this may be backfiring. Today china, north koreas closest ally, voted with the u. S. For the toughest economic sanctions yet, hitting kim jongun and his generals where it hurts. Luxury products like yachts, racing cars and jewelry. One of the important provisions of this resolution today was to make clear that a wide range of luxury goods, including some very specific luxury goods, arent going to be able to be imported for the leadership of north korea, which is living large while starving its people. Reporter kims love of western products and sports was proved again only last week by his bizarre embrace of dennis rodman. Despite pyongyangs newest threat, today the u. S. And south korea continued scheduled training exercises in south korea. While Officials Say the u. S. Is welldefended against missile attacks, south korea and japan are increasingly worried about their belligerent neighbor. This 28yearold leader is either trying to embolden himself with the military that run the operations of north korea, or the other way around. The military is exerting force over this young 28yearold leader, and the saber rattling is serious and we should take it seriously. Reporter u. S. Officials dont deny that the white house sent secret envoys last year to test whether the new leader wanted a better relationship with washington. Now they have their answer and it is not good. Brian. Andrea mitchell in washington for us tonight, thanks. Here in the northeast tonight the winter storm made its way across the country much of this week is now churning along the coast, exactly what the coast doesnt need and cant tolerate, because coastline defenses are down, so much remains battered and torn apart by hurricane sandy. We get our report tonight from nbcs ron allen on the jersey shore. Reporter this morning in mantoloking, one of the towns hit hardest by sandy, the main road was closed again. The sand dune meant to protect this Small Community where residents were only allowed to return last month failed in at least three places. Through the day, workers raced to plug the dike before the next high tide. Were exposed now, we have built the dune in the last several weeks. We have a pretty high dune, the length of mantoloking, all gone as a result of this noreaster. Reporter up and down the new jersey shore, at least five towns have voluntary evacuation orders. Its another anxious night with flood warnings in place until friday. Further north in new england, the coastal communities also are bracing for street flooding and possible evacuations. In scituate, south of boston, about a dozen streets were closed this morning, swamped by high tide. You ever get used to this stuff . Well, the older you get, the less you get used to it. Reporter back in new jersey, a busy day for firefighters here in sea bright, dealing with fires in buildings damaged by sandy, now exposed to this new storm. And this afternoon, as the winds eased a bit, roofers were in high demand, as homeowners raced to repair the damage yet again. The wind came in from that direction, and just ripped off totally, like, half the roof. Ron allens report tonight from sea bright, the northern tip of the jersey shore. Still ahead for us tonight, it looks like a war zone ravaged for years by crime and drugs and neglect. But its surrounded by some of the great wealth in america. Our visit with the man leading the charge to fight back and the young man who is inspiring his cause. Tonight we begin an ongoing series of reports which will air occasionally over the next year on a single topic. Well be covering poverty in america, an effort supported by the ford foundation. Tonight we begin with the poorest city in the nation and the most dangerous city all in the same place. Its camden, new jersey, right across from philly. Camden is a city of 77,000, a place most people avoid or take pains to drive by. A place i first covered 25 years ago, and as we found upon our return there, the story of camden cannot be avoided anymore. The skyline of philadelphia is almost painful to look at from here, because its so close. Such a glittering symbol of wealth and prosperity, compared to here. They say camden is the city that hope forgot. They didnt always say that. Walt whitman was from here, and his words are on city hall. In a dream, i saw a city invincible. Sadly, most people see something else. I always think of camden as the best visual aid in america. To see what has gone wrong and what is going wrong. Well, its staggering poverty surrounded by staggering wealth. Correct. Father Michael Doyle has served this community for more than 40 years. As a newly arrived irishman, he was there the night Bobby Kennedy came to town, and he campaigned against poverty. I dont think thats acceptable in this country and i dont think it should be tolerated. Many people blame the poor. We have to get over that and realize that american citizens are dying in inner city america and dying in camden at levels never seen. Last year, there was a shooting here on average every 33 hours. Per capita, its the highest crime rate in the country, the highest murder rate in the country in the poorest city in the country. Last summer we had three people shot two blocks that way, a person shot one block that way. Just last week at this time of the day we had a person shot right in front of this store. We spent the day riding along with camdens chief of police, scott thompson, whose own roots are here in this city. This 50 years ago was the Shopping Center mecca of south jersey. Look at this. Chief thompsons grandmother worked at rca when manufacturing was king in camden. Campbells soup started here, the booming ship yard built the great vessels kitty hawk and indianapolis for the war effort overseas. If i landed from mars, how do you describe camden to people. I guess the one word is challenged. Extreme poverty, extreme crime. Thompson and his police force have to improvise. The department was cut in half two years ago, the criminals and drug dealers know that. And they operate brazenly and in the open. I got somebody i want you to meet. And it was that summer nearly two years ago when the chief met 9yearold Jorge Cartagena in the hospital. He is the lifeless boy shown on Surveillance Video after getting caught in the crossfire in broad daylight on his way to the store, and the bullet to the head left him blind. When i open my mouth, it goes in. No kidding. Look at that. Did you hear gunshots first or see it . When he started shooting, i looked at the other guy that was running and the other guy said duck down and go to the corner. Whats the last thing you remember . That my eyes were burning. How do you not lose hope . What keeps me going is the connection i have with the people that live here. In fact, chief thompson has remained a presence in the boys life. After the shooting, he was named jorges godfather. A local charity called heart of camden, a part of father doyles church, helped jorges family move into a nice row house on a safer block. Whats the difference between here and where you used to live . In my old house i was scared to come out and here im not. Jorge is an optimistic 10yearold who hopes that some day science will at least give him partial eyesight. My doctor said they might be able to put a microchip inside your head and youll be able to see black and white and all that. For the chief, who on any given day has an absentee rate among his stressedout officers of 30 , relief is about a month away. The City Department will become part of a new county force that will add roughly 200 officers to the ranks. It may take us longer to get there. But at no point in time can we ever quit. Failure is not an option. This is just one part of our reporting on camden. We have another airing as part of an allnew rock Center Tomorrow night, 10 00 p. M. , eastern time. Were back in a moment here tonight with whats lurking right off the coast, just in time for spring break. Sharks and spring break are sharks and spring break are a bad combination. For that matter, sharks versus human encounters rarely end well. This is the scene just off palm beach in florida. They estimate the swarm at tens of thousands of sharks. While its not uncommon to see a shark in florida, this is a big herd. Perhaps, they say, because of an early migration. Another big name is leaving the senate. Carl levin, first elected in 1978, will not run for reelection in 2014. Hes the longestserving senator in michigans history. Chairman of armed services, he ranks fifth on the overall seniority list. Carl levin is 78 years old. The white house is trying to defend the announcement that it will suspend white house tours due to budget cuts from that sequester. Breaking down the numbers, the u. S. Secret service says it has 37 officers on staff for tours at a weekly cost of 74,000. The white house is getting slammed for this, because its such a public and visible cut, while other forms of government keep right on going, as if theyre trying to prove a point. While other expenditures continue, House Speaker john boehner has called cancelling the white house tours silly. Two items regarding weight making news tonight. A new study shows paying people is an incentive to work off a few pounds. A chance to win or lose 20 bucks a month was enough to convince some dieters in a yearlong study to drop an average of nine pounds. We also learned today, more than 20 of adults in this country are obese in every single state of the union except one, colorado. West virginia had the worst single obesity rate. Were back in a moment with a vehicle like no other. Finally here tonight, our correspondent covering the vatican has frankly had some downtime while waiting for the conclave to start. In rome, a city of vespas and fiats. She has noticed people getting around on something new, very small, not for someone faint of heart, however. The story tonight from nbcs anne thompson. Reporter if there is one thing thats eternal, its traffic. With congested roads, narrow, ancient streets and even narrower parking spaces, a small car or scooter is the way to go. Now drivers need no longer choose one or the other with the headturning twizy. Our guide, mateo, an italian journalist, who covers the auto industry. Four feet wide and under eight feet long, plugin car has four wheels and not much else. Theres no rearview mirror. Yes, no. You have to use the side mirrors for that. Reporter even the doors are unique. Go like this. Reporter it goes up . Yes. Reporter and you can see through the bottom. And windows are optional. Making for a unique ride. Ciao, mateo theres no room for my purse, and barely room for me. In the seat behind mateo. Oh, my gosh okay, did it. Amazing. Reporter but the real fun comes when behind the wheel of this zero emissions vehicle. [ honking ] reporter ooh, sorry. Not making friends. If you know where youre going. Best part is, i have no clue where i am. With top speeds of 31 or 50 miles per hour, depending on the model, the twizy is not highwayready. But for under 12,000, it does make a flashy green statement. Finito. Who in italy buys this car . Well, you know how italians are. We like to be fashionable and to look good. Reporter is this ever going to compete with a ferrari or lamborghini . I think not. Reporter the twizy, adding some zip to a roman holiday. Anne thompson, nbc news, rome. We heard from anne, she is okay. Thats our broadcast on this thursday night. Thank you for being here with us. Im brian williams. We hope to see you back here tomorrow night. Good evening. She was a breath of fresh air. In the lives of so many. He taught me more things than i can count, and i know that im not the only one here who can say that. An audience of thousands came out to say a final goodbye to the two officers who served and died in the line of duty. A stunning blow to a department that had not lost one officer in its 150year history. Good evening, and thank you for joining us. Im jessica aguirre. Im raj mathai. We want to begin was breaking fuss in san jose. Police are investigating a homicide at a senior center, but theres a twist here. This man has been missing for a few weeks till now. The man was found stabbed to death at the hilton manor senior apartments on ironwood drive near the church on the hill near highway 87. George kitayama is on scene. What are investigators is telling you at this hour . Reporter the mans name is stanley jacobson. He was reported missing back in midfebruary. Heres a picture. Apparently his family found him inside his apartment this morning, San Jose Police officers have arrest aid suspect. At this point they are not saying who this suspect is and what their connection may be. Back in midfebruary, police were looking for a woman named regina butler. Slae not saying whether shes the suspect. We did talk to his neighbor and friend just a short time ago. Totally shocked. Weve been looking everywhere for him for the last three to four weeks. And he wasnt at lunch because we always you know, meet together at lunch every day. And he does his little magician tricks or us, and thats how i first met him four months ago. Heres a live look at the scene right now. Officers came out to the Hilltop Apartments around 11 30 this morning. A homicide investigators have been out here for a few hours talking to people who live here as well as gathering evidence inside jacobsons apartment. Thats the latest here. Were live in san jose, george kitayama, nbc bay area news. Thank you, george. Remember further dedication to the job and to the love they shared with their families is, Sergeant Loran butch baker and Elizabeth Butler where is honored by the people and respected most, their colleagues, their friends and their children