how cohen responded as he faced another day on the stand. also tonight, president biden asserting executive privilege over recordings of his interview with the special counsel who ended up criticizing his memory. a rare high risk alert for life threatening flash floods in the south. the dangerous storms being called a nightmare scenario. just in, the man convicted of murdering a black lives matter protester. why the texas governor just pardoned him. a florida neighborhood terrorized. gunmen with high-powered firearms unleashing a barrage of bullets. a search for answers. the kansas city chiefs kicker under fire for his commencement speech, urging women to be homemakers, and blasting the lgbtq community. what the nfl is now saying. and after thieves made off with a beloved jackie robinson statue, the community coming together to help a legend rise again. >> announcer: this is "nbc nightly news" with lester holt. >> good evening and welcome. a grueling day for donald trump accuser michael cohen as the former president's lawyer worked to shake off some of the sparkle from the prosecution's star witness. cohen has now spent a total of 14 hours on the witness stand this week, facing cross-examination by conversation attorney todd blanche. diving once more into cohen's history of lies, painting him as driven by revenge and confronting him with his eagerness to see his former boss rot inside. and in a key moment, leading cohen to contradict his own testimony about a phone call he says he had with mr. trump regarding the hush money payments at the center of this case. tonight, the trial barreling toward its conclusion, but with key decisions still to be made, including will donald trump testify. once again, laura jarrett leads our coverage. >> reporter: tonight, star prosecution witness michael cohen facing a scathing second day of cross-examination as former president trump's defense team tries to paint him as a spurned former employee, desperate for payback. >> i truly [ bleep ] hope that this man ends up in prison. >> reporter: the jury hearing cohen on his podcast, appearing in search of vengeance. >> revenge is a dish best served cold, and you better believe i want this man to go down and rot inside for what he did to me and my family. >> reporter: tension in the room building to a dramatic moment. trump attorney todd blanche accusing cohen of lying about a key part of his testimony. just two days ago, cohen telling the jury unequivocally that mr. trump's bodyguard keith schiller passed the phone to mr. trump on october 24th, 2016 at 8:02 p.m. cohen says he informed mr. trump at the time the deal to pay off stormy daniels would be done. blanche today raising his voice, saying that was a lie. showing the jury never before seen text messages, suggesting the call was for another purpose entirely. cohen had earlier reached out to schiller for help dealing with a 14-year-old prank caller. and schiller texted back telling cohen to call him. logs show a call on october 24th that lasted just 97 seconds. the defense's clear implication, the phone was never passed to mr. trump. cohen appearing blindsided. blanche grilling him, "that was a lie, you did not talk to president trump. you talked to keith schiller. you can admit it." cohen responding, "no, sir, i don't know that it's accurate." cohen adding "i also believe i spoke to mr. trump about the stormy daniels matter. blanche shooting back, "we are not asking what you believe. this jury does not want to hear what you think happened." cohen's credibility key to the state's case as he is the only one who has testified the former president had advanced knowledge of the plan to pay off daniels to protect his campaign and then signed off on a scheme to pay cohen back, allegedly falsifying business records to disguise his reimbursements. mr. trump has pleaded not guilty as his defense attorneys have argued nothing was falsified, and once again challenging prosecutors today that the former president only cared about shielding his campaign from daniels' damaging story. blanche pushing cohen about mr. trump's reaction the first time the former president learned of daniels shopping her story. blanche asking, "the first thing that president trump said to you is that his family wouldn't like very much." cohen saying, "that's true." the self-described former trump fixer turned foe maintaining his composure on the stand when pressed at length about his criminal history. cohen has been convicted of lying under oath and disbarred. the defense arguing he has a motivation to lie now and a history of doing it. quote, you lied under oath, correct, blanche asking him? "yes, sir," cohen says. the defense saying cohen is also not telling the full story about his desire or for a white house job, which mr. trump never offered him. "you were disappointed that after all the work you had done for president trump for 9 1/2 years, nobody, including president trump offered you a position in the white house?" blanche asked. "that's not accurate, cohen said. >> i think it was a very interesting day. it was a fascinating day. it shows what a scam this whole thing is. >> laura, let's circle back if we can for a moment. when the defense accused cohen of lying under oath on the phone call, is there any sense of impact? >> reporter: lester, the jury was paying very close attention to that entire engines ex-change. it was real blow to prosecutors, no doubt about it. michael cohen will be back on the stand monday. lester? >> all right, laura, thank you. president biden asserted executive privilege today to keep congress from getting recordings of his interview with the special counsel. kelly o'donnell is at the white house. kelly, what was this about? >> lester, this goes back to the investigation of classified documents found at the biden home. no charges were filed. the special counsel who interviewed the president referred to him as a well meaning elderly man with a poor memory. the written transcript is public, but house republicans want the audio recording. the president blocked that using executive privilege. the attorney general recommended shielding the tapes to protect future witnesses and investigations. the white house counsel wrote that republicans really want the tapes to use them for partisan political purposes. house speaker johnson accused the white house of being afraid for citizens to hear what's on those tapes, and separately, news organizations, including nbc are part of a lawsuit seeking the release of this audio under the freedom of information act. lester? >> kelly o'donnell, thank you. tonight torrential downpours putting 21 million people at risk from potentially life-threatening flooding in texas and along the gulf coast. rain has been soaking the region with up to a foot expected in areas through saturday. the flash flooding risk moderate to severe in some parts through early tomorrow. also in texas, governor greg abbott issued a pardon today to a former u.s. army sergeant convicted of murder in the shooting of a black lives matter protester back in 2020. steve patterson is following this. steve, what more do we know? >> reporter: lester, governor abbott says this pardon is justified by texas' stand your ground law and comes after the board of pardons and paroles reviewed the case unanimously in favor of the pardon. last year daniel perry was found guilty of murdering air force veteran garrett foster during a july 2020 black lives matter protest in austin. police say foster was legally carrying a semiautomatic rifle when he approached an intersection where perry was parked. perry then shot foster from the vehicle, later claiming self-defense. tonight the district attorney in the case is condemning the pardon, calling it a mockery of our legal system. lester? >> steve patterson, thank you. it was a terrifying night at a neighborhood in south florida. a barrage of gunfire lasting 15 seconds lighting up the street as a silver car sped past in miami gardens. police say several gunmen targeted the car with high-powered weapons. the chaos caught on home surveillance cameras. some of the bullets hit houses in the neighborhood. the car crashed into a fence, and those inside got out. remarkably, police say, there were no injuries. we'll turn now to the growing controversy over a graduation speech at a catholic college given by a kicker for the kansas city chiefs. some critics saying it was sexist and homophobic, and calling on the team to cut him loose. here is liz kreutz. >> reporter: tonight, the nfl on defense after growing backlash over that controversial graduation speech given by one of their star players, kansas city chiefs kicker harrison butker. >> i think it is, the the women, who have had the most diabolical lies told to you. >> reporter: at this speech at benedictine college, the 28-year-old super bowl champ criticizing lgbtq rights, abortion, ivf and surrogacy, while encouraging the young women graduates to focus on being a homemaker. >> some of you may go on to lead successful careers in the world, but i would venture to guest that the majority of you are most excited about your marriage and the children you will bring into this world. >> reporter: despite a standing ovation from the crowd, many slamming the speech as homophobic and sexist. >> getting married and having kids is not my ideal situation right now. it definitely made graduation feel a little less special, knowing i had to sit through that and get told i'm nothing but a homemaker. >> reporter: the nfl, which is coming off a year of record female viewership amid hype over taylor swift's relationship with butker's teammate, chiefs tight end travis kelce, now distancing themselves from butker. the league saying in a statement, butker gave a speech in his personal capacity. his views are not those of the nfl. and more than 140,000 people have now signed a petition calling on the nfl to remove butker from the chiefs. so far neither benedictine college, the chiefs or butker himself has commented. >> liz kreutz, thank you. in the middle east, a potential lifeline in gaza has as the u.s. military finished setting up a pier the pentagon said could put u.s. troops in harm's way. richard engel reports. >> reporter: the u.s. military has tonight anchored its pier off the gaza strip and will in the coming days begin to use landing craft to shuttle humanitarian aid to the coast. defense secretary lloyd austin warning this could put u.s. troops at risk. it's also slow, but needed, because trucks are increasingly blocked and attacked by israeli settlers and right-wing extremists. in several incidents this week, israeli hard-liners have stopped supplies and aid they suspected were heading to gaza. and they're proud of what they're doing. the activists say as long as hamas holds hostages in gaza and keeps them in deprivation, gazans should be deprived as well. several of the trucks were sent by jordan, and senior jordanian officials tell news that israel failed to address the problem. we traveled to the west bank through areas where palestinians say hundreds of armed settlers carried out arson attacks. in one case, cctv footage showed settlers setting fire to a garage. while in the distance, israeli soldiers appear to not intervene. a palestinian american is a community leader here. is that common where the settlers do things like this, attack people, set things on fire, and the soldiers just sit back? >> sit back and watch. they don't do anything. they're supposed to be protecting people. >> reporter: the israeli military says it does not impede the flow of aid into gaza, and the alleged arson attacks by settlers in the west bank are under investigation. lester? >> richard engel, thank you. in 60 seconds, a promising new drug to treat menopause, but ll insurance cover it? when dry eye symptoms keep... coming... back... inflammation might be to blame. over-the-counter eye drops can provide temporary relief. xiidra can provide lasting relief. it targets inflammation that can cause dry eye disease. xiidra? no-o-o! xiidra treats the signs and symptoms of dry eye disease. don't use if allergic to xiidra. common side effects include eye irritation, discomfort or blurred vision when applied, and unusual taste sensation. why wait? ask your doctor about a 90-day prescription and pay as little as $0. xiidra. 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>> my daughter is bleeding. make sure the rescue unit has whole blood. >> reporter: they did. without it doctors say she would not have made to it the hospital. whole blood is simply blood that comes directly out of a donor's arm. >> 30 seconds after that first pump, izzy went from being unconscious to alert and looking around. how were you before you got the blood? uh-huh. and when you got the blood, how were you? >> reporter: how many izzys might be saved by putting universal donor o negative blood on rescue vehicles nationwide. >> conservatively, tens of thousands. probably more than that. 40, 50, 60,000 people every year. >> reporter: could? >> would. >> reporter: survive. >> would live if we had blood available for everybody. >> reporter: dr. john holcomb is a combat seasoned trauma surgeon and spent 23 years in the army. >> what we learned from the battlefield is that whole blood by far and away is the best, is the best product for bleeding patients. >> reporter: the latest research backs him and dozens of other former military doctors up, though many hospitals and blood banks do not routinely keep whole blood in stock. instead, they store blood's component parts. is there any credible medical opinion that you're aware of that opposes use of whole blood in trauma situations? >> no. >> reporter: dr. jeffrey kirby is a former air force trauma surgeon and is considered one of the nation's top trauma doctors. >> where you live should not determine if you live after an injury. >> reporter: so why is this intravenous water packed with elect electrolytes called crystalloid not the whole blood the standard of care across the country. if you're so darn sure this is the way the save lives, why do most hospitals not use this? >> because it's tradition, it's cheap and it's available. not because it's the best for them. >> reporter: no doubt in your mind? >> none. >> reporter: so why are we still doing this? the answer in large part is money. neither medicaid or medicare or private insurers pay for blood given on the way to the hospital. >> we need to stop thinking in terms of reimbursing our ambulance services for the transport they provide. we need to reimburse them based on the treatment they can provide. >> reporter: and that treatment can be life-saving. because a patient can bleed to death in less than 15 minutes. >> these darker areas are where you're more than an hour away fry a trauma center. >> reporter: specialist dr. kirby points to map that shows 40 million americans live more an hour from a trauma center. >> if this were a map of cell coverage, people would be losing their minds essentially. >> reporter: instead, people are losing their lives. often because the ambulance that comes to rescue them doesn't have whole blood. >> it was a miracle to us. >> reporter: cynthia mcfadden, nbc news, birmingham, alabama. coming up, months after it was stolen, recreating a statue of baseball legend jackie robinson. our inside look is next. if advanced lung cancer has you searching for possibilities, discover a different first treatment. immunotherapies work with your immune system to attack cancer. but opdivo plus yervoy is the first combination of 2 immunotherapies for adults newly diagnosed with non-small cell lung cancer that has spread, tests positive for pd-l1, and does not have an abnormal egfr or alk gene. opdivo plus yervoy is not chemotherapy, it works differently. it helps your immune system fight cancer in 2 different ways. opdivo and yervoy can cause your immune system to harm healthy parts of your body during and after treatment. these problems can be severe and lead to death. see your doctor right away if you have a cough; chest pain; shortness of breath; irregular heartbeat; diarrhea; constipation; severe stomach pain; severe nausea or vomiting; dizziness; fainting; eye problems; extreme tiredness; changes in appetite, thirst or urine; rash; itching; confusion; memory problems; muscle pain or weakness; joint pain; flushing; or fever. these are not all the possible side effects. problems can occur together and more often when opdivo is used with yervoy. tell your doctor about all medical conditions including immune or nervous system problems, if you've had or plan to have an organ or stem cell transplant, or received chest radiation. your search for 2 immunotherapies starts here. ask your doctor about opdivo plus yervoy. a chance to live longer. did i read this? ask your doctor about opdivo plus yervoy. did i get eggs? where are my keys? memory and thinking issues keep piling up? it may be due to a buildup of amyloid plaques in the brain. visit morethannormalaging.com it ain't my dad's razor, dad. ay watch it! it's from gillettelabs. this green bar releases trapped hairs from my face... gamechanga! ...while the flexdisc contours to it. so the five blades can get virtually every hair in one stroke. for the ultimate gillette shaving experience. the best a man can get is gillettelabs. if you have wet amd, you never want to lose sight of the things you love. some things should stand the test of time. long lasting eylea hd could significantly improve your vision and can help you go up to 4 months between treatments. if you have an eye infection, eye pain or redness, or allergies to eylea hd, don't use. eye injections like eyla hd may cause eye infection, separation of the retina, or rare but severe swelling of blood vessels in the eye. an increase in eye pressure has been seen. there's an uncommon risk of heart attack or stroke associated with blood clots. the most common side effects were blurred vision, cataract, corneal injury, and eye floaters. and there's still so much to see. if you are on eylea or a similar type of treatment, ask your retina specialist about eylea hd today, for the potential for fewer injections. finally tonight, months after it was stolen by thieves, an honor is being restored for a baseball legend. here is morgan chesky. >> reporter: this ballpark in wichita, kansas feels more empty than it should. in january, thieves cut down a beloved statue of barrier breaking all-star jackie robinson. the league 42 baseball fields founded for underprivileged city youth now robbed of their hero. >> was sickened by what you saw, even in a state of disbelief. >> reporter: the bronze cleats left behind, now on display at the negro league's baseball museum. >> you want to wave the white flag and throw your hands up and say okay, i give up. and the minute you're ready to do that, the good people step in and they step up. >> reporter: donors raising more than $100,000, more than enough to rebuild the monument. now a skilled team at art castings of colorado is hard at work, carefully painting and pouring. >> so this is part of jackie's jersey. >> reporter: all part of the process to rebuild the iconic dodger using the original molds, crafted by the late sculptor, kansas artist john parsons. his wife carol calling jackie his most important work. throughout the entire process, he was always talking with the robinson family? >> yes. >> reporter: he wanted to get jackie. >> oh, he wanted it, yeah. and he had pictures of jackie robinson all over his shop. >> reporter: and come late summer, an identical statue will be headed back home. >> it means a lot. he is a person you can look up to. >> after every game, i'm going to ask if i can take a picture by it. that way it's more closer to me. >> reporter: a baseball legend still daring others to dream. >> you can cut the statue down, but you cannot rid his spirit. >> reporter: morgan chesky, nbc news, wichita, kansas. and that is "nightly news" for this thursday. thank you for watching. i'm lester holt. please take care of yourself and each other. good night. got last year. good afternoon. i'm audrey asistio welcome to nbc bay area news at 4:30. our sergio quintana is at the fair