case against the former presidential candidate. why they say what he did may not have been against the law today. monday, june 6, 2011. from nbc news, this is "today," with matt lauer and meredith vieira, live from studio 1a in rockefeller plaza. and good morning, welcome to "today" on a monday morning, i'm matt lauer. >> i'm meredith vieira. details coming in about what happened in iraq. we have more from the pentagon. what can you tell us? >> reporter: good morning, meredith. this is the single worst if not one of the single worst attacks on u.s. military forces in iraq since the official end of formal compat operations there in iraq last august. according to u.s. military and iraqi officials, five u.s. service members were killed in a rocket attack on a u.s. military base, one of many, in or around baghdad this morning. now the timing of this attack cannot be dismissed because this comes at a time as the u.s. military is, in fact, preparing to withdraw all combat forces, all u.s. military forces from iraq by the end of the year. meredith? >> so does that now call that into question, whether or not the troops will be removed by the end of the year? >> reporter: that's why the timing is so important. the iraqi government itself is struggling with how to ask the u.s. military to stay. there are currently 50,000 u.s. troops there. again, they're supposed to be out by the end of the year. but it's clear that the iraqis cannot provide all the kind of defenses that they need, and they're preparing to ask the u.s. so again, this attack appears aimed at convincing the american people that all american troops should leave iraq by the end of this year. >> story still developing. jim, thank you very much. it is 7:02. here's matt. >> thanks. we're following two breaking news stories at home. new evacuations ordered in arizona where a massive wildfire is raging. this as anxious homeowners in parts of the midwest are keeping a nervous eye on the rising missouri river. we've got two reports beginning in arizona with nbc's george lewis. george, good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning, matt. these are monster fires burning in arizona. over a quarter million acres scorched, 2,100 people on the fire lines. thousands of homes threatened. >> we just dropped the line up -- >> reporter: firefighters spent the weekend attacking the fast-moving blaze from the air. the dense and rugged forest has made it difficult for ground crews to get equipment into the area. officials say this particular wildfire near the new mexico border has been unusually hard to get a handle on. >> it's mostly in the way it's behaving. it's such that we can't get anywherenary it. it's such -- anywhere near it. it's such that our resources are a limited value because we need people on the ground even using the air resources that we have. >> anybody who's not critical personnel stay off of 191 and 180. >> reporter: sunday afternoon the fire jumped highway 180 into the town of esqudea. >> it's a wilderness area, there's no fire treatment. it is going to be a hot fire. >> reporter: the fire swept through beaver creek ranch and destroyed several vacation cabins. daytime looked more like night in the small town of alpine. >> it feels surreal. >> reporter: with mandatory evacuations ordered over the weekend throughout the area, police escorted residents back to their homes on sunday, allowing them only a few minutes to choose what to save. >> they said 15 minutes, and they were very gracious with us. i know we had closer to maybe 30 or 45. >> i was driving faster so we wouldn't hold up -- >> reporter: this woman wasn't as lucky. >> when i got down in there, another sheriff came pulling up and said i had to get out. i said i had an escort. he said, you know, we had to leave because the fire was right there. we had to turn around and leave. >> reporter: with zero containment and hot temperatures expected today, firefighters will also be dealing with 50 mile-per-hour winds, a deadly combination. meredith? >> george lewis, thank you very much. meanwhile, authorities have asked thousands to evacuate in parts of the midwest from record rainfall and snow melt is causing problems. miguel has more. good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning. at 8:00 a.m. local time there's going to be a record release of water upstream from the missouri river. it's going to be a critical day here. there's no question the water level will rise, but for homeowners here along the river, there is little room to spare. swollen and about to surge even higher, the missouri river is threatening to swallow homes and take lives. in north and south dakota, nearly 20,000 people have been asked to evacuate. >> very, very traumatic for a lot of people. >> reporter: but many refuse to leave. instead, they fortify homes and protect communities on the water's edge. still the rising river threatens to spill over levees and burst banks. >> we have already said good-bye. we've shed our tears and said good-bye to the house. >> reporter: across the plains, they could see the worst flooding in decades. >> i'm telling our citizens that they should assume the levees will not hold. they should move out of the area that will be affected. >> reporter: with the missouri river nearly 2,400 miles long, seven states face serious flooding. a series of six dams control the river's flow. today's record release will gush even more water downstream. as reservoirs sit nearly full, there's too much winter water to hold back. >> mother nature really put a significant event to us in a huge rainfall event. there's no way you can really plan for a rainfall of that magnitude. >> reporter: the national has scrambled to shore levees and reinforce river banks. the water so dangerous, 180 miles of the river is shut down. today, the missouri is rising, and so is the fear. after today's release of river, the drama certainly won't be over. tomorrow there will be yet another record release of water. the missouri here may not crest until mid july. they say that we could see flooding here all summer long. meredith? >> all right. thank you very much. lets us get a check of the rest of the top stories. ann's off, natalie's at the newscast. good morning to you. good morning, everyone. we'll begin with the aftermath of last month's deadly weather. officials in joplin say that devastating ef-5 tornado has claimed three more lives as several other residents die from their injuries, taking the total death toll now to 141. tensions are running high in the middle east yet again this morning. nbc's stephanie gosk is following the story from tripoli, libya. good morning. >> reporter: good morning, natalie. well, taking their inspiration from the peaceful demonstrations of the arab spring, unarmed palestinians and their supporters challenged the israeli military on the syria-israel border for the second time in a month. and for the second time in a month it lead to bloodshed. [ gunfire ] >> reporter: gunfire again in the golan heights. unarmed palestinians and their supporters attempted to push across the border from syria into israel. [ gunfire ] >> reporter: when warning shots didn't stop them, direct fire did. israeli officials are calling it a deliberate provocation, supported, they say, by the syrian government to deflect attention from its own internal uprising. it was the worst violence between the two countries in more than 30 years. syria says 22 were killed, israel says only 12 were injured. and with the new front in the arab spring taking hold in israel, a familiar uprising entered a new phase. in yemen, thousands celebrated the sudden and unexpected departure of president ali abdullah saleh. he fly to saudi arabia for specialized medical treatment after being injured in a rocket attack on his compound friday. an operation reportedly removed shrapnel from the leader's chest, but there is no official word on his condition. many hope the man that has ruled yemen for 33 years as a dictator will not come back, and they fear what might happen if he does. >> i think there's a strong chance that the civil war will take place in yemen. and yemen will see a war that will last for many, many, many years. >> reporter: despite what the embattled president decides to do, it may be too early for celebrations. even if saleh does not return, there are still competing armed factions vying for power in yemen, and an active branch of al qaeda looking to take advantage of the chaos. natalie? >> stephanie gosk in tripoli, libya, this morning. thank you, stephanie. several u.s. missile strikes bombarded suspected militant target along the afghan border this morning. at least 16 people were killed as the u.s. ratchets up the pressure on insurgents in the area. former international monetary fund chief dominique strauss-kahn appears in a new york city court today where he will plead not guilty to charges of sexually assaulting a hotel maid. he resigned from his imf post last month. and another nail-biter in the nba finals last night as the miami heat took game three beating the dallas mavericks 88-86. with a tied game and 39 seconds on the clock, chris bosh scored the winning points despite being injured earlier in the game. the miracle on the hudson plane could have used a little help from former pilot chesley "actually" sullenberger on sunday. take a look as the famous airbus got stuck while the flatbed truck tried turning a corner in new jersey. after an hour, the plane was back on its way. it will be on display soon at the carolina aviation museum in charlotte, north carolina. i'm sure folks will be lining up to see it. it's 7:11. back to matt, meredith, and al. huge plane. >> beautiful plane. >> trying to get through the roads of new jersey, not so easy. >> the crowds will be lining up today to wish you happy birthday, natalie morales. happy birthday to you. >> thank you. >> and many happy returns. it's also a very big day, speaking of happy returns. back in february, end of february, one of our favorite people around here, camera operator bob yeagher, took a serious fall. very serious fall. he has been out ever since and is back with us this morning. [ applause ] >> yea! >> good to have you, pal. [ applause ] >> welcome back. we missed you like crazy. we really did. >> sure did. >> nice to be back with everyone. so grateful. thank you for all the cards and letters and emails. texts. >> we love you. >> not the same without you. >> really didn't call for a speech. but -- >> on the microphone, matt. >> we love you, we do. >> how does it look underneath that bus? >> be out in another few months, al. >> now he knows he's really back. >> right. >> we hurt the ones we love. >> mr. roker mr. roker with the weather. >> all right. well, bob yager knows the heat is on and we'll tell you the heat is on as well. minneapolis today going to get up to 92. 99 in memphis. looking at more records. factor in the humidity and you've got the heat index. temperatures approaching 100 in dallas and houston. and this heat is not going anywhere any time soon. tomorrow you can see it spreads into washington, d.c., continues in chicago. moving into wednesday, those 90-degree readings move into new york city and as far west as the southwest with temperatures again in the 100s there. that's what's going on around the country. here's what's happening in your neck of the woods. comfortably cool now. good morning, i'm tom kierein with some hazy sunshine. we're in the 60s throughout much of the region. 68 now at reagan national. later today we should make it into the mid-80s and lots of sunshine, not too humid today and a little more humid on tuesday, up near 90. that sweltering humidity and even hotter temperatures for wednesday and thursday. highs in the upper 90s with hazy sunshine. then some changes on the way for friday, saturday and that's your latest weather. meredith? >> al, thank you very much. there are growing questions over the indictment of former presidential candidate john edwards for allegedly using campaign funds to hide an affair. did the government overreach? nbc's senior investigative correspondent, lisa myers, has the latest. good morning, lisa. >> reporter: good morning. usually when a disgraced politician gets indicted, there is widespread applause. but not this time. even some who find edwards' behavior despicable question the strength of this case. john edwards' former mistress, p rielle hunter has made no public comment about the indictment. this weekend she was all smiles, posing with the little girl she shares with edwards, 3-year-old frances quinn. these photos obtained by nbc news, a striking contrast to this one, as edwards prepared to face the media throng after being charged with six felonies. >> i did not break the law. >> reporter: edwards spent the weekend out of sight at his estate, focused, a spokesman said, on getting daughter emma claire ready for camp. a friend of late wife elizabeth told nbc that despite john's betrayal, no one wanted him to face criminal charges. they worry about the couple's young children, jack and emma claire. local reaction is less forgiving. >> i have no trust in someone that continually lies. >> john edwards has become a rather pathetic figure. >> reporter: edwards is charged with soliciting and covering up almost a million dollars, provided by two wealthy donors. and used to keep hunter and later their child hidden away in lavish homes and on private jets while he ran for president. >> thank you. thank you. >> reporter: though the payments did not go to edwards' campaign, the government alleges they amounted to unlawful campaign contributions because they were meant to keep his candidacy viable. edwards' lawyers say the money was a gift from friends to hide the affair from his wife. the indictment has triggered unusual criticism of the justice department. from conservatives -- >> i think he's a reprehensible person, but not every scum or liar or reprehensible person is a criminal. and the federal government seems to be criminalizing bad behavior. >> reporter: and from campaign watchdogs -- >> i think that john edwards is a lousy human being, but i think this is a really lousy and flimsy criminal case. >> reporter: a "washington post" editorial said, "it is troubling that the justice department would choose to devote its scarce resources to pursuing this questionable case." but others argue that prosecutors have more evidence than they reveal, and that these kind of campaign finance abuses need to be prosecuted. >> what the government says is there has to be a line. john edwards crossed that line. we believe it's criminal behavior. >> reporter: hunter's publicist said edwards and hunter now raise their daughter together and see each other quite often. a friend of edwards told us that the senator and his parents have a close relationship with quinn and see her quite often. meredith? >> lisa myers, thank you very much. it is 7:16. once again, here's matt. >> thank you. john edwards isn't the onliy former vice presidential candidate making headlines. sarah palin is as well. our chief white house correspondent joins us, chuck, good morning you to. let's not just talk about what sarah palin is doing to make headlines. let's talk about what former chair of the democratic national party howard dean is saying to make headlines. he's warning democrats against the traditional refrain that in an election, barack obama would route sarah palin. he says sarah palin can win. what's the reason for his comments? >> well, what howard dean is saying is that the biggest opponent that president obama faces is not anybody who could become the republican nominee. it's the issue of the economy and the unemployment rate. so the point he was trying to make was, look, even sarah palin when you've got 9% unemployment, when you've got a lot of people questioning whether this housing market's ever going to recover, whether government and the stimulus even work, that anybody, any republican nominee can give president obama a race. i can tell you this -- if you would ask the white house and their political strategists who would they prefer to run against, they would pick palin every single time. >> back to howard dean. he did single out another candidate. he talked about john huntsman, former governor of utah and the former ambassador to china. he said he would pose the toughest challenge for barack obama. why does he match up so well? >> well, right now he has positioned himself as the moderate in this race. and if you believe this country is either center left or center right, the one thing pretty much everybody agrees with, it's center something. and huntsman is the most moderate, probably the most electable that's sitting in this field. the problem for huntsman is he doesn't look like a guy who's going to be able to win the republican primary. over the weekend he announced he's not going to compete at all in iowa. not going to do that. i can tell you there are a lot of people that have never become president who skip states. you can't skip states, particularly swing states like iowa. >> something got your attention, i know, in reading your comments over the weekend. so newt gingrich announces he's running for the republican nomination a few weeks ago. and then right now, he goes on a two-week vacation with his wife. you think it's odd timing, why? >> it is. he already knew when he was going to announce his run for president. and when you go, you go. and there are a lot of things going on right now. he missed another candidate cattle call over the weekend in washington, d.c. he sent a videotape rather than attend live. there's obviously some debate prep he should be doing, lots of stuff going on the ground. >> let me flip the point over on you, chuck. in the past he has received criticism that he had allowed some of his previous marriages deteriorate in part because of his own political ambition. here he is on vacation with his wife. why shouldn't we applaud that? >> well, why not do this vacation and announce afterward. that's what seems odd about it. when you do this, when you announce, it's all in. that's when you do that, you take the time. it's odd timing especially, matt, considering how poorly his announcement went. you would think he would be doing everything he could to fix that and while week one didn't go well, make sure week two, week three, week four -- particularly while there's so much attention from the presidential race. he's missing. i had iowa republican activists e-mailing me, where's newt, why did he do this? >> chuck todd in washington. thank you very much. >> reporter: you got it. it's 19 minutes after the hour. once again, meredith? >> thank you. there was a scary scene on new york's long island over the weekend when a big wind gust blew away three bounce houses with children inside. john yang has that story. oh, my god. >> reporter: it was a terrifying sight caught on cell phone video. three inflated bounce houses or moonwalks picked up by the wind at a long island soccer tourism and tossed into the air with kids playing inside. >> stay here. >> where's my daughter? >> i couldn't believe it. it was like something out of a movie. kids were knocked over. there were kids everywhere. >> reporter: lara radigan was waiting in line when she got a rope caught on her neck. >> a rope got caught on my neck and dragged me over. >> reporter: one cartwheeled on the grounds. >> everyone jumped on top. probably 100 on each one holding it down. >> i tried to grab on, and it knocked me down. >> reporter: police said 13 people were taken to hospitals with minor injuries. it's not the first time something like this has happened. in the tucson, arizona, area, three separate incidents since february alone. the most recent caught on cell phone video. parents and teachers evacuated the bounce hous