another chaotic night on college campuses. police arresting dozens more demonstrator, as pro-p palestinn protests continue to heat up coast-to-coast. the face of the #metoo movement back in court. harvey weinstein faces a judge for the first time since his new york rape conviction was overturned. powerful storms strike the

heartland yet again. the plains bracing for another day of tornado outbreaks. our meteorologist angie lassman is tracking the danger for you this morning. and inflation taking a bite out of fast food's bottom line. and would you be down to staying in the house from up? or does x mark the spot at the x-men mansion? airbnb opens the door to a dream come true for iconic franchises. it's thursday, may 2nd, "early today" starts right now. good morning, glad you're with me. i'm frances rivera. we begin with the protests on campuses coast-to-coast. activists are trying to get universities to divest from the state of israel. the most volatile situation is at the ucla campus in california. a tent city was attacked by pro-israeli counter protesters. lapd anti-riot forces are

currently deployed on campus. for the latest, let's get to brie jackson. good morning. can you recap the events for us overnight? >> reporter: good morning, frances. so yesterday was an explosive day for universities across the country. as protests against israel's war on gaza reached a fever pitch. many student groups want their universities to divest from israeli companies, academics and technologies. in new york city, around 300 people with arrested, mostly for squatting and trespassing. now the showdown happening after a week of negotiations failed while activists stormed and occupied the historic hamilton hall building. there have been few reports of violence on the part of activists in new york. but on the west coast in ucla, a pro-palestinian tent encampment was attacked by pro-israeli counter protesters, touching off a night of violence. there were several injuries, although none of them are reported to be serious. and overnight tonight, large crowds remained, even as lapd

officers in riot gear ordered them to leave. so far, no reports of any arrests. now this is happening against the backdrop of legislative action here in washington, d.c. the house of representatives passing the so-call thl thein't sem anti-semitism law. the bill's prospects in the senate remains unclear. president biden weighed in on the campus controversy, saying he condemns the overrunning of campus buildings, as well as hateful rhetoric. he also condemned the use of the arabic revolutionary term intifada over its connection to suicide bombings in israel. >> brie, thanks. the suppression of anti-war protests on campus is putting free speech values under

pressure. both pro-palestinian and pro-israel demonstrators say their viewpoints are being discriminated against. here's liz kreutz. >> reporter: as protesters spend their seventh day kacamped out, some say their rights are infringed. >> i have my i.d. right here. i'm being blocked out. >> reporter: he posted this video of what he says were protesters not allowing him to access a pathway near the encampment. >> they created their own checkpoint at this entrance, and i said no, no, no, absolutely not. this is public land. i pay tuition here. i deserve to walk this path to class if i so choose to. >> reporter: the incident condemned by the university but sparking a debate between free speech, access at a public university and safety on campus. this is a pro-palestinian protester who says she was pepper sprayed. >> they're saying what we are doing is unlawful. but what i've seen in the

encampment is that we are trying to be as peaceful and ensure that everyone is safe and that our community members are protected in their right to protest. >> reporter: by a nbc news count, nearly 50 u.s. colleges and universities nationwide have encampments with students demanding their schools divest from israel over the country's war in gaza, places like yale, indiana urniversity, arizona. the unrest playing out in different ways on some campuses. this american flag at unc put back in place and protected in part by a group of fraternity brothers after protesters had replaced it with a palestinian flag. it's all part of a decades-long history of protests on campuses helping to spark change in the vietnam war and apartheid. but the right to protest has limitations. >> there's robust protection for first amendment activities, when it comes to speech, expressive conduct, but there are limits.

and one of those limits, obviously, is violence. president biden is heading to north carolina to meet with the families of law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty. four officers were killed while trying to serve a warnlts. another four officers were injured but expected to recover. police say the suspect, terry hughes, was killed in the shootout. terrifying moments at a middle school in wisconsin where police say a student from the district was armed and trying to get into the school. he was unable o breto breach th entryway and was killed by responding officers. the school district saying they are so grateful for first responders. less than a week after his 2020 rape conviction was overturned, harvey weinstein made his first court appearance on wednesday.

>> reporter: harvey weinstein appearing in court wednesday, the first time since his 2020 rape conviction was overturned by the new york court of appeals last week. the disgraced movie mogul who has been serving a 23 sentence appeared frail and entered the courtroom in a wheelchair. while one of his accusers, jessica mann, sat a few piece away, as well as district attorney alvin bragg. the judge said they would move forward with a retrial for weinstein, telling the court that it would likely take place after labor day. following the hearing, weinstein's attorney spoke outside the courthouse. >> we're very confident that if he goes to trial, the only words we'll hear at the end of the trial are "not guilty". >> every witness who the prosecution believes is integral to this case, including the alleged victims will have to re-testify, and that will likely bring up all of the trauma and

emotions again. >> reporter: as for what happens now, weinstein will be transferred to bellevue hospital where he underwent a series of tests over the weekend. his spokesperson telling nbc news that weinstein's health has taken a turn during his time in prison. >> he has blood pressure issues, diabetes, not managed properly, eye problems, tooth problems, back problems. >> now he has a hard time on a walker. >> reporter: the court said the decision came down to improper rulings during his trial and women who were not part of the case should never have been allowed to testify. >> prosecution hadwill only ret this case if they are confidence in in the evidence at their disposal. so i am doubtful this case will actually make it to a retrial. >> reporter: new york isn't weinstein's only legal troubles.

he also faces a 16-year prison sentence in california, after he was convicted of rape and sexual assault in a separate trial in 2022. his team is currently appealing. >> and our thanks to chloe for that report. hours from now, former president trump has his gag order hearing here in new york city. both the prosecutors and defense will argue before the court in the hush money trial. judge juan mer chand is unlikely to rule on the same day. in waukesha, wisconsin, trump acknowledged seemingly for the first time that he asked the secret service driver to go to the capitol ahead of the riots, disputing the testimony of a former white house aide. he denies getting violent or aggressive, instead saying he deferred to his security detail who said he shouldn't go. today arizona governor katie hobbs is set to sign into law a repeal of the civil war-era abortion ban. protesters clashed outside the

capital as they voted widely along party lines. the democratic sponsor, voting arizonaens to vote republicans out of office. >> for the sake of arizona families, we cannot let them hold onto power for one more year. we must flip the state legislature and restore access to reproductive freedom once and for all. >> it could still take months for the repeal to go into effect, thanks to legislative procedures and maneuvers that arizona republicans could use to delay it. authorities have recovered and identified a fifth victim after the baltimore bridge collapse in late march. the victim has been named as 49-year-old miguel angel luna gonzalez. a total of six people died when the bridge collapsed, all construction workers. one remains missing. now to the dangerous streak of severe weather that has plagued the central u.s. for a week leaving millions at risk once again.

a tornado appeared to touch down in the texas panhandle. since last wednesday there have been 180 tornados reported, and at least six people killed, including a 4 month old. countless homes and businesses have been reduced to rubble and heartland res didents are unabl to breathe a sigh of relief as more storms are possible today. angie has the details. >> the same area that we've been watching for days and days is going to be the spot that we watch later this afternoon. especially as we see the stronger storms develop. already an active morning across the mid section of the country, parts of the midwest, the northern and central plains and southern plains seeing thunderstorm activity, but this is likely to ramp up through the afternoon hours. plenty of heigat, plenty of humidity to tap into. we're watching for a flood concern. i'll show you the alerts in a

moment. but first a look at the stronger storms. a much smaller area that we're watching, texas into oklahoma is where we'll have our eyes close to here as we get into the afternoon hours for the severe threat. all of those hazards are on the table. we're specifically looking for the chance for large hail, hen egg size will be possible. 13 million people under flood alerts because we're shreveport. mid-90s in san angelo with plenty of sunshine on tap for phoenix today. that's a look at your forecast, frances, back to you. "early today" is back in a minute with the fed's latest moves to fight inflation.

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the federal reserve says the fight against inflation is not over, which means interest rates will stay at a two-decade high. arabile gumede joins us with the details. good morning, arabile. >> that's certainly the case. the fed really making note of that. the fight not necessarily done. in fact, they may need to remain like this for a substantial period of time, meaning rates are going to stay higher for a little bit more than markets have perhaps wanted. in fact, while the market is anticipating a cut of around 25 basis points in the latter part of this year around december or so, question marks also being put whether that may even happen. there were even question marks on whether the federal reserve might even be looking at hiking or increasing interest rates again, because maybe it's just not done enough because inflation has of course remained

a little bit sticky. the fed chair jerome powell went on to say that it is likely the fed would move in that direction and really just saying that they would rather maintain this restrictive policy. that has actually hurt consumers somewhat as well. you're beginning to see a little bit of weakness here and there, and that is in consumer spending. the likes of starbucks, mcdonald's, all suffering when it comes to how consumers are beginning to spend on delivery items, including fast food as well. that is beginning to hurt their numbers. you see profits going down and revenues hurt overall. and the key question mark is whether that will be sustainable. >> we wish we knew the answer for that. arabile, thank you. still to come, airbnb takes gist guests into worlds beyond. and dua lipa ahead of her snl hosting debut. r snl hosting debut. that's why i use secret whole body deodorant...

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people-friendly. bug-deadly. here's what's making headlines this morning. ongoing testing of pasturized retail dairy products by the fda has found no signs of bird flu virus. the agency's acting director says it further affirms the safety of the u.s. milk supply. ford is recalling 243,000 of its pickup trucks over a taillight problem. a computer issue can cause them to stay dark, causing a crash. models from 2022 to 2024 are impacted. frequent feelings of anger may increase the risk of heart disease. being angry even for a short time impairs blood vessels' ability to open, which over time can damage them. and the new york mets are looking for the next mr. met.

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but... green... means... go! ♪♪ cool the pain with biofreeze. and keep on going. biofreeze. green means go. this continues to teick up the ladder. to jaylen brown. >> it was that kind of night for the heat, despite a valiant effort in their five-game series, miami's season came to an end at the hands of the league-leading sceltics. boston did what they've done best all season and advanced to the semifinals with a 34-point

victory. meanwhile, the mavericks have a chance to send the clippers packing, dallas easily took care of l.a. on their home court in game five. and the knicks can do the same to the 76ers tonight. but even the nba is admitting that tonight's game six possibly shouldn't be happening. an officiating review of game five found that refs missed a travel violation by tyrese maxey seconds before his play that fueled a crucial win for the sixers. it's not baseball superstars generating the biggest buzz around the plate, emilie ikeda tells us about the game saved by a beekeeper. >> reporter: as fans swarmed the stadium tuesday, so did an uninvited visitor. >> you're looking live at a bee colony that has established a foothold high atop the backstop, behind home plate. >> reporter: worrying officials that a foul ball could push the bees toward players and fans.

they could have postponed the game. >> we ask that you please be patient. >> reporter: but opted for plan b instead, calling in matt hill ton of blue sky pest control. >> this is it. the beekeeper made his way, a grand entrance. >> reporter: the evening's knight in cotton armor was escorted and sprayed and vacuumed the bees. could you imagine the energy you were about to walk into? >> no i k, i knew it would be exciting but this was another level. >> reporter: tennisa a beeline offer th the court in march. in phoenix, baseball's hero outshining some of the biggest names in the sport and rewarded with the ceremonial first pitch after a two-hour delay. >> our hero!

>> it was a neaight to remember for sure. >> reporter: winning the game before it began. emilie ikeda. nbc news. >> they should adopt him as the new mascot. thanks for waking up with "early today." i'm frances rivera. have a great thursday. we'll see you right back here tomorrow when we're all in a better mood, because it will be friday. have a good one in the meantime. . a nice to meet ya. my name is david. i've been a pharmacist for 44 years. when i have customers come in and ask for something for memory, i recommend prevagen. number one, because it's effective. does not require a prescription. and i've been taking it quite a while myself and i know it works. and i love it when the customers come back in and tell me, "david, that really works so good for me." makes my day. prevagen. at stores everywhere without a prescription.

lapd ordering crowds to disperse at ucla. the protesters defiantly staying put overnight, as officials call for an investigation into earlier violence between the encampment and counter protesters. we have a live report from los angeles. in wisconsin, a student shot dead outside a middle school after reports of a person with a gun. what police are saying today about th