anniversary. the line's long on the first day. if you want to buy a ticket, make a reservation and follow covid safety protocols. the ride lasts 12 minutes. what a view, quite the experience. >> lester holt is next, see you at 6:00. tonight, barack obama hitting the 2020 campaign trail for the first time 13 days until the election the former president making the case for joe biden. let's geto pete williams with more. >> the threatening emails sent to voters in at least four states and said to be from a far right group called the proud boys were the work of iran. the emails started showing up this week and the inboxes of registered democrats in florida and alaska. they said quote you will vote for president trump on election day or we

will come after you. the emails claim that the proud boys had information about the voters adding to the threatening nature and told them to switch the party registration to republican. but the proud boys immediately said they had nothing to do with the emails tonight the director of national intelligence ratcliffe says the messages were a clear attempt to interfere in the u.s. election >> we have already seen iran sending spoofed emails designed to intimidate voters,en cite social unrest and damage president trump. >> reporter: the intelligence community says both iran and russia have obtained some voter registration information but that so far russia does not appear to have done anything with it russia did on tan some voter registration information four years ago, too the fbi director and ratcliffe in a televised statement said iranian and russian activity

detected quickly by the intelligence community and said voters should continue to have confidence in the security of the u.s. election system the white house says tonight that president trump has directed law enforcement, defense and intelligence agencies to monitor any attempts to interfere in the election and says tonight's disclosure shows that those efforts are working. lester >> pete williams, thanks republican senator mitt romney making a statement by voting for someone else geoff bennett joins me now from the white house with more. geoff?aid he cast the b >> reporter: that's right, lester. senator romney said he cast the ballot in the 2020 election and did not vote for president trump but wouldn't say if he voted for joe biden. with election day fast approaching the president's closing argument is clouded by controversy, including his attacks on dr. anthony fauci an his repeated downplaying of the pandemic, add to that, new reporting by "the new york times" revealing the president has extensive business

interests in china and is linked to a bank account there. the disclosure dealing a blow to president trump's attempt to paint joe biden as the one who's soft on china. lester >> all right geoff bennett tonight, thank you. join us for the final presidential debate moderated by nbc's kristen welker tomorrow night at 8:00 eastern here on nbc. brahm back making a fiery return to the campaign trail tonight appealing to pennsylvania voters on behalf of his former number two joe biden and launching a sharp attack on president trump. both campaigns are mapping their paths to targeting joe biden among others we are covering it all starting with andrea mitchell in pennsylvania >> reporter: tonight former president obama back on the trail for joe biden. >> i am back here tonight to ask you to deliver the white house for joe biden and kamala harris. >> reporter: polls show biden slightly

ahead in a state that had not voted for republican president since 1988 until president trump won by just 44,000 votes. >> i got my start working in a community just like this. >> reporter: in philadelphia today, obama appealing to black men, a voting bloc that did not give hillary clinton the turnout she needed. >> the easiest thing to do is just say, well, i quit but we can't afford to quit our ancestors, our fathers, our grandfathers, they had a much better excuse to quit than we did. >> reporter: in contrast to president trump, biden is off the trail preparing for tomorrow night's big debate telling a wisconsin station he likes the new measure at times cutting off their mics. >> i think it's a good idea i think there should be more limitations on us not interrupting one another. >> reporter: but sharply disputing accusations his son hunter profited from the biden name in his overseas business dealings >> it's a last-ditch effort in this

desperate campaign t smear me and my family. >> reporter: while the president is in attack mode, biden is trying to strike a closing mess and of unity. >> there is only one america. >> reporter: there are warning signs for democrats in pennsylvania since june, republicans have out registered democrats in new voters by more than 2-1 former president obama telling pennsylvanians doesn't make voting everything perfect, it makes things better trying to get out the vote in a state both campaigns need to win. lester tonight the cdc'omes as ca spike in several regions. miguel almaguer with what you need to know. >> reporter: as our new guidance on close contact and spreading the coronavirus just how long it takes to raise or reduce your chance of infection. it comes as cases spike in several regions. miguel almaguer with what you need to know. >> reporter: as our nation climbs higher into a third surge of covid cases, tonight a new cdc report finds it takes less than 15 minutes of close contact to be infected with the virus short and nonconsecutive exposures to persons confirmed to have covid-19 led to

transmission the new change in guidance which comes as more americans return to crowded venues means you should still keep at least six feet of social distance, wear a mask and limit exposure to others. >> this increases the importance of what is a high risk exposure and were you, frankly, close to anybody positive for covid-19 for any period of time >> reporter: the new guidelines come as new outbreaks or superspreader events are tied to close gatherings in minnesota, 20 salvation army employees contracted the virus during a conference at church events in north carolina and in maine, nearly 100 tested positive after few took precautions some americans are still spreading the virus because they don't know they're infected, asymptomatic cases are still contagious to others as a tidal wave of infections sweep across the nation, 27 states are seeing an increase in covid deaths.

>> he had said good night to the kids and went upstairs and that was the last time saw him alert and basically alive. >> reporter: alice roberts lost her husband rob a 45-year-old new jersey police officer and father of three who had no preexisting conditions. >> i am really tired of pandemic but you can't let your guard down. >> reporter: tonight her warning so other families don't have to share her pain miguel almaguer, nbc news this is gabe gutierrez in the midwest where tonight the region's second surge is spreading rapidly. >> in my 34 years as a physician, i hav never seen so much suffering from a single disease over such a short period of time. >> i'm tired i know others are tired. not just our bodies and our minds but our spirits are fatigued, as well. >> the patients that are coming in are incredibly sick. they're requiring expensive measures >> reporter: in

illinois, the testing lines snake down streets. a few weeks ago, this testing site in chicago was dealing with no more than 600 tests a day. now it's up to more than 1,000 in ohio, hospitalizations are at a record high and at a new nursing home outbreak in indiana,the pa four people have died and 47 others have been infected. the pain is spread widely but not always evenly a new study out today found black patients in the u.s. were 72% more likely to be hospitalized than white patients >> it shows that the persistent healt care disparities that exist in our u.s health care system have been exposed to a great degree by covid. >> reporter: shiny gavin survived after spending two weeks on a ventilator. >> i never imagined anything like this would ever happen to me >> reporter: at the same chicago hospital was her mother, also sick she died one floor away. >> having covid is horrible losing a mother is horrific it's better to wear a mask than to wear a ventilator. >> reporter: today

illinois reported its highest daily covid death toll since mid-june lester >> all right gabe, thanks breaking tonight, after years of court battles, the justice department announced a $8 billion settlement with pure due pharma, maker of oxycontin which is blamed for fueling the opinion identify crisis. here's kate snow. >> reporter: the $8 billion settlement, the most dramatic effort yet by the federal government to hold a drugmaker accountable for the more than 450,000 american deaths from opioid addiction >> our criminal investigation in this case revealed that purdue placed profits over public safety. >> reporter: the company says it deeply regrets and accepts responsibility pleading guilty to three felonies, admits it did not sto oxycontin from being diverted from pharmacies and doctors and that it paid doctors to write more prescriptions. the company agrees to be restructured with future profits on oxycontin paying for

addiction treatment and prevention in a statement today, the sackler family who created purdue said members who served on the purdue board acted ethically and lawfully, family members would pay $225 million to resolve all civil actions but they could still face criminal charges critics say with purdue in bankruptcy it is unlikely the company will ever really pay $8 billion. >> it was clear the department of justice wanted to make a deal and make an announcement before the election, and they ended up making a lousy deal it doesn't bring justice. it doesn't bring accountable. >> reporter: tony lagreca whose son died six years ago after being prescribed oxycontin thinks the sacklers are getting off easy. >> every cent they earn from selling opioids i believe should be paid back to the families they damaged. >> reporter: the settlement still needs to be approved by bankruptcy court. kate snow, nbc news. let's turn now to the big surprise, a major shift today by pope francis, now endorsing civil unions

for same-sex unions. our anne thompson has more >> reporter: francis, cementing hi reputation as the pope of surprises saying in the new documentary "francesca" what we have to create is a civil union law i stood up for that. father jim martin author and advocate for lgbtq catholics saw the documentary. >> this is a historic step forward in the church's relationship with lgbt people and catholics. >> reporter: is he opening the door to gay marriage in the church >> the pope is not opening up the door to gay marriage being celebrated in a mass but he is opening up the door to people being approving of same-sex civil unions. >> reporter: church teaching says homosexuality is disordered today rhode island bishop tobin called on the pope to clarify the words saying the church cannot support the acceptance of objectively immoral relationships. from his first press conference when he asked, who am i to judge, francis's papacy has been marked by compassion to gays

and lesbiansey have a right to be now the pope says homosexuals have a right to be part of the family. they are children of god and have a right to a family. nobody should be thrown out or made miserable because of it reaching out to those who long felt excluded by the church. anne thompson, nbc news. nbc news has learned the parents of 545 migrant children separated at the border by the trump administration cannot be found according to lawyers appointed by a federal judge. the government calls them unreachables. a white house spokesman said many of the deported parents declined to accept their children back but that is disputed by the aclu. across the country, we are seeing record early voter turnout. in georgia, some 2 million people have already cast their ballots. as blayne alexander reports it comes after chaos in the primaries disproportionately impacted black voters. >> i'm ready let's go >> reporter: this is election day for this

woman. >> not waiting in the lines anymore. >> reporter: never mind that november 3rd is still days away >> we are ready to vote >> reporter: she is among the record number of georgians in georgia after sh learned a tough lesson in the june primary. >> been here for three hours. that image - >> i was angry because it was ridiculous. >> reporter: led to state officials coming under fire including georgia's secretar of state that oversees the election we happen to run into him recently casting his own early ballot is georgia prepared? is your office prepared >> yes, we are really it is the counties, getting them prepared we had a call out for new poll workers. >> reporter: critics say georgia's voting issues go deeper than a lack of resources. >> every tool in the voter suppression toolkit has been in use in georgia >> reporter: andrea young said the aclu spent years to fight against voting i.d. laws, closing polling locations and voter roll purges, removing registrations of people who have been inactive fo

at least two general elections. all legal and all disproportionately impacting minority and low-income voters often with fewer resources to check their registration status or change their voting plans. >> we want voting to be easy for working class people, low-income people, the people who take the bus. >> reporter: but it's not been during the june primary areas more than 90% black had an average evening wait time of 51 minutes in predominantly white areas, six minutes for some in georgia there's lingering resentment over the 2018 gubernatorial race >> this is not a speech of concession. >> reporter: when stacey abrams came within 55,000 votes of being elected the nation's first black female governor. she and her supporters point to voter suppression. the state's governor who at the time oversaw the election at secretary of state maintains it was handled fairly. >> this is exciting. people are getting out. >> reporter: now with record turnout expected - >> this time, 27 minutes. much better? >> much better.

>> reporter: both advocates and officials say to hel make this election go smoothly vote early. blayne alexander, nbc news, atlanta. there is record breaking early snow in across the northern plains and upper midwest. nearly eight inches in minneapolis and more on the way parts of the dakotas could get up to a foot of snow. in 60 seconds, as one major city switches to all-remote learning, the crushing burden in this pandemic on teachers rden in atth fisher investments, we do things differently and other money managersin don't understand why. because our way works great for us! but not for your clients. that's why we're a fiduciary, obligated to put clients first. so, what do you provide? cookie cutter portfolios? nope. we tailor portfolios to our client's needs. but you do sell investments that earn you high commissions, right? we don't have those. so, what's in it for you? our fees are structured so we do better when our clients do better. at fisher investments we're clearly different. anyone making less than $400,000 a year won't pay a penny more,

and i'm going to ask the very big corporations to pay their fair share. we're going to invest in creating millions of good-paying jobs. we're going to ease the burden of the major cost in your life- health care. we're going to protect social security and increase the benefits for millions of seniors. when i announced i was running, i said that's the reason, to rebuild the backbone of this country: hard-working folks of the middle class. i'm joe biden and i approve this message. in boston, schools are shifting to all-remote learning as covid surges there in our series, "america under pressure," tonight the strain the pandemic is placing on teachers. here's vicki nguyen. >> i bet over 1,000 emails. >> reporter: nick faroni struck a nerve when he posted a simple tweet, how many teachers are close to breaking down? launching a conversation about how teachers are really doing. >> exhausted and burnt out but need to keep providing the best

education they can. >> reporter: it feels like we're building an airplane while we're already in the air flying. >> it's my 15th yearhing is i e teaching, i feel like a first-year teacher all over again. >> reporter: we sat down with three educators for candid conversation. do you feel like in some ways the kids' stress and anxiety is something that the teachers take on >> absolutely. those are my babies! my babies. >> reporter: nick is teaching history remotely kelly gallagher is a high school science teacher and nicole mancini teaches fifth grade. >> what is the toughest part about teaching during a pandemic >> when we think of our kids, some of them are taking care of a sibling, some of them may have lost a family member due to this horrible virus >> reporter: trauma that's even harder to heal remotely. >> some students feel safer walking in a classroom than they do at home. that's an aspect of education we don't have right now. >> reporter: on top of worrying about the students, recent surveys show nearly half of teachers say their own families are struggling with 1 in 3

saying the pandemic has made them more likely to leave teaching earlier than planned. >> it is okay to ask for help it is okay to cry. because we have all done it so far this year. >> reporter: teachers are now connecting from around the world. >> we have definitel gotten a little bit of that mentality of stronger together. >> reporter: what is that silver lining that you're hoping for. >> we now realiz schools are so much more than jus schools to stoont students >> in springtime when the world of education was shook from the foundation there was a glimmer of hope to rebuild this. >> reporter: adapting and re-imagining the classroom as teachers manage one of the toughest jobs of the covid crisis. >> i'm not giving up because we want the best for our students. >> teachers are doing such important work. how can parents support them >> reporter: lester, if you know a teacher, check on them. an email or text goes a long way as for teachers, mental health experts say set aside time for self care, make sure you are away from work

and email to recharge. lester >> all right vicki, thank you for doing that story. up next, an exclusive, the surge in social media scams. (vo) i'm a verizon engineer and today, we're turning on 5g across the country. with the coverage of 5g nationwide. and, in more and more cities, the unprecedented performance of ultra wideband. the fastest 5g in the world. it will change your phone and how businesses do everything. i'm proud, because we didn't build it the easy way, we built it right. this is the 5g america's been waiting for. only from verizon. aso the national eye instituteon did 20 years of clinical studies on a formula only found in preservision. if it were my vision, i'd ask my doctor about preservision. it's the most studied eye vitamin brand. if it were my vision, i'd look into preservision. only preservision areds2 contains the exact nutrient formula recommended by the nei to help reduce the risk

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back now with our nbc news exclusive, the surge in online scams during the pandemic here's jo ling kent. >> you think that, okay, well this has to be like a trusted product. >> reporter: roommates brad fisher and josh rooney bought this floating putting green from a facebook ad.

>> the product never showed up. >> reporter: they reported it to the federal trade commission finding they're not alone. new ftc data show in the first six months of this year the total amount of money reported lost from online scams totaled $117 million compare that to $134 million for all of 2019 of all the social media scams reported to the ftc, 94% happened on facebook and instagram. >> it's so easy to place an ad and then never deliver the goods. >> why are people so vulnerable right now, do you think >> people are just not used to seeing scams on their social media platform. >> reporter: and it is not just no-show products scammers targeting users with get rich quick schemes. facebook says it removes accounts tied to financial scams. so to protect yourself online the ftc recommends be skeptical and do research on the company. luckily for rooney, his credit card fully refunded him

buyer beware he says the ads ar still up on facebook jo ling kent, nbc news. up next, she's racing to save lives and "inspiring america. ws. up next, she's racing to save lives and "inspiring america." the americans who drive our trucks and ambulances, who put fear aside and run toward the flames. these are the people we depend on. that's why at the ford motor company, our super dutys have undergone 20 million miles of testing. so that these people can depend on us. ♪ trump took a good economy and drove it back into the ditch through his failure to get covid under control, his failure to deliver real relief to working people. does he not understand and see the tens of millions of people who've had to file for unemployment this year, so far?

the people who lost wages while the cost of groceries has gone up dramatically. donald trump has been almost singularly focused on the stock market, the dow, the nasdaq -- not you, not your families. my plan will help create at least five million new, good-paying jobs and create them right here in the united states of america. let's use this opportunity to take bold investments in american industry and innovation. so the future is made in america. i'll be laser focused on working families. ♪ i'm joe biden, and i approve this message.

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or dental procedures. ask your doctor about eliquis. and if your ability to afford... ...your medication has changed, we want to help. finally, a young woman going the distance in this pandemic to save lives. rehema ellis with "inspiring america." >> reporter: for joya running is a way of life and now it is her way of helping others. >> i grew up in a family that believed in service, that believed in goin where you're needed and doing what you can.

>> reporter: when the pandemic hit this pre-med student started volunteering for a nonprofi delivering personal protective equipment to places that need it most sometimes actually running to the locations in new york. >> every single mask has meant something to someone's life. >> reporter: now joya is going a step further. though the new york city marathon wa canceled this year, she is running the virtual marathon lik 25,000 others around the world. with each mile joya is fund raising to buy more ppe. >> this one is the highest stakes race i'm ever going to run and it's honestly the race of my life. >> reporter: it also might be the race to save other lives. >> it is, oh, it absolutely is. >> reporter: if 26.2 miles isn't enough, she's adding another mile for every donation over $250 >> why wouldn't i do it if i knew i had a chance to make a difference somewhere >> reporter: for joya, racing to a finish line that's really just the start

rehema ellis, nbc news, new york. that is "nightly news" for this wednesday. thank you for watching, everyone i'm lester holt. please continue to take care of yourself and each other. good night iran and russia have taken specific actions to influence public opinion relating to our elections. >> we are following developing news late this evening. the fbi revealing how two countries are trying to disrupt the election and cause chaos in america. plus, pg&e is about to do it again. shut off power across the bay area. >> just do it. there's no -- there no backing up. there's no hiding in a hole. there's no calling mama, daddy for some money.

>> we're tracking where and when they'll begin. and i'm tracking where the fire danger will be the highest in the mountains and the much colder weather headed our way this weekend. also, some high-profile companies pushing back against governor newsom. >> at the heart of it, we don't see the guidelines as based in science or facts. >> the reason theme park operators like disneyland and great america feel betrayed. the news at 6:00 starts right now. good evening and thanks for being with us. >> we begin tonight with that late announcement from the fbi. we've known some foreign countries have been trying to interfere in the upcoming election and late tonight in a rare news conference federal agents confirmed it. they've uncovered a specific troubling effort. the director of national intelligence said iran has sent spoof emails. nbc news has learned the emails contain threats to voters telling them to vote for president trump, and if they