>> blayne alexander in atlanta tonight. blayne, thank you. >>> now to one of the most poignant tributes on this memorial day, president biden laying a wreath at the tomb of the unknown soldier at arlington national cemetery and speaking in deeply personal terms about overcoming loss while also delivering this note of caution >> democracy itself is in peril here at home and around the world what we do now, what we do now, how we honor the memory of the fallen will determine whether or not democracy will long endure. >> much more on america's memorial day tributes a little bit later. >>> but now to the showdown in texas over a controversial new voting bill. democrats walking out of the state house, preventing passage of legislation that they say would restrict voting rights. kelly o'donnell has the very latest. >> reporter: just minutes before a midnight deadline texas democrats headed for the exits. their walkout from the house floor derailed at least temporarily a controversial new voting law that would affect millions. >>

lester >> all right, blayne, thank you. you can make a plan for when and where to get vaccinated visit planyourvaccine.com for more >>> late tonight the house passed a bill that would make june 19th a federal holiday after it was unanimously passed by the senate it's known as juneteenth, a day commemorating the end of slavery. president biden is expected to sign the bill, establishing the holiday as juneteenth national independence day >>> now to our series "america the vulnerable." and the country's digital divide the biden administration says broadband should be treated as esseo help bridge that gap. but as jake ward reports, some states have road blocks >> reporter: high school teacher michelle galloway spent months struggling to connect with students from her north carolina farmhouse during the pandemic >> sometimes i would cry after a class. >> reporter: at times the slow internet made it nearly impossible to communicate. >> i had one student to hold up a sign saying "miss galloway, ask that question again. so i wrote

for more, we are joined now by nbc's blayne alexander blayne, good morning >> reporter: well, phillip, good morning to you across the country now, we are seeing state after state loosen restrictions people coming back to pre-pandemic activities. sporting events. but at the same time, we are seeing a warning from the cdc about a new, more transmissible variant. experts predict the delta variant, first discovered in india, could soon become the dominant-covid strain in the u.s. >> it is more transmissible. and possibly, more dangerous in terms of causing severe disease. >> reporter: all of it, only accelerating the rush to get americans vaccinated but the biden administration is running out of time to hit its july-4th goal. 70% of americans, with at least one shot so far, only about 53% of the country is partially vaccinated. but some states are barely hitting a third of their population the lowest rate in southern states, like georgia, alabama, louisiana, and mississippi where only 28% of the state is fully vaccinated a new poll gives some insight into why the rates are lagging 37% of

i want to start with blayne down in georgia. blayne, what is remarkable here, and i guess the best way to try to put it is try to explain, if we had a similar situation as we had in 2020, the secretary of state became a national, you know, folk hero to some because he sort of stood up and did his job against partisan pressure. could he even do his job the same way in 2024? >> it would have looked a lot different, chuck, and that's what a lot of critics are pointing to when you look back at 2020. here's why this matters. you talk about the fact essentially this law, one major component, it removes a lot of the power from the secretary of state and instead transfers that power to state legislature. essentially that means the secretary of state, who previously was the chair of georgia's election board, no longer holds that role. now that role will be appointed by state lawmakers. the second is the state board, elections board. they will have the power to suspend county and local elections. the reason that matters is here in the sta

very, very quickly >> reporter: a crucial reminder as millions gear up for the summer boating season blayne alexander, nbc news >>> a big weekend for the dogs as the famed westminster competition gets under way tomorrow and this year's show will be unlike any other. it's the super bowl of the dog world. >> hello hello. >> reporter: and for the first time in 145 years the show is being held outside, here at lyndhurst estate in tarrytown, new york >> were you afraid there wouldn't be a 2021 show? >> oh, that absolutely was something we considered >> so the show will go on without the usual audience >> that's right. and we're still going to have top dogs from all across the country. >> reporter: including four new breeds ready to make their ring debuts one of the big questions, how will the dogs adapt to their new surroundings >> go, go! back, come on. >> they'll be fine they know it's exciting they know when to turn it on and when it's showtime >> reporter: just to be sure, i headed to the agility course with chester, a berger picard and five-time champion >> ready weave. over, over that's wh

let's start with blayne alexander ♪ home of the brave ♪ >> reporter: with america bounding back to life, tonight there is a new warning the cdc has officially labeled the covid-19 delta variant one of concern. saying that it's more easily spread and causes more severe cases than any other covid variant. studies show that the pfizer vaccine is effective against the delta variant and experts say the other vaccines likely are, too. good news for the nearly 44% of americans who are fully vaccinated but the cdc guidance is sparking new worries for those who are not, including teens and young children >> if you're not vaccinated, the delta variant will spread in your community more quickly. it will take less exposure to get covid-19 >> reporter: the variant, which was first discovered in india, now accounts for nearly 10% of all new covid cases in the u.s. does this mean a bigger risk for those who are unvaccinated, including children >> it does mean a bigger risk. once you're fully vaccinated it's proving fairly effective against this that's the good news but if you are unvaccinated, especia

. >> and, blayne, quickly, it's not tony who will administer the shot? there is a nurse there that will administer the shot? >> that's right. for shops that are partnering with the administration, the barbers are not giving the shots themselves, they're making their place available for an actual vaccine site to be setup in their facility. geoff? >> blayne alexander, we appreciate you as always. >>> the fda is warning people who have seafood allergies not to eat cicadas. the agency tweeted the warning yesterday with the words, yep, we ever to say it. the brood x cicadas apparently share a genealogy with shrimp and lobsters, if you can believer that. >>> one of the reporters who broke the story for the "washington post" joins me next. >>> reddit is targeting a stock that was just $2 a few months ago. it's up 3,000% since. p 3,000% se are living in the moment and taking ibrance. ibrance with an aromatase inhibitor is for postmenopausal women or for men with hr+, her2- metastatic breast cancer as the first hormonal based therapy. ibrance plus letrozole signi

our report from nbc news correspondent blayne alexander. >> reporter: experts predict the delta variant could be the dominant covid strain in the u.s. >> it is more trance missible and poerm for dangerous. >> reporter: accelerating the rush to get americaning vaccinated but the biden administration is running out of time. 70% of americans with at least 1 shot. only about 53 prs of the country is partially vaccinated but some states are barely hitting a hit of the third of the population. georgia, al afflalo, louisiana and mississippi where only 28% out state is fully vaccinated. a new poll out today gives insight. 37% of those asked point to vaccine hesitancy and nearly double say they faced airbnbiers to get the shot and as scenes are more familiar, the largest sports crowd since the start of the pandemic and some setbacks with a cruise ship fored to postpone after eight crew members tested positive for covid. one hand we see states loosening restrictions but hearing this dire warning about the delta variant. is this a confusing message? >> what you are seeing is really a message for t

nbc's blayne alexander joins us from the cdc's headquarters in atlanta. blayne, good morning >> craig, goord morning to you this new delta variant is one health officials have been watching for some time now cases are now on the rise here in the u.s. posing a new threat to those who are not vaccinated. with the country creeping closer to the july 4th holiday, the biden administration is making a renewed push for vaccinations. the efforts to declare independence from the covid-19 pandemic is only intensifying with news of the new delta variant. more contagious, more severe, and experts worry soon to be more prominent than any other variant in the u.s already accounting for 10% of new cases. >> it happened in a relatively short period of time, and it would likely krincrease significantly beyond that skblort among the concerns, the nearly 56% of americans who are not fully vaccinated, especially teens and young children. >> when you're vaccinated you serve as a wall, as a barrier to infection coming into your home, into your community. the more of us that ca

>> blayne, i think what you're hearing is a message for two different populations which is if you are vaccinated you are still in good shape. if you are unvaccinated there's still reason to be cautious, to wear a mask. >> reporter: vice president harris will travel here to georgia as part of the push to boost vaccination rates where they are among the lowest in the country. back to you. >>> a follow-up this morning the san jose mother accused of killing her 7-year-old son in the southern nevada desert has a first court hearing today. samantha rodriguez is scheduled to appear virtually from denver. her extradition is pending. poe lows say she killed her 7-year-old son liam husted and left his body on a hiking trail. authorities arrested rodriguez last week after she checked herself into a denver hotel. >>> authorities have not yet identified two young drivers killed in a head-on crash. it happened yesterday on sellers avenue near delta road in knightsen. the chp says the drivers in each car, a 16-year-old boy and 19-year-old man, died. the only other person, a 15-year-old passenger in

. >>> we start with mike memoli at the white house, blayne alexander in atlanta, one of 30 cities where we see a gap in vaccination rates. i want to bring in an infectious disease physician and msnbc medical contributor. mike, we are waiting for that covid briefing to begin. expecting to get details we talked about on the global vaccination push. what do we know so far? >> reporter: that's right, hallie. we have have been seeing over the last five plus months a familiar cast of characters at the covid briefings, dr. fauci, dr. walensky. today we will see another participant making his debut. that's jake sullivan. the national security advisor. that's because this announcement is what you might call a little vaccine diplomacy on the part of the united states. the president announced last month that he was upping the ante to 80 million doses, 60 million of astrazeneca but 20 million of the johnson & johnson to share with other countries. we expect this will detail where they will go. we will listen to whether that -- the supply is actually increased from that 80 million as well. we know t

. >> nbc's blayne alexander joins us with the very latest, blayne, good morning. >> reporter: well, guys, good morning to you. this is one of the most powerful legal families in south carolina, and that's why their deaths have left so many people in the area shaken. now, more than a week later, there are still a number of questions but now we're getting new details about what happened. the 911 call came late monday night. officials say prominent south carolina attorney alex mourdock came home last week and called police after discovering his wife and son murdered. 52-year-old maggie murdaugh, and 22-year-old paul both shot multiple times outside their home according to investigators. it happened in island town south carolina, about 90 minutes outside of charleston. now, more than a week later seemingly little progress, no arrests, no named suspect and from police, no motive. the state's governor promising answers. >> we hope to get to the bottom of it and find those responsible for these two slayings. >> reporter: in a statement, the south carolina law enforcement division says it's comm

let's start with blayne alexander down south in atlanta, georgia. blayne, you're at a barbershop. they are partnering with the administration how? >> yes, we're at a barbershop here in atlanta. if you come with me, i will show you the chairs inside. that's key. if you look inside during normal peak hours, all of these chairs are filled. tony tells me they can see about many as 400 customers in a given week. as we step outside, that is crucial because one of the topics they're talking about is the vaccine. that's what the biden administration is counting on, they're hoping to get people to discuss the vaccine and shops like tony's, partnering with about a barbershops and salons across the country. of course, the black community is proportionately hit harder by the pandemic. so why barbershops? these are national community gathering places, where the conversations happen. this is how tony described it. take a listen. >> for black people, this is our living room, our den. it's the place we come to discuss things. >> in addition to the question of hesitancy, steph, it's very important

hoda. >> blayne alexander for us, thank you. >>> craig joins us now as we turn to that massive chemical plant explosion in northern illinois real scary. >> massive indeed, good morning, good morning to you as well. that blast covered the area in thick, black smoke and debris and forced full scale evacuations. this morning, authorities are saying that fire could burn for several more days. nbc's meagan fitzgerald is near the scene in rockton good morning >> reporter: good morning. we're nearly 24 hours into when this initial explosion happened, and while you can see this plume is subsiding some, it's still smoldering fire officials still searching for the cause, while there's growing concern here for officials about the potential for an environmental nightmare this morning, a massive chemical fire in rockton, illinois is still burning with no end in sight. >> this is going to be a several day event to have all this product burned off. >> reporter: the initial explosion happened early monday morning at the chemtool plant just outside of rockford, which makes greases, lubricants and cleani

>> blayne, i think what you're hearing is really a message for two different populations. which is that if you are vaccinated, you are still in good shape. but if you are unvaccinated, there's still reasons to be cautious. to still wear a mask, to still avoid indoor gatherings. >> nbc's blayne alexander reporting there. joining us now, former biden senior adviser for covid-19 response, andy slavitt. he was a key architect in crafting the affordable care act as well under the obama administration. andy is out with a new book entitled "preventable: the inside story of how leadership failures, politics, and selfishness doomed the u.s. coronavirus response." andy, good morning. good to have you with us. we'll talk about the moment in a moment, but you're only a week or so out of a job running the coronavirus team inside the white house. tell us what you know about this delta variant. obviously, we've heard from public health officials who have said the answer to this is to get vaccinated, because the vaccines are effective against it. >> we should think of this as covid on ste

first, the back story with nbc's blayne alexander. good morning to you. >> reporter: well, savannah, good morning to you. during normal business hours here at tony's barber studio, all of these chairs are completely filled. they can see as many as 400 customers a week, and these days vaccination is a very hot topic in this shop. that's exactly what the biden administration is counting on. he's partnering with companies like tony's to urge americans to get the shot. it's all part of a bigger push to hit that vaccination target by july 4th. this morning from the biden administration, it's an all-out sprint to get americans the shot. the administration announcing a wave of new incentives for those who get vaccinated, cash, free baseball tickets, super bowl seats, even free flights for an entire year. a game show worthy list all aimed at hitting the administration's goal, 70% of americans with at least one shot by july 4th. >> let's go into the summer freer and safer. let's celebrate a truly historic independence day. >> reporter: dubbed