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Deja vu all over again

All morning here in Washington, we’ve been watching the Senate Armed Services hearing on Iraq. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld is there. So is the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Peter Pace. So is Gen. John Abizaid, the top U.S. commander in the Middle East.

As we watch, we’re trying to figure out what’s new. Are there fireworks? Are they arguing? What’s the body language? What is said, what is NOT said? We hope to put this all in context for you on the broadcast tonight.

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Hot and Bothered?

Think you're hot? Believe it or not, there are places MUCH hotter than what we're experiencing this week. First, there's Iraq... where the average temperature in July and August is 120 degrees Fahrenheit. Today's forecast for Iraq is 114 degrees. That should hold for the next two days, with 116 predicted for Saturday and then 118 for Sunday. Talk to any soldier wearing about 20 pounds of  battle gear, and our situation pales in comparison.

Let's turn now to Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates. According to the BBC's five-day weather forecast, today should be a balmy 102 degrees, with temperatures going up to about 111 on Friday.

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'Early Nightly' -- D.C. edition

When most people think of working in news, they probably think of the glamorous globetrotting anchorman. Brian himself would tell you that this week's globetrotting was long on hours and uncertainty, and very short on glamour. He mentioned earlier this week that one day's meals consisted of MREs and Power Bars thanks to the smart people he travels with.

Brian started the week heading from New York to Tel Aviv, then to Haifa, back again to Tel Aviv, with some interesting chopper rides and scary drives along the way. Then back to New York for Thursday night's show, presumably a brief respite in his own bed for one night, and then, good morning!, back on a plane today to Los Angeles where he will easily find more Power Bars but nary an MRE in sight.

So to help out while our intrepid anchorman globetrots, our own Chief White House correspondent David Gregory steps up with today's edition of "Early Nightly" -- a rundown of what you can expect in tonight's broadcast from Los Angeles. Click here to watch the video.

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Incredibly Proud, Nervous

We're happy to tell you that Brian Williams will be back in his assigned seat this evening after his visit to the Mideast.  We're especially happy to have all our colleagues back safe and sound, and hope our NBC personnel overseas continue to stay safe.  Just watching Brian, Martin, Richard, Kerry, Dawn, and our producers & camera folks covering the story makes us both incredibly proud and incredibly nervous.  On our air, you see just a handful of the people we have working overseas.....there are many more you don't see.

Brian taped some observations before leaving the area which you can see right now on Early Nightly (immediately below).   And we invite you to join Brian tonight when he willl have the latest on today's developments in that troubled region.

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Here, Pinky! Come here, Pinky!

Wednesday night, George Lewis gave us a terrific primer on a fascinating Web site... the ever popular YouTube.com [VIDEO LINK]. His piece ended with a clip Brian feels is a modern classic in the annals of Web video. It is known far and wide as "Pinky the Cat." (Click to watch.) As he said last night, "It never disappoints."

I had not seen it before, and I have to say, I'm now a convert to "Pinky." I watched it once, but like good art or a good book: It makes you think. It stays with you. It makes you ask questions.

And here's what we are left with: where IS Pinky now? I didn't spend all day Thursday on this (we did have news out of the White House and Supreme Court after all), but a few hours of phone calls and yes, Googling, gives us no definitive leads on what happened to Pinky.

Is he adopted? Is he still looking for a home? Or, has he gone on to a place where he is free to be Pinky?

So, America: What happened to Pinky the cat? Someone out there knows. And we need to know. Click "Discuss" to give us any leads.

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Tall, Grande, or Venti?

The Senate on Thursday voted to make English the "national language" of the United States. Moments later, they approved a competing amendment making it the country’s “common and unifying language.” While the Senate figures out what really will end up in the immigration bill, we’ve asked correspondent Mike Taibbi tonight to find out what this means to a nation that’s always seen itself as a cultural melting pot.

But it does give us pause to wonder:  If the Congress succeeds in making this an English-only nation, perhaps they should start on Capitol Hill and see how it goes first. They’ll have to begin with the nation’s motto: “E Pluribus Unum.” That would be Latin, and means “One from Many.” Senators, if you all pitch in on weekends, it should not take long to redo all those government office buildings, and then the country's currency.

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Rain Delay?

It's been a fairly busy Sunday for us.   That's right. No comics. No crossword puzzles. No lattes or afternoon strolls. Not that we ever get to do that, mind you...but if you work the weekends, it does cross your mind.

At long last....Jill Carroll finally arrived in Boston earlier today...much to the relief of her parents.  NBC's Mike Taibbi was there and will tell us about the reunion.

The second Iranian missile test in three days....but what is the real motive behind the weekend war games?  Lisa Daniels will look at the tensions between the US and Iran.

Today is the first anniversary of the death of Pope John Paul II.   Tens of thousands of people showed up in St Peter's Square to mark the day. Keith Miller looks at the possible fast track to sainthood for this popular pontiff.   

And, tonight,  we'll bring you a Making a Difference about one very determined man who is offering hope, healing, and a future for wounded veterans.

Rain and golf? Not a good combination. Barring a rain delay, we're hoping to see you at the normal time on Nightly News with John Seigenthaler.

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Heading Home

The young woman stepped off the plane wearing jeans, a chunky sweater, and a camouflage jacket. With her large smile, she could have been any 28-year-old landing in Germany on holiday. But this was no ordinary traveler: Newly freed from her 82 days as a hostage in Iraq, Jill Carroll arrived Saturday in Germany. Mike Taibbi will tell us about the first stop on her way back home to the U-S.

There's nothing like a nice Saturday in April for a few interesting protests and rallies.

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Teens on the web

Facebook. Myspace. Know those Web sites? If not, you probably don’t have a teenager. This is the 21st century Internet version of the little black book, secret diary and photo album all rolled into one.

The sites are basically an online directory, and wildly popular with high school and college students. You create a personal profile, post a photo, tell friends about your likes and dislikes, and exchange both public and private messages. Detailed profile information is restricted to users from the same school, or people on your ‘friends’ list.   

Or is it? Are your kids tapping into a social network of friends, or a predator’s dream come true? Tonight, correspondent Pete Williams reports on this latest danger on the Internet highway. 

And parent to parent: if you would like to know more about how these online networking sites work, and how help your kid use it responsibly, go to www.wiredsafety.org.

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A rare glimpse of the wounded

You probably know ABC anchor Bob Woodruff and cameraman Doug Vogt arrived Tuesday at Andrews Air Force Base, and were transferred to the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md. 

If you saw Nightly News last night, you also learned that over 2 dozen injured members of the Armed Forces also returned on that very same flight. 17 were on stretchers. 13 were ambulatory. Some went to Bethesda Naval. Some to Walter Reed Army Medical Center. Others stayed at Andrews AFB for treatment at the base medical center.

What is remarkable is that you saw it at all.

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