I think you would have riots. Is he using scare tactics to try to lock in the nomination . Family first. A Major League Baseball player walks away from 13 million after being told to dial back his sons time with the team. A boy such a fixture he had his own locker. How much is too much when it comes to bringing your kids to work . And Frank Sinatra jr. Dies hours after canceling a concert and the touching tribute today thursday, march 17, 2016. From nbc news this is savannah guthrie. Good morning everybody. In kate you didnt know its st. Patricks day. I knew from the crowd on the plaza. I went with the traditional stick on shamrock on the lapel. Top story is the show doane over president obamas nominees for Supreme Court. Judge Merrick Garland to meet with lawmakers. When judge garland goes to capitol hill he will meet with democrats and so far no republicans. Political lines drawn by the president and the Republican Senate and a critical seat on the Supreme Court for mow held hostage to president ial campaign politics. I simply ask republicans in hearing and then an up or down vote. Reporter president obama Challenging Senate republicans to give his Supreme Court nominee a hearing. If you dont it will not only be an advocation of the duty but will indicate a process for nominating and confirming judges that is beyond repair. Reporter Republican Leaders are not budging. It is the senates right to act as a check on a president and with hold consent. Reporter majority leading Mitch Mcconnell doubling down. What we are talking about is a principle and not a person. Reporter insisting the vacancy should be filled by the next president. Have the guts, the guts to vote yes or no. Reporter democrats trying to shame republicans. They want to vote maybe. Judge garland is hardly a liberal icon, chosen because the white house thinks he is hard to reject on record or politics. Seen as a moderate he won votes of 32 republican senators when nomnited to the d. C. Circuit court in 1997. Hes a good man. But he shouldnt be brought up in this toxic environment. Reporter just last week he said he didnt think president obama would pick garland because garland didnt appeal to democrats liberal base. Republicans may be calculating that judge garland would be more acceptable to them than anyone a future president Hillary ClintonPete Williams is at the Supreme Court this morning with more on the man who is caught in the middle of what is a political tug of war. Reporter the president has chosen a mostly centrist judge who is well liked and respected hoping to make it harder for the republicans to say he wont give them a hearing. Merrick garland served for 19 years, hes 63. Born in chicago. Graduated from harvard. He and his wife, lynn, have been married for 29 years and have two daughters. He supervised the prosecution of Timothy Mcveigh in 1995. Bill clinton nominated him to be a federal judge in 1997 and was confirmed by the senate 76 to 23 with 32 republican votes. His rulings are considered uphold environmental rules and is often tougher on criminals. Mr. Obama twice confirmed Merrick Garland for the Supreme Court. White house chief of staff, good morning. Thanks for being with us. Thanks for having me. I have heard different people describe this nomination in extremely different ways. One theory is this is the president offering an olive branch to republicans. Another is this is the president saying i dare you to block this guy and the third is that the president is offering up the sack rificial lamb for an ugly political fight. The president ran a very detailed process and came up with a candidate who met a very excellence. Everybody that you talk to in legal circles and in the cannot find a bad word said about Merrick Garland. You are saying the president isnt telling republicans i dare you to block this judge . Im telling you the president nominated someone for this vacancy. He found somebody with a proven track record of excellence, somebody who is described as a decent man and somebody who has a fairminded approach to understanding the law. Thats exactly who we found in this judge and we expect the senate to do its job. Perhaps neither side has clean hands entirely. When senator obama was in office he voted against Justice Roberts nomination. How does he explain that now . Well, what is interesting is that in both of those cases not only did senators meet with and give a hearing to those and that is exactly the process that we are asking for here. President obama voted to filibuster and not bring him to the floor for a full vote. They had a series of hearings and a vote out of committee and then a debate on the senate floor. The filibuster was stopped. Thats exactly the way the process should work. That is exactly what we hope will happen in this case and exactly what the president called for yesterday. We have a candidate who is uniformally recognized somebody with unquestionable excellence and terrific experience. Real quickly if you can, does the president have one firm ally on the republican side in the senate that he feels will help him get this to a hearing and confirmation . Day of this. We heard many, more than a handful of republicans changing their position and being willing to meet with does the president have a real firm ally on the republican side . What i said is that yesterday we heard several republican senators agreeing to meet with him. We think that is a good start. This is not rocket science. They need to do what the constitution says, give him a hearing and vote and lets fill the vacancy. Thanks for getting up early with us. We appreciate it. Thanks. Happy st. Patricks day. The Supreme Court fight is raising the stakes. Donald trump is warning about what he fears will happen if he is denied the republican nomination. P nbc National CorrespondentPeter Alexander has more on that side of the story. Reporter good morning. Happy st. Patricks day. He needs 55 of the remaining delegates to get there. If he does it the billionaire is warning while he wouldnt lead it bad things would happen. Donald trump dominating the competition. He is defiant warning what could happen if he is not the republican nominee. I think you would have riots. Im representing a tremendous, many, many millions of people. I think bad things would happen. Reporter the front runner says he is done debating his rivals. Following suit. Debates. I was very surprised when i heard fox called for a debate. I wont be there. Reporter something trump is not shying away from, Foreign Policy telling morning joe he is his own best asset. Policy issues who are you consulting with so you are ready on day one . Im speaking with myself because i have a very good brain. My primary consultant is myself. I have a good insinth for this stuff. Reporter kasich touting his ability to win. Neither of those guys can win a general election. Maybe they are spoiling it for the republican party. Reporter speculation is building over another potential player like speaker of the house paul ryan. People say what about the contested convention . Who knows. Reporter a spokesperson says ryan will not accept a nomination. Trump and Hillary Clinton are already in a dress rehearsal for the general election. Trump releasing this Instagram Video mocking clinton as weak showing her parking like a dog while telling a joke on the trail. The closing message, we dont need to be a punch line. Our commander in chief has to be able to defend our country, not embarrass it. To be great we cant be small. We cant lose what made America Great in the first place. Reporter if a trump clinton show down faces reality the latest poll showing they are the most unpopular politicians in their parties. Trump is touting a big speech as he puts it before the prominent pro israel lobby scheduled for monday hours after Hillary Clinton addresses the group. That really could offer the best side by side comparison of these two on policy and presentation. Im on my way. Eucalyptus steam shower. Diplomatic efforts underway to free the College Student for poster. Reporter good morning. One Human Rights Group described it as like a simple student prank but the student finds himself in prison by a country locked in a Nuclear Standoff with the world. After begging for his freedom please save my Life Reporter he is waking up in north korea prison sentenced to 15 years hard labor. Please think of my family. Reporter fingerprinted, handcuffed, led away, guilty of subversion, the north koreans the university of virginia student stealing a propaganda poster from a hotel. I am only human. Reporter reportedly says he stole the banner for a member of his church group. His twitter and Facebook Accounts show him relaxed and smiling. He volunteers as a swim coach and mentor for teens. He is one of two u. S. Citizens held in north korea. Travel there is legal. A few thousand americans go each year. The allegations for which this individual was arrested and imprisoned would not give rise to arrest or imprisonment in the United States or any other country in the world. Reporter tours of destinations your mother would now he faces prison by a totalitarian government that hates america. Why he went there . The americans who go to north korea offering young people looking for adventure and retired folks hoping for the experience of a lifetime sgrmpt had not like that. Lets turn back to capitol hill. Rick snyder testifying at a house hearing on the flint water crisis. The governor has come under incredible fire after thousands were affected by led tainted water. Governor snyder says he didnt learn the water was contaminated until after 18 months after the city began drawing water from the flint river in april 2014. The governor is expected to address his commitment to finding a permanent solution. Is that green on your tie i see. A little bit. Have you pinched matt yet . Looks like it was about to fall off. I might take it off. Just for the pinch. Lets show you along the gulf coast. We are watching this stationary front that will lay across there and a system developing along it. Looking for risk of severe alabama. Tomorrow heavy rain develops. As you look anywhere from 1 1 2 to 3 inches of rain from central louisiana to the panhandle of this corollas got a sweet sound system and low apr. Nah, i dont live far. Its got tons of room. I do own a broom. This is pretty fun. Yeah, ive been thinking of growing a man bun. R r during toyotas 1 for everyone sales event, p get 0 apr financing for 60 months on a 2016 corolla. Offer end april 4th. For great deals on other toyotas, visit toyota. Com no, its jan toyota. Lets go places. And thats your latest weather. Sad news to report. Singer Frank Sinatra jr. , the son of the iconic entertainer died, passing away in florida reporter he led a colorful life. Frank sinatra jr built a career singing his fathers iconic tunes in a voice reminiscent of his fathers legendary croon. At times being the chairman of the boards son came with a price. At age 19 his fathers fame marked him as a target for kidnapping held for four days until sinatra sr. Paid almost a quarter of a Million Dollars to his captors. Nervous but the only thing to do is hope for the best. Reporter he stepped in as musical director during his fathers final touring years and acting, appearing in almost 20 shows including family guy and sopranos playing himself. Here is one for your pal. Just last year he sang for sister Nancy Sinatra posted that her brother died of cardiac arrest. That is sad news. Our best to his family. Coming up, how much is your family time worth . The major leaguer who is retiring and walking away from 13 million after being told to limit the time his son spent with the team. The beginning of the end of killer whales at sea world. The parks ceo is speaking out and addressing critics as he world. A surprising role that noise plays in weight loss. A new spring break scam. Families spending thousands of the rentals dont exist. How to protect yourself after your local news and we thousands of people came out today to run the race for retirement. So we asked them. Are you completely prepared for retirement . Okay, mostly prepared . Could you save 1 more of your income . It doesnt sound like much, but saving an additional 1 now, could make a big difference over time. Im going to be even better about saving. You can do it, it helps in the long run. Prudential bring your challenges rebecca ive struggled with depression. I thought i needed cigarettes to cope. I was able to quit smoking. And then i started running. Now, i feel a lot better. announcer you can quit. For free help, call 1800quitnow. The yogurt made from mmmm, yoplait. My girl cindy bought this fridge from lowes because of their worryfree 30day satisfaction guarantee on appliances. Thats what im talking about cindy. I like your style. Now get up to 25 off select major appliances 396 or more, at lowes. With ingredients like roasted hazelnuts and cocoa, the delicious taste of nutella takes pancakes to a whole new level. Make any day a pancake day with nutella. A leading consumer testing publication recently tested the top laundry detergents. The winner persil 2 in 1, didnt only beat tide. It beat every single detergent tested. Boom. Switch to Persil Proclean 2 in 1. 1 rated. Whats going on . Toasters broken. Which means no eggo waffles. Something smells delicious. Eggo leggo my eggo breakfast sandwich. Its sweet, its savory, its in your microwave. Leggo my eggo breakfast sandwich. Get to kohls Super Saturday this saturday and save on early birds till 1pm. Like 40 to 60 off dresses. Save on sport shirts and knit tops for him. And on all cookware and food prep. This saturday only at kohls. Never. Psssssh. Guaranteed. You picked a beautiful ring. Thank you. Were never having kids. Mmmmmm. Breathe. We are never moving to the suburbs. We are never getting one of those minivan . We are never having another kid. Im pregnant. I am never letting go. For all the nevers in life, state farm is there. People think californians live in our own reality. With our heads in the clouds. Like a bunch of space cadets. Huh . What . Ive drawn a blank. Whats my line . [director] reset maybe we do live in a fantasy. In our own little bubble. Just hangin out as if were not completely down to earth. But just a bunch of dreamers . No way were just like everyone else. Visitcalifornia. Com theres something to be said for exploring the world around you. Why should snacking be any different . Discover all nine flavors of our creamy cheese and tap into your curiosity. The laughing cow. Its about 7 30 on your thursday morning. Breezy, but mild today. Just ahead happy st. Patricks day the parties are underway all across town. Wlwt newsfives andrew setters has the rundown on the irish kyla woods has a news 5 traffic florida thursday on the today show. It is also st. Patricks day. We see green on the plaza. We will get out there and say hi. I love the traditional irish florida song. Meet wg lawmakers on the hill but Republican Leadership maintaining they have no intention on taking action on garlands nomination. The metro rail system back up and running after the unprecedented daylong shutdown. Crews spent wednesday inspecting hundreds of power cables. And First Lady Michelle Obama took part in south by southwest music festival. I will not run for president not going to do it. I have these two young people at home and being the daughters of a president , just think about it. Come on, young people, not so easy. They have handled it with grace enough is enough. What does she have planned for after the white house . The first lady to bring education to girls around the world. A retirement that has a lot of people talking. Adam laroche walking away from a multimillion dollar salary. White sox executives say laroche decided to retire after they asked him to dial back the time his son spends with the team raising questions about how much is too much when it comes to bringing your kid to work, in this case to a baseball park. Adam laroche stunning the baseball world with his abrupt retirement saying he is ready to walk away from the game and 13 million remaining on his contract. Him to cut back the time his 14yearold son drake spends in the clubhouse. Many call drake the 26th man. He is considered such a fixture that he attends practice at home and on the road. Drake has his own uniform and was given his own locker. White sox Vice President ken williams calls drake a fine young man but says it was time to draw the line. What would i say to the next person who wanted to bring his son and have it be an everything thing. Reporter williams saying it is time the team concentrates on playing Better Baseball after suffering three straight losing seasons. Laroche has not appeared publicly tweeting thank you for the game of baseball and for giving me way more than i deserved. Voicing his support tweeting good for you, nothing like father and son in the clubhouse. Its a family game. After all, it is work and when the fans are demanding a better output from the Chicago White sox they are tightening up the reins. We did reach out for comment. The team does confirm laroche signed retirement papers but have not been filed with the league. There was a meeting of the players, about a twohour meeting. This is coming from some of them clearly. Its a locker room. This is a 14yearold boy. We know players in locker rooms like a certain atmosphere and i dont think they want