a trip to the 59th annual grammy awards for half a million dollars. if anyone wants to buy any of those for janelle and i, we're be able. tonight, refuse to lose. donald trump's defiant new message, doubling down on his refusal to say he'll accept the results of the election. >> i'll keep you in suspense. >> new fall-out from a nasty debate. >> no puppet. no puppet. you're the puppet. such a nasty woman. isis escape tunnels. richard engel inside the underground bunkers in iraq where isis fighters lived before they fled for their lives. hunt for a serial killer. chilling new 911 calls as police ask for help in a new murder spree. and scrambling nightmares. a billion dollar disaster for families watching their houses crack apart. an alarming wake-up call for homeowners everywhere. "nightly news" begins right now.

from nbc news world headquarters in new york, this is "nbc nightly news" with lester holt. good evening. donald trump who has repeatedly decried negative media coverage of him, as part of a rigged system, has once again made himself the top of the news cycle for going where no presidential candidate has gone before. at a rally in ohio today, trump first mocking and then trying to qualify his jaw-dropping response from last night's debate, about whether he would accept the outcome of the election. his refusal to say managed to irk even some of his most ardent supporters, while shifting the focus from what many believe was his best debate performance. nbc's katy tur leads off our coverage. >> ladies and gentlemen, i want to make a major announcement. >> reporter: donald trump is refusing to play by the rules. >> -- that i will totally accept the results of this great and historic presidential

election, if i win. >> reporter: making it clear the only outcome he will accept is the one that puts him in the white house. >> i would also reserve my right to contest or file a legal challenge in the case of a questionable result. >> reporter: a defiant double-down from last night's debate. >> do you make the same commitment that you will absolutely -- sir, that you will absolutely accept the result of this election? >> i will look at it at the time. i'm not looking at anything now. >> are you saying you're not prepared to stick to that principle? >> what i'm saying is, i'll tell you at the time. >> reporter: trump reversing a vow he made just last month. >> will you accept the outcome of the election? >> reporter: trump supporters all in, but outside of trump's orbit, a flood of condemnation. >> when you try to sew the seeds of doubt in people's minds about

the legitimacy of our elections, that undermines our democracy. >> i don't believe that there's a rigged election system. >> reporter: and the north carolina gop, which said it was not aware election results were optional. >> what donald trump is doing right now is damaging that system, hopefully not beyond repair. >> reporter: the campaign's new spin, al gore did it too. but back in 2000, gore never questioned the integrity of the process before the ballots were cast, and the recount was automatically triggered by state law, given how close the race was. trump's campaign staking its candidacy on easily refuted claims, from the rigged election, trump's iraq war stance, and russian hacking. >> she has no idea. >> it's time for you to stake a stand. >> whether it's russia, china, or anybody else. >> reporter: today the intelligence community pushing back hard. director of national intense reasserting russia was behind the wikileaks hack. >> when we say we're confident, you know, i think it's speaks

for itself. >> reporter: nbc news has learned from government sources trump was even briefed on russia's involvement with the hack in his national security briefings, three weeks after he openly asked putin's government to find clinton's missing e-mails. >> russia, if you're listening, i hope you're able to find the 30,000 e-mails that are missing. >> reporter: less than 24 hours after that contentious debate, both donald trump and hillary clinton will be here, attending the alfred e. smith charity dinner, where the only thing separating them will be a priest. cardinal timothy dolan, seating right between them. >> all right, katy tur, thanks. a potentially tense and awkward affair certainly after what happened on that stage last night. at times, things got personal. heated moments that included the kind of name-calling we've never quite heard in a presidential debate before. we get more on that from nbc's andrea mitchell. >> reporter: it was downright brutal and personal.

>> she's been proven to be a liar. >> rather have a puppet as president. >> no puppet, you're the puppet. >> reporter: fight night in vegas where the biggest impact white be on the critical female swing voters. donald trump using graphic language to fire up conservatives, attacking hillary clinton on abortion. >> based on what she's saying and based on where she's going and where she's been, you can take the baby and rip the baby out of the womb in the ninth month, on the final day. and that's not acceptable. >> reporter: clinton relishing her first chance to go after trump about his female accusers, looking to get under his skin. >> -- he's said he could not have possibly done those things to those women because they were not attractive enough -- >> i did not say that. >> -- for them to be assaulted. >> i did not say that. >> reporter: trump returning fire. >> she mentions this, which is all fiction. all fictionalized, probably,

possibly started by her and her very sleazy campaign. but i will tell you what isn't fictionalized, are her e-mails. >> reporter: then the moment the clinton team was hoping for. >> such a nasty woman. >> reporter: how did you feel when he said, nasty woman, nasty woman, and you're a puppet. >> i just didn't pay any attention to that. >> reporter: it quickly turned into a meme on twitter compared to a janet jackson song. trump even taking a hit from the audience. >> nobody has more respect for women than i do. nobody has more respect -- >> please, everybody. >> reporter: late today, michelle obama, clinton's best surrogate, going after trump too. >> decent men do not demean women, and we shouldn't tolerate this behavior from anyone man, let alone a man who wants to be president. >> there's nothing

that i saw in his. performance last night that leads me to believe he's going to do any better among women voters than he's doing right now. >> reporter: with only 19 days left, the clinton campaign cannot hide its glee, because they believe there's not enough time for trump to bring those women voters back to his side. turning now to nicole wallace, you are a veteran of tough campaigns. trump needed a breakthrough night last night. did he harm himself, especially with women, though? >> oh, just a little, lester. the poll numbers that were up at the end of andrea's piece tell you everything you want to know, if you want to know whether a republican can win a national election. the last time it happened, was 2004. george w. bush did that by narrowing that gender gap. he got the married women, he got the mom vote, something i've been tracking during the general election. and donald trump pushed them much further away. we have to take into account that we don't always hit the mark in terms of

understanding what resonates beyond the belt way, but calling her a nasty woman, interrupting her the whole time, essentially morphing into the "snl" caricature of himself really sets in as a terrible image for donald trump among the kinds of voters he needs to sway. >> but think about the first 30 minutes of the debate. a much more subdued donald trump, and getting substantive issues, supreme court, very important to voters. >> yeah. >> at that point, did you think he could turn this around? >> well, it was his best performance. it was his best debate, but as he said last night, it was also her best debate. so she's almost in another league, in terms of her ability to communicate and now defend her own ideas. so i think she did a better idea. she has vulnerabilities too. these are the two most unpopular candidates we've seen on either side, as chuck todd keeps reminding us. while we got off to a solid start for him, he just didn't close the deal with anybody

who's undecided at this point. >> nicole, thank you very much. turning now overseas where a u.s. service member was killed in iraq today by a roadside bomb. the first american to die in the u.s.-backed offensive to drive isil out of mosul. tonight our richard engel is on the front lines with iraqi forces and brings us an extraordinary look at the underground tunnel network isis used to prepare for this battle. >> reporter: iraqi and kurdish forces today launched their biggest push toward mosul. the main offensive was from the east and to the town of bartella, just over ten miles from the city. we climbed into one of the iraqi special forces old american humvees. it's battle-worn, shot up, and the driver said damaged by an isis suicide bomber today. then it was on foot. quickly, because rounds whizzed by. this predominantly christian

village and one of isis's main defensive positions leading towards mosul, and they're fighting hard to keep it. isis sending out car bombs. but iraqi troops are advancing faster than u.s. commanders anticipated. we'll be in mosul in two days, a soldier boasted. but isis has had two years to prepare for this fight. the soldiers showed us a tunnel they had just found. this was an isis escape route. also seems to be like one of their positions. isis fighters lived here, safe from u.s. warplanes. just based on the number of mattresses we've seen, this could have held, 20, maybe 50 people, more if they packed them in. the tunnel extended for about a half a mile. at the far end, we came up into what appeared to have been an isis headquarters. food still in the kitchen area. half-made bombs too. and chemicals for more. on the walls, isis's infamous logo.

the sight of the black flag was once enough to send the iraqi army running. that's how isis took mosul. now it's isis on the run. tonight, iraqi forces have taken bartella, putting them within striking distance of mosul. lester? >> richard engel in iraq tonight, thank you. in arizona, this evening, police have released 911 calls connected to an unsolved serial killing spree that is still baffling investigators. after at least nine separate shootings, seven people, including a child, have been killed in the phoenix area. there have been thousands of new leads, but no arrests. we get the latest from nbc's miguel almaguer. >> phoenix 911, where is your emergency? >> um, he's shot on the floor. yes, it's my brother. he's been shot. >> reporter: the heart breaking call for help from one family targeted by arizona's serial killer. >> they pulled up in front of our house, i guess, and they shot him when he got out of the

car. i'm inside with my kids. i have two babies. >> reporter: after seven people were killed, including a 12-year-old girl, phoenix police now releasing chilling 911 calls, hoping to generate new leads in a case gone cold. nancy pena, who lost her brother horatio, can't bear to listen to the calls. >> these families are having to rehear it, relive it. it's gut-wrenching. >> reporter: the killing spree began in march. witnesses helped generate sketches but no arrests in this community on edge. >> he comes up at night. you get out of your car, he shoots you. >> reporter: a $75,000 reward and more than 3,000 tips, but the sketch, the only solid lead. >> when you see someone as prolific as this shooter, or these shooters have been, i think law enforcement knows it's highly likely they could strike again. >> reporter: tonight investigators hoping for a break in the case.

they have the face of a killer. >> all right, how old is he? >> he's only 21. >> reporter: and now the sound of the heartbreak he's left behind. miguel almaguer, nbc news. there is late word this evening of another death connected to those exploding takata air bags. the national highway traffic safety administration says a 50-year-old woman died from injuries in a crash on september 30th, while driving a honda civic that was first recalled in 2008. the repair never completed. the 11th confirmed u.s. fatality tied to ruptures of takata air bag inflators. still ahead tonight, every homeowner's nightmare. the foundation of your house crumbling under your feet. why it's happening to so many homes and why it's time to double-check your insurance policy. also buyer beware. why apple says it's time to think twice before shopping for its products on amazon.

back now with a consumer alert. in connecticut, as many as 30,000 homes are facing an issue so serious that the governor wants fema to declare it a natural disaster. and the effects could cost up to a billion dollars. homeowners are watching their concrete basement walls crumble, putting their houses at risk of collapse in what could be a wake-up call for people everywhere, the insurance company say the problem isn't covered. here's nbc's stephanie gosk. >> we started hearing

popping noises downstairs. and in the middle of the night. >> reporter: the noises were so strange they had no idea what was going on. until vince went down to the basement. >> oh, my god. >> and this has probably happened in the past year. >> reporter: the middle of the night sounds were the walls of the basement splitting. >> you can see outside. >> reporter: in some places, wide open. are you worried at night the house is going to come down on top of you? >> i worry. i do worry. >> how do you sleep? >> some nights it's hard. >> reporter: their house was built 30 years ago, and they're not alone. there's something rotten in the foundations in northeastern connecticut. engineer bill neil has told hundreds of families their homes are unsafe. >> reporter: do you have any sense the scale of this problem right now? >> my best guest is 10- to

say is pob is a mineral called purr type. found in the query. after years of exposure to water. it expands, causing the cracks. there is a fix. lifting the home completely off the foundation. and pouring a new one. for them, they raised four children here, the price tag is more than $200,000. nearly 60% the value of their home. they turned to their homeowner's insurance. the claim was denied. an industry spokesman says basically home insurance doesn't cover the problem. >> loss is occurring because of defective construction materials and or shoddy wormmanship. no matter what state you go to, home insurance is not going to be paid out. >> suing insurance

company. meanwhile the house continues to crumble. >> people i talk to and say why don't you just move out, well, it's my home. >> on top of the emotional pain, this family and many like them face financial ruin and there's little hope of a quick solution. nbc news, willington connecticut. >> back in a moment with why snoopy, charlie brown, and the rest of the peanuts gang are down a gig tonight.

we're back in a moment with apple says buying chargers and cables labelled as genuine apple products on amazon and found nearly 90% of counterfeit. apple warns the knockoffs pose a significant risk of overheating, fire, and electrical shock. mobile star did not respond to our request for a comment. and good grief, snoopy just got canned. metlife is saying goodbye to the beloved character.

the move comes as the company spins off most of its u.s. insurance operations, instead focusing on corporate and international business, marking the end of an era for snoopy. soon america will have to say bye-bye to bao bao, the giant panda born in washington, d.c. three years ago. her parents were on loan from china and, under that agreement, she'll be sent to china early next year. the atlanta zoo also announced its 3-year-old giant panda twins will be sent to china in two weeks. when we come back, a team whose unbreakable bond with her younger brother has inspired a potentially life-saving mission. test test. breaking news on t peninsula. ay

==janelle/vo==the concerns overe tank on board.and we're just le evacuated.businessebeing we have a crew on t wa===janell= the details next 6. finally tonight, we have a remarkable story about the bond between a teenage girl and her little brother. a love that remains so strong even through tragedy and now they've inspired a project that could help millions of other families. here's gadi schwartz. ♪ i'd like to make myself ♪ >> reporter: at age 7, tanner long street helped put blush on his sister's cheeks. at 8, he was her dancing partner. >> tanner, dance! >> we were so close.

>> reporter: but at the age of 10, tanner was diagnosed with brain cancer and died the next year. >> i didn't do anything, was the words that came out of his mouth. >> reporter: tanner had a mutated gene, called tp-53, that can lead to deadly cancer. when tested, the same gene showed up in his father and his sister. >> what are your chances of getting cancer? >> numbers wise, it's over 90%. >> i couldn't be more proud of someone who faces what she faces. >> reporter: now casey is the sole subject in a ground-breaking dna study they've named the tanner project, in memory of her brother. >> i think she's a great example for the world. >> reporter: she's working with doctors like craig vinter, the first person to sequence the human genome. >> pioneers like casey help us because we'll find out from all the tests, whether she's develops something early on, or whether she never develops it. >> reporter:

scientists are figuring out how she can live with the same genetic mutation that took her brother's life. >> i'm used to it. >> reporter: they're also monitoring for the earliest signs of disease. >> everything looks good. >> reporter: so far, no cancer. which means she's free to be a normal teenager. she's started a project to encourage others to consider genetic testing. >> he taught me so much. he's the reason why i am who i am today. i love you. >> reporter: a bond with her little brother that remains unbroken. gadi schwartz, nbc news, los angeles. >> what a great story. that's going to do it for us on a thursday night. i'm lester holt. for all of us at nbc news, thank you for watching and goodnight. on the peninsula. trafc

nightmare. an r-v re has shutdon rlo we begin with breaking news on the peninsula. a traffic nightmare. an rv fire has shut down all lanes of 101 in san carlos. you're looking at the charred rv right there. this unfoellding near the san carlos airport. they have been putting out the for 90 mennets. they were taking a distance because flames were in the air. at this point, no word yet on when they'll clear the is scene

but you can see the back up in the traffic area is enormous. we've been watching people get out of the cars taking selfies. you can track the progress minute by minute on the twitter feed and our website, nbcbayarea.com. the news at 6:00 starts right now. good evening and thanks for joining us. >> in for raj mathai. our other top story tonight, knocked unconscious with a broken nose and a bruised kidney. a man in the east bay is recovering. he says it all started when he tried to stop them from causing trouble in his neighborhood. and elyce joins us live with more. >> reporter: well, the 23-year-old tells me he heard the four young men being held here at the county jail yelling outside his home. he simply asked them to keep it down. instead, they nearly