now, today's other top stories. police arrested a driver they say intentionally crashed an 18

wheeler into a texas building. that truck was reported stolen one day after the driver was denied a commercial license. one person killed, 13 others injured. a harrowing rescue operation happening over the skies of turkey's capital. hitting a pole, bursting open, causing people to fall out. at least one person was killed. right now, crews are working to rescue more than 40 rescued. pittsburgh officials shut down several bridges after more than -- barges got loose, damaging docks. all of them have been accounted for, and none contain hazardous materials, but officials are blaming strong currents due to the flooding. so make in just moments, the fears ramping up over a potential attack by iran on israel. good day to all of you from msnbc with headquarters here

in new york. welcome, everyone to alex witt reports. president biden is ending his weekend early, as the u.s. and israel brace for a possible retaliatory attack. vowing revenge after an israeli strike killed several iranian commanders. right now, closing schools across the country and limiting large gatherings as tensions are on the rise. nbc's brie jackson and josh lederman are covering this for us. the president is preparing to speak with the national security team. what do we know about this? >> we are waiting for the president to return here. he is coming back to give an update on the situation in the middle east. national security advisor jake sullivan says he spoke with his israeli counterpart to discuss concerns in that region. on friday, president biden said he expected a strike to happen soon.

this comes almost two weeks for the bombing on the embassy in syria, and put the blame on syria. the by the ministration has been on high alert and in constant communication with israel amid concerns of a strike. here's with the national security spokesman john kirby said. >> we still deem to the potential threat by iran to be credible. e viable, we are watching us closely as we can. right now, our focus is on having conversations with our israeli counterparts. making sure not just conversations, but making sure that they have what they need and that they are able to defend themselves. and as i think -- as i think, you know, we are also clearly -- we have to take a look at our own posture in the region to make sure we are properly

prepared, as well. reneged and today, secretary of defense lloyd austin spoke with the israeli minister of defense to discuss, quote, urgent regional bricks. the pentagon has already repositioned assets, including fighter jets and ships in the middle east in preparation for a potential iranian attack against israel. >> all of your reporting is showing things are on high alert for sure. we will go to you now josh in london. what are we hearing about where this goes from here? >> reporter: it is safe to say, alex, this is the tenses the moment since the october 7th hamas terror attack. israel says the attack formations are now on high alert. the israeli military has scrambled dozens of jets into the skies above and near israel to be ready to defend its territory from this expected iranian strike. it is not just a military, it is also the civilian population with the military ordering all school activities to close down

for a two day period starting tonight. they are telling people who live near gaza and near lebanon they cannot gather in large groups for the foreseeable future. and the concern is not only about the effects of a potential imminent strike in israel, but what will come next if israel follows through with its vows to retaliate. this is what -- says about what might come next. >> they will bear the consequences for choosing to escalate the situation any further. israel is on high alert. we have increased our readiness to protect israel from further iranian aggression. we are also prepared to respond. >> now we should point out, alex, iran does not feel like this would be an escalation. they say, look, israel started this by bombing our embassy compound in syria. a very provocative act.

israel has not publicly acknowledged responsibility for that strike. but it does seem clear given the number of times that the israeli government has said if iran strikes in israel, we will strike in iran. it would be very difficult for the israeli government to back down if the strike does happen. that is what has so many of the nations in the region, and really around the world, scared about this pattern of escalation that has really potentially no ceiling, alex. >> i will ask you to stick around for my next conversation. joining me now is mark, the adviser from the u.s. ambassador to -- and a good friend, as well. glad to see you here, mark. what do you expect? >> it depends on whether or not iran will rely on hezbollah to attack israel, or whether or not iran will send its missiles and

its strong air force in order to attack israel directly. and each component of that, alex, as a certain time period. the bottom line, combined with hezbollah, and the ballistic missile and cruise missile capacity, israel's air defenses certainly cannot stop that type of onslaught, which is one of the reasons why if they launch that magnitude of an attack, you can expect american forces to try to defend the skies. >> mark, what is your big estimate, big picture wise? do you think they might say, we are going to use hezbollah to do this. with that in a sense that her a direct response into iran if the attack did not come in by their direct hand? >> frankly, alex, i think this is going to come directly not

from hezbollah, which is not the largest proxy of the greatest great -- threat to israel. as you are now, it has been engaged in the war. there have been assassinations, and largely, israel has been on the offenses. they have not really responded to these assassinations, including to the general by the trump administration. i think the pressure, as well as the belief that israel, both politically and internally on the international stage has been weekend. i think the iranians are calculating that despite american support for israel, that in effect, it could defend this preemptive attack before the court of international

opinion. >> hey, josh, given your time, would you think it says that president biden is leaving, he is coming back to the white house. what is going on, i guess the elevated temperament of things in the white house, where he think that stands right now? >> it is a very clear indication that the white house feels like this could be very imminent and that they need the president to be in the place where he is most agile and able to effectively respond to the crisis. what is so interesting to me, when president biden left for delaware, they already knew this was coming at some point in the future. the u.s. is already been raising the alarm. we heard from john kirby at the white house as we heard from president biden and recent days. and then in the middle of the trip was very little notice,

they decided to pull them back to the white house. that is based on my reporting. it indicates something has changed in terms of u.s. intelligence, in terms of their assessment, information they're getting from the israeli counterparts or other countries around the world then make them think now's the time when he needs to be in the situation room if he needs to be surrounded by his top aides, able to respond to something the white house believes never are the full attention of the apparatus. tonight he have any updates on that? it is in the street of -- has been taken over by members of the revolutionary guard. we have this extraordinary video if you want to describe what is happening there. >> so in the video, you see iranian forces rappelling from the helicopter and taking over this ship. it is essentially owned by a company that is owned by an

israeli billionaire. that ship after it was boarded by the special forces, it changed direction. according to the company that owns it, it is now moving toward iran. they would be at least demanding that others who have influenced iran stop immediately. it does seem to be yet one indication that they are looking to send a very clear message to israel right now but the ability to defend itself and the willingness to raise the stakes to make sure that israel cannot take the kinds of actions that iran has blamed israel for in syria. >> mark, what is your greatest fear? what do you worry about most that iran might do. >> we can't forget that israel

has been always on the warpath against iran's nuclear program. and while the israelis are claiming that they will retaliate against any iranian attack on israel, we also have to take into account that the iranians are very interested in assuring that they do not undermine their own nuclear program as a result of what you would know has been israel's determination to prevent them from obtaining a nuclear weapon. the other issue i mostly concerned about, hezbollah certainly is not going to sit on the sidelines here if iran directly attacks israel. and then the escalating conflict in the north between israel and hezbollah. this could result in further greater preemptive attack by israel against hezbollah forces. and that will cause the united states to be even more

involved. alex, let me just add that on october 8th, president biden dispensed two taskforces in the east mediterranean, that they were also not attack in the north when it was attacked on october 7 by hamas. >> mark, i'm thinking back to it must be a decade ago when you and i would have conversation about how close iran was from obtaining a nuclear weapon. from heaven the process. it was then under such secrecy. it was hard to get details and facts confirmed. do you have a better sense of that now? >> yes. the inspectors have made it very clear that iran has accelerated since president trump withdrew from the nuclear agreement with iran. it is on the cusp to enrich a bomb.

the question is whether or not iran has the mission to pass -- that are public. we are not talking about months. i think the fear here is that most intelligent sources say they are just weeks away from being able to testdrive the new year weapon. and that shows you how quickly they have violated the agreement since president trump withdrew from the agreement. >> so that begs this question, if they attack, what do you think the white house should be same to israel? to not make the situation any worse. >> president biden is in the election campaign. you certainly able to support israel generically.

but i don't think that the united states at this point in time, given the situation still in gaza, given his own domestic concerns over the u.s. policy that has been criticized over his support for israel so far. one thing to let him bait him into -- that could possibly only benefit i will -- iran. he needs to do enough to try to protect israel's airspace and to determine what essentially could be a multipronged attack against the military and perhaps government installations. >> mark, josh, thank you both. donald trump's latest attempt to delay monday's trial. you probably know the answer. we will be back in 60 seconds. .

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the trial of the century. about 500 potential jurors, the first day of the first ever trial of a former president. >> this is becoming almost likely donald trump reality show. it is not supposed to be. this is our democracy that is on the line right now. you have to take the case seriously. >> president trump will rally has base a little bit later on. the former president posted something on social media that could potentially violate his gag order. what can you tell us about that? >> right, donald trump has his gag order. he is not to attack any of the witnesses that could be coming before the jury as it pertains to the criminal proceeding.

and the trial that is supposed to come in. and quoted in part, quote, disgraced attorney, prosecuted for lying. and that attack undoubtedly against michael cohen. he pled guilty on the way back. there's questions about the extent to which it pertains directly to the criminal trial and the impact on michael cohen being a witness going forward. there are some questions that could really will be played out around this attack against the key witness, michael cohen. we are now less than 48 hours before it begins. this is before flying to new york city. he will have to be inside the courtroom every day because he is a criminal defendant.

and of course, when you are talking to the folks here, donald trump knows he has support around the country. i want you to listen to some of the folks we talked to about the trial coming up. >> it is just a bunch of baloney. why isn't biden on trial, or his son on trial? >> reporter: what comes of that? >> what comes of it? i'm afraid of that, too. >> reporter: notably, alex, when you hear these supporters who are of course defending donald trump to the core, there is a poll that just came out earlier this morning. about 60% of american voters think that you are either serious, -- and also notably, the number of women compared to men who believe they are

doubled. so for donald trump, there is no political win out of this except for his ability to rally the supporters to turn trump supporters into trump voters several months from now and places like here in the heart of pennsylvania, alex. >> thank you so much. i will pick up on the interview. join me now, -- cop. welcome back to the broadcast. did you hear the comment from the woman that my colleague interviewed there? saying she is is not going to believe what happens in a trial like this is donald trump is found guilty. as a lawyer, how do you feel about that? >> well, i think that rule of law has been, you know, largely sacrifice in the country. the

democracy and the court system bravely. i think it is too bad. on the other hand, i think are incredibly for better or worse, the weakest of the charges against trump is the trial that we are about to see. he is not likely to go to jail for this. it is disproportionately high for the consequences that are likely, and it remains certainly subject to attack on the appeal. although perhaps not in the courtroom. there is no defense to the

campaign finance conduct that they need to weave in in order to sustain any -- i do think it is unfortunate for people to believe or not believe the criminal process because of the politics. >> are you saying you think donald trump will walk free at the end of this trial? >> i do believe that under the new york sentencing guidelines, when you step back, or go to 30,000 feet, this is a case that involves white-collar offense, first-time criminal defendants, and the maximum amount is $130,000. the conduct is eight years old. in the sexual misconduct goes back 18 years. i think it will be a difficult case if he is so inclined,

sentencing trump to prison. on the other hand, there are some potential sentences that trump could be given that i'm sure he will not like. at the same time, any attempt to imprison would not take place until after the election. if he wins, that would delay at least another four years. >> given your operation, would you think is on his mind right now in this relative calm -- before what he is hoping to be a storm. >> i think he sort of relishes the storm. i don't think he is necessarily concerned about this.

it is baked into his political schedule. about the injustices he presumes, are what is happening to him, what he wants the company to believe, even if they aren't. there is no question that he and others misrepresented these. and he has really no defense to the misdemeanor case. you know, those 34 counts, at least the misdemeanors, they will clearly be supported by the evidence. i think it is also likely in my view that a jury would convict him on the felonies. i think there is some danger in the court of appeals. >> what is likely weighing on his mind?

>> he is probably battling the challenge that he faces because his client wants one thing, and his instincts with significant experience in the federal system, you know, one another. >> are you referencing that donald trump says, i want to testify. and he is probably thinking, oh please, don't? >> i don't think there is a chance that he testifies. that could be as far-reaching to the florida case. in this causes the filing of a false statement. i think trump will have a lot of advice.

trump's unwillingness to admit he had these two affairs. i think he would acknowledge that, and it would make it much easier for him to try the case and challenge these witnesses. it is a very heavy lift. and to adjust that this will happen. i think that will be a real struggle for me. it will be much easier for me to deal with the truthful events and challenge the witnesses on that base. i think it will be a very difficult case. trump is a difficult client. and i think ideally, he will be able to try the case he wants to try, which is a very compelling chance. michael cohen, he is perhaps the most unbelievable witness

in history. his lies, they are legendary. he's already been convicted of perjury. >> to that end though, do you think michael cohen would go and tell lies on the witness stand? >> oh yeah. >> somebody who has done time, they understand what it is all about on a very personal level, do you really think he would lie about something again? >> he is a liar. >> what about trump wanting to testify when you are working with him? did he want to do that? >> you know, he did publicly stated he would prefer that.

to manage. they declined to do it. he chose not to litigate that. he is not really afraid. he is not afraid to engage. on the other hand, most of the time he should not engage. it is easily challenge will as cohen is. >> yeah. last question, when you heard donald trump that he would be honored to serve a day in jail, do you believe him? >> no. >> do you think it scares him. >> not yet.

>> ty cobb, always good to speak with you. >> thanks. >> he found nothing, then wrote the book "disproven". pushing some of the same election fraud claims that he helped debunk. the new criticism about the election campaign, this one hits close to home. it's lying dormant, waiting... and could reactivate. shingles strikes as a painful, blistering rash that can last for weeks. and it could wake at any time. think you're not at risk for shingles? it's time to wake up. because shingles could wake up in you. if you're over 50, talk to your doctor or pharmacist about shingles prevention.

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in attendance. of course the crisis in the middle east being that the president has warned about concerns that iran will attack israel imminently at some point. we are watching this very, very closely as we see the indication that something could happen at any moment with the president returning to the white house to hold these meetings in the situation room. we will stay very closely watching all of this. otherwise, the president is set to kick off a tour in pennsylvania this week starting off with the speech in tuesday in his hometown of scranton. this will also include spots in pittsburgh, pennsylvania feel -- in 2020. the poll has biden leading trump by 10 points. join me now is pennsylvania lieutenant governor. glad to have you here.

let me ask what you would attribute to this apparent search. do you believe the poll numbers? smith first, thank you for having me. poll will fluctuate. i do think voters are trying to focus on the contracts. pennsylvania is a swing state. he won the state with less than a percentage point the last time. we know the election will be close. i think we just need to focus on persuading them on the accomplishments that he has accomplished over the last four years. i feel confident on election day that the presidents will be victorious. >> the day after tax day with some expectations, outlining the differences in his tax

policy from that of trump's. what are voters looking to hear from the president? >> yeah, i think voters are looking to hear that he is a leader who is helping to cut costs, who will put money back into their pockets. often times, they feel like they get left in the dark in pennsylvania. they recognize that he has delivered for them, and he will continue to keep delivering for them. i think this is a continuation of the work the president has doing. >> former white house chief of staff -- for the president campaign saying, quote, i think the president is out there too much talking about bridges. instead needs to focus more on rising costs. saying, he is not a congressman. he is not running for congress. that is a fools errand. >> with all due respects to him, i think he is wrong.

we had a bridge collapse out of nowhere seemingly. the president helped get that bridge rebuilt in record time. i just held a press conference a month ago announcing $130 million investment to rebuild our infrastructure here in western mania. and that is because of the resources that president biden has sent to the state. people are concerned about their aging infrastructure, about whether their roads and bridges are safe. i think president biden can talk about that, the issues he will outline this week. i think the president has proven time and time again that he can walk and chew gum at the same time. this infrastructure issue will resonate with voters in pennsylvania, and is something voters care about. >> i want to talk about black voters. he gave the keynote address at the convention yesterday. let's take a listen to part of that. >> i see an america where we defend democracy, we don't

diminish it. i see an -- with the john lewis voting rights in the wall. where i signed the george floyd justice completion act into law. where we make roe v. wade the law of the land again. and we can do that. >> here's the thing, this finds biden losing support among black men in particular. those polled across several swing states say they were definitely, or probably going to vote for donald trump. let's compare that to the 12% of the vote he got in 2020. would you think is driving this? and what does biden need to do differently? >> look, i don't think black voters are going to vote for him in large numbers. i disagree with that poll. i think president biden needs to continue to talk about the records that he has accomplished. like the rate for the black

americans in history creating millions of new jobs for black workers, capping the insulin caused at $35 a month for seniors on medicare, and allowing them to negotiate prescription drug costs. i think now the contrast is clear. i think he will overwhelmingly win to support the victory. the reality, this president has done more for black voters than any other president in history. we saw what he did when he was in office. >> and sylvania lieutenant governor austin davis, thank you. donald trump and house speaker mike johnson talking about voter fraud. next, an expert gives his take on all the things they said. s. ] introducing, ned's plaque psoriasis. ned, ned, who are you wearing? he thinks his flaky red patches

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speaker mike johnson is hoping his visit to mar-a-lago and words of support from donald trump will hand him a political lifeline. trump says johnson is doing, quote, a very good job. they said to oust him from the speakership. once again on capitol hill for us. our trumps positive remarks, are they earning him any points with his colleagues? many of them are questioning his ability. >> well, we will see, alex.

marjorie taylor greene still says she intends to bring that motion to vacate. if now he puts ukraine aid on the floor, her goalpost keeps moving here. first, it was the appropriations bill, the spending package johnson put on the floor. then it was the surveillance program, reauthorization of that the johnson put on the floor yesterday. now it is back to ukraine again. and certainly, the former president is a big ally. he is someone that green listens to. we will see if she actually takes trumps advice when he talked about the speaker battles, and how negatively that played for republicans. especially just months away. talking about ukraine, this is johnson's next big test. i am told next week we can see -- part of that aid package. johnson not yet indicating exactly how he plans to go

about it. here's what trumps it yesterday. watch this. >> we are talking about a, making it a form of the law. we keep handing out gifts. and most importantly to me, they have to equalize. >> look, it is not quite clear how alone would work. many here on capitol hill, ukraine is running out of time. johnson has to figure this out. privately, i'm told. even as recently as thursday. he indicated he will tackle a to ukraine. that is the big open question. >> okay, julie. you so much on capitol hill. another focus of the meeting with the speaker election security. both men have pushed false

claims of election fraud -- now they are both looking toward november. we will introduce legislation to require that every single person who registers to vote in a federal election must prove that they are an american citizen first. they have to prove it. that will be a new part of the federal law and a very important one. >> joined me now is data specialist can block. the author of this proven. the data that shows why he lost and how we can approve -- improve our elections. it is already illegal for noncitizens to vote in federal elections. it happens rarely, usually by mistake. and nowhere near the amount that trump claims. diving deeper to allegations of voter fraud than pretty much anyone else. what is your reaction to this?

>> yes. it was a disappointing press conference for me. i was hoping that some needed, necessary, real election integrity proposals would be brought forward. instead, we see the president and speaker worried about enforcing a law that is already on the books for a reason that doesn't make a lot of sense. i was asked to look for evidence . not citizens working in arizona, i was asked to evaluate a list of 2500 of those voters. we really couldn't come up with anything substantive out of that. or any noncitizens were on that list. so i don't understand what they are doing and why. i think it is much more about politics than a real proposal to make a difference. >> well, you know this is far from new territory. also taking the lead in filing a lawsuit that sought to overturn biden's victory.

this is expected to be a very close election. congress has taken steps to protect the process. are there concerns about johnson being in a position to abuse his power? >> that is a good question. i mean, we've been down this road wants. i believe congress passed the bill that would make attempts to take the certification of the states results in congress, making it more than it is, much harder to do. you know, we very -- we need leadership here. he understands the difference between political hyperbole, and as facts that will stand up in court. i really hope for all of our sakes that we can keep everything on the rails, work our way through this election, watch carefully to make sure nothing bad is happening. but at the end of the day, we need to accept results and move

on. we really haven't done that yet in 2020. >> these false claims by the trump team, they've had legal consequences. ruling the lawsuit against the trump campaign and former lawyer could continue. can trump and johnson get into even more legal jeopardy if they keep making false claims about election interference? >> yeah. we've seen the machine manufacturers have won some of their court cases. they are working through other ones that are pending right now. if i were advising any of these folks, the last thing i would tell them they should talk about are the machines, linking to any form of fraud whatsoever, unless you really had smoke in gun proof. >> okay. we always appreciate your insight. we will have to see you again, that's for sure. >> what is happening at the white house?

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what does it tell you that the president is coming back to the white house early? >> well, it tells me that biden continues to take the middle east seriously. and his responses on this issue has been strong. we know there is a credible, imminent threat. we are learning that iran has just brought some drones that will take time to arrive. we know they are -- with instability right now. iran and all of its proxies need to dial it down. i think we need more women in the security and diplomacy space. we know that iran proxies don't always follow their script. we also know that iran has messaged that it doesn't want to engage in a direct war with the united states. but this is something we are tracking. i expect to get a briefing when i get back to washington next week. >> are you able to tell me where you got that information about the drones? i will say that nbc news has not confirmed that report that

drones have already been launched from iran. >> this information is coming from israel. we know the idf has not made a statement about anything. it is something worth tracking. i certainly don't want to share misinformation, but this is information i am claiming. >> israel has said they will retaliate to any attack from iran. how does the u.s. keep this from spiraling? what are the concerns of igniting a full-fledged war that could dragon to the u.s.? that could drag rather the u.s. in? >> well, as i mentioned, no one wants to engage in a war. he and president biden have been talking with all of the actors in the regional partners, talking to friends of iran to say de-escalate, dial this down. we know that western commercial vessels continue to be attacked by iran's proxy. we know that

the vessels are not being attacked. however, when conflict is happening, what needs to be underscored is that de- escalation has happened. as i mentioned, the region has just been oversaturated with instability, and no one in the region once a sustained war, given what we are also dealing with in terms of gaza. >> and six months into the war in gaza, people they are facing a hunger crisis that the united nations sets borders on famine. saying israel is further allowing aid into gaza, but they need to do more. benjamin netanyahu says israel plans to go ahead with the invasion. what are you understanding of the strategy right now relative to that. >> well, samantha power came to committee earlier this week area around 420 trucks have gone

into gaza on a daily basis. bedding has increased. we know before the war, there is 0%, and now 1 in 3 people are suffering from acute famine. even the laws of war say that children and civilians should not have to face famine. we have more envoys of aid coming in. because what we also know, it is very hard to reach a state region when you have a humanitarian crisis like what we are seeing in gaza right now. >> let's move to domestic matters. yesterday, vice president kamala harris was making it explicitly clear who she holds responsible for taking away women's reproductive rights. take a listen to this. >> overturning roe was just the opening act of a larger strategy to take women's rights and freedoms.

part of a full on attack. state-by-state, on reproductive freedom. former president donald trump did this. >> trump for his part, he said he's responsible for overturning roe. then he said abortion laws should be left to the states. then two days later, saying the arizona law goes too far. how much will messaging like the vice president directly blaming trump for this go to convince voters to vote blue in november? >> i certainly support going to the church of vice president kamala harris on this issue. we should not let four tongue republicans off the hook on the abortion issue. trump has touted himself as being the architect over the dismantling of roe v. wade. 1 in 3 women now live in a state where abortion is banned in some form with more to he

might be saying he doesn't want a national abortion ban, but it is happening. arizona republicans are saying they will not repeal the decision. now they are trying to walk back. i don't know. what we do know, this will have an impact on neighboring states were over 10% of what we see, they come from out of state. it will have a chilling effect on healthcare providers that don't want to take the legal risk of providing healthcare. and women are going to die. to your point, everyone will remember in november. okay. sidney, thank you so much for joining me. that would do it for me on this addition of alex witt reports. we have mourned the breaking news from the middle east. ...we're going for a better treatment than warfarin. eliquis. eliquis reduces stroke risk.

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