that's all for us tonight. one programming note, jake tapper will be back here 11:00 p.m. eastern an hour from now with special live report, "crisis in syria, the debate begins." anderson cooper "360" starts right now. good evening everyone. the accusations are false and unfounded, an understatement that she pushed back. >> how you sleep at night defending the regime government

who has caused so much bloodshed and crossed the line from any kind of civil war into weapons of mass destruction in to one of the highest crimes of international law. how do you personally sleep that night? i believe that the use of chemical weapons or biological weapons or nuclear weapons is a horrible, appalling crime. and those who perpetrate such a horrible crime whether they are israelis or others should be held accountable. to the internationally established mechanisms, the policeman of the war american i reports. or false allegations coming from france or britain or saudi arabia or israel. >> that man has lied for years. he has been on this show. on a sector that interview, he began on capitol hill where john

kerry and other officials made the case for military action to the senate for installations committee. john kerry said he has used chemical weapons multiple times estimated to be in the teens. the united states needs to send a message when it comes to chemical weapons, never means never and it is not the time to be spectators to the slaughter of mothers, fathers and children. john kerry has met with him several times over the years and he met with them in 2009. there was no talk of meetings on associations on the hill today. he said it was time to act with limited operation. he had this to say when asked about the administration accepting a ban for military troops on the ground in syria as part of the resolution. >> i am absolutely confident that it is easy, not complicated to work language that will satisfy the congress and the american people that there is no door open near to which someone

can march in ways that congress does not wanted to well still protecting the national security issues of the country. i am confident that can be worked out. the bottom line is the president has no intention and will not and we do not want to put american troops on the ground to fight this to be involved in the fighting of the civil war. >> the death toll rose today in syria, the opposition groups say 66 people died today including six children. dana bash speaking with lawmakers since the hearing ended and she joins me now live. what are you hearing what is the mood tonight. dissenters philadelphia answers they were looking for? >> a lot of answers and questions still to be answered because some of what they were told they wanted to know about the military capabilities and so forth. they cannot talk about it in open session. there will be classified briefing with this same panel of senators to moral and help to

get answers. i spoke moments ago with marco rubio who lean and and sounded like he was going to be for this authorization vote and then vis-a-vis still not sure because he has some questions still. but, i think for the most part, you did see even some of the most traditionally liberal democrats, surprisingly, very much for this. barbara boxer for example, i went back and looked. she was a senator in 2002 who voted against the iraq resolution. she made clear she thinks this is very different, it's not an open-ended vote and something she thinks is very necessary. you heard that from a lot more of the democrats and maybe republicans than i would have anticipated. >> seems like the president would get the votes in democratically led senate. what about the house? >> reporter: the president got a huge assist from the house speaker today. those are word s i don't under much, anderson, but he got assistance from boehner today and the house majority today who came out of a meeting with the

president and said they support his effort to go ahead and have these limited strikes against syria. now, the house speaker, the reason why this is so significant isn't just because his political opponent but because what it comes to controversial issues, he tends to stay on the sidelines, particular lay those who subpoena prate people in his caucus. it would sway people kind of on the fence. one thing i should tell you is right now we're waiting for final language how they will change what this authorization would look like tonight. they didn't find much of what the white house was appropriate. if you looked closely you saw the senate former relationship and bob working out the language that we expect to see maybe even moe men tarry that they will put before the committee as soon as tomorrow and vote on it in order to get to the full senate next week and no troops on the ground, that's new and a time

limit on this. i'm told maybe even 60 days with a 30 day extension. that would be now, something in with the white house sent over the weekend. >> will they talk at all about targeting in the resolution, what can be targeted and what can't be? do we know. >> i don't know for sure but i think that's highly unlikely that anybody in the senate would want to micro manage the military operation like that. having said that, i think that there is going to be -- continued to be language like there is no focussing on chemical weapons. if you talk to people who are familiar with legally what you can take away from authorizations like this, it is -- it may be pretty broad what you can call something that could affect chemical weapons even if conventional. >> appreciate the reporting. we'll follow it. joining me now are chief national correspondent john king, ryan crocker, dean of the bush school of government and

public service at texas a&m university and ambassador to syria and more. kerry seemed to fumble about the possibility of boots on the ground and came back to it later and clarified in more definite terms. is that a fair construction for congress to place on military action? do you think no boots on the ground or does it bind the president's hand? >> anderson, i think that president kerry was speaking for the president and for administration. as far as i can tell, there is no interest in the white house or in congress to put american troops on the ground. >> but, i mean, but specifically putting language like that in a resolution, does that make sense to you? >> i'm not sure it matters much one way or the other, whether it's in or out. i don't think there is any consideration of boots on the ground. >> john, it certainly seems like the president had some momentum

shift in his favor today. >> there is no question. the republicans coming right out after the meeting set the tone for the day, a leadership moment. we'll fight just about everything, the debt ceiling, immigration, taxes and spending but rally to the president eastside here. that is important because the house is the steeper hill. it doesn't mean they are there, it's a steeper hill. most of this will be done in private and discuss in classified hearings. the people with the classified meetings, more come out in favor of this. however, the public opinion, 6 of 10 oppose it and some members of congress will take that queue. so today was about moving that with the public hearing. to your point about senator kerry he was trying to be quote unquote responsible saying if syria imploded we might have to put boots on the ground to keep them away from the bad guys and quickly realized he shouldn't have done that because that might hurt the debate. so he said no boots on the ground, no boots on the ground. >> do you think, fran, from a

military standpoint are they still looking at this in the same way they were last week? >> you know, anderson, john and i were talking before we went on air and there is a subtle shift in leverage. we ended last week very targeted strikes, punitive and now today you hear secretary kerry and others on the panel talk about degrading the assad's regime capability to deliver weapons and the likelihood that will shift the momentum on the ground in favor of the rebels. not that that's their goal but talking about degrading capability that will have that effect. >> ambassador, do you see that shift, as well? >> i've -- i think fran is right. the discourse has changed a bit. we heard it today in the testimony, and i think it's a crucial point because the very

worst thing we could do would be to take military action that does not effectively degrade assad's ability to fight and our record with standoff attacks, tomahawk attacks is about 0-4 in the '90s when we hit the wrong target, twice in iraq, including operation desert fox when the only thing that was destroyed was my house in damascus by an angry mob and once against the taliban in afghanistan. so what we can't afford is for us to come out of this and launch another offensive against the rebels the day after we stop shooting. >> you told time magazine and i quote our biggest problem is ignorance. we're pretty ignore rant about syria. what do you mean by that? that's alarming with the

military operation about to be launched? >> anderson, we don't have people on the ground. our embassy has been closed for, you know, have a very long time now. so we don't have any eyes or ears on a very complex and rapidly changing situation. but beyond that, i'm not sure we've ever understand syria very well. 1982 very few americans understand the significance of that, no syrian will ever forget it -- >> that's when thousands were killed by bashar al-assad's father. >> that's correct, upwards of 10,000 innocent civilians as he went after the syrian muslim brotherhood by destroying the center of syria's fourth largest city. two things came out of that. first, a deep sense of bitterness and hatred and i think led to an under ground radicalization which is why we have currents in opposition and the second, a regime that knew

that pay back could come some day. literally, three decades have been spent by assad father and son developing a security military and intelligence apparatus that could with stand an up raising, if it came. it isn't syria -- it isn't egypt. it isn't libya. it's syria, and it is a much tougher proposition. >> and to that idea, fran, limited strikes against a regime like this, which has murdered it's own people for decades and has it's back against the wall, i mean, some equated to poking a tiger we are a small stick. >> that's right. you run the risk that they will act in a desperate way, whether -- >> which obviously, their back is against the way. for them its a matter of survival. >> that's right, so you worry about the release of what chemical weapons they have, the

use of hasballah. >> and the propaganda victory -- >> and he survives. >> if he's left in tack to survive and continue to win in the civil war. >> ambassador, how concerned are you -- because a lot of people that don't support a military involvement in syria make the case, well, look at the opposition. you have these groups, these al qaeda linked groups directly connected to al qaeda in iraq. how concerned are you about who might take over or battle for control if assad does go? the there anything worse than assad? >> you know, when you're dealing with absolutes and evil it's hard to make comparisons, but a -- in damascus would have horrific repercussions throughout the region and iraq

and lebanon, no jordan, possibly in turkey. what the consequences might be for israel, i don't know but probably not good. so assad is bad. >> and john king, you talk about the public opinion a bit. does it seem likely you think the president -- at least, i mean, we've heard from dana on the senate side it sounds like he'll get approval. what about the house? >> they don't have house yet but momentum but the private briefings where conservatives come back with a couple questions. a lot more anti-war democrats and now the democratic leader is trying to say this is genocide, this is not iraq. that's important. they need to hear about the very questions we're talking about. why are we going to do this? is it going to make a difference or will it be a waste? they want proof they are doing

this for a tactical strategic reason and here is the one challenge for the president. right bump the iraq vote in 2002 the safe vote was yes. we can go back and look at that, the mistakes and that but the safe political vote was yes to be with president bush. many believe the safe political vote for them is no. they won't lose an election by voting no. if the president doesn't make the case, the safe vote is no. so they have more work to do in the house but in much better shape tonight than last night. >> ambassador crocker, john king, fran, we'll have more with you. let us know what you think at home. follow me on twitter at anderson cooper. if you're a regular viewer of this, a fearless voice inside iraq and he risked his life to say what he's seen in his country. he's been sent to jail twice for it.

last year he said syrians felt abandoned by the world. i'll ask him whether he still feels that way tonight. and later, assad and his wife, they look like a normal couple on the town. he studied ophthalmology. how wrong was the rest about him? we're looking at who the assads are behind the smiles coming up. [ male announcer ] introducing new fast acting advil. with an ultra-thin coating and fast absorbing advil ion core™ technology, it stops pain before it gets worse. nothing works faster. new fast acting advil. look for it in the white box. you work. and you want to get an mba. but going back to school is hard... because you work. now, capella university offers a revolutionary new way to get your degree.

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for more than two years we've been speaking with a man who knows first hand the destruction taking place in syria. he's a syrian activist and for years he's risked his life to speak out on this program as his country is torn apart and city destroyed. he's been thrown in jail two times. during a conversation back in may of 2012, he told me that the world had abandoned syria doing nothing as people were being killed every day. i'll speak with him in just a moment to find out how he feels now the united states is debating military action, but first, listen to what he said last year. >> everybody is happy watching us being killed on daily basis. nobody cares for us. everybody knows the story. it's okay, we know now the world is happy watching us being killed, and we will do it on our own. if it takes ten years, we're on

the streets. we will not retreat, won't give up. >> he left syria a year ago and joins us. good to see you. i don't think i've ever seen you. it always via phone. you always said syrians are abandoned by the world. do you still feel that way? >> i think so. we've come to the point and the international community is so late in reaction where any action cannot be correct right now. it's too late for anything, i don't know whether we can survive anything. if the air strike happens, limited hazard is expected the regime will be victorious. if the air strike doesn't happen, this is a license to kill for mr. assad.

>> so even if there is a -- if the strike is limited as is being debated right now, not something that's going to change the calculous on the ground, change the power of the regime, it not going to tip the scales, it's just a design to punish, it's a design to try to make sure that the regime does not use chemical weapons again, you think that will be interpreted as a victory, the regime will spin that as a victory? >> this regime is criminal. this regime has been using chemical weapons for at least five or six months. so far this regime can use chemical weapons for god knows how long, but what happens right now is not just promises of a limited strike. this means a prolonged crisis. for me, even -- i mean, i'm against military intervention. i want peace. i still want peace. i see a peace process through geneva two, i don't know whether that will happen or not but limited strike, i know the propaganda of the regime. they will use all -- every

possible word and they will dance in the streets. >> do you really believe a political solution that negotiations are possible at this stage given all that's happened and the nature of the regime and opposition at this point? >> it is difficult to see. that's why i'm saying hopes are really small. this is what i'm saying. it is the only hope. air strikes will not give us anything. the only thing we can just see right now is the americans talk to the russians, find some solution, compromises from both sides and then come out with a solution. i know the regime will hate, hate peace. it lives on killing. >> there is a lot of concern about al qaeda linked groups and other extremist groups, do you believe in someways they hijacked this revolution? >> well, yes, to some extent yes. there is al qaeda in syria.

if you remember, anderson, one year ago was i warning everybody in the world through ac 360 saying that if you keep just watching us, you will see al qaeda in syria. they are trying to hijack the revolution. i hope it will not. at one point of time, all the syrian people should unite against terrorism. terrorism does not fit syria at all, and we will not allow it. the way we are trying to topple the terrorist regime, we need to find terrorism and unfortunately al qaeda is becoming stronger day after day in syria. >> i appreciate you talking to us again and i'm glad your family is okay. >> thank you. if there is military strike in syria, what kind of support can the u.s. expect? joining me now is my panel.

commander, let me start with you, after today's testimony do you have a sense of what a military operation would look like, about what the targets would be, about what the impact would be? do you think administration has a really firm grasp on that? >> i think they have a firm grasp on what they want to achieve however when they go in for a strike taking out hopefully the facilities that would allow the assad regime to make chemical attacks. the regime gets a vote whether or not they choose to respond, whether themselves respond or use surrogates like hasballah. on the same token, the regime has every desire to see it expanded because that will draw more players into the region conflict and in fact, hamper our ability to execute the operation. >> in the previous block she's

sensing a shift in terms of what the operation would be targeting. do you sense that, as well? >> i sense a shift -- i shift of rhetoric. i'm not sure it's a shift of strategy. mccain and gram demanded more support for the opposition, and so, president obama began speaking about degrading and not just destroying capability, and that's all well and good but we really need a paradigm shift in the white house. it's important that this attack be carried out. i agree with what kirk said. there has got to be some concept of follow on and concern about it but america's credibility is on the line. throughout the whole region, there is a strong sense they are running for the exits. not just because of what happened over the last week, sequestering, a host of things, the absolute reluctance to get involved.

they created an impression throughout the region the u.s. is an undependable ally and the first priority has to be to correct that. >> what did you say today? >> i agree with what mike duran said. i think we shifted to some extent. we have begun to show greater faith in the opposition in this rebellion. you could hear it in secretary of state kerry. all of a sudden, he's now talking about the fact the syrian opposition is broadly conserved -- >> fact, you're saying the u.s. see as more moderate shift. >> absolutely, all of a sudden -- >> right, that surprised me. >> sudden moderation came upon the syrian rebellion. they have to make the argument that somehow or another we have a rebellion on the ground that could inherit this regime. for two and a half years, we

talked down the syrian rebellion. for two and a half years, we said al qaeda is there and that we would be the air force of al qaeda. for two and a half years before secretary kerry, there was secretary clinton and he was a theorists in how bad the opposition was and we didn't want to be partners of al qaeda. we have to have faith in the syrian people and if you're going to do these strikes, you have to trust in the ambiguity what will happen later. they don't know. >> no one does. >> absolutely not. in a way, if you strike at the bashar regime, you could be lucky and take out the head of the snake, the head of the mafia. i think we've entered the fog of war. >> defense secretary hagel said several key allies support the u.s. military action, france,

turkey, saudi arabia, how critical is that to the strike and even though some places support it in a limited way, is that enough? >> let me make two points about that. one is it's extremely important, but it's the raw material to be used to actually build a coalition and support the opposition in the way he said. one of the things that's happened because we have reseeded and we have refused to touch syria, is that our ally haves gone off in our direction and looked for alternatives to support their interest, alternatives to the united states. say for instance. turkey. turkey is -- i wouldn't say it supporting the front, al qaeda in syria but it's turning a blind eye. it's opening up the borders and allowing al qaeda to flow in. because it wants to topple the assad regime. it doesn't have the ability to do it on it's own. the united states didn't built a coalition to do it so it's found other ways to do it. what we're seeing now throughout

the region is all of these powers looking after their interests without the united states. it's very dangerous for the united states because we have significant interest in the middle east and at some point, we're going to get pulled back in. we need in on our own terms. >> commander, you commanded the uss cole in a terrorist attack and heard from the regime in syria saying that they and their allies and hasballah which they described being one force would strike out. how vulnerable and likely do you think it is that there will be a repercussion for whatever strike against the u.s.? >> well, just like us stating that we needed to do something in response to the chemical attacks by the assad regime, the assad regime length credibility to themselves has to follow through on their threats, as well, otherwise, they will be seen as enable, ineffective and not standing up for the long-term existence. we have to take it at face value and be prepared to do it and the

discussions going on today in congress and elsewhere in the halls of the pentagon are good. it's forcing this administration to do what it should have done a long time ago and that is detail the second and third order effects of what we'll do when we go in there and conduct strikes, how we'll get through them. if it expands to a broaden region, what will we do to contain it and deal with israel if they get struck? these are good discussions that the american people need to hear and know that the administration is thinking through, otherwise, we'll be seen as rushing into this, which we do not want to do and again, try and frame it like mike said on our terms. we need to remain engaged in the region. let's do it in a manner that we will look like we're backing our president, backing our national security interest and achieving the strategic objectives. >> appreciate you-all being on. up next, running syria along

a family lines, a family affair. former dictator al-assad not only pushed his son on a bike but gave the country to him. the man and parol university they are living in, the mafia like rule of that country. we'll look at that. the strange death of a georgia teenager, an athlete. the results of an autopsy requested by his family. new details in the case ahead. the image bashar al-assad is

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the image bashar al-assad is to be a leader. he was on facebook, twitter and married to an attractive british born british plate known for her love of french shows. vogue profiled her dubbing her a rose in the desert. appearances can be deceiving. syria is a family business. the assads a dynasty, despite the hoeks he would be a reformer, the reality is like father, like son. here is randi kaye. >> reporter: when bashar al-assad took control of syria, it was called the damascus peace of spring. assad was widely known as mild, unassuming and in favor of modernization, a sharply different image than his father

hafez al-assad using chemical weapons against his own people. >> there is a mafia like charter to the assad family. >> reporter: bashar al-assad was different. growing up he was a polite boy who never lorded his status over his friends. >> the family growing up live in a very sort of typical, modest three-story home in damascus, residential building where they lived on one floor of that building. for most of his childhood, he still lives on one floor of that very same building to this day. >> reporter: assad studied eyes in london. in london he met a glamorous investment banker who would later become his wife. in 1994 assad was suddenly called back to syria after his older brother was killed in a car accident. he was now next in line to rule,

and took over in 2000 after his father died. but the hopes of the damascus spring didn't last long. >> many from the so-called olgar in leadership positions came to him and said, listen, son, this isn't how we do things here. this will undermine our legit ma see and the position that we've worked very hard to get and maintain over the decades and so, what ensued about six, eight months later is what many people called the damascus winter. >> reporter: it was a return to the rule of the assad family a continued hard line against israel and the west. and brutal crack downs against any internal decent. but all the while, the public face of bashar and his wife has been the picture of calm, of a loving and normal family posting pictures on instagram, while all the ignoring the realities of the growing uprising.

>> i think that there are some people that have two natures and bashar al-assad and his wife are this couple. they are deceptive. they are very alluring for particularly those who don't understand what goes on in syria every day. >> reporter: despite the growing threat of military intervention, assad has publicly vowed never to leave syria. >> this is someone who will be president for life. this is someone who drunk the kool-aid of power and believes all the fans around him praising him on a daily basis. >> reporter: the once mild mannered man comfortable with his power. randi kaye, cnn, new york. >> let's get more insight to the assad's rule in syria. back to a senior fellow at the hoover institution. you got a ruler of a mafia. >> randi's piece tell as story. since we're using the metaphor of the mafia, think of his brother that died as sunny and think of bashar as michael, the

cold-blooded guy who inherits the job accidently and turns out to be very good at it. >> so bashar al-assad's brother was supposed to inherit it and the father put the focus on? >> yeah, and there is a bother even worse, the commander of the fourth division that does the real killing. so bashar inherited this job and came into it and in the end he was compelled, i think, to show that he has to prove himself and the strong figure in this family, after the death of hafez was the wife of hafez, the mother and she was urged to bashar to crack down harder. >> so his mother is pressuring him? >> absolutely tonight show you even how, again, killing the mafia metaphor, then again there

is also a tough sister, and she married this gangster, you know, he was one of the barons, intelligence barons of the regime killed last year in an attack on the ministry of defense and again, in the division of labor there were maternal cousins of bashar and their job was to be bag men, to rob the country blind. so they began with the talk about arab national and turned out to be complete extortion. >> so a huge business interest and made a lot of money. >> we don't know what the fortune of the assets would be. it runs in the billions. they treated the countries as a kind of killing for themselves. they robbed lebanon. they runned a racket in lib none for years. they held up the arab oil states to ransom and received billions. syria has oil in the northeast. not an oil producing state in a big way but there is enough oil

and it's regime money and assad money. >> explain the religious divisions, i mean, he has support among some. explain why that is important. >> the alawites were mads, servers and went into the armed forces because the good sunni boys never went into army so they had no other means of income, with no social skills, talent for business became soldiers and they ended up conquering and you have hafez al-assad pulling it off in 1970 and the word use is right, bequeathing the country to his family. >> thank you. up next, a new autopsy report calling for calls into the investigation of a georgia

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crime and punishment tonight, an autopsy report obtained by cnn is calling attention to it. it was ruled an accident at the time but to kendrick's parents that didn't make sense starting with the fact his body was found rolled up in a wrestling mat inside the high school game. now in a separate autopsy paid for by his parents says the death was not an accident at all. we want to warn you in the report there is a photo of kendrick taken after his death and may be disturbing to some viewers. here is victor's report. >> reporter: he was a high school, three-sports star in a south georgia town. >> played football, basketball and ran track. >> reporter: good at all of them?

>> good at all of them. >> reporter: so when he was not in the basketball game on january 10th and didn't come home, his parents knew something was wrong. >> there is a dead body out here. >> okay. where at, sir? >> lowndes high school in the gym. >> reporter: this is a photo of him found the next morning upside down in the center of a rolled six-foot wrestling mat. >> i just got weak, nervous. >> reporter: investigators believe he got stuck in the mat while reaching for this shoe that fell into the center of the mat. >> we examined all the alternatives spented to us and the only one that fit, the physical evidence and the forensic evidence and the testimonial evidence was this an an accident. this picture of kendrick served to fuel concerns. >> as hand some as my son was and you see him like that is --

so crazy. i really feel he was murdered. >> reporter: the photo has gone viral online, shared thousands of times through social media. >> what do we want? justice. >> reporter: crowds backed the small southern town demanding answers. in may they got them. the georgia burro of investigation confirmed the sheriffs theory, cause of death asphyxia saying he was smothered by his body weight, no significant injuries. >> saying there was no foul play. he had no bruises, no nothing. >> reporter: did you believe that? >> no. >> reporter: and you still don't believe it? >> no, i don't. >> reporter: in june, at his parents' request his body was exhumed and taken to florida for a second independent autopsy, this time the findings were dramatically different. the report obtained exclusively by cnn sites the cause of death as unexplained apparent

non-accidental blunt force trama, blows to the neck, not an accident. despite the new report, the state and local authorities stand behind their findings. >> fired up, ready to go. >> reporter: supporters for kendrick's family are calling for a department of justice investigation and kenneth johnson says he will not stop until he finds the person that killed his son. >> no matter who you are, how much money your parents have, the color of your skin, every one deserve justice, everyone. >> victor blackwell joins me now. it's not just the johnson's questioning the investigation, the coroner says the scene was compromised, how so? >> first, anderson, the coroner bill watson saws law in georgia is the coroner is to be called immediately once the body is found. we checked and that's true. his body was found about 10:00 a.m. and he was called a quarter to three. once he arrived, he said the body was move.

we received an e-mail from him a fee days and he told us i want to put up part of the e-mail anderson and he wrotes, i would appreciate it if you would destroy this interview with me. i do not want this to be shown whatsoever. i feel our situation should not be aired. we have air that interview here on cnn and that request only fueled the skepticism from the johnsons and supporters. >> thank you. we'll continue to follow it. we'll be right back. thank you orville and wilbur... ...amelia... neil and buzz: for teaching us that you can't create the future... by clinging to the past. and with that: you're history. instead of looking behind... delta is looking beyond.

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let's go "outfront." good evening, everyone, i'm erin burnett. "outfront" tonight a big win for president obama.