neutral platforms that do not create, nor control content on the web but we will see what the high court in argentina has to say about that. thank you, everyone, for watching. it's been nice to have you with us. my friend and colleague wolf blitzer starts right now. right now, president obama's getting ready to fly back to washington after laying out his views on american power and the use of force. we're covering his major speech today as only cnn can with reporters and analysts around the world. president obama says he would look weak if he sent in troops every time one of his critics calls for u.s. military intervention. we'll get reaction from one of those critics, senator john mccain. we're covering the rest of the day's news as well, including a 26-page response from donald sterling sent to the nba, saying he was unfairly singled out and hit with a draconian punishment.

hello, i'm wolf blitzer reporting from washington. president obama says it's not a question of whether america will lead on the world stage but how. today, the president outlined his vision for the future of u.s. foreign policy during the commencement address at west point. early in the speech, he fired back at critics who say he has been weak on foreign policy. he took direct aim at those who say america's leadership has diminished. >> in fact, by most measures, america has rarely been stronger relative to the rest of the world. those who argue otherwise, who suggest that america is in decline or has seen its global leadership slip away, are either misreading history or engaged in partisan politics. >> the president touched on the most pressing global hot spots and challenges on the war in afghanistan, providing more help to the opposition in syria's

civil war, the ongoing nuclear talks with iran and strained relations with russia over the crisis in ukraine. but he says the most direct threat to the united states right now, the most direct threat at home and abroad, is terrorism, specifically. he talked about the danger of a decentralized al qaeda. we want to focus in on the president's foreign policy vision outlined in his speech. joining us to do that, our senior white house correspondent jim acosta, our chief national security correspondent jim sciutto and our chief international correspondent chriscys christy yawn amanpour. did this speech accomplish what white house officials were hoping for? >> yes, they do, wolf, they do feel that this accomplished their goal of really answering the president's critics and laying out what is essentially the obama doctrine for the remainder of his term in office. wolf, i think if there's a theme to take away from this speech, and from the president's standpoint, it's that caution

can be muscular too. yes, there are times when unilateral intervention may be necessary but for the most part when the direct national security interests of the united states are not threatened, the u.s. has to work through global partners. you heard the president talk about that with respect to ukraine and dealing with russia, how the u.s. and its allies isolated russia because of its intervention in ukraine. you heard the president talk about how he wants to build these multilateral partnerships. he talked about this $5 billion counterterrorism partnership fund that will be used to help other nations train and, in some cases, perhaps, arm their military security forces to deal with terrorist threats in their regions. you also heard the president talk about syria. that is perhaps where a lot of this criticism began. when he drew that red line, the red line was crossed by bashar al assad, and then the president did not large air strikes. that what started this argument about whether or not the president has gone soft in his foreign policy. the president in his speech saying the support for the

syrian opposition will be ramped up over time. listening to a call just about an hour ago, white house officials are still not being clear as to how that assistance, how that training for syrian opposition leaders might take place. they say they still have to consult with congress, so a lot of unanswered questions at this point. >> the president said he has to consult with congress about that as well. the president also said his bottom line is american leadership is not always about military action. listen to what he told the west point cadets. >> military you have joined is and always will be the backbone of that leadership. the u.s. military action cannot be the only -- or even primary, component of our leadership in every instance. just because we have the best hammer does not mean that every problem is a nail.

>> so christiane, what's your take on how this is playing out on the international stage? >> first, about the hammer and nail, president obama has showed himself throughout his presidency to be the president to end these wars. as we discussed before, there's this pendulum swing in american foreign policy. the eight years of the bush administration, which was overintervention, which had the disastrous war in iraq, and that hangover is incredibly painful to this day. so the pendulum has swung all the way to the other side where there's, as jim said, caution can be muscular. i hope that doesn't come back to haunt them like leading from behind. but here's the thing. the president sometimes seems to think his critics are only being critical because they think he should go to war all over the place. that's not what allies are saying to us. they're saying, we don't want america to go to war all over the place. that's not the issue. we want to follow american leadership. syria is the main thing that has

allies all worked up at the moment. we're in the third year of this war. 150,000 dead. nearly 3 million refugees around. putting enormous strain on america's key middle eastern allies. and of course there's a moral and strategic imperative to do more in syria. that never meant putting boots on the ground or sending america to war there. what it meant was what the president said, assad must go by supporting a moderate opposition. and they still haven't laid out how they're going to do that. that, i think, wases disappointment in the speech today, wolf. >> jim sciutto, christiane is right, we were expecting more issues, more information on issues like providing help to the syrian opposition. we heard the president say he has to consult with congress before going forward on this front. what did you make of that? >> well, it's interesting, i think the administration were stunned by the criticism that followed his comments a couple

of weeks ago on his asian trip that his foreign policy was about hitting singles and doubles. they were stung by that and they saw a need to articulate a mission statement. and that's what the intention of this speech was. but the truth is, when you get into the details of the speech, in effect, it is doubling down on that strategy. justifying, in effect, where he has been and where he is going and saying he's going to continue down this path, right? the one bit of specifics that we were expecting today in terms of news was what will the step forward be in syria? that it seems there was a reassessment of the strategy but there were no specifics on that. the examples he did give, in effect, to justify the success of the strategy, were ukraine, multilateral approach there, which he says deterred russia and iran, nuclear negotiations under way there, because he said that pushed iran to the table. but those are two cases of unfinished business in effect. the crisis if ukraine still

exists. i just returned from there. the eastern part of the country very much threatened by russian-backed militants. the negotiations with iran. also not fully baked at this point, still serious ki disagreements standing in the way. you have an administration here saying it is confident with the strategy it's pursued so far, and expressing that confidence, and pushing back at critics who say that they need to be tougher in effect. so if this was expected to be new, it really wasn't. it was the president sticking with a strategy he's pursued so far. >> outlining that strategy. jim sciutto, jim acosta, guys, thanks very much. did the president make his case? let's get some perspective. perspective from a diplomat's viewpoint. former u.s. senator george mitchell served as special midwest peace envoy. he's joining us from new york.

what did you think, did you learn anything new about the president's strategy for the next 2 1/2 years or so, senator? >> think it was a good summary of his approach to issues generally. and to foreign policy. and i think he made a persuasive case about the reality that we cannot intervene militarily everywhere that we're asked to do so. and the reality also is, wolf, what we now regard as extraordinary, these conflicts around the globe are going to increase over the coming decade. the population of the world is rising. it's now 7 billion. it will be nearly 10 billion in 50 years. 1 out of 5 people on earth today is muslim. when it's 10 billion, it will be 1 out of 3. islam is being torn by two internal conflicts, sunni and shia. it was a political conflict that started in the thrust for power after the death of muhammad. the other is between the theo kraatz, those who want an

exclusion nary state and maintain it by force, and the majority, i believe, who want to have modern western-style governments that will enable people to have jobs and get their kids off to good education. so we're going to have these conflicts now erupting all around the world. we can't rely exclusively on military force to deal with them. i think the president's quite right in that approach, in laying it out as he did, although i did share the concern expressed by a couple of your correspondents just a moment ago about syria, i think we should have done more, i think we should do more now to help those opposed to the regime there, not using american military force but using american know how, technology, assistance, through others, if necessary. i don't think it's possible for that regime to remain in power indefinitely. >> i want to pick up that thought. don't go away. we have much more to discuss. later this hour, we're going to get a different perspective. senator john mccain, very

outspoken critic. he'll join us live. he'll weigh in on the president's speech. i'll also ask him about edward snoden's new claims he was actually a trained u.s. spy. the political battle within the gop, lots more to discuss with senator mccain later this hour. senator mitchell standing by. also coming up, things are getting even more heated between the l.a. clippers owner donald sterling and the nba. sterling now says he won't go down without a fight. and mudslinging in mississippi. the blogger adding fuel to an already heated republican primary race.

we're back with former u.s. senator george mitchell, president obama's special envoy

for middle east peace from january 2009 to may 2011. i want you to listen to this clip from what the president said just a little while ago at west point. >> for the foreseeable future, the most direct threat to america at home and abroad remays terrorism. but a strategy that involves invading every country that harbor's terrorist networks is naive and unsustainable. i believe we must shift our counterterrorism strategy, drawing on the successes and short comings of our experience in iraq and afghanistan to more effectively partner with countries where terrorist networks seek a foothold. >> as you know, one of the biggest problems potentially out there is all those al qaeda. affiliated terrorists who are now operating inside syria against the bashar al assad regime. there are a lot of them who have come in, foreigners, including some americans, who were being

trained there. this represents, according to intelligence, some of the greatest threats out there. what should the u.s. do about that? >> well, wolf, in this case, as many others that reached the level of the presidency, it's not a choice between a good alternative and a bad alternative. it's the choice between a lousy one and a really bad one. i think we have been too cautious in arming them. i recognize there are dangers down the road. but the immediate threat is the continuation of the government that is bombing its own citizens, dropping bombs on elementary schools in the cities of its own country. and the president has said many times assad must go. he drew the line and then didn't act on the crossing of the line. i think unless and until assad goes, american policy will be questioned. >> so what do you recommend? because he is succeeding apparently with russian cooperation, and destroying

syria's chemical stockpiles. >> that's a positive, a laudable step forward. i think we can and should be providing more assistance to those opposing the regime. wolf, let me give you an historical example. it makes the case. in the second world war, the united states embraced the greatest mass murderer in history, joseph stalin. we provided billions of dollars of assistance. we supported russia in the war against nazi, germany, because we felt the alternative was worst. it laid the foundations for the cold war that followed. i don't know of a single analyst who said that was a mistake, we helped the wrong guy. we didn't. there are danger, in any course that you take. i think we have to be as prudent as we can be. i don't think we have to let fear of a future bridge prevent us from crossing the first bridge. as long as assad remains in

power, obama's going to face this question, what are you doing when this slaughter is occurring there. >> i don't want anybody to misunderstand what you're suggesting. you're not saying the u.s. should now go ahead and actually work with these anti-bashar al assad elements affiliated with al qaeda? >> no, but there are people there who don't share those views who haven't gotten the amount of assistance that we might have provided. not directly, but we have plenty of friends in the region, allies, who have been anxious to help provide assistance there. we have to make it possible for the opposition to first remove the current regime and then give a chance for those elements of the rebels who aren't al qaeda, who want a more tolerant opera scream. now, i'm not suggesting this is easy, wolf, it's extremely difficult, but there are two bad choices, and i think letting him stay in power is the worst of the two choices.

>> let me get your thoughts on the pope when he was in the holy land this weekend, he extended formal invitations to the israeli president, shimon peres, the palestinian president, mahmoud abbas, to come to the vatican for a peace initiative. you were the middle east special envoy for a few years. obviously, that peace process looks grim now. what advice would you give the pontiff? >> well, he's done pretty well without my advice so far. he's won over the most admired persons in the world already. done a remarkable job and i think captured the imagination of not just catholics but people around the world because of his personal humility and his willingness to wade in issues, as he is doing in this case. i think it is a good gesture. i hope it will lead to an improvement in relations just seeing the leading palestinian and israeli political officials standing there with the pope, hopefully praying together. i think sends a positive signal

about the possibility of israelis and palestinians and other arabs living together. so i commend the pope. i encourage him. i strongly encourage the leaders on both sides to do what they have to do to move this process forward. wolf, let me add, i do believe, despite all the problems, despite all the setbacks and failures, it is very much in the interest of the people of israel and the palestinians to reach an agreement that will enable the palestinians to have a state, the israelis to have security, and begin the process of normalization of israel in the region and allow israel and the gulf arabs to join in opposing their real enemy, which is iran, and i think that's possible. i think it's going to happen sooner or later. i hope somehow that the pope's intervention and visit triggers some reaction in that regard. >> i hope so too. couldn't agree more. senator mitchell, as usual, thanks very much for joining us. >> thank you, wolf. he's been a major critic of

the obama administration's foreign policy. republican senator john mccain will join us live. i'll ask him what he thinks about the president's speech today. i don't think he's happy about it. but, first, donald sterling has a lot to say. we'll tell you what he's now doing to try to maintain ownership of his team. ] in a ra, it's about getting to the finish line. in life, it's how you get there that matters most. it's important to know the difference. like when i found out i had a blood clot in my leg. my doctor said that it could travel to my lungs and become an even bigger problem. and that i had to take action. so he talked to me about xarelto®. [ male announcer ] xarelto® is the first oral prescription blood thinner proven to treat and help prevent dvt and pe that doesn't require regular blood monitoring or changes to your diet. [ brian ] for a prior dvt i took warfarin, which required routine blood testing and dietary restrictions. not this time. ♪

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download the xarelto® patient center app, trwith secure wifie for your business. it also comes with public wifi for your customers. not so with internet from the phone company. i would email the phone company to inquire as to why they have shortchanged these customers. but that would require wifi. switch to comcast business internet and get two wifi networks included. comcast business built for business. so his wife is apparently moving quickly to try to sell the nba team. donald sterling is trying to fight to the bloody end to keep the l.a. clippers. here are the lengthy response items to the nba. sterling claims, i'm quoting, a jealous rant to a lover never

intended to be published cannot offend the nba. here's more. no owner, coach or player has ever been fined close to $2.5 million, banned for life and forced to sell their property for any offense. our rachel nichols is joining us live with more. a lot of moving parts now. seems to be a contradiction. his legal document suggests he wants a fight to the bitter end. all the reports we're getting is shelly sterling is moving quickly to try to sell the team. what is going on? >> yeah, it's sort of a three-ring circus here. the thing you have to remember here is the nba is still the ring master. they're still in control of this process. let's take this point by point though. i have actually seen the letter that donald sterling's letters sent shelly sterling's camp a while ago, saying they did authorize her to take bids for the team. however, she can solicit all the bids she wants. if she now doesn't have sterling's permission to sell

his portion of the team, she can't do it. that document doesn't entitle her to sell it forever, it just entitled her to take those first steps. in fact, reports are those first bids were due today. so she is soliciting bids from six different camps. we've heard some of the names. oprah winfrey, along with david geffen and larry ellison has a group. magic johnson has a group. grant hill has a group. wolf, i don't know if you have a group trying to buy the clipper. certainly enjoying the fact there's a lot of people picking up the phone to call her. that being said, as you noted, donald is saying now he does not want to sell the team, that he will fight this to the, quote, bloody end. we do still expect the board of governors to meet next week and vote on whether they are going to remove him from his organization. this letter he sent, 32 pages of documents, this was aimed at the other owners. it's really making his case that, hey, something he said in private, something that was just his opinion, should not be a

reason to force him to sell the team. but the problem there is he's basically saying, hey, it's okay for me to be a bigot and still own an nba team. the nba is going to say, that is not okay, not even if it was a conversation in private. >> you know, the numbers that are being thrown around, rachel, 1 billion, $1.5 billion, $2 billion, $2.5 billion. you say there are six parties bidding right now. are those numbers realistic? >> well, you know, the clippers television contract is up in a couple years. that's one reason why the valuation is so high. whoever owns the team in the next year or two is going to get a huge cash infusion from the television organization that broadcasts clippers game locally. they're also, by the way, going to get a huge infusion from the national contract, which is also is up. it's a bet on future earnings. it's also a franchise in l.a.

those don't come up very often. both of the teams in l.a. have been owned for decades by their respective families. as we know, the market demands, when there's scarcity, people will step up and pay for it. >> $2 billion, $2.5 billion, who knows, even if you have to pay capital gains, that's still a lot of money coming into their little nest egg. all right, rachel. thanks very much. he's a fierce critic of president obama's foreign policy record. what does republican senator john mccain think of the president's big foreign policy speech today at west point? the senator standing by to weigh in. two candidates, plus one very big bizarre political scandal equal a messy primary race in mississippi. we'll have the details. i make a lot of purchases for my business. and i get a lot in return with ink plus from chase like 60,000 bonus points when i spent $5,000 in the first 3 months after i opened my account.

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welcome back, i'm wolf blitzer reporting from washington. we've got some breaking news we're following right now out of phoenix, arizona. senator john mccain is joining us. senator, i know we booked you to talk about the president's foreign policy speech in west point, but i need to get your immediate reaction to the breaking news just coming into cnn. from a report from the inspector general of the department of veterans affairs saying an initial review of the veterans hospital in phoenix, arizona, found multiple unofficial wait lists of veterans seeking care and identified, get this, 1,700

veterans seeking care but were not on any existing waiting list. the inspector general's report says this, we recommend the veterans affairs secretary take immediate action to review and provide appropriate health care to the 1,700 veterans we identified as not being on any existing wait list. i want to get your immediate reaction. this is pretty shocking information, senator. >> well, it's terrible, too, and it obviously calls for immediate action. the report requires. i think also, wolf, it's probably about time for the justice department to get involved here. if records were falsified and people were denied care and people died, as is the allegation here, 40 people dying while on that mythical list, these are criminal activities that deserve the justice department involvement. and finally, i really believe

that general shinseki should review, in his own mind, whether he can adequately serve the country carrying out the responsibilities, given the things that have happened on his watch. >> i spoke to senator bloumenthl in connecticut, he wants the fbi involved as well. let me read to you from the inspector general's report. this is from your home state, arizona. the inspector general review found outside of the official wait list, the review found other scheduling practices that are not in compliance with policies suggesting additional lists may be the basis for allegations of creating secret wait lists. additionally, according to the report, the inspecter general found numerous allegations of daily mismanagement, inappropriate hiring decisions, sexual harassment and bullying behavior by mid and senior level managers at the facility. it gets more shocking as you read into this report. now, the inspector general of the department of veterans

affairs is an honest outside observer who has to inspect and investigate. you say the fbi needs to come into this investigation right now. >> i think, yes, absolutely, because this is obviously -- must be viewed in some respects as criminal activities. i also believe that, wolf, if it happened here, tragically, in phoenix, you cannot believe this is an isolated case. finally, i think we need to -- and we will next week -- come up with comprehensive education that revamps the va. also, we've got to give these veterans an opportunity to seek health care where they can get it best and easiest. that's got to be a fundamental change in the va. it's, you know, i've been traveling around my state and spent a lot of time here. i was hear a couple memorial day observan observances. i have never detected such anger on the part of all of our citizens, but most of all,

amongst our veterans, as i'm feeling here while being back here in arizona. >> but you're stopping short, i want to be precisprecise, from eric shinseki should resign? >> i think it's -- i think it's reached that point. i have not called for it. i was going to wait until the hearing that's going to take place here very soon. but this keeps piling up. and it can't be just an isolated -- the v.a. phoenix v.a. is not an island. it's not immune to other influences. every other va is probably going to have these same influences on them because they were trying to comply with guidelines that were laid down from the headquarters of va which they couldn't meet. that's what this whole waiting list stuff is all about. so i haven't said this before, but i think it's time for

general shinseki to -- to move on. >> senator, i know that was a painful difficult announcement that you just made, given his record in the united states army and vietnam, where you served as well. i want you to stand by. when we come back, i want to talk about the president's speech to west point cadets. today, the commencement address. we'll get into that right after this. it starts with little things. tiny changes in the brain. little things, anyone can do. it steals your memories. your independence. insures support. a breakthrough. and sooner than you'd like... ...sooner than you think. ...you die from alzheimer's disease. ...we cure alzheimer's disease. every little click, call, or donation adds up to something big. alzheimer's association. the brains behind saving yours. [ chainsaw buzzing ]

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that corporate trial by fire when every slacker gets his due.

and yet, there's someone around the office who hasn't had a performance review in a while. someone whose poor performance is slowing down the entire organization. i'm looking at you phone company dsl. check your speed. see how fast your internet can be. switch now and add voice and tv for $34.90. comcast business built for business. president's laying out his vision for u.s. policy over the next 2 1/2 years. detailing the blueprint earlier today during the commentment at west point military academy. saying it cannot be the primary component and he outlined his plans for addressing several political hot spots around the world, including afghanistan,

syria and ukraine. joining us once again from phoenix, one of the president's more vocal critics on foreign policy, senator john mccain, the republican senator from arizona. you heard the president outline his vision. you want to give us your immediate reaction to what you heard, senator? >> first of all, i resent, deeply, the criticism that the president lodges at those of us who are, i believe, deeply concerned and involved for years in national security, saying that there's really only two choices. no intervention whatsoever or total commitment of american troops. no one i know of wants to commit american troops anywhere right now. but we do believe that the president should have learned the lesson from iraq, when we pulled out without leaving a residual force, by the way, as we have after other wars in other places. and of course, now, the black

flags of al qaeda fly over fallujah, director of national intelligence has said syria/iraq border area now a base for al qaeda who will be planning attacks on the united states of america. it's a total failure. the place is in chaos. he's making the same mistake in afghanistan. setting the date for total withdrawal. sending a message to the taliban, all you got to do is wait. >> well, let me interrupt for a second, senator. because secretary john kerry was on cnn earlier today on "new day" and he responded to that criticism that you and lindsey graham, kelly ayotte, others have said by having this deadline two years, all u.s. troops would be effectively out, this was just a mistake to keep it open ended. listen to secretary kerry. >> it is only by setting dates we have been able to meet milestones. if you left it open ended, if you said to the afghans, well,

we'll be here as long as it takes, you can absolutely bet your bottom dollar, and it probably will be the bottom dollar of the u.s., that they'll take just as as long as as they wanted. so what the president is doing is appropriately empowering the afghans, giving them the opportunity to take control of their future and that's the best way for them to step up and do so. >> so he's defending the deadline. what's your reaction? >> well, first of all, obviously, secretary kerry must be ignoring the chaos that has now ensued in iraq as we set time for complete withdraw. second, i think it's rather insulting to the afghans to think that they would not want to be able to defend themselves. that's not the afghans that i know. and third of all, the president spoke at west point today. i think a first year cadet at west point will tell you when you're in a conflict, you don't tell the enemy exactly when you

are leeaving. that doesn't mean we have to continue fighting. we can succeed and have a residual force there, the same which we had germany, japan, korea, after those conflicts. and which we didn't do in iraq and we now see iraq becoming a -- first becoming chaos, but also a base for -- as the director of national intelligence has said, for attacks on the united states of america. look, the united states is not weak. the united states is not credible. we're not reliable. the president of the united states told lindsey graham in the oval office he was going to attack syria. when he told the world they had crossed a red line. the president had set and then didn't do it, it reverberated throughout the entire world. all of our enemies believe that. and so i believe that afghanistan possibly could revert to the situation that it did after we helped them drive

the russians out. >> but i don't know if you heard the interview, but secretary kerry made the point as far as that red line, drawing that red line in syria, the u.s. did follow up, and working together with the united nations, working together with the russians, they have effectively destroyed, he says, 92% of syria's chemical weapons stockpile already and 8% is being controlled for all practical purposes, they're just finding a way to get rid of it. hasn't that objective, the narrow objective of destroying syria's chemical weapons, been achieved? >> meanwhile, the horrible barrel bombs are being dropped, slaughtering innocent people. meanwhile, the iranian revolutionary guard is there. mean meanwhile, the russians have increased their supplies of weapons to bashar assad and the slaughter, hundreds of thousands of people dead, millions of refugees, and we have sat by and

watched it happen, while we have the chemical weapons to some degree removed, but there are allegations of chlorine attacks, which are chemical attacks, which are not covered by this so-called agreement. it is -- i can't tell you how it breaks my heart to see us continue to sit by and watch the syrian people slaughtered not just by bashar assad, who was going to lose before hezbollah came in. this has turned into a regional conflict and a tragedy of monumental proportions, for which we will pay a heavy price for decades to come. >> there's a huge and growing al qaeda presence in syria right now, there's no doubt about that. u.s. intelligence officials have said that is among the top threats potentially as far as terrorism is concerned facing the united states. we have to leave it right there. as usual, thanks for joining us.

>> thanks, wolf. she gave voice to a generation and shined a light on injustice. the author and the poet maya ang lieu has died at her home in los angeles. she went on to become a sing, a dancer, a civil rights activist. here, maya angelou reads the poem she wrote for the inaugural. >> lift up your hearts. each new hour holdings new chances for new beginnings. do not be wedded forever to fear. the horizon leans forward, offering you space to place new steps of change. here, on the pulse of this fine day, you may have the courage to look up and out and upon me, the rock, the river, the tree, your country. >> oprah winfrey has just

released this statement, let me read it to you. i have been blessed to have maya a angelou as my sister, my friend. she was there for me always. the world knows her as a poet. but at the heart of her, she was a teacher. when you learn, you teach. when you get, you give. is one of my best lessons from her. maya angelou was 86. honestly, the off-season isn't i've got a lot to do. that's why i got my surface. it's great for watching game film and drawing up plays. it's got onenote, so i can stay on top of my to-do list, which has been absolutely absurd since the big game. with skype, it's just really easy to stay in touch with the kids i work with. alright, russell you are good to go! alright, fellas. alright, russ. back to work!

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to go the distance with you. go long.

>> he was already working on the race but the battle for mississippi's senate seat just got nastier and it involves a candidate often called the next ted cruise. here is dan abash. >> a conservative blogger is in jail, arrested for breaking into this mississippi nursing home to photograph a senator's ailing wife suffering from dementia. cochran's campaign pokes fingers at mcdaniel. >> and it gets deeper in the mississippi mud. the reason he took the picture was to feed questions it is

called part of her job and and -- supposed to be about the struggle of ideas within the gop. >> a young tea party backed up start challenging a fellow republican for being out of touch and too entrenched in washington. now, chris mcdaniel is fending off questions about whether his campaign had anything to do with photographing his opponent's sick wife. >> our campaign had absolutely no connection with that whatsoever. >> you personally, when did you find out about the break-in? >> we're going to focus on his record right now. >> god bless the tea party. >> i am not going to washington d.c. to be a member of a cocktail circuit or to make back

room deals. i'm going up there to fight and defend the constitution. >> mississippi republicans and democrats say come on, cochran has been there a long time, he's a good public servant. >> i say name one fight that the senator has led against barack obama? name one time that he has raised his voice. >> for the tea party movement after a string of primary losses this year, mcdaniel has been their great hope, the best chance of toppling a republican especially after this stumble. >> the tea party is something i don't really know a lot about. >> millions of dollars pouring into mississippi against cochran come from a who's who of tea party groups. but like other republican incumbents, this year, cochran and his allies fight back. after four decades in washington, cochran has loyal

supporters. >> you're a democrat and you're supporting senator cochran? >> yes. i understand politics and i understand what is needed in his state and he's what we need in washington d.c. to stay and as long as he wants to stay. >> at this point, cochran is trying to avoid unforced errors. we tried to catch cocran the car they told us cocran was getting in screeched away without him while he snuck out. leaving reporters like us in the dust unable to talk to the senator. >> there are no reliable public polls to indicate who can win.

cut! [bell rings] this...is jane. her long day on set starts with shoulder pain... ...and a choice take 6 tylenol in a day which is 2 aleve for... ...all day relief. hmm. [bell ring] "roll sound!" "action!"

>> the 1960s were certainly a fascinating time. >> our government is asking us to refrain from traveling to foreign lands. >> okay. all you guys in vietnam, come on home. >> the times were changing so quickly in the 60s. and we didn't change them. we just reflected them. >> i can't hear you. what are you doing? >> i'm getting ready to go college. >> cbs gave the smuthers brothers that show because they were clean cut folk satirists. >> you lower your voice. >> mom liked you best. >> dick smuthers will be a guest. be sure to watch or set your dvr

for the premier of the 60s tomorrow night right here on cnn. that's it for me. i'll be back in the situation room, 5:00 p.m. eastern. newsroom with brooke baldwin starts right now. >> hi, everyone. thank you so much for joining me. it's actually a story that cnn first broke and moments ago, more disturbing details about the way service men and women are being treated right here on u.s. soil. bullying, sexual harassment and veterans not receiving the care they deserve. if you didn't think the numbers were high then, we have bigger numbers for you now. fl are several