right now, president obama and other world leaders, they're gathering at a that it toe snat. atop the agenda, russian aggression and stopping isis's reign of terror. the president of iraq asks for help. an interview, he says iraq is now in a very vulnerable situation. you'll hear from the new iraqi president. also right now, ferguson, missouri, police department already taking heat for the michael brown shooting, now about to face a lot more scrutiny. the attorney general of the united states, eric holder, set to make a big announcement. hello, i'm wolf blitzer.

from washington. >> gather a coalition and the president has made that clear. his administration officials have made that clear that to expand this mission you into syria on isis targets, they want to have a coalition that's ready to go to deliver that sort of military action and we can tell you in just the last couple of

minutes in a conference call with reporters that is happening right now, as a matter of fact, the deputy national security adviser to the president, ben rhodes, just told reporters that the president and prime minister, david cameron, did talk about the isis threat to and from a couple of events this morning. they had a bilateral discussion in which they talked about the threats posed by isis. and wolf, as you can see, these two leaders are very much becoming a duo in terms of providing leadership when it comes to dealing with the isis threat. the president and prime minister cameron put out that op-ed in the british newspaper this morning saying that the united states and britain will not be cowed by terrorists, but there are other meetings going on. interesting to note that the president did sit down for a meeting with king abdullah of jordan. the president has said he wants to line up regional partners in the middle east to take on the isis threat. so it doesn't just look like the west coming into the middle east to go after those terrorists. and so i think that's also

interesting. we don't have a full readout of that meeting. we expect that to happen later on. then, of course, you mentioned the crisis in ukraine, the situation with russia. there was a very interesting meeting, even though ukraine is not a part of nato, the leaders of the united states, great britain, france, italy, germany and president petro poroshenko all sat down at a table behind closed doors. the cameras went in for a few brief moments, didn't pick up much, but they were, of course, all stating their united support for ukraine's sovereignty and standing against that aggression that has been taking place in eastern ukraine. you know, one thing that we are wondering, you know, coming out of this meeting, wolf, is whether or not president obama will lead with some sort of international cooperative agreement stating there might be some sort of coalition that will go after isis in syria. interesting, wolf, that anders fog rasmussen said he thinks it is the international community's responsibility to go after isis. so another good development for the president in that regard as

well. >> stand by, jim, because i want to bring nic robertson into this conversation. as jim pointed out, there is this op-ed that the prime minister of britain, the president of the united states, they had a joint byline. let me put it up on the screen. we will not waver in our determination to confront isil. if terrorists think we will weaken in the face of their threats, they could not be more wrong. countries like britain and america will not be cowed by barbaric killers." nic, you had a one-on-one interview with prime minister david cameron. what did he say to you specifically about this isis threat? >> reporter: you know, wolf, he had a lot to say. and one of the things i put to him, i said, look, this is isis's not part of the main part of this agenda, this summit. he said, look, this is something that's going to get talked about. we just heard there from jim getting a briefing, conversations between president obama, david cameron in the margins about isis. we can expect more of that. these leaders will have a banquet in cardiff castle

tonight. they will discuss it more around the table there. i asked prime minister cameron, in the light of what president obama had said in estonia yesterday, i said, look. president obama has said that isis should be destroyed. but he also said that they should be reduced to a manageable problem, shrunk to a manageable problem. i asked the british prime minister, what should it be? should it be destroyed or shrunk? this is what he said. >> destroyed, squeezed out of existence is the way that i would put it. but we should be clear what we're facing here, is this islamist extremist narrative, poisonous narrative. it isn't just in iraq and syria. we've also seen it in somalia, in mali, of course in afghanistan when hosted by the taliban. so this is a generational struggle. >> reporter: now, prime minister cameron also there talked about king abdullah of jordan, how important it is to support him

militarily and other ways. he has isis on his doorsteps in iraq and syria, both bordering jordan. he also said when i asked him, is britain prepared to conduct air strikes to target isis in iraq and syria, he didn't commit to that. he said it wasn't ruled out, but his language led me to believe this may be a little further down the road for the british prime minister than perhaps it is for president obama right now, wolf. >> nic robertson on the scene for us, thank you. jim acosta, thanks to you as well. we're also learning more now about the white house's decision to send additional u.s. troops to baghdad. let's bring in our pentagon correspondent, barbara starr. we're talking about another 350 u.s. troops being sent to baghdad, bringing the total now to more than 1,000, i think, u.s. forces, active-duty military personnel now deployed to various partsiraq. so what are you learning about this new commitment? >> wolf, what u.s. officials are telling us is when they looked at the intelligence assessment, it showed them that isis,

indeed, had the capability basically to penetrate the international zone in baghdad. that's that high-secure area where the u.s. embassy and other installations are located, known for many years as the so-called green zone. that isis had the capability to get inside that secure area and potentially launch attacks against the embassy. they weren't looking at necessarily the scenario of isis storming the gates, trying to take the whole embassy, but isis has the capability to potentially launch suicide attacks, bomb attacks, car bombs, bombers with suicide vests, all of that. so the decision was made at the behest of the state department that they needed additional security. and now about 350 troops, about one-third of them already there now going to baghdad. they will be split between the embassy, the u.s. operation at baghdad airport, and maybe even going up north to erbil if it's required. so it's just really beginning to underscore how much the u.s. is

being -- is prepared to defend u.s. resources in baghdad, u.s. personnel in baghdad. this is another indicator, i would say, this is turning now to be a very long-term situation. wolf? >> yeah, it's going to go on and on and on. what about the specific threats? are there specific threats against the u.s. embassy in baghdad which, as you know, is a huge, huge embassy? i think it's the largest one in the world. specific threats to u.s. personnel, diplomats, military personnel in the iraqi capital? >> you know, wolf, at this time, the sources we're talking to in the u.s. government say there isn't a specific direct threat against the embassy complex. but we are in that post-benghazi era when the u.s. has heightened concern for all embassy installations around the world. and really in this era, it's all about taking those protective measures in advance. you know you're in a high-threat situation in baghdad. there's no question about that. so put the extra people in, be

prepared, and be able to repel anything that may come your way. it's one of the biggest issues right now for both the u.s. military and the state department around the world. protecting u.s. installations in these very high-threat areas that seem to be multiplying every week. wolf? >> yeah. in recent days, u.s. officials have said to me, given the fact that there was an attack on a u.s. diplomatic compound, the consulate in benghazi on the anniversary of 9/11, and that anniversary is coming up next thursday, one week from today. they obviously, in an abundance of caution, they're taking prudent steps to make sure that u.s. diplomats around the world are going to be protected as best as they possibly can. especially in baghdad. barbara, thanks very much. when we come back, iraq's president opening up about the new u.s. troop deployment to baghdad and reveals what he needs from the united states and how to destroy isis. christiane amanpour with the new iraqi president. that's coming up next. plus, the british government

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iraq is now looking to nato countries to help counter the threat from isis. today the president is the new president of iraq talked about that and other daunting challenges facing iraq during an interview with cnn's christiane amanpour joining us from london right now. what did the new president of iraq tell you about what he wants the united states, other nato allies to do about isis? >> first of all, he said he was really pleased by what president obama said, that now they are

determined to confront and to stop isis, determined to degrade and destroy, in president obama's words, and to stop the threat not just to iraq but elsewhere as well including the united states. those were the president's words. so he said he was really pleased about that. and then he told me -- and we can play a little bit of the interview -- he told me that they really did need help and have a broad sort of coalition kind of strategy to confront this menace. >> translator: if there is cooperation and coordination between iraq and the united states and the neighboring countries, i believe that the position can be quickly wiped out. >> the head of nato, mr. rasmussen, says that iraq, your government has not yet requested specifically help from nato. are you going to ask for that help? what kind of help do you want? >> translator: from here and through this interview with you,

i request support to iraq, support for iraq to fight those terrorists because iraq now is in a fragile situation, very vulnerable situation. and when that organization defeats iraq, it can proceed to other countries. but thorough our relationship with the united states of america and the coordination with the united states as well as european allies, we will discuss that. but regarding nato, it is true that we haven't yet asked formally for military help. but we ask the states that are members of nato for help. >> so you can see he's clearly asking in a very elaborate

manner for help. also when i specifically asked when he said we need retraining of our army which to the ears and eyes of many americans might seem strange because as you know, over the last 12 years, the u.s. has spent billions of dollars trying to stand up that army. but nonetheless, he says we need it completely reformulated. and interestingly, wolf, he confirmed to me that it was iranian militias along with iraqi forces supported by u.s. air power that. soed and relieved the siege of that town of amelie in iraq a few days ago. >> we learned that the pentagon agreed, christiane, to spend 350 additional u.s. troops to baghdad to protect the embassy there after intelligence assessments shows that isis potentially has the capability to launch an attack against the u.s. embassy compound in the so-called secure green zone. did the president of iraq, president masum, did he say that he wants more u.s. troops on the ground, boots on the ground, if

you will, in iraq? >> he didn't, actually. obviously, those forces have gone for the security that you mentioned. but i specifically asked him about, look, you know, a lot of people attribute the troubles in iraq to the 2003 war. and now a new american president, another american president who wanted a stop to all that is considering a new coalition for iraq to get rid of isis. do you want boots on the ground? and he said no, we want all sorts of other help but not boots on the ground. and critically, he said that he believes that a new government will be announced and will be formed within the next few days, he told me, one or two days. and that, as you know, is the very critical political component to have an inclusive government to pull in those disaffected sunnis to try to head off this fuel that that dysfunction is giving to isis. >> christiane amman poanpour, t very much. just ahead, the vice president of the united states,

joe biden, vowed the united states will follow isis, quote, to the gates of hell. but does the obama administration have a strategy to do that? and has vladimir putin made nato relevant again? we're going to talk isis, ukraine, politics, a lot more. david gergen's standing by. sweenjoy it all...ry! 'cause red lobster's one and only endless shrimp is now! endless choices! endless variety! kick it up with our spicy new wood-grilled sriracha shrimp and it's back: parmesan crusted shrimp scampi! the year's largest variety of shrimp flavors! so many to explore! as much as you like, any way you like! endless shrimp is here! but not for long. so hurry in and sea food differently. anncr: now you can merge the physical freedom of the car, with the virtual freedom of wi-fi.

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president obama and other nato leaders convened a two-day summit today facing what seems like a world in turmoil. the threat from the terrorist group isis certainly a major focus of the nato summit. it's now under way in wales. and president obama is under intense pressure here at home to lay out a clear, decisive strategy for confronting isis.

our senior political analyst, david gergen, is joining us now to talk a little bit about that. david, as our viewers know, you've advised four u.s. presidents. we need to hear the criticism of the president, a clear message on what he plans on doing to deal with isis. how important is it to hear that from the president? >> it's critical. you know, one of the lessons we learned from vietnam way back when is at first you commit the country, and then you commit the troops. and if you do it the other way around, you find the public opinion can slip away from you very, very quickly if something goes wrong. so if we really are going to embark upon a mission as the president himself said yesterday and then his defense secretary reiterated here on cnn, if the mission is to degrade and destroy the capability of isis, that's a big deal. it's going to involve troops, a lot of air strikes, probably in syria, rounding up a lot of allies. he's going to need the country with him, wolf, on this.

my working assumption is this. for the next 24 hours, he's going to be with our nato friends. at the end of that, there will be a press conference tomorrow, and we'll hear what has emerged from this nato conference. he will then come back to the united states, begin consulting with congress more, you know, more rapidly. and then i think sometime next week, he is likely to go to the country and say, ladies and gentlemen, here's what we must do. it's not really what i wanted to do as president, but what we must do given the new realities. >> how does the anniversary of 9/11, which is a week from today, fit into this kind of schedule, this kind of planning that the president might be considering right now? >> that's a really good question. i think it provides the 9/11 anniversary provides a rationale, a strong rationale for why isis must be destroyed in his mind. and that is what we're already seeing in britain, the fear of jihadists coming back from syria, coming back from isis and to britain. they've gone to a high state of

alert over that. and we all know that secretary hagel said yesterday here on cnn, with at least 100 americans having gone over to become jihadists, there's a real danger they'll come back. and so the president can use that 9/11, sort of the memories of 9/11 to, i think, unite the country. as long as he has a well thought-out strategy, wolf, and as long as it's one that people say oh, god -- they don't say here we go again, you know, one of the things that -- i don't know how it struck you, but watching the iraq president being interviewed by christiane amanpour on your show, wolf, it's hard tore me to see americans rallying to say oh, i'd really like to go save that guy. some parents are saying i wouldn't mind if my son was lost saving that guy. it's not exactly an inspiring, encouraging sort of symbol of what we want to go fight for. the president has got to give us that. the beheadings have really given us an emotional charge.

people understand now how brutal isis is. but he has got to come along and say here's what we're going to do about it and why i think it actually will work. >> because as you know, and all of our viewers know, after, what, ten years in iraq and the enormous financial and personal, painful sacrifice that american military personnel made there, 12 years or so in afghanistan, this country is pretty war weary right now. they've heard -- they remember in 2002, 2003, hearing all those warnings about what the threat was to the united states, weapons of mass destruction in ir iraq, nuclear potential and all of that. and they say what was the point. >> absolutely, wolf. and you and i can remember when we had something called the vietnam syndrome after the vietnam war. there was a real reluctance, a real resistance on the part of the american people, never again. we don't want to get into the jungles of a place like that. and we were very reluctant to

commit force as a country from the white house down through the public. and now what we have, i believe, is an iraq syndrome. and that is after the experiences, the war weariness, not only in iraq but afghanistan, people are just really, really reluctant, okay. you know, you see it again and again, people feel like we're not going to settle conflicts that go back 2,000 years. we're not going to do that in the next 20 months. you know, so they wonder who wants to die to defeat isis. on the other hand, we don't want any more beheadings. we've got this tension -- the leadership is about convincing us what the right way to go is and getting people behind him in a parade. >> let's talk a little bit about the crisis involving russia and ukraine. if the isis middle east crisis weren't enough, the president's got to deal with russia and ukraine right now. and estonia, where the president was before the nato summit, he delivered strong words of support for estonia, the other nato allies in the region,

especially those closest to russia. listen to this. >> and i say to the people of estonia and the people of the baltics, today we are bound by our treaty alliance. we have a solemn duty to each other. article 5 is crystal clear. an attack on one is an attack on all. so if in such a moment you ever ask again who will come to help, you'll know the answer. the nato alliance including the armed forces of the united states of america right here present now. >> strong words from the president of the united states. but you know, they are very nervous over there in eastern europe, the nato allies, not just of the baltics but countries like poland, for example, they wonder, maybe they're being reassured right now by the rhetoric from the president, but they're concerned as they see what the russians are up to in ukraine and elsewhere. >> wolf, the peoples of the baltics must have been reassured

by the president's stout defense of them yesterday, this issi si that we as partners and allies will defend them if they're attacked. i hope the people of poland felt the same way. what i think was missing from the president yesterday was an equally stout set of pledges for the people of ukraine. we'll have to see what comes out of these nato meetings. you any, there's news that's coming out of the meetings in the last couple of hours, as you know, we're seeking stepped-up sanctions. i'm not sure stepped-up sanctions, unless they're really tough, are going to satisfy the desire and the anxiety of a lot of people that were giving putin more of a pass than he deserves. there's also a question, wolf, to what extent the problems and the way the united states has responded in syria, backing away from a red line, whether that has fed into putin's aggressiveness and whether

putin's aggressiveness is feeding back. in other words, are these two things feeding off each other? "the financial times" made that argument yesterday in an editorial that the sense of american retrenchment, americans not wanting to be muscular either in the middle east or in ukraine. you know, that it's building up a syndrome in which other peoples sort of think they can take advantage of us, they can move into a vacuum. i think by the end of this nato summit, the president standing up with the other nato allies has got to send a message, we are united not only in the middle east, but we are united against russian aggression in ukraine, we're going to roll this back. the russians have to get out of ukraine. we are not ceding to crimea, we are not ceding to eastern ukraine, and putin ought to -- send a loud and clear message, we are willing to do what it takes to get you the hell out of there. >> ben rhodes, the deputy national security adviser, is telling reporters moments ago

that the u.s. and european nations, they are preparing a new round of sanctions against russia. ben rhodes saying among other things at the same time if there is a peaceful deescalation that is preferable, russia must continue to face costs. strong words coming from the u.s. we'll see what happens in ukraine with russia. lots on the president's agenda right now. a major news conference tomorrow morning, 11:30 a.m. eastern time. cnn will, of course, have live coverage of that. david, thanks very much. britain's battle against isis, it involves new measures to prevent an attack on the homeland. we're going to talk about the strategy, the growing terror threat with the former head of counterterrorism and britain's mi-6. that's next. [ female announcer ] you get sick, you can't breathe through your nose... suddenly you're a mouth breather. a mouth breather! how do you sleep like that?

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if we can't offer faster speeds or save you money we'll give you $150. comcast business built for business. welcome back. i'm wolf blitzer reporting from washington. great britain now taking action to neutralize the threat of an isis attack on british soil. the prime minister, david cameron, wants to temporarily block the return of uk-born jihadists from syria and iraq. and he's calling for a new law which would allow british citizens suspected of terrorism to be stripped of their passports. joining us now is richard barrett. he used to run britain's anti-terror operations for the last ten years. richard barrett, thanks very much for joining us. the prime minister's measures

would require all airlines to comply with a government so-called no-fly list or be banned from landing in britain. the uk also raised its terror threat level to severe, which means a terror attack is, quote, highly likely. a lot of terror action going on right now, anti-terror action, i should say. someone who used to run britain's anti-terror operations, does this response right now surprise you? >> well, clearly there's a lot of anxiety in the united kingdom just as there is everywhere else in the world where -- from where foreign fighters have gone to fight in syria and iraq. and it makes every sense, of course, to introduce measures that make it harder for people to go and harder for people to come back. but, of course, that doesn't necessarily stop them all from going, nor indeed stop them all from coming back. and i think what i've learned over the last ten years working with the united nations on counterterrorism is that the key issue really to deal with is to understand why people are going in the first place and try and deal with those issues rather

than merely trying to make it more difficult for them to go and come back. >> those are obviously long-term goals, but there's an immediate crisis right now apparently. 500 british citizens have gone to iraq and syria, have aligned themselves. they're fighting with islamist groups. how big of a threat do they pose? >> well, they could pose, of course, a very big threat because even if people go over to syria and iraq with the very best of intentions of helping the community there initially, of course, in 2011 to counter bashar al assad, and what happens to them while they are there? do they get really severely radicalized? do they get trained in various techniques which might turn them into terrorists when they come home? but then, of course, we have to ask why they come home. and i think that many of them may want to come home because they just are completely revolted by the violence or that they're disillusioned or exhausted by what they see. remember, war is brutal says.

it's not a particularly inspiring experience for many people. and the islamic state in iraq and syria, isis, has managed to portrayal itself as a wonderful organization which is offering people the sense of identity and belonging and purpose and all these wonderful things. but in reality, of course, it is an extremely violent and evil organization. and many people will understand that just as soon as they make contact with it. >> if some of these 500 who are now british citizens and maybe as many as 100 u.s. citizens, if they have now aligned themselves with isis, participating in these brutal acts, killing individuals in syria and iraq, if they decide, you know what, i'm now revolted, i want to go back to london, i want to come back to the united states, when they come back, should they be charged with a crime? >> well, certainly i think those who have joined isis and taken part in violent activity should be charged, yeah. they may be able to bargain down their sentence or penalty by saying, look, we are now prepared to try and help you stop other people from going by

telling them what it is that they're likely to get into. and that might be a deal that attracts the government. but essentially, if somebody has committed a crime and under british law it is certainly a crime to go and fight with isis or the al qaeda affiliate, then they must face the consequences of that. i don't think there's any doubt on that score. >> richard barrett, thanks very much for joining us. >> thank you. still to come, a new threat from al qaeda. announcing a planned expansion of their terror network. this while nato discusses the growing threat from isis. peter bergen, our terrorism expert, standing by to discuss.

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al qaeda has announced the planned expansion into india. the al qaeda leader ayman al zawahiri's message was posted online. in it he talks about the need for jihad in parts of india and the desire to, quote, liberate its land. let's bring in our national security analyst, peter bergen, joining us today from phoenix. what's your take on this new al qaeda message, specifically the substance and the timing? >> well, wolf, i think, you know, zawahiri is trying to get back some of the limelight that has been stolen by the islamic state of iraq and syria. you know, isis has been dominating the news now for many months. al qaeda is sort of forgotten. in fact, one of the interesting

things, wolf, about the videotape was how boring it is, you know. i mean, here is -- you know, when you think about the isis social media campaign that they're waging, it's highly effective. it's well edited. it's exciting. there's music. here you've got a picture of ayman al zawahiri sort of blabbing away for an half hour claiming that al qaeda is going to set up an affiliate in india, the likelihood of which is very, very small. i mean, there are very small jihadist groups in india, but there's certainly no al qaeda affiliate there. so this was just a very obvious attempt to try and get back in the news cycle. >> so you're suggesting there may be a bit of a rivalry going on between core al qaeda as it's now called and some of the other al qaeda, you know, groups like al shabaab or isis or al nusra or al qaeda in the maghreb, boko haram? is there some sort of rivalry among these groups? is that what you're suggesting? >> certainly between al qaeda and isis. al qaeda has publicly rejected

isis and vice versa. for the first time in history, al qaeda has basically said an affiliate organization, which is isis, is no longer a part of al qaeda proper. and there's a dispute about all sorts of things. there's a dispute about money. there's a dispute about power. there's a dispute about who has the global jihadi movement. and isis is, you know, the flavor of the month right now. the reason all these americans and brits are going to syria to fight with groups like isis is because, you know, these groups are winning. al qaeda certainly has never had large parts of the middle east under its control, the vast resources that isis commands, the number of recruits it has. and you know, even al czar wzaw in his mid-60s, is feeling no one's really paying attention to me. >> in the last two weeks two americans have been killed by isis. they now threaten a third westerner, a brit could be next. is that something we should all be bracing for?

>> unfortunately, yes. i mean, as you know, wolf, neither the american nor the british governments will negotiate, exchange money, for these hostages. and you know, isis also is not a group you'd want to negotiate with in good faith. they've never really made any good-faith efforts with hostages when they asked 100 million euros for james foley, that wasn't a serious demand. i think they've been, unfortunately, you know, keeping these hostages to make the kinds of statements we've already seen. >> you think the allies are basically on the same page, the u.s., britain, france, some of the other major nato allies when it comes to understanding and appreciating this isis threat? >> i think they're on the same page, but europeans, wolf, well understand that the threat is much more problematic for them. we've had had, you know, more than 700 french men go to syria. we've had the 500 brits you discussed with richard barrett just now. you know, and these are -- you

know, you cannot follow 500 people effectively in britain. it's just not possible. and of course, not all of them are people who have fought with isis. but the fact is that the problem is much more severe in europe. you can drive from paris to damascus. you know, it's a lot harder for americans to get to syria. and the numbers that have gone are much lower. so they're on the same page that this is a problem, but i think it's a very different problem if you're looking at it from london or from paris. >> peter bergen, thanks very much for joining us. >> thank you. i'll talk much more about this very same topic. the white house terrorism homeland security adviser, lisa monaco, she'll be among my guests later today in "the situation room," 5:00 p.m. eastern. 61 days until voters in kentucky decide who they'll be sending to washington. in this tight race, will the veteran senator running as the candidate for change actually win, or will it be her, the newcomer? there's lots of twists in this

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senatorial campaign committee. the group has made a multimillion dollar ad buy mark begich against dan sullivan seemed to have back fired. in kentucky, the senate minority leader, mitch mcconnell hoping for a change in title, wants to be the senate minority leader but has to get past a strong challenge to his own re-election first. here is chief congressional correspondent, dana bash. >> reporter: this year's marquis political race is a study in contrast. a 35-year-old democrat, a washington novice, running to be kentucky's first female senator. >> mitch mcconnell's washington, well, it's not working for again ken. >> reporter: the 72-year-old top senate republican in a fight of his life to win and take over the senate. >> there is nobody barack obama wants to beat worse than mitch mcconnell. >> mitch mcconnell is the ultimate political tactician and old school bring home the bacon senator. but he is not a warm and fuzzy

campaigner. at all. allison lundgren grimes is a natural at pushing the flesh with voters but in interviews, she often sounds scripted. >> give me some kentucky candor. is the president a drag on you here? >> i think that kentuckyions are seeing this race for what it is. a chance to actually move kentucky forward in the right direction. >> reporter: grimes is giving mcconnell his toughest challenge in years. breaking in campaign cash, getting help from family friend, bill clinton, airing clever tv ads. >> senator, why did you vote two times against the violence against women act and against enforcing equal pay for women? >> reporter: his goal, tie her to president obama who in 2012 won only four of kentucky's 120 counties and is even more unpopular now. >> she is a new face for the status quo. a new face to vote for barack obama. >> reporter: she paints him as the personification of

washington dysfunction. >> he has nothing left to give to the people of this state, no new ideas. actually promising further gridlock. >> reporter: you have to hear mcconnell's retort to believe it. the 30-year senate veteran is running as an agent of change. >> the only thing they can do in 2014 to change the direction of the country is change the makeup of the senate. >> reporter: and put him in charge. >> you know the joke that most senators look in the mirror and see a future president. you -- at least i don't think -- >> i never had that problem. >> reporter: is one of those owe omplts i didn't have that affliction. >> reporter: but you have always wanted to be the majority leader of the senate. is that fair to say? >> i would like to have a chance to be the majority leader of the senate, yes. >> cnn's dana bash reporting. the race, by the way, tight according to the latest poll. mcconnell has a slim lead among likely voters but within the margin of error. there you see 50 to 46%. still plenty of time before election day. 19% of likely voters say they

could change their mind before casting their ballot. a new development out of ferguson, missouri, means a lot more focus on the police department there. up next, the move we're told the justice department is getting ready to announce.

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less man a month after the deadly shooting of michael brown, the ferguson, missouri, police department is about to face a lot more scrutiny. officials are telling cnn, the u.s. justice department is planning a top-to-bottom investigation. we're waiting to hear from the attorney general of the united states, eric holder, in the next hour. he will be making a major announcement. let's get right to our justice correspondent, pamela brown, over at the justice department here in washington. so tell us what we know. what does this exactly mean for the ferguson police department? >> well, what this means, wolf, is that the justice department civil rights decision is going to launch an investigation, we're told, in looking at a top-to-bottom look at the ferguson police department to see if any changes need to be made there. whether or not there needs to be an overhaul, so investigators in this case are going to be looking at ferguson police department's training, its operational practices, perhaps its hiring practices, to see that if any of its patterns or

practices violate the federal law or the constitution. i want to make it clear, wolf, this is separate from the other two federal and local investigations taking place in ferguson right now, focusing specifically on the michael brown shooting. this investigation is focused on thepering ferguson police department. at this point, it's unclear if this will expand to other plemts. but we're being told it's just the ferguson police department. and wolf, just to put this into context, in the past five years, the justice department has launched investigations into 20 police departments. compare that, that's more than twice the number five years before that, wolf. >> we're going to have live coverage, of course, of this important announcement from the attorney general of the united states, eric holder. 2:30 p.m. eastern, a half hour or so from now. stay with cnn in the next hour. you will hear eric holder's important announcement on this new investigation. that's it for me. thanks very much for watching.

i'm wolf blitzer in washington. i'll be back 5:00 p.m. eastern another special two-hour edition of "the situation room." in the meantime, "newsroom" with brooke baldwin starts right now. you are watching cnn. hi, i'm brooke baldwin. and right now the president is meeting with allies in what many are calling the most important nato summit since the group formed back in 1949. the pressure, the stakes really couldn't be higher. the top of the agenda, russia's military incursion into ukraine and vladimir putin into russia, his defiance. but a more urgent concern taking center stage, isis militants both in syria and iraq. its slaughter of those two americans driving home the group's blood-thirsty hatred of the west. british prime minister david cameron really setting the tone for all these talks. take a lis