5:00 p.m. eastern in "the situation room." up next reaction to the president's speech. plus major new developments on the ray rice scandal. also the michael brown shooting. our special edition of "cnn tonight" continues right now with don lemon and allison. off awe thank you, wolf. appreciate it. it is 11:00 p.m. >> i'm alisyn camerota. did the president's speech rally the american people and congress? how are the people in the middle east responding? we will bring you all that. >> we will bring you breaking news on the ray rice story. conducting an independent investigation. the ap is reporting that somebody in the nfl's executive office was sent the shocking video back in april. who knew what and when? and is this case --

>> a bombshell. eyewitnesses shocked reaction to the shooting of michael brown. they say his hand were in the air, when he was gunned down by officer wilson. we'll have the latest on that and new protests to night in ferguson. >> we will begin with the president's strategy on isis this hour. we are joined live. now we will talk to jim, actually, jim is here with us. jim, not lost on any one that the president, president obama has been reluctant to act in syria. arming the kurd, syrian rebels now. we are going to do it. what is the plan? >> a tremendous turn around here. on so many levels, there are things that the president refused to do which is -- he is now doing. get involved in the syrian war. get involved in this mess really, as he is described it. now the u.s. its getting involved. two arm syrian rebels, the president dismissed in the past, a fantasy that arming them would

truly make a difference. you also have the president sending nearly 500 more american troops to iraq. these won't be combat troops. with that addition you will have 1700 americans in a war zone, as military advisers and things, facing real danger. the other big change tonight, step forward with air strikes. air strikes inside iraq. limited to two functions. protecting american personnel there. two, protecting some minority groups that we have seen under threat. the people early on. others. kurd. elt s et cetera. the president says the u.s. will chase down isis where it can be. it cannot have a safe haven. that will be true, both on the iraqi side of the border and the syrian side of the border. hof have a listen to what he said in the speech tonight? >> more over i have made it clear that we will hunt down terrorists that threaten our country wherever they are. that means i will not hesitate to take action against isil in syria as well as iraq.

this is a core principle of my presidency. itch you've threat if you threaten america, you will find no safe haven. >> now the president didn't get into the duration of this military operation tonight. but we have been told by pentagon officials that we're looking at years here. three years. possibly extending to after president obama leaves office. that means -- a lot of money. a lot of danger for american pie lots flying over those war zones. going forward. but one thing, don, to be clear, the president tonight never used the word, war. he calls this a counter terrorism operation. and said, he made an argument that it would not be like wars in iraq and afghanistan. >> not a war. still a military operation. military strategy as well. thank you for that. jim sciutto in washington. >> don in his televise address, president obama vowed to degrade and destroy isis through a comprehensive counterterrorism strategy.

cnns tom forman is here to tell us how the speech went over with the american public. i know you have your fancy barometer, taking the pulse of the american public, tom, what did it say? >> hi, allison. the bing pulse system. people are watching out there recording what they thought. overall. the 50% line here. overall people like the speech who are involved. the gender, split, men/women. by and large, women liked it a little bit more than men. but look at this. when you get to party. that's where you see the big differences. the blue up here. that's the democarts. the democrats liked it at every moment. more than republicans or independents, and importantly, the independents tracked very closely with the republicans, trust me, a lot of politicians in this town are watching that closely. let's look at a couple of points here, worth noting here. this its the highest overall point in the entire speech where most people all groups liked him the most. what was he talking about there?

defining the problem. listen. >> isil is a terrorist organization. pure and simple. and it has no vision other than the slaughter of all who stained its way. and a region that is known so much bloodshed, these terrorists are unique. in their brutality. they execute captured prisoners. >> one of the lowest points in the entire speech came here. this is where people were not very happy particularly the independents and the republicans. what did they not like? they didn't like any talk about american troops on the ground. even as trainers. listen. >> we will send an additional 475 service members to iraq. as i have said before, these american forces will not have a co combat mission. we will not get dragged into another ground war in iraq. they are needed to support iraqi

and kurdish forces with training, intelligence and equipment. >> so what was the one area though where people really disliked the speech the most? it's way down here. evenment democrats had troubling stomaching this. independents. republicans way down here. what was the president talking about here? he was talking about jobs, the economy, and his accomplishments. he injected politics, pure and simple, and at this time, nobody had a stomach for it. don, allison? >> all right. fascinating. if it's so interesting to get that instantaneous real time feedback. tom, thank you so much. >> jobs and the economy. yeah. >> people rejected that for some reason. guess they thought it had no role in tonight's bigger issue. >> meanwhile, get to major developments in the ray rice story. breaking news. former director of the fbi will be conducting an independent investigation. cnn's rachel nichols is here with more. rachel great to see you. all sorts of developments.

>> yeah, it's been rapid fire. seali seeing action finally. started earlier in the day associated press had been present in the office of the new jersey law enforcement, played them a voice mail, after the law enforcement officer, sent an nfl executive, all they're identified as an nfl executive a copy of the infamous individually we have been watching all week of ray rice inside that elevator. and the voice mail is so key. because you hear the voice of a female voice from the nfl offices, we know it is from the nfl offices because the ap reports that they saw one of those stamps, you know how you can have in your voice mail with the phone number where it is from. it is the phone number of the nfl office here in new york city. and a time and a date. and the voice says "i got the video. you're right. it's terrible." so this video that roger goodell has been saying on television and in print, that the nfl never

saw. well, according to the associated press there is an electronic chain of evidence that shows in fact they did get this tape into their offices. >> were they saying it's terrible in the sense that the situation is terrible? or the videotape is terrible? >> we have no idea. obviously. you're right it's terrible. certainly, we got the tape. your's right. if it's terrible. would imply the person was talking about the tape. we don't know. >> when did they get the tape? >> in april. >> in april. >> of the incident was in february. the case in march was sort of brought through the legal system and through the police. and then in april -- apparently, this video went to the nfl offices, july is when the two game suspension was handed out. and, obviously, roger goodell who has been up and down, saying we have never seen this video. has been put in the position of either being, a liar, or that

the office is so grossly incompa tent. or grossly neg li jenligent. >> over the next few hours there were calls not only for roger goodell to resign. and an investigation off to happen. former fbi director mueller will look into this. roger goodell pledged that everybody involved in the nfl offices will have their full cooperation. they will have access to all kinds of materials and people. we will have to see what happened. these things do go one or two ways. >> stay with us, rachel. i want to bring in our panel. bring in van jones, co-host of "cross "crossfire." lisa bloom, legal analyst for, avo.com. so, lisa, the nfl has the said time and time again it did not see or know of the tape's existence since tmz released it on the internet. now there will be an in end end investigation we have said, rachel mentioned alluded to as well. what do you expect it will find?

>> as rachel knows, had the pleasure of being on with her last couple days on cnn. i have been calling for an investigation. like the penn state investigation led ironically by former fbi director louis freeh. he is not available. read he is in a car accident last month. hope heap is better. we have a different fbi director leading this investigation. a very good sign. if it is anything like louis freeh's investigation in the penn state case. it will be thorough, detailed and scathing if he find facts embarrassing to the nfl. they're clearly not capable of policing themselves. they can barely get a statement without falling all over themselves this week. the best development all week. >> van, seem hard to believe this female employee who is unnamed at the nfl did not show this tape to anyone that she had in her possession since april. that she just sat on it. but, here its what the nfl spokesman, brian mccarthy had to say about the new revelation

today. he said we have no nol j knowle this. we are not aware of the video before it was made public monday. we will look night. what are your thoughts? >> well, this is a big leadership moment and challenge now. you are going from the player being put on trial. to now the entire league being put on trial. leadership there. this is a situation where if you have been lying it's time to confess. it its only going to get worse. somebody is either concealing or lying or covering up. it could be, at the very top. could be at the very bottom. but, those folks are watching tv tonight. looking at twitter feed. trying to figure out what to do. here is my advice. come clean. this is not going to work out well for anybody. and the longer this goes. you have the fbi in there now. you are going to have more people in there now. this will come out. nothing that is being said right now makes any sense at all.

>> the more they explain themselves, the less clear, i don't know how -- the more, befuddled i am. i think, everyone else is. like wait a minute. you said this. this happened. come on. >> isn't it clear they didn't want to see this video. is there any body who doesn't know that atlantic city casinos are filled with cameras? that there are cameras in the elevator? that they could have contacted any of the dozens of employees that have spoken to the press and said, oh, yeah, we all saw that. we saw it at the time. we watched it hundreds of times, afterwards. so many people knew about it. they said, oh, it was sent to us. we didn't see it. we dent knidn't know. asked law enforcement. didn't give it to us. they didn't want to seep it. >> amazing, espn put out a report tonight saying they had found 25 to 30 different casino employees who personally had access to the video. and that dozens more that seen it in the casino offices. also, as we reported here on cnn, ray rice's attorney had a

copy of the individuvideo. the casino told cnn that they repeatedly told the nfl and ravens. we can't give tight you directly. just go ask ray rice's attorney. now it is absolutely certain that ray rice's attorney was in roger goodell's offices with his client and they certainly could have said to ray rice's camp, bring us the video. bring us all of the evidence. and if you don't we are not going to let you back on the field. if ray rice's camp said, yeah, you know we dent want to give you the video. roger goodell's office could have issued a statement saying ray rice is obstructing our investigation, we are not going to let him back on the field. until he does. i promise you that video would have ended up in his hand. >> clients want to he-- attorne want to help their clients. >> there were four, five avenues the nfl could have gotten the video. >> thank you, guys. appreciate it. >> we have a lot more to got to tonight. we well talk to two wives who are part of the nfl family. one is a close friend.

of rave and janay rice. they will tell us what this couple is really like. also, new eyewitnesses for the michael brown shooting come forward. new unrest on the streets of ferguson. >> plus, more reaction to the president's speech. did he articulate an effective plan to defeat isis. we'll get into all of that right after this. when a pro at any 2014 pga tour event sinks a hole-in-one, quicken loans will pay your mortgage for an entire year. that is how it's done. truly amazing! get in the hole-in-one sweepstakes. enter today at pgatour.com/quickenloans and you could have your mortgage paid for an entire year. man: [ laughs ] those look like baby steps now. but they were some pretty good moves.

and the best move of all? having the right partner at my side. it's so much better that way. [ male announcer ] have the right partner at your side. consider an aarp medicare supplement insurance plan, insured by unitedhealthcare insurance company. go long. dad: he's our broker. he helps looks after all our money. kid: do you pay him? dad: of course. kid: how much? dad: i don't know exactly. kid: what if you're not happy? does he have to pay you back? dad: nope. kid: why not? dad: it doesn't work that way. kid: why not? vo: are you asking enough questions about the way your wealth is managed? wealth management at charles schwab

do you have something for pain? i have bayer aspirin. i'm not having a heart attack, it's my back. i mean bayer back & body. it works great for pain. bayer back & body provides effective relief for your tough pain. better? yeah...thanks for the tip!

>> the release of this shocking video of ray rice knocking out his fiance with a single punch sparked a nationwide discussion about why some women stay in abusive relationships. we have two women with us tonight who might be able to answer that. dawn newfield the wife of retired nfl player, ryan newfield. her own mother was in an abusive relationship for a decade. also with us is nioshi johnson, wife of retired nfl player chris johnson. she is a close friend of ray and janay rice's. ladies, thank you for being here. we appreciate talking to you.

tonight, dawn, i want to start with you. as we said, you're married to a former nfl player and your any mother was in an abusive relationship. so you connect to janay on many different levels. and you say you understand why she wouldn't leave. tell us about that. >> man nybe not necessarily understand why she wouldn't leave. i can understand why it is not an easy decision. people are saying why doesn't she just leave? my mom who is a -- a, an incredibly intelligent woman, educated, administrator in a school district before she retired, her own home was in a relationship with someone for ten years who all she had to do was tell him to leave. all she had to do was lock the doors. there was something about it that she just couldn't let go. and to see it happen with my own mother who is such a rock, i can imagine it could happen to any one. >> dawn, also some people have

suggested maybe janay is staying because of the wealth and privilege that comes from being married to an nfl player, do you thinking that could be playing into it? >> will i think there is a perception that nfl wives are just golddigs to gers to begin . to know your spouse is laying on the field with a blown out knee. there is no amount of money that can ever compensate for some of the stress that comes along with being an nfl wife. there is no doubt there are benefits to being in the nfl and being an nfl spouse. there are a lot of things you trade off that goes along with that. >> great points. >> your husband, played for the ravens. with ray rice. and you are close friends with ray and janay rice. can you tell us what they're like as a couple. >> they, as a couple they're just look any normal -- any nfl couple. living the -- the nfl life. what he has worked so hard to

accomplish on the field. but also -- what they have worked so hard to -- to build together. as a family. in this business of the nfl. just a loving couple. >> i guess the question is, have you ever seen him act aggressively or abusively toward her? >> no, not at all. and i'm very well versed i think. working with domestic violence. and seeing women who have the silent cries, who have the signs of being in a -- a crisis relationship, relationship or some kind of domestic relationship. there is never any signs to me at all. ever. >> you say that you are very well versed in working with women who go through this. of course you are because your own husband started this nonprofit to help abused women, be able to break free of that cycle. because his own sister was killed by an abusive boyfriend. so are you and your husband able to -- counsel janay?

>> that's why i lend my voice to her as a friend in that aspect. because she does know my stance on domestic violence. founded show time for women and children. to just break free from domestic violence. the women need to be removed, okay. also to educate women abut domestic violence. to educate families. to get families help and resources. and solutions if they are in a -- a domestic violent relationship. and -- so that's how she knew she could depend on me to help her transition through this. >> so, mioshi, how do you explain, given you know they so well. just a there mall fenormal nfl . how do you explain the videotape? >> i won't try to make an excuse. condone it. they know how they feel. they admittedly said that was the worst mistake they ever made. also, i will say that they took

full responsibility for -- for whatever parts they played. ray and janay took full spontd. i wasn't there that night. i can't say exactly what was going on. and what led to, that blow. but i do know when i spk oke to her. neither tried to make an excuse for each other and play a blame game. they took full responsibility. now how can we help, who can help us with this? >> well, dawn, and mioshi. appr about it. it removes the stigma and the shame. thank you for your work with that. >> thank you. >> coming up tonight, protesters hit the streets of ferguson, missouri. again today, cnn obtained exclusive video. two eyewitnesses reacting to the shoot of michael brown. could the video be a game changer. we'll ask the experts next.

>> look at this. tense moments in ferguson,

missouri. protesters calling for an independent investigation into shooting of michael brown, by a police officer, tried to shut down the interstate. police turned out in force. at least 35 people were arrested. so meanwhile tonight, cnn obtained video of two eyewitnesses to the shooting. reacting moments after it happened. cnn's randi kaye joins us now. randi why is the video key and help to set up what we are seeing about to see? >> what's key, don. these are two guys from out of town. they're both white coming to the defense of michael brown, basically telling us the officer darren wilson chased him down and shot him. what's also key -- they have no ties to the community of ferguson at all. this video is very short. just about 15 second or so as you are about to see but speaks vol u volumes and really gives you a raw response to what the guys just witnessed. it picks up here just as the final shots are being fired. watch this.

just after 12:00 noon, ferguson, missouri. the men you seen the exclusive cell phone video hear gunshots. they're about 50 feet away from michael brown and officer darren wilson. the unidentified person recording this video, captured the witness' reaction during the final moments of the shooting. both men were contractors working in the area. they did not want to be identified. the man on the left in the pink shirt told cnn they heard one gunshot. then about 30 second later, a second shot. he says he saw michael brown staggering. then he says brown put his hand up and said, okay, okay, okay. the witness told us the cop didn't say get on the ground. he just kept shooting. that same witness described the gruesome scene, saying he saw michael brown's brains come out of his head. again, reiterating, his hand were up. watch how he motions on the

video. the video, these witnesses say was taken shortly after the shooting ended. if you look closely, you can see a police officer in the distance beginning to put up crime scene tape. both men told us by the time it was over there were three officers on the scene. but only one involved in the shooting. another voice is also heard on the tape. the contractor in the green shirt told me that voice belongs to a man he didn't know who pulled up alongside them yelling this. that same contractor in green also told me that he saw michael brown running away from the police car. he said brown put his hand up and the officer was chasing him. he also said that officer wilson fired another shot at brown while his back was turned. the contractor in the pink shirt also shared this. that a second officer who arrived later to the scene also drew his weapon. he said, the one cop was the one

who shot him. then i saw the other officer pull a gun out. he didn't shoot. that same worker described how brown staggered dead after the second shot, 20, 25 feet to the ground. explaining, he was look a walking dead gift. keep in mind these men don't live in ferguson and don't know the brown family. but their account does square with what other witnesses have said. the woman who took cell phone video of brown's bed lyiody lyi the street. also told cnn brown was shot from behind. just like the can tractor ontra. >> he was running way from the officer he was getting shot at. >> this witness told ands on he didn't see brown's hand up perhaps because he was running outside to the scene. but he did see brown turn around before being fatally shot. >> by the time i get outside he is already turned around facing the officer -- he's, he's, he has the his arms under his stomach. he was like, halfway down.

like he was going down. >> uh-huh. >> the officer lets out, three, four shots at him. >> and after the shooting the contractor in the pink t-shirt told uh that they were the only two white people out there on the streets. so he told his co-worker they had to "get the hell out of there" before things got ugly. he said the was starting to get pretty ugly. they left. people were lining the streets. they were gathering there. they wanted to know what was going on. they have given statements to the police and the fbi these guys. one other quick er in the pink shirt talked to the police officer putting up crime scene tape. they talked to him. they were leaving brown's body uncovered in the street for evidence and putting up the tape to keep people away. that was his explanation. >> thank you for bringing that to life to us. let's talk about this potential evidence with the attorney for michael brown's family.

anthony, let me ask you this. the video, the story about the two construction workers has been out there since last week. that was a new development. that came to light because of the video that was floating around on the internet. been on the internet. yet you had not seen the video? video. >> i had not seen the video. no, don. this was the first time i was able to see it. was within the last 24 hours. i was unaware that this individual crow exist video existed. just coincidentally you have the, airing it around the same time that i actually saw it for myself. not too long ago. so, so. >> but, yeah, the construction workers two construction workers you knew about since last week. >> yes, yes. >> we knew about the construction workers for some time now. we knew their names. we knew that they were there. but we were unaware that they were captured on video. actually giving a -- what we call, spontaneous reaction to

what they had just seen. >> have you've spoken to the contractors. >> i have not spoken to -- to the contractor personally. i think one of the guys, i may have talked to, steve. but the other guy, no. and it was only in response to them reaching out to want to talk to -- to either the mother or some member of the family. >> jeffrey this appears to loon up with, eyewitnesses we had early on who, the ones who actually saw it. the two guys didn't see it. they said they came upon it three, four minutes after. they came up on it and saw him. right. started recording three, four minutes after. they came upon it after, after the first shot. right. and then they saw him running away according to them. this lines up with what witnesses were saying at the time. why is this significant? >> i think what's most significant about it is the individually that we see. because here you have maybe three minutes after michael

brown is killed. a witness essentially acting out his surrender. that is a pretty remarkable thing to have, essentially c es different thing. >> what's different. the two witnesses, young man, dorian, they all said the same thing. why are the two construction workers more credible than the eyewitness whose actually saw the shooting? >> i don't know if they're more credible. i just think this is more evidence in the same direction. i mean, i, think it is very different when you approach a witness who has been talked to for days and, and -- who -- who has told the story many times. here you have someone reactingen real time. to what is -- to what he, what he has seen. you know, raising his hands. saying he was surrendering.

he is basically saying, look, i saw this, this, this, young man. shot in cold blood. yelgs it is consisten yes it is consistent. i am not trying to weigh the most significant evidence. the video makes it so significant. >> it is right after. as randi mentioned. the two contractors were white weren't from the neighborhood. does it matter. is that significant? race, it plays a role in this particular case. >> i do, actually. look, of yufs lyyufsly -- obvio attacks, if this goes to trial, the community rallied against officer wilson. the community saw this as a racial thing. black victim. white cop. here you have a -- a two white witness whose say essentially the same thing. so, look, that, i think it is just reality.

that if the prosecutors pre seed with this case, it is better for them to have a diverse cast of witnesses. and you know, i think they -- will be pleased by the fact that -- you know, that these, these people are from outside the community and clearly have no ax to grind. >> as jeffrey said, anthony, pleased by the fact that they're from outside the community and they have no ax to grind. does that -- do you feel the same sentiment? >> i feel the exact same sentiments. keep in mind this reaction is without some one putting a microphone in this gentleman's face and asking him what happened. it's not like he had any opportunity to prepare his almost reflex reaction to what he saw. unlike the other withins who were basically asked to recount their version of events. this person is not attempting to do that for any audience. from what i can tell, looking at the video. he doesn't even know he is being recorded. so, from that aspect, i think -- it does make it a more

significant piece of evidence than all of the other evidence that we saw thus far. and he confirms the most egregious and most disturbing fact of the whole case which has got global attention, was the fact that mike brown had his hands up. >> which the whole thing, the whole saying of hands up, don't shoot. and as you are saying, this appears to be a more organic witness instead of some one asking them. he is saying what he said on tape. we appreciate that. we appreciate jeffrey toobin as well. >> organic. fascinating to see the video in real time. you see their bed language. a -- body language. >> yes, yes, the outloine tonight, will it succeed. does america risk the same mistakes of iraq. the experts have strong opinions. there was no question she was the one.

she reminds you every day. but your erectile dysfunction-that could be a question of blood flow. cialis for daily use helps you be ready anytime the moment is right. you can be more confident in your ability to be ready. and the same cialis is also the only daily ed tablet approved to treat symptoms of bph, like needing to go frequently or urgently. tell your doctor about all your medical conditions and medicines, and ask if your heart is healthy enough for sex. do not take cialis if you take nitrates for chest pain, as it may cause an unsafe drop in blood pressure. do not drink alcohol in excess. side effects may include headache, upset stomach, delayed backache or muscle ache.

to avoid long-term injury, get medical help right away for an erection lasting more than four hours. if you have any sudden decrease or loss in hearing or vision, or any symptoms of an allergic reaction, stop taking cialis and get medical help right away. ask your doctor about cialis for daily use and a free 30-tablet trial. and you'll see just how much it has to offer, especially if you're thinking of moving an old 401(k) to a fidelity ira. it gives you a wide range of investment options... and the free help you need to make sure your investments fit your goals -- and what you're really investing for. tap into the full power of your fidelity green line. call today and we'll make it easy to move that old 401(k) to a fidelity rollover ira.

>> i want the american people to understand how this effort will we different from the wars in iraq and afghanistan. it will not involve american combat troops fighting on

foreign soil. this counterterrorism campaign will be waged through a steady relentless effort to take out isil wherever they exist using our air power and our support for partners' forces on the ground. >> so can the president avoid making the same mistakes as the the u.s. has in the past? joining us now to talk about this, paul bernstein, cnn political analyst, cnn military analyst, and former at shea in syria, and david gergen, cnn analyst, and presidential adviser to nixon, ford, reagan, and clinton. gentlemen, grit to have you w-- have you with us tonight. colonel francona, start with you. it feels as though we are making a military effort in iraq. it suound to some like deja vu all over again the you never know how these things are going to turn out. then, in 2003, defense secretary rumsfeld said the iraq war

"could last six days or six weeks. i doubt six months." vice president dick cheney said, quote, "i think it will go relatively quickly, in week rather than months." ten years later we were still there. do you think the president has outlo outlined how we will get out of this? >> i don't. i think he has got support from the american people this is a threat that need to beaddressed. i think we have to be careful. a lot of people are saying, we have isisen ein iraq and syria. we'll do the iraq piece. and do the syria piece. we have to be careful not to separate them. isis is one target. it should be treated as one target set. no matter where they are. and the target should be attacked regardless of what side of the, line on the map they are. you have to find out what the centers of gravity are. go after logistics, commanders, wherever. if we start going after the iraqi portion, they'll just move everything to syria. so -- i think the president's laid out a good starting point. but the military is going to

have to do this smartly. and i understand the syria portion of it is going to be very difficult. you have to look at this as one target. >> i want to play something for you. because the president was warned about this. the american people were warned about it. national security people were warned about. they were warned about it by this gentleman back in 2007. listen. >> i know some in washington would laike us to start lefg irq now. begin withdrawing before our commanders tell us we are ready would be dangerous. for iraq, for the region, and for the united states. it would mean surrendering the future of iraq to al qaeda. it would mean we would be risking mass killings on a horrific scale. it would mean we allow the terrorist to establish a safe haven in iraq to replace the one they lost in afghanistan.

it would mean increasing probability american troops would have to return at some later date to confront an enemy that is even more dangerous. >> david gergen, that is, that enemy is isil. did president bush get it right? is this a crisis of the president's own doing? of his foreign policy failings? >> i don't think it is far to lay this entirely on president obama's doorstep. he inherited a lot of stuff. i do think we had a very sparky show tonight on cnn between jay carney and senator mccain on this point. i do think the weight of evidence suggests we should have left behind a force not a beg one, but a force as our commanders wanted. president obama never really pressed that point. if we had the force there, would it have solved everything. no. we would have had much better intelligence. we would have a, might have seen isis rising and, you know, we wouldn't have called the jv team. you know, some months ago.

and what we also know, when you talk to the commanders, who were there with american forces. if we had a, a force there, you would have had a general who go talk to maliki. talk to hip. steer him away from some of the terrible policy decision he's made which really broke the country apart. so there is a chance. a real chance we would not be quite where we are right now. >> carl, we know you want to get in there. >> sure. i think we need to look at this as part of a bigger problem than just isis. we are really talking about the beginning finally of a global coalition of, of -- hopefully involving islamists and as well as people, leaders in the west, we need a churchill, we need a fdr, truman, we need a great arab leader to form a coalition against the scourge of terrorism. this fight is going to last for generations. and i think this is the beginning perhaps, of recognition of this. and isis perhaps brought us to this point. but we cannot do this, protect

ourselves without the arab islamist world involved. that's where we are heading. but we have got to look at this a little bit like a cold war. we have to look at this coming out of world war ii. this is going to take newt gingrich. i don't agree with gingrich. but he is pretty elegant tonight about getting the dimensions of this right. we need our leaders. the media. we need to start looking act it that way. >> gentlemen. si sit tight. more reaction to the president's speech. coming up how isis is recruiting women from around the world. we'll get into that straight ahead. can this decadent, fruit-top pastry with indulgent streusel crumbles be from... fiber one? fiber one streusel. available at walmart.

do you guys have identity theft protection? [ male voice ] i'm sorry, did you say identity distribution? no. protection. identity theft protection. you have selected identity distribution. your identity will now be shared with everyone. thank you. no, no, no -- [ click, dial tone ] [ female announcer ] not all credit report sites are equal. [ male voice ] we're good in here, howie. yeah, have a good night, brother. experian.com members get personalized help plus identity theft protection. join now at experian.com. with enrollment in experian credit tracker.

dad: he's our broker. he helps looks after all our money. kid: do you pay him? dad: of course. kid: how much? dad: i don't know exactly. kid: what if you're not happy? does he have to pay you back? dad: nope. kid: why not? dad: it doesn't work that way. kid: why not? vo: are you asking enough questions about the way your wealth is managed? wealth management at charles schwab

that's keeping you from the healthcare you deserve.. at humana, we believe the gap will close when healthcare gets simpler. when frustration and paperwork decrease. when grandparents get to live at home instead of in a home. so let's do it. let's simplify healthcare. let's close the gap between people and care.

>> tonight president obama mapped out his four-point strategy for eliminating isis which include air strikes, training ground forces, cutting off funding and providing humanitarian assistance to innocent civilians in danger. by ground forces i mean local fighters. we're back with carl bernstein, david gergen and lieutenant colonel rick francona. your face looked skeptical when we played the sound bite of president bush, saying it was important to leave behind u.s. troops instead of rushing out of

iraq. >> with all due respect to the former president that she led us into the most disastrous war in our history. one of the worst presidential decisions in our history. to go to war in iraq, the wrong country, in a war that made iran the victor, that made terrorists the victor. and we are now dealing with the fallout from that disaster. including isis. but that said, the larger fight against the scourge of terrorism is the struggle of our time. as i was trying to say earlier, someone, some great leader, and it is a little late for obama, but, he said in estonia, the other day he actually made a statement about organizing the arab world, the muslim world, middle east, international community to isolate this cancer. that's what we are talking about here. it is going to take islamist leaders to joan uin us. i don't know if it is possible given the state of the islam

world. this is not a tiny faction of the islam world that encourages and cheers these beheadings. this is a terrible thing that we are up against. >> yeah. let's listen to the president tonight speaking about, about his reluctance to use military action at least ground troops, when he was a candidate. sorry, this is 2007. let's listen to that. >> we will bring our troops home! it is time to bring this war to a close! it is time to recognize there is no military solution to in iraq! it is time to turn the page! >> i have resisted calls for military action because we cannot resolve someone else's civil war through force. particularly after a decade of war in iraq and afghanistan. as commander in chief i will not allow the united states to be dragged into fighting another war in iraq. >> man will say, which president

is it? which message is it? david? >> he has clearly gotten pulled back in. a very reluctant warrior. doesn't want to do this. you have to say, it is good he recognized reality. i think his speech to night was a fine speech. i want to go back to the point carl is making. i totally agree that some one need to say this is a fight against terrorism and radical islam bigger than isis. carl, friend of ours in the middle east have been trying to tell us that for a while. our friend in the gulf, united arab emirates have been saying this for a while. my sense is that if we are going to get them as staunch partners throughout this, they need to know that we're in it for the long haul and that we have a bigger view and that we're going to be addressing their problems as well as our problems. you know, because they have to live in this, in this, very, very difficult place. >> colonel francona, the president talked about assembling a coalition lick that tonight. he didn't give a lot of specifics in terms of who that includes. >> that's because i don't think

we have any body leaned up just yet. very difficult to get arab al liz to commit forces if they're not sure we're in it for the long term. david is exactly right. we have to demonstrate to them we are committed to do this. air power alone won't do it. i had conversations with arab leaders about this, arab military officers, it's "why should we send our young men to die and fight in iraq, syria, if you won't do the same? ". >> colonel, what does "in it for the long haul" mean? >> we have to convince them that we're not going to leave when it is expedient for us or had enough. that's the problem. wea we go in and the enemy decides to wait us out. with the president, all due respect to time to bring the wars to an end you. don't always get the final vote on when the war ends. the other guy gets a vote too. >> par done me, colonel the this is not just about war. this is another strategy. i mentioned george cannon, history, the cold war for a reason. this is going to involve civic

leaders, institutions. >> why have to go, carl. >> held that thought. >> we'll come back to that. tau awe we have a lot of time here. >> thank you, we will be right back. >> we certainly will come back to that. dart, jake johnson. not even your best friend slash neighbor? no one. i can still get in craig. i'd like to see you try. all i'd have to do is roll in, dude. let's see it. i choose not to right now. come on indiana. craig, craig, craig. [in a british accent] is someone out there? don't do that accent on me! ♪don't touch my dart

>> we are just moments away from the anniversary of 9/11. and it is no accident that president obama chose this time

to lay out the strategy to defeat a new terror threat from isis. we've got more on that straight ahead. it is midnight on the east coast, everyone. this is "cnn tonight." welcome, i'm don lemon. >> i'm allisyn camarota. will americans increasably worried about terrorism, is this what it will take to keep us safe? >> plus, isis is looking for a few good women. how they're recruiting women, even girls as young as 14. they're far more successful than you might think. we're going to tell you why. >> why are women attracted to that? and new developments in the ray rice case. former fbi director mark mueller will conduct an independent investigation. and an nfl executive did receiver a cop. i of this infamous elevator video back in april.