check out our show page at cnn.com/thelead for video, blogs, extras. you can subscribe to our magazine on flipboard. that's it for "the lead." i'm jake tapper. i turn you over to wolf blitzer who's next door in "the situation room." happening now, combat troops in iraq. america's top military officer leaves the door open to using u.s. ground forces against isis. is he on the same page as the commander in chief? i'll talk to nato's supreme allied commander. boots on the ground to fight ebola, president obama will send 3,000 u.s. troops to west africa to battle the deadly virus. is it really a serious threat right now to the united states? ferguson deadline, a grand jury gets more time to decide whether a police officer should be charged for the shooting at the time of teenager michael brown. and raging wildfires. thousands have been evacuated with fires destroying a church and burning more than 100 homes

already. i'm wolf blitzer. you're in "the situation room." let's get to the breaking news. the united states has now launched two major military campaigns, one targeting isis terrorists in the middle east and the other targeting the deadly ebola virus in west africa which has now killed at least 2,400 people. president obama says ebola is spiraling out of control, could threaten global security. he'll send up to 3,000 u.s. troops to west africa in the coming delays. the united states will build treatment centers and train health care workers. meantime, the defense secretary, chuck hagel, tells congress isis could pose a direct threat to the u.s. homeland. and the joint chiefs chairman is now raising the possibility that u.s. combat troops could take part in ground combat missions against isis. our correspondents, our analysts, our guests are all standing by with full coverage. let's begin with our chief national security correspondent, jim sciutto.

jim? >> today joint chiefs chairman general martin dempsey put an option on the table that the president seemed to have taken off, putting u.s. military advisers who are now confined to joint operations centers in baghdad and erbil much closer to combat if not in combat situations. he's not requested such a move, but he did specify missions where if circumstances change he might ask for them, including ground controllers if the air campaign is failing. within moments of starting his testimony today, joint chiefs chairman general martin dempsey opened the door to an option the president had ruled out. u.s. troops in combat against isis. >> if we reach the point where i believe our advisers should accompany iraq troops on attacks against specific isil targets, i'll recommend that to the president. >> reporter: soon a total of 1,700 u.s. military personnel will be deployed to iraq.

and just last week, president obama again pledged -- >> these american forces will not have a combat mission. >> reporter: but today, general dempsey indicated the president had told his commander he might reconsider. >> he has told me as well to come back to him on a case-by-case basis. >> reporter: senior administration officials tell cnn the president's pledge stands. still general dempsey described specific circumstances where he might ask for ground forces, including if the air campaign was failing in special operations ground controllers were needed. or if iraqi forces attempted to take back the isis stronghold of mosul. >> it could very well be part of that particular mission to provide close combat advising or accompanying for that mission. >> reporter: close combat advising or close combat? we asked general mark hurtling, commander of u.s. forces in northern iraq during the troop

surge what the difference is? >> a soldier in a combat unit knows he or she may have to engage in combat with the enemy directly at any given time. >> reporter: an adviser would not? >> an adviser is pointing the way for another military force on what right looks like. >> reporter: on the end game, the pentagon was managing expectations, acknowledging for the first time while the u.s. will seek to destroy isis in iraq, it may settle simply for disrupting it in syria, where the challenges are far greater. as the u.s. embarks on war in the region once again, secretary hagel sounded a cautionary note. >> as much as we have engaged, as much as we have bled, the treasure and the lives that we have left behind, we still haven't fixed the problem. >> both the white house and the pentagon say that the mission has not changed and there is no current request for ground troops.

just a short time ago, i got a call from a senior administration official who got at the definition of what combat is. they're saying these troops would not be in a -- they would not be fighting combat, taking up firing positions, taking back ground, et cetera. they might be closer to combat, say for instance calling in air strikes or advising iraqi units engaged closer to the front line. so that's the definition of combat they're using. i think that americans back home might think that some of these roles that the general was talking about today sound a lot like combat. but from the administration's standpoint, that's not a combat troop. >> things are technical differences. but if you're one of those soldiers or marines on the ground right there and you're facing the enemy, it feels like combat. >> no question. for instance, during the iraq invasion, i was embedded with u.s. special forces who were performing a role of close combat advisers. while they weren't necessarily firing the guns, the kurdish peshmerga were, i was in many situations where the bullets

were flying over our heads. felt a lot like combat to me and the danger was certainly there. >> they described the mission as being to destroy isis in iraq, to degrade it in syria. i listened to the hearing. they were pretty blunt in acknowledging, this is going to take a long, long time, no simple military solutions. >> that's right. the word that general dempsey used was generational. this is a generational conflict that speaks of years, decades. and i think preparing people's expectations to say, this is something that cannot be stamped out completely in a matter of months or a couple of years. >> when i heard last week administration officials saying three years, i said, three years? the u.s. has been fighting al qaeda now for 13 years. it's been degraded but it certainly hasn't been destroyed. jim sciutto, thanks very much. even as the chairman of the joint chiefs leaves the door open to possible u.s. combat ground troops, the united states is stepping up its air campaign against isis. those strikes are being outdoor

closer and closer to the largest city in iraq, the capital of baghdad. let's go to our pentagon correspondent, barbara starr. what does that tell us about what's going on if the u.s. now has to protect baghdad? we know the second largest city in iraq, mosul, is under the control of isis. but if u.s. air strikes are needed to protect baghdad, what does that say? >> reporter: wolf, right now, these latest expanded air strikes are about 20 miles southwest of baghdad. and what they are doing is expanding the target set. these are the strikes now that are being called offensive air strikes. they are going against isis targets, in particular for the first time to defend iraqi forces on the ground that are in the fight. iraqi forces coming under attack by isis. the u.s. rolling in with air strikes. in fact, in the latest one of these offensive air strikes, they even bombed two small boats

in t the euphrates river. they want to keep rolling them back and going against these targets in iraq and pushing isis back towards where it came from in syria. and the next decision is, do you want to go against isis in syria? that may be the biggest decision the administration is facing right now. but definitely look for more of these expanded air strikes to help iraqi forces move against isis. >> what's next for the u.s. military? about 1,600 u.s. troop, advisers, as they're called. they're in iraq right now. i've heard estimates that number could go up significantly. >> reporter: it may well if as jim reported on what general dempsey said today -- if general dempsey feels that there is a need for more troops. very specifically general dempsey was talking about being -- those forward air controllers on the ground, calling in air strikes and also

working more with iraqi forces in advising them. if he feels he needs more in the field, he says he will go back to the president and ask for it. >> barbara, thanks very much, barbara starr at the pentagon. boots on the ground. president obama is deploying up to 3,000 u.s. troops. they're not necessarily going off to battle isis. they'll be heading to west africa to fight the deadly ebola virus, the disease has already killed close to 2,500 people. thousands more have already been infected. let's go to our white house correspondent, michelle kosinski. michelle, the president announced major u.s. military moves. >> reporter: we're hearing even from senate republicans right now applauding the president's plan. one senator just declared war on ebola. others saying, we ought to be paying as much attention to this, taking it as seriously as we're taking the isis threat. so now the president has unveiled this expanded plan. yes, it does include boots on the ground to fight ebola in

africa. here's what he said just now at the cdc. >> the epidemic is going to get worse before it gets better. but right now, the world still has an opportunity to save countless lives. right now, the world has the responsibility to act, to step up and to do more. the united states of america intends to do more. we are going to keep leading in this effort. we're going to do our part. and we're going to continue to make sure that the world understands the need for them to step alongside us as well in order for us to not just save the lives of families like the one i just discussed but ultimately to make sure that this doesn't have the kinds of spillover effects that have become even more difficult to control. >> reporter: so this is going to be about 3,000 u.s. military personnel based in west africa, coordinating these resources that the africans so badly need, money, personnel, training and facilities.

they will build a hospital for aid workers, treatment centers with more than 1,000 beds, a training center that the u.s. is going to recruit for and staff. and there are a lot of elements to this, including also distributing supplies, education, enhanced screening at foreign airports and more money for research for new drugs to fight ebola. but then again, you ask the white house, how big a risk is there really of an epidemic breaking out in the u.s.? and they say, it is highly unlikely. it's just that this spread has been so unprecedented in africa that it requires an unprecedented response. the president today called it gut-wrenching although some aid workers have said the u.s. has been quite slow to respond. it took months to get to this point. we just heard fascinating numbers from u.s. health officials saying there are just under 5,000 diagnosed cases of ebola and about half of those were just reported in the last three weeks. that's why there's such a fear that this is going to spread

exponentially. today there's a show of force. the president met with dr. kent brantly, who contracted ebola in africa and was treated here. he and the three other americans who were treated here are now doing well. brantly testified today before a senate subcommittee and called the ebola epidemic a fire burning out of control, a fire straight from hell. >> and the president invited him and his wife into the oval office to show that everything with this individual did come down with the ebola virus is okay right now. that's a good report, michelle kosinski. thanks very much. let's go in depth right now. joining us in "the situation room," dr. thomas frieden, the director of the centers for disease control and prevention in atlanta. he was with the president today. when i heard that 3,000 u.s. military personnel were heading right into the heart of it in west africa, in liberia, i immediately worried about those 3,000 troops. i'm sure their family members

are deeply worried about them as well. here's the question, you were in west africa, you studied what's going on. how worried should they be, their families about their brothers and sisters, moms and dads, sons and daughters who may be heading over there for the united states right now? >> any of us who deploy to another country, whether it's a war zone or a place where there's an epidemic raging, we can never say the risk is absolutely zero. having said that, we're going to take steps to make sure that it's kept to an absolute minimum. we don't anticipate any of the individuals having contact with ebola patients that would put them at risk and the kinds of things they're doing are going to make a huge difference. we're so grateful for the leadership of the president in bringing the department of defense on and having them help accelerate the efforts. >> will these military troops who are going to liberia now have to wear all this protective gear that we're showing our

viewers? >> the details still are to be worked out. what the department of defense has outlined is a series of steps to support logistics, training, building a hospital for national and international responders and doing other things fundamentally to accelerate the response because that's what we need. >> do they have specific training, these 3,000 u.s. troops, in dealing with a crisis like this ebola virus? >> many of the things that are needed aren't specific to ebola. they're things like logistics, training, moving things around, building things. on that, they have excellent training. no one from cdc or any part of the u.s. government or the defense department is going to go into any place that has ebola patients in it without complete training in how to do that. >> the world health organization now estimates the number of deaths from ebola could double every three weeks.

do you agree with that assessment? that sounds dire indeed. >> we are seeing an exponential increase in cases and we're deeply concerned. the president was very clear about this in his briefing today. he's absolutely correct. this is going to get worse before it gets better. and what we need to do and what we are doing with the president's leadership is surging people into the field to support the response. not to be the first responders out there but to make sure that those who are addressing the epidemic have all of the tools at their disposal to turn it around. >> you said earlier this month, dr. frieden, that the window, your words, the window is closing for containing ebola. how much more time does the world have? >> we know the situation is dire and urgent and we know that today's action with the president and the department of defense coming in and providing this incredible level of support is going to accelerate and reinforce the efforts not just

of the u.s. but of the entire world that's helping to stop the ebola epidemic there before it spreads to africa and is an even bigger problem. >> there have been some concerns out there that the ebola virus could mutate and become even more powerful, even more dangerous, even more contagious. is that a realistic fear? >> we've never been in this kind of situation before, so we don't know what the future will hold. we do know that for every day that the virus continues to spread in africa, it's more likely it will spread to other countries and there's the possibility it will have a mutation that will increase its ability to spread from person to person is there. our judgment is that possibility is very low. it hasn't changed much in 40 years and it would be unusual for something like that to happen. but we don't know. we haven't been here before. what we do know is that the longer it spreads, the greater the risk of more bad things happening. >> does this z-map as it's called, really work? is that a cure for ebola?

>> there are some promising experimental treatments and experimental vaccines. we hope they work. we hope to develop them, test them, find out if they're safe and effective and get them deployed in large enough numbers to wake a difference. but we can't count on it. what we can count on is a rapid, intensive response now, the kind that the president and the defense department are leading starting today can help turn this around by making sure that patients are rapidly diagnosed, rapidly isolated and that we can stop this epidemic before it spreads much, much further. >> i know the united states is now taking the lead. one final question, dr. frieden, before i let you go. why is the united states always the one who takes the lead in these -- where is the united nations? where is the world health organization? where are the europeans? where's the rest of the world? >> actually there's been a tremendous commitment to the response, not just from the u.s. we've got about a dozen

different countries building laboratories in the region. we have support from the british. we have support from the african union that will be sending hundreds of workers. but we have unique capabilities, as the president outlined today. and we're devoting those unique capabilities to respond to what is a threat not just to africa, not just to the world but specifically to the u.s. because of the risk of instability as the president outlined. >> dr. thomas frieden, cdc director, good luck to you and the men and women involved. this is obviously a crisis that is unfolding right now. appreciate what you're doing. thanks for joining us. >> thank you very much. just ahead, a fresh warning about the threat posed by isis. i'll talk to nato supreme allied commander general philip greedlove who's now in washington. and a new deadline in ferguson, missouri. a grand jury is given more time to decide if a police officer should face charges in the shooting death of michael brown.

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let's get back to our top story. the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, general martin dempsey, leaving the door open to possible u.s. ground combat troops fighting against isis. right now the local forces are trying to do the fighting on the ground in iraq. let's go to the front lines of this desperate battle right now. cnn's anna coren joins us from northern iraq. kurdish forces are deeply involved. you're in erbil right now. what's the very latest, anna? you were out with those peshmerga fighters earlier in the day. >> reporter: that's right.

we spent the day with the peshmerga out on the front line as they took the fight to isis. they were trying to claim back an area that had been seized by isis in the past several months and a strategic bridge which isis blew up a month ago. this bridge, critical because it gives access from erbil which is where we are, the capital of kurdistan, to mosul, iraq's second largest city and isis stronghold. the next phase of this operation will be the battle for mosul. we're not there just yet. but certainly preparations are under way, which is why this fighting was so important. now, apart from the ground forces, the u.s. fighter jets, they circled the entire time we were there. we were there before dawn and right until the afternoon. the presence of the fighters jets was critical, not only providing that cover so the ground forces could move in. but also taking out those enemy positions as well as the armored

vehicles which obviously are causing a great deal of problems. so certainly those u.s. fighter jets making a huge difference on the ground. and we sat down with the kurdish president, president barzani, yesterday and i asked him about the air strikes. he asked for more. he says they're great, they're doing a good job and helping our troops. but we desperately need more. the fight is ongoing. but they need more arms, more ammunition and more help. >> anna told me earlier, i think it still holds, there's no evidence the iraqi military is doing anything to protect these iraqi citizens, these kurds in the north right now, is that right? >> reporter: yeah, that's absolutely right. the thing is that the city of mosul is within iraqi territory. falls outside the borders of kurdistan. i put this also to president barzani yesterday, are you prepared to go outside your borders because you aren't getting that help from the iraqi security forces? he said if there is a comprehensive plan which

president obama and the global coalition are putting together, this is something that they certainly would consider to do. but there is no doubt about it. the peshmerga are in control of northern iraq. they are the ones on the ground fighting isis. we have seen no presence of the iraqi security forces other than the 200 iraqi commandos that were sent up to mosul dam to help in that operation. it worked effectively. but obviously if everybody comes under the one umbrella, it would be a much more effective fighting force on the ground. >> let's hope that could emerge. anna, thanks very much. be careful up there in northern iraq. you're in "the situation room." we're monitoring more breaking news that's just coming in. you're looking at one of the dangerous wildfires burning in northern california right now. crews on the ground. there are tankers in the air trying to control the flames. also, more on the other breaking news we're following. nato's top general is warning about the threat posed by isis-trained fighters returning from iraq and syria.

general philip breedlove is standing by to join us live right here in "the situation room." and later, why it could be next year, yes, next year before we find out if the ferguson police officer who shot michael brown will actually face criminal charges. stay with us. you're in "the situation room." my motheit's delicious. toffee in the world. so now we've turned her toffee into a business. my goal was to take an idea and make it happen. i'm janet long and i formed my toffee company through legalzoom. i never really thought i would make money doing what i love. we created legalzoom to help people start their business and launch their dreams. go to legalzoom.com today and make your business dream a reality. at legalzoom.com we put the law on your side. ♪

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getting answers about the police shooting of michael brown in ferguson, missouri cnn's confirmed a judge has now extended the term of the grand jury investigating the case. the jury doesn't have to issue its findings until early next year. i'm joined now by cnn anchor don lemon who covered the disturbances in ferguson for us. our senior legal analyst, jeffrey toobin, as well as naacp board member john gaskin. what's been the reaction in the st. louis area to this decision that this grand jury could go on till january? >> well, as we're speaking with people on the ground as well as some people from the legal community, people on the legal side are not necessarily surprised. to some extent, we can agree with them on that. we want this to be thorough. as your network led last week with that new footage that came out of those workers working in the apartment complex, information is coming and dripping out each day regarding this pertinent potential trial. we want to make sure all the

details come forward. we want to make sure any information that's going to be critical to bringing justice to mike brown and his family, that all those details are brought together for any information that could be pertinent in bringing charges against officer wilson. so we understand that. but we also want to educate people here on the ground of what that process is. so you have many people that are very frustrated, many people that are looking for answers and many people that are very upset and surrounding this very sensitive matter. we understand that. but we do want people to understand that if there is critical information out there that could be of a good service to the grand jury, we want to make sure that they hear all of this information for sure. >> let me ask jeffrey. how extraordinary or unusual is it that they're going on -- we thought maybe october they'd come up with a decision. but now maybe january. is this extraordinary, expected? >> ever since the prosecuting attorney announced that he would have the investigation done by

october, i thought that was way too fast. >> why do they need so much time? >> they're only meeting one day a week. and the prosecutor also said that he wants to put every scrap of evidence in front of the grand jury. so just as a technical legal matter, just in terms of presenting all that evidence, it's going to take a long time, especially when they're only meeting one day a week. that, to me, is a sensible way to proceed. there is really no difference between an indictment if there is an indictment in october versus one in november. it's certainly much more appropriate to have a full resolution, a fair resolution of the case than just an artificial deadline like october. >> don, all our viewers know you spent a lot of time there in ferguson. what do you make of this decision? >> listen, i still feel like i'm spending time there because every single day i'm stopped by someone on the street. i went to get a haircut today. that's all they talked about in the barbershop. why hasn't there been an arrest,

why hasn't this officer been charged? quite frankly, their question is, why does no one care in their estimation about black lives? why don't people value the lives of young black men? and they're viewing that as african-americans, many of them, and as people looking at what happened in ferguson. just before i came up here, i went to the whole foods, a young why lady on the street, same thing, what's going to happen in ferguson, why haven't they arrested him? john and jeffrey are right. people want a sensible outcome. but the prosecutor's also said this is the only thing the grand jury will be looking at, even if they meet once a week. and there's also a concern that if something doesn't happen soon. if there isn't some movement somewhere soon, they're concerned about rioting again. the business owners in the area are concerned as well. but i think the prosecutor -- i think he's damned if he does, damned if he doesn't. if he rushes to a decision, there could be a bad outcome. if he takes longer, people don't like that. >> a lot of people are

frustrated in ferguson and the st. louis area. how worried should everyone be that the frustration could lead to more violence, shall we say? and we know, we've talked about it, there are outside agitators who have come in there to create violence? >> as don just mentioned, you have a lot of people that are very frustrated and they want answers. i think it is our job as the naacp and other groups we're working with on the ground to educate people on the process and how this works, to encourage people to be calm, to allow them to let the system work, to let the process work. but to also keep putting pressure on the prosecutor to make sure that they move this thing along as smoothly, as quickly, as expeditiously as possible. but as you just mentioned, there is that factor in this time bomb almost. so we have to be very careful surrounding that. and we have to give these people

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today at the pentagon, nato's top general warned that isis-trained fighters returning from iraq and syria pose a direct threat across europe and indeed beyond. u.s. air force general philip breedlove, commander of u.s. forces in europe, joining us from here in washington over at the national harbor. general, thanks very much for joining us. i know you have a lot on your plate. let me quickly get your thoughts on what general dempsey, the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, said he didn't rule out necessarily the possibility at some point down the road, he might have to go to the president, the commander in chief and ask for permission to send combat troops over to iraq. what do you make of that? >> well, i followed the comments just like you did. i think we should let the chairman sort of relate how he sees that and how he means that. clearly this would be an important step. >> the other thing that sort of jumped out at me was the notion that the mission is to destroy

isis in iraq, to degrade isis in syria. that was the first time i heard that. you heard that as well. you want to react to that difference, shall we say? is there a different strategy against these terrorists in iraq as opposed to in syria? >> wolf, i'm not real clear on that. i think that that's something i would want to actually talk with lloyd austin, the commander of sent.com and see why we make that differentiation. but i followed that just like you. clearly it means a difference in mission type. >> certainly does. let's talk about nato's role in all this. you've spent a lot of time worrying and thinking about it. nato got its act together and deployed nato forces led by the united states to afghanistan to deal with the taliban and al qaeda. is that feasible right now in dealing with isis in iraq and syria? in other words, with all of the allies of nato get their act together and get involved? >> well, wolf, what we saw at

our recent summit is not that nato looked to address this but we did see, as you have seen reported, a group of coalition of the willing, several nations coming together to address the problem. right now, i do not see that problem being a nato mission at large but some subset of nato nations coming together to address it. >> because nato did move out of its geographically boundaries to go into afghanistan. why not do the same thing now? what would stand in the way? are there some nato allies who are reluctant to get involved? >> i wouldn't want to speak for those nato allies. but what i do know is that there is this group that came together at the summit to address how we could get after it. so i think rather than look at it negatively, we would look at it positively. there is a group that wants to address this issue and have agreed to do so. >> there are thousands of these terrorists in syria and iraq who

have european passports, members of nato passports. they could easily go back and undermine security in those countries. you spoke about this. how worried should the european allies be and for that matter, what about the united states and canada? >> absolutely, wolf. i was about to say, you have to remember there are also u.s. passports among this group. so we -- all the nato nations need to be concerned about it. the nato nations are concerned about it. as you know recently one of the nations had one of their foreign fighters return and cause some damage in the nation and injure people and then quickly dashed across one of these international boundaries into another nation. so previous to this, the nato nations may have been only concerned about their foreign fighters that might return to their individual states. but now because of that freedom of movement as we saw in this very first instance from belgium to france, we have to be concerned about all of those

fighters. so this is a task that we've agreed to take on together. >> i hope so. let's talk a little bit about ukraine. i know that's dominating your thinking, the thinking of the nato allies. there are a bunch of nato allies whether in the baltics or poland deeply worried about putin and russia right now. how worried should they be about some kind of russian advance on their countries? >> i wouldn't want to speak to their individual worries. but let me tell you what we have done. because of the concern of these nations and they did have a concern, we were able to qui quickquickly implement in these nations who brought air, land and sea capability to all the nations north and south in nato that quickly assured the concerns that they had. and we were able to address them. so i see this as a very positive

development. and at the nato summit, we agreed to continue those assurance measures until the permanent changes that we discuss and adopted at the summit are put in place. >> i know that you're worried, i'm worried, a lot of people are worried that what russia has been doing, vis-a-vis ukraine, they could be doing against moldova, georgia, and other countries. what's the latest on those fronts? how concerned are you and other nato allies? >> i believe this is a concern. first to the message of our nato allies, we have completely recommitted at the summit to our collective defense. and we saw a strong unity about this mission. so that i think we can be very assured of. what happens in these nations that are outside of nato, this is an issue that we need to address.

and you've heard the discussions of how we probably need as the western world to look at what is acceptable behavior in these nations outside of nato. >> it's a huge problem and will dominate a lot of your -- you've got a lot going on, general. you have isis, you have the middle east. i know the european command is also involved in the middle east. it's not just the central command. and you've got ukraine, other issues in europe as well. thanks very much for spending a few moments with us. good luck. >> thank you wolf. >> that ferris wheel behind you is at the national harbor here in washington. i don't think general bereedlov is going to have any time for the ferris wheel. >> no time for that. >> please tune in right here in "the situation room" on thursday. ukraine's president will join us live right here, a rare interview with the president of ukraine. thursday here in "the situation room." up next, a live report of the dangerous wildfires burning

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you see the plane dropping retardant. how difficult the terrain is, very steep, rugged terrain. to put this in context for you, this is a perfect example of what a three-year drought looks like in the state of california. just makes the conditions so ideal for wildfire. right now you have about 1,000 people under mandatory evacuation order, lot of firefighters on the ground trying to fight this thing. given the fact that the terrain is so steep right here the only way to battle this fire is from the air. there's a number of homes up there in the canyon. at this point all the homes have been saved. what firefighters are trying to do is build a perimeter around this fire. so far they've been successful. the rains can't come soon enough. this is what one sheriff's official had to say. >> we want to make it through, to be honest with you. the sand fire was rather large and we lost a number of homes in that. fortunately, we haven't lost any homes. i will tell you that the fire

personnel put out and to not have any homes lost is pretty good to this point. the fire department has protected those homes and i hope we can continue to do that. let's hope that the rains get here before we have another one. >> right now you have a dozen active fires burning throughout the state of california. and we're just at the peak or the beginning of the peak of the fire season. wolf? >> good luck. dan simon reporting for us. isis stepping up its propaganda with a glossy, sophisticated online magazine. that's coming up. so what we're looking for is a way to "plus" our accounting firm's mobile plan. and "minus" our expenses. perfect timing. we're offering our best-ever pricing on mobile plans for business. run the numbers on that. well, unlimited talk and text, and ten gigs of data for the five of you would be... one-seventy-five a month. good calculating kyle. good job kyle.

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happening now -- breaking news in the escalating war against isis. the u.s. launches new air strikes as terrorist forces are moving closer and closer to the iraqi capital of baghdad. america's top general now says u.s. ground troops may eventually be needed as well. plus the isis end game. new warnings of a doom day battle. will isis join forces with al qaeda and other forces to create a monstrous terror group? nfl outrage, new revelations that vikings superstar adrian peterson was accused of child abuse before involving another one of his young sons. we want to welcome our viewers in the united states and around the world. i'm wolf blitzer. you're in the situation room.

let's get right to the breaking news this hour. president obama is on his way to florida for an isis war briefing by commanders hours after america's top general seemed to contradict the commander in chief. martin dempsey telling congress he might recommend sending ground forces into combat against isis if the air campaign fails, despite the president's promise of no boots on the ground. right now, the u.s. is escalating air strikes against isis with five new attacks within the past 24 hours, including some targeting isis forces closing in on the iraqi capital of baghdad. we have a leading united states senator standing by. through see him, senator bernie sanders, along with our correspondents and analysts with new information about the isis threat and the u.s. battle plan. the latest from our pentagon correspondent, barbara starr. barbara? >> the office of general martin dempsey a few minutes ago put out a statement attempting to clarify what general dempsey

said earlier today. it really was, however, the very same, precise case that he made before the senate armed services committee for those who listened closely. he made a very narrow case that, in some instances, he might go back to president obama and recommend some use of ground troops inside iraq. >> will you please leave the room now? we're asking you nicely. >> reporter: anti-war protesters in full force at the senate hearing on the military plan to attack isis. >> please remove this gentleman. >> reporter: a plan that is entering a new phase. >> i believe we can destroy isil in iraq, and disrupt isil in syria. >> reporter: u.s. drones flying over syria are gathering detailed intelligence on the location of isis weapons, troops and supplies. also the location of isis commanders, targets if the u.s. can find them.

air strikes now conducted southwest of baghdad. u.s. warplanes bombing isis positions for the first time, acting to protect iraqi ground troops under attack. the chairman of the joint chiefs says he might recommend u.s. ground troops in iraq as combat advisers or to call in air strikes. one example, if they try to retake the city of mosul from isis, a complex operation. >> it could be part that have particular mission to provide close combat advising or accompanying for that mission. >> reporter: extraordinary admission, given president obama said no ground troops in a combat role. >> i appreciate that you said you've not ruled this out. >> i have not, in terms of recommendations. >> thank you. has the president ruled it out? >> well, at this point, his stated policy is that we will not have u.s. ground forces in direct combat. so, yes. >> including operators in jtek,

embedded on the ground. >> that's correct, but he has told me as well to come back to him on a case-by-case basis. >> does the u.s. military need to expand further? >> you won't defeat isis without forces on the ground that go to the source of isis. partners in the region are very capable of operating forces. >> making the case again. the ultimate task, make sure the u.s. is not alone. >> i think it's our last best chance to convince regional governments that if they don't solve their internal problems, we can't do it for them and they better get serious about it. >> general dempsey's comments getting a lot of attention across washington. you know, it is a distinction that the military makes about exactly what is combat. but for many americans -- look, for many troops, if you are standing in a war zone and the

bullets are coming towards you, that's combat. wolf? >> new war against isis could go on for years and years. it's generational. sobering thought from the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff. iraqi kurdish, fierce battle against isis fighters. joining us from erbil in iraq. you spent time with those kurdish fighters. >> reporter: that's right, wolf. we spent the day on the front lines with the kurdish forces who are, of course, the boots on the ground, fighting isis here in northern iraq. wolf, we witnessed intense fighting as they tried to root out these islamic extremists from a critical area. take a look. as the first rays of light stream through the clouds, the roar of u.s. fighter jets could be heard across these did he say

late plains. this was a signal for them to launch their new offensive against isis. the mission? to reclaim the township and the surrounding area, which includes a strategic bridge. blown up by isis a month ago. the bridge connects the highway running from irbil, the capital, to the city of mosul, an isis stronghold 30 kilometers away. >> two u.s. fighter jets, which can you hear now, have been circling, launching air strikes on enemy targets, providing that critical cover for these ground forces to advance towards the bridge. for the man in charge of these troops, he is the one communicating and coordinating with the americans, advising them on isis targets. >> what are you wanting them to hit when you give the orders to strike?

>> fighting, which will be very difficult for them to get. >> reporter: so far, the partnership is working well. although the kurdish forces have made no secret of the fact they would like to see an intensification of the u.s. air campaign. after strikes, artillery and attacks, columns of rising black smoke. some isis militants refused to retreat, one packing an oil tanker with explosives, driving it toward the front line. luckily, it was taken out with an rpg, resulting in this explosion. by late in the day, they had suffered at least half a dozen deaths, but they had taken back control of the bridge. up until this morning, this was the isis front line. after an intensive ground operation, they've managed to clear out the surrounding villages of militants. the focus now is this highway. it runs all the way to mosul.

an operation is currently under way to carefully and slowly remove what they say are barrels filled with explosives and ieds laid alongside the road. as the engineering unit began detonating the explosives, soldiers showed us some isis handy work. this is what isis is laying alongside the road. it's very primitive pressure plate f you step on it, it will set off an explosive. a deadly device that will, no doubt, litter the road all the way to mosul, a future battle these forces know won't be easily won. >> if we spoke to kurdish president yesterday and asked him how does he feel about the prospect of foreign forces on the ground in the future? he told me he has not requested it but would certainly welcome it to the fighting force here on the ground. wolf? >> yan, be careful over there. thank you very much. excellent report. we're joined by senator bernie

sanders, independent united states senator. thank you very much for joining us. we'll talk politics a little bit later. are you with the president as far as his isis strategy in iraq and syria as it unfolds? >> i tell you, i have a lot of concerns. this is an enormously complicated issue. i do not agree with the critics who say he waited too long. bush and cheney had a plan and they committed the worst foreign policy blunder in the you state. so we have to think it through. isis is a brutal, dangerous organization. we all agree that it has got to be defeated. here is my concern. my concern is that the united states gets involved in a quagmire, in a never-ending war that it is the united states of americas our soldiers, our taxpayers who are defending the

royal family of saudi arabia, who are worth hundreds of billions of dollars. if this is such a crisis to the region, saudis have a lot of f-16s. why aren't they involved ? we kind of forget kuwait. we went to war to put the kuwaiti government back. where are they? where are the billionaires? if these guys in the region think isis is such a great threat, they have to put some skin in the game. >> i don't see saudi arabia air force, for example, a lot of u.s. made air force f-16s, they aren't launching air strikes. >> they're very happy to have us do their work. they have got to get their hands a little bit dirty in this conflict. >> you voted against going to war in 2003 against saddam hussein. >> yes. >> you say that's the biggest foreign policy disaster in u.s. history. some people might say the vietnam war was a big foreign

policy disaster. >> reporter: that was another one. my point is, you can't criticize the president for thinking this one through. bush and cheney were forceful, direct and it turned out to be a major blunder. >> the president wants you to vote for half a billion dollars as early as the next few days to fund moderate syrian rebels opposed to the bashir al assad regime. will you vote yay or nay? continuing resolution. >> you're voting for ebola money. >> a separate, half a billion -- funding appropriation. >> at this point, i'm leaning. >> to vote against it? >> yes. >> what about authorizing a formal vote that would give the president authorization to go to war against isis? zblfrg is in the language. you can't talk in a general sense. i have and do support the president using air strikes. i think that they are working. i support that. but i many very, very nervous

about two things, ground troops getting caught -- our young people getting caught in war. i'm chairman of the veterans xhichlt i have seen what the war in iraq has done to hundreds of thousands of young people. and i worry about that. second of all, i don't know why the taxpayers of vermont have got to defend the royal family of saudi arabia, which is worth hundreds of billions of dollars. >> they're try ing ing to put together a coalition but are looking toward the united states. a lot of people like you are saying why does the united states always need to do the work? >> not to mention, the uk is concerned about terrorism there. >> you do agree isis poses a threat to the united states? >> they are a terrible threat. >> are you worried about isis coming here to the united states? >> i'm worried about everything. they are a threat to europe, the united states, to the region. they've got to be stopped. it can't be just the united states alone. >> you don't feel that the coalition, that secretary kerry is talking about, 40 nations involved, you don't think that's good enough? >> i've read some of the language. it is not particularly strong at

this point. i know it's difficult. kerry is trying, the president is trying. i need stronger language. >> do you want to be president of the united states? >> anybody who wants to be president is a little bit crazy, to tell you the truth. what i do believe is at a time when the middle class of this country is disappearing, more people are living in poverty than ever before and you have more wealth and income inequality than we've had since 1929, a billionaire class not only controlling our economy, but citizens united now having hundreds of millions of dollars in elections. you have climate change out there. we need candidates to stand up for the working class and middle class of this country so the billionaires don't get it all. >> will you run for president of the united states? >> i am thinking about it. but for my politics, we need -- the koch brothers, billionaires, spending a fortune. don't know at this point if we can put together a strong

organization. >> you're an independent. if you run will you run for the democratic nomination or as a third party independent candidate? there have been some, ross perot, as we all remember. which avenue do you prefer? >> if i had ross' billions, that miebt an easy answer, 50-state political infrastructure is not easy. there are advantages, because there's a lot of anger at the republican party, which has become extremely right and the democratic party which has not seen as strong as defending working class people. on the other hand it's tough to put together the 50 states a political structure. if you run in the democratic party, you're in the debates, et cetera, et cetera. i don't know yet. >> if you run for the democratic presidential nomination, could you beat hillary clinton? >> look, i don't know that i could. i don't know that i couldn't. this is what i do know. i know that this country faces

enormous problems. i know that at a time where we're seeing a huge fleefs productivity, tens of millions of workers are working longer hours for lower wages. highest rate of childhood poverty. 95% of all new income since the wall street crashed. do you know where that's gone, wolf? it's gone to the top 1%. that's not what america is supposed to be about. we need it moving around this country so we create a situation where the government represents working class and middle class not just the upper class. >> when yif you run, when will you decide? >> not before the mid term elections. >> hillary clinton is expected to announce. >> she'll do her thing. i'll do mine. >> always good to have you in the situation room. t the independent senator from vermont. joining force against their common enemies.

>> and are president obama and his war team on the same page? we'll talk about the muddled message and the political fallout we're hearing today. stay with us. you're in the situation room.

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islamist militant group isis operates with a slick new online magazine. brian todd is here in the situation room. we're looking into it for us. what are you finding, brian? >> it's polished, sophisticated, designed to appeal to young jihadists. u.s. official told me this is part of isis' strategic campaign to militants in the english

speaking world. isis end game, apocalyptic battles. john mccain are crusaders, about to bring about the modern collapse of the american empire. dabiq, named for the town in northern syria. >> the islamic state uses a sophisticated propaganda campaign, images of fighters with explosions and intermixed, important phrases here. it burns the crusader armys with images of american soldiers. >> another person portrayed by dabiq as a crusader, key adviser on the 2007 troop surge, who appears regularly on cnn. under the head nth words of the enemy, dabiq cites an article about isis' growing strength. >> you have to be perversley

honored. american analysts take us seriously. >> it differs from another glossy inspired from the arabian peninsula, how to make bombs and get them on to planes. >> this is encouraging people to come, to recruit, join the army in iraq and syria and fight. >> dabiq has plenty of violent images to lure jihadists, wounded and killed by western forces and their allies. also of isis' own victims. in its most recent issue, the final section defending his murder as retribution for campaigns in the middle east. >> analysts say that's designed

to set him up as the overall leader of jihadists worldwide, ahead of the likes of al qaeda leader al zawahari. >> this technique, is it working or not working? >> one u.s. counterterrorism official told me, all the young jihadists around the world through social media. xh increasing in number with his thousands of new foreign fighters. >> brian todd reporting. let's dig a little bit deeper with cnn terrorism analyst, the co-author of a brand new book entitled agent storm. we're also joined by our senior international correspondent nic robertson, a documentary based

on the book. >> i think that is quite a factor. they're not just putting that out. also translating it into french, german and all sorts of. a surge in the number of european militants. >> there's a report out there today that al qaeda arabian peninsula, al qaeda and the islam islamic megreb urging warring factions to unite in the face of a common enemy. what would it mean if all these various al qaeda splintered groups were to unite and work together. >> reporter: it would mean that

they would present a deadly and increased threat capability to the united states and europe. he makes sophisticated bombs. some of the bombs craft in the past. he is making more sophisticated bombs since then. so imagine with a north african operative who then sneaks into europe, because they're moving people across the mediterranean into europe with refugees coming from north africa and you have -- you know, you have essentially somebody with the skill skills perhaps the equipment who can perpetrate an attack. that's just one small defined example. if they work together, any organization, al qaeda or anyone, that unites and works together, becomes more effective. it shares ideas more. they've made their statement publicly now. but, wolf, we know from

counterterrorism expert that is they've been very aware, that communications between these different al qaeda groups has been growing. and that represents a seriously increased threat. >> a very serious threat, indeed. paul, as you know, isis started off as al qaeda in iraq, split off. now there's a split between core al qaeda, ayman al zawahiri's group. what's the chance these two groups could get together? >> there's been a lot of infighting between these groups but one unintended consequences of these air strikes would be to create more unity between al qaeda and isis. two al qaeda affiliates in north africa and yemen are calling for exactly that, for isis and al qaeda to patch up their differences, work together and focus on the united states. that's a pretty frightening prospect if it comes to pass, wolf. >> nic, both of you have a major

documentary that will air later tonight on cnn, entitled "cnn special report: double agent inside al qaeda for the cia." it airs tonight at 9:00. let me play you a little clip from this amazing documentary. >> for more than half a decade, he said he moved back and forth between two worlds and two identities, when one misplaced sentence could have cost him his life. >> you don't know what angle he is playing. >> traveling between atheism, hard-line arabism. >> in one minute he is 007 and on the other side he is now part of the militant circle. >> between being an agent for western intelligence and a sworn member of al qaeda. storm says he was a double

agent, so trusted by al qaeda terror leaders he even one with a european blond wife. war on terror who says he got results. >> i have been responsible of 30 kills. >> 30 terrorists killed. >> in a race against time, trying to bring down the most dangerous terrorists before they can launch their next attack. double agent inside al qaeda for the cia. >> nic, tell us how this documentary came about. >> well, paul and i reached out to morgan storm when he came out of sort of being an agent and contacted a danish newspaper. he began publishing some of his accounts. they had been through a lot of the accumulated hotel receipts

we reached out to him on facebook, contacted him. a few months later, we met him at an undisclosed location in europe and began discussing exactly what we're delivering today. not just the spy craft. the competition for his services by the british and american intelligence agencies. he was so valuable to them, because he knew so many senior al qaeda figures, wolf. >> it's an amazing documentary. and i'm glad it will air tonight, premiere 9:00 pm eastern here on cnn. it's based on the book. agent storm, my life inside al qaeda and the cia by morton storm. you guys have done an amazing job. the book is fabulous.

the documentary is powerful. we look forward to seeing it later tonight, guys. thanks very, very much. just ahead, as u.s. forces step up the fight against isis, are u.s. members of congress afraid to support another war? nfl, new action and reaction to the widening scandal involving pro football and domestic violence. ♪ [ female announcer ] we love our smartphones.