thanks so much for joining me. don't forget follow me on twitter if you can spell sper smerconish. we'll see you next week. can peace be reached in ukraine? world leaders are meeting in munich but there are some doubts that diplomacy can save the situation. >> coalition aircraft hitting isis hard this morning, going after new targets in northern iraq. also in syria. plus the family of kayla mueller, they're not giving up hope that their daughter is

still alive, even after isis says the american aide worker was killed during attacks against the terror group. >> two police officers now learning about life on the other side of the law as a video leads to charges against them. we'll show you more of that video. but first, want to wish you a good morning. hope saturday has been good to you. i'm christi paul. >> i'm victor blackwell. 10:00 on the east coast, 7:00 out west. you are in the cnn newsroom. >> high-level talks with russian president vladimir putin have apparently failed to broker a peace deal and end the bloodshed in ukraine. >> world leaders are meeting in germany hoping to craft a solution to a crisis really on the verge of chaos. already the conflict has claimed more than 5,000 lives and forced nearly 1 million people to flee. >> right now, vice president joe biden is addressing the mounting crisis there. listen to what he said just moments ago. >> >> america and europe are being

tested. president putin has to understand that as he has changed, so has our focus. we have moved from resetting this important relationship to reasserting a fundmental bedrock principles on which european freedom and stability rests. i'll say it again, no spheres of influence, the sovereign right to choose your own alliance cannot repeat that often enough. no judged no existing agreement or any future agreement by the actions russia takes on the ground not by the paper they sign. given russia's recent history, we need to judge it by its deeds, not its words. don't tell us shows us

president putin. too many times president putin has promised peace and delivered tanks, troops and weapons. >> so we will continue to provide ukraine with security assistance not to encourage war, but to allow ukraine to defend itself. let me be clear, we do not believe there is a military solution in ukraine. but let me be equally clear. we do not believe russia has the right to do what they're doing. we believe we should attempt an honorable peace and we also believe ukrainian people have a right to defend themselves. >> let's bring in senior international correspondent nick paton walsh, in wore-torn donestk, ukraine. >> joining us john herbst former u.n. ambassador to ukraine. vice president biden said the u.s. will continue to provide

security assistance not for itself but to allow ukraine to defend itself. how is that being received? >> well you have a picture as to how that will em bolden the russian narrative that ostensibly they claim in vladimir putin's word facing nato's foreign legion the ukrainian army. they say separatists are fighting here in ukraine. american direct aid will bolster that narrative. as you join me though victor if you could potentially hear on the other microphone we have set up the sound of shells slamming into donestk. i was woken by this morning and now as dusk falls, we're hearing again, let me see if i can just give you a moment to hear that. quite remarkable thudding getting closer and closer it seems towards the city center. this is separatist held territory. those shells appear to be hitting it. it's possible they are emanating

from the ukrainian military but regardless of that kind of noise backdrop is far away from suggesting a peace is about to come in here. we've had talks in moscow the remarkable scene of two of the leaders of the largest economies in europe heading to the kremlin to talk peace with vladimir putin. late in the night the talks, pretty much come up with nothing and now we have pretty negative sounds coming out of munich from angela merkel the german chancellor how she's uncertain the talks will succeed and joe biden how ukraine has the right to defend itself. it does not seem as though negotiation is taking us anywhere. there appears to be a previous hope the previous cease-fire agreed to a year ago fell apart, maybe revived somehow but if you listen to what we're hearing in donestk, most sustained and close to the city center shelling i have heard since i've been coming here. it is remarkably different for politicians to bridge the gap.

>> we can hear them in the background there, the blasts and we hear it often. one, nick has this been happening all night, and secondly when you hear from the leaders, some leaders who don't have a lot of hope in any sort of peace deal how do the people there perceive that? how do they -- what kind of hope do they have i guess? do you see any? >> very little. the people you speak to some, obviously, furious at ukrainian military shelling this area obviously those would be separatist loyalists because many people have stayed here out of an ideological affinity with the separatist movement but some don't have the resources to leave here. when you hear that kind of shelling that's a reason to get out of town quickly indeed. you have to have a few choices if you really are staying here. others simply want the war to stop. i spoke a group of women a few days ago in one town on the ukrainian side they were furious. ukrainian government and separatists too, both sides for

shelling each other and then, of course there are ukrainians as well equally furious to what they see here as a russian invasion. you have to know how well equipped and organized increasingly so the separatists are. they have a lot of heavy weapons on their side as the ukrainian military and, of course the ukrainian and nato position here. the u.s. as well is that that is because often they're fighting russian army regulars on the ground. remarkable scene tonight as you talk of peace and world leaders have tried to talk it we are hearing some of the most intense shelling that has hit his city a number of days at least, if not for months. >> bring be in ambassador herbster into this conversation. against the backdrop of the shelling happening right now on the outskirts of donestk, should the u.s. send this defensive lethal assistance to ukraine? >> absolutely. the united states believes ukraine believes germany believes europe believes there

can be a diplomatic settlement, there must be a diplomatic settlement to this crisis. the only person who doesn't believe this is vladimir putin. he is waging a first a covert and now increasingly overt war in ukraine's east. the current uptick in fighting was preceded by russia sending in hundreds of pieces of heavy equipment, tanks, armored personnel carriers missiles, ar tillery ins december. once they gave that to their proxies, subordinates so-called separatists, they began nare offensive -- their offensive. since the cease-fire was allegedly established or concluded in september, the russian-led forces have acquired over 500 square kilometers of additional territory in ukraine. this is a russian-led war. >> i wanted to ask you, ambassador, the russian economy we know is crippled. do you think that president putin in some ways is just betting on ukraine's economy to collapse first? >> president putin is hoping for several things.

one, as you've said for ukraine's economy to collapse two, for europe not standing firm with the united states besides ukraine. he wants the sanctions to come off and hoping those countries in europe, which are somewhat sympathetic to him, will not agrew to new sanctions despite his continuing aggression. but he has two serious problems. one, is the state of his economy, due both to low oil prices and sanctions, the other is the war he's conducting in ukraine is a war his people do not approve of. he is lying to the russian people saying russian soldiers are not engaged in ukraine but they are there on the ground right now according to western intelligence estimates there are at least 250, maybe as many as 1,000, russian soldiers officers in ukraine. according to ukraine estimates, as many as 9,000 russian soldiers in ukraine. >> i want to go back to nick there in the donestk region and there is this shelling that has been going on. he says sustained shelling. the secretary of state, john kerry, announced this week that $16.4 million in aid is going to

ukraine for aid, not military aid, but support for the people there. with 5,000 dead and a million estimated displaced, it seems like a pretty small number. is that how it's being received in kiev? >> well this issue has been going on for months and it's really only now many westerners are waking up to this problem. it's been growing very quietly but steadily for months as i say. 5,000 dead is the start of it. there are potentially a million people here displaced from their homes. you see it all over ukraine. that's the ukrainian ukraine, those parts where separatists have not infiltrated. many people displaced living out of other people's homes, trying to forge a life elsewhere. many stuck here. in terms of the aid getting into donestk, there's a problem in that the borders to some degree have been closed by ukrainian officials. you need to get past to come in

and out of the separatist held areas if you're a ukrainian citizen. we see trucks often trying to get into the separatist areas. i don't know the fate whether they do or not. there are at times parts of convoys, humanitarian aid, that come in here. we see people queuing for food we know electricity can be scarce, water problematic, the banking system has collapsed, purely cash economy in the separatist areas, so a very difficult if you take away the shelling first of all, and then, of course, add to the fact we have seen artillery shells land in civilian areas here both sides blaming the other for it but often you ask why would separatists shell their own areas. people at times assisting them. so a very messy task with the ukrainian military trying to hit targets scattered all over this broad area here. that, of course, is causing many civilian casualties. one factor last friday a cue for aid being hit by a stray shell. five people killed. we saw the aftermath of that ourselves. and all of this is just fueling,

frankly, the animosity and the broad feeling amongst many that it's going to be hard for this part of ukraine to feel part of the whole of ukraine again in the future without reconciliation and water under the bridge. >> draining the confidence in the peace talks going on for the past couple days as they try to come to some solution the shelling continues, literally. nick paton walsh in donestk for us and john herbst thank you both. >> thank you, gentlemen. still to come, the family of kayla mueller is reaching tout isis directly holding out hope the american aide worker is still alive. a live report on that ahead. 're underwater? try zyrtec-d® to powerfully clear your blocked nose and relieve your other allergy symptoms... so you can breathe easier all day. zyrtec-d®. find it at the pharmacy counter.

. let's you to our other big story right now. coalition forces unleashing at least a dozen new air strikes against isis. the latest offensive taking place in the iraqi city of mosul. >> we're learning that isis has blown up a strategic bridge in the city of kirkuk. the militants have recently used the bridge to launch an attack. cnn's phil black is with us. he's one of the few western journalists in that immediate area. >> behind me is the most important piece of territory that isis still controls in northern iraq. mosul. it is iraq's second biggest city and you can see it here from the top of the mountain. where i'm standing it is one of the closest positions occupied by the kurdish fighters the peshmerga who have drawn a defensive line around that isis controlled city and from up here, there is a commanding view into mowsle from the south and the towns and villages which surround it and which are still occupied by isis as well.

on this day, overhead has been the constant sound of aircraft fast-moving aircraft. we have seen what appears to be a slower-moving, larger reconnaissance aircraft of some kind and then frequently repeatedly often very close to one another, the sound of large blasts in the distance. it is a hazy day, not the best day to view mosul from this location. you still have a very clear idea of what lies between the lines that have been established by the kurdish fighters around the south and southwest of this city and that no man's land in between leading up to mosul itself. phil black, cnn, in northern iraq. >> thank you so much. quick break and we'll be right back. . that's why you should take the listerine® 21 day challenge. use listerine® and over 21 days you'll experience a transformation. take the listerine® 21 day challenge and start your transformation today.

[container door opening] ♪ what makes it an suv is what you can get into it. ♪ [container door closing] what makes it an nx is what you can get out of it. ♪ introducing the first-ever lexus nx turbo and hybrid. once you go beyond utility there's no going back. mouths are watering, lemons are squeezing and stomachs are growling. or is it just me? every minute between you and red lobster's lobsterfest feels like an eternity. and who could blame you for craving our largest variety of succulent lobster dishes all year? dishes like dueling lobster tails. with one tail topped with creamy shrimp and a second tail stuffed with tender crab. i was hungry already and now you show me lobster lover's dream® let's make this dream a reality. a delicious, delicious reality. but one that won't last forever, so hurry in.

next. ♪ expected wait time: 55 minutes. your call is important to us. thank you for your patience. waiter! vo: in the nation, we know how it feels when you aren't treated like a priority. we do things differently. we'll take care of it. vo: we put members first... join the nation. thank you. ♪ nationwide is on your side ♪ [ male announcer ] don't just visit hawaii. [ squeaking ] [ water dripping ] visit tripadvisor hawaii. [ whistling ] with millions of reviews tripadvisor makes any destination better.

21 minutes past the hour. new this morning more than 30 people are dead and nearly 100 wounded after two suicide bombers targeted a busy market and restaurant in the iraqi capital of baghdad. what you're looking at here is a video of the aftermath of those attacks. they come just two days after government officials announced the long imposed curfew on the capital city would be lifted a and then across the border from iraq coalition aircraft are going after isis in syria and activists say there have been at least ten explosions from air strikes north of the militant stronghold of raqqah and six

more air strikes to the west of the city. >> the u.s. is trying to determine if a young american aide worker held captive by isis presumably in raqqah is alive or dead. isis said an jordanian air strike killed her, and jordan says that's a blatant lie and p.r. stunt. retired army major general spider marks. thanks for being with us. >> absolutely. thanks. appreciate it. >> i want to start with the news of the suicide bombings this morning. centcom says, tells cnn, that isis is stretched thin here. we do not know if these are specific isis militants who are responsible for these, but could they be trying to now go for baghdad or pushing out of mosul? >> well we've suspected all along that isis really is covering baghdad but we also said baghdad is the center of gravity for iraq where the very

finest military exists within the iraqi security forces. that has to be held and it will be held. the fact that isis might be trying to make some penetrations into baghdad we shouldn't be surprised and, frankly, baghdad is a very big city it's easy to infiltrate the onesie twosies that might link back up and execute operations like this. so we shouldn't be surprised, but you know victor when you look at the geography of baghdad and kirkuk and mosul and raqqah you're looking at an incredibly large spans. if isis tries to strike everywhere they'll lose their strength and defeat themselves and hopefully that's kind of part of the plan right now. if you're spreading yourself too thin you can't a achieve mass. you can't achieve momentum. try to get a foothold and achieve momentum speaking tactically and militarily and try to reinforce that. if they're all over the place they will start to have

increased problems. >> our phil black is there near mosul and we've seen the air strikes this morning. we also know the u.s. intelligence officials are trying to determine just how strong are the resources. isis' resources in mosul to determine if they'll recommend to the president sending in ground forces. what do they need to see to make that recommendation? >> well it's a combination of what i would say all of those factors that you use in trying to determine an enemy's capabilities not only capabilities but their intentions and that kind of equates to the threat that you see in front of you. really what you're looking at is an ability to conduct operations resupply those operations to conduct operations in a way that demonstrates a command and controlled capability that really speaks to an organization that hasn't broken down and has some possibilities to move elsewhere. so if you can isolate isis and keep them in a certain area and

cut them off from their logistics and all their supplies and that might even be any elements of command and control, now you can start to defeat them in detail. the united states and its coalition partners certainly they're assessing this as a matter of routine but looking at isis' ability to conduct sustained operations. >> all right. general marks, thank you so much. good to have you with us. >> sure victor. thanks. and we're going to have more on the young american woman held by isis for a year and a half. >> thanks. >> killed in a jordanian air strike but there is no proof of that. her parents are begging isis to contact them directly now. our kim law is in kayla mueller's hometown. it is a hometown that is hoping this is a twisted lie, that one of its very best remains i live. i'm in prescott arizona, that story coming up.

meet the world's newest energy superpower. surprised? in fact, america is now the world's number one natural gas producer... and we could soon become number one in oil. because hydraulic fracturing technology is safely recovering lots more oil and natural gas. supporting millions of new jobs. billions in tax revenue... and a new century of american energy security. the new energy superpower? it's red, white and blue. log on to learn more. our "name your price" tool helps -- oh, jamie you got a little something on the back of your shoe there.

a price tag! danger! price tag alert! oh. hey, guys. price tag alert! is this normal? well, progressive is a price tag free zone. we let you tell us what you want to pay and we help you find options to fit your budget. where are they taking him? i don't know. this seems excessive! decontamination in progress. i don't want to tell you guys your job, but... policies without the price tags. now, that's progressive. mortgage rates were mixed this week. here's your look. last year quicken loans paid a year's worth of mortgages for every hole-in-one at a pga tour event

seventeen times. this year, the mortgage we pay could be yours. win a year's worth of mortgage payments from quicken loans. enter today at pgatour.com/quickenloans. vo: 85 percent of people who travel will go someplace they've already been. where's the fun in that? it's time to find someplace new. book the hotel you want with the flight you want and we'll find the savings to get you there. major: here's our new trainer ensure active heart health. heart: i maximize good stuff like my potassium and phytosterols which may help lower cholesterol. new ensure active heart health supports your heart and body so you stay active and strong. ensure, take life in. you give... and you give...

and then you give some more. but sometimes you get. and so you take. tylenol® cold is strong enough for you while children's tylenol® is gentle enough for them. we give you relief from your cold and flu. you give them everything you've got. tylenol®. . the bottom of the hour and developing this morning, coalition forces have unleashed a new wave of air strikes against isis targets in the iraqi city of mosul. cnn crews were in the area and witnessed those blasts earlier today. isis has maintained defenses since it took over mosul about eight months ago. >> while shelling continues in the streets of ukraine world

leaders are in germany hoping to broker a solution to the crisis. last hour vice president joe biden told president putin he now has to choose to get out of ukraine or face isolation and economic costs. >> president putin has to make a simple stark choice get out of ukraine or face continued isolation and growing economic costs at home. as the story of ukraine shows, there are multiple dimensions to european security hard military power of nato for sure but also confronting corruption that's being used as a tool to undermine national sovereignty in other parts of europe. corruption is a cancer. those of you who watch superman movies and comic books, it is like kryptonite to the functioning of democracy. >> according to the united

nations the conflict has claimed more than 5,000 lives and displaced nearly a million others. the parents of american hostage kayla mueller are begging isis to contact them and let them know if she's alive or dead. the militants have claimed she was killed in a jordanian air strike. the u.s. is trying to confirm that and jordan says it's just another publicity stunt by isis. we're following this from all angles. cnn's kyung lah is in kayla mueller's hometown prescott, arizona. i want to start with kyung, what's the mood like in the hometown? people waiting for any word on kayla mueller? >> they've known, victor many people in this town she has been captive for more than a year but now as you said this unsubstantiated claim from isis there is a lot of confusion here. there's a lot of hurt profound sadness and a lot of hope that this is just another isis lie.

>> reporter: police closed off the street leading to the mueller family home. kayla mueller's mother and father grapple with how their child could give so much is trapped in war's brutality. but it was the very atrocities of war that drew miller in syria, she felt compelled to help the victimized. in 2011 she posted this video protest on-line. >> i am in solidarity with the syrian people. i reject the brutality and killing that the syrian authorities are committing against the syrian people. >> reporter: by the following year she would make her first trip to the syrian/turkish border oceans away from her quiet hometown of prescott arizona. but even growing up she longed to engage in the wrongs of the world. this is a doctor close with the family. >> the daughter is one of those folks that looks for the good in everything and in that vain she

goes on ahead and tries to look for her god center with the way she looks and acts day to day life. >> reporter: in high school her local paper showed her marching through town as part of the save darfur coalition, lobbying congress and staging protests against genocide. as a student at northern university mueller was president of a group called stand, student led movement to end mass atrocities. she joined aide agencies. she came home briefly in 2011 volunteering at a women's shelter and hiv/aids clinic northland cares. the director telling cnn, she was truly a remarkable woman. we are all very sad. but mueller could not ignore the unfolding crisis in syria. the children she told her local paper, captured her heart. in may of 2013, she spoke at the prescott kiwanis club where her

father is a member and she said for as long as i live i will not let this suffering be normal. just two months later as she left a hospital in aleppo syria, she was kidnapped. her family would hear nothing until ten months later. isis demanded a ransom of nearly $7 million or they would kill kayla mueller on august 13th. as jordan begins its air strikes against isis this photo from isis and their claim that those air strikes killed mueller, unsubstantiated, likely a twisted ploy in the isis propaganda game. mueller's parents in a public statement directly to isis urged her captors to contact them privately and added, we are still hopeful that kayla is alive. >> and there is more to that statement. the family saying that they have kept their end of the deal that they kept her name out of the press by securing a agreements

with journalists around the world including this organization cnn by the family's request not publishing that name. the family urging the captors to reach out to them directly. victor? >> wow. i mean she has done so much hopefully that family hears something. kyung lah in arizona, thank you. the obama administration is skeptical about this latest isis claim. want to bring in cnn's sunland live from the white house. what have you heard there? >> christie the obama administration does say that they're deeply concerned about these reports, but they also say they're deeply skeptical. they've seen no proof, no evidence to back up isis' claims. right now the u.s. intelligence agencyies scrambling to find more information out. we know from law enforcement and intelligence sources, that the working theory appears to be that kayla possibly was murdered weeks, if not months ago, and this latest news from isis was

just to back up their evidence. now we do know that the obama administration has been in close contact with the mueller family really working behind the scenes to help secure her release. but as we have reported isis has demanded nearly $6 million in ransom something that the united states does not pay. now i want to take a -- have you take a listen to president obama's top national security adviser susan rice. here's what she said yesterday about these claims. >> we do not at the present have any evidence to corroborate isis claims but obviously we'll keep reviewing the information at hand. we have a broader policy with respect to hostages around the world. we don't make concessions to terrorists and to hostage takers. we don't pay ransom. >> reporter: and rice did add that the united states is

currently undergoing a review of the nation's hostage policy. of course the one part that is nonnegotiable, she says is, of course the making concessions to terrorists. she said that they're looking at ways they can help the families more who are undergoing this sort of tragic situation. of course that's not a lot of comfort to the mueller family who is going through this right now wondering if their daughter is alive or dead. >> a lot of people thinking about that family. sunlen serfaty, thank you. >> disturbing concerns for bobby kristina brown. police are looking for answers regarding some unexplained injuries she has. also two philadelphia cops now on the other side of the law as this video leads to their a arrest. nick valenci is following the story. >> such a disturbing story. we'll tell you how the quick thinking of the victim's girlfriend helped clear his name. i'm nick valenci in atlanta. you give... and you give...

and then you give some more. but sometimes you get. and so you take. tylenol® cold is strong enough for you while children's tylenol® is gentle enough for them. we give you relief from your cold and flu. you give them everything you've got. tylenol®. meet the world's newest energy superpower. surprised? in fact, america is now the world's number one natural gas producer... and we could soon become number one in oil. because hydraulic fracturing technology is safely recovering lots more oil and natural gas. supporting millions of new jobs. billions in tax revenue... and a new century of american energy security. the new energy superpower? it's red, white and blue. log on to learn more.

what's that thing? i moved our old security system out here to see if it could monitor the front yard. why don't you switch to xfinity home?

i get live video monitoring and 24/7 professional monitoring that i can arm and disarm from anywhere. hear ye! the awkward teenage one has arrived!!!! don't be old fashioned. xfinity customers add xfinity home for $29.95 a month for 12 months. plus for a limited time, get a free security camera call 1800 xfinity or visit comcast.com/xfinityhome. 41 minutes past the hour. now developments in the case of bobbi kristina brown is still in a medically induced coma. according to sources the 21-year-old has injuries that have still not been explained. what those injuries are, that hasn't been revealed. in another development investigators are focusing now on bobbi kristina's boyfriend nick gordon. all of this as they try to

determine how it is she ended up face down in a tub of water last weekend. the story we're looking at two philadelphia police officers have been arrested and charged with aggravated assault and criminal conspiracy. >> they're i couldaccused of turn and look at the screen here beating this 23-year-old busting his eye, splitting his head open and trying to allegedly cover it up. but his girlfriend hunted down surveillance footage that helped clear his name. nick valencias has the latest. >> reporter: vindicated by video nearly two years after he was brutally beaten by police 23-year-old naji rivera received a slice of justice. the two cops indicted by a grand jury indicted and arrested this week charged with police brutality. >> the eye was beaten and swollen shut a broken nose approximately 20 staples to the top of his head having his head split open. >> reporter: may 29th 2013

when officers shawn mcknight and kevin robinson said he resisted arrest after she said he ran a stop sign in his scooter. in a police report the officer said he attempted to flee on foot after being pulled over. according to the officers rivera slammed an officer against a brick wall before throwing elbows at an officer during the struggle. officer robinson was said to have suffered minor pain. after watching surveillance video from the incident a grand jury determined the officers' story was a lie. >> the video undermined every aspect of the officers' account of the incident. the another officer arrived that thought mr. rivera had been shot because there was so much blood on the ground. >> reporter: his girlfriend found the video, result of knocking on local businesses where the assault happened to see if it had been caught on tape. >> it is painful, it is embarrassing it does bring a lot of issues that you see across the country. we have 6,500 sworn members.

these guys do not represent the majority of police officers. >> reporter: the district attorney has dropped all charge against rivera. his attorney says rivera knew this day would come. >> it's unfortunate, you know, for the police department as a whole. they're all a pretty good bunch of professionals who try to protect everybody in philadelphia and they got a tough job to do. it's a sad thing that this particular incident occurred. >> naji settled with the city of philadelphia for $200,000. those two police officers they were arrested, put in jail but they posted bond. they're since out. we did hear back from each of their attorneys. kevin robinson's attorney says he's well respected and a dedicated member of the police department for the past seven years. he goes on to say he looks forward to clearings his name and getting back to protecting and serving the citizens of philadelphia. as far as shawn mcknight's attorney he says mcknight is a good cop who risks his life every day when respects flee. he says that creates risk for

themselves for the public and officers who bravely pursue them. he also says they look forward to the trial. these cops standing by their convictions saying looking forward to the trial. >> all right. >> nick valencia thanks so much. a new gallup poll out that reveals some of the most polarizing presidents since 1953. you might be surprised who's on the list. we'll tell you next. and even though their dentures look clean, in reality they're not. if a denture were to be put under a microscope we can see all the bacteria that still exists on the denture and that bacteria multiplies very rapidly. that's why dentists recommend cleaning with polident everyday. polident's unique micro clean formula works in just 3 minutes, killing 99.99% of odor causing bacteria. for a cleaner, fresher brighter denture everyday. [ julie ] the wrinkle cream graveyard. if it doesn't work fast... you're on to the next thing. clinically proven

neutrogena® rapid wrinkle repair. it targets fine lines and wrinkles with the fastest retinol formula available. you'll see younger looking skin in just one week. one week? this one's a keeper. rapid wrinkle repair. and for dark spots rapid tone repair. from neutrogena®. (soft, calm music.) hi, you've reached emma. i'm out of the office right now, but will get back to you just as soon as i possibly can. your call is important to me. join princess cruises for exclusive discovery at sea experiences. enjoy cruises from $499 during our 50th anniversary sale. call your travel consultant or 1-800-princess. princess cruises. come back new. you only know in a fire to get out, to escape and now ok you are outside and you are safe but what do you do now and that's where the red cross came in... .

we ran out of the house just wearing our pajamas. at that point just to even have a toothbrush that i could call my own was so important... . ...you know it just makes you feel like a person again. every 8 minutes the american red cross responds to a home fire or other emergency. you can help. please donate now.

president obama's approval rating it may be rising but he remains one of the most polarize polarizing presidents in modern times. perhaps it's no surprise that many democrats give him a thumb's up while overwhelmingly republicans thumb's down. >> this is according to a gallup tracking poll by the way. look at this each of president obama's six years in office rank among the top ten most polarized for more than half a century. george w. bush fills the other four spots. we got people who want to talk about this. cnn political commentator and strategist maria cardona and republican strategist and black rock senior director lisa booth. ladies thank you so much. >> hi christi. >> mr. obama -- good morning. mr. obama, america's most po particularizing president ever really? what's your reaction to that lisa? >> he is one of the most polar polarizeing presidents ever and

gallup said he is on track to be the most polarizeing president in their polling history. he's someone that set out and said he wanted to unite the country but divided the country through policies like obama care. what's important to note we're not just seeing a divide among the parties we're seeing a divide in the wage gap. look at president obama, middle class families have been left behind by this president. middle-class families making less than in 2009 and while jobs have been added to the top and bottom of the wage scale, middle-class americans have seen their job prospects diminish with hundreds of thousands of jobs lost in the construction and manufacturing industries. >> all right. wait a minute. maria, wayent to get your take on this. victor and i were talking a about it and thinking clinton wasn't polarizing nixon wasn't polarizing. what do you make of this? >> i think there's a couple things going on here. number one, it doesn't surprise me that there are folks who think that obama is the most polarizeing president thus far because he frankly, has had the most obstructionist opposition that we have had.

even during his campaign we saw the rise of the birther movement we saw the rise of the tea party, we saw the rise of an extreme right wing conservative movement that, frankly, other democratic presidents didn't have to contend with. and you're right, let's remember clinton. clinton was very polarizeingpolarizing. he also had an opposition that was trying to do absolutely everything to bring him down. it's no different with president obama. in fact look not very long ago, when mitch mcconnell essentially said that his goal as a majority leader in the senate or as a majority leader for his party, was not going to be to find solutions for this country, it was going to be to make sure that president obama was a one-term president. so he got elected twice because he focused on middle class economics which is what he's going to continue to do little laughable that republicans are just now talking about -- >> look at the numbers. >> middle-class families being left behind.

>> all right. >> every single policy they put forward actually hurts middle-class families. >> lisa you're shaking your head. go ahead. >> the proof is in the pudding, right. let's look at what middle-s class families are experiencing right now and suffering under this president. you can say that republicans don't care about the middle class, which is laughable in itself but let's look at who's really suffering under president obama and that's the same middle-class families president obama has said he's trying to help but they've not benefitted from this president. >> okay. we're heading into an election year. let's think about that. when you look at these numbers. and how there's this huge gap between the way, obviously republicans and democrats see candidates. i'm wondering, we've got president bush in there for four of the slots in the top ten. is that going to affect do you think in any way lisa jeb bush and his possible run? >> well i don't think it's going to hurt jeb bush. look at -- if jeb bush is the republican nominee, we he still has a long path to get there and a difficult path to get there,

but if he is the republican nominee he has a strong record on economic growth he can point to as governor of florida but it if you look at someone like hillary clinton, you know, she's incapable of doing that. no crowning achievements a as a united states senator and her record as secretary of state is abysmal because of their record seeing the rise of isis take shape in iraq and syria and north africa. >> you know what's interesting here christi, is that republican strategists are saying publicly and privately that given the growth in the economy, we just had another tremendous jobs report republicans are going to have to find another talking point other than it's the obama economy that's bringing the country down. yes, middle-class families have not been the receivers of a lot of that income in terms of rising income but frankly, it's been because of republican opposition to the policies that would have helped middle-class

families. >> there's no correlation you can make between the two. >> now they have a chance to prove they really are looking out for middle-class families. in the last two elections, you look at polls right now, lisa americans still believe that democrats and obama and if hillary runs it will be hillary, are the ones that understand what middle-class families go through. >> hillary clinton will be incapable of delivering an income inequality conversation when she is someone who is -- >> she's -- >> she's out of touch with the average american. this is someone who said -- >> she has worked all her life. >> we appreciate it. we can't hear either one of you at the moment. but i know that you're passionate we love the conversations. maria and lisa thank you so much. >> thank you, christi. >> thank you. >> thank you. >> coming up at the top of the hour new coalition attacks against isis in iraq and syria. the forces are unleashing more than a dozen air strikes targeting the militants in iraq's second largest city of mosul.

moderate to severe crohn's disease is tough but i've managed. except that managing my symptoms was all i was doing. and when i finally told my doctor, he said humira is for adults like me who have tried other medications but still experience the symptoms of moderate to severe crohn's disease. and that in clinical studies the majority of patients on humira saw significant symptom relief. and many achieved remission. humira can lower your ability to fight infections, including tuberculosis. serious, sometimes fatal infections and cancers including lymphoma, have happened; as have blood, liver, and nervous system problems,

serious allergic reactions, and new or worsening heart failure. before treatment, get tested for tb. tell your doctor if you've been to areas where certain fungal infections are common and if you've had tb hepatitis b, are prone to infections or have flu-like symptoms or sores. don't start humira if you have an infection. ask your gastroenterologist about humira. with humira, remission is possible. can this decadent, fruit topped pastry... ...with indulgent streusel crumble, be from... fiber one. fiber one streusel. [ aniston ] when people ask me what i'm wearing, i tell them aveeno®. [ female announcer ] aveeno® daily moisturizing lotion has active naturals® oat with five vital nutrients. [ aniston ] because beautiful skin goes with everything. aveeno®. naturally beautiful results™.

you do know that architecture is considered art. >> yes. it sure is. in today's ones to watch see how architecture can shape how we look at the world.

>> reporter: look around. we are surrounded by architecture. from the extreme to the every day. from the old to the new. from ancient rome to modern manhattan. each landscape speaks of those it shelters. we have built and built and built on this earth. and architecture the shaping of volume light and ideas, has come to be known as the mother of all art. >> there are many buildings in the world that are great and they are great and have their limits. there's no such thing as a perfect building. it's continually evolving and that's what's really exciting. >> reporter: every structure in our habitat was conceived by a created mind a person with a

plan an architect. >> architects are obsessed. everything they see and do is related to construction and everything around our world is constructed. >> you can watch the full show at cnn.com/onestowatch and we hope you make good memories today. >> stay with us next hour of "cnn newsroom" starts now, turp it over to our colleague and friend fredricka whitfield. >> i'll take it from here. i felt the handoff. >> all right. >> thanks so much. you have a great day. >> appreciate it. >> hello everyone. it is the 11:00 eastern hour of "the newsroom." we begin right now. happening right now, in the newsroom -- >> the sound of shells slamming into donestk. i was woken byes this morning and now as dusk falls, we're

hearing again. >> the sounds of war in ukraine this morning as talks fail to produce a peace deal. plus new air strikes against a major isis stronghold. >> behind me is the most important piece of territory that isis still controls in northern iraq. >> the u.s. trying to gather intel on whether american ground stroops should help retake iraq's largest cityp. you're live in the "cnn newsroom." we begin with new coalition attacks against isis in syria. forces unleashing more than a dozen air strikes targeting the militants in mosul. for weeks, isis fighters have maintained their defenses there, and now the coalition is bombarding militant targets with increased frequency and intensity.

a total of 26 air strikes in syria and iraq overnight, according to u.s. central command. phil black is on the ground for us outside mosul. >> reporter: on this day, overhead has been the constant sound of aircraft. fast-moving aircraft. we have seen what appears to be a slower-moving, larger reconnaissance aircraft of some kind and then frequently repeatedly often very close to one another, the sound of large blasts in the distance. >> will a ground offensive against isis in mosul include american troops? cnn has learned the u.s. military is gathering a as much intelligence as possible to determine whether it should recommend american troops accompany iraqi forces to help retake the city. also new this morning, we're learning isis has blown up a bridge leading into the oil rich iraqi city of kirkuk possibly to prevent an advance by kurdish forces. just over a week ago, isis used that bridge to launch a surprise

attack on the city gaining a stronghold there. and in baghdad, suicide bombings have killed at least 36 and wounded nearly 100 more. in separate incidents, two bombers targetd a busy market and a restaurant in the iraqi capital. the attacks come just hours ahead of the iraqi prime minister's decision to lift a long-standing curfew in the city. meantime the family of an american hostage held by isis is pleading with her captors to contact them privately. the parents of 26-year-old kayla mueller say they hope their daughter is still alive. isis is claiming she was killed in a jordanian air strike on an isis target. but the u.s. and jordan say there is no evidence that she is dead. cnn's kyung lah is in prescott arizona, 100 miles north of phoenix, for us. kyung, what is being said there? >> what this town is trying to

come to grips with is what is a lie and what is truth. it's very, very difficult to tell. the parents released a statement and it's something that's very interesting, fredricka, because it's not just a public statement, it's a statement directly to kayla mueller's captors. here's what it says. it says to those in position of responsibility for holding kayla in adherence to your warnings and out of concern for kayla's safety we have been silent until now. after going to extraordinary efforts to keep kayla's name out of the media for so long by securing the cooperation of journalists throughout the world her name was released. this news leaves us concerned yet we are still hopeful that kayla is alive. you told us that you treated kayla as your guest, as your guest her safety and well being remains your responsibility. it comes comes from her parents. they put their name on it. they have not spoken in front of cameras because, fredricka, as you can imagine, they're still

trying to weigh the difficult threat isis more than a year ago, told them if her name got out, she would be killed but since they released her name they don't know what to do right now. >> heartbreaking. people are wishing the best for her. kyung lah thank you so much. as we heard a moment ago the u.s.-led coalition has launched new attacks on isis in mosul. separately a jordan mounted more air strikes against the terror group today. the latest targets are in the isis stronghold of raqqah syria. activists on the ground report that one strike killed 47 isis fighters. joining me now, nicolas burns, a former undersecretary of state and was a u.s. ambassador to nato among many other things. he now teaches at the harvard kennedy school. good to see you. i wonder is a greater impact being made now that jordan is stepping up its air strikes and making it quite clear that it is still very angry about the killing of its pilot? >> i think this is certainly

going to help the international coalition. this coalition needs to accelerate the air campaign against isis not just in iraq but as you've just said in places like raqqah and syria, which, of course, is the heart of the isis operation. as long as the arab/sunni arab state cans coalesce jordan saudi arabia uae and kuwait if turkey can join the u.s. led alliance it will be much more effective in pursuing the military campaign but also in the very important effort to try to isolate isis within the sunni arab community in the middle east. >> so what country can apply the kind of pressure necessary to turkey to encourage turkey to take a stand to be more engaged? >> well certainly that's partly the responsibility of the united states given the fact that we have traditionally had a close alliance with turkey and turkey is part of the nato alliance. i think it is incumbent on the new saudi leadership and those who have taken positions in riyadh to close ranks with the

turks, qataris if that's possible because the threat of isis is to the heart of the sunni community and all their countries. it's the thousands of young people leaving these countries to fight with isis. so the battle has to be not just military it has to be both psychological and political and it really has to be one by these moderate sunni countries. >> it sounds like you're saying the only way to really take control of this is to handle it militarily? >> no. i think that's not the case. i think in the short term what the international coalition has put in place, effectively, is a campaign to contain isis and they've been effective in keeping isis away from the iraqi kurdistan, away from mosul and haditha dams but the only way to defeat isis is through a combination of military measures economic measures to dry up the financing support to isis itself and frankly political, strong political support by the arab countries to win the battle for the hearts and minds of the sunni

population funding isis some of them and, of course providing the young people who take up ranks with isis itself. >> then i want to ask you about a terror arrest that happened in the u.s. five men arrested here and one abroad all bosnian immigrants all accused of aiding terror organizations overseas. how much of a surprise does this come to you? >> well i think it's indicative of the fact that we know from fighting al qaeda, after 9/11 and the europeans know from fighting so many of the indigenous european groups in the '70s and '80s the fight is not just military it's law enforcement, it's judicial cooperation, it's economic cooperation, to work to make sure that these groups can't have access to our financial system. the fight against terrorism has to be comprehensive. it's good to see that american authorities, of course are focused on this. >> nicolas burns, thanks so much. always good to see you. appreciate it. >> thank you. vice president joe biden says quote/unquote america is

being tested. we'll show you what else he had to say about the crisis in eastern europe and bobbi kristina brown continues to fight for her life a week after she was found unresponsive in the bathtub of her home and we've learned police are focusing their investigation on her boyfriend. find out why, next. if you're taking multiple medications does your mouth often feel dry? a dry mouth can be a side effect of many medications. but it can also lead to tooth decay and bad breath. that's why there's biotene available as an oral rinse toothpaste, spray or gel. biotene can provide soothing relief and it helps keep your mouth healthy too. remember, while your medication is doing you good, a dry mouth isn't. biotene, for people who suffer from a dry mouth. okay, listen up! i'm re-workin' the menu. mayo? corn dogs? you are so outta here! aah! [ female announcer ] the complete balanced nutrition of great-tasting ensure. 24 vitamins and minerals antioxidants and 9 grams of protein. [ bottle ] ensure®.

nutrition in charge™. there's nothing more romantic than a spontaneous moment. so why pause to take a pill? and why stop what you're doing to find a bathroom? with cialis for daily use, you don't have to plan around either. it's the only daily tablet approved to treat erectile dysfunction so you can be ready anytime the moment is right. plus cialis treats the frustrating urinary symptoms of bph, like needing to go frequently, day or night. 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. why pause the moment? ask your doctor about cialis for daily use. for a free 30-tablet trial go to cialis.com

female vo: i actually have a whole lot of unused vacation days, but where am i gonna go? i just don't have the money to travel right now. i usually just go back home to see my parents so i can't exactly go globe-trotting. if i had friends to go with i'd go but i don't want to travel by myself. someday. male vo: there are no more excuses. find the hotel you want, and the flight you want, and we'll find the savings to get you there.

[ male announcer ] are you so stuffed up, you feel like you're underwater? try zyrtec-d® to powerfully clear your blocked nose and relieve your other allergy symptoms... so you can breathe easier all day. zyrtec-d®. find it at the pharmacy counter. america and europe are being tested. president putin has it to understand that as he has changed, so has our focus. we have moved from resetting this important relationship to reasserting the fundamental bed rock principles on which european freedom and stability rest. >> that was vice president joe biden speaking in just the last couple hours at an international security conference in germany. he was addressing the crisis in

ukraine and the attempts to work out a renewed peace deal with russian president vladimir putin. on the streets of ukraine, eastern ukraine, in fact more artillery fire between separatist rebels and ukraine forces today. after five hours of talks at the highest levels there appear to be little progress. diplomatic solution to the crisis. russian leader vladimir putin met with german chancellor merkel and france's president hollande in russia trying to rejuvenate a peace deal that has been in tatter since signed in september. once the talks ended chancellor merkel said the prospects for peace were uncertain. nick paton walsh is in donestk. with a push to get a few peace deal in -- new peace tealdeal in place is there peace in sight? >> now obviously you might be able to hear on our microphone the sound of the shelling

impacting donestk pretty much since it woke us this morning through until periodically tonight where it's picked up again quite intensely. closer towards the city center where i am standing. frankly i have heard since i've been coming here over the past sort of eight or nine months but that, of course, is in stark contrast to the push for some sort of negotiated settlement. there are a remarkable spectacle of two leaders going to the kremlin trying to get vladimir putin to sign up to a deal that frankly he already signed, the minsk agreements signed by the separatist trying to implement a cease-fire here and that fell apart very quickly as you mentioned and in the last month or so we have seen an increasingly embolden separatesist force here which ukrainians and americans say is staffed and equipped by the russian military. perhaps behind even maybe on the receiving end of some of the blasts you're hearing here,

though because it does appear those blasts are hitting separatist held territory here in their self-declared capital donestk. with that backdrop how could you expect any peace to be lasting? there is a clear sense of escalating violence here and i would imagine panic among some diplomats how to diffuse the situation. it is supposed to being calmed down by the talks but since then began, frankly, we have heard the shelling get louder. >> sounds like during your talk we heard probably four shellings. it's coming with quite the regularity. i see cars still driving behind you. let's take a listen to see how often we continue to hear this. >> fredricka, it is periodic so unfortunately it's hard to know exactly when you'll hear the next burst, but it comes at moments where you'll hear then

land at a time often far out to the outskirts of town that could be clashes around the airport where we were ourselves last week. very heavy fighting. it's been there for months. of course some of the shells and it seems like some of these are rocket systems, multiple rockets launch at the same time coming closer and closer towards the city center certainly the perception many residents you talk to here. they feel more under threat than they have in the past and that you stro ask what is the strategy behind this if it is the ukrainian military the most logical solution trying to ups the pressure on the separatists while talks are happening? it's been clear i think that moscow and the separatist backers aren't really perturbed by the threat of force, carried on regardless regardless of the impact sanctions have had on russian's economy. we are faced here with very violent situation around this the capital, the separatists declared for themselves and as it seems no real concrete result at all coming out of those

moscow talks. >> nick paton walsh, thank you for that. be safe. check back with you. more now, vice president biden addressing the crisis in ukraine a short time ago. >> must judge the existing agreement at minsk and any future agreement of russia by the actions russia takes on the ground not by the paper they sign. and given russia's recent history, we need to judge it by its deeds, not its words. don't tell us show us president putin. too many times president putin has promised peace and delivered tanks, troops and weapons. so we will continue to provide ukraine with security assistance not to encourage war, but to allow ukraine to defend itself. >> joining me from boston now is retired brigadier general kevin ryan spent many years working in russia and surrounding areas

including as the u.s. defense attache to moscow. good to see you. >> thank you. >> so you heard from our reporter there, nick paton walsh, reporting from the region and you could still hear the shelling. does that underscore to you the talks are at a standstill? >> yeah. i think the talks need to go on but certainly they're not going to produce a result or an end to this conflict while ukraine and russia are still fighting over where the eventual border or line of control is going to be between the two countries. and russia and ukraine have not decided where that line is yet, so the fighting will continue. >> so what kind of leverage can france and germany really have in these talks and how can they bring vladimir putin to the table? >> well i think the leverage they have is economic primarily. they are both on record as saying that they are not in

favor of sending military assistance directly in to the conflict so they have substantial economic and political leverage in the european theater. russian president putin needs allies. his allies' list looks like a rogue's gallery of north korea, china and iran. he needs reputable allies and partners and at the moment he has none. i think germany and france offer themselves as that. if he's willing to change his policies and behavior in ukraine. >> and what would be the changes in policies that he could possibly agree to? >> well first, to be to stop supporting the separatists in eastern ukraine, to stop the fighting in eastern ukraine. i think that's something that everybody agrees has to be the first step.

>> so if germany and the u.s. are both saying that militarily that's not the answer you know the military approach and it sanctions potentially does give leverage it doesn't seem as though that has helped so far. why is there such great hope that sanctions could actually make a difference? >> well i think it's -- it's the tool or the lever of convenience right now. what we don't have is a military lever. at the moment you have recommendations that are being floated around to provide military assistance to the ukrainian military and let's be clear what that's about. it's not about armed sales and helping to train the ukrainians during a time of peace. it's about providing them weapons and ammunition that will go directly to the front in the fight between ukraine and russia. and while i would never preclude

that kind of support or recommending that at some point down the road to the president, i think it's ill advised at this time because at this time under these sirc stabses, ukraine -- circumstances ukraine cannot defeat russia. as long as russia is willing to put troops on the ground in eastern ukraine, ukraine will lose. what we're fighting about now is where the line of control is going to be. >> brigadier general kevin ryan thanks so much for your time. appreciate it. >> thank you. >> other news we're following, the daughter of whitney houston continues to fight for her life. it has been a week since she was found unresponsive in her home. nick valencia has the latest on the investigation into her death. >> to a specific person inside bobbi kristina's residence at the time of the incident. we'll tell you who that is after the break. you're watching "the cnn newsroom." atter who you are, if you have type 2 diabetes, you know it can be a struggle to keep your a1c down. so imagine ... what if there was a new class of medicine that

works differently to lower blood sugar? imagine loving your numbers. introducing once-daily invokana®. it's the first of a new kind of prescription medicine that's used along with diet and exercise to lower blood sugar in adults with type 2 diabetes. invokana® is a once-daily pill that works around the clock to help lower a1c. here's how: the kidneys allow sugar to be absorbed back into the body. invokana® reduces the amount of sugar allowed back in ... and sends some sugar out through the process of urination. and while it's not for weight loss, it may help you lose some weight. invokana® can cause important side effects including dehydration, which may cause some people to have loss of body water and salt. this may also cause you to feel dizzy, faint lightheaded, or weak especially when you stand up. other side effects may include kidney problems, genital yeast infections urinary tract infections changes in urination, high potassium in the blood or increases in cholesterol.

do not take invokana® if you have severe kidney problems or are on dialysis or if allergic to invokana® or its ingredients. symptoms of allergic reaction may include rash, swelling, difficulty breathing or swallowing. if you experience any of these symptoms, stop taking invokana® and call your doctor right away or go to the nearest hospital. tell your doctor about any medical conditions medications you are taking, and if you have kidney or liver problems. using invokana® with a sulfonylurea or insulin may increase risk of low blood sugar. it's time. lower your blood sugar with invokana®. imagine loving your numbers. ask your doctor about invokana®.

a brand new development now in the investigation involving whitney houston's daughter bobbi kristina brown. the 21-year-old still in a medically induced coma one week after discovered face down in a tub of water in her home. national reporter nick valencia is tracking the developments. >> we know the investigators have turned their attention specifically to nick gordon quietly opened up a investigation. >> her boyfriend. the man she called her husband.

they want to know how she ended up in this bathtub full of water and there's also injuries they don't have an explanation for. you heard fredricka say bobbi kristina brown is still in a medically induced coma. we don't know what her current kp is. as recently as monday we were told the family had been told by the hospital that they should prepare for the worst but the hospital has. tight lipped about this information not releasing anything beyond. a source close to the investigation saying that police are looking very closely at her boyfriend, nick gordon. >> there whitney houston's mom getting out of the vehicle there. lot of family members have gathered now at the hospital. what about nick gordon? i understand when bobbi kristina was at the other hospital he was not allowed to be at that hospital. what's happening now at a different hospital? >> we don't know where he's at physically right now. he was spotted by local media at emory university hospital. he did show up briefly but because of the restraining order he wasn't allowed in the first

hospital where bobbi kristina was hospitalized. police want to talk to him and think he may be able to glean more information about exactly these injuries bobbi kristina sustained and what happened in the hours that led up to her being found in the bathtub. >> surely police had a conversation initial conversations with him and the other young man who found bobbi kristina but now it's another level of questions that will be asked? >> correct. last week i asked the roswell police department is everyone cooperative, are you talking to everyone in the home. they said there's four in the home. bobbi kristina nick gordon max low mass and perhaps his girlfriend. everyone in the home was cooperative. now perhaps, though, they've notched this investigation up. we're hearing from a source close that all eyes are on nick gordon right now. >> bottom line still a sad situation, bobbi kristina still on life support. >> absolutely. >> thanks so much. keep us posted. meantime should the government decide whether you vaccinate your child? coming up i'll speak to a mom who says it should be her

decision and a doctor who says vaccinations are too vital a tool to ignore. when you ache and haven't slept... you're not you. tylenol® pm relieves pain and helps you fall fast asleep and stay asleep. we give you a better night. you're a better you all day. tylenol®. don't just visit new york. visit tripadvisor new york. tripadvisor not only has millions of real traveler's reviews and opinions but checks hundreds of websites, so people can get the best hotel prices. to plan, compare & book the perfect trip.

visit tripadvisor.com today.

. all right. hello again, everyone. good morning. i'm fredricka witfield. you're in the newsroom. it's the bottom of the hour. should parents be forced to vaccinate their children for measles a highly contagious respiratory disease that spreads through coughing and sneezing. those who say yes argue the shots are a vital tool for stopping the potentially deadly disease from spreading. those who say no worry about potential health risks from the measles vaccine and say the government should not be allowed to make the decision for them. mississippi is one of only two states that does not permit religious or philosophical exemptions to its vaccination

program. the other is west virginia. in mississippi, a child must complete the state's immunization schedule which involves five vaccinations including measles or else that child cannot enroll in school. only children with certain medical conditions can enroll without getting vaccinated. lynndie mcghee lives in mississippi and opposes the state's policy on mandatory vaccinations and co-director of mississippi parents for vaccine rights and joins us now via skype. good to see you. >> hi fredricka. >> miss mcghee, you oppose the mandatory nature of mississippi's law, but you've said you're not opposed to all vaccine vaccines. your 14-year-old son has had all of his shots except tdap which protects against tenuous and diphtheria and whooping cough but your 6-year-old daughter has had only one vaccination in her lifetime and that's hepatitis b. so what's behind the different decisions you've made for your

kids? >> well my son is fully vac nated with the exception of the new tdap booster. my daughter had a reaction in the hospital before we left and had to be riyadh mitted after the hepb vaccination. i'm not anti-vaccine but our schedule looks like 49 doses of 15 vaccines before kindergarten and drug companies along with the doctors have no accountability and can't sue them in civil court when vaccines cause injury or death and vaccination is a medical, so when injury or death happens there's no recourse. so as long as there's no accountability, i feel like parents together with their doctors, should have some flexibility in our schedule. >> okay. so it's not necessarily that you

are against mandatory vac sayingses. sounds like you're against the scheduling. perhaps you as a parent want more leeway to make a decision as to when your child would be vaccinated? >> that's correct. and mississippi parents for vaccine rights we are a couple thousand educated families and most of those parents do want to vaccinate their children. the law here in mississippi is so oppressive that we have pediatricians who are terminating their clients whenever we veer from the cdc recommended schedule. >> so what about the concern, however, that many parents have expressed that if i vaccinate my child and someone else doesn't vaccinate their child and our children do interact and something is passed on then it means or, you know the parent of the vaccinated child is looking at other parents saying they're not taking responsibility for all children they're only thinking about their own. what do you say about that

argument? >> my responsibility first and foremost is to my child. but the thing that i say to that is that we have an entire generation of adults who are not current on their vaccines. i haven't had an mmr vaccine since i was a child and those vaccines wane. so why is it that our children have to bear that burden when we have an entire population of adults who are not vaccinated. >> but then children are more vulnerable isn't the argument being made by some parents that if their child gets sick as a result of a contagious disease passed on from another child, that that only underscores the vulnerability and the lack of protections that have been made? >> right. but if i choose not to vaccine my child against mmr, then i'm responsible for my child and like if we look at the mmr, i was on the california health

department site, it looks like about two-thirds or 66% of the outbreaks in california right now are in documents. so we're focusing on soccer moms who aren't vaccinating their children when why children? why aren't we looking at the fact that adults aren't being vaccinated as well. >> all right. we're actually going to talk to an infectious disease doctor coming up and ask him that question too. lynndie, appreciate your time. >> thank you. >> so is there too much leeway in general between states and as it pertains to vaccinations? i will be asking that infectious disease specialist joining us if it is time for a national standard.

lynndie, appreciate your time.

. should the measles vaccine be mandatory across the country if? measle cases are in 16 states and district of columbia. what is the best way to stop this highly contagious disease which spreads through coughing and sneezing? every state in the united states requires school-aged kids to receive certain vaccines. the differences are found in the types of exemptions allowed. all states allow medical exemptions. all but two states allow religious exemptions. at least 20 allow secular exships which means a parent can opt out because of personal or

fis philosophical beliefs. good to see you, dr. kim berland. >> thank you. good to be with you. >> as long as people are allowed to opt out of measles vaccines in some places will this spread ever be stopped or contained? >> no. the predictability with which a meessles epidemic, for instance will occur when enough people opt out or do not get their children immunized is a very sad fact that we're facing right now and clearly we're beginning to see that with what started at disney lanz and is spreading across the country and across national borders into mexico as well. >> so do you think as a result of this now, we talk about starting in california and then spreading now 16 states and the district of columbia does there need to be a national standard as it pertains to measles vaccinations? who should get it and when et

cetera? >> well i think that what we need to do is a really good job of explaining why people need to get the measles vaccine. it is a safe vaccine, highly effective vaccine, a vaccine that has saved millions of lives and kept millions more children who would have had permanent brain damage, for instance from measles from ever having that living out full and complete lives because they were vaccinated. i think if we explain carefully to people all parents love their children all people want what's best for their children this is not only about helping that individual child of a particular parent or family but protecting all children all of the most vulnerable among us. >> perhaps you heard lynndie mcghee who joined us earlier who talked about why with one of her children 14, fully vaccinate except for the tdap and

6-year-old opted not to have her vaccinated for most things instead of the hep b because the scheduling in her state is just too aggressive more than 50 vaccinations inoculations in any one time under a certain -- within a certain age group and she thinks that's too much and why she and maybe a lot of parents like her, are saying they're opting out of measles and other vaccinations. they think it's too much for these small bodies. what do you say in response to that? because that's a very common response and concern. >> well vaccines are safe. vaccines are effective. vaccines save lives. that's the most important message to convey. to get a vaccinen to en ton to -- vaccine on to market it's tested in tens of thousands of people and once being used throughout the united states the effectiveness as well as any kind of risks or adverse events associated with it are monitored carefully by the centers for disease control and

prevention and other groups as well. we have a very, very good understanding of just how safe these vaccines are and i think the fact that none of us have ever seen measles or few of us have is a testament to how effective they are. but in order to maintain that people have to keep getting the vaccines. and, these vaccines have been tested in the ages that they're being given. if someone defers getting a vaccine when they could have had it at 12 months of age for measles and decide to get it at 24 months of age they've lived another year of their life at risk of a deadly disease. >> and then doctor before i let you go if you can respond to one other thing that lynndie brought to our attention, she thought perhaps this spread is in large part because of adults who may have received the measles vaccination when they were young people and that their vaccine, the protection has waned and they, too, would be potential carriers. is that true and, b, is it the case that even adults who may

have had it as children need to get a booster somewhere in their life span so they continue to be protected? >> if someone has had measles in the past documented case of measles disease, they will not get it again. it's lifelong immunity. if they've had two doses of the vaccine in the past they will have lifelong immunity to the disease itself. we learn this in the 1989/1990 epidemic where tens of thousands of children and some adults as well had measles, some died from measles, something we want to not happen this time. stop this while we can. the best way to do it is to get two doses of this safe and effective vaccine. it will save lives. >> fascinating conversation. dr. kimberland thanks for your time. >> thank you for having me. still ahead, water rescue teams on alert in washington as mudslides and flooding forced residents in some areas to evacuate. that and another weather threat

for the northeast, next. buying a home used to mean hiring a licensed real estate agent and visiting place after place after place until you found the one you loved. thanks to technology buyers can now browse real estate listings whenever and wherever they want. >> at least 85% of all consumers search go on-line, before they actually buy anything and well before they're ready to buy. >> today, even with technology red tape and paper abound the transform of real estate will take it all on-line. that's the vision of square feet. an internet based realtor. >> we've streamlined the process so you as the seller would download the app, you take pictures of your home and once

you're finished it takes, you know five or six minutes to create a listing, it's going to be cleaner, simpler and faster. >> and it's cheaper too. list your home with a traditional agent and you pay 6% commission. do it yourself with square feet and pay 1%. that's a $25,000 savings on a half a million dollar home. the question for the future is whether people really will want to do it themselves? >> i wouldn't mess around trying to take shortcuts with a big investment like real estate. >> technology may not put the broker out of business but it does let us decide whether or not we need one.

if you suffer from a dry mouth then you'll know how uncomfortable it can be. but did you know that the lack of

saliva can also lead to tooth decay and bad breath? well, there is biotene specially formulated with moisturizers and lubricants... biotene can provide soothing relief and it helps keep your mouth healthy too. biotene, for people who suffer from a dry mouth.

. .

pretty wild night of weather on the west coast. flooding in washington state, hurricane-force winds in nevada. and this incredible dust storm in reno. zero visibility on the roads, causing several crashes there. and then there in san francisco, the same storm band also cut power to nearly 70,000 people. meteorologist ivan cabrera joining me now. the east coast for the past two weekends and now the west coast. >> and by the way, still more

snow in the northeast. hurricane force winds, category 4 hurricane-force winds. 144 miles per hour. that is some serious winds. and that is coming down the mountainside which is why we were so high, and all part of the same system that brought the to torrential rains, very heavy rain over the next few days. why? we are locked in. this is what we call the pineapple express. it's not just the hash tag for the twitter, it's actually a thing. the reason we call it that we get this tropical moisture coming all the way from hawaii and when this sets up basically what happens is we get a series of lows that come in one after the other, after the other. we are right now seeing one moving into the pacific northwest, but i'm more concerned about the next one, because i think this one, look at this kind of banding setting up like that. that is indicative of strong winds, potential hurricane-force winds once again for friends along the coast. that's a big deal. look at the potential rainfall.

this is additional rainfall from the foot we've gotten. anywhere from 4 to 6 inches to as much as 6 to 10 inches in the higher elevations and the northeast, you probably would like us to forget you at this point, because then we wouldn't be talking about weather. but more weather and more snow. and look at this. once again, we have areas here by the time we get through tuesday, this will come into series as well as through tonight, and especially heading into sunday and monday 12 to as much as 18 inches of snowfall. i don't know where they're going to put the snow. they have run out of space at this point here in the northeast. but they'll have to figure it out. >> i know. it's amazing that in some wayses they do have these snow-melting buildings. that's fascinating. but with this kind of accumulation -- >> overdrive. >> yeah indeed. thanks ivan. we'll check back with you. appreciate it. with the rise of cell phone cameras and dash cams even plane crashes are being caught on camera more than ever before. next we take a look at what investigators can learn from these incredible pictures. >> many people clean their dentures with toothpaste or plain water. and even though

their dentures look clean, in reality they're not. if a denture were to be put under a microscope we can see all the bacteria that still exists on the denture and that bacteria multiplies very rapidly. that's why dentists recommend cleaning with polident everyday. polident's unique micro clean formula works in just 3 minutes, killing 99.99% of odor causing bacteria. for a cleaner, fresher brighter denture everyday. our "name your price" tool helps -- oh, jamie you got a little something on the back of your shoe there. a price tag! danger! price tag alert! oh. hey, guys. price tag alert! is this normal? well, progressive is a price tag free zone. we let you tell us what you want to pay and we help you find options to fit your budget. where are they taking him? i don't know. this seems excessive! decontamination in progress. i don't want to tell you guys your job, but... policies without the price tags. now, that's progressive. vo: 85 percent of people who travel will go someplace they've already been. where's the fun in that?

it's time to find someplace new. book the hotel you want with the flight you want and we'll find the savings to get you there. major: here's our new trainer ensure active heart health. heart: i maximize good stuff like my potassium and phytosterols which may help lower cholesterol. new ensure active heart health supports your heart and body so you stay active and strong. ensure, take life in.

. we now have more incredible video of that deadly taiwanese plane crash that shocked the world. this time it's the aftermath. a trapped passenger banging on the window minutes after a transasia airline 235 plunged into the river. the person is believe to have survived. for the investigation, we're hearing instead of shutting down the failed engine the crew may have shut down the working engine. but as tom foreman reports, video of the crash may be a crucial piece of the puzzle. >> reporter: the number of stunning horrifying plane crashes caught on video has risen sharply in recent years,

giving investigators a powerful new tool when planes go down. for example, when this air asiana jet crashed in san francisco, video showed it touching down way too short of the runway. when this cargo plane crashed in afghanistan, a dash cam captured the final moments as the plane went nose-up and fell back to earth and exploded into a ball of fire. that video quickly pointed investigators to a possible cause. steve chelander. >> first thing that came to mind to me the airplane was over gross weight or overloaded or the load was not balanced. because it looked like the airplane was struggling to fly. >> reporter: and the idea this heavy military equipment broke loose inside the plane remains under serious consideration. even as investigators continue to scrutinize that video, frame by frame. while experts say video evidence must always be paired with other

findings sometimes it shows what is otherwise hard to know. did a wing break off? did a plane bank too sharply, or was the crash deliberate? and if images from outside are helpful, images from inside are even more so. this video shows the final moments of the small plane in idaho. >> i remember hitting the trees and it sounded like rapid-fire gunfire, it sounded like. >> reporter: nobody died but it was more evidence in favor of cameras in the cockpit. something federal authorities have wanted for 15 years. >> the ntsb would like to see video recorders just like cockpit voice recorders, part of every commercial aircraft. >> reporter: still, the explosive growth in cell phone cameras has dramatically increased the chances that any accident might be recorded. after all, those same cameras account for about 200,000 new photos on facebook every minute. and it all matters.

>> something is wrong! >> reporter: this is one of the earliest moves of a fatal aircraft from back in 1931 and then even it was clear, even i am an accident while in progress can make a huge difference in figuring out why it happened. tom foreman, cnn, washington. and we have so much more ahead, straight ahead in the "newsroom," and it all starts right now. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com happening right now in the "newsroom," new air strikes against a major isis stronghold. >> behind me is the most important piece of territory that isis still controls in northern iraq. >> the u.s. now trying to gather intel on whether american ground troops should take iraq's largest city. and measles cases in the u.s. continue to spread. should parents be legally required to vaccinate their

children? plus it's a credibility crisis. nbc launches its own investigation into brian williams' statements of his reporting in iraq. you're live in the cnn "newsroom." hello again, everyone. thank you so much for joining me i'm fredricka whitfield. begin with new coalition attacks of isis in iraq and syria. 26 air strikes, according to central command. isis releasing these images it says are from raqqa, syria, supposedly showing the aftermath of the strikes. cnn cannot confirm the authenticity of these pictures. more than a dozen air strikes targeted isis stronghold in iraq's second largest city of mosul. cnn's phil black is one of the few western journalists there. >> reporter: behind me is the most important piece of territory that isis still controls in northern iraq. mosul. it is iraq's second-biggest city

and you can see it here from the top of mt. czar tech one of the closest positions occupied by the kurdish fighters the peshmerga who have drawn a line around that city. and from up here a commanding view into mosul from the south and the towns and villages which surround it and still occupied by isis as well. on this day, overhead has been the constant sound of aircraft. fast-moving aircraft. we have seen what appears to be a slower-moving, larger reconnaissance aircraft of some point. and then frequently repeatedly often very close to one another, the sound of large blasts in the distance. it is a hazy day, not the best day to view mosul from this location but you still have a very clear idea of what lies between the lines that have been established by the kurdish fighters around the south and southwest of this city and that no man's land in between,

leading up to mosul itself. the strategy for the kurdish fighters is to circle this city to cut it off and to choke it off in particular from resupply across the border in syria. that is what these fighters are aiming to do not just on this front here but also from the southwest and the west as well near the area of the syrian border. the idea is to cut off isis weaken them prevent them from resupply all ahead of an anticipated major operation, an advance to try and reclaim this very important city from their control. but that operation still looks like to be months away. phil black, cnn, on mt. czartech in more than iraq. will a ground offensive against isis in mosul include the u.s. troops? cnn has learned the u.s. military is gathering intelligence to determine whether it should recommend american troops accompany iraqi forces to help retake the city. while air strikes continue

the u.s. is trying to determine the credibility of a claim that a jordanian air strike killed an american hostage. so far american and jordanian officials say there is no evidence supporting the claim that 26-year-old kayla muehler is dead. this as the muehler family implores isis to contact them and let them know if she is still alive. cnn's kyung lah joins us from prescott arizona. so kyung, what are the family members saying if anything? >> reporter: well they released that statement attention saying they are hoping she is alive. they are trying to talk directly to the captors. there is in that statement in everything we have heard from the people of this town a lot of confusion, profound sadness. but that slight glimmer of hope they are hoping that isis will somehow manage to bring her home. police close off the street leading to the muehler family

home. kayla muehler's mother and father grapple with how their child who gives so much is trapped in war's brutality. but it was the very atrocities of war that drew mueller. in syria, she felt compelled to help the victimized. in 2011 she posted this video protest online. >> i am in solidarity with the syrian people. i reject the brutality and killing of the syrian authorities are committing against the syrian people. >> reporter: by the following year she would make her first trip to the syrian turkish border oceans away from her quiet hometown of prescott arizona. but even growing up she longed to engage in the wrongs of the world. todd guyler is a doctor close with the family. >> the daughter is one of those folks that looks for the good in everything. and in that vein she goes on ahead and tries to look for her

god-sender with the way she looks and acts in day to day life? >> reporter: in high school her local paper showed her marching through town as part of the save darfur coalition, lobbying members of congress and staging protests against the genocide. as a student at northern university mueller was president of a group called stand, a student-led movement to end mass atrocities. after graduating she joined aid agencies that took her to india, israel and the palestinian territories. she came home briefly in 2011, volunteering at a woman's shelter and an hiv/aids clinic northland cares. the director telling cnn, she was truly a remarkable woman. we are all very sad. but muehler could not ignore the unfolding crisis in syria. the children she told her local paper, captured her heart. in may of 2013 she spoke at the prescott key wanis club where her father is a member. she said as long as i live i

will not let this suffering be normal. just two months later, as she left a hospital in aleppo syria, she was kidnapped. her family would hear nothing until ten months later. isis demanded a ransom of nearly $7 million, or they would kill kayla mueller on august 13th. as jordan begins its air strikes against isis this photo from isis and their claim that those air strikes killed mueller, unsubstantiated, likely a twisted ploy in the isis propaganda game. mueller's parents in a public statement directly to isis urged her captors to contact them privately and added, we are still hopeful that kayla is alive. now people who are close with the family tell us that there was a very clear understanding of the organization that they are dealing with. not just on the part of kayla mueller, but also her parents. despite this they are still

hoping this will end up being some sort of lie. fredricka? >> all right, kyung lah, thank you so much from prescott. u.s. authorities have arrested six people, meantime on terror-related charges. the suspects are accused of providing materials and money to terrorists in syria and iraq. and all six defendants immigrated to the u.s. from bosnia and three are naturalized citizens. officials say two suspects plan to join terrorists in battle. five of them were arrested in the u.s. and one overseas. let me bring in cnn's law enforcement analyst, tom fuentes, from washington. so tom, we don't have a whole lot of detail about these arrests or these subjects. but to hear that some are from bosnia or at least bosnian immigrants how does that strike you? >> fredricka, it doesn't strike me as that unusual, simply because you've had people from over 50 countries travel to syria and iraq to join isis

already. so in this case if they were bosnian in the united states but yet still wanted to join and provide support, even if it was by financial or help recruit or whatever it's not that unusual that it would be you know -- we have people from asia north america, europe australia, that have gone to join isis. so bosnia is yet one more country and it's been the site of a great deal of strf over the decades. >> so these men have been charged with supporting terror -- terrorists overseas or terrorist operations overseas. what kind of activity does that imply they may have been engaging in? >> that can imply they were trying to recruit people to actually go and join. or that they were trying to fund-raise whether it be by criminal activity or other activity. so -- or they themselves wanted to travel there and join. so there's a number of possible ways they can provide material support, and we'll learn more when they unveil when the

specifics are and the charges. >> and do you suspect that especially as a result of what happened in france that these kinds of operations intel right here in the u.s. really investigating people who may be either searching or engaging beyond searching online conversations with suspected terror groups? that is being stepped up as a result of what happened in france? >> no. because i think that it was as stepped up as it could be for months if not years already. and we have our legal system. we have our requirements of probable cause, and what can be produced and introduced as evidence to take them into court. so you know what the french or the europeans are doing is based on their legal system and what we have to do is based on ours. now, you've had the fbi director about three weeks ago in a public speech say the fbi is conducting over 1,000 active counterterrorism investigations. this would be just one of those. and there are many more just

like it going on all of the time. and as they investigate and follow through, they look to see are the people that are talking about supporting isis actually taking steps to support them? or are they just mouthing off, saying we want to support them and they're really not taking specific action to do so? so this is just an example that when there's enough evidence they want to take that case down so they can apply the resources to the next case. and not be bogged down with trying to watch people forever. >> tom fuentes, thank you so much from washington. >> thank you, fredricka. still ahead, as war with isis escalates, are the terrorists using americans as human shields? plus the plot thickens in the brian williams controversy. right now nbc is fact-checking his embellished war story, or was it embellished? can he survive the fallout?

[ female announcer ] we help make secure financial tomorrows a reality for over 19 million people. [ alex ] transamerica helped provide a lifetime of retirement income. so i can focus on what matters most. [ female announcer ] everyone has a moment when tomorrow becomes real. transamerica. no matter who you are, if you have type 2 diabetes, you know it can be a struggle to keep your a1c down. so imagine ... what if there was a new class of medicine that works differently to lower blood sugar? imagine loving your numbers. introducing once-daily invokana®. it's the first of a new kind of prescription medicine that's used along with diet and exercise to lower blood sugar in adults with type 2 diabetes. invokana® is a once-daily pill that works around the clock to help lower a1c. here's how: the kidneys allow sugar to be absorbed back into the body. invokana® reduces the amount of sugar allowed

back in ... and sends some sugar out through the process of urination. and while it's not for weight loss, it may help you lose some weight. invokana® can cause important side effects including dehydration, which may cause some people to have loss of body water and salt. this may also cause you to feel dizzy, faint lightheaded, or weak especially when you stand up. other side effects may include kidney problems, genital yeast infections urinary tract infections changes in urination, high potassium in the blood or increases in cholesterol. do not take invokana® if you have severe kidney problems or are on dialysis or if allergic to invokana® or its ingredients. symptoms of allergic reaction may include rash, swelling, difficulty breathing or swallowing. if you experience any of these symptoms, stop taking invokana® and call your doctor right away or go to the nearest hospital. tell your doctor about any medical conditions medications you are taking, and if you have

kidney or liver problems. using invokana® with a sulfonylurea or insulin may increase risk of low blood sugar. it's time. lower your blood sugar with invokana®. imagine loving your numbers. ask your doctor about invokana®. who cares what it holds, if it can't hold your gaze? who cares how tight it can turn, if it can't turn heads? who cares how capable it is, if it's incapable of creating a reaction? any suv can move something. but can it move you? introducing the first-ever lexus nx turbo and hybrid. once you go beyond utility there's no going back.

jordan unleashes more air strikes against isis. this after isis claims a jordanian air strike killed american hostage, 26-year-old kayla mueller. the united states and jordan both say there is no evidence. joining me now, cris hill cnn political commentator and former cia counterterrorism analyst, buck sexton. buck to you first, isis is not generally very creditable when it says an american was killed. how will anyone know if it's the result of the jordanian air strike? >> it's very unlikely. it's almost impossible that in these few air strikes they would have managed to get the one u.s. hostage they have in their custody. so as a matter of probability, you can almost dismiss it. and on top of the claim that isis made that not only was the american hostage killed which i do not believe. on top of that they have said

none of their fighters were killed. so somehow the jordanians, including to the islamic state were able to kill a hostage and not anybody else. this is not credible at all and we're figure to have to wait and see what the fate of the hostage is and our prayers are with the family. >> and so ambassador hill how does the u.s. proceed? we know jordan is now increasing its strikes. almost like taking a lead in the bombardment of the isis stronghold areas. but how should the u.s. proceed when it pertains to looking for this young american girl? trying to get to the bottom of whether indeed she was killed in this air strike. how should the u.s. proceed? >> well first of all, i think this is a time to be very close to the jordanians. and i think we're doing everything we can to support the jordanians whenever they need. i think we're helping them. and i think that's very important. secondly another i think battle is looming very much up in

mosul. and you can see the sort of beginnings of it where the iraqi forces have wanted to move the u.s. has been advocating caution there. but obviously, that is a top priority. once the battle gets going, that it needs to be successful. and then thirdly, i can assure you, the u.s. is just heavily engaged in every way we can be to find any and all-american hostages and i'm sure that effort is in no way, you know retarded or pulled back by the other efforts. >> and it's been said that she is the last american hostage. still unclear whether that can be believed as well. but buck when you look at the variety of people who have been held against their will hostages being held by isis from you know japanese to british, to americans and now jordanians there clearly is some real strategy behind what isis is doing whether it be to

engage countries of these hostages' origin or whether to make a statement that isis has a grip on the world. what -- how do you interpret this strategy if indeed there is one here? >> well it seems there has been a shift in strategy. it had been pretty kplon place to engage in negotiations that did result in release. if money was paid you could get a hostage freed from their grip. what we have seen more recently is that they're much more interested in the propaganda value of the videos they have created, of these gruesome murder videos and also using it as a means to oppose specific policies. in the case of the japanese hostages for example, they tied the figure they requested, the $200 million to the amount the japanese prime minister said he wanted to give the effort -- humanitarian effort in iraq and syria. so they're using this on the world stage to get attention for their cause. and this is terrorism in the

classic sense. they're trying to psychologically terrorize people by releasing videos instead of relying on this as a main funding stream. although i think they're going to find more hostages in the weeks and months ahead. >> ambassador hill if money is driving the machine of isis whether receiving money because of ransom and so many more countries now are saying we don't want to engage in that because even in exchange for the release of our citizen, we don't want to help finance isis. how is isis continuing to get money? do you believe there are certain governments that are somehow funneling money, whether it be from black market oil or in other ways they're getting money from countries? >> i think when we look back at this whole episode, the murder of the jordanian pilot i think caused a kind of sea change. and i think there is more and more sign that isis is not getting the funds they need. obviously, money is being funneled to them but there is no evidence at this point that it's being funneled to them by

actual governments. so i think they're getting money in the old fashioned way. they're engaged in extortion. obviously they have been trying to sell gasoline on spot markets in southern turkey but overall, isis is experiencing stress. and i think that's why there is some real effort on the part of the u.s. the iraqis and others to see what pressure can be put on them in the battlefield. >> ambassador cris hill buck sixton thank you so much. they took an oath to serve and protect. but investigators say two police officers lied. the evidence that caught them in a cover-up.

3rd and 3. 58 seconds on the clock, what am i thinking about? foreign markets. asian debt that recognizes the shift in the global economy. you know, the kind that capitalizes on diversity across the credit spectrum and gets exposure to frontier and emerging markets. if you convert 4-quarter p/e of the s&p 500 its yield is doing a lot better... if you've had to become your own investment expert, maybe it's time for bny mellon a different kind of wealth manager ...and black swans are unpredictable. if you're taking multiple medications does your mouth often feel dry? a dry mouth can be a side effect of many medications. but it can also lead to tooth decay and bad breath. that's why there's biotene available as an oral rinse toothpaste, spray or gel. biotene can provide soothing relief

and it helps keep your mouth healthy too. remember, while your medication is doing you good, a dry mouth isn't. biotene, for people who suffer from a dry mouth. i've been called a control freak... i like to think of myself as more of a control... enthusiast. mmm, a perfect 177-degrees. and that's why this road warrior rents from national. i can bypass the counter and go straight to my car. and i don't have to talk to any humans, unless i want to. and i don't. and national lets me choose any car in the aisle. control. it's so, what's the word?... sexy. go national. go like a pro.

two philadelphia police officers have been charged with brutalizing a man and claiming he attacked them. nick valencia joins me with the surveillance video. >> if not for the quick thinking of the girlfriend he may never have had his chan at redemption. he set a $200,000 law enforcement against the city of philadelphia and his lawyer says rivera's name is now clear. vindicated by video, nearly two years after he was brutally beat

beaten by police he received justice. the two cops indicted by a grand jury and arrested this week. charged with police brutality. >> the eye was beaten and swollen shut. there was a broken nose. there was approximately 20 staples to the top of his head from having his head split open. >> it was may 29th 2013 when veteran officers sean mcknight and kevin robinson said rivera resisted arrest after they said he ran a stop sign in his scooter. in an initial report the officer said rivera quote, attempted to flee on foot. according to the officers rivera then slammed an officer against a brick wall before throwing elbows at an officer during the struggle. officer robinson was even said to have suffered minor pain. but after watching surveillance video from the incident a grand jury determined the officers' story was a lie. the video undermined every, every aspect of the officers' account of the incident. another officer arrived at the

scene and thought mr. rivera had been shot since there was so much blood on the ground. >> it was rivera's girlfriend who found the video, the result of knocking on local businesses to see if it had been caught on tape. >> it is painful, it is embarrassing. it does bring a lot of issues you see across the country. we have 6,500 sworn members. these guys to not represent the majority of police officers. >> the district attorney has dropped all charges. his attorney says rivera knew this day would come. >> it's unfortunate, you know for the police department as a whole. they're all a pretty good bunch of professionals. we try to protect everybody in philadelphia, and they have got a tough job to do. it's a sad thing this particular incident occurred. >> both mcknight and robinson have been suspended from the department for 30 days with the intent for dismissal. they were in jail briefly and posted bond. we did get in touch with the two attorneys. and i want to read kevin

robinson's attorney's statement. he said he was a well respected and dedicated member of the police department and looks forward to clearing his name and looks forward to protecting and serving the citizens of philadelphia. sean mcknight's attorney mcknight is a good cop who risks his life every day when suspects flee they create risks for themselves for the public and for the officers who bravely pursue them. we look forward to the trial. both of these officers standing by their actions saying they want their day in court. >> even with that videotape, which is hard to watch. >> it is. and also when you look at that police report they wrote in there they approached this suspect, rivera with their lights on. and it's clear in that video, you saw at home or wherever you're watching those lights were not on the car. they actually knocked him over with the car showing that tape. and if not for his girlfriend, rivera -- >> she went door to door in that area looking for anyone who had surveillance video, and here it is. >> caught on tape.

>> nick valencia thank you so much. >> thanks. exactly what happened on brian williams' helicopter convoy in iraq 12 years ago? nbc is now investigating after williams recanted his war stories. and cnn has been doing our own digging, and we'll tell you what we found, straight ahead. (vo) after 50 years of designing cars for crash survival, subaru has developed our most revolutionary feature yet. a car that can see trouble... ...and stop itself to avoid it. when the insurance institute for highway safety tested front crash prevention nobody beat subaru models with eyesight. not honda. not ford or any other brand. subaru eyesight. an extra set of eyes, every time you drive. no matter who you are, if you have type 2 diabetes, you know it can be a struggle to keep your a1c down. so imagine ... what if there was a new class of medicine that works differently to lower blood sugar?

imagine loving your numbers. introducing once-daily invokana®. it's the first of a new kind of prescription medicine that's used along with diet and exercise to lower blood sugar in adults with type 2 diabetes. invokana® is a once-daily pill that works around the clock to help lower a1c. here's how: the kidneys allow sugar to be absorbed back into the body. invokana® reduces the amount of sugar allowed back in ... and sends some sugar out through the process of urination. and while it's not for weight loss, it may help you lose some weight. invokana® can cause important side effects including dehydration, which may cause some people to have loss of body water and salt. this may also cause you to feel dizzy, faint lightheaded, or weak especially when you stand up. other side effects may include kidney problems, genital yeast infections urinary tract infections changes in urination, high potassium in the blood or increases in cholesterol. do not take invokana® if you have severe kidney

problems or are on dialysis or if allergic to invokana® or its ingredients. symptoms of allergic reaction may include rash, swelling, difficulty breathing or swallowing. if you experience any of these symptoms, stop taking invokana® and call your doctor right away or go to the nearest hospital. tell your doctor about any medical conditions medications you are taking, and if you have kidney or liver problems. using invokana® with a sulfonylurea or insulin may increase risk of low blood sugar. it's time. lower your blood sugar with invokana®. imagine loving your numbers. ask your doctor about invokana®.

hello again. welcome back to the nurlz. i'm fredricka whitfield. there is an internal investigation into the claims brian williams made about being in a helicopter shot by an rpg in iraq back in 2003. the anchor's story started to come under question this week particularly when military veterans disputed his story. in a memo to staff, nbc news president deborah turner says quote, as you would expect we have a team dedicated to gathering the facts to help us

make sense of all that has transpired. we're working on what the best next steps are. cnn's senior media correspondent, brian stelter, takes a look at the latest fallout. >> brian williams' apology for exaggerating some of his iraq war reporting is not silencing the story. despite a separate apology to nbc employees, the conversation is only getting louder. ten years ago, tom brokaw seated the big cheer in "nbc nightly news" to brian williams. now brokaw is denying reports he wants williams out, saying i have neither demanded or suggested brian be fired. his future is up to brian and nbc news executives. those are hardly warm and fuzzy words for his colleague. a statement from brokaw's one-time rival, cbs' dan rather is more supportive. quote, i don't know the particulars about that day in iraq. i do know brian. brian is an honest, decent man, excellent reporter and anchor and a brave one.

of course dan rather has had his own controversies when it comes to truthful reporting. but the discussion about williams' future is not limited to legends of the evening news. on social media, the hash tag brianwilliamsmisremembers is exploding, placing him at historical events. the controversy growing since his mea kulpa. >> i made a mistake in recalling the events of 12 years ago. >> and he's not the only one having trouble with the fine details. rich krell admits he's questioning his own memory. yesterday he told cnn, williams' chinook helicopter came under small arms fire. now he's not so sure. several others say he was piloting a different helicopter in the area. krell says his nightmares are coming back and just wants to forget. prance the only one who can clear up the confusion is brian

williams himself. brian stelter, cnn, new york. the director at syracuse university good to see you. >> thanks good to see you. >> all right. so nbc says it's investigating a lead investigation, looking at the report. what williams has said whether it be on letterman either during a cnbc conversation even a documentary. but is this probe also going to be looking at all those who may have known about his story, how he's been telling the story, whether it be in -- whether it was inaccurate or not? whether there was some real corroboration by some of the producers he was working with? you know -- are there managers at nbc, perhaps even prior to the current president, turness? >> yeah one would hope. if it's a decent investigation, it's going to go after the old who knew what and when did they know it kind of thing. i mean this has been a sense -- the way this began to develop,

that it almost looked more like one of those stories that just started getting more and more detail and became more and more of a tall tale. certainly, we have done that all of the time. but then again, we're not the head of a major news operation. so it will be interesting to see what that investigation -- i have to say, though however that investigation turns out, i think nbc is going to have a really hard time not responding in a pretty powerful way. if brian williams is still in that seat next year at this time i think nbc is going to have some explaining to do. >> really? you're saying regardless of what the outcome of the investigation is just simply because of the flurry of activity this week in particular? >> well i think -- and there's two things nbc is thinking about. number one, brian williams has for some time been the number one anchor on network television. and he gets 9 to 10 million viewers. i know people say the evening

news is a dinosaur but 9 to 10 million viewers is not chopped liver. that's making a lot of money for nbc, especially now in this time where the "today" show is no longer in first place. they've got other issues. so part of them is loathe to give up this golden goose that brian williams is. on the other hand if they decide to simply let this slide with the chastisement or whatever they have essentially said that all that branding that journalism is all about, of being the one you can trust and, you know cronkite the most trusted man in america, that those standards are not as strong as they thought they were going to be. and his audience could, in fact begin to erode after this. so there's a lot of calculus they've got to take into account here and whatever we find out the investigation, it's clear that the story brian williams once told is not the same as the

truth, because brian williams has already apologized for that. >> yeah he did. and, you know it's an issue of credibility, as you put it trust. and especially at a time when you know we're seeing some pretty incredible promos. celebrating his ten years at the helm as lead anchor. what timing for this to be coming to a head like this just you know, with this campaign especially being stepped up celebrating his trust, his credibility, his story-telling over a ten-year period, as the leader of "nbc nightly news." >> yeah. that -- it's very uncomfortable to watch all of that. and the word "trust" keeps coming up. and i have to say, okay he apologyizes wednesday, but comes back thursday and friday and just does the news broadcast as though nothing had happened. and it was very uncomfortable to watch that. it was almost as though -- it was certainly a cloud hanging over those things. and i'm kind of surprised he

didn't suddenly take a brief vacation or something. but we'll see what happens. >> yeah we'll see what happens. you know it is uncomfortable. it's uncomfortable for viewers and a lot of us who know and have worked with him. i worked with him when he was at msnbc. and i, of course only think of him as a very, you know wonderful, kind and highly respected journalist. and when something like this happens, i think it makes so many of us cringe particularly those of us who have had the opportunity to work with him. and we're hoping for the best kind of outcome here. robert thompson thank you so much. appreciate it. >> thank you. we're going to shift gears quite a bit, because we're talking about vaccinating your children. if you decide not to vaccinate your child are you legally liable if your child or a playmate becomes sick or worse? our legal guys are next.

this is jim. a man who doesn't stand still. but jim has afib, atrial fibrillation an irregular heartbeat not caused by a heart valve problem. that puts jim at a greater risk of stroke. for years, jim's medicine tied him to a monthly trip to the clinic to get his blood tested. but now, with once-a-day xarelto®, jim's on the move. jim's doctor recommended xarelto®. like warfarin, xarelto® is proven effective to reduce afib-related stroke risk. but xarelto® is the first and only once-a-day prescription blood thinner for patients with afib not caused by a heart valve problem that doesn't require regular blood monitoring.

so jim's not tied to that monitoring routine. gps: proceed to the designated route. not today. for patients currently well managed on warfarin, there is limited information on how xarelto® and warfarin compare in reducing the risk of stroke. xarelto® is just one pill a day taken with the evening meal. plus, with no known dietary restrictions jim can eat the healthy foods he likes. don't stop taking xarelto® rivaroxaban, unless your doctor tells you to. while taking xarelto®, you may bruise more easily and it may take longer for bleeding to stop. xarelto® may increase your risk of bleeding if you take certain medicines. xarelto® can cause serious bleeding and in rare cases, may be fatal. get help right away if you develop unexpected bleeding, unusual bruising, or tingling. if you have had spinal anesthesia while on xarelto® watch for back pain or any nerve or muscle related signs or symptoms. do not take xarelto® if you have an artificial heart valve or abnormal bleeding. tell your doctor before all planned medical or dental procedures. before starting xarelto®, tell your doctor about any conditions such as kidney, liver, or bleeding problems.

jim changed his routine. ask your doctor about xarelto®. once-a-day xarelto® means no regular blood monitoring, no known dietary restrictions. for information and savings options, download the xarelto® patient center app call 1-888-xarelto or visit goxarelto.com. why do we do it? why do we spend every waking moment, thinking about people? why are we so committed to keeping you connected? why combine performance with a conscience? why innovate for a future without accidents? why do any of it? why do all of it? because if it matters to you it's everything to us. the xc60 crossover. from volvo. lease the well-equipped volvo xc60 today. visit your local volvo showroom for details.

the measles outbreak continues to spread. two new states nevada and delaware have confirmed cases of the highly contagious virus. based on cnn's count since the year began, there have been at least 110 cases reported in these states. even with this outbreak we're hearing from many parents who don't want to vaccinate their children for religious or philosophical reasons. that decision can impact the health of their child and the children around them. are these parents legally liable? and what does the law say? let's bring in our legal guys

avery freeman, law professor in cleveland, good to see you and richard sherman, defense attorney and law professor, joining us as well. richard, you first. if i, a parent say i don't want my child to be vaccinated for reasons other than medical, my child gets the measles and consequently spreads to someone else, can i be legally held liable for endangering the life of someone else? >> the answer -- the quick answer that, fred is maybe. it's not black and white. it's not open and shut. anybody can purchase bring litigation. there are no criminal laws against that. the states are empowered to regulate whether or not children have to be inknocklated. it's a state power, not a federal power and the states and legislation have certain exemptions and some are religious exemptions et cetera. if you fall into one of those exemptions and you legitimately owe owe that's the key,

legitimately fall into an exception, because that's where litigation comes out, then perhaps you are protected. but be real fred. these people have to be real. if you don't want to inoculate your children you probably shouldn't have those children. you're putting other people at risk. it's outrageous not to protect your children and other children around you. and just because you get an inoculation for polio or measles doesn't mean you're 100% protected. people who get it still get the disease if they're around people who have it. and if you get two doses, people still get it. so common sense and science in 2015 dictate get your kids inoculated or keep them home. end of story. >> and avery, i saw you in agreement for the most part until -- >> well i was until -- until we -- i guess discovered a new dimension of birth control. not having children if you -- >> it's not birth control. you have birth control. taking care of the children. that's what it's about. >> all right. let's dial it down. the reality is that most states

provide for an exemption, either religious or conscience. that actually is the problem area. because we have to recognize the public health reality, we have to recognize the severity of consequences. and we have to recognize the reality of mortality. basically, all of science says fredricka, thattin okayin knockrations are critical and people like donald trump and jenny mccarthy are entitled to their opinion, not facts. that's part of the misinformation disseminated. there is no connection between autism and issues like that and inoculations. that is fantasy. it is myth. and science backs that up. and i want to say that there were three years of hearings in congress chaired by dan burton former congressman from indiana,

who said there was -- that the evidence didn't support that there wasn't a connection. that was crazy. bottom line inoculations have to support public health. >> okay. so we won't win the argument on that. right now. but then i do wonder if you know cases of negligence if legal cases of negligence can be made when a parent opts not to get their child vaccinated they suffer brain damage from measles or they die. and then we're not talking about an exemption for medical reasons, because we just profiled a young child who had leukemia whose immune system wasn't strong enough for that child to have measles. but when you talk about i guess the legal recourse are parents looking at possible negligence charges against them if their child or someone else's child, you know, is endangered? >> yeah i would say yes to that, fred. i would say yes to that. and the states have the overriding power for the general welfare of their children. the state's power over the

children is greater than a parent. and if the states -- >> i don't know about that. >> it's true. that's law. >> wait a minute hold on. >> that's 2015 okay? >> hold on. >> you can make agreements spouses can make agreements and the judges can say no this is in the best interest of the children. >> the court -- >> real quick. >> let's answer fredricka's question. there is -- >> religious and philosophical -- >> is there negligence. >> all right, hold on. >> no reported case. unfortunately. no reported case. >> all right. >> so what's the viability -- are you really -- are you bound to your religion? are you a practicing person? is it is meaningful to you? and even if it is fred think about the reality of the situation. and the -- >> they always make a balance. >> not inoculating a child. what basic protection can you give a child. >> and politically, it's ridiculous.

>> and the state legislatures will never, never go along with that logic. i agree with it. it is politically impossible. it will never happen in this country. never. >> new york state says get your kids shots. >> this is the kind of argument that is taking place in many doctors' offices involving parents and pediatricians, et cetera. but because it is so heated because so many people see it in different ways do you see that it would serve this nation well that there would be a national standard? >> yes. >> of course they would have to remain exemptions. >> fred it's not -- >> how could you -- >> it's not realistic. >> how can you intellectually -- see it different? >> finish up, avery. real quick. >> it is not politically realistic. i agree with the science. by the way, one case out of new york took away a 3-year-old from a dad who failed to have her vaccinated by measles. >> beautiful. tlarchlts is tlarchlts. >> that is the only reported case i've been able to find. no national standard no state standard. >> in 2015 fred how can you

intellectually decide not give your child -- >> it's not intellectual. it's political, richard. it's political. >> if you care and love your children how can you not want for their best interests? >> well that's -- that disregards the religious argument. >> the religious argument is garbage. >> garbage? okay. >> we will leave it right there. this underscores the ongoing debate that really sweeps this nation just as the cases of measles also sweep through this nation. all right, thank you so much richard, avery. always appreciate you. thanks so much. and we'll be right back.

if you're taking multiple medications does your mouth often feel dry? a dry mouth can be a side effect of many medications. but it can also lead to tooth decay and bad breath. that's why there's biotene available as an oral rinse toothpaste, spray or gel. biotene can provide soothing relief and it helps keep your mouth healthy too. remember, while your medication is doing you good, a dry mouth isn't. biotene, for people who suffer from a dry mouth.

3rd and 3. 58 seconds on the clock, what am i thinking about? foreign markets. asian debt that recognizes the shift in the global economy. you know, the kind that capitalizes on diversity across the credit spectrum and gets exposure to frontier and emerging markets. if you convert 4-quarter p/e of the s&p 500 its yield is doing a lot better... if you've had to become your own investment expert, maybe it's time for bny mellon a different kind of wealth manager ...and black swans are unpredictable.

all right. >> checking our top stories, whitney houston's daughter remains in the hospital today a week after she was found unresponsive in her home. a source to bobbi cristina brown's case tells us roswell police are focusing their investigation on her boyfriend, nick gordon. and in washington state, dozens of homes have been engulfed by floodwaters. the worst of it hitting the town of britton, where a nearby river burst its banks. water rescue cruise are bringing their boats door to door and helping people from stranded cars. and serena williams is ending her 14-year boycott of

the indian wells tournament. she'll be playing now in that tournament next month. years ago, williams and her sister venus, suffered racist abuse, they say, at the california resort tennis tournament and the world's number one female player just off her australia open win says she is ending her strike in the spirit of forgiveness. ♪ with a straight sets win over maria sharapova, williams claimed her sixth title. moving past everett and and a half rah to lofa. >> i think it makes it really special, because this number 19 for me. so passing people like martina and a half rah drova. every win is like a super extra bonus and every win just is a

more awesome than the last. >> at 33 years old, williams shows no signs of slowing down. and is just three grand slam wins shy of tying steffi graf who holds the record at 226789. >> so much more straight ahead in the "newsroom," and it all starts after this.

[ female announcer ] we help make secure financial tomorrows a reality for over 19 million people. [ mom ] with life insurance, we're not just insuring our lives... we're helping protect his. [ female announcer ] everyone has a moment when tomorrow becomes real. transamerica. transform tomorrow. when the moment's spontaneous, why pause to take a pill? or stop to find a bathroom? cialis for daily use is approved to treat both erectile dysfunction and the urinary symptoms of bph, like needing to go frequently, day or night. 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.

[engine revving] [engine revving] [engine revving] ♪ introducing the first-ever 306 horsepower lexus rc coupe with available all-wheel drive. once driven, there's no going back. lease the 2015 rc 350 for $449 a month for 36 months. see your lexus dealer.

-- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com hello, thanks for joining me i'm fredricka whitfield. we begin with the war against isis. overnight, some 26 coalition air strikes pounded the militants in iraq and syria, according to the u.s. military. over a dozen of the strikes hit strategic isis targets in iraq's second-largest city of mosul. and now we're learning the u.s. military may recommend to the president that american forces assist in the eventual ground assault there. in baghdad today, suicide bombings have killed 36 and wounded nearly 100 more. in separate incidents, two bombers targeted a busy market and a restaurant in the iraqi capital. and in the iraqi city of kirkuk isis has blown up a bridge

possibly to prevent an advance by kurdish forces. over a week ago, isis used the bridge to launch a surprise attack on the oil-rich city gaining a stronghold there. cnn's phil black is on the front lines in the war against the isis militants. >> behind me is the most important piece of territory isis still controls in northern iraq. mosul. it is iraq's second-biggest city and you can see it from the top of mt. czartech one of the closest positions occupied by the kurdish fighters the peshmerga, who have drawn a defensive line around that isis controlled city. and from up here there is a commanding view into mosul from the south, and the towns and villages which surround it and which are still occupied by isis as well. on this day overhead has been the constant sound of aircraft. fast-moving aircraft. we have seen what appears to be a slower-moving, larger

reconnaissance aircraft of some kind. and then frequently repeatedly often very close to one another, the sound of large blasts in the distance. it is a hazy day, not the best day to view mosul from this location but you still have a very clear idea of what lies between the lines that have been established by the occurredish fighters around the south and southwest of this city and that no man's land in between, leading up to mosul itself. >> phil black now joining us live from mt. zartak. phil are -- is there real optimism with this mission? >> well it does appear fredricka, the kurdish fighters have gone along a way towards establishing lines that the isis fighters are simply unable to break through. it looks increasingly like a war of attrition. we visited a number of front lines over the last three days. and we have seen very similar sites in each. this areas where kurdish

fighters have rolled back significantly, and where they are now digging in holding defensive positions that isis increasingly simply looks unable to break. to is points to the possibility that isis' ability to strike forward to, lurch and claim areas of ground as it did when it moved into northern iraq appears to have been curtailed significantly, partly by the curds on the ground and at the same time, being hit by the international coalition from above. all of this is designed to protect the kurdish territory. these areas. that's what they're trying to do. and at the same time steadily slowly wear down isis in mosul, which it still occupies still controls and which is obviously significant. head of any attempt, major operation, to take that city back from them fredricka. >> all right, phil black, thanks so much for reporting from northern iraq there. all right. the u.s. meantime is trying to

determine if claims by isis that a jordanian air strike killed an american hostage are true. the family of kayla mueller is imploring isis to contact them and let them know if she is still alive. cnn's kyung lah joins us from prescott arizona. kyung, what is being said in the community there? >> reporter: well people here are saying and specifically her parents, that kayla mueller has a common thread in her life. and that is of quiet leadership and serving others. she knew -- you can see how idyllic it is here. she knew how lucky she was and she couldn't tolerate this when the people of syria were suffering so much. police closed off the street leading to the mueller family home. kayla mueller's mother and father grapple with how their child who gives so much is trapped in war's brutality. but it was the very atrocities of war that drew mueller. in syria, she felt compelled to

help the victimized. in 2011 she posted this video protest online. >> i am in solidarity with the syrian people. i reject the brutality and killing of the syrian authorities are committing against the syrian people. >> reporter: by the following year she would make her first trip to the syrian/turkish border oceans away from her quiet hometown of prescott arizona. but even growing up she longed to engage in the wrongs of the world. todd guiler is a doctor close with the family. >> the daughter is one of those folks who looks for the good in everything. and in that vein she goes on ahead, and tries to look for her god sender with the way she looks and acts in day to day life. >> reporter: in high school her local paper showed her marching through town as part of the save darfur coalition. lobbying members of congress and staging silent protests against the genocide. as a student at northern arizona

university mueller was president of a group called stand, a student-led movement to end mass atrocities. after graduating she joined aid agencies that took her to india israel and the palestinian territories. she came home briefly in 2011 volunteering at a woman's shelter and an hiv/aids clinic northland cares. the director telling cnn, she was truly a remarkable woman. we are all very sad. but mueller could not ignore the unfolding crisis in syria. the children she told her local paper, captured her heart. in may of 2013 she spoke at the prescott kiwanis club where her father is a member. she said for as long as i live i will not let this suffering be normal. just two months later, as she left the hospital in aleppo syria, she was kidnapped. her family would hear nothing until ten months later. isis demanded a ransom of nearly

$7 million or they would kill kayla mueller on august 13th. as jordan begins its air strikes against isis this photo from isis and their claim that those air strikes killed mueller. unsubstantiated, likely a twisted ploy in the isis propaganda game. mueller's parents in a public statement directly to isis urged her captors to contact them privately and added, we are still hopeful that kayla is alive. >> now we have spoken with people who are with the family this weekend, they say that they are surrounded by spiritual counsel, as well as friends and family and not speaking on family fredricka, because of that original threat by isis if they spoke they would hurt kayla mueller. >> they're still holding out hope. thank you so much kyung lah, appreciate that. the country of jordan has launched more air strikes on isis today to avenge the murder of one of its pilots.

cnn's atika schubert is in amman, jordan. what is the latest on this strategy being launched by jordan? >> reporter: well jordan is continuing to hit at those isis targets in syria. today we know a number of targets were hit around raqqa, specifically weapons depots storage areas. but also a mobile oil brigade and a number of vehicle convoys, as well. so those strikes have been continuing and, in fact they're likely to increase. the uae, the united arab emirates has now said it will send a squadron of its own f-16 jets to help also fly alongside jordan's planes. remember the uae actually suspended flights when the jourdain an air pilot was downed last year but have resumed flying again to show solidarity with jordan that they will be literally flying right along side. >> all right atika schubert thank you so much from aman. still ahead, there appears to be

month letting up in the fighting in ukraine, even after president putin got involved in peace talks. what is his real agenda? plus criminals may already be using the personal information of 80 million people who are victims of the massive anthem health insurance hack attack. we ask a former hacker if and how you can protect yourself. [rob] so we've had a tempur-pedic for awhile, but now that we have the adjustable base, it's even better. [alex] when i put my feet up on this bed my stress just goes away. [evie] i go up...heeeeyyy... [donna]our tempur-pedic is the best thing in our house, 'cept for my husband. [lauren] wait,wait,where are you going? [announcer] visit your local retailer and discover how tempur-pedic can move you. at ally bank no branches equals great rates. it's a fact. kind of like mute buttons equal danger.

...that sound good? not being on this phone call sounds good. it's not muted. was that you jason? it was geoffrey! it was jason. it could've been brenda. (vo) after 50 years of designing cars for crash survival, subaru has developed our most revolutionary feature yet. a car that can see trouble... ...and stop itself to avoid it. when the insurance institute for highway safety tested front crash prevention nobody beat subaru models with eyesight. not honda. not ford or any other brand. subaru eyesight. an extra set of eyes, every time you drive. ready for another reason to switch to t-mobile. get 2 lines of unlimited 4g lte data for just $100 bucks a month. it's america's best unlimited family plan. and it's only at t-mobile. if you have moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis like me and you're talking to your rheumatologist about a biologic...

this is humira. this is humira helping to relieve my pain and protect my joints from further damage. this is humira giving me new perspective. doctors have been prescribing humira for ten years. humira works for many adults. it targets and helps to block a specific source of inflammation that contributes to ra symptoms. humira can lower your ability to fight infections, including tuberculosis. serious, sometimes fatal infections and cancers including lymphoma have happened, as have blood, liver, and nervous system problems, serious allergic reactions, and new or worsening heart failure. before treatment get tested for tb. tell your doctor if you've been to areas where certain fungal infections are common, and if you've had tb hepatitis b, are prone to infections, or have flu-like symptoms or sores. don't start humira if you have an infection. talk to your doctor and visit humira.com this is humira at work

on the streets of eastern ukraine, more artillery fire between separatists, rebels and ukraine forces today and after five hours of talks at the highest levels, there appears to be little progress on a diplomatic solution to the crisis. russian leader vladimir putin, met with german chancellor merkel and france's president hollande in russia trying to rejuvenate a peace deal. vice president joe biden addressed the crisis while

attending a security summit in germany. >> it is not the objective of the united states -- i repeat it is not the objective of the united states of america to collapse or weaken the russian economy. that is not our objective. but president putin has to make a simple stark choice. get out of ukraine, or face continued isolation and growing economic costs at home. >> cnn's fred pleitgen is in ukraine. fred with a push to get a renewed agreement in place, is there any sense that some peace might be in sight? >> reporter: well the hopes certainly aren't very high. it was interesting, because today there was that munich security conference where a lot of world leaders were meeting. and the main topic there, fredricka, was ukraine. and there really wasn't any sense whatsoever there was progress being made. there wasn't a sense that some sort of cease-fire could be

imminent. because as you have just said angela merkel and francois holland went to see vladimir putin yesterday and came back basically with nothing. and that certainly didn't do much to listen the mood at the security conference and get people here on the ground in ukraine the sense that perhaps the bloodshed could stop at any point in time soon. it was interesting because angela merkel went on the stage at the munich security conference and said there is little to show for her efforts in trying to persuade vladimir putin to stop the violence in the east of ukraine. however, she also said she feels she has to keep on trying. and there also is sort of a divide between the europeans and some in the u.s. the europeans are saying we need to keep going down that diplomatic path. they're totally against any sort of defensive weapons for ukraine, where as we know there are some in the u.s. of course members of congress say the u.s. and others need to give defensive weapons to ukraine, otherwise they're simply going to get overrun by these pro-russian separatists. one of the voice who is spoke out very clearly was, of course

joe biden, as we heard in that sound bite there. i want to take a listen to more of what vice president biden had to say when he basically made an ultimatum to vladimir putin, saying if there is another agreement, he wants to see things happen on the ground before he believes anything. let's listen in. >> given russia's recent history, we need to judge it by its deeds, not its words. don't tell us show us president putin. too many times, president putin has promised peace and delivered tanks, troops and weapons. so we will it continue to provide ukraine with security assistance. not to encourage war, but to allow ukraine to defend itself. let me be clear. we do not believe there is a military solution in ukraine. let me be equally clear. we do not believe russia has the right to do what they're doing.

we believe we should attempt an honorable peace. we also believe ukrainian people have a right to defend themselves. so some very clear words there from the u.s. vice president. now, of course one of the positive things that did happen in these two days of talks of this new merkel/holland initiative additional talks where all four parties are going to be speaking with each other. there is a phone call planned for sunday that involves the russians, the ukrainians as well as the french and germans. it's called the normandy format where they're going to try and come to some sort of agreement. as you said there was a peace agreement on the table. the so-called minsk agreement, in tatters, and they're trying to revive that. of course fredricka, there are still issues in play where these ukrainians and russians are certainly at odds with each other about key points.

>> fred flight again, thank you so much from kiev. putin says he is open to creating a lasting peace in ukraine but also says none of the rebels in eastern ukraine are being backed by the kremlin. joining me from washington is liz wall former anchor for the russian cable network, "russia today," also known for quitting her job on the air, saying she couldn't take the distorted coverage of russia's intervention in crimea. nice to see you. >> nice to see you, fredricka. >> so what is the message that russia is trying to send? yes, he's at the table with france and germany. but is that message symbolic of something other than what he really wants? >> well you know it's hard to tell because his message has been so convoluted. i mean as we know here according to kiev according to nato according to the ukraine, according to the u.s. according to the u.s. allies russia has a

presence in ukraine. they're there with -- they're backing the separatists with weapons, tanks, personnel. yet all this time the russian president has denied that they're even involved in there. and so -- this is ludicrous. i mean it's -- there can't be a big conspiracy that everybody is lying, you know about the fact that they're there. but the -- what we're seeing and it's part of the whole strategy is just denial. denial of the facts. and so -- and the media is used to kind of back up these claims. and we hear it from russian officials and we reiterate in the media, hey, there is no proof. no matter how many voices come out and say this is there, they say there is no proof. and when proof comes out, when there is photographs of military personnel without insignias, what does vladimir putin say?

he says they're volunteers. so i mean there's no other way to put it besides it being outright lies. and it's part of this kind of manipulative strategy. and it's part of getting misinformation out there, so we don't really know what's going on. and it's troubling, especially in the wake of what we're seeing in ukraine. >> and this is kind of the sentiment you feel as to why you actually quit when you were working for "russia today." what about the russian people? are they being blindsided by this? are they too in denial? or do they publicly say why, because they know they would be putting their lives on the line so to speak or their -- their -- you know their livelihoods on the line by speaking otherwise? >> well this is -- it's -- interesting question. and, again, it goes -- it does go back to the media and the expansion, control of the media russia and expansion of state-controlled media. here you know we're looking at

this and kind of analyzing the kremlin's objectives trying to read what they're doing. and we're all skeptical. we're wondering what he's up to. but within russia, i mean putin is a hero. his approval ratings have skyrocketed after the annexation of crimea. and why is that? well, independent media has been silenced. the state-controlled media that is allowed to air has been amplified, a lot more state funding go into that. so there is not a diversity of voices within ukraine. and because of that what are the citizens hearing? well this biased media. and so what you see is a lot of support for putin and not a lot of questioning. and we're seeing the real effects of this misinformation more for lack of a better word tactic of media control and manipulation and the effects of that in terms of public perception what it is that's

going on. this is after sanction after sanction has been hurled at russia. their economy is suffering. yet you don't see that kind of pushback within the russian population. >> interesting. >> to put pressure on their leader. and it all -- it all kind of goes back i think, to information, to media. because the truth gets lost in all of this. unfortunately. >> all so fascinated. liz wall we appreciate your point of view. appreciate it. thanks for being with us. >> thank you. all right. it is called the pineapple express. a storm band pounding the west coast, bringing flooding hurricane-force winds and this a huge dust storm. we'll bring you the latest on the wild weather, coming up. why do we do it? why do we spend every waking moment, thinking about people? why are we so committed to keeping you connected? why combine performance with a conscience? why innovate for a future without accidents? why do any of it? why do all of it? because if it matters to you it's everything to us. the xc60 crossover. from volvo.

lease the well-equipped volvo xc60 today. visit your local volvo showroom for details. [ hoof beats ] i wish... please, please, please, please, please. [ male announcer ] the wish we wish above all...is health. so we quit selling cigarettes in our cvs pharmacies. expanded minuteclinic for walk-in medical care. and created programs that encourage people to take their medications regularly. introducing cvs health. a new purpose. a new promise... to help all those wishes come true. cvs health. because health is everything.

what's that thing? i moved our old security system out here to see if it could monitor the front yard. why don't you switch to xfinity home? i get live video monitoring and 24/7 professional monitoring that i can arm and disarm from anywhere. hear ye! the awkward teenage one has arrived!!!! don't be old fashioned. xfinity customers add xfinity home for $29.95 a month for 12 months. plus for a limited time, get a free security camera call 1800 xfinity or visit comcast.com/xfinityhome.

all right. checking our top stories now. two new states nevada and delaware have now confirmed cases of measles. that makes 16 states and washington, d.c. with at least 110 reported cases of the highly contagious virus. california is the hardest hit. the majority -- a majority of its cases are linked to an outbreak at disneyland. that began last december. and nbc has assigned the head of its own investigative unit to look into false claims made by its own anchor brian williams. williams has apologized for repeatedly telling an incorrect story about being on a helicopter in iraq in 2003 that came under fire.

and huge cleanups today on the west coast. hurricane-force winds are hammering northern california oregon and washington state. floods and mudslides are forcing residents from their homes there. and fallen trees have knocked out power to thousands of people including many in san francisco. and they're calling this massive storm band the pineapple express. meteorologist ivan gab remembera here to tell us why. >> it sounds pleasant but it's not. it's a tropical plume of moisture coming in and by the way, we had upwards of a quarter million people in california without power. here are the winds in nevada hurricane-force winds 90 to 130 miles per hour. up to a category 4 strength and my goodness right east of a slight mountain on the lee side of the sierras there as we talk about some incredible winds that were moving in. the rains, of course have been amazing, as well.

anywhere from 6 to as much as a foot of rainfall. here it is. the tropical moisture. we have had at this point up to three now. and we have the next one moving in and the next storm system you see the rain there in seattle. but one that is poised to about to move in across the northwest. i think that one not only will bring heavy rain but also will bring strong winds. look at these numbers. this is like snowfall numbers here. 4 to 6, 6 to 10. that is not going to be following in the form of snow. that is going to be rain and it is going coming down the mountain sites. and you know in california that is going to lead to mudslides likely. and then we take you to more snow. look at the pockets of snow. it's snowing right now in boston. a light snow but this is going to be an event with us through tuesday. a series of storms are going to move through. here we are sunday morning still snowing in boston. and then we're going to have a little enhancement here along the bay, i do think, where we're going to see light snow throughout the day tomorrow. and then our big storm comes in sunday night into monday. that's the one that could drop

12 to 18 inches. 12 to 18 inches. >> again? >> this is just depressing stuff for the folks in the northeast. i think they're giving up. perhaps going down to florida. it's lovely there. in fact here in atlanta, as well. but there it is. this is what you don't want to see. this would be a big story, anyway. but it's just bigger because of what we've had this winter. >> relentless. >> oh my gosh. but guess what ivan? here is the uplifting story of the day. we have it for you right here. and it's about a detroit man who was walking 21 miles to a factory job. that's not the uplifting part. here it goes though. and he was doing that in brutal weather all of the time. now his commute is going to be much more comfortable, because james robertson just received a brand-new car, that one right there. robertson's story actually went viral this week and caught the attention of a ford dealer who gave him a 2015 taurus. robertson tearfully accepted this gift. >> you know that's a good

question. every time i step into this -- whenever i step into it it reminds me of where i've been and where i'm going. >> oh my gosh. robertson, guess what he's not going to have any problems taking care of car insurance, because the story gets even better. a sympathetic college student set up an online fund-raiser for him, which has now raised more than $300,000. a new car, and a lot of new money. congrats to him. still ahead with the killing more brutal and the fighting on the rise is it time to send in u.s. ground troops to eliminate isis? the boots on the ground debate, next.

[ female announcer ] we help make secure financial tomorrows a reality for over 19 million people. [ susan ] my promotion allowed me to start investing for my retirement. transamerica made it easy. [ female announcer ] everyone has a moment when tomorrow becomes real. transamerica. transform tomorrow. who cares what it holds, if it can't hold your gaze? who cares how tight it can turn, if it can't turn heads? who cares how capable it is, if it's incapable of creating a reaction? any suv can move something. but can it move you? introducing the first-ever lexus nx turbo and hybrid. once you go beyond utility there's no going back.

mortgage rates were mixed this week. >> here are the numbers. ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ abe!

get in! punch it! let quicken loans help you save your money. with a mortgage that's engineered to amaze! thanks, g. you only know in a fire to get out, to escape and now ok you are outside and you are safe but what do you do now and that's where the red cross came in... . we ran out of the house just wearing our pajamas. at that point just to even have a toothbrush that i could call my own was so important... .

...you know it just makes you feel like a person again. every 8 minutes the american red cross responds to a home fire or other emergency. you can help. please donate now. hello again, everyone. welcome back to the "newsroom," i'm fredricka whitfield. 26 coalition strikes pounded iraq and syria, according to the u.s. military. over a dozen of the strikes hit strategic isis targets in iraq's second-largest city of mosul. and now we're learning the u.s. military may recommend to the president that american forces assist in an eventual ground assault there. in baghdad today, at least 36 were killed and nearly 100 wounded after two suicide bombers targeted a market. and a restaurant in the iraqi

capital. and in the iraqi city of kirkuk, isis who is blown up a bridge, possibly to prevent an advance by kurdish forces. just over a week ago, isis launched an attack on the oil-rich city gaining a stronghold there. so as the war escalates against isis is it now time to increase the u.s. role in the fighting? more air power, combat troops on the ground? joining me is former army intelligence officer, retired lieutenant colonel tony schaeffer. colonel schaeffer, good to see you. >> good to see you. >> your feeling is the u.s. isn't launching enough sorties and that to really make an impact, a greater investment needs to be made? >> absolutely. i think there's three things that we have to do and none of them include our ground troops. first, as you mentioned, we had 26 attacks, that's a high. we have been doing about serve a day. so i think we ought to increase by a factor of ten to be effective and increase the scope of what we're hitting, as well. secondly the issue, as you

mentioned, there is a number of ongoing battles right now. the kurds have been very effective in going at it against isis without much help from us and frankly, the help we have sent has been stuck in baghdad. baghdad has been sitting on heavy equipment, m-raps the armored vehicles heavy weapons. those are things they should be using. as much as i feel we don't need boots on the ground there must be boots on the ground to be effective. and i've been meeting with kurds and other reps and they're willing to do that for us. >> so you say they're sitting on arsenal there on the ground but not using it. is it because they don't have the training they don't know how to use it? why wouldn't they be using it? >> we have about 2,000 troops special operations forces mostly supporting the kurds. we have a command center there. it's not that we don't have people there training them. it's about the politics of the chaos of iraq in the central government. the central government chooses to actually be kind of a firewall if you will. and it's not a good situation, it's one of those things we have been working to get around. and the other issue is the very

apt and numerous armies jordan egypt, saudi arabia that we have all trained. we really need to look at a solution which includes those armies that we trained. i've met with officers at our own army war college from these nations. so i think, fredricka, we've got to leverage all the resources available to us and take the lead. we don't have to do everything but we must lead them i believe, in helping be effective. >> so and your belief is also that more intel needs to be on the ground. are we talking about u.s. intel or engaging the countries you just mentioned like egypt, saudi arabia their intel? do they need to be there and working in concert with u.s. intel already there? >> both. this is something called bilateral operations where we partner with countries and our allies and something we call unilateral operations. mostly people like me in the old days would set up our own asset nets and obviously our special operations forces doing reconnaissance and that sort of thing too. both are necessary, both are

required. and president obama has actually said look we need to get a better handle on where the hostages are being handled. the only way you do that is through human intelligence on the ground. eyes on target. you cannot do that through drones. so as much as i think we have had drones now doing things it's not adequate for the missions now required to be effective in both pinpointing isis leadership pinpointing the hostages being held and being much more effective in our precise use of power against isis to be able to start pushing them back. >> so i don't think i'm hearing from you, though you are a huge advocate for sending in ground troops because you did just say that you know there are a lot of things you can do before even sending in ground troops. so if the pentagon were to recommend that to the president right now, you would be in disagreement of that? >> i think it would be premature and i would like to believe most military planners and i've talked to a few, believe it or not, at the senior level. i think most people recognize that our ground troops would simply become another target for

isis and simply -- again, fredricka, i think isis wants us to overreact to put our troops back into iraq to become the target. once we enter into a war, often all sides start focusing on us. in this case we need to focus on the shia and sunni issue. the sunni, jordan egypt, saudi arabia really ought to be the ones focusing their forces against the isis folks, also sunni. we need to find a way these elements, their faith, work through this with our help not us becoming the issue that everybody targets. >> so just kind of recap everything i'm hearing from you. you say, you know, beefing up this coalition, using that arsenal already on the ground not being used. using more intel, whether it be from the u.s. maybe saudi arabia egypt, that coalition effort. in addition to more air strikes? is that going to be the formula? would all of that be necessary, you know solely to try to make

a dent to you know, try to cripple isis air strikes and the use of these things you just mentioned? >> yes, as a matter of fact my think tank i belong to actually has this strategy lined out. and it is something we have to do. and i would stipulate further that we should form this into a permanent treaty organization much like we have done nato. and then use that fredricka, to bring regional stability. nato remember would not only a military organization but served to bring europe together in such a way to create the conditions for the european union. so we see this as a way of actually winning the war currently, but paving the way and setting conditions for permanent stability, which obviously we all want for the militants east. we don't need to show up with a land army every 10 15 years to refight the same war. we need to enable those there to do what's necessary for their own security. and enlightened self interest is a strong motivator and we have to help organize it. >> colonel tony schaeffer, thank you so much. >> thank you. all right. it has been a week now since bobbi cristina brown was found face-down in a bathtub full of

water. a development on her case. nick la veterans i can't has been following this. >> good afternoon, i'm nick valencia in atlanta. police in the investigation of bobbi cristina brown are turning their attention specifically on one person in the house. we'll tell you who they're looking at after the break. you're watching the cnn "newsroom." listen up... i'm reworking the menu. veggies you're cool... mayo, corn dogs...you are so out of here! ahh... the complete balanced nutrition of great tasting ensure. 24 vitamins and minerals. 9 grams of protein... with 30% less sugars than before. ensure, your #1 dr. recommended brand now introduces ensure active. muscle health. clear protein drink and high protein. targeted nutrition to feed your active life. ensure. take life in.

when it comes to your credit, in the know is the place to be. transunion.com makes it easy. we give you 24/7 access. you get instant credit alerts to keep you in sync. you can even lock and unlock your transunion credit report from your phone. and all that information feels pretty good. come to transunion.com and get in the know.

there's a brand-new development in the investigation involving whitney houston's

daughter. bobbi kristina brown is still in a medically induced coma a week after being discovered face-down in a tub of water. national reporter nick valencia here, tracking the developments. >> this is a big development. police are now focusing their attention on the boyfriend nick gordon the man that bobbi kristina would call her husband, although we checked into marriage records and could not find any official documents they are married. but the attention solely on nick gordon. and what police really want to find out is bobbi kristina was found with some injuries they are unable to explain and they hope that nick gordon can perhaps glean information on that and want to know exactly what transpired in the hours leading up to her being found in the bathtub face-down. >> and so how do they feel they're going to be able to get those answers? strictly by this conversation with nick gordon or does it encompass players? >> we wish we knew. we know there are four people in the home. there have been media reports, including nick gordon himself who said he found her. we now know it was another man, lomus who may have lived there.

police say two couples lived there. nick gordon is also reportedly to have laurd up something we have yet to confirm independently at cnn. so we don't know physically where he is right now. there was a restraining order, some conflict inner conflict with the dynamic of the family. he wasn't allowed to visit bobbi kristina at the first hospital she was placed in. second hospital emory university he was spotted outside. we don't know if he was ever able to make it inside. but right now everything is focused on this one man, nick gordon. >> okay. family members who are there, bobbi brown still there, sissy houston. >> and here's the university thing. as recently as monday we were told the hospital told the family to prepare for the worst. now we're also seeing reports out there that family members are coming from far and wide including cissy houston, who showed up grandmother, mother of whitney houston. so we're told it could be very bad for bobbi kristina brown. the family maintaining hope hoping for a miracle. >> we all are. thank you so much. nick valencia appreciate that. still ahead, criminals may already be using the personal

information of 80 million people who are victims of the massive anthem health insurance hack attack. we'll talk about that, next. why do we do it? why do we spend every waking moment, thinking about people? why are we so committed to keeping you connected? why combine performance with a conscience? why innovate for a future without accidents? why do any of it? why do all of it? because if it matters to you it's everything to us. the xc60 crossover. from volvo. lease the well-equipped volvo xc60 today. visit your local volvo showroom for details. if you have moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis like me and you're talking to your rheumatologist about a biologic... this is humira. this is humira helping to relieve my pain and protect my joints from further damage. this is humira giving me new perspective. doctors have been prescribing humira for ten years. humira works for many adults. it targets and helps to block a specific source of inflammation that contributes to ra symptoms.

humira can lower your ability to fight infections, including tuberculosis. serious, sometimes fatal infections and cancers including lymphoma have happened, as have blood, liver, and nervous system problems, serious allergic reactions, and new or worsening heart failure. before treatment get tested for tb. tell your doctor if you've been to areas where certain fungal infections are common, and if you've had tb hepatitis b, are prone to infections, or have flu-like symptoms or sores. don't start humira if you have an infection. talk to your doctor and visit humira.com this is humira at work you only know in a fire to get out, to escape and now ok you are outside and you are safe but what do you do now and that's where the red cross came in... . we ran out of the house just wearing our pajamas. at that point just to even have a toothbrush that i could call my own was so important... . ...you know it just makes you feel like a person again. every 8 minutes the american red cross responds to

a home fire or other emergency. you can help. please donate now.

all right. one of the most popular websites for doing taxes resumes service after concerns about a hack attack. turbo tax stopped accepting online state tax returns on thursday after concerns about a security breach.

the company says they saw an increasing criminals using personal information, stolen from other sources in order to file fake state returns. this comes just days after the nation's second largest health insurance company announced 80 million americans' personal information may have been stolen by hackers. anthem says customers' names, birthdays, social security numbers and addresses were all exposed. they are also warning about phishing schemes, a sign the hackers are already using data they stole. i'm joined now by cnn business correspondent, samuel burke and a hacker and ceo of trusted s.e.c. david kennedy. all right, first to you, david. you have new details about how this anthem attack was carried out? >> well some initial indicators are that they could have come in through initial phishing sending targeted e-mails to

employees at anthem and compromise for them to compromise a machine and hack into what we see today, 80 million records stolen. looks like a compromise of the database itself. >> we've been seeing so many big companies being hacked. do consumers need to accept the fact this is part of doing business? it's unavoidable? >> that would be the absolute worse thing we as consumers could do and wouldn't let a burglar break into your house month after month. the "wall street journal" is reporting an themthem didn't even encrypt the information, like leaving your door unlocked. if you're one of these people be vigilant about these fbiattacks that would cause you to reset your password. that may be the fake e-mail. if somebody e-mails you or gives you a phone call and say they're

from anthem or any other great company, say, great, i'll call you back and look at the number on the back of your card. do everything on your own accord and don't reply to e-mails or phone calls. >> and don't agree to stuff like is this you? your social security information? banking information? people will do that and engage in that. david, what are these criminals looking to do with this personal information? try to open up other credit card buy homes, make big purchases? what are they going to do with this information? >> this is a really alarming trend right now. you saw last year and the year before target home depot and jimmie johns all experienced credit card breaches. those are relatively painful for consumers because they have to get a new credit card. the retail industry moved to encryption we saw wasn't the case in anthem and hackers are changing techniques and moving towards personal identifiable information. the problem with that you can't

reissue your social security number easily. if your social security is compromised they can take outlines of credit and fraudulent transactions and destroy your livelihood and difficult to protect. anthem will offer a year of credit monitoring service and it's not good enough because they can take out your information two years from now or five years from now. it's really devastating. >> what can be done with e-mails, address, don't have the social security but that other kind of information. >> in some ways people say this is worst than having your credit card stolen. >> absolutely. >> it's harder to change your date of birth, social security number and near impossible and you probably need permanent credit monitoring and want to be vigilant as possible. a credit card company will be vigilant all the time. we all dread the phone call that tells you somebody made a

purchase at best buy on your credit card. when it comes to 401(k)s and tax returns we're not that much vigilant so in some ways much wore than having your credit card stolen. >> can you put a long standing alert on your social security, so that the no matter what i guess no matter what period of time the credit card can never be opened or bank credit card ever opened without your direct consent? >> you want to be vigilant and the number one thing is looking for those fishing attacks and phone calls. my advice. >> and a testament to the credit monitoring service, they're really good. >> i attest to those credit monitoring services. i have my entire family and kids on those that actively monitor new lines of credit or credit card coming out. they actually work well. >> i'm afraid of those, too. i feel like i'm probably one of

those consumers now i don't want to trust any with my personal information. >> the world we live in today unfortunately it will continue to get worse until we can figure out a way to get ahold of this. >> all right. thanks so much gentlemen. appreciate it! >> thank you very much. >> we'll be right back. my d i see that it includes my fico® credit score. yup, you have our discover it card so you get your fico® credit score on your monthly statements and online...for free. that's pretty cool of you guys. well we just want to help you stay on top of your credit and avoid surprises. good. i hate surprises. ahhhh ahhhh are you ok? nope. we treat you like you'd treat you. we've already given more than 175 million free fico® credit scores to our cardmembers. apply today at discover.com [container door opening] ♪ what makes it an suv is what you can get into it. ♪

[container door closing] what makes it an nx is what you can get out of it. ♪ introducing the first-ever lexus nx turbo and hybrid. once you go beyond utility there's no going back. oh yea, that's coming down let's get some rocks, man. health can change in a minute. so cvs health is changing healthcare. making it more accessible and affordable with walk-in medical care, no appointments needed and most insurance accepted. minuteclinic. another innovation from cvs health. because health is everything.

[ female announcer ] we help make secure financial tomorrows a reality for over 19 million people. [ alex ] transamerica helped provide a lifetime of retirement income. so i can focus on what matters most. [ female announcer ] everyone has a moment when tomorrow becomes real. transamerica.

doctors doctor doctors

checking our top stories now, defense attorneys in the so-called "american sniper" murder trial say a fair trial will be impossible in the small texas town where chris kyle was killed. kyle's story was made famous for his best selling autobiography and movie "american sniper." he was killed at a gun range. he and a friend were gunned down by eddie ray ralph suffering from ptsd. the attorneys indicated they will use an insanity defense. federal authorities have arrested six people in the u.s. accusing them of provided money and materials to syria an the -- iraq. they immigrated to the u.s. from bosnia and two planned to join terrorists in battle and five rested in the u.s. and one overseas. mark zuckerberg and his wife

dr. priscilla are donating a whopping 75 million dollars to the san francisco hospital. chan completed her pediatric residency at that hospital that serves mostly underinsured or uninsured patients. it's to help double the size of the er and the number of beds. rosy o'donnell saying good-bye to "the view" now. for the second time she joined it five months ago after departing in 2007. the abc publicists say she is leave g leaving to focus on her family after she split from her wife in november. we have more in then "newsroom" and it all starts right now. happening right now in the "newsroom," new air strikes against a major isis stronghold. >> behind me this is most

important piece of territory isis still controls in northern iraq. >> the u.s. now trying to gather intel whether american ground troops should help keep them 23r78 taking over america's largest city. and a video allegedly showing cops beating a man on a sidewalk. wait until you hear who tracked down the evidence. and the false story of brian williams being in a represent nearly shot down in iraq. we'll show you how the probe is now widening.