al all . hello, i'm wolf blitzer, 1:00 p.m. in washington 8 p.m. in baghdad, from wherever you're watching around the world, thank you very much for joining us. we start with corruption on a global scale, rocking the management of the organization responsible for the world's most popular sport. fifa is the governing body for football or soccer as it is called here in the united states and responsible for the rules for more than 200 countries. more importantly they control the world cup which is watched by billions of people every four years. in switzerland, several members

of the fifa management were arrested at a luxury hotel. they're in switzerland for the organization's annual meeting. the suspects face extradition to the united states where the u.s. justice department is looking into allegations of bribery, fraud, and money laundering that has gone on for more than two decades involving more than 100 million dollars. just a little while ago we heard from the u.s. attorney general, loretta lynch. >> they were expected to uphold the rules that keep soccer honest and to protect the integrity of the game. instead, they corruptioned the business of worldwide soccer to corrupt the business and enrich themselves. the u.s. department of justice is intending to end these practices to root out corruption and bring to justice the people involved. >> and why is it being carried out here in the united states?

>> reporter: well wolf, this is an investigation that has been going on for about three years now. and it really began with an american a top official at fifa who was not paying his taxes, at least according to the justice department. this is a man by the name of chuck blazer. and he was a high-level official with fifa. again, an american. and according to this indictment $11 million in unreported income is what got the attention of the irs. and the irs official at this press conference just a few minutes ago called it the world cup of fraud. this is simply because -- according to this investigation, the 2010 world cup selection of south africa to be host of the world cup, was something that was corrupt. was rigged as part of this bribery scheme wolf. >> because as you know fifa says at least for now they say they're welcoming this investigation. they also say there will be no change in the next two world

cups. the 2018 cup will be played in russia russia beat out spain, portugal and england. qatar was the winner of the world cup bid. the world cup bids are part of a separate investigation under way right now, is that right explosive. >> reporter: that is right, wolf. the swiss authorities this morning announced that they're doing a separate investigation into the process that was -- that allowed for the awarding of the world cup in 2018 to russia and the 2022 world cup to qatar. the united states ran second to qatar. and it was really part of what got this case going. because if you remember after that vote there was a lot of whispers a lot of allegations that perhaps that election was rigged. and that is when some of this investigation, some of this -- the questions began here in the united states. what the fbi and the irs did

with this investigation, wolf was something that you normally see with the mafia or with criminal gangs. they used wire taps including one wire -- worn by this american official chuck blazer. he recorded conversations with some of these officials that are now investigations. total of 14 people indicted wolf. several of them arrested in zurich. others are expected to be arrested around the world, wolf. >> so basically what the fbi with the u.s. justice department wants, is they want these individuals who have now been charged with these allegations to be extradited to the united states where they will then be tried. is that right? >> reporter: that is right, wolf. but that requires the cooperation of some of these other countries. the swiss appeared to be cooperating. they carried out the raids this morning in zurich. they woke these people up and put them in handcuffs and took them away. more complicated will be getting officials that live in trinidad.

people who live in brazil for argentina who are also charged in this case wolf. and you know in these countries some of these are very prominent officials. so now the justice department says that they will request that those countries assist in detaining these people, extra extraditing them in this world corruption scandal. >> thank you very much we'll stay on top of this story. there is other important news in the united states. the death toll rising after historic rains in the southwest. here are the latest numbers and they are grim. at least 18 people confirmed dead in texas and oklahoma. another 13 are missing, 11 of them in hays county texas. and the property loss also devastating. 1400 homes and businesses have been damaged after the area picked up close to a foot of rain in one day.

in the meantime just south of dallas texas, officials are keeping very close eye on the dam they thought at one point would burst. people who live in the area evacuated their homes. they moved their livestock at this point, but the officials there are hopeful the dam will hold. let's get more perspective on what is going on. cnn's rosa flores joined us outside one flood-ravaged home. >> reporter: hi wolf one thing that made this story happen very quickly, was the surge. i want to show you around here because here you're able to see some of that surge. and some of the debris flushing towards the cars into these homes. now, we talked to the homeowner of this house. and let me tell you something, she says that her family was alerted at about 2:00 a.m. monday into tuesday about the waters rising. she actually put her family on

top of kitchen counters to stay dry. her dogs on top of the dinner table in order for the dogs to stay dry. i want to show you the water level here because you can really see it's about three feet. you can see it in the shades of this brick just how high the water went into these homes. now, the homeowner tells me that the water was just seeping through all the crevices in that home. here take a look at this car completely destroyed. if you take a look inside lots of debris. the homeowner tells me it is pretty much a complete loss. and of course she was telling me this morning she was trying to bring this window up. and she says rosa, i don't know what i was thinking because of course power windows are not going to work in this situation. i want to show you another thing, we're about 200 feet from the bayou, these are the bayous that run through houston that normally all they do is they flush out the water, which

eventually dumps into the gulf of mexico. this particular rain event, there was too much water, too quickly. that is why those areas swelled and that is why these people are stuck with this type of damage wolf. >> and we have just confirmed where you are, rosa, a sixth death. i know you have been surveying the damage where you are. is there an image that really sticks out in your mind? >> reporter: you know i was able to get a fly-over yesterday, wolf with the sheriff's department. and just from looking at it from the air, and i used to work in houston, i used to work in tv here in houston. the most impacted area is where we are right here. so that is the southwest part of houston, the shopping center is just up the street here. and these bayous normally they do their job when it rains but this particular rain event, it

was too much rain too quickly. and of course the fire department was out doing high water rescues, some of those people who died were actually found in part of these waterways. so again, wolf the officials here are telling us one of the things that they always tell people here that in this particular situation, when the water starts to rise they have to go to high ground and not drive into these roads because the water rises just way too quickly. >> all right, rosa thank you very much. rosa flores reporting from houston. and for our viewers out there if you would like to help the affected areas in houston and in parts of texas, you can go to cnn/impact your world. still ahead. >> iraqi forces battling isis militants in an effort to regain

control of anbar province. our cnn crew looks at a scene there, our arwa damon is there. and hillary clinton, is there. carly fiorina is there, as well. they will have similar events. we're going there live.

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fiorina, fiorin scrape official -- >> officials say fighter is have moved into the area of anbar. >> video from this morning shows iraqi troops firing weapons from isis targets in anbar province, battles are starting in and around these cities but it is taking a severe toll. the source telling cnn 30 iraqi soldiers were killed after a triple suicide attack, at an outpost between fallujah, our senior international correspondent arwa damon has more in anbar province. this territory was captured just hours before we arrived. >> we were saying whether we moved in here earlier in the day there were a number of ieds that isis fighters,. >> an bar-- >> she commands the brigade within the main military force that is leading this joint operation with the iraq forces. we cut off their supply route. we he explains. >> it is a critical line of defense between salary salahadden, through th forefront, have they made any significant advances against isis since you last saw them explosive. >> well, in that particular line of defense, they're pushing even further. to the south of ramadi we hear that the joint force was able to recapture anbar university just to the outskirts of the city. so we are seeing small pockets of progress being made. but again as we keep emphasizing, what is so important in all of that is that that territory not be lost to isis again.

they have to figure out how to maintain their ground stop isis' capability to resupply those fighters with weapons. because as we take the battle of tikrit they are used to attacking where the forces are. >> all right, arwa damon, thank you very much. as i always tell you be careful out there. so is the united states doing enough to fight the isis terrorists? after the break, we'll pose this question for an iraq war veteran, she is a democrat from president obama's home state of hawaii. she is a member of the armed services committee. her answers, to your questions coming up next. neosporin plus pain relief starts relieving pain faster and kills more types of infectious bacteria. when you pick any 3 participating products get a free all better bag. available at walmart.

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. all right let's talk a little bit more about the u.s. strategy to fight isis in iraq, right now, joining us a democrat from hawaii a member of the armed services. congresswoman, thank you very much for joining us. you're a combat veteran. you deployed to iraq twice with your fellow soldiers back in 2004 eventually serving two tours of combat duty in the region. so when you see what is happening in iraq right now, knowing that almost 4500 u.s. troops died in iraq thousands of others came back severely injured, do you ask yourself as so many other veterans are now asking themselves what was this war all about? >> yes, wolf i do. and i think it's important

mostly for our veterans, for our service members who sacrificed their lives in that country and for the american people to make sure we don't make the same mistakes in the past and really look what happened on the ground and recognize who our enemy is. we heard secretary carter mention the other day how he recognizes that the iraqi military has lacked the will to fight, which is a good recognition. but the question that i have now is will the administration actually change their current strategy? change their policy to make it so that we are actually making the primary recipient of our military aid, whether it is weapons, equipment intelligence the kurds and the sunni tribes. these are groups of people who have been proven. they have been tested. we fought shoulder to shoulder with them against al qaeda in the past and now they have the will to fight. they are our troops on the ground and they should be the ones we are providing our

primary support to defeat isis because they have the will to fight. >> you make a good point. the kurdish fighters have their own separate militia. the sunni fighters have their own separate militia. there is the iraqi shiite who are largely backed by iran with their separate militia. they are all pretty dedicated. the weakest link seems to be the central iraqi army, which the defense secretary of the united states says simply lacks the will to fight yet the united states keeps supporting that weakest link the central military of iraq. that is a problem from your perspective, isn't it? >> yes, wolf it is a problem for a few different reasons. one is this is a strategy that has proven to have failed not only recently but even through the bush administration when we had nouri maliki in charge we were providing weapons and military resources to the shiite-led government that persecuted the sunnis and really

left them out that really created the situation today where you have isis taking advantage of the oxygen of this policy that has been created. where they have been driven into the arms of isis for protection. this is the problem that i see with the current offensive that is happening right now heading into ramadi. this is being led by the shiite militia who named this offensive attack a name that is extremely in incendiary and offensive to the tribes. this will only make it worse, and again will push the sunni tribes closer and closer into isis arms at the end of the day, making isis stronger rather than defeating them. >> as you know the secretary of defense asked carter he told our pentagon correspondent, barbara starr, that the iraqi army even though they had thousands more troops than ramadi they simply lacked the will to fight a few 100 isis

terrorists. it is very similar to what happened in mosul, when the iraqi army lacked the will to fight. and the white house communications director offered this reaction. sort of a vote of confidence with the defense secretary at what he said. listen to this. >> let me first say that what secretary carter said is consistent with what he is seeing and hearing from the ground but also the iraqis themselves acknowledged there were command issues and issues on the ground. and it is something they want to adapt to as well. >> do you agree the iraqi army lacks the will to fight? >> clearly, the iraqi army lacks the will to fight. evidenced by what we've seen in mosul, what we saw recently in ramadi and many other times where they cut and ran. they dropped their weapons, the weapons that the united states provided to them and which have ended up in the hands of isis. we have to look at the motivation. they lack the will to fight

because they're fighting for this fictitious thing of a country called united iraq. you have a militia that is very motivated to fight because of sectarian regions. you have the sunnis and the kurds who are very notmotivated to fight to protect their families. again, this fictitious goal of the unified iraq that the iraqi army is essentially supporting, again they're in areas of baghdad, not the country of iraq. >> essentially, they're protecting people who live there but not much is. again, that is the impression you get from listening to experts from the department of defense. congresswoman, i want you to stand by. we'll continue more in our discussion with representative tulsi gabbard in just a moment.

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bard . welcome back to our viewers in the united states and around the world. i'm wolf blitzer reporting from washington. we're back with representative tulsi gabbard, a representative from hawaii. if the president of the united states congresswoman, were to call you and said all right's you served two tours in that region, you understand the military and what the region is all about what should the united states be doing next? what would you say? >> well, the first thing we need to be doing is make sure that the primary recipient of our

support through arms weapons, equipment, intelligence training needs to go to the kurds and to the sunni tribes. these are proven trusted partners that we have worked with in the past successfully to defeat al qaeda. we need to work with them as our troops on the ground now in this fight against isis in iraq. we need to step up our airstrike campaign and make sure we're dealing these decisive blows against isis in a very targeted way to stop the momentum they have been building. as they capture more territory and capture more ground this just goes to add to their ability to recruit more fighters to show that they're actually winning in this battle. and we need to make sure that we put a stop to that. and we need to make sure we stop continuing this failed policy of supporting and propping up this central government in baghdad. and this fantasy, really of a one unified country of iraq and

support this three-state solution of empowering the sunni tribes empowering the kurds and the shiites. each of them having three autonomous territories, rather than continue what we've seen really has failed for so long. by doing this, we can get rid of the oxygen that has allowed isis to maintain its stronghold here within this area of iraq. >> for so many experts in iraq going back over the years including by the way when he was a senator, vice president joe biden basically said there should be three autonomous areas, this whole fiction of unified iraq was controlled by a dictator saddam hussein, a brutal brutal dictateor when he was in power. there should be separate areas, that is something you would support? >> i think not only would i

support it, i believe it is critical for us to be able to get rid of these terrorists islamic extremists in this region. we have to look at the fact that iraq has created -- this country of iraq was created not by the people who live there. not by the kurds or the sunni tribes. it's created by these outside elements with these lines that were drawn that have nothing to do with the territories that were held by these different tribes. as a result of that we've seen these sectarian battles that have gone on for really generations. and now, because of the united states supporting this central government in baghdad, previously led by nouri maliki now continuing here with abadi, it continues with this fictional idea that iraq can be one country, when you have the sunnis and other tribes saying we want to fight for our own territory, empower us to govern and have the safety of our communities.

we need to provide that support for them in order to do that and to push isis out and defeat them. >> tulsi gabbard, congresswoman from hawaii. congresswoman, thank you for joining us. >> thank you, wolf, good to see you. thank you, up next, hillary clinton is counting on african-american voters in their bid for the white house. many of them abandoned her in 2008. can she get them back this time around? now that i have a tempur-flex, i can finally get a good night's sleep. when i flop down on the bed, and it's just like, 'ah, this is perfect." wherever you put your body it just supports you. like little support elfs are just holding you. i can sleep now! through the night! (vo) change your sleep. change your life. change to tempur-pedic. headache? motrin helps you be an unstoppable, let's-rock-this-concert- like-it's-1999 kind of mom. back pain? motrin helps you be the side-planking

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hillary clinton is in south carolina today. it's her first visit there since she announced her 2016 presidential campaign. south carolina is an important early primary state. and win votes will be crucial for a victory there. we'll talk about that in a moment. the other headline from today's visit could come from the only woman in the crowded gop field. carly fiorina who is also in south carolina today holding an event outside the very same location where hillary clinton is speaking. our senior washington correspondent is in columbia south carolina. our cnn political reporter is here with me in washington. first of all, jeff tell me about these dueling events where you are today. >> reporter: well i think carly fiorina is trying to step into hillary clinton's spotlight. and why not?

there is a captive audience here. carly fiorina had probably the largest gathering of her campaign. she was taking advantage of the people waiting for hillary clinton to show up. she really has been going across country like most republicans trying to distinguish herself by attacking hillary clinton. that is really what republicans are trying to do elevate themselves in their own very crowded field. but particularly for carly fiorina, she is trying to take gender off the table and said if she was at a debate with hillary clinton at a debate site she said that hillary clinton will not be the first woman contestant. she is campaigning here in south carolina and across the country. >> her strategy again, focusing on hillary clinton rather than her fellow republicans seems to be paying off, right? >> reporter: well, it's paying off in the short term, she is getting some attention, and it is probably pretty smart

scheduling by showing up in the same place. she says this trip has been on her schedule for a long time. i'm not sure who was first on that. she is definitely gaining attention, not just reporters, it's voters. when she appears at these crowded republican gatherings people are lining up around the room to talk to her. so she is definitely gaining a lot of attention and ground. but it is a very crowded republican field. hard to know if she will actually rise to the top when it really matters. >> all right, thank you very much jeff. i want to turn to another challenge hillary clinton is facing. winning the black vote she is determined to erase the memory of 2008 when a surge of african-american voters propelled barack obama to the top of the presidential run. they dismissed then senator barack obama, and severely angered some black voters and maybe helped to put him in the white house.

65% of black eligible voters turned out in 2008. five full percentage points higher than 2004. two million more blacks voted in 2008. many of them young people. that group showed an 8% increase over 2004. nia henderson has written extensively about what is going on. she really needs to bring out this african-american vote. >> that is right, pollsters call it the obama surge that we saw in 2008 and 2012. one of the things you hear people saying in terms of trying to get the voters back on board is listen you have a chance to make history one, with barack obama and will get a chance to make history again with hillary clinton if we vote her into the white house. so that is one of the arguments i heard people make down there. and so far it seems to be working. a lot of people on barack obama's side in 2008 and obviously in 2012 are now on hillary clinton's side, working on her campaign and doing some of the grass roots organizing as well. >> because the history was made

with the election of the first african-american president in the united states. you think blacks will turn out to elect the first woman president in the united states? >> i think if you look historically african-americans tend to vote democratic a trend that has been going on for the last 50 years. republicans have not been able to eat into that if you look at the way nixon was able to do in the '70s. but the big issue for clinton is getting over the hurdle a lot of people say they moved past it. but the other question is whether or not she will get the energy and excitement that was so much a part of the obama campaign and really made it a movement. that is the question for hillary clinton. >> because obama in 2007 and 2008 in that primary he won south carolina that primary decisively. >> he won it decisively and won african-american voters by a 4-1 margin. you saw them really jump ship from the hillary clinton campaign and partly that is because he did so well in iowa, who won iowa and all of a sudden

looked like a candidate who could win. there were some racially charged remarks, at least some thought there were racially charged remarks, particularly from bill clinton and that turned people off. she is meeting with african-american business owners and really the key to the vote after all. they vote in higher percentages than any other demographic group. that is one of the reasons she is reaching out to the group. >> and james clyburn is one of the high ranking members from south carolina. she he will play a role possibly on her behalf. >> he was neutral in 2008 and at some point told bill clinton to chill out. he may be neutral but he already has seen barry sanders and martin o'malley, and will remain neutral. he is certainly someone that the

clintons want out there on their behalf. >> good article you wrote on cnn.com and cnn politics. i recommend it to our viewers. >> thank you. >> thank you for joining us. up next, an addition to the republican presidential field. up next a former senator and former republican presidential candidate will formally toss his hat into the ring for another try. there you see, rick santorum getting ready to run for president of the united states. ara® it helps keep my skin clearer. with only 4 doses a year after 2 starter doses... ...stelara® helps me be in season. stelara® may lower your ability to fight infections and increase your risk of infections. some serious infections require hospitalization. before starting stelara® your doctor should test for tuberculosis. stelara® may increase your risk of cancer. always tell your doctor if you have any sign of infection have had cancer, or if you develop any new skin growths. do not take stelara® if you are allergic to stelara® or any of its ingredients. alert your doctor of new or worsening problems including headaches, seizures, confusion and vision problems.

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getting back to politics here in the united states. right now, later today, the former u.s. senator rick santorum is expected to announce he will run for the republican nomination. he is a conservative alternative, more conservative alternative to mitt romney back in 2012. he actually scored a victory in the caucuses. and right now, santorum is from pennsylvania representing pennsylvania and the u.s. senate. but joe, how is he going to break out of an extremely crowded republican pack right now? >> reporter: wolf it is an extremely crowded republican pack. this is pin united technology the factory floor for pennsylvania, just about ten miles away from where rick santorum grew up. among other things the people working with him say look, this

is the guy who should be the frontrunner. he is next in line having finished second to mitt romney in the last primary go-around. he has an organization in hopes here. they're putting together what they see as a very professional kickoff. this time they're going to talk a lot about poverty and helping people get jobs. so the intent here wolf is to try to portray this man, rick santorum in the second go-round as someone who's more than a social conservative. we'll see how it plays. >> he won the iowa caucuses did well in several other states in 2012. is he going repeat that same strategy basically in iowa spending all of his time there, almost all of his time visiting all 99 counties going door to door sometimes. is that going to be a strategy this time or has he got some other plan? >> reporter: well we do know he's going to pay a lot of attention to iowa. in fact he's going to go from

here to iowa this week spend some time there. then he's going to move on to south carolina. both of his sons go to the citadel in the charleston area. he's expected to spend a lot of time in the south. i even talked to one of his former state directors in alabama who says they're looking forward to having rick santorum back because he doesn't just have supporters they say, among conservatives. he has a lot of broad support in the republican party. and if he can broaden his base they say a lot of the other people getting into the race might have a hard time beating him, wolf. >> all right. joe johns reporting for us from pennsylvania. we'll see what happens. we'll have coverage of rick santorum's announcement later today in "the situation room." still ahead, a royal display of politics and pomp. britain's queen elizabeth opens a new session of parliament. what her speech revealed about the newly elected government's plans for power. does your makeup remover take it all off? every kiss-proof cry-proof, stay-proof look?

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the vice president joe biden says russia is critical to negotiations with iran. he says regardless of what's happening in ukraine, the united states and russia he says can work together when their interests intersect. the vice president also offered this assessment of the working relationship. >> we continue to look for, the

phrase used off-ramps for president putin. we're not looking to embarrass him. we're not looking for regime change. we're not looking for any fundamental alteration of the circumstances inside russia. we're looking for him to in our view act for rationally. if he does not, we'll continue to confront what i characterize as pure aggression. >> pure aggression his words. the vice president also vowing to protect u.s. allies against what he calls pure russian aggression. he called on nato partners to step up when it comes to defense of the nato allies. britain's queen elizabeth opened a new session of parliament today in all the customary pomp and circumstance. the queen wore the historic imperial state crown, an 18-foot robe of state, and then sitting on a builded edguilded throne she

delivered the government's new agenda, including a referendum on britain's membership in the european union. cnn's max foster is joining us live from london. even though the queen reads the speech it's written for her by the government. tell us how this all went down. >> reporter: well it was interesting. she's done this more than 60 times now. she's got more experience than any of the politicians in that building. her skill, really is showing no opinion, keeping completely neutral, keeping it very monotone. she stays out of politics. she doesn't want anyone to think what she thinks of the various policies involved. also that crown very heavy. she did a good job of balancing that. crucially, what you have here is david cameron. he's not got a majority government after the election. it's only a very thin one. what he's done here is set out his wish list if you'd like all the laws he wants to get through parliament over the next year. top of the list as you refer to is this issue with the european union. his party is very split on

whether britain should be a member of the european union, but he promised a referendum to the british people during the campaign. by the end of 2017, brits will have the choice on whether or not to stay within the european union. if he can get this bill through. that was really the headline from today. >> what does cameron want? >> david cameron wants -- it's interesting. he's got a split in the party. the far right would rather come out of the european union. he's sort of sitting on the fence by saying he wants british people to decide. but he's got this other issue he's facing. potentially a breakup of the european union or at least a split in european union on that front. but also within the u.k. a split within the union of the united kingdom as well. the scottish nationalists did incredibly well in the election. he has to give them something. also today, we heard a compromise from him saying we're

going to give more power to edinbrkedin edinburgh. he's offering the same to wales and the english regions. potential breakup of the european union and the u.k. >> and so basically when it comes to scotland i hear you saying sort of like he is on the eu sort of on the fence. at the same time not necessarily going in either direction all the way. is that right? >> well he's not necessarily saying we should keep the european union together but he's definitely saying we should keep the united kingdom together. he's saying you don't have to go for full independence in scotland because that's what the scottish national party really want. what you can do is have a compromise. we'll give you more power over various local issues in scotland but you don't need to

break away. they need to stay together. >> all right, max. thank you very much. that's it for me. i'll be back 5:00 p.m. eastern in "the situation room." for our international viewers "amanpour" is next. for our viewers in north america, "newsroom" with brooke baldwin starts right now. thank you so much. great to be with you on this wednesday. i'm brooke baldwin. this is cnn. we begin in houston. there's still this massive search and rescue under way for potential victims and survivors. the full scope of the tragedy here is really just beginning to emerge. authorities are discovering more bodies as the water is receding. the death toll now stands at six. two are still missing. officials say the search effort is treacherous. cars are littered throughout the city here. more heavy rain fell today and could continue t