nearly there 2. right now americans pay $2.77 a gallon. but you wouldn't see is the savings right away. that's it for "the lead." i'm turning you over to pam lo brown, who is filling in for wolf blitzer right next door in "the situation room.".""room" \s. president obama make a rare visit to the pentagon is there a shift in again the terror group? inside the secret service. after months of blunt respect, including an intruder in the white house, the secret service gives us behind the scenes access as a new boss battles to clean up the mess i'll talk with a leading congressional clinic. south carolina lawmakers debate whether to remove the

confederate flag protesters rally for and against the diadviceive symbol. will the flag come down? keeping their distance from donald. after a series of outrageous statements by donald trump, his republican rivals back away from the billionaire, but is a francis shooting adding fuel to his fire? wolf blitzer is off today. i'm pamela brown, you're in "the situation room." the u.s. and is allies have pounded dozens of targets in iraq and syria, including the city which isis has turned into its capital and command center. at the same time isis has recaptured a key town and is on the move elsewhere. president obama has just made a rare visit to the pentagon conceding that the fight against isis will not be quick, but stressing that the terror group has suffered heavy loss, and cub

pushed bake. at the same time the president warns there is concern about lone wolf attacks in this country and the u.s. is working to quote, smother new isis cells. i'll speak with jason chaff detz. >> here at the pentagon pamela the president said a short time ago the u.s. is intensifying its efforts in syria, but the question of course, will it make a difference? coalition war planes pounded isis positions around raqqa, to the dlafrd capital, here just one of 16 isis-controlled bridges destroyed. it's the kind of progress president obama wants to talk about. >> isil's recent losses prove that isil can and will be defeated. >> reporter: a total of 18 air strikes on july 4th several air strikes in populated areas.

the pentagon insists no change in policy but could there be new flexibility? >> i think with the strikes on raqqa over the weekend show that they have relooked the rules of engagement for those strikes and willing perhaps to take more risk with collateral damages and civilians cabots. >> reporter: the hope -- it will force the leaders to reposition troops and weapons. syrian kurdish fighters are on the ground, now less that 50 miles from raqqa, working with the americans to pinpoint more isis targets. >> if you put pressure on a force with ground forces with offensive action it forces the enemy to move to communicate,ened to mass to defend its positions. then it becomes vulnerable to air strikes. >> reporter: u.s. officials say one of the dead may have been an aide to an isis hacker believed

to have communicated with an attacker on the garland texas assault. the u.s. still looking for top leaders, who the u.s. believes could be in raqqa. >> with respect to leadership they are not sibt of these opportunities that rose over the weekend north of raqqa, but we continue to take action. >> reporter: but a setback in iraq seven kills when an iraqi military jet accidentally dropped a bomb on a residential neighborhood in baghdad. pamela you mentioned a town that isis apparently had taken back from the curtis in syria. these are the kind of areas that are going to see a lot of fighting a lot of battling back and forth. isis wants that town to keep its supply lines flowing. the kurds want the town back.

>> barbara starr, thanks so much. what's behind the sudden -- let's bring in jim scuitto for more on that. so jim, with this current campaign against raqqa, explain isis's hold there. >> we talk about how in iraq mosul is isis's stronghold. in syria, it's certainly raqqa, it goes back to before isis swept into iraq from syria. what's been happening in recent week is the ypg, syrian kurds have been advancing on raqqa, as well as areas on the border here. and as they advance, you get better intelligence.

expand bases. >> the bases currently in iraq you have five u.s. bases, baghdad the capital erbil, as well as just south. you added two bases here in taqaddan and al asad. but the pentagon has made clear, martin dempsey has made clear they might -- one spot perhaps on the path between baghdad, in the key city of tikrit also between kirkuk and mosul, both of those key, because this is are areas the iraqi voices with the backing of the u.s. coalition, they want to reestablish control. listen pamela we've been talking for a long time about when iraqi forces will be ready to re-take mosul. there was talk of springtime this year then the fall of this

year but no one is saying no one believes iraqi forces are capable of an operation like that until sometime next year. >> did the president announce any changes this year? >> he did not announce any major changes. the one thing sill noticed really was his sobriety on this how sober his assessment is of the threat from isis saying one, it will take time. two, there are going to be setbacks and frankly he has to acknowledge that. those setbacks have been very visible. but also this expanded assessment of the threat from isis today. it was a year ago the president called isis a jv threat. he that he had it very clear today it is a threat in his words beyond the region right up to the u.s. homeland. >> and nour they're considered the number one terror threat against the u.s. right up there with al qaeda. thank you very much jim scuitto. meantime negotiations with

iran over the nuclear program are in the final stages. it's not the first deadline and may not be the last in this marathon effort to keep iran from getting the bomb. let's turn to elice labott on that. what are you hearing? >> pamela today was the first day that the parties had gotten together in the same room since they talks began, but it was clear there were still major differences on key issues like iran's past nuclear weapon the lifting of sanctions, asked today if the dead line would slip the white house sid nothing is certainly. take a list to josh earnest. >> i would set any expectations. i would say it's certainly possible but i don't have been an expectation to share. >> i think everyone is laying the groundwork for the parties to work past tomorrow's deadline. the question is can they get a deal to the congress. you heard this weekend bock

corker the republican chairman of the senate foreign relations committee called secretary kerry personally warned him not to rush. he said it was more important to little a tough agreement than trying to jam one through with the deadline. you also heard today prime minister netanyahu, one of the most vocal opponents of this deal warning that the u.s. is making too many concessions. he said the deal is even worse than the deal north korea had, which it used to go nuclear. a lot of fearmongering by the israeli prime minister. >> there's a question of whether the deal will be reached by the deadline but what if there's no deal at all? >> i think it depends on how close they are. they could go a few days but both sides say they're prepared to walk away. secretary kerry says if there's not a tough agreement, the iranians say they would rather go home empty-handed so in the last couple days we've been calling it a game of chicken.

it's a question of who will flinch first. elise, thank you so much for that. joining me to discussing it is congressman chaffetz of utah. thanks so much for being here with us. as i said, a lot to discuss. first we saw today the president make a rare appearance from the pentagon. he said this fight against isis will not be quick. but he did not mention a war authorization from congress. congressman, if this is going to be a long fight, in your view does the president need that authorization? >> well he should. he should make the case for the american people. i sense more resolve from him, a more realistic view but i'm concerned he doesn't have a strategy. he talked about some tactics, but in a topical way. but i didn't sense he had a really rock-solid strategy on how to deal with this and defeat

it. >> what do you think needs to be done? >> he's getting a sense of the severity of the problem. it both you had. i think he's starting to do that that's just my xwrengs, from listening to him, but look the united states military can do anything. they can accomplish anything we set them to do but if the more handcuffs we put behind their back the more tethered they are to doing it a certain way, they won't be able to get the job done. it's not just iraq. i really do worry about north africa, libya, i worry about those areas. we don't have the type of intelligence that we should and we have had in the past and we've got to make sure we're taking the fight not just to mosul and other places we should never have lost control, but we have to make sure we have the fight going on in syria, iraq

libya and other places to make sure they're held back and that they're defeated. >> what's taking so long in your view, with this fight? >> well the president hasn't had a sense of urgency. the fact he was at the pentagon talking about this is a good sign. i'll say thank you, mr. president for doing that but let's unleash the military to defeat this enemy in its totality. thus far, i have not heard that resolve, and the president is starting to get there. i think the american people would be behind him if he would talk about it more often and explain the threat to the homeland in the united states of america. i do believe it is a clear and present danger but we have to unleash or military to get it done. >> as he said the fight against isis will not be quick. moving on to another big story, the ongoing negotiations with iran for a nuclear deal. jim scuitto reported the iranians are saying there's no agreed-upon deadline for a deal. what you would you need in order

to support a deal congressman? >> if they can't even agree there's a deadline and if the united states looks at thursday as just a suggestion then there really isn't a deadline. i would want it to be crystal clear. the -- iran should not get a nuclear capability. if they want to come into the real world, to the developed world, they cannot develop a nuclear capability. iran with a nuclear bomb is one of the biggest threats to the history of this planet and we can't let it happen. there are a series of other things and points that i think the president should insist upon. i've got to tell you, these concessions that i hear that the president is considering is just not going to fly. it's a nonstarter at least for this representative and the vote i get. >> congressman chaffetz i have a lot more to asking, particular particularly about the secret service. stay with us. we'll be right back with more of our enter view.

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chaffetz but first after a series of blunders and secure lapses including a fence jumper who made it inside the white house residence, the secret service has a new boss on a mission to fix the agency. jim acosta got a behind the scenes look. jim, how was it? >> reporter: pam, the secret service invited us to the training facility in part to reassure the public the agency has what it takes to protect the president. as the agency's director told us there is no room for error with the influx of threats coming in.

it's supposed to be one of most elite agencies in the world, from the canine squads arming the white house to armed agents protecting the president from a potential ambush. the secret service conducts year-round training for all possible threats, but lately the agent itself has been in the line of fire for allows an intruder inbide the white house, a low light in a barrage of embarrassing headlines. >> what is your short answer? >> it should not happen. >> that won't happen again. >> reporter: joe clancy was tapped to fix the troubled agency a longtime agent who came out of rye timplt an insider that a job many in congress say an outsider could do. >> i think it helps to have a baseline education in what this job, and it's a -- it's a difficult job. every day is a challenge. >> it's a cultural problem that you're dealing with now? >> i don't think it's cultural.

i think we have an element that has had difficulties in the past but we've learned from our mistakes. >> reporter: clancy is rebuilding the agency from the ground up dramatically boosting the number of recruits. >> 80 miles per hour the purpose they say is not to protect the integrity of the vehicle, but also the occupants. >> but clancy knows the secret service also hag to be prepared for more modern threats, whether it's isis. >> is it something you're training for? >> absolutely. but also we're training towards the lone wolf. >> our dropped flying over the white house fence. >> can the secret service stop a drone from flying over the white house? >> i'm not going to get into specifics, but we have included new technology there. >> reporter: but catching up take time. they installed spikes along the white house fence just last week more than nine months after last fall's incident.

>> we're hoping it will give us time to react. it's not stop ever jumper. and clancy wants a taller fence. almost anybody could jump it. do you feel the same way? >> i do. >> the director understands restoring the public's trust must come first. >> every day is a new day and we've got tore prepared. >> later this year the secret service says it will -- that's when pope francis comes to the u.s. to meet with president obama just as the president will be traveling to the united nations to address diplomats from around the world there. secret service wants more money to build a mock white house. they ville have to wait for congress to address that request. >> jim acosta thank you. we're back with congressman chaffetz chairman of the house oversight and government reform committee. we just heard this interview with the new director of the secret service n your view

hearing what you heard seeing the training that happens with the secret service, do you believe that the president the without are safe. hope so. >> the director doesn't believe there's a deep-seated cultural problem. that's what has led to a lot of these issues. i think we would agree there is a cultural pro into the training it looks great on television but as we uncovered in the oversight committee, the average training time for over the course of a year for both agents and officers if you average it out, it's 25 minutes. 25 minutes! >> okay, so you that you can about it cultural problem, you're saying the bigger problem is not a lack of training, but rather this culture problem. how do you change that? what would you doing to change

that? >> that's where i believe they need to cross the board. i disagree with the president's choice but i think mr. clancy is a good person he has a good heart, a host of experience i wholeheartedly support him. i want and need him to be successful every step of the way, but that's not my role as the chairman of the oversight committee to just pat him on the back. it's to hold him accountable. the fact they don't have a mock white house, something they are asking for now, i support it. it costs something like 8 million to do it but thaerz better that are spray painting a ball field and pretending they knew how the worries works. we had officers who had never been in the white house before yet they were guarding the without. we had a guy in crocs and got in the white house. there are a lot of fundamental problems there. already consent rick circles, and they all failed. that's why i think they have a more systemic problem.

>> in all fairness the director joe clancy has only been on the job, what six months or so? don't we need to give him more time to do the job? >> hey, like i said i want him and need him to be successful in a no-fail mission, but they have not necessarily made the changes. they put on press releases said they dismissed and let people go but we found out later they didn't actually let these go. they did bring one person from the outside, but they have got to be able to deal with management problems and issues you have to hold people accountable. they have a financial audit system that doesn't work. you have agents and officers that don't know if they're going to work the next day, excessive overtime. i could go on for an hour. he has his hands full. >> he did talk a vulnerability that exists right now. he thinks the white house needs a taller fence.

do you agree with that? >> i think the spikes will slow them down. you've had a number of briefings. there are other things you can do. i don't know that necessarily adding a foot or two is actually going to totally solve that problem. many of the people that got over the fence were actually on the watch list and probably should have been detained before they even got to the fence, so the canine teams need to be increased, but i don't know that necessarily making the fence taller will be the solution that they need. >> so what else would be the solution? i mean we know that the drones pose a significant security threat to the white house. do you think we should be doing more in terms of that? we heard clancy say new technology but do you think enough is being done on that front? >> i think they're trying. it's a concerted effort. there are in technologies in place that are surprisingly good i think can take care of the

threat if it does arise again, but they need more training more manpower they need a mock without. they have a severe staffs problem. you can't just grab some guy who applied on a pizza box, but we've got to make sure we have the elite, the best of the best that are there serving, and that they're treated as such. right now i worry they're not. >> congressman, thank you very much. >> thank you. coming up here on "the situation room", as depend straiters gather at the south carolina capitol, lawmakers take a dramatic vote on the future of the confederate flag. and a new blast from donald trump, despite growing pressure from his fellow republicans to tone it down. >> personally i love the mexican people. shopping online... ...is as easy as it gets. wouldn't it be great if hiring plumbers carpenters and even piano tuners... were just as simple? thanks to angie's list now it is.

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our top story -- president obama has made a rare visit to the pentagon. he warned of a hard long fight ahead. let's dig deeper with cnn's terrorism analyst paul kruk shank, phil mudd and cnn military analyst retired lt. general mark hurtleing.e her link -- hertling. is the president doubling down? >> i don't know about a

sustaining that isn't working. i think he's confirmed he's going to continue with the strategy and i think during his presentation he also reminded people even though he may be focused in some areas, there are a lot of areas, the north against the curtis and some of the areas even around baghdad where things are going quite well and isis is reeling a bit. i think he pointed that out quite well. he's firming, he's continues with the strategy and i don't think he believes in his joint force commanders or commanders don't believe -- >> phil mudd what do you have to say about that? >> here as the gamble. there's language that's confusing. we talked about defeating al qaeda. the strategy we're employing is not a defeat strategy. it's a contain strategy. that is give some equipment, some assistance some training to the iraqi military in support, while they try to take the fight to isis in places like anbar province.

the gamble is we don't have enough resources to defeat but the containment will be good enough. that's the double down that's going on. >> paul we've heard that isis's leader al baghdadi is in raqqa, that suggests that's why they're ramping up the strikes there. but what's being talked about on the sites? >> it's a lead theory that he might be somewhere like raqqa, hiding in a civilian neighborhood so the united states would find it more difficult to strike him, but wherever he is he's taking exceptional measures to accept his own safety eliminating his electronic footprint, only telling a few of his followers where he is at any one time. but i think what they will monitor is whether he will make some kind of appearance during ramadan, a year ago he made that appearance in a mosque in mosul. that may give the united states

an opportunity to target him. >> do you think the air strikes were ordered in parse -- >> i don't think so. if you look at the pace of operations compared to august/september last year operations in both syria and iraq the pace of operation is very high. what that tells me is we're not targeting a specific individual with one strain of intelligence but we have a range of intelligence that's giving us pattern of activity pattern of life on what isis is up to in raqqa. this is about taking out infrastructure not about one specific individual. >> it raises the question too, would it be as much of a setback for isis if al baghdadi was taken out of? >> i don't think it would be as much of a setback, but clear from the isis point of view he runs the day to day operations.

i believe he has a religious pedigree and direct descendant of mohammed it could be infighting if he was taken out. if the united states can get intelligence to take him out. >> a high priority but the command and control structure is no longer in play like it used to be. i think that's also part of the equation. i want to go to you, general hertling an iraqi jet accidentally dropped a bomb these fighters are supposed to be deemed trained. how does that happen? >> bad things sometimes happen in combat. it's not surgically precise 100% of the time. especially if you're a new pilot. there may be the potential for lasering a target and dropping a bomb but if you're in a jet flying 600 knotts and sometimes

human beings make a mistake. if i could go back to the targeting in raqqa, having been a guy that planned operations what you have to understands is there's more kinetic strikes going on primarily not because we wanted to start pulling more trigger, but we have more intelligence. we're getting greater intelligence feeds and able to bomb more targets. good point there. thank you so much for coming on to discuss. coming up here in "the situation room", as demonstrators wait outside south carolina lawmakers take a showdown vote on the confederate flag. were there enough votes? and later donald trump fires back accusing his critics of deliberately distorting his words about mexico. >> i love mexico but every time i talk about it they accuse me of being a racist. ♪ i'm the biggest threat your business will ever face.

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breaking now, south carolina lawmakers take an important step towards removing the confederate flag from the grounds of the state capitol, as protesters for and again the flag gathered outside, the 37-3 vote is more than the two thirds that would be necessary tome to give the final approval. then it goes to the state house of representatives. joining us is marlon kimpson,

bring us up to speed. how is the debate progressing? >> i think we had a great day in south carolina. the vote as you just announced wag 37-3. the vote speaks volumes. we passed a clean bill and we will be back here in the morning for a third read. what is important to note is this has been a process, one of the rules and largely sometimes those rules prohibit us from expediency but it's important to operate within the legal frame works and a resounding message was sent today to the world, the gravity of the nation is with us and a resounding message was sent that it is time for south carolina to move forward into the 21st century and put symbols that divide us behind us and focus on a

progressive agenda for the state. >> we know the bill has to get final approval from the house as well but do you believe ultimately the legislature will get the two third consensuses, and if so when do you expect that to happen? >> well pam, i'm optimistic but everyone needs to continue to work and remain focused. i anticipate that we will give a third reading to the bill in the senate, and then the process is simply as follows. that bill can make it to the hounts early tomorrow they can begin debate. it would be read across the desk and then they have to have three readings as well. the first time it's read across the desk constitutes the first reading, the substantive debate will occur on the second. so the most favorable, in light of the most favorable, the governor should receive a bill if all things go well and people keep working, stay engaged,

contacting their legislators, the governor should be able to receive a bill by thursday or friday this week and the flag should come down in front of the statehouse. but we must remain vigilant and focussed. >> that flag over your shoulder we should know. and i don't know if those are protesters against taking the flag down or not, but i do know they have been out there, and some have said this flag represents history and heritage. they do not want it to be taken down. what would you say to the protesters? >> well first of all, the flag is history, but it's a history that we are not so proud of. because of the the cause of the confederacy is well documented. there are museums that honor history, and that's the appropriate place. let me also say that they have a right -- people have a right to

exercise their first amendment rights and so what you heard today in the senate is just that. people are very emotional about this issue. it is a process we must work for, but we have to recognize that everyone may not agree, and give them an opportunity to voice their concerns. i'm on the side of removing the flag permanently forever, and putting it in a museum and i think the 37 senators spoke volumes today to honor the legacy of the charleston massacre and those who died those nine lives, as we move forward to bring some time of unity to the state in recognition that those individuals who passed away will be remembered for something positive as well as the work that they've done that speaks volumes for them. >> state senator marlon kimpson,

thank you very much. >> thank you. coming up here in "the situation room", donnell trumped fires back at his critics and ray affirms what he calls his great respect for mexico. >> i love mexico. i love the mexican people. two waiters came up to me tonight, mr. trump we love you. where are you fourth quarter from? mexico. that's great, i love you too. so i could get a faulty light switch fixed? yup! or make a backyard pizza oven? oh yeah. i can almost taste it now. tastes like victory. and pepperoni... when you do business everywhere, the challenges of keeping everyone working together can quickly become the only thing you think about.

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just in to "the situation room." as you see, a major fire in a historic part of downtown louisville kentucky. the fire is on wlilsky row, a block-long series of old whiskey

warehouse buildings. reports from louisville say efforts to fight the fire are blocking rush hour traffic. we just heard from officials saying there was a renovation going on at that building there. donald trump is firing back at his critics, saying that they're deliberately and totally distorting his remarks about mexico. for more let's bring in cnn senior washington correspondent jeff zell lany. >> first they tried to ignore him hoping this would go away. one by one most of his republican rivals have now repudiated donald trump's controversial comments. he's clearly stung by all the criticism. so he started pushing back on twitter at jeb bush and rick perry. now it's become a circular gop firing squad. >> they're not sending their best. >> reporter: republicans are racing away from donald trump. whose controversial comments about mexican immigrants are roiling the gop. >> i love mexico but every time i talk about it they accuse me

of being a racist. >> reporter: jeb bush was blunt. >> trump is wrong on this. he's not a stupid guy so i don't assume he thinks that every mexican crossing the border as rapist. >> reporter: after holding their tongues, gop candidates are now speaking out. >> the fact is i've said very clearly that donald trump does not represent the republican party. >> reporter: it's been nearly three weeks since the entertainer turned politician set off outrage by saying some mexican immigrants are rapists and drug runners. the fallout is still dominating the debate and dividing republicans. ted cruz is standing by him. >> i like donald trump. he's bold he's brash. and i get that it seems the favorite sport of the washington media is to encourage some republicans to attack other republicans. i ain't going to do it. >> reporter: chris christie is not. >> i've said that the comments he made were inappropriate and have no place in the race. >> reporter: and mike huckabee is blaming the media for stirring the pot. >> honestly donald trump needs no help from mike huckabee to

get publicity, he'sing to a really good job of that. >> reporter: trump has not backed down telling cnn's don lemon crime is rampant along the border. >> somebody's doing the raping don. >> reporter: now he's turning to twitter to fire back at his rivals saying jeb bush says illegal immigrants breaking our laws is an act of love. trump is also pointing to a shooting of a young woman in san francisco as an example of failed u.s. immigration policies. police say she was killed by an undocumented immigrant with a long criminal record. today, republican presidential hopeful george pataki urged all gop candidates to stand up to trump. >> it's not appropriate to use that to demonize millions of people who have come from mexico and to try to paint them as all being like that horrible criminal in san francisco. >> a short time ago the trump campaign released a statement. they were doubling down on his remarks. he says the mexican government is forcing their most unwanted

people into the united states. they are in many cases criminals, drug dealers, and rapists." he points to the san francisco shooting and says there are thousands of similar incidents throughout the united states. but it's statements like this that get trump into trouble. all of this comes now as the first gop debate is only one month away. >> as of today he is poised to be a part of that debate. we'll see what happens. thank you so much. one more political note to tell you about. join us tomorrow in "the situation room" for hillary clinton's first major tv interview since the start of her presidential campaign. she's sitting down with cnn's senior political correspondent brianna keilar. watch tomorrow at 5:00 eastern time. coming up as the u.s. and its allies step up air strikes against isis, including targets in its self-declared capital, president obama makes a rare visit to the pentagon and warns the fight against the terror group will not be quick.

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intensifying attacks as the u.s. rat chets up air strikes against the home base of it's is sister. president obama acknowledges setbacks about the vows the terror group will be defeated. what did he learn from top generals at the pentagon? down to the wire with a deadline just hours away tracking urgent round of clock talks to prevent one of america's most dangerous adversarieses from developing nuclear weapons. tonight, there's new reason to fear failure.

and blood stained politics. the deadly shooting of a young woman by a repeat felon from mexico gives donald trump more fuel for his rant against illegal immigrants. are fellow republicans following his lead or are they fed up? we welcome our viewers in the united states and around the world. wolf blitzer is off today. you're in "the situation room." observers say isis has retaken control of a key town near its self-proclaimed capital despite a new u.s.-led bombardment in the area. the coalition is intensifying its air campaign against the terror group targeting the isis stronghold of raqqa. president obama wrapped up a meeting with top military leaders at the pentagon. he's reminding the nation the battle against isis will not be quick and it will include setbacks but he still insists it can be won. i'll talk about the