>> certainly is. max foster reporting from london. thank you max, very much. to our viewers, thanks very much for watching. i'm wolf blitzer in the situation room. erin burnett out front starts right now. up next, breaking news targeting americans. the chairman of joint chiefs of staff telling reporters iran meant to kill u.s. troops. plus on edge, two rockets landing near the united states embassy in iraq tonight. we are learning more about that strike at this hour. and why did a boeing 737 crash in tehran killing 176 on board just hours after iran launched an attack on the united states? let's go out front. good evening. i'm erin burnett. out front tonight the breaking news iran was targeting u.s. troops, this according to the top u.s. general who tells cnn tonight that iran meant to kill u.s. troops when it fired 16 ballistic missiles.

the two iraqi bases housing american forces. the chairman men of the joint chiefs of staff telling reporters tonight i believe based on what i saw and what i know that they were intended to cause structural damage, destroy vehicles and equipment and aircraft, and to kill personnel. that's my own personal assessment. general milley's assessment is in stark contrast to what others in the administration have been telling, cnn which is they believe they believe iran did not intend to strike troops and that's the reason trump doesn't have to strike back, sending the united states closer to all out war. milley's jars and blunt statement comes as we are learning the white house did consider hitting iran back after the missile attack last night. a source telling cnn iran sent multiple messages to the united states through three different back channels through the night last night with the message of the attacks are done.

the president repeated that message today. >> iran appears to be standing down which is a good thing for all parties concerns and a very good thing for the world. >> president trump also standing down, doing a complete about-face of his promise on twitter with had he said, quote, should iran strike any person or target, the united states will quickly and fully strike back and perhapss in a disproportionate manner. the president also doing a 180 on using state of the art military equipment against iran. listen to what trump said today about the u.s. military. >> the fact that we have this great military and equipment, however, does not mean we have to use it. we do not want to use it. >> well, that is good and is a total about-face from what trump tweeted just days ago. this is the same person. if iran attacks an american base or any american, we will be sending some of that brand-new beautiful equipment their way and without hesitation.

luckily, he hesitated. he didn't mean what he said. but how does the world know that the trump of tomorrow won't reverse course again? barbara starr is out front live at the pentagon. general milley, stark contrast to what we've heard from others in the administration in terms of targeting u.s. troops and also your reporting concerned about the threat from iranian proxies. >> general milley wants to see more intelligence about all the of this but this is a four star general with decades of experience on the front line. he does not make these statements lightly by any stretch. he is basically saying you have to assume -- he believes the iranians were out to kill americans to spite these background briefings from administration officials today claiming that the iranians had unusual extraordinary capability to target bases and avoid any place where an american troop might be. what really happened is the u.s. got intelligence through satellites and radars that those

missiles were on their way and they had enough time to move u.s. troops out of the way. that is a very typical u.s. military strategy. they move troops out of the way. they send them to bunkers. they disperse them to safe locations. that's how in the view of general milley no u.s. troops were killed. there's no evidence at this point in his view by virtue of what he's saying that the iranians had some extraordinary ability to avoid hitting u.s. troops. he also, as you mentioned erin, is extraordinarily blunt on the way ahead. he says for those in u.s. military uniform, the uniform commanders, they believe that iranian-backed shia militia are very much interested in further attacks. that is a matter of great concern to them. so, he is not by any stretch tonight endorsing the notion that this is all over. he, in fact, perhaps has more concern than ever before.

erin. >> all right, barbara starr, very sobering. thank you. and the contradictions that we are hearing from some in the administration and the top general in the country, general milley, comes as the secretaries of defense and state along with the head of the cia and milley, the head of the joint chiefs briefed congress about the intelligence that president trump used to justify killing the second most powerful person in iran. and there was bipartisan outrage from some about the briefing. >> we have 97 senators there, 15 got to ask questions as the questions began to get tough they walked out. >> probably the worst briefing i've seen at least on a military issue in the nine years i've served in the united states senate. >> out front tonight, democratic senator ron wyden. he's the ranking member of the senate finance committee, and i appreciate your time. what was your reaction to the briefing today? >> i've been to the briefings, and i will tell you there just

have been so little content from this administration. and what they're doing -- i don't think it's their intent, is they're building support for those of us who think it's time on a bipartisan basis for the congress to draw a line in the sand and finally reign in executive power. under article 2, the president's view that he's above the law just isn't a good policy for america. >> so, you know, the secretary of defense mark esper is pushing back on some complaints we've heard. obviously that was senator schumer and lee. we heard from senators paul and blumenthal and others. esper says most members of congress don't have access to the intelligence i think is most compelling. you got to see more than most in your capacity on the intelligence committee. what do you say to secretary esper when he says there's something so compelling out there that he can't show everybody? >> erin, my view is -- and i can't get into classified

matters -- is this administration has not made the case that there was an imminent threat. the president spoke to the nation today. he did not make things worse. and i'll just tell you that is an embarrassingly low bar to set for the most powerful country in the world. >> when we hear the briefing was contentious, would you agree with that? >> again, you can't get into details about classified briefings. but what i will tell you is yes, i do think that senators are getting increasingly frustrated at the lack of content. and there are some tough questions that need to be answered. i had a community meeting on saturday in a small town. a woman came up to me in tears and said my boy is in kuwait.

is he going to be safe? those are the type of questions the administration has to stop ducking. >> i pointed out that the administration is contradicting itself on something crucial which is general milley, right, the top american general, chairman of joint chiefs, said iran meant to kill american troops. he said that was the point and that was their goal. barbara starr said that contradicts the background briefings others in the administration have been giving when they say no, no, no iran intentionally missed american troops. which do you think it is? >> what i will tell you is these are the tough questions and we've got to get answers to them. i was one of 23 in the senate who voted against going to war in iraq. the night before the vote, i was able to get declassified a document from the cia director to our committee saying saddam hussein really wasn't a threat unless you pushed him, unless you provoked him. so, there are a lot of unanswered questions. and when you have administration

officials as you've been pointing out, as barbara starr has been pointing out, that can't even agree with each other, what i think is it's time for them to step up and respond to the tough questions like i heard from that mom in oregon who wants to know if her kid's going to be safe. >> you called general soleimani, obviously the top general in iran who president trump killed in that strike, a bad man with blood on his hands. you criticized trump saying it was a reckless act. >> the fact we have this great military and equipment, however, does not mean we have to use it. we do not want to use it. >> that is the opposite of what he said the other day on twitter when he said if iran attacks any american or an american base we will be sending some of that brand-new beautiful equipment their way without hesitation. i know you're glad he completely

reversed course. however, do you have any confidence he won't do so again? >> no. and the fact is he is always all over the map. i mean, for example, the quote that you gave where he said we shouldn't use our military equipment reminds me of what he said in the campaign, that he was against endless wars. i believe what we're looking for on the key committees and the intelligence committee is the one that i serve on is some sense that there is a clear strategy, a clear direction. and i will tell you as i listen to donald trump on a lot of these issue, i hear echos of both iraq and i mention the iraq war where i don't think the tough kwequestions were asked. i hold the seat of wade morris. i hear a lot of echos of those past conflicts. >> i appreciate your time. thank you. >> thank you. next two rockets explode by

the u.s. embassy in iraq. so, we have new details in terms of what we're learning about those. plus why president trump simply cannot stop talking about president obama. >> the missiles fired last night at us and our allies were paid for with the funds made available by the last administration. >> and a shocking announcement from prince harry and meghan markle. they're stepping back from their senior roles in the royal family, moving away. and it appears they did not even consult the royal family. we made usaa insurance for members like martin.

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new tonight, two rockets landing inside the green zone in baghdad, home of the u.s. embassy in iraq. the attacks coming as the chairman of joint chiefs says militias with ties to iraq say they will continue to attack americans. clarissa, president trump said iran appears to be standing down. the chairman of the joint chiefs tonight says i think it's too early to tell. his quote. what are you hearing tonight clarissa about whether the united states embassy in iraq was targeted tonight? >> reporter: well, i think precisely because of what we know, that two rockets hit the green zone. neither caused any casualties. they were ka tu shah rockets.

the green zone is the fortified area that's home to the embassy. this will have a lot of people on high alert that this was potentially targeting u.s. either embassy workers, civilians affiliated with the mission in iraq in some way. at this stage, erin, we simply don't know exactly what prompted this attack or who was responsible for it. so far no one has claimed responsibility and it is important to emphasize for our viewers that these types of rocket attacks are not uncommon. but certainly given the events that have transpired in the last 24 hours and the sort of real shift in the dynamic we're seeing in iraq with the surge of anti-u.s. sentiment this will be a grave concern to a lot of people who believe while the official iranian response may be over, it may be more difficult for some of these shia militias who are big fans of qassem

soleimani to reign in the passions of some of their supporters and stop these sorts of attacks from happening. >> clarissa ward, out front from erbil tonight. now kim goddess join us. she's the author of the book "black wave." general milley, the chairman of the joint chiefs is saying iran did intend to kill american troops. if that was the intent, if he's correct, does that alone change things now? >> it could, erin. and it's very interesting that general milley mentioned that. obviously general milley has access to all kinds of intelligence that we don't have access to. so, his assessment could very well be based on something that he's seen in that intelligence. it would change things because it's a matter of intent. if the iranians intended not to

hit a target and they did in fact do it, the result would be very bad even if the intent was not to cause any damage. and the same thing if they intended to do something and they did it, it would also be bad. but regardless, intention does matter in this particular case. and that's where the intelligence picture is going to be critical in the assessment of this particular issue. >> i mean, david, this is the chairman of the joint chiefs going against what administration officials are saying on background. >> yep. >> and what they are making, it seems very clear has been used to justify why president trump did not feel the need to strike back which was iran needed to do this. they were put into a corner, but they didn't try to kill anybody. and we can all as the president says, you know, they're backing down. >> yeah. or they're standing down i think he used that phrase which is different from backing down in terms of the implications. backing down sounds like hey,

i'm surveillanrendering. i do think it's significant whether they tried to kill americans or not. i don't think it's going to change the dynamics where we are now. but it does -- it winds into calculations you make in the future about what we're facing. >> that's right. what they're willing to do. >> what they're willing to do. and it feeds into this question of who lobbed those missiles into the green zone, people working for the government, government military people, or some kind of rogue militia operation. i think we're going to see more of this in part because this isn't over by any means. and there are going to be continued efforts by people in iraq to force americans to chase americans out of iraq. >> you know, look, kim this also comes as, you know, the president today said that he's got a great military and doesn't need to use it, right? he was able to take the high road. let me play that part for you again, kim. >> the fact that we have this great military and equipment,

however, does not mean we have to use it. we do not want to use it. >> that's exact opposite sentiment, kim, that he expressed on twitter days ago. i read this again. if iran attacks an american base or any american, we will be sending some of that brand-new beautiful equipment their way and without hesitation. so, iran did just that, attacks a base. trump said he would attack, and he didn't. obviously that's something to celebrate. but the question, kim, is do the iranians -- does anyone trust he will not change his mind and go right back to where he was for no clear reason tomorrow? >> it's very hard to predict how president trump will react when we see the next iran move. but waking up this morning in beirut in the middle east, it felt like we were very close to war. and it was a scary moment to say the least, to hear of iranian

missiles being lobbed at iraqi bases where there are u.s. forces. and then, you know, in the few hours later, it looked more like a very dangerous dance but a dance none the less where everybody was able to posture, to claim that they had the upper hand, that they had struck back, retaliated, and that red lines were drawn and that everybody had made their position clear. i mean, you saw from president trump's tweet that all is well, no american lives were lost. you saw from the iranian foreign minister's tweet as well that everybody understood that there was a limit to this round, that this round is over. but we simply don't know what the next round looks like. and i do want to point out that the worst of this is that the iraqis are stuck in the middle and it is a very scary moment for them. they've been through so much over the last few decades and they've just started to rebuild their own country. and this is now coming at a time where they're trying to reclaim their future and build their

future. and now they find themselves stuck again in this very dangerous dance between iran and the united states. >> so, colonel, the term kim is using, this dangerous dance and wondering if there's another round, a grim prediction today. here he is. >> i still think that down the road we will see an iranian terrorist attack against a senior official. >> to be clear, he's talking about a senior american official. and that would be an eye for an eye, colonel, when you look at soleimani. do you think director morale was right? >> i think there's a real big chance that director merrell is right and that should concern every american, especially those in the middle east. it's really anywhere. they can strike anywhere. they've done that in the past. they've tried to assassinate saudi officials here in washington. that's the kind of thing we have to expect from the iranians. we hope it doesn't come to that,

but i think it's a distinct possibility. >> that is sobering. please stay with me. next it is the name that president trump continues to repeat again and again and again this week with iran but always with when talking about foreign policy. >> president obama. obama, you did nothing. >> why the obsession? and what caused a massive horrific plane crash, boeing 737 crashing in tehran, every single person on board dead, nearly 200 people. and it happened just as iran was launching more than a dozen missiles at u.s. troops. stop dancing around the pain that keeps you up again, and again. advil pm silences pain, and you sleep the whole night. advil pm ♪ robin hood and little john runnin' through the forest ♪ ♪ laughin' back and forth at what the other'ne has to say ♪ there's a booking for every resolution.

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tonight trump's obama obsession in the middle of trump's address to the nation today. the president blamed his predecessor for iran's attack on a u.s. air base in iraq. >> the missiles fired last night at us and our allies were paid for with the funds made available by the last administration. >> the president is talking about iranian funds that were unfrozen as part of the nuclear deal that obama signed. ben rods arguing on twitter

saying iran did not fire a single rocket. look what iran's done since trump pulled out of the deal. kaitlan, trump is trying to put the blame for all of this on obama. >> you see he's talking about talking about what happened with iran since the president pulled out of the iran deal. the president made clear that's not something he regrets. he didn't mention president obama by name today when he was addressing reporters with those remarks, but it was clear he was talking about when he was referencing that past administration. this dates back to the beginning of the president's campaign. just as recently as monday when the president did that interview with the radio host rush limbaugh, he brought up president obama by name at least four times during a pretty quick interview. and it's not just him and the administration who keeps bringing up president obama. you saw the secretary of state do the same thing during his interviews on sunday. and really what you've seen more

than anything is obama has loomed over president trump's foreign policy at least more than any other president that the president has criticized. if you speak to aides inside the white house or former national security aides, they'll say it's not just obama who counters and factors in the president's decision. he also thinks of people like president george w. bush, but you see obama in a way you don't see other presidents have influence over president trump's decisions especially when it comes to iran. and you've seen him talk about the iran nuclear deal, something he pushed to withdraw from and ultimately did despite the objections of his own national security aides at the time and even today as we are in this rising conflict between the united states and iran as you saw the president today, it is something he still continues to evoke. it is notable to see how it looms over his foreign policy decisions. >> i want to go to our panel now. john ganns joins us, joint speech writer during the obama

administration and author of white house warriors, new history of the national security council. president trump brings up the last administration multiple times, blaming that administration. in the interview with rush limbaugh, he mentions president obama four times by name. >> i think this is the best stab at wartime rhetoric we've grown accustomed to over the years. i've looked at speeches going back to truman and the buck stops with the president. and especially on foreign policy, most americans believe the buck stops with the president and he has to deal with the world and the challenges it faces. most americans are well-aware that president obama hasn't held the keys to the situation room in quite a while though president trump seems to be intent on bringing him up. as someone serving in the obama administration, i would say most

americans might err for the calm and collected approach to foreign policy today. and president trump keeps bringing him up today. >> the president mentioned president obama every day this week. on monday he said i think the obama administration was just letting them get away with murder and here are two different days, yesterday and today, and two different comments. >> his past was horrible. he was a terrorist. he was a -- so designated by president obama, as you know. the missiles fired last night at us and our allies were paid for with the funds made available by the last administration. >> on a technical basis, there would be no way for him to prove any such thing. but the big question is, david, is president obama the driving force behind the presidency because he brings him up so much. it's always he did this, so i'm going to do that. >> i don't know what possesses things like this. this is a moment for statesmanship. he gives the cheapest of cheap

shots. that doesn't happen among former presidents usually. one day he's supposed to be part of this fraternity of former presidents. they support each other, have a lot of respect for each other. i think it reflects on donald trump much more than obama himself. i don't know -- beyond the narcissism, i think there was a jealousy there. he thinks he's been the best president ever and obama is more popular than he is. i'm sure there's an element -- >> that bothers him. >> -- yes, that bothers him. i wouldn't be surprised if there's an element about michelle and how popular she is. her book is a wonderful best seller and he thinks melania should be the one should be honored and on top. michelle is the most admired woman in the united states again this year. it's a multitude of things. i don't think it's race. that would be the easy way to go. i think it's much more about -- >> it's much deeper than that.

it's about his ego. >> i'm me and i want to talk about me and don't let this shadow come over me. >> kim, this is not the only time president trump attacked obama on foreign policy and brought it up as he did this so i'm doing this. listen to this. >> president obama wanted to meet and chairman kim would not meet him. the obama administration was begging for a meeting. >> president obama used to send pillows and sheets. i sent antitank weapons and a lot of things to ukraine. >> al-baghdadi created a caliphate bigger than the state of california. and with obama, you did nothing but get your ass kicked. >> so, kim in iran, you know, when we're dealing with a situation we're dealing with now, what do they make of president trump's obsession with president obama? >> well, to start with, president trump's comment about the missiles being paid for by the obama administration, i think that's a little bit unfair

because of course, you know, the missiles were a response to a decision taken by president trump which was, you know, to allow the targeted killing of qassem soleimani. so, as other panels have been saying, the buck stops with the president. and obviously the missile program predates the nuclear deal that president obama signed. but in the middle east, i must say that a lot of americans allies like saudi arabia did think that president obama's policies enabled iran to become more powerful and bolder in its regional expansionist policies. that was facilitated by the nuclear deal. obama administration officials will tell you that the nuclear deal served its purpose. it boxed in the nuclear program. it curved it. it limited it. they will insist that the goal was never to curve regional ambitions, that that was a separate thing. however, iran under the nuclear

did expand in the region as was demonstrated over the last few years particularly in syria. >> trump repeatedly acts as if the united states sent money, it its own money to iran. it was iranian money we unfroze and gave back to them. it was their money, not our money. >> john, before we go. the obsession, what does president obama make of it? do you know? >> i don't know personally. my hunch is he probably thinks that the comparison is going to play to democrats favor in 2020 and thinks americans are looking for a little more dose of how obama handled the world looking at the mess president trump has made in decision making and in the world today. >> thank you all very much. next the plane crash, a jet carrying 176 people crashed in tehran hours after iran's initial attack on u.s. troops. iran says it was a mechanical issue, so why don't they hand over the black boxes?

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tonight the mystery growing over what caused a boeing plane only 3 1/2 years old to crash as it was departing tehran's international airport on the way to ukraine. the plane happening just hours after iran launched the 16 missiles at u.s. bases in iraq. all 176 people on board were killed in the crash. tonight iran is not handing over the black boxes. tom foreman is out front. >> reporter: the ukrainian airlines jet loaded with 176 passengers and crew takes off before dawn. minutes later it comes down, a bright streak across the sky trailing flaming debris as it plunges to the ground in a bowl of fire with no survivors. god help us, he says. quickly the iranians say a mechanical issue was to blame, and the ukrainians post an

online notice saying terrorism was not involved. but then it all goes sideways. the ukrainians delete that message and the president says a special investigative team is being sent to establish the truth and those responsible for this terrible catastrophe. part of the sudden suspicion may flow from the timing. the plane came down just hours after iran fires retaliatory missiles at u.s. military posts in iraq. so, a source tells cnn american intelligence agents while not necessarily drawing any connection are taking a look at the crash. part of it is also practical. >> this give mess the shivers. >> reporter: former federal crash investigator peter gold says that eyewitness video in particular just doesn't look normal. >> if that were simply an engine failure, it would be a much -- it would be a much less intense light. there's an explosion just before -- in air just before it hits the ground. and to top it off, there were no

emergency mayday calls from the crew, apparently. it is very disturbing. >> reporter: other factors, the crew was so experienced the ukrainians were saying we do not even consider pilot error a chance. the plane was only three years old. and the iranians, despite having reportedly recovered the cockpit voice and flight data recorders, so far are not letting anyone else look at them. and they are refusing to allow boeing which made the jet to join the investigation. boeing, ukraine, iran, the united states, it's as if a whole year of tumult events collided around this moment complicating the conversations about all of them. >> thank you very much, tom. i want to go now to former cia operative bob bear. how suspicious is this to you?

>> erin, the coincidence of these ballistic missiles being fired, shortly after that this plane goes down. i think a rocket probably hit it. speculation at this point, but in the absence of any other fact, most likely explanation is a rocket of some sort hit an engine, took it down. the fact there was no mayday, no other explanations. the iranians came out very quickly and said look, it's technical. how would they know? and the fact they're not turning the black box over tells me they're probably guilty. >> so, explain to me what you think how in the world this could have happened. it was hours after the initial missile attack. you're saying iran was responsible. i know you used the word "rocket." but what's your theory? >> well, what happens after this is the iranians are expecting to be hit, including tehran airport. they had surface air missile sites, got blips on the radar. it's coming up. they see all this stuff in the

sky. there were american airplanes in the sky. somebody made a mistake. i don't think they did it on purpose. but in the middle of a combat sequence like this, this is what happens. >> oh, awful. bob baer thank you very much. a lot of questions and it is unclear what answers we will get since iran is refusing to hand over the black boxes. thank you bob baer. next new calls for nancy pelosi. she's getting ready to move a war powers bill on authorization of force, but there are many who want her to move on the articles of impeachment. >> i think it's time to turn the articles over. >> i think it is time for the speaker to send the articles over. >> will she listen to her own party? and a royal shake up. prince harry and meghan markle steps back, saying sayonara to the royal family. we made usaa insurance for members like martin.

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tonight, a growing number of democratic senators urging nancy pelosi to end the stalemate with mitch mcconnell and send over the impeachment articles that they need to begin president trump's impeachment trial. >> i think it's time to turn the articles over. let's see where this senate can take pit. >> i think it is time for the speaker to send the articles over. >> dianne feinstein telling politico, and i quote, the longer it goes on, the less urgent it becomes. so if it is serious and urgent, send them over. if it isn't, don't send them over. it almost sounds like a republican speaking. "outfront" now, jackie speier of california, she wants on the intelligence and armed services committee. congresswoman, does it surprise you to hear this presser coming from your democratic colleagues in the senate? they want it, they want it yesterday, and from dianne feinste feinstein, even making an argument that republicans make. if it's surrogate, send them, if you've got something to say. >> let me say that the speaker of the house is prepared to send the articles over.

what we have had happen since we took the action that we did is we have now found out that the administration has once again been part of a cover-up so that documents that were made available because of a freedom of information act request were not disclosed and we've also had mr. bolton come forward and say that he's willing to testify before the senate. so i think her putting a pause has actually helped the senate in its negotiations for witnesses. and i think that's going to be critical. >> so let me ask you on that front. mcconnell says witnesses will be considered later in the trial. that's the argument he's been making all the way long. as you point out, fairly, there have been big developments over the past few weeks, but he has not moved on witnesses being a predicate to a trial. he has said that he'll have the opening statements and then a vote. and some senate democrats are saying that they will have real leverage when that happens. when that vote occurs. so the trial will have

technically have begun, but then they vote on witnesses that they have some leverage there. do you think they're wrong? >> well, i think that what will happen is that they'll have opening arguments, they'll present their case, and then he will want to close and then they will have the opportunity to seek witnesses. i don't think that makes sense. when clinton was impeached, all the witnesses and clinton himself had complied with the requests made by the house in the investigation. none of that has taken place in the house. we have put this together really with the benefit of ambassador volcker's text messages and the comments made by the ambassador sondland. so we do need to hear from bolton. we do need to hear from duffy. we do need to hear from others who have declined to meet the subpoena requests, because the president has told them to. >> look, anyone who wants to know everything about this, it would be intellectually dishonest to say they didn't want to hear from john bolton or mick mulvaney. i think one has to just be

honest and say that. but it may not happen in the senate. so if it doesn't, can you say that the house of representatives will subpoena john bolton? and that he will appear, for the american people to hear what he has to say? >> i'm not sure we're in a position right now to make that statement or i think it's frankly premature. because we have see what happens in the senate. mr. bolton has said he will testify in the senate. if the senate does not take him up on his offer, then i think the whole question becomes, was that really a trial at all. that oath they take for impartial justice was that, in fact, met? >> so, the articles of impeachment. do you anticipate that they will be sent over by the end of this week? >> i can't speak for the speaker. that's a question for her. but i think she has every intention to do it in on junction with the senate democrats. she's certainly been in consultation with them. and having heard from a number of senate democrats, i'm certain

she will take steps as appropriate. >> all right. i appreciate your time, as always, congresswoman. thank you. >> thank you, erin. and next, a royal riff. weapon fou we found out late today, prince harry and meghan markle are breaking from the royal family and they didn't tell anyone in the family. what is going on? that's what we, we listen to people, even those who don't have a voice. we are people helping people. but since they bought their new house... which menu am i looking at here? start with "ta-paz." -oh, it's tapas. -tapas. get out of town. it's like eating dinner with your parents. sandra, are you in school? yes, i'm in art school. oh, wow. so have you thought about how you're gonna make money? at least we're learning some new things. we bundled our home and auto with progressive, saved a bunch. oh, we got a wobbler. progressive can't protect you from becoming your parents, but we can protect your home and auto when you bundle with us. that's what the extra menu's for. ♪

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nlgts tonight, royal exit. a dramatic and shocking announcement from prince harry and meghan markle, the duchess of sussex. they released a statement and among many things in it, they said, quote, they will step back as senior members of the royal family and work to become financially independent. and they're not even going to live in the uk full-time. and here's the thing about this. it's not just shocking that they're doing such a thing. it is that sources tell cnn that the duke and duchess did not consult other royals about the decision. cnn royal correspondent max foster is "outfront" from london. max, this is stunning. they didn't even consult with

the royal family, with the queen, with prince harry's own brother, william. >> unheard of, frankly, erin. and we don't have these sort of breakdowns going public very often. let's not say that they don't happen. this is a family, it's a working family, as well. there are breakdowns within the family, but this has been building for some time. and this is a very public breakdown in the family. so i've been speaking to sources tonight, and they're saying things that they just don't say to reporters normally, because they try to hide these differences between palace walls. they're saying there was no consultation with other senior members of the royal family. there's deep disappointment behind walls. and crucially, senior members of the royal family, william, charles, and the queen are hurt by this. the reason they're so upset is because the couple have made this announcement without consulting them. they've also come up with this very intricate website defining exactly what their new roles will be, how they'll be funded, how they'll redefine their relationship with the media, where they're going to live, where they're going to get the money from, all of these things.

but they can't do it without the rest of the royal family. so the buckingham palace issued a statement saying shortly after they made their statement, these are complicated issues that will take time to work through. ie, hold back, sussexes, none of this has been agreed. >> i mean, it is incredible, especially when you think about -- you know, for so many years, the close relationship that was so clear between those two brothers and the sudden and obviously dramatic change in that relationship, a breakdown in that relationship, has been noticed by so many. i mean, why is this happening now, max? >> it's happening now, i think, because harry's had a very long-term issue with being a public figure. it goes back to his very troubled childhood and the amount of pressure that was put on his mother, frankly. that has built over time. and the duchess has really, really struggled with her public role and having to bite her lip all the time and not be herself and having to do things that the royal family expects of them. so i think it's just built to

the point where they got to the end of last year can thought, right, we need some time out to think about this. they took six weeks off, they went to canada, they came back, and this is their solution. but they haven't really ironed out all the wrinkles just yet. >> it's pretty incredible. and pretty sad, on a lot of levels, just to see it all so publicly. max, thank you very much. and thanks to all of you. anderson starts now. good evening. we begin tonight in a far different place than we left you last night, and that is a good thing, plain and simple. iran's signal that its missile strike on two bases in iraq, housing u.s. forces was the limit of their response. the american killing of general qassem soleimani. they apparently offered a way out and this morning, president trump took it. >> iran appears to be standing down, which is a good thing for all parties concerned and a very good thing for the world. no american or iraqi lives were lost, because of the