i'm wolf blitzer. i'm be back tomorrow morning 8:00 a.m. eastern from the pentagon for the special coverage of the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. my guest will be lloyd austin, jake tapper will join our coverage, as well. erfront" next, tyrant, some of the names biden is being called. a major blow to florida schools trying to protect students with mandating masks. a court citing with gloveoverno

desantis that wants a ban on masks. the mystery deepens over the shooting of a once w once promi attorney whose wife and son were murdered three mormt evnths ear "outfront" tonight, president biden facing republican outrage over his covid-19 vaccine policies that will impact up to 100 million americans. >> what is your message to republicans who are calling your vaccine requirements an over reach who are threatening to challenge it in court? >> have at it. look, i am so disappointed that particularly some of the republican governors have been so cavalier with the health of these kids, so cavalier with the health of their communities.

this is -- this is -- we're playing for real here. this isn't a game. >> he's referring to republican governors because some of them are piling on the outrage. the governor of south carolina henry mcmaster tweeting rest assured we'll fight them to the gates of hell to protect the liberty and livelihood of every south carolinaen and then there is this. >> what the biden administration is doing is government over reach, pure and simple. >> my legal team is already working, and we will defend and protect our people from this unlawful mandate. >> when we see elected officials violate the constitution, we have a responsibility to fight back, and that's what we're doing. >> you should not lose your job just because joe biden is having this hissy fit. >> in the halls of congress, the response from elected officials ted cruz calling it utterly lawless and marshall blackburn is saying biden is sounding like a dictator every day and steve

scalise accusing biden of being a desperate politician abusing power and not to be out done. right wing media cut to the chase. >> we had to elect this rotting bag of oatmeal to get a real tyrant. joe biden. >> joe biden couldn't get his act in order so he decided to issue a tyrant and authoritarian order here. >> time for facts and not fake calls of tyranny. facts you think the gop would embrace because can you believe this actually goes back to george washington? yes. vaccine mandates have been part of the united states since 1777. 1777. when george washington required his troops the immunized for smallpox. last i checked, pretty much anything george washington did is sacred to the republicans slamming prbiden for following george washington's precedent. i took you back to 1777 but

actually don't need to do that. i can show you what the very same republican governors called tyranny against biden are doing themselves in their states. yes, every single state in the united states of america has a form of a mandate for certain vaccines for students. let me just give you south dakota where governor christie gnome as you heard called biden's plan an unlawful mandate. perhaps she should look in the mir rar ror because she has a ve in her state for school children. i'll read it to you. her policy, her state. any child entering school or early childhood shall required to admission be required to present certification from a licensed physician that the child has received adequate immunization and goes on to list the illnesses. roue rubella, chicken box, mumps, it's okay for her but not for

biden? i'm not sure what excuse she'd make for the george washington precedent. vaccines work thanks is why south dakota and every other state in the country requires them, has mandates for them like the covid vaccines work now. just to remind everybody what those republican governors know full well unvaccinated americans are ten times more likely to be hospitalized with covid and 11 times more likely to die than vaccinated individuals. kaitlan collins is "outfront" at the white house. kaitlan, sounds like the president is relishing this fight with the gop. >> reporter: erin, he was certainly expecting it when he unveiled the measures yesterday. it didn't take long to see the governors pushing back and they knew it was coming. you're seeing the president call out republican governors as you said. he may not always say their name and po

explicitly and that's part of the broader shift as he's growing increasingly more frustrated with these republican governors standing in the way of vaccinating more americans or encouraging more americans to get vaccinated but with the people yet to get vaccinated. yet describing it as a paifailu asking 80 million americans to do so. it is remaining to be seen how this will play out for private companies because it's still being drafted by the labor department and not officially unveiled yet. a lot of details are in flux how the enforcement is going to work, who is going to pay for the test ifs you're a worker at a company and choose not to get vaccinated, is it you paying for it or the business? these are details we're learning to find out when they unveil this in the coming weeks. we should note the fights are far from over. the white house is not taking other measures off the table. when asked whether they would

consider a vaccine to get on a flight domestically here in the united states, something recently is not required, they said they are not taking it off the table and would do anything in the end that would help save lives. >> thank you. let me go to dr. marty, and david from senior editor of the "atlantic." dr. marty, you live where the governor there called the stance of vaccines a hissy fit fighting back on president biden's order. how concerned are you about this push back from desantis? >> i think that we shouldn't be playing politics with something as serious as this disease. the vaccine is incredibly safe. in fact, you commented about the verilation, which is recommended by george washington back in the 17 00s and i should add that he had martha washington in front of everyone take the verilation

to show his troops that it was safe, and actually, that was incredibly dangerous compared to the vaccines we have now, which are incredibly safe and effective, and the combination of using the vaccines and the non-pharmaceutical interventions are our best way out of this. anyone who isn't on board with that is not participating in the best citizen ship that should exist in this country and that is going for every single one of those including the governors. >> so david, all over and i know some states it is different, but, you know, people, americans support people and vaccine mandates and businesses really want it, right, because it's procapitalists because they don't have to worry about other protections and of course, the governors themselves fighting it have mandates themselves so it's hypocritical however, they decided coming out and saying this and fighting biden is the

right political move and will help them. will they end up being right? >> they are going to end up being so wrong. i will hear the caution against playing politics and i will drive right past it. i would like people to consider if we weren't talking about this vaccine issue today, 70% of the country is on the president easts 's side and 30% is other. you might talk about the rising price of beef, chicken and pork but very little a president can do but will be blamed and crime numbers that are evaluated from four, five years ago. not a lot the president can do but the president would be blamed. we would be talking about the situation on the southern border, this huge immigration issue and the terrible images from afghanistan. almost everything else we might be talking about is a 70/30 issue in the republicans' favor but biden has tracked them into

talking about an issue where their base is forcing republican office holders including people who are pretty -- i mean, greg abbott is something of a true believer but christie gnome and desantis are not true believers. this is a good thing to raise money on. it excites the republican $20 giver but doesn't excite people in the suburbs and especially women of the subbeshurbs who ar people the republicans need to win back. biden is not thinking about the politics but the maneuver he's executed is politically powerful. >> keep in mind, desantis is fighting to his court after court against businesses in his own states who are saying we want vaccine mandates, the cruise ships. they want it for their business and he's fighting against business. it's the most counter gop thing i've heard in quite sometime. but dr. marty, if governor desantis or governor gnome, governor ducy succeeds in stopping biden's rules, what

will it mean? will the impact be in the context where people under 12 can't get vaccinated and you're not going to require the 85 million americans who could to get it? >> he's not going to succeed. osha has the authority, which is where this has been placed by the biden administration to assure safety in workplaces, and already, there are many osha mandates that employers have to meet to be in compliance with federal regulations, and already osha already since january has had things on the books, some of which are mandatory, some of which are recommendations recording covid-19. more over, osha has rules on the hepatitis b vaccine but that is something that only affects one person that might get hepatitis whereas being vaccinated not only protects the person getting the vaccine but everyone around them.

there is no way he's going to win. >> so david, when you look at the texas governor greg abbott as you mentioned, you characterize him as a true believer. he tweeted yesterday quote protecting texans' right to choose. that's how he put it by standing up to biden's vaccine order. anybody who can't just look at that and shake their head, right, this is a guy defending his state's restrictive new law banning abortion after six weeks and explicitly jumping up and down preventing someone's right to choose. will voters care about a contradiction like this? he knows exactly what he's saying when he says i support your right to choose on the vaccine? he chose the words on purpose probably. he thinks it's okay to be a hypocrite in that regard. >> one of the things we're slow to process is what texas is rapidly becoming, a swing state. look how close the governor election -- the senate election was in 2018. democrats dominate houston and austin, the cities they've been strong but dallas and fort

worth. fort worth is the most republican large city in texas and now with the republican domination is tyler. san antonio is democratic, so what is happening in texas is what is happening in the country, which is the metropolitan areas are becoming more blue and the countryside is more red. so texas is very jerrgerrymande and republicans have -- they control more power than their voting numbers would indicate but governor abbott is walking on an ever finer knife edge. the point of the abortion law, i think he was supposed to lose and rev up republican voters and not inflame democrats but it won and now where are they? >> now he owns it because it's his. >> he caught the car. >> yeah. david, thank you very much. dr. marty, thank you. next, a florida court siting with governor desantis' ban.

the super i superintendent that. new video surfacing of angry flyers fighting mask requirements. governor gavin newsom facing a recall election in four days focused on one line on the ballot. we'll tell you what it is.

breaking news, president biden's department opening an investigation to determine if florida's ban on mask mandates violets the rights. this is cited on banning mask man dates in schools and desantis quick to take a victory lap saying no surprise here, the first district court of appeals destroyed the right of parents to make the best decisions for their children. ly continue to fight for parents' rights. "out front" now, the su superintendent of the fourth largest school and 13 staffers dying of covid-19 in his district in the last three weeks. superintendent, you and i spoke a couple days ago and now here we are on this development tonight. of usually, you defied the governor on masks before school

started putting a mask mandate in place. does the ruling from the court now mean on monday, masks in your schools are completely optional? >> not at all. number one, hello, erin. k not at all. this ruling doesn't bring back the 13 colleagues i lost and will not influ we think so our -- influence our position in miami-dade and those in florida getting a protective mask mandate protocol because it's protective in nature and not a political ploy. quite frankly, we're getting a little tired into our third week of school when we should be focused on acceleration of learning, protecting our students and really getting them back into the routine and normalcy schools bring and here we have a political legal volleyball game going on where kids quite dpfrankly are the ba and that shouldn't be the case. >> so how do you plan to fight this? i'm sure there is -- you probably are well aware of the

fact that there are going to be some people that show up and don't wear masks and you're going to have a buhaha here. >> sure. look. we are a system of close to 330,000 students. we have a mask mandate protocol that allows for medically ly endorsed accommodations advised by experts like dr. marty that was just on your program and the surgeon aggeneral of the united states of america and other experts and out of 330,000 students, we only had 37 students district wide whose parents requested an accommodation on medical need. there is no crisis in schools as far as an uproar of individuals complaining about masks. people understand that masks are protective tools that protect them from covid-19, and i will tell you one thing, the decision of the court today all it did was reinstate the mask mandate

while an appeal process runs its course. during that time period in miami-dade as well as districts across the state of florida impacting in excess of 1 million students will continue to enforce a mask mandate for one simple reason, it works and young people, younger than 12 years of age do not have access to a vaccine. with that said, erin, we're doing our part. we're providing $275 per employee to ensure they get vaccinated. 85% of our teachers are vaccinated and our community, we have about 98% of the people, the residents already vaccinated. we're doing our part. we continue to stay the course to do this right. >> so governor desantis had previously threatened to withhold the salaries of school officials who defied him. yet president biden took a clear shot at desantis over that specific threat. >> right now local school officials are trying to keep

children safe in a pandemic while their governor picks a fight with them and even threatens their salaries or jobs. talk about bullying in schools. >> where does it stand now on what desantis has done on that threat? is he following through? >> we have not received a letter much like my colleagues in broward and the counties have received but we expect to receive one. here is what i think and my school board members think. the long term benefit to doing the right thing absolutely out weighs the short term fear of the consequences, particularly when we talk about salaries and administration has taken proactive measures that should that be the case, those funds can be replenished. look, there is no financial consequence that will come in the way of us doing the right thing. >> all right, super intent dent, appreciate your time. thank you. >> thank you. next, live pictures from ground zero as the united states

is about to mark the 20th anniversary of 9/11. president biden releasing a video of the only public remarks that he'll be making for tomorrow. plus, the outrage over mask mandates boiling over. do you struggle with occasional nerve aches in your hands or feet? try nervivenerve relief from the world's #1 selling nerve care company. nervive contains alpha lipoic acid to relieve occasional nerve aches, weakness and discomfort. try nervivenerve relief.

why bother mastering something? why hand-tune an audio system? why include the most advanced active safety system in its class...standard? because when you want to create an entirely new feeling, the difference between excellence and mastery is all the difference in the world. the lexus es. every curve, every innovation, every feeling... a product of mastery. get 1.9% apr financing on the 2021 es 350. experience amazing at your lexus dealer.

♪ limu emu & doug ♪ got a couple of bogeys on your six, limu. they need customized car insurance from liberty mutual so they only pay for what they need. what do you say we see what this bird can do? woooooooooooooo... we are not getting you a helicopter. looks like we're walking, kid. only pay for what you need. ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty. ♪

and there you have it— -woah. wireless on the most reliable network nationwide. wow! -big deal! ...we get unlimited for just $30 bucks. sweet, but mine has 5g included. relax people, my wireless is crushing it. that's because you all have xfinity mobile with your internet. it's wireless so good, it keeps one upping itself. switch to xfinity mobile and save hundreds on your wireless bill. plus, save up to $400 when you purchase a new samsung phone or upgrade your existing phone. learn more at your local xfinity store today.

breaking news, president biden just releasing a video statement to mark the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks. likely his only public remarks, he's not expected to speak tomorrow but will attend the sites. the president honoring those who lost their lives and saying unity is the central lesson of september 11th. >> we also saw something all too rare, a true sense of national unity, unity and resilience a capacity of recover and repair in the face of trama and unity and service the 9/11 generation is stepping up to serve and protect in the face of terror to get those terrorists who are responsible, to show everyone seeking to do harm to america that we will hunt you down and

we will make you pay. that will never stop. >> a day that remains painful for the united states. a day where 2,977 people never came home after going to work or getting on a plane including 2,753 people in new york after the terrorists flew two planes into the world trade center and thousands more who survived that day died later or still suffering, physically and emotionally from the horror of that day. "outfront" now lawrence wright is the politzer prize winning author of "al qaeda and the road to 9/11" remains a seminole book and has a new reference and a staff writer for "the new yorker." i'm so glad to talk to you tonight, lawrence. 20 years later when you think about this, is the united states any stronger now than it was

before 9/11? >> well, there are different measures of strength, erin, and, you know, military we're certainly very strong and very practiced in war, but strength also comes from unity and as the president was saying, there was a time on 9/11 when the nation was unified. now we're in a state of such disunion that it hasn't been matched since the civil war and that weakens us. it also weakens us that our stance in the world has been so discredited. we're not a weak country. we're still the strongest military pourer in the world in history, but we're not the same country we were. >> no, and so much is fundamentally changed. i mean, after the united states with drew from afghanistan, president biden said this about the terror threat specifically involving afghanistan and al qaeda. here he is. >> i also know that the threat

of terrorism continues in this evil nature. but it's changed. expanded to other countries. our strategy has to change, too. >> now, it's true that it's expanded and it's changed. it's also true that the u.s. strategy for dealing with it had expanded and changed even as troops remained in afghanistan, right? that is true. and afghanistan as it is to many extremists has long played a core role. i mean, with the taliban in charge again and america now gone, is afghanistan again lawrence, do you think, going to become a breeding ground for terror, a headquarters? >> that's certainly the greatest fear that any american should have. al qaeda was not a powerful entity before it went to afghanistan and opened up those training camps. there were only about 170 names on the al qaeda list, maybe 300 people in total on 9/11, and

they were empowered by the training and the plotting that they did in afghanistan. now, it's franchised into different affiliates that reach from morocco to bangladesh and 30 to 40,000 members. al qaeda has much expanded but hasn't had the access to those training camps that are so invaluable. >> 15 of the 19 hijackers were from saudi arabia and you wrote extensively about their stories and of course, now, there are growing questions, there have always been but to this day still questions what the saudi government knew, when it knew it, what it was okay with, all of these questions and of course, the saudi government as you know fought tooth and nail to keep certain documents classified by president biden just ordered a review of classified documents related to 9/11 and they suddenly changed their tone and the saudi embassy quote is the kingdom of audio

arabia to the united states welcomes the release of classified documents relating to the attacks against the united states on september 11th, 2001. any allegation the united states is come come pocome police et . you've done reporting on some of the questions never answered about members of the saudi government. what do you think? >> i've thought about this a lot. the families of the victims of 9/11 demanded that had been retracted from the 9/11 report and they were damming. but i don't think that it's saudi that we're talking about in the sense of what secret is so precious, that three

presidents in 20 years would pass and the american people couldn't be trusted to know it? and the only answer that i have, the great unanswered question is why did the cia keep the information from the fbi that al qaeda was in america and they knew in march of 2000 that two al qaeda operatives were in the united states. this is 19 months before 9/11. and they hid that information from the fbi, which had the authority to follow them, clone their computers and arrest them. it was the best chance to stop the plot and that question has never been sat 'tist'tis -- satisfactorily answered, if there is one question needing answered, it would be that. >> incredible, no answer thus far. thank you very much. i want everyone to know not only is that the most incredible book written out the topic but a new

pre preface. appreciate you, lawrence. >> thank you. we have a full day of special coverage on 9/11 starting at 8:00 a.m. eastern. jake tapper and paula reed will be live. he talks to the class president bush was voisiting, the book about goats when he first heard about the attacks and nobody has forgotten about the image. victor will talk to the class. a tribute of celebrities shine a light and the film "shine a light". united airlines doubling down on a mandate for employees saying if you don't get vaccinated, you'll go on unpaid leave even in the case of religious exceptions. plus, a new twist in the mystery surrounding a prominent south carolina family. why that family patriot is explaining why his gun shot

wound to the head was not self-inflected. every day can be extraordinary with rich, creamy, delicious fage total yogurt. millions of vulnerable americans struggle to get reliable transportation to their medical appointments. that's why i started medhaul. citi launched the impact fund to invest in both women and entrepreneurs of color like me,

so i can realize my vision and give everything i've got to my company, and my community. i got you. for the love of people. for the love of community. for the love of progress. citi. before we talk about tax-smart investing, what's new? -well, audrey's expecting... -twins! grandparents! we want to put money aside for them, so...change in plans. alright, let's see what we can adjust. ♪ we'd be closer to the twins. change in plans. okay. mom, are you painting again? you could sell these. lemme guess, change in plans? at fidelity, a change in plans is always part of the plan.

incomparable design makes it beautiful. state of the art technology makes it brilliant. the lexus nx. experience the crossover in its most visionary form. experience amazing at your lexus dealer. ♪ ♪ welcome to allstate. where everything just seems to go your way. ♪ ♪ you're in good hands with allstate. click or call for a lower auto rate today.

tonight, united airlines

doubling down on the vaccine mandate saying even employees who cite religious reasons not to be vaccinated saying nope, sorry, you're going to ask for a religious exception, we'll put you on indefinite unpaid leave. that is a mandate. it comes as airlines are facing increasingly angry passengers lashing out against flight attendants and fellow passengers over mask mandates. dan simon is "outfront". >> reporter: the incidents keep wracking up. >> you gave me one [ bleep ] warning. >> on wednesday this passenger on a jetblue flight hurling expletives after refusing to put on his mask according to the airlines. >> let it go viral. >> reporter: the woman he's traveling with threatens the sue the airline as the two are escorted off the plane. passengers cheered. >> sit down now. >> reporter: on monday this passenger who salt lake city police said was intoxicated is seen removing his mask and growling in his seat.

the 61-year-old shouting the president's name being arrested after tangling with flight atenl te t -- attendants on on american airlines flight. >> show some respect. the anger you see on television toward flight attendants and others doing their job is wrong. it's ugly. >> reporter: president biden on thursday addressing the turmoil in the skies and announced the tsa will double fines on travelers that refuse to mask. >> if you break the rules, be prepared to pay. >> reporter: the faa reporting there are more than 4100 unruly passenger incidents so far this year. the majority of them more than 3,000 involve alleged mask violations. the incidents not only putting flight atenltendants in danger they also distract pilots a according to a public service announcement by the faa. >> unruly passenger. we need to get off the airplane. we need authorities on the

ground? >> yeah. >> an unruly passenger is not just creating havoc and violence in the space that they live in, they are spreading that out through the airport and they are distracting the pilots. >> reporter: as for this newest incident, the airline releasing a statement saying the two customers were asked multiple times but would not compile with the federal mask mandate. they will not be allowed to flu jetblue in the future. >> i feel for the lightflight a tends, i do. >> they are hoping their flight isn't the next one to go viral. >> if nobody is following the rules, that's really difficult and stressful for everyone. >> people that freak out about wearing a mask don't really respect other people's safety. >> i think wearing a mask is based on empathy. >> reporter: not wearing a mask on a plane will get expensive. the fines, first time offenders face a fine from 500 to $1,000,

second-time offenders face a fine from $1,000 to $3,000. >> wow. >> reporter: erin? >> that is serious. thank you, dan simon. >> next, the murder mystery in south carolina and nobody named as a suspect in the mother and son and the attorney facing questions about his new gunshot injury and the one question that could make all the difference in california's recall election. we'll show you. i wonder how the firm's doing without its fearless leader. you sure you want to leave that all behind? yeah. stay restless with the rx. crafted by lexus. experience amazing at your lexus dealer. your eyes. beautiful on the outside, but if you have diabetes, there can be some not-so-pretty stuff going on, on the inside. it's true, if you have diabetes, you know high blood sugar is the root of the problem. but that excess sugar can cause the blood vessels to be seriously damaged. and when that happens, this could happen, vision loss or even blindness.

that's right, diabetic retinopathy is a leading cause of blindness for adults in the u.s. but even though you can't see it, there is something you can do about it. remember this: now is the time to get your eyes checked. eye care is an incredibly important part of your long-term diabetes management. see a path forward with actions and treatments that may help your eyes— and protect against vision loss. just say to yourself, “now eye see.” then—go see an eye care specialist. visit noweyesee.com to get the facts about diabetes, your eyes, and what you can do next—to take control of your sight. brought to you by regeneron.

dry eye symptoms driving you crazy? inflammation might be to blame. inflammation: time for ache and burn! over the counter eye drops typically work by lubricating your eyes and may provide temporary relief. inflammation: those'll probably pass by me! xiidra works differently, targeting inflammation that can cause dry eye disease. inflammation: xiidra? no! it can provide lasting relief. xiidra is the only fda-approved non-steroid treatment specifically for the signs and symptoms of dry eye disease. one drop in each eye, twice a day. don't use if you're allergic to xiidra. common side effects, include eye irritation, discomfort or blurred vision when applied to the eye, and unusual taste sensation. don't touch container tip to your eye or any surface. after using xiidra, wait fifteen minutes before reinserting contacts. talk to an eye doctor about xiidra. inflammation: i prefer you didn't. xiidra. not today, dry eye.

tonight, the south carolina family murder mystery growing stranger by the day. the family attorney said he was shot in the head on the side of the road three months after his ide wife and son were murdered. a family spokesperson insist it was not a self-inflected wound and that a suspect is still at large. amara walker is "outfront". >> reporter: a mystery in south carolina deepening tonight after

prominent attorney alex murdoch said he was shot in the head on september 4th as he pulled over to check his tires. his lawyer said the 53-year-old suffered a fractured skull and brain bleed and a family spokesperson denied it was a self-inflicted wound and said a male driver in a blue pickup truck stopped to ask if murdoch was having car problems, when he replied, he was shot. the hampton county sheriff's department is correcting its statement saying the attempted murder resulted in noviceble injury. one day before the shooting the prominent south carolina attorney had abruptly resigned from his law firm after beingmi funds. three months ago the double murder of alex murdoch's wife maggie and his 22-year-old son paul thrust their family into the limelight. this is a portion of the 911 call murdoch made saying he found them both shot dead in front of his home in south

carolina. >> is he breathing at all? >> no, no -- >> is she -- okay. >> reporter: the murders remain unsolved but during the investigation, the south carolina law enforcement division announced it had gathered information that led authorities to another unsolved death. investigators are now looking into the cold case of 19-year-old steven smith, the teen was found dead on the side of a road in 2015. it was initially believed he was killed in a hit and run but former south carolina highway patrol trooper todd prok cter td fox news in june he has suspicions. >> there was no evidence that pointed towards this being a hit and run or vehicle being involved in it. it looked like it was more staged like possibly the body had been placed in the road way. >> reporter: the murdochs have not been accused of any wrongdoing in this case. in 2019 paul murdoch was involve in a deadly boating accident that killed 19-year-old mallory

beach. prosecutors charged with paul with operating the boat whilein. he pleaded not guilty. two years later allegations of an attempted coverup. attorneys of connor cook filing a petition in july alleging that law enforcement officials may have information regarding a conspiracy to misdirect a criminal investigation away from now deceased paul murdoch to blame cook. the south carolina department of resources called it a fishing expedition and frivolous. the murdochs have a long and powerful history in the south carolina lowcountry. three generations of murdochs served as region's top 3 prosecutor for nearly a century including his father. some wondering if the family's prominence may have influ we think soed these investigations. alex murdoch's brothers refuted that on "good morning america".

>> i see words like dynasty used and power and i don't know exactly how people use those words, but we're just regular people. >> reporter: and erin, in a statement obtained by cnn from his attorney, alex murdoch says in part that he is immensely sorry to everyone he has hurt and he's made a lot of decisions he truly regrets. he has entered a rehabilitation facility to be treated for an opioid addiction according to his attorney and also, his license to practice law has been suspended by the south carolina supreme court, and as you mentioned, there are no arrests made, no suspects named in the shooting of alex murdoch and the double-murders of his wife and son. erin? >> thank you very much. with all these details there, i want to go to jake shore a senior writer. jake, thanks so much. let me just start with this. there is a lot of questions about what led up to this moment

when alex murdoch just the other day got a gunshot wound to the head that ended up being, well, it's unclear how bad it was but he's alive and okay. what can you tell what can you tell us from your reporting and suddenly the family came out and said we want to make sure everyone knows this wasn't self-inflicted? >> yeah. thanks for having me on, erin. this weekend a lot of events happened. we got word that alex murdaugh was shot in the head and air lifted to a savannah hospital. that is all we knew. the following day we got word from the law enforcement division, the agency investigating the case that it was alex who called 911 and said he had a superficial gunshot wound to the head. on monday a statement was released by alex murdaugh that kind of shocked everybody that

he was resigning from the family law firm and entering drug treatment. it was a kind of vague apology issued to his family and friends and colleagues. you know, we weren't really sure what that was about. then on monday night the "new york times" reported that, you know, his law firm said they discovered he had misappropriated funds. he resigned after that. after the law firm gave that statement he resigned and it kind of made sense why the statement erler why in the day when he said he was entering drug treatment and was going to resign. it put more context on the shooting on saturday. the news about him calling 911, the superficial gunshot wound to the head, then the actual statement itself. it kind of put it in a different light and caused questions. >> for sure. >> whether it was self-inflicted

or not. >> look, all of this is, i know, raising all these questions and of course you had the double murder a few months ago of his wife and son, paul. now there is another mysterious case resurfacing surrounding the death of 19-year-old steven smith. he was found dead on the side of the road in 2015. authorities have said something from the murdaugh murder investigation has led them to review this cold case. the implication being that somehow these murders are related. it is unclear, right? they're not pointing to the murdaughs as suspects at this point. you've read through all the documents and interviews in the investigation. what did you learn about why it might be connected? >> that is kind of the big question, erin. you know, reading through all the documents, it was a really strange case. he was found in the road and it seemed like a hit-and-run according to police at the time and then the highway patrol investigating the case started

to cast doubt on that. i listened to plenty of interviews where the highway patrol investigators were telling family members that they didn't really think this was a hit-and-run. they chased a lot of rumors tying the murdaugh family to this case. a lot of members, this is a small town in hampton. and they said that they -- there was, you know, the murdaughs were tied in but there was no evidence of the rumors until the murders, you know, when they said they were going to reopen the case into steven smith's death. >> all right. jake, i appreciate your time. thank you very much. bizarre and deeply disturbing situation and obviously a lot we still don't know. well, up next, california governor newsom with a new strategy in the final days and hours leading up to the crucial recall election. responding to both of you.any and, it's temperature balancing to help you stay comfortable all night. it even tracks your circadian rhythm, so you know when you're at your best.

in other words, it's the most energy-building, wellness-boosting, parent-powering, proven quality night's sleep we've ever made. don't miss the final days where all smart beds are on sale. save 50% on the new sleep number 360 limited edition smart bed. plus, 0% interest for 48 months. ends monday. this is t-mobile, america's leading 5g network. this is apple tv+. and now only t-mobile gives new and existing customers one year of apple tv+ on us. only at t-mobile. why bother mastering something? why hand-tune an audio system? why include the most advanced active safety system in its class...standard? because when you want to create an entirely new feeling, the difference between excellence and mastery

is all the difference in the world. the lexus es. every curve, every innovation, every feeling... a product of mastery. get 1.9% apr financing on the 2021 es 350. experience amazing at your lexus dealer. introducing xfinity rewards. our very own way of thanking you just for being with us. enjoy rewards like movie night specials. xfinity mobile benefits. ...and exclusive experiences, like the chance to win tickets to see watch what happens live. hey! it's me. the longer you've been with us... the more rewards you can get. like sharpening your cooking skills with a top chef. join for free on the xfinity app and watch all the rewards float in. our thanks. your rewards.

just four days until the recall election in california. for all the talk about candidates looking to push governor gavin newsom out of a job for him it comes down to one line on the ballot. >> no on the recall. no on the recall.

>> reporter: there's been one message from democrats in california about the recall election. from the foot soldiers knocking doors in neighborhoods -- >> vote no. vote no. that is all you got to do. >> reporter: to the ads on tv. vote no. to governor gavin newsom himself. ignore half the ballot. >> don't even consider the second question. >> reporter: but there are two questions on the recall ballot. question one is quite simple. >> yeah. you either want to keep the governor in office or kick him out. >> reporter: more than 50% of voters need to decide to keep newsom on question one for him to survive. here is what is a potential concern for democrats. whether you vote yes or no. >> question two if you choose to answer it has 46 names front and back and you get to pick one. >> reporter: among the more than 40 colorful challengers on question two there is a millionaire running ads

featuring a bear. a youtube star running as a democrat but not backed by his party. >> my name is kevin papwrath running for governor. >> reporter: and reality tv star kaitlan jenner. >> i like winning. >> reporter: ignore them all says the democratic governor. keep it simple. it's newsom or nothing. why? this. 2003. republican arnold schwarzenegger defeated then democratic governor gray davis in california's last recall election. davis wasn't the only high profile democratic choice on the ballot. then lieutenant governor also ran with this slogan. >> vote no on the recall and vote yes on cruz bustamonte. >> reporter: it didn't work. and helped usher in a republican to the governor's mansion and his eventual re-election. >> i love doing sequels. >> reporter: not this time. democrats rallied behind newsom keeping party backed democrats off the ballot but that could

also backfire. >> this is not the gavin newsom party. it is the democratic party with no serious viable democratic candidate on that second question. if the recall wins, we'll likely have a republican governor. >> reporter: polls show the leading candidate on question two is conservative radio host larry elder. but the second question only matters if a majority of voters don't back newsom. some democrats dropping off their ballots are following the newsom strategy. how many questions on this ballot? >> i just answered the one. >> reporter: not everyone. ellie choate got lost thinking beyond yes or no. what happened on question two for you? >> i had to stand there for 29 minutes and decide if i -- how i was going to vote because it is just an absurd system. >> reporter: reporters asked the newsom team if it had any second thoughts about this strategy. the campaign said it had, quote,

zero regrets, erin, saying democrats have been down this road before in 2003 and the party saw what happened. erin? >> all right. thank you very much. a fascinating one to watch. thanks so much to all of you for joining us. "ac 360" begins right now. good evening. to hear republican governors tell it president biden's new mandate for businesses with more than a hundred workers is dictatorial, unlawful, unamerican, un-constitutional. a war against capitalism. one said it smacks of the soviet union. another suggested it's time to use the 25th amendment and unseat the president. i'm john berman in for anderson on a night when hysteria is high and sincerity low when it comes to republican reaction to the new mandate president biden announced thursday. today the white house said those orders should go into effect in weeks. biden today unfazed about the reaction from those governors. >> what is your message to

republicans who are ca