to images taken over an airfield in belarus less than 25 miles from the ukrainian border. the area was apparently completely vacant just a few weeks ago, and this is only heightening concerns about vladimir putin's intentions. the world is now watching and waiting for his next move after the west slapped russia with a coordinated series of very significant consequences. today consequences for what president biden now refers to as the start of an invasion of ukraine. >> this is the beginning of a russian invasion of ukraine. who in the lord's name does putin think gives him the right to declare new so-called countries on territory that belonged to his neighbors? this is a flagrant violation of international law and demands a firm response from the international community. >> and that firm response came in the form of numerous economic sanctions for putin's more of

russian troops into two breakaway areas of eastern ukraine in a very aggressive attempt to redraw the map of the region. they include sanctions from the u.s. and two big russian financial institutions with close ties to the kremlin, cutting off russia from western financing, and inflicting economic pain on the country's elites and their families. president biden calls it the first tranche, warning of more to come the further russia goes. and on top of that, the uk is sanctioning multiple russian banks and oligarchs, and germany halted certification of a key national gas pipeline. nord stream 2 would have increased european reliance on energy from russia, something the u.s. and other allies warned about, but is no longer in play at least for now. nato's secretary-general calls this moment the most dangerous for european security in a

generation. tensions are only building with a large amount of russian vehicles seen drawing closer to ukraine's border earlier. meanwhile, president biden is going straight after putin with his words, calling him out for his, quote, twisted rewrite of history to try to justify taking more territory by force, a rant full of grievances to try to lay the groundwork to annex former soviet territories. but the president is still signaling hope. there's a way to get putin to pull back. >> we still believe that russia is poised to go much further in launching a massive military attack against ukraine. i hope i'm wrong about that. there is still time to avert the worst-case scenario that will bring untold suffering to millions of people if they move as suggested. i'm hoping diplomacy is still available. >> so is there still time to avert that, quote, worst-case scenario? let's go live to the capital of ukraine. cnn's matthew chance is on the scene for us. matthew, how is russia, first of all, responding to the wave of new sanctions both from the u.s.

and the western european nations? >> reporter: hi, wolf. well, i think in the first instance, the russians are essentially brushing off those sanctions. they're not paying any attention to them, and i think what russian officials are saying essentially is that, you know, look, the idea that there is going to be sanctions because of our actions was already factored into the decision-making process. one very revealing comment came from the kremlin today when the spokesperson for vladimir putin was asked, you know, what vladimir putin's reaction was to president biden's recent remarks this evening. he said, i'm sorry. he didn't even watch them. he was busy in a working meeting. so they're sort of, you know, not even giving that -- at least publicly admitting that they're giving those announcements in washington the time of day. there's also been sort of comments come from the former presidents of russia, former

prime minister, dmitry medvedev in response to the german sanctions, which have been particularly stinging. the suspension of that nord stream 2 gas pipeline from russia to germany that would have dramatically increased the amount of natural gas that russia exports to the european union. that has now been suspended, the approval on that by the german government, a pretty tough measure implemented by them. you know, dmitry medvedev, that close putin ally, tweeting out, welcome to a brave new world where europeans -- and i'm paraphrasing here -- where europeans will be paying essentially thousands of dollars for their gas. there's already a gas shortage in the european union. that's led to a massive spike in prices, and this is just, you know, a reminder from that powerful russian official that sanctions, when it comes to russia, can cut both ways. and so, look, as i say, the russians have had sanctions upon

sanctions imposed upon them in the past, over the past ten years for various russian misdeeds, whether it comes to the annexation of crimea, meddling in the presidential election in 2016 in the united states, or attacks against opposition figures and opponents anddissidents. but none of those sanctions have had a discernible impact on russian policy, and it looks like this current tranche of sanctions is not going to have much impact at the moment either, wolf. >> well, we shall see about that. what more can you tell us, matthew, about russian troop movements on the ground? >> reporter: well, i mean the troops are, as you mentioned at the start of the show, moving closer all the time and growing in number close to ukraine's borders. we've seen more satellite images coming out over the past couple of hours, showing that there are medical facilities, other

infrastructure, military infrastructure, you know, things being put into place, all indicating that more preparations are being made for an eventual, you know, potential invasion into ukraine. now, the russians say they've got no intention of invading in that full-scale way. but there are these growing concerns tonight, wolf, that with the recognition of those rebel republics in the east of the country by russia, the problem is, is that those rebel republics only control a tiny amount of the area that they claim as their territory. vladimir putin, the russian president, has recognized their claim to the entirety of those territories, and so the big concern now is that those rebels emboldened with recognition from moscow will use this as an opportunity, perhaps backed by russian tanks that have gathered near the border, to push outwards, to restart that war in the east of ukraine and grab

more land. it's why the recognition of these republics could be the start of a broader invasion by russia and its proxies into ukrainian territory. >> matthew chance in ukraine, stay safe over there. be careful. excellent, excellent reporting. i want to turn right now to a democratic senator who sits on the senate foreign relations committee. he also took part in last week's munich security conference, widely considered to be the world's leading forum for international security policy. senator chris van hollen of maryland is joining us right now. as you know, president biden is warning -- and i'm quoting him now -- that russia is poised to go much further in launching a massive military attack against ukraine. and tonight the latest satellite images showing russian troops moving closer and closer to the ukrainian border. it seems to back that up. what are you bracing, for, senator, in the coming hours and days? >> well, wolf, it's good to be

with you. and it may be a fact that putin is determined to fully invade ukraine no matter what the cost. but what we have to do is together with our allies, raise the costs to the highest levels, and president biden's actions today with very swift and severe sanctions combined, as you reported, with the nord stream 2 actions and other actions from our allies was a very important first step as well. it's also important that president biden indicated that there is a lot more to come in terms of punishing economic sanctions. so, again, we don't know what's in putin's mind. there is time for him to pull back from the brink if he wants. but we need to make equally clear that there will be more punishing sanctions to come. >> president biden announced that this first wave of sanctions against russia today, but some republicans, including the house leader kevin mccarthy, the former u.n. ambassador nikki

haley, say this is too little, too late. do these sanctions, senator -- do they go far enough? >> well, these sanctions are appropriate, and they are severe sanctions as you reported early on. you know, it makes no sense to essentially fire off all your economic ammo at one time and leave nothing in reserve because that means that putin has nothing at all to lose from further advancements, further invasion deeper into ukraine. now, it's very possible that he will do that no matter what, but using all your economic sanctions at once is certainly not going to stop him while letting him no that further action will be met by higher prices and higher costs to him at least has a chance of doing. >> as you know, senator, the secretary of state antony blinken announced today he'll no longer meet with russia's

foreign minister later this week. they were supposed to meet in geneva on thursday. that had been planned. was that the right decision? do you see any diplomatic path forward at this point? >> well, at this point it's very clear that putin has rejected the diplomatic path. so what antony blinken, secretary of state blinken made the right decision in not meeting with, you know, his counterparts and not going forward with that meeting right after putin had taken the action he did today, including, you know, sending forces into these newly recognized territories, recognized by putin and nobody else. >> did you ever think you'd see a threat like this with putin attempting to redraw the map of europe by force? what do you think he could be doing next? >> well, it's our job to make sure that this is seen by history as an epic

miscalculation, and that means raising the price to putin. we don't know what he'll do next. what we can control is what we do next, and that is why it was really important to work with our nato allies and other partners around the world to act in unison. that's what we discussed over this weekend at the munich conference, and i should say, wolf, in addition to these sanctions on russian banks -- and there can be a lot more to come -- we can also help cut off russia's supply of critical technologies like semiconductors. and the president is reaching out not just to our european allies by to japan and twiaiwan and singapore, which are big suppliers of those high-tech components, to bring them in as well. so this has got to be a concerted action by the world's semiautomatics against a thug, an authoritarian thug who is now bullying and launching an

invasion against a democratically elected government. >> and all those sanctions could be very, very painful to putin and the russians, including the sanctions against his pals, the oligarchs, and their families. that will be very, very strong as well. senator chris van hollen, thank you so much for joining us. welcome back from europe. so what is vladimir putin's next move, and how far could he actually go in trying to redraw ukraine's borders? and how far might nato go to try to stop him? we're going to get special insight from the former u.s. director of national intelligence, retired general james clapper. there you see him. we will discuss when we come back. ♪ ♪ ♪a little bit of chicken fried♪ ♪cold beer on a friday night♪ ♪a pair of jeans that fit just right♪

♪and the radio up well i've seen the sunrise...♪ get 5 boneless wings for $1 with any handcrafted burger. only at applebee's king c. gillette is a complete lineup of tools and facial hair care products. this is the style master. designed to style your stubble in one stroke, a pivoting metal head that defines every edge, and three comb lengths for added versatility. one tool that helps you choose, change, and master your style. king c. gillette men put their skin through a lot. day-in, day-out that's why dove men body wash has skin-strengthening nutrients and moisturizers

that help rebuild your skin. dove men+care. smoother, healthier skin with every shower. (johnny cash) ♪ i've traveled every road in this here land! ♪ ♪ i've been everywhere, man. ♪ ♪ i've been everywhere, man. ♪ ♪ crossed the desert's bare, man. ♪ ♪ i've breathed the mountain air, man. ♪ ♪ of travel i've had my share, man. ♪ ♪ i've been everywhere. ♪ ♪ i've been to: pittsburgh, parkersburg, ♪ ♪ gravelbourg, colorado, ♪ ♪ ellensburg, cedar city, dodge city, what a pity. ♪ ♪ i've been everywhere, man. ♪ ♪ i've been everywhere, man. ♪ ♪ i've been everywhere. ♪ don't settle for products that give you a sort-of white smile. try crest whitening emulsions... ...for 100% whiter teeth. its highly active peroxide droplets... ...swipe on in seconds.

better. faster. 100% whiter teeth. shop crestwhitesmile.com. meet chef clem, owner of doughn't be sour, a sourdough doughnut company. she was flying back from a conference, when she got a text: she needed a bigger fridge asap if she was going to fulfill her orders. so she used her american express business platinum card® to earn more points on the big-ticket purchase. she got the new fridge, fulfilled the orders, and with her extra points, she got new equipment that allowed her to expand

her business by rolling out a new product. get the card built for business. by american express. so how will vladimir putin react now? that's the big question tonight in the wake of the retaliatory actions taken by the u.s. and western european nations. remember, when the obama administration imposed sanctions on russia for invading ukraine back in 2014, it created just a

modest drag on russia's economy. putin was able to hold on to crimea and learned how to further insulate russia from financial penalties. so what will these new sanctions mean this time around? i want to bring in the former u.s. director of national intelligence under then-president obama, james clapper. general clapper, thanks so much for joining us. i know there's a lot of uncertainty over how this moment will unfold, but do you believe the sanctions imposed today by the u.s. and western europe will impact putin's calculations? >> well, not right away, wolf. one of the frustrations that people have with the imposition of sanctions is it doesn't result in instant gratification. what you're looking for when you impose sanctions is a change in behavior, and we're not going to see that, at least right away. the other thing is, of course, the administration is trying to parse out sanctions in

anticipation of further action by putin. so the sanctions won't, i don't think, directly affect anything right away. but their impact will be felt over time, and then they could have the effect of changing behavior. but initially, no. >> the u.s., as you know, director clapper, didn't initially yesterday call this an invasion. they still haven't necessarily confirmed if russian troops, formal military troops, have crossed into eastern ukraine. you've studied putin over a long career in intelligence. is this so-called ambiguity all part of putin's playbook? >> oh, sure. this is, you know, the political act of essentially annexing two phony people's republics in eastern ukraine. the actual area that the oppositions control, as you've

noted, is only part of the area of donbas and the two states there. so this is his way of inching in. but he's not, i don't believe, going to allow those 190,000 troops or whatever it is on three sides of ukraine to just sit idle or not use them. so he's going to do more, and that's when he gets into what i would call the zone of unintended consequences. right now he's controlling the script. but when you start pulling triggers and dropping bombs, things can go bad, and he won't be in such control. so that's -- and i think we need to anticipate that. >> yeah, i think you're absolutely right. as you know, the biden administration and other western allies, they've revealed intelligence about putin's plans every step of the way. pretty remarkable. highly classified information publicly revealed. what do you think of that strategy? >> i'm all for it, wolf. now, there's a downside, of

course, when you reveal, particularly on such a timely basis, intelligence. you can bet that the russians are going to back-engineer and try and figure out where we got it. but it's the right thing to do in an information warfare context, and we're clearly in such a mode. so i think this has been disruptive and distracting to putin, and i hope it continues. >> president biden says -- and i'm quoting him now -- further russian assault in ukraine remains a severe threat in the days ahead. what will you be watching for specifically, director clapper, as this unfolds? >> well, what i would look for, of course, is moving out in eastern ukraine where right now, in the extreme eastern part, the part that's controlled by the opposition, the russian troops will be welcome. so they'll establish their

foothold or beachhead, if you will, but i also look for a move from belarus towards kyiv and the attempt by the russians to neutralize other militarily significant targets. so i think putin overall is interested in rolling back the calendar, history by about 30 years. and this injustice, this grievance of his has been eating at him for that long. and for whatever reason, he's decided to do what he can to right this tremendous wrong to russia. and so i don't think -- and i don't think ukraine is going to be the last of it. >> i want to get to that because that is really worrisome. first of all, is his goal to get rid of the current ukrainian government of president zelenskyy, get rid of them, take over in kyiv, the capital, but then move on to poland and other nato allies because an attack on those countries, including cyber

warfare, is an attack on the u.s. >> well, that's true. but i think he's talked himself into believing he can get away with this, and he thinks we won't react -- we, the west, won't react. now, putin is not getting much pushback as we've seen for these meetings he's been conducting. he doesn't have anybody telling him what he's doing is dumb or not the smart thing to do. so he's basically surrounded, as we've seen, by sycophants that are yes-men and are not going to push back. so he's not getting any bad news, particularly from his intelligence services, and that doesn't bode well for him or for the west. >> we're out of time, director clapper. but very quickly, how worried should the u.s. be that russia will retaliate against the united states directly by

launching cyberattacks, cyber warfare against highly vulnerable u.s. industries and others? >> we should be very concerned about it, wolf. it's a great question. and we need to be doing all we can to shore up our defenses because i expect if there is pain caused by the sanctions, putin will not sit idly by and let it go. he'll retaliate, and cyber is an easy mode to do it for him. >> and they're good at that too. i keep hearing from u.s. officials that's one of their gravest concerns right now. director clapper, thanks so much as usual for joining us. appreciate it very, very much. remarkable reaction to russia's moves from the former president of the united states. why donald trump is using the word "genius" to describe putin's aggression. we'll have that and more when we come back.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ - common percy! - yeah let's go! on a trip. book with priceline. you save more, so you can “woooo” more. - wooo. - wooo. wooooo!!!!! woohooooo!!!! w-o-o-o-o-o... yeah, feel the savings. priceline. every trip is a big deal.

do you think any of us will look back in our lives, and regret the things we didn't buy? (camera shutters) or the places we didn't go. ♪ ♪ andy, justin tested positive. let's do a cue test. okay. ♪ (whispers) whoa, what is that? ♪ who is this new device? i'm cue and i'm here to protect the family. hey, that's my job. i'm a smart home testing lab. i'm fast and super accurate. please be negative. don't worry, i got this. woah! shhh, they're coming... ♪ yesss! we're really warming up to you, cue. just wait till you see what else i can do. ♪ ♪ it's electric... made extraordinary. ingenuity... in motion.

it listens, learns, adapts and anticipates your every need. with intelligence... that feels anything but artificial. the eqs from mercedes-benz. it's the car electric has been waiting for.

republicans are blasting president biden for being too weak on russia, but the de facto leader of their party -- get this -- is spending his time praising, praising vladimir putin. former president trump going so far as to call putin's moves -- and i'm quoting the former president once again. he says putin's moves, genius. here's more of his complimentary tone. >> so putin is now saying it's independent, a large section of ukraine. i said, how smart is that? and he's going to go in and be a peacekeeper. that's the strongest peace force. we could use that on our southern border. that's the strongest peace force i've ever seen. there were more army tanks than i've ever seen. they're going to keep peace, all right. no, but think of it. here's a guy who's very savvy. i know him very well, very, very well. >> the former president's comments come as the house

republican leadership calls putin's actions reprehensible while taking a dig at the same time at the current commander in chief. let me quote from the house republican leadership statement. quote, sadly president biden consistently chose appeasement, and his tough talk on russia was never followed by strong action. lethal aid was slow-walked. anti-air and anti-ship capabilities were never directly provided. pre-invasion sanctions are proportionate to the aggression putin had already committed were never imposed. and sanctions on nord stream 2 were waived, end quote. let's discuss this and more, the political ramifications. joining us, abby phillip and john harwood. john, can republicans really hit president biden for being too soft on putin when you look at those comments from former president trump? >> well, they can try, but it's not persuasive. look, donald trump is somebody who has always been entirely transactional. he doesn't value abstract

concepts like right or wrong, true or false, autocracy versus democracy. he values people who help him. russia helped his finances. they helped his campaign. he helped russia as president, did the opposite of all the things that joe biden is trying to do now. donald trump weakened nato. he squeezed ukraine for personal advantage. that got him impeached the first time. and he cozied up to vladimir putin. vladimir putin is somebody, wolf, who wants to re-create a modern version of what ronald reagan once called the evil empire. ronald reagan would not recognize the party right now, the republican party that has followed trump increasingly into a warm relationship with vladimir putin so that they're more interested in criticizing joe biden than they are in standing up to vladimir putin. >> yeah, i was at that trump/putin summit when trump clearly sided with putin and didn't side with his own u.s. intelligence community, including dan coats, who was the head of the intelligence

community. it was a very embarrassing moment indeed. abby, democrats are now more likely than republicans to see russia as america's greatest enemy. have the two parties actually done a sort of political flip-flop on russia? >> i think to some extent, they have. you know, democrats are particularly soured on russia because of putin's role in the 2016 election. many democrats blamed putin for trump being president frankly. and trump's coziness with putin is one of the main reasons why some republicans, though not all, some republicans are echoing trump's comments and also questioning the u.s.'s stake in this crisis between ukraine and russia. i mean you mentioned, wolf, that summit between putin and trump in helsinki. i was also at the first summit between putin and trump at the g20 in germany, and their interactions in that very first

meeting were warm. this is a president who has for a long time seemingly admired putin for his ruthlessness, and now you have predictably a republican party that follows trump in lockstep, just basically following suit. it doesn't really have much to do with policy. it just has to do with frankly what trump wants. >> you know, john, the white house seemed to struggle initially with how to respond to these very latest moves from putin. what do you make of the change in tone with the president now calling this an invasion? >> well, i think there were two things going on there, wolf. one was ascertaining last night what exactly was happening with russia. you know, they put out the initial mild symbolic sanctions last night. senior officials describe it as an invasion. they need to suss out exactly what happened, what they expect to happen. they also needed to suss out how united they could keep the

alliance, nato and european democracies, behind the sanctions they wanted to impose. so what we saw this morning, once they had figured that out, we woke up this morning to olaf scholz, the german chancellor, announcing that the certification of nord stream 2 was halted. the u.s. government described what happened as the beginning of an invasion. and then we saw those tougher sanctions from joe biden. so it was a case of the administration trying to make sure they had their ducks in a row diplomatically, and so far at least, they have. >> yeah, that's a good point. you know, abby, president biden laid out what he calls the first tranche of sanctions today while saying he has no intention in fighting in russia. you've called this the most significant test facing biden in his presidency. what's your take so far on how he's handling this extremely dangerous and delicate balance? >> yeah. it's a real balancing act for biden because he knows that the american public really doesn't

have any appetite for -- obviously for any sort of conflict involving american troops in that part of the world. but also that he has to regain the trust of the american people, that he is competent enough to manage this kind of global crisis. and even while americans may not care too much about what's going on in ukraine, this goes far beyond this moment. and i think biden knows that. he knows that russia is testing the west and that if he fails to contain russia in this moment, the consequences could be severe in the long term for this country. so, you know, biden is trying to balance an american public that's focused inward, focused on what's going on at home, but that needs to see an american president and america on the front lines of this crisis, leading and not falling behind. i mean biden is still coping with the consequences of afghanistan and the damage that that did to how people felt

about him as commander in chief. this is his opportunity now to turn that around, and so that's one of the main reasons the stakes are so high for him right now, wolf. >> good point indeed. abby phillip and john harwood, thank you very, very much. we're going to stay on top of this ukraine story. new developments emerging. but there's another important story we're following tonight as well. the debate over a fourth covid vaccine shot for many more americans. in other words, a second booster. dr. sanjay gupta joins me to take a closer look at how likely it is that that moment will come and, if so, when. this is information you need to know, and that's next. ♪ ♪

♪ "how bizarre" by omc ♪ no annual fee on any discover card. ♪ ♪ as a professional bull-rider i'm used to taking chances. but when it comes to my insurance i don't. i use liberty mutual, they customize your car insurance, so you only pay for what you need. wooo, yeaa, woooooo and, by switching you could even save 665 dollars. hey tex, can someone else get a turn?

yeah, hang on, i'm about to break my own record. yeah. only pay for what you need. ♪ liberty, liberty, liberty, liberty. ♪ your shipping manager left to “find themself.” leaving you lost. you need to hire. i need indeed.

indeed you do. indeed instant match instantly delivers quality candidates matching your job description. visit indeed.com/hire

the fda is now considering whether americans will need a second booster shot of the covid vaccine, in other words, a fourth dose. some countries are already rolling them out. "the new york times" cites several studies that suggest just one covid booster does provide lengthy protection from the virus, but how long does it

last, and how many boosters might we all need? let's bring in our chief medical correspondent, dr. sanjay gupta. sanjay, why would we need a fourth booster considering these studies that show the third shot does provide strong protection? >> yeah. that's a good question, wolf. i think, you know, the data is still coming in on this. we know that people started getting these boosters sort of in the fall of last year. and what they found is that with time, the effectiveness of that booster does start to wane. let me show you the numbers here. we can sort of compare what people look like with the two shots and then what happens with the third shot specifically. and what you find is that hospitalization protection goes from about 91% to 78% after four months. so you can see that that's really the concern there, that right side of the screen. also, you know, keep in mind the first people to get boosters, wolf, were people who were older, people who were at high risk of developing serious disease, people in nursing homes. so that may be the population of

people who may be recommended this fourth shot. we'll see again. the data is still sort of incoming. let me show you one more graph sort of comparing what it sort of looks like between people who are getting two shots versus a single booster and possibly another booster. and what you find when you look at these trajectories is that people who get that booster shot are at the lowest risk of hospitalization. but at the bottom right of the screen, you start to see some disparity there between the people who got the two shots versus the three shots. clearly people who are unvaccinated still at the highest risk. but it's that right lower part of the screen that tells the story, wolf. if that gap continues to widen and it widens in people beyond just people who are elderly or high-risk, that might make the recommendation for people to get another shot. >> yeah. get vaccinated and get that booster shot as well. we'll see what happens down the road. how encouraged, sanjay, are you by the dramatic -- pretty dramatic drop in cases and

hospitalizations in recent weeks? deaths have dropped as well from about 2,500 a day. now it's about 1,800 a day. still 1,800 americans dying every day. that's still a lot of americans dying from covid-19. most of them unvaccinated. what's your assessment? >> yeah. you know, wolf, i mean there are the good trend lines for the first time since december 1st, below 100,000 cases per day. that's a 45% decrease from last week. deaths also going down as you mentioned, although still really unfathomably high. 19% lower than last week. hospitalizations, wolf, still pretty high. i mean, you know, it's interesting. what are we willing to accept almost becomes the question here. if the patient, you know, had a really high fever before, the patient still has a fever, but the temperature has dropped. so, you know, the question now, is it going to continue to go down to a level that is more acceptable? i think it's optimistic, but two

times last year, wolf, i think we were surprised. you know, we thought july 4th of last year was basically going to be a signal that maybe we were sort of looking at this in the rearview mirror, and then delta. then as we went into thanksgiving and the holidays, omicron. i mean we've got to pay attention to these cautionary tales. i hate to -- i'd like to deliver just good news here and say it's time to basically start lifting mitigation strategies. but i think we have to learn from lessons that are pretty recent lessons in the middle of this pandemic. so fingers crossed right now. looks good, but i think patients still in the hospital, and we have to keep a close eye on the patient. >> how worried should we be about new variants? >> well, there is a new variant out there that's circulating. as we collect more data on it, it does appear that it's more transmissible than ba.1, than the omicron that's currently circulating. but it certainly doesn't seem to cause any more severe disease,

and it seems to be similar enough in terms of the virus itself that it should get the same protections that we get with this current omicron. so if you are vaccinated, if you have protection, if you have immunity, you should feel very comfortable with that. if you don't, i mean this is even a more transmissible virus that will be even more forgiving. to your question, could there be something out there lurking, the antennas have to stay raised on that? >> that really worries me as you know. dr. sanjay gupta, as usual, our viewers are grateful to you. thanks so much for joining us. meanwhile, another potential health threat may be closer than already feared. the so-called havana syndrome, after years of worries that it may be the result of a deliberate attack on diplomats and service members, there are now some newly revealed claims it even reached the white house grounds. a former trump administration official is joining us, getting ready to tell us what happened to her.

very, very worrisome developments. she was just steps from the oval office. we'll discuss when we come back. like your next period or stress. you can't prevent what's going on outside, that's why qulipta™ helps what's going on inside. qulipta™ is a pill. gets right to work to prevent migraine attacks and keeps them away over time. qulipta™ blocks cgrp a protein believed to be a cause of migraine attacks. qulipta is a preventive treatment for episodic migraine. most common side effects are nausea, constipation, and tiredness. learn how abbvie can help you save on qulipta.

(music) ♪ i think to myself ♪ ♪ what a wonderful world ♪ why do people who live with generalized myasthenia gravis want a new treatment option? because we want to be able to get up and get ready for work. because the animals need to be cared for, and we like taking care of them. because we want to go out to dinner with our friends. because, in family photos, we want to be able to smile. a new fda-approved treatment for adults with generalized myasthenia gravis could help them do more of the daily activities they care about. to learn more, go to now4gmg.com and talk to your neurologist. (vo) jamaica. (woman) best decision ever. (vo) feel the sand between your toes, and the gentle waves of the sea on your skin. feel the warm jamaican breeze lift your spirits

and nourish your soul. escape to exactly what makes your heart beat. you will love every moment. jamaica. heartbeat of the world. let's go. (johnny cash) ♪ i've traveled every road in this here land! ♪ ♪ i've been everywhere, man. ♪ ♪ i've been everywhere, man. ♪ ♪ crossed the desert's bare, man. ♪ ♪ i've breathed the mountain air, man. ♪ ♪ of travel i've had my share, man. ♪ ♪ i've been everywhere. ♪ ♪ i've been to: pittsburgh, parkersburg, ♪ ♪ gravelbourg, colorado, ♪ ♪ ellensburg, cedar city, dodge city, what a pity. ♪ ♪ i've been everywhere, man. ♪ ♪ i've been everywhere, man. ♪ ♪ i've been everywhere. ♪

♪ get a head start in investing with the new schwab starter kit™. new investors can open an account and get $50 to split across the top five stocks in the s&p 500®. you can also unlock short videos, step-by-step guides, and other easy-to-use tools designed for people just getting started. plus, investment professionals are on standby 24/7 if you ever have a question. it's the smarter way to start investing.

♪ one minute everything is fine. the next, debilitating symptoms. ver vertigo, nausea, memory loss, brain trauma. and there's no good explanation. it's been happening over and over again over the past five years to dozens of american government officials. it's called havana syndrome, but no one knows who or what is behind it. the cia, the fbi, the state department, they are all investigating, but so far, they don't think most reported cases were caused by a foreign adversary. yet those who have experienced it fear the worst, and this may not necessarily just be happening in foreign countries. there are now firsthand reports, very disturbing firsthand reports of the syndrome happening right here at home. as one former official shared

with "60 minutes." listen. >> >> somebody is trying to send us a message that they can strike blows against us, and we can't strike back. that line being crossed into the united states takes this in some ways just shy of the realm of warfare. >> joining us now to discuss her personal story of what happened to her, olivia troy, she served as homeland security and counter-terrorism adviser to then vice president mike pence. olivia, thanks for joining us. i know you experienced havana syndrome, both in the summer of 2019, again in 2020. tell us what happened to you. how did it feel? >> hi, wolf. thanks for having me on. this is something that obvious very personal to me. it's been hard for me to make the decision to talk about this publicly. i think it's really important because it is impacting a number of intelligence officers.

who serve their country in national security and diplomats and military officers. and so for me, it was something that happened completely struck me just completely out of the blue. i happened to be walking out of the eisenhower executive office building on the west side which faced the west wing of the white house. it was late in the day after work. i remember vividly the feeling of when it happened, i remember striking pain on the right side of my head. the feeling i was going to fall. down the stairs if i didn't catch my balance. i felt nausea. i felt somewhat vertigo symptoms. i felt dizziness. i was very unsteady, and i just tried to make my way down the stairs and tried to take deep breaths and breathe through it. i remember the fear of thinking what is happening to me right now? i didn't understand. i thought maybe i'm having a stroke. i don't know what it is happening to me.

i kept walking towards my car. and i remember vividly and in 2020 i never had any symptoms like this ever. i never experienced vertigo. i don't have any previous -- pre-existing conditions. and in 2020 i was walking on the ellipse after work again to my car and this happened again. and it was exactly the same type of sensation of overwhelming something pounding on the side of my head, a piercing pain in my ear. i remember thinking when it happened again i thought whatever this is, it's back again. it is happening to me again. >> yeah. i think that's exactly the symptoms i keep hearing over the past several years from u.s. government officials. most of whom were working overseas. but you were right here in washington, d.c. as you know, the cia just released what they're calling an interim security report. they released it last month. it says, and i'm quoting now,

"we assess it is unlikely that a foreign actor including russia is conducting a sustained worldwide campaign harming u.s. personnel with a weapon or mechanism." this report was met with a lot of frustration from people who say they experienced havana syndrome. what was your reaction? >> look, i think, you know, it's one thing to say it's inconclusive because they are still doing the ongoing investigation, which is my understanding. and when you listen to director burns, i was grateful he came forward and said they're taking this very seriously. because this is a significant national security concern. and whoever it is, we have to get to the bottom of it. because there are numerous victims now. i can tell you, you know, there are guesses on foreign adversaries on what this is. i think they're still looking into that. but i can tell you that just in the time that i've come forward, i've had other officers reach out to me that i have worked with in the past and my career

who have said to me, you know, i am in the cohort. i have the symptoms. and it happened to me here domestically. so this is not something that is just happening overseas. i think this is happening on american soil and that is important for our national security community to really kind of take a look at this very seriously, and also get these officers who are experiencing this treated medically and examined and followed up on for this exact thing. >> you're absolutely right. you say, olivia, you did not report the episodes initially because you were worried how it could affect your security clearance, how it could affect your career. do you think others feel similarly? is there a culture, in other words, of not reporting? >> i certainly think there is some element of shame and also just you second guess yourself

when it happens, and you wonder, well, is this really what it is? i certainly think there are a number of people who have experienced that. certainly myself, you know, i had to come to terms with it and after sort of piecing it together that others have experienced similar symptoms and similar locations, and it's a very similar event and pattern. that is what makes this so distinct. for me, yeah, you worry about that. you worry about the implications for your future, your career and health and you also, i mean it's a harsh thing when there are so many people out there who are either doubt there is or nonbelievers. and you spent your entire career in national security serving your country and whether they're going to doubt you. and for me, i'll tell when you i read the articles and i connected with others, you just -- you know that this is different. >> yeah. i heard the story from your colleagues. olivia troy, thank you so much for sharing your story, with our viewers.

appreciate it very much. we'll be right back. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ it's electric... made extraordinary. ingenuity... in motion. it listens, learns, adapts and anticipates your every need. with intelligence... that feels anything but artificial. the eqs from mercedes-benz. it's the car electric has been waiting for.

(music) ♪ i think to myself ♪ ♪ what a wonderful world ♪ [zoom call] ...pivot... work bye. vacation hi! book with priceline. 'cause when you save more, you can “no way!” more. no wayyyy. no waaayyy! no way! [phone ringing] hm. no way! no way! priceline. every trip is a big deal. ♪ ♪ ♪a little bit of chicken fried♪ ♪cold beer on a friday night♪ ♪a pair of jeans that fit just right♪ ♪and the radio up well i've seen the sunrise...♪ get 5 boneless wings for $1 with any handcrafted burger. only at applebee's

when it comes to cybersecurity, the biggest threats don't always strike the biggest targets. so help safeguard your small business with comcast business securityedge™. it's advanced security that continuously scans for threats and helps protect every connected device. on the largest, fastest, reliable network with speeds up to 10 gigs to the most small businesses. so you can be ready for what's next. get started with internet and voice for just $64.99 a month. and ask how to add securityedge™. or, ask how to get up to a $650 prepaid card.

i'm wolf blitzer. thanks very much for joining us. i'll be back tomorrow night at 6:00 p.m. eastern "the situation room." and once again here on cnn tonight at 9:00 p.m. eastern. and now, here's don lemon tonight. don? >> all right. wolf, we'll see you tomorrow night. thank you very much. straight to the breaking news. i'm don lemon. our breaking news, danger ratcheting up in ukraine. it's just about 5:00 a.m. there. russian troops surrounding the country on three sides. vladimir putin not just recognizing two breakaway republics, but there are fears that he is laying the groundwork to take even more territory. the world has been waiting for president biden to call it exactly what it is, and now he is. the president bluntl