watching. hope to see you right here next week. and hello, everyone. i'm arthel neville. welcome to america's election headquarters. >> i'm eric shawn. hitting the homestretch of the 2016 election. hillary clinton campaigning in north carolina this sunday, while donald trump is visiting florida. >> plus, tragedy on a california highway. police now investigating the deadly collision of a tour bus with a tractor trailer. we'll have a presser happening in this hour. we'll bring it to you when it happens. >> such a sad tragedy there. meanwhile, in chicago, they're celebrating, cubs fans, after a 71-year absence from the world series finally over.

the curse of the billy goat. has it been vanquished? now an epic showdown with the cleveland indians. we begin with the race for the white house. and donald trump campaign preparing a final push with only 16 days to go until the election. and hillary clinton leading in many critical battleground states. the trump campaign promising to spend millions on a final ad blitz. trump's campaign manager kellyanne conway says trump is not giving up and he's been counting out too many times before. let's take a listen. >> you're not really bringing in people who haven't voted in a long time, the last voters are the first-time voters who are truly enthusiastic about donald trump as an outsider, trying to really shake up the system, and there are many people like that. he's not -- we're not giving up. we know we can win this, and we're certainly not exceeding to the same chattering class that's been wrong about donald trump for about a year and a half. >> we begin with peter doocy in

our news room right here in new york. >> the biggest newspaper in a key swing state just endorsed donald trump. the editorial board at the las vegas review journal, which is owned by gop mega donor sheldon adelson writes that, quote, mr. trump represents neither the danger his critics claim or the magic elixir his supporters claim, but he is a source of disruption and discomfortable to the back scratching political elites who have become subservient to power's pursuit and preservation. we have talked about something from eric trump, that his dad does plan to accept the outcome of the election, even if he loses, but only if mr. trump is completely confident that no laws were broken to benefit hillary clinton. >> he will absolutely accept it, no question. >> voter fraud is something trump has been warning his supporters about for several weeks now.

even though he took heat for refusing to concede to clinton if he had to, reince priebus said today he thinks trump has a point. >> what i think the media is missing here is that to ask a candidate three weeks before the election if they lose, are they going to concede, asking for a concession speech, no one does that. i think if it's a close election, look, if you lose by 200 votes in florida, are you going to concede on election night, if you're at 260 electoral votes? >> trump is also now trying to turn hillary clinton and the first lady michelle obama, who is arguably her most effective surrogate this cycle, against each other by unearthing a dig michelle obama made about clinton's personal life in 2007 while her husband, barack obama, and hillary clinton were getting set for the '08 primary. trump's tweet says, if you can't run your own house, you certainly can't run the white house. a statement made by mrs. obama

about crooked hillary clinton. kellyanne conway said her team has been watching absentee ballots and they believe the republicans to be in better shape this year than in years past. conway also said their path to 270 electoral college votes relies on wins in ohio, iowa, north carolina, nevada, and florida. florida is where mr. trump is right now for a rally that kicks off two hours from now. >> okay, peter doocy, thanks so much. on the other side, hillary clinton spending the day drumming up support in the battleground state of north carolina. kellyanne conway says the trump forces need in order to get the win the race in november. but the democratic nominee there today, appearing at early voting events after speaking at a church in durham. mrs. clinton touched on race relations as she addressed the group known as the mothers of the movement. the mothers whose children have been killed by police. >> we know we face a continuing challenge of systemic racism.

we know we face the continuing discrimination against african-americans and in particular young african-american men and women. if we're honest with each other, we have to choose hope over fear or there is no future for any of us. >> for more on the clinton campaign, mike emanuel traveling with the clintons in charlotte, north carolina. hi, mike. >> eric, good afternoon to you. hillary clinton has picked up the pace of campaigning with time before election day becoming ever more precious. clinton, as you mentioned, made a stop initially at an african-american church in durham, north carolina. she had with her the mothers of the movement, who had sons killed in incidents with police. clinton clearly trying to drive african-american turnout, a key constituency for democrats in this state. she also held a rally in raleigh, north carolina, this

afternoon. there she encouraged voters to vote before november 8th. >> i know that early voting has started in north carolina. from now until, you can vote early at any early voting location in your county, and you know, this is a big deal. >> real clear politics average of recent polls here in the tar heel state show a close race. hillary clinton leading donald trump by 2 1/2 points with libertarian gary johnson in single digits. and jill stein, the green party candidate, not a factor. clinton this hour is making a stop at an early voting location, once again trying to drive home the message that in states like north carolina, and many others, you can go to the polls before election day. the clinton team clearly hoping to go into november 8th with a healthy lead. >> and mike, in about 20 minutes, we'll be discussing the early voting trenldz, what's

going on in north carolina and elsewhere can with judy miller. >> joining me now for more on what we can expect in the final 16 days of this race are kevin sheridan, a former senior adviser to mitt romney's campaign and former communications director for the 2012 vp nominee paul ryan. and matthew litman, former speechwriter for vice president joe biden and former surrogate for the obama campaign. good to see both of you. >> thanks. >> good to see you. >> kevin, i'll start with you. i want to start with the undecided voters. how important are they to donald trump? you know, what points does he need to press in the next 16 days in the likelihood of trump staying on message and ultimately netting a sizable chunk of the undecided voters? >> well, for undecided voters, trump has always had the stronger message, just in terms of pure political message. in a year of change, he's the change candidate. he was going to come to washington to destroy the status quo.

and he's running against hillary clinton, who has been around for 30 years, has very few accomplishments and is a self-dealing insider wrought with corruption from her foundation. if he had stuck to that and if he does that over the next two weeks, his numbers could improve. the problem has always been that he gets side tracked on issues that voters, undecided voters especially, don't care about. they don't want to hear about him sawing his accusers. they don't want to hear about a rigged -- the rigged polling stations. if he sticks to his core message that he's change and she's the status quo, i think he can get back to within striking distance. >> all right. matthew, let me get you in here. is hillary clinton so far ahead in the polls and electoral votes that she can sit back and wait for trump to get in his own way, not stay on message? or does hillary clinton need to continue to campaign in earnest as -- so she doesn't appear that

she's even now planning on how to redecorate the white house? >> well, yes, you shouldn't appear as if she's going to redecorate the white house. at this point, hillary is so far ahead, trump really can't win. he doesn't have a shot. at this point, it's about the enthusiasm, getting people to vote for those senate races and those house races so hillary does have to campaign hard. trump obviously can't stay on message from one day to the next. that's really not a concern. so while kevin may be offering him good advice, kevin, i'm afraid he's not taking your advice. >> let me take a look at the latest fox electoral map projection. looking at florida, leaning towards clinton. you have 29 electoral votes there. iowa leaning toward trump. six electoral votes. north carolina is a toss-up with 15 at stake. ohio also a toss-up with 18 electoral votes at stake. kevin, getting back to you now, most politicos predict that without florida, which is another biggy, 29 electoral votes, as i said, donald trump

cannot win the election. senator marco rubio, he's not able to put his full throated support behind trump, and with 15.4% of the hispanic voters in florida, 39% of them, voting for mitt romney, as you well know, in 2012, can trump win florida? >> well, he's got a problem in that he is going to need a national surge to get back to within very competitive in those kinds of states. no, he does not have a path without florida, really. he needs florida. he needs to change the dynamic of this race. it's very difficult to do now, however, that the three debates are over. no more national moments that he's going to be able to do that in. he's going to have to jettison all of the other stuff that's been distracting his campaign, focus like a laser on his message, the second half of, you know, the majority of his speech yesterday in gettysburg was pretty good. it was what voters want to hear, i think. if he can stick to that and if hillary can have some bad moments in the next two weeks, who knows? maybe this thing can get close again.

>> you know -- >> let me jump in on that. because trump hasn't been able to stick to his message for five months. he started out trying to talk about the first 100 days of the trump administration, which obviously isn't going to happen, then talked about how he's going to sue all of the women who have been talking about his sexual harassment, right? he can't stay on message. he hasn't stayed on message for one single day for five months. there's no reason that will happen over the next couple weeks. also, there were three debates. he lost all three debates. there is not another opportunity in the next two weeks. >> there are still 16 days to go. there's still time in the campaign. i think most people out there watching, they don't like hearing politicos saying it's over. hillary clinton is going to win. forget about it. don't even bother. it's not fair to the whole process. matthew, closing with you since i started with kevin. what can we expect from hillary clinton on the campaign trail in the next 16 days? >> well, i think what you're seeing the last couple days, which is hillary talking about senate and house candidates and

trying to bring up those candidates so that she has a majority in the senate when she gets in. democrats aren't going to take the house, but they can get very close in the house. and that's what's needed for a clinton administration. >> okay. i leave it there. matthew, kevin, thank you both. >> thank you. >> thank you. as we showed you, more americans are casting ballots well ahead of election day. >> it's our duty. as citizens, americans. >> but the early voting wave could tell us about the possible results on november 8th. also, wikileaks hitting hillary clinton with round after round of hacked e-mails. how her campaign is responding to new pay to play allegations. >> and we'll have the latest on the terrible tragedy on a california highway this morning. that bus plowing into the back of a tractor trailer, killed 13 people. we're a few minutes away from a news conference by the california highway patrol. we'll get the latest information and what they say on how this happened.

we'll be right back. we always were told we were german. we were in a german dance group. i wore lederhosen. so i just started poking around on ancestry. then, i decided to have my dna tested through ancestry dna. it turns out i'm scottish. so, i traded in my lederhosen for a kilt. 80% but up to 90% fall short in getting key nutrients from food alone. let's do more. add one a day women's 50+ complete multivitamin.

with vitamin d and calcium to help support bone health. one a day. [aand i've never seen a rocketge ship take off like this. [owner] i'm lindsey. i'm the founder of ezpz. my accountant... ...he's almost like my dad in this weird way. yeah, i'm proud of you. you actually did some of the things i asked you to do the other day (laughs). [owner] ha, ha, ha. [accountant] i've been able to say, okay... ...here's the challenges you're going to have. and we can get it confirmed through our quickbooks. and what steps are we going to use to beat these obstacles before they really become a problem. [announcer] get 30 days free at quickbooks.com i'm going to make this as simple as possible for you. you can go ahead and stick with that complicated credit card that limits where you earn bonus cash back. or... you can get the quicksilver card from capital one. quicksilver earns you unlimited 1.5% cash back on ev-e-ry purchase, ev-e-ry-where.

i shouldn't have to ask. what's in your wallet? i found a better deal on prescriptions. we found lower co-pays... ...and a free wellness visit. new plan...same doctor. i'm happy. it's medicare open enrollment. have you compared plans yet? it's easy at medicare.gov. or you can call 1-800-medicare. medicare open enrollment. you'll never know unless you go. i did it. you can too.

♪

people are showing up in droves for the first day of early voting in nevada. >> we knew the lines would be long, but we were just very anxious to cast our vote. >> was controversial and i think if you have to get out here and vote early, make an example. >> thousands of voters casting their ballots in the silver state ahead of election day. so far, analysts estimate more than 5 million people have voted nationwide. we won't know until the winner of course, until november 8th, but data available now is already showing some trends. garrett has more now from our washington bureau. garrett. >> every election, we see a

greater number of americans casting their votes before election day. and this year, early voting could account for as much as 40% of all votes cast. already, more than 5.3 million votes have come in across the country. many of them in crucial swing states like north carolina. in 2012, when mitt romney nar w narrowly won the tar heel state, republicans held a wide margin over democrats in the number of mail-in ballots sent in. this time around, though, the clinton campaign is feeling confident because that lead is much slimmer, and since in-person voting began on thursday, democrats are now leading in the number of votes cast overall. >> we believe over 40% of voters in the battleground states are going to turn out before election day. this election is happening as we speak. and that ground game is there pushing people out. >> in ohio, democrats have historically been very strong in early voting. right now, though, there are some concerning signs for the clinton campaign. the number of requests for early ballots are significantly down

in several heavily democratic counties such as cuyahoga and franklin counties just near cleveland and columbus. another encouraging sign for the trump campaign is the makeup of those who are requesting ballots. the share of white voters who trump polls well with is up and the share of black voters who tend to vote democratic is down. >> we look at some of the early voting returns in places like iowa and ohio, and we're doing much better than previous candidates, in large part because we invested in the absentee ballot early voting procedures. >> while these current early vote numbers are just a small sample of the toter votes, they do give us a glimpse into where the race stands. this next week, voters in ten more states will start to cast their ballots. both campaigns hitting the ground hard to try to convince folks to get out and vote early. >> okay, thank you. >> well, can the early voting trend predict the turnout and what will happen on november 8th? judy miller joins us.

adjunct fellow at the manhattan institute for research. judy, always good to see you. following up on garrett's report, north carolina and florida are two states the trump campaign says he must win, and early voting there shows more republicans are casting ballots than democrats, but in other states like arizona and nevada, democrats are apparently ahead in the early voting. what do you think these trends show you? >> well, i think the fact that more women are asking for early voting ballots is more indicative of how this race is likely to go. because women normally are not single-issue voters, but i think they're shaping up this time to be what i would call negative issue voters. that is that we see a lot of indications that women are very enthusiastic to vote against donald trump, and especially because in the swing states that i looked at, north carolina,

georgia, and florida, there are more women democrats asking for ballots and showing up to be early voters. and that cannot be good for donald trump. look, you call women ugly, pigs, and now his latest one, nasty, you're going to get a strong reaction from women, and not just necessarily democratic women. so i think this is -- if i were in the trump campaign, i would be enormously worried about the early voting figures. >> you mentioned north carolina. 87,000 democratic ballots from women. 60,000 apparently from the republicans. could it not just be or just be that, but look, hillary could be on the course to win president. is that driving women more or a reaction to what trump has said? >> i think it's both. i mean, there's a historical opportunity, just as there was in the last election, to elect

the first black american president of the united states. of course, a lot of women irrespective of their political leanings, would like to break through that glass ceiling at last. but i don't think that's as much of a factor as donald trump's repeated attacks on women, starting with rosie o'donnell, continuing with our very own megyn kelly. right up through his epithet this weekend over -- just after the debate when he called hillary a nasty woman. now, you can disagree with hillary clinton and disagree with the democrats and everything they stand for, but when you actually disagree and are disparaging of women, women take note in the same way his boorish and bullish behavior on the stage was inappropriate. and i'm sure that kellyanne conway, who is a very talented campaign manager, has been telling him this again and again

and again. but he seems unable to control this almost knee jerk desire to attack and assault the very people, 53% of the electoral, whom he needs to help become president. it's kind of mystifying. >> and one thing you left out, of course, is that billy bush tape, when he talked about the groping and grabbing. right after the tape came out, the new polls show that mrs. clinton skyrocketed with clinton. the abc news poll shows there's a 20-point gap now between donald trump and hillary clinton specifically after that tape. >> and it's because we heard what he said and what he thinks in his own voice. there's no amount of, you know, when you hear words like that and you see that it prompts michelle obama, who until now, had not really been a great factor, call this just inappropriate and unacceptable and how do we feel when our children are listening to this?

i think from that moment on, the campaign was basically in terrible, terrible trouble. now, people like me have been saying from the very beginning, you cannot base a campaign on kind of racist, xenophobic, and sexist sentiments and to create morning in america, as ronald reagan did. you cannot get democratic voters to turn out in great numbers. the question, i think, for the hillary people is will minoritv? will democrats turn out in sufficient numbers to elect her? if they stay home, if they're turned off by these e-mails or by the foundation or by whatever, her personality, if they stay home, donald trump could still pull it off. but i see that as most unlikely. >> and finally, they're going to have a double whammy. for the first time, hillary clinton and michelle obama are going to campaign soon. they should try from their point of view, try to bring it home.

good to see you. thank you for your insight and analysis. >> thank you. so eric, the presidential debate sparking some strong words from an unlikely critic. the iranian president. we're going it tell you what he thinks about hillary clinton and donald trump. >> and new developments to try and liberate mosul. of course, in iraq, from isis, but the leaders on the ground there are saying or defense secretaries there, dealing with the strategy. ugh. heartburn. sorry ma'am. no burning here. try new alka-seltzer heartburn relief gummies. they don't taste chalky and work fast. mmmm. incredible. can i try? she doesn't have heartburn. new alka-seltzer heartburn relief gummies. enjoy the relief. and something amazing happens. that's our inspiration for fancy feast medleys. wild salmon primavera. tastes amazing. also in pate. fancy feast medleys.

you're a smart saver. you find ways to stretch your dollar. so why not compare your medicare part d plan with other options? call or go online now and see how aetna medicare rx saver could help you save. with a low monthly plan premium. access to over 60,000 pharmacies. plus $1 tier 1 generic medications at preferred pharmacies including walgreens and walmart. shop smart. compare your part d options today. and find out if aetna rx saver is right for you.

compare your part d options today. now that fedex has helped us we could focus on bigger issues, like our passive aggressive environment. we're not passive aggressive. hey, hey, hey, there are no bad suggestions here... no matter how lame they are. well said, ann. i've always admired how you just say what's in your head, without thinking. very brave. good point ted. you're living proof that looks aren't everything. thank you. welcome. so, fedex helped simplify our e-commerce business and this is not a passive aggressive environment. i just wanted to say, you guys are doing a great job. what's that supposed to mean?

fedex. helping small business simplify e-commerce. even if you're trying your best.be a daily struggle, along with diet and exercise, once-daily toujeo® may help you control your blood sugar. get into a daily groove. ♪ let's groove tonight. ♪ share the spice of life. ♪ baby, from the makers of lantus®, ♪ slice it right. toujeo® provides blood sugar-lowering activity for 24 hours and beyond, ♪ we're gonna groove tonight. proven blood sugar control all day and all night, and significant a1c reduction. toujeo® is used to control high blood sugar in adults with diabetes. it contains 3 times as much insulin in 1 milliliter as standard insulin. don't use toujeo® to treat diabetic ketoacidosis, during episodes of low blood sugar or if you're allergic to insulin. allergic reaction may occur and may be life threatening. don't reuse needles or share insulin pens, even if the needle has been changed. the most common side effect is low blood sugar, which can be serious and life threatening. it may cause shaking, sweating, fast heartbeat, and blurred vision. check your blood sugar levels daily.

injection site reactions may occur. don't change your dose of insulin without talking to your doctor. tell your doctor about all medicines you take and all your medical conditions. taking tzds with insulins, like toujeo®, may cause heart failure that can lead to death, even if you've never had heart failure before. don't dilute or mix toujeo® with other insulins or solutions as it may not work as intended and you may lose blood sugar control, which could be serious. find your rhythm and keep on grooving. ♪ let's groove tonight. ask your doctor about toujeo®. ♪share the spice of life. ♪ look there as the california highway patrol setting up for an update on a deadly high way trash between a u.s. holiday tour bus and a big rig. 13 people died in that crash that happened at 5:20 this morning near palm springs. we're monitoring this and we'll report details for you as we get them.

the clinton campaign on the defensive after even more releases from wikileaks. this time, documents that purportedly show mrs. clinton negotiated a multimillion dollar deal with the king of morocco in exchange for holding a clinton global initiative meeting there. revelations sparking moraleigations of pay to play, which has 16 days before the election. we're live in washington with the new details about this. hi, molly. >> hi, eric. hillary clinton's campaign manager contends it was not the appearance of pay for play, as donald trump suggests, that led clinton to back out of a planned speech in morocco in 2015. it was rather an issue with timing. new wikileaks documents show hillary clinton's aides discussing her plan for the king of morocco to give $12 million to the clinton global initiative. that's the family charity. in exchange for the charity holding a meeting in morocco in 2015, and hillary clinton speaking there. bill and chelsea clinton ended

up attending the event, but hillary did not. >> i didn't want anything on her schedule that was going to distract from the campaign, and again, the clinton global initiative had this meeting scheduled in morocco. >> it was big money from a foreign person to the foundation at the time she's running for president. >> this was, as you can see in the e-mails, this was a scheduling matter and we didn't want her going overseas. i didn't want her going overseas before the campaign was kicking off. >> also new today, new wikileaks documents on the transpacific partnership or ttp -- sorry, tpp, a massive multinational trade deal that clinton as secretary of state called the, quote, gold standard of trade deals. but many left-wing progressives such as bernie sanders oppose it, and robby mook wrote in 2015, quote, hrc, hillary rodham clinton, was already on the record as his, obama's secretary of state, so we don't have a ton of room to maneuver. clinton now opposes tpp, and here's how her running mate,

senator tim kaine, explained the flip-flop and her position on trade deals. >> if they didn't meet her standard of raising the number of jobs, raising ragewages, and focusing on the enforcement and national security angles, she voted against them. her conclusion about the tpp which is required to be voted on, up or down, no amendments, is it falls short of her standards. >> wikileaks sent out a tweet today directed at kaine saying, quote, we have a surprise fo for @timkaine. no further details. >> they have been releasing all these purported e-mails. now they may be zeroing in on mr. kaine. molly, thank you. all right, molly and eric. iraqi and kurdish forces closing in on mosul. fighters say they're now roughly five miles from the outskirts of the city and they have blocked off a major stretch of highway to prevent terrorists from

escaping. conor powell has the latest from jerusalem. >> iraqi security forces have made significant progress in the last week when the operation began. from way outside of mosul to now just really on the doorstep of entering into mosul. in the last week or so, they have liberated dozens of villages including one today by the kurdish mepeshmerga forces. this puts them just a few miles outside of mosul, and the operation to push into mosul is expected to begin in the next few days, particularly as they continue to consolidate the ground and territory outside of mosul. as they push closer and closer to mosul, iraqi security forces are seeing fierce fighting. the isis militants in mosul lit sulfur on fire, creating a large black cloud over the city. they have also set up booby-traps and ieds all over the place. roads are laced with bombs, and there have been suicide bombers

attacking the security forces, but throughout all of this, they are making significant progress. now, secretary of defense ash carter was actually in iraq this weekend. he met with the leaders in both baghdad and in erbil, the kurdish leaders there. he described the progress so far as considerable. now, he did also stress that this is going to take a while. it's not going to happen overnight, and that the u.s. troops that are fighting there are an intricate part of the overall fight against isis, and that this operation is really meant not just to free mosul but to defeat isis in both iraq and syria, and one of the big things he wants to see happen in the next couple days is he wants to see more of a fight from keeping isis fighters leaving mosul and trying to get to raqqah and also seeing more of an operation against isis fighters in raqqah, their capital in syria. those are the sort of two big remaining things left that the u.s. secretary of defense wants to see done in the coming weeks.

arthel. >> okay, conor powell, thank you for that update there. meanwhile, 26 sailors are now on their way home following more than four years in captivity. at the hands of somali pirates. the crew was captured back in 2012 while sailing aboard a fishing boat out of taiwan. one crew member was killed during the hijacking and two others died in captivity. the pirates claim they received $1.5 million for the group's release. meanwhile, back here at home, waiting for more information any moment now from the california highway patrol following that horrendous crash between a bus and a big rig that killed at least 13 people this morning. we'll have that live update when officials come to the microphones in a moment. you can run an errand.

(music playing) ♪ push it real good... (announcer vo) or you can take a joyride. bye bye, errands, we sing out loud here. siriusxm. road happy. i am benedict arnold, the infamous traitor. and i know a thing or two about trading. so i trade with e*trade, where true traders trade on a trademarked trade platform that has all the... get off the computer traitor! test test it's on all my mobile devices, so it suits my mobile lifestyle and it keeps my investments fully mobile... even when i'm on the move. sign up at etrade.com and get up to six hundred dollars.

this artoo unit must be delivered to the rebellion. come on artoo! ♪ artoo! welcome to the rebellion. ♪ this is for you. duracell and children's miracle network hospitals are powering imaginations everywhere.

sprint? i'm hearing good things about the network. all the networks are great now. we're talking within a 1% difference in reliability of each other. and, sprint saves you 50% on most current national carrier rates. save money on your phone bill, invest it in your small business. wouldn't you love more customers? i would definitely love some new customers. sprint will help you add customers and cut your costs. switch your business to sprint and save 50% on most current verizon, at&t and t-mobile rates. don't let a 1% difference cost you twice as much. whoooo! for people with hearing loss, visit sprintrelay.com.

(announcer vo) you can sit in traffic. or you can crack up. (man on radio) but if it isn't refreshing... (announcer vo) sorry traffic, we laugh 'til it hurts. siriusxm. road happy.

s. >> iran saying what it thinks about the president race, rouhani slamming the u.s. election saying the candidates' behavior on the debate stage reflects what he calls is a lack of morality on the part of the american people. >> look at their way of speaking. the way they accuse each other and the way they mock one another. do we want such a democracy in our country? do we want such elections in our country? >> iran criticizing our system, dennis ross joins us. fox news foreign affairs analyst and author of "dooms to succeed." ambassador, how do you say huts paw in farsigh. you have a political opponent who executes opponents, and

they're saying we're bad? >> well, look. it's not a surprise that when they see the way the current campaign is being conducted, they seize on anything they can seize on. they want to show that in fact we're not a real democracy, and they want to say, you see, we don't subject ourselves to that. this becomes a device for them to in a sense disguise who they really are. it becomes a device for them to get off the offensive when we charge them with human rights abuses or raise questions about elections they have where the only people who can run are the people who are allowed to run. so this is a way they get off of the defensive and try to divert attention from their own failings. >> are they saying this because you think they believe it or just for propaganda purposes? let me show you a clip of an interview i did with mahmoud

ahmadinejad. when he said their democracy is so much better than ours. here's what he said. >> i would be the first person who wants democracy in my country. i am the result of a democracy, the way i see it. at the highest level of democracy in history. the best democracy. i have received over two and a half times more votes than american presidents have, so that is democracy. >> he said it, the highest level of democracy in american history. >> look, eric, you ask, do they believe it or is it for propaganda purposes? it's clearly for propaganda purposes. they're trying to create a contrast with us. they're trying to present themselves differently than they actually are. look, whencreti questions are r about the legitimacy of our elections, they'll seize on that. we have to be mindful, we have a system we can be proud of. a system that elevates the rights of individuals. they have a system that denies

the rights of individuals. wehead be very clear about being prepared to say that and shouldn't be defensive about the character of our democracy because whatever problems we have, we're a country of institutions and laws. >> and that is certainly true and it is the american values and tenets of our constitution that we have that guides our elections and guides both sides. what should we do as a government? should we do anything? you served at the highest levels of the administrations in the past. should we respond in any way to what mr. rouhani has said? >> i think if there's a level of it being so absurd on its face, but i do think, look, in the last week, the question of whether our elections can be counted on, you know, whether the results of it should be accepted, we shouldn't be particularly surprised that we're going to have other authoritarian regimes, not just the iranian one. the russians, for sure, maybe the chinese, who will try to seize on that to show the contrast. we should be very clear, the character of our elections have

proven themselves over the years. the one thing that is a core to our democracy is that when we have elections, the loser accepts the outcome. that's what separates us from almost every other country that isn't a democracy. one of the things i say about the middle east, you judge elections by the fact that the loser accepts the outcome because the public as a whole assessments their legitimacy. that's critical for us, and that's what allows us to stand as a democracy and be a model to others. we should be proud of it. we shouldn't be hesitant about it. it becomes a source of attraction for the united states, not just here but around the world. >> a reference there, not by name, to mr. trump. ambassador dennis ross, thank you for your insight and analysis and your views based on your decades of experience. thank you. >> thank you. >> okay, eric, that california highway patrol is starting its news conference. we're going to listen in now. >> my first name is jim and my

last name is avery, a-b-e-r-e, and i'm a sign of the division commander. >> could you run through what you can. >> i'm going to rete a brief statement and we'll go from there. first, let me say, please know on behalf of the entire california highway patrol and commissioner ferrell, our heartfelt condolences go out to the families of the 13 victims and everybody who was injured in the traffic accident. what we know is this morning at approximately 5:15, a collision occurred westbound i-10 west of indian canyon road and desert hot springs. a 1996 passenger bus transporting 44 passengers struck the rear of a freight liner truck with a trailer in the number three lane. chp and fire rescue personnel arrived in minutes. a triage was immediately established by fire rescue.

tragically, 13 people were killed, including the driver of the bus. additionally, 31 passengers were injured and were transported to three local hospitals, including desert regional, eisenhower hospital, and jfk memorial. all the passengers are believed to be adults. identities are unknown, largely due to the swift extraction and immediate treaurj caiage care t needed. for the families, the riverside county coroner's family assistance center is located at 800 south redland avenue in paris, california. the phone number is 951-443-2300. 951-443-2300. the freight liner truck was hauling food products and the driver had minor injuries in the freight liner. the bus driver's identity is not

known at this time and drugs or alcohol or fatigue is unknown. the bus company is named usa holiday bus. and they're based in los angeles. they were coming from the red earth casino near the sultan sea. the bus had been inspected by highway patrol inspectors in 2014, 2015, and as late as april 2016, and no mechanical deficiencies were noted. the freeway is estimated to open approximately 4:00 p.m. today. and the investigation will be ongoing. the area that handles this region as well as our multidisciplinary accident investigation team, the reconstruction specialists, and ntsb, are going to be assisting. with that, i open it up to questions. >> what did the survivors have to say about the accident? >> very few statements. a few mentioned they believed

everybody was asleep on the bus. >> i know you have seen a lot of accidents. could you compare it, give us insight into how bad this is in your estimate? >> in almost 35 years, i have never been to a crash where there's been 13 confirmed fatal accidents. so it's tough. it's tough for all of us. the fire department, who handles it, chp personnel, it's not an easy thing. you never get used to this. so again, our sympathies to the families. we're going to do everything we can to find out specifically what the cause of the accident was. >> chief, what about the injuries? >> the injuries are minor to moderate. outside of that, i can't really tell you. >> where were the majority of bodies found and what does that tell you? >> in their seats, essentially. that tells me they were seated properly, and due to the impact, i will tell you, the speed of the bus was so significant that when it hit the back of the big rig, the trailer, the trailer

itself entered about 15 feet into the bus. so you can see that it's a substantial impact. >> and yet that driver was not injured -- >> the driver of the baas was killed. the driver of the big rig is injured, but it's minor to moderate. >> -- >> right now, we're looking at everything. what we're really hoping to get is i'm going to read you what this is. we're hoping that modern buses usually have some kind of black box or data control device. we're hoping to get a data recorder, but it's a 1996 model. we're not so sure it's going to be there. >> do you think the people were asleep, most of the passengers were asleep at the time? >> yeah, that was the statement of the passengers. >> could you describe the freeway conditions, was it fog

or anything else? >> nothing like that. the only thing that was going on was there was a maintenance crew that was periodically stringing wires across the roadway. so occasional traffic breaks were used to slow down traffic so >> traffic would slow down but it was going down several hours and we had no problem. sir, in the back? [ inaudible ] >> i could not tell you. >> did the bus driver have conversations with the company? >> well, we have been listening to the press conference with california highway patrol and monitoring it from our bureau and are you there, anita? >> yes, arthel, i am here. >> what did you makeup from the press conference? >> arthel we have been following the story and learned a couple of things. one, we know it happened very

early in the morning. there was maintenance going on, on the road. that did not play a major role? >> let me take break and get back with you on the other side of the break. >> got it. ♪ ♪ trintellix (vortioxetine) is a prescription medicine for depression. trintellix may start to untangle or help improve the multiple symptoms of depression. for me, trintellix made a difference. tell your healthcare professional right away if your depression worsens, or you have unusual changes in mood, behavior or thoughts of suicide. antidepressants can increase these in children, teens, and young adults. trintellix has not been studied in children. do not take with maois. tell your healthcare professional about your medications, including migraine, psychiatric and depression medications

to avoid a potentially life-threatening condition. increased risk of bleeding or bruising may occur especially if taken with nsaid pain relievers, aspirin, or blood thinners. manic episodes or vision problems may occur in some people. may cause low sodium levels. the most common side effects are nausea, constipation and vomiting. trintellix did not have significant impact on weight. ask your healthcare professional if trintellix could make a difference for you. i'm terhe is.at golf. but i'd like to keep being terrible at golf for as long as i can. new patented ensure enlive has hmb plus 20 grams of protein to help rebuild muscle. for the strength and energy to do what you love. new ensure enlive. always be you. woman: how do we protect them from $4 billion in new cuts to california schools? man: vote yes on proposition 55. woman: prop 55 doesn't raise taxes on anyone.

man: not on working californians, not small businesses. no one. woman: instead, prop 55 simply maintains the current tax rate on the wealthiest californians. man: so those who can most afford it continue paying their fair share... woman: ...to prevent new education cuts... man: ...and keep improving california's schools. woman: vote yes on prop 55 to help our children thrive.

we are back and debrief what we learned on the california

highway patrol press conference happening moments ago. we were monitoring it from los angeles and the update was that 13 people did lose their lives in the crash, including the bus driver of the tour bus. and 31 passengers were on the bus taken to area hospitals. what more can you tell us? >> we learned a few new details from the california highway patrol press conference. we know the crash happened early in the morning. it was dark here in california, just 7 -- just 5:17 a.m. and there were maintenance crews on the road on interrogate 10 -- on enter state 10 at time. it is still "under investigation." we know that bus, a usa holiday tour bus was carrying 44 passengers at the time. most of them were sleeping according to eyewitnesses.

this bus was inspected over the last three or four years and it did not have mechanical problems to the best of their knowledge. for whatever reason, it slammed into the tractor-trailer that was in front of it. the driver of the tractor-trailer was unhurt. he had minor injuries. he is going to be okay. at the end of the day here, a horrific crash on i-10 leaving 13 people dead. >> thank you, it is an unfortunate situation. we will get back on it in another hour but stick around for "i'll tell you what," with dana perino and chris stirewalt. >> see you in an hour. ky and wo. mmmm. incredible. can i try? she doesn't have heartburn. new alka-seltzer heartburn relief gummies. enjoy the relief.

americans are buying more and more of everything online. and so many businesses rely on the united states postal service

to get it there. that's why we make more ecommerce deliveries to homes than anyone else in the country. the united states postal service. priority: you >> "i'll tell you what," and i am dana perino. >> i am chris stirewalt. all the top headlines after a rough spell donald trump looks to reset with a big feast and new approach. how did it go? are democrats getting cocky? >> the rnc chairman has a new edict for the party, fall in line behind trump or else. the guy who cracked watergate calls it corruption, and the latest on payagainst hillary clinton and the down ballot affect on the united st