we leave you this sunday with elk braving a frosty morning in the ozarks of missouri. i'm lee cowan. please join jane pauley when our trumpet sounds again next sunday morning. enjoy the rest of your weekend. i'm margaret brennan in washington and this week on "face the nation," there is breaking news overnight as syrian rebels overthrow bashar al assad's regime. what are the implications for the middle east and americans. syrian rebels swept into the capitol city of damascus today

with break neck speed finally toppling the brutal al assad regime after 13 years of civil war. it's a conflict that former and soon to be president again donald trump is familiar with. he once bombed assad's military to punish them for using chemical weapons and then ordered u.s. troops out of syria six years ago. trump spent saturday reconnecting with u.s. allies in paris. >> certainly seems like the world is going a little crazy right now. >> we'll have the latest from the region and talk with the chairman of the house intelligence committee, mike turner. following the congressional task force investigation into security failures leading to the assassination attempt of donald trump earlier this year -- >> at every step of the way they failed. >> -- top investigators. pennsylvania republican mike kelley and jason crow will give us their findings on how to fix the secret service. finally, with the future of

tiktok in doubt, we'll hear from a potential buyer. it's all just ahead on "face the nation." good morning and welcome to "face the nation." for the first time in 54 years, the al assad family is no longer ruling syria. rebels who had been fighting government forces for 13 years swept through syria in two weeks capturing damascus, taking the syrian people and the world by surprise. dictator bashar al assad appears to have fled the country and we are reminded this morning of the horrors from his rein of terror. his brutal suppression of anti-regime protests in 2011 sparked the world's largest refugee crisis. since then, the mass atrocities

became too numerous to detail. the death toll impossible to tally, including due to the regime's use of chemical weapons against civilians. assad dared to test whether america and the world would stop him, something then president obama chose not to do militarily even after he crossed that so-called red line. here's our bob schieffer's report on assad's chemical weapon attack from 2013. >> the death toll in what appears to be a poison gas attack in the syrian civil war continues to rise by some estimates as many as 1800 people may have been killed. rebels blame the syrian government which continues to deny any responsibility. whoever is responsible, perhaps nothing can better help us understand the horror of syria than this video of a mother telling her small child good-bye almost as if she is hugging her good knight and tucking her in bed. president-elect donald trump

met saturday with french president emmanuel macron as well as ukrainian president volodymyr zelenskyy who is lobbying for more aid in his country's war with russia. in a post on his truth social website early this morning, mr. trump blamed assad's defeat on the entanglements of his allies, saying russia lost all interest in syria because of ukraine and along with iran, russia is in a, quote, weakened state right now. trump called for an immediate cease-fire in ukraine saying zelenskyy and ukraine wanted to make a deal to stop the madness. we begin our coverage today with our report from the turkish-syrian border. >> reporter: scenes like this would have been unthinkable just one week ago. syrian rebels in the heart of damascus celebrating the fall of the regime with the whereabouts of bashar al assad unknown. as people wept for joy in the

streets shouting freedom. some rebels appeared on state tv to announce assad's removal. his stunning defeat was at the hands of an alliance of armed groups who launched a lightning fast offensive seemingly out of nowhere and who faced little resistance from the syrian army. the rebel forces say they have now, quote, fully liberated a number of major cities and have also emptied prisons filled with those who dared to stand up against assad's rule during the country's nearly 14 year civil war, a war that up until now had seemed frozen, even forgotten. but as the statues and monuments to the assad dynasty continued to be pulled to the ground, the family's blood soaked half century of authoritarian rule passed from father to son is now over. ten years ago at the height of

the civil war, which was borne out of the arab spring up risings, assad was just then barely clinging to power. russia and iran, along with lebanon's powerful iranian backed hezbollah mission came to his skes cue and tipped the war firmly in his favor through a punishing campaign of well-documented war crimes, including indiscriminate airstrikes and chemical weapons attacks. a brutality against his own people that's hard to fathom, but russia is now preoccupied with its war in ukraine. hezbollah's leadership has been decapitated after a year of bitter fighting with israel and iran, along with its other proxies, have also been degraded by israeli strikes. assad's 24-year rule looks unlikely to be rescued or

resurrected ushering a new but deeply uncertain era for syria. and a key leader of syria's armed opposition who belongs to a group which used to be aligned with al qaeda has forbid anyone from going near the buildings housing the state institutions stating they want to have a peaceful transition of power but it's enormous, margaret, and the fear is these groups could soon turn on each other and begin a new, perhaps even darker chapter in this already ugly civil war. >> that's reporting from the turkish-syrian border. we're joined by ohio congressman mike turner. just a stunning turn of events within such a short period of time. the u.s. doesn't have diplomatic presence inside of syria. our visibility is a little limited here.

what is it that you think americans need to know about this turn of ee sflents. >> well, margaret, that was an excellent report. you certainly laid the groundwork and this has been an incredibly brutal civil war with hundreds of thousands of people dying, including the use of chemical weapons and of course reminding people that the obama administration had said this would be a red line that we would use military force to stop the use of chemical weapons, then failing to do so. this is an islamic militia that has risen up, continued, now is successfully toppling the assad regime. as your report indicated, it's al qaeda in its origins but it opposes isis. it is turkish backed. we're seeing what is likely a disintegration in sin yeah. t -- syria. what does this mean for the neighbors. >> so you mentioned there and we showed the picture of the leader

of hts. you're going to hear a lot about that in the coming days and weeks, the rebel group that appears to be taking control. they are working also with the prime minister. united states government has a $10 million bounty on the head of giovanni. do you think the united states still should keep that? should americans be concerned this will mean something in terms of impact for terror threats for the united states? >> this is a terrorist organization and group. this is not just going to be a passing of power and authority. it could be. we'll have to obviously watch that. one of the things that we do see here though is this is a diplomatic failure with respect to the united states and turkey. the u.s. has troops in syria. this is on the border of turkey. turkey is a nato ally. the united states is working with the kerds. this could have been an opportunity for the united states to work to resolve the issue between the kerds, turkey and the united states and working with turkish interests in syria.

hopefully this could be an opportunity where there could be a diplomatic support there that hopefully could help in this transition in syria. >> there are 900 u.s. troops in syria in the south. donald trump in 2019 pulled u.s. troops out of northern syria abandoning our allies there. do you believe he will stand by the 900 u.s. troops that remain there or should he consider pulling them out when he takes office? >> well, i think one of the things donald trump will make clear is that any threat to u.s. troops will be unbelievably responded to. the so everyone should understand absolutely that the united states troops are to be secure. the second thing is is he does absolutely support the kerds and he's going to look for a diplomatic solution. there will be an assessment if the troops should remain. i think here there is an opportunity for the parties, especially now that iran and russia's roles are going to be diminished, they have been brutal in their support with

assad. the hundreds of thousands of people, including the use of chemical weapons, that have been killed have been under the russian influence there. russia still has two bases, naval and air force base there, that are going to be, you know, both at risk for russia, but also a risk to the population of syria because they could -- they have been used before to attack the syrian population. we'll have to see what russia does there. but this is going to be an area that's going to be highly volatile in the trans zbligs no idea where bashar al assad might have fled to? >> not this time. >> i want to ask you since we're talking about the incoming administration. donald trump has chosen tulsi gabbard, the former congresswoman, former democrat now republican to be the director of national intelligence. she not only went and met with assad. she publicly doubted, high confidence assessments that he did what we showed you pictures of him doing, using chemical weapons there. do you trust that she could

actually represent the intelligence community, lead it and be trusted to brief the commander in chief? >> i obviously differ a great deal in a number of areas with both her judgment and her background and experience, but what i do trust is the -- >> you're smiling when you're saying this. >> -- is the senate's process. i think the senators are going to put her through a process. she has been nominated. she will go through the process and i think there will be significant debate and evaluation. i think donald trump has put together in his last term and i think he will in this term a great national security team. i think, you know, cia director radcliffe, i think mike waltz as national security director are both great examples of people who are foundational. you'll see a great national security team. >> this is a community you may not have oversight of. it sounds like she doesn't have your confidence. what about pete hegseth to run

the pentagon at a time of global instability? >> yeah. i think -- i think chairman of the armed services in the senate has made a great statement. we certainly support the process and he has his support going through the process and we'll have to see how that goes through. one thing that is absolutely clear is that the pentagon needs reform. we are not keeping pace with what russia and china are doing in advanced weapons systems. at the same time we're seeing the weapons systems of advanced technology that are being utilized on the battlefield of ukraine and our acquisition systems and our accounting systems, our spending systems are not working at the pentagon. >> that requires experience. >> we need reform. someone has to be able to lead that and that's going to be the debate in the senate. >> i love when i ask congress people and they keep reminding me they don't sit in the senate and don't want to comment. i sense some uncertainty there on your part, but i don't want to put words in your mouth. i want to ask you though about what is ticking down in congress

right now, and that is something -- there's a scramble at the end of this year to get a bunch of work done. your democratic colleague in the senate, mark warner, said it is an urgent priority to address cybersecurity gaps in these final weeks. is it a priority for you to do something because of this massive breech by china of u.s. telecom? >> one thing that's very disappointing and we've seen from this administration this malaise of -- or this stasis where they're unable to move, unable to make a decision. here we have this massive breach, this hack that has occurred from china, but we're hearing nothing from the president himself. no action from this administration as to what consequences there will be. this doesn't need just a technological fix, this needs also a diplomatic fix, nation-to-nation consequences to china. >> what does that look like? >> in the obama administration china hacked the personnel management system of the u.s.

government. there were no consequences. now we're seeing china hack the entire system of the nation. >> yeah. >> there needs to be consequences. they can be economic. they can be in a number of ways, but right now we have zero. we have nothing coming out of the administration. what we need to be talking about is not technologically how do we fix this, but how do we address -- which is what donald trump is doing. saying china is our most gravest threat. how do we address the fact that china is aggressively attacking us. >> question for the incoming thank you, chair turner. "face the nation" will be back in a minute. stay with us. turner fo turner e nation will be back in a print.

asthma. does it have you missing out on what you love, with who you love? get back to better breathing with fasenra, an add-on treatment for eosinophilic asthma taken once every 8 weeks. fasenra is not for sudden breathing problems. serious allergic reactions may occur. get help for swelling of your face, mouth, tongue, or trouble breathing. don't stop your asthma treatments without talking with your doctor. tell your doctor if your asthma worsens or you have a parasitic infection. headache and sore throat may occur. ask your doctor if fasenra is right for you. for some analysis on . for some analysis on the events unfolding in the east, we're joined by andrew boyd who held positions with the cia and once served in damascus. and the executive director of the syrian emergency task force. welcome back to "face the nation." wise, i want to start with you. you've been involved with the

syrian opposition for well over a decade. help us understand what it means to see the regime fall. >> it's an indescribable feeling of happiness, that this regime, this dictator who has made the worst crimes of the 21st century alongside russia and iran and isis, all of these horrible people have been defeated by a coalition of rebel forces that did not need any support from any outside country, not turkey, not qatar, not anyone. this time around syria was liberated by its people for its people and it's truly inspiring. and it's not just good reverberations for syria, for the middle east as well. >> there's a lot of uncertainty as to what this all means. andy, you've watched this region closely for some time. at this hour none of the officials that i have spoken with in regional government, u.s. government seem to know where bashar al assad even went. does it matter where he went?

>> moaz may differ on this one. i don't think it does now that the government has fallen. i do think what unfolds over the next couple of weeks and if the opposition actually treats all of the factions in syria with dignity and respect and ensures their safety, we will have more understanding because, you know, there's a lot of atrocities that were carried out by the assad regime. those people are probably still in syria so we'll see how that goes. >> careful. the people who worked -- >> syrian military intelligence, the other intelligence services, syrian intelligence director have a lot of blood on their hands. >> yes. i know that you personally, maz, were involved in smuggling out documented evidence of some of the torture of the mass atrocities, the systematic institutionalized violence that happened from some of those prisons, you brought it to congress. you made it public. what do you think we can learn

now as those buildings are being seized by rebels? is. >> well, the first thing that we are working really hard and i can tell you all the rebel factions are working really hard to do is find austin tyce. >> an american journalist who once worked at cbs news for some time, marine veteran. >> and he's a hero. he went to cover the plight of the syrian people from what assad, iran and russia are doing to them. god willing we bring him home alive but we need to find him and bring him to his mom no matter what. the syrians owe him a debt forever. also other americans that are undeclared and freeing syrians from prisons is something that's really important. but the collection of that intelligence as well as the hezbollah, iranian, russian, assad regime, any officials that have been arrested by the syrian people, again, without the support of any international countries, that is valuable. that is valuable to the united states. that's why we need to earn gauge

with this new government that god willing is the path to democracy. the only arab world with a hope of democracy is -- >> that's a big promise to make. >> that's not a promise, it's hope. hope. >> hope. andy, the person we're seeing emerge, we showed him, a hugely symbolic place to come and make a speech is a leader of a terrorist group designated by the united states as a terrorist. >> correct. correct. >> $10 million bounty on his head. >> be correct. >> what does that signify for you? is. >> as congressman thomas said -- >> the u.s. can't talk to him? >> the u.s. can't talk to him. we can accommodate some sort of flexibility there, but he's not going to instantly come off the designation list. so, i mean, we'll see. you have said that he's going to respect all of the factions, the drews, christian, shia and

alibi -- >> it is by his actions, not by his words. talk to the bishop of aleppo but absolutely. >> time will tell. i'm a born skeptic as a lot of my colleagues at the agency are. we will see. >> go ahead, mouaz. you talked about this as a coalition, not just hts. who are these people who now seem to be in control of syria? >> sure. first of all, since the whole world is boiling down the whole syrian revolution to one faction of a coalition or let's say even one person within a faction of that coalition, let's discuss that. why was hts put on the terrorist list? it was put on the terrorist list because of an older affiliate. it's an interislamist whatever. >> but, mouaz, i think margaret's talking as a person. he was in al qaeda and iraq. he worked for czar wa qawi.

he was a detainee in bukka prison. we're talking hts and him as a person. >> him as a person but what's hilarious about this, right now as millions of syrians come back from europe, ready to come back home, people have not been displaced and zero reports of violations and i was on the phone with the bishop of aleppo. the reason i was on the phone, president trump and people in president trump's camp were concerned about the christians in had syria. of course there's so much focus any time there's something, te terr terrorist, terrorist. the bishop of aleppo said, first, sir, it's the coalition of groups. we've had electricity now more than in our regime. they're in fear of airstrikes. he told russia to get out of syria, and it has done so. whether that continues to be the case and what transpires. mouaz, i have to go.

>> h.o.r., the affiliate. h.t.s. has defeated it and isis. the old designation is kind of irrelevant. >> we will be watching this developing story and we'll be right back. same. discover the power of wegovy®. with wegovy®, i lost 35 pounds. and some lost over 46 pounds. and i'm keeping the weight off. i'm reducing my risk. wegovy® is the only weight-management medicine proven to reduce risk of major cardiovascular events such as death, heart attack, or stroke in adults with known heart disease and obesity. don't use wegovy® with semaglutide or glp-1 medicines, or in children under 12. don't take if you or your family had mtc, men 2, or if allergic to it. tell your prescriber if you are breastfeeding, pregnant, or plan to be. stop taking and get medical help right away if you get a lump or swelling in your neck, severe stomach pain, or any of these allergic reactions. serious side effects may include pancreas inflammation and gallbladder problems. call your prescriber if you have any of these symptoms.

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absolutely. >> reporter: overall crypto companies contributed 1/3 of all direct corporate contributions to super pacs. of the 29 republicans and 33 democrats they backed in congressional races, 85% won. >> incredible. >> reporter: you see this election as a major victory? >> for sure. >> reporter: some people will look at that and say you teemed up and bought an election. >> voters voted. we educated voters as many industries do about candidates. >> reporter: but you helped super charges the candidates with the money and the coiffeurs in whatever they wanted to talk about. >> absolutely did. that's absolutely right. >> reporter: you can watch my full report tonight on "60 minutes." s been stealing my pudding, i hope your conscience eats at you as you have eaten my pudding. bring my pudding back. i wish you the worst. dale. [click] [click] [swoosh]

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