bounds. they said they want to catch up on two lost years and really make a new beginning for shane bauer and josh fattal. they have quite a few family members here. we know shane bauer's parents and sisters are here. josh has both his parents and a sibling, a brother, and also, sarah shourd is here. she is the third american hiker who was jailed and she was released on medical reasons almost exactly one year ago. she is engaged to be married to shane bauer who has just been released. it will be an emotional reunion. we know that. we don't know how much access we'll have to it but the authorities we've dealt with here have been incredibly a come daigt. as much as they could be. many of the people we've been talking to over the last week. it's been more than a week since it was announce that had their release was ill in any event. that everybody, us and the families have been waiting here in oman for some news from tehran. and some of the officials would say, we probably know as much as you do. we're just waiting for word from

the capital in iran as to when they will finally be released. it has been, you know, there's not much they can do. has the good story for oman being the go-between between the u.s. and iran. they have close ties with both nations. and this is a sultan who has wanted more business the u.s., more opportunities for tourism. this is nothing because good opportunity for them to show the world. w we've helped secure the release of these hikers. it is unclear if we'll be hearing from the hikers or their families tonight but we're hoping they'll be maybe a small press release or a statement or something. that we'll be able to have some contact with them and say hey, how are you doing? after two years in prison. >> it is incredible that we are at this point. it was all started with that interview with mahmoud ahmadinejad with anne curry and here we are now with these young men being released after they

perhaps thought they would spend many more years in that iranian prison. live in oman, i know you'll bring us whatever you can within the hour as we expect them to both land there. now to the other breaking story. the planned execution of troy davis. davis has less than an hour to spend with his family before prison officials start to prepare him for execution. the pardons board rejected this morning's last-minute clemency appeal. the execution is set for 7:00 p.m. tonight. troy davis will have his last meal at 4:00 p.m. at 6:00 p.m., officials will offer him a sedative to calm him before heading into the chamber. davis was sentenced to death for the 1989 murder of offduty police officer mark mcphail. davis has had his execution date delayed three separate times. joining me, the host of the politics nation. can you set the own? what is the mood like there now? >> reporter: well, we are seeing

people coming from all over, joining the vigil we call the network. many of us that have been involved in this case for the last couple of years are committed to be here, because we feel that this sets a legal precedent that is even beyond troy davis. you must remember, tamron. troy davis was convicted on nine eyewitness testimonies. seven that were recanted. no physical evidence. no dna evidence. and we're committed, no matter what happens today, that there must be laws made to protect people from being executed and even prosecuted in a death case, on just eyewitness, no physical, no dna evidence. >> you've brought up the same points that many others have regarding these eyewitnesses and the fact that almost all of them recanted their story. some of them claimed they were,

coerced. i want to play this. >> it doesn't strike me as improbable that with the passage of time, a witness could be approached by a well versed and articulate person whose job is to get a recantation from them. and talk them into a certain amount of present uncertainty about their prior testimony. >> that's interesting comment from the prosecutor. implying some of these people who recanted may have been i don't recollect want to say manipulated, but that what he is implying there. do you have us? are you there? >> reporter: yes. >> we just heard a clip from the prosecutor who basically said that he is not surprised that some of these people have recanted their testimony because they were approached by well versed and articulated person whose job it was to get them to

recant. implying maybe a manipulation that these people recanted because they were coaxed into doing so. >> reporter: then he should have brought these well versed articulate person forward. they had a hearing monday before the pardon and parole board. this has been stopped three times. i was here in 200 wheat the supreme court stopped it and said, let's look at this. why doesn't he produce them? we produce some of the witnesses that recanted. we brought them forward. why doesn't he produce these imaginary articulate people that talked people into something. i think that's absurd. >> we heard the people behind you, thousands, hundreds of thousands have signed petitions. we know the pope has spoken out. the former president, jimmy carter. in the end, at 7:00 p.m. eastern time, is an innocent man being executed? >> reporter: in my opinion, a

man that is innocent is being executed, but according to the law, a man that was not convicted beyond a reasonable doubt is being executed, if in fact it happens at 7:00. the reason i can say that, tamron, is because one of the jurors that voted conviction testified monday before this board and said, had they known what they know now, the ballistics test didn't match and others, they would not have voted to convict him. two others have said it. one came forward to the board. one vote would have hung that jury. so clearly, it would have been beyond reasonable doubt and should have been enough to stop this execution. >> reverend al sharpton for us live. we'll have much more on this tonight on his show, politics nation at 6:00. only msnbc. and in just a few hours, another execution set to take place in texas. lawrence brewer will be put to death at 7:00 eastern time for the racially motivated murder of

james byrd jr. in 1998. that case shocked this nation. brewer and two other men chained him to the back of the pickup truck and dragged him to his death. byrd's son said he does not want him to die for his crime. he said the execution won't solve anything. now to president obama's major speech before the u.n. general assembly earlier today in new york. the president stress there'd can be no shortcut to peace between palestinians and israel. president obama said he would veto a u.n. vote on a bid for statehood by palestinian president abbas. in his address, president obama pressed both sides to engage in direct peace talks again. >> we will only succeed in that effort. if we can encourage the parties to sit down, to listen to each other, and to understand each other's hopes and fears. there are no shortcuts.

and that is what the united nations should be focused on in the weeks and months to come. >> nbc news chief foreign correspondent andrea mitchell joins me now. is there anything the president can say that will change the decision? >> i was interviewing diane in our hour. she is a former palestinian spokeswoman. she said short of coming out firmly against the settlements and taking a heard line against israel, in negotiations, she does not see president abbas backing down. what we are seeing is a confrontation that will go to the security council on friday. and then the u.s. will try to sort of slow walk it. hoping to stop the palestinians from getting the nine votes they need to succeed. >> such an interesting dynamic. we've talked a lot about the relationship with president obama and benjamin netanyahu. whether there is an alliance or a relationship of con convenience. here you have president obama

standing with israel after days, weeks and months of articles criticizing him, saying that he has not been a stal worth ally and even being scolded by netanyahu during a visit. >> which was one of the most diplomatically difficult moments for president obama. this is an awkward relationship. these men are not close. this is the last place president obama wants to be diplomatically, standing against the rest of the world, for the arab spring, as part of that whole progress in history. yet tame he feels this is the wrong way to statehood. that it has to be done at the negotiating table and he is stuck in a place that is politically difficult and diplomatically difficult. >> andrea, thank you for sticking around with the latest. we'll see what happens with the latest move. be sure to watch andrea mitchell reports. tomorrow, debbie watersman schultz will join andrea live. and house democrats are expected to vote against a short-term bill would avoid a government shutdown at the end

of next week. democrats say they cannot vote yes on this measure because it does not include enough funding for federal disaster relief. congress needs to pass a funding bill before the government's new fiscal year starts. that by the way, mark your calendar, october 1st. capitol hill correspondent, of course, senate democrats have indicated this measure needs to include a significant am of disaster relief funding or it is dead on arrival. >> reporter: you haven't needed to utter the words government shutdown in a couple months. we're back around again that as the very far end of this battle. what it really is about is they need to pass some additional funding for all the departments of government. within that is money for fema. and there is a lot of sensitivity here because of all the really rough go that people have had with things like hurricane irene and the tornadoes in joplin, missouri. you have members of congress with a very personal connection to the need for this.

there is a real difference as to what that level should be. and senate democrats led by harry reid are really saying republicans on the house side are not willing to go far enough. that is the source of this fight. to give you a sense of how they kind of measure up on this, here are comments from eric cantor and steny hoyer. here's how they outline it. >> going to stick to the agreement of the debt ceiling. are we going to start spending more? are we going to allow yet again another opportunity to take advantage of a crisis? >> unfortunate the republicans have chosen once again to put in a poison pill that they knew we would not agree to in a piece of legislation they know has to pass. >> reporter: one of the issues is, is there enough money for fema funding? republicans stay amps included is enough to get through november and then it would be dealt with again. democrats want to see more

funding devoted to that. and senate democrats tried to pass it on its own and did get some republican support for that. but that won't go anywhere. this is something to watch. it is such a personal need in so many places with fema money and it is just a debate over how much and how quickly to act on that. >> kelly o'donnell live on that. and developing right now, we are waiting an announcement from the federal reserve on whether it will take new steps to stimulate the economy. this as republicans come under fire for putting political pressure on the fed. plus, tony bennett apologizes after making controversial comments about 9/11 in an interview. and why is the justice department buying $16 muffins and an $8 cup of coffee? a new report reveals what's being called wasteful and extravagant spending. [ male announcer ] this is lara.

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welcome back. with the ongoing fight in washington over government spending, a new report shows the justice department spent an exorbitant amount of money on events and conferences. take a look at this food for thought. perhaps you might need to know what auditors found. guests were served muffins that cost almost $17 each. coffee at $8 a cup. and $9 cookies and brownies. i hope they were tasty. the justice department does not deny the spending but says we agree that excessive spending of the types identified in the oig report should not occur.

joining me now, an msnbc contributor. we're in the wrong business. we need to open a bakery if people are willing in the got to spend $16 on one muffin. >> i'll serve the coffee. you can make the muffins. >> done. what do you make of this? >> there was a story a month ago that said in the last decade, we've probably wasted as much as $60 billion in iraq and afghanistan. and when i saw that story, i thought, it's hard to comprehend. that's like monopoly money. therefore a story like that, as horrible as it is, doesn't really resonate. this kind of a story, $8 for coffee. $16 plus for a muffin. this is a story we can all comprehend. and i think it really hits home. >> these conferences, interesting enough, were held under the obama administration and under the bush administration. four conferences under the current administration. six were held under the bush administration. one other thing. $32 per person for cracker jacks, popcorn, and candy bars.

i mean, you know, i would like to think you and i live in a real world. we have family members, we talk with regularly. and as you pointed out, these are the kinds of stories that really hit home. you can get lost in the numbers and the strangeness, quite honestly of washington, d.c., and then you see this. you wonder how this disconnect exists. how can people be so wasteful. >> the story comes out at a time when there is this ongoing debate and narrative as to how much government should be involved in delivery of different services. and this will, of course, fuel the concern that many have that government is just incapable of inept of doing the most basic things. >> if you can't do it on the small level, how can we expect that you will do on a larger scale. we'll see you tomorrow. stop being a doctor. >> from lawmaker to life saver. a congressman from texas leaps into action after a man

collapses at an airport. plus, a new poll finds more young americans have health insurance since president obama's health care reform passed. we'll get the details and find out if the president is getting credit for it. michelle barton was an inmate at the coffee creek correctional facility in oregon. while incarcerated, she participated in a course called lifelong information for entrepreneurs, learning how to start and run a company. now out of prison, she started forget me not cards and prints. state farm. this is jessica. hey, jessica, jerry neumann with a policy question. jerry, how are you doing? fine, i just got a little fender bender. oh, jerry, i'm so sorry. i would love to help but remember, you dropped us last month. yeah, you know it's funny. it only took 15 minutes to sign up for that new auto insurance company

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welcome back. we're following developing news. we're awaiting a big decision from the ferry reserve on whether they will change a key interest rate. there has been an unprecedented pushback from some republicans in congress. some have sent a over there fed chairman ben bernanke. it cried serious concerns about further intervention by the fed, arguing that previous efforts have done more harm than good to the economy. but in the meantime, we're waiting on this decision from the federal reserve policy make orders whether they will leave a key interest rate unchanged at an historic low we're experiencing. joining me now, co-archer of

cnbc. talk to us about the decision that we are, the impact of the decision they could make here. >> one of the reasons, okay. we're getting it right now. it remains unchanged on the trading session. the fed is prepared to adjust and reinvest principal of its mortgage debt in agency mbs. the fed sees some strains in the global financial markets as a risk. but they leave interest rates unchanged athis point. it is prepared to adjust securities holdings as appropriate. this is pretty much on the surface as i can tell it, what the market was looking for. they did leave interest rates unchanged which was expected. there was no dissent in this decision. as a matter of fact, there were three of the federal reserve members that decided, they

wanted to -- they did not want the fed to do this operation which is known as operation twist. it means basically, that the fed is going to focus on the longer end of the yield curve at this point. the longer end of the treasury securities. so right now, the fed has decided to do operation twist. that is against the wishes of some of the gop leaders who, as you mentioned, sent that letter to the federal reserve. pretty unprecedented. they did it the night before the federal reserve's decision. i've never seen that before, certainly. did it put the fed between kind of a political rock and a hard spot. because basically, the fed is supposed to be independent. there were some who thought if the fed did or didn't act, that they would be bowing to political pressure on either side of the aisle. i'm sorry for some of the jargon initially, it is hard to read some of the things the fed puts out. >> that's what i would like the

find out. what does this mean for mortgages, for loans, especially since you have the letter from the republicans saying this would not help the economy. the fed obviously, they believe it would help. in what way, break it down for people at home. >> basically it means interest rates will remain low for a long, long period of time. we may see 30-year rates move a little bit higher. as a matter of fact, they're trying to spur a little demand on that end of what we call the yield curve. the difference between short term and long term rates. but it doesn't mean a big change in interest rates for those people who are looking to get a mortgage or refinance a mortgage. the dow jones industrial average is starting to sell off. now down 95 points on the trading session. partly, not because of what the fed did but because of what the fed is saying. they're saying they are seeing stresses in the global financial system. they're referring to europe specifically. that's a worry for wall street.

we're watching the british banks, the french banks, the italian banc banks and the greek banks very closely. the fact the fed acknowledged that's an issue is a problem for wall street. that's why you're seeing interest rates move down and wall street also move down on the trading session. now down about 92 points. >> i have to get the information that i think you have on bank of america and moody's and their rating. what's the latest? >> bank of america's rating has been downgraded by moody's. they basically cited that fact there are decreasing odds the government would come in to support bank of america if needed. so they cut the rating on bank of america. bank of america has fired back and said they think that that ratings cut is unwarrant. moody has cut the rating on wells fargo. it is complicated but moody's is seeing stresses in both those balance sheets. back to you. >> breaking news for us.

thank you very much. regarding the fed's decision. coming up, a new report reveals the u.s. is building secret new drone bases in africa. plus, a powerful typhoon slams into japan, killing several people and bringing tokyo to a standstill. and just as the 2012 campaign cycle kicks into gear, twitter does something to get political message out that it has never done before. we've got the details ahead. even ragu users chose prego. prego?! but i've been buying ragu for years. [ thinking ] i wonder what other questionable choices i've made? [ '80s dance music plays ] [ sighs ] [ male announcer ] choose taste. choose prego. today i own 165 wendy's restaurants. and i get my financing from ge capital. but i also get stuff that goes way beyond banking. we not only lend people money, we help them save it. [ junior ] ge engineers found ways to cut my energy use. [ cheryl ] more efficient lighting helps junior stay open later... [ junior ] and serve more customers. so you're not just getting financial capital...

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an accident doesn't have to slow you down. with better car replacement available only with liberty mutual auto insurance, if your car's totaled, we give you the money for a car one model year newer. to learn more, visit us today. responsibility. what's your policy? is google too powerful? right now they are facing a congressional committee to decide whether it is threatening the competition. and a police officer is charged in the beating death of a mentally ill homeless man in california. and damage control. tony bennett apologizes after he makes some controversial comments that he says regarding 9/11 attack. we'll have more on what tony bennett had to say.

and the question is, does google have too much power? we asked you that. the company's chairman is testifying before a subcommittee now, defending google's business practices. google's rivals say because the company has expanded so much, it favors its own businesses as a way to squash competitors. just moments ago, eric schmidt said that's not true. >> not every website can come on top. it is a rank problem and there are complaints from business who's want to be first in rankings, even with they're not the best match as best we can tell for a user search. >> so help us understand what's going on here. google says it is run by people who go on the web. they are a search engine used by people every day, that they're not rigging the game here. >> that's google's argument. you remember that microsoft had a big anti-trust issue over the last 15 years. the argument against microsoft. you buy a computer and it comes with windows.

google is saying, look, yes, we are powerful. we are successful. but nobody actually is forced to use google. if would you like to use another website like yahoo you can definitely do that. that's their argument. the ceo eric schmidt before the senate judiciary committee. he is also being questioned about the fact business that's google has relationships with, often time in their search engine there's appear at the top or will automatically come with them. so for example, like an android phone would come with the google map that is automatically used. some of the competitors have a problem with that. that's what they're getting at. it has gotten some protesters here on capitol hill that are wanting the senators to ask google about how they track users. it has been interesting. folk going around senate office buildings, walk behind people, saying this is what google does. they track you, they track you, they track you. what is the best case scenario for google? two thing can happen. number one, this gets kind of,

as what happens on capitol hill. it gets rolled into, will there be legislation and nothing is done about it. just a few hearing. if there is legislation that says google is operating as an anti-trust, they can no longer do these types of things. you can see legislation that would make what they're currently operating like not be lex but we're a long way from that to happen. the justice department just closed their case on microsoft this year. so this is probably the start of a lot of hearings on google for the foreseeable future. nothing that any of the shareholders should sweat about in regard to them possibly getting in some trouble yet. >> all right. thank you very much. interesting hearing. and the "washington post" reports the u.s. is assembling a new network of secret bases for predator drones in parts of the arabian peninsula and also in africa. an aggressive new counter terrorism campaign to attack al qaeda affiliates in somalia as

well as yes, ma'am yechbl joining me now know jim miklaszewski. a lot of this conversation come from wikileaks? >> reporter: that's right. this may be one of the worst kept secrets in the world. this issue that was raised by documents that were released that had been originally obtained by wikileaks was referring to diplomatic cables between the u.s. and the islands. about the u.s. establishing a drone there. and the fact that the government wanted to keep that secret. although the u.s. did have jones there earlier and they removed that in the spring of this year. they've now put them back. in fact, according to some people we've talked to, the seychelles had a media day to announce they were coming back. the larger issue about all this is, of course, the u.s. has a white hot focus now on both yemen and somalia in terms of al

qaeda. terrorist operations are considered a very serious potential threat in the case of yemen. the most serious al qaeda threat to the united states. and it is no secret that since the war in afghanistan began, the united states has been slowly, steadily, and more rapidly just recently, building up its drone force. unmanned aerial planes that essentially are arm. that can take, hover over a target for a day or longer. and take out the targets without putting pilots at risk. it has been a very effective weapon. certainly in pakistan. taking out al qaeda targets. those kinds of drones have been used by the u.s. military in yemen. and are likely to be stepped up in somalia. and by the way, the seychelles is not the only place they're looking at. the u.s. is in discussions with ethiopia. >> thanks from the pentagon.

ment? a new survey finds the number of young adults without health insurance has dropped significantly. the gallup survey found a number of them between 18 and 25 dropped from 28% last fall to 24% by the middle of the year. that translates into about a million more young adults who now have health insurance. credit is given to the provision in the president's health care law that allows adult children to stay on their parents' health insurance until they turn 26. joining me to talk about it. the former head of communications for top health insurance company who is now a critic of the insurance industry. the abuses there. thank you for joining us. >> let me get your thoughts on. this hard million more young adults who have health insurance. >> my own daughter has benefited from this. my daughter is 24. she works for a small employer that doesn't offer benefits. she doesn't make enough money to buy decent coverage on the market so she's been able to come on my wife and my policy.

and she is just one person of a million. and probably many, many more, who are benefiting from this. the young adults comprise the largest segment of the uninsured in this country. most of them are either unemployed or can't afford to get coverage. >> it is the success of at least, what we're seeing with young adults. that the obama administration was hoping for, that this kind of thing, this word would spread. this can affect your family immediately and perhaps offset the rhetoric still coming from even the gop presidential candidates who all vow to repeal the health care law if they are elected. >> this is a big win for the president. it does show that the act is indeed already working to increase the number americans with insurance. i was testifying on capitol hill just last week about a bill that some republican lawmakers of introduced that actually would take this provision away. and i can't imagine that congress would go forward with it after seeing this kind of result. >> and is this something the insurance industry would be ready to push back against?

we know how hard they fought against the reforms that were pushed by the administration. you know this industry better than anyone else. >> i think that the industry, they would prefer not to have to cover anybody who they might have to pay some medical bills for. i think though, they're somewhat ambivalent about this. it does bring more people on the rolls. and they can charge more for these policies. >> this is an immediate effect. these numbers are just from the middle of the year. that 1 million added. you can imagine that it would perhaps even double within a complete year. >> exactly. the census bureau said just last year, they estimated identify hundred,000 young people were newly insured because of the law. and this is just since the first of this year. so i suspect already we're seeing probably a lot more than that. these number. there's always some lag time. some of the young people are just now being able to come on to their parents' policies. >> an interesting survey from gallup there.

thank you. an indictment and a hate crime in mississippi tops our look at stories around the news nation. a white teenage her face capital murder charges alleging that he intentionally ran over an african-american man with his truck. this charge carries a sentence of death or life in prison without parole. the victim, james craig anderson was the target of a racially motivated random beating and ultimately murder. they say dead mon went to find a black man to quote, mess with. and two of six california fullerton police officer accused of beating a mentally ill homeless man have been officially charged. officer ramos will face second-degree murder charges for kelly thomas. another officer has been charged with involuntary manslaughter and excessive use of force. moments ago, the orange county district attorney made the announcement. >> we must do everything we can to insure we protect this trust.

including if necessary, the prosecuting police officers who violate the law. >> there were 151 twoids this crime. and a number. cell phone videos collected at the scene. south central japan is reeling from a typhoon that left at least six people dead or missing. people navigating floodwaters. this is indoors they're having to use the boats. the storm knocked out power to more than 200,000 homes. they are still recovering from the tsunami in march. carl parker is tracking all of it. just incredible images we're seeing. >> it was really a power. storm. the good news is it is moving on it. wee got a photograph of the storm as it made landfall. this was about a half a day ago. early in the afternoon, japan time. you can see the center of the

storm making landfall. about 50 mile to the west, they had as much as 11 inches of rain. major flooding there. you talked about the issues in tokyo. 83-mile-an-hour wind. as much as 17 inches of rain in the northeast part of the island here. i want to show you the loop and show you how powerful the storm was. at one time, probably the equivalent of a category 3 or 4 hurricane as it was approaching. it took on some drier air is started to feel some shear. it came through central and northeast part of japan. it is now just about clear of japan. some lingering wind. that nation has been hit by a number of serious disaster this is year. and still ahead, find out why a family association is boycotting ben and jerry's newest ice cream flavor. courtney has the scoop. boycott of ice cream? there's a lot going on today and here are some thing we

thought you should know. this man saved a man's life. he went into cardiac arrest. roe used cpr and the medical dwoimt restart the man's heart. congressman roe said springing into action helped someone still comes naturally to him. >> you are a physician first. no question, after spending over 30 years practicing medicine. you don't stop being a doctor. i mean, that's what you do. that's the way i and the way i've been taught to think and the way i've been trained. it was just really like, i guess, deja vu. you're back doing what you were trained to do. this week twitter says it will begin selling political ads. it will kick off the political cycle. five candidates have signed up to place their ads on twitter. and the republican national committee has surpassed its democratic counterpart in fundraising this month. in august, the rnc raised about

$8.2 compared to $5.4 million raised by the democratic national committee. the rnc has $9.3 million in the bank. and about $15.9 million in debt. the dnc carries $11.1 million in debt. and former president bill clinton says he turned down an invitation on "dancing with the stars" saying he didn't have time to train but he that he promised hillary they would take dancing lessons and they would start with the tango. [ male announcer ] this is coach parker... whose non-stop day starts with back pain... and a choice. take advil now and maybe up to four in a day. or choose aleve and two pills for a day free of pain. way to go, coach. ♪ you'd do that for me? really? yeah, i'd like that. who are you talking to?

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sharpton. plus the president's day at the united nations. welcome back to news nation. simon cowell brings the x-factor. tony bennett apologizing for remarks he made about 9/11. and parents want to boycott, some parents want to boycott ben and jerry's latest ice cream. let's get the scoop from the pop column columnist. you have a great mixed bag. you're live in los angeles. let's stat with simon cowell. >> reporter: that's right. finally he returns to the television. we didn't see him most of last year because he won't hosting american idol. he was focusing on bringing the x-factor to america and that shows finally premiers tonight. matt lauer talks about how much pressure he is under for the x-factor to do well. take a look. >> how much pressure are you feeling? >> well, a lot. it's like going on a roller coaster.

you know it will be quite rough but you're going to have a good time. there are so many people. you know this. dying for to you fail. >> i think that's probably pretty harsh to hear from simon cowell that so many people are dying for him to fail but he is kind of right in a sense. a lot of people don't want to see this succeed for some reason. so it will be interesting to watch the outcome tonight and see if they can actually find talent like they tend to find in the u.k. when it come to america. speaking of television, you noticed the bag under my eyes. it is premier week and i'm staying up way too late watching all these new shows that are on. tonight is no exception. one of the big shows coming sbak "law and order, svu." very sad for some of the fan of the show. it won't be that he totally disappears and it is not addressed during this episode and throughout the season. his absence is going to be part of the plot line. and so it is not as if we're just pretending it never

happened. other shows coming on tonight. modern family. one of my absolute favorites so i'll be watching that, too. >> courtney, tell us a little about, tony bennett. he issued this apology. i don't even know what he said in the beginning. what's going on there? >> he was on the howard stern show. he is promoting this new album he has called duets ii. he made some comments about 9/11. if i'm going to boil it down very succinctly saying it was basically america's fault that the terrorists came and attacked the world trade center towers. you can find all the exact quotes scoop. he has now come out and apologized for what he said. let's pull up exactly his statement. he said my life experiences, ranging from the battle of the bulk in world war ii to marching with martin luther king made me a lifelong humanist and pacifist and reinforced my belief that

violence begets violence and that war is the lowest form of human behavior. my hope for humanity and my desire for peace throughout the world. i think it is safe to say when he is on the howard stern show, he didn't really realize what a fire storm it would cause but yesterday, well into the night, the internet was really just alive with people weighing in on what they thought about tony bennett's comments. on a much lighter note. i like when you end with something happy or funny. this one is not. it is actually pretty crazy. go ahead. tell them. >> reporter: as everybody who watches this segment knows know we discussed the spoof flavor. al everybody c happens to be hosting this week. an ice cream flavor from ben and jerry's and conservative moms group called 1 million moms wants people to boycott the flavor because they think that it is inappropriate. is it fun to have your kid saying i want that ice cream?

maybe not. however, they're saying to go a step further and just the mere presence of this ice cream is offensive. they asked ben and jerry's to at least not make it for a second round. it is out limited right now. to please not make any more offensive flavors in the future. >> the visual of a 6-year-old boy asking for that. it is spectacular. i'm sorry. thank you very much. courtney with the very latest from california. for the very latest, log on to scoop.today.com. crisp, clear, untouched. that's why there's brita, to make the water we drink, taste a little more, perfect. reduce lead and other impurities with the advanced filtration system of brita. while i took refuge from the pollen that made me sneeze. but with 24-hour zyrtec®, i get prescription strength relief from my worst allergy symptoms. so lily and i are back on the road again. with zyrtec®, i can love the air®.

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today we're rook at the death penalty case of troy davis. here's a look at new video just into msnbc. this is a protest outside the white house against the exhibition. troy davis has five more minutes to meet with his family members before they start the process of execution, preparing him for it. despite several pleas for

clemency from jimmy carter, even the pope. the georgia board of pardons is refusing to commute his death sentence. he will be put to death tonight at 7:00 p.m. for the murder of police officer mark macphail in 1989. since davis' conviction, seven of the nine witnesses have changed their stories. and his attorneys argue that ballistics evidence from the 1991 trial is no longer reliable. but officer macphail's mother said there is no doubt in her mind that davis is guilty. so on the eve of this execution, what does your gut tell you? should the state of georgia carry out the execution at 7:00 p.m. eastern time, local time of troy davis? to go news nation to vote. that does it for this wednesday edition of "newsnation." my doctor told me calcium is best absorbed in small continuous amounts. only one calcium supplement does that in one daily dose. citracal slow release... continuously releases calcium plus d

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i'm in for martin bashir. >> stop the clock. the seconds tick down to the lethal injection of troy davis. a case that has reignited the debate over capitol punishment in america. we're joined by the head. naacp a the controversial execution draws near. and while president obama seeks peace in the middle east -- >> peace will not come through statements and resolutions at the united nations. if it were that easy, it would have been accomplished by now. >> congress wages war in washington. >> he will go into full campaign mode now14 months before the election. that's fine. that is his decision. >> but wait a seng. >> a great country requires a better direction. >> is that you, sarah palin? >> a busy day. we begin a controversial capital punishment case, likely toned in a few short hours when georgia inmate troy d