and ultimately destroying them. this is significant. russia is assad's patron and protector. the world will note whether russia can follow through on the commitments it's made. as for the editorial, you know, we're not surprised by president putin's words. but the fact is that russia offers a stark contrast that demonstrates why america is exceptional. unlike russia, the united states stands up for democratic values and human rights in our own country and around the world, and we believe that our global security is advanced when children can not be gassed to death by a dictator. it is also worth noting that russia is isolated and alone in blaming the opposition for the chemical weapons attack on august 21st. there is no credible reporting, and we have seen no credible reporting that the opposition has used chemical weapons in syria, and we have been joined by now 34 countries in declaring

that the assad regime is responsible for the use of chemical weapons on that night. even iran, which is fighting on assad's behalf in syria, has publicly blamed the assad regime for the august 21 attack. in addition to the intelligence pertaining to the regime's preparations for the attack and our post-attack observations, it is common sense that the opposition does not have the capabilities to have carried out such a large-scale rocket attack from a regime-held neighborhood targeting opposition neighborhoods. it's worth also pointing out there's a great irony that in placement of an op-ed like this because it reflects the truly exceptional tradition in this country of freedom of expression. and that is not a tradition shared in russia, by russia, and freedom of expression has been on the decrease over the past dozen or so years in russia.

having said that, the point i made at the top is the most important point. russia, as we saw just now in geneva, has put its prestige and credibility on the line in backing this proposal to have syria, the assad regime give up the chemical weapons that until two days ago it claimed it did not have, turn them over to international supervision with the purpose of eventually destroying them. we are going to work with the russians to see if this diplomatic avenue to resolving this problem can bear fruit. and that is absolutely worthwhile and the right thing to do. >> as you mentioned, secretary kerry just spoke. these talks he's conducting in geneva are occurring on the same day that the reports of increased u.s. military assistance to the opposition

forces. do those two tracks kind of cancel each other out? is there a chance that, that additional military support actually undermines the diplomatic track that secretary kerry -- >> well, without confirming specific reports, we have said for quite some time the president on down has said that we have been stepping up our assistance to the syrian military opposition. no question. and in june the administration announced that following credible evidence that the assad regime had used chemical weapons against the syrian people -- this is prior to the massive attack on august 21st. the president had authorized the expansion of our assistance to the supreme military council in syria. that's the opposition's military arm. the expansion of assistance has been aimed at strengthening the cohesion of the opposition and the effectiveness of the smc on the ground as well as assisting their efforts to defend themselves against a regime that has shown no boundaries in its willingness to kill civilians. so i think it's an important

distinction to make as we have all along in the wake of the august 21 attacks and in our response to them that the issue of assad's chemical weapons is distinctly problematic and is separate from, although it is part of the civil war, it is separate from our policy response to the civil war in syria. that response is built around humanitarian support for the syrian people, assistance to the opposition, including assistance to the supreme military council as well as an effort with a broad range of allies and partners, including russia, to bring about a resolution of that civil war through a political settlement. that's the only way to end that war. so these are distinct tracks. the problem that confronts us by the use, the indiscriminate use

of chemical weapons, needs to be addressed, and we are addressing that. the president has spoken clearly about his views on it. we are exploring this diplomatic avenue, this opportunity that exists potentially to resolve this by removing from assad's possession chemical weapons. but we will continue our policy of supporting the opposition in order to bring about a political settlement in the syrian conflict. >> on the budget -- >> we are hearing white house reaction to the extraordinary op-ed in "the new york times" today written by vladimir putin as well as the latest update from the administration regarding the talks underway right now. i want to catch you up to where things stand. secretary of state john kerry is meeting right now with his russian counterpart in geneva, switzerland. in fact, moments ago they began two days of talks to hammer out the details of a russian plan for syria to give up its chemical weapons and avert u.s. military strikes. a couple hours ago, president

obama spoke about the diplomatic effort. >> expectations are high. they're high for the united states, perhaps even more so for russia to deliver on the promise of this moment. this is not a game, and i said that to my friend sergey initially when we talked about it. it has to be real. it has to be comprehensive. it has to be verifiable. it has to be credible. it has to be timely and implemented in a timely fashion. finally, there ought to be consequences if it doesn't take place. >> i am hopeful that the discussions that secretary kerry have with foreign minister lavrov as well as some of the other players in this can yield a concrete result.

i know that he is going to be working very hard over the next several days to see what the possibilities are there. >> of course, all of this comes after many of us woke up to this t extraordinary op-ed in today's "new york times" where president putin writes in part, it is alarming that military intervention in internal conflicts in foreign countries has become common place around the united states. millions around the world see america not as a model of democracy but relying on brute force, cobbling coalitions together under the slogan, you're either with us or against us. that prompting strong reaction from lawmakers, including robert menendez, who expressed his disgust. >> it turned my stomach because to read all of the elements of putin's op-ed, to suggest that, you know, he has a problem with american exceptionalism to

believe that he is the conduit to the path to peace when he has been the obstacle at the united nations. >> i think when a country like russia sees a vacuum and sees weakness -- and let's face it, that's what they're seeing right now -- they try to step into that. i do think we've hurt ourself and the world. i hope somehow or another we can maneuver through this, have a little bit of luck and regain a degree of credibility. >> meantime, syrian president assad told russian tv today he would hand over control of his country's chemical weapons but only because of russia's persuasion, not america's military threats. in fact, just hours earlier, in a video posted online, the head of the free syrian army said, quote, categorically rejects the russian plan for securing syria's chemical weapons. joining me now, andrea mitchell who is in geneva. a lot to cover. as you know, you are following every detail, but people are

hearing bits and pieces. i want to start with the reaction both from the administration and lawmakers to this op-ed written by vladimir putin and how that dynamic factors into the talks going on right now. >> reporter: well, in fact, this whole issue was down played by secretary kerry saying, oh, you know, that's not a big deal. that's what state department officials at least were saying. but it did become a big deal. at their first meeting today, in their opening statements, lavrov, the foreign minister of russia, brought it up. so he is making the point that vladimir putin and russia are still not accepting what they have said to the u.s., that the chemical attack was from the assad regime undeniably. if they are still that far apart and also far apart on whether or not force can be taken off or has to be taken off the table, it's hard to see how they're going to come together on an agreement. more surprising things have happened here in geneva in the

past, but this is going to be a long slog. >> and to your point, some of the conditions, if you will, just at the beginning that are being struck down, assad saying that a deal cannot be reached if military force is on the table. we know that is a key component, even in the alternative resolution that's being discussed in the senate. if, for example, the chemical weapons are turned over, secured, or destroyed, if that does not happen, military option is on the table in that resolution. >> reporter: well, what they want to see, what russia and syria clearly want to see is that the u.n. resolution does not have any mention of the use of force, that the enforcement is sanctioned in some other way of punishing russia or syria, presumably syria, but russia is its mentor. but that is right now not a starter with the united states. i think they're going to negotiate around that if they believe that they're getting cooperation on the details of this chemical weapons handover. >> so andrea, what should we and

the public be looking for in the next 48 hours? what are the critical components here? >> well, let's see how long they talk. do they break off tomorrow and go their separate ways, or do they keep going until saturday and appear side by side again in front of the cameras? that would be a good sign. what does vladimir putin do? does he write another op-ed or appear on camera? so there are a lot of political hand grenades that can be thrown into this situation. >> and verbal hand grenades. just quickly, the verbal hand grenades from jay carney saying that the op-ed reflects the ability to have freedom of expression in our country, but that's not something you see in russia. this is goes back and forth. i think it seems unsettling to the american public when you hear this verbiage on both sides. >> reporter: well, the american public would want to see that the white house at least stands up for freedom of expression,

freedom of religion, the freedoms that have been diminished if not extinguished in many cases under vladimir putin. this is a real crackdown on freedom of expression. so carney, who's a former moscow bureau chief, by the way, for "time" magazine in his years as a journalist, knows a lot of what he's saying here. i think that was an almost obligatory response. >> all right. andrea mitchell, i know we'll see you tomorrow with the latest information on those meetings. the news nation is also following breaking news in what the national weather service has described as a life threatening situation for people in parts of colorado. flash flood warnings remain in effect for residents in boulder and surrounding mountain communities, prompting evacuations and forcing officials to order government offices, even schools be closed. widespread high waters along with mud slides have washed out roads and making it absolutely impossible for rescue teams in some cases to reach people who

are stranded and motorists, particularly those in mountain communities. so far at least three people are confirmed dead and the boulder county sheriff says they are only in the early stages of assessing this incredible damage. >> boulder county is experiencing a disaster today that is broad in scope and very dangerous in nature. we know that we've lost lives. we anticipate that as the day goes on that we may find that we've lost others. >> up to seven inches of rain soaked the area within a three-hour period overnight. a number of businesses were washed away. colorado governor john hickenlooper says he's requesting federal disaster declaration. also, one dam in the area has broken, and officials are concerned that conditions of three other dams in the area could be in jeopardy. even as the water recedes, people are still being urged to stay indoors and off the roads

with more rain expected throughout this day. energy companies are working to restore power to hundreds of people who have been left in the dark. joining me by phone is john schultz. he's with the laramie county sheriffs office. what are the latest conditions? >> we still are experiencing rain. we're in the process of evacuating highway 34. we sent out emergency notifications to approximately 600 people earlier today telling them to be prepared to evacuate if necessary. we had a couple of situations where we were told the rain would be worse this afternoon and also that the roadway started to degrade and in parts has collapsed. we felt we had a short window of opportunity to start evacuating people. that's in progress as we speak. >> john, we're looking at some of the video.

you're talking about roads swept away. we see cars just tossed around here. this is extraordinary. i saw one headline referring to it as epic. what can you compare this to in your area that you've seen? >> well, this really is unusual for this kind of area. i guess it would go back to flooding we had in 1976. we haven't seen anything like that yet today, but that was the last time. i think that's what people are concerned about. >> evacuationwise and at least the number of people potentially impacted by this, what are you looking at numberwise? >> well, right now i think we're looking at about 600 folks coming out of the big thompson canyon, and we're routing those folks to three different evacuation centers. at this point in time, those are the only evacuations we have. we'll be evaluating if we need to do any other areas in just a bit. >> as i pointed out, this is

also challenging for your rescue crews who are going in and around the area to try to assist people. i've seen video of a couple of incredible rescues from people who wiere overwhelmed in their vehicles. >> yeah, we haven't had any of that in laramer county. i know boulder has had quite a bit of that. we have had situations where the deputies who were up helping with the evacuation, the roadway degraded and collapsed and they were stuck in between two places where the roadway had collapsed and weren't able to get through. the weather here is still raining. so we're unable to get a helicopter up in the air to help us with any kind of extra kags. >> as we understand it, there have been three fatalities confirmed. the sheriff from boulder county fears that number could increase. what information do you have as it relates to people who may have been seriously injured or if not worse fatalities there?

>> right. in laramer county at this point in time, to my knowledge, we have had no one injured and no one killed. >> all right, john. we wish you the best. again, extraordinary pictures coming in from your area. we know that homes have been washed away. people have evacuated. it's a life threatening situation. we appreciate you giving us a few minutes to update our audience on what's happening there. thank you. >> you're welcome. still ahead, key testimony today in the double murder investigation linked to former new england patriot star aaron hernandez. the latest on what could lead to a second murder indictment possibly against hernandez. plus, more than 100 demonstrators arrested outside the u.s. capital today during a sit-in. they are demanding action on immigration reform. we'll have more on this movement. join our conversation on twitter. you can find us @tamronhall and @newsnation.

i don't make any decisions about who to hire without going to angie's list first. with angie's list, i know who to call, and i know the results will be fantastic! find out why more than two million members count on angie's list. angie's list -- reviews you can trust. for a strong bag that grips the can... ♪ get glad forceflex.

small change, big difference. ♪ and i'll never desert you ♪ ♪ i'll stand by you yeaaaah! yeah. so that's our loyalty program. you're automatically enrolled, and the longer you stay, the more rewards you get. great! oh! ♪ i'll stand by you ♪ won't let nobody hurt you ♪ isn't there a simpler way to explain the loyalty program? yes. standing by you from day one. now, that's progressive. to prove to you that aleve is the better choice for her, she's agreed to give it up. that's today? [ male announcer ] we'll be with her all day to see how it goes. [ claira ] after the deliveries, i was okay. now the ciabatta is done and the pain is starting again. more pills? seriously? seriously. [ groans ] all these stops to take more pills can be a pain. can i get my aleve back? ♪ for my pain, i want my aleve.

[ male announcer ] look for the easy-open red arthritis cap.

welcome back. more than 100 protesters calling for immigration reform were arrested today at a sit-in that blocked traffic right in front of the capitol building in washington, d.c. in fact, the demonstrators, all women, more than 20 of them undocumented immigrants, hoped to bring attention to what they say is a lack of action by congress, specifically the house. the senate approved a comprehensive bill back in june, but the republican-controlled house has refused to take it up. house republicans say they they'd prefer a series of smaller bills, but with just a handful of days before congress goes back on recess, we know time is running out. still ahead, officials at

boston's logan airport are now apologizing after conducting a fire drill like this one on the anniversary of 9/11. >> the timing couldn't have been worse. i think the word i used earlier was it seemed dumb. plus, traffic cameras. you've seen them, of course. they're popping up on stop signs, of all places. some people say this is just a quick way to make money off of motorists. it's our "news nation" gut check. [ male announcer ] don't miss red lobster's endless shrimp. it's as much as you like, any way you like. try new soy wasabi grilled shrimp and more. only $15.99, offer ends soon. so come in and sea food differently. now, try seven lunch choices for $7.99. sandwiches, salads and more.

♪ i see you made yourself breakfast.

how'd you know? ♪ humans. even when we cross our "ts" and dot our "i's", we still run into problems. that's why liberty mutual insurance offers accident forgiveness with our auto policies. if you qualify, your rates won't go up due to your first accident. because making mistakes is only human, and so are we. we also offer new car replacement, so if you total your new car, we'll give you the money for a new one. call liberty mutual insurance at... and ask us all about our auto features, like guaranteed repairs, where if you get into an accident and use one of our certified repair shops, the repairs are guaranteed for life. so call... to talk with an insurance expert about everything that comes standard with our base auto policy. and if you switch, you could save up to $423.

liberty mutual insurance -- responsibility. what's your policy? i had pain in my abdomen... it just wouldn't go away.thing. i was spotting, but i had already gone through menopause. these symptoms may be nothing... but they could be early warning signs of a gynecologic cancer, such as cervical, ovarian, or uterine cancer. feeling bloated for no reason. that's what i remember. seeing my doctor probably saved my life. warning signs are not the same for everyone. if you think something's wrong... see your doctor. ask about gynecologic cancer. and get the inside knowledge. a separate case linking former nfl star aaron hernandez to a double murder appears to be heating up. two connecticut men with ties to the former star who were reluctant to testify have now been ordered to appear before a grand jury today. one of them is 21-year-old john alcorn. he's from hernandez's home town

and has ties to hernandez's family. the other is a 33-year-old man, alexander bradley. he's suing hernandez for allegedly shooting him after an argument at a miami strip club. it all comes less than a week after hernandez was arraigned on murder charges in odin lloyd's death and pled not guilty. "boston globe" reporters wesley lowery joins me now. a lot of these witnesses are reluctant to testify, including this guy who was allegedly shot in the face by hernandez. >> exactly. alexander bradley, who has alleged in a civil suit that aaron hernandez shot him in the face outside of a strip club in miami, florida, earlier this year, has not been cooperative at all. in fact, florida law enforcement officials have told us that's why hernandez has not been charged, one of the reasons hernandez has not been charged if that shoots is because bradley won't talk to him. he's trying to sue in civil course, but he will not talk to police about what allegedly happened when he was shot in the face. he has testified before a grand jury once before, but, you know,

has gone awol essentially here and was due to testify again today. >> do we know if there were any threats against his life? why is he choosing, if this is true, if someone shot you in the face, it seems you'd be willing to step up. >> bradley hasn't talked publicly much at all. a colleague here with me spoke with him once. he didn't express that he was, you know, necessarily afraid or had felt in danger but had said, you know, he was going to cooperate with media and said he did not want to talk to law enforcement. that's what he had said then as he was coming out of grand jury testimony about a month ago. >> and there's at least one other individual, tania singleton, who is also apparently refusing to testify, even after prosecutors offered her immunity. what's her tie to this case? >> yeah, she's a cousin of aaron hernandez, related to him, runs in his social circles. she's been being held. she was subpoenaed to testify in front of a grand jury about the

odin lloyd killing and any information she potentially had on that. prosecutors believe that she may have helped earnest wallace, the second man involved in that slaying, she may have helped him either get away, book a bus ticket. she refused to testify before the grand jury, so she's being held and has been charged with obstruction of justice. >> what has hernandez's attorney said about this investigation, if anything, as of late? i know he's been indicted on the other charge. >> they've been very, very tight lipped on this, granted they have -- hernandez's attorneys have used the second grand jury investigation as a way to try to put off the civil suit. in fact n a court filing earlier this month, they said, you know what, we shouldn't resolve the civil suit, the case involving alexander bradley until after these murder charges are handled because it would be unfair to have hernandez potentially participate in this civil suit and say something that could be used against him in these other cases. again, they've been very tight lipped about bradley's

allegations as well as about any potential investigation into this boston double murder other than to say, you know, that they believe aaron hernandez is innocent and being set up and that, you know, don't believe the media reports, which has been their line from the beginning. >> all right. wesley lowery with "the boston globe." thank you for the latest details on that investigation. it's something. still ahead, al qaeda fighters crossing into syria by the thousands. many of them being smuggled in from turkey. we'll get a live report from that border town. also, our own richard englengle exclusive report with own of the al qaeda recruits. plus, congress' battle from syria to the battle budget and obama care. the gop is still trying to figure out its next move due to in fighting within the party. it's part of our first read. this is for you.

♪ [ male announcer ] bob's heart attack didn't come with a warning. today his doctor has him on a bayer aspirin regimen to help reduce the risk of another one. if you've had a heart attack, be sure to talk to your doctor before you begin an aspirin regimen. ♪ [ male announcer ] some things are designed to draw crowds. ♪ ♪ others are designed to leave them behind. ♪ the all-new 2014 lexus is. it's your move.

the all-new 2014 lexus is. ♪ you make me, make me, make me go crazy ♪ ♪ you make me, make me, make me go crazy. ♪ welcome back. we continue to watch developments out of geneva where secretary of state john kerry has been meeting for about 40 minutes now with his russian

counterpart. they're expected to hold two days of meetings aimed at working out details of a russian plan for syria to turn over its chemical weapons to international control. meantime, there are reports the cia has started to deliver machine guns and other small arms to the syrian rebels. there's growing concern about who these rebels are. nbc news chief foreign correspondent richard engel's reports on al qaeda fighters that they've been crossing into syria from turkey by the thousands. richard talked with one young man from tunisia who said he dropped out of college to fight alongside al qaeda. >> translator: if muslims anywhere are oppressed and cannot defend themselves, we have to support them. >> the united states is considering launching military strikes against syria. would that help you? >> translator: we have a prayer. bashar is an enemy. america is an enemy. let them fight. >> you're smiling. i can see even through the mask.

>> translator: praise allah. i am happy. >> why are you so happy? >> translator: because this was a dream for me to wage jihad, to bleed for allah and no other. >> nbc ease jim maceda joins us live from near turkey's border with syria. obviously, jim, that's one element of the story. the other dynamic is the humanitarian cry circumstances refugees flooding into turkey and other places from syria. you've had an opportunity to speak with some of those people. >> reporter: that's right, tamron. we spent most of the day talking with the refugees who, as you say say, are flowing in -- actually, tens of thousands now. just as foreign fighters that is we saw speaking with richard flow into syria from here, the syrian refugees are flowing into turkey. they make the point, many of them make the same point about how extreme, almost medieval the fighting and the fighters have become inside. they talk about the fighting

even among rebel groups now themselves. you know, that young fighter that you just saw talking to richard, he is certainly more extreme than, let's say, your average free syrian army soldier, but there are groups of foreign fighters, thousands of them inside, who are much more extreme than even that young masked man. one person i spoke to today arrived here a couple months ago and said he feels the majority of syrians who are victimized by both sides. you have the assad regime using chemical weapons on one side and these islamic extremists. it's like the taliban in afghanistan, really, on the other side. they all said today to us, they seem to be increasing in number and influence, not decreasing. tamron? >> jim, thank you very much. we apologize for the technical interruptions. we wanted to get as much of

jim's report in as possible. meanwhile, president obama noted before a cabinet meeting today that there are a host of other issues that he is confronting outside of syria. >> it's still important to recognize that we got a lot more stuff to do here in this government. you know, the american people are still interested in making sure that our kids are getting the kind of education they deserve, that we're putting people back to work, that we are dealing properly with a federal budget, that bills are getting paid on time, that the full faith and credit of the united states is preserved. >> the president's latest remarks refer to keeping the government open beyond the end of the month. the tea party affiliated republicans threatening this shut it all down over funding for the president's health care law. but they're even battling within their own party. >> there are a lot of discussions going on about how to deal with the cr and the issue of obama care.

so we're continuing to work with our members. >> joining me now, nbc news deputy political editor domenico montanaro. this is the looming battle domestically. >> yeah, we're back to the boring stuff. >> not boring at all. >> you know, the fact is, when john boehner, you hear him talking about with sort of this wry smile on his face, it's really telling because, you know, they put on the table a continuing resolution that would move -- fund the government through mid december and what it would do is make the senate vote on defunding obama care, but it wouldn't exactly tie defunding obama care to government funding, something that the club for growth and heritage, two conservative groups here in washington that are very influential on the hill, called out as smoke and mirrors. that sent a signal right through the conservative vein of the conference, and they just said

there's no way they're going to support this and it had a lot of people coming out saying they wouldn't support it. you know, even people like ted cruz. there's a lot of frustration on the republican leadership side of things because this is something they thought they could be a compromise they could get through. but there's no come prompromisea party. >> yeah, absolutely. but you point out there are some in the gop leadership quoted as saying, quote, does ted cruz have a plan to get 41 votes? really calling him out that there's a lot of lip service, but can you get anywhere with this? >> right, and that's frank thorpe, who's our house producer, who reported that on "first read" yesterday. i think that highlights the difference between pragmatism and ideology. a lot of these tea party folks feel like they were elected to wage ideological economic warfare, and they're not going to budge on what they believe. it's up to john boehner to try

to figure out a way around them and to have -- and democrats, though, are happy to watch john boehner, you know, have to wrestle with this and not help him out at all. so if he doesn't have a majority of something that he wants to bring to the floor, democrats aren't going to help him out. >> all right, domenico. thank you for the update there. we'll be talking a lot about it soon. still ahead, a consumer alert. more than 2 million dehu m dehumidifiers on the recall list after dozens of reports of fires. plus, senator rand paul takes a shot at cory booker, accusing booker of having, quote, imaginary friends. it's just one of the things we thought you should know. huh...fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more on car insurance. mmmhmmm...everybody knows that. well, did you know that old macdonald was a really bad speller? your word is...cow. cow. cow. c...o...w...

...e...i...e...i...o. [buzzer] dangnabbit. geico. fifteen minutes could save you...well, you know. this man is about to be the millionth customer. would you mind if i go ahead of you? instead we had someone go ahead of him and win fifty thousand dollars. congratulations you are our one millionth customer. nobody likes to miss out. that's why ally treats all their customers the same. whether you're the first or the millionth. if your bank doesn't think you're special anymore, you need an ally. ally bank. your money needs an ally.

like carpools... polly wants to know if we can pick her up. yeah, we can make room. yeah. [ male announcer ] ...office space. yes, we're loving this communal seating. it's great. [ male announcer ] the best thing to share? a data plan. at&t mobile share for business. one bucket of data for everyone on the plan, unlimited talk and text on smart phones. now, everyone's in the spirit of sharing. hey, can i borrow your boat this weekend?

no. [ male announcer ] share more. save more. at&t mobile share for business. ♪ we want to update you on breaking news out of colorado where at least three people have been reported dead in a deadly flash flood situation. nbc's leeann gregg is in

boulder, colorado. what's the latest there? >> reporter: hi, tamron. it's been relentless. it's bad now. it's expected to get worse. earlier today the officials reported those three deaths. they said they are concerned that that death toll could rise because they can't get to a number of the areas where people are feared to be trapped inside. they're going house to house right now searching for people. the international guard is also expected to help with this effort, but they can't get into the air with helicopters. that will start whenever they can. but this is the scene. not only across boulder, but in much of the denver metro area. street flooding, which has caused closures in many -- this is usually a very busy intersection of boulder. also, street lights are out. cu boulder, the campus here, has been shut down today and tomorrow. more than 300 students and faculty had to be evacuated from their housing. also, many other areas, communities surrounding boulder county, have been evacuated. one town, lyons, has been completely isolated.

it's an island. there are no roads passable in or out. so they're standing by trying to get supplies to those people, rescuers in boats, and again going door to door. a lot of work ahead throughout the night and tomorrow. and the heaviest rain is still expected later tonight. so more road closures are expected in the morning. u.s. 36, one of the major interstates, had to be shut down last night during the heavy rain. so no doubt that will be another problem tonight. so not a good situation. they're bracing for the worst, tamron. >> in fact, the spokesperson with the city of boulder said they'd set off flood sirens. that does not mean they have new evacuations, but they underscored the need for people to get out of certain areas. >> reporter: that's right. and they said also they're reluctant to issue now evacuation orders because they think it's safest for many people to just stay where they are. don't get in their cars because most of the accidents happen when people try to drive to

another location. so if you are at all safe, they say go to a higher level in your house and stay there and wait it out. >> all right, leeann, thank you for scrambling to get this live report for us. it's incredible to see this video. we'll have more later. and officials with the massachusetts port authority are apologizing today for holding a fire drill at logan airport in boston on the 12 south anniversary of the september 11th attacks. the drill conducted on the tarmac included smoke and flames and provoked instant complaints on social media. nbc's mara schiavocampo has more on why this even happened. >> reporter: september 11th, a day of reflection and remembrance is also a day when many are nervous to fly. >> it's just superstition. it's on everybody's mind. >> reporter: hundreds of passengers at logan international airport saw something that was sure to rattle their nerves even more, a

training drill on the runway. similar to exercises in past years but never before on 9/11. >> the timing couldn't have been worse. i think the word i used earlier was it seemed dumb. >> reporter: christy coombs, whose husband was on the plane that crashed into the towers, thinks it was insensitive. >> it's almost as if someone looked at the calendar and said, oh, it's 9/11, that doesn't matter. it made no difference to them. then to pull off something like that on 9/11 when there are 364 other days in the year to do this kind of training, it just makes no sense whatsoever. >> reporter: after the exercise was done, airport officials released a statement saying, massport apologizes for conducting the fire training exercise and understands that it may have offended many of those touched by the events of september 11th. the exercise should not have taken place on the anniversary of 9/11. >> well, more than 2 million dehumidifiers are being recalled over concerns they could overheat and trigger a fire. that tops our look at stories around the news nation today.

the produmanufacture can carry variety of brand names. the consumer protection safety commission says they've been linked to nearly four dozen fires and caused more than $2 million in property damage. the state of california is suing whole foods market, claiming the company is selling products containing pesticides not registered with the state. the products include insect spray, cat litter pellets, and flea spray. state officials say companies are required by law to register pesticide products with the state so they can be tested and approve for safe use before their safe. whole foods is not comments on that lawsuit. still ahead, our "news nation" gut check on the new stop sign cameras. are they necessary, or is it just a way for some municipalities to make some money even though you broke the law when you ran through the the light? and be sure to like the news

nation at facebook. f cheese? [ crisp crunches ] whoo-hoo-hoo! guess it was. [ male announcer ] pringles, bursting with more flavor. guess it was. no two people have the same financial goals. pnc investments works with you to understand yours and helps plan for your retirement. talk to a pnc investments financial advisor today. ♪ diarrhea, gas, bloating? yes! one phillips' colon health probiotic cap each day helps defend against these digestive issues... with three strains of good bacteria. [ phillips' lady ] live the regular life. phillips'.

♪ [ male announcer ] 1.21 gigawatts. today, that's easy. ge is revolutionizing power. supercharging turbines with advanced hardware and innovative software. using data predictively to help power entire cities. so the turbines of today... will power us all... into the future. ♪ into the future. "stubborn love" by the lumineers did you i did. email?

you can join the news nation on twitter. you can find my te team @newsnation. there's a lot going on today. here are some things we thought you should know. lawmakers failed to override a veto of a bill that would nullify some gun control laws. the bill would have allowed the state to prosecute federal officials who attempt to enforce federal gun laws in missouri. it also would have allowed suspected criminals to sue federal agents who arrest them on gun charges. governor jay nixon vetoed the bill because he said it was unconstitutional. a texas watchdog group says textbook publishers are being pressured by the state board of education to teach creationism. the texas freedom network said at least eight textbook reviewers for the board have come out publicly to say they want creationism in textbooks in addition to the theory of evoluti

evolution. without the board's endorsement, it's harder to sell their books to districts. they plan to hold a public hearing on the issue next week. and republican senator rand paul is taking aim at newark mayor and senate candidate cory booker. in an interview with politico, he called booker a politician with, quote, imaginary friend with imaginary problems. according to politico, that's a reference to a newark drug dealer named t-bone. booker says he has befriended. paul goes on to say, quote, if cory will introduce me to t-bone when i get there, i'd love to meet t-bone. if he's not real, maybe we need to get mr. booker to talk about a real problem. what? this is bananas. i'm done. i can't read anymore of this. i'm sorry. and those are the things we just thought you should know today. time now for the "news nation" gut check. we've all heard about cameras on red lights, but washington, d.c., is taking the technology

one step further by putting cameras on stop signs. police say it's designed to make streets safer, but many drivers say the motive is all about money. n nbc's tom costello has the details. >> reporter: we're not just talking about speed cameras and red light cameras. that camera right over my shoulder, that is a stop sign camera in front of this school where kids come every day. it is watching this intersection. it wants to make sure people don't roll through this four-way stop. we're not just talking about these types of cameras. there's also pedestrian walkway cameras. it's technology that could be coming to an intersection near you. if you come to the nation's capital, you'd be well advised to watch your pedals, both gas and brake. no other city realize erelies m heavily on traffic cameras than washington, d.c. 91 speed and red light cameras already with 132 more on the way. the newest cameras pointed at

stop signs are about to go live. >> red lights, yellow lights. that's okay. stop signs are ridiculous. >> reporter: but maybe necessary. over 30 minutes we watched 54 cars approach this stop sign in washington. 37 of the 54 rolled right through, including a postal worker and a police officer. so the new cameras will catch drivers who fail to come to a complete stop at a stop sign. they'll also look for drivers who get caught in the middle of the intersection and block the box when the light changes or drives who turn into a crosswalk when a pedestrian has the right-of-way. the fines aren't cheap. depending on the type of ticket, you could be out $50 to $100. >> these are all things our communities ask us to enforce the law on and now we'll have the ability to do it with less man power and safer for police officers. >> reporter: to avoid a ticket, police advise drivers to come to a complete stop before the white line. to stay out of the intersection

if you're likely to get stuck there when the light changes and to wait until pedestrians completely clear a crosswalk before making the turn. nationwide, communities are turning to traffic cams. more than 500 use red light cameras alone. and safety advocates applaud. >> speeding is a major factor in crashes and in causing injury and deaths in crashes. >> reporter: but there are skeptics. >> makings lots of money, but of course that's what it's about. it's not about security or safe it i. >> reporter: d.c. raked in $85 million last year alone. there is one way to avoid the tickets. >> if you just follow the law and stop, no fine. >> reporter: yeah, that's true. like we said, if you come to d.c., watch your pedals. metropolitan police here in washington insist the cameras work. since they started using speed cameras, the number of fatal accidents in washington has dropped by 80%. tamron, back to you. >> all right, tom. thank you. so what does your gut tell you?

do you think cameras on stop signs are a good idea or go too far? go to facebook.com/newsnation to cast a vote. i was about to make a t-bone joke, but i won't do that. that does it for this "news nation." i can change my name to t-bone. there you go. tamron "t-bone" hall. we'll be back tomorrow. "the cycle" is up next. ib, atrial fibrillation -- an irregular heartbeat, not caused by a heart valve problem. that puts jim at a greater risk of stroke. for years, jim's medicine tied him to a monthly trip to the clinic to get his blood tested. but now, with once-a-day xarelto®, jim's on the move. jim's doctor recommended xarelto®. like warfarin, xarelto® is proven effective to reduce afib-related stroke risk. but xarelto® is the first and only once-a-day prescription blood thinner for patients with afib not caused by a heart valve problem. that doesn't require routine blood monitoring.

so jim's not tied to that monitoring routine. [ gps ] proceed to the designated route. not today. [ male announcer ] for patients currently well managed on warfarin, there is limited information on how xarelto® and warfarin compare in reducing the risk of stroke. xarelto® is just one pill a day taken with the evening meal. plus, with no known dietary restrictions, jim can eat the healthy foods he likes. do not stop taking xarelto®, rivaroxaban, without talking to the doctor who prescribes it as this may increase the risk of having a stroke. get help right away if you develop any symptoms like bleeding, unusual bruising, or tingling. you may have a higher risk of bleeding if you take xarelto® with aspirin products, nsaids or blood thinners. talk to your doctor before taking xarelto® if you have abnormal bleeding. xarelto® can cause bleeding, which can be serious, and rarely may lead to death. you are likely to bruise more easily on xarelto® and it may take longer for bleeding to stop. tell your doctors you are taking xarelto® before any planned medical or dental procedures. before starting xarelto®, tell your doctor about any conditions such as kidney, liver, or bleeding problems.

xarelto® is not for patients with artificial heart valves. jim changed his routine. ask your doctor about xarelto®. once a day xarelto® means no regular blood monitoring -- no known dietary restrictions. for more information and savings options, call 1-888-xarelto or visit goxarelto.com. yeah... try new alka seltzer fruit chews. they work fast on heartburn and taste awesome. these are good. told ya! i'm feeling better already. [ male announcer ] new alka seltzer fruits chews. enjoy the relief! more is better. that's why we designed the all-new nissan versa note, with more technology, to get you into, and out of, tight spots. and more space so that you always have your favorite stuff. and just for good measure, an incredibly efficient 40 mpg highway. so that when you're doing more, you're spending less. the all-new nissan versa note.

your door to more. ♪ straight ahead in "the cycle," life after syria. congress turns its focus back on the usual suspects. you know, like shutting down the government. hey, krystal. knock, knock. >> who's there? >> syrian rebels. >> syrian rebels who? >> syrian rebels who are working with al qaeda. jokes aside, we're going to dig deeper into why the enemies of our enemies are our enemies. one of the nation's cities is about to make it rain on some of its poorest residents.

all that, plus can you fake your way to a longer life? new research on our brains. and no more "knock knock" jokes. >> as we have been spending a lot of time on the syria issue and making sure that international attention is focused on the horrible tragedy that occurred there, it is still important to recognize that we got a lot more stuff to do here in this government. >> president obama meeting with his cabinet today, shifting back to domestic priorities like the budget, raising the debt ceiling, and implementing obama care, much to the demise of some republicans. but of course, syria and russia are still on his radar. russian president putin placed an op-ed in today's "new york times". he says he's on board with the plan and welcomes obama's interest in holding talks. and for the first me