right now on "andrea mitchell reports," clinton country, the former president is the big attraction in kentucky for democratic senate hopeful allison grimes not all that eager to have the current president come to the blue grass state for her. >> i want to ask you about president barack obama, would you want him to come down and campaign for you? >> this race is one that's about putting the people of this state first. and i speak for myself and don't need any other surrogate to do that. >> unless bill clinton is there. now the fugitive, ukraine's former president still on the run. we'll have the report from richard engel following the trail in kiev. senator kirsten gillibrand joining me after another setback to get a senate vote against

sexual saults in the military. >> what does it say about a body after having seen so many brave survivors in the military walk through the halls of this congress for over a year now, we can't even give them the decency of a debate on the reform they so deeply believe in. >> late night vice, joe biden, that is, teaming up with amy poehler for the debut of "late night with seth myers", only one was willing to answer the question about 2016. >> i was planning on making a major announcement tonight but i decided tonight is your night -- >> thank you. >> so i hope you'll invite me back. >> amy, your 2016 plans? >> i'm going to run for president. >> okay, great.

>> and good day, i'm andrea mitchell in washington. thank you for joining us a little earlier and for years to come at noon every day. president obama is speaking his lunch hour with speaker boehner. will the two most powerful leaders in the country agree on anything other than the menu? why does a democratic contender in kentucky want bill clinton to campaign for her but not the current president? joining me now, chuck todd chief white house correspondent and political director and in kentucky, jonathan martin, national political correspondent for "the new york times" live in lieu louisville. to you first, what about bill clinton the attraction of bill clinton in kentucky, the blue grass state but not barack obama? >> well, it makes sense. bill clinton won the state twice. he's very close to miss grimes and his family. his polling numbers here i'm told are pretty darn good.

well above 50%. president obama's numbers are well below 50%. it's kind of a no brainer to have bill clinton here at this point in the race, andrea, it's more about raising money. that's the point of the luncheon that's happening in a half hour from now. behind me here on the banks of the ohio river, and i'm sure the clintons certainly bill clinton perhaps hillary clinton will come back later this fall to do some sort of grass roots stumping here in the blue grass state. >> and chuck todd, the president himself not that popular there. >> no, he's not. look, i'm told that democratic strategists went to the president to talk about campaign 2016 and that the president is clear eyed about this. he was quoted to u.s. senators saying if you want me to campaign, i'll be there. if you don't, i won't be there. don't worry, i'll stay away. he's very clear eyed. they had a tough conversation with him and essentially presenting him -- he's not immune and not in a bubble. he knows in a place like kentucky he doesn't work. he won two counties out of 100

plus counties in kentucky in the primary against hillary clinton. when they vote democratic these are bill clinton type of democrats not even hillary clinton democrats. this is the old fashion populist yellow dog democrats from back in the day. very similar to the arkansas democratic party that bill clinton was a part of. in many ways this is home turf for bill clinton so it makes sense. you're going to see president obama used selectively, his operation, get out the vote with targeting min orts in particular, there was a time when barack obama in 2006 was the guy that red state democrats brought. nobody wanted to touch other democrats. by 2030, it will be barack obama that's the most popular democrat in the country, 22 years after becoming president in 2008 like bill clinton is. the resiliency of bill clinton to me, 22 years after elected president of the united states, number one politician to invite on the trail, stunning. this was after he was really

toxic after the 2008 loss and blamed partly for his wife's loss. what is the factor? this is the south where he was stronger than other places, but what is the magic of bill clinton on the campaign trail? >> well, i talked to one of his long time friends last week and he loves to be on the trail and when democrats see him having fun they have fun. there is a connection with bill clinton and a lot of democrats and frankly a lot of democrats in the south and states like here in kentucky, he literally speaks the language. he has the same accent as many of them do. they can relate to his political ascent from a small state in the south. i think he has a natural connection there. chuck is right. i talked to the top obama folks recently too, and they say if these senators or candidates for senate don't want him in the states, he'll stay away but still willing to help out and keep in mind president obama has

the best list in american politics and he can use that to drive turnout which typically falls in midterm years to get out youth, african-americans and hispanics who may see home. even if you don't see president obama in a place like louisville, you may see the use of his political organization. >> let's talk more generally about the senate. you could argue the future of the obama presidency depends on whether or not they keep the senate. there's no question that they are going to most likely lose that house -- >> there's no winning by losing here. okay? the party that controls the senate after 2014 and i say that because we could have a runoff situation in louisiana where suddenly we have a three-week battle for control of the senate. that's one nightmare scenario but fun for us political junkies but nightmare. >> good for the country, we know.

>> the white house knows democrats hold the senate, he's got a little bit of juice left to do something in this last two years of his term. he doesn't, it's lame duck central. he's all about foreign policy and it is a -- it's very similar to the last two years of the bush presidency. so yes, the white house is very clear. to pick up on jonathan's point here, there are things that the democrats are doing in places like kentucky and arkansas, that barack obama did in a lot of other states but never did in those states because they weren't important to him for his primary campaign in '08 or the general election. basic tackling and targeting voters -- >> what about georgia? >> they did work in georgia in 2008 but they are investing the -- the democratic senate committee is investing $60 million, essentially for turnout. what does that mean? means voter registration campaigns in states that the obama campaign never touched in '08 and '12. that means there's still a significant minority population in arkansas and kentucky to pick

two senate races in particular where they are hoping to increase the democratic vote because it's part of their strategy -- >> but jonathan, it's harder to get democrats, especially minority democrats to go up against the system and fight voting restrictions in a lot of these states in a mid-term election than a presidential election. >> well, sure, because president obama is on the ballot. if you don't have that, you could put a lot of money into turnout and amp it up some. it's still never going to be the same as you have in a presidential year. that is a truism of american politics. to be candid, if the nation die n namices are working where the head winds are so strong because of the economy or affordable care act, frankly those kind of efforts to help turnout may not matter as much. they could help at the margins and put in football terms sort of like getting you a field goal. but it's not exactly the kind of thing that matters if this

environment will be anything like 2010. >> one final question down there for you jonathan, what's the state of the mitch mcconnell race? he's got this tea party challenger. >> sure, he's widely seen as the favorite in that race, andrea. matt bevan, a first time candidate, there was some thought he could put his own money in the race. he's not done that. as important, some of the big outside groups like the club for growth have shied away from the race. the combination of him not being able to sell at the large number and absence of the club for growth has given mcconnell an advantage. there's a reason he has won every race since 1984. he's a political survivor. when you're matt bevan and going against that machine for first time, it's pretty tough. >> if mcconnell is the candidate, we presume does grimes have a shot against him? >> well, sure, because mcconnell's numbers are so poor here. the mcconnell has survived here.

i use the word survive but he hasn't necessarily flourished, not like lamar alexander next door in tennessee who is widely loved figure. he's more of a polarize gs figure who wins by frankly scorched earth tactics. he's vulnerable to fell. >> it's a replay of harry reid nevada. it really is. harry reid won with upsidedown numbers and mitch mcconnell knows that's their path. they believe the numbers aren't there for democrats but need to make grimes seem unelectable. i don't think she's sharon engle. how they turn this into a referendum -- he made it on himself. that's the mcconnell job here. it's not easy because he has to spend two months getting conservatives back -- he's going to win but not going to break 60. there is a chunk of republican voters who will punish him a little bit. he's going to spend time -- >> that's the question, right. >> and it's tough.

this is harder than i think some people realize in washington for mitch mcconnell. >> interesting stuff. >> the question is -- >> jonathan? >> the question is do those conservatives work for bevan in the primary, do they come out in the fall because they can't stand obama and see grimes as the person fiction of obama or stay home all together, that's the key question. >> we'll have to leave it there. what's on the political menu at the white house with boehner? >> we'll see. it is an unusual -- one on one meeting. we'll see if we get much out of it. some has to do with what's coming out on the budget. the budget rollout of the president, part of this is to brief him on the budget rkts on one hand it's not going to be a controversial document in many ways because they are not asking for new things. it is going to be abiding by the spending caps. this is going the first for appropriators these of our asks here and here and here and the

republican appropriators will spend more time doing this than most, start creating baselines. we agree here -- >> what a novel idea, working together on this. >> i think it is more about putting in the details to the budget agreement that -- >> wee've got to go. chuck and jonathan thanks for joining us for lunch. >> con grats. >> thank you very much. >> where in the world is the president of ukraine? the hunt continues. joining me now from the latest chief foreign correspondent richard engel on the phone with us. you've been all over the city. have you found him yet? you've been at his compound? >> we were just at his former house and i can tell you one thing, he's not there. his former compound has been turned into a tourist attraction. this was his spa overlooking the lake with a sauna, private boxing ring, he's not there and instead people of posing for photographs in front of the house. there are militia men inside the

house and that is becoming an increasing problem in this country. there hasn't been a breakdown of law and order but the police have not returned to the streets. there is no government. there is a interim president appointed but things are holding together here. you can say there is no new new authority yet that replaced the regime that collapsed with yanukovych fled. >> the big headline out of moscow today, is that lavrov was softening his approach as they try to create a new government and promises from the west and u.s. and imf that perhaps with strings attached they will come forward with billions in aid. what are we hearing -- >> i think -- two things. one, you had the comments from the russian foreign ministry which are softer than out of moscow yesterday. then today putin who had an

opportunity to speak didn't make a big fuss about ukraine. didn't mention it at all in fact during a television interview. so i think russia is back to a wait and see mode. there have been a lot of reports in the media, in the western media, that russia was even planning to invade this country and it was going to invade to capture crimea. they have a naval base in crimea to the south in the black sea and i think russia is trying to dial back that speculation. that said, there is still very much an anti-ukraine sentiment in the russian media. the moscow staet run press is not encouraged by what is happening here but at least the kremlin is dialing back from its very harsh statements to hopefully tamp down the reports and rumors that there could be military action. >> richard engel. still on the case in ukraine.

thanks so very much. >> if i find him, i'll call in. >> if you see yanukovych, give us a call. thanks. >> i'll give you a call. >> and ukraine of course and vladimir putin a big topic here tomorrow when we're going to start broadcasting live from the state department exclusively with secretary of state john kerry. we'll be talking to secretary kerry about the relations with putin and syria and iran and a lot more at 12 noon fon "andrea mitchell reports." purina dog chow light & healthy is a deliciously tender and crunchy kibble blend. with 20% fewer calories than purina dog chow. isn't it time you discovered the lighter side of dog chow. purina dog chow light & healthy. but something about spending this time together -- sailing past ancient glaciers in alaska -- makes you realize how old time is and how short life is. she can take all the time she wants.

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the white house seems to be waving the white flag of surrender under more than five years of this administration, instead of declaring this economy to be a minimum wage economy, i think america can do

better. >> one second. until a few moments ago we were going down a pretty cooperative road. i don't know what the heck was a reference to white flag when it comes to people making $404 a week. that's the most insane statement i've ever heard quite frankly. let's be very clear that we've had a great meeting and we didn't go down that road and it just started again and we didn't start it. thank you. >> vermont governor was right there to witness that exchange monday afternoon and chairs the governors association. thank you very much for being with us today. you were amused by the outbreak of partisanship right there on the doorstep of the white house. did that reflect the conversations that took place behind the doors with the president and the other governors? >> not at all. i think the only area we disagree with the republicans

governors all weekend was on minimum wage. we want to raise it, they don't as does the president. the nga is a nonpartisan organization. the difference between governors and congress folks is we've got to make decisions and get things done. we agreed unanimously to try and keep the pentagon from cutting the national guard at a time when governors need them more than ever. we agreed on ways to reduce the cost of health care to grow jobs and economic opportunities. we agreed on the challenge of oepiate addiction. there was a lot of agreement and that one conversation was the only partisan exchange i heard all weekend. >> speaking of opiate addiction, you made heroin addiction and growing crisis of heroin abuse one of your key factors in the state of address. what is going on in vermont and how do you think the nation needs to address this problem? >> well, andrea, we're all facing this, all 50 states. to put it very -- as bluntly as

i can, when the fda approved ox y connecticut tin. with what i call a rational exuberance and he calls a lack of constraint. what we have to understand, when you take oxy kont in, it cost more to buy oxy contin then it does heroin. heroin addiction is becoming a real challenge. we've always sort of faced it as a nation as a law enforcement problem all alone, leaving it to them to try to fix it. what we're all accepting on a bipartisan basis and there's a lot of consensus about this this weekend, we've got to deal with this as the health care crisis that it is, treat it as a disease and get people into recovery so we can reduce crime

and reduce the number of addicts out there and start to deal with this in a much more comprehensive way. >> how frustrating is it to you that we in the media, everyone, when there's a tragedy such as the death of this remarkable actor, we all focus on it then but then we kind of drop the issue and leave it up to you and states to try to deal with it ton a daily basis? what do you think we as a nation need to do? >> we need to speak out about it and start to deal with it as the health care crisis it. when we think about someone like philip seymour hoffman, we see someone we care about and love and he's gone. our common humanity said what could we have done to help him? i think when many of us think about heroin addicts we don't necessarily bring the same compassion as we do to someone that we know.

what we have to understand about opiate addiction, it knows no partisan lines or income lines, it's getting too many. if we can bring the same compassion and common humanity to all folks addicted out there, we can find better ways to treat it as a disease and get the folks into recovery and back into the job market and stop them from ripping us off so they can feed their habits and have a safer state, certainly safer country, and really give these folks the same kind of humanity we would have given to philip seymour hoffman had we could have. >> just wondering about another issue. unrelated issue but there's a big decision in arizona that governor brewer is going to have to face before saturday. and that's whether to sign or veto this unprecedented law that permits businesses to discriminate against gays and lesbians by not serving them.

it's hard to figure out how they would determine whom to serve or whom not to serve, but do you have any conversation with her or the other governors at your meetings about this? >> you know, i spoke with governor brewer over the weekend and didn't speak with her about this. she should veto that bill plain and simple. she has state senators that are asking her to veto it. the republican party will continue to lose elections if they continue to alienate gays and lesbians and women and young voters and immigrants, the foeksz they constantly seem to not embrace. we are one country. i happen to be the governor that sponsored the first marriage equality bill in the country that passed marriage equality because it was the right thing to do not because judges told us to do it. when we invented civil unions here in vermont, folks thought we were crazy, let's be honest about this. now 17 states have embraced marriage equality with little

fanfare in the last few states that did it. this is the wave of the future, letting folks love each other and commitment to each other for a lifetime because they care about each other is going to be the standard for marriage in this country. if arizona let's that law go into place, they are going to alienate hundreds and hundreds and thousands of arizona folks who are working hard in that state to create jobs as wells the other states will look at them and say what's going on in arizona? i think the days of discrimination are over and i really hope that governor brewer does the right thing. >> thank you so much. vermont leading the way, governor shumlin, thanks. >> "saturday night live" veteran seth myers had john kerry rooting for him last night as he debuted on late night. the secretary of state tweelted this picture of seth myers playing kerry during his failed 2004 presidential campaign, with the message good luck tonight, you've come a long way since

2004. wish my hair was still this dark. con grats. myers former weekend update partner amy poehler helped him launch the new show along with joe biden who took heat for what seth called his favorite performance by the vp at the state of the union. >> so many -- >> the president of the senate big time guy like me, i walked the senate over to the house and they announce us. we go in as we walk over a senior senator said look, joe, i know you and barack are friends, don't stand up every thing he says. all right, then i counted, 17 times this particular senator stood up in front of the president. so i went like this -- to point to him. talk about a suck up, he was out there telling me don't stand up -- first guy up. explaining my moderate to severe chronic plaque psoriasis

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former president george w. bush is getting back into the public eye promoting a new initiative to integrate vet vans back into civilian life and workforce. it's an issue that needs addresses. and bush is teaming up with the government with private companies and universities and non-profits. the president along with jacob wood, spoke to the challenges this week. >> we've got a problem. too many vets are unemployed. and there's what we call a civilian military divide. >> there's an opportunity for team rubicon to provide veterans with that sense of purpose they had while they had the uniform on. >> my spirit is always uplifted when i visit with vets. we have a society incredibly comfort and too many people

saying woe is me, not our veteran community. they say what can i do to continue to serve? >> joining me now is jacob wood, a veteran of the iraq and afghanistan wars, responding to disasters in the u.s. and around the world. jacob, tell me about your work with george w. bush, he's been very discreet in what he's doing. but tell me about his attitude and his initiative with you. >> truthfully our work with president bush is just now started. he has stayed out of the limelight since leaving the presidency and recently in the last week did he announce his initiative at the bush institute. the focus of that in partnering with private institutions and private non-profits is to conduct some really robust research into what's working well and what isn't working and how organizations can better be

effective as they are looking to help bridge this military civil divide. and what it is we can do better to make sure our veterans are coming home and reintegrating effectively. >> as an organization, team rubicon is focused on responding to disasters and providing military veterans with three things they often lose when they get out of the service, the sense of purpose and sense of community and that sense of identity that they had so strongly when they were wearing the uniform. we think that's a foundation for healthy transition and that can help to lead to jobs and education and other issues veterans fact. >> how does it work in a practical sense? >> to be quite frank, veterans are looking to continue to serve their communities. and they are just really looking for an opportunity that excites them, imagine being an 18-year-old that goes and joins the army and serves to tours in iraq and afghanistan and comes home and maybe gets a job as a mechanic or maybe going to the university of nebraska.

it's a sharp contrast to the life he had just lived for four years. how do you provide that same sense of purpose and that sim community that he had when he was in. we think we can do tha by organizing and training and deploying veterans for response to national disasters. you'll see in the clips here that whether it's moore, oklahoma or hurricane sandy or the typhoon in the philippines, there's an opportunity for veterans to use the schools they learned in the military to help people in desperate need. >> do you think this could be one remedy for the scourge of ptsd? >> there's no single remedy. this is a very complex issue. and i think that it's going to take an all encompassing approach. part of that is going to be having a good job and getting medical attention or gettinging in to talk to a trained therapist. part of this and this is often lost, is rebuilding that sense of community that peer support network that they have and helping to identify a purpose in the second phase of life.

that's where team rubicon can fit in. thank you for your service that continues to this day. thank you very much. great to see you. we look forward to following up with you. >> thanks for having me. >> and in ohio, following up on another tragic story, ohio's governor john casic presented courage medals to the three young women that survived years of being hostage in that cleveland house. they received a standing ovation as governor casic presented them with the award during his annual state of the state speech. >> no one rescued them. they rescued themselves. first by staying strong and by sticking together and then by literally breaking out into freedom. [ female announcer ] skin looking tired?

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until this weekend until saturday to decide whether to veto a landmark state law that would permit discrimination against gays and lesbians. no one has explained whether a business could decide whether a person is gay or lesbian, but that's another matter. both u.s. senators from the state oppose the bill. both republicans. as does the arizona host super bowl committee. the governor is flying back from washington today and going to meet with players on both sides of the issue tomorrow. joining me now, ns nbc analyst eugene robinson and editorial columnist ruth marcus. forgive my cold. i'm having a hard time today just talking. this law, i mean, where do you begin? >> i don't know where to begin. it's outrageous on its face. one would get -- you're the lawyer, but -- you went to harvard law school -- >> don't out me there, gene.

>> i'm sorry, but you do know this stuff. it seems to me that a layman on constitutional law on its face and so counter the way society is moving. it's the sort of last ditch sort of measure that is frankly outrageous. >> it was passed by the state legislature based on so-called religious principles by those supporters of it that florists and caterers didn't want to have to be required to do same sex weddings. >> they didn't want to be required to celebrate same sex weddings much as they did have to be required to celebrate interracial weddings. and very apt ananalogy. i think the most striking is something you mentioned, that the state's two republican senators not exactly flaming liberals -- >> neither one. >> are opposed to this law, do

not want to see it enacted. society has changed. i think there's a very important question that we need to address and constitutional question that has to do with individual religious liberty and there are -- i'm not going to call it legitimate but there are sincere religious objections to same-sex marriage. it's important to understand that as individuals we have the constitutional right to believe whatever we want to believe. but corporations, ability to discriminate, we see this in the supreme court case about the con tra septemberive mandate. i don't think of corporations as having religious beliefs and i think that's where this falls apart. as much as a restaurant can't refuse to serve african-americans and we would never argue that -- >> public accommodations and i think that principle is established. >> the attorney general spoke

today about where the federal government will step in in different cases. here's a bit of eric holder today. >> i believe we must be suspicious of legal classifications based solely on sexual orientation. and we must endeavor in all of our efforts to uphold and advance the values that once led our forebearers to declare that all are created equal and entitled to equal opportunity. this bedrock principle is immutable, it is timeless and goes to the very heart of what this country has always stood for even though centuries of advancement in civil rights have shown, our understanding of it evolves over time. >> there he's talking about gay marriage and where the federal government will step in to go against bans at the state level. the arizona law is not a law yet because she has neither signed or vetoed it but not ripe for discussion by eric holder. but one presumes that the federal government would be very aggressive. >> would be aggressively against this.

and on the gay marriage issue, attorney general holder as i understand him to say, he reminded state attorneys general if you think these laws are unconstitutional, you don't have to defend them and if you decide not to defend them we've got your back. >> i think it's a really complicated issue about what state attorneys should do in defending -- in standing up for state laws and in particular provisions of state constitutions we just saw it in virginia where the attorney general decided he couldn't support the constitutional amendment which he had voted for previously. now, when you agree with this position, it seems like a no brainer but i think we want to be very careful not to be in a position where attorneys general whose attituded we don't necessarily agree with are getting to pick and choose, either state attorneys general or federal attorneys general, which duly enacted laws they are going to support. >> cuccinelli was in my state,

i'm not sure i would want him deciding when laws. >> the country has moved in a very different direction. it has been dramatic since joe biden first on "meet the press" cracked the door open and the white house finally came through, this evolution, as it were of where the president was on this issue. and now the country has moved. state after state to see a law like this, doesn't it feel like a throwback -- >> it feels like a throwback. if you look at the history, we all lived through the civil rights movement or part of it and things move forward and sometimes there are forces pulling the other way and we know which way the arc is bending, i thing. but there will be some reverses and setbacks. >> i do think there's a difference between to play devil's advocate for a moment, most people or certainly a majority in polls support individual liberties to make decisions about who they want to

marry. but whether you as a florist or as a caterer are then required to celebrate that, may strike people differently. you need to think it through. i'm not advocating this. but it is a little bit of a different issue. >> complicated stuff. we'll see what happens. >> yeah. >> thank you very much. >> thank you. >> great to see you. thanks for being with us today. as i mentioned earlier, a programming note to share, secretary of state kerry will be with me live for an extended one on one interview live from the state department tomorrow at 12 noon -- 12:00 eastern right here on andrea mitchell reports. [ male announcer ] these days, a small business can save by sharing.

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it be linked to new sanctions in iran. this just happened yesterday. senator kirsten gillibrand has been leaving the charge on the issue. holding a hearing again tomorrow. how frustrating is it to you that you don't have a floor debate on this issue a year into your examination of the proliferation, increase in cases of sexual assault in the military? >> well, of course, andrea, it's disappointing, but the survivors of sexual assault deserve a vote. they've been walking the halls of congress for almost a year now and they are the ones disappointed and need to have a vote on this issue more than anyone else. i'm hopeful we will get our vote in the next few weeks. >> the tieing this to the iran sanctions vote, which is a nonstarter and something that the administration has fought against having any vote on iran sanctions, what possibly is the connection between a vote on iran sanctions and a debate on sexual assault in the military? >> there's no connection.

it's just another procedural delay, which is extremely disappointing. our men and women who serve in the military deserve a vote. they have sacrificed so much and we should at least be able to show them that even though the deck is stacked against them within the military, it's not stacked against them in the u.s. senate. we need to have a vote. >> you were up against fierce opposition and chairman of the armed services committee, carl levin and claire mccaskill who do not want to follow your lead on taking the prosecution from military prosecutors. what are your best arguments on this as you try to marshall votes? >> we have more than half of the senate in agreement that this is a reform that's needed. if you listen to the victims and survivors, they will tell you the reason why only one of ten crimes are even reported because they don't trust the chain of command. that breach of trust has been broken and even head of the marines has said the reason why a female won't report, they don't trust us, don't trust the

chain of command will do anything. we should reform the system in a way that creates accountability and makes sure justice is possible. that's how we see more prosecutions and more convictions and change the culture within the military. >> tell me about the victims survivors who are going to be testifying at your hearing tomorrow? >> tomorrow's hearing is unfortunately about a serious issue of suicide. the suicide rate among sexual assault survivors is too high. what we have to look at is why are men and women who are sexually assaulted not getting the services that they need, the mental health services and health care services that they need? even the v a's own website says the way we handle these cases is undermining the recovery and exacerbating post-traumatic stress disorder. we have to be able to find out what's causing the suicides and how do we prevent them and how do we reform the system to care for men and women better.

again, only one out of ten cases are being reported, that means only one out of ten does the victim have a hope of getting mental health services that they need. if it goes untreated, it can lead to unfortunately suicide. the suicide rate today, 22 suicides every single day. men and women, brave men and women in our military committing suicide because they see no way out. that has to stop. >> that's an as tounding number. i want to ask you though because the military is clearly on the defensive after all of the exposure of this issue, and there's one case in particular, the case of jeffrey sinclair accused of a sexual assault, the lead prosecutor quit that case. and according to the defense at least, he quit abruptly because he was being pressured in a case that involved consensual sex not sexual assault. is there say risk there are cases being mishandled because the pentagon is trying to play

up a high profile case such as this? >> i think there's a lot of evidence of cases being mishandled. to be honest, i'm not interested in an innocent soldier going to jail anymore than i'm interested in a guilty perpetrator going free. that's why this reform is so necessary. we need an objective trained prosecutor making these decisions about whether a case should go forward and not politics and not the discretion of a senior officer or commander who may like the perpetrator or victim who may value the perpetrator more than the victim. that discretion has no place when serious crime has been committed. it should be decided on merits. is there evidence a serious crime has been committed and have someone trained making that decision. until you remove the bias and until you remove the the conflicts of interest where a commander may have more interest in shoving something under the rug than seeing it go forward. that bias has to be removed from the system so we have that measure of justice that these

men and women so deeply deserve. >> senator gillibrand, thank you so much. thanks for helping us launch our noon show. we'll cover the hearing tomorrow. >> my pleasure. >> stay with us, now at our new 12:00 time right here on msnbc. ♪ humans -- we are beautifully imperfect creatures, living in an imperfect world. that's why liberty mutual insurance has your back,

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we'll also be following up on news we broke yesterday right here on our show on the anti-gay rights bill in arizona that jan brewer, the governor of the state is considering this week. we have big voices from politics and business and even entertainment weighing in. and bill clinton is wielding his star power in kentucky to try to topple mitch mcconnell. we explain why it matters to you. plus, we'll have some of your responses to our call to action. stay with us. it's got 1080p video, three times zoom, and a twenty-megapixel sensor. it's got the brightest display, so i can see what i'm shooting -- even outdoors, and 4 mics that capture incredible sound. plus, it has apps like vine -- and free cloud storage. my new lumia icon is so great, even our wipeouts look amazing. ♪ honestly, i want to see you be brave ♪ ♪ kand i don't have time foris morunreliable companies.b

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that will be here for you now -- and down the road. i have a lifetime of experience. so i know how important that is. starts with freshly-made pasta, and 100% real cheddar cheese. but what makes stouffer's mac n' cheese best of all. that moment you enjoy it at home. stouffer's. made with care for you or your family. hello and welcome to "ronan farrow." today we have breaking news on the withdrawal of american troops from afghanistan. we've got a struggle between religion and rights in arizona fueled by little news we broke on this show yesterday. and we've got a political dynasty reentering the fray on the campaign tra