field holding a white flag. holding a pre-arranged signal of a peaceful exchange. american special forces arrived in a black hawk helicopter. there are brief hand shakes. bergdahl is frisked. the handoff complete. back home, a full-blown controversy about why the white house didn't notify congress a month in advance as the law requires. >> this was an operation, i think as everyone recognizes, that had to be very closely held. only very, very few people knew about this operation. >> i strongly believe that we should have been consulted, that the law should have been followed, and i very much regret that that was not the case.

>> run after after yesterday's razor close primary. all signs point to a likely round two in the mississippi mud fight. >> this is a historic moment in this state's history. and because of your hard work, because of your dedication, we sit here tonight leading a 42-year incumbent. >> and a symbol of courage, on this day in 19889, a lone protester in tiananmen square, becoming one of the most iconic images of the 20th century. now a quarter century later, what the next generation is learning from this horrific chapter in history.

good day, everyone, i'm andrea mitchell in washington. extraordinary images today. the release of sergeant bowe bergdahl on video released now by the taliban itself. nbc's chief pentagon correspondent joining me now. you see that bergdahl is sitting in a pickup truck first prior to his release. he's then escorted to an american helicopter. there's a white flag waving in the wind. u.s. soldiers, when they see bergdahl, they fly in in that blackhawk. then he and his taliban escort go forward, as you see toward the helicopter. which then letifts off after a tense encounter with the enemy. we're being very careful, we're just going to follow this translation, but a couple of interesting points to ask you about. the taliban say that on the narration that it was agreed that only three people, bergdahl

and two taliban escorts, would approach the u.s. helicopter, but that they had 18 armed militants in the area surrounding hill tops. and also that the u.s. asked them to carry a green light when they arrived in the meeting place to signal they were friendlies, i guess. but the americans were told it was difficult to arrange a green light in that area so instead they displayed a white flag by agreement. tell me what was probably going down, what you're hearing from pentagon sources about this exchange. >> even before we saw this video, andrea, defense sources told us that this was heavily scripted for security reasons. each side had a script. if one side didn't say exactly what was supposed to be said, the whole mission would have been called off. even before that helicopter put down. and you talk about the -- there were some 18 heavily armed taliban in that region on the hillsides. the u.s. military had three dozen special operations forces

poised in that same area, out of sight. they also had attack helicopters in the air that were keeping a safe distance, but could have responded immediately as well as an armed drone. so the u.s. military was pretty much prepared for any possible contingency. and fortunately, and you hear this said by dod and even hagel's people there in europe, that this went off safely, without a shot fired. so there was fear that this could explode, and all just disintegrate and end up in a gun battle. it didn't, fortunately. >> nick, this has now exploded, as you know, in a political battle over the failure to notify, the arguments back and forth. one of the issues is, what susan rice said about his health being endangered, they had to move quickly. he does look fairly healthy.

as dianne feinstein said after their meeting in the senate intelligence yesterday and they'll have a fuller briefing later today, that he was perhaps undernourished but not malnourished. >> when i saw that video, he looks in pretty good physical condition. now, what his condition is psychologically, nobody's going to know until they finally get -- and the doctors at landstuhl, germany, are now trying to figure that out. and it's one of the things they're doing, trying to -- physical and psychological treatment there at landstuhl before he heads back to the united states. and in terms of what dianne feinstein said about his physical condition, she also referred to december. and it was in december when some people within the pentagon and administration were leaking that they had a proof of life video which showed bowe bergdahl in

failing health. but if you listen to senator feinstein, she says she has no evidence that his health was in danger. >> we've got a statement now from someone saying now that sergeant bergdahl is back, we must ensure his health is taken care of and he's properly reintegrated. we will conduct a thorough and complete review of the circumstances surrounding his capture. of course, the army chief of staff. nick, we know there will be an inquiry into whether to have an investigation. were they somewhat taken aback as the white house was over the controversy that erupted over this? what the white house thought on saturday afternoon was going to be a celebrated kicked off by the rose garden moment with the parents. >> not at all. the senior defense and military officials were aware from the very beginning, shortly after he was -- disappeared from his base

five years ago, that this was a controversial issue, that soldiers were upset that one of their own would abandon their post in a war zone, which to many is probably the most serious offense that a soldier could do. >> mick, if the pentagon wasn't surprised, why was the white house so taken aback? because i can assure you from chuck todd's reporting and other reporting, mine as well, they had no expectation that the price paid for bergdahl was going to become so controversial, the five taliban. >> people here are confused about that, because the record was clear, there was very aggressive and frequent reporting, media reports about bowe bergdahl and the suspicions, and the claims, about how he left the base, and how he then was taken into custody, or captured by the

taliban. so i think if anybody at the white house would have done google, sergeant bowe bergdahl, it would have jumped right up at them. there's no explanation for why they didn't know this. >> thanks so much. thanks for being there. >> you bet. >> the decision to trade sergeant bergdahl for five high-ranking taliban members set off a firestorm on capitol hill. among those leading the charge against the way the white house has handled this, congressman, thank you for joining us. first of all, dianne feinstein said she got, quote, an apology from the white house. then the white house pushed back and said it wasn't really an apology, just an explanation to those who had not been called. did you get a similar call yesterday trying to set things right? >> i have not. >> what do you want to hear from the white house, and what are your objections to their argument, that they had to move quickly, that they had to worry about the potential for leaks and that there was no time to notify the committees? >> again, this isn't about

people getting their feelings hurt, this is about a significant policy that the law requires congress, including congress and the relevant committees. there's a way to keep this to a very small number of members. believe me, this is a sensitive thing. but the information that my committee, dianne feinstein's committees and get on a daily basis is so much more sensitive than this. none of that carries water for me. again, now we have to worry about, now we'll have to try to mitigate the problems of this. so the taliban has used this certainly as a propaganda win. we know that these individuals can talk to the taliban when they're in qatar. we know qatar has a bad track record when it comes to keeping detainees from gitmo in qatar. we've got a lot of problems now we're going to have to work through in order to make sure that we don't have a price on our head of not only our soldiers in the field in afghanistan, but our diplomats

in dangerous places around the world as well. >> congressman, chuck hagel, the defense secretary spoke today about this, and defended the failure to notify congress in advance. >> this was an operation, i think as everyone recognizes, that had to be very closely held. only very, very few people knew about this operation. we did not want to jeopardize any leaks. we couldn't afford any leaks anywhere. >> now, i know the audio might be a little bit difficult for you. he was on his plane. he said they couldn't jeopardize the operation. they couldn't take the possibility, or the possibility of any leaks anywhere that could jeopardize the operation. your response to that? >> well, again, that's ridiculous on the front. the law requires 30-day notification on the detainee

portion for any transfer out of gitmo, number one. so that doesn't hold any water. and number two, the reason you have the responsibility, legal responsibility to keep congress currently informed is because these policies impact the legislature as much as they do the executive branch. and that's why you have these oversight, this check-and-balance in the system for this very reason. again, when you could bring the chairman, me, and five, six months away from the osama bin laden raid to go over all the evidence, all the updates, including briefings on how the raid would work, when the raid was likely to happen, including a notification the raid was beginning within 24 hours, and then afterward, that doesn't even make sense they would say there's no way they would jeopardize leaks. the problem is, in 2011, they came to congress and said, here's what we want to do, in a very strong bipartisan way, everybody said this is a terrible idea. you break the precedent of the united states not negotiating with terrorists, the haqqani

network. you're going to risk soldiers in the field possibly. who are still in afghanistan. they can go back to the battlefield within 12 months, that's a huge problem. i think they decided, you know, that part's really hard, we'll just avoid the law. the obama administration asked the obama administration if the obama administration had to follow the law, and the obama administration decided, no, we don't have to follow the law, let's do what we want. this is a dangerous precedent for the reasons we cited about the diplomats concerned about having a price tag on their head in dangerous places around the world as well as the soldiers in the field. >> let me ask you a question that some former intelligence operatives and others in the administration currently are suggesting. which is also that mullah omar's statements coming out of the shadows at this moment, and the fact that it was clearly haqqani network and that he was clearly held for five years, most likely in pakistan, what does that tell

you about the possibility, the question, i'm asking, is it possible that the isi, that pakistan's intelligence knew about this the way they likely knew about bin laden's hiding place? >> well, the isi that operates in the tribal areas has had problems in the past. we know that for sure. information that was shared by the united states with the pakistani government and subsequently the isi was disclosed to both the taliban, the haqqani network and others, all across the tribal region, the fatah of pakistan. so they've had this long-term relationship in the area. so we have good concrete facts of why we should be concerned about the fact that did they or did they not know. again, my argument early on is, we need to continue our talks with pakistan, the government of pakistan to work for the release of sergeant bergdahl, because i do believe that they would have had some sphere of influence in those decisions.

and so, again, in pakistan, we've had problems with the isi in the past. i think that there's probably open-there's a good probability that they may have had information better than they were willing to share about his location, and who exactly by name was holding him. >> briefly, would it make a difference to you, would the release be less controversial to you if there weren't so many questions about sergeant bergdahl and his own background and how he got captured? >> no. and this is -- these are the hard choices you have to make. i believe there were other ways, this notion that it was either now or never is not right. and that's the way this administration deals with every problem. you're either for their position or you're for thermal nuclear war. there's a lot of interim steps that we could have done, to pursue the release of sergeant bergdahl, without trading -- by the way, somebody the taliban has been using for years as a

propaganda tool for recruiting. one of their folks released was a propaganda recruiting tool for years. that's why this invigorates the taliban in a way that is very concerning to me. remember, in the next six months we're going to drop 22,000 troops, that means all the command energy goes to getting people out, not necessarily protecting our folks. taliban feels empowered, 12 months from now they'll get one of their serious commanders on the battlefield. awful decision, terrible decision. even if stgt bergdahl, they find out he didn't desert or do all of those other things, i still think this was a terrible decision to negotiate with terrorists, and then release five individuals who, by the way, believe it's okay for girls not to learn how to read. >> thank you very much. >> thank you. president obama tried to reassure poland of america's unbreakable commitment to eastern europe, holding poland's

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>> tea party favorite chris mcdaniel last night exuding confidence after his political battle with mississippi congressman in a narrow mcdaniel lead. likely three-week runoff that favors the challenger. how does the 36-year-old senate veteran look for a battle? he did not speak to his supporters last night. usa today's susan page, and former republican chairman, and "washington post" national political reporter, karen, thanks very much. susan, first to you. this matchup seems like an uneven matchup. it was a three-way race. now it is most likely a two-way runoff. >> even though the two candidates were basically tied last night, we know historically challengers do better in runoffs against incumbents. they're likely to pick up votes who were lost elsewhere.

also, the energy with mcdaniels, it's going to be hard to get voters to go off to the runoff of a primary. tea party people are all fired up for chris mcdaniel. i think this is a very tough race ahead. >> you have a former republican party chairman, hailey barber, who is the former governor of mississippi. >> right. >> and that whole mississippi republican structure, the establishment structure, don't they have a vested interest in trying to save thad cochran? >> sure they do. but that ship's left. i think the numbers last night prove that. i think you're going to find that the response is going to be a little bit tepid between now and the primary. as susan noted, the base of the party, tea party activists see the blood in the water and they're going to close the circle in three weeks. there will be some level of dollars put into the race. but you will likely not see the same level of energy.

i think everyone at least in this town kind of sees the light is dimming on this effort by cochran. now, anything can happen in politics. there's still an investigation out there on the scandal related to the senator's wife, on pictures about his wife in her nursing home. we'll see where that goes over the next three weeks. a day in politics is a lifetime, as you know. but i think by all estimates, what susan said is exactly how this is going to play out. >> you've got two republicans fighting in a runoff that would seem to advantage the democratic candidate, but this is mississippi. >> yeah, the democrats are sort of putting up some smoke here how this could be an opportunity. i think mississippi is the reddest of red states. what's really important about this race is that it has broken the pattern that we have seen in this primary season, where, again and again and again the establishment has triumphed over the insurgents.

this one went differently. >> american crossroads saying they're not going to put in money. >> but again, the tea party groups, and club for growth i'm sure will continue to. >> that actually makes the point i was just making. you know, you've got crossroads already saying, well, i think we'll sort of stay out of this, we don't want to offend anybody. yeah, you're not going to put your money into something that the outcome is not going to be what you want it to be. >> let's switch to the big controversy over bowe bergdahl and the way the administration handled this. karen, you've done some reporting on these signing statements, where george w. bush was criticized heavily by democrats for all these signing statements saying, well, i'm not going to veto this bill, it's a defense bill, i can't veto, but i don't really agree with it, i'm not going to follow it. >> one of the biggest critics of george w. bush for using this power called signing statements to say basically you're going to ignore aspects of the law was then senator and former

constitutional law professor barack obama as he was running for president. and he said that he would not use signing statements the way that george w. bush did. and george w. bush issued, you know, twice as many as all of his predecessors combined in provisions and bills. while barack obama has not issued as many signing statements, i talked to a number of legal experts, and, you know, academics who studied this who says he uses this power in exactly the same manner that george w. bush did. >> and susan, the surprise has been how the white house was really caught on their back feet. on saturday there was all this celebration and it was a moment, and the president being able to celebrate the successful return of an american prisoner of war. and they didn't seem to anticipate how angry the military would be, the former platoon members of sergeant bergdahl. >> it was a moment that lasted about 60 seconds for the

administration. it's not only that they have the democratic chairman and the senate intelligence community, they have questions about the wisdom of the decision itself. and then they have misrepresenting what we think will turn out to be the case with the soldier's service to the country. this is still -- you know, innocent until proven guilty. they failed -- i mean, they said they could have googled his name and come up with serious questions how he happened to be captured by the taliban. it almost goes to a question of the xcompetency of the administration. how could they turn this from a celebration for the country into one that is such a mess. >> i think we have to leave it there. thank you all so very much. susan and michael and karen. friday marks the 70th

anniversary of d-day, a day that would change the course of the war, and, of course, the 20th century. 70 years ago after our troops landed in normandy, there was another important matter at hand, voting. >> yanks, too, have some pressing business to take care of. there's going to be an election in november. each trooper desiring to vote must qualify by mailing home a postcard requesting an absentee ballot, another way to exercise the right of free men to bring victory to all. we asked people a question, how much money do you think you'll need when you retire? then we gave each person a ribbon to show how many years that amount might last. i was trying to, like, pull it a little further. [ woman ] got me to 70 years old. i'm going to have to rethink this thing. it's hard to imagine how much we'll need for a retirement that could last 30 years or more. so maybe we need to approach things differently, if we want to be ready for a longer retirement.

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reformer. tom brokaw was one of the first western broadcasters to get into china and cover the crisis. tom recently explained how he and cameraman tony wasserman came up with a way to get footage despite total blackout by chinese authorities. >> he was on a bicycle and putting a soft drink box on the back, and i said, we're going to put a camera there, right? he said, absolutely. >> it may be unusual. but it's one of the few ways we can show you life in the streets of beijing without getting in trouble with the authorities. >> we took off not knowing if i was going to get shot or whether we could pull this off or not. and i rode behind tony. i was wired up, and we could sync it up later. and to our surprise, no one stopped us. only one chinese bicyclist bicycled up behind tony, reached in the box and tickled the lens and drove away.

>> incredible footage. joining me now from hong kong, thousands are conducting a vigil today. ian, great to see you. that moment with tom is just such a classic of what it was like in the field, trying to get around the censureship in china back 25 years ago. >> reporter: that's right. and of course, even today the chinese communist party are trying to deny it happened, erase it from history. it's not just the big security clampdown you see today, the arrest of activists, the security in tiananmen square and the heavy censureship of the media and internet. china is trying to erase this from history, which is why the events today in hong kong are so important. tens of thousands of people raising their candles high. among the many mainlanders who

wouldn't be able to do this in mainland china, all unified by a determination not to let the memory die, andrea. >> these pictures are remarkable we're seeing on the split screen with you. because hong kong is part of china. i know it has a much more liberal sort of semi separate or sovereign status within china, but that is extraordinary. and the fact that china is also clamping down on the lines, not just the controversies with google, but they really are trying to stop all memory, as you put it, of what happened 25 years ago. >> reporter: that's right, andrea. sometimes they've got the limit on the line. the tank man, which replaced the tanks with a bunch of big yellow ducks, even that was barred from

the internet, the words "yellow duck" could no longer be used in chinese search engines. there's a museum that recently opened up here in hong kong commemorating the event, trying to keep the memories alive. it's tiny, up a side street, opened recently. and contrast that with the massive national museum that's on the edge of tiananmen square. it's huge. they claim it has more floor space than any mum museum in the world. you see the cowboy hat that he had from the u.s., but you won't see any reference at all to the crackdown that the leader ordered killing all those people, andrea. >> so, it's just really fascinating in -- you spent so much time in china, spent some time over the years in china. even as we talk about china's extraordinary economy, and all of the other changes in china, there's almost still complete

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it reminds me we don't have to do this alone. it's so much better to have some backup and to do it together because we all face similar challenges. the meetings keep me focused and motivated. and i have a newfound determination that i'm really proud of. [ female announcer ] jumpstart your summer and start losing weight right away. join for free. try meetings, do it online or both. hurry, offer ends june 7th. weight watchers. because it works. the complicated circumstances surrounding sergeant bergdahl's capture and the administration's decision to free him in exchange for five high-level taliban militants without prior notice to congress all combined to produce a political storm. mike rogers had this to say on our show just moments ago. >> the taliban has used this certainly as a prop gaaganda wi. they can talk to the taliban in qatar.

qatar has a bad track record when it comes to keeping detainees from gitmo in qatar. there are a lot of problems we need to work through to make sure we don't have a price on our head of not only our soldiers in the field in afghanistan, but our diplomats as well around the world in dangerous places. >> joining me now are two people with unique perspective on all of this. from los angeles, gail, a jurnlist, author and senior fellow on the council of foreign relations working in afghanistan when sergeant bergdahl was taken prisoner, and afghanistan combat veteran, wes morris. welcome to you both. wes, let's talk about the military and the response i was talking to jim earlier who said it was no mystery for five years there's been a lot of talk from his platoon members and others about the circumstances, the controversial circumstances of his departure from post. >> you're absolutely right. this wasn't much of a mystery. people knew there was always

word about some back story behind this, that was somewhere beneath the service. the truth is that, you know, the military community is excited about the idea of his return, because, you know, we believe in the idea that if a soldier is inside of enemy hands, that we know that our military and our political structure will do everything that it takes to bring us back home. but that still doesn't excuse or in any way dismiss the idea that the circumstances behind his capture do need to be evaluated and do need to be investigated. >> and gail, having lived and worked in afghanistan, as we see this drawdown, do you think it's true that this was the only way to get him out, with a high stakes trade like this? there was no ekxtraction possibility? >> i think there are a lot of conversations going on, asking exactly that. what i think is so striking about the whole conversation is less than 1% of this country has fought 13 years of its war, and

somehow we all seem to be slightly taken offguard when people who just celebrated memorial day without their loved ones at home, had a really emotional reaction to the fact that it is wonderful that he is home. but we don't know all the answers to what has happened. and i do think it brings a lot of questions about exactly how close america is to this war that we've been fighting, and how distant so many of us feel from the fact that this war actually is still going on. almost as if it takes the bergdahl case for us to remember that america is at war. >> and in fact, some of the positives coming out of this, it's been suggested, is that perhaps this interaction with the taliban, the communications, the advance planning we saw from the video earlier how precisely it was orchestrated, could lead to reconciliation talks with the next afghan president. wes, how likely is that? we know that hamid karzai shot everything down, but there could be a different outcome after these elections are over.

>> well, i think both sides are going to realize there is a bit of politics that will come as the new administration comes in, as the in you afghan administration comes in and starts to realize that the post-afghan war in afghanistan is not just going to be something that they'll have to think heavily about, but also the regional partners and also the united states. but at the same time, even when you watch how the transfer happened, i think there is a glimmer of light and hope that comes along with it. one thing this has also done is shown how complicated this transition could and probably will be as well. >> gail, what about qatar and its role in all this? the defense from the white house is, we were not negotiating with terrorists, we were working with qatar, the intermediary, and they have assured us they will not let them get back to the battlefield, at least for a year. how much control will qatar assert over them is this. >> that's a very good question. the taliban opened the office and then closed it. apparently the office is still

operating in some way for the taliban, enough of an office was open that they could have these conversations. i think the idea always was that this could be an opening to more conversations. but now, given the fact that we are on the way out, some analysts called this much more cleanup than actual, you know, opening to discussions. i think we're going to have to see whether this leads to anything. you know, the dni said basically about 30% of folks who have been released have returned to the battlefield, and the president said yesterday that if that happens, we will be in a position to go after these folks again. but i think, again, what is the cost of going after them? those are real people with real lives and real families who will have to go out every night on those missions to find these folks again. and i think that's why we're having such a heated conversation about what this all means. >> bottom line, wes moore, as a former fighter in afghanistan, someone in command, how do the troops do you think finally

absorb this? i know it's hard to generalize, but we've seen the bitterness of those who lost loved ones, they claim six died because they were on patrols looking for him. what about in general? do you think that the military communities say, well, at least they went and got him back? >> well, i think in general, the military community, you know, applauds the fact that when someone is behind enmy lines, captured by an enemy, they are not forgotten. i think what happened when the special forces soldiers actually got their hands on sergeant bergdahl and said to him, as reportedly said to him, we didn't forget you, that means something to us. when a person is on a ship and fall off a ship, the first question isn't necessarily how did they fall off, did they jump, or pushed or whatever, the first thing they do is they say, we're going to turn the ship around and pick that person up. the questions have to be answered. to make us, you know, satisfied, but at the same time, the fact that our people are never forgotten when they're in enemy hands does mean something to us. >> wes moore, gail lamond, thank

you so much. thanks for coming in today. and coming up, luking forward to normandy. the director of the new documentary "d day 360" joining me next. he's agreed to give it up. that's today? [ male announcer ] we'll be with him all day as he goes back to taking tylenol. i was okay, but after lunch my knee started to hurt again. and now i've got to take more pills. ♪ yup. another pill stop. can i get my aleve back yet? ♪ for my pain, i want my aleve. ♪ [ male announcer ] look for the easy-open red arthritis cap.

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and after the baby is born. simple is good right now. (anncr vo) innovations that work for you. that's health in numbers. unitedhealthcare. as we approach friday's 70th anniversary of d day, a new documentary is using 21st century technology to better understand one of world war ii's most historic battles. >> new imaging technology will analyze the battlefield for the first time, scanning it forensically above both and below ground, switching between a general's eye view and the perspective of the gi on the front line. >> i can remember thinking that, on that beach, that we were being sacrificed. that's what it feels like, you know. >> ian duncan director of "d day

360" and joins me from london. thank you for being with us. why did you want to use this technology to better understand the veteran forms, safg private ryan and some of the other documentaries don't think it could be any more graphic. >> well, you know, d day is one of those stories that -- it's been a lot of documentaries this year it being the 70th anniversary about d day. it's a story that filmmakers want to go back to over and over again. we wanted to do something new with it. we investigated using this technology which is a way -- i mean, it's used in all sorts of industries, in the mining industry, for instance, to map tunnels and things like that. we wanted to use it to actually map the battlefield, and map it in a new way. in a way that gives you a three-dimensional image, not just above the surface of the battlefield, but actually below

the surface as well. that part of france is absolutely riddled with tunnels and bunkers. and this new form of technology flies right inside those. it's accurate, so this is brand-new work we're doing here. >> it's fascinating stuff. particularly you focus on the exit strip of beach which you say was so critical to the outcome, the successful outcome for the allies. tell me about that. >> yeah, i mean, that particular -- i mean, d day was about landing 150,000 troops on five beaches. we actually concentrated on landing on omaha beach, in particular this one exit off the beach. it was an important exit, because it had the only paved road off omaha beach. we looked at the people who actually landed there on that beach. they had an almost impossible job. i mean, they were the first people to land in france.

the first infantry to land in france. we followed the story of these individuals through the course of the day. i mean, many of them actually died as soon as they landed. it was a terrible, terrible tale. >> recently our friend and colleague tom brokaw helped show on "meet the press" the george stephens footage, that is so remarkable. the color footage taken by the famous director george stephens, found by the director's son, that is remarkable. it shows us -- we're so used to the black and white, but that shows us where he and four other directors, william wilder and others, the predecessors, they enlisted and went and actually shot it in color. and it was in george stephens jr.'s attic. and it's been restored. that's another unique image. >> it's amazing, yeah. >> the laser technology. what does color do to tell us what that day was like?

>> color, well, i think color actually is -- it makes it so immediate. it doesn't look like you're looking at library film, does it. it's absolutely incredible. that's what we were trying to do, use technology that a younger audience might be familiar with. you know, from, i don't know, from computer games and things like that. so it would feel real and immediate to them, too. i think part of the problem with archive film, it can feel quite distant. you're right, though, that stephens footage is incredible. >> well, ian duncan, such a pleasure. thank you so much. the documentary is streaming on the pbs website. we'll link to it. thanks for helping to embrace this history, and bring it to a new generation. >> thank you. and which political story will be making headlines in the next 24 hours? that's next, right here on "andrea mitchell reports." that's why i got my surface. it's great for watching game film and drawing up plays. it's got onenote, so i can stay on top of my to-do list, which has been absolutely absurd since the big game.

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welcome back. susan page is back with us. susan, we're talking about politics, but we're talking

about diplomacy. the president has now gone from warsaw to brussels, meeting the g-7 without the g-8, vladimir putin, and on to paris tomorrow. it will be midnight in paris before they get finished with their dinners. there's a dinner with president obama and a separate dinner with vladimir putin. >> of course, the united states wants to minimize putin, isolate him. he will not be denied. he will meet with other foreign leaders. he's going to be at the d day celebration. >> he's invited himself to the d-day celebrations, will meet with angela merkel. and he will figure out a way, the president in warsaw said i guess i'll run into him on d day. >> will there be a picture of the two of them. >> stay tuned. that does it for this edition of "andrea mitchell reports." join me live tomorrow from normandy as we celebrate the 70th anniversary of d day. follow the story online, on

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with xerox, you're ready for real business. the tea party making waves from iowa all the way to mississippi. like suddenly everybody's rushing from their house. it may be weeks before republicans will know who their senate candidate will be in mississippi. mcdaniel leads the second longest serving republican in the senate by less than one point. >> i grew up walking beams, canning food, and feeding hogs on our family farm. and yes, i grew up castrating hogs on an iowa farm. >> a grim anniversary in beijing. 25 years ago, china's army used group force to end a massive protests in tiananmen square. since then china has done their best to erase it from their history books. we've seen the questions raised about sergeant bergdahl.

>> the fact that he was a dancer, a ballerina, what does that mean? >> i'm sick of people saying we always went after deserters. when we got them, we shot them or hanged them. >> he said he was growing his beard because his son was in captivity. your son's out now. you don't have to look like a member of the taliban. are you out of razors? >> i don't want to contradict your hatred of facial hair, but if you gave bob bergdahl a bandanna and duck, you would like him just fine. who is sergeant bowe bergdahl? that question is now at the heart of a sweeping political fight for how america treats its soldiers and how it treats some of its enemies. a new video released by the taliban is adding fuel to that fire. video shows the handoff of 28-year-old sergeant bergdahl waiting in a pickup truck for the u.s. military