welcome back to "morning joe." time to talk about what we learned today. special day today. we have with us, mrs. westchester, usa. what did you learn today? >> middle-aged westchester. i don't like pageants but i really like mia a lot. >> thank you. >> i'm glad you won. nice to meet you. joe, if it is way too early what time is it? see, i can be nice. >> you sure can. it is "morning joe." not to donald. stick around. it is time for chuck todd and "the daily orun-down." poll the leader. the pullout, future and scramble for power after house majority leader eric cantor announces he is stepping down. who is up and who is down in this game of thrones? musical chairs involved. plus, the impact on immigration legislation. reaction this hour from top

democrat senator dick durbin and one of cantor's fellow virginia republicans. iraq on the brain. after a decadelong war, thousands of american lives lost. many cities in iraq falling. could baghdad be next? does the u.s. have to do something about this? p.o.w. pressure. defense secretary hagel was under fire yesterday as new details emerge about bowe bergdahl's history and mental state. good morning. it is thursday, june 12, 2014. this is "the daily run journdown." a surprise announcement from george h.w. bush who joins an exclusive club today. more on that later in the show. let's get to my first read of the morning. we continue with the fallout over eric cantor. the shock of his primary defeat. now starting to wear off. now republicans are trying to move on. race to replace him in and the leadership is picking up steam. republicans will make hair choice one week from today.

that means seven days packed full of political jockeying and intrigue that could provide a rare show of party unity. or drive the wedge between the establishment and conservatives even deeper. less than 24 hours after becoming the first majority leader in history to lose a primary, eric cantor officially started the clock. >> while i intend to serve out my term as a member of congress in the southern district of virginia, effective july 31, i will be stepping down as majority leader. it is with great humility i do so, knowing the tremendous honor it has been to hold this position. >> there's three names being mentioned most frequently as cantor's successor. first majority whip kevin mccarthy that got cantor's endorsement wednesday. she likely to face off one would have texas republicans. sessions is public with his campaign and made his pitch to reporters less than an hour african tore said he was

stepping down. >> i believe i can do a job. i believe i led our team before. getting members involved, giving the whole team credit, authority and responsibility. >> bottom line, more quickly this gets done the better for mccarthy. nbc learned he has been holding meetings with key allies and said he would make his intentions known very soon. he wants to announce and say he has the votes already. the strategy here for leadership is keeping it in house. don't let it spill out into the public. by all means, don't let this become an election that gets played out in the conservative media. that's because the longer this drags on, more public it is, it could provide an opening for conservatives who are really frustrated with the leadership to voice their displeasure. if mccarthy can't get the votes quickly or seen more of a long-term replacement than a short-term fix, the better the chance of an internal insurrection. while sessions is the only dough clard candidate some conservatives are openly pushing for henserling who they see more in line as the conservative

base. tonight i will pray that jeff hen he hensarling runs. p they want to make this more on a referendum on leadership or more of a litmus test for the members, it will be a whole lot more messier. >> for conservatives across the country, they have been frustrate ad long time. they are looking for a leadership in washington, d.c., that got their power because of the tea party wave and have done very little with it. they are looking for folks that have been focused on conservative principles. the majority leader has a limited power and given to him by the speaker. and so this, i think, should blow away the top. i was one of the few that voted against john boehner. this is a message we need to change out the whole team. >> the cam subpoena one of the few that actually talked publicly about this. but he's not the only member of congress that thinks that way. as a practical matter and race

to replace cantor, it is likely that only sessions or hensarling would run, not both. no matter which congressman runs have the entire 36-member texas delegation on your side does provide a good base to build on. to win a an date only needs a simple majority. keep in mind if mccarthy wins the there will be another election to replace him as whip. and while washington is focus order who replaces eric cantor the bigger implications of course for the republican party and the rest of the country center around tissue of immigration. on wednesday, president obama dismissed the idea of cantor's loss and made tissue too hot to touch. potential 2016 candidates may not feel the fight is worth it. does it leave republicans like jeb bush or marco rubio with a more difficult choice to make? what's interest sing kentucky senator rand paul says the party has painted itself into a corner with the word amnesty. a business call with business

leaders wednesday, paul said people who are opposed to all reform think amnesty means everything. and then other people think that amnesty means another thing. i think some of it is we are trapped in this rhetoric and that we have to get beyond that. pretty much right on that one. definition of amnesty changes depending who uses the word. a few other conservative republicans like senator ted cruz say that the lesson from tuesday's upset in virginia simply is that the conservative wing of the party is alive and well. >> as bad as it is getting, it is getting bad, we are seeing liberty under assault and an administration trampling our constitutional rights, disregarding the rule of law, but as bad as it is getting, it is waking people up. >> joining me now, robert costa, national political reporter for "the washington post." welcome. robert, let me start with you. let's just talk about the nuts and bolts real quick.

hemsarling in or out? >> i think she out. speaking to his allies this morning, it seems like he knows mccarthy has the votes and not interested in a long, brutal fight. >> this is despite this morning an endorsement from "the wall street journal" editorial page. what i have been finding interesting about this kevin mccarthy situation is that nobody seems to love kevin mccarthy. nobody seems to love the idea of putting him in there but it sounds like nobody wants to try to stop him. >> kevin mccarthy has a tom delay-like whip operation p.m. she very well organized in the house. committee chairman like dave camp, hal rogers of kentucky working as whips for him now. on the side lines have you sessions who has no organization and trying to get his name out there. this has enabled mccarthy within the last 24 hours to get from what i hear over 120 votes already on the side ask if not more this morning. >> molly, you have been on the rail covering the conservative

primaries a little bit. you do hear from sort of grassroots conservatives, i don't like any of the washington leadership and so this will look like more of the same today. >> absolutely. one of the story lines of this year so far in the house has been the way john boehner managed to reassert control and reunify his caucus and stop some of the destructive in-fighting that helped bring about such things as the shutdown which were so terrible for the republicans and political terms. and so this is a potentially disruptive event. it is a literally disruptive event. top member of leadership dethrowned like this. it is in boehner's interest and political interests of house republicans to seem as unified as possible and not have another messy fight. that does not help anybody so much as the democrats who would love to paint a picture once again of these republicans who are, you know, being eaten alive by the caucus, conservatives. >> robert is that a message that some house republicans sort of accept which is if kevin mccarthy, message is, hey, guys, this is not the time to have a

public debate? we can have it after the midterms? >> i think that's right. what i'm -- when i'm talking to mccarthy and allies they are making an argument he is the stability candidate. let's move on from this cantor mess, try to have boehner stay, mccarthy ascend and not have too much tumult within the ranks. that's his core argument and not making an ideological case. it is a case of stability. >> molly, let's move to immigration here. the rand falling comments are always fascinating. paul has been -- he wanted to be supportive of the gang of eight but when push came to shove he pulled back and decided i'm not going to do it. i will vote against the bill and have a differentiator there. it is -- is he trying on have it both ways? do you think this is -- you know, i thought his amnesty -- what they have done with the word "amnesty," perverted the definition. >> he has been out there on the trail and talking to conservative audiences in places like iowa and i saw him trying to make the case for himgration reform in both political terms and policy terms.

it hasn't been terribly well received. marco rubio's work on tissue has not been terribly well receive bid the base. it is a tough issue for republicans. i just have been on the trail with lindsey graham. he brings this up in his speeches and does not try to hide the position. he's obviously a very pro-reform. he was part of the gang as well. and he just won a tough primary against, you know, his opponents not well moan but there were six of them and managed to get well over 50% of the vote by going out there and making the case for what he believed and not trying to have it both ways. not trying to be against and for it at the same time which i think is what eric candor did. he was signaling to people like chamber of commerce he wanted to get something done. the same time he is sending mailers to his district saying he is the one that's blocking. >> it you know, with paul, robert, i also took his comments as a reminder, you know, rand paul, if he runs for president, is not simply running to make a point inside of the party. he does want to figure out how to put together a 50% plus one

coalition and win the entire thing. >> that's right. we have seen paul really trying to balance having a tea party legislative record for not really being a proponent in the marco rubio comprehensive immigration reform. will try to do outreach visiting with african-american leaders and visiting with hispanic leaders and seeing him tow the line and find a balance and try to have a message that makes him not seem like a ron paul type but potential nominee. >> let me ask you this. anybody in the house talking about bringing up any immigration bills anymore? or is that totally gone? >> not only sit totally gone, i was outside the republican study committee in the capitol basement yesterday afternoon. one of the major immigration forces in the house came up to me and said, costa, immigration reform is dead. totally dead. comprehensive immigration reform is dead. i think that's the sentiment from a lot on the right within the house. they see cantor's defeat, whether it is right or wrong politically, as a sign if this

year -- is not able to happen, not the political capital to push it forward. >> can't go from 2014. presidential race. we saw how that played in '07 and almost destroyed john mccain kaens dassy. >> he still won the primary. >> after nobody figuresed o fig >> mccain won spit -- despite his position. >> the republican party is paint flood a corner. immigration reform was already dead before this happened. a lot of representatives were looking for ways to get to know and then now they have an excuse to be -- more afraid of the issue than they already were. >> at the same time, you know, the party elders, establishments, chamber of commerce is and so on badly want this done, tom don view saying a month or so, republican party -- may not run a candidate in 2016 and if mother not going to do anything about the issue because it does make the political

equation much more challenging in a national election. >> 75-25 and hispanic vote and forget it. landslide presidential election here into the future. thank you both. you heard it here. hensarling is probably not running. the path is pretty clear for mccarthy. iraq is calling for u.s. help. major cities there are falling tune insurgents. former ambassador negroponte will be here next to explain, what, if anything, the u.s. should or could be doing. first, a look ahead at today's planner. president obama meets with the australian prime minister. the new one. he became a familiar face to those of you that followed the missing malaysian airplane. chris christie will be on "the tonight show" tonight with jimmy fallon. look who is feeling more comfortable stretching his funny legs.

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to the quickly escalating crisis in iraq. a nation under siege amid a pull-blown mill at that point uprising led by some of the very same islamic militants that the u.s. held that day for ten years during the iraq war. right now it seems like the militants have the upper hand. stunning speed. the al qaeda inspired group has taken over multiple cities, including mosul. the second largest city in the country in and tikrit. saddam hussein's hometown. had is a civil war that is beyond the borders here a little bit. the capture of months i wisul a happened in a few days. the i.s.s. rushed in and drove security police from their posts and forces refugees to flee.

there is number on casualties. local leaders say that hundreds of militants, gunmen, have been involved in this fight. they insist they weren't aren't finished and claim baghdad may be next. leaders of isis say they have old scores to settle with the shiite prime minister, al maliki. in response al maliki declared a state of emergency and iraqi government reached out to the obama administration asking the u.s. to consider using drones and air strikes to help them fight back. the u.s. official tells nbc news that those discussions are preliminary and that no active plan sing under way. in the meantime, the state department issued a new travel warning to keep people out of the region. bottom line, this group is trying to create an islamic state that spans borders of iraq and syria. now they found willing allies around the population angry with the government. nbc's chief foreign correspondent richard engel gives you a little bit of the history here.

>> reporter: why is this happening? sunnis ruled iraq for 13 centuries until the u.s. invasion toppled saddam hussein. ushering in a shiite regime. the sunnis want their country back. they hate the shiite government which has excluded them from power and there are no u.s. troops around anymore to stop them. >> in other words, the u.s.-led war that lasted for a decade and cost more than 4,000 american lives, couldn't stop this centuries' old sectarian fight. it only delayed it for a little while. joining me is john negroponte. ambassador, nice to see you, sir. we have in one hand a -- centuries' long civil war that's been taking place in parts of the middle east for a long time. let me ask you this. what's the responsibility -- the responsibility you believe the u.s. to assist al maliki at this

point? >> it is a very serious problem. not only for iraq but for the entire region. and i think that the region has a responsibility as well as the united states. maliki's asked for help. we are rushing military equipment there. i think that we should seriously consider whatever requests he makes of us. >> what can air strikes do? >> well, air strikes -- they are not a panacea, not the answer in and of themselves. there is no substitute. no air strikes or drones drones can substitute for effective action on the ground. >> likelihood of the u.s. actual will you sending troops on the ground, that's less than zero percent chance. that's very likely except for the possibility of people who might man drone strikes or something like that. i would seriously consider that under these circumstances because this is a grave situation and as you pointed out, it spreads beyond the iraq itself and it is into syria already. if these people succeed as they seem to be doing at the moment, this is going to have grave regional implications that extend beyond iraq and syria.

>> and we have been through this with syria which is the folks that -- these folks are fighting assad which in that respect, the united states shares empathize was their need to get rid of assad but don't like this band of people that want to get rid of assad. let me ask you this. p the u.s. had a residual force, negative official -- right now we are going to have -- we could have troops in afghanistan for ten years because we negotiated this bilateral security agreement with them, tried do the same thing with iraq and maliki said no. bush and obama tried it. maliki said no. if there were a residual force of u.s. troops on the ground, about 10,000, which is what the request has been, would we be seeing this? >> i think without it have made a significant difference in terms of training and intelligence, moral support. the fact we have a presence there, i think mr. maliki made a mistake in rejecting the forces.

it is always bet perfect possible after having a large presence in a country to be automobile to leave some kind of force behind when the fighting subsides. >> but -- let me ask you this. would it have only delayed the inevitable? is there an argument between this sunni uprising, would have taken place at some point just -- was a matter of whenever the u.s. left? >> yes, but you have to think about what's the outcome of this going to be? to me the imperative is for the government of iraq, not maliki, not a shia, coalition, the government of iraq, the state of iraq to re-establish the authority over its entire country. it seems to me that's the most urgent matter at this point. anything that can be done by us, by the neighbors, turkey, by the gulf states, all the countries in the persian gulf to help iraq achieve that, i think ought to be the first order of priority. >> look, there is always this -- utopian idea that maybe sunnis, shia, kurds, they all build the coalition government and iraq could be governed in somewhat of a peaceful way.

you have been in the middle of this. is there any way sunnis and shias will ever govern -- >> here's not impossible. that's not an impossible achievement. it will require a coalition of these forces to get -- they have the national assembly had elections. it is going to require political leadership. up until now that has not been forthcoming. but that does not mean it is impossible in the future. maybe these events will help crystallize some sort of action on the part of the iraqi political leadership. >> if you are the president today, advising the president today, what do you have him do? >> i would certainly deal seriously i would -- consider seriously whatever request for assistance, the government of iraq makes. i would consult with all the other reege malfriends we have, turkey, the -- the gulf countries, and so forth as a starter. it is this regional multinational issue and it is not ours alone. and in tend, it is -- >> you would describe this as a regional civil war at this

point? >> it is moving in that direction. that's what has to be stopped. because otherwise, the threat -- if these people succeed in multiple countries, that is going to represent some kind of permanent terrorist threat to the west, to our interests around the world and to ourselves. >> thank you for coming in. >> thank you. up next, a blockbuster corruption trial this sum their has to do with our 50 state virginia. how many of the last ten virginia governor designed as the state's attorney general in order to run for governor? (mother vo) when i was pregnant...

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it is time for our tdr segment. it has been virginia all week. it is not often you hear about a former governor facing prison time. this sill i will. one will be a corruption trial of former governor mcdonnell and his wife. a judge den tide ex-governor's latest plea to dis miss the case and declined to separate the cases. clearing the way for the two to be tried together. that trial date is set to begin july 28. to recount, the mcdonnells are charged in a 14-count federal indictment that alleges they accepted hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of cash and gifts from johnny williams a former ceo of a company called star scientific. mcdonnell does not deny he took the gifts but said there was no quid pro quo, therefore no crime. >> i deeply regret accepting these gifts and loans from mr.

williams, all of he is now have been returned or repaid with interest. i have apologized for my poor judgment and i accept full responsibility for accepting these legal gifts and loans. however, i repeat again emphatically, that i did nothing illegal. >> always hard, though, to prove a quid pro quo. prosecutors say that the mcdonnells helped williams by setting up meetings with local officials and throwing a launch party for one of his products at the governor's mansion. now we are getting more information about exactly what went into the investigation courtesy of state police files that have been turned over to the mcdonnells' attorneys. among other things, they showed the mcdonnells were under investigation as far back as 2012. merely would years before they were charged. remember? he was being vetted for v.p. by romney. if convicted they could serve a long stretch behind bars. 12 of the 14 charges carry 20-year prison terms and the other two could get them up to

30 years each and face fines up to $1 million. the trial is expected to last several weeks. coming up, top democrat senator durbin joins me right after the break. we have a lot to talk about. immigration, guns, among others. ...and a choice. take 4 advil in a day which is 2 aleve... ...for all day relief. "start your engines" still running in the morning? yeah.

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top house republicans are scrambling to fill the leadership void. top democrats are fighting hard against the perception cantor's loss puts the final nail in the coffin for immigration legislation this year and for the rest of the obama presidency. >> the idea that they can't do immigration reform because eric cantor lost his election is another phony excuse. eric cantor was never the solution on immigration. he was always the problem. >> some republicans, including david brat, here on "the dalindown," says cantor's defeat was about more than just the immigration issue. >> month, it is more than that.

i have been trying to get it through to my local press. i gave a speech of 20 minutes and immigration is a part of that aspect but i ran on the fiscal issues and the republican cre -- >> the washington establishment is not listening to the face of the party of the grassroots conservatives. it is not just immigration. it is issue after issue. >> the president echoed the immediate for legislative action at a fund-raising event wednesday might. saying, in part, quote, some of the conventional wisdom talks about oh, the politics of immigration reform seem impossible now. findmentally reject that and will tell the speaker of the house that he needs to reject that. while the politics play out in washington, there is a growing crisis along the border where since october more than 47,000 unaccompanied children have crossed into the u.s. illegally. >> undeniably, athere is a problem of humanitarian

proportions in the rio grande valley that we immediate to deal with. i ask we consider all lawful options to deal with this situation. if there are options twine hear about them. >> illinois senator and assistant majority leader dick durbin joins me now. senator, good morning to you, sir good to be with you, chuck. >> well, look, i know, you don't want to believe that the push for immigration reform is dead. but the politics seem to point in another direction. at least with what's going on with house republicans. paint me a plausible scenario that somehow gets a piece of immigration legislation on president obama's desk before he leaves office >> let me just say point blank, chuck, call the senate immigration bill on the floor of the house of representatives and it will pass. in this district, the seventh district of virginia, eric an tore lost, tuesday night in his primary, 72% of the voters in the exit polls said they supported comprehensive immigration reform.

you floeshgs is a spin going on here by those who don't want to see reform, that this -- that's what the issue is all about. >> let me -- you do know that everybody has -- just like are so many definitions of amnesty, there is a lot of definitions -- you can't -- i mean, that poll to me was extremely flawed for a number of reasons. but one of hem is comprehensive immigration reform means so many things to so many people. you know what i mean? on that phrase alone. >> i understand that, chuck. but our bill, which we crafted over months of deliberation, republicans, democrats, conservatives, progressives, we covered the waterfront in terms of border security and in terms of making certain that those who were here undocumented go through a process and paying a fine, paying their taxes, learning english and going to the back of the line, and we went through this very, very carefully. call it on the floor of the house. let me add this. that election night, two elections occurred on the issue of immigration, if you want to raise it.

one was eric cantor that tried to straddle issue before and then be against it. the other was lindsey zbrm, certifiable conservative republican from south carolina who won his primary and supported comprehensive immigration reform without equivocation. that to me makes the difference. stand up and explain to the american people what the bill is all about, you will get support. >> all right. the likelihood of the house leadership putting the senate bill on the floor is -- falls some where between slim and none. paint me the plausible scenario that gets smog the president's december. >> i can tell you this. i still believe -- i talked to congress lan gutierrez and others. i still believe there is a sentiment among republicans, congressman paul ryan, for example, has been an extraordinary lead other this issue. i believe that if we can bring this issue to the floor, speaker boehner would just give us a vote, i think that it is going to pass. i think that if more and more people make that clear to him, he will give us that chance. >> if -- is there any different

bill, a smaller bill, that the senate could do with the house that -- that -- could get something passed that sort of starts to make progress, whether it is -- a version of the dream act coupled with the visa issue, for instance. >> there are many possibilities. let me tell thank you basics. the basics are that we have to have border security from the republican side and we have to have a path to citizenship on the democratic side and there are many variations on that theme. what we have to do is engage the house of representatives after waiting for a year with this bill, this bipartisan bill, that passed the senate and it is that your turn to lead. >> we obviously have this crisis on the border. we -- you heard from the homeland security secretary admits the a crisis on the border in many ways. the border dashboarder agent dashboarder patrol is work dashboarder patr ee ee ee eer -

turn these folks around if they are not from mexico or canada. border patrol. >> what we should do is twofold. first, define this as it is. this is a humanitarian crisis. literally hundreds of children who are showing up on our borders. 80% are from three central american countries, honduras, el salvador, guatemala. there is such turmoil and lawlessness there that these children are fleeing for their lives. we have to acknowledge this as the humanitarian challenge which it is. make sure that the united states will receive these children in a humane way. secondly, we have to really work towards bringing stag built in these three countries. a massive amount of money being spent on behalf of the children is not what i'm calling for. enough aid down in honduras, el salvador, guatemala, to lessen the conflict. >> should we be asking other countries to help us out here? >> absolutely. this should be an international effort because it is an

international problem. certain lly for americans zblip want to move to guns. i was curious to get your reaction to something the president said the other day. it was striking to me in the political analysis, bluntness, but also where the president feels a little bit powerless. take a listen. it is on the issue of guns. >> the only thing that's going to change is public opinion. if public opinion does not demand change in congress, it will not change. we have -- i initiated over 20 executive actions to try to tighten up some of the rules and laws. but bo only line is that we don't have enough tools right now to really make as big of a dent as we immediate to. most members of congress -- i have to say to some degree, this is bipartisan, are terrified of the nra, the combination of, you

know, the nra and gun manufacturers are very well financed. and -- have the capacity to move votes in local elections and congressional elections. and so p you are running for office right now, here's where you peel the heat. >> senator, it was -- to be a very cogent analysis, there was part of me that thought he was throwing up his hands. >> i don't think so. i think it is the opposite. i think what the president has said is the truth. every member of congress and both political parties would have to you a agree with the president. he has defined this political challenge. now we look on a daily, almost daily basis. at least weekly basis, a new gun tragedy. another innocent child killed. another child killed. we say to ourselves, can't we agree on the basic premise that we shouldn't sell guns to those convicted of a felony or those that are so mental lynn stable

they can't handle them? that seems so basic and consistent with constitutional rights. i agree with senator reid who said yesterday after this terrible incident in his home state swreeshgs to return to this issue. >> senator, very quickly, on iraq, what kind of responsibility do you think the united states has in trying to help maliki out with this situation? >> listen, we paid a heavy price in iraq. 4,484 american soldiers gave their lives in iraq not to mention the thousands that came home injured. in terms of sending in forces, absolutely not. in terms of support to maliki, perhaps to stabilize the situation. i'm not going to rule it out. let's be careful. the united states has to be very careful in terms of commitments that end up costing so many american lives. >> senator dick durbin, democrat from illinois. appreciate you coming out this morning. thanks. up next, stunning details about bowe bergdahl past straight from his own journal. i will talk to the virginia

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all with no annual fee. to apply, go to citi.com/thankyoucards. . new details about the p.o.w. swap and p.o.w. bowe bergdahl. nbc news confirmed bergdahl joined the coast guard in early 2006. three years before he walked off his army base in afghanistan and was capture bid the taliban. the coast guard says bergdahl was in boot camp for 26 days. then left with an unexplained administration i have discharge. he joined the army two years later. meanwhile a friend of bergdahl shared writing with "the washington post." bergda bergdahl's writings paint a

portrait of a complicated and fragile young man who is struggling to maintain his mental stability from the start of basic training. there was not muff time to notify congress. hagel was pressed to explain why bergdahl is still being held at a u.s. base in germany. >> i'm going to give you an plans i am like the implications. >> answer. >> it he is being held there because our medical professionals don't believe he's ready until they believe he is ready to take the next step of rehabilitation. >> have you ever seen a traumatically injured service member brought to the united states immediately upon being stabilized at landstuhl? we do it all the time. >> this is not just about a physical situation, congressman. this guy was held for almost five years in god knows what

kind of condition. >> despite hagel's reassurances, four house members plan to introduce a resolution condemning president obama's risker in swap for bowe bergdahl. joined by one of the co-sponsors, republican representative from virginia. why do you believe this resolution is mess? >> chuck, this was, i think, an egregious abuse by the president and indeed the secretary of defense. the national defense authorization act is very clear that they were required to give 30 days notice. it is a serious matter. the things listed in there that they have to provide to us, to provide proper and legitimate oversight are important. the president and the secretary made no attempt whatsoever to comply with that. it was a complete repudiation, i think, and -- of congress and so we have a bipartisan group that is determined to stop the

precedent that the president is advancing a more executive overreach. >> let me ask you this. do you think the united states pleaded to do what -- what was necessary to secure the release of sergeant bergdahl? >> well, chuck, the return of american service member is as a good thing. sushgs under which he balm a captive of the taliban is being investigated by the u.s. army and i have high confidence in the general but if we look at what -- what we gave up, the chief of staff of the taliban army and it is widely understood he's highly likely to return to re-engaging u.s. forces. that's why the oversight was needed and i think the fact that they knew back in 2011, members of congress, senior members of both the house and the senate on the intelligence and defense side, made it clear that we wouldn't approve something like that. >> let me ask you this.

what -- what do you think needs to happen to the -- taliban members had been kept at gitmo and -- at what point, how long keep them captive if they're not going to charge them with anything? >> indeed, i think they should be charged under a military tribunal. i am for advancing that, but any person who is going to be a continued threat to the united states, we have, in my view, the legal basis to hold them. that's what we do, the principal role of the federal government is to protect the american people. >> if the war's over? >> yes, indeed, because if the -- the specific legal documents under which we are engaging right now in afghanistan, if that comes to a close there are other legal foundations upon which we can continue to hold someone who is a direct threat to the united states. that is not -- it's not a

controversial issue in my mind of protecting the american people. >> congressman, i've got to ask you about a little home state politics. what did you learn from eric cantor's loss? >> eric is a dear friend, and i appreciate his leadership. i think he really was instrumental in not only my election, but others in helping us take control of the house representativeses and i am so sorry to see that he won't be our majority leader. i'll let the folks in virginia, the political pundits unpack that, but he's got a good future and i'm grateful for his leadership. >> but you must take your own lesson away from it. you'll be on the ballot in november, sir. >> absolutely. i know this, i just love and appreciate our district. we have the highest concentration of men and women in uniform in the country and i've heard clear opposition to what the administration has done with respect to the release of the five gitmo detainees there and that's one reason i advanced it. just stay close to the district,

listen and again, i'll just have to let those political pundits figure it out. >> sounded like familiar lines that i heard from eric cantor yesterday. scott rigll, republican from the second district. >> thank you. >> trivia time, three of the last 10 virginia governors, jim gilmore, and john mcdonald resigned as state's attorney general before they began their run for governor. congratulations to today's winner. ron boehmer. do you think it's a fake name? when sales rep steve hatfield books at laquinta.com,

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90. >> that's right. it's today's takeaway. we, of course, want to wish a very happy birthday to the former president george h.w. bush, the the 41st president joins an elite club today. he becomes the fifth president to reach the age of 90. john adams and herbert hoover both lived to be 90 years old. they lived to be 93 and jimmy carter turns 90 in four short months. of course, on his 75th, 80th and 85th birthdays, bush 41 celebrated by skydiving. we loved that, and we just learned he's got one more jump in him. that is right. bush announced on twitter that at 10:45 this morning, in 49 minutes he will jump out of a helicopter weather permitting. he will take off in a helicopter in kennebunkport, maine, when he was shot down in 1944.

this is a much happier occasion. good luck, mr. president. that's it for this edition of "the daily rundown." she'll have more on the escalation on iraq from richard engel. i'm meteorologist bill carins. a chance of showers and storms all throughout the afternoon especially down in areas of florida. the mid atlantic has showers right through this afternoon and then back in areas of texas. watch out for some strong storms from dallas to little rock to shreveport as we go throughout the afternoon. have a great day. we're right where you need us. at the next job, next adventure or at the next exit helping you explore super destinations and do everything under the sun. 12 brands. more hotels than anyone else in the world.

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