for irngs sis. here's what you need to know right now. the nfl is in the headlines for another day. the attorney for vikings running back denies new reports that he was accused of abusing another son this summer. they have not confirmed the reports. peterson will be back on the field and they are reinstating him. >> we feel strongly as an organization that this is disciplining of the child. whether it's an abusive situation or not or whether he went too far disciplining, we feel strongly that that is the court's decision to make. >> that decision prompted the radisson hotel chain to suspend the sponsorship. the first to back out from the team. ray rice will ask nfl commissioner roger goodell to recuse himself. we will look at all of that from

a legal standpoint from a couple of minutes. >> this afternoon president obama will be at the cdc headquarters announcing a massive mobilization to combat ebola. that includes 300 u.s. troops and $500 million in funding that is normally used from war. 2500 people have been killed in the outbreak and 5,000 others infected. in california, hundreds of firefighters are now battling wildfires in central and northern parts of the state. the so-called king fire has burned more than 8600 acres in the mountains above sacramento threatening 500 homes and forcing hundreds to flee. the wildfire in bass lake continues to grow. 300 acres damaged. 2100 homes destroyed and schools closed. a hurricane up the pacific coast could help or hurt the fights in california. they left widespread damage on

the baja coast. it weakened to a category one storm that continues to cause widespread flooding. stores were looted after the wind and rain moved out. >> the war against isis travelled to capitol hill. the two top leaders are appearing to advance the strategy to defeat that terrorist group. chuck hagel and martin dempsey faced questions all morning from the senate armed services committee, including tough ones about the wisdom of arming syrian rebels. >> i don't think given what we intend to do -- >> you don't think the free syrian army is going to fight against assad who has been decimating them secretary hagel, was the president right in 2012 when he overruled most of the national security team and refused to train and equip the moderate opposition in syria at

that time? >> senator, i was not there at the time so i'm limited. >> i asked general dempsey. he was there at the time. >> the hearing was interrupted by protesters from the group code pink. >> please remove them. the disruptions are not going to be acceptable to anybody. >> following the story in washington, capitol hill correspondent, luke russert. is there a sense of whether the messages were well-received? >>. >> it depends who you talk to. they are in a difficult position. this plan as out lined by president obama last wednesday is running into some, shall we say, opposition from republican leaders who expect the president to do more. as people scrubbed the plan, armg the frarming the groups an

was interesting in the hearing, but hearing what they could be of arming this group. you heard from general dempsey saying the possibility is definitely on the table. it will be approached by a case by case basis. that is a headline. they are saying there is no direct threat to the homeland, but they believe going forward with this type of coalition with support that is very important. they contain isis. however when you get into the specifics, i was struck by the number. you need 12,000 troops to secure the border with iraq and try to eliminate isis. if all goes according to planned, this first year they receive the training well, that gives you about 5,000 troops under their estimations. that's about half of what is needed. that's one of the interesting facts that came out of the hearing. >> not only the tough questions

about the quality of the troops, but there not enough of them. a lot of obstacles ahead. any word on the timing to authorize the forces? >> they are expected to be in the house tomorrow. it should pass from what we understand right now, but there is going to be bipartisan op sigsz. republicans think this is not going to be enough. the president needs to get authorization on this. you will have democrats who think there needs to be authorization and opposed to any military strategy because they view it as a prolonging the war in the mideast. from sources i spoke to, they think it will pass and it should, but it will expose fault lines of libertarian opposition and liberal opposition that we have seen a lot more of. the rand paul mind set. >> that's a helpful overview. thank fist are calling that for us. chairman dempsey and secretary

hagel stressed that isis poses a real threat if it's left unchecked. >> although the intelligence community has not detected specific plotting against the homeland, isil has global aspirations. president obama made clear, isil's leaders threatened america and our allies. if left unchecked, they will thenen our homeland and allies. >> let's look at how that mess knowledge is being received so far. jim heinz from connecticut. thank you for being here. are you going to vote on arming and training syrian rebels? >> i am a lean no on that issue. there far too many unanswered questions about the kinds of weapons that can be provided. are we going to provide man pads. who will be overseeing these guys? will we have officers uniformed on the ground in syria making

sure they don't commit crimes? by the way they will move weapons to people we don't want to have it. another question that has not been answered, i do support the president with respect to air strikes. that's a classic counter terrorism mission. with respect to the rebels, there a lot of unanswered questions. how you fight isis on one day and the next day do what you have been doing for the last couple of years. fighting assad. there is one thing worse than being on one side and that's being on two sides. >> congressman, did dempsey and hagel not answer any of those questions? >> they are doing the best they can. they are playing a healthy role. a lot of us have wanted this debate and opportunity, but one of theed headlines is important for us to remember. general dempsey said there would be circumstances where he asked the president for ground troops. these missions have crept.

that's important for us to consider as we think about where we have been for the last ten years and where we may find ourselves. >> let's take a listen to that quote. >> this coalition is the appropriate way forward. i believe that will prove true. if it fails to be true and there threats to the united states, i of course would go back to the president and make a recommend that may include the use of u.s. military ground forces. >> we heard you raise that as a concern. do you think this is giving a lot of members pause? >> absolutely. there is two essential questions about ground troops. one is simply do we as representatives, given where we have been, the other big question is would they at the end of the day make the problem better or worse? look where we used our military. afghanistan, iraq and libya. it's hard to look at the experience of those three

countries and say our application of military force has in the long run actually made us more secure against groups like isil. >> the president is meeting with john allen who is expected to lead this operation. if congress doesn't pass this title ten authorization to train on the ground, do you think the 2001 and 2002 will cover what the president wants to do largely. >> i don't believe they do. this is another topic that is important and worth taking it up even as i help the majority of the congress would support. we have to talk about syrian rebels and would support action against isil as we undertake against groups like isil. you have to stretch legally to say as a president does he thinks that the authorization of 2001, 2002 cover this is. this is worth getting right.

how far will we stretch this. when a guerilla group has three members of al questioned a are we at war in columbia? that may be a ridiculous example, but it's a question we have to ask. >> you are not alone saying that is a stretch. one thing stood out and hagel saying isis could be a threat to the homeland and not just the interest. still careful language there, but very different tone from the president telling chuck todd the intelligence doesn't suggest credible threat to the u.s. itself. just u.s. interest. what does the intelligence suggest? >> this is not that hard of a question. the intelligence community has been clear on this and they do not see any plotting or planning on the part of isil against the united states. would isil like to do this? of course. that's true of a dozen other groups around the world. tomorrow that fact could change.

none of us should be on the misapprehension of brutal, horrible people. is what the president proposed, is that the best way to address it. we have the commitment and will we find a way to work even if we don't admit it? there has to be a long conversation about something we all agree on. these guys should go away, but that conversation has to point us to something that is going to work. >> jim himes, we will be watching what you vote in these coming days. >> thanks. >> up next, the vikings star running back is back in the game. as abuse allegations mount. how much money do you have in your pocket right now? i have $40, $21. could something that small make an impact on something as big as your retirement? i don't think so. well if you start putting that towards your retirement every week and let it grow over time,

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. >> vikings star running back will face a judge in texas for the next month. geeing reinstated to the minnesota vikings team. he didn't play after being indicted for abusing his son. team officials said they continue to play him until the legal case is resolved. he released a statement saying i am not a perfect son and husband. i am not a perfect parent, but i am without a doubt not a child abuser. that hasn't stopped major fallout. it came the first sponsor to drop the nfl team over this. he takes the team very seriously when it comes to the protection of children. mark dayton released this statement adding i believe the team should suspend mr. peterson until the accusations have been resolved in the criminal justice

system. this is the latest with the pr disasters. he has until midnight to appeal indefinite suspension over charges of domestic violence. he is expected to request that roger goodell recuse himself from the process. following the story closely and a take from another regular on the program. a lot to unpack today. this is weighing heavily on sponsors. cover girl released a statement saying in light of recent events, we encouraged the n frfo take swift action. do you see others following the suit that radisson has begun and dropping out? >> this is significant because

it's the first shoot to drop. they suspended for now, but the sponsors say we speak about the bottom line. they are worth $1.07 billion to the league. more than a billion dollars from the sponsors. that is obviously significant. the question and the problem for radisson, they felt uncomfortable watching the general manager speaking not about xs and os, but the injury to a child and adrian peterson. will the same happen for bank of america for the carolina panthers with a player convicted of assaulting and threatening to kill his ex-girlfriend and other places where they are dealing with the situation as well. we wait and see. >> there is another report of a previous instance of abuse with his other son. we haven't verified it and

regardless of whether that proves true, how much is this at stake? >> there is a lot at stake. with a lot of allegations of child abuse, what makes this so different? we have seen the photographs. i can't imagine anyone looking at the pictures to say this is discipline versus child abuse. there is a wide chasm between the two and it's penitentiary to not conplate the two issues. when you look at the child's body, you have to suspend belief. you have to do away with common sense. that's why i think i see the stance being taken by the vikings as not taking this serious enough. >> in terms of the legal burden of proof, what has to be established for this to be child abuse. >> when someone is charge and they are prosecuted, the prosecutors have to prove the case beyond a reasonable doubt.

they have to look at whether or not the child's injuries, they have to prove the injuries were inflicted by adrian peterson. two, you have to look at whether or not the child was harmed. just looking at the photographs, a prosecutor is not going to have a difficult time in proving that. >> another interesting legal facet is a number of the players in this invoking legal arguments to talk about the private nonlegal decisions of the teams in today's minneapolis star tribune weighing in on that. saying the vikings are hiding behind due process which refers to the legal system and has nothing to do with the company deciding whether they wanted to be represented by a man who whipped a 4-year-old with a branch until the boy bled. is that being exploited unfairly? >> i wouldn't say that. one, there is a legal case and people are right. we are all having due process

under the constitution of the united states. the issue is the nfl. whether or not the nfl sees these as serious. it matters. the nfl is an american icon. children look up to them as breathing and talking heroes. it is very, very important that the nfl take a stance in letting people know that we take these things serious. >> peter? >> i agree with what was written by the columnists. these are privately held companies. they don't oh, any constitutional rights to anybody. you embarrassed the team, you are off. if he was not one of the best players, he wouldn't be practicing and his car wouldn't be in the parking lot in minnesota right now. one of the real challenges that is undermining this is that you have a lot of faxes at playment the nfl and the player's union and the teams and the fans.

often times the interests do not align. that's the mix that continues to put pressure on him. >> let's talk about roger goodell's interest. on the ray rice side, he is expected to recuse himself from rice's appeal. is that the correct call for him? don't people need more and not less? >> the situation is that people feel like it's ridiculous that he could be the guy who said you are suspend and gets to hear the appeal of him saying you are suspended. that's what it comes down to. nbc sports is reporting and i have had conversations with people close to the deliberations and the consideration of what the grievance filed will say. it is an option being considered they will ask goodell to recuse himself. there was bounty gate that pertained to the new orleans saints where players were getting paid premiums to take out other players and roger goodell at that time brought in

the former commissioner to oversee the process. >> not his first rodeo, but it may be his worst. >> and may be his last. >> there a lot of calls for that. it centers on a serious issue. one of the subjects we are looking at all week is this underlying surge of domestic violence. fascinating and helpful discussion here. for this week's call to action, we are asking for you to team up against domestic abuse. join the 16 women senators to wrote a leader to roger goodell calling for a zero tolerance policy. do you agree that? tweet us at #zero tolerance. we will be tracking it all week. president obama's big military announcement. 3,000 troops to combat a growing

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we know we're not the center of your life, but we'll do our best to help you connect to what is. >> the tv star bill cosby is in the news with a release of a major new biography. they stayed away from dirty jokes. >> the dentist comes back, you want to talk to him. you say, [inaudible] >> i beg your pardon. >> [inaudible]. >> i don't understand. >> [inaudible]. . >> later in the show, we talked to the author of that biography, but first, take a look at the other stories that caught our eye spiking across social media. two medium cappuccinos!

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this health crisis we face is unparalleled in modern times. the gravity of the situation is doifl get across with just a few numbers, but with 5,000 now infected, twice the number of when we met a couple of weeks ago, over 2500 dead and nearly twice the number of when we met a couple of weeks ago. you start to get a sense of the rapid escalation we are seeing of the virus. >> that are rapid escalation of the ebola outbreak is prompting a major announcement from president obama today. up to 3,000 troops to west africa to train workers and build clinics. >> the goal here is to surge american expertise, including the military logistics and

command and control expertise to control this outbreak at the source in west africa. >> at 3:00 eastern time, the president will be briefed in atlanta. later in the afternoon, the senate will take on the crisis. during testimony from an ebola survivor. i am joined by gabe gutierrez following the president's movements. it's fairly rare to see the president go to the cdc physically. what can we expect for today? >> that's right. the senior administration officials are calling this a national security priority. as you mentioned, president obama is expected here shortly after sending personnel into west africa to combat this crisis. as you mention, they will build facilities with 100 beds each. they will be set up in monrovia and liberia and the plan to to

train up to 500 health care workers a week. they said the u.s. forces will get on the ground within weeks. they spent quite a bit of money combatting the crisis. the president is asking for 88 million more dollars to do this. the white house and the community had criticism levelled at it from aid organizations in the area saying the response is too middle, too late. officials say that the white house had been monitoring this crisis since the outbreak began in march. they have sent workers into west africa and taking this seriously. that's the largest response in history. >> really appreciate you following the story for us. for more now, i am join joined by the doctor. it's good to have you here. >> thanks for having me here.

>> the numbers are staggering. 2500 deaths so far. the new response is very robust. you worked in a number of places where you have seen responses fail and recede. this will stem the spread and how long do you think it will be before we see the effect of these troops being deployed? >> this is the right thing to be doing. we haven't seen the epidemic like this. they had to respond in the same way. we don't know if it's enough, but it seems like a good start. >> the crisis is so bad, the un will hold a meeting this week. take a look at what 245i said about this. >> i won't mince words. the situation is dire and growing worse by the day. we can contain this. we know how to do it and we must avoid panic and fear, but the collective response to date has not been sufficient. >> she spoke about avoiding

panic and fear, stressing there is not a risk to americans. is that what you would council? >> that's right. we do not have to worry about an ebola outbreak. it is an easy viritous contain. in west africa, everything is different. there is no real health care. people don't trust the government and the level of education. they think we have gotten ebola in new york. they don't believe ebola exists. we have literacy rates that are low and cultural practices that encourage the spread like burial that have a lot of contact with the bodies. >> what is needed to stem this? is it money or manpower? >> what the president seems -- we will hear from him, but what he is suggesting is a huge financial commitment. that's excellent. we need beds and medicines and protective gear. the only organization in the

world that can spend that money that quickly is the u.s. military. but this will be stopped by changing people's behavior. it's about education and reassuring people to seek care when they need it and altering the way in which they interact with the people. that's not what any western military does. that requires a response. this is not a security crisis. it's a public health crisis. >> the of this is the financial requirements. that is vast. they were saying $988 million needed to combat this threat of ebola and west africa. one thing that jumped out, $24 million to pay for body bags. how is that going to find itself way to the crisis? is the u.s. enough? >> it's difficult because you have to spend that through

multiple organizations. very few have the capacity to spend tens of millions of dollars. some of the agency would be others. in terms of dealing with that money and coordinating how the resources are deployed, that will be tricky. they are setting up the command and control. that doesn't sit easily with the organization who have been there for much longer and asking for help. they are not going to be controlled or coordinated by the u.s. military. there is always a power struggle to get credit. i'm sure we will see that play out. >> there is always a fight between ngos and agency. appreciate the overview. >> thanks very much. >> a programming note you want to watch. msnbc will cover the president's remarks on ebola live at about 4:00 p.m. eastern time. we will be keeping an eye on that. the most famous scotsman of all

dominating the debate in the uk right now. >> the point shows we are split 50-50 on the matter and i am hesitant to throw my support to either side be it the right one or the obviously wrong one. >> everything you need to know about scotland's independence vote after the break. sfx: opening chimes sfx: ambient park noise, crane engine, music begins. we asked people a question, how much money do you have in your pocket right now? i have $40, $53, $21, do you think the money in your pocket could make an impact on something as big as your retirement? not a chance. i don't think so. it's hard to imagine how something so small can help with something so big. but if you start putting that towards your retirement every week and let it grow over time, for twenty to thirty years, that retirement challenge

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terms and conditions apply. to learn more, go to celebrex.com. >> dying in your beds many years from now, would you be willing to trade all of this from this day to that for one chance, just one chance to come back here and tell our enemies they may take our lives, but they will never take our freedom. >> there it is. just two days from now, scotland again considering that question of independence. 4.2 million registered scottish

voters reading for a referendum of whether to seceed. it existed since 1707. they are pulling out the stops to keep that from happening. the queen is urging them to think carefully. david cameron describing the potential break from the uk in stark terms. >> independence would not be a trial separation. it would be a painful divorce. the forces we built together being commit up forever. it would mean our pension being sliced up at some cost. it would mean the borders we have would become international. it may no longer be so easily crossed. it would mean automatic support we get from british embassies traveling around the world. >> matt wells assistant from the guardian. tell us why now.

what was the political back story to the vote? >> some people would say it started with william wallace. >> we did take it back there. >> back to 1999. when a referendum was held to establish a scottish parliament. it was voted for overwhelmingly. it was described as the settled will. it turned out to be anything but settled. in 2011, the people elected a majority government on the promise of securing a referendum on independence from london. that was the one astonishing thing that they got an overall majority. the next thing was that he agreed to a referendum in 2011. he agreed to a yes-no vote. he thought that the polls were

around 30% in favor of that that could easily be beaten if you give a yes or no question. >> the best led plans. >> that are proved to be a huge miscalculatio miscalculations. it's a toss up. >> you are a scotsman. you grew up there and you are tied to this. one interesting thing is you and others have been adamant that this is good for scottland and a boom for their economy. i want to turn to what former british prime minister gordon brown said. americans may share equal, civil, and political rights, but scotland, england, wales and northern england share. about 60% of that of a family in new hampshire and the poorest member of the eu is about 9% of that. the income of a tip typical scott is on.

>> ar with that of a neighbor. haven't they benefitted? >> it benefitted hugely for the years of being there. that's true, but i think that it's not just an economic argument. to understand this as an economic argument, those shared values and the shared vision that britain has over the 20th century and fighting two world wars together, they started to diverge now and the values and visions that people in england and wales have are markedly different from the visions of people of scotland. university tuition is free and health care for the elderly is free. these are big fundamental differences and there is a feeling in scotland that the divisions have run so deep they want to take control of their

own affairs. >> another bone of contention, they have a controversial stance on whether this is beneficial economically. they said they are no longer the power house and you are disagreeing. it will be interesting to see which prevails. there is a ferocious debate among celebritiecelebrities. we have sean connery saying independence would be a good thing. j.k. roweling is not pro independence. and dan radcliffe is in the debate. everyone has a take on this. james bond versus harry potter? >> it has been a high profile campaign. the highest profile person of all, the queen intervened. >> with ominous words. i quaked in my boots. >> quite. she said they ought to think very carefully about their future. very clever remark.

on the face it seems neutral and she is a constitutional monarch. >> you know that is not neutral. >> know it was a set up phrase. the media was invited to hear her say it to a member of the congregation from her church as she left on sunday evening. it's polarized from the head of state down. >> this may be another period she does not look back on with fondness. >> she will still be the queen. she will be queen of scotts and that was clever to neutralize that issue. we will keep the queen and the national health service. all very clever by him and that's why. he looks like he is on the brink of victory. >> appreciate it. we will be keeping track of this. bill cosby achieved the pinnacle of success with "the cosby show." iconic, but there less successful ventures like leonard part 6. a new biography on the comedian

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i'm going to give you $300 a week. yes, indeed. $300 a week. $1200 a month. all right? >> great. i'll take it. >> yes, you will. and i will take $350 for taxes. >> whoa! >> huh? yeah. now, because, see, the government comes for the regular people first. >> still america's favorite tv family, big cosby's endless store of fatherly wisdom made him one of the biggest icon. the new book cast the funnyman in a different light. the first major biography from a man who rose from a philadelphia housing project and found success as first african-american to win an emy f emmy.

a more complete view coming into focus with this book, one that includes tragedy and controversy. mark whitaker is the author of that book that is "cosby: his life and times" with unprecedented to cosby himself and 60 of his closest friends. it is out today. thank you for coming. one thing that leaps out, it's a terrific read, is how much he struggled with failure and adversity. >> yes. we remember bill cosby as the guy with the hit comedy albums in the '60s, first black star of prime time television with "i spy," introduced children's educational programming on saturday morning with "sesame street," electric company" and "fat albert" and then pitch man request star as one of the greatest, most iconic tv shows in history. yet, what i show in the book is that he's had just as many failure and struggle. he grew up poor in a housing project.

he dropped out of high school. joined the navy. he was a terrible student. barely got into college. even after being a big star in the '60s, he lost almost all of his money when his manager got him into a bad production deal. he struggled throughout the '70s. >> a 15-year dry spell. >> dry spell in television. people forget, he had four consecutive flops on television between "i spy" and "the cosby show." when "the cosby show" debuted exactly 30 years ago this week, people thought the sitcom was dead. nbc was in the cellar in terms of network competition. they threw it together in just a matter of months. they didn't even have a proper pilot. they were shooting it in a dilapidated studio in flatbush. nobody expected it to be the breakout success. >> and the rest is history. >> yeah. >> and, of course, off of the screen he was tremendously controversial, but also a leader, particularly with his comments about race. i mean, that goes back a long way. certainly the iconic pound cake

speech. >> yeah. so, this is again ten years ago this year he gave this speech on the 50th anniversary of brown versus board of education where he made very strong statements about the need for better parenting, more responsibility, more respect for education. >> let's take a listen to some of that. >> yeah, sure. >> these are not political criminals. these are people going around stealing coca-cola. people getting shot in the back of the head over a piece of pound cake. and then we all run out and we're outraged. the cops shouldn't have shot him. what the hell was he doing with the pound cake in his hands? >> i mean, this controversy has dogged him for a long time and his relationship with the african-american community has for a long time been complex. going back to even when "the cosby show" first premiered in the '80s john leonard said it was a sitcom throwback, atavistic, leave it to beaver in

his own face. how did that affect him? >> one of the things i show in the book is that that speech is not something he planned. he just got very upset that night and he just sort of went off for 20 minutes in a way he hadn't expected to. but the views that he expressed in that speech he had always kept separate from his comedy. for much of his career he was criticized for not being more political and not talking about race relations in his comedy and tv shows. what i show in the book is that he held these views all along. it wasn't -- some people said he was blaming the victim and ignoring institutional racism. he was always aware of those issues. but his feeling was, and the message he was trying to send to black america was, you can wait forever for the system to change or you can control, you know, what is in your own power, which is getting an education, keeping your family together, telling

your kids about some of the challenges. >> we both grew up in mixed race families. my mom was always telling my siblings, listen to bill cosby. bill cosby has the right stern message. it wasn't well received by everybody. here is late tim russert on "meet the press." >> it's the system and that's why -- no, bring your children in. if you say that my black child is going to do more time for selling crack cocaine than your white child for selling cocaine, then i'm going to tell my black child, don't sell it. here's what's happening, son. it's the same as warning you, kid, that the cklu klux klan is coming. >> do you think he'll be known as a hero? >> i think when the dust settles, people are going to

give him a tremendous amount of credit. for, first of all, vis-a-vis race relations between the white community and black community. doing more to help people see what they have in common than the differences. img in terms of his relationship with the black community, all along in his work, he always wanted to say, rather than do comedy, put on tv shows that portray blacks as victims of the system, he wanted to show black folks that they could go to college. that they could be doctors. that they could be lawyers. >> that they have agency. >> yeah. and the fact is -- some people said that was unrealistic but the fact is, we have to aspire to this. >> one of the interesting things in this book is you don't address in any fullsome ways of the charges of abuse that have come up later in his life. particularly, abuse of women. why the decision not to get into that? >> first of all, i wanted this book to be a study of his professional life. i knew i had to get into some of his personal life and some of his behavior, but i also knew that if i was going to do that, i had to have very strong

independent confirmation of everything i wrote. and in some areas, like the affair that he had with a woman whose daughter claimed to be his out of wedlock child -- >> you checked that out? >> i checked it out and have fresh reporting but in other places i wasn't in a position, no independent witnesses, no court documents and those areas i stayed away from. >> i appreciate it. landmark book. fascinating profile. pleasure having you here. mark whitaker. that wraps things up. "the reid report" is next. looks like my next dinner party. that's only 4 points? with weight watchers you can enjoy the food you really want. dine out on favorites... or cook up something new. i can do this every day. join for free and start losing weight now. learn how to eat healthier, while enjoying the foods you love. get inspired at meetings, online, or both.

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