hillary clinton and melinda gates will lead one of the final sessions on equality for girls and women. and police in virginia, on the hunt for the man they have charged in the . >> the big worry was that we had to go into this fight alone. but you know what? that's what friend are for. >> we told four arab nations are also flying in the missions over syria, saudi arabia, jordan, bahrain and the united arab emirates. a fifth is helping, but not by

air. what are they, catering? what is that? how is that holding under the circumstances, are they giving isis the silent treatment and then when isis is all like, qatar, what's wrong? are you mad at me? no, it's cool. >> how funny. >> good morning, everybody, it's wednesday, september 24th. a lot going on today. we have the president on foreign relations with us. >> good morning. >> really, can you believe this? >> he's up this morning, too. >> he's angry. >> a new memoir, fire slot up in my bone, it is incredible. i read an except over the week, it's great to have you on. >> could we read this washington post article about what happened to the white house? >> yeah, is that the white house jumper? >> unbelievable. >> okay. >> so an intruder sprints to the white house on friday.

the secret service officer ran away, but he barrelled past him. a few yards further on, the intruder reached the white house store. they talked about how there were like seven steps that the secret service people were supposed to stop at and every single step of the way they failed. it's unbelievable. on the outside of the fence, there was somebody who is supposed to spot a jumper. they failed. once they get to the inside of the fence the guy at the get a is supposed to go out. he failed. then as he moves closer to the white house, they are supposed to relieve the dogs, they failed to do that. then the swat steam was supposed to slow him down. they failed to do that. >> it keeps getting worse. >> it keeps getting worse him then finally, the 7th ring of protection is somebody who is standing at the front door of the white house, to keep him out. but that person wasn't there.

so that was the seventh ring of the protection. and so now what they're going to do is make tourists across america wait even longer because they're too stupid. seven people, this is seven people who didn't screw up. they said a word i can't say on tv and as a security expert said, once the guy gets inside the white house, he could have had anything on him. he, in effect, controlled the white house. he could have had a bomb on him, a massive device on him. they had seven wings of protection that all failed miserably and if the secret, the person who is in charge of running the white house secret service is not fired for this, i don't really know what you have to do to fire in washington, d.c. >> i think he is answering a lot of questions, too. >> they got a new fence.

>> well, it's an amazing job. >> well, exactly. oh, man. >> that was our whole story. we can start there. >> we are lucky on two fronts. number one, this guy wasn't armed. number two the president is there. the president holds, the guy gets inside with god knows what. >> just right up the stairs. >> not good. not good. >> unbelievable. >> all right. >> it is. >> but let's begin here in new york, where in just a few hours, president obama will try to rally more international support for his plans to defeat islamic state militants in an address to the united nations general assembly. overnight the u.s. continued to pound isis targets in syria for the second day in a row as well as in iraq. they are continued targets of opportunity. the pentagon says more than 160 bombs and missiles have already been launched inside syria.

officials say the strike was very successful but are warning they could last for years. >> i don't know what that means. >> for years. there are some of the -- we are looking at some of the first pictures from the ground in syria after the airstrike. residents say this town was hit with rockets on the first day of raids. while the u.s. stressed that was u.s. coalition, the joint chiefs of staff says the u.s. has carried out most of the strikes. the obama administration says the airstrikes are illegal under the iraq war authorization of 2002. two months ago, national security adviser sui isn't rice will be on the show to ask house speaker john boehner to rescind the resolution, calling it outdated. >> what's going on here? do we know what we're firing at? come on. let me ask this a different way. we really don't know what we are firing at over there. this is one of those situations

where my mother would come up and say don't confuse motion for action. this is motion more than action, 16 it, richard? >> it is. we do not know exactly what we will find after such real time intelligence. we don't have people on the ground. so in some case, we may get the targets we wanted. in some case, it may b not be the people there we wanted. it's trying to conduct an anti-terrorist campaign with one arm tied behind your back. are you doing it from the air, not with a partner, which is the achilles heel of the united states. >> charles, haven't we done this before? again, i'm not saying we sit back and do absolutely nothing. it seems like we are firing randomly. >> well, i mean -- >> at targets. i have for the idea what we are hitting. nobody is on the ground. >> that's the question and it's an expensive question. and whether or not we trust the

military mission not to create. i'm always leery of war. i think it cannot be contained. >> that it is always hungry once you let it loose, you don't know what you get on the other side. >> we have the dean of tuft's university and supreme allied commander at that to. the author of the book "the accidental admiral." i'd like to capitalize about airstrikes only at this point with no ground partner. they are being call very successful, but what if the limitations to airstrikes only? >> i think richard categorizes it correctly. without the spotters on the ground, without that real time laser dot to put it precisely where you want. you are handicapped. can you do a fair am using strategic intelligence over head

sensor, that type of thing. there are some indications some of the leadership of this khorasaf group may have been hit. over time, if we will be very effective in this air campaign, we will have to put some people on the ground. >> and, of course, that's the big question, who do we put on the ground? we don't have arab states to put troops up there. the united states isn't going to be putting people oak right now. again, it seems like the pentagon's not even doesn't seem to be competent. >> david ignacious writes this morning in the washington post it's a wake-up call how long it will be in terms of training people. we haven't begun training them yet. they're setting up these caverns in saudi arabia, where we will train people to go back into syria. those have been up and running for something like six months. you have to train them and they go in. we are talking years here. it's a clean airstrike mission.

this will go on into the long presidency. this is a long deal. >> so what do we do strategically? >> i think first and foremost is to get coalition partners to the degree we've had some success in afghanistan, it's probably because of bringing 50 nations together there. we had a reasonable tactical success in libya by bringing together a coalition that included some arab partners. i think if we can capitalize on the arab's apparent willing inside to at least participate. maybe bring some of their folks on the ground to be in that environment might make some zblens you have arab states, as the new york times reported this morning, don't like each other. >> exactly. that's the question of how long that can last. what's a great example of how it's worked before. thank you. richard, talk a little bit about the challenges of getting the coalition together especially arabs. >> one is what they want to contribute, themselves.

we talked about the lack of enthusiasm shall we say for putting quote/unquote their boots on the ground. secondly, you have the political differences, they have been os stra sides for being too close to muslim brotherhood in egypt, to hamas. >> why is it that other arab states have basically turned tear back on qatar because they have funded radical islamists across the middle east. but we have the secretary of state here and he's, john kerry is repeating america's position that, is sort of down the middle. we don't seem leak we want to go out and condemn qatar for -- >> we had the emir of the council foreign relations of qatar there. there is something, a movement x the fact that they've joined the coalition however limited says something, the fact that they kick out the muslim representatives they've had living there, that says something. >> are they starting to feel the

heat? >> they are starting to feel the heat. i think they are worried. all these traditional straights to be worried at one point isis will not be content in syria and iraq. at one point isis will train its gun literally on the centers of the sunni-arab world that means saudi arabia and everybody else. >> we are learning more details about the saudi group started in the airstrikes. intelligence shows the group known as the khorason was in the final stages of planning to attack the u.s. or western target. richard engel will join us live in just a moment. but there is his report from neighboring turkey. >> reporter: it's a crowded battlefield in syria with dozen, perhaps hundreds, of extremist groups drawing members from across the world. they fight against the assad regime and against each other. the khorasan group is one of

them. it's a splinter group of al qaeda which moved to syria to locate and move westerners among the thousands of foreign fighters in the country. it's considered a threat to the u.s. because the u.s. intelligence officials, say it will bring down explosives. the group's leader is this man. mussin al-fadhli. he ran al qaeda cells in raurn, reportedly not in afghanistan and chechnya and a top aide to osama bin laden said to be one of the few people to know about 9-11 before the attacks. now he and his organization is under attack. so is isis. there are mr. more in syria just like them. >> charles, the september 11th columnist talking about the cost of war. appropriately on sempbts, we find ourselves 13 years later. >> yeah. >> and you talked about how americans are just reluctant can

have people in washington, d.c. the council of foreign relation, the united nations, all over the world, telling working class americans we got to go back to war and i understand. but the costs have been so extraordinary. a lot of americans are saying, no mas. no mas. >> i think there are moments when we are kind of patriot oughtic and rightly so. beheading videos cause a lot of anxiety and anger among americans. i understand that, so you saw real spikes in approval of going after isis. but we've seen this before. we played this movie before. if you look back at polling right before we went into iraq, people were very gung ho as well and that falls off very, very quickly. we don't have the stomach for long engagements. we think things should be quick and easy. >> that is no. we play on a different time table. we play on a quick and easy time

table. they play on a decade glacial time table. >> i'm looking and charles makes great point, i'm looking forward to the next wave of polls. we have the first waves of polls after the beheadings. i'm looking after the airstrikes. i don't think will you find 65, 70% of people supporting this and 40% of americans saying they support ground troops over there i just don't think you will find that. that's a real challenge. that's why the president while he has been going much more slowly than a lot of 350e78 would like him to go on capitol hill. he's actually closer to the american people than they are. >> we have richard in place. richard engel joins us live from just north of the syrian border in turkey and khorason at this point as many have reported, it's far more dangerous in some way, how much of a piece of it was taken out, richard? >> reporter: well, it's unclear and i'm actually not entirely sure that khorason is any more

dangerous than a lot of these militant groups that are operating inside syria. according to u.s. intelligence, the khorason group, which is not a well known group has about 100 core members. it is linked wage to al qaeda. it has linkages with other al qaeda militants in the middle east and it was in the late stages of plotting an attack to bomb u.s. airliners. that is a very specific threat. that is the threat that the u.s. intelligence is pointing to, saying that was more immediate need to carry out these airstrikes. but when you look alt syria. you look at all of the different pilltant groups on the ground. have you isra the military front which is also an al qaeda offshoot. there are many groups in syria that could pose a threat to the united states not just khorason. i think explain tlag to the

american people. once you start bombing in syria and you start looking for targets, will you see a lot of targets and there is going to be not just a short campaign but a year's campaign. we'll see if the american people really recognize what they're getting into. >> hey, richard, it's willie some those are some of the more radical groups inside the syria. let's talk about the more moderate ones we hope to work with and partner with to provide ground troops to go if following the airstrikes. what do we know say about the free syrian army s. that a viable people willing to fight on behalf of the united states, on behalf of the united nations and partner with the united states, are they willing, number one, second, are they capable of pulling this off? >> reporter: i think the answer is are they willing? in theory, they're willing. when you talk to some of their leaders. the leaders who are in new york, some with their hands out right now looking for money, looking

for support. they say they are willing. they seem to be convincing washington they are willing. on the ground they are very weak right now. tray nowhere in a position to take ground. >> that is the basic structural flaw of this strategy. the u.s. is backing both side. the airstrikes in syria are helping assad, but the u.s. is also promising to support rebels who are against assad. so this strategy sets up syria in an almost permanent state of civil war and that is the civil war that has caused all of the extremists to allow themselves to find a safe haven. >> richard, thank you. and still ahead here on "morning joe," national security adviser susan rice will join us in our 7:00 hour. retired general michael hayden is here at 8:00 live. plus there is a common treatment that could avoid the current eboll loo pan demic. we will explain the troubling reason why it wasn't ready on

time. also, a texas school board candidate has an innovative way to secure his election but did it work? we will tell you about his plans. next. you are watching "morning joe." when fixed income experts work with equity experts who work with regional experts that's when expertise happens. mfs. because there is no expertise without collaboration.

can you start tomorrow? yes sir. alright. let's share the news tomorrow. today we failrly busy. tomorrow we're booked solid. we close on the house tomorrow. i want one of these opened up. because tomorow we go live... it's a day full of promise. and often, that day arrives by train. big day today? even bigger one tomorrow. when csx trains move forward, so does the rest of the economy. csx. how tomorrow moves.

. >> one past the hour. >> so richard haase i don't think i've seen him so angry. he's so mad at hamid. >> if it's farewell speech, richard is very worked up this morning. the farewell speech, he thanks, iran, india, china, he said america never wanted peace. he said future leaders beware of america. >> we'll get to that. shall we? we'll play some of that. >> okay. let's get a look at the morning

papers, now? the epoch times. >> one of my favorite newspapers. >> prosecutors say a 47-year-old man used cocaine to buy votes in texas. >> mica, why is it i'm always right behind the curve? >> i know. all right. frankie garcia is accused -- >> it would have made '94 so much easier. >> are you thinking of a little b? >> ecstacy. that would have been stupid. >> accused of selling dime bags to voters in the florida educational elections and in texas in 2012. others were paid cash for votes. garcia is facing voter fraud and other charges. >> why, why, why, you can be arrested for buying votes? >> he was selling them, though. shouldn't you just give them out? >> maybe at a discount. >> oh, that's right. >> maybe at a discount. >> i think. >> i see. go ahead. >> we can do better in denver.

>> the denver post, hundreds of colorado students faced a walkout yesterday to pro taste new curriculum. it looks to focus education on history only on topics that build positive images of history. it aims to promote citizenship and respect for authority while downplaying acts of civil disobedience, students from six high schools say it was by social media and follows a sick-in by teachers. >> i don't think they wanted to go to school. see here's another thing, i would just sneak off campus when i went to catholic high school and eat roast beef. >> i should have like staged protests. >> okay. four of america's largest

beverage companies have vowed to cut calories by 20% by 2025. the companies made the pledge tuesday at the clinton global initiative. instead of cutting their beverage calories, the companies are expected to sell smaller portions and from bottled water. that's a lot like mayor bloomberg would do here, you can have this. let's get this in perspective. >> it's like a french lady. they know how to eat smaller portion, right? >> french paradox. >> oh, that one. >> they drink a lot of wine. they live longer. >> they are selling bottled water, too, could i say it you could also get it from the tap. there is floor ride in it. >> instead of those plastic bottles. >> it's crazy. >> it's good. >> we drink the water. >> what happens? >> you know what it tastes a lot like? the water in a bottle.

>> do you get green spots all over you? >> no, it's weird. pacific the water actually tastes like water. >> you do have to buy water. >> drink it like a cat out of the sink. detroit news, general motors announced plans to spin cadillac off into a separate business unit. the luxury auto brand will move its headquarters from detroit to soho here in new york city t. move comes as cadillac looks to focus on global growth and a new identity. >> they are making interesting changes appealing to women. >> cadillac, like what? >> they're coming to, for the. you'll seechlitative got some interesting cars on the horizon. cadillac is getting hip. >> not your granddad's cadillac. >> it's not. all right. willie. >> the chicago tribune, basketball player metta world peace, he was formally known as ron artest a wore unusual shoes in china. after announcing he will change his name to the panda's friend,

mr. world peace is taking it seriously. he took to twitter to show off the sport wear for his new team. the head and arms of a stuffed panda bear. it goes black and white. >> going to the cadillac dealership. >> that should do it. >> it's like a nurse's shoe. >> it's definitely. >> from the papers the washington post the world health organization says the ebola outbreak will become a permanent fixture in west africa if drastic measures are not taken to control the spreading virus. the cdc also says there could be 1.4 million cases in sierra leone by january. statistics suggest it could spread as easily as the flu or malaria. joining us now, a staff writer for bloomberg business week, he writes the magazine's new cover story. ebola is coming.

the u.s. had a chance to stop the virus in its tracks and it missed. >> okay. what's going on here? i mean, that's obviously a very frightening head lean. is ebola really coming to the united states? >> that's known as a every co, joe to get your attention. >> so what you are telling me is, what's inside doesn't really reflect. so all the blood that says ebola is coming, it's meant to make me go to an airport and scream and i go inside and it's a story about the jettisons? >> we have amazing graphic design zbrers can i say rur about as bad as selling your magazine as anybody we've ever had on the show. >> i love my magazine! so here's water inside which is that you are familiar zmat a cocktail that may have an effect on eboll lousiana it's actually been in the government pipeline since 2005.

what we found out it was stuck at a pentagon agency for two years not in any kind of development but just stuck if contracting. so the defense threat reduction agency, a small part of the pentagon, it's job, in part, is to take drugs and move them towards fda licensure. while they were trying to figure out how to cut a chuck, we lost two years in the development of this drug. >> the cover suggests, how is it getting here? i know the numbers are exploding in west africa. mica read read that 1.4 million number. that's scary. how does it make the jump across the atlantic? >> i don't know that we know we can control it. it may jump on an airplane. the problem is, usually the measures that we have for combating ebola are for hundreds of people. dozens of people. sort of the standards that the world health organization has for fighting it. they don't apply to thousands of people and possibly now tens of thousands of people. so water happening is, we're kind of making this up as we go

along. that's the problem. we don't know what happens when it reaches this stage. it has never reached this stage before. >> making it up as you go along, willie, like the cover. >> come on. >> i'm joke zblk brendan, thank you so much. it's greatly appreciated. it's frightening. one other story, anti-at this timism if europe, the front page of the new york times, this is a story about people outside of international headquarters screaming "gas the jews, gas the jews." they're also beating, savage beatings of jewish people across europe. >> what year is this? >> yeah, it sounds a lot like 1938. it's very frightening, france, germany, you go across where anti-semitism led to the holocaust. it's really frightening. >> all right. coming up, is there a way for

washington and tehran to come out as winners, plus today's must-read opinion pages and more from our friend hamid karzai. we'll be right back.

. >> a live look at d.c. look at that beautiful sunrise. there is no love lost for hamid karzai. in his farewell speech he warned hundreds of cabinet members not to trust the u.s. government. he calls the american mission there a betrayal saying the united states did not want peace. karzai who more than once it there threatened to join the taliban, blamed the u.s. for its own personal interests and agenda. he made no reference to the thousands of american troops killed while fighting to flee that country of militant rule. what? >> this is, again, you know, richard, from 2009 forward whenever people would come on and say we need to trip tell number of troops in afghanistan, they would say prop up this guy's government. seriously, you can talk moms and dads to fight for hamid karzai? this is who they were fighting

for. this is whose government they were fighting for. >> partly it remind me of the old days of foreign aid. you used to give it. you had ungratefulness this is just the sort of thing, it's serious in lots of ways that go beyond karzai and afghanistanful people would say why should the united states make serious commitment oversea, if this is the return on action, this is serious to go way beyond this ungrateful, narrow, nasty man. >> we have been fighting in afghanistan since 2001 for karzai. we were nighting in you can ra. it led us to malachi. yeah. i love americans, they say why? why in the world? >> joining us for the must read opinion pages. the director of the columbia university. >> he supports our wars, he's here to support all wars. >> maybe there is a lesson from here these are words we shouldn't be in. maybe there is a little message, whether it is afghanistan, iraq, syria, libbia yemen. they're all a complete mess.

we do not belong there. that's the basic point. we should be helping these places sort out their own problems. but what we are doing is not sorting out problems. it's making a growing crisis everywhere. >> thomas freeman writes in the new york times, this, isis crisis, in committing america to an air campaign against isis, obama declared the ground war will have to be not by arabs and muslims, not just because this is their war. they are organizing themselves across shiites, sunni and kurdish lines is the necessary ingredient for creating any kind of decent, government that could replace isis. the fork times, the actual paper, editorial board writes this, wrong turn on syria, a preliminary assessment suggests isis and khorasan suffered significant blows, these organizations are widely expected to bounce back.

in a do you meanary-type video said they relished the opportunity to draw the u.s. into a new and lengthy war into the middle east. they've done just that. isn't that what terrorism is? they do it because they want us to jump in correct? >> it's key here, obviously, willie for them to kill us over there and over here. >> the idea that we will extension wish isis in a couple weeks is ludicrous. we should have learned, after 13 years we are still fighting taliban. this will extend into years. >> this is the new normal. but president obama did himself no favor by saying our goal is to destroy these groups. at most can you do is set them being the problem with a lot of these people are saying, we can't do it all by ourselves, you need a partner on the ground. we are now paying the price for what we didn't do three years ago. i don't think it's enough to say everything we are doing is too much.

we also play a price for doing too little, for not having done anything with the syrian opposition three years ago. we pay a price for not acted when the syrians crossed varies red lines. yes, there are daerngs in the middle east, but mr. obama also shows there is dangers in doing too little then you are left with terrible options, that itself where we are today. >> we haven't done too little. we have invested $2 trillion so far in. this i wonder if every household in our country feels the $16,000 they've invested has been a good bargain not to mention the bloodshed and the growing cast. this has been a disaster. >> so what would we do with isis? so isis is growing. they're getting oil fields, they're getting millions and millions of dollars. >> i total understand what you are saying. >> if left alone this group is going to get enough money to be able launch significant attacks. >> that's correct. so the starting point is to take

one step back and to understand there would have been no isis but for u.s. actions that took down governments in iraq and destabilized syria. so we have to start -- >> so we assume that to be the case watch do we do now? >> stop digging in deeper. pull back say this is your region, your responsibility. >> what if they don't step up. do we let isis step over in the middle east? >> when we do step up, we are making it worse, not better. there are hundreds of thousands -- there are hundreds of thousands of new refugees today. >> i understand. >> you don't go in leading with the chin that says, we're going to be the ones to take you out and then try to bargain. >> my question, i'll not being cantankerous, we all need an answer. >> for me, saudi arabia and the other countries in the region have a huge stake in getting isis under control.

it's a small group compared to the large armies in the region but when we go if and say we're going to be the ones to do it and beg others to join, they say no thank you, we are suckers if this. >> that's a way to do nothing. >> we get played again. >> it doesn't help to say we ignore you because of the mistakes we made in the past. >> we are where we are. >> no, we are not where we rchl we are where we are base we keep doing the same thing over and over again. >> you can say that, but by not acting out, isis is not self littleing. you are kidding yourself if you think quote/unquote sitting back. >> i didn't say sitting back. >> the arabs are not going to step up. the turks are not going to step up. there is a vacuum there, the vacuum will be filled with isis. doing nothing will simply made a bad situation worse. >> is that what you are saying, doing nothing? >> what is it that is the effective that would work? >> you don't say we're going to be the ones to degrade and destroy this umpblt now, will

anyone else help us? is is what you do. it's ab surld. >> so if turkey, if saudi arabia, if egypt, if the uau would step in, in a meaningful way, do we then provide support? would that be acceptable? >> we don't need to, isis is outnumbered at least 10-to-1 by the local forces. but they don't fight. they don't fight. >> your position is we don't go over there regardless? >> that is correct. we helped to organize a framework in which groups like this are brought under control and we stop overthrowing governments, which open up the space for this kind of disaster. >> interesting. >> that to seems to me naive and dangerous. yes, we should not have overthrown the iraqi governments. now we are where we are. to wash our hands would make a bad situation worse. >> what is naive? >> naive.

>> a debate. we should are made this our healthy debates. >> we can't let mem them go outside with cameras. >> by the way, it's a fantastic conversation. check out the financial times. jeffrey sacks has a piece there. politicians and business, it speaks for itself. still ahead, national security advisor susan rice joins us on set in our next hour. first, all eyes are on iraq an syria. is president obama preparing to strike a major deal with eastern. that report is next. we'll be right back.

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. >> gining us now u.s. national correspondent david sanger. it's great to have you on. you are sororitied on a face saving plan washington is will be to offeritarian. what is that? >> the discussion is to allow the iranians to keep many of their centrifuges in place. these are those big, tall, silvery pieces of equipment that actually enrich uranium tom unpipe them. basically to call in the plumbers. take apart the plumbing that connect them. which is how the iranian moves from within machine to the next. the theory is to boy some time. if the iranians ever put this back together, you'd have some number of months, maybe upwards of a year to know the equipment is coming back together. it would enable the iranians to say they have not actually dismantled the centrifuges,

themselves, which is one of the big issues the supreme leader and the president talking here in new york -- >> so what are the downsides to that? what would the john canes, lindsey grahams of the world say about the deal? >> what they would say, it's not just john mccain and lindsey graham. it's some other iran experts and technical experts is that you are not actually take ache way the equipment that the production capability, all you are doing is putting an impediment there, if they prove the inspectors out and begin to pipe it all up towing, it's not all clear the west would be ready to step in, in the interim time and decide what to do? >> is there any evidence they will agree to remove the entire centrifuges? >> there is almost no evidence, joe, the arabians will agree to remove all of the centrifuges. in fact, there is a fair bit of evidence they won't cut down

anywhere near the level the u.s. has demanded. if you listen to over the summer, the supreme leader, he wants to go building to more than 100,000 new centrifuges in the next few years at some point after the agreement would expire and iran would essentially become what it would view as a normal nation allowed to do what it wants. >> david sanger, thank you very much. >> thank you. >> national security adviser susan rice joins us straight ahead, much more "morning joe." after a morning break.

. >> and here we go, joining us now, the former policy adviser to the bush administration, dan senor and now the director and president and ceo of the woodrow international central for scholars jane harman. >> let's give dan sen oar support for barak obama over wellingly. dan, you believe the president has all the authorities he needs to do whatever he wants to do? >> i do believe -- >> and these airstrikes. >> the president has, the commander-in-chief has the responsibility and authority to protect our homeland. >> should he come back and have an authorization from congress for a vote.

>> if he wants to, he didn't have tom to declare war he doesn't need an act of congress. he is not declaring war. he can use previous authorizations that enable him to do what he needs to do to protect our homeland. the operations she conducting is wage to threats facing our homeland. >> you supported the previous authorization, not for something 11 years later. >> when i voted in 2001 for those who attacked us. i never expected it to be in effect ten years from now. >> should he call congress back in a special session? >> yes. also, i can't believe it. dan wants to write a blank check to a president. >> not a blank check. >> let me say that congress doesn't need to wait on obama. the leaders of congress can say, we're holding a special session. this has been call a war and we are going to debate it and decide whether -- >> but they're running for -- >> they haven't called it a war.

>> it's not a new war. >> oh, dan. >> the president is not calling for a new war. >> it's a new set of -- >> it's a few set of actors in the same region. >> so you believe a vote taken 13 years ago should apply because why, it's a war on terrorism in general? >> let me put it in contact. bill bratton, chief of the new york police department the number one security threat facing the city we are in is a terrorist attack from isil t. president has drawn a direct line between a potential attack on the united states to what is happening with what isil is doing in syria and iraq. he is doing something about it. the last thing i am going to do is putting up obstacles for him. >> you in your poll you sit right there. >> thank you. i do appreciate this. the responsible thing for congress is to come back if session before the election. there are active threats against the homeland. if the homeland is attacked either by a foreign fighter or a

home grown terrorist, congress is going to look pretty dumb in an election season. >> did you say we should have a permanent presence in the middle east? >> we have embassies, we have a diplomatic approach. >> do you support marco rubio. >> i think occupying the middle east is a really bad idea. i think what obama is doing right now with the world coalition and the meeting here and the debate to block foreign fighters which could pass unanimously at the u.n. is terrific. we're not going to destroy isil this way. >> is mark co rubio right? >> i don't think we should have a combat presence in the middle east. he's saying had we not had some military presence in the middle east, we wouldn't have been able to do the bin ladin operation. after 2011, iraq wouldn't have gone to -- we need some presence, we've had a presence in europe. we had a presence in korea. >> jane. >> thank you, joe. we have an arab base if qatar, we have resources in saudi

arabia. and we have the forward operations presence in the middle east. those should stay. sure. but i'm thinking -- >> really, do you think they should be there permanently? >> i didn't invite those countries to say there, yes. i'm not talking about substantial -- >> the man eight years ago, make him show the folder. >> why do have you that? >> he carries it around. >> you want to foe why? >> yes. >> we're football fans. >> do you go at the time paper? >> show one of these cameras. >> we're football fans in the senor home. my kid because we are a football fan bought me this to keep my work papers in. every way on the morning to school, they like to talk about the teams and who is playing who. now, post-scandal, i walk around midtown manhattan with these i get these like dirty looks.

>> oh. >> so what do you do? so, son, this is the team where a guy beat up his pregnant wife and had bruises on the articles, they're still letting him play, oh, wait a second, is that what you do? >> no, i go, these are the jets, they're going to beat the lions this weekend. >> i will give him a few poll, dan senor -- >> you can be critical of these issues and still not abandon the nfl. >> it says it is time for congress to step up. and do what is responsible. >> amen. >> they will rejoin us at the table to put to bed this morning the big question who is more naive in this fight in the middle east? plus we will explain what has become to be known as the latte president. >> i love. that. >> hey, jane, it's great to see you, dan senor, thank you for coming.

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. >> we have reports military operations in syria have begun. >> the u.s. and a coalition of five arab allies leading airstrikes in syria using drones or missiles. >> multiple targets. >> syria is a country we have never bombed before, which means

i get to put a whole new hole in my frequent middle east bombing card. there you go. we have already bombed afghanistan, iraq, pakistan, yemen, somalia and libya and now let's get this thing out heir, now let's put syria right there. all we need to do is bomb oman and i get a free fillofal. >> very nice. welcome back to "morning joe." . >> oh my god, that is so funny. >> also, joining the discussion, senior editor of the news website, ian llitchfield and in washington, moderator of "meet the press," cluck todd. a lot to get to, president obama, we have a great panel, is going to be speaking at the united nations in just a few hours from now. according to new information from the white house, the president will quote layout a

broad vision of american leadership in a changing world. he will also try to rally more international support for his plans to defeat islamic state militants. overnight, the u.s. continued to pound isis targets in syria for the second day in a row as well as if iraq. military officials tell nbc news the airstrike hit vehicles considered targets of opportunity. the pentagon says more than 166 bombs and missiles have already been launched inside syria. officials say the strikes were quote very successful but are warning they could last for years and to launch the conversation also hamid karzai gave his farewell speech later, calling the american mission there as we set the table for new missions of betrayal. >> jeff my sacks, you accused richard hodge of being naive. >> he started it, i retorted. >> he started what?

>> you are calling barak obama and the united states congress and a lot of military men and women naive as with el to think they can go over and bomb isis and ma ache difference. >> well, every general that we have read said this doesn't work this way. it's not going to work. what we have is perpetual war. we have to understand why. rand that's because of domestic politics, this is driven by president obama not wanting to look weak before the mid-term elections and then the next one and the next one. >> isn't he supposed to be if washington? >> i think this is a wave that has no chance of stop tag threat. >> do you think they pose that threat? >> they do pose a threat. bur this isn't going to do it. all the does is create aos. we have hundreds of thousands of new refugees moving this morning trying to cross into the turkish border. you have as stephen colbert said spreading war. this is perpetual war. no solution. i wanted to ask richard one question, richard, should we be

trying to overthrow assad? >> should we have? i believe, no, now, in the future, i 3w4r50e6sh that you will not have peace in syria so long as assad is there. you can't ask me a question and answer it yourself. >> i asked for an answer. >> right now we want to focus on isis. we ought to have an isis first strategy in syria. ultimately, reduce assad to be the mayor, syria, openly, he ought to go. you will not have peace if syria. you will not have peace in the region so long as assad is in power. but the first effort on the part of the united states and everybody else ought to be to go after isis. >> is that what we are doing, training and equiping the rebellion? >> it's not going to provide near time ground -- i would say you get it from the arabs, if that doesn't work. >> no, no, my point is something else, richard, that you are fighting two wars the way that

you are recommending right now and this is just getting us in the middle of chaos inside syria. >> can i say one thing, though. >> answer. >> what we need do is work in syria with the sunni tribe, we need to work with the kurdish tribes though much as we are doing in iraq. that has got to be our focus in the short run in syria. ultimately, we bring in other ground partners and ultimately se see a change. >> i'm going to grow on jeffrey's point, if we jump in as we are, what are the possible ramifications from refugee crisis to ruling more hatred from what you have seen? >> for me the running more hatred is the thing that's really worrying. the fact is that way isis has been paying this, they have been drip feeding us executions. first targeting the u.s., then targeting the u.k. and what we saw with one of the videos from yesterday, the british germans,

he was reading a statement warning the u.s. that it was going to get into something worse tan vietnam. i think what isis has done is, it's doing a very involved tactic. it is drawing in its enemy, provokeing it to attack and trying to dishearten it. and i think this kind of escalation is exactly what they are looking for. >> yes. >> how do we deal with it? i don't know, sitting back and doing nothing also tricky. >> i am still hung up on the point you made earlier trkt president is doing this for political reasons. do you believe? that's a serious charge he's entered who is sure to be a year's long engagement. syria in the middle east so few congressmen and women can win in november? >> i think i provoked a public reaction. the president drew to the reaction. isis drew us. this is a huge mistake, a huge blunder to have gone this way into the middle of the syrian

chaos, which we hope to create, without tying in the countries around the region, isis is outnumbered 10-to-1. we did mobilize the region. the u.s. led. we are begging, please join us, please join us. >> it's a mistaken approach. >> you know he thinks isis is a threat. >> i think she driven by domestic considerations right now. of course, he thinks it's a threat. >> you think this is all about politics? >> i think like vietnam, we were dragged year after year when they knew inside just what we're hearing, joe. let me be specific. the generals came last week and said this approach doesn't work. they said boots on the ground, why did he say no boots on the ground when the general said this approach will not work. >> this president hadn't been accused of making political decisions. >> what the prlts is trying to do is deal with the threat that also limits the costs to the united states, whether he can

thread that needle, i'll somewhat skeptical. -se right about one thing. she right that groups like isis are not self limiting. she right that they pose a threat to the u.s. region and the u.s. homeland, themselves, they are a gathering threat. grupts like khorasan is an imminent threat. will airstrikes alone be the answer? no, that's where we need ground partners and grupt like turkey to stop the three of recruits, the governments to stop the flow of money. i think people are living in a dangerous world if they think that simply if we do less these groups will do less. what we should have learned is these groups will fill vac couples. they are not in anyway willing to play international -- they have an agenda. groups like isis have a serious global agenda. we are in their target. >> we are creating the vacuum by overthrowing governments one after another and creating chaos. this is a perpetual war. >> i want to jump in. go up to 20,000 feet if you

could and actually looking at what you are saying in terms of the different ways that we need help, partnerships with this, ground troonls, coalitions working together. what are the chances, chuck that, we are and will carry the load on this whole thing and ultimately feed into jeff's point? >> i have to say, first of all, i'm a little flustered here watching jeffrey and richard go at each other. okay. >> it's a great debate, though. >> no, it is. look, it's a very healthy debate. i think it feels like we are in a rock in a hard place. >> by the way, chuck, it's the debate we should have had in congress before we fled town like cowards. this is exactly we need to be here two or three weeks, right? >> reporter: absolutely. not only that, we are not seeing nit in the campaign trail. if anything the only thing you see on the company trail is fear mongering television ads, so and so is weak on terrorism.

that's not the debate. nobody is talking about, there was not a single, you know, a couple of senators were talking about the debate about whether to authorize this, you know, should we rescind the 2001 war authorization, all that? it is absurd how congress totally just sort of steps aside and walks away from. this but to get to your point, mica, the united states is already carrying the big burld here. they're doing a majority. we are doing the majority of the airstrikes in syria. that was always going to be the case. you talk to some military leaders and they want these arab countries to sign on, but they don't necessarily want them to do some of the military targeting. this is a case where our u.s. military leaders want to take the lead on here. there is not necessarily, it's not trust. they know the u.s. is a little more capable of this stuff. but i think. look, you have to say this. i'm still a bit shocked by the timing of this and i think anybody that was questioning the president's resolve about going

after isis and doing it through syria, i'm with richard. there is a lot to be skeptical about, about this plan. but you can't question his resolve. he did it the day before he goes to the u.n. that's quite the statement. >> it's amazing. everybody is skeptical about the plan. but you support it. i oppose it. i'm skeptical. >> the lesson is in syria. a year ago we didn't attack assad when he crossed the red line. so we have less than ideal options now. but you got to make the best of a bad situation. >> jeffrey has been saying for some time. you have been saying for some time that we have quietly been undermeaning assad's regime. >> absolutely, not so quietly. >> and caused chaos in syria. >> we have put in a lot of resource, a lot of logistics, a lot of cia. >> since when? >> since mid-2011. this has been cia operations, training the ensurgency. this has been creating chaos.

>> we should have done a lot more. >> i think we should have done nothing like this because we create vacuums richard. >> we went from a president who did too much to a president who did too little. that is the consequence right now to whether we are seeing in the middle east. >> we have a policy of perpetual war. it is a huge mistake. >> it is perpetual wars, we have not been in these long wars with the great thank you of mr. karzai this morning. >> exactly. see i'm frightened both your concerns will come through. there will not be more collective action and we will be joining more hatred. joining us, nbc news correspondent bill feely. are there early strikes both sides of the border are having any impact at all? >> reporter: that is the big question, guys, how do we judge the success of these airstrikes and, by the way, we are awaiting confirmation there were between five and more airstrikes overnight. so we haven't got that from the

pentagon. but, yes, how do we judge excessive these strikes? through the body count and where the dead isis fight es, were they foot sojs or commanders, clearly buildings were hit. were they command and control centers or perhaps were they empty at the time? there was evidence that isis was clearing out. what damage have we done to isis? that they lost men, have they lost momentum? clearly, it was not simply to knock them off balance. i think there are cautionary tales here. one, there is evidence that isis are actually continuing their attack on near the syria-iraqi comborder from where 130, 140,000 kurds have pled. far from stopping that attack, it would appear that isis is using tanks to continue and

harden their assault on that town. second cautionary tale is about where i am now at because there have been -- u.s. missions and -- area aaround 200 airstrikes, essentially, [ inaudible ] the positionary areas have not moved. so when we talk about the success of this first wave, we have to beer have, very cautious. this may only be a tactical success actually strategic or in the medium or long-term, it may have done isis that much damage. >> there you go. >> the point you were making. >> now 1140,000 refugees on the move. new towns being hit. >> richard, you have a date this morning. >> i have to see the president of eastern now. >> which by the way, you are looking forward to after dealing with jeffrey sachs. >> thank you so much. >> happy new year. >> yeah, happy new year.

>> you are supposed to say that. >> jonathan happy 5775 how about that, chuck? man you can take the boy out of pensacola. >> thank you. >> that's funny. >> still ahead on "morning joe," prime minister david cameron barely survived the scottish independence vote. now the british leader is caught on a hot mic talking about the queen. >> oh, no. >> we'll show you what he said. >> first the fight against isis could take not months but years, some say decades. white house national security adviser susan rice will speak with us about what the president's long-term plan is. she joins us next when "morning joe" comes right back. when fixed income experts work with equity experts who work with regional experts

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joining us now, welcome back to "morning joe," we have the white house national security adviser, susan rice joining us on set. good to have you, very good time, i know. why don't we start with the debate. i don't know if you were able follow the debate we were just having from the green room. >> i wasn't. >> okay. well, it was very, very different extremes on this to act and do nothing to stay out of it completely or to get right in. the concern is in terms of what we are doing, we are ultimately not going to have the support to do it collectively. we will end up going this alone. can you say sure us the u.s. won't bear the brunt of it as it is now. >> mica, we are not in it alone, yesterday, u.s. action began if syria and began with an unprecedented collection of arab partners. five countries were with us on the first set of strikes, saudi arabia the united arab emirates, bahrain, jordan and, of course,

all of our qatar as well. these were all countries that met with the president of the united states yesterday and underscored that this is their fight. >> that is their words. this is their fight. they understand that in this region, this is a force in the form of isil that they have to deal with. they welcome u.s. support. they welcome u.s. leadership. together we must do this. but this is not the united states' fight against isil alone. >> so talk if you could about the challenges of getting a groum of arab states to work together that the navigating of that and also can you realistically assess just how long this could go? >> well, let me start with the first. you may recall, i certainly do, that over the last several weeks, there have been a lot of folks wondering where the coalition was. well, in the first instance i think it's important to recall we have had 40 nations plus involved in this from the

outset, larl in iraq from the moment we began our operations there, in support to the iraqi government, military support to the iraqis to the kurds, involvement by partners in the humanitarian operation, countries like france and others taking strikes with us if iraq. but we have been doing a lot of very hard, quiet diplomatic work over the last several weeks that we didn't advertise publicly and that culminated in this, in very important collection of countries coming together yelled. >> this morning, though the new york times is reporting the vast majority of airstrikes belongs to syria, is carried out by american war plains. we are carrying the disproportionate. >> we are the leader. >> overwhelmingly. >> very importantly, a collection of five important countries in that region were a part of it. not part of it in the cosmetic way. part of it taking strikes. >> where is turkey? >> turk just a very important player in this.

i think now that their hostages have been released, we expect turkey both as a nato allie and as a country very wage affected by water hang in syria and iraq to play an important role. now, what form that role takes, we will continue to discuss with them. obviously, they have been involved in supporting the opposition inside of syria as we have. they have been involved in supporting elements in iraq and the kurds and what is particularly important and remarkable and we saw this manifest yesterday is that the sunni countries in the region that were our partners in this effort in syria have now come in strong support of the new iraqi government. >> let's talk about one of those partners? qatar, obviously, a lot of people talking about the fact they're playing both sides. you look at sunni arab states who have actually already kicked the ambassador of that country out of their countries because they have been such big supporters of terrorism across

the middle east. why is the united states a bit more reserved from our approach towards qatar and their funding of terror groups across the middle east? >> first of all, joe, i think what we saw yesterday was very important. because there undoubtedly should have tensions. >> of course, a few concerns, obviously. >> we have had concerns about this tension between the bulk of our friends in the gulf and qatar. we have been well aware of this. yesterday in these actions, they came together. yesterday in the meeting with president obama, they were together underscoring the same message that isil was a threat to them all and that together they have to confront this threat. so i don't want to men mize the fact that there have been tensions and there undoubtedly will be. but isil has had remarkable unifying effect. >> and you wanted the right direction. >> they have been a critical piece of this. you are well aware we have a

major base in qatar. it is important platform for us in the region and that's part of the basis of our relationship. although, it's multi-facetted. >> let's talk about ground operations. it's going to be training that goes on in saudi arabia, training a new free certain army, whatever it's going to be called. the intent is, i would assume to take them back to fight on the ground in syria. the city of raka, headquarters of isil, it's going to take time to put this army together to main tonight ta maintain the gr operation without american troops on the ground in raka, you can't eliminate a city, you can't do it. what's the time element here to beat the clock factor? >> it's going to take time, mike. it's going to take more time in syria than iraq. i think the president has been very clear about that. we have been partnering for some time with the syrian moderate option, the vetted opposition.

but we are now with the support of congress going to be able to substantially ramp up our support and provide equipment and train income a direct way. we will take the time to vet these fighters carefully. obviously, we want to be sure those we are giving our support to are those we have competency in. then we will also need to build their ranks and their skills. it's not something we can do with the flip of a switch. so we have estimated that this will be a matter of months before these forces start to come online if substantial numbers. obviously, iraq, a bit easier because we have iraq syria force, peshmurga forces. they too are of varying capability. some have atrophied and need additional training and support. with reproviding that along with many -- we are providing that along with many other partners.

we do need the analog in syria. >> there have been many people skeptical, including generals about the ability of the free syrian army to move in and provide that kind of ground support without help from men ground troops. the president basically took the idea off the table american ground troops will go in, in any great number. we know there are special forces. >> in iraq, advising. >> yes, in this space of time and these months when you say it's going to take time to build up the free syrian army, other groups like that, do you have a scenario where american men and women would be forced to go in on the ground, it's something, a combat role, beyond an advisory role, never? >> no, you asked if i ever seen a scenario. this has got to be as we have learned painfully over time the fight the locals take to the terrorists on their own ground. >> they're up to the task? >> we have to make them up to the task. obviously, in syria now they are not yet. they have been fighting on

multiple fronts, fighting the assad regime, isil. al niusra. it's a little of the wild west out there. we believe with the sophisticated training we and our partners can provide, sophisticated equipment and the time to enhance their command and control that they can be an effective force on the ground. >> national security adviser susan rice, always good to see you thank you, best of luck with this. coming up on "morning joe," pope frances lives up to his promise on child abuse, for that, hols his first ever criminal trial. why one couple's last minute zigs decision may have saved their lives, that incredible story is next. miss america defends herself against allegations she was kicked out of her college sorority for hazing, are you trying to embarrass me? we'll be right back.

. >> all right. let's take a look at the morning

papers. from the new york times, a former vatican and accused pedophile has been placed on house arrest ahead of his trial. a 66-year-old of poland is accused of sexually abusing teenage boys serving in the public. this will be the first time the vatican will hold a criminal trial on child sex abuse. an explosion rocked a 300-year-old house. minutes after the homeowners walked out the door. a massachusetts couple smelled gas and asked the company to come to inspect why the propane tank was released early and they later took it away. when they left for dinner, a blast knocked it off its foundation. amerigas could not be reached for comment. queen elizabeth had a unique

reaction to the news. >> did you larry this? do you know what the queen did? >> what did she do? >> like your cat. >> like my dad? >> cat. >> like my california cameron told former new york city michael bloomberg the monarch purred down the line over the news. >> you don't talk about the queen that way. >> that will be interesting, i saw the queenful that was a great movie when tony blair talked to the queen. one day, you will understand. it's going to be really uncomfortable when cameron goes will. >> i'm sure he got a phone call. >> mr. cameron. >> i don't know. >> is it baaed? >> she's happy. it's just sort of an awkward thing. >> it does what? >> i don't know. >> come on. >> a bikeer in russia appears to be invincible.

he was crossing an intersection, a car whizs out of nowhere, the bikeer not only misses the car, he appears to get knocked off his bike by the truck. they caught the event last week in moscow, amazingly enough, kids, everybody is doing okay. >> oh, let me tell you something. >> now, the daily news, i'm so glad miss america is denyingacys she was involved in hazing at a sorority at hofstra university. an anonymous source claims that under the butty queen's supervision, they physically abused. keira admits she was knocked out of the sorority says she was never hazed. she never hazed anyone. >> i can sit here and be honest

and share, yes, i was involved under the broad definition of hazing at some point never in a million years what this is claiming to hold. >> she seems nice. why are they picking on her? >> i don't know enough about the issues to weigh in with great authority. >> the miss america organization is standing by her. >> they will be taking this up at a u.n. breakout session. >> saying they are aware of the transgregs. >> i wish we could hear from donald trump. we need to have him respond to it. >> believe it or not, even after that debacle. we want everyone to sign up for the "morning joe" wake-up call. it's a complete story sent wage to your e-mail before the show, sign up by visiting msnbc/wake-up call. >> mr. happy is coming up. >> no, no is glass is always full wilbanks joins us in a must read page, why he is saying president obama is enduring the

lesser evil for some liberals. stay with us.

. >> president obama is catching some flack. >> oh, yeah. >> for what's come to be known as the latte salute. this is much to do about nothing. >> yes. >> the white house posted this video of the president's arrival. >> you can at least say that. >> the problem came when he exited his marine one holding a cup of coffee. >> this would be the very first time that any president in the history of the republic has never, ever, taken everything out of their hand, never mind.

>> there you go. >> that will cut short the talk radio. >> that's barney. >> he didn't put him down to salute the troops? >> everybody has their off day. so only right wing radio hosts coen won't be able to say, he hates the troops, he hates the troops. >> george bush is holding a dog. listen, you know, if you are holding a dog. >> that's all to say. >> i love george. >> i miss george bush. >> you know what, it's moments like this that he comes through for us. that's all i will say. >> i like george bush. >> we lick george wind chill. >> i miss george w. >> joining us now the washington post columnist david milbanks. >> i salute you. >> look at that bold salute. >> nothing in my hands. >> ridiculous. let's get to your piece in the washington post. obama and george the lesser evil

for liberals. the anti-obama left was out in force all 22 of them. >> that the president stood on the south lawn, liberal demonstrators gathered on pennsylvania avenue to protest the man they thought was their allie. the liberal activists say there is insufficient claimant change and wanls, failed economic diplomacy but the role call offing aistives was short. obama starts a war, they scheduled joint demonstrations with plenty of advanced warning and only 22 people show up. it was the latest display of how obama has neutralized the left. >> that's a far cry from the gop storming into congressional areas screaming "no more war!" that doesn't happen a whole lot now does it?

>> it joe's pink, some of those co-pinkers were there yesterday. they were among the 22. they all made their best effort. they attempted a dye in at the white house get as. ten laid down in what was supposed to be blood sustained sheets and the secret service and the park police are so uninterested in the whole thing, they kind of left them there to die. five of the dead rose from the dead and started giving interviews because they were getting bored with the whole thing. >> what is how he has neutralized the left? we are seeing a convergence. >> i talked with the actors, they said, can you imagine if george w. bush had done this, launched a new war while congress is out of town? the whole place would be full of liberals streaming in protest. it's absolutely right. it's a part of who obama is. the things he has done. few look at his policies, it should be enfurriateing a lot of people on the left, whether it's

war, terrorism, gitmo, immigration, the environment and global warming. but obama, himself, is so popular among lib ralts that it carries, it dominates over the policies. you know, few look at support for him among african-american, among liberals, self described democrats, it's still extraordinarily high. therefore, they are supporting poiltss basically holding their nose. >> jeffrey sack sachs, you said it was hard for you to be stuck in another room on pluto while that was going on f. there were a lot of americans, a lot of people overseas thinking we can't sit back and do absolutely nothing against isil. >> i like what dana said about holding your nose. i speak to an obama support hate what obama is doing. they're still supporting him because they're desperate.

there seems to be no alternative. it feels like over in the middle east there is no alternative as well. now this things that started. i don't understand how it started. how everything pivoted. but now that it's started, it's gotten a moment item to turn. i don't know where it stops. >> dana, do you also think that twinned with the liberals empathy for obowl there is also an undercurrent of washington weariness no matter what happens? that's why i worry about an election this fall. i think there is so much weariness of what is going on the washington, people are, whatever, leave me alone, i got to get a cup of coffee. >> i think it explains why the turnout models for democrats looks so poor for november. they are going along and saying obama is the lesser of all evils. they are not passionate about it. few look at the generic ballot, the people prefer the democrats by 4 points t. people that go to

the polls prefer the republicans by 8 points. it does have a consequence. he has a demoralized left. that i are reluctantly going along with the lesser vehicles. >> what was your reaction to yesterday's story in the "time's" about the increased expenditures and expansion of our nuclear weaponry? i was surprised by it. >> it was fascinating again coming from barak obama and his commander in chief. but you know, dana was talking about how, i mean it's another region for the people on the left that are some of the most motivated people to go up and volunteer and if it does the elections may not go out and do that, mica, on the right, you have a lot of republicans. a lot of conservatives who are disen franchised from the republican congress and can't stand john boehner and can't stand the house leadership and can't stand mitch mcconnell.

can't see themselves going out, putting it on the line for them either. that's why here we are what september 22nd, september i guess it's the 22nd. what day in 24th. only a couple days behind. we still don't know how this race is going to break because it's really a stake, you got in the south, republicans are making some gains and the mid-west, republican governors are in trouble. in kansas, it looks like, you know, it looks like there are a thousand different cross currents and i think the common denominator is you have a very disenfranchised public. >> we'll see what happens. i think people are tired of blandly following those who are there in washington now. no matter what side what party they're on t. walk post dana milbanks, thank you very much. still ahead, is capitalism versus the climate. why saving the planet may rest

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i don't know if it was his star power or what, but seemed like people are starting to get the message that the world is getting dangerously hot. >> i stand before you not as an expert but as a concerned citizen.

one of the 400,000 people who marched in the streets of new york on sunday and the building build building billions of others who want to solve our climate crisis. every week, we're seeing new and undeniable climate events. droughts are intensifying. are oceanings are acid flying with methane plumes rising up from the ocean floor. >> and yet somehow the weirdest thing about that clip is leonardo dicaprio's hair. >> climate change is taking center stage. >> it's hot in there, huh? >> the united nations general assembly gets under way with everyone from president obama to actor leonardo dicaprio weighing in this week. she's out with a new book "this changes everything," capitalism versus the climate. >> you said it was very strange to see all these ceos just sort of circling around dicaprio. >> they were acting like 12-year-old girls.

>> your very provocative argument, you're actually talking about capitalism being the biggest enemy of the vish. >> environment. >> in a sense, this is what all of most credible scientific organizations, what they're telling us is if we continue with what they call business as usual, which is capitalism as usual, which is an economic system built on short-term profits and growth, that will take us to 4 to 6 degrees of warming. that's more than 10 degrees celsius, right? so this is not me saying it. the 6 degrees comes from pricewaterhousecooper. that means we have an commission system that has essentially waged war on the life support systems that we have. >> what about the chinese? obviously, they're the biggest polluter. you wouldn't say the communist chinese are classic capitalists, are you? >> i don't think they're classic

capitalists either. with china, it just begins to soar in 2000. so what we have is this emissions explosion, post-2000, which is the year china joined the world trade organization. there's a link between -- this is what i'm arguing in the book, there's a link between the embrace of unfettered, deregulated capitalism, and the fact this crisis is hitting us more quickly, and we're not politically and ideologically equipped to deal with it. >> what do you replace capitalism with? >> we feed to regulate. well, a system that will be able to say no to corporations. you can't dig up five times more carbon than our atmosphere can safely absorb. >> that's fair. >> maybe even you should help pay for us to transition away from fossil fuels. it's very expensive. we hear all the time our governments are broke. we hear that exxon mobil made $45 billion in profits in a single year. so, i mean, all this is obvious. this is polluter pays.

this is how we solved most large environmental crises in the past. we have a problem of timing. which is we live in a time where there's a right-wing campaign that told us we can't regulate, we can't tax. and there's something vaguely wrong with that collectively -- >> we have a lot of it, we want to get around -- >> is there a tipping point? you see somebody like leo showing up and everybody's acting like a 12-year-old girl at the u.n. because of the star power, is there a tipping point? do environmental groups actually believe that business is on board or are they skeptical? >> i think there's real tension because at the u.n. there was this idea that we're just going to get the polluters around the table. you had a lot of big oil companies there. everybody has grandkids. it was sort of like a telethon for the earth with very low bidding. but then on the streets the day before, you had flood wall street, much more confrontational attitude. we actually know you're causing this crisis. think the tipping point is

reflected in the fact there were hundreds of thousands of people in the streets. an expression of urgency we haven't seen. >> pipeline versus the earth, what do we do? >> i come from canada where that pipeline starts. in canada, we're told, we have to choose between the economy and the environment all the time. we don't. we can't have a much healthier, much better environment with more jobs. i mean, every dollar that you would get -- every job you would get out of investing in a pipeline, you would get 6 to 8 jobs by investing in renewable energy, public transit, it's just a smarter investment. ideology. because that's going to be public investment. very politically connected. obama has been waffling for more than three years. he can't seem to get the word no out. there's a boon going on right now in green energy, but there's a bigger boon going on in fossil fuels.

it's sort of like eating celery and going to mcdonald's and wondering why it's not working. >> this changes everything. can't you see it? capitalism versus the climate. thank you so much. >> come back. still ahead, seven layers of defense couldn't stop the white house from being breached. "the washington post" has an unbelievable breakdown watof wh went wrong. maybe this will help. we've got a good defense here. >> a buffer. >> plus, the state department told him not to go but he went anyway. back to the same iraqi village where he served as a marine ten years ago. he join us with a vivid story of his journey.

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the big worry ahead of all this was that we'd have to go into this fight alone. but you know what? that's what friends are for. >> we're told four arab nations are also flying that the missions over syria. saudi arabia, jordan, bahrain and the united arab emirates. defense officials say a fifth nation, qatar, is also helping in the effort, but not by air. >> uh, what, are they -- i don't understand. how is qatar helping? we're doing air strikes but they're not -- what, are they giving isis the silent treatment? when isis is all like, qatar,

what's wrong, are you mad at me, qatar's like, "no, it's cool." good morning, it's wednesday, september 24th. the president of the council on foreign relations with us, richard haass. >> it's huge. >> can you believe this? >> he's spun up this morning too. >> he's angry. >> "new york times," charles blow. his any memoir "fire shot up in my bones" is incredible. i read an excerpt over the weekend. >> did you read this "washington post" article about the white house? >> jumper? >> it's unbelievable. >> new nens? >> yeah. >> okay. >> an intruder at the white house. a few yards further in, the intruder reached the door. they talked about how there were like seven steps for the secret service people.

and every single step of the way, they failed. i mean, it's unbelievable. on the outside of the fence, there was somebody that's supposed to spot a jumper. they failed. the guy at the gate is supposed to go out. he failed. then as he moved closer to the white house, the third ring of protection is they're supposed to release the dogs. they failed to to do that. then the s.w.a.t. team was supposed to slow him down. they failed to do that. >> it keeps getting worse. >> then finally, the seventh ring of protection is somebody standing at the front door of the white house to keep them out. but that person wasn't there. so that was the seventh ring of the seven rings of protections. so now what they're going to do is make tourists across america wait even longer because they're too stupid. seven people. this is seven people who didn't screw up.

they said a word i can't say on tv. and as a security expert said, once the guy got inside of the white house, he could have had anything on him. he, in effect, controlled the white house. could have had a bomb on him. could have had a massive device on him. they had seven rings of protection. that all failed miserably. and if the secret -- if the person who's in charge of running the white house secret service is not fired for this, i don't really know what you have to do to be fired in washington, d.c. >> there's a review. i think they're answering a lot of questions now. has been called in. >> well, they get a new fence. whoo. >> it's a mini fence. >> it will keep short people out. >> exactly. oh, man. oh, my, lord. >> they got lucky on two fronts. number one this guy wasn't really armed. didn't have a bomb. number two, the president wasn't there. if the president's home, that

guy gets inside with god knows what. >> and the kids, they're just right up the stairs. >> not good. >> it's unbelievable. >> no, it is. all right. let's begin with new york. where in just a few hour, president obama will try to rally more international support for his plans to defeat islamic state militants in the address to the united nations general assembly. overnight, the u.s. continued to pound isis targets in syria for the second day in a row, as well as in iraq. military officials tell nbc news the air strikes hit vehicles considered targets of opportunity. the pentagon says more than 160 bombs and missiles have already been launched inside syria. officials say the strikes were, quote, very successful. but are warning they could last for years. >> i wonder what that means, very successful. >> we're looking at some of the first pictures from the ground in syria after the air strikes. residents say this town was hit by at least four rockets in the first day of raids.

while the u.s. has stressed there was an international coalition, a top official with the joint chiefs of staff says the u.s. has carried out most of the strikes. the obama administration says the air strikes are legal under the iraq war authorization from 2002. but two months ago, national security adviser susan rice asked how speaker john boehner to rescind the resolution, calling it outdated. >> what's going on here? richard haass, do we know what we're firing at? come on. let me ask this a different way. we really don't know what we're firing at. this is one of those situationings where my mother would come up to me and say don't confusion motion for action. this is motion more than action, isn't it, richard? >> we do not know exactly what we're firing at because that's real-time intelligence. we don't have people on the ground. in some cases, there might not

be the people or the equipment there we wanted. it's one of the problems in trying to conduct an anti-terrorist campaign with one arm tied behind your back. so, charles. haven't we done this before? again, i'm not saying we're sitting back and going through nothing but what's going on on the ground? >> and whether or not we trust the military mission not to creep. i'm always leery of the beasts of war. i think that you -- it cannot be tamed. that it is always hungry. that you know once you let it loose, you don't know what you get on the other side of it. >> where it ends up. >> so joining us now from

boston, we have the dean of the fletcher school at tufts university. former supreme allied commando at nato. he's the author of the book "the accidental admiral." admiral, i'd love to capitalize on richard haass' point about air strikes only at this point, with no ground partner. they're being called very successful. but what are the limitation, to air strikes only? >> well, think richard categorizes it correctly. without the spotters on the ground. without that real time laser dot. to put it precisely where you want. you are handicapped. now, you can do a fair amount using strategic intelligence, overhead sensors, that type of thing. there are some indications that some of the leadership of this khorasan group may have been hit. over time, if we're going to be very effective in this air campaign, we're going to have to put some people on the ground. >> richard -- >> yeah, and of course, really,

that's the big question. we don't have any arab troops ready. united states aren't putting people on the ground. the pentagon's not even -- doesn't even seem to be confident. a lot doubting this is even going to work. >> david ignatius writes in "the washington post" this is a wake-up call. they're setting up these camps in saudi arabia. where we're going to train people to go back into syria. they will be up and running for something like six months. we're talking about years here. this is sort of sold as a clean air strike mission. this is going to go on into the next presidency. this is a long deal. >> so admiral, what do we do strategically? >> i think first and foremost, it's get coalition partners. to the degree weem had some success in afghanistan, it's probably because of bringing 50 nations together there. we had a reasonable tactical success in libya by bringing

together a coalition that included some arab partners. i think if we can capitalize on the arab's apparent willingness to at least participate, maybe bring some of their folks in on the ground who can be in that environment. >> some arab state, as "the new york times" reported this morning, don't like each other, are actually working together. >> that's the big question of how long that can last. what's a great example of how it has worked before. talk, if you could, about the challenges of getting a coalition together, a group of arab states. >> the challenges are enormous. one is the limit, they want to contribute themselves. the lack of enthusiasm, shall we say, for putting, quote/unquote, their boots on the ground. secondly, the political differences. qatar has been owe straw sized by the arab states by being too close to groups like the muslim brotherhood in egypt, to hamas -- >> can i ask about that, why is

it other arab states have basically turned their backs on qatar because they have funded radical islamists across the middle east but we have the secretary of state here and he's, john kerry's repeating america's position, and that is sort of down the middle. we don't seem like we want to go out and condemn qatar for funding terrorists. >> we had the emir the qatar yesterday at the council of foreign relations. there is something of a movement there. the fact they joined the coalition, however limited, actually said something. the fact they kick out the muslim brotherhood representatives they've had living there over the next few weeks, that's something. >> are they starting to feel the heat? >> starting to feel the heat a little bit. all these traditional arab states have got to worry. at one point, isis is not going to be content with mucking around in places like syria and iraq. at one point, isis is going to train its guns, literally, on the centers of the sunni/arab world. that means saudi arabia ander else. >> we're learning new details

about the al qaeda-linked groups also targeted in the air strikes. pentagon officials say intelligence showed the group known as the khorasan was in the final stage, of plans to attack the u.s. or other western targets. nbc news chief foreign correspondent richard engel will join us in just a moment. but this is his report from neighboring turkey. >> reporter: it's a crowded battlefield in syria. with dozens, perhaps hundreds, of extremist groups drawing members from across the world. they fight against the assad regime. and against each other. the khorasan group is one of them. it's a splitter group of al qaeda which moved to syria to locate and recruit westerners among the thousands of foreign fighters in the country. the khorasan group is considered a threat to the u.s. because american intelligence officials say it wants to bring down airplanes with explosives. a traditional al qaeda objective. the group's leader is this man,

muh cy n al fadhli, age 33, born in kuwait. he ran al qaeda's cell in iran, reportedly fought in afghanistan and chechnya and was a top aid to osama bin laden, said to be one of the few people to know about 9/11 before the attacks. now, al fadhli and others are said to be under attack, so is isis, and many more just like them. >> you talked about the cost of war. appropria appropriately, we find ourselves, what, 13 years later. you talk about how americans aren't just reluctant. we can't have people in washington, d.c. and the council on foreign relations all over the world telling working class americans we have to go back to work. but the costs have been so extraordinary, a lot of americans are saying no mas.

>> a lot of moments where we are kind of very patriotic, rightfully so, beheading videos, really cautioned a lot of anxiety and anger among americans. i understand that. you saw real strikes in approval of going after isis. we've seen this before. we've played this movie before. you look back at polling right before we went into iraq, the people were very gung-ho and well. that flies off very, very quickly. we don't have the stomach for long engagements. we believe things should be quick and easy. that is not -- we play on a different timetable. they play on a decade, glacial-long timetable. >> charles makes a great point. i'm looking forward to the next wave of polls. we had the first wave of polls after the beheading. i'm looking forward to the next wave of polls after the air strikes. i don't think you're going to find 65% of people supporting this and 40% of americans say

thank you for supporting ground troops over there. i just don't think you're going to find that. that's a real challenge. that's why the president, although he has been going much slowly -- that's why he's actually closer to the american people than they are. >> we have richard just north of the syrian border in turkey. khorasan, at this point, as many have reported, it's far more dangerous in some ways. how much of a piece of it was taken out, richard? >> well, it's unclear, and i'm actually not entirely sure that khorasan isn't any more dangerous than any groups operating inside syria. according to u.s. intelligence, the group, which is not very well known, has about 100 core members. it is linked directly to al qaeda. it has linkaged to other al qaeda groups in the middle

east. other late stages of plotting an attack to bomb u.s. airliners. that is a very specific threat. that is the threat that the u.s. intelligence is pointing to, saying there is a more immediate need to carry out these air strikes. but when you look at syria and you look at all of the different militant groups on the ground, you have nusra, another group, there are many groups that could pose a threat not just to the united states but i think once you explain that, once you start bombing in syria, you start looking for target, you're going to see this is not just a short complain, but years, and we'll see if the american people recognize what they're getting into it. >> let's talk about the more moderate ones.

the quote/unquote groups we partner with. what do we know about the free syrian army? is that a viable group of people who are willing to fight on behalf of the united states, on behalf of the united states, to go in and partner with the united states? are they willing, number one? second, are they capable of pulling this off? >> i think the answer is are they willing? in theory, they're willing. when you talk to some of their leaders. the leaders who are in new york. some of them with their hands out right now, looking for money, looking for support. they say they're willing. they seem to be convincing washington they're willing. open the ground, they're very weak right now. they're nowhere in a position to take ground. and that is the basic structural flaw of this strategy. the u.s. is backing both sides. the air strikes are helping.

but the air strikes also support rebels who are against assad. this sets up syria in almost a permanent state of civil war. that is the civil war that's caused all of the extremists to allow themselves to find a safe haven. still ahead on "morning joe," what does the military really think of the plan to defeat isis? plus, a high school on strike? we'll tell you why these students walked out of their classes next. what would happen... if energy could come from anything? or if power could go anywhere?

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♪ so, raichard haass, i don't think i've ever seen him so angry. this karzai thing. >> he basically said thanks but no thanks. >> he thanked the iranians, but then thanked us. >> richard's very worked up. thanks iran, india, china. said america never wanted peace. he said future leaders beware of america. >> we'll get to that. we'll play some of that. let's get a look at the morning papers now. >> the epoch times. >> one of my favorite newspapers. >> prosecutors say a 47-year-old man used cocaine to buy votes.

>> why is it i'm always right behind the curve? >> i know. you and rob ford. >> it would have made '94 so much easier. i was thinking about acid, little x. >> a little meth. >> ecstasy. >> accused of killing dime bag of coke to voters in the board of education elections in 2012. others were paid cash for votes. garcia is facing voter fraud. >> you can be arrested for buying votes with coke? he was selling them? shouldn't you just give them out. >> maybe at a second? >> oh, that's right. >> let's go to denver. >> i think -- go ahead. >> we can do better in denver. >> hundreds of colorado students staged a walkout yesterday to protest a new controversial u.s. history curriculum. the new proposal looks to focus

education only on positive things in american history. while downplaying acts of civil disowe beadance. students from six participating high schools says the walkout was ourganized by word of mouth and social media. >> i just don't think they wanted to go to school. here's another thing. i would just sneak off of campus. i'd go sit and eat at morrison. li you know, the roast beef. >> we went to the parking lot of the seven 11. >> i should have like stage ed protests. four of america's largest beverage companies have vowed is to cut calories. but instead of cutting their beverage calories, the companies are expected to sell smaller

portions and promote bottled water but that's a lot like what mayor bloomberg was trying to do here. which is you can have this, but let's get the -- >> have a little less. it's like french ladies. they know how to eat smaller portions, right? >> i thought you meant -- >> what was that book called? >> the french paradox. >> oh, oh, that one. where they drink a lot of wine and live longer. >> they're selling bottled water too. could i just say, you could also get it from the tap. >> you know, that's actually -- we've started to do that. >> there's fluoride in it, it's good for your teeth. >> instead dealing with plastic bottles, we get glass and turn on the water. you know what, this is crazy. we drink the water. >> what happens then? >> you know what it tastes like? the water. >> do you get green spots all over you? >> no, it's weird, it's just like the water actually tastes like water. >> yeah, you don't need to buy it. you do not need to buy water. >> drink it like a cat out of the sink. general motors has announced

plans to spin cadillac off into a separate business unit. the luxury auto brand will move its headquarters from detroit to so w soho here new york city. cadillac looks for a new identity in the luxury auto market. >> they're making some interesting changes that are really appealing to women. >> like cadillac? >> what are they doing? >> you'll see. they've got some interesting cars on the horizon. >> it's not your granddad's cadillac. >> it's not. >> the chicago tribune. basketball player metta world peace, i can't believe i'm saying that, he was formally known as ron artest, will wear unusual shoes when he plays ball in china. after announcing he'll change his name to the panda's friend, mr. world peace is taking his entire -- you can see here, he took ton twitter to show off the footwear. the sneakers feature the head and arms of a stuffed panda bear. available for --

>> a head? >> try wearing that down in so who o -- >> are you serious -- >> that's like a bad shoe too. >> is he going to wear that? >> what's going on there? >> "the washington post." the world health organization says the ebola outbreak will become a permanent fixture in west africa if drastic measures are not taken to control the spreading virus. the cdc also says there could be 1.4 million cases in liberia and sierra leone by january. the statistics suggest the deadly virus could spread as easily as the flu or malaria. coming up next, retired general michael lahayden joins the tabl. andrea mitchell will be here as well. plus, he's the head of the world bank but this is what he did in his old job. we'llics plain when he joins us ahead.

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there is breaking news tonight. air strikes against isis in syria has begun. >> ooh, it was so anticipated. it was the iphone 6 of wars. it's expensive. a little bigger it a little more

unwieldy than you thought it was going to be. it's going to be at least a two-year commitment. >> with us now, we got the former director of the cia and nsa. now a principal at the cherdof group, michael hayden. and host of "andrea mitchell reports," andrea mitchell. general, let's start with the headlines. they're all talking about air strikes. there's "the washington post." "the boston globe" talks about us taking on another foe in the middle east in our campaign. "the wall street journal" says the united states promised a long war. and then, air war in syria could last years is the headline on the front page of the "usa today." a lot of americans waking up, trying to figure out what exactly, what are we doing over there again. >> well, the headlines are right. this is going to take a long

time. even if this goes swimmingly, i've said 3 to 5 at least. >> why so long? >> just because of the nature of the war. the nature of the target. strategy, the essence is a lot of means to ends. i think most folks with my kind of background say we're a bit short on means. for reasons that may or may not be good. >> a lot of military people inside the pentagon has been critical of the president, suggesting he's making political decision instead of strategic decisions militarily. do you agree with that. >> they certainly kind of reflect, look, this is a president who wanted to be remembered for the tide of wars receding. it's time to do some nation building at home. and then two weeks ago today, he gets to make that "my fellow americans" speech. >> how's he coming up short in this strategy? >> i thing he is putti inting t visible a limit on what american ground forces will do, and let me be very careful about this -- >> by saying no ground troops? >> yes, look, no one is calling for maneuver brigades back into the western iraqi desert, right.

but you do have boots on the ground. we're probably pushing 1,500 now. i think we're at 3,000 to 5,000 by the end of the year. but it's how you lose them. right now, we're not allowed to be present within the iraqi army below the brigade level. if you want to stiffen and guide and toughen the iraqi army, we're going to need americans at a much lower level. if you want to have really precision air strikes integrated with the fire and movement of iraqi forces, you want to take the phone call from an iraqi nco. >> right. >> i think he wanted an american nco. >> the president's reluckett aengs reluctance, doesn't that reflect where the american people are? >> it reflects the polling. as commander in chief, he has to make decisions that are strategic and long range. how do we do these air strikes on the serious side effectively without spotters, without some

kind of forward deployed special forces? >> no, no, that's really part of the problem. look, i'm taking the meaning from the headlines and other commentary that we had a pretty good night, the night before last, with the target, we hit. that's kind of the low-hanging fruit. that's the stuff that you knew already. by the way, the islamic state. so you've got a bit more infrastructure there to hit. now, they're going to scatter. they're going to mix with the civilian population. they're going to be more disciplined with their cell phones. this is going to require -- >> even that, at least they're not in a position where they can run oil refineries, right? >> no, this is good. you've already begun -- >> for people that are listening, yes, they're scattering, living among civilians now. that's much better than running around saying we're going to run this chemical plant, this oil refinery, amass millions of dollars on the black market so we can build a dirty bomb and go to the united states and set it off. >> to the degree they began to

act like a nation state, to that degree, this kind of campaign can suppress them. when they morph back into a terrorist group, our campaign is going to have to look an awful lot like we've been trying to do in waziristan for the last few years. >> when we talk about the campaign and trying to suppress what isis means, and now a new name coming up is khorasan. what do you say to those who are skeptical about this, we're doing the same thing, and it's the definition of insanity? what's the harvest we're trying to reap down the line if we initiate the same behavior over and over again? >> you look at this conflict. you got to deal with the people who are already convinced they want to kill me already. the deep fight has to do with the production rate of people who may want to kill me in 1, 3, 5 or 10 years. while there are still people currently committed to harming americans or american friends, you do have to deal with them

the way weem begun to deal with them here. >> right. >> but that doesn't do anything for dealing with the production rate. doesn't do anything -- look, my last week in government -- >> but the production rate -- not to be, you know, drill down on this specifically about what's going on in that region, but we're talking about a birth rate, of basically creating human beings that are being pickled to grow up to hate americans and now we're learning about americans that are going overseas to fight with terror groups like isis and use their passports to come back. so we're not only fighting against foreign-born enemies potentially but now american-born enemies that would go and join a group like isis. >> briefed there on the margins of an nsc meeting, i've got a week left in government. rahm emanuel says, hey, good stuff. i say, okay, rahm emanuel is complainting cia. i should just pocket that and walk away. but this is my last week in government. i don't have a chance to say much anymore.

so i said to rahm, thank you very much, that was a good thicthic thing, and i appreciate you appreciate it. but unless you change facts on the ground, you have to kill people forever. that's the challenge we now have. can we change the facts on the ground? >> we've invested so much, andrea in maliki in karzai. we haven't -- forget boots on the ground, we haven't had leaders on the ground. it's put the president in the position where he's become what he campaigned against, the president who was going to get us out of wars. he says hillary's idea about arming the rebels is fantasy. now it's his policy. now politico's reporting he's using the same authorization that his own people wanted to do away with several months ago. this is really a messy situation for the white house. >> it's a messy situation, yet this is the reality that he's dealt with. i'm wondering, you know, what side is qatar on?

where is turkey? you know who are the allies that we can really count on? because some of them helped create this mess. >> why is it that middle eastern countries are willing to go after qatar but we aren't? call them out for what they're doing. they're funding terrorists. >> we need them. >> we have a bigger base. that gives them leverage, for better or worse. your comment is right. i think what the president is doing now is right. it is not consistent with what the president has said for the last six years. and it's not just qatar. it's the turks that really matter in this. >> yeah. and they still matter. general, thank you very much. we appreciate you being here, as always. andrea, we'll see you at 12:00 noon. most american people don't want u.s. troops in iraq but one marine went for his own reason, to see the village he served ten years ago. he's with us next on the set of "morning joe."

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with us now, we have retired combat marine benjamin bush. he writes about his return to the iraqi village where he served ten years ago. this is remarkable. you've got your memoir here, dust to dust. mike is going through some pictures. extraordinary pictures that we want to show everybody while you're talking. but you went back to the village of dushan and it was unrecognizable. >> these are very small satellite villages that had been disregarded by the regime. >> where is the location? >> right near the iranian border to the east, so heavily ccupied benefited from a shia benefit,

maliki of course, favored his own for all those years. so we went looking for a place that had been fraught with violence. it had been able to avoid most of that instability, simply by being irrelevant to everyone. >> doing better today than it was ten years ago? >> i would say it was in some ways. what you see there is the slow erosion of their traditions in history. what they were when i first arrived was this very small, tight community. an earthen village on top of a hill. what you see now is they're moving into brick homes with loans from the government. they're suddenly beholding to someone. they have to pay these back. >> how did your perception change from that first time and what the mission was, to going back and knowing how the world has changed over that decade? how did it change for you? >> well, i wanted to now he we were perceived. i bought cheap clothing in baghdad to look like everybody

else. although i wasn't disguising myself as nonforeign, you know, everyone knew i was american, i didn't want to be major bush on this return. i wanted to see if i could get honest opinions about how relevant we had been. and, you know, i found out we hadn't really been relevant at all, we'd barely made the story. and it's an oral culture. so if you don't make the story, you don't make the history there. the rest of the -- i started in baghdad which being is a much different place it. >> relevance is the question. you write this about iraq. we sought for years to define the iraqi people, give their nation one cogent people that would allow us to administer a cure but iraq is every disease there is. its mind is diseased with too many organs. it was religion that did this. one man i met shortly after i awried told me. when i asked whether he favored iraq's division, he said no, that won't help. the three parts will be ruled by the outside countries and they

would fight. several men i met said they were proud to be shia but they didn't think iraq meant anything anymore. it is just a place. since babylon, it has just been a place. and we are, again, rooted in that place endlessly. >> well, everything old is new again. especially in iraq. said, when asked how do you define yourself? he said i'm sa marian. that's going back a piece. i think it's the inability of iraqis to really define themselves, which has caused so much disharmony and unity. >> what was your reaction, having fought alongside, at some points, the remnants of an old iraqi army? what was your reaction recently when you read that -- with the onslaught of black flags coming over the hill, the iraqi army as it stands today, many of them ripped off their uniforms and ran? >> well, you know, that's about

as repugnant as anything could be to a marine. retreat, surrender, all that. after eight, nine years of training, you see what us beginning to talk about training them again. i just -- i think at some point we need to put a limit on folly. self-definition is the thing that really has to drive a force. >> a limit on folly. the new issue of "harper magazine" is out now. also, "dust to dust, a memoir." benjamin, thank you so much for being with us. we really appreciate it. there was no question she was the one.

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here with us now, we have president of the world bank group, dr. jim yun-kin. and the former president of dartmouth. very good. >> glad to have you he, jim. let's talk about extreme poverty. over 1 billion people in the world today live on, what, $1.25 a day? are we making no gains at all? >> we've made a lot of games. the good news is, if you go back to 1990, 36% of the global population lived in extreme poverty. you hear that number and you think, well, $1.25, that's nothing. it's truly nothing. but still more than 1 billion people. went from 36% to 28%.

and now in 2015, it's down to 12%. so two-thirds of the number living in extreme poverty have been lifted out of poverty. >> what's the challenge getting that number lower? >> finding ways to grow the economies of the developing countries in ways that include the poorest. that's what we do with world bank. we're trying to find ways of spurring economic growth. which everyone wants. that will create jobs which is the best way to lift people out. >> so global citizen festival, how far? it's like a countdown now. we're getting close. because you're really trying to make a significant impact here. >> what we're focused on this year is three key measures associated with extreme poverty. the first one is global health. specifically child survival and ensuring children have access to vaccines and immunizations. the second one is education. particularly for girls. getting those remaining children into school. thirdly, we're focused on water and sanitation. particularly across indian.

together with the prime ministers of bangladesh and nepal will join us at the festival. >> let's just be shallow and sell it. because you've got jay z, no doubt, the roots, carrie underwood, fun. this is all live on msnbc. that's just to start, thomas. this thing's going to be huge. >> it's a great collection. as you point out, you have great world political leaders that are also coming to add their star power. so how do you think that is going to help get the attention of the people that you want? which is young millennials. people that know how to pick up the torch and carry it on, to pay attention. >> yeah, well, we've seen, throughout the half the year, membership basically continues to grow. thousands of young people sign on. young people all around the world. they're signing on because they say our voice collectively is stronger than our voice alone. they say we want to hold world leaders' feet to the fire to commit to the world's poorest people.

significant promises. like with agriculture. sometimes world leaders follow through. other times they don't. we need to make sure they follow through in this instance. that's what the global citizen festival's all about. >> do we have this videotape of you at dartmouth? >> oh, come on, are we doing that? >> really, our tower says we should do it. showing off his skill thalgs he doesn't usually show as a college president. ♪ ♪ i came up like a fire make it hot ♪ ♪ up here giving all they got >> so does president obama know you were doing this before -- >> you're good. >> he didn't see it before he nominated me but he saw it

afterwards. >> that's an original song, right? >> no, that's the will.i.am version of "time of my life." i met will.i.am about a year ago and showed him the video and he loved it. >> you're lip-synching? >> no, i'm singing. >> that's what i thought. >> right before beyonce, right there, okay. >> it's perfect. >> what if it's dark in the park? jim, you need to take the stage. with you and your light sticks. >> you can catch the broadcast live on msnbc and streaming on msnbc.com this saturday at 3:00 p.m. eastern. dr. kim and hugh evans, thank you. we'll be right back with much more "morning joe."

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♪ and zero words per manwich. hold on. it's manwich. welcome back, kids. time to talk about what we learned today. >> i learned in a busy week here, u.n. week in washington, in new york, and a dangerous world, benjamin bush's description of iraq today, we have to put a limit on folly. >> return to folly. tom. >> a lot of different things today, but most of all, i just learned that mike barnacle liks,

the nats and the os for the world series. i'm with you. i like this idea. i think it would be very convenient. a beltway world series between washington and bald more. baltimore, right? >> pretty good. >> next, a special two-hour edition of jose diaz-balart, including the president's address at 10:00 a.m. if it's way too early, it's "morning joe." we'll see you tomorrow. in one hour, president obama will take center stage at the u.n. general assembly trying to rally the world against a common enemy. this, just hours after a second wave of bombing attacks against isis. the president will make the case for others to join the fight. of course, that's not all the u.n. has on its plate. from global protest over climate change to the ebola outbreak ravaging west africa but at the top of the list, no doubt, isis. the er