midterm it t midterm. the first lady, jeb bush, high-profile help hitting the ground today in key contests. good morning. from washington. i'm luke russert. it's monday, september 29th, 2014. this is the "daily rundown." also, the latest on the manhunt in pennsylvania. we begin with isis. president obama now admitting the extremist group is tougher than we originally thought. it may be shocking to some, but to folks who have been watching the threat, the real shock is that the u.s. intelligence community didn't see this coming. over the weekend, the u.s. launched another round of strikes in northern and eastern syria. but nbc is reporting isis isn't retreating. it's actually gaining ground in some spots. the president now says officials thought our enemy would be easier to beat. here's what he said on "60 minutes" last night. >> how did they end up where they are? in control of so much territory?

was that a complete surprise to you? >> well, think our head of the intelligence community has acknowledged i think they underestimated what took place in syria. >> he didn't say -- just say we underestimated isil. he said, we overestimated the ability and the will of our allies, the iraqi army, to fight. >> that's true. that's absolutely true. >> nbc's chief foreign correspondent richard engel says plenty of people saw it coming from miles away. >> luke, this is a surprising admission by the president. not so surprising he admitted the intelligence agencies underestimated isis' strength in syria and overestimated the ability of the iraqi army to fight against isis. but shock that the intelligence agencies didn't see this coming. it was well known. it was no secret that isis and

other militant groups were growing in strength in syria. anyone who is looking at this region for the last two years would have seen that. we did numerous reports about foreign fighters streaming into syria. we even interviewed some of the foreign fighters as they were going in and out. going in to join isis and isis-like groups inside syria. so the fact that the u.s. intelligence agencies didn't see this threat coming and didn't see the problems with the iraqi army which were also well documented, many people had said that the iraqi army was divided, that it was corrupt, that some of the units were simply shiite militias, shiite death squads. so the fact that the intelligence community missed this one is a major failure. luke. >> that's sobering to hear. the u.s. is still hoping that iraqi forces can get the job done. and if not then, maybe turkey will send troops. that country's parliament will be debating the issue later this

week. house speaker john boehner says he thinks it's going to be the u.s. >> the other day, i think this is going to take more than air strike, to drive them out of there. at some point, somebody's boots have to be on the ground. >> and if no one else steps up, you would recommend american boots on the ground? >> we have no choice. these are barbarians. they intend to kill us. if we don't destroy them first, we're going to pay the price. >> boehner's not alone. in a new poll by nbc, "the wall street journal" and the enenburg center, nearly three quarters of americans think we will eventually send in our own troops. less than half think that's a good idea. this morning on cnn, senator john mccain upped the ante. he said if we're going to train syrians to go fight isis, we have to protect them from syria's president assad too. >> are we going to ask young men to train and equip and we send them back to be slaughtered by bashar assad's air power?

>> what's the solution? >> we need a no-fly zone. >> what happens if he breaches it, it's his country. >> if he breaches it, we take out his air force. >> so take on assad at the same time as isis? >> assad, in my view, has been responsible for 192,000 syrians dead. >> back home, boehner said he's willing to call the house back to vote on a war resolution to fight isis if the president wants more authorization. he's not alone in that either. >> i think we have an obligation. the prime minister of british called the british parliament back. no maybe of congress should be left off the hook. >> if you were looking for fireworks between me and john barrasso today, you're not going to get it, because i agree with his position. we ought to be there, we ought to be debating it. >> with me now, nbc senior white house correspondent chris jansen. chris, good morning to you. is the administration worried about the pushback over the president's remarks? pretty shocking admission that we were, in fact, caught off guard. >> i think they would say that

jim clapper who of course is the director of national intelligence signalled this that, you know, they underestimated the threat, overestimated the ability of the iraqi army to respond. i think there are a couple of other things going on that may be more significant. one is whether or not there will be some sort of vote on authorization. as you well know, luke, the president has said all along he doesn't believe he needs that additional authorization. although white house officials have signaled for weeks now they would welcome any show of support from congress. in fact, we asked specifically about that, after the decision in the uk to call for a vote, whether there was more that congress could do, and that was exactly what i was told, we would love any show of support from congress, but we're not asking for anything specifically. i think there's also that ongoing disagreement about -- and it's one, frankly, that the president bushes back against. the decision not to intervene more directly in the syrian civil war and to pull troops out

of iraq and whether or not that contributed to conditions that allowed the growth of isis. the president, of course, saying, unequivocally, he doesn't believe it does. and pointing the finger at urnu maliki but also said syria is a more complicated solution than iraq. >> a bombshell report out of "the washington post" about the secret service. specifically, a shooting incident back in 2011. it took the service four days to realize that the seven shots from a gunman's high-powered assault rifle actually hit the residence. one of the obama daughters was there at the time. within this report, michelle obama apparently furious that she was not told directly by the secret service about this incident. what can you tell us about the white house response to this? >> they're not talking about it. they say these kinds of private conversations, particularly the one "the washington post" reported on, that they say could

be heard behind closed doors, between the president and the first lady. that they were, indeed, both very upset about this. but, look, as you said, there was four days that elapsed between the time this happened and that they put a warrant out for the suspect, oscar hernandez. the secret service is pushing back as well. with one official saying, and i'm going to quote here, immediately following the incident, the secret service made notification to the u.s. park police and the metro police department as well as initiated a protective sweep. ud officers found no suspect, injured persons or property damage. but, in fact, it was a cleaning staff here at the white house that found the damage. seven bullets. at the same tyime, on the day, there were people both in the secret service who heard the gunshots and people outside. a woman tweeted about it. she actually saw a man who

pointed a gun out his car. and so in the end, it's hard to say they couldn't find any property damage. these weren't in places that were difficult to find. it was off a balcony and it was almost $100,000 in damage. so you can bet that this is another embarrassment. of course you have the director of the secret service who's going before a congressional committee tomorrow so there will be some tough questions. >> alarming report. chris jansen, thank you. for more on how the secret service is protecting the first family, i'm now joined by a security analyst and former secret service agent who served on president obama's detail. she was assigned to the white house resident on that day of the shooting. thank you so much for being on the show. >> thank you for having me. >> now, you did not hear the shots that night, but according to "the post's" report, at least five secret service officers on the ground thought they did hear gunshots. people witnessed the gunfire from this rifle. a woman even tweeted about it.

how does it take the secret service four days to realize that seven shots had, in fact, hit the white house? >> yeah, i think that's a true disconnect here. of having the shots taken -- it was noted, multiple witnesses, they knew the individual -- in fact, he was in pursuit by both national park police and the secret service. it's the idea he took them from such a distance that nobody was able to connect the possibility that some of these rounds may have struck the ed fa sis of the white house. it's the inability to assess whether these rounds strike the white house. do you have sensors in such a way where you can know if something like that happens? >> is this due to a culture of mismanagement within the structure of the secret service? i mean, there's a lot of reports within this overall article where individual agents say, i thought i actually heard gunshots. i did not like the way my

superiors were reacting bug i was afraid to speak up because i was in fear of being reprimanded? is there a structural problem within the chain of command? >> i think this happens a lot in paramilitary organizations. in law enforcement, you have a paramilitary setup. where it goes from the -- there's a hierarchy. you go from one step to the other to the other. there's a chain of command. some structures like the secret service, they take that very, very seriously. it does make certain individuals uncomfortable to speak openly, to engage their supervisors, to pass that information on for fear of retribution or criticism. that does happen. it's a common thing. it does come under that idea of the management style. something that needs to change. so the flow of information and communication can go back and forth appropriately. >> quickly, to finish it off, there's been a lot of questions about whether the perimeter is secure. there's been a few fence jumps. the gentleman who fired this was further away. there was no cameras at the

time. now there are. where would you say the security of the perimeter is for the white house? is it doing okay right now? should it be more -- should it be strengthened? >> i want to say one thing with regard to camera systems. there's a proper surveillance system setup, even prior to the shooting. you can't stop someone from stopping real quick, pulling out a weapon and randomly shooting the white house. so there's a little bit of give and take. if you want people to have access to their white house, you're going to have incidents like this. it's more the response. having all the assets and resources there available so people can respond appropriately and proper training. a lot of that comes down to funding. budget. you'll see in a lot of these agencies is a problem. these people work very, very hard. often, they're asked to do a lot, you know, do more with less and that can be problematic. overworking people, not having

resources, and you have these mistakes one after the other. >> the sequester certainly took a chunk out of the secret service. thank you so much for being on the show, we appreciate it. a live look at the u.n. general assembly meeting in new york. israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu will speak later today. up next, underestimating isis. republican congressman peter king weighs in on iraq and syria air strike, and whether we'll see u.s. boots on the ground eventually. first, a look at today's planner. governor christie on the trail in wisconsin and ohio. while jeb bush drops in to help out senator pat roberts in kansas. we'll talk more about the heavy hitters on the stump later in the show. you're watching "the daily rundown" only on msnbc. the sho. it's going to cost me an arm and a leg. that's hilarious. i'm sorry. you shoulda taken it to midas. get some of that midas touch. they'll tell you what stuff needs fixing, and what stuff can wait. all right. next time i'm going to midas. high-five! arg! did not see that coming.

[ male announcer ] get the midas touch maintenance package including an oil change for only $24.99. and here's a deal, use your midas credit card and get a rebate of $25. oil. tires. brakes. everything. trust the midas touch.

but when we start worrying about tomorrow, we miss out on the things that matter today. ♪ at axa, we offer advice and help you break down your insurance goals into small, manageable steps. because when you plan for tomorrow, it helps you live for today. can we help you take a small step? for advice, retirement, and life insurance, connect with axa. the ultimate arena for business. hour after hour of diving deep, touching base, and putting ducks in rows. the only problem with conference calls: eventually they have to end. unless you have the comcast business voiceedge mobile app. it lets you switch seamlessly from your desk phone to your mobile with no interruptions.

i've never felt so alive. get the future of phone and the phones are free. comcast business. built for business. we're not falling into the

al qaeda trap of sending tens of thousands of americans in where they get bogged down, tied down and bled. we're being smart about this. this is a sustainable way to get at the terrorists. it's also a more effective way. >> that was president obama's deputy national security adviser tony blinken. the latest member of the president's team to dismiss the idea of sending u.s. combat troops to iraq and syria. joining me now, new york republican congressman peter king who's a member of the intelligence and homeland security committees. thank you for being on the program. i want to play this bite from speaker boehner and get you to respond to the other side. >> sure. >> i think he does have the authority to do it, but the point ei've been making is this is a proposal that the congress ought to consider. >> so to be clear, if the president put a resolution forward now, you'd call the congress back? >> i'd bring the congress back. >> do you think congress should come back from campaigning and recess and vote on whether to authorize strikes in syria?

>> first of all, i would definitely vote to authorize the strikes myself. i think if the president think, it's necessary and we feel the votes are there, we should do it. but i don't want to get bogged down in a long debate and undermine what the president's trying to do. i would vote for it. i'm on record saying i would vote for it. as far as congress coming back. unless the president feels there's a solid majority of votes and he and john boehner can work it out, i think it would be counterproductive to come back on this stage because you may have some guys try to cover themselves in the election and that could send the wrong signal to the world. >> you were chairman of the homeland security committee. do you take the president at his word when he said we underestimated the isis threat? >> no, absolutely not. the fact is, we've known for over a year how dangerous isis was. in fact in january of this year, flynn from the defense agencies testified we should expect an offensive by isis. to me, the president -- first of

all, a real lead, a true leader, does not blame other people. secondly in this case, he can't blame them because the intelligence community was very concerned about isis. you never know the full extent. the fact is, they were concerned that isis was a real threat. also, as we know, getting to syria tlz, two years ago, leon panetta, petraeus, all urged we train and arm the free syrians. if i can divert for a second, he was saying people just wanted us to throw guns and weapons towards them. no, that's not true. are you really saying that hillary clinton and panetta are willing to just give guns to anyone? the fact is, the president dropped the ball. he dropped it in syria. he dropped it with isis. now he's trying to blame everyone but himself. >> from your perch at homeland security, what did you hear about isis that could be a

threat to national security? >> i would say in 2013 i became aware of it. and then throughout fall and certainly of january in this year, we knew isis was a real threat. and then if february, fallujah fell. we had a six or seven month lead-up to this. in the summer, july and august, the president was acting as if he just heard about it. let's assume the worst case sib scenario, that we didn't know about it until fallujah in february. well, that's seven months ago. the president had all this time to work out a plan, to try to line up a collision. instead, he didn't. last year with syria, he threatened air strikes and didn't follow through. >> real quickly, do you see this ending without u.s. forces on the ground? >> i think some -- someone has to put boots on the ground and ultimately i think you are going to see -- listen, we have almost 2,000 troops on the ground as it is. we are going to have to use special forces in some ways. we'll have to have spotters on the ground. we have to embed, i believe,

americans with the iraqi army to coordinate and to provide some kind of leadership to them and certainly coordinate their activities with the kurds. so the extend beyond that, it's going to be a decision to be made. the president, he's trying to pass it off. if isis is a threat to the united states security, then we can't say it's up to iraq to defend u.s. somehow cutting off your nose to spite your face or if iraq doesn't do the job. we're the ones who will be attacked. we should only be in there if it affects the u.s. if it doesn't affect the u.s., we have to be willing to do whatever it is we have to do. >> joining me now, spokesman jen sake. you heard king there say we were, in fact, not caught off-guard. he first heard it in summer of 2013. what happened? >> there's a difference between being aware of a threat and seeing the level the threat poses. i think anyone can look back at the past eight months and see isil has not only gained strength, they did what no one, i think, in the world expected

they would do in iraq. that was in part because of everybody overestimating the capabilities of the iraqi security forces. so we've certainly been aware of isil, just like we've been aware of khorasan. but the threat they pose, the strength they've built, has really grown over the past six to eight months. we've correspondingly taken action over that time as well. >> did the u.s. and the administration, in your opinion, perhaps weary of leading the public into another struggle in the middle east, purposely look the other way, sort of saying, oh, it's not that big a deal? >> oh, luke, absolutely not. we're all talking about this. you're talking about it. people who are appearing on television around the country are talking about it. because of some of the horrific incidents that recently happened. with the two beheadings of american individuals. we have long before tracking this. we've been increasing our support for the iraqi security forces. we've been working closely with the iraqi government. they just formed a government a couple of weeks ago. that was a key moment in time.

of course, last week, we joined with five arab countries to start this military campaign. >> you bring up the iraqi government. that is something that is very much at the center of success here at least in iraq, combating isis. what gives you faith that this new agreement can somehow spur the iraqi defense forces to act for the best interest of both sunni and shia in the country? no independent analyst has said that can happen overnight. how is this going to happen? >> let me tell you about two things that are happening right now with the iraqi government. one, they formed a government, of course, and they are taking -- they're implementing a new national plan. they're training a new national guard force. that includes sunni tribes. leaders from sunni military folks from around the country. that's something we didn't do a couple of years ago. >> so this is different training in the group that got overrun in the group by isis? >> this is different than a couple of years ago with the sunni awakening where sunni

tribes were temporarily a part of what we were doing. now the iraqi government is incorporating them. we know this needs to be a long-term effort. the second thing we're working with the iraqi government to do, we've done a military assessment of their capabilities. and what we've seen from that is some have the capabilities. some need more training. some need more equipment. we're working with the iraqi government to get that done. those are the boots that we're going to have on the ground and that's what we're implementing right now. >> the president said this on "60 minutes," i want to read this quote. we just have to push them back and shrink their space. and go after their command and control. and their capacity and their weapons and their fueling and cut off their financing and work to eliminate the flow of foreign fighters. how is that possible without u.s. troops on the ground? >> well, one, i think what the president was touching on was the fact that one of the reasons that isil has gained so much strength is their financial, you

know, capabilities. >> sure. >> and they are worth billions. people have different estimates of that. that's one of the reasons why the oil refineries have been an important component of what we're focused on. we're focused on strengthening the syrian opposition. we have passed this train and equip program. that's going to build on what we're already doing. we need to strengthen those, you know, individuals to fight isil. because they're the ones who can take on this fight. >> even if our rosyist predictions come true is that enough to combat isis in syria? >> isil, first of all, has kind of control over some specific areas of syria. not all. air strike, that the united states and other arab countries are doing are certainly, over time, going to have an impact on the capabilities and the mechanisms on the ground. so that's something that will help complement the work of the opposition forces. but we're working together on this. what we know is this is a fight

that arab countries and -- their forces on the ground need to be in the lead on. >> so we can go after their command and control, their capacity and their weapons, all without ground forces. >> well, i think air strikes, in addition to training and equipping forces on the ground, working with countries in the regi region, is the approach we think will be effective. >> jen sake, thank you for joining us. coming up, the supreme court justices holding their first fall meeting today which could have huge implications in the battle over same sex marriage. turns out former ceo hank greenburg didn't like the terms of the $100 billion rescue plan. we'll explain that. first today's trivia question. name the only u.s. president to be sworn in by his father. the first person to tweet the correct answer gets an on-air shoutout. the answer and more coming up in three minutes. did someone say burn? try alka seltzer reliefchews. they work just as fast and taste better than tums smoothies assorted fruit. mmm. amazing.

yeah, i get that a lot. alka seltzer heartburn reliefchews. enjoy the relief.

[ grinding of net mechanism ] [ male announcer ] you've reached the age where you've learned a thing or two. this is the age of knowing what you're made of. so why let erectile dysfunction get in your way? talk to your doctor about viagra. 20 million men already have. ask your doctor if your heart is healthy enough for sex. do not take viagra if you take nitrates for chest pain... it may cause an unsafe drop in blood pressure.

side effects include headache, flushing, upset stomach, and abnormal vision. to avoid longterm injury, seek immediate medical help for an erection lasting more than four hours. stop taking viagra and call your doctor right away if you experience a sudden decrease or loss in vision or hearing. ♪ this is the age of taking action. viagra. talk to your doctor. if your doctor decides viagra is right for you... you can fill your prescription at your pharmacy. or, check out viagra home delivery, a convenient place to fill your prescription online and have it shipped at no additional cost straight to your door. viagra home delivery. get started at viagra.com. viagra home delivery. ring ring! progresso! it's ok that your soup tastes like my homemade. it's our slow simmered vegetables and tender white meat chicken. apology accepted. i'm watching you soup people. make it progresso or make it yourself. developing now, we just learned that water shutoffs will

continue in detroit. bankruptcy judge steven rods ruled and announced moments ago he won't stop the city from shutting off water to residents who aren't paying their bills. the detroit water and sewage department began the controversy practice of shutting off water earlier this year. the judge says bankruptcy law doesn't give him the authority to order the city to keep water flowing. we'll keep an eye on that throughout the day. and it is a busy day in a number of courtrooms across the country. at this hour, the retrial of michael dunn is under way in florida. prosecutors are expected to rest their case against dunne who is charged with first degree murder for fatally shooting 17-year-old jordan davis. after two men argued over the volume of his music at a gas station in 2012. a jury failed to reach a verdict on whether dunn was guilty of first degree murder in february but found him guilty on three counts of attempted second degree murder. a key witness from the original

trial, the state's associate medical examiner, is expected to take the stand in the retrial today. if dunn is found guilty00, he could face 60 years in prison. six years after the government bailed out international group, the former ceo of aig is taking the government to court. he claims the bailout cheated investors and violated the fifth amendment. the architects of the bailout, including ben bernanke, hank pa paulson and timothy geithner are expected to be questioned in the trial. jury selection for the trial of a friend of accused bomber dzhokhar tsarnaev. he faces up to 16 years in prison if he is convicted of making false statements to law enforcement after he was questioned about his movements hours following the fbi's release of the photos. the tsarnaev brothers are suspects in the bombing.

the supreme court's next term doesn't officially kick off until next week. today, the justices will convene their first private conference since their june recess. the justices will review hundreds of petitions on a variety of cases including several on same sex marriage. but are the justices ready to settle this contentious issue nationwide during their first term? with us now is nbc news justice correspondent pete williams. pete, if the justices decide to review one or more of the cases, could we see a ruling happen that we don't know about? >> certainly could see a ruling this year if they decide to hear them. here's the thing. we've got seven cases on the challenges to laws in five states. utah, oklahoma, virginia, indiana and wisconsin. now, all of those court decisions below struck down the bans on same sex marriage in those states so there's agreement. normally one of the key reasons the supreme court takes a case is if there's disagreement among the circuits. so here's the first question.

will the supreme court take one of these marriage cases when there is agreement among the lower circuits? there's no law to harmonize, in other words. or will it wait until there's a split, until another of the circuits and there's at least two or three more that have cases pending, if one of them rules the other way. even if the court is going to take one of these cases, it could be a while before we find out. because when the court agreed to take the same sex marriage question last time about the federal barngs we had to wait several weeks before they finally announced it. because they kept putting it off into different conferences before they finally made up their decision. so we just don't know what they're going to do. we don't know when they're going to do it. >> but for a supreme court watcher like you, it's the opening day of the season. >> it's a living. >> it's entloling. thank you so much for joining us. we appreciate it. up next, the search for missing college student hannah graham expands into wooded areas outside of charlottesville, virginia. a cop killer manhunt in pennsylvania narrows to a small

region near the suspect's home. new details just in three minutes. sensitive bladder? never miss a chance to dance. introducing a revolution in bladder leak protection. new always discreet. up to 40% thinner, for superior comfort. absorbs 2x more than you may need. for dance-all-you-want protection. no wonder more women already prefer new always discreet pads over poise. new always discreet. now bladder leaks can feel like no big deal. because hey, pee happens. curious? visit alwaysdiscreet.com. ameriprise asked people a simple question: in retirement, will you outlive your money? uhhh. no, that can't happen. that's the thing, you don't know how long it has to last. everyone has retirement questions. so ameriprise created the exclusive.. confident retirement approach. now you and your ameripise advisor can get the real answers you need. well, knowing gives you confidence.

start building your confident retirement today.

watch this. sam always gives you the good news in person, bad news in email. good news -- fedex has flat rate shipping. it's called fedex one rate. and it's affordable. sounds great. [ cell phone typing ] [ typing continues ] [ whoosh ] [ cell phones buzz, chirp ] and we have to work the weekend. great. more good news -- it's friday! woo! [ male announcer ] ship a pak via fedex express saver®

for as low as $7.50. about 50 rescue workers are combi ining rural areas around charlottesville, virginia, looking for a college student missing for more than two weeks. university of virginia student hannah graham disappeared in the early morning hours of september 13th. last spotted in surveillance camera footage near the downtown mall area of charlottesville and she wasn't alone. police say graham was with this man, 32-year-old jesse matthew jr. he's being held in a nearby jail. so far, investigators say he's not talking. meanwhile, police say they've got be more than 1600 tips but there's still no sign of hannah graham. >> the preservation of clues or evidence is still good at this point but we're still looking for any -- anything that might

lead us to hannah. we're still looking for articles of clothing, her phone, et cetera. >> nbc's gabe gutierrez is in charlottesville. what's the latest with that search? mr. matthew is not going to see a judge until thursday. >> hey there, luke, good morning. that search continues this morning. the suspect, jesse matthew, is being held in the jail behind me without bail. we could see him back in court for a bond hearing thursday. he was arrested last week. some 1,300 miles away in texas. he's charged with abduction with intent to defile. he has not entered a plea. this community is really just focused on finding hannah game. over the weekend, students passed out hope for hannah ribbons. today, back at it. using canine units and atvs to search the vast virginia countryside. again, still no sign of hannah graham. >> thanks so much. we appreciate it.

turning now to another search. this one is intensifying. the mountains of eastern pennsylvania this morning. almost 1,000 federal and state officers have joined the massive manhunt for a suspected cop killer woz been on the loose for over two weeks. eric frein is wanted for ambushing two state troopers outside their barracks on september 12th. accused killing one trooper and wounding the other. then escaping into the wilderness of the pocono mountains. police belief frein is hiding within a five-mile perimeter of his home. nbc's ron allen joins us now from pennsylvania. ron, i'm told that kids are supposed to stay inside still. what's the latest on this search? >> well, the search is confined to this one area. it's been that way now for most of the past 17 days. this is day 17 of all this. it's about a five-square area around frein's home. it shifts a little bit. but five square miles in these woods is an incredibly dense and rugged area. the area we're in now is

relatively calm or easy compared to what we've seen out there and what the searchers are encountering. there are caves. there are mountains. there are swamps. there are countless places to hide. remember, frein is an experienced outdoorsman who was very involved in military re-enactments and he spent a lot of time in the woods. he's believed to be well armed. it's a very dangerous search. why the police and federal agents are proceeding very carefully, very cautiously. he did, in fact, already kill one trooper and perhaps -- and wounded another one very seriously. they're leery of the fact he may open fire from a hidden position, sniper. they also think he may have some explosion ins because there's evidence he trained with explosive explosives, trained on how to avoid police manhunts. so we don't think there's been a confirmed sighting for several days now. luke. >> ron allen, thank you so much, stay safe. calls for democracy turned

violent in hong kong where tens of thousands of student protesters are pushing back against a government calling for free and fair elections. and in afghanistan, a show of democracy turns guilty, just as that president was being sworn in. more on that ahead. first, the white house soup of the day. they're searching up vegetarian being chili. i guess that's in honor of meatless monday. we'll be right back. if you have moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis like me, and you're talking to your rheumatologist about a biologic... this is humira. this is humira helping to relieve my pain and protect my joints from further damage. doctors have been prescribing humira for ten years. humira works by targeting and helping to block a specific source of inflammation that contributes to ra symptoms. it's proven to help relieve pain and stop further joint damage in many adults. humira can lower your ability to fight infections, including tuberculosis. serious, sometimes fatal infections and cancers,

including lymphoma, have happened, as have blood, liver, and nervous system problems, serious allergic reactions, and new or worsening heart failure. before treatment, get tested for tb. tell your doctor if you've been to areas where certain fungal infections are common, and if you've had tb, hepatitis b, are prone to infections, or have flu-like symptoms or sores. don't start humira if you have an infection. talk to your doctor and visit humira.com this is humira at work >> important message for women and men ages 50 to 85. please write down this toll-free number now. right now, in areas like yours, people are receiving this free information kit for guaranteed acceptance life insurance with a rate lock through the colonial penn program. if you're on a fixed income or concerned about rising prices, learn about affordable whole life insurance with a lifetime rate lock that guarantees your rate can never increase for any reason. if you did not receive your information, or if you misplaced it,

call this number now and we'll rush it to you. your acceptance is guaranteed, with no health questions. please stand by to learn more. >> i'm alex trebek and the announcement you just heard is for a popular and affordable life insurance plan with a rate lock guarantee. that means your rate is locked in for life and can never increase. did you get your free information kit in the mail? if not, please call this toll-free number now. in the last month alone, thousands have called about this plan with the rate lock guarantee through the colonial penn program, and here's why. this plan is affordable, with coverage options for just $9.95 a month. that's less than 35 cents a day. your rate is locked in and can never go up, and your acceptance is guaranteed. you cannot be turned down because of your health. see how much coverage you can get for just $9.95 a month. call now for your free information kit. don't wait, call today.

♪ protests turned violent in hong kong where tens of thousands are demanding the election has freely elected candidates. some dubbing the movement the umbrella revolution. part of that handover agreement was to allow free elections in

2017, but the chinese government went back on that promise. riot police have withdrawn. the mostly student-led protests continue, blocking off government offices and forcing many schools and banks to close. meantime, in japan, at least 36 people are now believed to be dead after a volcano erupted without warning on saturday. resc rescuers found five more victims today before the search had to be called off because of rising levels of toxic gases. hundreds of people were hiking when the election occurs. it's the first fatal volcanic erupt in japan since 1991. folks in afghanistan can remain a functioning democracy got brighter when the only president the country has had since the taliban fell handed over the reins. it hasn't been easy. it fol lows months of fighting between gunny and his split kay opponent abdullah abdullah.

in the end, abdullah was brought into the new government, sworn in as ghani's chief executive. in a speech, he said, our message is peace but this doesn't mean we are weak. reports of ied and bomb attacks occur almost every day. a car bomb killed half a dozen people. two roadside bombs also went off by the airport in kabul. outgoing president hamid karzai also spoke today. he said he was happy to be stepping down and despite karzai slamming the u.s. during last week's farewell speech, secretary of state kerry praised him today. he said the world recognizes karzai as a nationalist, a patriot, an important figure who stepped forward when his country needed him. of course, the u.s. also benefits from karzai's departure. wi while the outgoing president refused to sign an agreement letting u.s. forces stay in afghanistan, the new president of that country supports it, according to a u.s. embassy spokeswoman. ghani is expected to sign the deal tomorrow. turning back to the fight

against isis, many believe it will require boots on the ground to win. could turkey, in fact, be the country to provide them? amman mohadam is an nbc correspondent, well versed in issues in this part of the world. we've talked about turkey a few times. there is some conflict within that country a few months ago, but also we saw a hesitancy on behalf of the turks to really get involved against isis because isis had over 40 turkish hostages. that issue has been figured out. there was some sort of exchange. will that allow, now, turkey, to perhaps put their force on the ground against isis? >> that's the hope of u.s. officials and certainly arab countries that would like to see turkey play a more robust role. the most important thing turkey can do is probably shut down its border immediately to try to prevent the flow of isis fighters joining that fight perhaps even more foreign fighters joining that fight. but no doubt about it, the turks

have always had an interesting position to say the least when this revolution started in syria. their position was they wanted assad regime out. that's why they kept the borders fluid, to allow arms and money to fund the rebels. that morphed into having isis inside syria. i think now they're trying to revise that assessment and to get them on the ground inside syria, i think that might be tough. certainly, they can put up more of a military presence along their border to play a bigger and more robust role. >> amman, we've seen the u.s., now, being involved in these air strikes with this coalition, arab countries involved in the fight which the administration's received a lot of praise for. it seems while these strike, occur, there's nothing necessarily happening on the ground to change what has been going on with isis and their command structure and how they take over towns. we're sort of at a stalemate

perpetuated by these air strikes. what can be done to change that narrative on the ground? >> listen, at the end of the day, i think this is the kind of criticism that's circulating around d.c. and other capitals around the world about policy and whether or not this is actually going to succeed. there's no doubt -- we've heard this from to many u.s. officials that a air campaign alone is not going to solve it. if in certain areas they push isis fighters out, they need people on the ground to take these cities and get them back up and running. in the words of some of the local people there, to liberate these cities from isis control. that's going to really come down to what forces are on the ground that are capable of doing that. in iraq, obviously, iraqi army. despite the fact they've had a very bad performance over the past several months. in syria, they're banking on the free syrian army and perhaps moderate rebels and perhaps relying on the kurdish forces. >> in iraq and syria, untested armies, to say the least. we appreciate it. trivia time.

the answer, calvin coolidge is the only president sworn in by his father. that happened in 1923 after the sudden death of warren harding, probably our most corrupt president. congratulations to today's winner. we'll be right back. calvin coolidge, enjoying a resurgence among the conservative movement, this day and age. who would have thought that. ain. first that feeling of numbness. then hot pins. almost like lightning bolts, hot strikes into my feet. so my doctor prescribed lyrica. the pain has been reduced and i feel better than i did before. [ male announcer ] it's known that diabetes damages nerves. lyrica is fda-approved to treat diabetic nerve pain. lyrica is not for everyone. it may cause serious allergic reactions or suicidal thoughts or actions. tell your doctor right away if you have these, new or worsening depression, or unusual changes in mood or behavior. or, swelling, trouble breathing, rash, hives, blisters, changes in eyesight, including blurry vision, muscle pain with fever, tired feeling or skin sores from diabetes. common side effects are dizziness,

sleepiness, weight gain and swelling of hands, legs and feet. don't drink alcohol while taking lyrica. don't drive or use machinery until you know how lyrica affects you. those who have had a drug or alcohol problem may be more likely to misuse lyrica. [ karen ] having less pain, that means everything to me. [ male announcer ] ask your doctor about lyrica today. it's specific treatment for diabetic nerve pain. you know your dentures canue feel.ke natu. try new fixodent plus true feel. the smooth formula helps keep dentures in place. it's free of flavors and colorants. for a closer feeling to natural teeth. fixodent. and forget it. ugh. heartburn. did someone say burn? try alka seltzer reliefchews. they work just as fast and taste better than tums smoothies assorted fruit. mmm. amazing. yeah, i get that a lot. alka seltzer heartburn reliefchews.

with the midterm vote 36 days away, some of the biggest names aren't the ones running for that was time around. candidates with their eyes on 2016 are banking some good will and building up some name id for making appearances. fresh off becoming a grandmother to baby charlotte. hillary clinton will headline a fund-raiser tonight in new york city. for houses candidates sponsored by the democratic congressional campaign committee. in wisconsin chris christie faces off with michelle obama.

christie will headline a pair of events for scott walker. and the other side of the state michelle obama campaigns for mary burke. later this afternoon christie will stump for another time john cay sick who leads anywhere from 20 to 30 points in repeat polls which is making ohio's democrats nervous. christie's aggressive campaigning this cycle is a way to generate headline s not abou the bridge. it's an uphill task, this weekend christie picked up some of the same number of votes as hillary clinton and joe biden just one. not surprisingly ted cruz won the poll for a second year in a row with 25% of the vote. another guy conservatives have mixed feelings about jeb bush picked up two votes. he'll be in kansas state. feelings about bush among

conservatives are so complicated even his son running for texas land commissioner wasn't willing to endorse him in a 2016 primary. this weekend john boehner his attempt to lobby bush may be working. mark murray is here. and 36 days out we're seeing some folks in important states ohio, wisconsin getting out there. i want to go to jeb bush off the bat. fast hitting that the political environment is so toxic his son was worried about making an endorsement of his father. john boehner an establishment money guy admitting what we knew on the hill for a long time. he wants jeb bush in the race. >> we continue have an answer yet. it's looking likely. what is fascinating about bush is the political party he represents with the republican party could it be more have distance from him on key issues like immigration and common core than it did a year and year and

a half ago. that has to be a consideration. also, a consideration his son's political aspirations. if jeb bush decides to run in 2016 and said i want to campaign on common core. how does that impact running in one of the most conservative states in the country. >> and underany possibility for the son running for president. a fourth bush might be a little tough. i found this fascinating. republican control all voters 42% high interest voters 49%. democrat control 47% high interest voters 45%. this is the entire game for the midterm. republicans are more motivated but the average voter likes democratic policies a little bit better. how does play out? >> it helps republicans. we talk about the enthusiasm the republicans had in 2012. it turned out not to matter. it was true for a presidential. there wasn't that much separation between the

registered voters and likely voters. fewer people come out to vote. if one side has more enthusiasm and energy. they're the side that has the advantage. >> high interest voters. thank you so much for joining us. we appreciate it. come up next jose diaz-balart. more on monday morning traffic headaches. 300 flights are cancelled. plus more on the protest in hong kong. up next. take care. it's a bit like asking if they want a big hat... ...'scuse me... ...or a big steak... ...or big hair... i think we have our answer. geico. fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more on car insurance.

 when folks think about wthey think salmon and energy. but the energy bp produces up here

creates something else as well: jobs all over america. engineering and innovation jobs. advanced safety systems & technology. shipping and manufacturing. across the united states, bp supports more than a quarter million jobs. when we set up operation in one part of the country, people in other parts go to work. that's not a coincidence. it's one more part of our commitment to america. developing this morning 300 cancelled flights at o'hare international airport already today. that's after some,000 cancellations over the weekend. we'll have the latest on this faa mess. midterm monday. jeb bush and hillary clinton both pounding the campaign trail today while christie and michelle obama play surrogate show down in the badger state. take a look at the pictures from hong kong. massive protests in the name of democracy. the china director from human

rights will join me this morning to discuss what some are calling umbrella revolution on monday, the 29th of september. good morning, i'm jose diaz-balart. our first focus this morning new air strikes against isis and an acknowledgment from the president on intelligence failure that lead to the rise of isis. over night a fresh round of air strikes pounded isis targets in northern and eastern syria. for the first time british war planes joined the u.s. attacks on isis targets in iraq. less than 24 hours after getting the green light from parliament. isis is far from retreating in syria. it's advancing on cities closer to tushish border. in iraq the terror group is reportedly on the edge of baghdad. on 60 minute s president obama said the u.s. f