of quarantine at last. >> i remain thankful for the support we received. and also a bit disappointed at some of the negative things that i have heard. >> we will talk to the white house ebola czar about the response to the outbreak. president obama and vladamir putin chat briefly at the summit in beijing while putin makes his own pivot, hitting a little too close to china's first lady. >> and paying respect. on this veteran's day, thanking those who sacrificed, taking care of those who returned. >> we are not only the heart and soul, but you are the very spine

of this nation. and good day. i'm andrea mitchell in new york. dr. craig spencer is on his way home, ebola-free today. >> my recovery from ebola speaks to the effectiveness of the protocols in place for health staff returning for west africa. i am a living example of how the protocols work and how early detection is critical for surviving ebola and ensuring it is not transmitted to others. >> after months of national anxiety, there is no one being treated for ebola in the united states.

life is returning to normal for kaci hick ox having shown no symptoms of any virus. >> i remain really thankful for all of the support we received. and also a bit disappointed at some of the negative things i have heard. i hope that one day we as an american culture can learn to show compassion instead. >> ron is coordinating the federal government's response for the obama administration and joins me from the white house. thanks and great to see you. does this mean you are confident that there won't be more cases of ebola? >> today is a milestone, but as the period said in the east room two weeks ago, we will see occasional additional cases of ebola in our country. this is not the last one. today's release of dr. spencer is a milestone in his treatment and a milestone in showing that

our strategy of identifying and isolating and treating patients can be successful. it's the first time a hospital other than one of the three nationally specialized centers has successfully treated an ebola patient. we owe a debt of gratitude to the team and the leadership in new york city for delivering this success today. >> what has happened since the experiences in dallas to make sure that patients will not come to an er and be treated the way dallas handled it that led perhaps to the death of mr. duncan? >> we have seen an improvement since. we have new protocols for protecting health care workers and new monitoring protocols that requires everyone who comes to our country from one of the nations be monitored twice a day for symptoms and in the case of people with elevated risk, they

check on them every day. we increased our ability to identify risky cases and identify potential cases of ebola to isolate them and we improved our readiness to treat the patients and get the recovery. the good news is that of the eight people in america who have been promptly identified and treated, all eight now including dr. spencer are healthy and home with their families. that shows we know what to do if we identify it and treat it quickly. >> one of the things you are trying to do is get people to focus on the science and the facts of what we know. they require some sort of quarantine or isolation for people who are not symptomatic? >> the cdc and the best medical sciences in the world issued guidelines and each state has the power to choose what policies to follow in our federal system. 35 of the 50 states have adopted

the cdc guidelines. we are concerned that where you have quarantines that are not based on medical science, it does tend to discourage health care workers from going to west africa. that is how the american people are going to be protected. by heroes like craig spencer to fight the disease. we need to welcome them back as heros and have safeguards like the guidelines to make sure they don't infect other people. that's what worked in dr. spencer's case and what we would like to see across the country. >> the pentagon took a different posture. they announced that the troops who are in west africa and not even treating patients and setting up facilities are going to be self quarantined as they returned to base. why are they treating the military differently than you want civilians to be treated? >> they are treating civilians the same way other workers will

be treated. they are differences between military and civilian life. we have a lot of troops over there. it's veteran's day and we need to acknowledge the 1900 american men in uniform. what the commanders decided is when they come home, they will be kept together instead of scattering them off to units and take their temperature, they will be kept on base. that's the most effective way operationally to monitor them and apply the same protocols we are applying to civilians. all civilians are being treated the same and we will have the different approach based on a decision by our commanders. >> the white house asked for $6.2 billion to help with the infrastructure it needs. what assurances if any did the president get when he met with the leaders that that might be forth coming. >> the request covers both,

increasing the domestic preparedness as well as fighting the disease. >> sorry about that. >> that's fine. we had a good meeting. i was part of that meeting with the congressional leadership and briefed both the democrats and the republicans on the request. the senate is getting to work on this. the first hearing before the committee tomorrow. we expect there to be questioning about it. it's a carefully constructed request. it is an urgent situation. there 13,000 case and that number goes up every day. 5,000 deaths. we need to fight the disease there and increase protection at home. the good thing about the case is they need a hospital where the preparation and the training is right. we can isolate cases and treat people, but we need funding to do that. >> once you get your arms around this crisis, are you prepared to stay and help the president on other assignments? >> i'm here to fight this fight

and do this once i'm finished and i am going back to private life. this is more than enough for me. >> thank you so much. thanks for being with us today. >> thanks, andrea. >> some of the most intense fighting is being fought in the northern syrian town of kobani. richard engle made his way into that city. many kurdish fighters, many women only 20 yards from opposing isis fighters. >> this is one of the top field commanders. many of the frontline fighters here are women. they say the fanatics from isis are afraid to be killed by a woman. a dishonor the militants believe could cost them a spot in paradise. she doesn't believe that. they are afraid because of our conviction and our strength, she said. our female comrades are not scared of isis. >> richard engle joins me now

from turkey near the border, i believe. is this a turning point? are they gaining ground at least in this symbolically if not strategically important town? >> i don't think we are at a turning point. if the defenders of kobani had a bad week, they could be overrun. what happened here is we got access to the battle and we were able to see it firsthand what is going on in the city. i don't think our access reveals that there is significant change. they control about half the city. isis controls the other half. if they don't get a consistent supply of food and weapons, they could lose. you mention it's not the most strategic town. it's not the biggest city in syria and the only city that is attacked by isis, but perhaps the most visible one.

the place where you have these secular nationalist fighters, men and women fighting together. people who are reaching out to the united states and the united states reaching out to them offering support with air strikes. if they were overrun by isis, a massacre would happen and it's clearly a humanitarian disaster. a blow to the strategy. >> in a way the ability and the passion of the forces is a contrast to the iraqi army. are they improving at all or is the forward basing of the u.s. troops and advisers and other provinces another indication we have a long way to go before the army is up to speed? >> i think it's the latter. the iraqi army and iraqi state is in a complete mess. you have the kurds who have all

but decided to break away. they had enough. they seized oil and think they can make a go of it and have their own independence. they are waiting to hold a referendum. the shiite government is openly aligned with iran. you have the leader of the force and taking credit for going on missions inside iraq and fighting against isis. you have the shiite government in a way we never have before, part of the security establishment and you have the tribes and the sunnis who once fight with the u.s. military being lined up in front of trenches and massacred by isis. i think the situation right now in iraq is almost as bad as it is in syria. iraq was supposed to be the easy half of the two-country war. >> extraordinary reporting. thank you so much. join us for a special report

friday night at 9:00 p.m. eastern for the battle against isis here on msnbc. there was no avoiding it. in beijing, president obama and vladimir putin spent quality time together. three short chats adding up to about 20 minutes to tackle their biggest disagreements including ukraine. kristen welker is traveling with the had president and filed this report. >> with relations between the united states and russia at one of the lowest moments since the cold war, president obama met with president putin three straight times on the sidelines at the economic summit. they lasted a total of 15 to 20 minutes. officials said they discussed a range of topics including iran, syria and of course ukraine. he imposed sanctions for incursions into ukraine. the president had planned to be firm with president putin in those meetings, but there are no

plans to impose a new round this week. officials are not taking that option off the table in the future. the pictures underscore the frosty relationship between president obama and president putin. it's a contrast to the meetings with the president who are designed to foster open conversation and closer conversations who have been at odds on a number of issues including human rights. president obama had several meetings including a walk in a garden and private dinner tonight. they will have an official meeting tomorrow and we expect to hear from both after that meeting. this is a part of president obama's pivot to asia with critics saying he hasn't followed thru on the promise to foster stronger ties with this region. the u.s. today touting two announcements including a trade deal that will lower tariffs on high tech goods creating about 60,000 new jobs and a new visa agreement that would extend visas between the united states

and china which promote business and trade. this is president obama's first stop on a three-nation tour. he heads to myanmar also known as burma where transitions have stalled. >> the tireless kristen welker. we had to share this unscripted moment from the asian summit. putin being putin. the president offering a shawl to the wife of china's president while she was busy talking to president obama. the first lady was diplomatic, but quickly made it clear she didn't really appreciate the gesture. up next, we will talk to the head of the va and get reaction to his proposals from a leading advocate from the veterans of iraq and afghanistan. you are watching "andrea mitchell reports" only on msnbc. ♪

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vice president joe biden is standing in at arlington national cemetery for the wreath laying for the men and women who served in the military at the tomb of the unknowns. the secretary of veterans affairs robert mcdonald tries to structure the agencies and veterans as many as 40 may have died while awaiting medical treatment at va hospitals. the new secretary comes from the business world from procter & gamble and is pledging an overhaul. i spoke to him about his plans. thank you very much for being with us. how are you going to reassure veterans, especially on veterans

day that this problem is going to be fixed? >> i took the job to fix it and committing that i will fix it. we will create an organization that is totally veteran-centric, concerned about the veteran and we have 22 million veterans in this country. 9 million veterans in the health care system. i want every employee at veterans affairs department to give everyone a warm hug and embrace them and help them navigate our system. >> a warm hug is good, but what they want are appointment in the medical treatment system. >> we have a doctor and nurse shortage in this country right now. how are you going to find 28,000 people willing to work for the va given how the reputation has been hurt. >> i have been out at medical schools, talking to doctors and

nurses and encouraging them to work for us. listen, we have the best mission in the world. that's to care for our veterans. every doctor who cares for veterans will tell you that. at the veterans affairs department we do three things central to american medicine. number one, we do research and $1.8 billion of research a year. a lot of that affects the general public. we were the first to do a liver transplant and a pacemaker and the first to use the upc code to connect patients with medicine. one of the first to work on the shingles virus vaccine. secondly we do a lot to train 70% plus for doctors. we have a great network of doctors. most of the doctors and many of the doctors teach the best medical schools in the country.

the doctors do clinical work and a lot of doctors in this country, a lot of nurses want to be involved in all three legs of that. >> you know this better than i. we got an e-mail from one of the whistle blowers who have been working with us and she writes one of the key orchestrators, the next appointment is not until february 2015. is that the day you want? that has been promoted into a powerful position. everybody truly guilty is sitting pretty except for one person. >> i am incensed by what went on in the department. we had people violate our values. i stands for integrity. we have over 100 investigations and some involving the department of justice and fbi. we have proposed disciplinary

action on over 40 people. >> you are still on the payroll. the chairman heads your oversight committee and said they are on the payroll. >> i'm following the law. if members of congress want me to do a different process, they need to change the law. >> if they are prosecuted you can't fire them? you have to keep them on the payroll even if there is plenty of accusations against them? >> that's correct. we have to provide due process. my point of view is not about walking or firing somebody, but making sure this will stick upon appeal. every american has due process. we have to follow the law. >> there is a lot of indication in the past the inspector general has been too forgiving and has referred things down to local levels so they haven't really had independent

oversight? is the inspector general too cozy with the people who he was supposed to be overseeing? >> my first week on the job i met with the inspector general and his team and i asked them to be as tough as possible on the agency. it's simple. when you are running a customer service business, you can't get better unless it's the employees. it's the customers that tell you how to get better. i want the criticism from whistle blowers. we should celebrate. >> will whistle blowers be protect protected? many they say have been haras d harassed. >> one of the first things was to seek certification by the office of special council for the whistle blower protection program. the whistle blowers that ta take action, they have good jobs and they are happy. >> your message to veterans on this veteran's day? >> the va is going to be becoming a better place to get

their benefits to take care of memorial services. sign up. come take advantage of the benefits they have earned. >> thank you very much. >> more on how veterans feel about the proposed reforms. the founder and ceo of iraq, thank you very much. did you like what you heard? >> di, yeah. most veterans like what they hear out of the va under the secretary. i spent time with him at the white house and i think he is the right kind of leader. a breath of fresh air and trying to move forward. big plans out of washington are easy. execution is the hard part. you are hearing and getting to the weeds about how he is handcuffed. what our veterans want to see is there is a new sheriff in town. that change is under way. the bottom line is that's going to take a long time. him being out front and putting

out the plan is a first step. it will be a marathon of steps that will be necessary for years. >> is there any sign from the people who report back to you that the system is becoming more customer-friendly? >> yes. i got a phone call from my further drafted in vietnam a few weeks after. he said i got a phone call from the va. did you do that? i said no, dad, they are calling everybody. mr. mcdonald himself is out in the media and giving the whole world his cell phone and trying to move this big bureaucracy forward. we will try to find out when the rubber meets the road and we want to hear there is a customer centric service provider. they have 12 websites and is to go from 12 and is to one simplified website. those are the steps we will need. veterans day is the biggest

activation of our community and we will hear from all over the country right now. >> do veterans get enough from congress? only 20% of members are veterans that will be increasing slightly after the mid-terms. including women. is there enough empathy and do they understand? they face these bureaucracies. >> i don't think they do or the scandal would never have happened. you have been covering these issues for years. there hearings and frankly the white house didn't listen. now everybody wants to rush to show they have our veterans's backs, but where were they for the last years. it's time to step up and come together. this is going to be a challenge for the new president when we have a campaign. we want to hear about how they will take this on. this is going to go way beyond the obama administration and we won't know the real outcomes for years from now. >> thank you for your service

and thank you for being with us. >> thank you for staying on top of this and holding them accountable. >> we thank all of the men and women who have served and remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice. this is msnbc. we'll be right back. i lost my sight in afghanistan, but it doesn't hold me back. i go through periods where it's hard to sleep at night, and stay awake during the day. non-24 is a circadian rhythm disorder that affects up to 70% of people who are totally blind. talk to your doctor about your symptoms and learn more by calling 844-844-2424. or visit my24info.com. and for many, it's a struggle to keep your a1c down.

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today. the senate returns to work tomorrow, but what if anything can the outgoing majority accomplish on the lame duck session and who are the players doing in the majority. joining me for the daily fix, chris alyssa and managing editor of post politics.com and jean cummings at bloomberg. you look very comfortable back there. >> we are in close quarters. they wouldn't let me sit in the anchor chair. i tried. >> any time. first to you, chris. what if anything will get done? they had the meeting last friday. there was tension and back and forth. is it in both of their interests or neither of their interests to get anything done in. >> it's in their interest to get something done. it's the something that we don't know what will happen. there lots and lots of backlog to the traditional appointments that democrats would like to get as many through as possible.

they went through an election in which the leader of their party played a large or some would say the only role in them losing more senate seats than most people thought including the majority. it's difficult for them politically speaking to do any sort of big things because republicans can come back and say look, the american people made very clear who they like or more accurately who they don't like. the question is how far do they want to push it? my guess is not that far. i defer to people who spend every day on the hill. my guess is you will see incremental things and not see democrats go for broke. look at the new chairs. we put them on the chairs.

over the environment and taking over the judiciary. senator richard burr who has in the past worked closely with dianne feinstein, taking over intelligence with the big torture report to come out. senator hatch will be in charge of health care decisions and taxes if tax reform will happen. this is a whole new team coming in in charge. >> it definitely is. mccain at armed services, that is familiar. it gives him a much bigger microphone to prosecute the case against the administration for its handling of isis and other conflicts that are ongoing. and hatch is going to put obamacare under a microscope. every piece is going to be scrutinized because we all know that the people, they still ran

on obamacare in this cycle. even if they can't repeal it, they will owe it to their base to put up a big fight and have a real showdown over obamacare. those two are particularly important in terms of the criticism and the scrutiny that the white house will face. then democrats hope that's a silver lining. he will be overseeing environmental issues. he will be very tough on the epa. at the same time he is not a believer in global warming. he has been prone to say extreme things. democrats think maybe they will be able to use some things he said to try to make an argument that the caucus is extreme. the fact is in office, a very experienced politician. everybody will pop off something they regret. he's a smart inside player and i don't know that their wish will

come true on that. >> in less than a minute, obamacare or the affordable care act, millions fewer are expected to enroll. that will not hit their numbers on 9 million. 13 million plus the supreme court challenge and a hostile congress. >> look, i think mitch mcconnell is smart enough not to repeal the entire law. he wants to keep the job he is about to get as senate majority leader and he has to show probably through the finance committee, he has to show that there things that they are going to do everything they can to strip out not the entire bill, but these unpopular measures and force the president to veto those things. >> chris alyssa and jean cummings, they are coming back and we will be all over it. in hawaii the slow moving lava flow on the big island hit a

rural town consuming the first home. plumes of smoke could be seen for miles. no one was hurt. at least 50 resident who is live in the protected path have been forced to leave their homes. right now officials say no other homes are in imminent danger. you are watching "andrea mitchell reports" only on msnbc. [ male announcer ] it's a warning. a wake-up call.

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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. >> to the big chill, people in the upper plains and midwest are digging out from record breaking first snowstorm of the season. in st. cloud, the official total was 13 inches, the biggest ever for the month of november. the arctic plast is spreading sending the country into below average temperatures. if you are not feeling it yet, it's going your way. the forecast from forest lake,

minnesota. >> good afternoon. yesterday when we talked to you, it was snowing and blowing and so far it has been one of the biggest storms for november north of minneapolis, st. paul. about an hour northwest of the twin cities. they picked up 13.2 inches, the biggest calendar day snowfall and the fifth for any day during the year. this is a big storm now. as you get south of minneapolis, st. paul, it drops off to 2.8 inches. the roads are much improved. temperatures not above freezing and they have really covered the roads with salt and the plows doing their thing. it soaks up the radiation and helps to melt down. tonight it gets colder for the rest of the week into the weekend. highs that will end up around 20 and lows down close to zero. that would be typical for late

january, but for mid-november, those numbers are a solid 20 degrees below average. better news in and out of minneapolis-st. paul, flights were canceled and long delays. about 15 flights today have been canceled. we are looking at the sunshine, but the snow is going nowhere as we stay likely below freezing for the next couple of weeks. all the cold airheading east and south. it infiltrated most of texas. if you are watching east of the mississippi river, it's on the way in the next to two days. andrea? >> thanks for the warning chlg a huge honor for one of our own. tom brocaw will be one of the recipients for the presidential medal of freedom. he is in a spectacular company. the murdered civil rights workers were killed in mississippi during freedom

summer in 1964. and before we go right now, take a look at college station, texas. former president bush at an event to unveil his book about his fausht, george h.w. bush who was at the event along with his wife, barbara. that's from his daughter, jenna bush haeger. you are watching "andrea mitchell reports" here on msnbc. against all enemies foreign and domestic... ♪ ♪ ameriprise asked people a simple question: in retirement, will you have enough money to live life on your terms?

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>> two presidents, father and son and a book paying tribute to the father. jenna bush haeger brings us a rare conversation between bush 41 and bush 43. her dad and her grandfather. jenna? >> good afternoon, andrea. those that know my grandfather know how humble he is. he never has even written a memoi

memoire. my dad calls it a love story. >> first he was a great father. >> it is the part of the president's story best told by his son. >> he had enormous success in life, but those exceptions were meager com weared to the success of being a husband and great father. >> with the glimpse into the life of my grandfather, beyond the world's stage and what the public knows of him. before he entered politics he and my grand mother were busy raising kids. >> what are type of father was gachly? >> he set the boundaries, but never tried to impose his will on us because of the way he was admired greatly. >> what type of things did you want for your kids? >> wanted all the best. i wanted to feel there was no horizons. they could reach for the stars

and accomplish stuff and sure enough, they have. >> and history will tell that story. my father had a front row seat working throughout my grandfather's campaigns. >> so help me god. >> he says now the hardest part of politics is watching the spotlight shine harshly on those you love. >> dad, when you watched as he was a president, you would turn on the television to hear critics talk about him. >> yeah. it made me angry. and i wasn't disciplined enough not to watch television. when i became president i was disciplined enough to ignore all the noise, but when he was president and people criticized him, i didn't like it. it helped thicken my hide for when i became president. my dad was a heck of a lot more difficult for me to handle than criticism of me.

>> what about you, gamps when you heard people? >> same thing. i did not like it. i knew by then that it goes with the territory, but it's your own son. it's hard to take. >> dad, when in 1992 when gampy lost. >> it was an unhappy moment, but we fed off of his graciousness. >> it is a lesson in grace and fortitude. >> it didn't work out the way we wanted. >> my grandfather has never been bitter or resentful and a most unlikely friendship developed. >> bill clinton used to have as a father figure. it's a great irony. one of the great lessons of life. >> he also doesn't hold grudges as you said. bill clinton and gampy are friends. >> that's right. >> some people would be surprised by that. >> i think they are.

>> bubba, he's a good man. i like him. >> throughout it all, my grandfather has put family first. he has been there for us throughout the most important moments. the frivolous ones too. >> remember the time when you were preparing for the 1988 debates with michael dukakis and the day before barbara couldn't find spiky the dog. gampy rather than be quiet little girl and go to your room leads the search for spiky, the stuffed dog. >> it was pretty remarkable that you were baby-sitting us the night before the debate anyway. where were you? out to dinner? >> preparing for the debate. i don't know where i was. good news is they found spiky. >> my dad is bias and i am as well, but my dad learned a lot about his dad writing this book and in turn, i got to learn a lot about my dear grandfather. back to you. >> jenna bush haeger, thank you

so much. a special family look. since we are on a family theme, we had to show you this theme from the white house in honor of veterans day. first late michelle obama invited young children over for a playdate. some got impatient and they were running around the old executive office building. who was able to calm them down? >> everyone, isn't this exciting? >> yes, the big treat for the kids is dock mcstuff ins, a popular character from a disney show. for lotus f1 team, the competitive edge is the cloud. powered by microsoft dynamics, azure, and office 365, the team can gain real time insights and instantly share information around the globe. when every millisecond counts,

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>> bush 43 is being interviewed by the chief of staff. >> you made clear i didn't like

your recommendation. >> correct. >> however i took it. >> i remember the concern you had for your parents and you ended up tracking your parents down and they were in wisconsin or minnesota and something. tell us about that. >> i said where are you. the communications were terrible. >> not as bad as he said. in which case you were terrible. let me just say that i couldn't -- we had trouble making connections. >> we did. i finally found mother and dad. dad got on the phone and so comforting. unbelievably thoughtful people. one of the great strengths and one of the reasons he was a fabulous president is because he

could think about the other person. how does the other person feel? he was able to be so effective about gorbachev, for example. he was very comforting. mother got on the phone and said where are you? she said wisconsin. s i said why are you there? she said you grounded our plane! man, did i need to laugh at that moment. i think andy was in the room when i did that. . >> we just lost the feed. president bush will bring you more on that coming up. that does it for this edition of "andrea mitchell reports." california congressman and doris kerns goodwin. follow us on facebook and twitter@mitchell reports and my

colleague joins me with what's coming up next. hi, ronan. >> i enjoyed your show today. we have a packed hour coming up. first up, something you want to tune in for. the so-called architect of obamacare is at the heart of a firestorm. he is not talking to media. we will have an explanation of why his comments caused such a stir. part of the big hour coming up. don't go away. i have a cold with terrible chest congestion. better take something. theraflu severe cold doesn't treat chest congestion. really?

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download the xarelto® patient center app, call 1-888-xarelto, or visit goxarelto.com this is the equivalent of the and this is one soda a day over an average adult lifetime. but there's a better choice. drink more brita water. clean, refreshing, brita. >> first up, the big chill. the polar vortex. november. is that one a thing? definitely a thing. a massive storm moving east. look at minnesota where they are expecting more snow after a record breaking haul yesterday. drivers didn't brace for so much so soon. >> on highway 10 probably about 15, maybe 20. and the ditches and so forth.

>> definitely a snowstorm of november, i guess. one to remember. >> stay warm. a good samaritan there. south dakota. yesterday rapid city saw the earliest snowfall since 1888 and saw single digit temperatures this morning. moving over to another part of the country further south down to texas, north texas specifically could see the first earlier than expected freeze tonight. we will take you to the thick of the storms across the country in a couple of minutes. overseas in beijing, awkwardness abounds. on day two of president obama's china trip. the president and russia's vladimir putin crossed paths including one 20-minute meeting that touched on a variety of life topics. i am thinking a spring wedding for those two. the president of china