consulate in erbil, is isis winning? ♪ >> within the past two hours we have learned of a car bomb attack outside the u.s. consulate in erbil, three people dead and five injured and no reports of american casualties. the state department said they have no details yet on who's responsible. the blast comes as fierce fighting in two other locations, iraq's prime minister warns the fighters may be unstoppable if they succeed in taking over ramadi, the capital of the anbar province 70 miles west of baghdad where iraqi forces are trying to fend off a relentless assault by islamic state. more success in the battle to hold the site of a massive oil refinery and the iraqi government is testing dna to

confirm reports a key terror leader has been killed al douri is believed to be a mastermind of the current insurgency. the death would be considered a victory for iraqi forces. isis was a key topic of conversation today praising italy for their support in the coalition fight and there is backlash over martin dempsey's comments which seem to downplay the importance of ramadi at the news conference you saw right here on the cycle. >> much rather ramadi not fall but it won't be the end of a campaign should it fall? >> what if anything can the u.s. do about it. let's get to nbc chief correspondent jim miklaszewski. what do we know about the attack outside the consulate and can you tell us more about the former aide to saddam hussein? >> u.s. military officials don't have all of the details about

the bombing. no americans were injured or killed in that attack which was near the u.s. consulate in erbil and kurdistan. they are investigating it and so far three dead five wounded, no americans. >> thanks for that mik. joining us now, retired army officer and director for iraq on the national security council, douglas olivant. we heard isis is trying to take ramadi ramadi, if they succeed they'll become unstoppable. why would taking ramadi make isis so powerful? >> this a bit of an overstatement. this way i want to echo chairman dempsey, if they take the city don't get me wrong, that's bad but that the noz going to shape the ultimate shape of campaign.

the forces that are being generated by the united states training effort are going to be available in the next weeks and months and there's going to be more and more and more material that the iraqis are going to have to push against the islamic state. will it be easier if ramadi does not fall? yes, absolutely. if ramadi falls, does that mean they are not going to eventually overcome isis in iraq? no, it doesn't. >> if they were able to take over the oil refeenry city that would be more powerful and destructive for us. >> i think that's right but i don't think that's going to happen. even during the darkest days when it looked like isil would take baghdad and erbil, the iraqis were able to hold it it's a defensible piece of terrain. a few guys infiltrate but it's open and easy to kill people who actually do that.

i'm not too concerned about it falling. in many ways this is isil trying to regain control of the narrative, which they are very very good at. they've had a huge defeat in tikrit, a big victory for iraqis and prime minister abadi just left town last night, had a very good visit in washington. they very much need to change the narrative. >> it's helpful to hear you break this all down. two days ago we were talking about how isiswise was losing ground and the narrative shifted from that. it makes you wonder if we're doing ourself a disservice by talking about this in terms of winning or losing or up and down we shouldn't talk about this day to day, week to week it's far more complicated by that. >> there's a lot to that. to my mind it is very very clear that isil is losing and in the next 12 to 24 months they are going to be thrown out of iraq as an organized force that holds terrain. all kind of qualifiers for that and always have a terrorist

presence for a long time. i don't think they are going to be holding any ground two years from now. that doesn't mean they are not going to have good days in the interim. even a force that's losing has good days. think of the germans, battle of the bulge, even though it's clear that they are losing the entire war in europe. you can always have a good day when you're losing the campaign. >> what gives you the confidence that we'll see isis dispelled from iraq in 12 to 24 months? >> once we stop islamic state advance and didn't take baghdad and didn't take erbil, once we started -- renewed our training effort and start the iraqi forces regenerating and once the shia militias came up from the south and started holding things down, then it was a matter of time before all of these people are kicked back. >> and if something like that does happen it will also benefit bashar al assad, there was discussion of these terrible

horrific chemical attacks there, blaming the assad regime, according to samantha power been supportive through thick and thin. what do you make of that and the difficulty of the u.s. position here which is that even if isis is beaten back which is good broadly speaking that still doesn't deal with assad in any way and indeed helps him to some degree. >> you know i never thought i would be doing the easy country in the middle east but we have a plan for iraq and i'm pretty confident about that plan. i have no earthly idea what we do about syria. i see no good options. the moderate resistance so to speak is so small and even that we're not sure how moderate they are. the assad regime it deplorable but seems to be holding on and seems to have the support of significant parts of the population we would not suspect. the bulk of the opposition is divided between isil and al nus

stra, last i checked we don't like them very much still. i see no good options in syria, no way to move forward. >> because of that chaos in syria, we have a massive refugee crisis in "new york times" pointing out the worst since vietnam. these are horrific proportions and u.n. is calling on the u.s. to do more to take in more of these refugees and this is becoming a political issue. some members of congress are concerned about terrorist issues could they sneak in with refugees. is that a valid concern? >> it could be a concern. i think you're right, we do a pretty good screening job for people we let into this country but you're absolutely right, to highlight the refugee crisis. even if you're totally heartless and don't care about the human suffering of the refugees which i do just the mass numbers of

them destabilizing all of the neighbors, the jordanians accepted millions and lebanese have accepted by a million. even some are coming into iraq. it's destabilizing all of these neighbors, many of whom didn't have a lot of stability to spare in the first place. it's not only a humanitarian crisis which it is first and foremost but a geopolitical crisis for the region. these neighboring states don't have the capacity to absorb the numbers they are being asked to absorb. >> former aid to saddam hussein al douri is dead. is this someone who is so important that i am being taken off the battle field really makes a difference? >> first let's hold our horses. we've heard him reported dead many, many times over the last decade. we've been hunting for him for a long time. he was the king of clubs in the original iraq card deck. it does look like there's a

likelihood he's dead but i'll wait until the dna tests come back. if he is killed we've learned some things about decap tags the capture and vul execution of saddam hussein did not stop the iraq insurgency and killing of of -- decapitateing one senior leader, even if it is important, probably won't have a huge impact in the great scheme of things. if he's dead i'm happy about it don't get me wrong. >> nice to see you happy. thank you for your time. president obama making news at the news conference weighing in on trade and blasting congress. plus, to the trail we go and focus shifts to new hampshire where gop hopefuls and one mrs. clinton are making early play today and what's next for

accused murderer robertdurst, after all they found this author's book on durst in durst's apartment. later, the entire two minute trailer for "star wars the force awakens" luke skywalker, chewbacca are back and you'll see them all here on "the cycle." it is friday, april 17th. (son) oh no... can you fix it, dad? yeah, i can fix that. (dad) i wanted a car that could handle anything. i fixed it! (dad) that's why i got a subaru legacy. (vo) symmetrical all-wheel drive plus 36 mpg. i gotta break more toys. (vo) the twenty-fifteen subaru legacy. it's not just a sedan. it's a subaru. ♪ [upbeat music] ♪ defiance is in our bones.

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two-day leadership summit. the talking has already begun, jeb bush and chris christie speaking shortly and rick perry kicked it off. >> in response to the min many crises that we're experiencing in the world today, both at home and abroad i might add the conservative movement must be the agent of reform. we got to share with the american people that there is hope for the future. that the best days are ahead of us in this country. absolutely the best days in america. >> other top contenders will get their turn tomorrow. as for democrats, hillary clinton making they are first trip in the campaign swing monday and tuesday this coming week. for more on all of this we're happy to welcome back david fromm, former speechwriter for president bush and senior writer at the atlantic. let me read to you a key part of senator rubio's announcement speech.

he cites the story of cuban immigrants ands it's part of the larger story of the american miracle, a collection of immigrants of exiles and former slaves and refugees together built the freest and most prosperous nation ever. see for almost all of human history, power and wealth belonged only to a small few. here we are the children and grandchildren of people who refused to accept this. what do you think as a speechwriter of that language and those arguments he's making? some of them sound universalistic and some can sound downright progressive? >> they are powerful and powerful when you connect them to his family story, that he has an unusually hard scrabble striving background. he speaks from the heart and from his personal story. marco rubio has been looking for a way to open the republican conversation to different kinds of ideas from those we heard in the 2009 2010 2011 period when

the republican message was all about the terrors of deficits and need to slash. he's trying to come up not just with the themes of hope but actually an agenda. >> as ari was mentioning, potential candidates already announced candidates are spending a lot of time in new hampshire. jeb bush was there as well as chris christie and it sounds like christie is putting a lot of his time and effort in the granite state if he decides to run. i spent a good amount of time there in 2012 -- >> i bet you did. >> a good takeaway how unpredictable the state can be. voters are don't listen to the pundits and they either like you or they don't of the. they will judge you in person. it's a place where i could see a brand like christie's playing well. the question is has his time already passed. >> new hampshire looks more like the national republican party and also more like the national democratic party than iowa does. the iowa caucuses for the republicans are dominated by

overwhelmingly very religious conservative people of the on the democrat he can side it is dominated by very dofish people and by teachers unions. new hampshire looks more like what you'll face nationwide. so they are both important. you have to clear them both but they are especially for candidates who did not represent the base of their party. new hampshire offers more of an opportunity. i guess that's why you were spending so much time there yourself. >> who do you think is best position for new hampshire on the right? >> well i -- i think on the conservative side, there's a lot of feeling as they look at jeb bush. this feels a little bit like an arranged marriage. the bride or the groom has been brought in and they are eyeing and saying am i going to have to follow the path that's been laid down for me -- or is there anyone else here i can choose for myself? that's going to be the question overhanging jeb bush. >> a lot of changes in the gop

primary process this year this time you've got to win at least eight states to be presented to be a nominee at the national convention in cleveland and most of the states this time will be winner take offall. how does that impact the nation's first primary new hampshire, does it make it more important or less important? >> well i think new hampshire is going to be overwhelmingly important. with such a big field, if a candidate has not done well in one or both of iowa or new hampshire, the fund raising will become impossible. unless you have done an enormous amount in advance, maybe a jeb bush can survive not doing well in iowa and not doing well in new hampshire, but probably nobody else can. the money will just stop. >> we've got to ask you about another big news item president obama coming in as strong as we've heard him on a domestic issue in a long time saying republicans in the senate are out of line here blocking

loretta lynch for this long. listen to in new sound. >> being somebody fair and effective and good manager, nobody suggests otherwise, who's been confirmed twice before by the united states senate and for one of the biggest law enforcement jobs in the country has been now sitting there longer than the previous seven attorney general nominees combined. and there's no reason for it. there are times where the dysfunction in the senate just goes too far. this is an example of it. it's gone too far. enough. enough. >> given the case the president makes there and the fact that republicans unanimously confirmed her before and that they haven't raised a substantive objection to her this time and 51 votes reportedly are ready for her.

should she get an up or down vote? have republicans gone too far? >> i'm a strong believer absent corruption or incompetence, they should be served by the people they want. it's the president's cabinet, he is sfeshlly in domestic policy roles. i would say and notice that jeb bush actually said something similar to this effect today, this is not right. the president should have his people. but to my mind that was not the biggest news at this press conference. the biggest news was the president was asked, would he reject the idea of iran getting all of sanctions relief up front the way the iranians want? the united states has rejected that position until now. the president pressed very hard on that point did not reject it today at the press conference. and i have a question does that mean another round of american concessions to iran is about to come? >> a larger question for another time maybe we'll have you back for it. david frum thanks for being here. we go deep into robert durst

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it's a question of note what do i say but how do i say it? never intentionally purposefully lied. i made mistakes. did not tell the whole truth. nobody tells the whole truth. >> robert durst is an american obsession, the man still in a loousz jail awaiting extradition to california for a murder charge. is a character unlike before seen and so hard to understand. a million millionaire heir who seems devilishly attracted to murder. when you see someone smiling like that in the back of a squad car, you've got to say, what is wrong with this guy? to attempt to answer that vexing question, we have the

investigative journalist matt burkebeck, a book did durst found in durst's apartment when durst searched it. do you look at that as an endorsement? >> i guess, i was surprised when i got word that he had the book. when i thought about it the book gets into detail what he was doing prior to the cases -- the investigations that started in 2000. he was living a very bizarre life where he was stealing identities and living amongst the homeless and different cities across the country. somehow he learned how to dismember a human being. >> you mentioned that and that goes to this paradox, he went into hiding and on the other hand put himself in the limelight in the interview and famously got caught shoplifting when he had money on him. did you ever resolve that? >> i didn't. i was really surprised when i heard back in 2011 that he had agreed to interview with andrew

dur he canky, who directed the jinx. he told me that and i was shocked. that's not the durst i covered when i first started covering him in 2000 very secretive, didn't have any dealings with the press whatsoever. and as i just mentioned he lived very strange lifestyle and he had been doing it for a very long time the stealing of the identities and what not. that's a big mystery in the story and something people haven't figured out. what was he doing? obviously the fbi is looking now to see if in fact he may be a serial killer and looking to see if perhaps there are other victims in cities where he's lived. >> so obviously you're surprised he sat with interviews with "the jinx", what's there anything else that shocked you based on research he had done? >> i was familiar with most of the story. it was a good primer for people who weren't familiar with the durst story, the last five minutes, i was stunned. >> the confession nobody could have seen that coming.

>> it was perhaps the greatest five minutes in tv history. you hear him -- it sounds like he's having multiple conversations and he was stressing out just before that when he was shown this letter with the misspelled beverly hills and looks like his handwriting. you see he's having issues and goes into the bathroom and didn't realize he's miked up and admits to killing them all. that's the durst i covered and one i remember investigating and looking into. i was stunned. >> the body behavior throughout was quite strange but especially in those last five minutes it was particularly strange. you talked about three cases that we know about, do you think there are more? >> i had reported in 2003 that there were two missing girls in northern california one in san francisco, and one in eureka where he had lived. and the one in san francisco, there's circumstantial evidence i don't think it's as strong as the one further north where he not only was with this young

girl in a shoe store where she worked and homeless center where she volunteered but the composite is right on. it looks just like him. given that the composite was given by someone that knew durst that leads me to believe there's far more to that story than we know today. >> durst certainly seems crazy in cloak weal evidence -- >> when he was 10 years old sent to see a psychiatrist and couldn't treat him. he had severe anger issues towards his father. >> he went through a lot at the age of 7? >> he saw his mother did witness his mother committing suicide though the facts of the story are different than what was presented on "the jinx." but two or three years later he sent to a psychiatrist and the psychiatrist after two visits can't treat him. says he's suffering from something, he mentioned schizophrenia and other things

and says this will result in a severe psych co-dynamic force that will cause problems when he gets older. we've seen that in his adult years. >> extraordinary to see his own family be so afraid of him, thinking that he might try to kill us we know he wants to try to kill us. you mean, killing other people is horrible but his brother living in fear all the time. >> and he has -- he's lived in fear of him for decades. their story goes back to when they were children and issues go back to then. douglas durst had in the past few years had security whenever he knew that bobby would be in town he would have 24-hour security watching him. that's how fearful he was. >> to you think he wants to get caught so that he can get out of it? >> you know i don't think -- i don't think it's that -- i don't think it's that complicated or he's that smart. he's been doing what he's been doing for a long time.

and far -- >> and he has gotten away with it. >> exactly. i'm surprised about how visible he's been. i'm surprised that the photo of him in the police car is smiling, agreeing to speak an interview for the jinx and letter to the l.a. times, this is all new behavior. this is for a psychiatrist to figure out. >> what do you say to people who have no interest in robert durst as a person as a multimillionaire but think there's something really wrong with our justice system when you can admit to dismembering a body and get off on the murder charge. >> that's the other story, that's law enforcement and issues, a, with that trial and prosecution, which was really poor. then you've got this bizarre jury then the former district attorney in westchester county who played a very big role in all of this and twist the facts of her own investigation. which is something she's probably going to have to account for if and when this goes to trial. >> the expert on robert durst

matt birkbeck thanks for your time. still ahead the question millions of families are grappling with right now, how to pick the right college with decision deadlines around the corner. glorious two minutes of the brand-new trailer for "star wars." we'll play it in its entirety because we're a full service operation here at "the cycle."

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this weekend marks 20 years since the horrific bombing on the federal building in oklahoma city domestic terror attack killed 168 people including 19 children and injured hundreds more. there's going to be a moment of silence at the memorial site at 9:02 a.m. on sunday. that was the time of the bombing and former president clinton will deliver remarks there in honor of the victims. and turning from security to schooling to policing with d.c.

stuck in permanent gridlock it is falling on our state and local governments to try to pick up the slack. look at the potential 2016 pool, we have a lot of governors and former mayors on the list. managers across the nation are looking to each other for guidance to find out what others are doing to learn what works and doesn't work. enter route 50 that's a new website that connects local lessgs lors. the use of aerial drones and even uber these are all common challenges and with budgets being squeezed removing that learning curve is absolutely vital to making things work at the local level. michael grass is executive editor of route 50 and joins us now. >> thanks for having me. >> talk to us about why the platform is so necessary. >> think of how many state county municipal governments

there are in the country. even though a jurisdiction on west coast might not necessarily think a problem that a jurisdiction in the great plains or east coast might be facing relates to them often times it does. these jurisdictions, these governments are facing the same challenges, the same pressures and often times there are solutions that they have but they oftentimes exist within their over sigh low so they need to community more. >> when you look at the places getting it right, what do they have in common? >> let's look at raleigh, north carolina, for instance we have had a piece written by two contributors there. they have a very actively engaged local government but not just that they have a very engaged civic tech community, non-profit community, the private sector. it's not just local governments that have responsibility for how communities work together so

encouraging all of these different players and stake holders, that's one of the common threads that you see successful local governments working on. >> earlier we talked about one of the most horrific bombings and cities can learn how to deal in a horrific situation. what have cities learned from that moment? >> oklahoma city overall has a lot of experience working with crisis situations not only the 1995 event but also there are a lot of natural disasters, think of all of the massive tornadoes that have impacted the metro area there. they have very strong planning and protocols in place. and that seems like a common sense no brainer, yes, you need to have plans but you also need to practice against them. you need to factor in the what ifs and what happens if your plan a has a problem. what if the plan b fails?

you need to know who is responsible for what and if there's a -- a virable that you haven't accounted for, what's the next best step. >> in these disastrous situations, when there's a tornado or bombing, sometimes the most important part is getting the word out to people on the ground. now with social media, talk about how important that role plays in all of this. i think about just the blizzards here in the new york area i wait for tweets to come about what's going on. >> social media is a two-way street. if you are engaging with citizens you're failing them in a lot of ways. now, every community is different. one community might be -- have more engagement on facebook versus twitter. you have to understand the uses of social media and how it's being practiced with the citizens. so you know there are a lot of bad examples of social media

interactions gone awry but that works in the other direction too. a positive experience can travel miles just as much. so you have to be proactive and the city and other municipalities are doing it right. they oftentimes get high marks from their citizens. >> michael, is it hard to pick which cities are doing it right without using an idealogical or partisan lens? in part who's doing it right and who's succeeding is dependent on what your values are. >> yeah, that's a good question. i would say that a lot of the common problems that local jurisdictions are facing don't follow under a partisan lens. you know you look at trash pickup that's not a democratic or republican issue, it's a common task for your public works department that needs to

gets done. so when i talk with local leaders around the country, often times they look at what's happening on the national level and sort of shrug their shoulders and they are fortunate that they don't need to deal with the same type of partisan ak moanny that is common at the national level. >> that is encouraging in and of itself thank you we appreciate it. up next those college acceptance letters, they are already rolling in. and now the big decision for millions of families across the country, which school are you going to pick? luckily we have the guide to everything that you really need to know about where to go right here next. the new s6 hits the stores and i'm like... whoa. open the box and... (sniffing) new

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ortho weed b gon kills weeds... not lawns. our label says it. your grass proves it. get ortho weed b gon. the label tells the story. welcome back may 1st is national college decision day, that lives only two more weeks for students and parents to decide which college is best for their future. there's many things to consider which is best for a certain major or career path how far away from home do you want to live? and maybe most importantly, which school will not kriple you with student loan debt. the book the other college guide, ranks schools base on which charge a fair price for education, if finance 101 we call that return on investment, folks. here is the book's co-author, paul glass rus, former

speechwriter for president clinton. the book is called "the other college guide" when is in this book not in the other ones? >> most college guides focus on the top 10% of students from afluent families going to the top 10% colleges. this is the guide for everyone not just the well to do for somebody getting as and b's and middle class, poor doesn't matter. everybody needs post high school education, this is the book that will provide you with the tools you need and rankings and numbers you need to make the right choice to get value for your money. >> indeed you got a lot in here on where to get the best bang for your buck in terms of what college to go to. all of the different regions in the country, you're really reaching out to folks who may not be served by other college books and one thing you do in this book that a lot of other college books don't do you talk about how to make the most of

your first year in college, the completely overwhelming situation. give folks some advice on that. >> so for a lot of young people, who didn't necessarily go to rigorous high schools and my co-author jane sweetland was a administrator at college for years and really knows the subject. that first year can be a washout year. early signs of a student probably likely to drop out is that they drop a couple of classes or won't up in remedial classes, the way that this book can help is in our rankings we look at whether students tend to graduate from these schools. the worst possible thing you can do is go to school rack up a bunch of debt and not get a degree. to get the benefits of a college education, you need to have that degree. not all schools do right by students that they admit. >> paul one thing that sounds like it makes a lot of sense, go

to two years of community college, if money is tight and to be able to save money there and transfer to four-year institution. how well does that work out and what are tips to pulling that off successfully? >> it is a great question and potentially a good thing to go to community college and then transfer to a four-year. you can save money and it's very treacherous. we have an entire chapter on what we call the community college transfer swamp. remember, a lot of four-year schools don't communicate with the two-year schools in their state. they don't necessarily allow the credits to transfer over. and you can lose a lot of money and time if you're not very very careful. our book walks you through how to advocate for yourself in that situation. >> you do with a lot at looking at the numbers that really count for people. you look at schools that have a low default rate on loans, a big issue we covered a lot. a high graduation rate and you found when you total that up in the northeast for example, the third largest university system

in the united states, a city university of new york has four of the top five spots. it's also one of the most diverse institutions in the country and it's publicly funded which seems to suggest there might be a good model there for others to pursue. >> absolutely. if you look on the west coast, you're going to find something very similar, the california universities, both the university of california schools like davis and riverside and san diego and los angeles. as well as the california state schools, even though the prices have increased are still relatively good bargain, a great bargain given most of the other states' tuitions have gone up. community schools and california schools are really among the best. >> if you are getting to the age where you have to start thinking about colleges but have no idea where to begin, don't know what you're interested in or what you want to do with your life. >> don't know who you are. >> where do you begin? >> so the first couple of

chapters of the book walk you through that. we've got personality quizzes that you can take that's based on very serious bureau of labor statistics data that matches the kind of person -- kind of mentality you have are you an investigative person who likes to bore into facts, more of a hands on person. do you like being decreecreateive or following careful routines. that matches you up with majors that you might take and careers that you might get with those majors and then what the incomes of those majors are and whether they are growing or shrinking professions. just if you just read the first couple of chapters if the book if you're 15 or 16 trying to decide what you want to do with your life very quickly you're going to have at least a better focus and people who know what they want to do when they start college, at least have a plan are statistically much more likely to graduate.

>> paul, let me ask you a philosophical question. what do you think college should accomplish? this is sparked from nick chris christoph liberal arts education, how important it is to learn how to think and to think deep thoughts about the world without having a specific like i'm going to go for four years and then get this x career and this x job. now, given the fact of massive student loan debt certainly that is what most students are approaching their college with now. is it a loss that we do have a sort of decline in respect for and students taking up the option of a liberal arts education? >> well look. it has always been the case that the vast number of students go to college in order to be able to get a better career. and that's just the facts. it's probably a little more that way now in the wake of the recession and given the price of higher education and the debt people are taking on. but at the same time a liberal arts education is not only

terrific, people who get liberal arts degrees from quality schools wind up with pretty good incomes. so there's not really a tradeoff there. i've traveled to a lot of colleges. there are great professors all over this country teaching liberal arts. >> some great advice. thanks for being with us. >> my pleasure. >> and now, as promised, the new "star wars" trailer is out already. 20 many people have viewed it. in december the saga continues. now j.j. abrams released the 90-second trailer. they didn't pay us but as a public service, here it is in its entirety. >> the force is strong in my

family. my father has it. i have it. my sister has it. you have that power, too. >> chewy, we're home.

>> gonna be awesome, guys! make sure to check out our facebook page where we have a lot of behind-the-scenes photos and a special video from a voice that "star wars" fans might recognize. that's over at facebook.com/thecycle. >> it's time for the your business entrepreneur of the week. aaron is the owner of the comic shop and a geek easy in orlando, florida. he attracts new customers by having fun events and then turns them on to comics, often turning them into regular readers. for more watch your business sunday mornings at 7:30 on msnbc. american express for travel and entertainment worldwide. just show them this - the american express card. don't leave home without it! and someday, i may even use it on the moon. it's a marvelous thing!

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this past week it was all about the race for 2016. everyone was busy talking about hillary clinton's big announce pt ment. there was a piece in the "times"

by david brooks that caught my attention. it wasn't getting nearly as much buzz, but i loved that it had nothing at all to do with politics. it was about how so many of us are focused on our own success and how great we are that we forget who it is that we want to be not in our professional life, but our inner character. to be honest, i worry about this new world we live in with social media taking over our lives. it is so easy to become totally consumed with ourselves. i worry about what it's doing to our society and to this next generation coming up. and i was reminded of this last night when i watched a video that made me sick to my stomach. it has gone viral. but if you haven't seen it yet, it shows espn reporter brit mchenry speaking to a parking attendant who towed her car in the most cruel and disrespectful way. take a look at this. >> . >> that was just part of the

video, but here's what i will say about it. it shouldn't matter whether cameras are on or off, no one deserves to be treated like that. regardless of your profession or education or the amount of money you have no one is above anyone else. as for brit she apologized for this, sort of. and espn has suspended her for a week. that video made me think about the piece in the "times" that i mentioned earlier and just how important's brooks' message was. he writes about once a month, i run across a person who radiates an inner light. they seem deeply good. they listen well they make you feel funny and valued. you often catch them looking after other people, and as they do, their laugh is musical and their manner is infused with gratitude. they are not thinking about what wonderful work they are doing. they are not thinking about themselves at all. we all know that type of person. we know who he's talking about. no matter what this is the person who can always brighten your day. they are more interested in you than they are themselves. most of us also like to think we

are that person that we are caring and selfless and at the core just a good person. no one wants to think they are simply consumed with their own lives and their own success. even david brooks humbly admitted that while he had achieved a great deal of success, he had not achieved that same level of generosity or that depth of character. the type of character that will be described at our funeral one day, whether we were kind or brave or honest or faithful. whether we were capable of great love. these are the qualities that we will be remembered for. not what's written on our resume or how well educated we were. or how rich we were. it's the connection we have with the people in our lives. it's how we treat those around us and our willingness to think about someone else. so thank you david brooks for reminding us that at the end of the day, what matters most is our character. it couldn't come at a better time and in your own words, wonderful people are made not born. remember that the next time things get tough. all right, that does it for "the cycle." have a great weekend. "now with alex wagner" starts right now. a car bomb explodes directly

outside the u.s. consulate in iraq. the massive sony hack just got worse for everyone involved. and "star wars" is breaking the internet. but first, jeb bush wants to have his pie and eat it, too. it's friday april 17th, and this is "now." >> hell with the diet. >> bush is taking his message to voters with a stop of politics and pie in concord. >> campaigns need to be about the future not the past. >> this will be the first time bush and rubio crossed paths since rubio launched his campaign. >> he said, he's a great guy, and you will not hear me criticize rubio. >> if rubio ever gets close to jeb bush in the polls, i cannot imagine that promise being kept. >> jeb bush