right now on "andrea mitchell reports," was it a war crime? doctors without borders calling today for an unprecedented international investigation into the hospital bombing by u.s. forces. >> today we say enough. even war has rules. this was not just an attack on our hospital, it was an attack on the geneva conventions. nuclear sting. the fbi investigates nuclear materials in maldova. what have they found? and pressure is mounting up for joe biden to get into the race. >> so it will be up to you in this changing world to translate those unprecedented capabilities

into a greater measure of happiness and meaning, not just for yourself but for the world around you. good day, everyone. i'm andrea mitchell in washington. a disturbing report from the associated press today. the fbi working with police in moldova have foiled attempts by russian-linked smugglers to sell nuclear materials to terror groups. what have they found? i'm joined by justice correspondent, pete williams. what has the fbi been doing in this arena? >> reporter: well, the fbi has been working with eight or nine countries to set up the counter smuggling investigations. and what they report today is an inside look at a couple of the cases in moldova over the past couple of years. the moldovan authorities have

been pretty good about this, and the pictures you are given right now were given by the moldovan police. these people claim they had access to nuclear materials, raid logical materials and were willing to sell them. in one case in february, the reported dealer said that he was -- or the buyer was an undercover operative who said he was representing isis. now the fbi points out there's no actual known isis connection here. this was a claim by the undercover operative working with the police that he represented isis. but andrea, this whole issue of loose nukes of keeping track of radiological materials came after the breakup of the soviet union. moldova is one of those countries. the issue is people willing to sell the material, for money, sometimes with anti-western views. the international atomic energy commission has tracked some 2400

cases of either lost or stolen material. of those, they say, 425 or so up until december of 2013, the most recent data, actually involved an attempt at smuggling. one question here is, how often did the would-be smugglers actually have the capability to get dangerous levels of nuclear materials? and most of these cases, investigators say, they only get a little. one official told me today it's easy to get your hands on a teaser quantity, but obviously it's a huge concern. so what we get here is a little spotlight on activities that really have been going on for 20 years. >> and just a quick shout-out, pete, this involves 25 nations, $2 billion spent annually by the u.s. all extending from the non-nuclear initiative passed 20 years ago post cold war. >> that's right. the obama administration picked up on this urging other countries to get cooperative. it's a huge operation for

interpoll. the u.s. has radiation detectors all around the soviet union and is working with other police. but it is, obviously, one of the most worrisome scenarios. >> pete williams, as always, thank you, sir. >> you bet. meanwhile, doctors without borders today calling for an unprecedented international investigation into a u.s. air strike to kill 22 patients and doctors in kunduz, afghanistan. >> in kunduz our patients burned in their beds, our doctors and staff were killed as they, withed, our colleagues had to operate on each other. one of the doctors died on the operating table and office desk while his colleagues tried to save his life. >> the medical group released this video of the hospital in kunduz before the bombing where they say more than 22,000 patients received care last year alone. they also released video of the hospital after saturday's attack documented the devastating

damage. nbc's john yang is joining us from london. bring me up-to-date on what in investigation could comprise because the u.s. is not signatory in this investigating panel. >> reporter: that's right. it's not entirely clear, looking at the website, they were questioning the investigation by the international humanitarian fact-finding commission. this was established in 1991 as part of the geneva conventions that rule, dictate the rules of war. the united states is not a part of this commission. and so it's not quite clear to me how this would work. they have asked president obama to consent to the investigation. accord stock the website, both or all parties in a conflict have to consent to this investigation. so i don't understand now if the taliban would somehow also have to consent to this. obviously, doctors without borders, a nongovernmental organization, not a party to this conflict but certainly a

victim or someone who has suffered great loss in this conflict. now this call comes as we have been getting new pictures, as you say, from doctors without borders. for the first time seeing, showing us the devastation inside this hospital that we saw the pictures of the hospital when it was operating. but now the pictures inside after this devastating attack that lasted more than an hour early saturday morning. also today our nbc producer in kabul went to the italian clinic run by an italian nongovernmental organization where many of the wounded or the ill patients who had been treated or were being treated when this attack took place are now being treated. our producer talked to them and they had harrowing descriptions of the bombing, they thought it was like doomsday, that the

world was coming to an end. as every 15 minutes for more than an hour, an ac-130 gun ship rained down fire, cannon fire on this hospital destroying it. they have now pulled out, doctors without borders, has pulled out of kunduz declaring the hospital a total loss. this is the only trauma center or was the only trauma center in kunduz. just many the five days before this attack, they treated about 39 patients. now fighting continues in kunduz and all those people have no place to go because the one trauma center to treat them has now been hit and now closed. andrea? >> john yang in london. for more on this and what russia's moves are in syria, a big issue, i'm joined by jack reid, ranking member of the armed services committee. senator, what about this strike? we are told and read in "the new york times" that general campbell, after his testimony

yesterday, has privately said that none of the terms of engagement, none of the rules guiding, operating the special forces who were on top ground were met in this case. >> general campbell assured us that he's going to conduct a vigorous investigation. he already has a general on the ground conducting the investigation. he will inform us. it will be transparent. and i'm sure if there were violations of the rules of engagement he will poll the appropriate people responsible. we operationally understand that collateral damage in my way, shape or form doesn't help us. but more importantly, we know that we have to respect these, not just hospitals, but we have to respect the civilian population. otherwise we won't be effective in what we're trying to do to aid the government of afghanistan. >> but in this case it just seems so clear that there needs to be some sort of independent

investigation. that the world is not going to believe a pentagon that had three different stories in the first couple of days, first saying it was taliban firing at coalition forces from inside the hospital, in which doctors without borders vigorously denied from saturday morning on. and then saying, while the afghans asked for it, why would they trust a pentagon investigation at this stage? don't we need an independent international investigation? >> the investigation is going to have to be thorough. it's going to be unclenching and have to look at what was done, who did it. and i think it's the quality of the investigation and also the -- the ability, and i think general campbell is positioned to do this, to communicate truthfully and directly that they have looked at every aspect and held people accountable if necessary. but clearly, this is something that cannot be ignored or sort of dismissed. and i think general campbell is doing everything he can to get the facts out.

and that's ultimately the test. and then take responsible action based on those facts. >> let me ask you about russia in syria and over the skies and what they have been doing. and also now for the first time firing cruise missiles from warships. they say they are going after isis targets but ash carter said in rome today they are not no matter what they say. and now there's a new report that we are just hearing about on fox and maybe you have heard it as well, that three times in the last week since they started this air campaign, the russians have intercepted predator -- american predator drones over syria. what can you tell us about that? >> well, first, it appears that the russians are engaged in trying to sport the assad regime, not directly go after and exclusively go after isil. they are not cooperating with the coalition of 60 nations including the united states. they are going after isil, a

major threat to the peace and security of the world. and their intent, the russian intent is to prop up a regime in which they have been supporting for decades now. and they are doing it, in close collaboration with assad's forces on the ground. one aspect of this is they were compelled to do this because assad had been losing ground steadily. the rebels had been gaining. the russians felt they had to step in now in order to prevent a worse fate for assad. this is not a positive development. i think it complicates the matter and creates more violence in syria. and it deters or delays ultimately what has to be a political solution. and the whole community, with the exception of russia, are calling for assad's departure. and i think that's ultimately the way this must end. >> how concerned are you that u.s. and russian war planes or even now a predator drone may

come into conflict in this air space? >> this is one of the issues that, i think, the secretary has been trying to discuss seriously with the russians, which is deconfliction. they should appreciate the fact that unintentional contact could lead to serious consequences and it is in their interest as well as our interest to ensure that we can fly where we need to go and will not be interfered with by the russians. that's something we have to insist upon. the first step is to sit down and talk about the rules, really, of the road. or in this case, the sky. and it's important to do that. >> and what do you think putin is up to, really? just propping up assad? does he have larger ambitions? >> i think this is one where he feels that if assad would fall, their position in the middle east would seriously erode. they have had a naval base in syria for decades.

they have had a continuous support of this assad. but his father before him as well. and also, putin has a sense that regime change any place could ultimately be a threat to his position. because it destabilizes. he has forces within russia that might, under proper circumstances, begin to agitate against him. i don't think in a military basis but on a political basis initially. so i think one, it's just to maintain their long-term relationship and maintain assad in power. and two, have u.s. this notion of trying to stop the regime change anywhere. >> jack reid, thank you, senator. thank you very much. and what does vladimir putin want for his birthday? victory and total domination of course, but he also had to settle today for getting that on the ice. the russian president spent his 63rd birthday in moscow playing

hockey with a team of nhl stars against russian officials and tycoons. putin's team won 15-10 with the russian strong man scoring a hard-to-believe seven of those goals. do you think the fix was in? and up next, we're on the trail in iowa and new hampshire as new poll numbers show how the race is shaking out. you're watching "andrea mitchell reports" only on msnbc. licate t. like limiting where you earn bonus cash back. why put up with that? but the quicksilver card from capital one likes to keep it simple. real simple. i'm talking easy like-a- walk-in-the-park, nothing-to-worry-about, man-that-feels-good simple. quicksilver earns you unlimited 1.5% cash back on every purchase, everywhere. it's a simple question. what's in your wallet? when a moment turns romantic why pause to take a pill? or stop to find a bathroom? cialis for daily use is approved to treat

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i want them to know that they do have a safe and reliable system. together, we're building a better california. contrary to what donald trump told chuck todd on "meet the press" trump says he's giving no thought to getting out of the race. new poll numbers from critical 2016 states give him more incentive to stay with that strategy. in pennsylvania, ohio, home to john kasich and florida, home to

marco rubio and jeb bush, of course, trump now holds clear leads. trailed in all three states by ben carson. there's no surprise at the top for democrats, hillary clinton leads in all those states. joe biden tied or leading bernie sanders across the board. today the top contenders are blanketing the early states. hillary clinton, jeb bush and donald trump are three of the five candidates criss-crossing iowa. and in new hampshire, the big name is rubio, hoping to turn surging poll numbers into solid primary support. in iowa, we have kristen welker covering the clinton campaign a. kristen, hillary is trying to stay on offense keeping momentum going trying to seize on what kevin mccarthy had to say about the benghazi committee, what do you find in play in iowa today? >> reporter: that's right, andrea. i'm going to talk a little

quietly because secretary clinton is answering questions right now, but you're absolutely right. she's trying to remain on up offense today talking about her proposals for gun laws and continued to try to gain traction off of those controversial comments that congressman mccarthy made when he suggested that the benghazi committee was tied to some of her poll numbers which have started to drop. today she e-mailed another kevin mccarthy who has been getting a lot of negative tweets due to that whole incident. and she initially said, this kevin mccarthy is someone who happens to be the same name, agrees that the benghazi committee is a political sham. but this is the political gift that keeps on giving. kevin mccarthy defending himself saying the benghazi committee is legitimate, but today "the new york times" editorial board saying it should be disbanded. and they expect secretary clinton to gain traction off of

that as she continues on offense here in iowa. this is her first event and she has another event later on today. she holds the town halls essentially where she answers questions. and this is something that is helping her to remain in the lead in states like iowa. of course, a very different story in new hampshire where bernie sanders is leading. and the wild card, vice president joe biden, who as you mentioned is tied with sanders or in second place in the new poll. by the way, the numbers show he's increased seven to eight points since august, the last time the poll was conducted. >> thanks to you. back to new hampshire with katy tur. sorry, also in iowa, tell me about trump today. >> reporter: trump is going to be here in waterloo, iowa. we are going to expect to see a trump that is growing as a candidate. the campaign knows that they need to have a second act for him right now. the immediate your exposure, while still very high for him, is starting to dwindle a little

bit. he's not getting the same amount of free air time, if you will, from them no longer taking his speech to the air. but they are going to make him a fuller, more robust candidate. he'll be more robust on the stage. they are telling "the washington post" he's more knowledgeable on things like foreign policy. in fact, he's meeting with generals as we speak, according to "the washington post" to beef up this foreign policy. we also expect to see melania and ivanka on the trail. the campaign says they will come out soon. first we heard the fall, then september, but hopefully we'll start to see that a little bit sooner. as well as ad times, the campaign has told "the washington post" they are going to spend $20 million, or they are planning to spend $20 million in media buys. the campaign is refusing to confirm the number to us right now. but that does show a sign is that if they do see the tv air

time, the interviews, the live take of all of this, they are willing to go out there and spend money on traditional ads. although they have told me that this is a non-traditional campaign. they are going to continue to run it as a non-traditional campaign. the water bottles are an example about the ones they sent to marco rubio. but they do plan to be on the ballot in every single state. they don't plan to get out of the race early even though people keep speculating that. they are going to be in it until the conventions. one delegate or 2,000 as the campaign manager recently told "the washington post." and has been telling me, frankly, since day one. andrea? >> and he doesn't have to spend money on ads as long as he's all over network and cable television. katy tur and kristen welker both in iowa. now the latest on the missing cargo ship from hurricane joaquin. in a few minutes we'll hear from the ntsb and the coast guard with an update on the search

efforts. officials talked to mark potter a short time ago. >> every investigation is challenging. in this case, it's a large ship. it's in deep waters. there's a lot of information related to it. there are a lot of people, especially the loved ones of the crew members who we want to be considerate of. >> and one body, a small amount of wreckage, has been recovered in the atlantic. it's believed to have gone down in 15,000 feet of water after reporting the last known position last thursday making any kind of search and rescue incredibly difficult. up next, breaking the silence. a famous son tells about his parents to try to help others. a developer! its official, i work for ge!! what? wow... yeah! okay... guys, i'll be writing a new language for machines so planes, trains, even hospitals can work better.

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kennedy, son of ted kennedy, writes not only about his own challenges with mental illness and addiction but the private struggles of his parents. his mother joan, the father, late senator ted kennedy. i spoke to patrick about why he revealed so much and how it has divided his family. patrick kennedy, thank you for joining us. author of the new book "a common struggle," tell us why you wrote the book. >> we got people to tell their own stories about discrimination. part of the challenge we have more more mental health and treatment in this country is the political challenge that no one will speak up. so i can't be out there saying for others that we need their voice to be heard and yet not address the silence in my own family when it comes to these

issues. >> how painful is it for you that your brother and others in the family are very upset that you have basically opened the closet on the kennedy family addictions and the pain that they caused? >> well, andrea, it's pretty painful living with these issues and not talking about them. and i think for millions of families who know what i'm talking about, we're all held hostage by the code of silence, by the stigma and shame that pervades these issues. the only way to treat that shame is by talking about it. >> how difficult was it growing up with your parents, both of them drinking, tell me what it was like to grow up with your mother joan? >> i have an alcoholism and addiction that i inherited from my mother. she inherited it from her mother and father. just like cancer and every other physical illness, we have

genetic predisposition for mental illness and addiction. but the difference about these addictions is that we look upon them as moral issues, not as medical issues. so my mom was, had insult to injury. she had the illness and the insult to that was that no one talked about it and they blamed her for her illness. that has to change. and that's the reason i wrote this book. >> who were the they? >> the "they" is all of us. i certainly participate in that old-style thinking that you don't say anything about these issues, you don't talk about them, and you try to keep them secret. now, if i can't talk about my issues, which are, by the way, already in every other book in the kennedy section of the bookstore, how can the average family break the silence in their own family and get into a conversation about what their loved one is suffering if they suffer from a mental illness or

addiction? that's what needs to change. >> you were 2 years old when ch chapaquippa happened. how big of an issue was that? >> that was a big issue for my dad. clearly he lived with the tragedy his whole life. when your parents are suffering, you're suffering. you cannot distinguish their pain and their story from your own because, at the end of the day, they are your most important emotional foundation. if they are in turmoil, you're likely to be in turmoil. that's what we need to start talking about. >> what about the relationship with your father. how painful was this and what about your reconciliation? >> i was blessed because i not only had this towering figure

who was the most important person in my life who i grew up idolizing. i got to serve with him. i got to be his colleague. and as a result, i got to know him in a myriad of ways than just being his son. so i consider myself blessed to have had the relationship i had with my dad. he was the most amazing human being. in addition to being the greatest united states senator ever to serve in the united states senate. >> but in terms of his addictions, there was a time when you did an intervention, the family in mcclane and he walked out. how difficult was it for him to address his alcoholism? >> my relationship with my dad and dealing with his drinking is not unlike what other families deal with. and that is, no one wants to talk about it. we tried to talk about it with my dad. and he didn't want to talk about it. >> and now with the support of amy, your wife, and your children, another baby on the

way, you have been four years sober. how do you approach that? how do you deal with that every day, every minute of your life? >> that's right. well, i feel like i've started to get out of the woods, but i know that it's a reprieve and i need to continue to get the support of my fellows in recovery. the love and support of my family. and the belief that i'm not alone in this world and that i have a god of my understanding. these are the principles that make enormous difference in me living a sober life today. i might add, i also take medication for my mental illness. we need to have a conversation about the fact there is no separating, treating people with addiction and alcoholism and treating people with mental illness, because often they overlap. >> patrick kennedy, congressman, thank you very much. >> thank you. >> always good to talk to you. >> likewise. and the book "the common struggle" is to try to get other

families and other people suffering this way to seek help. and the justice department set to release 6,000 prisoners serving time for drug offenses, some having served lengthy jail time, after new drug sentencing guidelines try to reduce the sentencing for non-violent drug crimes. the average sentence could be two years. biden is making the first ad buy. the message, joe run. you're watching minneapolis. msnbc. marie callender believes that her chicken pot pie

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president to get into the race. joining me now for our daily fix, msnbc contributor, founder of the washington post fix blog and washington editorial columnist ruth marcus. chris, you've been taking the temperature on this. and i know there's a lot of reporting every day. what is your take now, chris, as to whether or not he's going to listen to the appeals? >> well, first, it's a really, really compelling ad. you know, joe biden's life story all the way up to including the death of his son, his eldest son beau in may. it's a remarkable story that i think moves you, whether you're a democrat or republican, you don't care about politics. i think the hardest question and the one joe biden is answering is, can i do this? do i have the ability given what i have lost? given what has happened in my family to do it. the second question is, can i be more than a spoiler in this race? he would have to go directly at hillary clinton in order to win, certainly, to be more than a

spoiler. does he want to do that? can he do that? will it work? you know, these are the questions, i think, that he continues to wrestle with. and everyone in his inner circle is sort of set up as if he's running, ready to press the button. but they all acknowledge he's not running just yet. >> chris and ruth, there was a focus group that bloomberg did. some democrats out in iowa were asked about joe biden. take a look at this. >> how many of you in this room want joe biden to get in the race? you think it would be a good thing if joe biden entered the race. only one out of you. >> raise your hand if you think joe biden is qualified to be president? >> qualified -- i guess you could say qualified. >> what are your reasons for not wanting joe biden to get in, kyle, we'll start with you? >> i really can't put my finger on it. i really don't have a good reason why i don't think he should run. >> i'm not sure he would make the best president for us.

i worry sometimes about some of the things that he's done and said. >> so that was mark halperin there in iowa and new hampshire. but no real enthusiasm out there for joe biden according to this focus group. >> not just the absence of enthusiasm but the persistence of concern. we have been talking so much, and for good reason, about the real empathy that any feeling human being has for vice president biden and the losses he's suffered. and they are envoked by that powerful ad. but there's another biden we have talked about in the past, which is the gaffe-pro biden. the undisciplined biden. and those focus groups seem to remember that. and i just guess i have a lingering question in my mind about whether the morning he decides, he's going to decide whether joe biden wakes up and thinks, i don't want to go through all of this. i don't want to put my family through all of this. >> but chris, these responses

from the focus group do not at all match our polling. >> no, and there's polling out from quinnipiac, obviously in florida, pennsylvania a, they sw he's moving up rapidly. the question on being honest and trustworthy. he's deeply trusted in a way that hillary clinton is not. joe biden scored the best of all the candidates tested on that question. hillary clinton scored the worst. but i would say, just to add on to what ruth said, on the day joe biden wakes up, legts st's e decides to run for president that day, that's possible that's his best day of polling in the entire race. which is, we have seen this with hillary clinton. she eroded faster than i thought they would, but once you become a candidate and go from the person everybody thinks should run to the person who is running, it's harder to translate that success. wesley clark, fred thompson, we have been through these sort of draft efforts before. rick perry. they don't always work out the way that the candidates think

they will. you don't always sort of keep going up in polling. sometimes you peak there and start heading downward. >> and remember joe biden has been through this before. this would not be his first time at the presidential rodeo. and his performance was not good, to put it mildly, and that was painful to him. that's probably not the biographical note he wants to end his political career on. so he has to tell himself why this time is going to be different and that there's really a route to victory for him. >> now, hillary clinton mocked herself on "snl" on her caution, on her poll driven on same sex marriage. she has been arguing details have not been negotiated, but now they have been negotiated with 11 pacific nations. so any day we may hear, even today, we may hear whether she's supporting it or not.

bernie sanders is pushing her very hard. by his own example, to go to the left and not support it. >> this is a difficult choice for secretary clinton. i wrote about it this morning in the paper. you can read it online at washingtonpost.com. she has a risk either way. if she comes out for the trade deal, she's going to infuriate labor unions and environmentalists. she's going to look like a flip-flopper who used to be before it before against it. if she comes out, yeah, if she comes out against it, if she comes out for the trade deal, then -- i'm sorry, if she comes out for it, she's unfatheruating people. infuriating people. it's a hard choice for her substantively and politically. i think she's smart if she does

it quicker. the longer it stretches at, a la keystone, the better she'll look. >> this is the difference between a prime election and presidential candidate. >> that's right. add in the history of the clintons and trade. in 2008, barack obama tried very, very hard to use nafta against hillary clinton in a state like ohio. so there's a lot that goes into the decision. i'm always on the issue of lansing the political boil as soon as possible. make a decision, explain it and start talking about something else. >> like benghazi. don't think so. >> clear point. >> that's a good conversation these days. >> thank you very much, chris. ruth marcus, thank you. last night bill clinton was on stephen colbert's show and he was asked to explain a few things, including the nature of his relationship with donald trump. >> there's a rumor out there and

feel free to dispel this. did you call donald trump and ask him to run for president of the united states? >> no. >> no? because that would be pretty smart, man. >> yeah, get credit for doing a lot of things i didn't do like that. >> "credit." and up next, high alert. still south carolina towns are in fear of the dams breaking after the big rains. it's time for the "your business" entrepreneur of the week. bill schaeffer saw opportunity in the midst of california's record-breaking drought using a trick golf courses have known about for years. his bay area company brown lawn green uses an organic grass coloring to make a dry dormant lawn look lush and green with minimal watering. for more, watch "your business"

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one of the country's biggesties financial services firms? or 13,000 financial advisors who say thank you? it's why edward jones is the big company that doesn't act that way. south carolinians are still on edge as more dams are on the verge of breaching. residents living near the beaver creek dam are allowed home. they were evacuated overnight. this as a desperate search continues for two missing people who drove their car around a barrier early this morning and got caught in the floodwaters. several others were rescued from

the car but two are still missing. at least 15 people in south carolina have died as a result of the floods. the devastating rain as well. now residents along the coast brace for potential flooding as swollen rivers wind toward the atlantic. >> this is not over yet, but we need to continue our prayers. we need to continue to be responsible and diligent as we move forward. and we need to continue to remember that it is all hands on deck. you can push south carolina but boy does south carolina push back. and so i am incredibly proud of that. >> we are joined now from columbia, south carolina. sarah, you have tracked the storms and the effect of it. are they turning a corner? >> reporter: well, it's hard to say. just when you think everything is kind of settling down, there's another warning for flash floods or there's another dam that's about possibly to fail. nerves are frayed here and you can understand why. people haven't had a break since the water started to rise. take a look around me. it looks like a garage sale, but the fact of the matter is these

are people's lives. these are people's memories all spread out. you know, old photographs dating back to the early 1900s. things that can't be replaced. now being combed through by strangers who are making the call of anything here to see if they can be saved or a complete loss. the sun has been out for two days to dry stuff out. you can see here, a bunch of clothing spread out on the sidewalk, drying that out thanks to this sun. this is a very emotional -- it is very hard work for the project. there's a lot of heavy lifting, too. take a look at this car over here, this suv. this suv does not belong to the homeowner. it belongs to somebody way up the street. the floodwaters pushing it here. and now here it sits among the wreckage of this family's home. back to you. >> thank you, sarah. coming up, election day on capitol hill. we'll explain. that's what's coming up in the next 24. you're watching msnbc. ♪

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well that's why i dug this out for you. it's your grandpappy's hammer and he would have wanted you to have it. it meant a lot to him... yes, ge makes powerful machines. but i'll be writing the code that will allow those machines to share information with each other. i'll be changing the way the world works. (interrupting) you can't pick it up, can you? go ahead. he can't lift the hammer. it's okay though! you're going to change the world. i'm a gas service my nrepresentative. n. i've been with pg&e nine years. as an employee of pg&e you always put your best foot forward to provide reliable and safe service and be able to help the community. we always have the safety of our customers and the community in mind. my family is in oakland, my wife's family is in oakland so this is home to us. being able to work in the community that i grew up in, customers feel like friends, neighbors and it makes it a little bit more special. together, we're building a better california.

benghazi is not political. it was created for one purpose and one purpose only. to find the truth on behalf of the families of the four dead americans, period. i've been very clear about this and don't use politics to try to change this around. >> did you misspeak personally? >> i could have been very -- i could have been more clear in my description of what was going forward. and i -- i've stated that. but there's only one reason why that committee was created, period. >> trying to clean it up. so which political story will make headlines in the next 24 hours? msnbc's luke russert covers capitol hill and joins me now. you, clearly, know better than anyone what kevin mccarthy faces. the vote is tomorrow. this is the vote to nominate him to be speaker. will he be able to get 218 votes on the house floor? >> reporter: well, that question they still have to answer, andrea, but they have time. that vote is not until october 29th.

tomorrow all he needs is about 124 votes, that's the majority of the conference. and from aides i've spoken to as well as senior members of the conference, they believe he'll get that on the first ballot against jason chaffitz, the republican from utah. and the conference is slightly rallying behind him and mccarthy after the barrage of attacks that he's sustained by democrats because hillary clinton, quite frankly, has used this as a way to move her campaign past the e-mail issue saying that the republican attacks against me, same old, same old. so he'll get out of this conference fine. the question will become can he get the 218 on the floor? that still remains to be seen. they have over 200 votes, but remember all it takes is 129 members who are getting a lot of fund-raising e-mails right now from their constituency to say oppose mccarthy. they are handing out t-shirts today calling him mcboehner. so he has to work a little

harder to get the final 18, andrea. >> and this is a secret ballot. what is the chance that there's going to be some internal revolution there. are we going to have some big surprise? >> reporter: i don't think so. just because mccarthy has been working so hard and there's really no real opposition to him, andrea. it would be one thing if conservatives could come around somebody else, but so far they have not proven themselves able to do that. what i'll be very interested in, though, is what happens over the course of the month. because mccarthy is going to make concessions to conservatives in order to try to get all the votes he needs to win on the first ballot on the house floor. and by doing that, he positions himself in a very difficult way ahead of a debt limit extension that needs to happy november 5th. as well as funding the government by december 11. if he's given the concessions from the conservatives to fight on the issues, what does he do in a narrow amount of time to become speaker? there's hope john boehner will clear the deck in october. but the deal is mccarthy dealing with conservatives the way he's

dealing with them, by making concessions to them, including them in the process and listening to them, he's going to make it difficult in the first weeks of becoming speaker. >> luke russert, thank you very much. and just this sad update. they have now recovered, we are told, two bodies, the two bodies of people who were swept away early this morning when their car went around a barricade in south carolina. so that means that that search is sadly over. and that does it for us for this edition of "andrea mitchell reports." follow us online, facebook and twitter @mitchellreports. my colleague, thomas roberts is up next with "msnbc live." stay tuned.

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imagine loving your numbers. there's only one invokana®. ask your doctor about it by name. hi, everybody. good afternoon. i'm thomas roberts. two live events we want you to know about at this hour. one in waterloo, iowa. we are expecting the gop front-runner donald trump to speak.

and in nearby oskaloosa, 100 miles due south, jeb bush is scheduled to appear. that's coming up in 25 minutes. trump's lead among republicans may be declining, but as new swing state polling from quinnipiac proves today, the donald is still the man to beat. florida, ohio and pennsylvania all show trump in front. and that's despite names like bush and rubio in florida. not to mention a popular governor in ohio who are all still in this race. former president clinton was on stephen colbert's show last night. here's his explanation why donald trump's campaign is still going strong. >> it may have a short half line as campaign, i can't tell you that. but he's a master brander and there is a macho appeal to say, i'm just sick of nothing happening. i'm going to make things happen. vote for me. >> three reporters covering republican 2016 politics for us. nbc's katy tur is in waterloo with the trump