why his campaign is issuing a rare apology. and struggling democratic presidential candidate lincoln chafee is stirring up speculation about his white house bid. he's staying in the race? it's 5:30 on the east coast, 2:30 out west. and this is "way too early." good morning. it's friday, october 23rd, i'm jonathan capehart. after 11 gruelling hours in front of the house select committee on benghazi, hillary clinton left the capital last night just before 10:00 p.m. eastern. the former secretary of state, by almost all accounts, stood her ground in the face of intense questioning from the republican-led committee. and as day turned to night and the grilling continued, the republican-led charges, and democratic-led defenses, showed no signs of stopping.

>> who else was at your home? were you alone? >> i was alone, yes. >> the whole night? >> well, yes, the whole night. >> i don't know why that's funny? i mean did you have any in-person briefings? i don't find it funny at all. >> i'm sorry, a little note of levity at 7:15. >> well, the reason i say it's not funny is because it went well into the night when our folks on the ground were still in danger. so i don't think it's funny to ask you if you were alone the whole night. >> congresswoman you asked if i had a skiff. i had secure phones. i had other equipment that kept me in touch with the state department at all times. i did not sleep all night. i was very much focused on what we were doing. >> and i just for one want to thank you. and i appreciate what you've done. it has not been easy. you're right. it's easy to sit up here under

these lights. and monday morning quarterbacking about what could have been, what should have been. you have laid it out. i don't know what we want from you. do we want to badger you over and over again until you get tired, until we do get the gotcha moment that he's talking about? we're better than that. we are so much better. we are better country. and we're better than using taxpayer dollars to try to destroy a campaign. that's not what america is all about. so you can comment if you like. i just had to get that off my chest. >> it is deeply unfortunate that something as serious as what happened in benghazi could ever be used for partisan political

purposes. and i'm hoping that we can move forward together. we can start working together. we can start listening to each other. and i appreciate greatly what you said, ranking member cummings. >> and the afternoon session brought fireworks over clinton confidant sidney blumenthal. republicans on the committee repeatedly asked clinton about his e-mails. why, they wondered, did blumenthal have what they called unfettered access to her when security requests from ambassador chris stevens never seemed to reach her desk. here's nbc news chief foreign affairs correspondent andrea mitchell with more. >> reporter: it was supposed to be about benghazi, but it soon dissolved into bickering. >> i don't care if he sent it by morse code, carrier pigeon, smoke signals. what is relevant is that he was sending information to the

secretary of state. >> will the gentleman yield? >> i'll be happy to but you need to make sure the entire record is correct. >> and that's exactly what i want to do. >> well then go ahead. >> reporter: while they argued the star witness tried to stay above the fray. unlike in 2013. >> what difference, at this point, does it make? >> reporter: this time, hillary clinton was poised, practiced, pushing back with putdowns. >> i wrote a whole chapter about this in my book "hard choices." i'd be glad to send it to you, congressman. i'm sorry that it doesn't fit your narrative, congressman. i can only tell you what the facts were. i know that's not the answer you want to hear. >> reporter: at other times her face said it all, laughing off unwelcome suggestions, showing impatience, irritation, or scorn. reflecting days of preparation at home, sent off to battle this morning by her husband, bill. the republicans were also armed and ready. >> happy to bring breakfast in. but when asked a yes or no question it would sure be helpful if we could get to the answer that's -- wasn't a trick question at all. >> they were concerned, that is

the white house, at the amount of credit that you were getting as opposed to the amount of credit the president's getting. that's true, isn't it, madam secretary? >> look, the president deserves the lion's share of the credit. >> then why is the white house uptight that you're taking the credit? >> reporter: and a fierce dispute over a controversial former clinton political aide sidney blumenthal, barred from the obama white house from working at her state department but sending private advice about libya to her private e-mail account. >> madam secretary, he had unfettered access to you. >> i don't know what this line of questioning does to help us get to the bottom of the deaths of four americans. >> i'll be happy -- >> help us -- >> i'll be happy to help you understand that, madam secretary. >> reporter: it was clinton who spent the most time talking about the victims of the attack. >> you know, i would imagine i've thought more about what happened than all of you put together. i've lost more sleep than all of you put together. >> reporter: information officer and air force veteran sean smith. cia officers tyrone woods and

glen doherty. and ambassador chris stevens. >> i stood next to president obama as marines carried his casket, and those of the other three americans, off the plane at andrews air force base. >> that was nbc's andrea mitchell reporting. turning now overseas to iraq where an american soldier has been killed in combat for the first time since u.s. forces withdrew from that country in 2011. it happened as american and kurdish commandos raided an islamic-state prison successfully freeing some 70 hostages, said to be facing imminent mass execution. nbc's chief foreign correspondent richard engel has the details. >> reporter: the raid was supposed to rescue kurdish hostages like these. held by isis in cages. u.s. intelligence have learned they were about to be executed. so when the kurds, washington's closest allies in iraq, asked for help rescuing them, u.s. forces agreed.

at 2:00 a.m., america's special ops and kurdish forces in five u.s. helicopters, headed for the town of hawija landing near an isis prison on the outskirts of town. sources say isis had already dug mass graves for their hostages. kurdish troops stormed in. about 20 isis guards inside fought back. so the u.s. troops, there to assist, guard the perimeter and communicate with u.s. aircraft above, decided to step in to protect the pentagon says, their kurdish allies and the hostages. about 15 isis guards were killed. but not before the u.s. military says an isis fighter shot one american commando, so far unidentified, who later died of his injuries. the first american to die in combat in iraq since u.s. forces withdrew four years ago. but the pentagon insists this was a unique situation. >> u.s. forces are not in an active combat mission in iraq.

and that's -- i can say that directly. >> reporter: when the fight was over, the americans and kurds loaded the freed hostages, 75 of them according to u.s. officials, and at least 5 captured isis guards, on the helicopters, and left. and today, secretary of state john kerry is scheduled to meet with russia's foreign minister to discuss the syrian conflict. the meeting comes as the obama administration debates setting up no-fly zones over parts of syria as a way to protect civilians. now according to "the new york times." there have been seven airstrikes on syrian hospitals and medical facilities since russia began its military intervention. an international human rights group says at least four people have died. new video shows the scale of destruction carried out by some of russia's recent airstrikes. the video was reportedly shot by a war correspondent earlier this month. these airstrikes have helped boost russian president vladimir putin's approval rating at home. a new nationwide poll shows

nearly 90% of russians approve of putin, and it's largely due to his military advances in syria. the united nations is looking to end the wave of violence between israelis and palestinians. according to the associated press, new zealand is working on a resolution that calls on both israeli and palestinian leaders to restore peace. at the same time, secretary of state john kerry met with israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu yesterday to discuss the situation in israel. kerry called on netanyahu to tone down the rhetoric that may be fuelling palestinian attacks. kerry said he was cautiously optimistic about defusing the violence ahead of his meeting with palestinian president mahmoud abbas. now breaking overnight, we've learned at least 42 people have died following a fiery crash between a bus and a truck in france. it happened in the southwestern part of the country. french president francois hollande says the government is fully mobilizing around the terrible tragedy. the bus was reportedly carrying a group of elderly people. according to officials, it's one

of the worst road accidents in recent french history. no word yet on the cause of the crash. yesterday's poll out of iowa is rocking the republican race, and forcing a rare apology from donald trump's campaign. ben carson, surging into the lead, up seven points to 28%. while donald trump falls seven points to 20%. carson's surge is fuelled by support from women and white evangelical republican voters. and trump appeared to react by slamming iowans. trump's personal twitter account retweeted a comment yesterday -- yesterday morning, saying, quote, ben carson is now leading in the polls in iowa. too much monsanto in the corn creates issues in the brain? referring to agribusiness that supplies farmers. after an outcry the tweet was deleted and an explanation was posted. quote, the young intern who accidentally did a retweet apologizes. trump reacted to the poll directly on the hugh hewitt show. >> i was actually surprised --

i'm not saying that a thing like that can't happen, but i was very, very surprised to see it. because i think we're doing well in iowa. i have a feeling we're doing much better in iowa than the polls are showing. if you want to know the truth. i was leading in iowa, not by a huge amount, but i was leading in iowa. and i was very surprised to see that i wasn't. that's the only one i've had that i'm not leading. >> and we're just minutes away from the release of the latest bloomberg des moines register poll of the iowa caucus. we'll have all the details for you on "morning joe." ben carson is off the campaign trail as he has been for most of the month, making book tour stops in kansas and nebraska today. when asked about reports of added secret service protection in a radio interview the candidate characterized recent threats he's received. >> i have recognized and people have been telling meal for many, many months that i'm in great danger because, you know, i challenge the secular progressive movement to the very core. and you know, they see me as an

existential threat. i know that. so -- but i also believe in the good lord, and you know, we take reasonable precaution. >> we're at the end of a momentous week in the democratic primary. and we're not through yet. former rhode island governor lincoln chafee set to address the, quote, future of his campaign this morning. chafee has just ten donors who reached the reporting threshold of $200 this year. his pending announcement comes after former senator jim webb quit the democratic race on tuesday, while vice president biden decided against the bid on wednesday. meanwhile, former top spokesman for president obama, and rahm emanuel, is getting addressive toward bernie sanders for these comments. >> we need a political revolution. we need to mobilize tens of millions of people to begin to stand up and fight back and to reclaim the government which is now owned by big money. do i think that that is -- was the work -- was that the goal of

the president and the vice president? not really. i don't think so. so i think we've got to go further. you know, i think we need to stand up to wall street in a way that -- that the president and the vice president have not. >> this prompted ben la bolt who is national press secretary for the obama biden re-election campaign to write bernie sanders said he would not carry out the obama legacy. count obama supporters out of quote the revolution. now, still ahead on "way too early," mcdonald's could be making a comeback. the fast food chain is suddenly sizzling again at a record high. plus what more could he have done? after winning the n.l. west, dodgers manager don mattingly is out. those stories and a check on weather when "way too early" comes right back.

take the zantac it challenge! pill works fast? zantac works in as little as 30 minutes.

nexium can take 24 hours. when heartburn strikes, take zantac for faster relief than nexium or your money back. take the zantac it challenge. it takes a lot of work... but i really love it.s. i'm on the move all day long... and sometimes, i just don't eat the way i should. so i drink boost® to get the nutrition that i'm missing. boost complete nutritional drink has 26 essential vitamins and minerals, including calcium and vitamin d to support strong bones and 10 grams of protein to help maintain muscle. all with a great taste. i don't plan on slowing down any time soon. stay strong. stay active with boost®. to see if they could find the guy who uses just for men. it's me. no way. i had no clue. just for men gives you a natural gray-free look in just 5 minutes. it looks really good. great looking hair made easy. just for men. every insurance policy has a number. but not every insurance company

understands the life behind it. for those who've served and the families who've supported them, we offer our best service in return. ♪ usaa. we know what it means to serve. get an insurance quote and see why 92% of our members plan to stay for life. ♪

let's turn to business, and a good day for the dow following some solid third quarter earnings reports. let's bring in cnbc's jeff cutmore live from london. a new all-time high for mcdoesn't old's stocks helped push the markets in the right direction. give us the details. >> yeah, absolutely. this was worth 56 points for the dow here. new product line, the premium chicken sandwich, and also the all-day breakfast, helping mcdonald's here. so this was a beat on earnings. and what's more important, i think "usa today" called this mcrevenge. mcdonald's doing better than chipotle over this period. so it looks like the golden arches are shining once again. one note of warning, though, revenue still down. off 5%. so they still have a little bit of work to do here. and i just want to point you towards the tech sector, amazon alphabet and microsoft, all doing better than the market was expecting.

microsoft stock hitting a 15-year high as nadella over at nyse seems to have got this beast moving again. it was cloud computing, being, and apparently microsoft 10, the windows 10 service, all helping this business. back to you. >> cnbc's jeff cutmore live from london. thank you. all right, everyone. buckle up. time now for sports. we begin with the nfl and the 49ers hosting the seahawks on thursday night football. to san francisco, the seahawks snap a two-game losing streak, posting their fourth straight win against their nfc west rivals. seattle running back mar shawn lynch rushed for 122 yards and a touchdown. quarterback russell wilson found tyler lockett for a 43-yard score. and the seahawks beat san francisco 20-3. to college football now, and a historic performance by ucla quarterback jeff rosen hosting

the number 20 california golden bears last night. rosen completed a school record 34 passes, finishing with 399 yards, and three touchdowns. two of which were hauled in by receiver devon fuller. the bruins beat cal 40-24. and a small scuffle broke out between the two teams after the final whistle. while there wasn't any major fighting, one camera operator gets a little too close to the action and ends up getting knocked over onto the turf. after a report from espn's outside the lines re-ignited controversy over the sex scandal involving the university of louisville basketball program on tuesday, head basketball coach rick pitino yesterday apologized to fans in a post on his personal website, and assured them he will not resign. allegations in a recent book written by self-described former escort katina powell claim a former louisville staffer paid her staff and other escorts to entertain and in some cases have sex with players and recruits.

the university has declined to comment until an investigation is closed. now in manger league baseball, don mattingly is leaving the dodgers. the club made an official announcement hours after the news broke yesterday, saying that the decision was mutual. mattingly was the first dodgers manager in history to lead the team to three consecutive postseason appearances, all were division championships. now let's get a check on your weather, with nbc meteorologist bill karins. bill? >> good morning, jonathan, all eyes are on patricia here. this storm intensified faster than any storm that we've ever seen, even a little more than wilma which was the record breaker. this is a 200-mile-per-hour hurricane, heading for mexico later on today. i've never said those words before. this has a chance to be at landfall the strongest typhoon, cyclone, or hurricane to ever make landfall in our recorded human history. that's the kind of scenario that we're dealing with here. in between manzanillo and puerto

vallarta, mexico, later on this afternoon and through this evening. it's almost too late for these people to evacuate. preparation should be done just about now. here's the latest. we know for a fact this is somehow strong the storm is. our air force hurricane hunters just flew into the center of this and this is the lowest pressure ever measured by the hurricane hunter aircrafts in the atlantic or the pacific. 200-mile-per-hour winds. that's tied for third strongest storm ever recorded in our human history on our planet. that's how serious of a situation this is. to put this in comparison when it makes land fall later this afternoon through this evening in between puerto vallarta and manzanillo it's going to be a 20 to 30 mile wide ef-5 tornado. that's the kind of devastation along this path that it's going to take. it will weaken as it moves inland but not fast enough. it's going to go from 205 at landfall maybe down to 150 by the time it gets to puerto vallarta. a devastating storm. one of the worst that's ever hit mexico is going to happen later today. eventually some of that rain will make it into texas this

upcoming weekend. compared to what texas is going to deal with, what's going to happen in mexico is truly amazing, historic, and going to be catastrophic. >> wow. our thoughts and prayers for the people in mexico facing that storm. thanks, bill, still ahead. has new york city's rat infestation hit a new high? why one city official says the rats are taking over. "way too early" is back in a moment. we live in a world of mobile technology, but it is not the device that is mobile, it is you. real madrid have about 450 million fans. we're trying to give them all the feeling of being at the stadium. the microsoft cloud gives us the scalability to communicate exactly the content that people want to see. it will help people connect to their passion of living real madrid. thinking of new ways to make treat time fun. (vo) at the friskies playhouse, the cats and us are always busy. that's how we came up with new friskies pull 'n play.

with tender string treats cats can eat. that part was their idea. lucy always thought strings should be edible. chloe thought the same. and charlie, well, he's up for anything as long it's fun. new friskies pull 'n play with tender strings. the whole new way to treat 'n play.

the bridge to nowhere is

officially no more. the $450 million project to connect the alaskan city of ketchikan with its airport became nationally infamous during the run-up to the 2008 election when then-governor sarah palin put an end to it and made saying thanks but no thanks to the bridge part of her vice presidential stump speech. cut to seven years later, state officials now say they're endorsing a more realistic option, improved ferry service that includes a passenger waiting facility, shuttle vans, and upgrades to existing docks and ramps. now to new york city, where the rats are taking over. according to the city's comptroller scott stringer told reuters quote, i'm a lifelong new yorker, and i've never seen it this bad. i see them on my way home, they're standing upright. they say good morning, mr. comptroller. an estimated 2 million rats dwell in the big apple and their human neighbors have lodged a record number of complaints. more than 24,000 so far this year.

those complaints brought them to the city street where one hotline, the city is currently expanding a pilot program tasked with getting rid of, quote, rat reservoirs by attacking them in the colonies they set up in sewers, parks, and subways. that does it for me and "way too early." coming up on "morning joe," general michael hayden, chuck todd, and tom brokaw will help us break down a marathon day of testimony on benghazi. plus -- >> you know what? if you like me today, you need to help me. because what you see here is what you get. there's no hidden agenda, i'm not going to put three scoops of ice cream in my houth to get attention or stand on the roof and take my shirt off. i need you to help me -- >> our first "morning joe" presidential town hall. john kasich shares what he will and won't do to become president. that and much more coming up next on "morning joe."

does your makeup remover every kiss-proof,ff? cry-proof, stay-proof look? neutrogena® makeup remover does. it erases 99% of your most stubborn makeup with one towelette. need any more proof than that? neutrogena.

it takes a lot of work... to run this bu but i really love it. i'm on the move all day long... and sometimes, i just don't eat the way i should. so i drink boost® to get the nutrition that i'm missing. boost complete nutritional drink has 26 essential vitamins and minerals, including calcium and vitamin d to support strong bones and 10 grams of protein to help maintain muscle. all with a great taste. i don't plan on slowing down any time soon. stay strong. stay active with boost®.

earning unlimited cash back on purchases. that's a win. but imagine earning it twice. you can with the citi double cash® card. it lets you earn cash back twice. once when you buy and again as you pay. it's cash back then cash back again. and that's a cash back win-win. the citi double cash card. the only card that lets you earn cash back twice on every purchase with 1% when you buy and 1% as you pay. with two ways to earn, it makes a lot of other cards seem one-sided.

who else was at your home? were you alone? >> i was alone. yes. >> the whole night? >> well, yes, the whole night. approxima i'm sorry, a little note of levity at 7:15. >> the reason i say it's not funny is because it went well into the night when our folks on the ground were still in danger. so i don't think it's funny to ask you if you were alone all night. >> you asked if i had a skip. i had secure phones, i had other equipment that kept me in touch with the state department at all times. i did not sleep all night. i was very much focussed on what we were doing. >> welcome to morning jo