ask your doctor if chantix is right for you. that does it for us. follow us @mitchellreports. follow the show on facebook and twitter. chris jansing picks it up next right here on msnbc. >> thank you so much. can donald trump survive the heat of august? two hours from now he hits the stage in portland, maine, with doubts, defectors and also defenders inside his own party. his campaign today trying to push back on new battleground poll numbers in michigan, pennsylvania, new hampshire, all with one clear message -- clinton is winning and winning big. one big reason? check out these new numbers from fox news by 50 points 69% to 19% voters say trump's comments about the gold star military family he criticized were out of bounds. >> the drop in poll numbers were expected? >> this big of a drop was

expected? >> well, the drop in -- this big a drop, depends on which poll you look at. we feel like in another week or so it will even out. he's not campaigning on the khan family. >> he's hoping to move on without an apology? >> he's expressed his sympathy. he's expressed his support for what the family is going through. >> more republican defections only highlighting the problems trump is having. multiple high-level sources tell nbc news trump supporters are hoping for an intervention although there's no immediate sign that's happening. today paul ryan told a radio station in green bay, wisconsin, that he doesn't care whether trump endorses him, he just wants him to focus his entire attention on beating clinton. >> we just came out of our convention and, yeah, he's had a pretty strange run since the convention. you would think that you ought to be focusing on hillary clinton and how all of her deficiencies, she is suck a weak candidate that one would think we'd be on offense against

hillary clinton and it's distressing that's not what we're talking about these days. >> we've got our team of reporters on how both campaigns are trying to win the month of august. let's start with katy tur who is once again traveling with the trump campaign. we find her today in maine. so katy, there's also this new poll out of florida, suffolk university gives clinton a six-point lead there among likely voters but paul manafort has the same basic answer to just about any question about the polls, the khans, an intervention, trump's failure to endorse paul ryan essentially, "there's nothing to see here." but what are you seeing going on inside the campaign? >> they're brushing it off. they're trying to push back on this idea that there is any campaign disunity, that there is a problem between donald trump and his aides but the reality is donald trump is being talked to by his aides, by members of the republican party, by donors, by his close confidantes, all of them telling him that now is the time that he absolutely has to get serious, that these

controversies are dogging him, they're not doing him any favors and they are starting to show signs of weakness in the polls. you mentioned florida. let's talk about a few other battleground polls as well. he's down 11 in pennsylvania, down nine in michigan and down 15 points in new hampshire, these are states that donald trump needs to turn red if he wants to win the white house, if he wants to change that electoral map to his favor. pennsylvania especially. that's a state the campaign will be focusing on. that's one they've already been focusing on, where they think they can find a good portion of white working class voters that will vote for donald trump and put him over the edge but the reality is he is down among white working class voters. our latest nbc news survey monkey poll, our online poll, shows that as well. so the campaign is taking on water in the polls and if donald trump is going to change that, now is the time he'll have to get serious and start talking about the issues according to

multiple sources within the campaign and outside. that's not all, chris. i spoke to a number of people lined up for this rally in portland, they are fervent donald trump supporters but i asked each one of them, about six people, what advice would you give donald trump if you could give them advice. every single one of them said stop with the cvs, stop fighting with people and start boiling down and getting to the issues, talk about your strengths, this i went to hear him talk about the economy, about job creation and they wanted to hear him talk about national security. they don't necessarily want to hear him go after gold star families, pin a purple heart on his chest or even jokingly fighting with a baby at a rally. >> katy tur is on the road once again with the donald trump campaign this day in portland, maine. thank you. meantime, trump's running mate mike pence faced a tough question from an 11-year-old kid at a rally in north carolina a few hours ago. the trump fan wanted to know why does it always seem that pence

is having to smooth over trump's rhetoric? take a listen. >> i've been noticing that you've been kind of softening up on mr. trump's policies and words. is this going to be your role in the administration? [ laughter ] >> well, number one, this boy has got a future. [ applause ] nicely done. let me tell you what, i couldn't be more proud to stand with donald trump and we are shoulder to shoulder in this campaign. sometimes things don't always come out like you mean, right? and donald trump and i are absolutely determined to work together. we have different styles. you might have noticed that. >> our next guest is a man who resigned his position as a republican elector from georgia, that's a member of the electoral college who decides the presidency, he cited his distim kaine for the republican candidate. thanks for being with us. give us more insight into why you decided to resign this

position? >> well, thanks for having me on. it was out of a matter of principles and conscience. i for one am a vietnamese de sent, my family is a house divided. my parents are scared to death and mrs. clinton but then on the other hand i'm telling folks, wait, the way to look at this is you should be going out and supporting your senate and house candidates because we can assure our majorities in the house and senate we'll be just fine. >> so i'm wondering what you think about the positions of republican leaders, speaker paul ryan, senate majority leader mitch mcconnell. we've heard them on individual situations coming out, paul ryan in particular standing up for the khans but not backing down from his endorsement of donald trump. what do you make of that?

>> i have tremendous admiration and respect for speaker ryan and leader mckonld because i know what positions they're in right now. if i can backtrack, the founding fathers beautifully crafted the constitution and it sets up the systems of checks and balances which have really sustained our democracy for the last 240 years. so we can -- if there's one thing we should blame but give credit to it's to the constitution because it's held in check any semblance of dictatorships and before we decide to crown somebody a king i think we should walk ourselves back and say what do we want that's best for america and how do we find avenues to come together to fix that? i don't want people to be focusing short term and there are basically losing the long term. >> i want to go to something you said which is about the down-ballot races, members of congress, for example, u.s. senate up for election whether

it's where new georgia or around the country. i'm wondering as you look at these new polls, is it your concern that if donald trump keeps on this trajectory and we see people -- seem to be rejecting this divisive rhetoric that it will have a significant impact on who holds control of the house and senate? >> there's a -- there's definitely a risk there. i have been heartened by the fact that many of my republican colleagues have expressed their concerns and support for what i'm saying and when you get down to it i think the american people -- we have to trust the american people as the ultimate arbiters of our leadership and in this case while we may be frustrated and angry about the drooex of this country, frustration and anger are not active principles to base our platform on. it should be based on the ideas that speaker ryan and leader mcdonnm mcconnell have set forth over time already. >> baoky vu, thank you very much

for coming on to explain your position. >> thank you very much. >> michael burgess is a republican congress from texas. he put his support behind donald trump after ted cruz donald trumped out. congressman, i just want to get your reaction to what you heard baoku vu say. he feels strongly as someone who is a member of the republican party, on the other hand he seems very concerned that what we're hearing from donald trump is frustration and anger but we're on the other hand not getting the kinds of specifics he would like to hear or the kind of demeanor he would like to see. what's your reaction to what you've heard that. >> well, he made the point that the people get a voice in this process and the people's voice was heard during the republican primaries and donald trump did outperform all of the other candidates and indeed any other previously running republican candidate so the people who showed up to vote voted for donald trump in overwhelming numbers.

as you have shown on your role leading up to the program about the people showing up for donald trump's rally in -- that he's doing today people are genuinely enthusiastic about this individual and, look, i have to tell you, one of the things that i'm -- obviously i'm concerned about the future of the supreme court, i'm concerned about the federal agencies and out-of-control agencies we have in this country. does anybody think for a millisecond that that will be better under hillary clinton than it would be under donald trump? you need to get an education. >> i want to play something for you from trump campaign chairman paul manafort today trying to explain about momentum, here's what he had to say. >> mr. trump yet was in florida to crowds of 15,000 people. those are october crowds in many campaigns. we've announced our 50-state directors, everybody's deployed and working. >> two things to that.

you made a point about big crowds he's continuing to get. it seems as though from the people that our folks have talked to in line it's his base, he needs to grow that base and i saw being on the roads with bernie sanders that sometimes crowds of 15,000 or 20,000 don't translate into enough votes to win and when you talk about 50 state directors, that doesn't mean you have a ground game. a person does not a ground game make. do you think this campaign understands what it takes to run a national campaign up against, all of her experience and all that goes with that? >> well, this is a different campaign. this is a different candidate. this is a first-time candidate who is running for highest office in the land. that's a tall order. >> wouldn't you want to surround yourself with people who understand the kind of infrastructure, the kind of research it will takes to get people to the polls? >> i think that's happening. we're looking at poll numbers in august and everybody knows about

the fallacy of poll numbers in august. people have said so on programs on your channel. but still you look at the difference and the choice here. i was just down on the texas border two days ago. it is no better than it was two years ago and you have to ask yourself why is this not -- why are we not doing better regardless of what your position is? why do you think it's okay for women and children to be trafficked across the border by human traffickers or cartels? the reason is because it's never been a priority to anyone in the administration and i would include a republican administration that i served with previously. >> and a republican congress? a republican-controlled congress as well, congressman? >> i beg your pardon? >> and a republican-controlled congress as well? >> look, the problem is no one has ever made enforcement of our current laws a priority. when you look at the past two years, when have the numbers gone down from people seeking to come across the boarder? it's when there has been enforcement of existing

immigration law. that message resonates and people don't come. it has happened a couple of times the past couple of years. unfortunately those numbers are increasing month by month and it's way past time for someone to get a handle on. that i wish president obama will come to the border and see for himself firsthand. donald trump has at least been to the border and talked to border patrol and has some understandings of what the problems are. >> congressman michael burgess of texas, thank you so much. >> thank you. hillary clinton officially filing her paperwork for a white house transition team today even as she has to field questions over iran as well as her e-mails. nbc's steve patterson is in las vegas where mrs. clinton is expected to appear in a rally two ours from now. a lot of good numbers for hillary clinton in these latest polls but just past those headlines are more controversial stories. the republicans trying to tie her to money to iran and whether or not it had to do with the release of hostages.

her response over the week end to the e-mail story. how is the clant camp managing the -- clinton camp managing the good and the bad here? >> frankly by doing what they've been doing so masterfully whisi the conventions have ended which is staying on message. in las vegas, trump's name literally hangs in the sky overlooking the city in bright gold glittering letters. if that's any metaphor for what's happening in the headlines, we expect clinton to keep her head down and stay focused on her message and that message had been the economy. the clinton campaign on a whirlwind tour in battleground states focusing on things like job creation so we expect her in front of a bunch of union workers that have her support talk about her jobs plan. first 100 days in office she wants to introduce $300 billion in spending on infrastructure. she's already got one economist saying that would introduce millions of jobs. that same economist saying

donald trump's plan would send us spiraling back into recession. not only that, this $100 million ad campaign on tv spots across the country criticizing donald trump on outsourcing of jobs so what's what she's focused on and the clinton campaign feels like that's all she needs to stay focused on, content, not character. chris? >> msnbc's steve patterson, thank you. it was a terrifying scene on the streets of london. one american is dead, five people injured after a man goes on a stabbing rampage in the center of the british capital. details on the attacker and what his motive might have been after the break. first, here's today's microsoft pulse question. do you think gop leaders can convince donald trump to reset his campaign focusing on hillary clinton? go to pulse.msnbc.com. cast your vote and let your voice be heard. trolling for a gig with braindrone? can't blame you. it's a drone you control with your brain, which controls your thumbs, which control this joystick. no, i'm actually over at the ge booth. we're creating the operating system for industry. it's called predix.

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an american woman is dead after a stabbing spree in south london. police are in custody, a 19-year-old norwegian of somali ancestry. officials say the incident is not terror related. matt bradley joins me from london. matt, if it isn't terror related, do we have anything more on the motive or the attacker? >> we don't know exactly what the motive was. we do know the police have essentially ruled out any type of radicalization or any sort of political motive behind this. the police say that they've already raided a home and searched it in north london today and they're planning on searching a home in south london so they're hoping that will yield a couple more clouues. the identity of the american woman who was killed, the u.s. embassy confirmed it was an american woman killed. british police are saying she was in her 60s but both sides are not willing to give more detailed information about the

identity of the woman killed, what she was doing there and anything else about this investigation. >> matt bradley in london, thank you so much for that update. meantime, turmoil inside the trump campaign as a high level intervention is poised to take place with pressure mounting on the campaign. what would happen if donald trump decided just to drop out of the race? chief legal correspondent ari melber explores that scenario next.

the tension builds between donald trump and the republican national committee. what's the breaking point? trump says his cam spain as united as ever, a very different story than what the facts might indicate, from republicans jumping ship to plummeting poll numbers and headlines around the nation are asking "could trump drop out of the race?" we'll dig into the possibility with ari melber. a lot of people think this is

highly unlikely and probably there were things put into place if something happened to a nominee. it is possible? could he just decide "i'm not going to run anymore"? >> it is possible and you go back to the party and what plans they have if place. rule nine basically says the rnc can be empowered to fill vacancies for death, decombination, or the formal refusal or withdrawal and otherwise being a vague term that people want to read into. i don't think there's going to be any attempt here to intercede and push donald trump. >> so otherwise being the party actually says you're not fit to be our candidate? >> right. and i will tell you, there's -- i've seen discussion of this online and people can have the debates but there's nothing in the history of the rules or legal precedent that would suggest there's wiggle room. he is the nominee. what's most important is you

have rules that say you're obligated to support the nominee and he's clinched it but this goes to the larger point you were raising in the setup. it's august. we're going after the convention into the first general election sprint and donald trump rather than having a big message or out there being able to control the headline which is he's so proud of generating seems to be dealing with a lot of controversy and concern not just from outside observers but from leaders of his own party. >> but he clearly, and paul manafort if you believe what they say, that they're not too concerned about it but it bog boggles the mind to think if donald trump gets out of the race how they would make the decision about how to replace him. that would cause chaos. >> that's a super-duper "house of cards" type scenario. >> could reince priebus say "i'll run." >> the dick cheney move where the result of your search is yourself? >> does the person who came in second automatically get it? >> anything could be entertained

because it would be an rnc decision. you mentioned trump and manafort says they're doing well. well, you judge for yourself. here we have donald trump in daytona beach talking about how this plays. >> the campaign is doing really well. it's never been so well united. we started on june 16, i would say right now it's the best in terms of being united that it's been since we began. >> that is a historical claim that this is more, better, well united than any time i the past nine months. thiss a period where he's op openly feuding with reince priebus, john mccain is feuding about endorsement, a top rnc official has been removed from the campaign i would argue -- although people can debate it -- that this is not the most well-united week of the trump campaign and that's what's

feeding the conversation, however speculative it may be, about unrest with him and what the republican party could look like without him. >> we are all waiting to see whether or not this intervention takes place. ari melber, fascinating stuff. thank you so much. >> thank you so much. more on donald trump ahead. latest polls have hillary clinton expanding her lead by double digits. we'll have those latest numbers and whether it's too late for trump to get back on track. but first let's check your responses to our microsoft pulse question. do you think gop leaders can convince dump to reset his campaign and focus on hillary clinton? so far this is what you think about the possibility that donald trump does an about-face. 2% say he can change his basic strategy. 98% say ain't happening. still time to cast your vote, go to pulse.msnbc.com.

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a new suffolk university poll of likely voters shows hillary clinton up by six points. in pennsylvania, a new poll shows hillary clinton leading by 11 points with likely voters. in new hampshire clinton has opened up a 15-point lead over donald trump. kelly o'donnell joins me from washington, d.c. kelly it's traditional this post convention bounce and by most account she is had a very good convention but double digit leads in key swing states, you have to wonder in spite of what they say if this is making the donald trump campaign nervous. >> it has to. these are numbers that reflect a shift in how the electorate is viewing this. it has been within the margin of error for long parts of this

campaign. there were times trump edged even or ahead and it robs him of one of his biggest talking points, one of his proud moments at many of his rallies where he out the touts his polling numbers as a measure of his candidacy. that will be much harder for him to do reflecting on these numbers. he's talked about the importance of a couple of these states, florida is a second home for trump. he is there regularly, employs people there. that's a state he has said he could do well in, he boat home state senator marco rubio during the primary season, he has the support of governor rick scott. then you look at pennsylvania which has voted democratic far more often but it has in some of the communities that sort of working class disaffected former reagan democrat, that kind of part of the constituency that could appeal to donald trump and yet hillary clinton has a strong lead there. so what can they do? there are very few sort of pivot points in a general election

season that can change the direction, debates can be a big part of that. we're still more than a month before those are scheduled and outside events, will there be any news event that will shape this and the much talked about will there be any kind of change in how donald trump conducts himself on the trail that might alter how people are viewing him? >> kelly o'donnell, thank you very much. i'm joined by political analyst rick tyler and democratic strategist bob shrum who is a professor of politics at usc. good to see both of you. bob, let me start with you. i wonder what you make of the new polls and is the trump campaign right to this extent that it is still early, a lot of people won't be baked in, some to speak with their decisions until we get in the fall and it's not time to panic yet? >> it's not early. there's a lot of history that suggests august has a shaping influence on the outcome and i

think hillary clinton hasn't had a bounce, she's had a surge. that partly reflects her convention which was a strong convention blue it also reflects donald trump's conduct during the last two weeks. it's a self-destructive demolition derby mass craquerais a campaign. i don't know if anybody can get him to change but even if he does i think the race is frozen about where it is now with her six eight mine points ahead nationally until the debates. that would be the one thing that might be a game changer here but it's not even clear he wants to show up to the debates. think theys they're rigged, that the clinton campaign got into a conspiracy with the debate commission to put debates opposite sporting events. they're always opposite sporting events. you can't avoid it. >> let me play what newt gingrich had to say about trump on wednesday. >> i think some of what trump has done is very self-destructive. i don't know if it's a fixable problem but i think it's a very

big moment for trump he has got to find a way to slow down, really learn new lessons, this is like "the apprentice" except he's "the apprentice," not the boss. >> give me your assessment, rick, how much trouble is the campaign in and could bit fixed if donald trump would do what a lot of republicans are telling him to do and this is focus on hillary clinton, you know what her weaknesses where just focus. >> the problem is he keeps stepping on his own story. these last two weeks have been disastrous for trump but notice they would have been disastrous on hillary clinton. one we had a gdp report with very anemic growth. trump could have capitalized on that, we had her saying the fbi said she was truthful about her e-mails, she was not. we had $400 million paid to the

iranians with what looks like a money for hostages deal but he's trying to talk about that. instead he's in a fight with pa gold star family and says outrageous things. i don't personally think trump could change his behavior. bob mentioned one possible game changer would be the debates, i agree. but also hillary clinton may have a lot of e-mails that have yet to be released. we don't know who has them. that may change the game as well. i don't know how trump changes the game because i don't think he is has demonstrated a willingness to be disciplined and i don't know what policy idea he would offer between now and november that would attract more people or attract the voting population. >> so maybe there's something else he could do, bob. i'm asking you because you've written brilliant speeches. could he do a very specific and targeted reset? part of that reset besides

preparing significantly for the debate where hillary clinton is going to have the depth of knowledge advantage, everyone will agree with that, could he give a speech after labor day and say i'm going to roe introduce myself to the count i. these are my ideas, this is what i'm going do and draw that contrast with hillary clinton? could he do that? >> he could. he missed the biggest opportunity he had in terms of the speech which was the acceptance address where he could have reached out, instead he yelled at us for an hour and fifteen minutes and doesn'ted down. i think the problem with him in terms of a speech, he gave one in the primaries. one of the primary nights they told him calm down, read the teleprompter and he was utterly boring. to give a speech like that and make it effective you have to trust someone else to write it, i don't think he could do it. he has to practice it so he owns it so it's part of him and it's convincing and authentic then he

has to make sure he can deliver in the a way that doesn't seem phony and out of place. he also can't completely transform himself. he has to be himself. i agree with rick. i think it's very hard for trump to change. he acts on instinct. he's his own advisor. he doesn't listen to people like newt gingrich who i think have given him some smart advice and i suspect he gets angry when he hears that they're saying that he ought to behave differently. >> we're out of time. rick, just quickly. a percentage. what are the chances there's an intervention this weekend? >> oh, i think there's conversations going on. i don't think there will be a big meeting but there have been people talking to trump but i don't know he's capable of following through. >> rick tyler, bob shrum, good to see both of you guys, thank you. the director of the cdc in miami touring zika infected areas today as florida health officials offer more guidance for pregnant women. we'll have the latest coming up next. is 22 pages long. did you read every word? no, only lawyers do that.

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moments ago, the california department of public health announced the birth of two babies with zika-related birth defects in that state. at this point, officials have not found a direct link between local mosquitos in those two cases. the pentagon also announced 41 u.s. service is members including one pregnant woman have contracted the virus. meanwhile, officials in south florida are trying to get a grasp on the outbreak there. florida governor rick scott announced free testing for pregnant women and reassured the public the state is safe. >> we're telling everybody this is a safe state. just think about this. we have one square mile north of downtown that we think we might have locally transmitted zika. we're not seeing new cases. people should come to our state. i was at disneyworld last weekend with my family. you need to come to our state, enjoy our beaches, enjoy our weather, enjoy our people, enjoy our foot. >> reporter: nbc's kerry sanders is live in miami and just the fact that what you heard the governor say just tells you how worried they are about the tourist industry there which is

so huge but the director of the cdc in south florida touring the affected area and i know there will be an update some time today. let's talk about the latest including how they can get the testing done for pregnant women. >> well, so women who have been in the area are sort of the beginning of the circle here. they live here or have been in the area they're supposed to call the health department and they will move up high on the list and then there will be circles that move out, people who live further away and haven't been here recently. eventually all the state will be tested, all 67 counties. 29 counties who have people who have travel-related zika. that's different the homegrown zika from mosquito. bottom line is that the state doesn't have enough tests to do everybody at once. as you can imagine, the health department in the state here has been getting inundated with phone calls and walkups as people come in to say they would like to have the tests, two types of tests depending on the

time you were i an area or that you believe you might have been in an area or hit by a mosquito, one is a urine test, the other a blood test but if governor wants people to come to the test despite the cdc travel warning for the one square mile where we're standing in right now. that's in part because this state does not have a state income tax, tourists are taxed. that's what keeps the funding for the state by and large going. so he recognizes the impact that a travel warning can have far beyond just the miami area. at the same time, remember, six months ago president obama requested from congress $1.9 billion to handle this and when he requested that, congress went back and forth and then they went on a seven-week vacation. they went on recess and didn't fully fund what what the president's request was which is robbing peter to pay paul,

taking $600 million out of the ebola fund and moving it to the zika fund which the cdc is saying not enough money and governor scott said he's very disappointed and frustrated with what's happening in congress. >> the president and congress need to work together, they need to be a partner this this. this is not a state issue. this is a national issue. if they don't, we're going to fund it. >> and so as you hear his frustration, the state right now says it will continue to fund this, chris, until they get some federal money. those tests are already starting today. >> case in point why so many americans are frustrated with what goes on in washington. kerry sanders, thank you so much. less than an hour now president obama meets with his national security team to meet with about the intense fighting around aleppo where government forces have made major gains against rebel forces.

foreign correspondent ammyman mohyeldin joins us now and there will be a news conference after the president talks with the national security team. what can you tell us about what we'll hear about the aleppo siege? >> he'll be briefed on the overall situation in terms of the fight against isis but this situation unfolding in aleppo will be of major concern for the u.s., particularly because all of the major parties are there and there is a raging battle for aleppo. aleppo has been under siege by government forces for the past several days. rebels, mostly al qaeda affiliated islamist groups are trying to break that government siege. that i've launched a massive counteroffensive with thousands of fighters to break the government stronghold around this part of aleppo. the syrian government is getting support for from the russian air force. they've been pounding that area hard but at the very core of it is a humanitarian situation that is being described as a disaster. about 300,000 civilians without access to basic food or supplies or medical care. so much so that one of the

leading human rights organizations, physicians for human rights here in new york said that this past week has been the deadliest week for hospitals in that area since the civil war began nearly five years ago and they're putting it in context of the fact that 300,000 people are being denied basic medical care and some of these other critical issues. so certainly the president will be briefed on that situation. >> and obviously we'll have the president's press conference, thank you so much, ayman. as donald trump's campaign seems to be spinning out of control, his staff is going into overdrive trying to stop the freefall and get the campaign back on track. a look inside the campaign next. but first, one last look at responses to our microsoft pulse question. do you think gop leaders can convince donald trump to reset his campaign and focus on hillary clinton? here's how you're voting so far. 3% -- i think that's up from 2% earlier in the hour. 3% thinks donald trump will adopt a new strategy. keep those votes coming. head over to pulse.msnbc.com.

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the talk of a campaign in chaos, donald trump is dismissing talk of disunity in the campaign. that's not what reporters are hearing behind the scenes. joining me is the political reporter for politico. eli just wrote an article about trump's struggling campaign. good to e see you. i know you heard what paul manafort had to say about internal disunity. you heard the candidate saying he's never been more unified. what are you seeing and hearing today? >> there's a lot of resignation from senior staffers on down. frustration with the candidate, who really is in charge of the campaign who can't take direction. they can have all meetings they want, but the problem with the campaign is all related to what is coming out of the candidate's mouth. that's very hard to control.

>> rudy giuliani talked today about the idea of a possible intervention. here's what he had to say. >> i find the word intervention completely out of line. there was a meeting. i meet with donald trump all the time. e we talked. we talk about issues. sometimes we make changes. it's an evolving campaign. he's a new candidate. that adds a little bit of more of a learning curve than would normally be the case. >> what are you hearing about the possibility of an intervention and, i suppose, what does that word e evolving in the phrase actually mean? >> these are euphemisms. i hear they are having meetings today. trump is campaigning this it afternoon. he's up in maine. but manafort, chris christie and trump's children apparently set to meet with other senior staffers to try to get ahold of

this campaign and figure out if there's anything to do to steady the ship. it comes down to trump being willing to take direction, to focus on clinton. the problem with donald trump is we have seen for a year he can't focus on anything. he's in an interview with "the washington post" reporter and gets distracted by the television. you can understand when the hillary clinton campaign is saying in her convention acceptance speech, donald trump can be baited with a tweet. she's telegraphing a strategy. they are going to continue to bait him throughout the next three months because they know that he cannot resist taking that bait and trump's staffers know that too. >> people can see the reporting on politico.com. thank you, eli, good to see you. 24 hours until the opening ceremony that kicks off the xxxi olympiad. but first, uber is is calling a truce with its fiercest rival in

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tomorrow? >> reporter: it's going to be a spectacle. they do know how to throw a party here in rio. that's all we know. this is going to be a pretty good opening ceremony from what we have been told, teased that way. it's always about the surprises so we don't know what the big surprise, big reveal of this opening ceremony will be tomorrow night. but suffice to say, people are starting to get excite d about the games beginning tomorrow, even though we know women's soccer is underway, men's soccer is underway today. the u.s. team off to a great start. a 2-0 victory over new zealand. they go against france on saturday. that's a big match, because the winner is probably going to win that group and to get into the quarters. so the excitement is starting to build. the promenade behind me is empty, but by tomorrow and saturday it's going to be clogged with fans looking to get into the arenas to watch these

athletes. >> everyone is asking, aren't you nervous about zika virus? but people have been there and haven't seen a single mosquito. >> reporter: not a single one. my bag got delayed and i had deet in there so i did use some before i went to bed, but i have not seen one single mosquito. but because this is the winter season, most of the mosquitos we have been told have moved further north up into the southern part of the united states. so right now, not an issue at all. >> this is why you never check a bag. never check a bag. thank you so much. i'll see you there on saturday. >> see you there. >> thanks for watching this hour. i'm kchris jansing. more news now with thomas roberts. >> so don't pack a bottle of deet. >> i'm going to assume nbc medical will have deet there. >> we're going to miss you. >> you'll see me. >> have a wonderful time when

you're not working. >> which is when? >> to the news. >> it's been a trouble iing wee for donald trump having republicans asking themselves should i stay or go. we'll see trump next hour when he speaks to voters in maine. the candidate and his campaign insisting today that his bid for the presidency is unified and on track. but we know of at least three gop lawmakers facing reelection who are getting off the trump train. after a public spat on his own reelection bid, paul ryan says he's staying the course, but not from the sidelines. >> if i see and hear things that are wrong, i'm not going to sit by and say nothing. because i think i have a duty as the republican leader to defend republican principles and our party's brand. bejust came out of our convention and he said pretty strange run since the convention. you'd think we ought to be