doesn't modify his behavior. the trigger isn't just not launching more missiles. it's giving up his nuclear missile -- his nuclear weapons program. that is a heavy flip. >> i am reminded of the briefing last week in which the ambassador says the president slaps the right people in this speech. that is more than a slap. we will follow up on this. thank you. checking back in with you throughout the day. we will be filing on "nbc nightly news" tonight with more ahead. after what has been an incredibly busy and newsy morning. >> it will continue to be. it's great to have you with us in new york. good morning. >> let's get you started. >> we meet at a time of both immense promise and great peril. rogue regimes represented in this body, not only support terrorists, but threaten other

nations. as president of the united states, i will always put america first. the united states has great strength and patience. but if it is forced to defend itself or its allies, we will have no choice but to totally destroy north korea. rocket man is on a suicide mission for himself and for his regime. the iran deal was one of the worst and most one sided transactions the united states has ever entered into. frankly, that deal is an embarrassment to the united states. maria charging into the eastern caribbean after tearing across dominica overnight. >> the prime minister had his own roof blown off. we have lost all what money can buy and replace. >> puerto rico and the virgin island in the cross hairs of this dangerous storm.

>> this one looks like it's going to hit us hard. >> the devastation it will cost might be unprecedented. >> category 4, 5, over the top of san juan. if this happens as forecasted, this would be one of the worst hurricane disasters we have seen in the world. president trump moments ago addressing the united nations for the first time ever for him. as expected, he brought his america first platform to the world stage and demanded that other nations step up and do their part to confront the world's challenges. >> he then tore into the regimes of north korea and iran with the north korean delegation sitting front and center feet away from the president. >> as president of the united states, i will always put america first, just like you as the leaders of your countries will always and should always put your countries first. [ applause ]

the united states will forever be a great friend to the world and especially to its allies. but we can no longer be taken advantage of or enter into a one sided deal where the united states gets nothing in return. as long as i hold this office, i will defend america's interests above all else. but in fulfilling our obligations to our own nations, we realize that it's in everyone's interest to seek a future where all nations can be sovereign, prosperous and secure. america does more than speak for the values expressed in the united nations charter. our citizens have paid the ultimate price to defend our freedom and the freedom of many nations represented in this great hall.

the united states has great strength and patience. but if it is forced to defend itself or its allies, we will have no choice but to totally destroy north korea. rocket man is on a suicide mission for himself and for his regime. the united states is ready, willing and able. but hopefully, this will not be necessary. that's what the united nations is all about. that's what the united nations is for. we cannot let a murderous regime continue these destabilizing activities while building dangerous missiles and we cannot abide by an agreement if it provides cover for the eventual construction of a nuclear program. the iran deal was one of the

worst and most one sided transactions the united states has ever entered into. frankly, that deal is an embarrassment to the united states, and i don't think you have heard the last of it. believe me. >> okay. >> all right then. we have a lot to break down. let's bring in peter alexander at the u.n. first. >> a former member of the national security council. he's a senior fellow. barry pavel, gordon chang and vivian salama focusing on national security and politics. welcome to all of you. let's go to peter. >> we're giving no opinions yet. peter alexander -- >> tell us what you thought. >> reporter: tell you what i thought? first of all, set the scene.

we saw the president's motorcade pass by with a wave to the gathered crowd that wanted an opportunity to see the president that did not hear his remarks inside. the president obviously delivering a statement that you can see was stunning at times to a lot of the people in the room, 193 nations represented. not the type of language they're used to hearing, certainly not from an american president. this president you noted with the tough talk not just calling north korea a menace as was described to us but re-visiting the classic, his rocket man line the president loves so much and threatening basically nuclear annihilation of that rogue regime that he described as a depraved regime of murderous regime. what was striking is that this is a man who campaigned as a non-interventionist, america first. here he was threatening threatening american involvement in a variety of places from iran to north korea, venezuela and

syria as well. this was a speech that will certainly satisfy the president's supporters, the president's base, people that feel like the u.s. has not been tough enough in its position again so many of the rogue nations around the world, notably the president did use the phrase radical islamic terrorism, one of the favorites, not just of the president but of his speech writer and policymaker, steven miller. also a phrase that his own national security adviser h.r. mcmaster advised him against using in venues like this. >> we shouldn't be entirely surprised. many people's immediate reaction was this was a very domestic speech, one he should be giving to his base, not the international stage, not at the u.n., we shouldn't be surprised. america first is exactly who president trump is and it's what helped him get elected. >> i think that's right. on the surface, the speech wasn't as bad as many of us feared. he didn't trash the u.n. he talked about international

cooperation. but there was at the heart of it a fundamental and inescapable contradiction. that's this. he kept talking about independence, about sovereignty, about a reawakening of great nations. if everybody does as trump says and they are only out for themselves and they pull out of the paris climate agreement and they pull out of the iran deal and they pull out of trade deals, what do we have? nothing. we turn back the clock to a world of self-regarding self-interested nation states. we undo the progress we have made since world war ii. he is talking about going back to the 19th century. it may play to the base. for most of the people in the room, they're going to leave with a lot of indigestion. >> the problem is that there are a lot of americans who don't like the u.n. there are a lot of people that don't like the u.n. there are arguments to be made for reforming it. the third world war that hasn't broken out because of it.

fundamentally, there was an every nation for itself feeling to this except when it came to syria, iran, north korea and radical islamic terrorism. donald trump wants everybody in on it on america's side on those particular issues. with north korea, he went farther than he has gone before. >> it was a very aggressive speech. it was a very interventionist speech. i worry about the continuous escalation regarding north korea. i think charles hit the nail on the head. if this is an admissinistration that's going to push strong sovereign independent nations, you can not do that without very close cooperation with every other nation, with other nations that have technology, without staying in climate agreements, trade agreements, alliances and global institutions. you can reform the institutions, but you have to be an internationalist who cooperates with others. >> technology is an important element. it's what makes companies and nations so powerful right now.

it's what the president basically never speaks about. gordon, how do you think north korea is taking this? >> they're probably not taking it too well. you got to remember what the president actually said. he said that if we are forced to defend our allies, we will do so and we will destroy totally north korea. that's always been american policy. the real sin here is saying that in front of the u.n. what i'm concerned about is not so much what trump said today but what mcmaster and nikki haley said over the weekend. that was real war talk saying time for diplomacy was over whether it's not. there are a lot of things the u.s. can do to disarm north korea. we're not talking about those things. the administration is not talking about those things. there's a problem below the trump level in this administrati administration. >> you have done some work on this. the concept of the nation's diplomacy starting at the state department being adrift for several reasons, including rex tillerson being at odds with the president, rex tillerson being

at odds with a lot of people and lack of focus on diplomacy to some of the issues. >> it's true. i have been in touch with foreign and u.s. diplomats in the u.s. around and the world. it's astonishing to hear the general consensus of where is the u.s. right now? why aren't they talking to us? who do we talk to? we had jared kushner who seemed to be the go-to person. you talk to him. you will get the ear of the president. >> he is busy. >> he was busy in the beginning. his portfolio -- he was racking up one after the other. he took a step back this summer. everybody said, what happened to jared? no one knows who to talk to. >> probably working with his legal team. >> we don't know. i keep asking, do you know if it's because of the legal issues that are coming around? everyone says, we don't know. we know he's not taking our calls anymore. you have a number of under secretary positions that haven't been filled, ambassador positions in critical places like seoul. we are talking about north korea right now. there's no ambassador in seoul

to be the face of the u.s. state department right now. this is a major issue and one that is not just detrimental to our diplomatic efforts but puts our allies in a position where we say we don't know if we have a partner. >> would you categorize it as unsophisticated. it may play to his base and there are americans that don't necessarily like the u.n., they might not understand the nuances and all that the u.n. does on a coordinated effort to protect us. on the face, could people view this as a strong speech, not having an understanding of all of the disconnects required for the president to be impactful? >> i would call it a simplistic axis of evil speech on steroids. >> okay. hold on. one more time. simplicity axis of evil on speaker ro steroids. >> you had bush talk about the axis of evil, in 2001, iran, north korea and iraq. we invade iraq. it didn't work out so well,

including the invasion of iraq. now we have north korea and iran with syria in waiting to get into the axis. >> you had david fromm who wrote that speech. let me ask you, this speech written it seems a lot of it felt like steven miller. it felt like the inauguration speech, like the nato speech. >> no, it wasn't that -- it was not dark. >> steven miller with nikki haley in it to even it out. >> it was donald trump. that's donald trump's voice. steven miller writes for donald trump. >> but the theme continues. right? for all of the development we think we have had in this administration, the fundamental theme to your point earlier that donald trump got elected on continues. he has not brightened up to the idea that he wants the world involved in solving these problems except where he articulates he wants the world involved in solving them. we're not a world joint together except for the list of things donald trump needs done.

>> i think that's right. steve bannon may be gone. but his ideas are alive and well. it's not because steve miller is whispering in his ear. it's because we're seeing the real donald trump. speeches force people to make decisions. trump i'm sure went over draft after draft, i'm sure mcmaster and nikki haley and others tried to soften the edges. you could see there were soft edges here and there. in the end of the day, this is a guy who is all about nationalism, sovereignty and patriotism. it really is concerning that he is laying out a vision of the world before the entire diplomatic community that says each for his own, let's go out there and pursue our own interests. if he continues to do that, four years from now we'll be in a very dark and dangerous place. >> all right. we are out of time for this discussion. thanks for your analysis. >> the conversation is not going anywhere. >> it is not. we will talk about this all day. >> thanks very much.

peter alexander who moved on to other things. another major story we're following, hurricane maria. >> follow this one. it's now a category 5 monster. that happened within 27 hours. she's headed straight for puerto rico, a population of 3.5 million people. that's how many are on that island. >> they're expected to take a direct hit tomorrow. the airport shutting down at 7:00 p.m. eastern time. the latest forecast and why officials are begging people to evacuate. a live picture of san juan, puerto rico. waves are starting to pick up. >> evacuate to where? many people from the virgin islands went to puerto rico. what powers the digital world. communication. that's why a cutting edge university counts on centurylink to keep their global campus connected.

and why a pro football team chose us to deliver fiber-enabled broadband to more than 65,000 fans. and why a leading car brand counts on us to keep their dealer network streamlined and nimble. businesses count on communication, and communication counts on centurylink. i'll have the langoustine lfor you, sir?i. the original call was for langoustine ravioli. a langoustine is a tiny kind of lobster. a slight shellfish allergy rules that out, plus my wife ordered the langoustine. i will have chicken tenders and tater tots. if you're a ref, you way over-explain things. it's what you do. if you want to save fifteen percent or more on car insurance you switch to geico. sir, we don't have tater tots. it's what you do. i will have nachos! the uncertainties of hep c. wondering, what if? i let go of all those feelings.

because i am cured with harvoni. harvoni is a revolutionary treatment for the most common type of chronic hepatitis c. it's been prescribed to more than a quarter million people. and is proven to cure up to 99% of patients who have had no prior treatment with 12 weeks. certain patients can be cured with just 8 weeks of harvoni. before starting harvoni, your doctor will test to see if you've ever had hepatitis b, which may flare up and cause serious liver problems during and after harvoni treatment. tell your doctor if you've ever had hepatitis b, a liver transplant, other liver or kidney problems, hiv or any other medical conditions and about all the medicines you take including herbal supplements. taking amiodarone with harvoni can cause a serious slowing of your heart rate. common side effects of harvoni include tiredness, headache and weakness. ready to let go of hep c? ask your hep c specialist about harvoni. [fbi agent] you're a brave man, your testimony will save lives. mr. stevens? this is your new name. this is your new house.

and a perfectly inconspicuous suv. you must become invisible. [hero] i'll take my chances.

the united states has great strength and patience. but if it is forced to defend itself or its allies, we will have no choice but to totally destroy north korea. >> president trump last hour at

the united nations with a dire warning for north korea. joining us is edward markey. senator, thanks for being here. you heard that statement in addition to referring to kim jong-un as rocket man again in his speech. he talked about iran and he talked about north korea in very, very forceful terms. with north korea, he did take it a step further talking about totally destroying north korea if prompted. what do you make of that? >> what the president did not talk about is what can still be done about that nuclear weapons program in north korea. he praises china and russia for their cooperation on the sanctions, which after they were voted at the u.n., kim then shot off another rocket. what the president should be doing, what he should be talking about is saying to china and to russia that he insists upon a complete cutoff of all oil that goes into the north korean

economy. that has not happened. a complete cutoff of all revenues from slave workers outside of north korea that is repatriated into the north korean economy. that there's going to be out of business sign placed upon north korea. the president did not say that. he is not talking about the steps we have to take right now to get the world community on our side to isolate north korea so that they do not complete their icbm hydrogen bomb program. >> president trump seems to think the sanctions are working, yesterday tweeting about the long gas lines in north korea when that's not true. >> those sanctions are not working. if they were working, then it would have driven kim back to the negotiating table in the same the north koreans were driven back to the natiegotiati table in 2006 when there was a full cutoff of all oil into the north korean economy. in fact, there was a 22%

increase in trade between china and north korea from the second quarter of 2016 to the second quarter of 2017. that is not sufficient pressure to say to kim, stop this program or your economy is going to collapse. >> senator, you have been there. you led a delegation to the north korean border. it does seem like all roads do lead to china. it's interesting that the president skipped over much of that. he thanked china for the work china has done. it's very hard to keep track of whether he's criticizing china or threatening to cancel trade with china or he wants china to fix the north korea problem. same thing with south korea, it's friendly until he threatens to cut off free trade agreements we have with south korea. why is this happening this way? >> i think the president loves talking about rocket man. loves talking about our ability to destroy all of north korea.

of course we have that capability. the question he has to answer is, has he exhausted all of the remedies that are still available to drive kim to the negotiating table? >> he will say and many have said ta thhat this has been tri for many administrations past and it never actually worked. unless you hit kim jong-un where it hurts or threaten to do so, you won't see necessary movement. do you share that view? >> he is talking about a real war between the united states and north korea. he should be talking about the kind of economic war, economic sanctions that we can, in fact, impose upon the north korean economy. that has never been done except in 2006 when all the oil was cut off and they went back to the table. the least we should be able to say is that we tried, we really tried to avoid a nuclear showdown between our two

countries. the president today was praising china rather than calling china out, praising russia rather than calling russia out. we need the toughest possible sanctions imposed. if the president is not willing to do it, there are members in the senate along with myself who are working right now on legislation that will work to pass those kinds of sanctions in the same way that the congress had to pass the sanctions on iran to bring their oil economy to its knees. >> has the president skipped ahead? can he not work on those negotiations seeing that when he had this country on the world stage he immediately jumped to rocket man and total destruction? >> exactly. what he should be doing right now is putting together the coalition at the u.n., including china and russia, that will be able to announce an agreement to cut off the oil, to cut off all business transactions that north korea engages in on the world stage and that that's the big announcement he is going to make this afternoon or tomorrow. instead, what he does is he

engages in escalatory language that only induces further paranoia in kim. we should be trying to find a way of getting the united states to the table with kim accompanied by a crippling economic sanctions. that's the better solution that we should be talking about right now rather than something that is only going to drive further and faster the north korean development of an icbm and hydrogen bomb program. >> senator, thank you so much for your time and sharing your thoughts with us this morning. >> you are welcome. >> rocket man. elton john is like, are you kidding me? >> we're back now with the other major story that we're following this morning. this one has us worried. two hurricanes now churning in the atlantic, two of them are having an immediate impact. the most powerful hurricane maria. it's a category 5 storm taking aim at puerto rico and its 3.5 million residents. right now, this will be the most

powerful hurricane to hit puerto rico since 1932. that after pummeling the island of dominica. maria is the first category 5 storm on record to that island. the prime minister describing the damage as, quote, mind boggling. you came back from -- >> mind boggling. i was there, the prime minister he lost his own roof. he said, anything that you could buy with money is gone. look at this. an island like dominica, they don't have a place to go. as far as the virgin islands, so many people evacuated and went to puerto rico. puerto rico, which had been providing relief efforts and aid to the usvi, they will need it. this morning we are looking at pictures of the flooding and damage on guadeloupe. you can see cars are completely submerged. hurricane jose, a cat 1 at this

point, is battering the eastern seaboard, up here, new york, new jersey with rain, wind, rough surf and coastal flooding. the scene this morning, we're looking at it right now. here is the positive news. the news in new jersey is stay out of the water. stay off the shore. don't be on the beaches. as far as anything inland, things are okay. when you actually -- remember, hurricane sandy was not long ago. we saw the peer this morning, supports breaking. it was a few years ago in sandy, you saw it decimated. do you remember that ferris wheel gone? >> let's get -- we have a new update from the national hurricane center. let's start with you, bill. what are we looking at? >> worst case scenario, possibly a category 5 land fafall tomorr morning.

puerto rico could be dealing with a cat 4, 5 over its most populated areas. the new update. there's the oeye looking strong. it's not showing any sign of weakening. still a category 5, 160 muile pr hour winds. a cat 5 is a cat 5. it will do catastrophic damage wherever that eye travels. where is it going? it's going to travel towards st. croix tonight and then toward eastern puerto rico as we go through early tomorrow morning. virgin islands, it will be on the dirty side, st. thomas. st. croix could get a direct hit. it will travel to the dominican republic. this is the land interaction as the storm exits the caribbean and tries to head into the atlantic. the cone of uncertainty does cross st. thomas and st. croix and then right through the populated center there of the northeast section of puerto rico. as i mentioned, this would be worst case scenario with the eye

traveling very close to san juan. some things that could happen. the eye is only 12 miles in diameter. it's a small eye. not the entire island is going to get category 5 devastation. only where the eye travels. if we get to the east side it would be worse in st. thomas but we could get it offshore. that's the hope. if it goes to the south, it would spare san juan but still hit other cities. no one will win. we would like to avoid the 1 million plus people from going through a category 4, 5 hurricane tomorrow morning. landfall tomorrow in puerto rico looks to be around 8:00 a.m. >> san juan does have strict building codes. they have earthquake codes, coastal codes. outside san juan in the rural areas, things can get so dangerous. s st. croix is where the relief efforts have been set up, where you find the red cross, private organizations that are -- it's the only place where there's an

internet connection at this point. they have running water. it will be tragic to think they could lose it. thank you to bill. let's go to puerto rico. tammy lightner is in san juan. i don't want to call it the calm before the storm. >> it's definitely not. in fact, it was just pouring a minute ago. you and i spoke about an hour ago. just in that amount of time, the wind has kicked up. you can see the water is getting a lot choppier. something else i want to talk about. a lot of the people here on the island, they are still recovering from hurricane irma. a lot of people still don't have power. they still don't have water. now they're having to prep for maria. nobody is taking this hurricane lightly. the government is rationing baby formula, water. they're out of generators on the island. they're out of batteries. there are no gas cans. everybody here is boarding up their homes, their businesses.

we got a chance to travel to some of the more remote parts of the island. we spoke with some people that had been hit by irma and asked them how they felt about yet another hurricane coming their way. let's listen to what they had to say. are you worried? >> a little bit, yeah. it's the first time that i will see a storm like that. i'm a little bit scary. >> this neighborhood was hit by irma, yes? >> yeah. it was the place, the town was more affected. >> your roof is gone. did it pick it right up? >> it went off. >> it ripped the roof off your house? wow. you know, it's just heartbreaking. it's heartbreaking to have spoken with somebody who lost everything and is staying with family and that family is having to prepare for yet another devastating -- possibly devastating hurricane. back to you.

>> tammy, thanks very much. we will stay on top of this. >> you stay safe. we will pivot to another big story. everything you need to know about the russia investigation. there have been developments in the last 24 hours. we heard from michael cohn just before the show. we will tell you what happened to the testimony he was supposed to give at congress. there have been changes there. we will tell you which campaign leader got a warning that he might be indicted. stay with us. boost. it's about moving forward, not back. it's looking up, not down. it's being in motion. in body, in spirit, in the now. boost® high protein it's intelligent nutrition with 15 grams of protein and 26 vitamins and minerals. for when you need a little extra. boost® the number one high protein complete nutritional drink. be up for it

[car tires screech] [bell rings] p3 it's meat, cheese and nuts. i keep my protein interesting. oh yea, me too. i have cheese and uh these herbs. p3 snacks. the more interesting way to get your protein. there's nothing more important than your health. so if you're on medicare or will be soon, you may want more than parts a and b here's why. medicare only covers about 80% of your part b medical expenses. the rest is up to you. you might want to consider an aarp medicare supplement insurance plan, insured by unitedhealthcare insurance company. like any medicare supplement insurance plan,

these help pick up some of what medicare doesn't pay. and, these plans let you choose any doctor or hospital that accepts medicare patients. you could stay with the doctor or specialist you trust... or go with someone new. you're not stuck in a network... because there aren't any. so don't wait. call now to request your free decision guide and find the aarp medicare supplement plan that works for you. there's a range to choose from, depending on your needs and your budget. rates are competitive. and they're the only plans of their kind endorsed by aarp. like any of these types of plans, they let you apply whenever you want. there's no enrollment window... no waiting to apply. so call now. remember, medicare supplement plans

help cover some of what medicare doesn't pay. you'll be able to choose any doctor or hospital that accepts medicare patients. whether you're on medicare now or turning 65 soon, it's a good time to get your ducks in a row. duck: quack! call to request your free decision guide now. because the time to think about tomorrow is today.

it's a busy morning. we have to cover new developments in the russia investigation. president trump's personal attorney, many called him his body guy and business adviser emerged minutes ago from a closed door session with the senate intelligence committee. he was expected to be questioned by committee investigators about reported links between russia and the president's businesses, including a potential deal back in 2015 to build a trump tower many moscow. >> according to the lawyer, the meeting was postponed. >> mr. cohn appeared voluntarily for an interview with the senate select intelligence committee today. mr. cohen looked forward to answering all of their questions.

the committee has chosen to postpone today's meeting. we will come back for a voluntary interview whenever we can to meet with them. we look forward to voluntarily cooperating with the house committee and with anyone else who has an inquiry in this area. mr. cohen will continue to cooperate. thank you very much for being here today. >> why was it postponed? >> you will have to ask the senate. >> continuing to cooperate, why is it that it was canceled? what happened? >> that's a good question. we have asked the committee for an official explanation. the explanation that we got from a source with direct knowledge who told us the committee was upset michael cohen broke what had been an agreement not to talk to reporters before or around this meeting. cohen's camp sent out a

statement last night to reporters that was embargoed until he was going to give it in this committee meeting this morning. that was enough that the committee felt like this was a bad faith deal. they sent him home. now we're going to find out if they will bring him back. you heard the lawyer say voluntarily twice. it's possible he could get subpoenaed to come back and do this again under different circumstances. >> he said voluntary and cooperate twice. they are emphasizing it's all good. why if that was the case -- if that's the way they went into it did the committee not see fit to just move ahead with it? >> it's hard to say. these committees take their jurisdictions very seriously. they don't like to feel like they got rolled, somebody wasn't following the terms of the deal that they came up with. we won't know until we heard more from the committee. i do expect we will see him back. they have been methodically working their way through these other witnesses. some have played this differently. it's worth pointing out, cohen's

appearance looked like jared kushner's from a few weeks ago, perfectly happy to be seen in front of the camera, making the point he was here voluntarily than donald trump junior last week where he went to great lengths not to be in front of the camera. we will see mr. cohen at a time and place of the committee's choosing. >> thanks very much. we will talk to him a lot because there's a lot going on over there. >> i find it interesting. this is the chance to sit down with a guy, ask him all these questions. >> why not do it? >> why not do it? >> that's an interesting point that they want to make sure people take them seriously. this morning, reporting in the "new york times" that prosecutors have informed former trump campaign chairman, this man, paul manafort, that they plan to indict him. federal agented raided raided h in july. they took binders and took pictures even of his expensive suits. it's part of what "the new york times" described as robert mueller's shock and awe tactics

to intimidate witnesses and potential targets of his investigation. nbc news reached out to manafort's team and has not received a response. >> let's bring in danny savalos. we have to point out one thing. by frame of reference, the morning that paul manafort had that raid in his apartment, an hour later that's when president trump announced his transgender ban in the military. it was paul manafort when these investigations started, sean spicer, the then press secretary downplayed his role in the campaign saying he was a volunteer for a short period of time. mr. spicer, that's not true. cnn reporting that u.s. investigators wiretapped manafort under secret court orders before and after the 2016 election. he reportedly -- he is reportedly under investigation for possible violations. tax laws, money laundering. those who are saying, president trump said trump tower was

wiretapped and he was. it sounds like if it was, it was paul manafort's apartment and they followed the law. >> that's the problem with wiretapping. you may have a target of a wiretap, but that person is talking to other people and you pick up other voices. in a case like this, there are two ways they could have wiretapped manafort, through the foreign intelligence surveillance act and through what we call title 3. title 3 you need to show probable cause of criminal activity. the standard is lower under the other. you need to show probable cause that this person, the target, may be a foreign agent and -- sometimes we act unwittingly as foreign agents. maybe knowingly acting as a foreign agent. if you can make that showing to a court, then you will get your warrant, you are going to get your wiretap. the numbers over the decades bear it out. they grant these warrants in almost all of the cases.

>> in other words, the burden of proof that x target may be knowingly acting as a foreign agent is not all that high? i want to be fair. it's not a given paul manafort was a spy for russia? >> it's not only not that high, but it's always ex parte. that means one sided. the only person making the pitch to the court is the person who wants the warrant. the fbi agents who are very skilled. the doj, u.s. attorneys, these are very skilled agents at writing up a warrant with the right language to convince a magistrate or a judge or a secret court that this warrant should issue. there are no defense attorneys at these showings. it's a one sided affair. the burden of proof really isn't all that high. >> you know else is skilled? robert mueller. what is your opinion assessment of how "new york times" describes robert mueller's approach, the shock and awe approach? >> i don't know i would characterize it as that. i would actually characterize it

as better than that. he is following all the basic rules of a doj investigation. we are all left wondering what exactly is he doing, because he is not disclosing information. there aren't any leaks. while he is using what people call shock and awe, that is just the normal compliment of powers available to the doj. he is using them well. and he is using them in a way that doesn't reveal exactly what direction he is going. he is cooperating with state authorities. he is almost surely obtained tax returns. believe me, trump does not need to know under the law that he has obtained those tax returns. in all likelihood, he has. he has brought in specialists in the area of money laundering. is even working with the irs. it is by all accounts by my perception a text book, fantastic investigation that's using all the forces of the doj, which are considerable in any investigation. >> fantastic if you are robert mueller at the department of

justice. your worst nightmare if you are someone being investigated. >> anybody who is being investigated by the federal government should be very, very, very concerned, because the federal government -- when they decide to make a case, it stays made. if you talk to criminal defense attorneys like me, they will routinely say, they would rather be this state court than federal court. in federal court, the doj or fbi decides you are guilty a long time ago. then they start investigating. only after they are certain they have all the evidence they need to secure a conviction do they indict. anyone that is the subject of a federal investigation has reason to be concerned. if you are the subject of this level of resources levelled against you by the federal government, it should be sheer terror. >> to anyone who has been reaching out, like we heard earlier to jared kushner over the summer, if you are involved in any of his portfolios and he hasn't called you back, sounds like he is probably busy. >> good to see you. thanks very much.

>> appreciate it. stick around. obamacare now in grave danger. the late of the repeal and replace effort gained steam last night. we will explain what's in the new bill and how it could pass by the end of the month. we have been following the fight against confederate monuments in this country. we want to introduce you to americans who may be deserving of a statue of their own. it's dr. helen toxic. she founded pediatric cardiologist and have invested procedures that have saved millions of lives. she graduated from the johns hopkins university school of medicine. she worked until her retirement at hopkins and developed an operation to correct a defect that prevents the heart from receiving enough oxygen. it's a condition known as blue baby syndrome. her work was also a key step toward open heart surgery. >> they took down monuments in baltimore where johns hopkins is. if baltimore is watching, we

have one for you. dr. taussig was deaf. that gave her an advantage in her field. she was able to distinguish subtle heart rhythms of her patients simply by touch and vibration instead of by sound alone. dr. taussig received the medal of freedom in 1964. she died in 1986. >> if you have a monumental american, tweet us. we'll be right back. during our made to move 2017 clearance event, you can do endless online research. or, you can take advantage of our best offer ever on an xt5. don't wait. our 2017 models will be moving fast. you can drive a car... or you can drive a cadillac. come in now before the end of our made to move 2017 clearance event and leave with the perfect cadillac xt5 for your next adventure. choose a low mileage lease on this xt5 for around $339 per month.

kevin, meet yourkeviner. kevin kevin kevin kevin kevin kevin kevin kevin kevin trusted advice for life. kevin, how's your mom? life well planned. see what a raymond james financial advisor can do for you.

but on the inside, i feel chronic, widespread pain.like most people. fibromyalgia may be invisible to others, but my pain is real. fibromyalgia is thought to be caused by overactive nerves. lyrica is believed to calm these nerves. i'm glad my doctor prescribed lyrica. for some, lyrica delivers effective relief for moderate to even severe fibromyalgia pain. and improves function. lyrica may cause serious allergic reactions, suicidal thoughts or actions. tell your doctor right away if you have these, new or worse depression, unusual changes in mood or behavior, swelling, trouble breathing, rash, hives, blisters, muscle pain with fever, tired feeling, or blurry vision. common side effects: dizziness, sleepiness, weight gain, swelling of hands, legs and feet. don't drink alcohol while taking lyrica. don't drive or use machinery until you know how lyrica affects you. those who've had a drug or alcohol problem may be more likely to misuse lyrica. with less pain, i can do more with my family. talk to your doctor today. see if lyrica can help. (flourish spray noise) (flourish spray noise)

(flourish spray noise) (flourish spray noise) the joy of real cream in 15 calories per serving. enough said. reddi-wip. (flourish spray noise) share the joy. are you one sneeze away from being voted out of the carpool? try zyrtec® it's starts working hard at hour one and works twice as hard when you take it again the next day. stick with zyrtec® and muddle no more®. they always refer to me as master sergeant. they really appreciate the military family, and it really shows. we've got auto insurance, homeowners insurance. had an accident with a vehicle, i actually called usaa before we called the police. usaa was there hands-on very quick very prompt. i feel like we're being handled as people that actually have a genuine need. we're the webber family and we are usaa members for life. usaa, get your insurance quote today.

we are back. you are watching velshi & ruhle. we have the pleasure of richard branson joining us this morning. since hurricane irma banished the british isles, you were on your ship when it hit. what was it like? >> we were in a bunker, and despite being in a bunker, the whole bunker shook. we had about 16 people huddled in the bunker. it went on for about five hours.

it was the most powerful storm in history, over 200-mile-an-hour winds, and when the eye of the storm went over us, we went outside and looked over the island and it was as if a nuclear bomb hit. it hit us again. we threw ourselves back in for another five-hour ride, and we were -- you know, we were in good spirits in the bunker. we were relatively safe. we were obviously worried about all the wildlife. we had 600 flamingos, lemurs and all sorts of things. and very worried about the local community because we knew they were in shacks. and the neblxt day we went out d saw them. the whole of the virgin islands was completely decimated. and even more worryingly, only 14 days later, there's a force 5 hurricane going to hit them in

about six hours' time. >> can the virgin islands take it? i was in the british island and the u.s. virgin islands last week. as the rain came down, the debris stuck in the trees causing mudslides. there are first responders on the islands now, but what do they really need? because there wasn't much military presence. >> well, there were 150 prisoners, skband one or two ofe dangerous prisoners had broken out. luckily they got that in control in the last two weeks. i'm afraid a force 5 hurricane is the worst that's ever hit. the worst was force 3. the one i had was a factor 4. anything left would just be flattened. we're going to have to rebuild

the entire country. there are places around the virgin islands that will have to be completely rebuilt. i'm in new york in climate changing week to work out a plan to see if we can rebuild with clean energy and do some positive things for the country in the rebuilding process. but the immediate needs, i'm sure, will be things like t tarpaulins, generators, and those we'll get back to dealing with in the next 48 hours. >> it's quite remarkable -- we haven't been able to pay much attention to these hurricanes but today in the united nations, it hardly got mentioned. but when you talk about a marshal plan, what's the motivation to fix things that weren't really fixed in the first place? >> these are beautiful countries with beautiful people, very resilient people, that deserve our help.

and puerto rico, i'm afraid, is going to be hit later today. you know, puerto rico came to the virgin islands' help last week. i've already written to the governor of puerto rico saying, even though the virgin islands are in trouble, welcome to your help next week to thank you. and we will. but we've all got to rally together and get countries and nations, the united nations and big foundations to work out how to rebuild all these countries so they can be that much more resilient when the next hurricane comes. i sadly believe this is a forerunner of what we've got to come. this is climate week. we've never had storms this powerful ever before. they have always told us the storms will get more and more powerful as the sea heats up.

we're going to get stronger and stronger storms. we're not going to give up. we'll go back and rebuild our nations. >> have you heard anything from the administration? i know this administration has gone back and forth with climate, accepting climate change as a reality, and from your perspective it needs to be if those islands are going to be rebuilt with responsibility. >> yeah. i mean, i just think that, you know, fortunately 192 countries realize we have a problem. they're getting on with the job. unfortunately, mo fortunately, most states in the country believe we ever a problem, they'll get on with the job. hopefully this reality will be driven home to more and more people in the country that have been denyers in the past. >> if you don't believe it now, i don't know when you will. sir richard branson, good luck in rebuilding those islands in

the caribbean. stay tuned for continued coverage of hurricane maria. thank you so much. thank you! so we're a go? yes! we got a yes! what does that mean for purchasing? purchase. let's do this. got it. book the flights! hai! si! si! ya! ya! ya! what does that mean for us? we can get stuff. what's it mean for shipping? ship the goods. you're a go! you got the green light. that means go! oh, yeah. start saying yes to your company's best ideas. we're gonna hit our launch date! (scream) thank you! goodbye! let us help with money and know-how,

so you can get business done. american express open. if you have moderate to severe plaque psoriasis,...ness done. ...isn't it time to let the real you shine through? maybe it's time for otezla (apremilast). otezla is not an injection or a cream. it's a pill that treats plaque psoriasis differently. with otezla, 75% clearer skin is achievable after just 4 months,... ...with reduced redness,... ...thickness, and scaliness of plaques. and the otezla prescribing information has...

...no requirement for routine lab monitoring. don't use if you're allergic to otezla. otezla may cause severe diarrhea, nausea, or vomiting. tell your doctor if these occur. otezla is associated with an increased... ...risk of depression. tell your doctor if you have... ...a history of depression... ...or suicidal thoughts,... ...or if these feelings develop. some people taking otezla... ...reported weight loss. your doctor should monitor your weight and may stop treatment. other side effects include upper... ...respiratory tract infection and headache. tell your doctor about all the medicines you take... ...and if you're pregnant or planning to be. ask your dermatologist about otezla today. otezla. show more of you.

all right. halley promised us a busy hour, and it was one. thank you for watching "velshi & ruhle." i'm ali velshi. >> and i'm stephanie ruhle.

now it's time for "andrea mitchell reports." president trump taking a hard line against both north korea and iran. >> the united states has great strength and patience. but if it is forced to defend itself or its allies, we will have no choice but to totally destroy north korea. rocket man is on a suicide mission for himself and for his regime. the iran deal was one of the worst and most one-sided transactions the united states has ever entered into. frankly, that deal is an embarrassment to the united states, and i don't think you've heard the last of it, believe me. >> coming up here, nbc news nightly news anchor lester holt who just sat down with iran's president rouhani. our first look at lester's interview.