is another girl who can take your job. >> i want to tell you, the board, after that new yorker article came output out a statement saying, these allegations are unethical to human decency. these allegations come as utter surprise to the board. any implication that the board had knowledge of this is false. in the area in which you and i live, we now know from david boyer that the board knew something was up. one of the board members admitted to the "new york times" he was told about a settlement between harvey weinstein and some women, but he assumed they were to cover up consensual affairs. how does that happen? >> we also should point out that it had been reported that harvey weinstein's brother who is turning on him, turning all this up, well, his brother sits on the board. >> a bunch of rich guys. >> so during the years this conduct -- the fact that jokes were being made about this on television shows, at the oscars. think about this industry. it is an industry that can make

people stars and change their lives. this woman who i interviewed changed her career goals and dreams because of this experience where he looked at her and said, i can make you, i can break you. it's stunning. >> these allegations continue to come out, and they continue to be denied by the board. there are so many levels of responsibility here from people who knew about his behavior. and again, people are splitting hairs now, saying, well, we knew they were consensual affairs, we didn't know there was sexual harassment. well, we might have known there was sexual harassment but we didn't know -- >> let's say the board thought they were payoffs because of consensual affairs. at that point they didn't think he needed some sort of reprimanding -- >> counseling, rehabilitation. >> so when he's saying, i'm going into therapy now, i want a second chance, i'm pretty sure the second chance was a few decades ago. >> we're going to continue to cover this story and so many others for you today, but thank you for watching this hour of "velshi & ruhle." i'm ali velshi.

so good to be back with my buddy. >> i'm so thrilled to be back with my friend. i'm stephanie ruhle. i'm going to be back at 3:00 and right now we're going to watch our colleague andrea mitchell on "andrea mitchell reports." president trump signs an extraordinary to further undermine his pred secessorpred signature health insurance. >> take action to increase competition, increase choice and increase access to lower-priced, high-quality health care options and they will have so many options. this will cost the united states government virtually nothing and people will have great, great health care. and when i say people, i mean by the millions and millions. nuclear meltdown. the president overruling his national security team to send a signal to tehran. >> this is the worst deal. we got nothing. we got nothing.

so i'm not giving anything away, but i've been saying this for a long time. and coming up, we need to talk to two key players in the iran deal, ben cardin, the top democrat on the senate foreign relations committee, and former energy secretary ernest muniz who helped seal the deal. and three weeks after hurricane maria ripped through puerto rico. the president said they should not expect fema and the feds to stick around forever. meanwhile, some trapped in remote areas of the island have a message for fema. >> come on. do what you're supposed to do. we need you. and fema is not a service that is -- i understand we pay for it. and if we pay for it, we want what we pay back. and we want it now. >> good day. i'm andrea mitchell in

washington where president trump is taking matters into his own hands on health care after repeated failures by a republican congress to repeal and replace obamacare. citing a new executive order moments ago, the administration claiming it will expand choice despite criticism that it will actually tear apart the insurance safety net. this as the president also announced the rescue with the help of pakistan of kaitlyn coleman and her family after five years in taliban captivity. >> i have an important update. yesterday the united states government, working with the government of pakistan, secured the release of kaitlyn coleman, joshua boyle and their three children from captivity from the hakani network. the pakistani government's cooperation is a sign that it is honoring america's wish that it do more to provide security in

the region. a lot of countries are starting to respect the united states of america once again. >> joining me now, nbc white house correspondent kristen welker, nbc medical correspondent dr. john torres and nbc intelligence and national security reporter ken delanian. ken, before we tackle health care, let's talk about kaitlyn coleman, her canadian husband, her children. after five years in captivity, what do we know? this is a very complex story. >> it is a very complicated story, andrea. they were captured hiking in afghanistan five years ago. they've been held in pakistan by the hakani network, which is a terrorist organization that u.s. officials say has gotten support from the pakistani government. so now we're made to understand that the u.s. intelligence community provided the pakistani military with the location of these folks, this family, and the pakistani military mounted an operation to go and get them. so that's the good news. a complicating factor we learned

today, though, is that the family declined to get on a u.s. plane back to the united states. the husband particularly, who is a canadian, joshua boyle, refused to get on a u.s. c-130. it's not clear why that happened and that's raising some questions. overall, and you've covered this story over the years, this is a couple that have been held. their children were born in captivity, three children. the woman was pregnant when she was captured, so they appear to be out of danger at this point and they're in pakistan at the u.s. embassy, andrea. >> that was a u.s. military plane that they declined to enter. the fbi was involved, the intelligence agencies were involved, so it's a good news rescue story. this was from the obama administration through the trump administration. there was a taliban video released last december with her appealing both to the outgoing and the incoming president. she's from pennsylvania. her parents have been desperate with worry about this, so we have a lot more to untangle,

correct, ken? >> yeah, and one of the interesting questions, andrea, is what were the circumstances of this pakistani operation? was it an actual kinetic operation with guns fired and helicopte helicopters, or was it merely a handover? it's been reported that the hakani network has close ties to the pakistani services and many are skeptical it was actually a military operation. >> ken, as we let you go, moving on to health care, one more point here. the complication is also the u.s.-pakistani relationship, the president alluding to this last night and suggesting this is some sort of new step in trying to work with the pakistanis. thanks, ken, i know you'll keep reporting throughout the day on msnbc. and let's talk about health care because that's the other big story here. kristen, the president moving where the house and senate republicans refuse to move and taking a big step on the insurance mandate for health

care. >> reporter: that's right, andrea. this is the president effectively saying the congress failed to act so i'm going to do something on health care. today he signed an executive order that will allow individuals and small businesses to effectively buy some coverage across state line to pool their resources, coverage they otherwise wouldn't have been able to purchase due to some of those regulations under obamacare. the president touting this as something that will give them more flexibility in terms of the plans that they're buying. but critics are saying, hey, wait a minute, this is allowing people to buy substandard plans and ultimately could have a big impact on the market overall. so it's a complicated picture, but the political picture is that the president's very frustrated, andrea, over the fact that his legislative agenda has largely stalled, health care obviously one of his big campaign promises, so this is the president taking a move forward in terms of health care from his perspective. you heard him touting the fact that rand paul was on board with this. obviously one of the holdouts in

terms of getting something done on health care, and it just raises the stakes in terms of tax reform. that's, of course, the key focus. he was in harrisburg last night pushing his tax reform package, and republicans, sources i've been talking to at the white house and capitol hill, says there's really nom margin for error. he really needs a win here, andrea. >> considering what it does to the 2010 law, it will make it possible for small businesses to put plans forward with fewer protections, less insurance, bakely, cheaper plans. but that does begin to tear apart the mandate. >> that's the bottom line. it does give you cheaper plans, but when it comes to health insurance, you do get what you pay for. what i've seen, especially before 2010, and i saw this in the clinic continually, a lot of times patients don't understand their insurance. they get a smaller premium, they're saving money up front, but when something happens and they go there and they find out their deductible is very high or

they have co-pays very high that they can't afford, they end up getting that type of healhealth getting the health care they need, and then they end up in the emergency room where i see it. it takes a lot of work to try to get it or it's at a stage where it's hard to treat in that area. so, again, this is one of those things that you do get what you pay for when it comes to this and that's the big concern i think a lot of people have, is that they're going to get this insurance, that they're saving money up front, but the thing people have to realize is that healthy people, who are probably the ones who are going to buy these cheaper insurances, do get sick. they do get injured. when that happens, they're going to find out their insurance probably doesn't cover those things they thought it covered, which is very likely to happen. and in that case they're going to sit there either trying not to get the care because they can't afford it or trying to figure out a way to get the care if they can't afford it, having to do other things in their life

that they can't necessarily pay for. >> this could end up -- just to better understand it, it could end up being a federal responsibility in the long run for some of these people. >> exactly, and that's bwhat happens a lot of times. they get to the stage where they can't afford it anymore, their disease progresses and it becomes a federal responsibility or a medicaid or medicare type of responsibility where the federal government ends up getting in there and taking care of it. but at that stage it's a very advanced disease they suffered for or they try to pay for it in other ways. again, this is one of those things that a lot of people, and i saw this in patients all the time, don't understand their insurance to the point of what's my deductible, what's my co-pay, how much am i going to pay out of pocket? some of this may just make their costs go up and they may not understand it. >> understandable that people don't understand it because it's so complex and people make competing claims from the white house and the hill. thanks to dr. torres, thanks to

kristen welker at the white house. joining us now is maryland senator ben cardin who serves on the senate finance committee. the president seems to have found a way through an extraordinary to continue to try to dismantle obamacare. they've already started doing that by spending less money, signing up healthy, young people, new people for these exchanges. >> andrea, the president is taking steps to undermine the affordable care act. he already did that by making it clear he'll make the cost-sharing payments to insurance companies. he's not affording the mandate. he's offering options for particularly healthy younger people to look for options. all that means is the risk becomes more difficult and premiums go up for those who are in the individual marketplace. it is an effort by the president to undermine the health care system of this country. >> and i wanted to also ask you

about another major legacy from president obama which, of course, is the iran nuclear deal. the president is set to announce tomorrow, as we have been reporting, that he will not certify iran's compliance with what they are calling the spirit of the nuclear deal, so they're looking beyond the narrow framework of nuclear weapons or nuclear program, i should say, and looking at missiles, looking at support for terror and saying that in those regards, iran is not making the world any safer, it's making the region and the world a lot more dangerous. what does congress do now? they'll have 60 days to do something about all of this. >> well, it's not clear what congress will do, but let's make it clear there is no indication that iran has violated the nuclear agreement. the president does not want to sign this certification even though he's being told by his advisers in our national security interest to do that, so he's making a personal decision that puts america at risk. we don't know what's going to happen next.

we don't know whether congress will act on the expedited process that could put us in violation of the nuclear agreement. we don't know how the international community is going to respond, but we do know this. america's leverage to hold iran accountable for non-nuclear violations of terrorism and human rights, ballistic missiles is now going to be more difficult. we do know that america's role internationally will not be as strong as it would be otherwise, and countries like russia and china may try to fill that vacuum. this is a dangerous decision being made by the president, and it's unclear how congress will respond. >> the chairman of house foreign affairs at a hearing on this yesterday signalled that they are not at all sure which direction they're going to go in, but this is what ed royce had to say. >> as flawed as the deal is, i believe we must now enforce the hell out of it. let's work with allies to make

certain that international inspectors have better access to possible nuclear sites. >> so is that going to happen? iran has said no deal, we're not going to open new sites there? acting very negatively about this decision announced tomorrow. >> i agree with chairman royce. what we want to do is hold iran accountable for its non-nuclear violations, make sure this agreement is strictly enforced and deal with some of the gaps that are in the agreement by working with our european partners in trying to deal with these issues as soon as possible. but with the president not certifying, the international reaction is unclear. it's going to put us in a weaker position rather than a stronger position to do exactly what ed royce was talking about. >> senator ben cardin, thank you so very much. there is a big back story here behind this decision. the "washington post" is shedding new light on tensions between the president and his

national security advisers over the iran deal. the post saying they wanted to walk away from the deal. one person very familiar with the meeting told the post he threw a fit -- he, the president -- he was furious, really furious. it was clear he felt jammed. this was a critical period. it was july 17. they had until midnight to certify again that, yes, every 90 days i'm telling congress they're complying. the u.n. inspector said they were complying, the cia said they were complying with the nuclear deal. not all that other stuff that was never negotiated. and he was so angry about it, that's when it really, i think, began to cut the relationship with tillerson that really frayed. >> so many things happened that

week, including the fateful meeting in the tank at the pentagon. >> which was only three days later. >> right. it was a bad week. but on the iran deal, what the president was required to tell congress just made him absolutely go nuts. he thought neither one of these things is true. the certification requirement is the president has to say iran is complying with the deal and the deal remains in the vital u.s. national security interest. he didn't think either one of those things was true, and he told his advisers that. and the argument that he had gone along with in april that in the interest of stability and not alienating our allies and not giving congress a problem that it is not ready to handle, he would sign it in april. by july none of that rang true to him, our sources are telling us. he said, wait a minute. the administration has been reviewing our iran policy for

months. we know we don't like this deal. i have said repeatedly i don't like this deal. why are you making me tell congress that the deal is fine when so many people in congress also don't like the deal? >> he basically signalled he was taking it away from the state department, who was in charge of coordinating all of this, putting it in the hands of the white house cnc, and that's how they compromised, which you'll see tomorrow. >> the white house came away from that experience determined not to give the president what was described to me as a binary choice, either certify or don't certify it. he wanted to give the president another way forward, partly because not only were the other national security advisers in favor of trying to preserve the boundaries of the deal, but increasingly, many republicans in congress, as you just heard ed royce there, were sending that same signal. so mcmasters came up with what

is, in effect, a compromise but will allow the president to make up old stroke, which we think will be tomorrow, and say, i do not believe this deal is in the interest of the united states. >> despite teresa may who was very blunt, and i'll tell you this, the allies are ready. those who sign this deal, the brits the french, the germans. they're already saying it's a big mistake. >> oh, yes, they are saying it's a big mistake. rex tillerson said it was that. >> he met with the u.n. negotiator in rome skbrus yesterd -- just yetd sterday or the day before. >> those who are in greatest consequence to the united states have already been working the halls of congress as well. they've sort of given up on the nsc, they think it's clear where this is going, but they're now

working with congress saying it's now going to land in your lap. you have 60 days to try and do something. don't screw it up. >> that's a great policy, don't screw it up. coming up, we'll check in with one of the iran deals. coming up, former secretary ernest muniz. stay with us. you're watching msnbc. for birthdays. for turning over new leaves. and we make them for every moment in every corner of the country. we are the coca-cola company, and we're proud to offer so much more.

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as president trump prepares tomorrow to decertify the iran

nuclear deal, two of the primary negotiators of the agreement, former secretary of state john kerry and former energy secretary ernest muniz were on capitol hill yesterday meeting with democrats. joining me now is ernest muniz, physicist and co-chair of the nuclear threat initiative. thank you. welcome. >> good to be back. >> let me play devil's advocate. why isn't the president right? iran is a bad player around the region, syria, yemen, iraq, the revolutionary guard all these bad behaviors. why pre seserve the nuclear dea and give them access to the european and other businesses? >> because the deal has rolled back their nuclear program. we don't want to lose that. the deal has given us unpa unparalleled visibility into what they do. transparency unprecedented. the deal has given us a streamlined way to work with our allies as opposed to against our allies to go back to effective

sanctions if iran violates the deal. it's given us a procurement channel which means we get to review purchases by iran and have to approve them. and frankly, it keeps us in harness with our allies and friends, not to mention russia and china as well, and the europeans have made it very, very clear that if we walk away while iran is complying with the deal and the international inspectors say that, frankly, members of his cabinet say that, then we're going to be isolated. in fact, i thought it was very interesting that edward baraoqu, the former prime minister of iran, said very clearly, now we should be in the deal, otherwise we are giving iran an advantage. >> what about the complaint that iran is not permitting access for the inspectors to military

sites? >> that's not correct. the deal is very, very clear. the issue is, of course, whether it's a military or non-military site. we need to present some reason for a site being suspicious. when we do, we bring it forward. we will have our allies with us. >> does that give them time to hide whatever they're doing? >> no. we have a clock that sets off another unique part of this agreement. so i think the issue is -- imagine iran having a nuclear weapon or even the am biguity o them having a nuclear weapon and threatening yemen, syria and the other countries. >> what about the time you and john kerry spent at the negotiating table.

for years i was following you around the world as you were negotiating. how does it feel to see this becoming unraveled? it's not a full break, but it certainly does undermine it. >> first of all, i think that's correct. there are two different levels of backing off. one would be not certifying but not reimposing sanctions so we're still in the deal. but i do want to argue that just the first act already creates problems for us. the europeans have made that clear. it again weakens our alliance, essentially, with the europeans. so the concern -- look, obviously i would strongly hope that contrary to our expectations that the certification is there. we don't expect it, to be honest, but it's not a personal issue. i think this step is very bad for our national security and the national security of our friends. again, i go back to ed baroque. he said very clearly, with this

agreement iran is not an existential threat to israel. >> now, let me ask you about another existential threat, which is the president's grasp about the nuclear arsenal. you used to be in charge of the nuclear arsenal as energy secretary and its maintenance. this is what the president had to say when asked about our reporting that he had pressed his national security advisers back at the pentagon on july 20th about why we couldn't increase the size of our arsenal in violation of national treaties. >> i want to have absolutely perfectly maintained, which we are in the process of doing, nuclear force. but when they said, i want ten times what we have right now, it's totally unnecessary, believe me. because i know what we have right now. >> you want no increase whatsoever, you're happy? >> we will need an increase, but i want modernization and i want total rehabilitation. it's got to be in tiptop shape. >> tiptop shape. he already claimed back in

august that he had modernized the arsenal between the time he took office and between august 7th. what's the reality there about our weapons? >> the reality is that, of course, we are in a modernization program. we are constantly life extending the weapons because they are pretty old and they age, and we must maintain them safe and reliable. but this is a multi-decadal issue. it's nothing anybody can do in a few months. the question of needing more, i think not. the military judgment has been very consistent that we can cover contingencies, if you like, if they should arise, with our current force. in fact, most would say, and president obama said, and this was after talking with the military leaders, that we could certainly go another 30% down, for example, and still satisfy our military requirements. so we have to -- if i might say,

andrea, one thing is the numbers. but there are other issues that i think should be the real focus of attention. one is, for example, our president, the president of russia doesn't have enough decision time if information were to come, which could be erroneous. it's happened in the past about an attack. we would need to work on defusing that issue. the second issue is -- >> the hair trigger. >> -- the hair trigger. certainly launch on warning. we've been very lucky to dodge bullets in the past on that. we need to stop the bullets from coming. but secondly, another thing is, and we're very concerned. we know there is a big nuclear posture review going on, as all administrations do early in their tenure, but we're hearing mixed signals because what's important is we need to decrease the role of nuclear weapons in our military posture.

we must maintain deterrence, we agree with that. but we should not go around threatening the use of nuclear weapons. this goes very, very much counter to our own interests. >> secretary ernest muniz, thank you very much. it's always great to see you. >> thank you. good to see you. turning now to puerto rico. president trump's new threat to end u.s. aid to the storm-ravaged island, those people being american citizens. it's a u.s. territory. he said, we cannot keep fema, the military and the first responders, who have been amazing under the most difficult circumstances, in pr forever. quote, disaster before hurricanes. this is days before mike pence visited the island and said the administration would stick with puerto rico for as long as the recovery takes. >> we are with you today. we will be with you today. we will be with you every day until puerto rico rebuilds and

recovers bigger and better than ever before. >> nbc's gabe gutierrez is in puerto rico with the latest. what's the reaction to the preside president, gabe? >> reporter: hi there, andrea, good afternoon. there has already been a strong reaction here on the ground in puerto rico from the san juan mayor. she's had a contentious relationship with donald trump since this humanitarian crisis started. today she is responding saying she is upset by the president's tweets. ricardo rossello also said he wants all the support that they would expect for the united states. we have been speaking with residents in puerto rico, andrea. in remote areas there is still a sense that some of this humanitarian aid has not gotten there. we went yesterday to the western

part of the island where they still, some communities have not seen fema since the beginning of all of this. we spoke with one woman. she said she had cancer and she was desperate for a generator. here's what she had to say. >> well, i don't hear no one talking bad about the governor. >> reporter: what would your message be to the president? >> well, to the president, mr. trump, hi there, mr. trump. hope you're doing okay. i am not. and we are not. and i really trust you. i really, really do. i trust you. and i'm sure you're going to do the correct thing. i need that generator, mr. president. send it to me. thank you. >> reporter: now, the acting homeland security secretary is expected here in ponce in just a short time. she's meeting with local officials. again, fema says they have 19,000 workers both in puerto

rico and the u.s. virgin islands, civilian and military service personnel, and they are hiring people in places like ponce for job fairs to be able to be part of this relief effort. but some areas in rural parts of this island say that's just not enough, and the president's tweets this morning certainly made certain people upset here on this island as it tries to recover, andrea. >> thank you so much, gabe gutierrez, with the reaction from puerto rico to the president today. and that heartbreaking interview with that resident there in a remote section. thank you, gabe. coming up, growing dangers in california. the deadly wildfires raging out of control, gusty winds picking up across the state. the latest on worsening conditions, next. you're watching "andrea mitchell reports" on msnbc. in the mirror everyday. when i look in the mirror everyday. everyday, i think how fortunate i am. i think is today going to be the day, that we find a cure?

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welcome back. the situation in california growing more urgent. devastating wildfires with a rising death toll and more evacuations. so far at least 23 people have died, thousands of homes and businesses have been destroyed. most are in the wine country north of san francisco. nbc's steve patterson is there

with the very latest. steve, what do we know about these evacuations? >> reporter: andrea, 22 active fires burning in communities around here, and now entire towns are being evacuated. this evacuation center one of the largest here in napa, napa valley community college. 700 evacuees here. one of them is sandra bradley. sandra, so nice of you to join us. >> thank you. >> tell us, you don't know what the status of your home is at this point? >> no, we don't. >> what is it like not to know? >> it's like a deep pit. for me, i'm the kind of person that needs to know. >> reporter: you had to escape very quickly, i would imagine. >> yes, we did. one road out. >> reporter: one road out. were you scared and nervous when you had to get out? >> the panic button was pushed. >> reporter: you don't know when you're allowed back in the community? >> no. they said as long as it remains

active. no. >> reporter: all of those fires, 22 of them very active. there are red flag warnings still in place. winds up to 40 miles an hour and they get worse as the day goes on. firefighters very concerned about that situation. andrea? >> steve patterson in napa, thank you so much. coming up, full-court press. president trump ramping up his talks to the media. right here on "andrea mitchell reports" on msnbc. ood to see you. you too. you tell grandma you were going fishing again? maybe. (vo) the best things in life keep going. that's why i got a subaru, too. introducing the all-new crosstrek. love is out there. find it in a subaru crosstrek.

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it's frankly disgusting the way the press is able to write whatever they want to write, and people should look into it. [ inaudible question ] >> the press should speak more honestly. i've seen tremendously dishonest press. it's not even a question of distortion. >> let's get the inside scoop on the press and the president from ruth marcus, "washington post," deputy editorial page letter and columnist. welcome both. the writings just disgusting. >> i feel so ashamed of what i do for a living. i don't even know what word to use to describe this, so i think i'm just going to go back to thomas jefferson who famously said he would rather have -- given the choice, he would rather have newspapers without government than government without newspapers. i think maybe a little bit of

reflection on the meaning of the first amendment would behoove our president. >> ben sasse tweeted out, are you recanting of the oath you took on january 20 to preserve, protect and defend the first amendment? >> this is the president who in the beginning talked about fake news and criticized the press. i am worrying that he's demeaning the first amendment, he's demeaning a profession that is honorable. the thing i'm most worried about is a few months ago jeff sessions hinted they might try to arrest some journalists if they didn't disclose their sources. that's what i'm more worried about. donald trump says in tweets lots of things every day he doesn't follow through on. if this is just him saying things outlandish, i'll take it

that way for now. >> and of course they network over local television stations. then you have harvey wine stein caug -- weinstein caught by paparazzi yesterday. it reportedly following a meeting by his lawyers when he was being taken to an airport. >> i'm not doing okay. i'm trying. i got to get help, guys. you know what, we all make mistakes. second chance, i hope. okay? >> ruth, you take it away. i have to catch my breath. >> second chance? how about ninth chance? we all make mistakes, yes. these were not mistakes. as reported, these are serial, unwanted harassment and assault, and in the telling of some of the women involved, rapes of people. everybody makes a mistake, but there were repeated settlements.

one of the things that upsets me here, and there are so many things, is the notion that we should be thinking about these inciden incidents, and the number of them is just astonishing, as something that harvey weinstein needs therapy for, and if he could just get some therapy, he could recover. no, these are assaults and potentially crimes that he and his company endeavored to cover up. no second chances on that. or ninth chances. >> i'm not a therapist, i'm not a doctor, but i don't know how one gets treatment. he's already said that he'll be back in a year. so he's already determined the out cocome of therapy. >> i'm just shocked at how unapologetic he seemed or how remorseful he seemed considering what he's done and the volume of the stories i've read the last few days. he seemed very cavalier. it was very disturbing to see his reaction. >> i'll have to leave it there for now. to be continued. coming up, leaning in. facebook ceo cheryl sandburg

making the rounds on capitol hill using the network to influence the election. you're watching "andrea mitchell reports." we'll be right back. with my advisor's help along the way, it's finally my turn to be the host. when you have the right financial advisor, life can be brilliant. ameriprise depend silhouette active fit briefs, feature a thin design for complete comfort. they say "move it or lose it" - and at my age, i'm moving more than ever. because getting older is inevitable. but feeling older? that's something i control. get a free sample at depend.com.

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and things happened on our platform in this election that should not have happened. especially and very troubling foreign interference in a democratic election. and we know that we have a responsibility to do everything we can to prevent this kind of abuse. >> facebook's chersheryl sandbs talking to mike allen about russia interference in the election. sandberg says that the u.s. should recomplelease the facebo bought from russian accounts. joining us senior director no president obama's council and also former cia analyst and national security analyst. so with all of those hats, what did you know and when did you know it about facebook in terms of russia interference, prior to the election or occurring tduri transition? >> we knew beginning in the summer especially after the release of a private industry report in june of last year.

>> the dossier? >> this was the crowd strike report about the hack into the dnc. but it wasn't until later that you could put the pieces together. espionage is the practice on the part of countries like russia, china, to penetrate into political organizations, in on campaigns, think tanks, governments. and what this turned out to be, and that was a covert operation, a covert influence campaign the so-called active measures, where the russians took this information and actually weaponized it against us. and it didn't become clear until much more recently in fact. earlier this year, the multi pronged effort that the russians embarked upon, this was not just a facebook strategy, this was not just a twitter strategy, or not google or pinterest strategy. we learned today that they actually used pen terroriintere. this was a cyber strategy.

>> before there were russian bought ads or placed ads -- >> the russian campaign was not only aimed at denigrating secretary clinton and advancing the electoral prospects of donald trump, but it was aimed at sowing divides within our country. they used movements like the "black lives matter" movement, the lgbt movement, they used every movement to their advantage to try to sow civil discord into actually undermine the united states place at the head of that liberal democratic order. that was really one of their underlying goals here. and so we've seen that continue as you said with the take a knee hash tag the russians have appropriated themselves. >> what do you say to the president who as recently as last night with sean hannity was saying that this is all a democratic hoax just to deny him the victory of his own success?

>> well, i would say that president trump should listen to his intelligence community, he should listen to the private sector, he should listen to his advisors. all of who unanimously to a t have said that there was a russian effort to interfere in the election. they echoed the conclusions put forward in the january 2016 intelligence report that the nsa, fbi and cia signed on to. and so there is a clear body of evidence that speaks to the contrary. and actually sheryl sandberg said something very interesting today. she said facebook would welcome the additional support from the intelligence community to help facebook identify some of the forensics mind the ru s behind efforts. we need to look at that time as a public/private responsibility, the government needing to work with the private sector, with the facebook and twitters of the world to help them combat this. as long as that doesn't happen, the russians will have the door wide open to them and frankly, it will be very difficult for the development to put its full

heft this until president trump fully admits what happens here and only then will we be able to make true progress. >> thanks so much. sounding the alert. we'll be right back. so that's the idea. what do you think? hate to play devil's advocate but... i kind of feel like it's a game changer. i wouldn't go that far. are you there? he's probably on mute. yeah... gary won't like it. why? because he's gary. (phone ringing) what? keep going! yeah... (laughs) (voice on phone) it's not millennial enough.

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that does it for us. a busy day. remember follow the show online on facebook and twitter at mitchell reports. craig melvin is up next.

hi, craig. >> good to see you. good afternoon to you. craig melvin here. trump can provided sort of. president signing an executive order today aimed at dismantling obamacare. long on promises, short on details. what the executive order means for insurance and what more can the president do without congress? also pulling out of puerto rico. the president threatening to pull out the military and federal emergency resources from the hurricane ravaged island. will the president turn his back on puerto ricans? and hostages released after five years in captivity, an american woman, her husband and three children are now free. the latest on their harrowing ordeal and that stunning release coming up and new details this afternoon on why the husband is refusing the military's offer to get them out of the country. but we start withre