headquarters in new york. us good night from nbc news headquarters in new york a stunning op-ed in the new york types has the president lashing out. the anonymous author claims to be part of the resistance within the trump administration. >> that comes on the heels of bob woodward's book which the president is slamming as a work of fiction. another fierce round of questioning for supreme court nominee brett kavanaugh. no definitive answers on some of the more hot-button issues. good morning, everyone, it's thursday, september 6th, this morning the white house is rattled after "the new york

times" published that rare, anonymous op-ed by a senior white house official claiming to be part of the resistance on the inside. now the "times" says senior opinion editors know the identity of the official but took the unusual step of withholding it at the author's request because public disclosure would endied their job. the "times" added, quote, we believe publishing this essay anonymously is the only way to deliver the important perspective to our readers. it claims that the president is amoral and that many senior administration officials are, quote, working diligently from within to frustrate parts of his agenda and his worst inclinitions. adding, quote, we believe our first duty is to this country and the president is acting in a march that is detrimental to the health of our republic. >> it cites reform and a robust military as a bright spot but says, quote, this comes despite, not because of, the president's leadership style which is

impetual, adversarial, ineffective. senior officials give their opinions daily and, quote, most are working to operate on his whims. he veers off topic and off the rails as he engages in rants, and his impulsiveness results in half baked, ill informed, and reckless decision that's have to be walked back, saying americans should know there are adults in the room. we are trying to do what is right even when donald trump won't. the op-ed says that there are whispers of invoking the 25th amendment which would start the process of removing the president from office, but it never happened because no one start to start a constitutional crisis. >> as you can imagine, it did not take long. the president hit back on twitter writing, "treason," question mark.

an hour later he tweeted, "does the so-called senior administration official really exist, or is it just the failing "new york times" with another phony source? if the gutness, anonymous person does indeed exist, the "times" must for national security purposes turn him or her over to government at once." here's the president's on-camera response. >> we have somebody in what i call the failing "new york times," talking about he's part of the resistance within the trump administration. >> this person works -- >> this tis disgraceful. i will say this, nobody has done what this administration's done in terms of getting things passed and getting things through. when you tell me about some anonymous source within the administration, probably who's failing and probably here for all the wrong reasons, no. "the new york times" is failing. if i weren't here, i believe "the new york times" probably wouldn't even exist. >> white house press secretary

sarah sanders also released a statement in part reading, "we are disappointed but not surprised that "the new york times" chose to publish this pathetic, reckless, and selfish op-ed. this is a new low for this so-called paper of record. it should issue an apology. the individual behind this piece has chosen to deceive rather than support the duly elected president of the united states. he is not putting country first but putting himself and his ego ahead of the will of the american people. this coward should do the right thing and resign." the president also spent the day hitting back at bob woodward's explosive book that paints a picture of chaos inside the trump white house. he repeatedly called it a work of fiction and denied that several parts of the book are true including the claim that he called for the assassination of syrian president bashar al assad or that there had been talk of replacing defense secretary jim mattis. >> the book is a work of fiction. if you look back at woodward's past, he had the same problem with other presidents.

he likes to get publicity, sell some books. the book is a work of fiction. it's a -- it really -- if you look at it, it was put out to interfere, in my opinion, at this time, with the kavanaugh hearings which i don't think it's done because so many people have come out against it. so many people who have been written about said i never said that. >> did you suggest the assassination of president assad? >> not at all. the book is fiction. i heard somewhere where they said the assassination of president assad by the president of the united states, never even discussed. the book is total fiction. >> report you're looking to replace secretary mattis, is that true? >> he just made the nicest quote about me i think i've ever had. the book is total fiction. he was totally -- not even misquoted, he never made the statement. he came out with the statement that honestly, you know, i've heard over the years that general mattis is an intellect. when i read his statement, i asked whether or not this was true. he said, not only is it not

true, i'd like to write a statement. i said, thank you very much, that's very nice. he wrote the most beautiful statement. no, i think he's a terrific person. he's doing a fantastic job as secretary of defense. >> he'll stay in that job? >> yeah. he'll stay right there. want to bring in now reporter for the "washington post," eugene scott. talk about a one-two punch here. >> what a day. >> talking about the book, op-ed, the writer of the anonymous "new york times" op-ed suggested invoking the 25th amendment in a west wing that is already reportedly paranoid. talk about where do we go from here as far as the claims here and the significance of it? >> reporter: i think it's important to note that anyone who's been paying attention to white house reporting knows that some of these claims coming from this anonymous source aren't new. there's been some reporting for a while that there are people inside the trump white house, inside the trump administration, for a while who believe that it is their job to protect america from president trump. however, this is the first time we've seen an op-ed this

detailed and this rich in terms of why they think president trump is such a troublesome leader. the reaction from the white house, i think, is the most telling. that's what people are focusing on now. they seem to be frustrated and really aware, perhaps, that this actually is an op-ed that a real person in the trump white house actually wrote. >> so let me ask you this kind of two-part question. it's obviously something that we in the media and certainly a lot of folks in washington, d.c., are going to obsess about over the next few days are. there any clues as to who could be the senior administration official that wrote this op-ed? and more importantly, does it matter who this official is to what the message of the op-ed is to the general public? >> reporter: as of now we have mainly speculation. i've seen some close white house reporters saying that given the details and given the likelihood of "the new york times" granting privacy to this person that it's

probably someone so high that they could be a cabinet official or a senior leader in the white house. some could pay attention to the fact that the president and white house press secretary sarah huckabee sanders continued to use the word "he." i don't know how much one could read into that. me personally, i'm paying attention to those protesting the most, frankly. just like i will when you see people in the white house attacking leakers. many who have come out publicly ante -- anti-leak regular ers af the biggest leakers in the white house. depending who it is determines how much it matters. that person, if they're high enough, really actually knows what they're talking about. >> it may be a name we don't know, at least throughout the course of the administration. thank you very much. we'll touch base with you in a bit. stick around for us. president trump's supreme court nominee is set to return

to capitol hill in just a few hours, going before the senate judiciary committee for a third day of questioning. there were plenty of fireworks during day two of brett kavanaugh's confirmation hearing yesterday as he was challenged over a number of hot-button issues. nbc news's justice correspondent, pete williams, has more. >> reporter: clearly aware that he'd be asked about his loyalty to the president, brett kavanaugh declined to say what would happen if robert mueller tried to force president trump to answer questions. >> can a sitting president be required to respond to a subpoena? >> i can't give you an answer on that hypothetical question. >> reporter: kavanaugh said one of the supreme court's greatest moments was its 1974 ruling requiring president nixon to abide by i ha subpoena during we house hearings about watergate. and what about the pardon power? president trump claims he has an absolute right to pardon himself. does he?

>> the question of self-pardons is something i have never analyzed. >> reporter: like past supreme court nominees, judge kavanaugh called the roe v. wade ruling binding precedent, reminded that thousands of women died in the decades when abortion was illegal, he said he gets what's at stake. >> i don't live in a bubble. i understand -- i live in the real world. i understand the importance of the issue. >> reporter: and despite president trump's promise to appoint anti-abortion judges, kavanaugh said it never came up before his nomination. >> did anyone ask you to make any promises or assurances at all about the way that you would rule in certain cases? >> no. >> were you ask good your -- asked about your views on roe v. wade? >> no. >> reporter: kavanaugh's hearings have set a record for interruptions by protesters. each hustled out, some even carried out by capitol police. >> our thanks to pete williams for that report. joining us here on set, msnbc legal analyst danny s

savalos. great to have you with us. the questioning pointyant at the end by -- poignant at the end by kamala harris. what stands out for you the most in the hearing? >> what stands out, strangely enough, is usually things in these cases that we could have predicted beforehand. there aren't going to be a lot of surprises. if there was a surprise, and i put that in quotes, it would be kavanaugh's response to abortion rights. he essentially confirmed what many of us know, that roe v. wade and after that planned parenthood v. casey is precedent and precedent on top of precedent, and affirms the notion that a justice does not take a case before him or her and say how would i have ruled originally in this case. instead, they adhere to precedent under the concept or the principle of starry decici

-- stare decisis. it's a part of our modern day legal fabric. i think kavanaugh indicated in his answer that roe v. wade, planned parenthood v. casey, are precedent, and they're probably going to be here for a while. >> we're talking about presidential pardon, executive power here. couldn't help but notice the reluctance, hesitation when it comes to kavanaugh and talking about that. at the same time as we heard in pete williams' report, praising u.s. versus nixon when it came to president nixon handing over the recorded tapes. >> the lesson from the defeated nomination of judge bork in the '80s is do not go out on a limb answering questions. play it safe. in sports analogies, this is prevent defense. you're not here to put on a show, you're not here to fight with senators. you're here to answer as little as you possibly can and do as little controversy or don't shoot yourself in the foot at these hearings, especially when mathematically it's almost a sure thing that you're going to be confirmed. in talking about presidential

subpoenas, it's interesting because to some degree the presidential subpoena question has been addressed. in the nixon case -- >> yeah. >> judge kavanaugh was not exactly accurate when he said this is hypothetical, i couldn't answer it, because it has been addressed. can a president be subpoenaed to a grand jury to testify? that is an open question. he was correct in that sense. >> all right. dan danny, thanks. stick around. president trump appears to change course on the idea of a government shutdown. we'll show you his quick reversal. and later, top executives from facebook and twitter face tough questions over election meddling, and both admit that mistakes were made in 2016. we'll have those stories, of course, a check of weather when we come back. ♪

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i know! i know! i know! i know! when did brian move back in? brian's back? he doesn't get my room. he's only going to be here for like a week. like a month, tops. oh boy. wi-fi fast enough for the whole family is simple, easy, awesome. in many cultures, young men would stay with their families until their 40's. welcome back. president trump seemingly reversed his stance on shutting town the government if he

doesn't get the border funding that he wants. during a meeting with republican lawmakers yesterday, trump reuped his shutdown threat ahead of the mid terms. take a listen to that. >> do you want a shut down? >> if it happens, it happens. >> reporter: if it happens, it happens? >> if it happens, it happens. if it is about border security i'm willing to do what it takes. we have to protect our borders. if we don't protect our borders our country is not going to be a country. >> but that is a far cry from the threats he expressed a day earlier where the president said, quote, i don't like the idea of shutdowns. i went on to explain, quote, i don't see even myself or anybody else closing town the country right now. the trump administration dismissed an intelligence assessment last year that showed refugees did not present a significant threat to the united states and its national security. three former senior officials tell nbc news that it is part of a strategy within the administration to consistently exaggerate the potential security threat posed by refugees. during a meeting last year

associate attorney general rachel brand cut off a representative from the national counterterrorism center before he could present a report that analyzed potential risks posed by refugees, saying attorney general jeff sessions would not be guided by the findings because he, quote, doesn't agree with the conclusions. that's according to two officials familiar with the meeting including one who was inside the room. after rejecting the intelligence, the administration issued its own report that misstates evidence and inflates the threat posed by immigrants. according to several former officials an rights groups, a current homeland security official responded, telling nbc news that the trump administration's immigration policy does not rely soleryly on historical data with terrorism trends. let's get a check on the weather. a hot one for the northeast day. >> this could be it. we keep saying that, right? but it will be another -- even worse as far as the humidity goes. temperature may be down a little

bit, but we have 39 middle women who will have triple digit indices today. how hot will it be on the i-95 corridor? boston will feel like 100. new york city, 101. t.c. is about the same, about 100. raleigh will feel like 99. it won't be until the cold front that is now trying to move through the ohio valley, that will swing closer by the time when get through friday and that will cool everyone off on the eastern seaboard by the time we get through the weekend. we have what is left of gordon now trying to head over the mississippi river, now spreading rain into arkansas. that moisture will combine along the front and we will get soaked. a lot of rain in areas of missouri, southern illinois and indiana and areas of arkansas. where you see pink is three inches. we could have isolated flash flooding concerns over the next three days and some of the rainfall will track to the mid atlantic region going through the upcoming weekend. today's forecast, very hot.

late-day thunderstorms in the northeast. we are okay in the southeast. a little cooler in texas because of the storms. you don't get to the beautiful fall weather until you get to minneapolis. it is a top ten day, 73 degrees and less in the way of humidity. one of the big stories that will be talked about a lot in the next week, hurricane florence out in the atlantic. it looks like it has a chance to get dangerously close to the east coast about this time next week. still seven days away but i will give you an update on that coming up. >> i know you will be watching closely. >> thanks, bill. still ahead, a major holdout in the nfl, a major injury in the mlb and a major day at the u.s. open. all of that and much more in sports. we're back in a moment. in sports we're back in a moment but there. . that blows them all out of the water. hydro boost water gel from neutrogena®. with hyaluronic acid it goes beneath the surface to plump skin cells from within and lock in hydration leaving skin so supple,

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are structured so we do better when you do better. maybe that's why most of our clients come from other money managers. fisher investments. clearly better money management. welcome back. time now for sports. the nfl regular season kicks off tonight in philadelphia with the defending champion eagles hosting the atlanta falcons. in pittsburgh members of the steelers are growing frus freighted with le'veon bell's continued absence from the team. according to espn he won't be playing in sunday's opener against the browns in cleveland. his agent lined to say when bell will report to the team. he has yet to sign his franchise tag and his agent indicated concern over compromising the player's long-term value by risking an injury. he can become a free agent next season as long as he signs by week 11. let's move on to professional tennis. the last of the quarterfinals of the u.s. open here in new york,

not much drama on the women's side of team as american madison keys and naomi osaka are set to square off in the semis. osaka is first japanese woman to advance to a grand slam semifinal since 1996. with serena williams competing in her match today, there's potential for an all-american women's final. that would be incredible. on the men's siem,de, a rematch the 2014. he will meet number eight seeded jokovich after last night's win. let's turn to major league baseball where team doctors recommended otami undergo tommy johns surgery to repair a ligament in his throwing arm. he is still cleared as a designated hitter.

his bat seems unaffected as he slugged two home runs in last night's 9-3 win against the ranger. in colorado, three epic home runs for the rockies. trevor story starts with a shot that sends him off his feet. his second homer, a 505-foot shot out to left field in the fourth inning. it is a bomb, the longest since the league began tracking the stat in 2015. his third came in the sixth with another solo shot to left that put the rockies ahead for good. they go on to beat the giants by a final of 5-3. it is the trevor story show in that one, guys. >> no doubt about that. exciting today as the nfl season gets underway, but can't ignore the elephant in the room, colin kaepernick, the tv ad by nike. a lot of people will be talking about that. it is supposed to air today during the game. >> going to be late nights for us. >> absolutely. still ahead, much more from the marathon questioning of supreme court nominee brett kavanaugh, what he had to say and didn't

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♪ ♪ good to be back with you. i'm francis rivera alongside ayman mohyeldin and louis bergdorf. let's get started with the morning top stories. brett kavanaugh returned to capitol hill for day two of his confirmation hearing. he faced more than 12 hours of questions from members of the

senate judiciary committee yesterday. kavanaugh asked many tough questions, including his position on the landmark supreme court decision on roe v. wade. take a listen to that. >> what would you say your position today is on a woman's right to choose? >> well, as a judge -- >> as a judge. >> as a judge, it is an important precedent of the supreme court. by "it" i mean roe v. wade and planned parenthood versus casey. it has been reaffirmed many time. casey is precedent on precedent. >> meanwhile, he dodged questions from senators related to the russia investigation including whether trump could pardon himself. >> what sort of loyalty will you owe to the president? >> if confirm to the supreme court and as a sitting judge, i owe my loyalty to the constitution. i have repeatedly called u.s. v. nixon one of the four greatest moments in supreme court history. no one is above the law in our

constitutional system. >> president trump claims he has an absolute right to pardon himself. does he? >> the question of self-pardons is something i have never analyzed. it is a question that i have not written about. it is a question, therefore, that's a hypothetical question. >> does the president have the ability to pardon somebody in exchange for a promise from that person they wouldn't testify against him? >> senator, i'm not going to answer hypothetical questions of that sort. joining us onset, msnbc analyst danny cevallos. good to have you with us. interesting in that moment was not the first part of kavanaugh's answer which is what i'm not going to comment on whether the president can pardon himself. it was the second part where he

was asked specifically can the president offer a pardon to someone so they don't testify against them that i think a lot of people are scratching their heads about this morning. is it surprising that brett kavanaugh did not answer that question? >> no, it is not surprising because he took the safe route, don't answer any controversial questions, but he is correct that the issue of self-pardons and pardons in exchange for some quid pro quo are issues that have never really come before not only the supreme court but arguably any court, maybe even including state courts. it is an issue that hasn't really been addressed, whether or not the president can give pardons out in return for goodies or favors or quid pro quos or something that would approach the world of bribery or extortion. >> before you joined us we were talking about the exchange of kamala harris, too. >> one of the more poignant comments. >> absolutely. let's listen and talk about it. >> how can you not remember

whether or not you had a conversation about robert mueller or his investigation with anyone at that law firm? this investigation has only been going or for so long, sir. >> i'm just trying to think do i know anyone who works at that firm. i might know -- >> that's not my question. my question is have you had a conversation with anyone at that firm about that investigation? it is a really specific question. >> i would like to know the person you are thinking of because what if there's -- >> i think you are thinking of someone and you don't want to tell us. >> hmm. >> yeah, that moment right there. she is asking about -- >> she is clearly insinuating something, right? >> she has insinuating she has done research and may have information, she has a person in mind. if you look at brett kavanaugh's face or his positive file, it looks like genuine surprise. it may be he truly doesn't understand her question or who she is asking about, but if the question goes to the issue of -- and it obviously do -- whether or not kavanaugh has some leaning as to the russia

investigation, whether a president can be indicted, whether a person can even be arrested or prosecuted, those are all very, very important legal questions. but, like the self-pardon, they're questions that haven't really ever been addressed and in that sense kavanaugh is correct that they are a hypothetical and probably not best answered here and now. >> well, we'll see if that comes up again in any kind of flow. >> oh, it will, it will. >> it will, of course. do you guys ever get hecklers like they do at the hearing? >> all the time in the show. we have security throw people out all the time, actually. >> that means you got the watch out, too, for that. >> don't make any noise when you leave. >> danny cevallos, thank you. it seems president trump is facing opposition within his own ranks. "the new york times" has published a stunning op-ed written by someone the paper describes as a senior official inside the administration. the author claims to be part of the resistance within the trump white house. now the president is hitting back. nbc news chief white house correspondent hallie jackson has

all of the details. >> reporter: an extraordinary alarm sounded from the inside out, jaw-dropping charges against the president by someone who says they work for him. an anonymous source describing a secret cluster of top aides, quote, working diligently from within to frustrate parts of his agenda and his worst inclinations. i would know, the author writes, i am one of them. "the new york times" publishing that op-ed, choosing not to share who wrote it but describing them as an official whose job would be jeopardized if their job was revealed. the headline, i am part of the resistance inside the trump administration. >> when you tell me about some anonymous source within the administration, probably who is failing and probably here for all of the wrong reasons. if the failing "new york times" has an anonymous editorial -- can you believe it, anonymous? meaning gut less, a gutless editorial, we are doing a great job. >> reporter: the writer praising some of the president's successes but arguing they come despite, not because of his

leadership style. describing half-baked, ill-informed and occasionally reckless decisions that have to be walked back. at one point the official describes early whispers within the cabinet of invoking the 25th amendment to remove the president, but no one wanted to precipitate a constitutional crisis. americans should know that there are adults in the room, the person writes. we fully recognize what is happening and we are trying to do what's right even when donald trump won't. the explosive op-ed echos the portrait painted in a bombshell new book of a chaotic white house driven by dysfunction. the president doesn't believe any of it. >> the book meeans nothing. it is a work of fiction. if you look back at woodward's past, it had the same problem with other presidents. >> reporter: the book's author, bob woodward, whose reporting helped bring down richard nixon. >> for the american people, why should they believe you over woodward? >> if you look at his track record, he had the same problem

with obama. every time he wrote a book they complained about the lack of accuracy. >> reporter: woodward tells nbc he stands by his reporting. the president in response it seems to the anonymous op-ed tweeting a single word, treason, adding a question mark. his press secretary called whoever wrote it a coward who should resign, all of it capping yet another extraordinary and explosive day inside the west wing. back to you. >> extraordinary and explosive, an understatement. our thanks to hallie jackson for that reporting. executives from two of the biggest social media companies faced tough questioning on capitol hill over their efforts to prevent foreign actors from interfering with american elections. cheryl sand burg and jack dorsey appeared before the intelligence committee yesterday. in addition to focus on election meddling, lawmakers pressed the two on whether more regulation is needed for their companies. notably absent from the proceedings was google. the hearing featured an empty

chair where google was invited to sit. lawmakers criticized sandberg and dorsey, saying their companies were not doing enough in the wake of the election interference, with both executives acknowledging their failures. >> let me be clear, we are more determined than our opponents and we will keep fighting. when bad actors try to use our site, we will block them. when content violates our policies, we will take it down. when our opponents use new techniques, we will share them so we can strengthen our collective efforts. >> if we don't find scaleable solutions to the problems we are now seeing, we lose our business and we continue to threaten the original privilege and liberty we were given to create twitter in the first place.

intel committee member angus king will give his take. eugene, we heard a criticism coming out saying we're going to block it, take content down, but what tangible change could we see coming from the hearings on the hill? >> it wasn't described in detail as of yet yesterday, but what facebook has been communicating is that they are monitoring what could be happening from foreign actors to abuse their social media platform and mislead the american people, that we're seeing systems somewhat put in place that can remove fake pages, should down fake accounts and allow people to report posts and individual accounts that they find to be suspect and harmful to the dissemination of information process. >> eugene, let's switch gears and talk about the other hearing

taking place yesterday, that of judge kavanaugh. he declined to speak about hypotheticals, in specific hypothetical of presidential subpoenas though he has in the past and he certainly addressed other hypothetical situations in yesterday's hearing. what is the justification for that? why was he able to get away with some hypotheticals and other hes would answer? >> reporter: i would say today the reality is that people who want the know where he stands on issues that he has, as you acknowledged, written about in the past, specifically in the minnesota law review, will continue to question him and ask if he can provide some level of clarity for where he stands when it comes to how commanders in chief should be treated when they are found to have done something in violation of the law while in office. i think what he is trying to do obviously is not be pigeon holed into a firm answer and position like his writings have suggested he should be. that's going to be a problem for

him with democratic lawmakers and, quite frankly, conservatives as well who are hoping that he can articulate he will take a clear stance on the issues that matter to them most. >> see if there's going to be any more of the hypotheticals. good to have you with us. >> thank you. >> thank you. still ahead, joe biden back on the campaign trail. what his speech for one congressional hopeful may signal about his own intentions for the 2020 presidential race. plus, bill karins is back with details on where a new hurricane in the atlantic may be heading. sometimes, the pressures of today's world can make it tough

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a hotel can make or break a trip. and at expedia, we don't think you should be rushed into booking one. that's why we created expedia's add-on advantage. now after booking your flight, you unlock discounts on select hotels right until the day you leave. ♪ add-on advantage. discounted hotel rates when you add on to your trip. only when you book with expedia. welcome back, everyone. former vice president joe biden is giving what could be a preview of what his speeches might sound like if he ran for president in 2020. in fact, he spoke during a midterm rally yesterday in new jersey. watch this. >> i'm sick and tired of being sick and tired about what is going on in this country today. it is a diminishment of our

values. i've had it up to here. this is not who we are. this is not the america i know, and i mean that. this is not who we are. we are a generous people. we are an honorable people. we are an inclusive people. that's who we are. >> all right. so biden lent his fire power to congressional democratic canned, a former navy helicopter pilot, a former prosecutor vying for congressman's seat against jay weber. his 40-minute speech offered a national focus while underscoring the state's status as a key battle ground for democrats. according to the associated press, biden will make more campaign stops as the mid terms approach. he has given himself a january deadline to decide whether or not he will run for president in 2020. let's get a check on the weather with nbc meteorologist bill karins. bill, hurricane florence

lingering in the atlantic, maybe approaching the east coast for next week. >> that's the timeline of concern, say wednesday through friday. we don't know how close it is going to get exactly. still it is seven days away, but it is the next storm of concern. this is the peak of the hurricane season. you expect there to be storms of concern. by the way, this is florence here. this strong tropical wave coming on to the map here eventually will become helene. wind sheer is taking its effect on florence. still a major hurricane at 115 miles per hour. this is the 5:00 a.m. update from the national hurricane center and it takes it to the northwest, the west, category two, maybe three, intensity fluctuating. bermuda is the first area of concern in the atlantic and it is heading in that general direction. timing for bermuda would be tuesday night into wednesday morning. you can see where cape cod is and the outer banks are and the jersey shore, so it is still too early to say when it will

recurve or if it will. anywhere from the carolinas to new england is the time to make sure you go through the hurricane kit and make sure you have supplies because if it gets closer you know what the lines will be like at the stores. as we head towards the upcoming weekend, the items of concern bringing it state side won't be anything hurricane-related but flash flooding threat will develop. this is friday's map. heavy rain from arkansas leftover from hurricane gordon plus a cold front. it will be poured on here. saturday, it continues to rain hard from arkansas, illinois, indiana and scattered storms in the east. highs in the 60s and 70s in new england, a big-change feeling like fall. on sunday it goes into areas of the ohio valley. some of the worst weather this weekend will be found along southern portions of the owe hoy ee river. still ahead, north korea

looks to hold another summit, this time with south korea. >> with the latest talks between the new neighbors may meaning for pyongyang's alleged efforts to denuclearize. to denuclearize. experience the lexus rx with advanced safety standard. experience amazing. but one blows them all out of the water. hydro boost from neutrogena®. with hyaluronic acid to plump skin cells so it bounces back. neutrogena® to take care of yourself. but nature's bounty has innovative ways to help you maintain balance and help keep you active and well-rested. because hey, tomorrow's coming up fast. nature's bounty. because you're better off healthy.

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welcome back. the leaders of north and south korea will hold a third summit in pyongyang. focus on efforts to denuclearize the korean peninsula. north korea is not taking steps

to achieve. reports indicate talks between the u.s. and the dprk may currently be at a stalemate. comes as nbc news has learned that china loosens restrictions on trade with north korea undercutting u.n. sanctions. the u.s. treasury sanctioned multiple entities for helping pyongyang avoid those sanctions. president trump's desire to rush into a meeting with kim jong-un caused china to fear a loss of regional influence. the former senior state department official adds, quote, the trump admin strapistration m pressure is now at best minimum pressure. next big thing, i wonder what it could be. a white house in crisis goes from bad to worse. >> the latest on that anonymous

"new york times" op-ed by senior administration official claiming to be part of an internal resistance to contain president trump's worst inclinations. john brennan and john kerry will be in studio with their reactions. a very busy morning, moments away. ents away e*trade. the original place to invest online. this is a story about mail and packages. and it's also a story about people. people who rely on us every day to deliver their dreams they're handing us more than mail they're handing us their business and while we make more e-commerce deliveries to homes than anyone else in the country, we never forget... that your business is our business the united states postal service. priority: you

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joining us now from washington, d.c., with a look at axios and editor in chief nicholas johnston. great to have you with us. what is the one big thing for us this morning? >> the one big thing, there are snakes everywhere. that is how president trump is viewing the government that he oversees. a quote from him to a member of his administration. suspicious of all levels of his government from career staff and agencies to members of the west wing staff and some of the most senior and hand-picked aides that work right around the oval

office. dozen trust any of them at all. in the hours after "new york times" op-ed posted yesterday two officials reached out and said the writer took the words right out of our mouth. there are dozens of people who sort of fill the bill of written that. something we wrote about as long ago as last summer. members of the administration some of the very senior who saw themselves trying to play a role and now with the most recent revelations and that bombshell "new york times" op-ed seeing that right in the forefront. >> the author of it referring by saying we. so, an indication that there is definitely more than one person speaking on behalf of more than one person. >> do you think in this case knowing that this anonymous person may now pave the way. we'll hear from more coming out

more vocally in this case. >> if you looked at some of the books that have been published and the leaking and numerous people who speak to us and now this op-ed a constant torn as long as i've seen since i've been in washington. people who speak honestly about ways they're trying to oppose them and particularly in the foreign policy establishment. that is a great question, though. does this open the flood gates, could it be. could others come forward. all of this has been done second hand. anonymous sourcing. some who very senior who will say on the record and put their name behind some of this criticism. that is the one thing that h hasn't happened. >> how important to know the identity of this person. "new york times" going on a gamble by not knowing, how significant is that the message they're trying to send out to the general public? >> i think that does fit into

it. as we wrote yesterday on axios. hundreds of people who fit the bill of senior administration official from people buried in agencies to mike pence. we don't know exactly who that person is. more important than the washington parlor game that will go on for many weeks is what it symbolizes. the number of people in the administration who are speaking about that and people leaking to the press about that kind of thing and the constant sense that we get of people who are working against the president and leading to the paranoia that all these people working out trying to undermine his agenda. >> "new york times" op-ed here and split screen moment and kavanaugh confirmation hearing and executives testifying, as well. focus a lot more, you know, as

far as the magnifying glass is on the kavanaugh hearings. >> the hearings went off without a hitch. except for alex jones making a scene with marco rubio and they were contrite and change possible election interference and open to regulation. the one wrinkle that happened was between them all. the department of justice said they'll take a closer look at these platforms and bring in state attorney general that could lead to a regulation. >> it seemed at one point alex jones was upset that marco rubio didn't know who he was on that exchange. >> nicholas johnson, thank you so much. you can do that, as well. sign up for the news letter, signup.axios.com. >> that does it for us this morning. "morning joe," everyone, starts right now.

>> i was very honored when without my even knowing about it statements were put out by general mattis. general mattis is an intellect and when i read his statement not only is it not true, i would like to write a statement. i said thank you very much, that's nice. president trump first told reporters he didn't know that jim mattis was going to write a letter defending him. 90 minutes later he said the opposite. heck of a way to push back on allegations that you're either confused or lying. and that's just the tip of the iceberg this morning. good morning, everybody. >> it's the least of the problems. >> the least of the problems. >> what did you think about the letter? >> incredible. incredible move by "new york times" and incredible letter and not the way the white house is supposed to work. not normal. it is thursday, september 6th. >> john