temperatures and widespread power outages. the texas power grid continuing to fail to meet the massive power demand. houston leaders are responding to the outrage earlier this week in the city's downtown skyscrapers completely lit up as frigid communities were left in the dark. property owners in that district are asked to reduce power juiceage. morgan chesky joins us from dallas. it's not getting much warmer down there and there's no clear answer whether the power will come back in houston. >> reporter: yeah, andrea, you're absolutely right. that's what's so frustrating for about 3 million households across the state. last check, that's how many people are still in the dark as a result of these frigid temperatures that have turned a cold snap into really an all-out crisis here in nearly every corner of the state. we're in our fourth day of subfreezing temperatures, and there's not just unprecedented, but it's really a temperature that people aren't used to.

they can't handle. the buildings are not made to withstand these kinds of temperatures, and we're seeing that play out in the fact that people are trying to stay warm however they can. people have been sending in pictures of the thermostats inside their homes, and it's heartbreaking. one reads 45 degrees. i spoke to another gentleman who had to move his wife across the street in the snow after it dropped into the 30s there into a neighbor's home because they were the only ones that had a fireplace. that's up here in dallas. in houston, they're also breaking record lows as well. we had a chance to hear from the county judge in harris county on the state of really this frigid disaster playing out. take a listen. >> demand is up right now. a lot of the plants, the production plants, are down, and that is natural gas, all sorts of production. in order for the texas power grid not to fail, there has to be a balance between the two. the weather is going to go away in a couple days. you know, today is going to get

a little warmer, again tomorrow. but those power issues i expect will continue. >> reporter: and that unprecedented demand will hopefully drop when the temperature comes back up. but here in north texas, its may not rise above freezing until at least friday, making for another dangerous 24 hours ahead, leaders asking everyone to try and conserve power when millions of texans still don't have power. in fact, the city of houston issuing a boil water notice, but just checked, i know about 300,000 people there in that area don't even have power to likely boil water. so it's just one disaster piling on top of another right now, and the only clear end in sight is when it will warm back up and that's a long ways from now. andrea? >> morgan chesky, thank you so much. let's turn to nbc meteorologist bill karins. tell us why texas, the energy capital of america, is faced

with this power crisis and where this massive weather system is heading. >> thanks, andrea. frustration has to be turning to anger at this point. this morning when i woke up it was 2.8 million people in texas without power. i checked seconds ago. an additional 500,000 people have lost power as of now during the day today. partially because of the ice storm that's ongoing, especially around the austin area. i saw a lot of pictures ofarcin. texas is a population of over 30 million. 1 out of 10 people don't have power and they're unable to fire generators back up because of the natural gas lines are frozen. a nuclear plant had a gauge sent they're froze monitoring the cooling water into the reactor. thankfully the sensor worked. and pictures of the wind turbines frozen and not

producing the power they typically do. the big issue with that is, you know, some people blaming this doesn't work, green energy doesn't work with the wind turbine. but they didn't purchase the ones with the carbon fiber blades that the ice slides off like in norway, sweden, the alps, antarctica, that have heated blades on those turbines that work in all extreme weather conditions. they didn't winterize their equipment and it was a failure to see what's happened in the past. this isn't the first time texas was this cold, but it is the first, teem in a lot of these people's lifetimes. it hasn't been this cold in 100 years. for whatever reason we seem as humans problems picturing what could happen. look at the pandemic. didn't happen in any of our lifetimes. talk to people that, you know, their grandparents told them stories from the 1920s. that's that part. now the storm. we'll track it across the country. east texas has been dealing with an ice storm all morning, additional power outages. now it's all through louisiana.

if it wasn't for what's happened in the last week, this would be an historic event in areas like louisiana. shreveport is having their second significant snowstorm in a week. that hasn't happened in over 43 years. in all, when this storm is done, it will have impacted over 120 million people from san antonio all the way up to boston. this snow swath, we're done in dallas now, but goes about 1,600 miles. this isn't going to be a huge impact storm in the northeast, more of a nuisance, 4- to 8-inch snowfall. in the winter we're used to driving in the snow. what i'm more concerned about, and this could be extreme tomorrow, raleigh, areas of southern virginia, southwest virginia, western portions of north carolina, we could see a really significant ice storm tomorrow. so the unrelenting cold is with us, andrea. one slightly positive story, they're out there doing work. this is the texas game warden that just sent this picture out.

these turtles are alive. they are safe. 141 of them have been rescued from the cold walters from a shipping canal in brownsville. they put them on the ship and they're taking them out to sea in the gulf where it's warmer to send them back in. andrea, the whole boat, almost all of the entire deck, was covered with these sea turtles. they saved them. >> that is amazing. thank you for that. you had me at the nuclear reactor. we all know from those who covered three mile island, you need that reactor. thank you, bill karins. for more on the situation in texas, where health officials are scrambling to administer covid vaccine doses. i'm talking with the dean of the school of national tropical medicine at baylor. we appreciate this. tell us about how the weather is

impacting the power is of course impacting your hospital and community and vaccine distribution. >> yeah. the medical center is the a me of over 100,000 employees and several medical schools and multiple hospital systems. it's as big as downtown los angeles. it's got a lot of experiences with power outages due to the extreme weather events that happened here like hurricanes. so in terms of power and generator backup, we're okay. there have been some water pressure issues. overall, i think the texas medical center is faring pretty well. that's the good news. the not so good news is the residential areas are hit pretty hard. we lost our power yesterday afternoon, and it's not just power. it's water as well. it is a hardship for an enormous number of texans.

the temperatures were really cold on monday down into the teens, and that's really unusual for us down here in houston. so it's no question this is a huge challenge and the hope is that we can get the power back up pretty soon. i am worried about interruptions in vaccinations. and the reason, andrea, i'm so worried is because we're in this race to get ahead of the variant from the united kingdom which we know is much more transmissible, more contagious, and higher mortality rates associated with it according to the uk scientists. so even though the numbers have been looking really good in terms of going down, i'm concerned this is short lived and we're going to start seeing the acceleration. so i've been pushing pretty hard on my colleagues as well about vaccinating the american people ahead of that variant. so any interruption really becomes a problem and i'm worried now, you know, we thought it was going to be a

one-day interruption on monday, now it's tuesday, now wednesday, so that's going to be a -- have a significant impact on race eight head of the variants. that's my big concern about vaccinations. >> and we just saw some pictures of people lined up, college kids at rice university, lined up because there was a refrigeration problem with the power problem, and so rather than have the doses get wasted, they raced to get the college kids all lined up to get those doses. is that a concern? >> yeah. i mean, those pictures you're seeing were a block away from the medical center. that's the medical center on the right-hand side. we're right next to rice university. i think it's really important not to waste vaccine. there's no bigger crime in my mind than having vaccine go to waste. so rather than toss it away because it doesn't meet criteria, i'm all for giving it out, don't waste any vaccine,

because in the end it will help in the interruption of transmission. but this goes to show you the problems that we are facing. also there's been delays in shipping vaccine because of the logistics and the concern that there won't be an adequate place to store it. so my understanding, that's been delayed as well. >> could that affect second shots for people who have appointments? >> it's going to affect everything. all we can hope for is things get back up and running in the next day or two and that this is a glitch and won't go on much longer because as i said, there is this new urgency now with the new information we've learned about covid-19. >> dr. peter hotez, i really hope you get your power, the medical center gets its power. we're thinking of everybody in houston and throughout texas. thanks for being with us. moments ago we heard about that massive storm from bill karins ripping through the south and the northeast. kentucky is getting hit with a third wave of winter weather as

state leaders try to get residents vaccinated with their current supply. joining us now lucky to have kentucky governor andy bashir. thanks for taking time out. you're right in the middle of this and have been for several days. what's the situation now? you've had more than 100,000 kentucky residents we heard about without power. where are you now? >> you're right. we have now been hit with two out of the three storms that we're going to face, the third starting tonight. at the height, we had about 156,000 kentuckians who had lost power. we've got that down to about 9,400 now. we got hit with snow, freezing rain, and an eastern kentucky, in appalachia, a very tough ice storm that has knocked out power there. it's got power lines and substations down. we are working as fast as we can. for us, our concerns are people on the roadways and people who are trying to heat their homes,

making sure that they don't bring that generator inside and ultimately suffer from carbon monoxide poisoning. it is very significant. >> what about delivery of vaccines? you've been ahead of many states in vaccine dosage delivery, but now you have this weather problem, maybe people getting to appointments or refrigeration problems. what's the choke point. >> for us, there is the national and the state. u.p.s.'s world port is in louisville, kentucky. much of the country gets their vaccines shipped through that amazing facility. they are still running hard. i know there have been some delays, but these are professionals and they do a great job. on our vaccine delivery, we are still vaccinating more people each week than we receive doses for based on a lot of doses that came out early. but we did have to cancel some

days last week, and we had to cancel one day this week. but we have as of yesterday had to make a ship. we are going to keep all of our vaccine sites, our large regional sites ohm. we'll make it ease sieve for people to reschedule if it's too dangerous for them to get out, but we're fighting this pandemic at the same time we're fighting a winter storm. there is just a point where our need to get ahead of these variants becomes so critical that we need folks who are willing to drive, really slow, and be really careful, to still make their appointments. >> i don't know whether or not you were on the call, some of the governors were on a call with the president, with joe biden. what hope is he giving you as far as dosage delivery? you say that you're making appointments but you don't have enough to go around. >> well, first, we did have a call that the president put together, and it was appreciated by all the governors who have

been impacted by this snowfall and ice storm. i did start my chance to talk, thanking him for the 57% increase in vaccine doses coming to states. and there was also a doubling of the federal pharmacy program. so that's a significant increase. kentucky, we've gone for about four weeks ago to about 53,000 doses for our state program, those are first doses to about 87,000. we have another 26,000 in the federal pharmacy program. and the president committed, we're going to see more in march and even more coming in summer. and you could tell through his voice that he is pretty confident and pretty certain in the increased supply we're going to be seeing, and it is great news. i will give this administration a lot of credit for pushing really hard to increase supply, and it is welcomed by every governor of every state across this country. >> kentucky governor andy

beshear. we wish you well with the next storm corming your way. thanks for taking time for us today. we really appreciate it. a shot of hope. president biden laying out a new coronavirus vaccine time line and when things could start feeling normal again. and later this hour, white house press secretary jen psaki with her daily press briefing. we'll bring that to you live. still fresh unstopables in-wash scent booster downy unstopables (sam) gamers! he who is good for making excuses is seldom good for anything else. take fuzzywuzzy28. blamin' losses on a laggy network. only one or two. verizon 5g ultra wideband is here, the fastest 5g in the world, with ultra... low... lag!

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the first presidential town hall, president joe biden promising new time lines for delivering vaccines and pushing back his projection for when the u.s. can get back to a post-covid normal. >> we have now, by the end of july, we'll have over 600 million doses, enough to vaccinate every single american. a year from now, i think that there will be significantly

fewer people having to be socially distanced, have to wear a mask, but we don't know. >> joining me now, nbc news chief white house correspondent and "weekend today" co-host welt well and jonathan ra mere from the associated press. the president moving the goal posts slightly on the vaccine roll outs to when shots will get into people's arms and also on school openings. explain. >> reporter: that's right, andrea. what we heard from president biden overnight, and you heard it in that sound bite that you just played, now the administration is eyeing summer for when everyone who wants a vaccine can get a vaccine. that is a shift, because remember, initially the president and dr. anthony fauci had pointed to the spring, towards april, and now they are saying, no, look, due to some of the holdups with manufacturing, we are going to push that time line back. in talking to administration officials this morning, they

stressed that that is the goal right now and it's going to depend not only on the manufacturing but on people's willingness to take the vaccine. the president talked about the fact that it's his hope that things would really start to look normal by next year, by christmas potentially, and, again, that's going to depend not just on the ability to distribute and manufacture the vaccine but the willingness of people to actually take the vaccine. schools also under a microscope, andrea, as you pointed out in the wake of the cdc releasing those guidelines for how schools should reopen including saying that teachers don't necessarily need to be vaccinated. on the "today" show this morning, savannah pressed vice president kamala harris repeatedly on this point, and the vice president said, look, it is their strong preference that teachers are one of the top spots of the list when it comes to getting vaccinated but they

acknowledge, yes, this is an imperfect science. an administration official said because they are relying on the science, some of these answers are not necessarily black and white. >> jonathan, let's talk hard politics, hardball, if you will, where you had donald trump's ferocious attack against his former ally mitch mcconnell, his first comment since mcconnell's scathing critique after the impeachment trial, former president just blasting the majority leader, now minority leader as a, quote, dour, sullen, unsmiling political hack and calling for mcconnell's ouster. where do we go from here? >> tell us how you really feel, donald trump. >> yeah. >> yes. this is sort of not surprising from the former president who of course was angered by minority leader mcconnell's condemnation on saturday at the end of the impeachment trial. let's remember, of course, mcconnell voted to aquit. but then afterwards he delivered

a powerful denunciation of the former president, very much blaming him for the violence, the riot that beseiged the capitol on january 6th. so it's certainly not like donald trump to slight like that go unpunished. it took him a couple day, and of course he doesn't have twitter, so it wasn't a twitter thread but rather an over 600-word statement that came out yesterday, which, again, lays squarely at the feet of mcconnell, some of the recent republican setbacks. mcconnell and those close to him feel the exact opposite. they feel it is donald trump who cost the republicans the majority by losing two seats in georgia in that runoff. but it sets up going forward, andrea, an interesting i do -- dichotomy. some are critical of mitch mcconnell for speaking so sharply about donald trump. other republicans voted to continue ticket him and seemed eager to turn the page. this is our first test, and there will be many, of what kind

of hold does trump indeed still have over the republican party going forward even now as he's out of office. >> kristen, last night president biden did everything he could to avoid saying the name donald trump, which is becoming a theme for his vice president as well and her interview with savannah. you referenced that interview. let's show this bit of it from the "today" show. >> do you think that president trump should be criminally charged? >> you know, right now, savannah, i'm focused on what we need to do to get relief to american families, and that is my highest priority, our administration's highest priority. >> you're a former prosecutor. is that a strong case against the president, a criminal case that mitch mcconnell had raised as a possibility? >> i haven't reviewed the case through the lens of being a prosecutor. >> kristen, so that was pretty clear that the vice president didn't want to talk about donald trump either. let me just also share with our viewers, anyone who didn't see

it, if you want to look for a contrast between the person known as the former president, the 45th president of the united states, and joe biden, the current president, this is his response to a second-grader who was with her mom and has been scared by covid, as so many children and adults are. this is how joe biden responded to her. >> well, first of all, honey, what's your first name? >> leila. >> leila. beautiful name. first of all, kids don't get the covid very often. it's unusual for that to happen. when things change, people get really worried and scared, but don't be scared, honey. don't be scared. you're going to be fine, and we're going to make sure mommy is fine too. >> kristen, what was the reaction in the room? i mean, there were a couple people he also said if you can, stay behind and i'll help you with your problem.

this was a classic joe biden town hall. >> it was, andrea. this is what we saw from candidate biden on the campaign trail, this ability to reach out and try to connect with people on a personal level. retail politics. and so we saw that on display last night in a few different moments. and you highlight that moment there that is getting so much attention, his message to that little girl not to be worried. the question becomes, andrea, again, when you take a step back in the broader context, what does happen when do some of these critical questions gets answered in terms of when schools can resume normally again. the president has said that he wants that to happen within the first 100 days, five days a week, not one day a week, which was stated last week by one of his top officials here. and when will life get back to normal. so it's those personal connections that come against the backdrop of these promises that i think people are going to be expecting to hold this

administration to, andrea. >> kristen welker, jonathan, thank you very much. breaking news. nbc news has confirmed that longtime radio talk show host rush limbaugh has died at the age of 70. he of course has been a fixture of conservative politics on the airwaves for decades, revolutionizing conservative radio later becoming a close public ally, defender of the former presidents. weeks after limbaugh's january 2020 lung cancer diagnosis, he was presented with the medal of freedom by mr. trump at his final state of the union address. his death was announced by his wife on his radio show this morning. here's geoff bennett with a look back. >> time for broadcast excellence. >> reporter: rush limbaugh was a broadcasting icon and a powerful and controversial voice in republican politics. >> i have a question for the democrats. when are you people going to get

tired of losing? >> reporter: his self-titled show was the most listened to radio talk show in america. >> i am rush limbaugh, america's real anchorman. >> reporter: by the time he was 8 years old, he set his sights on a career in radio, getting his start playing records on a toy radio in his bedroom. that enthusiasm and singular focus carried through his teens. he quit college to become a rock n roll dejay. after a few false starts he found opportunities in talk radio. he quickly drew a following in sacramento. the show's success earned him a national audience through syndication in 1988. the show quickly became known for its extreme conservative slant and limbaugh's at times racist and bigoted commentary. >> we need seg regalted buses. it's obama's america. the nfl all too often looks like a game between the bloods and the cripps without any weapons. there. i said it. look, there is no question we're

being invaded by immigration, illegal immigration. america is still not ready to elect a papa gueye kissing his husband on the debate stage. >> a king maker in conservative politics, limbaugh was a staunch ally of president trump's. >> good times, bad times, he doesn't waver because he's tough as hell. >> reporter: mr. trump rewarding limbaugh's loyalty by bestowing the presidential medal of freedom during his state of the union peach, limbaugh visibly emotional, having announced his diagnosis of lung cannes err day earlier. >> so i have to tell you something today, but i wish i didn't have to tell you. i have been diagnosed with advanced lung cancer. >> reporter: limbaugh had beaten other health challenges, losing his hearing in 2000, before getting cochlear implants. later missing his show when he sought treatment for an addiction to prescription painkillers. >> my goal was to be the most

listened-to show, biggest radio show in the country. >> reporter: rush limbaugh, always brash, bold, powerful, and polarizing. geoff bennett, nbc news, washington. liberty mutual customizes- wait... am i in one of those liberty mutual commercials where they stand in front of the statue of liberty and talk about how liberty mutual customizes your car insurance so you only pay for what you need? uhhh... yes. huh... what happens in this one? seagulls. oh, i like it. how are you doing? (seagulls sounds) only pay for what you need. ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty. ♪

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the biden administration has begun shipping vaccine doses directly to community health centers ato cross the country trying to address the gap between rich and poor in access to vaccines as communities of color are fighting enormous disparities in vaccine distribution, exacerbated by centuries of justifiable mistrust of black people in our health care system. zeke emmanuel serveeds on president biden's covid advisory board during the transition. and dr. chris purnell in the city of new york who took part in the moderna vaccine trial after losing several family members to covid. dr. purnell, two months since we talked to you. two vaccines, millions vaccinated. how has that worked as far as what you're seeing in your community in terms of vaccine doses and people being willing to take the vaccine?

>> it's welcome news, andrea. we won't skirt around the issue or deny that there are those being historically aware of those injustices and ongoing discrimination that aren't quite ready or willing to get vaccinated. but i'm more encouraged by those who are saying yes, i'm stepping up, i'm signing up. i want to get my many vaccine. i'm even further encouraged by what we're seeing in national polls among blacks and latinos. there are considerable amounts of folks who are what we call the wait-and-see category. so they're not a definitive no, but they're impressionable, meaning if we meet their information needs, if we meet their access and logistical needs, then those persons will be able to make progress along their decision journey. >> and the biden administration has just announced today new steps to try to get more vaccines to people. looking at my notes from the briefing, the federal government is going to invest $1.6 billion to expand and improve covid

testing in three areas, expanding testing in schools, in underserved populations, boosting manufacturing of testing supplies, investing in virus genome sequencing. i want to talk to you about dr. zeke about that, but what do you hope to see in your community from those changes today announced by jeff zients and the team? >> this is all encouraging news. what we need to see in these communities that have been hardest hit like new york, new jersey, and other areas we need to see access to testing, ppe, and to vaccination. we're going to beat back this pandemic and we need a full-throttled public health response. that had been lacking for so many years in this nation. what our black and brown communities who have disproportionately learned is a sense of empathy, of focus, and a sense of attention.

we know we haven't solved all of our problems, but these are more concise, steps in the right direction. and we can't let up. i just want to emphasize that, andrea. as we begin to see this, we cannot let up because the moment we let up we give the virus, give the pandemic an opportunity to surge forward. so it's hopeful, but i'm remaining vigilant as are folks in my community. >> of course. dr. zeke, you've been harping on this failure to do genomic testing so we don't know where the variants are, no way of tracking them compared to other countries. it mimics the failure of testing by the trump administration. how can the biden administration catch up on genome sequencing? >> this is a good announcement, but i think it's not a full announcement. we're doing about 4,000 genomic

tests per week. we're supposed to go up to 7,000 by the end of next week, and this investment of $200 million is supposed to take us to 25,000, but most public health experts believe we need to be closer to 50,000, so we have a big distance to go to monitor the variants and begin to rapidly assess whether they're resistant to drugs, monocoe nal antiboies and how they're reacting to the vaccines. there's still a long way to go, and that should be high on the top of the list that otherwise we're flying blind. we don't know what's out there or if it's resistant to the vaccines, and that's really dangerous. >> dr. emanuel, i want to ask you a viewer question from twitter. is the vaccine less effective for people over 65, and if so, what is the lower effectiveness number if it's less effective and how do you plan to do that

if at all? >> well, we don't have great data on people over 75. there was some disagreement on the advisory group about those people. the evidence is they do generate some antibodies and if you're offered a vaccine, you should take a vaccine, and you should definitely boost it up, boost up the immunity in the community. we all need to take a vaccine when we're offered it. again, echoing what was said, i think it's really important people see that it's not causing big side effects, people are getting it, not seeing a lot of allergic reactions, and that's reassuring to people. when they know someone who's gotten the vaccine and it's gone well, even if they get, you know, a day of feeling a little under the weather when they get their second dose, that's really going to encourage people to get

the vaccine themselves, who was referred to as the wait-and-see group really important to convince them to get the vaccine. we need to spread it out. but we also should remember there are millions of people waiting. there are teachers waiting. there are people in some states that are not doing the 65-year-olds and older. we really have to get as many vaccines out as possible. we're at 1.6 million, 1.7 million today, and we need to ramp that up to 3 million soon to get ahead of the variants that are much more contagious and appear to be more deadly. >> exactly. it's a footrace with the variants. thank you so much, dr. chris purnell and dr. zeke emanuel. thanks so both. if you need help figuring out when and where to get your covid vaccine, our interactive and personalized state-by-state guide has everything you need. visit planyourvaccine.com or

scan the qr code to be taken to the site. president biden's nearly $2 trillion covid relief proposal is getting pushback from republicans in congress. they say it is far too expensive and they're opposing state and local aid. but the biden plan is getting the backing of some republicans at the state level, including the mayor of fresno, california, jerry dyer, dealing with high unemployment and homelessness and may have to lay off police and firefighters without that state aid. joining us now, mayor jerry dyer. mayor, talk to me about your city, your budget, the shortfall, what's going to happen if state and local aid is not in the final package? >> well, unfortunately, whenever you close businesses, financial loss to the government, in depress know, losses, reduction in traveling, and so that impact is resulting in upwards of a $31 million revenue shortfall for us

in our city. we're at least not being able to balance the budget. certainly, we do not want to lay off police officers and firefighters. that would be a last resort. but the reality is we have to balance the budget. and that's one of the reasons that i can support this relief plan by the biden administration. you just can't close business without a financial loss. so that lost revenue, the rental assistance program, housing the homeless, utilities, small business brands, businesses have been very impacted in our community. reopening those schools and the dissemination of the vaccine, all of those things outlined in this relief plan are critical to local governments. and that's what this is about, helping local governments get that helping hand in the next 18 months. >> and we should point out you're a former police chief. you know exactly what you're talking about when we talk about

first responders, how police and fire have to be taken care of. you're republican, so what do you say to republican members of congress who are arguing that $2 trillion is just too much money? >> well, i spent 18 years as a police chief here in fresno and 40 years in the department, so i understand the importance of public safety. and what i would share with all of those republicans and democrats alike, that this is not a party issue. it is a people issue. i was elected in the city of fresno as mayor not to represent a party but to represent the people, the people of fresno. and whether you're republican or democrat, we represent all the people within our corresponding jurisdiction. and there are people out there that are hurting. there are people who for the first too many have lost their job, for the first time standing in food lines, for the first time are facing evictions from their homes. these people need help. and our responsibility as

elected officials is to get them the help that they need and to make their lives a little bit more enjoyable within that community. so that's what i'm trying to do. i'm trying to set aside partisan politics and support what i believe to be important. >> we appreciate the update from you. stay in touch. fresno, california's mayor jerry dyer, former police chief and member of the force. thanks so much to you. >> thank you. we have a david and goliath story. how a group of women formed a fighting force to take on isis. the daughters of cavani showing us how to find courage in the chaos of war. an extraordinary saga. stay with us. but, um, look around. these days it's not that easy. you're telling me. but humana helps make it easy. human care gives you tons of ways to talk to your doctor: phone, computer, in person, or tablet. hey jean!

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story of kurdish women in syria who took on isis and won. women who defied their own culture becoming commanders of an elite fighting unit to take on a terrorist group who had been kidnapping and raping women. at the same time they were promoting women's rights and social change, making a lasting difference if their country. joining me is the author of the book, a senior fellow with the council on foreign relations. her new book is called "the daughters of kobani." congratulations. your book is compelling. so full disclosure, we are friends. i'm proud to call you a friend. but i am just in awe of what you have established. i've known over the years your multiple trips into the fighting zone, into this combat zone where most people, most journalists would be afraid to go. how did you hear about the women fighters? tell us the back story of how you got involved.

>> thank you so much. i'm so glad to be here. i remember you telling the admiral to convince me not to go to syria. this story happened when one of the soldiers from ashley's war, which is a book i wrote about an all-women's special operations team, syria and she said you have to come see this. there's women leading in the fight against isis. it's not just that they are leading in battle. they have the full respect of the men they serve alongside and huge, deep respect from the u.s. special operation soldiers alongside whom they were working and part of this training effort. i think that whole question of how did this experiment in women's equality come to be on the ashes of the isis fight and who were these women? who fought for the islamic state room by room and town by town? not just for the united states but for the entire world. they took on stopping isis. i had to learn more.

>> these are woman who faced losing their villages or kidnapped themselves. >> they all had really interesting credible stories. i think, truly, like so many of the women who are watching today, they were going to be doctors or pharmacists and war came and changed the entire face of what their lived experience would be. she loved brazilian soccer and always was trying to play soccer. when she was a little girl, her uncle dressed up as a ghost to discourage her from playing soccer because that's not what girls were supposed to do. we follow her on this journey to lead not just in battle, which is the first time isis has handed a battlefield loss but to serve as america's partner when it came to trying to get isis out of its capital. sochl folks from the american side who worked with her wrote

me just last niet and said i'm so thankful that you're telling this story of these incredible women. that's their journey. leads the liberation of her hometown from isis. it's the humanity amid the inhumanity that i wanted readers to see and get to know. >> what has happened to the women since, especially since the american withdrawal? >> well, this is the question. the question now is this about america's national security. this is partner who lost 10,000 people in fight against the islamic state. who took back the caliphates physical territory so it would be much harder to launch attacks

in the united states. we follow in the daughters, their stories up to this moment where it really does hang in the balance. we'll see which way this goes going forward. >> when we talk about the true heroes here. one is three teams on her life. talk to us about how she survived? >> every one of us have someone in our family who will never take no for an answer, a daughter, a sister, a friend. isis shot her. they later tried to blow her up and the thing she says always is i will not let them win. i think what was fascinating to me is they said two things. one is you cannot allow a world in which men buy and sell women. you cannot allow that to stand. the second thing that struck me was their humanity. she's right in the middle of the interview, she said in the

middle of the fight with isis, her sister called her on the phone and she thought it was her commander and she starts yelling at her sister saying come on. i told you i would call you as soon as the fight is over. can't you give me a second. i promise. we're trying the fight isis here. we all had that moment where our lives collide and our worlds collide. only this was the most extreme version of women who really were building a future that looked different for the next generation of girls and boys. >> in syria, can these women have any measure of equality such as they didn't have now that they have proven they can take on isis when they go back to their villages, can they still have some measure of equality? >> it's such a great question.

the military piece was only a means to an end for the governing piece. she, her mother was illiterate. never got to go to school and said don't let your life be like mine. women can lead in war then they must govrp come peacetime. i think that is the thing that is so striking. the word women is 13 times found in their founding documents. women are co-heads of the towns they took back from isis. women are having civil councils that are representing what women are doing. i think it's that whole spirit of putting women right at the heart of the story, of the politics and of the war that is their aim. not just for them but for the next generation. >> you can the run that can't take no for an answer in large circle of friends.

congratulations. can't wait for the movie. this has optioned already. thank you. >> thank you so much. >> that does it for this edition of andrea mitchell reports. here is the qr code that will take you to plan your vaccine.com. our interactive and personal state by state guide. everything you need. follow us online on facebook and on twitter. we'll be back tomorrow. chuck todd is up next only right here on msnbc. s up next only rit here on msnbc. ♪ irresistibly delicious. ♪ ♪ pour some almond breeze. ♪ ♪ for the maestros of the creamiest-ever, ♪ ♪ must-have smoothies. ♪ ♪ it's irresistibly delicious.♪

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welcome to wednesday. it's "meet the press daily." we're minutes from the start of today's daily white house briefing. it was delayed about a half hour. it should start any moment. the administration is having a collision of cat troughics. it's left many many texas without heat and electricity.