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it is great to be with you. i'm geoff bennett, and we are following multiple breaking stories as we come on the air. at any moment pentagon officials are to speak after we woke up to a surprise, all of the u.s. troops have left bagram, the last active military base to be used in afghanistan, and few hundred troops in kabul, and we will bring you the headlines of the pentagon briefing as we get them. meantime, incredible heartache of the scene where i was standing 24 hours ago. overnight, the officials say that searchers in surfside, florida, made a heart wrenching discovery. >> last night we did discover two additional victims. tragically, one of the victims was the 7-year-old daughter of a city of miami firefighter.

and it goes without saying that every night since this last wednesday has been immensely difficult for everybody, and in particular the families that have been impacted, but last night was uniquely different, it was truly different and more difficult for our first responders. >> she was just 7 years old. "the miami herald" is reporting that her father was there at the site supporting the recovery effort, but not actively digging. the firefighter and his brother, another firefighter have kept a vigil since tonight of the collapse staying at the site every day, and 200 officers saluted as the girl was carried out. a search and rescue team continues to dig with the fears that the part of the remaining tower may collapse, and they may be facing another danger. >> it is possible that this area

could see tropical storm force winds. you could potentially have an event with the building as well there. are going to be some impacts in florida, you know, at some point starting as early as sunday night. >> joining us now are nbc news correspondent sam brock in surfside, florida, and nbc news msnbc bill karins, and sam, starting with you, this is heartbreak on top of heartbreak, and the emotional toll, and tell us about that, and the contingency plan of this storm. >> geoff, it is a 7-year-old child and it comes on the heels of search and rescue crews discovered a 4 and 10-year-old child, and so within the span of 48 hours, three kids 10 or under discovered in that rubble, and as you said, geoff, in this particular incident, it is a miami firefighter who was

standing vigil with his brother who is also a firefighter according to "the miami herald" for nine days now, until this moment when that 7-year-old was discovered early friday morning from what we are told, and there were columns of first responders standing right there, geoff, blocking off the view for a moment of privacy and a salute from hundreds of rescue workers here, and understanding the toll it is going to take, and i don't care who you are speaking with in miami, if it is a first responders or someone who you know or your friend's friend or relatives and everybody seems to have some connection to this building, and now in the 128 people unaccounted for, and that is an adjustment geoff, that we found out about this morning and the death toll now down to 128, and the reason behind that is that the miami-dade mayor saying audits done, and missing people, and some of the relatives they were not sure whether or not they were alive or accounted for have been confirmed alive. so that is a sliver of good news in all of this, but you have to

imagine, and put yourselves in the shoes of the brave men and women in an unstable sur searching for loved ones and sifting through the remains and deeply personal for that firefighter. i am going to get into the impact of the storm in a second, but first, let's hear from the fire chief here about psychologically what these men and women are going through, and this is what he had to say. >> obviously the firefighters are emotional. you know, i won't disclose anything, and we are in respect for the family, but, you know, it takes a toll. it takes a toll. and in regards to keep going, it is how we evaluate what we look for, and certain aspects, so, you know, we know we have several individuals missing, and that is kind of the primary focus. >> reporter: they have at varying points, geoff, and you have observed this firsthand, they have at varying points,

stop, hug, cry, and they are human as well, and going through the same trauma that everybody else is going through right here, and with respect to the storm, we found out from fema today they have contingency plans with tropical storm elsa if it hits south florida or a glancing blow or if it misses altogether, and different scenarios for all of the scenarios, and they will be making a decision tomorrow evening, and if you are talking about 50 to 60-mile-an-hour sustained winds projected, and i will leave it to bill for the latest information there, and it could do havoc for debris field, and the building and the structural stability knowing that they have had issues to pause the search and rescue efforts, because it is so unsafe. so they are trying to figure it out and a lightning strike within 2 1/2 miles here, the crews have to stop immediately and wait at least 30 minutes to resume activity, and imagine, if you know that there is a 15-hour

or so suspension, and that there is a strong possibility that they will be stopped again as elsa comes through. geoff, back to you. >> and yesterday, i spoke off camera to the mayor of surfside and active discussions about demolishing the remaining camera about the concerns of the integrity of that building and the concerns that the remaining tower would not withstand the storm, and have officials said anything about that storm? >> they have mentioned the fact that it is a matter of weeks and not days before they can demolish that building, and in a perfect world they would tear it down here, and however, it is not logistically feasible, and we had logistical discussions about that, and the pressure points of how they will detonate and perform this controlled demolition, and it cannot be done overnight, and as much as they have inherent threats in that building, they cannot plan out all of the details of that

planned demolition to carry it through, and however they are going to close that out, fema said the last asset on the ground is the men and women pulled away, and the first that comes back in the event they have to stop because of the storm. >> so, bill, given everything that sam laid out there, the give us a sense of where this storm is headed. >> well, the storm, itself, i mean, this sunshine state is right in the way, and looking at the building in the pictures that you were showing, and you know, the thing that we worried most with the hurricanes and the tropical storms were projectiles and objects being blown and hitting people. if you are looking at the side of the building and all of the stuff that is remaining and all of the apartment buildings, you can imaine that all of the objects could blow and fly away, and talking about the people within a block radius would have to be, and i don't know if you would have to evacuate or shelter in place in the storm,

and brings up a whole slew of problems besides the rescue effort, and besides, you know, trying to dig through the rubble, and the additional weight that the water is going to do also, so let me get into the forecast to brief everybody about what we are talking about. this morning it became a hurricane. it was a tropical storm yesterday, and hurricane today. it went through the winward islands and it is a fast. it is flying. the fast moving storms can't get stronger, so we don't believe it is a category 3 or 4, or anything crazy like that. so it is a strong tropical storm or cat 1 hurricane, and pass safely past puerto rico and cuba and haiti as we go into sunday. cuba has a lot of tall mountains and if it is left of havana, it is flatter there, and the storm could be stronger when it gets to florida or the panhandle, but if it is right of the forecast

cone, and goes over the length of cuba, it is a weaker storm going to miami or the surfside area where we showeded you the pictures. notice the intensity. right now, they are saying strong tropical storm from fort myers to miami and that is where the projectile items that are loose, would not do as much damage, but obviously different in surfside, but where the computer models are, it is all over florida, and we are four or five days away, and earlier to pinpoint that, and one thing that sam mentioned is the lightning strikes, and we call it any time, and this is lightning season, and you will get the daily thunderstorms, jeff, and every afternoon, we will get the lightning within the 2 1/2-mile radius, and there will be delays. >> bill karins and sam brock, and we wish the best for the families there in surfside,

florida. meanwhile, we are monitoring the pentagon briefing which is coming after the u.s. military quietly left the largest base in afghanistan last night, and the withdrawal from the bagram military base is going to leave the military operations, and it is coming weeks before the withdrawal deadline set by president biden and a deadline that president biden defended earlier today. >> look, we were in that war for 20 years. 20 years. and i think that i met with the afghan government here in the white house in the oval, and they have the capacity to sustain the government. >> our pentagon correspondent richard engel has the latest. >> reporter: with the troops clearing out of bagram without celebrations or fanfare, and the u.s. is shutting down the longest war extremely quietly and not announcing how or when the troops are leaving for their

safety. this is not a victory lap, but a stealth move out of the door after 20 years. when osama bin laden masterminded from afghanistan, the u.s. invade and within weeks overthrew the taliban who had been protecting him. starting off small, the war dragged on and grew. more than 750,000 american troops rotated through. 2,042 died here. but afghan security troops are collapsing to a resurgent taliban and the propaganda channel shows that afghan soldiers and police are turning themselves in, and handing over the small base, and the taliban giving them pocket money for transportation home, demoralizing.

the american general tasked with shutting down this war is not painting a rosey picture. >> they have gained some of those back in certain parts of the country. >> the return of the taliban would be catastrophic for millions of afghan women. when the taliban were in power, they banned the women from going to school, and declaring it unislamic, and they were whip and stoned for crimes like adultery. under u.s. protection, a generation of women flooded the schools and the workplace, and they are fearing returning to the middle ages. >> richard engel joins us live from kabul. richard, a line in the reports that stuck with me talking about the u.s. military that this is not a not a victory lap, but a stealth move out of the door, and what is the reaction to the stealth withdrawal from bagram? >> it is understandable on one

level, because the taliban is very capable, and they are still here, and they have warned the americans that if they don't leave, that they will be attacked. so the americans do not want to leave under fire and have the image seen around the world of americans leaving this country helicopter or something like that. but, doing it the way they are doing it so quietly and so far away from the cameras has left many afghans uncertain about what is to come, and their american protectors are leaving in the dead of night without so much as saying good-bye, and they are wondering if they have american support going forward if this is how they are leaving and many afghans here in kabul which saw tremendous changes over the last 20 years, and some of the countryside culturally didn't change as much, but this city changed dramatically, and there is a coffee culture here. i was at a coffee earlier today, and i had a fantastic

cappuccino, and the young people on laptop computers and this is not the same as when the taliban were here 20 years ago and the people don't want to go back to that way of life, and particularly the women and girls, but across the spectrum of the population in this city. >> nbc's richard engel, and thank you as always for your fantastic reporting. >> as always with us is nbc white house reporter sharon pennypiece, and what this means for the taliban of instituting a gender apartheid that women are rightfully terrified right now in afghanistan. what is the administration planning to do about that? >> even the administration in the top general in afghanistan has raised the possibility of a civil war, and really a chaotic situation that could unfold after the u.s. pulls out. my colleagues and i have been repeatedly asking the white

house what they will do if that happens, and we have repeatedly been hearing from the press secretary jen psaki this reiteration that it is time to end the war, and they have made a clear-eyed assessment of what is happening on the ground and what that means, and they are aware of the different scenarios out there, and nonetheless though, the president has made the decision that is it in america's best interests and the priority for him is america's best interests, and that best interest is for u.s. troops to start leaving by the end of august is the time line that they have committed to, but of course, the administration says they are providing some support, and security support, and nonmilitary support through other channels, and trying to emphasize that they will be there, but again, not backing down at all on this time line despite the very difficult scene that you can see that richard is describing on the ground there. >> yeah, nbc's shannon

pettypiece, and we will bring you any briefings that happen. and the trump org indictments, and what political jeopardy that could bring for> r than expected, and are businesses still worried about workers. and a track sensation is suspended for one month for testing positive for marijuana. we will talk about her american dream. her american dream. only pay for what you need. ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty. ♪

there's just no legal defense for it. that is what one top tax expert is telling nbc news about the charges against the trump organization and allen weisselberg. they say that they have laid out a strong case, but a number of questions to remain. lucky for us we have nbc

correspondent tom winter and nbc correspondent betsy swan, and former chief district attorney for manhattan tom alonso. and now you have had 24 hours to digest the indictment, and what sticks out to you? >> well, we continue to come through it for a few clues of how the trump organization works, but the overall sense of it has not changed much, geoff. one thing that sticks out to me, you were citing a story done by one of our colleagues darren and gretchen, of what the legal experts were saying about the indictment, and what they have keyed on in here, when you are reading between the lines, it is clear that the 15 counts, and you are looking at some of them on the screen right now relating to the trump organization is that the 15 counts are bolstered by what is a significant amount of evidence and documentary evidence, and what it shows is that not only it occurred, but speaks to intent.

so one of the things that the legal experts have told us is that it speaks to when you have documents show that there are different ledgers and documents the show who the checks were written by allegedly in some instances by allen weisselberg himself, and that they were clearly knew what they were doing, and wanted to do this in this there is this idea of off of the books payments that were not properly documented, income taxes that were not properly paid, and it is not illegal, and not illegal for the trump organization to say, allen weisselberg, we will pay for your apartment or car or tuition, but all of it has to be properly accounted for in the appropriate taxes that need to be paid. so i think that is the key take away from this, and this case in and of itself appears to be quite strong, and the question and what everybody is debating in legal circles for the last 24 hours or so, is that if it is enough to go further in the

trump organization, and if there are more crimes there, and also, jeff, what happened in the lead-up to this in the fight over the president's taxes that ultimately the manhattan district attorney's office was able to prevail in bank fraud and insurance fraud and that type of thing, and that what we will continue to ask questions about. >> so daniel, the question to you, enough in this case to move forward and another question, is trump and weisselberg's lawyers are saying that these kinds of cases are rarely brought, and garden variety crimes that are rarely prosecuted and what is your take? >> well, that last point is really kind of hard to take, right? i mean, people are prosecuted everyday for tax evasion, tax fraud and in state and federal courts, and companies are prosecuted everyday including small companies, so, the idea that somehow these, this 15-year scheme of paying part of his salary off of the books, really, ultimately, it is part of his

$940,000 is coming in the form of this in-kind compensation is no different conceptually if they had handed him a bag of cash. so obviously, you have to pay taxes on this, and the idea that, oh, we have never had a case exactly like this with, you know, the fringe benefits financed by the taxpayers, fine, but the fraud cases as defense attorneys know come in every shape and size and limited by human ingenuity, and that is a silly proposition that i reject, and it is not a defense and they know it is not a defense in court. another thing they will say is that interestingly, if you are a ceo of a company, and it gets accused of these things, maybe you will say, okay, we are looking forward to, you know, dealing with these things in court, but there is a lot of granular specifics as tom said, and some things about the ledgers have been falsified and you would think that the ceo would say, we will get to the bottom of the this, and reassure our partners and lenders, et

cetera, but that is not what we are hearing from the former ceo of this company. so that is really just telling me a lot. this is a strong case that a lot of detail, and a lot of evidence. so, i have no -- i have no reason to believe that they can't prove this up. as for the broader case that you asked about, they said it, you know, specifically in court, they are still investigating it, but we don't know what they are going to be able to find, but they will be doing that for a while. >> betsy, what about the concern within trump world of the damage that the charges could do not only to trump's business, but his own personal bottom line here? >> well, certainly something where the bottom line could face some challenges due to this indictment simply the simple indictment of a company, regardless of whether a jury ultimately finds it innocent or guilty can in some cases create immediate financial problems for that company. in the case of the trump

organization, there have been reports that the organization's debtload is as much as $1 billion according to forbes. many of the loans that lenders make to organizations like the trump organization include provisions saying that if the borrower is indicted, the lender can demand payment on those loans, and we don't know if provisions are in all of the outstanding loans that the trump organization owes or if the lenders would necessarily move to enforce the provisions, but it is certainly something that would make senior trump org executives and the former president himself a little bit uncomfortable. another possible challenge down the road if the company is found guilty that, i can lose their liquor license if they are found guilty of moral turpitude if they are found guilty of this fraud or larceny that would fit in that category.

if the trump organization were to lose the liquor license, some would find those resorts and other properties less appealing, and maybe it is small arcane thing, but for a business that is so deeply ingrained in the hospitality industry, that could produce some real logistical challenges. >> and betty, and daniel and tom, thank you to the three of you. so this weekend, americans are going to be hitting the road in record-breaking numbers. also, gas prices are at the highest in seven years. and one of the biggest draws in vegas is back, and we will go behind the scenes of the first cirque du soleil show since the pandemic hit. >> the excitement is unbelievable. after a nightmare, here we are in state of joy and celebration and that is how i feel.

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we have now created over 3 million jobs since i have took

office and more jobs than any presidency in modern history than knocks the work of the team. >> president biden took a victory lap following a better than expected jobs report. they added 850,000 jobs in the month of june while the unemployment rate rose to 5.9%. joining us from the long island shore is nbc's business correspondent stephanie ruhle, and break down the numbers for us. are the new hires keeping pace with the reopening of the economy? >> listen, it is very good news. the president is right, we are on a positive trajectory, and covid is moving behind us, and we are moving forward, however, when you see that people say that this is the fastest that we have seen, and historic, you have to put it in perspective, geoff. last year, we were in the

seventh ring of hell, but as the company is being reopening, and people are vaccinate and people are going back to work, and it is encouraging to see the wages up. so we have been talking about the fears and we would not reopen, and workers would not come back, and customers are not coming back, and now we may have a triple-win. workers are reaping the benefits of getting the pay increases and perks, and the businesses have seen the demand up in a big way, and for customers, we are back out there doing business and spending money, and that is win across the board, but still many, many open jobs across the country, and depending who you speak to, it is the expanded unemployment, and people don't want to go to work or we are seeing more and more people not stay home, but shift into the better and higher-paying jobs which is a good thing, and actually seeing the teen employment hit a 10-year high which means that the teens are filling a lot more of those lower-skilled low-wage jobs which is essentially, geoff,

designed for young people. >> and let's talk about the wages again, because the president said today, instead of the workers competing for the jobs that are scarce, employers are competing with each other for workers. i drove by a taco bell where the starting hourly wage is $15 which is great for retail workers, but how long is that is going to last do you think? >> well, it depends. we have needed the wages to increase for some time now, but the way that the capitalism is working for year, it is for executives or shareholders and the labor force didn't have the power. the way that you get the wages to go up is to say, i will not do this job. if people are forced into the low-wage jobs, and there are no other jobs out, there then the employer can say, i don't have to pay you much or offer you much, but the employers have to offer more to get the workers on the job, and the debate of a few months ago about raising the minimum wage in many place, you don't have to raise it, because it is happening on its own.

>> nbc's stephanie ruhle, enjoy the summer friday, you and your family. the july 4th holiday weekend is under way, and likely to set a record for travel. more than 43 million americans are hitting the road, but before you fill up the tank, take note, it is going to cost you more and a lot more. the gas prices are the highest in seven years. joining us from long island is our friend nbc's yasmin. and what should the drivers expect when they pull up to the pump this weekend? >> to spend a lot of money. i was talking to this guy right here who was at the pump, and he had gotten a new suburban like three or four days ago, and his sleeping son in back seat who was woken up by me when i asked to interview him, and he rank up $75, and i asked about the happy for the sur ban, and he said, yeah, we planned for it. but the average for the nation

is 3.17, and that is the highest in seven years. and you ask why, and it is a confluence, because the opec countries having a set amount to export, and shortage of gas at the gas stations, and simple demand issue, because they did not anticipate the demand for crude across the country of people driving. so i talked to people lined ahead of the congestion, and this is what they had to say. >> to beat the traffic. i know that i am going to hit some going my way, and so, i would rather have traffic at 7:00 a.m. than 10:00 p.m. >> people are opening up more, and more things do, and so it is a big 4th of july weekend. and i am seeing traffic picking

up all over the place. >> reporter: 48 million people are traveling this weekend and 90% of those are in cars, and what do cars need to get from a-to-b? gas. my advice if you have not gotten out early, get out early, and leave now, or leave out late at night to throw the kids in the car to get to the destination. >> and yasmin is hanging out at a 7-eleven on long island and good to see you as always. >> as always. >> oh, boy. still ahead, covid cases are on the rise. and again, more warnings about the delta variant in all 50 cases. and curtain up. we will go inside of the cirque du soleil's first performance since the pandemic. rst perform since the pandemic.

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look for the ecolab science certified seal. a covid delta variant is now in all 50 states and causing the coronavirus cases to rise in the u.s. the cases of the virus climbed 10% over the last week, the situation is growing particularly dire in the ozark states of oklahoma and arkansas where it is spreading quickly. according to my next guest, these three states are seeing the fastest growing seven-day cases in the u.s. and now joining us is the

vaccine specialist from children's hospital. and now, do you think that there is another surge of the coronavirus because of this variant? >> yes, geoff. that is the perfect storm of the delta in places like missouri, and 46% of the virus isolets are in the delta variant in missouri and arkansas and elsewhere, and then you have the low vaccination rate and the perfect storm where you will start to see the outbreaks, and we are seeing it in southern missouri, and the icus are filling nup southwestern missouri and starting to see it going into louisiana and elsewhere in the south. so, aim worried that we could see something resembling a surge like last summer after the july 4th holiday. >> for people who are inclined to get the vaccine, i want to ask you about a breast practice, because germany is going so far

to recommend that people combine the astrazeneca with the fizer or the moderna shot to combat the delta variant, and what do you make of the data of the mixing and the matching of the vaccine? >> well, we don't have the same pressures in the united states, because we have the abundance of the mrna vaccines of moderna and pfizer and biontech, and there was recent data released that the johnson & johnson is very good brand-new information that just came out, and though it is small number ps of individuals and only 20 individuals, and so hopefully we will get some clarification, and so we don't have the same pressures of the mixing and matching like in europe, but the key is now is the time to get vaccinated, because it is going to take you five to six weeks if you get the first dose of pfizer or moderna tomorrow. so now is the time to do pit, and don't wait for when we are in the middle of the surge this

summer. >> and i keep thinking about the people who can't get vaccinated. the kids under the age of 12. what kind of threat is the delta variant pose to them? >> it depends where you are. so if you are in the northeast where the vaccination rates are high, and i don't think that the transmission is going to pick up, but in the south central u.s., and especially in missouri, and now we are starting to see it a little bit in wyoming and utah and colorado in the west. if there is a lot of transmission, that means it is hard for you the bring your unvaccinated little kids into stores and restaurants, and so this is going to affect the quality of life for all americans this summer, and we don't want this to continue into the fall school year. >> is it safe to fly, dr. hotez, even if they wear masks with this new variant? >> the airlines are good about getting everybody masked up on the airplane, but there is, and it depends upon how much

transmission picks up, and depending what airport you are flying out of, and so all of those things have to be taken into consideration. so this requires a lot of situational awareness on the part of the american people to know the level of transmission in the community, and listening to your local public health authorities and you can provide more granularity of how much transmission there is. >> dr. peter hotez, thank you. >> thank you. and now, an olympian who qualified and now what sha'carri johnson is saying about testing positive for marijuana. ve for . ♪ that's why we'll stop at nothing

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covid has done a number on the tourism industry, but las vegas is starting to look like its old self again. they proerted nearly 3 million visitors in june and that number is expected to increase with the first holiday weekend around the corner and the casinos are operating at 100% capacity, and another major portion of the strip is also in full force, the cirque du soleil with the first

night of the bellagio's o-theater, and joining is nbc's and this is a cool story about these performers returning to the stage. >> it is a huge moment, and last night dozens of performers returned to the stage, geoff, for the first time after 15 months of being away for the production of "o" which is a set of 14.5 million gallons of water, and last night, it was before a sellout crowd, and preceded by a parade and followed by a total party. take a listen. >> it felt like we are home. it felt amazing. aim happy to be back, and happy to have the audience back, and so, yeah, now we have 10 million more. >> as soon as we came on and heard the scream from the audience, i mean, there is

nothing like it. i got a little bit emotional. it is awesome. >> we are back. we are back! we are back! we are back! >> reporter: you can their excitement there. it was a relaunch that many of these artists didn't think possible, especially considering the impact covid-19 has had on cirque du soleil. they had to lay out 90% of their performers and shut down all 44 productions worldwide. revenues dropped to zero. they actually filed for bankruptcy protection last june. however, thanks to the resilience and passion of these performers, according to officials that we've been speaking to, in addition to investment that has come in, they have been able to have this relaunch and hiring back 95% of their performers. so, they're seeing this as a real achievement. a lot of optimism.

however, here in nevada, covid-19 remains a concern. the case numbers are going up. it has one of the lowest vaccination rates in the country. officials say they're watching those numbers extremely closely. getting those daily reports. right now masks are not require performances and that said, there is still a lot of excitement and optimism going forward. geoff. >> vegas isn't vegas without cirque du soleil. erin, thank you for that incredible reporting. following a stunning development ahead of the tokyo olympics. track and field star sha'carri richardson tested positive. the positive drug test that came after she secured her place on team usa means the sprinter will not compete in her signature event, the 100-meter dash. still unclear if she'll be eligible for the relays which are scheduled for after her suspension ends.

the 21-year-old texan established herself as a gold medal contender by winning the 100 meters in 10.68 seconds during the qualifiers last month making her the fastest woman in america. she became an overnight icon for leaving her competitors in the dust with her bright hair, long lashes and bedazzled fingernails and her determined search through the stands to embrace her grandmother who raised her afterward. this morning richardson spoke to nbc's savannah guthrie. >> i want to apologize for my actions. i know what i did and i know what i'm supposed to do. i'm allowed not to do and i still made that decision. i have plenty of games left in me to compete in and i have plenty of time that backs me up because everything i have comes to me naturally. no steroidsteroid, no nothing. after my sanction is up, i will be back and able to compete.

>> joining us now is contributing writer for "the atlantic" jamal hill. really appreciate you joining us on this. i tell you what, my heart breaks for sha'carri because she appears to have this immense talent where it appears her support system can't fully sustain her. she said on "today" show that she learned from a reporter that her biological mother had died and to cope with that she ingested this marijuana. and there was nobody around her really to say, no, that's not a good idea. don't do that. what's your take on all this? >> yeah, it is really heartbreaking because people have to understand that, you know, the olympics because of their cycle, they come around every four years, the amount of time in between olympic cycles just how much energy and commitment is required to be at the very top of your sport, which worked. to get to this moment that she has been waiting for her entire life. on the other hand, i think we need to shift the conversation a

little bit and talk about whether or not these rules are really reflective of what's happening in society today. i mean, the fact is, marijuana is rapidly becoming legalized all across the country. it is legal in the state in which she tested positive and not to mention, when we have conversations about mental health, particularly with athletes, we understand now what they're dealing with and just their personal life and also the pressure in their sport. to be honest, given what this young lady was dealing with between the death of her mother, having such high stake from a competitive standpoint. we need to be happy all she did was smoke weed. >> about that because people have been bringing up the compaison to ryan lochte where he vandalized a bathroom and lied about it and created a cover story that caused an international uproar and he was on "dancing with the stars" and

"celebrity big brother" and his own tv show. the idea that empathy and grace is reserved for a select view. what's your view on that? >> i mean, the select few, let's just keep it real is white athletes. typically black athletes not only have to be the best at what they do, but they also don't get the leniency that many white athletes get to have. and already we can see the conversation suddenly you have law and order all over social media when she knew what she was doing and she jeopardized her career and it's like, hey, listen, people are dealing with a lot out here. we're still in the middle of a pandemic. i know people like to act like it's over, but given the amount of personal baggage she was dealing with and the conversations about mental health, we need to be very cognizant of this. you brought up ryan lochte and i think about michael phelps he had a dui and tested positive for marijuana but became a spokesperson of what he was

dealing with from a mental health standpoint. he is someone who was also extended a lot of grace. this should not be her defining moment as an athlete. this should not be something that kills her career. this should be something that makes people more aware of not just mental health struggles, but the fact that our olympic committees need to standardize, they need to change these rules. the nba, nfl, major league baseball. so many other leagues have relaxed the standards when it comes to marijuana use and they need to follow suit because, let's be honest, unless there was a bag of doritos at the finish line, marijuana is not a performance enhancing drug. >> thank you to put this all in proper context. have a good weekend. >> you, too. an update on the breaking news out of the pentagon. spokesperson john kirby confirming the goal is now to complete the withdrawal by the end of august. president biden had initially set a goal of september 11th. the 20th anniversary of the 9/11

attacks for u.s. troops to leave. we're also going to take you right now to the white house briefly where there is a naturalization ceremony happening in which president biden is participating. those folks being sworn in as american citizens just ahead of the july fourth holiday weekend. that will do it for us on this busy summer friday. my good friend ayman mohyoldin picks up the coverage next. but he rides alone. that's jeremy, right there! we're literally riding together. he gets touchy when you talk about his lack of friends. can you help me out here? no matter why you ride, progressive has you covered with protection starting at $79 a year. well, we're new friends. to be fair. eh, still.

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good afternoon, everyone. i'm ayman mohyeldin. in new york the long holiday weekend begins with good news on the economic front. the government saying employers added a better than expected 850,000 new jobs in the month of june and the unemployment rate rose slightly to 5.9%. however, there are still nearly 7 million fewer jobs than at the start of the pandemic. president biden hailed the job's report giving credit to his administration's policies.