it is good to be with you. i'm jeff bennett. if you thought you knew everything there was to know about the january 6th attack on the u.s. capitol, you were in for a shocking, gut-wrenching awakening during today's first hearing of the house select committee. vivid testimony from four officers who faced the kinds of horrors that day that, thankfully, most of us will never know. we want to warn you. much of this is very difficult to hear and contains graphic descriptions and language. >> a rioter called me a traitor, a disgrace. he shouted that, i, an army

veteran and police officer, should be executed. >> you're going to die tonight! >> what we were subjected to that day was like something from a medieval battle. >> i was at risk of being stripped of and killed with my own firearm as i heard chants of "kill him with his own gun." i said as loud as i could manage, "i've got kids." what makes the struggle harder and more painful is to know so many of my fellow citizens, including so many of the people i put my life at risk to defend, are downplaying or outright denying what happened. i feel like i went to hell and back to protect them and the people in this room. but too many are now telling me that hell doesn't exist or that

hell actually wasn't that bad. the indifference shown to my colleagues is disgraceful! >> a man attempted to rip the baton from my hands and we wrestled for control. i retained my weapon after i pushed him back. he yelled at me, "you're on the wrong team"! we huddled up and assessed threats surrounding us. one man tried and failed to build a rapport with me, shouting "are you my brother"? the other took a different tack and said "you will die on your knees." >> i told them to just leave the capitol. in response they yelled "no, man, this is our house, president trump invited us here, we're here to stop the steal, joe biden is not the president,

nobody voted for joe biden." i'm a law enforcement officer and i do my best to keep politics out of my job. but in this circumstance i responded, "well, i voted for joe biden. does my vote not count"? that prompted a torrent of racial epithets. one woman in a pink maga shirt yelled "you hear that, guys? this nigger voted for joe biden." then the crowd joined around screaming, boo, [ bleep ] nigger. no one had ever, ever called me a nigger while wearing the uniform of a capitol police officer. in the days following the attempted insurrection, other

black officers shared with me their own stories of racial abuse on january 6th. one officer told me had never in his entire 40 years of life been called a nigger to his face and that streak ended on january 6th. yet another black officer later told me he had been confronted by insurrectionists in the capitol who told him "put your gun down and we'll show you what kind of nigger you really are." >> we're going to start off our coverage with lanne caldwell, pete williams and clint watt. leanne you were in the room for much of the hearing today as we listened to these officers recount their harrowing and heroic stories from that day and also their full-throated emotional indictments of people who try to deny and rewrite what happened on january 6th.

i was struck by the degree to which the committee was spike speaking with one voice today since house republican leader kevin mccarthy boycotted it and pulled his members. what were your impressions? >> reporter: inside the room it was serious, somber, sad and really silent except for the person that was speaking. all of the attention was directly focused on whoever was speaking, whichever officer. at one point, officer fanone got up and whispered and touched officer gonell's shoulder and squeezed it as a moment of solidarity. so there were some very poignant moments between these officers who had a shared experience that day and a shared experience that they came to share with the country. this is the first time that we have heard from rank and file officers. while the point of the hearing was to ensure that their stories were heard, it was also to try

to debunk what is happening among some in the republican party who are rewriting history or whitewashing what happened that day. so it was their job to say, no, we were there, this is what happened, there were weapons, our lives were in danger, and no, we cannot move on. we can't move on until the country accepts what happened. that is the mental that these officers really sent today. but it was pretty extraordinary, because in most hearings up here on capitol hill, it's usually republican versus democrat and there's a sparring match that takes place. but these committee members, the seven democrats, the two republicans, they spoke with one voice and they had the same mission. that was really evident today. the only thing that was different between the two parties is it was the republicans on the committee, representative liz cheney and adam kinzinger who invoked

members of their own party and who invoked the former president. that was where the politics fell. the democrats, they focused on the hearing itself. that was very strategic to ensure that there is not some view that this committee and this mission of the select committee was, in fact, partisan. they just want answers and they want the truth. >> clint, one of the other things congressman adam kinzinger said plainly today was that congress was not prepared on january 6th. that's a direct quote. is it prepared now? donald trump is still holding rallies, still telling lies about the election he lost. you have a lot of his supporters that believe this absurd fantasy that he's going to be reinstated as early as next month. is this country prepared for another attack? >> definitely not, jeff. i think in the u.s. capitol, yeah, there's been improvements.

but if you look around the country right now, state capitols are facing similar issues. state and local governments are having this problem. the august 13th conspiracy that president trump will be reinstated which is completely false, it is getting a reaction on social media and it's not that different than the reactions that we saw after the election in november all the way up to the insurrection in january. you see people reacting. comments might be, hey, i want to avoid the capitols on august 13th because i don't know what's going to happen. this sort of uncertainty, this sort of fear-based mongering is creating online and in-person mobilizations. that's due to one thing above all others, that people have continued to perpetuate this lie, one, that the election was stolen, which it was not, and that the insurrection was a peaceful demonstration. it absolutely was not and we heard that in vivid detail today. >> pete, we know from your reporting that the fbi now has charged more than 500 people in connection with the january 6th attack.

we heard from at least two of the officers today talk about how the people who might have planned, aided, abetted, fuelled this insurrection, about how they need to be held to account. sergeant gonell said today that we need to get to the bottom of who brought these people here. has the fbi indicated they are investigating the people who might have been responsible for organizing the rally? >> absolutely. that's been a big question. surprisingly, there still isn't an answer to that question. it remains one of the biggest unsolved mysteries about the capitol riot. whose idea was it? did some group, was it the proud boys, the oath keepers, the three percenters, did they sit down and say after the rally, we're going to try to get inside the capitol and stop the vote count? was there such a plan? if so, was it just a few people and other people followed? was it something that just sort of organically developed as people began to descend upon the

capitol. the feeling was let's go in. who knows, is the best answer to that question so far. there have been some people charged with conspiracy to go into the capitol or to do something on the 6th. but in terms of identifying the actual planners, that is still something that has yet to be answered. >> as this committee continues its work, we learned today that the doj informed former trump officials that they can testify about efforts to overturn the election. who might that include? and we should also say this is a big deal because the doj, as i understand it, they usually resist congressional inquiries like this. >> they do, but what they've said in this case, it's always a matter of balancing the department's interests in keeping its own internal confidences protected and congressional desires to know what happened. in the letter that they have sent to some of these officials, about six of them so far, say,

quote, the extraordinary events in this matter constitute exceptional circumstances warranting an accommodation to congress in this case. they say, we, the justice department, don't have any objection and not only that, neither does the white house. president biden has decided not to assert executive privilege, which the white house would normally do for its own institutional purposes. now, the question is, can president trump, who's out of office, assert executive privilege over discussions he had when he was president with the officials who were around him then? and there's no clear answer to that question. i don't think it's ever come up before. some legal experts i've consulted say,ing no, he probably can't, but that doesn't mean that he won't try. >> clint, as we wrap up our conversation, there's still lots to know about what happened on january 6th. there are lots of questions about the chain of command that day, how it all fell apart. what more could the committee learn on that front? and what strikes you as the

other list of unanswered questions here? >> jeff, some of the ones that have been hit pretty hard are general honore's review of the security around the capitol and the senate report hammered that home as well. what we don't know is who was dealing with the department of defense that day? was president trump really leading the chain of command as the commander in chief? it isn't really clear. the accounting of what was going on that day and vice president's communications after the department of defense are quite alarming because it would seem there was a breakdown in the chain of command, which essentially had the president watching the activities that were going on and the vice president maybe being vulnerable to them. separately, the one gap across all of this, and we've heard hearings for months and seen the senate report, but it's still not resolved, is what will the fbi be allowed to do in terms of preempting these sorts of attacks and insurrection? will they have a domestic

terrorism statute or will they be able to preemptively look at social media out in the open? those are two big questions. >> my thanks to the three of you. clint mentioned general honore and phil rucker and carol len nick. we're going to have all three of those folks coming up. we start with general honore. he previously served as the commander of the joint task force katrina. general honore, it's good to have you with us. i want to start with your impressions of the hearing today, the valiant and heroic officers and you have officers like harry dunn who blatantly stated black officers had to fight a different war on january 6th because they were attacked and had to endure racist epithets based solely on the way they look. >> absolutely. they were composed, they shared

their experience. they shared it with people themselves that were victims that they were trying to protect. what is clear today from the officers' perspective and what i heard is that they take offense at the president saying this was a tourism event. he needs to be held accountable. the former president -- there are many indications that the executive branch was complicit. [ inaudible ] what's coming out clear is that the executive branch was

complicit, and maybe certain agency leadership members were complicit. listening to these officers this morning and the hell they went through as we all watched on television and as the people questioning them today, who were victims of that attack, that we got two narratives in america. one of them, the followers of the former president that deny it happened this way, and then the victims, the members of the house and senate themselves and the brave police officers who took the brunt of the damage that day. >> when you say the executive branch was complicit, that the trump white house was complicit in this attack, are you able to assign names? i ask you that because you conducted that security assessment? do you know who was in touch with the department of defense? do you know why there was that delay in getting more law

enforcement to the capitol as frantic calls were made for reenforcements? >> no. this was not a part of my investigation. it's my personal opinion that the executive branch was complicit in the planning and that the lead response that occurred in bringing in more federal assistance through the capitol that day. that's my own perception based on what i've seen and what i've heard and the fact that the former president is continuing to tell people this was not a riot, they meant no harm, it was like a picnic. he was complicit, because the last i heard from him, he told them to go to the capitol and raise hell. and many members of his party told them to go fight. that's the

>> two quick questions for you here. when you talk about information and disinformation, before today's hearing you had members of the house republican leadership hold a press conference. they said that house speaker nancy pelosi is responsible for what happened on january 6th, not donald trump. i want to get your reaction to that. >> donald trump is the president of the united states. speaker pelosi is responsible for the house side of the capitol along with the house sergeant at arms. speaker pelosi is not responsible for the security of the entire capitol. maybe we need to give them a class on how the capitol is secured. the speaker hires the house sergeant at arms. the leader of the senate at the time was mcconnell. he hires the senate sergeant at arms. the architect of the capitol is hired by the president of the united states. those people make up the police force along with the capitol

police chief, who retired right after this event. the capitol police chief is hired by that capitol police force. maybe they need to study who's actually in charge and who does what in the capitol. but the speaker is responsible for hiring and resourcing the house sergeant at arms, and the same is true on the senate side and the house sergeant at arms, the senate sergeant at arms and the architect of the capitol, hired by the president, are the police force and they make decisions and they keep the speaker and the leader of the senate informed. when they need money, that's who they tell they need more money, either on the senate side or the house side. they don't know what they're talking about or they're fabricating a big lie again. this is something they've trying to make into a bumper sticker,

but it's another lie, as these officers proved this morning, the big lie the former president is saying that this was a walk in the park, people were cheering and this was a nonviolent -- it was a violent mob attack and the former president again keeps saying that. i saw it on tv last night from a recent interview. his supporters, members in the house, they keep telling this lie that this was not an attack on the capitol. this is a shame. leader kevin mccarthy knows better than that, because he said there should be an investigation and it did not happen. >> lieutenant general russell honore, i appreciate your time, as always, sir. thanks for joining us this

afternoon. still ahead, green light. as we mentioned, doj will allow former trump aides to testify about the final chaotic days of his presidency. what more could we learn? also ahead, breaking news on the coronavirus pandemic. the cdc expected to reverse course on masks for unvaccinated americans and vaccinated americans too and urge their use indoors in covid hot spots. simone biles withdraws from the team's gymnastics final. m the team's gymnastics final. from prom dresses to workouts and new adventures you hope the more you give the less they'll miss. but even if your teen was vaccinated against meningitis in the past they may be missing vaccination for meningitis b. although uncommon, up to 1 in 5 survivors of meningitis will have long term consequences. now as you're thinking about all the vaccines your teen might need

make sure you ask your doctor if your teen is missing meningitis b vaccination.

today the justice department gave the green light for former top aides to donald trump to testify about the final chaotic days of his presidency. now, this sets the stage for potentially damaging accounts from people who were close to trump as the events of january 6th unfolded. over the last few weeks

recordings of trump's interviews with phil rucker and carol lening have shed new light on the former president's feelings about that, including his frustration with mike pence. pence was evacuated by secret service as insurrectionists moved dangerously close to him. >> what does he want him to do? >> i thought that the election was rigged. i think that when you have more voters -- when you have more votes than you had voters, i think that -- the vice president of the united states must protect the constitution of the united states, right? and it says very, very clearly protect the constitution of the united states. >> with us now are "washington

post" journalists phil rucker and carol leonnig. what stood out to you? what resonated with you after listening to today's committee hearing? >> well, it's so compelling, isn't it, to hear the officers describe what they actually went through on january 6th. phil and i were in mar-a-lago in late march listening to donald trump describe a loving crowd who were ushered in by the capitol police warmly and who were hugging and kissing. the officers we've heard from today in this hearing, including most poignantly officer gonell describing a medieval battle, deciding he probably was going to die that day, listening to his fellow officers beg for their lives and beg for their

own breath. he described how he was squealing himself in pain, not sure if he was going to get enough oxygen because of the crowds. the difference between these two split screens couldn't be more stark. former president trump continues to tell people all around the country and his base that this was not violent, that this was a picnic, to quote your previous esteemed guest. obviously the hearing shows the truth, what these officers really went through. >> phil, today the doj ruled that it's going to allow trump officials to testify about the final days of his presidency. that really sets the stage for potentially damaging testimony from top trump aides about the events leading up to and on january 6th. you know, based on your reporting, who could be the most interest to this committee? if you're trump, who do you really not want to talk? >> jeff, it's an important question. we should start with the people

that we know were in the room and the oval office and, more importantly, in that private dining room just off the oval where the president sat for several hours watching the riot unfold on television. his chief of staff mark meadows was there, his daughter ivanka trump was there, in and out of that room for several hours, as we report in our book, trying to persuade her father to tell the insurrectionists to stand down and to go home. other officials were around as well, including keith kellogg, national security advisor to vice president pence. you should keep in mind that in addition to those high ranking white house officials, there are other witnesses who could potentially provide information. some of the clerical staff that worked around the oval office, the butlers who would bring the president his launch or his diet coke. secret service agents are around. there's no telling who congress could seek information from and who would cooperate to some degree with this investigation,

but there are a lot of people who saw and experienced what the president did that day who have not yet spoken publicly, including the house minority leader kevin mccarthy, who had at least one phone conversation with trump but has not yet detailed what that conversation was like on the record. >> carol, you both write former nsa advisor mike flynn's speech before the rally. don't get bent out of shape, he said. there are still avenues. he added, the courts are not going to decide who the next president of the united states is going to be. we, the people, decide. how much was mike flynn in trump's ear in the weeks after the election leading up to january 6th? >> such an important question, because this is what made senior leaders at the pentagon feel like their hair was on fire. the whisperers like mike flynn who were in that conversation in december telling people, hey,

maybe we could have martial law. the president could declare martial law and collect all the election ballots. or maybe we could rerun the election. all these things have nothing to do with the law, nothing to do with how our elections are run. these whisperers -- and flynn was key among them -- were telling the president there was a way for him to maintain his grip on power. you see in that statement what michael flynn and others like him, including the proud boys and the oath keepers, people like him were saying, we've got to take this by force, we've got to take this action into our own hands about who the president will be. well, that is about as close to a coup as you can get. coming up next, breaking news. the cdc is expected to reverse

guidance of masks for vaccinated people living in covid hot spots. get ready to pull those masks back out, people. also, an avalanche of new vaccine mandates from states, cities and federal agencies. dr. emanuel, who's argued for a vaccine mandate for health care workers joins us after the break. ate for health care workers joins us after the break. their only friend? the open road. i have friends. [ chuckles ] well, he may have friends, 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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décor. i got this mountain bike for only $11. i got these bluetooth headphones for only $20! don't miss out on the best deals running right now. go to dealdash.com and see how much you could save. and shipping is always free in about a half hour from now at 3:00 p.m. eastern, the cdc is expected to reverse guidance of masks for vaccinated americans and urge everyone to wear masks while indoors in areas with high covid-19 transmission rates. now, this change comes just two months after the cdc said anyone who was fully vaccinated no longer needed to mask up. but the delta variant and vaccine hesitancy are fuelling a surge of new covid cases in the u.s. now, in response we've seen the proverbial dam break with new vaccine mandates. the department of veterans

affairs, the city of new york, the state of california all announcing vaccine mandates for their employees. i was speaking with an administration official over the weekend, who said they were having conversations about changing this mask guidance, but they were really concerned about how to do it in a way that was not confusing to folks. help us understand what made the cdc get to this point. >> well, what those familiar with the discussions tell nbc news is that there is some new data that they have been reviewing that indicates that people who are vaccinated have a high other amount of the virus sort of in their nose, their nasal area, which suggests that vaccinated people might be able to spread the virus more easily than they previously thought. so vaccinated could spread to unvaccinated. vaccinated could potentially spread to people who are vaccinated. it was that data that really

made them reconsider this. what they are recommending today is that people who are vaccinated but in an area with a lot of virus spreading -- and we now know the vast majority of cases out there are this delta variant. people in those areas, the cdc is going to recommend they put masks back on when they are indoors. as you suggested, there have been a lot of back and forth in the administration about this and concern that putting mask requirements or recommendations back in place could take away incentive for a lot of people to get vaccinated. and so much of the emphasis has been on getting more people vaccinated. that's what public health officials and administration officials see is the real way out of this pandemic. but at least in the short-term, more masks are what they're calling for as of now. >> even though you're in front of the white house, this is not a decision coming from the white house.

this decision was made entirely but those career officials at the cdc. give us a sense of who's required to get the vaccine in california. >> reporter: so the governor made this announcement yesterday. we have to be clear in california they are not mandating anyone to get the vaccine yet at the state level. what the governor announced they're doing is they will require everyone who works for the state of california to prove that they've gotten the vaccine. for those that choose not to get the vaccine, they will have to get tested once a week, twice a week when they work in a more dangerous setting and also they will have to mask up. this will also apply to health care workers in california. let's hear what gavin newsom said yesterday. >> as it relates to leading by example, 246,000 californians are state employees, 246,000 californians should be vaccinated. and if they're not vaccinated and cannot verify they've been vaccinated, we are requiring

that they get tested. california's committed to vaccination verification and/or testing on a weekly basis. >> meanwhile, the governor also saying he wants local governments at cities and counties to do the same thing. they're basically doing everything they can here short of mandating people to get the vaccine in california. we also spoke to someone at human resources at the state level who told us that some private companies and local governments in california are already moving forward requiring their employees to get the vaccine. but at the state level for now, they require them to prove that they've gotten the vaccine. if not, they will have to mask up and get tests once or twice a week. >> with us now is dr. ezekiel emanuel. he's served on the biden/harris covid-19 advisory board.

thanks for being with us. >> my pleasure. >> if people would have got the vaccine, we wouldn't be in this position where vaccinated people are now having to wear masks again indoors. this really speaks to the severity of the delta variant. >> yes. the delta variant is 100 times more infectious than the original coronavirus. you spread it earlier and you seem to spread more virus and that is causing problems. it's causing more breakthrough infections. the good news is those breakthrough infections do not seem to lead hospitalization, severe illness and death. the bad news is you can still be infected and still transmit the virus. that's the worrisome aspect. >> are masks here to stay? i ask that question because it appears we've reached a plateau when it comes to vaccinations. is this the new normal?

>> don't be so negative about the vaccines. i do think there are some people who are anti-vaxers but there's a wide swath of people who haven't been vaccinated who can be persuaded or mandated to get vaccines. we are for a mandate in health care workers and expanding that out to the military and first responders. i think a lot of private employers will mandate it. we also should not make wearing a mask so onerous. we're not talking about masking 8 hours a day. we're talking about if you go indoors to the grocery store or the pharmacy, wearing the mask for those periods. if you're walking in the park or in the street without a lot of people, not wearing a mask is perfectly fine. before calling it so onerous, such an imposition, really wearing a mask is not that big a deal if it's for short periods of time when you happen to go indoors with people you don't now. >> you mentioned you're a big supporter of vaccine mandates.

we should mention that you organized a growing list of nearly 60 medical and health care groups asking for vaccine mandates for anybody working in health care and long-term care facili facilities. can private employers mandate that their employees get the vaccine. how does that work? >> you're promoting the welfare of the individual, because these vaccines are very safe, very effective and they protect people, even younger people who we're seeing are really affected by the delta variant if you're looking at people being hospitalized in florida. second, you're protecting people who can't protect themselves. children who can't be vaccinated. immuno compromised people in this country. the courts have said pretty clearly when you have a public health interest like that and

you have a safe, effective vaccine, we can have people for their community responsibility get vaccinated. i think there are other areas besides health care where we have to put our obligation to other people ahead of our own personal obligations and choices. if you're in the military, if you're a first responder, if you're a schoolteacher, all of those situations where your job entails doing something for the benefit of others, the obligation to get a vaccine, it seems to me, is pretty clear cut. >> thanks for your great insights. coming up next, the olympic news that nobody expected. a day after admitting she felt immense pressure to compete, simone biles pulls out of the team competition. what does that mean for her quest for gold? we'll talk about it coming up. quest for gold we'll talk about it coming up. ms struggle to get reliable transportation to their medical appointments.

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(vo) conventional thinking doesn't disrupt the status quo. which is why t-mobile for business uses unconventional thinking to help your business realize new possibilities. only one 5g partner offers unmatched network, support, and value-without any trade offs. . four-time gold medalist simone biles said she with grew the u.s. gymnastics team final over mental health concerns and not a physical injury. and there's word of another setback for a high profile olympic athlete. naomi osaka has been eliminated. nbc's stephanie gosk has the latest from tokyo. >> reporter: so all of this happened in simone biles' first

vault. it's a trick she's done many, many times before, although it's very difficult, this 2 1/2 twisting somersault. instead of doing 2 1/2 twists, she only did 1 1/2, pilling out and landing really awkwardly. later on we were told she's pulling out of the competition tonight, leaving jordan chiles to fill her spot. they went onto the silver medal. we heard there usa gymnastics and they said simone biles had a medical issue and they were going to assess it either the over the coming days. she was asked whether it was a physical condition and she said it wasn't, that it was mostly mental. then we received this statement from the u.s. olympic committee that reads at least in part, we applaud your decision to prioritize your mental wellness over all else and offer you the full support and resources.

she is in the all-around competition in the coming days. also the individual pr competition that begins august 1st. it's unclear whether she's going to take part in any of those. simone saying herself the pressure of carrying that weight coming into these games was tough. >> i want to bring in the author of the book "loving sports when they don't love you back." it's great to have you with us. there was great concern about why simone biles had to withdraw. it strikes me at the olympics, especially gymnastics, the physical is the mental and the mental is the physical. give us a sense of the kind of pressure she was under to compete. >> i think that's exactly right. i think one thing that people

often forget, especially when we talk about gymnastics, is just how dangerous the sport is. if you're not 100% mentally there, you're risk significant injury to a level you can't really fathom. we're not just talking broken limbs. we're talking potentially broken necks. it is a dangerous sport. we are talking about simone biles who has won a world championship with a kidney stone, who has played with broken toes and has obviously dealt with a level of stress after being a sexual assault survivor, if she is saying she is at a level right now that she was facing something today that she could not continue to compete, i think we have to take her at her word for that. >> take a look at this. >> physically i feel good. i'm in shape.

emotionally that kind of varies on the time and the moment, you know, coming here to the olympics and being the head star of the olympics is not an easy feat, so we're just trying to take it one day at a time and we'll see. >> she also posted on instagram about how much pressure she's under. naomi osaka said something similar after she was eliminated today. it's striking the degree of which these big name athletes are speaking out publicly about their mental health. >> absolutely. naomi osaka kind of kick started this conversation when she withdrew from the french open. it's a lot of weight to carry on her shoulders to be the american face of these olympic games. we also have to remember that she said that one of the decisions she made not to retire was because in order to be that public face of the olympics and of team usa, that was the only way people could continue to hold usa gymnastics accountable.

that's a lot of pressure for a 24-year-old to place on themselves. i think we all need to keep that in mind. these athletes who have performed to the most elite degree are telling us they need some space in order to keep performing to that level. >> we also just saw team usa's women's basketball team win their 50th olympics match in a row. 50 wins in a row. how significant is this? >> it's very significant. especially when you think about what women's basketball means in the history of not just women's athletes globally but women's athletes specifically in the u.s., you think about the 1972 basketball team, the first women's team sport to win silver in the olympics. it's very significant and it bodes well for the sport both in the country and globally. >> thanks for your time this afternoon. right now president biden is at the office of the director of

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and we're following breaking news out of washington this afternoon. president biden is at the office

of the director of national intelligence for his first visit to a u.s. intelligence agency as president. president biden is delivering remarks to the staff at the office and according to the white house, will emphasize the importance of keeping political influence away from the intelligence community. joining us now is nbc news national security and intelligence correspondent. the intel community faced criticism dubbing him as the deep state. so what are president biden's main objectives with the speech like this today? i think the objectives to reinforce a message that is already obvious to most members of the intelligence community which is that we're back to normal with a president that actually is interested and will pay heed to what his intelligence professionals are telling him every day. now that doesn't mean he's going to do everything they want. for example, there is great unease within the intelligence community about biden's decision

to completely pull troops out of afghanistan. but they know that biden is an avid consumer of intelligence. he takes it very seriously. this is in sharp criticism for him who was at war for four years. it's worth noting that bud enchose to go to the director of national intelligence that is atop the intelligence community which is where trump went first four years ago in 2017. he gave an absolutely disastrous speech in front of the wall of stars memorializing fallen cia officers when wr he didn't acknowledge the officers and gave a political speech and talked about the crowd size of his inaugural. i think we're going to see a much different set of remarks from president biden.

>> most american people are aware of when the white house guidance comes out, there is a time on there for president biden to read the president's daily brief which is sort of the intel work product. and toward the end of the trump administration, the president based on our reporting hardly ever read it. didn't may time for it. how has the intel community changed from the trump administration to the biden administration? >> well, for their part, i mean, essentially the hefdz the spy agencies no long ver to wake up every day worrying about whether they're going to be fired. that was a real concern in the intel community under trump. that had profound effects throughout the bureaucracy. one of the major public effects is they stopped having threat hearings, public worldwide threat hearings. where the heads of the intelligence agencies go before congress and talk about the biggest threats they felt were facing the country. when they did that, and they contradicted what donald trump saw as his world view, they were rebuked for that. they stopped having them. they had one under president

biden this year. they continue to have them. essentially, they're able to speak truth to power and give an intelligence view to president biden and not worry that there will be reprecushions, jeff. >> appreciate your reporting as always. and president biden is set to speak anyone now. ayman mohyeldin will have that live coverage for you coming up next. ave that live coverage for you coming up next n stop frequent heartburn before it begins? prilosec otc uses a unique delayed-release formula that works to turn down acid production, blocking heartburn at the source. with just one pill a day, you get 24-hour heartburn protection. take the prilosec otc two-week challenge. and see the difference for yourself. prilosec otc, 1 pill a day, 24 hours, zero heartburn. subway® has so much new it didn't fit in our last ad. like the new artisan italian and hearty multigrain bread. it's the eat fresh refresh™ at subway®. it's so much new there's no time for serena! wait, what?! sorry, we don't even have time to say they were created by world class bakers!

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good afternoon, everyone. i'm ayman mohyeldin in new york. we are monitoring multiple developing stories at this hour. right now, president biden visiting the office for the director of the national intelligence. it oversees the united states' intelligence organization. we're also following reaction to the powerful testimony from the first republican -- from the first public hearing, excuse me, of the house select committee investigating the january 6th attack on the capitol. the committee's first witnesses included four officer