word just out a short time ago, president obama set to make remarks just over an hour from now on the hot-button topic of iran. that's right. we are going to hear from him at 3:05 today. this comes right at the end of the day of talks in geneva aimed at getting iran to come clean about their nuclear program once and for all. the president will soon join his wife, michelle owe bam narcs copenhagen to make a personal pitch to bring the olympics to his hometown of chicago, but will putting presidential prestige on the line pay off? and the incendiary rhetoric

over health care goes up a few more notches, everybody, reactions from both sides today to a democratic congressman's claim that republicans want people to die and die quickly. and new developments in the john edwards' affair, involves a close assistant to the possible presidential wannabe and it involves potentially a sex tape. i'm norah o'donnell in washington, d.c. and welcome back to msnbc. just about an hour from now, we are going to hear from president obama and he is going to given a update on the six-way talks being held today on iran's nuclear program. and for the first time in years, a senior u.s. official met face-to-face with iran's top nuclear negotiator. just a short time ago, we heard from the secretary of state hillary clinton, who spoke about how things are going. >> i think it was a productive day but the proof of that has not yet come to fruition.

we want to see reaction and positive results and i think today's meeting opened the door, but let's see what happens. >> nbc's savannah guthrie joins me now live from the white house. savannah, you heard the secretary of state there, obviously, they believe the talks have been productive but not ready to declare success yet, right? >> yeah, i think it is too early for that. and i think the secretary of state's tone says a lot there. pleased, to some extent with the progress made but certainly not doing a jig. the president will come out an hour from now and echo what we just heard from the white house press secretary. one thing they are pointing to is before today, or at least about a week ago, iran was saying the nuclear issue was off the table entirely and yet there will be a second meeting we learned today and nuclear issue is very much on the agenda. so that's some fresh this sure of progress, but again it is really about the details, what happens next? iran has agreed to letting

inspect nears this second site, but how fruitful will that be? how fulsome will their cooperation be in does that mean documents? does that mean people? what does it mean in terms of inspectionses? i think there is a question mark in what it means for the meeting. and there is some news, we heard from javier solano, the eu official, about another concession that iran is willing to make. let's listen. >> in the margins of today's meeting, it was agreed in principle, that the low and enriched uranium produced in iran could be transported with the country for further enrichment, production into fuel, assemblies for the tehran research reactor. >> so, the significant of that would be an effort by iran to continue to enrich your rain yum. obviously, believes that it has the right to have nuclear fuel, something the united states agrees with, too, but opening it inand having it go through a third party would be more of a

transparent move from iran and that would be regarded probably by the allies as a good move, a good time. >> and then, savannah, we just learned, of course, that the president is going to be speaking at 3:05 from the diplomatic room on iran. why has the white house decided the president should come forward and make some comments? what do we expect he might say? >> i don't think he is going to make a lot of news, per same i think he will probably echo what we heard from the secretary of state what we just heard from the white house press secretary, what he will say that some progress has been made that this engagement is something the u.s. is going to continue to do but probable belie also say look if this isn't fruitful, the talks won't last forever and there is a separate track for sanction. this is a way to get the president out there and talking about the issue on what is a key day. look, this is really where all the talk of engagingment, goes way back even to the campaign really comes to fruition. this is where, i said before, the rubber meets the road. so, i think the president wants

to get out there and saying, look thatth is the first step from the iran yans, by far, not the last step. >> savannah guthrie at the white house. thanks. >> sure. bring in now democratic senator from minnesota that is senator amy blow butklobuchar. >> great to be on again. >> this is the first time the iran and the u.s. have had formal direct talks in more than 30 years. do you think that there could be a breakthrough? >> well there could can and i think the secretary of state was right in voicing some caution here. i mean, this is a very positive development that they sat down and talked but at the same time, we have to see the words backed up by action. you know when you go back through history, iran has said a lot of things and not followed through. so we want to make sure that these inspectors are allowed in, to a full extent we get the

documents that we need, and that we really are able to start negotiations into the future. so, it's really two things, allowing those inspectors in and then having real negotiations. and i think at the same time, we have to start looking at what the economic sanctions would look like so we make sure that there is a carrot and a stick here, because this is the belligerent actions of iran in the last week and the last years. we just can't pretend they are not happening. >> senator, you heard savannah, i think, play that clip of javier solano today and that may be one of the key sort of news items today and it may seem difficult to understand, but that one of the concessions that iran may be willing to make essentially involves a uranium swap where it would go to a european country, get further enriched and then come back to iran and be used for medical purposes. does that suggest that iran is willing to give a bit on this issue? >> again, it may, but we want to be very careful as we go into

these negotiations. i think the other thing it shows that the world is working together on this finally have china and russia voicing concerns about iran last week, now you have the eu involved in this negotiation. because we don't want to go it alone with the united states, as important as these negotiations were today. this is going to have to be pressure from the world and not just our country. >> let me turn now to the issue of afghanistan, because, of course, there was this key meetinging at the white house yesterday involving the president's national security team that went a few hours long, the beginning of several meetings on, this as the president must make a decision about strategy and then tactics and troops. do you believe that's the right way for it? are you in the camp, some of the senators up there who believe a decision has got to be made pretty soon because our men and women are in harp's way over there and they need reenforcements? >> well, first of all, we have general mcchrystal over there taking a new approach, building

the counterinsurgency and i think it is good that the president takes a few weeks here to talk to all his top advisers. remember that was one of our issues in iraq where our inneighboral strategy for years wasn't the correct one and then had to be changed. so here you have a president that actually is making the time to make a decision and i think that is very important in this case, when we have so many young men and women's lives at risk over in afghanistan. i think it is very important that the president makes a decision as soon as possible but that he be thoughtful and deliberate about it. >> are you -- do you believe that more troops are needed? >> again, i would like to hear the president. we in congress had a briefing yesterday. we are continuing to gather information on this. i looked at the classified version of the -- a report that we got from mcchrystal, so we were all working on this, but again, i think it is important that we hear from the commander in chief on this as well as the jones and i think it is important that we stay within

the chain of command. there's some efforts to push mcchrystal to come and testify before even the president reaches his decision and i think we need to wait for the commander in chief. >> i respect that senator, but do you have some concerns about sending additional troops to afghanistan? >> i think everyone should have concerns, but i think it's a very -- it's a possible that that will happen, as we look at what's going on there. we have got the possibility of having more terrorism there if we don't continue our efforts. we have got little girls going to school, getting acid poured in their face but i think it is important to look at this beyond just a military strategy to work with our allies torque look at the civil piece of this and the work we can do to build up what hasn't been done the whole last eight years to really build up the civil structure in afghanistan as well. so i think it is important that the president look at this in a broadway and then come to congress. >> no doubt that will be key decision for him in the coming weeks, senator amy klobuchar, democrat from minnesota. great as always to see you.

thanks so much for joining us. >> thanks, norah, bye. talking about minnesota there is some new moves today by minnesota governor tim pawlenty, the signal, he wants to make a presidential bid in 2012. right, the republican today launching a political action committee and website to lay the groundwork for a run for the white house. pawlenty was on john mccain's short list for the vice presidential spot in 2008. and since then, he has anoipsd won't be running for a third term as minnesota's governor and starting to chris-cross the country, speaking to republican organizations in swing states such as ohio and florida and has assembled a campaign team. all right, coming up, we will have more on the issue of afghanistan, the top military commander in afghanistan today has some new words. that is right. he says it is a critical time for the u.s. mission there, but are more troops really the answer? plus, 2008 was a rough year for all of us, and that even includes the richest people in the world. and later, new information

about michael jackson's health in the days before he died. details from the king of pop's autopsy. was he in good health? this is msnbc. rr for all the moments that make every day special. fancy feast introduces an entirely new way to celebrate any moment. fancy feast appetizzrs. simple high qualiiy ingredients like wild alaskan salmon, white meat chicken, or seabass and shrimp in a delicate broth, prepared without by-products or fillers. new fancy feast appetizers celebrate the moment.

the situation is serious and i choose that word very, very carefully. we need to reverse the current trends, and time does matter. waiting does not prolong a favorable outcome. >> the top u.s. and nato commander in afghanistan, general stanley mcchrystal there talking to reporters and academics in london today about the situation in afghanistan. general mccristal recently submitted a request to the pentagon for more u.s. troops but the pentagon will hold the request until president obama

decides on what strategy to pursue. joining me now live is jan dribben, former spokesman for the state department and jamie, good to see you. let me ask you about the general's comments, in the context of the beginning of these series of meetings that the president's national security team is coming. the general saying today that we need to reverse the current trends and time does matter, waiting does not pro-long a favorable outcome. does that suggest that he is criticizing the current approach by the administration that there's too much waiting going on to decide the next strategy? >> i don't think so. general mccristal is certainly aware that the whole world is going to parse his statements precisely for this kind of question, as to whether there's some break between the military and civil yap leadership and the general is of the stature and savvy to know perfectly well that this is a system in wit military is subboa subordinate

president talks to the joint chiefs about how to implement the decision. i don't think this is an attempt to short-circuit the discussions going on in the white house. i think general mcchrystal is probably confident, however, that after sorting through the various options that the administration will continue down the path that it started in march and that is preventing the fall of afghanistan to the taliban will require a substantial military and civilian effort and perhaps even more troops and that that risk of the taliban regaining control of afghanistan is just too great a risk to take. >> no doubt. i just think it is noteworthy that he used that phrase again, that time does matter. at the same time when the white house seems to be suggesting we are going to take our time over the next couple of weeks and get the strategy right before we decide on tactics and troops. i want to play for you senator

john mccain, who sat down with nbc's david gregory today and play for you what he had to say about afghanistan. let's listen. >> i am confident that we can succeed if there is sufficient resources do so and if we don't give it the required manpower necessary, men and women in uniform, then i think that we may fail. >> jamie, given those comes by senator mccain and other tos, if president obama and his team decides on a different strategy and therefore decides on a different bit of tactics that does not include more troops, how difficult is that for the president politically to make that argument? i mean, that would be a tough sell, won't it? >> well, there's no question that carl rove and john mccain and the republican team at the top have decided, by and large

to support general mcchrystal, to support the idea of more troops in afghanistan. and they, i think it's clear will take a pretty strong criticism of the president. condi rice, the former secretary of state, said the same thing. they see what president bush did in iraq, a surge was done after many years of difficulties and that turned things around and they would like to see the same thing done in afghanistan. i think there are questions as to whether that analogy they use about iraq is applicable to afghanistan, 'cause the problem there is this has been going on for eight long years, we have been in afghanistan, and maybe we can turn it around, and i certainly hope so, and personally, i probably support it but it is a much, much tougher problem created in large part by the bush administration's failure to give the resources, the time, the energy and the focus the obama team has to reset the clock for

the country so we stop talking about this as the eighth and the ninth and the tenth year, because that's when the public and the congress get weary. >> no doubt. jamie ruben, as always, great to have you. thanks for joining us. >> thank you. also want to point out we are keeping a close eye on wall street with several key economic figures out today. new u.s. jobless claims climbed more than expected last week to 551,000, more evidence that jobs remain scarce. and some mixed numbers from the commerce department. consumer spending surged by the largest amount in nearly eight years in august, but personal income growth continues to lag. square that. economists worry whether an economic rebound can be sustained with households facing rising unemployment and, of course, tight credit. the country's richest citizens are also feeling the economic downturn. the latest "forbes" 400 ritualist says the collective wealth has fallen by $300

billion. of course, they are still pretty rich. take a look at the top five, bill gates comes in number one at $50 billion down from $7 billion from last year. at number two warren buffett followed by oracle owner, larry ellison and walmart airs christie walton and jim walton. this year was only the fifth time that collective wealth had fallen since the forbes 400 was first compiled in 1982. a billion dollars. coming up, the death toll from the pacific tsunami climbs to at least 150. we are going to get more on the recovery efforts with a live report. and later, president obama is expected to speak about a situation surrounding iran's newly revealed nuclear facility. of course, we will bring you had his remarks live. that's at 3:05 eastern time here on msnbc, the place for politics. ♪ge was getting depressed 'cause of all of the stress ♪

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breaking news out of indonesia. a government official says the death toll from an earthquake on the island of sumatra has now passed 700. rescue workers are struggling to extract victims from the rubble. about 500 structures came crashing down in the town of padang went 7.6 magnitude quake struck off the coast of sumatra wednesday afternoon. padang is home to 900,000 people. and military ships and planes are beginning to arrive on the sam mowen islands. an underwater earthquake unleashed a series of tsunami that flattened entire villages and swept people, homes and vehicles out to sea. at least 150 people were killed. lee cowan is on the ground in samoa. heil, tell us about the devastation you are seeing now. >> reporter: most of the devastation is on the south and southwest part of the island, because what is the side the wave hit it is extraordinary.

the wave, in some places, went as far as a mile inland, sweeping just about everything out of its way, many places, some of the coastal areas, the wave came in, it swept everything back out. some places you go you don't think there is any damage, there is nothing left, literally nothing left it got all swept back out to sea. what is extraordinary is the amount of recovery that they are already involved in in rebuilding. some of the road we have seen the last 12 hours, one side of it washed out right along the water, they have filled in areas were they could at least get aid vehicles in and out. we have seen utility workers around trying to get the power up to some of the remote villages, which is no small task. everything on that side of the island, on the southern side, really just these pockets of very, very small communities, but everybody is helping everybody out. the largest problem at this point is what to do with the dead. the death toll stands now at least 150, expect to grow even more.

now saying it could be weeks before they really recover all of the dead and the missing, at least those they can recover some this is going to be a very long process. they have asked some of the aid agencies to help them with temporary morgue facilities because the hospital morgues are all full. they are asking people, as much as they can, not to bury their dead. they have a tradition here of burying their dead in -- on their own properties and part of their house, alongside their home. they are asking people not to do that because they are trying to get an accurate count of how many people have been killed and where they are. some people, though, are foregoing tradition, doing it anyway, just because they feel like they have to put their loved ones to rest one way or the other. norah? >> lee cowan there, lee, thank you so much. new details on the health of michael jackson just before his death. the associated press has acquired a copy of the autopsy report. according to the report, the king of pop was relatively healthy. jackson's arms were reportedly covered with punctures. his face and neck were scarred and he had tattooed eyebrows and

lips. but other than that his heart was strong, his other organs were normal. jackson died, of course, of an overdose in june. and still to come, democratic leaders are playing down congressman alan grayson's recent "die quickly" remark on the house floor. should he be made to apologize? the first family takes the lead in the race to get the windy city the 2016 olympics, but will there be a political cost for the president? more ahead. this is msnbc. the place for politics. t few td kilowatts in a vise. squeeze some savings back into our budget. into our attics and walls. let's locate the original energy source called you and turn that machine up full-blast. more saving. more doing. that's the power of the home depot. come get 50% more savings on insulation with the new lower price of just $9.37 per roll.

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maddow last night. >> people utterly unscrupulous, foot-dragging, knuckle-cracking neanderthals, who know nothing but no. one way or another, we have to overcome it for the sake of the nation. >> there you heard, the congressman saying these are foot-dragging, knuckle-dragging kneer and thals nothing but no. pretty controversial comes, calling the health care crisis a holocaust. now, more with kelly o'donnell. i understand the house speaker is weighing in on this. >> you knew this was going to happen, norah, even talking about a freshman from florida. he is in his first term, alan grayson, caused a buzz along the way, a big personality, let me say that a place that relies on seniority, the first termer is worth noting. because of the flap and harsh words he chose to use, some cases with the kneer and thal

comes, that came to the attention of the speaker of the house. reporters wanted to know, should he apologize? >> holding them to tougher standards than their own members on issues that relate to death. >> i think it is time for democrat leaders and the speaker of her house herself to rein in some of the rhetoric that she decried just several weeks ago. if he is not going to apologize to the american people and to republicans, as he should, really the democrat leadership's responsibility to have a conversation with their own member. >> that one-two punch came from house speaker nancy pelosi and then the top republican innocent house, john boehner, part of this, i think is, a jeep win

concern that leadership has about the kinds of words people are using, the tone of the debate that is going on, when it does, in fact, derail the public conversation. we are spending time talking about these tactics and perhaps not spending this particular moment talking about the substance. and you i love to talk about the substance. >> right. >> but they are concerned about that. the same time the tat for tat aspect of apologizing, kind of all digging in on this one. >> i guess kelly, too, rachel really kind of hammered congressman grayson on this last night, because he did say, i mean, the foot-dragging, knuckle-dragging, neanderthals, always colorful language on the hill but said that the current health care crisis is a holocaust. and whether he regretted using that word, "hollow cost" but it kind is an over-the-top charge and certainly should be sensitive about using that term, and he has not back aid way from those comes. i mean, there's some democratic members up there who are sort of rolling their eyes, want to move on, think maybe he went too far?

>> i think there are plenty of people and certainly happened in the joe wilson episode as well, where privately, people of one's own party, where it was republicans then, democrats now who were uncomfortable about this think it draws attention that is unnecessary and unwanted and at the same time, the more they talk about, the more the story continues. so, there's some tactics in how they respond, but sour right, that the words he chose, some of them very evocative, very loaded. remember, he is from the state of florida which certainly has a sizable jewish community as part of its electorate that is important. democrats often really rely on the jewish community vote, strong, long-standing bond and use words that might be offensive in that corridor is certainly a political risk for alan grayson. >> all right, kelly o'donnell up there on the hill. kelly, as always, colorful. thank you, kelly. >> we have a good time, norah. all right and let's turn now to the obamas, because in some ways, they are back on the campaign trail. that's right. this time, for chicago's bid for the 2016 summer olympic games,

you have heard about it the president is going to give his pitch tomorrow, the first lady and oprah winfrey are already warming up the crowd in denmark. >> i just think, wouldn't it be great if that kind of spirit was happening right down the street in our community? just think of that. >> nbc's jim maceda joins us now from copenhagen with more on this visit. jim, that was a short soundbite of the first lady, but what she was talking about is that it's important, given what's going on in cities, to see -- have lots of kids see sports exalted in a city, especially with the current obesity and eating problems in the united states that that could would be a good thing. what else has she been saying there in copenhagen? >> reporter: that's right. she has been hammering that point. she also has been ham earthquake the point that she wants the united states to get to -- chicago specifically, to get

these games so that the united states, through the olympic games can open up again, reach out and embrace the world, which i find fascinating, because even the bid chairman, pat ryan, talked at length with me yesterday, the chicago bid chairman, how much he has noticed this is really becoming the focus of the bid, the strategy you that the united states has changed so much, for so many different reasons under this obama administration and that the athletes and chicago wants to -- really wants to show the difference, that this is no longer 9/11 or just post-9/11. the country has evolved. relationships now with the world should evolve and sports should evolve with it and in fact, be the vehicle for that new relationship between the united states and the world. it is a fascinating aspect, a kind of geopolitical aspect to all of this, but there's no question that these two, michelle obama and oprah

winfrey, are extraordinarily popular here. they are first and second among equals. and you talk to danes here in the street, all they want to know about are these two individuals. of course, president obama is arriving tomorrow. that will be a first for any u.s. president, to get into the fray of lobbying by a head of state from america. it seems like lonbying by head of states now for the olympic games has almost become routine here. back to you. >> all right, jim maceda there. jim, as always, thanks so much. going to turn to another jim now, jim warn, of course, from chicago, one of our msnbc contributors. jim, i want to touch on what the first lady said in a speech in copenhagen today. she said, "it's a sacrifice", used the word sacrifice" to travel to europe to pitch for the olympics but i'm doing it for the kids." and she talked about how athletics is becoming more of a threating opportunity, funds dry up, harder for kids to

participate in sports, even ride a bike, mentioned childhood obesity, all those things. powerful with the committee there? >> first of all, not sure about the sacrifice, wasn't exactly like she was flying southwest and changing in dallas and going to the capital, development it is a high priority for the olympics, something that los angeles claims are the big success over the last 20 years after it is running the summer olympics. and you perhaps underscore you have some of these venues in chicago, proposed venues right in the middle of some of the most above rushed neighborhoods in the united states and perhaps there could be some positive long-term impact on the kids in those areas. >> let me read you a little bit from gail collins, op ed in the "new york times" today, i think it is note worthy. she writes this, "what if obama

goes to denmark and chalk loses anyway. let's hope the white house hasn't guaranteed the fix is in. going to waste the momentum on a big gamble it really a ought to be to slow global warming or reform wall street, not to make sure the 2016 triathalon champion whips his medal in illinois." what do you think about that? >> yeah, i love gail collins, but i think that's kind of falderoll. he is going, john boehner, deet facto mayor of chicago. he is representing the country and representing the country which -- in a bid which really was very much a long shot. don't forget that rio and madrid were the early very much odds on favorites for many reasons. chicago is a city that may be a wonderful place, may rank up there with other international cities substantively but suffers from a very low profile. i think one of their problems, pat ryan, the head of the committee is telling a lot of

these ioc guys, sophisticated as they are, a little bit about chicago. when you have the prime minister of tokyo, of japan, the king and kwaen of spain, the president of brazil showing, you know, i don't think it's necessarily fighting fire with fire just to have oprah and the first lady, all due respect to the two of them. >> well, jim, you sound like you're pooh-poohing this whole thing. i don't know. have to wait and see what happens i guess when we get a decision on this, you will come back and we will see whether oprah and her chitchat buddy what michelle calls oprah, her chitchat buddy whether they did the trick. >> i want to know, does oprah's show in koppen haigen in danish, some of those whacky medical cures of hers? do you get to see that in the middle of the afternoon in danish or like subtitled? >> jim warren, as always, great to talk to you. >> see ya. show everybody now, we do have something interesting happening on the floor of the senate right now this is just into us. there you see, of course, senate majority leader harry reid.

something interesting going on now sent terror voting on opposing amendments as to whether general stanley mcchrystal should come and testify before congress and the situation in afghanistan. this is really interesting. there was an amendment offered by carl levin, of course can, the democratic head of the senate armed services committee, saying that mcchrystal, the general, should testify after president obama has made a decision about strategy. and that actually passed, that amendment. john mccain had offered a counteramendment, saying mcchrystal should testify before november 15th. the democratic amendment, passed carl levin. getting the vote tally in, the vote tally was 60-39 in favor of the democrats, so, there you have it. the general in charge of strategy in afghanistan not going to be heard from public belie in terms of taking questions from senators on capitol hill until the president has decided his strategy. pretty interesting. going to have much more straight

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poe tenning bombshell revelation in the sex scandal involving the former senator and presidential candidate, john ed wars. sources telling politico.com that edwards' former aide, andrew young is reportedly holding a sex tape of the former senator and his ex-mistress, rielle hunter. john edwards has admitted to an affair with hunter. he has denied that he is the father of her child. but politico, citing former aides, says edwards has come under increasing pressure in recent months to acknowledge paternity. joining me live is jean cummings, managing editor for plight dough. thanks for joining us. >> thanks for having me, norah. >> an exhaustive piece done by ben. it in politico, all about the edwardses relationship with andrew young. one of the things elizabeth

edwards says in her book about the relationship with andrew young, compares to rielle hunter, they were guilty of being vulnerable to on seek questioniousness. what was the relationship to an draw young and this family? did he do just about everything for them? >> did he, norah, put himself in a position he was indispensable, not just the political career of john edwards but the working of the edwards family, when they were out of town campaigning, he made sure their lawn was cut and their mail was picked up. when former senator would come home from the road, he was always there to pick him up with his favorite soda at hand. he picked up their dry cleaning, took care of all the small day-to-day events for them. >> in fact, jean that is very interesting, when, of course, woe pick up john edwards at the airport that john edwards would just slightly raise his hand as a signal and that andrew young would hand him the coke that's how in tune with the senator's needs he was. i want to ask you about why

andrew young, if he was so protective of, supportive of, took care of the edwardses why he turned on them with this book proposal? and in politico, ben writes this, "young with all the fury of a spurned lover may be holding out another threat to his old idol, if it comes to that an explicit videotape." two people who have seen it said of edwards and hunter together it is his hold card, said the source. jean, why has he been motivated now to write this tape -- excuse me to write this proposal, talk about this sex tape? why is he doing this? >> well, what close colleagues of andrew young told ben is that a couple of things have come to bear. first of all, his career, of course, has been ruined. his marriage was hurt, although not broken, when he took cred it debt for being the father of

hunters a child. but he had felt all along that edwards, once his presidential career was over, would then step up and take credit for being the father of the child and edwards has resisted doing that. and so, that was one reason, it was to pressure edwards to tell the truth, presumably. and he also was apparently very hurt by mrs. edwards' book, she did her autobiography in which she referred to him as pathetic, sort of a cloying staff member who had injected himself in their lives in inappropriate ways and was clingy and jealous and she spoke very badly of him and it broke his heart, they said. and finally, he decided he was going to write his own back. >> jean, you are really smart when it comes to money and poll it ticks, do you expect, of course, senator edwards under investigation by this grand jury does face some potential legal problems? >> it is difficult to tell

because from what we know from the reporting is that one of his top fund-raisers, fred barren, was the one who was funneling money to andrew young and hunter to keep them quiet and happy while the presidential campaign took place. and barren now has passed away. that also becomes an easy opportunity to blame the dead for anything that happened and it is unclear whether barren's private funds in anyway were mingled with campaign contributions. and campaign expenses. the key is the salary that was paid to andrew young and to hunter. that's the key. were they paid to do real work or were they paid to simply hide the affair and the pregnancy that came later on? >> jean couplings with politico, good to see you as always. we appreciate it. >> thank you, norah. how excited would you be if you found out that the pilot on your next flight was none other than the miracle on the hudson pilot chesley sully sullen

berger? it is possible. he is back in the cockpit today. sully and first officer jeffrey scout flew from charlotte, north carolina to new york this morning for the first time since their amazing landing in the hudson back in january. sully said he would be eternally grateful for his courage and said that he was blessed by his passengers' gratitude. >> something about this event has captured the imaginations of people around the world. and it happened at a time and a place where it was noticed. it happened at a time when people needed to know that good could still be done in the world. >> well, originally, american airline also said that their first flight would be from laguardia later today. when asked why it gave out incorrect information, the spokesperson said the flight out of laguardia was important because it was symbolic for the crew. the airline said today's play from laguardia was sully's fourth flight since the water landing. he actually flew on september 11th for retraining.

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ladies and gentlemen, here is exciting news, sarah page, had her memoir published, coming out in november, i got an advanced copy of the sarah palin memoir. listen to this. this time, i was the one who quit halfway through. >> that was david letterman poking fun at sarah palin's upcoming memoir but the former governor of alaska might have the last laugh because she can now add best-selling author to her res may get this, seven weeks before its release, palin's memoir, "going rogue" has hit number one on barns & noble.com and amazon.com. the publisher on tuesday moved up the release state date from next spring to november 17th. all you small business owners and entrepreneurs want to pay close attention to this next story, msnbc your business host jj ram berg interviewed the

commerce secretary on his efforts on behalf of small businesses. >> we really believe that to really help entrepreneurs in this country who really in the last 25 years were responsible for virtually of all the net new jobs in america, i mean, companies less than five years old, last 25 years, responsible for virtually of all the net new jobs in america, we need to really help them lead this economic recovery. >> joining me now is the host of msnbc's "your business," jj ram berg. good to see you. you heard him talking about the small business bus what specifically are they doing to help small businesses, and especially when it comes to health care? it is still up in the air whether small businesses will have to pay a larger portion of their employees' health care costs. >> as you can imagine, add all right to say about health care but didn't say anything that is going to be resolved. as you know, still a big debate. what he did spend a lot of time talking about what he did announce was the opening of the new office of innovation and entrepreneurship. and through that, the commerce

department is going to help entrepreneurs by giving them training, by giving them mentors and what i thought was most important, by trying to speed up access that force small business to government r&d, which they hope will have then inspire other small businesses. >> of course, jj, there is the shine a light contest. i understand it has been narrowed down to three type lists, first, those who don't know what it is, explain it. >> this was a contest that american express put together with nbc universal, where we -- people shaped a light on the small businesses that really inspired them so we got thousands of nominations. we narrowed them down to three and now everyone can go vote on -- for their favorite one, all you have to do is go to nbc.com/shine a light and narrowed them down to three, one is sacred wind communications a tel come company in albuquerque which is providing telephone service, internet service to thousands of people on navajo lands who have never had access to this before.

pretty amazing. the second someone happy baby, a company based here in new york which provides organic foods for your kids and they have created a wonderful community of moms which help educate other parents about healthy living for their baby and the third is beacon peyton hardware, the quintessential community business, where people come in and they know everybody's names and kids get toys and dogs get treats. just go to nbc.com/shine a late and vote for the winner. >> all right. jj ram berg. jj, good to see you. good to see you, too. watch "your business" every sunday morning bright and early late 7:30 a.m. right here on msnbc. i'm norah o'donnell. david shuster and alex witt will pick things up next. minutes from now, president obama is expected to speak about iran at 3:05 in the diplomatic room this is msnbc. i was always going.

having to go in the middle of traffic and just starting and stopping. having to go in the middle of a ballgame and then not being able to go once i got there. and going at night. i thought i had a going problem. my doctor said i had a growing problem. it wasn't my bladder. my prostate was growing. i had an enlarging prostate that was causing my urinary symptoms. my doctor prescribed avodart. (announcer) over time, avodart actually shrinks the prostate and improves urinary symptoms so i can go more easily when i need to go