jim miklaszewski was told an unconfirmed report of another air hijacking. we share this with you not to exacerbate what is a terrible situation but so much has come true today based on earlier reports we want you to have as much information as we can possibly get at the pentagon, all people outside were told to take cover just moments ago but jim miklaszewski said the size were clear. >> there was an unconfirmed report of another hijacking with the plane headed towards washington. we don't want to sound alarmists but that is something mick heard while he was at the pentagon. we want to mention the president is en route from florida where he was there to visit an elementary school to talk about literacy. his agenda has changed dramatically. he will convene a meeting of the national security council nns he gets home and colin powell is scheduled to be back from lima, peru. >> my guess is that air force one is in unusual situation to have a fighter plane escort on its way back from florida today is where we stand. >> think about the loss of life that we could

jim miklaszewski, nbc news, the pentagon. >>> bit of an awkward moment today as president obama stepped off air force one in upstate new york. he was greeted by governor david paterson. they spoke. we don't know about what exactly. the awkwardness is because reports have it the president doesn't want the governor to run for re-election and has said so because he doesn't like his chances. one poll puts his disapproval rating at close to 80%. state democratic sources tell our n chuck todd the president expressed regret today over this whole thing. as for governor paterson, he insists he's in the race to stay. the president went onto a community college to talk about the economy and heal care. >>> and late today at a taping of "the late show with david letterman" for air tonight, the president was asked about former president jimmy carter's comments to us last week that racism is behind a lot of the vitriol we have been seeing at town hall meetings and protests across the country of late. >> well, first of all, i think it's important to realize that i was actually black before the election

jim miklaszewski, along with vicky and jonathan.we expand the conversation to the rhetoric and the difference of the rhetoric between george w. bush and president obama. let me remind you of the key distinctions. take a listen, if you would, to george w. bush in a consolidation of some of his rhetoric relative to iran. >> iran is, today, the world's leading state sponsor of terror. iran's actions threaten the security of nations everywhere. so the united states is strengthening our long-standing security commitments with our friends in the gulf and rallying friends around the world to confront this danger before it's too late. our strategy is this. we will fight them over there so we do not have to face them in the united states of america. >> and now president obama on iran. >> we will extend a hand, if you are willing to unclench your fist. my administration is now committed to diplomacy that addresses the full range of issues before us and to pursuing constructive ties among the united states, iran, and the international communit

forces there. >> all right, jim miklaszewski.hanks. >> reporter: you bet, wendy. >>> a colorado man allegly trained by al qaeda will stay in custody after a federal court appearance today. zajibullah zazi and his father mohammed zazi were arrested in denver over the weekend. investigators say the younger zazi played a direct role in an alleged terror plot believed to have targeted new york city. ringconnect 1200 >> reporter: all alone coming off of a commercial flight at dulles, national guard major t.j. law was smothered with hugs from his wife and two small kids. he's just back from a seven-month deployment to iraq. >> the hardest part was not being able to see anybody and be with them but it's great to be back. >> reporter: how much dumiss them. >> so much. >> reporter: law's wife monica is a national guard reservist who wants to bring attention to soldiers like her husband who deploy by themselves. t.j. law was sent on a special mission and had to link up with units not knowing a soul. there's no big deployment ceremony or ho

nbc news jim miklaszewski joins us from the pentagon. m, what was the rationale given for this decision to scrap missile defense in eastern europe? >> reporter: well, as you know, savannah, the obama administration really wasn't that supportive of the bush administration plan to permanently base antimissile missile interceptors in poland and radars in the czech republic permanently as some sort of missile shield against possible iranian missile attacks. so, the president announced today that they were scrapping the bush plan, but they were adopting a new one that would provide for a more mobile, portable system, more adapted that would not only be land-based, but sea-based. and even defense secretary robert gates, who first recommended that land-based missile defense system in europe three years ago, acknowledged today that things have changed, that the technology is improved that allowed this new system to take over for what would have been that permanently land-based system. and it would be cheaper in the long run, more effective and pu

. >> jim, if you could stand by for a moment because jim miklaszewski jim miklaszewski at the pentagon has more information for us. >> my colleague chris brown here at the financing encountered some of those who survived. whatever it was. whether it was a bomb or an airplane crashing into the pentagon. one of the survivors who was reportedly injured had various lacerations, was on the second floor of the d-ring, that is one ring inside the outer ring of the pentagon when, suddenly, there was this horrific blast and he said that the second floor buckled upward and then the third floor above him actually collapsed downward. the scene on the other side of the building as it's being described to us there are people being removed on stretchers. security forces are evacuating the building right now. and according to the officials here at the pentagon, they still don't know exactly what it was, but as you reported, katie, eyewitnesses reported that, in fact, it was a plane that crashed into the pentagon. >> mick, any idea? i'm not sure you said this about the number of people who might have b

jim miklaszewski has the story. >> reporter: june, 2006. on his second tour in afghanistan.he was both a soldier and a diplomat. two weeks after he's seen here, he was killed in combat. >> i was devastated. i couldn't sleep. not my jerry. >> reporter: his parents say jared was a natural born leader. he cared deeply for others. they weren't surprised he gave his life to save another. >> i couldn't expect him to do anything else. because that's how he lived in life. >> reporter: they were on a surveillance mission when they were suddenly ambushed. staff sergeant chris cunningham was there. >> it was very, very intense. >> reporter: outnumbered three to one, they took cover from an avalanche of enemy fire. one soldier s quickly killed. one of the wounded was out in the open and exposed to the enemy. without hesitation, he left the safety of his position to reach the wounded soldier. not once, but twice, he was driven back by intense enemy fire. >> he went out again and he was determined to get his soldier. >> reporter: the third time, he was hit by a grenade. medical reportly w

military officials are telling jim miklaszewski he has the ban because he objrqaór to the beer gardenhere allied military officials gathered throughout the day. he thought it created a distraction. they are prohibited from drinking alcohol anytime in the war zone. many allied forces permit drinking at the base. >>> a british soldier and translator were killed in a daring raid on a taliban hideout in northern afghanistan. the raid accomplished the objective. it freed the reporter of the new york times. stephen farrell was taken hostage. >>> high drama on the hundredway in mexico city. a lone hijacker tried to take control of a plane full of passengers, including several americans. kerry sanders has more on how it started and how it ended. >>> some passengers on board said they didn't realize there was a hijacking in progress. >> translator: we never would have guessed he was attempting to hijack the plane. we know because they told us we were taking off. >> reporter: the lone hijacker was never able to get past the locked cockpit door. somehow he told crew members his intentions. some

jim miklaszewski, nbc news, the pentagon. >>> when we come back, somof the many americans who are takingme out to make a diffence where they live. pentagon >>> when we come back, some of the many americans who are taking time out to make a difference where they live the mily budget? o be h here goes the good old steam. [ pfffft! ] whooa!!!! [ female announcer ] let bounty help... because it cleans the mess with less than the bargain brands. 's thick and absorbent. and really durable. in lab tests bounty absorbs twice as much ashe bgainrand. [ steam sses ] why use reh@ r when you can use less? bring it. with bounty. the thick quicker picker-upper. and try bounty napkins. now with new prints. the one deal in the neighborhood where you get the real food. feating a half rack of our new double-glazed baby back ri wi your choi of sauces. get one full-sized aptizer and two real entrees for just twen bucks. 's 2 for $20. only at applebee's. so it's a typical morng when suddenly youeeuilt ford tough tcks! e ground starts rumblin' like you jusstru o, and you know what? lan' leading th herd th is t

nbc news pentagon correspondent, jim miklaszewski, has more on the war over this war. >> reporter: evens american commanders in afghanistan prepare to ask for more u.s. forces to fight the war, their biggest battle may be back in washington. today, the powerful chairman of the armed services committee, democratic senator carl levin, says he is against sending more american combat troops to afghanistan, but instead, would send military trainers to help expand the afghan military. >> we need a surge of afghan security forces, and we have not done nearly enough to put that in motion. >> reporter: house speaker nancy pelosi is opposed to any additional u.s. forces. >> i don't think there is a great deal of support for sending more troops to afghanistan in the country or in the congress. >> reporter: and for the first time, the american public has turned against the afghanistan war n a recent poll, 51% said the war is not worth fighting. public support eroded as the situation in afghanistan is rapidly deteriorating. in the past two months, a record number of american forces have been killed

nbc's jim miklaszewski. joe said it. i challenged him. i was wrong. into the conversation this morning. we appreciate it. again, the president is set to speak about iran in just about an hour. we're going to take it live. up next, former mccain campaign adviser nicole wallace is right here. plus former california governor gray davis on what that state needs to do to get out of its economic crisis. we'll be right back. show and tell you weren't always my favorite day. with all the pet hair in the air, i'd spend class preoccupied, bothered by itchy eyes. but now i have new zyrtec® itchy eye drops. it works fast, with just one drop, to relieve my itchy eyes from allergies for up to 12 hours. no other allergy itchy eye drop works faster or longer. which is good, 'cause there's a lotta paws to shake. with new zyrtec® itchy eye drops i can love the air™. (announcer) find it in the allergy aisle next to other zyrtec® products. getting an early flu shot is the best thing you can do... to protect you and your loved ones from the flu. it's also one of the easies

officials in tehran are not even going to discuss it and jim miklaszewski is live for us at the pentagonith the latest going into this conversation. jim, where are we? >> well, dylan, if you talk to the iranians we are no place. they are as defiant as ever about pursuing their nuclear program whether it's peaceful use of energy or nuclear weapons. they are not willing to discuss it at this meeting on thursday in geneva. even though president obama has demanded immediate and unfettered access to this new facility, this new uranium enrichment city in northern iraq, iranians say not so fast. they say even if they allow the iaea into the -- into inspect the facility, they say there's certain protocols and that is going to take some time. but this morning, on msnbc, the former scket madeleine albright said, look, it's a good thing. at least they're talking. >> what i think has been good is he also made clear that we have to talk to them. i think what has been missing in the past is that we were not talking to iran and i can assure you that talking is not necessarily nice. i had a few conversa

nbc's jim miklaszewski joins us live from the pentagon. what can you tell us, mick?ast couple of days and, in fact, in talking to david gregory on "meet the press," he wants to take a closer look at the strategy that general mchrystal has put together for afghanistan to make sure it's the right strategy before he, the president, commits to sending any more young men and women into harm's way there in afghanistan. defense secretary gates says, you know, that's a reasonable course for the president to take, although some military officials are going a little concerned that given the way the white house and the president are dealing with this situation, that they may be -- maybe considering reducing the number, if not withdrawing, from afghanistan altogether. nobody is suggesting that at this point but the president is apparently studying new possible strategies. >> we know general mchrystal laid out in the document leaked to the post that in fact, he needed more troops in order to get this job done in that 12-month time frame. if the white house is looking at a differe

nbc's correspondent, jim miklaszewski, reports. >> reporter: nearly eight years after the president declare the u.s. would get osama bin laden, dead or alive, bush is out of office, and bin laden is still out there somewhere. he is the world's most wanted, yet most elusive fugitive. shortly after 9/11, the u.s. military had osama bin laden cornered at tora bora in afghanistan. but somehow, he managed to slip through a massive bombing campaign and has been on the loose ever since. on the run in a remote tribal regions of western pakistan, bin laden still led al qaeda's reign offer to. in july, 2005, al qaeda suicide bombers struck london's subways and buses, killing 56. over several years, al qaeda bombings killed thousands in iraq. as bin laden was forced deep near hiding in pakistan, al qaeda offshoots went to on a killing spree in places like iraq, yemen and somalia. and while they no longer are calling the shots, bin laden and his number two, amman al zawahiri repaint inspirational leaders of al qaeda. >> to get amman al zawahiri or bin laden, we need someone to make a mistake or stumble

nbc's jim miklaszewski. thank you so much for answering all those questions. tamron? >>> coming up, the latest on those deadly floods making life miserable in the southeast. eight people reported dead, including a toddler. we'll have a live report. >>> plus, what does the left really want from president obama on health care? we'll talk with our very own ed schultz. >>> and stripping down to track the stock market. i didn't know they had to work so hard to keep us interested, but apparently so. we'll tell you what's behind this crazy video. this is the big picture on msnbc. [ birds squawking ] [ moos ] [ man announcing ] if you think about it, this is what makes theladders different from other job search sites. we only want the big jobs. welcome to theladders. a premium job site for only $100k+ jobs and only $100k+ talent. announcer: what if yoand give itrite a whole new life? introducing a transformation in hair care. new aveeno nourish plus. only aveeno has harnessed the power of active naturals' wheat complex in formulas that target and fortify the weakest parts of

nbc correspondents jim miklaszewski is at the pentagon. sort of a shake-up here. man who had been in charge of the process, gregory craig has been removed from the moth. now what is he doing? >> the white house is going to come up with all sorts of reasons why they are going to miss that one-year deadline to close guantanamo bay but there is really only one factor at play here. and that is the fact that after many months of searching, the u.s. military, the pentagon, the administration, could not find a single state in all 50 to be willing to accept these detainees. now, ultimately, right now, they are holding 225 day teen yeas at guantanamo bay and they ultimately hope to put many on trial, ship many more off to other countries. but there might be a core of 90 to a hundred that they are going to have to house and pentagon official told us yesterday that everything is back to square one and now they are going back to look at a military option. but there hasn't been a single spade of dirt turned, there hasn't been a single dollar allocated to improving facilities t

. >>> we'll go now to jim miklaszewski, who has just come out of a briefing where we understand the discussion was all about the president's plan to scrap a missile defense shield plan. what was said in that meeting? >> reporter: secretary of defense robert gates wanted to make sure that the u.s., the obama administration is not scrapping missile defense in europe altogether. they are scrapping the bush plan, which was to put permanent missile intercepters in poland and a permanent, large radar in the czech republic for one they say is more versatile. it would be portable, in fact, that these missile intercepters could be moved around on the ground. but they would also be sea-based intercepters on cruisers that are more adaptable, they say, to the emerging threat, particularly out of iran. it's been determined by intelligence officials within the past three years since secretary gates himself recommended a permanent missile defense system in europe that the long-range ballistic missile threat from iran has diminished somewhat and the short-range, medium-range threat has grown. so, what the sec

jim miklaszewski is live at the pentagon with details on general stanley mccrystal's 66-page assessment to one sentence. he said historically the mission in afghanistan has been under resource and if it continues to be under resource then the mission is likely to fail. but you've hit on a key question. what exactly is the mission? stan mccrystal went into afghanistan with the idea that his orders were to defeat or at least contain the insurgency long enough, maybe two or three years, to allow the afghan military security forces to get up to speed to take over that operation. but that field appears to be changing as we speak. he has given this 66-page assessment that took several months to compile and now the white house apparently not satisfied with that because it would lead to more u.s. troops. you know, mchrystal has this order sitting on his desk, a recommendation for up to 40,000 additional forces into afghanistan over the next year or so. essentially, the white house has said sit on it, don't send it our way yet. and now we're being told today by senior pentagon and military offic

nbc's jim miklaszewski joins us from the pentagon.ng how quickly the violence spread? >> well, you know, the u.s. military strategy is aimed at actually trying to tamp down that increase in violence and as 21,000 additional troops were put into iraq or are being put into afghanistan, i'm sorry, we're in the process of doing that, it was expected that the violence would rise because u.s. military forces are venturing out into areas, enemy territory where they really had no presence before, so that's not unexpected. however, what was unexpected is they are confronting a much more sophisticated taliban enemy than they had before and some of that violence has spread to areas in the west and northwest where the taliban had no presence before and it's estimated, as a matter of fact, that taliban, they have some control over 80% of afghanistan right now. >> jim, thank you. >>> u.s. strategy in afghanistan will be a key topic on "meet the press" this sunday. moderator david gregory brings jon kyl and jim webb on "meet the press" this sunday.

nbc's jim miklaszewski has the story. >> i'll be there in ten minutes. >> reporter: june 2006, sergeant first chase jared monti on his second tour in afghanistan. he was both a soldier and diplomat. two weeks after he's seen here, monti was killed in combat. >> i was devastated. i couldn't believe it. not my child. >> reporter: his parents, janet and paul, say jared was a natural born leader who cared deeply about others so they weren't surprised he gave his life to save another. >> i couldn't have expected him to do anything else because that's the way he lived in life. >> reporter: monti's unit was on a surveillance mission when they were suddenly ambushed. staff sergeant chris cunningham was there. >> it was very, very, very intense. >> reporter: outnumbered 3-1, monti and his men took cover from an avalanche of enemy fire. one soldier was quickly killed, but one of the wounded was out in the open and exposed to the enemy. without hesitation, monti left the safety of his position to try to reach his wounded soldier. not once, but twice he was driven back by iense enemy fire. >> when

jim miklaszewski at the pentagon. >> reporter: they came in to the white house not on board with thead they're going to recommend placing a portable, more flexible, but they say just as capable system to deal with short-end medium-range missile threats to europe. for some reason, all of a sudden, there has been a reassessment of the iranian missile threat and it's been determined that there's less of a long-range ballistic missile threat from iran and more of a short to medium range missile threat, which leaves many of us scratching our head. we'll see what the details are from secretary defense gates and the vice chairman of the joint chiefs of staff later this morning. but, you know, ultimately the white house has wanted to scrap this from day one, and they needed a way out, because they're very sensitive about looking weak, especially on missile defense, dylan. >> hey, mick, why do they want to scrap this plan in the first place? what's going on between the u.s., russia, eastern europe and iran? >> there is that sensitivity on the part of russia that opposed it from the very begin