bush's secretary of state and former bush and obama defense secretary bob gates about syria.some of the highlights, putin's move into syria is old-fashioned, great-power politics, he, putin see as vacuum created by our hesitancy to fully engage in places such as libya and stay the course in iraq. no fly zones and safe harbors are not half-baked ideas. >> it doesn't get much more ofls obvious that gates and rice, throwing president obama's words right back at him. >> in a way that's utterly mocking. the sentence you read about putin's move is old-fashioned, great power politics. is followed by a parenthetical that says, which still exists in the 21st century. that is to mock a president who believes that when the calendar the abolition of 5,000 years of power politics. and as he said at the u.n. the control of territory no longer is a measure of power in this century this is a man truly living in a make-believe world and they wanted to emphasize that. the fact that one of those who wrote this, as you say, it served obama himself as defense secretary for more than one term. is

bush's secretary of state and former bush and obama defense secretary bob gates about syria. are some of the highlights, putin's move into syria is old-fashioned, great-power politics, he, putin see as vacuum created by our hesitancy to fully engage in places such as libya and stay the course in iraq. no fly zones and safe harbors are not half-baked ideas. >> it doesn't get much more ofls obvious that gates and rice, throwing president obama's words right back at him. >> in a way that's utterly mocking. the sentence you read about putin's move is old-fashioned, great power politics. is followed by a parenthetical that says, which still exists in the 21st century. that is to mock a president who believes that when the calendar turns on january 2000, that was the abolition of 5,000 years of power politics. and as he said at the u.n. the control of territory no longer is a measure of power in this century this is a man truly living in a make-believe world and they wanted to emphasize that. the fact that one of those who wrote this, as you say, it served obama himself as defense

leon panetta and go and bob gates said don't go. i told them my opinion, i thought he should go, but to follow his own instincts. >> much has been written about joe flip-flopping on that raid. picture the moment that bin laden was taken out. biden on the left, flanked by hillary clinton and president obama on the right, flanked by bob gates. >> i like it i think being assertive. he's saying listen, i'm the big dog in the town. i'm calling the shots, speaking for the president. being firm in my decision-making and say he essentially superseeds her. that to me sounds like a man with confidence that knows what he wants and is ready to get in. >> dana in those three clips, joe biden said i get along with the gop. i speak for the president when we go overseas or i go overseas, and then the last one, i was in favor of the raid when a lot of people have said he never actually was. >> i think the most important one of those three is what he was saying about the republicans. because this is a man who is now saying i'm ready to lead this part

le leon panetta said go and bob gates said don't go. others were at 59-41. some end wanted up saying go, but it was such a close call. i joked and said, you all sound like 17 larry summers economist, on the one hand and the other. and they said, well, joe, what would you do? there was a third option that i didn't really think we should do. i said, well, i said, i think we should make one more pass with another uav to see if it's -- if it is him. and the reason i did that is i didn't want to take a position to go if that was not where he was going to go. so, as we walked out of the room and walked upstairs, i said -- i told him my opinion, that i thought he should go but follow his own instinct. >> it's really just fascinating when you listen to that, he's saying, leon panetta and bob gates were the only two around the table who had definitive yes or no answers. he does not, guys, put hillary clinton in that category. it's really fascinating. so he's kind of downplaying the fact that she said yes, which is reported. he's also downplaying that he said no, whic

i left the cia in the 1980's because of the politicization of intelligence under bill casey and bob gatest what john brennan has done is created the cia as a paramilitary institution that is really doing the bidding of the pentagon. he said in his confirmation hearings he was going to give up drone warfare, that that properly belongs in the pentagon. if we should be doing it at all, which is another question. not only has he not done that, we have expanded the use of the drones. now he is merging intelligence analysts and operatives which will further politicize intelligence. what i worry about is the cia that was greater by harry truman to challenge the pentagon, to challenge intelligence briefings by the pentagon, to try to get an understanding of why we need arms control and disarmament. and they're the cia and the state department, when we had arms control and disarmament agency which bill clinton got rid of, the cia did a very good work. if you look at the last 10 years, if you look at politicized intelligence, the phony case to go to war, people like mike morrow, deputy director who

leon panetta said into, and bob gates who's already ably said this said don't go.oom and walked upstairs, i said, i told him my opinion. that i thought he should go but follow his own instincts. >> reporter: a difference in what was thought. also making clear he had the last word with the president, not the secretary of said who has long said she advised the raid. >> i was one who recommended that he go ahead, and hissed advisors were split. it was risky. >> reporter: biden said he had a hand in every decision, even choosing clinton as secretary of said. >> the president said you have veto right on anybody in this cabinet. for biden, time is running short. he has deadlines in alabama and texas. even his new polls show biden in a distant third and more democrats say he shouldn't run, his campaign in waiting roars on. >> that's the healthy part -- >> reporter: he said again today, he doesn't believe republicans are always the bad guys. >> i don't think my chief enemy is the republican party. this is a matter of making things work. >> reporter: a not so subtlel jab at

are only two people who were definitive, and were absolutely certain, leon panetta said go, and bob gates, who has already publicly said this, said don't go. >> reporter: back in 2012, biden admitted he had argued against the raid. >> mr. president, my suggestion is don't go, we have to do two more things to see if he's there. story. >> i told him my opinion, that i thought he should go, but follow his own instincts. >> reporter: it's possible biden is trying the tweak his role in that pivotal decision in advance of a presidential run, but, scott, even president obama has said publicly that the vice president was sceptical about the operation that killed bin laden. >> pelley: nancy cordes in the washington newsroom tonight. nancy, thank you. cbs news will bring you the next democratic debate with or without joe biden from des moines, iowa, saturday november 14th at 9:00 eastern time. the debate will not be including former senator jim webb of virginia. he dropped out of the race today. webb is considering running as an independent. a stranded motorist is shot to death by a cop, and now th

confidence that bin laden was in the compound and came out firmly in his book, defense secretary bob gates said flatly, biden was against the operation. hillary clinton is also on the record saying, vice president biden remains skeptical, but she was for the raid. the white house refused to clear up the confusion. >> i don' t have any new insight to share with you. announce he' s running for president, this would be a major stumble right out of the gate. kenneth moten, abc news. shelley: a new poll of new hampshire republican primary voters has donald trump expanding his lead. the franklin pierce/"boston herald" paul puts trump at the front of the pack with 28% of support from republican primary voters. the group' s previous poll had trump at 18%. then carson him at 16%. carly fiorina was the only other candidate to receive double-digit support, but jeb bush was only 1% behind her. shelley: a judge has upheld the felony conviction of owen labrie , meaning he will face a offender. in august, the jury found the of five charges related to the sexual assault of a teenage girl. his attorneys ar

he said that it was bob gates and leon panetta, who was running the cia.ry clinton gave a definitive judgment on whether to go forward with that raid. so this is obviously causing some controversy. josh earnest, the white house press secretary was asked about it just a few hours ago. let's play what he said. >> i think historians would probably tell you this is not the first time that a significant political event has prompted differing recollections from people who participated in it. and that is not to call into question the integrity or veracity or honesty of anybody who participated. >> so kate, the vice president stirring something up here and obviously this all comes as he's trying to decide whether to run for president. and all the talk has been, if he gets in the race, this is a vulnerability for him. the perception he was against the raid, hillary clinton is for the raid. he's now trying to rewrite that, it seems. >> is he now creating another vulnerability, that he said one thing two years ago and he's describing a completely different set of fac

. >> there are only two people who were definitive, bob gates already publicly said, don't go. as he walked out of the room and went upstairs, i told him my opinion but i told him he should go by follow instincts. >> nicole: he told house democrats he warned against the operation. >> cheryl: also breaking news overnight. bashar al-assad in russia yesterday, this was to thank vladimir pit infor launching air strikes in syria. visit comes three weeks after russia launches against islamist in the country. >> nicole: change high composite down 3%. not effecting home. nikkei up about 2% and kospi up almost 1%. >> cheryl: dax 9 points right now. >> nicole: s&p over and nasdaq almost 7. >> cheryl: look at oil, 45.62, we are down 67. take a look at gold, 11.75, pretty flat day for gold. let's take a look at how the dollar is trading. japanese yen, mexican peso all weaker against the u.s. dollar. >> cheryl: the current yield on the treasury. that's a loss of 1.9 basis points. ferrari stock in demand. priced initially at the top of expectation. fifty-two dollars a share, that's according

and, and bob gates has already publicly said, don't go. >> reporter: back in 2012, biden admitted hergued against the raid. >> mr. president, my suggestion is don't go. we have to do two more things to see if he is there. >> reporter: but today he told a different story. >> i told them my opinion. i thought he should go. follow his own instincts. >> it is possible biden is trying to tweak his role in the pivotal decision in advance of a presidential run. scott, even president obama said publicly the vice president was skeptical about the operation that killed obin laden. >> the next democrat debate, from drake university, saturday, november 14th, at 9:00 eastern time. the debate will not include former senator jim webb of virginia. he dropped out of the race today. webb is kconsidering running as an independent. a stranded mope torist is shot to death by a cop. and now the family is demanding answers. the "cbs overnight news" will be right back. laundry can wreak havoc on our clothes, ruining them forever. sweaters stretch into muumuus. and pilled cardigans become pets. but it's not

and, and bob gates has already publicly said, don't go. >> reporter: back in 2012, biden admitted he argued against the raid. >> mr. president, my suggestion is don't go. we have to do two more things to see if he is there. >> reporter: but today he told a different story. >> i told them my opinion. i thought he should go. follow his own instincts. >> it is possible biden is trying to tweak his role in the pivotal decision in advance of a presidential run. scott, even president obama said publicly the vice president was skeptical about the operation that killed obin laden. >> the next democrat debate, from drake university, saturday, november 14th, at 9:00 eastern time. the debate will not include former senator jim webb of virginia. he dropped out of the race today. webb is kconsidering running as an independent. a stranded mope torist is shot to death by a cop. and now the family is demanding answers. the "cbs overnight news" will be right back. laundry can wreak havoc on our clothes, ruining them forever. sweaters stretch into muumuus. and pilled cardigans become pets. but it's no

and, and bob gates has already publicly said, don't go. >> reporter: back in 2012, biden admitted he argued against the raid. >> mr. president, my suggestion is don't go. we have to do two more things to see if he is there. >> reporter: but today he told a different story. >> i told them my opinion. follow his own instincts. >> it is possible biden is trying to tweak his role in the pivotal decision in advance of a presidential run. scott, even president obama said publicly the vice president was skeptical about the operation that killed bin laden. >>> cbs news will bring you the next presidential debate with or without biden, from drake university, saturday, the debate will not include virginia. he dropped out of the race today. webb is considering running as an independent. a stranded motorist is shot to death by a cop. and now the family is demanding answers. right back. choose to move freely. move free ultra has triple-action support for your joints, cartilage and bones in one tiny pill. move free ultra. get your move on. and now try move free night. the first and only 2-in-1 joi

first, i think bob gates was right when he said, when you look at putin's eyes, ec kgb, kgb, kgb. by that, i mean this guy is a thug, this guy is a bully. second point i make is that he only understands relative power. who was got more power, who's got less power. that is how he thinks about relationships. i will tell you that he tries to create the image that he is this great strategic thinker. he is not at all. he is a very good tactician, very good reacting to situations, taking advantage, but not particularly good at thinking them through. i think he is the biggest loser over the long-term in the ukraine crisis and i think yes miscalculated what he is doing in syria now. i do not think he is this great strategic thinker. the other thing i say is he is entrepreneurial and he is a risk-taker, but he is a particularly dangerous risk-taker. when vladimir putin takes a risk and it pays off, he often times is willing to take an even bigger risk. he takes a risk, something goes well, he will take a bigger risk. that is why during the ukraine crisis, i was worried he might have done s

leon panetta said go and bob gates has publicly said don't go. others were at 59-41. but it was such a close call. i joked and said you all sound like 17 larry summers, on the one hand and the other hand. and he said, joe, what would you do. there was a third option that i really didn't think we should do. i said i think we should make one more pass with another uav to see if it is him. and the reason i did that is i didn't want to take a position to go if that was not where he was going to go. so as we walked out of the room and walked upstairs, i told them my opinion that i thought he should go, but follow his own instinct. >> joe biden down playing that hillary clinton was a definitive yes ongoing after osama bin laden. also throwing cold water on the idea that he was a definitive no, but it's interesting because when you fact check that, it contradicts something president obama said at a debate with mitt romney in 2012 where he basically says that biden was reticent to go after bin laden. and another thing that's kind of interesting. this is what you know he's swi

what did you make of former defense secretary bob gates saying he never doubted the president's support for the troops, only his support for their mission. >> that was an overall such a damning interview. it was kind of astonishing to listen to secretary gates say the things he was saying. it all rings true, you look at the fact that the president's heart was never really in this arming the syrian rebels, but he did it, anyway. he seems to be making these political calculations. and he's not even in this case, you do have do say i'm somebody who wanted to us get out of afghanistan. if you look at the situation on the ground right now, could you easily see why you would stay. but it doesn't seem like it's the plan and the president, where's the rallying cry? >> i think we're not just talking about keeping afghanistan stabilized, we're talking about a region blowing up, completely out of control and it's our only base of operation. you think the president would be making a rallying cry to the american people, this is something we need to do. we may need to send more troops, as much as mos

and bob gates who is already a publicly said this, said don't go. and the others were 49-51, and i joked and said, y'all sound like 17 larry summers, an economic, to one hand and the other hand and they said, well, joe what would you do? and there was a third option that i didn't really think we should do, i said, well, i think we should make one more pass with another uav to see if it's, if it is him and the reason i did that, i didn't want to take a position to go if that was not where he was going to go. so, as we walked out of the room and we walked up stairs. i said, i told him my opinion. that i thought he should go, but follow his own instincts. but it would have been a mistake, imagine if i said in front of everyone, don't go, or go and his decision was a different decision. it under cuts that relationship. >> you can see all of the george washington university forum on the vice presidents, that highlights the legacy of walter mondale, on our sister station, c-span 2. the future of u.s. military policy action in asia. >> the senate armed ser

leon pinetta said go and bob gates has already publicly said this, said don't go. >> so now people are accusing her along with vice president joe biden of some sort of stolen glory. trying to get in on these decisions that sent men in that particular case into harm's way. and it worked out well, as you know. >> they were the ones that made the critical call. you have to give credit to barack obama. the people in a room and mind closed doors giving different perspectives. her foreign policy record is terrible. if he knew where he stood and whether he was popular or not, that's where we're at with leadership. >> great to see you. thanks for being here. ? thank you. >> our next guest has a new book out on this very topic. two decorated former navy seal officers who led the most highly deck rayed special operations unit of the entire iraq war. they are the authors of extreme ownership, how u.s. navy seals lead and win. great to see you both. it's great timing on an incredible book. >> i just asked earlier, did i ever make mistakes in my career? absolutely. i made all kind of mistakes. when

leon panetta said, "go," and bob gates, who's already publicly said this, said "don't go." >> reporterom the situation room could flair up in a potential democratic presidential race. >> as we walked out of the room and walked upstairs, i said, i told them my opinion, that i thought he should go, but follow his instincts. >> reporter: he's trying to clear up criticism from his unknown opposition to the bin laden raid, also making clear, he had the last word with the president, not secretary of state hillary clinton, who's long said she advised the president to authorize the high-stakes raid. >> i was one who recommended to the president that he go ahead, and his advisers were split, because it was a very risky operation. >> so help me god. >> reporter: biden didn't stop there. he said he had a hand in every decision, even choosing clinton as secretary of state. >> the president at the outset said you have veto right on anybody in this cabinet. if you think we should not move. and sure enough, he asked my opinion on every cabinet member, and we were in total agreement. >> reporter: for

what did you make of former defense secretary bob gates saying he never doubted the president's supportt for their mission. >> that was an overall such a damning interview. it was kind of astonishing to listen to secretary gates say the things he was saying. it all rings true, you look at the fact that the president's heart was never really in this arming the syrian rebels, but he did it, anyway. he seems to be making these political calculations. and he's not even in this case, you do have do say i'm somebody who wanted to us get out of afghanistan. if you look at the situation on the ground right now, could you easily see why you would stay. but it doesn't seem like it's the plan and the president, where's the rallying cry? >> i think we're not just talking about keeping afghanistan stabilized, we're talking about a region blowing up, completely out of control and it's our only base of operation. you think the president would be making a rallying cry to the american people, this is something we need to do. we may need to send more troops, as much as most americans don't want to be the

are only two people who are definitive, and who are absolutely certain, leon panetta said go, and bob gates who has already said this said don't go. as we walked out of the room and walked upstairs, i told him my opinion i thought he should go but follow his own instincts. lou: and biden took a number of swipes at hillary clinton. he declared he has more standing than the former secretary of state. >> because the secretary of state, we've got two great secretaries of state, but when i go, they know that i am speaking for the president. there is nothing missed between the lip and the cup. that whatever i say the president is saying. lou: but it was a fairly good day for clinton. she announced he has the endorsement of more than 50 african-american mayors all across the country. clinton also rebounding after last week's democratic debate, her numbers improving. she has a 20-point lead now over senator bernie sanders and the new nbc-"wall street journal" poll and a 31-point lead over sanders in a new abc-"washington post" poll. and former senator jim webb announcing he is dropping out of the d

leon panetta said go and bob gates, who is already publicly said this, said don't go. as we walked out of the room and walked upstairs, i said, i told him my opinion, that i thought he should go but follow his own instincts. jenna: rich lowery, of "the national review," and phillip bump washington blog the sixth. this is didn't account than joe biden said in the past. in the past he was hesitant but the president went ahead and made this bold decision. is this matter of semantics or is this strategy? >> it seems clearly aimed at hillary clinton because not only did biden kind of clean up his version and his role in this decision, telling a version that is more favorable to himself, he also undercut hillary's story about what she said in the situation room when biden said look, there are only two people had definite views. so, the democratic race here is clearly entered the passive aggressive phase where both biden and hillary are shooting the subtle and not so subtle arrows across each other's bows. jenna: passive aggressive phase. that is always where we want to be ri

. >> only two people were defintive and were absolutely certain, leon panetta said go, and bob gates who already has publicly said this said don't go. and others were 59-41 and some said go, but it is a close call, and i joked and i said, you all sound like 17 larry summers, the economist, and they said, joe, what would you do, and there was a third option which i really didn't think that we should do, and i said, well, i think that we should make one more pass with a uav to make sure it is him. and the reason i did that is that i didn't want to take a position to go if that was not what he was going to go. and so as soon as we walked out of the room and upstairs i told him my opinion that i thought that he should go, but to follow his own instinct. >> there is an awful lot there to pick apart, and so i call on the senior white house correspondent jim acosta to join me, as well as the senior political analyst and adviser to the four presidents david gergen and patti solis doyle who went on the lead the obama team that picked joe biden as the v.p. and first to you, jim acosta, there i

only two people were definitive and were absolutely certain, leon panetta said go and bob gates has already publically said this, don't go. >> reporter: old disagreements from the situation room could flare up in a potential democratic presidential race. >> as we walked out the room and walked upstairs, i told him my opinion he should go but follow his own instincts. >> reporter: a seemingly reversal from a road he was thought to have played opposing the raid. making it clear he had the last word with the president, not secretary of state hillary clinton who long said she advised the president to authorize the high-stakes raid. >> i was one who recommended to the president he go ahead. his advisors were split because it was a very risky operation. >> reporter: biden said he had a hand in every decision, even choosing clinton as secretary of state. >> you have veto right on anybody in this cabinet. >> reporter: for biden, time is running short. he has nine days to qualify for the ballot in georgia followed by deadlines in alabama and texas. even his new polls show biden in a distant third an

so, first, i'd say that i think bob gates was right when he said whin you look in putin's eyes you see kgb, kgb, kgb. by that, i mean this guy is a thug, this guy is a bully. second, he only understands relative power -- who's got more power who, 's got less power. that's how he thinks about relationships. third, i will tell you that he tries to create the image that he is the great strategic thinker. he's not at all. he is a very good tactician, taking advantage of situations but not good at thinking them through. i think he is the biggest loser over the long term in the ukraine crisis and has miscalculated what he's doing in syria now. so i don't think he this great strategic thinker. the the other thing i would say about him is he's entrepreneurial and a risk-takerrer but a particularly dangerous risk taker. when vladimir putin takes a risk and it pays off, he oftentimes is willing to take a bigger risk. he takes a risk, something goes well, then he'll take a bigger risk. that's why, during the ukraine crisis, i was worried he may have done something similar in the baltics, and whil

. >> only two people were definitive and were absolutely, leon panetta said go and bob gates who has already publicly said this said don't go. others were 59-41 and some ended up saying go, but it was a close call. i joked and i said, you all sound like 17 larry summers on the economy, on one hand and on the other hand, and he said, joe, what would you do? there is a third option that i didn't think that we should do, and i said, well, i think that we should make one more pass with another uav to see if it is h him. and the reason i did that is that i didn't want to take a position to go if that was not where he was going to go. so as soon as we walked out of the room and walked upstairs, i told him my opinion, that i thought that he should go, but to follow his own instinct. >> and why is this coming up all of the sudden today? >> because he has decided to talk about it, and he did not have to go into that lengthy of an answer, and if you unpack that, a, so much in there that he, a, had the final word with the president, and when i went upstairs to the president, and made it clear t

. >> your former colleague, condie rice, former secretary of state under george bush and bob gates, who the secretary of defense under both bush and obama had a very tough piece in "the washington post" this week where they say this. putin's move into syria is old fashioned great power politics, yes, people do that in the 21st century. is president obama as out of touch with the reality of the current situation in syria as rice and gates seem to suggest? >> i think condy and bob are absolutely right. putin has gone in to defend assad and defend the syrian regime. he is dealing himself into whatever yut come that comes out of the middle east and he's pursuing the agenda he's had for some time to return russia to the kind of role in the world that the soviet union had during the cold war period. that's what he's about and that's what he's done in ukraine and that is what he is doing in syria. >> and president obama is what? >> you know, the united states has been awol. it's interesting. the republicans and democrat beginning in 2011, who all said if we don't attend to syria, more people w

challengingbly leadership, your former colleague, former secretary of state rice under george bush and bob gatesecretary of defense under both bush and obama had a very tough piece in the "washington post" this week where they say vladimir putin's move into syria is old fashioned politics. people do that in the 21st century. is president obama as out touch with the reality of the current situation in syria as rice and gates seep to suggest. >> i think they are right. vladimir putin has gone in to defend assad and defend the syrian regime. he is dealing himself into whatever outphilaes on it of the middle east and he is pursuing the agenda he has had to return russia to the kind of role in the world the soviet union had during the cold war period. that is what he is about. that is what he has done in ukraine and in syria. >> president obama is, what? >> the united states has been awol. there were republicans and democrats in 2011 who said if we do not attend to syria more will be dying and it will be second tape and open the door for al-qaeda and that is what has happened. the first step to remed

and bob gates has already publicly said this, said don't go. as we walked out of the room and walked upstairs, i said, i told him my opinion, that i thought he should go, but to follow his own instincts. >> chris and larry, here we go. we say joe biden tends to be gasptastic. you're looking at the situation. he said a couple years ago, chris, it was all president obama. nobody in that room had the balls to do what president obama did. sorry, my french. and now he's saying that, yeah, he's the one who called it with him all along. >> well, listen, i read the article. he said the statement today. if you listen to what he is saying and how he says it, and it's a statement that's backed up by the president's chief of staff at the time in terms of what happened there. when you're a vice president, and history kind of confirms it, you're in a difficult position because you don't want to go out there and somehow contradict the president. you don't want to question the president's decision. >> okay. >> you always have to play it a little different than

. >> and bob gates and leon panet panetta, and they will be called this year to testify?hat what you are saying? >> yes, we would like to do it, and we have a number of witnesses scheduled in november, so and so we will be working with the colleagues and the staff that have helped to arrange the meetings and the interviews and the hearings, and setting forth that schedule. but i must say that we want to finish this investigation. we want to issue that comprehensive report for the families of those who died, and for the state department employees who are involved and the state department employees who are working in dangerous places. so we want to get to this, and the secretary clinton was head of the state department at this time, and she a critical witness, but we have more critical witnesses to go >> representative susan brooks of indiana, thank you for talking to us. >> thank you, wolf. >> we will have much more on the hearings on benghazi and they are scheduled to go about eight hours. we will have much more on that ahead on cnn. >> she is called the iron fist with ve

went around the room, two people were definitive, absolutely certain, leon panetta said go, and bob gatesly said this, said don't go. >> reporter: one person biden left out, secretary of state clinton, who has long said she advised the president to move ahead with the high stakes raid. >> i was one who recommended to the president that he go ahead and his advisers were split because it was a very risky operation. >> reporter: biden didn't stop there. he made clear how he viewed the pecking order at the white house. >> as we walked out of the room and walked upstairs i said -- i told him my opinion, that i thought he should go but follow his own unstinks. >> reporter: whether revising history, it's clear he wants to be president. those are five words you hear again and again when you talk to democrats around biden. gearing up for a run, spending time on the phone today with supporters and campaign advisers but he could still back away at the 11th hour. and, jake that 11th hour is quickly approaching. one friend told me he can't let this go on much longer. >> jeff zeleny, thanks so much. i

there are only two people who were definitive and absolutely certain beyond panetta said go and bob gates who has already publicly said this don't go. others were 59, had 41. some said go. it was such a close call. i joked and said y'all sound like 17 larry summers, economists on the one hand are and the other hand. and he said joe, what would you do? there was a third option that i didn't really think we should do. i said well, i think we should make one more pass with another uav to see if it is. and the reason i did that is i didn't want to take a position to go if that was not where he was going to go. as soon as we walked out of the room and walked upstairs. i said i told them my opinion i thought he should go but to follow his own instincts. it would have been a mistake. imagine if i had said in front of everyone, don't go or go and his decision was a different decision. it undercuts that relationship. so, i never on a difficult issue never say what i think finally until i go up in the oval with him alone. >> chief white house correspondent ed henry joins he moo. ed? >> good to see

>> bob gates, the former secretary of defense who i don't believe is a hillary voter or an obama supporterid in an interview with bret baier yesterday, he described the obama administration's efforts at arming various groups within syr syria, groups about who they know absolutely nothing, as insane. i wonder why more republican candidates aren't pointing this out. >> well, you know, i've been trying to have this debate, because the thing is, is i don't think we should be allied with al qaeda. and they ask about how are you going to stop isis? first thing we ought to do is stop funding them, stop sending arms to them, stop sending arms into all of these jihadist groups that are opposed to assad. that doesn't mean that i think assad is a good guy. i just think that by funding al qaeda and the remnants of al qaeda and the friends of al qaeda that we've created a space, and in that space, isis has grown. so, yes, absolutely, we should quit sending arms into there. the whole idea of training these moderates, the so-called syrian moderates -- we spent $250 million to train 60 of them, over $4 mi