stated that interference in the internal affairs of our country was categorically inadmissible . we had also passed irrelevant information through our embassy in washington to the department of state department. now, this comes as google and apple earlier are invited to attend a special security session of russia's parliamentary commission to explain that position. the head of that commission said that evidence of meddling in russia's affairs by both companies hasn't been presented to the us ambassador to moscow. this is after the tech johns failed to remove voting related content and apps made by organizations that russia classes as extremist. these also been accused of trying to exert influence over the vote, even before a single one is big cath, that's after the block. pass the motion allowing it to potentially not even recognize the results of the election. more than 100 members voted against the move, though, with one of them in particular, with plenty to say. this isn't a serious credible document, it's actually as then a full big round. much of the information is false, misleading. on one side it's we surround russia with mesa basis, and we call them the aggressor. we support oppositi

stated that interference in the internal affairs of our country was categorically inadmissible. we had also pass that relevant information through our embassy in washington to the department of state department. now this comes as google and apple were earlier invited to attend a special security session refreshes parliamentary commission to explain that position. the head of the commission said that evidence of meddling in russia's affairs mind, both those companies has been presented to the us ambassador to moscow, mondays. after the tech, the johns failed to remove voting related content knobs may by organisations, but russia considers extremists. the ease also been accused of trying to exert influence over the vote after the blog post the motion allowing it to potentially not recognize the results of the election if they are quote, seen as fraudulent. more than 100 members, i voted against may even some of them are plenty to say about. this isn't a serious credible document. it's actually a van, a phobic round. much of the information is false, misleading. on one side, it's, we surround russia with naser basis. and we call them the aggressor, we support opposition groups and we accuse the

department. the education department, the former secretary of state, _ department, the former secretary of state, state, was i think a weakling when you look_ state, was i think a weakling when you look at— state, was i think a weakling when you look at the fiasco last year, if you look at the fiasco last year, if you look— you look at the fiasco last year, if you look at — you look at the fiasco last year, if you look at repeated government getting _ you look at repeated government getting it — you look at repeated government getting it wrong. having the provision... there were lots and lots _ provision... there were lots and lots of— provision... there were lots and lots of different things. if they are repeated errors, and such a big high-profile — are repeated errors, and such a big high—profile job, things have to chango — high—profile job, things have to chango i— high—profile job, things have to change. i think the prime minister is in a _ change. i think the prime minister is in a position of confidence, and what _ is in a position of confidence, and what he _ is in a position of confiden

states and the u.k. have been operating nuclear submarines for decades. i've asked secretary austen of the department of defense to lead this effort for the u.s. government in close collaboration with the department of energy and department of state. our governments will now launch an 18 month consultation peri df this program from workforce to training to production to safeguards and nonproliferation measures and to nuclear stewardship send safety to ensure full compliance with each of our commitments of a nuclear nonproliferation treaty. we will undertake this effort in a way that reflects the long-standing leadership and global non-proliferation and rigorous verification standards and partnership in consultation with the international atomic energy agency. i want to thank prime minister morrison and prime minister boris johnson for their friendship, but mostly for their leadership and partnership as we undertake this new phase in our security cooperation. the united states will continue to work with the quad, as stated earlier. our five treaty allies and other partners, as well as allies and partners in europe and around the world to maintain a free indo pacific and build a future of peace, op

after president trump retaliated against inspectors generals at the department of defense, the department of transportation, the state department, and other agencies because they were conducting their oversight jobs. this protection for inspectors generals passed the house last year as part of the heroes act and as part of the inspector general independence and empowerment act. and we're pleased that chair schiff has included it in this important comprehensive statement that we are introducing today. these abuses demonstrate the need to finally establish specific protections for inspectors general and law. this package also strengthens protections for whistleblowers who expose waste, fraud, and abuse. the whistleblower improvement act ensures whistleblowers are protected when they provide important information to congress and that they have the opportunity to challenge retaliation in court, including access to a jury trial. the protecting our democracy act would also hold political appointees accountable for violating the hatch act, the law that prohibits inappropriate political activities by government officials. ou

in addition to dhs and the department of defense, the federal agencies working on this include the department of state, health and human services, justice, and education. our goal is to move the vulnerable afghan nationals out of the military bases and have them resettled successfully in the community as swiftly and safely as possible. we are building the public-private partnership to achieve this objective at scale. this is just the beginning of this operation and there is far more to come. here is the bottom line, in just the last few weeks, more than 120 thousand people have been safely evacuated from kabul. among them are thousands of vulnerable afghans. many have worked on behalf of the united states. we have a moral imperative to protect them, to support those who have supported this nation. we have the obligation to do so anyway to protect national security and preserves public safety. at fort lee, one of the military bases designated to receive vulnerable afghan nationals, i heard two stories that help communicate the meaning of our operation and the meaning of our country. when families arriv

of a state department mission. -- shifted to more of a state department mission. it'll be pungent to the white house or state department. there are questions about what the threat level remains for the folks behind, questions about how the military conducted this in terms of their relationship with the taliban. we are to some reports coming out now that the taliban were exporting it even vetting some folks who may have come to the airport. if that is the case, that is a level of trust in a government that the u.s. has said they do not have any real trust in. today care folks who were in a vulnerable offensive position. the question you brought up before. what is the terrorist overwatch capability now? what are the missions going to be and how confident are they the u.s. will be able to strike a group like isis-k or al qaeda? if there is not the force on the ground. we've heard a lot of questions about the equipment left behind, things the dod has started to account for and expanding what equipment they were able to destroy or disable on the way out. there is still

department's fault and it's the military's fault? or do you lay the blame also at the feet of the state department or the nsc or the white house? >> 100%, all of the above. i mean, this -- what we saw does not take place because there was one breakdown in one place. i think the ultimate accountability obviously lies with the president, who appointed and directed and established the priorities of these individuals. and within the state department, it obviously lies with the secretary of state. within the defense department, with the secretary of defense. within the nsc, with the national security adviser. you know, all of these entities and all of these bodies were intral to this failure. right now, 20 years after 9/11, every conceivable terrorist organization, maybe with the exception of al qaeda -- every conceivable terrorist organization is leaps and bounds more influential than they were two decades ago and where we have several groups that have sprung up that didn't exist, that have come to enormous -- come to be able to control territory in large swaths, at least temporarily. this was something we never saw in the pre-9/11 environment. >> help me just understand, then, who should resign. >> [ chuckles ] i -- >> is it political leadership? >> i think there should be political resignations. i'm surprised that there -- and, again, there's a difference between resigning because you disagreeh the course of action. that window

of sources within the state department. one was the director of the state department's office of special political affairs. indeed, when the colleagues worried about him leaking, it was not to the soviet union but to drew pearson. some of his columns clearly initiated with information about the british actions. several departments received copies of those reports and this was one of them. he always denied being the source. they said that they were regularly visiting the office. they were a squad of reporters that he hired to go out and patrol the halls of government to sweep up any news items. the most prominent was jack anderson who eventually inherited the column. he knew that the state department was a hot bed of goss i am and rumor. they gathered private information about local affairs and they continued to do so when they came back to washington. they handled state secrets casually. no field was secretly spying for the soviet union said he benefited by the department's careless records management. fields called the mentality of the state department rather provincial in those days and attested that, quo

department of state. we will continue to evacuate american citizens under the leadership of the department of state as this mission has now transitioned from a military mission to a diplomatic mission. evacuees flowed through the state safe haven and central command and european command for onward movement to the united states, a third country with their home of origin for repatriation. evacuees complete medical and security screening vetting in accordance with the lead federal agency's guidance, the department of homeland security. currently there's approximately 20,000 evacuees in seven staging bases in five countries in central command. another 23,000 in seven staging bases and four countries in europe. and as of this morning, there are approximately 20,000 afghans who arrived at eight different military bases in the continental united states. this mission cost 11 marines, one soldier and one navy corpsman their lives. and 22 others who were wounded in action. in addition to over 100 afghans killed and wounded in a horrific terrorist attack on 26 august at abbey gate on the southeast perimeter of the ai

of this? kimberly yeah, the defense department and the department of state both issuing statements with regard to dismissal lodge by north korea. now, the defense department saying that they are not concerned that any of their allies at the time are particularly at risk or any of the u. s. personnel or territory. but what they are saying is this underscore is it highlights the destabilizing impact of north korea's weapons program. now, the state department going much further saying that it is not only condemning this, but pointing out that it is in violation of a number of un security council. resolutions and that's why the state department is calling for renewed dialog dialog that we know has really stalled since 2019, when the north korea suggested to the united states that it was needing sanctions release. something that was rejected by the united states. so it appears that this latest missile launch is really an attempt to try and get the bite administration attention the president will be speaking later today. is he going to address this? well, there's certainly expected to be questions a

department of state. and we will continue to evacuate american citizens under the leadership of the department state. as this mission is now transitioned from military mission to a diplomatic mission. evacuated slowed through the immediate staging base safe havens and central command and european command for onward movement to the united states. a 3rd country or the home of origin for repatriation, evacuated, complete medical and security screening, vetting in accordance with the lead federal agencies guidance to the department of homeland security currently is approximately 20000 evacuees in 7 staging bases in 5 countries. in central command. another 23007, staging bases and 4 countries in europe. and as of this morning, there are approximately 20000 afghans who arrived at a different military bases in the continental united states. this mission, cost 11 marines, one soldier and one navy corman their lives and 22 others were wounded inaction. in addition to over 100, afghans killed and wounded in her epic terrorist attack and 26 august at abbey gate and the se perimeter of the airport. no soldiers, s

states and u. k. have been operating nuclear power submarines for decades. i have asked secretary austin to the department of defense to lead this efforts for the u. s. government. in close collaboration with the department of energy and the department of state are governments will now launch an 18 month consultation period to determine every element of this program from workforce to trainee requirements, to production timelines, to safeguards, nonproliferation measures, and to nuclear stewardship and safety to ensure for compliance with the, for each of our nations commitments on the nuclear nonproliferation treaty will all undertake this effort in a way that reflects the longstanding leadership in global mom, collaboration and rigorous verification standards in partnership and consultation with the international atomic energy agency. so i want to thank the prime minister prime minister marson, and prime minister johnson for their friendship, but mostly important for their leadership and partnership as you undertake this new phase of our security cooperation. and the united states will also continue to work with asi on and the quad. as was stated earlier, our 5 treaty allies and other close partners in

and the department of state and the department of defense, neither one, can give us a number. this is unconscionable, shannon. yes, we do have -- i have some retired special ops guys that are working with groups trying to get people out, and thank goodness, the quataries, and others are helping us with some of this movement. and these men are giving up their time and resource and endangering their lives to try to help get people out. and they are doing the job the u.s. military should have done and has not done. but how dare them not be able, at this point, to say, okay, these are the number of cases we have. here are the ones that are left. whether they were there working, contracting, whether they are missionaries or aid workers, people are hearing about this and they want to help get people out. >> we know they are there. >> shannon: listen, we know, too, the u.s. military would absolutely carry that out, those evacuation orders if they were told to do it. we know those men and women are more than willing. thank you for your service and for being with us tonight. >> thanks.

let me be clear, i will not consent to the nomination of any nominee for the department of defense or for the department of state until secretary austin and secretary blinken and jake sul vin resign -- sul sullivan resign and the failure of these individuals, the failure of this administration has cost americans their lives and has left american civilians to the enemy. there must be accountability and there must be a new start. mr. president, i believe that a century from now when the history of this long war is written by our children's children, they will note the heroism and the honor of our soldiers and veterans who in the aftermath of the worst attacks on our nation's soil in a century stood steadfast and resolute in unity and who despite the grave mistakes of their leaders over many years, served their country with bravery and disparticulars in defense -- distinction and defense of our union. winston churchill said that we have endured all of the agonies of the past, we will prevail over the dangers and problems of the future with holding those sacrifice, grudge no toil, seek no sort of gain, fear no foe,

let me be clear i do not consent to the nomination of any nominee for the department of defense or from the department of stateuntil secretary austin or blinking and jake sullivan resign. leaders take responsibility for their failures and the failure of these individuals, the failure of the administration has cost americans their lives and left american civilians to the enemy. there must be accountability and a new start. i believe a century from now when this is written by our children's children theym will note their heroism and honor of our soldiers andho veterans whon the aftermath of the worst attacks on the nation's soil in a century stood steadfast and resolute and despite the grave mistakes of their leaders over semany years served their county with bravery and distinction and in defense of our freedom. churchill was a veteran and said this almost 70 years ago we've surmounted the payroll and endured all the agony of the past we shall provide against the dangers and problems of the future withholding no sacrifice, grudge no toil, seek no sort of gain. all will be well. we have i believe within us the l

i'm trying to find out, after calling all of our state reps and the department of health, and the department of health specifically told me the advisory committee said schools are allowed to accept exemption forms and it is allowed to touch up to them what type -- it is up to them what type to accept. our school is being -- parents provide documentation that children's have a medical issue or disability. -- children have a medical issue or disability. the department of education is not stating that this comes from them. on the health department faq, it says it is recommended to prove a child has a 504. >> >> you can watch the remainder of this program on c-span.org. we will take you live to hear from south dakota governor kristi noem, talking about federalism. the hoover institute is hosting. >> we invite

so let me be clear, i will not consent to the nomination of any nominee the department of defense or for the department of stateecretary austin and secretary blinken, and jake sullivan resign. leaders, take responsibility for their failures and the failure of these individuals, the failure of this has cost americans their lives and have left american civilians to the enemy. there must be accountability and there must be a new start. mr. president, i believe a century from now when the history of this long or is written by our children's children they will note the heroism and the honorh of our soldiers and veterans to the aftermath of the worst attacks on our nation's soil in a century stood steadfast and irresolute and unity and despite the grave mistakes of their leaders over many years, served their country with bravery and distinction for our freedom. the great winston churchill was not a veteran of a one and a leader of another said the sum of 70 years ago. we've surmounted and endured the agonies of the past, wills shall provide against and thus prevail over the dangers of problems of the h futures. withh

is we heard from not just americans but from former and current employees of the department of state and the departmentwho were deeply concerned about the rate of almost 200 dogs. not just the couple small animal rescue dogs who were forced to remain a major concern but also service dogs working doug scott bomb sniffing dogs belonging both to the american forces and afghani forces and believe it or not, companion animals belonging to american families who have evacuated and who we are told have since been released onto the streets of coupled to fend for themselves, these are companion animals who have no survival skills and don't stand a chance unless there is intervention. and that is what we are calling on president biden to do now. >> tucker: you know, not -- you hate almost to say this, but not every culture appreciates pets and dogs the way to the united states does. and dogs, as you just pointed out, do not stand a chance on this capital like kabul. they don't take up much room. again, is there some reason. it is so transparently cruel and mean, like, why would you do that? why would you keep dog

go down, not the chain of command so much but the operational elements from department of transportation, to department of state, two dod, to start going through what we knew we would have to do to get our ducks in order. so, there wasn't time to have an emotional response. we went right into work mode. >> host: and as she went downstairs to the situation room and there are now some famous iconic photographs of you, and karen hughes and national security adviser condoleezza rice, the vice president speaking with all of you. can you give us a sense of what was happening in that room? what was said? what you remember? yes, it took a while for everybody to actually get to the room. and it hadn't been really used for its intended purpose what's was to be a bomb shelter since its inception. we had drills and whatnot in there, but i think you'd be surprised it's a very small room. it has a lot of instruments in it. but the getting people there, karen was trapped in her neighborhood uptown. i think condoleezza rice, national security director was there and her aide. and i had been ordered, as had everybody in the west

i called some of the very top officials in the white house, in the state department, and members of the state departmentdefense. the department of defense pointed at the white house. nobody in charge, and it's a continuing challenge that we need to face because lives are at stake. lives of people who put their lives on the line for us. it's different than other asylum seekers or refugees. these people demonstrated their love for america and i have met many of them who have come to this country now as a result of being air lifted, and they are potentially a source of great contributions to this country. we ought toeally honor them by respecting those rights. >> i'm curious what answers you've been given by anyone, either in public or private, because it see thaour mission and your value of these afghans is shared by the entire veterans community. this president seems to say that he supports this mission. what is the explanation you're given? >> nicole, you are so right that this passion is shared by the veterans community. i have been moved by the veterans groups and individuals who have fought, literall

department of homeland security. we use the term non-citizen, to respect the dignity of every individual as a preliminary matter. secondly, i will defer to the state departmentthat's a matter within the state department's province, but let me say this. having been in government service for more than 20 years, i'm aware of the fact that some people have policy differences, and i respect and acknowledge that fact. i respectfully and vehemently disagree with what this individual, whom i do not know, articulated. we have a relationship with the government of haiti. we are exercising the public health imperative, as defined by the centers for disease control. we are surging resources not only here domestically at the border, but also in haiti, to ensure that the needs of the individuals whom we return to haiti seare addressed appropriately. usaid has surged resources. we're working with the international organization for my grates with the haitian government, and we are addressing the needs by devoting resources to them. >> i understand you're committed to speeding up these deportation of these haitians, but this special envoy also said this, that he cannot enfor

go down, not the chain of command so much but the operational elements from department of transportation, to department of state, two dod, to start going through what we knew we would have to do to get our ducks in order. so, there wasn't time to have an emotional response. we went right into work mode. >> host: and as she went downstairs to the situation room and there are now some famous iconic photographs of you, and karen hughes and national security adviser condoleezza rice, the vice president speaking with all of you. can you give us a sense of what was happening in that room? what was said? what you remember? yes, it took a while for everybody to actually get to the room. and it hadn't been really used for its intended purpose what's was to be a bomb shelter since its inception. we had drills and whatnot in there, but i think you'd be surprised it's a very small room. it has a lot of instruments in it. but the getting people there, karen was trapped in her neighborhood uptown. i think condoleezza rice, national security director was there and her aide. and i had been ordered, as had everybody in the west

not just a cia to us, and the blame should be shared by the defense department of military intelligence agencies, the state department, and the office of the national security advisor. but again, that is part of this larger mechanism and therefore share the blame. i'm convinced that the u. s. leadership had all the intelligence about the situation on the ground. and the potential developments they didn't take into account one thing. their own capabilities were that they didn't want to face the truth if you will. and the truth is that the u. s. is no longer capable of playing the role of the global hedge him on which it has assigned itself. yes. yeah, look and see me joe. look after the us and its allies invaded afghanistan, the prevalent thinking in the international community was that the americans had everything under control. and the situation was getting better from the u. s. a. nato military presence was viewed as a solid barrier against the terrorist threat, preventing it from spreading further into eurasia. unfortunately, that wasn't true. the americans withdrew, fled from afghanistan, and now we see the ruins

of friction. you always see that between the defense department and the state department. had the friction between donald rumsfeld and the state department. under colin powell. let me go back a second. what has happened with leon panetta is a pretty interesting comment because you have the agreement we had with the taliban that they would not allow al qaeda into their country or any other organization. that was part of the agreement. now when you look at what you see now, you look with on the left side, you look at a map. you have iran, afghanistan, pakistan. talk about and isis caliphate. you have got a huge amount of territory that is now controlled by basically to meet a rogue state on the left with iran, afghanistan and supported by pakistan that has nuclear weapons. enormous potential for a huge terrorist state in the middle east that's bigger than we've ever seen before. i think we have to be aware of that. i want to close by saying we have the original agreement and the agreement with the taliban was they would not allow al qaeda, isis k or anybody to operate in the

state department about this. the state department said we are not in control of the airspace. s. i don't care which way you think about it. it's our mess. the united states created this vacuum to allow the taliban to come in. the president president biden and his horrific withdrawal has caused this to happen. >> bret: do you have any regret about what did you? >> absolutely not. i would do it again tomorrow. we were saving people's lives. >> bret: what if 535 members decide to get on a plane. >> everybody is helping right now. i don't care if they are republican or democrat. everybody is helping. i have heard from a lot of different members that are trying to do their thing. everybody has a different way of helping. do you know why those all those other governments are picking up their individuals and bringing them back in? there was three taliban checkpoints before you could get to high kia, all three of them would charge you a tax. and a tax was anywhere between 500 to $4,000. this one young lady and her four kids to which i have recordings of, we were recording as we were wa

states and the uk have been operating these for decades. i have asked secretary austin of the department of defense to lead this effort of the u.s. government in close collaboration with the department of energy and the department of state. our governments will now launch an 18-month consultation period to determine every element of this program from workforce to training requirements, to production timelines, to safeguards and nonproliferation measures and to nuclear stewardship and safety to ensure full compliance with each of our nations' commitments of the nuclear nonproliferation treaty. this reflects the longstanding leadership in global nonproliferation and vigorous verification standards in partnership, in consult with the international atomic energy agency. so i want to thank the prime minister, prime minister morrison and prime minister johnson for their friendship, but mostly important, for their leadership and partnership as we undertake this new phase of our security cooperation. and the united states will also continue to work with asean and the quad as was stated earlier. our five treaty allies and other close partners in the indo-pacific as well as allies and partner

house.gov, where officials from the department of state, department of defense, the intelligence communitydecisions leading up to this or the execution of it. we need to know that's the best way that we can get the right information and actually hold this administration accountable, through whistleblowers, through people who know the truth on the ground and are tired of being thrown under the bus by their own president. steve: sure, so you're saying hey, whistleblowers, contact my office. of course you're talking about people who currently have government jobs if their bosses found out, can you protect them? >> yes, yes, we've gone through this already with the whistleblower project that we had. our offices are able to provide that legal protection. i mean, you can either go through the inspector general or go through us but again, i think this is a better avenue, to go through both but yes you are protected legally. ainsley: the president called it an extraordinary success and that evacuations couldn't have been done in a more orderly manner. listen to this. >> extraordinary success of th

department of state. we will continue to evacuate american citizens under the leadership of the department of state as this mission has now transmissioned from a military mission. evacuees' complete medical and security screening and vetting in accordance with the lead federal agency's guidance, the department of homeland security. currently there's approximately 20,000 evacuees in seven staging bases in five countries and central command. another 23,000 in seven staging bases in four countries in europe. and as of this morning, there are approximately 20,000 afghans who arrived at eight different military bases in the continent of the united states. this mission costs 11 marines, one soldier and one navy corpsmen their lives, and 22 others were wounded in action. in addition to over 100 afghans killed and wounded in a horrific terrorists attack on the 26th of august at abbey gate. those soldiers, sailors and marines gave their lives so others may live free. they literally gave their tomorrows for the tomorrows of people they never knew. those 124,000, they never knew the 13 that died and will never know t

i asked the commanding general and i asked the representative for the department of state and the department of homeland security, do we know that every refugee that you've received so far and there is only a thought at that point in time do we know they have some form of i.d. and we didn't. we're hearing all of these assurances that we're getting biomet biometrically screened, a 14-step plan. i asked the head of northern command at fort mccoy, describe those steps to me and what are re screening them against? are isis terrorists, al qaeda terrorists, have we biometrically screened them in the past that we could compare them to a data base. what is that 14 step process in detail. tell me and describe to us in detail how are we keeping this nation safe from such a chaotic situation? >> so, senator, the 14-step process referred to the special immigrant visa applicants and there is a lengthy process. >> so had you about the for other 124,000 people. >> so to come to your point, senator, a couple of things. we arranged as you know transit countries so any afghan coming out of afghanistan would i

we're standing by waiting direction from the department of state, the department of defense and wantingsk force pineapple set up influencer group where we're working to build political support. obviously we want, this political support to help us. you know, you guys were talking about it earlier, the vetting process. the individuals that we're trying to get out are special immigrant visa holders that were left behind. these are individuals who sacrificed many years, heroes that worked right along side. many of the people that we knew, that worked directly with special operations forces. they are at high risk. they were on many of the targeting missions to go directly after the taliban. so needless to say, terrified but on the flipside, they have been vetted and approved. lawrence: jason, i'm sorry to cut you off, sir, i'm curious, we had a promise of these people. what is their view of the american government? i know they know you guys are trying to do whatever they can to rescue them and you guys appreciate them and love them, but what is their view of the united states government? tha

states department of defence. some are going _ states department of defence.are going to california. others may be going _ going to california. others may be going to _ going to california. others may be going to narrator, we were told. but one thing _ going to narrator, we were told. but one thing we know for a fact and that is— one thing we know for a fact and that is that — one thing we know for a fact and that is that there is nothing but uncertainty and indecision by the bioen— uncertainty and indecision by the biden administration about exactly what they are going to do. there has been no response _ what they are going to do. there has been no response yet _ what they are going to do. there has been no response yet from _ what they are going to do. there has been no response yet from the - been no response yet from the president. he is under pressure to reverse a decision to cancel deportation flights to haiti after another earthquake there this year. but hundreds more migrants are believed to be on their way to texas, posing a major political and humani

he appointed 2 people, one of the state department and one of the defense department who are in charge of reviewing cases and bringing them to the highest levels of the, of the national security council to review review those cases and recommending a release or otherwise. so i definitely will push back on can kind of point that the u. s. does not want to close down one final day. so 1st of all, president obama was making a concerted effort to do so. pointing to envoys of the state and defense departments to do so. but another something that has not been mentioned that that have been part of the difficulty and closing down on cono bay is that's when we decided to release somebody one final day. we have to release them either to their home country or to a 3rd country if their home country wouldn't take them. and in many to in all cases, we have to we have to receive assurances from that country that we were sending them to, that they would not be tortured or detained, or unfairly treated once they got back. and in many cases, we actually were not able to receive those assurances from the

of state. you own this. >> the state department was talking to the defense department to slow down the pace of military withdrawaling actually for "tapping the brakes" on military withdrawal. isn't that true? >> senator, i'm not going to get into any internal deliberations or discussions that-- that we had. we worked on this together every step of the way. >> reporter: intelligence officials warn today that now that the u.s. has left afghanistan, al qaeda is already starting to move back in, and their new estimate is that the terror group could reconstitute to the point wre it migh able to strike the u.s. homeland >> o'donnell: that's alarming. nancy cordes, thank you. well, turning now to covid. a study out today finds more than 280,000 covid hospitalizations this past summer could have been prevented by vaccination. and listen to this-- the medical bills for those patients totaled more than $5 billion. here's cbs' manuel bojorquez. >> reporter: there are more signs tonight of covid's worsening grip. both cases and deaths nationwide remain dangerously high, equal to levels from last winter's devastating surge. t

we have sent their letter of preservation to the department of state, to our intelligence community into our department of defense to preserve all documents, we will and one the democrats to join us, but we will do this with or without them. we will investigate this and exercise our constitutional authority of oversight to get to the bottom of how did this get so wrong? how did this get so bad? let me conclude by saying to our veterans who served, i chaired homeland for a long time, you served us well. we did not have a 9/11 scale attack since 9/11. as the speaker said, this is going to be a grim anniversary of 9/11. to those veterans, you did your job. i am worried with the taliban and control, with our weapons left behind, they are one of the most armed forces in the world that the threat is getting stronger, and we will be in three into a new phase in chapter where the terrorists will once again attack our homeland. god bless america, god bless our veterans. i want to yield to the ranking member, mike rogers. >> i to have the honor of leading republicans on the armed services committee. i want to ma

of afghanistan. the state department following the departure of the military, the state department remained engaged and continued to work to get american citizens out. and as we've seen, some 85 american citizens and 79 legal permanent residents have departed via the kabul airport. and so that work continues on. the state department set up a cell to continue this work and develop a mechanism. that cell is heladed up by ambassador bass. you may recall he was one of the senior counselors on the ground as we were conducting the investigation. i have a general officer that is a part of that cell, and we have reached out to -- or ambassador bass has reached out to veterans groups and others who may have information that can help us continue to contact and eventually evacuate american citizens and lesprs. this work continues and we remain xhiltded to get ouz v out as many american citizens that are willing to come out. >> well, there was a point, and you can call it the eye of the storm, when the taliban had taken over the country but really wasn't in charge when we could have evacuated a great many more ame

of afghanistan. the state department, following the departure of the military, the state department remained engaged and continued to work to get american citizens out. and as we've seen some 85 american citizens and 79 legal permanent residents have departed villa the kabul airport. and so that work continues on. the state department set up a cell to continue the work and that is headed up by ambassador bass. as you may recall, ambassador bass was one of the senior counselors on the ground as we were conducting the investigation. i have a general officer that is a part of that cell, and we have reached out to -- or ambassador bass has reached out to veterans groups and others who mauf information that can help us continue to contact and eventually evacuate american citizens and lprs. so this work continues, and we remain committed to continuing that work until we get out as many american citizens that are willing to come out. >> well, there was a point, and you can call it the eye of the storm, when the taliban had taken over the country, but really wasn't in charge when we could have evacuated a gr

you know, nobody knows because we can't get this information from the department of homeland security, from the state department and others. but, you know, from the start many of you said what we do there needs to be based on conditions on the ground. quite frankly the president's decision was not based on conditions on the ground. that's why it was a disastrous withdrawal. that's why it put so many people at risk. it should have been an ordinarily withdrawal under the cover of superior u.s. and nato military force. we did have 2500 troops there. we had 7500 nato troops with us, too. again, many of their commanders were shocked at what happened. they were surprised because there was not good coordination. there was a lack of coordination with people who had stuck with us. we talked about baghram. there was also lack of interagency planning. we've seen this, in terms of how the chaotic withdrawal occurred. these were preventible problems and they put our military and your diplomats in this impossible situation. they did the best they could. i commend them for that. in an impossible situation, it's amazing that t