representative eliot engel has introduced a bill that would blacklist all stolen electronic devices from service because this actually happened well look at this and his efforts to secure our online data out later in the show. and the people of pakistan are experiencing a hectic election season with a series of attacks taking place around their country we'll have a report from the ground on the violence this election e. well it's friday may tenth five pm in washington d.c. i'm margaret how well you're watching r t. we start out today with a movement that is getting everyone from environmentalists to regular consumers questioning what they're consuming now activists against genetically modified organisms are organizing a worldwide protest against the biotech month santa later this month now on may twenty fifth at eleven am pacific time the march against months and so is expected by organizers to hit over two hundred fifty cities across six continents now this coming on the heels of congress passage of what critics of corning the month santo protection act now this is a bill that protects

producers rachel curteous went to the hill yesterday to meet with congressman eliot engel of new york to talk about the ongoing concern of privacy issues like this one and i spoke to her earlier first asking her if she saw any laptops or cell phones laying around the congressman's office due to the legislation that he's trying to pass. that's a funny question i'm glad you brought that up so you're right that congressman engel has been working as a couple of bills he's already introduced this session the cell phone theft prevention act when the truth essentially blacklist all stolen cell phones so they could no longer receive service in the hopes of just incentivizing those thefts as well as a social networking online protection act also known as snow which would make it illegal for employers or schools to ask for students or potential employees social networking passwords so yes he certainly seems like he's working on these sort of cell phone laptops like that but it is actual office the office that we conducted the interview and funnily enough i didn't see any laptops or computers th

the stories of the atrocities there are tough to cover as richard engel knows first hand. he and his crew were kidnapped in december but thankfully made it out okay. they are back to investigate allegations of chemical warfare. >> reporter: rebels bring us into syria, laid waste by more than two years of war and constant brutality. we're taken to a headquarters bombed just days earlier to discuss allegations of chemical weapons. a young activist shows us video he says is the aftermath of an attack. villagers choking, gasping. among them this woman slipping in and out of consciousness. rebels blame chemical weapons, smoke from something dropped by a government helicopter. they show us two photographs, but experts tell us these devices closely resemble tear gas canisters. a doctor tells us he treated the woman. she was unconscious, sweating he says. she had white liquid at the mouth. she was struggling to breathe and had small pupils. we're shown blood and urine samples doctors say they collected from her. evidence of a chemical attack the rebels say but it proves nothing. a

richard engel returns to syria for the first time since his kidnapping and on a much lighter note, surfing's best rides and worst wipeouts. good morning. we begin this morning with new developments out of cleveland where prosecutors have filed charges against ariel castro accused of keeping three women as prisoners for more than a decade. castro will be arraigned in an ohio courtroom today facing seven felony counts of kidnapping and rape. we're also learning horrific details about what life was like in that house. nbc's ron allen has more. >> reporter: on a brilliant afternoon, a scene many feared would never happen, gina dejesus arrived home, her face hidden but with a big thumbs up as family, friends, and neighbors cheered all around her. >> i never gave up. never gave up searching for her. >> reporter: just hours earlier, another reunion, amanda berry, the woman who led the escape from the captors with her 6 # 6-year-old daughter. the third woman remains hospitalized in good condition. police announced charges in the case. >> i just signed criminal complaints charging ariel castro with f

a reality check from richard engel and we learned today that job creation has been better than what we thought. the unemployment rate down to 7.5. could that be a boost for democrats in 2014? and we're already heard a lot from the nra today, but now this. its new president refers to the american civil war as the war not between the states. the war of northern aggression. that's talking the cause, the lost cause if you remember it.

nbc's richard engel is here live as well. that's all to come. >>> we start tonight in sichuan province in china. this is a map of china. sichuan province is here. in 2008 you might remember there was an absolutely massive catastrophic earthquake in sichuan province. whole villages just flattened. the order of 70,000 people were killed in a single quake. five years ago this week. it happened not far outside the capital city of sichuan province. earthquake was 50 miles northwest of the capital city. that quake was 2008. but then last month it happened again. same faultline. at least we think it was the same faultline. right there in the same region. in this case the quake was within 100 miles of chengdu. this was not as big as the mega one, it was still big. it killed something like 170 people. this is not only an active earthquake region in sichuan province but it is a place where even very recent quakes have not just been large but deadly. and if you live there, if you live in chengdu, having just lived through those big quak

richard engel, nbc's chief foreign correspondent.nk you for being both physically here. >> won't be for long. i'm on my way out of the country soon. >> of course. i'm going to put a tracker on you myself. we'll be right back. ♪ ♪ wonder if i gave an oreo ♪ to somebody out there who i didn't know ♪ ♪ would they laugh after i'd gone? ♪ ♪ or would they pass that wonder on? ♪ ♪ i wonder how it'd change your point of view ♪ ♪ if i gave one to you? ♪ ♪ if i gave one to you? meet the 5-passenger ford c-mc-max one. c-max two. that's a super fuel- efficient hybrid for me. and a long range plug-in hybrid for you. now, let's review. introducing the ford c-max hybrid and the ford c-max energi plug-in hybrid. say hi to the c-max hybrids. so you can capture your receipts, ink for all business purchases. and manage them online with jot, the latest app from ink. so you can spend less time doing paperwork. and more time doing paperwork. ink from chase. so you can. [ dennis ] allstate wants everyone to be protected on the road. whether you're an allst

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speaks atichard engel the journalist memorial ceremony. >> "the communicators you are watching "the communicators you are watching "the communicators" on c-span. members of congress and staff are here. there's new software on the market called phone 2 action inc. what was the issue that caused phone 2 action to become? -- i was theng to national director. it was national. what i found is that we did not have the tools for people for them to connect with elected officials. at the time, i asked a lot of people for help, developers and meet its and technology. i found someone who understood the problem. that is my co-founder. >> what were you trying to solve? how are you trying to connect people? >> you'll hear about the issue. everyone does. some may not be able to physically attend events. but does not mean people do not care. people want to care. there are a variety of issues. they want to hear from their constituents. they will listen. at the time, i was trying to connect people that care about issues and want to connect with legislators and tell them how they feel. it was very hard for them. de

richard engel, nbc news. >>> coming up next, we'll introduce you to a bay areaball legend. how the sequester cuts may make life harder for him. >>> a peek at the tech tool bar in the south bay. the local library with the first of its find program involving technology. >>> think of it as the apple genius bar at a public library. >> monday, you will be able to test readers at a library. scott budman had has the story you will see only on nbc bay area. >> reporter: yes, libraries are still filled with paper books, but especially around here, they are also full of tech savvy people. with that in mind, the cupertino library will roll out the tech tool bar, a smorgasbord of e-readers. >> this is partly to train and use volunteers here who are more tech savvy and happy to take that time to explain to someone, oh, this is the feature of the kindle and this is the feature of the nook. >> we have digital magazines you can down spd load and keep. audio books. we are trying to get the word out there about all this free stuff we have beyond e-books. >> reporter: the library called it a

richard engel. thank you, richard. [applause] >> i am truly without words. that was too much. we are focusing not on me. i am very lucky i am still here. we are talking about the people who are on this list and thinking about their lives and what they did and why they did it. good morning. it is an honor to be here today. this is a somber task but one that is dearly important to me. our little tribe that goes through the war zones is getting smaller. we are being killed off. like correspondents like marie colvin who are no longer with us. she was smart and funny and good at what she did. i remember her from everywhere. while it may seem there are many foreign correspondent running around the world bringing the news, there are not. the ones that last and stick it out are a small group. i remember marie as tripoli was falling and gaddafi was on the run and the city was not functioning. we found a hotel in the center of tripoli. it was an old arab mansion with a courtyard next to a famous statue. we decided to rent out the entire thing. there were shortages. phones and network. t

nbc's richard engel has this report tonight from istanbul. >> reporter: good evening, lester.eeling the strain and now the bite of the syrian war across the border. two rockets exploded today in the lebanese capital. in neighborhoods controlled by the militant group hezbollah. one rocket hit a residential building. the other a car dealership. there were several injuries. the attack appears to have been a response to a speech yesterday by hezbollah leader when he publicly committed his group. to helping president bashar al-assad defeat rebels who have been trying to topple him for two years. there's now a sectarian fight that straddled both sides of the syrian/lebanese border. hezbollah is a shiite group that backs bashar al assad shiite's regime. syrian rebels on the other hand are sunnis. today's rocket attack in beirut was likely the work of sunnis in lebanon. their way of saying if hezbollah wants to fight us in syria, we can fight back in lebanon. it is a very dark sign of what to come. lebanon suffered through 15 years of civil war, mostly in the 1980s and has never reall

richard engel's been talking to rebel leaders and joins us next to sort it out. # joo can [ lisa ] myisa, and chantix helped me quit. i honestly loved smoking, and i honestly didn't think i would ever quit. [ male announcer ] along with support, chantix (varenicline) is proven to help people quit smoking. it reduces the urge to smoke. it put me at ease that you could smoke on the first week. [ male announcer ] some people had changes in behavior, thinking or mood, hostility, agitation, depressed mood and suicidal thoughts or actions while taking or after stopping chantix. if you notice any of these stop taking chantix and call your doctor right away. tell your doctor about any history of depression or other mental health problems, which could get worse while taking chantix. don't take chantix if you've had a serious allergic or skin reaction to it. if you develop these stop taking chantix and see your doctor right away as some can be life-threatening. tell your doctor if you have a history of heart or blood vessel problems, or if you develop new or worse symptoms. get medical help rig

richard engel, nbc news, beirut. >>> federal officials say they've busted a multibillion dollar money laundering scheme. u.s. attorneys announced charges tuesday against digital currency company liberty reserve, saying it could be the largest online money laundering prosecution in history. authorities believe liberty facilitated criminal activity through 55 million transactions for 1 million users totaling $6 billion in proceeds over seven years. this morning liberty's website has been shut down by the feds. arrests have been made in spain, costa rica and new york. the company's founder has been taken into custody. >>> tornado alley is seeing more twisters this week. a city in kansas had such a strong tornado in their town that it actually stayed in one place. two homes were damaged as well as a local business and downed power lines. that twister stayed on the ground for more than an hour. thankfully, residents were unharmed. >>> nbc's bill karins is here with the forecast. this is crazy weather. >> yeah, that was another big tornado yesterday. it picked up huge hay bales that weighed

who is charlie engel? what is he some wall street wheeler dealer big-time banker? >> he didn't work here on wall street. he was not a big-time banker. he was convicted of doing something hundreds of thousands of other americans likely did during the housing boom: he exaggerated his income on his mortgage applications. >> jon: priorities u.s.a. we'll be right back. (cheers and applause) >> jon: welcome back! now listen, the i.r.s. has been accused of targeting right wing groups for scrutiny, which is very unfair. in fact, it's the only unfair thing-- ever. (laughter) jason jones has more. i i last week we learned the i.r.s. targeted tea party members and conservatives like wayne allen root were furious. >> i think the i.r.s. scandal is one of the biggest scandals in modern american political history. maybe in all of political history. if you speak out against obama you are ordered to be persecuted. >> see, normally, i would love to say yeah, you're such a stupid idiot! but i can't because they targeted conservative groups. >> they did. >> sadly, wayne allen root, au

nbc's chief foreign correspondent, richard engel, is in beirut and has our report. >> reporter: violence spreading across the middle east and it's all interconnected. it was an especially horrible day in baghdad. at least 15 explosions. most of them car bombings. most of them in poor shiite neighborhoods. this is another sign despite years of american sacrifice the civil war in iraq appears to be coming back. but violence is not just in iraq now but also here in lebanon but of course in syria. and syria is at the center of this. the war in syria is dragging the countries around it back into chaos. senator john mccain put himself right in the center of this storm. he visited syria. he visited in secret. it was a surprise visit. he stayed on the ground just for a few hours. senator mccain wants more to be done for the rebels. senator mccain specifically wants weapons to start flowing to the rebels and today that may look a little bit more likely after the european union announced it's lifting an arms embargo on syria making it legal for european nations to give or sell weapons. to the syri

>> richard engel across the syrian border in turkey tonight. richard, thanks. >>> well, the topic of benghazi is back, the tragedy there took four lives. the controversy over what happened that night during the attack never went away -- specifically the question of what the u.s. knew, when they knew it, and what they did about it. congress is set to hear dramatic new information on this topic later this week. our chief foreign affairs correspondent andrea mitchell has new details from our washington newsroom tonight. good evening. >> reporter: good evening, brian. republicans are gearing up for hearings this week with new state department witnesses they say will undercut hillary clinton's explanation of what went wrong in benghazi. the attack on the benghazi mission started around 9:40 p.m. by 3:00 in the morning ambassador chris stevens and information officer sean smith were dead. but two other americans, former navy seals working as security contractors, did not die until a second full assault at 5:15 a.m. on a cia annex several miles away.

>> richard engel covering it on all fronts in beirut.ou. >>> tonight, wide open spaces and worrying signs at the most popular vacation spots for american families. >>> later, making a difference with high honors and a time to reflect for our nation's greatest generation. >>> memorial day signals the kick-off for tourist season in the national park system. but from the shenandoah in the east to the haleakala in hawaii, visitors may discover the nation's parks are showing signs of wear and tear and are in real need of money and tlc. here's nbc's tom costello. >> reporter: from death valley to glacier, yellowstone to the everglades, few places hold the nation's imagination and awe like its national parks. >> especially getting young kids to come. >> yes. >> and make sure they know how important it is. >> reporter: lying between maine and hawaii, 401 parks and monuments, battlefields, volcanos, protected coasts make up the national park system. this year they will host some 280 million visitors but park advocates say for years the parks have

richard engel following the story from turkey. >> reporter: israel remains calm, not expecting a direct military response from syria but on alert. its iron dome missile interceptor system deployed, precautions in case syria, or perhaps more likely its ally in lebanon hezbollah respond to a predawn raid on saturday, the second in 24 hours. analysts say the president bashar is in no position to fight. >> he is busy with survival. he has no time or i think even the thinking, the thought of taking care of israel. >> reporter: israel doesn't seem to want an all out war with syria either, stressing its goal isn't to topple president assad, worrying what would follow him but stop weapons transfer. targets were precision, iranian made rockets bound for hezbollah. now that israel has acted, with or without admitting it, there is an increase risk the middle east's deadly civil war could become a regional one as well. israel is now reportedly trying to ease tensions stressing it doesn't want to get involved in the syrian civil war but doesn't want to suffer either. richard engel, nbc news. >>> a m

. >>> and up next, the red line on sirria richard e, syria, richar engel's exclusive interview with the leader of the rebel forces. [ engine sputters ] [ dennis ] allstate wants everyone to be protected on the road. whether you're an allstate customer or not. all you have to do is call. [ female announcer ] call and sign up for good hands roadside assistance today. [ dennis ] are you in good hands? easy-to-use platform. no, thank you. we know you're always looking for the best fill price. and walk limit automatically tries to find it for you. just set your start and end price. and let it do its thing. wow, more fan mail. my uncle wanted to say thanks for idea hub. he loves how he can click on it and get specific actionable trade ideas with their probabilities throughout the day. [ male announcer ] open an account and get a $150 amazon.com gift card. call 1-888-280-0157 now. optionsxpress by charles schwab. call 1-888-280-0157 now. help the gulf recover, andnt to learn from what happenedg goals: so we could be a better, safer energy company. i've been with bp for 24 years. i was part of

our chief foreign correspondent richard engel has made his way into the city of tripoli, lebanon, andas our report tonight. >> reporter: president assad claims he has taken delivery of russian missiles with more on the way. russia has promised assad advanced anti-aircraft missiles, but the rebels don't have planes. instead, such missiles could shoot down western planes, enforcing a possible no-fly zone or fend off israeli air strikes like this one last month in damascus. assad's interviewer, a lebanese station owned by hezbollah, which backs assad and sends fighters into syria. but now the fighting extends beyond syria. over the past two weeks, dozens have been killed in tripoli, lebanon's second largest city. shiite muslims, assad supporters, and hezbollah fighting sunnis who back the syrian rebels. at night, gunfire. at sunrise, fighters in the streets. this coffee shop owner told us "everyone here has guns at the ready." he keeps pistols hidden under his coffee machine. he doesn't hide the black flag outside his shop, a sign to sunnis he's one of them. the lebanese are drawing batt

the syrian opposition meeting in istanbul can't agree, brian, on who to send. >> richard engel with us tonight from beirut, thanks. >>> in oregon tonight, law enforcement calling it a close call, the arrest of a 17-year-old high school student with what they said was an arsenal of explosives that he wanted to use to blow up his school before taking his own life. nbc's mike taibbi has the story. from benton county 70 miles outside of portland. >> reporter: police have not said who phoned in the warning last thursday about grant allen acord, a 17-year-old junior at west albany high school. when they searched his home they found what they described as several powerful completed bombs hidden in his room and intended for his own high school. >> this was far beyond teenage curiosity. these would have caused significant damage, injury or death. >> reporter: all 23 schools in the district were searched with bomb sniffing dogs, alarming many parents. >> i was freaking out. it's nothing any parent wants to see. >> reporter: today those schools reopened after the long holiday weekend. officials a

as nbc's richard engel saw firsthand, the violence shows no signs of letting up. >> reporter: rebels bring noose syria, laid waste by more than two years of war and constant brutality. we're taken to a headquarters bombed just days earlier to discuss allegations of chemical weapons. but the rebels want to talk about a massacre last week. hundreds dead, they claim, butchered by assad's forces. children and women are massacred daily, hundreds. are these war crimes, too, asks this man, a brigade commander. rebels say syrians died while world leaders it in pick claims of chemical weapons and rub their chins over what to do with assad still in power, meetings with iran's foreign minister as if nothing was wrong. a young activist shows us video he says is the aftermath of an attack. villagers choking, gasping. among them, this woman, slipping in and out of consciousness. rebels blame chemical weapons, smoke from something dropped by a government helicopter. they show us two photographs but experts tell us these devices closely resemble tear gas canisters. a doctor tells us he treated the w

that any of the groups fighting on the ground in syria would actually accept it, brian. >> richard engel safely across the border again, reporting live from turkey for us tonight. richard, thanks. >>> back in this country tonight, political redemption and then some for former south carolina governor mark sanford. the man who skipped the state, lied about his whereabouts, ran off with another woman in 2009 setting fire to his life and political career. turns out temporarily. now he's headed to congress. he won last night's special election to replace republican congressman tim scott who is now a senator. sanford defeated the democrat elizabeth colbert bush, sister of comedy central's stephen colbert. >>> guilty of first-degree murder, the verdict in the phoenix trial of jodi arias. the event has become a spectacle, a tv series on cable all its own. a massive crowd cheered outside the courtroom when the verdict was read. almost five years ago her boyfriend travis alexander was found with 27 stab wounds, a gunshot wound, his throat slashed. so the first-degree murder verdict was not a surpr

richard engel, beirut. >>> president obama is taking a detour to the jersey shore today. he will survey the progress of rebuilding along the coastline with governor chris christie. . it's a replay of a scene we saw days after the president's reelection in november. tracie potts is in washington with a preview of this. good morning trace. >> we're looking at the political impact. many say it had an impact on the election. now the tables are turned. we have governor christie, a republican governor in a heavily democratic state that the president easily carried, now again walking together, talking about cooperation. their focus today is rebuilding the enginejersey shore. 130 miles of shoreline that was devastated by hurricane sandy. we saw over the memorial day weekend stores that reopened. the boardwalk has been reopened. the state pouring $25 million into an ad campaign trying to get people back to the jersey shore. today president obama will be talking with some of those small business owners that the government is sending money to jersey to help. he will be talking with

richard engel reports from beirut. >> reporter: senator john mccain is still in the region after his quick trip that the syrian rebels simply loved. this is what they've been hoping for from the united states a senior official meeting them, krozing the border and showing solidarity. the problem for the rebels is, he's not the president. and although mccain is pushing for a no-fly zone, there's been no new movement on that. but there is a growing realization and a concern that something must be done. because this is what's happening without action. at least 80,000 dead in syria so far, more than 1 million refugees, iraq is going back to a civil war. lebanon is heading for an internal conflict, as well. almost every day, there are funerals for hezbollah fighters who crossed into syria. the rebel free syrian army gave hezbollah 24 hours to leave syria or it would declare war on the lebanese group. the u.s. is pushing for diplomacy. it wants a conference in geneva next month. but that hit a snag too. the syrian opposition meeting in istanbul can't agree on who to send. richard engel, nbc

richard engel along the turkey/syrian border. thank you. >>> turning to massive wildfires in southern california. the biggest one tripled in size at this point but help could be on the way from mother nature. we go to california now. good morning. >> reporter: good morning, erica. overnight firefighters intensified ground operations just south of where we are here. they are trying to keep the fires that have spread to more than 28,000 acres over the past two days, they're trying to contain them. right now officials say they're at about 20% containment. now, last night -- late last night, they had to suspend air operations because of nighttime visibility. they are hoping in the coming hours as daylight here breaks, they'll be able to get aircraft back up in the air to try to suppress the flames including two c-130 airplanes that carry 12,000 gallons of water or flame retardant. that's what they are fighting against. a fire that has really surprised many people here and with the winds has actually blown in many different directions

richard engel is chief foreign correspondent for nbc news. wright is a distinguished scholar at the u.s. institute of peace. richard, thank you for joining us. i know we have a bit of a time delay. but tell me, what is mccain wanting to do? and what has he accomplished over the weekend? >> what i think he wants to do is he wants to put pressure on the white house. and he wants to give moral support to the rebels themselves. there was a danger he's creating some false expectation. the rebels simply loved his visit. they were very happy. this is exactly what they want from washington. they want to see senior u.s. officials putting themselves at risk and this was a risky trip. the area that he went to, although in some degree under rebel control is still dangerous. there have been suicide attacks there. there have been air strikes. and the rebels saw this as the kind of thing we want from washington. we want leaders in washington who fully embrace our cause and will crossover and will be with us and want a no-fly zone. the problem is, he's not t

richard engel's reporting from baghdad set the standard.e was the only american to cover it all from the early days of victory, into the civil chaos, the ultimate successes of the surge. he tells that story in another brilliant book, war journal, my five years in iraq, which will be studied by historians decades from now. at one point in war journal he notes the poor psychological stages of all reporters go through, while covering war zones. and on this day, commemoration of these four stages seem particularly relevant and particularly when you. stage one, i am invincible. nothing can hurt me. i'm superman. stage two, what i'm doing is dangerous. i might get hurt over here. i better be careful. stage three, what i'm doing is really dangerous. i'm probably going to get hurt over here, no matter how careful i am. math and probability and time are working against me. stage four, i have been here too long. i'm going to die over here. it's just a matter of time. i have played the game too long. last december, the journalistic world held its brea

>> well, i think that richard engel's precision and demand for precision is very, very important andt's going on in syria today. people are looking at a red line and trying to say should this not trigger a greater immediate action by the united states in a broad array of fronts and the answer may be possibly yes. i think that's what you saw in chuck hagel's commentary. at the same time, the president is is saying we need to ask the bigger questions. what's really going on. how do we leave a constructive situation, a situation that can work after there may be an intervention. what is the exit plan in all of this and those are the questions that many observers calling for greater intervention are not talking about and they are vital because syria is a real mess. richard knows libya well and there are going to be disputes about who the real heroes of the revolution are. who are the allies inside the assad regime behaving covertly? that's another potential scenario here, so there's a will the of complexity. the demand for a binary red line that gets action or inaction, would be an inept

first was to salute the career of his friend al neuharth, tom brokaw also took whomtime to speak of engel. he called one of the best correspondents of the middle east in a very lobng time. despite that being a praise, it is an understatement. richard is now the chief correspondent for nbc news. his face has become indelibly associated with 100,000 american viewers with coverage of the iraq war.-- by hundreds of thousands of american viewers with coverage of the iraq war. with the arab spring and the tumultuous scenes in egypt, libya, and syria. he has 17 news and documentary emmys and is the winner of a special citation for his personal video diary of the iraq war. even these laurels do not get the full story of the self-made correspondent me see today. he is surely one for the history books. winston churchill said history would be kind to him. he intended to write it. richard did the same. not that he needed any action kindness.-- any extra kindness. he wrote his first book about his life before and after the iraq war. the book drew praise from chris matthews of msnbc, saying "this evene

joining us now from beirut in lebanon is richard engel.hank you for staying up into the middle of the night for us. again, it's great to see you. >> it is great to see you and it's hard to see how this is going to end well or how it is going well right now. there are really no good options here. because the conflict is spreading. it is already inside lebanon. it is certainly inside syria, it is certainly in iraq, a country you didn't mention where there were just about a dozen car bombs the other day. something needs to happen. whether it's the maximalist approach, the diplomacy that the white house is pushing for, whether it is the continued option which israel wants of being able to go into syria with its planes, which is why it doesn't want russia to give syrians any anti-aircraft missiles because they want the option to go in when it has to and when it wants to and pick out specific targets. there are many possible approaches here and i think it's the least worst option. >> seeing all these different sides choosing different armed appr

even though he was on the ground only a fewer hours as richard eng engel pointed out. on the very day that the e.u. lifts its arms embargo, we knew that was going to happen. it reinforces the sense that the administration is behind the curve. john kerry meeting in paris with the russians to try to talk them into another round of negotiations. yet the russians are still arming the syrian regime. >> well, the word, i mean what we know from the white house and from the great white house correspondents and the bureau is that the president is really adamantly opposed to any kind of intervention. he's leading this policy. and mccain has been out there for a year at least, pressuring the white house to do something about syria. but they're talking about a little more aid to the rebels, but right now, it just does not seem like the white house is going to step up its game in any big way into syria. the president feels like he got out of iraq, he's getting out of afghanistan. he wants to focus on asia. he does not want to focus on what he calls these little wars in the middle e

. >>> in office politics, i talk to richard engel about what was going through his mind when he was kidnapped in syria. >>> powerball mania reaching a fever pitch. the big clamor for the $600 million prize. have you got your tickets yet? good morning, everyone. welcome to weekends with alex witt. let's get to what's happening. >>> first in front page politics, a new fallout just a day after the irs commissioner faced fierce questioning from a house panel. steve miller was force the to resign his post as acting director this week. on friday he faced republicans and democrats who demanded answers about why the irs targeted tea party groups seeking tax exempt status. >> as acting commissioner, i want to apologize on behalf of the internal revenue service for the mistakes that we made and the poor service we provided. i think that what happened here was that foolish mistakes were made by people trying to be more efficient in their workload. the listing, as described in the report, while intolerable, was a mistake and not an act of partisanship. good morning. thanks for joining me. bombshells. did

nbc news foreign correspondent richard engel joins me by phone from turkey. and nbc foreign correspondent ayman mohyeldin is in new york. what's happening in terms of threats by syria for retaliation. israel doesn't seem to be taking the threats seriously. given the fact that the prime minister, netenyahu, is in china on a previously scheduled trip. >> i think it's fair to say israel does not expect to see a major retaliation, a military retaliation. no scud missiles coming out of damascus toward tel aviv. the way saddam hussein has done so. syria has a lot on its plate right now. the regime is fighting for its own survival. what israelis are concerned about is there could be some sort of asymmetric attack. syria could use one of its allies, a force from iran or hezbollah to do an attack in israel or even at a foreign embassy. so they are on alert. but don't expect to see a full-on military assault from damascus. it may be something that's harder to directly on to syria. >> ayman, there's been muted response from the arab world. we had the expected criticism

our chief foreign correspondent richard engel is in turkey near the syrian border. good morning. what can you tell us? >> reporter: good morning, erica. these attacks are far bigger in scale than any previous ones attributed in israel that can be felt all across dam affect whys and suggests that israel may be prepared to take a far bigger military role in the war in syria. syrian activists filmed in secret. whispering as explosions shook damascus just before 2:00 a.m. witnesses say shock waves were felt across the city. windows broke and the fires made the might look like day. u.s. officials tell nbc news israeli jets struck military targets on the mountains overlooking damascus. nbc news can't independently verify the videos, but witnesses said they do look like what they saw. witnesses also heard multiple fighter jets flying low, apparently trying to evade radar. rebels in damascus said the jet struck at least nine locations in close proximity, including the research center, the syrian revolutionary guard, the elite division and a weapons depot. another attack in january also a

international efforts to pay for all of these refugees are only funded by about 50%. >>> richard engel istanbul, 1.5 million refugees with an estimated 200,000 coming across the borders every month. thanks as always. please stay safe. >>> paul kevin curtis can breathe a sigh of relief and not just because he's found his dog. we'll look at the case's new suspect, coming up next. angie's list is essential. i automatically go there. at angie's list, you'll find reviews on everything from home repair to healthcare written by people just like you. if you want to save yourself time and avoid a hassle, go to angie's list. at angie's list, you'll find the right person to do the job you need. and you'll find the right person quickly and easily. i'm busy, busy, busy, busy. thank goodness for angie's list. from roofers to plumbers to dentists and more, angie's list -- reviews you can trust. oh, angie? i have her on speed dial. stay top of mind with customers? from deals that bring them in with an offer... to social media promotions that turn fans into customers... to events that engage and create

richard engel has the latest from beirut. >>> twister threat. more than a dozen reports, as twisters cross the midwest tuesday. our storm chasers are on the lookout for potential dangerous weather in the same region, including battered oklahoma today. education nation, the uproar over school closings in chicago. >> there no educator i know that wants to close schools. there's no up side. >> my conversation with education secretary arne duncan about chicago and also high schools across the country, high schools of the future. >>> someone get the tide. president obama's got some explaining to do about that lipstick on his collar at a white house reception. >> i want to thank everybody who is here, the incredible warmth of the reception, a sign of the warmth is the lip stick on my collar. i have to say, i think i know the culprit. where is jessica sanchez -- no, it wasn't jessica. it was her aunt. where is she? auntie right there, look at this. i look at this. i want everybody to witness. so i do not want to be in trouble with michelle. that's why

this is nina engel, she was also a supermodel in the "sports illustrated" sports issue. she actually called him babe on her twitter site. a nice runner-up for jake. >> this has made jake's life. >> she's in "esquire" magazine. >> i am interested with this along with bill kierans. "way too early" is up next. >>> i got a confession to make, i'm no fan of barak barak. there, i said it. somebody had to. but i am a fan of how he's handled the war on terror, by following the exact same policies laid out by problem president bush who followed the exact same policies laid out by president cheney. >> things are changing, though, when it comes to how president obama handles the war on terrorism. that's not all he is dealing with the morning. the woman at the center of the irs scandal suspended after refusing to answer questions. we'll pen point exactly what got her pushed out. >>> bridge collapse. luckily everyone survived. some witnesses say they know how it happened. >>> and you know these things never end well in baseball games. a fan steals the spotlight from the angels and th

our chief correspondent richard engel is across the border in turkey. richard, good evening.ood evening. >> reporter: good evening, lester. israel hasn't acknowledged the raid in damascus, but u.s. officials say it was the israelis and they're not denying it. war makes for some pretty strange bedfellows. many syrian rebels welcomed the attack, even if it was from a most unlikely source. an israeli air strike against their common enemy, president bashar al assad's regime. 2:00 a.m. in damascus, an activist filmed the attack in secret saying god is great as the israeli bombs fell. more than a dozen targets were hit, shock waves felt a cross the city. a syrian rebel in damascus told us by skype, even though the raid was from israel, syria's decades-old foe it lifted the opposition's spirit. syrian state tv quickly blamed israel for the attack close to assad's palace. and helping the rebels they call terrorists. the missiles were bound for hezbollah, the military group that operates over the northern boarder in lebanon. >> israel said it would not allow what it calls game-changin

let's get to nbc news chief foreign correspondent richard engel in nearby turkey. richard? >> hello, maura. u.s. officials have confirmed to nbc news that an israeli air strike did take place inside syria early on friday. an israeli official today was quoted as saying that the target was a group of sophisticated long-range, ground-to-ground missiles that were apparently bound for hezbollah. hezbollah is a militant group based inside lebanon and israel has repeatedly said that it would attack any weapons leaving syria that were chemical weapons or, quote, game changing weapons. and this is the second time that israel has carried out an attack inside lebanon, on weapons that were bound for hezbollah. the last one, maura, was in january. >> richard engel in turkey, thanks so much for that. now to the latest in the boston marathon bombing. investigators say dna found on one of the bombs is not a match for katherine russell, the widow of tamerlan tsarnaev. russell's attorneys say she'll continue to meet with law enforcement to provide as much assistance to the investigation as s