and his fellow comrades there, dustin wright, jeremiah johnson, brian black. the formal investigation, under way into the ambush that killed johnson and his comrades there, early reports indicating johnson's body was found nearly a mile from where the other soldiers were killed. lawmakers are demanding answers about what happened, what went wrong, and many u.s. civilians also asking why were these troops in niger in the first place. senator lindsay gram issuing this warning. >> the war is headed to africa. it's begin to go morph, as we suppress the enemy in the mid east, they're going to move, they're not going to quit. >> let's bring in cnn's senior diplomatic correspondent. the michele, the fbi on the ground interviewing people trying to collect evidence. are we learning anything more about the investigation? >> reporter:. yeah. i think most of the details coming out over the past two days have focus the on the investigation itself. who's handling it, we know that africa command is leading it. the but as you mentioned, the fbi is also involved. u.s. intellig

yes, take a look, that is the axe man checking out his son jeremiah jr.ing on hall of famer marvin harrison's son, there's marvin last night. first half, let's get to the action. it is marquis mason turning on the jets. he's going to stay inbounds here. nice. nobody is going to catch him. he is going to go 50 yards for the touchdown. check this out, like father like son, jeremiah trotter jr. busting through the line with a sack. is he going to do the axe? no, he doesn't. prep down 28-14. philly.com's number four team downingtown taking on number five coatesville. another heavyweight battle. coatesville down by a point, ricky ortega floating it into the end zone. leaping catch for the touchdown. coatesville beats east 38-27. let's go to roxborough. edison on the road, they have the ball. not for long. this lands in the open arms of roxborough's pick six, 50-0. prep charter taking on south philly. first half now prep short punt, southern's samuels scooping it up and he is gone. taking it to the distance. all southern in this one. they win it 50-6. washingto

.>> reporter: shannon villanueva is in the process of adopting seven-year-old jeremiah.he fostered him when he was a baby for six months. his biological mother could not care for him and his younger sister mariah. they were returned to their mother villanueva kept in touch with the children. in october 2015 mariah died after ingesting methamphetamines for a second time while she and her brother were in another foster home in stockton. >> it is shocking and heartbreaking.>> reporter: now esther gardner -- as his guardian she has filed a lawsuit against alameda county and the agency that placed him in the foster home. >> the reason is so that this doesn't happen to any other family. and to any other foster child.>> reporter: after being in the care of alameda county the foster parent of mariah and jeremiah for four days mariah was hospitalized for ingesting methamphetamines pick >> there was nothing done. there was no investigation or inspection of the home. there was no anything done. yet they were notified.>> reporter: despite officials notifying authorities mariah was t

>> reporter: we've learned the suspect, jeremiah toldly was living in this town home development, which is less than a mile from where police say he was targeting women. we've learned one of his victims lives near him. we did witness a fairfax county police officer come to the home on avondale drive where he has been staying with a family. who tells me they're shocked and ashamed at the charges he's facing. 21-year-old jeremiah tolly is accused of assaults at least eight women in recent weeks while exercising along nearby trails, he grabbed the women from behind and groped them. we spoke to a man at tolly home. he did not want to go on camera but he's like a former stepdad who reached out to him in june asking if he could come stay with him. he wanted to get a job, start a life, get back on his feet. this man let him move in. things seemed normal and that's why his recent arrest came as a total shock to him. meanwhile, neighbors here are also concerned about everything, because they tell me one of them was a victim and some even witnessed tolly arrest. >> the police around, looking for

and by the time i got back there, jeremiah diel reached back out to me again.o he was pretty sure that she was up at sunrise. so i took my cowboy boots off, put on my tennis shoes, jumped in a cab and went up there. and just waited. went up to the front desk, gave them a description of who i was looking for. at that point i had jumped on her instagram account just to get pictures. took screenshots of them. so some point of reference. they kept trying to ask for a name, but i figured there wasn't going to be a name because she didn't have any identification. >> yeah. it's --? and eventually they -- >> it's incredible that you were willing to not only help her but continue for her family's sake to go from hospital to hospital. and i know that's where you eventually found her. kody, we've got to take a break because i know the president's about to speak, but i just want to thank you for what you did and for talking with us about it. thankfully, there are a lot more people like you than there are like the person who did this. and that made all the difference on sun

jeremiah raenl asked why his sister's body stopped working. >> we explained in a little more detail. he said, i should have followed her. i should have protected her. >> the suit was filed yesterday, the day mariah would have turned 5. we're calling alameda county and administrative office for a response, no call back yet. no response on a call to triad family services. one footnote. the original foster mother in stockton was never charged with any crime as far as we can tell. we will of course continue to follow this sad story. abc 7 news. >>> turn your attention very different, we'll focus on the weather forecast. >> yeah. >> great weekend coming our way for the outdoor events taking place. check out this view of the setting sun from our east bay hills camera. a stunning view. these are the chilies we'll feel the next couple of days, but warmer afternoons thursday and friday and it will be like shade of summer this weekend. we have clear skies across the bay area, evidence by this gorgeous view from the camera. we had a view just a few minutes ago but in the dark let's take a look

yes, take a look, that is the axe man checking out his son jeremiah jr.aking on hall of famer marvin harrison's son, there's marvin last night. first half, let's get to the action. it is marquis mason turning on the jets. he's going to stay inbounds here. nice. nobody is going to catch him. he is going to go 50 yards for the touchdown. check this out, like father like son, jeremiah trotter jr. busting through the line with a sack. is he going to do the axe? no, he doesn't. prep down 28-14. philly.com's number four team downingtown east taking on number five coatesville. another heavyweight battle. coatesville down by a point, ricky ortega floating it into the end zone. leaping catch for the touchdown. coatesville beats east 38-27. let's go to roxborough. edison on the road, they have the ball. not for long. this lands in the open arms of roxborough's lamar wilkes pick six, 50-0. prep charter taking on south philly. first half now prep short punt, southern's samuels scooping it up and he is gone. taking it to the distance. all southern in this one. they wi

and also, staff sergeant jeremiah johnson. >> there are 800 american trumans in niger.s than 100 are the advisers to local military. >> you can be with them on the front lines which was clearly the case. you can stay back behind the front lines and that's what happened for a while in iraq. it is one of those euphemisms, advise and assist. >> last tuesday johnson's body made the long journey home. >> i want everyone to know. >> you've known him since you were 6. >> yes. >> it was during her car ride to dover air force base to meet her huss's casket when she received the now infamous condolence call from president trump. >> i asked sergeant neil put his phone on the speaker so my aunt and uncle could hear as well. what he said was -- >> the president. >> yes. the president. that he knew what he signed up for but it hurts anyway. >> sergeant johnson's widow confirming what congressman wilson said. she was in the car at the time. >> and i heard him say, well, i guess you know, he knew what he was signing up for. but it still hurts. >> i didn't say what she said. i didn't sa

yes, take a look, that is the axe man checking out his son jeremiah jr.aking on hall of famer marvin harrison's son, there's marvin last night. first half, let's get to the action. it is marquis mason turning on the jets. he's going to stay inbounds here. nice. nobody is going to catch him. he is going to go 50 yards for the touchdown. check this out, like father like son, jeremiah trotter jr. busting through the line with a sack. is he going to do the axe? no, he doesn't. prep down 28-14. philly.com's number four team downingtown east taking on number five coatesville. another heavyweight battle. coatesville down by a point, ricky ortega floating it into the end zone. leaping catch for the touchdown. coatesville beats east 38-27. let's go to roxborough. edison on the road, they have the ball. not for long. this lands in the open arms of roxborough's lamar wilkes pick six, 50-0. prep charter taking on south philly. first half now prep short punt, southern's samuels scooping it up and he is gone. taking it to the distance. all southern in this one. they wi

staff sergeant brian black, staff sergeant jeremiah johnson, staff sergeant dustin wright and sergeantdavid johnson. tonight's last word goes to myeshia johnson. >> i don't know how he got killed, where he got killed or anything. i don't know that part. they never told me and that's what i've been trying to find out since day one, since october 4th. >> are you confident you're going to get the answers you need? >> if i keep pushing for them, i will. they're telling me that he's in a severe, a severe wrap, like i won't be able to see him. i need to see him so i will know that that is my husband. i don't know nothing. they won't show me a finger, a hand. i know my husband's body from head to toe, and they won't let me see anything. i don't know what's in that box. it could be empty, for all i know. but i need -- i need to see my >>> tonight new details from the pentagon on that deadly attack in niger. from the chairman of the joint chiefs ask a new report that the ambush was possibly a set up. the president 80s fight with a gold star widow entered its second week today after trump went b

he leaves behind his wife michelle and their two young sons. 39-year-old army staff sergeant jeremiah chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear specialist. he's from the state of ohio. he has a wife crystal and their two daughters. staff sergeant johnson loved motorcycles, the outdoors and smoking cigars. he was a businessman before enlisting in the army back in 2007. his commander said, quote, johnson was an exceptional soldier in all regards. we as a nation were fortunate to have men like jeremiah. 29-year-old army staff sergeant dustin wright. his brother will i spoke to yesterday. his family has a 205-year history in the military. staff sergeant wright followed his dad, his mom, and his brother will all in the military and will says dustin didn't want accolades or praise or awards. he did his job fighting for this country because it's what he loved, and it's what he was born to do. and finally, a man who is getting a lot of attention and certainly needs some. 25-year-old army sergeant david t. johnson of miami gardens, florida. he was a special forces engineer from georgia. s

sergeants brian black and dustin wright, both green berets and sergeant jeremiah johnson, the oldestife and two sons. johnson by a wife and two daughters. the body of sergeant ledavid johnson was not covered until two days later. he and his wife were expecting their third child. in hindsight it is obvious the patrol went out without enough backup but it will take an investigation to determine whether warning steins that an ambush was in the works had been missed. anthony. >> david martin at the pentagon. thanks. >> the widow of staff sergeant johnson, grieved over her husband's casket yesterday as it arrived home from niger. she also received a call from the president. congresswoman fredericka wilson listened in. >> he never said the word hero. he said to the wife, well, i guess he knew what he was getting into. how insensitive can you be? >> sergeant johnson's mother confirmed the account to "the washington post." white house press secretary, said she did not have a recording of the conversation but did not specifically deny congresswoman wilson's charges. sanders did question the c

prosecutors have charged jeremiah collie with sexually assaulting multiple women dating back to walk us. he was arrested -- dating back to august. there was arrested after he had attacked a woman just last week. justin tonight from the caribbean, the death toll on the island is more than doubling. 34 deaths are blamed on hurricane maria. the island remains in dire condition as most people do not have electricity. president trump visited the island. nancy chen is at the live desk. nancy: there has been mixed reaction to the president's visit. the president said that puerto ricans should be proud that only 15 people died. has "thrown island our budget a little out of whack." at church in san juan, president trump tossed paper towels to hurricane victims and compared the hurricane to katrina, all as he sat next to the governor of puerto rico. butvery death is a horror, if you look at a real catastrophe like katrina and you look at the tremendous -- hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of people who died -- and you look at what happened here with really a storm that was totally overpowerin

staff sageant bryan black, staff sergeant jeremiah johnson, and staff sergeant dustin wright.ircumstances surrounding their deaths still very cloudy, brian. the fbi, as we've been reporting on the ground in niger also trying to talk to witnesses, gather evidence. which is customary when there are deaths that involve u.s. troops. but this investigation has reached a certain level, you know, a particular pitch because, as you underscore, so many americans had no idea there were u.s. troops in niger. there are americans, you know, dotted across the map of the continent of africa. all the circumstances not always clear. particularly now with the growth and the spread of isis and terror groups. there apparently are circumstances taking place in niger which may surround this ambush that involves the terror activity of isis or splinter groups, and we heard from senator lindsay gram who says, you know, everyone should be paying attention to the potential of terror activity now rooted deeply in africa. >> this was the greatest single combat loss since president trump took office and th

you're looking at army sergeant la david johnson, justin, jeremiah and justin black, more after that double digits. it really scared him out of the markets. his advisor ran the numbers and showed that he wouldn't be able to retire until he was 68. the client realized, "i need to get back into the markets- i need to get back on track with my plan." the financial advisor was able to work with this client. he's now on track to retire when he's 65. having someone coach you through it is really the value of a financial advisor. lauren: businesses across america making bids, they want amazon to build headquarters in metro area. here are a few examples, new york city turning empire building and one world strayed center orange, amazon orange, get it? a town in georgia to change its name to amazon. other places offering up to $7 billion in tax breaks u tax breaks for amazon. jerry willis says it's a waste. >> why are we giving subsidies for the company, much less the wealthiest company on the planet. take a look at the numbers. state of new jersey says, for example, we will give you $7 billio

along with jeremiah rack and justin right were killed in a military attack earlier this year by isis . it's remains unclear on\son\{^son}'s body was found almost a mile from the site or how he he became separated from the other soldiers. the us currently has about a thousand troops in the region to support a french-lead mission to disrupt and destroy terror groups. that news has left some including senate minority leader chuck schumer surprised. we are in a brave new word. there are no set battle plans. you don't declare war and then fight three weeks later, but having said that, the constitution says congress has the power to fight war. meanwhile president trump and florida congressman women frederick a wilson continue to trade barbs over the call to david on\son\{^son}'s width on. whacky congressman women is the gift that keeps on giving for the republican party. a disaster for democrats. vote r i think this is going to be this administration's benghazi. this is going to be trump's benghazi, trump's niger. and they need to concentrate on what happened and what is happening. >> john

they charged jeremiah tolley for sexually assaulted a number of women dating back to august. they are not saying how many victims have come forward but he faces eight felony charges. he was arrested after police say he attacked a week on a trail near the county government center. michelle: police in stafford county are trying to figure out who vandalized a giant confederate flag along i-95. there it is. long source of controversy, investigators say someone spray painted the words "take it down" and "racist" on the base of the pole. they trieden successfully to re -- they tried up successfully to remove a plaque near the base. jonathan: d.c. council approved emergency legislation to allow dogs on restaurant patios. today's vote came after health officials clacked coun on bars and restaurants -- cracked down on bars and restaurants. the individual businesses will decide if they want dogs on the paid -- patio. michelle: this koala ran to the top of a grilling rig after s away from a busy road nearby. first responders stepped in and saved the koala and took it to safety. jonathan

the fire fight ended in the deaths of bryan black, justin wright and jeremiah johnson. a fourth solder la david johnson was found a mile from where the attack happened. >> once we found out that sergeant johnson was missing we brought the full weight of the u.s. government to bear to try to recover his body. >> johnson's widow told abc news that the military has not told her why she was not allowed to open his casket. as soon as investigators have answers about what happened, they will get a personal visit with the details. >> the commissioner read his resignation aloud. he is being investigated for child pornography. investigators say they found hundreds of graphic images, some featuring children as young as 2. he will no longer serve as president, legally he will remain on the board until there's a conviction in his case. his preliminary hearing is scheduled for thursday. >>> governor wolf announced today that a special election will be held march 13th for the seat held by former congressman tim murphy. the antiabortion republican resigned after text messages showed h

also known as the ss jeremiah o'brien. the all-inclusive cruise will take you around san francisco bay with incredible views of golden gate bridge, alcatraz, visiting naval ships and have the best seats in the city to watch the navy's blue angels. tickets are on sale for saturday and sunday, include hot dogs, hamburgers and chowder. a line of hand crafted bee ars will be available. sailing goes from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. >>> three days of life music comes to golden gate park with the hardly strictly bluegrass festival. no tickets needed. head there friday, saturday and sunday. enjoy over 90 acts on 7 stages throughout the weekend including robert earl keen, bran ddy carlisle, t-bone burnett, and kristen dewilliams. >>> let your italian roots shine at the 149th annual san francisco italian heritage parade. the action starts sunday at 12:30 at jefferson and powell in fisherman's wharf. the parade route continues through north beach in columbus and ends in washington square park where you'll find the ferrari sports car disp

police say jeremiah trolly is behind at least seven attacks since august.y arrested him last friday after officers say he attacked a woman on a trail near waffles mill and random hill road. >>> today is national walk to school day. we do have this warning for parents whose kids plan to participate. prince gorges county police say a little girl was sexually assaulted after she got off the school bus last week. the attacker is still out there. we explain what we know about this disturbing case. >> reporter: terrified parents picking uphe they're afraid after an elementary school student was sexually assaulted last week in this neighborhood. the little girl was attacked walking home up devon hills drive last thursday afternoon. >> when it first happened nobody told us. like everybody else knew. i had to find out -- get a phone call from the neighbor. >> reporter: at grasmiere court a block after she got off the school bus the little girl was alone. she was grabbed by a stranger, dragged between two cars where she was sexually molested. he touched her inappropr

brian black of washington state, dustin wright of georgia and jeremiah johnson of ohio were killed. >>> a crazy kind of binge watching today going on at the national mall. for 12 hours state you could watch that infamous access hollywood video with president trump, the one where he talks about grabbing women by their private parts. well, tomorrow marks one year since that video first surfaced. today the women's rights group ultraviolet put that clip on a giant screen and ran it over and over and over again. reaction was mixed, much like the country itself. >> i think it's important that people remember things like this and that they're bringing attention to it and trying to move people to action. >> i think it's crazy, ridiculous. >> it doesn't do anything for anybody, i don't think. >> don't know if the president himself tried to catch him on th been disappointed since oube to for women to get birth control, president trump issuing new rules today that allow employers to back out of providing insurance that includes contraceptive coverage. pete muntean, you've been studying up on all

they are four men ambushed in africa, la david johnson, also staff sergeant brian black, sergeant jeremiah johnson and staff sergeant dustin wright. the president said he will call and write letters to all of the family members who lost their loved ones there. members hereof congress hope that the president in the future will be more sensitive when he makes those phone calls. frances, philip? >> everyone feeling for the families, edward, thank you. >> the communist party of china opened its 19th national congress today kicking off a week long meeting that takes place every five years and includes a vote for the party's leadership. president xi jinping who is expected to remain in power spoke to over 2000 delegates mapping out his agenda for the next term. nbc's janice mackie frayer is live for us in beijing. janice, good morning. what did president xi speak about? >> reporter: good morning, frances. the party congress is a big deal for several reasons. and for china's president xi jinping who is also leader of the communist party, it is a confirmation of his power. he told the 2300 delegat

. >> lester, tonight there is a memorial service for 39-year-old jeremiah johnson one of four soldiers who died in niger. here at the pentagon, official are insistent they will fully cooperate with congress. lester. >> hans nichols reporting from the pentagon tonight. thank you. >> as president trump deals with that fallout, two of his predecessors were back in the spotlight today. barack obama, back on the campaign trail for the first time since leaving office. george w. bush largely stayed on the sidelines in a rare appearance delivering a powerful message. nbc news white house correspondent kristen welker has the story. [ applause ] >> thank you. >> reporter: tonight a pair of past presidents raising concerns about the direction of the country they once led. >> are you fired up! >> former president obama, campaigning for new jersey's democratic candidate for governor. >> we are rejecting a politics of fear. that we are embracing a politi that says everybody counts. >> but the former republican president spoke with a sharper edge today. >> this is a unique moment. >> reporter: delive

that's where sergeant brian black, jeremiah johnson and sergeant la david johnson were killed. >> reporter: army sergeant johnson was laid to rest near his home in florida. he was killed in an ambush earlier this month along with three of his come raids. new and conflicting account about what happened during the deadly mission. the "the new york times" reports that military sources say the army convoy spotted and chases insurgents until they crossed into neighboring mali. the soldiers didn't mention giving chase and claimed they were ambushed and surrounded by insurgents outside a village possibly tipped off by tribal leader who they were meeting. the pentagon tried to determine if they were on an unapproved mission. a signal from his beacon was tracked for several hours fueling hope that johnson was still alive. a senior congressional aid nbc news it stemmed in part from a massive intelligence failure. congress now demanding more information on counterterrorism missions across africa. >> you've got to have a balance here. you've got to keep us informed so we can make good decisions about

staff sergeant brian blatt from washington state, staff sergeant jeremiah johnson from ohio and dustin wright from georgia. they were ambushed while on a joint patrol. >>> there is still much more ahead this friday. the alleged terror plot in new york city. the details revealed tonight. the plan for the new york city subway. the fbi seizing bomb making materials. more after the break. >>> a famous dallas cowboys star and his son in the news. the campus fraternity accused of hazing him. a bat to the stomach in a culture described as a fight club. >>> and keith urban and the moment that moved so many as we honor the faces. a lot more news ahead. of multi. ♪ that's why there's trintellix, a prescription medication for depression. trintellix may help you take a step forward in improving your depression. tell your healthcare professional right away if your depression worsens, or you have unusual changes in mood, behavior or thoughts of suicide. antidepressants can increase these in children, teens and young adults. do not take with maois. tell your healthcare professional about your medicat

the fire fight ended in the deaths of bryan black, justin wright and jeremiah johnson. a fourth solder la david johnson was found a mile from where the attack happened. >> once we found out that sergeant johnson was missing we brought the full weight of the u.s. government to bear to try to recover his body. >> johnson's widow told abc news that the military has not told her why she was not allowed to open his casket. as soon as investigators have answers about what happened, they will get a personal visit with the details. >> the commissioner read his resignation aloud. he is being investigated for child pornography. investigators say they found hundreds of graphic images, some featuring children as young as 2. he will no longer serve as president, legally he will remain on the board until there's a conviction in his case. his preliminary hearing is scheduled for thursday. >>> governor wolf announced today that a special election will be held march 13th for the seat held by former congressman tim murphy. the antiabortion republican resigned after text messages showed h

staff sergeant jeremiah johnson, 39, from ohio where the community is devastated. >> we knew where heas and he wasn't in a good place, and -- >> reporter: yeah. >> -- it was just heartbreaking. >> reporter: the green berets just a few of the 800 american troops in niger where drones watched islamic extremists. they encounter terrorism, but a routine mission turned into full-pledge combat when nearly a dozen u.s. and niger forces were surprised by islamic militants. a deadly fire fight ensued. french helicopters evacuated them. in the chaos of battle, one was missed. special operators were flown in from across the globe, but it was too late, his body found today by nigerian troops. >> you try never to do a soldier behind. it is unusual to do so. it must have been one heck of a fire fight for that to happen. >> reporter: military officials tell nbc news the green berets did kill some islamic extremists but they can't say how many, where they came from or if they will strike again. hans nichols, nbc news, pentagon >>> mix news on the economy in evening. the u.s. lost 33,000 jobs in septe

white and blue and gold ferry boats are offering special cruises.the world war two liberty ship jeremiah'brien is offering special blue angel cruises on saturday and sunday.one popular spot is off this year's list:treasure island officials say they are strongly discouraging visitos. that's because costruction projects have restricted access to viewing areas and parking lots. coming up... a new way to combat menopause. how beer can help. ( marty ) here's a live look at yosemite this morning... her hair's a hot mess. her eyes are like... "oh, i'm late for work. i have to go." your dunkin' doesn't make you, you, but it helps. dunkin' donuts coffee. pick some up where you buy groceries. a new hampshire brewery has spent six years formulating a special beer--- for women. they say it's to help women going through menopause, and it is doctor approved joanne francis is the brewery co-owner. she came up with "lib-beer- ration". the beer has ingredients like chamomile and nettle, which are designed to reduce stress. a doctor who is consulting on the beer says it can reduce hormone imbalances. owne

sergeants bryan black and dustin wright, both green beret, and sergeant jeremiah johnson, the oldest at 39. black is survived by a wife and two sons, johnson by a wife and two daughters. the body of sergeant la david johnson was not recovered until two days later. he and his wife were expecting their third child. in hindsight it's obvious the patrol went out without enough back-up, but it will take an investigation to determine whether warning signs that an ambush was in the works had been missed. anthony? >> mason: david martin at the pentagon, thanks. the president called the families of all four soldiers, and he is denying accusations he was less than respectful to one of them. the white house said today chief of staff john kelly heard the call and thought what mr. trump said was "appropriate and respectful." here's major garrett. >> i didn't say what that congresswoman said. didn't say it at all. she knows it. >> reporter: myesha johnson, wind of staff sergeant la david johnson, grieved over her husband's casket yesterday as it arrived home from niger. she also received a call fr

jeremiah johnson, 39, of ohio. and dustin wright, 29, of georgia. president trump has set off an international guessing game with a few ominous words. today, he wasn't giving any clues. margaret brennan is at the white house. >> reporter: what did you mean by "calm before the storm" yesterday? what did you mean by that? >> you'll find out. >> reporter: at a dinner last night with top military leaders and their spouses, the president made this cryptic commentst comment: >> you guys know what this represents. >> reporter: tell us, sir. >> maybe it's the calm before the storm. >> reporter: what's the storm? >> could be the calm, the calm before the storm. >> reporter: the ominous remark comes amid rising tension with north korea and next week's announcement of the president's iran strategy. he is expected to take steps that could unravel the agreement to freeze iran's nuclear program, also known as the j.c.p.o.a. the action would be in defiance of top national security adviser like defense secretary james mattis. >> do you believe it's in our national

staff sergeants dustin wright, jeremiah johnson, bryan black, and sergeant ladavid johnson. on friday, defense secretary james mattis met with arizona senator john mccain. the chairman of the armed services committee threatened to issue subpoenas to get more details about that october 4 attack. the fallout has rattled the military, congress and the country. but it was the president's calls and what he said that ignited a national debate. florida democratic congresswoman frederica wilson said she heard the president tell the widow of one of the soldiers who was killed that, quote, her husband knew what he signed up for, but i guess it still hurts. end quote. mr. trump denied saying that and his chief of staff, john kelly, a retired marine general whose son was killed in afghanistan seven years ago, defended the president. >> he called four people the other day and expressed his condolences in the best way that he could. and he said to me, what do i say? i said to him, sir, there's nothing you can do to lighten the burden on these families. >> hours later, president trump atta

this new low in america and october 4th attack in niger where four american soldiers, ryan black, jeremiah johnson, la david johnson and dustin wright were killed when they were reportedly ambushed by islamic state extremists, joinings now to answer some of the questions about the attack are michael morell, cbs news senior national security contributor and former number two the at cia and cbs news national security correspondent david martin. mike, start with you before we get a sense of what exactly happened. why were us servicemen there? >> john, it has been u.s. policy for some time to support those nations facing a terrorist threat. one of the key pieces of that support is to train, advise and assist local military. one of the places we were doing that was niger, they face a significant threat from a robust al qaeda group and a growing isis group. both of those are located in mali but come across that border and conduct attacks in niger, americans might ask why were they there helping them? the answers while this is a regional threat today, it could be a threat to europe tomorrow and i

>> she was already going to name him jeremiah, so we just stuck with it. >> reporter: jeremiah taylorbe born for 20 more weeks. he never got a birth certificate. only a death certificate. then the coroner released his body along with his mother's, so their family could say goodbye. >> it was an open casket. i remember i wanted to reach out and touch her. i just kind of sat in the chair looking down at the floor, waiting for it to be over. >> reporter: in the days after cripsty drillsty died, everyone in the family spoke with police. hoping they could help in some way. any way. michelle had a story about the day before christy died. as she left with the kids that morning, there was a man in the lobby of their building. >> and i came around the corner, and -- it was a guy. he was sitting on the stairs. and when i came around he startled me a little bit, so i stopped to ask him what was he doing there, and then he told me he was waiting for someone. >> reporter: michelle had a bad feeling about him. >> i kind of got this instinct that said, remember what he looked like. and then i froze

brian black, a green beret medic, and jeremiah johnson, who loved riding motorcycles. the wright family has served in the armed forces for 200 years. 29-year-old dustin the first to die in the line of duty. >> the kindest, the most loving person you'd ever met. and that's the amazing thing about him. >> reporter: the pentagon tonight still investigating how the low-risk mission was blind sided. a deadly ambush by fighters affiliated with isis. during the attack, johnson becoming separated from the unit. his body found by nigerian troops two days later. tonight his family's pain compounded, they say, by the president's words. president trump denying a democratic congresswoman's claim he disrespected johnson during a call to his widow. >> i had a very nice conversation with the woman, with the wife who -- sounded like a lovely woman. did not say what the congresswoman said. >> reporter: that congresswoman, fredricka wilson, her account of the call heard on speaker phone. >> he said, "well, i guess you know he" -- something to the effect that he knew what he was getting i