do they amount to a proverbial smoking gun? and should he focus solely on donald trump or ignore him and focus on issues like abortion? the contradictory advice from key members of the democratic party to president biden that could be the difference between winning and losing in 2024. we'll talk strategy. but right now, we begin with some of the fiercest fighting of the entire israel-hamas war that is taking place all across gaza. tens of thousands of palestinians are in danger of being caught in the cross fire. in the north, around gaza city, israeli forces say they're engaged in intense urban combat, face to face with the enemy. but nbc news learned the bulk of israeli operations is now focused further south, in the heart of khan younis. in the hospital there, the wounded are stretched out on the floor, surrounded by blood and other debris. according to the u.n., roughly 80% of gaza's population, 1.8 million people, have been displaced. some two, three, even four times they have had to move. and for them, theuation is likely to get worse before it gets better. the u.n.'sumanitarian coordinator for the palestinis says, quote, nowhere is safe in to go.and there is nowhere left the conditions required to deliver aid to the people of gaza do not exist. if possible, an even more hellish scenario is about to unfold, one in which humanitarian operations may not be able to respond. i want to bring in nbc's chief foreign correspondent richard engel. richard, what is the latest on the ground? the last i saw you, adding to the misery, is was pouring rain. >> reporter: it certainly is making this situation even worse that it is raining now here in jerusalem, it is raining in gaza, and there are many people, particularly in the south who have been unable to find shelter. so they are either crammed into apartments if they can find space or sleeping on the streets, under tarps if they can find those. the situation is one that people feel depressed, they feel abandoned. we spoke to a woman in gaza a short while ago, and she was wondering how can the world be watching this. how can the world be watching this tragedy unfold and do nothing? and just watch as the situation gets worse day after day, and express sympathy and condolences, but take no actions. so, there is a tremendous sense of delusionment, disappointment, and in addition to the suffering. and that's just among the people who are stuck in rafah, waiting for the next phase of this war, which as you mentioned could be even more destructive, even more deadly because this campaign began almost two months ago in northern gaza. and israeli troops are still fighting in northern gaza. some of the most intense ground fighting where troops are now actually out of their tanks, going into some of the most densely populated alley ways and apartment blocks is happening in the north. and now the new phase of the operation is beginning in the south. so, the israelis are going in heavy like they went in heavy in the north, in the south around khan younis with air strikes, with tanks, not yet on the ground, street to street fighting, though that is expected to follow as it followed in the north. and as the fighting is continuing in khan younis, this heavy initial assault, people are moving south. and the last place they can go, the end of the road, is the city of rafah, right on the egyptian border. this and is the city i was just describing, where people are waiting for what is coming next, they feel that they have been crammed down in this corner of the gaza strip, and they don't know if the israelis will continue the offensive into rafah. they assume that it will, because that has generally been the pattern. i think that is one of the scenarios that the u.n. is warning about. what happens when the israeli offensive reaches all the way down to the bottom of gaza, what will happen to all the people who are now gathered there? >> and nbc's richard engel, thank you for that. let me bring in michael crowley, diplomatic correspondent for "the new york times" and peter baker, the times chief white house correspondent and msnbc political analyst. peter, it occurs to me as i'm hearing richard engel quote someone saying how can the world watch this and do nothing, that the two things that president biden may be best known for is empathy, and his long experience in foreign affairs and support of israel can almost seem to be at conflict right now. what is the administration's biggest concern about the israeli operations as we see them on the ground and moving forward? >> well, the biden administration made a point of telling the israelis that if they go to the south as they have now done, they needed to show how they can do it in a way that would minimize civilian casualties and they have taken credit to some extent, we saw some of the things israel has done, providing a map of where safe zones may be during the conflict and so forth. all of that in the end doesn't mean there isn't going to be a very intense conflict, very intense battle in the part of the country, the part of gaza that had been, you know, gazans were told it was the place to go, leave the north because that's where the fighting would be to go to the south. now in the south and the fighting followed them there. for the biden administration, obviously, which doesn't want to do anything to undermine israel, it is still a very big challenge because they don't want, you know, to maximize civilian casualties. they're trying to manage this in a very delicate way, but, you know, probably getting a little bit from both sides. >> michael, do we know in is any movement at all trying to resurrect some form of the cease-fire? >> well, look, i was just actually in israel and then dubai with secretary blinken last week. and, you know, what u.s. officials will say about that is if they are very determined to get hostages who are still held by hamas released. and that does include americans. and so i think that there is -- there are ongoing conversations to see whether there is some way there can be another break in the fighting, the u.s. also says that continuing humanitarian aid into gaza is an urgent priority. but there is this very tricky balancing act where, you know, the israeli military wants to conduct its offensive, wants to get hamas leaders as quickly as possible, wants to get this over with, but the u.s. as peter noted is trying to see there is some way to make this more humane, also by trying to get these prisoners out, trying to get aid in. that does necessitate another break in the fighting. so, i would not be at all surprised to see that happen again. but at the moment, i don't think we're on the brink of it. >> so, peter, your paper quotes a couple of experts in the laws of war who say they have not seen significant changes in recent days and how israel is waging its war, that warnings to civilians and you touched on this appear to be ineffective, but matt miller said yesterday it is too soon to judge whether israel has been doing enough to protect civilians in gaza. are the private messages that president biden and the white house is sending to israel different from what we're hearing publicly? >> well, i think it will blunt it, they are calibrating what they say in public, in public you're hearing a kind of -- a little bit of a mixed message. the vice president, kamala harris, defense secretary lloyd austin and secretary blinken have been pretty strong in the last few days about talking about israel's obligation to avoid civilian casualties. you haven't heard the president say that and jake sullivan, the president's national security adviser came out and was more cautious in his tone and his language in reminding everybody that hamas is the one that started this, that hamas is the one that has been using civilians as shields and israel is, you know, has a right to defend itself even as, of course, it should follow the laws of war. i think you're seeing a mixed message in effect from the administration, maybe good cop, bad cop, and behind the scenes saying it rather bluntly, trying to tell israel that, yes, they should do what they need to do to destroy hamas, but as lloyd austin, the defense secretary said the other day, there is a risk of delegitimizing its international credibility and, you know, further radicalizing another generation of palestinians depending how they do it. that's a message hard for israel to take. they want and need the united states to be on their side, they don't want to have a break with the united states, but at the same time they view it differently than they do in washington. >> so, to that point, michael, i mean, just a short time ago, israel's president was on with our ana cabrera and she asked him specifically about the growing international concern, the outrage as people see more and more what the impact is on civilians. let me play what he had to say about that. >> first, they told us get out of gaza, get your settlements out of gaza. we did that. within a year they took it over, with an iranian-led platform and turned it into a military base with 10,000 missiles on our hands in the last two decades. what exactly are we supposed to do? sit idly by and be killed. you may think otherwise. >> is it clear from your time there, from your conversations with folks, michael, whether israel is concerned about how international opinion has turned against their tactics? by the idf's own assessment, for every hamas fighter they have gotten, they have killed two civilians. >> well, chris, you know, opinions in israel are not uniform, even within the government. but i think there is a strong sentiment that amounts to the idea that the world is basically against israel. the world is always going to find a reason to criticize israel. and israel basically has to do what it has to do to defend itself. but, the relationship with the united states stands on its own and is another matter. so, i think that israel can withstand a lot of world condemnation, it expects it, it can tolerate it, and it thinks as long as it has the -- as long as the u.s. has its back, it can survive it. that's why i'm sure i know israeli leaders are closely watching the nuances in the bider administration that peter described and american public opinion which drives american policy. i think for now, peter the put his finger on it, you're not hearing president biden really break in a significant way with israel. there is increasing pressure coming from the likes of blinken and austin and othothers. the messaging has gotten more sharp. what we have not heard is anything suggesting real consequences. you know, blinken and others laid out all these demands isn't quite the right word, but strong advice or pleas for israel to do a lot more to protect civilians, lower the casualties, get the humanitarian aid in, get the hostages out. but what is the next step if israel doesn't do those things or doesn't seem to be taking america's advice. no one laid that out. there is no stick on the table. strings on american aid, reduction on american aid, now it may be in the works, i'm sure it is something the white house is talking about, but it is not out there right now and so for now, i think israel feels like they can survive this international condemnation. >> and before we go, michael, i want to ask you about the word we just got from the state department that they're going to be imposing a visa ban on israeli settlers who are believed to be involved in the attacks on the palestinians in the west bank. put that into context for us. >> well, you know, in recent years you have had a real dramatic surge in violence by right wing israeli settlers, often heavily armed, attack palestinians in the west bank with the goal basically of driving them off of their land and these settlers essentially don't, you know, most or many or all of them don't believe there should be a palestinian state. they want that land for israel. and they are attacking, intimidating these palestinians. the u.s. condemned this violence repeatedly. i think there is frustration in a sense that particularly this very conservative netanyahu government in israel is allowing this to happen with impunity. so, the biden administration is taking the next step here and will be denying visas to dozens of these people, preventing them from enter, the united states. incidentally this action does include palestinians who are believed to have committed acts of violence against israelis. but i think the thrust of it here is against the settlers who the biden administration basically feels are out of control, and the netanyahu government is not doing anything about it and that's making it a lot harder to move things forward, to get some stability in the west bank. some day in gaza, some day maybe have a two-state solution, which is the big picture goal for the biden administration right now. >> michael crowley, peter baker, thank you so much. funding for israel and ukraine continues to defy congress. and today, volodymyr zelenskyy is making a personal plea to u.s. senators, trying to convince them to green light $60 billion in aid for his country. he doesn't have much time do it. nbc's sahil kapur is following that story from capitol hill. how urgent is the need and what are you hearing about the chances zelenskyy can change minds on this issue and get it moving? >> reporter: it is widely seen as urgent, chris, but as zelenskyy has a very tough challenge ahead of him and that's largely because some of of the republicans who are supportive of additional aid to ukraine have bought into the idea that it must be linked to a major immigration policy piece, specifically restrictions on asylum and parole and those negotiations in the senate have gone badly, even mitt romney and mitch mcconnell, two republicans who are in favor of aid to ukraine, say there won't be any without an immigration agreement. as far as negotiations, on the asylum piece, according to my sources there has been progress there. democrats have been willing to put policy changes on the table, including raising the so-called credible fear standard against the wishes of some immigration advocates. there has not been as much progress on the issue of parole. republicans want sharp limits to presidential powers and granting humanitarian parole. and there is also a kind of a dispute about the parameters of t the negotiations. let's put up what senator john cornyn, the texas republican told me. said, quote, there is a sunderstanding on the part of senator schumer and some democratic friends. this is not a traditional negotiation where we come up with a bipartisan compromise on the border. this is a price that has to be paid in order to get the supplemental. a lot of democrats have cited that to argue that republicans see this as a hostage negotiation, not a policy discussion. nevertheless, there is likely to be a vote tomorrow in the senate to try to move forward with this $106 billion aid package requested by president biden, that includes assistance to ukraine, to israel, to taiwan, as well as funding for the u.s./mexico border. republicans have made clear they will filibuster it. senator chuck schumer made a plea as he filed for this motion. let's play what he had to say. >> in the coming days, i urge my colleagues to do the right thing and support moving forward on the supplemental package. we can't ever put a price on defending democracy in its hour of need because if ukraine falls, putin will keep on going. autocrats around the world will be emboldened, democracy, the grand and noble experiment, will enter an era of decline. >> reporter: and just today, as well, house speaker mike johnsonish issjohnson issued a letter to the white house, reiterating the position there has to be strict border policy measures in order to move forward with ukraine aid. the lead democratic negotiator, chris murphy, i asked him what is at stake here. he said nothing less than the fate of the world, chris, in terms of stopping putin and russia's territorial expansion. >> let me ask you really briefly, sahil, we learned about a big retirement, republican patrick mchenry, who served as the temporary house speaker, he's calling it quits. i think now "the new york times" has more than three dozen members of the house who will not run for re-election. what is going on? >> reporter: this is a real shock to some of mchenry's colleagues. he's only 48 years old. he's the chair of the house financial services committee. he gained national attention when he served as acting speaker pro tem during that three-week drought after republicans removed kevin mccarthy from the position. mchenry is seen as an institutionalist, a solidly conservative voting record, solidly conservative positions, but, you know, he tried to be the voice of reason within the republican party, arguing against aggressive moves like defaulting on the debt, dangerous things like a government shutdown. he was seen as someone for the future of the party, turns out he will be retiring at the end of next year. he said in a statement, quote, i believe there is a season for everything and for me this season has come to an end. this is simply the latest in a long-standing exodus of institutionalists and moderate republicans from the party which began in the era of barack obama, only accelerated in the age of donald trump. >> and sahil kapur, thank you. coming up, new information on the bribery investigation that is shaking up the senate. the robbery, the gold bars, and the businessman, and what new revelations about all of that could mean for senator bob menendez. that's in 60 seconds. bob menendez that's in 60 seconds we always thought that whatever we did here would be an emblem of what small communities can achieve. trying to give a better life to people that don't have the means to do it. si mi papá estuviera vivo, sé que él tuviera orgulloso también de vivir de esta viviendo una vida como la que estamos viviendo ahora. es electricidad aquí es salud. 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(vo) for a limited time, turn any iphone in any condition into a new iphone 15 pro with titanium and ipad and apple watch se - all on us. that's up to $1700 in value. only on verizon. more on the legal peril now that is facing new jersey senator bob menendez. nbc news is reporting that gold bars, the fbi says it found in his home, are linked to a businessman accused of bribing the senator. at least four gold bars with unique serial numbers match those that fred divy reported stolen in 2013 in a robbery and were recovered and returned to him by police. this is the latest development in the case against menendez and his wife who are charged with accepting hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes in exchange for the senator's influence. nbc's jonathan dienst has been a lead investigator. jonathan, what more can you tell us about these gold bars, how they fit into this investigation overall and i think i butchered the name of the businessman, so help me with that too. >> you got it right. fred davies. look, senator menendez has never explained how he got these gold bars. what is new here is that these gold bars are now linked to a 2013 robbery, fred davies, the man accused of bribing the senator, says he was robbed back in 2013, reported it to police. police went out, they caught the robbers. they returned the gold bars to fred davies. fred davies to get the gold bars back had to sign and certify that each and every one with t