Transcripts For CNNW Wolf 20140620 : vimarsana.com
CNNW Wolf June 20, 2014
He, quote, stepped right in it. Wolf blitzer reporting from washington. Both the islamist militants and the iraqi army. As advisers prepare to deploy to that country to help contain the crisis. We just learned the first of those advisers could arrive in iraq as early as tomorrow. President obama is also sending the secretary of state, john kerry, to the region. Hes heading out this weekend for meetings in europe and the middle east. Our chief National Security correspondent jim sciutto will be traveling with the secretary this week. Theres a lot at stake. The key question is how far is the u. S. Going to go in squeezing the iraqis to get rid of Nuri Al Maliki . Theyre not going to do it publicly. Theyre going to do it subtlety. They dont want their fingers on a political regime change. He certainly didnt express a vote of confidence in maliki. I think thats whats happening. Its happening domestically as well. The ayatollah sistani, the revered leader of shias in iraq, saying today that they need a leader. In effect, maliki losing that backing as well. At the same time, you have people raising their hands, other shias coming forward who have a better relationship with the sunnis and kurds. One of emthis, ahmad chalabi, remember the name, 2003, one of the architects of the american invasion. So you already have people who are raising their hands possibly to reblaze him. Arwa damon is joining us. Shes in erbil, iraq. Arwa, both sides of this conflict, theyre trying to boost their numbers right now. Give us a little sense of the strategy thats unfolding. Well, wolf, you talk about trying to boost your numbers. You have isis producing that super slick recruitment video. Really impressive when you look at the production value of it. And then of course theres the very chilling statements that are being made trying to lure in various other socalled jihadis from around the world. The language being spoken, arabic and english as well, trying to really reach out to that expat jihadi community. One of the people that are speaking, boasting they have fighters ranging from bangladesh, the uk. On the ground, wolf, isis also trying to continue in its effort to boost its ranks. Were hearing increasingly they are turning back to that fear strategy theyve used on so many battlefields that sadly works so well, terrorizing the population into supporting them. Also at this stage, given the alliance they have with various other sunni groups, they are emerging as the more powerful entity. Even the other sunni groups fighting alongside them are losing control to isis as well. Hold on for a moment. I wanted jim to weigh in on this question, its a diplomatic sensitive issue. Does the u. S. Bring iran into this diplomacy . Does the u. S. Bring in iran even more forcefully into some military operation against isis . Its a sensitive issue for the obama administration. Yes on the first, no on the second. No, they dont want to have u. S. And theyve kind of ruled that out u. S. iraqi cooperation. U. S. iranian . U. S. iranian cooperation on the military front. The president laid out yesterday yes, theyre willing to work with iranians but on the condition iranians support a inclusive iraq, that iran is not in effect coming in as a military force on behalf of the shias. Thats the condition theyre setting for all parties in this, both american allies, the turks, the kurd, et cetera. Does Nuri Al Maliki, youve studied this guy for a long time, youve been in iraq on and off going back to 2003, the u. S. Invasion, does Nuri Al Maliki understand if hes already lost the United States its over for him or is he clinging on despite that kind of suffering the loss of credibility, if you will . Well, he has been acting like a man who still believe, he has the support of the population, if one looks at his public statements. He has a government of national unity, thats what he believes. Hes calling on iraqis to unify. The problem is, his policies most certainly have proven to be the exact opposite. He he does not have much credibility. The kurds are trying to distance themselves. Very little credibility with them as well. Bearing in mind this is a man who has made all sorts of promises to the iraqi population, to various other politicians, even to the United States. There were promises he never lived up to. This is a man who has continuously failed to all those whom he has pledged to support. Its going to be very difficult to see how he handles the situation moving forward. One must also remember iraq just had par la monetary elections. Theres going to be a clock thats going to start ticking for the natural formation of a new government. Arwa damon in erbil, arwa, be careful over there, jim sciutto, thank you as well. Hell be traveling with the secretary of state coming up this week. The number of people potentially exposed to anthrax at the cdc headquarters in atlanta is now climbing. The centers for Disease Control and prevention now says as many as 86 employees may have come into contact with the live bacteria. Anthrax is the same potentially deadly toxin that turned up in the mailboxes of some prominent politicians right after 9 11. Our chief medical correspondent dr. Sanjay gupta is now joining us live from outside the cdc headquarters in atlanta. For those viewers who dont know, how could this possibly happen . Well, this is how do i put it delicately, this is a messup. An person or group of people didnt follow protocols. The cdc is being candid about specifically what happened. There are different bio safety labs. There are higher bio safety labs. There are lower bio safety labs. They had this anthrax. They were supposed to deactivate it, wait 48 hours, make sure it had been deactivated, then take it to the lower bio safety lab. It wasnt deactivated properly. They didnt wait long enough to make sure the process worked. The end product is you took live bacteria and you put it into a laboratory that just wasnt designed to be able to handle it and thats where the concern for exposure comes from. The number went up today. Why did that number go up . What is it now, 87, from 75. Yeah, you snknow, its interesting, i was talking to officials about that. Its been quite a process to identify would might have been affected. People have to swipe their i. D. Badges to walk through certain hallways, certain laboratories. All that data is stored so they can tell who was where when and how long. It is based on that initially they got this sort of 75 number. Other people have subsequently come forward and say they were in the same area for something unrelated or they may have been exposed in some way. Some of this is sort of selfreporting in terms of why the numbers may go up and they may go up even more, wolf. Were saying, i should correct it, at least 86, as many as 86 people potentially affected. Are any of them showing signs or symptoms or anything woresome right now . No, and ive asked that question very clearly. Any signs or symptoms means obviously any cough or flulike symptoms. Also, mild fever would be something they would be concerned about. Mild fever, could be the initial signs of an anthrax infection. In fact, over the next two months, these people are going to be screened, get regular temperature checks, because it could be one of the first signs. As a preemptive measure, do they give them, you know, some sort of antibiotics . Some sort of cipro . Remember after the anthrax attacks, a lot of people started taking cipro. Do they do that to these 86 folks who might have been impacted . 54 people have been seen, offered the various medications. What is interesting is even among Infectious Disease community, not everyone agrees on what the best thing to do here. 32 them have decided to take sip pro. 20 have decided to take another antibiotic. And two have said im not going to take any antibiotics whatsoever. Very different responses. Theyre also offered the anthrax vaccine. Exactly half said they would take it. Hat half said no. Youre getting different sort of approaches to how to handle this, even within this community. What is the possibility 1 of these 86 we hope none of them come down with anthrax could spread it to others . What are the concerns about that if any . This doesnt behave that way when we talk about things that spread easily from person to person. This doesnt seem to behave that way. The idea of someone having an infection, having it reside in their lungs and then spreading it to other people in the community or in their home, that seems really low. I should point out even for the people who are in the laboratory, the likelihood theyll get an infection is pretty low. The concern is its is up a dramatic serious infection, the mortality rate is around 75 . This is a heightened level of gravity around this, wolf. Sanjay gupta, helping us appreciate whats going on. A very worrisome situation down in atlanta. The cdc headquarters. Thanks very much. Coming up next, the head of the irs in the hot seat here in washington up on capitol hill. His explanation for why thousands of critical emails, they are missing, as his explanation did not go over well. Our chief Congressional Correspondent dana bash standing by. Lots of fireworks. And Bowe Bergdahl slowly making his transition from being a p. O. W. Well take you inside what a day in his life is like right now. Shes still the one for you. And cialis for daily use helps you be Ready Anytime the moment is right. 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Tdd 18003452550 so you can take charge tdd 18003452550 of your trading. Count on cortizone10. With the strongest, nonprescription itch medicine for fast relief. And 7 moisturizers. Cortizone10. Feel the heal. Lots of drama today up on capitol hill. In the hot seat, senior officials drop the department of veterans affairs. The House Veterans Affairs committee wanted to know why Senior Executives at the agency were awarded bonuses while thousands of veterans were kept waiting for months simably to see a doctor. Some of those vets eventually died as they waited. The most recent audit for the va shows at least 43,000 veterans waited 120 days. Thats three type times more t previously disclosed. Another highly contentious hearing. Irs commissioner, whos only been on the job since the beginning of the year, he app r appeared for several hours before the house ways and Means Committee to explain why thousands of Critical Agency emails were missing. At issue, whether irs officials improperly targeted gaps applying for tax exempt status. He revealed the emails they want to see might never be recovered. It was determined it was dysfunctional and no emails could be retrieved. Was recycled and destroyed in the normal process. Oh, my was it physically destroyed . Thats my understanding. Was it melted down . I have no idea what the recycler does with it. This was three years ago. Our chief Congressional Correspondent dana bash. You have to wonder if John Koskinen regrets coming out of retirement to take over the irs. Who are these missing em ining from . Are they really gone for good . We dont know who the emails are from. Thats really the heart of why this has become so contentious. Its over a twoyear period that the hard drive just has crashed and its that exact twoyear period that the irs and her tax exempt part of the irs allegedly targeted Tea Party Groups inappropriately. Thats at the heart of this. You just heard his answer. The irs commissioner saying they dont think its recoverable. He said they even had the irs criminal Forensic Team try to figure out if they could get to the hard drive. They couldnt do it. Congress is not pleased they simply destroyed it so theres no way for congress to check that. This was incredibly intense, this hearing. Republicans of all stripes really went after the irs commissioner and one of them even accused him of lying under oath. Listen to this. This is being misleading again. This is a pattern of abuse, a pattern of behavior, that is not giving us any confidence the agency is being impartial. I dont believe you. This is incredible. I have a long career. Thats the first time anybody has said they dont believe me. I dont believe you. We can have a disagreement. Im willing to stand on our record. What paul ryan is saying he doesnt believe the irs commissioner on is, number one, these emails that republicans think might shed more light on the whole idea of targeting Tea Party Groups, but also about the fact that the irs didnt Tell Congress they found out about this hard drive being destroyed in a timely fashion, which is feeding republican accusations of a coverup. Unlike in the past at least when this first started, wolf, you remember, there was some bipartisan outrage directed at the irs. Thats not happening anymoore. This is incredibly partisan. Democrats were come to the defense of the irs commissioner, even mocking republicans for coming up with conspiracies. Listen to this exchange. Let me ask you as to the seriousness of this investigation, sir, have you ever been in benghazi . No. Do you know if you or miss learner have ever had any responsibility for anything having to do with benghazi and our embassy there . No. How about area 51 out in r roswe roswell, new mexico, have you ever had any responsibility for that . No. Have you ever had custody of the president s birth certificate . No. Well, commissioner, i believe one of the mistakes youve made in dealing with the committee is you did assume this was a serious inquiry. I believe it is an endless Conspiracy Theory thats invo e involved here that is being exploited solely for political purposes. You could see the csarcasm. Another democrat said it was an inquisition. Lots back and forth over whether he was being treated fairly. The irs commissioner tried to give back as good as he got. Any idea, any thought this irs scandal had died down, its now erupted right back, front and center politically five months before the election. When paul ryan who is a Top Republican in the house of representatives effectively accusing the irs commissioner of lying to congress, thats incredibly, incredibly serious. Thats right, you know this, wolf, hes really more of a policy wonk up here than a political attack dog, which is why that was so striking. Others, i wouldnt be so shocked, but for paul ryan, that was obviously a serious just very quickly, dana, it was just lois learners emails that disappeared, or other officials from the irs, they lost their hard drives, they lost all their emails as well . Thats not reason why Congress Republicans are so upset, because apparently six others also had their hard drives lost or their information lost because their hard drives crashed. Its not just that that happened, but, again Congress Republicans are upset that they found out about learners hard drive, but then at the same time, the irs didnt tell them about the other six. Its sort of the dripdripdrip information fueling republican charges of coverup. Dana, i know youll work this story for us, thanks very much. Sergeant bergdahl is back in the United States, as all of you know. Hes slowly being intergreated back into civilian life. Were going to take you inside one of his days. What is it like for Sergeant Bergdahl right now . Spokesperson the Volkswagen Passat is heads above the competition, but were not in the business of naming names. The fact is, it comes standard with an engine thats been called the benchmark of its class. Really, guys, i thought. It also has more rear legroom than other midsize sedans. And the Volkswagen Passat has a lower starting price than. Much better. Vo hurry in and get 0 apr for 60 months on 2014 passat gasoline models plus a 1000 contract bonus. Woooooah. [ male announcer ] youre not just looking for a house. Youre looking for a place for your life to happen. Zillow. Youre looking for a place for your life to happen. Could help your business didavoid hours of delaynd test caused by slow internet from the phone company . Thats enough time to record a memo. Idea for sales giveaway. Return a call. Sign a contract. Pick a tie. Take a break with mr. Duck. Practice up for the business trip. Fly to florida. Win an award. Close a deal. Hire an intern. And still have time to spare. Check your speed. See how fast your internet can be. Switch now and add voice and tv for 34. 90. Comcast business. Built for business. Its been a week since sergeant Bowe Bergdahl arrived in San Antonio Texas and began the process of reintegrating into life. A team at the Medical Center has been gradually introducing bergdahl to the Media Firestorm that erupted over his release in exchange for five taliban prisoners. Now, what life is like for the former p. O. W. The military is not going to tell us anything absolutely private to bergdahl, but they will point out things they say can be told. One of them is most of us dont like to say we have a routine life, but thats exactly what theyre trying to reinstill into bergdahl. Theyre getting him up at a regular time. He goes to bed at a time most of us accept. They want to get him into a standard regiment. He has a typical hospital room at the brook army Medical Center. Nothing fancy. Nothing extreme. Despite the hundreds of people that are also in that hospital, he actually only daily interacts with less than a dozen people. And then there is the storytelling. Im not telling about the once upon a time kind. Im talking about how he gets to retell his story of captivity. Not a 30second synopsis but a daybyday accounting. He tells it to a small group which includes his military psychologist. Hes got his military team. Hes got army debriefers. They want to hear every detail. Most especially, his account of things. The investigation into his disappearance what prompted him apparently to walk away from that base in afghanistan in 2009 . Is he participating with the investigators on those sensitive questions yet . Yeah, i asked that very question. And the answer was youre going to have to talk to the pentagon on that particular issue. However, it was then immediately followed up with, the investigation is not part of reintegration. It applies that no, the investigative part has not happened. The reason theres sensitive over that is because this sergeant is now divulging everything about his experience and you wonder whether at some point someone says, you know what, anything you say can be held against you in potentially a military court of law. The key right now is getting him well. Getting him back into doing normal things. Teaching him how to take care of himself physically. How to make the decisions we all make for granted. For a returnee whos been in captivity, thats extremely difficult. Hes only just now starting. Another very, very sensitive question, perplexing one, when do we expect hell reunite with his parents . This is an issue of great sensitive for the military. Because, you know, there are personal matters involved. A week ago, they said this decision rests with bergdahl himself and he said at that time he wasnt ready. Theres not been a reunion in between that time. Theres not been contact, i am told, by the family with him. The thing i cant discern is whether this is all Bowe Bergdahl making the decision or if its also convenient for the military itself he remains in isolation. The reason i cant answer that is because i cant talk to bergdahl. Until i do, right now, i have to go with what the military says, which says bowe doesnt want to talk to his parents just yet. All right, thats obviously a very, very sensitive issue right now. Martin, thanks very much. U. S. Military advisers are heading to iraq to help eye roc iraqi troops get some help in their fight against militants. The impact the United States potentially could make. mother vo when i was pregnant. I got more advice than i knew what to do with. What i needed was information i could trust on how to take care of me and my baby. 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Im wolf blitzer reporting from washington. Right now, up to 300 u. S. Military advisers are preparing to deploy to iraq. Some arriving as early as tomorrow. Their mission, to help the Iraqi Military gather critical intelligence on islamic militants would are taking other towns in Northern Iraq and moving closer and closer to the capital of baghdad. Joining us in washington, robin wright, middle east analyst for the Woodrow Wilson center. Thank you for joining us. The strategy the president has, no combat troops in iraq, but hes sending 300 special operations forces, obviously, naval seals, army age rangers, n beret, these are men and women capable of engaging in combat. What is going on here . T the real mission is to get on the ground and make sure the Iraqi Military remains cohesive. Which it hand been. Right, particularly as isis mosts on the capital, that thats no fleeing these forces in a way that makes baghdad vulnerable. I think to some degree theyre babysitters, making sure these guys do what theyre supposed to do. With reexpespect to these 30 advisers, is that really going to make a difference . Its a huge military. The first sign of trouble in erbil, other places, what happens . I think the really goal is to make sure theres enough time t created. Everyone knows theres no military solution to this crisis. That is has to begin with a new government. It has to begin with not just replacing the Prime Minister but also creating a cabinet that can then reflect the population. And then more fundamentally coming up with a power sharing formula that makes the sunni minority, the kurds, feel theyre invested enough in iraq to preserve the territorial integrity. Otherwise, iraq falls apart. The 300 and potentially maybe a bit more somewhere down the road are really trying to create a window for politics to play out. Nuri al maliki, lets assume he goes who replaces him . Is there someone who can unite the sunnis, the shiites, the kurds . Is there a else Nelson Mandela iraq . No, there are three names as potential. One is well known to us, ahmed chala chalabi, who initially convinced the United States to get involved in iraq. Another one is abdul abel mehdi, one of the most popular. And then the former minister jabar, known for some of the tougher periods against dissidents in iraq and might not be as popular. One of the great challenges is does iraq bring back the supporters of the baath party, who were saddam supporters, now siding with isis . Do you bring in tribal leaders . Sunni tribal leaders. Who were the key to the awakening in 2006 and 2007 would pushed back al qaeda in an earlier because they were paid off by the United States government they were paid off, armed, aided by the United States. Petraeus was spending millions and millions of dollars every day just paying off these guys. And the Iraqi Government was supposed to incorporate them, either give them jobs they stopped paying them off. Bring them into the military, stopped paying them off, stopped giving them jobs, and they turned against the government. An excellent article you wrote in the new yorker magazine. The modern iraqi state may not hold. Neighboring syria is already shattered. The middle east map may be withdrawn. Globally, the jihadist threat has never been greater. All of those artificial states created after world war i, were going to see a redivision as we saw, for example, in yugoslavia, when that was broken up into six or seven independent states . We certainly face that possibility. Its not yet a probability, but its one of the longterm consequences of both the conflicts in syria and iraq. Youre seeing the border, as you know, well being erased, with isis having a force on both sides. And the possible creation a kind of sunnistan that brings together both of those countries. But were not there yet. Thats why the political solution is the only way to prevent both countries from falling apart. Back in 2006, joe biden as a u. S. Senator, he was already speculating seriously about breaking up iraq into three autonomous divisions, regions, if you will. Robin, thanks for coming in. Thank you. Up next, protests erupt in the west bank today. Ill show you what happened to a cnn reporter when he was targeted by Security Forces. Stand by. When you run a business, you cant settle for slow. Thats why i always choose the fastest intern. The fastest printer. The fastest lunch. Turkey club. The fastest pencil sharpener. The fastest elevator. The fastest speed dial. The Fastest Office plant. So why wouldnt i choose the fastest wifi . I would. Switch to comcast Business Internet and get the fastest wifi included. Comcast business. Built for business. Protests erupting in the west bank today. I want to show you what happened when our Senior International correspondent ben wedeman tried to cover the protest. Palestinian Security Forces stepped in. Watch this. [ crowd chanting ] were good, were good, were good. No, no, no, hes going to take your camera now. Go, go, go, go. [ speaking Foreign Language snvth. Hes not going [ speaking Foreign Language ] bens joining us from jerusalem. Ben, i understand this was a demonstration organized by supporters of hamas. Tell us a little bit more about what happened. The background. And most importantly, at least right now, are you okay, aour crews okay . Everybodys fine. A couple bruises. We went to cover this demonstration and the situation is already very tense on the west bank with the israeli operations. Crack down on hamas in the aftermath of the kidnapping of those three young israeli teenagers. When we went, its clear theres a large security presence from the Palestinian Authority. They were not happy to have press, particularly foreign press, covering this event. And initially, we were not hassled or anything, but at a center point, i heard one of the plainclothes policemen there say in arabic, grab that camera, grab that cameraman. Thats when i tried to shoo our guys out of the area. They grabbed the camera, broke it in half. Were waiting to see if theyre going to apologize, but im not holding my breath, wolf. Yeah, but and ben, as a lot ou veers know, youre fluent in arabic so you understand what theyre saying. You had a chance to speak with the mother of one of those three teenage boys, whos a u. S. israeli, dual national. Kidnapped eight days ago. How did that conversation go . She was very sort of constrained, composed. Under the circumstances. But she told us shes not getting much sleep. Shes not able to eat. Shes trying to keep the family calm and just sort of hoping for the best. She told us that they are working on the assumption that her son, 16yearold naftali, still alive. And i also asked her if she could send a message to the People Holding her son, what would she say, this is what she said. Were going to have to cue that up, were not hearing what she said. Well fix it well play the statement that she just made. But give us a paraphrase. What was her message . Her message is that everyone, anyone whos got children should understand the need to release them, to let them go. Her son is only 16 years old. And he was simply coming home from school when that happened. Really, she just made sort of an appeal to the humanity of everyone involved who could possibly help to release her son and the other two teenagers. The Palestinian Authority president , mahmoud abbas, he has condemned this kidnapping. Hamas has not necessarily condemned it, is that right . Hamas has denied any involvement in the kidnapping. It did praise the kidnapping, saying its a useful tool to win the release of the thousands of plan poli palestinian prisoners who are in israeli jails. We saw it in 2011, it was a deal between hamas and israel that led to the police of gilad shal shalit, the israeli soldier who in june 2006 was held in exchange for more than 1,000 palestinian prisoners. So this business of kidnapping is seen as a very useful tool for the palestinians, particularly hamas, to win release of prisoners, but certainly its something that really muddies the waters in this area, and raises tensions. Tensions are really i havent seen them quite this high in a long time, wolf. Im worried about whats going on myself, especially the potential for another israeli conflict with palestinians in gaza. That could escalate dramatically. Were watching it closely. Well stay in close touch with you. Ben wedeman on the scene for us. Im glad you and our crew are okay. 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But xarelto® is the first and only onceaday prescription blood thinner for patients with afib not caused by a heart valve problem that doesnt require regular blood monitoring. So mary is free of that monitoring routine. For patients currently well managed on warfarin, there is limited information on how xarelto® and warfarin compare in reducing the risk of stroke. Xarelto® is just one pill a day taken with the evening meal. Spinach . Grazie plus, with no known dietary restrictions, mary can eat the Healthy Foods she likes. Dont stop taking xarelto®, rivaroxaban, unless your doctor tells you to. While taking xarelto®, you may bruise more easily and it may take longer for bleeding to stop. Xarelto® may increase your risk of bleeding if you take certain medicines. Xarelto® can cause serious bleeding, and in rare cases, may be fatal. Get help right away if you develop unexpected bleeding, unusual bruising, or tingling. 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Both have said theres not a case here and, in fact, have taken it so far as to tell the prosecutors to stop, stop their case going forward. Cnn politics executive editor mark preston is joining us from the faith and Freedom Coalition conference here in washington under way right now. Mark, so how will this controversy around scott walkers fundraising impact his Reelection Campaign for governor, possibly a 2016 president ial run . Well, wolf, i got to tell you, i spoke to one of walkers top aides just a few hours ago, and they were caught by surprise that this information was released yesterday. But they continue to rely upon what two judges said, the federal judge and the state judge who decided not to pursue these charges. You have to ask yourself, well, while democrats are going to try to make a lot of this, they are going to point to that deadline and they think it will be devastating to him. You have to wonder, though, if this will actually help scott walker. Will this rally the base more behind him as he heads into november. He does have a tough reelection. If he does win, wolf, there is a lot of talk about him running for president in 2016. If he does win. All right. Another president ial hopeful, former democratic governor of montana brian switser, he made rather inappropriate comments about the outgoing horse majority leader eric cantor. Schweitze rerks, if you were just a regular person, you turned on the tv and saw eric cantor talking, i would say my gaydar is 60 to 70 . Yesterday he apologized. Posting on facebook, i recently made a number of stupid and insensitive remarks to a reporter from the national journal. I am deeply sorry and sincerely apologize for my carelessness and disregard. Did his comments cause schweitzer any hope of rallying enough support to become a viable president ial candidate . You know, wolf, at this point were all looking towards Hillary Clinton to run for and easily win the democratic nomination. There doesnt seem to be another person thats out there that can take her on in the democratic party. Schweitzer is something willing to be critical of Hillary Clinton, willing to be critical of people in his own party. Thats why were looking toward him as something whos possibly going to challenge. The fact of the matter he, he wouldnt have been a credible candidate against Hillary Clinton because there is no credible candidate, at least that we can see at this time that can challenge her heading into 2016 for that nomination. Another potential republican president ial candidate, the Texas Governor rick perry, hes also sort of saying hes sorry. Hes suggesting he, quote, stepped in it. Tell us what he said and what hes now saying. Well, wolf, this was rick perry, the Texas Governor, who said in his speech last week he compared alcoholism to homosexuality. He said if he had the gene, he would be so inclined not to drink. But he viewed homosexuality the same way. Meaning you shouldnt act upon that. It took him a while, though, to actually and i cant say he apologi apologized, because he didnt apologize. For him to address it head on, he did it at a breakfast with reporters. He said he stepped in it. He said you need to be tolerant of everybody and that Everybody Needs to get a job. I have to say, though, when he had the opportunity to say it on cnn just the other night, he did not. So it did take him a while to apologize. I dont think this will hurt him, though, if he does decide to seek the republican nomination, wolf. It might not hurt him to get the republican nomination. But in a general election, if he were to get the nomination, it could hurt him big time. Yeah. No question. Certainly at this time when there appears to be more of an acceptance right now of samesex marriage, were seeing that across both parties, and certainly with the younger voters, wolf. Mark, thanks very much. Mark preston joining us. Excitement is building all over the country right now for a big world cup soccer battle this weekend. Its team usa versus portugal. Were going to tell you what challenges both teams are facing. Thank ythank you for defendiyour sacrifice. And thank you for your bravery. Thank you colonel. Thank you daddy. Military families are uniquely thankful for many things, the legacy of usaa Auto Insurance can be one of them. If youre a current or former military member or their family, get an Auto Insurance quote and see why 92 of our members plan to stay for life. Hiwe just love scouring flea markets for special treasures. But with my type 2 diabetes, we now spend all our time at the pharmacy. With medcare, i dont have to they deliver everything i need right to my door with Free Shipping plus, medcare takes private policies, medicaid, even my medicare sleep apnea machines, nebulizers, medcare has all the finest medical supplies. The best part. Medcare saves us money medcare allows us the time to do the things we love. Medcare. We deliver a better life. Narrator these are the skater kid whoa narrator that got torture tested by teenagers and cried out for help. From the surprised designers. Who came to the rescue with a brilliant fix male designer i love it narrator which created thousands of new customers for the tennis shoes that got torture tested by teenagers. The internet of everything is changing manufacturing. Is your Network Ready . For some people it was like a ufo landed. Theyre like, what the hell is this . Oh, yeah. Its a solar power thing from m. M. I. T. You can charge your phone here. We call it benchy. Im sondra, live in the city of boston. Were here at the m. I. T. Media lab. We made the future for every park bench. A connected solar powered charger. Cities of the future need to be designed around the human being. Around us. Were seeing more and more efforts for sitable cities. So benchy is a first step into smart urban furniture which connects us to the city. We hacked a lot of things together that normally dont make sense. We took six solar panels, three lithium ion batteries, a waterproof usb plug. And then we have battery sensing. So what does that mean . We actually notice when and how many people are charging off of solar energy. And we can communicate that to the cloud. So the bench right now is actually connected to the internet. World cup fever is heating up all across the United States. Laura baldasero is joining us from Rio De Janeiro to tell us how team usa preparing for the big game against portugal, what are you hearing, laura . Wolf, the u. S. Team, they have left their base in sao paulo just moments ago. That gives them a good day and a half in this tropical or amazon rain forest city. It allows their bodies to get climbtize climatized. Its really going to be a very strenuous match for both teams involved. It should be very interesting on sunday. And so the excitement i take it a lot of americans are there for the game. I remember four years ago i went to south africa for the world cup. The usa ghana game. The usa lost that time. They beat ghana this time. A lot of americans on hand . Reporter oh, yeah. There certainly are. The first game that we were at was predominantly american fans in this crowd. They really helped to spur on this team which all of the players really talked about. It was really special. You saw basically everyone in red, white and blue. Were expecting the exact same thing. Thats despite the fact its in the amazon rain forest. Its also a really big game for the usa. If the usa beats portugal, thats the game theyre playing on sunday, and germany has beaten ghana, that means the usa is through. So its huge, wolf. Its huge. Huge. Were going to be watching. Lara, thanks very, very much. World cup fever. Thats it for me. Thanks very much for watching. Ill be back 5 00 p. M. Eastern in the situation room. Newsroom with Brooke Baldwin newsroom with Brooke Baldwin starts right now. Captions by vitac www. Vitac. Com wolf, thank you so much. Here we go. On this friday, im Brooke Baldwin. We begin with this new Development Just into us here at cnn. Russias Vladimir Putin has called iraqs Prime Minister, Nuri Al Maliki, pledging his support for the Iraqi Government. This development as the first contingent of as many as 300 u. S. Military advisers heads to iraq. They could land as early as tomorrow. Really the big headline today here on this story, chemical weapons. Extremists fighters have taken a former chemical weapons production pla t