Northern california and Southern California continuing to struggle with the worst wildfires. Whole town burned and dozens of life lost already. Today widespread suffocating smoke, blanketing from the west coast and even far away. Some of the worst air quality on earth is in the American West right now. Well be checking on that a little bit later on this hour. At the atlantic magazine reported Jeffery Goldberg who had the unnerving scoop a week ago about the president calling Service Members losers and suckers. Today Jeffery Goldberg had another scoop since the impeachment of the president this past december with alexander vindman. Lester holt had just done the first interview with vindman and it is a remarkable thing. What is your message to young military officers . I am concerned about how this played out. I had a lot of peers and younger officers reaching out and soldiers reached out and people i have been known to pass support. There was an under tone to kind of some of the responses from these people, fellow Service Members. That is i did the right thing in their perspective, i feel like i am hung out to dry. Thats what i fear most of a second Trump Administration. You have good people that understand or have a strong moral understanding whats right and wrong. What you can have and cant have is this creeping view, you need to compromise. Do you blame secretary of defense or secretary of army or chief of staff army . No, i understand their roles are bigger and they are responsible for the whole enterprise. What i do have concerns about is that in letting one thing go, you basically created a slippery slope that compromises the ethics and values of the institutions. I try to live by the seven army values, selfless and serve on integrity and personal courage. I dont think many people can fault me. In living those values, i still end up in the situation where my curve is done. What was your reaction when the senate failed to convict the president . I was not surprised. Again, i was could be considered idealistic. I hope not naive. It did not surprise me the republican members in the senate and majority would not convict the president. Would i was i disappointed . Absolutely. And they let selfservice, trumps their duties to the United States. It does not make a difference if you are a republican or a democrat, you have one duty at the national level, serve the constitution and serve your people. Some are calling you bitter, are you bitter . I dont think so. I hope i dont come across that way. I tend to take an intellectual approach to looking at problems. I cant say my family has been through moments, my wife reacts to a lot of these and her husband is under attack and our family been criticized. I see it beyond my span of control. These are things i cant influence and therefore they are background noise. In that mindset, i am not the mostly calling this situation. I take an analytical view as to whats going on. Would i like to continue my military career, which was still on being selected as colonel. I will helicoptcontinue to serv best way i can. I see this conversation as a continuation of my service. It would be comfortable for me to sit quietly and stay out of the publics eye. What i remember to be a significant amount of personal risk and reputation risk to come out here and talk to you and the atlantic with one hope in mind and that hope is to share the perspective that can somehow inform an electorate, maybe persuade them to choose an alternative of what we have. Thats a Strong Political viewpoint. Prior to all this, would you describe yourself being political . I hope that frankly after this election, i can return to my comfort zone which is being equilibrium. I think i have been in a complacency that everything is going to be okay. Hopefully well have a strong democracy and well live through this. But, i am not inherently political. I am most recently registered. I am voting for my registration card. Now i am a civilian. I am looking forward to register to vote. Tell us how do you plan to register . I think those are our personal decisions. I understand. I can tell you this, the choice i made in the election is clear. I am going to be voting for the other guy. Alexander vindman speaking to lester holt. He sacrifice his career to tell the chain of command and ultimately to Tell Congress when he was subpoenaed about crimes he saw the president committing from the National Security council and the white house. After what he had been through and in terms of retaliation against him for doing that and getting fired from the white house and ultimately railroaded out of the military. It is really something to see him willing to speak out. You haert theard him. He thinks he can continue to serve and he can warn people how much worse things could get given the second term and what he saw in the first term. It is incredible. A long a lift plot line showing some of the same recharacteris s characteristics. You may remember aaron zelinsky. Aaron zelinsky testified that robert got special treatment. The case against stolen pointed to him lying to investigators in order to protect the president. Hodger stone since had been intensed in and strung anyway, served from having to serve his sentence, way. We learned that erics interview did not lead to nothing. Julia ainsley and ken dilanian reports tonight. Of course it raises the immediate session, what is he going to do this. If the in vers investigators be out, what happened in this case. That should be interesting. You shoulz should although that the way it was reported. So watch this space. There is a lot going on tonight. I also want to talk about the news that broke today. I have been working on this all day. I remember everything that come out, it strikes me as too weird to be true. But rather it is true. The fbi came to capitol hill, gave members of congress a warning. A briefing, a warning about this guy. It had come to the fbi attention that members of congress. Reporter in touch with this guy, former ukraine officials. They were trying to get information from him for various c congression congressional. The fbi came to the that warning, notable warning that ends up in the new york times. That worning from the fbi came after this guy turned up, sort of on the edges of republican circles. Kids started shoveling information towards Republican Congress that he said they should use. He peered in a probanana host bide michael capudo. Hes running a Disinformation Campaign targeting the United States. They worn lawmakers not to believer anything he as is. There he is. He ran on far right. Michael caputo turns up in weird places. We featured one of the strange stories. They apparently lied to the Intelligence Community when theyveed. Both kudos, they never had hahad had but then when capudo was asked by the same question by pros kei prosecutors and he had text messag messages. Roger stone and caputo. No, jesus, did he lie in. I am sorry, did we talk to this guy. Emails completely democrating different. That was a side bar for the mueller report. The senate put out the big report on shush that appearance. We got all this new information. All laid out in very dark terms. Once again the michael kudo pops up there. This is from the Senate Intelligence committee. It supported acourt report of russian active measure cam plain. In delumanafort relationship the russian government began with his introduction, to owe gark. The russian acted as a a derek paskll. The committee limited insight into the origins of manaforts relationship with many oligarch but it likely began in 2004. The report continues. A former flow, if a firm run by several others and including roger scone. So, i thof thats sort bound body. It is just part of a background story that we need to understand daily events is in the news these dies. Thats the background that gets us to Michael Cueto guy. When really does purn up here. Time and the Trump Campaign was working on the project for more than a decade. Hes doeng with thing with this. And from the beginning of his relationship, hes vofr involved in the pascal. Roger stone later gets sent to the president while trying about it. He has to go to the prison for a long time after his convictions instead the Justice Department and thats now under invasicisi. Somehow he feedback miraculously being charged. Cueto makes a di sar tr trua fe. Hes a weird guy who turns at that weird pint. Often with a rare connection of russia and to people getting convi convicted. Thats a back story. And so what do you think happens to a guy like this . Turns out they put him in charge of the center of krz control. Michael pew toe had no background whatever so ever. He can start dictating to the cdc the cdc could say about the coronavirus and how they are pronounced since their announcement of cow vid had to line up closely about what they are saying about the virus. This story breaking late on friday neegt. Michael kudo de ing what i thinks to the cdcs report. It is author by career scientists. And these publications had been viewed as a corner stone for decades. Since michael caputo, there is been efforts to help with trumps staples. The president claims fears of the outbreak or over stating. There is efforts of stopping the report all together. Michael, as the pandemic is taking off installment in april. Health and Human Services department oversees the cdc. He hires himself and he appoints himself a scientific advisor. He was an assistant professor. Caputo seeks to overthrow the cdc. Caputo tells the cdc they are no longer to allow to the report, must be head by someone outside of the cdc like myself. We cant allow the the reporting to go on as it has been. Nothing to go out unless i agree with the findings. And i tweak it. Nothing to go out unless i read it and agree. Hide by a guy who plays the role of forest scas scump. They have succeeded and not just push. And, he succeeded in substantially delaying the cdc reports. The important for policymakers and Decision Makers thinking about whether to put kids back in school together. They also succeeded in delaying a cdc report on how hydroxychloroquine is not a miracle cure for covid no matter what you hear from fox news host about it. So the reporting starts on friday night and gets developed over the weekend and then this arrives. Reporting on how michael caputo, how hes comporting himself. Now that we know that guy of all people is controlling what the American People are allowed to know. What the world is allowed to know from the cdc about the science on covid. Michael caputo did a Facebook Live even for his followers. Here is the report. Mr. Caputos comments in the video. He can be in physical danger. Vote, if you carry gun, by a new one lanl. It is going to be hard to get. How long is mr. Cupodo most most mr. Caputo says remember the trump supporter who shot and killed. That was a drill. There are hit squads being trained all over the country so mount our position for a second term. You understand theyll have to kill me. I think thats where this is going. Mr. Caputo predicted that the president will win reelection come december. When donald trump refuses to stand out the nothing realization, the shooting be began. The drills that you have seen are nothing. Mr. Caputo went further saying his Mental Health has definitely failed. I dont like being alone in washington, shadows on the ceiling in my apartment are alone. Shadows are so long. This is whos in charge, the president of the United States has installed, insisted must be in charge of whether the cdc publish its covid site or not. The shadows are so long. The drill you see is nothing. The shooting will begin. Buy ammunition. The response to this reporting, there is no sign that Michael Caputos zwrjob is in danger. Why would that be the guy in charge of this global pandemic. More to come. F this global pandc more to come i had this hundred thousand dollar student debt. Two hundred and twentyfive thousand dollars in debt. Ah, sofi literally changed my life. It was the easiest application process. Sofi made it so theres no tradeoff between my dreams and paying student loans. Student loans dont have to take over for the rest of your life. Thank you for allowing me to get my money right. Tide power pods one up theme cleaning power of liquid. Can it one up whatever theyre doing . For sure. Seriously . One up the power of liquid, one up the toughest stains. 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Scientists deep in the cdc have given up science and become political animals. They walk around like they are monks but they are engaged in n rotten science. He accused the socalled this unit of being determined, undermined president trump. These people are all going to hell. I do not think it means what you think it means. Caputos profound understanding of the word. That admittedly is the least of the problem here. Michael caputos comment remains live yesterday, first reported today by the new york times. He simultaneously says while hes doing that hes being hu hunted. This is a real thing. This is really who they got as a gate keeper on covid information for the public and the world. Really. The person who wrote that story of the new york times. Thank you so much for your time this evening. I appreciate you being here. Thank you. Rachel. You reported this straight up with drirect quotes and no commentary. I am giving my opinion about it because i cant stop myself because it strikes me as so bananas. Is there a connection between mr. Caputos sort of crazy pants ranting and the Conspiracy Theory that you reported on and the way hes been comporting himself at hhs . Well, this shows mr. Caputo that reporters deal with him have not realizing up close so it was rather surprising in that way. He does not usually talk like this. I would say that the views that he expressed are different than some other people than the president s inner circle. I apologize, i didnt mean to cut ayou off. There are echoes in what the president himself said of mr. Caputos remarks. The president disparaged scientists. He thinks the deep states are out to get him and theyre controlling the pandemic and hes cast out on whether the election is going to be fair. He suggested that there is some sort of armed squads that are prepe preparing for actions. The thing that i find most upsetting about this reporting on mr. Caputo is the reporting of the cdc has actually bent to him that there has been adjustments made to wording and to the ways that the cdc has phrased things including in their weekly publications and there has been significantly delays in some cases weeks long delay and publishing information that seems to be important and that has direct, real world applications to the decision that doctors are making of how to treat patients, specific because mr. Caputo and his team have been insisting on those changes and delays and trying to block publications. Does it surprise you that the cdc did not have more institutional ggravitas. The campaign and the Health Agency is dealing with the pandemic. It is not just the cdc but the cdc proves to be more appliable. I think a number of scientists within the cdc would say dr. Redfield who is leading the agency has failed to protect them from political interference. The results is what we see going on with these reports. Sorry. The fda seems like is more on the verge. Its roll out of the plasma is rushed. Scientists and other agencies agree that was the right thing to approve the treatment and on the other hand, the fda approved hydroxychloroquine. It is also not as much in the frontlines as the other two agencies. Thank you so much for helping us understand this remarkable and unnerving reporting. Thank you for helping us understand. Thank you. Not everyday you get this kind of reporting on a public official who has done something that should not be able to be done, right . Scientific, integrity at the highest levels of the Public Health infrastructure. You dont think it will be compromised by people who had zero sign ti scientific backgro. And how this public official is publicly describing himself as mentally hill and ready for the s