Were being beamed in from ufos. You didnt know where he was coming up with this stuff. And im afraid to say that, and i saw him do standup and he was he was miraculous. He was superhuman. But you know, i dont know that movies ever really fulfilled him. In the way that i wish they had. I wish i wish we lived at a time when movies could be looser. Could accommodate the kinds of spontaneity that he had. In a weird way, he never found, you know how will ferrell works with a guy named adam mckay. They create a feeling on the set. I dont think Robin Williams ever found, ever quite theres always something about williams i was my mother always loved Robin Williams. Sort of been a devoted fan through her eyes and there was always, of course, something about his presence that was so manic. That was what he was channeling when he was doing his best work. It was the mania being unleashed, like watching a dancing flame. And you didnt know it was. It would be very dark as well. And i dont think you know, he after good will hunting he has roles where he was a kind of a zany humanist patch adams where he would entertain children dying of cancer. There was an attempt on screen, on the big screen, at least, to try to bottle that energy and maybe try to domesticate it. Try to take what was scary brilliant out of it. Now, thats not to say he didnt deliver i mean, i think if you watch the king again, he played a role as a figure, kind of mad visionary that i think caught some of that manic energy, but also a lot of the darkness. Thats a performance that i dont think is sufficiently appreciated. Moscow in the hudson. Great film. The patriot. Deep melancholy. I think he connected with that role. It was also surprisingly effective later in his career when he was cast as a serial killer in the film insomnia opposite al pacino. He seemed to relish having a chance to swear on screen and be nasty and cruel. You know, those were sides of his personality that didnt show up on screen. The kind of danger you talk about, feeling when you were watching him in his improvisational mode, not in the confines of scripted films. Sometimes in some of those roles that really comes across i want to play this first appearance on carson tonight show, you get the sense of watching someone who doesnt himself know what will happen next. You feel it and theres an exhilaration and terror at the same moment. This was kind of how i think of him. This is Robin Williams on the tonight show for the first time. Take a look. People always think performers dont get nervous. Not at all. No, really. Not me. No way. Is there some reason you dont the fact you get nervous in. I suffer from severe dyslexia, too. I was the only child on my block on halloween to go trickortrout. Here comes the Young Williams boy again. Better get some fish. There you go. Say hi to your mom and dad. Where is home for you . Or did you come from a home . All the people in the institution, tommy, if you havent taken your medication yet, its going to be fine. Be back at 12 00. How are you, mr. Williams . Im real fine. Look at this thing. Look, flipper. Right now theres a saw man going, what are you doing . Relax, relax, relax. Its okay. Youre on tv. Youre a nice man. You wont hurt me. Thank you. Dont be afraid. The sores went away. Real men can stand up to herpes. Everything there, david, all the nerves seems completely authentic. Its like this person channeling all the kind of crazily intense Neuronal Energy into what he was doing in the moment, it feels unsettling and you cannot turn away from it. Its a high wire act that he played and he did it better having seen him live, i can tell you he did it better than anyone. Lets not forget also he came of age in hollywood at really the height of the cocaine epidemic, and he was famously quoted as saying that cocaine is gods way of telling you you make too much money. And i fear that like so many people, he felt at a certain point, he was shining so brightly he had to have something to keep his confidence up. And he never i dont know he sort of is like robert de niro, i think was maybe a buddy of his in that de niros talked about it, too. There was a way in which they burned something essential out of them doing that. And, of course, his you always when you heard him on talk shows, he would speak with this great melancholy. Yes. About that period in his life when he burned so brightly and yet it was also accompanied by insane terror. Oh, the terror of to be performing at that level and try to keep it up. Can you imagine . Because he was better than anybody. How where do you go from what you just saw on carson . Where do you go from that . How can you ever capture that . How can you be sure of capturing that . David edelstein from new york magazine. Joining me on the phone, mark harris for entertainment weekly. I was going back through the most recent Robin Williams interviews and what struck me was a kind of palpable sense that he didnt feel the way that were all talking right now about Robin Williams career being remarkable and spanning decades and Award Winning roles and brilliantly talented, that he didnt feel that way about himself. It comes through in the most recent interviews about his career, about his finances, about the fact hed gone back to rehab in 2006. Theres this massive gap between and im always struck by this in one of these moments, the gap of perception between people watching from the outside, what it is like to live inside the head of that person. I think thats right. And, you know, as stunned and sad as we all are, in a way, we are less surprised than we might be if this was news about someone who did not wear his heart on his sleeve as much as Robin Williams did. I mean, he was not someone who concealed what he was going through. Whether it was struggles with Substance Abuse or Health Issues or emotional issues or insecurity. You he was open about many of the difficulties through the years that he faced. And i think that kind of openness also extended to many of his performances. I mean, over the years especially after mork mindy in the early 80s when he started his clear as a movie actor, there were time in the lesser movies he made when we would recoil a little from the source sort of sad clown thing he was often forced to do, the sentimentality through the laughter like patch adams. I think in a way in those parts williams was communicating something that was very, very true to him. Which is that comedy for him was a way of masking pain, coping with pain, overriding pain, expressing pain, aside from all of the other really brilliant aspects about him as a comic artist and performing artist. He was a very true guy. I mean, there was real honesty. Not just anarchy, but truth in his comedy. Do you think we will remember him for his films . What role do you think we will remember him most for . Well, you know, its funny, i was listening to David Edelstein earlier said that movies failed for the most part to harness the really unique free wheeling, fastmoving talent he had. He seemed hemmed in having to play one part. I think in some ways the big exception to that is the movie you didnt actually see him if which was aladdin. That performance as the genie was thats right. One of the rare cases where the movie was able to keep up with him and its sort of a tribute to the fact that Robin Williams made everyone else look slow. That it took a cartoon to keep pace with him. Mark harris from entertainment weekly. Thank you so much, mark. Thank you. If youre watching this right now and you have had thoughts about suicide and are depressed, i want to read this very important number to you. It is the National Suicide prevention lifeline. And it is 18002738255. They are there at any second in the darkest, darkest, darkest moments. They are there. They are a phone call away and you can pick up that phone right now. Right now. And call them. There is much more news tonight. We will be back with more of it after this break. Hands up, dont shoot hands up, dont shoot my hands are up, dont shoot. The chant of protesters in ferguson, missouri, after an unarmed teenager is shot and killed by a Police Officer. Well bring the latest in an interview with the young man who says he saw it all, thats next. ® daily moisturizing lotion has active naturals® oat with five vital nutrients. [ aniston ] because Beautiful Skin goes with everything. Aveeno®. Naturally beautiful results™. Aveeno®. So this board gives me rates on progressive direct and other Car Insurance companies . Yes. But youre progressive and theyre them. Yes. But theyre here. Yes. Are you. There . Yes. No. Are you them . Im me. But the lowest rate is from them. Yes. So thems best rate is. Here. So where are them . Arent them here . I already asked you that. When . Feels like a while ago. Want to take it from the top . Rates for us and them. Now thats progressive. Outrage in ferguson, missouri, today, after police shot and killed an unarmed teenager saturday afternoon in broad daylight. Heres what we know about the death of 18yearold Michael Brown. After brown was walking with another individual on a road near the canfield apartments in ferguson, a northern suburb of st. Louis, missouri. After an altercation, key elements which are disputed by police, brown was shot and killed by a Police Officer. Police do not dispute that a Police Officer who has not been publicly identified shot and killed Michael Brown. Police officer is on administrative leave pending an investigation. There was no dispute Michael Brown was unarmed. An individual who said he was accompanying Michael Brown has said in multiple interviews that he was walking in the street with brown when the Police Squad Car pulled up. The officer said to get the f on to the sidewalk he recounted. It was not but a minute from our destination and wed be off the street, johnson said. Again, this is the man who said he was with Michael Brown prior to and during the altercation. Johnson told cbc news that after a pause, the officer reversed his car and the following ensued. He pulled up on the side of us, he tried to push his door open but we were so close to it that it ricocheted off us and bounced back toward him and got him a little upset. At that time, he reached out the win toe. He didnt get out of the car. He grabbed my friend around the neck. As he was try to choke my friend. He was trying to get away. An officer then reached out, he grabbed his arm to pull him into the car, so it was like the officer is pulling him inside the car. Hes trying to pull away. At no time the officer said that he was going to do anything until he pulled out his weapon. His weapon was drawn. He said, ill shoot you. Or im going to shoot. And in the same moment, the first shot went off and we looked at him. He was shot and there was blood coming from him and he took off running. Johnson said he, himself, ducked and hid, but that brown kept running and the officer got out of the car. His weapon was already drawn when he got out of the car. He shot again and once my friend felt that shot, he turned around and put his hands in the air, started to get down but the officer still approached with his weapons drawn. Various news accounts refer to multiple witnesses, many of those witnesses unnames, but one who is willing to offer account on camera described the event this way. I heard gunshots fired, and im, like, oh my goodness, whats going on . I gathered all my things and looked back out the window. At this moment, hes running, chasing after michael down the street and gunshots are being fired repeatedly as well. I went from that window to my balcony where i then saw michael. Hes running this way. He turns his body toward this way. Hands in the air. Being compliant. He gets shot in his face and goes down and dies. Police officer offered a dis different account. The officer had an encounter with two individual, up of whom is mr. Brown who is walking down the road in canfield apartments. He spoke to the individuals about getting off of the street and perhaps taking the sidewalk. One of the individuals complied. The other did not. In fact, as the officer decided to get out of his car to continue the conversation, he was pushed back into the car and there was a physical confrontation in that car where, in fact, there was a struggle over the officers gun. We do know, for example, that there was one shot fired within the car and then were taking a look at the rest of the details of the investigation at this point to determine exactly what happened once Police Officer exited the car. As the the fbi today announced its own investigation, many questions remain unanswered, including how many shots were fired and how many hit Michael Brown. In the wake of browns death, outrage, protests continued today in the st. Louis area for the third day running. Protesters chanting, no justice, no peace. Many protests including yesterdays were marked by intense interactions with the police. Some instances last night in ferguson, rioting and looting erupted. Meetings continued to take place in the st. Louis area. A makeshift memorial sprung up for Michael Brown and the family, the 18yearold planning to begin College Classes today. Called for justice, not violence. The violence needs to stop. The support is all needed. All needed. But not the violence. Joining me now is Dorin Johnson who saw the shooting and his attorney, Freeman Bosley jr. Mr. Johnson, you say you were walking with michael at that moment. Were there other people on the street that could have witnessed or corroborated your account . Because obviously the police are telling a very different story than what you and some other witnesses have said. Yeah. At the moment, at the time when we were in the street, before the officer pulled all the way on the side, no, i did not see anyone. My eyes were not looking for anyone. My ears were open, just talking to my friends. So before the officer said his first words, no, i didnt not see anyone. How quickly did this escalate . It sounds like from your account that it was sort of casual comment made by a Police Officer for the two of you to get off the street and it sounds like there was gunshots within, what, 60 seconds . What was the timeframe of this encounter like . The timeframe was a little just like you said. 60 seconds or less. It sped up so quickly. It got out of hands real quick, like, it wasnt even a minute like you said. Did michael reach and struggle the officers gun as the police are saying he did . Thats incorrect, sir. He did not reach for a weapon at all. He did not reach for the officers weapon at all. You were able to see this interaction . Yes, correct. Were you scared in that moment . Not scared yet, but more shocked at how the officer approached us. It really its just more shocking than scared at that moment. Mr. Bosley, have you or your client, have you been approached by investigators . To seems like this is very key eyewitness testimony. Well, what is interesting about this is that we have not, as a matter of fact, the naacp contacted the authorities and Police Department yesterday to make us available and make mr. Johnson available and at that point, they said they had some other things going on. They did not want to interview mr. Johnson at that time and also wanted to indicate that mr. Johnson ran away and was not really a person that witnessed everything that was going on. Of course, we know that is not correct. Well, mr. Johnson, is there any doubt you were there with michael at that moment . Sir, i did not leave until the last shot was fired, until i confirmed that my friend was not moving, that he was dead. Thats when i took off running. Is there a possibility based on your account of how things went down, do you believe that, say, a dash camera from the Police Officers video would change in terms of how things were set up spatially . No, the way the officer approached us, if there was a dashcam on his car, all that it would have gotten is me and my friend walking in the street, and thats it. Because the actual shots fired and michaels death came when he was behind the police car, am i correct . His death came from behind the police car, but the initial shot we were on the side of the driver door of the police car. What was going through your head as you are now, you say, crouched behind a car watching a Police Officer chase your friend . Im fearing for my life at this moment because at this time the first shot had already been fired and i notice my friend had been shot. Ive been in situations before where gunfire has let out and i really dont take i feared for my life. Scared. I didnt know what to do. And shocked. My body couldnt move at that moment. How close were you, michael . I didnt fully have to extend my arm out to touch michael or the officer. I was that close that i could touch both of them. Without fully extending my arms. Did michael at any point strike out, lay hands on, assault the officer . He did not initially assault the officer. I didnt see it, at no point in time while i was standing in the officers driver door window where he touched the officer or any type of threatening way. Not whatsoever. How Close Friends were you and michael . Were you tight . We werent so much as Close Friends, childhood, but the time i met him, because i had recently i had just moved over in the apartments. When i met him, we just became good friends. What kind of person was he . He was a very cool person. Quiet. Calm. And gentle. Dorin johnson and Freeman Bosley jr. , his attorney, thank you, gentlemen, both. I really appreciate it. Youre welcome. Thank you. All right. The breadth of the protests in the community raise the question, now, of course, of what is next. Not just in this investigation, but in Police Community relations. Meanwhile, st. Louis county police chief says he supports the parallel fbi investigation. Of course, the shooting that we saw this weekend comes on the heels of several highprofile incidences of people being shot by, or killed by Police Across the country. Of course, the death of eric garner, which was ruled a homicide here in new york city in Staten Island after he was first questioned by police for the charge of selling untaxed cigarettes. There has also been a whole lot of different information released out in the wake of the death of Michael Brown. First accusations that he had been busted for shop lifting. So far there has been no corroboration of that. A lot of outreach, too, about how hes been portrayed, both in the images that have been circulated about him and what people have done to try to presume that they knew what kind of person michael was. Joining me now, msnbc contributor Goldie Taylor who is in ferguson tonight. Goldie, what are things like in ferguson right now . You know, the tensions are still fairly high. Although not quite as high as last night. I hear that theres an incident at a nearby mall, but were not certain that its related to the recent unrest. What is the context for what we are seeing in ferguson county . It seems to me that the theres some buildup that has happened before this incident happened over the weekend. Well, i will tell you this, that north st. Louis county is comprised of dozens of small jurisdictions, tiny townships, 20,000 people or less. And that those tiny townships over the last 30 to 40 years were all white. But now those townships are increasingly more africanamerican as in fergusons case, some 85 , but if you look at the arrest rate, if you look at the traffic stops, disproportionately, they are africanamerican. Especially when you start to look at citations and arrests and outcomes. So youre starting to see some real tension begin to flare up between whats a fairly white leadership in terms of mayors and Police Chiefs and a black population and theres a bit of distrust from both sides. Is there confidence among folks there, and i think i know the answer to this, but i will ask it, about there being a genuine and thorough investigation . I cannot say and be the arbiter of the disputing account between the man you just saw who said he was with michael when he was shot and the police. Sure. If it is the case that what happened happened in the way that witnesses have described it, it seems very, frankly, clearly a crime. I spent a great deal of time with him today and leaders from the naacp and other Community Groups today. Ive been out here on the scene. I think theres still a great deal of distrust from the community for this investigation. I think there was a bit of relief, though, that the fbi has come in and either taken over the investigation or i think its a little bit unclear as to whether theyre running a parallel investigation. There will be a department of justice monitor on this. I think the level of skepticism for the Ferguson Police even extends to the st. Louis county police unfortunately. And so i think those Police Departments and others have a lot of work to do to rebuild their ties, to rebuild their binds with these communities that theyre sworn to serve and protect. There is a sense, i mean, this is now there have been a number of highprofile incidents in which young black men, unarmed, have been killed. Obviously Trayvon Martin comes to mind. There was an incident recently in a walmart star with a young man whos buying a toy weapon. We saw eric garners death here in new york. There is this sense, and you saw it just explode across social media this weekend, what do we have to do to say that we are worthy of respect and dignity and life . You know, i think that that is really the center question. I grew up here in st. Louis. It still remains one of the most segregated towns ive run into in my lifetime. My parents told my brothers how to deal with themselves or athem to deal with themselves when they were in allwhite communities. But they werent even safe in their own communities where there was higher, you know, proportions of crime. This is about the value of life. When we look at investigation, web we look at how people are prosecuted, when we look at outcomes in terms of prison sentences. Even when we look at the kind of Media Coverage that, you know, these deaths receive. They are quite different when you begin to look at race, at gender income. Our justice system, unfortunately, it has a color. Msnbc contributor Goldie Taylor in ferguson, missouri, tonight. Thank you very much. Thank you, chris. The unraveling of iraq, thats ahead. Did you know a tensecond test could help your business avoid hours of delay 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. Go to comcastbusiness. Com checkyourspeed if we cant offer faster speeds or save you money well give you 150. Comcast business. Built for business. Updating our lead story tonight. The death of actor Robin Williams. Marin county Sheriffs Office is investigating the cause, manner and circumstances of williams death. Sheriffs Office Coroner division suspects the death to be a suicide due to asphyxia. 20th century fox released a statement tonight saying, Robin Williams was a comedy giant. Although we only knew him personally for a season, he was warm, funny. Cast and crew loved him and loved working with him. Our hearts two out to his family and friends. He was one of a kind. Williams had been battling depression, according to a statement from a press representative. Robin williams was 63. Oh, captain, my captain. Well be back. As i said when i authorized these operations, theres no American Military situation to the crisis in iraq. The only lasting solution is for iraqis to come together and form an inclusive government, legitimate interests of all rockies and can unify the countrys fight against isil. Today iraq took a promising step forward in this critical effort. President obama praising the iraqis for making important progress toward forming a unity government today as u. S. Air strikes on isis targets continue today in northern iraq. Today the iraqi president nominated shiite politician hat dr as the new Prime Minister ending political deadlock since the country held parliamentary elections in april. According to iraqsconstitution, that gives new Prime Minister 30 days to form a president and means current Prime MinisterNuri Al Maliki has 30 days until hes out of the job. President obama and Vice President biden called al albadi today to offer their support and urge him to be as conclusive as possible. That wont be easy if maliki has anything to say about it. In a televised appearance today, he condemned the appointment as unconstitutional, decrying the u. S. For supporting it and ominously reminding iraqis he remains their commander in chief. Last night in baghdad, Security Forces deployed around the city and locked down Government Forces in the green zone. Maliki, you may recall, is responsible for the proshia policy seen by in as having opened the door to isis who courted the disaffected sunni in the country. If he keeps hanging on to power, baghdad could be on the verge of a coup. Thats happening in the capital, okay, between ostensible allies between the United States government and current and former allies. Northern iraq, where isis seized large swaths of military, u. S. Has begun to send weapons directly to Kurdish Forces fighting back against the group. Its a bid to keep the momentum headed in the kurds direction after u. S. Air strikes helped turns things around a bit during the weekend. Reporter definitely theres a sense something has shifted. Last week in irbil they were panicking the possibility of isis fighters. Something changed over the weekend. That something was the u. S. Air strikes. We heard about u. S. Aircraft shooting at a convoy of isis fighters that was moving on a kurdish line of defense just outside. That helped them. We also heard over the weekend the Kurdish Forces, the peshmerga taking two important towns that are just half an hour away. Really key strategic towns because theyre on the north south route. Again, theyre only able to retake that territory because of the u. S. Air cover. So it has been really, really important, but saying that, front lines, they keep on shifting. Yes, theres optimism up here, but the fighting is raging quite unpredictably all around the country. U. S. Military continued its air campaign against isis today hitting four targets near mt. Sinjar where isis is holding siege to tens of thousands of yezidi refugees. Peshmerga opened a corridor for some yezidi to escape, but some remain trapped on the mountain in 100 degree heat with little food and water. Why air strikes in iraq, but not syria. The obama doctrine, if there is one. Well discuss, ahead. Cialis is also the only daily ed tablet approved to treat symptoms of bph, like needing to go frequently. Tell your doctor about all your medical conditions and medicines, and ask if your heart is healthy enough for sex. Do not take cialis if you take nitrates for chest pain, as it may cause an unsafe drop in blood pressure. Do not drink alcohol in excess. Side effects may include headache, upset stomach, delayed backache or muscle ache. To avoid long term injury, get medical help right away for an erection lasting more than four hours. If you have any sudden decrease or loss in hearing or vision, or any allergic reactions like rash, hives, swelling of the lips, tongue or throat, or difficulty breathing or swallowing, stop taking cialis and get medical help right away. Ask your doctor about cialis for daily use and a free 30tablet trial. Ask your doctor about cialis for daily use thats why i always choose the fastest intern. R slow. 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. It really has felt like the world is on fire. All right . It just, everywhere you look, there seems to be a war, or disaster, or Foreign Policy entanglement that seems head scratchingly impossible to deal with. Of course, the critics of the president are happy to take a little victory lap and point to the president as the source of this. That is the question. What exactly is the president and the u. S. role in a middle east that seems aflame right now and a world that seems teetering on instability, and would it be possible for the u. S. To anything to make it better or was the u. S. Trying to, quote, make it better the source of that instability in the first place . Joining me now, zainab salbi, founder of women for Women International and ali gharib, writer and Foreign Policy analyst. Iraq is such a complicated situation and terrible in many ways. The yezidi, raw footage of these people, be clear about the moral stakes, unapologetic genocide being committed against people because of their faith. Theres a group of people that wants to extinguish every last one of them because of the god they worship. Absolutely. Right . That includes christians as well. Includes christians as well. At the same time, i cant help but watch this and think theres something shakespearean about barack obama, man whos president of the United States because he opposed the iraq war when basically the entire governing class of the country did not, is now back ordering air strikes in iraq. Well, as an iraqi, what does this look like . Does this look like the u. S. Being indivisive . Does it look like the u. S. Doing a good job of managing an impossible situation . Or does it look like the u. S. Making things worse . It has created. What were seeing right now has not suddenly happened. It happened by president bush. President obama is a president of a country and he continues the legacy of the country. His legacy right now in iraq is constantly too little, too late. Too little, too late. But, okay, ive heard that from a lot of people. Theres a sort of synergy between the too little, too late critique that you hear from iraqis and from john mccain, Lindsey Graham, neocons. Theres an agreement on this. There is, though. All right. My question is, would more earlier be better . Because if there was more earlier, my sense is we would be having a whole other set of discussions about what a cluster in defense of iraqis, john mccain and Lindsey Graham are talking about more bombs and not diplomatic pushes for stuff like, say, cutting off more arms to maliki unless he creates inclusive government and things like that. Thats true. The question is how can the u. S. Constructively intervene in the middle east . Right. Or not intervene . And the consistency of that is important. We an not look at iraq in an isolated way. Iraq and isis and the division of the country right now is part of a longer strategy that includes saudi arabia, that includes egypt, that includes syria, jordan, and all the neighboring countries. America has to make that constructive decision. Were intervening in a constructive way where we look at the region and interconnection of the region or pull out completely and let the region handle itself. Right. Were not u. S. Maybe thats a possibility, right . I mean, maybe that would be for the best for everyone, if the troops left saudi arabia but its not going to happen. Right, exactly. Its not going to happen. All right. So then the question is, i mean, because it is striking to me, like the syria question, right . So now you look at whats happening with isis. I think everyone looks at isis basically across the political spectrum in the world and is aghast. Right . I mean, i dont like its ghastly. Everyone looks at isis and thinks oh my god. Even al qaeda. You guys are too violent for us. Stop it. Stop beheading everyone. Al qaeda is not a ali, i see an interventionist story about this which were going to get to in a second about a certain critic who gave u. S. Not intervening in syria, gave rise to isis. I see an antiinterventionist thing that says its the u. S. War in iraq that brought isis about. Right . Well, at least one of those things is true. And the problem is that this is all a counterfactual argument, right . Yes. Its not clear that had we armed some mythical moderate Syrian Opposition that we didnt know existed and was, you know, just fragments of little pieces of rebel forces in 2012, would that have stopped isis rise . Maybe. Theres nothing definite about that. But what it definitely would have done is flooded the zone with weapons. For all we know, those weapons could have gotten in isis hand earlier than iraqi troops stripping off their uniforms and abandoning their artillery. Because, you know, if you go back and read the news articles from 2012, you know, you can go back and read the new yorker, John Lee Anderson was in Northern Syria and was writing about even how the fsa commanders cant identify which brigades are theirs. They didnt know what they were, yet alone we go in there and dispose weapons. Its counterfactual based on a context that never existed. Heres where i feel like we arrived on this summer on fire. You look across the region. It feels like, oh my god, its all burning. This isnt me as an american looking over there. No, it is burning. That maybe thats just what the world looks like as america recedes from the role its been playing. Which is inexorable or theres something we can do about it. Thats the question. Maybe thats just like you stare into the void of what this new era looks like which is the worlds on fire and the only upside is there arent american troops burned in the fire. Thats way too pessimistic for me, chris. Nonmilitary ways to deal with stuffs she was talking about the saudis. In 2012 we were begging the saudis to arm the fsa which i think would have still been a task, but we were begging them to it and instead, they armed isis. Right. They helped to create the thank you, our great ally. These are our allies. Zainab salbi, and Foreign Policy analyst, ali gharib. One somewhat surprising critic or maybe not, attacking him for being weak. Well talk more about that, next. Let me get this straight. [ female voice ] yes . Lactaid® is 100 real milk . Right. Real milk. But it wont cause me discomfort. Exactly, no discomfort, because its milk without the lactose. And it tastes . Its real milk come on, would i lie about this . [ female announcer ] lactaid®. 100 real milk. No discomfort. And for more 100 real dairy treats youll 100 enjoy look for lactaid® ice cream and lactaid® cottage cheese. Hillary clinton who is president obamas secretary of state until early this year broke dramatically with the president s Foreign Policy in an interview published yesterday in the atlantic magazine. Many have taken it as a sign clinton tried to distance herself from the president ahead of a potential run for the white house. Asked about the obama doctrine, characterized as cant do stupid stuff, clinton said, great nations need organizing principles and dont do stupid stuff is not an organizing principle. While he said it would not help turn the tide in syrias bloody civil war, clinton said, a failure to help build up a credible fighting force, the people who are the originators against assad, the failure to do that left a huge vacuum which they have now filled. Joining me, author of fall of nixon, rise of reagan. The entire book, the opus that you just produced which is phenomenal, and everyone should read basically says the 1970s was a period of instability. The world felt like it was aflame. America was kind of staring into the void caused by watergate and vietnam, wrestling coming to terms of what we were as a nation. Reagan swept in to say, dont think about all that. Were the exceptional city on the hill. Were the greatest nation in the world. When i read that clinton interview, it felt to me she was channeling reagan in a similar political moment in america. Yeah. I think that the New York Times made the same comparison. I think the interview was very, very worrisome. I think that when robert kagan said that he considers Hillary Clinton a fellow neoconservative, thats exactly what he was referring to. I think she kind of bolt forward with this huberistic notion that america could heal the world with its touch. Everything bad thats happened in Foreign Policy has sprung directly from that idea. I mean, when Lyndon Johnson thought he could build a tva in the river delta. Years later you have 58,000 lives of americans expended and not one but three nations laid to waste. And people were taking a good, hard look at that hubris in the 70s. It dismays me that Hillary Clinton hasnt learned that lesson. Part of me, i think we have the tendency to read her through such a political prism, shes figure trying to calculate her pitch to the political whims of the moment. I think everyone looks back at the iraq war vote and said she voted that way because thats the way the politics was. She really does have these views on Foreign Policy. Yeah, i think shes been pretty darn consistent and shes been on the side of intervention and all these debates in the state department. And the problem with it is the kind of nuance that barack obama has been trying to introduce into Foreign Policy really kind of speaks to the complexity of the world. And by trying to kind of explain away that complexity, youre going to get us into the same blunders over and over again. Now, if its the fact that she wants to govern like Ronald Reagan did in Foreign Policy, lets review that record. Its kind of paradoxical. He only committed troops once in tiny grenada and eliminated a class of Nuclear Weapons and looked at the complicated morass of mutual assured destruction and mathematical abstractions and said lets get rid of Nuclear Weapons. Id love to see that vision from Hillary Clinton. Trying to be like reagan, she may be more like reagans rhetoric and more like his reality. Rick pearlstein, the book is invisible bridge. Thats all in. The Rachel Maddow show begins now. Good to see you again. Its good to be back. Thanks to you at home for staying with us. Its good to be back. Thanks to Steve Kornacki for filling in. Theres a lot going on. A lot of it oversea, none of which is good right now. Also a lot of news at home, politics and otherwise. Theres a ton of stuff to talk about tonight. And we do have a lot planned for the show. But the very unexpected and late breaking news that has come as a real shock tonight, particularly to those of us who have grown up stewed in american political and popular culture, is that one of the most recognizable and iconic comedic talents of this generation or last few generations has died unexpectedly today. Robin williams, age 63, died in