security clearance. there are about 4.9 million people with some kind of security clearance. subcontractors and government workers, this is a large universe of people. it s clear that this is something that congress and perhaps the white house wants to take a look at, which is perhaps taking a look at how many people have these clearances, whether or not it s too easy to get them. but without that clearance, it s clear he would not have the job that he had and would not have been able to make his way on to the navy yard yesterday, carol. kind of bring us through that process. how do you get clearance? is there a waiting period before you re granted clearance? that s again part of what s going to be investigated. the congressman who was on the air a short time ago i think is asking some of the same questions, which is, is the navy using the procedure, the
psychological issues. he approached several va hospitals? that s what we re learning from law enforcement officials, carol and john. he visited and made contact with two veterans affairs hospitals recently. investigators are still looking at the circumstances surrounding this. we re learning he has had several run-ins with the law. the question remains, how was he able to pass two security clearances in the past year and what was his motive to carry out the deadly shooting? law enforcement officials say 34-year-old i.t. subcontractor aaron alexis entered navy yard building 197 legally, with a valid military-issued i.d. and an intent to kill. his motive, unknown. we are looking to learn everything we can about his recent movements, his contacts and his associates. reporter: a picture is emerging of a complicated man. at times, quiet and polite, who spoke several languages and worshipped at this buddhist temple. it s incredible that this is all happening, because he was a
this morning rejected any u.n. resolution authorizing force against syria. the u.s. and france want to keep that option if syria does not comply in a timely fashion. for the first time in a week, the sun dominates across colorado. as the weather improves, many people are returning home to find nothing left. hundreds of other people, though, are still unaccounted for. the floodwaters are slowly receding, but some runoff is heading toward nebraska and could fly towns in that state. investigators say last week s fire that involved dozens of businesses on the boardwalk along the jersey shore was an accident. we re expecting more specifics today. the belief of the cause was electrical. the fire started in an ice cream shop and quickly spread out of control. that s it for us. thank you for joining us. i m carol costello. i m john berman. legal view with ashleigh banfield continues right after the break. [ female announcer ] when it comes to your smile,
is someone who was here yesterday at the washington navy yard. that s the chief of naval operations. he lives here. that s right, john and carol. this is admirable jonathan greenard, the chief of naval operations. he and his wife were evacuated from the navy yard as this incident unfolded, so many people trying to make the rush to safety. as you see in a few minutes, defense secretary chuck hagel laying this wreath, this moment of remembrance, i think it s worth remembering, again, hagel himself a combat veteran of vietnam, a man who has seen so much. as he is sort of settled in at the pentagon over the months, this is a guy who out in the hallway will suddenly stop some fairly low-ranking military member or civilian and just stop and talk to them and ask how they re doing and what s on their minds. we ve seen that happen here in the hallways of the poent p gop.
still rushing. where i m standing right now, just a few days ago i would have been standing in the river. it gives you a good indication that the floodwaters are receding. we re also seeing the number of unaccounted for go down. just a day ago, that was at 658 people, according to the office of emergency management here in colorado. that number now at 648 people. so slowly, but surely that number is going down. there are centers in various counties where people can go to check in with officials to let them know that they are okay so that they are no longer counted on that missing list. also, we re seeing people go back into these communities now to see what s left over, communities that were cut off. they re seeing their homes that have been damaged or flooded. keep in mind, there are still communities where people are cut off. there s still areas where the floodwaters are high. so, we know that the rescue operation continues to help people get back to safer ground, carol. almost afr