Rapidly deteriorate. And that they feared a catastrophe, which is exactly what came to pass. Which is exactly why the biden administrations scrambling and why its now necessary to negotiate with the taliban. And why, despite Evacuation Efforts speeding up, some of the growing number of transport planes are leaving kabul less than full. People want to leave simply cannot safely get through Taliban Checkpoints to the airport. Senior pentagon officials have made it clear theyre not going Into Kabul to get afghans or even americans. Nor, do officials and this is remarkable even know how many americans, let alone afghans, are still in the country. When asked today, Pentagon Spokesman John Kirby Wouldnt say. He wouldnt give a number. I do not have a breakdown. I i suspect that over time as our Manifesting Process gets more refined, we may be able to be that be there but we dont have that specific breakdown. Today, how many americans american citizens remain in in afghanistan . I dont know. When asked the same question, neither would the State Department spokesman. Left in afghanistan. They referred them to the well, we have been consistent in um not answering. In in explaining that in every country, americans register with the embassy. So its a voluntary its a voluntary thing. As for afghans, as you saw at the top, many are beyond desperation. One man who worked at the embassy for years got stuck for hours with his family in crowds near the airport. He waited with them for hours, fearing for their lives. Their 2yearold son growing dehydrated. I decided he said i would rather the taliban shoot me in the head to be stuck in that situation. Its hard to imagine this country or any Country Couldnt have done better for him and his family and so many others. More now on the attempt, now sadly necessary to salvage the situation. The talks with the taliban. Cnns Natasha Bertrand joins us now with details. So, natasha, what more do you know about how the u. S. Is dealing with the taliban . Yeah, anderson. So the topu. S. Commander in afghanistan on the ground in kabul has been communicating with the taliban commander. His counterpart essentially in the taliban at least once a day. Trying to ensure that americans are able to get to the airport safely. Trying to ensure that there are no major issues with westerners, in particular, getting through and getting to the airport and getting on flights. But that, of course, has had mixed results, right . We are seeing reports of afghans not being allowed to get to the airport, even though u. S. Officials say that part of what the u. S. Commander there has been discussing with the taliban is to allow those afghans to get to the airport. Were seeing the taliban has essentially set up a perimeter outside the airport. And that seems to be part of the understanding right now between the u. S. And the taliban. That the u. S. Stays inside the airport. Secures the airfield. And the taliban can pretty much do what it wants outside of the airfield, right . I mean, this is something that u. S. Officials have been emphasizing for days that they are working diplomatically with these taliban commanders to try to find the solution here. But that ultimately, thats really the most that they can do. So, the u. S. Has no intention right now in these talks with the taliban to inform them that they are going to be fanning out across the city. And trying to pick up people and bring them back to the airport. Um on top of all of this, the former ambassador to afghanistan is arriving in kabul to, also, help in talks with the taliban. And ensure that safe passage of americans and afghans to the airport. But again, really chaotic right now. The taliban seems to have pretty much free reign outside of that Airport And Outside of the airfield. Lawmakers had really stark questions this morning for u. S. Officials from State Defense and the national Security Council who emphasized, look. The u. S. Mission right now is just to secure the airport and that seems to be the taliban expectation, as well. Has the u. S. Given any actual number of afghans who either have already been approved for for a visa . Or and and have one . Or are in the pipeline to do it . Um, do we know an actual number did and also including their Family Members . And is there actually i mean, is that part of the active discussion about afghans . Or is it simply about americans . Well, lawmakers, just this past weekend, were given an estimate by officials that as many as 60,000 afghans could be eligible for that evacuation. Not just the siv, Special Immigrant Visa applicants who have worked with the u. S. In the past, for example. But that includes human rights defenders, activists, journalists, people that might be targets from the taliban that havent necessarily worked with the u. S. , but would benefit, obviously, from getting out of the country. So thats as many as 60,000. As of Midjuly Or End of july, there were about 20,000 of these Special Immigrant Visa applicants in the pipeline trying to get out of the country. Now, as far as how many have actually gotten out, the State Department has not given us a breakdown really, at this point. They say about 7,000 people have been evacuated, at this point. But wont say how many of those are afghans, versus americans, versus others who have been able to get out with their families. Yeah, Natasha Bertrand, appreciate it. Thank you. Now, the diplomats who feared exactly what we are seeing now and sent their warning weeks ago to the very top of the State Department. Cnns Kylie Atwood joins us now with that. So, kylie, the warning from u. S. Diplomats apparently kcame in midjuly. What have you learned about it . Yeah, this is a Dissent Memo written in midjuly by these diplomats in kabul urging the Secretary Of State that the State Department needed to take more urgent action to process and evacuate these afghans who had worked alongside u. S. Troops and u. S. Diplomats because they were watching what was unfolding on the ground. They watched the taliban gains. They predicted that the afghan government was going to collapse by the time of the u. S. Troop withdrawal. They needed their voices heard. And its significant that they even wrote this Dissent Memo, in the first place, because its not the first thing that diplomats do. This is a lastditch effort. Its when they dont feel their voices are being heard. And then, they write to the Secretary Of State in hopes that their input will implement some changes. Now, the significance here is that President Biden has been asked about what went wrong. And he is essentially saying, as recently as in that Abc Interview, that this was inevitable. That this chaos that we are seeing unfold was going to happen. But what this Dissent Memo shows is that these diplomats felt like there was action that could have been taken more rapidly to mitigate at least some of this chaos from unfolding so that you could get these afghans out of the country more quickly. Has there been any response from the State Department or Secretary Blinken about this . Well, deputy national security adviser, john finer, spoke with Wolf Blitzer about it earlier this evening. He acknowledged that this Dissent Memo did predict that the afghan government was going to fall by the time of the complete u. S. Troop withdrawal. But he also said that, listen, there was also a Lot Of other folks who were predicting that. No one predicted it was going to happen as quickly as it did. He also said that there were certain aspects of this memo that were implemented. Now, State Department spokesperson said Secretary Of State reads every single Dissent Memo. Therefore, of course, he read this one. He reviews the response to it. But as i said, the fact that it was even written is significant and you can be rest assured that those on The Hill who are looking for answers as to what went wrong here are going to want to review this, in detail. And see what was done and what wasnt done that these diplomats were suggesting. Yeah. Anderson. Kylie atwood, thanks very. Appreciate it. Joining us now, ryan crocker, former u. S. Ambassador to afghanistan, pakistan, syria, and iraq. Ambassador crocker, appreciate you being on with us tonight. First of all, the the reporting that we got today that the topamerican commander is in negotiations with the taliban to try and secure evacuations. Im wondering, does that make sense to you . It seems like a practical thing. Do you think would afghans be included in those negotiations in terms of is the i mean, obviously, the priority is american citizens but would it, also, be about afghans . I i think the admiral is doing exactly what he should be doing to to talk to the those on the ground who have the guns. On a narrow agenda, obviously. I would very much hope that the issue of our Special Immigrant Visa folks who are desperate to get out would be covered in any understandings that are reached. We clearly have a priority to our own citizens. These are there are thousands of afghans with their families. 60,000. That we we promised we would get them to safety. But were not delivering on it because we werent ready for the Taliban Takeover that we are now forced to deal with. So he is doing the right thing. Im sure hes got his diplomatic counterparts with him and well see what happens. Heres what i dont understand. And i im not sure if its known at all. But the we weve heard as many as 60,000, which is the people who directly worked for the u. S. But also their their Family Members. Um is it people who have already been you know, obviously, there is a certain number of people who have gone through this process. This process has often taken years for people. Its been very frustrating for people. You have, you know, Special Forces veterans who have served with interpreters vouching for people and it still takes a long time. Would this just be people who have already been approved for special visa . Or just anybody in the pipeline because its an Emergency Situation would be allowed to get on a flight, put somewhere while the paperwork goes through . Because there is also a Lot Of, then, afghans who are just showing up at the airport with, you know, a letter of appreciation for a job they held on a base somewhere. Um and obviously, has have not gone through whatever the process is. Well, listen. On this particular issue, im on the Advisory Board of the nonprofit called No One left behind. Our whole mission is to get those who have worked with us and risked their lives doing so, to get them to safety. And now, the the special immigrant Visa Process is the process from hell. 14 complex steps. Takes years to adjudicate. But what we have certainly urged is that anyone that is involved in the process, at any stage, needs to be evacuated. We can sort the paperwork out later. But it would be unbelievably callous to say, oh, you only got 13 out of 14. Not good enough. So we got to kind of toss the Rule Book here and pick it up at the other end. But has got to be get people to safety. Without some sort of negotiation, which seems to be ongoing, between the u. S. And and the taliban on the ground. Just about the even the just the logistics of getting people to the airport safely. Um, i mean, it seems highly unlikely that the u. S. Military would i talked to to congressman jason crow, the other day, who talked about expanding the perimeter from the airport. Perhaps, creating kind of better lanes that were guarded by the u. S. Into the city. That seems highly unlikely. I mean, that that actually, you know, theres a whole host of of risks that would come with that. Well sadly, because of our own unpreparedness, we are now in a situation in which it is the taliban calling the shots. Literally, calling the shots. Not us. They have agency. They will decide what they want to do and dont want to do. Clearly, it would be a very dangerous thing to try to expand our perimeter and expand our mission if the taliban doesnt agree to it. We could find ourselves in a very bad place and that, of course, is the place that the president s precipitous actions have have created for us. So weve got to find ways to get these folks out and heres the conundrum. So youre a Special Immigrant Visa applicant. Get to the airport. Well fly you out. Well, you got stopped at a Taliban Checkpoint and and what do you say to the the taliban at the checkpoint . Who say airports closed. Why are you trying to go there . What do you do . Do you say, well, i its all arranged, the americans to fly me out. Here is all my paperwork demonstrating that i worked for them and against you. And that if i dont fly out, youre going to kill me. Well, that is not a formula for success. So again, the the bad judgment, frankly, of President Biden has put a whole Lot Of folks at unnecessary risk. Does it um i mean, you have been ambassador a number of places. I have traveled a lot to a Lot Of countries. Ive never registered to the embassy, to my knowledge, of any of the countries i visited. So i am not surprised the Embassy Wouldnt know how many americans are necessarily in country, at any one time. Does it surprise you . I mean, in obviously, in a place like afghanistan, its maybe more likely that people would register. But in your experience, do people usually register . Well again, it depends on the country. Depends on the individual. Registrations never total up to the actual number in country. But there is a required report several times a year about numbers of american citizens. So we kind of know how to do that. Count up all our registrations, obviously. But we can normally make a pretty educated guess on numbers of americans that may not be registered. So for the department to say they really dont know, that may be technically true. But actually, i would think weve got a pretty good idea. Interesting. Ambassador crocker, i really appreciate your expertise, as always. Thank you so much. Thank you. Coming up, next. What the White House is doing to turn the situation around or trying to do and the pressure the administration is now under even from democrats. And later, the Bomb Scare outside the capitol and what were learning about the suspects views, ahead. [music plays. ] now were giving you even more reasons to rediscover the joy of travel. 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Last things last by the grace of the fire and the flames youre the face of the future, the blood in my veins, ohooh the blood in my veins, ohooh but they never did, ever lived, ebbing and flowing inhibited, limited til it broke open and rained down pain you made me a, you made me a believer, preorder now and get up to 200 in samsung credit. Tonights two top breaking stories on talks with the taliban and that State Department Dissent Memo highlight how deep a hole the biden administration is in with afghanistan and casts serious doubt on the notion that this was simply unforeseeable. The president , as you know, struck a defiant tone yesterday. For more on the Thinking Tonight and the behindthescenes action today, we are joined by cnns kaitlan collins. So we did not hear from the president today. I know you are learning about what happened behind close doors at the White House. He is going to speak on afghanistan tomorrow, anderson. We havent gotten a schedule from the White House, yet. Its not expected to be as formal of an address as it was on monday. Where you heard the president come out. And he spoke at length for probably 20 or 25 minutes not only talking about you how this drawdown is going down but talking about why he felt it was so necessary for the u. S. To leave afghanistan. But we will hear from him tomorrow which is notable because he has not taken questions on it since he did an Abc Interview overnight. That was, of course, talking about what was on the ground, what he was seeing, what their effort was going forward when it came came to these evacuations that were seeing. So it will be notable to see the president speak on this tomorrow. And if he does take questions, to talk about what is transpired in the last few days. Is there any sense from the president s advisers that for him to get through this crisis, hes going to need to be more straightforward about everything . Or is is that not really a point of discussion . I think his advisers realize, behind the scenes, the kind of incoming that they are getting on this and what they are hearing from not just their critics, not just republicans, but from democrats as well, anderson, who say they have a Lot Of questions. And these questions arent going away just because the News Cycle is continuing, the days are moving forward. They are watching this evacuation very closely. There are going to be congressional hearings next week and so they are going to have the president s top aides testifying about what happened behind the scenes. And i think thats going to be a big question. That right now, the White House is focused on this evacuation on getting the american citizens and these endangered afghans out of there. But lawmakers are going to have a Lot Of questions about how the drawdown went so poorly, and how they got to this position. Kaitlan collins, appreciate it. Thanks. I want to bring in cnn actually, stay with us, kaitlan, if you can. Because i do want to bring in cnn political analyst, and New York Times washington correspondent, maggie haberman. So, maggie, you hear kaitlans reporting. Are you surprised the white House Hasnt gotten a better handle on this situation, yet . I mean, competence was the kind of the the catchphrase that won, you know, about this White House early on. Certainly, for you know, this is the first major Policy Crisis and its not gone well. Anderson, there is two factors. I think there is the fact that the White House seems overwhelmed by events on the ground, which is is to some extent i think what the president says about how there was always going to be chaos. That was true. It just wasnt necessarily on the withdrawal, which is thats not what he was supposed to be talking about. Number one. And number two, the fact that there are so many pieces of information both coming out such as the Statedepartment Memo that you referenced. Reporters that are leaking out. And then, officials that are speaking publicly and saying essentially it wasnt us. We did x, y, z right. Its this other agency that didnt do it right. That has been really surprising because that has there really hasnt been a Lot Of that at all with this administration. And you are clearly seeing tonight that some White House officials, some administration officials realize they are taking water on this. You are seeing officials trying to fan out at some News Outlets and give a response. But at the end of the day, it is the president who the public wants to hear from. And he has not been heard from very much other than a pretty defensive interview that he gave to abc. Yeah, kaitlan, one of the big remaining questions is whether the White House actually knows how many americans and allied citizens, particularly afghans, are still in kabul trying to get to the airport. I just spoke to former Ambassador Crocker, who said he think he would imagine that the State Department has a pretty good idea of how many americans at least would be there. If they do, they have not revealed that publicly. And this you had been raising we had been raising questions about why we were hearing all these different numbers these week. We had been hearing potentially 5,000 from the State Department, early on. Then, we heard 5 to 10. Then, they were saying 10 to 15 to lawmakers on The Hill. We were wondering how it was such a Big Gap and what Jake Sullivan, the national security adviser, was saying earlier is that what you were talking about with formerAmbassador Crocker, which is that when you go to somewhere, especially like afghanistan. You have to register as a american citizen. You dont necessarily have to deregister when you are leaving and so i think a Lot Of conflicting reports on what their roles are actually looking like. And i know other countries what we have heard from other diplomats, they are struggling with this as well. Figuring out how many of their citizens are still there and so they are trying to get the word out, anderson. But the other thing is not just knowing how many are there. Its how they are going to get americans who cannot get to the airport because it is a treacherous journey. They are relying on the taliban to help people get through and a Lot Of people are leaving because they feel like they are targets of the taliban. And so, i think thats another big issue that theyre dealing with which is once they do know how many americans are there, how do they go out Into Kabul, in other areas of afghanistan and get them . And that is something that we know is front of mind for a Lot Of White House officials right now. Maggie, do you think that part of this was just either hubris on the part of of the administration thinking, you know, they they have a they want to withdrawal and they feel they should just go ahead and do it . Was part of it thinking the american people werent really paying attention to afghanistan and hadnt for a long time. And and certainly, the idea Of A Forever War is not something that thats popular . I mean, im trying to understand how they misjudged things even just in terms of the the optics of this. One of the things, in terms of the pure optics, anderson, that, you know, has been discussed a little bit. But my understanding is that a number of senior White House officials were were on vacation while this all started unfolding and basically did not return from vacation until it was clear, well after sunday, that things were quite messy. So i think that part has been very surprising. But that is that is the reason why. The administration has given a number of different reasons as to why it was that the evacuations out of afghanistan did not take place sooner. And those are often in conflict and sometimes theyre blaming afghanis afghans sometimes they are blaming processing in the u. S. System. Sometimes, they they are blaming the trump administration. And there is no clear through line. I dont think its hubris. I dont think that that is what this is. I do think it is the a Policy Choice that President Biden has stuck with for some time and been consistent about. But he said something publicly that did not turn out to be true. And at the end of the day, public officials get judged based on that and they have yet to give a coherent answer as to why things went wrong the way they did. And how they want to try to fix them. As kaitlan said, we are hearing a number of different reports that are coming out about numbers of people who are still there. How they are being removed and the things that the government is saying about how this is going are sometimes at odd with what we are seeing on this network from Clarissa Ward and what she is reporting and thats concerning, as well. Kaitlan, is there a sense of whom the president is listening to most closely in how to deal with this going forward . David axelrod on this program has talked about how during the obama years, you know, everyone knew president vice President Bidens position on afghanistan. Which was often counter to president Obamas Position on it. Is he listening to anyone on this, do we know . I think that plays a factor actually in this is that he sat through meetings where he was Vice President and he advocated for a withdrawal. And those warnings from President Or Thenvice President Biden went ignored. I think that was a big factor into a Lot Of what drove this decision. When it comes to who he is listening to, secretary of State Blinken and his national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, are probably two of the closest aides to President Biden on this. Certainly, when it comes to foreign policy. Obviously, they are at the top of the chain of command when it comes to that. And so, they definitely play a role in this and how theyre handling this going forward. I would note we have not actually heard from Secretary Blinken in person since sunday when he did a few interviews. That is not the case when it comes to the Defense Secretary or the chairman of the joint chiefs or Jake Sullivan who we have heard from as well. Though Secretary Blinken has been invited to testify next week. And this is another really interesting thing that President Biden said in that Abc Interview. Which is that he said from what he could recall, he was not going against the advice of of Military Leaders who were advising him to keep those 2,500 u. S. Troops in afghanistan. We reported back in april that he actually had been advised by several of them to do that. And he essentially overruled them. Not surprising because we knew this was his position. But it is notable that he is saying in this interview, he doesnt recall that being something that came up. Advice that he was given by them. Given not only cnn, several other outlets as well have reported that. Yeah, kaitlan collins, maggie haberman, thank you appreciate it. Just ahead, a look at the Pain And Frustration and sheer terror of those afghans desperate to flee their country. Special Operations Veteran who was wounded fighting in afghanistan joins us with his reaction to events on the ground. When you get back out there, however you get back out there go green. cause everybodys green when you ride with uber green. 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To give you some idea of the challenges facing afghan allies trying to make it to these flights out of kabul, cnn has obtained a message from the State Department. It was sent to thousands of locally employed staff at the u. S. Embassy in kabul tilling them they could come to the airport for evacuation. Multiple sources tell cnn some didnt because of the danger. Though, they desperately wanted out. Others had to turn back. Some who made it were bloody, mentally distraught, and had lost most of their belongings along the way. Scenes that are now painfully familiar with u. S. Veterans that forged bonds with interpreters and others trying to get out of after began stan. Jimmy hatch is a Special Operations, who served in afghanistan. Aids police and Military Dogs during and after their service. So, jimmy, just all the images that have coming i mean, i cant i have been thinking about you a lot wondering what is going through your mind when you see, you know, just all the images play out that we have seen over the last couple days . Its sad and its kind of disturbing i think. You know, im sure that nobody in the administration or in the military got up one day and said, hey, were just going to wing this. You know . I think, you know, things happen quickly and unfortunately this is the situation we find ourself in. But, you know, not long before this program started, i had an email from the mother of a young guy who was attached to my unit who was killed in august of 2011. So tenyear anniversary and i asked her how she was doing and she said she was angry and heartbroken. And i i mean, i think a Lot Of us gave a Lot Of effort there. Um, and i think to see it come unraveled like this is is disheartening and so we have to look for positive things to try to pull ourselves out of it. There there is cnns reporting about an afghan man who worked at the u. S. Embassy, tried to make it with his family to the airport. Forced to give up because of the chaos along the way. Um i mean, i feel for the troops who are at the airport who are trying to clearly do the best they can to help people. It has got to be an incredibly difficult and just even horrific thing to witness. To be the one, you know, picking up a baby from this crowd and not you know, what do you do in that situation . What would you like to see happen now . Gosh. Its a big situation and and im certainly not aware of all the dynamics. But i think, you know, it was mentioned earlier i think Ambassador Crocker and you were talking and you mentioned something about how, you know, people like me from the military who worked with interpreters and could vet for them. I think we could maybe use that, right . So like, there are people with names that, you know, that we know that we worked with and that might streamline things. But man, it just seems like its so chaotic and i feel for those american soldiers that are at that airport. Yeah. Can you just talk a little bit about the role of interpreters and others who who, you know, you worked with and others worked with . How how important were they and are they in in ongoing missions . Well, i think particularly for the Special Operation forces that and thats all i really know about. I didnt do anything with the conventional forces, really. But with us, it was superimportant because we were actually generally, we did our missions at night and it was superimportant that we identify, you know, who were looking for. And if we didnt have those those guys, you know, my gosh. We wouldnt have had a Lot Of success when we were trying to capture people. I think its also important that people understand that they saved our lives but they also saved the lives of a Lot Of other afghans. And i feel like, you know, this is a moral issue which a Lot Of people have thrown that word around kind of loosely but its also a very practical issue. There are other Military Units from the united states working in other countries around the world. And i can guarantee you, the people theyre working with are paying close attention to how were handling this. So its a practical thing, as well. We really need to get, you know, our arms around this and try to figure out how to do it quickly. It seems to me there are probably on the ground that understand exactly what needs to happen or at least have a pretty good clue about it. I think were the united states of america. What do you guys need . Lets get it done. You know, that kind of spirit, i think, needs to happen. But, you know, as mentioned previously by the other guests, there is so much chaos on the ground right now, i can only sympathize with the people trying to sort this out. One of the things i i worry about i worried about in the coverage of this is that for those who have served in afghanistan. Who sacrificed so much. Who lost friends. Who lost, you know, limbs. Who were wounded. You, yourself, were wounded in afghanistan. Um, to see all thats going on and, you know, its hard enough to deal with the memories of having served in a in a place like afghanistan where where there was a Lot Of loss and a Lot Of difficulty. How how what do you suggest . I mean, what what do you suggest to others, veterans who are out there who are watching this and and having a Lot Of difficulty watching and and, you know, seeing whats going on and thinking about their own experiences there . I think its important that we keep in touch with one another and thats really happened with me. I know, there is two kinds of communication that go on between myself and and people that i served with. One is, hey, we have an interpreter or some people from a unit that we worked with that theyre trying to get their family out. Do you have any contacts that can help us . And then, the other is are you okay, man . Is this is this taking a toll on you . Lets talk. You know. So there is a Lot Of that and that, i think, you know, with all the Mental Health challenges i faced in the past because, you know, i didnt deal well with getting injured and and ending my career that way. But i think the important thing is to really reach out and and talk to one another and to look out for the folks that are isolating, that youre not hearing from. And and check in on em. You know, be intrusive, actually, and dig your way into their lives and find out how theyre doing because this is it is a very big deal. And, you know, best to try to find the light somewhere in all this darkness, you know . Yeah. One of the places that you have found the light is with Spikes Canine Fund and i appreciate you being with us tonight and i just want to tell people, jimmy was a Canine Handler with the s. E. A. L. S. When he when he retired from the s. E. A. L. S. , he was shot in afghanistan, he founded an Organization Called Spikes k9 fund. They raise money to get custommade kevlar vests, Body Armor for dogs in Military Units and Police Departments often whom are in harms way, dont have protection like other Law Enforcement personnel. Um and this helps protect a Lot Of animals who are in harms way. To learn more about it, go to spikesk9fund. Org. You can probably see videos, too, of jimmy in like a Dog Handler Costume fending off a dog because he trains also a Lot Of canines. So jimmy, appreciate you being with us. Thank you. Thanks for having me, anderson. Still ahead. A suspect near the u. S. Capitol claiming to have a Bomb Led to evacuations and a long standoff with police. 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Tonight, we are learning more about who this person is, what was on his mind at least as much as can be gleaned from his Social Media postings. More now from cnns ryan nobles. Reporter it started around or about 9 00 thursday morning. 49yearold floyd Ray Roseberry entered washington, d. C. In a black Pickup Truck looking to cause trouble. I am parked up here on the sidewalk, right beside all this pretty stuff. Reporter he settled on a spot in front of the library of congress, directly across from the u. S. Capitol. And claimed to anyone that would listen that his truck had a bomb. Hey call the police and tell them to come out here and clear the capitol. Tell em to clear the capitol. He quickly got the attention of Capitol Police. They began to clear the area. At 9 43, they tweeted this urgent warning. Uscp responding to a suspicious vehicle near the library of congress. Please, stay away from this area. Then, at 9 54, less than an hour after roseberry arrived, they sent this message to staffers on The Hill telling them, among other things, if you are in a public space, find a place to hide or seek cover. That began a long and tense standoff between roseberry and police. One that would include an Evacuation And Lockdown of buildings across a Threeblock Radius as police attempted to wait roseberry out. All right, guys. Looks to me like im getting ready to make a phone call. Reporter he live streamed his grievances on facebook. Promising a revolution and calling on president joe biden. Just warning you, biden, dont pull the trigger on this truck. Because im not responsible for it. Reporter he demanded biden resign and complained about the administrations Immigration Policy and its response in afghanistan. Its my land. Its your land. Were the people. Taking a stand, joe. All them people dying in afghanistan. All them kids being raped. Just let Taliban Run right through. Reporter he also showed the inside of his truck filled with Loose Change he claimed would turn into shrapnel and held in front of him a canister he claimed was filled with a chemical explosive. He warned if police attempted to shoot him to end the standoff, his truck would explode. A later assessment of the trucks contents revealed there was no bomb. But what police described as bombmaking materials. Throughout the ordeal, Capitol Police used inventive ways to attempt to quell the situation. We tried to negotiate with mr. Roseberry. We first started doing that with a whiteboard. Just writing messages back and fwo forth. We used a robot to get a telephone down to him but he would not use the telephone. Reporter eventually, five hours after it began, roseberry gave up. He gave up and did did not resist and our folks were able to take him into custody without incident. Reporter his precise motives remain unclear. But based on his Social Media monologues, politics were a big driver of his angst. His son christopher told cnn that his father took a much greater interest in politics after Donald Trump was elected. Bidens victory made him very upset. Since biden got elected, hes just been, like, man, he doesnt like change, i reckon. Christopher roseberry said. Adding his father told him, quote, im sticking up for my country. We need to get the country back to the way it was. Ryan nobles joins us now from Capitol Hill. So um im wondering what your sense is. I mean, obviously, nerves are frayed because of what happened on January 6th and this guy was sort of speaking the language of insurrection and stuff. Clearly, he was making it all up about the bomb. Um, whats your sense of how that Fear Kind of impacted the Reaction Today . Anderson, i dont think theres any doubt that what happened here on January 6th and and the continuing rhetoric that is all over Social Media right now. Just makes these incidents even more serious than they would have been prior to January 6th. There is No Doubt that Law Enforcement would have taken this situation seriously. But when you go to the broader Capitol Hill community, the staffers, the journalists, the lawmakers that are up here every single day. They often will hear of reports of a a suspicious package or a vehicle in a place where its not supposed and just assume that its something that will be quickly brushed away. That doesnt happen, anymore. Everyone treats every incident like this very seriously. And then, when you couple it with the live stream of of this individual ranting about the government and specifically the president , that just raises the Anxiety Level even higher. And theres just No Doubt that the world changed significantly for the people on Capitol Hill on January 6th. And what happened here today just brought that home in a very real way. Ryan nobles, appreciate it. Thank you. There is more Breaking News tonight. This time on the end of a tense political standoff in texas over Voting Legislation that at one point led to threats of arrest. Dianne gallagher joins us now with more on that. So what have you learned, diane . Yeah, anderson, 38 days after those texas democrats got on planes and flew to washington, d. C. , receiving praise from the White House on down. Their Quorum Break ended with a whimper instead of a bang. The attempt was to block restrictive Voting Legislation in the lone star state. And they had the slimmest of margins in this second special session that had been called by republican governor greg abbott. Tonight, three new democrats showed up on the House Floor giving the Texas House the quorum that it needs to conduct legislative business. Those members issued a Statement Saying that they were proud of what they had accomplished. But citing the surge in covid19 as the reason why they decided to come back. Ill tell you, anderson, that their fellow democrats seemed pretty surprised by this decision, even accusing them of kind of faking them out, saying that theyd had a Twohour Caucus Meeting earlier in the day and this had not been discussed. But anderson, theyd been chipping away for a while. They had gone up to washington, d. C. Spent weeks up there trying to lobby lawmakers on Capitol Hill to push federal Voting Rights Protections noting this was going to be the inevitable end. Theyre in the minority party. They do not have that much power in the state of texas. But that historic Quorum Break in texas now is over and that Voting Legislation is already moving through the house, anderson. Yeah. Theres no reason to believe the outcome will be different other than, you know, than what it would have been before after all this. Reporter no, there isnt. And to give you an example of that, Senate Bill 1, which is this Election Overhaul Bill that contains new restrictions and empowers partisan Poll Wokkers and adds criminal penalties, the senate passed it a week ago. Theyve been waiting for the house to come back. The house came back today. There was already a public Committee Hearing scheduled in the house for saturday. So they seemed to plan to move quickly. Diane gallagher, appreciate it. Thanks. Ahead on Capitol Hill the senate is not in session but three Senators Today announced they have covid19. All are vaccinated. Details next. Plus the legal fight over Vaccine Mandates in florida schools. The superintendent of the states largest School District joins us to discuss why he calls doing what he thinks is the right thing no matter the consequences a badge of honor. As weve stopped counting. And built our most punishing Test Facility yet, in our effort to build the worlds safest cars. Weve created Crumple Zones and autonomous braking. Active Lane Keeping Assist and Blind Spot assist. Weve introduced airbags, Side Curtain airbags, and now the firstever rearmounted frontimpact airbags. All in the hope that you never need any of it. upbeat Pop Music in background throughout heyyy steins breaking your cousin. From boston. It means, oktobeerfest. Another Sam Octoberfest . Nein. Make it ten i like this guy. cheers Breaking News to report. Three u. S. Senators announced they have tested positive for covid. Angus king of maine, Roger Wicker of mississippi and John Hickenlooper of colorado. All three have been vaccinated. The senate is not in session right now. Senator king said he began feeling mildly feverish on wednesday. The offices of Senators Wicker and hickenlooper said they were tested after experiencing mild symptoms. We should point out these sorts of Breakthrough Cases are rare and vaccines show amazing protection against severe illness. For those who cant vaccinate, in particular children, there are, of course, masks. But also fights over Mask Mandates in schools. We are now one step closer to a legal decision over the mandates in florida after a Judge Today refused to dismiss a lawsuit brought in part by parents against Governor Ron Desantiss Order Banning mandates that do not allow the option of an opt out. Several School Districts, including the states largest in miamidade, have defied the governors order. The superintendent from Miamidade County public schools said he is doing the right thing and so will wear the consequences of his decision as a badge of honor. Alberto carvalho joins me now. Superintendent, thanks for being with us. Have you heard from the state or the Governors Office . Good evening, anderson. Not yet. But then again, our School Year does not begin until monday, august the 23rd. So quite frankly, there is no impact to students as a as a result of the protocols that we recently adopted. So we have not received any communication from tallahassee yet. So i know the School District is implementing a number of Safety Protocols in addition to a mask mandate. What else are you doing to protect students and staff . Look, were following all of the recommendations of our Public Health and medical task force. These are experts in field. And that includes social distancing, certainly in the classrooms, intense sanitization cycles utilizing ionization technology. Also, the wearing of masks. Strong encouragement with financial incentives for the vaccination of eligible employees. And of course, education for students and our workforce regarding required hygiene. And ill tell you im really surprised over the fact that the Expert Opinion of doctors, of Public Health officials is so easily disregarded in the face of an explosion of covid cases right here in the South Florida community. Just a few years ago, there were about 70 cases per 100,000 residents. Now, we are dealing with in excess of 700 cases per 100,000 residents. Hmm. With a reduced capacity of icu beds in our hospitals inclusive of pediatric units. The governor reiterated today that he feels and i am quoting that the parents understand what is best for for their kids. It also talked about even if a child is you know, tests positive that that its up to the parents whether that child should be up to the parents whether that child goes back to school or not. I certainly am not going to debate the opinion of the governor but i am going to certainly accept, without any question, the Expert Opinion of our medical entities and Public Health officials. And that statement is totally inconsistent with scientific practice which will tell us if someone is symptomatic. If someone has tested positive for covid, they should quarantine. And that is, indeed, one of our protocols. Secondly, second only to the vaccination of individuals who are eligible for it. Masks are an effective protective tool against the infection. They are not political statements. And i think that as a nation turning them into that is, quite frankly, engaged in a campaign of misinformation that can hurt individuals. What Mask Guidelines did you have in place last year . And did you face a backlash . I mean, did what did did Students Mind . Thats the most incredible reality, quite frankly, we should be discussing. The guideline for mask wearing last year is remarkably similar to the protocols that we adopted this year. In fact, the board just yesterday on a 71 vote affirmed the opinion of our health experts. The guidelines last year provided for mandatory masking with accommodations to be made for those individual students and employees who obviously reflected some degree of a medical concern affirmed by a doctor. In addition to a recognition that accommodations would have