How will we know . I think also we have to understand that the taliban also has interests. They are not going to flatline now theyre willing to extend the deadline. They want to show that they have control over afghanistan and they need to counter the Isis Threat. No one is going to say, sure, were going to extend the deadline until you feel youre ready. What we do know, theres a classification who are already going to be u. S. Citizens. They are going to third countries that are not the u. S. We are giving them security reviews, Bio Mettic reviews and health reviews. Then they come to the u. S. Where they get covid testing. Just so people understand theyre not being dropped in the united states. And the classic that was in review. Those that youre hearing about are getting sped through. I do think its likely that those who may have been worthy but did not get into the process will be left behind. It doesnt mean theyll never get out but getting out, i think, will be dependent on the taliban. You know, its just pain like spyder was saying, its horrible. And we have to prioritize, of course, the u. S. And levels of sids at this stage. Juliette, let me stay with you and this Terror Threat from Isis K. And a lot of people never heard of this division, offshoot of isis that weve talked about for quite a while. Yes. And Jake Sullivan said that the threat is persistent, acute, real. How does that play into the decisionmaking on how long to stay . How many people stay and when you start to evacuate . I know were looking at great numbers in terms of evacuation, but the number that we should focus on is no u. S. Soldier has been killed yet. Knock on wood here. Thats not just because of the u. S. , qatar and other countries are helping u. S. Citizens get to the airport so theres a whole complicated system here. And then, of course, to get isis in line. The Taliban And Isis are not friends. They were actually enemies. Isis is essentially motivated to make the taliban look like its not in control of afghanistan. We want out before that period happens. We dont want to be in the middle of that fight. And, yes, this is i think worth pushing the White House on. What will be our Counterterrorism Capabilities in the future . Well, ill focus on today. Theres no question that the exit of the military in the world im in, which is homeland security, is going to have an impact on the Counterterrorism Capabilities. The administration talks about over the horizon disability. What does that mean . And how will we actually impact that . Those are fair questions that the administration is going to have get a new counterterrorism strategy, because whether the taliban has the motivation or the capability to control isis, we just dont know right now. We want to bring in now cnns barbara starr. Shes at the pentagon. Shes obviously been listening to everything that Jake Sullivan said. Barbara, what jumped out to you . Should we ever have real numbers . I appreciate that Jake Sullivan spelled out why theyre not able to give exact number. That makes sense. That makes sense, helped to know that the americans didnt register with the embassy when they had gone and continued its Evacuation Process Admission . Well, right now, the pentagon is really aiming to be out by that deadline of August 31st. Thats what they are working towards. And for good reason. The taliban dont appear to be willing to agree to any extension the longer u. S. Troops stay, they are more risk they are at from isis. And this is becoming rapidly a very difficult mission to basically sustain. To provide food, water, sanitation to all of the thousands of afghans that are coming to the airport, trying to get through. So many thousands are already on the airfield, trying to get flights out. Its a very, very difficult proposition. So, given that, they are going to try very hard to wrap It Up. And theyve been able, at least to rampup the numbers of people theyve been able to evacuate in the last day or so. They may be able to bring in more aircraft, more seats, if you will, on airplanes to get out of the country. It will be a rush to that deadline, to see how much they can accomplish. But i think its really important that serious minded people in the administration are quietly acknowledging right now there are no guarantees. Everyone stay with us. Were going to now go to the pentagon for their briefing. This is admiral John Kirby. Being there and being there as long as possible. Were proud of the men and women assisting in this effort and truly making a difference on the ground. Speaking of making a difference on the ground and making a difference through u. S. Capabilities i do want to now turn the microphone over to general steve lyons, general of the command, hell get questions and ill come back to the podium and monitor the q and a. We have a limited amount of time with The General. Hes obviously got a lot on it his plate. General, sir, you can hear me and are you ready to go . John, i got you. Can you hear me okay . Yes, sir, loud and clear. The floor is yours, sir. Hey, im pleased to join you today, as well as the press, to talk about transcomin this monumental noncombatant evacuation proceeds. I want to say from the time transcom began, to gain the kabul airfield. Simultaneously, continued around the Clock Operations to ensure the safe evacuation of American Citizen Our Afghan Friends and those cleared by the State Department. Im just reminded that the united states is the only nation capable of rapidly deploying forces and providing Nonstop Airlift operations at this scale. Id like to specifically highlight the role of the outstanding component, the Air Mobility Command led by general movos. And continuing to operate what you see in the news footage, operating at the Kabul Airport and a multiple of other forces provides en route support. This incredibly dedicated team of Air Force professionals is the best in the world. I did have the opportunity this week to speak with the crew. The C17 Flight that carried the 823 afghans from kabul to safety. The iconic photos of hundreds of afghans on the floor of the c15 illustrates the Desperation And Fear and uncertainty of the afghan people but also the lifesaving Capability And Compassion of our military members. These herculean efforts provide them an opportunity for a new beginning, safer life and brighter future. To be clear this is a coalition effort. We could not be successful without the likeminded nations by providing important Access And Transit centers. Finally i want to acknowledge and thank our Industry Partners who routinely provide airlift. Many reported to activate stage 1 on the Air Fleet and we greatly appreciate the Team Work and contributions of our commercial aviation partners. Let me close by saying for me, like all of our veterans that served in afghanistan, this mission is very personal. I assure you that we will not rest until the military is complete, the mission is complete. And we have Evacuated Americans who are seeking to be evacuated and as many afghan partners as humanly possible. I could not be more proud of the transcom team, the relationship with u. S. Central command ill be happy to take any questions the press may have. Thank you. Thank you, general. Well start with Bob Burns, associated press. Thank you, general. This is Bob Burns of the ap. Thank you very much. A couple of questions, currently, what is your maximum capacity for airlifting out of Kabul Airport . A number of people you can get out in a single day, based on the aircraft, including the support that you have available to you as of today . And the second question is regarding fuel. Im wondering if you can describe how youre managing to keep sufficient fuel on hand at the airport, given the limitations of that facility . Thanks. Yeah, bob, thanks for the questions. Let me take the fuel first. We do manage fuel, and we intentionally do not take fuel on underground. So, we make sure we have enough fuel to go in and out without taking fuel on so we dont scratch the logistics and wear. And if the legs are longer coming out, you know, well aerial refuel en route, if necessary. The last 24 hours as you saw on the news, more than 10,000 well more than 10,000 evacuates moved. Im very, very confident well sustain that effort and improve that effort. My concern is that airlift is never the constraint in this operation. As you know and appreciate, ive seen your reporting, airlift is extremely important. Critical to the through put is the airlift. Thank you. You can talk a little bit about the threat that your aircraft are facing as they fly into and fly out of kabul . Weve seen a french Cargo Plane have to shoot out flares as it was taking off. What are your crews preparing for . And you can put this in context of other Threat Environments that your Cargo Aircraft have had to fly into over the last couple of years . Yeah, thank you, the threat is significant, as you know. I wont get into details. Were closely alioneled to centcom and other agencies with respect to air operations. I would just say, as we watch that you know, our crews are the best in the world. That machine, the c17 is the best in the world. And im confident that were taking the right measures to mitigate the threat and were connected to the right sources and taking the right kind of measures. Ill probably leave it at that for reasons, good reasons. With the current operations, you were discussing earlier today in the briefing about just the one hour on the round quick rotation. Can you talk about how youre managing that . How the planes and crews are managing that . Yeah. Its quite remarkable. You know, weve got a number of planes in the system. But we have twice as many crews. And the idea is to keep those planes moving all the time. Either by extending the Crew Day or preferably by swapping crews or keeping the iron in motion. So its a very tight detailed Management System to do that. Critical to that, of course, is what you mentioned which is ground time. The 23569er we can turn, load or discharge, the faster we can turn that aircraft and were razor focused on bringing down. I appreciate the work ongoing in afghanistan to bring down the time on the ground to under an hour. General, can you just give a sense how you foresee the Mission Changieing as the u. S. Draws on the numbers on the Ground Bit End of the month and what the mission will look like towards August 31st . Yeah, every day, we take as the day comes. We are we are razor focused on neo. We know and are linked very closely with Central Command potential operations to close out the mission by August 31st. That was the mission given by the president and were committed to do that. And im committed that airlift is never a constraint to execute those operations. Were with Central Command have a great relationship and great Team Work. So, i think we are we are pushing the limits to do everything we can to get every single evacuatee out of kabul. You foresee fewer flights in the 28th, 29th, 30th, 31st of the month as there are fewer Ground Forces presumably, In Kabul . Well, id prefer not to get into numbers of flights by day. I would not say that were going to let up. Were not going to let up. You know, full accelerator. Were not going to let up. As long as theres a mission to be accomplished well be out there. I forgot to ask you to introduce yourselves so The General cant see you, courtney. This is courtney kube from nbc news. You said youre pushing the limits. You can explain a little bit more what you mean by that pushing the limits to get as many people out . Then, are you able to give a big picture look how c17s or c130s out of the entire mission are dedicated to this right now, out of the entire Military Fleet . Well, its you know, all of the ability and resources are focused on this effort. Theres a number of ways i could cut the numbers that might not be helpful to you, to be honest. Right now, the Air Component has well over 200 aircraft committed to operations. Some of these are even kc10s are committed to the operation in some way or fashion. When i say were All In, i mean to present to meet the president and Secretarys Director to ensure that every evacuatee that is cleared to move can move. And our crews are absolutely incredible. I wont lie to you, theyre tired. Theyre probably exhausted in some cases. I know that the leaders from time to time are pulling crews out to make sure we dont have safety issues. But they are motivated. They are fired up. And they are committed to complete this mission. One more about any Covid Mitigation efforts that youre taking. Are you doing anything to ensure that your crews are safe from covid . And you can give us a little bit of detail what that is, looks like . Well, thats a great question. You know, we shouldnt forget that were doing this operation in the middle of a pandemic. So, all of the crews are obviously masking and but, the afghans that are, you know, on the aircraft are not masked. So, thats one mitigation. There. Is some screening that occurs before they load. And then as we reach a temporary safe haven, these other hubs and lily pads, there are resources being applied to further test the evacuates upon arrival to these various temporary safe havens. Are all of the Crews Vax Natured or getting tested p periodically to make sure theyre safe . The vast majority are tested. I cant say that they all are, great news from the fda, pretty soon well all be vaccinated. Jennifer goodson from fox news. Can you talk more about some of the constraints how you say how you resolved them. And also in the last 24 hours youve got 18,000, or 11,000 passengers out of kabul, clearing the back log. Are you concerned there are not enough people cleared through into the airport, that you may have to take off with empty planes . Is there any sign that youre having to take off because of that quick turnaround with empty planes . Great question. Not at this time. You know, were in contact with centcom constantly. I talk to general mckinley on a continuous basis so were synced up. The idea is we never want to leave on a empty plane, were not doing that. Were filling the aircraft to 400, 450 passengers in a fourload configuration. I do say, to the first questions, its an excellent question. Anytime that we move this fast in an operation theres going to be fog and friction. And its trying to achieve equal L Equilibrium in a large network throughout the network. Initially, its moving quick. Youre trying to grow capacity. Youre moving as fast as you can, sometimes, you get ahead of yourself and then its trying to equalize out and making sure you got a critical path open. But again, right now, well sacrifice the Back End of all of the architecture in the nose to make sure that were clear at kabul international. Thats what were doing now. I need to go to the phones. I havent done that yet. Stephen lucie. Yes, thanks very much. There are reports about the threats that isis has made. And i know you Cant Speak to a specific threat envirens, but can you talk about how the military is dealing with these threats are you telling the military its their responsibility to keep isis away from the airport, and what happens if isis decides to embarrass the taliban by Launching Air Taxattacks at the airport . Ill take that. Thats more appropriate for me than general lyons. As we talked about for the last several days, we are in daily communications with taliban leaders outside the airport. Sometimes, multiple times a day do again deconflict, as best as we can. And to help ensure a healthy access to the airfield for american citizens in Ti Ss in p. And that communication continues to happen. We are also mindful of the threat that isis poses. Without speaking for the taliban, i think its a safe assumption that they, too, are mindful of that threat. I wont begin to hypothesize of what could or could not happen. And i think you can understand that at the podium, we wouldnt get into specific intelligence streams. Or what what were watching. Nobody wants to see anybody else hurt. And certainly, nobody wants to see anything that could impact our ability to continue to conduct this evacuation operation. All i can tell you, were focused every single day, hour by hour, monitoring the Threat Environment very carefully. As i said, the communication with the taliban continues. Politico. First of all, can you tell us the total estimated cost of the evacuation . And then also, can you explain the discrepancy between the Date And Dod numbers on the number of people evacuated . State is saying 25,000 since the operation began but major general taylor earlier said 37,000. What is that discrepancy . With the numbers question, i Cant Speak. I dont know where the other number came from. But i think were All In the in the inner agency, were all tracking these numbers. The numbers that we put out this morning. I think you saw the White House actually put those numbers out before we did. So that 37,000 since the 14th is what were counting on. And ill turn it over to The General, on your first question. But whatever the costs are going to be, laura, are bigger than just the airlift. And i can tell you that we dont have an estimate right now. Our focus and the focus of the entire inneragency is to get as many people out as fast as we can and as safely as we can. And were not letting cost drive the factor here. Cost drive the operation. The operation is driving the operation and the need to do this in a very urgent and orderly way. But ill turn it over to The General. If he has any more data for you in terms of the cost from his perspective. Yeah, i couldnt have said it better than mr. Kirby just said it. Were wear, were Tracking Costs but were nowhere close to accumulating that data for public dissemination. Im sure, laura, when all is done, i mean, at the appropriate time, well certainly be able to provide an overall sense of what the cost is. I just would add that the real cost that were focused on now is human life. Thats the cost that were focused on. If i could just follow up, general lyons, are you concerned about the talibans ultimatum that they issued, that if the u. S. Has to stay past August 31st to complete the evacuation . And what is the plan to protect our forces and evacuees in that case . As i said, we watch all risks and threats very closely. And i would defer to u. S. Central command on most of the parts of those questions. Were in direct contact with them, regularly, continuously. And then we have, you know, our own processes and defensive measures and tactics and procedures to take you know, to protect our cruise and to protect our aircraft goes in and out. Weve got time for two more. Sylvie and then terrese. You know, general, can you speak to us about the cooperation with the Turkish Parties at the airport . What kind of relationship do you have with them . Yeah. I would defer to the u. S. Central command for that question. I would not be able to characterize the relationship on the ground. I know there is a relationship, but i would not be able to characterize that four. Sylvie, the turks on the ground are really from a security perspective. It is more of a Central Command relationship that theyre managing with the turks every day. The turks are there and of course you know the scale we are there. Terrese. General lyons, i know there are concern about capacity, but are medics being provided, theres a report that a woman had a baby during one of the flights . So do you have medics that will be upon board to handle Emergency Situations that may come up, if somebody has a Baby Or Somebody gets sick or something of that instance . Yeah. Thats a great question. We do not have medics on every flight. There is a medical screen, as part of the Screening And Boarding process. But ill confess to you that many people would have to selfidentify any kind of medical issue. Really exciting, i mean, i really appreciate the News Reporting on the baby being born, as that flight came in to ramstein. As a matter of fact, theres actually been more than that. Just an incredible, incredible operation ongoing, you know, just impressive work by our great airmen. A lot more than that . Im sorry . What did you mean by more than that . More babies . How many babies . More than one baby. Yeah. My well, my last Data Point was three. I dont have a formal tracker, those are the you know, well keep you posted. All right, sir. Well follow up and try to get you information on the other two. Listen, we have to let The General get to general lyons, weve heard some concerns that there wasnt enough Food Or Water for the evacuees at the airport. Can you just talk about the efforts to fly in more s sani sanitation, more water for those trying to flee kabul . Sure. Well, you see all of the aircraft going in there. We never want to send an aircraft empty if we dont have to, so, centcom is managing that. Weve got plenty of capacity going in there. There is sustainment on those flights coming in that were taking evacuees out. Centcom is addressing that issue, thank you. General, ill let you go until you have any closing thoughts, anything you want to hit at The End here. John, thanks for being a part of today. But, again, how proud i am of our Mobility Airmen just operating around the globe. Its just impressive to see. And, you know, everybody is just in this, All In, rowing as hard as we can. And were going to make this happen. Im absolutely confident of that. Thank you, general. Thanks, everybody. Well see you back here midmorning tomorrow. Thanks very much. All right. So youve been listening to the latest there from the pentagon. We heard from Admiral Kirby and general steve lyons, head of Transportation Command saying theyre pushing the limits to get as many people out. 200 Air Kcraft committed to, les bring in juliette kayyem. And Cnn International Reporter Nick Paton walsh in doha. Nick, i want to start with you about who is getting to the airport, into the airport and on to the flights. Now, we know from the u. S. Embassy spokesman there onsite who actually told one of our correspondents that special immigration applicant, the afghans who helped the americans are being told not to come to the airport. But we heard from Admiral Kirby, that their applications are being processed through the gates. Theyre considered for entry. It sounds like a contradiction. Clear It Up for us, please. I dont think it really is. To be honest, its very clear from the sources we have on the ground, special Immigrant Visa Applicants are not being allowed on to the airport as policy. Some may be sneaking on because its chaos there. There are holes in the fence. Theres afghan Security Forces letting their friends on at times so its not a cut and dried policy by any stretch of the imagination. But as of this time, theyre not being asked to come to the airport, now that may change because the piece of good News Today as we presumably have seen this messaging from the administration, theyve managed to get 10,400 people off in a short period of time which is quite staggering and remarkable. But it is quite clear, amongst, those are not necessarily new people on that airport. John kirby parsing his words slightly saying theyre being processed through the gates. Im not quite sure what that means. Certainly, people are being processed on the airport because theres more there, certainly will 10,000 still remaining afghans as far as im aware, for considered entry. So theres a very clear effort from the at stdministration to and confuse the notion as to whether civilian applicants are being allowed son the airport. It wasnt cleared by The General or Admiral Kirby, which we just heard from. An hour pushing forward the narrative here. A lot of key questions we want answers to have not been answered. How many americans have they taken out . How many americans are still left . How many special visa applicants could potentially be in need of evacuation . I understand these are difficult questions to answer but theyre pressing because there are american troops in harms way. There san operation here with a clock ticking. We know that the taliban want this over and want them go. President Joe Biden said the same thing himself. He wants troops out. So, you know, theres a lot still to be answered here. Theres some clarity, We Saw John Kirby finally saying that american troops seem to be going out to get americans and bring them back. That explains what the alternate routes perhaps may have been, but limited detail there. So i think there must be some frustration, possibly. The good news that the White House has been pushing out 10,400 cant necessarily be matched by a forensic detail of who they think have left. Its completely understandable. But enforces the decision of how much longer this goes on. The mere operation of taking 5800 troops currently on the base off that base is going to take days anyway. I have to guess that you dont want to start doing that when you see hundreds of afghans and seeing the americans depart in front of them. They may have start thinking about when they do that. Jake sullivan did talk about the same Number Today Tomorrow and the next day. That could potentially mean another 10,000 individuals. There is a window for special Immigrant Applicants to get on the base but they have to get through taliban checkpoints on the way up. Taliban filtration around the base. And then we have to avoid the awful scenes of overcrowding and fatalities that causes at the gates. A huge challenge ahead here. I should say, too, theres a lot of concern about possibly thousands of local employed afghans who work for the u. S. Embassy. Theyre almost certainly eligible for special visas. These are who diplomats work with Facetoface Day in and day out. They are still, many of them, In Kabul, hoping to get to that airport. Thats a very urgent task in the days ahead. Absolutely. Absolutely. We continue to monitor that whenever we can. Im not sure we have with us we do yes, lets bring in journalist connor powell. He spent four years working and living In Kabul. Connor, great to see you. What did you hear . And what do you think from the Press Conferences knowing how it works In Kabul . Thanks for having me. I hear an administration that is continuing to try to have it both ways like they didnt know what was coming and at the same time they totally prepared. They were negotiating with third countries to take afghans. And still negotiating to let more people on at the same time they have issues with getting more people on. I think this is an administration that is still trying to come to grips with just the totality of this effort. Now, they do deserve some credit. They have moved a lot of people in the last couple of days, the last couple of hours. I know a lot of afghans that ive been talking to, that ive been talking to for the last week or so, you know, about a half of those, Couple Dozen afghans i was talking to on monday and tuesday have now gotten out of the country. None of them are getting out through a particular process. They are people pushing their way through the gates as nick just said. And the ones waiting for that Text Message or email sitting In Kabul, theyre still waiting, theyre trying to abide by the State Department policies of well tell you when to come and dont come before that. Theyre the ones that arent out right now. The people that are pushing their way through the gates, theyre the ones getting in. Juliette, as often as we ask the question here and the correspondents there in all of the briefings ask, will the u. S. Stay beyond August 31st. T really doesnt behoove the u. S. Or the taliban to say today that, yes, this will extend beyond the 31st, does it . I mean, the taliban doesnt want anybody to know that they have given in to, you know, pushing that Red Line back today, certainly. I think thats exactly right. And i understand the interest in wanting some clarity on the deadline. Especially because there is so much panic as nick and others have been reporting. Going to the airport because they think, August 31st is the date. But if you just take a step back, the taliban is the government of afghanistan. They have incentives. They have constituencies. Those include trying to convince the afghans that they are in charge and also countering an internal Isis Threat that wants to make them look destabilized. So the idea of them saying, yes, were going to concede to that america is not in their interest right now but lets think about our interests and the people waiting to evacuate. To make the public the deadline extended is actually more dangerous for them because it becomes a more dangerous place to be over the next ten days. Because lots of people who dont want us to be there are going to go after it. Im just an analyst for you, but i understand the urge to know, but i kind of get why were getting that grayness from the White House at this stage because i just think, you know, i believe that the deadline will be extended. We will get people out after August 31st. But there will not be an announcement about it. That there will continue to be an effort. That seems the safest thing for me, america, the troops and the thing that the taliban wants the most. In terms of national security for the u. S. , and juliette told us about the vetting going on, its being done in third countries. After they leave, after the special Immigrant Visa Applicants leave. After some of the afghan helpers leave, they go to another country, doha, elsewhere. They are biometrically screened and vet ted before they come in but it also sounds, frankly, that Jake Sullivan wasnt able to say how many afghans that the theyre accepting in. Do you have any thoughts on that . Yeah, you very clearly heard the national Security Adviser not put a Firm Number on that not put a goal out there for folks to hold this administration accountable when it comes to how many of these afghans theyre going to relocate here in the united states. And how many of these afghans are going to be out of the country before the u. S. Military withdraws. Significantly, earlier today, a senior State Department official said they have every expectation that afghans are going to be able to get out of the country once the u. S. Military leaves the country. They said that the agreement with the taliban, for Safe Passage to the airport has no expiration date. But i think its hard to imagine how theyre going to be able to uphold that commitment by the taliban. Once the u. S. Military is gone. You know, how exactly are they going to be able to get the taliban to maintenance that, or afghans who are traveling to the airport . Because with know that the taliban want the americans out of the country. That is one of the reasons that they are cooperating right now, allowing the americans to get through as much as they can, even though there clearly have been issues but they dont want the afghans to leave the country. That makes the country weaker. It makes it look like people are leaving because theyre scared of the taliban which, of course, they are. So, i think that that will be a real area to watch. Can these afghans actually get out of the country when the u. S. Military withdraws. And what kind of leverage does the u. S. Have to uphold the Talibans Commitment that they say has no extension date. Connor, let me put that to you, whats your experience there in afghanistan tell you about the ability for afghans who want to leave after the u. S. Military leaves, that they will be able to continue to leave . Well, im not sure any agreement with the taliban is really worth the paper its written on. I think one point that were missing right now is were talking about the taliban as if its a unified group. There are really two groups. There is sort of the Kandahar Taliban, traditional taliban, and talitaliban, sort of the gangsters of the group. And what im hearing from people In Kabul, theres already a push between the two groups. Ive spoken to a couple people who are afghan officials, theyre part of critical infrastructure. Theyve been asked earlier in the week to stay on by the Kandahar Taliban leadership. Go to the office, continue to do your job, youre safe. Then in the last couple of days, ive heard theyre today, no, dont go to your office, thats coming from the haqqani group. And then they pick up the phone and go to the office. Theres already a factual battle between the taliban leadership and who controls kabul particularly. I think that makes any agreement that you may have with that taliban tough to handle. Im not sure they can enforce can with haqqani right now, or other parts the country where the taliban is more in groups rather than a unified investigation. Connor powell, nick paton walsh, kylie atwood, juliette kayyem. Thank you very much for helping us understand whats happening today. So, we are also following Breaking News out of the fda. Its granting full approval of the Pfizers Coronavirus Vaccine for People Age 16 and up. This could drive up Vaccination Rates for those who said they were hesitant about it being just Emergency Use only. We have much more, ahead. At pnc bank, we believe in the power of the watch out. Thats why we created low Cash Mode, the financial watch out that gives you the options and extra time needed to help you avoid an overdraft fee. Its one way were making a difference. Low Cash Mode on virtual wallet from pnc bank. Oh are you using liberty Mutuals Coverage Customizer tool . So you only pay for what you need. Sorry . Limu, youre an animal only pay for what you need. Liberty. Liberty. Liberty. Liberty. I booked our hotel on kayak. Its flexible if we need to cancel. Cancel. I havent left the house in a year. Nothing will stop me from vacation. No canceling. Flexible cancellation. Kayak. Search one and done. If youre 55 and up, tmobile has plans built just for you. Switch now and get 2 unlimited lines and 2 free smartphones. And now get netflix on us. Its All Included with 2 lines for only 70 bucks only at tmobile. You need an ecolab scientific clean here. And you need it here. And here. And here. Which is why the scientific expertise that helps Operating Rooms stay clean is now helping the places you go every day too. Seek a commitment to clean. Look for the Ecolab Science certified seal. Big development in the fight against covid19. The fda granting full approval for the pfizer vaccine today, for everyone 16 years and older. President biden says this is a crucial step in convincing more americans to get the shot. And has this message for anyone who is waiting for this moment. Let me say this loudly and clearly, if you havent if youre one of the millions of americans who said that they will not get the shot when until it has full and final approval of the fda, it has now happened. The moment youve been waiting for is here. Its time for you to go get your vaccination. Get it today. Today. Now, over the past few days, Vaccination Rates have ticked up in certain parts of the country. The president says that the approval could mean more vaccine mandates, businesses, cities and states. Were already seeing some examples, United Airlines just announce they had will move up the deadline for their mandatory vaccines. And the mayor of new York City said all Education Employees will be required to get vaccinated by september 27th. Dr. Megan randy is a professor of Emergency Medicine and on the team at brown university hospital. Doctor, welcome back. This is part of which area . The individuals who are saying ive been waiting for approval to get the vaccine . Or the cities, the companies or the local governments . You know, victor, i really think its the latter. This is certainly going to change the mind of some people who said they were holding out for full approval. What this really does, this opens the door for more businesses, for more governmental institutions, for more institutions of education, to start to mandate the vaccine. Weve seen the university of minnesota, for instance, the State University now say theyre going to mandate the vaccine. I am saying im hearing from a lot of people who said, well, im on the fence, but now my employer is requiring it so im going to show up and get the shot. Its really interesting, mandates will convince people, unless they want to lose their Job And Wont have access to places they want to go, Thats Number one. And number two, it seems its already afoot in the country because weve seen Vaccination Rates tick up. There were 1 Million shots given several days in a row last week. And what do you think thats about . I really think thats about fear and the reality that this virus can strike any of us, regardless of our age. Regarding of our preexisting health status. The Delta Variant in particular, but really covid in general does not discriminate. Any of us are at risk. And the vaccinations help protect us from severe disease, hospitalization and death. And as people see Friends And Family members getting sick, getting hospitalized. They see the News Stories about these Tragico Outcomes for youn people, theyre now stepping up and saying, you know, im welling to overlook some of these small fears. Im going to take the risks that indeed these myths or misinformations really are false. And im going to get the shot because i recognize that i need it to protect myself and to protect my family. Speaking of risk and misinformation, the Adafda And Mississippi Health Department now are warning people not to take this antiparacystic drug ivermectin. People will not take the vaccine, but theyll take this anti antiparasite drug. Make it make sense. Any of us on twitter have been subjected to a constant barrage of information claiming that ivermectin is some miracle cure. I want to be really clear there is no data supporting that ivermectin prevents or cures covid19. If you want to prevent it, get a vaccine. If youve already gotten covid and youre highrisk get monoclonal antibodies. Those are the only things that prevent or help reduce the impact of covid, unless you get to the point of being hospitalized. Then we do have other treatments. Unfortunately, this promotion for this drug has spread like wildfire among Conspiracy Theorists and people who are out to make a unfortunately this promotion for this drug has spread among wildfire among thiConspiracy Theorists and people who are out to make a profit. Another example of the very real harm of misinformation. Dr. Megan ranney, thank you. Thank you. Were getting an update now from the State Department. This is spokesman ned price. Lets listen. Forces bravely served alongside u. S. Troops and other nato allies in afghanistan. And they are now continuing to support the afghan people by collaborating with our ongoing efforts to evacuate afghans at risk. President biden and secretary blinken have personally expressed our gratitude for their continuous support as friends and allies and for assisting in the temporary transit of afghans to safety. The temporary Transit Locations we have established joint bases in germany, italy, and spain have capacity to process at least 15,000 people on a rolling basis. Significantly expanding our ability to relocate u. S. Citizens and atrisk afghans from afghanistan. These flights departed in germany today. We are grateful to host governments for agreeing to allow the united states to host atrisk afghans while we make arrangements to relocate them to the united states or to a third country. Our embassies have been working with the u. S. Military, and our partners in these countries to rev flights and ensure safe transit of passengers to onward destinations. With that, and with that background, id be happy to take your questions. Can i just ask you on the 15,000 on a rolling basis, what is that, over 24 hours . Its 15,000 at any one time. So, as atrisk afghans, Others Transit from those countries, others will backfill and be able to take their place. So at any one time, this system of Thirdcountry Transit sites can accommodate 15,000 people. Okay. And thats italy, germany, spain, and thats what the 15 applies to . Thats correct. Secondly, also really briefly, are you guys still sending consular and other people to kabul to work at the airport, or has that now have you now reached what you need . Well, so we are always evaluating the situation on the ground to determine that we have the right Staffing Posture to accommodate a task that we need to take on. We talked about this last week, but as of late last week, we had doubled the number of consular officers on the ground In Kabul. We had sent additional consular officers to some of those initial Transit Sites in the Gulf Including to qatar, to kuwait, and the uae. But the broader point i would make is that we have been able to take advantage of consular officers throughout this building and around the world. Okay. But im not interested in the broader point. Im just interested in the answer of the question. Are you still sending people there . And if youre not, which is fine if you are or not, i just want to know if theyre still ramping up. And then on the opposite end of that is that we are approaching the 31st. And if there is no extension in this, you guys are going to have to start thinking and i want to know have you already started thinking about drawing them back down again . If in fact they are going to leave or if you guys think that maybe you can go back to the embassy. Well, we are always evaluating what we have on the ground compared with our needs. If we need more people on the ground, we wont hesitate to do it. We came to that conclusion last week. Thats why we doubled the presence of Consular Offices on the ground. But you are right, this is a mission with it is a finite mission with an end date, whatever that specific date is attached to it. So of course we are working very closely with the u. S. Military to ensure that we are working in lockstep with them on their retrograde plans so that in addition to what the u. S. Military needs to bring back, their people, obviously we will be working with them to ensure we have a Time Line and to ensure that we bring back our people at the right time. Okay. Last one. Yesterday, and i didnt see this interview, i saw the first one, i didnt see the second one in the cbs interview, the secretary, according to the transcript that you guys put out, misspoke and said he had spoken of president karzai. And im less interested in his misspeaking and more interested in knowing whether or not there has been any discussion between the Secretary Or Anyone else like Zal Or Anyone between the u. S. And former president karzai or Abdullah Abdullah or the others who are now in discussions with the taliban. Absolutely. As you know, matt, there continues to be dialogue between the afghans. That is to say representatives of the islamic republican and the taliban. For our part, we have been in touch with relevant and key stakeholders, individuals who are taking part in intraafghan discussions with the taliban. Were not in a position to read those calls out. This has been primarily on the part of our team in doha, our team on the ground in afghanistan to make sure that we have a regular line in to those afghan stakeholders. So they have not been in touch with no. So how are the talks going . So, those talks. Youve been listening to ned price there, State Department spokesperson, about the ongoing evacuations. Still so many questions about the numbers, how many americans, how many afghans whove applied for special immigrant visas, and every day we do get more numbers, but not all of the numbers. And not the numbers that most people are looking for specifically, how many americans are there and how many americans have they brought out. That should be a precise number if theyre flying them out every day. We want to get right now to the extreme weather across much of the u. S. This weekend. In central tennessee, Search And Rescue operations are still ongoing after devastating torrential rains and floods. At least 21 people are dead, and more than ten still missing there. 7monthold twins were killed, when, according to a family member, they were torn from their fathers arms in the rushing waters. More than 17 inches of rain fell on the city of waverly in just 24 hours on saturday. That triggered Flash Floods that swept homes off their foundations, piled cars on top of Each Other. This happened so fast. Theres houses moved off their foundation, cars and trees. I mean, this is almost a biblical proportions here like a massive tornado come through here. It literally come in, it came in five minutes it was in, it was flooded. It was so much more water than i have ever seen in my life. Cnns Nick Valencia is in waverly in humphries county, tennessee. Nick, ill toss it out to you. Reporter yeah, many of those who died were height here in this housing complex. Some are still missing. And were joined by jody. Jody, take me inside your home here and show us. Brandon, come in on in, this is your neighbor. Right. If it wasnt for our little Neighbor Lady across The Street banging on my door, we had just a few seconds to get out. How high did the water get up . My god, Theres Nothing left in here. Theres nothing left. It got all the way up to here. I had actually cooked breakfast that morning before this happened. Reporter did you guys have any warning at all whatsoever . No warning, nothing. Just a little lady across The Street. And by the time id answered that front door, the lady next door, ms. Lisa, was banging at my back door. By the time that they had told me to get out, we just had enough time to pull the car up here, jump in, and just go. Reporter and who helped you guys . Was there any first responders here . Are you guys just chipping in and helping Each Other . She was over here at her apartment. I was left behind saving my family and wanted to make sure they got to safety before i do. I was stuck up on the roof and everything. Reporter you were stuck on the roof . Yeah. Reporter you mustve thought you might not have made it. I was going to die because the way the foundation was, everything was coming down. Theres nothing left. If it wasnt for the wall that busted out of the front and for rico next door, he came in a boat and saved them. Reporter people are watching this right now. This is sort of an overlooked tragedy with so much going on in the world. What do you guys need . We just need lots of prayers for the people that are missing. Everythings just completely gone. We have nothing. Reporter you guys Saw Cars floating down and people screaming for help. And animals and babies and everything. I couldnt get to nobody because i was stuck myself. And i could have drowned because we were stuck in a room. And thank god for the foundation that had busted through. Because if not i wouldnt be standing here now. Reporter we just got a few seconds left here. I cooked brick fast this morning on the stove in there, and look right here. This door that was shut, theres the pan. Its perfectly sitting that came all the way from the kitchen. Reporter we wish you guys you know, were so grateful for your time here. We have to go. Ill be here with you after we end here. But this community clearly still hurting. And its going to take a long time for them to recover. Alisyn and victor, thank you so much. Nick, the devastation there. You can see the Water Line is above Jodys Head there. Its remarkable. The breakfast is still in the pan. Thats how quickly that water came in. The lead with Jake Tapper starts right now. The longawaited stamp of approval. The lead starts right now. The fda fully approves Pfizers Coronavirus Vaccine setting the stage for sweeping vax mandates, and maybe pushing more reluctant americans to get the shot. A race against time, and the taliban. The u. S. Up against a deadline to evacuate thousands from afghanistan. Well talk to a former u. S