Brian Williams examines the day's top political stories and current political-campaign news. appears to be dialing up the pressure on other witnesses in the investigation specifically anyone one tied to roger stone, anyone in his orbit. mueller has a number of stones passed to associates now firmly on his radar tonight. one of them is andrew miller is being held in contempt for refusing to testify before a grand jury hearing evidence into the russia investigation. another roger stone's associate kristen davis did testify today. this was after she voluntarily spoke to investigators last week. randy who has been reported to be the back channel between stone and wikileaks have been subpoenaed to appear before the grand jury on september 7th, randy credico. this investigation will not be over. they're all involved. >> hey frank, let's talk about the siemny chhuogns that things tightening around roger stones and where do you expect this to be going. >> roger stone is a bigger fish than many people realize. while we are focused on that, mueller has been ratcheting up the effort on stone. i believe that stone can put the crime in the collusion concept. by that i mean the mysterious connection between stone, wikileaks and julian asange. mueller is focus on that like a laser because that's where you get hacking charges and emolument clauses and in the middle of that is roger stone, a guy that's been playing dirty politics for years. mueller knows a lot more about stone than any of us do. why? because the u.s. intelligence community has been monitoring wikileaks and asange, they considered him a criminal. it is possible that roger stone may have actually tripped into coverage by the u.s. intelligence community of asange and wikileaks and it is possible that mueller has all of that documentation and intercepts and sitting there and knowing what stone said and did with julian. >> the last part of what frank said in effect of equivalent of walking through the beam of a spotlight would be a very bad look for roger stone. ken, given what you know and talk about what stone have called his 40 years friendship with donald trump and the kind of damage a guy like that can do. >> yes, i also think that roger stone, frank used the phrase, "trip into," roger stone has made a long career of exaggerating his roles and significances of some of these episodes of dark arts and dirty tricks. all the way back from watergate where he was the tiniest bits of player in the nixon operation but managed to make a whole career out of this sort of pears personification of himself as a dirty trickster. be careful what you wish for. he continues to try to insert himself in ways that were sort of the margins and he did interact with an internet p persona and there is guccifer ii. so he sort of by almost by accident became very sort of character that he portray himself as and ultimate be his undoing. >> annie, i have been reading and follow you all day. i need you to perform a service on a friday night in august, we send them off into the good night and knowing everything there is to know on all of the sist stories out there. that's where you come in and you get to tell our audience everything they need to know about this new book by omarosa including but not limited a scene where the president is eating paper and the fact that she gave an p.r. interview conflicted of the tale and the book of the president alleged use of the "n" word. >> omarosa was fired last december and she gets the prize for being the first tell-all memo memoir out of this white house. it is a weird one because there is questions of omarosa. she calls the president gbigot. she contradicts herself in the book, she has not heard it but she confirmed it. >> she claims that he ate a piece of paper when michael cohen was walking in the office to hide it from his lawyer that he ate it. she claims that ivanka trump, the first daughter was responsible for ordering up the list of leakers in the white house who would be fired. this like apparently, ivanka tried to stay or project a persona who was above the fray and cares about women's empowerment only. omarosa portrays her as cut throat as her father. the allegations are tremendous and where this falls on the credibility matrix with michael wolff suffering credibility of what's real or what's not. how do you judge omarosa's book is a big question. she certainly has a nice runway on a nice august weekend to have the news cycle to herself. >> all the kids watching, don't eat paper if you seeing this at home. this is from the generation that thought it was a good idea to eat paste in school. >> thank you guys enough, frank, ken vogel and thank you all so very much. have a great weekend. what we may think may have been happening behind the scene during the lengthy and unusual delay in the manafort's trial today and preparing for a tense weekend in charlottesville on the one year anniversary of the fatal confrontation and in washington where white supremacists and protesters will square off in earshots of the white house. "the 11th hour" on a friday night is just getting underway. this jury. this time they were unhappy of what the judge said while prosecutors were discussing a loan that they say manafort fraudulently applied for but did not receive and the motion they argued "the court's statement that the government may have spent time alone that was granted and regarding bank fraud conspiracy and conveys the court's opinions on the facts and mislead the jury." when witnesses take the stand, jurors were told manafort may have used his position to dangle trump's position jobs. with us, we welcome back danny cevallos and we welcome chad day, investigative reporter for the associated press. he was inside the court today for all of these proceedings or lack there of. i heard chuck rosenberg. he was theorizing that this could be -- your honor i looked a at the device and i saw television coverage and it would still take a lot o f time to turn to. >> could it be a juror riding on the subway or commuting or seeing a newspaper and glanced at it. this is a process that takes a long time. they have to take the jurors aside and remove the other jurors, hey, what did you find out. a lot of times get burned up. how can we spin this to our side's favor. do we like this juror. one attorney for the defense may say that's a good juror and other may say no, we got to get them out of there. that's why this can take so long because it is a lot of back and forth just because the juror may have flipped on the tv at the wrong time. chad, you were there, what was it like again, we don't know what it is you witness. but, what was it like witnessing it? >> right, so we expected the prosecution to come in and rest their case today. instead we were greeted by a 20-minute huddle between the attorneys and judge ellis and there was not any kind of explanation for why there was a delay. he recessed until the afternoon. we did get a couple of things that backup what danny is saying. the judge at one point left the courtroom towards the jury room and later on when the proce proceedings started, he did not discuss the case anyone else and cracked a joke on don't comment on the attire of the witnesses. all signs being some kind of jury issues. like you say the transcript is under sealed and we won't know until some time. >> danny, we get into your line of work. defense goes to work, they're under no obligation to call any witnesses, what work do they have to do and what do you think they do? >> my times defense calls on no witnesses at all. they rely on attacking the government's case. in a case like this, they're not many defenses in such a paper intensive case. here is what the manafort team needs to do. they need to focus on gates that the order came from gates. they need to focus on that which the bank employees when they testify, they don't have a dog in the fight, they're not biassed or cooperating witnesses. some of them, defense has to point out, this is not fraud. he may have fought it this way and air bnb has a different policy that does not allow it or not accurate. the defense has a lot of work to do because this has been a paper intensive case with cooperating witness who got up there on the stand and all his sins pointed out to the defendant and said that's my former cohort and he did it. >> like among journalists and lawyers, you often hear people say if you watch the jury, a jury that is cleared the defendant is going to come in and make strong eye contact, they're proud of what they did. a jury -- him or her found him guilty is going to overt their eyes. stuff like that we journalists watch the jury box for. having said that, what's the dynamics and i know you have been watching sitting there. >> i have been in trial for two weeks. the jurors have paid attention. there is time subject matter are dry. we have seen jurors not nod off, rick gates got their attention and they are really keying in on the discussion of lifestyle and following the tax case and the prosecution put on an expert witness who is testifying about how much money, $16 million that he says should have been reported on his taxes and i can tell that they were taking notes and keeping up with their testimony and so you know it is a complex case that these are really kind of simple charges. did you report offshore bank accounts on your taxes and did you pay enough taxes that you were supposed to. did you lie to get loans. and so i think so far they really been keeping up of what the prosecution is putting in front of them. >> $16 million on a tax return, sooner or later you are talking about large amounts that may attract some attention. can't thank you gentlemen enough. this trial which is stretching into week three. dan danny cevallos and chad day. thank you very much. security is tight around the university of virginia and the street of that town as well. one year after the violent protest with white supremacists, we are live in charlottesville, we'll have that when we continue. let's do an ad of a man eating free waffles at comfort inn. they taste like victory because he always gets the lowest price on our rooms, guaranteed, when he books direct at choicehotels.com. or just say, badda book. badda boom. book now at choicehotels.com does it look like i'm done?yet? 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[ mockingly ] "shouldn't you be at work?" todd. hold on. 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>> well, there is obviously the memory of heather heyer who stood throughout the long and tragic jim crow era stood for what we should be and not necessarily of what we are all the time. and so i think that's the most perhaps one of the most important things to take a moment and realize that someone gave her life and trying to protest against the neo-nazis and the clans man wen who gathe there a year ago. the event of august 11th and 12th will loom very large. that was the first momen moment -- maybe not the first but a significant moment where the president seemed to have a hard time figuring out whether he stood with people like heather heyer argued that we had to be apart and aside with our better angels or did he stand with david dukes and others? >> david dukes said a year ago that is why we elected donald trump was to protect statues like the robert e. lee statue and protest the way they protested. when the president of the united states advocated his moral leadership decisively and decidedly then that set a tone for t for the year and we are still living with those after shocks. >> clarence, you get to write history in realtime on a daily basis. is it possible when we look back at 2018, part of the plot is we have racism and activism and both as concurrent growth stocks. >> that's a good way to look at. it was quite a wake up call many of us had a year ago that race relations have gotten this bad only a few years of optimism that sprung up of barack obama's successful campaign. i never used it but a lot of people were questioning whether that happened. i did not realize how much my spirits have been lifted and my optimism have gotten inflated and told the tragedy in charlottesville a year ago, i have to say as one who remembers the summer of kent state of 1970, four college students killed while protesting the war and killed by national guards and troops and another situation that did not need to happen, people were not ready for things like that. the same thing happened in charlottesville where police under estimated what would happen when protesters and the unite the right, far right wing fashion clashed with antifa and they were not prepared for that. now charlottesville got hundreds of state troopers who are at the red end during the state of emergency already. here in washington here a little more accustom to this kind of disruption. things are quiet in august and washington. i expect they're going to be noisier. >> one of the tragedies is charlottesville is known anything but being home to one of the great country. part of the conversation, both gentlemen, thank you for staying with us over this break. we'll take this break, coinciding with the start of the nfl pre-season. the president renews his dispute with pro football players and most don't understand why they are outraged. we'll talk about that on the other side. i receive travel rewards. going new places. (oh!) going out for a bite. going anytime. rewarded! learn more at theexplorercard.com better things than rheumatoid arthritis. before you and your rheumatologist move to another treatment, ask if xeljanz xr is right for you. xeljanz xr is a once-daily pill for adults with moderate to severe ra for whom methotrexate did not work well enough it can reduce pain, swelling and further joint damage, even without methotrexate. xeljanz xr can lower your ability to fight infections, including tuberculosis. serious, sometimes fatal infections, lymphoma and other cancers have happened. don't start xeljanz xr if you have an infection. tears in the stomach or intestines, low blood cell counts, and higher liver tests and cholesterol levels have happened. your doctor should perform blood tests before you start and while taking xeljanz xr, and monitor certain liver tests. tell your doctor if you were in a region where fungal infections are common and if you have had tb, hepatitis b or c, or are prone to infections. don't let another morning go by without talking to your rheumatologist about xeljanz xr. don't let another morning go by without talking to the first survivor of alzis out there.ase and the alzheimer's association is going to make it happen. but we won't get there without you. join the fight with the alzheimer's association. would you love to see one of these nfl owners when someone disrespects our flag, you would say get that son of a -- out of the feel. he's fired. >> you should be standing proudly for our national anthem. you have to stand proudly for the national ananthem. >> pro football is back and pre-season is underway. someone must have alerted the president this morning. he shared this thought. "the nfl is at it again taking a knee when they should be standing proudly for the national anthem, he adds be happy and cool and stand proudly for your national anthem or be suspended without pay." as e-- still with us clarence page and john meacham, i got to say, i miss football and my beloved giants lost last night. >> we need certitude during this time. >> what's going on with the president and the national football league other than the league's ability to deal from this challenge from the president. >> i think the peachtree is exactly right. it is an elective feud and battle that the president has under taken. this is absolutely for the base. it is kind of 101, old southern strategy and i say that as a southerner. everybody knows what he's talking about when he talks about these people should not be in the country. it works with the base, i think that 30 and 35% or so in the country that seems to be inclined to follow trump anywhere including into us fearing of our civic life that a lot of things should be above and beyond politics. if it becomes about politics and players who are exercising their first amendment rights. an amendment written by a man who lives not far from charlottesville, james madison. i think it is pure old fashion unattractive and divisive politics and the kind of thing that the president is playing to fear and not to hope. he's going to pay a high price for this certainly in the long-term of history. >> clarence, in fox news today, i will paraphrase here of a question of a rich white guy asking of freedom of speech of a rich black guy and we are coming off the following from laura ingram, well-known to many in the media world, former supreme court clerk and long time law r lawyer. >> she said this. in some parts of the country, it does seem like the america that we know and love does not exist anymore. massive demographic changes have been voiced against the same people. much of this is related to both illegal and in some cases legal immigration of course, progressives love. >> the purpose of last night's angle was to point out that the rule of law meaning secure borders is something that used to bind our country together. >> and despite what some may be contending. i may explicitly clear that my commentary had nothing to do with race or ethnicity. >> clarence page, what do you think is going on here? >> i have known laura ingram for a couple of decades. i advised her for some time ago, one anne coulter is enough and does not make a good look for her to come off as a far right anti-immigrant if you will. i think it is a ratings grab just like i think donald trump future ca little fiasco with the nfl. we have some more important issues going on at the time. he becomes obsessed when people define him or anything. the whole nfl protest began with kaepernick have faded awwould hy if trump did not pump it up. what's his base? a white male who loves the nfl, i don't think he's going to change their minds in any kind of a way that's going to help him. this is the kind of fiasco that we stumbled into. >> this is why we have smart guys like you on our broadcast at times like this. jon meacham and clarence page. jon, please keep those angels on speed dial. >> it is in our contacts. >> thank you both. coming up for us, does the u.s. military need a six branch. can the nation afford it right now? what else is out there may compete more urgently for our time and attention, right now tonight and around the world. just listen. 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(avo) right now, get 0% apr financing on the 2018 subaru outback. ♪ keep it comin' love. if you keep on eating, we'll keep it comin'. all you can eat riblets and tenders at applebee's. now that's eatin' good in the neighborhood. i had a great meeting with putin, we discussed everything. i had a great meeting. we got along really well. by the way, that's a good thing, not a bad thing. >> just one week ago president trump was telling sploupportersw good his relationship with putin is and facing more sanctions from the u.s., russian leaders are striking a decidedly different tone according to reuters. the prime minister offered this warning. if the new sanctions impact russian banks, it would be possible to clearly call it a decla declaration of economic war and it would be necessary." with us tonight former battlefield commander of the persian gulf and these days an msnbc military analyst, general, take them on one at a time please and that's what are russia and north korea and their leaders trying to gain from this country? >> well, i think they got a clear understanding of their own objectives which i think we lack in the united states. i am still very much convinced and confident that secretary jim math mattis and mike pompeo and secretary treasury. and having said that, the preside president's reaction to many of these situations border on sa sainty. when it comes to north korea, they're still producing icbm which are not yet fully tested. there is zero chance they're going to denuclearize. they're trying to escape sanctions trying to get us out of south korea and to some extent the president's public rhetoric is helping them. that's a problem. when it comes to the russians this statement by medvedev was unsettling. one thing we shouldn't do is overstate the threat from russia. they got a lot of nukes, a lot of oil. a minor strategic force in terms of naval power ipower it, air power. an army that is not a significant threat to western europe. it is to the baltic states, poland, the ukraine. they're batting way bob their weight average. i remind people that the economy of russia is less than that have italy, less than that of california. this is not a major player. it's run by -- the roar of that crowd behind the president is what unsettles me. that is not. >> this is something new for our times. >> this guys a thug. he murders journalists, the opposition. he murders people overseas. he has eliminated most of the democratic beginnings in the russian federation. he's a gad bad guy. >> general i've been wanting to ask you about this space force idea. of course, we already have the u.s. air force space command which is a large part of the u.s. air force with a tack and a mission. what do you make of the space force notion and its chance at success? >>, the threat is real particularly from the chinese and the russians but the threshold to threaten our communication satellites is pretty low. i mean, modest country can build and attack -- we're spending a lot of money and a lot of science on trying to harden it and protect it. space operations is baked into every service. the army can't operate without our smart weapons don't work without space communications. so the space force concept is a separate service is one of those intellectually attractive ideas widely debated that's a thoroughly stupid idea. i don't think it's going to get funded by congress. civilian secretary, a new chief and -- i don't think it's going to happen. it's not a very good idea. it's an organizational fix to a functional challenge that i think mattis is addressing right now minus new legislation. >> give us your one-minute summation of this president's behavior and i've heard you put it this way. what if you were a combatant commander in the military? >> i said actually a battalion commander. over at fort benning all day today with these unbelievable experienced war fighters now that are running the army fairors, neighbor, marines, coasties. the president is you know, personally, i've been involved with three white houses fairly closely. i got a lot of years dealing with business, 15 years. i've been in civil government. i've never seen this level of illogical behavior, anger, impulsiveness, rudeness to the international leadership, never mind his domestic opposition. this is not the correct behavior for a senior executive at any level, never mind the president of the united states. >> strong words from an experienced man, general, always a pleasure to have you on. barry mccaffrey with us on a friday night. coming up, we remember a friend of ours. a patriot. and a warrior and a scholar and an enemy of terrorists everywhere. when we come back. with the new chase ink business unlimited card i get unlimited 1.5% cash back. it's so simple, i don't even have to think about it. so i think about mouthfeel. introducing chase ink business unlimited with unlimited 1.5% cash back on every purchase. let's get someone to say it with a really low voice. carl? lowest price guaranteed. what about the world's lowest limbo stick? how low can you go? nice one, carl. hey i've got an idea. just say, badda book. badda boom. badda book. badda boom. nice. always the lowest price, guaranteed. book now at choicehotels.com you might or joints.hing for your heart... but do you take something for your brain. with an ingredient originally discovered in jellyfish, prevagen has been shown in clinical trials to improve short-term memory. prevagen. healthier brain. better life. last thing before we go here tonight, friends and family and colleagues and fellow warriors gathered today to remember a great patriot and public servant a man our viewers came to know for his expertise and judgment as our analyst and steady hand during scary times. michael sheahan died at walter reed this past monday. he will be remembered most perhaps for what he wrote just before the turn of this century back in 1998, a secret memo urging the u.s. government to the cut off financing to a man named osama bin laden. and to stop giving sanctuary to an organization named al qaeda. after sounding the warning within his own government, sheahan became frustrated at the lack of action. in looking back on his life as a soldier, statesman and scholar, "the new york times" this week quoted him as asking his colleagues at the time, what is it going to take to get them to hit al qaeda? does al qaeda have to attack is the pentagon? of course, that was just one of the targets on 9/11 and sheahan helped secure the other, new york city. he ran the then brand-new nypd counter-terrorism bureau and he turned it into a world class organization in its field rivalling federal agencies. mike was born and raised in new jersey. i always thought the reason we got along so well was we shared an exit in neighboring towns and both grew up just off exit 117 of the garden state parkway. mike left the jersey shore for west point, then ranger school, then special forces as a green beret where one hostage rescue mission got the attention of the new york papers. he later earned two masters degrees, he was chief of counter-terrorism at the state department. he oversaw special operations at the pentagon. and peacekeeping at the u.n. which he was proud of. mike sheahan our friend and former cloog was of 3 years old. he fought multiple myeloma has hard as he fought terrorism during his lifetime. we, of course, accepted along