new details surrounding ecuador ecuador s massive earthquake. anine passing of one of tv s favorite moms. early today starts right now. good morning. i m betty nguyen. we begin with breaking news. a suicide car bombing in the afghan capital. afghan officials say the explosion happened close to the afghanwiefense min.try in kabul. it was followed by gunfire still ongoing. the taliban has claimed responsibility for the attack on twitler. back here at home. at least five deaths are blamed on what is being called unprecedented rainfall i the houston area. the governor of texas has declared a state of emergency in nine counties. three to four inches of rain fell for an hour for some places inundating waterways and residents trapped in homes and vehicles. hundreds of flights were cancelled. reporter: a flood for the ages. the nation s fourth largest city at a standstill, submerged by as many as 16 inches of rain. highways under water and public transit shut down and schools
the former u.s. senator from nebraska, the only republican on the obama national security team in a prominent role, oversaw the withdrawal from afghanistan and cut backs in war time defense spending. but now the president is planning a bigger presence in afghanistan and is ramping up american military activity in iraq and syria, and he s looking for a new defense chief to carry out the new missions. pushed or pulled, fired or resigned. good mor morning, everythinge seated. secretary of defense chuck hagel is out depending his successor s confirmation. i have determined that having guided the department through this transition it was an appropriate time for him to complete his service. the former vietnam combat vet and republican senator came in to the administration to help cut budge and it s guide the pentagon as it wrapped up its combat mission in afghan storm the u.s. military role in iraq was already finished when the situation changed. militants from ey iraq and
hello i am ray suarez. calling chuck hagel an exemplary defense secretary. president obama bid him farewell after just two years on the job. the former u.s. senator from nebraska, the only republican on the obama national security team in a prominent role, oversaw the withdrawal from afghanistan and cut backs in war time defense spending. but now the president is planning a bigger presence in afghanistan and is ramping up american military activity in iraq and syria, and he s looking for a new defense chief to carry out the new missions. pushed or pulled, fired or resigned. good mor morning, everything, be seated. secretary of defense chuck hagel is out depending his successor s confirmation. i have determined that having guided the department through this transition it was an appropriate time for him to complete his service. the former vietnam combat vet and republican senator came in to the administration to help cut budge and it s guide the pentagon as it wrapped u