hagel put out some big stuff today. there's a lot to be excited about. he said, we can't just tweak. now the question is, we've heard that before. are we now going to see tweaks or are we going to see the real change he just gestured at? >> the reason i wanted to have you hear, mattie, you've been on "up" before, but i think it's fair to say skeptical about the size of the defense budget. >> right. >> i was sort of amazed, i have to say, you guys won a victory, which was i thought republicans were going to blanch at the sequester, and the reason they were going to blanch at the sequester, in fact, the design of the sequester was put something in to make them blanch, the $85 billion in the first year, half are on the defense side, which it's a big budget, but that's a big chunk, that's going to take a bite. somehow republicans got themselves to being okay with this. the question is, will that create political space for chuck hagel to do something more than tweaking? >> right. this is what we talked about last time i was on, that sequester was supposed to

secretary hagel? >> the fy15 budget we'll present earl next year will reflect the reality of whatever the situation is. i don't know if between now and next february if they worked hair on it, both parties, president has. >> that's why we're surprised when it didn't reflect this time around, but happy to hear it reflects the law of the land next time around. you know, last month, the addition of 15 additional intercepters will be deployed to alaska as reaction to the provocations we've had from north korea. this brings the numbers of alaska to the number of originally planned during the bush administration, i believe, later we deuced by president obama. i have a question to you about this. was the russian government consulted or informed that the united states was considering this decision before the decision was made, and if so, when did that occur? >> the answer is not to my knowledge. it was not russian government who was not consulted in any way, and it was not that decision, that policy was not d

secretary hagel, welcome back to this committee. and secretary hagel, i wanted to ask you questions about the furlough. the navy is reporting that with a recent passage of defense appropriations bills it has the financial resources to avoid furloughing the 200 navy and marine corps. civilian including thousand from my home state of north carolina. recently a pentagon spokesman state that the current plan is to implement civilian furlough with rough consistency across the department so i remain committed to replacing sequestration the balance long-term approach that can give certainty not only to the department of defense but the department to businesses and obviously men and women serving our nation. and until this problem is fixed, i'm concerned about unnecessary furlough. vis urloughing civilianrt term employee they would be outweighed by the long-term drop in readiness. for example, the laying maintenance like that performed at frc east at cherry point, would likely result in additional cost when the backlog would be eventually a

secretary hagel? the 2015 budget we will next present early next year will reflect the reality of whatever the situation is i don't know if between now and next february, if the congress and the president are able to come together with a deficit redpux plan. i know, the congress worked hard on it both parties. the president has. i know, everyone is hopeful. as you suggest the law of the land is the law of the land. that will be the budget that is presented. >> okay. that's great. that's why we are surprised when it didn't reflect this time around. i'm happy to hear it will reflect the law of the land next time around. mr. secretary, last month the edition of the -- addition of the fief teen additional ground based intercepters will be deployed to alaska as a reaction to the provocation we had from north korea. this brings the number of gbi in alaska to the number originally planned during the bush administration with president obama. i have a question for you with the russian government consulted or i

defense secretary chuck hagel said the white house has informed members of congress that intelligence officials believe quote with with some degree of varying confidence unquote that syrian president bashar al assad's government has used chemical weapons against the members of the opposition specifically sarin gas. did not provide any specific facts no specifications of when or where the a legend weapons were used. and it's also not clear what his phrase means the phrasing used is with some degree of varying confidence does that mean that one member of the intelligence communities is confident that this is happening and another member is not confident secretary hagel also said that assad's use of chemical weapons violates every convention of warfare and now the u.s. is reportedly asking the u.n. to investigate these allegations by reportedly testing bodies in syria whether or not they have any chemical or biological weapons in their system now we do know that in the past u.s. president barack obama has said that the use of chemical weapons by the syrian government would be a game chan

christiane, you and i know chuck hagel, fareed, you know chuck hagel. he is not a guy who speaks provocatively without specific warning, without specific reason. when i heard what he was saying, i sensed he's pretty concerned. >> he is concerned, but rather than ominous, it sounded kind of reassuring. he basically said we have what it takes to defend our homeland, our allies. and i think that yesterday the admiral in charge of the pacific command, admiral locklear, told congress that of course they would take defensive action if they saw any missile headed in a hostile manner toward allies or u.s. bases in guam. but he would not suggest shooting down any missiles in inhabited areas, in other words, not targeted in anger. >> what happens, fareed, if they do launch not just one or two, but multiple missiles, and they all go into the pacific ocean, they fly over japan, land if the water. then what? >> that's precisely why i think the american plan seems to be at least not precipitously to intercept them and shoot them down. because if these are sort of har

i would like to hear your secretary of -- opinion of secretary hagueen, chuck hagel. it's been on the job for a couple of months now. you were very critical of him, with those in your party , how would you rate the job he is doing? >> i'd probably give him an a. >> really? why? >> i feel very good at about him at this point. you're asking me a month into his administration. >> but you've been working directly with him now. >> let me tell you a couple of things. he called me when he was nominated. i didn't know him. i didn't have a vote. but he would ask me what my concerns were. i told him, we discussed them i have not found him to be -- to be saying one thing and doing a different thing. i did opposed him when i watched the hearings, i didn't think he did well in those hearings, and my concerns weren't alleviated. i opposed him. didn't mean anything. but he called -- i was going to call him to congrat congratulate him, he called me first to say hey, you know, i'm the secretary, we're going to be working together, i want to reach out. i thought that was -- i mean, aro

>> secretary hagel's proposal really scratches the surface. he is dealing with what we would call the back end of the trial process. as you heard from a lot of the survivors in that film, the invisible war, we're not dealing with the front end yet. which is where the majority of the commander bias happens. where a victim will come forward, report her or his assault and the system itself is rigged in such a way that the commander has authority to determine whether or not the trial goes forward at all. and the vast majority of sex krils do not go forward. and the vast majority of accused therefore do not see the inside of a courtroom. the criminal justice system was in the military today doesn't just not serve the victim. it also doesn't serve the accused. the accused doesn't stand a shot at a fair and impartial trial if it is his commander, his boss or his boss's boss who is determining his fate, right? so no one's justice is served here. >> i wanted to pick up on your testimony from the armed services subcommittee last month which was importan

secretary hagel, i would like to ask you a question first. on march 15 when you announced that we would be able to have additional intercepters you were standing next to the vice chairman of the chiefs of staffs. kn08 "we believe the probably has the rain todge reach the united states." would you agree with that statement? >> i don't are all him -- i was thrnt -- i don't know if i was there or not. i'm not sure if he was referring to hawaii, which is part of the know. states, as we so i don't know. certainly, as i said there are things we don't know. so i'll ask him if he was -- >> let me help. do you recall the launch of the north korean satellite into space, that had a third stage. it was the third stage that was the breakthrough for the north koreans. i think what he was saying was now they have that third stage technology, apparently under control it could migrate to the kn08. >> thank you. i would like to ask me next question to you, general dempsey. there was a study that finished last month and now while the contents of the study are c

christiane, you and i know chuck hagel, fareed, you know chuck hagel. he is not a guy who speaks provocatively without specific warning, without specific reason. when i heard what he was saying, i sensed he's pretty concerned. >> he is concerned, but rather than ominous, it sounded kind of reassuring. he basically said we have what it takes to defend our homeland, our allies. and i think that yesterday the admiral in charge of the pacific command, admiral locklear, told congress that of course they would take defensive action if they saw any missile headed in a hostile manner toward allies or u.s. bases in gu all. but he would not suggest shooting down any missiles in inhabited areas, in other words, not targeted in anger. >> what happens, fareed, if they do launch not just one or two, but multiple missiles, and they all go into the pacific ocean, they fly over japan, land if the water. then what? >> that's precisely why i think the american plan seems to be at least not precipitously to intercept them and shoot them down. because if these are sort of h

chuck hagel says u.s. officials believe the syrian government has used chemicals in the battle to sustain power. he did not say exactly who was targeted but did detail the type of chemical agent, sarin gas, take a listen. >> this morning the white house delivered a letter to several members of congress on the topic of chemical weapons use in syri syria. ed -- the letter will be to you shortly. assesses with some degree of varying confidence that the syrian regime has used chemical weapons on a small scale in syria. specifically the chemical agent sarin. >> we're joined on the phone by senator lindsey graham -- actually by remote. senator graham, first of all your comments on chuck hagel. >> yeah, i was one of the senators on the letter. well, it's a red line that's been crossed. it's clearly an indication and admission by the administration that sarin gas was used by the assad regime and the president said that would be a red line. so the question is what's next? >> what do you think should happen next? >>

hagel spoke at the national defense college yesterday. [video clip] >> they have nuclear capacity now. they have missile delivery capacity now. up so as they have ratchet their bellicose dangers rhetoric and some of the actions realhave taken present a clear danger and threat to the interests of our allies starting with south korea and japan. the northhe threats koreans have leveled directly at the united states regarding our ,ase in guam, threatened hawaii threatened the west coast of the united states. takecretary of defense, we those threats seriously. we have to take those threats seriously. we have had serious responses to those threats. host: michele flournoy? guest: i think the secretary is it right. the united states has to take seriously the threats from north korea. very prudent action has been ordered to increase our defenses by the president. sending additional ballistic missile ships into the region. this not know where unproven north korean leader is going to go. we don't know if he is going to miscalculate. better to be saf

secretary hagel, i have three questions. if you can answer them yes or no, and then if you need an explanation. first of all, with possible delays in the f-35 procurement, do you believe the navy and the air force have budgeted sufficient funds to maintain the necessary strike fighter inventory to meet the national military requirement, the national military strategy requirements? >> we, i do. -- yes, i do. >> with regard to the national guard, in your opinion and given the current restrained budget atmosphere we know we're in, can we continue to adequately resource and equip the national guard and reserve component as an operational force, or do you feel like you're going to be in a position where you have to revert back to the strategic reserve model? >> well, the way i would answer it, i think the national guard and reserves are key components of our military force structure and will continue to be. and i think that, i think that has become quite obvious the last few years. and without going into a long oration of this, m

defense secretary chuck hagel said his intelligence services have quote some confidence that syria's government used chemical weapons on a small scale he said it's believed the nerve agent sarin was deployed against civilians and rebel fighters are merino porton has more. the u.s. defense secretary chuck hagel said at the white house and has informed members of congress that intelligence officials believe with some degree of varying confidence that syrian president bashar al assad's government has used chemical weapons against members of the opposition specifically sarin gas didn't provide any specific facts on when or where the alleged weapons were used and it was not even clear what the freeze with some degree of varying confidence even means does that mean that one intelligence official is confident that this is taking place and one is not confident clearly that that language is either convoluted or are bit confusing now secretary hagel said that assad's use of chemical weapons violates every convention of warfare is that tuesday israel's intelligence officials claim that syria th

i heard secretary chuck hagel was there and i said i would like to visit with him. this is schedules are all plans. he came the next day and we had a good discussion. i do not know how we change the scheduled to make it work out. he did. we were in total agreement on that. he is going to be with karzai the next day. i think general done for it is that still have that right now. i think they are a good team. all of the chips are in place to make it happen. how are we proceeding on this agreement? the president had talked to karzai the day before and told him we need to get this done now. i am saying get it done this spring. did not wait. i saw what happened and how it fell apart in iraq. the downside, what we would lose, it would be tragic. real positive things. we have made really good gains there. we hear of the tragedies of a suicide bomber. the blue one up as we arrived at headquarters. positives as a agreement. they can provide enough security. the tal bang cannot beat -- taliban cannot be the afghans. they do not have the numbers or ability. we still need to be

eastern on c-span. >> monday, chuck hagel says the u.s. plans to send 12 more -- aircraft to japan this summer. chuck hagel made this announcement during a press conference. this is 40 minutes. today i am honored to welcome the minister to the pentagon. we have just completed a very productive meeting covering the full range of issues facing the u.s.-japan alliance including north korea's destabilizing behavior, threats to maritime security, and our insured efforts to enhance postured capabilities to respond to the 21st century challenges. [translating in japanese] >> in the course of our discussions the minister and i reaffirmed that the u.s.-japan alliance is the cornerstone of security and prosperity. [translating in japanese] >> our focus here today is on our defense. i should note that the united states renounces to asia. our two nations are taken steps to economic and look ties -- including progress towards japan joining the trans-pacific partnership trading negotiations. [translating in japanese] >> strengthening our security allian

i want to ask secretary hagel a question. number one, secretary had not a -- panetta did make it a priority, that have been pushing for and i hope again you will continue that effort as for dealing with budget issues and it's fair and auditability will help that cause. second way on export controls, to try and simplify the system of export controls for defense manufacturing industrial base who are under a lot of pressure. things like dolphin helicopter parts of engine parts restricted because it outdated regulations needs to be changed. a good progress recently and i hope under your leadership that effort will continue. the last point is the budget document tries to have 2021. the timeframe of the budget control act that the 2005 budget rack will not generate net savings for 13 years? no prior brac has been able to do that in less than six years. that's just a case. there may be reasons, but doing it in the context of the budget control act for a lot of us does not work. you made your visit to afghanistan and i complement geo

>> this is an example of what chuck hagel was talking about in his speech today, if you just tally up one year's worth of cost overruns for the 96 most important defense programs, in one year, that's $74 billion. which, if that was its own country, would be the third largest defense budget in the world, more than russia spends. >> sue terry, spencer ackerman, mattie duppler, that is "all in" for this evening. rachel, sorry i'm throwing it to you late, but i know how much you love defense overruns. >> if you're going to be five seconds late because we have to learn that our cost overruns alone are the third largest defense budget in the world and we learn it from spencer, i'm with you. >> awesome. >> thank you, awesome. thanks to you at home, as well, for staying with us this hour. the president of the united states, flying about the country and making public appearances, that is always kind of the fulcrum around which the rest of the day's political news tilts. that was largely true today with the president in colorado and then heading to california. but there was also big substantiat

this is video of hagel meeting with israeli prime minister yesterday. in his talks with egyptian leaders today hagel will try to preserve u.s. influence in egypt as the country struggles with its transition to democracy. >>> more mosquito fogging is planned this morning in contra costa county. areas along taylor road and on holland track road will be treated with insecticide. yesterday's fogging had to be called off because of high winds. crews will try again in 15 minutes. >>> the boundaries for yosemite national park can be expanding. if the bill passes, more than 1500-acres of undeveloped land would be added to the park. spokesperson says the bill has broad bipartisan support but an identical proposal was turned down by the house of representatives last year. >>> 4:48 is the time. back over to sal who is starting in san francisco. how does it look? >> it looks pretty good there, pam. northbound 101 approaching the 80 split and no major problems here. we have a little bit of road work on the southbound 101 freeway connector to eastbound 80. you might

at 4:30, the president and vice president meet with secretary of defense chuck hagel. a briefing today at the white house will be at 1:15 with press secretary jay carney. back for another hour with congressman tony cardenas and congressman chris van hollen. see you then. stay around. >> announcer: this is the "bill press show."

hagel made it clear that they do not have all the facts yet. the u.s. government is going to continue to investigate. they do not want to repeat the mistakes of the bush administration, who said that there were weapons of mass destruction in iraq, but there were not large stockpiles, so they also do not want terrorists to have access to weapons of mass destruction or chemical weapons. >> this is going to give fuel to members of congress who have criticized obama for not doing enough to help the rebels in syria. i am thinking of senator john mccain, for example. what does this announcement mean then for u.s. policy in syria? >> president obama is very reluctant to put boots on the ground. he would prefer to increase diplomatic pressure on the assad regime and of its allies -- for example, russia, and iran. if president obama decides to send troops to syria, he would look for international support through an international coalition of troops. you just mentioned senator mccain. he has already stated the u.s. should set up is on providing a safety area for

brach from our defense secretary chuck hagel now just announced that the united states and our intelligence services can confirm that there is some evidence of chemical weapons use in syria. there are still some questions about the chemical weapons, what type exactly, how much used, who exactly used it. there's been claims on either side in this conflict in syria about either side using chemical weapons. we also just received a briefing from senator mccain that said senator mccain received a letter from the white house with the president also describing some use of chemical weapons in syria. this important. as we get more information about this news, is this the red line that has been crossed by the bashar al-assad regime that would elicit more response from us, the united states. that is the big question that overhangs these remarks. as we get more information we'll bring that to you. jon: fox news alert we'll take you now to the campus of southern methodist university in

chuck hagel was talking to defense reporters traveling with him over night to israel. he briefed them. he said there's know differences between the u.s. and opposition. both countries are in their lock step. he did except -- there was some difference in the timing of when the iranians crossed back. and clearly that will be the certain of their discussions with the prime minister to the key figures he's meeting. some convergence. some of the rhetoric that you think from hagel all night long sucting that the -- and it's if equipment and for the toughening of the rhetoric. she has the trying defend herself, to take its own ecision according to its own table. >> demonstrations began over the aleced kedge nap, rap and torture of a five-year-old girl. >> many demonstrators are angry. the case was touched raw nerves in indian society. angry protestors gary it side the home of sewn yeah gandy. -- sonia gandy. >> many are sbging to useful. opening about these pictures at all. the latest incident involves the kidnap, torture of a 5-year-old girl is particularly vicious. a man in

secretary hagel reassured americans the u.s. is ready and prepared to protect this country and its allies. we want to know, what is your level of concern over north korea's nuclear threats? vote by texting or calling us at 408-300-9222. 1 for high, 2 for moderate, 3 for not concerned at all. tweet us @nbcbayarea. results coming up at 6:00. >>> in "health matters," hpv is known for mostly causing cervical cancer. new information links it to lung cancer. researchers at fox chase cancer center in philadelphia examined tissue samples from lung cancer patients. a small amount had evidence that the cancer was fuelled by a strain of the human pap loma virus, phv. certain strains of hpv are linked to head and neck cancers. new findings could target treatments for lung tumors. >>> pfizer has been experimenting with a bill for advanced breast cancer and today the f da gave the experimental treatment a breakthrough designation. this means the development and review of this drug will be sped up because the fda sees it as a big advancement o

from u-s defense secretary chuck hagel. south korean officials now say, the north has finished preparations for a test launch. the missile in question is an untested weapon. it is believed it could reach as far as guam - which is home to u-s naval and air bases. secretary hagel said today, north korea is quote - 'skating very close' to a dangerous line. and remember you can watch the weather forecast whenever it is convenient for you on our 24/7 bay area news channel. you can also get headlines and live traffic. it's on comcast 193 and you can also watch it live on kron4.com. >> toy maker mattel is rolling out a new line of culturally- diverse barbie dolls. but the first doll is already causing controversy. mattel's mexico barbie is dressed in a festive "fiesta" dress, with a pet chihuahua and a passport. the doll makers say, all of the dolls have a passport and have a pet friend. the company website says, the doll is meant to teach girls about the culture, traditions, and ancestral dress of mexico. but critics say, the ent

defense secretary chug hagel is taking pyongyang seriously. >> as they have ratcheted up the beliicose dangerous rhetoric and the actions they have taken over the last few weeks present a real and clear danger and threat to the interest certainly of our allice starting with south korea. >> hagel told the military audience that the u.s. is trying to defuse thuation with china and others . the pentagon is dealing with spending cuts starting this year. >> the sequester cut because it falls heavily on operations. it is already having a disruptive and potentially damaging impact on the force. >> it could affect moral and impact productivity and the defense is addressing the cuts, hagel said it is just the beginning. >> fiscal realities demand another hard look at personnel . how many people we have military and civilian . how many do we need. what do these people do. >> today pyongyang barred south korea workers to cross the border . so the south koreans had no choice but to return home. the worst thing the u.s. could do to regimes like north korea is project weakness. >> this tells us that

we've put a link to chuck hagel's speech at maddow blog today. it's pretty good. ahead of the speech today, secretary hagel and his deputy announced they'll each give up a portion of their salary this year. they'll return a portion of their salary to the federal treasury because of all the pentagon workers having to take unpaid furlough days thanks to the sequester. that announcement came first, but after president obama said today he's going to do the same thing. quote, the president has decided that to share in the sacrifice being made by public servants across the federal government affected by the sequester, he'll contribute a portion of his salary back to the treasury. president obama is giving up 5% of his presidential salary for the whole year back to the treasury. that will not make a difference to the workers forced into pay cuts and furloughs, because congress has not yet undone the sequester, but it will put a spotlight on it. it will remind us all that that sequester is happening and it's causing real pain. >>> one other thing that reminds us the seque

defense secretary chuck hagel said the u.s. has evidence. >> the u.s. intelligence community assesses varying confidence that the syrian regime used chemical weapons in syrialy chemical agent saron. >> lawmakers who are pushing president obama to be more active in the syrian war said we should take steps. >> provide a safe area for the opposition to operate and establish a no fly zone and provide weapons to the people in the resistance that we trust. >> obama fortunatelies say syrian air defense would make a difficult no fly zone and concerned that the u.s. weapons would find in the hands of the extremist. >> a red line for us is we start seeing a whole bunch of chemical weapons moving around and utilized. i have made clear that use of chemical weapons is a game changer. >> given the experience in iraq, it is essential we establish that bashar assad used them. senator mccain is suspicious. i wor that the president is using it as an expense. >> and assad refuse tod allow access to experts. lawmakers suggest that syria used chemical weapons in two locatio

. >>> chuck hagel says that syria has used chemical weapons. will that force the president to take action? senate foreign relations bob corker joins us next. [ male announcer ] this is betsy. her long day of pick ups and drop offs begins with arthritis pain... and a choice. take up to 6 tylenol in a day or just 2 aleve for all day relief. all aboard. ♪ arrival. with hertz gold plus rewards, you skip the counters, the lines, and the paperwork. zap. it's our fastest and easiest way to get you into your car. it's just another way you'll be traveling at the speed of hertz. >>> major news today on the subject of chemical weapons used in syria. responding to letter today, from a bipartisan group of senators requesting answers on this murky question of whether the assad regime has used chemicals, according to the new assessment by the white house, on two incidents they did or someone did. there is a concern about the chain of custody of these weapons, but principally, it was sarin gas, according to the defense secretary, chuck hagel. has the syrian

syrian government had used lethal lethal chemical weapons against rebels and at that time secretary hagel expressed his doubts about those findings now the u.s. is currently pressing for the united nations to conduct a comprehensive investigation into allegations of damascus use of chemical weapons but the united nations secretary general has previously appointed a team of experts but the syrian government has been accused of blocking the team from doing its work now u.s. president barack obama has previously said that the use of chemical weapons by the syrian government would be a game changer in the u.s. position on intervening in the two year old civil war in a letter sent to two u.s. senators a white house legal official did write that the assessment of likely chemical weapons use in syria will not automatically trigger action including military intervention but the official also referred to a bad intelligence about weapons of mass destruction in iraq that led to the invasion the us invasion of that country in that case the intelligence was proved wrong everybody can remember just a d

is not confident clearly that that language is either convoluted or are bit confusing now secretary hagel said that assad's use of chemical weapons violates every convention of warfare but what's interesting is that on tuesday israel's intelligence officials claim that syria that the syrian government had used lethal lethal chemical weapons against rebels and at that time secretary hagel expressed his doubts about those findings now the u.s. is currently pressing for the united nations to conduct a comprehensive investigation into allegations of damascus use of chemical weapons but the united nations secretary general has previously appointed it seem of experts but the syrian government has been accused of blocking the team from doing its work where u.s. president barack obama has previously said that the use of chemical weapons by the syrian government would be a game changer in the u.s. position on intervening in the two year old civil war in a letter sent to two u.s. senators a white house legal official did write that the assessment of likely chemical weapons use in syria will not aut

secretary hagel looks like this year's version of susan rice. they shove talking points in front of an administration official who unfortunately goes out and repeats them and they have to back away from them. this is showing trouble conducting serious national security matters and i think the president will have a lot to explain here. bill: second matter here, "wall street journal" fr you yesterday, the title of your piece. obama put america in a red line box on syria. explain. >> well, i think by laying down a red line and then not adhering to it, the president undercuts his own credibility. unfortunately in the case of syria, the red line he laid undo was the wrong red line. although people say, well we've got to do something because the red line's been crossed, i don't agree with that. i think you don't compound one error by engaging in another error. and the fact is the most e iranian nuclear weaponsre, program, i think both in israel and iran, they look at the president's statements. they conclude he is not serious when he says all options

the same way it was sort of new and different that chuck hagel was questioned so hard. i mean there was not kind of the level of you know, i guess respect is the word afforded to a presidential pick, a nominee. so this, this the game has chang changed. >> to be fair, this kind of judicial appointments increased substantially during the last administration, by democrats in the senate against republican nominees. >> and those nominees were -- really out of the balance. >> and what would republicans say of the cat lin halligan? about the same? >> chuck hagel is a republican. >> lest we forget. >> actually being very effective in making sure that the president, who is a moderate president is putting up republican after republican. and people who i would say that the most of the liberal base would say i don't know where that guy is going to be on corporate rights and corporate power, but that's okay. >> it's a slippery slope it didn't start yesterday. >> and there could be a taste of their own medicine here. i think it's elevated. >> it's beyond that. >> the filibuster, josh

that's the word from chuck hagel, who says the u.s. believes with varying degrees of confidence that syria has used chemical weapons. that's not confirmation. not in the same leaving still, lawmakers in congress release statements saying it's time for the united states to take action. it's not that simple. there are still lots of questions about the syrian rebels. the very people would would be supporting. in fact a branch in al i'd in iran announced it has joined force with one of syria's largest opposition groups. jennifer griffin is live at the pentagon. have we crossed the readline? they want to say no. >> the letter from the white house to congress suggests a small out of sarin gas was likely used. this is blazed on fit rolling cal evidence or blood or tissue samples from the victims. the white house wants more evidence. the letter from the white house says the intelligence community assesses, quote, with dearth degrees of confidence the syrian regime has used chemical weapons on a small scale. chuck hagel appeared to be surprised

deploying missile defense systems to the area as defense secretary chuck hagel admits the rogue nation presents, quote, a real and clear danger to america. we'll have the very latest and the fallout to your investments. >> in the meantime, reaction to all this and more from former treasury secretary, paul o'neil, will be joining us, exclusively. you do not want to miss his unique insight into all of these events, coming up a little bit later here on the "closing bell." looking forward to see him. >> let's check where we stand right now as we approach this final stretch. off of the lows, still in double digit decline. down about two-thirds of 1%. pulling back from that record high reached yesterday, on the dow and the s&p. technology, one of the leadership groups on the downside, 3223, last trade there. and the s&p 500 sits at 1526 with a decline of 14 points or so. >> one key sector that's been leading the rally this year so far, the transportation sector. that gave the bulls great comfort. but the index is down for the third straight day and it's now with today's decline below its 50-

christiane, you and i know chuck hagel, fareed, you know chuck hagel. he is not a guy who speaks provocatively without specific warning, without specific reason. when i heard what he was saying, i sensed he's pretty concerned. >> he is concerned, but rather than ominous, it sounded kind of reassuring. he basically said we have what it takes to defend our homeland, our allies. and i think that yesterday the admiral in charge of the pacific command, admiral locklear, told congress that of course they would take defensive action if they saw any missile headed in a hostile manner toward allies or u.s. bases in gu all. but he would not suggest shooting down any missiles in inhabited areas, in other words, not targeted in anger. >> what happens, fareed, if they do launch not just one or two, but multiple missiles, and they all go into the pacific ocean, they fly over japan, land if the water. then what is this. >> that's precisely why i think the american plan seems to be at least not precipitously to intercept them and shoot them down. because if these are s

defense secretary chuck hagel has said his intelligence service is of quote some confidence the syrian government has used chemical weapons on a small scale and said it's believed that the nerve agent sarin was used against civilians and rebel fighters let's get more details from marty's marine important live for us in new york so his comments are the first confirmation of any kind of chemical weapons being used in this conflict tell us more about that and what effect it could have. while addressing reporters in abu dhabi u.s. defense secretary chuck hagel said at the white house and has informed members of congress that intelligence officials believe with some degree of varying confidence that syrian president bashar al assad's government has used chemical weapons against members of the opposition specifically sarin gas didn't provide any specific facts on when or where the alleged weapons were used it was not even clear what the phrase with some degree of bring home to even means does that mean that one intelligence official is confident that this has taken place and one is not confi

secretary hagel, and what specific area does the u.s. government expect to see more of her role from the self-defense forces through the process of reviewing these guidelines? and to defense ministers onodera what kind of area of self-defense forces role should be beefed-up to deepen the cooperation? and the question goes to as to when are you going to be compiling -- compiling up the basic directions of these guidelines? if you have any schedules or timeframes in your mind, could you share with us? [speaking in native tongue] [speaking in native tongue] [speaking in native tongue] >> translator: the current guidelines were drafted in 1997. therefore a certain amount of time has passed since then and we have seen drastic changes in the security environment. the u.s. and japan have been studying on these roles, missions and capabilities discussions and we have just started discussion on the strategic environment perception between our two countries, especially. and as for the schedule of this review, i think it's going to take a few years

defense secretary geoff hagel -- chuck hagel says that the information may not be complete. they have been padding areas neither capital with more conventional weapons. this is reportedly the district where rebels have been fighting against people from the neighboring area global to the side. toneighboring area low oil assad. they cannot say for sure that chemical weapons are being used. what are their opens at the state -- what are their options at this stage? >> the use has agreed to this conclusion with some confidence. that means there is some doubt. what is interesting that, for now, the u.s. is taking a very cautious stand, trying to evident -- trying to verify this evidence. they want to consult with their allies before they take any action. however, the tension is mounting. we just heard from the deputy israeli foreign minister who has asked to take control of the desk of syria's -- of syria's chemical weapons arsenal. -- tensions are rising and the words are big, but so far, no action is promise. the beginningng of a confirmation that chemical weapons are being used