chuck hagel warned that the u.s. would not ignore action that could threaten long-term process. >> china called the south china sea a sea of peace, friendship and cooperation. that's what it should be. in recent months china has undertaken destabilizing actions asserting claims over the south china sea. we oppose any effort by any nation to restrict overflight of freedom or navigations, whether from military or civilian vessels, or countries big or small. the united states will not look the other way when if the add principles are being challenged. >> scott heidler has more. >> reporter: the lang im from the u.s. -- language from the u.s. secretary of geps, chuck hagel - -- defense, chuck hagel, the united states seeing this as possibly having having international ramifications. chuck hagel welcomed a move by japan, where they said they want to be more involved in peace in the region. they are an ally of the united states. they are upping the pivot to asia. in six years 60% of air force and navy will operate out of t

in the honorable chuck hagel, secretary of defense. the 18th chairman of the joint chiefs of staff. theutive director of national military cemetery. commanding general of the united states army military oestreich of washington. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ [applause] >> ladies and gentlemen, please ,tand for the introduction invocation, and national anthem. , majorand chaplain general jeffrey buchanan, commanding general, united states army. executive director of the army national ella terry cemetery. chairman, joint chiefs of staff. the honorable chuck hagel, secretary of defense. >> ladies and gentlemen, the president of the united states. ♪ [applause] >> ladies and gentlemen, chaplain raynor. let us join together in prayer. god, we ask your presence be upon us this day. a day in which we as a nation come together on this hallowed ground to honor those brave men and women who gave all they had for the service of our nation and our freedom. never let us forget the sacrifice and their willingness to serve. they did not ask to become heroes, they asked for courage to

defense secretary chuck hagel talking to cnn about the scandal at the va. he's calling for change, but not at the time, despite many calls for eric shinseki to resign. >>> and then, a hail mary from hope francis, putting himself in the middle of a political battle that has lasted centuries, calling for a palestinian state and offering help negotiate a deal himself. can he solve what countless others could not? good morning, everyone. great to see you this morning. welcome to "early start." i'm john berman. >> i'm christine romans. it is monday, may 26th, memorial day and 5:00 a.m. in the east. glad to see you this morning. let's begin in southern california, where there are new developments as investigators try to piece together what led this 22-year-old to go on a deadly rampage around santa barbara, killing six people and wounding more than a dozen before turning the gun on himself. now, a friend of elliott rogers' family tells cnn rogers' parents went on a desperate hunt for their son just as he was opening fire, seemingly at random. he had just sent his

american defense secretary chuck hagel accuses china of destabilizing the south china sea and says the u.s. will not look the other way. military of thailand's afternoon announces elections might be more than a year away, and in formula one, simmering tensions, even though they are both driving for the same team. of words has erupted between the united states and china. first, u.s. defense secretary chuck hagel accuse china of, as he put it, destabilizing the south china sea and china responded by describing the comments as full of incitement, threats, and intimidation. the dispute looks to heighten further tensions in east asia, where china has recently been involved in disputes with the number of neighbors, above all, japan and vietnam. >> the senkaku islands are at the center of a long-running dispute. although officially controlled by japan, china also lays claim to the uninhabited territory. the real issue is not the terrain rising from the sea, but the oil, gas, and fish, deep below the surface. see -- speaking at a conference in singapore, the u.s. defense secretary had some tou

, china will become the enemy of the u.s. >> secretary of defense chuck hagel using blunt language in dealing with china, and what he sees as possible destabilization of the region when china is dealing with territorial disputes. he thinks what they're doing is something that could impact the international opportunity. >> china has called the south china sea a sea of peace, friendship and cooperation. that's what it should be. but in recent months china has undertaken destabilizing unilateral actions asserting it's claims in the south china sea. >> the broad bed disputes in southeast asia and the china sea. he talks about thailand and the military coup and what that could mean to the population in tie. >> and we also respond when nations retreat from democracy, as in thailand. we urge the royal thai army to release those who have been detained in restrictions of free expression and move immediately to restore power back to thailand through free and fair elections. >> secretary hagel went on to underline the pivot or rebalancing to asia as it draws down forces in afghanistan and earlie

he will be introduced as we understand by secretary of defense chuck hagel. of course time when, especially care of our veterans is very much front and center. we talked about it a moment ago with bob cusack about the scandal that is enveloping the veterans administration. there is the secretary getting ready to introduce the president. let's go back for a moment now to general jack keane our fox news military analyst who continues to remain with us until the president's remarks. general keane, when you learned about the allegations of trouble at the veterans administration, what do you say about the way the way the military is generally a pretty well-run organization in this country. yet, when the troops leave the service and transition out into the civilian world, fall under the care about the veterans administration something needs -- seems to happen. let me interrupt myself, and take you back to arlington national cemetery for chuck hagel's remarks. >> ladies and gentlemen, i very much appreciate the opportunity to be here, to be here this morning in this

this is defense secretary chuck hagel. let's listen to what he said. >> president obama, vice president biden, dr. biden, secretary shinseki, general dempsey, major general buchanan, ladies and gentlemen, first i want to acknowledge and add my welcome to the families of our military men and women who are here today and who are watching this all over the world. i want to particularly welcome the families of the fallen who are here with us this morning. we admire you. we are grateful. we will never forget your sacrifices and the sacrifices of your loved ones. ladies and gentlemen, i very much appreciate the opportunity to be here this morning in this place as we observe this very sacred, very sacred day in america, memorial day. we gather to remember those who sacrificed everything in defense of our nation. this memorial day has special meaning given that next week marks the 70th anniversary of the d-day landings at normandy. a day that was perhaps america's bloodiest day in all of world war ii. a day with more than 10,000 a

chuck hagel said she has known secretary shinseki for a long time. it would be uncial to call for a resignation. >> absolutely. that's a decision for the president. i want to pick up on one thing chuck hagel said, the key is to fix the problem. that's a good point. if your fired secretary shinseki today the fact is they'd have to name a replacement, the replacement could have to go through confirmation hearings and it would be weeks or months before this person would be in charge, and he talked about fix the problem. there's more and more talk about that. it's interest that republican senator mccain and house leader nancy pelosi are talking about the idea of vouchers. you believe these alwayses and there are thousands of millions of veterans out there who need to see a doctor and are unable to see a doctor because of long wait times, why not give them voucher to good to a private doctor or private medical facility right away. that would really be fixing the problem. it's not permanent fix but at least would get the people who are maybe in harm's way

defense chuck hagel accused china of destabilizing the south china sea. china called his comments full of incitement, threats, and intimidation. the dispute looks likely to heighten tensions in the east of asia where china has recently been involved in disputes with a number of neighbors, including vietnam and japan. the islands are at the center of a long-running dispute. officially controlled by japan, china also lays claim to the uninhabited territor. the real issue is not the rocky terrain, but the oil, gas, and fish below the surface. speaking at a conference in singapore, the u.s. defense secretary was critical of beijing. >> china has called the south china sea ac of peace, friendship, and cooperation. that is what it should be. but in recent months, china has undertaken the stabilizing -- destabilizing unilateral actions staking its claim. >> the islands are not the only bone of contention. beijing has laid claim to parts of the south china sea shown by the red line. it has caused anger by putting up an oil rig in vietnam's waters. tokyo has indic

secretary of defense chuck hagel has ordered a sweeping review of the military's health system to begin immediately. the 90 day study will focus on access to care, safety and quality of care at facilities which serve almost 10 million active duty soldiers. those facilities are not specifically related to the va but the veteran scandal sparked the investigation saying its fair to say that secretary hagel ordered this review in context of what is going on in the va to the degree we have same issues and we do not know that we necessarily have them, he wants to know and attack them aggressively. the announcement comes on the heels of two deaths as one of the army's busiest hospitals. those patients according to the army decide shortly after emergency rooms. "the new york times" report the deaths led in part to the center's top commander and suspension of three deputies. >> that's stephanie sy reporti reporting. syrian president bashar al-assad, running for re-election in votings scheduled for next week, but some outside of the country are casting their ballots today, and they're making sure

secretary of defense in chuck hagel and china and how it's hand 8ing the territory dispute. the u.s. sees this as destabilizing that could have international ramification. the defense secretary went on to say that china needs to back off this. he welcomed a move by japan where the prime minister said they want to become more involved in peace and security in the region. japan is an ally of the united states. the united states also said it is upping it's pivot to asia. in fact, the defense secretary said that in just six years, 60% of air force and navy from the united states will operate out of the region. this is obviously something very important to them moving forwa forward. >> the pakistani government report an attack in the west. fighters crossed over from afghanistan and attacked a military post killing one soldier. >> the chief minister of india's state has called for investigation into the gang rape and murder of two teenage girls. the cousins age 14 and 15 were strangled before villages found their bodies hanging from a tree. the girls had gone missing from their ho

chuck hagel also called for democracy to be restored in taiwan. the dividing factor is the country's prime minister. they went to find out just how the military seizure has been received over there. >> even if you don't read thai the posters say it all. this is a town loyal to the brother and sister who were both once prime ministers of thailand. it's a personal matter for noi who sold snacks here and watched them grow up. she's joined by one of the leaders of united front for democracy ow known as the red shirts. detained by the army for five days in the mass arrest that followed the military coup. >> we have to wait and see if the army general who staged the coup can do what he promised bringing people together of no color of shirts. i wonder how he can make it happen. >> there are hardly any soldiers to be seen. life in thailand's second biggest city goes on, but scratch the surface and the nature of the political battle becomes apparent. ththey refuse say how many people they have detained as part of the crackdown. still they're offering basic

defense secretary chuck hagel at the naval academy. a discussion of the department of veterans affairs and the future of eric shinseki. >> if we do not stand up -- step up the enforcement side, that brings immediate attention. if we are going to say that all we can rely on and make these universities and colleges do what they should be doing this for them to get a bad story, that if victims. that would be a depressing conclusion. we have to figure out some way to up the ante that is short of waiting for another tragedy. >> i would say more focus on the department of education to do the work. again, i think the changes i have seen that institutions make are immediately under investigation. we do not know what the fine is. see thatlmost rather investment in a bigger team. >> they will be paying for it. we have an issue of budget. where does that money come from? it can come from institutions that have done wrong. they can fund their own enforcement. that is justice. >> is begin on c-span, claire on combating sexual assault and rape on ca

chuck hagel resigned. he ultimately was so disgusted with the administrator that he went and told president reagan why he was resigning, left, didn't do any interviews about the subject. ultimately the administrator was forced to step down as well. one suspects that that experience makes hagel recognize that these problems are horrific and also that they're not new, that they have been going back for decades, the idea of the va sometimes seeming to be at odds with the very rhett rans they're charged with protecting. >> it's clear the secretary has done a lot of deep thinking on veterans issues. jake, let me say thank you to you for all the work you've done with service members and veterans. some of the people you've gotten to know over the years, they have good friends who have died in combat. the secretary served in vietnam. he had friends, he was around so much loss as well. is this something you had a chance to discuss with him? >> i did. i asked who he would be thinking about today. two names came to m

defense secretary chuck hagel discussed it in our exclusive s sit-down. >>> in the world lead, pope francis defying expectations yet again on a trip to the holy land. can he succeed where so many others have failed in brokering peace in the middle east? good afternoon, everyone. welcome to "the lead," i'm jake tapper. we'll begin with the national lead today in santa barbara, california, six people killed in a horrific series of attacks near the university of california, santa barbara. a pair of sorority sisters, roommates visiting their buddy, college students out on an errand. all of them slained by a 22-year-old because he couldn't get a date. after this, the questions turn to the motive, what could someone drive someone to do this sort of thing. this time we already know. pent-up sexual frustration, he gave voice to the mall lig nancy inside of him, in a 141-page rant. and on the types of message boards that you hope you never find on your son's, husband's, or boyfriend's internet cache. he was somebody's son. by all accounts, he was denied nothing, really, in his privileged life. his p

chuck hagel addressed the group. he said european allies should trim it more to the alliance and rely less on u.s. military spending. in 1997, my daughter hillary, i have a hillary and my own family, then a princeton senior, picked nato as her thesis topic. she called her mom to get my assessment. i had to think about it. nato expansion had been agreed upon in 1994. enthusiasm,al certainly in the u.s. congress. the senate voted 89-19. that is a very unusual vote these days. in 1998. to ratify the addition of three countries. poland, hungary, and the czech republic. 16 countries have now been added through six rounds of enlargement since the end of the cold war. there were also skeptics. tom friedman, the writer tom friedman, who is also a former osos color, wrote an op ed in which he quoted his interview with the 94-year-old george kennan. kennan, the russians will gradually react adversely. we have signed up a number of countries even though we have neither the resources or intention to do so in a serious way. segue

hagel the secretary of defense during southeast asia trip chuck hagel stresses humanitarian aid coordination so they talk about in particular for example the u.s. marines they brought rice to the filipinos after a recent major typhoon and this is why that asia pivot they're sending two thirds of the u.s. naval fleet over to southeast asia for humanitarian reasons well i mean this is fast that ng to watch because as we point out the end analogy to the collapse of the roman empire is apt and now we have the collapse of the american empire and you see people like chuck hagel scrambling around the world to convince everybody that they're there for humanitarian reasons and everyone knows that has access to a t.v. or internet that that's nonsense that hagel is just trying to. wage a massive propaganda effort to get his subjects' in these countries that america dominates ruthlessly to believe and to accept their occupation and they're not having any of it it seems as you quoted in the beginning that the romans were forced to deny that they were bullying so it seems that there were some alternative

defense secretary chuck hagel has taken aim at china over its actions in the south china sea. hagel accused china with this. carried out a coup last week and the dividing factor is the former you prime minister, tak shinawatra. ta tak you shinawatra. it is a personal matter for noy who sold snacks here for decades and watched the customers grow up including tacsin and yin luck shinawatra pnl, detained by the army for five days in the mass arrests that fold the military coup. >> we have to wait and see if the army general who staged the coup can deliver what he promises in bringing people together with no colors of shirts. i wonder how he can make it happen. >> there are hardly any soldiers to be seen in shanghai's streets. scratch the surface and the nature of the political battle becomes apparent. >> the military here have so far refused to say how many people they've actually detained as part of the crack down. still, the military's going ahead with a seemingly contradictory campaign. they're offering basic medical services to people in so-called red villages. nobody seems v

we have more from singapore. >> reporter: blunt language from defense secretary chuck hagel. they say that this dispute in the region could have international ramifications. he welcomed a move by japan friday evening at these same talks where the prime minister said they want to become more involved. weighs in the region. and the defense secretary said that in just six years 60% of air force, and navy from the united states will operate out of the region, so obviously this is something that is very important to them moving forward. >> pakistani army said it killed 15 gunmen following a taliban ambush in the northwest. it happened near a tribal district bordering afghanistan. the fighters covered over from afghanistan and attacked military posts killing one soldier. the chief minister has called for a federal investigation into the gang rape and killing of two teenage girls. the police are accused of responding too slowly. the girls 14 and 15 years old were found sprinkled hanging from a tree. five suspects have been arrested. >>> women's rights groups are demanding justice fo

secretary of defence chuck hagel says a jump in sexual assault is a result of more victims coming forward and a rise in prosecutions against attackers. attacks are high. randall pinkston joins us. >> some critics say one of the serious problems in the military is internal. we talk to a former navy officer, one of the first to call widespread attention to the problem. >> i was groped, grabbed, fought for my life. they were trying remove my life. >> that was 22 years ago. paula was a navy lieutenant taping a convention of aviators, and reported the incident to her commanding officer. >> he told me and i quote "that's what you get when you go down a hallway full of druping aviators -- drunk aviators", i didn't believe. >> she fought back, going public with sexual abuse accusations at great cost. >> i essentially lost my career. >> victims advocates filed a lawsuit claiming thousands suffered similar consequences. >> in a milliseconds left if he goes left i can go right. >> they were planning a hazing. it turned into more than that. >> the suit claims these assaults result in devastating long

chuck hagel sat down with charlie rose. here's what he said. , ithe resolution to ukraine don't believe president obama has said this. it is not going to be resolved militarily. i think what russia is doing here, isolating itself in a very dangerous lace or its own fortry -- dangerous place its own country. how many countries supporting what the russians are doing? not many. >> alex kliment, the head of russian studies for eurasia. how legitimate is the selection? >> legitimacy is in the eye of the boulder and the people doing the holding. they're the government in kiev, which has a strong interest in legitimizing itself and the u.s. and the eu. what do the russians think? the russians have a lot of leverage in eastern ukraine to destabilize them further. they will welcome the election is a positive step forward. >> ricks would say that the united states supports the imf. the imf supports the foundations of economic ukraine. are the american taxpayers the conduit to ukraine to keep them going through the summer? >> the imap

what chuck hagel is now saying about veterans affairs chief eric shinseki next. >>> but first, here's today's "cnn hero." >> i love the crispy feeling of the air. the sound on my skate crunching on the ice. >> skating relieves me from everything. >> i just want to fly. i just don't want to stop. >> i heard that there were some girls who wanted to figure skate in harlem. growing up i was a competitive figure skater. there was not access for kids in low income communities. they looked so eager to get started. i started to teach them and really inspiring to me. ready? and, slow. we serve over 200 girls a year. you did it. best part of skating is gives you qualities you use the rest of your life. they gain perseverance. >> step cross, step cross. excellent, girls. >> they fall down and get back up and can do that in anything. it is a building block. skating's a hook but education comes first. >> oh. >> before they get on the ice, they have to get their homework done. they get a minimum of three afternoons a we can. >> that means -- >> algebra was not my best subject. miss sharon hired me

defense secretary chuck hagel and retired general pet ray us were among those showing respect. chuck hagel said america ha an obligation to take care of veterans >>> next - fighting the federal government. anger in utah over washington's control of wide-open spaces. >>> this memorial dau weekend a group of -- day weekend a group of nevada rampers will saddle up for a 70 mile horse back ride to protest grazing rules. in utah more than 57% of the state is now under federal control. a al jazeera's paul beban has more from salt lake city. >> reporter: as you hike into recapture canyon you notice the silence. >> we are barelied in the closure. we have come to our first ark logical site. >> reporter: there's evidence that ancient native americans called this home. >> this is what we call an outdoor museum. it's a special place where there's remains of the past. >> recaptured canyon is protected land administered by the federal bureau of land management or b.l.m. in 2007 they closed the canyon to motorized vehicling something that didn't sit well in blanding, where locals don't want t

you had a visitor over there, chuck hagel, charged to ensure israelis that the relationship is strong as ever. have you convinced them? >> there are serious differences between the obama administration and prime minister netanyahu over the talks. of course, the prime minister insisted that iran have no nuclear enrichment capabilities in order to create nuclear weapons. this is the p5+1 willing to give iran something -- they have not taken that step. >> another topic. israel is conducting a major spying operation against the u.s. what can you tell us? does it have credibility? >> the officials i spoke to are furious about these allegations put forward by anonymous u.s. officials. they see it really as a vindictive campaign against israel. they deny completely as related to an effort by israel to get visa waivers for its tourists. it is adding to the tension that is already there between the obama administration and netanyahu government. >> another tension is the palestinians peace talks. john kerry is saying they have not collapsed. many people think they have to. >> there's a lot of s

defense secretary chuck hagel passed through a thermoimaging cameras. elizabeth cohen is outside the hospital. do we know if people who were in contact with the person in florida have mers? >> we know that they don't. the testing in florida turned out to be negative. a number of health care workers had contact with this person, 18 or so. two of them had indeterminant testing. as we speak, behind me, they're doing some testing at the cdc to try to get a yes or a no. i want to add that that patient in florida is now doing much better. the patient is now fever free and improving. >> this country with a new virus for which there is no treatment, elizabeth. and has a high mortality rate. put this in perspective. how much concern is there among health officials considering that no one in the u.s. has died from this? >> there's still concern. because, of course, lots of travel between the middle east and the united states. but this is how i look at it. if my husband just came back from the arabian peninsula, i would be worried because of where he was. i would

. >> chuck hagel said rescuing the girls would be difficult. >> it will be difficult. it's a vast country. we'll bring to bear every asset we can use to help nigerian government. >>> pro-russian separatists in donetsk and lugansk declared their independence today, a day after referendums that ukraine and the west say are illegal. the european union moved to impose sanctions against russians and ukrainians connected to the crisis. kim vinnell has more from kiev. >> reporter: as votes were counted in the east, authorities said the outcome was irrelevant, calling the referendum illegal. with formed ballot papers, no international observers and low voter turn out. speaking in parliament, acting president oleksandr turchynov said organizers of the referendum would be held criminally responsible. >> translation: the farce that the terrorists call a referendum is nothing else but a propa gannedist cover for kidnappings, violence and other crimes. the west echos the chorus of condemnation. in brussels for a meeting to discuss the crisis, british foreign secretary chuck hagel s

please welcome chuck hagel the 24th secretary of defense. [applause] >> should i put that on for the presentation? jane, thank you. i'm always overwhelmed her company but now you have outdone yourself with the special nebraska cornhuskers scarf and by the way the cornhuskers will have a better season this year. thank you. thank you jane and thanks to the wilson center for what you continue to do for our country and world affairs to bring thoughtful analysis and leadership to these tough issues the world is complicated as we all know. it's not getting any less complicated nor is it getting any less dangerous. your continued contributions and leadership as well as the substitution are very valuable and important parts to all of our efforts overall efforts to find peaceful, wise resolutions to these difficult problems. to my friends here who are on the panel that size good to see you and thanks for your continued contributions as well. and for those here who have been in this business of analysis and thinking and writing for many years thank yo

the secretary chuck hagel has some thoughts on that subject and he shared them with my cnn colleague jake tapper in washington. hi there, jake, good to see you. what did hagel tell you? >> we talked about a lot of topics, syria, rescuing the girls in nigeria. the focus of the interview in many ways was of course memorial day. he of course comes to the va story from a very interesting perspective. he is a vietnam veteran, secretary chuck hagel, and, also, he worked for the va during the reagan administration and resigned in protest. so i thought he might have a specific reaction, so i asked him about it. are you appalled when you see these stories? >> it makes me sick to my stomach. because it is clear responsibility we have as a country, as a people, to take care of these men and women and their families who sacrificed so much. i know systems are imperfect, i get that. but when you've got what we do know, and you're right, we need to get the facts, let's see exactly what happened, why it happened, how it happened, then we've got to fix it, then we have to fix it. >> pamela, secretary

chuck hagel marking memorial day with a solemn ceremony at the national mall, honoring the 7,000 service members killed in the line of duty since 9/11. >> benjamin allen johnson. >> more than 450 americans joined in together to read the names of the fallen, including casey and petraeus and many others. >>> overseas, the pope celebrating mass at an outdoor stadium. visiting some of the most sacred sites in the holy hand and meeting with christian and jewish and christian leaders. now back to bulls and bears. >>> federal workers make more than most of us make, and they still can't pay their taxes on time. they owe $3.3 billion in back taxes. is it time to do to them what they do to us? >> yes, if you don't pay your taxes in the real world you get your wages garnished. there is 714 employs in the house and senate that are behind taxes and the federal courts are behind on taxes, and they should not be treated differently, and you are getting paid more, working for the federal government, pay your taxes. 1.7% of active military is behind. why do we have soldiers pay taxes anyway? we give them

. >> chuck hagel says anyone responsible for the scandal must be punished. >> any time there is an issue or problem or a veteran doesn't get service or certainly if a veteran dies because he or she doesn't get service or any time there's an issue, there's no higher responsibility our country has than to these people who served and sacrificed. so it's a constant process of getting better monitoring managing assuring in every way we can that every veteran gets the quality service that they deserve. i think the v.a. has around 9 million people that they take care of and it's a large -- it's a large department. but it's a zero tolerance kind of thing. i mean you really have to come at it that way. we're all concerned about this. not just because i'm a veteran or secretary of defense but i think every american -- >> they clearly are. there's great concern about this. there are those who do argue that we need to know the facts but we're late focusing concern about this. some in your party are calling for the head of the veterans affair department to resign general shinseki. is it premature to

please welcome chuck hagel. the 24th secretary of defense. [ applause ] >> should i put that on for the presentation? jane, thank you. i am always overwhelmed in your presence and now you have outdone yourself. by the way, the corn huskers will have a better season. thank you, jane, and thank you for the wilson center for what you do for our country and world affairs and bringing thoughtful analysis to these tough issues. the world is complicated. it isn't getting any less complicated. nor is it getting any less dangerous. so your continued contributions and leadership as well as this institution are very valuable and important parts to all of your global efforts to find peaceful, wise resolutions to these difficult problems. it is good to see my friends on the panel and thanks for your continued contributions as well. and for those here who have been in the analysis and writing and thinking business for many years, thank you, and now is no time to stop. we are going to need everybody now more than every in our

ourse join me in welcoming secretary of defense, secretary chuck hagel. [applause] thank you and good morning. you.l of i am deeply grateful for an this dayty to share with all of you. and i mean that. i know these kind of events and job.onies come with the one of the more attractive this business, to kind ofate in this inspirational uplifting event. has been noted, you begin a new chapter in your lives. forgiving me the opportunity to be part of this day. will be par of your lives forever. as has been noted by admiral affiliation with the ofy, with the state nebraska, land locked state of nebraska, might puzzle some of why, or put it another enough,ld he be worthy this army sergeant, from to address the u.s. naval academy commencement group. and i would respond, aside from secretary of i am defense -- )laughter explaining to you that maybe that you don't know, nebraska does have a navy. much.sn't do a ceremonial navy that began about 100 years ago and admiral. i know the standards are low. ( laughter ) but nonetheless i am an admiral in the united states

and jennifer, it's got to be good news to the family, secretary of defense, chuck hagel releasing the details that sergeant bergdahl is being released. what are the conditions of that release? >> reporter: kelly, i've just spoken to a senior u.s. defense official who tells me that bowe bergdahl is in good shape, in germany right now. he is, according to the official, has lost some weight. he is scared. he clearly is a little disoriented and weakened after years of being held in captivity by the taliban. what i understand, not only from a statement that's recently been released by defense secretary chuck hagel, but also from senior u.s. defense officials who have spoken to today, is that the release is the result of negotiations and a trade. it was a trade to release five prisoners afghan and taliban prisoners from guantanamo bay. they are en route back to afghanistan. and, of course, bowe bergdahl is being seen in germany by u.s. military officials, and getting medical treatment at this time. he's going to see his family soon. and i think it's really important to point out, kelly, how

defense secretary chuck hagel has ordered an immediate investigation into the military's health system. that review is expected to take 90 days. and these new revelations today out of ft. bragg and this health system that chuck hagel has now put under review, keep in mind, this is a totally separate something, a totally separate system from the ongoing stories is and scandal about the health care that our veterans receive. the military health care system and the veterans health care system are separate systems, but this is all going on at once. when president obama last week first addressed these allegations about the v.a., about staff at v.a. health centers around the country, manipulating wait lists to make it seem like veterans were getting timely care, he said in those remarks, he gave prepared remarks and answered questions, and he said during his answering questions, that something that we've sort of been puzzling over ever since he said it. this was what the president said about reaching out immediately to veterans who were on these bogus wait lists. watch. >> what i said to ric

defense secretary chuck hagel and former senator bob dole addressed the crowd. dole is the founder of a program for older veterans and their families. the organization raises money to send those vets to washington to visit the memorial. >>> the number one killer of americans who have served in the wars in iraq and afghanistan, it isn't combat, it's suicide. after they return home. tonight in the middle of the memorial day weekend, a local group is trying to stop that from happening. >> reporter: post-traumatic stress is such a powerful force. >> combat veterans never come back the same. they're changed. >> reporter: the va estimates 22 veterans kill themselves each day. >> 8,000 a year. in the united states. that has to stop. >> reporter: that's more than the number of troops killed in combat during the entire wars in iraq and afghanistan. >> i see these little kids out here. and the blankets. running around, having a good time. and some of my post-traumatic stress comes up when i see that. >> reporter: vets who still suffer the effects of combat lit candles at

defense secretary chuck hagel say it isn't the result of more sexual assaults. he says they reflect more service members reporting the crime. he ordered six new initiatives, including it get more male victims to come forward and a review of alcohol policies. >>> the senate approved legislation to eliminate the words man and woman from california's legal definition of marriage. he says the bill removes language from the family code and it brings it into compliance with new state laws on marriage. it calls for gender neutral language. the bill passed with all but two republicans. >>> california's work place safety agency slapped tesla with a fine related to an incident that left three workers injured last year. they failed to ensure a press was maintained in sape operating conditions. work -- safe operating conditions. workers suffered burns. they plan to appeal the fines. >>> 400 elementary school have been named california distinguished schools and some of the schools are in the bay area. contra costa county has 24 schools. for the first time they were recognize

defense second chuck hagel saying more reports mean victims have more confidence in the system. hagel ordered new initiatives including an effort to get more victims to come forward. >>> florida is one step closer to medical marijuana. state's house voted in favor 111-7. if florida's senate approves, governor rick scott has indicated he's ready to sign it into law. it would allow doctors to prescribe low thc cannabis to patients. >>> in seattle's mayor has proposed an increase to the city's minimum wage. he with like to bump it up to $15 an hour over the next seven years. if this is approved, it would make seattle's pay baseline the highest in the u.s. lots of folks might be moving there. >>> you have to see this squirrel go nuts over a selfie. some teen on vacation, in florida, able to get a selfie with a little squirrel. now, but then, yeah, go ahead. >> wanted to give him a hug. >> yeah, right. >> then he quickly jumped on the boy's back and went up his shirt, didn't like the picture. his mom snapping the photos of the harmless squirrel attack which went viral after the famil

. >>> we went straight to chuck hagel in our exclusive interview yesterday. it's a scandal that's shaken military families across the country. should it cost veteran affairs secretary eric shinseki his job? already, the american legion has called on the retired four-star general and vietnam vet to step aside. should general shinseki be accountable? >> there is no one who understands accountability more than general shinseki. >> does he have your support you? >> i do support general shinseki. but there's no margin here. if this, in fact, or any variation of this occurred, all the way along the chain accountability is going to have to be upheld here. because, we can never let this kind of outrage, if all of this is true, stand in this country. >> the average wait is five months. is that taking care of our veterans? >> no, it's not good enough. obviously. it has to be better. >> shouldn't we have predicted that there would be a backlog? we were in the middle of two wars. we had tens of thousands, millions deployed in this period. and no one predicted that, inclu