noted that there has been a decrease of violence in syria but the international envoy kofi annan said there is still a profound concern that syria is descending into full on civil war up to one hundred international observers are already working there the only said the number will reach three hundred by the end of the month so there's going to be more eyes on the ground as of now he said and i'm going to i'm going to quote here there has been a worrying episodes of violence by the government but we have also seen attacks against government forces troops and installations it's very interesting how the u.s. ambassador susan rice responded to the claims made by the syrian ambassador she brushed off the question about terrorists and then she went on talking about those who took up arms to fight for their rights a very dubious question arises here is that in a campaign to justify violence on one side while. the other being exclusively the syrian government susan rice confirmed it in a way with her latest statement by putting all responsibility in the hands of the syrian government and neve

has accepted kofi annan plan which addresses all sides of the conflict not just the syrian government. meanwhile see where it is counting the votes of the country how it's election for hoffa century but it was boycotted by the position. that amid continuing violence in the country many syrians believe the election gave them a real chance to help their country. it didn't get the stamp of approval from the opposition huge coup for. boycott the people did turn out to vote in syria's parliament she elections the elections taking place against the backdrop of instability in the country and the credibility of the very it's being called into question with the opposition boycotting the vote so that their participation the real question is just how serious a change will this election bring to the political landscape in syria and that's what we've been finding out i feel because we have some disturbance and some of this is ok we have to approve that we can move forward and we can overcome this obstacle here. for people who are like people who support you people who say. yes you know for to know

has accepted kofi annan plan which addresses all sides of the conflict not just the syrian government. meanwhile syria is counting the votes out of the country held its first parliamentary election for hoth a century but it was boycotted by the opposition. says that amid continuing violence in the country many syrians believe the election gave them a real chance to hope that country. stamp of approval from the opposition huge cool for a boycott that people did turn out to vote in syria's parliament she elections the elections taking place against the backdrop of instability in the country and the credibility of the very it's being called into question with the opposition boycotting the vote so that their participation the real question is just how serious a change will this election bring to the political landscape in syria and that's what we've been finding out. because we have some disturbance and some of this is. we have to approve that we can move forward and we can overcome this obstacle here . for people who are like people who support syria. saying yes for syria. yes for your s

kofi annan also accused the massacres of failing to halt the violence despite it being nearly a month since the nationwide truce was imposed with all the details of serious responses artie's guy in a church. where heard the syrian ambassador to the united nations say that a number of regional era powers are sponsoring terror in syria to undermine kofi annan. he said the syrian government remains committed to the plan but it faces a surge of terrorist attacks including suicide bomb bombings. d.v.d. and said it has the confessions of dozens of individuals involved in terrorist activities upon the order of thirty countries here is what he said these terrorists did not come into syria. by using. they came into syria through the syrian borders with the neighboring countries so it's not a secret anymore who is behind these groups the. who are giving orders and try to work through these terrorist. leave. did. he also accused turkey of harboring armed groups which are infiltrating syria committing crimes and returning back to turkey because syrian ambassador said what also undermines kofi and

secretary clinton said that we will assess the kofi annan plan. we will make adjustments based on that. >> how much more time do you need? this has been going on for over a year. willfi annan and's deputy brief the security council tomorrow in new york. we will wait for the outcome of that. we will consult with their partners on the security council. >> thank you very much. speaking about a possible next steps, the french president said a military intervention is not ruled out. i was joined in the studio by the former foreign minister of jordan. you're listening to mark turner at the state department. not much of a plan coming out of washington. >> no, you are facing a situation where washington does not intend to do much because of the presidential campaign. the mood in the country does not support that. you also have the russian and chinese position which are not supportive of any type of view. you also have a divided opposition and syria that has not come up with a clear plan for the day after. all of this is leading to what we see today, a con

what are the expectations for these talks today between kofi annan and president assad? >> well, good morning, willie. if you ask syrian opposition activists inside and outside of syria, they'll tell you there really is no hope to the u.n. peace plan. it has now been in place for six weeks. it's not stopped the violence. although it's important to keep in mind it's meant to be an observer mission. meant to observe the violence or lack of it happening on the ground. but in the presence of u.n. observers, the violence has steadily over the past six weeks continued to rise. for the time being as the u.n. general on the ground told us when we were in syria, he said this is the only game in town that the united nations peace plan is the only option for the sides to get together. and that's why it is still getting the support from some of the major players in the international community. but for the syrian opposition, they have all but given hope that the violence is going to stop as a result of the peace plan. >> ayman, tell us specifically what the latest is on the horrifyin

>>trace: and, conor, the specialen provide, kofi annan met with the syrian president. any progress on that front? >>reporter: well, it doesn't appear there was a lot in the way of progress. kofi annan met with president assad early today, and has been there for two days in syria meeting with syrian officials. the only thing that kofi annan did say that he and president assad did grow to was the need for humanitarian aid to continue to flow into syria but that need for aid and the agreement on the need for aid comes as syrian forces are attacking fans and there is essentially a civil war going on this right now but kofi annan called on both sighs to put down their weapons and he is trying to push a ceasefire agreement that is essentially been abandoned in the last few days and never, really, took hold, but, at the time, right new, the violence is continuing and diplomatic efforts do not seem to be doing a lot. trace? >>trace: conor, thank you, and now, former state department deputy special envoy during the bush administration, currently a principle for the consulting f

secretary-general kofi annan, now envoy. so by shifting the burden of the military now to these nonuniformed personnel, he's able to listen to kofi annan say, that syria's reached a tipping point and not admit that he's the one that's brought syria to this tipping point where you could see very significant sectarian violence develop. what is true of syria is also true of iran. iran has for the moment in its own suppression of its own people. held on to the loyalty of the you know, the iranian security forces and so far, notwithstanding some defections to the free syrian army, assad has held on for now. "lean forward" with the rachel maddow show, right here at 9:00 p.m. eastern os msnbc. >>> now a "first look" at wall street. the dow opens at 12,580, after jumping 125 points yesterday. the s&p up 14, and the nasdaq gained 33. taking a look at overseas trading this morning. in tokyo, the nikkei was down 23 points. in hong kong, the hang seng tumbled 365. stocks bounced back tuesday, despite europe's ongoing debt crisis. signs

back into action, and today kofi annan, the man whose peace plan is so vividly failing arrived in damascus for official talks. >> those responsible for these brutal crimes must be held to account. >> reporter: but how? by the time military observers arrived in hula on saturday the massacre was over. frantic local witnesses told them on friday afternoon president assad's troops shelled their villages and then gangs of thugs went house to house killing. syria's government said the killers were terrorists. survivors insist they were government militiamen. today all eyes were on russia's foreign minister sergei lovrov for a sign that russia, syria's last major ally, would at last join calls from president assad to step down. but it didn't come. "it's completely unimportant who's in power in syria," he said. "the most important thing for us is to support an end to the violence. easy to say, but as britain's foreign secretary made clear, there are no fresh ideas on how to do it. >> the alternatives are the kofi annan plan or ever-increasing chaos in syria and a dissent closer and closer to allou

annan plan and the kofi annan plan it has six points one of the points is is to have a ceasefire and it's very difficult to implement this at the kind time and it's very difficult to blame one side for violating the cease fire instead of another because there are no monitors on the ground and the monitors are insufficient the numbers of martha is very limited and even if they are three hundred monitors i think there should be a will by the syrian people to actually. sit on the table and resolve things politically. of the future of syria can be very sad i would say and it will be a lot of misery for the syrian people taking what you say in the comment political analyst and senior columnist of the newspaper thanks for your time. protesters gathered in barcelona today chanting slogans in protest to european central bank chiefs meeting their security precautions ahead of the meeting where heavily ramped up speed even going as far as to reinstate checkpoints along its border with france in a bid to try to limit the number of demonstrators possibly arriving from within europe now the fear

when the international community talks about the kofi annan plan, this is all a fraud. this is all a fraud. i think this is what this trip has made amply clear. >> we're going to talk to senator john mccain who is calling for greater international involvement. there are many people in the united states who tire of this. they say, look, you're throwing weapons into a powder keg, a dangerous situation. we don't know fully. there may be jihadist elements. >> if there are jihadist elements, it's a great share of the blame that comes from the international rescue. when the cavalry of the good guys, nato, the united nations didn't come, people have to fend for themselves, that's it. >> we're going to have a lot more throughout this hour. as the violence continues in syria, some are asking where is the international community, the united states? we'll talk to senator john mccain and he's flat out saying where is president obama. >>> welcome back. we're live from the turkish syrian border refugee camp. this is what the so called cease fire looks like across syria. the violence

annan plan and the kofi annan plan it has six points one of the points is to have a ceasefire and it's very difficult to implement this at the kind time and it's very difficult to blame one side for violating the cease fire instead of another because there are no monitors on the ground and the monitors are insufficient the numbers of martha is very limited and even if they are three hundred monitors i think there should be a will by the syrian people to actually. sit on the table and resolve things politically or else the future of syria can be very sad i would say and it will a lot of misery for the syrian people taking what you say in the. political analyst and senior columnist of the newspaper thanks for your time. protesters gathered in barcelona today chanting slogans in protest to european central bank chiefs meeting their security precautions ahead of the meeting were heavily ramped up spade even going as far as to reinstate checkpoints along its border with france in a bid to try to limit the number of demonstrators possibly arriving from within europe now the fear was that a p

when the international community talks about, you know, the kofi annan plan, this is a fraud. it's all a fraud. and i think this is what this trip has made clear. >> we're going to talk to senator john mccain who is calling for greater international involvement. there are many people in the united states who tire of this and say you're throwing weapons into a powder keg into a dangerous situation. we don't know fully. there may be jihadist elements amongst the rebels. to them you say what? >> if there are jihadist elements, it's actually a great share of the blame is born by the international community which did not come to the rescue. when the cavalry did not come in, when the cavalry of the good guys of nato, cavalry of the united nations didn't come, well then people have to fend for themselves. that's it. >> we're going to have a lot more with ivan and professor ajami throughout this hour. as the violence continues in syria, some of you are asking, where is the international community? where is the united states? we'll talk to senator john mccain in a moment. he's saying w

secretary general kofi annan is there, trying to salvage a peace deal in tatters as the violence continues. the latest from our chief foreign correspondent, richard engle. >> homs, syria, under attack today by government troops. overnight, syrian forces pounded homa, reportedly killing more than 40 people. the new violence came just hours after the u.n. security counsel condemned syria for friday's massacre in hula. horrific, even by the standards of a year of fighting. more than 100 people killed, most of them women and children. new video shows the attack as it started. syrian forces appear to shell hula. people run in panic as more artillery rains down. then witnesses say, pro government thugs went on a house-to-house killing spree, binding the hands of victims, stabbing them, and shooting them point blank. today, with syrian tanks now in hula, u.n. peace broker kofi annan arrived in damascus. >> i am personally shocked and horrified by the tragic incident in hula two days ago. >> but annan is losing credibility. syrian activists say his cease-fire is a sham, just a cover for the assad

. >>> kofi annan puts bashar al assad on notice. he says the people of syria do not want their future to be one of bloodshed and division. the joint u.n. and arab league envoy return to damascus to try to value saj the peace plan he brokered, urging president assad to follow through on his promises. annan appeals to assad to take bold steps to stop fighting between opposition and government forces. syrian state run news agency quoted the president as saying the frequent terror attacks and foreign military aid to terrorists would have to end. u.n. military observers are in syria to monitor a peace agreement but have been unable to stop the fighting. more than 100 people were killed last week in central syria. members of the u.n. security council were among leaders from around the world who have condemned the assad administration for its role. >>> u.s. officials say iranian official are to blame, too. they say an iranian military unit helped carry out the massacre. state department spokesperson victoria neuland says an officer of the

special envoy kofi annan, as well as in the u.n. security council resolution. >> translator: assad is taking advantage of weakness and division in the international community. annan's plan allows assad's regime to use its power to oppress people. there has to be a resolution in the security council that enables the use of actual force against the current regime. >> ghalioun wants the security council to adopt a new resolution allowing military operations if syria's government fails to comply with the cease-fire. he also said he won't accept any solution that allows the assad administration to stay in power. >> translator: we accept an unannounced plan on the premise but the purpose of negotiation is to bring this to a democratic administration, not to reconcile with the assad dictatorship. there will be no immediate and true solution to this crisis without assad's resignation. >> ghalioun expressed optimism about uniting the various anti-government groups. >> translator: the syrian national council is tackling the conflicts within t

. >>> kofi annan puts bashar al assad on notice. he says the people of syria do not want their future to be one of bloodshed and division. the joint u.n. and arab league envoy return to damascus to try to value saj the peace plan he brokered urging president assad to follow through on his promises. annan appeals to assad to take bold steps to stop fighting between opposition and government forces. syrian state run news agency quoted the president as saying the frequent terror attacks and foreign military aid to terrorists would have to end. u.n. military observers are in syria to monitor a peace agreement but have been unable to stop the fighting. more than 100 people were killed last week in central syria. members of the u.n. security council were among leaders from around the world who have condemned the assad administration for its role. >>> u.s. officials say iranian official are to blame, too. they say an iranian military unit helped carry out the massacre. state department spokesperson victoria neuland says an officer of the i

kofi annan is warning syria could descend into full civil war. the joint envoy for the u.n. and the arab league predict serious consequences if u.n. observers fail in their mission to stabilize the country. >> i believe that the u.n. supervision mission is possibly the only remaining chance to stabilize the country. >> annan briefed members of the u.n. security council via video link from geneva. he said the observers have had a calming effect in fighting between syrian government and opposition forces. still, he said, troops continue to violate the cease-fire. he said the levels of violence and abuse are unacceptable. u.n. observers moved in last month to monitor the situation. annan said he expects it will improve after all 300 observers are deployed by the end of this month. >>> u.s. media say a cia double agent foiled a plot to bomb an airliner. the informant reportedly infiltrated the terrorist group and volunteered for the suicide mission. the u.s. government said monday there had been a plot last month to bomb an airliner. the terrorist plans to use a new type of expl

the joint special envoy kofi annan has proposed six peace proposals, among which the complete sesation of violence is number one. unfortunately, this has not been implemented while -- with the deployment of monitoring missions, we have seen some dampening effect. >> if there's no plan "b," then what will stop the violence in syria? joining me senior fellow at hoover institution, and author of the book "syrian rebellion." they say there's no plan "b," kofi annan is going to brief the security council next week but he hasn't been to syria even since march. this process is a joke except people are dying so it's not funny. >> well, you know, i think you said it very well. it is a joke. as you know a few days ago, some days ago, i went with our friend and colleague, anderson cooper to syrian refugee camps. in the refugee camp you meet true historians of the syrian rebellion, true historians of the victims of bashar al assad and his regime. at least grant ban ki-moon one thing. he said there was an honest man. he said there was no plan "b." the world has been watching this ordeal for 15 mont

something at some point in these to be done if the kofi annan peace plan is failing. there needs to be an alternative. i don't think that necessarily means military intervention. that is easier said than done. we need to exploit the next option. >> what is it? assad is not listening to anybody. >> part of it is trying to cigarette what can be done. and there are maybe people that might want to break from his inner circle. -- part of it is trying to figure out what can be done. it seems like we're waiting for this plan of kofi annan to magically produce some results, and it does not seem like that is going to do it. >> that could have been baghdad a few years ago. do you think that this is starting to turn into a sort of the iraqi-style insurgency? >> not really. these look like some of the bomb attacks that the jihadists groups did in iraq. you had many more militias. you have a large civil war that led to tens of thousands of people being killed. we are certainly not there yet, but the death toll is increasing. what we don't have this is coalescing of forces into dif

few here have faith that damascus will implement the peace plan from kofi annan. u.s. secretary of state hillary clinton rebukes moscow for propping up the regime when a political transition is what is needed. >> i can tell you that right now we're focused on supporting kofi annan, reaching out, both inside and outside of syria, bringing together those that are most directly affected, particularly in the region. in the last several days, i have had numerous conversations. i will have many more over the next few days, with particular attention paid to the russians. >> russian president vladimir putin is due to meet german chancellor angela merkel on friday. her position is already clear. >> a catastrophe is taking place in syria. we will do everything we can to alleviate the people's suffering. >> while the international community fails to find a common line on syria, anger is growing. rebels have send the assad regime and all the made them. they say damascus must implement the u.n. peace plan by noon local time on friday. if not, they will no longer observe any commitm

if the kofi annan peace plan is failing, something else needs to be done. that doesn't mean military intervention. that is easier said than done. we need to explore the next option. >> assaad is not listening to anybody. what is the next part? >> part of it is trying to figure out what needs to be done. these are being done maybe to true to break his inner circle. but at this point we are not having that serious discussion. it seems like we are waiting for this plan of kofi annan to magically produce some results, and it doesn't look like it is going to do it. >> that could have been baghdad a few years ago. >> right. >> do you think this is starting to turn into sort of an iraqi-style counterinsurgence? >> not yet. these look like some of the bomb attacks that the jawaddist grooms did in iraq. you had a large civil war that led to tens of thousands of people being killed. we are certainly not there yet, but the death toll is increasing. what we don't have yet is this coalescing of forces into different camps. what we have is something more difficult, a fra

special convoy kofi annan meets with syrian president bashar al assad. >>> and high tension. a police standoff unfolds more than a hundred feet in the air. captioning funded by cbs >>> good morning, everybody. so good to be with you. i'm terrell brown. we begin overseas this morning. for the second time in just over a week northern italy has been rocked by a strong earthquake. this morning's quake was a magnitude 5.8 and was felt north of the city of bologna. there are reports some buildings collapsed but no immediate reports of injuries. nine days ago a quake killed seven people damaging hundreds of buildings. >>> back here in this country it's expected to be a big day for mitt romney. texas primary voters are all but sure to give romney enough delegates to assure the republican presidential nomination. he's been campaigning for weeks attacking president obama and romney is back on the campaign trail today. susan mcginnis is in washington with more this morning. susan, good morning to you. >> good morning, terrell. romney is right on the brink of clinching that nomination in

now kofi annan arriving in damascus. meeting with the syrian foreign minister, trying to stress the importance of holding those accountable, the need to implement a six-point peace plan. but ever since this peace plan has even begun to hypothetically be implemented, it reallys has not materialized. we we're just sighing this ever growing cycle of vie leps. it's not just the massacre that took place, we have a high body count. >> when we talk about kofi annan, who do they hold responsible? is anyone claiming responsibility for this horrendous massacre? >> we have that usual tit-for-tat finger pointing saying this was the work of armed terrorist gangs, elements of al qaeda backed by foreigners. opposition forces saying this is the work of the syrian regime. u.n. monitors say mft ott wound they saw, the shelling, the gunshot wounds could have been possibly carried out by the assad army in and of itself, the u.n. not coming out and fully placing the blame on the regime. again, stressing the need for both sides to lay down th

i deand in government of syria act on the kofi annan peace plan. >> the secretary general behnke moonthere. now our correspondent is now in neighboring beirut saying rebel forces are under increasing pressure. >> we went for about 3 1/2 weeks in a place about 0 miles west of hula,, the site of the massacre. and on syrian's border of lebanon and had try days of filming and three weeks of hiding because there were so many troops out and so much movement by the syrian forces and the activists and fighters felt under constant pressure. but in places like here, they are hanging on and managed to remove the last check point from that place about a couple of weeks ago. the other general impression i have is this is a place a hair's breath away from all-out civil war. going to that part of syria since november and every time i go i say is there going to be a sectarian war? and people say that's not the tradition we have here. we don't have this an most based upon sectarian lines, but there's not plans for all out civil war. but this time people said they will look back at may and say this was the

as a goodwill gesture to the united nations and to the special envoy, kofi annan. you can get a sense that the crisis in syria has reached a bottleneck with no clear indication as to what lies ahead in the next 48 hours. >> i'm not sure a goodwill gesture and the syrian government can go in the same sentence at this point. but we'll see what the international community can do from here. live this morning again from cairo, thanks so much for your reporting. >>> new poll numbers this morning, zeroing in on three key battleground states that president obama won in 2008. but went to george w. bush in 2004. according to nbc news maris poll. president obama and mitt romney in a tie in colorado, iowa and nevada. the economy remains most important issue with 70% saying it will decide their vote for president. when asked which candidate would do a better job at handling the economy, iowans give mitt romney a slight edge. in colorado and nevada, it's a tie. despite the country's financial struggles, there are encouraging numbers for the president. the majority of voters beli

secretary kofi annan is there, trying to salvage a peace deal in tatters as the violence continues. the latest from our foreign correspondent, richard engle. >> homs, syria, under attack today by government troops. overnight, syrian forces pounded homa, reportedly killing more than 40 people. the new violence came just hours after the u.n. security counsel condemned syria for friday's massacre in hula. horrific, even by the standards of a year of fighting. more than 100 people killed, most of them women and children. new video shows the attack as it started. syrian forces appear to shell hula. people run in panic as more artillery rains down. then witnesses say, pro-government thugs went on a house to house killing spree, binding the hands of victims, stabbing them, and shooting them point blank. today, with serious tanks now in hula, u.n. peace broker kofi annan arrived in damascus. >> i am personally shocked and horrified by the tragic incident in hula two days ago. annan is credibility. syrian activists say his cease-fire is a sham, just a cover for the assad regime's relentless

special envoy kofi annan continues to press for implementation of his peace plan. but the syrian president bashar al-assad blames opposition forces for the latest violence. while the opposition blames the regime and says the peace plan has done nothing to reduce tensions. >> implementation of his plan does not exist on the ground. we are witnessing more explosions and kidnappings. >> meanwhile, the violence continues. these images are said to show fighting in homs on monday. their first reports of civilians, including women and children, being killed by artillery and sniper fire. the u.n. now says most of the victims of friday's massacre in houla were killed with small arms and knives. the u.n. peacekeeping chief in syria said pro-assad local militias were most likely responsible for the killings. >> for more on the diplomatic efforts to end the crisis, we're joined by our political correspondent terry martin. many are saying that the houla massacre is a tipping point for syria. is that the sentiment here in berlin? >> there is a sense here in berlin that things in

what can kofi annan doing? syrian activists don't think anything. they think it's going to continue, the brutal crackdown will continue as it has been, that's what they're saying. >> okay. mohammed jamjoom, thank you so much for that update. >>> now to japan, where two american men are being questioned in the strangulation death of an irish exchange student. the dead woman is identified as nickola furlong. japanese police say her body was found early thursday morning in the tokyo hotel room of one of the americans. cnn's kyung lah explains how they may have met. >> we know her name is nickola furlong, she's an exchange student from ireland, she was studying here in japan and that she had just recently celebrated her 21st pd. what tokyo police are tell us is that she died by something called suffocation by cervical compression, and that does sound like it's strangulation. the news agency is reporting that she and a friend went to a nicki minaj concert in tokyo when she was approached by two americans. she and her friend ended up with these men at a p

special convoy kofi annan meets with the president. >>> and high tension. a police standoff unfolds more than a hundred feet in the air. captioning funded by cbs >>> good morning, everybody. so good to be with you. i'm terrell brown. we begin overseas this morning. for the second time in just over a week northern italy has been rocked by an earthquake. it was 5.8 north of the city of bolog bologna. there are reports some buildings collapsed but no reports of injuries. nine days ago a quake killed seven people damaging hundreds of buildings. >>> texas primary voters are all but sure to give romney enough delegates to assure the republican presidential nomination. he's been campaigning for weeks attacking president obama and romney is back on the campaign trail today. susan mcginnis is in washington this morning with more. >>> romney is right on the brink of clinching that nomination in texas. we'll do it for him today. meanwhile he used memoir yeah day to promise he'll maintain the strongest military in the world just as the president planned to downsize it.

special convoy kofi annan meets with the president. >>> and high tension. a police standoff unfolds more than a hundred feet in the air. captioning funded by cbs >>> good morning, everybody. so good to be with you. i'm terrell brown. we begin injuries. nine days ago a quake killed seven people damaging hundreds of buildings. >>> texas primary voters are all but sure to give romney enough delegates to assure the republican presidential nomination. he's been campaigning for weeks attacking president obama and romney is back on the campaign trail today. susan mcginnis is in washington this morning with more. >>> romney is right on the brink of clinching that nomination in texas. we'll do it for him today. meanwhile he used memoir yeah day to promise he'll maintain the strongest military in the world just as the president planned to downsize it. after months of primaries and caucuses, romney will likely pass the 1, 144 delegates needed when texas voters go to the p l polls. the former massachusetts governor returns to the campaign trail after appearing at a mem

i spoke to senator mccain today. >> obviously the kofi annan peace plan has not led to a ceasefire. the violence has continued this past month. last week on thursday susan rice said it's too early to call it a failure. do you agree? >> i think it's shameful. i think it's shameful to use this as an excuse for us not acting. you're on the ground. you've seen the camps. you've heard the stories of the killing, the rapes, the torture, the murder. that's a instrument of policy that bashar al assad is using to kill his fellow citizens. and somehow place any hope or reason for delay for acting on the kofi annan plan is intellectually dishonest and shameful. >> what do you want to see the united states doing? i've been getting that question for the past days. what is the u.s. doing? where is the international community? why aren't more people paying attention? what do you think the u.s. should do or the international community should do? >> first of all, lead. where's the president of the united states? when's the last time the president of the united states talked to the american people ab

weeks ago syria agreed to a cease-fire and peace plan that was negotiated by kofi annan the former head of the united nations but it hasn't worked. so what, if anything, can or should the u.s. do about all of this? norah o'donnell has been talking to her sources and has some insight from the white house tonight. norah? >> reporter: scott, the obama administration said today it holds the syrian government responsible for the slaughter of innocent lives yet the us intervention saying it would lead to greater chaos and carnage. for now the president's strategy is to further isolate and pressure syrian president assad diplomatically. today the u.s. expelled the top syrian diplomat in washington. nine other countries followed suit, including great britain, france and germany. but the question remains whether further isolation will actually stop the violence. more than ten countries have now expelled syrian diplomats. how would this stop another massacre? >> obviously no single action like that, diplomatic action, stops the regime from its brutal behavior, but it is a cumulative effort. >> re