>> this is al jazeera america live from new york city, i'm tony harris with a look at the day's top stories. a new report says u.s. drone strikes are responsible for killing hundreds of civilians overseas. president obama's health plan is out. some are saying so much so good, and others are giving it the thumbs down. two fugitives walked right out of prison. how they pulled it off ahead. one fiscal fight is over, and

another has just begun. battling over the budget, and each side has a different vision. just two shorts to agree on a long-term budget plan. if they don't, and the partisan bickering kicks in the impact may be fall well into the new year. libby casey is in washington with more on what is at stake in. drama, the fight over funding the government and raising the debt ceiling may barely be cold but work is already started on the next washington budget battle, a group consisting of house and senate members, both republicans and democrats, have started meeting to get their budget work under way. patty murray and congressman paul ryan former presidential candidate, and their effort is to try to come to some sort of deal of spending cuts, new budget changes. they have two months to get it done. they're starting from very different places, though. they come to the table with different goals.

republicans want no new taxes. they also want to see cuts to agency spending, and they reductions in entitlement benefits. democrats are looking for higher income taxes, they want to end sequestration and preserve entitlement benefits. there is only a little bit of time for them to do even a small amount of bargaining. the mandatory budget cuts, the sequestration will kick in, and another round starts in 2014. >> it is no surprise many americans are not happy with the way things are going in washington. what might surprise you, things are even worse then they appear. here's what former republican congressman from virginia tom davis had to say about that. >> yeah, i think it's worse than we realize. we are institutional any now, the house is drawing

institutionally to a republican advantage. democrats have 1.7 million more votes for the house of republicans than the republicans did nationally but they have a 17-seat lead. that's because they control the redistricting process, voting rights, some of these laws. if the presidential level now, the way the elec electoral colle comes together, democrats have the advantage. >> president obama is moving on to fairly urgent matters. he officially nominated jay johnson as his homeland security adviser. >> the pentagon report explained how serving openly would not weaken our military. >> if confirmed johnson will

succeed janet napolitano. now on to the affordable healthcare act, depending on who you ask, it's a success. we exam both sides of this extremesive divisive issue. we start in georgia where many for obamacare, where it is also called, is a bad word. here is robert gray. >> reporter: after 20 years of working for advisory firms. cicely decided it was time for her to open her own business. but now she'll need her own health insurance. >> my clients, who are also self employed, i told them to wait until november, december because i knew there would be glitches. >> reporter: she's talking about healthcare.gov . the website that is supposed to allow customers the opportunity to sign up for healthcare.

>> the long term, i think this will be a distant memory. >> reporter: for welch who lives in georgia, one of 36 states that did not open up their own healthcare exchange, she finds the federally designed website frustrating. >> i'm fully registered. i see my placing sent in. but to view eligibility results, i can't access that button. >> people have their personal advisers, i'm working with my clients, friends and family, but there is no assistance from the state at all. there is supposed to be a navigator. i think the state of georgia approved six people. that's not meaningful. >> reporter: for cicely welch, she's on her own. that's because the state of georgia decided they don't want to assist people in getting insurance. that's by design.

governor nathan deal has said to the federal government i don't want your money to expand medicaid. >> and the affordable care act we stand to use $45 million a year. >> reporter: administrators say operating grady is a break-even operation. this mean clinical services like mental health will be eliminated if state lawmakers fail to pre-solve the federal healthcare law. in order to benefit from them, states need to be fully on board with the affordable healthcare act. without signing on prominent healthcare specialists spell out negative outcomes.

>> there will be a huge loss of care in the community, and what we'll end up with is increased prison population and increased homelessness. there is not an upside to the decision. >> reporter: welch is determined as a consume for wait it out. >> it can be a significant cost savings. if it was something that they were waiting in line for, a movie ticket or something else, they would be waiting through the hassle. millions of people wait in line for a new iphone. >> reporter: on january 1, most americans will be required to be insured. >> now for a different perspective on obamacare. we head to sacramento, california, and melissa chan. >> reporter: on october 1st, the day online healthcare went

online, many came to shop. >> it said that i completed my application. >> reporter: paul will have insurance starting the first of next year. and it will cost him $1 a month. with a few clicks his life has changed. >> without it i wouldn't be able to do it. the policy that they're offering me is worth $500 a month. and i would call it a disaster policy in case i broke a leg, heart attack, it would cover major expenses and i wouldn't lose my life savings or my house. >> reporter: obamacare has meant a smoother launch and more time to set up it's website and systems. many are enrolling. many are waited for years even decades for healthcare coverage. the state's coal to sign up a million californians by the end of the first year. dana howard at covered california said high web traffic

is prove of consumer interest and public support for the new exchange. >> do the numbers. when go on and do the shop and compare and put in your information and see what you get back you realize this is going to be good. >> reporter: getting that kind of message out to millions some of them skeptical of change and others simply very confused may be the biggest challenge. the country's health system already difficult to navigate is requiring the threat of a penalty that americans buy insurance. but for some who follow health policy closely out of necessity the changes are a relief. paul considers himself a typical middle class american, not someone poor, but a beneficiary of obamacare. >> i didn't have medical insurance. i had it in years past, but the premiums just went up and up. i finally had to make a decision, do i eat or pay for

medical insurance. i haven't had it for some years. i really wanted it to be covered in case of an emergency. >> reporter: and the message to those unconcern about covered california, the answer is simple. go check it out and decide for yourself. there is at least one believer. melissa chen, al jazeera america cal. >> a man who pays just $1. it sounds ridiculously low. that's because california's exchange provides options. a special investigator for the u.n. human rights council said that several hundreds of civilian versus been killed by u.s. drone strikes since 2004. in a report that will be present to the u.n. general assembly next week, let's go to john terrett, what ar is the u.n.

calling on the united states to do so? >> reporter: to explain why there has been so many killings of civilians by these drones or pilotless aircraft. we're talking about two separate administrations and it goes above foreign policy. then the affect of that foreign policy of people overseas, on the end of it. we have the reports on human rights issues and council terrorism issues, and the report going before the assembly on the 25th will say that there are far more people killed than the u.s. admits to. according to the report, 450 civilian versus been killed in pakistan, afghanistan and yemen. since 2004 according to his report the pakistani government says 400 civilian versus been killed by drones or pilotless

aircraft, and in his conclusion an additional 200 civilians may well have been killed over that figure of 400. >> what does the obama administration say about this. >> reporter: john brennan, who used to be the president's adviser of terrorism now head of c.i.a. is quoted in saying there is no collateral damage and he's talking about the capability of the system developed by the united states when it comes to these pilotless aircraft. a speech given by the president in may of this year in which he defended the use of drones and narrowed the scope against al-qaeda and it's ow affiliates. there is a difference between what the united states government is saying and what the pakistani government is saying and who might have been

killed by these drones. >> that's what i want to pick up, how much real weight can be put on pakistan's claim of 400 confirmed deaths. >> reporter: i think you have to be careful. washington and islamabad are the closest allies you can get when it comes to the push back against international terrorism, but they are very two different governments, as you know. pakistan is a nuclear nation and needs to be treated with great respect because of that. you saw with the killing of ow osama bin laden, he ended up living just a mile from the pakistan military academy. so you have a difference of how many the pakistan has been

killed. and the u.s. will admit. history will tell. >> john terrett. appreciate it. a manhunt is underway for two men who walked out of a floor prison with forged release documents. they were both serving life sentences. the sheriff office just spoke. what was the latest here? >> reporter: they believe these convicts are still in the orange county area in florida. they used fake signatures orderer their early release. it was judge belvin perry. he was a judge in the casey anthony trial. everyone i had spoken with, this paper had to have come from the outside. here's why.

generally a paper like this would go from a judge's claim per to the clerk's office to the department of corrections to the prison. and from its verified with the clerk's office. some how that documentation by passed the judge's chamber and was flipped into the clerk's office. now this is what larry levine, an ex-co ex- convict who now wos with the government. >> they forged the stamp. i coo create these document on my computer in five minutes. that's easy. the key here is that they had an insider. they had a person at the courthouse who was able to take this document and slip it into the paperwork chain. that opens up the question they could have had things slipped in for years. >> reporter: and the corrections department in florida said it's changing its early release

policy. they'll verify all documents with the judge's office. >> it could have been happening for years. that's scary. has this kind of thing happened before? >> reporter: it has. it in the last couple of years there was a case in pennsylvania. there was a convicted irs scammer forges documents and then there was two similar attempts in kentucky and wisconsin. you have to consider this, these men are still free. they have a network of people helping them. >> thank you. lawmakers from both parties are remembering tom foley. foley died today in washington, d.c. he represented eastern washington state for 30 years. in 1994 he became the first speaker to be defeated for re-election since the civil war. a flag at the u.s. capitol was

lowered to half-staff in his honor. foley was 84 years old. >> meteorologist: we have a lot of cold ehrhof air moving into . and moving into parts of wyoming and eastern nebraska. we have signs of winter arriving. arriving now in western washington. about 80,000, and they're starting to arrive so birdwatchers will go and view them. as we look at the satellite and radar combined you can see that snow tracking through the midwest. now it's changing over to just a few scattered showers moving farther to the east where it's becoming a cold rain for parts of kansas and even showers stretching down along texas into louisiana. let's talk about the cold air that is pouring in.

this is a false storm. it's more like winter. that's how strong it is with the cold air pouring down. we have that cold air pouring all the way down towards oklahoma with the hard freeze warning with temperatures although freezing. we'll have more details with the freezing air as we wake up in the morning. >> next up on al jazeera america. a live long road a transit strike stranded hundreds of thousands of commuters. and the state fair where the food is fried and the grease doesn't go to waste. and renewable energy just ahead.

(vo) tonight: faultlines chases the flames as they spread throughout the west.

>> there's a thick, acrid smoke smell in the air and we're following a strike team now to the top of the mountains where the fire line begins. (vo) it's a war being fought by air and on land costing millions of dollars every year. >> you will make an individual decision to build a home there, but what's the cost to the rest of us? (vo) what's going wrong with the war on wildfires and what are the true costs of putting them out? >> fried food, okay, it is one of the main attractions at state fairs across the country. that means plenty of grease. thousands of gallons of it a year in fact. and that's just at the texas

state fair in dallas. we find out where the grease goes from there. >> welcome to the state fair of texas. >> reporter: the state fair of texas mascot big t ex is a big deal, but one of its biggest draws is fried food. if you can think it, somebody lear is frying it. >> fried food is the reason we come every year. >> fried food has exploded here at the state fair. >> reporter: and this is a big reason why. he's the creator of some of the most talked about foods at the fair. >> we have a fried peanut butter and jelly sandwich. fried cookie doe. and this year fried nutella. >> reporter: of this incredible fried food generates tens of thousands of grease at the state fair, and if any of that made it down the drain there would be big problems. >> they're required to recycle it.

>> even if one vendor poured that grease down the drain that would cause tremendous problems for our sewer pipes and waste water treatment plant. if we had to clean out hundreds of oil every day from our water that would be a tremendous expense to our taxpayers. >> reporter: there are more than 100 food vendors. one of them estimates it goes through 4,000 gallons of cooking oil making half a million corny dogs through the fair. the grease is fared in huge drums for pick up and reuse in bio diesel fuel. >> we donate the majority of it as long as they can come and get it. we're proud to be able to do that. >> reporter: taking care of the environment and their hungry customers is a simultaneous challenge that each vendor manages to eat. >> we'll ching out these fires. filter the oil that we can and the ones that are just spent we take them to a recycling 25-gallon drum back here that

it's poured in to. once a week they'll pick those buckets and send it to the recycling center. >> reporter: seize the grease, the best place to do it, the fried food capitol of texas. dallas. >> i can't even watch people eat that food. in business, google share soaring above $1,000 after reporting stronger than expected earnings. and then some. listen to this, it is now worth $40 billion on paper ranking behind apple and exxon. ali velshi will be talking about this in his program at the top of the hour. ali, is google too hot of a share right now. >> reporter: the jury is out, you would think after $1,000, they would run up the stocks.

there are still people piling in saying that tech is the future. it feels a lot like the 90s, the tech boom all over again. we'll be talking about this on the show. tech stocks are hot. everybody wants in. i have peopling can about twitter ipo, facebook, netflix has been on a terror. they're all moving up sort of together. and the opinion is absolutely split on this. i always like people to be real careful before investing in individual stocks. my general recommendation there is no business in investing in individual stocks. but many people don't just invest but they back up the truck and pile on. if you're going to make investment in some stocks, not the whole. >> you're also looking at housing. there are signs that the market is cooling a bit. >> reporter: yeah, we don't have the government numbers. but next week we'll get those.

housing is something that you want to get from all over the place and figure it out. these are numbers for september because it takes a while to calculate these and suggests that in some parts of the country housing has been flat, and in some parts it's coming down. we're still up from last year, so nothing to panic about, but we'll talk about where there are housing deals. >> that sounds like a packed show. anything else coming up? >> reporter: we'll talk about stocks, tech, and food. if you can't watch people eat that stuff you and i should go to dinner because that's how i'm planning to end my week. >> ali velshi, thank you, sir. i just can't do it. i can feel the arteries clog just looking at the piece. ross is here with the headlines

and a busy day in sports. and some relief for the patriots? >> reporter: yes, tom brady is all smiles. rob groynkowski has just before cleared to play. now head coach bill belichick would not confirm his status for sunday against the jets, but last week they say it was up to the player to decide if he played. play on seattle se seahawks, they're flying high. they spanked the cardinals last night, 43-22. russell wilson, you're loving him if you have him on you're familiarcy team. and zach miller living large as he called in that incredible touchdown grab. game five of the american league championship series is a pitching rematch from game one. sánchez, last night he got

hammered. mike napoli, can he hit it any harder? that is boston strong, napoli exploded for three runs in the second and they would go to take a 3-2 series lead. game six is back in beantown on saturday. the car analysis have a lead over the dodgers and they'll try to close things out at home. kershaw against rookie michael waka. >> ross, see you later. driven from their homes in a war-torn nation hundreds of thousands of syrian refugees must call lebanon home. a first-hand look at the situation, and why they're not always welcomed.

>> welcome back to al jazeera america. here is a look at our top stories. a manhunt is underway in florida for two convicted killers who walked out of floor's prison with forged release documents. they were both serving life

sentences at the franklin correctional facility in the for the west part of the state. president obama has officially announced his choice to be the next homeland security secretary. jay johnson, the pentagon's former top lawyer. if confirmed he would succeed janet napolitano. in syria what started as an internal fight now has global consequences. millions have fled syrian and gone to several places in the world. the u.n. registered 800,000 refugees in the country. their presence is making a big dent in lebanon's economy. >> reporter: syrian versus been escaping to lebanon not just in search of safety but to work. many of them are too tel scaredo tell their stories because some

of them are here i will legally or they don't have work permits. many hire them because syrians are willing to work for lower wages. >> we can hire two syrians than one lebanese. they accept lower wages and it's better for us. >> reporter: this reality has caused resentment. >> the lebanese can't find jobs. there will be a lot of unemployed people and our men to continue to migrant. there has been an invasion of syrians 2347 this tiny nation hosts syrians, and lebanon's economy is under strain. 20% of the nation's 4 million people are now unemployed. official statistics show average wage versus dropped. >> we work for $600 to $800 a month. syrians work for $300 or less.

>> reporter: next year the world bank says an additional 170,000 lebanese will not find don' fins adding to the numbers living although the poverty line. >> reporter: even before the mass migration of syrians, lebanon already had a weak labor market. >> among the thousand of qualified lebanese who can't kind work. he is a bio chemist graduate who doesn't blame syrians for the country's economic ills. >> reporter: therills. >> there was an economic problem even before syrians came. >> reporter: lebanon is a casualty of the war to neighboring syria and their people are very much a victim as syrians themselves. >> to help ease the burden of lebanon, they will send more than $95 million in aid.

the money will help support syrian refugees through the winter, but the challenge right now is to exist peacefully. >> reporter: over a thousand people a day in lines to register as refugees. this is an area where syrians outnumber the lebanese. when the war began these people were welcomed, but not any more. sit down and give them all your lies, the lebanese taxi driver told this woman who said she suffered outright hostility. >> when we come here they insult us. isn't it enough that someone told me we deserve worse than chemical weapons? >> reporter: nearer the syrian border, a sign of how desperate yeah from the conflict has become. it's in the holidays when the atmosphere should be different from this.

no dignity here and a desperate situation. a passport, an i.d. can mean a bag of fresh beef. but a growing number of people who no longer qualify for food or help. this mother is one of them. >> i've been standing here for hours to get a piece of meet. touch my child. she has fever. >> reporter: then lebanese man who tried to drive through the queue vents his anchor to the roadblock. there is still some sympathy to syrians, though, by the end of the day this donated meet will feed around 4,000 people. but it isn't enough. >> we told these people at the end of the day if we have meat left we'll give it. >> reporter: many are living without running warrant and rents thewater, and rentsthey c.

she breaks down before explaining and her sister take over. >> her and her daughter are sick. i forced her to get up. if she's sick we all have a problem. we are the only one who is can take care of the children. >> reporter: but at least they have a roof over their heads unlike hundreds of thousands in these makeshift settlements. they're helplessly inadequate and the dryness will soon be replaced by rain and snow. it's a place that once had promise for those escaping war but it's becoming a living hell. every day the numbers increase along with the resentment of the lebanese living along side, and what prospects do they have? no one here has any hope. how can anyone find any hope in such a forlorn situation. with so little to look forward

to. let me take you past this tree where there is remnants of suit cases that people have fled with and they're trying to get by. here we take a look. they're doing their best to try to live some sort of normal experience. they put rock down to avoid the whole trail of mud, and it leads this way into what is living accommodation, if you believe it, a family of more than six trying to sleep in this space. they try to keep it orderly. there is even a television set for some level of normality not for entertainment but to keep in touch with what is going on at home. the bottom line is unless something is done very soon in lebanon this situation with the onset of winter will make things, well, near catastrophic for these people. >> saudi arain why is taking the unprecedented step of refusing

to take its seat on the u.n. security council. it was elected to serve a two-year term as a non-permanent member a highly coveted position. ethe saudi has said, quote, it s incapable of helping. the bart train shutdown has left thousands stranded. we're live from the golden gate bridge. lisa, good to talk to you. this has to be frustrating. such a frustrating day for everyone out there. how are things going so far? >> which lost her. my apologies, we'll get back to her in just a moment as soon as

we can work out the audio issues. same sex marriages will begin on monday in new jersey. set for january. newark mayor and senator elect corey booker said he will be performing same sex marriages on monday. joining us to talk about the decision maureen and cindy, they've been together for 39 years, and plan to get their marriage license on monday. they join us from new jersey. they're on skype. well, ladies, congratulations. first of all, we should say let's see, maureen is on the left and cindy is on the right. welcome to both. thanks for being on the program. you're not only celebrating this as a couple but you were plaintiffs in this against the state. how are you feeling?

>> unbelievably excited after all of these years to finally be able to utter the words we're going to get married. you cannot imagine how excited we are, how relieved we are. it's been a long fight. we're just elated. the fact that we can finally say that we're going to get that marriage license on monday and then get married on saturday with all of our friends and family. our children will sing for us and be our witnesses. you cannot imagine how excited and thrilled and how relegalled. it's the biggest sigh of relief that came out of both of us when we heard today. >> maureen, i understand that the two of you are at a rally right now. can you describe the environment, the atmosphere, the move at the rally? >> everybody is excited. everybody is reveling in the decision that we heard today. we finall can't believe it's fiy

true. >> your state government, you know, tried to block the weddings, and suggested he would have a difficult time winning an appeal in the lower court ruling. he made several comments about his beliefs on this issue. what are your thoughts about the governor's efforts to block th this, even vetoing a piece of legislation passes in february of last year? >> well, of course we're incredibly disappointed that our governor would feel that he has the right to equal rights. we are incrediblebly disappoin disappointed that he's basing his comments on his personal beliefs rather than as governor of the state. and the families of all the gay and lesbian couples who want to see their loved ones have those equal rights, so we're very disappointed that he's doing this. we don't understand it. we understand that somebody can

have their personal beliefs, but we don't understand someone who is sworn to up hold the constitution of our state can say that his personal beliefs override that. >> cindy, before i lose you i've got one more question, and maureen, you can chime in if you like as well. this has been a fight. there are high points, which you're experiencing today, and then there are low points. can i ask you on this day when you're celebrating, reflect back and what was the low point in this battle for the two of you as a couple? >> seven years ago when the supreme court decided unanimously that we deserved our equal rights but did not say that that was including marriage. >> when the legislature decided it should be called an union, we were just deflated. at that point, they should have just called it marriage back

in 2006. >> and then give us the full equality. they said in one breath you should have equality, and then they gave us second class citizens. that was extremely deflated. >> congratulations on the victory. when are you going to pick up the license, and when are you going to get married? >> monday morning we're going to town hall to pick up our license, and then saturday the 26th the biggest wedding ceremony celebration you have ever seen in the world. >> congratulations, it's a wonderful fight that you fought for so many, not just for yourself but for so many. we'll release you to enjoy the rest of the rally. >> thank you so much. >> thank you very much. >> let's get you to the transit strike in san francisco right now. lisa bernard is there. i think we cleared up our audio issues. we were just talking about how frustrating a di this must have been for everyone who is

using that system. how are things going? i guess so far we're coming up on the afternoon rush. >> yes, the afternoon rush at the golden gate bridge is going so smoothly. they had to get creator and i spoke to transportation leaders in the bay area who said that the buses and ferries were completely full today. a lot of commuters went to work at off-peak hours. but clearly many got into their cars instead of the trains. and many bay area bridges were extra county today. the 9 the percent increase, and the bay bridge brought 13% more cars and clearly people are frustrated.

they're also finding ways to get into strike as this needs to go in, and they're certainly frustrated with the en pass of bart and it's union. bart has an offer that gives 3% pay increases every year for the next four years, but the union said it will not call for a vote on that proposal. >> lisa bernard. boy, it is beautiful, the golden gate bridge behind lisa, joining us from united states. instead, nasa exploring the earth's atmosphere. we'll have more coming up. rates this stuff get complicated. but don't worry. i'm here to take the fear out of finance. every night on my show i break down confusing financial speak and make it real.

(vo) tonight: faultlines chases the flames as they spread throughout the west. >> there's a thick, acrid smoke smell in the air and we're following a strike team now to the top of the mountains where the fire line begins. (vo) it's a war being fought by air and on land costing millions of dollars every year. >> you will make an individual decision to build a home there, but what's the cost to the rest of us? (vo) what's going wrong with the war on wildfires and what are the true costs of putting them out?

>> welcome back to al jazeera america. it is a rare mission for nasa, exploring planet earth. they're trying to learn about climate change. it's part of this week's "techknow" the program that focuses on science and life-changing innovations. >> from a distance our planet looks like any other. but close up, i'm minutes away from boarding this plane with nasa experimentalists. this is a modified plane with 28 different instruments on the outside all trying to measure the pollution and atmosphere. it's a three-prong attack. nasa launch as learjet and er 2 modeled after the u 2 spy plan. the men and women are learning more about climate change and the role humans play in it.

it's 9:00 a.m. everyone is seated, and its wheels up. we're flying right into clouds and storms it's a bumpy ride with lots of turbulence. i hit my head while trying to get back to the seat. >> there are things occurring in the air that you just can't see and couldn't predict. when we dropped like a rock and you experience zero gs.

>> we're two ours into the mission and we're flying at 300 feet over the gulf of mexico. at this height we can delay directly over ships and oil rigs to murray missions they're putting in the atmosphere. why is this mission so important? >> because if we don't do anything about it, we'll continue to wrecking air. we're making sure that the scientists are getting what they need, how they want it and when they want it, and it's done safely. >> earlier i spoke to bill with his time with the crew. >> we're targeting the turbulence because that's where the good clouds were that the scientists were trying to get the data from. every time we hit a turbulence we had to grab on to something and make sure it was not one of the 31 machines that all cost several hundreds of thousands of dollars. >> tell me about the paths this plane took. starting low, collecting date tax and it sounds like a lengthy

process. >> yes, it sure was. they're really trying to get from the ground all the way up to 35,000 feet. they're interested in how clouds form in relation to the pollutants in the air. and those pollutants start low. we hit 300 feet and then moved up to 500 feet, 1,000 feet, 10,000 feet, and all the way up. it was a windy ride and intense. these guys did it 18 times for this mission. >> that is phil torres. you can check out the program "techknow" every sunday at 8:00 p.m. on al jazeera america. voss here with the day in sports, and its must-win time for the dodgers. >> reporter: all the clichés, backs against the wall, hanging on with a thread, the boys in

blue are not feeling blue. game six tonight i, the cardinas are trying to show everybody that they can close out a series. the they're tired about hearing about this stat. whenever the carte cardinals tae years, kershaw will be facing michael wacha who has been lights out. in the nfl the patriots are off to a 5 and 1 start which is amazing if you think that tom brady has been throwing to a bunch of receivers who say, hello, my name is tag. yes, rob gronkowski has finally

been cleared by doctors to play. head coach bill belichick would not confirm his status, but saying that it's up to the players to decide if he plays. on the college gridiron all eyes on number five florida state against number three clemson. we have a lot about this must-see match up that features two heisman quarterback contenders. >> yes, winston and boyd, two very prominent heisman contenders, and only one can be left standing. winston is a great red-shirt freshman. he has played incredible all year. and taj boyd is a veteran. a premiering quarterback match up. i kind of give him the edge because he has been down this

road before but winston is definitely a lot fun to watch, and i think people will have a big treat watching these guys go at it. >> now we've got to give some love to missouri. the tigers are 6 and 0, and they can really make a statement against number 22 florida. is missouri the biggest prize of the season so far? >> well, full disclosure, i'm a missouri grad, i'm going say yes, yes, they are the biggest surprise of the season. i don't think anybody expected them to do as well as they've done so far, 6 and 0. this is a team that has played pretty poorly in the sec and they beat up georgia pretty good, and they have a kid who they really like named matty mock. as long as he doesn't screw up, throw interpretations and fumble the ball, i think there are plenty around him who will help them win this game.

>> stanford was shocked by utah last week, but they'll bounce back and come up. is the dream still alive for them? >> yeah, everything is still out there for stanford. they could still win the pack 12. they could still play in a bcs bowl and win a championship but they can't screw up. they can't lose another game. it's going to be a really good game. i think ucla is really underrated but stanford is so good in the trenches, and they're so good at their various positions especially quarterback. they're going to be eagle for get back on track and ucla is not--it does not have the firepower to stay with them. >> quick, real quick on the selection committee that was ajust announced. rise, alvarez, osbourne, what are some of the obstacles that that selection committee will have to face? >> definitely public perception. people are going to be--eyes are all going to be on this group,

and i think a lot of people are going to be scrutinizing them and how they pick the four teams. of all the teams out there this is going to be very tough. i think that is where their biggest troubles are going to lie to make sure that the public stays on board, and they're able to select the best teams out of a group of a lot of really good candidates out there. >> full disclosure, she went to missouri. she's rooting for the tigers. >> full disclosure, my son is going to missouri, tigers! so, i don't get to ask this often but i'll ask it of you now friday, going into the weekend, must-see tv this weekend. >> the college gridiron, i'm watching arizona state take on washington. and usc game. >> okay, all right, good deal. i'm going to watch the dodgers. i'm looking for the dodgers and

the tigers in the world series. appreciate it. >> on to weather. rebecca stevenson is next with the national forecast. real money. victoria azarenko on august 20th,

this is the 900-page document we call obamacare. my staff has read the entire thing. can congress say the same?

>> meteorologist: today we had plenty snow coming drown wyoming even down to parts of nebraska. now we saw some rain showers, and it was a cold rain scattered across the canadian border and it started to make its way into the southern portion of question beak. montreal, a showery cool day, but most of that cold air moving in, yeah, we're still in fall but this is cold air that we usually see around the winter season. we see the snowfall and the u.s. as a whole at 5.1%. even by last month we were at zero. that was a quick shot of a few

storms that brought snow into montana, wyoming, and north dakota as well. this is where you're going to feel the street freeze, the norh midwest. temperatures bottoming out. the early morning hours that's where we're going to get the hard-killing freeze for any tender plants outside. temperatures farther east are going to stay mild. eveeven though we have this cold blast coming in now we have a second cold blast as we come into the middle of next week and that will trash towards the east coast. we will have a cool down for all of us as we get towards the next week or two. the high temperatures we'll feel that chill in the air in the midwest while others areas feel cool. it is not the cold that we feel in australia but a powerful fire season dry and hot.

>> this is al jazeera america live. this is tony harris with a look at the top stories. the launch of the affordable care act is not going as planned due to technical glitches. however, some states have far fewer unenrolled people than just a few weeks ago. president obama nominated jay johnson, defense department's top lawyer. he overa the increase use of unman drone strikes as well as the revamping of military commissions to tr