welcome to al jazeera america. i'm del walters. these are the stories we are following for you. in the wake of a scandal, new jersey governor chris christie preparing to make his state of the state address. reviewing the nsa, a senate committee set to review the recommendations by the presidential panel. and egyptian voters go to the polls deciding on a new constitution. updating our breaking news coming out of roswell, new mexico police confirming there has been a shooting at a middle school there.

that school now on lockdown. three students were injured. they also say a suspect is now in custody. roswell police saying they will hold a news conference around 3:00 this afternoon with more details. facing a series of scandals, governor chris christie will deliver new jersey's state of the state address today. last week we learned that a top aide ordered lane closures causing a massive traffic delay, and now there are questions over how governor christie used funds from superstorm sandy. >> reporter: the feeling is he has got to nengs. it has become too big in his life, career, and in the people he serves.

we and members of the media will be watching his body language, and will he mention these things at all, and at what point will he mention them? last summer this ad was one of many pushing tourism on the jersey shore. >> we're stronger than the storm. >> reporter: but this post sandy marketing campaign is now under scrutiny amid allegations that christie put himself and his family front and center of the ad right in the middle of his reelection bid. new jersey democratic congressman frank pallone said he alerted the department of urban development, this comes days after the governor was

forced to .a ool guise for a traffic scandal at the george washington bridge. a close aide ordered lane closures snarling traffic for days, saying this followed the mayor's refusal to support christie's bid for second term. christie said he knew nothing about it and apologized to the people of the state. >> i had no knowledge of this issue, in the planning or the execution, and i am stunned by the abject stewpydy. >> reporter: christie went to fort lee immediately after his news conference to apologize to the mayor in person. the mayor said he would take christie at his word but wanted to wait and see what the investigation turned up. and now knew allegations have

emerged. emails were released showing that meetings were canceled in july hours after he refused to back the governor's bid for reelection. an email reads . . . until all of this came to light, christie had been the big guy in new jersey politics who appeared poised to top the g.o.p. ticket in 2016 for the white house. could these additional allegations make a run for the presidency more difficult? first today he must get through his state of the state. now regarding those alstations christie's peopled says the white house gave him permission for those ads, and the company said it got the okay before they made the ad. the governor will soon deliver the state of the state, he is expected to say the state is

strong and he is expected to move on and try to put some of this behind him. dell. >> john thank you very much. a presidential panel tasked with looking at how the nsa works set to testify today. they are looking at a number of important changes. libby casey right now in washington. libby what is the panel recommending? >> they made 46 recommendations, dell, and among them a key one, stopping the collection and keeping of phone records by the government. instead they would recommending that that information stays in the hands of the phone companies and can only be accessed by federal authorities after a court order. and the same privacy laws and protections that american citizens get should be extended to non-u.s. citizens and that applies to personal data. so there should be the same limits on that information as americans citizens are allowed

to have, and a third item when it comes to spying on foreign leaders any direction or order from that has to come from the president and his advisors, not from the intelligence officials, and that of course has been an issue of great international concern over the last few months, dell. now we'll see the panel members come before the judiciary committee this afternoon, and these are folks that the president appointed to this panel, an objective group that was supposed to work on its own and come up with these recommendations. including a former acting head of the cia. and they'll talk to the -- committee and they will have a captive audience. there are other issues that the president is not going to budge on. he said he is working on them

now and we'll know more information when he gives his speech on friday. >> thank you very much. in egypt eight people are dead as millions of egyptians go to the polls. they are voting on a referendum to revise that's country's constitution. if approved there will be new presidential and parliamentary elections come this summer, but security is tight. >> reporter: voters are being asked to approve a new constitution one that would undue many of the rules brought in this under president morsi, changes that some believe would give the elite more power over the country. >> translator: yes to the constitution and may god bring peace to the country. >> reporter: the military will be charged with appointing the defense minister for the next

two presidential terms, several give the military more power. the police will be empowered with the creation of a new council comprising senior officers critics say this will protect the force from civilian oversight. egypt's army chief cast his ballot at a polling station in cairo. >> translator: this constitution is a reflection of egypt's current situation along with the challenges egypt and the egyptian society face. therefore, there is a great focus on freedoms, rights, and the benefits of the egyptian people. >> reporter: controversially the draft text retains the military's right to prosecute civilians who attack it. civilians can still be tried under military tribunals. rights groups say the changes also ensure to fail transparency

over the vast economic interests. the proposed constitution also bans any party based on religion. further eroding the position of the muslim brotherhood which is already been classified as a terrorist organization. another party with a strong religious core has indicated it favors a yes vote. >> translator: these are all factors that effect our party's position, and we can confirm that not only are we saying yes, but we hope that all egyptians would also vote yes. >> reporter: supporters of the ousted president are boycotting the polls. protests against the military continue across the country. security forces fire tear gas in this neighborhood of alex sawn

driia. >> translator: we can never participate and give legitimacy to a government that fools the people while it is neither democratic nor civil. >> reporter: security has been tightened for the vote, but along with peaceful protest has become violence. this was the aftermath of a bomb blast just before polling stations opened in giza. this is the first big test of public opinion since the removal of mohammed morsi as president. those who oppose him have called for a large turnout and positive result. if they do vote yes, egyptians will have seen three different constitutions in three years. around the world media organizations joining the call for the release of our five al jazeera journalists. mohamed fahmy, baher mohamed,

and correspondent peter greste all accused of spreading lies harmful to state security and joining a terrorist group. al jazeera continues to maintain that the allegations are false. sectarian violence in the central african republic has claimed more than 1200 lives. the fighting also displaying thousands of people. entire groups fleeing and hiding in the bush. but some of those who left their homes are now starting to return. >> reporter: people have fled houses burnt down. these villages have suffered attack f after attack. but in this settlement, hundreds of people emerge from the bush for the visit of a un official. >> coming back now to rebuild your lives. >> reporter: they were hanging on his every word. >> we want to hear about your

needs. [ applause ] >> reporter: he was shown all that is left by the help center, everything taken by the selica militia. these people don't have a government that can help them. >> the institutions of the state here don't exist. there is no health infrastructure, or schooling infrastructure. we really have to step up to respond to what is an unprecedented situation. it's so long now that this country -- the people of this country have been languishing without very basic infrastructure and support. >> reporter: there's so much destruction it seems the villages have lost absolutely everything, and yet we have seen some signs of hope. after months of living in the bush in fear, there are some people here who have decided to come home. nina is busy. she's come out of hiding, and now she has to tidy up around

her looted house. but inside, there's almost nothing left. and nina is alone with her two children. muslim herdsmen murdered her husband last month. >> translator: i have been left alone to raise these children. i hope there is peace, and that the village market reopens so that i can try to make money to feed them. >> reporter: this is the village militia. they might be brave, although they don't have much to fight with, but they know if they don't protect themselves no one elsewhere. up next on al jazeera america, the changing face of the american auto worker. why they need high-tech skills to build the cars of tomorrow. that story and your top business headlines when al jazeera america returns.

al jazeera america. we open up your world. >> here on america tonight, an opportunity for all of america to be heard. >> our shows explore the issues that shape our lives. >> new questions are raised about the american intervention. >> from unexpected viewpoints to live changing innovations, dollars and cents to powerful storytelling. >> we are at a tipping point in america's history! >> al jazeera america. there's more to it.

welcome back to al jazeera america. i'm del walters with your top business headlines in hour. wall street on the upswing today. up 75 points right now, and following an encouraging report on retail sales that is helping to boost stocks the way after the blue chips had their worst drop since september. j.p. chaste reporting revenues and earnings back in this quarter. chase says it spent $1.1 billion in legal fees. that target data breach is getting the attention of congress. asking the ceo for details about what happened. house democrats have already called for a congressional

probe. 100 million customers may have had their information stolen. after years of declines and layoffs there are no new jobs in the auto industry, and those that are being created are being found outside of detroit. but for many that means longer hours and less pay. >> reporter: this was once the picture of american auto makers. assembly lines turned out cars at a frantic pace. about 17% of american workers produced autos and auto parts. today that number is less than 1%, following years of factory automation, and slumping sales. and yet four years after a bailout, and increased sales,

analysts say the industry is posed for growth. >> i think there's still a lot of viability as an automotive worker in the u.s. >> reporter: as production ramps up, more than 35,000 more auto jobs are projected an increase in part attributed to foreign manufacturers as they get new u.s. plants online. that's especially true in southern states where weaker unions and reduced labor costs have made manufacturing more attractive. >> it has shifted to some extent away from the detroit three and to the transplant auto makers, and there's more auto economy in the south than there used to be >> reporter: an average u.s. auto employees spends more hours at work than he did a decade ago, but american pay has dropped over the years. that worker costs about $48 an hour in pay and benefits in the u.s., compared to about 60 in

germany. >> the new hires, the wage is still higher than a starting wage in retail, but it's just not as attractive as it used to be. >> reporter: and yet the jobs are changing rapidly. the change in cars and trucks require educated workers with high-tech skills. >> in many cases these workers have at least a couple of years of college on the line. >> reporter: today's average vehicle contains about 60 micro processors and 10 million lines of code. >> we need people who can do coding for computers. these have become much more important in the last ten years. >> reporter: that means tomorrow's auto maker might be one part engineer and one part computer programmer. and don't forget our ali velshi hosting "real money with ali velshi" life from the detroit auto show.

you can catch that show at 7:00 pm eastern time right here on al jazeera america. every day we hear reports the housing market is recovering, but for millions the dream of homeowner ship is still a financial nightmare. julia explains. >> reporter: desiring more space and a family friendly neighborhood for their children, sonya and her husband made what they thought was a sound investigation decision. they purchased a home in hollywood, florida, buying at the peak of the real estate market. >> the value has decreased by about $70,000. it makes us kind of scared for the future wondering if we will be able to own this home outright. it makes us wonder if we should continue to stay in the home. >> reporter: they are now considered underwater in their home, meaning the current loan amount is at least 25% higher

than the value of the property. they paid almost $300,000 for a home now worthless than $200,000. >> the frustrating part also is when i see at this time that the market is starting to change, i see friends and family around us purchasing homes and getting more for their money. >> reporter: according to new figures, by realty track which compiles trend in the marketplace, some 9.3 million u.s. residential properties are currently under water. florida has the second highest rate in the nation of such homes, nevada leads the way. 34% of florida homeowners are considered underwater, 61% of those are deeply under water and in the foreclosure process. south florida realtor ron attributes forward-looking's high underwater rates to several factors stemming from the 2005,

2006 real estate boom. >> there was a time that the money was cheap and they had pick your mortgage, and buyers bought and flipped, and bought and flipped. >> reporter: he says while the rate of underwater homes is high, sit down from $10.9 million just a year ago. interest rates are below 5%, home values are increasing 20% during the past year, and inventory is up. yanks advised underwater homeowners to consider all of their options. >> hire a professional, get your home short sold as soon as possible. >> reporter: as for this homeowner she says despite the challenges they have faced, she still beliefs in the dream of homeownership. she is helpful the market will continue to strengthen. helping a child's

vocabulary. coming up a program that can help children one word as -- at a time. we need to produce more, better. so we -- we are talking about assault. afghan president karzai is long accused the unit

welcome back to al jazeera america. i'm del walters. these are your headlines at this hour. egyptians are casting their ballots on a revised constitution if they vote yes, the country will vote for a new president in the summer. supporters of the ousted president boycotting that two-day vote. a presidential review panel set to testify about the changes proposed for the nsa. new jersey governor chris christie set to deliver a state of the state today. the governor is facing several scandals, including a traffic jam controversy and misuse of hurricane sandy relief funds. the goal to convince parents

that the lives of their children can be better if they talk more to them. diane eastabrook reports. >> reporter: aknee sha is always putting her four-year-old daughter to the test even even at snack time. >> do you see how many gram crackers there are? >> one, two, three four. >> reporter: she learned how to improve her daughter's vocabulary through a pilot program the program helps kids improve their vocabulary by teaching their parents different ways to talk to them. newal was astonished by her daughter's quick progress. >> i want to say maybe by the

fifth of sixth week, my daughter called something ridiculous. >> reporter: this doctor specializing in implants for the hearing impaired developed 30 million words after noticing that some of her low-income patients didn't progress as well following surgery. >> i realized it had nothing to do with their hearing loss, but rather the language environment they were being exposed to early on. and that difference almost always fell along socioeconomic lines. >> reporter: two psychologists found that three year olds who interacted more with their parents and exposed to more words were better in kindergarten and tended to do better in reading later.

>> she really increased her numbers. went down a little bit, went up a little bit, but really pretty much doubled where she started. >> reporter: she admitted a strong vocabulary is no guarantee kids will succeed in school, but newell thinks it will give alana an advantage as well as her little brother. diane eastabrook, al jazeera, chicago. ♪ i'm meteorologist dave warren the weather pattern here is fairly stuck. we have the cold air to the east, warm air to the west. this trough of low-pressure. cold air continues to move down. we see storms move through. high-pressure out west is dry and we get that windy weather especially east of the rockies, and the santa ana winds keeping

it cold there. light snow in the plains, just a winter water advisory in effect with the cold temperatures. still warm across the southwest, and mild weather one more day here across the mid-atlantic states. the light snow just lingering a little bit, winter storm warning will remain in effect, but it's just a winter weather advisory, meaning not a lot of snow, just a little bit to make it troublesome on the roadways. wind will continue to gust, increasing the fire danger because it is dry and making travel a little troublesome there. here is the light snow through the great lakes. it will clear out. rain with the warmer temperature along the east coast ending, followed by a drop in temperatures in the middle to end of the week.

dell? >> dave thank you very much. "the stream" is next, and check us out 24 hours aday by going to aljazeera.com. hi i'm lisa fletcher and you are in the "the stream." after 55% of female recruits in marine boot camps failed the pull-up test, are women ready for the physical demands of combat? ♪ our digital producer julio is here tonight. >> i like that. >> thank you. is filling in tonight. and man, twitter is exploding