>> welcome to al jazeera america. i'm del walters. these are the stories we're following for you. president obama set to sign an executive order raising the minimum wage for federal contract workers even as the senate now voting on increasing the debt ceiling. and slipping and sliding in the south, another winter storm blowing in from texas to the carolinas. and the verdict is in in the trial of former new orleans mayor ray nagin.

>> we're following breaking news at this hour. former new orleans mayor ray nagin soon may be heading to jail guilty. nagining corruption charges including accepting $500,000 worth of bribes. al jazeera has been following the story from new orleans. ben, what did the jury say? >> reporter: well, del, as you might know he was charged with 21 counts of different types of corruption including bribery and kickback schemes. the jury found him guilty on 20 of those 21 counts. count number 7 involved a bribery charge with a family business and investment that was to pay off the mayor for city contract. but the jury came in moments ago

and deliberated for 6.5 hours. three on monday and three and a half today. this is day 11 of this trial. as we talked before, one of the great mysteries was many people figured the mayor had the opportunity to take a deal with prosecutors. this is an investigation that has been at least four years in the making. six other people have pled guilty or been convicted on charges to nagin's case. giving him a page out of the playbook of the prosecutor. essentially he saw the evidence that he had against other people and had an opportunity to talk with prosecutors and make a deal, which would have gotten him three to five years in prison if he had pled guilty. nevertheless, he took his chances with the jury. he went to trial for 11 days, now he has been found guilty on 20 of the 21 counts that amounts to 20 years in prison depending

on his sentencing. the latest breaking news, the trial is over after a day off for jury deliberation yesterday. they came back today and went to lunch for 30 minutes and within 20 minutes of coming back from lunch the jury told the judge they were ready to file bac comn the jury room and filed back in and found him guilty of 20 counts against the mayor of new orleans. >> ben, it was believed that nagin might have been trying for a jury nullification by maintaining what he was doing was trying to speed up the contract-letting process following hurricane katrina. obviously the jury did not buy that argument. >> one of his main arguments was, look, we had billions of dollars coming in this city. 80% of it had been destroyed after hurricane katrina, and he had a big part in getting the rebuilding done. this was a mere effort for us to try to get back federal money

into the hands of people and the rebuilding of the city as quickly as possible. it had nothing to do with kickback schemes but prosecutors showed in trial that it seems that they had paper trail, they had bank statements and phone records and contracts to show very clearly that the people who were getting this business, many of them were also putting money into the pockets of the mayor and his family. yes, it appears that approach didn't work for him. >> ben, thank you very much joining us from new orleans. again, former new orleans mayor ray nagin found guilty of 20 of 21 charges in his corruption charge and could spend 20 years behind bars. today the president said will sign an executive order increasing the minimum wage for contract employs from $7.25 an hour to $10.10. but it's what is happening

across town on whether to raise the debt limit ceiling, what is happening in the senate? >> reporter: this is a fascinating confluence of events. you're right in the east room the president is about to sign this executive order. he announced it at the state of the union. they're making a big deal about the president signing the executive order. this is for contract workers with the federal government and anal universe of people especially when he consider it does not take affect for the first of next year and for new contracts. but what is the white house trying to do? what is the president trying to do by making an event out of what is usually a mundane signing of an executive order? he's trying to put pressure on congress to wit right at this moment the senate is voting on a crucial measure to raise the debt ceiling. we've been here before as recently as last fall.

the white house prevailed over republicans. they raised the debt ceiling and put it off until february 7th. now they're moving around accounts. it has to be raised by february 27th. the house of representatives caved. they did so yesterday, and then they have left town for two weeks. the senate now trying to get this thing passed. reports from capitol hill very interesting. it needs 60 votes to pass. assuming all 55 democrats will vote for it. it it is unclear which republicans those might be. reports now from capitol hill the republicans are still behind closed doors. very few have come out on the senate floor to cast their vote. if this goes down, del, considering it has already passed the house, and this would be final congressional action before it's sent to the president, the financial markets would react very poorly, indeed. there is a lot at stake on both ends of pennsylvania avenue. >> that is conundrum that house speaker john boehner punted,

saying i won't rely on democratic support to get it passed in the house. now the senate could be the stumbling block. >> isn't that ironic, the politics are fascinating. john boehner basically said to his conservatives who were very unhappy saying i'm going to put this on the floor, there will be no attachments, no funny business. the president is not going to negotiate on this thing. let's keep fighting on the affordable care act and home bear, let's not blow it and mix our message by talking about a government shutdown and delaying the debt ceiling as obamacare is falling on its own sword. john boehner put it on the floor, and it was an amazing thing for him to do that. it passed on the strength of democratic votes. if you look at it in a ma mamachiavellian way, now in the

senate we have what appears to be a nail biter. remember it needs 60 votes for this procedural hurdle, and then for it to pass requires only 50 votes for that. >> mike viqueira, never a dull moment. >> oh, yes. >> we're following that signature, we're waiting for the signature from the president concerning that minimum wage bill, which will effect 250,000 federal contract workers when he signs it. we'll bring that information to you live. also we're following the weather, a big chill in the deep south. another ice storm slamming the southeast, hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses across the region already without power and the freezing rain and snow already coming down. robert ray is live on interstate 75 in marietta georgia, and we marine he's on interstate 75 in marietta, georgia.

>> reporter: yes, del, i sure am, and it's getting more dangerous as the hours go by. a giant chunk of ice that was snow a couple of hours ago is now totally frozen. this road is literally an ice skating rink. it has gone from snow to rain to sideways sleet, sleeting rain to now bb's almost like a hurricane if you're standing on a beach and getting sand blasted as a cat 3 comes in. it feels that way. this is very dangerous. no one is on the road here. people are hunkering down because it's simply a situation you don't want to be out in. if you look over here this is i-75 down here. barely a soul on the interstate. two weeks ago this was jam packed, gridlocked with people trying to get to their homes, out of the city. well, lessons learned. the governor and his new task force of emergency folks really put a new plan into action, and

people listened. new salt spreaders have been out and around the city. the national guard is out as this situation continues to get worse as temperatures are dropping. just over the course of the past few hours it was about 30 degrees three hours ago. it is now 26 degrees now. and this bizarre mixture of prescription coming down, del. just a few hours ago my own home took a casualty. i don't know if we'll put up the photograph. a big pine tree fell in my backyard, destroyed my kids' swing set, unfortunately. we're hearing a lot of stores like that in and around metro atlanta as over 200,000 people are out of power. the power companies are out trying to restore the situation. so the numbers fluctuate every so often. the power numbers will go down and then go up. tree cutters are out. we were out with them this morning trying to resolve the situation. and people hunkering down here as this system is moving through

georgia into the carolin carolio washington and eventually into your neck of the woods, del. >> thank you very much. if you follow the woes of robert ray you know this weekend is his child's swing set. last weekend he lost his car because of all of this ice, and it is a mess out there and to is moving. >> there is ice coming down, and that will be the problem over the next few hours. oh below freezing seeing sleet and freezing rain. the air above that is warmed up. snow is melting, and it fall noose that cold air, so we have ice storm warnings, winter storm warnings for that snow and ice. all snow up in north carolina. we're talking about six to eight inches of snow there. this area year, central georgia, north and south carolina where we see this mix indicated by the

pink collar on the radar. the moisture moved out, the storm intensifying. there is heavy rain and now we're seeing heavy sleet and freezing rain across georgia. this will continue. this is not done yet and the ice will continue to accumulate. this large area of mixing, heavy rain in georgia going to heavy sleet or freezing rain. that moves into south carolina and north carolina, and then midnight tonight it is ending. it will close out and move on to the coast of north carolina. that will be overnight tonight and tomorrow. here are the temperatures down below freezing noon today. staying there as this area of mixing here continues to fall into the very cold air, and in end in site. although finally by tomorrow this clears out. then we're talking about the northeast storm and we'll talk about that later with the complete forecast. >> we're not alone. in southern england causing

severe flooding and officials are warning that more rain is on the way. >> reporter: this scene is something that we're seeing all over britain. one of many hundreds of roads that are flooded, houses threatened. as the water goes up just a few more feet this house will be threatened. this is one of the lucky ones. this is on higher ground. we have dozens of houses here today where the water is just really inches away. a lot of people have left their homes here in race bury and across the country to people who are staying, many have moved all of their furnishings up to the second floor and what they can, and taken things off the ground. we've seen the army going door to door helping people, getting through these villages, trucks and big four wheel drive vehicles is the only way to get

around. we've been to several villages nearby, and many are worse off than here. some areas totally cut off, the water is three, four feet deep along the road. here many people have left theirs homes. others have moved their belongings up on the second floor, and these are scenes repeated across britain as this flood effects the whole south of britain now. the prime minister said they will spare no money to help these people and help prevent future floods. the government has come under a lot of criticism about how it has handled this situation, and it's not over yet. we're expecting rain and there is not a lot of concern. london so far they are able to regulate the flow of water there, but we're on the edge of london here not far from heathrow airport. a lot of people badly affected here and across the country, and

more rain expected later this week. it could take days, weeks or months for most of this water to go away. >> about 150 palestinian prisoners say they're critically ear. one family saying they want their loved one to be set free. al jazeera talked to them. >> reporter: their son is in an israeli prison, and they say he's close to dying. he was given a sentencer two years into his sentence he fell ill, an illness he hid during visits with his mother. >> i was crying. the woman asked why, they joke, asking if i was a doctor, but i know i'm his mother. >> she was right to be concern concerned.

the palestinian authorities says he's suffering from intestinal cancer. this is his medical records from 2009 to 2013. consisting of nearly 2,000 pages. the israel authorities won't release his records from 2006 to 2008 when his deterioration began. when his family asks why, they are told it is a secret. his family says they want to hide negligence. but the israeli say he is fine. palestinian prisoners suffer from abuse inside the prison. the group said sick prisoners are released only when they are in their final stages or when they become a burden to the

system. like the december release of a man who suffers from motor neuron disease. >> i'm leaving behind people who are suffering. go see for yourself. go see the living dead. go see the half men. go see the open abdomens. >> she goes about her chores, but the fears of a mother always creep in. >> every time the phone rings or someone says they have news from a prison my heart sinks. >> every now and then she allows herself a mother's moment. al jazeera, in the west banks. >> we're going to take you live to the east room of the white house. we're awaiting the signature of the president of the united states with the stroke of a pen he will give 250,000 federal contract workers a pay raise. mike viqueira is standing by. mike, a lot of people wanting

and waiting to see what the president is going to do. >> well, right, and del, it's important to put this in context. what the president is doing is part of a campaign, a public campaign since the state of the union to put pressure on congress to enact those items on his agenda which he thinks are going to help working people and narrow the divide between rich and poor. at the top of the list is raising the minimum wage. obviously it varies from state to state. that is the mum. some states are higher, but the president has gotten behind a bill that is in the united states senate and going nowhere, to raise that minimum wage to $10.10. so what can the president do in lieu of congressional action? you heard him. he's talking about his pen. he talked about his phone. he talked about a year of action. he talked about going around congress even if it's in marginal way. that's what we're seeing here today. the president announced this step actually at the state of the union just a few weeks ago, that he would raise that minimum

wage to $10.10 an hour for federal contract workers with a few caveats, of course. first of all it doesn't go into affect until january 1, 2015. it's only for new contracts entered into after that time, and the white house is really quite unsure how many people will be affected. so the president about to sign this executive order. >> exactly, mike, he has walked into the east room. he's taking pictures right now, but there is the president of the united states with the stroke of the pen about to give a pay raise to 250,000 federal contract workers. >> i come before you go buy shovels and assessment. it sound like we may get a little bit of snow. i appreciate everybody being here. i want to thank first and foremost the workers who are with me here this afternoon.

[applause] >> and i want to thank two champions for all hard working americans. we have secretary of labor tom perez, who is in the house. tom is right here. i didn't know where he was. and we've got outstanding congressman who is used to snow because he's from minnesota, congress man keith ellison. now, it's been just two weeks since i delivered my state of the union address, and i said this year would be a year of action. and i meant it. the past 14 days i ordered across the board reform of our job training programs to train folks with the skills that employers need and then match

them up with good jobs that are ready to be filled right now. i directed the treasury to create something we're calling myra. something like ira but it's myra. it's a new way for americans to start saving for retirement, and you can start with $25 to $50, and start building up a little bit of a nest egg. and get tax benefits for doing so. we rallied the leaders of some of america's biggest high tech companies to help us make sure that all of our kids have access to high speed internet, up-to-date technology in their classrooms so they're learning the skills that they need for the new economy. we brought together business leaders who are committed to hiring more unemployed america americans, particularly long-term unemployed who are often times discriminated against. they're in a catch 22.

they haven't had a job for a while, and then the employer is not willing to look at the resumé because they have not had a job in a while. the point is i'm eager to work with congress whenever i can find opportunities to expand opportunity for more families. but where i can october on my own without congress by using my pen to take executive actions or picking up the phone and rallying folks around the common cause, that's what i'm going to do. so that brings me to the issue that i'm going to talk about today. after the worst economic crisis in generations our economy has been growing for the past four years. our businesses created new jobs,

while those at the top are doing better than ever, corporate profits have been high. stock market has been high you have too many americans who are working harder than ever before just to get by, but they can't seem to get ahead. they can't seem to make all ends meet. that's been true long before the recession hit. we've got to reverse those trends. we got to build an economy that works for everybody, not just the fortunate few. no matter how you started out, no matter what you look like, no matter what your last name is, you can get ahead in america if you want to work hard and take responsibility for your life. all right? so the opportunity and agenda i

laid out is going to help us do just that. part one of this agenda is more new jobs that pay a good wage, jobs in manufacturing, exports, original, innovation. part two, you got to train the folks with the skills to fill those jobs. part three you got to make sure that every child gets a world class education. and part four you got to make sure that making hard work pay off with economic security and decent wages and benefits is what we're about here today. it means making sure women earn equal pay for equal work. it means workers can save for a

dignified retirement. it means access to affordable health insurance that gives you the freedom to change jobs or be your own boss, and the peace of mind that it will be there when you get sick and you need it most. so if you know anybody without health insurance right now, send them to healthcare.gov . the website is working. sign them up. you can get healthcare for less than a cell phone bill for a lot of folks. it means in the wealthiest nation on earth nobody who works full time should have to live in poverty, nobody. not here in america. now it was one year ago today,

one year ago today that i first asked congress to raise the federal minimum wage. federal minimum wage that is worth 20% less than it was when ronald reagan took office. 20% less. a fifth less. this afternoon i invited some of the folks who would see a raise if we raise that federal minimum wage, and they happen to join me here at the white house like most workers in their situation they are not teenagers. they look like teenagers, some of them are very young looking, but they're not teenagers taking on their first job. they're adults. average age is 35 years old. the majority of lower-wage jobs are held by women. many of them have children that they're supporting. these are americans who work full time often to support a

family, and if the minimum wage had kept pace with our economic productivity, they would already be getting paid well over $10 an hour. instead the minimum wage is still just $7.25. when congress refuses to raise it loses value because there is inflation, and everything else starts to cost a little bit more. even though inflation is low, it still cost a little bit more each year. that means each there are is not going as far as they've got a little bit less. over the past year the failure for congress to act. >> a pay raise for 250,000 federal contract workers.

er. >> the president going through his litany for job training, education, some of the initiatives. >> mike viqueira at the white house, thank you very much. former new orleans mayor ray nagin crickete convicted of 20

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