a little bit younger. and for the rest of us there might just be a novelty that we look to and check in on. >> interesting. molly great to have you back on the show. the conversation continues on our website. we'll see you next time. hello and welcome to al jazeera america. i'm richelle carey in new york. john siegenthaler has the night off. polls open, afghans vote in an historic election under threats from the taliban. healing hands after the fort hood rampage. the unseen advantage americans surgeons have. aiming high. a champion with the bow and arrow who has no arms. we'll talk to him. >> so i called her cinderella.

[ laughter ] >> and the nanny on broadway a conversation with actress fran drescher, and a career that began with saturday night fever. ♪ we begin tonight in afghanistan where voting in the presidential election began moments ago. the election represents the first democratic transfer of power in the country's history. these are live pictures. millions of afghans are expected to make it to the polls, but there are security concerns. the taliban is calling the election a sham. the taliban has already carried out a b in of attacks prior to saturday's vote. it's a crucial moment in the country's history. the past is littered with turmoil especially in recent

years. for more on america's involvement here is david shuster. >> the united states have been trooped on the ground since october 2001. the bush administration launched operation enduring freedom. throughout the bush presidency, u.s. troop levels remained fairly constant at around 30,000. in 2009 in his first year in office, president obama announced a surge of 17,000 troops and a second surge of an additional 30,000, and by september 2010, nine years later, the u.s. had 98,000 u.s. troops in afghanistan. two years ago the obama administration began to scale back these troop levels while announcing plans for withdraw, and today the number is approximately 38,000. according to account by the

associated press the total number of american troop casualties in the afghan war stands at 2,316. according to congress the total financial cost of the war in afghanistan now is over $707 billion and counting. for the afghanistan elections this weekend, u.s. officials say 12 million registered voters are expected to take part and to help ensure a fair election for them, 200,000 people are expected to work as election observers. richelle. >> the day before the vote a pulitzer prize winning journalist was shot dead by a police. courtney has the report. >> reporter: it happened at a government come pound in eastern afghanistan. witnesses say a convey of election workers a journalistings came to an halt

when a police commander walked up to one of the cars, shouted good is great and opened fire on the women in the back seat. anja niedringhaus was killed instaktly. the police commander surrendered and is under arrest. the afghan taliban has vowed repeatedly to disrupt saturday's elections. afghan police have often targeted foreign soldiers, and this year taliban fighters have singled out westerners, notably at an attack last month on a hotel in kabul. the ap says she was one of the few western reporter allowed in the country in the 1990s. in a note to staffers the

corrector of photography said . . . on the last day of her life, she has a front page photo in the international "new york times" showing a giant image of president karzai on display. courtney leely, al jazeera. she was one of more than a does earn journalists who lost their lives while on duty this year. of the 70 journals killed in 2013, 28 were working in syria. it is being called one of the worst measles outbreak in years. coming up at the bottom of the

hour, how big a role some parents refusing to vaccinate their children is having on the outbreak. now to the fort hood shooting. tonight the army says his mental health was not a main factor in the assault. heidi zhou castro is following the investigation in texas. heidi what are officials saying? >> richelle the fort commander says it was an argument that was a direct precipitating factor to the shooting. but the father said lopez could not have been in his right mind. he says his son was not like that. a friend says he was quiet, a talented drummer, and a family man. he says lopez was shocked when his mother died of a sudden heart attack in november. his family says the army gave

lopes a 48-hour leave to attend the funeral. then the army transferred lopes to fort hood. >> when they were moving in, she was smiling, he was smiling, you know. i would get a -- you're from the army, you know, i'm moving in. >> reporter: on march 1st lopes came to this gun shop where he purchased a 45 caliber. a neighbor says she saw lopes return home for lunch with his family on wednesday. hours later the shooting unfolded. this man told a local tv station his son was in the first building lopes attacked. he said his son saw lopes ask

for a leave form, and an officer told him to come back the next day. >> the first guy he shot right in front of my son was killed. then he turned the gun towards jonathan, aimed it and fired. >> the military says lopes was being treated for anxiety and depression and being evaluated for ptsd. >> we believe that the immediate precipitating factor was more likely an escalating argument in his unit area. >> while in his personal vehicle he indiscriminately fired at other soldiers. >> reporter: the army said he had no criminal history and a long list of medals and accomodati accomodations. >> given that the alleged shooter is deceased the possibility does exist that we

may never know exactly why the alleged shooter did what he did. >> reporter: for now 80 age -- investigators are on the ground hoping to find answers. the army is scrutinizing the four months that lopes spent in iraq. but so far they have found no specific event. that is adding to the mystery because he did self report a traumatic brain injury when he came home. richelle? >> thank you very much. we are starting to learn more about the three people killed in wednesday's shooting. 39-year-old sergeant first class daniel ferguson. he was killed holding a door shut to protect a room filled with military personnel. tinlthy wayne owens. his mother said she never

imagined her son with his multiple tours of duty would die on american soil. have four people are still in the hospital from wednesday's shooting. u.s. medical centers including where these victims were taken are considered the best in the world for treating gunshot wounds. they handle more of these types of injuries than any other western country. jacob ward reports. >> reporter: three years ago in this parking lot outside of tucson, arizona, gabriel giffords was shot in the head at point-blank range. here in the united states gun violence has created an elite breed of trauma surgeon. this doctor was in charge when

giffords arrived. he says a trauma surgeon in any american city can handle the horrors. >> in texas the trauma centers that they have there, they are used to that. >> the doctor knows that everything depends on where his patients have been shot. >> i would say anything in the nervous system cannot good because it can be permanent. i see guys here that we did a great save on, we stopped their bleeding, we controlled all of the contamination, but they are paralyzed and in a wheelchair for the rest of their lives. >> reporter: he points out that in countries without gun violence, trauma surgery barely exists as a profession. >> they don't even need that in other countries, it's just crazy. they don't have the guns. what is different than germany than us? the cars? a little bit? their houses?

their tv? it's the fact that we have an uncountable amount of guns and we don't. these other countries they don't even need me. >> he says that leading the world with over 10,000 annual gun-related deaths has given the u.s. a unique understanding of their capacity to inflict damage. up next where the jobs are, some good news about employment. but ali velshi tell ls us why economists are still worried. plus the same that john kerry has for israelis and palestinian.

today the push for peace in the mideast is moving back a few steps. the obama administration is reconsidering whether the effort towards peace talks is even worth continuing. nick schifrin has the latest. >> reporter: they arrived defiant demanding the release of palestinian prisoners. but almost immediately the israelis were unwilling to give them space.

physically and politically the palestinian believe they are gained momentum, the israelis are pushing back. for four hours the two sides clashed. the israeli tear gas came in close and created a plume of noxious smoke designed to disperse the crowd. you can really feel the tension here. there have been palestinian kids throwing rock and the israelis respond with tear gas. the palestinians have been trying to get to the gate, but every time they move forward, the israelis fire back. for this man this protest is personal. his brother was supposed to be released last weekend. that's when we first met him. but after palestinian president broke a promise and signed

papers joining un treaties, israel blocked his release. now he says he is willing to wait. >> translator: i support the step of the president, and i believe the step pushes towards the release of all of the prisoners and on top of them kareem. >> reporter: but for israelis signing those treaties meant breaking the very premise of the talks. >> it's like being blackmailed by someone, saying only this blackmail and then let's negotiate. there is no way that they are going to go back negotiating under this blackmail of the palestinians. >> reporter: the blame game goes on both sides. >> i don't want any gestures or favors from israel. what is between me and israelis are a set of agreements, i'm

willing to northern all of my obligations but i really hope that the israeli side will start learning how to honor obligations. >> reporter: the only one who can help bridge the gap is the us. but now the man who has spent more time than any other finally hints they he may give up. >> there are limits if the parties themselves are unwilling to take constructive steps to move forward. >> reporter: every day they dig in, they are doing less talking and more confronting. kerry said he and president obama will reevaluate their role in the talks. the u.s. prestige is at stake. it will be seen as a major foreign policy failure if these talks fail.

the u.s. economy is showing some positive signs. 182,000 jobs were add last month. let's turn to ali velshi to understand if this is a sign that the economy is back on track. >> well, rather than give you an opinion, let me give you the sense and allow you to judge for yourself. 192,000 net new jobs were added in march, and the last two months -- they always revise the prior two months, they were revised upwards. that means the number of jobs added over the past 12 months averages 183,000 per month. above 150 is pretty good. 200,000 a month is really good. 250,000 is what both presidential candidates promised. the unemployment rate remained unchanged that's because about half a million more people felt

confident enough about job prospects to get back in the game and start working. but i don't like that as a measure all that much. i pay attention to the labor force participation, this is the percentage of people who are working age who are not in jail, and have either had a job or actively sought a job in the last month. that number inched up a bit. so 63.2% of the possible working population is working, and that's at the highest level since about mid-2009. >> but what did concern you? did anything concern you really about the jobs report? >> yeah, and it wasn't specifically this report. it is the trend that this report confirms, and that is that 7.4 million workers don't feel lucky, because they are only working part-time and they would rather be working full-time. in the meantime the number of unemployed in the country stayed

put at 10.5 million. 3.7 million have been out of work for six months or more. and you no richelle it's just harder to get a job if you are long-term unemployed. >> and it's extremely frustrating for those people. and the underemployment situation as well. >> yep. >> you spoke to the labor secretary, what was your big take away from that. >> he said they are still addressing the perception of a skills gap. where people are available for work but not matched to the types of jobs that are out there. so they have been partnering with employers to train people in the skills that in for the jobs that they need. so that's a sort of a sensible market-based approach to giving

people the right skills for jobs. >> and that would certainly feel better for some people to know what i have done with this training, and there might be a job waiting for me. >> that's exactly right. >> ali thanks. >> see ya richelle. >> 50,000 jobs in professional and business service jobs, 30,000 food service jobs created, construction and healthcare each added about 19,000 jobs >> chinese companies are bringing jobs to the us. it's that type of spending that is providing some relief for midwestern towns hit by the recessio recession. s >> reporter: for years this factory has been a monument to ohio's dysfunction. when general motors pulled out

in 2008 it was left with cracked asphalt, rusted gates and 4,000 unemployed auto workers. now the landscape is changing. chinese auto glass maker is roping the aging eye sore with $280 million and for starters 800 jobs. >> you can't not welcome foreign investment. if you want to grow your cities and communities right now, you have to be open to foreign investment. our country was built on immigrants, and if you are not open to immigrants now where was your family 200 years ago. >> reporter: chinese conglomerates are the newest investors here in this us. the ties with china go beyond business the largest concentration of chinese is here at the university of dayton

there were 200 chinese students here eight years ago and 800 today. >> my dream is also to make the ward together, to do the business together. people in china love america, and i hope those two country can work really good together. >> reporter: the tiny town lured them by offering the chinese what it had in excess, workers and factory space. >> it is because we have 4 million square feet available, and we now have thousands of folks with a skill set. this is a great win, and i think a lot of us see the opportunity to capitalize on this, and try to attract more foreign investment. >> reporter: that tantalizing prospect has many american towns hoping to reopen more padlocked

gates like these. he is an expert with the bow and arrow but he was born with no arms. he shot a perfect score hitting the bullseye 60 times. this story coming up in our next half hour. the competition is also fierce in college basketball. four teams are still standing in the men's tournament. we'll hear about the connecticut senior who is inspiring his teammates. >> reporter: the last time the huskies won a championship, this man was a freshman. then they lost jim calhoun to retirement, last year the team was ineligible for post season play due to poor academic performance.

but he decided to stay in school. >> they stayed loyal to me and i wanted to do the same. and i never regret my decisions. >> reporter: and out there his tenure at the university of connecticut, he has made some important decisions, he toiled with the idea of transferring but remained with the huskies and when he could have answered the draft, he decided to instead fulfill a promise he made to his mother. >> he told his mom he was going to get a degree, and he will, and he has a chance to win a national championship as well. >> reporter: the massachusetts native also hones his skills on the court and grew into the leader that drives this husky team. >> the biggest thing i think i have grown in is my leadership skills. the intangibles. you are going to go through mishaps but when adversity hits

it shows you who you are, and either you can fold or stand up and fight. and i think i learned that through my years at the university of connecticut. >> to see him talk and see his swagger, his positive arrogance about how good we are is inspiration to every guy on this team. >> he is a great heard. you see the big shot he shoots and stuff, he is great heard. >> you just see it on the court. he is a superstar. he is our lebron. >> the huskies have another tall task ahead of them tomorrow they play the tournament's top seed that is florida and then the winner no goes to the championship game. up next why cases of the measles is now on the rise.

and george w. bushing paints portraits of world leaders. [ male announcer ] it's here -- xfinity watchathon week,

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welcome back to al jazeera america. i'm richelle carey. there is a lot to cover this half hour. humanitarian disaster, millions of people in south sudan at risk of starving to death. a look at what is being done and what should be done. born with no arms an iowa man becomes a champion with the bow and arrow. and fran drescher talks about her fiekt against cancer. but first a look at our top stories. ivan lopes easemental health was not a factor in the shooting at fort hood. authorities say he had an argument with other soldiers before he opened fire. the latest jobs report was

released today and it continues mostly good news. the u.s. economy created 192,000 sglobs march, the number of private sector jobs is now higher than before the recession, but the economy did lose a thousand manufacturing jobs. and millions of people are making their way to vote in the presidential election. it will be the first democratic transfer of power in the country's history. let's go to bernard smith who is live in kabul. how is the process going so far? >> the polls have been open for about an hour, it is unfortunately a very wet, dreary, cold day here in kabul, but karzai himself has voted in the last ten minutes or so, and has urged afghans despite the

poor weather and the security situation to get out and vote. and we have seen people queueing up to vote. there is tense security -- high security in kabul. i have never seen so many check points in this city. but there does seem to be an enthusiasm to get out and vote. >> tell us about the significance of this election. put it in some perspective for us. >> well, i lost a little bit of your question there, but i can tell you that imagine this is the first time in the 5,000 year history of this country that that will be a democratic transfer of power. that really is an historic event. so that is why there is enthusiasm amongst afghans. in 2009 when karzai retained the presidency, that was widely seen

as a fraudulent vote. this time afghans are much more conscious of the risks of fraud. there are some 200,000 observers all over the country keeping an eye on things. ballots will be tracked. they are bar coded and will go in sealed boxes, so there is a hope that there will be a much more fraud-free election. we have received reports of ballot stuffing, but nothing to get too concerned about at the moment. but everybody has an eye on the fraud in this election, richelle. >> what are some of the challenges that face whoever wins this election? >> the challenges are enormous. we have got three front runners in this election. eight candidates standing. whoever wins has got to try to

make peace with the taliban and revive the devastated economy of this country. karzai had billions of dollars of foreign money pour into this country, and yet corruption was a massive problem, yet there is little economic progress in this country. whoever makes over won't have those billions of dollars in foreign aid. he will be on his own. afghans are going to be on their own this time around. it will be an extraordinarily difficult job to try to make peace with the taliban and try to rebuild this country's economy. richelle? >> bernard thing you so much. the united states says it is a race against time in south sudan where 3.7 million people are at the risk of starving. fighting since december has threatened oil production and

displaced millions in the world's newest country. today warnings that the country needs $230 million in the next 60 days to stave all the crisis, a crisis that would leave nearly a third of the total population hungry. we're joined by a south sudan policy analyst for an organization devoted to fighting genocide and crimes against humanity. the un says this crisis is as severe as the refugee crisis in syria. is that a fair assessment to you? >> yes, it is. it's impossible to overstate the gravity of the crisis that south sudanese are facing right now and the scope of humanitarian need there. unfortunately it is getting far too little attention on the international stage. there are people who are walking for days and days in search of refuge and food and they are just not getting the assistance

that they require. >> so the aid workers that are trying to help, tell me about the conditions they are encountering. >> in south sudan the rainy season is coming early which makes it almost impossible to navigate the country. and on top of that, both of the country's armed factions those loyal to the president and the armed opposition are obstructing aid deliveries. flight aren't able to take off to get to remote locations and humanitarian aid workers are being targeted as a result of the combat. warehouses are getting lieutenanted additionally. so that aid is actually fuelling the war in the end. >> so are you saying that there actually are enough provisions to help people, the problem is getting it to them? >> no, it's -- it's a combination -- the united nations here says that they need much more money and significant

assistance from the international community to meet the need. they have made an assessment of how much money and assistance would be required and they haven't been able to get that help. >> let's talk about ethiopia. it's our understanding that so many people are going to ethiopia, how sustainable of a situation is that. >> refugees from south sudan are flowing into ethiopia and uganda, and that is creating immense pressure on the region. south sudan is the world's newest country, and there is a history of people going to ethiopia, uganda, and kenya during the scope of the war, and now they are returning in the same path that they did in the '80s and '90s, and facing devastating potential for famine

and real devastating degree of humanitarian need. >> there have been sanctions imposed on the groups deemed to be aggravating this conflict, what does that do for aid efforts? does that complicate the situation? does it help the situation? >> so yesterday the u.s. government took an important step in that they announced and paved the way for possible sanctions on leaders who are obstructing peace or violating human rights, but they haven't yet named the targets of those sanctions and without a strong multi-lateral commitment, the pressure needed to get the parties to the negotiating table really doesn't exist. as far as the aid need that's a completely different question, and that requires donor countries recognizing the dire need that they have. >> and again, the immediate need

is $230 million in 60 days. and that's really just the beginning. thank you very much >> thank you. the cdc is reporting the worst outbreak of measles in 17 years. in new york city 25 cases have been confirmed. and in orange country the number has trimmed in the last year alone. >> reporter: people here rnth used to doing without, but some children are lacking a basic component of public health worldwide. >> there are pockets of people who haven't taken vaccination and because measles is so incredibly infectious -- it is probably the most infectious disease -- >> we usually have zero or one case a year, compared to the 21 we have already had so far this year. it's one of the largest outbreaks that we have seen in

the country in the last several years. >> reporter: 4 9d cases of measles have been reported in california so far this year. last year at this time there were only four. many people are starting to wonder why this disease is suddenly making a come back. this doctor says one reason is the number of international travelers, the other may be linked to a small percentage of parents who don't vaccinate their children. >> if you look at the people who have been six. five have been children and none of them have been vaccinated. if your child hasn't gotten their regularly scheduled mmr. >> but this pediatrician says it may be an outbreak, but it's not a threat. >> it's not a joke. it's to be taken seriously. but it's not something that people need to be scared about.

>> one of his patients is mom to an 11 year old, and 6 year old. she used a delayed vacation schedule because to seizures her son when he was an infant. she had never given her kids the mealses vaccine. >> we are talking to the doctors office about it. >> reporter: and doctor gordon believes the current guidelines shouldn't apply everyone to. >> if you would like to get the vaccine for your child you have should. no one should scare you out of getting the shot because it might cause autism, but you can hesitate if you are worried about the side effects of that vaccine and no one should scare you in to getting the vaccine, either. >> and while the debate rages on, health officials hope this recent outbreak of measles

won't. now the story of an expert with the bow and arrow, despite having no arms he shoots a perfect score at the north dakota archery championship. >> my name is matt stetsman and i am a professional archer. what makes me different from other archers is i was born without any hands. according to the doctors there's no medical reason for me being born without any hands. for me i found out that i can complete against people who have null function of their limbs and still be an elite athlete. i got on youtube and visualized if my legs were just like my

arms. in 2012 i won a silver medal. the fact they was representing the whole united states and people were watching me and hoping i would do well because i was wearing the u.s. on my shirt, that was a pretty amazing moment for me. you know, one of the most difficult things that i have to face compared to somebody that has hands is just learning or -- learning to adapt to normal things in life like brushing your teeth or more importantly, i have kids now, so i'm learning how to take care of them, and teaching them how to brush their teeth, because they want to use their feet which is weird because they have hands so i have to teach them to use their hands versus their feet. one of the things i would like to convey to people is that i could have sat at home and did nothing and complained and

really moped about having no arms, but at the end of the day they are never going to grow back, right. so if someone meets a situation that is hard for them, just don't give up. life is not that bad. life goes on, the situation passes. keep moving forward. >> when he is not competing he is giving motivational speeches around the world. a new exhibit of artwork by former president george w. bush opens tomorrow in dallas. >> reporter: former president george w. bush went to work and in about a year he painted a seriesover 30 world leaders including himself and his father. he said he never picked up a brush before and now he doesn't plan to put it down. >> what we hope to convey is not

just the president as artist, but what it takes to be a personal diplomat, and develop relationships on behalf of the united states. >> reporter: in the video accompanying the exhibit president bush provided some incite behind his inspiration. the pieces are arranged in the order in which he met the world leaders. bush used photos to paint his subjects. as president, bush met former british prime minister tony blare in the flesh more than two dozen times and says he had a lot of affection for blare. >> when he paints someone he tries to convey how he feels about them and something about their personality. >> reporter: president bush says the dolly lama is a sweet man and tried to paint him sweetly. another bush personal favorite

the stern portrait of russian president vladimir putin. >> i think he thinks the putin painting is -- is quite good and -- and quite artistic. >> reporter: dallas area art crickic calls the paintings interesting work. >> there is a great range of variety in terms of style and the amount of time he seems to have worked on them. all of the lips are a little overworked a little bit, but some of them -- there's a few that actually do have an element of personality that are interesting. >> reporter: on display along with the painings are photos of president bush alongside the world leaders and gifts from the leaders. one thing missing? a signature? our 43rd president signs his paintings on the back with the number 43. phillip is a pulitzer prize

winni winning art critic for the washington times. >> most of these were apparently made from photographs. and official photographs don't really tell us much about people. it's often just the public mask that they put forward. and a lot of these are less interesting than the ones he did of himself. the exception is the vladimir putin painting, and then of course the portrait of his father we all read the accounts of bush and his father and the question of dynamics between them. so of course people will be examining that painting. >> how will history see the president and his art. because there are a lot of artists who you know their work wasn't appreciated while they were alive. >> well, i think unless he gets a lot better really quickly, he

is not going to be remembered as a great artist, but he will be remembered as a kind of goofy rather weird guy. it is gutsy for him to put this work out there, but he is a guy who doesn't seem to really care much anymore about whether public opinion is giving him the yay or nay on the paintings. up next, our photo of the day, plus john siegenthaler's interview with fran drescher. the nanny is now on broadway, a conversation about her career and her personal battle with cancer. >> i'm ignoring that! chom!

after all of that snow hit the northern plains, we're getting the storm system that is impacting northern new england. as we get through the day tomorrow, we're getting sleet and snow, and expecting anywhere from 2 to 4 inches of accumulating sleet and snow. other places of snow will be are right across the rockies of the west. and unfortunately we do have wanefall coming in with a stronger storm off of the pacific. this is going to impact mainly western oregon. expect the bulk of the rainfall

to increase through the second half of your saturday. so the forecast will stay rather soggy as a series of storms will begin to funnel on through, but start to push northward and it is not going to help that california at all, but we'll get more rain where we don't need it, however, things start to change as we go into the week ray head with warmer temperatures and drier weather for the first part of the workweek.

from tv and film to broadway, fran drescher does it all. she is also a cancer survivor. it is an honor to have her with us. >> thank you. >> when i think about you as a cancer survivor i wonder what it was like to go through all of this in public? >> well, it wasn't my choice to

go as public with my health issues as it turned out i was. i was still in the hospital and hadn't reconciled the fact that i not only had cancer, but cure was to have a radical hysterectomy. so that was all compounded by the fact that i was all over the newspapers and airwaves, and it was a bit difficult, but the silver lining of it was because i was outed the way i was, i couldn't sweep it under the carpet. >> my name is franl drescher, i'm a cancer survivor. >> i always felt that being a celebrity that leverages that popularity for the greater good is an imperative. >> and you did just that. >> yeah. >> you started a charity organization.

>> yeah. >> you just said i'm going to do this. >> i felt very compromised and didn't know how to turn this around and regain my life. i first started talking about my story from the end of the nanny, the end of the marriage, and all the while experiencing symptoms that were going undiagnosed because i went for two years and eight doctors before getting a proper diagnosis. frankly i think living a preventative lifestyle and identifying the causes of cancer is a greater weapon than looking for some magic bullet that doesn't exist. >> you have been working with charity buzz to try to raise money as well? >> yes, we work with many

different organizations and the -- the internet and -- and social networking allows us to reach, you know, millions of people. >> a lot of people know you because of the nanny, but you are doing amazing things on broadway right now. how different is doing cinderella on broadway than doing the nanny? >> the nanny was shot -- as well as all of my situation comedy prior to the nanny, in front of live audiences. so in that way it is somewhat similar. we budget on a little play every week. the difference is that you get a take two. and here it is like flying without a net. you make a mistake you just got to keep going on. this is my broadway debut, and it has been a great opportunity for me, because being in a musical is just the most wonderful experience.

and it's such a delightful show. >> as the stepmother? [ laughter ] >> why don't i have any friends? >> the stepmother -- >> who you play. >> who i ply is deliciously wicked and sexy and a big diva and someone you love to hate. >> until we sat down with this interview, i had forgotten you were in saturday night fever? >> yes. >> you got your start? that movie. >> absolutely. that was my first film. i was a teenager, i was growing up in commercials. i had an agent, and he said they are doing a movie, looking for kids like you. i'm going to send you up on it. and i got this small speaking part of connie. >> when is connie going to get her answer, huh? >> and that was kind of the beginning of my fill career. >> an iconic movie to get your

start? >> amazing. my dad went over to the set and said i'm the star's father, of course i only had three lines in the movie, but the security person said right this way mr. travolta. >> we're so glad you opened up your life and talked to us about it today. when you walked in i was complaining about the weather and you said i'm just glad to be here. >> oh, thank you. >> how wonderful is she? tonight's image caught our attention from afghanistan. an afghan loading white and blue ballot boxes on a donkey. today's headlines in a moment. debate. and a host willing to ask the tough questions and you'll get... the inside story ray suarez hosts inside story

weekdays at 5pm et / 2pm pt only on al jazeera america

welcome to al jazeera america. i'm richelle carey. here are tonight's top stories. in afghanistan heightened security as millions of people go to the polls. voting in the presidential

election began about an hour ago. officials say an escalating argument with soldiers preceded the shooting in fort hood on tuesday. three people were killed, 16 wounded before lopes turned the gun on himself. good news for the economy. the latest jobs report was released friday. the u.s. economy created 192,000 jobs in march. the number of private sector jobs is now higher than before the recession. despite intensive international search efforts that say there are no fresh leads from the missing malaysia airline. they are now hoping to latch on to a signal from the black boxes. a sharp increase in mealses infections has health officials on alert.

49 cases have been reported this year. those are the headlines. i'm richelle carey. and an special "faultlines" on the front lines of the taliban is up next. and you can always check out our website. ♪ america tonight will be seen in one half hour immediately following this special report from fault lines. >> as us forces prepare to pull out of afghanistan after twelve long years, al jazeera's fault lines travelled there.