car. well, you know what i mean. i'm ray suarez, and that's the inside story. >> this is aljazeera america, live from new york city. i'm richelle carey, and tony harris is on assignment. the u.s. fights back after the taliban captures a strategic city. >> . >> whatever it takes, president obama is pledging full support to the world in his fight against isil. delayed, a new trial date set for the officers charged in freddie gray's death. and treating asthma in a

sea otter. the fight against isil took center stage today on the sidelines of the united nations general assembly in new york. president obama chaired a meeting of more than 100 leaders to discuss ways to fight isil and violent extremism. mike viqueira joins us now, and tell me more about what happened at this compass. >> reporter: well, the fallout over syria continues over the violent clash between the two leaders in the violent stage of the assembly and the question now, what is russia's role against isil. and can president obama and vladimir putin put behind their differences, on such open display yesterday about what to do about bashar al-assad.

the council with more than 100 countries, president obama said the fight would be long. >> isil will eventually lose, because it has nothing to offer but suffering and death. >> reporter: but it's now the short-term has now in question. russia's sudden support of bashir al at add with military might has taken the white house by surprise, and the general assembly speech has changed the equation. monday night, the two leaders we want overtime. but yielded no concrete resorts. putin said that russia will attack isil. but rented the call for assad to go. >> i relate to my colleagues with great respect, but they are not residents of syria, and they should not be involved with choosing the leadership of another country. it's syria's business.

>> reporter: tuesday, acting out of weakness in syria, and concerned only about losing it's last toehold in the middle east. this as president obama acknowledged setbacks but insisted that isil's hold on cities like ramadi has progress. >> the u.s.-backed coalition has liberated towns like tikrit. and isil has lost one-third of the populated areas in iraq that it had controlled. >> the president called the fight against isil a stalemate. and al-abadi repeated his call for more international help to fight isil. calling for a fly zone over syria. there appears to be wiggle room, richelle, on the modalities, and president obama insisting that he must go. and he cannot stay with putin

taking the die meticly opposite position much but there might be a transition for a new syria. today, president obama also sat down with cuban leader, raul castro. at the bottom of the hour, we'll talk about the significance of this rare top level meeting. now to afghanistan, where a major effort is underway to retake the city of hundu, which was captured yesterday. it was the biggest victory since it was led from power from the invasion in 2001. and it's also a strategic location. kandus is a strategic location. >> reporter: richelle, at this point, there's only one u.s. airstrike. a tank that was stolen by the taliban, and it was headed to the u.s. and german troops

were. the us f-16 took out the tank, but the pentagon has amassed a force numbering in the thousands and it's confident that afghanistan will retake cukunduz and retake control. afghan security forces are on their own, and they have been for nine months, so when the taliban fighters overran the city of kunduz on monday, there was no u.s. air power to beat back the assault. but nevertheless, the u.s. is working closely with afghanistan to make sure that it has what it needs to defeat the taliban. >> obviously, this is a setback for the afghan security forces, but we have seen them respond in recent weeks and months to the challenges they face, and they're doing the same thing in kunduz right now.

>> in aniro echo of what happened in iraq in april, where the u.s. troops were taken by a much smaller isil force, a relatively few taliban fighters, in the hundreds, overwhelmed the afghan troops, reported to be in the thousands. one local official told the new york times there was a lack of leadership. but in a television address, ashraf gandhi limited the hold to kunduz to eliminate civilian deaths. >> the government is responsible, and it can not and will not fom it's own citizens. >> the government ordered the commandos to prepare an immediate counter offensive. and the u.s. military advisers are assisting with the plan, designed as deliberate and designed to minimize civilian casualties. aside from the advice, the u.s. military sport was limbed to a sim airstrike from an f-16,

which was called in to protect nato forces, including ern and german troops who were advising the afghans. last year, the 10,000 or so u.s. troops remaining in afghanistan are not supposed to be involved with front line fighting, with exception of a small american counter terrorism force, authorized to target individuals. john mccain was quick to blame the fall of kunduz on the president's decision to pull out those force. in a statement, he said president obama's calendar-based draw down of afghanistan, despite conditions on the ground has pleased an opening for the taliban and placed at risk the hard-earned gains of the past decade. and richelle, with the combat in afghanistan, the u.s. has very limited authority to carry out airstrikes. let me explain this. only in three circumstances.

to protect u.s. troops on the ground, and that's when it did today. and go after remnants of al qaeda, not taliban, or to protect afghan troops if they're in danger of being overrun. the u.s. didn't carry out any airstrikes because in an urban area, there was too much danger of civilian casualties. rish norichelle. >> after more than 100,000 nato troops left the country, they have been struggling with cuts in international aid and resurgence of taliban. >> reporter: it was afghanistan's first democratic power. top find afghanistan still so heavily dependent on foreign aid to stand on its own. it would be a difficult year ahead. >> if you want to have the rule

of law, those involved in corruption should be removed so that we can have a transparent system. and all of those, they should be removed. >> reporter: one of the biggest challenges would be security. nato's combat mission in afghanistan was only 12,000 troops, one-tenth of what it once had. the remaining forces to train the security forces. they face a resurging taliban, with an offensive not in the stronghold, but in the north, in kunduz city. the call ban fighters got to the gates of the city, driving thoses of villagers from their cities, and the siege went on all summer. in july, it looked as if the afghan government had made a breakthrough. the first talks with the

taliban were held in pakistan with the talk of a second talk. the leader was dead and had been, and through announced a new leader but not all of the taliban wanted to follow him. the taliban division didn't stop the violence. hundreds were injured in a single day, and the attacks around the country company. poor security has weakened the country's already fragile economy. and they are losing confidence in the government. >> no work, no business, i wanted my children to work. and now they have to support the family. >> the taliban, and the rest of

the country, the challenges -- >> the head of planned parenthood was on capitol hill today, defending the organization from house republicans, trying to cut off it's federal funding. the group came under fire after ant abortion activists released a video. the federal dollars do not go to embarrass abortion, and the d them on the political advocacy. >> the tell me about the it up hundred thousand dollars that you gave to the strategy efforts. >> states in the last several years passed ballot initiatives that restrict women's access to reproductive healthcare. but you have been involved in ballot measures that have been introduced -- >> if you want to be a private entity, be a private entity,

but you don't need federal dollars to do this. >> i don't use federal dollars to do this, sir. >> you do to run the organization. >> he questioned richards about her nearly $600,000 salary. democrats criticized it, and called it a campaign against abortion rights. and congress is expected to narrowly avoid a government shutdown this week. if the house passes a senate bill passed yesterday. planned parenthood did not pass in the senate. and with the new gop on the horizon, and bland planne plannd on the defensive, the debate is far from over. michael, who are the top candidates for house speaker in. >> richelle, i was judgment walking in the hall with paul ryan, and a lot of people

wanted him to run for the speakership. and he said to me in no uncertain terms that he is not going to run for the speakership had. that he says what he means, and he's out of the race. the real favorite now is of course the real majority leader, the california congressman, kevin mccarthy. >> i know what's going on across the country, and i'm concerned about what we hear. a lot of people in washington, concerned about power and institutions. i'm concerned about making a difference in everybody's lives. we want to make sure that we're closer to the people. if they feel that it is their government. and they're in charge, and we serve them. that's not easy, and it won't change overnight, but that's our mission. >> kevin mccarthy has only been the majority leader for a year, and what he does have going for him, he has the republican congressional campaign committee, and he knows a lot of the people that worked against john boehner.

he was part of the leadership team that boehner was heading and that works against him. but for now, webster is the only announced competition, and the republicans have to come up with 218 votes to elect a speaker. daniel webster got 12 when he ran in january x. he could get a few more. >> what happens to the debate with planned parenthood and the shutdown after the shift in power? >> it's hypothetical, while the faces change and will change, what remains the same are the fundamentals. that there's a fractured caucus on the republican side. and there's a president on the other end of congress, on the other side of washington that's going to veto things, so when you see the planned parenthood bill, whatever comes out of congress is going to wind up on the president's desk, and the president is going to veto that. the fundamentals haven't changed.

but what will change is the rhetoric and the people that get behind those issues. >> michael shure, thank you him. >> the officials in washington today to discuss the u.s. territory's economic crisis. representative pedro luisi said that the federal government bears responsibility for the problems, but the white house has no plans for a bailout. they said additional funding would not be sufficient enough to help the island. up next, a call for help. the officers charged in the death of freddie gray go to court. what we're learning about the attempt to get him medical attention. and trying to accommodate thousands of refugees. how germany is trying to determine who has legitimate claims for asylum.

>> a woman is scheduled to be

executed tonight in georgia, despite amazes for clemency from her family. she was convicted of having her husband murdered in 1997. her attorneys and her children say that she has been rehabilitated while in prison, and they asked the parole board to change her sentence. several of last-minute appeals have delayed it. the first in the series of criminal trials, stemming from the death of freddie gray will take place in november. several trials for six officers charged in the case. the decision has a lot to do with the evidence just coming to light, and what the officers said to each other while fred fred was in the back of the police van. paul has more. >> reporter: what the officers talked about amongst themselves as they took freddie gray into custody, and drove him through the city has not been made public before. but the baltimore sun has

access to it, and they have begun releasing details. what the officers said or did or did not do is why the judge has ordered separate trials for them. and this could determine whether run of the officers will be convicted of murder. [ screams ] >> that cry of distress and pain on april 4th is the last time that a baltimore police officer heard freddie gray alive. >> that guy's legs are broke. he's dead. >> after that, the 25-year-old was load food a police van, and at some point, in the next 45 minutes, as the van drove through the city, gray sustained severe injuries to his spinal cord. his death, one week later, sparked protests that spiraled into chaos. >> the manner of death deemed a

homicide by the maryland medical examiner is believed as a result of mr. gray unrestrained by seatbelt in the baltimore custody wagon. >> of the six officers involved in the arrest, only the police van's driver faces a murder charge. the others face manslaughter, assault and other charges. according to the documents obtained by the baltimore sun, officer william porter said that he warned his federal officers that gray needed medical it attention. he says at one point, gray pleaded, help me, help me up. and porter said that he asked gray if he needed to go to the hospital. and when he talked to officer gutson, the driver, about his condition, he said that he might be faking, and another officer said that he had a case of jailites. and he said that everybody uses the i need to go to the hospital thing when they get arrested. what the officers said and did

while gray was in the van has been under scrutiny since the beginning of the case. >> i still want to know why the policies and procedures for transport were not followed. and why none of the officers called for immediate medical assistance, despite mr. gray's apparent pleas. one thing that we all know because of this incident, a mother has to bury her child. and she doesn't even know exactly or why this tragedy occurs. only that this occurred while her child was in our custody, in police custody. and this is unacceptable. >> according to the police investigation, when the van arrived at the police station, gray was on his knees with his head against the wall and didn't answer when the officers called his name. officer porter said he's not looking too good before gray was loaded into an ambulance

and to a hospital where he would fall into a coma and died. the prosecutors will have him testify against officer goodson, the van driver, and alicia white. all six officers have pled not guilty. and gray's family has settled a civil suit with the city for $6.4 million. and none of the officers have acknowledged any wrongdoing when they made that deal. >> thank you. and areva martin is an attorney fromming los angeles, and what paul has been reporting from the baltimore sun, at least one officer says, i did acknowledge and tried to tell others that i thought that he needed help, and put that into context for us. >> i think that the important part of the statement, it corroborates what we have been hearing from the witnesses at the scene when freddie gray was

arrested. we heard them over and over that freddie gray from the beginning of the incident was telling officers that he was in distress and he needed help. so now for the first time we're getting the statements that were made from the impacted witnesses, and those are being corroborated by some of the officers, and also, for the first time, we're seeing and hearing that the officers are starting to turn on each other. this is not uncommon when you have multiple individuals charged, based on a similar crime. so in this case, we have six officers, all with separate attorneys, and all are going to be tried separately, and we're hearing that one of the officers, porter, is going to testify against the driver and at least one of the other cops that was involved in fred fred's death. not uncommon in a case like this. >> and having said that, there's conflicting testimony, and how difficult is it for the prosecutors to get to the truth? >> i think that it's made

easier when you have separate trials so, you don't have the officers pointing the fingers at each other, but six different juries listening to the evidence, and if porter comes forward and says, look, i told goodson the driver that freddie gray was in distress, and he didn't take any action, that's pretty damning evidence against the driver, and that's what the attorneys are hoping to accomplish, to have six different sets of jurors hear the evidence, which we're hearing so far, and it's going to be pretty damaging against these officers. >> how would a jury look upon that, areva, that an officer is acknowledging, i thought that he looked bad and i thought he needed help, and i didn't do anything to help him. >> i think that the jurors in the city of baltimore are going to make these cops accountable for failing to take any action. you have a young man, who not one time, but multiple occasions expressed that he was in distress and needed medical

care, and you have six officers involved in the arrest and not one person took any affirmative actions to figure out what was going on with freddie gray and get him immediate medical attention, and you have the officers talking among themselves, recognizing that he has a plea for help, and no one taking any steps to get him medical care. i don't think that the jurors are going to look kindly on that, and they're going to hold the officers accountable for his death. >> i realize that there was a civil settlement and no one had to admit any responsibility. and having said that, will it still in any way hangover the criminal case at all? because the jurors may know things, and hear themes. potential jurors. >> it won't be admissible in the criminal tr trial but it has been wildly reported in the media, and the jurors are going to have to raise their hands, and say that they will listen to the evidence and say that

they will not let anything outside of the courtroom influence them. but jurors are just human beings, and you and i, and as they heard this information, which they would have by the time the cases go to trial. it may have impact on them. and people, though there's no admission of be liability, people think that if you paid money, particularly large sums of money, means that there must be a perm responsibility on at least some of the officers. >> a areva, thank you very much. the leaders in the u.s. and cuba meet at the u.n. for the first time in decades. they hope to normalize relations between the two countries. and tough talk in ukraine's president,

>> there was tough talk and finger pointing today at the united nations general assembly ukraine's president, poroshenko, used it to express tensions in his country. and john has more on what he had to say. >> reporter: good evening, richelle, petro poroshenko was spurring for a fight today. he called it broken, and accused the security council of under mining peace in the world, and he let russian president, vladimir putin, have it with both barrels. with a lock list of priorities, petro poroshenko went before the united nations general

assembly and took dead aim against one of the security council hez most powerful members. >> my country has been the object of their external aggression. the russian federation. >> with no russians in attendance during the speech, poroshenko through a list of responses. ukraine accuses separatists of downing the flight 17 with a russian missile. >> it's a license to kill. it's absolutely unescapable. >> reporter: but his mouth scathing remarks were about the conflict in eastern ukraine. supplying soldiers military and arms to separatists fighting government forces.

russian president, vladimir putin, continues to deny that his country is involved in ukraine, and while poroshenko never referred to the leader by name, he did mock putin's call for an international tariff, which he made to the united nations on monday. >> the story, how can you speak for freedom for a nation if you punish your neighbor for these? how can you demand respect for all if you don't have respect for anyone? >> poroshenko's be speech comes as measures of a cease-fire in minutistic haven't been included from firing rainy in both sides. he said that thousands of people have died in the conflict. and that number could be higher, accusing russia of covering up its casualties in an effort to hide its presence in ukraine. >> the russian takes the

insignias off of its servicemen and marks off of itser military equipment. to abandon its soldiers on the battlefield. and use a mobile creamtorium to eliminate the evidence. >> ukraine is not a happy place now, rebels control the east. and the u.s. has no long-term strategic interest in the country, and it desperately needs investment and reforms, neither of which is coming soon. >> a historic meeting today on the sidelines of the u.n. gem assembly. president obama sat down with cuban president, fidel castro, for the second time in six months ago. and the white house said that the leaders discussed recent advances by the two countries, and the steps that each can take to improve ties, and they also discussed pope francis' visit to the two countries.

in cuba from 2011 and 2014, he joins us from jacksonville, florida, and we appreciate your time with us tonight. how would you characterize the meeting between the two gentlemen? >> all reports were that it was very restful and courteous, and both sides were able to talk about things that they considered important. >> so obviously, they want something from each other. castro wants the embargo lifted and ones guantanamo restored to cuba, and president obama wants the human rights situation improved in cuba, and how do they possibly make any headway on either one of those things? >> well, yeah, you're right. some of the things, the united nations process has begun, and in a with the announcement of both in december, and following up on the economic controls on cuba, and the additional

measures just last week, so that part of the process is underway. the more complicated part is that the united states criticizes the way that cuba treats its own people. and they don't have basic rights. for many years, cuba was on defensive footing, fearing that the united states would invade or subvert it. and they justified these very severe measures by the need to defend themselves against the united states. as the u.s. threat diminishes and no longer exists as a military threat, the question is whether cuba will feel that it can allow more individual liberties for its citizens. >> all right, so how long do you think that it will take before relations are -- i would say fully restored. and i don't know if they will be fully restored, but when do

you expect more significant progress. >> well, the formality of relations is already accomplished. that cuba has an ambassador in the united states, and we have one in havana, and we are talking with cubans about nuts and bolts issues, whether it's a treaty or agreement. or how you deal with the international postal service. we have had no international postal service with cuba for the last 50 years. so these are improvements in recognizing the normality of the relationship. and they're going to be beneficial to the cuban people as well. the fundamental issues, such as guantanamo, i don't see that being resolved to cuba's satisfaction. for the predictable future. but that does indeed allow for a lot of progress. cuba is facing among its own it

citizens, much higher expectations for economic improvement and that's the challenge that the cuban government has, to give a better economic life to the cuban people. for many years, the embargo was reason to believe that cuba has difficulties, but essentially, i believe that it was the economic system. the communist economic system that was implemented in cuba, which was not successful throughout the world. the communist countries, such as china have changed their economic systems, and the people are better off. but cuba has been slow to make the changes, even with the relaxation of the embargo. and now american firms are now allowed to invest in cuba for example, but more important for cuba's future, is allowing for the first time cubans to start companies. very limited openings for repairmen and carpenters, but

the real change is when cubans are allowed to open companies, and import and ex sport. and when they're allowed with the reach out, which is prohibited now. these are changes that occur in their own economy, and as these occur, there will be other demands as people make depends on the government to change policies and procedures. and that's going to be difficult. >> absolutely. that's going to be difficult. and now cuba is facing a generational change. >> i apologize, we're out of time. i apologize, john, thank you so much for your time from jacksonville, florida. >> several current and former aljazeera journalists have pealed to the egyptian president peter greste was released and deported from egypt after 400 days in jail.

>> we're grateful for president presidencpresident sisi, and i think that he has acknowledged that there was a mistake that was made. and he has moved toward addressing that. but this is just a step. what he has to do from here on is to pardon the rest of us, which he has promised. and what i want to say to you today, i have formally begun by bringing to president sisi, in through the court. >> three of the journalists are egyptian, and they won't return home for fer of arrest. the judicial lifts and aljazeera deny the allegations against them. afghan troops are now battling the taliban for the control of the northern city of

kun izu. this morning, the u.s. launched an airstrike to protect. and a large-scale effort will be required to reclaim that city. >> there are no government troops left here. the call ban fighters are controlling large parts of kunduz city. and here they are raising the flag in the square. the afghan government has announced a major operation to recapture kunduz. >> in the first place, we should take care of the civilian casualties. we have already paid attention, and we will continue. the enemy has severe damages. and i don't want to go into the detail of the operations. >> special forces have been brought in, and the u.s. military confirmed an airstrike

on the outskirts of the city in the no longer. they have set up booby traps along the way. as part of the takeover on monday, the tall began gunmen broke open kunduz's prison, releasing inmates, most of them taliban fighters. and they released a statement, telling the residents not to worry, and go about their daily lives. and that will be difficult with the major operation underway. it's one of the most significant territorial gains that the taliban fighters have made since 2001. ashraf ghani's first anniversary as president, facing the taliban alone after the u.s. and nato trops mulled out last year. a counter terrorism operation remains, but this is in the long campaign by the taliban to take more control of the country. a strong message to whoever is

watching, that after 14 years of being deposed, the taliban can still take control of a major city in less than 24 hours. >> saudi authorities are asking for help in identifying those who died in this year's hajj. the police distributed more than 1100 photographs, but those are not just of the 769 people killed in last week's deadly stampede. but all of those who died in the pilgrimage, including those who died in the crane collapse on september h 11th. the italian coast guard today rescued people off of the coast. this year, half a million refugees crossed the mediterranean to reach europe. close to 3,000 have died along

the way most of those are coming from syria, where over 175,000 people have fled the war there. many are trying to reach germany, where the government is trying to make sure that the refugees are really who they say they are. >> arriving at the train station in big groups. it's a hostile journey for all of them, and workers are hand to check their temperature, and they are also checking to see they are who they say they are. days ago we filmed the group, moving as fast as they could to the border with austria,. among their number, red said that he would do an interview with us. >> where are you from? >> syria. >> which city. >> dam affect. >damask.>> you just came here e border? >> go to austria and germany. >> in a conversation in french,

he admitted that he was in fact a hotel worker, and h was going because he knew that he had no chance of asylum. and the germans don't think that he's the only one. the air of suspicion, 45 linguistic experts in 80 different languages. anyone who arrives here has to be analyzed to see they are who they say they are. if any fake syrians, they will not have their asylum automatically rejected but it's going to make things more difficult for them. we leader similar things in slovenia. the arguments are of course, the people who are not fleeing for their lives should not be getting in the way of people who are, but others say that the system should not discriminate. >> .

>> to go on the long travel to europe and cross the mediterranean, i think that you have a real reason to flee. so they shouldn't be refugees. >> the other voice, inside of the european union, which is hostile to any refugees, and the idea that some are getting-by-preparing, is hardening the attitudes. and it's hard to prove that they're really running for their lives. >> typhoon hit northern tie one, killing 300 people and injuring 1100 others. more than a million will power outages. and winds gusted as high as 153 miles per hour. torrential rainfall from what's left of the typhoon may cause

dangerous flooding and mudslides. it's really an all-around mess, and high tides are being blamed for the second day of flooding in florida. they have an unusually high tide this week with residents if some areas waking up to a foot of water yesterday. this morning, the northeast is bracing for its own wet weather in the coming days. and kevin corveau is here with that. >> it's going to be an interesting week to say the least for many people, and if you look behind me, we have 1300 miles of rain right now, all the way from the south to up here in parts of maine, and it all began in the south. look at what happened in parts of alabama. this is where the tropical moisture came in from the gulf of mexico. and mobile saw one of its wettest days since the records began in the 1800s, across mobile bay. and they're now beginning to drain out in that area.

but what we're seeing now, in parts of virginia, that's where the heaviest rain, and we're now seeing mudslides in that area. these have just come in this afternoon, of flooded roads, and some roads are impassible because of the rain. and we're also seeing mudslides in certain areas as well. this is what we are we expect to see over the next day. in terms of how much rain is going to be in the area. this is just over the next 72 hours, but rain expected in the region, and you can see the watches and warnings, especially here, you can see the flood warnings flood warnings in effect, and those go all the way up to main. thea factor that's coming into effect in the week is joaquin. it's expected to be a hurricane, as it was a category 1 storm, but look what happens as the storm makes its way to the north. richelle, we're going to be

seeing the storm making landfall, but all of this moisture is coming into play across the united states, so it's going to be wet. >> all right, kevin, thank you. up next, a plan of action. planning to fix emissions problems with 11 million cars. plus -- >> we're going to meet mischa, the only asthmatic sea otter in the world.

>> the u.s. intelligence chief is expressing doubts about a new deal to put an end to cyber threats from china. last week, president obama and the chinese president xi jinping agreed to not spy on each other. >> you think that that will result in the elimination of chinese cyber attacks? >> well, hope springs eternal. i think that we will have to watch what their behavior is, and it will be incumbent on the intelligence community, i think to depict, portray to our policymakers what behaviors, if any result from this agreement. >> are you optimistic.

>> no. >> clapper said cyber threats to the u.s. national and economic security are on the rise from china, russia, iran and north korea. >> the fallout in the volkswagen diesel emissions scandal continues. the world's largest automaker facing investigations in europe and the united states, as well as a huge recall. and aljazeer ali velshi has the. >> richelle, today vw announced they will refit up to 11 million vehicles. emissions software that landed vw in hot water. it will affect 5 million vws, and audis, and scot as, i didn't know they made those anymore. and vw didn't say how they will make the cars comply with the regulations or how they will affect fuel efficiency.

but this is all bad news for the company. analysts say that it could cost the company of and a half billion dollars. and the company has already lost one-third of its market value. and volkswagen is being hit with investigations from all angles. today, they were told to hand over all of the emissions, and last week, the justice department said that they would investigate the company's practices, and additionally, 27 states have launched their own probes, and they're looking into the ceos. martin winterkorn, for possible fraud. it's not a good time to be in volkswagen. >> you can watch right here on aljazeera america. and for a look at what's coming up at the top of the hour, let's check in with john seigenthaler. >> fighting isil, president obama wants to lead a financial

war against this group, and he'll get help from 30 other countries. how will it be done? and can they smash isil's bankroll? we sawe saw planned parenthood's leader before congress today. and we'll talk about both sides of that issue. power of the vote, power of politics changing, and the mean reason, puert puerto ricans are moving to the state. >> we have 1 million inhabitants are in florida, and how many of those are voters? you have to figure 400,000. >> it's the biggest movement of people off the island since the 1950s. how it could be a game changer in the 2016 presidential election. and political comedy in america has a new face. a new era at the daily show. last night with trevor at the helm. we'll learn about the south

african's debut. >> . >> humans are not the only creatures at risk ar breathing complications. sea otters are as well. researchers are hoping that we can learn something from these marine mammals, especially one in particular. >> reporter: so you want to get a sea otter's attention, try full tilt sushi. >> then some slip, all sorts of restaurant quality seafood. >> behind the aquarium, a special team gears up to show us a special training sex with a 145-pound patient. meet mischa, a sea otter pup with a serious problem. >> you can see the heart here, and these darker areas are the lumps. >> a problem shared by an estimated 25 million americans, human americans. >> reactive airway syndrome,

or asthma is what she has. >> so the inhaler or puffer, used by so many two-legged asthma sufferers. >> she has to learn to press her face to the inhaler and keep it there long enough to breathe the medicine n the drugs, available by prescription at your local pharmacy. >> these are the same drugs that are what a human would use, and she's being trained to use albuterol. >> in case of an attack. >> the sea otters are a big draw, and mischa, the first on ther diagnosed with asthma, can teach kids and others about air quality. mischa went into a funk this summer when the thick smoke from the wildfires in

washington came through. and they had the diagnoses. >> we are working through it, and she's doing great so far. >> asthma occasionally hits cats and horses, but the researchers are sure why mischa has it, and what triggers it, and whether other otters might be susceptible. this is all an experiment in progress. mischa eyeballs our camera occasion loo. but plenty of fresh fish. the thick furred medical pioneer is a quick study. >> she lets me put it right on her nose, and so i gave her a big jackpot of food. you did really good! >> they're training us more than anything, what they want. so very smart. >> hopefully it will mean relief for mischa, and with human cases on the rise, possibly education on asthma

and the environment for the rest of us. alle >> i'm richelle carey, and john seigenthaler will be back in a couple of minutes, so do keep it here. thanks for your time.

>> hi everyone. this is al jazeera america. i'm john seigenthaler. >> game plan, a global movement that is united by the mission of the degrading and ultimately destroying isil. >> president obama's plan over isil. under fire, and fighting back. >> planned parenthood policies not only comply with, due, indeed, go beyond requirements of the law.