unintended consequences. 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. >> it is easier in some communities to find a gun than it is to find some fresh vegetables. >> the problems facing the nation's police. president obama talks about the challenges and how to fix them. changing strategies, defense secretary, ashe carter talks about plans for fighting isil. a high school arrest.

the investigation into an officer who dragged a teen from her desk. and plus, prevent an underground fire from reaching nuclear waste. >> we begin with president obama's calls for criminal justice reform and tougher gun laws. the president spoke today at the international of police convention in chicago. and he also defended police officers who have come under intense scrutiny amid accusations of pors and racial bias after deaths in missouri, florida and elsewhere. mike viqueira joins us from washington, and mike, the president covered a lot of ground. and he spoke for almost an hour. let's start with gun control. >> reporter: recurring gun

violence, and controversial tactics by the police, all going viral, all serve as backdrops before president obama's long speech before a group that says it all, the international association of police chiefs. president obama walked a fine line. praising the gathering of law enforcement chiefs from around the country. while keeping with his call for police to perform the way they operate in minority communities. >> we have got to honestly and fairly address it, and not simply close ranks or stand down. >> reporter: but the police deserve the benefit of the doubt, mr. obama said. it has too quickly become a story of law enforcement and minorities at odds. >> a narrative that too often gets served up to us by news stations, ratings, and tweets, or political candidates seeking attention.

>> reporter: an encounter between an officer and a high school student in south carolina, and the day after mr. obama's fbi director playing the so-called ferguson affect. calling on police. >> our divides are not as deep as some would like to suggest. i don't know what to tell you, i don't know any community that doesn't want strong law enforcement. >> reporter: mr. obama spoke about the backdrop of violent crime. just last week weekend, 36 wounded and 6 dead. though he didn't put any proposals on limiting guns, he put part of the blame on indiana, where the lack of gun control allows guns to flow into chicago, where they're

used in crimes. >> it is easier for a lot of young people in this city and in some of your communities to buy a gun than to buy a book. >> reporter: the president also pushed criminal justice reform and sentencing reform. and he's making rare bipartisan progress in congress. and on monday, he travels to newark to continue that push. >> okay, mike, this movement in congress. >> going to reach the president's desk any time soon? >> it's really extraordinary, from both ends of political spectrum, that's where it's coming for political reform. the deal that was struck by the democrats and the republicans over the last few hours will allow them to work on the bill. and it's unlikely that they will be able to get it that far before the beginning of next year. >> joining us is glen martin, the founder of just leadership

usa, and we appreciate you joining us tonight. the president covered a lot of ground, talking about criminal justice reform, and the police, and gun control and what stood out to you? >> what it stood out to me is the effort to bring communities together. he's trying to bridge the divide and bring folks together on dialogue on how to have better community relations for police officers, and he moved to the values discussion. so we can talk about the nuts and bolts all day on when it takes to change those relationships, but what he's trying to remind us all, we have certain values as americans, and those that we believe in. >> let's talk about the divide though. so there were certain things that got huge applause. when the president said certain times police officers are scapegoated for the ills of society, particularly when it comes to racism.

that got huge applause, but when he talked about people of color are not making this up, and he talked about being victims of police brutality and the statistics to back it up, there was no applause, and the divide seems to be big. >> people would have you believe that this divide is a year and a half old, but this is a multigenerational narrative that has been happening in communities of color for a long time. and if he had that same speech in front of one of those communities, you would hear the applause in the opposite direction. does that mean that people shouldn't come together? he pointed out that the narrative exists with police officers and with the communities, and how do you get beyond that? the communities don't want state violence against them. and the police officer abuse and they want public safety. >> do you think that he highlighted any common ground between the communities? >> i think that he highlighted common values, the idea this

both of these communities care about public safety. and both of the communities have values that line up with american values, and we should find ways to come together. and things like this don't hit a tipping point until you get to the point where americans come together and we need to tackle together. this doesn't line up with our rhetoric when who we are as americans. >> one thing that got a lot of the support in the room, when the president talked about gun control. and do you think that that might be a good place to bridge the divide a little bit? because the communities that are often the most affected by lack of gun control are the communities of color. might that be a good starting point? >> i think that police officers care about gun control. obviously, we have police shootings all over this country every day, fob quite honest. and they become the victims of the illegal gun, and that may be a point for us to come together. but i think that there are many

other opportunities to come together. the point again, true public safety comes with police officers engaging in communities. because there's a very small number of people in those communities committing the most serious crimes, and law enforcement is always better off when the they have a high-ll of community. >> where they know the people they're policing. >> i can't think of anywhere they don't know who those folks are. >> great to have you here tonight, glen, glen martin, and coming up at the bottom of the hour, fighting back against gun violence in chicago. how mothers are coming together to stop crime. governors are not happy with the budget deal reached last night between john boehner and the white house. they said that he gave away too much to leaders. and tell us what's in it, libby. >> reporter: richelle, it increases spending by $80 billion over two years, and to put that big number into

perspective, that's only 1% of the whole federal budget. it lifts caps on military spending, something that the republicans wanted, and non-military spending, which the democrats wanted to go along, tact 2, any increase in military spending, and it raises the debt limit until march of 2017 because there was a deadline for that next week. this is a compromise measure, and house speaker, john boehner said that it should be supported. >> the agreement isn't perfect by any means, but the alternative was a clean debt increase without any additional support for our troops. so this is a good deal for the troops, for the taxpayers, and for the american people. >> reporter: speaker boehner

said there's no reason for the republicans to vote against it, but we're already hearing grumbling as you mensed, including from presidential candidates, like rand paul, senator, who said that he will try to filibuster it. so you can expect it to come up in tonight's republican debate. >> we know that he's pretty good at the filibuster. what did the president have to say about it? >> president obama is supporting this, and he's saying that congress should vote yes. >> and it's an actual bipartisan compromise, which hasn't been happening in washington a lot lately. two years of funding for budgets that finally free us from the cycle of shut down threats, and last minute patchwork fixes, and it allows us to plan for the future and for your departments to plan for the too much. >the future. >> the white house were working

behind the scenes, and the white house is learning about getting things behind the scenes to get things accomplished in congress. >> all right, libby casey in washington, thank you so much. iran was invited for the first time to take part in international talks over the future of syria, the new round of diplomatic meetings began thursday in the u.s., russia and european and arab officials, and iran has been left out of such discussions in the half because of its support of president bashar al-assad's regime. the pentagon has changed it's approach to fighting isil. they have elected to putting more troops on the front lines for combat roles in the region. focusing on two isil strongholds, one in syria, and the other in ramadi in iraq. more from jordan. >> the u.s. military has a

counter isil strategy, the three removes. syrian rebels retaking raqqah, troops swooping in on ramadi, and u.s. troops getting more involved. >> the third and final is the raids, saying that we don't hold back for opportunistic attacks against isil, or conducting such missions directly. >> reporter: carter's statement comes after last week's raid, where the u.s. special forces jumped in to help kurdish fighters, and if so, that would be a major policy change for the u.s. president barack obama had promised no troops to fight isil. and despite russia's decision to launch airstrikes in syria, they are pressuring to not let russia join in the fight on its territory. >> we are the preferred in iraq and we have been insistent on that. >> there's another

complication, the never ending flow of northerners who want to fight with isil. even as turkey is interrupting supporters, the u.s. general admitted that the coalition doesn't have a plan to stop foreign fighters. >> we don't have a common view of where the fighters come from, and how they moving back and forth, and more importantly, where they go once they leave. >leave. >> reporter: the military leaders have been studying the use of a no-fly zone in syria, something that the legislators have called for repeatedly. >> what you're saying, the strong estimation in the world can't even establish a no-fly zone to protect people from being barrel bombed. it's embarrassing >> reporter: it's not clear if the u.s. has the right strategy to fight isil. but they certainly heard there's a hunger for the u.s. to get it right. rosilan jordan, aljazeera,

washington. >> tough talk from china today after a u.s. navy warship sailed past the islands in the south china sea. beijing claims that the islands are china's territory. but the u.s. disagrees. aljazeera's rob mcbride has more. >> reporter: the united states has been signaling for months that it would make the symbolic sail past. and china has warned that it would respond appropriately, and both sides have been good to their word. the patrol came within 12 nautical miles of the disputed islands in the south china sea. normally the accepted limit of the territorial claim. but not accepted by the u.s., who says these are international waters, open to anybody. china said that it shadowed the u.s. vessel, accusing it harming regional peace and it stability. >> we want the u.s. to respect

our position and correct it's mistake immediately. it should not conduct any dangerous, provoketive action that threatens china's security interests, and not take sides on territorial disputes so as not to harm the u.s./china relationship. >> the waters are disputed by china and several of the island nations, among them the fill peeps, which as an ally of the u.s., welcomed the move, saying that the ship was operating in international waters. >> it has to be [ unintelligible ] when all parties are affected by realities. >> another ally, japan, has it's own territorial dispute with china in the east china sea. it went further, expressing concern over china's island building activities in the south china sea. >> the unilateral conduct to

change the status grows, such as the large stale landfills to build platforms in the south china sea are a concern in the community. it's very important that the international community units to maintain the peace and stability in the south china sea. we're closely talking to the united states. >> the united states says that the decision to send the warship los to the disputed of islands reaffirms its right to sail into what it considers international waters. china is responding in equally assertive terms that it will safeguard what it sees as it's territory. but there's widespread regional support from china's neighbors for america's actions. >> still ahead, confrontation in the classroom. a police officer throws a student to the ground. and now the fbi is involved in the investigation. and ready for another

round, republicans prepared to take the debate stage. as a new poll suggests that the frontrunner has been trumped.

>> republican presidential candidates will face-off again tomorrow night. and the leading the polls, donald trump and ben carson, what the field looks like now, and what we're likely to hear.

>> reporter: since the republican's last debated at the reagan library in california, the group got a little smaller. >> i will suspend my campaign immediately. >> the rhetoric remainedded same. >> bush has no money, he has cut it, he's meeting today with mommy and daddy and they're working on the campaign. >> and he has shown up on somebody's enemy list. >> probably the republicans. >> reporter: this time, they're set to debate in bolder, colorado, democrats outranking republicans by 2-1. and now a national poll shows ben carson passing donald trump. so wednesday's debate billed as your money, your vote by cnbc, gives trump another opportunity to hammer carson on deals. >> i will make great deals, ben is a doctor, and he's not a deal maker

>> reporter: carson will be on his evangelical message, which may have trouble with finance and economic measures. >> i change my message from one group to another. and i think that people observe that. >> reporter: when it comes to finances, jeb bush appeared very strong, but now hobbles into boulder with a bush family powwow. >> i have a lot of cool things that i could do other than sit around being miserable, listening to people demonizing me, and that's a joke, elect trump if you want that. >> reporter: marco rubio seizing on some of bush's lost ground, having to defend recent allegations that he has a poor attendance record for votes in the senate. >> being a senator is more than just casting a vote. >> the debate will be an

opportunity for carly fiorina, the former hewlett-packard ceo has seen only fleeting popularity bumps out of both debates, but this is in her comfort zone, money and business, and john kasich has the most in taxes. make the most out of the early debate for those not polling as well will be rick santorum, george petaki and the bewildered lindsey graham. >> we'll get you set for tomorrow's debate with a full hour of the coverage. breaking downort issues that the candidates are most likely to discuss. tonight, a united nations resolution passed by a landslide today. 191 nations voted enter it, and

despite renewed ties with cuba, the u.s. was one of the two countries to vote against the measure. they said that the resolution did not affect the spirit of engagement between the two country's leaders, and they remain committed to normalizing it. israel also voted against the resolution. people affected by monday's earthquake, 400 people were killed, mostly in pakistan, and parts of india were impacted by the 7.5 magnitude quake in northern afghanistan. and that's where we find aljazeera's jennifer glasse >> reporter: 12 afghan girls, the first to die in the quake, are laid to rest, draped in the colors of their nation. they were killed trying to get out of a stam immediate in a school in the afghan nation. the walls collapsed, reducing

the village to rubble. survivors gathered up what belongings they could salvage. and not everyone here survived. >> the earthquake, the walls were shaking and one of my sisters came out of the house, and when she came out, she disappeared under the wall. there were others inside. the wall collapsed on her. >> reporter: walls cracked, ceilings fell in. and much of the village is uninhabitable and winter is approaching. [ foreign dialogue ] >> interpreter: our house has been destroyed by the earthquake. >> reporter: the injured and dead were taken to local hospitals. the province suffered the highest number of casualties so far, with at least 42 dead. and officials fear that the numbers could rise with access to remote locations.

outside, children all played together. >> there was a wedding ceremony, and all of the kids were playing when the quake started. one wall fell on the children, two broke their arms, and 23 people were injured or killed in the incident. >> reporter: afghan authorities are still assessing the extent of the damage. it/3 of the province was affected, including those controlled by the taliban. they asked to help the needy and the fighters to support them. the national it security council will coordinate the efforts, and they will decide whether to accept outside help once the full extent of the devastation is known. jennifer glasse, kabul. >> demonstrations today in the occupied west bank.

palestinians fought with israelis on what some of the local political parties called a day of rage. they threw rocks at israeli soldiers who responded by firing live rounds. several hundred jewish settlers live in the city of hebron. 18 people have been killed there since the beginning of october. still ahead, coming together to take on gun violence. how a group of chicago mothers is trying to keep their streets safe. plus, voting rights in alabama. why critics say that a new move from the state will make it even harder for minorities to cast their ballots.

>> president obama made anotherly for gun control today. the president addressed the international police chiefs convention in chicago. he spoke about the recent spike in violence in his hometown. especially with the guns used in the crime come out of the state. and how easy it was for criminals to access them. >> it is easier for young people in this city, and in some of your communities, to

buy a gun than buy a book. it is easier in some communities to find a gun than it is to find fresh vegetables at a supermarket. >> the president also pushed for new steps to require background checks for every purchase. chicago has been plagued by gun violence. so for this year, 2500 people have been shot. and 400 killed. the personal stories of fear and resilience, "america tonight's" sarah hoye talks to one woman taking a stand against the violence. >> i'm going to do it. i'm going to set the fire today. everybody who wants a sandwich, get over here. >> reporter: the charcoal grill is out and the smell of a summer barbecue on chicago's south side. >> you're welcome.

>> but this is more than an average neighborhood get together. >> we have the hot grill going. >> reporter: a group of mothers have taken to the street in the city inglewood neighborhood. and they hope that their presence will curb the violence that has plagued the city this year. >> i want to save my children and everybody else. >> reporter: tamar never lost a child to gun violence, but she's fighting to make sure that she never does. >> i was thinking that just as mothers control things, and keep things under control in their homes, i figured that we can do it in our communities as well. so this summer, what we thought we would do, we would take moms, and we go and set up shop on blocks, on the worst blocks, the blocks that have the most challenges and are the most violent. >> moms on patrol, sir, so

everybody knows i'm here. >> after shooting deaths in the notorious inglewood neighborhood this year, senseless killings, and groups of volunteers patrolling the streets. they want to stop the gun violence plaguing the city, even if it's just for a few hours. >> it worked. >> i just don't want to have all of the sandwiches gone. >> reporter: the women, and now the men, commit to patrolling at least four hours every afternoon. tamar said the grassroots effort created a safe place in an otherwise embattled neighborhood. in the weeks since they have began, there have been no shootings on this street corner. but there are obstacles, and not necessarily the ones that tamar accepted. >> i thought that the kids would be my biggest problem, the obstacles, and when i got there, the kids were so welcoming, and it's like they kind of needed whatever it was

that i was offering, whether it was a hug, or whatever it was, they needed it. it was the police that didn't necessarily care for it. and it has proven to be our biggest obstacle is our relationship with law enforcement. >> and for now, tamar and her team will keep a watch over the block. >> sarah joins us now, and that group is clearly having an impact, remarkable women, by but the story doesn't end there, and there's a lot more to it. >> reporter: no, with the patrols in the labor day weekend. but the uptick in violence, close to 3,000 shootings, and 400 deaths, and so as it continues to climb, september was the deadliest month in nearly a decade, it's terrible. and they had a lot of work, but they want to keep on going back out and they wanted to end, but

they can't. so we were looking for these voices, the people who live there, and call chicago home, they have to live with this violence. >> we talk about it, but they're there. >> absolutely, and there are many many people who are tired of it, and they want to fight back, and so we went to find some of these people doing just that, looking to make peace. >> your hometown of milwaukee, it's not far from chicago, also a spike in violence, and so has philadelphia and baltimore, and what's going on? >> what we hear about, we need to work, there are not enough jobs, and some say that it's a problem with the police. it's a multitude of all of the factors, but one of the things that you hear from everybody, the job front. >> the president mentioned that today as well, in his speech to the police chiefs, it's the jobs for kids. >> we spoke with the specialist at the university of wisconsin milwaukee. and he said, police were tell you, in 1978, we had 13, 14, 17

shootings in the entire year in the city. why was that? everybody had a job. >> all right, it's a good place to start, that's for sure. sarah, thank you, appreciate it. the justice department is now investigating an incident at a high school in south carolina that was caught on cellphone video. a sheriffs deputy seen flipping and then dragging a female student who refused to leave the classroom. just a short time ago, the officials spoke publicly about this incident. >> what happened yesterday, what we all watched on the shameful, shocking video is reprehensible, unforgivable and inconsistent with everything that this district stands for, what we work for, and what we aspire to be. >> reporter: school administrators, speaking to the media in the wake of a confrontation caught on camera at a high school in columbia, south carolina. according to the richland county sheriff's department,

the school called resource officer, ben fields to the classroom because a student refused to put her cellphone down. he can be heard on the video ordering the girl to stand, before flipping her desk over and tossing her across the floor for refusing to leave the class. the county sheriff said that he was "very disturbed by what he saw" and that deputy field should never be assigned to work in the schools again, but the department is asking to wait until the res is finished before making a conclusion. >> it makes you throw up. it makes you sick to your stomach when you see the initial video, but again, that's a snapshot. and as a professional, i have to look beyond that. >> a third officer punching as he grabbed her, but it was the officer's reaction that disturbed them most.

but they opened an investigation on thursday. the veteran has been under the microscope before. he was sued for false arrest in 2007, but eventually vindicated. the girl in the video was eventually charged with disturbing school, but the school's principal said that the confrontation was unacceptable, regardless of the student's action the. >> our school district has zero tolerance for what occurred. and i personally have zero tolerance as well. >> the deputy has been suspended without pay. and joining us tonight, from columbia, south carolina, we do appreciate you for joining us. but my first question is just a reaction to the video. >> well, my reaction was, it was just egregious. i was shocked and appalled. and i have a daughter in that school district. and she's not yet in high

school. but the immediate thought, that could have been my child. and i don't think that there's anyone out there that would feel otherwise. if it was your child, or son or daughter, would you appreciate that being the kind of care or handling of your child? i was just shocked and appalled. and at a loss of words. first, i thought it wasn't even -- it could not be spring valley high school in columbia, south carolina. it had to be somewhere else. it had to be a booby video. but quickly afterward, i found out that it was confirmed that it did happen, and it was at spring valley high school in columbia, south carolina. >> are you aware of any other incidents similar to something like this? any other treatment of students like this at this particular school or in this district? >> the only other incident that i'm aware of, and this is just from feedback from the young people that actually go to the school, and they were past students of the school, is that

this particular officer has a track record. he's actually called playfully sergeant slam, or sheriff slam. that's just scary all by itself. just hearing the report, speaking to young people that currently attend spring valley high school, and those in the past that are students at spring valley high school. and they said that he always has been like that. he goes fro zero to 100 quickly if you don't respond. he wants you to respond with the immediacy that he wants you to respond with, he goes there. >> what are your thoughts of having police officers in the classroom, and the fact that students can be arrested for -- let me get this right -- disturbing schools. how do you feel about that? >> i think that's a huge mistake. i believe that the school resource officers, as the name suggests, are school resource.

if anything, they're there to protect students, given all that is going on in the culture, with active shooters on campuses, and they're there to protect. they're not there to police students. this is not a penal institution, or a correction institution, it's an educational institution. so having the officers on campus, i understand, and i have had relationships in the past with school resource officers, and the vast majority of school resource officers that i know and have friendships with, they're wonderful people and awesome guys and have great repour with students. but this isan anomaly and absurd. i was shocked when i found out that this guy had previous run-ins with the law, as it were, with regard to students, and parents at this particular school. and my question is, why was he still employed in the school district? >> let me ask you this:

how would you have liked to see this particular situation handled? there's a student that is not doing as he or she is strucked and won't leave the classroom. how would you have liked to see that particular situation handled? >> as an 18 year educator, i've been an educator for 18 years, and i've worked in some of the toughest school districts, and i've dealt with students a lot of like this young lady. and she's not an anomaly in the world that we live in right now. defiant and disrespectful. and there are protocols in place for most school districts for the relationship between law enforcement and the students. as it were, the law enforcement interfacing with the students should be a last step. there should be these limits placed on t why wasn't her parent called? i understand the teacher had an issue with the cellphone, and now i'm hearing other stories

about the fact that she was a quiet child. she was new to the school. and him asking her -- >> your point being you through there are a lot of other things that could have been done before it escalated into this situation. >> there were a lot of things, training, the ball dropped when it comes to training the professionals and the educators in the schools. >> well, there's going to be an investigation, and perhaps we'll call on you again. pastor, hugh harmon out of south carolina, we appreciate your time. >> i appreciate you as well. >> cellphone records show that the florida musician fatally shot by a plain-clothed police officer was on the phone when he was killed. corey jones was shot 5 minutes after his suv broke down early in the morning on october 18th. according to the log, the call lasted nearly an hour. at&t has not confirmed whether

it has a recording but the county officials are investigating the shooting. civil rights groups in alabama say that they are issuing i.d.s in rural parties of the state. the state says that the i.d.s can be obtained in other offices, but the critics say that there's nowhere to the investigation. >> reporter: it's the picture of southern charm, but activists say that union springs in rural alabama is part of a new battle ground in a decade-old fight. in parts of the state, dozens of drivers license offices have closed. they need government-issued i.d. to cast their ballots. >> hello. >> residents like evelyn smart say that it's voting rights are still an issue. >> we have a long way to go, and still a long way to come. we have earned the rights years and years ago. and we should not have to fight

now like we did then. >> reporter: civil rights activists say that it's not so much that drivers license offices are closing but where they're closing. overwhelmingly, it's rural and black communities that are losing facilities, and they say it's an attempt to suppress the african-american vote. some are calling for an investigation into the closures. but officials claim that budget cuts gave them no choice. the voter discrimination is simply untrue. >> we'll go to people's houses to have their picture made if they don't have a photo idea in the state of alabama. we're not going to ever do something in the state of alabama to keep them from voting. and for them to jump to a conclusion like that, it's politics at its worst. >> it's a big barrier, people don't have transportation. >> but campaigners say this closures, with the voter i.d. laws, are part of a long ugly

history of discrimination. >> here we are, 50 years later, 50 years after the voting rights act, and we're again suppressing the rights of black voters in alabama. >> officials say that the closures will save this state millions of dollars. civil rights campaigners are more concerned about the potential cost on democracy. union springs, alabama. >> still ahead, burning under ground. a fire at a buried landfill is getting closer and closer to a radioactive site. the plan to stop a potential disaster. and the senate passes a controversial cyber security bill. and privacy advocates say that it gloss too far.

>> the air force has warred the contract for stealth bombers. the $55 million contract was the biggest in air force history. the new long-range bomber that will replace the aging b1 and b52 bombers, they're $550 million apiece. after years of false starts

and debates it appears that congress is on the way to thwarting cyber attacks. voting to approve a bipartisan bill that will encourage companies and the government to share information. and that's the start of the story. >> reporter: there's widespread agreement that cyber security threats are growing, and becoming more sophisticated with individuals and the government and companies at risk. just last week, john brennan's emails were made public. he had been hacked. and tuesday, brennan said that he's outraged. >> what it does, it under scores just how vulnerable people are to those who want to cause harm. >> the bill may not prevent official cyber attacks, but it would allow them to stop them from spreading. it allows them to share with each other and the government about any threats to their computer networks. >> right now, the same cyber

intrusions are used again and again to penetrate different tarts. that shouldn't happen. if someone sees a particular virus or harmful cyber signature, they should tell others, so they can protect themselves. >> it's all volunteer. and companies get legal protection for any information they pass on. first to the department of homeland security, which can share it with the fbi, cia, and nsa. businesses are supposed to wipe any personal data before it's shared. but opponents say the bill's requirement to protect consumer's privacy is not strict enough. >> sharing information without pob university privacy standards creates as many problems as it may solve. >> reporter: supporters of the bill say that they already have good privacy prokes, and they prevailed. cyber security experts called this legislation a necessary

first step. >> we have to protect the government in many ways. they are doing the best they can, and the situation is changing rapidly every day. >> reporter: it's backed by the chamber of commerce and the banking and retail industries, but some tech giants, including twitter and apple are opposed to it. >> the ayes are 74, and the nays, 21, and the bill is passed >> reporter: in the senate, it had widespread partisan interest and are support. a key to its success. >> it's incredible that we got overwhelming bipartisan support. but one that is a very technical and contentious bill from the standpoint what it deals with. >> now the house and the senate will huddle to try to work out the differences between their two cyber security bills and try to get a final measure to

the president's desk. lisa stark, aljazeera, washington. >> for the last five years, a fire has been burning between a landfall in suburban st. louis, and the officials are trying to figure out how to keep that fire from reaching the adjacent westlake landfill where nuclear waste is buried. it's just five miles from the st. louis international airport. diane, just how dangerous is the situation for the people who live near it? >> >> reporter: well, richelle, it sort of depends who you talk to. the virn protection agency and the operator of this landfall says that there's no cause for alarm, but however, the state attorney general said that there is reason to be concerned. and he's suing the landfill operator. and meanwhile, all of mixed messages are leaving residents in the area angry and confused. an informational meeting with

government officials over the burning landfill quickly turned into a public inquisition. >> we don't know who to trust, who to believe. we don't know anything, and you want to tell me this is a safe environment? this is not safe. >> reporter: the landfill is west of st. louis. a chemical reaction started the fire five years ago in the bridge ton landfill, just south of where the nuclear waste from the first atomic bomb program was dumped 40 years ago. >> that's where the reaction is going on right now. >> at a depth of 100 feet. yes. >> reporter: be republic services showed me where the fire has been burning at the 22-acre site. he said that systems that cool and draw off gas that help

contain the fire, moving it away from the nuclear waste. seven months ago, it was away from it, but now it's 2500 feet away. >> reporter: one of the state's lead experts acknowledged that under the current landfill conditions, it's physically impossible for it to migrate over to the quarry and get to westlake unit one where the radiological impacted material s >> reporter: but residents leaving near are sceptical of the company's assurances, and a recent grass fire, caused by faulty, leaves them more worried. they are demanding a permanent solution to both the fire and the nuclear waste. >> we're kind of caught in the middle of this bureaucratic nightmare, and the one thing that they all seem to agree on is that it's a very serious situation. >> reporter: the epa says the

risk of the underground fire reaching the waste is minimal. but still, an administrator said that he's confident that a solution to the problem will come soon. >> i want to make sure that when we propose a remedy for that site, we have good, sound data to back up what we're doing. >> reporter: but for residents of the landfill, any solution can not come soon enough. now, a couple of the options that the epa is considering, would be to put a barrier under the ground, or inject inert gases in the ground to potentially gas those flames. >> so what are the risks if the fire actually reaches the nuclear site? >> reporter: well, according to the epa and to a physicist that we talked to at washington university, it could potentially send some radon gas into the air, but both of those people say that it would

present very minimal health effects to the people in the area. >> all right, diane eastabrook, thank you. and for a look at the top of the hour, john seigenthaler is here. >> tonight at 8:00, a new approach. the u.s. defense secretary has a new approach for the fight on isil and will it work? i'll ask a former army commander. raising money, new for presidential candidates are out. and we'll break down the financial challenges. plus politics and sports. u.s./cuba relations, and what it means for cuba's top sports stars, and musical spirit. ♪ billed by jimmy hendrix as the birthplace of some of the biggest songs of all time, we'll take you inside of the studios in new york city.

all of those stories coming up in 4 minutes. >> fans are rooting for two teams who haven't won a world series since the reagan white house. the royals are taking on the mets tonight. they won in 1985, and the next year, the mets took home the trophy and since then, each team has played in one world series and lost. president obama honored the world cup champions today at the white house, and the soccer team excited and inspired the country, especially young women. >> this team taught all america's children that playing like a girl means you're a badass. [ applause ] >> oh, well said, president. and that was the team's first world cup title in 16 years. they presented the president with a personalized soccer jersey. i'm richelle carey, and thank you for joining u. john

seigenthaler will be back in a few minutes, the international hour with antonio mora. go to aljazeera.com. john, behave.

>> hi everyone, this is al jazeera america. i'm john seigenthaler. strategic shift - we must hold back from supporting capable partners in opportunistic attacks against i.s.i.l. rethinking the attack against i.s.i.l. >> showdown. a stand off in the china sea and a