tv Third Rail Al Jazeera January 31, 2016 7:00am-7:31am EST
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remain republicans? i will ask one who resigned disappointed with his own party. in your panel should you be able to protect your property from drones that might be flying over head. students that go hungry every day in third world countries in the world. i'm adam may and this is third rail. the g.o.p. is in turmoil with establishment candidates for president running wellll behind insurgent billionaire donald trump. >> i'm very angry because our country is being run horribly and i will gladly accept the mantle of appear anger for many establishment republicans, a ted cruz
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candidacy would be even worse for their party. >> we've got a republican house, we've got a republican senate and we don't have leaders who honor their commitments. i will always tell the truth and do what i said i would do joining me now is tom davis, a former chair of the national republican congressional committee and co-author of the partison divide. congress in crisis. first question, if donald trump wins the nomination, what does that say about the current state of the g.o.p.? >> well i think it says something about the state of the country. i think it shows a great alienation of the non-college whites and people who have kind of been left out of the economic successes of this country. donald trump speaks to them. he expresses the frustration of a lot of americans who don't see themselves moving up the ladder and see the culture changing all around them. the reality is hillary clinton's
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numbers are also very bad on the democratic side. so donald trump-hillary clinton race will be one to watch. it's not a slam dunk for hillary clinton what do you make that ted cruz is polling in second in most polls and he is seen someone quite frankly someone difficult to get along w doesn't have many allies there on the hill. what does that say about the g.o.p.? >> it says a lot and the country in general. if you look at what bernie sanders is doing against hillary clinton on the democratic side, this is basically an anti establishment revolt, but it's more pronounced on the republican side what do you make of the guy that you're supporting right now, john kasich? does someone like john kasich have a chance in this current atmosphere within the g.o.p. of pulling ahead and winning the g.o.p. nomination?
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isn't he part of the establishment? >> john kasich left washington undefeated and unindicted as we like to say and went into the private sector and came back as governor of ohio so he hasn't been in washington for 15 years. when he was in congress he wasn't the establishment until he became chairman of the budget committee at which point he worked with president clinton to balance the budget for four years you basically helped build in modern republican party. you ran the national republican congressional committee for four years from 98 to 2002. did you ever predict that this is what the party would look like in 2016? >> i was hopeful it would go in a different direction because i'm not into social issues. i represented the majority minority district where we had a lot of immigrants who were voting republican at the time because they're economically conservative. they don't like the government regulation and taxes holding them down. we will see where this ee involves. maybe one thing that happens is
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that they nominate someone who is so out of the mainstream they take a good licking and come back to be a more economically conservative and a less culturally conserve party do you think that's what the licking? >> i don't think that's what they need, but i think it would wake them up if they run somebody out of the mainstream. what you see traditionally is the parties have been centering forces. the public will let them know if they're too far out to the right or the left in the case of democrats you have worked over the last decade after getting out of office trying to build a stronger coalition of republicans. where have mainstream republicans failed? >> i think what has happened is the emphasis on social issues. as the country is prosperous in particular people move to other issues and so guns, abortion, gay rights, these issues have taken a
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primeacy. it has moved states into the republican column but they paid a price for it in some of the states, some of the more after fluent suburbs-- affluent suburbs. they've accepted gender equality and gone a different direction on climate change. i think they're still sorting it out comments made by rich lowrie is saying that he is leading this effort to have well-known conservatives denounce donald trump calling him a fake conservative a men ace to the conservative movement. is he a conservative? >> he is certainly more conservative than any other ones running is his success right now a threat to the conservative movement in this country? >> they seem to feel that way what do you make about sarah
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palin? >> i think he endorsed donald trump but i don't think she is significant outside of iowa at this point she has a lot of money behind her and she has helped candidates. don't you think her voice in this could change things? >> i think she works both ways what do you think it is going to take for both parties to return to governing style that emphasiss a compromise as opposed to confrontation. it seems like the confrontation is so successful at turning up the bases we're seeing now >> i think it takes the voters to make them do that. the voters are angry right now. they're in a very honoree mood, but we will have to see which way they go. they're upset of the fact that nobody is governing, but they're anger. that's what this debate is about right now and so far donald trump has captured it, but we still have a few weeks to go before the first ballot is counted
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thank you very much for your time >> my pleasure. thank you the third rail panel is coming up next. >> it has been very reticent to take on the privacy issue around drones but they need to step up this is a perfect example of the government trying to catch up >> that is not going to stop somebody from flying a drone my backyard. president -- he blamed the media a little bit, saying reports had been exaggerated, and accused other groups of trying to capitalize on a chaotic situation by getting involved in some of the recent violence that we have seen in the poorest suburbs in and around tunis. we can now speak to hashem ahelbarra. he joins us on the phone now.
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hashem, i'm not sure if you were able to listen to what the president was saying there, but trying to reassure people that he has the situation under some level of control, despite the fact that people clearly there not very happy and they say that change has come too slowly. >> reporter: exactly he had basically two messages. one to people saying that the government is committed to answer their demands and look after those demands, particularly the call for job opportunity --
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with us. so we hear him accusing -- he is sort of accepting that the people have a right to be unhappy with the situation as it is, but he is also vowing to tackle anyone who deliberately targets the country's security and stability. how do you think the government might now respond? if these protests continue? >> his speech was very interesting. he approached it at three different levels. he spent a great deal of time on the speech complimenting the role of the military and the police forces, and if one remembers the party of the president was elected very much because they stated that they were the party that could control terrorism, could establish security, so this is very much fitting the narrative of the party that is in party.
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and the second level is that he is blaming as so often we have heard, the authoritarian type of presidents in the middle east, blaming these wild and extra forces, these vigilantes, and other groups, and this is not particularly a good sign, because it implies that he is not really addressing the real cause, but is blaming outside forces. and third of all, i would argue this was very much a speech for the foreign listener. it wasn't just for the domestic audience. he mentions the need of tunisia to have further financing to come in, and it is hoped that after the situation has been brought under control, that the foreign money will be given. so he is clearly trying to here. >> is there anything that -- any tangible action the government can take to improvement the
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situation in the country? because clearly, when you look at the countries that saw unrest, that have seen unrest since 2011, tunisia has been hailed very much as the success story. there has certainly been political process, but it has not been accompanied by economic change. unemployment is still a problem in the country, especially for young people. >> certainly the prime minister who is visiting in paris has succeeded in finally getting the french agreement to fund projects over the next five years at the tune of a billion euro, and this is very good news, and i imagine the focus of the government will be to try to build up further support in the economic sector so that it can start translating this more into economic growth, and if nothing else, this uprising is perhaps helping to focus the find of
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those who have supported the idea of tunisia being that beacon of arab democracy, but have really not supported it on a democratic front, and for a democracy to be established is not as easy as earn -- everyone thought, and in particular the youth who helped him put him in the job he is in today that they are given answers and jobs. >> thank you very much. appreciate your thoughts on this. >> thank you. now it's the worst unrest tunisia has seen since 2010. the uprising that lead to the arab spring. we can now hear more from hashem ahelbarra. >> reporter: a family mourning
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its son. he frustrated over lack of job opportunities. he climbed an electricity pole and threatened to commit suicide. he was electrocuted. his death sparked anger nationwide. and he has become the symbol of a younger generation that feels increasingly let down by its government. >> translator: my son died. the government is responsible. it breaks my heart. those responsible for his death should be held accountable. they destroyed a whole family. >> reporter: he was relentlessly hunting for a job to look after his parents and seven brothers and sisters. his father is a retiree and struggles to make ends meet. >> translator: my brother was put on a list of people eligible for government jobs. then suddenly his name was taken off of the list. he was dreaming of ab job and
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ended up in a graveyard. >> reporter: this neighborhood is called karma. it's one of the poorest areas here. and where he spent most of his life. after the revolution that ended the regime five years ago this month, he was hopeful life would improve and the poor and unemployed would get a better chance. here anti-government sentiment is on the rise. karma, and other poor areas have become the focal point of spontaneous mass protests. anger soon spread through this week with unemployed young people protesting in towns and major cities. they all say the government breaks its promises. the government is under growing pressure to show it is on top of the situation and show its people it cares about their problems, but at the same time it runs on a tight budget and may not be able to fund programs
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hashem ahelbarra, al jazeera. ♪ at least 45 people, including 17 children have died trying to cross the aegean sea to greece. greek and turkish ships have been involved in a search and rescue mission to try to find any survivors. greece has become a major gateway for people fleeing war and poverty as they try to make their way to europe. how to stem that flow of refugees into europe via turkey has been the subject in a meeting between the turkish prime minister and germany's chancellor. nadim baba reports. >> reporter: the pressure may not have shown as she welcomes her turkish counterpart. but she is treading a lonely
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path at the moment. as they held talks in berlin, the chancellor again rejected the idea of closing europe's borders. >> translator: we have once again heard about terrible numbers of people dying in the seas between turkey and the e.u., children as well. and we just cannot allow the illegal traffickers to have supremacy here, and that people endanger their lives. and people earn money when they really do not have the best interests of these human beings in their minds. that's why we have to make sure that this illegal immigration is changed into legal immigration. >> reporter: on friday, a reminder of the risks people are still taking to reach europe. despite scenes like this, some of merkel's closest allies are warning it is time to set a limit on new arrivals after germany took in more than a million last year. in december the e.u. agreed to a
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$3 billion fund to help integrate syrian refugees. and merkel's government says u.s. president obama has offered to help substantially. but some experts warn it might not make a huge difference. >> it has to do with refugees flows themselves. they are not all syrians. we have afghans, iraqis, kurds, obviously staying in turkey is not attractive to them, they will want to move to continue towards europe. >> reporter: this is a sign that angela merkel needs turkey's help. but it's not concern if ankara has the means or the will to deliver. before friday's meeting the turkish prime minister warned the e.u. money wouldn't be enough, but he insists he has already acted to slow the migrant flow. >> translator: turkey has declared a number of plans and will put them into action. we're determined to make
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refugees lives easier providing humanitarian aid to them. we passed legislation to allow syrian refugees to gain employment in turkey, and we are working on visa requirements to prevent them from being exploited. ahead of next month's e.u. summit, angela merkel has already worried many european colleagues, and the calls to get tougher at home and abroad are getting louder all of the time. more than 30 civilians have been killed in russian air strikes on two villages in syria under the control of the al jazeera america al jazeera america. the u.k.-based syrian observatory for human rights, says at least 13 dhi dhirn -- children are among the worth, many more have beening wounded and the death toll would rise. people across the east coast of the united states are bracing for a huge blizzard expected to
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dump record levels of snow. around 60 centimeters is expected to fall in washington, d.c. >> reporter: the snow started to fall in the carolinas. people heading to work got their first taste of the storm expected to sweep along the eastern coast of the u.s., likely to be worst hit is washington, d.c. they have been preparing the snowplows and loading the salt trucks to try to keep the roads open. job. >> we are all going to have to live through it. we certainly appreciate your citizens patience, but we're not going to have the luxury to push neighborhood streets. >> reporter: stores have been stripped bare as people get ready to hunker down. >> fruits and salads and cheese, and wine. >> milk, bread, all of those things. >> reporter: some stores say it's
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thanksgiving. >> i want all marylanders to know that their state is ready effectively. >> reporter: a big concern for many is the snow will be wet and heavy and whipped by gail-force winds. that could bring down power lines leaves tens of thousands, maybe more without power. >> i want to be very clear with everybody, we see this as a major storm. it has life and death implications. >> reporter: many workers have been told to stay at home on friday, the country's second biggest metro network, nbc will close on friday for the entire weekend. and in the air thousands of flights have been canceled. >> for the safety of our customers and to really try to ease travel as much as possible, and prevent people from sitting in the airport all day tomorrow, we wanted to go ahead and cancel those flights for tomorrow. >> reporter: it's estimated 50 million people are in the path
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of the storm. the next 48 hours could be rough and challenging, and then everyone has to dig themselves out. allen schauffler, al jazeera, washington. more to come for you on al jazeera this half hour. we'll be looking at why the kenyan government is under pressure to reveal the true number of soldiers killed in the al-shabab attack. and we'll tell you who is making the news and who is bidding to win this year's sundance film festival. ♪
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