nadim baba. >> that's for us. richelle carey is up next. we begin with the political and constitutional battle to replace antonin scalia. the showdown over his seat is heating up at the white house, capitol hill, and on the campaign trail. president obama is pressing ahead. both sides are digging in. mike viqueira reports from washington. >> reporter: the sudden death of scalia has trigger admit call free for all in washington. it is going to mean gridlock and it could translate to dead lock at the supreme court for more than a year. just advertise antonin scalia's remains are now in the washington area. >> i do not believe the president should appoint someone --

>> reporter: almost from the moment of his passing the fight over his replace has been escalating. it could leave the supreme court with just eight justices for at least the next year. republicans want to return it into a kind of referendum on who should sit on the court, and insists any nominee put forward by president obama should be blocked. ted cruz has vowed to filibuster. >> we are one justice away from losing our fundamental rights in this country. we're one justice away from a liberal majority that would effectively write the second amendment out of the constitution. >> reporter: mr. obama has ignored that call and says he will do his constitutional due to fill the vacancy. first, a juris already on the bench. he sits on the d.c. circuit court of appeals.

he was youian nowsly confirmed for that seat by the senate three years ago. and the chief judge of the d.c. court, widely respected. his name has come up on previous lists. and paul wattford, who was confirmed to the ninth circuit in 2012. all three are known as moderates. if republicans do block a moderate, democrats will call them obstructionists and seek political traction. mr. obama could go outside of the judiciary or pick someone with a more liberal record, knowing republicans would block the election. and california attorney's general is considered both a rising star and a white house favorite. she is running for a senate seat. and perhaps most daring, sitting attorney general, whose

nomination process for that job lasted almost six months as senate republicans fought her for backing mr. obama's immigration policies. republicans are not likely to yield in their fight to block a nomination to succeed justice scalia. even as they lament his passing. >> he loved to laugh. he loved to bring people together. he loved to argue, but at the end, he was living a life as big as anybody could have. because he was dedicated to improving the entire united states of america by taking care of things one step at a time. >> reporter: and that list of possible candidates by no means definitive. the white house has a list of their own they were working off of. there were nominations before by president obama, elena kagan,

and sonia sotomayor. the white house says he will not put forwanted a nomination this week. >> mike viqueira there. ray locker is white house senator for usa today. we appreciate your time. is there any type of precedent for a president not to put forth a replacement for a supreme court justice in his final year of office? >> no, i don't think there is. certainly -- i mean, justices have not been confirmed in the president's final year, but usually the president when confronted with a vacancy makes the appointment, and then it's up to the senate to confirm or reject the nominee. >> what are the politics, the risks of the politics behind what the republicans were saying, pushing for the president not to even make a nominee? >> well, he is still president

for 320 more days, and when you get elected to a four-year term, you serve four years in office, it's not three years and then whatever congress wants you to do after that. so he is certainly well within his constitutional rights to .a point a successor. its's obvious -- >> i'm asking what are the politics, the risks that the republicans are taking playing politics that way, when the president is doing something the president is supposed to be doing? >> oh, it's tough for them. i mean, i think they are going to hold firm in the beginning, but once an appointment is made and people get a chance to measure that nominee and say he or she has a moderate record, then the pressure will bill on the republicans to do something. the question will be why not this person? what is wrong with them? and if someone that is confirmed unanimously is out there, you voted for them before, so why

not this time? >> how far do you think this process will get? >> i look to what happened with the government shutdown in 2013. the republicans had a hard line at first, but over a period of weeks it steadily looked worse for them, they looked like obstructionists, and looked for a way to reach a settlement. i think we could see that template come into play this time. >> really? okay. suppose it doesn't happen before the election, how would this effect voter turnout? how would this play into the election? >> if you have a nominee, say the asian american, indian american, that will gal van nice minority voters who will see an appointment of their own being rejected by a basically white republican party. if it turns out that people don't care, then it will be less of a big deal. >> all right. we'll have to see how this all

plays out. ray locker with usa today, thank you very much. >> thanks, richelle. now to saturday's primary in south carolina, the pressure is mounting on all of the candidates, especially jeb bush. he hasn't campaigned with his brother, but that all changed today. randall pinkston joining us from south carolina. it was quite something to see, randall, what did the former president have to say about his brother? >> well, you know what, richelle, every poll in south carolina puts jeb bush near the back of the pack. the most recent poll as him at no more than 10, 11%, on the other hand his brother is polling at more than 60% approval among south carolina republicans. so today the brother of jeb bush came to south carolina to rally voters on his brother's behalf. george bush arrived in colombia,

appeared at an event for veterans. then we came here to south carolina at a rally for jeb meeting. bush had been sharply criticized as we all know in this debate a few nights ago, but he spent most of his time talking about his brother's qualifications to become president. urging voters to turn away from donald trump. >> there seems to be a lot of name-calling going on. but i want to remind you what our good dad told me one time. labels are for soup cans. [ laughter ] >> the presidency is a serious job. it requires sound judgment, and good ideas. and there's no doubt in my mind, that jeb bush has the experience and the character to be a great president. >> reporter: and the former

president said the loudest person in the room isn't necessarily the strongest person in the room, an obvious dig at donald trump, although he didn't call him out by name, richelle. >> jeb bush still seems pretty fired up over his exchanges with trump from that debate saturday night. in that was a racous debate. >> reporter: you know, that was one of heck of a donnie brook of a debate. charges flying everywhere. and one analyst told me he was rather surprised that trump went after jeb bush, suggesting that maybe trump is seeing something that would suggest that jeb bush could make a run for it here. but jeb bush said tonight it wasn't fair for any candidate to criticize a candidate at a time of war.

>> while he was building a reality tv show -- i'm sure it was a fantastic one. i have never seen it. i'm sure it was [ technical difficulties ] >> reporter: and that he was going to separate himself from his brother's policies and his father's policies, the two previous presidents, but obviously at this point, jeb bush is looking for any help he can get. >> randall pinkston in north charleston, south carolina. thank you. south carolina is now flooded with campaign ads. some residents say they have never seen so many presidential commercials before. david shuster reports. >> reporter: days before the south carolina g.o.p. primary,

the republican candidates and their super pacs have already spent $24 million in the state on television ads. that's three times as much as 2012. an independent media group says that almost half of the ads have come from one super pac that supports jeb bush. the latest spot features his brother, george w. >> the first job of the president is to protect america. our next president must be prepared to lead. i know jeb. i know his good heart and his strong backbone. >> reporter: donald trump and ted cruz have been hammering each other with attack ads. >> ted cruz, the worst kind of washington insider who just can't be trusted. >> reporter: trump pulled that spot after deciding it was too negative. cruz is hitting trump with a humous video featuring children. >> look, i lot the top action

figure. >> what does he do? >> he pretends to be a republican. [ laughter ] >> reporter: in the democratic race, hillary clinton and bernie sanders are trying to appeal to african americans who usually make up over half of the south carolina democratic vote. >> something is just foreign ministerially broken when african americans are more likely to be arrested by police, and sentenced to longer prison terms for doing the same thing that whites do. >> reporter: the daughter of eric garner, the unarmed african american man who died after a new york city police officer put him in a choke hold. recorded this ad for anders. >> there is no other president that is speaking about this. people are dying. this is not tv. we need a president that is going to talk about it. >> reporter: in the political ad world, the most talk has been about two other ads both

produced think the sanders campaign. the first has racked up over 2 million hits on youtube. ♪ >> reporter: that ad has even been praised by republican candidates including jeb bush. >> that is the best ad i have seen. >> i know. >> simon a& garfunkle came back man. >> when we stand together, and demand that this country work for all of us, rather than the few, we will transform america and that is what this campaign is about. it's bringing people together. >> reporter: and in south carolina they are messages that are now impossible to miss. david shuster, al jazeera. the republicans focus on

their primary this week in south carolina, the democratic candidates are battling over in nevada. the silver state holds its democratic caucuses on saturday. hillary clinton held two rallies there today. clinton won the caucuses during her 2008 presidential bid. and bernie sanders spent president's day in michigan and spoke to a crowd of nearly 10,000 supporters at eastern michigan university. they spoke about the tragic impact of flint's lead contamination crisis. sanders called it one of the most difficult meetings of his political career. coming up threats to the planned temporary truce on syria. russia being blamed for attacks on hospitals and a school.

the u.s. says four hospitals and a school were hit in syria. the syrian opposition blames russia war planes. zana hoda reports. >> reporter: there is no red line in syria's war. in that seems to be the message behind the attacks on azaz, here the turkish border. a school, hospital, and other locations were hit, by what the opposition says were russian air strikes and ground to ground missiles. among the casualties were recently escaped syrians. turkey promised not to allow the town to fall, not just because it is one of the few remaining

strong holds of the opposition in the northern corridor, but because it is being threatened by the ypg, a kurdish armed group ankara calls terrorists. >> translator: the ypg has stepped back from azaz and its area, if they come closer, they will see the most severe reaction. we will not allow azaz to fall. the whole world should know this. >> reporter: turkey has been targeting ypg positions inside of syria. they have already captured many areas from the opposition close to the turkish border, taking advantage of a russian-backs syrian government offensive against the rebels across the province. the ypg and its allies have rejected turkey's ultimatum to retreat. instead they are advancing, and are at the doorsteps of the two remaining strong holds in the corridor. many in the opposition say they

have been able to make advances with the support of russian air power. air power is not only being used in aleppo and the rebel-controlled province of idlib in the west. another hospital has been destroyed. the facility was supported by doctors without borders and provided services to more than 40,000 people. the organization called it a deliberate attack, but it didn't blame anyone but activists say russian planes were responsible. just last week, one of its facilities was hit in the southern province of dar -- d a dar -- dara. >> we have seen facilities that are desperate. and the population rely on these structures to get health care. >> reporter: back in azaz fear is growing among the tens of thousands of syrians.

today monday's attacks were a message from russia and itself allies. dozens of families have already left towards the turkish border. azaz has become a new front line that could trigger an even larger war. zana hoda, al jazeera, southern turkey. reuters reports that isil used mustard gas last year. a chemicals weapons monitoring agency says that lab results came back for sulfur mustard. the group did not identify who used the chemical agent. mustard gas was also reportedly used last year in syria. bay rain has arrested four americans for a protest. state-run media says the arrests came sunday during clashes with security forces and protesters. the group reporters without borders says a journalist is

among the americans. the island nation is predominantly shiite but ruled by a sunni minority. the president opened a meeting in california just a short time ago. it is the first time the entire group has met in america. al jazeera's patricia sabga has more on the summit's agenda. >> we were able to complete the negotiations. >> reporter: it's the linchpin of president obama's pivot east. the trans-pacific partnership, massive trade deal which the white house claims will work to counter china's growing power in the pacific and beyond. >> we should write those rules. >> reporter: all 12 nations involved signed the trade deal earlier this month, but around half now need to get their

governments to ratify it. a process already proving contentionous in the united states. opponents like former labor secretary say the deal will shift jobs to countries with lower labor costs, but supporters claim some of those lost low-wage jobs will be replaced with high-skilled bitter paying ones. >> he is opening up important new export opportunities, and those export jobs generally pay much higher wages, 18% or so. >> reporter: access to affordable medicines is another hot-button issue. so is the impact the deal with have on the environment, with those opposed pointing to a clause that allows big corporations to sue governments if they adopt environmental and health laws that harm corporate profits. the white house would like congress to vote on the deal

before then of the year, but given the resistance the partnership is getting from both sides of the aisle not to mention nearly every presidential candidate, president obama may well leave office before the fate of his signature trade deal is decided. up next, how the death of antonin scalia could effect major cases before the supreme court right now. plus a new approach in salt lake city to try to end the growing problem of homelessness among young adults.

we begin this half hour with antonin scalia's death. the new appoint. new appoint. [ technical difficulties ] >> reporter: one of the most conservative voices on the u.s. supreme court silenced now with the death of antonin scalia. that leaves four justices prone to leaning conservative, and four liberal, with several cases pending. like affirmative action. perspective student abigail fisher sued the university of texas for denying her a spot, blaming the school's policy of

holistic review. justice scalia drew criticism for citing studies that suggest black students may do better in slower-tract institutions. scalia's vote may have ensured a win for fisher, resulting for an uncertain future of affirmative action in education institutions. and another one involves the affordable care act. scalia could have tipped the scales in the plaintiff's favor, but now the most likely outcome is a tie, which means obamacare will stay in place. >> when we work together we have power. >> reporter: and these

plaintiffs who are california school teachers who argue that public employees should not be forced to pay union dues. >> the unions force me to fund collective bargaining efforts that are harmful to my students. >> reporter: it looks like a slam dunk for conservatives, but justice scalia's absence may now mean a tied 4-4 vote, and no change to the existing system. now the conservative scalia formed a unique friendship with ruth

[ technical difficulties ] joining me now election law attorney in fort lauderdale via skype from key west, and a personal friend of the late justice scalia, and we appreciate you both joining us. fred when was the last time you spoke with your friend? >> it was about two months ago. we used to have lunch somehow regularly over the course of the year, and it was about two, three months back. we had a regular, very nice italian lunch with a little bit of wine and a lot of discussion.

>> was he a funny man? >> he was hilarious. he was very funny on the court. i think a couple of years ago the "new york times" did a study of which justice drew the most laughs, and scalia came in number one by far. number two was very, very distant, wasn't even in the ball game. [ laughter ] >> so that was not a surprise to you, knowing him? >> not -- not in the least. not in the least. i remember very quickly a number of years ago, i wanted him -him -- him -- nino was what pretty much everyone called him. and i mentioned i wanted him to participate in a particular function. and he was kind of grumpy. and didn't want to do it. and i said well, maybe i'll see if i can get lawrence tribe. the wonderful left-wing

professor. nino broke out laughing, and immediately said i'll do it. >> i'll do it. so you knew how to needle him? >> absolutely. and we would needle back. >> how would you describe his legacy? >> for conservative lawyers like myself, he was the champion. if you look at any of the now four justices left, and he was the fifth republican appointment justice. for the conservative cause, justice scalia was our man. he never really won his opinions in the majority. it was his descents that would be remembered. it is always his defense of the traditional way to -- to view the constitution. he was always big defender of the fourth amendment. he was no fan to law enforcement. he protected the rights to search and seizure, and that

government would never have the ability to violate the fourth amendment. he really was the protector of the people in the conservative cause and traditional values. so for the conservative legal community, this is the biggest loss, because he was the champion and the justice that everybody looked up to, even when i was in law school as a conservative young law student, it was justice scalia we all looked to as our hero. >> what did you learn? >> i learned that he was a man of his principle. he had no problem being an 8-1. and that's hard being the no vote. but sometimes the no vote spreads a movement that is beyond just following the sheep so to speak. he was always -- always stuck to his values. he was a traditionalist, and he believed the constitution stood

for what it stood for. >> having said that, obviously there are these constitutional debates going on now, david about how to proceed. how do you think justice scalia would want the country to proceed with this process of replacing him. >> politics versus the courts is always a separation of powers. i think when the senate judiciary committee gets the nomination by president obama, who by the way, senator cruz is on that committee, i have a feeling we are going to see a lot of theatrics. i still believe he would want the rule of law followed. elections have consequences, but unfortunately the consequence is adverse to the conservative cause at this time. but i don't think within the next ten months, i'm betting that president obama is not going to get his appointment. this is going to be a war of the senate century, and this is going to make justice thomas's

appointment look like minority leader -- minor league baseball compared to what we will see. >> i would agree. and i am a left-winger. [ laughter ] >> i am a very, very liberal guy. >> uh-huh. >> i'm chair of a catholic organization called catholics in alliance with a common good. i'm a member of a group l ka r -- called patriotic millionaires. a group that is pushing for more taxes because we think the country needs it. but with that background, nino scalia was able to reach out and talk to people of every persuasion. everybody knows about his close

relationship with ruth ginsberg. i was very, very lucky about 20 years ago when a friend and i discovered nino scalia and [ inaudible ] had never met. we set a meeting up over lunch. the two men entered. it was governor. it was justice. they left, it was nito, it was mario. they were two giant int legislates coming from different points of view who recognize the humanity and integrity of each other. and i totally agree with david, i think that scalia would say, elections have consequences. we should move on. obama -- he would probably oppose -- he wouldn't oppose, because he would still be on the court if alive, but he would say obama won the election. his term of office doesn't end for another 11 months. he has the right to make that

appointment. unfortunately, i also think that that appointment is going to get bogged down in politics and not happen. >> okay. it was wonderful to talk to both of you, to have this conversation tonight. so david, and brad, thank you so much for your time tonight. >> thank you. >> thank you. >> good night. appreciate it. over the last ten years utah has become a model for fighting homelessness with its housing first program. but as diane eastabrook reports, the officials in salt lake city, have a new mission. >> we are in palmer court, which is a converted former holiday inn. >> reporter: lloyd used federal funds to con virm former hotel rooms into apartments for the homeless. >> it smalls but it works.

the small kitchen is using the plumbing on the back of the bathroom. >> reporter: the strategy was so effective it helped reduce the number of chronically homeless in salt lake city from 2,000 to 200 in a decade. but pendleton, now retired says the state has an even bigger job ahead, getting young adults off of the streets. >> they have been abused at home, so they find it safer on the street than at home. thigh have run away, they have left home. they have been kicked out. >> reporter: homelessness among 18 to 23 year olds is a growing problem in utah. their numbers increased nearly 15% last year, and that estimate could be low. oftentimes they will be couch surfing in somebody's living room, or living ten to an apartment. homeless advocates say teens in

particular avoid shelters because they don't trust adults. so utah is trying to find creative ways to get them off of the streets. >> on the fourth floor we have our community room, which has instruments games. >> reporter: this is one of two homes for young adults. they get their own rooms and can live here for up to two years, but they have to work or go to school. but it can be a tough sell to some. >> to have them come in and have their own bedroom and start to talk about employment and jobs, there's a pretty big gap in there. so we have to work for the youth for months to help them reorient their own thinking. >> reporter: but it can be done. joseph noble's father was homeless, and so was he, until the 24 year old moved into an

apartment for the chronically homeless last year. he lives with his girlfriend, two sons, and dog. mobile says the transition has been tough, but worth it. >> there's always that fear of, you know, what is going to happen if i put myself out there, am i going to fall again? am i going to lose everything? is really the biggest fear. but at the same time, it's something to strive for. i just done want my kids to have to worry about the things they did as a child and a young adult. >> reporter: homeless advocates say the state have an obligation to get people off of the streets. >> we see those homeless individuals as our brothers and sisters. they are one of us. they are not those people. they are us. >> reporter: he says utah may never end homelessness completely, but he thinks they

can at least try. heroin and prescription drugs are linked to more than 28,000 deaths in 2,00014 according to the cdc. president obama's late esz budget is asking for $1 billion in new spending to expand treatment. but as our correspondent found out, for those hooked or heroin, help can be hard to find. >> reporter: at 30 years old, vanessa is one of 3 million americans fighting an opioid addiction. she is 18 months clean, and living a normal productive life that not too long ago seemed completely out of reach. >> i never thought i would give it that much time to get clean nch >> reporter: six years ago she started abusing painkillers prescribed for her lupus, and then graduated to heroin. >> i'm living out of a hotel room, selling drugs and robbing

people. >> reporter: according to one study, 80% of addicts are not getting treatment. vanessa got lucky. two years ago she was ordered to rehab after facing jail time for drug charges, that meant a spot at a state-funded addiction treatment program in newark. a bed at the center cost $24,000 a year. >> most folks that come to us have a severe addiction disorder, and previous failed attempts at treatment. >> reporter: most addicts don't have insurance so they turn to publicly funded centers. the facility like many across the country doesn't have enough funds to grow with a growing national opioid epidemic. 150, that's about the number of people on the wait list for treatment here on any given day.

in that time, hundreds of americans will die of a drug overdoze. the alarming numbers have inspired initiatives, but they fall short of what many hard-hit states need to save lives. president obama sought $1.2 billion to expand treatment for opioid addiction. >> the expansion is important, but it is also important that medication alone will not help an individual transform their lives and sustain their recoveries. >> reporter: many will need long-term inpatient treatment, the kind of treatment that saved vanessa's life. up next, the school district next door to ferguson, missouri, and the woman who completely turned it around. ♪

in jennings missouri, next to ferguson, nearly all of the 3,000, mostly black public students qualify for free lunch. for many years the schools there were failing and nearly forgotten, until one woman changed everything. andy roesgen has that story. >> reporter: meet tiffany

anderson, part-time crossing part and full-time superintendent of the jennings school district. >> awesome. awesome, see you later. >> reporter: every day she sets an exhausting pace in the school hallways, and she doesn't drink coffee. >> this is what a great line should look like. >> reporter: in the four years since anderson blew into jennings like a wirled with, she has helped establish a food bank, a foundation, and she has put a washer and drier

[ technical difficulties ] >> the jennings district, one of missouri's lowest performing has reached full accreditation under akdson for the first time in a decade, grades are up, graduation rates are up, scholarship funds are up, and the district which was operating under a $2 million deficit, how has a balanced budget. this teacher sold his home in the much bigger kansas city school district just so he could follow her here, after working with her once before. >> she makes you truly believe and know for a fact that you are making a change. >> reporter: andersson's first order of business was tackling the tough home lives of many of the students in this mostly black low-income suburb. >> the first challenge that i found in meeting people were the needs of poverty, food literally. so in october of 2012, we opened the community cub board, we give

us 8,000 pounds of food a month. >> reporter: then she helped turn this dilapidated home into a homeless shelter. she is relentlessly pushing jennings businesses to hire her students. >> when the superintendent gave me this job, it made me grow into the man that i have become now, you know? so i feel good about it. >> reporter: how grateful are you to her? >> i can't even say. i'm -- i'm thankful. >> reporter: so how did she do it all? she started just for asking for stuff. applying for grants. >> when people know the story, they want to be part of helping you. they just need to know how. >> reporter: she is constantly in motion, helping out at the food bank, or jumping in to

substitute teach, or marching kids through the crosswalk and handing out goodies. >> remember you helped me the other day? i got you both these. >> reporter: the principal of jennings high school tries to keep up with her. >> the leader sets the tone. the leader creates the vision. any leader hires the staff. because you have to have the right people in the boat. she has done that. >> excel elect line, preschool. >> reporter: and about anderson's boundless energy. i call it my christmas every day. even sitting in this chair as i move around, i call it christmas every day. >> reporter: but these days are bittersweet for anderson, she is leaving jennings at the end of the school year. >> so i thank you, because you all have embraced this vision. >> reporter: she is preparing to take over as the first black

female school superintendent, in topeka kansas. anderson says she is taking a pay cut to go there. >> this work isn't about money or any of those things. this work is about serving children well, and serving people well. this work is about transforming communities in ways that people thought weren't possible. so your vision, i just pray that somebody comes with the same vision that we can keep it moving -- >> you know the community won't allow anything less. >> reporter: so watch out topeka, there is tornado in tennis shoes and your kids might be better off for it. andy roesgen, al jazeera, jennings, missouri. >> what a markable woman. the national park service announced a $18 million gift to

refurbish the lincoln memorial. the do nation will go towards repairing the roof, and adding a second elevator to improve accessibility. it's the most visited attraction on the national mall in washington. up next the conversation with the director of "cartel land."

al jazeera america.

the crisis along america's board we are mexico has lead to a rise in vigilantly groups in both countries. the documentary "cartel land" goes inside the fight between two groups on the border. john siegenthaler spoke with the director. >> they are taking back what is theirs from the cartel. that's the way it should be done up here too. >> anybody touches me, drop them. you savvy? >> matthew welcome. >> thanks for having me. >> you are not a war reporter, are you? >> i am not. >> how did you end up doing a

documentary about the middle of a bloody war between the mexican drug cartels and vigilantes? >> there has been so much coverage of the drug wars in media, and in many ways it had been glorified. and i wanted to put a human face to the context. put myself right in the middle of the action. so i embedded myself with two different vigilante groups. both of whom are fighting back the mexican drug cartels. and i went on a journey i never could have imagined or predicted or dreamed of. >> do you think is a failure of the u.s. and mexican government that vigilantes have to go out and try to fight this war? >> it's a failure at many, many different levels. i think at the heart of it is a failure of government institutions. living in the face of an absent

government, a movement that is either not there, or if they were there they are working directly in inclusion with the cartels. living in fear of this brutal reign of the cartels that control every aspect of life from the judicial system to the police, tortilla makers to international corporations and beheaded or killed anyone who got in their way. >> and many of the people in these vigilante groups are ordinary citizens. so what drives them? >> they rose up to provide basic safety and security for their families and their communities. they were doctors, farmers, storekeepers. these are not trained soldiers. this is really a citizen revolution. and when i first started i thought it was a story of good

versus evil. and then overtime, i realized that these lines between good and evil were much blurrier than i thought. and that fascinated me. and by the end of the film, i didn't know if i was with the good guys or the bad guys. >> how did you secure such an amazing access? >> when i approached my subjects, i really told them, i have no agenda or goal in mind. i want to follow this story with all of its twists and turns. and i think they really appreciated that. developing deep relationships with my subjects that allowed me to get into these sensitive and precarious situations. >> this is really death-defying work to be caught in the middle of a shootout with your camera, right? >> several times. and the first shootout was absolutely terrifying. i have no war experience either as a journalist or, you know, i

never served -- >> did you have second thoughts when you got in there? >> for me, all i knew was how to film. i knew i knew how to film. so that's what i focused on, on framing, and making sure the record button was on. >> have you gotten reaction from the u.s. and mexican government on this? >> the mexican government i think hired a good pr firm and has remained quiet. which i think is the best thing they could have done. what we see is there is no one group to blame. there is not one evil actor. there are many evil actors >> these cartels have killed more than 120,000 people, 20,000 missing. you spent a lot of time in the middle of this, is there a solution? >> there really isn't a silver bullet. >> there's no way out. if there's demand for these

drugs they keep coming, no matter what? >> there is a basic supply and demand. and with that will come the violence and fear and terror from the cartels, you know, and also -- you know, it's a failure of government institutions, and that -- that allows these cartels to operate with impunity, and we're not -- we in the u.s. besides our voracious appetite for drugs which is fuelling this, we're also sending guns south, money south, so it's a vicious feedback loop in which many people are responsible for it. >> you have done documentaries before, what is it like to get an oscar nomination? >> it has been incredible. it has been really humbling. i was so grateful when we heard the news. i'm just happy the nomination will help put a spotlight on the issues raised in the film. >> congratulations. >> thank you so much.

>> "cartel land" is available now on netflix. that is our news for this hour. thank you so much for watching. i'm richelle carey. keep it here on al jazeera america. ali velshi "on target" is next. ali "on target" is next. >> i'm ali velshi. "on target" tonight, a firsthand look at the harsh reality of the american dream. presidential candidates are making lots of promises designed to appeal to middle class voters. that's no surprise. one obvious reason is that more than half of americans still, still identify themselves as middle class. that's after a great recession that knocked many people out of