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"cnn newsroom" starts right now. the trump administration has lost another key player. u.s. health chief tom price resigned on friday. he was under fire for using private jets for official government business. when commercial flights would have been much cheaper for taxpayers. the resignation comes as the president is grappling with a huge natural disaster in puerto rico from hurricane maria. sara murray has our report. >> i'm not happy, okay? i can tell you, i'm not happy. >> reporter: president trump said accepting the resignation of health and human services secretary tom price. the bombshell announcement coming after days of mounting controversy, over price's travel on private jets. at a cost estimated to be in the hundreds of thousands of dollars. >> it's not a question of confidence. i was disappointed because i didn't like it, cosmetically or

otherwise. i was disappointed. you know, this is an administration that saves hundreds of millions of dollars on renegotiating things. so, i don't like to see somebody that perhaps is the perception that it wasn't right. >> reporter: price agreed to repay a fraction of the overall tab. but sources say the offer only appeared to exacerbate trump's anger. >> well, we have great secretaries. and we have some that actually own their own planes, as you know. that solves that. but we put it in an order, no more planes. >> reporter: this has the humanitarian crisis in puerto rico continues to mount, leaving trump to the federal government response. >> when you have a category 5 wipe out an island like because you have nothing. you don't have the roads, you don't have anything. even the people to operate the equipment. >> reporter: characterized as unpleasant he painted a bleak picture of the storm.

>> the electrical infrastructure were already in poor, poor shape. they were at their life's end prior to the hurricanes. we're literally starting from scratch. we will not rest, however, until the people of puerto rico are safe. >> this let's more about the developments with the trump administration. joining me now, a senior lecturer in international relations at boaz university of london. leslie, thanks for talking with us. >> thank you. >> well, $1 million charged the american people for the health secretary to take private flights. and tom price's job was to repeal and replace obamacare. he couldn't do it. and then spending the taxpayers' money. this is hardly draining the swamp, isn't it? >> yeah, this is really -- it's a good thing that he's gone. the optics are terribly bad. the tactics are terribly bad. the whole -- the lobbying,

mobilizing the bases, as you said, about draining the swamp. now, we have blatant use of public funds for private purposes in really an egregious way. i think what's also lifting here, the president hasn't been happy at the failure to repeal and replace the affordable care act, obamacare. and so this was in some ways an easy person for him to loose. there are multiple factors, i think, driving in this particular direction. but nonetheless, very disturbing. >> yeah, as you mentioned it, the president referred to the optics of this and the perception. but he didn't really talk about the fact that this was a huge cost to taxpayers. he spent so much of his campaign expressing outrage about washington. and then this. so, we hear more outrage from this president? >> well, i think that there are a number of things that don't look good to the public eye, when it comes to the spending of money. and the president constantly

going to golf. and so, it's perhaps difficult for the president to speak out in a way that he might like to. but, yes, there should be some measure -- some steps taken to understand how the problems can be rectified and how it's going to prevent any future moves in this direction. but it's very -- you know, this has been an ongoing issue. i think the optics have been an ongoing issue for this administration because it hasn't been about draining the swamp. >> right. tom price apparently isn't the only one. others are being investigated. but let's move to the other issue on the president's plate. that is puerto rico. the mayor of puerto rico pleading for help. nine days after the hurricane ravaged the island. people don't have basic supplies to live. and the president was bragging before he went to his golf club about what a great job u.s. is doing. so, there's some disconnect

there. >> yeah, and this is really, i think, a very serious tragedy. it's an ongoing humanitarian disaster. it's a very grave one. cannot underestimate it. of course, there's always a concern. and it's not only a problem of getting goods to the islands, there's a real problem with z . disdistribute. and there's a question of whether a temporary lifting of that, having more access to goods, regardless of whether they're transported on american ships, whether they're temporaries or not. because we're going to have weeks and months of trying to rebuild infrastructure, deliver the goods that get to the islands. it's a very grave humanitarian crisis. and i think if you look at the

repeated response, it's been not good compare to past crises. >> one other thing that was revealed this week, that the president's son-in-law and top adviser jared kushner did not reveal to the senate intelligence committee about use of a private e-mail to do the public's business. and we all know that that was what candidate trump expressed outrage repeatedly even since being president over hillary clinton. so, bottom line about this administration, where do you see the top issue? is it over organization, is it over ethics? >> if it's one thing, i don't know. >> there are so many problems right now, i think. but the e-mail question, of course. as you know -- as i guess what we're talking about today is a lot of issues that are real. they're concrete. but they're also real questions of optics. there's a sense of double standard. and the e-mails, there is a

great irony, legitimate concerns. and there are different -- you know, the legal questions are different, with respect to which individuals are and are not allowed to use private e-mails. so that legality is actually quite different across cases. nonetheless, the optics are very bad. of course, the best thing to do would be for the white house and for the president to stand up and say we're going to clean up shop and take care of this. but there is an ongoing problem of internal cohesion, coherence, in terms of the message that's being communicated. and also the normal and ethical standards that are being applied across the administration. but the current humanitarian crisis is one that the administration has got to get out in front and take very seriously in the long term. and i think that's something, not to be sort of be put in the same camp as the other, but is very great for a lot of people. and there's a perception here that puerto ricans won't be

taken as seriously, their humanitarian needs won't taken seriously because there's a sense that it's a second class population which, of course, it's all in. the majority are american citizens. they're going to need access to the mainland, many of them. and this is a very very ongoing crisis. >> leslie, thank you for joining us. >> thank you. >> again, humanitarian emergency in puerto rico, a week and a half after hurricane maria, u.s. officials remain optimistic that it's on the way. elaine duke arrived friday to check on the situation first hand. she called a lot of anger before leaving washington when she called the federal response a good news story. on friday, she was more guarded than that. >> clearly, the situation here in puerto rico, after the devastating hurricane is not satisfactory. but together, we are getting

there. and the progress today is very, very strong. >> and, again, across the i would, progress is slow, puerto ricans are waiting for hours under a brutal sun for basic necessities like food and fuel. some are tapping spring water, you see here, to drink and wash themselves. the mayor of san juan is furious. so many puerto ricans are still suffering during a news conference friday, carman de la cruz made an emotional plea for help and warning that lives are hanging in the balance. >> we are dying here. and i cannot fathom the thought that the greatest nation in the world cannot figure out logistics for a small island of 100 miles by 35 miles long.

so, may day, we are in trouble. so i am asking the president of the united states to make sure somebody is in charge that is up to the task of saving lives. i will do what i never thought i was going to do. i am begging, begging anyone that can hear us to save us from dying. if anybody out there is listening to us, we are dying. and you are killing us with the inefficiency. and the bureaucracy. we may be small, but we're huge in dignity and our life. so, i'm asking the members of

the press to send a mayday call all over the world, we are dying here. and it would also -- if we don't get the food and water into people's hands, we are going to see is something close to a genocide. >> the mayor repeated her frustrations with my colleague anderson cooper. >> we're dying here. we truly are dying here. and i keep saying it, s.o.s., if anyone can hear us, and our mr. trump can hear us, let's just get it over with and get the ball rolling. >> she's being such a champion for the people of san juan. and she, too, with her family,

right now is living in a shelter. cnn has teams across puerto rico. ivan watson is in florida, puerto rico where the u.s. aid agency fema is bricking much needed supplies. and leyla santiago has an emotional reunion with our family. we'll bring you her story, are but first ivan watson in one small town still lacking basic necessities, food, water, electricity and desperate for help. >> reporter: welcome to florida, florida, puerto rico. like so many other communities on this american island, this town suffers from fuel shortages and the collapse of many other utilities. >> this is no water in the house. no telephone, no internet, nothing. >> reporter: have you seen any -- officials -- >> nada. no, no, no, one, no one pass through my neighborhood. >> reporter: one neighborhood in

florida is struggling with an additional problem. are these fish in the road. >> si. >> yes. fish in the road. >> reporter: you can fish in the street? >> yeah, a little one, big one. >> reporter: this town is up in the hills, nowhere near the coast, and yet somehow the storm backed up a nearby creek, creating this flood that has inundated dozens of families' homes. among those homeless. >> we lose everything. first floor, second floor, everything is gone. >> reporter: she's now living with her son and family in a local government shelter. the municipality provided this pump to suck out thousands of gallons of floodwater. and it's distributing fuel to volunteers like george pagon who is using his own equipment to help clear debris. much of the cleanup here is also being done by ordinary citizens. during our visit, the mayor of

florida appeared accompanied by officials from fema, the federal disaster relief agency. the mayor tells our fema representative, he's worried the flood could spread disease. residents made homeless by the storm have their own questions for fema. >> what are you sources for foodwise and gaswise and water? >> the mayor reported directly to us and we're reporting that back to san juan and somebody -- >> and how long will that take? >> well, in the communities -- we are the first to come here apparently. >> because for us to move back in here, with black water, it's full of black water. >> yeah, yeah. >> there is no type of moving back in there. >> reporter: fema's first visit to florida comes nine days after the storm. >> we said this is the first of many visits. fema is not going to forget about this community. fema is not going to forget about the needs that they have.

and we're going to work with the people in the field office in san juan about what we're going to do. >> reporter: the people here could sure use some more help. ivan watson, cnn, florida, puerto rico. >> well, for one of our reporters and the devastation in puerto rico, it's personal, leyla santiago is based in mexico for cnn but was born and raised in the town of corazal reporting back to the place where she made home. here's her report. >> reporter: this is relief, seeing my family for the first time, hearing them tell me -- they're okay. that's the relief i found in this small town. but it's far from the relief on this island. at the shelter in corazon, the school. we found 120 people living in

classrooms. the generators came out six days ago. no power, no water. and the staff has people with cancer, hiv, and children with cancer. if she walks every day about 15 minutes to get therapy for her daughter who has asthma. she's 3 1/2 years old. and needs medical attention that she's not getting here. we then find francisca, she has parkinson's disease and hasn't had access to the medicine she needs in days. look, she's crying because she doesn't know about her family. desperation is growing. people are waiting in line to get water from mountain streams. he says they can live without power, but they can't live without water. that's why they're filling spring water from the mountain side to take a bath, to cook, to

eat. people are even resorting to washing clothes like this. this is juana -- she's been here since this morning. washing clothes. five to six hours cleaning clothes, she tells me. i'm asking her when's the help? she says there's no help. no help has sa arrived here. no help at all. none from the local government residents say. nor from fema which has only been here to do an assessment, not to deliver and aid. the people of corozal are now in survival mode. waiting for their relief. leyla santiago, cnn, puerto rico. >> we have stories from other parts of the world here ahead. including reports that abubakar

abu baghdadi's death.

secretary of state rex tillerson has arrived in beijing for top-level talks with chinese officials. he's expected to meet with president xi jinping on saturday. on the agenda, trade and investment, as well as the increasing tensions with north korea. he'll also discuss preparations for u.s. president's donald trump visit in november. >> the iraqi central government

is making good to its threat to shut down flights to the kurdistan region. in it's retaliation for the vote in which kurds chose overwhelmingly to split from baghdad. the central government used the vote as unconstitutional. and the kurds have little international support for its bid. one of the regions that many countries are urging unity in iraq is the war against isis. the terror group has been dealt major off six, but there's evidence its leader is still alive and calling for future attacks. here's cnn's brian todd. >> reporter: he's been called a ghost and the invisible sheikh. so mysterious, only this one video from 2014 exists of him. for month, the russian government had said he was dead. now, al baghdadi, the shadowed leader of isis is apparently imam and calling on them to

attack the u.s. and allies. >> translator: carry on jihad and blessed operations. let not the crusaders enjoy life in their homelands while you're subject to bombardment. >> reporter: the new audio messages running more than 45 minutes. any doubt that's a call for isis to launch attacks inside america? >> what isis wants to do is show that they're a viral organization. and what better way to show that is launch attacks wherever these folks are, whether middle east, europe, the americas or elsewhere. this is baghdadi in the bunker. >> reporter: u.s. intelligence tells cnn they have no reason to doubt the tape's authenticity. the message references current syrian peace talk us. what's not clear why the message was released now. could baghdadi be trying to regain command and control.

>> we know he had delegated a lot of his efforts to underlings. his successors have been trying to get things going in a lot of places. but as we've seen pushing out operations like we saw in france and uk and elsewhere is extremely difficult. >> reporter: the american coalition has tried to take several shots at him in recent months and thought they had it their best shot at killing him in a recent air strike but getting to him has been challenging. analysts say he covers his face even when meeting with his most trusted lieutenants. and makes them place cell phones in a lead-lined box but experts say he's got an an achilles' heel. >> his personal proclivities might give the game away. for instance, baghdadi has kept a consortium of sex slaves. he's kept the is ziti people as

his personal chattel. >> reporter: if alive as the tape suggests, the isis leader could be running out of places to hide. more than 6 million people have been freed from isis control. analysts say this audio message could only intensify the coalition's hunt for al baghdadi. intelligence agencies are combing through the audio for any clues about his whereabouts, if they can successfully target him it might put isis more on the ropes. as one put it all the usual suspects have been killed. brian todd, cnn, washington. >> we've been talking a lot about how puerto ricans are suffering, they don't have enough food, water, electricity. well, they don't have something else. they need fuel. and you wouldn't believe how long they're standing in line and waiting to try to get that. we have a story for you coming up. plus, bureaucracy is bogging

down puerto rico's recovery. especially when it comes to distributing life saving medications. our dr. sanjay gupta with that report. ike some people like banging their head on a low ceiling. drinking spoiled milk. camping in poison ivy. getting a papercut. and having their arm trapped in a vending machine. but for everyone else, there's directv. for #1 rated customer satisfaction over cable switch to directv. call 1-800-directv. l'oréal's magic root cover up. 3 seconds to flawless roots. 3 2 1 roots gone! magic root cover up by l'oréal paris. oh, my gosh! so my dentist toldell, bume about this...! go pro with crest hd. crest hd cleans and whitens my teeth to eye-popping levels.

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plain. great. so what are we gonna watch? oh! show me fall tv. check out the best of the best hand-picked fall shows on xfinity x1, online, and the xfinity stream app. thirsty? welcome back to our viewers here in the u.s. and all around the world, you're watching "cnn newsroom" live from atlanta, i'm natalie allen. here are the top stories. iraq has cut off international flights to its kurdistan region. it's a move aimed at pressuring the kurds after independence from iraq. baghdad said the vote wans

unconstitutional and demanding that the kurds hand over control of their airports. thousands of people marched through the streets of catalonia to voice protests to the vote. the campaigners for independence vowed to proceed. u.s. health and human services secretary tom price has resigned. he lives -- he leaves amid a scandal, after flying on private charters instead of commercially on more than two dozen occasions, all with taxpayer money. sources say u.s. president donald trump was infuriated by that. the acting head of america's homeland security arrived in puerto rico friday to get a first hand look at relief efforts following hurricane maria, elaine duke said she's please by the coordination among federal relief efforts. it's a view echoed by president trump back in washington. >> as far as puerto rico's concerned that's been going as you know, really well.

it's been total devastation. we have over 10,000 people in puerto rico right now. we're getting truck drivers because the people from puerto rico, the drivers just aren't there. they're looking for their homes. they have a lot of other problems. likewise with the police force. but i think it's going really well considering. >> well, the administration's upbeat assessment as you heard there does not quite square with circumstances on the ground. it's true that most of the medical supplies are on the island, but get them to hospitals and clinics is bogged down in red tape. cnn's dr. sanjay gupta found that situation unacceptable. >> we're kind of up here, because we don't have iv antibiotics to give to patients, and we have no place to get them. >> i keep thinking to myself how difficult could this be if the life-saving supplies are on the island of puerto rico, why aren't they getting there,

what's standing in the way, and could i make it happen myself? >> first thing i'm going to try or the disaster management teams, hhs. this is the federal government. i was with the doctors yesterday, volunteering, this is what they were asking for. >> okay. >> okay. we've been waiting 45 minutes now outside of the hhs tent. we know they have medications. what we heard, they got to run it up two lines of command, two chains of command, then they get back to us. again, it's 45 minutes. how are you doing? we're trying to get some of these medications because we went to some of the shelters. >> you can get some here. >> are there medications here? >> yeah. we have the medications. >> okay. thank you. >> yeah. >> because the hospitals have been slow to start back up, these are all volunteer doctors over here who basically come, trying to gather supplies and

take it out to the people who need it. they're trying their best. it's a slow process. let me see -- okay. okay. if we can get a few doses, we'll take it over there. >> okay. >> we have only some of the antibiotics. >> yeah. >> that you need it also. >> yeah, that would be great. perfect. thank you, doctor. >> the other one i will give you. >> appreciate it. thank you. it's all about getting the supplies and getting them to the people who need it. these come from an organization called direct relief. you can see it's set up right underneath this parking structure with all of these medications. we've got them, now, we're going to take -- what dr. morales asked that we get these medications see if we can bring it to this clinic, this hospital. this is one of those places up and running but without

medications they haven't been able to take care of patients. like rodriguez. i was told to bring you this. >> thank you. these are -- >> thank you. >> let me tell you what we have. also sorts of antibiotics primarily. dr. morales said that you were needing a lot of this. >> yes. >> is that true? >> yes. >> you can go through it. there's also pediatrics. i hope this helps. >> yes, a lot. thank you. >> you're doing great work here. keep doing what you're doing. it's like a little baby. >> dr. sanjay gupta, cnn, louisa, puerto rico. well, throughout puerto rico, people have been forced to stand in long lines to get basic necessities. our anderson cooper is outside of san juan. where trying to buy gasoline is an all-day ordeal. >> reporter: in louisa, gas stations are open, but the lines

are long and agonizingly slow. it's 94 degrees and gloria beth nunez is trying her best to stay cool. how long have you been waiting here? since 5:00 a.m.? >> yes. >> reporter: and you're sitting here in the car. >> uh-huh. >> reporter: she can't sit in her car any longer. she's been waiting for nearly ten hours. i've been here since 4:30 a.m., she says. just waiting for the generator to turn on. they turned off because it got overheated. when the generator starts again, so does the pumping. like most places in puerto rico, here, cash is king. credit cards can't be processed so dollars rule the day. a lot of people can't even bring their cars here. they're just waiting in line in person with as many gas cans as they can. but this line, there's dozens of people in it. and it stretches all the way

down here. a lot of people have been waiting for hours as well. what's it like day to day? >> well, i haven't been able to come back. even my boss said don't come back until you have gas. during the day, 6:00 a.m., all the way until 7:00 p.m. to be out in streets looking for whatever you can. >> reporter: that's how you spend your day basically, looking for water, gas, food, everything? >> yes, today it's just gas. >> reporter: slowly, the cars inch forward, she's close with cash in hand. louisa's deputy mayor say the needs are overwhelming and it starts with the need for gas. >> it's a chain, right, no fuel, no work, no money. >> reporter: it's all connected? >> yes. >> reporter: people are patient but they're tired and fed up. >> i don't understand why things are so drastic and so out of control. it's just gas. we have gasoline, so, why isn't

there any in the stations? >> reporter: do you see, you know, relief supplies coming, do you see the federal government coming? >> no, no. the. >> reporter: she finally makes it to the front. fuel is no longer being rationed. so she can fill her tank and a small gas can as well. she drives off happy. tomorrow, she'll look for water and other basic necessities. the line inches forward. it's another car's turn at the pump. anderson cooper, cnn, louisa. >> after hearing about the trouble the government is having getting in, don't let that dissuade you from helping out if you'd like to. go to our website, cnn.com/impact. you can donate to one of the charities that we vetted and volunteer your time. well, it's been ten days since the hurricane has landed to puerto rico. we've been talk about the lack of food and water and such, derek is telling us about

flooding. >> can you believe it a week and a half since the storm made landfall. and there are still towns completely under water. take, for instance, florida, this is a municipality in town, about 70 kilometers to the southwest of san juan, the capital city. this region still under water. we're not talking about a couple inches, we're talking about a couple feet here. look at the pictures do 2 justice. the slow receding water causing health concerns as natalie just mentioned there is more rain on the way. this is not only going to slow the recovery process ongoing there. it's also going to exacerbate the potential for more flash flooding. we have a tropical disturbance moving across the caribbean as we speak. you can see plenty of convection, shower and thunderstorm activity, numerous through the leeward islands right through puerto rico. there will be more rain, especially as you get the daytime heating from the sun. and we see that orographical influence as well from the

mountains regions. a 10% possibility of tropical cyclone formation with the storms. that's actually good news, because we don't expect this to become a tropical storm or hurricane but on the other side of that coin the fact that there's an abundant amount of moisture associated with this. and this will bring rainfall to an already soaked and saturated environment. the heaviest rain fall will be along the eastern coastal areas of puerto rico and the central mountain ice parts. another 3 to 6 inches of rain, all of this on top of -- get this -- 35 inches of rain that fell ten dajes ago from hurricane maria. unbelievable staggering amounts of rainfall. that is why on the ground there, it's no longer accepting any precipitation. no more water. the national weather service has flash flood watches continuing into the weekend. they may even extend it into monday. by the way, this includes part

of the british and virgin islands. normally, they're showing you live radar. exactly where the rain is as we speak. but we can't do that anymore, because the national weather service's radar have been completely blown out on the island in puerto rico. so, we're depending on our computer systems for future radar information. and of course, it shows, just more and more rain for the region. so, not what they want to hear right now. >> derek, thanks. coming up here, united states taking action in cuba after those mystere use sonic attacks on u.s. flow the mas. and also, it's warning americans don't go there. our patrick oppmann will have a report from havana. go long, just kidding.

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the united states is drastically cutting its embassy staff in cuba after a mysterious sonic attacks made some diplomats ill. the state department is warning americans not to travel to the island, saying they could also be at risk. cnn's patrick oppmann has the latest from havana. >> reporter: just two years after the re-establishment of full diplomatic ties the u.s. embassy in havana has seen better days. hurricane irma watered much of cuba and the havana sea front boulevard where the embassy is located. u.s. diplomats are still picking up from the storm and now are facing another calamity. diplomat families and nonessential personnel are being ordered to return to the u.s. after at least 21 members of the staff were targeted after what u.s. officials say could have been sonic attacks. >> we have it under reallvaluat. it's a very serious issue with the harm that some have

suffered. we've brought some of those officials home. >> reporter: u.s. officials believe that devices that emit sonic waves could have targeted u.s. diplomats while they were in their homes or staying in hotels. who is behind the attacks or motives is still unclear. cuban officials deny it and say they're investigating. >> translator: cuba has never perpetrated nor will it ever perpetrate actions of this sort, nor has cuba allowed or never allow its territory to be used by 30 parties for that purpose. >> reporter: u.s. officials believe the cubans know more than what they're saying and rogue violence of the island's formidable intelligence service could be involved. not long after the u.s. complained to the cuban government about the attack, raul castro himself personally promised that cuba would investigate the incidents. the fbi was allowed tocometo havana. and security increased at u.s. diplomats' homes, u.s. officials

say, still, the attacks continued. u.s. officials say as a result of the attacks they will stop issuing visas to cubans affected immediately. an issue of travel warning to americans thinking about visiting cuba. despite the harassment current and foreign diplomats say now is the wrong time to lessen u.s. presence on the communist-run island. >> it is the worst possible thing that could happen to both countries. and what worries me more than anything, is that hardliners on the cuban side and the u.s. side might be behind pushing this idea. >> reporter: u.s. officials say their first priority has to be to keep u.s. personnel and their families safe. but they concede that american diplomats leaving cuba could be just what the people behind these mystery attacks are hoping to accomplish. patrick oppmann, cnn, havana. the catalonia region of spain is trying to break away

from its central government. they're holding an independence referendum on sunday. thousands marched through the streets of barcelona on friday in support of the vote, even though the spanish government said it's illegal. and has sent police officers to prevent it. independence campaigners promised to hold the vote anyway. we sent our isa soares to spain to get a look at how both sides viewed the hotly debated referendum. >> reporter: a sea of red, yellow and blue squeezed to be heard. these are the yells of the protesters, we will vote, we will vote. a message the central government who in the last week has been accused of open handedness. he's lost his democratic compass, tells me this man, and he thinks he can stop this with the use of the courts with the force in the perverse manner.

earlier in the days in the streets of barcelona, that anger and frustration was matched by the deepest desire to vote. we're going to vote with carnation, tells me this lady, with flowers and there will be no type of violence. no one will stop me because there's so many. according to the catalon government some 150 referendum websites have been suss send itted. and what this has led to the creation of more traditional campaigning right here on the streets of barcelona. people can approach asking for information regarding polling stations, which ones are open, from what time. and critically, they can collect their official ballot paper. this is a grassroots referendum, too. with people occupying polling stations to make sure that police cannot close them and therefore stop them from voting. the option to vote yes or to vote no is up to each person, he says. what we want above all else is

to vote. we want to manifest our opinion and our desires of people. but a look towards the barcelona port suggests the central government in madrid has other plan. here are reinforcements, as many as 7,000 police officers are waiting to be deployed to stop a referendum the central government calls unconstitutional and illegal. but while they may be ready to trash the party, catalons right now are celebrating hoping that october 1st they'll be voting. cnn, isa soares, barcelona. in a moment, the u.s. commander responded to racial slurs for his cadets. and he did not mince words when he faced the students. his words, when we come back. banging their head on a low ceiling. drinking spoiled milk.

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a few hours ago, there were reports of a shooter on the campus of the u.s. air force academy in colorado. police eventually said there were no shots fired. and no injuries. there were concerns it could have been linked to another painful incident this week when five black cadets found racial slurs written on their doors.

but as tom foreman reports that prompted a blunt anti-racist speech by the school superintendent. >> reporter: this was a very bold line being drawn in the sand by a general who quite clearly has had enough. >> if you can't treat someone with dignity and respect, then you need to get out. >> reporter: in a blistering address to all 4,000 cadets and hundreds more staff members of the united states air force academy, the superintendent lashed out. lieutenant general j. silveria, go home. >> if you're outraged by those words, then you're in the right place. that kind of behavior has no place at the prep school. it has no place at usafa and no place at the united states air force. you should be outraged, not only as an airman, but as a human

being. ♪ >> reporter: over recent years, the academy's reputation has suffered from allegations of sexual harassment and assault, claims of religious bias and racial animus. even though last year, a quarter of the cadet corps was female. a quarter from minority groups. >> reach for your phones. i'm serious, reach for your phones. >> reporter: so the general explicitly invited the students to record and remember his hard hitting words. >> if you can't teach someone from another gender whether that's a man or a woman with dignity and respect, then you need to get out. if you deminute someone in any way, then you need to get out. and if you can't treat someone from another race, or a different color skin, with dignity and respect, then you need to get out. >> reporter: against news of recent upheavals involving white

supremacists and the ongoing dispute over the national anthem, the general said it would be naive to imagine racism could not be a problem at the academy. >> we would also be tone-deaf not to think about the backdrop of things going on in the country. things like charlottesville and ferguson. the protests in the nfl. that's why we have a better idea. >> reporter: that better idea, for all cadets to stand up against bigotry of all types or pack up and leave. >> this is our institution and no one can take kaye our values. no one can write on a board and question our values. no one can take that away from us. >> reporter: the general's staff is now working with students subjected to these racial slurs. and just importantly, he said he's hearing a lot of support for his words from the rest of the community there at the academy. tom foreman, cnn, washington. thanks for watching.

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okay? i can tell you, i'm not happy. >> president trump accepting the resignation of tom price. >> he railed against people using private jets. >> it was time for him to go. he had lost the confidence of the american taxpayer. >> parts of puerto rico are at risk for flash flooding this weekend. >> we're taking food, water and medicine everywhere. we would like it to be quicker. of course it's not where it