what we are doing is rebuilding the convention center and we will have conventions and alabama for alabama people. we have made lemonade out of lemons and i want to thank cooper for his hard work. the university of alabama has allowed him to do that and helped me. >> governor. there is a back alabama. and there is one from wyoming. ours does not have sand in it. [laughter] >> further questions or comments? do any of the governors have anything to say before the committee? i declare the committee adjourned. thank you for being here. [applause] [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2015] >> the national governors association meeting in west virginia got underway earlier today and continues this weekend. a few governors were asked about the house legislation passed lester day -- yesterday that would cut off funding for cities that do not use federal funding. >> the issue of sanctuary city's has become a hot topic. i'm not sure which of your stat

the university of alabama has allowed him to do that and he has helped me. >> there is one for alabamaere is one for wyoming. ours does not have sand in it -- [laughter] governor tomblin: ok, are there further questions or comments? do any of the governors have anything else to bring before the committee? if not, i decl >> we will have more from the national governors association today when they continue their summer meeting in west virginia. the day begins with prescription drug abuse and later a discussion with labor secretary thomas perez about ways to stimulate local economy. the meeting concludes with the hss secretary sylvia burwell. all that begins at 9:45 a.m. eastern here on c-span. on newsmakers this weekend kentucky congressmen and harold rogers is our guest. as chair of the house appropriations committee, he talks about the budget process and the potential for an ongoing resolution or omnibus spending bill.

and tonight we found the .40 caliber semi automatic handgun was purchased in phoenix alabama. any time mass shootings happen there is increased discussion about gun control. whereby louisiana governor bobby jindal wroid questions avoided questions about gun control and said this is the time to pray. >> jonathan betz has more on the shooting. >> one day after the shooting the question that so many people have is how john houser a than with a long history of mental illness was still able to get a gun and open fire in a crowded movie theater. >> everyone was just running down the stairs freaking out climbing over chairs and people and everyone was screaming and it was awful. >> are in 2006 he was denied a concealed weapons permit in alabama because of a domestic violence complaint and earlier arrest. his family had him committed in 2008 and 2009 calling him a danger. alabama officials voiced their frustration about the difficulty in dealing with cases like houser's where mental illness is a factor. >> the cuts that are being made as far as mental health around the state is allowi

a thing we are learning from alabama is that the man had mental health issues.ng more about that? you mentioned mentally deranged a moment ago. are you hearing more about what those mental issues were with this gunman? >> well, in our last briefing by the department of -- by the way, the law enforcement in this community and this state have been remarkable in their response and containing this situation, ensuring that no one else are injured. but the loophole is a common discussion about the gun laws and how people can go to a gun show and purchase a gun without having a check of mental health capacity. but briefing i have with the gentleman was -- had been treated for mental capacities. to the extent and the degree, i don't have a grclue. but it tells me we have a loophole in the laws to be addressed. incumbent on congress and local legislators to decide how are we going to solve these mass killings and these killings in the community that's happening every day? across america, people are ki killing, chicago. i can go on and on and on. it's the way of life in s

the launch of the soviet rocket, fighting in south vietnam, the integration of the university of alabama in tuscaloosa, and president kennedy's trip to berlin. the film was nominated for an academy award and was narrated by actor charlton heston. narrator: five cities were silent in may. on the first morning of the following month, they awoke with brushes in their hands and a calendar as a canvas. -- as their canvas. when god made the days, man the calendar, and the five cities in made june of 1963. ♪ 4 million people died in the month of june and 9,600,000 people were born. no one knows what names of future history are among those born. of those that died, pope john xxiii. outside st. peter's basilica the masses waited with meditation, tears, and prayers. on june 2, the vigil outside was the vatican was over. within the basilica, they the cardinal college gathered for mass. still in great, they had a mission to elect a new man to follow their beloved pope john. ♪ in the square, the crowds received the signal they were waiting for. from all over rome they gathered to witness a single puf

they are available at alabama booksmith.com. the folks sitting here are beyond the odds of the early 20th century moving palace that has been lovingly restored to its original charm. the final is that one lucky patron will walk away tonight with this 50th anniversary edition of to kill a mockingbird with a bookplate signed by harper lee. the rest of the evening format will be opening remarks, a conversation with the increase questions from the audience that he's written down as you enter the theater and then drawing for the prize. this podium will soon belong to the hottest author in america. we just found out about two hours ago and you were the first to know that it will debut on "the new york times" bestseller list at number four and it's only been out a few days. [applause] and you own a signed first edition. it has been praised by "the new york times" and "washington post" and the newspaper and radio talk shows and television news program out there not to mention blogs facebook comments many of you like quite a few of the r

tourism is a key component of alabama's overall economy. in 2014, over 24 million people visited the state of alabama and they spent $11.7 billion will hile visiting our state. the beautiful beaches of the alabama gulf coast account for about 40% of the tourism that occurs in our great state. the reason is it is so important that we preserve and restore and expand our goal state -- gulf state park, which was damaged by hurricane ivan in 2004 and the deep horizon oil spill in 2010. we want to present two years ago to expand and renovate the gulf state park. you will hear more of that in a few minutes. speaking of the state parks, alabama has 22 of the most diverse state parks. from the goal state park to a part in the foothills of the appellation mountains. our state parks feature fishing and hiking and mountain climbing and so much more that visitors can enjoy. alabama has a significant historical presence that many visitors come to experience. we hosted more than 150,000 visitors to selma this year for the 50th anniversary of the selma to

we know he lived in alabama. a sheriff in alabama explaining he had been evicted a year ago.real understanding from investigators on why he was in louisiana. why he decided to target the knew street theater he did target. why he decided to open up gunfire last night. we have been trying to see what we can learn about him. we know he was denied a concealed carry permit in 2006 at the time because of an arson arrest though it appears that case may have been dismissed. this man graduated from faulkner university in 1991. poppy, we found he was very active for some period of time on a political forum making hundreds of posts. those posts stopped back in 2013. but there is an area of this web site where he was able to describe himself a little bit and here's what we're learning. he defines his occupation as hustling. he says his interests are hustling. he says he has no political affiliation, believes media government censoring. he also says, poppy, that he believes the u.s. will be mad max in less than five years. it seems to be a reference to the apocalyptic movies. and he goes

things appear so muddled in alabama because the alabama supreme court on monday issued an order that said alabama judges are not required to issue same-sex licenses for 25 days. according to a report, a lawyer who works for alabama supreme court justice roy moore wrote a letter seemingly directed at the governor, essentially scolding governor bentley for saying that alabama will obey the law. it reads in part, public official, what will you do? will you stand up for the law of alabama or for the people, for the law of god? or will you capitulate? will you become complicit in the takeover by the wicked. in kentucky the courier journal, the largest newman in the state. that they are refusing to issue marriage licenses to any couples to avoid having to grant them to gay and lesbian couples. by this morning at least two kentucky county clerks who refused to issue marriage licenses to anyone will resume handing them out. those are lawrence and montgomery county. but clerks in three others are still holding out with casey county clerk, a man named casey davis saying his conscience will not

not in lafayette, but in phenix alabama, because that's where the shooter once lived. we'll take it there live when it begins. first, the most important part of this story at this hour the victims, mayci breaux the other, 33-year-old jillian johnson, designer and performer. here johnson is playing in a band just six days ago. police in louisiana say this man, 59-year-old john russel houser shot and killed them as he walked inside the grand 14 theater in lafayette right around 7:30 last evening. nine others were wounded in that rampage. as many as 300 others just ran for their lives. police say houser fired at least 13 rounds. i spoke with the state trooper who told me he went outside, reloaded came back in and took his own life. >> we know he had at least one additional magazine which he dropped in the lobby. he reinserted reloaded and returned back into the theater at which point we think he fired one additional round and that was to himself. >> want to take you live to that news conference that just began in phenix city alabama, where this man once lived. >> also ass

we learned that the .45 caliber was purchased legally in phoenix city alabama. any time mass shootings like this happen, we hear about gun control, louisiana governor bobby jindal was asked numerous questions about gun control but avoided those questions and said it was time for the community to pray. david. >> jonathan what is the community saying about the victims? >> two young women jillian johnson, 33, all around creative woman and macy brow, described as a really professional young woman, we got information about the nine people who were taken to the hospital after the shooting. we understand if there is any good news in all of this is four people david have been released from the hospital but five still remain there one we understand right now in critical condition. >> jonathan martin reporting from lafayette louisiana, thank you. >>> authorities in louisiana say they will go over every detail of john russell houser's life. jonathan betz has also been looking into houser's past and joins us jonathan. >> david, is he described as a drifter, unstable, raisin

the weapon was purchased at a pawn shop in phenix alabama, in february 2014. atf has informed us that the purchase was legal. we are going to continue to hold this scene throughout the weekend. we want to make sure that we have gathered every piece of evidence that we could. we have an update on evidence confiscated inside the scene. a total of 15 shell casings were recovered in the theater in various areas. our investigators were able to determine which seats people were in when they were shot. once we were able to interview witnesses regarding where they were seated in the theater, we'll be able to recreate the setting of that theater just seconds before the shooting took place. today, a number of people have reached out to us regarding counseling services. not only for our police officers but the victims, their families and the citizens of our community. so monday we hope to open a counseling shelter in lafayette that will offer services to anyone who feels the need to discuss this incident or to discuss what they went through or simply just to have someone

though the gulf coast of alabama was not the hardest hit of the region, the gulf coast of alabama was severely impacted by hurricane katrina. while there are some healing that still needs to be done, the gulf coast is not only back in business, but has returned to life as usual and it is thriving. new shipyards are being constructed, new businesses are opening up and tourism has returned to the region. this, i believe, is a testament to the spirit of the people of the state of alabama as well as our neighboring states, as mississippi and louisiana. and as we move forward as a country and as a region, i hope that we'll not only look to the lessons we've learned from the failures of this response, but also to the lessons we learned about kindness, the lessons of charity, being a good neighbor and actually the spirit of this great nation. . i thank my colleague from louisiana to draw attention again shes not to place the blame on the organizations that we could point blame but to the spirit and greatness of all those involved in the kindness charity and spirit that arose. and i yield bac

yes, gay marriage is legal even in alabama.ll the kicking and screaming and heel dragging by conservative leaders in these states, this thing really is over. i mean, the orders have come down. marriage equality is legal in mississippi. and in texas. and in louisiana. and in alabama. but we are still seeing pockets of kicking and screaming, right? a few county clerks and judges in all these states refusing to issue marriages to same-sex couples or in some cases refusing to issue marriage licenses to any at all. a judge in pike county, alabama is refusing to issue marriages to anyone. he has asked the county to hire him a lawyer for the expected lawsuit. the county said no. so maybe that ends that. in kentucky, a few county clerks are refusing to issue licenses for gay couples and it appears they have two options. they can resign as county clerks or face some sort of legal consequences for that. one of those clerks is saying essentially, well, then, send me to jail. we'll see. so we do have these, what do you call them? dead ende

the gun was legally purchased in alabama.fficials are trying to figure out what led houser to carry out the attack. >> it appears that the shooter actually took his time. he was somewhat methodical as he shot people from the top, from the back of the theater. it appears more and more that he had planned his escape. literally had the keys on the tire of his car parked near the exit and it appears more and more that he thought build "b" how to get away. i, too like the colonel want to thank the chief and his men and women, the first responders, they did such a phenomenal job running towards danger not away from it. >> last night's movie theater shooting is the third major attack. last week a gunman open fired in chattanooga, tennessee killing four people and injured three more before being shot dead. a fifth victim later died from his wounds. last month a young white man killed nine african-americans in a historic black church in charleston, south carolina, and now dylann roof faces hate crime charges. these all have a common t

let's begin with alabama. alabama redistricting was drawn by republicans when they took over the legislature. what they decided to do was to take all of the majority black districts and to say that when we draw these districts, we're going to draw them the same number, and we're going to maintain the black percentages in each one. we're going to do that because we want to avoid record -- retrogression under section five of the voting rights act. this was pre-shelby county. the plaintiffs challenge this on a number of different grounds. i have to say, i was not involved in this case except for assisting with the advocates in the supreme court. but i say the justice breyer went out of his way to give a very liberal reading to the pleadings below, so as to incorporate what he considered to be their true claims of racial gerrymandering, some of the districts and overly relying on race. so much so that he actually had an appendix to his opinion relisted all the pleadings where you can find support for the fact that

they couldn't get the holiday off in alabama and this year it was 1956.read quite a few things and they were impressed with what she could do and thought she needed a chance so they gave her enough money to write for one year it was their christmas gift and they had written -- how to kill a mockingbird and the introduced her to an agent and at the end of one year she had a manuscript and then they took several months from all of the projects to work with a very promising new author but they needed quite a lot of work. >> when the book changed from atticus to how to kill a mockingbird what was the motivation for that? >> harper lee always wanted to tell how to kill a mockingbird and they said hold on to that until the last minute. don't drop it on them until it is really time. >> do you think that they wanted to call it advocates because in her mind this was a book about her father? >> i think that it's entirely possible based on i don't know. i think that what i know about her father speaking to her sister and talking to her friends is that he was an incr

it's all the alabama, that part of georgia, tennessee, north carolina. it's much of mississippi. it's a lot of land and it's the city where i work. it's washington, d.c.. it's the white house or the executive mansion as it was called then. it's the house of representatives, this kind of temple of democracy which in those days meant that the capital. the statutes were sent from every state of the union one of whom is sequoia the inventor of the language sent here from oklahoma which is where they ended up after they were expelled partly because of a road in that room which was received of by the supporters and defined by president andrew jackson in 1830. so to me this became an opportunity to look at my day job in a completely different way to understand both the similarities and differences between this time and that time to be at this moment when the country is changing so rapidly, demographically and other ways. there's so many different kinds of people from all around the world who come here and our continuing challenges to work through the differences in the democracy, respec

, which led to the killing of jimmy jackson i alabama state troopers. and above all, bloody sunday the event that was critical in the passage of the voting rights act. and successful march at the and from selma to montgomery. these powerful images perhaps could contribute to the passage of the new voting rights act that was introduced into congress just last week. those events had a profound impact on the passage of the original act in 1965. maybe, if enough people see the film and are moved by those images, we will have a new voting rights act. i certainly hope so, although it is sad to say that the new act has no republican cosponsors. the republican party played a key role in the passage of the 1965 voting rights act. the voting rights act was written in the office of everett dirksen, a republican minority leader, and without his help and the help of others, the act would not have passed. one of president obama's favorite quotes of dr. king's is the one that comes from dr. king's speech to the marchers at the end of the march. on march 25, 1965, the

. >> guest: you find el little landlocked town in alabama that hasn't changed too much from teethirty description in and "to kill a mockingbird". keeping an eye out for the kfc. [laughter] there was a time the town council would tear down the old courthouse because they built a 1960's courthouse now of course, that has been restored now looks like a torch. is the shrine to american literary culture but that is the best thing about that tower. there is still though museum friedman and trimming capote where his home town was. >> it is the square. the bricks are still there with the boundary of the house that there is a plaque than there is the yard i think is where that walk-in theory is. but it seems almost reluctant to embrace it is the southern concord. >> and it is a much different town from oxford it is also a shrine to its author but it is a small southern town the park almost perfectly preserved but macon is still a little stuffy round of quarters for go like doing the opponents on the square it has none of that atmosphere and teeeighteen is happy to cooperate in promoting "to ki

. >> with me now political commentator for the alabama media group, alabama of course a state where harperetting to her books. also here, political commentator and democratic strategist donna brazile. thank you both for being on with us. >> thanks for having me. >> you're in alabama and there has been so much reaction strong reaction to this. really across the board from all over. and let's look at a couple of the tweets really echos the devastation of fans out there. one that we read says quote, the idea of atticus finch be racist is like spielberg doing a sequel in which e.t. punches elg yot in the face and steals his lunch money. and then this one, my figures area husband since the aid great is a racist and my entire childhood is a lie. why do you think this has struck such a nerve? >> look i grew up here in alabama. i read this book in high school. a lot of people here in alabama and throughout the world, this was one of their coming of age books and that sort of taught them right from wrong, black from white, how, you know we're supposed to behave. and let's face it in the last month

it came out right in 1960 and alabama was not changed by it. selma is just up the road in montgomery. you go right by there when you fly in. all of the stuff after that the bombing of the birmingham church revered the lessons in the book but didn't learn from it. >> guest: realize "to killing a mockingbird" was not talked about until 1984. and asked why it wasn't taught early and they said it offended too many people. >> host: this is one of the reasons perhaps why they didn't care for the overall town. they have a play that is poplar of "to killing a mockingbird." >> guest: it is a license to be an amateur production. you will not see "to killing a mockingbird" on broadway. >> host: the second act of the play is in the courtroom. >> guest: i was on the jury. >> host: you can see the resentiment saying wait a minute i wrote this story about how unpleasant the town can be and now you are turning a buck on it and acting like you love it and you can see why that make tick her off. >> guest: yes, good friends said she wanted to characters and stori

clan leader, and an organization based here in alabama. and they're talking about the confederate flag, and all of the criticism, as being a great recruiting tool for them. and i'm not sure that's true, but that's what they're talking about. >> so is it fair to say that even if those three to four other fires at black churches turn out to be deliberate attacks, and that's not the case at this point that they will most likely end up not as a coordinated action, but more likely a lone wolf attack? >> that's right. i think that it's incredibly unlikely that even if two or three or four of these churches were set on fire as reaction to the brouhaha because of the coldconfederate flag that it was done in a coordinated way. it's unlikely that it's a group. it would be lone wolves or inspiring other copy cats >> so looking back at the ame shooting, put into context there was a moment of that in martin's piece why have they been such a context in. >> let me say that the black church has been attacked all the way back to the 1820s and it really was

. >> alabama. >> hinojosa: alabama. and these percentage growths we're talking about... >> more than double. so the population of hispanics in these states, in fact throughout the southeast, more than doubled in many places. now truly, when we talk about alabama, or we talk about south carolina, the hispanic populations there were were relatively small. 150,000 in 2000, for example, and it doubles to maybe 300,000 or so now. now compare that to california. california is more than 14 million latinos. so the relative size is small. nonetheless, throughout the southeast, tennessee, kentucky, georgia, alabama, all throughout arkansas, all throughout the southeast, that's where we saw the fastest percentage growth in the hispanic population. but i want to point to one state, because there's one state that's really interesting, which is georgia. georgia didn't start from a small base. georgia started at about 450,000 latinos in 2000. it's now over 800,000. it nearly doubled during the decade. >> hinojosa: and actually, in the

me's from phenix city alabama. what would officials be doing right now to figure out what was behind this and possible there's no motive and he was just a man with some mental issues. >> yes. see, there's a motive. there will be a motive. we call these individuals sometimes wound collectors. this is someone who feels that he's been wounded many times in his life. he saves these offenses and they build up and build up and build up. why go to a movie theater? only he could tell us. again, it's been in the media x number of weeks and the trial taking place in colorado and he would realize that's a target rich environment. and if in fact he held everybody, you me all of us in society, if we were all responsible, then anybody could be responsible. and somehow he appears to have fan that sized in his mind that he could take at least two magazines of ammunition a pistol, go into the high ground in that theater and you got to imagine for that challenged mind the greatest mental after dose yak is power of life and death and

it is just past midnight in monroeville, alabama.arper lee's hometown and also home to a bookstore known as old curiosities and bookshop where copies of "go set a watchman" just went on sale. you see people cueing up there. cnn's ed lavandera is joining me on the phone. so you are in harper lee's hometown. i imagine there is so much anticipation. i can see the crowds on the screen gathering to buy this boat "go set a watchman." i'm curious what the reaction has been from the people you've spoken to about how atticus finch's character has been recast. >> caller: there are so many people who see this novel shrouded in mystery, in intrigue. they've read some of the initial reviews that have already been published, which suggests that atticus finch, this beloved character that has been portrayed as this hero of this small alabama town atticus finch. they have monuments and statues and pictures dedicated to atticus finch throughout this small town in southern alabama. and meany y many people say they're surprised by the twist and characte

shooter john hus house from alabama -- john russell houser from alabama.he waited 20 minutes stood up ask is opened fire. he tried to escape, but police quickly arrived. he went back inside the theater and killed himself. >>> two wildfires to tell you about this morning. heading to south lake tahoe, you'll want to avoid highway 50 because a wildfire has grown so fast along highway 50, it is now burning more than 100 acres. halfway between placerville and south lake tahoe and highway 50 is closed from placerville to meyers. there are mandatory evacuations in the white hall area and sand flat campground. this fire is only fooi% contained this -- 5% contained this morning. not clear when it's going to reopen wildfire near lake berryessa in napa county 15% contained. burned 6,900 acres. within the last of half hour, we've learned the fire is 20% contained. 1,300 firefighters are battling the blaze and evacuation orders still in effect for several commutes. quail ridge and canyon creek areas are still under mandatory evacuations this morning. we had stronger wi

the university of alabama has allowed him to do that and he has helped me. >> there is one for alabama, there is one for wyoming. ours does not have sand in it -- [laughter] governor tomblin: ok, are there further questions or comments? do any of the governors have anything else to bring before the committee? if not, i declare the committee adjourned. thank you all for being here. [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2015] [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org] >> and we will have more from the national governors association tomorrow as they continue their summer meeting in west virginia. the panel begins with a description on prescription drug abuse, and then later a discussion with thomas perez on the way to stimulate state economies. the meeting concludes with the hss secretary sylvia burwell. all that begins at 9:45 a.m. eastern here on c-span. on newsmakers this weekend kentucky congressmen and harold rogers is our guest. as chair of the house appropriations committee, h

yet, he was still able to legally buy a gun in alabama. nbc's gabe gutierrez reports. >> reporter: newly released dispatch reporters of first responders racing to the movie theater. >> to the grand theatre on johnson. got an active shooter over there. >> reporter: two people shot dead. plus the gunman. nine wounded. >> headquarters, units at the grand, it is safe to enter. >> reporter: police say the shoot ore 59-year-old john "rusty" houser had planned his get away. he walked out this door but turned around when he saw officers do you think if those officers hadn't arrived so quickly he could have escaped? >> absolutely. they felt he would have been able to drive away. >> reporter: houser had a history of mental illness. his family tried to help him get treatment for bipolar disorder. saying he was a danger to himself and others and committing him to a hospital against his will in 2008. while federal authorities say the gun he used was purchased legally in alabama last year some experts questioned whether that involuntary hospitalization

press -- in 1963 might not have the covered by the alabama press a local television? my impression is that it was very, very limited and certainly in the press, more in the press. not covered at all. i am thinking of the mississippi clarion ledger that was the most racist newspaper in mississippi for years. ironically, it was later taken over by a member of the family that owned the paper originally and turned everything around. that paper now has become a force, particularly for investigating the civil rights cold cases reporter named jerry mitchell has been doing fabulous work for the last 10 years. yeah, you were living behind the magnolia curtains. >> would you talk about the impact that you hope your book will have on the current discussion on both civil -- on the supreme court level and the congressional level on the need for a renewal for the civil rights act? how would you say your history and reporting on it contributes to that debate today? mr. may: the question is -- will my book have an impact on the congress, the courts and help the passage of the new act

while in new orleans, while in south louisiana, mississippi, and in alabama. there were amazing stories of communities coming together, of people coming together, of resilient families coming together to ensure that while this did knock them down, they were getting back up again, they were going to recover. strong resolve from these communities all across the gulf coast. mr. speaker, one other thing that was truly amazing is watching the incredible outpouring of support, not just from the gulf coast but from all over this nation and countries around the world, committing to come help us recover. across the gulf coast. it was an amazing opportunity for people to come together. to put down differences. and to all come together in support of the recovery of these communities. the recovery of these families. the recovery of these businessfuls. the recovery of the hopes and dreams of these communities across the gulf coast. mr. speaker, we're going to continue to see this play over and over again. we're going to continue to see these types of disasters, over and ov

year the atf says he legally purchased his gun in alabama. lester? >> all right, miguel, thank you. at the first report of last night's mass shooting inside a movie theater, a lot of us probably had the exact same thought, please not again. the stories of people randomly shot by a lone gunman have become all too familiar, and so too are the questions and the soul searching that follow. with that here's national correspondent peter alexander. >> reporter: after last night's violence if someone asks about the movie theater shooting the response could be "which one?" right now a colorado jury is deliberating whether james holmes should face the death penalty for killing a dozen people during this movie theater massacre three years ago. it's deja vu for the parents of victim jessica gowey. >> at what point are we saturated or become numb? >> we have mass murders every week now. come on. i mean, let's do something. >> reporter: across america dozens of mass shootings since the newtown elementary school massacre in 2012. at a church, a school, a mi

and yet last year, houser was able to legally purchase a gun in alabama. it's the latest mass shooting to raise questions about potential cracks in the federal background check system. we begin tonight with nbc's gabe gutierrez in lafayette, louisiana. gabe, good evening. >> reporter: kate, good evening. one of the biggest questions right now is why here? the gunman had no ties to the community. only his uncle died here three decades ago. investigators say he was a drifter, and they are now digging deep into his past. today newly released dispatch recordings of first responders racing to the movie theater. >> need you up to the grand theatre on johnson. we have an active shooting there. >> reporter: two people shot dead. plus the gunman. nine wounded. >> headquarters to the unit at the grand. it is safe to enter. >> reporter: police say the shooter, 59-year-old john rusty houser had planned his getaway. he walked out this door but turned around when he saw officers. you think if those officers hadn't arrived so quickly, he could have escaped. >> absolutely

the gentleman from alabama. mr. palmer: how much time do i have? the chair: 2 3/4 minutes remaining -- 1/4 minutes remaining. mr. palmer: i appreciate the gentlelady from minnesota's response and i too agree that every federal official deserves to be able to go home safe and sound to their family. that, though, does not address the specific issue here in regard to what's going on with the e.p.a. if there is a need for armed intervention with a business or, in this case, with a municipality, there should be a clear threat assessment. there isn't any. there was no reason for anyone to think that they needed to go in in full body armor with weapons drawn. i think that that is part of what is going on here, that a lot of american citizens are concerned about. is the overreach of the government. and particularly in regard to 70 federal agencies having armed agents in their employment. i agree with the gentleman from california, this needs to be a broader discussion. but with that, in that regard i think we should have that. but in respect to my amendmen

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he previously resided in the state of alabama. he's kind of a drifter. he's been in lafayette since early july as far as we can tell. >> cnn's ed lavandera live in lafayette this morning and boris sanchez gathering information on the victims and some heroes this morning. i want to start with you, ed and the latest on the investigation. >> reporter: good morning, carol. well here investigators continue to do their work at a couple different locations. here at the theater, they're still inside going through and trying to gather as much evidence as possible and then just a couple miles away from here at the motel where it's believed that john houser was staying since early july authorities here say that he arrived in this area from phoenix city alabama, in earlier this month so they're trying to piece together his movements and his whereabouts over the course of that time and what brought him here trying to talk to as many relatives and friends as possible. they have been doing that throughout the night and revealed some disturbing clues, details of mr. hou

the gentleman from alabama is recognized. mr. bryne: mr. speaker, i was listening to the gentleman's remarks and if he believes that by codifying the e.p.a. regulation, that this bill is undermining e.p.a. i just don't follow that reasoning. that's what this bill does. it takes the e.p.a. regulation and it codifies it. it puts it into statutory law. and it sets it as a minimum and allows the state regulators that are already regulating solid hazardous waste to use that as a minimum and go above it. so far from undermining e.p.a.'s authority here, far from undermining the effort to get a clean environment for the people of america this enhances it, by putting it into law and allowing the states to go above it if that's what they want to do. what this bill really does that's new and different and different from what the e.p.a.'s trying to do is that it takes the enforcement of this away from different federal courts around the country and gives it to the state regulators that are already providing this regulation in other common areas already

originally from alabama. he took two young women's lives, a a 21-year-old woman and a 33-year-old woman died later at the hospital. >> good news and frustrating news out of the headlines. police don't have a why here. it wasn't a domestic abuse. no man fesifesto. he's not from lafayette. he's 59 years old. they are asking people to reach out to them. you can go. online to find the access number for police. then the other head line is that because of the quick police response, which was a function of them being proximate, nearby in the area and people were calling 9/11 when the shots fired. they believe this it man planned to fire and exit, to flee. he let off 13 rounds. but when the cops showed up he was forced back inside the theater and wound uptaking his own life. >> they are crediting the immediate response for saving lives here. we'll have more after a break. stay with us. it's a golden opportunity to elevate each moment. hit every mark. thread every needle. turn every ride into a thrill ride. come in to

georgia, south carolina, north carolina, and alabama. winner take all is not in the constitution. the default is not to award. my argument in the court is that in the you do not have a winner take all statute, you must award them in proportion of the popular votes split or you must reduce the representation in proportion to those electors that voters have been denied. when the court does not have an answer, the judge -- there is one way the judge can get all of trying to address the issue. you have standing. standing is whatever the judge says it is. that is what the state allows when they don't have an answer. what i have been doing is i have been in these suits that are actually correct, the bad history in litigation under the jurisprudence under the 14th amendment. lawyers have been making lost cause, neo-confederate arguments over this issue. as pro se, i'm given leeway. i have been using my briefs to put in history that lawyers practicing would not put in there. part of that is the legacy, what i tell the court is, the value of the black vote -- without the black vote, we may

congressman lewis is from alabama. in choi, alabama, he went to school with a principal who was his uncle. he had uncles who migrated to buffalo, new york. these articles used to come home, and when they did so, they would share with him all these experiences and made him see the north as this magical place. he was really intrigued, so his uncle takes him north. they go and visit. he sees things that changes his mind and shapes how he sees alabama. he says, i cannot really see alabama in the same way. he encounters that not on a business trip or future, but really in the space of his family, the people who are flesh of his flesh, look like me and they are encountering life in this way, whereas i'm encountering get in a different way. i think another story is really interesting wel as well. what state is she from? louisiana. she is from louisiana. her cousin, barbara, what's to come visit her. barbara's caretaker is saying, no way. why did they say you can go? because the north is supposed to be better? my fingers are m

that is not the case with all politicians in alabama.ief justice of alabama roy moore, is still on his soapbox ranting and raving against the same-sex marriage ruling. so i think governor bentley should be applauded for helping the state look forward rather than backward. amy: it has been very much kept under wraps what is going to announce today, but it might relate to that. as anti-lgbt violence increased since the same-sex marriage ruling of the supreme court? >> i don't know if we are seeing an uptick since the same-sex marriage ruling, but we have seen an apparent uptick in the recent years because as more people in the lgbtq entity for culpable coming out, they're more likely to be targeted because they are more open. in terms of sheer numbers, hate crimes against black people are the most common. on the other hand, from a percentage standpoint, the lgbt community is the most likely to be victimized by hate crimes. amy: richard cohen, thank you for being with us, speaking to us from a gum ray, alabama. tune in tomorrow for our inde