in central helmand, which really is the responsibility of task force helmand which is the uk forces, we use the analogy that they're on their knees. they're still getting support funding and i can talk in more detail but they're still getting funding through some of the criminal networks that are fueling the activity in central activity. places like nari surage which today is the most kinetic district in afghanistan. it's changed dramatically over the past year due to some of the things we did this year. but so there is still some taliban insurgent activity there. then in upper helmand valley, places like haji ki. places like that. the taliban are on their heels. because we recently -- it was really the last piece of real estate we cleared was haji ki dam. so they're on their heels. but behind them is a transit area for drugs, for poppy growth, that's owned by our friend that i just mentioned earlier, and his boys. they still own that territory. at this stage, we are no longer in the business of clearing real estate. it is now the afghans providing the security. so from south to nort

and they're from helmand. the corps commander unfortunately, though, is from pataki, and he's not pashtun. and the other is a tajik. so it would be better if there were more. but, really what we're trying to focus our attention on is the afghan uniform police. because they -- really, we realize, are the center of gravity. if we're going to make a difference, if we're going to keep the support of nationals, the police are the ones that are going to control the populations, support the populations in the helmand river valley. the army, the intent, is for the army to leave. and we're currently doing that right now. to leave the populated areas and move out into the further reaches of helmand and nimruz province. so that their focus becomes the borders. and the police focus becomes the populated centers. and in the police, that's where you find the pashtun. that's where you find the locals who are taking responsibility for their homes. it's very interesting because the average pashtun does not want to leave home.

in central helmand, which is really the responsibility of task force helmand, the u.k. forces, we use the analogy that they are on their knees. they are still getting support, funding -- i could talk in more detail, but it and are still getting funding from networks fuelling in session activity in places like -- insurgent activity in places like helmand. the most connecticut district in afghanistan -- most kinetic district and afghanistan, it has changed over the past year, but there are still some taliban insurgent activity there. in other places, the taliban are on their heels, because it was the last place of real estate be cleared. but behind them is a transit area for drugs, poppy growth, owned by a our friend we just mentioned earlier. they still own that territory. at this stage, we are not in the business of clearing real estate. it is the afghans providing security. so from south to north, it is increased taliban involvement, funding, etc. but you are absolutely right, there are a lot of local nationals who get themselves into trouble, who get an opportunity to

in central helmand which really is the response to devotee of task force helmand they are on their knees and they are still getting support funding and i can talk in more detail but they are still getting funding for some of the criminal patrons networks that are fueling helmand so the places which today is the most kinetic district in afghanistan it's changed dramatically over the past year due to some of the things we've seen this year but there is still a taliban insurgent activity there. but then in the upper helmand valley, in places like that the taliban are on the heels because it was the last piece of real-estate wheat cleared so they were on the heels, but behind them as the transit area for drugs for poppy grove debts owned by our friend i just mentioned earlier. they still own that territory, and at this stage, we are no longer in the business. it's now the afghans providing the security. so, from south to north it gets increased taliban involvement, taliban founding etc, but you are absolutely right. there are a lot of local nationals that get themselves into trouble and get

particularly in helmand. we have had some good success in helmand. the federal government doesn't trust the local leadership. they want to appoint their own governors. i have had three chiefs of police in helmand. you build the trust of one, he pulls out. he is not doing what he's told to do. someone asked if the mayor. what we really need to do is stop the central government's meddling in the local politics. the only way you will make a difference in afghanistan is to allow the local districts and provinces to control their own fates. fate. but there isn't that degree of faith yet in the central government. you don't feel comfortable in doing that yet. it's going to come, but that is how, i think, limit the impact of the senior-level influence -- negative influencers on afghanistan in helmand province. the second part of your question is a lot more important, and certainly something that at the provincial level can impact. that is how do we support the afghan national security forces in maintaining stability and maintaining control in the province.

we just turned over the leadership of the marines in helmand province. command was given to general gainous. the night before was a huge dinner hosted by the provincial governor. i'm confident that you have met them on your many visits in there. at that dinner at that night with all the commanders and the leadership there, there was -- there was much discussion, almost to the point of tears, as the general recanted the last 13 months of general tullen's time in afghanistan in the helmand province. so they talked about how the marines saved the lives of his soldiers. how marines died saving the lives trying to retrieve a drowning afghan soldier. we have not seen the level of violence in helmand that we have seen in other places. my sense is that it's a result of strong relationships, a level of confidence. doesn't mean they're not going to be things that are going to happen, senator, you know this. but i will tell you that there is a great amount of confidence between the afghan national security forces, the provincial governor, the leadership, the prt te

corporal paid their respects at the veterans memorial park, he was killed during combat operations in helmandnd tour of duty there his parents traveled the dover airport base in delaware this weekend to receive his remains. >> a shooting spree in tulsa oklahoma, how police were able to catch them. could the final installment in a comedy franchise in a hundred games at the boxcompete with the hundred games at the box [ male announcer ] sweet. tangy. creamy. you don't often find these things in one place. maybe in vegas if you know where to look. and us. so come on, give us a whirl. ♪ ♪ we have two car insurances that we're going to have you taste. the first one we're going to call x. go ahead and take a sip, and then let me know what the baby thinks of it. four million drivers switched to this car insurance last year. oh, she likes it babies' palates are very sensitive so she's probably tasting the low rates. this is car insurance y they've been losing customers pretty quickly. oh my gosh, that's horrible! which would you choose? geico. over their competitor. do you want to finish it? no. does

services were held in the helmand province. they will be transferring authority to afghan forces by 2014. mike wallace, one of the most respected journalists after decades on "60 minutes" has died. he was 93 years old. we take a look back at his life and legacy. >> i am mike wallace. >> he was known for his hard- hitting journalistic style and aggressive questioning. >> how many blacks are on your campaigns death? >> but decades before millions of television viewers watched him on cbs news, mike wallace already had a colorful career. he was born in massachusetts in 1918. after graduating from the university of michigan, he started his career in radio. he worked as a radio host, and that landed him a spot in television as an actor in a police drama, as a program host, and even in commercials. >> that is some apple pie. >> but his love for news led him to drop that type of work in 1963, when cbs news hired him as a correspondent. >> the president of china. >> his feisty style made him a good fit for the network's new magazine sho

solar panels, the ability to recharge your radio batteries while you're pumping along a ridge line in helmand province. that's what sold it for the marines. the other thing, all of a sudden, they went from being 120 degrees outside in their shelters and now, just with a little bit of ingenuity and some of the energy initiatives, you can actually walk inside these things and it may be 87 degrees, but it might as well be, you might as well be at the north pole. that's what these kids feel like. so they have really gotten into it and it's exciting from my perspective, we're just on the cusp of it. i think there's so much more we can do and we're dedicated to doing that. >> thank you very much. my time is up, but i just want as a final comment, you'll not be surprised to hear that i'm also concerned about our four public shipyards and the fact that this year's military construction budget does not again contain much needed dollars for the portsmouth naval shipyard and we have requests for modernization report that we, senator collins and i included in the defense authorization bill last year and

one of the attacks happened just outside police headquarters in the helmand province.t least four officers were killed. five more wounded. a group of suicide bombers blew up a truck outside a district province in the herad province. >>> today is the deadline for syria to withdraw its troops from towns and halt the 13-month crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrators but activists do not see any signs of a cease-fire as military attacks are reported in towns across the country. a u.n.-brokered plan called for a cease-fire after the u.n. estimates more than 9,000 people have been killed in the one-year uprising against al assad. >>> north korea announcing tld it will be ready to launch its controversial long-range rocket as planned. it said all preparations will be made by the end of today. a top government official telling foreign journalists in pyongyang that everything is on track for a launch between april 12th and 16th. the international community is condemning the planned launch, of course. the major concern here is a secret nuclear test. john, though, north korea ins

the helicopter had been called to help the injured after a suicide attack in the helmand province. >>> two years ago today, the deepwater horizon explosion in the gulf of mexico triggered one of the biggest oil spills in u.s. history. this week, lawyers submitted a plan to settle more than 100,000 legal claims that followed. fishing and tourism are recovering in the area. but scientists say an unknown amount of oil is still lurking in the gulf. and environmental effects are still unfolding. >> heard yesterday about the some of the effect bs it's having an fish and shrimp. >> deformed crabs and shrimp. it's scary. far from over. >> it's not good. >>> time, now, for the weather from across the kags. stormy in texas, with golf ball-sized hail and 70-mile-per-hour winds from corpus christi to houston. rain from dallas into little rock, detroit and the ohio valley. sunny and warm in the northeast. thunderstorms from knoxville to the carolinas and miami. mountain snow in the northern rockies. showers in the pacific northwest. >> 55 in seattle. and a hot 95 in phoenix. 58 in minneapolis. and

and the first one yesterday was about american biography and the cold war, biography of lillian helmand that alex kessler harris of columbia spoke about. later today there will be a session about interpreting the arab spring with juan cole of michigan, and then on american intervention with jeremy surry at ut austin. this morning our topic is publishing and the american century. our format is a little unusual for this annual conference. we will have a presenter, but then instead of serial comments, we will have a more free willing informal conversation among everyone who is here. i'll introduce the members of the panel later on. right now i'd like to introduce our presenter. alan brinkley is the alan nevins professor of american history at columbia. among his works are "voices of protest," huey long, father cobb lynn and the great depression which won the national book award for history. the "unfinished nation," "the end of reform" are two other of his works. the book we're focusing on today and though he didn't ask me to, i'm happy to hold up a hard-bound copy which is still available

eight policemen were killed in the southern province of .ellman's -- helmand and nine people were killed in an explosion outside a district headquarters. a court-appointed psychiatrist in norway determine the man who killed 77 people into an attack from the country last year, anders breivik, is sane. an earlier evaluation said he suffered from paranoid schizophrenia. both assessments will be continued at his trial, which begins next week. a chinese court sentenced the stable -- disabled activists ni yulan to prison for creating trouble and destroying property. her husband received a shorter sentence. they are known for providing legal help for people whose homes have been seized by the government. 5 terrorism suspects living here in britain have lost their battle to avoid extradition to the united states. they include the radical cleric who is facing 11 terrorism- related charges. and also another, accused of raising money for terrorist groups. and two men allegedly involved in u.s. embassy bombings in kenya and tanzania in 1998. the ruling is that suspects must not be treated inhumanely

later, seven policemen were killed in two suicide attacks in southern helmand province. secretary of state hillary clinton issued a stark warning to north korea today to think twice about conducting a long- range rocket launch, which she said would be a direct threat to regional security. the regime, however, has dismissed concerns that the satellite launch, which could happen as soon as thursday, is a cover for developing missile technology. our correspondent has gained rapid access to north korea, then he sends us this report from north korea. and a vast, empty streets -- >> vast, empty streets. welcome to the world's last stalinist state, preparing a party for its debt but eternal president. even the walls are being watched. it is like traveling back in time. today, we were whisked past grim-looking villages and people toiling by hand in their fields to be shown this. 1000-hectare fruit farm, all perfect rows. it is the way north korea wants to be seen. a modern socialist miracle. she says she is very happy working here, and it is thanks to the leaders, the kim family

the military confirms a black hawk went down while in a mission in the southern helmand province. the helicopter was responding to a suicide attack at a local police check point. no word on the exact cause of the crash, but there was bad weather in the area. >>> police forensics teams remain at the scene of a lower manhattan apartment building right now, looking for clues into the decades-old missing child case. clues have emerged that may mean a break in the mysterious disappearance of the 6-year-old boy who disappeared in 1979 while walking to a bus stop two blocks from his home in soho. his case garnered so much national attention, he became the first missing child to appear on a milk carton. new york police say new tips led them to the site where they're now digging and cadaver dogs recently picked up the scent of human remains. >>> talk about possible takeover could take off at american airlin airlines. the company's three major unions are now set for a merger by rival usairways. the move would amount to a hostile takeover of americans. some analysts question whether the unio

police that iran is actively helping the taliban in order to prevent the building of a dam on the helmand mond. there's the issue of narcotics, one of the highest addiction rates in the world. there are literally millions of iranian heroin users, a lot of them are young. and iran has spent hundreds of millions of dollars and has lost thousands of lives trying to protect the iranian/afghan border so this is a major issue for iran. often the drug flow is cited as a reason for regional cooperation and not just regional cooperation but cooperation between iran, the united states, and international forces in afghanistan. but at the same time there have been reports of the revolutionary guards which is very active in afghanistan and to a large extent is responsible for iranian policy in afghanistan, it is involved in the drug flow. we know that the revolutionary guards as involved in iran, they're involved in elicit activities. president ahmadinejad has hinted of this. and i believe recently the u.s. treasury department designated a guards officer of being involved in the narcotics trade in ira

there are disputes over the helmand river. the iranian government accuses the afghan government of preventing water flows to iran. and there have been some reports that according to the afghan police iran actively help building a dam. there is the issue of arnott koiks. iran has one of the highest addiction rates in the world. there are literally millions of iran heroin users. a lot of them are young. and iran has spent hundreds of millions of dollars and has lost thousands of lives trying to protect the iranian afghan borders. so this is a major issue for iran. and often the drug flow is cited as a reason for regional cooperation, and not just regional cooperation but cooperation between iran, the united states, and international forces and afghanistan. but at the same time, there have been reports that the revolutionary guards, which is very active in afghanistan, and is to a large part responsible for afghanistan, is spopsable for the drug flow. we know the revolutionary guards are involved in the underground economy in ira

martinez died on thursday in afghanistan's helmand province. it was his second tour of duty there.s parents received his remains at the dover air force base in delaware over the weekend. chicago area residents might be able to go camping next year... right here in cook county. the forest preserve is looking at plans to open up some areas of the county's 68-thousand acres of forest preserve to campers. campers used to be allowed in the preserve... they could even build their own cabins. but that stopped in 19-29 when it got out of hand with littering and overcrowding. now, the forest preserve is looking at options for campers... including security, and on-site staffing. a record number of families were expected to sign up on line for summer day camps and other programs at the chicago park district. there have been a number of complaints from people waiting a long time for processing on the website. but it handled the volume. at eleven thirty -- there were 7,600 completed registrations. the website is www.chicagoparkdistrict.com in person registration begins on saturday the 14th. if

four american troops were killed when the army blackhawk went down in the helmand province, which is in southwest afghanistan. defense officials say the crew was responding to a suicide attack at a police checkpoint. the military has not ruled out the possibility that enemy fire also contributed to the crash. >>> and we're learning more about one of the secret supervisors forced from their job in the wake of the agency prostitution scandal. his name is david chaney and he was assigned to protect sarah palin during the 2008 election. police kept reporters away from chaney's home yesterday and greg stokes is also out of a job. the attorney says neither man left involuntarily. lawmakers say more people connected to the scandal could step down or be let go today. meanwhile, the white house is standing by the director of the secret service, mark sullivan. >>> election day is less than seven months away now. and president obama holds a sizeable lead over mitt romney in the latest nbc news/"wall street journal" poll. the president leads the presumptive gop nominee 49-43%. the news isn't all

military the four were on their site to a suicide bombing in the helmand province.transporting them to a nearby hospital. we don't know what brought the helicopter down but bad weather is most likely the cause. the taliban did post responsible on its english website saying they shot down the black hawk with a grenade. the u.s. sources are casting doubt on the claim and the taliban is known to claim responsibility for things they didn't do in the fast. back here at home u.s. service members who served in iraq at the tail end of that war are continuing to trickle home months after the war ended in december. this was the scene this week in minnesota with 80 u.s. soldiers coming home from kuwait. these men and women were responsible for escorting the con voups convoys of supplies and thousands of our american troops leaving iraq and crossing over into kuwait. over the next few weeks nearly 3,000 of these troops from the 34th infantry red bulls will be coming home to minnesota. they were part of the single largest deployment since world war ii. and it is because of those

later, in the south, two more bombers blew themselves up outside a police station in helmand province. the taliban claimed responsibility for both attacks. in yemen, army officials reported heavy fighting between al qaeda militants and government forces has killed 127 people in two days. it started monday in the town of lawder in abyan province, which sits on a strategic highway. today the fighting spread along the borders of two more provinces, shadwa and marib. the european human rights court has ruled that britain may legally extradite terror suspects to the u.s. among them is egyptian-born cleric abu hamza al-masri. the one-eyed radical is suspected of trying to set up an al-qaeda training camp in oregon. the european court rejected claims that their rights would be violated in the u.s. justice system. but a court official said they can still appeal the ruling. >> he now has three months to ask for the case to go to the chamber. if and when the judgment does become final it means that as far as the european court of human rights is concerned they can be extradited to the u.s. >> s

in some areas the insurgent attacks are down by 30% in helmand, for example. and others like rc east they are up by 19%. he regrets having claimed that counterterrorism and night raids and so forth were workers the war was heading to the discussion we're at today i guess is an extension of that. he also wishes he could've focused earlier on preventing civilian casualties to a u.n. report came out today that talks about this is the fifth year in a row where civilian casualties in afghanistan have risen. and while u.s. or isaf cause casualties are decreasing, insurgency caused civilian casualties are on the rise. so how does that translate into how our campaign is working? do you want to say a few remarks about? what i'd like to do so put it and let vernon have a few remarks to say to questions. [inaudible] >> i'm happy to answer questions. >> all right. do we have any questions? please but i guess you should use the microphone. >> in your book, it was mentioned that petraeus wanted to be the chairman of joint chiefs of staff, but he was told that no way he woul

the military confirms that black hawk went down while on a mission in the southern helmand province. leaders in the area say the helicopter was on its way to respond to a suicide attack on the local police check point. no word on the exact cause of the crash, but there was bad weather in the area at the time. >>> 6:15, uc davis has a new police chief this morning. the university's chancellor swore in interim chief matthew carmichael in as the new head of the department yesterday. now carmichael believes rather he replaces chief annette spacuzza. >> i promise you to expect nothing but professional and excellent service which we have always given and will continue to give. >> carmichael will have the year for one year while a national search is launched for a permanent replacement. >>> it is 6:15 right now. giants back in action tonight. barry zito gets a start. pitching a complete game shutout. follow that up with a solid appearance last saturday against the pirates. tonight's game starts at 4:15. >>> a's are back in the bay area wrapping up a four-game series with the angels. suzuki

wherever we go, first units that are pulling out is down in helmand. marie is when there and said -- the marines went in there and said nobody can do anything with helmand. they have wrapped up the mission. we can do those kind of things. wherever we go, we dominate in afghanistan today. afghanistan today.

army blackhawk that went down in helmand province in bad weather. it was en route to the site of a suicide bombing at an afghan police checkpoint. the presidential candidates in france wrapped up their campaigning today ahead of sunday's first-round election. socialist francois hollande is the current front-runner in the ten-candidate field. incumbent nicolas sarkozy has been hurt by high unemployment, but in nice today, he argued his policies kept things from getting even worse. >> look simply across the borders right next to us, to what has happened to countries whose governments have not wanted to make the choices that needed to be made when they needed to be made. is there one frenchmen who wished for france, the current situation in greece, portugal, spain, ireland, iceland? >> the top >> sreenivasan: the top two vote-getters in sunday's voting will meet in a run-off on may 6. in syria, there was more heavy shelling of the embattled city of homs today, leaving a u.n. cease-fire in tatters. government troops blasted away at two rebel-held neighb

if i make a commitment to go to canada are or hellman's -- helmand, i am in danger of being attacked by the taliban. what could be done to bring peace, in your opinion, having served as the united states president, and now mobilizing an army of change advocates, what can be done? because i think the idea -- my dream, and i think everyone can hear that -- is we should see on cnn, bbc, news about commitments about changing the world and not war. [applause] >> afghanistan is a particularly difficult case for three reasons. one, there is the question of the capacity of the government and its allies -- not just the united states, but the other country that of their -- to actually create a secure environment. secondly, there is the alienation caused by the widespread corruption. and third, the most productive, most likely path to a less violent future on a daily basis would be some sort of an agreement between the afghan government and the taliban. and most people question whether that could be done without the guarantees of the constitution for equal rights for women and girls being sever

we're going to pull out two-thirds of the marines in helmand province and turn the rest over to afghanead this is going to be the first time we will know for sure whether the afghan national security forces are up to the task. we think they are. but as i told one of the afghan generals who will take over in kandahar province in july, i said the truth is, you don't know whether you're going to be able to do it and neither do i, nor does anybody else here, but we're going to find out in a few months whether you're going to be able to sustain the gains that have been made. and listen. they're not just showing up there. they've been in the fight all along, with nato forces, since we went in there in 2010. jenna: sounds like an important time to keep our eye open on a lot of different things. general keene, thank you. we're going to have a story in a little bit on this one soldier that caught our attention, travis mill, i mention his name because you need to know his story, coming up on "happening now" in ten minutes. rick: a team of u.n. observers arriving in syria today, they're there to

military helicopter in afghanistan were killed when the chopper crashed on thursday in that country's helmand province. initial reports indicate that poor weather may have caused the crash. >>> a bird flying into a plane's right side engine shortly after takeoff forced a jetliner to make an emergency landing in new york. take a look at this cell phone video taken by passenger grant cordone. it shows birds flying into the engine. it rattled the flight. he filmed his version of this ordeal. >> plane shook, i felt we were coming down, i choked from the video, and closed it. and went to grab my phone to see if i had reception because i was really calling my wife to say, hey, this might be my last flight. i was that scared. >> the delta flight to los angeles was carrying 179 people and the pilot managed to land the plane safely at jfk airport. >>> they definitely needed a bigger boat. two mexican fishermen couldn't believe what they caught in their net. that right there is a 2,000 pound great white shark. lucky for them, it was already dead when they found it. another boat towed them back to shore

all federal buildings in the navy and marine guards as the carvings and outfitted with bayonets and helmand and they go of all federal buildings they go up at the memorial bridge and the bridges are closed between virginia and washington and there's the martial law essentially imposed very shortly so washington becomes an armed camp. the constitution and the declaration of independence were put in hiding in maryland. at the time they were on display the library of congress and they're taken out of the library of congress and hidden in maryland because they were fearful of there being bombed and destroyed. >> you're assigned to the sanitation corporation in georgia and this is what his departing so it was all newspapers. >> rather interesting. >> skill equiano we haven't put one person -- >> i'm the kind of guy that comes to these things and it picks. a couple of questions i might was the six a couple of things i might comment on in question. one mentioned in the isolation of the sentiment for the pro war sentiment in american colleges on would tend to think that is much less in sympathy wit

served this the united states marine exoarmt on april 12, lance corporal taro was killed in hell helmand province, afghanistan. in a memorial service will be held saturday to honor his self-sacrifice and he'll be laid to rest in his native liberia. when he was 7 years old, he left liberia and started a new life in the united states. he was one among thousands of liberians who came to the united states seeking safety from a civil war. we are proud that so many of these brave individuals and families now call rhode island their home and our state continues to be enriched by this strong community. lance corporal taro enlisted in the united states marine corps in june, 2009. he was other than-on his second deployment to afghanistan, assigned to the second bat battalion, second marine division of the second marine expeditionary force, serving as a mortar man and had additional duties as a military dog handler. each generation of americans has called upon to protect and sustain our democracy. and among our greatest here are the men and women who have worn the uniform of our nation and have sac

the marines went in there and said nobody can do anything with helmand. they have wrapped up the mission. we can do those kind of things. wherever we go, we dominate in afghanistan today. we want to come home. it is time that we disengage. we have secured those areas. will the afghans be able to keep them secure? i don't think any reasonable person can predict what afghanistan is going to look like in 2015. there is a very good chance that the terrorist will not have a sanctuary in afghanistan. host: can general allen save afghanistan? wrong question. thank you for joining us. >> april 15, 1912, nearly 1500 perished on the ship called unsinkable. >> once the bells were sounded, they struck the bell's three times. it is a warning, saying that there is some object ahead. it does not say what kind of object. what the lookout then did comment -- then did, he called down to the officer on the bridge. when it was answered, the entire conversation was, what do you see? icebergs right ahead. the response from the officer, thank you. >> on the truth and myths of t

all federal buildings in the navy and marine guards as the carvings and outfitted with bayonets and helmand and they go of all federal buildings they go up at the memorial bridge and the bridges are closed between virginia and washington and there's the martial law essentially imposed very shortly so washington becomes an armed camp. the constitution and the declaration of independence were put in hiding in maryland. at the time they were on display the library of congress and they're taken out of the library of congress and hidden in maryland because they were fearful of there being bombed and destroyed. >> you're assigned to the sanitation corporation in georgia and this is what his departing so it was all newspapers. >> rather interesting. >> skill equiano we haven't put one person -- >> i'm the kind of guy that comes to these things and it picks. a couple of questions i might was the six a couple of things i might comment on in question. one mentioned in the isolation of the sentiment for the pro war sentiment in american colleges on would tend to think that is much less in sympathy wit