let's go back to mike viqueira, our chief washington correspondent. is next in line to speaker boehner? >> you know, stephanie, when we call this a seismic event, it's not necessarily because of john boehner, his personality or who he is, whether you love or hate john boehner, the fact that he is the top most senior official in congress, it represents the split, the very serious split now, the hemorrhage within the republican party enough between these rebels, the people leading this coup within the house of representatives and everything that they represent in terms of conservatism in this country and expectations of their politicians in washington and the establishment, those from perhaps a by gone era, at least that's how the conservatives see it who make the best deal they can, but will make a deem with democrats and president obama. the leadership has been able to do that for a few years now, but evidently now, it's become a bridge too far. who is going to be the next speaker of the house and is the house even gonable at this paint? that's an ope

let's bring in mike viqueira and get his vantage point. . >> all right, i see the pope's vehicle coming up the driveway. in 10 seconds, he'll be pug in front of the crowd cheering, doing everything you might expect, holding up their cameras, trying to get a photo. it is a fiat with flags on the hood, which is something you don't often see, sort of a juxtaposition there, says everything you need to know about the low key and unpretentious pope, now pulling up, greeting the president and first lady. >> who is the cardinal flanking the pope? >> he is the pope's english translator. one of the things pope francis likes to do is to speak off the cuffness native language, spanish. he repeats it in english with exactly the same gestures and intonation. it's much more personal than a standard translator would be. >> he's 78 years old, he has one lung. he has a long trip that is just beginning, it began in cuba. this is the beginning of a six day trip to the united states and it kicks off on the south lawn of the white house. mike viqueira, how is yo

let's head to our senior washington correspondent mike viqueira in washington. mike, it seemed as if this day was certainly coming. we're hearing from the obama administration about this move. what are those officials saying? >> well, you're absolutely right. it's not unexpected. especially when you consider the events of the last two weeks and obvious russian build up that caught the administration flat footed. the high profile showdown just two days ago at the united nations, the dueling speeches before the general assembly from president obama and vladimir putin and talking about the deconfrictioning any military activity that was to take place, making sure that russia and the united states and coalition forces did not come in inadvertent contact there by touching off an incident. the way this happened this morning is being termed by u.s. officials as alarming and aggressive on the part of russia. telling the u.s. embassy in baghdad, a russian general with just an hour before the bombing took place, hey, look, stay out of the way, we're going to be flying thes

mike viqueira joins us now from washington. , state department spokesperson is point to point out that all of the 150 or so flagged messages were of a confidential variety instead of the classified variety. how important is that distinction? >> reporter: well, to put a fine point on it. they are classified as confidential, then you go to secret and top secret. confidential being the lowest level of classification, and that is something that has pointed to these emails as perhaps not as politically explosive as many republicans perhaps had hoped. and that has been the case all along. some 30,000 that a federal judge has ordered to be released to the public. this controversy stemming from the revolution that when she was secretary of state had a private email server in the basement of her home in new york. these 7,000 ranging from the mundane to the prosaic, and even a little bit odd. there was talk, for example, some of the emails outlined a conversation about a lower level state department official and his conversation with issu

let's go to mike viqueira at the white house with more on that. mike. >> there's no question that the catholic church is in some trouble around the world and particularly here in the united states. an amazing statistic and work done by the pew forum that studied catholicism in the united states. if you take every former catholic, someone that identifies as a former catholic that walked way from the church for one reason or another, that would be 41 million americans. 13% of the population. if those 41 million form their own religious group, it would be the second largest in the country after catholicism, which for generations has been the largest. the pope and so-called francis effect is something that the vatican and church leaders here in the united states can help to turn the tide. [ singing ] on a recent sunday in washington, new catholics are christened. >> i baptize you in the name of the father, and of the son, and of the holy spirit. >> two more added to the rolls of what has been for generations the single largest religious group in the un

let's head to our senior washington correspondent, mike viqueira in washington. mike, of course we want to talk about what is happening at the u.n., but let's first talk about what is happening in syria with the military action by russia. what is secretary of state john kerry saying about this? >> a flurry of activity here, and obviously the situation on the ground in syria, very troubling for the united nations. it comes on the heels of those dualel opening speeches between president obama and vladimir putin on monday. vladimir putin himself in the past days deploying russian troops, fighter jets, tanks, personnel, to syria to bolster the regime of bashar al-assad. no secret he was going to initiate some sort of military activity, but the way this has happened today the targets at odds perhaps with what the u.s. and its coalition is targeting, has raised a lot of questions. a russian general walked into the embassy, saying that russia was going to start flying these fighter jet missions, fighter bomber missions over the skies of syria, and very shortly thereafter

mike viqueira has more. >> good evening. the debate in congress over the iran deal took a turn into political theatre. republicans struggle to find a way around president obama and a solid wall of democrats to try to deny them of a near certain victory by the end of this week. when it comes to the vote in congress, it may be over, but the shouting. >> the deal with iran is a disaster. but now the iran deal is a hot button in the presidential race, and wednesday the campaign trail led to the capital steps. >> we are led by very, very stupid people. >> republican contender donald trump joined forces with a rival. conservative fire brand senator ted cruz to attack the deal at a rally by the tea party and other opponents. >> if iran gets a nuclear weapon, the single greatest risk is they'd take that nuclear weapon, put it on a ship in the atlantic and fire it up straight into the air. >> they were not the only presidential contenders to weigh in on wednesday. democrat hillary clinton argues though the deal is not perfect. it mus

i want to go out to mike viqueira who watched the speech unfold from the house gallery. that was a common theme, the golden rule, do unto others, and our common home. >> you know, couched in that pastoral theme as the leader of 1.2 billion catholics, a spiritual leader, and i think that's the important thing to remember when he look at this. we as americans sometimes want to reach for the easy label, red, blue, conservative, liberal, but i think the pope while he is aware of the political divisions and the gridlock here in washington, i think he is going for something that transcends all of that. remember, this is the first time he has ever stepped foot in the united states. we have this my openia in this count interest, that we are the center of this universe, and the pope recognizes the importance of this country, and that's why he is here. he talked about the polarization in this country, and he said, and i'm going to paraphrase here, the think that you hate, you are in danger of becoming yourself. to imitate the hatred of tyrants and murders is the best way to take t

let's bring in mike viqueira. mike? >> -- an am trivial point. he is traveling in a chrysler made product now, which is of course, owned by fiat. so there is a common thread there. he is on constitution avenue, an avenue that has often seen many ceremonial parades, 4th of july parades, familiar to most americans -- >> oh, mike, i have to stop you for a second. this is a moment we have to see. a little girl has made her way past the barricade. the pope says bring her over. they do. [ cheers and applause ] >> at this point -- yeah. >> and she hands him a gift of some kind, and he receives it, and you see, mike, just in a moment, the humanity and the person here. but beyond that, you see the tension between him and security, and the security guard saying you can't go there. >> i'm going to be curious to find out whether or not the secret service knew that was going to be happening. bad enough if they didn't that there was a young girl which we can all empathize with and feel a moment of tenderness towards, but then to hand him a gift, i'm sure a lot

the united nations here in new york with our own mike viqueira has been covering this throughout the morning. mike, what did you hear? >> i heard vladimir putin putting a rhetorical thumb in the eye of barack obama. clearly putin is rejecting the logic put forth by president obama on the question of syria in particular. but taking a shot at some very tender targets as putin sees them, saying it is, in fact, the united states' idea of exceptionalism is what we hear among conservative circles that led to the disaster that is syria, that led to the instability that is iraq. vladimir putin suggesting as you reported, richelle, that the international community under the auspices of the u.n. and it is interesting the way appealing that the united nations has been largely ignored by the obama administration, but suggesting that assad must be strengthened as opposed to removed, which is the longstanding policy of president obama and the american administration. so a fascinating pretext setting the stage for what is doubtlessly going to be an interesting and immediate substantive meeting betwe

i want to go to our mike viqueira who is in the chamber for this. some 50-odd minute speech, mike.ell us what you saw that we couldn't see from our vantage point. >> i don't know where to begin to summarize that speech. it was one of the more remarkable events i have seen in covering washington for 25 years. the way in which he expressed himself, the putting aside of partisanship, a few glimpses of it here and will, but just really remarkable. and you mentioned some of the hot button issues. he talked a lot about climate change, and immigration. talked about in a more or less oblique way threats to the family, an obvious reference to gay marriage. he talked about the need to preserve the sanctity of life, and the death penalty, one of the members of congress on the democratic side, leapt to her feet, remembered she wasn't supposed to do that, and quickly sat down. and two people from the left of the political spectrum, his call for an end to polarization, to say -- and to paraphrase if you have hatred and violence, be careful of the things you are condemning, because you become tho

-saudi alliance, mike viqueira is in washington live.know saudi arabia wasn't happy about the deal with iran. so how have see seen this deal already impact u.s.-saudi relationship? >> reporter: there is no question there is sensitives, anxiety on part of the saudi arabians. no question about it. president obama last year making a special trip to saudi arabia after visiting europe to sit with king salman's predecessor and talk things out. a lot of con stern nation on the part of the saudis not only with regards to the ongoing negotiations at the time with iran, but also with syria, the saudis urging president obama to take a more robust stance against bashar al-assad. there are sensitivities no question about it. in knee the g.c.c. summit that president called in saudi arabia. mere is something i have never seen in 25 years of covering the white house the president of the united states coming out on the driveway to meet a visiting dignitary in this case king salman, that only happens official state visits on the sound side of the white ho

and mike viqueira is live for us in washington, and he has the very latest. mike. >> reporter: tony, you're absolutely right about heightened tensions, and this was a formal event, not only a state visit. but a state dinner to go along with f all of the trappings for diplomacy, and all of thejestion tours for the united states' largest allies. the second largest economy, but these two countries have tensions, and much of it boiled to the surface today. president xi jinping went to the oval office with the president, and then they emerged in the rose garden. one of the top issues, cyber crime. and the office of personnel management, an agency of the federal government hacked. and many people suspect that china is behind it, though the administration is loathe to say it publicly, and they still haven't said it publicly. that was the topic on the table. and the two help, president obama and president xi reached a gentleman's agreement. and they said that they agree to not knowingly allow cyber spying on each other from each other's countries, whether it be a corp

mike viqueira is live at the u.n. this morning, so mike, president obama, president putin will have to cop front several tensions. this is their first meeting in two years and syria clearly is going to be the focus of this meeting. tell us more about that. >> there is no question about it. first about the speech that president obama gave yesterday, sunday the sound bite we just heard, the president coming up a day early to give that speech at the global development conference, this is really the penalty's last time here at the united nations. this is an annual trip, the speech to the general assembly, his last time to put other issues to the forefront. if you think a year from now we're going to be in the midst of a presidential election, the president will be a lame duck with just a couple of months left in his term. this year is really president obama's sort of swan song here. on the tail, vladimir putin now trying to play king maker in syria, making bashar al assad, slid filing his political and military position. n

let's check in with mike viqueira who is listening. mike what do you think the president wants to get out of this summit? >> reporter: what is fascinating is this was scheduled before vladimir putin and russia came into syria in a big way pledging to take up the fight against isil and all of the enemies of bashar al-assad. president obama said syria had been much the topic of discussion over the last several days, and that is certainly true. so i think the original intention of this conference is to bolster the coalition of taking stock -- of public taking stock of what needs to be done to continue the fight, the president voting that isil has lost some one-third of its populated territory since the bombing cam bane began a year ago, but talked about many of the themes that he has struck before. in terms of being able to stop isil's recruiting, which obviously has been very effective, to offer development and economic hope to rid some of these countries of which isil recruits to give young people in particular the ability or alternative

. >> let's go to mike viqueira at the u.n. ke, president obama called out russia over its position on syria, and ukraine in front of the entire general assembly. what if anything do we know about what happened hah in sideline meeting with president putin. >> reporter: i have to tell you, as i stand here on 1st avenue on new york city's east side, the president's limousine just went by, an hour earlier than we expected it to go, because that meeting went an hour longer than expected. so we don't know exactly what happened, but we're anticipating perhaps a briefing from officials that were involved. it comes after a day of acrimony, and very awkward to say the least photo opportunity between president obama and vladimir putin. they met inside the u.n. all of 15 seconds a very stiff handshake and then walking out, it represents the first face-to-face meeting these two men have had since june of last year. this freeze as a result of russia's actions in ukraine, annexing crimea, and now we have this power play that putin is making i

mike viqueira joins us now from washington. ke despite all of the opposition to the deal, the president does appear to be on the verge of what would be a big foreign policy victory. >> reporter: you are absolutely right. 54 republicans, not one of them in the senate is going to vote for this deal. the same deal in the house with 2 -- some 246 republicans teamed up against that. so the president has been leaning hard on democrats. there has been a campaign throughout this six-week recess, trying to pressure them and now that campaign appears to be paying off. these two key democratic senators put the president on the verge of a major foreign policy victory, and he needs just one more vote to get the one-third plus one he needs in the senate to sustain the veto when as expected both the senate and house are going to vote to reject this deal, then the president would veto it. he needs 34, he has got 33. chris coonz from delaware says he still has serious problems about this deal. he was thought to be a no, but after speaking to vic

mike viqueira joins us, and the pontiff didn't seem to shy away in addressing major issues facing the united states and the church today. >> he addressed in the first speech that he made as pope in his entire life. this is the first visit he has had here. what the pope saw on television and the thousands who lined the street and thronged the pope in jubilation as he made his way across town in a parade is a pope that's not going to shy away from controversy. from the moment he left the vatican embassy in the morning, to the indelible scene, when he saw a young girl held back from the pope mobile by security, went to her. and it represents a change for the church. earlier, there was the pomp and ceremony of a white house welcome, speaking publicly for the first time in america, the pope repeated a stance that has brought him scorn from conservatives. the need to act on climate change. >> the ability to all together in building our common home. [ unintelligible ] we wish to commit ourselves to the conscience and responsible care of our common home. >> president obama spoke of their shar

mike viqueira joins us life from washington. the momentum appears to be behind the president at this point. >> it's difficult. difficult to explain in a way the machinations of the isn't amount. -- senate. it's like a bank job. delaware, pennsylvania state and another put the president on the verge of victory. he needs one more, one of 11 undecided democrats remaining in the senate to be assured of the victory, we talk about the difficult procedure. basically what is expected to happen is a majority of senators will vote to disapprove of the deal struck with iran. the president, of course, vowed to veto that, if it were to come to that. it comes down to a third of the house and senate. if the senator can muster that, he can sustain the veto, it will not be overridden by opponents. it's the bar, it's low, but the president is about to meet it. all he needs is a vote. chris coles from delaware, a surprise. comments that led many to believe he was leaning against the deal. he said as much. he doesn't like it one bit. there are expe

we'll go to mike viqueira, who was also taking notes as well. i'm sure you got something that i left out. mike he seemed to cover a lot of things. i'm not sure how you characterize it. >> i would characterize it as an impassioned defense of the obama doctrine. you heard the president wrap it up neatly saying that the history is littered with false prophets and dictators who have failed trying to emphasize things that president obama has emphasizeed and has been criticized for nationally and internationally for almost the seven years of his presidency. talking about the need of instituting democracy around the world. the deal with iran, the deal with cuba after 54 years of acrimony and mutual suspicion across the states. ukraine, part of the obama doctrine. democracy is essential before force is moved. talking about sanctions against russia after the annexing of crimea and they are ongoing but president obama perhaps looking at the brightest possible interpretation talking about the crippling effect that those sanctions have had on russian individ

mike viqueira, stand by.are going to continue to bring you live coverage of pope francis visit to the united states, but we are going to take a short break now and we'll see you on the other end of it with more live coverage. >> every saturday night. >> you are looking at pope francis, his first breathe of american catholics waiting there with open arms, waving the papal flag. this is in washington, d.c. he emerged moments ago from that door, went straight for the crowd, and started shaking hands. this is part of the reason why this is being called the largest security operation around a single individual in this country. look at that. pope francis hugging,, shaking hands. he didn't waste any time getting right in there with the people. >> not at all. we're seeing what this pope is famous for. he's in there with people, talking with people, famously with audiences. he reaches out to folks. this is one reason people often call him the people's pope. >> talk about how important this sort of kickoff day is. this

mike viqueira joins us from washington, and mike, how is the administration responding to the russian airstrikes in syria >> reporter: richelle, there's no question, since the buildup in syria, americans are caught surprised and flat footed. yes, the russian move is like pouring gasoline on a fire, and you saw kerry and lavrov, they met behind closed doors at the united nations, but before that time, it's still unclear. this was the aftermath. 20 flights in all said the russian defense ministry, asserting that they hit isil tarts within syria, and others on the ground report extensive civilian casualties, and others, including ashley ash car were taken by surprise by russia's aggressive moves in syria. >> this is not the time that we should expect professional from the russian military >> reporter: the u.s. was informed at the last minute, said officials, delivering a blunt message to baghdad. russian bombs will fly soon, and coalition forces should stay clear. it was not when, but who was targeted that angered the administration. the u.s. administration said that russian bombs hit ar

. >> mike viqueira, thank you. >> ukranian president petro porashenko fired off serious allegations against russia at the u.n. general assembly. the russian delegation walked out wh petro porashenko accused russia of unprovoked aggression and using a veto on the security council as a licence to killment. -- kill:. >> the ukranian portion walked out yesterday when vladimir putin spoke as well. he came out swinging, calling the u.n. charter broken, accusing the security council of undermining world piece and without mentioning him by name left vladimir putin, no doubt what kiev thinks of involvement in eastern ukraine. >> hoping to place the conflict in ukraine atop a long list of priorities, ukraine's president petro porashenko went and spoke to the general assembly and took aim. >> my country has become the october of their external aggression. each time aggressor is the russian operation. >> with no russians in attendance, petro porashenko lobbed a list of grievances at moscow, including veto power, specifically resolutions condemning annexations of crimea and an airlines jet. and accuses

mike viqueira is live for us at the united nations. at is the president hoping to accomplish today? >> well, it's obviously a huge topic of discussion here, a very controversial discussion as we saw in plane view yesterday with the conflict between putin and obama, and whether bashar al-assad should be ousted or bolstered. president obama joining many dignitaries, foreign ministers, we understand that vladimir putin is not going to be here

mike viqueira is live for us at the united nations. mike, what is the president hoping to accomplish today? >> well, it's obviously a huge topic of discussion here, a very controversial discussion as we saw in plane view yesterday with the conflict between putin and obama, and whether bashar al-assad should be ousted or bolstered. president obama joining many dignitaries, foreign ministers, we understand that vladimir putin is not going to be here for this conference. what they are doing is taking stock of the coalition fight against isil, and it goes through many different forms, almost a time line, talking about first of all a very general sense of the state of the coalition against isil. the air strikes have been going on for more than a year, even the u.s. top commanders, randall say the fight is at a stand still. obviously they have had some very high profile successes, notably in iraq where the iraqi army is still struggling to oust them. earlier in the year there was talk of a spring offensive to retake the city of mosul. no one

let me bring in my colleague mike viqueira. yes, mike, he seems a bit confused by the russians' approach. he doesn't like it, but nevertheless this is where we are. because this is where we are, he said basically what he has to do now is to communicate with his russian counterparts to make sure that there is not further conflict and miscommunication between the russians and the americans about what is happening in syria. >> well, you're right. i think you're correct. he was direct. he did not sugarcoat the frustration, the surprise and alarm being felt across the u.s. government in washington clear up to new york where secretary of state kerry is still meeting and spending time with his russian counterparts sergei lavrov. you're--ash carter taking the podium at the defense department at the pentagon today. basically three problems he has with what the russians have done here. when the russians have undertaken these strikes, given the united states just one hour's notice villa the emabout embassy saying essentially to the u.s. f

. >> mike viqueira on capitol hill thank you very much.nd later you will tell us about his comments on immigration, and the tear that came to senator marco rubio on that topic. pope francis called climate change a problem which can no longer be left to future generations. addressessed those concerns again today. >> i call for a courageous and responsible effort to redirect our steps and to eliminate the most serious effect of the environmental deterioration caused by human activities. i'm convinced that we can make a difference. i'm sure. >> and today several environmental groups are in washington for a rally on the national mall to spread a similar message. ashar qureshi was there -- he was there this morning. ashar how are organizers responding to the pope's message on climate change? >> reporter: good afternoon, randall. for months now, the environmental activists have been applauding his views and stance on climate change, and they have been pushing for this to be sort of a springboard to talk about the issue, and try to reach across t

mike viqueira has more from washington. >> this was the moment the white house has been waiting for. a majority of the senate. including four democrats opposed the nuclear deal. their effort to move it forward fell short of the 60 votes needed to stop the filibuster. republicans cried foul. >> over the last several days i heard colleagues supporting the deal saying this deal is flawed, it's not the best, it needs improvement. since when did a bad option in the united states senate become the only option. >> the upshot the deal is in the clear for now. >> this gives me confidence that this is the best opportunity to eliminate the existential threat >>> thursday's vote came after a lobbying effort last week. opponents, and the pro-israel a.p.a.c. group mounted pressure a.p.a.c. group mounted pressure to aid congress. >> voters were urgeed to call barbara and ben. >> col son and mccartney urged them to oppose this deal and tell them we need a better deal >>> thursday mccall ski voted with the white house, cardon voted against the deal. sensing an issue that resonates, with base voters,

we'll go to mike viqueira, who was also taking notes as well. i'm sure you got something that i left out. mike, he seemed to cover a lot of things. i'm not sure how you characterize it. >> i would characterize it as an

mike viqueira has more on that. >> reporter: last week the white house said the europeans had the capacityo handle it. but now as the refugee crisis grows, heightened by graphic scenes of suffering, the u.s. is rethinking its approach. >> it does appear the situation is worsening, and that's why the united states is going to continue to consider additional steps that we can take to help those countries that are bearing the brunth of the burden. >> reporter: the obama administration is quick to point out that the u.s. has given $4 billion to help syrian refugees, more than any other nation. but as the tide swells, the number granted entry into the u.s. has been tiny, compared to some european nations like germany who said it will take in some 800,000 this year. compare that to the u.s. taking in 1500 since the civil war began five years ago. 1300 coming this year. during their civil war, an estimated 4 million syrians have left their homes, most going to neighboring countries like turkey and jordan. now many are on the move. opponents of allowing more refugees into the u.s. say there could

i want to get the take from mike viqueira who has covered speaker boehner for a number of years. mike, you heard libby say this is about respect for the institution, is this a case of your interrelationship and you break up, because you know the other person is about to break up with you, and you want to do it first. [ laughter ] >> reporter: yeah, there is an indication -- and libby has given you a great rundown of the details and what is going through the speaker's mind and a window into the character of john boehner. who wants the job? whether it's kevin mccarthy or something else it is virtually ungovernable. one of the reasons why this is important is because it really illustrates this kasome that has developed in the republican party. there is a group that basically wants to tear down the leadership. wants mitch mcconnell to go, has wanted john boehner to go. the voice of the american people is breaking through in washington, is what they are saying today. we see the deeply divided party. another shutdown fight looming yet again, another debt ceiling fight looming later in t

. >> let's go to mike viqueira, there are still some huge things to get done, never mind the funding of planned parenthood. take us through the next couple of weeks. >> reporter: well, it's sort of an ironic perverse washington way, for the short-term thing that you are talking about to actually get done, because john boehner is now free to depend upon democrats to fund the government while continuing the fu funding planned parenthood. last night i happened to be in the capitol after the pope had spoken, walking by the speaker's suite and there were two dozen reporters camped in the hallways. it turns out that these conservatives -- they call themselves the freedom caucus had been called by speaker boehner for a meet ing. you have got to believe whatever happened in there, colored the judgment of john boehner in making this decision today. i agree with jean, whoever has the job after john boehner has got their work cut out for them to say the least. this stepping down of john boehner who was viewed rightly or wrongly as an establishment figure, and a -- and a symbol of the status quo

mike viqueira is in washington. how has the deal.er mind it hasn't been approved by congress, how that is i can pacte impacted the relp between the u.s. and sauce saudi arabia. >> reporter: you are right. now together sides are trying to turn the page being talk about the did he stable are stabilizing activities in iran, it's a fait accompli. you can see here a picture of president obama emerging from the west wing, this is relatively rare you don't see a president come out and greet a foreign leader or dignitary the way he did today with king salman an indication of how the white house views this relationship with saudi arabia. a vital relationship no question about it. the two men went inside the west wing, went in to the oval office and had a working thereafter. the th the president talked abot the need to cooperate in the war on terrorism. >> we continue to cooperate extremely closely in countering terrorist activity in the region and around the world. including a battle against isis. >> reporter: now, saudi arabia has publicly b

let's go to mike viqueira live at the united nations this morning. mike, president obama and president putin will have to confront a lot of tensions in this meeting, the first in two years. >> it's really remarkable. president obama has given vladimir putin the cold shoulder for a year and a half. if you count a meeting around the d-day commemoration in june of last year, sort of an informal meeting and that one fraught with tension, happening around the time vladimir putin and the russian associated forces, the russian forces sympathetic to russia, backed by russia came over the border in eastern ukraine. the white house western powers have been trying to freeze putin out. there have been a series of sanctions to try to put an economic vice around putin and those closest around him do damage to the russian economy and bring putin to the table. putin's response, no slackening of the activity in eastern crane. over the past few weeks, the fighting has died down, now a bold move by vladimir putin, bolstering bashar al assad in syria, sending in more pla

. >> mike viqueira is in washington. what can we expect in the coming days from the pope and the president? >> well, i think that we have it about right. i mean, there are many issues on which these two men, president obama and the pope, agree. they discussed many of them when the president visited the vatican with michelle obama last march, march 2014. little did we know at the time also on the table the historic meeting between cuba and the united states that pope francis helped to broker. something that came to light after the fact. the issues they have in common and what the white house is stressing on immigration and climate change and on cuba, on income inequality. some of the more contentious issues they don't agree. this is all behind close

mike viqueira, washington. >> back to live pictures of the pope's final mass in cuba before he makes to the united states. this is in santiago, cuba as a basilica dedicated to the patron saint of cuba. all along during his trip, he has been accompanied by huge crowds of people. the pope's visit has led to what is considered one of the largest security operations ever in our nation's capital, new york and philadelphia. the f.b.i. and secret service have been preparing for months, acting out possible scenarios. it is happening as world leaders arrive in town for the u.s. general assembly. ten miles of city streets will be closed down, something never done. we spoke with security consultant, a former secret service agent about those preparations. >> it's not quite there yet and it may not get there in time to make it feasible. >> we apologize. we queued up the wrong sound there. the pope's address in philadelphia is expect to draw crowds in excess of 1 million people. in our next half hour, we will have more about the pope's final day in cuba live from havana. >> republican presidential

mike viqueira is at any u.n. tonight. mike? >> reporter: you are right.t was a public display of acrimony and diplomacy. they met at the end of the day after duelling speeches at the world body. they went overtime, and now both sides are still struggling to look for a way forward on syria. amid open antagonism with president putin, president obama was diplomatic. >> we are facing extraordinary challenges today, ones that test our capacity to work together. >> reporter: there was a chord wall moment when they both toasted the united states. but moments later a metaphor when putin took a phone call at the table. in his speech to the general assembly, mr. obama chastised putin's actions in ukraine and syria. >> the dangerous currents risk pulling us backward. >> reporter: as putin now makes his play in syria with the backing of jets, tanks, and military support. >> in accordance with this logic we should support tyrants like bashar al-assad who drops barrel bombs to massacre innocent children because the alternative is surely worse. >> reporter: still he sai

mike viqueira joins us at the white house. >> what was the atmosphere like after the pope arrived? >> it was low key, notwithstanding the fact that the president and the first family and the children and the president's mother-in-law was there, and jill biden. what americans are about to see up close in the next two days is an individual who condemned blameness, materialism within western society. >> reporter: bidding farewell to cubans along packed streets. hours later he arrived outside washington. prepared to greet him on the tarmac, president obama and the first family. joe biden and his wife jill. the 78-year-old skipped a ride in a limo. from there pope francis arrived at the embassy in washington. it's expected to be a quiet evening for the pope, a trip to the white house on wednesday morning. >> i'm looking forward to the opportunity to welcome him to the white house tomorrow morning. and most looking forward to the opportunity to visit within the oval office. >> there'll be pomp, ceremony and potential for controversy. >> president obama and the pope met at the vatican. fr

. >> mike viqueira in washington. >>> now talks aimed at ending the war in yemen takes place next week. the u.n. says representatives from the houthis, yemeni government and the general people's congress will take part. the violence continues. a soldiers from saudi arabia was killed during a cross-border gunfight. and sanaa was rocked by a series of air strikes by the saudi-led coalition. they appeared to target a weapons depot, and houses belonging to houthi leaders. >> an astounding discovery in a south african cage. bones of an unknown relative. he'll talk to a lead researcher. and protests in india, angry grouds demand that a saudi arabia diplomatic accused of rape is stripped of diplomatic immunity. the only way to get better is to challenge yourself, and that's what we're doing at xfinity. we are challenging ourselves to improve every aspect of your experience. and this includes our commitment to being on time. every time. that's why if we're ever late for an appointment, we'll credit your account $20. it's our promise to you. we're doing everything we can to give you the best ex

mike viqueira joins us from washington tonight. and good evening, mike, republicans seemed united in the deal but does that really matter? >> reporter: good to see you, erika. the white house has a solid opposition from republicans, and the democrats are trying to find a way around. today, washington took on the air of political theater. when it comes to the vote in congress, it may be all over but the shadow. >> this deal with iran and a disaster >> reporter: but now the iran deal is a hot button in the presidential race, and on wednesday, it led to the capitol steps. >> we are led by very, very stupid people. >> reporter: republican contender, donned donned joined force was the rival, senator ted cruz, to attack the deal by a rally by the tea party and other opponents. >> if iran gets a nuclear weapon, the single greatest risk, they would take that nuclear weapon and put it on a ship in the atlantic and fire it up straight in the air. >> reporter: but they weren't the only contenders ta weigh in. democrat >> reporter: hilliary cli

. >> mike viqueira, thank you. >> and with the waves of people fleeing conflict zones, the white house said that the u.s. is willing to take in more refugees from syria. >> this year, the fiscal year that will end this month, the united states is on track to take in about 1500 syrian refugees. the president has directed his team to scale up that number next year, and he's informed his team that he would like them to accept at least make preparations to accept at least 10,000 syrian refugees in the next physical physical. >> but human rights groups say that the u.s. needs to do nowhere. they issued a statement in part, it's barely a token contribution given the size and scale of the global emergency. resettling 10,000 syrian refugees is only a drop in the bucket. the group went on to say that the united states needs ta comprehensive global initiative to improve access and protection for refugees and asylum seekers. it's getting tougher for refugees to travel across europe. austrian railways says that it has suspended service between hungary and austria because of a massive overload. but

mike viqueira is with us in studio. >> the fall out does continue. ththe day after president obama and his russian counterpart vladimir putin clashed on the world stage, it is still unclear what is russia's role in the fight against isil, and what they put aside their differences in what to do about bashar al-assad. >> the subject was countering isil. president obama said that the fight would be wrong. >> isil will eventually lose because it has nothing to offer but suffering and death. >> but if is the short term that is now in question. the sudden move to support bashar al-assad with military might. and the dueling speeches at the general assembly has changed the equation. they went over time but yielded no concrete adults. putin again rejected calls for assad to go. >> i relate to my colleagues with great respect, but they're not citizens of syria, so she should not be involved in choosing the leadership of another country. >> tuesday concerned only about losing it's last toe hold in the middle east. this as president obama acknowledged set backs

met him at saint andrew, the diplomatic mission to the u.s., senior washington correspondent, mike viqueira is at the white house, and it's a pretty big day in dc, mike. >> reporter: so far, you're absolutely right, richelle. pope francis is known for his lack of attention, and worldliness in a throw away kurt. and now as he goes to washington this afternoon, americans are about to see a new kind of pope in both substance and style up close. bidding farewell to cubans on packed streets. after four days on the communist island, pope francis makes his first trip ever to the u.s. hours later, he arrived outside of washington, at st. be andrews, the president on the tarmac and the first family and vice president bide and not jill. he skipped a ride in the limo, climbing instead into the back of a fiat. the president's visit to washington, it's expected to be a quiet evening for the pope, for his trip to thehous to whit. >> to be able to welcome him to the white house tomorrow morning, and most importantly, to visit with him in the oval office. >> reporter: the anticipated arrival for pope franc

mike viqueira joins us now, and tell me more about what happened at this compass. >> reporter: well, the fallout over syria continues over the violent clash between the two leaders in the violent stage of the assembly and the question now, what is russia's role against isil. and can president obama and vladimir putin put behind their differences, on such open display yesterday about what to do about bashar al-assad. the council with more than 100 countries, president obama said the fight would be long. >> isil will eventually lose, because it has nothing to offer but suffering and death. >> reporter: but it's now the short-term has now in question. russia's sudden support of bashir al at add with military might has taken the white house by surprise, and the general assembly speech has changed the equation. monday night, the two leaders we want overtime. but yielded no concrete resorts. putin said that russia will attack isil. but rented the call for assad to go. >> i relate to my colleagues with great respect, but they are not residents of syria, and they should not be involved with

. >> now leader pelosi is catholic as is speaker boehner, and as we heard mike viqueira say, yesterday was a momentous moment in speaker boehner's life. so the timing is certainly significant. you saw so much emotion on his face. he is known for someone who is not really able to hide his emotions, and you have to wonder what was going through his head as he heard what the pope talked about in terms of putting aside bickering and getting along. this speaker could have been successfully challenged for his leadership. but it may have just not been worth it to him anymore. he did an interview a couple of weeks ago in which he said garbagemen get used to the smell of garbage, prisoners get used to being prisoners, in reference to trying to lead this caucus, he compared it to basically being a garbageman. and republicans are starting to react and we are catching comments from members of congress as they walk the halls here. people like representative huls camp who said people were shocked and stunned. paul ryan someone who folks think will eventually rise to ranks in the house, he says we wi

mike viqueira, washington. >> what have you seen on the border in hungary and describe what is happening behind you, as well. >> what you see behind me here, those are dozens of refugees along with the police on the border. they are waiting on a bus to take them. they've been told that they will be going to hungary's border with austria. there is confusion at this hour on if they will be taken to a refugee camp here first, fingerprinted and then taken to the border, just underscoring how confusing the situation remains here on the ground, but the prevailing sentiment that i've come across today is one of real fear when it comes to the refugees. they are very concerned about the treatment that they will receive here in hungary. i spoke with several young men coming from iraq about an hour ago, just about a mile down the road. they actually turned back and went back into serbia, because they heard so many horrific tales about treatment of refugees in hungary. we spoke to some saying they are treated well, getting food, water, medical attention, but there really is a sense of desperation he

mike viqueira is there. mike, you've been in the thick of things today. the pope has already spoken twice today as we mentioned weighing in on major issues facing america and the church. >> i think it's important to note as we wait the pope's emergence in upper northwest washington and making his way across town to the shrine of the immaculate conception, the basilica there, this is the first time pope francis has been in the united states as pope but in the united states ever in his entire existence as a human being. the first thing out of his mouth, the first public speaking was not in his native tongue speaking in public. he took on any major issues. if anybody thought he was going to tone it down or be more traditi traditional, as some people within the church would like to see him do, he quickly dispelled any thoughts that was going to happen. he took on the issues and shared values as it happens and the shared goals with president obama talking about the gap between rich and poor. talking about religious and civil liberties around the world. particu

senior washington correspondent mike viqueira has more. >> reporter: the subject was countering isil. convening a united nations kwefrngs of more than 100 countries. president obama said the fight would be long, but the outcome is not in doubt. >> by terrorists and tyrants throughout history, isil will eventually lose because it has nothing to offer but suffering and death. >> reporter: it's the short term now in question. russia's sudden move to support al assad with military might caught the white house by surprise. the open clash between mr. obama and vladimir putin in duelling speeches at the general assembly changed the equation. monday night a meeting of the two leaders went overtime but yielded no concrete results. speaking later, putin said russian forces will attack isil, but putin rejected calls for assad to go. >> translator: i relate to my colleagues the american and french presidents with great respect, but they aren't citizens of syria so they shouldn't be involve in chooeding the leadership of another country. it is syria's business. >> reporter: they're concerned only