he spoke with mike allen and ben white. this is 55 minutes. >> base and gentlemen, please welcome to the stage mike allen and ben white. >> good afternoon. welcome to this year's first book launch. time in thist amazing setting at the hamilton. i have alongside me ben white.

mike white is a seller and i don't want to buy from him. he paid no fee and there is a collar here and we'll watch the stocks. it has held up well since it first started. look at the ten year. it is a great ten year piece of pain. today it is breaking down a bit as you see there. and they are doing a lot of equity. i asked again why not use more cash because the cost of the debt is so low. you are issuing equity and the belief is the balances are you are going to spend $9 billion this year and that spectrum being freed up by the fr broadcasters and they are going to pay $21 billion a year. so, he is making sure that he's got in his words plenty of fire power that is the word he used for me. i saw numbers being bumped for 2016. final pound here dish we'll keep an eye on here as well. >> it confused us all the time. >> that's right. probably shouldn't have done that. >> what will he choose to do? >> he has watched two of his partners get together. directv was thought of as a possibility. would he want to double down in a slowing business with

i hear how motivated at&t is to do the deal but mike white seems anxious to sell.se he's gotten all he can out of this franchise. i don't want to buy from mike white. i want to sell with it. if you own directv, you should, too. stick with cramer. we believe oug the competition tomorrow requires challenging your business inside and out today. at cognizant, we help forward-looking companies run better and run different - to give your customers every reason to keep looking for you. so if you're ready to see opportunities and see them through, we say: let's get to work. because the future belongs to those who challenge the present. carsthey're why we innovate. they're who we protect. they're why we make life less complicated. it's about people. we are volvo of sweden. >>> yes, i am a believer in penney and not just because i shop there and like the fact that the stores look the way they used to. there's still some of that expensive merchandise there. don't worry about it. always a bull market somewhere. i promise to find it for you here on "mad money." see you tomorrow

mike viqueira at the white house, will this satisfy the critics or just stoke the fires?>> reporter: well, i think for the timing, the critics will be mollified. and shinseki, it's not often that the white house will allow an outgoing cabinet secretary to make a parting speech. and that for sometime by secretary shinseki, the white house had to sign-off on that. they knew the choreography, and they knew that they were going to be calling shinseki here to the white house immediately after that speech and the course that the events would take. and they offered shinseki the opportunity. and i think it's a very significant sign of respect from the president to shinseki, and the president saying several times that he has great respect enter him and he considered him a friend and good man. he said i can't explain the lack of integrity among some of our leaders in the healthcare facility. it's a breach of trust. and i will not defend it because it's indifferencable and we know what happened in the hours following those comments. >> mike viqueira at the white house. and we contin

mike white, you are so right.d what he's doing in latin america, despite the punitive government downs there is incredible. this could be a way for at&t to get back away from just being domestic. so i feel like the ac kwigs, only because the toehold provided the governments there become a little more open minded so to speak. >> it's not going to be the technology that replaces cable at this point eater? >> no. but there's still growth. someone was on earlier saying listen, who knows if it grows. it's amazing it does grow. they keep signing people up. i keep thinking doesn't everybody already have cable or satellite? it's not a bad acquisition if you're at&t and stymied. notice how the stock has gone 34 to 36 the whole time they've been talking. david faber has been talking about this deal three weeks. it amazes me when the journal reports it and the guy next to me has been saying that. where have you been is this that's okay. i don't think it's bad and mike white wouldn't do it if he didn't think there was more va

. >> the white house correspondent is in washington and mike, the white house saying this is the most comprehensive report out on climate change ever, and what is president doing to push it? >> they can go around congress and congress is not going along with any new legislation to address global warming and coal fired pollution and that is a thing that the president is going to do through the epa. the president called this a year of action and new regulations and proposing new regulations on the power plants and this country relies on coal for half of the electric supply. you can't have this discussion without the keystone pipeline and many on the left and the movement is pushing him to reject it and the white house is putting it off until after the midterm elections and democrats are going rogue on this in congress and a debate in the senate about the pipeline and democrats from the conservative states, alaska, arkansas pushing forward to build to construct that and it is up in the air. the president is using the bully pulpit and hosting at the white house, granting a series of inter

. >>> our white house corresponder mike viqueira in washington and mike, the white house saying thisthe most comprehensive report on climate change ever produced. so what exactly is the administration going to push this report? >> reporter: a lot of this is the bully pulpit the president and his staffer will put this issue you front and center not only today but throughout the week, but when you talk about what the white house can do in the face of a congress that is full of republican -- those are the republican sides who are climate change not only deniers, but skeptics as well the president's handsome what limited. one major thing think doing down the pike in a few weeks that will be very controversial, del, new regulations givenning the coal-fired plants. the majority of this country for consumer use comes from coal plants and you cannot talk about this issue you without talk you go about the controversial keystone pipeline, of course the administration putting on of that decision again. this time until after the midterm elections at least sometimes after the elections coming up

mike viqueira is at the white house. , bring us up to date on what is happening right now. >> reporter: in the last 48 hours we have seen an about face and a change of heart from the democrats on benghazi that republicans had been clamoring for. speaker boehner appointing a committee about three weeks ago. but up until yesterday nancy pelosi said democrats were not going to be participating. she had held back any direct answer. seven republicans, five democrats were her objection. she want to give republicans the stage alone, they would be attacking, centering their fire on hillary clinton and no one has to be reminded that she is the front runner to run for president in 2016. and that's what though advocating stays off in the beginning had anticipated. and now john kerry subpoenaed to testify about benghazi. this coming to us villa reuters. he will be testifying before this benghazi committee at a date yet undetermined if the committee according to reuters withdrawals its subpoenas. so some developments that rep sent a c

my light -- mike white might be more amenable. >> that is a fair point.ng to be interesting to see what charlie's next move is. everybody is talking about his interest in t-mobile. not shied away from acknowledging his interests. he is going to be potentially leading the next transaction. >> felt more to come. thank you so much, jon erlichman, our bloomberg west coast correspondent. and to paul sweeney. the at&t-directv combination will be a hot topic facing fcc chairman tom wheeler on capitol hill this morning. he can expect a grilling over has just proposed new internet rules on net neutrality. peter cook on the hill with more. it is going to be a challenging morning for wheeler but he seems to be used to it. bracing for ae tough morning on capitol hill. he knows it is coming and he has offered a spirited defense of his actions at the sec over the last couple weeks. expect nothing different today from tom wheeler when he testifies in front of the house energy and commerce subcommittee that has jurisdiction over the fcc. his first trip to this subcommitt

. >> mike viqueira for us at the white house. mike, there are serious allegations beyond cooking the books. what is the president saying about it, and what is the president going to do about it. >> reporter: this is galling for president obama and this is an issue president obama has been talking about since he was senator on the committee of veteran's affairs in the senate, campaigning on his pledge to reduce the wait times in the va. these are chronic problems, they go back decades if not generations. the president has thrown money at these programs, yet the wait persists and many are calling on the president to fire his va secretary erik shinseki. let's listen to nor of what the president had to say. >> he has put his heart and soul into this, and i said to him today, i want to see what the results of these reports are, and there is going to be accountability. >> reporter: rob neighborrob nan disattached. accused of cooking the books, showing that veterans only had to wait 14 days to make an appointment and getting in to see a

infrastructure going nowhere, gridlock, it all comes together. >> reporter: really. >> mike viqueira for us at the white house. mike, thank you. >>> congested roads are a big problem coming up later this hour. science and technology correspondent jake ward tells us may not be new roads but how we organize cars on existing roads. >>> hillary clinton prepares for a 2016 presidential campaign, the debate over her health and how that debate started. >> reporter: tony, the new york post reported that george w. bush's former political adviser spoke to a republican audience and repeatedly suggested that hillary clinton may have suffered brain injury two years ago. she did fall. she suffered a concussion and spent four days in the hospital from a related blood clot, but he exaggerated the amount of time spent in the hospital and said, we need to know what is up with that. >> reporter: newt gingrich went even further, quote, i'm total opposed and deeply offended by karl rove's comments about secretary clinton. i have policy disagreements with hillary, but this personal charge is what is wrong with american polit

secondly is mike white really done? i mean mike white is fabulous. came from pepsico, doing a great job, is he finished? >> no. he may be. or may be a sign they think listen this is not a growth business at this point, jim. you know that. and you don't have that second path for broadband. that's kind of an issue, isn't it? >> yeah. apple -- >> along -- >> go ahead. >> sorry. >> along with the board and mr. white, when you get an inquiry coming in you hire your bankers and do a good deal of thinking about whether this would be right time to return significant value to shareholders and may be taking stocks so they'll get opportunity to participate in the merged entity although at&t is still mostly about wireless even with this deal. you know, we'll see. if they announce it i will be curious to see how the stocks react. with it out there hasn't been that hard on at&t'ses stock at this point but it is interesting to watch the strategic decisions or considerations that they are currently undergoing. >> directv has been up 12% for the month. >> $69 in janu

mike viqueira joining us live from the white house. mike, thank you for joining us this afternoon. >> boko haram's leader has threatened to sell the school girls in the market. they have done more to rescue the girls and end gender-based violence in that country. a spokesperson at women for women international. amber, thank you for joining us. >> thank you for having me. >> give us an idea, amber, what it's like to be a female in nigeria. >> it depends on where you are, michael. it's challenging for women, particularly women in nigeria are unable to access education, which is the pathway to find employment to support themselves and their families. and the struggle is really seen when you look at where you live in m nigeria. in the rural parts of nigeria 10% of girls and women are seen as having access to education. throughout the country is roughly 55%. the experience of having access to formal education is very difficult. the majority of women we work with, we've trained over 50,000, and to give you an idea of their lives and the suppo

still need to be worked out as to whether there should be a breakup fee and a possible role for mike whiteke a look at the trading. gosh, those numbers are small. after hours, directv higher by just under 6%. >>> scott, thoughts on this? >> again, it's interesting what's happening here. this looks like it might be a deal that isn't going to be rejected by the board in the same way that we have the astrazeneca rejection. 20% yeemium? not a great premium. i would be surprised if there wouldn't be push back, friendly push back saying you have toive good us a bit more than that. 20% is at the low end of the range where m&a deals tend to take place. the other issues on this one, one of the things that actually really matters is in fact what happens to the management. look at publicis/omnicom. that fell apart because two ceos couldn't figure out who would sit in the corner office. >> they were saying the people below them couldn't figure it out. >> we know what that always means. so i think that issue that you just mentioned is in fact a very, very key one. >> yes. >> it isn't just him. is also

brahimi will step down, coming as the head of the syrian national council makes a visit to the white house. mikeiqueira joins us. good to see you. who is mr jaaba and who is he meeting with at the white house. >> fully years ago president obama first, after some hesitation, called for the ouster of bashar al-assad, since that time it's been one bad news after the next. bashar al-assad's forces have the upper hand on the battlefield as well. allegations from human rights watch and others that there has been a series of barrel bomb attacks. homs has been turned back to bashar al-assad. the humanitarian crisis, ghastly as it may be continues, and the geneva petitions process appears to have fallen apart. against the backdrop the president comes to washington. he's been with a week, met with secretary of state john kerry publicly last week. today more hush, hush. a scheduled meeting with the national security advisor, susan rirks the white house -- susan rice, the white house letting it know that president obama may drop by, all informal, not high profile. and some press officers telling me moments

the white house says if we don't act we'll have a multibillion tab, and many problems will be irreversible. >> thank you. talk of climate change fires up party activism. mikeiqueira is at the white house with more. it will not be easy for president obama to change some people's minds on capitol hill, does it. >> you are right. the die was cast. the partisan's lines were drawn. the cap and trade legislation put forward. a lot of promise, the white house was hopeful, it failed and many think it cost democrats seats over the long firm. we had a situation where democrats from louisiana, arkansas, alaska, in the senate are pushing things like the keystone pipeline. it is pushed by the conservative democrats, going rogue against the president. they gave a series of interviews to meteorologists and he talked about some of the recalls trants that he met in congress over the course of the last six years. >> we have been signing this for the last five years. you've seen some of the resistance from congress. part of the reason for putting forward the assessment, involving hundreds of people, experts, businesses, not for profits and local communities sharing their exp

mike viqueira joins us from the white house with more. >> let's go flow some of the biggest races on a big day in american politics kentucky was the match up. mitch mcconnell beat back a challenge from his right, businessman matt bevin, with 60% of the vote. he'll case connecticut secretary of state alison lundergan grimes a democrat in a tight and expensive race in the fall. in georgia, it's bad news for tea party conservatives in the go senate. at this hour the two most conservative, five republican candidates are praling badly, david perdue, and jack kingston are leading. karen handell is in the mix. for a right to face democrat michelle nunn. in pennsylvania new coming tom wolf beat allyson schwartz, a sitting member of the house of representatives, to take on tom corbett in november. in arkansas, mark prior won the primary as the conservative representative, tom cotton, they'll go head to head in a race that could determine who owns the senate. tea party-backed republicans are expected to fall short in races for the senate and congress. have you to say it's been a tough day for

mike viqueria, al jazeera, the white house. >> when modi's victory became clear he sent out a messageg, india has one. quickly becoming the country's most retweeted post. modi gave wide speeches via lologram. it broke a guiness book world record. at the bottom of the hour, india's co consul general are wl meet with me. >>> police in turkey moved against protesters who took to the streets of somma today, protesters insist that negligence was a factor in the mine disaster. claimed the turkish government and the mine credit% deny. ukraine where organized groups of miners and steel workers have banded together to take back eastern ukraine cleaning unbarricades set up by pro-russian separatists. kim vanel has the latest from mariopole. >> these steel workers say they refused to see their are city torn apart. working alongside police to regain control of the streets. >> translator: because people vems need to stand up and create order in the city. because we are responsible for the city, no one will come and help us and if murderers appear you captain get rid of them. >> reporter: mariopole

mike viqueira is standing by at the white house. mike, 60% of clinics were cooking the books. in the wake of that, could the secretary stay on board? >> reporter: it was 64%. nationwide. remember, this scandal started in phoenix. there was yet another report on wednesday that started this firestorm that culminated in the events of this morning. but that report were wednesday said in 1700 cases in phoenix alone veterans were shown to have appointments when they were never able to see a doctor. as you said, cooking the books. events really culminated in erik shinseki delivering his interim report in person and offering his resignation. as you just heard the president say he accepted that resignation. why? because this had just become such a firestorm. in congress there were many democrats who had joined republicans and it could not be seen as a partisan witch-hunt. this was bipartisan. a veteran who had lost both le legs, and now a congresswoman from the president's home state of illinois. she herself joining the chorus. the president and secretary shinseki came to the same conc

our white house correspondent mike viqueira is in washington. what else can we expect to hear from the president today? >> reporter: we can look at today as the third in the three-act play. the president had the surprise visit in the heart of afghanistan over the memorial day weekend on sunday there addressing the troops. some of the 32,000 left there now after a peak of 100,000 at the time of president obama's surge way back in 2011. then we saw the president yesterday, another surprise appearance frankly in the rose garden where he put some flesh on the bones of something he announced long ago, and that was his goal to remove all american combat troops out of afghanistan by the end of the year. what was new? the number that will be left in that residual force you just described by the end of the year, 9800, by the end of next year half that pament and by the end of 2016 a normal embassy force with security personnel of course around him. but then today what's being billed as a major foreign policy speech, the president said yesterday he wants

and mike viqueira is at the white house. it won't be easy for president obama to change things, will it? >> the lines were drawn in the president's first term. remember the cap and trade legislation? the white house was hopeful, and it failed spectacularly, and many think that it cost the democrats seats in the long-term. we have a situation where conservative democrats in places like louisiana and arkansas and alaska are pushing things like the keystone pipeline extension. and that's being pushed by the conservative democrats this week, going rogue against the president. and the president today gave a series of interviews to meteorologists, talking about this, and he met in congress over the course of the last six years. >> in the last five years ago, we have seen some resistance from congress, and part of the reason of putting forward this assessment, which involved hundreds of people, experts, businesses, not-for-profits, and local communities sharing their experiences, is we want to emphasize to the public, this is not s

mike viqueria the white house. >> ranked the most dangerous place to work in america. the survey done 50 afl-cio points to north dakota's booming oil and gas industry. workers are flocking there for high risk high paying jobs. the death rate has doubled over the past be seven years. there are 18 deaths per 700 workers. compare that to texas which has only 5 deaths per thousand. >>> millions are out of work and including many young people. in sacramento looking for job is taking a toll on some. melissa chan has the story. >> brian has spent the past year looking for a job and has had absolutely no luck. >> it's been a struggle and i've been looking for a job and put in applications and gotten virtually no responses. >> he now lives with his mother. >> i felt bad for him. you know i've always raised him to be very independent. and it's hard to do that if you can't support yourself. >> my mom's been wonderful. without her support, i might be -- dare say i might be homeless at this point because my mom's been so supportive. she's allowed me to stay here virtually rent free

lisa said a white male came into the bar and sat next to mike. she had never seen the man before. >> i assumed he knew michael because why would he when there's empty seat fwos right next to him and amade the man a scotch and water and michael said, lisa, this is so-and-so. he's a nurse at st. vincent's. >> when she left the bar, michael and this man were still there. no one saw the two men leave the bar together. >> the detectives asked me for a nachlt i said it was like john or mark. a very common name. but i didn't really remember a name. i remembered a face. >> so investigators created a composite sketch based on lisa's description. but even lisa knew finding him wouldn't be easy. hey, razor. check this out. listen up, thunder dragons, it's time to get a hotel. we can save big on killer hotels with priceline express deals. somewhere with a fitness center? hey you know what man, these guys aint no dragons. they're cool. these deals are legit. yeah, we're cool. she's cool. we're cool. i'm cool. hey, isn't that razor's old lady? not anymore. pri

the white house is not trying to bring it up. >> mike viqueira at the white house, thanks as always. >>> southeastern florida is considered a vulnerable area in the united states when it comes to the impact of rising sea levels. ' and other areas are --' and other areas are taking steps. engineers in florida have a big project keeping the water out. natasha ghoneim is there. >> reporter: i'm standing on a major road on miami beach after high tide and a heavy rain. i would be standing up to my shins in floodwater. that's why there's a massive work under way, installing drainage pipes, elevating the road six inches in an attempt to alleviate flooding in the future. an expert said these efforts are for naught. >> reporter: more than 1200 miles of picturesque coastline lure people to visit and live in the sunshine state. one day it will be washed away by the ocean. scientists say it's not a matter of if, it's when. >> we are really living on borrowed time. we'll gj enjoy it. i can't appreciate the overexuberance for building. >> geologist harold wanless refers to the boom. he has been wa

he spoke with mike allen and ben white. this is 55 minutes. >> base and gentlemen, please welcome to the stage mike allen and ben white. >> good afternoon. welcome to this year's first book launch. time in thist amazing setting at the hamilton. i have alongside me ben white. >> no one can do that, mike. >> welcome all of you and live stream land. we appreciate you joining us. host timcited to geithner. book, to talk about his "stress test: reflections on financial crises." copies are available in the back. i would like to thank bank of america for making these conversations possible. onappreciate the partnership this form to talk about the issues that matter most in washington. we thank them for their continued support. >> thank you everyone for being here. it is exciting for me to see people eating at these events which is sometimes a rarity. i hope everyone enjoys their lunch. went to urge people that have questions -- you can send them to us at #playbooklunch. i did pay for this at barnes & noble in new jersey. [laughter]

. >> randall in washington, and we have our white house correspondent, mike viqueira in washington as well. and mike, there have been many scandals in washington. obamacare, and benghazi and this one has legs. >> you're right. it has not been seen as a partisan principal like benghazi. or obama obama. >> i have to cut you off. >> shinseki has presented me with the review of the facilities nationwide. and what they found was that the misconduct has not been limited to a few va facilities, but many across the country. it's totally unacceptable. our veterans deserve the best. they have earned it. and last week, i said if we found misconduct, it would be punished and i meant it. secretary shinseki has begun the process of firing many of the people responsible, including the senior leaders at the phoenix va. he has canceled any bonuses this year for senior executives, and he has ordered the va personally contact every veteran in phoenix waiting for appointments, to get them the care it they need and deserve. this morning, i think that some of you also heard rick take a truly remarkable act

mike viqueira is live at the white house right now. give us a breakdown of america's speech. >> reporter: part reconciliation and part rebuttal to the president's critic who is have been vocal, and it's not just criticism of president foreign policy, criticism o. the president said while america continues to be the indispensable nation, we need to partner with those against those who break international law. he announced a $5 billion fund for countries to partake in training around the country. he talks about working with congress to assist syrian rebels fighting bashar al-assad. let's listen. >> a critical focus of this effort is the ongoing crisis in syria. as frustrating as it is, there are no easy answers, no military solutions that can eliminate the terrible suffering any time soon. as president i made a decision that we should not put american troops into the middle of this increasingly sectarian war. i believe that is the right decision. that does not mean that we should help the syrian people stand up against a dictator who bom

. >>> the leader of syria's opposition spent this afternoon at the white house. mike viqueria is live there . what have we learned about the closed-door talks? >> it's interesting, with the white house and president obama, mixed feelings, and certainly reluctant to embrace one side or the other in the opposition. this was billed as a meeting between the president and the opposition with susan rice, thish national security adviser, but they held it in the roosevelt room, which is just next to the oval office. what we have learned from the white house, they reaffirmed that president obama has support for the moderate opposition, and they reaffirmed the support for the political opposition, and ridiculed that president hasad and his regionim, they called him a parody. >> a lot of fanfare surrounded jarba's meeting with secretary of state john kerry last week . why did president obama just drop in? >> that's a great question, three years ago this summer, president obama said that bashar al-assad had to go, and now he has dropped chemical weapons, and the administration ha

mike viqueria, al jazeera the white house. >> he's one of the most wanted and despised men in the world, the warlord joseph kony. are waged a war against the ugandan can government. for years no one knew where he was hiding but now that could be hidings, but now, that may be changing. kristin saloomey reports. >> he has been hard to find in the dense jungles of west africa. but now a new report on the location of he and his men. >> to make sure that kony himself is removed from the field. so thatidps refugees can all go back home and live in peace. >> they are believed done split into several highly mobile groups in central african republic and the democratic republic of congo. senior lra leaders are believed to be why in central africa prung and kony and oarts central leaders may be seeking safe haven. between the streamp central earve republic an south sudan. terrific nature of kony's crimes resulting in tens of thousands killed and over a million displaced, many raped and maimed. countless children were forced to kill and mutilate their own families and then turned into kony's person

did this story read like mike white, the fabulous ceo, i believe, at directv, is saying hey, we're opent could be. i don't know where -- i can't tell you where the leaks come from. you wonder why they want it out there. it's hard to gauge the seriousness of these discussions. everybody looked at everybody. one person said to me, these are books that you blow the dust off of them. >> right. >> because they've been around so long. these approaches in the past have been made. and they've gone nowhere. a directv deal would be a very large deal. white have significant synergies, bring cash flow to the company, but bring it into a business that's mature. that's not going to necessarily provide a great deal of growth. >> why would you want latin america? >> i don't know. >> the confiscatory environment is not talked about. take a look at the numbers for venezuela. argentina has become a closed off state. brazil is deeply troubled. why do i want that expand -- >> all good questions and i think shareholders will have those questions as well. we'll see what develops, if anything develops, and it'

reports the unit patrolling near the white house were pulled off of their post in 2011 to protect an administrative assistant who worked for the agency's then director. mike vick vick viquiera is at the whitehouse. >> another black mark on an agency that once enjoyed a spotless reputation. the allegation: secret service agents pulled off their white house posts and sent an hour away top patrol the home of their director's assistant. within hours of the report, there were calls for another congressional inquiry into the elite agency. >> you have to ask if there is a leadership culture that needs to be ripped out at the secret service. >> the washington post reports that in june, 2011, as president obama was about to board marine 1 on the south lawn, two prowler agents were ordered to laplaita marilyn, home of lease a jope. she had a dispute with a neighboring family and fet threatened. she happened to be the administrative assistant to mark sullivan, then the director of the secret service. >> when you have someone removed from a post who is primary responsibility is to protect the president and the white house's occupants, that is very, very concerning. >

they show that the white house and not just the cia know acting director mike morel took part in the alteration but the white house, highest levels in the white house altered those talking points to remove references to al-qaeda, to it being a terrorist attack and for the crass political purpose of shielding a presidential campaign. >> many of your former colleagues in the cia where you work, i am curious of how they reacted to the fact they were scrape goated through the whole process and it was their fault and they changed the talking points and they said don't send anyone in and change the security, i have to think that there are people deep in the agency who are utterly frustrated and angry they are blamed for things over which they had no control. could you speak to that and tell me is that an accurate assess am? >> i have been out of the cia for many years, i would expect many good and patriotic people serving there that are frustrated by what happened in libya and in benghazi. i would have to say in in addition to the talking points which the cia participated, think about the r

iwe'll go to mike viqueira, who is the white house for us. >> reporter: long wait times and cooked books. president obama said if that's what really happened, if that's what really happened then things have got to change. critics say we've heard this all before. heads must roll. with allegations of deception and misconduct mounting. >> if these allegations prove to be true it is dishonorable. it is disgraceful, and i will not 20 tolerate it, period. >> reporter: president obama's angry comment came after he met with his be beleaguered veterans secretary erik sh she kinsey. >> the reports emerged last month of staffers cooking the books submitting phoney documents to make it seem that veterans were receiving timely care when in reality several even died. >> tough words are just not enough when it comes to this issue. we need action. >> but it's not only republicans. the american legion was also critical, respond together president in a statement. the question is this. if the administration had known about these issues for at least four years why is it just now taking action? the legion ha

veteran's wait times were manipulated in 60% of facilities investigated, and al jazeera white house correspondent mike viqueira has been covering this story all day, and mike, the problems at the v.a. hospitals do not end with shinseki's departure. >> reporter: i think the public pressure will go down. the heat, the scrutiny from the press will go off. but these problems are systemic. they are decades old, and many reacting to shinseki's departure. republicans and democrats saying this management structure has to be uprooted, pulled up by the roots and changed from top to bottom. this issue had been cascading. turning into a controversy, a scandal. there were no fewer than two reports outloi outlining the deception and mall feance. some 1700 veterans on the books as having appointments they were never able to see the doctor, and 40 died waiting to do so. now a second report comin coming from erik shinseki and rob nabors, outlining the figure you pointed out. 64% of v.a. facilities nationwide, not just phoenix, experienced the same cooking of the books. shinseki was here at the white house here in pers

our white house correspond, mike viqueria, that is story. mike. >> picking up steam over the last are 48 hours. the problems at the veterans affairs department are decades old, they are systemic but today they cost president obama his one and only veterans affairs secretary, eric shinseki, his ten you a has come to an end. with growing evidence of malfeasance and deception at veterans affairs, president obama had accepted what now became inevitable. >> minutes ago deputy shinseki offered me his resignation. with considerable ro regre regri accepted. >> among the findings, in 64% of those facilities, records were falsified to make it look like veterans were receiving timely care. this after a wednesday report from the va inspector general documenting at least 1700 cases in the phoenix facility where veterans waiting to see a doctor were never scheduled for an appointment. by this morning shinseki was engulfed a full blown fire storm. both men the president agreed he could not be effective. >> with judgment, i think it is his belief that he wo

mike viqueria is at the white house. >> his second trip to afghanistan in two years, fourth overall.ven the press wasn't permitted to are reveal his location until wheels down at kabul. quite some time for months as a matter of fact but it also comes at a critical time now in afghan politics and as far as the security situation there, the u.s. negotiating the status of forces agreement with the new government that's due to come in after the june 14th runoff aof hamid karzai exits office. and then today, after returning, very shortly, just two hours after returning to the white house, north lawn a very solemn ceremony on a brilliant day, at arlington national sell tears. president obama invoking the lives of all who died, world war ii, section 60 where the dead from both iraq and afghanistan wars lie at arlington, hallowed ground there. president obama made reference to the scandal of the va, and he talked and renewed his vow to keep with veterans. let's listen. >> here on these hallowed grounds we rededicate ourselves to our sacred obligations to those who wear the uniform and the fa

mike viqueria, al jazeera, the white house. >>> injustice to juveniles who end up in court.ords show more than half the state's children faced a judge without an attorney by their side. the latest figures available to the national juvenile detention center shows that colorado is one of only 23 states including the district of columbia for providing public defenders for juveniles. other states leave it top local jurisdictions to protect juveniles in court. kim dvorzac joins us from denver. kim, welcome. >> thank you. >> explain how the system worked before the law was passed? >> the system had opportunity to get representation for the hearing where children appear after they're taken in custody. they are often in jump suits and shackles. almost 2,000 children appeared at detention hearings without counsel. >> who makes that decision? >> the decision has been made in part through our legal system. the statute that governs detention hearings have has never explicitly required that counsel be present before today. that is a significant change in colorado. >> do parents play a ro

mike viqueria, al jazeera, the white house. >> snowden remains in russia, his temporary ooh asigh legaluns out in june. obviously he misses america and would like to come home. we just don't see that happening in the near future. and greenwald told me today he thinks snowden might end up spending the rest of his life in russia. snowden appeared on russian television and are asked putin a question. >> i'd like to ask you, the bulk collection of records by intelligence sources. >> putin denied. they wanted to testify about america's surveillance of chancellor merkel's cell phone. coming up next, fallout, how snowden's credit composure of the secrets might have affected al qaeda. >> much more of my conversation with glenn greenwald as our special report, secrets and spying continues. >> that's the voice of edward snowden. the impact of snowden's leaks depends on who you talk to. it changes how the nsa operates and possibly how terrorists do business. more from randall pinkston. >> it was the most shocking revelation from edward snowden'strophy of stolen government secrets. that the nationa

. >> mike duggan is the first white mayor in 40 years.he city was so desperate for a plan to revive it, few cared about his race. 79 dilapidated properties that they need the houses repaired and occupied within six months or watch the city seize the title. >> it's really about stabilizing the neighborhood. they want to set up neighborhoods that are stable, and able to be saved. >> the winning bid of the new program's first home auction did not come from debra levy. >> people at work who knew my situation, with this information. >> the price: $32,000, a fraction of the cost of the average american home. but the points is not to drive up property values. it is to repopulate the urban ghost towns that surround a newly hopeful motor city. john hendren, al jazeera, detroit. >> recapping one of our stories, in eastern ukraine the violence is spreading. the story of slovyansk, saw some of the worst tensions between ukrainian forces and pro-russian separatists. i talked to the are former pment virus zbigniew being brzezinski. >> ing the internati

mike viqueria, al jazeera the white house. >> snowden's temporary asylum runs out in june but one lawyer says it will probably renewed. obviously he misses america and would like to come loam. we just don't see that happening in the near future. and greenwald told me today, he thinks snowden might end up spending the rest of his life in russia. he had a question for vladimir putin. >> i'd like to ask you a question about the mass surveillance online communications and the bulk collection of private records by intelligence and law enforcement services. >> putin denied using nsa-style surveillance. german lawmakers are eager to hear from snowden too. they want him to testify about america's surveillance of chancellor plecialg's cel merke. coming up, fallout, how exposure of secrets has affectthe fight against al qaeda. plus. >> i think everyone recognizes that some target driven surveillance is justified. >> conversation with glenn greenwald, as our special series continues, are secrets and spies. >> spying that effects all of us has been costly. but it is the right thing to do and i have

. >> reporter: mike viqueira live at the white house. take us through the specifics of the troop withdraw. >> reporter: you know, it's been a long time coming. this is a promise that he had made on the campaign trail. and he has been saying all along that the u.s. u.s. combat role s going to end. however, the agreements he hoped to reach with the afghanistan government, how many troops will be left there, and exactly what their mission will be. at the height of mr. obama's afghan surge, the sift had 100,000 troops on the ground. by the time of sunday's surprise visit in afghanistan that number was 32,000. you heard the president say that there would be 9800 troops with that number cut by half by the end of the year and then there will be normal security presence at the embassy office, and 2,184 americans have died in the war in afghanistan. the president making the announcement saying he wants to turn the page. >> the bottom line is it's time to turn the page on more than a decade in which so much of our foreign policy was focused on the

. >> mike duggan is the first white mayor in 40 years. the majority black city was so desperate for a man to revive it few cared about his race. duggan started by notifying the openers of 79 properties that they need to get the houses repaired and occupied within six months or watch the city seize the title. >> it's been stabilizing the neighbourhoods. they want to set up neighbourhoods that are stable and able to be saved. >> the winning bid in the new programme's first home auction did not come from deborah leafy. >> people at work know my situation and slipped me the paper. >> the price $32,000 - a fraction of the cost of the average american home. the point is not to drive up property values, but to repopulate the ghost towns that surround a newly hopeful motor city. >>> do stay with us here on al jazeera. we'll be back with another full bu bulletin of news. >> results of analyses were skewed in favor of the prosecution >> the fbi can't force the states to look at those cases >> the truth will set you free yeah...don't kid yourself >>

mike viqueria has more from the white house. >> there are two critical events coming up and vladimir putin's comments to the international conference in st. petersburg has to be confrontational words for president obama who had accused peupt of not telling -- putin ever not telling the truth. when he was not fomenting rebellion in eastern ukraine. that got the attention of a lot of people but perhaps more significant in putin's comments today, very conciliatory comments, towards may 25th elections, that's the first critical moment coming up on sunday in ukraine. the west has laid down its marker. if putin were to underline those elections then broader sanctions could put into place. putin says he will, quote, respect those elections. decide whether or not to move forward with the broad sanctions they've been threatening for two months now. so putin very conciliatory comments, already said the sanctions in place were taking a deep bite out of the russian economy, not something he's said before. driving a wedge between the europeans and the united states, into imposing much harsher san

white house correspondent mike viqueira joins me now.ike, the president says he's losing patience with climate change deniers, and the gop response to this report appears to be setting up another battle. what are your thoughts? >> i mean that's absolutely right. we saw the senate republican leader who has his own election coming up in november, and virtually the only people who vote in midterm elections and non-presidential elections are the hardcore base motivated supporters, and this is both of those angles. the president has serious problems with those on the left, particularly those who are part of the environmental activist community, they're angry about keystone, he hasn't killed that. and many suspect that he's going to approve it after the midterm elections. they're angry about fracking, and there's almost a panacea to america's energy needs, saying that the united states is going to surpass russia and saudi arabia as top oil and gas producers. we have seen mitch mcconnell on the floor of the senate today, saying that this is a s

mike knows that better than anyone. he's dived with great whites without a cage hundreds of times.e once even caught on a great white's dorsal fins. he insists they are top predators but not the man eating machine so often portrayed in movies. we decided to take him up on his offer to dive with the sharks without a cage. to see the great whites in their natural state. >> what do i need to know before going down. >> whatever you do, don't make fast movements. we're jackal at a lion feed. as long as the jackal behaves he doesn't get killed. >> we're the jackal at a lion feed. >> exactly. >> they will let us be there as long as we don't interfere. >> don't grab a bone and run away. >> the water is filled with chum, fish parts, and blood. a number of sharks are already circling the boat. so it's time to go. to get to the bottom i climb into a cage which is lowered about 20 feet to the ocean floor. mike is already there scouting for any sharks. then he signals for me to swim out. almost immediately my weight belt falls off, struggling with that is the last thing you want to be doing aro