it's all about who turns up richelle. america, the state department especially is pushing very, very hard for these talks to be a success. when ban ki-moon invited them over their heads that made the entire thing pretty pointless. behind the scenes the state department has worked very hard to have those folks uninvited. so now the talks can at least get under way. it's one day, it is a show boat day, everyone's going to be there, lots of photographs, lots of tv cameras and the protest of putting together a traditional government without bashar al-assad can at least begin. and i think that's what the americans, what the state department wanted more than anything. of course bashar al-assad himself is talking about running for a third term and neither the opposition national council nor the regime is happy about any kind of transitional government that has the other side as a part of it. so it's a very long way to go but at least the talks can start, and i think that's what washington wanted more than anything richelle. >> b

>> richelle, there are. in detroit, they are here helping out a lot of people, as you see behind me. and as you can see, the space is getting kind of tight. but they're going to make room, and they're making room because the organization says they will not turn anyone away. overall, there are about 19,000 homeless people here on the streets of detroit. many of these people, they have come here in search of food and warmth. and there's also, on many occasions that the organizers here will actually go out on the streets and look for people who are in harm's way. the goal they say, here at the organization, is to save live beings and save people from the bitterly cold temperatures. i spoke with the president of the organization earlier today and he talked about the overwhelming need this they have seen here in the past couple of days, and i also spoke with a man who is homeless and he said he's grateful that he has somewhere to turn when the temperatures get dangerously cold. take a listen. >> unfortunately, in

back to you richelle. >> thank you.e yoa garcia, last year, california ruled he could be admitted to the state law. he has been waiting 19 years for a green card. a little while ago, i spoke to garcia from his office in chico, california. >> i was superexcited, it was many years fighting for this right and i couldn't be any happier with the decision. especially a 7-0 decision by the chief counsel herself. very, very excited. >> let's talk about how the last few years were, were you concerned that your undocumented status would end up hurting you? >> once this controversy erupted, yes, that was a concern. but prior to that i wasn't concerned, the california state bar had never asked anybody about their status. that was never a concern for me when i was going through law school. once the controversy started yeah, that was a big concern for me and it was a roller coaster of emotions. i didn't know if i was going to be able to practice or not. hi faith that california would do the right thing and take the lead with this lan

john. >> richelle thank you very much.uman trafficking sex slaiftion anslaves andprostitution is a gg problem. according to the nonprofit group free the slaves, there are as many as 30 million worldwide. earlier i sat down with cindy mccain, i asked her how big a problem it is here in the united states. >> we have right now, there's no real data, hard data. we think we know. we know it exists. we don't know how many. the estimate right now is over 100,000 little children, little girls are being moved around just the united states. it doesn't include the women that are of age but are trafficked against their will. it doesn't include the little boys either or the men that are involved in this from a labor trafficking standpoint. it's much -- i think once we have hard data from this we're going to find it's bigger than we think. >> and why target the super bowl? >> it's not targeting the super bowl but the super bowl is a catalyst for a large uptick, the 100 mile limit they are away from their families and things happen. the

>> now to new york where richelle carey is there with more.ichelle, the airport was closed this morning. have they reopened? >> they do. but before i get to that, i think some people sitting at home who are not from boston says it snows in that part of the country all the time. why do we pay so much attention? a few reasons, obviously it's a major financial hub, and major travel hub as well. if this part of the country becomes paralyzed that trickles down to the rest of the country. jfk after being closed for two hours this morning, back up and running. flights are about an hour behind. newark, for flights coming in to newark, those flights are about three hours behind right now, dell. i have an update as well -- you mentioned that there are about a million kids in new york city who were home. they had a snow day. i think i have seen a few of them playing in central park behind me. but the new mayor said he made that chose more because of the cold temperatures. there was a 79 year old woman who wandered away from her house, she has alzheimer's

richelle there you go. barring a last-minute snafu, there can always be one of those, barring a last minute snafu we can have the regime and the syrian national council in the same room. we'll see what they do when they get together. >> to discuss the latest developments now is jeneve abdo, a fellow with the middle east program, at the stinson center a nonpartisan think tank. the latest news that the u.n. has disinvited iran, seems like a positive thing if for no other reason than talks will still happen. will this still be pling ring in the room the fact that this invitation happened? >> yes, of course and also, even though the talks are going forward, obviously the issue of whether president assad remains in power yet is the deal breaker ultimately. so even though the talks will be held, assad has announced as of a few days ago that he is running for reelection. so it doans seem as -- doesn't seem as if he is going anywhere. >> does it seem like this invitation to iran was a good thing ostart with? >> i t

this is what's astounding richelle. if you take the top 85 wealthiest people in the world just the top 85, they control as much wealth as the bottom 3.5 billion people. that's how wide the gap has

we go to richelle carey at columbus circle in new york. look, this cold is nothing to play with. we're talking about a dangerous chill at this point. >> we are, and it's actually getting colder. since we've been out here today. at the park, just in the lat few minutes it dropped to 14 degrees. that's without the wind chill, you know what that means. it's well below zero. of course when the northeast sneezes if you will the entire country feels it. when a snowstorm like this hits the northeast it effects huge population centers. >> almost two feet of snow in parts of massachusetts, up to 18 inches in new york, and parts of vermont the wind chill made it feel 25 below. cold enough to cause frost bite in a half hour. and in maine temperatures are down 34 below. >> reporter: many major highways were closed overnight. flights were delayed or canceled because of the storm. residents were asked to stay home and stay warm. and shelters filled with many who normally sleep on the streets. >> normally we open up three times a day for meals and a lot of our guest also leave afterwards, but w

richelle carey has more. >> the first winter storm of 2014 delivered. almost 2 feet of sydney in parts of massachusetts, 18 in new york, and parts of ramont the wind chill made it fill like 29 below, cold enough to cause frostbite in half an hour. in maine, it's 45 below. >> i'm layered up. >> many major highways were closed. more than 10,000 flights across the u.s. were delayed or cancelled because of the storm. residents in new york city were asked to stay home and warm. shelters filled with many who normally slept on the streets. >> normally we open three times a day for meals, and a lot of guests leave afterwards. what we'll do is keep the doors open all day. it's too cold outside to have people come and eat in leave. >> the mayor of new york encouraged anyone who sees a homeless person out in the cold to call the emergency helpline. >> that was richelle carey's reporting. >> extreme weather conditions across the midwest, where chicago could be facing the coldest weather in three decades. ashar quraishi reports. >> in the chicago area the new year's

eff >> welcome to al jazeera america, i'm richelle carey. here are the top stories: a helicopter accident in the u.k. kingdom. a helicopter crashed and there are four fatalities, it happened near a training mission near clay on the east coast of great britain. a quarter-mile area around the scene has been cordoned off. >> a deadly avalanche at colorado. one has died and three injured. it was triggered outside the ski resort. >> record-breaking coal. arctic air continues to drive across the country.

richelle carey is out there. richelle, how is it out there? >> there's cold and then there's out here. i've been out here most of the take. it's dropped about four or 5°. throughout the day, i do have an update real quick about some of the airports. the major airports, la guardia, kennedy and newark, most delays were about 30 to 45 minutes for a departure. the issue of course is people trying to get into the airport. that's where you want to check if you are headed to any of those airports. some of those delays are up to an hour and a half. it's actually much better than it was. this morning, kennedy was closed for two hours. we knew the snow storm -- i'm cold -- was coming. and boy d, did it hit us. here ask a wrapup. the first winter storm of 2014 delivered. almost two feet of snow in parts of massachusetts.up to 18 inches in new york and parts of new york the wind chill made it seem like 14 below. and in maine the wind chill pushed temperatures down to 45 below. >> i'm layered up. i have four pairs of pants and four sweat shirts. >> many ai

i'm richelle carey. here are tonight's top stories. a new report shows dozens of journalists and medics have been injured by police and protesters. human rights watch says police targeted reporters and medical workers not participating in the protest. >> the u.s. accuses syria of dragging their feet in removing chemical weapons. less than 5% of the stockpile has been turned over. it is possible for syria to meet its obligations, but the threat of military force is on the table. >> federal prosecutors will seek the death penalty against the aid accused boston marth thon bomber. 20-year-old dzhokhar tsarnaev faces 30 charges, 23 of which carries the death penalty or life imprisonment of the the justices department has been authorised to pursue the death penalty. >> an apology from georgia's governor on how the snow storm was handled. thousands were stranded and children spent the night it schools. they'll try to prepare better for next time. >> toyota ordered north america dealers to top selling six popular models. the material on the he

that's it for now. >> richelle, appreciate it. coming up after the break heidi zhou castro reports to us from texas. >> we're looking at the state of the tea party. >> and the state of the union, the president warned about the congress defaulting on the country's debt. they did it once, will more stand offs be in the horizon? >> the official republican state of the union response will come from representative kathy mcmorris rogers of washington state. but the tea party will put out it's own televised response from senator mike lee of utah. heidi zhou castro takes a look at the tea party and whether last year's government shutdown helped or hurt its re-election. >> i do not like green eggs and ham, i do not like them, sam i am. >> that was part of ted cruz's 21 hour marathon speech in the u.s. senate. although opponents belittled his crusade less than a week later the republican-controlled house brought the government to a halt and furloughed 800,000 workers for 16 days. >> when we defund obamacare we'll be happy, happy, happy. >>

i'm richelle carey. here are the top stories.led by a few inches of snow and ice folks in georgia and alabama are trueing to -- struggling to get back to normal. highways were paralyzed. kids were forced to spend the fight at school. >> both sides in geneva said yes to 2012 as a base for peace negotiations. the the u.n. mediator says there's little chance of a breakthrough before both sides head home. >> peter greste's appeal against detention in egypt has been denied. peter greste, mohamed fadel fahmy, and baher mohamed have been held without charge for a month. >> president obama gave speeches in maryland and pennsylvania. he spoke about income and equality and introduced a retirement plan. >> economic jitters drove the dow down almost 190 point. travels emerging abroad on the same day the federal reserve said it would roll back stimulus efforts. those are the headlines "america tonight" is next. you can get the latest headlines on aljazeera.com. thank you for your time. >> on "america tonight" frozen out. atlanta immobilized b

i'm richelle carey. here is a look at the headlines - president obama invited a group of unemployed americans to the white house to push for passage of a bill to extend long-term jobless benefits. the u.s. senate began to debate the measure that if passed it would face tough opposition in the house. >> jpmorgan will pay $2 million to settle allegations that it ignored the bernie madoff uponsy scheme. >> forecasters say the worse of the cold should be over in the next day or two, but the weather is frigid across most of the country. roads are closed, schools shut down by the hundreds and businesses suffered. not even the south has been untoucheded by the cold. most of the countries has not seen temperatures this low in decades. metrologists are encouraging people to stay home. some cities are turning to other options. we go to a warming area in detroit. hopefully there's enough of these warming centres to accommodate all the people who want to get inside. what is the situation? >> there's a few warming sh

richelle carey, al jazeera new york. >> camiko royal, dr.arol, thank you for coming. >> thank you for happening. >> how does this happen to a school district like philadelphia? >> i think it can happen in any of our school districts, any of our schools when we have this sort of climate that says that test scores are the way, the be all end all of achievement. not just for students but for educators as well. i think some people end up feeling like they don't have a choice but to manipulate the scores so they can complaint their professional lives. >> they can say they keep their job, if they don't cheat they keep their job? >> right. >> it sounds tough when you are talking about teachers who are teaching children not to cheat, right? >> well, we would lope that they are teaching children not to cheat but you know that may not always be the case. >> i guess i'm sort of surprised at the widespread nature of something like this. you know one or two teachers but more than 100? >> yeah, i'm not surprised by the widespread nature of it. i think thi

>> welcome to al jazeera america, i'm richelle carey. here are the top stories: a helicopter accident in the u.k. kingdom. a helicopter crashed and there are four fatalities, it happened near a training mission near clay on the east coast of great britain. a quarter-mile area around the scene has been cordoned off. >> a deadly avalanche at colorado. one has died and three injured. it was triggered outside the ski resort. >> record-breaking coal. arctic air continues to drive across the country. thousands of flights from cancelled. by tomorrow temperatures were supposed to rise. president obama called for meetings with lawmakers and intelligence officers for checks in the way the national security agency operates. privacy issues will be the topic when he meets with n.s.a. officia officials tomorrow and lawmakers on thursday. they talk about long-term unemployment tomorrow. if passed it would face opposition in the house. those are the headlines. "consider this" is up next. bsh >> bombshells about washington's most powerful players in a ne

richelle carey has more. >> it is a major cheating scandal to hit a city, and the largest. scores of educators, up to 38, are -- linked to an investigation. it ranges from public to charter schools. it's based on information provided to the reform commission. the allegations surfaced in 2001 after patterns were discovered in standardized tests. they looked at the test scores, classroom by classroom school by school. for instance, huge test score increases from one year to the next. or unusual numbers of erasures of wrong answers to right answers. >> evidence of cheating was reportedly uncovered, noving teachers, principals, administrators, a councillor and security guard. >> they tampered with the booklet or gave improper instructions to students. they did unethical things to inflate the scores, the test scores of students in the philadelphia schools. >> cheating scandals made headlines across america. one in atlanta involving nearly 200 educators. in that instance the focus was on making the scores better so district could receive aid based on the no child left behind. the

i'm richelle carey. here are tonight's top stories. much of the northeast is in a deep freeze the day after a major snow storm blanketed the region. authorities are warning of dangerously low temperatures which are expected to keep conditions icy throughout the weekend. >>> an update in the case of a 13-year-old california girl declared brain dead after tonsil surgery. a judge says jahi mcmath will be moved to a different facility, specifics will be worked out. >>> in washington state, more than 30,000 machinists for boeing, moving production of the new 777x jet liner out of washington state. and sad news. phil everly has died. everly passed away from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. those are the headlines, "america tonight" is next. remember you can always find the stories on aljazeera.com. thanks for your time. and courting once again. downton abbey is back. fervent fans in full character as the dramatic saga continues. >> people who have no brirve british heritage, look to the british as the penultimate of how to look and dre

richelle carey. here are the top stories. u.s.ffice iran's presence in the geneva 2 talks because i.t. has been opposed to the regime. halted their uranium enrichment work. >>> lawmakers are announcing new legislation seeking oversight of above ground storage tanks like the ones that leaked in west virginia. nearly 8,000 gallons spilled into one of the state's rivers. investigates are on the state and federal level on the way. >>> explosions at the nutrition plant in omaha, nebraska, 38 employees inside the building and several are still missing. no word yet on any fatalities. today is martin luther king day, marches parades and ceremonies are taking place across the country, paying tribute to the legacy of dr. king. those are the headlines. al jazeera america presents, thank you for your time. do keep it here.

i'm richelle in new york, and john has the night off. a rising cold snap has a rising toll on the crops. and plus: >> a lot of our friends and a lot of our neighbors have lost their jobs and they're working their tails off every day trying to find a new job. >> restoring benefits. president obama calls on congress to restore assistance to the long-term unemployed. >> . >> on defense, dennis rodman goes to north korea to play basketball and create a new controversy over captive amers

i'm richelle carey. >> i'm stephanie sy. israel's defense minister made some pretty undiplomatic comments about the u.s. secretary of state john kerry who's deny deeply involved trying to negotiate peace between the israelis and palestinian. we're going to talk about that coming up. >> folks in chicago demand action be taken to fix the problem that is leaving their homes covered in black dust. it's tied to the production of ail and now the state's governor is stepping in to put a stop to that problem. in a scene becoming all too familiar, a series of bombings shake iraq. the attacks near baghdad killed at least 58 and injured more than 90. a half dozen or more car bombs exploded today. we are live with details about this violence. what is sparking this violence, these attacks? >> well, that is most basic. it's sectarian in nature. for a very long time, the sunni community have complained that they are frozen out of the political process, their leaders put in secret prisons, giving fuel to a lot of the al-qaeda linked groups

john. >> all right, richelle, thank you very much. joining me now ray suarez, host of "inside story." if many ways this is all about the speech tonight. >> every speechwriter who has worked on a state of the union that i have spoken to has told me revisions are still being made even now inside two hours before the president steps to the lecturn, which is remarkable in its way because these speeches are months in the making. for the writing team it's the super bowl. we talked to former presidential speechwriter michael waldman who said on state of the union night he field like a former player who wants to run out on the field. >> these speeches go through many, many drafts. every word matters so it's possible that they're still fiddling with it and editing it up to the end. president obama gets very personally involved in the writing of it, and i'm sure he's making changes now. >> michael waldman knows a thing or two about the pressure of writing a state of the union speech. >> bill clinton loved this format. >> what should we do with

richelle carey, al jazeera, new york. >> i'm dave warren.his doesn't look like much now but this will come together and create a big storm, intensifying across the coast of north carolina. this is bitter cold arctic air, zero in bismarck, 46 in only haw, all pushing to the south. this cold front dropping south as it runs into the warmer air, it best fiez, fuels storm and a lot of moisture here right off the coast. watch it develop early tuesday, low pressure just off the coast of north carolina, here is the snow and the colder air. it intensifies tuesday afternoon and evening. that's when the snow will be heaviest. really pulling in moisture and a lot of it off the coast. watch, the snow amounts will be a little higher than we're exepg throughout the night tuesday and wednesday. wednesday and thursday it clears out but there's some cold air coming in behind this. the snow amount is what we'll expect. late morning and throughout evening four to six inches of snow, heavier amounts just off the coast where the storm intensifies, getting a lot o

i'm stephanie sy. >> i'm richelle carey. the brutally cold weather is difficult to bear, even more so if you're homeless, it can be deadly then. we'll look at steps one city is taking to make sure they can help people. >> first let's get a look at snow and rain across the u.s. today. >> talking about that cold air, it was another reinforcing shot of all of that. you can see the next front, this isn't even the one that was a snowstorm for the east coast, we've had system after system coming through. not only did it bring the cold air in, but a little moisture to the southern tier of the country. texas and overnight tonight, you have the cold air intersecting the warm. watch for the possibility of freezing precipitation. i'll have more on those temperatures coming up in just a little bit. back to you guys. >> being an 8-year-old has its own share of challenges, but imagine having to experience those growing pains while being homeless. as part of our special series, we spent the day with a girl who knows this firsthand. >> befo

. >> i'm richelle cary. are in israeli to say goodbye to former prime minister sharon, passing away at the age of 85 after spending eight years in a coma. he was honored in a ceremony outside the israeli parliament. the memorial was attended by current israeli prime minute at her netanyahu, a one time political foe of sharon's. vice president joe biden also on hand, calling sharon a complex man who always put his country first. >> prime minister sharon was not only loved by the jewish people, he not only loved them, but he loved the land of israel. >> his body will be buried in a military style ceremony in southern israeli fooling procession from jerusalem. >> that is where our next story is. what's the scene like there. >> good morning, stephanie. you can see and begin to hear behind me, this funeral is about to start and thousands of people are up on that hill to say a final goodbye to the man they used to call king eric for his military victories. he defined the nature of the borders and state. you heard

stephanie and richelle, interesting logic here. everybody involved with this case was what could, killed to keep them quiet. vincent is till alive, proving he couldn't have been involved. >> it's a fascinating story. >> they are planning to go to trial. >> what a blast from the past. thank you very much. >> business headlines right now, on wall street, it could be an ugly start to the trading day, dow futures down sharply, unnerving traders. here's where withstan we stand : >> in asia, shares were mostly lower, concerns over chinese manufacturing linger. nikkei down 2%. european stocks opening mostly lower. >> carl icon is rattling another company, telling the wall street journal he wants ebay to break up. he urges ebay to spin off its pay pal unit, but so far ebay has resisted. he seeks seats on the board and is prepared for a problems sigh fight to win them. >> the infamous wall street firm lehman brothers is still working out deals from bankruptcy, reaching a settlement to pay fannie may more than $500 million. a federal bankrup

i'm richelle carey in new york. john siegenthaler has the evening off.assive winter storm, now bracing for the coldest temperatures to hit the country in decades. fire ball, setting precedent, the first undocumented worker licensed to practice law in the u.s., joins us. >>> plus free ride. buckle up for next big innovation behind the wheel: self-driving cars.

we begin our coverage with richelle carey. she's at columbus circle.an you walk us through this day. i know it was a real pain during the early morning commute, but how are things going in the afternoon? >> reporter: i think it's going much better, you're right, tony, when storms come in often the most difficult is in the morning when plows out are and children are needing to get to school. however, 1.1 million children got out of school for snow day. it is dangerously bitterly cold here in new york city. and of course in boston as well. i know john terrett will have much more on that. that is what went into the decision to cancel school today. i know people sometimes wonder it snows on the east coast all the time. why do we focus so much on the east coast. because what happens here in this population hub, financial hub travel hub what happens here can trickle down and paralyze the rest of the country. i have an update on the three major airport. laguardia has a 30-minute delay. jfk was closed for two hours, open now, so it's progress but that's a 30-m

richelle carey reports. >> >> four more years. that was the promise toronto's mayor rob ford made as he signed up to run for re-election. he was the first candidate to show up at city hall, making international headlines. first by admitting he used drugs. >> yes, i have smoked crack cocaine, explaining that it happened when he was in a drunken stupor. then there was this. >> [ bleep ]. >> everyone outside canada knew who ford was. and the world waited to see what outrageous thing he may say yes. >> this guy has a huge [ bleep ]. >> i'm sorry how i've been acting. it's not indicative of my possession of mayor in this town of toronto. >> hey, man, i have what you wanted. >> hey, let's do it under the desk. >> despite the bad press, he refused to stand down. nor did he when strip of all but his symbolic powers. >> the reason i drank and did drugs was not because of stress, it was because of sheer stupidity. he told city council that he is the best mayor, and promised to un are on fiscal, not personal record. >> everybody drinking and

richelle carey, al jazeera america. >> that fbi break in led to regulations that restricted governmentance on citizens. many of the regulations were active until 9/11. let's take a look at these pictures outside. i think these are pictures of salt lake city. i thought we were going to see the street level. after the arctic blast that hit the lower 48, dave warren is next with a look at the national forecast. >> start with one issue ad guests on all sides of the debate. and a host willing to ask the tough questions and you'll get... the inside story ray suarez hosts inside story next only on al jazeera america >> i'm dave warren. the cold air is trying to clear out of here. the temperatures have warmed up each day and now they won't drop too much tonight. still cold in minneapolis, chicago, here is the warm air coming up from the south right from the gulf, and that is leading to warm air. eastern texas, arkansas, missouri. there is some freezing rain and mix there. that's rain falling in the air which is right about or below freezing. it could freeze when it hits the ground so a large a

. >> richelle carey reports on kids that prove they have the right moves. >> a chilly morning in brooklynstudents filing into school. nothing out of the ordinary on the outside. inside the chess elite from is318. step into the hallway and you are bombarded by banners and trophies, testament to the legacy of the champ yopship chess team. >> they are a legend. winning more titles, 30 and counting, than any other school. >> we are like the lakers and the celtics and the yank ears thrown in. >> what started as an afterschool program in 1999 is a full-blown chess of obsessed culture of the the game is taught as part of the is318 curriculum. it boasts 80 students with a single-minded focus, to battle it on the board. >> chesz is not just a came, it's a modern game. you can organise yourself. >> 70% of the students come from families living below the federal poverty line. the great ecallizer is chess. the power of the program shows that kids can achieve greatness. for our children becoming the best at something in the entire united states is a powerful message. when you sit down, the chess board

. >> richelle carey joins us with a look at the stories for the next hour. >> good morning. representatives have gone before a united nations panel in geneva to answer questions about text abuse by priests. a decade after little has changed. >> a senate report lays partial claim for the attack on the men consule even on ambassador stevens himself. >> 34 ranking officers dealing with nuclear weapons are accused of cheating on proficiency exactlies. >> dozens of earth quakes rattli rattling texas. they blame drilling for oil for shaking the ground below their feet. >> and what president obama is doing to make sure every child, regardless of background has a shot at going to college. >> and i'm beback with the >> no excuse for child abuse. the vatican speaks out against sex abuse cases in the catholic church and propose healing and respect. >> a new senate report says the attack on the consulate in benghazi could have been prevented. >> making a comeback, how entrepreneurs are breathing life back into detroit's economy after the motor city went bank repute. >> i was born during

i've stephanie sy. >> i'm richelle carey. talks in switzerland are underway to bring an end to the war in syria, but sharp divisions remain. >> later, we'll talk about a case with the youngest person ever executed in the u.s., a 14-year-old. back in court, the family, 70 years after the initial verdict was reached. i'll tell you why. >> the political and business world have leaders ming to come together to try to find solutions to the biggest problems in the world. the challenges of health care in the u.s. and around the world will be talked about. peace talks are underway in switzerland, the government and opposition meeting face-to-face for the first time. the plan is to bring a diplomatic solution to a war that has left more than 100,000 people dead and more than 2 million displaced. people there are trying to reach a goal, but it obviously will be very challenging. >> these dip lomaic events normally are pretty measured, sometimes quite boring. certainly that's not been the case here this morning. quite dramatic the speec

i'm stephanie sy. >> i am richelle carey., the quebec governor is looking to stop employees from wearing certain religious symbols. that is not sitting well with some. >> first, lets look at precipitation today. meteorologist nicole mitchell is back. >> we are dealing with areas of rain and snow across the country, one front through the midwest is dropping temperatures through the day today and up and down the coastline, we are dealing with areas of rain, as well. snow has been through places like minneapolis, t. paul moving into wisconsin and through the east coast, not seeing airport delays, but laguardia is getting light rain. atlanta, the airport is starting to clear out. back to you guys. >> the carbon footprint in the u.s. is trending negative again. after several years of decline, the report found carbon dioxide pollution grew. the reemergence of coal as the dominant power supply is the reason for the increase. >> this to do about the effects of caffeine could bust myths. researchers study our coffee drinking habits an

. >> i'm richelle carey.president obama is going to deliver a major speech laying out his proposed changes to the nsa's domestic surveillance programs. the panel made 46 recommendations but nobody knows which if any the president will enact. he must straddle satisfying the public outcry, 70% of americans oppose the nsa tactics and the use of techniques he has defended in the past in the name of national security. >> the hardest thing for the president is he cannot satisfactory both, the intelligence community on the one hand, civil liberties organizations on the other. the question is if you can't satisfactory them no matter what, why not just do what you feel is right. >> journalist glenn greenwald, man who helped edward snowden reveal details about the spy program said he is in the expecting much. >> i think the intercept has a role in identifying and therefore disrupting and also forcing the terrorists to -- impeding their activities. >> that's not glenn greenwald. we'll get to that. now. >> we've heard en

i'm richelle carey. >> i'm stephanie sy. syrian peace talks are back on track, barely.re gathering starting today in switzerland for the meeting. we'll look at whether the fighting in syria will end even in the best case scenario. >> the central african republican, a woman has been picked to be the leader and hopefully bring an end to the blood shed. we'll hear about the new choice for interim president. >> imagine going to jail just for trying to get your child the best possible education. it is a reality for one pennsylvania couple, we'll have that story coming up. >> the u.n.'s decision to include iran in syrian peace talks almost derailed the process, but after a day of wrangling, iran is out and talks set to go as planned. world leaders including u.n. general secretary are starting too arrive in switzerland for tomorrow's conference on syria. syria's opposition will be taking part in the peace talking about, which will move friday to geneva. they made the decision to attend after the u.n. rescinded, really uninvited iran is the best way to put it. >> for more on th

richelle carey joins us with the stories for the next hour. >> new jersey governor chris christie is embroiled in a controversy about lane closures causing traffic chaos in a bridge. one of his aides engineered the jam for political reveption. >> the white house is standing by vice president joe biden after being slammed in a book by gates your. >> nuclear talks are resumes between iran and world leaders in geneva. the 2-day event to curb iran's nuclear program. >> we are talking about the five promise zones. they are to create jobs, economic security, and improve public safety in depressed areas. >> pushing back against legalized pot in colorado. why it could be pad for kids. i'm meteorologist nich -- nicole mitchell, the arctic blast. i'll have more when we continue. only on al jazeera america >> counter punch, the white house hits back, closing ranks around vice president joe biden after skatinging critique by robert gates. >> dirty tricks, the bridge controversy threatening to burn bridges for governor chris christie in 2016. >> thousands of african migrants take to the streets i

2006 for $3.5 million. [ ♪ music ] >> it is now believed to be worth more. [ ♪ music ] >> that was richelleey reporting. the fbi says there are roughly 30 violins of this caliber that have been stolen. >> a skydiver saved by quick thinking friends. a newly released video shows the scare, 12,000 feet above ground. it's from james lee's helmet cam. that was when ones of his fellow sky dive's legs hit him in the head. he was knocked out. friend grabbed him, deploying his shoot. he has no memory of the accident. >> del walters joins us with a look at the stories for the next hour. >> the south thawing out from the storm. seven dead and stranding hundreds on the roads, school and work. the mayor of atlanta criticised for how he handled the storm preparations and warnings. >> the syrian government to agree to a transition government in the opposition agrees to stop fighting. >> a missouri innate executed after a final appeal was denied about the injection drug. >> some states are using drugs to carry out the executions and why some say they violate a prisoners constitutional rights. >> al jazeera

i'm richelle care re. >> the bridge controversy surrounding new jersey governor chris christie is now investigation, but it could get worse when tate democrats release more emails and text rewarding the scandal. >> only fraction of the 900 pages of correspondence has been released and they plan to release more today. in a 108 minute conference yesterday, christie apologized having any knowledge of the scheme to close lanes on the george washington bridge. >> he said he learned of a toll aide's political vendetta, saying he's fired two senior members of his team for their part. >> we have more on the controversy. that we're going to learn more today, it seems about who did what. there will be more of a release of information. >> that coming from the new jersey state assembly expected to release more of that 900 page stack of documents turned over by the official pointed by christie who allegedly carried out the instructions. while the governor expressed humiliation, those documents could produce more humiliation. >> blind hearted, broken and betrayed, some of the words governor chris c

. >> that was aljazeera's richelle carey reporting. our second hour, del has a look at what we're following this morning. >> the syria national coalition now threatening to walk away from geneva peace talks, upset that the united states has invited iran to the negotiating table. tehran has suspended eye rain yum enrichment at two plants. there are reports u.n. inspectors are on their way to one plant, all part of that six month deal with world powers to ease the sanctions. u.s. officials voicing concern about the security of the sochi winter games after a video emerged, reportedly saying the games will be targets. >> president obama making a bold comparison on the dangers in marijuana. how it could affect he was to legalize pot. >> the cleanup continues in west virginia as officials convince residents that the water is safe to drink. some won't drink it did he say spate the all-clear. >> another arctic blast poised to hit the eat he were half of the country. >> the aljazeera morning news continues. del is back with you in two and a hal