there are some who want nicholas maduro's government to end now. he was elected only last year and still has many more years to run. others are talking about a more moderate approach. protests to try to control the rampant inflation that venezuela suffers from, very high crime rate. one of the height he have murder rates in the world. many members of the opposition are simply fed up with the government, the previous government hugo chavez and now nicholas m maduro and their impatience to wait not next election, so very much explain terred among the opposition, unrealistic certainly in asking nicholas maduro to stand without. he's not going to do anything of the sort any time soon. >> he has also called for a meeting with president obama. i am curious why he wants to meet with mr. obama. >> reporter: sorry, could you repeat that, please. >> i understand that president nicholas maduro has called for a meeting with president obama. i am curious just how serious is this request and why he wants to meet with mr. obama? >> reporter: well, nicholas maduro

there's been growing discontent with the government led by nicholas maduro, rachel 11 reports. >> 18th -- levin reports. as you can see right here they have had lighting fires are trying to barricade themselves. then we see that there aren't as many people here that have been in previous nights and there isn't the heavy security presence that we've also been seeing. now earlier today they learned that their leader, the opposition leader leopoldo lopez, will be charged with arson and also to try to insight violence. he is to be held at a military prison for the next 45 days until his case will go to trial. later on a few hours later, the other opposition leader enrique capriles, demanded that the lopez actually show proof that this is happening. >> the government are says it is a coup. if there is a coup in the making you mr. nicholas maduro have to provide proof of that to the country. >> reporter: he's calling for a nationwide march, if he can continue this momentum, that leopoldo lopez began when the protests happened. a town that's about two hours outside of caracas. the woman was s

nicholas maduro. some piling up furniture and whatever else they can find to keep government forces out of their protest sites. people have been fed up over the violent crime, the shortages of basic food and the soaring inflation. we're going to have a live report from caracas later this hour. >>> coming up next, obamacare reaching another milestone. will the increase in sign-ups quiet republican critics? our own gloria borger is here, standing by to weigh in. >>> and later, what do iran's sanctions have to do with increased benefits for u.s. military veterans? one lawmaker says nothing. that's why he's upset. we'll speak live this hour with senator bernie sanders. ♪ they lived. ♪ they lived. ♪ they lived. ♪ (dad) we lived... thanks to our subaru. ♪ (announcer) love. it's what makes a subaru, a subaru. the recent increase in cafeteria prices is not cool. when you vote for flo, we'll have discounts. ice-cream discounts. multi-cookie discounts. pizza loyalty discounts! [ kids chanting "flo!" ]

this video show supporters of president nicholas maduro. but on the other side of the capital are venezuelans who blame the government for rising crime and a sinking economy. al jazerra's rachel levin joined those crowds in caracas. >> reporter: thousands of people have gathered in downtown caracas on saturday. these are people that would support the opposition. they have come here to have a concentration and a message of peace. they also have the same sort of complaints that we have been hearing all week, they say that the government still hasn't addressed two issues that is inflation, the soaring levels of crime. and while these demonstrators are here there is another march happening in the other part of the city, which is a pro government rally. for what these people have so far told us, is they want the government to listen to their complaints, to take them seriously and hopefully enter in to a dialogue where they can start addressing the problems that affect all venezuelans no matter what side of the political line they stand on. >> ra

they blame president nicholas maduro for rampant crime and food shortages. the 52-year-old former bus driver says the protesters attempts to overthrow a democratically elected government will not be tolerated. >> the government is within solemn people in the fight against fascism, against fascist groups that attack our people and our society. >> nevertheless the demonstrations are the most serious in nicholas maduro's ten months in office. now there's no apparent end in sight with more demonstrations planned in the coming days. under normal circumstances this main street in caracas would be bumper-to-bumper but it has been eerily quiet. andy gallagher al jazeera, caracas venezuela. >> now venezuela's opposition is promising to hold mass rallies all across the country saturday. john terret has more on what is fueling their age are. >> the violence in venezuela began on february the 12th, when three people were killed. but that violence has spread nationwide. opposition group members are seeking policing reforms and an end to severe shortages of goods. venezue

challenging president nicholas maduro to put on the boxing gloves and get in to the bring, saying there will be millions of venezuelans fight ago long side him against the president. president maduro standing up talking to his supporters. showing what he said were handmade nail bombs being made by the opposition. being used against the venezuelan authorities but also at the same time, while blaming the violence very much on the opposition, calling for a day of speaking, a day of talking, of peace next wednesday when he wants all sectors of saturday, all elements in this conflict to come together to try to find peaceful solutions to this conflict in venezuela. at the same time continuing hits accusations against the united states. saying the u.s. is funding and supporting the opposition groups who he continues to call fascists. and inviting president obama or the second of state john kerry to sit down with him when he says he will present evidence of u.s. involvement in the opposition movement here in venezuela. so really it's a case now i think the both sides going to be sitting down an

nicholas maduro. traffic came to a halt monday as protesters put up barricades. protesters bhaimed the government for the high crime rate and slow economy. distorting the situation in the country, hundreds of his supporters road motor bikes through the streets of the city. >>> measure increases penalty for homosexual acts to possibly life in prison and prison time is possible for anyone who counsels gays and lesbians. the white house condemned that bill john. >> richelle, thank you. a mysterious polio like illness has been diagnosed in children. doctors are concerned about what might be a new virus. melissa chan joins me from san francisco. are officials calling this an official yoa yoat outbreak? >> no, john. there are very, very few cases in the state of california at the moment but they did hold a press conference monday evening to explain the very little they do know and one family the jarvis family came out to talk about how this mystery illness has affected their daughter, sophia. >> we had two boys that are very healthy, and sophia was healthy until that p

on sunday, nicholas maduro ordered three diplomats to leave after they came to an opposition leader's defense. >>> the drought in california is seriously impacting businesses, like ski resorts, california is in a state of emergency. attracting snow, visitors have been losing a lot of money. those are the headlines, i'm richelle carey, "america tonight" is up next. thanks for your time. >> on the other side of the san francisco's glittering bay, are the people the wrong color for environmental protection? and remembering to heal. also tonight, fighting for air. >> the power of the people, because the power of the people don't stop. >> on the other side of

nicholas maduro can change vacations. that isers responsibility for him because what is happening is not solved with vacations. what is going on is not solved with beach. what is going on here in the streets and what is happening here for us needs real solutions and responsibility from the government. i understand the situation here in caracas. we understand that the people demand immediate changes and if nicholas maduro thinks he will solve the country sis telling people to go to the beach he is completely wrong and will respond and receive the answer of people next sunday we well be on the streets on the day typically people go to the beach all people from caracas will be on march and say we want changes. >> thank you very much for joining us and talking about the venezuelan situation. appreciate it. >>> coming up, putting yourself on the line to protect others. a nuclear engineer is fired after talking about clean-up at the most toxic site in america. >>> also a global day of action to free al jazeera journalists in eg

you have to understanddthat nicholas maduro is not a very smart person. he never went beyond high school. he was a bus driver. he was selected by chavez and by the cubans. he was actually trained in cuba under the castro brothers because he was a very promising, not very intelligent communist to take over from chavez after chavez died a year, over a year ago. so he is really following the script that is written for him from havana. there is very little originality in what maduro or the people around him are doing in venezuela today. the violence is being directed from cuba. david: you know them very well. you lived there. you were ambassador there. you have family there. they are accustomed to democracy. granted it is not u.s. democracy. it has been imperfect at best over the past several decades. it's a democracy. they're not accustomed to that in cuba. if he is getting orders from the cubans who have no idea what democracy is, doesn't that mean eventually there will be such pushback that he will be gone? >> he is only going to be one if the army, the po

duty to nicholas maduro in some states today. while the government has called the dialogue, wants to all sectors in the society in venezuela, there is still a big standoff. we talked to lillian, the wife of leopoldo lopez, if she would talk to maduro, she said no absolutely not, i don't talk to dictatorial regimes. wants a guarantee that he will be given the microphone, will be allowed to speak. the government is not giving him that guarantee. whether he will speak or not is still not clear. while each side is expressing an urge for dialogue, there does seem to be a big standoff, a great difference between the two sides. and always in the background this threat of the violence that in the last two week or so had seen 11 dead, many injured and many others detained. so really waiting to see what happens now in the next few hours. >> south korea and the united states have started annual war games, despite displeasure by north korea. field exercises will continue until april. north korea feels this is in preview of a confrontation. >

. >>> venezuelan president nicholas maduro believes washington is encouraging the ongoing antigovernment protests in his country. the state department say those allegations are baseless and false. >>> countries in asia and africa are doing big business importing e-waste, trash from discarded electronics. as reported from china the big business comes with risks. >> shipped in from around the world for one of the ports for solid waste, some of the millions of tons of scrap metal that china processes every year. e-waste from the last generation of twices that the -- devices that the world no longer wants. from laptops to mobile phones. evidence everywhere of the hazards caused for recycling toxic components. a government crack down on unregulated processings have forced contractors to take a pollution nightmare. it is a nuisance too for those people unlucky enough to live next to the port. >> the situation is worse now compared to when we moved in a few years ago. the pollution is more serious and it is very bad for our health. >> while more than two-thirds of the world's scrap devices find

nicholas maduro was elected last year, a direct successor to hugo chavez who held office since 1999. so far a very uncomfortable ride for him. for the large part the protests come down to money, price controls and protectionist policy has seen venezuela's economy go into meltdown over the last year. the rate of inflation hit 56% at the end of the year and continues to rise month after month. some venezuelans are paying $9.00 in some places for a loaf of bread. not only are basic things expensive, they are in very short supply. here is another big issue. crime. venezuela's murder rate has made it the united nation's fifth most dangerous country. president maduro is trying to camp tensions by calling for a peace conference. vladimir hernandez is there. >> reporter: for over a week this has been a common scene in venezuela, anti-government demonstrators have taken to the streets in protest because the economy has crashed and crime levels are at a record high. nearly 20 people have died since the protests began two weeks ago and many more have been injured. gabriella was one of those hur

president nicholas maduro said he wants to meet with the united states. the police have captured the most wanted drug lord, it was the result of the joint u.s.-mexico operation. he escaped prison in a laundry basket. the cartel is responsible for smuggling large amounts of drug in the u.s. >>> jaws dropped in an auto show in dallas this weekend where an italian super car is on display. and the price tag, just under $2 million. mark snyder shows you exactly what you get for your money. >> reporter: more than a car, the pagani is a working of art, and this man, one of five dealers in the united states who get to sell it. >> everything that you see is the best of the best. they pay attention to every little screw, bolt, nut, it's polished. >> reporter: this pagani cost $1.8 million. >> that's like four of my hous houses--it's hard to comprehend that much money. >> reporter: people stopping by the car show tend to stop in their tracks when they get here. >> wow, what is this? >> that is insane. [ chuckling ] >> i think someone is going to take me for a drive,

president nicholas maduro wants to meet with united states after kicking out american diplomats. >>> many new cardinals are from south america and latin america. and the first cardinal from haiti. >> top of the morning to you all. it is a beautiful morning in the northeast. and it's going to feel quite comfortable. we had a cold front push through and that cold front did bring gusting winds and a couple of tornadoes across portions of the southeast yesterday but as i said today looking a lot more comfortable. high pressure is building in and we'll see a lot of sunshine cross the northeast today. there is a pan of know pushing across new york and pennsylvania. you may see a couple of snowshowers but nothing to accumulate. it's very comfortable across the area. you can see that light snow band pushing further east. high pressure in control and temperatures are going to be above where they should be at this time of year. it will be in the 50s. nice and comfortable. however we need to be careful out there because with all of that sunshine we're seeing a lot of snow across the area melt,

across town a rival march was held with tens of thousands of supporters of president nicholas maduro, hold be up a grenade he said was used by protest, he he blame the violence on the opposition. >> translator: this here, they throw it and it works like a grenade. this is terrorism they fit it with nails and throw it he at the national guard to kill people. >> reporter: hours after the duadueling rallies. confrontations, students threw rocks at police and they responsed by gassing the demonstrators. the frustration of many was palpable. >> translator: we are the future of this country and they treat us like dogs there are no police to fight against criminals, they are fighting against the students instead. >> reporter: press maduro has called for a national day of peace next wednesday. involveing all sectors of society. rachel los angeles vin, al jazerra, caracas venezuela. >>> celebrations are getting under way to mark the ninth birthday of zimbabwe's president. achieving that milestone doesn't mean that he will be leaving the top job. in an interview on state television he said he h

. >>> more venezuelans are expected to show their support for president nicholas maduro today. yesterday's mass marches saw hundreds of thousands of pro and anti-government supporters on the streets of caracas. after two weeks of arrest that have already killed eight people. >>> in thailand two crea peoplee dead including a 12-year-old child after a last whipped lou the capital. dozens more injured at the site of an anti government protest. >>> a day earlier gunmen attacked demonstrators at a rally east of bangkok, two people died and the young girl among those killed when at tackers dope up i drove up in ap truck. rallies between supporters and opponents have grown increasingly violent. >>> meanwhile a suicide car bomb explodes near a field hospital in northwestern syria willing at least three people. it happened in the rebel held down. parts of the hospital have since collapsed and it's one of the only hospitals in about 40 miles until patients can seek treatment in neighboring turkey. no group has yet claimed responsibility. >>> over to afghanistan now where the taliban has

president nicholas maduro sending added security to caracas and border towns. following a week of demonstrations protesting rising crime and unemployment. the national weather service believes four tornadoes hit illinois on thursday, all of them touching down in central parts of the state. one of them hitting 50 miles from the state capital of springfield. no injuries have been reported. >>> and more rain. >> meteorologist: yeah, more rain and those storms are pushing east. if you are caught in the storms you look outside and see storms coming through it's only for a brief period of time. they will be clearing out but they are very intense and severe. this was yesterday. the storms, the individual cells produced all of the tornado reports right through illinois and that line eventually moved through. but these are strong, severe storms spoe potentially able to rotate and now that area is across the southeast, severe thunderstorm warnings indicating wind and hail, tornado watches through north carolina and that watch area goes up through virginia a line pushing

. >>> meanwhile, more venezuelans are expected to show support for president nicholas maduro today. yesterday's mass marches saw hundreds of thousand pro and anti-government demonstrators all on the streets of caracas. the peaceful rallies are relief from two week of violent unrest that has already killed eight people. >>> new details about the fight that took place during the capture of the drug leader joaquin el chapper guzman, he was arrested in mexico yesterday in a joint u.s.-members co operation and adam rainy has the latest. >> reporter: more details are managing about how joaquin guzman was called by dozens of mexican marines who surrounded the condominium building he was staying in mazatlan. he was arrested before 7:00 a.m. on saturday. no shots fired. he tried to reach for some of the arm that he had amassed in that condominium, but he was unable to do so. the marines subdued him. there was some blows exchanged and within a couple of hours he was flown to mexico city, paraded before the cameras and wisked off to a prison here, there is a lot of speculation about whether or

student-led protesters in venezuela are demanding that president nicholas maduro step down over his ms mishandling of resources. like ukraine the protests have turned violent with 13 people killed and scores more wounded in recent weeks. well, venezuela possesses some of the largest oil reserves in the world. it's a founding member of opec but venezuela's oil production has dropped 29% since 2005. lacks maintenance of the oil infrastructure and a lot less foreign investment are behind that fall. in 2006 venezuela socialist led government nationalized oil exploration and production in the country. critics charged its mismanagement has reeke wreakedc oon the oil industry and the economy. price controls and devalued exchange rates have made it difficult there. all of this has affected exports to the united states. they've dropped off 42% since 2005. the reason why you haven't felt this is because america has largely made up the difference with a boon in oil industry. but the offset has not helped to bring prices down either because oil is a global commodity and growing world demand is kee

student-led protesters in venezuela are demanding that president nicholas maduro step down over his ms mishandling of resources. like ukraine the protests have turned violent with 13 people killed and scores more wounded in recent weeks. well, venezuela possesses some of the largest oil reserves in the world. it's a founding member of opec but venezuela's oil production has dropped 29% since 2005. lacks maintenance of the oil infrastructure and a lot less foreign investment are behind that fall. in 2006 venezuela socialist led government nationalized oil exploration and production in the country. critics charged its mismanagement has reeke wreaked havoc oon the oil industry and the economy. price controls and devalued exchange rates have made it difficult there. all of this has affected exports to the united states. they've dropped off 42% since 2005. the reason why you haven't felt this is because america has largely made up the difference with a boon in oil industry. but the offset has not helped to bring prices down either because oil is a global commodity and growing world demand i

in venezuela student-led protests are demanding that president nicholas maduro step down. saying it has deployed it's own wealth but mismanagement of nationalized oil industry has led to massive drops in production. that's hurt the economy and led to a shortage of goods and decline in living standards. like the thai protest movement elements in the middle class are coming out to join the street protest in caracas and in other cities. and protests in ukraine began after the government backed out of a trade pact with the european union under pressure from its neighbor, russia. increase trade with the european union would boost opportunity in ukraine's western province, but industry in ukraine's eastern province depend on russia for supplies. they've used natural gas to drive that point home. president viktor yanukovych has stepped down and that has divided ukraine from its east and it's west. mary snow has more in. behind the revolt in ukraine a fight for a better future and universal human rights. while there are many divisions among ukrainians of how to go about that, they

no end in sight for the violent protests in venezuela as president nicholas maduro has nothing to do with what they have to say and they are under flood evacuation order and past wildfires creating a new threat months after those fires were put out. ♪ good morning and thanks for waking up with al jazeera america, i'm thomas drayden and they ceased to airports and one of the airports was taken over by russian military and happened overnight in the territory of crimea and that is the focal point of battles between ukrainian seeking to be with the union and those loyal to russia and the new parliament calls the action an armed invasion in occupation and since voted on a resolution to seek help from countries that consider ukraine a sovereign nation. coming up, in a few hours deposed president victor yanukovich will speak from an undisclosed location in south urn russia and we will begin in moscow but jennifer class is there where one of the airports was seized and good morning to you and it seems from the outside there has been a power grab from pro-russian forces across crimea. >> go

the other sides, the are government of nicholas maduro, and leopoldo lopez surrendered t .released by his party on wednesday, a video, he called on his people to end the maduro regime. >>> a pending trial in egypt. thursday is the deadline to get out and stay out of the country, that from a terrorist group that claimed responsibility for bombing of a tourist bus. the group that is also claimed attacks on atax on egyptian police in the sinai. thursday is also the day three al jazeera english journalists, peter greste, mohamed fahmy and baher mohamed, are going on trial, accused of aiding a terrorist organization. charges the journalists and al jazeera say are false. for more, i'm joined by charles senate. the correspond for two front line documentaries on egypt's ongoing crisis. thank you for being on the show. >> thanks for having me. >> most notably in 1997, where ayman al sawahiri, new group whose name translates as supporters of jerusalem is going down this road and trying that tactic again? >> yes, it's depressing. i mean this is really sad to see jiept swing back to the kind of v

is trying to conspire with protestors to overthrow nicholas maduro, secretary of state john kerry is accusing syrian president bashar al-assad of stalling peace talks. in a press conference in indonesia kerry called syria to negotiate with opposition leaders. president obama said he is considering new ways to pressure assad. an ethiopiaian co-pilot high jacket a plane and routed it to geneva. he took control when the pilot went to the bathroom. none of the 202 passengers were harmed. >>> a new batch of snow, falling at a rate of two inches an hour, hundreds of flight were cancelled. those are the headlines. "real money with ali velshi" is next on al jazeera america. >>> a big blow to big labor, why unions fighting to regain power in the work force. we'll look into the so-called ills gap. and the cash-strapped u.s. post office wants to get back into banking, i'll explain. i'm ve i i i'm al vel shi, and this is israel

when nicholas maduro ordered. much, he came out with his flak jacket and said he would have to go out in a body bag before he would go with police. he has been an icon for the antigovernment protesters. there are people that are protecting his home for future police that may go to it. here he is, he's talking on top of his balcony with a megaphone. he is saying that the cuban government has infiltrated into the venezuelan government. now his twitter account has exploded over the last two days, gotten over 239,000 followers. he says he will not heave. this is the picture of him outside his home with assault rifle. >> will you keep us posted? >> yes. >> thank you. mif, so new this week, director spike lee went on a rant about changes in new york city. in the process he set off a debate the benefits of gentrifying low-96 neighborhoods. parts of lee's neighborhood has seen an influx of high income residents. he says the gentrification is changing, then comes the blank expletive, christopher columbus descroax. syndrome

the protests are the largest that the president nicholas maduro has faced in his 11 months in office. former bus driver is a protege of this man, hugo chavez. maduro calls the opposition far is and like an infection that needs to be cured and he points the finger at us in the united states. he accuses washington, d.c. of plotting to destabilize his government. and this week three u.s. diplomats were given 48 hours to leave the country, accused of bringing down the government in caracas. maduro shouted, yankee go home. and president obama wasn't too happy about that, feeling that the president should focus on the legitimate mat issues in the country. many of president maduro's claims today, of u.s. intervention, of assassination plots, those were all hurled around back in 2002 when president hugo chavez was briefly ousted in a coup. john. >> john, thanks very much. eva golinger is the author of the chavez code and joins us in new york. good to have you on the program. >> thank you very much john. >> journalists credentials from cnn have been revoked and could be removed or detained. do

the other sides, the are government of nicholas maduro, and leopoldo lopez surrendered t.released by his party on wednesday, a video, he called on his people to end the maduro regime. >>> a pending trial in egypt. thursday is the deadline to get out and stay out of the country, that from a terrorist group that claimed responsibility for bombing of a tourist bus. the group that is also claimed attacks on atax on egyptian police in the sinai. thursday is also the day three al jazeera english journalists, peter greste, mohamed fahmy and baher mohamed, are going on trial, accused of aiding a terrorist organization. charges the journalists and al jazeera say are false. for more, i'm joined by charles senate. the correspond for two front line documentaries on egypt's ongoing crisis. thank you for being on the show. >> thanks for having me. >> most notably in 1997, where ayman al sawahiri, new group whose name translates as supporters of jerusalem is going down this road and trying that tactic again? >> yes, it's depressing. i mean this is really sad to see jiept swing back to the kind of v

silkily signaling oujust a remis president nicholas maduro has addressed the nation almost on a nightly basis having a talk show or press conference. yesterday the only economic measures they did announce was that they were going to have representatives from the government be sent to various parts of the country to make sure that price gauging wasn't happening. >> we understand that there are big protests scheduled for tomorrow? >> that's right. it would take place in caracas, and also nationwide. the important thing to be watching here is the turnout. it was the students at the head of this movement, and it will be interesting to see if he can galvanize the moment that leopold lopez, who is now in prison, was able tied when he came out on tuesday. that will be the key things and the government will have its own rallies held in caracas and around the country. that will be extremely high. >> rachel for us in the capitol of venezuela. that's caracas. >>> ukraine opposition and government signed a deed. president yanukovych is in the country's east discussing the agreement with supporters,

>> today president nicholas maduro called for a pro-peace rally here in caracas. there are thousands of people who did turn out. even though this was supposed to be a rally for peace, he did have some pretty harsh words for the opposition, particularly the leader of the opposition, leopoldo wawdo wawrdo juarez. we're talking about 1500 and 2,000 protesters. venezuela continues to be a polarized country and tensions are very high this week. >> rachel, what has sparked these massive protests? >> well, what happened was, earlier this week, in separate cities throughout the country, mainly students took to the streets. they were very upset about the rising crime here throughout the country, caracas actually has one of the highest homicide rates in all of latin america and another major problem is inflation. venezuela has crippling inflation right now. just to give you an idea, when i was here in october on the black market you could exchange a dollar for about 50 venezuelan boulevardos. , but now it's twice that much. every day they need more to buy the same products,

they have taken to the streets, as you can see in these posters, demand an end to the rule of nicholas maduro's anti-democratic measures and his failed economic policies that have caused a shortage of basic necessities like bread, electricity, and more. despite the vast oil wealth that the nation has. but the harshest shortage is democracy. these unarmed, freedom -- -- these unarmed freedom seekers have predictably been met by the heavy hand of maduro's state thugs as the veans way lan forces have responded with vifpblese. maduro remains intransigent and vows to continue to unleash the national guard on these unarmed protesters urn the false pretense of protesting -- protecting the people of venezuela. montes cue said there is no great -- montesquie said there's no greater tyranny than using the rule of law against the force of justice. there have been over a dozen deaths so far, mr. speaker, a high number of arrests, including one of the most vocal critics of maduro, leopold de lopez who turned himself in even though he's facing serious tumped -- trumped up charges. his case caused am

we're often seeing bloody violence and nicholas maduro. why isn't the u.s. being as aggressive with nicolas maduro? >> jake, when it comes to venezuela, we've been very clear in our views but we also don't want to give maduro the execution of making the united states look like the problem. this is a problem that is of his own making and they need to resolve it. putting the united states in the middle of the story just creates an easy distraction and an ability for him to point pictures at something that is not the problem. >> tony blinken, thank you so much for your time. >> thanks for having me. >>> coming up on "the lead," a controversial bill sitting on the arizona governor's desk. does it protect religious freedom or discriminate? some people say both. >>> sure, netflix's "house of cards" is a little over the top but is the real washington, d.c., in some ways more cynical? >> the president can change his mind. honestly? i wanted a smartphone that shoots great video. so i got the new nokia lumia icon. it's got 1080p video, three times zoom, and a twenty-m

. >>> to venezuela where the opposition leader enrique caprice yas says the government of nicholas maduro is on its death bed as he put it. at least 13 people have been killed during weeks of protests in the country. it started when students took to the streets angered by venezuela's high crime rate. >>> i'm joined by bbc munn dough's yolanda valerie. so is this on his death bed, is that his wishful thinking or is there clear evidence that that is the case, the president? >> this is a crucial moment for president maduro's presidency. it's very difficult to predict which way it's going to go. >> is there clear evidence from the streets that his presidency is, quote, on its death bed? >> i'll say that's credit to the wishful thinking you were mentioning. so far president maduro has been able to control the situation and even though there have been some nights and some dates where the situation has gotten a bit worse, he's still in power and apparently the whole control of the government is taking place in venezuela. it's hard to see where he says that. it's a way of him speaking the his aud

. >> the venezuelan president nicholas maduro has ordered the expulsion of diplomats from the country. >> it is deployed operations this embassy, where they have focused on protest movements, to grant visas, but what this is, is just a front to engage in contacts with the leaders and to provide training and financing to them, and to create youth organization hs whereby voyagess promoted in venezuela. >> rachel levin is with us from caracas. what can you tell us about it? >> what we know is they have 48 hours to leave the country, as we heard just now from the foreign minister himself. the venezuelan government is accusing these students meeting with the diplomats to give them visas. insighting violence. >> there are demonstrations planned tomorrow for the capitol. tell us more about those? >> reporter: right. there is a huge demonstration that is being called by one of the opposition leaders named leopoldo lopez. this is the man that the venezuelan government has issued an arrest for him. authorities went to the home of his father looking for him. he came out and says he wants to call

his vice president, nicholas maduro took over. less than a month later, maduro was elected president. the opposition refused to recognize the results and demanded a recount. in october, maduro expelled three u.s. diplomats. he accused them of trying to sabotage the country's electrical grid. he tightened control room of the foreign exchange to tackle shortages in inflation. later that month, the national assembly allowed him to create laws without going through lawmakers. and in december, students protested a new law that would give the government more control over universities and, last month, the government announced changes to the nation's foreign currency rate with maduro calling for an increase in gas prices that had not changed in more than a decade. joining us from philadelphia to talk about this is george shicarela mar and the author of "we created a chavez." fiancÉes is a country long played with problems. where is this anger coming from now? >> the reality is this is an anger simmers for years. what we are seeing in the

protesters are back on the streets of vent what la as nicholas maduro orders arrest of an opposition leader, the president is live in gongi where thousands are too frightens to go back to their homes. the toy company with profits and we look at the rising fortunes of lego. >> i love this song. ♪ but first let's go to ukraine and the growing signs there that the semi autonomus ukraine says russian military forces blocked the airport in crimea. armed men have taken control of the international airport in the capitol and they are wearing unmarked uniforms, no insinnias and the airport is functioning normally and it's in the hands of armed men and took control of the building on thursday and they are standing their ground. in kiev, ukraine temporary parliament asked the council to call a session and is summoning security chiefs over the crisis. as for the president, viktor yanukovych he says he is still president and in charge but speculation is increasing about his whereabouts and has been for days and looks like he is in the southern russian city near the border of ukraine and he say

on the other, security forces of president nicholas maduro and in support of opposition leader leopoldo lopez surrendered to authorities. released by his party on wednesday, a video, he called on venezuelans to end the maduro regime. >>> turn from venezuela. >>> a pending trial in egypt. thursday is the deadline to get out and stay out of the country, that from a terrorist group that claimed responsibility for bombing of a tourist bus. that killed three south korean tourists on sun. the group also claimed attacks on egyptian police in the sinai thursday is also the day three al jazeera english journalists, peter greste, mohamed fahmy and baher mohamed, are going on trial, accused of spreading false news and aiding a terrorist organization. charges the journalists and al jazeera say are false. for more, i'm joined by charles senate. the correspond for two front line documentaries on egypt's ongoing crisis. great to have you back on the show. >> thanks for having me. >> most notably in 1997, where ayman al zawahiri killed. new group whose name translates as supporters of jerusalem is goin

protesters are back on the streets of vent what la as nicholas maduro orders arrest of an opposition leader, the president is live in

sandra: for the latest on the president nicholas maduro's socialist government. that is coming up. there's this kid. coach calls her a team playe she's kind of special. she makes the whole team better. he's the kind of player that puts the puck, horsehide, bullet. right where it needs to be. coaccalls it logistics. he's a great passer. dependable. a winning team has to have one. somebody you can count on. somebody like my dad. this is my dad. somebody like my mom. my grandfather. i'm very pround of him. her. them. ashley: for the latest on deadly protests going on in venezuela the country is dropping terrorism and murder charges against the opposition leader lopez but he still faces 10 years in prison for arson an conspiracy. fox news's steve harrigan is in miami with the very latest. steve? >> ashley, those protest that is began earlier this month in the capital city of can rock cause have -- caracas and is around the border region with colombia and where residents say it looks like a war zone and nicholas maduro is warning that he will send in military force. so far eight protest

the opposition to president nicholas maduro's government has come mostly from the middle classes their frustration spilling in to ainge their shows no signs of abating. al jazerra, caracas. >>> now to the marijuana business in colorado. the first state to legalize the sale of recreational marijuana in this country is now just beginning to find out how much tax revenue it is raiseing in some parts of colorado. paul is standing by in denver to tell us more on that and take a look at the numbers. paul. >> reporter: good everything, john, that's right, the first round of numbers are in after recreational marijuana went on sale on january 1st and so far, so good. pueblo county south of denver on the southern edge of colorado has raised 56 that you dollars in one month after two shots, just two shots did a total of a million sales in january. fa web will he county opened up three more shops, we don't have the numbers from them yet but the county is protecting overall sale tax revenue for the year will be about $670,000 that's just one county with five shops as of now. there are about 160 sho

and at least one alley in nicholas maduro's government is denouncing him. carl? >> reporter: opposition leaders are making it clear that they feel they have nothing to discuss in those peace talks being offered by the socialist president nicholas maduro. they want to crack down on spiraling crime and rescue a tanking economy. there is a pro regime state governor now rebelling. he's calling the president's response to the protests says sieve. they continue to have daily rallies by the loyal lists and the opposition supporters. the scene does seem to be set for more confrontation. >>> a 65 mile stretch of the mississippi back open this morning after being closed for two days off an oil spilled. it spilled after a barge collided with a towboat on saturdays. >>> another round of rest on the way in an -- arresting on the way. get this, cnn's learned as many as 30 names will be released on top of the 100 retired police and firefighters indicted last month. they were accused of collecting social security when they weren't fully disabled. >>> in case you're planning a fa

maduro. >> ( translated ): every venezuelan who wants change, gather ourselves, organize ourselves and hold non-violent protests. i swear to you we will overcome and very soon we will have a free and democratic venezuela. >> ifill: the protesters have denounced maduro's stewardship of the oil-rich venezuelan economy. also at issue: rampant crime, controls on media, and food shortages. five people have died in the last week as protests turned violent, a turn many blame on so-called colectivos, a paramilitary citizens' militia allied to the maduro government. >> ( translated ): we cannot support maduro, he's a bad man. he's worse than chavez. there are no medicines, there's nothing in this country. for how long are we going to continue to suffer in this country? >> ifill: maduro, in turn, has minced no words in denouncing the protests. >> ( translated ): i have been personally overseeing the operations so that i can guarantee peace in the face of the fascists gathering today with their armed gangs, with their trained groups, so that there would be peace. >> reporter: maduro was elected l

venezuelan president nicholas maduro called for a peace conference on tuesday. he's also name an ambassador to the u.s. for the first time since 2010 as the u.s. announced it was expelling three venezuelan dip nats in the response to the same move by maduro last week, meanwhile protesters in caracas kept the appreciate you are on we december craigs and a protest at the cuban embassy in what they call is oppressive influences. joining us a blog that covers the country's political scene from the opposition perspective and pubbed a piece in the new york times on monday entitles rash rejenks in venezuela. good to have you with us . you wrote those these protest started three weeks ago, after rape. crime has been ram plant with a homicide rape large effort in the world. they were protesting the fact that that student that was raped nothing was done to find the rape e. now that these previous tests have gone so far beyond the students, does that show that venture have swa* a wil venezuelans have had enough? >> i don't think we want to get too far out of ourselves righ

venezuelan president nicholas maduro called for a peace conference on tuesday. he's also name an ambassador to the u.s. for the first time since 2010 as the u.s. announced it was expelling three venezuelan dip nats in the response to the same move by maduro last week, meanwhile protesters in caracas kept the appreciate you are on we december craigs and a protest at the cuban embassy in what they call is oppressive influences. joining us a blog that covers the country's political scene from the opposition perspective and pubbed a piece in the new york times on monday entitles rash rejenks in venezuela. good to have you with us. you wrote those these protest started three weeks ago, after rape. crime has been ram plant with a homicide rape large effort in the world. they were protesting the fact that that student that was raped nothing was done to find the rape e. now that these previous tests have gone so far beyond the students, does that show that venture have swa* a wilvenezuel? >> i don't think we want to get too far out of ourselves right now. there is a lon

thousands are furious with venezuelan president nicholas maduro over skyrocketing inflation, rising crime and shortage of even just most basic goods and services. >> it is over the top. does enormous long-term damage to the military. they act like it is highway spending, you turn it on and off. the fact of the matter he is having huge impact the ability of future presidents to deal with future crises that are bound to arise. eric: that was clearly very concerned former vice president dick cheney not mincing any words in response to the proposal from defense secretary chuck hagel that would slash the pentagon's budget. a view shared by many members of our military although secretary hagel insists that the cuts are fest to face a changed threat environment. are they? loot colonel ralph peters is a strategic analyst. lieutenant colonel peters, welcome. he says they strengthen our military readiness or do you think the administration is compromising our very national security? >> the kind ever thing you say by secretary hagel he is asleep at the wheel as he appeared to be half asleep during h

greatest challenge to date of president nicholas maduro's post-hugo chavez presidency. >> translator: this fascist we detained is well-guarded in prison. he is tried for having called for a coup and he should respond. >> reporter: the dead include 22-year-old genesis carmona, last year's miss tourism of one venezuelan state. she was shot by a motorcyclist who fired into a crowd of antigovernment protesters. florida senators, marco rubio and bill nelson condemned the government's action as did president obama yesterday. earlier today venezuela expelled three u.s. officials from venezuela. the u.s. state department is weighing exactly how to respond to that. jenna: phil keating live in miami. phil, thank you. jon: well, right now some lucky person is $425 -- $425 million richer, before taxes. just one jackpot winner from last night's powerball drawing. the store that sold the winning ticket also getting a chance to cash in. arts them neville is live at the breaking news desk. >> jon, talk about california dreaming coming true, milpedis, california, proved to be the luckiest place specif