Transcripts For WHYY PBS NewsHour 20140923

I want to figure out how to partner with life to make the things we need, in a way thats sustainable and beautiful. Woodruff those are some of the stories were covering on tonights pbs newshour. Major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by at bae systems, our pride and dedication show in everything we do; from Electronics Systems to intelligence analysis and cyber operations; from combat vehicles and weapons to the maintenance and modernization of ships, aircraft, and critical infrastructure. Knowing our work makes a difference inspires us everyday. Thats bae systems. Thats inspired work. Ive been around long enough to recognize the people who are out there owning it. The ones getting involved, staying engaged. They are not afraid to question the path theyre on. Because the one question they never want to ask is, how did i end up here . I started schwab with those people. People who want to take ownership of their investments, like they do in every other aspect of their lives. And the william and flora hewlett foundation, helping people build immeasurably better lives. And with the ongoing support of these institutions and. This program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting. And by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. Thank you. Woodruff the air war against Islamic State forces has now moved into syria. Bombs and missiles rained down on targets there overnight. Another group was also hit to avert a possible attack on the United States itself. In all, the more than 200 air strikes, included bombing from u. S. Carrierbased aircraft, as well as sorties from regional arab nations, plus nearly 50 tomahawk cruise missiles launched from u. S. Navy vessels, all aimed at more than a dozen locations across northern syria. They included Islamic State Training Camps and other facilities in raqqah, and also in hasakah, in deyr aw zour, and hard by the iraq border at abu kamal. As he left the white house this morning, president obama said the aerial assault made a vital point. We were joined in this action by our friends and partners saudi arabia, the United Arab Emirates, jordan, bahrain, and qatar the strength of this coalition makes it clear to the world that this is not americas fight alone. Woodruff separately, on its own, the u. S. Hit a group called khorosan, an organization of veteran al qaeda operatives. Eight air strikes hit near aleppo, where the khorosan militants are linked with the alnusra front, al qaedas principal syria franchise. Pentagon leaders said the strikes were successful. The top Operations Officer for the joint chiefs, Lieutenant General william mayville, said the aleppo attacks aimed to disrupt an active plot. Weve been watching this group closely for some time, and we believe the Khorasan Group was nearing the execution phase of an attack either in europe, or the homeland. Woodruff mayville also made clear the air campaign against Islamic State forces in iraq and syria is openended. Could this take years . I would think of it in terms of years, yes. Woodruff there were some reports of civilians killed on the ground and video of syrians apparently trying to dig out people trapped in rubble. Mayville said they were unaware of any civilian deaths. He also confirmed the u. S. Carried out the vast majority of the bombing. But jordan, bahrain, saudi arabia and the United Arab Emirates all flew combat missions, too, while qatar provided support. Jordans information minister spoke in amman. We will continue to identify and to attack the positions of these terrorist organizations, in order to secure our country and our national interest. Woodruff the state department denied reports that it coordinated with syrian president bashar alassad. It did say the u. S. Alerted damascus ahead of the strikes. After the strikes, the Syrian Government issued its own statement on state television. translated syria will support any International Effort that may help in fighting terrorism. But this should not affect the lives of civilians and National Sovereignty of syria as well as the international laws. Woodruff on the streets of damascus today, reactions to the air campaign varied. When we see american warplanes flying in the air over syria, it is impossible to be optimistic about this thing. With all my respect to america, it should stand by the Syrian Governments side in a serious, way. Woodruff there was also word that a key nato ally might join the fight turkish president erdogan had refused to pledge military action earlier this month at a nato summit, while 49 turks were held hostage by Islamic State militants. The captives were released saturday. And today erdogan said we will give the necessary support to the operation. The support could be military or logistics. Later, after arriving in new york, president obama met with leaders of the antiIslamic State coalition. He will make the case for the campaign tomorrow, before the u. N. General assembly. Also today, the wife of british aid worker alan henning said shes received an audio message from him, pleading for Islamic State captors to spare his life. And in iraq, Islamic State fighters in iraq paraded captured government soldiers in fallujah. The militants overran an army camp in Anbar Province on sunday, killing 40 troops and capturing nearly 70. Israel shot down a syrian fighter jet today for the First Time Since 1982. The Israeli Defense minister said the plane entered israeli air space over the golan heights. Amateur video from syria appeared to show a Patriot Missile battery downing the jet. The crew managed to get out, and landed in syrian territory. Special forces in israel have killed two alleged hamas militants wanted in the murder of three israeli teenagers. The teens deaths in june ultimately triggered this summers 50day war in gaza. Early today, israeli units stormed a west bank hideout and shot it out with the suspects. Prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu hailed the outcome. translated i said whoever carried out the kidnapping and murder of our teenagers would face the consequences. I vowed we would not rest until we reached the last of them, wherever they tried to hide. I also said this was our First Mission and it would be carried out. This morning it was carried out. Woodruff palestinians held funerals for the two men this afternoon in hebron. Hamas leaders praised them for a long life full of jihad and sacrifice. translated hamas mourns for the Palestinian People and the two martyrs. Hamas blames the Israeli Occupation for the assassination of the two martyrs, and this is a war crime which the Israeli Occupation is responsible for. Woodruff the killings sparked a new round of clashes in the west bank and threatened ceasefire talks in cairo. But palestinian negotiators agreed later to move forward. The Ebola Outbreak in west africa could lead to 1. 4 Million People being infected. That new estimate came today from the u. S. Centers for Disease Control and prevention. Its more than double any previous figure. The c. D. C said the projection assumes the number of cases is currently being substantially underreported. A germanamerican journalist was freed today in somalia after being held hostage for two and a half years. Michael scott moore was kidnapped by somali pirates in january 2012, while researching a book. Its unclear if any ransom was paid for his release. In china, an ethnic uyghur scholar was sentenced to life in prison. Hed been convicted of advocating separatism, for speaking about the muslim minoritys plight. The penalty is the most severe in a decade for illegal political speech. Prosecutors said ilham tohti led a criminal gang seeking to split the country. The white house said its deeply concerned and called for tohtis release. The outgoing president of afghanistan, hamid karzai, aimed a parting criticism at the United States today. In his farewell address, he thanked other nations, but he charged that americans did not truly want peace in his country. He spoke in kabul and called for washington to be honest in its dealings. translated we want to have strategic relations with america. We want to have deep relations with america. We want to have the best relations with them in the west. But america should follow the path of friendship with afghanistan. Afghanistan can be their best friend on condition their actions and words are the same. Woodruff afghanistan inducts a new president , ashraf ghani ahmadzai, on monday. Osama bin ladens soninlaw and spokesman will spend life in a u. S. Prison. Sulaiman abu ghaith, was sentenced today in new york, for aiding alqaeda after the 9 11 attacks. He warned the United States will face retaliation. Its about to become legal to carry a concealed handgun in the nations capital. The washington d. C. City Council Voted unanimously today to allow it, but with a number of restrictions. In july, a federal judge struck down the citys ban on carrying weapons. Eight national fraternities announced efforts today to fight sexual assaults on colleges campuses. The Initiative Includes training members to prevent and intervene in sexual violence, hazing and binge drinking. Wall street had a down day. The Dow Jones Industrial average lost more than 116 points to close below 17,056. The nasdaq fell 19 points to close at 4,508. And the s p 500 slipped 11 to finish at 1,982. Still to come on the newshour air strikes target Islamic State strongholds in syria, Global Leaders put a spotlight on Climate Change, hackers rewire the biology of living organisms for practical uses, and the secret Service Comes under fire after a man breached security at the white house. Woodruff now back to the u. S. And partners air strikes inside syria. Our chief Foreign Affairs correspondent Margaret Warner is at the United Nations this week and has more on the International Reaction to the new campaign. Hello, margaret. Youve been talking to a lot of people today. What is the reaction there to these air strikes . Well, judy, since the president has signaled that he was going to take the fight against the Islamic State or isil or isil into syria as well as iraq, it did not come as a shock here, but the reaction was, well, where you stand is where you sit. I went to a small meeting with president rouhani of iran. He declared them illegal because they violated the sovereignty of the Syrian Government, that syria had not given its permission. He further said the only way to defeat isis in this whole region is youre going to have to partner essentially with the Syrian Government. He said the syrian option, you cant fight the only government that could step in if the Iraqi Government could step in and reclaim territory, you cant do both fights on one. The president of turkey had small gathering yesterday. He didnt know about the strikes yet, but turkey clearly did not join the coalition and did not play ball. He said to secretary kerry when they met two or three weeks ago, look, as long as isis has 49 hostages, we cant do anything. But after we get them out, which they did last weekend, perhaps we can. I thought the most interesting reaction, judy, was from jordan and the four gulf states that did participate. None of them boasted about it. I saw one of them late this afternoon. I cannot name who he was, who said this is very sensitive for us. Were now partnering with the United States. We have a reputation on the line, and what we keep asking the americans is what comes the day after. He left the suggestion that they really dont have an answer yet. Woodruff margaret, its interesting because a number of these countries have been critical of the u. S. s uncertain leadership. Are they taking a different tone about that today because of the u. S. Leading these strikes . You know, judy, you put your finger right on it. That is the. The concern is the constancy of u. S. Leadership. From president obama saying he would strike syria last year over chemical weapons and then backing off or announcing hes going to afghanistan but announcing an end date. Even countries that didnt want the u. S. To do those things were shaken or rattled by that. So these countries do feel they could be out on a limb. They joined this Public Coalition now with the United States. So that is the. I would say that is the numberone concern. I still think the United States has a long way to go to persuade them that this president is in it for the long haul. I did ask the gulf leader about this, i said, do you have any doubts about the president s constancy, he went youll have to ask him. That concern remains. Woodruff just quickly, margaret, we know the u. S. On its own undertook these strikes against this group. We really havent heard very much about before, this Khorasan Group, theyre called veteran al qaeda fighters. What are you hearing about that . Well, u. S. Officials today from. Well, i cant say from where, gave a briefing for all of us. They really got into it. They said these are seasoned operatives out of afghanistan and pakistan. Their specialty is recruiting foreign fighters, bringing them, training them, sending them back, explosive device, mounting attacks on homelands in various parts of the country and moving money and material around. And they saw a safe haven they could exploit, and they moved into syria into this area. Theyre not necessarily affiliated with isis, but u. S. Intelligence had received what they said was credible information that a big plot against they said u. S. Interests and european allies was in the works, was imminent. President obama went to centcom last week to do it. It was also convenient that it coincided with the decision to also launch the air strikes against i. System militants in syria. Woodruff margaret, thank you very much. Youll be in new york all this week covering these u. N. Meetings. We thank you. Thank you, judy. For analysis on the strikes and how they affect an already complicated civil war in syria with multiple sides, im joined by retired colonel derek harvey, a former Intelligence Officer and special adviser to the commander of u. S. Forces in iraq, general david petraeus. Hes now director for the Global Initiative on Civil Society and conflict at university of south florida. And joshua landis, director of the center for middle Eastern Studies at the university of oklahoma and Andrew Tabler, a senior fellow in the program on arab politics at the Washington Institute for near east policy. Welcome you all back to the program. Colonel harvey, to you first. How do you size up this military operation last night . I think its an important event, but its just the beginning of a very long journey. The president has laid out a strategy thats going to take a long time to pull the pieces together. The financial aspects going after foreign fighter flow, delegitimizing the Islamic State. Most importantly from last night, we had sunni arab and shia arab buyin in this attack, and the attack on the Khorasan Group i think was the most important element last night. Woodruff so youre saying the u. S. With this coalition, five countries, went after the right targets . I think for the initial stages it was the right target. Its going to be a long campaign. The Khorasan Group, a legitimate, serious threat, and then going after the Islamic State, even though theyve had plenty of time to disperse and prepare for this, because they knew this strike was coming. So its not a decisive strike that we made last night against them, but its the first step of a long journey. We have to understand that. Woodruff Andrew Tabler here with me in washington, first step in a long journey, is that how you see it . Absolutely. I think the air strikes are first step to contain isis and eliminate it inside of syria. Woodruff quickly to you, joshua landis. Is this. For the United States, have these five countries in the region on board, what does this look like to you as the beginning of a campaign . Well, its great to have five monarchies as your wing man on, this all sunni arab. This is the big challenge for the United States is to convince sunni arabs that were not attacking them and were not against sunni islam. Many people, many sunnis suspect we are. Were trying to. We have a war against islam because we threw the sunnis out of power in iraq and catapulted the shiites into power. Theyve been persecuting the sunnis ever since. We said we were going to bring sunni rebels to victory in syria when we said assad had to step aside and we did nothing. The country has crashed into horrible civil war. The u. N. Just said 90 of syrians are living in poverty today some many sunnis believe that america is secretly working with iran and shiites to destroy sunni islam. Now, from an american perspective, this seems absurd, but this is the sort of propaganda that isis is going to try to use, al qaeda will try the use. We have to convince the arab world that were going to do something good for sunnis and that were not just bombing arabs again. Thats why we needed the five monarchs there with us in this thing. Woodruff so Andrew Tabler, the convincing goes on. It was one thing to get these five countries on board last night, but what im hearing from all of you is that that is an effort that will continue. Right. And there are two parts to this. One is keeping the rulers of the monarchies on side and the other arab countries as well as turkey that might jump on board. There was serious damage to american credibility in what was known as the nonstrike incident last year when president assad went beyond american red lines. The second selling is to the sunni population majority inside of syria. Its there with the opposition in particular that american credibility has been extremely low. Hopefully with these strikes we can go on bath toward restoring that credibility with a pledge to arm moderate rebels in syria. What about the campaign itself . Im coming back to you for the moment, joshua landis. The campaign, the idea that air strikes alone, which is what president obama has been saying, no u. S. Boots on the ground, that we can. That the u. S. Can degrade isis, and one assumes thats the same view when it comes to the Khorasan Group . Right. Well, you know, andrew is right. The United States needs to partner with somebody because you can bomb isis, but you need an army on the ground that is pro american, thats going to bring better government to this region, that can move in and take these towns away from isis as theyre bombed. That puts america in a very complicated position. The United States has not really wanted the rebels to win a military victory in syria. And today the rebels are saying, arm us, arm us, well take on isis, but assad is our real target. And america has to figure out how to get the rebels on board, to attack isis, without destroying damascus and many cities where syrians still live in their apartments and drive cars and get some benefits from the state. If that should happen, there will be a big outflow of refugees again from syria, and this could flood out into neighborhoods, which is just what america does not want. So the dangers are many for obama. Hes going to go slowly and see how he can develop the rebel side of this. Woodruff picking up on, that colonel derek harvey, once air strikes do as much as they can do, what does. Who does the u. S. Turn to to fill those spaces that isis now occupies . Well, i think thats an important element and it speaks to the issue that we dont have a parter in in syria, in the Free Syrian Army and the Training Program will take a long time. But there are some significant and important developments that we could take advantage of. In the Euphrates River valley, there are a number of sunni arab tribes willing to take up arms and fight the Islamic State, and theyre not aligned with the damascus government either. We could take advantage of that and use jordan and saudi arabia and our iraqi partners to work with those tribes in developing a resistance almost like an awakening movement. The same dynamics apply to the northeast. If you did that with kurdish and sunni arabs in the northeast that are willing the fight and the Free Syrian Army in the far west, then you have the makings of a threepronged effort to put pressure on the Islamic State. It would be an awakeningtype movement, and it would be a tribal militiatype movement. Then you could move towards Something Like a nofly free zone that might begin to give you a political way forward in syria. Woodruff Andrew Tabler, that sounds like a significant balancing act for the United States to be juggling this many different players and this many different interests . Absolutely, but after the initial strikes, right, thats the key question who goes in and fills that vacuum. So there it is. What sunni powers do we have to move into those areas. The Free Syrian Army is primarily in the north and the south. Its not primarily in the eastern part of the country. Tribes are naturally in that area. So it might not be a force going into the area, but they high spring up. They could be armed. The other player is it could be the assad regime tries the lash out from its bases in the center of the country, but their capacity has been somewhat limited. Woodruff lash out at isis . Lash out at areas formerly controlled by isis in the event theyre decimated following an american air campaign. Woodruff i want to come back to you, joshua landis, on this Khorasan Group. Again, we have not heard much about them, although the attorney general was out saying today that the administrations known about them for a couple of years, known what they were up to. It was just when this threat became imminent or immediate that they decided to act. How much of a complicating factor is it or not . Well, you know, americas put down marker here. Because we could have just gone after isis. There are, according to the c. I. A. , about 1,500 armed militias in syria amongst the sunni rebels. And they span across a long spectrum, too. The american friendly socalled moderates at one end to Islamist Groups in the Center Getting more jihadists up to al qaeda on the right. Some of the Al Qaeda Groups have alliances with our proamerican groups. So were putting dunn a marker and letting the rebels know, anybody who messes with the jihadists and the groups we have designated as terrorists are not going to be able to cooperate with the United States. So thats an important lesson to send, but obviously theyre pitching this as al qaeda in syria organizing to hit america. And we are. This is selfdefense. America is defending its homeland by taking out these foreign terrorists. I think that speaks to the legitimacy question in this entire thing of what are we doing in syria and are we defending america. And this sort of underlines, yes, were defending america. Well, as we heard at the pentagon today, this is only the beginning and this is a beginning of our analysis. We thank all three of you for joining us, colonel derek harvey, Andrew Tabler and joshua landis. Thank you, judy. Thank you. Thank you. Woodruff the president made a call for more ambitious action on Climate Change today, one that he said must be led in part by china as well. Chinese officials said they recognized their responsibility. But theres still a divide between the u. S. , china and many developing countries over how to proceed. Jeffrey brown has the story. Theres one issue that will define the contours of this century more dramatically than any other. That is the urgent and growing threat of a changing climate. Brown hours after ordering air strikes in syria, president obama was in new york, to address a very different threat Climate Change. He headlined a summit with more than 120 world leaders, and he pledged to work with other nations, but said the u. S. Wont work alone. We recognize our role in creating this problem. We embrace our responsibility to combat it. We will do our part and we will help developing nations do theirs. But we can only succeed in combating Climate Change if we are joined in this effort by every nation developed and developing alike. Nobody gets a pass. Brown the summit came a day after findings that Carbon Pollution increased last year, by the most in 20 years with the u. S. , china and india accounting for much of the damage. The leaders of china and india chose not to attend the summit today. Overall, the gathering was meant to gin up political momentum for negotiating a global agreement by december 2015 to reduce greenhouse gases. U. N. Secretary ban kimoon urged all to do their part. We need all Public Finance institutions to step up to the challenge. We need to bring private finance from the sidelines, we must begin to capitalize a Green Climate fund. Brown ban also called for putting a price on carbon, something the United States has rejected. But president obama did announce hes ordered federal agencies to consider Climate Change in International Development programs. And french president Francois Hollande pledged 1 billion over the next few years to help poor nations adapt to the effects of a warming climate. translated the French Parliament at this very moment is discussing a law on energy transition. Not only do we need to show by example, not only are we hosting this conference, but we also have to be capable of making the gestures and doing what is necessary on behalf of france. That is why the green fund for us is a new prospect that needs to be well equipped. Brown the Climate Summit follows sundays mass march in new york and rallies around the world, demanding the u. S. And other developed nations do more. The next phase of negotiations will begin in lima, peru in december working toward a potential International Agreement at a conference in paris next year. But some of the challenges in reaching such an agreement were on display even today. Brazil, for example, said it would not sign a plan to halt deforestation by 2030. And chinas vice premier maintained that his country and others need to be allowed to release more pollution for the time being. Earlier this afternoon i talked about the summit and the challenges with mary robinson. Shes the former president of ireland, now serving as the u. N. Secretary generals special envoy on Climate Change. Mary robinson, thank you for joining us. This is not a summit intended to result in a specific new agreement, correct . So what is the purpose of this gathering . The main purpose was to bring Climate Action up to heads of state. We need leadership and ambition in order to get a climate agreement in paris in 2015. In december 2015. The secretarygeneral recognized that we needed to have a strong leadership and mobilization, and this is what the climb summit has really done. I think in an extraordinary way, first of all, we have the climb march with more people going out into the street, not just in new york, but all around the world. Then heads of state have come in bigger numbers than ever before, more than 120. There were only 94 in copenhagen a few years ago, and were much better prepared now. And the announcements that have been made and are being made on a whole range of issues, on Climate Smart agriculture, green bonds, forestry, cities coming together, energy efficiency, support for after cash support for small island states are really mobilizing people to believe this is a moment where we are changing direction in favor of a Renewable Energy world that would be better for everyone. Brown and yet the old rift between developed and developing countries over who should bear the burden of changes in energy use hasnt been resolved. Is there a specific movement. You see that could clear the way to a meaningful agreement . I think weve made progress on that. The durbin conference came out with the durbinenhanced platform and said all countries must take action on Climate Change. Of course, the bigger emitters and the countries that benefited for longer from fossil fuel, like the industrialized countries, they must move further and they should move first, but theres less of a divide, i believe. I sat in on a meeting of an alliance of the progressive states who got the durbin agreement together, and the mood was actually quite positive. But the poorer countries and the small island states are saying, we want some more evidence of financing to help usdant, and we have heard announcement, even today at the summit. We had an announcement from germany of 1 billion for the Green Climate fund. France has promised 1 billion. Korea, denmark have promised money. Countries are coming in and were hearing them as i speak. Brown speaking of the biggest emitters, the heads of state of two of the top three, china and india, are rather pointedly not attending this summit. Does that suggest an unwillingness to move toward any kind of new agreement . My understanding is its not actually very pointed. China believes that a very senior representative is coming, the vice premier, the third in the chinese establishment and the first on climate and development issues. They regard that as being very senior. In the case of Prime Minister modi, hes coming to the General Assembly, and im sure hell reference climate later, but he has a state visit to the United States at the end of the week, and he couldnt with away from his country for all of that time. Both the communications from both have been that we do want a climb agreement, were very serious about it. So i dont take it as being negative in that sense. Were incredibly proved by the numbers that are here and the numbers that have come out in the streets to mobilize their leaders. I think the secretarygeneral played it absolutely right in having this Climate Summit. It has made a huge difference to everybodys deadlines and planning and it has helped us on the road, first of all, to peru to, lima this december, where we see a text of a climate agreement and then negotiations for the year that will take us up to paris. Among industrial countries, as you say, there have been pledges for more action and pledges for new money, and yet even here in the u. S. , there is little sign of a political consensus on the size of the problem or the policies needed. And yet i was just talking to jerry brown, the give of california, here in new york. And hearing from him, the steps that california has taken. So cities are moving and states are moving within the United States, and i think people, especially young people, really do get how important it is that the United States gives leadership on this because its going to be good for their economies. There was a new economy. A new climate economy report saying that all countries should now take Climate Action because its good for future sustainability. Get out of fossil fuels as rapidly as possible and interrenewables. I believe coming from a Climate Justice perspective we have to do that fairly. We have to realize that even large emerging economies have very large poor populations and poor countries dont have good energy at the moment and are worried about trying to move so rapidly into renewables. They need to have some space to work it out, but they need our help to do it as rapidly as possible. Finally, you said going in that this gathering should not repeat the mistakes of copenhagen. How do you define that and how exactly will you measure success from this gathering . Weve learned the lessons from copenhagen. It was astonishing that heads of state would go to copenhagen without knowing what the outcome would be. Then they cobbled together the copenhagen accords. We have time to prepare and the preparation is much more rigorous. There will be a draft next in lima. There will be a year. It has to be inclusive because its the u. N. System. Everybody has to be prepared to step up to the plate. Leaders now are talking very seriously about how climate is already affecting their countries. So they need this climate agreement. And we need pathway that keeps us below two degrees celsius. I dont say im an optimist, but i borrow what Archbishop Desmond tutu says. Im a prisoner of hope. Im very hopeful that were on the right course at last,. I want Civil Society everywhere, in this country and all over the world to, keep up the pressure on the leaders because we need to change course an we are taking course to get a safe world for our children and grandchildren. Its as important as that. Brown mary robinson, former president of airline and now u. N. Special envoy on Climate Change, thank you so much for joining us. Thank you. Woodruff imagine a world where mushrooms can be turned into furniture, algae can be used to conduct electricity, and glowing plants can replace street lights. Those are examples of whats become known as biohacking, a Diverse Movement that is gathering steam, converts and controversy. Newshour special correspondent Spencer Michels explains. Reporter in private and university labs, students and volunteers are messing with biology. They are engaged in whats become known as biohacking. Stanford bioengineering professor drew endy. Hacking is a positive term, and it means learning about stuff by building, and trying to make things, and seeing what happens. Reporter thats what theyre doing at berkeley biolabs. Biohackers here are delving into biological systems, trying to figure out how the d. N. A in plants is controlled, how to build an inexpensive photometer for biological research and how to use algae to make batteries. Youre not making electricity, youre storing electricity that you can recover later. Reporter this is one of a growing number of biohacking locations, mostly off campus, where biology has become a citizen sport, a place where anyone with or without training can do handson biology, and perhaps change the world. It is a new, less formal way of practicing biology than in Many University or commercial labs. Ron shigeta, a ph. D. Chemist and biologist, cofounded the lab a year ago. Biohacking is sort of the ability to walk into a space, like ours, and follow your curiosity, and sort of not have these limits of someone coming and saying to you, like, you know, you cant do that, youre not an expert, you dont know anything about this. You can come in, and you can look at bacteria, you might take a little piece of plant and grow the plant up and try to change its properties, you can even take your food apart and look at the biological things that are living in the food, and making it tasty and nutritious. Were a team of citizen scientists and biohackers. Reporter one group of hackers has posted video online to raise money so they can produce a vegan cheese made from reprogrammed yeast. He genetically modified yeast will produce cheese protein as it grows. Reporter what started as a fringe science has become almost mainstream. Stanford university has constructed a new lab dedicated to synthetic biology, a formal term for biohacking. Staffed by a combination of ph. D. S, and undergraduates volunteering their time, its run by professor endy, one of the leaders of the movement. As an engineer working with biology, i view biology not as a science, but as a platform for making, for manufacturing i want to figure out how to partner with life to make the things we need, in a way thats sustainable and beautiful. This is a locally grown, organic mushroom chair. Reporter endy points to San Francisco artist philip ross, a former cook, as a biohacker who is using biology to make art works and sustainable building materials. Ross takes common reishi mushrooms, feeds them sawdust or other cellulose waste like peanut shavings, and produces a new, recyclable material he shapes into chairs or bricks. Im able to transform them into something that doesnt look at all like what were familiar with as a mushroom. It could be seen as biohacking in that im taking an organism, and im making it do things that might not be immediately obvious or apparent. Reporter ross has founded a firm, myco works, to produce and market his products. In pretty short order i expect to be producing millions of tons of fungi on the planet earth. Reporter not all biohackers are having the success ross has had, but in makeshift labs like this one hundreds of wouldbe scientists are working toward that ahha moment. Biohackers like to compare the biological revolution they believe they are part of to the development of the computer a at first only a few people, insiders, could tinker with computers, but as they became more commonplace, they changed the entire society. Now biologists think they are part of a revolution similar to the computer. Endy is convinced the Natural World forests and oceans and deserts provide models for man. Flourishing biosystems that generate huge amounts of power, hackable systems that will teach us to be more productive and creative. What happens if we could do Something Like grow a cell phone using a mushroom, to physically make electronics. Reporter literally grow the entire cell phone, or grow some parts of it that you put into a cell phone . Obviously wed start with figuring out how to grow parts, and then wed see how far we could take it. Reporter the biohackers at glowing plant in San Francisco are shooting for a more modest goal. Using this video, they raised around half a Million Dollars to research how to make a normal plant glow in the dark using d. N. A from a squid. What if we used trees to light our streets instead of electric street lamps . Reporter antony evans, not a biologist but a Marketing Specialist is cofounder. Bioluminescence is the process by which biological organisms make light from their d. N. A. So we go online, we download the genes responsible for making a bacteria glow we put them on our software and we press print. Its nearly as simple as that. Reporter so far, the glowing plant is very dim but in two years evans expects tens of thousands of times more brightness. And even now, people are investing in the technology and buying the plants. The glowing plant was pioneered at biocurious, a Biohacking Lab in Silicon Valley where the hackers all ages, all disciplines are now experimenting with bioprinting. Thats a technique that uses a modified ink jet printer to produce biological results. Biocurious founder eri gentry sees the possibility of printing body parts. What if you could take stem cells from your own body and have these be differentiated into heart cells that are placed on a scaffold thats printed for pennies, maybe a few dollars, grow enough and then transplant it back into your own body, with our own materials. And the way the hackers think is hey, thats not so hard, i can do that. Reporter but biohacking has plenty of detractors. Critics who warn that unregulated biology poses dangers to the environment and to humans. One of those skeptics is dana perls who is an activist with friends of the earth. Do we really think that reprogramming life in garages is not going to encounter some sort of mistakes, some sort of problem . This has to be taken really seriously, were not talking about people who are entirely trained. Reporter perls says the field of biohacking to too new to be allowed free reign. If and when these organisms escape into the environment, we wont know how to recall them or clean them up. This is a very new field of technology about which we know very little. Its unregulated, its virtually unassessed, and we need to be sure that we have national and international regulation, safety assessments, and safety precautions. Reporter but endy counters that biohackers do observe safety rules, even though those rules arent entirely clear at this point. And, he says, Law Enforcement is working with the community to develop safe practices. Just because youre not at an institution when it comes to biohacking, it doesnt mean there arent any rules, and you might be surprised, for example the f. B. I field office in San Francisco has field agents who are in charge of making sure that the local socalled biohacking community is operating responsibly. Reporter the debate over the ethics and legality of biohacking has just begun. It will be played out as doit yourself biologists hack their way into Natural Systems not sure what they will find. Woodruff spencer has more online, including how one ambitious biohacker tinkers with his own body in the hope of improving himself physically and mentally. Woodruff finally tonight, new details and fresh questions following a major Security Breach at the most famous residence in america. The amateur video taped by a tourist captured a man running across the white house lawn friday evening. Omar gonzalez allegedly jumped the fence and made it through the executive mansions unlocked front door with a threeinch knife before being stopped. Folks everybody turn around and head out the gate here. Lets go, lets go. Youre going to have to go to 17th street please. Woodruff the first family had left for camp david just minutes before, but the incident still prompted a partial evacuation of the white house. Federal prosecutors revealed yesterday that gonzalez, an army veteran from texas, had 800 rounds of ammunition, a machete and two hatchets in his vehicle. Hed also been arrested in july in southwestern virginia with a car full of weapons and a map with the white house circled. And last month, officials stopped gonzalez as he walked by the white house with a hatchet in his belt. After fridays incident, the secret service immediately increased surveillance and foot patrols near the white house. But the episode also brought renewed criticism. Republican congressman peter king of new york appeared on fox news sunday. This demands a full investigation as to what happened and why it happened, and whats being done to make sure it never happens again. Woodruff a house hearing is scheduled next week, amid reports the public might be moved farther back from the fences. But d. C. s delegate to congress, Eleanor Holmes norton, has objected to that proposal. In a letter to secret Service Director julia pierson, she asked that Public Access not be further restricted. For his part, president obama expressed confidence in his Security Team yesterday during a white house event. The secret service does a great job and im grateful for all the sacrifices they make on my behalf and my familys behalf. Woodruff still, this wasnt the first black eye for the secret service. In 2012, agents were disciplined over allegations they used prostitutes in colombia, south america. And last year, three agents were sent home for drinking during the president s trip to europe. The Security Breach is raising a lot of questions about the secret service, its ability to protect the president , and what changes might be made in and around the white house. Joining us is Carol Leonnig, a reporter for the washington post, who has been following this story closely. Welcome to the program. Thanks, judy. Woodruff so what more do we know, carol, about why this man got as far as he did, opened the door of the white house and was about to go in . Its kind of stunning. You know, the previous problems the service have suffered you could put in a category of misconduct, personal misbehavior, but this one is kind of on another. Its in a whole other category because it raises questions about the tactical performance of the secret service. There are a number of rings of security around the white house to protect the complex and the president , of course, but to protect this central beacon of our government, and all of those rings are reporting as showing failed. You know, the alarm bell sounded. Guys are supposed to swarm the area. A dog is supposed to be let loose if uniformed officers cant collar that intrudeer. An Emergency Response team is supposed to go into action to basically jump all over this person. A host of things are supposed to happen that didnt happen. That door is supposed to be locked and it was open. Why did all this happen . Do you have answers no these questions . This whole event is under investigation by the secret service. Theyve been very mum about that and in making any early prola nations, but what weve learned from people close to some of the evidence is there are serious questions about whether or not the dog and the canine handler, a failsafe way of stopping the intruder, whether they were in position at the right time on the north lawn or whether they were sort of out of position. There are also a lot of concern, and we cant attribute this to what happened necessarily friday night, but there are a lot of concerns about severe staffing shortages among the division, the uniform division of the secret service that is responsible for protecting the grounds. You know, you see the protective detail for the president usually on television, but this is sort of the hard core back of the Kitchen Group of the secret service that makes sure the grounds are safe. And that group has been understaffed for the last two and a half years. Woodruff thats documented that they havent been for budget reasons getting the money . Whats the explanation . The secret service said hard decisions had to be made during continuing resolutions and budget tightening and they decided the best way the handle that and cover all their other costs was to go down a little on the number of officers in the uniformed division. They say that has not impaired their security parole protocol, but a lot of people inside the agency has it has endangered it. It has burned out officers. It has required them to come in on off days routinely and it has created a really low morale and probably has led to a couple posts not being monitored. Again, i stress, it doesnt mean thats the reason this happened, but it is part of the background. Woodruff Decision Making on this goes to the very top. We mentioned julia pierson. Shes been there a year and a half. What role is she playing in all of this in. Shes taking it very seriously. I think shes extremely cognizant of how embarrassing this is an understand debt. Former Senior Secret Service agents are coming out saying that this is humiliating for the agency they love, and she says shes going to do a top to bottom review, were protocols violated, is the problem with training, is it about staffing, is it about how they communicate the officers . She also says shell share with this with the secretary of the department of the homeland security. We dont know what parts of it will be public. I doubt that much of it will. Woodruff so based on the people youve talked to outside, government inside people who have served in the secret service before, how confident are they that this is going to get fixed . Theyre a bit worried i think. Theyve seen sort of a number of incidents that worry them, but this is a new low and they wonder if perhaps the agency has become a little complacent, a little too reactive rather than creative in thinking about the new world of security. I cant speak to that. Thats not my expertise, but listening to them, i hear a real anxiety about the agency they love. And at a time when the threats against the president , against the white house are not lessning. No, increasing actually in this administration. Woodruff Carol Leonnig with the washington post, thank you. Thank you, judy. Woodruff again, the major developments of the day. President obama declared last nights air strikes on islamic lessning state targets in syria are only the first and he said the participation of five arab states shows this is not americas fight alone. Pentagon officials also said other air strikes hit an Al Qaeda Group in syria before it could attack the u. S. Or europe and at a u. N. Climate summit the president called for a new Global Compact on limiting greenhouse gases. On the newshour online right now dallas artist gabriel dawe starts with a concept and 60 miles of thread. Then he weaves massive geometric installations that transform entire spaces. See some of those creations, filmed by our partners at north texass k. E. R. A, on our art beat page. All that and more is on our web site, newshour. Pbs. Org. Woodruff and again, to our honor roll of American Service personnel killed in the afghanistan conflict. We add them as their deaths are made official and photographs become available. Here, in silence, are three more. Woodruff and thats the newshour for tonight. On wednesday, Margaret Warner reports from the United Nations General Assembly where president obama will lead a meeting of the security council. Im judy woodruff. Well see you online and again here tomorrow evening. For all of us here at the pbs newshour, thank you and good night. Major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by moving our economy for 160 years. Bnsf, the engine that connects us. And by the alfred p. Sloan foundation. Supporting science, technology, and improved Economic Performance and Financial Literacy in the 21st century. And with the ongoing support of these institutions and. This program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting. And by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. Thank you. Captioning sponsored by Macneil Lehrer productions captioned by Media Access Group at wgbh access. Wgbh. Org. This is nightly Business Report with Tyler Mathisen and susie gharib. Backtoback, a triple digital loss led by Health Care Stocks after the treasury announced new rules to halt socalled inversion deals, leading some large proposed acquisitions hanging in the balance. Big bang theory, volatility is back just in time to close out the quarter and that could be good news if you hold shares of the money center bank. Where business meets politics, former president clinton and president obama, gathering in china discussing alibaba and the big issues facing business. 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