Major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by and with the ongoing support of these institutions 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 more people and places along the snowbound east coast got back to normal and got back to work today. But the death toll rose to 45, and in washington d. C. , especially, there was still a lot of digging out to do. The Nations Capital lurched slowly back to life on this third day after the great blizzard. Federal offices remained closed, but work crews were out early to clear more snow, and the mayor sounded cautiously optimistic. We have finished two full days of plowing and removal and our crews made Good Progress through the night. Theyve gotten down to asphalt on all major arteries, woodruff washingtons subway system was also back to near normal operations, albeit with some delays. But many side streets remained unplowed, and emergency manager Chris Geldart said the focus now is on getting into those neighborhoods. That will continue through today and through tonight. Were Monitoring Progress every two hours, to ensure that no areas in the city that we have not touched and that are not passable. Woodruff that effort will be vital to reopening d. C. Public schools tomorrow. Another concern how to pay for the massive cleanup effort thats eating up most of the citys annual snow removal budget of 6. 2 million. D. C. Officials have asked for federal disaster assistance. And, another kind of help arrived today in the form of a snow melter, on loan from indianapolis. It was quickly deployed to tackle the mountains of snow being collected from city streets. We have water inside, like a giant hot tub basically, get the b. T. U. S to get the temperature up to a certain level and then just start loading it. Woodruff meanwhile, new york city with a much larger snow budget has recovered more quickly and is already clearing outer boroughs of snow. In the days other news, wall street surged ahead as oil prices turned higher again. The Dow Jones Industrial average gained more than 280 points to close at 16,167. The nasdaq rose 49 points, and the s p 500 added 26. A Congressional Task force today called for keeping more non violent criminals out of federal prison, and saving 5 billion in the process. The panel recommended prosecuting only the most serious cases and repealing mandatory minimum penalties for many drug offenses. That could cut the federal prison population by 60,000 in 2024. Its now nearly 200,000. In syria, bombings erupted in the central part of the country, killing at least 20 people and wounding more than 100. The Islamic State group claimed responsibility for the attacks in homs. They struck just three days before peace talks are supposed to begin, and left refugee officials warning of the price of failure. As we do now have momentum to get agreements, we can, as humanitarians, reach the besieged areas, all of them, within days of the agreement. All of the millions, were out of reach within weeks. We can do it. So, finally, if they lose this momentum, i think they will live to regret it. Woodruff meanwhile, Syrian Opposition groups backed by saudi arabia met in riyadh, to decide whether to attend the peace talks. And russia pushed for the main Syrian Kurdish party to participate, despite opposition from turkey, which considers it a terrorist group. A policeman in afghanistan shot dead 10 other officers late monday, in the countrys latest insider attack. It happened in the south, in uruzgan province, bordering the Taliban Strongholds of helmand and kandahar. One local official said the victims were sleeping when they were killed. Another said theyd been drugged. The taliban claimed responsibility. Warnings of the zika virus spread today. The centers for disease prevention said pregnant women should postpone visit there any 22 other destinations. The virus is being linked to birth defects. The official design for a new world war one memorial has been unveiled in washington. Artist renderings today show walls bearing relief sculptures of soldiers, with quotations. Each cubic foot represents an american soldier who died in the war a total of 116,516. The memorial will be located near the white house, in a small urban park. Something old is new again, in the world of peter rabbit. Theres word today that an unpublished story by renowned childrens author Beatrix Potter is bound for book stores, more than a century after it was written. Sharon thomas of independent Television News has the story. Reporter once upon a time there was a serious, wellbehaved young black cat. It belonged to a kind old lady who assured me that no other cats could compare with kitty. The tale of kittyinboots tells the story of a wellbehaved cat who leads a double life. For more than a century, it lay undiscovered. Daniebetween the world and mex potter menned 23 books. Now a 24th has been unearthed. The tale of kittyinboots was referenced in an outofprint biography on the author. Three manuscripts were found in the archives in london. Her classic, peter rabbit, has been published in 36 languages, and sold more than 45 million copies. Beatrix potter had only completed a single drawing to go with kitten in boots. The rest will be created by illustrator quentin blake. I mean, it will go like a hot cake. Its tantalizing, but, of course, the announcement has been made now. Reporter this july marks the 150th anniversary of Beatrix Potters birth. The tale of kittyinboots will be published in september. Woodruff the story that started it all, the tale of peter rabbit, was First Published in 1902. And, two passings of note actor abe vigoda died today in woodland park, new jersey. He was best known as the mafia captain tessio in the godfather, and as the sadsack detective fish in the 1970s tv series barney miller. Abe vigoda was 94 years old. And Concepcion Piccioto has died at a washington homeless shelter. She staged a threedecade peace vigil outside the white house the longest political protest in American History. Still to come on the newshour an end to solitary confinement for juveniles. The fine line between promoting security and fear on the campaign trail. A push for an alternative to college. And much more. Woodruff in the latter part of his tenure, president obama has put criminal Justice Reform high on his agenda. His latest move includes a new ban on solitary confinement for juveniles in the federal prison system. The executive actions also put new limits on how long federal prison officials can use solitary for firsttime offenses. The department of justice caps its use at two months rather than a full year. And the president prohibited federal officers from using solitary for lowlevel infractions. Hari sreenivasan has our look. Sreenivasan the president s changes would affect about 10,000 federal inmates a year. In an oped published in the washington post, the president cited the case of Kalief Browder, who committed suicide within a year after he was released from prison. He spent nearly two years in solitary at rikers island. In the oped, the president says, solitary confinement has the potential to lead to devastating, lasting psychological consequence pptz United States say nation of second chances, but the experience of solitary confinement too often undercuts that second chance. We discuss these changes with shaka senghor, who was convicted of seconddegree murder and sent to prison at the age of 19 and during parts of his sentence he spent a total of seven years in solitary. Hes written a memoir and is with the group cut 50 air, national, Bipartisan Initiative to reduce the prison population. And Maurice Chammah of the marshall product, a notforprofit news agency covering the criminal justice system. One of the critiques here is this is going to affect a very small population in federal prison, compared to the large populations that we have in state prisons. How significant is this impact going to be . Thats true. Its kind of hard to tell at this moment sort of how widespread it will be. One of the things the president has done has been to ban solitary confinement for juveniles in the system, and in the federal prison system there are maybe a dozen of that sort of unmate. But across the states, in state prisons and jails, like rikers island, where Kalief Browder was, there are thousands of juveniles who are sometimes held in solitary confinement. And the president s actions wont affect them, so this is a signal, of course, to people who run prison systems around the country that the National Mood is shifting on this. Sreenivasan shack aim sure youre excited about the president s announcement today, but tell us a bit about why you think this is important. You had been in solitary. What did it do to you in the short term and the long term . Im super excited about the president s decision today because i know the impact it will have on men and women currently in solitary confinement in the federal prison system. And for me, personally, knowing the devastating impact of being in the most barbaric and inhumane environment, locked down for 23 hours a day, and sometimes 24 hours a day, i just think its one of those type of moment wheres it helps people to think about, you know, what our responsibility is in terms of men and women who come home from pris pon and we have a choice. We have a choice whether we want to bring home healthy men and women or broken men and women. When i was in solitary confinement, i remember dealing with depression and being dwooelg, you know, the feeling of hopelessness. When you have somebody incarcerated the last thing you want to do is leave them way sense of hopelessness. Sreenivasan what did it do to you when you were coming out . What kind of effects did you still have to deal with and maybe even deal with today . I served a total of seven years in solitary confinement, and at one point, four and a half years straight. And one of the things i struggled with getting out was the ability to just communicate in normal ways with everyday people. I wasnt very trustworthy of people touching me, of standing behind me. I dealt with sensory dep riff ailings deprivation. I dealt with depth of field perception. I had a little struggle driving and being able to adjust because i had been in a box for so long. So its small, nuanced things, and fortunately, i was literate while i was in solitary, so i was able to read books about Nelson Mandela that kept me focused and kept me strong. But thats not the typical case in an environment where the majority of men i was around were suffering from severe cases of Mental Illness, and if they didnt have it going in, they definitely left with it. Sreenivasan maurice, what is the justification and rationale that prison officials give you for solitary confinement . There are a few. Usually people are placed in solitary confinement because the wardens or Correctional Officers in the institution feel that person might be a threat. Un, either they attacked someone or they, you know, attacked, you know, either their cell mate or an officer. But, you know, often the justification has kind of stretched down into smaller, more mundane, mouthing off at an officer or refuse a direct order. You know, one of the Major Concerns i think a lot of people have is that Correctional Officers have sort of become overly used to using solitary confinement as a punishment. Sometimes you also hear the justification used that younger inmates who are maybe more vulnerable need to be in solitary confinement for their own protection. Luckily, that rationale has sort of slowly been ebbing away, though it still does gift in some prisons. Sreenivasan shack agiven those reasons dsolitary work when you were placed in there . When you came out dyour behavior change towards what they wanted . And i guess a corollary to that what would have worked better . In my instance it was more a matter of what i chose to do with the time i had when i was in solitary confinement. I set my cell up like i was at a college campus. But again, that speaks to my literacy going in. To me theres really no longterm benefits for putting somebody in solitary confinement, and i think what i would have benefited from was actually counseling, conflict resolution, and being in an environment that nourishes the healthy part of human interactions and unfortunately that is not the way our systems are designed. We have a very punitive system that has been a model for decades. And i think what the president has shown is we have to take a step toward what we really want to see the outcomes be, which is we want to make sure healthy men and women are returning home. In order to do, that you have to pour into them a sense of respect, dignity, hope, and health. And when you fail to do, that you cant be surprised when the outcomes arent positive. Sreenivasan maurice, lets talk a little bit about some of the other executive actions, or at least the initiatives the administration is trying to outline today besides just the ones for juveniles. Sure. Well, hes also limiting, basically, the way in which solitary confinement can be used across the board in the federal prison system for people who break rules. And it sends a message sort of from the top down to bureau of prison administrators that they have to kind of figure out a different way to deal with people who break rules within federal prison. This is broadly in line with things different states have tried out. The president did mention state experiments in his oped. And different states are kind of looking at ways to instead of put people in solitary confinement, do what shaka has been describing, give them counseling. In washington state, in colorado, theyre doing this. Youre kind of seeing that tide shift a little bit and the president s the president s oped kind of is a capstone for that. Gl shaka in the brief amount of time we have left youre work with an organization trying to move the ball forward on different types of criminal Justice Reforms. Is there a Tipping Point here . There seems to be some momentum in what maurice is outlining . The work i have been doing with cut 50 is amazing in that it gives us an inside look at what policies have been put on the table. About the of but the last six months, i mean, the president has set the tone in the leader in terms of assuring that hes paving the way by going inside of prison, really coming up on the with these aggressive policies. While we noted this only impacts federal prisons, im confident the states will pick up his leadership and take, you know and follow his lead. Sreenivasan all right, shaka senghor from cut 50, and Maurice Chammah from the marshall project. Thank you so much for joining us. Thank you for having us. Thank you for having us. Woodruff now to the race for president. Political director Lisa Desjardins guides us through the gauntlet of activity in just the past day. Reporter in campaign land, the biggest heavyweight is now the calendar. Were at tuesday, so candidates and voters have six short days left until next monday the iowa caucuses. And, as time wanes, intensity waxes. All right, we are live at drake university. Reporter last night it was des last night, it was des moines, iowa where democrats engaged, at a forum hosted by cnn. Is secretary clinton simply better prepared for the job . Dont leave, we have another 15 minute. applause reporter reporter bernie sanders, the former underdog, now co frontrunner, was first on stage. This calls for a standing up response, thats all. Reporter the vermont senator argued that his judgment outweighs Hillary Clintons experience. Yeah, its easy to get rid of a dictator like saddam hussein. But theres got to be a political vacuum. There will be instability, and it gives me no pleasure to tell you that much of what i feared in fact happened. Hillary clinton voted for the war in iraq. I have a i have a much longer history than one vote, which ive said was a mistake because of the way that that was done and how the Bush Administration handled it. Reporter clinton responded with a doublepunch, quoting president obama on depth and readiness. He said, you know, you dont get to pick the issues you work on when youre president , a lot of them come at you. They come in the door whether you open it or not. Reporter the familiar battle lines felt sharper. Sanders, pressed about his plan to raise taxes on wall street, wore it as a badge of honor. Fine, if thats the criticism i accept it. I demand that wall street start paying its fair share of taxes. Reporter from martin omalley. Im excited reporter . Came both an admission of and an argument about being the underdog. In the history of the state of iowa, iowa has found a way to sort through the noise and to sort through the National Polls and to lift up a new leader for our country at times when that was critical and essential. Reporter and clinton showed quiet intensity when an air force veteran and Muslim American expressed concern that her children could face discrimination. The candidate blasted Republican Donald Trump as demeaning and dangerous. He started with mexicans, hes currently on muslims but i found it particularly harmful the way he has talked about muslims. American muslims, but muslims around the world. Reporter as for trump. I am angry. Im angry about isis, we cant beat em. Reporter he was in New Hampshire last night. But today, some of his republican rivals were also playing up the idea of a less divisive rhetoric. Marco rubio, back in iowa, painted himself as a unity candidate. Even the people that vote even the people