This is Al Jazeera America live from new york city. Im tony harris. Vice President Joe Biden has ended months of speculation about a president ial bid. A short time ago he announced he will not run. Biden made the announcement in the white house woes garden with his wife and president obama at his side. He said he and his family are still grieving the death of his son, and there is not enough time to launch a successful campaign. Mike viqueira joins us now from the white house with more. Mike, walk me through the announcement, was it much of a surprise . It was a very big surprise, tony. Consider the fact over the last few days there have been secret meetings, leaks from those secret meetings, there has been speculation that has just sucked the oxygen out of the White House Press core. Everyone trying to read the tea leaves and trying to figure out what joe biden is going to do. The hour is getting late. In fact, in the end joe biden appearing with his wife, dr dr. Jill biden in the rose garden, president obama by his side. He decided there was not enough time, the clock had run out. He had lost his son bo this year and with all the machinations in the modern campaign he simply could not get a campaign together. Here is more of what the Vice President had to say. As my family and i have worked through the grieving process, i said all along, what ive said time and again to others. It may very well be that that process by the time we get through it closes the window on mounting a Realistic Campaign for president. That it might close. I concluded it has closed. So there you have it, tony a bittersweet moment for Vice President biden. A disappointment for those who wanted him to jump in the race. Hillary clinton, many will speculate that the success that she had in the first democratic debate last week and joe biden now saying that hes not going to run. Mike viqueira for us from washington. Thank you. Lets bring in david shuster. David, lets chop this up a little bit. So if youre joe biden, we understand the grieving process. But if you take that off the table there are a couple of bench mark questions that need to be asked and answered. Joe biden says to his team, is there enough time . Can we put a Team Together ultimately can we win . Lets take those in sequence. First the grieving process. He has been told by his family, specifically by the widow of bo biden, were behind you 100 if you want to do that. Well, his family was there. What about his chances of winning. He has been told repeatedly that the odds are slim. There is a chance that you could do this, but its not going to be easy. There is no guarantee. Hillary clinton is extremely strong. Youre starting with no organization. And no money. And that is normally a recipe for disaster. So he goes in to this thinking, okay, i got my family. Maybe i could handle the grieving process, its over. But in the front of his mind, not the back of his mind, hes being told that the odds are very small that you can do this. The performance by Hillary Clinton in last weeks debate. How did that factor in thoug to this decision . I think it reminded people of her stage presence and how well she does in these debates. Joe biden saw this up close and personal. He knew that. This really came down to joe biden has to live with his decision for the rest of his life. This is the last time hell get all this attention unless he speaks with the Democratic National convention. He has been able to get a lot of attention over the last several weeks, last several months, thats going to go away. Is it easier to live with this decision if you come to your own conclusion that it will be an uphill battle, and you probably cant win. Yes, if i run, i lose, what kind of legacy is that on top of everything that he has been through. On the other hand, now he can snap back for the good of the Democratic Party instead of continuing to drag this out, here i am saying he looks magnanimous. He is looking magnanimous. There is something that he said about partisanship in washington and his desire to move on beyond that. As the president said many times compromise is not a dirty word. But look at it this way, folks, how does this country function without consensus . How can we move forward without being able to arrive to consensus . Four more years of this pitched battle may be more than this country can take. We have to change it. We have to change it. Now tony, that is something that could have been part of his speech announcing that hes running. He has repeated it over the last couple of days. Unlike Hillary Clinton who said republicans are her enemy. Joe biden said that republicans are not my enemies. We have to work together. This is him saying i still feel strongly we cannot have the partisan. But that sounds like joe biden the senator. That sounds like joe biden for all of his political year. The guy is working it. Let me shake your hand, buy you a cup of coffee, lets work this out. There is another issue. This is the issue, this impacts quality not just politics. This means the democratic field will not have a debate over the keystone oil pipeline. There will not be a debate over the Transpacific Partnership deal because joe biden is going to be in position to defend that, Hillary Clinton, a few weeks ago came out against that. Youre going to see the policy debate is going to change as a result of what joe biden did today. Can i ask one more question . Yes. Can i please . Of course. Where is joe biden as ive been talking about this over the last couple of months, and we talked about it repeatedly, where is joe biden going to run. If he decided to run, he was not going to run right of Hillary Clinton, someone who voted for the iraq war. Where is he going to run. If seems to me when Hillary Clinton began to apply herself closely with the obama administration, joe biden was shut out, am i wrong in that . A little bit. When Hillary Clinton started moving towards Bernie Sanders and there is this divide, and shes against the Transpacific Partnership deal, and joe biden is there having to defend it. Thats a problem. Hillary clinton is also saying im the heir to the obama legacy because of foreign policy. Joe biden would say, wait a second, i was Vice President. I dont know, i love it. Weve been kicking this thing around for months, and i love it when we disagree. David shuster, terrific, as always. Will pearce, the executive director of a draft biden released a statement just a few moments ago. He said, while the Vice President has decided not to run, we know that over the next year he will stand up for all americans and articulate a vision for americas future that will leave no one behind. Basel. Good to see you. What are your thoughts and reaction of joe biden that hes not running for president. For a lot of folks it would have been great political theater just to see him in there. Yes. He has been highly regarded as someone who is incredibly authentic, and we love to hear him speak. Hes a great democrat. In terms of his ability to carry the torch of the Obama Presidency would absolutely be true and on point. Not to say that Hillary Clinton cant, because i think she can. But it would have been great political theater. Having said that, folks here particularly in new york who love hillary and want to see her win this nomination and win the presidency, now now can say, now that thats settled lets put the full weight behind the senator. Let me bring it another way. You said political theater, and does thatis that a way of saying political theater but not a serious threat in your mind . To Hillary Clinton . You know, no, i mean, it would have shaken up the race. I think your earlier question is actually a very good one. What would be his opening coming in to this race . Yes. And then its something that i questioned for a while. Look, he can talk about the obama legacy, but the reality is even if he comes into this race hurting the poll numbers. They didnt go down. They went up. He probably has to run to the right of Bernie Sanders and probably to the right of Hillary Clinton. I dont know if the electorate is really ready to hear that right now. If hillary is being pulled, if one can argue that hillary is being pulled to the left, how can he go further to the right . That must be something that he would have had to wrestle with. With a lot of the constituen constituentsgoing back to 2008 president obama created his own network to go around political institutions. In a way he probably thought i could take that network and run with it, but i dont know if there are enough of those individuals left that have not gone to other campaigns right now that he would have been able to ride that network to victory. Former aid to Hillary Clinton and executive director of the new york state Democratic Party. So republicans are rejecting paul ryans conditions to become speaker of the house. He said he needs unanimous support from g. O. P. Members before hell run. Ryan has been resisting pressure for weeks but now he says hes open to being speaker on his terms. As al jazeeras Michael Shure explains some republicans are pushing back. Paul ryan serving as speaker of the house is based on if all republicans can be unified at all. In the House Freedom caucus and other republicans, ryan said that hes willing to serve as speaker as long as three main demands are met. He will not commit to anything that the Freedom Caucus wants before becoming speaker to a rule change that prevent any group to vote to vacate the chair meaning to remove the speaker. On top of that he wants the Freedom Caucus to publicly endorse him. Already this seems unlikely as five Freedom Caucus say theyre opposed, and Daniel Webster of florida saying hell continue his own run for speaker. They even called for ryans, quote, none starter. Its not as if ryan ever wanted this job in the first place. Im in the job that i always wanted here in congress. I came to the conclusion that this is a dire moment for our country, and i think our country is in desperate need of leadership. Congressman ryan has expressed his reluctance to me just after Speaker Boehner resigned. When i asked if he wanted the job, he said no, its sincere and people are finally believing what i say. Paul ryan may have to walk away from a job he never really wanted. Political correspondent Michael Shure for us. Benjamin netanyahu has met with german chancellor angela merkel. If we want to have peace we have to stop terror. If we want to stop terror we have to stop enkitement, and i think its important that they demand president abbas to stop the entigh citement and spreading the lice about the jewish state. We have more on the visit. Weve seen the german host saying exactly the kinds of things you would expect to see as Benjamin Netanyahu was on his way here. That the violence needs to deescalate. Israel has a right to protect its own citizens, but it should do so in a proportionate way. The interesting Diplomatic Initiative women from e. U. Parties. The french who have talked about some pressures at the al aqsa mosque compound and tensions there. Thats something that Prime MinisterBenjamin Netanyahu has rejected. His meeting with john kerry tomorrow is very important because john kerry will fly on, we believe, to a meeting with the Palestinian Leader mood abbas. However, little ground for optimism with all of this happening against the backdrop of eight years of frustration. In st. Louis federal investigators suspect a lone arsonist has been setting fire to black churches in and around the city. Six fires in two weeks. John henry smith has more. Fire Department Officials in and around st. Louis say they have no doubt the fires that have burned citizen churches there are the work of an arsonist. They say it is suspicious in nature. The new north Side Missionary Baptist Church is one of the churches set aplays. All are within three miles of each other. Each has seen an entrance set on fire. What i would like to see happening is number one, i would like to see them caught. And whoever they are, that they can face justice. And the leader of the new nor side said that it does not seem like locals are taking it seriously. National media, yet, while investigators say that they dont have any suspects, they also say its likely one person is responsible for the rash of fires. There is a 2,000 reward for any information leading to an arrest. It is appalling that someone would doing i do Something Like that. At new live missionary baptist another church has burned. Dozens came together for an Outdoor Service a day after the fire there, showing Amazing Grace as they prepare to rebuild. I dont want the communities to be angry. Its in these moments that our character is tested. John henry smith is reporting. Searching for answers, we look how residents are coping with violence and they try to find a solution. More than 130 Police Chiefs are expected to launch a new campaign to reduce the number of americans in prison. They tell the New York Times that too many people are there who dont belong there. Homicide rates in some parts of washington, d. C. Have doubled since last year. Now many washington residents, including a teenage victim of gun violence wants to make sure that d. C. Does not become the nations murder capital. Lisa fletcher reports. [ sirens ] the sounds of sirens blaring. The sound of a city in crisis. Officers racing to the scene of yet another violent crime. The most powerful city in america seems powerfulless to stop the killing terrorizing the community destroying families. August 30th, this 36yearold mother of seven came face to face with the violence. To hear the gunshot. Her 13yearold daughter was sitting on her neighbors front steps with two other kids when gunfire erupted from a passing car. When the main walk like that right in front of us, they started shooting. I understand that you laid down over the little girl to protect her. Yes. What was going through your head. I dont know,. So far, 126 homicide. But while the dramatic rise in the murder rate looks and is a terrible reflexion on the city, experts who take a long view warn against reading too much in a single year. Developer adrian washington is another washingtonian who takes an along view. He lived through the murderous 90s, and decided while applications and police were trying to figure out why crime was happening, he would help communities mobilize against it. You know, the police cant put a cop on every corner and have them here 24 hours a day. There are not enough resources. We have to get involved. Not just with your job making it safe but we have to do what we can do to make us safe. The message is not lost on this 13yearold girl just two days after she was shot she found her voice. Insisting her mom take her to a Community Meeting at the First District police station. I want us to go to the Community Meeting because i feel like i belong there. It is a community. I was in the community. Something happened upon the community. So i figured i should go to the Community Meeting because i dont want this to happen to nobody else. Lisa fletcher, al jazeera, washington, d. C. President obama today is said to announce steps aimed at preventing overdosing of prescription drugs. The rate has been climbing. Among the steps, requiring federal Health Insurance plans to pay for addiction treatment. Keeping an eye on what police are doing to track your cell phone. And why some say Law Enforcement is going too far. Sony pictures has agreed to pay 8 million to its employees for personal data lost in last years hacking scandal. The settlement will reimburse Identity Theft losses and presensitive measures and cover legal fees. Some claim that sonys negligence caused them harm. The House Committee is taking a closer look at cell phone tracking technology. Using special devices to track suspects often without a warrant. The devices are easily obtained and easily used. One acts like a fake cell phone tower to track every phone on a Street Corner or at a protest. If it trained only the on one number, then most people would not have a concern. But it operates in a dragonet fashion. Police departments and federal agencies have been buying these devices as far back as 2010. They cost answer where between 2,400 to 7,500. They gather radio waves when a phone is communicating wit communicating with a cell tower. That means that the police do not need a court order to gather the data. I dont want to say too much about that because i dont want the bad guys to know how we might be able to find them. Last month the Deputy Attorney general said they need to mention the use of stingrays in seven warrants. That policy has two exceptions. When there is an urgent Public Safety need and when the need meets exceptional circumstances. The use of the device is often concealed from suspects, lawyers and even judges. The police want to enter into a house they got to get a search warrant. It would be easier for Law Enforcement to say, were going to enter everybodys house and look for crimes once a week. That would probably make their jobs easier but there are liberties at stake. Updating our top story. Vice President Joe Biden said that he will not be running for president. He said that the grieving process of the loss of his son has closed the window on a bid. Unfortunately, we ran out of time. The time necessary to mount a Winning Campaign for the nomination. While i will not an candidate, i will not be silent. I intend to speak out clearly and forceful where we need to go as a party and where we need to go as a nation. Thats all of our time. Tony harris, well be back tonight at 7 00 p. M. The news conditions liv continues live from lone con. London. S. Hello, im lauren taylor. This is the news hour live from london. Coming up in the next 60 minutes as more funerals are held we ask the secretary general what can be done to end violence between israel and the palestinian areas. President Bashar Alassad flies to rush to thank president putin for his help. And. Unfortunately, i believe