[ screaming ]. >> why all the screaming in thailand today. the news starts right now. hello, everyone, i'm don lemon. an intoiks indicated man, mysterious backpack, all add up to chaos and the ripple effect disrupted travel nationwide for hours. susan candiotti is at laguardia airport. we're learning new information be at man in custody. tell us what you have learned. >> it's very curious. we're now learning from new york's port authority police more about the suspect. they are saying that he has been homeless for at least a year. he appeared, he showed up at the airport here dirty and disshaechbld in a near catatonic state. that's how they describe t well, he surely caused a lot of confusion. hundreds of passengers were hur rid outside one of laguardia's terminals by a bomb scare that disrupted flights for hours. >> it's sad, it's sad had a we live in a society that people

are like that. >> at 7:00 a.m., passengers were just starting to arrive when suspect 32-year-old scott mcgann approached this security checkpoint a law enforcement source says he appeared intoxicated, carrying a backpack. attached to its outside in plain view were two square batteries were why wires sticking out. when asked not to move, he allegedly failed to comply. he looked as though he was trying to push a switch but nothing happened. mcgann was arrest and and the terminal evacuated, sending scores of air travelers dragging suitcases into the hot sun. outside the water squad use a water cannon to detonate the de. it was fake. >> they can't suppose it's a bomb scare all the time because they could be wrong. >> the terminal fully reopened after about six hours. law enforcement authorities also

tell us this man mcgann has three prior new york city arrests and now faces state charges as well including planting a fake bomb and making terror threats. we have more questions about him, how did he get his hands on boarding passes, we are told he had passes from connecting flights from new york to chicago to denver and on to oakland, california. don? >> susan candiotti, thank you. the man who threat tond quo quote, assassinate the new president of the united states has heard from a federal judge. under a plea barrigain, timothy ryan gutierrez has been sentenced to probation with house arrest. he pled guilty to making threats by e-mail and also threatened to blow up the mall of america outside minneapolis. he could have gotten 18 months in prison. not one motive but two behind the murder of that couple in the florida panhandle a few weeks ago. prosecutors believe it was not only robbery but a contracted hit and only the alleged

organizer leonard gonzalez jr. and a yet to be named suspect knew about the planned hit. the motive behind the hit, no one is sure. sources also say a second safe has been found at the home containing $100,000. investigators are not commenting. the couple were known for adopting special needs kids. >> to iran now and word that three american tourists have been arrest and detained by the iranian government, it happened along the border with iraq where americans went hiking. senior state department officials say the u.s. has identified the three too deta detainees and their families have been notified arwa damon has an update. >> the u.s. department of state has asked diplomats to look into reports on iranian tv they have in fact arrested three americans and if this is true to see if they could gain counselor access. iranian tv is reporting that the three were detained by the iranian military along the border with northern iraq for illegally crossesing into iran and failing to heed the border guard's warnings.

the three's journey started in syria with a fourth companion. from syria to turkey, then northern iraq and arrived on thursday. on friday morning, three of them, one stayed behind because he was sick, traveled to an area right up against the iranian border. that's a beautiful tourist destination. very popular for hikers and people who edadmire nature alik. the three were in regular contact with their friend until 1:30 prm on friday. that is when the last phone call was made saying we are surrounded by the iranian military. local police did say they warned the three because of the close proximity that they were in to iran saying these are tense times, you are americans, not iraqis. kurdish officials are scrambling to figure out exactly what happened. dispatching a patrol to the area where they say the three disappeared. they said they found a backpack

that appears to belong to one of the americans. the concern right now is that this could escalate to an international incident, especially given the tension between the iraq-iran-american triangle. arwa damon, cnn, baghdad. also in iran today, more than 100 people who took part in june election protests are on trial accused of trying to overthrow iran's government. the defendants include a former vice president and other pro-reform political leaders. some of the defendants were brought into court handcuffed to each other in pairs. a prosecutor accused of defendants of being tools of foreign power, reformists are blasting the trials saying the defendants had been denied access to lawyers. make sure you join us right here at 7:00 p.m. evening, i'll discuss the group trials in iran with ka rim sadjadpour.

it's been a deadly day in afghanistan. three american service members died when two road side bombs struck a patrol in southern kandahar province. meanti meantime, the french government says one french troop died an two wound in that attack. did al qaeda infiltrate the british secret service? one says it spotlight and is demanding an investigation. the elite mi-5 intelligence agency recruited two men who attended al qaeda training camps in pakistan. the men received several weeks of trapg before being ejected from mi-5. the lawmaker believes the men got into the agency because of a rush to beef up intelligence following the 2005 suicide bombings in london. there are also concerns about the past activities of four other members of that mi-5 unit. capitol hill is clearing out for the august break right now. but lawmakers are leaving with

the health care work on their mind. from the president. he is urging congress to keep up the momentum after a sweeping health care reform bill, one a critical thumbs up from a house committee. elaine quijano live at the white house. explain what the president is saying today? >> you know, the president obviously wants to make sure, don, that congress stays on track to get health care reform done this year. you mentioned that the house committee passing its own version of health care legislation is a victory for the white house. so in a written statement, the president said, quote, this historic step by the white house energy and commerce committee move us closer to health insurance reform than we have ever been before. the bill passed will strengthen protection protections and choice while lowering cost and improving care, but the white house know it is in for a tough fight. take a listen to the republicans' argument of why they say washington needs to slow down on this issue. >> in this difficult recession, americans and our government are already overextended.

the democrats who control congress have been spending money and racking up debt a at an unprecedented pace and their plan for government-run health care would only make things worse. uns implemented the democrat plan would spend more than $2 trillion and further increase our exploding deficit. their plan would pile up higher costs, create new washington bureaucracies and burden every tate through new requirements on medicaid. >> so that is the argument that republicans are making this month of august is going to be critical in this fight. what lawmakers basically are going to be hearing back in their home districts could really determine whether or not health care reform gets done this year. don? >> all right. the administration is just passing the six month mark, elaine. what are white house officials doing? are they busy accessing the terms so far, how well they've done, what they should be taking care of? >> exactly. in fact today was day two of this white house retreat, if you l 22 cabinet ranking members

gathering on the white house campus. yesterday at blair house, today at the white house campus. basically doing just that sitting down now that it's been a little more than six months and assessing how they think they've done so far. also a chance to come together and make sure they're all on the same page in terms of moving forward on the president's agenda. >> elaine quijano at the white house, thank you very much. so what's the best way for millions of uninsured americans to get health care? it's just getting started tonight. coming up in our 10:00 p.m. eastern hour we're posing tough questions to dr. peter thomas who advocates for uninsured black men. wasn't you to weigh in on this. send us your question, comments an concerns. the president's second 100 days have been like the first, better than the first? here's your chance to weigh n starting tomorrow, you can vote at cnn.com and be sure to tune in to see the final grade, part

of the national report card, the second 100 days. she was ushered into office after her husband was murdered. the world mourns corazon aquino. so many clunk, so little cash, the government comes to a rescue. how long can it last? plus this -- [ screaming ]. >> some people will just about anything to get your attention find out why. and also tell us what think about your reporting here, twit, facebook, my space or i-repo i-report.com. i'm robert shapiro. over a million people

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if you drive a certain model honda accord, act have a or civic, yours and about 40,000 others are being recalled because of faulty air bags. they include 2001 to 2002 accords. 2001 civic, 2002 to 2003 act have a tls. honda says in rare cases, the air bag inflaters have ruptured when the air bags was deployed causing injuries and at least one death. well, calls to the government, a program call it a government program that is a victim of its own success. so. you signed up for cash for

clunkers that the well has simply almost run dry. yesterday, the house approved another $2 billion for, but as kate bolduan explains, some dealers are becoming wary. kate is in gaithersburg, maryland, at a car dealership. kate, can you still get cash for clunkers through the weekend? i imagine, right? but after that we're not so sure. >> it it is a question mark, after that, but the obama administration assures through this weekend, clunker deals will be honored, i've talked to a lot of customers coming here to this de dealership throughout the day, all looking for a deal, looking for that up to $4,500 rebate but also wondering how long the deals will last. auto dialers sought as the deal they couldn't and wouldn't pass up. what was the reaction amontsdz you and your employees when it's their program starting moving? >> when we saw the people coming in that were actually ready to buy, it was very exciting. i mean we had a huge weekend.

>> reporter: alex perdikis said they have sold 290 cars at 16 locations thanks to the program and they've seen a 40% jump in sales compared to the same time last year. but then reports the $1 billion was already running out of cash leaving dealers as well as members of congress scramble. >> to help our auto industry, to help consumers, to grow our economy in an environmentally sound way, i this a perfect message for us to take home for august. >> this is a godsend for the auto dealers in my district. don't stall what's working. give it a fill-up and let get cash for clunkers back on the road. >> the house quickly passed a $2 billion extension of the clunkers program. happy with its success, the white house is also piling on the pressure. >> so we're now working with congress on a bipartisan solution to ensure that the program can continue for everyone out there still looking

to make a trade. >> but the become and forth, the dlets of stop and go have some dealers nervous and searching for direction. >> texas right now because you're just so scared. you're not sure what to do or what's going to happen. now bill to extend more cash to this program still needs to make it through the senate and that's not a clam dunk, on the right, fiscal conservatives don't want to spend more taxpayer dollars. on the left, some liberals don't think this goes far enough to increase fuel efficiency and senate aides said late thick week, they aren't sure just yet if they'll take action next week or have to wait until september. >> what kind of business are you seeing at these dealer shps today? i would imagine it's kind of robu robust. >> i'll tell you, we were are at this dealership all day long, this is indoors very warm here. it has been packed indoors, i just went inside and talked to

gentlemen in there. they've done nine clunker deals as we're calling them just today. the general manager says that's about half of the business they've seen across their eight loeckes in various states. they say that's great, they welcome this business, the one question really is what happens after this weekend and there are also concerns about the computer system it having to put this information in and apply and get these people into the computer system to be approved by the government but all in all really they say they welcome the business no matter what, bottom line getting people on the lot to look at cars. >> don't buy a car, okay? wait until you get home. >> it's been hard. i've been looking. >> buy a car, but wait until you get home so you don't have to drive so far. thank you, kate. some people really like this program, this cash for clunkers program. lauren fix is the author of lauren fix's guide to loving your car. she joins us from rochester, new york. thank you so much for joining

us. what's not to like about this, lauren? >> i this not fair. it's a favoritism program. think about the fact first off, if you always leased vehicles, you you have nothing to trade n so you're ineligible, if you've been smart about getting good fuel efficient cars, you're not el jichblt the reason people have clunk eers is because they can't get credit or can't afford a car payment with additional insurance payments. you forget, you buy a new car, your insurance payment will definitely go up. isn't that how he got here in the first place, buying more than we can afford? >> right. this one is from twitter. if i'm not ready to buy a new car, should i still turn are in my clunker for the voucher now before the cash runs out? or do i? and that was it. do i wait i imagine. only 14 character and ran out. >> well, i think that's a big

question. if you owe money on this vehicle. just so you know, you can't trade in that car. it can't have a loan against t so if you've got a ucc filings. you're not eligible. the other thing is to find out the car is even eligible to begin with. go to cars.gov web site. be forewarned hundreds of cars that were eligible when this program started are no longer eligible. so that's the other thing. >> that's a thichblgt the next, maybe brother grimace says don what is the description of a clurvger. if it's paid for, what's the inentive to get a meager downpayment for a new car? >> right. that's the other thing is if your scar worth more than $4,500, you're better off selling it on your own. it would be absolutely silly to take $4,500 on a consider that's worth $6,000 but if you can trade that in before this weekend is out, it might be a good idea because the senate still has to pass that $2 billion additional insertion of

cash. if they don't and the policy ends, if this program end, then you'll have missed your opportunity. so if you're in a position to do it. i would absolutely get on line, look at the dale dee tails and take advantage of it. but the problem is if you need that car for somebody else, you're better off giving it to emthchlt. because it will be in a salvage yard. >> 25 years? >> it can't be older than 25 years. we were against older cars being crushed. because i collect old muss tangs and we didn't want to destroy the collectibles. >> that was my question. i have a 1984 cadillac sedan de vil. >> you missed it by one year, but believe it or not, there is someone who will want that car. >> so this is what the next person says, lauren. why can't the clunkers be older cars that get good mileage? i can afford a new car but not

going to buy it if i can't. they're shortening this for twitter. if i can't get the same deal. >> that's the whole thing. if you had an old honda civic like one of the ones under recall. you're not eligible, you don't get poor fuel economy. why would you trade it in for another vehicle. unless you've got the money. financially, your job is secure. you can afford it, you own the car, now is a great time to make a deal on a 2008 or 2009 car because in september just a month away, we're going to be getting the 2010 cars in and believe me, they'll want to get rid of those old cars, but look for a certified preowned if you do that the cash for clunkers is only on new car, but if you're looking to trade in i love certified preowned. >> i don't know if i ever bought a new car. it's certified preowned. >> that's my choice because you get the guarantee. >> even from the same year. >> right. i actually did that for my daughter's car around it was a

great purchase. >> thank you, lauren. we appreciate it. >> thank you. >> well, you know it's hot and dry out side when you see a group of people huddled together praying for rain. right, jacqui jeras. >> the drought sin tense if iing in the state of texas. coming up, we'll introduce to you a cattle rancher and cotton farmer and a find out how they're coming to a state of crisis. me too. you know, i just got out of a bad relatio... it's okay. thanks. goodnight. goodnight. (door crashes in, alarm sounds) get out! (phone rings) hello? this is rick with broadview security. is everything all right? no, my ex-boyfriend just kicked in the front door. i'm sending help right now. thank you. (announcer) brink's home security is now broadview security. call now to install the standard system for just $99. the proven technology of broadview security system delivers rapid response from highly-trained professionals, 24 hours a day.

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all right, are you wishing, hoping for rain where you live? in texas, they are praying for

it. take a look. >> how great thou art. >> well, texans are looking for to a higher power to open up the skies. months of extreme heat and bone dry conditions are quickly making for one of the greatest droughts in history. loss of cattles and crops have reached $3.6 billion and numbers just really, really keep on growing. that is off -- jacqui jeras spent some time there this week. miserable to feel but also the financial part of it is terrible as well d. is. just amazing. people who make their living off the land have always struggled at the mercy of mother nature, but this time around, they're not just worried about losing cattle or having a poor crop, this time they may have to give up their profession altogether.

>> come here, girls. >> he's been raising cattle for four generations. >> the status is still on hold. we've got 45 more days. to figure out what. >> he's already sold a fifth of his 500 cattle because he can't afford to feed them. in good year, they graze on hay and corn and sell the surplus for profit. he's had to resort to protein bellets, kauldz cow candy. >> you can see their ribs. >> the drought has been exceptional, with no significant rain for nearly a year and searing temperatures are drying up the water supply.

>> how high is this usually? >> usually up to about here. this is kind of the edge of the -- this is usually the water line. >> he says he's lucky many of had of his neighbors have no water at all, the could the. skrop even worse. while thee have reached maturity now, they're very poor. these plants should be so thick i can't walk through the row. >> we've got 80 acres out of cotton and this is the best 80 acres and it's the worst in 12 years. >> could ttton is usually his c crop. now it will cost more to harvest than he'll make, the corn is no better. >> this ought to be up here and this ear ought to be up here. >> he'll yield about 15% of his corn and cotton crops. >> depressing? this is sickening. >> he's counting on a federal emergency disaster fund approved in 2008 but so far, nobody has

gotten any money. severe drought gripping nearly half of the state. texas agricultural commissioner todd staples says the consequences will be felt nationwide. >> this economic crisis and this drought is only compounding and making matters wornsd if we don't see some immediate action to have some relief it is going to impact the long-term security of our nation's food supply. >> for matt huey, the money can't come soon enough, in the meantime, he's praying for rain. surprisingly with the grim outlook, he is really optimistic. he's hoping to keep it doing together. it's his life-long dream to be a farmer. >> they have to there's no relief as far as money. what did the story say 2010 before -- >> there was a bill pass in 2008, they should get it by

2010, but matt huey says by october, if he doesn't have it it, he's probably done. >> he needs it yesterday. another fix would be rain. >> rain. >> lots of it. >> right. >> can it happen? >> well, maybe, well see. let me show you a couple of different things if we can. this is the u.s. drought monitor. just to put it in perspective for you. this about 20% of the state it is the worst type of drought imaginable and about a quarter of the state is under extreme conditions. now if we check out radar map over here, there's a couple of showers and thunderstorms, but the way the weather pattern is set up, it's going into the northern parts of the state. and beeville where matt is right here. he's had 0.3 of an inch of rain since hurricane dolly last year. we want the tropical system to come into this area and bring heavy rainfall, you don't want an allison where you get two feet of rain, but they're hoping that before will bring something and a little bit of potential is el nino, which brings in more

active weather across the state of texas, but that doesn't usually happen until late fall into spring, like we said, they need it now. >> and irrigation is very expensive. usu usually they get rain so they don't have to deal with this much. wow. okay, jacqui, best of luck to you. we're praying for you as well that you get some rain. >> we'll keep in touch with matt. >> >> what's happening in the rest the country? >> believe it or not, too much rain. it's feast or family, isn't it? you either ver too much or too little. that's been the story of too much across kind of the texarkana area. the rain has been coming down about one to three inches in the last 14 hours across mississippi. heavy stuff pushing into the naturalville area right now. flood watches in place across much of this area, now stretching into even into the virginias as we look at the big picture for the weekend. the story will continue to be torrential downpours in the lower mississippi valley and

throughout the south east unseasonably cool conditionings across the upper midwest and across the west, hot and dry, we're not seeing extreme temperature, all-time record highs like we saw earlier their week in pacific northwest but still a lot of 90 degree temperatures will suppress a little bit into the next work week. don? >> i learned so much over there fa from you, thank you for that tour. good luck to the folks if texas. let's hope they get some rain. before i play this next video, i have a warning for, not just jacqui jeras, everybody else watching, cover your ear, and if you have the tv turn upped really loud, you may want to turn it down. are you ready? >> i think. >> here goes. [ screaming ]. >> sounds like my bratty little sister. that is enough of that. in thailand, ear splitting

contest are trying to break the world record for, you guessed it the loudest scream. 1,500 people entered, 11 got to the final. the winner, a russian guy with a scream topping 116 decibels. what is the kwequivalent of tha? that's well short of the 129 record decibels set by a british woman back in 2000. ouch. i want to know what 116 decibels sounds like. we'll look that up for you. well, you might need one of those after hearing that offer pass the joint, you're going to have to pay up. but will that be the new mantra in california? we'll tell you what you might have to pay even though you may be able to smoke it. and you'll take care of everything? yep, even the rental. what if i'm stuck at the office? if you can't come to us, we'll come to you in one of our immediate response vehicles! what if mother won't let me drive? then you probably wouldn't have had an accident in the first place.

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hot! hot! hot! time to check your air conditioning? come to meineke now and get a free ac system check. at meineke, you're always the driver. president barack obama is touting positive economic numbers in his weekly address, saying there are increasing signs that the recession is easing but he acknowledges the challenges are far from over.

>> business investment, which had been plummeting in the fast few months is showing signs of stabilizing. this means that ebitda wale businesses will start growing and hiring again and that's when it will really feel like recovery to the american people. this won't happen overnight, as i said before, it will take many more months to fully dig ourselves out of recession, recession we've now learned was de deeper than anyone thought. but i'll continue to work every day and take every step necessary to make sure that happens. >> all right. remember, the big brouhaha made about the first 100 days. the president's second 100 days have been better than the first? here's your chance to weigh in. you can vote at cnn.com and be sure to tune in thursday night to see the president's final grade as part of cnn's national report card, the second 100 days. you know, since the recession started, california has been in a financial really mess, a basket case there.

nothing like money to get people to ease their stances on some things. so the golden state now people there, well they're seizing on the opportunity to help the state get out of that slump by legalizing and taxing marijuana. cnn's dan simon reports from san francisco. >> marijuana is california's biggest cash crop valued at $14 billion. worth more than grapes and vegetab vegetables, but the state doesn't get a dime from it. state law may eck tom automatic yawn kn ami mian wants to change >> that particularly with the economics knit state. >> he has response aerd bill to legalize and tax marijuana. legal pot to california's 21 and older could bring the cash strapped state $1.4 billion in revenue. >> i think, you know, you would have some kind of retail outlet

and it could be a walgreens, it could be a hospital. >> the idea got a boost from governor schwarzenegger who has spent months trying to avert a budget catastrophe. >> i think we also study very carefully what other countries are doing that have legalized marijuana. >> most law makers do not support broad legalization so advocates are also working towards a 2010 ballot initiative to let videoers decide. according it a field poll, 56% of californians support legalization. on the local level meanwhile the easiest way to cash in is by taxing medical cannibis. oakland became the first city to dispose a tax on dispensaries, city councils in los angeles, san francisco and santa cruz are discussing similar measures. it might seem off for dissensories to want to pay more in tax, but they welcome the chance to be seen as retch jit

mat businesses. >> criminals don't pay taxes, citizens do pay taxes and you are a hope is that the movement will be seen as a group of citizens rather than a group of criminals. >> given the political environment, if it does make the ballot, it's possible voters could legalize marijuana in california as early as next year. of course, then all the details would have to be worked out, how you regulate it, tax it and where it would be sold. then there's the question of the federal government. right now, it doesn't even recognize medical marijuana. dan simon, cnn, san francisco. thanks, dan. there's some very interesting responses on this coming from the social networking site. a couple from twitter. here is what -- legalize marijuana in ca and end the budget deficit. why has this taken so long? just like liquor back in the days, they should handle this in the same manner. and it's a no-brainer. kill the dangerous black market and turn it into revenue.

the infrastructure is even already in place. so drug dealers are supposed to just set up a store front and start sharing profits just because the government wants taxes? get real. i don't think they're going to do it that way. think it's a great idea but just don't tax the medical type. legitimize and tax for recreation purposes only. past due. they should tax marijuana because it costs them more enforcing the law than to regulate it and bring in the revenue. and it's it's going to get sold and smoked anyway, might as well, tissue legally for medical use, it's just a smoke screen. tax the ganja. twitter, facebook or myspace how your responses get on. every time we do a pot story, twitter lights up. i wonder what that says about

twitter. her calls led to the arrest of professor henry gates and sparked a racially charged national debate. now she's gotten flowers courtesy of gates himself. he sent a bouquet to the 911 caller along with a note which her lawyer wouldn't reveal. an officer responding to a report of a possible break-in, arrested the professor on july 16th for disorderly conduct, the charge was later dropped. she was a former housewife who became the most powerful woman in her nation, we'll remember corazon aquino. . gecko vo: 'course, geckos don't literally sweat... it's just not our thing... gecko vo: ...but i do work hard, mind you. gecko vo: first rule of "hard work equals success." gecko vo: that's why geico is consistently rated excellent or better in terms of financial strength. gecko vo: second rule: "don't steal a coworker's egg salad, 'specially if it's marked "the gecko."

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former world boxing champ, arturo gatti's family wants a second autopsy and they're going to get t police found his body at a sea side resort last month, there were strangulation marks and a blood sprained purse strap near his body. his death was ruled a suicide but his family isn't convinced. his body will be exhumed for the second auchlts his widow has was

arrested but later released. mourners are paying their respect to corazon aquino who died today of kocolon cancer. she led a people power uprising that ended the 20-year regime of ferdinand marcos. she battled cancer for a yore. aquino was 76 years old. there are dare devils and people who are just plain crazy. you decide. apples to apples, against other top companies, to help you get the best price. how do you do that? with a touch of this button. can i try that? [ chuckles ] wow! good luck getting your remote back. it's all right -- i love this channel. shopping less and saving more. now, that's progressive. call or click today.

you've got to watch this video. every time i see it, i can't believe tachlt dare

>> disabled children, they're really the forgotten ones in this war. they're that the back rooms often not seen in society. i came to iraq as a civilian contra contractor. there were a lot of children that either dragged themselves on the ground or had to be carried. there were so many kids out there with the need, and so many people willing to reach out and touch the lives of these kids. in 30 day, we had 31 pediatric

wheel chairs that had hit the ground. my name is brad blauser, i bring pediatric whale chairs to children in need. people donate on my need. people donate to my website. the wheelchairs are brought over. and i help fit the children into the wheelchairs. the experience for me was awesome. to see the kids with smiles across their faces. >> it's all about humanity. he wanted iraqis to feel there is humanity in america. which makes us happy to see such a thing. >> there's no paycheck. it's not really safe here. but this is a once in a lifetime opportunity. knowing that you've done something for someone that nobody else has done before. i made a difference in the life of families. definitely the sacrifice has been work it.

>> you, too, can nominate a cnn hero of your own. our website is cnn.com/heros. go and remember nominations for this year close today. go there and nominate a hero. she is taking on gators and good ole boys as well. >> he's a male, uncooperative. >> that's not the only cranky male she's been facing. 20 minutes later, she'll bring one into the world in seattle. later today, she'll help an accident victim in kansas. how can one nurse be in all these places? through the nurses she taught in this place. johnson & johnson knows, behind every nurse who touches a life...

there's a nurse educator... who first touched them. ♪ you're a nurse ♪ you make a difference

the staff at florida's veterinary hospital is used to working with big animals, but they were blown away by this guy. look at this. it's a super sized python who slithered onto hospital grounds last week. boy. a veterinarian shot the 17-footer, which tipped the scales at, get this, 207 pounds. this guy is the biggest snake bagged so far in the snake

sanction hunt that got under way last month. the population in the everglades is growing out of control very quickly. they think it's going to spread to the rest of the country. snakes, alligators, catching florida's scaly wildlife is enough to rattle anyone's nerves. john zarrella shows us how she's breaking a glass ceiling in the murky water. >> reporter: once in a while julie still gets snickers and behind the back laughs from, of course, men. >> you just take it in stride. like today i think i had a few doubting thomas around here. >> didn't think you could do it? >> reporter: she's the only woman contracted with the state of florida to trap alligators. yep, she catches gators. >> better not have got loose. somebody is going in after him.

and it ain't me. >> reporter: late on monday afternoon she heads to a backyard pond. earlier she baited a hook for a nuisance gator that had taken a dog. >> trapper tires out for the gator. >> reporter: the gator breaks the surface. he's seven, maybe eight foot. with her southern brand of humor, she adds. >> he's a male. uncooperative. >> reporter: she started catching gators with her husband back in the mid-1990s. on their first date he got a call for a nuisance gator. she went with him. after his death years ago julia applied for and got his trapping contract. >> this afternoon i'm like, okay, tell me where to put it. thinking, maybe i should have listened to him a little bit more. >> by the looks of the trophy catches inside her home, julie learned just fine. her biggest one, over 800 pounds. >> so you had some help. >> i'm not stupid.

>> not every nuisance gator is a monster. that shadow on the bottom of the pool, yep, gator. the family had just moved here from boston. the kids spotted it first. >> daddy, there's a gator by the pool. i'm like, what? i really didn't expect to see one back there. >> reporter: these are the easy ones. but even at just two feet he would have left a nasty bite. with his mouth taped the kids get a little education from julie. >> see all of these are little bones all over him. >> reporter: the big gators julie catches are processed for meat and hide. the little ones under four foot get relocated. >> see you, baby. >> you wouldn't dream of doing anything else? >> never. never. i'm pretty dang good at it. >> reporter: and she proves it every day. john zarrella, cnn, tampa. >> that sounds like a job i know someone here could probably do.

you think? that's a tough job. but the story before that, too, the pythons are out of control. so you should do that story. will you go out on that story and catch some pythons? >> you know, i would go out and report on that story. you know, i'm a tough chick, but there's something about gators. i could even deal with a snake. gators, not so much. oh, look at that thing. that's a python. >> i'm so afraid of snakes i can't even look at the picture. i had a garden snake in my yard and freaked out. the neighbors are like what are you screaming about. i'm like, there's a snake in my yard. >> thank goodness there are people to take care of that for us. it's hot, a lot of kids want to be outside. stick around. this is a neat little story. 65 kids, were barred from a suburban philadelphia swimming pool. they went to disney world instead. look who they're with. the guest of film maker tyler

perry. we can call him a movie mogul, right? he saw the news reports about the children and actually contacted us and said, hey, i want to get in touch with those kids. he thinks the kids were barred from the pool because of racism. the pool operators say it was because of a matter of overcrowding. that was the issue there. so whatever it was, we hope they're rectified. they got to hang out at disney with tyler perry. >> better than the pool anyway. come on. >> no gators or pythons. >> this is true. >> let's read some tweets here. talking about legalizing marijuana. they should legalize and tax marijuana as it is now the law is just making us spend money to barely contain it. wickedlet says i think the whole united states should follow california's example and tax it and let us smoke it. marijuana is less harmful. castle view sayss