people they were by and large caring if. >> i wish people had auk says to the kind of medical treatment i get because it's just fantastic that and weer pushing forward now with the next hour of "cnn newsroom" with kieyra phillips new york city. >> i wish you were with me. president obama speaks to the vfw on america's two foreign wars and the troops who are fighting them. you'll see it live right here in the "newsroom.." two and a half months in the hurricane sen and bill and claude it light up the radar. hello, everyone. i'm kieyra phillips. you're live here in the "cnn newsroom." -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com

and they fought for you. who fights for them. american veterans focused health care. we're pushing forward on both fronts. a live address to the vfw in this hour and a congressional session of conservative opponents to the health plan. you know we've covered their causes and criseses to tainted equipment at v.a. hospitals. there are people stories, not number stories. we can't ignore numbers like these. almost a million unprocessed claims. if claims are denied it can take a year and a half, sometimes much longer to go through the appeals. factor in a passionate fight to

overhaul the nation's health care system and this becomes the scene outside president's adegree. cnn's ed henry joins me live. how does it push into this for reform? we sure know they want it. >> i've seen it here over the last couple of days. they say they've been watching this health care reform play out. a number of them obviously senior citizens are on medicare. many others use try care through the military system and they're frustrated that a lot of times, the department, there are a lot of problems. the president is going to address problems, come up with solutions. i think many veterans have heard things like that before and they're going to say the proof will be in the pudding. you can probably pick up the sound behind me. there's a pretty large rally

going on. it's mostly supporters of the president. there are a small group of protesters against the president throwing around charges of socialism and the like. so it's kind of fascinating that while the president has just arrived in the last few moments he should be starts the remarks earlier than expected in talking about a health care benefits for vet rats rans and et cetera. it's playing out right here on the streets of phoenix, kiera. >> it's also extremely controversial because this is a time when we haven't been able to get the head of the v.a. for a live interview, ed. and there's been so many issues with regard to vets and they're coming home with the highest suicide rate. ptsd cases that are piling on by the day which leads to the backlock in the system.

so i think a lot wonder why aren't more people coming forward and addressing these issues, in particular the head of the vmt a. alolong with the president of the united states. >> you're right. they all agreed that more needed to be done for a veteran. and many expressed frustration not just with the bureaucracy in washington but more people need to pay attention to the fact there are these two wars goinged on and while we do honor the fallen and those who die that many more come home injured, come home with traumatic braj injuries and we sometimes move on to other sumgs ant doend fieptd out they neat it. tack a like at this man who works at ft. brag, north

carolina. here was his american merge to those across the country and what ee going on right now. >> i know that they are tough. i know they're strong. i have a hoard feeling for those that are over there. but i'm a marine and i will stand up for our chief of staff and our soldiers everywhere they go. >> you can see this came in the middle of an interview where it came up. totally unexpected. roland got very emotional. it was while we were talking about whether or not americans i cross the country. so i think's an expectation the president is going to talk about that. he'll thank u.s. troops but obviously beyond that thank you, as you say, the proof will be in the action as to whether veterans taken care of here.

>> right now stay with me. the president is about to be introduced here in phoenix, arizona. you know, you talk about the number of troops in iraq and afghanistan. you megged that's going to be one thing the president is talking about. the warner rock may be winding down as 130 tlp troops are still there. and at the moment 63 are in afghanistan. but 6,000 more are expected to be there by the year's end. so i know that -- yes, go ahead. >> reporter: well, an important point you put on, another democrat was a democrat. he said he was very worried about the escalation in afghanistan. he understood that the president as commander in chief has tough decisions to make but he said point blank to me on camera that he fears afghanistan is becoming another quagmire like vietnam.

he voted for ta group. there was a mick who ould measured. . >> hold that thought, ed. we're going right to the president. let's fw ahead and listen. >> thank you. thank you. please be seat. thank you so much. commander gardner, thank you for your intro dukds and for your lifetime of service. i was proud to welcome glen and your executive director to the oval office. i look forwarded to working with your next commander tommy trade wall. i also want to acknowledge jean gardner and sharon trig well as well as dixie hills and all the

ladies. mesh honors your service as well. also governor jan brewer is here, of arizona, and mayor gordon, our host here in phoenix. wayn't to acknowledge president dr. jo shirley jr. this wu not my original card and it's an extraordinarystair and you may have heard from her but i wam to publicly ak knock and thank -- the secretary of dwight eisenhower who typed up the ordereds for it. what an extraordinary store that is. 6 >>.

members of the veterans of foreign wars, i am honor and humbled to stand before you add the commander in chief of the finest military the world has ever known. [ applause ] we're joined by some of those who make it the finest force in the world from the air force bases, members of the 56th fighter wings. [ applause ] >> whether you wear the uniform today or wore it decades ago, you mind us of the fundamental truth. it's not the powerful weapons that make our military the strongest in the world, it's not the sophisticated systems that make us the most advanced.

the truth strength of our military liars in the skill and strength of our men and women in uniform, and you know this. [ applause ] >> you know this because it's the story of your lives. when fascism seemed unstoppable and our harbor was bombed you crossed the rocky islands and stormed europe, matching across the continent. my own grand father and uncle among your ranks, liberating millions, and turning enemies into allies. when communists cast a shadow over so much of the globe, you stood vigilant from a long cold war from the air lift in berlin to the mountains of korea to the jungles of vietnam. when that cold war end and old hatreds emerged anew you turned back aggressions from kuwait to

kosovo. and you weekend and support your troops. working to give our veterans the care they deserve. and when america's heroes are laid to rest, giving every one of them that final fitting tribute of a grateful nation. we can never say it enough. for your service in war and peace, thank you, vfw. thank you. [ applause ] today the story of your service is cared on by a new generation, dedicated, core rangers men and women who i have the privilege to meet and lead every day. they're the young sailors, the mid shipment who raised their right hand at graduation and committed themselves to a lifetime of service. they're the soldiers i met in baghdad who have done their duty

year after year on a second or third tour of war. they're the mama reens. they're the airmen like those here today who provide the close air support that saves the lives of our troops on the ground. they're the wounded warriors across america for whom the battle is not to fight but simply to speak, to stand, to walk once more. they're the families that my wife michelle has met across the country, the supposes wonder when mack and dad. the parents who watch their sonnd and dataers who go off ta wafrmt so so awe those in

americaing our fosses, yore family, our veteran, you can done your duty. you have full named your responsibilities, and now a grateful nation must few -- fulfill ours. first we have a solemn responsibility to lead our men and women in uniform wisely, and that starts with a vision of american leadership that recognizes that mel terry power alone cannot be the first or only apg to the threats facing our nation. in recent years the troops have succeeded in every mission given them from toppling the taliban to battling insurgences. at the same time, forces trained for war have been called upon to perform a whole host of missions. like mayors they've run local

governments and delivered electricity. like aids workers, they mitt farmers and build new schools. like diplomats. but let us never forget. we're a country of more than 300 million americans. less than 1% wears the uniform. and that 1% are soldiers, sailors, marine have borne an overwhelming security. in fact, never in american history have protected so many. the spomt must not be theirs alone. this ee why i've made a list. our diplomacy, development, our economic might and moral example because one of the best ways to lead our troop wisely is to prevent the conflict that causes

american blo i've said before that is the first thing i think about when i wake up in the morning, the last thing that i think about when i go to sleep at night andly not hesitate to use force to protect american people or our vital interests. but as we protect america, our men and women in uniform must also be treated as what they are, america's most precious resofrms as commander in chief i have a solemn responsibility for their safety. and there's nothing more sobering than signing a letter of con dole lens to a service man's family. i will only send you in harm's way when it is absolutely

necessary. when i do it will be based on intelligence and sound strategy. i will give you a clear mission, define goals, and the equipment and support you need to get the job done. that i my commitment to you. which brings me to our second responsibility to the armed forces, giving them the equipment and strategies to meet their missions. we need to keep our military trained. that's why even with our current economic challenges my bunt increases defense spending. we will insure that we have the structures to meet today's missions. that's why we increased the army's size two years ahead of school. we've halted reduction in the naeb and air force. this will give our troops more

time home between deployments which means less stress on families and more training tr if next mission. and it will help us put an end once and for all to stop los for those who have done their duty. we will equip our forces with the assets and technologies they need to fight and win. armies, helicopters, crew and pilots needed in afghanistan, the injell jans, surveillance and economists, the special forces that can deploy on a moment's notice. all of those including our national guard and preserve, more of the protected gear and armor that saves lives.

now, as we fight in two wars we will plan honestly, budget honestly and speak candidly about the consequences of our actions. that's why i wabltd to make sure. in iraq after more than six years we took an important step forward in june. we transferred all cities and towns to iraq's security forces. a transition. their full security is now under way. the product is a testment of all those who served. our nation owe these. a profound debt of gradty. . gentlemen. now as a rom i can takes i can control of their destiny, the

hay they will be tested and tar get. they will a tim bombings and more. this we know. if we move forward they must know the united states will keep its commitment and the american people must know that we'll move forward with our strategy. we'll begin removing our combat brigades from iraq beginning of this year, all of them by the beginning of next august and we e will resume all of our troops from iraq in 2011. and many america the iraq willy hand. by move forward in iraq we're able to riffo was on the war in al qaeda and other places. that's why i announced a new comprehensionive strategy in march. a strat jie that recognizes akai da had rye moved its area from two remote areas.

and the strategy announces that military sup plight will not win this strat dwi as ale. it has fine goals to dib erupt, dismantle and tee get e extreme allies. in the months since we've put it into action. in recent weeks we've seen the troops do their part. we've gone into new areas. taking their fight to the towns where residents have been tear ride for we also need to protect the afghan people and improve their daily lives and today troops are helping to secure polling sights so they can chosen the future they want.

the fights has been fierce. more americans have given their life and as also the thoughts and prayer are made. as i said, when i announce in strategy there willmore difficult kays ahead. we won't defeat it overnight. this there not not be aechb. but we must never forget. this is not a shah of tessny. though wthose -- those who attacked eed on 9/11 playing to do again. so this is not only a war worth fighting, this is monday mental to the defense to our people. going forward we'll constantly adapt to new tactics, stay ahead on the tools and equipment they

need and on every step of the way way we'll feed our etd forts and to help people build the future of the base cease. now, even as we leave and commit our troops for today we have a third responsible to full fi. we must prepare or forces for the missions tomorrow. >> our soldiers, sailors and others must adapt. than insurgents in the rugged terrain in afghanistan. 20 years after the cold war end -- this is simply not acceptable. it's irresponsibility. our troops and taxpayers deserve better. and that's why -- that's why our

defense review is taking a top and bottom look of our priorities. rethinking old dogmas and challenging the shah stus quo. we're asking hard questions about the forces we need and the weapons we bide and when we're finished we'll have in ones for military that we need. we're on our way. the full challenges of suspected de-manhattans a full rail, both conventional and undefengal. the intercontinental ballistic missile and the improvised device. 21st century cyber threats. le no matter the mission wi must maintain america's military dominance.

so even though we did that we'll reinvest in an arm that's more moi bile and mission tries. a navy that phenomenal ott projected pours across the oceans wu on vut simply. a marine corps that can move ashore more rapidly in more place. and across the north we're expressing a new skill and century because they will be measured by not only the weapons they carry but the lain begans they speed and the cull ur they said. we no not build the 24th century military century we need and mainland tan the quill can responsible the mesh has. it's a simple fact. every dollar wasted in our

defense budget is a dollar we can't spend to care for our troops or protect america or prepare for the future. you heard the stories. costscontractors bill ygs and make them rich. the entrenched lobbyists that even or military say it kunlt doesn't work. protecting things at home, building things we don't see. at a time when we're fighting two wars it's inscrewsable. it's an front to the america people and to our troops and it's time for us to stop. it's not a democratic issuer a remany public issue.

this is not a democratic issue or a republican issue. it's about giving troops support they need. this is something we should all agree to. i'm glad to have great veteran and arizonaen and minnesota. we have senator josh and i'm also proit too vo vary of defense roper gates who had served under both parts heating this. i signed bipartisan legislation to perform defense procurement so weapons systems don't spin out of control. theechb went money on equipment they do need we propose think about it. hundreds of williams of

alternates when when reliable evidence will d just fine. nearly $2 million to buy more when we can move ahead with a fleet of newer more afoyer ford about sf two minutes to put a lift on. and new presidential irks among its other capen'ts, it would let me cook a meal while under nuclear attack. let me fell you something. if united states of america is under attack, the last thing on my mind will be whipping up a snack. so it's pretty straightforward. cut the waste, save taxpayers' dollars, support the troops. that's what we should be doing.

the special interests, contractors, lobby yifts, they're putting up a fight, but make no mistake. so are we. if the project does not support our troops, we won't fund it. if the summit doesn't reform we'll terminate it. we will do right by our troops and tax pay iers and will we build the 21st century military that we need. finally, we will fulfill our responsibilities to those who serve by keeping our promises to our people. we will fulfill the responsibilities to our forces and our family. that's why we're increasing military pay. that's why we're funding more child care and counseling to help families cope with the stresses of war.

we changed the rules so they can per suv that career. to those still in uniform, we're investing billions of dollars for more treatment centers, more case managers and better med cain kale but as the vfw well knows, for so many veterans, the war rages on, the flashbacks that won't go away, the loved ones who now seem like strangers, the heavy darkness of depression that has led to too many troops taking their own lives. post-traumatic stress and traumatic brain injury are defining injuries of today's wars, so caring for those effected by them is a defining purpose of my budget.

for billions of dollars more to reach our troops on the front lines and more rural ones to meet them back home. we're not going to leeb these american here. we're going to do right by them. we will fulfill our responsibility to veterans as they return to civilian life. i was proud to co-spo sore the post 9/11 bill. it is now the law of the land. and as president i'm committed to seeing that it is successfully implemented. for so many of you, likemy grand mother, the original g.i. bill chafrmd your life. it also transformed america, helping to build the largest

middle-class in history. we're saying the same thing to today's post-9/11 veterans. you pick out the school, we'll help pick up the bill. and as these veterans start showing up on campuses -- i'm proud we're making this available to all those who have sacrificed indluss the service and spouses avid which, including kids who lost their mob an the dad we chose to reward the responsibility of the service and our forces and their families. whether you've left the service in 2009 or 1949, we will fulfill our responsibility to deliver the benefits and care that you earned. that's why i've pledged to build nothing less than a 21st century

v.a. i picked someone to leave this fight. we're dramatically increasing funding for health care. inincludes unique need of our growing number of women veterans. we're restoring that. since there's been so much misinformation about there about helmet insurance reform, let me say. this one thing reform won't change is veteran's health care. nobody is going to take away your benefits. that is the plain and sill pl truth. we're expanding access to your health care, not reducing it.

we're also keeping our promise on concurrent receipt. my budget ensures that our severely disabled veterans receive their retirement and their insurance benefits. and i look forward to signing lenl lags on the advanced appropriation for the v.a. so your medical care needs are never held up by budget delay. i've also focused him to focus on the top priority, reducen't is. after serving their country, no veteran should be slight on the struts. no stret ran. we should have zero tolerance

for that. we're cutting the red tape in inefficiencies that caused backlog and claims in the claims process. . this spring i directed the didn't of veterans affairs to create one lifetime health record for the member of the armed forces, a single electronic record with privacy guaranteed that will stay the with them forever because after fighting for america you should not have to fight over paperwork to receive the benefits that you've headed. today i can announce that we're taking another step. i've directed my chief performance officer, my chief technology officer, and my chief informati information officer to join. we're launching a new competition to capture the best ideas of our evangelism achlt employees to work with you every day.

we're going to challenge each of the 57 regional offices of the best way to do business, of cutting red tape and breaking through the bureaucracy. and then we're going to fund the best ideas. all with a simple mission. cut the wage los and d it sooner. the resources we're providing this time means that we're going to be able to do it. that is our mission and we're going to be able to make it happen. now taken together, these investments represent a historic increase to our american's veterans, 15% in crease over last year's funding leveleds and the largest v. amt budget. over the next years we'll invest another $25 billion to make sure the veterans are getting what

they need. thoos are difficult times. fiscal discipline tee panhandle that we make hard decisions, sacrificing certain things we can't afford. let me with clear. they're not lines on the budget. they're bonds. a sacred bond we're honor-bound to uphold. these are commitments we make to the patriots who serve, patriots like you. patriots like a man names jim norine. his story is his own but in it we see it of others. he was a child of depression. a pair a trooper in the 507 infantry regimen of the 101st

airborne. rushing to ba sohn at the battle of the bullbling where they were surrounded by the rumle and declared famously no. for his bravery jim waugs awarded the blond star but like so many others he generally spoke of what he did or saw. they're not bowes truss or loud but rather the steady dedication of a time time. he returned home, went to school on a g.i. bill. got married. raised a small farming town. every year he visited the school children to speak up the meaning of service and he did it all as a proud member of the veterans of foreign wars.

then this spring jim made a decision. he would return to europe once more. 85 yearses old. frail. gravely ill. he knew he might not make it back home. but like the pair trooper he always was, he wu determined. so he returned to the places he knew so well, a dutch town liberated by our gis. students lined the sidewalk and sang the "star-spangled banner," and he walked among those perfect lines of white crosses and of fellow soldiers who walked so long ago, their names forever etched in stone. then back where he had served 65 years ago, jim norine passed away, at night, in his sleep, quietly, peacefully, the tranquil and steady dedication of a lifetime. the next day i was privileged to

join the commemoration of normandy to mark the day when the beaches were storm and a continent was freed. there were presidents and prime ministers and veterans from the far corners of the earth, but long after the bands stopped playing and the crowds stopped cheering it was the story of a wv. you have done your duty to your fallen comrades, your communities, your country. you have always fulfilled your responsibilities to america and so long as i am president of the united states, america will always fulfill it responsibilities to you. god bless you, god bless all our veterans. and god bless the united states of america. thank you very much. >> the commander-in-chief

speaking to the veterans of two wars. that brings me to veterans advocate steve robinson who actually listened to the president's speech as well. he joins me live from our studios in washington. steve, i know you and i were looking for the same thing. we heard them h imtalking about the same things in afghanistan, increasing the defense budget. but i think more than everything we wanted to hear about the backlog in claims, ptsd, suicide among our troops and the mental illness they're getting and not getting enough care. he did mention. it. the question is was it enough? >> yeah. very good speech. kind of what we thould it would be. i was a little worried that it with us going to be on what the job is. he did talk about the things that were very important to me and other veteran advocates,

especially a president acknowledging pti, ptsd, and the increased ones. it's incredible. it allows us to break it down. let's go ahead and take a listen to it, steve. >> for so many veterans the war rages on. the flashbacks that won't go away, the loved ones who now seem like strangers, the heavy darkness of depression that has led to too many of our troops taking their own lives. proeft traumatic, so caring for those affected by them is a defining purpose of my budget. billions of dollars more for treatment of mental health, screenings to reach our troops, o on the front lines and more global ones to reach it back

home. >> he said it right there. billions of dollars for more treatment and mental health screaming to reach our front lines and rural clinics to reach our people back home. are we seeing it ournd way. >> the policieses haven't reached them yet but they are working on them very hard and it's great to hear a president acknowledge these things because i have fought since i retired from the military to draw attention to these issues, and to hear the president talk about them should put the fire under the va to get the policies out to the veterans. >> also i want to ask you before i let you go. the head of the va, is he the man to be running veterans affairs, and, of course, another former military hero, tammy

duckworth, was injured in the war, lost her legs, she knows what they're going through. you would think automatically, mental health issue, suicide, coming back as a different person would attempt them a well. >> i think they are the right people. you have to surround the secretary and ms. duckworth with people who are equally motivated. you to remove people who put up barriers to getting care, and if you're not care to serve the veteran, then you need to find another jock. i think they're the right person. you've got to move them through. >> final thought, steve. you are one of the biggest advocates i know.

is thering in you conditioned dnlt here that you wish you would have. >> i heard all the issues confronting a veteran. the head of the snakes for problems in the department of veterans affairs is what we do for people while they're in the department of defense. proper diagnosis and screening and treatment and then a seamless transition to the va would go a long way in reducing some of the problems that veterans have. then we can just focus on access and programs that this va provide. but all in all, i heard everything i want to hear. now i want to see those programs put into action. >> amen. you heard the president say we do not want to abon don these american hears. steve robinson, great to talk with you. suddenly the atlantic hurricane is heating up.

the first tropical storm to make landfall on the u.s. mainland this year hits the

florida panhandle. tropical storm claudette came to shore about 12 hours ago. it dumped heavy rain and caused sporadic power outages and some local flooding. no deaths or injuries. it's been downgraded to a tropical depression. as claudette weakens, hurricane bill intensifies. it's the first hurricane of the atlantic season, right? >> correct. probably the first major hurricane as well as it gets above a category 3 strength. this will be well in excess of 110 miles per hour. the forecasters are way above that, 125. there is bill. all of the computer models are taking it very close to bermuda, and this is kind of in the atlantic ocean. no models yet are taking it to the u.s. that said this is a very dangerous storm, category 1, 2, 3. there's b ee's bermuda, there's carolina and swinging to the north. it may get close to newfoundland as well as it moves to the north

as a big storm. the next storm that i think that's very underrated. this storm here is ana. ana going to go over hispaniola, over the dominican republic and immediately over the florida keys. as that happens it's going to get into very warm water. right now it's not forecast to do anything but be a 35-mile-per-hour storm. i want to advice you and warn you that this storm has a lot more potential than 35 miles per hour because of the intensity and the warmth of the water here because of the gulf of mexico. let's pap around a little bit. this is all around ana. it's almost up to atlanta. i touched on this earlier. we're trying to get pictures out of kansas city. there's a big line of weather that's moved there. there has been a lot of flooding across parts of kansas city, especially toward levin worth and showers into the detroit metro area. we'll keep watching that storm there. i want you to keep watching bill because it's a major, major event. but it may be a fish storm.

that means a lot of people won't see it, just the fish. ana already moved onshore. ana formed first, next, claudette formed close to florida and has already moved inland. >> we'll keep tracking it with you. thanks. walk a mile in their shoes? a doctor takes it one step further, actually, giving up his medical insurance to better understand the health care crisis for the uninsured. we will talk to him.

well, as cnn covers this make or break month for health care reform, our team wanted to highlight some people who are helping folks get the care that they need, and one of those individuals is dr. will nicholson. we first introduced you to him

last month and at that time, he had just begun a personal experiment. he actually dropped his employer-provided health insurance and is trying to buy coverage on his own. dr. nicholson joins us now from minneapolis with a progress report. so bring us up to date. for our viewers that didn't see you the first time, what have you experimented with and how's it been an eye opener thus far? >> thanks, kyra. the goal of my project has been to go on to the individual insurance market and purchase insurance just as many of my patients have had to do, and try to go through some of the challenges that they go through and hopefully give some advice on how to get more value out of the system. now, since starting this project, i was interviewed by you on cnn and that has actually added a whole different aspect to the project. people have been contacting me from all over the country, telling me about their challenges with the health care system, so now i've not only been able to draw on my own experience, the experience of the patients that i work with every day, but also these people

across the country. it's by no means a scientific sampling of the population but it's given me a lot of insight. 70% of medicine is talking to your patients. i'm getting pretty close to having pretty good recommendations, i think, for people who are trying to buy private insurance. >> well, let me ask you a question. i don't want to put you on the spot so you tell me how you can answer this, because we have actually got a number of tweets from patients that have said to us tell the doctor my situation and then he's going to really know what some of us are going through. listen to this one and tell me what you think. unless this young doctor is ill, it's not a real test, as a brain and testicular cancer survivor who now has copd, congestive heart failure, diabetes, and bladder cancer, he can follow my trips for a month and find out which hoops you have to jump through. my heart sunk, first of all, when i heard everything he's dealing with but that really puts it in perspective, will. >> my heart goes out to him as well.

i have very similar patients in my practice, and i don't pretend to have a hard health care case to insure. i'm young, i'm healthy, but from a scientific point of view, i'm a pretty easy person to navigate all the different options. lots of people like him don't have the same number of options. i would like to find a way to start to add complexity to the model but right now, i think just as an individual, i have a day job. this is the biggest task i can undertake and i really think that information that i've been getting from this has been very valuable. >> for example, let's say this man came to see you, okay, and he's dealing with all of this. knowing what you know now, as you have been checking out all these various plans, what would you tell him? >> well, you know, i'm not an expert at purchasing insurance. someone like that is going to have a lot of trouble no matter how they're insured. a lot of those people that i run into, the people that i've heard

from across the country, they can't find insurance. there is no insurance. so they instead face bankruptcy, chapter 11, or they look for some type of charity care. an example in my community is we had a physician who recently contracted cancer and he actually had to hold a fund-raiser to pay his own medical bills. this does touch everybody, physicians, patients alike. >> so final thought, then, because a lot happened over the weekend with regard to the public option. health and human services secretary kathleen sebelius came forward and said well, maybe it's not the essential element, the public option part of the health care bill. then howard dean came back and said no, there's no way we can have a meaningful overhaul of the health care system without public option for coverage. as you've been dealing with your experiment and the various patients, what do you think? >> i've been trying to follow the health care debate but obviously, i'm not a health care expert like howard dean is. i would have to defer to howard dean on that one. or kathleen sebelius.

but you know, the two big options that seem to be out there right now that are being discussed are the public option and that co-op option. from a purchasing standpoint, from the experience i've had in this project, there's some appeal to the idea that you can have a co-op of people who gang up and try to lower the cost of health care. you know, maybe that's a good compromise. however, as a physician, i have a strong moral feeling that people shouldn't have to gang up on anyone to be able to afford health care as an individual. as far as the public option goes, i can tell you right now, the options that we do have aren't enough for a lot of people. they're inadequate. we need better options. if a public option is one of those, i would be willing to entertain the idea. >> dr. will nicholson, we'll keep following your experiment along with the debate, obviously. good to see you. appreciate your time. more from the "cnn newsroom" at the top of the hour. i had felt fine. but turns out...

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protecting america's veterans, expanding americans' health care. twin commitments of president obama. we're pushing forward on both. you just saw the president's address to the veterans of foreign wars. earlier we saw the secretary of veterans affairs pledging to speed up the turnaround time for benefits claims. on the health care front, it's a make-or-break month. we'll see which key issue may not make the final cut. to the vfw convention in phoenix now. the commander in chief brought a two-word message, thank you. he also brought a promise to fight waste in defense spending to fight for america's interests anywhere in the world and to make sure the u.s. military is second to none. the president talked about the war that's winding down in iraq and the war that's ramping up in afghanistan. >> these new efforts have not been without a price. the fighting has been fierce. more americans have given their lives. as always, the thoughts and prayers of every american are with those who make the ultimate

sacrifice in our defense. as i said when i announced this strategy, there will be more difficult days ahead. the insurgency in afghanistan didn't just happen overnight and we won't defeat it overnight. this will not be quick, nor easy. but we must never forget this is not a war of choice. this is a war of necessity. those who attacked america on 9/11 are plotting to do so again. if left unchecked, the taliban insurgency will mean an even larger safe haven from which al qaeda would plot to kill more americans. so this is not only a war worth fighting, this is a -- this is fundamental to the defense of our people. whether you wear the uniform today or wore it decades ago, you remind us of a fundamental truth. it's not the powerful weapons that make our military the strongest in the world. it's not the sophisticated

systems that make us the most advanced. the true strength of our military lies in the spirit and skill of our men and women in uniform. >> we in the "cnn newsroom" have made it our mission to push forward on the battles so many troops face long after they leave the wars behind. we're all about solutions. that's where new directions comes in. here's cnn pentagon correspondent barbara starr. >> you forget about everything, you know, helps me stay calm. >> reporter: a calm far from sergio's combat tour of duty in iraq. he served as a marine during the 2003 invasion. >> we have apricots up here. >> reporter: sergio, now 28, says he came home from war with post-traumatic stress. he wound up in jail for possession of drugs and when he was released, he had nowhere to go. sergio came here, to new directions, a recovery center for addicted and homeless

veterans. he found john keveny, a scottish bu born vietnam veteran who wound up in prison after a stabbing conviction. blunt talk from john, still with a metal plate in his head from being shot in vietnam, he mentors this iraq vet 32 years younger. >> he has to make a choice what he wants to do, you know. he's got all the potential in the world. he really does. >> you know he tells me that i shouldn't be ashamed what happened, ptsd, i shouldn't be ashamed i have problems. >> reporter: sergio suddenly finds another mentor, 60-year-old michael anderson, a fellow marine, who served during vietnam. michael started writing poetry while he was in jail. >> as the bell tolls, i offer a

salute to our fighting men in uniform, brave and resolute. >> reporter: the vets decided to collaborate. >> i have a picture in my mind of what i want to paint for that poem. >> reporter: while this iraq and this vietnam vet are separated by generations, they are now joined by their art and their battle against the demons of homelessness, addiction and combat duty. new directions says they're beginning to find today's troubled young vets in jail, like sergio was. so they're trying to get them help as fast as they can so they don't wind up here. barbara starr, cnn, los angeles. join us this week on cnn's "american morning" as veterans of the wars come back from the battlefields only to fight the war at home. all this week on cnn's "american morning." veterans and health care issues collided today at a town hall hosted by pennsylvania

senator arlen specter, and veterans affairs secretary eric shinseki. the latter, by the way, we invited to appear on this program many, many times, with no success. alongside specter in philadelphia, the secretary of's message came down to seven words. we're working as fast as we can. >> it's not just a matter of taking 131,000 homeless veterans off the streets. we have to go after education. we have to go after drugs -- jobs, we have to go after substance abuse, we have to go after mental health issues, and unless we're solving and attacking all of those things, homelessness is just -- continues to be the end state. so we have to do all of that. >> many our town halls are taking place across the country today. besides pennsylvania, we're watching florida, virginia and texas, and when i say we, i mean cnn's jessica yellin as well. she's in washington. hey, jessica. >> reporter: i've been keeping my eye on the town halls that

represented alan boyd has been holding. he's a blue dog democrat who came out today saying he is not in support of that one house health care bill that the blue dogs in general were going to support. what we've heard at his town hall is a lot of frustration on the same topics that we have been hearing in general, but especially in florida, whether illegal aliens will be covered under this bill. three people asked him whether that would happen. he keeps saying no, there will be no coverage for illegal aliens or immigrants, and he's asked it over and over again. not a lot of faith in the democrats and trust in the members of congress in representing this accurately, it seems. and then he was confronted by one member of the audience who wanted the same health care that members of congress get. let's listen. >> thank you for coming. appreciate it. >> i didn't get an answer to my question. why not -- why can't all americans have the same health care -- >> i don't want this. >> i know you don't want this. why don't you get the plan you're trying to force on us?

>> i don't want all americans to have the same. i want you to have your choice about what you have. >> reporter: that encapsulates some of the rock and the hard place contradictions members are dealing with, because in the same breath, folks will say i don't want the government making decisions and then i want the government to give me what you have, meaning make the decision for me. you got people saying i need lower health insurance costs and then someone else saying don't do anything to bring down health insurance costs, that's the job of private industry. so these folks are feeling like they're in a no-win situation to some extent. and alan boyd's answer is we've got to get to a better bill. >> jessica yellin, thanks. we're calling this a make-or-break month. it looks as if the white house is breaking with the so-called public option. that's the concept that opponents call a government takeover of health care. more now from cnn's jim acosta. >> wait a minute. now wait a minute. >> reporter: after weeks of congressional town halls gone wild, the obama administration is now keeping its options open on health care reform.

specifically, on the crucial question of whether americans should have the option of joining a government-run plan. the so-called public option. >> i think what's important is choice and competition. and i'm convinced at the end of the day the plan will have both of those. but that is not the essential element. >> reporter: there were no lines in the sand drawn by the president himself at his own town hall in colorado. >> this is a legitimate debate to have. all i'm saying is, though, that the public option, whether we have it or we don't have it, is not the entirety of health care reform. this is just one sliver of it. >> reporter: the white house is spending less time pushing the public option and more time talking about injecting competition into the health care marketplace to drive down costs and give americans more choices. >> the fact of the matter is, there are not the votes in the united states senate for the public option. there never have been. so to continue to chase that

rabbit i think is just a wasted effort. >> reporter: north dakota democratic senator is offering one compromise to establish nonprofit health care cooperatives like the rural electric co-ops that have existed for decades. >> land of lakes is cooperative. ace hardware is a cooperative. this is a model that works. it's not government run and government controlled, it's membership run and membership controlled. >> reporter: the president is stuck. keeping the public option would anger republicans and some democrats in congress who insist a government-run plan would drive private insurors out of business. >> i still think we should have a bipartisan solution but what i can't tolerate is the government plan. >> reporter: dumping it would disappoint liberals, who see a surrender on the public option as defeat. >> if he backs away from the public option, is that health care reform? >> it is absolutely not, no. we need the kind of reform that will improve the lives of families in communities everywhere. >> reporter: this is not the last of the public option debates. supporters and opponents of health care reform are spending

tens of millions of dollars on commercials that are slated to air well into the fall. a campaign style overdose of political advertising not seen since the election. jim acosta, cnn, washington. if you want to know more about the health care debate and how reform could affect you and your family, check out the special health care in america website on cnn.com. you can get the latest from town hall debates, fact checks, i-reports. you can even read the bills. go to cnn.com/health care. what do ana bill and claudette have in common with the canadian rock band, lover boy? everyone was working for the weekend, not to mention keeping chad myers very busy. the latest on the wild tropical weather. ♪ well i was shopping for a new car, ♪

♪ which one's me - a cool convertible or an suv? ♪ ♪ too bad i didn't know my credit was whack ♪ ♪ 'cause now i'm driving off the lot in a used sub-compact. ♪ ♪ f-r-e-e, that spells free credit report dot com, baby. ♪ ♪ saw their ads on my tv ♪ thought about going but was too lazy ♪ ♪ now instead of looking fly and rollin' phat ♪ ♪ my legs are sticking to the vinyl ♪ ♪ and my posse's getting laughed at. ♪ ♪ f-r-e-e, that spells free- credit report dot com, baby. ♪ racheting up slowly )

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who said we were having a slow atlantic hurricane season? what a difference a weekend can make. i don't think chad got anything wrong. he's been staying busier than anybody the last few days, right, chad? >> it has been quite a couple days, tell you what. bill, ana and claudette. you say wait, they're out of order. how comes it's b, a, c? ana formed first. bill will be a major hurricane, category 3 or higher. it does not appear right now that it's going to make a u.s. run or u.s. landfall. then claudette formed just right

here in the northeast part of the gulf of mexico, now it is spreading rain showers and thunderstorms into the southeast, but in a very dry area. sometimes you just need to almost pray for a small little tropical system to come onshore, give you some rainfall and then that really helps you out. you just don't want storms to stop, because when storms stop, it just rains for days. this storm has not stopped. this is hurricane bill, one, two, three, category 3, 125 miles per hour and i'm telling you, some of the models have this thing well above 125. up into the 130, 145 category without a doubt. that's going to be the possibility as it comes in. maybe one of the underrated players is ana. it is now only a tropical depression. that right there is puerto rico. it is designed and going to be driving itself over the dominican republic, haiti, over cuba and into the gulf of mexico. if that happens, it will be torn up by all this landfall here, but it could redevelop itself, just depending on where it's going to get here in the gulf of mexico. you have to realize now, if it

is one degree off, if it's one degree from where the forecast is, it's in the gulf of mexico and it could be here for a long time. one degree literally the other way, and it hits the east coast of florida, glances, maybe even goes off the east coast. so that's the center of the cone. you never can look at the center of the line. we have to keep watching where this goes. this could be an underrated player, it could be a much bigger storm in the gulf of mexico. i want to stress, that is not the official forecast. the forecast is for it to only be a 35 miles per hour storm as it gets here across florida. that's five days away. things change. rain showers into atlanta, all the way here into pensacola. had some pictures from bay news 9, just some wind, 35, 45 miles per hour, not a huge storm. we can take the rainfall, maybe push things around, bang some boats around. as long as you have fenders and lines on the boat, pretty good shape here. the rainfall is beneficial for the oysters, get some rain up into the rivers, bring the

rivers back down into the areas into the gulf of mexico and that wash kind of helps the plants, animals. they expect this. this is a normal event for the gulf of mexico. we will take the rainfall, take 35 miles per hour, no problem. >> you mentioned the oysters. you, me and john zarrella. oh, yeah. can't get enough of those. >> it's a date. >> thanks, chad. california firefighters are work overtime battling almost a dozen wildfires on both ends of the state. they're making progress on a fire around the santa cruz community of bonnie doon. officials are allowing hundreds of people to return home but the danger's still real. in santa barbara county, officials say a campfire started by mexican marijuana growers sparked a fire which is now 64% contained. is affordable health care nothing more than liberal rhetoric? we will take you to san francisco, where the answer is a resounding no.

so is the future of affordable health care for everyone existing right now in san francisco? as part of our health care in focus series, san francisco photojournalist jeff king and jim castle break down the program known as healthy san francisco. >> right in here. >> i had mitral valve prolapse. i was diagnosed with that about nine years ago. after i lost my insurance, i would have to pay out of pocket for everything, 100%. it would have been really

costly, more costly than i could have afforded. probably eventually i would have died. it was scary. i thought it was really unfair and just not right, basically, that you should allow anybody to die because they cannot get coverage, they can't get help even though they're trying to do the right thing. that's why i sought out the clinics that are here in san francisco. >> healthy san francisco is a coverage model that provides medical care, hospital care, emergency care, pharmaceuticals, laboratory, radiology, for people within san francisco. any adult who is uninsured in san francisco can qualify. how much people are required to pay depends upon what their income is. >> in my opinion, much better and more thorough care than i had when i was insured. >> we have required only a very

minimal amount of city general funds to start up, $750,000. the rest of the money comes from one of three sources. we receive the state federal grants, we are receiving money through the employer spending requirements that requires businesses that have more than 20 employees to spend money on health care, and finally, participants pay. we have figured out how to decrease the cost of care and use that money to cover a broader set of people. what we're able to do is to supplement all of the money that had been existing to enable people to care for a group of people that they were by and large already caring for. >> i wish everybody had access to the kind of medical treatment that i get, because it's just fantastic. >> if you want to know more about the health care debate and how reform could affect you and your family, check out the special health care in america website on cnn.com.

you can get the latest from the town hall debates, fact checks, i-reports, you can even read the bills. go to cnn d.com/health care. we will bring you the numbers and what it means for our own possible economic turnaround. susan lisovicz is here. ies who d assistance getting around their homes. there is a medicare benefit that may qualify you for a new power chair or scooter at little to no cost to you. stay tuned for this important medicare benefit information and free scooter guarantee.

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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. take a look at the markets right now. look at those numbers. bad day, actually. down 169 points, the dow industrials. the list of countries that appear to be pulling out of recession is growing. last week, it was germany and france. today, it's japan. but the big question is, what about the u.s.? especially as we look at the market numbers. who better to ask than susan lisovicz. she actually left her post at the new york stock exchange to join me here on set. break it down for us. maybe we start with the numbers. i thought everything was getting better and today we tanked. >> you have to remember this is an aberration, kyra. the market doesn't move just one

way or another, although we have been enjoying it lately. we have not seen a triple digit selloff for the dow since early july. the market's been improving because there's a sense that the u.s. economy is improving, but as we were talking, we used the health care analogy. the patient is off the respirator but way too sick to be discharged from the hospital just yet. that, of course, is the u.s. economy. >> which we are dealing with every single day. i know we think it's getting better, then all of a sudden we have a day like this. let's talk about japan, the focus. put it in perspective. what do we get from japan? >> why do we care. it's the second biggest economy after the u.s. we get a lot of things from japan. japan's all about exports. japanese can't buy all the things that they send out. cars, toyota, honda, flat screen tvs, computers, video games, you name it. japan's economy grew for the first time in years. that's very comforting. if you look beneath it, though, you see that exports were driving it. japanese are still not buying.

>> we buy the most from them, right? >> correct. but what's happening right now, cash for clunkers. we have stimulus programs here, we have stimulus programs in china, stimulus programs in europe. there's a sense and a fear that once the stimulus goes away, so does the demand, and japan's economy suffers. >> japan's got a stimulus program going as well. >> that's right. and the japanese are even bigger savers than we are. we're celebrating because now we're saving 5% of our paycheck. japan, it's 25%. those people do not buy -- no one buys like we do. and we're seeing that. that's another reason why the market is tanking today, lowe's, the big home improvement retailer, saw sales over the last quarter drop 10%. walmart, which has been stealing market share, doing really well in this recession, saw its quarterly sales drop. we saw consumer confidence drop on friday. if we're not spending, you know, it hurts. it hurts here, it hurts everywhere. >> good to see you here on set.

thanks for taking off. i know you had to make it quick. >> for you, any time. well, it may seem like a holiday in chicago but it's far from it. most city offices are closed to help an ailing budget. libraries are also closed. there's no garbage pickup or street sweeping. but it's work as usual for police, firefighters and ems crews. this is one of three reduced service days planned this year. the savings, listen to this, is expected to be about $8 million. possibly more. love your job enough to work for free? a number of dairy farmers are asking themselves that, thanks to the economy. here's a pretty unique piece from deb feyerick. >> reporter: every morning, bright and early, you'll find allen and his two sons milking the cows at their farm in st. albans, vermont. >> been doing it 34 years. to be able to have a weekend off, be awful nice but i cannot go afford to pay an extra man

just so i can have that luxury. >> reporter: you're the chief executive officer. >> yep. yep. chief of everything. debts and all. >> reporter: and the debts right now are soaring. >> we're definitely running negative, $4,000, $5,000, $6,000 negative. >> reporter: every month? >> every month. >> reporter: why? last year, demand for u.s. dairy exports was high and milk sold at a record $19 per 100 pounds, about two of these jars. that price has plunged to $11, less than what it actually costs farmers to produce it. >> this is certainly not overblown. this is the worst crisis the dairy farmers probably have ever seen. >> right now, farmers are in a position where they're paying to go to work every day. >> reporter: last month, the u.s. department of agriculture took the unusual step of raising support prices by about 15% for dairy programs through october. >> hopefully these actions will suffice and get a lot of dairy producers over, you know, this rough patch they're going through. >> reporter: maybe.

maybe not. while the cost of milk is going down, the cost of virtually everything else to run a farm is going up. >> my fertilizer cost last year was roughly $20,000. this year, it's $25,000. i have done nothing different except now i got $5,000 extra. >> reporter: like many farmers, he has been borrowing from the bank and cutting corners. >> we're trying to cut the grain, every cost we possibly can, but trying not to lose too much milk production. >> reporter: his sons know every cow and every inch of land. what they don't know is whether there's a future here. obviously, this is in your blood. are there some days where you think about giving it up? >> yeah, more often now than before. >> reporter: still, they have faith things will turn around and that they will keep the farm for generations to come. deborah feyerick, cnn, st. albans, vermont. straight ahead, i trusted him with my life in iraq's war zone. now the iraqi body guard who kept me out of danger is

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as cnn covers this make-or-break month for health care reform, our team wanted to highlight some people who are helping other folks get the care that they need. in many creative, innovative ways. thelma gutierrez meets an oncologist who made sure when one door closes, another one opens. >> reporter: everyone is talking about health care reform so we came to las vegas because we heard about a doctor doing something innovative to try to treat underinsured patients. we came here to meet him. how are you? >> good. how are you? >> reporter: the doctor is director of the women's cancer center of nevada. he treats women with nowhere to turn like 28-year-old christine

aguilar who has advanced stage cancer. >> if she were not able to come here, what would happen to her? >> over time, her cancer would progress and she would pass away. >> reporter: the out-patient cancer center at the county's university medical center closed down earlier this year because of state budget cuts amounting to $21 million. >> we're supposed to be the safety net for patients in the population, yet obviously, the safety net has holes in it. >> reporter: but spiritos found a solution. he converted a storage area in his office into a chemotherapy room. convinced his partners to take on the patients pro bono and got clark county to pay for expensive chemotherapy drugs. that is an incredible picture of your mother. >> yeah. that was her wedding day. >> reporter: christina, whose own mother died from cancer when she was 18, is in this predicament because her insurance doesn't cover chemotherapy. she makes too much money to qualify for medicaid. >> when i found out i was still

working and making good money, so they wouldn't pay for it because i was making a little bit more than what they recommended. >> reporter: how much were you making? >> making $8.76 an hour. >> reporter: what did you do for a living? >> cashier at toyz are us. >> reporter: in the past, she could turn to the county hospital for help. but now, that facility like so many others across the country, are being forced to make tough choices. >> the option was put them out on the street and let others pick up or try to do it in an organized fashion. >> reporter: that's what he did. now he's trying to cure christina in what used to be a storage room converted into a place of hope. >> the great part about this is christina's hair's going to grow back and mine won't. >> reporter: thelma gutierrez, cnn, las vegas.

when i covered the war in iraq, a very brave and professionally iraqi put his life on the line to keep me safe every day. the security situation is not only intense, but deadly. from the moment you land, the gamble with your life begins and probably one of the most terrifying trips is the one you will make from the airport to the baghdad bureau. >> so it's times like this where security definitely becomes more a concern. they call it a choke hold, where we come to a standstill and all the cars stop because if something were to happen, you're a sitting duck. >> the man driving that car, actually getting me through the danger zone, is hamdi. that's him on the far left, right there, on one of our assignments at baghdad's all female sports college. because of hamdi, i was able to enterprise some pretty incredible stories on iraqi life

in a war zone but unfortunately, every night, the war followed him home. a bomb was thrown at his house, wounding his daughter, his young son was haunted by trucks carrying dead bomb victims past his home. so for his family's sake, hamdi realized they had to leave. they are among four million iraqis who have left their home since the war began in 2003. a few thousand have come here to the united states. cnn international's michael holmes understands hamdi's commitment to all of us as well. hamdi kept michael alive on assignment in iraq, too. so when it was time to leave, michael had a great idea, to tell the back story of our special bodyguard's emotional last day of work in our baghdad bureau. a farewell that would lead to the beginning of hamdi's journey to atlanta, georgia, for a new life. >> hey, joe. how are you? >> good. >> good?

i will miss you. i will miss you all. go on. where is hamid? come on, i'm going to see you on the web cam. i've been working here and see you guys more than my family. i've been working here sometimes 18 hours, sometimes 16 hours. i slept here maybe sometimes a week, a whole week, just to keep this mission, you know, this office moving and working. they need us to do the job.

it's very hard to leave someone you live with for what, four or five years. >> say something. please. >> it was emotional back there. >> good to see you. >> i would imagine from my time living there, that one of the things that these guys are going to find different is things aren't exploding every day. is that something you noticed, you don't hear the booms? >> no, just that. a lot of things, booms, gun

shots. >> what does he think of america? >> better. >> translator: he says there's no explosions. >> cnn international's michael holmes joins me from our global headquarters in atlanta. i get tears in my eyes. you know, tell our viewers, i only got a second really to touch on what hamdi has done for us, but explain to our viewers how he impacted your ability to tell stories. i mean, stories that a lot of the other guys said nope, can't do it, too dangerous. but hamdi really made a lot happen for us. >> reporter: he did both ways. it is interesting, we were, of course, as you know, there's a big security team there but hamdi was the only iraqi security guard on our staff. you could go to him and say look, i need to get here, i need to talk to this person, he's on

the phone, arabic, of course, and making things happen for us. yes, he could get us places that maybe the other guys hadn't thought of route-wise to get to, but he also, i remember one day i wanted to go to a place, problematic suburb back then, in '05. he said you can't go that way. we ended up hooking up with the military to get there. the next day, an ied went off on the route we wanted to go on. he made things happen and stopped us from making mistakes, too. >> well, and i know one of the most special part of you putting this story together, it was when he arrived here in atlanta, georgia, and you know, he did so much for us over there, it's been so great to see him and his family here, and your big event, you joined families and went to six flags, right? >> reporter: oh, yeah, we did. we did. we have some material we shot while we were there, myself and somebody else at cnn took our

kids and went with his kids. we had a blast. you've got to imagine, these kids, hamdi's kids, had seen one roller coaster in their life. and it was nothing like six flags, i got to tell you. i remember steve saying to me at one point, he said these kids are so brave, they're jumping on everything. i said hey, if you have had bombs going off every day, this is nothing. i got to tell you one almost bittersweet thing. we're sitting down having lunch and about, i don't know, 50 feet away there was a wild west show going on, you know, how they go. the kids couldn't see it but you could hear it. when they started shooting blanks, you saw three kids and mom jump through the roof. every time those blanks went off. so they're here, it's an adjustment, and that adjustment is a work in progress. >> i tell you, they seem to be doing pretty well. i think the highlight for me is when they came over to the house for a barbecue and i just fell in love with fazul and the two girls immediately.

>> reporter: great kids. >> he was so drawn to the guitar. we brought a guitar out and he just, his eyes just lit up and he took hold of it and here he is. he just couldn't stop playing. everybody was sort of paying attention to his fascination with something that, you know, so many of us take advantage of, just a guitar, playing the guitar. he didn't want to put it down. >> reporter: first time i went over, we took a basketball with us. thrilled, absolutely thrilled. he used to go down and play on this court in the area they're living in and didn't have his own, but he does now. >> we're going to talk more about him this thursday. he's still looking for work. i know all of us are trying to help that family get adjusted and push forward. michael, what a great piece. >> reporter: it's a great story. we are going to continue telling it, too. >> good. see you later. michael holmes will join us every friday now with another of his special back stories and if you would like to know how you can help refugees around the world just like hamdi and his family, log on to our special website, cnn.com/impact, and

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barrett. he's actually recovering in the hospital after being beaten with a metal pipe. it all went down over the weekend at the wisconsin state fair, of all places. the mayor and his family were leaving when they heard screams. they rushed over and saw a woman and baby being menaced by a guy police call a vicious thug. the mayor intervened, the guy started whacking at him and the mayor fought back. he has a fractured hand and head wounds but the hero mayor will be okay. two out-of-state cops find out real quickly what happens in vegas can mean jail stays in vegas. listen to this. over the weekend, local police spot a van parked illegally. as they approached, the van took off. after a short car chase, then a foot chase, the local guys search the van and find drugs. then they realize their suspects are two officers in town for the police olympics. gee, are there any athletes not doping these days? all right.

they break into his house, steal his stuff, and end up calling the cops on their victim. just a bizarre story out of britain. two burglars delighted with their haul were disgusted to find kiddie porn on a stolen laptop. so they rang up police and tipped them off to richard coverdale's computer and where it could be found. the cops found 78 illegal pictures and movies on that computer. next thing you know, coverdale is sentenced to three and a half years in prison and the crooks with a conscience got community service. as always, team sanchez working hard on the next hour of "newsroom." >> how you doing up there in new york? everything good? >> doing okay in the big city. >> big girl, big town. >> big apple. >> listen, we're starting to see a little bit of a trend. it's starting to look bothersome. remember last week, we did a story about what was going on with that one guy who showed up in an obama town hall event with

a gun in a holster, loaded gun, according to him when he was interviewed later. it was a little alarming to see that. today, the president's in phoenix, arizona and we understand from our own correspondents that they have seen not only this fellow right there, that's an assault rifle he's carrying, but that ed henry has seen others as well in the audience. now, you should know that arizona is an open carry state, so what this guy's doing is perfectly legal. still, i'm sure secret service has some concerns and we're drilling down on this. we will bring you the information on that. the other story we're bringing you is unbelievable video. i think we've got that. show some of this. it's a police officer -- we don't have it, you will see it at the top of our show. this is a police officer who's beating a suspect. the question is, did he have to go to that so soon? because when you look at the video and all of us will,

together, it almost looks like it's their first reaction then there's about eight other police officers who jump into this fray. the fbi is now involved. once the fbi is involved in an investigation like this at the request of the police chief, you know there's something going on. we will be bringing this one to you as well. all this right here at 3:00. kyra, back to you. >> sounds good. see you then. homeland cybersecurity becomes a bigger issue by the day. hackers are targeting government agencies and getting through. so what's the big delay on that cyberczar? two words. money and power. reading about washington these days... i gotta ask, what's in it for me? i'm not looking for a bailout, just a good paying job. that's why i like this clean energy idea. now that works for our whole family.

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turf wars and budget battles are real problems as the government moves to battle virtual threat. still, no czar to head up our cybersecurity efforts. as a white house official said earlier this month, we can't get this done soon enough. here's our homeland security correspondent, jeanne meserve. >> reporter: denial of service attacks against twitter and government websites earlier this summer got a lot of publicity, but experts estimate hackers are successfully penetrating almost every government agency seven or eight times a month, and those

experts are perplexed that the obama administration isn't doing more to stop it. in may, president obama declared a new day in cybersecurity. >> from now on, our digital infrastructure, the networks and computers we depend on every day, will be treated as they should be. as a strategic national asset. >> reporter: but two and a half months later, some cyberexperts are asking where is the action to match those words? >> it seems that it's only been lip service thus far. we really need real tangible action. >> reporter: two high profile cyberexperts have announced plans to leave government in recent weeks and the president has yet to appoint a cyberczar he promised to lead and coordinate government cybersecurity efforts. word in the computer community is that well-qualified people don't want the job for one big reason. >> right now, there's no indication that that person will have a great deal of power. >> reporter: the white house vigorously denies that, insisting cyber remains a top priority and a rigorous

selection process is well under way. >> those of you from the private sector, i hope to recruit some of your smartest people to join the government, so watch out. >> reporter: homeland security is looking to double its cyber staff and has already brought in some well regarded experts from industry. meanwhile, the pentagon is starting up a new cyber command to secure military networks and develop offensive cyber capabilities. but some experts say with more leadership, there would be more progress. in the federal government and beyond. >> in order to engage international actors, in order to engage the critical infrastructure community globally, we have to have real leadership on the civilian side. leadership from the white house. because there's too many turf battles. >> reporter: the attacks continue, largely unabated, with cybercrime and cyberespionage sucking valuable information and money out of the u.s. every day. back to you. >> jeanne meserve, thanks so much. before we wrap up here, the top u.s. commander in iraq may

be sending some troops into disputed areas in the northern part of the country, we're being told. general ray odierno points to the spike in violence as a reason for the possible move he wants to make. if it happens, it will be a departure from a security pact with baghdad that actually pulled u.s. troops out of cities and towns, as you may remember, back in june. under odierno's plan, u.s. soldiers would partner with iraqi and kurdish troops in the areas disputed. no final decision has been made but we wanted to get on record that that's being talked about right now. we will keep you updated on what happens. that does it for us. we'll be back here tomorrow. rick sanchez takes it from here. claudette comes ashore and now, the flooding. >> there's the rainfall from claudette right now. almost raining all the way into atlanta. >> we're on it. look what