>> rick: hello, everybody. welcome to a brand-new hour inside america's news headquarters. i'm rick folbaum. >> arthel: i'm arthel neville. topping the news, america's struggle for new jobs, the president and gop leaders speak out today about what needs to be done to get the nation's millions of unemployed back to work. >> rick: also, sudden lethal flash floods strike in the northeast. we'll get the latest forecast electricity extreme weather center. >> arthel: space shuttle program may be over, but our country's search for signs of life on mars goes into overdrive with the brand-new rover. we begin with a fox news alert. new reports just coming in of gun fire and mortar explosions

being heard in tripoli. libyan rebels making stead gains against moammar gadhafi's forces, pushing them out of two key industrial cities. those rebels now a few miles from gadhafi's only remaining stronghold. so could this be the beginning of the end for gadhafi's regime? tedak joins us live from tripoli. just give us the latest from there. >> yes, there has been significant developments in tripoli itself not where i am in the hotel where the media are staying. we are hearing the gun bat. we've been making calls and trying to find out exactly what is happening. we're being told that in a suburb that is ten miles from here where in the early days of this conflict, gadhafi forces went in very heavy. so it is an opposition hot bed. earlier there was a fire fight. colleagues are speaking to foreign workers who are based

this and said there was heavy fighting. so much so they couldn't leave the area and that it was a pitch battle going on. i'm also told that in the other area of strong resistance against the gadhafi regime, a place called sukaljuma, a gunmen entered a mosque and threatened people in there praying saying you're either with us or against us. if you're against us, then you've got to be cleared out. so indeed, nato bombarding heavily and there is firefighters in tripoli. so basically the battle for tripoli has begun. getting back to your earlier point, is this the end for moammar gadhafi? perhaps it is. he's a man who has been in charge of this country for 42 years and he's created a lot of enemies. moments ago, we could hear them going after gadhafi's military apparatus, anything that could be used for the defense of the libyan capitol. on the ground the most significant gains have been made

by gadhafi's own people who want him gone. rebels basically surround the capital on three sides. they're coming in from zawia, a key city on the coast. they also say they're controlling a city in the east. gadhafi's back is literally toward the wall. last saturday the rebels threw everything into this fight and it seems to be paying off now. so gadhafi basically encircled. it looks like tripoli will be where he makes his last stand. some people are suggesting he will quit the country. the people i've spoken to, people said they have spoken with him say no, that isn't true. he's digging in. he's urging his followers to fight to the bitter end and this is becoming the scene of a one mighty showdown. let's put it that way. >> arthel: of course, fighting like this brings about more defections. i understand that libya's top oil man, he was supposed to be coming back to tripoli from italy, but instead, went to tunisia.

>> not surprising at all. he's not the only one. a gentleman was one of the originals, back in 1969 who brought gadhafi to power. he was gadhafi's right hand man, he's taken off. he's taken his family and headed towards western area. he arrived and on his way to italy. but not before he's given rebel has pretty good peek behind the curtain about things that happened within the inner circle, who the people are now that are closest to gadhafi and who the rebels need to get at who sort of break up his power base and destroy his political credentials and in order to -- the end game is topple him. >> arthel: i have to let you go. but has there been any word from gadhafi? >> we've only heard earlier, audio files. there was one earlier in the week played on state television where he said to followers, pick up your weapons. go to the fight. drive the rats, as he calls them, the rebels, back into the

sea and destroy nato. he is saying his followers, we fight to the bitter end, that blood of martyrs is the fuel of the battlefield. so his rhetoric isn't about i'm leaving. thank you, good night. it's about let's fight to the bitter end. >> arthel: thank you very much for that report from tripoli. >> rick: we'll take you back to tripoli if news warrants. a potentially crushing blow today for two american hikers who have been locked up for two years in iran. a new reports saying a court sentenced josh and shane to eight years in prison. they're charged with espionage and illegally entering iran during a hiking trip along the border. now the pair, whose release seemed a sure thing a few weeks ago, have 20 days to appeal before they're locked up longer. julie banderas is live with more on this. >> that's right. despite american calls for leniency, the two men have each reportedly been sentenced to three years in prison for

illegal entry to the islamic republic of iran, and five years in prison on charges of espionage for the american intelligence agency. under iran's islamic law, spying is punishable by death. the pair were arrested two years ago, along with 32 years sarah, on the unmarked border between iraq and iran in 2009. iranian police arrested them, saying they illegally entered iran. the hikers pled not guilty and say they unknowingly walked across the border. sarah was released in september 2010 for medical reasons. returning to the united states after 410 days of solitary confinement. then a couple weeks ago, there was actual positive word coming out of iran that the hikers were actually going to be released. those rumors were soon rejected. even iran's foreign minister had expressed hope, by the way, that the verdict would result in the hiker's freedom. a source heavily involved with the negotiations between iran and the u.s. early in this conflict tell fox news today

that while he is disappointed by the verdict, he says it does not necessarily mean they will serve the eight years, meaning in the world of iranian politic, the fact that they have been sentenced means that iran now can move on to policy actions as opposed to judicial ones and in theory, it could open the door for the release as well. the hikers' attorney says the time they have spent in iranian custody is enough. rick. >> rick: julie banderas in the news room, thanks. a lawyer for the two americans in iran says that they're reported seems unusually harsh and if it's true, an appeal will come soon. how much a chance do the two have and could they, who have spent two years behind bars, spend even longer? joining us on the phone now is dr. amady, the president and founder of the american iranian council and he was heavily involved in the negotiations regarding the hikers. we're glad to talk to you. first of all, what role have you played in the negotiations?

>> basically taking messages back and forth and trying to convince the iranian side that goodwill -- in fact, the original message, days after -- not days, weeks after the young men were arrested, came from tehran and they told me that they can go and send a message to the u.s. government and i did send that message to general jones at the time. i told them that iran is ready to release the people and obviously was expecting goodwill in return and i don't know what afterward the u.s. government intend to do. one thing i know is that they, at the time, they dealt with the

issue with sort of like cold shoulder, basically. all right. now, they have captured these people. they better release them. that's all. and it was very disappointing at that time. but then i went to tehran and continued my discussions with them and i basically telling iran, listen, you don't have to wait for any goodwill. just let them go. but i believe at some point they were very close to releasing them. >> rick: so what happened? just a few weeks ago we were hearing that as part of the holy month of ramadan that it might be a goodwill gesture to release them during that month, which is so holy on the calendar there and nothing happened. why not? >> well, obviously the executive branch, that is the president of the country, has been in favor of releasing them and, in fact,

was helped by ahmadinejab personally. at the moment, unfortunately, mr. ahmadinejab is not in the same strong position that he used to be. so i don't think that he could do much in this particular case. i think the judiciary obviously, which has been in conflict with the executive has taken upon itself to sentence them with a harsher terms, just to tell them that the boss is someone else. >> rick: i'm sorry to interrupt you. we have limited time. why are the iranians or at least the prosecutor, so convinced these two young men are spies? >> well, again, i believe that -- the news is good. in fact, in one way, that is not that they are being convicted in a way, quote, unquote, and that

they have driven a term. i think it is easier for the system to free them. i expect -- i'm also hopeful that they will interrein and he is the only one at this point who could help to free them and i think they have a chance in the actual court as well. there has been many, many cases where the appeal court actually has either turned down the original verdict or has given them a very, very, very low term, relatively speaking. i think it is not unusual or unexpected that something serious and better can happen. >> rick: let's hope you're right about that, as we would all like to see these two young men sent back to the united states and back to their families. the president and founder of the american iranian council and who i understand plans to return to his home country of iran and run for president in the next election. we wish you well. thank you.

>> thank you. >> arthel: rick and i are on to our president. president obama putting in office hours while vacationing on martha's vineyard. the white house confirming today that his top economic advisors scheduled to arrive on monday to help map out his new economic plans set to be unveiled after labor day. meanwhile, the president is using his weekly radio and internet address urging congress to, quote, put country first. and getting americans back to work. chief white house correspondent ed henry live in martha's vineyard. ed, with that beautiful backdrop, even on vacation, the president is hitting republicans on work that needs to be done. >> that's right. in fact, the president taped that radio and internet address while he was on that bus tour in the midwest and i was reporting on all week. and he did that even before he got to martha's vineyard. so he struck the same theme we heard on that swing through the heartland. basically the president not

taking responsibility for the economy in terms of suggesting his policies were to blame, but instead, trying to turn it around on the republicans and say, look, they're blocking progress in washington. and as he said in recent days, if they continue to block progress in his eyes, then he is going to run against what he called a do nothing congress. take a listen how he put it today. >> these are common sense ideas, ideas that have been supported by both democrats and republicans. the only thing holding them back is politics. the only thing preventing us from passing these bills is the refusal by some in congress to put country ahead of party. that's the problem we have right now. that's what's holding this country back. that's what we have to change. >> one thing the president, according to his aides, will be doing here on vacation is put the finishing touches on a new economic plan that he's challenging republicans to support and that's the context there, we're told, there will

probably be more tax cuts, maybe more infrastructure spending. but saying so far the republican s have known no initiative. >> arthel: so ed, the president looked like he was coming on kind of strong there in his address. how are the republicans responding to him? >> john kasich, the ohio governor, was scheduled to do the sort of republican address today and he was very direct in saying, look, this is not about republicans in the house blocking the president's initiatives. it's about this president in the eyes of the governor, not showing enough leadership. take a listen. >> divided government is no excuse for inaction. sure, we've had our fair share of gridlock back in the 1990s, our differences may have been stark, but president clinton and his team worked with us so that we could do what was best for the country. there is just no substitute for leadership from the president of

the united states. >> right now the president is at a social event, spike lee is on twitter tweeting he spoke to the president, maybe posting pictures of him. >> arthel: all right. we'll check it out. ed henry, thank you very much. >> rick: former alaska governor and vp candidate sarah palin raising a few eyebrows with the new thank you iowa video. some are wondering if it's a signal she's about to get into the presidential race. take a look. >> you can ask anybody here and i think that they would tell you it's time this country is put back on the right track, that the economy is strengthened. dog gone it, there is no faith given to the american people who are small businesses, understanding that you all know better how to spend your own money than politicians in washington, d.c. know how to spend. >> rick: fox news contributor karl rove had some interesting thoughts on that ad and the former governor. here he is this morning on "fox

& friends." >> she has a schedule next week that looks like that of a candidate. not a celebrity. and then this video that she released yesterday, she made a surprise appearance at the iowa state fair and now she releases video saying, see you september 3. look, either this is her last chance. she either gets in or gets out after this visit next week. i think she is gets in inasmuch governor palin said she would likely to have make a decision about running in the near future. >> arthel: we have shocking new video out of the rioters in the u.k. the footage is showing some of the looters were out for more than just robbery. take a look. this surveillance video shows at least one rioter firing a gun directly at an unarmed police officer. investigators are now hoping the video will lead them to the suspects involved, suspects that police say were on a deadly mission with one goal in mind. >> i think when you see that

footage, you will agree that what we're looking at is a concerted and organized attempt to kill or injure police officers. >> arthel: more than 1300 people now charged in the riots. two-thirds of those are behind bars. thousands of survivors returning to the site of the shooting massacre in norway, paying tribute to those gunned down on the island nearly a month ago. the shooter, anders behring breivik, says he went on the rampage to save europe from extremism. more than 70 people were killed in that attack. >> rick: deadly flash flooding claims four lives in pittsburgh. waters rising as much as nine feet in some areas after the city received more than two inches of rain in less than an hour. 11 people had to be rescued by boat when their cars got trapped in the rising waters. maria molina is live at the fox weather center and tracking another storm moving across the midwest.

right? >> right. we are tracking a new storm system. there is already reports of up to six inches of rain over parts of michigan because of localized storms. this isn't a widespread weather event, similar to what we saw on friday. today, these are localized storms producing heavy downpours and damaging wind gusts in excess of 60 miles per hour at times and we had a line move through southern portions of michigan. there are reports of trees down, also some cables down because of those storms. now they are east -- mostly east of detroit. that's improvement. no warnings in effect. southward, we have localized storms, so there are a number of warnings across portions of arkansas, as well as as far east as southern portions or south carolina. as we head into tonight, there is a second area that we'll be watching for the potential for severe weather across portions of missouri, western portions of arkansas. concern for large size hail and damaging wind gusts. as this system heads eastbound, tomorrow we're going to be looking at big population centers, like new york city,

philadelphia and dc that will get hit with strong storms. some could potentially turn severe, especially during the amp and evening hours. we'll watch that as we head into tomorrow. the city of pittsburgh will see storms as well tomorrow with that same storm system. otherwise we've been talking about flooding across michigan today, pittsburgh, yesterday and now drought conditions ongoing in texas and there is still no rain in the forecast for this area and today we're seeing those triple digit temperatures again. it's currently 106 in dallas. 100 in san antonio. you factor in a little bit of humidity that's in place, those heat index values rise higher. some areas could see heat index values up to 115 degrees. a number of heat advisories are in effect from mississippi on westbound into texas and oklahoma. rick? >> rick: all right. maria, thank you. >> arthel: the recent wild ride on wall street is certainly no laughing matter. for so many millions of americans out there saving for retirement. but we have tips for you,

protecting your nest egg in particular. 'cause that's what everybody is trying to protect in these rockies economic times. >> rick: we'll have that coming up. plus an air show stunt goes terribly wrong. the breaking details coming up next. >> arthel: and the soaring price of gold causing some unintended consequences. the disturbing new trend of smash and grabs. that's also ahead. when you're od to recovery. proper nutrition can help you get back on your feet. three out of four doctors recommend the ensure brand for extra nutrition. ensure clinical strength has revigor and thirteen grams of protein to protect, preserve, and promote muscle health. and immune balance to help support your immune system. ensure clinical strength... helping you to bounce back. ensure! nutrition in charge!

ensure! a mouthwatering combination of ingredients...e for you! i know you're gonna love. [ barks ] yes, it's new beneful healthy fiesta. made with wholesome grains, real chicken, even accents of tomato and avocado. yeah! come on! [ barking ] gotta love the protein for muscles-- whoo-hoo! and omega-rich nutrition for that shiny coat. ever think healthy could taste so good? [ woman announcing ] new beneful healthy fiesta. another healthful, flavorful beneful.

>> arthel: time for a quick check of the headlines now. congresswoman gabrielle giffords just now learning who died in that tragic shooting spree back in january. her husband telling her in private just a few weeks ago. the details of the victims were kept from her until she was strong enough to handle the news. new developments out of libya where there are reports of mortar shelling and gun fire inside the capital city of tripoli. it's gadhafi's last major stronghold. rebel fighters have been close not guilty for days, capturing two nearby towns. british military plane crashes during a stunt at an air show in southern england. the pilot, a member of the famed red arrows, errorredly died in the crash. >> rick: the past few weeks has been a roller coaster ride on

wall street, leaving a lot of americans weak in the knee, especially when it comes to their retirement savings. with the dow closing down more than 170 points again yesterday, some experts say last year's financial plan may not work. how should you steer your nest egg through these troubled economic waters? joining us is michael seymore. nice to see you. >> nice to see you. >> rick: for guys like you and me in our early 20s, we don't have to worry so much right now. why is everybody laughing in the studio? we have a little bit of time. but for folks who are retired or nearing retirement, this is scary stuff. what are you viesing your clients? >> this really is scary stuff. everybody i've seen is starting to talk about 2008, how the market crashed. for those of us who have been around this a while, i think we're back to 2000 and 2002 where we had a slow bleeding market that ultimately took the market down 49%. that's three times more than

where the markets pulled back since july 21. so i think people have -- if you're not set up correctly, this could be very painful, especially for the retired investor that's taking income from their life savings. >> rick: that's right. so for folks who do take income from these retirement plans, obviously the less they take, the less they spend, the better. but what do you do? there is really not a lot of time right now to come up with a whole new investment strategy. it is what it is. >> well, it is what it is maybe. i agree with you, absolutely, rick, it is what it is, meaning forget about what your portfolio was worth july 21. what it's worth now is it is what it is. and i do believe that. but i think if you were not set up correctly, what you need to do at a time like this is back to basics. if you need your portfolio to pay you 5% a year, for you to pay your bills, and let's say you can't reduce your expenses

anymore, then the more predictability you can have in your portfolio to generate that 5%, let's say you own a stock a, where you own investment a that pays 0 dividends or zero interest. and i own investment b that pays 4% dividend or interest of the 5% that i need. the market goes down, you get zero. market goes down, i still get my 4%. so maybe you do need to take some changes right now to make some changes right now. >> rick: i know. but if investment a is down 15, 20, 25%, it's tough to go in and make changes. you don't really want to do it and you maybe want to leave the money there and hope that maybe a year or two from now that's going to bounce back. >> well, that's not just the individual investor. that's professionals as well. but remember, number one, where is your guarantee it's going

back up? i'll give you an example. in march of 2000, general electric was $60. 11 years later, you can have as much as you want for 16 and change. so there is no guarantee. what if it does not go up and you still need to take money? it's very painful to sell when we're down. hopefully if you need to do that, always look at each investment and this is very important. look at everything you own. in light of where it's trading right now or what it's worth right now, if you were in cash, would you buy it again today? if the answer is no, you need to ask yourself why do i still own that? a lot of bargains out there that might be better than what you own now. >> rick: good advice from michael. it's tough because these are the golden years. they're supposed to be for folks who have worked so hard their whole lives. they had a plan. they stuck to it and now they're like, oh, boy, what am i going to do now?

if you -- thanks so much. >> arthel: you're so right. now a lot of people are investing in gold. a sign of the tiles, because now the soaring value of gold sparking an increase in theft. gold prices nearly doubled in the past two years. and in the last three weeks alone, it shot up by almost 200 bucks an ounce. we'll take a look at this video from a jewelry store in los angeles. yep, the l.a.p.d says there has been a rash of similar smash and grabs, muggings and home burglaries. some store owners increased security. police are warning owners of gold. beware. >> rick: stream of heavy hearts 12 miles long, traveling hundreds of miles to ground zero to commemorate the ten years since the 9-11 attacks. a convoy of more than 1800 motorcycles began their journey friday morning?

shanksville, pennsylvania, that is the site where flight 93 crashed, killing 44 people. the convoy is also visiting the pentagon before traveling up to ground zero in new york city tomorrow. the ride has been held every year since the 9-11 attacks. >> arthel: rick, we had mentioned earlier about the extreme weather that we're having here in the u.s. the heavens also opened up in spain, drenching the pope, as well as thousands of faithful. the strong winds -- look at this shook pope benefit dick's stage so much that it blew off his skull cap. thousands of people ran for cover until the rain stopped. the pope changed clothes and returned, finished his speech about 20 minutes later. >> rick: you would think maybe the pope could pull some strings and keep that weather from coming in. all right. coming up next, unemployment set to be a major factor in the 2012 election cycle. but who has the most to lose? the republicans or the

democrats? a fair and balanced debate straight ahead. >> arthel: police in nevada launching a new search for a utah mother missing for almost two years. where they are now searching. that's coming up as well. >> rick: and nasa getting set for its next chapter in space exploration. the exciting new mission to mars coming up next. [ female announcer ] so you think your kids are getting enough vegetables? maybe not. v8 v-fusion juice gives them a full serving of vegetables plus a full serving of fruit. but it just tastes like fruit. [ male announcer ] get five dollars in money-saving coupons at v8juice.com. at exxon and mobil, we engineer smart gasoline that works at the molecular level to help your engine run more smoothly by helping remove deposits and cleaning up intake valves. so when you fill up at an exxon or mobil station, you can rest assured we help your engine run more smoothly

while leaving behind cleaner emissions. it's how we make gasoline work harder for you. exxon and mobil. [ slap! slap! slap! slap! slap! ] [ male announcer ] your favorite foods fighting you? fit back fast with tums. calciumich tums goes to work in seconds. nothing works faster. ♪ tum tum tum tum tums

>> arthel: welcome back. it is the bottom of the hour. time for the top of the news. two american hikers detained in iran now reportedly sentenced to eight years in prison. the two men were arrested back in 2009 for espionage and illegal entry. >> rick: reports of heavy gun fire and explosions in the libyan capital city of tripoli as rebels close in on the main stronghold of moammar gadhafi. >> arthel: and new leads into the disappearance of a utah woman missing for nearly two years. police now scouring through the mountains of eastern nevada for any sign of susan cox powell. her husband remains a person of interest. >> rick: an alarming development in america's health care system. doctors and hospitals all over the country are running out of a lot of very important drugs causing them to delay treatment or postpone surgeries. the shortages include medicine

needed for a number of life-threatening illnesses, including cancer and bacterial infection. caroline shively is live in washington. what drugs are not available and how did this happen? >> a number of drugs, rick. drugs used to treat breast cancer, colon cancer, ovarian cancer, leukemia and types of bacterial infections. many are a couple of dollars a pill. normally. but the price increased to 20 times that in some cases. the majority of the shortages are because inspectors found contamination problems with batches of the drugs. some advocates say that's because so many are made in foreign plants that the f.d.a. doesn't inspect. but the f.d.a. says others occurred because the companies aren't interested in making drugs that have such a low profit margin. >> rick: what's the plan? what's the government going to do to fight this shortage? >> they're considering a couple things. the administration is considering creating a stock pile of the dry ingredients for the drugs, like they do for other drugs. they would store them and send them out to pharmacists in case of a shortfall and the

pharmacist would mix them and distribute them. the house and senate also have bills that would require companies to give advance warning when they think they'll run out. doctors are getting in on this. they're doing what they can. a group of cancer doctors started a nonprofit drug company. they're hoping they'll be able to import some of these medicines soon and eventually manufacture them themselves. rick? >> rick: an important story from washington tonight. caroline shively, thanks so much. >> arthel: unemployment becoming a major concern heading into the 2012 election cycle. take a look at this. the jobless rate increased from june to july in these swing states. indiana, nevada, north carolina, ohio, pennsylvania, and virginia. these are all states that went for obama back in 2008. unemployment is also still above 10% in these swing states, florida, nevada, north carolina and michigan. obviously this is a major concern for president obama, but could it also be a problem for some republican candidates heading into the primary? joining me now, former deputy assistant to president george w.

bush, brad blakeman, and josh block, former spokesperson for the clinton-gore and gore-lieberman campaign. good to see both of you. brad, i'll give you first shot. could this also become a headache, unemployment, for the gop candidates? >> i think it's more of a headache for democrats and here is the reason: we control one part of one branch of government. the democrats control the white house. they control the senate, and obviously they were in control for the first two years totally of government. so i believe this president put his neck on the line when he promised the american people if you pass that $800 billion stimulus, unemployment nationally would not exceed 8%. it has never been below 8% since this president has been our president. and actually has topped over 10%. and with the national unemployment rate now peeking over 9%, in the inner city, the people who supported this president the most are the ones hurting the most. >> arthel: josh, even if fewer

people are unemployed in swing states, which is good, but there is still a lot of people out of work. so do you think this bodes well for the president or do you think it will ultimately have minimum impact at the polls? >> the economy is obviously still a challenge for the white house. with good reason. it's taken a long time to get us into this mess and it will take us quite a while to get out. on the plus side, unemployment in the swing states is down 1% over the last year in ohio, in pennsylvania, in florida. in states like indiana and nevada, it's down 2 points since last year. that's a positive thing. on the flip side, you have rick perry running against the white house, seemingly on his economic credentials. of course, the growth in texas was driven by military spending, out of his control. but there you see unemployment going up over the last three years. so it's going to be hard for him to reconcile those things. these issues cut both ways. >> arthel: okay. so guys, you know the federal reserve is predicting a bleak outlook for the economy all the way through the middle part of 2013 and now the president and

the democrats want to kick in some more stimulus money to try to create jobs. so brad, i ask you, 'cause you know that's not going to go well with the republicans. but considering such a predicament, who could really feel the impact politically speaking? >> the democrats because again, we see an advancement of a failed policy. didn't we learn our lesson from the first stimulus, which was an utter failure? not by my standards, but by the president's standards. look, there is a stark difference as there ever will be in a presidential election between what republicans believe the economy's recovery will be and democrats. we happen to believe lowering taxes and empowering the individual, entrepreneurship will spur our economy along because it will mean increased revenues. of course, the democrats believe in bigger government and spending. another stimulus. that is the road to recovery. we know historically that is a failed policy. so it's really up to the american people to determine which road they want to go down. but republicans in september must stand united against more

spending and increased deficits. >> arthel: josh, do you feel that sort of road blocking, if you will, could possibly hurt the republicans? >> you know what we need to do is get back to good old-fashioned bill clinton style, balanced budget, high growth. as a pro-growth democrat, we need to invest in the middle class and beginning to that direction. obviously the president believes in those things, that's why he's been out on the road trip. he was on earlier this week. he was at johnson controls, a company that employees thousands of people. buys from people that employees thousands of people. he was there because he saved the auto company. he was there because the banking system is still working. he was there because we did the things we needed to do to prevent a second great depression. so you've got to believe at the end of the day, by empowering the middle class and by cutting taxes, as you like to do with the payroll deduction tax -- >> arthel: let me jump in here, josh.

josh, one moment please. i will cut you off if you don't stop, please. >> can i finish one point? >> arthel: no, you made a bunch of points, you're doing a list of talking points. i want a conversation. please, let me ask you this, josh. you said that the middle class, that they're much better off. a lot of the middle class are hurting, okay? so i want to ask you, do you feel confident in the president's jobs plan that's going to be announced after labor day and what specifically does the president have to say to ease the people's minds to know they're going to get back to work? >> it's a great question. i think people have to believe we're going to be responsible in washington. the point i wanted to make was if the republicans would take a deal that provides for ten dollars in cuts for every one dollar of new revenue, the middle class would have something to believe in. we could get back to the kind of responsible balanced budgets and the kind of economic policies the democrats want to see put in place so everyone pays what they can afford, the some works and you got an economy that's retraining people for new jobs,

that's using the government resources we've got to create new incentives, green jobs, the kinds of things the president was -- hybrid battery companies and wind mill companies. these are the things we can do to create new jobs in new sectors. >> arthel: everybody wants new jobs. i don't dispute that at all and i hope the president can come up with a plan, somebody can. brad, i'll give you the last word. >> i'm happy to hear josh is for balanced budget. he should encourage his party leaders to do just that, a balanced budget amendment would be wonders for bipartisanship and would be important for our country. the main thing is this: this president must change his direction. he must be less on taxes and spending and more on empowering the american people by putting more money in their pockets. >> arthel: brad, josh, thanks to both of you gentlemen. we'll see you next time. >> rick: quick break and then nasa chart ago new course for the 21st century, searching for the building blocks of life on mars using this state of the art rover that's named curiousity. the exciting new mission to the

red planet when we come right back. don't go away. my doctor told me calcium is besabsorbed in small continuous amounts. only one calcium supplement does that in one daily dose. new citracal slow release... continuously releases calcium plus d for the efficient absorption my body needs. citracal. we get double miles on every purchase, so me and my lads earned arip to san francisco twice as fast we get double miles every time we use our card... i'll take these two... ...no matter what we're buying. ...and all of those. and since double miles add up fast, we can bring the whole gang! it's hard to beat double miles! whoa dude. [ male announcer ]et the venture card from capital one and earn double miles on every purchase, every day.

go to capilone.com. what's in your wallet? @ go to capilone.com. ♪ sing polly wolly doodle all the day ♪ ♪ hah @

getting an amazing discount on a hotel with travelocity's top secret hotels. [ gnome ] ahhh... [ male announcer ] the easy way to get unpublished discounts of up to 55% off top hotels. [ gnome ] your fingers are quite magical.

>> rick: now that the space shuttle program is in the history books, nasa is gearing up for a big mission to mars. the mars rover opportunity still on the job after years of service. now nasa is sending a new rover called curiousity. casey stegall is live in l.a hey, casey. >> hey. good to see you. this thing is scheduled to blast off into outer space in

thanksgiving day. but it will take about eight months before it even reaches mars, even traveling speeds of more than 12,000 miles per hour. that is fast. take a look at this thing. pretty spectacular. the rover built here in california at the nasa jet propulsion lab. it weighs about a ton and is the size of a car with a price tag of nearly $2 billion. curiousity will roam the mashes surface, collecting rock and surface samples and scientists on the ground with capabilities they've never quite had before. >> this rover has got 17 cameras on it, so y'all are going to see lots of cool pictures coming down from the surface of mars. these are full colored cameras. h.d. resolution, focusable lenses. >> of course, the whole goal of this nasa mission on mars, to rye and unravel the planet's history and see if life could have once existed there. by the way, there are two other nasa rovers hard at work on the

martian surface since '83. they were only engineered to last 90 days. but fast forward seven years later, and opportunity is still moving around up there, making new discoveries all the time. the existing vehicles are small and have limited technology, which is why this new upgrade is so exciting for the nasa scientists. this project, by the way, is two years behind schedule. only adding to the urgency of getting curiousity out of the laboratory and into outer space. pretty cool. >> rick: very cool. good stuff. thanks so much. >> arthel: i agree. pretty cool. it's that time of year, folks. a road trip to campuses all across america. people getting ready to take their kids to college. but here is the question: how should you pack the car to avoid those last-minute headaches? you want to keep your family safe. "consumer reports" fills us in next.

host: could switching to o really save you 15% or more on car insurance? host: do people use smartphones to do dumb things? man 1: send, that is the weekend. app grapgic: yeah dawg! man 2: allow me to crack...the bubbly! man 1: don't mind if i doozy. man 3: is a gentleman with a brostache invited over to this party? man 1: only if he's ready to rock! ♪ sfx: guitar and trumpet jam vo: geico. 15 minutes could save you 15% or more on car insurance.

>> rick: a busy time of year on the nation's roadways. last couple weeks of summer and also a lot of kids gearing up to head off to college. that could mean stuffing the car to the gills with tons of stuff. >> arthel: so how do you keep your kids safe on the long trip to college? joining us, mike, the automotive

specialist with "consumer reports." mike, hi, first of all. >> hi. >> arthel: that's exactly -- i've seen it a couple of tiles, you're driving down the road next to college kids and you've got pillows and sleeping bags and you can't even see in the window and obviously they can't see out. >> it's like "animal house" on wheels. >> arthel: how do you avoid that. the best thing is really try to pack smart. when you got big bulky items, have them down low. you don't want anything up high because if you have a panic stop, you hit the brakes all of a sudden, all that stuff comes forward. so big, heavy stuff, have it low and near the center of the vehicle. >> rick: if your kid has bought him or herself a hunk of junk that they're driving up, i remember mine when i drove to school that i drove off and i went up to syracuse, new york in my beat up honda hatch back, but anyway, there were things that i remember my parents sort of wanting me to have in the car,

just a basic safety stuff in the event that there was a problem. what should people have? >> some of the basics include some of the stuff that i brought here to the studio. that's a reflective triangle. this will be seen for miles down the road, when the lights hit one of these, it's a good indication for oncoming motorists something going wrong. you want a first aid kit with a lot of the basics. a teen-ager doesn't need a cell phone, because you never -- the problems aren't going to happen when the weather is nice, when you're in your neighborhood. it's always going to happen where you're in the middle of nowhere. >> arthel: you call it a hunk of junk? >> good tires, really good tires. >> arthel: speaking of tires, i don't know how to change a tire. so i think mike was mentioning to us that it's a good idea to have your child practice in the driveway at the house. >> rick: before your teen-ager loads up the car, to head out.

>> make sure they practice changing a tire. know where the jack is. how do you get -- knowing they're secure inside the vehicle. so you need to actually know how to unscrew it. have them practice taking a tire on and off. >> rick: if you're on the side of the road and it's raining. >> that's when it happens. it doesn't happen when it's bright ask sunny out. >> rick: this is important stuff. as parents, my kids are little. i'm already upset about them going off to college. you want to make sure that they're safe. mike, good to see you. automotive content specialist at "consumer reports." that does it for us. >> arthel: i have enjoyed being with you. stay tuned. fox report with harris faulkner is coming up next. ♪

with diabetes, it's tough to keep life balanced. i don't always have time to eat like i should. and the more i focus on everything else, the less time i have to take care of me. that's why i like glucerna shakes. they have slowly digestible carbs to help minimize blood sugar spikes, which can help ler a1c. glucerna products help me keep everything balanced. [ golf ubs clanking ] [ husband ] i'm good! well, almost everything. [ male announcer ] glucerna. delicious shakes and bars. helping people with diabetes find balance.

meet pnc virtual wallet. it comes with a calendar that shows you all your finances at once. it lets you know when n your money's going ou. and when it's coming in. it even tells you when you're running low. we call that danger days. it's built to help you see your monein a whole new light. experience everything virtual wallet has to offer at pncvirtualwallet.com. pnc bank. for the achiever in you. ♪ what if we designed an electric motorcycle? what if we turned trash into surfboards? whatever your what if is, the new sprint biz 360 has custom solutions to make it happen, including mobile payment processing, instant hot spots,

and 4g devices like the motorola photon. so let's all keep asking the big what ifs. sprint business specialists can help you find the answers. sprint. america's favorite 4g network. trouble hearing on the phone? visit sprintrelay.com.