to those at that participated in that conflict. we've got it all for you. jon: right now this fox extreme weather alert, tropical depression barrel causing major problems across the southeast, barrel making landful overnight near jacksonville, florida packing near strength hurricane winds, heavy rains, knocking out power to thousands of people, and the issue now, rain, lots of it, talking about 8 inches in most places are some areas getting up to a foot. we have live team fox coverage. meteorologist maria molina is live in the fox extreme weather center. first to jacksonville, florida and elizabeth par -- prann doing beach duty, but it's not exactly beach weather. >> reporter: it's not like you said not exactly a beach day. you can see i can lean into these winds. it has been downgraded to a tropical depression but we're still going to get

29-mile per hour winds on the peach, paling in comparison to what we saw between midnight and 2:00 a.m. where we had 70-mile per hour gusts. that's very close to hurricane winds. we spoke with the mayor and he said yes we did luck out in jacksonville because we are seeing minimal damage, a lot of downed power lines, 20,000 folks without power but working to thet power as soon as possible. the roads, very slick, a lot of debris and we spoke to the mayor and he says he knows it's memorial day weekend, people are going to head out and if you don't need to travel, stay indoors. here is what he told us: >> it's all about safety now. we don't want people going out, joy riding, trying to really see what's going on. we want them to stay inside because it's still not safe. we've got a lot of power lines that are down and we want them to call 911 to report it. don't try to move it or anything else like that. >> reporter: so jon, like you said, yes, the worst is over, but the storm is not

finished here. we know we've got an inch and a half of rain so far but meteorologists predict we could have rain today, tomorrow and even into wednesday morning, so tropical depression barrel isn't going anywhere, very fast. jon. jon: we heard there were a lot of rescues there over the weekend. i'm guessing nobody is venturing back into the water today? >> reporter: well, if you pan over my shoulder you can see we do have a lot of curiosity seekers at this location. i haven't seen anyone get in the water and over the weekend we did see people get in the water and there were sevenry accuses, 30 at jacksonville beach and more than 100 across florida, georgia, south carolina and now north carolina. the beaches are closed, lifeguards are not on duty, the mayor says that is something he wants people to learn quickly, that it is dangerous out there. those ripcurrents can sweep you off your feet in a matter of moments and there is no one that can help you.

jon: elizabeth prann, thank you. jaime as tropical storm barrel sweeps the coast, you have to take precaution, our team coverage continues with maria molina, 97, 96, high, high temperatures. >> possible record setting temperatures for a large area of the country from the northeast into parts of the great lakes, like the city of chicago, cleveland, through the plains, down into texas. so a pretty big chunk of the country that's going to be seeing high temperatures into the 90s this afternoon so everybody needs to be safe out if. twenty-three -- out there. if you're headed outdoor for a long period of time, you've got to make sure you stay hydrated, drink a lot war -- a lot of water throughout the day. i do want to kick off with tropical depression barrel because there is an sreupbzry, downgrading the storm from a tropical storm to a depression, sustained winds at 30 miles per hour. you can see gusts stronger than that. that's something to keep in

mind from northern florida to southeast georgia. the reason the storm is going to dutch rain across this area isn't just because of tropical moisture but because it's going to start to take a very turn towards the north and the northeast here over the next 24-48 hours. we're going to see a prolonged period of time that we're going to be seeing a lot of heavy rain out there. jon mentioned up to 8 inches of rain, the general idea here is between 4-8 inches of rain, locally, up to a foot of it across parts of northern florida and southeastern georgia and by w*d we expect the storm system to sustain winds of 30-35 miles per hour. now, the rain is welcomed news here in florida, georgia, south carolina, because we're currently in a drought and that maroon color is the worst type of drought or extreme of it. so a drought across portions of florida, georgia and parts of south carolina. again, we'll take the rain, but when you get too much water, too fast, then you have flash flooding concerns, and that is something we're keeping an eye on right now across

northern florida, where we're seeing the heavier rain bands coming down right now. elsewhere, as we head into the upper midwest, pretty quiet, just scattered showers, but we're going to be seeing things really kicking up later on today and as we head west for montana, higher elevations actually getting snow out there, so behind this frontal boundary, there is cooler air that will be bringing in rereef to -- relief to the areas seeing high 90s like the great lakes but this storm system is going to be bringing in active weather later on today in the form of severe weather, thunderstorms, so parts of the great lakes, texas, oklahoma, and the northeast need to stay alert today, because you could be seeing large hail, damaging winds and even isolated tornadoes and jamie, here's a quick look at the high temperatures into the 90s, cleveland, chicago, down to dallas. jamie: unbelievable that red portion. i hope folks will take your advice today. thanks maria, so much. there's more extreme weather in the midwest, too, strong thunderstorms packing quite a punch in kansas. take look at this. you can also hear it:

>> look at that, golf ball sized hail shattering windshields, and bringing 60-mile an hour winds, really dangerous conditions and a threat for tornadoes lasted over the holiday weekend. a severe thunderstorms watch finally lasted in that area, just in time, hopefully, jon, i don't know, look at the skyies, for folks to enjoy today. jon: the only people that like that kind of weather are the auto body shops. >> right now international pressure is mounting on the regime in syria as the slaughter of innocent civilians continues virtually unchecked there. u.n. special envoy koffi annan arrived in damascus for emergency talks with syrian president bashar al assad after a horrific attack on hula friday, u.n. observers confirming artillery and shells killed 108 people, 32 under the age

of ten. conor powell, koffi annan is in damascus right now. what is he hoping to accomplish? >> reporter: jon, koffi annan arrives in syria with really one task, to try to kick start the ceasefire that has essentially been abandoned over the last few days with the resumption of violence now. the rebels are vowing to avenge the attack on friday, so koffi annan has to convince both sides -- >> jon onwe interrupt that report from damascus, and conor powell, with this, memorial day observances at the tomb of the unknown, arlington national cemetary in washington, d.c. there is president obama, about to take part in the ceremonial wreath laying at the tomb of the unknowns. let's listen in: >>

>> ♪ >> ♪ >> ♪ >> ♪ >> ♪

>> ♪ >> ♪ order. >> >>

>> ♪

>> ♪ jon the president there

departing the wreath laying ceremony at the tomb of the unknowns, arlington national cemetary in washington, d.c., accompanied by general michael lenington, chief of

the military district of washington, and it's my understanding that arlington sem mother falls under his per view there. the president will later lay -- i should say have another ceremony at the vietnam memorial on this the 50th anniversary of the beginning of the vietnam war. "happening now" will be back in just a moment. >> hi, this is sergeant first class lance parker shouting out from afghanistan, i would like to wish my family, my husband, my partner and friend from north virginia and maryland a happy memorial day weekend. love you. ♪ hallelujah

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jon fox news is your election headquarters and running a nationwide campaign can be risky business but some analysts say both president obama and governor romney seem to be playing it very safe. they're not making any bold policy proposals or displaying a free wheeling personal style. so is not rocking the boat the smart strategy? in what most predict will be a very close election.

aaron mcpike is national political reporter for real clear politician and joins us on this memorial day, good to have you on again. >> good to be here. jon: neither one of these guys is really going out there and lighting fire to the campaign trail. they're both playing it pretty close, pretty safe. >> they are. and when you meetings they're not putting out new policy proposals, that is true. president obama hasn't said at all what he would do in a sec term. we hear a little about immigration reform, but that's largely it. he's defending what he's done in his first term and saying do you want to go back to the republican polices of the bush administration which is how he characterizes mitt romney. mitt romney on the other hand simply says he that would roll back the president's polices, but he doesn't put forth much of a vision of his own. he talks simply about repealing health care reform that the president passed, and that's largely just saying that he understands the economy and knows how the economy works but we

haven't heard anything from him about what he would do with social security, for example. jon: it's kind of curious that the president is asking us to be selective, i tkpes, in our memory, go back four years and beyond to the memories of the bush administration. he's not touting his accomplishments of the last four years. >> not much. and the president does have some accomplishments to tout. whether or not he wants to talk about health care reform is another matter. jon:it roux. >> it's not particularly popular. but he can talk about wall street reform, credit card reform, and what the president did with education in 2009 when he first took office. he did a lot with education reform as well. but they're not talking about those specific accomplishments because they're not particularly tied closely to the economy, which is what everyone, of course, is talking about, the unemployment right rate and the economy at large. jon: obviously because the president's health care law was so unpopular, that is a big part of what mitt romney talks about, repealing it or trying to.

>> that's exactly right. he says we would sign waivers on the first day in office, so that states could opt out of health care reform, but exactly, mitt romney is talking about what the president has done wrong, and that is where these two candidates are sort of talking around each other. it's just what one has done wrong, what the other one would do wrong. it's not what they both want to do to move the country forward which funny enough is the president's campaign slogan. i don't know jon politics is supposed to be about ideas and campaigns are as well and we're not hearing money from -- many from either side, i guess. erin, real clear politics, thank you. >> thank you. jaime keeping a close eye on pakistan as u.s. relations are showing new signs of strain following the latest deadly u.s. drone strike, plus last week's sentencing of a pakistani doctor. he provided critical detail to the cia that led to finding usama bin laden. he is sentenced now to 33 years by pakistan. what all this means for our troops in the region, and

our security here at home. plus, catholic archbishops are taking aim at the white house, suing over the so-called contraceptive mandate. the latest details in a live report, straight ahead for you, this memorial day. [ male announcer ] the inspiring story of how a shipping giant can befriend a forest may seem like the stuff of fairy tales. but if you take away the faces on the trees... take away the pixie dust. take away the singing animals, and the storybook narrator... [ man ] you're left with more electric trucks. more recycled shipping materials... and a growing number of lower emissions planes... which still makes for a pretty enchanted tale. ♪ la la la [ man ] whoops, forgot one... [ male announcer ] sustainable solutions. fedex. solutions that matter. a little bird told me about a band... ♪ an old man shared some fish stories...

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jamie: major developments to tell but in pakistan after a just drone strike killed five suspected mill tans. it happened near the terror strong holds along the afghan border. let's remember our tonights are on the other side. it's the latest in a barrage of missile attacks despite demands from islamabad to halt them. it's also on the heels of new criticism that defense secretary leon panetta. over the weekend he talked about pakistan's conviction and sentencing of this

doctor. thirty-three years, he got, in prison after he helped the cia track down usama bin laden. what will be the impact? is our relationship deteriorating further? will anyone else there step forward to give -- give us the intelligence we need? joining me now, speaking of intelligence, retired major general bob scales. you know i'm sweet on you! but i'm very concerned about pakistan, and you know that, and all along, you and i have been talking about why does the u.s. government give all the money that we do to help them in their efforts when we saw that usama bin laden was living probably for ten years next to one of their military bases. now, a unanimous vote, taking $33 million away from a $250 million package. in happened last week. one million for every year that this doctor is being jailed. will it work to get him released? >> yeah, you know, this

conviction of doctor afridi is just another signpost of the cynicism of this pakistani government. it's literally just an attempt by the pakistani military to seek revenge and pay back for the american strike that killed usama bin laden. it's just that simple. and it goes along with many other signs that the pakistanis are putting forward that potentially, jamie, put the american commitment in afghanistan at risk. a $5000 vehicle head tax on resumeing american vehicle movements through pakistan, efforts to stop these drone attacks, the support of the terrorist groups in afghanistan in the wazeria tribal areas. you know, jamie, one of the key elements of a successful military is a sanctuary and all of the efforts in the united states to put the afghans on their feet could be jeopardized by the pakistan military's

continual support of insurgents in their own country. jaime jail and they would probably consider dr. afridi an insurgent. in fact they charged him much more information today o treason. what does that say, treason, defined there as aiding the enemy, or levying war on pakistan? really, general? >> no. i mean -- jamie: are they going to get away with that? >> unfortunately they are going to get away with it. they may find some way to shorten his sentence but i don't think so. the irony that i don't understand is the pakistani government is exhibiting this bipolar behavior where support of the haqqani network, taliban and god fer bide al-qaeda is actually harming their own military, it's cynical and makes no strategic sense for nato, united states or for that matter, pakistan. jamie: they've not nukes, general. they've got nuke. sue: and that's the point. a rogue state a. bipolar

state with a nuclear arsenal that has very little control over its tpherpb territories. think of the consequences jamie if the insurgents, haqqani network or god forbid al-qaeda got their hands on nuclear consequences br some reason the pakistanis always seem to back down at the critical moment in on the tphopbl -- not only helping the united states defeat the insurgency but helping their military defeat the same insurgency in their own country. it's diabolical. jaime and on this day we know they closed supply routes to our troops in afghanistan who served so bravely, i hope you're right that they will come to our aid as we need them to. general, thank you very much and thank you for your service. we appreciate it. >> and also thanks to our young men and women on this memorial day. i hope all of america remembers their service and sacrifice. jamie: and their family as well. good to see you stkpwhraoeur you too, jamie. jon onthe temperature commander in afghanistan

pauses to mark this memorial day with an inspiring story, read ago letter written to his family before he died, sergeant william stacy was killed in january while on foot patrol in helmand province. >> and while our brothers and sisters fell at a place far from home, far from their families, the value phos which they stood and for which they lived and for which they died occupy an enduring place in our hearts. jon: nearly 1900 members of the u.s. military have given their lives since the u.s.-led invasion in 2001. we remember each of them today. and we thank them for their incredible service. jamie: now to the question of president obama's reelection campaign. it's off, they say, to a bumpy start. let me explain. several political analysts are citing critical

mistakes, given an -- giving an opening perhaps to governor romney. we're going to have a fair and balanced debate on that straight ahead for you. >> plus, are you buying sunscreen today? it's all so confusing what number do you need, what ingredients do you need. we're going to decipher the different lames for you and also, if you're eating up today, we're going to have food that is will burn off that fat tomorrow. [ music playing, indistinct conversations ]

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the economy needs manufacturing. machines, tools, people making stuff. companies have to invest in making things. infrastructure, construction, production. we need it now more than ever. chevron's putting more than $8 billion dollars back in the u.s. economy this year. in pipes, cement, steel, jobs, energy. we need to get the wheels turning. i'm proud of that. making real things... for real. ...that make a real difference. ♪ jon: new questions raised over some perceived missteps in president obama's re-election campaign between attacks on bain capital that were actually criticized by democrats and some slow fund-raising the president's re-election effort seems to be off to a bumpy start. with us for a fair and balanced debate. alexis mcgill johnson, executive director of the american values institute.

and sabrina schaeffer, executive director of the independent women's forum. thanks to both of you. >> thanks. jon: the gay marriage thing, for instance, is cited by some as an example. alexis, did the president make a mistake in coming out and sort of diverting people's attention with that whole flap? >> oh, hardly. i think that his support of gay marriage showed the incredible leadership that we know that president obama is capable of. i think it is rallying his troops on the left and i think it is getting people very excited. so i hardly see that as a misstep. jon: but, does in rallying his troops on the left, sabrina is he losing votes in the middle? >> i actually see there is is quite a divide within the democratic party between the elites in washington and those voters on the ground. i think unfortunately what we're seeing the white house increasingly using fear. it is trying to use scapegoats. it is stooping to the lowest

levels of leadership rather than tackling our mick problems head on the fact there is a lot we should be scared of right now. there is a lot to fear. in poll after poll showing americans do not feel the country is moving in the right direction. the president has a lot he should be addressing but he is not like our nearly $16 trillion debt. i think that people should be worried about our complete loss of freedom in health care, education the complete sub. >>cation -- subjugation of the citizen to the state but thepy the president is handling these issues is the the completely wrong direction. jon: alexis, the way it is written up in "politico", online website, pretty neutral observer of things political. a couple of writers put together. they said some democrats are fearful this president doesn't seem to have the mojo. that he is kind of stumbling his way to the campaign. >> i completely disagree. i think the article is absolutely wrong. what we've seen loose couple

weeks, conversation around private equity, with the example you started off with gay marriage is example of bold leadership and obama's willingness to and up for what he believes in. and sometimes at the expense of other people in his party. so, i think what he has done with the private equity conversation. he was able to help americans to vet romney's record at bain which he has been putting forth as his qualification for running for president. we've seen him time and time again stand up and talk about what working americans really need to hear. jon: and yet, but alexis, when, you know, let me address this to sabrina. but when people like cory booker come out and criticize the president for having taken on private equity, that doesn't seem to suggest that his, you know, that this criticism of bain or private equity is really resonating with democrats. >> that's right. because the fact is that people don't want to see a president who is critical of free enterprise. whether you're a small,

mom-and-pop shop, doesn't mean that you can't have aspirations to grow and to be something bigger. when you see the president coming down so hard on the idea of free markets, on the idea of pro-growth policies and coming down increasingly on the side of burdensome regulations i think more and more americans are skeptical that this is the way to dig us out of a hole. >> let's be clear. cory booker's attack against the president has a lot to do with the fact his base is lot of private equity guys. that is what he doing in newark getting a lot of funding from private equity guys. obama's base actually understands in order to grow this economy we have to really focus on job creation and that's not going to come at the expense of the private equity sector. what we've seen in mitt romney's record he is not a job creator, whether working as partner in bain or working -- >> i have to disagree with that. one-dimensional view of bain capital. the fact uncomfortable in

many ways when company like bain breaks apart other companies people will clearly lose jobs. that is one side of the coin. they're also rebuilding jobs and rebuilding business and creating jobs from major companies like staples, dunkin' donuts, the guitar center. that is often overlooked in this conversation. >> you can not go from being strip minetory being environmentalist. that is what romney is trying to convince us he can do. jon: alexis, nobody buy as company intending, you just can't make money on a company if all you do is shut it down. the track record of bain capital showed most of the companies that they bought actually went on to succeed. >> that was great for bain's shareholders and partners but, what bain's main proposition, that they're offering is that they have been --. jon: we have to shut you down. hang on a second. hang on a second. alexis mcgill, sabrina schaeffer. thank you both.

now to the president who the is ready to make his remarks at arlington national cemetery. >> good morning, everybody. thank you secretary panetta for your introduction and foreyour incredible service to our country. to general dempsey, major general linnington, kathleen condon, chaplain berry, all of you who are here today. active duty, veterans, family and friends of the fallen, thank you for allowing me to the privilege of joining you in this sacred place to commemorate memorial day. these 600 acres are home to americans from every part of the country who gave their lives in every corner of the globe. when a revolution needed to be waged and a union needed to be saved they left they're homes and took up arms for the sake of an

idea. from the jungles vietnam to the mountains of afghanistan they stepped forward and answered the call. they fought for a home they might never return to. they fought for buddies they would never forget. and while their stories may be separated by hundreds of years and thousands of miles, they rest here together, side by side, row by row, because each of them love this country and everything it stand for more than life itself. today we come together as americans to pray, to reflect, and to remember these heroes but tomorrow this hallowed place will once again belong to a smaller group of visitors who make their way through

the gates and across these fields in the heat and in the cold, the rain and the snow, following a well-worn path to a certain spot and kneeling in front of a familiar headstone. you are the family and friend of the fallen. parents and children, husbands and wives, brothers and sisters, by birth and by sab nice. you too leave a piece of your hearts beneath these trees. you too call this sanctuary home. together your footsteps trace the path of our history and this memorial day we mark another milestone. for the first time in nine years americans are not fighting and dying in iraq. [applause]

we are winding down the war in afghanistan and our troops will continue to come home. [applause] after a decade under the dark cloud of war we can see the light of a new day on the horizon. especially for those who have lost a loved one, this chapter will remain open long after the guns have fallen silent. today with the war in iraq finally over it is fitting to pay tribute to the sacrifice that spanned that conflict. in march of 2003 own the first day of the invasion one of our helicopters crashed near the iraqi border with kuwait.

on it were four marines. major jay alben, captain ryan boupert, corporal brian kennedy, and staff sergeant contend dell waters bay. together they became the first american casualties of the iraq war. their families and friends barely had time to the register of the beginning of the conflict before confronting their awesome cost. eight years, seven months, and 25 days later, army specialist david hickman was on patrol in baghdad. that is when his vehicle struck a roadside bomb. he became the last of nearly 4500 american patriots to give their lives in iraq. a month after david's death

the days before the last american troops including david were scheduled to come home, i met with the hickman family at fort bragg. right now the hickmans are beginning a very difficult journey that so many of your families have traveled before them, a journey that even more families will take in the months and years ahead. to the families here today, i repeat what i said to the hickmans. i can not begin to fully understand your loss. as a father i can not begin to imagine what it's like to hear that knock on the door and learn that your worst fears have come true. but as commander-in-chief i can tell you that sending our troops into harm's way is the most wrenching decision that i have to make. i can promise you i will never do so unless it is absolutely necessary and that when we do, we must

give our troops a clear mission and the full support of a grateful nation. and as a country -- [applause] and as a country all of us can and should ask ourselves how we can help you shoulder a burden that nobody should have to bear alone. as we honor your mothers and fathers, your sons and daughters, we have given, who have given their last full measure of devotion to this country, we have to ask ourselves how can we support you and your families and give you some strength? one thing we can do is remember these heroes as you remember them. not just as a rank or a number or a name on a headstone but as americans often far too young who are guided by a deep and abiding

love for their families, for each other and for this country. we can remember jay alben, the pilot, who met his wife on an aircraft carrier and told his mother before shipping out, if anything happens to me just know i'm doing what i love. we can remember ryan baupert, the former track star, running the leadoff leg, always the first one into action. who quit his job as an accountant and joined the marines because he wanted to do something more meaningful with his life. we can remember brian kennedy the rock climber and lacrosse fanatic, who told his father two days before his helicopter went down the marines he served alongside would be some of the best men he ever dealt with and they would be his friends forever. we can remember kendall, waters bay, a proud father, a proud son ever baltimore, described as a fellow

service member as a light in a very dark world. we can remember david hickman, a freshman in high school when the war began. a fitness fanatic who half jokingly called himself zeus, a loyal friend with an infectious laugh. we can remember them and we can meet our obligations to those who did come home and their families who are in the midst of a difficult but very real battle of their own. to all our men and women in uniform who are here today, no this. the patriots who rest beneath these hills were fighting for many things. for their families, for their flag, but above all they were fighting for you. as long as i'm president we'll make sure you and your loved ones receive the benefits you've earn and you deserve. america will be there for you. [applause]

and finally for all of you who carry a special weight on your heart, we can strive to be a nation worthy of your sacrifice, a nation that is fair and equal, peaceful, and free. a nation that weighs the cogs of every human life. a nation where all of us meet our obligations to one another and to this country that we love. that's what we can do. as president i have no higher honor and no greater responsibility than serving as commander-in-chief of the greatest military the world has ever known. [applause] and on days like this i take pride in the fact that this

country has always been home to men and women willing to give of themselves until they had nothing more to give. i take heart in the strength and resolve of those who still serve, both at home and around the world. and i know that we must always strive to be worthy of your sacrifice. god bless you, god bless the fallen, god bless our men and women in uniform, and may god bless the united states of america. [applause] jon: the commander-in-chief shaking hand there with his defense secretary leon panetta, flanked by the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, martin dempsey at arlington national cemetery where he earlier laid a wreath at the tomb of the unknown soldier. later today the president will head for the vietnam

memorial. >> playing of taps and the benediction. jamie: walking to a cross-country trek to remember our fallen soldiers. how you can get involved. that's next. too stay with fox news as we honor america's heroes on this memorial day weekend. great grains. great grains cereal starts whole and stays whole. see the seam? more pcessed flakes look nothing like natural grains. i'm eating what i kn is better nutrition. mmmm. great grains. search great grains and see for yourself.

jon: here's a great story on this memorial day. a cross-country walk to remember fallen u.s. service members. the 1700-mile journey called,

carry the load, started at west point on may 1st. it will end this afternoon in dallas. that's the hometown of two former nave seals who created the organization behind this movement to increase observation of memorial day. coleman ruiz, executive director of carry the load joins us live from dallas. you had an interesting thought or comment about how memorial day stacks up in our nation's pantheon of holidays. can you share that with us? >> yes, jon. we, you know, memorial day to us is much more than a mattress sale and barbecue and three-day weekend. memorial day to us is the one holiday that all other who days are subject to. without memorial day we don't get any other holiday. so this a very important weekend for us. jon: tell us about the walk. i said it started at west point but it is actually westport, new york, right? >> you're correct. we started at the cemetery

on high noon may 1st at at military academy at west point and proceeded proceeded 27 days, all day, all night. the relay never stopped. when we arrived dallas to begin the 20 hour walk here in dallas, texas. jon: wow! what are the experiences you've had along the way? >> jon, we had everything from a visit to rescue 5, a firehouse on staten island to impromptu parade in laverne, tennessee, to folks coming out of their houses to walk with us five or 10 miles, knowing way not knowing how they will get back to their houses because they heard about about us on the radio. it was incredible journey. did exactly what we wanted to share stories with people across the country. jon: this is only second year it has taken place? >> yes, jon with, we did 20 hour, 11 minute walk. relay this is the first year we did that because we wanted to push the meaning of memorial day back into the american consciousness

and we're doing 20 hours and 12 minute walk today in dallas. it is only second year of the local event here in dallas. jon: the money that is raised, because there are fund raise alongwith this, right? do they go to families of wounded veterans? >> yes, sir. all the money we raise over and above the cost of the 1700 mile relay event go to two primary organizations. the snowball express, a charity for the children of the fallen and tragedy assistance program for survivors which i think you probably know about. i'm relatively certain they were in arlington all day today. dallas raises money for a couple of local organizations here in dallas. jon: coleman ruiz, spent 12 years as a navy seal. 1700-mile walk and just a matter of days. thank you for your service and thanks for bringing this out for us. >> thanks for having me, jon. jon: you bet. jamie: what an incredible example they're setting. beautiful story. thanks, jon. dozens of catholic institutions suing over the

contraception mandate and the president's health care law. we know that but one cardinal says the mainstream media is ignoring the story. news watch will take a closer look. on this memorial day we also mark 50 years since the start of the vietnam war. we're going to take a look back, it is important to remember, to honor all of those who gave their lives. >> on this memorial day we honor all the soldiers, sailors, airmen, guardsmen and marines who made the ultimate sacrifice in vietnam. wake up! that's good morning, veggie style. hmmm. fohalf the calories plus vgie nutrition.

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material you need to build a nuclear bomb. that particular report says that teheran has enough to make five atomic weapons. check out if that is true. jim walsh an international security expert part of the mit security studies program, jim, thanks for being here. >> good to be with you jaime. jamie: i suppose of course it's hard to tell for sure what they have bus intel is sketchy. they are boasting more than ever and time is passing. what do you estimate or predict they are able to build in this period of time? >> i think we have very good information about iran's nuclear program, both because we vin spechters on the ground every month who issue reports every three months. that is the basis for this latest report is the report that the international atomic energy agency gave. i think we have an excellent idea of what their nuclear facilities and materials are. jamie: really? you trust that they are letting those inspectors see what they really need to see.

>> yes, they are not allowing them to go everywhere they want to go, that's why there have been back and forth and negotiations this past month. the core here is enrichment of uranium and i'm sure they have access to those facilities. they are declared, and there are seals on them, environmental monitors, cameras, physical inspectors, that is very closely watched. jamie: they are bragging, though, that they are going to build another plant. does that concern you? >> well, what they are saying is they are going to build another atomic energy plant, a nuclear energy plant like the one at beshear. it took them 40 years to build that one. i don't think anyone should hold their breath on that one. they make grand announcements on all the stuff they are going to do and it turns out there is not a lot of follow-up. they announced they would build 15 more enrichment plants and a bunch of other facilities and haven't done it. they've made announc

announcements about their advance centrifuges. that hasn't come to fruition. we've got to be crystal clear about this there is a lot of confusion. you cannot make a nuclear weapon out of that material as it currently stands. they do not have any bomb material. what they have is material, low enriched uranium, which you can enrich, and enrich, and enrich higher and higher to 90%, then that's bomb material. they can't make a bomb with low enriched uranium which is what they have now. jamie: explain to me why this report announced and it certainly got picked up by the media that they have enough to make five? >> what would happen is if they took all the material that is low enriched uranium and they enriched it from 3 to 5% up to 90% they would use the bulk of all of their low enriched uranium, and they would have enough left over of highly

enriched uranium of four or five bombs. i mean enough low enriched uranium that they could have converted into a bomb going back as far back as 2009. there is a process in the middle that has to hyannis port and that cannot happen without us knowing about it. the moment they move from low to high -- jew thin jamie: you think we'll pick it up. let me broaden it out for one second before i let you go and ask you this. iran has friends in the reese. if you had to what iran is doing, and there is a lot of countries that we're keeping an eye on that want the technology that they are working on, even though of course it's for peaceful purposes according to them, add to iran let's say, for example, hezbollah. are you concerned at all that iran is seen as a powerful force in the dirty deed department, where these other countries are going to be working with them behind the scenes, and that is something our inspectors won't see? >> i'm not so much concerned about hezbollah.

hezbollah in this past several months has made different statements about his relationship with iran, some pushing away, some embracing. it's not clear what is going on there. i was much more concerned about pakistan. i think iran like most nation states they want to hold onto their nuclear assets they want to keep a monopoly over them rather than share them. the country that has been the major kpwepgs to thi exception to this is pakistan. they sold enrichment technology to iran and libya. that network is still out there. i'm much more concerned about leakage through pakistan. that's been the bad boy on this particular issue of selling sensitive nuclear technology to others and they are the ones i think need to be closely watched. jamie: they are on our alert to say the least. jim, you explained it so well and i agree with you about pakistan too. thanks for bringing that into the discussion. >> thank you, jaime. jamie: we appreciate your time.

keeping an eye on a fox news weather alert, tropical depression beryl dropped now, thank goodness. before it did go it left a lot of water soaking parts of eastern florida and georgia. tens of thousands without electricity and heavy rains and winds caused flash flooding. meteorologist maria molina tracking beryl and all your weather from the weather center. thanks tore bein for being here again. >> reporter: we are still looking at a lot of busy record across the lore 48, starting off with tropical depression beryl, it was a tropical storm when it made landfall last night basically northeastern parts of florida, including the city of jacksonville. it had sustained winds at that time of 07 miles pe 70 miles per hour. every since it's separated from the warm ocean water that was helping fuel it we are seeing it

weak evening. sustained winds now at 35 miles per hour. we expect further weak evening as it goes north into georgia, by late tonight into early tuesday morning, sustained winds will be for the weekend about 30 miles per hour. it was downgraded at 11:00am by the national hurricane center that ias it continued to weaken out there. it is going to track to the northeast. we can actually see beryl strengthen a little bit as it enters the warm ocean water by sustained winds of 35 miles per hour and race off towards the east into the atlantic ocean and continue to strengthen. we are not looking at any direct threat to any land mass out here. we need the moisture out here. we are talking about rainfall amounts between 4 to 8 inches, locally up to a foot of it. we need the rain in northern florida, georgia, and also southern parts of south carolina. here is a quick shot of beryl

still continuing to bring the heavy rain to florida. jamie: good news it's breaking up. thanks, marie a we'll check back with you. jon: memorial day may be a day off for you, but for our troops deployed overseas it is business as usual. the president is working today as well, a busy schedule of events for the commander-in-chief, here seen laying a wreath earlier this morning at arlington national cemetery's tomb of the unknowns. ed henry is live at the white house for us. tell bus the president's day today. >> reporter: you're right, obviously the president working today, he just came back from arlington national cemetery. a little later he'll be at the vietnam veterans wall here that memorial here in washington to mark the 50th anniversary of the start of that war. he's trying to moneyer the

servichonor the service of all shoulders who made sacrifices. he said the war in iraq for the first time in nine years, americans not fighting and dying in iraq. today though he noted 4,486 americans did die in that conflict. he noted that he's trying to wind down the war in afghanistan. right now the longest war in u.s. history, so far nearly 2,000 americans losing their lives there as well. the president noting that is why he does not make these decisions about war and peace lightly. >> i cannot begin to fully understand your loss. as a father i cannot begin to imagine what it's like to hear that knock on the door and learn that your worst fears have come true. but as commander-in-chief i can tell you that sending our troops into harm's way is the most

wrenching decision that i have to make. i can promise you i will never do so unless it's absolutely necessary, and that when we do we must give our troops a clear mission, and the full support of a grateful nation. >> reporter: those comments important now given all of the threats around the world, some of which you were just talking about a moment ago, iran, not to mention syria as well. interesting that the republican presumptive nominee mitt romney will have an event in a short time a memorandu memorandum memorial event in san diego honoring the men and women serving. john mccain was blasting the president's foreign policy, saying he had a feckless foreign policy that has not shown leadership around the world. they sharply disagree with that inside the white house. while both sides are taking off a day from campaigning focusing

instead on american men and women in uniform and paid the ultimate sacrifice there is a big campaign that they will get back to too many when some of these foreign policies will be front and center, jon. jon: thank you. jamie: we are also keeping an eye on dozens of catholic institutions filing lawsuits now against the obama administration. what they are trying to do is block that mandate for employee contraception coverage. one of the nation's most prominent catholic leaders says the media is largely ignoring the story. plus, we'll focus on the true meaning of memorial day, and it can be lost in the haze of those backyard barbecues and beach parties. coming up we have a touching story of a true american hero. that's next. [ kate ] most women may not be properly absorbing

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jon: it's all too easy to think of memorial day weekend as the three-day kickoff to summer. of course there is a much deeper meaning to this holiday. here is our fox news power player of the week. >> every day is memorial day to me and i think it's important that every day is memorial day to the rest of this country. >> reporter: ryan manion knows all about devotion to country and the sacrifice because her family has lived it. she and her younger brother grew up in the military. her dad, tom was a marine. >> the first song my brother and i sang was the marine corps hymn. >> reporter: he excelled at everything he did. he went to the naval academy

intending to follow in his father's footsteps. the attack on 9/11 only deep end his resolve. >> he wanted to be in the fight, be there with his men e wanted to get out and go as quickly as he can. >> reporter: travis was on his second tour in iraq in 2007 when his unit was ambushed in fallujah. the first lieutenant was rescuing some of his wounded comrades when he was killed by a sniper. he had exposed himself to save some of his comrades, and all of them survived. >> he did. >> reporter: when they learned of his death in doylestown, pennsylvania, they were devastated. >> we have to honor him the way he would want to be honored. >> reporter: they started the travis manion foundation. and it was what kept her going. >> i feel some comfort in the fact of knowing that he died for his country, and he loved what he did. >> reporter: the goal is to honor the fallen by challenging

the living. through private donations and corporate response poer ships from companies like gm and.com cast they provide challenge grants. one went to the family of shane harris who was killed in 2006 for a project in guatemala. >> they built a house for a homeless family in five days. and the only thing that shows that it was for shane harris is this tiny little plaque above the door and it says in memory of shane harris. >> reporter: in 2010 the manions faced ot traged another tragedy. when travis' best friend was killed in afghanistan. the two families decided to bury their boys next to each other. >> they are side-by-side just like they were at the academy. >> reporter: last memorial day president obama visited their graves and talked about their

devotion to duty. >> brotherhood, sacrifice, love of country. >> reporter: but the story doesn't end there. last september janet was diagnosed with stage iv lung cancer. she fought for four months to run the foundation before she finally succumbed in april just days before the 5th anniversary of travis' death. in her will there was one special directive. >> that the travis manion foundation continues on through family and friends. >> this is the reason why i'm standing for all of me is my brother. >> reporter: ryan manion took over from her mom to continue finding ways to carry on her brother's legacy. >> i don't know how many times i've had the saying said to me in the last three weeks, since my mom died, wow you have some big shoes to fill. and i do, and i couldn't be more proud of the family that i have. >> reporter: and so ryan and the

rest of her family will spend this memorial day at arlington honoring travis, and brendan, and all the others. >> don't be afraid to go up to a family that you know has lost a loved one in the war and just say, thank you. because just knowing that people remember is one of the greatest feelings that a family of the fallen can have. jon: wow, we thank them all. if you would like to find out more about the travis manion foundation you can go to the website travis manion.com. jamie: the search for the remains of u.s. marines who died in action fighting for a small island in the pacific, and the determined effort to bring them all home. >> hi, this is brandon stationed at kabul, afghanistan. i'd like to say hi to my beautiful wife maria and my friends back in san antonio, texas. of my had a great deployment and

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jon: right now we are awaiting president obama's arrival at the vietnam war memorial. the president will mark 50 years since the start of the vietnam war against the backdrop of the memorial wall. of it is sure to be an emotional event. he will be accompanied by the first lady, michelle obama, and vice president joe biden and his wife jill biden. defense secretary leon panetta will also make remarks there. keep it right here on the fox channel for this event and memorial ceremonies. jamie: switching gears a bit to the jury in the john edwards trial.

they will return tomorrow for more deliberations. on friday they had a lot of attorneys scratching their heads. what the heck is going on there? the former senator is charged with violating campaign finance laws while seeking the democratic nomination for president. joining us now to talk about it former prosecutor now criminal defense attorney doug burns and former prosecutor tad nelson. gentlemen, good to see you. >> good to see you. jamie: there was more going on than you could report in that lead in, doug. first of all you have the at juror showing up every day in the same colored shirts. it's red one day, it's yellow the other day. and then you have, perhaps there was speculation, some juror misconduct, we don't know jury or at juror. remember the alternates aren't hearing the deliberations. potentially flirting with in this case the defendant. >> it was very, very unusual. first of all in all my years, 26 years of doing trials i've never seen at jurors and i'd like to

see what tad says show up wearing the same colored shirts. i'll be honest with you i don't know what that does or does not mean. jamie: what is that solidarity? tad, do you have any clue? >> it's bizarre. at the end ever the day it doesn't mean anything. they walk out together and say wear orange tomorrow, big deal. it's funny, and it makes you scratch your head, just like you said, but you're going, big deal. jamie: let's put our lawyer hats on all of us and let me ask you this. tad, is bizarre behavior by jurors enough for the judge to say, i'm tossing a juror, i'm scrapping the case? what could happen when they resume tomorrow? >> this case isn't getting scratched, i can almost promise you that. as far as this one juror, you know, you say bizarre behavior, is looking at senator john edwards and kind of smiling at him and a giggle back and forth, i can tell you, like he was just talking about, he's done this 26

years. we have jurors look at us all the time, and sometimes in a long trial they are looking at you, giving you some empathy because they know you are at a crossroads in your trial. they want to smile and lighten the moment. not every smile is something negative or something to concern ourselves with. jamie: you wouldn't read that much into it. tkourbgs you knodoug, you know when the swreu come jury comes back, and you've sat at the prosecution and the defense table, you look at the jurors, and maybe they can give you a glance to let you know where they are going. >> there is a distinction. i've never or almost never seen a juror do that with a defendant. think about it the dynamic is such, the defendant is the person ostensibly who broke the law, et cetera, et cetera. one lawyer in a well-known case married a juror after the trial, okay. so you do get some of that little giggling and back and

forth. jamie: this is not just any defendant, doug. john edwards was such an esteemed attorney. and he didn't take the stand. do you think that is a mistake, doug? >> you're right first of all in making that clarification. here is a defendant, you know, i'm not going to call it one in a million, i think everybody knows what i mean, a prominent lawyer, u.s. senator, vice presidental candidate, et cetera. the fact of the matter is, it's just a very, very unusual dynamic. jamie: tad? >> i agree with you. i can't imagine this guy taking the stand. i think it was the right thing to do by his lawyers. you think of all the baggage he's carrying. he would have had to sit there and go through that day, after day, after day. i don't care what he did wrong, i still don't think he committed a crime here. if they listened to all the bad stuff he was doing they'd figure out how to convict him of something. jamie: he may have been a horrible husband and judgment that doesn't mean he committed a

crime. he could go to jail if convicted. we'll keep and eye on it. good to talk to you. jon: the votes have been counted in egypt, breaking news on that nation's first free presidential elections, what the results could mean for the united states, and israel. a live report from cairo. plus catholic institutions in this country, dozens of them suing the white house over its mandate on birth control. why washington's archbishop is upset at how the mainstream media covered this lawsuit. our fox news watch panel weighs in coming up.

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jamie: egypt's presidential election and breaking news. the top two candidates will face one another in a runoff election next month. the muslim brotherhood candidate versus the former prime minister from the hosni mubarak regime. what happened to the calls for change and democracy there? leland vittert streaming live from cairo, egypt. >> reporter: shock, disappointment, sadness, anger, all emotions we are hearing from egyptians on this news. there is a lot of uncertainty here in cairo now that the runoff election for next month is set. the cairo stock exchange in the past two days as word has started to leak out is down some 5%. this runoff election will truly be the two exstreams, you have the prime minister under president hosni mubarak from the

old regime that everybody tried so hard to kickoff. on the other side the muslim brotherhood. the brotherhood promised they would not run somebody for president, now he is in the runoff. a lot of people have asked what happened to the liberal democratic secular can dade th candidate that we were promised during the revolution, all of those interviews of people risking their lives. the liberal vote was essentially split between about nine different candidates, and that's why they don't have anybody in the runoff election. an extremely disorganized sense from the liberal groups, the muslim brotherhood on the other hand extremely organized, very dedicated, a big political machine, they've had 50 years of experience in egypt and they were really able to bring out the vote to put dr. morrssey on top. they say they want to create an islamic state run by sharia law. that obviously has a lot of

people from the united states to israel extremely concerned to say the least. on the other hand the former prime minister from the hosni mubarak regime has extreme emotions inside egypt. they say if he is elected come next month they will once again return the revolution there come back, because they said they did not sacrifice so much to have somebody who was so entrenched in the old regime of alleged corruption, crackdown and torture also then return to run the country after this election. it will be a very interesting couple of weeks. already we are hearing reports that there will be protests tomorrow over these election results and then again on friday as the runoff race take place next month. back to you in new york. jamie: clearly not the scenario that those in tahrir square expected. thank you for your report. jon: one of america's most prominent catholic leaders slamming the mainstream media claiming that they have missed

the boat by largely ignoring lawsuits filed by dozens of catholic institutions, names you know, like notre dame, challenging the mandate for employee contraception coverage. >> this whole lawsuit isn't about contraception, it's about religious freedom. embedded in the mandate is a radically new definition of what constitutes a religious community, what constitutes religious ministry, brand-new, never before applied at the federal level. that's what we are arguing about. jon: jim pinkerton is contributinged tore and writer for american conservative magazine. ellen ratner is bureau chief and a fox news contributor. do you think the archbishop has it right when he says the suit is not about contraception, it's about religious liberty? >> i'm not sure i agree with that. i think that contraception is

something that should be offered to every woman. jon: but you're not catholic i'm guessing. >> no i am definitely not catholic. but, you know, i think that there is no reason on earth it shouldn't be offered to everybody. you don't have to take it. if it's against your conscience you don't have to take it. it's like, you know, i'm off of meat, i'm a vegetarian, i don't have to eat it. jon: then who is supposed to pay for this contraception that you want offered to everybody? >> well, i think that health insurance can pay for it. jon: okay. all right. jim i guess we get to the nuts and bolts of the argument right there. what do you think of the archbishop's argument? >> i think it's an interesting argument, and i think ellen has an interesting counter argument. what is most interesting, though is that we're discussing it on fox where as most of the rest of the media are completely ignoring it. the media research center calculated that the prime-time broadcasters still get the vast bulk of the news audience in america devoted a grand total

between the three networks of 19 seconds, one report on cbs. what we are seeing here is the biggest media deliberate ignoring of a story since the story about trayvon martin turned and we discovered that george zimmerman had actually got even beaten up, whereupon the media blanked out on trayvon martin. they've been blanking all along on the catholic story, to the mainstream media it's just not news when catholics do anything conservative or pro-life, they just don't care. >> i understand that the media is saying that the big media isn't covering it. talk radio covered it. fox news covered it. a lot of people consume their media on the internet, a lot of the younger people. maybe people turning into the evening news didn't get the story. from the fox news perspective, from the internet perspective it was here. jon: abc didn't cover this

catholic lawsuit at all but found time for katy could you remember i shall to do a story about how she met queen elizabeth and how she wore a lovely peach coach. cbs did 19 seconds on the catholic lawsuit but did a longer report about a cincinnati red fan who caught two home run balls in one game. nbc had no time for the story about the lawsuit over religious freedom but had time to do a story about a new computer app that counts calories on the iphone. isn't it all about misplaced priorities? >> yes, and there is a reason, if you still put princess di on the cover of a magazine that sells magazines. no one ever said that is the right thing to do. what is disturbing to me, though is not just the mainstream media not necessarily covering this. although as i said talk radio and internet did, but also that the legal -- i looked at some of the legal magazines, there was very little analysis about this

case, or these cases, because there is more than one, and what the chances are, where it was going to happen, et cetera. i mean there was an absolute media out there as well. jon: there are roughly 60 million catholics in this country, jim. clearly they do not all vote in lock step with church teachings, but given the size of the number of people who have a connection to this lawsuit, doesn't it deserve coverage just on that basis? >> i think so. of course the media even within the domain of the catholic church they found room for some news. there is a sex-abuse case an old one in philadelphia. they found plenty of time for that one, and plenty of time for the news about the allegations of the pope's butt her in rome. there is interest in the catholic church, a lot of it negative. but when it comes to anything that catholics actually believe and practice and do and think is really information i'm with mike

huckabee who said that the media ignoring this story about contraception and right to life and so on is the equivalent of the media ignoring the civil rights movement in the 60s, which of course they did not ignore, that is just the double standard right now, then and now. >> i'm going to holdout not only hope but interest as these cases when they go through the court system. i will bet you there is more media coverage. it's a bet. jon: we'll see. thanks for hashing it out with us. enjoy memorial day. >> thank you. >> thank you. jamie: jon, i am sitting here because jenna lee is off today. but she didn't want to miss the opportunity to send a very special greeting to our military. you know, jenna's husband lost navy of his navy seal teammates so this national holiday means a lot to her. here is a personal message from jenna. >> memorial day is a really special time for me and my family, especially this year. of it wasn't always something i

knew a whole lot about. my birthday was always around memorial day weekend. when i was little i thought it was cool to have this long weekend and the holiday. when i got older it changed quite a bit. i met my husband and graduated from annapolis and went onto serve his country in the navy, on ships and with the navy seal team as well. it was early on in our relationship, we just met when he brought me to for the rozen krapbs national cemetery where a few of his very good friends and teammates are buried. mark berry was awarded the silver star and he was killed. they had been in many firefights together during that deployment. and that was obviously a very significant day. mike manzur is a medal of honor recipient, also a teammate of my

husband. as i learned from him, there is very little division between friends and teammates and family. when i met my husband war became very personal. for rile the first time in my life. the reality hit because my office was out there deploying and the stakes became very real. since i met my husband we've lost two really good friend of ours, one of them brian job is a seal blinded by an enemy sniper round. he survived that, he was blinded. he passed away in a following surgery that he had to have to repair his combat wound. brian bill was in the helicopter of navy seals that was shot down in afghanistan the past fall, only a few weeks after my husband and i got married, and brian, being who he was, has figured out how to come to the wedding despite being up against another deployment to afghanistan. so he was there for that event and was with all of our friends but then only a few weeks later he passed away.

so, this memorial day i'm really struck by the profound loss this is, not only to my family, and to our friends, and to our friends' families, but just the loss to the country overall. it's so -- there is not even words that can really describe it. these people will never be replaced. their aspirations will never be met and they died serving our country. and we should remember really what memorial day is all about, it's a day to honor these warriors and the many like them who gave their lives and, you know, have a cold beer in their honor, because knowing them, that is what they'd want us to do, maybe one beer, not 20, maybe one to honor them this holiday weekend, but let us never forget. jon: remarks there from jenna lee. they fought to defend america in the far reaches of the south pacific but many of those who lost their lives in world war

ii never came home. a new film takes us along on an effort to recover all of their remains. >> this is major michelle carter from kabul, afghanistan. i'd like to say happy memorial day to all my friends in baltimore, maryland and a special hello to my baby. go ravens. at bank of america, we're lending and investing in communities across the country. from helping to revitalize a neighborhood in brooklyn... financing industries that are creating jobs in boston... providing funding for the expansion of a local business serving a diverse seattle community... and lending to ensure a north texas hospital continues to deliver quality care. because the more we can do in local neighborhoods and communities, the more we can help make opportunity possible.

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jamie: welcome back, everybody. today is the day that a new movie will premiere, on memorial day because it takes us back to the sight of one of the world war ii's pwhrud yes, sir battle. that's where many marines who

fought on the island of tarawa never made it home. dan springer brings us the story from seattle. >> reporter: the documentary is entitled, until they are home. it's an incredible story about loyalty and patriotism and a 93-year-old veteran who simply refuses to give up. over three days in november, 1943 more than a thousand americans fell in what is known as the bloodiest battle in marine's history. >> i had landed, marines of the second division and saw the slaughter taking place. >> reporter: leon cooper was a navy ensign in the first american offensive in the theater in world war ii. we took the island and after d-day we left. the shoreline became covered with war debris and trash after we left. >> i went there with the

objective of doing something about getting the garbage cleaned up. i learned during that visit the remains of possibly hundreds of americans still lay where they fell. >> reporter: more than 500 soldiers who fought in the battle are still unaccounted for. cooper made it his mission to bring every last one home but hit a dead-end. >> couldn't get the attention of any of the big shots in washington. >> reporter: so the now 93-year-old financed a documentary which was seen by the right people. an illinois congressman introduced legislation that helped launch a pentagon mission to recover, identify and return. but cooper is not done. >> there are tens of thousands of guys who died elsewhere in the pacific theater. >> reporter: with a second documentary and plans for three more he wants every soldier missing in action found. >> they are still there. how many? nobody knows.

>> reporter: leon cooper a true american hero. the documentary is narrated by kelsey grammar and pre miers tonight in los angeles. jamie: great story. thank you so much. good to see you, dan. jon: marking 50 years since u.s. troops first went to vietnam, today a look back at the war that divided america. c'mon dad! i'm here to unleash my inner cowboy. instead i g heartburn. [ horse neighs ] hold up partner. prilos isn't for fast relief. try alka-seltzer. it kills heartburn fast. yeehaw! ♪

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jon: this year we mark 50 years since the first u.s. troops went to vietnam. today as the president and top dignitaries pay tribute to service members who died in

southeast asia we want to take a look back at the war that divided the nation. jennifer griffin is in washington for us now. >> reporter: more than 50,000 u.s. service members killed in 13 years. a cold war era conflict to halt the march of communism in asia. the vietnam war began when president kennedy deployed hundreds of military advisers at the end of 1961. the war escalated to half a million u.s. troops on august 7th 1964 congress passed the gulf of tonkan resolution giving president lyndon johnson blanket authority to defend southeast asia. >> when vietnam started it was a very popular war and most of the soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines who served over there were volunteers, they weren't draft tees. as the war progressed and troop numbers went up more people got drafted, and the demonstrations started. >> reporter: on january 30th, 1968 on the tet holiday the viet

congress launched a wave of attacks, the tet offensive across cities in viet number. 30,000 sraoeess congress were killed but u.s. politicians decided essentially to end the war. 2500 u.s. troops lose their lives and public support for the conflict was at an all time low. >> from a military perspective the tet offensive was a victory. from a psychological perspective it was a great defeat because it turned america against this war. we've seen similar things happen today in afghanistan. >> reporter: president richard nixon takes office in 1969 with the aim of ending the war. congress defunds it. three years later two-thirds of all u.s. troops are withdrawn and the ground war is left to the south vietnamese whom the u.s. forces have trained. on january 27th, 1973 all warring parties sign a cease-fire in paris. the last u.s. combat soldiers leave in march. the war is officially over but the north vietnamese keep

fighting. on april 29th, 1975 u.s. ma reasons and air force begin a massive air lift from the u.s. embassy. at 4:03am on april 30th, 1975 two u.s. marines are killed at the saigon airport. they are the last u.s. troops to die in vietnam. america's longest war, jon. jon: jennifer griffin, thank you. and we'll be right back. we don't have a word for retirement. in the latino community the word that we use is jubilation. as you're getting older, you should be able to do the things that you love. to get people to try on these new depend silhouette briefs, and today we are rocking the red carpet. look it's lisa rinna!

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jon: as fleet week got underway here in the new york city area memmers with of a new jersey country club continued their tradition of inviting in young marines for the day. it is called honor day at eagle objection. a chance to let the young servicemembers relax, play a little golf, enjoy a gourmet barbecue and some drinks. 400 eagle oaks members joined about same number of marines. the club invited me back as emcee for the evening. i guess they like my emcee

ability rather than golf skills. a retired major general jim livingston. >> you think about 400,000 casualtisties during world war ii. almost almost 40,000 during korea. 60,000 during vietnam. 300 during desert storm and almost 6,000 to date with the war against terrorism. the know the only thing this country ever asked for is as a result of all that sacrifice overseas is a place to bury the dead. that's a reflection of the greatness of this country we call america. [applause] jon: jamey, it was great to see a lot of marines. many are still shaking the dust of afghanistan off their boots. some of them going back. >> i'm so a glad you did this. they're setting a great example. jon: kind of thing americans