bill: all right good morning everybody, on a tuesday, this a fox news alert, another senior al-qaeda leader taken out, nato saying its forces killed the terror group's number two in afghanistan in a precision air strike, nato saying the suspect traveled between the two countries, pakistan and afghanistan. carrying out orders from al-qaeda's high command, including attacks on coalition forces and afghan forces. more as we get that. it's breaking inside of "america's newsroom" now. after a long primary fight, mitt romney is about to drop the presumptive part of his title, former massachusetts governor set to hit the magic number and clench the republican nomination, the great state of texas, holding its primary today, 155 delegates up for grabs that. that should put him over the top, 1444 needed to lock up

the big gig. good morning ebb, hope your weekend was grand. martha: very grand indeed. and yours? bill: lovely, capital g! march we'll hear more about that in a bit. i'm martha maccallum, one by one, the former governor knocked off his rivals to the road to the nomination which is he about to clench, mr. romney spent part of memorial day speaking to the troops and giving a on our financial and security. >> i wish i could tell you the world was a safe place today. it's not. the world is not safe. we have two courses to follow, one is in the pathway of europe, to shrink our military smaller and smaller to pay for our social needs. bill: so that message was about defense, and also social spending. the big question is how does he now connect with voters over the next six months and bob cusack has thoughts on that, managing editor of the hill.

good morning to you. that process of connection is already starting as you will soon see. what's his chal stphepbg. >> i think that is the chat evening. -- the challenge. he's got to let his guard down a bit, make people think what makes him tick. ann romney has been talking about myth but -- mitt but i think mitt has to be likable, connect with voters, have a little of the bill clinton in him to win the like ability or close this gap between president obama and mitt romney. bill: the message on the military delivered in san diego, you say that is tailor-made for him and they can be expecting cuts at the end of the year. explain that. >> come the end of the year hundreds of billions in cuts because the supercommittee did not succeed, so i think you're going to hear a lot from mitt romney on that, saying we can't afford those cuts and that's going to be coordinated closely with republican leaders in congress. look for that a lot in the coming weeks. bill: we sure will. bob, thank you. a rundown there out of washington, bob cusack. more now on martha with this. martha: mitt romney spending

his memoiral -- memorial day like many others, and guess who got in on the snacks bill hemmer got a chance to sit down with mitt romney and his wife, ann, and you'll see him like you've probably never seen him before and bill asks him what is his best selling point to the american people. maybe how well he does a medium-rare burg stpher bill: decent, actually! the hot dogs from his son, matt, were great. seldom do they give us a look at that side, at a gathering such as that and the purpose of going out there is not so much to talk about the big issues but to get to know them better as a couple, so you're going to see that. martha: we look forward to that. bill: in the meantime president obama honoring the men and women of our forces on the memorial day weekend, laying a wreath at arlington national cemetary and promising today's military will not suffer the same

fate as so many veterans from vietnam who came home to protest. >> they came hole and sometimes were deny gated -- denigrated when you should have been celebrated. it was a national shame. a disgrace. that should have never happened. that's why here today, we resolve that it will not happen again. >> [applause] >> bill: those remarks at the vietnam memorial in washington as the nation marks 50 years since the start of that conflict formally. martha: fox news alert now, new protests and violence breaking out in the streets of egypt over the recent reelection results. the country set to hold a runoff election next month. that was expected. but some demonstrators say they are very unhappy with both of the options on that ticket. one is the former prime minister under ousted

president hosni mubarek, sort of the old guard on that one of the election ticket, the other is the muslim brotherhood's candidate. leland vitter is streaming live from cairo. why nobody is too happy with the outcome on either side, it seems, leland. >> reporter: exactly martha. the entire middle of the egyptian popular spectrum in the political spectrum have largely been left without a presidential choice. it was described to me by one egyptian as the old eric saying which translates they have two choices, they are both sour. in tahrir square, thousands came out to protest, they say they do not like ahmed shafik and certainly do not want the muslim brotherhood who is going to base the egypt shall not state on islamic law. many fear they will institute an islamic state in egypt and with a lot of young secular people here that is something that's not popular. more protests are planned in

tahrir square this evening. martha: that raises all kinds of concerns as well about how this situation could evolve from here. >> reporter: exactly. and just to give you an idea of how ugly this could get, we just returned today from the campaign headquarters of ahmed shafik last night, a number of vandals broke in and burned down the garage where they were keeping the campaign posters and flyers and those kinds of things, also vandalize dollars inside those campaign headquarters. the question here though, right now, in egypt was was that an inside job to try and garner sympathy or perhaps was that a warning from the muslim brotherhood, going out and saying all right, this is what's going to happen if shafik indeed wins. there's a lot of people in egypt who are very, very nervous martha. just to give you an idea of how uncertain the future is here, since the news of who was going to be in this runoff election for next month came out the egyptian stock market is down 7 percent. back to you. martha: boy. there was so much hope and

promise during the arab spring, and now the messy business of electing a new leader. leland, thank you very much. leland vitter in cairo. bill: also there's developing news in europe, at least ten dead, a magnitude 5.8 quake in northern italy. that's the same area where a slightly stronger quake killed seven people earlier in the month. caught on camera this is, the moment here, it took a shot at a tent center for evacuees from the article -- earlier quake. at least five reported under the rubble of various homes and factories. we'll let you know when we learn more from italy this morning. martha: and this bizarre story from over the weekend. a man who spent 14 hours on the top of a construction crane in dallas fell 150 feet for his death after a standoff with the police. it happened on the campus of southern methodist university in dallas and police say the man had told them he was armed and he threatened to shoot anyone

who came near him. he apparently lost his grip after dangling from that crane. this bizarre standoff, it started with a reported carjacking of a truck. listen: >> there are no words exchanged. i just wondered what he was doing and he liked to -- looked to his side before he swung his arm at me with a sharp object, and so for the most part i backed off and let him do his thing. >> as he's taking off, he turns right on to main street and you see equipment falling out and hear a big bang multiple times, he's hit multiple cars at that point. martha: an awful, bizarre situation. so far he has not been identified. fortunately there were no students on smu's campus at the time of the standoff. they have all gone home for the summer. what a story. bill: strange, too, indeed. we're just getting started, huh? >> martha: yeah! bill: more to come, indeed there is. there are new reports now, cash discounts to patients who do not use their insurance. how does that work? find out why some doctors say this is a big problem. we'll have that for you.

martha: escalating, horrific violence in syria. is there a u.s. military option on the table for yet another mideastern country? syria's turmoil? bill: two young women missing from university towns, hundreds of miles apart. could new information now link both of their cases? this is the family of one of the missing girls, speaks out, looking for help. >> obviously it's a very emotional thing to find something so vital to the case but i think we got to look positive on it because if we don't, no one else will and i think that is a very important thing. we have an amazing lead and it's just the next step to bring her home. are you receiving a payout from a legal settlement or annuity over 10 or even 20 years?

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martha: all right, we've got a fox news alert for you on brand new numbers on the economy. this is a look at the housing market which we've been watching closely. it ticked up a little bit in the recent weeks, home prices rising in march from february in most major cities. that says unchanged, although we're told that it's the first rise in seven

months. we're going to check that number for you. many prices did increase, when you look at individual cities across the country. twelve out of 20 saw prices rising a little bit, including tampa and miami and boy those two places have been hit hard over the course of this housing debacle so we're keeping an eye on the housing market, see if it shows any signs of building up. bill: need to get that foundation stronger again. a twist in the seven for a missing louisiana college student, mickey shunick, screen right, indiana police in bloomington, investigating the disappearance of lauren spere from a year ago, a student at that school who went missing, contacting counter parse in the bayou state after spotting same laters -- similarities in both states. former nypd detective and fox news contributor, bo, good morning to you. you have done work for the sphere family in how's, smart? -- smart? >> we are -- start?

>> we are actively involved with the schere family on her disappearance. bill: do you have any clues. >> we're following up on every lead we get. i think the similarities are that the two gals are approximately the same size, blond hair, and there was a white pickup truck that was supposedly involved or seen in the area with the lady from louisiana, the same when lauren disappeared, there was a white pickup truck seen also at the time. does it have anything to do with it at this time, we don't know if there's any connection but every lead that comes in we track down and follow up on could there be a connection. anything is possible and we wouldn't take anything off the table. bill bell let's go through this one by one. on the screen you'll see that the blond with the cruly hair is from lafayette, louisiana and on that the right is the young woman from bloomington, indiana. with the woman on the left in louisiana, what are the facts of her case as we know them? >> well, the facts of the one on the left as i believe them is she was on a bicycle

as she was last seen around 2:00 a.m. in the morning, then her bicycle was found. the police have not released now the bicycle was found, what kind of condition, was it possibly hit by a car. you have someone ride ago bicycle at 2:00 in the morning along these roads, these little rural roads, and that's where she disappeared. the other one with lauren, we have her disappearing approximately 3:30 in the morning, leaving a friend's apartment to go two blocks away back to her apartment. at that time. she disappeared sometime in between that. so i mean, the similarities, as far as i'm concerned, is the fact that there was a white pickup truck that people have seen in the area, on both things, and also, the fact that they both look pretty similar with the blond hair, the pet eat size and all that. i think that's the similarities that we have here. as far as any connection, i think it's a little too early to put any kind of connection, but again, with the bloomington police department and with the police department down here in louisiana, anything we put on the table, we try to

compare and see if there's any connection at all. bill: let's be specific about this white pickup truck. here's missing information number, by by the way: >> bill by on the white pickup, it's a fairly common car. what we learned from the sniper incident in washington, d.c., going back a few years, everybody was looking for a white van. and the white van had nothing to do with it. >> and at the 9/11, remember the famous white van? go to the tunnels in new york, every white truck is pulled over and they're looking inside, they're still looking for something. i don't know what they're looking at it. again, this thing comes out, jumps out and stays in peoples' heads. even with the paths case in new york -- patz case, with the little boy that disappeared, anyone with information, if you have anything, call police. we need the evidence. bill: on that white truck it could be a clue or could not be. >> could totally be --

>> bill: now, this woman in louisiana, her bicycle was found and apparently she was an avid bicyclist but found 25 miles away from campus. >> right. it was found on a rural road, about 20 miles away. now, you know, what condition was the bike? was the bike smashed? could it have been hit by a car? the police have that information and i'm sure the search is really continuing around that area, for any evidence where the bike was found. in this case, you actually have physical evidence. in the case with lauren there, we really don't have that physical evidence to work with of where she was last seen, going down the block. bill: i think you're smart to give us a little caution about connecting the two cases, and there meet be some similarities in the end, but they also might be deadends. >> you know, remember the son of sam when we were looking for the dark haired gal being shot, then all of the sudden, stacy mosquitz was a blond. you're absolutely right, it could be nothing at all. bill: if you get more, come on back.

all right, 17 minutes past the hour. martha. martha: tropical depression barrel ruined memorial day weekend for a lot of men's, that storm dumped a son of rain in the south. we've got an update of where this is headed next. bill: also remember the doctor credited with helping the u.s. find usama bin laden, now sitting in a jail in pakistan. fox news talked to his brother, his brother is concerned for his life. [ male announcer ] what's in your energy drink?

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bill: 21 minutes past the hour now, the issin the john edwards corruption trial set to begin deliberations for the #th day, prosecutors say the former presidential candidate is nearly a -- hid nearly a million dollars from campaign donors to hide his career. >> a check on a paper mill after an explosion at the facility kills one person and injures five others.

>> a new study finding nearly 30 percent of college students who took itloans, dropping out of school, that's up from fewer than 25 percent a decade ago, and the dropouts are four -- and four times as likely to default on loans. you think about the debt they're piling up. that is a national tragedy, huh? when you think about the years it's going to take to pay that back. martha: some people think it's the next chapter of the housing crisis, people carrying debt and not able to make investments in homes of their own and that kind of thing because of that, so we could be hearing the ripples of that for some time. bill: it takes years to pay back those lobes and the job market is tough, too. less than half a find ago mull time job. march pharpbd how long it takes to pay it back, there are serious questions about that. how about this, a look over the memorial day weekend, it was a washout for many folks looking forward to back yard barbecues. we got to enjoy them in the northeast but not such a good situation in the south where tropical depression

barrel drenched florida and georgia and it's now slowing down a little bit, still soaking the southeast coast, we hear. elizabeth prann is live in hilton head, south carolina, such a beautiful spot, not so perfect today. elizabeth, what's the latest from there? >> reporter: not so perfect day and it could get much worse. we are expecting three more inches, where we are standing now. but like you said, a very nasty memorial day weekend for hundreds of thousands of folks along the coastal communities. at some points, we saw 70 miles per hour winds, just short of hurricane-force winds and sporadic rainfall that could come violently. over my right hand shoulder, the main attraction for memorial day, closed to swimmers. the beaches were closed to swimmers throughout the better half of memorial day weekend. that's because of the ripcurrents, very violent. in daytona beach, officials tell us they recovered the body of a 19-year-old male swimmer who got in the water when double red flags were

flying. swimmers were told to not get in those waters over the weekend. that being said, the winds are not the biggest concern, looking forward. it's rainfall. where you can expect anywhere from 12 inches of rain in parts of georgia and florida, and yes, a lot of those areas in exceptional drought conditions, so farmers say they're breathing a sigh of relief. that being said, too much of a good thing can be dangerous. flash flood warnings today and tomorrow from florida all the way up to north carolina. so emergency officials are telling people yes, it looks beautiful, but to please, stay out of the water between now and late tomorrow afternoon, and also, be careful on the roadways, because those flash flood warnings are very serious and very dangerous. martha: dangerous indeed. your heart goes out to that young man's family. what a tragedy that is. the folks need to stay out of the water when those red flags are up. elizabeth, thank you very much. elizabeth prann reporting live from hilton head. bill: seems like an early

start to the storm season. 70 miles an hour. martha: it was july, you know, it was hot and tons of summer weather out there. and along with it, those kind of winds. bill: overseas now, the outrage is growing, but is the action growing to stop it? a massacre reported over the weekend in syria. should the u.s. military get involved? former u.s. ambassador to the united nations, john bolton, weighs in on that. martha: we're going to talk to him about that. plus, a horrifying wid-air -- mid-air collision and get this, one person actually managed to walk away from that crash. you will hear from the stunned eyewitnesses to this. >> my husband, my grandson, ran to the site, i dialed 911 immediately. i know i collided with something, and i know it wasn't a bird. (bell rings) hi. good morning. big news. we're spreading the word about new honey bunches of oats fruit blends and their unique taste combinations. like peach/raspberry...

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escalates in that country. more than 100 people more killed, and nine -- and the estimates are as high as 32 children in those reports. president obama's top military adviser is warning that military force will be used if necessary. >> i frankly believe the international community -- i think the pressure has to be mounting on assad. there is always a military option, but that military option should always be wielded carefully, because one thing we've learned about war, i have learned personally about war, is that it has a dynamic all its own, it takes on a life all its own. martha: that's to be sure. ambassador john bolton, former ambassador to the

u.n., ambassador, good morning. it strikes me, we've been watching these scenes for over a year, 10,000 people estimated lost their lives, it takes perhaps the death of all these children to bring this issue screaming to the forefront for our country. and what do we do? >> well, it's obviously horrific, and you have to look at those pictures and wonder how we can allow this to continue. the different, of course, is that in this particular circumstance, you have russia, aiding the assad regime with weapons and finance, iran with military personnel on the ground in country, so any u.s. military intervention, i think, could not be contained to syria. inevitably, it would involve iran and we don't know what role russia would play and the question in my mind is whether president obama is up to the task, whether he can handle this difficult a situation. that worries me more than anything else. martha: what about the reputation of america? when you look at the world scene, you look at the reasons we went in this

libya, we were told it was because it was an imminent massacre about to unfold in libya and now we're not watching an imminent massacre, we're watching a current massacre and i think a lot of people look at it and say isn't this the kind of moment that america needs to rise to the occasion and help. >> i think in libya example, the president used the doctrine called the responsibility to protect, when a country couldn't protect its own citizens or in that case was actually killing its own citizens. the difficulty with that doctrine is where you draw the line. in the case of the syrian opposition, we know there are al-qaeda elements, they are islamist terrorists and just as we would not have wanted to aid the kumer rouge that came into power in cambodia in 1979 we don't want to aid terrorists in syria as well. it's a complex situation. i think the president has aired in not being more -- erred in not being more

assert up in russia, given its role. martha: how would you deal with russia at this moment? >> i'd tell them the reset button has just been unpushed, that unless they stop -- not only stop arming and financing the assad regime, but help figure out how to remove it from power, our relations with them are going in the opposite direction. martha: who has that conversation, who's the best stpherpb. >> the president of the united states needs to call president putin and say this is unacceptable behavior. if you want to be part of the civilize dollars world, stop aiding the assad regime. martha: it's interesting, when you think back to that conversation with medvedev about how after my election, i'll have a little more flexibility, and now, you can't help but think shouldn't that moment have been used to say look, you know, we will not stand for what's going on in syria, i'm not going to say this in a public speech right now but you need to realize that we are not messing around with this. >> no, and in that, the president is promising in essence to give up our limited missile defense capabilities. iran is important here as well. the president knows if he does anything to oppose the

assad regime, he could kiss goodbye the prospects of negotiating with iran over their nuclear weapons program. to me that's not great loss since that negotiation was never going to work, anyway, but obama has real difficulty in admitting that for 3 1/2 years, he's been pursuing an illusion with iran. martha: in his memorial day, he talked about lifting the cloud of war, the ten years with iraq and afghanistan. does it feel like a moment, five months before the election, that he -- that he wanted to commit efforts to a new effort. >> it's because his view of the world is so naive and out of touch, he wants to be the president who withdrew from iraq and afghanistan and this is one of the consequences, as america comes home, as he wants, that our ability to influence events all over the world declines. that's what he campaigned on, that's the way he's governed, now he sees the consequences. martha: is this a situation that could be handled to some extent with drone strikes, could we go after military bases wherever they're arming these

militants and put in some strikes that would, you know, perhaps at least slow things down and give us time to figure it out? >> i would go to the source, which is the assad regime itself. he's the one who's directing these forces. but even more important, without iran supporting assad, that regime would have fallen long ago and without russian support it would have fallen, so we need a larger strategy which we don't have to deal with the major threat to security in the middle east, which is the regime in tehran. martha: ambassador bolton, it's a complex situation. thank you very much for weighing in on it today. we'll see what happens. >> thank you. martha: thanks. bill: there is new information at the moment about this pakistani doctor who's been imprisoned after helping the u.s. find usama bin laden, members of his family now speaking tout to fox news, they say security forces, telling them he's been tortured and deprived of sunlight for a year, and the family also has a strong message for the u.s. world affairs contributor dominic di-natale streaming live out of islamabad, what

more can you tell us about the conditions this doctor has been through? >> reporter: bill, a short while ago, we spoke to the better of -- to the brother of dr. shaquil afridi, jamiel. he's been informed by the security services that his brother was tortured in the months before his conviction, apparently he was starved, left in a state so emace ated when he was transferred after his conviction just six days ago, he managed to put on 5 pounds in weight because at long last, he's finally being fed profpl. that's 5 pounds in six days. he wasn't allowed to see direct sunlight or open skies, apparently, during those 12 months where he was captured. we don't know where he was kept during that time at aufplt there's nothing from the pakistani authorities about that. we do know that his family is being denied visits, though the prison says no one has tried to visit there. that's something the family is disputing. they are concerned about his

condition. now that he's eating properly, the conditions are quite crammed, and the cell is roughly, according to prison officials, 5-foot by 4-foot, which is cramped. but we've been told that is paradise and that's a direct quote in comparison to the conditions he was being kept in before his sentence, bill. bill: is there any indication how the u.s. is helping the family in its appeal? >> reporter: no. not at this time. the family was happying -- hope to go hear from the u.s. embassy but the embassy hasn't been in touch and as yet, they haven't been able to approach the embassy. they say what they want the embassy here to provide is a team of lawyers to help in the appeal case which they hope to get started soon, once the pakistan authorities actually give them a copy of the verdict so they can actually begin that. they also want the u.s. to offer the entire afridi family asylum in the united states, that's 30 people in total, but they're not clear exactly what the process will be with regard to that. i did try and contact the u.s. embassy in islamabad a short while ago but they haven't returned our calls

yet. bill: we'll watch that story. thank you dominic, live on the ground there in islamabad. martha: scare in the air over canada, a jet carrying 300 people, forced to make an emergency landing after its engine shuts down and get this, police believe that chunks of metal may have fallen off the plane and hit cars below. as of now, they cannot be certain that the debris was actually from that plane, and while several cars were damaged, no one on the ground or on the plane, thankfully, was hurt. bill: wow. also in virginia, an investigation underway after two small planes collide, killing two and injuring a third. police say one of the planes caught fire after the collision. the planes went down about a mile apart. here is what one of the witnesses in virginia saw: >> i jumped up and i said oh my gosh, a plane is crashing in our field. my husband, my grandson, ran to the site. i dialed 911 immediately. >> a very nice gentleman, but i think he was becoming delirious as time went by.

bill: two bodies were found in the 6-seat aircraft and the pilot of the second plane has been hospitalized. his condition is not known at the moment. we understand he spoke to troopers and was walking around. walking around! martha: incredible. lil lil -- bill: lucky day for him. mash mash lucky day for him and not for others. that's an awful story. thank goodness those people were nearby. >> doctors say this is becoming a big problem, hospitals giving cash discounts to patients, sometimes bigger discounts than their own health insurance companies can do. this is an incredible story. you can get a very good deal on cat scans and things if you're will to go pay cash. we'll talk about how that marks -- how that works. bill: marc siegl is on that. and up close and personal with mitt romney on memorial day. >> in mid october you're going to have, what, 10 million, 15 million americans who are truly undecided, and they're going to make a decision, because it's going to be that time. and they live in these key

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martha: what an incredible story this has finish recent days and now there are new suggestions that the police may have missed crucial clue that is could have solved the 1979 disappearance of etan patz much sooner. he was one of the first missing children to be featured in that way on milk cartons across the country in an effort to find him. last week, a man admitted to killing him. reports say that this man worked at a corner store that was very close to where little etan would have walked on his first day of walking to the bus on his own, which was to be his last. according to new york city police commissioner ray kelly it appears that suspect was never questioned >> hindsight is 20/20. i wasn't there. it's a long time ago. it's very difficult to say.

it's a lot of emphasis, a lot of focus on the case itself, a lot of resources were devoted to it at the time. so you know, it's difficult to say now -- obviously, you know, you can speculate that we should have talked to individual. there was no indication he was interviewed by any member of the police department. martha: he's right, resources were thrown at that case in a huge way back then. authorities are trying to piece the together against this man, pedro hernandez. legal experts say it will take more than a confession to convict him because the evidence at this point is so very, very old. bill: now to the campaign, mitt romney will become the official nominee perhaps later today, and just yesterday on memorial day i spent time with myth roamny and part of his large family. at one of the homes of one of his sons in san diego,

california. here is part of our conversation, first: >> in mid october you're going to have, two -- what, 10 million, 15 million americans who are truly undecided, and they're going to make a decision because it's going to be that time. and they live in these key battle ground states, many of which have been destroyed by the economy over the past four years. what's your best selling point to them? >> i can make the economy better. i can get more jobs in america, i can get competition between employers for jobs, rising wages, i understand how the economy works. the president wants to make this a personal attack campaign. he's going after me as an individual. look, i'm an american. i love this country. i have experience in the economy that's going to help me get good jobs for americans on so we can be secure again. bill: there are three things in that statement i want to ask with stephen hayes, senior writer for the weekly standard. stephen, good morning to

you. >> good morning bill. bill: you're going to see a lot more of this throughout the week. that was a little snippet of what we talked about yesterday. but i think when two comes to the hrerbgs, that's the critical point, it's nine to 12 states and what they do, especially with folks in the middle, and which way they go, whether pwrapl pw*bg gets four more years or mitt romney is able to trump in. first statement he said, i economy -- i understand how the economy works. that's his strongest selling point. how does he translate that to voters? >> it was an interesting answer. if you look at snapshot polls today, that's the answer that those voters are going to want to hear. i mean, overwhelmingly, voters say they are worried about the economy broadly and also jobs and unemployment, so he's speaking to those voters right now and trying to make that pitch that because he's worked in the private sector, because he has business experience, he's going to be the best one to usher in this new era of american prosperity. bill by point number two, the president wants to make this, and mitt romney talking now, a personal campaign, he's going after me as an individual.

that goes to personality. that goes to tone. who wins that argument? >> well, it's an interesting argument for team romney to make. i think it's a smart one. the president has done well. he has remained a likable character, even as his favorability numbers, his approval numbers, job approval tphaupls -- numbers, have fallen a little bit and i think what team romney wants to do is say this is not the president, this is not barack obama who ran in 2008 who is promising those great things, saying he was above the fray, this is a new barack obama, a meaner, nastier barack obama and not only did he not deliver on policy issues, he's not the same guy he ran as in 2008. bill: let's go back to the attendant point on this, and the latest polling we have, among independent, -- head to head, six months ago, mitt romney has a five-point edge among those voters. are you one of those who believe that those voters decide who gets the next four years? >> sure. i mean, i think we're looking at a number of groups that are going to be

critically important but mitt romney needs to have that lead solidified and increase it if he can going into november because barack obama has built-in advantages among some groups, largely among women, a gender gap, among hispanic voters and other crucial voting blocs, but mitt romney needs to win that independent vote and win is decisively. bill: point number three, i'm an american, i love this kufpblt on memorial day, he's making an appeal to patriotism. how do you interpret that? >> he's been making this appeal to patriotism throughout his campaign. remember, his original campaign slogan was believe in america. he's been making this broad pitch and i think what he's trying to do is reach out to the vote e. including those independents you talked about, who feel that america is slipping away, that we're passing down to a generation, the next generation of americans an america that's different than the one that many of us grew up with. and i think it's an argument that may resonate particularly in the midwest

states that may end up deciding this election. bill: stephen, thank you for that. we're going to have a bit more in the show late dear and tomorrow, the personal side of the romney family and the critical relationship between the cnn governor and his wife and what they've been through together and what they hope to forge in the future. some more in that sit-down interview with governor romney and his wife ann tomorrow and thursday on "america's newsroom". you get the impression, based on the way the polling is right now, that mitt romney feels pretty good, with all the attack attacks on n coming over the past couple of weeks and he's neck and neck. and when you ask him, who's going to win this election, he says i have no idea, it's a coin toss. martha: and you look at the obama folks and they look at him as also being in good shape and you look at how bad the economy has been, how rough it's been, the fact that the president is neck and neck with mitt romney bodes well for them, so both sides feel like they're in pretty good shape right now, five months to go and a lot of people just starting to take a look at

them as they think about that. bill: to all of that, they know that they find a lot of voters do not know who mitt romney is. martha: still. isn't that surprising in some ways, after having run, you know, now for the second time as president? i think you're right. bill: in about 40 minutes, the point that was made 20 years ago for how america was introduced to another politician who became president, and his answer to that is intriguing, too. we'll have that for you. martha: good stuff. we look forward to that. thanks bill. the next time you go see a doctor, think about what we're about to tell you. you could get a huge discount, but there is a cash on how to go about getting cheaper health care, and you can decide if you think it's worth it. amazing story. bill also, the bieber, beat down, the teen heartthrob said to be involved in a nasty conflict. martha: no! bill: did you tell your daughter that? could he face charges on the bieber beatdown? martha: can you imagine? >> ♪ >> ♪

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bill: never gets old. a soldier's home coming from afghanistan. his family will never forget martha: oh my gosh! bill: that's what i'm talking about, right? turner field in atlanta, before 45,000 people. that's sergeant saved simms pull ago switcheroo of a lifetime, telling the family they had ticket toss the braves game, but that he could only join them by satellite and they got a heck of a surprise.

martha: i challenge anybody to watch that with a dry eye. bill: that's what they call a perfect game in baseball. martha: love that. all right. have you got cash cash on hand? because it could save you big time, the next time you go to see the doctor. you used to just bring in your insurance card in there? try this, folks. many physicians and hospitals these days are giving steep discounts if you can pay out of pocket instead of using health insurance. dr. marc siegl, medical a teamer joins me now, good morning doctor, good to have you here. >> good morning martha. martha: one of the things that drives me crazy, whenever you call a doctor's appointment to get an a-- they won't answer any questions until you tell them what your medical insurance is and it turns out people are saving a ton of money if they bring cash to pay for their scans and all sorts of things. >> you know martha, on the surface, i could start off by saying this is a good thing that is correct you

save money you pay cash. i would give you the same service for less if you pay cash, you go to a hospital, you want a cat scan, the l.a. times found out some cat scans are charging $6000, if you wanted to pay cash, it's $1000. i could say that's a good thing but consider this, it's price gouging. the hospital is actually charging a lot more to the insurer than they're going to charge you, and where do you think that money is going to end up coming from? it will end up coming out of your pocket one way or the other. out there, you're either going to be paying higher premiums to cover all the huge costs that the insurance companies are paying for these procedures, or, as omabacare roll necessary, it's going to come out of the taxpayers of pocket. so they'll end up with a two tiered system of health care, you pay for it cash or else your insurance pays a fortune and you're not even aware of what they're paying. there's no way a cat scan should cost $6000. martha: but you know what, it makes it so starking clear where the money is caught up in the system,

right? because if they're saying we'll give you, in this one case, it was a ct scan for the abdomen, it was going to be $4423, that blue shield said we got you a good price, $2400, but when the newspaper called in and asked them for the price they paid in cash, $250. so what is that all about? what is the cost of actually running this scan? >> i love that, $250! can you imagine? that shows you the technology has been around a while and there's no way it should cost $4000. and to your point, martha, it's caught in the middle man. all this money is caught up in the back and forth between the insurance company and the hospital, and that's why our premiums are so high, that is absolutely the problem of the future as more and more insurance rolls in. martha: it's worth looking into. mark, thank you very much. >> great to see you. martha: as always. dr. mark seeingel. bill: is this a scandal rocking the vatican, a butler at the center of an investigation, what he was allegedly doing with stolen

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martha: an investigation into the leak at the vatican is now expanding further this morning with the pope's butler agreeing to cooperate with the investigators, and an anonymous mole telling local media this morning that the scandal goes much deeper than meets the eye here. what an intrigue story that is. brand-new hour of "america's

newsroom" on a tuesday that feels lick like a monday. i'm martha maccallum. bill: the pope's butler is under arrest accused of leaking secret church documents. few at the vatican believe that he at the end had worked alone. martha: what is next? joining me now is father john jonathan morris. he lived at the vat kin. thanvatican. thanks for joining us. >> just when you thought you saw it all. martha: a butler close to pope benedict leaked some of his papers and may have been working for somebody, right. >> he was one working very closely with him in the papal household. there is somebody taking care of an 85-year-old man, helping him get dressed, serving meals and holding an umbrella when it's raining and he is in public,

that type of thing. the fact that documents were found in his possession, in his own apartment, that were not supposed to be there is a big deal. martha, this goes back to over the last few months there's been documents that have been leaked that have gone into the story behind pope ben detectives desire tbenedict's deviewer to desire to make sure there is no transparency, including with the bank. they wants to get rid of corruption and cronyism. there are probably more people involved as you said. martha: there is a secretary of state, and the suggestion is that there is a history of corruption, all truth be told is in all businesses it would seem in italy, that there is cronyism and paying off people to get business contracts. and there are two sides

struggling. one of the questions i have, is where the pope comes down in this debate, and how aware he is that all of this is going on in some kind of huge struggle around the closed doors of the vatican. >> he's aware of it now certainly. and he's probably very sad from the people i have spoken to who are there, he is very sad, you're being betrayed by someone, a father of three, this is not a priest, it's a layman, a father of three working you every single day and betrays them for one thing or another, whether it's money, who knows what is exactly involved. he is working closely with the authorities and there is an investigation going on. to you are point, i think, martha, the pope when easy hrebted pope eashe's elected pope he's pushed into the sole of head of state. it's hard to have all those qualities in one man.

it doesn't always happen to be the case, and therefore things like this happen. martha: we'll see wri where it goes. thank you so much. bill: we have breaking news, nato saying that al-qaida's number two in afghanistan has been killed during a weekend air strike near that volume till border with pakistan. kelly wright watches that from washington. who is this guy, how did we get him. >> reporter: good morning to you. nato and afghan forces identify this al-qaida guy, this figure. a press release was issued was responsible for commanding foreign insurgents in afghanistan and directing attacks against nato. they were spotted in a kunar

province. they state that after insuring no civilians were in the area the security force ordered a precision air strike that killed both men. nato says no civilians were harmed as well. bill. bill: kelly, this air strike, could it have come from a clue that was left behind by the osama bin laden death? that was what, 13 months ago now? how is that possible? >> well, bill, you may recall that when osama bin laden was killed the u.s. navy seals team also uncovered a treasure trove of information that was stored inside osama bin laden's hope. some of that information show osama bin laden's growing concerns about air strikes. according to the combating terrorism center at west point letters seized from osama bin laden's compound revealed he had advised al-qaida militants to leave pakistan's north and south tribal areas because of the threat of drone strikes n. in one letter osama bin laden

recommended they go to afghanistan's kunar province because of trees and rivers and hundreds of brothers as he stated without being spotted by the enemy. that is the area where they were killed on sunday. martha: the f.b.i. is joining the investigation into a bloody explosion that happened in kenya and injured at least 33 people. the huge blast was felt for miles, and one witness described a possible suspect as, quote, a bearded man who was carrying a bag shortly before that explosion. still unclear whether al-qaida's linked group there in somalia may have been behind the attack. members of the group were heard bragging about interviewing survivors. bill: senator john mccain teaming up with mitt romney over the weekend, heckled on monday,

memorandum memorial day. the send speaking at an event with the governor when someone in the crowd of 5,000 started thoughting this. >> families in every place in america have a relative of -- [chanting] [booing ] [applause] >> jerk. bill: sometimes you only need one word, don't you. he kept going. he said he was honored to be on

the same stage with the former governor mitt romney. martha: i never knew about that john mccain. bill: a lot bigger crowd than they were expecting on san diego. you know what it means to them in the military down there. martha: we could have a verdict, we've been saying this for days, right. it could come any moment in the john edwards trial. the former senator and one-time white house hopeful accused of using campaign funds to cover up an affair with his pregnant mistress. he still waits to find out his fate. there he is every day coming into the courthouse with his mom and dad. anything more from this juror issue that we heard about that arose on friday, jonathan? >> reporter: the judge was scheduled to have a closed door session with attorneys on both sides of the issue first thing this morning. no word on what came out of the closed door session. it's been fueling much speculation.

on friday a blog was published suggesting one of the female at jurors might be flirting with john edwards exchanging miles with him in court. ettedwards who is a skilled trial laur laura tempts to smile and make contact with all jurors as they enter the courtroom. jurors arrived in court wearing color coordinated shirts. on thursday they wore yellow, on friday all red. it's unclear whether this has anything to do with the juror issue. it could be something as mundane as a juror having a scheduling conflict as deliberations go into a 7th day. martha: it was a very long weekend for the jurors. were they given any more special instructions over the course of this weekend about how they should proceed? >> reporter: the judge gave them some firm instructions that they were not to discuss this case

with anyone, so presumably all of the jurors went home to family and friends, after all they are not being sequestered, and over the holiday weekend steered the discussions to topics not relating to this very high profile trial. we have recent videos of john edwards minutes ago leaving the courtroom. that is our indication that the jury has indeed begun its 7th day of deliberations. john edwards is allowed to leave the building during the deliberations, as long asess able to return within 15 minutes notice. martha: last week he went off to a baseball game. we'll see where he heads today. jonathan serrie thank you. bill: four years ago president obama energized voters with his hope and change campaign. >> the american people aren't stupid. what they are looking for, what they are looking for is somebody who has been consistently

calling for change. bill: so what is the campaign theme four years later? the problem is there isn't one. fair and pwapd debatfair & balanced debate moments away. martha: the white house telling catholic critics the contraception issue is about women's issues not religion. plus this -- bill: that is a young girl falling almost 20 feet at a ballpark as her parents can only watch in horror and they are videotaping it. more on how this turned out for that young girl in moments. >> there was no tension, no nothing, it was just like she just jumped off with nothing. how long it takes to fall 18 feet, there is nothing, anybody can do it. wake up!

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paralyzed after a horrific accident. watch here. that was emily davis making her way to the top of that rock climbing wall about 20 feet up. the cable supporting her suddenly snaps in two sending her crashing to the ground below, while her father was recording it. >> i wasn't even thinking, she's all right, she's all right. she was yelling, wake up, wake up, get out of my dream. bill: emily's doctor says she will have to wear a neck brace during her recovery. they are thankful she was not paralyzed. the carnival workers investigating what went on out there. her father was just saying, be alive, be alive. martha: those carnivals get popped up and another, and it is -- it's worrisome how well some of that stuff is put up.

bill: best of luck to her. martha: politics on this tuesday morning as we get up and running after memorial day weekend. president obama rored le reportedly struggling to find an effective re-election campaign slogan. in 2008 his campaign of hope and change dominated the political playing field, it galvanized voters for him across the country. >> i don't believe change happens from the top down, it happens from the bottom up, because the american people are determined to bring about change. if you are ready for change we can go ahead and tell those special interests that their days of setting the agenda in washington are over, because they have not funded my campaign, they will not run my white house, and they will not drown out the voice of the american people. martha: remember at the inauguration he said change has come and that change begins now with the beginning of his presidency. joined now by alan colmes the host of the alan colmes radio show and tucker carlson editor

of the daily caller and a fox news contributor. this is the talk alan in some of the pieces this morning. you look at some of the ideas that they've come up with forward, seems to be one of the prevailing messages of the obama campaign. how do you think they are doing with this messaging stuff this time around? >> with all the media going on how he needs a campaign theme i don't think many people right now are paying much attention. people who watch fox news and truly involved in the process, but many voters are not yet tpoeubgs owne folkessed on the re-election campaign. i would say the change continues, that's what he should say. look what we've done. his accomplishments as tom freidman suggested and the change continues. it's very simple, that should be the message. martha: there is a phrase i heard over the weekend that he said, tucker, he said, i believe in you, and i hope that you still believe in me.

you know, and that with us one of the messages that he was trying to get across. how much does all this matter? is alan right? are people not really tuned in yet? does it really matter if you have a great bumper stick stpher. >> sticker? >> i love alan as idea, do you like the change over the past four years, we have more for you. they have a campaign theme they can't say it explicitly. it's simple. we are kind of mediocre, but they are scary. it's not about them or what obama has done for the last four years or hope and change, it's about the romney people being bigots. this is what the lawsuit over arizona immigration is about. you have to vote for obama in default, that is the whole campaign. >> we haven't seen the whole sam

pain. it'whole campaign. it's may. you don't roll anything out until after labor day. this is not the whole campaign. martha: we live in a world where they start putting up christmas decorations on halloween. >> i don't think the american people are really focused on it. he reformed wall street, saved the auto industry, a list of things. >> keep going. >> no punishment for preexisting conditions. he's done a number of things that he should be very proud of and the american people will decide properly i'm convinced. martha: maybe it should be hope and change. >> more change. martha: i wonder if some of it got corrupted by a lot of the bumper stickers, how is that change thing working out for you. sarah palin saying, how is that hopey, changey thing working out, which may make them want to come up with something.

>> there is a sweetness on alan as point. run on what you've done. the way to run your campaign if you're an incumbent is to run it on your accomplishments. he would within, alan, he would win three or four games. it would be mcgovern 72. gold water 64. fewer than a hundred electorial votes. >> what is mitt romney running on other than i'm not obama. >> nothing, nothing,s that's all he needs to run on. >> he needs more than that. martha: i want to ask you, tucker about the suggestion -- i want to ask alan about what tucker said in the beginning. the obama campaign seems to be suggesting that there is something scary about the romney folks. there is a lot of talk about him being a throwback, that he's old fashioned, stuck in the mud, that kind of stuff seems to be, and that president obama is cool and forward looking. do you think that works, and do you think that makes people shy

away from mitt romney? >> no, i think it's part of this new cycle, running on the fact that romney is tying himself to berther trump. this is the story today and the cycle will move and and there will be other themes. it's not one theme in may that carries through until after labor day, that's not the way it works. martha: whenever you are running for re-election, tucker believe never remember what your slogan was. i think our slogan is what you've done over the past three and a half years. i don't remember bill clinton's re-election khroeg began slogan, i think it becomes a nonissue doesn't it? >> you remember the story that the slogans point to, you remember the narrative that unfolds over the course of a campaign. you know the core message that the campaign is selling and you either buy it or you don't. i think at this stage it's not too early for the obama people to run on the only thing they have. you're not to succeed painting mitt romney as a right wing

extremist. that is untrue and the dogs won't eat that dog food. all you can say is the guy doesn't like you and he's a bigot. they don't like you that is this women thing, he's out of touch with the needs of women, that's the point they are making. bill: one of those points that you're debating right there, a bit more of my interview with mitt romney, have a list stpwhrepb how do you want to be introduced to america? >> i haven't thought about that. just a kid that wants to make a difference for america. get people working again, have bright prospects for the future. bill: there is more to that answer as we sit down with the romneys on memorial day in california. stay tuned for that right after the break.

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martha: it is 25 minutes past the hour now. chicago police reporting a deadly spike in violence over memorial day weekend that led ten people dead and 40 people injured. there was an overall spike in homicides. unlikely benefits for common household pai painkillers. aspirin and ibuprofen can reduce the chance of skin cancer. astronaut john glen, and madeleine albright, and bob dillon getting medals of honor. there will be a ceremony later today. did you get invited? i did not. martha: that is an interesting three. bill: the first song i learned on the acoustic guitar.

bdg -- or c. martha: you got those three cords down you can play just about anything. bill: i have to go home and rehearsay. i forgot it at the moment. right. to a new side of governor mitt romney, at home with part of his large family in southern california. this weekend i spent some time with the former governor at the home of one of his five sons. how will america get to know him? have a listen. 20 years ago this summer a little-known governor from arkansas was introduced to america when the democrats rolled into new york city in madison square garden the boy of hope was bill clinton. how do you want to be interes introduced to america? >> i haven't thought about that. just a kid who wants to make a dave rents fo difference for america. get people working again. have us have a bright future. there are too many people concerned that jobs will be less

plentiful, incomes won't be rising, they can't afford college. these are the concerns people have, and that is not the america i know. it has always been american to believe the future is brighter than the past. we have to have a president who believes that. i do. i'm optimistic about the future of this country. let me just make that real clear, we do not have to be a nation in decline. we do not have to be seeing what we have seen the last three and a half years. we just have to have someone who knows how to lead to get us back to have the right kind of economy that america deserves. bill: there is a lot more than that. i spoke with mr. romney and his wife ann, as we get a little more personnel now this is the romney family barbecue on memorial day. they have a large family. they had little less than half the family there. part one of the full interview tomorrow, then part two on thursday a little later this week. martha: too bad they don't have any cute grandchildren, you know. bill: as you well know, a lot about his faith, a lot about

their relationship, his business career, things perhaps you do not know about him yet. here is the key, is that they understand they have to introduce themselves to america. a lot of folks will tell you, i don't know the guy. and they understand now that that process begins and so it begins with us tomorrow. martha: there was a clue from his mother saying how ugly politics is, and it's the worst job that anybody can have. part of it is getting people to know you, and we look forward to seeing more of that. thank you, bill. coming out swinging leaders ever the catholic church not shying away from tough new questions over a lawsuit to block parts of the federal healthcare law. >> embedded in the mandate is a radically new deaf tpheulg definition of what constitutes a religious community, what constitutes religious ministry. brand-new, never before applied at the federal level. martha: speaking out in a way we

haven't seen in a longtime. they say the white house missed one key fact in all this. we'll take a look. bill: an inc incredible story of survival after a plane crash in the mountains. more of the 19 911 calls that tell the incredible story. we t, creating the rx hybrid. ♪ now we've turned the page again with the all-new rx f sport. ♪ this is the next chapter for the rx and the next chapter for lexus. see your lexus dealer. is now within your grasp

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martha: breaking news on syria. the state department has shown the syrian chars-da-faire the door. that is in place when there is no diplomatic mission. we will continue to update you on all the developments from the state department on syria moving forward. bill: tough questions for the

archbishop of washington d.c., asked about the lawsuit by catholic organizations, including the university of notre dame, trying to block the mandate for employee contraception coverage. the white house argument that 99% of women who use birth control are catholics. listen carefully to this answer with chris wallace on fox news sunday. >> 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. the new definition says, you're not really religious if you serve people other than your own, and if you hire people other than your own. that wipes out all the things that we have been doing, all the things that we contribute to the common good, our schools, our

healthcare services, our catholic charities, even parish soup 0 kitchens and pantries. bill: the white house argued 99% of women use birth control including catholics. we have the chairman of the house republican committee. welcome back. on the top of that 45-second clip it isn't good contraception, it's about religious treed opl, that is the same argument that timothy cardinal dolan is making in new york. how far does that go? >> well it goes very, very far. the cardinal is absolute lie right. this isn't about contraception, this is about an administration that believes it ought to be deciding everything, including the definition of what is healthcare in our country, and that's where the challenge is. they believe so strongly in this that they are willing to trample on the first amendment and religious freedom and that's why the lawsuit was brought by notre dame and by so many catholic organizations around this

country. bill: where do you stand on this argument, on the other side that suggested if you're taking federal money, you're ability to have control is more limited, especially under this mandate and the catholic church apparently gets several million dollars per year from the federal government. how would you address this. >> this tramples on the first amendment to the constitution. it's the reach of government, the power of government. who is going to decide what the definition of healthcare is? in fact we've just seen most recently over the weekend an announcement by a catholic university in florida that says they are no longer going to be able to provide health coverage for the students in their university. this is the consequence of this administration's decision about them defining what healthcare is. i know when i was a physician the maddess i saw patients get was when they knew that somebody else was forcing them to do something. and that's what this is. this is the federal government forcing on our country what the definition of healthcare is, that's why it's wrong, that's why the suit was brought.

bill: let me get back to what the cardinal said in a moment. does the lawsuit stand? does the catholic church win on this? how do you see it as being decided? >> i'm a physician not a lawyer, and i won't predict the outcome of that. but i do know that the vast majority of the american people are very concerned about the over reach of this administration. insinuating itself into the every day lives of every day americans, and that's why there is in angst and concern and fear about the over reach of the federal government. i'm pleased that the catholic church has stepped up and said, look this is a police we've never been before in this country. we've never been in a position where the federal government is trampling on the religious freedom of millions of americans across this country. bill: the bigger point that the archbishop of washington makes is you cannot tell us who we can serve and who we cannot serve, right? >> huge, huge, bill, exactly,

because what the administration said is that you don't have to -- you will be a religious organization so long as you only care for those that are of your religious denomination, or so long as you only provide services for those that are within your denomination. that tramples on all of the charity that has been at the heart of who we are as americans. so, again, i think that the suit being brought is absolutely pertinent. i know that the american people are just outraged at the over reach of this administration, and the healthcare bill is kind of front and center. bill: what many catholic leaders will argue is if you do not stop this. then where does it lead? i mean where do you think it could possibly lead? >> well, i think -- i've said from the very beginning that when you have an administration that believes it can define what healthcare is for this country, and as a physician, i can tell you that is abhorrent to me. but what healthcare is for each and every single american, then

we've gonna long way down the wrong road which is why the supreme court will rule i believe later in the month of june about the constitutionality of this. but regardless of what they do, the status quo in healthcare is unacceptable. we need to move for positive patient-centered reforms and those are the solutions we put on the table. bill: appreciate your time, tom price, thank you for that. that decision from the supreme court could come down any day now, a week if now or a month from now. shannon bream says it won't be today, we know that much as of now. tom price thank you for your time out of atlanta. >> thanks, bill. martha: there were dramatic 911 calls released from survivors of a small plane crash in idaho. the plane went down late saturday night in snowy mountains in the middle ever the end of may. three people were on board. they were able to call for help. listen to those phone calls. >> i'm in an airplane and i crashed. i'm in the mountains. i need you to send a search

party. >> i want you to stay on the line with me okay. >> i will try my best but my phone has very little battery left martha: they are so composed on those calls and it's so frightening. the family waited 15 hours in the no for rescuers who had to slog through 15 feet of snow drifts in the end of may to reach that very remote area thank god they could find them. the family is in the hospital, recovering, and expected to survive. what a story. 15 hours in the snow. bill: that cool nature saved their lives too. barney frank, famous for being outspoken especially on social issues. but a joke that he made has him making a big apology this mourn. we'll tell you what that is all about. martha: too frank for some. and he was just trying to shop with his girlfriend he says and

now police say that justin bieber is somebody they would like to speak to about an incident. down here, folks measure commitment by what's getting done. the twenty billion doars bp committed has helped fund economic and environmental recovery. long-term, bp's made a five hundred million dollar commitment to support scientists studying the environment. and the gulf is open for business - the beaches are beautiful, the seafood is delicious. last year, many areas even reported record tourism seasons. the progress continues... but that doesn't mean our job is done. we're still committed to seeing this through.

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and find out about an aarp medicare supplement insurance plan. you'll get this free information kit... and guide to understanding medicare, to help you choose the plan that's right for you. as with all medicare supplement plans, you can keep your own doctor and hospital that accepts medicare, get help paying for what medicare doesn't... and save up to thousands of dollars. call this toll-free number now. bill: and apology from barney frank after making a joke referencing the travon shooting in florida. >> when you get an honorary degree you get one of these. i think you now have a hoodie you can wear and no one will shoot ago you. so i hope you will feel pretty pretexted by that. bill: you hear a little bit in the background there. congressman frank says the comment was made to ridicule the idea that a hooded sweatshirt

means you're up to no good. martha: that didn't go over too well. sometimes it's better not to adlib as we find out. ♪ [singing] martha: the bieber fans out there, big news that no doubt has not escaped their attention today. the teen superstar justin bieber is wanted for questioning after reports of an altercation that he may have had with a photographer on sunday. l.a. investigators say the paparazzi claims that the 18-year-old pop icon attacked him at a local shopping center as he tried to snap pictures of bieber and his actress girlfriend celina gomez. they are looking for witnesses to this event. arthur aidala is an attorney and a big bieber fan. >> actually now that i heard the intro music now i know at least

one bieber song. martha: that makes three of us. i think bill and i now know it too. >> shame on you, you need a nine-year-old daughter. martha: i'm trying to picture this. i wish there was video to describe the moment. i can't really envision justin bieber getting out of his car and slugging a photographer. if that is the case is this a photographer looking to make money off a very rich teenager, or is there something more to this? >> these celebrities get stalked. it's like prey, going on a safari. can i see it, a young man, especially with his romantic interest, snapping and doing something, where martha, if i did it i would be arrested, if joe the sanitation worker did it he would be arrested. it only takes one witness to come in and say you did

something. you can say i know the guy who stole my pocketbook, it's a bald guy, and he will be arrested. martha: what are justin bieber's rights? the story is as far as we can tell that he was trying to get out of a parking lot and this guy was standing in front of his car. so i mean he feels threatened. >> absolutely. martha: let's imagine, that he feels threatened. what can he do in can he push the guy out of the way? >> well, yeah, i mean there are limits to pushing out of the way. there are a couple of witnesses coming forward, i mean one witness report i heard this morning he said that celina gomez, who is just di justin bieber's love interest dropped her blackberry or her cellphone, and the photographer in question had it and wouldn't give it back. that's what one witness said. and she became upset by this. and i got a little bit of information that perhaps justin bieber was sort of being the knight in shining armor as his girlfriend is there upset and

pushed the photographer out of the way also a set ran paparazzi said that this particular photographer actually was way across the line in his invading justin bieber's body space, personal space. and then another witness said that when the photographer allegedly was hit by justin bieber that he dropped his camera, picked it back up and proceeded to take photographs again. and after that, after justin and celina left the scene of the alleged crime, supposedly at that point the photographer then called 911. so that doesn't really sound to me -- bill: why is he skwregt off t jetting off to europe. >> he feels like he's defending himself. he doesn't know if he's in danger. martha: he said there was a lawyer nearby who said, gee you might want to consider suing justin bieber because he just gout a $6.5 million house right

after he graduated high school. >> with that whole paternity suit, even after the suit was dropped he took a paternity test to proo prove that he was not quote unquote guilty. you know when the cops call you and they want you for questioning you're not supposed to tweet, i'm off to europe. you're supposed to say, okay i can afford the best lawyers in the world, let me go get one and deal witness. martha: i remember similar run ins with san antonio penn, and russell crowe hitting someone with a telephone when he was upset. thanks a lot. guys. go bieber. bill: you haven't seen any bald guys with purple ties today have you? martha: one maybe downstairs. yeah, as soon as we find one we'll let now. bill: we are still looking for them camera 51, folks, a television weatherman arrives too late for a big story. what he did during a live report to make up for it. a fight over the ten commandments.

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woman: that changed my life. man: at that moment, it hit me -- this is why i joined the guard. we're soldiers, always ready to protect our country, but we've also got communities -- family, friends, neighbors -- who count on us.

i couldn't believe it. i just saved a life. somebody from my hometown. announcer: see what it means to be a citizen-soldier, at nationalguard.com. martha: fox news alert on the economy. some negative numbers that came out this morning, consumer confidence in may showed the largest drop that we've seen in eight months, under 65%. that is according to the conference board. they keep track of that number. they are a private research group. concerns about the job market, the stock market and the global economy partly to blame for that slide. consumer spending accounts for about 70% of economic activity. but the markets totally shrug this market off. up about 150 points right now for the dow. bill: a growing controversy over a proposed tax hike that would raise the cost of cigarettes in laug california by a dollar a pack. the money is supposed to go to cancer research, the critics

argue that rarely happens. adam housley at his post in los angeles. what is going on. >> reporter: good morning. tobacco companies and those against the proposed tax have raised $40 million to fight the measure. meantime, those in favor of the new tax in california say they've got the support of cycling legend lance armstrong but they don't necessarily have the money. >> who do you trust to save lives? the american cancer society? the american heart association? the american lung association? >> or big tobacco. >> prop 29, more pwraour roc boo roc. >> reporter: this is a ballot initiative that would raise cigarette taxes by a dollar a pack with the estimated $800 million raised each here earmarked for cancer research and prevention. >> we know it will save lives and taxpayers money and would he hope that it will fund new cures

and better treatments for cancer, heart and lung diseases. >> reporter: supporters claim the new tax will stop 200,000 kids from starting to smoke, while encouraging tens of thousands of adults to quit. but opponents funded mainly by tobacco companies philip morris and r.j. reynolds argue that this is another si syntax that california can't appeared. >> this may not be our highest pry over. we are taking a block of tax revenue and spending it on something, while it may be very important, and certainly cancer research is, it may not be of the highest priority when we are trying to get out of a $16 billion hole. >> reporter: 67% of those polled in california were in favor now that ads are running opposing this new tax that support bill is down to just 53%. so another big battle here in california over a potential new tax. bill: watch that vote. thank you, adam housley at his

post in los angeles. martha: well, lions and tigers and a battle over the ten commandments at a california zoo. a man named joey is now threatening to new the oakland zoo over a monument of the ten commandments that sits on city property. he says the monument is a violation of church and state. >> that's a symbol of the christian dogma and the christian biblical beliefs which i don't expect to have on public property. >> all of a sudden it's a problem, i mean it's been here for a while, that's all. for me it doesn't make sense to remove it now. martha: so far no response from the zoo. watch this one, folks, there will be more. bill: how do the animals feel about that? martha: they are very upset apparently. bill: if we could put them on camera. martha: they've been complaining, tweeting about it. bill: we need a boom mike for that to reach a giraffe way up there. parts ever a plane dropping in the middle of a parking lot and

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martha: sometimes when mother nature won't cooperate you just have to fab it apparently. in romania, a reporter covering sandstorm. winds were gusting 60 miles per hour we're told. but wasn't working out for the live shot. they kicked the old sand from off the side to make it look like a sandstorm.

thank you, producer. maybe not. they tried to create that dramatic scene but you can tell what is really going on there, can't you? the cameraman says i'm not putting up with this. i make sure we get the foot of that producer who i don't like all that much coming out of the side shot. bill: stand a little more to the right. that way we would have never known. swirl winds. how was your memorial weekend by the way? martha: it was lovely. had a fantastic time visiting great friends who were wonderful hosts to us. it was lovely. great, great time. jon: don't you love it when the forecast was wrong? martha:, yeah. weatherman said it would be awful but it was gorgeous number weekend. bill: thanks for sending us that way. we'll see you tomorrow. "happening now" starts right now. jon: we begin with this fox news alert. a search for survivors in italy after a powerful