retail sales are down, simply meaning we all shopped a lot less last month, buying fewer cars and appliances and clothes. this trend we're watching, not just this one report. it is the third straight month of declines. this is first time, the very first time we've seen back-to-back-to-back negative reports since the height of the financial crisis back in 2008. why is shopping so important? i know it is a question jon often has for me. 70% of the economy is consumer spending. we pull back, the economy pulls back as well. we're going to have a closer look on the economy coming up right now on "happening now.". jon: for weeks the president's campaign has been hammering governor romney on his time at bain capital. now mr. romney hits back saying the president uses taxpayer money to help his wealthy donors while the middle class struggles. authorities release documents on dozens of phone calls made by the man accused of killing an

unarmed black teenager. breaking news in the george zimmerman case. plus if you use hairspray, nail polish or certain other cosmetics you need to hear this. jenna: i'm listening. jon: how the things that keep you looking good might contribute to bringing on a very bad medical condition. it's all "happening now.". jenna: we have a lot of great stories for you today but we start with this fox news alert. brand new information, brand new report on the kidnapping of a boston pastor in egypt. we're glad you're with us, everyone. i'm jenna lee. jon: i'm jon scott. the man who claims to have abducted the reverend michel louis, an american women with their church group and a tour guide claims he is talking to intelligence officials about releasing them but it comes with a condition. now there is word a secret plan might be in the works, this as the abductor else tells the ap he has been holding the trio since friday when he tooka tour bus on

mount cairo and sinai. the pastor is diabetic. his family fears he is not getting the medical assistance he needs. greg palkot working the story live from london. greg, these kidnapping, what is the latest? >> reporter: jon, we got off the phone a short while ago from a official in the u.s. embassy in cairo. that person maintains line that american authorities are working with egyptian authorities for the safe release of the three. there could be developments in the next few hours but so far nothing new on that. it happened on friday as you said on egypt's sinai peninsula. this mission group was said to be on their way to israel after perhaps a visit to that mt. sinai site when the incident happened. armed bedouin tribes people, boarding the bus and demanding a few people get off. the word we're getting is that the pastor, michel louis offered himself instead of other passengers. he was taken along with that woman, along with their tour

guide. the demand is that the uncle of the main leader of this, these hostage-takers should be released from a alexander, egypt jail. he said is being jailed on drug chars. the word we're getting egyptian authorities are not budging yet on that demand, jon. jon: what has been the reaction back home from the pastor's con agation, et cetera? >> you can imagine how concerned they are all are. the son expressing deep emotions as well as others. this pastor is well-liked this church from the boston area. take a listen to a few of the comments. >> we're still in good spirits. we're still praying for him. >> we do need him to come back to boston soon as possible. we hope also nothing will happen to him. >> there is no word for it. i can't believe this. this is a man of god. >> reporter: the son of the pastor, michel louis, said he and others were not aware

of the dangers that kind of route through the sinai peninsula entailed. if they were aware they would have made other plans. they should have been aware. in the past year three different american tourist groups are targeted by the tribes people. usually they're looking for money. this is uptick in crime in this area since the fall of the mubarak regime. less security happening right now. negotiations according to egyptian authorities talking to fox news are ongoing but not budging too far on the demands. this is past the point where the, where the hostage-takers said they would in fact do harm to louis and others. so far no word on that happening thankfully. back to you, jon. jon: after all the troubles in egypt the last thing they need more kidnapping of tourists. thanks very much. greg palkot, stay on it for us. jenna: back here at home for the race for the white house and as governor romney gets

ready to head to the olympics two weeks from now and republican convention in late august he is taking fire over his days at bain capital from the president. but today, mr. romney is raising some more questions about the president and his campaign. back and forth we go. chief political correspondent carl cameron is live in washington with more. so, carl, what's going on here? >> reporter: best defense is a good often is the romney campaign strategy. they have been taking a pounding. outspent in the ad war by calm campaign in battleground states in big, big numbers. attacks on mitt romney's career at bain capital is taking a toll. he will attack president obama for quote, crony capitalism. the allegation that the president and administration, democrats, have been rewarding obama allies and donors with big government contracts. think solyndra and the like. this was romney earlier today. >> this is a tough time for the people of america but if you're a campaign contributor to barack obama, your business may stand to make, get billions of

dollars or hundreds of millions of dollars in cash from the government. i think it's wrong. i think it stinks to high heaven and i think the administration has to explain how it is they would consider giving money to campaign contributors businesses. >> reporter: romney used this line of attack in the past. it has been successful. whether or not it changes the subject from bain remains to be seen. we know most independent fact checkers said the bain attacks from the obama campaign from mr. romney are false and misleading. though the president is setting a record for his ad campaign on the tv screens across america with its attack ads, he did or interview with cbs argued he is actually pretty positive on the air. this is an interesting thing to watch. >> if you look at ads that we do, first of all we've done a whole slew of positive ads that talked exactly about how we need to change our education system, how we need to change our tax code, how we need to rebuild america. how we need to promote

american energy. so, those just don't get attention in the news. but, we're very much promoting it. >> reporter: they don't get attention in the news because they are basically outnumbered. in june, independent studies said that the obama campaign, 75% of its ads were negative. so a three to one margin. for instance in the battle ground state of ohio, dayton, a i can particularly important state, city, for two weeks, in the latter part of june, all the ads that ran from the obama campaign in dayton were negative. jenna. jenna: interesting. the president is heading out to ohio again today. we talked aed a little bit about the calendar. labor day will be here before we know it, carl. what about the vice president pick? >> reporter: romney spent the weekend talking about vice-presidential elections with staff in new hampshire. he spent a couple weekends on it. there is buzz out there that he will make the buzz early. next two weeks before the olympics would seem highly unlikely. that would set a new record

for announcing vice-presidential nominee early. since 1980 no candidate would make announcement more than 20 days out. the olympics a full month ahead, highly unlikely. they're getting closer and folks say they are beginning to make up their mind. jenna: 113 days. our countdown clock is on the screen. carl cameron in desee, thank you. jon: democrats threaten to go over the fiscal cliff. it is a harsh warning to republicans if no agreement is made on bush tax rates. such a move could send the nation back into recession. mike emanuel live on capitol hill. we're scheduled for this huge tax increase, what, january 1, if nothing gets done to stop it. democrats are threatening to let that happen? >> reporter: jon, what the democrats in the senate would like to do, obama white house agrees to extend tax cuts for individuals

making $200,000 a year. for couples making up to $250,000 per year. if not, senator patty murray, who is the, person responsible in the u.s. senate for the democrats maintaining the majority, is going to say in a speech today, maybe we ought to reset everything. maybe we ought to let it all expire and start over at that point. she is going to say, quote, so if we can't get a good deal, a balanced deal that calls on the wealthy to pay their fair share, i will absolutely continue the debate into 2013, rather than lock in a long-term deal this year that throws middle class families under the bus. so she is going to issue that warning to her republican colleagues, if we can't get a fair deal, then maybe we ought to just let it all expire and start over in the new year? jon? jon: but republicans are arguing you should let all of the bush tax cuts be extended. can you explain their position? >> reporter: yeah. essentially what they're saying is, let's extend the bush tax cuts for another

year and let's dot-com hens sieve tax reform in 2013. they're worried about the country slipping back into recession. if you let the tax cuts expire the job creators will be hurt. here is senator jon kyl making that point. >> the problem with the tax cut or tax increase the president is proposing is, false directly on the job creators. 53% of the income raised would come from those businesses and they employ 25% of the all the people that are working in the united states. >> reporter: senator patty murray will lay out her vision in a speech this afternoon here in washington. a lot of republican senators are making their way back to washington after being in their home states. we expect to hear plenty from them throughout the course of the day. jon: a big game of tax cut chicken. we'll see which side blinks i guess. mike emanuel, thanks. >> reporter: thank you.

jenna: secretary of state hillary clinton touching down in israel today for the final leg of her middle east tour. she arrives after high-level talks in egypt where some protesters pelted her motorcade with tomatoes and shoes of all things. the senior u.s. official says mrs. clinton was never in any danger. israel, secretary clinton met with the president this morning. she is dweerging up for talks with prime minister benjamin netanyahu later on today. the talks are expected to focus on the iran's nuclear program and stalled middle east talks. coming up next hour we'll have report about jerusalem and talk about our friends and enemies and the way forward in the middle east. jon: governor romney is going on the offensive this week, charging president obama with handing out payouts to his political cronies while ignoring the struggles of the middle class. we'll take a new look at the governor's new strategy on that. jenna: hundreds of homes now in the line of a fast-moving

wildfires. what a summer it has been for wildfires. we'll talk about what is being done to tame the flames and why mother nature could make their job even harder out there. jon: this controversial case. some brand new phone calls just released in regard to the trayvon martin shooting. what they reveal about suspect sill sim george zimmerman and the impact on the case against him. we're live with the case coming up. frank, instead of scratching your way to retirement,

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jon: fox news is america's election headquarters. after attacks by the president's campaign over his time at bain capital governor romney hits back with a fresh campaign message, a new web video accuses president obama of political cronyism, rewarding his democratic donors while ignoring the struggles of the middle

class. the ad, just part of the larger effort the romney campaign refers to as president obama's political payoffs, and middle class layoffs. take a look. [applause] ♪ i'm so in love with you . [cheers and applause] jon: joining us now, from washington is bob cusack, managing editor of "the hill." bob, a lot of people have been urging mitt romney to hit back at president obama over these attacks on bain capital. is this it and do you think it will work? >> definitely this is part of what romney needs to do. i mean he needs to get the attention back on president obama, not on his tax returns, not on bain. i mean every day that campaign is not about the economy is a good day for the obama campaign because

the obama campaign can't blame mitt romney for the ailing economy. a lot of republicans have said, jon, listen, romney has got to be better at counter punching. he has been on the defensive. he had a tough weekend. this week has got to be a reset button. the media interviews he did late last week did not really work. so they're trying this. and certainly they have to make the case that president obama vowed to change washington as we know it and it has not changed. it actually has changed for the worse according to some. jon: yeah, but there are indications that the bain attacks haven't necessarily worked. i mean the president and mitt romney are still essentially tied after weeks of the president's team pounding mitt romney on his business experience. >> yes. i mean this election is still a jump ball with obama i think having a slight lead in some of these battleground states but the obama campaign hasn't indicated they will keep hammering him and, i do think that bain, coupled with the tax returns, romney

needs to change the conversation, especially with more and more republicans saying he should release those tax returns. romney needs to shift course. without a doubt, this is a very close race and it is not like they buried mitt romney with these attacks. jon: we just got another consecutive month, a third consecutive month of a slowdown in consumer spending. that hasn't happened since 2008. ironically, the year that president was elected. there are all kinds of warning signs out there about the economy. why doesn't the romney team use that? >> well, certainly that's what i think their gameplan is going to be. that is what romney has to say repeatedly. mention these stats on retail sales, consumer confidence, the unemployment rate obviously. manufacturing. there's a lot of these stats that can be used repeatedly. i think you will see a lot of them during the debates. they're being crowded out and drowned out by the noise of bain and that is a communication problem that romney campaign is seeking

to rectify this week. it is a key week for mitt romney. jon: thanks very much. bob cusack from "the hill". >> thanks, jon. jenna: now a closer look at a major city's new effort to fight crime. the disturbing spike in murders and shootings in chicago and what's being done about it. jon: also tragedy to tell you about in texas. two men killed in a lightning storm. another man fighting for his life. what witnesses saw in the moments of terror and chaos. also, dangerous heat is back. we're going to tell you where folks have to stay safe from blistering temperatures once again. [ snoring ]

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jon: a severe weather alert now. firefighters are racing to try to contain a wildfire before it reaches hundreds of holes in northern california. the robbers fire as it is known burning near sacramento. it is only about 30% contained now. this dangerous situation forcing evacuations as the fire continues to grow. rough terrain combined with high temperatures and strong winds are making it a tough fight for folks on the ground. jenna: then there is this. a deadly display of mother nature's force. two soccer players are now dead and a third person injured after being crushed by a falling tree during a thunderstorm in houston, texas. police say they were trying to get shelter from the rain when lightning suddenly struck killing one man instantly. >> i heard what sounded like a bomb go off. i looked to my left and i could see the lightning strike hit the top of the tree, go all the way down and disperse on the ground. so i took off running towards them. everybody was running the

other way. when i got there i saw three males laying on the ground unresponsive. jenna: the third man remains in stable condition. the houston area by the way, dealing with drenching rain and flooding. flooding between 50 and 100 homes there. jon: from torrential floods to a record drought creating a state of emergency across 26 states, mostly in the midwest. farmers say it is already killed a third of our nation's crops, and it could cause prices to spike even higher. corn, peanuts, soybeans and cotton are among crops hardest hit. farmers say they're desperately praying for rain, meantime doing the best they can to try to get by. >> all the stuff is pretty much burned up. we've had to buy stuff, import produce in. had to do a lot of watering to try to keep things from dying. and increase prices. just made it real difficult. jenna: trying to do all the

watering they can but there is still not a lot of relief in sight. you have brutal temperatures for folks in the midwest and northeast. meteorologist maria molina is in the fox weather center with more. >> jenna, good to see you. we're expecting more dry weather across the midwest and hot temperatures, well above average temperatures. even though it is summer we're used to seeing warm this time of year we're looking at temperatures a little bit on the hot side. minneapolis, 98 degrees for a high temperature. you factor in the humidity and it feels hotter. we're expecting heat across the region into the triple digits. chicago another scorcher for you as well. across the northeast you will notice temperatures getting warmer and warmer. new york city expecting a high of 92 degrees. this is why we have the heat advisories in effect across south dakota, minnesota and parts of wisconsin. as we head eastward, philadelphia currently under an excessive heat warning because we'll see heat index values well over 100

degrees. new york city you're also under a heat advisory. tomorrow will be even hotter across the northeast. back into the triple digits in d.c. 97 in philadelphia. as we head northward, upstate new york in syracuse, 99 is the forecast high as we head into tomorrow. i mentioned thesetures are above normal this time of year. d.c., average temperature is 88 degrees. by tuesday, triple digits and wednesday still a hot one of the this won't last as long as last one we see. we'll see cold front by wednesday. it will bring relief in the chicago. 86 will be the high then. by the end of the work week we'll see much more pleasant temperatures in new york city. jenna: getting perspective when the relief is 86 degrees. it is a hot summer so far, maria. thank you very much. >> thanks. jon: maria talked about the heat wave hitting towns like chicago. murder is also on the rise there. a city that leads the nation in gang violence. in one recent weekend, more than 50 people were shot on

the streets of chicago. nine of them killed in what appear to be revenge attacks. now that city's police department is launching a database to try to prevent and predict gang violence there. mike tobin takes a look at it live. mike? >> reporter: jon, nothing seems to stop the street violence with gangs here in chicago. just over this past weekend, another four people were killed, 17 shot and wounded. as you mentioned chicago police are pioneering new tech next to use technology to get a upper hand on the street dwangs gangs. >> guy in the middle. streest. looks like he is shot. >> reporter: hot summer night on chicago's south side. another young man lies on the ground with bullet wounds. >> we have a guy with wounds in both his legs. >> reporter: more than 100 people have been shot in chicago this year. homicides are up 39%. from the latin kings to the

gang sister disciples, so vice lords, there 625 gangs in chicago often warring it internal factions. there are drug disputes and never ending cycle of vend debt tas. chicago pioneered a database that tracks gangs and turf battles. even lower level gang members are entered when they pop up on the police radar. if a guy gets shot, police see who his friends are. we can quickly assess conditions. we can make predictions where retaliations might be likely to happen. >> reporter: now the person you saw shot in that report is a member of the mickey cobras street gang. he has a bunch of buddies who feel compelled to about out and get even. but with this technology, police have a rough idea who they are and who to keep an eye on. jon? jon: mike tobin in chicago. interesting technology there. thanks, mike. >> reporter: you got it. jenna: back to politics now, the battle over the bain attacks with the president refusing to apologize after

a campaign official insinuated that mr. romney may be guilty of a felony. governor romney reacting today. we have a fair and balanced look at the controversy coming up next. a new financial scandal brewing over interest rates. why some of the world's biggest banks and biggest bank firms could be facing charges. what this means for all of us carrying home loans and car loans. we're live with that story next. at shell, we believe the world needs a broader mix of energies. that's why we're supplying natural gas to generate cleaner electricity... that has around 50% fewer co2 emissions than coal. and it's also why, with our partner in brazil, shell is producing ethanol - a biofuel made from renewable sugarcane. >>a minute, mom! let's broaden the world's energy mix. let's go.

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jon: new fallout after president obama refuses to apologize for attacks on governor romney's record at bain capital. this after his deputy campaign manager, stephanie cutter suggested mr. romney may have committed a felony by misrepresenting his tenure at bain capital to the securities and exchange commission. cutter now saying the governor needs to stop whining. >> he's not going to get an apology. it's interesting, a few months ago in the republican primary mitt romney said to his opponents who he was crushing at the time, stop whining. i think that is a good message for the romney campaign. instead of whining what the obama campaign is saying, put the facts out there and let the people decide without trying to hide them. jon: governor romney reacted to that on fox & friends. >> when people accuse you of a crime you have every reason to go after him pretty hard. i'm proud of the record i had in my business career, helping turn around the olympics, and as the

governor of the state of massachusetts. what does it say about a president whose record is so poor that all he can do in this campaign is attack me. jon: hadle heat joins us and chris kafinis, former chief of staff to joe manchin. does anyone really care when governor romney left bain capital? >> i think they do care. the reason why the bain issue matters, the reason why the taxes issues matters, it goes to character and trust. as i said before when the american people go in and vote for president they are not just simply voting on record and policies, it's how they feel about the candidate, what that candidate represents and stands for and believes. i think based on -- for governor romney given what he professes to be his record at bain, when you have a very confusing understanding of when you came and what you left and what your

record was and when you have this inability to release taxes even though republicans are going out there saying you should release your taxes, republicans are saying this. i think it doesn't help governor romney's argument to the american people at all. jon: why not, chris, i'll get to hadley in a minute, why isn't the president running on his record? >> well, listen, the president is running on his record. and the fact is every incumbent is going to be judged on their resume and what they accomplished during their term. it is also a choice, it's not simply a referendum. the american people have to make a decision between the through visions of what governor romney did at bain, what he did or didn't do with his taxes, what he did as governor in massachusetts, those also matter. jon: hadley if the person people are looking at both of these candidates they know what they've got even from barack obama for the last almost four years, what are they going to get from governor romney if he were elected?

>> well, hopefully we see a more positive message from governor romney. he's able to articulate the policies he stands for and i think he's doing that. i do agree with chris though his record in the public sector and private sector, governor romney is running for the highest office in the united states and his record should be fair game. i think the obama campaign is parking up the wrong tree. it shows how desperate they are to detphrebt th deflect america's focus from the failed promises by barack obama. jon: what about when he said on friday if you have a business you didn't build that. it sounds like a guy who doesn't want to allow businesses to prosper in this country. >> well, listen, in fairness to the president, and i read that entire comment that he made at the event in virginia, what he was saying i think was what i

think most americans believe, that the reality is in this country none of us do it by ourselves, we go to schools, we use roads. jon: sure. >> there is a role for government and i think that is what his argument is and that is the crux of the differences between the two candidates. one believes that individuals regardless of their backgrounds can all make it on their own. listen, the truth is government does have a helping hand. it shouldn't be a crutch but it can be a helping hand. to go back real quick to the point about mitt romney. when george bush ran in 2000 i could tell you what he stood for, he had a vision. i cannot tell you as a democrat and an american what governor romney believes. no one has an idea of what his policies are, not one. jon: give us the stphreu flip side of that. what are president obama's policies. >> i think he believes in expanding the role of government. there is a role for government in our society but the role has gone too far. obama wants to criticize romney for outsourcing jobs. equity firms don't specialize in

outsourcing. american business are outsourcing now because we have the highest corporate tax rate in the world. under president obama's watch federal regulation has become increasingly burdensome. we can certainly point to the role of government having expanded too far beyond its means as a reason that american businesses are struggling and american families are struggling. jon: and the discussion for ano. thank you both for joining us. >> thank you. >> thank you. jenna: now this warning from economists, many are growing increasingly pessimistic about the economy here at home. a new survey finds a majority of economists see growth slowing in the next few months ahead. part of those 113 days, so very crucial as we move closer to the election. the debt crisis in europe is a big issue according to these economists and looming tax increases if washington can't reach a deal, some of that is

being blamed for the gloomy outlook. this story is a big story today in the business world and the rest of us, the department of justice getting involved in an alleged interest rate fixing scandal at some of the world's biggest banks. peter barnes is with the fox business network and has more on this. what are officials saying about this investigation? >> jenna, the justice department is confirming the investigation. a spokesperson says quote the department's criminal division has an ongoing criminal investigation into other institutions and individuals. officials are investigating price fixing in libor which is one of the most important interest rates in the world, it's the benchmark, the base rate that banks use to set higher rates for trillions of dollars of mortgage rates, student loans and more. the british bank barclays settled civil charges in in case three weeks ago for $450 billion. a government official says the justice department is ramping up the criminal investigation,

jenna. jenna: when it comes to the criminal investigation and charges how many banks are we talking about, how many people could be facing those charges? >> well, the government official confirms "the new york times" reports that about ten u.s. banks and at least two european banks are targets in the civil and criminal investigations. citigroup is one of them. it just released its second quarter earnings this morning and in a conference call it says it continues to cooperate with regulators on the liobobor case but declined further comment. jenna: are any investors and analysts worried about how this scandal can affect the actual health of those banks and whether or not they are going to stay healthy? >> yes we've seen multiple analysts reporting that they think that civil and criminal and private lawsuits, class action lawsuits could cost these banks billions, potentially tens of billions of dollars, jenna.

jenna: a story we'll continue to watch, peter, thank you. jon: new video just in to fox, violent protests over economic measures in spain. more than a thousand people taken to the streets there, including firefighters, police officers and other civil servants as they try to march on the parliament building. they were protesting austerity measures, which include cuts to their salaries. their wages already were cut by an average of 5% two years ago, and they say that is enough. jenna: a new medical warning for women today, a very common beauty products, probably some you've already used today, i know i have, that may put your health at risk in a way you never really would have thought before. we'll talk about that with a doctor coming up. thousands of vehicles recalled by ford because of a possible problem with the brakes, sound familiar? more on that next. if you have copd like i do, you know how hard it can be to breathe and what that feels like.

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jenna: fox news alert if you drive afford you should listen

up to this. ford is recalling more than 10,000 popular escape suv's. julie banderas is with us. >> reporter: ford motor company is putting the brakes on its 2013 ford escape. the model is being recalled for brake pedal interference problems. the auto company is recalling more than 10,000 of the redesigned suv's to fix carpet pad thag could get in the way of braking. ford says the wrongly positioned carpet padding could reduce space around the pedals causing drivers to hit the side of the brake pedal when switching from the accelerators. if you own one of these vehicles not to worry. dealers will fix it at no charge. owners can call the number on the screen with any questions. so fortunately, though, no injuries have occurred as to this recall, so that's the good news. jenna: that is the good news. thank you. jon: brand-new stories for you

next hour, a big victory in florida's battle against voter fraud, and why what happened there could have national implications. we are live with that story. a very disturbing new trend in afghanistan as us and nato soldiers come under attack, and you won't believe who is behind it all. also a desperate search for two missing cousins, the little girls disappeared on friday, what police have found so far. jenna: some of the most common beauty products used by woman, like nail poeurbl polish and hairspray could be increasing our chances of a disease. a brand-new study finds certain chemicals found in many types of cosmetics may be tied to diabetes. how is this possible? here is doctor marty makary, a professor and physician of public health. as i am doing my interview i

have had my hair done and make up already today. how do they see that diabetes can be caused by the chemicals in these products. >> phthaltes is thought to increase in the fat break down and affects insulin and predispose to diabetes. i think it's hard to maco make conclusions from it and it's a new study. jenna: call this hah hunch i believe i'm not the only one on set that has used hairspray or makeup today. jon: what? jenna: i'm just saying, i think there may be someone else. i know this study is about women but is there any connection to men, potentially using hairspray

maybe. >> the same study group had looked in years past about the idea that hairspray could cause cancer, found no connection. subsequently they looked at this study of 2 how 300 women only and it's just based on this group that they found that those that had this substance in their urine when it was tested had a slightly higher rate of diabetes. i find it sunny, when you use the stuff on your skin, nails and hair it shows up in your urine, to me that is pretty amazing that that stuff pen straits your system. jenna: as a medical professional, give us some advice that we can use. do you think there is enough information out there, this study and others that you would really suggest to us that we should shop for some of these organic products that have less chemicals in them? is there enough out there that you think that would be a wise choice for our health? >> well, first of all we really haven't seen the high rates of these problems in a large scale. i would just say use common-sense, avoid the mucus membranes, the aoeurbgs the

nose, the lips, use moderation whenever possible and just realize you're using chemicals, any time you can avoid a chemical, you know the better so. moderation is probably the wisest thing. jenna: i'll send that message to jon's make up artist to make sure he's protected. thank you for being here today. jon: new information on a story we are following. the president of florida a & m university is stepping down, this comes in the wake of the hazing death of a member of the school always marching band. 11 band members face felony hazing charges in this is death. he has been under fire because of the entire incident. he is resigning effective immediately. jenna: fox news getting its hands-on new documents in the

trayvon martin murder case. the prosecution releasing new phone calls today made by george zimmerman. live in florida with the breaking news on that. also two men trying to cool off in triple-digit heat get swept away. the daring rescue caught on tape, next. [ male announcer ] don't miss red lobster's four course seafood feast, st $14.99. start with soup, salad ancheddar bay biscuits then choose one of 7 entrees plus dessert! four perfect courses, just $14.99. come into red lobster and sea food differently. or annuity over 10 or even 20 years? call imperial structured settlements. the experts at imperial can convert your long-term payout into a lump sum of cash today.

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prosecutor in the trayvon martin murder days releasing new documents on more than 140 phone calls that george zimmerman made from his florida jail cell. he is charged with second-degree murder as you know in the death of trayvon martin. he claims he shot the unarmed teenager in self-defense. the case reviving the debate on the controversial stand your ground laws in many of the united states.

steve harrigan is live in miami. steve, what can you tell us? >> reporter: jon, just a caution at first. the release of information from more than a hundred phone calls as well as a statement from witness number nine, this is a great deal of information we are going through really as we speak. it seems one startling fact leaps out, and that is an accusation by witness number nine that she was molested by george zimmerman when she was six years old, zimmerman was eight years old. witness number nine also makes the accusation that zimmerman and his family were racists. >> i was afraid because he was black. growing up him and his families have always made statements that they don't like black people if they don't act like white people. they like black people if they act white. >> reporter: two charges from

this witness number one just released, one that zimmerman and his family were racist and two that when witness number nine was a tkpweurpl of six years old zimmerman, roughly two years older than her, that would put him at about age eight molested her at that time. zimmerman's attorney has fought hard to keep the statement of witness number nine out of the public considering it would inflame the face, he failed in that case so we're going through the phone calls and that document right now. jon: similar r-r's lawyer zimmerman's lawyers are asking for the judge to recuse himself. >> reporter: they want that judge out. it all stems back to the bond hearing. he lied to the court about how much money he had available, the judge through hi threw him back into jail, gave him a stinging rebuke, he's out again on bail but they don't think he can get a fair trial from this judge. it is the judge himself, kenneth lester that will make the decision on whether or not he needs to recuse himself from

this case. no trial date is set yet, jon. jon: i know you have a lot of phone calls and documents to go through, we'll let you get back to it, steve harrigan in miami. jenna: breaking news alert now, a shooting has happened right off the coast of the united arab epl reufplts you ca emirates. it's not far from the strait of hormuz that we talk about with iran and the security in that region. we are not sure precisely where the shooting happened. the "associated press" sayserica boat off the coast of the united emirates. the associated press is reporting that one person is dead, three others injured. we have yet to confirm that part of this report. all we can confirm at this time is that a shooting happened. we are going to have more breaking news on this story and the potential impact in the middle east as we get more information we will bring that

to you. budget cuts leading to very tough choices these days of course, including an eye-opening decision to free dozens of prisoners, even accused murderers at that. we'll tell you what is behind that decision. much more coming up next hour on "happening now." happy birthday! thank you, nana send money to anyone's checking account with chase quickpay. all you need is an email address or mobile number. you're welcome. take a step forward and chase what matters. wouldn't it be nice if there was an easier, less-expensive option than using a traditional lawyer? well, legalzoom came up with a better way. we took the best of the old and combined it with modern technology. together you get quality services on your terms,

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jon: a top democrat says her party is willing to go over the, quote, fiscal cliff and allow the bush tax cut toss expire for everyone at the end of the year if more taxes for the rich are not considered. that could mean a much leaner paycheck for millions of americans. bret baier on the high-stakes poker game playing out right now on capitol hill. we'll also go live to the pentagon for the very latest on this u.s. ship that apparently has fired on a boat off the coast of dubai. and authorities in iowa resume their search for two young girls who disappeared near a lake on friday. we are expecting a news conference this hour with the very latest on this mystery.

jenna: well, major victory for florida in the state's long-running battle two prevent voter fraud and to make sure voters are actually citizens. that was part of their key argument. hi, everybody, i'm jenna lee. jon: i'm jon scott. florida wants to remove the names of noncitizens from state voter rolls. the obama administration repeatedly refused to give the state access to a federal database of non-- i'm sorry, of resident noncitizens. jenna: well, the feds finally caved in after a federal judge ruled in the state's favor, and that decision could have implications in other states. eric shawn is live on this story with more. >> reporter: hi, jenna. well, for a year now the feds did not want to give up the names. the department of homeland security list that could help florida remove noncitizens who are illegally registered to vote. but after a state lawsuit against the justice department and a judge's ruling in a related case, the obama

administration relented. the list is called the systematic alien verification for entitlements database. critics have claimed culling through the names on that list to try and find any noncitizens here legally but who by law should not be voting, they claim that could lead to voter suppression. but ken debtor in told us this morning that getting the list is an important step in trying to protect the integrity of the election. >> that means that we can insure to florida voters that this fall's election and in elections in the future will guarantee that noncitizens are going to be removed and that eligible voters' votes will not be neutralized as a result of noncitizens voting in florida elections. >> reporter: the details for turning over the list have not been finalized, and he did say they will not be able to go through the entire list in time for the november presidential election. florida officials originally compiled a list of 180,000

potential noncitizens, they plan to vet that list, but now they say since they're going to get the whole database, they're going to start that process all over again. some like the brennan center for justice here in new york say the issue is overblown. they claim the number of noncitizens voting across the country is insignificant. but we have seen here at fox news voting records of noncitizens who are illegally registered, registered in another state and who have, yes, voted. other state election officials across the country now also want access to that national list to check possible illegal voting in their states. the department of homeland security has not yet responded, though, to our request for a comment on their releasing the names in this list. and, of course, if you suspect voter fraud or problems at the polls where you live, we want to know about it. voter fraud@foxnews.com is our address. jenna? jenna: a busy next few months for you, eric. thank you. jon: battles raging right now in the capital of syria. government troops and rebels there fighting in damascus for a

second straight day. reports of dozens of explosions rocking that city. we are also hearing that the fighting briefly forced the closure of the highway linking damascus to the main airport. also in the middle east, secretary of state hillary clinton visiting israel, holding talks with leaders of our top ally in that part of the world. the meetings focus on the violence in syria and iran's nuclear program. mrs. clinton also reassuring israel of continued u.s. support. leland vittert is keeping an eye on that, he's live in jerusalem for us right now. leland? >> reporter: jon, there's certainly a lot going on in the middle east between syria, the egyptian election, of course, the nuclear crisis with iran. so the israelis are nervous, to say the least. mrs. clinton came in, reassured the israelis of not only the u.s. support, but also playing an active role in helping israel over the next couple of months. the other thing she was pressing israeli leaders on is the middle

east peace process with the palestinians. there have been no meaningful negotiations or movement on that in about the past year, and the united states is trying to play a key role in getting that moving once again with israel and the palestinians speaking once again. the other big issue looming here is the go/no go decision on the possibility of an attack on iran by israel. obviously, the united states is trying to ask israel to continue to hold off, though there's not really any concrete statements by either side about that today. it's important to note where mrs. clinton came from which is egypt where the muslim brotherhood president has just taken over, and mrs. clinton did not exactly get a great reception there in egypt. we have some video from alexandria, there were people throwing shoes at her, throwing tomatoes at her convoy, telling her, quote: go home clinton. and the other chant, monica, monica, monica, of course, in reference to the monica lewinsky

scandal. this shows you the level of anti-americanism there. they were burning american flags in the streets when mrs. clinton came to egypt, and that's going to make it much harder for the united states to try and get concessions or help for israel or for u.s. interests over the coming months from mohamed morrissey, even as a muslim brotherhood member, he wanted to give the united states some concessions, the political climate certainly as evidenced by that video has changed a great deal over the past couple of years. jon, back to you. jon: this from a country that receives all kinds of american foreign aid. interesting developments there. thanks very much, leland vittert. some big changes in the middle east making it harder for the u.s. to tell friend from foe in that very important part of the world. we'll discuss this with our panel a little bit later on in the hour. jenna: speaking of the middle east, fox news confirming a u.s. ship fires on a boat off the coast of dubai in the united arab emirates. with more, jennifer griffin joins us from the pentagon.

>> reporter: hi, jenna. well, we can confirm from two senior u.s. defense officials that the u.s. ennis navy ship fired shots on a small vessel that approached it in territorial waters off the united arab emirates earlier today. that is not far from the strait of hour hormuz -- hormuz. the uae coastline goes on either side of that narrow strait. the u.s. ship is a u.s. navy oil tanker. we're told by sources that the oil ship fired warning shots at this small dinghy-sized boat that approached it. the dinghy turned away as if it were leaving and then turned back around, we're told by sources, towards the boat, and that's when the u.s. fired again where we are hearing reports from the united arab emirates

through the u.s. consulate there that one person was killed, three others injured on that dinghy as it approached the ship. it is extremely unusual, jenna, for a u.s. navy ship to fire in the very tense area around the strait of hormuz. we've heard, you know, repeated threats from the iranian leadership that they have threatened to close the strait of hormuz to prevent oil tankers from going through. we haven't seen any signs of that, but certainly all of the u.s. fifth fleet, navy fifth fleet that are out there are on high alert, and they are concerned certainly whenever they see these sort of small dinghies approaching their sides in the wake of the uss cole years ago as well as other attempts by the iranian revolutionary guard to swarm navy vessels in the persian gulf and in the strait of hormuz, jenna. jenna: go back to what you said what's being described as a dinghy was on the way towards the ship. can you tell us anything about

what senior officials are telling you about whether that was a military vessel, whether it looked like commercial fishermen, any description of that further? >> reporter: right now it's not clear whether this was a vessel that had a flag attached to it, whether it's clear which country it was flagged to, whether it was a military vessel or whether it was a fishing vessel or commercial vessel. the u.s. navy sources that we've spoken to suggest that they're still getting information. um, this incident happened not long ago, but what we can tell you is that the iranian revolutionary guard in the past has tested u.s. navy ships in those waters by swarming small vessels around them. so this is something that u.s. navy vessels are quite used to. but what was unusual about this case was that this dinghy appeared to turn away from the u.s. ship and then come back towards it. now, because it's carrying oil, it would be extremely flammable if there were any sort of attack on it, so that is why these

civilians onboard the u.s. ship fired, because they felt, they felt at that point their lives were in danger. another point, we're just learning from officials here at the pentagon that the uss john c. stennis, an aircraft carrier group, is enroute to the persian gulf and will be arriving four months ahead of schedule. right now there are two aircraft carrier groups in the persian gulf. the stennis now, we're told, will be heading to the region and will be arriving four months early. this does not mean that the u.s. navy is going up to a three-carrier group position, but we're told from pentagon officials that, essentially, they want the stennis in place so that there is not a gap where there's only one aircraft carrier in that very tense region off the coast of iran. jenna: very important story for us today and an important time as you're mentioning, jen. back to you at the pentagon anytime this hour as we get more news on this situation. thank you very much.

jon: remember, it was a small boat like that -- jenna: absolutely, the cole, that's right. jon: yeah. the navy has been on high alert ever since then for those small boat attacks. the democrats are threatening now to spark what some call an economic meltdown unless they get their way on raising taxes on the wealthy. we'll get into that. jenna: an ongoing debate. plus, an afternoon outing ends really in sheer terror. we have some amazing video of a rescue coming up. >> jon: also searchers are hunting for two young girls missing since friday as loved ones pray for their safe return. >> positive thinking is all we have right now and our faith and that god will bring them, god will bring them back. i just care about what happens to my kids. i just want them. ok! who gets occasional constipation, diarrhea, gas or bloating? get ahead of it! one phillips' colon health probiotic cap a day helps defend against digestive issues

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jon: democrats on capitol hill

appear to be ready to take a page from "the godfather," making republicans an offer they can't refuse. either agree to raise taxes on the wealthy, or the democrats will let taxes go up for everybody, potentially sending the economy over a fiscal cliff. bret baier is the anchor of "special report." so what's going on here? we're getting this word from senator patty murray who says, okay, if republicans don't want to raise taxes on the wealthiest americans, we'll just raise taxes on everybody? >> essentially, using that january 1st deadline when all of those tax cut expire. the bush era tax cuts and dozens of other provisions would go away, thereby raising everyone's tax rates. the democrats now in the form of senator patty murray, the democrat from washington, who's not just another senator talking, she's also the number four in the senate democratic leadership and the head of the democratic senator tore y'all campaign committee, so this is really kind of the thought

process in the caucus one would assume, in a prepared speech today shiewl lay out that if republicans don't get off the dime on dealing on raising taxes for the wealthy, the democrats think it might be worthwhile to let all the tax cuts expire and then after the first of the year force republicans' hands, and then they would be voting on what would be a tax cut across the board. and that's the only way, she says, that if democrats don't negotiate, they might have to go there. jon: i guess that comes from a senator who sounds pretty confident that the senate is going to remain in democratic control after the first of the year? >> yes, definitely. and, you know, that is -- this is all, let's just be clear about this, this is all about the election and positioning and semantics. remember that the president's proposal is to have a one-year extension of the bush era tax cuts for those making $250,000 or less, families making $250,000 or less, individuals

$200,000 or less and then raise taxes on everyone else. basically, to keep what is in place for one more year for middle class families. this is different than what president obama said back in 2010, and he said raising taxes on anyone in a bad economy would be a bad idea. so that's the difference. jon: and that seems to be the consensus, bret, among most of the economists and people who have looked at this thing, that letting the bush tax cuts expire in this economy could potentially be catastrophic. so democrats are saying they're willing to do that just in order to, i guess, have a second vote and make republicans raise taxes on the wealthy? >> right. and this is very similar, jon, to the standing on principle that republicans made in raising the debt ceiling and all the back and forth about the threatening of the economy based on that stand. eventually, republicans backed

down. it did not play well for the republican caucus in the house. whether this is, this is dicey politics no matter how you look at it. but if democrats are saying they're willing to go to this length, we'll have to see how it plays as we get closer and closer. again, this is all about semantics setting up for the november election more than it is about the lame duck session of congress. jon: yeah. seems like a strange policy, make everybody unhappy, and then blame republicans. but we'll see if they get there and whether it works. bret baier, you can explain it to us some more tonight, i'm sure. 6 p.m. eastern when he anchors "special report." jenna: well, secretary of state hillary clinton is in the middle east today looking for potentially creative ways to deal with iran, that's what's been reported. what our allies have to say.coming up. plus, a jury now considering the fate of a teenager accused of brutally beating a girl. he's claiming insanity caused by his brother's suicide. will the jury buy it?

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jon: right now the first day of jury deliberations underway for a teenager charged with brutally beating a young girl, leaving her with severe brain injuries. we've told you about this case before. wayne tracy charged with attempted murder, but he's claiming insanity. he blames post traumatic stress caused by suicide of his brother. julie banderas has more for us. >> reporter: it's a traumatic case all around, jon. prosecutors say tracy was enraged, not insane on that day in the march of 2010 when he slammed josie lou rattily to the

ground and bashed her head against the concrete while stomping on her head wearing steel-toe boots. the assault happened on the campus at their middle school in dearfield beach, florida. tracy's defense lawyer argues according to mental health experts, tracy -- who was 15 years old at the time -- suffered from untreated post traumatic stress disorder for five months leading up to the incident after he saw his brother's body dangling from a tree outside a neighborhood church. after receiving instructions on the law from the judge this morning, today jurors began deliberations in ft. lauderdale. we'll continue to watch this very sad case unfold. jon? jon: yeah. keep us updated, julie. thank you. jenna: secretary of state clinton on the last leg of her europe/middle east tour, and today she's in israel holding talks with leaders there on the changes sweeping the region including syria and iran. first up on her tour, though, of the middle east before she got

to israel was egypt where she met with the country's new president, a member of the muslim brotherhood. egypt was once a bedrock ally of the united states and also, by the way, quite an ally of israel, but that might not be such a sure bet this time around. egyptians pelted clinton's car with tomatoes and can burned american flags. the president, again, the man who's the member of the muslim brotherhood, is on the record as calling israelis vampires and killers. so in the fast-changing middle east, the united states is forced to consider a new question; who are our friends, and who are our enemies? joining me now, erin miller, former adviser to six secretaries of state, and pat buchanan is also with us, former senior adviser to three presidents and author of "suicide of a superpower." welcome to you both, nice to have you today. >> pleasure. jenna: we had that breaking news that i want to wrap into this, again, we're just working to confirm a lot of details of this, but we have the news that an american vessel fired on a

ship right off the coast of the united arab emirates. and, aaron, we've talked in the past about the risk of accidental war, giving the tensions in the middle east. again, working on the details of that, but how high of a risk do you think that truly is right now? >> i'm not sure it's much of a risk at all. middle east wars usually don't happen by accident. they're preceded by a trail of events, misunderstandings which are usually triggered by some event. clearly, after the uss cole in yemen, the u.s. navy needs to be incredibly vigilant, particularly with respect to small craft and dinghies approaching boats. so i suspect discretion was the better part of valor here. whether this was iranian-inspired, whether it was an al-qaeda operation off the coast of the uae is virtually impossible to say, but i don't believe we're headed for another war, at least not yet. jenna: pat, your thoughts on this? >> jenna, i disagree to some extent. i think the iranian militants

and in their parliament they want the iranian government to, basically, blockade the straits of hormuz. i don't think the iranian government and the ayatollah are that foolish, but i think there's a possibility that some iranian boats or individuals could act, and if there's a shooting incident with the american navy or if there is any attempt tolose the straits of hormuz, i think politically that would have an enormous impact in the united states, and it would be of enormous benefit to the commander in chief, barack obama. a u.s. engagement with iranian patrol boats or with iranian ships, i think, would be a winner for the president in november. jenna: some political ramifications, of all this, these happenings in the middle east. aaron, let's get back to also what we're aiming to discuss here today, about who our friends and enemies are. it seems like there might be a shift in the region. i say that carefully because it's tough to predict exactly what these changes will bring over the next several years. but, aaron, if there was a conflict with iran, who are our

friends? who will come to our aid in that region? are they the likely suspects, if you will, of israel and egypt like they were several years ago or not? >> i mean, i think we have a serious problem. the united states is neither admired, feared or respected as much as it needs to be in this region, and over the course of the last 18 months we've seen our traditional friends, certainly the arab autocrats, mubarak, ben ali basically go the way of the dodo. we've also seen our adversaries, gadhafi, saddam and not yet but soon i suspect and hope, bashar assad pass away as well. so america's off balance right now. clearly, we have an ally in israel, although the relationship is far from perfect, and we will probably do our best to keep the israelis out of any military confrontation that we were involved in in large part in order to preserve our credibility on the arab streets. so i suspect other than a couple

european powers, whatever the arabs secretly want with respect to capacity to destroy iran's nuclear sites, we're going to get very little open support by our so-called arab friends. jenna: pat, you have said the united states has diminished its power, the power of the united states hasty might -- has dimind in the region, but you're also saying how we're handling the iran issue has been rell thetively successful so far. why? >> well, first, take four nations, take you are turkey, e, saudi arabia, pakistan, i think aaron's exactly right. u.s. influence is really at a nay deer. these folks pay less and less attention to the united states. however, if you get to the persian gulf, iran is sort of universeally detested by the american people, and if they should try something militarily and the united states' fifth fleet is dominant in the gulf, if that happens and you have a fighting collision with iran, i agree with aaron, we're not going to get much help, but

we're not going to need too much help. you don't want the israelis involving themselves in it. but if you did have that collision, there's no doubt that the united states i think eventually would prevail after some kind of battle, and politically the american people have always risen to support the president in times of engagement. jenna: let me ask you both this final question, then we're going to have to wrap it up here. both of you say our influence in this region has diminished. so, pat, starting with you, how safe are we? >> well, i think our influence is going down because, frankly, the monarchs and the dictators and the despots who we supported because they were in power, they're being thrown, and there's a revolution going on that is hostile to westerners, deeply hostile to israel. we are supportive of israel. this tide and this revolution is on a roll. you know, as victor hugo said, armies as great as they are don't have the might of an idea whose time has come, and that time has come in the middle east. jenna: aaron? >> the space for america in this region, absolutely, i would

agree with pat, is shrinking. and our capacity to wage war effectively although on iran i do agree with pat that should we bring our military force to bear, we will prevail. but also our efforts to do diplomacy, to do peacemaking for historic conflicts in this region is going to be greatly reduced. i think we have to get used to the fact that for the first time the arabs own their own politics, and there may not be much of a place for the united states at least for the foreseeable future. jenna: leads us to a next conversation about how we can regain some of that influence with some of the new regimes. aaron and pat, nice to have you today, thank you. >> pleasure. >> thanks, jenna. jon: so when you vote for a president, what are the big issues that sway you? is it foreign policy like the discussion we just heard? what should the campaigns be about? we'll talk about what the campaigns are saying about each other today as they spar over governor romney's record, how it's being reported in the mainstream media when our news watch panel covers the coverage. that's coming up.

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jenna: breaking details, american hostages taken in egypt have apparently been released. greg palkot has the latest from london. >> reporter: the past couple of hours we have had indications that something was brewing, and in fact in the last ten minutes we can confirm that breaking reports, we are getting confirmations from egyptian security officials that the two americans who had been taken hostage on friday in the sinai

peninsula as well as their guide have been released. they were members of a church group from the boston area. the individual, and the two americans as well as the guide were then held by the tribes people under the guise that an uncle would be released from he jail. he was being held on drug charges. that in fact was the point of negotiations all along here for the well-being of michelle lewis, the boston area pastor, as well as the woman with him. back and forth the egyptian authorities went with these tribes people, and finally, again, according to our own security contacts the admission was that they would address the point of the release of this individual, of the hostage takers if not actually guaranteeing it. according to the hostage takers,

they said the americans that had been seized had nothing to do with his problem with the egyptian government, and for their own well-being they would in fact be released. we are told that they are with egyptian security officials right now. again, they've been taken since friday and there was some concerns because michelle lewis had served from diabetes. there are concerns whether he had medication with him when he was held in the mountains of the sinai peninsula and there had been threats that if the demands were not met after three days that in fact harm would be done to the americans held possible taj. they ar possible topblgs. our indications are that they will continue on their way in the sinai peninsula the story we just told you about an hour and a half ago now having a good ending, a happy ending. there have been several other incidents like this in the past year in the sinai peninsula

again, this one resolved safely. back to you, jenna. jenna: greg, thank you. jon: the news media are getting a lot of mileage these days from campaign attacks, blasting governor romney's career at bain capital. president obama is defending the latest attack ads targeting governor romney, listen. >> first of all, we've done a whole slew of positive ads that talk exactly about how we need to change our education system, how we need to change our tax code, how we need to rebuild america, how we need to promote american energy. so those just don't get attention in the news. jon: this morning governor romney slammed the obama campaign for dishonesty. >> the best offense is to look at the president's record. i really think the american people are going to tire and probably have already tired of all the attacks and misdirected as they are, one after the other attacks have been shown by independent tax checkers to be dishonest and false.

a campaign based on falsehood and dishonesty does not have long legs. jon: joining us is ellen ratner. and jim pin pinkerton, both fox news contributors. ellen, the president says we've been doing positive ads. the over well of his ads have been negative from what i see. >> i consider going after governor romney's tax records, his tax shelters to be a positive thing. i'm sure jim doesn't. jon: jim, what about it? let me read you this headline from "the washington post" today, jim. it reads, romney tries to regain momentum with new focus on obama's political payoffs. then the first line of this report reads, trying to shift

the presidential campaign narrative away from his personal finances and tenure at bain capital republican mitt romney will launch a fresh assault this week accusing accusing president obama of political cronyism at the expense of middle class workers. >> the media hopefully will know eye not true and not cover it that way. i wish bogus attacks would be revealed by the media to be bogus attacks. as seen in the last week or so the mainstream media are actively trumpeting all the attacks. what they are ignoring at the very moment they are demanding that governor romney disclose his tax returns and bain capital and all this stuff they are ignoring the fast and furious executive privilege. they are ignoring the activities

of a rogue epa and a arms treaty imposing gun control from afar. the hill newspaper this morning reports that the treasury department was using prostitutes as part of its expense plan. those would all be big issues, and the media strangely aren't interested. >> obviously the media will get on the prostitute thing because sex sells, jim. why isn't the media not down in the caymen islands. why haven't they followed where governor romney's accounts are. they've talked about the offshore accounts but no one has done the homework to show where they are and what he holds. jon: in a nation that has 8.2% unemployment, ellen and if the labor participation rate were the same as it was when president obama took office we'd have 11% unemployment. do you really think that is the issue that matters? >> i think you have to be able to have somebody who you are

voting for for president in your living room for the next four years and it has to do with the trust factor. and if governor romney is not being clear about his taxes that has to do with the trust factor. it's up to the news media to follow along with what really happened in healthcare in massachusetts and what is really happening with his offshore accounts. neither is being done. jon: the president promised us dark dash the president's people promised us if we passed the stimulus we'd have 5.6% unemployment. so, who should we trust ph. >> i'll add to that, jon. if the media was interested in digging up things they could dig up obama transskreuplts and his entire life story before the age of 35 years old. none of that was interesting to them. other stories, clicking around thinking about the segments. investors business daily reported back in scan that 36 white house aids owe the irs a

huge amount of money in taxes. do you think if governor romney had scofflaws on his tax rules what do you think the media would be talking about. >> you think the news media is prejudice against the owe bam administration and i think they are lazy on both fronts, actually. jon: we'll leave it there. thank you both. you can catch more of our terrific panel. jenna: a u.s. navy ship firing on a both near the strait of hormuz, the boat ignoring repeated warnings by those on board. joining us formal admiral, joe sestak. he'll tell us what it means for the military in the region and the west of us, next. [ dad ] i'm usually checking up on my kids.

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before you make any big decision. that's why i want to send you this free dvd about reverse mortgages. it'll walk you through the process, from qualification to counseling to closing and also, answer some important questions. what are the costs and how do they compare to a traditional mortgage? how is the government involved? and what is your responsibility after you get your reverse mortgage? the answers are all in this free dvd. a reverse mortgage could be a smart, safe and secure option that could help you pay off your original mortgage, manage your health care costs or just cover your day-to-day expenses. so call this toll-free number and let me send you your free video right now. [♪...] jenna: back to breaking news now. fox news confirming a u.s. ship fired on a small vessel rapidly

approaching it off the coast of due by. according to the "associated press," one person is stked three others injured. we are confirming the details on this. joe sestak joins us on the form, a retired vice admiral in the u.s. navy. he commanded the george washington carrier strike group. he served two terms in congress. congressman, nice to have you back with us on this breaking news story. what's your gut tell you on this? >> this is exactly was done with the rules of engagement that we train our sailors to follow in what is very restricted, very difficult waters. when i've operated out there there are hundreds of small craft going back and forth throughout the night. you're only about 40 or 50 miles away from iranian water wheres this happened. and we train our sailors that if some vessel is approaching you close aboard you give it

warning, you give it signals, like search lights, you light off flare s-rbs. you might eve flare. >> you might have a helocopter fly over. this is the type of incident where the united states naval ship took correct measures to defend itself because it has often been the case that the iranian revolutionary guard, like they did a few years ago, had five small fast boats go within a couple hundreds of yards of the u.s. s. hopper and almost began a violent incident. this is the type of incident that we train our sailors to do well when they are in international waters that we don't own but we have to protect ourselves. jenna: i want to go back to one of the points that you just made there, that when you have a

security team on this boat, and by the way this boat has civilians on it that are operating the ship and also a navy security team. this security team cannot just fire haphazardly on ships that are approaching it. talk us through that process and how much it would have taken for this ship, and the people on this ship to open fire on this vessel. >> absolutely. in this case, since this is an auxillary ship we usually have a civilian crew but the captain of the ship is a naval officer. he is awakened at night, and this appears to have occurred either in twilight or at night when every ship it looks like on radar it will approach within five nautical miles of the ship. you always have a crew that is manning a gun out there. at times if it's like a fast fregget that i commanded in the 90s you might have a helicopter up. if you do it will go look at that craft.

as it gets a certain distance away from the ship, and these are confidential limits so i can't speak specifically about what limit that is, they will radio that ship and ask it to turn away. next they will sound warning whistles at it, very loud. it will then begin to have search lights on it, all the time trying to contact this approaching vessel on an international frequency that every sailor, every fishing vessel, every merchant man copies for safety. if it keeps coming in then as it does other things it will begin to give warning shots in the water. if it continues to close in, and also the navy ship will maneuver for its own safety, then only at the last moment, the very last moment, where the ship looks like it will be in danger, will actual hostile action be taken

against that vessel. we trained for months with these truce to make sure they do it absolutely right. i probably had this happen over a hundred times when i was there, including incidents of having iranian aircraft fly over you. we have to give warnings or decide whether it's just a peaceful over flight. these are international waters, we have to protect our troops, but at the same time we don't want to have an untoward incident of injuring somebody because we aren't well-trained. our navy is extremely well-trained. jenna: you gave us even more of an appreciation for that today, congressman with that insight for us. thank you for the context during this breaking news. we look forward to having you back with us on this program. >> thanks, jenna very much. jon: you know there were tense times there in that part of the world. jenna: absolutely. jon: they are accused of violent crimes but dozens of inmates are no longer behind bars. in fact they are walking free. we'll tell you why and where that is happening next. are you receiving a payout from a legal settlement

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jon: new questions about public safety after budget cuts. one county in oregon recently released dozens of inmates, some of them with some pretty scary backgrounds. dan springer has that live from seattle. dan. >> reporter: we've seen early releases from jails and prison toss save money, but this lis is really stung. one hundred people serving time for robbery, strangulation, selling drugs to kids, and those are the less serious crimes. three of the men could not make bail and are awaiting trial on charges of manslaughter and vehicular homicide. they were sent on their way with only an electronic ankle bracelet. one of the guys admitted to a beating death of 46-year-old allen platt. aaron curry confessed to the

crime aeupbt crime and is looking for a lengthy sentence if convicted. the family is outraged. >> we want aaron locked back up until trial, until he goes before that jury like anybody else who has committed one of these crimes, or is accused of this cry. >> reporter: after closing a whole wing lane county is filling just 150 of its jail's 500 beds. this after the county was forced to close a $100 million budget deficit. 64 positions in the sheriff's department were cut, so in addition to the prisoner release there are also eight hours, for which there is not a single deputy on-duty to respond to crimes in progress or people this need. county leaders blame the federal government which owns a majority of the land. timber sales used to fund most of the county's services but the u.s. forest service has all but stopped them. and federal timber payments which dwindled, lane county used to get $50 million a year, this

year it got just over $3 million. >> it's a slap in our face. washington d.c. has basically said, oregon, you're not important, and lane county you're not important. >> reporter: voters must also share some of the blame. 13 times in a row they have said no to raising their own taxes to pay for law enforcement. jon: dan springer live from seattle. dan, thanks. "happening now" will be right back. the medicare debate continues in washington... ...more talk on social security... ...but washington isn't talking to the american people. [ female announcer ] when it comes to the future of medicare and social security, you've earned the right to know. ♪ ...so what does it mean for you and your family? [ female announcer ] you've earned the facts. ♪ washington may not like straight talk, but i do. [ female announcer ] and you've earned a say. get the facts and make your voice heard on medicare and social security at earnedasay.org.

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