jenna: i'm not worried at all. more people to bring to the conversation. they have a sense of humor and that's never a bad thing. jon: every little bit helps. jenna: thank you for being with us. jon: "america live" begins now. >> we begin with a fox news alert. welcome to "america live", i am shannon bream. the buzz is starting to heat up again. it is anybody's guess who governor mitt romney will select as his running mate. many suspect these men are still strong contenders and while the big announcement is imminent, chris stirewalt says not so fast. he is the host of "power play" on fox news.com.

you say you should slow it down a little bit. >> slow it down a little bit. that is very tip of you. don't get used to it. the point here is that for mitt romney, all of the other alternatives and media narratives that are out there have to do with his tax returns and all of this hell mitt romney massages the press and whether he is treating them right. all this other stuff come it doesn't really do any good. the one story that no reporter can resist his who his running mate is going to be. why not let it roll a little bit, let the speculation continue until you're about the 20th of this month. then pop the cork and roll right into tampa, florida. shannon: i'm a fan of playing hard to get, keeping the press

on your side. i know that they get cranky and they are looking for things to write about. one thing i thought was interesting that we have seen over the last couple of days, these e-mails are coming from the obama campaign. i have seen one on rob portman and the other was on marco rubio. saying that these two guys might be on the shortlist for bp. they are from your state and it looks like they are targeting people in ohio and florida. if you have any bad experiences with them, we need to know now. it is almost like they are enlisting the general public to help them do opposition research. >> it is just another way to fund raise and to get the grassroots fired up and to say -- i assume what they will get back is that these are terrible republicans and two concerted and rotten, rotten, rotten because they don't want people to have health insurance and stuff like that. that is most of what they will do it. this is mostly a way to engage them that way. you can better believe that there is an army of opposition research who have poured through everything these people have

done. every public interaction, anybody on the shortlist. that is the job of the folks in boston. they have to be just as good. the romney campaign has to be just as good at weeding out any potential scandal a problem because they definitely don't want to be caught unaware. shannon: i cannot resist to ask. this rumor out there that someone within the white house, maybe even the president himself, allegedly thinks that general betray us could be on the shortlist for vp. >> let me put it this way. it is not the greatest assertion possible. he is the best known military men in the united states. general david betray us. and he he would certainly help his public an ability on foreign issues. we don't know yet, but it lines up very well with some things that would be good for mitt romney. this is what the next 10 days will bring if romney picks his

running mate. that is better than talking about his tax returns. shannon: chris stirewalt, the one and only everyday. www.fox news flash claw and centcom/power play >> thank you, shannon. shannon: a fox news alert. moments ago, governor mitt romney speaking to carl cameron. reacting to condemn criticism by president obama. here is what president obama said. >> it is like ramen robin hood in reverse. it is romney good. shannon: a very catchy line

rolled out last night. >> it is a battleground a bumper of bumper sticker one-liners here as we get into closing days of the vice presidential selection and the sprint that comes post- labor day. mitt romney today talking about welfare reform and accusing mr. obama of liberal extremism going back to old-school democratic politics, pre-bill clinton and opposing welfare reform, requiring a work requirement. i had an idea to speak with mitt romney about the trend to quit. >> we have been watching the presidency a lot of things about me and my policies for. if i were to coin a term it would be "obamaloney." he is serving up a dish that is in contradiction to the truth. it helps the middle class to tax

policy, it is just things that are not accurate. >> so the president opens with "romney-hood" and mr. romney calls and raises it with "obamaloney." it looks like we are going to get a lot more about virtually every day. it is not just on the pbs and radio stations. every where these candidates go, the partisanship escalates at this juncture. there is no question that there are 91 days left. it is every single enchantment that matters. you know in a room somewhere, there are writers out there grinding out brand-new catchphrases that they hope will take fire on the campaign trail for both sides. karl, thank you. >> t-shirts are soon to come. shannon: bumper stickers after that. to catch up the complete interview, check out our website fox news.com. you will see the entire video as well as all the latest information on the 2012 elections and all things

politics. shannon: chilling details of the suspected shooter behind the massacre that left people dead at a sikh temple. we'd michael paige is a frustrated neo-nazi with a history of drinking problems. an emergency distress call was made. police officer was shot nine times. >> there is a lot of altercation at a sikh temple. a balding man with glasses may have gone inside and there may have been shots fired. >> parking lot, white t-shirt. we have more with rick leventhal and wisconsin. reporter: we are learning more about the life of wade michael

page and hatred that could have fueled his shooting spree. a former army colleague referred to nonwhites as dirt people. we also have learned more about his heavily tattooed body, including some whites of them is the symbols. he performed with skinhead rock bands putting definite hate. he was fired from jobs for drinking and attitude problems. and stuck some neighbors as creepy. but no one said they thought he was dangerous. he apparently bought his handgun legally within the last 10 days and use it to kill six and wounded three others, including oak creek police brian merkley, a 51-year-old 20-year-old veteran of the department was first on scene sunday morning he was born in brooklyn and has a brother that is a rip tired mip detective, was tending to a victim when page hit him eight or nine times. he is wearing a vest but is still listed in critical

condition. hundreds turned out, including members of the oak creek temple who need another place to worship. sikh leaders say if any good can come from this, it is a better understanding of how peaceful and unthreatening the religionists. >> i don't know how our country could show more solidarity with the community and to have its own flag on american flag fly at half mast. this hurts and it also helps a lot that our whole community is behind us. local police are not talking today, neither is the fbi. except to say the investigation continues and that pinpoints the motive. shannon: it's a difficult one to unravel. is the land of the free becoming the land of the free handouts? we are going to tell you about the angry letters said to sent to janet napolitano eventually

clinton. after a group of advertisements encouraging the use of american food stamps for mexican consulates. why they say that is undermining an immigration principle and the process of becoming a citizen legally. new evidence reveals that james holmes and the people who knew him had concerns that may have fallen on deaf ears. for the university of colorado be held responsible for the massacre? and a tech whiz versus the traffic cop in the big apple showdown that nt viral. we will show you what happens when you drive a ford car. the cost hundreds of thousands of dollars over new york city's finest.

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but. shannon: president obama celebrating his 50% a over the weekend and the republican national committee spends over a key to its democratic counterpart. a picture of the president in that you didn't make this -- they play on the you didn't build this controversy. the dnc sent the case back saying that he wants to let the middle-class ek. interesting. is the land of the free turning into land of free handouts? 's winning the obama administration over a weakening of citizenship standards for immigrants. janet napolitano questioned material that promotes foodstamp usage for mexican consulates.

food stamps will not be taken into account when considering visa applications. in the letter, the senators say it is long been a sound principle that those who seek citizenship in this country ought to be financially self-sufficient. we were shocked to discover that the state department dhs is glued alliance on all governmental welfare programs when evaluating whether an alien is likely to become a public charge. joining us now to break it down is the leading national authority on poverty. he is also a senior fellow at the hertz foundation. thank you for joining us. >> thank you. shannon: i want to get your take on this. where do we find a balance between compassion for people who are here and clearly may be struggling to put food on the table, and chipping away at immigration laws that now exist in the u.s. or should? >> well, the law says that an immigrant who comes and that is likely to be heard in on u.s.

taxpayers taxpayers shouldn't be here for. in fact, the entire immigration system massively violates that. the government does not enforce that public charge provision at all. for example, one third of the immigrants in the united states today are high school dropouts. those households will receive at least $3 in government benefits for every dollar that they pay in taxes. over the course of a lifetime, they trust the u.s. taxpayer, it cost them about $2 million per household. it is extremely expensive, it's a burden. but the immigration system says come on in, the more the merrier. shannon: if someone appeared illegally in a due process of some kind of federal aid, is immigration status taken into account when a decision is being made, whether or not to issue them benefits? >> yes, it is. illegal immigrants, per se, cannot get welfare benefits. but many illegal immigrants have children that they have in the united states, and those children are eligible for all

welfare as well as free public education. this means that those illegal immigrants pose a very strong cost on u.s. taxpayers, as well as taking away 426 million jobs from americans who need jobs. shannon: in this letter, inton say that going through the paperwork, two of 80 welfare programs are factored in. when they are asked about are you on this kind of assistance or help. is that legal? we have laws that state something otherwise should be done when they are screening people? >> the general principle of the law that has not been enforced and is completely disregarded by the obama administration is that you are not supposed to have an immigration system that brings in people that are going to be a net cost on the u.s. taxpayer. our immigration system in general disregard for that

entirely. for example, at least half of the immigrants coming into the united states are either high school dropouts or have a high school degree only. those individuals on average would receive about $10,000 per year in welfare benefits. they should not be here, according to the law. but the law is basically ignored. shannon: is this something you mentioned specifically? something new to the administration or the chipping away, has it been enforcing the law on the books? something that has been happening for a long period of time? >> it has happened for a long three of time. in fact, close to halfimmigrante last 20 or 30 years really should not be here, invisible, because they are a cost on the taxpayer. the obama administration has put frosting on the cake by aggressively promoting the use of these welfare benefits among

immigrants. shannon: i want to ask you about that. senator sessions signed on to this letter and he raised concerns that there are programs here in the u.s. that they are essentially immaterial that are reaching out to people that are not here legally. saying that we have benefits come you should take part in those benefits, that is his primary concern before you get to how it impacts applications. the usda took down those materials are made some change. do you think this administration, when confronted with these issues is going to be willing to back off on some of this? >> no, they have no intention of enforcing the public charge provisions whatsoever. they treat them as a kind of pointless joke. the reality is that, for example, in a program like food stamps, if you are an illegal immigrant parent and you have a child that was born in the united states and they are about

-- there are about 4 million kids like that, you will receive welfare benefits for your child, which come right into the illegal immigrant household. the welfare system is very supportive of illegal immigrants, even though on the surface it is not supposed to be. shannon: robert rector, thank you for giving us an insight. they have asked the secretaries respond why august 20. we will see what happens. thank you, sir. disturbing new reports suggest the obama administration may have sacrificed benefits for thousands of nonunion workers. one of the worlds largest carpet -- car manufacturers. we will speak to the reporter and find out what he has to say. we are following a developing story that the tsa identified in the mosque a woman who had trace explosives at a major u.s. airport. this is the aftermath. check it out. that woman is nowhere to be found. that story in three minutes

shannon: the lone survivor of a horrific connecticut home invasion that left his wife and daughters that has remarried. doctor william peck married 34-year-old photographer, christine, the two met while she was doing work for his foundation. doctor petit was the only survivor of the attack. new details on an unbelievable story out of newark. the tsa identified in the mosque a woman who tested positive for trace explosives during the screening process and that

caused hours of delay for stranded passengers. that woman is nowhere to be found. trace gallagher is here with the latest. reporter: i can tell you within two hours, tsa made two major wonders. the first one happened at 8:45 a.m. sunday morning. that is what we were talking about during the culinary screening process. the woman tested positive for trace explosives and then somehow seriously the tsa, they simply lost track of her. she made her way inside the terminal and of course, it took a while, but the airport went into alert mode. they put the airport on lockdown. one hundred flights were canceled, dozens more delay. the woman they were looking for had already gone on the plane, flown and landed in cleveland. she was never questioned were screened and never id. the passengers come as you can see there that did get rescreened and delayed were not happy. >> the whole terminal was

jampacked. it was hot and sweaty. just not really very happy. tsa was not giving much information. >> it concerns me that we are still having issues like this in the international airports. especially with the screening procedures. >> two hours before the tsa lost the woman who tested positive for trace explosives, they lost a bag that had tested positive for trace explosives. the flyers again had to be rescreened. that bag ended up on the tarmac. he took the bomb squad about 2.5 hours before they could clear the bag. this is the very same airport that back in june, seven tsa agents were fired because they were sleeping on the job. congressman peter king says this is absolutely unacceptable. shannon: something tells me it will be. thank you very much. a new twist and a raging debate

over senator harry reid's claims that governor romney didn't pay taxes for a decade. the white house scoffing at the idea that president obama could somehow put a lid on it. >> again, you can talk to senator reid, i'm sure he will address this issue if you ask them. he certainly speaks for himself. shannon: in just moments, we have brand-new reaction from the white house. and as the white house unable to shake the democratic dialogue in this situation? we will let our panel debate it. plus gold medalist daddy dog was facing online attacks. who is attacking her and her stunned reaction when she sought for the first time. it sounds like science fiction, but we will bring you the life story of an avatar that could hold the key to your border security. questions?

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shannon: and fox news alert. jay carney was repeatedly pressed about controversial comments from senator harry reid. the governor mitt romney hasn't he taxes for a decade. here is what mr. carney had to say about it today. >> i think the dispute here is between the romney campaign and harry reid. senator reid is, you know, he

doesn't take direction. he speaks for himself. [talking over each other] >> sometimes our politics are small. this is an example of one of the smaller times. >> the broader issue of tax fairness is very important to this campaign. shannon: ed henry was in that not breathing and he joins us now live from the white house. reporter: is interesting because the white house may face charges of having a double standard because the reason why jay carney was being pressed was that earlier in the briefing, he denounced the ad, even though he doesn't always comment on the campaign or politics from the white house podium, he denounced a very strong terms, a mitt romney ad that hits the president's record on welfare reform. he was being pressed in that exchange there. if you are going to denounce that advertisement, why are you not announcing the taxes and very reid. this is the second day the jay

carney refuse to get into that dispute. based on one anonymous source that allegedly was spoken to, he is alleging that the romney did not pay any taxes at all. this was from the washington fact checker on this review. they believe that this is an attack that is hitting mitt romney very hard. on one of his vulnerabilities about not putting out more tax returns and not telling how harry reid to stop it. brinkley, jay carney, per second, he said there is one way to end this issue. have mitt romney turn over more tax returns. the bottom line is, they want to see these attacks continue. it certainly helps the president politically. >> thank you very much for keeping up with the updates. shannon: the dispute is between governor romney and senator harry reid. senator harry reid speaks for

himself. newark mayor cory booker criticize the president's attack on on governor romney's record having capital. at one point on a sunday morning, he called them nauseating. then there was senator dianne feinstein. she says the white house was possibly responsible for recent intelligence issues. we have a syndicated radio host with compass network. welcome to you. >> we don't know for sure that cory booker, who has been, hours later, uploading a video that sounded like 180 from what he said on that morning or senator dianne feinstein said that she should not have speculated about the white house's intelligence to intervene there. but it looked like it. >> i can understand how some people might have drawn that conclusion. but i really don't think the president or his administration

has the time to be puppet masters to all congressional democrats in the house and senate and the governor's, mayors of cities and if that is the case, the bottom line is here that senator reid made these comments, this is not a day care center. it might appear this way, this is not a day care. it is not their responsibility to speak for senator reid. >> he is a grown adult. >> this is what is happening. this is a sleazy campaign tactic, the white house, harry reid is carrying water for the campaign by doing this. harry reid is a representative of the united states government and federal law protects the right of americans to keep their tax information secret. so harry reid comes out and makes this sleazy charge with nothing to back it up.

poor pinocchio is, just as you said, the president should come out and say that he respects people's right to privacy, nobody should have their tax information leaked. the fact that leslie is willing to let this sleazy campaign tactic be used, harry reid doing what the president himself can't get his hands dirty with. it is really lousy. this is not something that could be done by the republican administration. >> let's take a quick look to listen to what harry reid had to say. this is the latest reaction from him last night on this whole kerfuffle. >> the issue that i raised has nothing to do with me. it has everything to do with presidential candidate, the first one in more than 30 years, that refuses to show the american people his income taxes. he could not be confirmed as the secretary of the president's cabinet if he does not supply the income tax returns. this is not about me.

shannon: it is not about him, but he had to know that making these statements, especially on the senate floor, in some ways it would be about him. >> i would agree. i would agree with you there. what senator reid is saying, regardless of whether any taxes were paid or not, can all be revealed. quite frankly using mitt romney and his own words, to put up or shut up. when you talk about sleaziness, it is sleazy when you have former presidential candidates, like bob dole who released 20 years, and the current president at least 12 years, you look at john mccain -- the least amount. two years. >> two years. >> mitt romney has released one year. there are those on the right that are requesting just as much

as some on the left for him to just what has been a bipartisan agreement on tradition. the american people said we want to know what is going on. shannon: the solution is releasing their tax returns, which is the solution that is always propose when we refer to his comments. i want to get back to the bigger picture and the question about whether or not the white house, if they disapproves of what harry reid is saying. could the white house say not toning down? >> they could, but the fact is they don't want to. let me remind you of something that and coulter pointed out. another obama won his seat through sleazy tactics.

divorce tactics, then leaked out to favor barack obama. this man has won his previous offices through sleaze and plans to do it again. he can't get his hands dirty because he's president. that is why the president refuses to denounce senator harry reid. if the president doesn't say so, then he owns it. >> do you think that if the president doesn't step in and say something about the remark in the allegations, or should we just leave alone? >> i think you should leave it alone. this really doesn't have to do with the president and i don't think if the president were republican and senator reid were a republican, i don't think they would be saying this at all. this is a matter between the senator and a political candidate and what senator reid is doing him as you know, is

echoing the sentiments of not just democrats but republicans that are saying, what is the big deal? the he has nothing to hide. show us the tax returns. >> it looks like you are hiding something, which is sleazy. [talking over each other] >> the only reason for him to do this is to benefit the obama campaign. this is being done for president obama's benefit and the president disapproves of all kinds of things in his comments and speeches. he could disapprove of this. he is refusing to do this because he knows the sleazy tactics benefit him and that is the obama campaign from illinois. >> all right, we have to leave it there. always good to see you. >> there is new evidence in the colorado movie massacre. we just learned about the weeks leading up to the tragedy and there are new details for the doctor and gunmen with the gun,

and major problems with the university he had been attending. a big apple showdown. let me show you what happens when the driver of this for our he runs over york city police officers but. let me show you what happens when the driver of this vehicle to

shannon: a center of the first amendment finds itself having an issue over a cross in this town. a copy attention of a group called the americans united for the separation of church and state. they are threatening to sue if the cross is not taken down. it was erected two years ago, and local reports say the town wants to salvage the property to someone who is willing to let

the cross stay right there on that land. new questions on whether the university of colorado can be held responsible in the mass shooting in the movie theater. a new report suggests that james holmes's psychiatrist warned authorities of what she described as his bizarre behavior. while it is not knowing what the information dead, to police outside that realm of information or anyone else. we have a guest who is going to join us with an insight on this. professor, think you for joining us. she was still worried, the psychologist was, that she did reach out to a police officer. how concerned would she have to be to make that call? >> she can break the confidentiality only if she knows it is a serious threat of

imminent violence. since she talked to the cops, we know that in her mind it was there and she is under an obligation to prevent them do what she reasonably can to prevent the tragedy, so far as we know, she didn't do it come the cop did not do it, the behavioral analysis unit, which is supposed to do exactly that, also didn't follow up, even though there were obvious signs and finally on top of that, as fox has reported before, the university was apparently negligent in delivering to the psychologist a package, which it delivered on time, might have prevented the tragedy. yes, there is a strong chance that they will be soon. certainly it is a more viable defendant. they have more money and are more likely to settle to avoid the embarrassment of further evolutions in the trial and other situations have done. shannon: you touched onhis. within the university they have a behavioral evaluation and

threat assessment team called the data assessment team. they held a formal meeting, specifically about the alleged gunman in a case. there is speculation that maybe they didn't follow up because they eventually had him drop out of the university, he was walking away from the school. would that absolve them of any liability if they no longer go there? it seems to me that we have somebody who was forced out of a prestigious program and the university. he loses his only income, so far as we know, and he is being forced out of the apartment. these are what we call major stresses. the analysis team should have followed up. and they should set with all this going on, isn't getting any worse? they did not. many experts think they should have. that wasn't brought up in the trial. once again, in many of these cases, most cases, the university settle rather than getting to court and having these revelations come out and

have the embarrassment of the trial. in this case, the university had the head of this program somebody who had been reprimanded for mental health abuse. -- drug abuse. he wants all that coming in from the courtroom, coming before a jury? shannon: what kind of legal issues with the university be facing and what kind of damage and? you mentioned negligence? are there additional things they you think the victims or survivors with soup or? >> i think the major charge would be one of negligence. there are other collateral issues. the extent to which university has a duty. the university is liable whenever one of its students does something. but most universities have to take reasonable care to prevent things like this from happening, whether it is this kind of violence or something simpler like sexual harassment.

also in colorado there is a thing called sovereignty, which women and the amount of damages but the university could settle for those damages if they want to import the embarrassment of a trial, which is what is happening at penn state right now. robert morris has been hired to provide a report, just like penn state hired someone as well. the university is settling, and the same thing will happen here with the university of colorado. shannon: we will take a close eye to this and keep an eye on it. a disturbing new investigation may be shedding light on the union position. speaking with the reporter behind it all. about some of the e-mails that he said revealed the administration cut benefits for thousands of nonunion retirees, in order to save money for their union counterparts at one of the world's largest automotive parts manufacturers. olympic gold wasn't good enough

for the efforts of gabby douglas. online attacks started after she won the gold. zero to 60 in three seconds. one driver landed on the pavement on a cop's foot. it's going to happen a lot faster.

shannon: the mother of olympic start gabby douglas firing back at critics. the 16 year olds here has

critics who claimed that her ponytail look messy. gabby douglas responded that i just made history and people are focused on my hair? showing just how tough she is, she says that her critics can deal with it because she's not changing her look. go gabby douglas. she has one to gold medals at the london olympics for gymnastics. good job. no matter how much money you have or how important you think you are, you are not above the law. the owner of a 260,000-dollar ferrari found out the hard way when he tried to ignore a police officer and get out of a parking ticket in new york. trace gallagher has the details. reporter: apparently the valet of the hotel park that ferrari in a no parking zone. as you saw, nypd came rocking by. and they decided it was time for a ticket. this guy over here is an internet entrepreneur and a

well-known playboy. he didn't like ge ticket and what you missed is that at one time he tried to grab the officers take it. that didn't work and he got in the ferrari. he keeps going and he keeps going and now he is on his foot, apparently. the cop said that was a very bad idea. he hits the window once, a couple of times, he opens up the door, slams the door against the cab, a couple of times, one, two, three -- 10 grand and repairs, pulls him out of the car and throws them on the ground. at this time, another cop comes by and they are, he is down and handcuffed. he is charged with assaulting a police officer. this girl walking in the street is stephanie pratt from the hills. she drove the ferrari away and this guy was taken away in a police car.

there we have the red carpet video of stephanie pratt, which doesn't have anything to do with the car, but the bottom line is, the ferrari is now in the hands of the reality star. mr. playboy is facing assault charges. he could be in jail -- up to seven years possibly in jail for assaulting the officer. he said the officer didn't really hit his foot, and nypd says yes, he did in his hand as well, therefore you have the assault charges, and video. shannon: a lot more painful than just paying a parking ticket. >> i know, right? >> be one is there a listing for entrepreneur playboy types? [laughter] a race for the white house. a new poll shows the race and a

dead heat. it could spell trouble for president obama. and u.s. border patrol. computer kiosks keeping our borders safe. and are they really enough for some of america's busiest crossings? i'm only in my 60's...

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shannon: this is a fox news alert. the latest matchup shows president obama and governor romney locked in a virtual tie. but a different poll could be a measure of what the next three months will hold. twon polls from rasmussen reports there are two sides to the same coin. the daily tracking poll shows little movement. the president and governor romney still locked in a dead heat. at the same time there is this. a poll showing nearly after of all americans think the best days of our country are behind us. 49%. so how much do polls like this matter in the election?

let's check in with scott rasmussen and joe trippi. the manager of howard deans's campaign and a fox news contributor. scott, it looks like a dead heat overall but what does it say when you dig inside the numbers. when people were asked whether our best days are ahead or behind, and more think behind than ahead. >> that's right. the race for the white house is a tossup. there is a lot of economic reports that will come out between now and elect days that are likely to have a big impact on who wins. but only 32% think our country's best days are the future. there is a growing sense of desperation across the country. normally you would say that's very bad news for the incumbent. only a third of the voters say if barack obama is reelected the economy will get better.

but it's also bad news for mitt romney. there is a sense out there that neither of these guys knows what's going on and that's where the frustration comes in. shannon: despite the pessimism about moving forward and who can do best with the economy, the president in a lot of important polls continues to pull ahead. this one is within the margin of error and there are key swing states where he seems to be doing well as well. so it seems like the president must be doing something right to overcome the doubts about his leadership or our economy. >> one of the things the obama campaign has been doing is keeping romney so off balance. raising -- harry reid doing the tax stuff on him and all these other issues that are where romney can't get it to the fight that he wants to make this campaign about. that's one of the reasons not only is it a tie statistically.

but why in the past few weeks you have started seeing in ohio and michigan and wisconsin, the president starting to drift up a little bit towards that magic 50% number that should cause the romney folks some fear if that keeps going on. it's clearly will be it is about the economy and scott is right. there are a lot of jobs and other things that will come out between the elect that could snap this thing right back into a situation where bad economic news gives romney a boost. but right now the obama campaign has done a pretty good job of keeping them off balance and that's one of the reasons you are seeing this discrepancy between how people feel and what we are seeing in the poll numbers. shannon: scott, you track this day by day, probably hour by hour sometimes. are you seeing trends in a specific direction one way or

another? >> no, in fact the trend -- there is no trend. we track his job approval all the time. it's been around 47% for 2 1/2 years. every now and then bounced a point or two higher. but it's holding right at that level and that's a level that suggests a tossup on election day. shannon: we'll see three months away. scott and joe, great to see you, thank you. we are learning more about the democratic national convention. former president jimmy carter is scheduled to address the convention by video. organizers say carter will provide unique insight into our president's ability to move the country forward. how minority leader nancy pelosi comparing republicans to a bacteria that causes food poisoning. she accuses them of trying to remove oversight of everything including clean water and food.

>> you have to be able to trust the water that our kids drank and the food that they ate. but this is the e. coli club. they do not want to spend money to do that. shannon: the e. coli club. she also came to the defense of harry reid and his comment about governor romney's taxes saying she absolutely believes him. accused killer jared loughner is inside an arizona courtroom where a judge will decide whether he many competent to stand trial. if approved he's expected to plead guilty in an agreement that would take the death penalty off the table. he killed 6 people and wounded 13 others. one of them former arizona congresswoman gabrielle giffords.

>> reporter: today should come down to how jared laugher in who has been diagnosed with schizophrenia handles himself in court. today his court-appointed psychiatrist will testify he's competent. if the judge agrees it moves to a plea hearing in which loughner is expected to plead guilty. >> when a defendant entered a guilty plea that is going to send him away for life without a possibility of parole, this judge will ask a large amount of questions, many questions, i should say, for purposes of making sure this is a voluntary plea. that he knows and understands the consequences of the plea. >> reporter: we are hearing commander mark kelly, husband of former congresswoman gabby girveds who was injured in the shooting. kelly said we don't speak for all of the victims or their

families but gabby and i are satisfied with this plea agreement. the pain and loss caused by the events are incalculable. avoiding a trial will allow us and we hope the arizona community to continue with our recovery and moved forward with our lives. those in the courtroom could hear laugher in describe to the judge what his actions, or the attorneys could do it. security is tight inside the courthouse. we have been told by our producer they set up metal detectors, something she has not seen in any of the lifer in -- the loughner hearings and she has been toe every single one. shannon: the national average for a gallon of gas stand at $3.63. the prices over $4 a gallon in

some spots. partly because of refinery problems. yesterday's pipeline blast in richmond, california. the west coast could see their prices going up as well. fox business network's jeff block is in indiana to tell us more. >> reporter: it's the midwest's largest refinery. when there are problems in refineries like there are at three in the midwest you get price spikes like what is coming from california. take a look at states with the highest gas prices in the nation right now. at least in the lower 48. the worst in the nation is illinois. just over the tbroard where we stand right now. over $4 a gallon. michigan is second at $3.97 and wisconsin where the pipeline broke. $3.92 a gallon. in chicago, this is the all-time highest worst city in the

nation. higher even than honolulu which tend to be one of the highest. chicago right now $4.26 on average for the gallon. ann arbor michigan, then santa barbara, california, then detroit. it points out how important it is for the refining capacity to be up online. one of them like the one behind me had a fire and it reduced their capacity and prices go up. look out california, it's coming to you next. sorry. shannon: you are only the bearer of the bad news. thank you very much. a new investigation maybe revealing the relationship between the white house and its union friend. we are going to talk with the reporter behind this about why he's pointing the finger straight at the treasury secretary for cutting benefits to thousands of non-union retirees and where that money eventually wound.

the new frontier of protecting america's borders. president obama's and governor romney's relationship with the press is raising questions about how many answers candidates should have to answer. >>it is the right thing to do. excuse me, sir. it's not time for questions, sir. not while i'm speaking. and the answer to your question, sir, and the next time i prefer you let me finish my statement before you ask that question, is this is the right thing to do for the american people. i didn't ask for an argument. i'm answering your question. questions?

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shannon: an update on two

bizarre deaths connected to a san diego mansion. the mother wants an investigation into how her son died. her son accidentally fell down the stairs while his far it was suppose to be watching him. she says he fell as the result of an assault. days later she was bound hang from a balcony. a disturbing report shows the obama administration may have sacrificed benefits for non-union employees while saving union employees' pensions. the reporter who broke the story joins us live. some strong allegations.

can you tell us about these e-mails and what you know? >> where this started off is three years ago we know these people's pensions were taken away by government officials. the obama administration has maintained it was the independent pension benefit guarantee corporation which is supposed to handle pension matters like this. house republicans have maintained that there is definitely appeared to have been a political influence from administration officials throughout and under congressman mike turner's direction the congressional investigation that lasted two years. >> reporter: i know there was some hill testimony. this is from former treasury officials. it sounds like they track with that position. it was this outside agency who made decisions about which

mentions survived and which ones didn't. what is the story with these alleged e-mails involving secretary geithner and how he may have done something that stands in contrast to what they testified to? >> these e-mails show the same administration officials who have testified on numerous occasions before congress, it was the pbgc that handled this deal and not administration political officials are seen in these e-mails back in 2009 conversing on how to go about taking away these people's pensions. so above all else the treasury secretary wore three hats during this deal. the treasury secretary in addition to being the treasury secretary is also a board member of the pbgc and was a co-chair of the president's auto task force. as congressman mike turn alleged

there definitely appeared to be a conflict of interest with regard to timothy geithner's involvement from every single age here. the senior most official at the treasury department, second nary geithner, was involved from every single angle of this decision. above all else these e-mails prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that the administration officials -- the obama administration political officials were the ones who made the decision coercing the pbgc officials to interminating the pengs of these non-union workers. shannon: can you tell us specifically what the e-mails say? >> i published them on our site. they are on dailycaller.com one e-mail, a treasury official chatting back and forth with joe house who is a pbgc official and

joe house is asking matt feldman permission on what certain steps to take. another e-mail shows that vince snowbarger had cleared with treasury and senior administration officials before he made any moves on this front. another e-mail chain shows pbgc officials were quote disinvited or uninvited from a meeting where they were legally required to be there. at the meeting as was the agenda for the meeting. the future of the pensions was discussed at that meeting and they were disinvited from that meeting before it happened. shannon: we are talking about terminating the pensions of 20,000 folks with delphi auto parts. we'll follow the story. it seems there will be some explaining to do following this report and investigation.

keep us updated. thank you very much. new concerns over the president's healthcare law after a new report finds a lot of doctors say they won't accept new patients covered by medicaid. our expert panel will weigh in. plus, oh, no, a bulldog gets a little bit more than she bar gaged for when she confronted a porcupine. it's so sad. we'll have the full story coming up. [♪] [ male announcer ] it's a golden opportunity... to drive a car filled with as much advanced technology as the world around it. with the available lexus enform app suite, you can use opentable tmake restaurant servations... search wi bing... and listen to pandora.

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shannon: a bulldog is recovering after learning a life lesson. when animals face off it isn't necessarily the biggest guy who wins. she got into a confrontation with a porcupine. she walked away with 500 quills in her body. the veterinarian says she has never seen such a severe porcupine attack on a pet. the u.s. border patrol gets a new member on the team. this strange character could mark the new era of surveillance. >> reporter: the nogales post entries one of the biggest ports to the united states. you have the drug cartels fighting for control of that corridor. but it's also a bustling trade

port with thousands of cars crossing legitimately every single day. u.s. customs is testing out this a aextra tar. you have to screen these low-risk travelers. the robot will ask a series of questions and using speech recognition and voice anomaly software it will try to detect suspicious behavior. >> hello, i'm now going to ask you a few questions about your sentry application. in a moment i will ask to you say your name then answer some yes or no questions. >> reporter: so while you are talking to the avatar, there is a customs agent kind of watching every move, tracking it with an ipad. that way the agent can come in and do the followup questioning if there is anything to follow up on.

critics say this technology is in its infancy and should not be used in national security cases like this. but the feds say the avatars are backed up by the agents so there is safety nets in place. if all goes well, the avatar they believe will speed up the crossings on the border. eventually you put them on the border. you can drive and give a fast pass to go in. that might and few years away. shannon: trace, thank you very much. a new debate brewing about presidential candidates and the press. president obama hasn't taken a question from the white house press corps in 7 weeks. a new report suggesting new hurdles for the president's healthcare plan. doctors say they won't take new patients covered by medicaid.

but you will still be paying for it. >> we have to pass the bill so that you can find out what in it. away from the fog of the controversy.

shannon: ernesto is officially a hurricane it's traveling off the coast of honduras head for the

yucatan peninsula. mexico issued a hurricane warning for the tourist area of cozumel. it is not likely to hit the u.s. there seems to be a growing rift between the presidential candidates and the press corps. reporters ridiculed romney for not taking enough questions on his overseas trip while the * went 7 weeks without taking questions from reporters. hello, james. report report on mitt romney's eight-day trip across three foreign countries he answered two questions from the british press corps and conducted 8 interviews. still the traveling press corps vent its frustration with romney shortly before the trip ended in

poland. the last time president obama took questions from the white house press corps, from three reporters to be exact, was 7 weeks ago at the g20 summit in mexico. the chief executive joked about this telling a reporter who shouted out a question about the colorado movie massacre that he would get the reporter's phone number from jay carney. one reporter told fox news the obama white house is nixonan in its efforts to bully the press corps. >> they can tell you they have been personally attacked by a member of the white house press team. the reason they do this is to

try to intimidate and get inside people's heads so maybe they will do this story but they will be a little bit more intimidated about doing another tough story about the white house next time because a voice in the back of their head will say i'll have to deal with a screaming jay carney. >> reporter: he wasn't screaming but he did address the long gaps. >> will the president be holding a full-globe press conference anytime soon? >> define anytime soon. i'm sure the president will be taking questions from you in the relatively near future. >> reporter: later mr. carney was asked if the relatively near future meant friday an said he had no scheduled updates to offer. shannon: who knows, it may be even sooner, james. how many questions should the candidates have to answer? who decides and what's behind

the warm of silence on both sides of the aisle. a republican analyst. and bernard whitman is the author of 52 reasons to vote for obama. welcome to you both, gentlemen. we want to play more of the clip james rosen viewed where romney was overseas and there were questions back and forth. >> governor romney do you feel your gaffes have overshadowed your foreign trip? >> show some respect. show some respect here. >> will we have another chance to ask him questions. >> this is a holy site for the polish people, show some respect. shannon: it was a visit to a sacred place. was that an okay place to be screaming questions at a candidate? >> i think the candidates expect that all the time. the president is interrupted

during a major speech in the rose garden. there are ways to deal with that and ways not to. you saw a senior aide to mitt romney lost his cool telling a reporter using words i won't repeat here. and i think that that speaks to the maturity of the staff around governor romney. you have to be ready to deal with the fish bowl that is the press corps. shannon: i'll give you a chance to respond. >> i worked traveling press, i have been part of the press on both sides it, the nature of the beast. it's not an inindictment of the maturity of the staff. the problem with president obama is he has gone 7 important weeks without having an opportunity to be engaged directly by the white house press corps who generally ask tougher questions and the local media. terrible job reports. 1.5% gdp growth.

the healthcare bill was upheld on the basis of being a tax. he has an accountability to be transparent. his own goal that he set -- an' not fulfilling that at all. shannon: bernard i want to give you a chance to address what you referenced. >> it is the right thing to do. excuse me, sir. this is not time for questions, sir. not while i'm speaking. and the answer to your question, sir, and the next time i prefer you let me finish my statement before you ask that question, if this is the right thing to do for the american people. i didn't ask for an argument, i'm answering your question. shannon: that the most pieced i have seen the president. >> i have to take issue with my friend tony. president obama has given between 7-10 press conferences

in each of his three years. reagan gave 4 press conferences over 8 years. president obama has given 71. finally he has given more than 400 interviews over the course of his 3 1/2 years in office. george bush gave less than a third of that at 136. i think this president has been more than accessible to the press. it's common during the summertime that you might have less press avail billion. i'm sure the press will have a hans to ask him questions later. shannon: is it a campaign strategy for either side to say we are going to limit the things we do ... >> the great communicator of today, barack obama is great on the sometime and terrible at the press conferences. remember the early one in june

where he declared the private sector is doing fine. we have had times where he seems to stammer. but i want to go back to my friend bernard's statistics. this president criticized george bush for the statistics you just cited. his time in the white house. george bush and barack obama have essentially had the same amount of press conferences give or take a couple. there is another metric done, a university study, at the same point in their presidency there is an opportunity for presidents to allow the press to do to q and a in the oval office. george bush granted 307 of those tints. barack obama 94. bill clinton granted 497 at the same point. the opportunity to talk to the press is much more important than the formal called press conference. and this president for the last several weeks in a terrible economic time in our country has

ducked every major hard question and instead talked to the friendly softball media because he knows they won't be as tough as the press corps. >> it's important to be accountable to the american people. as i talk about in my book. he kept his campaign promises. an independent pulitzer prize organization evaluated over 500 campaign promises obama made. he kept 74% of his promises. he is keeping his vows. shannon: if you were advising him, would it be best to engage or stay buttoned up? >> i have no doubt in my mind as we head into the conventions and post labor day campaign period. the president will be more than thane to address the press corps. >> i have no problem with the press criticize mitt romney for

not being available as long as they have the same outrage when the president is not available. the president has gone radio silent for 7 weeks. the reason is he's much more effective in a controlled setting. and his campaign knows that. that's why they minimize these opportunities for him to go off script. virginia he made a speech about a month ago. the you didn't build it speech, that was off script. the great communicator is not great without a teleprompter. shannon: what happens if some doctors refuse to partake in a huge part of the president's healthcare plan. what will it mean for you and your doctor. the mars mission may have accidentally discovered a new star. this guy is fast becoming a

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shannon: yet another emotional scene in an olympic stadium. dominican hurdler felix sanchez in tears as he takes home the second gold his career. by his grandmother took center stage. when he crossed the finish line he brought out a photo of her. he promised he would come back and win a medal for her and it took four years but this 34-year-old did it, putting him in the record books as the oldest man to win gold in that

event. congrats. a shocking new study could spell trouble for president obama's healthcare law. one in three doctors refuses to accept new patients covered by medicaid because of the plan's low reimbursement. bad news for the healthcare law democrats passed in 2010. what does its mean for you and your family. doctor, thanks for coming in today. so this study shows 31% of doctors say they are not going to take on medicaid applicants and participants. but part of the law's plan is to shift some people there. what do we do if doctors won't take them? >> it's a problem the reimbursement is low, so some doctors can't afford to take it. that's why in the past a lot of them have been covered by emergency rooms or tertiary care

centers like university hospitals had to take them. the issue is they are trying to expands it but part of the expansion is to increase the reimbursement so it is closer to medicare. but states are opting out of that because they can't afford to expand it and increase the reimbursement. it's like this vicious cycle. it's a problem. the onus falls on e.r. doctors it's been that way for a while. but it's an issue. there is a looming crisis. people talk about the medicare crisis, there is a medicaid crisis. shannon: what is the current status if you need medicaid to get healthcare, what are your odds of finding a doctor to treat you. >> you can always come to emergency departments. a lot of times teaching hospitals where they have residents, they will refer their patients out to those

hospital-based practices and sometime those practices are taking medicaid. but it's a problem. 17% of doctors aren't going to take new medicare or private insurance. there is a doctor shortage looming nobody is talking about. i don't think the healthcare act is going to be able to handle all these moving parts and really handle it. just because you have insurance doesn't mean you have access to care. shannon: a lot of places aren't interested anymore. you can pay cash or figure out something else. you mentioned the shortage of doctors. something that keeps bubbling up that people are worried there aren't as many people getting through medical school. and taking the chagellen of being a doctor and dealing with the complications. how concerned are you about the next generation. the next wave in encouraging people to get into the medical field. >> for a while back when managed care first started they thought everyone would be so healthy and

they held medical slots to a steady stake. now they are trying to increase medical school slots and encourage people to go. but there is a predicted shortage, 90,000 by 2020 and 2030. there are four years of college and medical school. then 3-4 years of training. once you are already kind of behind the 8 ball it will take years to catch up. shannon: if we had the influx we needed, the reimbursement rates won't so great. >> that's an issue. these are the most vulnerable population. there is the indigent population. there are children. so it's an issue. once again as an e.r. doctor we don't turn anybody away. we end up caring for these patients. if there is a serious problem you will be able to get care in this country. but just going out and finding a doctor. i have friends that tell me they

can't find an internist. they have private insurance. people aren't expecting new patients and doctors are get together age where there is retirement. besides there are not enough new doctors coming in. so it's something that we have to look at. it's very come mid-atlantic. i don't know just the healthcare law is going to be able to manage it all. shannon: do you think the reimbursement rates will change in any foreseeable way so these doctors will be encouraged to treat those folks? >> besides the reimbursement rates having to go up, we have to hold healthcare costs down. part of that is liability reform. nobody is addressing that in the new law. so it's a combination of things that have to come together. if they don't it's like a perfect storm waiting to brew. shannon: doctor, thank you. we thank you for being willing to treat folks when they need it most. a school program that offers a free lunch for low income

families is coming under criticism. there some say it's not helping the children many intended to help. it's helping free loaders on the taxpayers' dime. wait until you hear the reason why the new lightbulbs could be harmful to your health.

shannon: contact florescent lightbulbs were suppose to be the earth friendly way to light your home. but scientists say it could be harm phil to your health. the foundation found skin damage to the bulb is similar to damage

from the sun. u.v. raise can cause cancer and other damage to skin and highs and they pose a risk if the glass breaks because of the mercury contained within that took you. school may be out for the summer but that doesn't mean kids aren't getting a free meal when they need it. claude why cowan is live in san francisco. how does the summer program differ from what happens with lunch during the year? >> the rules changed so more children can take advantage of a program aimed at low-income families and that's where the controversy lies. during the school year students need to meet certain criteria to participate in the free and reduced price lunch program. during the summer the location needs to qualify. the meals can only be served in low income areas that anyone 18 and under can come and get fed. normally we wouldn't qualify for

a free lunch. but we are close and it's convenient. and my kids like it. that's important. >> these are the kind of things that sets tank pairs' hair on fire. not that we have poor people taking advantage of these program but we have people who are not poor also taking advantage of these programs. >> critics say americans are more than willing to help out children truly in need but wonder if this come one, come all will have taxpayers feeding every child whether they are needy or not. shannon: anybody regardless of whether you need it ... >> they say taxpayers are making an investment in the future. they argue during the summer months it's better to have all children eating meals that meet high nutritional standards. >> we know that if we are able to help children stay healthy,

when they return to school in the fall they are better able to learn and ready to start their academic year. >> the only rules are that the lunch is eaten on site and the adult don't mooch off the kids. but critics say those to eat off the taxpayer dime should show need like they do during the school year. shannon: we are getting the first incredible pictures back from the mars rover. but this guy known as mohawk guy may be nasa's newest star. is reaction to all the newfounda fame next. and a choice. take tylenol or take aleve, the #1 recommended pain reliever by orthopedic doctors. just two aleve can keep pain away all day. back to the news. or annuity over 10 or even 20 years? call imperial structured settlements.

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>> new should veto showing nasa's rover in the final few minutes on to mars. look at this. you can see the heat shield falling away as it plummets through the planet's atmosphere. after the eight month journey it landed safely in a specially

chosen crater. nasa posted the first color picture from mars on twitter showing tan fins on the surface of the planet. that says mission to mars creating a star right here on earth. "the mohawk guy," getting a lot of attention, even some marriage proposals after he was seen in mission control when the rover landed. he works inside the space delight operations facility for nasa and changes his hair for every mission. we love it. on twitter, he is taking his new found fame in stride saying, i'm not ready for the attention but happy to show it takes all types to make curiosity. if only my co-workers would stop making fun of me. "studio b" with shepard smith starts now. >>shepard: we have the internet ramblings of the