>> steve: new year's eve, ethan joins husband dad on stage of the we tried to recreate that viral moment on the television show. didn't work. >> gretchen: ethan, that's you. >> brian: are you going to dance in the after the show show? >> steve: you're darn right he is.

bill: aleppo which has seen a a lot of fighting is up in the northwest corner.

this is where the u.n. believes chemical weapons are being stored. what are the implications of take out a chemical weapons facility and where does that material go? the air strips, of which there are primary bases that would be major targets if indeed an attack were launched. we are waiting to see what the president will do. what are the implications of an attack in the region. there is any one of 6, 10, 12 things we can think of as we sit here right now. this is a big, big decision. martha: the ships in the mediterranean are loaded with tomahawk missiles. they could be launched from those warships in the eastern

mediterranean. they have speeds of 550 miles an hour. they can hit targets 1,000 miles away, and they very well may be employed if this does get underway. bill: how involved should the u.s. be in syria. log on, tell us what you think. 44% say get out completely. 36% say only humanitarian aid. 11% support the u.s. giving weapons to the rebels. ambassador john bolton with what the u.s. should do now. martha: jack lew alerting congress the national credit card is almost maxed south again. he says come october we'll not be able to pay our bills unless

we raise the at the country can borrow. the white house is warning of a possible financial crisis if we can't borrow any more. stuart, what do you make of this? >> here we go again. treasury secretary lew says we'll only have $50 billion in the bank cash on hands. we spend $9 billion every day. so $50 billion is far too close for comfort. president obama says he's not going to negotiate on this. he wants a clean bill, raise the debt ceiling, no other issues on the table, no strings attached. just let me borrow more by october so i can pay the bills.

that's the statement from president obama no negotiations. that's not going down very well on wall street. they look at this and say here we go again and the dow jones average will open about 120 points down in part because of that no negotiation position from the president. martha: we know from history republicans will come back and say they want to see spending cuts to pass this through. why do you think the president is so intractable on this issue? >> it's possible he thinks if there is a government shutdown over the debt ceiling issue then the president wins politically and the republicans as they have in the past lose politically so he's saying go ahead, shut it down. the market is concerned about the syrian situation and again about another debt crisis 50

days away. martha: there are oil concerns percolating in the market and we'll talk about those a couple minutes away. and a very dire situation. stuart, we'll see you coming up. bill: our national debt skyrocketed in recent years increasing from $10.6 trillion to $16.7 trillion since president obama took office. the debt has been increasing by an average of $2 billion every day. more debt has been compid under president obama than every president through president clinton. martha: we are getting started on a busy, important news day. president obama putting off a decision on a plan supporters save would create jobs. here is a big issue for us today that would help make us energy independent. for the keystone pipeline, why

are there still so many delays. we'll talk about that. bill: a young boy realized someone broke into his house. now he reveals how he managed to stay calm. martha: we speak to the man who helped raise the newest medal of honor recipient. how ty carter's dad feels about his son. >> i would never wish for someone to receive this medal because in order to receive this medal, your family is pretty much dying around you. everything is getting destroyed. our priority is, was and always will be serving you, the american people. so we improved priority mail flat rate

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martha: chaos erupts in a boston courtroom when the brother of a murder victim lungs at the

accused killer. -- lunges at the accused killer. look at the slow motion on this. what a moment in that boston courtroom. the suspect is accused of stabbing the victim more than 60 times. the brother was charged with disorderly conduct and is ordered to stay away from the suspect's family. bill: the decision on the keystone pipeline will likely delay to 2014. the president has been analyzing whether the pipeline down to the going fro --down to the gulf com

canada is in the national interest. >> the state department inspector general is going to do an investigation about this alleged conflict of interest. the state department has done previous investigations about previous allegations about conflicts of interest and they didn't amount to anything. this feels like an attempt by environmental groups to throw another obstacle in the way of the approval of the keystone pipeline while the president hems and haws and doesn't make a decision. bill: i'm not so sure it's ever going to happen. what is your sense? >> i have been sceptical all along. i think if the president were going to have approved it he would have done so a long time ago when the state department came out with this initial review which was exhausting

which said sit wouldn't have any appreciable effect on the environment. he gave an opening to environmental groups to raise these concerns. by giving them that time he's allowing this slow roll to continue. bill: from last month in chattanooga, tennessee, he addressed this. >> gutting our environmental protection, that's not a jobs plan. gutting investments in education, that's not a jabs plan. they keep on talking about the oil pipeline coming down from canada. that's estimated to create 50 permanent jobs. that's not a jabs plan. >> 50 permanent? or is the key word permanent? >> there are widely varying estimates how many jobs this will create. and how many directly and indirectly. but the president is obviously

using the low end of that estimate. the republicans point out one shouldn't sneeze at a time of high unemployment at the creation of any jobs. and this would create some jobs and probably create other indirectly. bill: you have got the middle east, that's a mess. you have got fracking that's never been better in the united states. we are producing more energy than ever in our history. you want middle east independence. you have got the issues with iran and syria. doesn't it strike you as making sense? one would think that the longer the white house delays this, the more the context argues for approval. but if you look at the pressure the president has been receiving from environmental groups it's been quite strong and quite sustained. there was environmental activists leading up to the election in 2012 threatened to sit out the election if the

president approved keystone in advance of that election. after the election you had obama campaign staffers sign a petition saying they worked for the president, they worked to get him reelected and they didn't want to see keystone signed, that what's they worked for. this is sustained pressure a segment of the president's base. bill: he has to keep these groups happy. >> it certainly looks that way. bill: back in june he says if the project doesn't exacerbate the problem of carbon pollution. if they are going to burn it eventually why does the it matter if it's burnt in canada or the united states? >> i think they boxed him in with that. republicans on a conference call last thursday night, john boehner house speaker said keystone pipeline was one of several leverage points that

house republicans are interested in using the coming debt ceiling negotiations. that's true they are going to press their case in public at least. bill: all right, steven, thanks. we will see you real soon. martha: make shower you visit our brand-new politics page. go to foxnews.com and enter your e-mail address. it's easy to do. you will get the top political headlines popping into your phone whenever they happen. it's a big day for 11-year-old sarah murnaghan. we have followed her story since almost the very beginning. this little girl is heading home today. she had a double lung transplants that has saved her life. she is now walking. it's an amazing recovery. a great story. we'll show you have the latest from sarah when we come back. >> reporter: two kayakers with

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martha: that's a new one to me. bill: you thought you were on vacation. you can add vacations to the list of issues that divide americans. 46% say they don't check their seem while on vacation, 42% say they do. those of you who do check in. 40% do it at least once a day. 18% do it once a week. younger americans check in more which is a shock i'm certain to everyone at home. martha: you just had your

vacation. how did it go. bill: it takes me three days, maybe four. i can check it in the morning and check it in the evening, make sure the world is still rotating then off i go. martha: the first few days constantly checking. then after that you might go all through the afternoon and realize you haven't looked at darn thing in a while. but in the old days you had to call or text your boyfriend. thousand those were different times. we are hearing directly from the rodeo clown. you remember this guy who came under a lot of fire for wearing a mask depicting president obama and mocking the president at the missouri state fair. some say tuffy gessling, it was all in good fun. he says he received death threats over this. >> a man called me a dirty name,

spit in my face and walked off. one threatened to burn the house down. i didn't do this to be hating. i did it to be funny. i did it to be a joke. this clown bit has been around for generations. i didn't think anything more about it than what we have done when we have done it with bush and clinton and ronald reagan. martha: he's now apologized. he's banned from the missouri state fair which i think he has done for many years. he does have other gigs lined up. as for the presidential act, he says he don't know if he's going to do it again. this might be the moment for an e-mail from the white house. the guy's out of a job. bill: i watched the whole interview, he's very sincere. they have been doing it for 20 years making fun of everyone in the white house. i felt sorry for the guy. he sounded sincere.

martha: we have been waiting to see who the man behind the mask was and whether he had some malicious thing against the president and it appears he's quite sincere. bill: i think america needs another beer. 26 past. growing talk after military strike against syria. will american cruise missiles be enough to achieve the objective and what should that objective be? martha: folks in one town a bit on edge. the unwanted guest that has been staying indoors. >> i ran out of the house. it was real scary. i said imnever going back there again. help the gulf recover and learn from what happened so we could be a better, safer energy company. i can tell you - safety is at the heart of everything we do.

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martha: the obama administration is saying it's ready to act against syria if the president gives the green light for that action after declaring there is undeniable evidence syria launched a chemical attack against people. but nor mccain is warning this situation he believes cannot be solved with a single missile attack alone. >> if the united states stands by and doesn't take serious action, not just launching some cruise missiles. our credibility in the world is

diminishes even more if there is any left. martha: john bolton joins me now. former u.s. ambassador to the u.n. it feels like we are on the brink of something here. what it's going to be, we don't know. >> the president is going to use military force. having drawn this red line in the heat of the 2012 election campaign. then 5 or 6 months ago when there was substantial evidence of the asawfd regime using chemical weapons. the president will look even more foolish than he does now. what is the objective of using the military force? what is he trying to accomplish. when does he know he will have used enough? so far we don't have answers to those questions. i think it's symptomatic of the disarray and the administration

policy in syria specifically and the middle east in general. >> there is an idea you could launch a fugitive attack for having used chemical weapons and you need to do that to make it clear to anybody who might want to do that that they would also receive that kind of retaliation. so an end to a means itself. what do you think about that? >> i think it's feel good. how punitive is punitive enough? i think you could see some military force actually leaves the united states credibility worse off. if assad remains in, that says the countries like iran, they are doing this for their own domestic political reasons and we can with stand it. and to be on the safe side let's get our nuclear weapons put together sooner rather than later. the people who wanted to aid the

rebels in syria are going to use the chemical weapons as an argument for a policy they wanted to all along. it's still not clear to me why it would be in america's interest to replace assad with the rebels who are infiltrated with al qaeda and other terrorist groups. martha: let's listen to charles krauthammer from special report. >> to do a strike or two that destroys a building or two would be worse than useless. when our embassies were attacked in kenya and tanzania in 1998, clinton came out -- i think he was also at the vineyard. he lobbed a few missiles into empty tents in afghanistan. it showed the world he was unserious. after that it was the cole and after that it was 9/11. martha: a parallel? >> i don't have a clue what barack obama is going to do. trying to understand his

strategic thinking is like trying to nail jelly to a war. i think he will use strategic force. buff he has given no cliewf what the objective is and no indication he's going to follow through on it. i believe this is a reaction to the box he put himself in. martha: it's unnerving because it's said to have been an ad-lib when he made that comment and not something he necessarily intended to say that day. what would you do in his shoes right now. >> i would roll the clock back five years and start over again. but in the circumstances we face now which are undesirable from america's points of view. since he's going to do something i would try to target the chemical weapons stockpiles. but america's real interest in this narrow contest with syria

is making sure those weapons don't get out. the issue of is iran. the assad regime would not be in power in iran and russia had not assisted financially and with weapons and soldiers from hezbollah. that's the problem with syria. the administrationn't recognize iran as the problem. it's still trying to negotiate with iran on its nuclear weapons. >> bill: detroit on edge after a super cat is seen to be roaming the neighborhood.

bill: many say they are scared for little kids playing in the area. listen to these people who describe the mysterious animal. >> it's tall with very long arms and a long tail and a small head. >> it looks like an evil thing. i just ran. you just ran. you didn't want to look at it any longer. >> it just walks through the block. it's not scared of anybody. i'm scared to walk the neighborhood. it come out on you. >> i ran in the house and it was real scary. i said i'm never going back there again. bill: humane society officials moving in there. but they have got to locate him first. martha: he has a long tail. he's not a bobcat. he looks like a combination of a

leopard and a bobcat or something. bill: hiding out under the left quarter panel of that vehicle. martha: i'm not going back around there again. a 12-year-old boy who really kept his cool under some frightening circumstances after two burglars broke into his home when he was alone. now the little boy tells us about those terrifying moments. bill: a living american hero saving lives in the middle of hell and earth. staff sergeant ty carter receiving the medal of honor yesterday. >> he gave him safety and comfort. he allowed them to have the thought that he would be coming home to us. coming home to his family.

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>> they just broke the window? what room are you in? stay on the phone with me. martha: we told you about this story yesterday. 12-year-old deion murdoch called 911 after two men broke into his house. >> i closed the door, locked it, opened it, and i had to like squeeze back there in this corner. hear them coming in. i panicked, but the lady started talking to me and made me calm down. martha: the 911 operator stayed

on the phone with him until the police arrived. many in the texas town are calling her a hero. >> you have to put yourself in a mother's position or parent's position and get give the information to him so he can feel comfortable. >> reporter: both suspects were eventually arrested. it's great to see these 911 stories. he said she made me feel calm. so that's good. bill: nicely done. our nation's highest military hon jar awarded to a man who is not on an american hero but is still fighting for troops battling the memory of their own service. >> specialist tyrone carter's'

selflessness reflect great credit on himself, bravo troop 4th infantry division and the united states army. [applause] bill: you do not picture that moment when you enlist for the u.s. military. the battle took place in 2009. ty carter and his fellow soldiers came under attack by taliban fighters. he braved enemy fire to run

ammunition to his brothers in arms. took out several taliban fighters himself and risked his life to provide aid to a gravely wounded comrade. 8 soldiers died that day, 22 were injured. >> before he camit came ty saids hoping to take his children around washington to show them the history. but if you want to know what a true american hero looks like you don't have to look too far. you just have to look at your dad. bill: mark carter is ty carter's father. as a father what did that ceremony mean to you? >> that's a tough question. not too many dads have the opportunity to experience something like that. meeting the president, meeting

vice president biden and his wife ann. what a tremendous experience. i haven't even brushed shoulders with people who were able to experience that. so this is pretty cool. bill: your son's heroism will be remembered forever. bill: he said i stand here proud to represent the 50 soldiers who faced impossible odds. he said i'm nervous about living with the responsibility of telling their story. >> he's always been a loner, enjoyed his privacy. hasn't really had to represent anyone but himself and do what he and his family need. so in my opinion, that's the reason why he's nervous about that. that's quite a responsibility. i found that just having him be acknowledged this way and people starting to ask me these questions it's been quite a

responsibility on my part, too. that hopefully i can portray his feelings, my feelings, the family's feelings in a way that bring respect from our family, to the army and to this nation. bill: he's been dealing with post traumatic stress disorder. he has been very public about it. what he talks about is the invisible wound. he says know that they are not damaged, they are simply burdened with living with what others do not. how is he doing? >> he's doing pretty good. all of them. that experience that. so they are experiencing it now. they will wake up in the middle of the night at a include itle click or a flash of light, and they will immediately be awake and not be able to go back to sleep for hours. the idea of them just something

triggering in their mind and they are back there in afghanistan at the out post. so it's going to be tough for them to get over. including my son. tough for them to get over for a number of years. bill: if you think about the statement he made, you have a young man, you have a son who is living with this disorder yet he's helping others. how does he do that? >> i think he's considering that that is his therapy being able to help others. he's always wanted to help others. he did some individual jobs between military service the first four years, lived with me for five years. and the jobs that he was doing just didn't give him the gratification of being able to help others like his current job now. bill: you have your son, he has

co have not. sometimes you deal with the guilt of living or coming out of an experience like that. and now you have the opportunity to give back. i think it's a wonderful sight to see the images we see and to recognize who those -- those who have sacrificed so as much. you have did not serve so your son has one up on you. >> i'm living most of this through my buddies at the golf course, my buffedies at work. they are going holy crap, your son did this? >> i said that's what i'm hearing about. now i'm finding out national recognition is quite a thing. this is just impressive. bill: i'll bet that's not all they are saying. mark carter, thank you. our best to you, your family, grandchildren and your son, ty. thank you for giving us such a great example.

thank you, sir. a good man. it was an honor. martha: a real look inside what it's like to have that kind of attention to witness a moment like that when your son is a true american hero and the humility that family expressed is very touching and the other families are grateful to him. bill: bya on this if you want to talk about anything on your mind. on twitter follow me there. just one line. one question mark. bya because you asked. martha: it looks like a major showdown is coming over the debt ceiling. the debt ceiling. the white house says it won't negotiate on this. a panel will join us fair and balanced debate coming up. bill: what a day here.

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bill: a heart stopping close encounter caught on tape. a pair of kayakers out on kayaks in monterey bay snapped these pictures of a 40-foot humpback whale. the woman closest to the whale said her heart was doing flips afterwards. flip-flops. more than just a flip. man oh man.

martha: she is getting stronger every day. now a big step for sarah murnaghan following two lung transplants surgeries. laura ingle joins us live. >> reporter: our own peter johnson jr. who is in philadelphia with the family tells us sarah arrived home via ambulance and a nurse will be home with her. her mother was in the ambulance with her and her brothers and sisters and grandparents all greeted her in the driveway. on sunday sarah's mother said her daughter was taken off oxygen though she is still getting support from a machine that helps her breathe. she is up on her feet using a walker to help her get around. even venturing outside. sarah's recovery is focused on

building her muscle strength. her mother says she and her daughter have cried tears of joy because she is home. an incredible part of this story. sarah's parents sued to change that policy to put her at the bottom of the adult list. the group added sarah to the adult list. after the first set of transplanted lungs failed, sarah received another set three days later while struggling with the end stage of cystic fibrosis. after entering the hospital more than 6 months ago she never could have imagined the journey

ahead. if you are struggling with something bigger than you. god is great and so is the human spirit. there are so many beautiful people in the world. thank you. martha: great story, when wish them well. bill: a fox news alert from the pentagon. senior defense officials telling fox news a military strike on syria is not a question of if but when. jennifer griffin will have the details. martha: this is a fire the size of the city of chicago. we'll go live to yosemite where firefighters are battling a place that already charred thousands of acres. and you need it now. ladies, let's goo vegas. cute! waiter! girls' weekend here!

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martha: we start with this fox news alert. the u.s. military is, quote, ready to go. the obama administration calling syria's apparent use of chemical

weapons to slaughter innocent men, women and children a quote, moral obscenity. senior defense officials telling fox that military strikes are not a question of if but when at this point. welcome, everybody. brand new hour of "america's newsroom." glad to have you with us on this really busy morning. i'm martha maccallum. bill: i'm bill hemmer. military assets, we marked this last hour, they are already in position. warships stationed in the eastern mediterranean carrying cruise missiles, capable of reaching targets inside of syria. now we wait to hear from the white house. here is ambassador john bolton just moments ago inside "america's newsroom." >> i don't have a clue what barack obama's going to do. trying to understand his strategic thinking is like trying to nail jelly to a wall. i'm sure that he is going to use military force but until we see what it is he has given no clue what the objective is.

he has given no indication he intend to follow through on it and i very much feel this is a reaction to the box he put himself in rather than the application of sound, strategic thinking. martha: strong words from john bolton moments ago here in "america's newsroom." joined by national security correspondent jennifer griffin covering this story from the pentagon. so, jennifer, what are you hearing at this point? >> reporter: martha, u.s. military sources tell me the current plan is limited and does not include targeting syria's chemical weapons. that would require special operations and boots on the ground which the president has ruled out. there is no way to surgically strike chemical stockpiles i'm told, most of which in syria underground. the four u.s. destroyers in the region, in the mediterranean are each capable of firing up to 90 tomahawk cruise missiles. defense secretary chuck hagel has spoken with his french and british counterpart and told the bbc in an interview today that

the u.s. is ready to strike. >> the united states is looking at all options regarding the situation in syria. we're working with our allies and with the international community. we are analyzing the intelligence and, we will get the facts. >> reporter: we just learned that in the next 24 hours the administration plans to release an intelligence assessment which they have declassified in order to make the case for why a military strike is needed the intelligence will show how the chemical weapons were used and how the administration believes those weapons were used by the assad regime. that we expect in some sort of a printed formulator today. we also learned the chairman of the house armed services committee, congressman buck ma keen, was reached last night by

senior u.s. defense officials. this sort past noteification process that is taking play and underway, in terms of secretary of state, white house, defense department, reaching out to senior congressional leaders in the event the president gives the go order. martha: it is clear from everything you say, jennifer, they're making all efforts to notify the people who need to be notified, to put information out there that backs up their case for taking action. what other measures in terms of feedback from congress or from our allies is the administration waiting for at this point? >> reporter: well really the holdup at this point is that the administration has decided to work through nato. nato has called an emergency session tomorrow, wednesday, in brussels with all of its member-states. there is, there is very little likelihood the u.s. would strike before that meeting so they're going to wait for that nato session to end tomorrow which is wednesday. then we understand that the, the u.k., prime minister david cameron has called his

parliament back into session from recess. they will meet and take a vote we're told on thursday. so it is unlikely that any strike would happen before thursday. the administration is unlikely to go through the u.n. security council where russia and china are going to, would likely veto any sort of military action and it's not without precedent that the u.s. would use nato as the, as the body in which to essentially gain international, sort of, that is the route which they are planning to go. that's what they did in kosovo. that's what they're doing at this time we're told. martha? martha: that kind of cooperation and coordination, jennifer, thank you very much. we'll see you later far-reaching implications from all of this too. you're already seeing the price of oil increase as of yesterday. we want to show you on the map what are considered the two most critical choke points for oil transportation in the world.

state of hormuz here which empties in the persian gulf just south of iran eventually into iraq is number one. number two is the suez canal over in egypt. syria is here to the north. but the suez canal runs for about 120 miles and connects to the persian gulf and eastern mediterranean where the u.s. warships have been prepositioned. advance it one time. how important is the suez canal? 7% of all seaborne traded oil passes through the suez, and 13% of liquified natural gas does the same. this area is something to watch if there is military conflict that could impact the suez. melissa francis is with me now. "money" with melissa francis i should say. >> there you go. bill: good morning to you. syria doesn't produce a lot of oil. >> right. bill: why would you see the spike now? >> exactly what you highlighted it is the neighborhood we're

very concerned about. look at the neighbors right there. iraq is right on its border. iraq is the second biggest oil producer in opec. they kicked up exports to 2.4 million barrels a day. they have seen a big increase in production with investments from folks like bp exxon and royal dutch/shell. they have all gotten in there and really stepped things up. so the fear is a conflict begins in syria, it impacts the oil from iraq going out around the world. there is libya to think about in the neighborhood. they have seen production drop by 60% because of internal conflicts. that is sort of the flipside of that coin. that is a big concern as well. because they're a big contributor. with all the traffic around the area. we're not just talking about us. this is oil to asia where they're seeing a bit of a slowdown and europe as well. bill: here at home we've watched this huge production boom by way of fracking. so we're not entirely insulated from this,. >> we're not. bill: by any measure. >> your point is correct.

it has helped a lot. as soon as october our own internal production should exceed imports. that is the first time that happened since 1995. bill: wow. >> production is at a 22-year high. we're doing better than we were before. we're in a better position to deal with this but oil is fungible. it goes all around the world. and what hurts europe and hurts asia ultimately hurts us as well because we're an interconnected global economy. bill: i know the straits of hormuz. we'll get the geography right next time. melissa, every weekday. 5:00 eastern time, "money" with melissa francis over on the fox business network. plenty to talk about. martha: plenty to talk about is right. we have consumer confidence in august near a five-year high. we'll see if the confidence holds up with everything going on in the world with these concerns about oil as well. despite the possible impact on oil prices a new poll suggests

that most americans would not support the idea of getting more involved in the syrian crisis. look at the new number from rasmussen. 31%, favor giving more military help to the syrian rebels. a lot of questions who the rebels are and connections to al qaeda complicates that matter greatly. only if the chemical weapons charges are actually proven to be true. 37% say they do not support getting the u.s. military involved in syria. bill: so what do you think at home? should the u.s. get involved? send us a tweet online right now, @billhemmer and at martha maccallum. lines are open. tell us how you feel and what you think. martha: all right. this fox news alert for you now. encouraging update on california's massive wildfires as crews finally make a little bit proving guess after more than 250 square miles have been burned in and around the iconic yosemite national park. this is known as the rim fire as it makes its way around that

park. smoke clouds, even some flames now visible from space. we have seen the pictures. could be a long way before this is over. claudia cowan is live in california and she is giving us the latest how they're doing. hi, claudia. >> reporter: well, good morning from a very smokey, toulmine city. this is few miles and one ridgeline away from the fire's leading edge and two nearby communities remain under evacuation advisory. folks are here ready to leave at moment's notice if need be. 4,000 firefighters are battling the stubborn rim fire. this has really become an air assault. we have seen 13 helicopters and six air tankers making continuous drops of water and retardant. living with locals who live on

the ridge, we saw drops as late as 7:30 last night. despite erratic winds and hot temperatures crews made a significant progress yesterday. they have a line around 20% of the rim fire. it has grown to nearly 180,000-acres. after getting briefed yesterday, governor jerry brown praised california's firefighters who have come through time and again during this extreme fire season. >> this is something we have to live with. it may get worse in years to come. california will be ready for it. whatever it takes, i'm going to make sure the resources are deployed. >> reporter: of course those resources include money. price tag for the rim fire alone, martha? more than $20 million. martha: claudia, thank you very much. claudia cowan. bill: and on it burns, huh? martha: on it burns, that's right. bill: white house will not negotiate after asking lawmakers for more borrowing authority to pay america's bills. you have nearly $17 trillion in

debt, america. why is the white house playing hard ball? fair and balanced debate on that in a minute. martha: the government is spending a lot of taxpayer money to sell you on the health care law. how much money are they spending on this effort? we're going to tell you. plus remember this? >> everybody in cleveland, all minorities got obama phone. keep obama in as president you know. he gave us a phone. >> gave you a phone? >> give you more. bill: which told you about the fraud in so-called obama phone program yesterday. how easy it is it to get one of those phones. we will talk to someone today who did not just get one, but rather free, all paid for by you too big.

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in some parts. and they're doing right now what you shouldn't do and that's drive across that water. the heavy rain also causing mudslides. one person was killed over the weekend after a car was caught in one of those flash floods. look out. >> back to washington now where there's a major battle brewing after the treasury department asked congress to raise the borrowing limit on the nation's credit card by october. nearly $17 trillion in debt we are right now. the white house says any request from republican lawmakers to tie the increase in the debt ability to borrow on the debt to spending cuts is a deal-breaker. they say it will be met with a resounding no. >> we will not negotiate with republicans in congress over congress's responsibility to pay the bills that congress has racked up. period. it is congress's responsibility to maintain the full, faith and credit of the united states.

we have never defaulted. and we must never default. martha: there you have it from jay carney at the white house. bob beckel, former democratic campaign manager co-host of "the five." brad blakeman former deputy assistant to president george w. bush. you have to pay the bills, brad and bob, and there's just no negotiating on that and there is no deciding when you do pay the bells it might make some sense to rein in some of your spending going forward because you're racking up a big credit card. brad, you want to take crack at it first. >> brad, i'm sorry, go ahead you take a crack at it. >> the white house making demands making are trying to sucker the republicans in to voting down the debt increase. let me tell you, republicans better play chess and not russian rule let. the american people know it is this president unable to get a budget. there are 50 million people unemployed. housing prices are still not where they are. bankruptcies are at an all-time

high. when we need to do is live to fight another day but we should not throw in the towel on the negotiation. sequester cuts must stay at present levels and press on obamacare. the president knows it is not ready for prime time. we need to exempt individuals the same businesses have been exempt and push this thing back at least a year the president pushed it back. martha: bob, what do you make of all this. >> first of all the republican dug their own hole. brad, i wish you would tell them to hand you the shovel they will keep getting in deeper. they were the ones want to increase the debt sealing to the fall. now going into election season. the idea of putting full faith and credit of united states at risk going into election year is suicide. to tie it to the budget, which means without a budget the government shuts down. the republicans learned that lesson in the 1990s when they got killed at polls. there are the two choices. make those choices fine with me, either way they go with it but it is suicide from that

standpoint. >> i understand the politics you're talking about but i can't help but take it to a more practical level. here is the example. if you're a family and daughter runs up credit card and has access to it and goes crazy on it, you know? we will not besmirch the family's name. we have to pay the bill. are you going to say to her, keep going, all we care about is family's good name. you say no, we'll pay the bill but change things in the future. what is so very difficult about that? >> go ahead. let me take a crack at that. martha: go ahead, bob. >> i take a crack at it because i got a daughter says does that to me all the time. martha: me too. >> i am an atm machine. all she has to do is push four buttons. martha: i hear you. >> the debt we all agree is a problem. i don't think is as big a problem as other people do. nothing about this americans woke up the deficit in any way

impacted on them negatively. but in the future there is possibility it can. president obama made a proposal to redo the cost of living increases on social security which is billions of dollars and republicans turned him down. martha: brad? >> well, look, what we need to do, as you point out, martha, we have to live in our federal budget like our citizens are mandated to live at home. we have to live within a budget. this is a town all about numbers and power and ability to get things done of the right now we have divided government. >> brad, why don't you accept -- martha: argument is the president doesn't want to cut anything. he never comes out with any way to cut anything. bob says he does and republicans shot it down. what do you say? >> this president, even when he controlled both houses of congress in his first two years was unable to produce a budget when he controlled every brand of government. this president has no limit to spending. why? because he is backstopped by the american taxpayer. we don't live this way at home. we can only spend what we take in and what we take, and account

for what we take out. is. martha: i hear you. >> brad, constitution says all money begins in house of representatives, controlled by republicans. >> come on, bob. martha: but it is endless, endless pot that continues to be spent. >> that's right. martha: bob, one of the things that strikes me is the sequester. we were told the sequester was going to be so horrible and so scary and it would cut back so many things that meant so much to americans. it didn't happen. if that wasn't so bad, what is the president afraid of in terms of saying you know what we'll raise the debt ceiling but we'll go further. we'll cut this and that? because he says he is serious about reining in spending so why not do it? why not surprise the republicans? >> first of all sequester is in fact beginning to cause pain across democratic and republican -- why republicans want to change -- wait a minute. both democrats and republicans want out from underneath the sequester vote. they can't do that without a new budget. that is the pressure point the

president's got. they wanted sequester. they got sequester. the pain is coming in and they want to change it. martha: is the pain coming, in glad. >> the pain is coming in because president directed agencies to cause american people pain. he told them you cut programs that affect american people. white house is closed to public tours because the president wants to send a message. it is easy to live within your budget. if the president wanted to be a rock star he would tell every agency to cut back spending 10%. >> one final point, speak about rocks. that's where you guys are, between a rock and a hard place. >> no way, please. martha: we'll leave it there. bob see you later on "the five." thanks so much, brad. bill: bob and brad going at it. a dust-out now. a major storm that left a major american city paralyzed. you will see that in a moment. also here. martha: it was a turning point in tennis and american culture but could it all have been

rigged by the mob? the day we rescued riley was a truly amazing day.

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martha: well a dangerous weather pattern creating some big problems in phoenix, arizona, hit with a massive dust storm on monday night. on the same day a flash flood warning went into effect there as well. a tough august. look at the weather in phoenix. the state's monsoon season runs through mid-june and goes to late sent and can result in these massive dust storms known has haboobs you see in the picture they cause serious problems whether you're on the air or in the ground. fog situation basically rolls through with the haboob, bill. bill: the obama administration using millions of your tax dollars to promote a health care

program you already have to use by law. one group in arizona holding town halls explaining how obamacare will really affect people and they do it without the use of taxpayer dollars. william la jeunesse in the west close newsroom to explain how this works. william, good morning. >> reporter: bill, for a few hundred million dollars you hope to get the straight story on the obamacare, the good,ed bad, the ugly. instead a lot of the money that you're being spend something being spent on celebrities hired to sell the program. >> ♪ >> reporter: video contest, celebrities, pro athletes. the obama administration is asking everyone from oprah to comedian amy foaler, to do the one thing is hasn't sell obamacare. the pr machine will spend $684 million to pedal the new law. almost 300,000 went to the community health center in tucson. >> the employees educate people

about the options with the affordable care act but they will also be encouraging people to come in to see what kind of insurance they qualify for. >> reporter: at el rio, employees accent the positive, expanded coverage. acrosstown taxpayers in this neater wonder how the law will negatively impact them. >> when is obamacare kicking in? is it done deal, point of no return? >> under 65 or -- >> better if you're younger. >> reporter: this event sponsored by americans for prosperity. involved no public money. >> you want to be very, very careful if you're in the medicare age group. >> reporter: older folks worry what they lose but what the working poor that stands to gain energizes el rio's effort. >> well educate them and help them through the process. >> reporter: critics consider the process a one-sided p.r. campaign. >> it's a little bit disturbing the government is spending taxpayer money to go out and sign people up for a government program of dubious quality.

>> reporter: now obamacare's success getting young and healthy to sign up, hence the celebrities. outreich to the uninsured. don't expect it. v commercials or comedians to answer the hard questions. bill: we'll leave that to you, william. william la jeunesse live in los angeles. martha. martha: george zimmerman is back in the spotlight. why he says he shouldn't have to pay his legal fees. he believes the people of the state of florida should kick in money for that. >> how about that. a top lawmaker demanding answers about the abuse of a federal program that gives away a free phone. how bad is the abuse you ask? you're about to meet a woman who was able to get a bunch of free phones, and you paid for all of them with your dime. [ man ] look how beautiful it is.

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go long. martha: familiar face in washington saying farewell today as homeland security secretary janet napolitano leaves her post after four years in that job. the president says the american people are safer because of her leadership. some critics are questioning how much she really accomplished. chief intelligence correspondent catherine herridge is live on this story for us in washington. so, what is napolitano saying herself about her tenure there this morning, catherine?

>> reporter: thank you, martha. good morning. the homeland security secretary began speaking at the national press club here in washington billed as a farewell speech before she begins her new position heading up the university of california system. nalitano citing how the response to the boston marathon bombing earlier this year saved lives. >> we have improved the ability of local communities to respond to critical incidents including in the city of boston and the commonwealth of massachusetts. for example, we provide homeland security grants to equip and train special response teams in improvised explosive device detection, prevention, response and recovery. >> reporter: supporters also cite the fact that napolitano is the longest serving homeland security secretary, the first woman to hold that position and a secretary whose immediate response to hurricane secretary, on the ground within hours won high praise even from her critics. those from the department who work the cyber issue say

napolitano pushed very hard and fairly successfully for a bigger role for her department, martha. martha: interesting. what do the critics say about her time there? >> reporter: critics complain napolitano along with the administration tried to minimize the threat to al qaeda by referring to terrorist attacks as man-caused disasters. under napolitano watch there were two major domestic terrorist attacks, most recently the boston marathon bombing where 260 people were injured or killed. two very close calls on her watch. including attempted bombing of a transatlantic flight in 2000 nine and attempted bombing in times square. in both cases a bomb's detonate nors failed to work. and there is the border issue. >> there are several problems the way this administration, janet napolitano handled the southwest border. they have not secured the border in any way. it is not about illegal immigration. it is about security.

>> reporter: at administration is yet to say who the likely pick to replace napolitano will be, martha. martha: that is the next part. catherine, thanks very much. >> reporter: you're welcome. bill: top law maker in washington is demanding answers on the so-called obama phone program. free cell phones were supposed to help low income americans find jobs and access health care. call the doctor, the hospital. senator jeff sessions in a letter to the fcc writes the following. i want to understand what you're agency is doing to eliminate abuses within the program and why previous efforts appear to be insufficient. a "wall street journal" review found more than 40% of the participants are not eligible. and that program, costs nearly $2.2 billion. julian melcher, columnist for "national review." fellow at franklin center. with me in studio. good morning. you did your experiment throughout the city of new york. you found yourself with three phones in the end.

i want to get to your story in a moment, with regard to senator sessions what can he do here, what is he after? >> he is after answers why fraud and abuse are so prolific in this program and it's a fair program. costs have soared since 2008 when cell phones were added. what may be missed in the debate this is an integral problem. the problems with the program, fraud and abuse are built in structurally. because they provide perverse incentives to the phone companies to push as many out on the street. bill: the phone companies get the money because they have the statement on the bill universal -- >> universal service fund. bill: that is on your bill. this started in the mid 1980s with land lines back then. the program was increased in 2008. but why the increase so sub songsly in the past five years? >> part of it is a lot harder to take a land line to a pawn shop and sell it than it is to take a cell phone. part of it cell phone companies really have an incentive to go out to push as many free phones

on the street they can. they get $10 per month per customer for signing up. bill: there is incentive there. >> huge incentive. bill: financial aide. you were on the iphone or blackberry. >> i was. bill: that is the story i read. you were talking on the phone and you were approached to get a free phone. >> that's right. i went, to all of the different offices in manhattan and some in brooklyn that offer food stamps. vendors come up to you do you have your free phone yet. they're supposed to ask you questions to determine eligibility. i'm not eligible. i told them the truth the entire time. are you on welfare. i said, no i would like to be. i think a lot of people paying for welfare would very much like to be. that was enough they signed me up. i tested the limits. went up talking on my existing phone. bill: you had a phone. >> yes. bill: they offered you another phone? >> they offered another phone. i really don't need this. they saw i was talking on my phone. that i hung it up to put in my application. in addition it that you're only

supposed to have one phone even if you're eligible. i already received a lifeline phone in the mail. no problem. sign right on up even though that is not in the program. bill: they're actively pursuing you. >> very active. actually incentives, perverse incentives trickle all the way down. you have the big.companies, carlos slim, billionaire getting half a billion dollars in 2011. down to the guy on the street who is getting a commission for every single phone he hands out. this program is just fraught with perverse incentives. i think that is what makes reforming it very difficult. bill: in the end final tally, got a one phone from a company called safe link. you were given two phones from assurance. >> yep. bill: there were no questions asked? >> no questioned is. i think they only caught i had duplicate in the entire system. getting picture, photo i.d. in some cases photo of my insurance card. the companies don't have an incentive to do due diligence.

the federal government doesn't belong in the cell phone business anymore than phone companies offered to in the welfare business. bill: are senator sessions -- >> there have been a lot. james o'keefe. he has see hing problems. fcc audit finding out 41% of the people aren't eligible that they polled. you have got studies by no means comprehensive over the last two years finding out more than 400,000 lifeline customers have more than one phone. bill: story you wrote shows how easy it is to get. there in lies the problem. >> indeed. bill: thank you for sharing your story. julia melcher, "national review." thanks for sharing your story with us. >> thank you. bill: 20 minutes before the hour. back to martha. martha: fox news alert. we have brand new video of the representative to the u.n., samantha power arriving there just a few moments ago to work on the syria situation.

let's take a look. >> all i can say we're continuing to consult our allies and partners on the appropriate response in light of last week's chemical weapons attack in syria. >> how is that coming along? >> we're making progress. martha: we're making progress she says. we know that there are a number of steps and measures being taken at the u.n. discussions with allies to coordinate the possibility of some sort of coordinated attack, possibly towards the end of this week. so we're going to see what happens with that. samantha power at work as she was yesterday at the united nations. bill: when there is news on that we'll get back to it certainly. in the meantime was the famous battle of the sexes rigged? bombshell allegations that bobby riggs threw the famous battle between he and billie jean king? would he do that? why would he do that? we'll tell you about the new reports coming up in a few minutes. ♪ the great outdoors...

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♪ i finally found the right snack ♪ ♪ martha: this has everybody talking about. tennis legend billie jean king now dismissing the claims the mafia rigged the famous 1973 battle of sexes match against former champion, bobby riggs. >> that was bobby riggs. martha: that was the moment for billie jean king. she made history and after she beat him in three straight sets, that september night. this is them riding in. she was 29 years old at the time. number two female player at the time. margaret court was number one.

bobby riggs beaten her which prompted billie jean king to step into the ring with him. he was 55 years old at the time. no longer a competitive player. he was quite a player in his day. billie jean king says quote, this story about the rigging she is referring to, is ridiculous. i was on the court with bobby and i know he was not tanking the match. people need to accept he had a bad day at the office. jim gray is a sportscaster of course and a fox news contributor. good morning, good to have you here. >> good morning, martha. martha: before we get to the obvious question here i want you to take us back to that time in tennis and what, what this moment was really like in this, amazing arena in houston. >> well, billie jean king was a pioneer in the women's movement. she of course was called the battle of the sexes and everybody was talking about at that time, should women be of equal pay? she was on the original virginia slims tennis tour.

this was a huge, huge deal across america. it had some 30,000 people in the astrodome. bobby riggs had been a great player in his day. he won some u.s. championships. he won wimbledon. he was 55 years old. he easily had beaten margaret court. he was now ready to take on billie jean king. it was a huge tennis audience. howard cosell, the great broadcaster of that time, called the tennis match. this was just a really, really big deal back in 1973. the battle of sexes. 55-year-old man against the number two woman tennis player in the world. martha: tells you how long ago it was, there was a virginia slims tennis tournament. not too many cigarette companies sponsor any sort of athletic events these days. looking at these charges, very exhaustive story, it is an interesting story. definitely takes you back to that time. it remind everybody that he was a huge gambler, bobby riggs.

at this point in his career taking 100 bucks with people to have matches with them. all kinds of bets. he bet on tennis constantly. so why would he not, if he owed a lot of money to the mafia and guy who worked in a country club in florida says he witnessed this mafia discussion about having him throw these games in order to repay $100,000 in debt? do you put any credence in it? >> well certainly it is plausible and of course it is possible and, this pro who is making these allegations and who said he overheard this conversation could very well be true. just because he heard this conversation between some mobsters at a golf country club late at night when he was there and he was clandestinely listening to it doesn't mean exactly that is what happened or that in fact because the mob was having a discussion about it that bobby riggs participated. there is no evidence, at least by anybody credible, his best friend say he wasn't in debt.

he didn't owe money. yes he was hustler. he liked to gamble. he was always looking for a game. he was notorious for it. no one said he was in this type of debt that woe have to repay anybody. in addition he might not have won this match not because he was tanking it, there was reportedly a rematch clause. he felt maybe he could make a heck of a lot more money beating billie jean king in the second match. a very famous boxing promoter and television man is still alive. he has the contract. he refused to participate in the story. but billie jean king never awarded the rematch saying what would it prove if she beat him twice? martha: you know, it is interesting. and there are a lot of circumstantial things that do raise questions in this story. like the fact that he wasn't really training before this match. that the guy who showed up to warm him up said he played for 10 minutes and wandered off and seemed disinterested and seemed sullen and unhappy going into it. after the match he said to his son, that was the worst thing i

ever did. and that it was sort after weighty comment, that it seemed to have larger meaning to his son at least then portrayed in this story than having just lost the match. >> well his son certainly doesn't dampen the fact this is a possibility. in fact his son did participate in this and he never comes out right and says, of course this didn't happen. now the one thing that you do have to take into account that f. lee bailey, who was one of the great lawyers of that time of course in the watergate era, he had a show at time. he had a lie detector terse and had bobby riggs on the show and bobbery rigs passed the lie-detector test. later came out one of the mobsters involved in this thing, f. lee bailey represented in the trial of the mob possibly being involved in the killing of the kennedy assassination. so now here we have the battle of sexes, kennedy assassination a lie detector less.

there are a lot of sordid details. there is nothing at this moment said he was in debt and had to do this. martha: certainly nothing in this story that takes away from the greatness of billie jean king who no doubt could have beaten him either way. it's a fascinating look back at that time. jim gray, always a pleasure sir. thanks so much. >> good to be with you, martha, thank you. bill: we have breaking news now. maybe the best story of the day. after several months in the hospital sarah murnaghan has arrived home. the first images coming to us here at "america's newsroom" only moments ago. she spent several months in hospital. agonizing surgeries. she was only 11. weeks after two risky transplants and several operations she is home in her delaware county home. her story made international headlines when her family fought a rule that would allow her to get transplants on an adult list for an organ transplant even though she was under the age of

11. the rule was eventually suspended during the long court battle. sarah got her lungs and sarah got her life back. today she is back home. >> wow. [ tires screech ] ♪ and your favorite songs always playing. [ beeping ] ♪ may you never be stuck behind a stinky truck. [ beeping ] ♪ may things always go your way. but it's good to be prepared... just in case they don't. let's go places, safely.

bill: george zimmerman a free man but that freedom cost him hundred of us those of dollars in legal fees in florida. the lawyer for the man acquitted for murdering trayvon martin says according to state law florida should foot zimmerman's legal bills. keith, good morning to you. florida has a law that says what? >> it says if you are convicted of a crime they can charge you with the cost proves cuting you. if you are acquitted and found not guilty they will pay your costs but only costs. not the attorneys fees. it is travel expenses.

it is transcripts. it is the expertfies which are very expensive. but it is not everything. the state will certainly object to some items. bill: did he pay hundred of thousands of dollars for his trial? >> somebody paid it and they're entitled to get compensated. bill: so he was acquitted, if he were found guilty, what would i state say then. >> state would hand him a bill for his costs. very unique and progressive statute in the state of florida. bill: if he were found guilty, the state could get him for what? loot of money, right? >> certainly a lot more than 2 to $300,000 the bill is coming to. jury consultants. 3d animation was not used as evidence. they used it as demonstrative evidence in the summation. they will take it off. bill: you make the point, florida would be lucky to only cover his legal fees? >> absolutely. bill: why? >> if they get off easy by paying his legal costs not attorneys fees he is entitled to file a massive civil rights lawsuit against the sheriff's

department, prosecutors and municipality with that i think he should go forward with the lawsuit. bill: you do. >> absolutely. bill: that could bring millions. >> millions in his pockets. cover legal fees an judgments he has against him from the civil lawsuit. they will be lucky to get it of here paying his legal costs. bill: thank you, keith. that story goes on for some time. keith sullivan in studio. thanks. martha, what's next? martha: u.s. military officials say they are poised and ready to strike in the president decides to take action in syria. we'll look at the claims that the u.s. may not wait for the green light from the international community now. the growing sense military action may be all but guaranteed. [ rob ] our daughter is all kate.

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a lot of discussion about that. bill: i've bottom one. john says no, no, and no. larry says, yes, save lives in that country. we'll see when the digs comes. i'll seal you tonight on fox report. make it a great day. martha: looking forward to that. "happening now" starts right now. see you back here tomorrow. >> fox news alert on rapidly building momentum for a u.s. military response in syria. one defense department official telling fox news not a matter of but when the obama administration leaving no doubt that american armed forces can easily hit targets inside syria. military officials telling fox that planned operations may include the use of cruise missiles or possibly even stealth bombers. over the next couple of hours we'll have extensive coverage and analysis about thetial american intervention in this crisis and moments from