in 1963. bill: pretty good markup. have a terrific labor day if you're with family and friends. hope it is not raining wherever you are. heather: see you five a.m. tomorrow for "fox & friends." bill: good to be with you. "happening now" starts right now. >> right now, brand new stories and breaking news. >> the president today meeting with leading republican senators at the white house. trying to win their support for military action in syria. the saws nimitz and its care year group moves in. who has to use caution out on the roads. a lawsuit against the pledge of allegiance in schools, now heading to one state's highest court. what the plaintiffs want and why it is not sitting well with a whole lot of parents.

all on happening now. gregg: president obama lobbying key leaders hoping to rally support for a military strike on syria. hello, happy labor day. i'm gregg jarrett in for jon scott. arthel: happy labor day. i'm arthel neville in for jenna lee. syria's civil war already claiming the lives of 100,000 people. secretary of state john kerry told our own chris wallace yesterday we now know hundreds of those victims were gassed by their own government in a chemical weapons attack. >> the fact is that yesterday, we have now learned that hair and blood samples that have come to us from east damascus from individuals who were enbeiged as

first-responders in east damascus i can report to you today they have positive for signatures of sarin. arthel: right now, six u.s. warships are already in the eastern mediterranean, equippedd with powerful tomahawk cruise missiles that can be used on individual targets and now fox news can confirm several more ships are moving closer to syria including the aircraft carrier, uss nimitz. national security correspondent jennifer griffin joins us live from washington. jennifer, what should we make of the movement of u.s. warships to that region right now? >> reporter: arthel, u.s. defense officials are describing this as a prudent decision based on developments in the region. the uss nimitz was originally to be heading home from the indian ocean last week. her normal course would be through the pacific, back to seattle. then the navy said it would keep two aircraft carriers in the persian gulf. with the nimitz with its four additional destroyers, each

quipped with tomahawks are somewhere in the red sea, moving in the opposite direction what would you expect to see if it was going home. meaning if she is moved into the mediterranean, that would bring a total of nine destroyers focused on syria. there are indications that the uss kersage, which played such an important role in the libya conflict could be retasked to the mediterranean. no orders however on that front. she would join the uss san antonio, amphibious ship with 300 marines on board, which some say could serve as a forward operating base for uss special operations troops but more likely could be a rescue team just in case. all of these movements put assets in place for the pentagon as planners reassesses their targets in syria during this pause, arthel. arthel: jennifer, do we know what assad is doing in the meantime? >> reporter: there continues to be reports that assad has moved some of his key assets around. the delay in d.c. is giving the

u.s. military and pentagon planners meantime time to reassess targets. time to come up with the resources which will be needed for a possible strike. which of course, still is likely to rely on tomahawk missiles. >> the fact that we have waited so long and bashar al-assad has been able to disperse his forces and move various units around, and, the leaks have been massive, more than any i have ever seen, indicates more and more that this strike may be a political exercise rather than one that's military. i regret that enormously. >> reporter: both senators john mccain and lindsey graham have been invited to the white house. they are scheduled to meet with the president at 2:00 p.m. today. arthel: jennifer griffin, thank you very much for that comprehensive report. gregg: could take the united nations scientists three weeks to verify those test samples they gathered at the site of the attack near damascus.

according to the u.n., since fighting broke out nearly one-third of the country's population has fled their homes trying to escape all the bloodshed. many flooding into neighboring turkey as well as lebanon. lawmakers in washington must decide if evidence warrants an intervention in syria's long civil war? this as the president warns that doing nothing could look like open season on the united states from terrorists who want to use chemical weapons on us. greg palkot live in beirut, lebanon with more. greg, what is the reaction you're seeing there on the ground? >> reporter: hey, gregg, we're just about 40 miles from the border with syria here in beirut, lebanon. as you can imagine there's a whole lot of reaction to the possibility of u.s. military intervention in syria. also, with the way that president obama is handling the run-up to that possible strike. we spoke today with an official of the syrian government and they said again, denying that

they used any chemical weapons on any attack against their own people last month. they also have been branding the white house move to go to congress as, this is their words, an historic retreat. we also spoke to a spokesman for the rebel free syrian army, he told me, he didn't think a green light from congress was necessary. they of course want the united states to act soon and to act strongly. here in lebanon, a top official is quoted as saying they are worried about possible fallout from an attack. this country has seen a lot of fallout already. sectarian violence coming across-the-boarder from syria. violence and death here in this country. also refugees coming across-the-boarder. it is thought over one million people have fled from syria into lebanon and more are coming. here's a little bit of the reaction we got from the folks on the street in beirut to possible u.s. action. take a listen. >> i hope it will -- >> do you know how?

>> let's see. let's see what obama will do. >> reporter: should the united states act do you think? >> well if they have the proof of the intention to use the chemical weapons on civilians, then, yes. >> no need for bloodshed. no need for american people or american military to die in syria. >> obama is the biggest of all in the country. maybe he wants to, he wants to strike, he wants to strike. >> reporter: as you can hear, gregg, divisions here just like in washington on the possibility of u.s. action in the region. gregg: yeah. i want to mention, come back to something you mentioned, arab league. the arab eagan league is weighing in on this, what are they saying? >> yeah. they met last night in cairo, gregg. much anticipated here in the region. also, by washington, the hope was that they could come up with a strong statement backing military intervention by the united states. well the concluding statement from that meeting fell short of that, simply calling for the

international community to take all necessary measures against syria. we also didn't get too much of a comment today, gregg, from the hezbollah group. they are lob none-based. they are a major participate in bashar al-assad's war inside syria. they have said if there is a major strike they would retaliate, maybe retaliate against israel. if that strike was more contained, then maybe they would hang fire. a lot of questions but consensus building here in the region, gregg, about so far president obama's handling of the situation. we talked to one of the top political analysts here in beirut today and he says, if he could sum up the feeling among leaders here and these are his words, the characterization of white house handling of this so far? feckless and weak. he also said, however, if the congressional backing was secured and if the strike was pulled off with some strength, that opinion could be turned around. back to you. gregg: live on the ground in beirut, lebanon.

greg palkot, greg, thanks so much. arthel: greg, i want to get back to what jennifer griffin reported that the delay in washington may give the pentagon more time to assess their targets and what resources are needed to carry out a strike. joining me more for the military aspect of all this, retired navy captain chuck nash, fox news military analyst. good to see you. >> nice to be with you, arthel. arthel: do you think according to the report we just heard that this does give the u.s. military, more time for a better, more effective strike or is it more to assad's benefit? >> well, i think politically it is more to assad's benefit. operationally, it may benefit assad as well, because he has more time to scoot his stuff out of the way and try to find hiding places for it. but for the u.s. side of the equation, it gives planners more time and planners will plan right up until there is no more time. so if you give them a year to plan, they will plan for a year.

if you give them six months they will plan for six months. the process of planning i think it was eisenhower who said after d-day, all the plans weren't worth anything but the process of planning was invaluable. so, they will continue to plan. they will integrate new information as it comes in. they will adjust forces as necessary. so that when the time comes, if they're given the signal to pull the trigger, then they will have the forces in place to execute the military mission that supports the national political strategy and that is what senator mccain, senator graham and many members of congress and the american people are waiting to hear. what is that political strategy and, that the military is going to execute too. arthel: right. and of course we're waiting for what that strategy might be. in the meantime are you able to telegraph at all from this just in case move in terms of military strategy what the u.s.

might be preparing? >> well, if you look at the fours structure they're -- force structure they're putting together, arthel, it is nine tomahawk missile-firing destroyers, possibly one cruiser, two amphibious assault ships, an aircraft carrier. this is some big muscle. arthel: right. >> the two amphibious assault ships, the kersage, which is a large deck is in the red sea on one side of the suez canal and the san antonio is up in the mediterranean up on the other side of the suez canal, combined those two ships have the equivalent hospital capability of uss comforter, mercy, the two hospital ships. more importantly from the assault side, they have the lift and the marine corps combat power to do non-combatant evacuation operations should the

strikes go and one of the unanticipated consequences perhaps is an assault on one of our embassies in the region. we have the capability with the marine corps team to do that, to get our people out of whatever country has the problem with the embassy. so there are a lot of things that could go wrong. it looks like they're positioning the forces to prepare for some of those contingencies as well as the cruise missile capability. now the aircraft carriers of course, now you're talking a real serious, real serious punch. so whether nimitz stays in that region toreor gets withdrawn, again depend on what's the strategy, therefore, what's the military's mission to support that strategy. arthel: before i let you go, captain nash. gregg: if i could ask you based on the offense sieve moves we talked about what the u.s. might be planning, talk briefly about

the defensive moves assad might be making in next couple weeks in anticipation of the strike. >> well, it runs the gamut. it is duck and cover, number one, move stuff around. conceal, camouflage. watch your communications, all of those things. he is going to do. defensively he has got a very good surface-to-air missile network. he has some jamming. he has got surface-to-surface missiles that he could use. he has got a navy that has missiles that could come out against our ships. were he to do something like that, were he to react very, very strongly, i think he would get pounded into the dirt. it is amusing, well, it not really amusing but you have got hezbollah negotiating well, say if you do a minor strike maybe it's okay. this is getting silly now. arthel: that is part of the whole conundrum there. captain nash, i have to go. we appreciate your analysis sir. >> my pleasure, arthel.

>> we continue to follow all the developments in our top story. less than three hours from now president obama meeting with his former rival for the white house, john mccain, they will talk about a possible strike on syria. so can the president convince republicans that an attack is the answer? the fight to keep the pledge of allegiance in our schools, fought in one state's highest court. can a group of atheists really stop students from saying, "under god"? >> one nation, under god, indivisible. when i can. [ bop ] [ male announcer ] could've had a v8. two full servings of vegetables for only 50 delicious calories.

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gregg: president obama inviting a former republican rival to the white house today to try to get the gop on board for a strike on syria. the president will meet with senators john mccain and lindsey graham, two p.m. eastern time, lobbying for a narrow and limited attack. the house is expected to vote after members return from vacation next week but many lawmakers are already gathering in washington to hear the

president's arguments so far. the congress seems split on the president's call for military action. >> there's a great deal of skepticism in the room about the utility effectiveness, and the support that we would have for the kind of strike that the president has proposed. >> i'm sporting the president, yeah. i'm supporting the president. i feel very strongly that these are war crimes. >> i think even the president's strongest defenders would acknowledge this hardly has been a work of out. we sort of stumbled into this commitment. gregg: bob cusack, managing editor of "the hill." bob, good to see you. >> good morning. gregg: mike rogers, who of course is the chair of the intel committee in the house, he thinks in the end the congress will back the president. peter king says no way. what do you say? >> i think, gregg, if the vote were discernly in the house i don't think this would succeed. but the vote is not today. the administration has some time. i think it is very important

this meeting with senator graham and mccain today because the president needs a republican ally and graham and mccain want of course the president to go further. they don't just want a limited strike. he has got to get them on board. what we're hearing from the house, especially some leaders including cathy mcmorris rogers, who is the number 4 house rep be can, she says she is skeptical. gregg: congress is noted for its dysfunction, so this will be a tough one but the president compounds it because he is got, he has got to rally his own democratic base, right? >> yes. gregg: there are certain democrats against this thing. will you go to those folks and say look, this is about my presidency and the credibility of america? >> uh-huh. i think he might try but, he is not going to succeed with many solve these members, whether it is charlie wrangle or congressman alan grayson. they are forcefully and firm nos. grayson certainly rallying for

more no votes. when you're talking about war, certainly left-wing will not be helping president obama. that is going to put nancy pelosi. that, she will have her own work to do to maybe convince so of these reluctant democrats to vote yes. gregg: yeah. polls seem to show limited support among americans for military action and, certainly john kerry made a very powerful argument that assad had indeed used chemical weapons. but the more important argument, bob, is whether president obama has made a cogent and persuasive argument that the u.s. should get involved? >> yeah. and i think that, that argument, they have got to work on it because they haven't convinced the american public. that is why the members here are skeptical. i think they're going to have to make a lot more forceful argument to the american people. maybe president obama will have to address congress the week of

september 9th. if they're lacking votes that could be in the cards. gregg: bob cusack of "the hill", bob, good to see you, thanks very much. >> thanks, gregg. arthel: coming up, some wild weather gripping the west. dramatic video of severe flooding in las vegas following last week's major downpour. plus the latest on the effort to contain the fourth largest wildfire in california history. ♪ with diabetes, it's tough to keep life balanced. i don't always have time to eat like i should. and the more i focus on everything else, the less time i have to take care of me. that's why i like glucerna shakes. they have slowly digestible carbs to help minimize blood sugar spikes. glucerna products help me keep everything balanced. [ golf clubs clanking ] [ husband ] i'm good! well, almost everything. [ male announcer ] glucerna. delicious shakes and bars. helping people with diabetes find balance. [ male announcer ] glucerna. delicious shakes and bars. i found our colors.

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gregg: welcome back. some headlines we're watching for you this hour. prosecutors in thailand say they will issue an arrest warrant for the err to the red bull fortune after the 30-year-old allegedly failed to appear on multiple occasions for an indictment related to a 2012 hit-and-run death of a police officer. former south african leader

nelson mandela is home this morning alf spending three months in the hospital. the 95-year-old is battling recurring lung infection but he will continue to receive care he needs from home. for the first time this fall flu shots will offer more protection than others. certain vaccines will guard against four strains of flu rather than the usual three. that is good news. arthel: good news. fox news weather alert. severe flooding is gripping areas in and around las vegas this is after a major downpour last week. rushing water causing major problems on the roads, even managing to partially bury an entire tractor-trailer in mud and debris. a cleanup effort is now underway. gregg: to one place that could certainly use some rain. we're talking yosemite national park. what a beautiful place but look at this. crews are still fighting to continue this massive wildfire, threatening some of the park's most popular attractions

including the prairies made famous in the hit tv show, "little house on the prairie." as of this morning the fire was 60% contained. crews are hoping the weather will cooperate long enough for them to get that number to 100%. arthel: for more on the wild weather gripping the west and other parts of the country, we're sending it over to meteorologist janice dean who is live in the fox news weather center. hi, janice. >> hi, arthel. gregg mentioned they have now got 60% containment on the rim fire. they will get a little bit of humidity and moisture in the area in terms of thunderstorms. however that could be a bad thing because it is so dry out here that a lot of the moisture could evaporate before it hits the ground and you're left with dry lightning which can spread wildfires. look at forecast, wind gusts in excess of 20 miles per hour. and the threat of thunderstorms is in the forecast today and tuesday. but again, the good news is it looks like they are getting a

little more of a handle on the fire. we'll get a little bit of moisture in that in terms of humidity. looking at the satellite radar imagery, north of where we're dealing with the rim fire, that's where we're seeing the precipitation but we're not really getting it into that region. the southwest, dealing with flooding. we saw the video out of nevada where they received anywhere from one to two, even three inches of heavy rain in a very short period of time. got to be really careful. this is the desert. a lot of this is just runoff. it is so dry the ground can't take all of the moisture that is coming down "fast and furious." there is the forecast rainfall over the next several days. looking at monsoonal moisture. we have upper level low across the northwest. the rest of the country, central u.s. looks good. still warm across the south and we're dealing with a frontal boundary draped across the eastern third of the country which will put a damper unfortunately on afternoon plans anywhere from new england, down towards florida, towards the gulf coast.

keep that in mind. keep the umbrella close by and have a plan to escape indoors if you're at a picnic. arthel: that's a good plan. janice, thank you very much. >> you got it. gregg: many members of congress not all that convinced the united states should launch a military strike in syria. apparently neither are some big players in the international community. coming up, new reaction from world leaders on president obama's call for action against the assad regime. plus, the legal challenge to the pledge of allegiance. it goes to one state's highest court. more on the lawsuit over the words, under god.

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don't take nexium if you take clopidogrel. relief is at hand for just $18 a month. talk to your doctor about nexium. arthel: as president obama works to drum up support for military action in syria, some top international players are now speaking out. russia's foreign minister calls the white house's evidence of chemical weapons used, kwoit, unconvincing. israeli president peres is backing president obama and says he's confident the u.s. will strike syria. chief washington correspondent joins us now and james, the air ak -- arab league met. what happened? >> they told reporters in cairo -- remember cairo? while only the asad regime is responsible for use of chemical weapons in that country, only

the united nations with authorize measures to, quote, put an end to the practice in syria. saudis attending the same session were more forceful in backing u.s. intervention. meantime, head of nato explained the limited role he expects that organization to play while germany's chance lar participating in a televised debate while seeking re-election suggests that the u.s. may seek another vote out of the united nations. >> nato plays its part through deployment of patriot missiles, in turkey focused on the defense of turkey. it's for individual allies to decide how they would respond to the use of chemical weapons in syria. and which military facilities they might decide to use. >> germany will not participate. in germany, by the way, can only participate if there will be a nato or u.n. mandate or european

mandate. we're trying everything and that is why i'm very glad we have a few days to initiate the u.n. process. >> russians for their part have expressed interest in sending a delegation of their law make hes here to delog with our congress. arthel: that's interesting. iran is watching all of this very closely and may be taking a message out of this that washington didn't intend to send. >> the new iranian president has said relatively little about the u.s. course of action, although he did condemn the use of chemical weapons. secretary of state kerry argued on this network yesterday that tehran will be impressed by president obama's decision to seek congressional approval for u.s. intervention in syria. >> i think actually, north korea and iran ought to take note that the united states of america has the confidence in its democratic process to be able to ask all of

the american people to join in an action that could have profound implications with respect to iran. if we act and act in concert, then iran will know this nation is capable of speaking with one voice on something like this. >> lastly, french president is facing pressure in his own country now to seek his parliament's authorization to join in a u.s.-led campaign. arthel: james rosen, thank you very much. gregg: a massachusetts case challenging a key part of the pledge of allegiance is making its way to the stay's highest court as one atheist couple fights to remove the phrase "under god." here is our report from boston. >> every day before school starts, children stand up and recite the pledge of allegiance. now a family is trying to get the words "under god" removed

from they're taking the school district to court to do it. >> every day these kids go to school and the pledge is recited declaring that the nation is, in fact, under god. that marginalizes them. that suggests that people who don't believe in god are less patriotic. >> jane and john doe is what they're named. their children ages 13, 11 and 9. the lawyer describes them as atheists. they don't have a problem reciting the pledge, just the term "under god." the school district says the pledge is entirely voluntarily. >> the school district has to respect at some point parents and children can opt out of things they find to be, for their own reason, you know, inappropriate. and the school system respects that. >> the superintendent says the district has so far spent $10,000 on this case and he hopes the judge dismisses it. >> this business of marginalizing students, there's

no negative consequence ever against the child that chooses not to take the pledge or simply say the pledge and not the words "under god." >> under eisenhower, they added "under god" in response to the cold war. they say not saying the words "under god" is discriminatory. >> what they're asking for is violence other people. they're not asking for the right to opt out. they have that right. they admit they have that right. they're trying to get other people to shut up. gregg: let's talk about it. former prosecutor and a new york attorney, gentlemen, good to see you. the nation's highest court has dealt with the issue of god and the pledge of allegiance before, have they not? >> right. and the prior suits have generally been about the separation of church and state. this is something interesting because they're bringing it under the state equal rights laws. it's not a religious liberty

argument. gregg: you know, dominique, nine years ago the u.s. supreme court had a nearly identical case and they booted it, essentially, on procedural grounds. they didn't decide it on the merits. so this time around, this particular massachusetts case could really have import. >> it could. it could. but like dan said, they're attacking it from a different angle, freedom of protection rather than freedom of religion. a lot of people don't realize it wasn't always that way. those words "under god" weren't always there. it was in the cord war that president and congress added those words into the pledge so what these people are asking is for a restoration back to the original language. gregg: but take it to its local extent. would it also remove "in god we trust" on the dollar bill? >> they could bring that. i think the key part here that will hurt the plaintiff is that it's voluntarily. they don't have to say it. in prior cases it's hard to find a precedent for their case.

they're bringing it under the equal rights law which was used by the massachusetts high court to legalize same sex marriage by a 4-3 vote a few years ago. they're trying to say this is violating their equal rights. gregg: i wonder whether this will work its way beyond the massachusetts state lines into the u.s. supreme court. it's a completely different court now than it was nine years ago. >> you're right. it could. and this decision could set off others similar but i think there's a distinction between, like you mentioned, the dollar bill or the pledge. in the pledge is something h historically we don't go back as many years. i was taught by the christian brothers in a catholic high school. i happen to have no problem saying those words but some people do. what kind of country do we want? a country where different faiths are respected? why do those words need to be in the pledge? i think that's what the whole argument is about. gregg: and it's different

because on the dollar bill and other symbols throughout the nation, the word "god" is used and supreme court in past cases has said that's permissible because it's tradition, not religion. this is a recitation of words. is there a difference? >> one of the questions that the lower court decided with the defendants' request, is this a prayer or a pledge to the country that happens to have a couple of religious words in it? that's the defining issue here. so far past cases have not been on the side of the plaintiff but they're bringing a new legal theory here so we'll have to figure out what happened. gregg: what do you think could happen? >> it could go either way. i think if the words were removed, we wouldn't be a weaker country because of it. gregg: do you agree? >> i'm not sure how it's going to go at this point. gregg: good to see you both. thanks so much. arthel: thank you. more coverage of the crisis in syria coming up and the possibility of u.s. military action in the middle east. we're life at the white house as

president obama prepares to meet with two leading republican senators. and north korea backing out of a planned meeting with a special u.s. envoy as we try to seek the release of an american facing 15 years in a north korean prison. a look at why coming up next. [ female announcer ] since 2001 caroline penry's used olay total effects. and after 1 wedding, 2 kids, 43 bottles of total effects, and many birthdays, still looks amazing. now add a boost with new olay moisturizer plus serum. now add a boost [ male announcer ] may your lights always be green. [ tires screech ] ♪ and your favorite songs always playing.

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gregg: next hour the mother of this little boy calling the search for her son successful this weekend. new evidence found in the disappearance of the boy that went missing in 2010 after his stepmom dropped him off at a school. ecstasy turns to tragedy at the techno concert when two people died of a drug overdose in new york. several more people are in critical condition. the concert was cancelled. and you may feel like you spend a whole lot of time at work. some folks are actually living in their offices.

no kidding. arthel: let me move on. right now we're talking about this. north korea is withdrawing its invitation to a special u.s. envoy who was set to negotiate the release of an american prisoner. the regime blaming a, quote, grave provocation by the u.s. in mobilizing nuclear capable bombers during recent military drills with south korea. 45-year-old kenneth bay is a tour operator and christian missionary who has been sentenced to 15 years in prison for committing, quote, hostile acts against the north korean regime. joining me is china and north korea analyst and author of the book "nuclear showdown, north core ontakes on the world." >> thank you so much. >> what is it that kim juning ill is trying to say? >> i think by inviting robert

park to come to talk about kenneth bay, what he was saying was look. we want to negotiate with the united states. now, by withdrawing the invitation, they're really trying to keep us off balance. they do this. they go through this charm cycle and right now they've turned to the dark side a little bit. so i think really what they're trying to do is get more from us than we were willing to give them. arthel: what else do they want? >> u.s. aid, the united states to legitimize their nuclear weapons state. they also want a senior american to go to him to rescue kenneth bay so they can take photographs of senior americans sort of paying homage to the ruler and that's very important for them. arthel: then there's syria and his support of syria. is there something that the u.s. should be doing about that? >> clearly what the north koreans have been doing is supplying the syrians with their chemical weapons factories and also with north korean military

officers who are at the front lines and directing the use of chemical weapons so this is the last thing we should be doing is giving incentives to release kenneth bay because although that's never a good idea to give the north koreans what they want but now because they're engaged in especially bad bhafr, we need to make sure we do not incentivize the regime for anything, supplying weapons or whatever to the syrians. arthel: so getting back to north korea, you're saying don't negotiate with them. don't give them what they want. meanwhile, mr. bay is in the hospital which is a different scenario than is usually the case for the prisoners held there. they're making sure that he's kept alive basically and in fairly decent health, although i think his health is failing at this point. why is he doing that? >> the last thing the regime wants is for kenneth bay to die on them. normally when they serve a term in the labor camp, the last thing the north koreans do is transfer them to the hospital. they work the people to the

point of exhaustion and then let them die. the fact they transferred kenneth bay to a hospital indicates, look. we want to deal with the united states. so clearly we can deal with the north koreans but it should be all stick and no carrot. arthel: so how does that look? >> if they think we think they're in a weak position, we'll get further down the road in getting kenneth bay released without giving kenneth bay something. every time we release the hostages, we incentivize the north koreans to grab the next hostage. arthel: are you implying we get him? >> no. but we can make sure that the north koreans see in their interest to release kenneth bay. arthel: we'll be watching and i know you will as always. thank you very much. good to see you. >> good to see you. gregg: we're getting new details on the n.s.a. surveillance program, who the agency has been spying on now and why it could affect u.s. relations with two

key allies. and a colorful twist on recycling. how crayola is planning to turn the used markers into fuel. i still use crayons.

gregg: as we follow the story out of syria, new developments in another middle eastern country in crisis, egypt. as protests continue in cities across that country, we're learning that egypt's disposed islamic president will go on trial for inciting murder. morrissey has been removed from office since july and now he and

several muslim brotherhood supporters will be tried for allegedly inciting the killing of opponents who protof his pre palace. arthel: u.s. military base attacked in afghanistan. it happened early this morning. the taliban claiming responsibility after a group of homicide bombers attacked part of a key u.s. base near the border with pakistan. it led to several explosions and a gun fight between nato troops and the three insurgents responsible for the ambush. no security forces or civilians were killed and taliban have escalated attacks in recent weeks ahead of a full withdrawal by u.s.-led forces at the end of next year. gregg: scientists at the fukishima radioactive plant say radio levels leaking are 18 times more severe than first thought. every since the tsunami,

contaminated water has been slowly seeping into the ground as well as the nearby ocean and last week scientists discovered new leaks from storage tanks. according to one report, new readings indicate the level of radiation could prove deadly within hours of exposure. scientists say they are monitoring the situation. arthel: a colorful new twist on reseek liening as top crayon manufacturer crayola unveils a new program that promises to turn used markers into fuel. brian has more now from our new york city news room. tell us all about this. >> crayola makes about 700 million plastic markers a year and now they're turning dried up markers into fuel good enough to be used in boilers, ships and even your car. crayola partnering with new york clean energy company j.b.i., creating the color cycle initiative. about 600 schools around the country so far joining up to recycle their old markers for free. once at j.b.i., the entire

marker is melted and compressed into machines to make clean fuel. the fuel used by companies like u.s. steel and fuel dealers since 2010. the process producing 600,000 gallons of fuel. >> you can take it and use it as is. the only thing we would have to add for transport use but other than that, it is the cleanest, straight chain fuel you could ask for for a vehicle. it doesn't have any of the aromatic compounds that be creatively challenging. >> tough to recycle because customers have to strip the ink out first and many go to landfills but crayola hopes they found a environmentally sustainable solution. >> it's interesting with social media and with the internet, it's interesting how positively people have reflected and reacted to this so we've seen a rapid growth in a number of schools and i think that will continue the next few months as children get back to schools and teachers settle in.

>> crayola is not making a profit off this initiative. so far 17,000 markers have been turned into fuel. they hope that number will rise to 70 million by the end of the year. arthel: i like that story. thank you. gregg: and your favorite color? arthel: i want to go old school and do the colors. what was your favorite color? gregg: red but now it's periwinkle. arthel: my favorite color is purple but my favorite color in the box was sienna and corn flower blue. gregg: what does that look like? arthel: like a light blue. gregg: love the names. arthel: that's why i loved it. president obama is working to get congressional backing for an attack on syria but are lawmakers buying the administration's argument? we have the details as the president prepares to meet with influential senators. study the competition.

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gregg: on the crisis in syria, as we await a key meeting at the white house with president obama now getting ready to sit down with his one time political rival, senator john mccain as well as senator lindsey graham, hoping that they will help him round up g.o.p. support for military action against the asad regime. this as the president works to get congressional approval for retaliatory strikes on syria amid mounting evidence that the asad regime was among a chemical attack that killed 1,500 people, many of them were children. still some republicans and democrats brefed yesterday on the matter say they have serious reservations about a strike so tomorrow, there will be even more briefings and meetings on capitol hill, including a public senate foreign relations committee where john kerry and secretary of defense chuck hagel

will both testify. but first right now, brand new stories this hour. arthel: volunteers in oregon launching a new search for a boy missing for more than three years. why his mother is calling it a success. a popular street drug derived from ecstasy claiming the lives of two college students over the weekend. what you need to know about the dangers of molly. plus a legendary swimmer closing in on her long goal after five previous attempts. why diana nyad's team says she's closer than ever before. first breaking developments on the crisis in syria. the white house launching an all out political push to rally capitol hill support for a military strike against the asad regime. happy labor day. gregg: welcome to the second hour of "happening now."

president obama set to meet with senators john mccain and lindsey graham, two hours from now at the white house to brief the members of the armed services committee on evidence that president asad used chemical weapons against his own people. after secretary of state john kerry made the rounds on all the five sunday talk shows yesterday, revealing new details about last month's deadly attack. >> the fact is that yesterday we have now learned that hair and blood samples that have come to us from east damascus, from individuals who were engaged as first responders in east damascus, i can report to you today, they have tested positive for signatures of sarin. so this case is going to build stronger and stronger and the president believes that the united states of america for a decision like this is stronger

when you have the time to be able to have the support of the united states congress and obviously the support of the american people through them. gregg: we have live team coverage with mideast bureau but first let's turn to our chief white house core spend ent ed henry. ed, it sounds like the president is trying to step up the game to sell this thing. >> he is and his critics are saying, what took him so long? he should have been making this case to the public and the congress sooner. the white house pushing back on all of that. look. they call it, you know, flood the zone. he needs to get out there. he was on the phones yesterday, even though it was sunday. he's meeting with john mccain and lindsey graham today even though it's labor day. they're trying to show the president is all over this. why? it's a race against the clock. the president is get ago board air force one to get sweden and russia. he needs to change minds now before he's out of the country

and will have a harder time lobbying him. you're bringing in republican senators and briefing republican house members that the president has a rocky relationship with. some of these republicans are coming out of classified briefings say they're not convinced. take a listen. >> i left yesterday with more questions than answers because we don't see a coherent strategy in the middle east. this is what happens when you lead from behind. >> i think at the end of the day, congress will rise to the occasion. this is a national security issue. this isn't about barack obama versus the congress. >> and the white house is very happy about that last comment from a senior republican, mike rogers saying, look. it's time to step up and help the president here, show some bipartisan support. mike rogers will be one of the key lawmakers meeting with the president tomorrow so you can see he has a full schedule before he gets on air force one. they know time is of the

essence. gregg: this may turn out to be one of the leakiest white houses ever and what's leaked out the last couple of days is how the president really changed his mind, you know. some people say he's flip-flopping and others say he's vacillating but there was a turn about, wasn't there? >> big time. we talked about the 45 minute walk the president had with the chief of staff friday night just a few hours after secretary of state john kerry made a passionate case to the state department what sounded like unilateral military action but he sort of stepped back and then we have a picture of an extraordinary two hour meeting the president had with his white house staff. this happened late on friday night, although secretary kerry was on with chris wallace yesterday and insists he was not cut out of the loop and instead says he's on board with this decision because if the president gets congress support, there will be a better coalition. take a listen. >> i think to contemplate that the congress of the united

states would turn its back on israel, on jordan, on turkey, on our allies in the region, turn its back on the innocent syrian people who have been slaughtered by this gas and those who yet may be subject to an attack, if we don't stand up to this, i can't contemplate that the congress would turn its back on all of that responsibility. >> that's why this is so difficult for the president. why he's got the sleeves rolled up and working so hard. if he wins and it's a squeaker and he uses a lot of political capital to get congress on board here, that's political capital he would have spend on immigration reform or something else. if he loses that would be a devastating blow. gregg: thank you so much. arthel: new fallout in the mideast region to the crisis in syria. with the arab league now stopping just short of endorsing military force, calling on the united nations and the world community to take action and use

deterrent measures to stop crime by the asad regime. we continue now with conner powell live in jerusalem. >> when it comes to syria, the arab league is extremely divided. the arab league says something must be done but it stops short of saying that the military options should be on the table unless the u.n. approves it. now, the arab league like the rest of the world knows that the u.n. is not going to approve any type of military strike because the u.n. security council has essentially protected the asad regime through russia and through china. both russia and china have basically blocked any type of peace negotiations or military action against the asad regime which leaves the u.n. in a position of being able to do nothing. now, since the asad regime is still in the position, they are claiming victory and they think that the united states essentially is not going to attack but today nato secretary general has said a firm response is needed for this august 21

chemical weapon. but the international community continues to struggle to decide what a firm response should be and who should join the united states in this firm response. all of this ambiguity from nato, also from the arab league and from the international community really puts the pressure on president obama and congress to sort of decide on something. now, privately both saudi arabia and kuwait and other countries in the middle east are pressuring the united states to take military action but that is a very divided community and what actually will be sort of publicly said should be done before any type of military action is taken, that's all very unclear right now putting the united states in a very difficult position going forward. arthel: thank you very much. gregg: there could be real pitfalls with taking military action in syria and the unintended consequences could include al qaeda taking over syria if the asad regime is

weakened there. lisa is a mideast journalist and fox news contributor. what makes you think so? >> you know, president obama has painted a picture which is somewhat accurate that the syrian regime used chemical weapons and it changed the entire calculus of the situation. while chemical weapons are used across many lines, consequences on the ground have not changed and that's the same reasons why we didn't get involved two years ago and since. we have al qaeda as a majority of the rebels embedded with them on the ground. gregg: let me stop you there. there's a piece in today's "wall street journal" that people might be interested in reading by somebody who has been on the ground there who says that the conventional wisdom that jihadists are running the rebellion is not what she witnessed on the ground. >> well, it's difficult to say what you can witness on the ground because, again, there's a

micro aspect of this entire conflict and there's a macro aspect to it as well. and looking at the use of chemical weapons is a small detail in a larger landscape of what's going on in syria. and again, our fear from the beginning the weapons would get in the hands of these rebels, that the chemical weapons as well would get into the hands, that they could be transferred, passing along scenario of the chemical weapons, that you could have the asad regime weakened by the attacks as limited as they may be and al qaeda is sweeping in and taking over and the u.n. has to ask itself, are the consequences worth it? would we rather have an al qaeda regime to an asad regime? gregg: one of the other aspects was expressed by charlie hagel. he said where is the threat to america if lives are at stake, american lives are at stake or if it's retaliation for americans who have been killed,

which is what past presidents have done, that's a clear national security interest. but i mean, why -- >> but how is that now? right. if we use the humanitarian justification for this, then why didn't we get involved a long time ago? gregg: exactly. why indeed. >> why wasn't that the case? did we have to wait for 1,000 plus lives to be lost by the chemical weapons? but here is the bottom line of the entire equation here, that the obama administration and congress have to really consider that there should be punishment for chemical weapons. absolutely. but should we, the u.s. and our interests in the region and abroad, also be punished for the fallout that can happen as a result of these military strikes? that's really the -- what we have to weigh out here. gregg: the other thing we're learning is that a horrible atrocities have been committed not just by the asad regime but the opposition forces in syria.

they've committed atrocities against syrian christians and yet the united states has uttered not yet a word about that. >> right. solutions. again, you have to real tweeze out what's going on, on the ground here and you can't just look at the chemical weapons as the only transgression in this entire conflict of over two years. so many lives have been lost and if you really want to look at it in terms of, you know, looking at the chemical weapons as the only trans gegs or looking at the asad regime now to be punished or looking at it as a symbolic gesture toward the iranian regime, the fallout is going to be much worse and the failure in foreign policy toward the middle east, not just for the obama administration but even before that, i have to say, republican and democrats alike, we have failed to really look down the line and see what the consequences may be the next day and that's in libya and iraq,

afghanistan and we don't want to add syria to the list. gregg: good to see you. thank you. >> my pleasure. arthel: one bone headed robbery suspect trips himself up. yeah, after calling the cops to report his gun stolen, the amusing details coming up next plus some companies taking the phrase "live to work" to the extreme. going all in to compete in the new economy. a live report on this growing trend just ahead. this is for you. ♪ [ male announcer ] bob's heart attack didn't come with a warning. today his doctor has him on a bayer aspirin regimen to help reduce the risk of another one. if you've had a heart attack, be sure to talk to your doctor before you begin an aspirin regimen. mayo? corn dogs? you are so outta here! aah! [ female announcer ] the complete balanced nutrition of great-tasting ensure.

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arthel: an intriguing look at the new economy right now. americans blending work and home to an extreme degree. some tech and startup companies now having employees eat, live and work together. the unconventional business

model gaining popularity across the u.s. is a way to cut costs but there's some drawbacks. will carr live in l.a. with the details. >> hi. how well do you think that you and gregg would work together if you had to be together all the time? a lot of companies are now offering that option to employees and more and more, it looks like, are signing up. imagine working, eating and sleeping all at the office. living at work 24/7. >> every day we're working together. we wake up, have meetings, get our work done and keep working into the nights. the weekend we continue working. >> interactive and billboard company has 40 workers with 12 staying in a bel air, california house. c.e.o. says their model is extremely efficient, cutting down on costs and commuting time. >> it's very family-like. we share everything from the food, we share bedrooms, share bathrooms, it's a very communal and people are extremely

dedicated. and people are willing to sacrifice, you know, living on their own and like a cushy apartment to living with their colleagues. >> there's a similar setup with half of the 15 employees sharing strategies and meals. workers get free rent and a modest stipend. >> you have your bills covered, you've got a little cash here and there and, you know, some people get a little bit more than others. it just depends on your experience but everybody has all their bills and their needs covered. >> but it may not be for everyone. >> i think it wouldn't work for many people who weren't willing to work, live, eat and breathe their work and they're co-workers. >> but it doesn't work for some people. one couple got married a couple of weeks before they went into one of the homes and while that doesn't scream romance, they say the free rent and other perks were too good to pass up.

arthel: that's the point. will carr, thank you. to answer the question, just listen, will. i could -- well, it's rhetorical but i'll give a rhetorical answer. i could live with you because you're neat. i couldn't share a bathroom because all your products, you know, for your hair and face and stuff would take up too much space. gregg: my products? i have no products. i would be a lot better looking if i had some products. that's what i need. yeah. you cannot now borrow my blowup mattress anymore after that insult. arthel: fine. gregg: all right. she is closer than she's been before. will the american endurance swimmer make it all the way to florida from cuba this time without a shark cage? it's really amazing. we're keeping a close eye on diana nyad's marathon swim. arthel: plus american policy when it comes to the syrian crisis and how it could be applied to the iran nuclear showdown.

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gregg: right now new developments in the crisis in syria. president obama trying to marshal support on the domestic front for military action but his decision to get congressional authorization for a strike seen as cause for celebration in syria. one newspaper calling it a u.s. retreats. arthel: and the delay is turning into cause for concern in israel with fears about the implications that it could have on the iran nuclear showdown. we're going to bring in now fred flights, a former c.i.a. senior analyst and the chief analyst at

lignet.com. good to see you. what does this signal to iran and to israel, our ally there, and how does this affect the tenuous situation between the two countries? >> well, what we're seeing here is a situation where the united states is conveying a reduction in our resolve and our credibility on the world stage when the president lays down a red line and expresses reluctance to enforce it. it's sending a dangerous signal to rogue states. when secretary kerry gave a strong statement on saturday that there was going to be -- i'm sorry, on friday that the united states must act against the syrian chemical weapons program but the president the next day makes it clear that this is not an urgent threat and he's prepared to wait until congress returns from its summer recess, this is sending an even worse signal and i think israel is worried about that and i think iran, north korea are going to take notice. arthel: israel coming out to the

people saying, look. don't be concerned. i will handle whatever gets our way. we're getting back to the red line as this kind of all started from this. it was crossed before. iran crossed israel's red line last september. if you would reset that scenario and revisit the outcome. >> it's interesting that there's two red lines in the mideast right now. last september, prime minister netanyahu laid out a red line and that indicates when iran will have enough nuclear fuel to make one nuclear weapon and what he was talking about is the enrichment process. now, enrichment is an effort to increase the small amount of uranium 235 used for fission. netanyahu was referring to 20% uranium enriched. according to the ieae, iran may

have just enough uranium to do that right now. the problem with the red line is that in the analysis of lignet.com, iran passed this line in 2009 and the reason i say that is that the 20% uranium 235 could be used to make a bomb, bomb grade uranium in six days but it would only take about four weeks to use its vast amount of reactor grade uranium and it could make up to seven nuclear weapons out of that. so in our view, iran long passed this red line. arthel: how effective is bluff calling when you're dealing with dictator types? is there a hidden strategy perhaps? >> i think netanyahu was trying to improve relations with the united states. he was accused of being too close to the romney campaign but i think there is a danger when states like iran and north korea

see these red lines being laid down that don't make any sense. i think it could embolden them to engage in further belligerent actions, engaging in hostile activities, maybe engaging in nuclear tests. arthel: do we see any possibility of making israel more vulnerable to syria? >> i think israel is considerably more vulnerable based on the president's indecisiveness and confusion on his syria policy. the syrians are learning they may be able to engage in acts like this and get away with it. there will be no reaction from the united states. israel is now -- israel has to calculate what would their policy be when the united states lays down red lines like this that it doesn't intend to keep? arthel: did you think that the u.s. should reconsider the military -- its strategy in the mideast overall? >> i think the united states has

many vested interests in the middle east. we have to keep a strong relationship with israel. we have to keep engaging with egypt. we have to keep egypt on a path to prevent radical islamists from taking over. i think that we have to probably improve our relationship with israel and see what else we can do in the region. arthel: it's a pretty long to-do list it seems. thank you very much for coming by today and giving your analysis. >> thank you. gregg: new revelations on n.s.a. snooping, this time targeting world leaders, including one of our neighbors. we're going to tell you where in a live report. and president obama hitting the links after deciding the u.s. should take military action against syria. is he getting a free pass from the media on playing golf when other presidents might have taken a lot of heat over that? our fox news watch panel is up next. hey kevin...still eating chalk for heartburn?

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arthel: new information on nsa snooping. , the surveillance program reportedly targeting the presidents of brazil and mexico and impacting our relations with both of those countries. peter doocy is live in our d.c. bureau. peter what kind of communication was the nsa intercepting? >> reporter: they were reading emails belonging to the mexican president ethe toe a month before he was elected and possibly longer but that is all

a document dated june 2012 that was given to journalist, glenn greenwald by nsa laker edward snowden and files that they targeted brazil's president whose emails were intercepted with a program called dni presenter. they tried to figure out who she and her aides were talking to. brazil's justice minister, eduardo card doze sachs spoke to body about the nsa last week. he is out with a blisserterring statement, if the fact the of the report are concerned they will be considered very serious and would constitute a clear violation of brazil's sovereignty. this is completely outside the standard of confidence expected of a strategic partnership that u.s. and brazil v. later this year's brazil's president is expected to be honored at a white house state dinner. arthel. arthel: those are strong words.

what are we learning now, is the partnership between the dna and at&t? >> reporter: there is a massive program called the hemisphere project and here is how it works. every call passes through at&t switches made by customers with all carriers, about four billion records a day are made easily available to dea agents and local police who are trying to track drug dealers that switch numbers a lot. by at&t employees, the government basically pays to embed with law enforcement. information from the back to 1987 is available where as the nsa only keeps data for five years. justice department says quote, the records are maintained at all times bit phone company, not the government. one document obtained by the new york times shows that people using the hemisphere project are told to never refer to the hemisphere project in any official documents. arthel? arthel: peter does sir, very interesting report.

thanks, peter. gregg: they say timing is everything. president obama raising a few eyebrows on saturday when he went out to play golf after announcing that he will seek congressional approval for an attack on syria. should the media have taken him to tact for hitting the links during an international crisis? let's bring in the "fox news watch" panel. jim pinkerton, contributing editor and writer for the "american conservative" magazine. alan colmes, host of the alan colmes show and author of, "thank the liberals for saving america." indeed. fox news contributors. >> makes you laugh, gregg, right? gregg: alan, let me start with you, woodrow wilson apparently played something like 1200 rounds of golf. i think eisenhower, 800 rounds of golf. so, you know, this president, but, the ticks on this thing don't look good, do they. >> no, they don't. optics don't look good. presidents have done it of both

parties. president bush famously was talking about a suicide bombing in israel. now said, watch this drive. then he vowed to stop playing golf although he was photographed still playing golf and went mountain biking. i also think presidents do have a right to get some relaxation and a have balanced life. but optics are bad. gregg: they do indeed. the optics on this thing don't seem that great. jim, national foreign policy crisis, you know, national security interests at stake and the president within 30 minutes is out on the golf course. one could argue shouldn't he be talking to foreign leaders or military leaders or trying to lobby members of congress? >> one could argue that. just for perspective, cbs's mark knoller is a enencyclopedia of these types of statistics, president bush played golf 24 times. president obama played golf 141 times. so there is a, change here. i mean look, what is so striking

is, the president builds up the syria intervention for months, changed his mind at the last minute, goes to play golf and then the next day "the new york times" says president puts congress in box, making it sound like president obama is some kind of mack developly, outsmarting congress. president, oops, secretary of state kerry making the case on all sunday shows. looks like he is in charge now. gregg: i was anchoring at the time when secretary kerry made his speech on friday. incredibly dramatic, powerful, alan, very energetic, i think we have some video on that. all of sudden after he arguably gets sandbagged by the president, yesterday he looked like a sick oyster at low tide, stuffing knocked out of him. boy, what did you think. >> i was wondering why when john kerry was addressing the nation he was doing it and not the

president? obviously secretary of state has standing to make these kind of comments. he talked for a very long time. this seemed to me for the place of the commander-in-chief. gregg: are you disappointed? >> i'm disappointed we're drawing a red line and talking about a war. i think it is ridiculous to talk about going into a country we have no, i mean -- gregg: but the fact, you're pointing out that obama didn't make the speech, it was kerry? >> correct. gregg: are you disappointed by that? do you think this is a president dodging his responsibilitys. >> i'm more disappointed by having all this war talk. you can't say there will be a red line and not do anything and say, wait until congress gets back to let them decide. it doesn't look good. i'm, unless we have, unless we're threatened, we shouldn't be at war. gregg: some can argue, i suppose, jim, if the president, truly sincerely believes congress should be involved, why didn't he do that at at outset? instead it seems like this was

almost an afterthought, born of indecision or vacillation or fecklessness, s that fair criticism? >> i think it is. you know who agrees with you, gregg? that is hillary clinton. behind the scenes in all these stories you're seeing references and quotes from hillary clinton officials and former state department officials, ben smith touted one on buzz feed last night, oh, hillary clinton is disappointed what happened. she advised president to do this two years ago. you're seeing a pretty substantial 2016 undertone of former secretary of state and presidential candidate clinton which is positioning herself and i agree with alan that doesn't look very good here. gregg: if the house votes this down and many suspect they will do, what does the president do? does he act without standing and if he doesn't, does that make him look weak. >> i think the house has to agree with him to make him look

like he is empowered. if he violates against the congress he is in violation of war powers -- gregg: really? >> yeah. gregg: many presidents have done precisely that without authorization from congress. >> they're wrong. gregg: clinton. h.w. bush. >> they were all wrong. gregg: they were all wrong? >> yep. gregg: alan colmes, jim pinkerton, good to he sue, thanks. >> thank you. arthel: coming up a narrow escape from a near fatal landslide all caught on tape. how the driver made it out alive when a giant bolder came, whoa, careening down, almost crushing his car. plus the massive wildfire near yosemite national park getting even bigger, threatening hundreds of homes. an update on the progress they are making and the role mother nature is playing if this firefight. that is coming up next, guys. this is a map of the pressure points on my feet.

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gregg: welcome back. deadly flooding in taiwan triggering a landslide sending a boulder careening down a coast call roadway narrowly missing that car, wow, look at that! all the drama captured on a dashboard camera. amazing live the driver only escaped with minor injuries. more torrential downpours are forecast so landslides are a very real concern. arthel: fox extreme weather alert now. here at home with flood watches ahead of monsoon-type storms that could put a big damper on your labor day barbecue. meteorologist janice dean live at the fox weather center. hey, jd. >> yeah, arthel, have a plan if and when the thunderstorms start to develop around your area. and we certainly have the potential for showers and heavy downpours across the southwest again today as arthel mentioned. monsoonal type moisture that is exactly going on that we've had

several weeks. we have several flash flood watches and warnings. we have the a flood advisories for parts of nevada and parts of idaho and the northwest stretching into northern rockies where we see the heavy rain. across the northeast where millions of people live, yes, we have the potential for showers, thunderstorms, and some heavy rain, leading to flash flooding in parts of jersey, up towards pennsylvania, connecticut, massachusetts some again this could be a big downpour on your picnic. just have an alternate plan. there is the labor day forecast. we have this cold front that will push eastward. we'll still have a rain any day on tap tuesday. once the cold front pushes off, it will be beautiful. maybe take a vacation day on wednesday if you live across the northeast. just saying. across the southwest that's where we could see afternoon thunderstorms as well, with very hot temperatures across texas, especially dallas at 98. a quick look at the beach forecast, arthel and gregg.

not looking too good unfortunately across the east coast. newport beach looks pretty good. if you live in that area. arthel: it always does. >> it always does, right. arthel: do you plan on barbecuing either inside or outside? >> i haven't checked on it. i have been up since 2:30 this morning. arthel: you should have called me. the i totally didn't sleep last night. >> number one priority. sleeping. gregg: i have the blowup mattress in my office, jd. >> good to know. gregg: help yourself. >> i'm on my way. gregg: boeing the extra mile. a cans irsurvivor pulling off an incredible test of strength all for a good cause. his inspiring story still ahead. and a powerful deadly drug hitting the street causing serious concerns. >> it is getting more and more popular i think, especially she was at a concert where it was sort of like music and the festival. i think people are getting more and more hooked on it because of i help support bones... [ ding! ]

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gregg: right now, new information from the world of sports. the florida a&m band performing for the first time on sunday nearly two years after the beating death of a drum major in a hague incident led to its suspension. >> >> legendary distance swimmer diana nyad is closing in on key west in other quest to be the first person to swim from cuba to florida without a shark cage. a fam cancer survivor celebrates with family and friends after completing a bike ride. hopes the money will pay for those who need treatments and are down on their luck. good for him. >> this is pretty recreational use around here.

around most colleges here. i was surprised that somebody must have got a bad bash or something happened bad. you usually hear about people dieing all that kind of stuff but it is unfortunate. arthel: serious new concerns about a potentially deadly illegal drug. it is known on the streets as molly or mdma. it has been linked to two fatal overdoses in new york city over the weekend, prompting officials to shut down a popular music festivals drawing tens of thousand of people. dr. marti mccreary is professor and doctor at john hopkins. author of, unaccountable. good to see you. >> good to see. >> what is molly and how does it make you feel? >> it is popular drug. not a new drug. it is short for molecule of methaphetamine or what is known as ecstasy. it was introduced in the '60s and '70s. really surged in popularity in the '90s. this more purified form right now is very popular under the

street name, molly. arthel: is it easy to od on molly? >> it's a drug that is very easy to overdose on it causes high blood pressure, shortness of breath, rapid heart beat, things you're not always aware of in the context where there is almost always used which is rock concerts. it can sort of exacerbate the sensation or euphoria of music which is why it is very popular in these concerts. a lot of musicians included references to molly in their songs. miley cyrus has a song called, "with molly." referred to it. it she later said it is referring to miley, if you believe that. kanye west referred to it. a rapper by the name of rick glamourized the use of molly in date rape and reebok pulled their endorsement of him because of that. good for reebok. arthel: you're talking about 15 to $50 a pop. it comes in white powder form or

capsule. is it easy to make and therefore easy to find? >> it's a synthetic drug. it is made in a laboratory. it is not grown. similar to methaphetamine. there are advertisements for molly all over concerts, at parties, people will say where is molly? at concerts there is posters that say to get, to find molly, call this number. those are commercial advertisements for the street drug. what's concerning is it is not expensive. it is very popular. it is in vogue right now. and still just as dangerous. these two recent deaths in the four icu admissions are good opportunity to really talk to kids about the risks of this drug. arthel: is it something, doc, that you can get off cold turkey? or do you have a wean yourself off of it? >> there's, it doesn't have much 6 an addictive effect in the sense that it has a dependence reaction from withdrawal but the euphoria is enticing. it has an allure similar to alchohol.

for that reason, people tend to use it again and again once they experience the high. the problem is, you get a massive down rush afterwards and it can cause severe depression, especially if you have mild depression going into it, let's face it, half of america has. arthel: that's true. i just asked the question about if it was difficult to get off or if you had to wean yourself off this drug, i don't know anything about it except for what i learned in my research but i mean parents are watching and hearing this and kids are at college functions taking this stuff. is there something parents can look out for in terms of kids behavior, they might go, hey, what are you up to? >> well, often there is detachment when somebody is on it f a child seems different from normal. if they're hearing the term molly used in these conversations, this is the name of the new popular drug. you know, kids often don't, aren't afraid of risk. risk may appeal to them but if you discuss with them the commercial interests. fact entertainment industry is

trying to sell entertainment and not interested in their well-being and talk about recent deaths at a concert it is a good opportunity to frame the subject for a conversation with kids. arthel: not all musicians are dealing with this stuff. dr. marti ma carry, thank you very much. >> good to be with you. gregg: keep it right here. our continuing coverage on syria and the white house push to use military force. the latest. aw this is tragic man, investors just like you could lose tens of thousands of dollars on their 401(k) to hidden fees. thankfully e-trade has low cost investments and no hidden fees. but, you know, if you're still bent on blowing this fat stack of cash, there's a couple of ways you could do it. ♪ ♪ or just go to e-trade and save it. boom.

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the hospital using a new weapon to fight infekz and the name is neal. they can disinfect a room with pulses of light. one if 20 patients will contract

infection. one hospital near denver. and they have seen an improvement and it comes with a price tagingly bit steep. it is a whopping 10,025,000 bucks. >> it is too bad. i would be for that. >> stay away from hospitals altogether. >> i like it. there is the thought for the day. >> keep it here on fox news. more brilliance coming up. thanks for being with us over the course of the last couple of hours and we hope you have a wonderful and safe and happy labor day. thanks, guys, we have a fox news alert to start this hour. the president will be meeting with senateors john mccain and lindsay graham and other key law makers in the white house.

they will discuss his decision on syria and the strategy going forward and the additional conference calls with other law makers that are expected later today. this fox news alert on syria. u.s. carrier group is on the move headed to the eastern med terian. and they know they have targets inside of syria welcome to america live. >> i am kelly wright. we are in for megyn kelliy. uss anymoreitz is in the red sea. it is being recast to assist with a strike on syria. but so far no orders to enter the med terrannian sea. there is the five in the sea. and the anymoreit