thajs so mucnks so much for us today. >> meanwhile, one of the more important things is is going to be the cow tipping we started earlier in the show. join us for the after the show show. foxandfriends.com. >> there's a website somewhere. we start this hour with a fox news alert. it is crunch time for the white house as it tries to rally all the support it can for a military attack against syria over the alleged chemical attack. the high stakes lobbying campaign will culminate on tuesday when there is an announcement that the president will address the american people from the white house before a critical vote is scheduled in the senate. and we welcome you this morning to america's news headquarters. i'm jamie colby. so great to have you with us. >> good morning, jamie. good morning, everyone. i'm eric shawn. president obama faces a critical test this week of his strength this week and of his policy calling for military strikes.

he will be pressing his case for what he calls limited air strikes against assad's regime. before the american public, he will press that case to congress and, of course, to the international community. but with support seemingly eroding even among some democrats and liberal groups, the numbers right now show that the president is facing an uphill climb. what does he have to do tod con coming week? that process is already now in first gear this morning. peter duesy has the very latest from washington. good morning, peter. >> good morning, eric. beginning this weekend the obama administration is doing everything they can to get the public on the president's side in favor of an attack on the assad regime in syria. that's why the white house chief of staff is on all the sunday showing this morning. that's why president obama is giving six national network interviews tomorrow evening. that's why the very graphic videos originally only shown to members of congress behind closed doors as proof of chemical weapons use are now public. secretary of state john kerry is

in france right now. he explained today why he thinks the world needs to see images of helpless children taking their last breaths. >> gas is indiscriminate. it goes wherever the wind takes it. and the death that comes with it is a death that many people decided was too horrendous to describe. those videos are from people that measure for themselves. >> congress comes back this week from summer recess. but members on both sides of the aisle have been saying their constituents that call in are overwhelmingly against military intervention in syria. and that sentiment is reflected in the latest "washington post" tally of support for a strike. 226 members of the house say they'll vote no or are leaning no on a resolution to authorize force. republican senator rand paul said this morning that if congress votes no, president obama must respect their will. >> i will insist that there is

full debate on this. and i will insist that i get an amendment, and my amendment will say that the vote is binding. that the president cannot, if we vote him down, decide to go to war anyway. that's the way i interpret the constitution. >> the white house is also working behind the scenes to get lawmakers on their side. president obama has been making phone calls, and the vice president will host republican lawmakers for dinner tonight at the naval observatory. back to you in new york. >> peter, of course the president has said even as commander in chief he believes he does have the power to act even without that congressional authorization. thanks so much. jamie? the white house has launched even a media blitz to try and make a convincing case for military action in syria. but the president has lost support from some of his biggest backers, including several key democrats and liberal interest groups that usually are on his side. what does this mean and what does he need to do to turn things around? bob cusack is managing editor of

"the hale." how big an uphill battle is the president facing, first of all with congress, and second of all with the american people when he comes and speaks to them on tuesday night? >> this is a huge hill to climb. basically this is mt. everest. he's so far down in the votes especially in the house. can he turn around? it's possible. i don't think it's going to be political speeches that are going to get the job done. i think images are at the start. i think you're going to have to get survivors of these chemical attacks on national television to convince the public. peter doocy was saying, constituents are calling their members and saying, absolutely not. 95% to 99%, sometimes, members say. democrats are saying that. from liberal districts. so the president has a very difficult task here. they had a number of missteps right out of the gate. had a broad resolution that was sent to congress, rejected by democrats as too broad. so they rewrote it. also they didn't call congress

back in right away. so they couldn't corner them and convince them. instead they were back home. the constituents are saying absolutely not. >> moveon.org even buying ads to say they are against the strike on syria. what does that mean for the president? >> it's really difficult. because democrats have to pick between their constituents and their president. and he's going to make the case, and the president is an incredible speaker. and maybe he can change some votes. but some votes on the left, i mean, this is not an immigration or a health care bill where you can just twist arms. is this a war-related resolution. so there are some members on the left you can't even talk to. they are a firm no, and they are rallying other no votes. so the fact that outside groups like move on are adamantly against this, that is a big problem for the president. >> you have foreign nations also saying we will not participate. if say the president doesn't get

the vote in congress and no one else wants to go in with us other than france, it looks like, what's the fallout? >> oh, the fallout is significant. a lot of members of congress are using that as basically saying they're leaning no by saying we need a strong international community. well, the strong international community is not there. at least not to the extent that a lot of members want. this has a broad effect on both the powers of the president as well as president obama's second term. this would significantly weaken him if he cannot get this through both the house and the senate. >> it's so interesting, bob. because this is all anyone's talking about right now. there are opinions on both sides. wherever you go. and in the meantime, the economy is -- is struggling. jobs are -- so many millions of people still out of work. and then there is potentially a defunding or further delay of obama care. when do we get back to those issues? do you think that there's any deliberate strategy of the white house to keep the focus on syria? oh, and then there's benghazi,

too. >> yeah. there's so much to do when congress comes back tomorrow. i mean, they have a possible government shutdown. congress, at least for once, is going to have to walk and chew gum. they're going to have to do multiple things. they're going to have to deal with syria as well as get some type of fiscal agreement on the debt limit, as well as a government shutdown. republicans fighting over the defunding of obama care. really there's only nine legislative days before the end of the fiscal year. that may change. i think congress may stick around a little longer. at the same time, a lot to be done in a short amount of time. >> what's the buzz in the beltway, particularly for people like you that follow the goings on? when you look at the fact that iran is waiting to hear and see what we are really capable of doing, israel is certainly watching the situation. but not necessarily stating what it wants. and the relations are strained with russia and a bit with israel with this administration.

how does the president pull it all together? >> i think the president does have to make the case that if this is rejected, and he's been trying to make that case. this is not about him. this is about the united states and the ability to say, hey, there was a red line crossed. and we need to act. and we need the ability to act and also make the case that iran is going to be doing a celebration if this syria measure is voted down. some members, that's not going to resonate with them. because this is a war weary country. and they think -- they're asking valid questions about, okay, if we do strike syria, then what? what happens after that? and the administration, i think, has to make better cogent arguments than they've been making. >> you make a good point in our noon hour i'm going to ask captain nash whether or not this could be president obama's iraq or afghanistan. a protracted, long battle there. we'll take a look at that side of it as well. thanks so much. great to see you, bob.

we're also following protests that are against military action in syria. and they are cropping up both here at home and overseas. there were at least 150 people picketing in front of the white house yesterday. they went ahead and marched all the way to capitol hill. and there was a small gathering in new york in times square expressing displeasure with the idea of u.s. intervention. but by far the largest protest taking place was at the vatican. there were tens of thousands of people filling st. peter square answering pope francis's call for a grass roots cry for peace. eric? there are new concerns this morning about the role islamic extremists may be playing on the ongoing conflict in syria. this at the expense of syrian christians. you know, we've seen churches torched and countless christians fleeing. just this morning an apparent new islamic victory. activists on the ground say al qaeda rebels have now gained control of an historic christian

village near the capital, maaloula. can u.s. intervention help protect them? joining us on the telephone from the persian gulf, ambassador john bolton, former u.n. ambassador to the u.n., fox news contributor. ambassador, good morning. >> glad to be with you. even from a distance. >> exactly. i'm going to talk to you in a moment about the view from there. first this new troubling event. victory over this christian town. what do we do about it? >> i think this demonstrates just how complex the civil war inside syria is. you know, historically, christians and alawites have supported the assad regime in part because they fear what would happen if the 70% sunni majority led by extremists were to take control in syria. it's not because bashar al assad protects the christians or the

drews. but because it's a political alliance. i think as the christians have seen what happened in egypt with the muslim brotherhood, trashing churches, intimidating and assaulting christians, they worry that the brotherhood's equivalent in syria and even worse, al qaeda and terrorist groups, could really endanger the relatively small christian population there. so they are very concerned. >> yeah. there are about 2 million christians in syria. 10% of the population or so. do you think that any possible air strikes would help or hurt the christian population that remains? >> well, i think that's very much up in the air. in large part because to this day, more than two weeks after the president announced he wanted to conduct strikes, we still don't know what he has in mind. is he trying to change the balance of power in the civil war? is it simply what he's been saying before, a proportionate, limited strike to deter the use

of chemical weapons? is it something in between? is it changing every day? i think that's having an effect on the congressional debate, too. honestly, i don't support the use of force in syria. but it's a good reason for the president to have made up his mind what he wanted to do in the first place. and then gone and done it. as the saying goes, better to ask forgiveness than ask permission. >> the president will speak to the nation on tuesday night. what do you want to hear and what could he say, ambassador, that could potentially change your mind? >> well, i don't think given his lack of leadership to date there's anything he could say to change my mind. in fact, it's the fecklessness, the continued dithering and flip-flopping that worries me even more. it's as if the president thinks that as he sees the horrible use of chemical weapons, he asserts that an american trik of sostri undefined proportion can act as a retribution for the use of chemical weapons and then everything will be over. that is simply not the reality

we live in. and it's the lack of strategic focus of the president's remarks, his diplomacy, his politics here at home, that leave me very worried. i've thought for some time that as tragic as the civil war in syria was, it's a strategic side show compared to iran's nuclear weapons program. even if we got involved in syria, even if the assad regime supported by iran were overthrown, that would not be a strategic defeat for iran. if anything, it would simply be a further incentive to get nuclear weapons as soon as possible. the way to deal with iran is to deal with iran. >> the president hasn't changed your mind. he hasn't changed vladimir putin's mind, either. there was an extraordinary meeting at the g-20 where they both talked for 20 minutes. kind of, like, had a meeting with other world leaders and then took a vote. look at what the "new york times" said on the front page yesterday about that meeting. quote, during a long, late night discussion about syria the two presidents effectively competed

for t support of the other leaders. putin said the majority leaders joined him in opposing a military strike independent of the united states. >> i think it shows putin has absolutely no respect for obama. i think he outmaneuvered him as st. petersburg. it was a defeat, a lost opportunity for the president to try and bring others on board. despite what secretary of state kerry has been saying in his european trip of expressions of support from others, there's still precious few countries that have expressley said they support the use of force by the united states. so far, and include france in this, no one has said they will join in the use of military force. which means everybody's saying, somebody ought to do something and pointing at the united states. that is not support for the united states of the kind we need.

if we're going to do this, we ought to try and have others engage in military force. now, it wouldn't bother me as a matter of principle if obama struck unilaterally. i think if that's what he feels we need to do, then he ought to do it. but it comes with a great irony from a president who so criticized his predecessor for acting unilaterally. >> ambassador john bolton who is in aman in the region right now. thank you so much. we'll, of course, hear more from you next on sunday as you are with us every sunday. ambassador, thank you. of course, the president speaks in just over 48 hours from now hoping to convince the country and congress to back his plan. coming up, we'll hear from louisiana senator david vitter. he plans to vote against u.s. military strikes. what would senator vitter have to hear from the president to potentially change his mind? senator vitter joins us live in the 12:00 hour, two hours from now, on what he thinks america should do. jamie? >> syria remains in crisis.

a mass exodus of innocent people who are seeking refuge. they are fleeing the war. we're going to take a look at the ongoing conflict and the impact it is having on civilians there. guess what? there's yet another reason to reach for that cup of morning joe. no wonder they call coffee the happy drink. new research says that coffee could now actually help fend off prostate cancer. how much do we have to drink? dr. david samadi, who knows all about prostates and coffee will join us with the doctor on "sunday housecall" coming up just ten minutes from now. run and get a quick cup of coffee and come right back. >> refill, please. ♪ ho ho ho [ female announcer ] at 100 calories, not all food choices add up.

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back to the syrian crisis this morning. you know, as we learn more about the horror on the ground and the war's impact, that horrific impact on civilian, since the outbreak of the war, more than 100,000 people have been killed. thousands of victims, of course, innocent men, women and especially those children. more than 2 million people have become refugees. millions more displaced within the par towar torn country. now syrians are most displaced people on earth. here with us, a journalist who has spent the last six years

covering middle east conflicts and has been reporting from syria since the outbreak of this war, including being imbedded with rebel forces, independent journalist, e.b. hall. thanks for coming in this morning. >> thanks for having me. >> you have been there. you have seen what happens. you have been on the ground. what is it like? >> i would say the first thing that strikes you is the indiscriminate bombing of civilians by the regime. there is no doubt he is targeting women and children actively. the other thing we've started to see over the last two years is how fractured the rebel movement has become. so whereas initially we felt quite safe with the rebels and they were on our side, more moderate, that's been hijacked by the islamists. now we find ourselves in a position where the entire country is falling apart and it's very hard to pick up. >> what would happen if we had these air strikes? you talk about the islamists. "the washington post" says there are just 11 groups. they have about 15% or 25% of the rebel forces. the free syrian army is the dominant one. >> i would disagree with that. the idea the free syrian army is

the dominant force is no longer true. it was initially. now you have so many different groups fighting one another it's hard to pick out who we would support. in terms of the air strikes, i do think that we need to do these. we need to go in and make a stance. if only just to level the playing field. the main outcome, hopefully being to negotiate a settlement some years down the line. but the idea of arming the rebels or doing anything else is absurd. what we need to do is bring down the air capacity of the assad regime. >> you're saying bomb the airfields. take out the air force. >> i would say take out the airfields. that serves two main purposes. first to prevent him bombing indiscriminately using his planes. the second to prevent the arms shipments coming in from iran and russia. i think that would be very strategic. a wise thing to do at this point. >> what about those who say no war. we shouldn't get dragged into this. and they worry about what will happen. >> we have to be very, very careful of mission creep. we've seen that happen throughout the other conflicts in the region. i think if we were to be very careful and state there would be no boots on the ground, this would be ineffective response to the red line being crossed.

we need to say something about that. we can't just let them cross this red line and do nothing about it. then i hope we can control it strategically. >> we're looking at video there that you have shot, your group borderline news has shot, of some of those air raids you talked about. you discussed the red line. is it time for the world to say, enough? we went through the holocaust. we went through chemical weapons used in world war i. 182 nations have signed the chemical weapons treaties. now this. what does it mean if this continues? will the terrorists be emboldened? what does it mean to you when you see chemical weapons used on the people you have met? >> enough is enough. due to the lack of action on obama's part, assad has the wind in his sails. he is feeling emboldened at the moment. i think that that red line stands for everyone else in the region. we have a red line on a nuclear iran. we don't want them to send weapons to military proxies. if you have these vague threats without following through, where does the u.s. stand?

yes, we have to stand up for our opinion. >> not just president obama, as you say, for the past 2 1/2 years. look at the fact that the united nations security council has been paralyzed. the u.n. itself founded in the ashes of world war ii to prevent and address this very thing. >> unfortunately the security council is no longer the potent force that it once was. >> we're looking at video of a day in aleppo. tell me about that. i know some teenagers who have a friend who's a young teen, he lives in aleppo. he's there now. he went to summer camp with some americans. what do we tell that young man? they're on facebook with him. do we say we're not coming? the world doesn't care? good luck if you get gassed? what do we tell him? >> what kind of a message does that send to anyone else who looks to the u.s. to be a potent sort of source for good in the world. we have to say we will be there to support you. we'll do everything possible to prevent these atrocities continuing. let's not forget, though, the

rebels are now fractured and have been hijacked by a lot of islamists movements. so it's pretty hard to pick out a good guy here. >> were you with the islamists or were you with others? >> they work quite closely together. depending on each different tactical -- >> how did they treat you as a westerner? >> two years ago, very well. they were more than happy for us to come in and cover the conflict. because as i said, it was assad bombing indiscriminately. it was people standing up and protecting their village and their families. now their main motive for fighting is to create an islamic state in the north of the country. that is a lot more troublesome. how do they treat us? with nervousness. they don't know anymore whether we're on their side. >> finally, what do you think will happen? >> i hope and i believe that the u.s. will go in, take care of some surgical strikes. put assad on the back foot again and remind him that we still have a voice in the middle east. let's see if that happens. i hope it does. >> e.b. hall of borderline news. very compelling. very dramatic.

thank you so much for your brave work which basically could potentially cost your life for telling this story of the syrian people. >> thank you. >> thank you. jamie? >> of course, as you've described, the middle east is on edge. we're hearing growing concerns over what possible u.s. involvement in syria could mean for one of our most important allies in the region. coming up, we're going to take a look at the impact on israel. there's also some new evidence that a leading cause of death in america is likely preventable in one out of four cases. the doctors are here with what we're learning about heart health. prostate health, too. "sunday housecall," next. mine was earned in djibouti, africa. 2004.

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we'll, of course, be staying on the syrian story all morning. right now it's time for "sunday housecall." joining us as always is dr. marc siegel, associate professor of medicine at nyu's lang