two- week run up. >> it is the players and their backgrounds and sob stories and girlfriends. >> we go through the commercials with girls in bikini. we are stays here for outnumbers on the web. we'll see you right there. >> starting off with a fox news alert. a potentially crippling storm gaining strength and moving in on the northeast. >> get your boots out. blizzard warnings are out and people are bracing for several feet of snow coming their way. >> the over all picture is to do everything in our power and the strongest force in the world to keep america safe. >> does our safety come at a cost? >> the release of an al-qaeda agent. a part of a proposed prisoner swap for americans. >> and a now waveev bomb threats

to several airliners. how these threats were made and what is done to stop them. >> an asteroid to pass by close as what has been in year. just how close will it get. it is all on "happening now". >> first, fox news alert on the blizzard of 2015 bearing down on the northeast. tens of millions of people are in its path for a big storm of epic porportion. the snow is falling here in new york city only a dusting of what is to come. some places could so throw foot of snow. national weather service issuing a blizzard warning as blows and salt spreaders get ready. doug is in the reagan international airport reporting on the travel conditions and

janice dean has been tracking this monsterous storm. >> we are certainly looking at this storm being a big event. this is the top five for new york city. last time we saw epic snow 20 inches or 21. and we go back to 2006 for our top storm and that was 26.9-inchs. february 11th- 12 and we were outside and covering it and it was epic. boston, here are your top five and we have the potential to be in the top two certainly for boston. we'll be in a period when the storm strengthens off of the coast and getting a handle on the snowfall toelts. people are focused on the snowfall totals. a foot or two or throw feet. it doesn't matter. we have winds in express of 40

or 50 miles per hour for a duration of 6 to 10 hours in the biggest cities in the northeast. light snow reported in new york and philadelphia and up to boston. this is not the main event. the low has to move offshore and it will strengthen overnight and we'll get blizzard conditions. and those are the satellite radar image row. and we'll get in the overnight this is tuesday at 12 clock and starting to see the heavier bands move on shore in the jersey shore land up to portions of long iowa land and connecticut and massachusetts and maine and cape cod and the islands and we'll have hurricane wind warnings. and that is for an extended period of time for cape cod and the islands. still seeing the snow on the i- 95 corridor and the snowfall totals are focused on that and the fact that we will have

blizzard conditions for a period of 6- 12 hours. that is the main take away and why the storm is so dangerous. the forecast models, again, the deeper shade of blue, including new york city and the jackpot and most snow new england including you, boston cases up wards of three feet of snow. >> purple is such a beautiful color. >> except on the weather map. >> thank you, janice. we'll laugh when we can. it is looking like a tough couple of days. >> thank you. >> i personally love a good blizzard and the blizzard of 2015 is bringing travel to a stand still. moves in and airlines are cancelling thousands of flights and affecting passengers up and down the east coast. doug is live in the airport for

us now. >> reporter: washington is escaping the brunt of the blizzard. we are getting only 2- 4 inches but the airplanes are loathe to send their planes up north not only because of getting stuck in the dope snow, but once it is cleared, we expect wind conditions of 40 or 50 or 60 miles per hour. and a lot of that snow will blow back on the runways making that job difficult. here is the delays and cancellations we have sewn. totals nine schoacross the country and cancellations today, 2570 in the country. and tomorrow's cancellations looking at 3200 flights in the united states. the at newark and laguardaia and jfk and philadelphia. we are hearing from the

airlines, tomorrow operations are limited in the northeast including all american u.s. airways and regional partners. we'll suspend operations in philadelphia newark and laguardia and jfk and boston. we plan to resume operations as soon as it is safe to do so. so the blizzard, his toriccal porportions is affecting not only air travel. but many mayor and governors warning people to stay off of the road. here is the connecticut governor. >> this afternoon get off of the roads early as possible. if you can leave work early and work the at home. do not plan on travel monday evening through the duration of the storm. amtrak may reevaluate as

conditions worsen. they could lose transcribingal power from the heavy winds affecting their electric lines. we'll keep our eyes on it. back to you. >> thank you doug. >> and now new fallout for the pro american government in yemen. the u.s. is restricting access to the embassy. we are told it is not evacuated but closed to the public today. antiterror operations continue in yemen. and targeting al-qaeda in the region will be more kopgz. >> and new threats from isis terrorist calling on muslims in western countries to carry out more attacks and the recent suggest of a al-qaeda sleeper agent was a proposed swap for

americans overseas. kathryn, what is isis saying today? >> reporter: the audio message was posted to a known isis website. making direct reference to king abdullah's death in saudi arabia. the isis spokesman praises the attacks in paris and followers acting where they live and not travel for iraq or syria for individual training. you saw what a single muslim did with can dan and what our brothers in france, australia and belgium did and may allah rewardy them. >> and there is no video and they are going to audio prrational security reasons. video can indicate a lot with the location. >> in the other story, so-

called sleeper agent, what can you tell us about this individual and any reported deal by the administration? >> reporter: right after 9/11. a li ama ri was pulled over for a are you tone traffic stop. they found a briefcase full of cash. he was transferred to in federal court and he pled guilty to providing material support to al-qaeda. he was sent to the u.s. as a part of a second wave of attacks. the allegation is that qatar offered to swap him for an american couple held for the negligent of their adopted daughter. quatar made the offer and wanted to do a deal last year. >> during meetings with them and

the state department u.s. ambassador at the time, was in her office talking to qataris and they floated the idea of a prisoner swap specifically mentioning a l- ma ri. >> reporter: today there is a letter sent to mr. obama and his office confirms that qatar approached the u.s. government to do the swap. the justice department spokesman said a lmari completed his sentence. but like federal inmates he was given credit for good behavior and got out with ten percent of his sentence remaining, jenna. >> interesting and a lot more to the story. and we'll talk to the reporter who broke the news of the proposed prisoner swap. and said this could be a sign of things to come. >> the white house is gearing up

with a new battle with congress. the president will be asking congress to donate 12 million acre of the alaska wild life refuge as protected wilderness. and the administration will propose new limits on offshore drilling. is this a political move by the white house? >> i mean republicans certainly think it is a political move. look president obama made clear even after the shellacing he took in the 2014 midterm environmental policy is a big part of his egg legacy. he made moves on the regulation and expand the clean air act and reduce emissions and smog and carbon dioxide. and this is another move which republicans are upset about on capitol hill. you have lisa marka usky saying

that the president is willing to negotiate with iran but not with alaska. and so right now this proposal is dead on arrival. >> but does it have the net affect of stopping oil and gas drill nothing the arctic region for now? >> it could. it will discourage companies that are looking to develop those resources up there. and you have to remember though alaska is in a new position. they used to be the second biggest oil producing state in the country. they have more competition and in north dakota has surpassed them on that front. so this is a sensitive issue to those up there in alaska. and i think it is notable that you have the senator up there is aing that she was blind sided by this and the administration didn't come to her to propose a compromise. and they are looking for 13

million acres and the only explanation is that the president wants this as part of his legacy and not interested in the republican opinions about it. >> cynics noted that the official white house announcement has the president sitting on board air force one. whether it is flying or not. they wouldn't just take him to the airplane to shoot a clip for a white house television commercial. but air force one, not exactly cheap on gas. it is kind of an interesting side note to this whole discussion. >> it does matter to some of those out there that are frustrated with the administration. look, i think you will see this issue pop up as we ramp up in 2016, i was out in iowa and looking at the republican contenders and a lot of them are raising the overreach and environmental legislation and

senator ted cruz talking about the locusts of the environmental protection agency. and this move by the obama administration will provoke more rhetoric coming down in the next few weeks and months. >> doesn't look like they will get along in washington in the midterm anyway. >> david, thank you. >> thank you jon. >> a former employee of the local fox tv station took his own life in front of the news corps headquarters. they released this statement. this morning a former employee in fox seven committed suicide outside of fox station headquarters new york. he was employed in austin station for ten months and hasn't been with our station since john of 2014.

>> and the secret service finding a device on the ground that is getting the agencies full attention and the death of a top prosecutor originally ruled a suicide. and allegations of murder may be gaining new credibility. ♪ are your joints ready for action? ♪ take osteo bi-flex®. osteo bi-flex® is specially formulated with joint shield™ to nuture and help defend your joints°... so now you can keep doing...

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of preparing for retirement. that's why when the time came he counted on merrill edge to streamline his investing and help him plan for the road ahead. that's the power of streamlined connections. that's merrill edge and bank of america. >> right now an investigation is underway after a small drone landed on the white house lawn. the secret service discovered the drone and the quad copter posed no danger to the president and first lady. the white house was put on look down. there are no drones flying right now, kevin. >> reporter: there are no drones flying around. but three questions for your consideration. what was it? whose was it? and what if anything can the

secret service do to keep it from happening in the future. it was a drone as you mentioned. it was four propellers and given its size of two feet in diameter type you can pick up in the hobby shop. the second question as the secret service looks into who had the drone and how it ended up here on white house property. they have walked on the south side and making sure there is nothing else as they lead the investigation. and i want to it share what we found on the fa a website. they weigh in on what happens when you operate a vehicle like this. the law is chlor that the faa may take enforcement action against model aircraft operators that endangers the safety of the national air space system. that includes threat to persons

or property that it would fall under this instance. no one was hurt in this circumstance and in case you are wondering what the secret service will do, they can disable ittousing technology and worse case scenario directly engage a drone. and the faa is continuing to come up with the right law to prohibit things like this from happening. sometimes the law, john is slower than the technology and they continue to try to move it up as things change each and every day. >> sounds like somebody would be in trouble if they figure out who was at the controls. >> you bet. >> passengers ordered off of the plane and other flights over what authorities are calling security concerns. we'll have the latest

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>> new details on several security threats in the skies over the weekend. two of those evacuated in seattle and another flight diverted to dallas and all three flights were originated in los angeles. that is where william is live with more. william? >> the fbi is working with twitter to identify those behind the tweets that ruined the weekend and scared the bejesus

out of hundreds of travellers. they were five flights threatened by twitter is social media. sunday jet blue and sky west landed in seattle and passengers evacuated and bussed to the gate and police inspected their baggage for bombs. and another flight in dallas and credible threat but no explosives. and a guy gave me the text or tweet that went out. and so he saw it on the twitter. >> isis made a threat a bomb threat. and said there was a bomb on board and they had people on board like 9/11. and they it were being cautious. >> and on saturday, another scenario after someone used the

twitter handle threatened southwest and delta airlines and prompting fighter jets to escort the passenger planes in atlanta. one tweet saying, i have a bomb on one of your planes, can you help me find it and it was smuggled through the back entrains. and southwest airline. a bomb was placed on flight 29 no. and it will be detonated and if it happens to me, i will make sure more were targeted. i strongly suggest you don't try anything stupid. >> and twitter responded. and the fbi said twitter is cooperating and no arrest yet. >> william, thank you. >> and now to another story we are following. mysterious death of a top

argentine prosecutor. alberto these man was shot in the forehead earlier this month and new detail suggest that murder cannot be ruled out as a cause. and ashes parentally not according to reports. and at the same time journalist who broke the news of his death fled the country in fear of his own life. he was found shot to death hours before he was set to testify on what he said was a cover up about iran's alleged role in the 1994 terrorist bombing of a jewish community center. theentious vents in argen tina could have a direct bearing on our security here in the united states. >> and the new york city police department former head of intelligence testified in 2013 and congress they have found

iranian diplomats conducting hostile recognizance on new york city over the past twrefl years. subway tray and wall street helioport. alberto's warning was not a long ago bombing in argen tina. it was a warning about the terrorist attacks today. >> that bombing killed 85 people and the allegation is that the current government in argentina wanted to do business in iowa ran and cover up the involvement in the bombing. you are looking at the argentina the president who said she thinks he was murdered to bring down her government. >> a proposed exchange for american prisoners is raising concerns that there are

concessions on terrorism. we'll talk to the report. we have constant updates as the storm closes in on the big storm in the northeast. and history- maker in space. an asteroid expected to brush past earth. rrn

>> fox news alert and weather conditions are are deteriorating as blizzard warnings go in affect in the northeast. millions of people bracing for a potentially historic storm that could unload three feet of snow in places. in times square the ground is already wet and getting blanketed with snow. and new york governor cuomo urged commuters to stay home and warning of road closures and mayor de blasio. >> people have to make careful decision and it is not business as usual. >> in massachusetts, the governor placing a state of the emergency and placed a midnight travel ban on nonessential vehicles. power outages are anticipated and it could take days for the

outages to be restored. >> and we are learning about the iowa governor had to be transported to it a hospital in des moines after falling ill in an event he was at. according to his website, the governor was conscious and alert in the transport to the hospital and according to this announcement, he was suffering from the affects of a cold. governor of iowa is conscious and talking. but we wish him well. >> and a startling new report about a al-qaeda sleeper agent was part of a proposed swap. it is sparking fears that the obama administration opened pandora box when it traded for bergdahl of last year. james, let me read one line from

your article that was recently posted. you say administration officials characterized a lmari's release as are you tonight. he is a sleeper agent. why was he no ordinary prisoner? >> he was the only enemy combatant on u.s. soil at one point. and captured in the united states in december of 2007 and in an admitted al-qaeda agent and in contact with cahid sheik mohammed mastermind of 9/11. and there is no indication of him being remorseful and we don't know he will not go back to committing acts of terrorism. there is concern that he could be a legitimate threat to this country. >> why dow think he was released based on your reporting?

>> i don't have all of the information. but the story that we reported that there was an offer made by the qatari attorney general he would be released in exchange for matthew and grace wong who are an american couple held in detention in qatar for two years. they are washing in qatar and the husband was a engineer. they have an adopted daughter who died there and falsely accused of being responsible for her deaths and last summer an emiszary came to the ambassador, our ambassador and said all right. we'll release this couple if you release the terrorist in your custody. and we have that from two sources. and this is what we heard. and we think we think that this, this occurred in july of

last year and only several weeks after the bo bergdahl exchange. >> you mention the time nothing your article of when the article came out. why is that significant and what does it say about the anti- terror policy of the country right now? >> well, in the worst case scenario, we think it sends a bad message and that the price on american heads is higher right now to rogue bad actors and terrorist groups, rogue regimes, if you get your hands on an american citizen that the price of that american citizen will be very high and we'll be willing to it expend money and resources including potentially terrorist in exchange for those for those american citizens. >> based on your reporting, was

the idea floated before the bo bergdahl trade? >> can you clarify that? >> was this brought up as an idea to it trade the sleeper agent for this couple before the bergdahl story. >> in this specific instance not to it my knowledge and throughout history sure there are instances where terrorist groups have tried to make exchanges for american citizens and soldiers and in this specific case, with the wong couple not to our knowledge. i am not aware of this being the case. >> you described a lmarri in a facility and i am curious and we are seeing video of him. what is the reaction to your reporting? >> can you bring us anything new as you work the story. >> the state department said there was no offer made.

this is sort of a broad and there is a lot of wiggle room in that sort of statement. i mean, to say that there was no offer made, it's hard to say. ifap emiszary came to you and what would you say if i lay this proposal out on the table? and what would you say if i offered you this? what would you say if we vahhingly made the proposal. it is unclear what the emissary of the qatari attorney general said. >> a third party could be involved? >> it is all sorts of ways it could have been made. and really quickly. a l- ma rri. what is he doing today? >> he's in qatar and given

a hero's welcome and the attorney general has the same last name and they are belonging of the same tribe and believe they are family members. >> thank you very much. >> a ground- breaking election in greece sparking new uncertainty for the european union and the global economy. the left wing party won a a a decisive win. >> there is questions of greece staying with the euro and raising stability in europe and the united states. europe is the number one trading partner for america. this party is anti- asteritty with a wave of greek discontent.

in order to get a bail out greece had to balance books and put in place tax hikes. that has sent the greek economy in a real depression. e leader promised new jobs and a freeze on lay offs and a write off of big chunks of that death. that led to victrow and we watched alex cypress be the new leader of the groes. and they are saying no way to any kind of debt forgiveness. eu tax pay ares have to pick up the tab and that would be down might. there will be a compromise. and we are watching the european stock market and except for greece, they are taking it in the destroyed. a vast majority of greeks want

want to it stay with the euro. and some fear relaxation could be possible. there are fears that other european countries may rebel and that could lead to instability in europe. bad news in the old world means bad news in the new. >> thank you greg. nspeaking of instability. russia is down graded to junk level. first time they have done it. and russia hit by sanctions from the united states and others because of action in ukraine. and a big question of what is ahead of the russian economy. does that make vladimar putin more apt to talk to the west or make him more aggressive. it is what we continue to watch in this part of the world.

the russian currency dropped throw percent amid threat of new sanctions. moscow is believed to be behind the fighting in ukraine. and an emergency meeting of eu foreign ministers is set for later this week. they are saying it is ukrainian leadership that should be responsible for the violence. >> it his spread to seven states and nowex poe. our medical a- ten will share important steps on keeping you and your family it safe. respiratory

>> happy monday everyone. i am gretchen carlson. major road closures and flight

cancellations and so how are you dealing with it. send us your picks even if you are on the beach. what is the administration's policy on negotiating with terrorist. it seems wishy-washy. and we have a kicker's take on deflate gate and whether we should move along and play ball. all at the top of the hour. >> hospitals on alert for measles as an outbreak of highly contagious illness spreads. the epidemic originated in disneyland in california. 80 of the reported infections are in california but confirmedyd cases in seven western states and mexico. a high school baseball coach in santa mannaco was diagnosed with the disease. >> we have a member of the fox news medical a- team.

you say blame the unvaccinated for the unbreak? >> that is certainly part of it. there is a big debate about whether the vaccines are safe and the poll from a p said that 50 percent of the americans are not sure that vaccines are safe and effective. mmr vaccine that has been here in the 60s. gives a 99 percent immunitiy and shown to be safe. i am more afraid of the virus than the vaccine. if you had it, there is a 90 percent chance if you had it that i would get it by being close to you. >> it can be a fatal disease in cases? >> absolutely. the risk of a rare complication from the vaccine is one in 500000. and the risk of measle brain infection and death is one in

a thousand and much more likely. and there is a lot of measles in the world. hundred thousand kids die around the world every year. and the last thing we need is a resurgence here. >> it was wiped out in this country. >> in 2000 there was less than 80 cases. 2014, over 600 cases and this year, it is worse. hoar in disneyland people are crowded together and most?s of the people who got it were unvaccinated and now, i have to say to people going to disneyland did you get your antibodies check. i want to go to desny land. i may have to give you a booster shot. >> and the big storm is about to affect millions of people in the northeastern corridor cities. and you have suggestions to keep

those that you love safe? >> number one cause of death is from transportation ax accidents and car accidents. if people go out there, make you have your gas tank full, make sure your battery is checked, that you have the jumper cables and don't go on slippery roads. i'm also worried about the elderly and disabled. you shouldn't be going out there if you're elderly or you have a chronic condition. wear extra layers of clothing. keep your fingertips and your noses covered, toes, because of frostbite. frostbite is a big problem hypothermia when the temperature goes down too low. you don't want prolonged exposure outside in weather like this. and you don't want to slip and you don't want to shovel snow if you haven't been doing anything. >> especially that wind can be very dangerous. doctor, great advice. thank you. the coach of the new england patriots going on the defense saying his team has nothing to do with underinflated footballs in the afc championship game.

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employees at an ohio business are going about their job making the game balls used in the super bowl, we're live in chicago where the story begins. garrett? >> after leaving the farm this is where every nfl football begins. at this leather factory in chicago, this is the leather that eventually ends up on the playing field each monday after it is tanned and pounded to give it a little bit of this texture, it is shipped over to wilson sporting goods football factory in ada ohio, the birsplace of every nfl super bowl football

since 1941. >> we wonder every time that ball hits the field, was that one that i laced, did i do that ball? and we just hope that the players and the quarterback and so forth, that they take as much pride in playing with it as we take in making it.qb >> less than a week until the super bowl, you can see how busy they are. sue could hardly stop working throughout our entire interview. more than 3,000 footballs are made each day. it's a meticulous process. the cowhide is cut into four panels sewn together run through a seam box to help soften up the leather. and then the balls are turned right side out stuffed with a bladder, the laces are added to seal it up. the final touch is the inflating process where these balls are inflated to have 13 pounds of air pressure inside.

that's something the nfl officials will be looking at very closely on sunday. >> that is so cool, garrett. never seen that before. that woman, sue, she's really working those laces. really cool to see. >> she is no joke. >> garrett, thank you so much. >> they're cowhide why call them pig zlsskin? an asteroid the size of a mountain hurtling past earth is history in the making as it marks the closest pass at least until 2027 or so we hope. the asteroid was 1800 feet across and made its closest approach are to earth two hours ool ago. no threat the asteroid would hit the earth. this is going to hit us the blizzard of 2015 moving into the northeast. keep it right here for our continuing coverage of this potentially historic storm. this tylenol arthritis lasts 8 hours

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they said 1:00 p.m. eastern time for the blizzard warning. looking blizzardy out there. >> it's getting there. thanks for joinings. >> "the real story" with gretchen starts now.sy fox news alert, hi, everyone. i'm gretchen carlson. millions of americans bracing for a major winter wallop as a huge blizzard moves in on the northeast. the d.c. area bracing for up to a foot of snow. that's just the start. new york preparing for up to two feet of snow. boston set for even more. and before it's all over, some parts of new england could be hit with as much as three feet of snow. "the real story" starts right now. that storm being described add potentially historic and crippling. right now much of the northeast under blizzard warnings. it's snowing across the region right now. but this is just a