his wife, diana welcome baby francesca marie. their third daughter. congratulations. >> our family just got bigger. so beautiful. >> bill: fox news alert on the day which could be the day republicans have been waiting seven years for. at this hour they're meeting in private. their leadership says they have the votes to pass the plan to replace obamacare. that is a live picture from capitol hill as they get together inside the meeting room. what will they talk about and say when they emerge? you'll see it live when it happens. a big day in "america's newsroom." >> shannon: good morning, i'm shannon bream. it was a big campaign promise for donald trumled to this. house republicans appear to be confident that their new healthcare bill does have the needed support to pass. >> bill: here is the magic number, 216. that's what it takes to pass the bill onto the senate. after a full-court press to win over the undecided and a

last-minute compromise with moderates they think they're there. late last night house leader kevin macarthur confident while leaving this meeting. listen. >> to me it's a very big amendment that helps close the bill. and close it. you're not quite there yet? >> very close. >> shannon: peter doocy is live outside the meeting of house republicans. do they feel confident they have the votes? >> leader macarthur was as confident as he has been in weeks. he said we're going to pass it after spending several hours huddling in speaker ryan's office to see if there are enough members of their own party to back the american healthcare act. not just members of congress. the white house put pressure on republicans yesterday as well. mike pence was here for the third day in a row. he was joined by the hhs

secretary tom price in some of those meetings. price and pence have known some of these skeptical republicans for years. they appear to be some of the more moderate members. they didn't make big public announcements they love any new language in the bill like the new long vsh upton amendment to spend $8 billion more on covering people with pre-existing conditions but the freedom caucus leader jim jordan tells me that conservatives are still on board and that leadership can count on the freedom caucus to back this ahca today. >> shannon: do we have any idea how much this bill is going to cost? there have been a lot of questions how quickly it has come together, whether we have any estimates. >> no idea. the congressional budget office didn't have time to put the price tag on it. democrats are mad about that and using bad words to make

their feelings known. >> this process to put it bluntly is a [bleep] mess. it really is. i don't know anyone can defend it. fixes upon fixes to fix the fixes to fix the fixes. >> at that rules committee meeting last night one of the republicans working hard to make sure the bill covers for people with pre-existing conditions insisted it is not his party's fault there is no price tag yet. >> i have called for the cbo to release the score and i'm disappointed that they don't. >> and shannon, members are still streaming down this hallway underneath the capitol into the meeting where anything could happen. there is no guarantee the american healthcare act will be approved by the house of representatives today. this meeting is the last chance that anybody opposed to the bill is going to have to convince their colleagues to vote it down. shannon. >> shannon: we know you're on the front lines and keep us

updated. we'll check back. >> bill: much more on the big push throughout the morning. health and human services tom price is here today. we'll talk to him in 30 minutes on the president's efforts to seal the deal. remember the reason why he was picked. he was picked in this cabinet to serve for president trump in order to do this today. repeal and replace or at least replace we'll see how it goes, tom price coming up in 30 minutes to answer a lot of questions. >> shannon: it could come down to the wire. our capitol hill producer says they're trying to pad extra few votes if it gets down to the wire nobody is tagged as being the deciding vote for voting for this. >> bill: we mentioned 216. house majority, they can lose 22 members and still pass it. watch that today. in the meantime speaker paul ryan walking into that meeting. stay tuned. we'll get you back there in a minute. big story here also. the f.b.i. director james comey back on capitol hill this morning could give new details

on his investigation into hillary clinton, russia and the election of november. details he could not provide publicly during that testimony which at times was animated and filled with passion. comey was asked repeatedly about his decision to go public about a second look at hillary clinton's emails and server only days before the election when he said this. >> i could see two doors and they were both actions. one was labeled speak the other was labeled conceal. concealing in my view would be catastrophic. not just to the f.b.i. but well beyond and honestly, as between really bad and catastrophic, i said to my team we have to walk into the world of really bad. >> bill: that was yesterday. now today trey gowdy on the house intelligence committee will be questioning him behind closed doors. repeatedly yesterday the f.b.i. director answered this way to questions on the hill. >> it's not a question i can answer in this forum, mr. chairman because it would call for a classified response. i have briefed leadership of

the intelligence committees on that particular issue. but i can't talk about it here. to react to that i have to give a classified answer and i can't give it sitting here. i can't answer it here. not something i think i can comment on. >> bill: there you have it. what is your question today? >> i have a bunch and we're going to do it in a classified setting so we can ask all of them. he is a foundational witness that touches all parts of russia and masking and unmasking and dissemination of classified information. he really is a foundational witness so i'll start at the beginning. what is the evidence that russia attempted to interfere. we'll walk through that. is there any evidence to tie the trump campaign to that? if there is, you need to tell us what it is. we'll get into the masking and unmasking and dissemination of classified information. we won't get it all done. today we'll get started. >> bill: two hours ago president trump tweeted the following.

susan rice the former national security advisor to president obama is refusing to testify next week on unmasking trump transition officials. not good, he concludes. she rejected the invitation to appear publicly on monday. what do you make of her case? >> she rejected an invitation. there are other ways to invite people other than via letter. there are things called subpoenas. you shouldn't have to use them with a former national security advisor, if you do, you do. susan rice is also a very important witness. it may be that she concluded that public setting would not enable her to answer the questions that the senators were going to have which is why we're going behind closed doors today. that's where these interviews need to take place. she is an important witness. members of congress and lawyers don't pick witnesses, the facts pick the witnesses. rice is a really important fact

witness. >> bill: democrats would argue james comey should have kept his mouth shut and gone public in late october. are they right? >> i don't know what doors he saw. he is not the reason -- i don't think he told secretary clinton to have her own server or give disingenuous answers to questions throughout the campaign. i don't think he told anthony wiener to communicate via text with underage girls. i don't see how any of this is jim comey's fault. he has a tough job. someone was going to criticize him no matter what he did. he did what he thought was right. i reject the notion that jim comey is the reason that we have president trump. secretary clinton at some point ought to do some self-reflection and go back and reflect on her own decisions which led director comey to have to make the call he did. >> bill: take you back to last july. phoenix, arizona on the tarmac. james comey brought it up.

>> the capper was. lynch's meeting with president clinton on the campaign was the capper for me. >> bill: how does that change in where we are today on your investigation? >> it doesn't impact our investigation. we have a new attorney general. loretta lynch is gone. the decision to meet with the spouse of the target of an ongoing criminal investigation. you know not to do that in your first year of law school. she will have to explain her thought process there. director comey said it was the straw that broke the camel's back. >> bill: do you think it was the original sin in all of this? >> i don't know. i don't know what the original sin was. it was a very complicated fact pattern exacerbated by the fact we were in a presidential election. comey felt the need to update congress on his previous testimony and thought it was the way to do it. again, bill. who was responsible for the

entire fact pattern up to that decision? it's not comey's fault that lynch met with bill clinton and she had this curious email situation with herself. >> bill: in every answer your given the original sin comes back to hillary clinton's server. had she not set it up we wouldn't be here today. >> bill: i'm reluctant to use theological terms like original sin but to have her own unique email arraignment with herself and keep it quiet for two years was a really bad decision. >> bill: thank you for your time. it's not over today is what you say, right? how much longer. >> that's right. we're just starting today. we have 100 witnesses we need to talk to. we'll get through two of them today. however long it takes to tell your viewing audience what happened last year. that's how long it will take. >> bill: thank you for being here. trey gowdy, thank you again from the hill. 10 minutes past.

>> shannon: president trump marks the national day of prayer by signing an executive order easing restrictions on religious freedoms to roll back irs regulations muzling tax exempt organization when it comes to political issues and candidates and protect religiously-affiliated companies to -- the president will head back to new york for the first time since taking office. he will meet with the australian prime minister and give a speech on the uss intrepid which means don't plan to get around new york city easily today. always an adventure. >> bill: he hasn't been back to the city where he was born, raised and made his fortune and built is campaign in almost four months. pretty remarkable. big day on the hill back there in a moment. the house will vote on healthcare. that's what we're told. stand by on that. then the senate said to take up that trillion dollar budget deal. republican senator john

barrasso on the republican policy committee going to take our questions in a matter of moments on that. >> shannon: turning up the heat on north korea congress set to vote on sanctions. ed royce is sponsoring the bill and will talk about it with us next. >> bill: president trump vows to bring peace to the middle east. did he make any progress in his meeting with the head of the palestinian authority? >> the president's ability to connect with an individual to work with them towards a shared goal, to have back room diplomacy, it's something that is going to continue to pay dividends and get results. i fin. oh yeah? ended up saving a ton of money on car insurance. i hear they have a really great mobile app. the interface is remarkably intuitive. that's so important. ♪

>> shannon: this is a fox news alert. confirming u.s. fighter jets intercepting a pair of russia cold war era bombers off the coast of alaska. this time they were escorted by a fair of su35 fighter jets. the first time the u.s. air force has seen fighter jets escorting the bombers. american f-22s were able to escort the russian planes back to international airspace. the russian fighters were unarmed. this is the fifth time since the beginning of april that russian bombers have flown near alaska. >> we're preparing additional sanctions if it turns out north korea's actions warrant additional sanctions. we're hopeful the regime in north korea will think about this and come to a conclusion that there is another way to

the future. >> rex tillerson talking tough on north korea. the house is voting on hitting that regime with the strongest sanctions yet. lawmakers debate that, some major military hardware, the u.s.s. carl vinson strike group off the korean peninsula. the sponsor of the bill is ed royce. chairman of the house foreign affairs committee. thank you for your time today and good morning. what does this bill do that you did not do before, sir? >> what this bill does that we did not do before is to cut off north korea's access to ports, to cut off any financial institutions with third party sanctions, and to cut off slave labor that north korea uses to get several billion dollars worth of hard currency a year. we found out in 2005 when we sanctioned north korea and 11 chinese banks at that time that we shut down their weapons program because they didn't even have the money to pay

their generals. remember, if we shut down their economy, they can't go forward with their program. this legislation builds on a bill of mine last year that will give the president of the united states every tool now to do exactly that. >> bill: why would kim jong-un be moved on this one? >> the problem for kim jong-un is this, he has been able to take advantage of strategic patience. that was the obama administration's plan. through strategic patience what he did was to do last year alone 26 missile tests and two atomic weapons tests. and in that process he has now developed -- he is so close now to being able to hit all 50 states in the united states with this weapons capability. he has one more step he has to achieve. but if we cut off his money so that this multi-billion dollar

weapons program is shut down so we can implode his ability to go forward and even fund his military, that's the step that in 2005 we put on him and that the defectors told us he is in real trouble. we've got to put him in exactly that posture. >> bill: north korea criticized china earlier today. called beijing reckless remarks now heard every day that makes a bad situation tenseer. that's how it was interpreted. how rare is that for north korea to make criticism toward beijing? >> they can see what's coming. i can tell you what happened back in 2005 when we caught them counterfeiting $100 u.s. bills and our treasury department put those sanctions are, the chinese banks decided it was better to do business with the united states than go bankrupt and do business with

north korea. they froze the north korean accounts. the north koreans are responding because they're afraid that's what is going to happen again. these sanctions, this bill that's up today will mandate that. and that's why it's important we get this bill to the president's desk. >> bill: one more topic here, john roberts white house asked sean spicer and mr. trump being optimistic about peace in the middle east. >> the man is different. this president's style is one to develop a personal bond with individuals and i think you saw that today with president abbas. him talking so kindly about the president. you saw that. the relationship that exists and it is only getting stronger between him and prime minister netanyahu. you have two individuals because of this president are increasing their desire for peace. >> bill: it's a big topic and i need a quick answer. is there hope here? >> there is in the sense the president made it clear that abbas is to quit supporting

incitement against his civilians, quit supporting terrorism and stop funding those who get money from the palestinian state every time they slay an israeli civilian. that budget process be cut off and that's essential. >> bill: sir, thank you for your time. ed royce, we'll watch the sanctions bill today. thank you for your time on the hill. 21 minutes past the hour. >> shannon: the u.s. army is looking for a few good solder. the sweet deal being offered for a new program. we'll tell you all about it. a big announcement from british royalty. which member is preparing to take it easy?

>> bill: here is the status at 9:24 on a thursday morning on the hill. house members on the republican side we're told meeting behind closed doors talking about whether or not they have the votes to pass the replacement bill on obamacare today. what you see right now is a lot of procedural matters on the floor of the house. debating the rules to bring the bill forward later and the good stuff that shannon bream has been living in for some time. >> shannon: i love it. the nerdier, the better. i love it. >> bill: we'll keep an eye on that. we'll let you know what's happening on healthcare today. it's very significant. >> shannon: family members of the victims of the san bernardino terror attack are suing three social media sites blaming them in part for the massacre. we're live from los angeles. william, what exactly are they claiming in this lawsuit?

>> well, shannon, the question they pose, are social media companies responsible or criminally liable for material posted on their networks? until the law has said no. if you commit a violent act after reading a book or watching a movie the publisher and producer isn't responsible. the families of the victims of the san bernardino attack accuse twitter, facebook and google knowingly providing material support to isis. terrorist organization. i'm quoting. the shooters had never been directly in contact with isis. isis use of social media directly influenced their actions on the day of the san bernardino massacre and without twitter, facebook and google the explosive growth of isis over the last few years into the most feared terrorist group in the world would not have been possible. we asked the tech companies for comment. so far nothing yet. it is quite early. lawyers who filed this case, however, filed similar cases for victims in the orlando and

paris attacks. >> shannon: how have other lawsuits fared in court? >> some of those cases are ongoing. the courts have generally dismissed similar lawsuits because of the communications decency act and interneat freedom act. no provider can be held liable based on third party content that they carry. argue otherwise these companies say would expose every online platform to liability for terrorist violence anywhere in the world at any time simply because the terrorists may have been affiliated with some of the platforms billions of users. having said that, many of these companies have stepped up their efforts to police themselves. twitter says it's suspended 360,000 accounts in 18 months. facebook has 7,000 people tracking down questionable material. as you know, there is now an effort, a lobbying effort in washington to increase policing and study of 37% in swing state

voters said they do want the government to get more involved in controlling content. >> shannon: there are always consequences to those decisions. william, thank you very much. >> bill: the senate will vote today on a trillion dollar budget deal that many call a big win for democrats, or do they? ann coulter makes the case the budget means there is no point in ever voting republican again. senator john barrasso responds to all that live. >> shannon: late night host stephen colbert is responding to the firestorm over his crude mono log on donald trump. what he said in the follow up. is it enough? we'll talk about it coming up. >> bill: if you saw my monologue on monday you know i was a little upset with donald trump for insulting friend of mine. so at the end of that monologue i had a few choice insults for the president in return. i don't regret that.

there you go. you still need a pass.

>> shannon: this is a fox news alert on what's a very busy day on capitol hill. the house set to vote on the bill the repeal and replace obamacare and james comey will meet with the house intelligence committee behind closed doors and right now the senate is set to move forward on passing the bipartisan budget deal. john barrasso is chairman of the republican policy committee and joins us live. good morning to you. >> shannon: thanks for having me. let's talk about stacks. conservatives not happy with it. 179 democrats voted for it compared to just 131gop members voted in the house. it's coming to you next. clearly democrats are celebrating this thing. ann coulter says this in a column titled swamp people 47-trump 0. if this is the budget deal we get when republicans control the house, senate and presidency there is no point in ever voting for a republican again. will you vote for the deal?

>> let me tell you like ronald reagan. you sometimes take your victories a slice at a time. i won't go over the hill with a flag flying and shutting down the government. big wins in this overall spending bill. spending is down but military and defense spending and even border security spending is up. we have finally broken this tied together this link the obama administration had for every dollar we wanted to increase defense spending he wanted an extra dollar of domestic spending. we have now broken that link entirely. additionally we have gone after a number of things that were so important to the obama administration that are now gone like the green climate fund and all the money that was going to the epa. we've cut that budget back to the level it was at when president obama came into office. can we do more? absolutely. we should have 12 individual appropriations bills. that's where we're going from here but we're only four months into the administration.

i think donald trump got it right. >> shannon: all right. this is another thing ann coulter had to say about this. straight out of george soros's dream journal. republicans are saying we'll have the big fit in september and asking why everything is always kicked down the line with republicans. she says you know, they labor under this idea their gentlemanlyness now -- does it make things harder in september when democrats feel like they have leverage, that's what they're saying publicly with the victory laps they're saying. >> you need 60 votes on this. where we don't need 60 votes is on healthcare and is on tax reform. we don't expect any democrat cooperation there. the house is going the vote on the healthcare reform bill today to repeal and replace obamacare. we'll do tax reform. we're able to do that without democratic cooperation because i don't expect there to be any.

but we are going to continue to work to cut government spending, get more responsible spending to make sure people actually get value for their taxpayer dollars in ways we never did over the last eight years and i think donald trump is heading the right way as he is going to sign more congressional review acts to get control out of washington and make the decisions back at home. those are all things that are going to be so important for jobs, the economy, as well as for national security. >> shannon: you serve on the senate foreign relations committee and i want to ask you about some things we heard from f.b.i. director james comey. i want to play a little exchange with lindsey graham. >> is it fair to say the russian government is still involved in american politics? >> yes. >> they're doing it all over the world, right? >> bill: yes. >> my view the greatest threat of any nation on earth given

their intention and their capability. >> shannon: that's a pretty strong statement there by the f.b.i. director. how do you feel about russia? do you believe they're continuing to interfere in u.s. politics and where are we on the russian investigation? >> the investigation continues through the intelligence committee work. there is a bipartisan group. i believe the russians were involved in the elections prior to this in the united states but it is against democracy around the world. i see it in germany and i think they're involved in the election in france this weekend. vladimir putin is cunning. he is aggressive. he is opportunist. he will try to take advantage of any situation he is granted. he is always looking for an opening but he has said he wants to restore the former soviet union. that's wrong for us as a democracy loving the freedom that we have. i think he has to be taken with a great deal of concern because i know where he wants to go.

it is not where the american people or the world needs to go. >> shannon: it sounds like there is a lot of bipartisan agreement on that point. senator barrasso, thank you for your time. >> thank you. >> bill: news out of london, buckingham palace announcing prince phillip, the husband of queen elizabeth ii is retiring from his royal duties. we have more on that and jonathan, what's happening? >> it's a very big announcement but nothing compared to the speculation that preceded it when buckingham palace called a meeting twitter went wild and prince phillip was declared dead by many. rumors of his death were greatly exaggerated and the 94-year-old prince is simply retiring. we'll get to see less of him doing this kind of thing. opening a new part of one of london's most iconic sports venues yesterday and summing up his life's work by declaring

himself the world's most experienced plaque unveiler. he has been much more than that and more than merely the queen's husband and the prince's public humor will always be remembered, too. although not always for the right reasons. he has managed to offend the chinese, russians, hungarians, canadians and australians to name a few as well as women. people of color and overweight children. now he will get to make all those jokes off color or not in private as he deals with ongoing health issues. we wish the prince very well. >> bill: i'm certain he has a sense of humor. i hope i look like that in my mid 90s. >> shannon: you won't retire ever. you don't know this but hemmer is 95 now. he is so youthful and sprie. i think that he deserves a break, right? we can agree on that. wish him the best.

we're waiting for that vote to replace obamacare. house republicans say they have the votes to advance the bill to the senate. democrats have a really big problem. many big problems with the plan. nancy pelosi calls it a monstrousty. tom price is live next. >> shannon: >> this flooding has been devastating. some fear it could get worse. we'll take you to some of the hardest hit areas next.

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>> shannon: new video out of northeast arkansas. communities are grappling with severe and dangerous flooding.

>> oh my god. >> shannon: powerful current washing homes right off their foundations. that ran into a bridge. 50 homes reportedly destroyed. the governor is dispatching the national guard there and he says at least nine levies have breached. >> bill: the waters could get higher. stand by for more news on that. in the meantime let's get to this. >> all the promises of obamacare have been broken and tomorrow we begin the end of obamacare once and for all. >> vice president mike pence has been on the hill three days in a row. republicans believe it could be it. they think the current healthcare bill has the support to pass and do away with much of obamacare. house republicans at this hour meeting behind closed doors ahead of a vote planned later today on healthcare.

there are critics and many of them. here to answer those critics health and human services secretary dr. tom price is with me now. good morning and thank you for your time on what could be a significant day. this is the reason why you're in the cabinet. president trump picked you exactly for this reason. so tell us the bill that is now being talked about, how will that make healthcare in america better? >> the fact of the matter is where we find ourselves right now is a system that's not working for so many folks. they may have a health insurance card but they don't have care. we've got -- yesterday the announcement two major insurance companies were either announcing they're pulling out or planning to pull out of iowa and virginia. the system right now isn't working. what the system that we believe ought to be put in place and we believe the bill will move us in that direction is a system that's more affordable for folks, allows for access to the kind of coverage they want, not that the government forces them to buy. allows patients, families and doctors to be in charge and

increased choices for patients because that's how you get not just costs down but you get the system responsive to real folks. >> bill: now, a couple specific questions. three times you've tried this now in a month and a half. do you believe they have the votes today, 216? >> it feels like it. i spent 12 years on the hill with my colleagues working on issues oftentimes as difficult as this. it feels like it. there aren't any assurances obviously but it feels like it. the fact of the matter is regardless of what happens. i think it will happen. regardless of what happens the system again is failing the american people. you've got a system where they have a third of the counties in this nation with one insurance issueer, counties that are now realizing that they aren't going to have any insurance company providing coverage for them in the individual market next year. that's a system that's failing the american people. so here at the department of health and human services we're working on the kinds of things to stabilize that market, to make certain we can allow for choices for individuals.

and listen to patients. listen to the folks out there in the real world because right now the system is failing them. >> bill: critics are teeing off already. democrats on floor of the house and they're not happy. nancy pelosi put out this statement. house republicans are going to tattoo this moral mon e -- >> i think the american people are sick of the talk out of washington they said if you wanted to keep your doctor you could keep your doctor. if you wanted to keep your insurance plan you could. if you wanted to vote for something that would bring down the cost of health coverage that was it seven or eight years ago. none of those things are true. what we want to do is have a seamless system, not pull the rug out from anybody. make certain individuals are able to gain the coverage they want for themselves and for their family that's of the highest quality care that we can absolutely provide. that's the direction we believe we're moving in with this next step.

>> bill: the cost hasn't been estimated. there is also a claim of 24 million americans going without health insurance. how do you respond to both of those today? >> the entire plan is one that includes the kinds of things we'll be doinging at the department. the next steps from the legislative standpoint. some begin today and some will move through committee in short order. the overall plan will bring down costs, allow for more individuals to be covered than there are right now. we believe that it will provide for greater coverage for those with pre-existing. the president of the united states has made a commitment to the people that those with pre-existing are covered. this bill will do that. as it moves through the process we can demonstrate that quickly. >> bill: are you saying that 24 million americans will -- are you saying that number is not accurate, sir? >> i don't believe that number is accurate. it is looking at a small slice of what we're doing. we believe the plan will increase coverage. there are 20 million americans right now who don't have

insurance coverage. many of them have said to the federal government none cess, i'm not going to buy your plan even though you penalize money and the i.r.s. gets money from me. it's a system not working for people. we believe in a system that works for patients, families and doctors so they're the ones making the decision, not the federal government. >> bill: fred upton from michigan. his big hang-up was the pre-existing conditions. he met with president trump and after that he talked about this. >> i talked to the president yesterday afternoon. i told him i could not support the bill as it was then moving through the rules committee without added protections for those who pre-existing illnesses. and based on our discussions and the agreement on this amendment, can now be in a place where i can support the bill with such amendment. >> bill: apparently the amendment includes an $8 billion fund for high-risk

pools that would cover those with pre-existing conditions. critics are already saying it's not enough money and you leave people hang out to dry. >> it's not true. i want to commend the president. he has engaged in this in an incredible manner. unprecedented like this. talked to members of the house of representatives over and over to make certain th're comfortable the direction the bill is going. the amendment that congressman upton and long worked on will absolutely ensure that those with pre-existing illnesses, injuries and conditions, nobody falls through the cracks, the rug isn't pulled out from under anybody and we move in the direction of patient-centered healthcare where patients, families and doctors are making these decisions and not your federal government. >> bill: how different could it be when it comes out of the senate? >> they will engage once it gets through the house in a positive and productive way. i believe it will be an activity that will make certain that we have the best quality

bill coming out of the con congress of the united states. >> bill: it's on the schedule today. we'll see it if goes forward. thank you for your time today. >> thanks so much. take care. >> shannon: the president is set to sign a new executive order he says will vigorously protect and promote religious liberty. critics are calling it discrimination. >> bill: stephen colbert backing off some of the stinging comment. far from an apology. howard kurtz set to analyze this. reaction next. >> he can take care of himself. i have jokes, he has the launch codes. so that's a fair fight. is worth doing right. can-am defender. tough, capable, clever. get a a $1,000 cash rebate

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>> if you saw my monologue monday i was a little upset with donald trump for insulting a friend of mine. at the end of that monologue i had a few choice insults for the president in return. i don't regret that. while i would do it again i would change a few words that were crudeer than they needed to be. >> shannon: late show host stephen colbert following his rant monday night against donald trump. critics calling for him to be fired. others say free speech. howard kurtz is the host of media buzz. good to see you this morning. a lot of what he said we can't play on the air. maybe the words he used. he got heat not only from the right but from the left as well. some of his comments could be proper trade as homophobic. >> he did apologize for the

crude sex joke about trump and vladimir putin. he made it worse with the lame non-apology. he uses this kind of language on network television. the most he can say is well, i guess i could have changed a few words. see a very talented comedian. i give comics a lot of leeway. that grossly offensive crack was beneath him. >> shannon: he is getting a lot of attention. people probably tuned what he would say on day two. >> he must be loving all this publicity. there is a larger narrative. he was in last place on "the late show" and using once trump got elected and using a lot of anti-trump humor. he is a liberal. he enjoyed a ratings surge that took him to number one. he doesn't want to appear to back down to his liberal base. cbs which allowed this joke to air as part of a pre-taped show. it was scripted. also needs to address this. it is pretty bad stuff. >> shannon: i have to honestly what goes through my mind no

matter which administration is in power you think would it work if you did it against the other party? i can't imagine him saying these things or any comedian saying these things about president obama or hillary clinton. i would think the person would be run out of the business. >> if a conservative host had made that crack against barack obama, there would have been a mainstream media uproar. colbert is getting criticism but not as big a story if the target had been somebody as you suggest. i'm not a fan of boycotts and #fire stephen colbert campaign. viewers can make up their own minds. we're a long way from the time that johnny carson or jay leno would sort of be an equal opportunity insult artist toward comedians. almost all the late night comics are against donald trump. >> shannon: as you said it's a free country. if people don't like it they can change the channel.

we're never changing the channel when you're on. >> bill: breaking the meeting now on healthcare talking about whether or not they have the votes to pass it today. this is a big deal. house majority leader kevin mccarthy at the microphone. nd grease is gone.

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>> shannon: big day on capitol hill and the white house as the house gets set to vote on healthcare president trump will send a new executive order easing restrictions on religious liberty in the usa. welcome to "america's newsroom," i'm shannon bream. >> bill: it's rocking today, right? hang on. first off, it will also protect faith-based groups and companies from being forced to provide contraception in employee healthcare plans. they have been fighting that for years now. fulfilling a promise, then candidate trump made on the campaign trail. >> shannon: we have team fox coverage this morning. mike emanuel live on capitol hill but we start with john roberts here in new york city

where the president will speak on the uss intrepid. what do we know about this executive order? >> a little bit about the intrepid visit. the president will be here tonight to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the battle of the corral sea and then meet with australia's prime minister turnbull. they talked on the phone where the conversation was a little bit terse. the president will hold a national day of prayer event at which he will sign that executive order that religious organizations have waited a long, long time for. among other things it will affirm the administration protects and promotes religious liberty and direct the irs to ease enforcement of the so-called johnson amendment. an amendment passed back in 1954 that prohibits pastors or priests or whoever else at a church from either endorsing or speaking against a candidate.

basically it limits political activity by churches and other tax exempt organization. this executive order will ease the obamacare mandate. you might remember the ways of the little sisters of the poor and contraception having to be carried in their medical benefits. it will eliminate the mandate in obamacare that requires religious and tax exempt organizations to provide services they object to. they've been asking for more. they wanted to deny services to people on the basis of their religious beliefs such as not providing flowers for a gay wedding. they aren't going to get that. the president has said it is still his goal to repeal the johnson amendment. that will take an act of congress to do that. ralph reid of the faith and freedom coalition is pleased with what he has seen so far. he is asking or saying that this is just the first bite at the apple and that he expects

more to come. >> shannon: i'm hearing from groups who think this is a watered down eo. the first one met a lot of resistance. we'll wait for the details later and later today the house is voting on healthcare. what does the white house have to say as it's playing out this morning? >> this was a long-fought battle for the white house. we understand the vote will occur sometime in the 1:00 hour. it looked like it would be derailed again as of yesterday morning. but fred upton, congressman from michigan and billy long from missouri came over to the white house with a plan. they said they weren't comfortable that people with pre-existing conditions would be able to get access to healthcare under the new plan. they came up with something. we'll put it on the screen that dedicates $8 billion to be given to states when they are creating high-risk pools to help people with pre-existing conditions get health insurance. that was what turned them from

nos to yeses and helped push this thing over the top yesterday. here is what -- i guess we were going to play something for tom price but we're not. if it passes the house, it is expected to, it goes to the senate and there could be substantial changes by the time it gets to the senate. >> that is steve scalise. the one responsible for counting votes and he better have a pretty good calculator today to figure out whether or not they have the votes to go. our apologies but we're awaiting all this and watching that meeting that lasted about an hour, right, shannon, behind closed doors on the hill among republicans seeing whether or not they can go forward. the meeting has just concluded. >> shannon: for context we're talking about how close it could be. obamacare passed by seven votes. it was pretty tight and 34 democrats voted no. so we know these votes are tight no matter which party is in control. >> bill: what that. mike emanuel is working the halls on the hill. what are you picking up this

morning? >> steve scalise told us it will be a good day and predicted the healthcare reform package will pass. steps from where i'm standing on the house floor is the scene of the action this morning. lawmakers are arguing for and against this republican healthcare package and republicans are saying that they are forced to act because obamacare is failing. as you heard from our colleague john roberts the breakthrough was yesterday when fred upton and billy long were on board when they offered $8 billion for folks with pre-existing conditions. a house conservative said that aspect is critical. >> people with pre-existing conditions are going to be fairly pleased with the results of this thing. the obvious thing is that obamacare is unsatisfactory completely. >> republicans also note that more insurers are backing out of obamacare each day including some just yesterday, bill. >> bill: the critics are already out.

democrats aren't happy about this at all to say the least. can they block this now, mike, or not? >> it doesn't appear that way, bill. not in the house of representatives. if you have the majority, you can pass a bill on your own and democrats are expressing frustration. they are ripping republicans saying that they're going forward without an estimate of the price tag from the nonpartisan congressional budget office and democrats are taking aim at this measure saying it will be bad for the american people. >> you managed to pick up a few votes by providing additional $8 billion over five years in an attempt to soften the devastating impact your legislation would have on the millions of americans with pre-existing conditions. >> traffic is picking up in the hallways as lawmakers head onto the house floor. we expect a vote in the house of representatives in three hours or so. >> bill: mike emanuel watching everything coming and going on the hill. >> shannon: if this bill is passed, is it a shot in the arm that republicans need right now?

here is charles krauthammer. >> i think this is a major achievement to find a consensus replacement for a very divided republican caucus and i think it's a cause for celebration among republicans even if, as i think is likely, the senate won't go along with it. >> shannon: karl rove from the white house. deputy chief of staff to george w. bush and fox news contributor. good to see you today. i'll read what the "wall street journal" says. speaker paul ryan has been saying this is it. this is part of our legacy. everybody is watching. here is what the "wall street journal" says. they need to follow through of the pledge on economic growth and government reform and convince americans that a better future awaits. healthcare progress will lift the rest of their program. only a minor exaggeration to think that healthcare reform is a do or die moment for the gop congress. karl, do or die.

>> i totally agree. we saw the energy for tax reform begin to melt away when the republicans could not pass the repeal and replace measure several weeks ago because inside the caucus they understood that a large amount of the opposition to it from the freedom caucus was based not upon the merits of the bill but based upon excuses designed to help bring down the republican leadership and foil the direction the conference wanted to go. now that that group has had pushback from their constituents and from their colleagues, they've now come up with their own face-saving amendment which says if states want to opt out of these provisions they can but they have to prove that they will lower premiums and get higher inclusion into the insurance program and so forth. it was all face saving. if the republicans can get their act together and vote this on, keep the process going, of course this bill won't be the same when it comes out of the senate.

it will go to a conference committee and hopefully improve it there and the house will have another vote on that. but to stop the process as a small element of the republican party in the house did a couple of weeks ago was very troublesome and damaging to the party. >> shannon: those groups think they got important concessions that got their votes on board. they see this how this played out differently. but clearly when you have division within the gop it's hard to address the president's agenda. paul ryan there are calls if he can't get it across the finish line, calls for him to step aside or taken out as speaker. how much pressure is on him between the white house, between all these different factions on the hill? it's a tough job. >> it's a tough job. look, those calls were there when he failed to get it passed several weeks ago when the freedom caucus denied the house the votes to move forward. and i hear you that they got their amount but as i said in

my "wall street journal" column this morning every single argument the leaders of the freedom caucus laid out as their reasons for the objection to the repeal and replace bill, every one of those provisions is still in the bill. what they did is said we have to find some face-saving way to do it. that's the way the process works. i'm not condemning finding a way to say yes, let's not kid ourselves. what they claimed were the fundamental flaws in the repeal and replace bills, those provisions are still there. >> shannon: if it's a boost for them they have a lot of political things to do. another spending showdown fight coming. we'll see how they do today. great to see you. >> bill: also you have this today. the f.b.i. director james comey is back behind closed doors a day after he stuck to his decision on hillary clinton. >> this is terrible, it makes me mildly nauseous to think we might have had some impact on the election but honestly it wouldn't change the decision.

>> bill: so what now? the judge on that next. >> shannon: plus one analyst thinks jimmy kimmel went too far when he was talking have candidly and emotionally about his newborn son's medical condition and why he is calling him an elitist creep. we'll debate that. >> i am not taking a child and dragging them into this debate and then looking at everybody that disagrees with me politically and says you don't like my child. you don't care about my child. that's no way to solve this. this is a very complicated debate. ... let it sink in. shouldn't we say we have the lowest price? nope, badda book. badda boom. have you ever stayed with choice hotels? like at a comfort inn? yep. free waffles, can't go wrong. i like it. promote that guy. get the lowest price on our rooms, guaranteed. when you book direct at choicehotels.com.

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>> bill: okay f.b.i. james comey having a meeting with the house intelligence committee. catherine herridge watching all that back live on the hill. what will happen today? >> good morning. the house intelligence committee is focused on two issues incidental collection and unmasking when the u.s. intelligence agencies go after a foreign target like a russian ambassador and in the process pick up the emails, phone calls and text messages of an american citizen later identified. the house intelligence committee is recalling james comey and admiral mike rogers because they want a full accounting of how many americans were picked up in this way and later identified and more specifically, who made

the request to unmask these americans and who authorized it. there is an extensive paper trail to show who was behind it. this comes as the former national security advisor susan rice, who is at the heart of the unmasking allegations, has told a senate committee in a letter that she is going the pass on the opportunity to testify on monday. that hearing also involves the former deputy attorney general sally yates as well as the director of national intelligence james clapper. rice's attorney told the committee she is going to pass for now. simply because it was too short notice and she didn't feel the request was offered on a bipartisan basis. though she will cooperate with investigators on this issue but only in a non-public classified session, bill. >> bill: there you have it. thank you on the hill. shannon has more now. >> shannon: fox news senior judicial analyst judge andrew napolitano. so many things we could talk about here. let's start with the fact that yesterday the f.b.i. director was very emotional and sort of

passionate and forthcoming and really making a defense for himself on some of these decisions he made along the way. do you think it was too much over sharing? >> well, his job is to keep certain things below the radar screen. one of the things he is supposed to keep out of the public domain is the status of criminal investigations. federal rules of criminal procedure, the justice department internal regulations, the f.b.i. internal regulations say if a person is not going to be charged you don't release all the evidence against them. so when he made his statement on july 5, we don't think hillary clinton should be indicted because no reasonable prosecutor would take the case, that's not a decision for him to make. he is not a prosecutor or the attorney general. the head of the most sophisticated law enforcement investigation entity on the planet. they take their investigation and below the radar screen hand it to the justice department and the justice department decides. once he went public with that

and then went public with the evidence against mrs. clinton it caused all of us the say why did you recommend a non-indictment with the mountain of evidence you've characterized there. he not only lost a lot of credibility but demonstrated very poor judgment as the director of the f.b.i. >> shannon: then months later when they came upon the emails and things involving anthony wiener and huma abiden he said it was a tortured decision days before the election to decide i have to let the congressional committees know it may be reopened again. senator feinstein had this to say about that decision. >> you took an enormous gamble. it was that there was something there that would invalidate her candidacy. and there wasn't. i think most people who have looked at this say yes, it did affect the campaign. why would he do it? >> shannon: he said he was left with two terrible decisions but

felt an obligation to let those congressional committees -- he sent the letter to the committees knowing it would go public. >> that's the same thing as making it public. he should have examined -- he can't control when his people and his agents got the laptop, the anthony wiener laptop that happened to have thousands of mrs. clinton's emails in there. some with classified materials on there. but he can control when he makes it public. all of that should have been below the radar screen. by making it public and ultimately was fruitless as senator feinstein pointed out, he basically took the politically neutral f.b.i. and injected it in the presidential campaign 11 days before america was going to vote. utterly unacceptable for him to do that. >> shannon: he talked about how he was tortured essentially over that and there was a junior attorney in one of these meetings are you worried this will influence the election in favor of donald trump?

no, i can't think of the political ramifications on this. >> all the guidelines and rules say you keep these secrets to yourself. if you are tortured by it, get another job. >> shannon: all right. he is keeping one for now as far as we are. we hope you keep yours and come back with us. >> bill: it is a do or die moment for healthcare reform. pre-existing conditions front and center all week. we'll watch the microphones with more comments from the hill. stay with us. are we getting the entire story of the issue of pre-existing conditions? we'll examine that next. >> it is not full repeal it's the best we think we can get out of the house and willing to support it and keep working.

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works for american people and that when issues come up, we address them effectively. i believe we've done that now with changes to the legislation that we'll be bringing forward when it comes to the issue of making sure people with pre-existing coverage have the care and support they need. >> bill: that could be a very significant point from the white house yesterday. one of the republican hold-outs worried about coverage for pre-existing conditions. now there is a deal that he and other republican fence sitters can support. a big one, too, $8 billion worth. jonah goldberg fox news contributor. good morning to you. i heard you late yesterday describe these pre-existing conditions in some states suggesting we don't have the whole story. is it on the books or is it not? if you change this law are these people protected or are they not? >> look, the simple fact is the pre-existing condition issue is an important issue. there are real people who have concerns about it.

but starting with obama's push to get obamacare passed, democrats have height and inflated numbers way beyond the reality. you had some democrats saying 129 million americans would be denied insurance if they could deny people with pre-existing conditions. it's more like 1 or 2 or 3% of the market out there depending how you do these things. a lot of states have had on the books for years prior to obamacare had regulations preventing discrimination against people with pre-existing conditions. they tend to be in the sort of bluish places where republican moderates are coming from and so there is a lot of hyperbole and exaggeration. no state will ask for a waiver to create a thunder dome like insurance market in their state and no one has explained how the hhs is going to grant that waiver. it is a way to create

sympathetic poster boys for an issue that is not central when it used to be the concern was how can we get the most people, the most affordable coverage possible? and that argument seems to have disappeared. >> bill: this is important stuff. and you have to read deep to understand it. we found this at abc news earlier today. a producer there, this is a paragraph as it reads. under the current bill states could seek a waiver so insurance companies could discriminate against such people, rate them separately and charge them much higher premiums. is that a -- >> states could also petition for a waiver where we eat the irish. it doesn't mean they'll get one. it doesn't mean that it would make smart business sense for the insurance companies to play those games. it doesn't make sense politically that insurance

commissioners and governors or state legislators would want to do that. at the same time, there are other subsidies that help poor people pay for insurance to get over these hubs. i have no problem with being concerned about people with pre-existing conditions. but there are a lot of safeguards in the system about it. what i object to is this sort of demagoguery you have where people make it sounds like millions of people will be thrown to the wolves if this bill passes when it still has to get through the senate and then back to the house. >> bill: we asked tom price about that 45 minutes ago. we don't know. flip the argument around for a moment, jonah. how big of a gamble is this for republicans moving forward? >> look, this is a big gamble, a bit of a hail mary. they're throwing it to the senate. a lot of republicans in the senate and house kind of hope it dice -- dias ---dies in

the senate. they're counting on a lot of work by tom price on the regulatory front that's not in the legislation. at the same time, there are a lot of people who feel that obamacare -- i think they're largely right -- really is dying on the vine. premiums are going up through the roof around the country and they have to do something. they think this is the best approach they can get passed and they might be actually right. >> bill: we'll see as it goes, right? thank you so much. we love the irish, by the way. we like to drink the beer, not eat the people. jonah goldberg in d.c. >> shannon: it's that kind of day. new york city in full lockdown mode as officials get ready for president trump's visit to his hometown. an exclusive look at how the nypd is keeping him safe and jimmy kimmel facing act situations of using his newborn son as a political prop. our panel will debate that. >> everybody no matter what your position on obamacare is, everybody wants to find a way

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>> bill: 10:31 in new york. awaiting the president moments from now signing a presidential order on religious liberty coming on the national day of prayer which would give churches and religious organizations more freedom to engage in political activity and not lose their tax exempt status. so that's what the eo says and stay with us for live coverage on that moments away. >> shannon: in the meantime we're waiting for a vote on the bill to replace obamacare. republicans have been promising to get rid of obamacare for seven years. today they get their chance. looks like congressman collins is fired up there. all right. this as the health crisis for rural americans continues to get worse.

we have more on that part of the story. i understand you spoke to a lot of folks and they aren't holding their breath on changes that are coming into their coverage. why not? >> no, they're not. shannon. as they put it to us, what good does an insurance card do if there aren't any doctors in town? this is the situation in much of rural america we're finding. a prime example of park county, colorado. about a 90-minute drive from denver with a population of 16,000 has not had a physician for the past 2 1/2 years. the community funded state-of-the-art medical facility they have has sat empty in that time even with the offer of the bargain lease price of $1 a year. the national rural healthcare association says park county is not rare and seeing declining life expect tan sees in small towns. a higher percentage of people age 65 and older and a long drive from medical care. folks end up driving up to two

hours for a doctor here. a hindrance for folks like this army veteran and his wife. >> he could get his care right here in our town if we had a place for him to get it instead of driving 60 miles one way when he has severe neuropathy in his feet. i can't drive this week. i had surgery. >> things are so bad in park county, shannon, that they have two ambulances in town that are overwhelmed because they're constantly called for things that are non-emergencies. things you see a doctor for like a sprained ankle and things like that. >> shannon: how did we get to this point and what can be done to resolve it? >> the fact is small towns are not attractive to medical students who are just graduating and heading out to be doctors. and that makes it really hard especially when you consider that the average immediate school debt upon graduation is close to $190,000 according to the association of american medical colleges. the nrha says the whole way in

which med school is approached needs to change and they want it to change, shannon, in the way they say what they need to do is recruit people from the rural areas and get them trained so they can then place them back in towns they're used to and a lifestyle they're used to around people with with an income they're comfortable with. >> shannon: thank you so much. >> if your baby is going to die, it doesn't have to. it shouldn't matter how much money you make. i think that's something whether you are a republican or democrat or something else, we all agree on that, right? we do. >> bill: there is still a lot of reaction to that monologue from jimmy kimmel the other night talking about his newborn son's medical emergency. charty hurt is making the case that he was using his son as a political prop. >> this is very harsh even what

this family went through. >> so is taking your ill child and inserting that child into the public arena and using them as a prop to push partisan political politics. i find that could be disgusting personally. >> bill: kristen soltis anderson, leslie marshall has had a similar experience. good morning to both of you. i think it's very important to point out the sensitive nature of this story because you are left feeling as if there are politicians or even doctors who would not care for an infant in the state that jimmy kimmel's son billy was in. how do you see this and the criticism coming from charlie hurt? >> i don't have any criticism for jimmy kimmel for a father

who has gone through torture over the last few weeks wanting to advocate to make sure no parent has to go through anything even worse. i actually took away from kimmel's comments something far less partisan. he says in that clip that you just showed that he thinks republicans and democrats can agree that we don't want any children to face this issue. further in the monologue he talks about how the budget just passed if congress increased funding for the national institutes of health. i didn't take from it nearly as much of a partisan message as i think charlie hurt did. i would probably disagree with -- i would disagree with democrats and jimmy kimmel on the best way to make sure a child can receive that care and have a healthcare system that provides top notch care. but i did not take away from that that jimmy kimmel was using his child as a prop in any way. >> bill: leslie, how did you hear it the other night? >> i would agree with kristen on that. what i heard was an individual who was putting aside who he

was as a comedian and that he was a father who was lucky to have a happy ending. as you know, i did not. i had a child that died from a terminal illness in 2004. my son who would have been a pre-existing condition individual and at that time in 2004 would not have been able to obtain insurance. when the audience clapped it was after the remark that whether you are democrat or republican that's something we can both agree on and it's something that the polls show america agrees on and quite frankly why it's been so difficult for a repeal and replace by republicans of obamacare because there have been a lot of moderate republicans even today as we speak who are very concerned about their constituents who may have a pre-existing condition or like me, i was not so fortunate with my son or jimmy kimmel's son who were born with a pre-existing condition. it wasn't divisive or partisan and he is a comedian. he wasn't going to sway anybody in the audience or watching

that television that program either way. >> bill: i want to be sensitive to your personal situation, too. this debate will continue. there is other late night news and there is colbert. there was no apologies. he didn't take anything back. here is what was wrote. liberals support political correctness and censorship loving manifestations. when it comes into a tacking the president, they dive into the -- what colbert said last night, kristin is that the president was insulting a friend of his, that friend was john dickerson, a colleague who apparently had some incredible access to the president over the weekend. flew on board air force one, an interview and into the oval office and at that point you

see president trump ending the interview on the topic of wiretapping. is he being honest with his audience and the way he evaluates his reaction to his quote, unquote friend given the amount of time that he was given this past weekend? >> it would actually surprise me if the criticism of colbert had only come from the right i doubt that you would have seen any kind of apology. i think the reason why he came out and half apologized for what he said is because he was getting criticism on the left for saying things that were deemed to be homophobic that were deemed to be politically incorrect by folks from the side of the political spectrum he is more interested if catering to. i don't think he should be fired. >> bill: his ratings are going higher. >> he had this very popular show on cable news where he was very, very brutal about

republicans but made people laugh. now he is on a network with a much bigger stage. can he hang onto the audience while being extremely partisan? >> bill: leslie if you reverse the roles and the criticism was at barack obama do you think conservatives could get away with it? >> absolutely. before i came on this morning. >> bill: to say something like that on network television in prime time? we haven't gone there before. >> well, i would agree that i think they call it in comedy going blue when you go a bit too far. but again, one of the things that's great about our nation and there are so many is our freedom of speech, our freedom to take that remote and click off or change a channel and we do have that freedom. so does the network to keep stephen or let him go. i think presidents -- i know presidents have been made fun of. i would agree it was more the homophobic remark as opposed to saying something negative about the president. we should honor and respect the office. not always the person in it. >> bill: comedy stage on

saturday night say what you want. but on network television? some believe we've crossed a new line. we'll see if that's the case. leslie, thank you for your time, kristen, thanks to you as well. >> shannon: we're now waiting for president trump set to sign an executive order to protect religious freedom. critics call it legalized discrimination. we'll talk to a key conservative voice backing the president's agenda. >> bill: two-alarm fire. one of the most vulnerable places, a day-care center. it went up in flames. how the children inside got out. >> all of a sudden it grew. it was bad. that's not going to help. oh, man, that's scary. shoulders don't just carry pads.

they carry your fans passions, hopes, and dreams. and maybe, a chance at greatness because shoulders were made for greatness. not dandruff. >> shannon: fox news alert on this national day of prayer. president trump 15 minutes away we understand from signing a religious liberty executive order in keeping with the promise he made during the

campaign. leonard leo has been an advisor to the president on many things including the supreme court pick. there was an initial attempt at this. a lot of pushback. people who were very upset about what they saw as possible discriminatory things. the new order rolls out today. i'm hearing from both sides what aren't exactly happy with what they're getting but you say it's a first step. >> it's a first step. the president is standing for freedom of religion and that it is what defines us as a people and nation. i think that's an important first step because it sends a signal to his administration, the executive branch these conscience rights issues are things they have to bear in mind and broad authority to the attorney general and hhs and cabinet officials. >> shannon: so i want to read from both sides here. we had a number of senators who were pushing the president to

do something on this. an executive order requiring federal government agencies to protect the right to religious freedom is necessary and directing agencies to adhere to existing federal laws protecting religions freedom is sound policy. the free exercise of religion rings hollow if individuals don't have the ability to live out their faith without fear of repercussion from the government. the president of the human rights campaign said this. donald trump's unconstitutional action is no more than a license to discriminate that puts millions of lgptq people at risk. >> there has to be mutual respect between people of faith and the lbgt community. the attorney general will have an opportunity to evaluate lots of areas where freedom of religion and lgbtq interests might intersect or clash. one area is the protection of

the little sisters of the poor who had religious objections having to carry contraception coverage and there will be other examples like that. over time i think hopefully this order will create a conversation between those two communities and hopefully they'll reach some consensus on some areas where there does need to be conscious rights attention. >> shannon: the aclu says they're going to court on this. we've seen how successful people have been in challenging other executive orders. how is the legal showdown on this playing out? >> it's fashionable these days to be hostile toward religion. we'll see court challenges. at the same time religion is the first freedom in our country. it always has been. this order reflects a longstanding tradition in america that we don't force people to do things that are at odds with their rights of conscious. >> shannon: aclu's arguments from been for all kinds of freedoms. at least in this context,

though, they're immediately saying without having seen the order if it lives up to what they think they'll get they'll oppose it. >> they probably will but religious freedom is another form of freedom of expression. it is wrong to require the nuns or other people of religious conscious that morally they can't do. that's what this order is all about. there is a long way to go. the attorney general has a lot of activity he has to engage in to enforce religious freedom protections elsewhere and hopefully there will be a civil conversation about how to get it done. >> shannon: we would like civil conversations on all different topics. these days those are harder to come by. we'll watch and see what we get in the next 15 minutes or so. always good to see you. >> bill: jon scott is coming up on "happening now." good morning to you. >> we have two big stories taking place during "happening now" today. president trump set to sign that new executive order today at 11:00 on this national day of prayer. then that key vote on the

republican healthcare plan comes in the house 1:00 p.m. eastern time during our second hour is third time the charm? if it makes it through the house, what happens when it gets to the senate? senator john thune is here and we'll ask him about the healthcare bill and the chances in that body ahead on "happening now." >> bill: republican leadership feeling good about the healthcare vote. we're told jason chaffetz is on the hill. he is recovering from foot surgery and republicans will need every vote out there to pass it. we're back live on the hill watching this and more next.

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>> bill: for the first time since he has been sworn in president trump returns to his hometown this afternoon. fox news has an exclusive behind the scenes look at the

massive security efforts here in new york city. from trump tower mid town manhattan here is julie on that. >> unmatched by any police department in the entire world, the new york's finest is going to be facing one of the toughest feats and for the first time in its 100-year history protecting the u.s. president that calls new york city home. what's most fascinating about the heightened security is the breakdown of the nypd's active force of 36,000 officers. a team of 1500 men and women devoted to one job, counter terrorism. with the president's first visit since getting elected the job becomes that much more critical behind the scenes to not only protect the president, but to protect this great city and its millions of residents. now, it's a job that takes intense training and many layers within the nypd. >> whether it's the counter

terrorism bureau, which is the bomb squad, the radiation detections, the network of camera systems, the explosive detection dogs, the biohazard detection devices or the intelligence bureau, the investigations, sources of information. >> layer one the security armed with long guns visible to the public guarding trump tower together with the secret service every security point is made up of a counter terrorism critical response command teams or crc. layer two, the not so visible nypd sniper team. we got an exclusive behind the scenes look at how they train to hit a target 200 yards out. the length of two football fields. and then layer three, an eye in the sky. the emergency service unit or esu. not only has a plan b, c, a, b, c in place if things get bad there is a plan d.

these are ready to respond to the unpredictable requiring force officers can deploy from a helicopter and rappel onto any platform in the city anywhere. there is a cost to this but good news from congress, they have approved a budget deal that will reimburse the tens of millions of dollars the city has already spent to protect the president of the united states. >> bill: big deal later today. shannon. >> shannon: a big boost for religious freedom. president trump signing an executive order easing restrictions on religious liberty. we'll take you live to the rose garden as it happens. +++

>> bill: nancy pelosi, house minority leader was talking during the commercial break. she is describing republicans as being in a lose-lose situation. they've talked about repealing and replacing and they don't believe the replacement will help americans. she called at yesterday a moral monstrosity. this could be just the beginning of this debate as we look forward to a potential for a

vote on health care this afternoon. it's on the schedule, we'll see if it happens. >> shannon: she said it would be tattooed to the gop's warhead. love it or not, we'll find out. >> bill: we have to run, have a great day everybody. see you on friday. >> jon: effects news alert. a big day in washington. we are waiting on two events that could affect millions of americans. the replacement of obamacare and a signing ceremony on religious liberty. welcome to "happening now," i'm jon scott. >> melissa: i melissa francis. president trump plans to sign an executive order allowing tax-exempt religious organizations to take political positions. house republicans get ready to vote on a republican plan to repeal and replace obamacare. vice president pence told antiabortion activists that it's